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With Horror Spectrum, Bunnies plunges headfirst into the shadowy abyss of their art-rock multiverse, unearthing sounds that slither, shimmer, and scream.

Equal parts psychedelic hallucination, krautrock ritual, and noise rock exorcism, this record feels like the sonic aftermath of mad scientists summoning ghosts through an analog synthesizer they excavated from a cursed tomb. It's less an album and more an experiment gone deliciously wrong—a séance that channels the chaotic energies of dimensions better left untouched.

From the extraterrestrial pulsations of “Eyer of Ire” to the technicolor bliss of “That Evil Ghoul,” Horror Spectrum is a seven-track odyssey that detonates the boundaries of Bunnies’ already unhinged catalog. These tracks drag you by the ankles into realms where sound has teeth, time melts into warped rainbows, and the music feels like it’s plotting something sinister. Few bands dare to tread where Bunnies boldly hop, but here they are, mapping out mythical soundscapes with the glee of cartographers lost in their own creation.

This freakish entity of a record is profoundly unsettling and weirdly exhilarating. Horror Spectrum is the sound of a band digging deep into their subconscious and inviting you to get lost in the labyrinth.

Will you find your way out?

And if it sounds this good, why not just stay?

1990's Recurring, the fourth and final studio album by Spacemen 3, is often considered the introduction of two brilliant solo projects (Spectrum and Spiritualized) rather than the work of a functioning band. While Spacemen 3's departing statement surely reveals a deep divide within the S3 camp – each side of the LP was written by Sonic Boom and Jason Pierce separately and, unlike previous releases, the two do not play on each other's songs – Recurring maintains a cohesive, dreamy feel with its chief sonic officers backed by fellow travelers Will Carruthers, Mark Refoy and Jon Mattock.

Opening saga "Big City (Everybody I Know Can Be Found Here)" marries ambient haze with narcotized indie rock, while "I Love You" manages to arrange a beautiful flute alongside a defiantly throbbing bass track. "Hypnotized," a reimagined fuzz-pop hymn, would become the group's first entry in the UK Singles Charts. Recurring lays bare the essence of Spacemen 3's persistent sound, rooted in both aural expansion and phenomenal songwriting.

Includes download card and new insert with liner notes by Marc Masters.

Isabelline curator and label head Practitioner reveals a stunning selection of his own archival productions with 'Portobello Innocent', the third release on the mysterious and acclaimed Berlin-based imprint. Recorded between 2016 - 2024, these «ve selected works offer a broad look into Practitioner’s sonic sphere. Introspective club re¬ections that cover a grand scope of machine-translated human emotions. The EP feels like a dug-up lost tape, timeless tracks untouched by current modes or trends, each composition progressively digging deeper into unknown chasms of the enigmatic producers' distinct sound.

Raisina - A hypnotic club track featuring sharp drum machine rhythms and a prominent vocal sample from a 1960s North African love song, creating an alluring and surreally beautiful opener. Well-Behaved Boys - Pulsating, shu®ing techno drums take front and centre, as warped frequencies from raves of a bygone era tune in and out, ¬ickering between past and present with frenetic rhythms and spoken fragments. Form & Emblem - An effervescent ambient interlude, its shimmering textures and layered atmospheres provide a meditative pause amidst the EP’s harder edges. Kala - Hazy and dreamlike, this track layers a wandering dub bassline under a steady house beat, glimmering jazz chords and ethereal textures surround the sonic sphere, evoking ¬ickering memories and lingering mystery. Council - A relentless, bassheavy techno groover with sharp vocal cuts and infectious energy. Council feels like a culmination of all that camebefore, resulting in a hypnotic and kinetic underground offering that feels in«nite. With 'Portobello Innocent', Practitioner offers a rare glimpse into his abstract realm, crafting magnetic spaces between memory and rhythm, the ancient and the future, the human and machine.

Virginia Beach's Turnover has never been a band afraid of telling the truth. The emotional honesty poured out over a number of anthemic releases has been a proven formula of success for the band, but on their sophomore LP Peripheral Vision, the band treads into deeper water. Working again with Magnolia producer Will Yip (Title Fight, Circa Survive), Turnover's latest record shows a band maturing to create their best effort: an ethereal, reverb-drenched soundscape blending elements of hazy dream pop and the delicate emo rock of yesteryear. Songs like "Hello Euphoria" and "Like Slow Disappearing" highlight the new calmer, more subdued approach to songwriting, matched by Austin Getz's somber, confessional lyrics that echo throughout songs as if his words were haunting every measure. Peripheral Vision solidifies the idea that Turnover is a band with its finger on the pulse of its generation: growing and learning with every release, but never failing to provide a relatable, cathartic experience for anyone listening.

Deadache, released in 2008, is the fourth studio album by Finnish hard rock band Lordi. Known for their theatrical personas and horror-inspired themes, Lordi delves deeper into darker and more sinister territory with this release. The album features standout tracks like "Bite It Like a Bulldog" and "Deadache" showcasing a mix of heavy riffs, haunting melodies, and anthemic choruses. Produced by Nino Laurenne, Deadache explores a more mature sound while maintaining the band’s signature blend of hard rock and heavy metal. The album’s lyrical themes and atmospheric production bring an eerie and cinematic quality, enhancing Lordi’s monstrous aesthetic. Deadache solidified Lordi's reputation as pioneers of theatrical rock and expanded their fan base internationally. For fans of hard rock with a horror twist, Deadache is an essential listen, reflecting Lordi’s creative evolution and unmistakable style. Deadache is available as a limited edition of 666 individually numbered copies on translucent blue & white marbled vinyl.

Rilo Kiley was born from hunger, from the insatiable desire to write one’s own story. The band’s origins can be traced back to Los Angeles in the late 1990s, when Jenny Lewis and Blake Sennett discovered a shared songwriting obsession and began performing together. After some starts and stops, a band was formed with Pierre “Duke” de Reeder playing bass. They called themselves Rilo Kiley, borrowing a name that came to Sennett in a dream.

