Search:story of the year

‘Time Flies… 1994 – 2009’ is Oasis’ complete singles collection.

Now available with remastered audio, this quadruple vinyl deluxe box set is released to celebrate its 15th anniversary and ahead of the band’s eagerly anticipated Oasis Live ’25 tour, and includes a limited edition print. Released on Big Brother Recordings, the tracklisting spans fifteen years across Oasis’ staggering seven consecutive number one albums. 1994’s ‘Definitely Maybe’, 1995’s ‘(What’s The Story) Morning Glory?’, 1997’s ‘Be Here Now’, 2000’s ‘Standing On The Shoulder Of Giants’, 2002’s ‘Heathen Chemistry’, 2005’s ‘Don’t Believe The Truth’ and ‘Dig Out Your Soul’ from 2008. Starting with their irresistible debut, ‘Supersonic’ and finishing with their last release ‘Falling Down’, this compilation features all 26 singles - including ‘Whatever’ and ‘Lord Don't Slow Me Down’, which have previously never appeared on an Oasis studio album.

REPRESS

New Delhi-based Peter Cat Recording Co. will release their debut album, ‘Bismillah’ on June 14, 2019 via French independent label Panache Records. Debut UK live shows are soon also to be announced by the band.


Peter Cat Recording Co. could almost have a question mark on the end of its name. Not least as founder & frontman Suryakant Sawhney refuses to explain where that name really comes from or what it means (perhaps a reference to the Tokyo jazz club owned by Haruki Murakami), but also since the very existence of the band itself raises a raft of questions. When was the last time we fell for an indie rock band for the right reasons? Not because the band in question nostalgically imitate a perceived ‘golden age’ but because they innately embody the fundamentals of such music: fantasy, sincerity and the freedom to make music without rules or career aspi- rations. And when was the last time this kind of band sounded like Sinatra, Barry White, the sweetest doo-wop, humid fanfares and a psychedelic wedding band, all at once? And all of this coming from India?
In truth, the story of Peter Cat Recording Co. was written within the triangle of San Francisco, Delhi and Paris.
In the first of these cities, Sawhney (a native of Delhi) pitched up to study film-making. More distracted by the city’s peaking live scene of the early noughties, this is where he started to make music and to sketch out an idea for the band.“
The people I lived with supported my idea of writing music, they introduced me to great mu-
sic. There used to be a great garage scene in San Francisco, like The Oh Sees also Ty Seagall, Mikal Conin, all those bands. This is a world I had never seen in my entire life. A big inspiration from San Francisco was that you could record yourself. You don’t need to be in a studio and spend a lot of money to make an album. You can do it”.


At the end of the 2000s, Suryakant returned home to New Delhi, and started his band for real, more or less the same band that plays today. “I wasn’t so concerned about will we be performing, will we be the greatest band, will we be trendy. I just wanted to make something that was consequential and important for us, I think. Something which would last, something people could listen to and be like « this is life changing ». It was for the sake of beauty”.


For the first few years and in India alone, this is exactly what Peter Cat Recording Co. did, in total indifference to the rest of the world. This was until young Parisian label Panache stumbled across the band online via Vice’s THUMP subsidiary, stupefied by the band’s cosmic video for seven-minutes-and-counting track, ‘Love De- mons’. And so in spring of 2018, ‘Portrait Of A Time: 2010-2016’ was released on Panache - making the first international release from Peter Cat Recording Co., bizarrely enough, an anthology of re-mastered, hidden gems from the band’s ramshackle back catalogue, previously recorded in Suryakant’s own living room. With Peter Cat’s off-kilter charm hitherto unheard of beyond the fringes of India, the release provided a gateway op-
Whilst the title track found its way onto Tracks Of The Year lists at the Guardian & NME, it was tricky for new PCRC enthusiasts to get a firm grip on the startling push/pull between the immediate, uncanny music this release gathered, and the cultural backdrop of New Delhi at which it was so startlingly at odds.


Opportunity for a wider fanbase to fall in love with their cloud-like, drunken songs for the first time.
If discovering your favourite new band via a ‘Best Of’ feels a curious premise, then ‘Bismillah’ does more than hint towards the promise of Peter Cat Recording Co’s future. Blending gypsy jazz, psychedelic cabaret, space disco, bossa supernova, Bollywood and uneasy listening with kaleidoscopic ease, in many senses, the band’s knack hasn’t altered. Always different, paradoxical, unpredictable yet somehow familiar. The new album opens to the strains of bird chatter, the whisper of a city’s soundscape and the first few notes from an instrument which seem to be calling us to the departure lounge, a fore-shadow of the flight ‘Bismillah’ launches its listener
on. Suryakant sings with the detached, rueful elegance of Sinatra marooned on a desert island, whilst his band create small space-time capsules which navigate their way through genres and eras – including the future – and between nostalgia and eccentricity.


Peter Cat recently trailed ‘Bismillah’ with the release of ‘Floated By’, an appositely titled musing on failure & missed opportunities, punctuated by the fulsome brass section which weaves through so much of the album.


The languid, blue quality to the track is offset by the attendant music video, created with footage shot, implau- sibly enough, at Suryakant’s own marriage ceremony (needless to say, the wedding band hired for the day was of course, Peter Cat Recording Co.) Sawhney dryly notes; “Hopefully it’s not a many-a-times-in-a-lifetime event. You can’t fake that set, those people actually having a good time, being really emotional and intense.” ‘Bismillah’’s colour-drenched album cover also captures Suryakant’s father-in-law making his wedding toast on that same day - a nod back towards the cover of ‘Portrait Of A Time’, itself a black & white image taken at the wedding ceremony of Suryakant’s own father.


A stumbling but gracious collection of songs rooted in a kind of drunken soul music, the melancholy nature of some of the songs on ‘Bismillah’ renders them almost liquid, before they develop into more dance-like shapes. Suryakant’s rangy voice swoops from the falsetto glide of ‘I’m This’ to the beat-up baritone blown along by the warm breeze of ‘Soulless Friends’. The elliptical structure of album opener ‘Where The Money Flows’ also al-
lows for the use of brief bursts of autotune effect on his vocal without feeling incongruous, whilst the desultory lyrics of ‘Heera’ (a Hindi word for diamond) - sharing something with the Morricone school of grand storytelling - have an emotional weight that would impress even coming from a native English speaker. Perhaps the most gleefully unpredictable moment on ‘Bismillah’ comes with the illusory, vocal loops on the intro to ‘Memory Box’, errupting into 8 exhilarating minutes worth of unbridled, string-backed disco joy. A cat might have nine lives, but on ‘Bismillah’ and beyond, Peter Cat Recording Co. are hinting towards an un- knowable multitude of dimensions. Throw them all together, and it equates less to a listening experience and more to an out-of-body experience.


Peter Cat Recording Co. are: Suryakant Sawhney (vocals/guitar/organ), Dhruv Bhola (bass), Kartik S Pillai (organ/guitar/electronics), Rohit Gupta (horns), Karan Singh (drums)

Mr Bongo proudly presents Ritmo Italiano ‘Unspoken Sounds of Italian Tamburo’ a captivating compilation of percussive-driven, Italian gems curated by Sardinian multi-instrumentalist, percussionist and producer, Gabriele Poso. A journey into the heart of Italian musical history, it celebrates Italy’s rich rhythmic traditions, showcasing a selection of genre-traversing, Italian treasures from the ‘60s to the early ‘90s. Honouring the timeless rhythms of Italian percussion masters, alongside a brand-new exclusive composition by Gabriele, ‘Ritmo Italiano’ shines a light on the universal, primal language of the drum.

A connection sparked from an early age; percussion has always deeply resonated with Gabriele. It led to years of studying percussion traditions across Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Brazil, crafting his own songwriting skills in the process. An acclaimed producer and compiler, his releases on Yoruba Records, BBE and Soundway Records have garnered global support. Yet a growing need to rediscover the essence of his country’s cultural heritage laid the foundations for this new compilation.

In Gabriele’s own words, “Italy has always been a crossroads of civilizations, with influences from the Mediterranean, North Africa, the Middle East, and Europe converging over centuries. Ports like Naples, Genoa, and Venice played a crucial role as gateways for musical exchange, a melting pot of sounds and cultures brought by sailors, merchants and travellers. These influences blended with Italy’s own folk and religious traditions, creating Italy’s unique and emotionally resonant rhythms.”

Across the 12 absorbing tracks, there’s jazz influences, Italian library music aesthetics and experimental beats mixing with Afro-Cuban and Mediterranean rhythms. It’s a broad selection anchored by the drums. The synth-heavy, ‘80s jazz funk flavours of Gegè Munari's ‘Police Man’, sit side-by-side with the samba-infused ‘Napulitano D' 'O Brasil’ by Don Marino Barreto Jr. Tribal, earthly energy radiates from Naco’s ‘Volando Con Milton’, with Tullio De Piscopo serving up cosmic disco brilliance, and blistering jazz funk mastery coming courtesy of Agostino Marangolo. Taking the name of the compilation, a new original track by Gabriele, ‘Ritmo Italiano’, blends traditional rhythms with contemporary energy, Afro-Latin influences with Italian jazz essence. Recorded live in one take, it captures a raw, unfiltered vibe.

“Each track tells a story, connecting the past with the present, and highlighting the deep-rooted traditions that shape Italy’s rhythms. The collection also offers a glimpse into the diversity of Italian music with a variety of styles from the organic, earthy beats to the more experimental and modern takes on traditional rhythms. It’s a reflection of how these rhythms have not only shaped Italian culture but also influenced global music.”

A1 - 1NC1N - No Man’s Land (System Check Interlude) : It’s a vinyl exclusive part of the release.


After 14 years since the founding of Zinloos Geluid Soundsystem, the very first release on vinyl is finally here. Expect various styles, each with its own story, just like the raves of Zinloos Geluid.

In addition, you will receive an EXCLUSIVE sound system check, only available on vinyl, to make your speakers sound great at your own rave or free tekno!

"Chasing the funky symphonies that filled my head and my dreams..."

December 25th, 2023 - an Instagram post. Stimulator Jones shared half a dozen FIRE tracks from his beat tape archive. We were immediately drawn to the rough hewn boom bap.

"I'd release that", Rob commented.

Hours of material was shared and the result is this: Cool Green Trees (1999-2005). A collection of beats and loops Stimulator Jones created between the ages of 14-20 at home in his basement, bedroom and computer room in Roanoke, Virginia.

You will not believe the profound soulful genius contained within these naive schoolboy melodies.

December 25th, 1998 - 25 years ago to the day and his much-coveted Yamaha SU10 sampler was finally bestowed upon young Stimmy AKA Sam Lunsford: "I immediately hooked up a CD Walkman to the input jack and looped the beginning two bars of Grover Washington Jr.'s "Mercy Mercy Me". I don't know what exactly was so thrilling about hearing two measures of music repeating over and over but it was so infectious and hypnotizing and enthralling to me. I'll never forget that ecstatic rush of making my first loop - an uncontrollable, gleeful smile plastered all over my face." When you hear the pocket breakbeat symphonies featured here on Cool Green Trees, you'll feel the same sense of frisson.

In the wake of his Stones Throw breakthrough - Exotic Worlds & Master Treasures - Stimulator Jones was pegged by many as a 90s throwback artist. However, he literally IS a 90s artist. He's been recording music most of his life and he's now 40. He created the bulk of Cool Green Trees as a teenager. Everything before 2004 was recorded when Sam was still in school. He was in 8th grade when he made the 1999 tracks - he didn't even have his learner's permit. This album is a snapshot of a young man in a simpler time. Things were still mysterious back then and he was flying blind, relying on his ears and having to figure things out for himself: "I had no road map for becoming a beatmaker. I have been collecting music since I was a kid, I am a lifelong digger and seeker of cool and interesting sounds. I was there in the golden age of Hip Hop, and while I may have been a suburban white kid in Roanoke, Virginia, I was tuned in and I bought so many classic albums when they came out. I was attracted to Hip Hop because of the musical and poetic quality. I was hypnotized by the rhythms, partially because I was a drummer. I didn't brag about collecting my breakbeat records or making beats - it was something I did in isolation. It wasn't something I generally wanted to bring attention to and it didn't really score me any cool points. I certainly wasn't flexing on social media about it."

Hell, he can do that now!

Opener "Pharoah Jones" was inspired by Yesterday's New Quintet and Madlib's ability to capture that classic 70s sound whilst playing all the instruments. Sam created this one stoned afternoon by laying down a 2 bar loop and a shaker loop on his Yamaha SU700 sampler. He hung a microphone from the ceiling and played his Yamaha Stage Custom drum kit over the top before adding ender Rhodes and playing his dad's Selmer tenor sax through an Electro Harmonix Memory Man echo pedal. Yes! Up next, "Ghost Gospel" utilises a dope loop from a gospel record and adds some soul-funk drums overtop, whilst working that filter knob. Says Sam: "The loop reminded me of something Ghostface would rap over. The sample was in 3/4 waltz time but I flipped it for a 4/4 groove, a technique I picked up from RZA. "Ill Feeling" uses sped-up pieces from a dusty old funk record and putting them over a classic NOLA drum loop; gain chopping up a slow, bluesy 3/4 time signature and bending it to a 4/4 groove. Classy shit. "Capital Punishment" features drums tapped in live, inspired by MF Doom's Special Herbs series. "Do Not Adjust" consists loops found on a compilation of 70s French music at Happy's Flea Market, a classic Roanoke digging spot.

The sublime, evocative title track, "Cool Green Trees" was created when Sam was still living at home. He dumped samples off his SU10 into the family desktop and arranged them in a demo version of Pro Tools: "This track was sort of my ode to the DJ Shadow style of sample based production. Super spacey, slow, and moody. The heavily filtered drums were inspired by Alec Empire's 'Low on Ice' album. I later added some scratches and sounds from a Spider Man storybook record." "Chill Scratch" snags the final bit of a bossanova record and pairs it with a drum loop before adding experimental scratching run through an Electro Harmonix Memory Man echo pedal. "Poisonous Fumes" was made using a sampler, mixer and a turntable; a kind of mixtape beat collage with added scratches and sounds from various records. Using dialogue from superhero records was a nod to Madlib. "Welcome Aboard The Starship" is dark, downtempo trip-hop with a spooky bent. Sam paired a slow, hard drum loop with a guitar sample grabbed off a psychedelic rock record. To finish, he added various backwards sounds and weird atmospheric effects and a little scratching. Swoon.

Side B opens with "Keep On Runnin", made on a borrowed Roland SP202 sampler. Having always loved the sound of the Lo-Fi filter on those machines, reminiscent of the Emu SP1200, Sam always imagined Del or another of the Hieroglyphics crew rapping over this beat. You can certainly hear why. "Sounds Impossible" sees Sam experimenting with layering multiple kick samples at different volumes to create patterns similar to those heard by Showbiz and Lord Finesse during their God-level 1995 period. "Painted Faces" was made by chopping up a REDACTED record which he had gotten from Happy's Flea Market and paired it with a REDACTED drum loop. By the time Sam recorded "The Knew Style", he had acquired a shitty old 1960s portable turntable off eBay. It didn't function properly when he bought it but his brother opened it up, cleaned it out and got it working: "I remember he told me that there was a bunch of sand inside of it when he opened it up, as if its previous owner had taken it to the beach. I would take that turntable on my Happy's Flea Market digs so I could preview records...that's how I found this loop."

"Chicken Wing Blues Sauce" loops up a classic blues joint and pairs it with some REDACTED drums. A bit of filtering and arranging et voilà! "Kool Breeze", from 1999, is one of Sam's oldest surviving beats, as is "Sexx Bullets". The Roots sampled the same record, leaving Sam frustrated yet vindicated. "Soul Child" was an early SU10 creation, looping a dusty old Soul Children 45 and pairing it with 70s rock drum loops to great effect. "Take Off Runnin" was another loop found digging with a portable turntable. Paired with some boom bap drums it makes for a hypnotic head-nod groove. "Centurian" was intended to be a little beat interlude a la Pete Rock. The sample is from a sun-dappled soft-psych record and it's paired with a Robin Trower drum loop that just happens to fit perfectly. Sometimes you slap things together kind of haphazardly and magic happens. "Bozack" was the first beat Sam made using Pro Tools, his first foray into using chopped sounds instead of loops, an exciting new world. "Church" is beat interlude using a Phil Upchurch loop with the "Long Red" drums - a favourite break of Dilla et al. Sam was really on a tear in late 2004, probably because he was unemployed and phoneless and able to just make beats all day. He made "Splash One" on a borrowed Yamaha SU700 and again was experimenting with tapping the drums in live with his fingers, instead of using a loop or sequenced pattern. Channeling 9th Wonder, Sam used a water splash sound effect from a Batman record as a percussive element, hence the title (also a 13th Floor Elevators reference). The main loop is a backwards portion of one of his favourite Roy Ayers songs.

"Hank" is another fun little beat interlude thing, created on a borrowed Roland SP202 sampler with the fantastic Lo-Fi effect that resembled the Emu SP1200 at a fraction of the price. "73 goatee", from 99, is another of his oldest surviving beats, created in his bedroom with his Yamaha SU10 and his brother's Vestax MR-300 4-track recorder: "This one will always feel special. I can remember having a feeling all the way back then on the night that I created it that this was a solid beat with a catchy loop. There was something in the Fender Rhodes melody that resonated with me emotionally, and I had never heard a producer sample that portion before. I felt like I had found my own unique sound, my own unique loop. It came from an Ahmad Jamal '73. I actually even recorded myself rapping and scratching over this beat way back then, I still have that version in all its imperfect sloppy glory."

