quête:the flowers

The Sound Of Summer on Acid Jazz - the Humble Souls
sampledelic classic ‘Beads Things & Flowers’ gets its first
outing on a 7-inch single as part of our new Acid Jazz
classics series. A magnificent dance floor classic, ‘Beads
Things & Flowers’ is the result of the creative coming
together of Simon Anniky - previously of Beats International
and Hugh Brooker of the Night Trains and The Hip Joints, an
Acid Jazz fixture since its earliest days. Its seamless blend
of Mod Jazz samples and tight beats is inspirational. The Aside 7-inch was the hit of our ‘Acid Jazz (Not Jazz)’
compilation last year, whilst the vocal version makes its first
ever appearance since its 1991 single release!

Caserta’s favourite era of house was when the line between hip hop and house was really only made visible by the tempo of the songs. An art mastered by legends like Kenny Dope, Armand Van Helden and DJ Sneak to name a few.

FF to 2023, Caserta returns to that form with Joe’s Boutique. An obvious nod to the craftwork of the seminal album Paul’s Boutique by the Beastie Boy’s. Caserta fired up the samplers and sliced and diced his way to his first EP in years. With swinging drums, heavy basslines, chopped up vocals and music you might think you stumbled across a lost Strictly Rhythm acetate but mixed and mastered to year 2728 by the man himself.

Complete with vocal interludes segueing from track to track this truly is a listening experience as well as a dance floor filler all in one.

Over three years after the release of his latest record, Belgian singer-songwriter Bram Vanparys finally returns with breathtaking new music. His songwriting has often drawn comparisons to the music of Bob Dylan and Neil Young, but the new record 'Silent Days' reveals that Vanparys has been on a journey into new musical territory.

After 'Wild Flowers' (2015), which he recorded in Los Angeles with Ray LaMontagne's former live band, Bram Vanparys kept his guitars locked away in their cases for months. Too many questions had been bothering him and soon he found himself struggling with his musical direction and his artistic integrity. Partly so because he felt that his almost archaic approach on songwriting was pushing him down a dead end street and partly because his interest in rich and complex arrangements started to grow stronger. In 2016 he bought an old trailer and went living in the countryside to work on his new sound. A harsh winter and a tragic breakup with his wife set the mood for a new set of songs and soon Vanparys started recording again.

'Silent Days' comprises both classic songwriting reminiscent of the old masters such as Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan and on the other hand dark, complex arrangements that refer to late Talk Talk and even Radiohead. Guitars were played with kitchen knives and the heavily manipulated acoustic sounds reveal that Vanparys might have been listening to Kurt Vile. Bram's lyrics are deeply honest, touching, but never sentimental and his once so angelic voice now sounds hoarse and mature.

The Bony King of Nowhere is the pseudonym of Belgian singer-songwriter Bram Vanparys. He released his debut album 'Alas my love' to critical acclaim in 2009, which was followed by his second and most celebrated album 'Eleonore' in 2011. In the aftermath of 'Eleonore' he was asked to write the film score for the movie 'Les Géants', for which he was awarded by Les Magritte du Cinéma for best original soundtrack.










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Running Back welcomes Firas Waez and his studio character 9th House for a flock of heartfelt and intuitive house tracks. Centered around uplifting chords and joyous melodies, upbeat drums and shuffling hi-hats, it feels like being in a circle dance, watching flowers turning into fruits or caterpillars into butterflies.

Made with the tools of today, but with a burdening love for the ancient magic and positivity of this music. The results being highly contagious. Whether its any of the 9th House’s solo works like Reuben or the collaboration with Matrefakt, it’s impossible to hold still. But as no one can live off love alone, there is also an odd one out. The eponym Midas swaps vintage techniques and the love potion of its counterparts for sharp and exact peak-time magic that makes endorphins rush and cheeks blush. Whichever you finally pick of the five tracks, any of them are an amulet against bad times. A Midas’ touch indeed! Happy house painting artwork courtesy of Luciano Calderon via ruttkoswki;68.

CURRENT RAGE - The missing musical link between Athens and Atlanta
To celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the out-of-print forgotten classic, Propeller
Sound Recordings is set to release and remastered and expanded edition of
"Seven Songs". Fully immersed in the do it yourself aesthetic of the early-R.E.M.
era, Current Rage's sole indie record is highly regarded by record collectors
seeking out early eighties DIY releases. The relative scarcity of the original EP
today suggests the item does not circulate on the marketplace very often making
it ripe for reintroduction to the current marketplace with this expanded version.
Anthony DeCurtis of Rolling Stone wrote, "an enviable and impressive explosion
of new music was emerging from the Atlanta Athens area at this time" Current
Rage drew inspiration from Talking Heads, Pylon and R.E.M.

