Search:the beautiful

“There's a clarity here that feels hard-won. Honing ideas first explored with his Organic Music series, Tiago Sousa unlocks the final puzzle pieces on Sustained Tones Vol 1. This music is enchanted, the way each layer moves in conjunction with the others: complex structures that feel less constructed than discovered, like stumbling upon ancient mechanisms still whirring beneath the earth. "Readily Reliance" opens as an effervescent sea, waves gilded in neon creating an enveloping sense of eternal motion. Bright organ timbres throw silhouettes and cast Sousa as the deft puppeteer keeping everything moving with an effortless precision. These evolving shapes suspend listeners somewhere between the physical and the cosmic, held in place by nothing but intention and sound.

Drones build rippling foundations in other places, using slower tempos to construct immersive, off-kilter sound worlds where minimalism becomes emotive, almost poignant. The fluctuating tones have a gossamer sheen, creating this interesting sonic dichotomy: a solid surface with fragile rotations beneath. It's music that commands attention; it is so much more than simply aural furniture. Sousa writes these beautiful sequences that are all interconnected, intricate sonic architecture that pulls us further into some kind of unknowable ether.

On the piano pieces, "Smooth Flow Into It" and "Swirling Mist and Thin Dust," Sousa shines sunlight through all the cracks. Washes of melody are effervescent, clouds clearing to reveal the day has not gone. Not yet. Positioned in the middle of Sustained Tones Vol 1, these pieces ground the album in something transcendent yet still earthen: moments of breath inside all that cosmic drift. Darkness finds its way through on "Restlessness," where Sousa smears sinuous electronics into a ghostly sonic mesh that seeps through the skin. It feels like a slow inhale, time suspended long enough to take note of where we are and how we feel before moving forward. Expressive, almost sparkling synth arrangements return to send us back into reality on closer "Becoming a Landscape." Its title hints at larger concepts at play throughout this album, where lines between our physical beings and the wider environment are blurred. The tones that echo throughout these six pieces mirror the echoes inside our bodies, from heartbeats and voices to something quieter, something much smaller and more elemental. By immersing us inside these mesmerising, beautiful soundscapes, Sousa immerses us within ourselves.’’

Brad Rose, 2025

Reggae cover of Bobby Caldwell and Boz Scaggs' AOR classic on 7"!

Bobby Caldwell is famous for his AOR classic "What You Won't Do For Love" (Silhouette of the Wind) released in 1978, and Rejie covered "Special To Me," another classic song from the same album, with a reggae arrangement. The original song was a single cut only in Japan at the time, and a Japanese Eurobeat cover by Wink in 1989 was also a hit. The B-side features the beautiful melody of the original song with a hint of reggae flavor.

Reissue for the first time of original Ethiopian 7inch with the beautiful artwork. 6 different 7inch plus a poster and 6 stickers included in a boxset. Track Selection, by Francis Falceto (ethiopiques series founder and Ethiopian music specialist).

Following the success of volume 1, sold out at the record store day 2017, Heavenly Sweetness decided with Francis Falceto to give a follow up to this boxset of Ethiopian singles. Francis plunged into his impressive collection of

Ethiopian records to bring out colourful pearls. There are great names of the golden age of Ethiopian music such as Mahmoud Ahmed, Alemayehu Eshete, Ali Mohamed Birra but also less known artists to be rediscovered as Muluquen Melesse, Alayew Mesfin or Seyoum Gebreyes.

This box is a tribute to the Ethiopian music producer Ali Tango, who produced most of these EP's.

William Onyeabor self-released this record in 1980, before he gave up his life as the greatest Nigerian funk artist to become a devout Christian. This is a limited color edition of William Onyeabor"s ATOMIC BOMB. 10 years later, the music still EXPLODES.

Summer of 2025, the UK techno community was shocked to hear of the sudden and untimely passing of one of its leading lights, James Baker, better known as ReKaB. As his light had been glowing ever brighter in recent years, with forays across the deep end of the techno spectrum, his passing was even more tragic. He had certainly found his voice, a particularly emotive, soul-tinged strain of techno building on the foundations of the 90s bastions of the form. Though bittersweet, Distant Worlds is immensely proud to present this release showcasing his personal evolution and mastery of the sound both he and the label love so much.

‘Art 4 Me’ opens with a transcendent chord progression, gradually incorporating brain piercing synth-work and chunky percussion before opening out into a perfect intersection of melancholy and euphoria. ‘Trapped In Boxes’ opts for a more introspective take on the classic techno template incorporating a Detroit palette of sound atop punchy bassline and beats.

Flip over for UK techno royalty Nuron’s take on ‘Art 4 Me’, a characteristically apposite reimagining. Teasing layers of inverted synth and percussive elements until a beautiful breakdown finally delivers that majestic chord progression. ‘Our World’ closes out this fantastic release with pure elegance; beats skitter, Detroit strings soar and cosmic pads align in timeless fashion. These are 4 tracks of deep, electro-soul music helping cement the legacy of one of the truest practitioners of the form over the last decade.

Ploughing a different furrow, Alone in a World of Wounds is an album of sweeping gothic tinged Americana, tripped out drones, beautiful world weary vocal melodies and slowly unfurling cello arrangements. Initially inspired by the harmonic resonance of piano and synths and his long standing love of ambient music, Alone in a World of Wounds follows 2021’s No Wilderness Deep Enough in reflective ambience. Opening up his voice in ways he has never done before, the album's genesis came via intuitive improvisations.
The search for deeper connection, living with the sorrow of our separation from the natural world, and relying on gut level intuition to get closer to the primal creative state are all key to Von Till’s creative process.
Recorded mostly at his barn studio at home in Idaho and mixed at Circular Ruin in Brooklyn, NY, with storied producer Randall Dunn (Jóhann Jóhannsson, Sunn O))), Earth, Jim Jarmusch), Alone in a World of Wounds also boasts cover artwork from Spokane, WA based alternative process photographer Brian Deemy - who works with colloidal wet plate ‘tintype’ aesthetics, which compliment Von Till’s uniquely ancient yet grounded aesthetic, and one that perfectly matches his desire to reimagine the connection between the human and the more than human world.