For their second record, Rilo Kiley headed to Nebraska to record with Bright Eyes’ Mike Mogis alongside new drummer Jason Boesel. Here, Lewis truly becomes a generational songwriter, spinning interior mysteries regarding romance, depression, trauma, hope, and isolation into cathartic revelations. The Execution of All Things was a triumphant arrival.

Originally released in 2002, the celebrated and beloved album The Execution of All Things is a hallmark of indie rock. Hailed by fans and critics alike as an essential component to any record collection.

A Man Against Time...

Die Schatten des Krieges verdunkeln Europa. Die 20er Jahre des neuen Jahrtausends erwecken beklemmende Erinnerungen an jene Zwischenkriegszeit einhunderte Jahre zuvor, aus der unweigerlich der Zweite Weltkrieg entstand. Nun steht die Ukraine in Flammen, täglich bedrängt von russischen Angriffen. Und Europa ist zerrissen in diesem Konflikt, der oft nur wie der Vorbote eines viel größeren Katastrophe wirkt.

Jerome Reuter hat mit seiner Band ROME die Musik als Mittel gewählt, Europas Schicksal zu kommentieren und zu verarbeiten. Seit 2005 schreibt er Lieder und Konzeptalben, die sich den Schlüsselmomenten der Geschichte widmen, ihre Mythen und Narrative reflektieren und kommentieren. Dabei behandelt er historische Themen aus einer künstlerischen Distanz, dekonstruiert Ereignisse und Ideologeme, betrachtet sie aus unterschiedlichsten Perspektiven und gibt sie uns als Frage zurück. Er wird vom mal melancholischen, mal wütenden Zeitzeugen zum teilnehmenden Beobachter, aus dessen individualsubjektiver Sicht die Dinge unmittelbar mit Pathos aufgeladen erscheinen. Mit ROME sollen wir erkennen, beobachten, erschauern und erschrecken, aber auch neu erstrahlen: "We walk in brightest Black towards the Sun".

Reuters Songwriting gleicht oft einer Reise, auf der sich visuelle Eindrücke mit persönlichen Gesprächen mischen. Als lese man in seinem Tagebuch nach einem turbulenten Tag, der persönlich reflektiert und schließlich in ikonische Metaphern gegossen wird. "Civitas Solis" soll ausdrücklich nicht als Konzeptalbum verstanden werden, wie wir es zuvor so oft von ROME erleben durften. Immer schien sich Reuter ganz jenen Themen zu verschreiben, ging in emotionaler Hingabe und Identifikation auf, nur um dann wieder Distanz einzunehmen, um das Geschehen aus einer neuen Perspektive und in anderem Licht zu betrachten.

Jerome Reuter ist ein Suchender auf den verschlungenen Wegen der Geschichte, getrieben von einer Sehnsucht nach Europa, dem Mythos, der Utopie - zwischen aufgeklärtem Manifest und irrationaler Festung. Als zentrale Metapher dient ihm diesmal Civitas solis, der "Sonnenstaat" aus der utopischen Schrift des Dominikaners Tommaso Campanella (1623). Darin wird der wirtschaftliche und politische Aufbau eines idealen Staates imaginiert - eine der ersten gesellschaftlichen Utopien. In der Welt von ROME kann dieses Modell höchst ambivalent gelesen werden, denn Reuter bewegt sich von jeher assoziativ zwischen Anarchismus und Traditionalismus.

Stilistisch bedient sich ROME auf "Civitas Solis" einer ungewöhnlichen Bandbreite - angelegt zwischen der Liedermacherkunst von Jacques Brel, Leonard Cohen und Townes van Zandt, kalten Dark Wave-Akkorden und akzentuierten Akustikgitarren. Das Wechselbad aus martialischen Hymnen und introspektiven Balladen kehrt zu zahlreichen Schlüsselmomenten aus zwanzig Jahren Bandgeschichte zurück und wie alle ROME-Alben wirft es vor allem Fragen auf. Provozierende Fragen. Was wird unsere Zukunft bringen? Und was bedeutet das für Europa? Uns bleibt nichts übrig, als in die Fern blicken, "standing on the Western Wall". Jerome Reuter ist ein "Man against Time" und mit ihm bezeugen wir den Sturm.

Nach den letzten Jahren, die durch ein mit dem American Music Award und dem iHeart Radio Award ausgezeichnetes internationales Nummer-1-Album ”Impera”, das auch in Deutschland die Spitze der Charts
eroberte, eine RIAA-zertifizierte Platin- und eine UK-zertifizierte Gold-Single sowie eine massive Welttournee, die in dem rekordverdächtigen Kinofilm ”Rite Here Rite Now” verewigt wurde, welcher es bis auf
Platz 3 der deutschen Kino-Charts schaffte, geprägt waren, wird 2025 für GHOST das bisher geschäftigste,
ehrgeizigste und schlichtweg größte Jahr werden. Mit der Enthüllung von SKELETÁ, dem kommenden
sechsten Album der GRAMMY-gekrönten schwedischen Theatralik-Rock-Ikonen, und der heimtückischmelodischen Leadsingle „Satanized“ hat GHOST gerade erst die nächste Phase ihres unausweichlichen
Weges zur Weltherrschaft eingeleitet. Mit Hunderttausenden von bereits verkauften Tickets für den ersten
Teil einer weltweiten Arena-Tournee, bei der die Band zum ersten Mal als Headliner im Madison Square
Garden auftritt, ist GHOST bereit, das introspektivste und nach innen gerichtete Material der Bandkarriere
zum Leben zu erwecken - und das in einem angemessen grandiosen Stil: Auf der Tournee zu SKELETÁ
wird der neu getaufte Papa V Perpetua sein Debüt geben, der einer phantasmagorischen neuen Produktion
vorsteht, die verspricht, die Live-Rituale zu übertreffen, die den Debütfilm der Band, RITE HERE RITE
NOW, zum umsatzstärksten Hardrock-Kinoereignis der nordamerikanischen Geschichte machten

A1 - Ocean Breeze

Kicking off the EP we have an understated 2-step banger from label head ASC as Ocean Breeze rips into your consciousness, positively bursting at the seams with a wonderful rolling break - make no mistake this track will make you and the dancefloor move. Building continually with a trademark subtle female vocal and wavy synthwork, Ocean Breeze is the perfect livener for any discerning atmospheric set.