CURRENT RAGE - The missing musical link between Athens and Atlanta To celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the out-of-print forgotten classic, Propeller Sound Recordings is set to release and remastered and expanded edition of "Seven Songs". Fully immersed in the do it yourself aesthetic of the early-R.E.M.

era, Current Rage's sole indie record is highly regarded by record collectors seeking out early eighties DIY releases. The relative scarcity of the original EP today suggests the item does not circulate on the marketplace very often making it ripe for reintroduction to the current marketplace with this expanded version.

Anthony DeCurtis of Rolling Stone wrote, "an enviable and impressive explosion of new music was emerging from the Atlanta Athens area at this time" Current Rage drew inspiration from Talking Heads, Pylon and R.E.M.

One of the most innovative and ambitious albums ever made, Genioh Yamashirogumi’s Ecophony Rinne is a sonic masterpiece featuring over 200 musicians that expanded the limits of what music and sound could do.

Before Akira there was Ecophony Rinne. Originally released in 1986, Ecophony Rinne is a four-part symphony of “ecological music” by Geinoh Yamashirogumi that married ancient tradition with technological innovation, and changed the way we listen to music in the process.

Half-speed mastered at Abbey Road by Miles Showell, Time Capsule’s high-tech analogue reissue is the first to reproduce composer Ōhashi’s ground-breaking “Hypersonic Effect” theory on vinyl, cutting frequencies beyond the realm of human hearing into wax to capture the full spectrum emotional impact of this extraordinary work.

Founded by genius polymath Tsutomu Ōhashi aka Shoji Yamashiro, Geinoh Yamashirogumi is a shapeshifting collective of over a hundred members from across disciplines. Rejecting professional musicianship, Ōhashi cultivated an ethos where neuroscientists, psychologists, doctors, journalists, engineers and students could critique society through artistic expression and pursue their research in ethnomusicological performances that spanned global traditions, Eastern spirituality and Western classical form.

Ecophony Rinne represents the pinnacle of this vision - an expansive orchestral suite made with over 200 musicians that channeled Ōhashi’s thinking about mankind’s relationship with nature, and fundamental questions of life, death and rebirth.

Here pipe organ synths made from sampled Tibetan horns sit alongside field recordings from Central African forests, Buddhist mantras circle dummy head microphones, Javanese Jegog percussion ensembles pulse like verdant ecosystems, and the acoustics of temples, caves and landscapes are conveyed in the mix. Weaving together culture, nature and technology, it is a record that vibrates with the polyphony of life on Earth.

But Ecophony Rinne was not only musically innovative. Noticing the difference between vinyl and CD versions of the album where digital reproduction limited the sound, Ōhashi developed a theory of “Hypersonic Effect”, determining that ultra-high frequencies above 20khz can impact human perception even if they are inaudible. At once a physical and a psychological experience, to listen to Ecophony Rinne is to feel music differently.

The rest is history. After its release, Ōhashi was approached by director Katsuhiro Ōtomo to produce the soundtrack for Akira, the work for which Geinoh Yamashirogumi is best known. Emerging from the shadows at last, Ecophony Rinne was its transcendental blueprint, reissued in its most complete hypersonic form on vinyl for the first time.

Rather than describe nature, Ecophony Rinne embodied it. Rather than reflect culture, Ecophony Rinne defined it. Rather than explore technology, Ecophony Rinne changed it. As a work of art, it is more relevant than ever. You won’t have heard anything like it.

A friend of mine told me he had visited the place that Cancer House live and record.He said they jammed together all afternoon. In the moment, in the zone so to speak,he became more and more convinced that what they were making together was thebest music he had ever been involved with. As the afternoon drifted by, second byrevelatory second, he began making grandiose plans to release the recording. By the timeit was dark outside the windows he imagined it as a future lost classic, a key livedocument of a scene, a moment and an aesthetic. He thought about all the recordshe loved. He thought about the great, little known, statements of lo-fi, downer indie:dark, sweet, crawling guitar music by bands like Farewood, Bedhead, UN, orThe Sonora Pine. He could even picture the sleeve down to the last detail.

The session ended and as they were all packing up he asked about the recording.And someone said ‘oh, we weren’t recording.’ ”- Jack Rollo

Das siebte DESTROYER Album von 2006. Dieses Reissue enthält einen exklusiven, 20-minütigen Bonus Song namens ,Loscil's Rubies". Die LP kommt als Doppel-LP auf schwarzem Vinyl. Eine gänzlich unerwartete Sammlung smarter Popmusik, die keine Gefangenen macht. ,Destroyer's Rubies" erzählt von gewonnener und verlorener Liebe, von verpassten Gelegenheiten und einer künstlerischen Integrität, die DESTROYER Fans sehr vertraut sein dürfte. Bejars DYLANeske Herangehensweise an geistreiche Kommentare und sein Tribut an den glamourösen und bombastischen Folk der frühen T-REX oder BOWIE distanzieren DESTROYER vom eher straighten Pop seiner anderen Band, THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS, ohne auch nur einen Moment die Melodieseligkeit eben jener Band hintenan zu stellen.