Sam explains just how much these tracks mean to him: "They all have immense historical and sentimental value and I'm proud of them. These beats come from an innocent, simple time when I was just figuring out how to craft these sounds. They're something very personal to me. They are the initial part of a journey that I really was taking *alone*. There was no YouTube. I couldn't Google shit. I didn't even know any other beatmakers, producers or DJs in my town that could teach me anything. It was always just me, alone, in a room with some equipment - chasing the funky symphonies that filled my head and my dreams. What I was doing wasn't cool. Most of my peers thought I was a weirdo and couldn't care less. Creating these sounds was an anti-social endeavour. In a sense, I felt like it was me against the world, and all I had to instruct and assist me were the recordings produced by my heroes - RZA, DJ Premier, Erick Sermon, Beatminerz, Showbiz, Diamond D, Beatnuts, Prince Paul, The Bomb Squad, Pete Rock, Q-Tip, E-Swift, Mista Lawnge, DJ Shadow, Cut Chemist, Peanut Butter Wolf, El-P and so many more...I dedicate this collection to them, and to my older brother Joe who has always been a musical and technical guiding light for me.

This was a time before every kid was a self-described producer and beatmaker, before everyone had a DAW, before Kanye and "chipmunk soul", before Red Bull beat battles, before there was any social media beyond chat rooms and AOL Instant Messenger, before Soundcloud, before SP-404 mania, before lo-fi beats to study to, before Splice, before targeted ads for MIDI chord packs, etc. In 99 when I told people that I had a sampler and made beats I was mostly met with bewildered confusion and indifference. Kids and adults alike would wonder why I got this weird machine for Christmas instead of something worthwhile like a Playstation or a mountain bike or even a guitar for that matter because at least that could be used to make "real music". Back then, sampling was still not widely respected as an art form - it was seen as lazy, talentless and unoriginal at best and outright criminal theft at worst. I had gotten respect for playing drums and guitar and things of that nature but this was a step in the wrong direction in the eyes of many."

The cover photo is a picture of Sam standing on his back porch in the latter part of 1998, just before he got his first sampler. He was 13 years old, in 8th grade. His dad took the picture with his 35mm film camera: "I actually wanted to be pointing my dad's .22 pistol at the camera lens but he wouldn't let me. He gave me an old walking cane to use instead. The Tommy Hilfiger puffer jacket came from the lost and found at William Fleming High School where my mom worked as a secretary. I was thrilled when she brought it home because we never spent money on expensive name brand clothing like that - we were for the most part strictly a sale rack, bargain bin, thrift store, yard sale, flea market kind of family when it came to clothes. My watch is some cheap off-brand fake gold department store watch." Mastering for this vinyl edition was overseen by Be With regular Simon Francis and it was cut by the esteemed Cicely Balston at Abbey Road Studios to be pressed in the Netherlands by Record Industry.

Embark on a sonic journey through Rod Stewart's unparalleled career with this comprehensive compilation. Ultimate Hits gathers his most beloved songs, from the heartfelt storytelling early classics like "Handbags and Gladrags" and "Maggie May" to the irresistible hooks of chart-topping anthems such as "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?" and "Forever Young". More than just a collection of hits, this meticulously curated set spans decades, revealing the evolution of a true musical icon's enduring talent and versatility. This is the ultimate Rod Stewart experience for both longtime fans and new listeners, a testament to his lasting impact on music.

Rod Stewart’s Ultimate Hits will be a new career-spanning greatest hits collection. The release will be the first to include songs ranging from his 1971 hit, “Maggie May” to selections from 2024’s UK #1,“Swing Fever,” with key touchstone hits along the way - celebrating 6 #1 UK singles and a top 5 hit worldwide in consecutive decades. Rod will participate in several major milestone events this year, including his performance in the Teatime Legend Slot at Glastonbury Festival on Sunday, June 29th.

Décima Víctima were a Spanish-(Swedish) band that, during their short-lived career between 1981 and 1984, developed a very personal sound reminiscent of Joy Division, The Cure and other British post-punk bands. Although commercial success evaded them, rarely has any Spanish band achieved such a high degree of quality and coherence in their music and personality. This LP contains previously unreleased tracks recorded by Décima Víctima in November 1983, one month before their last concert. Seven of these songs feature different lyrics to the ones later recorded for the "Un hombre solo" album. This is the way they performed them that night on the Rock-Ola stage, so this record can be considered, to some extent, an approximation to their last show and to their powerful live sound. After many years a rehearsal session that DV had recorded on an old cassette tape has been resurfaced. It had originally been laid down on a four-track recorder but unfortunately the tape got lost.The story of these tracks goes back to the last weekend of October 1983, when DV went to record at friend Paco Trinidad's family home in the mountains north of Madrid. Paco recorded the latest songs on a four-track tape recorder at the house. It was done live, except for extra takes of clarinet and some guitar details. The garage sound, as the name suggests, was achieved in the garage and an adjoining room where the drums were played. The sleeve design is a photo montage of our performance for the Maqueta de Oro (Gold Demo) at the Diario Pop awards in March 1983, plus another photo of the band in the dressing room at Rock-Ola after playing our last gig. The directness and passion of the tape makes it an interesting item for collectors and fans and the fact that some of the lyrics were not the definitive ones is an added rarity that reveals the development process for the following LP "Un hombre solo".

KITCHEN FUNK: The Groove Legacy of Funk, Hip-Hop, and House
Founded in 1999 in Lorient by Tabasko and Ramirez, key figures in the Breton underground scene, KITCHEN FUNK fuses hip-hop, soul, funk, acid jazz, and house music into a unique sonic universe. Combining punchy rhythms with captivating grooves, the duo made a name for itself in the 2000s, marked by the excitement of clubs and radio stations.

"LETUGO": A Forgotten Treasure Finally Rediscovered
Among their notable collaborations, "LETUGO," recorded with Karl the Voice, embodies the very essence of KITCHEN FUNK. This powerful track, blending funky vibes and soulful energy, didn't receive the promotion it deserved upon its release.

25 years later, the story takes an unexpected turn. After rediscovering local archives, RAMIREZ and JULIEN LO BONO decided to reissue "LETUGO" on vinyl to mark the project's anniversary. The initiative sparked immediate interest: Breton radio stations picked it up, and the record finally found its audience, proving that KITCHEN FUNK's groove is timeless.

A resounding success with "PUSSY CALL"
Before this resurgence, KITCHEN FUNK had made a lasting impression with "PUSSY CALL", a hit that received critical acclaim on Europe 2, NRJ, and RADIO FG. This success allowed the duo to sign with CHRYSALIS PUBLISHING and then 909 RECORDZ (WARNER FRANCE), confirming their place in the French music scene.

A promising future
And this is just the beginning... Boosted by this renewed interest, KITCHEN FUNK is preparing new projects, supported by Jean Jérôme, a key player in the success of "PUSSY CALL." A return to the stage is in the works, ready to rekindle the flame of funk, hip-hop, and house music for a new generation of enthusiasts.

2025 Repress

Tobias Bernstrup is a contemporary musician and video artist born 1970 in Gothenburg, Sweden. He received an MFA from Royal College University of Fine Arts Stockholm in 1998. Using the visual language of pop culture, video games, sci-fi, classicism and gothic noir, he has created a stage persona with notorious live performances. Dressed in elaborate costumes of skin-tight rubber suits and fetish gear, Tobias' external appearance is androgynous. He raises questions about representation of identity, the body and physical space in both virtual and non-virtual realities. Between 1997 and 1998 he self-released two limited CD-R EPs. In 2002 his debut album 'Re-Animate Me' was released by Tonight Records followed by two limited 12' singles for the song 27' and the Italian version Ventisette'.
.
27' is a 5-song EP collecting 4 different mixes of the title track plus one unreleased song from the 'Re-Animate Me' recording sessions. The material on this EP is closely connected with the world of computer games which Bernstrup also inhabits. Bernstrup's music is influenced by 1980s Italo disco and synth pop, reminiscent of Kraftwerk, Depeche Mode and Ken Lazlo. On the A-side is the original mix at 115 bpm followed by the Lazer Mix set to an faster beat and additional arpeggiations and heavier bass drum beats. Lyrically the song tells the story of a good looking 27-year old boy from a small town searching for love with any man who can spoil him. On the B-side are both the vocal and instrumental of Ventisette', the Italian translation of the song 27.' Both versions of Ventisette' are stripped back compared to the A-side but keep the melodies in tact. Also released for the first time ever is the demo Dirty Money' a Pet Shop Boys influenced song about male prostitutes ready for a night out working the streets.

All songs have been remastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios. For the jacket Eloise Leigh transformed the original portrait of Tobias into a Warhol-like painted polaroid with a striking likeness to Liza Minelli with blue eye shadow and red lipstick. Each copy includes a photo postcard with lyrics and notes. I would rather create alternative routes to experiencing and understanding the world, understanding what it means to be human today,' says Bernstrup. We are more artificial than we want to admit.'

Ukrainian Riot Grrl Trio 'Death Pill' Return With 'Sologamy' Their Much Anticipated Second Album. Two years on from their sensational debut, Ukrainian 'Riot Grrls' Mariana, Anastasiia and Nataliia, aka Death Pill are back. And back in full force, locked and loaded with a mighty set of tunes, _ as they put it. 'A bold exploration of personal empowerment'. 'SOLOGAMY' is fierce, heavy and melodic. The album's 10 tracks mark a bold evolution in the band's sound and Death Pill really deliver with ferocity and belief through multiple gear changes and genres as if it were easy. Hardcore, punk, grunge, thrash, riot grrrl, emo, are just some of the touchstones this album moves through, and all with the accomplished ferocity and memorable melody the band introduced on their debut. There are cellos, piano's, sound effects and ornate arrangements that open out their sonic palette, there's a bit of pop and even a bit of prog. But rest assured _ It's all pure 'Death Pill'. Thematically 'Sologamy' is, at its core, a celebration of the self! DP says: "The title, inspired by the concept of marrying oneself, speaks to the importance of making a personal commitment to self-care, happiness, and emotional well-being. In an era where that can sometimes be misconstrued as selfishness, Death Pill pushes back against these misconceptions, inviting listeners to embrace the power of prioritizing their own mental and emotional health." "Each track on the album is quite different from the last, and we see this as a way of accepting and supporting yourself in any emotional state. You arrive in this world alone and you leave it alone. The bottom line is: You're the only person you've got. "Every song on the album is a story that happened to us. Maybe it'll happen to you too. But every story deserves to become a song." "Sologamy" is more than just an album-it's a call to action" The very special LP version is not only frosted clear vinyl, but comes w/ foiled sleeve art, poster, sticker and free dlc! CD is nice too.

When the trio of Sontag Shogun gathered at Laura Naukkarinen's home on the Finnish island of Kimitoön in the summer of 2019, they had not the slightest inkling that the world was about to change irretrievably with the onset of a long-predicted pandemic the following year. By the time their collaborative album, Valo Siroutuu ("The Light Scatters"), was released nearly two years later, the intimate and reflective nature of the work they had created together had taken on new meaning, resonating powerfully (and quietly) with a world in which the proverbial cracks in the wall only seem to be widening. 



Päiväkahvit completes the story that began with Valo Siroutuu, featuring 9 songs from the original sessions as well as 4 interpretive reworks courtesy of Amulets, Fadi Tabbal, Post-Dukes, and Jeremy Young. Available digitally and in a one-time vinyl pressing of 300 copies, the album flows seamlessly from beginning to end, incorporating field recordings, tape, sublime vocal melodies, and a host of acoustic and electronic instruments. Richly textured and immersive, Päiväkahvit positively crackles with warmth and a sense of creative embrace.



"We invite the listener into the sauna, out to the garden and onto the trampoline, to sit by the water’s edge and to take a coffee in the waning afternoon light, and to stay as long as they like." – Jesse Perlstein

Lau Nau, aka Laura Naukkarinen, is a Finnish composer whose music is imbued with an idiosyncratic, finely honed sound world. Her palette consists of acoustic instruments, singing voice, modular synthesisers, reel-to-reel tape recorders and field recordings. To date Lau Nau has released ten albums on record labels in Europe, the USA and Japan and a large number of collaborative releases. Lau Nau is known for her music to films and multi channel sound installations. She was awarded the Finnish State Prize for the Performing Arts 2021 as a sound designer. She has toured abroad for over 20 years, playing in venues such as Super Deluxe in Tokyo, the Lab & Castro Theatre in San Francisco and Blank Forms & Issue Project Room in New York.

Sontag Shogun is a collaborative trio that makes use of analog sound treatments and nostalgic solo piano compositions in harmony to depict abstract places in our memory. Textures built from organic materials such as sand, slate, boiling water, brush and dried leaves, both produced live in performance and recorded to weathered 1/4" tape warm up the space between lush piano themes. All of which is abstracted coolly in the reflective digital space of treated vocals and a live-processed feed from the piano. Bringing us back, like a faded passing scent or any natural emotive trigger, but to where? The wordless journey there will inevitably be more revealing than the destination itself.


"CAM Sugar is thrilled to present Jeymes Samuel’s Spaghetti Western Collection, a selection of rare cuts from Italian Western film soundtracks (1963–1972), curated by the acclaimed father of the contemporary Spaghetti Western genre, BAFTA-winner director (The Harder They Fall, The Book of Clarence) and singer-songwriter Jeymes Samuel (The Bullits, Executive Music Consultant for The Great Gatsby alongside Jay-Z and Baz Luhrmann, as well as collaborator of Gorillaz and Talib Kweli, Jay Electronica). The English artist has also supervised the art direction of the products – painting the cover artwork by hand – compiled the music selection and produced two new original tracks. 2-LP DELUXE VERSION 2LP, a 20-track deep dive into the CAM Sugar catalogue casting a light on the trademark Italian sound that shaped Spaghetti Western, the legendary film genre birthed 60 years ago from the brainchild of Sergio Leone A Western Saloon Inspired Box Set with additional artwork for the box set. Exclusive 7” featuring an original song written and composed by Jeymes Samuel and an instrumental version of the song. Exclusive 10” featuring an original song written and composed by Jeymes Samuel with a CAM Sugar Sample and an unreleased poem by Regina King. Exclusive Official and unreleased story board from The Harder They Fall by Dwayne Turner Exclusive Interviews by Jeymes Samuel with The Harder They Fall protagonists Regina King and David Oleyowo, included in a booklet that will also feature content from the CAM Sugar Archives: Original Scores and Movie Posters One Dollar mini poster customized with Jeymes Samuel’s portrait in pure Spaghetti Western style THE STANDARD 2LP and CD versions:Featuring the 20 tracks selected by Jeymes Samuel and the exclusive booklet, including interviews By Jeymes Samuel to The Harder They Fall protagonists Regina King and David Oleyowo as well as content from the CAM Sugar Archives: Original Scores and Movie Posters.
"

It has been almost seven years since the release of Alpestres, the impressive debut by Matthias Puech on Hands in the Dark. While that first experience took us on a mystical journey through fascinating fictional landscapes, 'Cabanes' lets its narrative unfold in a confined space: eight pieces each resembling small structures or makeshift shelters that, while enveloping and isolating the listener, remain open to their surroundings. These are not merely interiors; they are handcrafted spaces through which we gain insights into the world. Yet they allow the light from the outside to seep in, reminding us of reality.

According to Puech, each composition has a distinctive two-part story that are both clear and intriguingly interconnected. The first one often revolves around the anecdotal and tangible aspects of instrumental "play," showcasing a technical exploration with his tools, the discovery of sounds in a library, and the serendipitous encounters that inspired them. The second part, however, delves into the more elusive yet profound state of existence that the French artist experienced while engaging with these sounds, reflecting on the moments he listened and re-listened to them, ultimately deeming them worthy life companions. These two narratives, perhaps reshaped over time like distant memories, interact in ways that can either clash or complement each other, creating a lasting impact on the listening experience.

A significant aspect of the compositional process involves distancing oneself from these connections to creation, allowing for the rediscovery of a state of listening that is free from prior emotional influences—what one might call "pure" listening. This method enables the transformation of a sequence of events into a narrative that is independent of its original intent, resulting in a universal object. After spending considerable time with the attached pieces and attempting to induce a form of amnesia to reconstruct an artificial narrative, Matthias Puech has ultimately chosen to relinquish this pursuit. Thus, the album is aptly termed “Cabanes” (“Huts”): fragile structures whose design clearly reflects the intention behind their creation, showcasing all the signs of considerate craftsmanship.

Ride bassist Steve Queralt’s debut solo album Swallow is a beautifully brooding nine-track collection that combines the darkly textured soundscapes of early M83 and Sigur Rós with an electronic sheen reminiscent of Boards Of Canada. It also features guest vocals from Sonic Cathedral labelmate Emma Anderson (formerly of Lush and Sing-Sing) and Verity Susman (Electrelane, Memorials).Swallow has been slowly but surely pieced together between Ride albums and tours over the past five years and, perhaps as a result, has a slightly dystopian, Blade Runner feel that reflects the liminal spaces in which it was created.Despite the fact that the majority of the album is instrumental, there is plenty of power and emotion poured into these moody, moonlit soundtracks. When words do appear, an underlying anger and political slant emerges and amplifies the album’s dark intensity. This is most notable on the closing track, ‘Motor Boats’, where he overlays words from Julie Sheldon’s polemic poem The Same Boat (“We’re all in the same boat they say, but I would disagree”). According to Steve, these simple words of rejection “capture the reality of our times perfectly”. However, it was the collaborations with the two guest vocalists that tied the whole thing together and paved the way to the finished album. “After a few false starts, I had started to doubt the project altogether. It was going nowhere,” says Steve. “Then, out of the darkness, Emma got in touch to tell me that she’d found her voice and could I send her some tracks. A few files back and forth and an afternoon in the studio later and we had ‘Lonely Town’ and ‘Swiss Air’.”In the meantime, Verity from Electrelane had added vocals to the song ‘Messengers’ and transformed the track. Matthew Simms, now her bandmate in Memorials, would go on to mix the finished album.“Swallow has turned out so much better than I had hoped,” enthuses Steve. “I’d fallen out of love with it so many times I was thinking of calling it Loveless. But then, that wouldn’t be the whole story.”