A2 - Blue Planet

Straight into the action with a heavy break pattern, Blue Planet sees ASC experiment with deep, thunderous kicks and tightly edited, weighted snares set to take you higher - as the classic, recognisable vocal sample urges.Throughout the track we are treated to a darkly atmosphere created by thoughtful pads and effects which elevate the mix while the breaks make the most of their headline billing to the end.

B1 - Cyclic Nature

Continuing the break focussed approach to the EP, ASC unleashes a break heard right at the start of Spatial's history in Force Majeure - in fact this piece began life as a remix of that very same track, before taking on its own identity and becoming Cyclic Nature. Intense and hot-blooded, dense analogue kicks battle echoing drums and subtle melodies to form a wonderfully constructed atmosphere we just can't get enough of.

B2 - Shapeshift

Dialling back the intensity, Shapeshift is introduced more gradually this time with a DJ-friendly cymbal driven intro, with curious clicks and sound effects jostling over a mellow synthy backdrop. Before long a relaxing old-school break enters the mix while textured pads fluctuate with inquisitive jolts of melodic energy, elevating Shapeshift to become quite the memorable EP closer indeed.

Words by Chris Hayes (Spatial / Red Mist)

Hardcore from Italy and not only... With massive bass, spinning at 45 RPM. These collabs are total crazy for speed and noises ! One of the best Head Fuck !!!

An Introduction To Syd Barrett, is a reissue of the 2010 collection that brought together for the first time the tracks of Pink Floyd and Syd Barrett on one compilation.

David Gilmour, who originally worked on Syd Barrett's two solo albums, as co-producer of The Madcap Laughs and as producer of Barrett, was the executive producer for the album. Damon Iddins and Andy Jackson at Astoria Studios remixed five tracks including ‘Octopus’, ‘She Took A Long Cool Look’, ‘Dominoes’ and ‘Here I Go’, with David Gilmour adding bass guitar to the last track. Pink Floyd's ‘Matilda Mother’ also received a fresh 2010 Mix.

The album features the original 24-page booklet and graphics plus all lyrics, and was designed including the cover art by long time Pink Floyd associate the late Storm Thorgerson and his estimable studio.

Born in Cambridge in 1946, Roger Keith 'Syd' Barrett was the primary songwriter, guitarist and original lead vocalist in the first incarnation of Pink Floyd. He formed the band in the mid-1960s with drummer Nick Mason, bassist Roger Waters and keyboard-player Richard Wright. With their groundbreaking, semi-improvised sets at the legendary UFO Club in London's Tottenham Court Road, they became the prime movers of British psychedelia.

Barrett wrote the warped pop vignettes ‘Arnold Layne’ and ‘See Emily Play’, the group's two hit singles from 1967, as well as 'Apples And Oranges', and the lion's share of the material – the dreamy ‘Matilda Mother’, ‘Chapter 24’ and the whimsical ‘Bike’ – on their debut album The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn. Recorded at EMI's famed Abbey Road Studios while the Beatles were making Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, Pink Floyd's first album has proved an enduring classic, referenced by everyone from David Bowie to Spiritualized via The Damned.

Barrett contributed ‘Jugband Blues’ to A Saucerful Of Secrets, the band's follow-up, but his behaviour became increasingly erratic and he left in April 1968, a few months after the addition to the group of his Cambridge friend David Gilmour on guitar and vocals.

Syd Barrett's first solo album, The Madcap Laughs, was a long time coming but made the Top 40 on its release in January 1970. Barrett followed in November that year, and contains tracks such as ‘Baby Lemonade’ and ‘Gigolo Aunt’ that provided the names for two cult US groups in the 80s and 90s.

Over the last four decades, Syd Barrett has become the ultimate rock enigma. In 1975, he paid an eerie visit to his former band mates at Abbey Road while they were recording ‘Shine On You Crazy Diamond’, the centrepiece of the Wish You Were Here album he had inspired. He never entered a studio again. In 2001, he was the subject of a BBC Omnibus documentary.

He died in July 2006 but his legacy lives on in the music of R.E.M., Robyn Hitchcock, Julian Cope, Spiritualized, Blur and countless other groups. Earlier this year, Faber and Faber published Syd Barrett: A Very Irregular Head, an exhaustive biography by long-time fan Rob Chapman.

An Introduction To Syd Barrett provides a handy overview of this visionary talent, this madcap genius whose star shone brightly yet burnt out all too quickly.

Danny Ward’s 30-year career has been far from predictable. While best known for the musical eclecticism of his Dubble D project, the dance floor-focused nous of his work as Moodymanc and as a member of the groundbreaking 20:20 Soundsystem, Ward’s bulging CV also includes stints drumming for artists as diverse as Fila Brazillia, Rae & Christian, and The Pharcyde, to Jazz luminaries Mat Halsall and Nat Birchall, alongside countless collaborations (Flora Purim and Nightmares on Wax to name but a couple) and numerous evenings spent adding live percussion to DJ sets at iconic Leeds club night Back To Basics.

Now the long-serving Manchester musician and producer has a new project to share via NuNorthern Soul: Balaphonic. Inspired by a mixture of lockdown-era studio experiments, online collaborations, his long-held love for Afro-Cuban and Afro-Brazilian rhythms and a desire to do things differently, Resolution Revolutions is a gorgeously sonically detailed and immersive album that takes Ward’s musical output to a whole new level.

Like many musicians, Ward used the forced lockdowns of the global COVID-19 pandemic to retreat to his basement studio and make music. Focusing on utilising all of the acoustic and electronic tools at his disposal – not least his beloved percussion instruments – Ward took the opportunity not only to draw on a wide range of musical influences and ideas, but also rhythms, grooves and time signatures. As well as composing new tracks from scratch, he also revisited older compositions with fresh eyes and ears.