Fast-rising Los Angeles band The Silvertone make a splash on the modern soul scene with Mistakes—their most soulful statement yet. Retro-laced and dripping with smoky vocals, dusty grooves, and late-night cool, this souldie record blends vintage R&B, classic soul, and a touch of psych—Sam Cooke meets Durand Jones under neon lights.

Diagonale des Yeux is the new band formed by two of France’s admired and adventurous artists. Laurène Exposito, we know as EYE, our longest regular contributor to the label — and friend Théo Delaunay, member and producer of Parasite Jazz, panoptique, De Klok & Violent Quand On Aime.

In Knekelhuis we have a particular fondness for artistic outputs that resist easy categorisation, and Diagonale des Yeux inhabits precisely that kind of territory.

Every aspect of the project is DIY/homemade. Their world drifts along the fringes of cabaret, strange 1980s French underground pop music to contemporary lo-fi scene — evoking the spirit of Nini Raviolette and The Residents — while delivering beautifully written songs that lodge themselves in your head almost immediately like a Cindy Lee ballad.

The tracks on Madeleine squeak and creak, wobbling on fragile hinges before suddenly opening onto moments of pure beauty.

Drums and guitars follow up synths and electronic percussions captured on tape between living rooms, studios and a concert space.

The band has a kink for choirs and playfully uses diverse languages. Their lyrics emerge through a homemade, patented four-hands cadavre exquis (Exquisite Corpse) process, where chance and dialogue shape meaning as much as intention.

Diagonale des Yeux is a singular project — equally strange and irresistibly pop-leaning. Music like weeds pushing through pavement cracks and, against all odds, turning into flowers.

The most popular acoustic folk music group of the 1960s, Peter, Paul and Mary mixed great songs with political and social activism. They brought folk music to a new prominence in the post-McCarthy era, putting lyrics about politics and morality on the radio amid the syrupy boy-girl love tunes that dominated the airwaves. Presented here is the trio's debut album, originally issued in 1962, the splendid selftitled Peter, Paul and Mary. It features some of their most popular compositions such as 'Early in the Morning' and 'Cruel War', and great renditions of Hedy West's '500 Miles' and Pete Seeger's 'If I Had a Hammer'.

The bonus tracks were recorded live in San Francisco and Long Beach, California, late 1962: 'One Kind Favor', 'The Times They Are A' Changin', and 'If I Had My Way'. "The debut album by Peter, Paul & Mary is still one of the best albums to come out of the 1960s folk music revival. It's a beautifully harmonized collection of the best songs that the group knew, stirring in its sensibilities and its haunting melodies as it crosses between folk, children's songs, and even gospel. Peter, Paul & Mary, which hit the top spot on the album charts as part of a 185-week run, is the purest of the trio's albums, laced with innocent good spirits and an optimism that remains infectious"






f 6 ONE KIND FAVOR [Live version]






[m] 13 THE TIMES THEY ARE A' CHANGIN' [Live version]
[n] 14 IF I HAD MY WAY [Live version]






[f] 6 ONE KIND FAVOR [Live version]






[m] 13 THE TIMES THEY ARE A' CHANGIN' [Live version]
[n] 14 IF I HAD MY WAY [Live version]

The dreamy harmonising of Everything But The Girl. The propulsive urgency of The Strokes. The lilting folk-pop of The Coral. The introspective songcraft of Belle and Sebastian. The bittersweet, lyrical side-eyes of The Beautiful South. Vona Vella have all these elements and so many more, all weaving together to form a contemporary sound both gossamer delicate and fiercely robust. Since their eponymous debut album in 2023 (released on Strap Originals, Pete Doherty’s label), the seed of their signature sound – wistful indie-pop harmonies, exquisitely blended male/female vocals – has not so much grown as erupted through the dream-pop meadow into a towering, flowering beanstalk.

Today, with their second album Carnival, the former indie-pop duo have spectacularly evolved into a dynamic five-piece band, with key musical contributions from the musicians they’ve so successfully toured with over the last two years, drummer Jake Bott (who they’ve known since they were 17), bassist Claud J Melton (who they found on TikTok through a search for a female bassist), and guitarist Dexter Howell (a friend of a friend). As a five-piece, their innate pop sensibilities are now newly bolstered by a confident, thrilling propulsion, izzy and Dan, still the main songwriters and vocalists, are thrilled with the sound, where the possibilities are endless. Vona Vella may be names after two flowers, but there’s nothing twee happening here.