For Wilkes-Barre's One Step Closer - the concept of home is complicated. "I've never felt so distant in my life," vocalist Ryan Savitski screams on the lead single "Pringle Street," a place in his hometown that binds the album's lyrics to both a precise location and feeling of displacement. On their first ever full-length album and debut for Run For Cover This Place You Know, the band offers a modern coming-of-age story about growing up and grasping both the known and the unknown. One Step Closer started in 2016 and in their short five years, Savitski, along with drummer Tommy Norton, bassist Brian Talipan and guitarists Ross Thompson & Grady Allen have come into their own as a modern hardcore mainstay. Their 2019 EP 'From Me To You' countered existing trends in exchange for a more melodic sound in the vein of bands like Turning Point and Title Fight. They went on to open for Have Heart at the band's now legendary reunion shows that summer, and joined bands like Knuckle Puck and Turnstile on tour before pausing to write their debut album. This Place You Know grapples with the weight of themes like isolation, depression, and loss - all amplified by driving bass lines, em-phatic guitar riffs and unwavering drumming performed by the band. From the first moments of album opener "I Feel So," the stakes are made clear by the anchoring lyric 'this place you know, sometimes it hides the truth and lets people go" - One Step Closer is attempting to resolve the unresolvable anguish of moving on from everything you once knew.

Back to the future and northern velkommens to bro Morken. EPs for Prins 'Blud' Thomas' Full Pupp show early production chops, but it's his residency as part of Oslo's Jaeger crew where the range of styles is truly showcased.

Appearances on Trushmix series and his recent Road Trippin' cassette for L.I.E.S last year show depth(charge) DJ on a roll, but it's setting up the Moonlighting label where vibes came alive via some electro bass tribal sub bass wonder. Jungle dialects!

All and more over these 5 cuts >>> afro-bump-shuffle-rat-tat-hats-acid-stab-meets-storyville-dark-tom-toms-pads-relentless-hypnotic-down-down-electro-italo-endings-and-bass! Strange Thank f***.

The record is largely sung in Scots language, one of Scotland’s three official languages along with Gaelic and English. “Scots gives me a way of expressing myself which is connected directly with the landscapes I love. It brings the songs alive and it is a fascinating language. The name of the record is in Scots - Forefowk means the people who came before, or ancestors. When we say ‘mind me,’ we can mean a few things- remind, remember, watch over or care for me. The record explores how tradition needs to be constantly reconnected with, built upon, looked after, and shared.”
Quinie sings with a style inspired by Scottish Traveller singers. “I began singing unaccompanied Scots Song in 2015 after hearing Scots Traveller singer Sheila Stewart on the radio. Initially I felt like I shouldn't sing these songs because I'm not a Traveller, and I saw people around me doing that in a way that made me uncomfortable. But on the other hand this music made sense to me and I felt driven to learn. Over the years I have met Traveller friends who taught me that settled people sharing these songs could contribute to raising awareness. Scottish Travellers are marginalised and discriminated against in modern Scotland, despite being custodians of so many of our important traditions. So I started to perform them and tell this story. From there I built on my repertoire and started writing my own songs”.
To develop this record, Quinie travelled across Argyll with her horse. They went on a pilgrimage of sorts through the ancient landscapes of the West of Scotland to explore the interconnected relationships between people, ancestors, animals, and place. The album’s vinyl release is accompanied by a book and film, documenting this unusual research process.
Forefowk, Mind Me was recorded in August 2024 at The Big Shed in Highland Perthshire with support from Creative Scotland. Quinie is accompanied by an ensemble of musicians: Ailbhe Nic Oireachtaigh (viola), Oliver Pitt (duduk, bouzouki, percussion), Harry Górski-Brown (small pipes, violin), and Stevie Jones (double bass, recording, and mixing). Each of these artists brings their own distinctive voice, bridging contemporary experimental practice with worlds of traditional and early music.

‘You are behind the damn wheel every day and you don’t even know it’ , weightily remarks Powerplant’s band leader Theo Zhykharyev on the reading of his latest single. London-based project signals the return to signature formula of marching drum machines and wailing synthesisers, matured by life experiencing of prolonged touring. ’Car is life, brother. Sometimes you drive it, other times - the car drives you. And, statistically, we’ll all see the airbags go off sooner than later as consequence of choices made by us or onto us, consciously or not.’
Crashing Cars breaks out the gates to the heavy low end driven dance floor. ‘I was listening to a lot of Bladee when I wrote it and needed a similar thick kick to get you moving’, says Theo. Its an emotionally loaded cannon of a track that will keep you in its grip until it has run its course and told its story. Yearning from connection unfulfilled, rings out through the heartbroken and weeping synth and choir lines. The ever-morphing and dynamic bass works in tandem with razor sharp guitars. The instrumentation, through combined ‘no looking back’ forward charge and immediacy, conjure a manic and emotional forward momentum, which rings out in the song’s lyrics. The vocal performance ranges from the trademark Powerplant goblin squeaks, to more mature, tour-hardened singing. On a sonic aesthetic level, Crashing Cars vibrates in a familiar fashion to Powerplant’s biggest hit Dungen. However, this time far less playful and harder hitting. Described as the fallout of “avoiding, chasing and running away”, lyrically it paints a dead end in human relationships concluding it car-crash heading for the scrapyard. The song concludes with a loaded four line spoken word poetry segment, that hangs over the fleeting outro.
The B side of the single, Never Smile, rolls the speed back, but throws in jangly guitar hooks and bouncy bass lines. Zhykharyev’s vocals sit in a lower register, hence are more stoic and melancholic. If this track had to be a day of the week, it would be a calm, introspective Sunday. With lyrics about looking into evil omens, the sky and reading people as ‘not something different’, it paints an ambiguous, but heavy conclusion about the world and its people. It tells a story about circumstantially settling into an identity and playing the assigned part for the convenience of the external world. It’s easier to fit than to stand apart. It's a perfect balance of mid-tempo radio-rock that builds and changes, before exploding into a shaggy guitar solo, only to go into an unexpected ethereal outro and this 7”s crescendo.
‘Both of these songs are kinda old now, sitting at around 4 years old. And although I haven’t changed the lyrics since then, I somehow find new meaning in them as time goes on. Being Ukrainian and going into the fourth year of the full scale Russian invasion back home, the chorus “my death to you - a better price to pay” makes a lot of sense looking at how the world powers are trying to spin the devastation of my people for a quick profit and an easier life for themselves. This single coming out now at this very point in my life feels both profound and very ironic. Life never ends’, summarises Zhykharyev.

"Maybe Happy Ending Original Broadway Cast Recording
Ghostlight Records invites you to experience the Original Broadway Cast Recording of Maybe Happy Ending, the critically acclaimed new Broadway musical hailed as “One of The Very Best Scores to Hit Broadway in Years” by USA Today.

Set in the future, Maybe Happy Ending is a beautifully offbeat story about two outcasts near the end of their warranty who discover that even robots can be swept off their feet. Starring Emmy and Golden Globe Award winner Darren Criss (Glee, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, American Buffalo, Little Shop of Horrors), Helen J Shen (The Lonely Few, Teeth), Dez Duron (NBC’s The Voice), and Marcus Choi (Wicked, Flower Drum Song), the album features an enchanting score by Will Aronson and Hue Park, and captures the heart of the show with standout songs like “World Within My Room,” “The Rainy Day We Met,” “The Way It Has to Be,” “Jenny,” ""Where You Belong,"" and ""Hitting The Road"

Marconi Union, one of the most influential names in contemporary ambient and electronic music, announce their twelfth studio album, The Fear of Never Landing, set for release 6th June via Just Music. The news is paired with the release of first single Eight Miles High Alone, out 20th March on all major streaming platforms.

Known for their ability to craft cinematic, immersive soundscapes that blur the lines between ambient, electronic, and experimental music, the Manchester-based duo once again push the boundaries of sonic exploration. The Fear of Never Landing takes us on a dynamic journey that’s atmospheric, diaphanous and never short of mesmerising. While the new record is certainly infused with a sense of hope, there’s more than a soupçon of anxiety too, as the title suggests.

A 55-minute odyssey presented as one seamless piece divided into nine movements, they transcribe the nexus of modern living into a mostly wordless odyssey. The album encapsulates Marconi Union’s ability to translate the complexities of the human experience into sound, all while maintaining a stunning sense of cohesion.

While the music feels effortless, the creative process was anything but. During the two years it took to complete the album, members Jamie Crossley and Duncan Meadows faced creative struggles that even led them to briefly question the band’s future. A pivotal moment came when they performed a live soundtrack to the 1975 skateboarding film Downhill Motion, rekindling their connection to atmospheric composition. By testing new material live and returning to their roots, Marconi Union redefined their creative process, leading to some of their most emotionally impactful work to date.

“We’ve always made atmospheric music but we had started to lose that aspect. Other than some rough ideas, we had no sense of what we were doing anymore, a kind of musical wilderness. Eventually a couple of things fell into place, and it was like, ‘Ah, okay.”
With a foundation to build upon, they went back to basics and decided to take their time going forwards. “We tried out a few new tracks live which gave us the opportunity to see what worked and what didn’t. We've never given ourselves that luxury before.”

The first track to be shared, Eight Miles High Alone, is a mesmerizing sequencer-driven track that builds an immersive, atmospheric soundscape. Its hypnotic pulses and intricate layers evoke a sense of solitude and weightlessness, perfectly capturing the album’s blend of tension and introspection. “Eight Miles High Alone was the first piece that we managed to complete and helped to inform our approach to the rest of the album.”

Formed in Manchester in 2003, their debut album, Under Wires and Searchlights (2003), introduced their signature sound, but it was their 2011 release of Weightless that brought international acclaim. Developed in collaboration with a sound therapist, Weightless was scientifically recognised as “the world’s most relaxing song”, praised for its ability to reduce anxiety and heart rates. With over 900 million streams and widespread coverage across media, the track remains a cultural phenomenon.

Over the years, Marconi Union has continued to evolve, producing critically acclaimed albums such as Signals (2021), Ghost Stations (2016), and Tokyo+ (2017). Their work has been hailed for its emotional resonance and sonic depth, with The Quietus noting their ability to find “beauty in the bleakest places” and The Sunday Times describing them as “amongst today’s most talented musicians.”

Beyond their studio albums, Marconi Union has collaborated with visual artists, provided soundtracks for installations, and remixed notable acts like Max Richter and Vök. Their invitation by Brian Eno to perform at Norway’s Punkt Festival further cemented their reputation as innovators in the ambient music sphere.

With The Fear of Never Landing, Marconi Union once again showcases their unmatched ability to create immersive soundscapes that resonate deeply. The album reaffirms their position as masters of atmosphere and emotional storytelling, making it an essential addition to their storied catalog.

Johnny and Robert began work on the album in the first weeks of the pandemic, wanting to make music that sang of those dangerous, disorienting spring days; when birdsong was brighter –– and the sense of bewilderment more powerful –– than any of us had known before. They drew inspiration in part from The Epic of Gilgamesh, the oldest surviving work of world literature; an epic poem from Ancient Mesopotamia that contains the earliest version of the Flood Myth. To Johnny and Robert, Gilgamesh resonated eerily with the present moment –– and it catalysed their song-writing. For Gilgamesh is a story of friendship, love, loss, grief, bad governance and good dreaming; of natural disaster and environmental crisis. It also contains the first recorded act of human destruction of the natural world: when Gilgamesh and Enkidu travel to the Sacred Cedar Wood, slay the guardian spirit of the forest, and cut down the trees with their axes, thereby bringing catastrophe upon themselves. Johnny and Robert wrote the album between March 2020 and February 2021, during a year in which we all wandered unsure of our path, lost in the cedar wood. The songs were composed in large part as a correspondence, through a back-and-forth of notebook pages, voice-recordings and WhatsApp-messages, at a time when lockdowns made meeting in person impossible. The first eight songs were recorded in an off-grid cottage deep in a Hampshire forest, with the sounds of chainsaws felling trees drifting in through the windows along with the birdsong. The result is an album at once urgent and ancient, which fuses poetry, landscape, myth and music into something unique. These are songs that ring with hope, love and sadness –– and one need not know anything about The Epic of Gilgamesh to be touched by them.

The story of Eyeshield 21 follows the protagonist Sena, the whipping boy of his classmates, who wants to earn respect by joining a club at the start of the school year. He crosses paths with Hiruma, head of the American soccer club, who recruits him for his exceptional running skills. They must quickly find 11 other players, as the inter-school championship begins in 24 hours.

Numerous artists and composers were involved in creating the theme music and accompanying songs, including Kosuke Morimoto, who contributed to various theme songs for Fullmetal Alchemist and One Piece. Any fan of the series will have a strong feeling of nostalgia when they recall the music that marked them during their teenage years. The very Pop-rock and J-pop tones will remind them of those after-school afternoons watching episodes of this epic anime on Game One. You'll also be able to hear the voices of the Japanese cast, including the voice of the main character, Sena Kobayakawa, on many of the credits and accompanying songs.

The manga turns 21 in 2023. To celebrate, the author wrote a 55-page one-shot called “Brain X Brave”, which appeared in early January 2024 in Weekly Shonen Jump. The anime has been broadcast frequently on Game One since September 2009 and on France Ô since September 2012.

"Los Angeles-born music producer, artist, and DJ DF Tram is thrilled to announce the release of his highly anticipated new album, Bittersweet Afternoon on Orbscure Records. Orbscure Records, founded by Alex Paterson of the legendary electronic act The Orb, continues its tradition of championing innovative and boundary-pushing artists with this remarkable release. About DF Tram DF Tram is a leading figure in the global downtempo electronic scene, celebrated for his meticulously crafted audio-visual performances and immersive storytelling through sound. His work seamlessly blends ambient, sampling, spoken word, vocals, and psychedelia into genre-defying sonic journeys, offering listeners a unique and transformative experience. Bittersweet Afternoon Written and recorded between DF Tram’s Zagreb and Vienna studios during the pandemic and finished last year. Bittersweet Afternoon represents the next chapter in his storied career. The album surprises listeners with his vocals, bittersweet lullabies, and signature collage and spoken word style. Featuring atmospheric soundscapes and cinematic influences, the project reflects the spirit and playfulness of Alex Paterson and Orbscure’s commitment to fostering experimental, forward-thinking music. Adding to the album’s rich tapestry are collaborations with Alex Paterson himself on two tracks, as well as contributions from multi-talented contemporary classical violinist Violeta Vicci on another pair of songs. The first single and video, "The Librarian," offers an immersive glimpse into the world of DF Tram and “Bittersweet Afternoon”. Available on a limited edition transparent blue vinyl, card gatefold CD.

Recorded August, 1965, Copenhagen, Denmark.

Original LP issue: OKTAV – OKLP 111



Sahib Shihab (Edmund Gregory) played with many of jazz’s finest musicians. Shortly after he became one of the first jazz players to change their names due to an Islamic conversion, he joined Thelonious Monk for his Blue Note sessions. He also played with Art Blakey, Dizzy Gillespie, Oscar Pettiforn and Quincy Jones. A unique musician, he was at home in every musical style, from the experimentalism of Thelonious Monk to the more direct hard bop of Art Blakey. Sahib Shihab’s distinctive sound was rooted in his modernist compositions and arrangements, complemented by an intense, soulful playing style.



In 1959 he toured Europe with Quincy Jones after getting fed up with racial politics in USA and ultimately settled in Scandinavia. He worked for Copenhagen Polytechnic and wrote scores for television, cinema and theatre. He remained there until 1973. During this period, he recorded several albums as leader for European labels such as Vogue, Storyville and Futura.



In 1961 he joined The Kenny Clarke-Francy Boland Big Band and remained a key figure in the band for the 12 years it ran. He married a Danish lady and raised a family in Europe, although he remained a conscious African-American still sensitive to racial issues.



This record, on the Danish Oktav label, his second as a leader and also his rarest is a true masterpiece !!!



Personnel :

Sahib Shihab (Baritone saxophone, Flute, Cowbell)

Poul Hindberg (Alto saxophone, Clarinet)

Ib Renard (Baritone saxophone)

Bent Nielsen (Baritone saxophone, Flute, Clarinet)

Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen (NHOP) (Bass)

Alex Riel (Drums)

Allan Botschinsky (Trumpet)

Fritz von Bülow (Guitar)

Bent Axen (Piano)

Bent Jædig (Tenor saxophone, Flute)

Niels Husum (Tenor saxophone)

Svend Åge Nielsen (Trombone, Bass trombone)

Torolf Mølgaard (Trombone, Euphonium)

Palle Bolvig (Trumpet)

Palle Mikkelborg (Trumpet)

Poul Kjældgård (Tuba)

Louis Hjulmand (Vibraphone)

"Connect is the latest and sixth album by world famous Dutch DJ Ferry Corsten. Connect represents a culmination of over 30 years of ground-breaking contributions to electronic dance music that has shaped the global music scene. The album is a sweeping journey through Ferry's career-spanning exploration of genres—trance, house, progressive, and techno—brought together by his signature sound and masterful emotional storytelling. Connect features a host of contemporary artists including producers Marsh, 22Bullets, Silva City (Alan Fitzpatrick & Reset Robot), and more. It also features vocalists Chris Howard, Diandra Faye and MERYLL amongs others. The album pushes the boundaries with features like AI-generated vocals, showcasing the evolution of electronic music in both artistry and technology. Every track on Connect resonates with Ferry Corsten’s unmistakable trance roots, yet each forges its own distinctive path. Connect is a testament to Ferry Corsten’s artistry, weaving a rich tapestry of progressive, house, breakbeat, and trance into a cohesive journey that celebrates the power of music to connect and inspire. Connect is available as a limited edition of 1000 individually numbered copies on purple marbled vinyl and includes an insert with notes by Ferry for each track."

Claudio PRC's fifth album, Self Surrender, unfolds as a reflective journey of self-acceptance, a story embracing reality in its purest and most unfiltered form. Released via Delsin Records, this marks his first full-length album on the Amsterdam label following up an impressive line of EPs over the past 5 years. Self Surrender moves through ambient, dub, minimal house grooves and deep techno. It blends techno and house elements flawlessly, a blend that Claudio has naturally made his own during his long going career. Further on the sound shifts to more energetic techno. It's driven by heavy kicks and dreamy atmospheres, with acid-laden textures and haunting strings. Self Surrender closes with an ethereal track, fully embodying the theme of surrender and acceptance to conclude this personal story.