Splattered LTD EDITION

Trackwahser side bring a crazy romance, mystic call for a tribal dancefloor banger ! Legend !
Second tune, in collab with Boubou, member of Antinorm-17 Sound System back in the years... The oldschool Acid excitation supported by a thick Hard Techno kick. Put some electricity in the air, be Deter-Mina !

With Roland K side you will get 2 Hardtek missiles !
The first track delivers a high-energy, fast-paced, and punchy vibe, perfect for rocking the dancefloor.
The second, a collab with Darth Leng, takes the energy even further with an explosive mix of styles and unrelenting power.
Tracks designed to get parties rocking and boost good vibes to the max!

The second volume in Death Is Not The End's survey of a form of Brazilian country music known as música caipira ("hillbilly music") - a stripped-back forerunner to música sertaneja, the Brazilian equivalent to US country & western which in it's contemporary form has come to dominate the domestic music industry in recent decades. This collection covers some of the earliest recordings made by the pioneering folklorist Cornélio Pires at the end of the 1920s, through to records from the 30s, 40s & 50s and the beginning of the 60s.

Somewhat rooted in Portuguese troubadour folk traditions, música caipira is typically performed by a duo singing in parallel thirds and sixths, drawing upon a Portuguese-Brazilian style known as moda de viola - with the viola being the viola caipira, a Brazilian-style ten-string guitar that is the core instrument of the music. Born out of the "outback"-style region in north-eastern Brazil, these songs tell stories of pain, love, loss & betrayal - often backed by homemade guitars using invented tunings. Away from the polished pop country & western-stylings of the sertaneja, these recordings could be viewed as the Brazilian equivalent to the roots music of the American dustbowl or Appalachia.

Your Biggest Fans, these are... STANS. Official STANS Soundtrack Vinyl, featuring the tracks from the STANS movie and previously unreleased songs.

Step into the ethereal soundscape of Mark Vernon's LP, "The Dramaturgy of Decay." Reminiscent of early fears surrounding recording technology, the album explores ghostly voices, distorted and elusive. Vernon's sonic cinema mirrors the decay found in ruined films, capturing the essence of disappearing places and voices. Amidst themes of death and environmental destruction, the album maintains a delicate balance with humor and familiarity. Through snippets of reworked audio letters, it unveils a soundscape of forgotten moments, extracting life from the transient. "The Dramaturgy of Decay" is a beautifully haunting reflection on time through sound--an otherworldly musical experience for the present.

Unisong is like a second chapter in Bergur's troubadour/trobairitz research (after Around the Songster's Commune, 2022) and an exploration into/practicing of Bergur's own poetic and melodic ability. It's a beautiful experiment in unifying and synthesizing something of a conceptual nature with something autobiographical. Let's call it bare, easy-feeling, domestic pop. 'Bare' naked -- and as in not-too-much-production. 'Easy-feeling' because that's how it feels. 'Domestic' a la John Lennon, Watching the Wheels, and as in home and living a life. 'Pop' because it is; because it's for everyone. It's about travelling, longing, searching, finding -- love.

Crypt of the Wizard is proud to present Ginger Wizard - The Curious Flora and Fauna of the Ancient World on vinyl and digital formats.
About ten years ago in a record store in Prague, the Ginger Wizard discovered a copy of Bo Hansson’s Lord of the Rings LP. Although initially unfamiliar with the record, the reference to Tolkien’s masterwork and the incredible cover art drew him in and, rather fittingly, sent him off on a journey of discovery that would reshape his creative trajectory.
Years later while working in cassette tape manufacturing, Ginger Wizard noticed that most fantasy-inspired music fell into two camps: metal and dungeon synth. With little interest in the former, but intrigued by the latter, he began writing a few songs imagining a beautifully packaged and tactile cassette tape. However, dungeon synth he soon realized was “the most boring music to make”.
So began the Ginger Wizard’s own mythological discography. In 2022 came The Feast for the Dead King and Other Musical Themes recorded at home in a cold kitchen, is conversely an album full of warmth drawn from sheer exploration. A year later Can I Choose My Own Psychopompos? was recorded for the legendary Stoned to Death label - a 7” séance of semi-improvised noise and melody featuring allies from the Ginger Wizard’s live backing band The Peter Jacksons. The following year with Bathysburg Tales, a new approach was needed in order to keep the project interesting. Drawing inspiration from Popol Vuh and the inclusion of vocals lent by Protomartyr’s Joe Casey and Jakob Battick, a new more cinematic sound began to emerge.
Now, we present The Curious Flora and Fauna of the Ancient World marking a step into something stranger while still channeling the spirit of Bo Hansson. The new album rejects swords and sorcery for the mythology of the natural world “the ancient stuff,” he explains in the record’s insert, “has a similar taste for me as fantasy.” These songs bloom, creep, and shimmer like forgotten plants under distant suns while rooted in something real and organic. Inspired by the myths of nature rather than heroic quests, it’s an album that feels alive, equal parts archaeological dig and psychedelic garden.
Currently at work on a soundtrack for an imagined 1970s fantasy film in collaboration with The Peter Jacksons, the Ginger Wizard continues to expand his strange universe while The Curious Flora and Fauna of the Ancient World serves as a new map to somewhere ancient, beautiful, and unknown.