Mit The Mirror legt Buck Meek, Gitarrist von Big Thief, sein viertes Soloalbum vor - ein feinfühliges Werk über Sprache, Identität und das ständige Sich-Verändern. Freunde und Weggefährt:innen wie Adrianne Lenker, Jolie Holland oder Tucker Zimmerman wirken mit und hinterlassen ihre Spuren nicht nur musikalisch, sondern auch in den Texten. Meek begreift Songwriting als gemeinschaftlichen Prozess und nutzt den Spiegel als zentrales Bild: nicht zur Selbstbespiegelung, sondern als Gegenüber, das Fragen stellt. Aufgewachsen in einer kunst- und literaturgeprägten Familie in Texas, sammelte Meek früh vielfältige musikalische Erfahrungen - von Blues über Jazz bis Folk. Diese Offenheit prägt auch The Mirror. Gemeinsam mit Produzent James Krivchenia verbindet er die Live-Energie einer Band mit subtilen elektronischen Texturen. Die Aufnahmen entstanden in einem experimentellen, offenen Setting, das Spontaneität über Perfektion stellt. In seinen Songs geht es um Nähe, Verletzlichkeit und die Brüchigkeit von Erinnerung. Wortspiele, Spiegelungen und innere Dialoge machen Sprache selbst zum Thema. Angst und Zweifel erscheinen dabei nicht als Gegenspieler, sondern als Begleiter. The Mirror erklärt nicht - es hört zu, tastet sich vor und lädt dazu ein, dem Unbekannten mit Neugier zu begegnen.
Sicherhe

Whilst remaining leftfield in spirit, there is a musical vulnerability to the latest iteration of Legss, and a newfound pop sensibility to their writing, which reflects a move to a more accessible sound. There is a security in inaccessibility, and shedding this cloak opens the band up to an earnestness at once exciting and nerve-wracking. Twinned with their signature world-building aesthetic, the new direction is reflected sonically by drummer Louis Grace, who co-produced the album with Balazs Altsach (Ugly, Katy J Pearson, Broadside Hacks) - set to be distributed by The state51 Conspiracy.

On the announcement of their debut album, Unreal, the band say:
“Unreal feels like the work of a lifetime. We can’t believe we’re still here to see it through, but we are and we couldn’t be prouder. The album is about miscommunication and feelings of unreality/the uncanny in everyday life; the tragic and the comic.”

ABOUT LEGSS
Merging intricate guitars, disquieting monologues and a rhythm section both technical and unruly, London’s Legss create a wholly unique sound.
After meeting and forming in London, Legss released their experimental, darkly satirical debut EP Writhing Comedy in 2019, which received heavy airplay on BBC 6 Music. A year later the band’s much-anticipated, genre-bending sophomore EP Doomswayers was released in the shadow of the pandemic, championed by BBC Radio 1’s Jack Saunders and BBC 6 Music’s Steve Lamacq.

After the release of their single ‘Hollywood’, Legss signed to The state51 Conspiracy and released their third EP Fester in 2023, recorded at The Church, which saw critical acclaim from the likes of the Sunday Times, Quietus, Independent, Line of Best Fit, So Young Magazine, DORK, L&Q, and DIY.

In 2024 the band were included by Simon Reynolds in the afterword to a republished edition of Mark Fisher’s seminal Ghosts of My Life (Zero Books).

Legss are Louis Grace (drums, synth), Ned Green (vocals, guitar), Jake Martin (bass) and Max Oliver (guitar)

'Flowers', the new EP from Elizabeth Davis, finds itself at the cross-section of many factors. In part, it’s the result of Davis’ obsession with a seminal folk song. But it also coincides with her rediscovery of the voice and language as an instrument. It was recorded during an autumn residency at Sternhagen Gut, the cultural refuge run by Gudrun Gut and Thomas Fehlmann, located deep in the Uckermark countryside halfway between Berlin and the Baltic coast.

The six tracks on 'Flowers' all take Pete Seeger’s ‘60s protest-folk song 'Where Have All The Flowers Gone' as their starting point. However, they veer off in different directions, from vocal loops and deconstructed lyrics, to instrumental drones and glitchy, manipulated rhythm tracks. Like many musicians, Davis has learnt composition by a process of disassembly, analyzing musical works piece by piece, and 'Flowers' began as one such forensic exercise. “But sometimes,” says Davis, “a source is so loaded up on meaning that the studies and experiments can become worthwhile and meaningful works in their own right.” 'Flowers' began to take on a life of its own, raising renewed questions about age-old themes such as war, authorship, translation and historical structures.