Howdy punkè rocke fans, welcome to FORCED COMMUNAL EXISTENCE - the wonderful and frightening world of ALIEN NOSEJOB’s EP’s & singles. Anti Fade and Agitated Records are teaming together to bring you a paint stripping, mind altering, rare collection of EP and compilation tracks recorded in various Australian bedrooms and garages between 2017 and 2022. The sound of goofy obnoxiousness will soon be permeating your bedroom airwaves and perforating your eardrums. Kicking off this long player is an EP that was recorded by Billy from Anti Fade in his childhood bedroom in July 2017. The songs came to fruition while AUSMUTEANTS were on tour in Japan 2016.

There was a lot of ‘WALLABY BEAT’ / ‘MURDER PUNK’ being played in the background while seeing the sites of Mount Fuji and ‘Bar Fuck Yeah’. In between shows Jake was organising the release of DANNY GRAHAM and PLASTIC AND THE EP’S records on the label he co-ran XEROX MUSIC. Both artists played parts in the sound and ethos of the PANEL BEAT EP. The goal was to make the songs sound unapologetically Australian without pretending to be something they’re not. There’s no fake accents or songs about VB and mullets. Instead, there’s songs about every day struggles, like dealing with fickle fashion followers, having too many fucking records, playing PlayStation, resentment and manipulation.

500 copies were pressed and self released, with a photo slipped inside each copy at random. Next is THE DEATH OF THE VINYL BOOM which was self recorded in a shed in November 2017. This is the only Alien Nosejob release (besides this comp, smartarse) to feature a cover - Flyblown by Adelaidean arty weirdo band JACKSON ZUMDISH. The idea behind this EP was to incorporate the simplicity and scrappiness of the late 70’s DIY Australian sound, but give them the complicated structures of prog songs. Scum stats - 500 copies, self released. Several copies were smeared with Jake’s blood and had smashed pieces of vinyl glued to the front cover.

Now we have a cover of the DEAD KENNEDYS. The conspiracy theorist wet dream Government Flu. Recorded September 2020 during lockdown in one-man-band with a tape recorder fashion for a 20 minute unedited ‘live set’ video where all instruments were played one by one, sung and mixed in the space of a couple of hours. The HC45 7” was recorded at the same time as a disco 12” maxi, which I hear were originally meant to come out on the same day. Shit happens I guess? This EP came out in Feb 2020 and sounds somewhere between early GANG GREEN, DIE KREUZEN and the BEASTIE BOYS old bullshit. Self recorded on a 4 track with a broken pinch roller. Lyrically this thing is cynical and choc-a-bloc full of satire and hate. A year later a sequel was recorded the same way, on the same machine.

No fucking disco this time though. Cold Bare Facts is the most recent recording on this comp. Self recorded in Jake‘s bedroom 2022 It has the same mid paced tempo as DYS or SSD when they’re at their slowest (pre-Boston Curse, of course!). Both songs take a stinky shit on the Australian state police. 300 copies. Finishing the record is a cover by THE AINTS. Originally written by ED KUEPPER for THE SAINTS Eternally Yours album, but it sounded too similar to Lost and Found. Originally released on ‘ALTA’ cassette compilation during the lockdown. FORCED COMMUNAL EXISTENCE binds this mouthful of releases into one neat package from June 6th, 2025. Catch the ALIEN NOSEJOB band on tour in Europe & UK from June 13 - July 2nd, 2025.

Howdy punkè rocke fans, welcome to FORCED COMMUNAL EXISTENCE - the wonderful and frightening world of ALIEN NOSEJOB’s EP’s & singles. Anti Fade and Agitated Records are teaming together to bring you a paint stripping, mind altering, rare collection of EP and compilation tracks recorded in various Australian bedrooms and garages between 2017 and 2022. The sound of goofy obnoxiousness will soon be permeating your bedroom airwaves and perforating your eardrums. Kicking off this long player is an EP that was recorded by Billy from Anti Fade in his childhood bedroom in July 2017. The songs came to fruition while AUSMUTEANTS were on tour in Japan 2016.

There was a lot of ‘WALLABY BEAT’ / ‘MURDER PUNK’ being played in the background while seeing the sites of Mount Fuji and ‘Bar Fuck Yeah’. In between shows Jake was organising the release of DANNY GRAHAM and PLASTIC AND THE EP’S records on the label he co-ran XEROX MUSIC. Both artists played parts in the sound and ethos of the PANEL BEAT EP. The goal was to make the songs sound unapologetically Australian without pretending to be something they’re not. There’s no fake accents or songs about VB and mullets. Instead, there’s songs about every day struggles, like dealing with fickle fashion followers, having too many fucking records, playing PlayStation, resentment and manipulation.

500 copies were pressed and self released, with a photo slipped inside each copy at random. Next is THE DEATH OF THE VINYL BOOM which was self recorded in a shed in November 2017. This is the only Alien Nosejob release (besides this comp, smartarse) to feature a cover - Flyblown by Adelaidean arty weirdo band JACKSON ZUMDISH. The idea behind this EP was to incorporate the simplicity and scrappiness of the late 70’s DIY Australian sound, but give them the complicated structures of prog songs. Scum stats - 500 copies, self released. Several copies were smeared with Jake’s blood and had smashed pieces of vinyl glued to the front cover.

Now we have a cover of the DEAD KENNEDYS. The conspiracy theorist wet dream Government Flu. Recorded September 2020 during lockdown in one-man-band with a tape recorder fashion for a 20 minute unedited ‘live set’ video where all instruments were played one by one, sung and mixed in the space of a couple of hours. The HC45 7” was recorded at the same time as a disco 12” maxi, which I hear were originally meant to come out on the same day. Shit happens I guess? This EP came out in Feb 2020 and sounds somewhere between early GANG GREEN, DIE KREUZEN and the BEASTIE BOYS old bullshit. Self recorded on a 4 track with a broken pinch roller. Lyrically this thing is cynical and choc-a-bloc full of satire and hate. A year later a sequel was recorded the same way, on the same machine.

No fucking disco this time though. Cold Bare Facts is the most recent recording on this comp. Self recorded in Jake‘s bedroom 2022 It has the same mid paced tempo as DYS or SSD when they’re at their slowest (pre-Boston Curse, of course!). Both songs take a stinky shit on the Australian state police. 300 copies. Finishing the record is a cover by THE AINTS. Originally written by ED KUEPPER for THE SAINTS Eternally Yours album, but it sounded too similar to Lost and Found. Originally released on ‘ALTA’ cassette compilation during the lockdown. FORCED COMMUNAL EXISTENCE binds this mouthful of releases into one neat package from June 6th, 2025. Catch the ALIEN NOSEJOB band on tour in Europe & UK from June 13 - July 2nd, 2025.

After breaking through with a gold selling debut in the late 1990’s, Harlem emcee Cam’ron quickly emerged as a leading figure in hip-hop, just as the genre was reaching mass audiences for the first time. A platinum-selling classic on Roc-A-Fella Records came a few years later, followed by the founding of the iconic collective Dipset and the release of three more seismic solo albums over the course of the 2000s. The last chapter in his historic run was 2009’s Crime Pays, which drew praise from critics while also lighting up the Billboard Charts, showcasing Cam’s sonic evolution while proving his pen game remained unmatched. More than 15 years after it’s release, this vital collection is now receiving an official vinyl pressing for the first time ever. A perpetually underrated lyricist with transcendent rhyme mechanics embedded in his leisurely flow, Cam’ron is in peak form on Crime Pays, effortlessly walking listeners through the details of his fascinating life and times. With suprisingly modern production supplied by AraabMuzik, I.N.F.O., Skitzo, and more, this memorable album is an important chapter in the story of a truly essential artist.

o encapsulate the themes. “Aseurai means around you in the atmosphere, hard to reach, fading away,” Choi says. “It’s a poetic expression. You wouldn’t say it in normal conversation, but I like that.”

Following the four-piece band’s 2024 self-titled EP, Aseurai adds disco and city-pop influences while staying true to dream-pop roots. While Phoebe Rings was originally a solo project of Choi’s, Aseurai marks a shift with contributing songwriting credits from the whole band. The four musicians cut their teeth working on other notable NZ projects such as Princess Chelsea, Fazerdaze, Tiny Ruins, AC Freazy,, Sea Views and Lucky Boy.

With a more ambitious collection of instruments, Choi says this album heralds the start of true collaboration: “I feel more precious about this LP because it includes everyone’s gems.” Guitar/synthesist Simeon Kavanagh-Vincent spearheads unexpected arrangements, with bold fuzzy guitar textures, to spice up the mix. Benjamin Locke adds maturity to the lyrics, paired with perfectionist bass lines. And drummer Alex Freer’s slick production soars Aseurai to diverse and synergetic heights. The broth is richer with more cooks in the kitchen, and the brewing of textures creates a distinct ‘Phoebe Rings’ sound.

If the EP was spacey, then Aseurai settles on earth, rooted in tangible moments. “Without getting too gloomy, it’s a weird world out there. A lot has changed in the world since the EP came out,” says Kavanagh-Vincent on this transformation. The album delves into hope and longing across all possibilities, and this exploration of holding on and letting go is organically threaded throughout. Across ten songs, Phoebe Ring’s storytelling ranges from tongue-in-cheek musings on gentrification to tender autobiographical memories.

아스라이 흩어지는 하늘의 별이 (May the falling light of faraway stars) / 그대의 손 끝에 닿아 숨이 돼주길 (Reach your fingertips and let you breathe),” Choi sings in the title track “Aseurai.” Imagined as a breezy track inspired by a 90’s Korean pop band, Choi discovered, when fleshing out the lyrics, that it was about yearning for people she couldn’t see anymore. In the old-school disco track, “Get Up,” Locke addresses struggles with mental health in a Matrix-inspired driven mantra:  ‘Just get up / Just get up.’ The groove persists with ‘Fading Star,” a quirky ballad filled with steely jazz/rock guitar solos dedicated to a suburban aging musician. Kavanagh-Vincent’s lead single ‘Drifting’ is an unrequited celestial love song with bouncing bass and playful synths.

The band wrote, produced, and engineered the album across studios and band members’ homes in 2023/2024 in Tāmaki Makaurau (Auckland). It features mixing/mix production by local legend Jeremy Toy (Bic Runga, Aaradnha, Princess Chelsea) and mastering by Kelly Hibbert. With Aseurai, Phoebe Rings mark out a brilliant new constellation in their sky, bringing their individual compositions to the fore whilst seamlessly threading them into one celestial body - launching skyward on Carpark Records in June 2025.

During a month living with the Wampís in the Amazon Rainforest, Aboutface and the Wampís community collaboratively captured field recordings, music instrumentation and traditional Wampis Nampets – ancient songs sung from the perspective of animals living in their rainforest environment.

These recordings then informed 4 improvised performances to articulate the story of the 4 Nampet songs from within each animal's habitat, to depict nature and culture as inseparable, and to propose that humanity is not exclusive to humans but a multinaturalist characteristic available to all living organisms.

This is the first project of its kind in Wampís history and contains sound recordings of biodiversity that no longer exist due to deforestation.

Indigenous-managed Amazonian rainforests sequester around 340 million tonnes of CO₂ each year—equivalent to the UK’s annual fossil fuel emissions. In stark contrast, non-Indigenous-controlled forests have become sources of carbon emissions, therefore accelerating our global climate crises. Among the vital custodians of these precious ecosystems are the Wampís people, who protect 1.3 m ha of precious rainforest territory currently being decimated by mining for gold. This devastating practice is currently decimating Wampís territory, destroying their river habitats, leaving toxic methylmercury pollution that strips all biodiversity, contaminates the food chain, and causes widespread harm.

100% of all sales revenues from this release will directly go to the Wampís to protect their rainforest territory, to fund Wampís-led eco-initiatives against illegal mining, alongside ways to preserve Wampís cultural heritage– embedded in their songs, art and crafts, central to their conservation of their territory called The Iña Wampisti Nunke: A system of life that encompasses reciprocal relationships between humans, plants, animals, and spirits, central to the harmony of all its multi-dimensional ecology– which they term Tarimat Pujut.

For more project information, a short essay is provided alongside a nonstop-listening version of the album as part of the free Bandcamp download with every LP.


Credits

Nampet songs
Kutir, Wancha and Pinchichi by Elizabeth Huampankit Najamtai.
Manchi by Fernando Ijisam Tsakim.

Acoustic Percussion by Wampís band Guayabita
Fernando Ijisam Tsakim, Edilberto Ijisam Tello, Larry Tello Huampankit, Jose Luis Cahuata Pipa, Tedy Tello Cahuata, Heyner Tello Cahuata, Eli Artista Antonio, Never Tello Huampankit

Violin by Taro.

Peruvian bamboo quena, classical flute, acoustic guitar, electronics, composition and arrangement by Aboutface.

Original portrait painting of Fernando Ijisam Tsakim by Nyran Loomcal.
All other artworks, analogue photography and design by Aboutface.

Rainforest field recordings identified and collected by The Wampís of Guayabal and Aboutface.

A new year, a fresh chapter. Outside In returns with a richly textured EP by Brazilian producer Villaça, marking their first release of 2025.

Four tracks, four moods—each one unfolding like a short story. A standout collaborative piece with Paraguayan artist Wildo adds depth and soul to an already emotive project. This is music for the mind, the heart, and the dance floor.

After a year of scheming and crafting, building and destroying, Maisie Peters is ready to share what she’s been conjuring up – her brand new album ‘The Good Witch’, arriving via Gingerbread Man Records/Asylum on June 16th.

Recently heralded by vulnerable lead single, ‘Body Better’, Maisie’s second studio album ‘The Good Witch’, is the official follow-up to her No. 2 BRIT Breakthrough certified debut, ‘You Signed Up For This’, and in many ways the older, wise and scorned counterpart.

Exhibiting a newfound confidence, sharper storytelling and greater artistic ambition, Maisie created ‘The Good Witch’ across London, Suffolk, Stockholm, Bergen and LA, alongside the likes of, Oscar Görres (Taylor Swift, Troye Sivan), Two Inch Punch (Sam Smith, Jessie Ware), Matias Tellez (girl in red), Brad Ellis (Jorja Smith, Little Mix), Joe Rubel (Ed Sheeran, Tom Grennan) and Elvira Anderfjärd (Tove Lo, Katy Perry).

Over the decades, the image of Kompakt as a pirate ship has taken root in our minds, braving the dangers of the seven seas of the music market. Sometimes it glides with a tailwind through calm waters, sometimes it has to survive violent storms. When we set sail in 1993, we never would have dreamt that our journey would still be going on after more than three decades and with 500 releases to date.

In our fast-paced business, the 500 mark is rarely reached, so we want to celebrate it with a lavish 5LP box set. In a democratic process, we have selected 50 pearls from the thousands of tracks released over the last 33 1/3 years and pressed them onto 5 brightly coloured vinyls. Alongside many Kompakt evergreens, there are also some real rarities from the early ‘Kompakt Sound of Cologne’, which have been lovingly remastered here to shine in new splendour.

The box also contains a 144-page book that tells the story of Kompakt from 1993 to today with detailed texts and images. In addition to the manifold musical and graphic achievements of Kompakt, the multidisciplinary links to the visual arts are also highlighted here.

The Bonus Picture Disc opens with the symbolic tolling of 500 bass drums, followed by 50 locked grooves from the 5 Kompakt founders, looping into infinity at 133 1/3 BPM, and the ‘33 1/3 Years Loop Opera’ – in which the loops are combined into one track that, in its reduced essence, is more than the sum of its individual parts. The magic of groovy loop minimalism and the ‘art of omission’ are once again brought to the proverbial point.

On 23 May 2025, the big KOMPAKT 500 art exhibition will open at the venerable Kölnischer Kunstverein to coincide with the release. The entire visual cosmos of Kompakt will be shown here in an unprecedented way on three floors, with the participation of many renowned artists. Of course, there will also be dancing and partying at the vernissage party, with DJ sets and live shows by the Kompakt Allstars.

The last one turns off the bass drum.


Im Laufe der Jahrzehnte hat sich in unseren Köpfen das Bild von Kompakt als Piratenschiff festgesetzt, das den Gefahren der sieben Weltmeere des Musikmarktes trotzt. Mal gleitet es mit Rückenwind durch ruhige Gewässer, mal muss es heftige Stürme überstehen. Als wir 1993 die Segel setzten, hätten wir uns nicht träumen lassen, dass unsere Reise nach über drei Jahrzehnten und mittlerweile 500 Veröffentlichungen immer noch andauert.

Die 500 ist in unserem schnelllebigen Geschäft eine selten erreichte Katalognummer und soll daher mit einer üppigen 5LP-Box gebührend gefeiert werden. In einem demokratischen Prozess haben wir aus den tausenden Tracks der letzten 33 1/3 Jahre 50 Perlen ausgewählt und auf 5 knallbunte Vinyls gepresst. Neben vielen Kompakt-Evergreens finden sich auch einige echte Raritäten des frühen “Kompakt Sound of Cologne”, die hier liebevoll remastered in neuem Glanz erstrahlen.

Die Box enthält außerdem ein 144-seitiges Buch, das mit ausführlichen Texten und Bildern die Kompakt-Geschichte von 1993 bis heute erzählt. Neben den mannigfaltigen musikalischen und grafischen Errungenschaften von Kompakt werden hier auch die multidisziplinären Vernetzungen zur bildenden Kunst beleuchtet.

Die Bonus Picture Disc wird mit einem symbolischen Glockenschlag von 500 Bassdrums eröffnet, gefolgt von 50 Endlosrillen der 5 Kompakt-Gründer, die sich bei 133 1/3 BPM in die Unendlichkeit schleifen sowie der “33 1/3 Years Loop Opera”, in der die Loops zu einem Track zusammengefügt werden, der in seiner reduzierten Essenz mehr ist als die Summe seiner Einzelteile. Die Magie des groovenden Loop-Minimalismus und die “Kunst des Weglassens” werden einmal mehr auf den sprichwörtlichen Punkt gebracht.

