Buscar:the b 52 s

Recorded during that unique period in the late ‘60s when jazz, blues and rock musicians found common ground in London’s vibrant subterranean clubs, 1968s Definitely What! was the second of the run of the four ground-breaking Trinity albums. Showcasing Auger's open-minded approach and his masterful organ & piano skills, the album whips up a rich blend of jazz, R&B, psychedelic touches and soulful grooves, complemented by the tight, dynamic rhythm section of Dave Ambrose (bass) and Clive Thacker (drums).

After the previous year’s Open (1967) with its 'Summer of Love' feel and its melting pot of Mod R&B, cover versions of US soul hits led by Julie Driscoll’s inimitable vocals, Auger considered Definitely What! as his first solo album, and so he travelled deeper into jazz territory, balancing original pieces with audacious covers. Tracks include versions of Mose Allison's 'If You Live' and of Wes Montgomery’s ‘Bumpin’ On Sunset’. “I got a letter from Wes's wife,” recalls Auger, “saying that it was Wes' favourite version. Can you believe that, Wes's wife wrote to me!”

Elsewhere, we find a dramatic re-arrangement of The Beatles’ ‘A Day In The Life’ complete with orchestral strings and a punchy horn section, alongside a supercharged version of Booker T & The MGs’ ‘Red Beans & Rice’ . 'George Bruno Money' was dedicated to Auger's drinking pal of the era, Zoot Money, and 'John Browns Body' both combine prime Hammond jazz with the very British surrealist humour that was in vogue at the time. The title track goes further “out” in a sprawling instrumental piece rooted in experimentation. Brian himself specifically states in his sleeve notes that his concept “lies along a straight line drawn between pop and jazz and aims at the 'fusion' of both elements” - ‘fusion’ at that time was not even a recognised musical term, further reinforcing Auger’s credentials as an innovator.

That forward-thinking approach was developed in Open and Definitely What! would come to fruition a year later with the release of Streetnoise (1969) featuring the Trinity and Julie Driscoll. At the time, the move to bring together jazz, rhythm & blues, folk, gospel and pop into a progressive new sound may have annoyed the purists and confused the less open- minded, but these albums stand today as a testament to Auger’s unique position within British music, foreshadowing his future 1970s explorations with the Oblivion Express and beyond. Definitely What! remains a fascinating snapshot of 1960s musical experimentation - raw, eclectic, and unapologetically Auger!

This new Strut reissue is curated by Impressive Collective’s Greg Boraman in partnership with Brian and Karma Auger. The album is remastered by Cosmic Audio from the original tapes, and is packaged in Brian's favourite version of the 3 different sleeves the album was originally issued in.

The Band Rotosphere has become a cornerstone of the Blues Festival Baden (Switzerland). Since 2005, led by guitarist and bandleader Nic Niedermann, they"ve been lighting up the festival"s legendary Late Night Jam Sessions. Over the years, they"ve shared the stage with blues icons such as Magic Slim, Susan Tedeschi, Coco Montoya, Justina Lee Brown and Chicago"s own blues harpist, Matthew Skoller. A truly magical moment unfolded in 2022 when Mark Slate took to the stage. The charismatic blues and soul singer captivated the audience from the first note with his powerful voice. Having spent years on the road with the "Joe Cocker Tribute Show", Slate embodies the raw and gritty essence of the blues. Now, performing alongside Rotosphere, they deliver original tracks brimming with energy, passion, and musical fire - an unforgettable experience for every listener!

When Straight Ahead hit the shelves in 1974, it marked another bold chapter for Brian Auger’s Oblivion Express. The band—Steve Ferrone on drums, Barry Dean on bass, Jack Mills on guitar, and Lennox Langton on congas— was firing on all cylinders, pushing jazz fusion into fresh, uncharted territory.

Critics took notice, with Billboard praising the album as “excellent in development and inventiveness, ” and it found its way onto multiple charts at once.