The results are simply stunning. Ward sets his stall out via the exotic, slow-burn Balearic warmth of ‘Sunflowers in Dub (Deep Summer Mix)’, where echoing whistles, harmonica motifs, sitar sounds, and cascading piano motifs rise above dub-wise bass and seductive, soft-focus beats. The heady, eyes closed vibe continues on the sunrise-ready awakening of ‘Disorganics (All Strings Mix)’, a samba-soaked summer shuffle rich in sparkling acoustic guitars and infectious Latin percussion, and the fretless bass-sporting Afro-Cuban yearning of ‘Six Fingers’.

As Resolution Revolutions progresses, Ward’s deep love of club-adjacent and dancefloor-focused rhythms subtly comes to the fore. There’s ‘Udders’, a hybrid – and hypnotising – fusion of chopped-up South American percussion, marimba-style melodic motifs, looped bass and spacey electronics, and Ocean Waves Brasil collaboration ‘Oxum’, a mid-tempo Afro-Brazilian deep house number wrapped in deliciously dreamy chords and gentle acid lines.

Similarly impressive and inspired is closing cut ‘Bloco Manco’, where Ward peppers a delay-laden Latin beat and a deep, weighty, dancehall style bassline in waves of echoing hand percussion and restless timbales patterns. Stripped-back, raw and seriously sub-heavy, it provides a jaw-dropping conclusion to one of Ward’s most perfectly formed albums yet.

a A1: Sunflowers In Dub Deep Summer Mix
[b] A2: Disorganics [All Strings Mix]

DJ Support: DJ EZ, Dr Banana and Enzo Siragusa.

ODF is a Leeds-based DJ and producer originally from London known for his eclectic genre-bending sets. Many of his productions have caught the attention of some high-profile artists such as Ben UFO, Bicep, Ilario Alicante, Michael Bibi and Interplanetary Criminal, as well as support on Radio 1, Kiss FM, Rinse FM and Reprezent.

Kicking off his new Imprint On Da Floor with a banging double header Tell Them & Underground.

The A side, Tell Them, is a dark, speed-garage-laced roller that oozes intensity, showcasing the gritty, bass-heavy sound that has defined ODF’s unique style. Its driving rhythms and shadowy undertones make it a late-night anthem for dancefloor aficionados.

The B Side, Underground, mirrors ODF’s signature sound with a bubbly organ top line and hip-hop-influenced vocal chops, delivering a playful yet irresistibly groovy vibe.

Limited Pressing Buy or Cry.

Percussion mastermind Ploy arrives on Dekmantel with a double-pack of unbridled dancefloor heat that sees him reconnecting with his house roots.

Before he made a striking breakthrough as Ploy with wayward broken techno for Hessle Audio and Timedance, Samuel Smith's first releases as Samuel were leftfield house excursions. On this release for Dekmantel he wanted to reflect on a decade of releasing music and the many high-impact dancefloors he's shared with the label, from Selectors to De School, over the years.

The common denominator across these eight tracks is no-nonsense house, offering up grooves that will serve a DJ exactly what they want in the mix. At the same time, Ploy doesn't dilute the distinctive edge of his sound, from the abundance of perfectly balanced percussion to the nagging hooks of an off-key synth line dropped at just the right moment. Wry samples inject the mischievous humour he's always creeping into his craft. This is where dancefloor magic is nurtured, hitting the sweet spot between rock solid reliability and the wild card energy that brings a heads-down set to life.

From 'Admirer's big room peaks to 'It's Later Than You Think's cosmic incantations, this is the sound of Ploy showing exactly what it takes to make laser-focused club bombs without losing one iota of his inimitable style.

Âsan’s self-released Beychen EP is a raw odyssey through the chaos and catharsis of creation. Across four relentless tracks, the producer mirrors the turmoil of nearly losing their passion for music—only to rediscover it by dismantling old habits and surrendering to the unknown. What emerges is a vortex of psychedelic techno, where layered rhythms spiral into the deep-down and morphing soundscapes warp time itself.
The title track Beychen channels the claustrophobic unease of a creative block with its brainmelting progression, only to erupt in a complete loss of control and, therefore, relief. The other three tracks deliver visceral techno in similar fashion, each piece evolving like an own entity with hypnotic force. This is music for darkened rooms and muddy forest stages, where the dancefloor becomes a mirror for Âsan’s internal reckoning. Here, the anxiety of creation is not conquered, but alchemized.
Âsan, a New York-based producer and co-founder of the label Cellar Door, always chases a certain feeling in his work—an elusive sensation that guides his creative journey. For him, dancing begins in the head, as rhythms and soundscapes take shape in a space between thought and intuition. His music invites listeners to step into that headspace, where the body follows the mind’s spiraling patterns.

Big new release by Peter Van Hoesen! Continuing his exploration of intricate techno systems, their effect and direct perimeter of action, Peter van Hoesen turns in his newest four-track piece, ‘Prime Directive’: a fascinating dive into the artist’s shape-shifting headspace and inner creative chaos.

Fuelled on a furnace-hot mix of abstract-leaning immersion and hi-octane rhythmic thrust, ‘Prime Directive’ looks at contemporary techno from the angle of experimentation and intuitive abandon. The result comes in the form of four distinct movements, each carving out their own logic and associated behaviour out an endless pool of potentialities. Here comes chaology unfolding in all its unadulterated, visceral glory.

‘Definition by Absence’ breaks the trip in to the sound of a faux-random symphony: its train-like swing and fiery bass seesaw coalesce through an elliptic fluttering of sorts, iterative and not, patterns moving in and out of synchronicity as van Hoesen applies more or less pressure on both ends. All in gusty in-your-face-ness, ‘Variables Edit 1’ whirls and swirls like an ominous vengeance of nature; Its puncturing kicks and whistling menace set against stellar winds and rabid machinery on the prowl for its next victim.