MidnightRoba is the solo project of vocalist, songwriter and producer Roba El-Essawy. The voice of Attica Blues (Mo Wax 1997, Sony 2000), Raise A Symphony is MidnightRoba's second solo album. Her first album, Golden Seams, very much rooted in jazz, received support, airplay and features from DJs such as Gilles Peterson (BBC Radio 6), Tony Minvielle and China Moses (Jazz FM), Robert Elms (BBC London Live) and Kevin Le Gendre on J to Z (BBC Radio 3). Single releases from this second album have been played by Gilles Peterson (WorldWideFM & BBC Radio 6), Kate Hutchinson (Soho Radio), Marshmello (NTS), Rob Luis (Tru Thoughts), Kev Beadle, Patrick Steele, DJ Amazon, and more.

'Raise A Symphony' is music of our time. A 15-track electronic offering, it comments on topics ranging from colonialism to complicity of silence; from compromised politicians to the power of protest and gratitude to those on the frontlines of change; from displacement and sea migration to the desire to protect our loved ones and the need for kindness; to have faith in the future and the importance of searching for joy in the meantime. The self-produced album 'Raise A Symphony' sees contributions from Saul Williams, Deschanel Gordon, Michael King and Tony Kofi, amongst others. The album title takes it's name from Martin Luther King's 'I Have A Dream' speech where King calls for the nation to rise to gather together and form a 'beautiful symphony of brotherhood'.

"..in Raise A Symphony, Midnight Roba has transmuted talent into something more powerful, where bridges built from her exquisite, unique harmonies, soaring songs and percussive productions allow competing emotions to co-exist and feed into each other. This album itself is a form of community; voices in unison, reaching outwards and offering restoration and upliftment throughout this remarkable work of love and fury." Emma Warren



a 01: Joy (Reprise) [feat. Deschanel Gordon]

SOEN - the Swedish progressive metal powerhouse spearheaded by Joel Ekelöf (vocals) and Martin Lopez (drums) - continue to find incredible new pathways into the spatial areas between light and dark, loud and calm, heavy and soothing. And with its seamless march across deeply human emotional terrain, their forthcoming 7th studio album Reliance, SOEN continues to explore the human mind, heart, and soul with a visionary duty of care, plus an extra edge of heavy. With Lars Enok Åhlund (keyboards & guitar), Cody Lee Ford (guitar), and Stefan Stenberg (bass) standing shoulder to shoulder with Ekelöf and Lopez, the lush continual evolution of SOEN’s sound soars. Take “Primal”, a barrel-chested roar detailing the existential fight between the human spirit and our current world, Ekelöf’s incredible vocals leading the heavy charge. “Axis” is a resolute and defiant look into where humanity sits, propelled by Lopez’s relentless yet swinging drums, and then there’s the serene elegance of “Indifferent” a beautifully orchestrated modern lament on the loss of love which rides resolutely on the power of strings, piano, and Ekelöf’s marvellous voice. With Reliance, SOEN continue their extraordinarily raw and earnest lifetime exploration of the mental and physical boundaries which challenge humankind as it writhes and wrestles with itself in these challenging times. Thoughtful, provocative, beautiful and brutal, Reliance is a journey you need to take.

SOEN - the Swedish progressive metal powerhouse spearheaded by Joel Ekelöf (vocals) and Martin Lopez (drums) - continue to find incredible new pathways into the spatial areas between light and dark, loud and calm, heavy and soothing. And with its seamless march across deeply human emotional terrain, their forthcoming 7th studio album Reliance, SOEN continues to explore the human mind, heart, and soul with a visionary duty of care, plus an extra edge of heavy. With Lars Enok Åhlund (keyboards & guitar), Cody Lee Ford (guitar), and Stefan Stenberg (bass) standing shoulder to shoulder with Ekelöf and Lopez, the lush continual evolution of SOEN’s sound soars. Take “Primal”, a barrel-chested roar detailing the existential fight between the human spirit and our current world, Ekelöf’s incredible vocals leading the heavy charge. “Axis” is a resolute and defiant look into where humanity sits, propelled by Lopez’s relentless yet swinging drums, and then there’s the serene elegance of “Indifferent” a beautifully orchestrated modern lament on the loss of love which rides resolutely on the power of strings, piano, and Ekelöf’s marvellous voice. With Reliance, SOEN continue their extraordinarily raw and earnest lifetime exploration of the mental and physical boundaries which challenge humankind as it writhes and wrestles with itself in these challenging times. Thoughtful, provocative, beautiful and brutal, Reliance is a journey you need to take.

A true gem of French animated cinema, Sylvain Chomet's Les Triplettes de Belleville (2003) left a lasting impression with its quirky universe, tender humor, and unforgettable musical score.


Composed by Benoît Charest, this cult soundtrack blends retro swing, gypsy jazz, ramshackle brass bands, and cycling rhythms to create a unique atmosphere that is both nostalgic and fiercely modern.



This vinyl edition finally celebrates the soundscape of Belleville as it deserves to be celebrated: unusual percussion instruments made from bicycle parts, mischievous orchestrations, and the playful voice of the cult song “Belleville Rendez-vous,” performed by M - Matthieu Chedid in its French version.



Carefully remastered for analog format, the record captures all the warmth and vitality of this timeless music, a vibrant tribute to the creativity and audacity of the film.


A must-have for lovers of cinema, jazz, and beautiful vinyl editions.

Limited repress of the white vinyl pressing. Includes unlimited streaming of all digital tracks from Arlo Parks' first and second EP's, PLUS a free spoken word poem 'London' only available with Vinyl purchase. The artwork sleeve is reverse board black - and includes the 'London' poem written by Arlo Parks. Artwork sleeve both front and back created by Arlo Parks. Includes Sophie.”Sophie' is a song about "crumbling under expectations and feeling helpless, but with a persistent, quiet sense of hope underpinning it”. True to form, it's a melodic and beautifully articulated sonnet, cementing the notion that she is overwhelmingly considered the majestic voice of Generation Z

This album originally released on Electrecord’s RCM (Romanian Contemporary Music) series in 1986 provides a selection of works which belong to Nicolae Brînduş's cycle PHTORA (1968-1972). The cycle comprises five pieces which are five degrees of structuring collective improvisation, leaning towards the spectralist tradition.