Davis is no stranger to cover versions. From studying violin to playing in free jazz and punk bands, interpreting other artists’ works has long been a key part of her musical approach. And since her radio show 'Deep Puddle' recently drew to a close after seven years, her experiments with narration and sound collage have found their way into her musical work once again. For 'Flowers', she cut up the source material (with a nod to Gysin and Burroughs), and reassembled the lyrics, the musical notes, and recordings by different performers, to create uncanny new forms.

But perhaps the biggest influence on 'Flowers' was conversations about music, art and pop subcultures with Gut. These dialogues helped Davis find a balance between far-out sound design experiments and catchy melodies, combining a certain avant-garde element and modern day songcraft. And it’s this sense of conversation, this revisiting of topics and renewal of ideas, that will keep us coming back to 'Flowers' long into the future.

Auf ihrem dritten Album bei Oh Boy Records und ihrem fünften seit Beginn ihrer Karriere vor einem Jahrzehnt stellt Emily Scott Robinson erneut ihre Meisterschaft als Performerin und Geschichtenerzählerin unter Beweis. Mit Appalachia - aufgenommen in den Dreamland Recording Studios mit dem Grammy-nominierten Produzenten Josh Kaufman - öffnet sich Robinson für Experimente und singt mit ihrer kristallklaren Stimme über Widerstandsfähigkeit, Liebe, Trauer und Hoffnung. Robinsons Talent ist keine Überraschung - sie ist mittlerweile eine erfahrene Tournee-Künstlerin, sowohl im In- als auch im Ausland. Ihre Alben ,Traveling Mercies" (2019) und ,American Siren" (2021) landeten jeweils ganz oben auf den Jahresendlisten ,Best Country and Americana Albums" des Rolling Stone und ,10 Best Country Albums" von Stereogum. Sie wurde von der Washington Post, Billboard, American Songwriter und No Depression gelobt und erreichte mit ihrem Song ,Let 'Em Burn" Platz 19 der NPR-Liste ,100 Best Songs of 2021". Es war ihre 2020 veröffentlichte Single ,The Time for Flowers", eine Hymne der Hoffnung, die sie zu Hause inmitten der globalen Pandemie aufgenommen hatte, die die Aufmerksamkeit von Oh Boy Records auf sich zog, dem 1981 von John Prine gegründeten Independent-Label. Robinson ergriff die Gelegenheit, sich dem freigeistigen und beliebten Plattenlabel anzuschließen, das das Erbe ihres Helden weiterführt. Robinson ist überzeugt, dass die Songs auf ,Appalachia" die besten sind, die sie je geschrieben hat - sie singt über ihre an Demenz erkrankte Großmutter, einen Saloon voller schillernder Charaktere, in dem nur Bargeld akzeptiert wird, und über ihre Dankbarkeit für das Leben trotz aller Schwierigkeiten. Das Album enthält ein Duett mit dem Grammy-Gewinner John Paul White, das die Liebe feiert, die mit Narben und Alter einhergeht, sowie eine Hymne für alle, die jemals gescheitert sind oder hinter ihren Erwartungen zurückgeblieben sind. ,Es gibt etwas, das ich bei jeder Platte, die ich mache, tue", sagt sie. ,Ich verwebe ein Gebet darin und bitte darum, dass all diese Songs ihren Weg zu allen finden, die sie brauchen. Ich bitte diese Songs, von Nutzen zu sein, den Menschen zu helfen, Freude zu finden und zu erleben."