Am 23. Mai 2025 eröffnet parallel zum Release die große KOMPAKT 500 Kunstausstellung im ehrwürdigen Kölnischen Kunstverein. Der gesamte visuelle Kosmos von Kompakt wird hier unter Beteiligung vieler namhafter Künstler*Innen in nie gesehener Form auf drei Etagen gezeigt. Selbstverständlich darf zur Vernissagenparty auch getanzt und gefeiert werden zu DJ Sets und Liveshows der Kompakt Allstars.

Der Letzte macht die Bassdrum aus.

House Music label Ascension on Wax are proud to present AOW003 - Toronto Hustle & Sean Roman - The Unity EP. This duo have had a real buzz to them of late with strong releases on Wolf, Local Talk and Freerange this past year. Now with AoW, this is another EP which truly delivers for the House heads.
Side A is complimented by vocals from Detroit legend Jovonntte, and a mesmerising remix by 90's Deep House pioneer Abacus. Side B is for those deeper, early morning hours with a hard-hitting dub mix followed by a Deep House roller. This versatile release is for those with a love for that iconic 90's US East Coast sound.
Support from Franck Roger, Dj Deep, Dam Swindle, Philippa, Felipe Gordon amongst may others.

Ltd edition in transparent yellow vinyl!



The Mystery Lights 2nd outing on Daptone's rock subsidiary, Wick, sees them digging deeper into their cavern of influences, taking on tips from Suicide, The Kinks and Television as they look to build on their already party fuelled, raucous sound.

The Mystery Lights story begins in 2004 in the small town of Salinas California when friends Michael Brandon and Luis Alfonso -whose shared fondness for groups like The Mc5, Velvet Underground, Dead Moon, and The Fall (just to name a few) -decided to join forces and craft their own brand of unhinged rock and roll. From there they spent the better part of 10 years touring relentlessly before migrating to Queens, New York in 2014.

With a live show known for its raw, visceral energy and relentless assault –leaving little to no stoppage between songs –they barreled through countless NYC haunts and DIY venues, quickly amassing a fervent local following. The buzz soon caught the attention of Daptone Records execs who were in the beginning stages of launching a new rock-centric imprint, Wick Records. Impressed by the groups’ musicianship, groove, endless supply of energy, and understanding of musical history the Mystery Lights were quickly signed to Wick. Though a rock band at heart, the parallels to what Daptone Records had traditionally looked for in their Soul artists was undeniable. Soon sessions were booked with Producer/Engineer Wayne Gordon, and the release of their debut single “Too Many Girls” b/w “Too Tough to Bear” launched to mass critical fanfare.

Upon the release of their self-titled full-length on June 24th 2016 The Mystery Lights were quickly crowned “one of New York’s finest garage rock bands” by NME. Extensive touring, including multiple stops in Europe, Asia and Australia followed which found the group graduating from support slots at hole-in-the-wall clubs to headlining stages at major festivals worldwide.

After two years of break-neck, non-stop touring, the group settled back into Queens to prepare for their second full-length record, Too Much Tension(out May 2019). With Wayne Gordon in the producer’s chair and several intense writing sessions under their belt the group were back at Daptone’s House of Soul and ready to track. While keeping the hard-hitting approach of the first LP, Too Much Tension finds the group digging deeper into their well of eclectic influences, enriching their sound without echoing the past. Mixing the eerie, insistent synth sounds of groups like The Normal and Suicide, the energy and swagger of punk’s golden age, the pop sensibility of The Kinks, and the stark, deliberate execution of Television -The Mystery Lights are taking their idiosyncratic brand of rock and roll to dizzying new heights.

More than 20 years after their debut, Witchcraft's seventh album, 'IDAG,' is an awaited full accounting of who they are as a band. Those who have clamored for the return to an earlier sound rooted in '70s classic progressive and heavy rock will delight to the strut of "Irreligious Flamboyant Flame" while the eight-minute opening title-track is the heaviest the band have ever sounded, and a succession of interspersed acoustic-based pieces helps create a vision of a new, soulfully folkish doom taking shape as they continue to move inexorably forward. Founding guitarist/vocalist, Magnus Pelander, says of 'IDAG': "This album will reap souls and destroy wicked minds. And perhaps mend a couple of broken ones." These enigmatic few words from the Swedish band's main songwriter give clues as to the songs' intentions; a reference dropped to Coven's 1969 album, 'Witchcraft Destroys Minds and Reaps Souls.' Coven also had a folkish, proto-doomed take at that point in their history, and that multifaceted nature has been a part of Witchcraft all along. On one level, Magnus is winkingly telling you it's a Witchcraft record. The actual meaning of that becomes clear when you hear the album and find out just how much 'a Witchcraft record' can encompass. The storyline of Witchcraft's growth, from Pelander's starting the band in Örebro in 2000 in the wake of his prior outfit Norrsken's disbanding. A generational landmark of a 2004 self-titled debut helped spark a retroist movement that has become its own subgenre, but Witchcraft never stopped growing. 2005's 'Firewood' and 2007's 'The Alchemist' introduced more progressive sounds, and five years later, the pointedly modern 'Legend' established in 2012 that they had moved beyond the analog worship they had been a part of pioneering within the contemporary heavy rock and doom scene. In 2016, the 2LP 'Nucleus' introduced fuller-toned doom, and 2020's 'Black Metal' diverged into moody acoustic minimalism familiar to some fans from Pelander's early solo work, but different from anything Witchcraft had done prior. 'IDAG,' then, is the tie that draws all of this - more than two decades of exploring and growth - together. Whatever they've done in the past and whatever they'll do in the future, 'IDAG' feels like a nexus for defining who and what Witchcraft are. Even crazier, that might be the point of the thing. JJ Koczan

More than 20 years after their debut, Witchcraft's seventh album, 'IDAG,' is an awaited full accounting of who they are as a band. Those who have clamored for the return to an earlier sound rooted in '70s classic progressive and heavy rock will delight to the strut of "Irreligious Flamboyant Flame" while the eight-minute opening title-track is the heaviest the band have ever sounded, and a succession of interspersed acoustic-based pieces helps create a vision of a new, soulfully folkish doom taking shape as they continue to move inexorably forward. Founding guitarist/vocalist, Magnus Pelander, says of 'IDAG': "This album will reap souls and destroy wicked minds. And perhaps mend a couple of broken ones." These enigmatic few words from the Swedish band's main songwriter give clues as to the songs' intentions; a reference dropped to Coven's 1969 album, 'Witchcraft Destroys Minds and Reaps Souls.' Coven also had a folkish, proto-doomed take at that point in their history, and that multifaceted nature has been a part of Witchcraft all along. On one level, Magnus is winkingly telling you it's a Witchcraft record. The actual meaning of that becomes clear when you hear the album and find out just how much 'a Witchcraft record' can encompass. The storyline of Witchcraft's growth, from Pelander's starting the band in Örebro in 2000 in the wake of his prior outfit Norrsken's disbanding. A generational landmark of a 2004 self-titled debut helped spark a retroist movement that has become its own subgenre, but Witchcraft never stopped growing. 2005's 'Firewood' and 2007's 'The Alchemist' introduced more progressive sounds, and five years later, the pointedly modern 'Legend' established in 2012 that they had moved beyond the analog worship they had been a part of pioneering within the contemporary heavy rock and doom scene. In 2016, the 2LP 'Nucleus' introduced fuller-toned doom, and 2020's 'Black Metal' diverged into moody acoustic minimalism familiar to some fans from Pelander's early solo work, but different from anything Witchcraft had done prior. 'IDAG,' then, is the tie that draws all of this - more than two decades of exploring and growth - together. Whatever they've done in the past and whatever they'll do in the future, 'IDAG' feels like a nexus for defining who and what Witchcraft are. Even crazier, that might be the point of the thing. JJ Koczan

Purple Vinyl, limited to 450 copies. More than 20 years after their debut, Witchcraft's seventh album, 'IDAG,' is an awaited full accounting of who they are as a band. Those who have clamored for the return to an earlier sound rooted in '70s classic progressive and heavy rock will delight to the strut of "Irreligious Flamboyant Flame" while the eight-minute opening title-track is the heaviest the band have ever sounded, and a succession of interspersed acoustic-based pieces helps create a vision of a new, soulfully folkish doom taking shape as they continue to move inexorably forward. Founding guitarist/vocalist, Magnus Pelander, says of 'IDAG': "This album will reap souls and destroy wicked minds. And perhaps mend a couple of broken ones." These enigmatic few words from the Swedish band's main songwriter give clues as to the songs' intentions; a reference dropped to Coven's 1969 album, 'Witchcraft Destroys Minds and Reaps Souls.' Coven also had a folkish, proto-doomed take at that point in their history, and that multifaceted nature has been a part of Witchcraft all along. On one level, Magnus is winkingly telling you it's a Witchcraft record. The actual meaning of that becomes clear when you hear the album and find out just how much 'a Witchcraft record' can encompass. The storyline of Witchcraft's growth, from Pelander's starting the band in Örebro in 2000 in the wake of his prior outfit Norrsken's disbanding. A generational landmark of a 2004 self-titled debut helped spark a retroist movement that has become its own subgenre, but Witchcraft never stopped growing. 2005's 'Firewood' and 2007's 'The Alchemist' introduced more progressive sounds, and five years later, the pointedly modern 'Legend' established in 2012 that they had moved beyond the analog worship they had been a part of pioneering within the contemporary heavy rock and doom scene. In 2016, the 2LP 'Nucleus' introduced fuller-toned doom, and 2020's 'Black Metal' diverged into moody acoustic minimalism familiar to some fans from Pelander's early solo work, but different from anything Witchcraft had done prior. 'IDAG,' then, is the tie that draws all of this - more than two decades of exploring and growth - together. Whatever they've done in the past and whatever they'll do in the future, 'IDAG' feels like a nexus for defining who and what Witchcraft are. Even crazier, that might be the point of the thing. JJ Koczan

In the vibrant streets of Tembisa, South Africa, amidst the sprawling urbanity connecting Johannesburg and Pretoria, the story of Moskito began. Formed in 2001 by Mahlubi "Shadow" Radebe and the late Zwelakhe "Malemon" Mtshali, the group first emerged as a powerhouse of pantsula dancers. However, their undeniable passion for music soon led them down a new path_ one that would cement their place in kwaito history. Spending countless hours on the street corners of their township, where they were born and raised, Shadow and Malemon danced and sang with an infectious energy that attracted crowds. It wasn't long before the duo decided to channel their talents into a kwaito group, and after adding friends Patrick Lwane and Menzi Dlodlo, Moskito was born. (Pantsula dancing emerged in the 1950s among Black South Africans in townships and continually evolved until it became intertwined with kwaito music culture. The stylized, rapid foot movements and characteristic low-dancing became associated with kwaito as it took over South African urban culture into the early 2000s.) With limited resources, the group displayed immense creativity, recording demos using two cassette decks and instrumental tracks from other artists. They would rap and sing over an instrumental playing on one deck while the second deck records their performance. Their determination paid off when they submitted their demo to Tammy Music Publishers, who were captivated by Moskito's style. "Kwaito was the thing `in' at the time. If you did music you did kwaito. We wanted to fit in and actually it was easy," says Radebe. "We didn't have engineers in the group, so the first time in a real studio was with Percy and Thami to record Idolar." That same year, the group released their debut album, Idolar, under Tammy Music. The album was an undeniable success reaching gold status selling over 25,000 units and earning them a devoted fan base across South Africa and neighboring countries like Botswana, Swaziland, Namibia and Zimbabwe. Moskito collaborated with industry legends such as Chilly Mthiya Tshabalala, who was known for his work with Thiza and Spoke "H." They drew inspiration from Thami Mdluli a.k.a Professor Rhythm, who had dominated the disco scene back in the 80s and 90s. Mdluli helped with musical arrangements and executive produced the album and signed on producer-engineer Percy Mudau, while Shadow and Malemon took pride in composing most of their songs. Like many of the rising kwaito artists of the time, they didn't have music production or engineering backgrounds so they required support from engineers together their ideas down on tape. They were inspired from South African kwaito icons like Trompies, Mdu, Mandoza, and Arthur Mafokate, alongside international heavyweights like Snoop Doggy Dogg, Dr. Dre, 2Pac, and R. Kelly, Moskito created a sound that was uniquely theirs_a perfect blend of local flavor and global influence.

Dune: Prophecy is an HBO original series based on the
best-selling books by Frank Herbert and Brian Herbert, and a spin-off to the blockbuster movies of Dune.

The music for the series was composed by Academy Award-winning composer Volker Bertelmann (All Quiet on
the Western Front, Conclave, Lion), whose evocative, futuris- tic ambience, meets bold, powerful orchestral tracks on this score, accompanying the story.

Set 10,000 years before the ascension of Paul Atreides, Dune: Prophecy follows two Harkonnen sisters as they combat forces that threaten the future of humankind and establish the fa- bled sect that will become known as the Bene Gesserit. Dune: Prophecy is inspired by the novel “Sisterhood of Dune”, writ- ten by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson.

The soundtrack of Dune: Prophecy is available as a limited edition of 1000 numbered copies on orange “Spice” marbled vinyl and includes a 4-page booklet with pictures from the series.

Singer-songwriter Dan Arsenault’s avant-garde music infuses classic progressive rock and modern hard rock vibes - crafting himself a unique style of accessible songs that truly inspires the listeners. Born and raised in Atlantic Canada - home of many diverse artists, Dan’s taste in music genre greatly varied in his adult life, you can surely spot many of his style influences in his songs, ranging from early progressive rock to modern rock. His lyrical metaphor style along his punched-in odd signature moments, brings a strange complexity to the songs always leaving you discovering something new in each playbacks.

Dan’s first official released music arrived in 2021, with his first full length instrumental album ‘Eminence’ which was nominated for recording of the year at the MNB Awards 2021 and was highly accepted by the progressive music
community and qualified as a hidden jewel. Dan’s new concept album, ‘Signs point to Yes’, will truly showcase his passionate composing and producing skills, through the story journey of a kid on his quest for musical stardom and
happiness, featuring elite artists like Joe Calderone (Arch Echo), Jemma Heigis and Danny Bourgeois.

"1980 was a huge year in pop music with every genre competing for hits. We have already included many tracks on the records of the 1980 Yearbook, the 80-84 Final Chapter, and their extras so far in our appreciation of the year…

Those tracks were generally the bigger hits of the year, with their chart achievement a factor in their inclusion – however – that’s not the whole singles story of the year, and our celebration of 1980 wouldn’t be complete without shining a light on some of the years’ singles that have been compiled much less frequently over the years.

Welcome to THE VAULT for 1980… Some of the tracks included were Top 40 hits, some missed the chart completely. Some were representative of massive selling albums, and some were big hits in the U.S. and not in the U.K… but all are part of the wonderful pop story of 1980. "

Carwyn Ellis & Rio 18 release their new album "Fontana Rosa". Possibly the world's only musical group to fuse Latin music of all kinds with the Welsh language, this time Rio 18 draw inspiration from slightly different musical corners, including Chicano Soul, Nuyorican pop, and Salsoul disco plus Latin sounds filtered through the cultural spectrum of the USA.

Most significantly though, the album was among the last ever to be recorded by the acclaimed producer Liam Watson at his legendary studio and shrine to all things analogue, Toerag Studios - a huge inspiration and influence on Rio 18's Carwyn Ellis. The "Fontana Rosa" sessions saw Ellis draw together an all-star band at the fabled studio which is perhaps best known through its place in the White Stripes history.

Talking about the story and gestation of the album, Carwyn said:

"I was in Mexico City with Baldo Verdú when I heard that Toerag Studios in London was going to close. It came as a shock - Toerag and Liam Watson, its owner and resident producer had been a massive influence on me. Liam, along with Edwyn Collins, had taught me much of what I know about recording, had hired me as an instrumentalist on countless sessions and had helped me to get started when I began my own solo career. And over the years, I'd still go in to record with Liam whenever the opportunity arose. When I heard that Liam was shutting up shop, I took it upon myself to try and ensure he went out with a musical bang. I rounded up the best band I could get: the aforementioned Venezuelan percussion wiz and singer, Baldo Verdú: American drummer, multi-instrumentalist and producer Shawn Lee: the Isle of Wight's finest drum and percussion master, producer and composer Rupert Brown (whom I'd originally met at Toerag many moons ago): Elan Rhys, one of Wales's finest voices and long term collaborator with Rio 18, as well as being one third of the wonderful folk group, Plu: and Kassin - my Brazilian brother from Rio de Janeiro, bassist and producer with artists such as Jorge Ben, Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil and a multitude of others, including Carwyn Ellis & Rio 18.

So this was my dream team, assembled to make beautiful music one more time at Toerag (I have to add at this point that Shawn and Rupert hit it off so well at our sessions that they booked their own session shortly afterwards! Look out for the brilliant Shawn Lee's Toerag Orchestra 'Percussion Discussion' album). Toerag, if you're not familiar with the place, made its name as London's foremost analogue studio for some 30 years, recording directly to tape which in essence means musicians playing live, together in a room until they get it right. And the sound? Oh the SOUND!! And this is all Liam Watson's doing, his sonic aesthetic - a real master engineer. The studio is perhaps best known as the place where the White Stripes recorded their monster hit album 'Elephant' but for me it's where I got to record with James Hunter, Lay Low (from Iceland), Quruli (from Japan), Fabienne Delsol (from France) and made many lasting friendships, learnt a great deal about popular music, as well as making a bunch of my own best recordings with Colorama.

Over the course of five days we laid down as much music as we could. We had some visitors too: guitar slinger Little Barrie (Primal Scream, The The and Liam Gallagher among other things, but also my dear bandmate in Edwyn Collins's band): sax and flute maestro Jim Hunt (Amy Winehouse, Primal Scream, Duffy and very many others): and Diego Laverde Rojas, the Colombian Latin harp virtuoso.