The journey begins with “Beginning Again, ” a lively opener built on Langton’s congas and Ferrone’s muscular groove. Auger’s electric piano sparkles here, immediately setting the album’s adventurous tone. Then comes their take on Wes Montgomery’s “Bumpin’ On Sunset. ” Darker in mood and drenched in atmosphere, Auger stretches out into improvisation while still honoring Montgomery’s spirit. The interpretation struck such a chord that, years later, Wes’s widow wrote to Auger to tell him it was her husband’s favorite version of his much-loved tune.

The title track, “Straight Ahead, ” shifts gears into funk, showcasing the group’s ability to slide effortlessly between genres. “Change” pushes further, blending rock’s raw energy with jazz’s improvisational freedom, driven by Auger’s command of the Hammond organ. To close, “You’ll Stay in My Heart” brings the tempo down with a tender, soulful ballad—an intimate ending to an album full of bold explorations.

At the time, reviewers hailed the record as a gem. One called it “a minor masterpiece of incredibly engaging and melodic keyboard-centric jazz-rock fusion. ” Another singled out “Bumpin’ On Sunset” as “the best reason to own this recording.”

Half a century later, Straight Ahead still resonates. It captures that fertile moment in the 1970s when jazz, rock, and funk were colliding, and artists like Auger were busy redrawing the map. To this day, it stands as proof of Auger’s fearless curiosity and his knack for breaking boundaries—music that looked forward then, and still feels ahead of its time now.

Soft Centre is the new album by Iko Chérie, the solo project of French-born, London-based multiinstrumentalist Marie Merlet. She blends dub-inflected textures, pop tinged vocals, reverbdrenched guitars, Casio drones, and warm experimental noises - creating her own intimate, fragile sound. Self-produced and largely performed by Merlet, the album grew from an introspective process, with many sketches recorded in transit between tours. The result is a deeply personal work, balancing light and dark in a Lynchian dream-pop haze. Songs such as We Smoke That Peace Pipe and Bilbao shimmer between vulnerability and resilience, while the single Ghosted Ghosters of the Holy G captures the immediacy of a one-take dub bass. Some pieces retain the quality of improvised snapshots (Intelligent Women, Half a Metaphor) while others reveal her meticulous production process and songwriting craft (Tears in the Sea, Luciférine). Merlet defines Soft Centre as alive in radical tenderness, unguarded, open, and vivid. Influenced by Clarice Lispector"s prose, Diane di Prima"s poetry and Rachel Carson"s environmentalist writing, as well as Marie"s fascination with a vintage Roland Space Echo, the album is an invitation to connection that she describes as "... hopefully a meditation into healing." A versatile musician trained in classical piano, jazz, and electroacoustic composition, Merlet has long moved between different worlds of sound. She has worked with Laetitia Sadier in Monade, performs with Gina Birch (The Raincoats), Malphino, Yama Warashi, and several other groups. She recently appeared as guest singer on the latest Stereolab album. Her debut solo LP, Dreaming On (Elefant Records, 2015), revealed her singular melodic instincts; with Soft Centre she ventures further inward, shaping her own distinctive voice in experimental pop.

"Straight up, no one is having more fun than me when we"re up there!" beams DRAIN frontman Sammy Ciaramitaro, whose face is perpetually glued in a grin. For anyone that"s seen the Santa Cruz hardcore firebrands live, there"s no mistaking that fact. DRAIN isn"t just a good time as Sammy presides over the chaos of stage diving bodies and mic-grabbing frontline; it"s a party-and everyone is invited. (Dolphin shorts and boogie boards are optional but encouraged.) "The vibe of it is, enthusiastic, hectic," says the vocalist. "Five people deep singing and stagediving, then kids going berserk behind that. It"s a great vibe and I think people pick up on that." That, in a nutshell is DRAIN. The trio inject a serious dose of relatability-not to mention catchiness-into hardcore"s penchant for toughness and brutality on their new Epitaph album, ...IS YOUR FRIEND. Ciaramitaro"s desperate, snotty howl rides roughshod over thrash-leaning riffage as rhythms bounce in a big way. If you"re picturing the Pacific Ocean waves that rise and fall along the coastal town, occasionally violently so, you"re not far off.