It’s probably the most eccentric record in the whole RCM series, offering a mesmerizing collage of organized cacophony, as a massive but subtly layered whirlwind of abstract orchestral improvisations, Romanian picturesque folklore and free jazz with extensive use of tape manipulation and reverberation.

This reissue comes with the beautiful original sleeve artwork by Ana Golici who designed many sleeves for Electrecord.

2026 Repress

The ever enigmatic Deepchord makes a most welcome return to Soma with this, the first single to be taken from this latest full length, Ultraviolet Music. Three beautiful slices have been cut from the album to form this truly outstanding single and shows Deepchord return to a straight up mix of heady, cerebral dub techno infused with more solid rhythms.

Swan Song

The vinyl LP at the heart of this éthiopiques 31 tracks 2 to 11 was one of the very last vinyl records ever released in Ethiopia. But above all it represents, we felt, the absolute masterpiece of the Ethiopian Groove – the Swan Song of Swinging Addis. The album leaves a clear idea for posterity of the level of sophistication and mastery that modern Ethiopian music had achieved, before being crushed under the Stalino-military heel of the Derg – as the bloody revolution that was unfolding came to be called.

Ethiopia1976.

The Revolution that broke out in February 1974 rolled on in a ruthless march. The whole of Ethiopian society was utterly stunned. The bouquets of flowers handed joyfully to the first tanks of the coup d'état were to wilt very rapidly. From September 1976 to February 1978, 18 months of Red Terror (the name given by the junta itself) spilled blood throughout the country. This fratricidal conflict took its heaviest toll among students and youth. The shift from feudalism to a cruel and primitive Stalinism left the country's citizens deeply traumatised, and snuffed out any pretence of activism, whatever the sector of society. This ice age was to last for seventeen long years.

ሙሉቀን፡መለሰ Mulukèn Mellèssè Muluqän Mälläsä

It was three tracks by Muluken that served as the opener for éthiopiques-1 more than 25 years ago. Seven more tracks appeared on éthiopiques-3 and 13, all accompanied by The Equators, which was soon to become the Dahlak Band.

The first track, Hédètch alu, also the very first piece that Muluken ever recorded, left audiences both unsettled and amazed. Reflecting the singer's extremely young age (he was just 17 at the time), this angelic voice mystified many, who thought they were in fact listening to a feminine voice. He was not yet 22 when he released his last vinyl record in 1976 with Kaifa Records (KF 39LP), one of the very last to be issued in Ethiopia, before the cassette tape became the dominant medium for music distribution – and before the new revolutionary regime put a stop to all independent musical life, via an unspeakable barrage of prohibitions and other persecutions.

Mulu qèn, literally, “A well filled day”. This tender maternal intention wasn't enough to ward off the cruelty of fate. His mother's premature death drove Muluken to leave his native Godjam, in northeast Ethiopia, to live with an uncle in Addis Ababa. Born Muluken Tamer, he took his uncle's last name – Mèllèssè.

The spelling Muluken appeared in his administrative records. Transcription of Amharic to the Latin alphabet, both in Ethiopia and for scholars, gives rise to controversies and quibbles that can never be neatly settled. French allows for a closer approximation of the original pronunciation, thanks to its battery of accent marks, confusing as they may be to anglophones.

Between rather accommodating administrative record-keepers and the various versions that pop up in interviews given by the artist, Muluken's year of birth oscillates between 1953 and 1955…

1954? One thing is certain: the artist's talent made itself known very early indeed, because he got his start in 1966-67, at the age of 13 or 14. Photos from the period attest to his extreme youth. It's a strange sort of initiation for a very young teenager to become a sensation in the heart of Addis's nightlife at the time, Woubé Bèrèha – the Wilds of Woubé. And what's more, in the club of the Queen of the Night, the Godjamé Assègèdètch Alamrèw herself, the very same that was portrayed by Sebhat Guèbrè-Egziabhér in his novel-memoir Les Nuits d’Addis Abeba2… The legendary female club owner who is remembered to this day by the capital's ageing boomers.

Muluken first tried his hand at the drums, before he grabbed the microphone. He emigrated briefly to the Zula Club, across the street from the old Addis Post Office, one of the ground-breaking bars of the burgeoning musical scene, before joining the Second Police Band in 1968, for around three years. He spent a few months with the short-lived Blue Nile Band founded by saxophonist Besrat Tammènè. As the musical scene grew increasingly successful, and pulled slowly but decisively away from its institutional ties, Muluken released his first 45rpm single in February 1972 (Amha Records AE 440). It was included in two LP Ethiopian Hit Parade compilation albums in September of the same year. All in all, Muluken released eight two-track 45s and the same number of original cassette tapes between February 1972 and 1984, the year that he departed for permanent exile in the USA. After converting to Pentecostalism in 1980, Muluken gradually abandoned all secular musical activity. In 1985, at the end of a concert in Philadelphia, he decided to quit concerts and recording for good. Mèlakè Gèbré, the historic bass player from the Walias band who was playing with him that night, recalls that everything appeared so irredeemably diabolical in Muluken's eyes, that it was to be the end of his contribution to Ethiopian Groove.

The end of the story, the beginning of a legend.