This time the music had a slightly different edge - although we still maintained our Brazilian/Welsh connection on 'Deffro'r Dydd' (written with and sung by Elan Rhys), our Cumbia vibe and some Merengue ('Mariposa' and 'Te Adoro', sung by Baldo Verdú) and even a traditional Afro-Venezuelan tune ('La Quichimba', again sung by Baldo) - the main influence for me this time was Latin music as recorded in the USA, both new and old. 'No More Secrets' is a straight up slice of Salsoul disco, while 'Hei Ti' is a punky funky but of Nu Yorican pop somewhere between ESG and the Beastie Boys. But one of my main influences in the last couple of years has been the current wave of Chicano Soul coming from California, particularly via the Penrose and Big Crown labels. I was turned on to this music when I was in Japan in early 2023 - Takashi-san at Pleased To Meet Me Records in Nara played me the Altons' 'Float' and I was hooked!

And that music has a similar aesthetic to Toerag: music recorded live to tape by excellent engineers, performed by fine musicians and singers. So our songs 'Impossible', 'Heartbreaker' and 'Lovesick' are very much in this vein. And that just leaves the title track, 'Fontana Rosa'."

In the vibrant streets of Tembisa, South Africa, amidst the sprawling urbanity connecting Johannesburg and Pretoria, the story of Moskito began. Formed in 2001 by Mahlubi "Shadow" Radebe and the late Zwelakhe "Malemon" Mtshali, the group first emerged as a powerhouse of pantsula dancers. However, their undeniable passion for music soon led them down a new path_ one that would cement their place in kwaito history. Spending countless hours on the street corners of their township, where they were born and raised, Shadow and Malemon danced and sang with an infectious energy that attracted crowds. It wasn't long before the duo decided to channel their talents into a kwaito group, and after adding friends Patrick Lwane and Menzi Dlodlo, Moskito was born. (Pantsula dancing emerged in the 1950s among Black South Africans in townships and continually evolved until it became intertwined with kwaito music culture. The stylized, rapid foot movements and characteristic low-dancing became associated with kwaito as it took over South African urban culture into the early 2000s.) With limited resources, the group displayed immense creativity, recording demos using two cassette decks and instrumental tracks from other artists. They would rap and sing over an instrumental playing on one deck while the second deck records their performance. Their determination paid off when they submitted their demo to Tammy Music Publishers, who were captivated by Moskito's style. "Kwaito was the thing `in' at the time. If you did music you did kwaito. We wanted to fit in and actually it was easy," says Radebe. "We didn't have engineers in the group, so the first time in a real studio was with Percy and Thami to record Idolar." That same year, the group released their debut album, Idolar, under Tammy Music. The album was an undeniable success reaching gold status selling over 25,000 units and earning them a devoted fan base across South Africa and neighboring countries like Botswana, Swaziland, Namibia and Zimbabwe. Moskito collaborated with industry legends such as Chilly Mthiya Tshabalala, who was known for his work with Thiza and Spoke "H." They drew inspiration from Thami Mdluli a.k.a Professor Rhythm, who had dominated the disco scene back in the 80s and 90s. Mdluli helped with musical arrangements and executive produced the album and signed on producer-engineer Percy Mudau, while Shadow and Malemon took pride in composing most of their songs. Like many of the rising kwaito artists of the time, they didn't have music production or engineering backgrounds so they required support from engineers together their ideas down on tape. They were inspired from South African kwaito icons like Trompies, Mdu, Mandoza, and Arthur Mafokate, alongside international heavyweights like Snoop Doggy Dogg, Dr. Dre, 2Pac, and R. Kelly, Moskito created a sound that was uniquely theirs_a perfect blend of local flavor and global influence.

The record is largely sung in Scots language, one of Scotland’s three official languages along with Gaelic and English. “Scots gives me a way of expressing myself which is connected directly with the landscapes I love. It brings the songs alive and it is a fascinating language. The name of the record is in Scots - Forefowk means the people who came before, or ancestors. When we say ‘mind me,’ we can mean a few things- remind, remember, watch over or care for me. The record explores how tradition needs to be constantly reconnected with, built upon, looked after, and shared.”
Quinie sings with a style inspired by Scottish Traveller singers. “I began singing unaccompanied Scots Song in 2015 after hearing Scots Traveller singer Sheila Stewart on the radio. Initially I felt like I shouldn't sing these songs because I'm not a Traveller, and I saw people around me doing that in a way that made me uncomfortable. But on the other hand this music made sense to me and I felt driven to learn. Over the years I have met Traveller friends who taught me that settled people sharing these songs could contribute to raising awareness. Scottish Travellers are marginalised and discriminated against in modern Scotland, despite being custodians of so many of our important traditions. So I started to perform them and tell this story. From there I built on my repertoire and started writing my own songs”.
To develop this record, Quinie travelled across Argyll with her horse. They went on a pilgrimage of sorts through the ancient landscapes of the West of Scotland to explore the interconnected relationships between people, ancestors, animals, and place. The album’s vinyl release is accompanied by a book and film, documenting this unusual research process.
Forefowk, Mind Me was recorded in August 2024 at The Big Shed in Highland Perthshire with support from Creative Scotland. Quinie is accompanied by an ensemble of musicians: Ailbhe Nic Oireachtaigh (viola), Oliver Pitt (duduk, bouzouki, percussion), Harry Górski-Brown (small pipes, violin), and Stevie Jones (double bass, recording, and mixing). Each of these artists brings their own distinctive voice, bridging contemporary experimental practice with worlds of traditional and early music.

Soul Clap and Haven Star join forces for vibrant collaboration ‘Gone Stumblin’ on Crosstown Rebels.

Landing on 23rd May 2025, the track brings together years of musical evolution, late-night studio magic, and the unmistakable essence of a true party anthem. Genre-blending US house visionaries Soul Clap return to Damian Lazarus’ Crosstown Rebels with a deeply groovy and emotionally charged new release, teaming up with South Florida’s rising star Haven Star for the striking ‘Gone Stumblin’ - ushering in a new chapter of collaboration and cosmic storytelling.

Rooted in a near-mythical session at Brooklyn’s legendary Marcy Hotel, ‘Gone Stumblin’ began its journey with keyboardist John Camp crafting the original chord progressions and top-line melody. After years of floating in digital limbo, the track resurfaced thanks to Soul Clap’s Charles Levine, who reimagined it with a fresh twist and brought in Haven Star—whose soulful delivery launched it into orbit.

At just 24, Haven Star brings fresh energy and vintage soul sensibility to the table—having shared the stage with legends like Patti LaBelle, Jeff Beck, and Sam Moore, while cutting her teeth across genres from orchestral pop to funk-fuelled house. The original mix merges heady keys and rich chords with a bouncing, crisp low end, while the ‘Dub’ strips it back and introduces trippy sonics and heavy low-ends for after-hours introspection. ‘Unifying Force’ leans into Soul Clap’s psychedelic ethos, before the ‘Bonus Version’ of the title cut offers yet another club-ready rework with added punch.

For customers of the Rush Hour shop, this item ships for its may 23rd release date. Any items ordered along with this will ship then also

A classic returns. Mystery, one of The RAH Band’s most beloved albums, celebrates its 40th anniversary with this long-awaited reissue - the album's first time on vinyl since its original 1985 release.

The RAH Band, the brainchild of producer and arranger Richard Anthony Hewson, has been synthesizing jazz, funk, and electronic pop into out-of-this-world tracks since the late 1970s. Mystery marked an important moment in Richard's career, following on from The Crunch & Beyond (1978), RAH (1980), and Going Up (1983). With this album, Hewson took his pop songwriting and commercial success to new heights while never compromising his unique and unbound production style.

At the heart of the album are eight perfectly crafted pop songs, each standing strong on its own, with no filler in sight. The lead single, Are You Satisfied?, set the tone for the album’s jazz-funk evolution, but it was Clouds Across The Moon, with its futuristic narrative of love and longing across the cosmos, that became a chart-topping phenomenon, reaching #6 in the UK. The track’s space-age storytelling cemented its place in pop history, with many still recalling that 1985 Top of the Pops performance as the moment they fell in love with The RAH Band - if you know, you know.

From the dreamy synth-jazz of Float, a club and radio favourite to this day, to the smooth saxophone solo on Out On The Edge, recently featured on Steven Julien (aka Funkineven)'s DJ Kicks mix, Mystery remains an essential album four decades later - a testament to the genius of one of the most quietly influential songwriter-producer-arrangers of our time.

In 2012 Gruff Rhys embarked on a solo 'investigative concert tour' through the heart of America following the route taken by his distant relative John Evans. Every night he presented songs augmented by a power point presentation that detailed his relative's unbelievable history, along with any new piece of information that had come his way during the day. He was ultimately looking for Evans's lost unmarked grave. Along with many major cities, the tour took him to play shows at the Mandan and Omaha tribe reservations, a Missouri vineyard, villages that no longer exist and lay at the bottom the Mississippi river and a New Orleans bordello. What transpired from that ‘investigative concert tour’ was a 2014 album, American Interior, plus a book, film and exhaustive tour of the same name. With the aid of the dusted-off power point presentation, Gruff Rhys and a full band revisits the project in 2025 to perform the songs that formed both the album, and the soundtrack to the film.

Gruff says of the reissue -

“Revisiting American Interior 11 years later, feels very prescient. In following the unusual story of explorer John Evans (1770-1799) it becomes clear that faked narratives can have profound and unpredictable consequences in real life. His barely believable journey of verification in searching through continental scale wilderness for a fictitious Welsh speaking tribe believed to be living on the Great Plains of North America (an ancient folk tale perpetuated by the Elizabethan court following the subjugation of Wales, to make colonial claims on behalf of the British on the Americas) had a dramatic political effect on the fledgling USA and a devastating impact on himself and some of those who helped him on his way. I wrote an album of songs inspired by his life; American Interior, which also served as a soundtrack to a documentary film based on a book that detailed his journey, intertwined with my own investigative concert tour, all three of which I worked on simultaneously during a 2-year fever 2012-14. By far the most ambitious undertaking I’ve ever attempted. Living with one foot in the 18th century, wearing the same clothes (for cinematic continuity) for that entire period, left me pretty exhausted. (Imagine a cold extra from The Revenant movie). It took me a while to process the whole experience and its lessons and feel I owe it to my former self to take these songs back on the road for a couple of months and re-tell the story for a new decade. To celebrate it further Rough Trade will reissue a remastered version of the album with previously unreleased tracks.”

In 2012 Gruff Rhys embarked on a solo 'investigative concert tour' through the heart of America following the route taken by his distant relative John Evans. Every night he presented songs augmented by a power point presentation that detailed his relative's unbelievable history, along with any new piece of information that had come his way during the day. He was ultimately looking for Evans's lost unmarked grave. Along with many major cities, the tour took him to play shows at the Mandan and Omaha tribe reservations, a Missouri vineyard, villages that no longer exist and lay at the bottom the Mississippi river and a New Orleans bordello. What transpired from that ‘investigative concert tour’ was a 2014 album, American Interior, plus a book, film and exhaustive tour of the same name. With the aid of the dusted-off power point presentation, Gruff Rhys and a full band revisits the project in 2025 to perform the songs that formed both the album, and the soundtrack to the film.

Gruff says of the reissue -

“Revisiting American Interior 11 years later, feels very prescient. In following the unusual story of explorer John Evans (1770-1799) it becomes clear that faked narratives can have profound and unpredictable consequences in real life. His barely believable journey of verification in searching through continental scale wilderness for a fictitious Welsh speaking tribe believed to be living on the Great Plains of North America (an ancient folk tale perpetuated by the Elizabethan court following the subjugation of Wales, to make colonial claims on behalf of the British on the Americas) had a dramatic political effect on the fledgling USA and a devastating impact on himself and some of those who helped him on his way. I wrote an album of songs inspired by his life; American Interior, which also served as a soundtrack to a documentary film based on a book that detailed his journey, intertwined with my own investigative concert tour, all three of which I worked on simultaneously during a 2-year fever 2012-14. By far the most ambitious undertaking I’ve ever attempted. Living with one foot in the 18th century, wearing the same clothes (for cinematic continuity) for that entire period, left me pretty exhausted. (Imagine a cold extra from The Revenant movie). It took me a while to process the whole experience and its lessons and feel I owe it to my former self to take these songs back on the road for a couple of months and re-tell the story for a new decade. To celebrate it further Rough Trade will reissue a remastered version of the album with previously unreleased tracks.”

His story is entangled in the story of America, and he's been tracing it's highways and
entertaining it's audiences, and those abroad, for nearly six decades.
So, it's fitting that his new record, is entitled Look Out Highway, and it's remarkable
that a man who has spent more days on the road than off still brings such spirit and
passion to the music and the lifestyle. Throughout his illustrious career Charlie
Musselwhite has received 13 Grammy nominations and 33 Blues Music Awards. In
2014 his collaboration with Ben Harper Get Up won a Grammy and in 2010 he was
inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame. In 2023, Musselwhite was cast in Martin
Scorsese's film Killers of the Flower Moon.Charlie has collaborated with an eclectic
list of incredible artists over the years, including Ben Harper, Cyndi Lauper, Eddie
Vedder, Tom Waits, Bonnie Raitt, Gov't Mule, INXS, George Thorogood, Eliades Ochoa,
Cat Stevens, Elvin Bishop and John Lee Hooker.More than any other harmonica player
of his generation, Charlie Musselwhite can rightfully lay claim to inheriting the mantle
of many of the great harp players that came before him with music as dark as
Mississippi mud and as uplifting as the blue skies of California.
In an era when the term legendary gets applied to auto-tuned pop stars, this singular
blues harp player, singer, songwriter, and guitarist has earned and deserves to be
honored as a true master of American classic vernacular music.

Two Times Juno awards listed and 2 times Polaris price listed, Canadian Soul Star Tanika Charles unleash the new album "Reason To Stay that drops on May 16 via independent soul label Record Kicks. Reasons To Stay is Tanika Charles' fourth full-length album, and her most introspective to date. Where her songs have typically touched on romantic love and heartache, the core love and loss of this record is family focused. It has taken years for Tanika to be able to publicly reflect on the childhood trauma and family breakup that occurred during her teens. The majority of the album was composed by Tanika with the tight knit team of Scott McCannell (Lydia Persaud, Henry Nozuka), Kyla Charter (Aysanabee) and Chino de Villa (Jessie Reyez). Kelly Finnigan of the Monophonics joined in to mix the bulk of the project and apply some trademark analogue grit to Tanika's sheen. Guests include Quebec-based Soulful singer/songwriter Clerel on the last track "Win", as well as Toronto soul artists Aphrose and Claire Davis providing additional vocals. "I love this album. I love singing these songs. I love that it's made me step outside of my comfort zone. It's forced me to face the root causes of my own insecurities that I carry to this day. Why am I striving so hard to seek validation, and why take it so personally when it doesn't come? That distortion has prevented me from celebrating my own successes at times. This album is me trying to change that." "I love the conversations that have begun with these songs. It's about childhood trauma, but it's not a victim story. I'm doing well, despite the baggage I carry. I want others to be able to carry theirs too." In the last few years, Canadian Soul/R&B powerhouse Tanika Charles has transformed from an emerging solo artist to a commanding performer and bandleader, cementing her status as a staple in the Canadian soul scene. Her previous studio albums - "Soul Run" (2017), "The Gumption" (2019), and "Papillon De Nuit" (2022) - have propelled her to international acclaim, earning her two JUNO nominations, two Polaris Prize listings, and a growing global fanbase. Extensive touring across North America and Europe has further solidified her reputation, with standout performances at festivals such as Trans Musicales in France, Fusion Festival in Germany, Mostly Funk & Soul Festival and Jazz Festival in the UK, Holy Groove Festival in Switzerland, and Canarias Jazz Festival in Spain. She has also shared the stage Estelle, Mayer Hawthorne, Haitus Kayote, Lauryn Hill, Bedouin Soundclash and Macy Gray. Tanika's meteoric rise and undeniable artistry have been widely championed by outlets such as KCRW, KEXP, BBC6 Music, Exclaim!, CBC Music, Uncut Mag, PopMatters, Albumism .. further solidifying her position as a global soul sensation.

A fully licensed, analogue reissue -- sure, on cassette and not on vinyl, that's a
long story -- of the first Index LP, originally released in 1967
The "Black Album" is one of the all-time holy grails of psychedelia, with originals going
for more than $4,000. It is an album "with a really druggie sound, full of feedback and
fuzzy guitars. The vocals, when present, are not easily heard. The cover of 'Eight Miles
High' is very good, probably one of the best cover versions I have ever heard. The
original songs all follow a similar pattern as the covers, with hazy guitar riffs and loud
rhythms. The last track is particularly noisy and unstructured. Hidden in amongst the
echoing canyons of sound there's some really snotty punk attitude wrapped up in
trippy velvet fuzz."
This record is magnificent-- bizarre, atmospheric, amateurish (in the best of all
possible ways). It has a wonderful bleak sound, both droning and murky... the atonal
sound of 1960's rock that would leave the most lasting impression on what would
become future punk, post-punk and indie rock artists.
"Much has been written about this incredible band. Much of it isn't true. Index was
formed in the early spring of 1967 in Grosse Pointe, Michigan. I was 18 years old
when I met a chain-smoking 16-year-old named Gary Francis. Our conversation soon
got around to rock and roll. He told me that he and his friend, John Ford, were forming
a band. I told him that I played drums and we arranged a jam session at John's home
on Lakeshore Drive. Our first meeting was incredible. Our sound was full and
powerful. John's lead guitar techniques were fresh and innovative. After our first
sessions we knew we had something special. Index was born. Soon we hit the local
'sock hop' circuit, playing at high schools and teen clubs in the area. We poured our
unique sound out at The Hideout, Undercroft and G.P. War Memorial every weekend.
One afternoon John pulled out a new album he had been listening to. It was a new
band with a mind-shattering sound called 'The Jimi Hendrix Experience.' John played
some songs he had written inspired by this 'psychedelic' sound. Over the next few
days, 'Fire Eyes,' 'Shock Wave' and 'Feedback' were written. This album was recorded
in December of 1967 at the Ford estate. It is recorded in mono with literally one
microphone and with all instruments and vocals recorded at the same time. The cover
photo is of founders of a singing group John joined at Yale. The stiff, board- like
figures seem to characterize the exact opposite of this musical collection. This
reissue is taken from the original recordings. Nothing has been added and all songs
are in their original length. Over the years various bootleg copies of this album have
surfaced but this is the original work." --Jim Valice

TOTEMIC MODULATIONS, UNEARTHED FROM WIND AND WORDS

“The album Chênes mainly brings together songs. These songs are narratives of scenes that unfold in the forest, or in the city but with animal and plant protagonists. One song also tells the story of a solitary walk in the mountains. They are like zoomed-in snapshots of the world of insects, amphibians, birds, and mammals. They are also celebrations of growing life, and the pleasure and joy it brings.