The Klezmaticsare thrilled to announce the re-issue of their seminal 1990 album, "Rhythm & Jews Revisited", set for release on limited-edition vinyl LP pressed on Bio Vinyl. In 2026, The Klezmatics will be celebrating their 40th anniversary. This milestone will include the re-issue of many of their landmark recordings which will include previously unpublished material. Originally released in the pre-digital era, this groundbreaking album never made its way to modern platforms, until now. The re-issue features alternate versions of the album"s iconic tracks, unearthed from recently discovered master files, offering fans and new listeners alike a fresh perspective on this klezmer masterpiece.

"Straight up, no one is having more fun than me when we"re up there!" beams DRAIN frontman Sammy Ciaramitaro, whose face is perpetually glued in a grin. For anyone that"s seen the Santa Cruz hardcore firebrands live, there"s no mistaking that fact. DRAIN isn"t just a good time as Sammy presides over the chaos of stage diving bodies and mic-grabbing frontline; it"s a party-and everyone is invited. (Dolphin shorts and boogie boards are optional but encouraged.) "The vibe of it is, enthusiastic, hectic," says the vocalist. "Five people deep singing and stagediving, then kids going berserk behind that. It"s a great vibe and I think people pick up on that." That, in a nutshell is DRAIN. The trio inject a serious dose of relatability-not to mention catchiness-into hardcore"s penchant for toughness and brutality on their new Epitaph album, ...IS YOUR FRIEND. Ciaramitaro"s desperate, snotty howl rides roughshod over thrash-leaning riffage as rhythms bounce in a big way. If you"re picturing the Pacific Ocean waves that rise and fall along the coastal town, occasionally violently so, you"re not far off.

SML is the quintet of bassist Anna Butterss, synthesist Jeremiah Chiu, saxophonist Josh Johnson, percussionist Booker Stardrum, and guitarist Gregory Uhlmann. Their second album, How You Been, finds the supergroup of prolific composer/producers pushing ever further into the hyperrealist, collectivist approach to music creation nascently explored on their debut Small Medium Large, which was lauded as "awe-inspiring" by Glide, "exuberant" by the Los Angeles Times, and "an exciting milestone" by Pitchfork. As SML has evolved and spread out in space-time, their fluencies, both as an improvising unit in performance and as a production team in the studio, have sharpened. At inception the band inspired disparate but distinctive artist comparisons like Essential Logic, Oval, Herbie Hancock"s Sextant, and electric Miles Davis, as well as assorted genre touchpoints like Afrobeat, kosmiche, proto-techno and new-jazz. With How You Been their work manages to both collapse and explode such derivatives, displaying a new, high resolution version of SML, fully-flowered into a new strain of sound, bound to incite its own copycats in due time.

Sometimes there are discoveries that hit like thunderbolts! Matt Pascale & The Stomps are undoubtedly one of them-and a major one at that. Everything here is simply perfect. Musically, the backbone of this album remains blues, but rock, funk, soul, and even hip-hop are never far off. The compositions flow like a string of potential hits. It only takes listening to this album once or twice for certain melodies to lodge themselves firmly in your brain. As for the performance, it"s downright incredible. Matt Pascale has a raspy voice with a "more Italian you couldn"t get" vibe, his guitar playing is a sheer marvel of precision and feel, and The Stomps are a rhythmic and groovy powerhouse capable of waking the dead. Un-be-lie-va-ble!

Kalita are proud to present a 2-year anniversary repress of Emerson’s 1988 mythical electro boogie grail ‘Sending All My Love Out’, accompanied by two remixes courtesy of the genre’s most respected innovators, Egyptian Lover and Detroit In Effect. Limited to only 500 copies, pressed on electrifying yellow 12” vinyl.

Originally privately released as an obscure 7” single on LAS Records, operated by visionary power couple Emerson and Leora Sandidge, ‘Sending All My Love Out’ has since transformed into a hallowed grail among dance music collectors, enthusiasts and DJs alike, commanding sky-high prices on the second-hand scene.

A late 80’s electro boogie anthem, featuring a heavy mix of synthesizer and drum-machine euphoria, overlaid with Emerson and Leora’s own vocals, the recording truly is in a league of its own.