An even more unsettling piece of disjointedly arrhythmic, anti-club music for the dance floor, ‘Prime Directive’ will have you zoning out like a bad dream, flush with metronome-faced monsters and molten clocks hanging from dead trees. ‘Morphology’ could be PVH’s attempt at giving his concepts a carnal carcass to hold onto. Here, rhythm becomes somewhat less erratic, offering his 360-degree vision more melodic surface and actual room for dispersion. One to keep the boundaries pushed and status-quo challenged, this is techno at its most entrancingly bold and fearless.

*This new four-track epic from Peter van Hoesen comes draped in a fine piece of artwork courtesy of Atact, and pressed according to our standards in 180g audiophile quality so you get to experience the Belgian master's chiselled sound design in all its glory.

Here comes a very special production from East Germany of the early 70s!
One of the TOP Soul-Jazz & Beat combos in the country led by bassist and singer HORST KRÜGER,
recorded two previously unreleased, outrageously good titles here in the newly formed septet format.
"Ich will die Zeit nicht bereuen" is probably by far one of the most crispy produced German-language soul beat numbers that existed in the GDR at that time! From the pen of Ralf Petersen, the then head of Berliner Rundfunk personally, no pure high-class hit was recorded here, but hard-hitting, rocking beat.
It was not without reason that the choice of the head of broadcasting fell on the recently formed Horst Krüger Septet, which also gave the contemporary jazzy sound a perfect touch through an intensified brass section from 1970 on.
The title "Sonderbar" is exactly what its title promises, peculiar and extraordinary. A feat that was created as such in 1972. This somewhat sweeter SoulJazz vocal piece had a concrete idea, which composers Dieter Kopf, Horst Krüger and Franz Bartzsch as a musical arranger as well as Jens Gerlach in the musical free spirit of the hippiesque era. A through the stylistic device of Repetito in the text
dominant repetition, which is complicated in the context of the ever-evolving theme about feelings and love Groove of bass, guitar, drums and organ theme is reflected, redefined and constantly found again, simply masterfully. An interlude with a flute solo and a groovy dreamy Hammond organ solo at the end of the title, envelops the verses very contemporary.
Horst Krüger on bass guitar and his wife Gerti Möller with her outstandingly distinctive and powerful voice on the microphone.
A must for every fan of early beat, rock and soul!

Tony Holiday has been at the center of a Memphis soul blues revival anchored by a contingent of young, savvy, well-schooled musicians who have a "family-like" attitude and a strong belief in one another. Over the past couple of years, Holiday has been touring hard, taking spells in between to write and record with Producer Eric Corne in Memphis and Los Angeles. The result is Keep Your Head Up, an album that demonstrates an impressive command of styles, as Holiday leads his band fluidly through Texas, Chicago and hill country blues with plenty of Memphis soul and even a touch of Afrobeat. It features a nice array of special guests including Eddie 9V, Kevin Burt, Albert Castiglia and Laura Chavez, last year's Blues Music Award winner for 'Guitarist of the Year’ with Holiday shining throughout on vocals and harmonica.

As they celebrate the 10 year anniversary of debut album 'MISERY', DISENTOMB have smashed through Australian tours with Sanguissugabog in March, Europe in August with STILLBIRTH as well as annihilating the European Festival circuit, before finally unleashing new EP 'NOTHING ABOVE', in OCTOBER 2024 with a run of headline shows across Australia, as well as a headlining appearance at Souther Death Festival. The release of NOTHING ABOVE coincides with Disentomb marking 10 years since the release of their 2014 sophomore album Misery which has become a classic in the genre of Brutal Death Metal. Fresh from laying waste to some of the biggest summer festivals in Europe, Disentomb will be bringing out slam pioneers Internal Bleeding for three exclusive shows in October in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, which will see the band performing Misery in full for the first time. Grab tickets to DISENTOMB, INTERNAL BLEEDING (US), HONEST CROOKS and DELIQUESCE The NOTHING ABOVE EP marks the first Disentomb release following their third album The Decaying Light and delving further into the sound of dissonant and bleakened Brutal Death with the writing from the band's bassist Adrian Cappelletti. NOTHING ABOVE is four tracks of the band experimenting with their sound while maintaining the guttural brutality that originally made Disentomb's mark when they exploded onto the worldwide scene in 2008. Vocalist Jord said the EP was an opportunity for fans to hear a more experimental side of Disentomb. "While we're hard at work writing Album IV, we wanted to put out some songs in between albums that show a more evolved sound that we have developed over the years. With the writing done by our bassist Adrian, you can hear the mix of brutality while also some more experimental elements."

Lunchbox's legendary lost album "Evolver" is lost no more! Sparklingly remastered for the album’s twentieth (and a few!) anniversary and available on CD, cassette and (for the first time) vinyl, this psychedelic masterpiece fills a crucial hole in the band's discography. Recorded in the couple's 1990s Oakland basement between stays in Berlin, tour dates in London, and dreamy sojourns up the rugged Mendocino coastline, "Evolver" fuses jangle and jungle, ambient and dub into a striking pop statement.

Marrying refined songcraft to the serendipitous magic hidden in half-broken reel-to-reel tape decks and vintage synthesizers, the "Evolver" plants its pop flag on the terrain of magic and mystery. Dreamy jangle pop gems emerge seamlessly out of a sea of loops, drones, and dubbed-out horn fanfares, cascades of tape echo feedback and whispers from outer space providing a trance-inducing backdrop to the pop sensibility for which Lunchbox is well-known. Hook-filled and hypnotic, "Evolver" is a sublime slice of post-pop psychedelia that you won't want to miss.

For this special and long-overdue reissue we've raided the bands vaults for three previously unreleased tunes that add extra dimensions to the album's uniquely trippy flow. And for the vinyl heads we're pressing this as a double LP for maximum fidelity and playability, including a vinyl-only fourth side of beats, loops, interludes and puzzling aural ephemera, all taken directly from the original master tapes. Super cool!