"Graze the Bell" ist eine Sammlung von bewegenden, faszinierenden Solo-Klavierstücken und das bisher reinste Werk von David Moore. Bekannt für seine atmosphärischen Kompositionen mit Bing & Ruth sowie seine Zusammenarbeit mit dem Gitarristen Steve Gunn und Cowboy Sadness, ist dies Moores erstes weit verbreitetes Solo-Klavieralbum. Wie das Albumcover - ein Foto, das Moore von Hand bestickt hat - abstrahiert die Musik persönliche Erfahrungen zu transzendenten Eindrücken. Moore nutzt sein Klavier, um meditativ die Conditio Humana zu erforschen, und macht "Graze the Bell" zu einem Zufluchtsort des Klangs. Im Laufe ihrer zahlreichen Veröffentlichungen haben Bing & Ruth häufig ihre Form und ihren Sound verändert, sich zu einer fünfzehnköpfigen Gruppe entwickelt und sind schließlich zu einer Trio-Konfiguration gelangt. Ihr jüngstes Album ,Species" stellte Moores Farfisa-Spiel in den Vordergrund, während eine nachfolgende EP mit dem gleichen Namen seine Solointerpretationen des Albums enthielt. Dieser lange Prozess der Destillation konzentrierte sich stets auf Moores Kompositionen für das Klavier und sein Verständnis davon. Nach zwei Jahrzehnten gefeierter Ensemblearbeit ist das Erscheinen von ,Graze the Bell" ein Moment, in dem sich der Kreis schließt, eine Heimkehr - nicht einfach zu einem Ort oder einer Zeit, sondern zu einem leuchtenden Zentrum, das beides übersteigt. Einige der Stücke auf ,Graze the Bell" waren ursprünglich für ein Album von Bing & Ruth geplant, wurden aber schließlich als Soloprojekt neu konzipiert. Moore nutzte nur das Klavier und versuchte, die bewährten Methoden, die er im Laufe der Jahre entwickelt hatte, weiter auszubauen. ,Ich möchte mich weiterentwickeln", sagt er, ,und dogmatische Denkweisen hinterfragen." Er öffnete sich aktiv für Experimente und suchte nach einer tieferen Präsenz in seinem Spiel, wobei er seine Beziehung zum Klavier und zum Leben neu bewertete. Moores Musik basiert zwar auf komponierten Noten und schöpft aus Lebenserfahrungen, doch die Quelle seiner Inspiration bleibt eher unbeschreiblich. Indem er Letzteres bewusst pflegte, entwickelte er eine natürliche Fähigkeit, sich in einen tranceähnlichen Zustand zu versetzen. Moore kann sich mit dieser Absicht hinsetzen und ist ,innerhalb weniger Sekunden" ,vollkommen dort". Von der ersten bis zur letzten Note basiert das Album auf dem atemberaubenden Klang eines ,bestialischen" Steinway Model D aus Hamburg von 1987. Dies hängt zum Teil mit seinem subtilen Spielstil zusammen, der manchmal an Stille grenzt. Moores anmutige Herangehensweise gibt dem Klang Raum und offenbart Nuancen des Klaviers, die viele Spieler gewöhnlich ignorieren würden. Solche Nuancen wurden während der Aufnahmen des Albums im renommierten Oktaven Audio in Mt. Vernon, New York, gepflegt. Der Klang des Steinway-Flügels des Studios wurde unter der Produktionsleitung des Grammy-Gewinners Ben Kane mit Unterstützung von Owen Mulholland lebhaft eingefangen. Um Moores experimentellen Ansatz zu unterstreichen, setzten sie Pitch-Correcting-Software kreativ ein, um die verschiedenen Register des Klangprofils des Klaviers zu orchestrieren. Der Ausdruck ,graze the bell" (die Glocke streifen) kam Moore vor Jahren aus heiterem Himmel in den Sinn. Er fand ihn poetisch und blieb ihm im Gedächtnis haften. Moore, der lange Zeit daran geglaubt hatte, dass das Leben eine Reise ist, an deren Ende man etwas erreicht oder ankommt, und dies zunehmend in Frage gestellt hatte, fand zunehmend mehr Sicherheit darin, einfach da zu sein, wo er ist. ,Es gibt keinen Gipfel - und keinen Weg dorthin", schreibt er. ,Nur die Hoffnung, dass wir, wenn wir Glück haben, gelegentlich die Glocke streifen." Und diese Erkenntnis hat er in sein Klavierspiel einfließen lassen. Mit diesem Album hat er sich bewusst dafür entschieden, Eigenheiten, sowohl seine eigenen als auch die des Instruments, voll und ganz anzunehmen. Anmut, subtile Klänge, rohe Gesten und glückliche Zufälle werden hier geschätzt. Die Stickerei auf dem Cover zeigt seine Frau beim Drachensteigen an der Küste von North Carolina. Sie wurde während der Abmischung des Albums über zehn Monate hinweg methodisch mit Kreuzstich gestickt, und viele persönliche Lebensereignisse - traurige und hoffnungsvolle - sind in seine Handwerkskunst eingewoben. Da Moore selbst mit einer bipolaren Störung zu kämpfen hat, dienten sowohl das Album als auch die Stickerei als kathartische Mittel der Meditation für ihn. Moores Klavierspiel enthält eine versteckte Karte persönlicher Erfahrungen, die bezaubernde Wiederholung seiner Melodien navigiert seinen Weg und unseren durch die Skalen des Raums. Moores Musik weckt verborgene Gefühle, erweckt uns und erinnert uns an unser gemeinsames Zentrum. In einer Zeit, in der unsere Menschlichkeit regelmäßig abgelenkt und beeinträchtigt wird, lässt ,Graze the Bell" das Herz erklingen, das wir als unser wahres Zuhause kennen. David Moores "Graze the Bell" wird über RVNG Intl. veröffentlicht - eine spirituelle Heimkehr, wenn man so will.