And to do justice to its legendary status, Kalita has dusted off the original multi-track master tapes and enlisted two of the electro scene’s most revered figures, namely Egyptian Lover and Detroit In Effect, to remix and elevate the track in their own signature style.

A truly special release.

Mit dieser exklusiven Picture Disc wird das musikalische Erbe von Aretha Franklin auf besonders stilvolle Weise gefeiert. Die Auswahl vereint einige der ikonischsten Songs ihrer Karriere - kraftvoll, emotional und zeitlos. Ob Soul, Gospel oder R&B - Aretha Franklins Stimme hat Generationen geprägt und ist bis heute unerreicht. Diese Edition bringt ihre größten Klassiker in einem hochwertigen Sammlerformat auf den Plattenteller - visuell eindrucksvoll und klanglich ein Genuss. Die kunstvoll gestaltete Picture Vinyl ist nicht nur ein musikalisches Erlebnis, sondern auch ein optisches Statement.

Grim days call for fierce love. And Mavis Staples, one of the most enduring figures in American music, is laying it down. Sad And Beautiful World is the latest solo album from a national treasure and multigenerational talent. Produced by Brad Cook, Sad And Beautiful World spans seven decades of the American songbook - a range nearly as vast as Mavis" career - and includes reinventions of timeless songs by Tom Waits, Sparklehorse, Gillian Welch, Frank Ocean and more. Cook imagined an album in the tradition of Nitty Gritty Dirt Band"s Will the Circle Be Unbroken, a group of artists coming together to celebrate community - in this case, one centered on Mavis. Collaborators include Buddy Guy, Bonnie Raitt, Jeff Tweedy, Derek Trucks, Katie Crutchfield, MJ Lenderman, and Justin Vernon. Inducted into several halls of fame (Blues, Rock, and Gospel), a Kennedy Center Honoree, a winner of multiple GRAMMYs (including a Lifetime Achievement Award), Mavis is musical history. She"s collaborated with nearly every major figure of her era(s), from Bob Dylan to Prince, Aretha Franklin, and Willie Nelson - not to mention countless stars from subsequent generations.

Grim days call for fierce love. And Mavis Staples, one of the most enduring figures in American music, is laying it down. Sad And Beautiful World is the latest solo album from a national treasure and multigenerational talent. Produced by Brad Cook, Sad And Beautiful World spans seven decades of the American songbook - a range nearly as vast as Mavis" career - and includes reinventions of timeless songs by Tom Waits, Sparklehorse, Gillian Welch, Frank Ocean and more. Cook imagined an album in the tradition of Nitty Gritty Dirt Band"s Will the Circle Be Unbroken, a group of artists coming together to celebrate community - in this case, one centered on Mavis. Collaborators include Buddy Guy, Bonnie Raitt, Jeff Tweedy, Derek Trucks, Katie Crutchfield, MJ Lenderman, and Justin Vernon. Inducted into several halls of fame (Blues, Rock, and Gospel), a Kennedy Center Honoree, a winner of multiple GRAMMYs (including a Lifetime Achievement Award), Mavis is musical history. She"s collaborated with nearly every major figure of her era(s), from Bob Dylan to Prince, Aretha Franklin, and Willie Nelson - not to mention countless stars from subsequent generations.

Dub Spencer & Trance Hill once again realize their musical vision with their new release SYNCHRONOS: The perfect hybrid of dub and trance - analog, danceable and at the forefront of sound technology. With SYNCHRONOS, Dub Spencer & Trance Hill present an album that defies conventional categories. The new tracks surprise and guide the listener into a colorful world of sound - an acoustic kaleidoscope in which diversity becomes a principle. Musical components - dub, trance, dance, techno, rock, jazz - are put together by the musicians in new and unexpected ways. Experimental, multi-layered and always good for surprises, yet inevitably club-ready: That"s Dub Spencer & Trance Hill.