Dahlak Band, forgotten by History

Aside from his personal history and vocal talents, it must be remembered that Muluken Mèllèssè was one of the biggest names in the musical innovations that marked the end of the imperial period. These éthiopiques aim to convince those who are just discovering this hidden gem... As for Ethiopians themselves, they are to this day captivated by this singular and atypical figure in the Abyssinian pop landscape – even though he withdrew from public life some 40 years ago. Incorrigible devotees of poetic twists, of more or less hidden meanings, Ethiopians appreciate above all the care Muluken took in choosing his lyrics and the writers who penned them, such as Feqerte Haylou, Alemtsehay Wodajo and, here, Shewalul Mengistu (1944-1977). Love songs, written by women, a far cry from the conventional drivel that pleases sappy sentimentalists.

Muluken is equally acclaimed for his perfectionism when it came to music, the opposite of the overly casual approach that is all too common. He remained a faithful partner of musicians who came from a lineage that borrowed from several inventive and pioneering bands (Venus, Equators, Dahlak). Amongst them were certain artists who began their musical lives with Nersès Nalbandian at the Haile Sellassie Theatre and who come of age in around 1973 – at just the wrong time, you might say. Among them were the pillars Shimèlis Bèyènè (trumpet), Dawit Yifru (keyboards) and Tilayé Gèbrè (sax & flute). Most notably Tilayé Gèbrè, certainly one of the most important musicians, composers and arrangers of his generation, of the end of the imperial era, and of the early years of the Derg.

It was only in 1981 that a miraculous opportunity arose for Tilayé to escape the Stalinist paradise of the dictator Menguistou Haylè-Maryam. Once again it was Amha Eshèté (1946-2021) who provided a solution. The spirited and courageous producer, who had been in exile in Washington since 1975, succeeded, thanks to his incredible perseverence, in bringing the Walias Band to the USA. It was, in fact an extended Walias Band comprising ten musicians3, six of whom chose to slip away after a few concerts and the recording of an LP (The Best of Walias, WRS 100). Tilayé Gèbrè was one of these. He has been living in the USA ever since. There he joined the then-nascent Ethiopian diaspora, which lived largely unto itself, and was making only very modest headway in the American musical market. It seems unfair that Tilayé Gèbrè and the Dahlak Band were not able to benefit earlier from the public recognition that they do deserve.

A similar draining away of the top-rate talents would lead to the reorganization of the major groups of the “Derg Time”. The remaining artists spread themselves around between Ibex Band (renamed Roha Band), Ethio Star Band and a remodeled Walias Band. That spelled the end of the Dahlak Band.

With this record, produced by the essential Ali Abdella Kaifa a.k.a. Ali Tango, we can appreciate everything that the Derg not only destroyed, but also prevented from flourishing. This gem of Ethiopian-style afrobeat came out in 1976 (and, by way of a parenthesis, before the FESTAC 1977 in Lagos, which was attended by an impressive delegation of Ethiopian musicians — although Fela was already personna non grata in his own country). Despite everything that might distinguish this ethio-groove from Fela’s music – no colonial axe to grind, no question of political confrontation with the authorities, no claims to negritude or Africanism for the Ethiopian musicians, and less extrovertion! –, this LP fits beautifully into the saga of intense and electrified soul of the new “African” groove that Fela and Manu Dibango embodied so well from that point onwards.

In restoring this record to its place in the afrobeat epic, it can be seen that, if nothing else, the timeline bestows a legitimate pedigree and a historical primacy to works that had no international impact when they were originally released.

Warning! Masterpiece!

With the demise of the group Wire in 1980, founder members Bruce Gilbert and Graham Lewis joined forces to create Dome. With the assistance of engineer Eric Radcliffe and his Blackwing Studio Dome took the ethic of »using the studio as a compositional tool« and recorded and released three Dome albums on their own label in the space of 12 months: »Dome« (July 1980), »Dome 2« (October 1980) and »Dome 3« (October 1981). A final fourth album, »Will You Speak this World: Dome 4« was released on the Norwegian Uniton label in May 1983.

These albums represent some of the most beautifuly stark and above all timeless exercises in studio experimentation from early 1980s alternative music scene.

Following 2018's acclaimed collaboration with Simon Fisher Turner, "Care", Swedish sound artist Klara Lewis returns with "Ingrid", her third solo release for Editions Mego.

"Ingrid" is a departure from Lewis's previous solo outings, drifting from the eerie rhythmic variations of "Too" and "Ett" and moving assuredly into long-form experimentation. The piece retains those records' pulsing core and builds on a single cello loop that is steadily enveloped by a surge of distortion. It's almost like a voice or chant, shifting pointedly from a whisper into a scream before singing peacefully into the light.

At times, "Ingrid" reminds of William Basinski's looping melancholy or Steve Reich's controlled and innovative phase experiments, while at others, it recalls the chaotic Scandinavian physicality of black metal. Yet the entire composition is anchored in Klara Lewis's distinct emotional world. By dissolving familiar and beautiful strings in baths of noise, Lewis allows something violent but tender to grow in its place. In a society struck through by cynicism, "Ingrid" is a cathartic listening experience and a beacon of hope.

KEG announce new EP Girders set for release September 2nd on Alcopop! Records/BMG. The band also share the frenzied and whip-smart new single Kids. The band, who have been hotly tipped across the board for 2022, will also play their debut UK headline tour plus festivals which include Green Man, End Of The Road, Latitude and more. Kids strides into the deep lineage of British art-punk songwriting that is both self-referencing and outward-facing - while being consistently innovative. Few singles manage to take aim at both the restaurant chain Itsu and the comedian Michael McIntyre, but KEG somehow pull it off.

Following a widely successful debut single release Heyshaw in the summer of 2021, KEG saw major support from publications such as NME, DIY, Dork, So Young, Clash etc. Leading into their debut EP Assembly, released October 2021, KEG toured with contemporaries such as Squid and Talk Show.