Composed over the course of about two or three years, it was a deliberate choice to bring them together for this album, even though they were not initially connected to one another. One of them is an exception and is more of a collection of vocalizations and cries without actual words, composed in a language incomprehensible to humans because it is nonverbal.

This collection of imitated chants and sung songs had to be illustrated by the collages of my friend Fen. Even though the stories describe real species and elements, they are indeed imagined tales. Her collages are, too. There’s also the violin that adds a wandering touch to the pieces, and other instruments that shape the environment and setting of these stories. Bells, bird calls, whistles, flutes, jaw harp, harmonica — all imitate more or less imaginary species. Each has its role and its life, down to the horsehair of the bow that rubs the strings of my violin to bring forth the sound.

Chênes is a title that pays homage to trees I love so much, though without preference over others. They have embodied several giants that I’ve often come across, greeted, and embraced” ~ Roxane Métayer

At long last, Q Lazzarus says hello to Dark Entries. Q Lazzarus is the moniker of Diane Luckey, born in New Jersey in 1960. While living in the East Village in New York City in the 1980s, Diane met songwriter Bill Garvey at a party and they recorded “Goodbye Horses” in his home studio. As the story goes, Luckey met Hollywood director Jonathan Demme when she picked him up in her taxi during a snowstorm in 1986. Demme was wowed by her demo tape, which was playing in the cab, and they ended up hanging out at a restaurant for hours talking about life and music. “He liked it so much, I gave him the tape I was listening to, he said he would call me for one of his movies, but I didn’t really take it seriously.” said Luckey. Demme would have the song “Goodbye Horses” first appear in his offbeat comedy Married to the Mob, and then again more memorably in Silence of the Lambs when Buffalo Bill changes into women’s clothing while drowning out his intended victim’s pleas with loud music. Despite the exposure, both Luckey and Garvey languished in relative obscurity. “Goodbye Horses” is the definition of a cult classic, an ethereal tearjerker driven by Garvey’s lush synth work and Luckey’s unmistakably powerful voice. Garvey says, “the song is about transcendence over those who see the world as only earthly and finite.”

Over 15 years of effort have gone into the making of this release. All five songs on this record were previously unreleased and are sourced from original master tapes. The extended version of “Goodbye Horses” was newly mixed from the original stems by Alberto Hernandez at Fantasy Studios. Instrumental and acapella versions of the song are included, which are also available for the first time. Side B opens with “Hellfire,” a brooding number about the New York BDSM nightclub of the same name, showcasing the range and force of Luckey’s voice. “Summertime” follows, with a sauntering synth-reggae spin on the 1937 George Gershwin number. Both B-side tracks are also new mixdowns and edits from the original stems. This record is released alongside Eva Aridjis Fuentes’s documentary on Q Lazzarus, Goodbye Horses: The Many Lives of Q Lazzarus, a work chronicling the life of the enigmatic Luckey. It is an opportune moment to reflect on the underrecognized artists we have lost and the undeniable brilliance of both Diane Luckey and William Garvey.

Indian-born British composer Cephas Azariah presents his highly anticipated debut album, a 12-track neo-classical LP 'Joy Paradox' to Reflections. Cephas was always drawn to classical composition, he studied Music Theology and the Arts at Middlesex university and began composing soundtracks for film right away. He drew on the full spectrum of his influences to write his debut album, including neo-classical, ambient and cinematic, and wrote it in his home studio with a piano he bought off Facebook Marketplace. "I finished it all in Scotland in a cabin by the lochs," he says. "It was a beautiful way to wrap it up." Every track on Cephas Azariah's 'Joy Paradox' has a story, tending to resolve personal conflicts through music, with each piece acting as a gentle unravelling of inner unrest. "This project is a summary of thirty years of life, and a realisation that you can't have good things without sacrifice," Cephas says. "Achieving success takes a certain level of suffering, and that's the paradox of joy."

Extending the melodious and mad, three-decade story of Super Furry Animals projects by adding another bombastic and beautiful chapter, Huw Bunford, Cian Ciarán, Daf Ieuan and Guto Pryce reconvene to announce the release of their second album, Pando.

Meeting every pummelling motorway mile with the beat of their psychedelic-soul-house blend since the release of their debut, Official UK Breakers Album Chart No.1 album, DK.01, in late 2023, Das Koolies’ energetic return to festival fields, intimate venues and service station shopping has affected no distraction from their mission. Committing to more time on the road at the same time as sharing rich spoils from the studio, Das Koolies include Newport, Nottingham, London and Manchester in their live plans. Determinedly exploring capability and ambition, the band’s continued, restorative return to wired and wonderful, man-and-machine-based music, following years of psych-folk-rock experimentation as four Furries, hasn’t meant forgetting the past. Som Bom Magnífico’s tour story, combining wistful and weary memory, rests the band’s case.

Taking on the lead lyrical and vocal role, Daf Ieuan, says: “Hindsight and rose-tinted glasses. It’s a song about a time when it was normal to order a veggie breakfast in hotels as a concession to a healthier life style, then following up by requesting to see the ‘Breakfast Wine Menu’. As Lou Reed sang: "Wine in the morning!".
Everyone should live like that for a while. Could be for a couple of days or a couple of decades. We’ve never laughed so much, but never again.”

Extending the melodious and mad, three-decade story of Super Furry Animals projects by adding another bombastic and beautiful chapter, Huw Bunford, Cian Ciarán, Daf Ieuan and Guto Pryce reconvene to announce the release of their second album, Pando.

Meeting every pummelling motorway mile with the beat of their psychedelic-soul-house blend since the release of their debut, Official UK Breakers Album Chart No.1 album, DK.01, in late 2023, Das Koolies’ energetic return to festival fields, intimate venues and service station shopping has affected no distraction from their mission. Committing to more time on the road at the same time as sharing rich spoils from the studio, Das Koolies include Newport, Nottingham, London and Manchester in their live plans. Determinedly exploring capability and ambition, the band’s continued, restorative return to wired and wonderful, man-and-machine-based music, following years of psych-folk-rock experimentation as four Furries, hasn’t meant forgetting the past. Som Bom Magnífico’s tour story, combining wistful and weary memory, rests the band’s case.

Taking on the lead lyrical and vocal role, Daf Ieuan, says: “Hindsight and rose-tinted glasses. It’s a song about a time when it was normal to order a veggie breakfast in hotels as a concession to a healthier life style, then following up by requesting to see the ‘Breakfast Wine Menu’. As Lou Reed sang: "Wine in the morning!".
Everyone should live like that for a while. Could be for a couple of days or a couple of decades. We’ve never laughed so much, but never again.”

Townes Van Zandt’s eighth studio album, released in 1978, from one of the most influential figures in country, folk, and Americana music, returns with a new analogue mastering on a limited edition blue vinyl — complete with a color insert featuring sleeve notes, a rare Townes Van Zandt interview, and the full lyrics.

This reissue celebrates the album’s enduring legacy and its importance as Townes’ debut release on Tomato Records – the label run by his long-time manager Kevin Eggers. Originally recorded at Nashville’s famed American Studios and produced by Chips Moman, Flyin’ Shoes features some of Van Zandt’s finest work, including standout tracks like the heartfelt ‘Loretta’, the haunting ‘No Place to Fall’ the mystical title track, and the standout ‘Rex’s Blues’. The album also introduces ‘Pueblo Waltz’, a song that, alongside others, solidified Van Zandt’s reputation as a master of blending poetic lyricism and melancholic storytelling. In addition to its timeless tracks, Flyin’ Shoes has a unique history. Indeed, the album includes material from a previously abandoned 1973 project, 7 Come 11, that would be released years later under the title The Nashville Sessions in 1993, also available on Charly Records. Many of the songs from that unfinished album were re-recorded for Flyin’ Shoes, and these fresh takes represent Van Zandt’s growth as an artist while staying true to the raw authenticity that fans have come to cherish

"10th Anniversary Edition Ghostface Killah, legendary Wu-Tang Clan member, invites you to rediscover the cinematic brilliance of 36 Seasons, his tenth studio album and unforgettable concept masterpiece.
Originally released ten years ago, this album tells the compelling story of Tony Starks as he returns to Staten Island after nine years, seeking a peaceful life but nding anything but. 36 Seasons is a testament to Ghostface’s storytelling genius and raw lyrical power.
To honor its 10th anniversary, 36 Seasons is being reissued in a range of special formats packed with exclusive bonuses. Fans can look forward to three vinyl editions, including a Deluxe Double Vinyl featuring all original tracks alongside instrumental versions."

"10th Anniversary Edition Ghostface Killah, legendary Wu-Tang Clan member, invites you to rediscover the cinematic brilliance of 36 Seasons, his tenth studio album and unforgettable concept masterpiece.
Originally released ten years ago, this album tells the compelling story of Tony Starks as he returns to Staten Island after nine years, seeking a peaceful life but nding anything but. 36 Seasons is a testament to Ghostface’s storytelling genius and raw lyrical power.
To honor its 10th anniversary, 36 Seasons is being reissued in a range of special formats packed with exclusive bonuses. Fans can look forward to three vinyl editions, including a Deluxe Double Vinyl featuring all original tracks alongside instrumental versions."

"10th Anniversary Edition Ghostface Killah, legendary Wu-Tang Clan member, invites you to rediscover the cinematic brilliance of 36 Seasons, his tenth studio album and unforgettable concept masterpiece.
Originally released ten years ago, this album tells the compelling story of Tony Starks as he returns to Staten Island after nine years, seeking a peaceful life but nding anything but. 36 Seasons is a testament to Ghostface’s storytelling genius and raw lyrical power.
To honor its 10th anniversary, 36 Seasons is being reissued in a range of special formats packed with exclusive bonuses. Fans can look forward to three vinyl editions, including a Deluxe Double Vinyl featuring all original tracks alongside instrumental versions."

"A powder keg of bangers primed to shake the rat race to its core" - The Guardian Australia (Best of 2023) "Simultaneously chaotic and precise, no matter whether the palette is fierce rap, punk energy or slinking beats." - Rolling Stone Australia (Best of 2023) London/Melbourne rap duo Teether & Kuya Neil release their long-awaited debut album YEARN IV. YEARN IV captures the brooding and vivid world of two musical outsiders. Raised by the internet, the pair find their voice amid a sea of clashing cultural experiences and sonic histories, finding solace in the isolation of contemporary urban Australia. Recorded in Melbourne and completed in London, the album captures the duo's hyper local yet globally influenced rap sound at its core. Kuya Neil's drum heavy production collides with Teether's surreal and immersive storytelling, blending thrash metal and club music aesthetics with the echoes of the early internet. Lead single `ZOO' plays with the silent throes of cultural diversity over a paranoid trap instrumental, 'BLUSH' is a blissed out digital love letter wuth shimmering autotuned hooks and rave inspired breaks. `CHANEL' (featuring Indigenous Australian songwriter Alice Skye) is a guitar driven lament for Australia's myopic cultural landscape, fading out with "I'll never reach my full potential here". Teether & Kuya Neil released their first mixtape GLYPH via Chapter in 2021, receiving airplay from NTS, Dublab and Australian radio, plus writeups via Brooklyn Vegan and NME. Four tracks from `GLYPH' were featured in the iconic Australian Netflix series 'Heartbreak High' the following year. 2023 mixtape STRESSOR charted in the Australian Independent Top 10 and made it into end of year best of lists for The Guardian, Rolling Stone and NME Australia. The mixtape was nominated for Best Hip Hop Album at the 2024 Australian Independent Music Awards and named Album of the Week by 3RRR and fBI Radio. Teether & Kuya Neil have performed around Australia and New Zealand. They have played alongside international peers MC Yallah & Debmaster and They Hate Change as well as supported veteran alt-rap outfit Shabazz Palaces and Chicago Footwork pioneer RP Boo. As a solo artist, Teether has collaborated with New York rapper Billy Woods and toured with his outfit Armand Hammer in Australia in 2022. In 2024, he opened for the legendary Kim Gordon. Kuya Neil is an active producer in underground dance music, releasing tracks on UK labels Chinabot and Moveltraxx and has toured South East Asia as a DJ and promoter.

Even the name is mysterious-Black Honey Cult evokes a sense of intrigue and the otherworldly, a fitting moniker for a band born out of deep roots in Los Angeles' storied underground music scene. The story begins in the early '90s, when Johnny DeVilla and Jake Cavaliere first crossed paths, performing in various bands at the legendary JabberJaw, a hub for raw talent and boundary-pushing sound. Fast forward to 2003, when Spencer Robinson joined forces with Jake and Johnny in The Lords of Altamont, solidifying a creative bond that has endured for decades. Over the years, this trio found themselves collaborating time and again, refining their chemistry and exploring new sonic landscapes. It wasn't until 2010 that Black Honey Cult began to take shape, though the journey to a definitive lineup was a winding road. After several incarnations, the band finally coalesced into its current form with the addition of Garey Snider on drums, and Travis Petersen on guitar, whose contributions completed the puzzle. Jake and Garey, longtime conspirators with a shared desire to work together, brought their vision to fruition, creating a group that feels both destined and uniquely fresh. Drawing inspiration from pioneers like The Velvet Underground and psychedelic icons, The 13th Floor Elevators, Black Honey Cult infuses their sound with shades of early goth, post-punk, and krautrock. The result? A hypnotic, genre-defying blend of dark, atmospheric psychedelia that transports listeners to another plane - like dropping LSD on Mars. The band's sound was brought to life by the legendary Paul Roessler (of Screamers and 45 Grave fame) at Kitten Robot Studios, a perfect match for their haunting and transportive vision. Black Honey Cult stands as a testament to years of collaboration, creativity, and perseverance, offering an immersive experience for those ready to step into their enigmatic world. Prepare to follow the cult and lose yourself in the spellbinding sounds of Black Honey Cult.

Gold nugget vinyl, limited to 350 copies. Even the name is mysterious-Black Honey Cult evokes a sense of intrigue and the otherworldly, a fitting moniker for a band born out of deep roots in Los Angeles' storied underground music scene. The story begins in the early '90s, when Johnny DeVilla and Jake Cavaliere first crossed paths, performing in various bands at the legendary JabberJaw, a hub for raw talent and boundary-pushing sound. Fast forward to 2003, when Spencer Robinson joined forces with Jake and Johnny in The Lords of Altamont, solidifying a creative bond that has endured for decades. Over the years, this trio found themselves collaborating time and again, refining their chemistry and exploring new sonic landscapes. It wasn't until 2010 that Black Honey Cult began to take shape, though the journey to a definitive lineup was a winding road. After several incarnations, the band finally coalesced into its current form with the addition of Garey Snider on drums, and Travis Petersen on guitar, whose contributions completed the puzzle. Jake and Garey, longtime conspirators with a shared desire to work together, brought their vision to fruition, creating a group that feels both destined and uniquely fresh. Drawing inspiration from pioneers like The Velvet Underground and psychedelic icons, The 13th Floor Elevators, Black Honey Cult infuses their sound with shades of early goth, post-punk, and krautrock. The result? A hypnotic, genre-defying blend of dark, atmospheric psychedelia that transports listeners to another plane - like dropping LSD on Mars. The band's sound was brought to life by the legendary Paul Roessler (of Screamers and 45 Grave fame) at Kitten Robot Studios, a perfect match for their haunting and transportive vision. Black Honey Cult stands as a testament to years of collaboration, creativity, and perseverance, offering an immersive experience for those ready to step into their enigmatic world. Prepare to follow the cult and lose yourself in the spellbinding sounds of Black Honey Cult.

Lael Neale's minimalist drone pop draws inspiration from the Transcendentalists, the alienation of modern life, and a rich array of musical influences-ranging from Dionne Warwick and John Lennon to primitive American gospel and Spacemen 3. Her expansive new record, Altogether Stranger, due May 2, was written and recorded in the early morning quiet of Los Angeles. Clocking in at just 32 minutes, the 9-song LP covers an unexpected breadth of musical and lyrical terrain-from garage rock nursery rhymes and creation myths to Motorik dance dirges and solitary Omnichord meditations. A brilliant lyricist, Neale has a unique ability to uncover the extraordinary within the mundane, tackling themes of polarity that recur throughout her work-country vs. city, humanity vs. technology, isolation vs. society. This album is her third collaboration with producer Guy Blakeslee who helps expand the tonal palette while staying true to Neale's commitment to the raw immediacy and hand-made intimacy of home recording. Altogether Stranger - a stunning album filled with dreamlike reverie, Neale's crystalline voice, and echoes of the Velvet Underground - was conceived after four years of oscillating between rural solitude and urban chaos. It finds Neale perched at the piano in a hilltop bungalow, looking down on a rare curve of Sunset Blvd. Here, in this daily ritual of writing, singing, and painting-what David Lynch referred to as "the Art Life"-she creates the space for her most adventurous work to date. Born and raised in Virginia's idyllic countryside, Neale brought the high-lonesome sound of her home state with her when she moved to California to pursue music. After years of writing songs on guitar and playing small venues in Los Angeles, she discovered the Omnichord in 2019, which sparked a new creative direction. This led to her 2021 Sub Pop debut album, Acquainted With Night. That album's 2023 follow-up, Star Eaters Delight, deepened the collaboration with Blakeslee, infusing minimalist soundscapes with a heightened electric energy. The album found a devoted audience, and Neale's subsequent tour included sold-out shows in Los Angeles, New York City, London, and Paris, multiple trips across Europe, and a West Coast run supporting kindred spirit Weyes Blood. This marked yet another return to Los Angeles. Indeed, Los Angeles is not just the backdrop of Altogether Stranger but a lead character. The album's accompanying film - created with Neale's faithful Sony Handycam - builds on her ongoing series of videos, telling the story of Neale as an alien in a suit of mirrors stranded on Earth. Wandering through modern-day LA, she finds both absurdity and beauty in our fragile, untenable way of life. Over the long year it took to write Altogether Stranger, Neale vacillated between childlike optimism and existential melancholy. While she may not have been able to reconcile these opposing states, Altogether Stranger represents an ambitious breakthrough for this singular, self-sufficient artist.