Sarathy Korwar, genre-breaking drummer, producer and composer, announces the release of his seventh album "There Is Beauty, There Already" out on Otherland. Celebrating the melodic power of the drum ensemble, the album follows his 2022 Indofuturist manifesto "KALAK" with a deeply immersive longform suite of percussion-led compositions.

Muito Kaballa return in style with a refined modern sound on "Tomorrow A Flower" for the London-based imprint Batov Records, blending indie pop, soul, hip hop, jazz, Brazilian rhythms, and West African grooves.

"A Few We Remember" is the new album by Jonah Parzen-Johnson and Lau Nau. The recording debut for the new duo of Finnish composer Lau Nau, aka Laura Naukkarinen, and American baritone saxophonist Jonah Parzen-Johnson, it cycles between moments of knotty ambience, whispered melody, and innocent tinkering, as the duo improvises over 8 narrative scores composed by Parzen-Johnson.

Zwölf Jahre nach dem gefeierten Album All Is Fever melden sich Naked Lunch mit Lights And A Slight Taste Of Death eindrucksvoll zurück. Die österreichische Band um Sänger und Songwriter Oliver Welter präsentiert ein Werk, das tief geht - musikalisch wie emotional. Der Titel deutet es an: Licht und Tod, Hoffnung und Abgrund, Intimität und Explosion - alles ist da. Welter verarbeitet persönliche Krisen, Krankheit und Wiedergeburt, aber auch Liebe und Lebensfreude. Die Songs sind radikal ehrlich, poetisch und musikalisch vielschichtig. Von zarten Balladen wie Come Into My Arms bis zu hymnischen Popmomenten wie To All And Everyone I Love oder We Could Be Beautiful entfaltet sich ein Klangkosmos, der berührt und fordert. Produziert wurde das Album gemeinsam mit Wolfgang Lehmann, dessen sensibles Verständnis für Musik Welters Vision perfekt ergänzt. Unterstützt von langjährigen Weggefährten Alex Jezdinsky (Drums) und Boris Hauf (Keys/Sax), entstand eine Platte, die sich kompromisslos in die eindrucksvolle Diskografie von Naked Lunch einreiht. Lights And A Slight Taste Of Death ist eine musikalische Tour de Force - intensiv, verletzlich, kraftvoll. Ein Album, das zeigt: Naked Lunch sind lebendiger denn je

Zwölf Jahre nach dem gefeierten Album All Is Fever melden sich Naked Lunch mit Lights And A Slight Taste Of Death eindrucksvoll zurück. Die österreichische Band um Sänger und Songwriter Oliver Welter präsentiert ein Werk, das tief geht - musikalisch wie emotional. Der Titel deutet es an: Licht und Tod, Hoffnung und Abgrund, Intimität und Explosion - alles ist da. Welter verarbeitet persönliche Krisen, Krankheit und Wiedergeburt, aber auch Liebe und Lebensfreude. Die Songs sind radikal ehrlich, poetisch und musikalisch vielschichtig. Von zarten Balladen wie Come Into My Arms bis zu hymnischen Popmomenten wie To All And Everyone I Love oder We Could Be Beautiful entfaltet sich ein Klangkosmos, der berührt und fordert. Produziert wurde das Album gemeinsam mit Wolfgang Lehmann, dessen sensibles Verständnis für Musik Welters Vision perfekt ergänzt. Unterstützt von langjährigen Weggefährten Alex Jezdinsky (Drums) und Boris Hauf (Keys/Sax), entstand eine Platte, die sich kompromisslos in die eindrucksvolle Diskografie von Naked Lunch einreiht. Lights And A Slight Taste Of Death ist eine musikalische Tour de Force - intensiv, verletzlich, kraftvoll. Ein Album, das zeigt: Naked Lunch sind lebendiger denn je

When Straight Ahead hit the shelves in 1974, it marked another bold chapter for Brian Auger"s Oblivion Express. The band - Steve Ferrone on drums, Barry Dean on bass, Jack Mills on guitar, and Lennox Langton on congas - was firing on all cylinders, pushing jazz fusion into fresh, uncharted territory. Critics took notice, with Billboard praising the album as "excellent in development and inventiveness", and it found its way onto multiple charts at once.