Following our first LP of Tom Jones’s finest soulful performances on the radio, “Soul Man”, we present a second album of soul songs that we think he should have released but never did. This time we concentrate on his TV performances, the bulk of which come from 1969 and reflect his personal preference for covering Stax, Atlantic and Motown material. So put aside your preconceptions if you have any and listen to his collaborations with Aretha, Smokey, Janis, Cher, Dusty and don’t forget that Wicked Wicked Pickett. With a tight, funky band led by Herbie Flowers, this is Big Band Soul at its very best.

Frankfurt's legendary producer Roman Flügel returns to Phonica Records with the 'Cooking The Books EP', another four track collection of his idiosyncratic leftfield Techno.

Roman sets the tone of this release with the quirkily foreboding title track 'Cooking The Books', all zippy, skittering percussion and deep pulsing basslines. The sneaky off-kilter melody of 'Sensitive Contacts' continues the dark and sparse feel of the release, while on the flip 'Shameless' provides the EP's dancefloor climax while retaining its bleak, ominous theme. Finally, the clouds disperse and the tension melts away with gorgeous introspective ender 'Flowers'.

Leave it to Langhorne Slim - a pioneer of raw, rule-breaking Americana for more than two decades - to reach far beyond the genre he helped inspire.

The Dreamin' Kind finds the Nashville transplant strapping on an electric guitar and embracing his longtime love of larger-than-life rock & roll. With it's chugging power chords, 1970s-sized riffs, and richly layered arrangements, The Dreamin' Kind is fueled not only by sheer amplification, but by the soul-baring songwriting that's become Slim's calling card, too. Tucked between those anthems are acoustic-driven songs that skirt the outer orbits of folk music, from the bare-boned heartbreak of ''Stealin' Time'' to the organic, orchestral sweep of ''Dance On Thru.'' The result is the more explorative and expansive album of Slim's career: a record made for rock clubs, campfires, and garages alike, produced by Greta Van Fleet's Sam Kiszka, and anchored by a lifelong desire to break down new walls.

''It felt like I was blowing some old shit up so I could plant some new flowers,'' Slim says of the creation process. ''I love acoustic music. I love folk music. But those aren't my only loves. Rock & roll has always tickled the same place in my soul as great singer-songwriter music, and I wanted to explore those influences. Raw songs that make you feel something: that's the stuff I'm after.''

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!

Zeitkratzer director Reinhold Friedl and his ensemble present new compositions, grounded on Domenico Scarlatti's piano sonata F-minor K.466. Commissioned by the dance company Rubato and dedicated to Mario Bertoncini (1932-2019).

Little is known about Domenico Scarlatti (1685-1757). His music is, so to speak, left to its own devices: free, cheeky, playful, sonorous, surprising. Harmonically strolling again and again into unforeseen regions, the ear leads, not the theory; and also the fingers get their right: playful and haptic it goes. Scarlatti explained, "since nature has given me ten fingers and my instrument provides employment for all, I see no reason why I should not use all ten of them."

Freedom, friction and listening pleasure instead of convention: "He knew quite well that he had disregarded all the rules of composition in his piano pieces, but asked whether his deviation from the rules offended the ear? He believes there is almost no other rule than that of not offending the only sense whose object is music - the ear."

Reinhold Friedl applied this principle and composed the music for a choreography by dance company Rubato. Dance music drawn from Scarlatti, who was so inspired by dance music. The material of the piano sonata F-minor K.466 is twisted anew in all its richness, shifted back and forth, declined, frozen, noisified, sound structures extracted, floating. Those who know the sonata, will more than smell it’s shadows. Dedicated to Mario Bertoncini (Gruppo di Improvvisazione Nuova Consonanza) who was particularly fond of K.466, on which all the music presented here is grounded.

"Wild flowers", Barbara Zubers had once called Scarlatti's music. Let them bloom.

a 1.1 KAKUMEI DOUCHUU - ON THE WAY FROM "DANDADAN"
b 1.2 DAIJOUBU FROM "MOONRISE"
[c] 1.3 HANA MUSOU - PEERLESS FLOWERS [FROM "MONONOKE THE MOVIE: THE ASHES OF RAGE"]
[d] 1.4 KATSUBOU [FROM "MONONOKE THE MOVIE: THE ASHES OF RAGE"]
[e] 1.5 LOVE SICK [FROM "MONONOKE THE MOVIE: THE ASHES OF RAGE"]
[f] 1.6 AIKOTOBA - THE SPELL [FROM "THE APOTHECARY DIARIES"]
[g] 1.7 RED:BIRTHMARK [FROM "MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM: THE WITCH FROM MERCURY"]
[h] 1.8 HOUSEKI NO HIBI [FROM "MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM: THE WITCH FROM MERCURY"]