KEG are a seven piece. Albert (vocals), Joel (bass) & Will (synth) grew up together around the seaside Yorkshire town of Bridlington; and like many artists growing up in removed quarters of the country, they shared a yearning to leave. Spreading to different parts of the country after leaving school, they found their bandmates in their respective cities and found one another once again on the southern shores of Brighton.
Frank (guitar), whose background resides mostly in hip-hop, afforded a unique pulse with a guitar sound which is manic, discordant but firm. Jules (guitar) whose songwriting sensibilities come from a love of cadence and craft of beautiful soul ballads, imbued the band with his structured sense of composition. Both Charlie (trombone & shell) and Johnny (drums) come from classically trained Jazz backgrounds.
The announcement will receive digital marketing support and will launch with new tour dates announced (below) with pre-order for presale access available.

Montreal indie rock trio Plants and Animals announce "The Jungle", their fifth studio album set to be released October 23rd via Secret City Records. Their shortest album yet and certainly their boldest, "The Jungle" is eight acts in a world full of noise. The album is auto-produced and was recorded at Mixart, their studio in Montreal. The band explains : "We started working on this a couple of years ago. Warren was afraid for a friend's health. He thought he was self-medicating too much and not taking care of himself. He couldn't let go of this image of an overworked dude swallowing too many sleeping pills and falling asleep with the stove on. So it began as the place next door, sometime before Greta Thunberg turned the expression into a rallying cry, where Earth is the house and the people are sleeping. It's terrifying, and on the whole we're not unlike this friend, are we?" "The Jungle" starts with electronic drums that sound like insects at night. A whole universe comes alive in the dark. It's beautiful, complex and unsettling. Systematic and chaotic. All instinct, no plan. Voices taunt,"yeah yeah yeah." This tangled time in which we find ourselves is reflected back in shadows. Every song is such a landscape. The first one grinds to a halt and you become a kid looking out a car window at the moon, wondering how it's still on your tail as you speed past a steady blur of trees. You watch a house go up in a yellow strobe that echoes the disco weirdness of Giorgio Moroder, Donna Summer and David Bowie. You get pummelled by a rhythm then set free by a sudden change of scenery_the wind stops, clarity returns. You're under a streetlight in Queens, soft-focus, slow motion, falling in love. You speak French now too, in case you didn't already. Bienvenue. These are personal experiences made in a volatile world, and they reflect that world right back at us, even by accident. There's one song Nic sings to his teenage son who was dealing with climate change anxiety and drifting into uncharted independence. The band carries it out slowly together into a sweet blue horizon. Warren wrote the words to another shortly after losing his father. It's about the things we inherit not necessarily being the things we want. In a broader sense, that's where a lot of people find themselves right now.

“So, how did this band even happen?” That’s the question most often asked of Winged Wheel, a creatively and geographically scattered collective who have somehow congregated to make a noise that’s unexpected but undeniable. The band includes Whitney Johnson (Matchess, Circuit des Yeux), Cory Plump (Spray Paint, co-owner of the dream venue Tubby’s), Matthew J. Rolin (solo guitar wizard and half of the Powers/Rolin Duo), Steve Shelley (Sonic Youth), Lonnie Slack, and Fred Thomas (Idle Ray, Tyvek), each player living in a different city and bringing their own unique element to the group’s chain reactions. Early long distance file-trading between a few members yielded 2022’s No Island, a debut album that was accidentally really good. Good enough for the band to expand their membership and meet in person for the sessions that became 2024’s Big Hotel, a surgically-assembled murk of high energy kosmische rock with jammed-out tendencies.

Fast forward just a little and all of a sudden the band that started out as a passing idea has completed multiple tours, become a taper’s dream with sets that drift through structure and improvisation, and ridden the momentum to places unforeseen on their third album, Desert So Green. After a run of shows across the Midwest in the spring of 2025, the group settled into a studio on the outskirts of Chicago to track their next record. Though the full lineup had only been solidified for a little over a year at this point, time together on stage led to a quickly-expanding sound and a unified vision of always going somewhere new. To this end, Winged Wheel abandoned the play-now-sort-it-out-later approach of Big Hotel and instead spent hours refining flashes of inspiration into coherent songs.

Step into The Colors Within, where Totsuko sees emotions as colors and discovers real connections through music with Kimi and Rui. kensuke ushio’s score brings their world to life with glowing melodies and intimate textures.

This vinyl edition pairs the soundtrack with special artwork from the film and a translucent milky-clear LP inspired by its soft, dreamlike palette.

A must-have for fans who felt every hue of this beautiful story.

The Germany-based band Rikas' new album, "Soundtrack For A Movie That Has Not Been Written Yet," promises to be their most cohesive and contemplative project to date

Comprising 11 brisk yet beautiful tracks, the album showcases the band's tight tempos and mellow delivery. "We started this record just to have fun. It's not been that easy, because so much change has happened," guitarist and keyboardist Sascha Scherer reflects. "We've had to learn to adapt... This record is more inward-looking. We were reflecting. " Scherer further explains, "I think a lot of bands have trouble staying still. When you stop touring and moving to a new city each day, you feel lost. I feel like our new album is capturing that feeling of go, go, go." This feeling of inertia contains layers: there's a sense of restlessness, but also brotherhood and camaraderie-- feelings Rikas aim to depict in each of the album's videos. "For our sophomore album, we wanted to create a very homogeneous one," Scherer continues. "Which was not easy to achieve because we have made the experience that throughout all of our records every song differs from each other. We have four songwriters who happen to be also multi-instrumentalists in our band, and that's why we don't have to put much effort into diverse record making. Instead, we had to put pressure on ourselves to make something consistent. But we also didn't want to make every song sound the same. So the concept of the album lays in its topics."The songs for "Soundtrack For A Movie That Has Not Been Written Yet" were written over the past year, adapting and shaping old snippets and ideas, as well as creating songs completely from scratch. "For some reason, when we started writing and listening back to the songs, they all shared a similar feeling of cruising, traveling, being in motion," Scherer says. "This wasn't intentional at first, but felt more and more suiting as we proceeded with the writing. We found we'd enjoy the songs most while driving in our van, looking out the window, seeing the landscapes passing by. This has something very meditating to itself already, amplified even more by a suiting soundtrack. This is the soundtrack we tried to write. The album in its entirety is supposed to feel warm, hugging, like 'being bedded in cotton.'" For the visual content of the album, the band decided to travel to San Remo, northern Italy, to capture some of the late November sun. "In a way, you could say we tried to film the first part of the movie whose soundtrack we had just written," Scherer concludes. "Soundtrack For A Movie That Has Not Been Written Yet" is a testament to Rikas' ability to adapt and reflect on their journey, offering listeners a meditative and immersive experience that captures the essence of being in motion.