"Vicious Rumors are an American power metal band, originally formed in 1979 in the San Francisco Bay Area. The band was conceived by founder and guitarist/vocalist Geoff Thorpe, and has been actively recording and touring worldwide since their full-length recording debut in 1985. Their first Atlantic release was the self-titled Vicious Rumors in 1990. One of the finest moments in their lengthy career. At times sounding like hybrid of Bruce Dickinson and Geoff Tate on vocals with Judas Priest as a backing band. The band subsequently began their first full US tour—which lasted for over three months and shot their first official video, ""Don't Wait for Me"", directed by Gore Verbinski. This tour was quickly placed in rotation on MTV's Headbangers Ball. Die-hard fans will celebrate this reissue, and those who missed the boat the first time will be well-served in taking this for a spin.

Vicious Rumors is available as limited numbered edition of 1500 copies on translucent blue coloured vinyl and comes with an insert."

The first ever reissue of 1994 sound poetry masterpiece »BLANKSMANSHIP«, a high point in the work of legendary avant-garde poet and artist John M. Bennett. Editions Basilic and Luna Bisonte Prods previously collaborated on »A Flattened Face Fogs Through: Selected Sound Poetry (1986-1994)«, an anthology of Bennett’s sound poetry released in 2022 to widespread acclaim.

John M. Bennett’s »BLANKSMANSHIP« is a totemic representation of something impossible: a linguistic object containing a totality. Written and recorded in the early 1990s and released as a sound poetry cassette and chapbook, »BLANKSMANSHIP« begins and ends with a ten word mantra, distilling the poem’s ten cantos that act as phases of an extended meditation. Performed by the author accompanied only by minimalist shakuhachi flute and bell, a narrative emerges from a mythic place, spoken by a single voice that eventually multiplies into a horde of selves. The author states that »BLANKSMANSHIP« refers to a state of mind, the "empty yet swarming void from which the poem’s voice arises, as if it were the voice of completeness itself".

RIYL: Robert Ashley, Akio Suzuki, William S. Burroughs, Steve Dalachinsky, Max Headroom, Japanese Shakuhachi Flute Music

Kennedy Mann, indie singer-songwriter and lead singer of dream-pop band Highnoon, is a rising artist from the Philly DIY scene, in which she has become memorable for her poignant lyricism, tender vocals, and sharp melodic skill. Combining the analog sounds of dream pop, indie folk, and slowcore, Kennedy Mann's compositions strike you in the heart and linger like a bittersweet memory. Kennedy's journey as a songwriter began with the debut of Highnoon's first album Semi Sweet, a project consisting of self-written pop-rock tunes. As Kennedy continued to write, she quickly gathered a collection of demos that felt too intimate and singular for the traditional rock band format - a world of music she kept to herself like a secret. Kennedy finally launched her solo project in 2023 as a way to bring some of her most personal musical ideas to life. A prolific songwriter and creative force, she began performing her original acoustic demos on TikTok, quickly building a small devoted following around her vocals and songwriting. Through TikTok, Kennedy began to build her own music community, befriending fellow songwriters Kai Warrior, Tofusmell, and Leith Ross along the way. In recent months, Kennedy Mann embarked on the European leg of Leith Ross' first headline tour, allowing her the opportunity to bring her idiosyncratic talents to the world stage. In July of 2023, she released her debut solo single ?Crooked," a charming Kimya Dawson-inspired slowcore track that finds Kennedy pining over her partner's ?ugliest? and most undesirable traits.

Formed in the same early 2010's scenes that spawned bands such as LVL Up, Ovlov, and Speedy Ortiz, Krill found success doing something completely different. The lyrics on Krill's debut LP "Lucky Leaves" reveal Jonah Furman to be a clear-headed and thoughtful oddball, compulsively considering both sides of every coin. The lyrics are as thought-provoking and endearing as the music is complex and refined. Krill is both a band's band, and a fan's band. Earworms such as 'Theme from Krill' and 'Theme from Krill (Reprise)' get stuck in your head on first listen, and it's no surprise that 2013 showgoers were singing along to these tunes almost immediately after hearing them. Now, with Krill back playing shows as the hilariously named "Krill 2", Exploding in Sound is thrilled to announce that "Lucky Leaves" is back in print! It's a certified EIS classic, and a record close to many people's hearts. Krill forever!

Tuneful, feedback- slathered surges like "Half Way Fine" and "Spright" feel as
comfortable as a beaten-up pair of Chuck Taylors, introducing dramatic dynamic
shifts and savvy melodic change- ups to keep you on your toes. You may not
always be able to make out Hartlett's lyrics amid the cyclonic fuzz, but the
despondence and disillusionment in his voice always cut through loud and clear.
And when he can't quite find the right words, he and fellow guitarist Morgan Luzzi
unleash that simmering angst through nonverbal means, like the roiling guitar
tsunami that brings the hazy-headed "Baby Alligator" to a cataclysmic close.
Stuart Berman, Pitchfork

What happens when Bristol's noisiest export BENZO QUEEN decides to fight themselves? You get this split record - a double-headed beast of post-hardcore fury and experimental noise. Side A delivers "NO GODS NO MASTERS NO SLEEVES" - BENZO QUEEN's sophomore album captured raw and bleeding after months of destroying stages with Mclusky and Whores. Twelve tracks of controlled chaos recorded live on New Year's Eve in Bristol - because why not start the year by breaking something? Side B introduces BENZO AND THE QUEENS - this iteration emerged like a bad rash at Bristol's annual Dean Lane Hardcore Funday. Nobody asked for more, so naturally they recorded an EP. Think of it as BENZO QUEEN's evil twin, if evil twins were actually more evil than their evil siblings.