The Great Dismal, NOTHING’s new full-length album explores existentialist themes of isolation, extinction, and human behavior in the face of 2020’s vast wasteland. Closing in on the band’s ten-year mark, frontman Domenic Palermo finds himself stringing together songs of misanthropic tales of Philadelphia with a refined and refreshed take on NOTHING's classic sound. “The Great Dismal refers to a swamp, a brilliant natural trap where survival is custom fit to its inhabitants,” Palermo states. “The nature of its beautiful, but taxing environment and harsh conditions can’t ever really be shaken or forgotten too easily.” The ever progressive NOTHING keep true to their chaotic outlook on life, keeping a keen eye to avoid repetition. With a radical cast of talented contributors such as harpist Mary Lattimore, classical musician Shelley Weiss, and singer/songwriter/producer Alex G., The Great Dismal showcases yet another essential side of the band’s trademark American Post-Shoegaze.

Placenta is the fourth collection of broadly imaginative and highly collaborative Carlos Niño & Friends music released on International Anthem since 2021. But perhaps more notably for the zeitgeist of today, it is the first new music to be released by Carlos Niño & Friends following the November 2023 release of André 3000’s New Blue Sun – an album which Carlos produced alongside André, while co-writing, performing, and co-mixing every song. The announcement of Placenta also comes while Carlos is in the middle of tours with André to support New Blue Sun, where Carlos wields an immense presence as music director, bandleader, and percussionist, and performs alongside many of the same musicians that are present on his recent & Friends albums, including this new one.

Placenta is announced on the 1st solar return of Moss Niño, of whom Carlos and his partner Annelise are Earth parents. Their experience of pregnancy, labor and delivery were all profoundly impactful for Carlos. Becoming a father again (a whole 25 years after the birth of Azul Niño, who has become a regular artistic collaborator for Carlos) he felt total Inspiration for this set of recordings, and hence it is perhaps the most conceptually-grounded Carlos Niño & Friends album we've yet to present–fully connected to the spirit of family, birth, and "how we get here."

In Niño’s words, Placenta is “dedicated to Mothers, Children, Babies, Aunties, Doulas, Midwives, Birthworkers...,” and a short list of track titles includes: "Love to all Doulas!," "Some Rest for the Midwives," "Real Vital Organs," and "Generous Pelvis." The centerpiece of the album, the sprawling "Placenta, Nourishment, New Home, The Galaxy," is an unbelievably vivid immersion in the sonic architecture of Niño's memory-scape...like being present in his energy field...or being present in a birthing room, or maybe even being born yourself. And it just might be the most powerful, unique piece of music Niño has ever created.

Featured artists on Placenta, in order of their entry on the album, include: Nate Mercereau, Jamire Williams, Sam Gendel, Jamael Dean, Dexter Story, Brandon Eugene Owens, Maia, André 3000, Jesse Peterson, Ariel Kalma, Surya Botofasina, Annelise, Haize Hawke, Aaron Shaw, Devin Daniels, Tiffany de Leon, Michael Bolger, Michael Alvidrez, Moss, Iasos, Photay, Deantoni Parks, Adam Rudolph, Andres Renteria, and Cavana Lee.

The 20th installment of Saddle Creek’s Document series features Dean Johnson, the Seattle-based singer/songwriter whose heartfelt storytelling and undeniable charm have been quietly building a devoted fanbase across the globe.

For years regulars at Al’s Tavern might murmur to each other about Dean Johnson behind the bar. There were nudges and whispers that he might just be the best songwriter in town. They spoke of his talent like a family secret –Seattle folklore. How many times, and for how many years, did Dean elusively reply to some variation of the question, “When will there be a record?”

In May of 2023, there finally was. Nothing For Me, Please, Dean Johnson’s debut album, was released on his 50th birthday.

Calling him a “hidden gem” doesn’t quite fit, because there’s nothing hidden about him—he shines in plain sight. It was only a matter of time before people stopped to take notice.

Dean’s music feels like a conversation with an old friend—warm, honest, and deeply human. His songs bridge the past and present, weaving modern sensibilities with a timeless appeal. With razor-sharp wit and an uncanny ability to make you laugh and cry in the same breath, Dean’s songwriting reminds us why music matters, offering proof that a song can be more than the sum of it’s parts. Hear just a phrase of his melody, catch even a moment of the sobering depth in his voice, and you’ll feel it—like a letter written, signed, sealed, and delivered just for you.

Go see him live, and you’ll understand. That’s how he won us over—one song, one story, one unforgettable moment at a time.

Few albums evoke a sense of place as vividly as Desire!, the third offering from Friend of a Friend. The duo—Claire Molek and Jason Savsani—craft music that feels cinematic and immersive, threading themes of yearning, transformation, and resilience through a palette of lush synths, tactile rhythms, and haunting vocals. Recorded in a sprawling Victorian mansion in rural Illinois, with a history steeped in spiritualism and the paranormal, Desire! not only embodies the environment where it was created but also reflects the duo’s evolution as musicians and sonic architects.

Producer Jordan Lawler (M83), who also worked with the duo on FACILITIES, played a pivotal role in shaping the album’s sound. His approach seamlessly integrates analog and electronic elements, from shimmering synth pads to deep, tactile rhythms. The result is a record that feels both vast and grounded, inviting careful listening to its intricate details.

With Desire!, Friend of a Friend captures their evolution as musicians and storytellers, offering a record that lingers in the spaces between tension and beauty. The result is an immersive and deliberate work, one that showcases their musical innovation and their ability to create a vivid, otherworldly sense of place—haunting and cinematic, like stepping into a film where every sound carries a story.

The band has been named an artist to watch by Rolling Stone, an “American visionary” group by Mesmerized, an “indie rock band taking the scene by storm" by Wonderland Magazine, a "cultural phenomenon" by Extravafrench, "sonic visionaries" by Plastic Magazine, "the next huge thing in indie rock" by Each Measure, and "seamlessly intriguing" by Obscure Sound.

d4vd’s debut album, WITHERED, is one of the most hotly anticipated albums of the year. It completes the story laid out in his 2023 EPs, Petals to Thorns and The Lost Petals, as he continues to articulate a relationship’s ricocheting emotions: the coruscating highs and bleak lows, all set to music that’s intimate, hook-heavy, and refreshingly direct. Created primarily on Bandlab, WITHERED brought d4vd back to the place his music journey began: his sister’s closet, alone with his iPhone. To finish the record, d4vd journeyed to London with a trusted crew of collaborators to create a cohesive, intimate record that’s meant to be listened to sequentially — the songs consumed like chapters — that spotlights his evolution as a deft and dynamic vocalist.

Pressed on 180 gram virgin pearl-coloured vinyl

Includes 16-page 12” booklet signed by the artist

Black poly-lined inners

Individually numbered

Limited to 1,000 copies worldwide


A Paradise In The Hold is an album of yearning. It’s about Ivor Novello Award winning Yazz Ahmed’s dual heritage, drawing on traditional music and folklore as well as her own personal experience as a British-Bahraini woman. A sweeping epic where tradition meets innovation, she melds ancient rhythms with contemporary musicianship. The record is a tribute to the sorrowful songs of Bahrain’s pearl divers, the strength of Arab women, and the celebratory rhythms of women's traditional drumming circles, while also telling the story of Yazz’s own decade-long voyage of selfdiscovery. The album also marks Yazz’s first foray into writing lyrics, in both English and Arabic, bringing a new dimension to her expansive sound. The project features an impressive roster of collaborators, including vocalists Natacha Atlas, Brigitte Beraha, and percussionist Corrina Silvester. With A Paradise In The Hold, Ahmed delivers a groundbreaking fusion of tradition and innovation, creating a contemporary jazz project that is set to make a lasting impact on the genre

The Ibex Band, with Giovanni Rico and Selam Woldemariam at the creative helm, provided the musical backbone for legends like Aster Aweke, Girma Beyene, Tilahun Gessesse, Mulatu Astatke, and Mahmoud Ahmed, including the iconic album Ere Mela Mela, shaping modern Ethiopian music as we know it today. This 1976 album (Ge’ez Year 1968) played a pivotal role in that legacy and has now resurfaced to set the record straight.

There’s a tendency to talk about the seventies as a golden age of Ethiopian music. There are good reasons for that, and just as good reasons against it. However, the notion of a golden past privileges the role of Western explorers and suggests that the pinnacle of Ethiopia’s musical culture is something only a foreigner can appreciate and unearth. It downplays the complexities of Ethiopia’s culture and history, creating an artificial divide between then and now. And it underestimates the constantly evolving sound that has followed.

The legendary musical outfit The Ibex Band, later metamorphosed into The Roha Band, has played a central role in defining the sound of many of the greatest stars on the music scene of Ethiopia from the mid-seventies onwards–but their golden output has never really waned. The story of the origins of the band that provided the musical backbone for greats such as Aster Aweke, Girma Beyene, Tilahun Gessesse, backing the solo career of group member Mahmoud Ahmed as well as backing Mulatu Astatke and many others has yet to be properly told.

Two misconceptions plague the image of Ethiopian music, one is that the music is pure because it is, by some notion, unexploited, the other is that it is all traditional. To begin with, a combination of political changes between the late sixties and the mid-nineties created an environment where only the most dedicated and skilled musicians struggled on and pursued a musical career against fierce odds. The whole Ibex Band, with Giovanni Rico and Selam “Selamino” Seyoum Woldermarian at the creative helm, are arguably the origo of the vibrant scene in the mid-seventies, and the said pair are foremost responsible for not only navigating the band through troubled times, but also modernizing the 6/8 chickchicka rhythm to a contemporary form. Giovanni laid the rhythmic foundation with heavy looped basslines that reinvented traditional melodies as dance music, and with Selamino’s innovative guitar work they influenced scores of musicians from Abegaz Kibrework Shiota to Henock Temesgen. Even Giovanni’s Fender bass and Selamino’s Gibson guitar inspired younger musicians in their choice of instruments. Not only in choice of instruments but also in sound–even as the digital revolution hit Ethiopian music, a lot of popular music still took its cue from the masters from Ibex and Roha.

Ibex emerged out of the ashes of the sixties group the Soul Echos band, adding Giovanni and Selamino to their ranks and taking their cues from a slew of influences, such as Motown and The Beatles, fused with traditional music. A tighter-knit unit than most bands at the time – Ibex has remained six to seven members throughout their whole career, compared to many bands that were as large as fifteen or sixteen men strong when Ibex set out. Their playing has been viciously focused, economical yet heavy. Just a year before the recording sessions of the album in your hands, Giovanni and Selamino made a contribution to the popular musical lexicon of Ethiopia that was simply defining the popular sound: their arrangement and recording of bandmate Mahmoud Ahmed’s solo effort and real commercial breakthrough tune and eponymous album, Ere Mela Mela, from 1975.

Selamino has never limited himself to being an adroit lead guitarist, but has always been a scholar of history, and as such he has probably contributed as much to modern Ethiopian music with his guitar playing and compositions as with a deepened understanding of modern or contemporary – Zemenawi – Ethiopian music. Selamino’s contributions serve as a metaphor for those of the whole band, at one and the same time creating and defining a new, danceable and updated sound anchored in Giovanni’s bass, whilst also elevating the broader scene through their support for others on the scene and on top of that, increasing the understanding of the music.

There is an understandable desire to romanticize the musical heyday Ibex and Roha were at the forefront of, because so much of the output is sorrowfully hard to come by. Ibex creativity was nothing short of ridiculously fierce compared to many of their Western contemporaries. Based on their sheer recorded output alone they could have usurped the title “hardest working in show business” from James Brown, recording more than 250 albums or 2500 songs in the seventies and eighties. Some only surface as cassettes today, others were never given full LP release, and some are simply impossible to find today. In the light of that, it’s nothing short of a miracle that the recording Stereo Instrumental Music from 1976 (Ge’ez Year 1968) has resurfaced. Unearthed in perfect condition on a chrome cassette, this is musical history comes alive–to set the future straight. Stereo Instrumental Music was recorded in collaboration with Karl-Gustav Lundgren, a Swedish national working for the Radio Voice of the Gospel. It took two sessions at the Ras Hotel ballroom in Addis Ababa. The Ibex Band was the first band in Ethiopia to employ a four-track recorder for their recording (the first available in the country, lent by Karl-Gustav). Later the same week, Giovanni and Selamino realized that, lengthwise, the recorded material fell short of what they wished for, so they recorded four more tracks in one more session on a single-track recorder. The Ras Hotel and Ghion Hotel, where the Ibex Band held musical residencies were to Ethiopia in general and Addis Ababa in particular what Motown was to the USA and Detroit a few years earlier – a hotbed of musical creativity and showmanship.

The most astonishing thing about Ethiopian music of the last half century is how tradition and modernity are intertwined. Because of this feature, it’s kind of hard to tell when there ever was or when we are in a “golden age”. So much of music from the past has been criminally neglected, but because of the hardships in the past, it would be an oversimplification to say that said past was a golden age. Probably, the golden age is what we are approaching, because for the first time both the past and future are accessible, and the monumental contributions from before can lay a firm foundation for a thriving music scene today. The Ibex Band stands firmly in the past, present and the future. That, if anything, is golden.

The detailed history of Stereo Instrumental Music is in many ways unique. To begin with, it couldn’t have been recorded earlier (there were no four-track recorders available) and it really couldn’t have been recorded afterwards either, at least not in the years directly following, because of the toll the musical scene took from the unfavorable political climate that followed when the nascent Derg regime and rival groups tried to assert themselves, the musical equipment lent from The Voice of Gospel Radio simply disappeared from Ethiopia when the radio station folded in 1977. Karl-Gustav Lundgren,
the Swedish foreign national who assisted during the recording, worked with the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus at the time, recalls how they only had about fifteen minutes to get the microphones in place for the recording as to not alert neither the management at Ras Hotel nor the authorities and most importantly, to complete the recording before the curfew came into effect at midnight. In leaping to the opportunity to use previously unavailable equipment to push their sound forward and improvising to meet the logistical challenges, the Ibex Band displayed the very avant-gardism and adaptability that explains their longevity as a band through the years. The recording of Stereo Instrumental Music is from a given time in history, but it sounds as beyond time.
Much of the energy that burst out of the scene that Stereo Instrumental Music came out of dissipated or got sidetracked during the societal changes Ethiopia went through in the 1970s and 80s. Whilst leaders might have professed to be revolutionary, the work ethic of the Ibex Band can truly be described as that. They never called it quits, but adapted, toured extensively abroad in Africa, Europe, and the Middle East, and found ways to work even in the face of the curfew that curtailed a lot of musical life. They even played major arenas in the nineteen eighties, despite said curfew and restrictions. The whole extent of their legacy has never been told, but their music speaks louder than words, so therefore… tune in to the Ibex Band’s Stereo Instrumental Music.

Imagine having a song go viral for 17 years - without even knowing it. That's exactly what happened to the German 1980s band FEX. And this isn't just any song - it's The Most Mysterious Song on the Internet, a track that puzzled music detectives for decades before finally being identified in November 2024. Now, it has been officially released - twice.

The Story in Brief:
Sometime around 1984, a song was broadcasted on NDR Radio. The name of the song was Subways Of Your Mind - only found out 40 years later in November 2024. Back then, a listener recorded the NDR show on cassette, a common practice at the time. Decades later, the tape resurfaced, but while most songs from the recording were identified, one remained an enigma. On March 18, 2007, the track was uploaded to the internet in an attempt to uncover its origins. Due to its now-iconic opening lyric, it was tentatively titled Like The Wind. Over time, the mystery deepened, and the song was given a nickname: The Most Mysterious Song - or simply TMMS.

Starting in 2019, a dedicated Reddit group, TheMysteriousSong, now boasting over 63,000 members, took up the search. They meticulously documented every lead, hoping to solve the riddle of the song's origins. Then, in 2024, the breakthrough: Reddit user marjin1412 reached out to musician Michael Hädrich after discovering a reference to his band FEX in an old newspaper article. Hädrich, FEX's keyboardist, provided a recording from an old demo cassette which included an alternative version of the song. On November 4, 2024, the mystery was officially solved: FEX was the band, Subways Of Your Mind was the title.

What Happened Next:
Since then, FEX has released two singles - both featuring Subways Of Your Mind - through the Berlin-based independent label The Outer Edge. First, the demo cassette version was pressed onto vinyl, as the original NDR radio recording remained lost (see EDGE-028). The Remastered Demo Mix single instantly topped Bandcamp's global charts, holding the #1 spot for several days. By then, it was clear: this was more than just an internet curiosity. A real fanbase had formed. Enthusiastic comments on the sales page ranged from "best post-punk song to ever exist" to "FEX themselves (are) perhaps the most underrated musicians of all time."

But the story didn't end there. A higher-quality version of the NDR radio recording was rediscovered in late december, remastered, and now sent for a second vinyl pressing: the TMMS Version. This new vinyl 7" is backed with Talking Hands another great and unissued song that was found on the demo cassette.

Fame Comes with a Price
Suddenly, time isn't standing still for FEX. The band had to come to terms with the fact that they had become Lostwave super stars. A FEX fan club quickly formed on Reddit, fan-hosted FEX parties are popping up, and the internet is demanding more - an album, merchandise, live performances. But how does a band prepare for a comeback after a 40-year hiatus?

For now, FEX is carefully considering their next steps. Their demo cassette contains six songs - and a few other recordings have resurfaced which probably could be restored and compiled. But foremost, a brand new re-recording of Subways Of Your Mind is in progress.

One thing is certain: The Most Mysterious Song will continue its unstoppable journey around the world. Don't miss this (second) chance to own a piece of music history!