[a] 1.1 KAKUMEI DOUCHUU - ON THE WAY [FROM "DANDADAN"]
[b] 1.2 DAIJOUBU [FROM "MOONRISE"]
[c] 1.3 HANA MUSOU - PEERLESS FLOWERS [FROM "MONONOKE THE MOVIE: THE ASHES OF RAGE"]
[d] 1.4 KATSUBOU [FROM "MONONOKE THE MOVIE: THE ASHES OF RAGE"]
[e] 1.5 LOVE SICK [FROM "MONONOKE THE MOVIE: THE ASHES OF RAGE"]
[f] 1.6 AIKOTOBA - THE SPELL [FROM "THE APOTHECARY DIARIES"]
[g] 1.7 RED:BIRTHMARK [FROM "MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM: THE WITCH FROM MERCURY"]
[h] 1.8 HOUSEKI NO HIBI [FROM "MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM: THE WITCH FROM MERCURY"]

[a] a1 KAKUMEI DOUCHUU - ON THE WAY [FROM "DANDADAN"]
[b] a2 DAIJOUBU [FROM "MOONRISE"]
[c] a3 HANA MUSOU - PEERLESS FLOWERS [FROM "MONONOKE THE MOVIE: THE ASHES OF RAGE"]
[d] a4 KATSUBOU [FROM "MONONOKE THE MOVIE: THE ASHES OF RAGE"]
[e] b1 LOVE SICK [FROM "MONONOKE THE MOVIE: THE ASHES OF RAGE"]
[f] b2 AIKOTOBA - THE SPELL [FROM "THE APOTHECARY DIARIES"]
[g] b3 RED:BIRTHMARK [FROM "MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM: THE WITCH FROM MERCURY"]
[h] b4 HOUSEKI NO HIBI [FROM "MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM: THE WITCH FROM MERCURY"]

[a] a1 | KAKUMEI DOUCHUU - ON THE WAY [FROM "DANDADAN"]
[b] a2 | DAIJOUBU [FROM "MOONRISE"]
[c] a3 | HANA MUSOU - PEERLESS FLOWERS [FROM "MONONOKE THE MOVIE THE ASHES OF RAGE"]
[d] a4 | KATSUBOU [FROM "MONONOKE THE MOVIE THE ASHES OF RAGE"]
[e] b1 | LOVE SICK [FROM "MONONOKE THE MOVIE THE ASHES OF RAGE"]
[f] b2 | AIKOTOBA - THE SPELL [FROM "THE APOTHECARY DIARIES"]
[g] b3 | RED BIRTHMARK [FROM "MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM: THE WITCH FROM MERCURY"]
[FROM "MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM THE WITCH FROM MERCURY"]

Das 2024er Album des irischen Indie-Folk-Singer/Songwriters Fionn Regan wird erstmals auf Vinyl erhältlich: "O AVALANCHE" ist voller schwebender Intimitäten, abstrakt und intuitiv, durchdrungen von einem Gespür für die erhebende Verbindung zwischen Umgebung und Emotionen. Zwischen sonnendurchfluteten Kulissen und leuchtenden Arrangements entstand eine Reihe wundervoll-erhabener Songs. Koproduziert mit Ian Grimble (Travis, Manic Street Preachers, Texas), schafft Regans abseits gelegenes Gespür für Klima und Landschaft einen weiteren kreativen Höhepunkt und ein Album, in dem man sich verlieren kann.

Although humans possess language as a means of communication, We sometimes hurt each other simply by intending to. In war, bullets kill people. If we consider words to be like bullets, they can be violent and cause mental suffering. However, when communication causes problems, the only way to solve them is through more communication. I thought: wouldn't it be wonderful if those bullets could turn int flowers instead? In everyday life, when we talk, laugh and share moments with friends and family, Those moments can be transformed into flowers. Keeping this in mind, I created this album. (Hidetoshi Koizumi aka Hybrid Leisureland)

This is an entry for Record Day DAY 2. Released on 180g heavyweight vinyl!

Following on from their hit previous album, this is their third album, produced by Tore Johansen in 1998.
The band changed their production environment, spending two months at Tore's home/studio in Sweden.
Includes 13 tracks, including "Evil and Flowers (Piano version)" "Forget Me Not," and "Kingyo"

This summer's epic murder mystery will find its way to your record player! The new film by Chris Columbus
(Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Home Alone) has once again been fully scored by composer Thomas Newman.

With titles such as American Beauty and Road to Perdition under his belt, Newman is renowned for his hauntly eerie,
but beautiful style. The beloved film composer matches perfectly with the cozy, yet intriguing
Netflix movie starring Pierce Brosnan (GoldenEye, Mamma Mia! The Movie) and Helen Mirren (The Queen, Excalibur).

The Thursday Murder Club is available as a limited edition on red vinyl.

- 140G schwarzes Vinyl inklusive bedruckter Innenhülle und Downloadkarte