Vinyl-Reissue des Sex-Organs Debut! Mit DLC und Insert! PURE & DIRTY SEX'N'ROLL + DIRTY GARAGE FROM OUTER SPACE GESPIELT VON ZWEI GENITALIEN! THIS IS NOT ONLY A RECORD - IT'S A WHOLE RADIO PLAY !!! THE SEX ORGANS durchquerten mutig und zielorientiert zigtausend Lichtjahre, um als intergalaktische Sex-Touristen auf unserem Planeten Erde zu landen und ihre Mission SEX & ROLL unter die Menschen zu bringen! Primitive anarchische Schlagzeug-Beats gepaart mit schreienden verzerrten Gitarren und schamlosen Texten! Dafür haben sie sich als erstes mit ihrem Raumschiff nach Italien ins OUTSIDE INSIDE Studio gebeamt und kurzerhand den famosen Produzenten Matt Bordin genötigt ein Meisterwerk aufzunehmen. Um die Weltherrschaft zu erlangen sind sie damit sogleich in die Schweiz ins VOODOO RHYTHM RECORDS Headquarter gepilgert, wo sie Beat- Man verführt und entführt haben, damit dieser mit seinen internationalen Vertriebszweigen den ganzen Globus mit diesem musikalischen Höhepunkt infiziert. Ein bekannter Journalist, der lieber nicht genannt werden wiil, hat dieses XXL-Genitalien-Duo auf einer ihrer orgastischen Welt-Tourneen begleitet und auf Tonband festgehalten, was die Welt zu dieser Sex-Invasion zu sagen hat... zu hören auf diesem Album! Futuristic Primitive Rock n' Roll Trash Garage Science Mono as Fuck !!!

Das zweite Soloalbum von Bennie Maupin aus dem Jahr 1977 spiegelt die Erfahrungen wider, die der
Saxofonist und Bassklarinettist in den bahnbrechenden Fusion-Bands von Miles Davis (u.a. auf “Bitches
Brew”) und Herbie Hancock (”Mwandishi” und ”The Headhunters”) gesammelt hatte, zeigt aber auch
seine unverwechselbare eigene musikalische Persönlichkeit.

Japanese pianist Yumiko Morioka initially released Resonance, her first and only solo recording, on Akira Ito's ‘Green & Water’ imprint in 1987. Whilst by no means a commercial failure, the album was mostly found in the background of Japanese TV documentaries, maternity clinics and healing shops before drifting into relative obscurity.

By 1994, Morioka had relocated to America and her solo music career had given way to the joys of starting a family and her new life in California. It was, and still is, a shock for her to learn that Resonance had gained the attention of a new audience outside of Japan through blog posts and YouTube album uploads.

After hearing Resonance for the first time ourselves back in early 2017, we tried for months to track Morioka down about a reissue. This news reached her at a particularly trying time in her life following the devastating loss of her home in the 2017 California wildfires.

Her home had recently been razed, destroying all of her possessions, musical equipment, scores and recordings. Morioka was lucky to escape with her life; her quick thinking neighbour raised the alarm in the middle of the night giving her just enough time to escape safely before then tragically watching her home burn to the ground.

In the aftermath, Morioka returned to Japan in an attempt to rebuild her life. She found work writing music for commercial projects and pop acts before recently opening her own chocolate shop in the Jiyugaoka neighbourhood of Tokyo - back where it all began.

‘’Space and time moved at a different speed than now’’ – Yumiko Morioka

A lifelong student of the piano, Morioka was born in Tokyo in 1956. A child prodigy, she took up the instrument under her mother’s tutelage at just three years old and by her teens she had won multiple piano scholarships. Her talent was so obvious that she was invited to train in America, eventually graduating from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music with a piano major during John Adams’ reign as head of composition.

After graduation, Morioka returned to Japan but struggled to find her place musically, working mostly on commercial songwriting assignments. Frustrated, and at times embarrassed by her musical output, she turned to the works of Brian Eno and the surroundings of her coastal home in the Izu Peninsula south of Tokyo for inspiration. It was here that she began to work on the compositions that would eventually become Resonance.

Recorded on a Bösendorfer grand piano, much of Resonance was made in an attempt to soothe her creative soul. Constructed from unwritten improvisations with additional instrumentation added later, Resonance explores the space between notes. As such, it's a record that feels open and inviting, permeated throughout with a sense of confident serenity.

The sparse, delicately played notes are allowed to reverberate and echo through the spaces between themselves, giving each track a feeling of both grandeur and intimacy. Like the great pioneers of classical and ambient music, there's a timelessness to Resonance - a comforting, familiar feeling, as if these melodies have always existed.

Resonance drew influence from the popular environmental music culture prevalent in Japan during the late 80s, but it was also heavily inspired by Western musicians such as the avant-garde Parisian composer Erik Satie. Listening today, it still feels fresh and pertinent; a warm, contemplative reflection of a travelled woman.

Resonance has been lovingly remastered by Séance Centre's Brandon Hocura and given new artwork by Métron Records’ label head Jack Hardwicke.

Renowned DJ and selector MURO is a Jedi-level compiler and this new collection of his delves into Victor's extensive archives to spotlight a world of Japanese jazz, fusion and AOR. It take sin plenty of internationally known names like Yasuko Agawa on the sunset sounds of 'L.A. Night', Sadistics who offers the more psyched out guitar leans of 'On the Seashore', Yuji Ohno's neo-Balaeric bliss-out 'The Dawn of Seychells' and Hiroshi Fukumura's soul soothing Ry Ayres-style melodies on 'White Clouds.' These are luxurious sounds and timeless tracks with MURO's signature funky perspective making this a brillaint choice for brighter, warmer days.

Techno tastemaker Enrico Sangiuliano returns to his influential NINETOZERO label with his bold new Transcendence EP featuring two very different but equally powerful sounds; one track is to dance to, the other one to listen to.

This new release caps off an impressive year for the Italian underground icon. Coming just a couple of months after his Interconnection EP and a packed season of headline shows, it marks yet another subtle evolution of his always hard-to-classify sound. The EP is a collaboration with psychedelic trance pioneers GMS, who have been making their mark since the 90s. The award-winning pair have had their music used in a trio of Tony Scott movies and have dropped several vital albums and EPs.