The capstone of Miles Davis’ electric period, Agharta reigns as a funk-rock fireball — a blazing comet streaked energy and elan, a fearless organism feasting on adventure and freedom, a seven-headed Godzilla stomping its way through Osaka, Japan. Recorded on February 1, 1975 at Osaka Festival Hall at the first of a two-show stand, the double album offers an endless abundance of surprises and shifts — as well as a road-proven ensemble whose chemistry and abilities equal that of any of Davis’ celebrated bands. If the true measure of jazz is the capacity to adapt to the moment and challenge perception, Agharta is consummate.

Sourced from the original master tapes, housed in a Stoughton gatefold jacket, and pressed at Fidelity Record Pressing in California, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered-edition 180g 33RPM 2LP set of this epic live release presents it in audiophile sound on a domestic pressing for the first time. Offering greater degrees of separation, detail, and richness than the compressed CD editions and more clarity, openness, and presence than older vinyl copies, this version of the 1975 release helps bring the concert stage to your home. Just make sure your turntable and speakers are up to the challenge of Davis and Co.’s explosive performances — and producing the decibels they demand.

Teeming with vibrant colors, tones, and pace, Mobile Fidelity’s reissue captures the hear-it-to-believe-it flow, sweep, and moodiness of the music. Though the group honors looseness and freedom with religious verve, the specificity and scale rendered by this remaster allows you to detect methods behind the alleged madness that are often otherwise harder to discern. This insight extends to the understated changes in volume, harmonics, and phrasings. In many ways, you can listen as Davis himself did that early February evening as he helped coordinate the overall direction and decided on whether to blow his wah-wah-wired trumpet or take a turn on the organ.

Tellingly, Agharta would likely never have been made if not for Davis’ ventures overseas and, specifically, to the Land of the Rising Sun. Having for years faced a backlash on his native soil for his choices to experiment and blow past all known borders, Davis was welcomed with open arms in Japan. The concert documented on Agharta — as well as the day’s later show, captured on the equally exciting Pangea — stemmed from a sold-out three-week tour that would ultimately mark Davis’ final public appearances for years, as he soon settled into semi-retirement and nursed the wounds connected to an unprecedented stretch of restless and relentless output.

For all the band-fueled merit of Agharta — and there’s plenty, given the cast of saxophonist Sonny Fortune, bassist Michael Henderson, drummer Al Foster, percussionist James Mtume, and guitarists Reggie Lucas and Pete Cosey seemingly blasts off to outer space and travels distant galaxies by the time this minimally edited record runs its course — Davis’ own playing often remains overlooked. As critics Richard Cook and Brian Morton observed, it is “often fantastically subtle, creating surges and ebbs in a harmonically static line, allowing him to build huge melismatic variations on a single note.” He attacks like a man on a mission, out to prove naysayers wrong and bent on trailblazing another new path forward. Convention and skeptics be damned.

Noisy and furious, dark and discordant, abstract and off-balance, radical and intense, abrasive and atmospheric, strangely beautiful and hypnotically eccentric: Agharta evades simple description, and refuses to be pinned down in any established category — rock, jazz, punk, ambient, prog, avante-garde, or otherwise. Shot through with trench-deep grooves, screaming riffs, scalding solos, and free-improv leads, its cosmic thrust comes on as the equivalent of an animated pointillist painting comprised of millions of textured dots, dashes, and dabs that hold your attention so raptly you want to revisit the ideas again and again.

Always steps ahead of everyone else, Davis knew what he was doing even when Agharta debuted in Japan before later hitting U.S. markets. Though “Maiysha” and “Theme from Jack Johnson” are identified in the track listing, the record contains a number of uncredited references to other Davis works, including a nod to “So What.” This decision to bypass labels only adds to the art of the reveal — the rare black magic in which Agharta expertly deals.

This is the gloriously remastered version of an all time classic: Dj Excel's "Just When You Thought It Was Safe".

Originally releases in the very early 90's, it has been beautifully remastered and recut, alongside some absolutely devastating remixes from the likes of The Criminal Minds, Stu Keating, Abyss, and Dj Stephano, and it also includes the four bonus beats from the original pressing.

This version is the extensive Move-E Series 2 Double Pack, which comes on coloured vinyl, and with a ridiculously cool sleeve and label design plus poster!

Avalanche Party is a garage-punk rock and roll band from the bleak yet beautiful North Yorkshire Moors After releasing their critically acclaimed debut album '24 Carat Diamond Trephine' in 2019 (BBC 6Music, BBC Radio 1, Radio X, KEXP, NME Top 100, PRS Momentum Fund Award), the band toured heavily until they weren't allowed anymore in 2020. After picking up with they left off, hitting the road with mentors ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead, they found their way to the hallowed Rancho De La Luna studio in California's Joshua Tree in 2022 to record their follow up album, engineered and produced by Dave Catching (QOTSA, Iggy Pop, Arctic Monkeys). DER TRAUM UBER ALLES is now ready to be unleashed onto the world.

Trackwahser side bring a crazy romance, mystic call for a tribal dancefloor banger ! Legend !
Second tune, in collab with Boubou, member of Antinorm-17 Sound System back in the years... The oldschool Acid excitation supported by a thick Hard Techno kick. Put some electricity in the air, be Deter-Mina !

With Roland K side you will get 2 Hardtek missiles !
The first track delivers a high-energy, fast-paced, and punchy vibe, perfect for rocking the dancefloor.
The second, a collab with Darth Leng, takes the energy even further with an explosive mix of styles and unrelenting power.
Tracks designed to get parties rocking and boost good vibes to the max!

Sikka returns to Dark Knite with another trilogy of hard hitting jungle and d'n'b workouts. As ever, these three tracks are meticulously created, beautifully produced, and hard as nails, with Cyborg being one of the toughest tracks ever to land on this filthy Kniteforce sub label....

Now recognized worldwide as one of the biggest artists, BTS released this album about two years after their Japanese debut, solidifying their status as
top artists in both Japan and Korea. This marks the analog release of their second Japanese album, coming two years after their previous one.

Included on the album are their 4th single "FOR YOU," which earned them their very first No.1 on Japan’s weekly chart, the hit single "I NEED U,"
and their 6th single "RUN," along with Japanese versions of tracks from the "Hwa Yang Yeon Hwa" series such as "FIRE," which capture the most
beautiful yet fleeting moments of youth. Additionally, the album features the Japan-original song "Wishing on a star," as well as many tracks only
available on this release.

Italian producer Matteo Veroni returns with Vibez, the second 12″ on Much More Music, a label devoted to timeless house grooves with soul, warmth, and a touch of Mediterranean light. Vibez captures the essence of classic house: deep basslines, crisp percussion, and melodies that glow with emotion. Veroni crafts each mix as a different moment in the day, radiant, fluid, and irresistibly groovy. It’s the sound of open-air dancefloors, rooftop sunsets, and late-night laughter that never quite fades.
A beautifully balanced 12″ that embodies what house music does best, move the body and lift the spirit.

Legendary Hiroaki Sugawara in the form of Sergio Maria Saguaro presents Rain Guitar.

Step into paradise alone to deeply savor an exotic experience.

“I first learned about this album thanks to GOKA, who built the sound system for my record shop, CELLAR RECORDS. Around 2019, it was praised by some connoisseurs, but it’s different from the so-called “popular ambient” sound that was in vogue at the time. This work is a Japanese obscure pop album created in 2002 by Hiroaki Sugawara, who goes by the name “Sergio Maria Saguaro,” mixing all types of exotic moods and completed in a secluded space. In particular, A-2 “Window with a Dog” and B-5 “Washing Machine” are truly a sonic paradise. When you put this record on your shelf, be sure to place it next to Tatsuhiko Asano’s excellent soundtrack “Following in the Footsteps of Doshin,” which was happily reissued in 2022, or Steve Hiett’s “Down On The Road By The Beach.”” -浜公氣 (Cellar Records)

“This sophisticated sound file paints natural landscapes, depicting rich and abundant scenes while floating through them, creating a world that is as beautiful as a kaleidoscope, appearing in the soundscape in a way that is always gentle, natural, and organic. It makes extensive use of four types of stringed instruments, modulators, flutes, and ethnic instruments, possessing a refined sense of elegant ambiance.” -Walearic / Gokaine Sound Research Institute

Spandau20 delivers its eleventh various artists release, a sonically rich and future-facing blend of broken grooves, spatial moods and modern Detroit romanticism. Four tracks, four new angles on the dancefloor. ANNA Z sets the tone with 'Kabeljau', an eclectic, IDM-flirting workout. On the opening track, elastic rhythms stretch and snap while ethereal pads drift overhead, punctured by sudden turns and glitchy surprises. Moody, weird and beautifully unpredictable. Dajusch continues with 'Fallout', diving into shimmering Detroit-inspired chords and pristine production. Clean yet full of soul, its dreamy propulsion moves with effortless optimism. It's a track that lifts heads and hearts without ever losing its club focus. Flip the record and FJAAK welcome you into a breakbeat-infused haze. 'Your Time' pairs groovy percussion and airy atmospheres with those unmistakable powerhouse vocal chops, a warehouse anthem with a gentle cosmic touch, driving yet deeply emotional. Closing the EP, Claus accelerates the pulse. 'Moist Logic' is a faster, more urgent exploration of the techno continuum. Machine funk encoded into a forward-thrusting groove, a sleek atmosphere swirling around a sharp, kinetic core. With SPANDAU20 011, the West-Berlin collective celebrates a hybrid future that is rhythmically adventurous, melodically rich and rooted in the love for the dancefloor. This record combines Berlin grit with dream-state techno, balancing rough energy and refined emotion across four cuts that leave their mark on the floor.

Brand new album from global superstar duo LANY, 10 new tracks and follow-up to their latest release A Beautiful Blur in 2023. Maroon Color 1LP Vinyl with printed inner sleeve and 12x24 poster. LANY have quietly cracked the mainstream on their own terms as one of the most ubiquitous, unpredictable, and undeniable alternative rock bands of this era. Tallying billions of streams, selling out legendary arenas, and earning widespread critical acclaim, the platinum-certified Los Angeles group consistently deliver rafter-reaching anthems anchored by airtight songcraft and the outsized personality of enigmatic frontman and songwriter Paul Jason Klein. LANY will be releasing their brand new album ''Soft'' in October 2025. Thematically and visually ''Soft'' exists in tension - an intentional contrast of the hard and soft. Tangible, literal, physical hardness juxtaposed with metaphorical, relational (and, at times too, physical) softness. Sonically, the album explores these same tensions - much of the softness and vulnerability of lyric that has defined LANY's acclaimed career, now with a harder, braver edge to the production.