“GMS and I met many years ago in their studio in Ibiza and spontaneously cemented our relationship through our passion for sound”, says Enrico Sangiuliano. “They are a pillar of psytrance, and collaborating with them to interpret the concept of Transcendence was the perfect way for us to finally merge our creative visions. With this release, we transcend our individual musical paths to create something entirely new. We explore the theme of elevation, challenging ourselves to move beyond the tangible. Here, music becomes a portal, expanding consciousness and providing an escape from material reality. Together, we shaped our sounds to build an immersive experience, with a guiding voice to lead you through it. Transcendence is an invitation to let go, release mental constructs, and flow with the sound. It's a journey into a timeless realm where what you feel and who you are become one. To transcend is to connect with your deepest self—and beyond.”

Superb opener 'Transcendence' is a sleek and futuristic soundscape with dynamic drums that take you up amongst the stars. The smeared pads bring a cosmic atmosphere, the lush arps layer in plenty of trance-tinged emotion, and smart spoken words add a cinematic feel to this most escapist track. 'The Inner World' is then a suspenseful two-minute synthscape with wise spoken words that muse on inner strength. It is a rousing piece of emotional electronic grandeur.

The Transcendence EP is another strong statement from the forward-looking creative mind of Enrico Sangiuliano.

Long awaited, here is the 4th volume of the Mighty Mellow collecon, from the curators of the
seminal series The Mood Mosaic. Mushy funk, abstract jazz, including tacks of Pete Jolly, Annete
Peacock, Dusty Springfield among the others.

"Donald Duck, kill Minnie!" These words, ordered with urgency against a circular series of drum strikes and manipulated guitar/electronic textures, come over three fourths of the way through the album known as SYR 5 (aka "Olive's Horn"). While the words and sounds taken on their own may shock, their appearance within this collaborative effort between Kim Gordon (Sonic Youth, Body/Head, solo efforts), Ikue Mori (DNA, solo) and DJ Olive (We, solo) by this point in the album are not surprising. Taken on whole, SYR 5 sees its creators' respective histories forged in the 80s downtown noise scene, No Wave zone and Marclay-inspired club collide head on to create the audio equivalent of a slow-playing J.G. Ballard novel. Starting from the album's initial impressions where shimmering tones are interrupted by the sounds of winding clocks and bird calls before giving way to a cinematic sweeps of percussion, alien samples and blown out wasteland subs, the listener is constantly taken on a guided journey through a waking dream state where anything is possible. It is a world where dub samples, gurling beats and plaintive vocals (as only Gordon can deliver) fit together like the final locking puzzle pieces, the only elements needed to fully grasp a new reality. Re-appearing on vinyl for the first time in 25 years, these sounds have proven to be jaw-droppingly timeless. - Cory Rayborn, 2025

EC Underground is back with more inquisitors of low-end heavy sounds on Bass Scene Investigation vol 1 and again digs deep into the worlds of electro, techno, breakbeat and IDM. The compilation kicks off with the skittish percussive patterns of Illektrolab's 'Making Heads Dip', then heads into moody ground with ADJ, Pablo Funk brings some menacing synth work and Errorbeauty gets all weird and trippy with some mad electronics. Francois Dillinger offers a dystopian electro sound full of irresistibly jacked-up drums. A fine investigation indeed.

Night Keeper is a collaborative album by New York City-based artist Aaron Landsman and former Swans guitarist Norman Westberg that is based on the former's eponymous play. Westberg recorded it together with performer Jehan O. Young for the Swiss Hallow Ground label, with Landsman serving as the record’s producer. The original piece was first performed in the Spring of 2023 at The Chocolate Factory Theater in Queens and filled the stark industrial space with spoken text, choreography, projections, and music in dim light and, occasionally, complete darkness. Westberg and Young afterwards brought it to the studio to record it as a two-part
album in whose course his textural sounds, based on loops and samples, set the stage for her soothing, sonorous vocal performance. »Night Keeper« is a performance inspired by sleeplessness and the wanderings of the human mind at night—about time and memory.
Westberg and Young elegantly capture its essence in these roughly 44 minutes with a somnambulic album, letting sound and meaning flow into each other. The initial spark for Night Keeper was a run of almost sleepless nights in different neighbourhoods of a city that is perpetually insomniac. Instead of trying to force himself to go back to sleep by any means necessary, Landsman started writing down his thoughts. As he explains in the liner notes—accompanying the music along with drawings made by audience members during the performances—he started listening to the particular way in which the voice in his head navigates time and language. Accordingly, the texts that Young reads on the record form a diverse collection of specific moments, imagining different speakers and evoking different
situations. Westberg complements, accentuates, and juxtaposes these with different means. Ominous drones, soaring melodies, rhythmic bass sounds: the guitarist, whose latest release for Hallow Ground was 2021’s First Man In The Moon with Polish double bassist Jacek Mazurkiewicz, conjures up distinct sound worlds in which Young can let Landsman’s scenes unfold to gripping effect.
Landsman makes it clear that »Night Keeper« was intended as an invitation to »stay up, look out the window, let what’s happening outside spark reveries or predictions« or even take it on a stroll through the neighbourhood—at night, of course. Much like the original piece, this album is then one dedicated to wandering around, both mentally and physically.

Japanese bamboo flute maestro and goat (JP) cohort Rai Tateishi makes an impressive debut statement with his holistic attempts to transcend the limits of ancient instruments to reveal gently delirious insights.

‘Presence’ is a triumph of improvised, elemental musicality that distills aspects of myriad folk traditions in pursuit of the artist’s own truth. For 40 minutes of singularly weird, locked-in performance, Rai Tateishi diverges his formative training in the shinobue (a bamboo flute) to applications for its elder sibling, the shakuhachi, and its distant relatives in the khene mouth organ of Northeastern Thailand and Laos, and even the Irish flute, with remarkable results returned from each.

Piece to piece, Tateishi adapts a spectra of unusual and extended instrumental experiments to articulate uniquely animist sound arrangements, with judicious use of a ring modulator and delay effects only subtly altering his sound in real-time, gelling the harmonics and smoothing off its contours. Some 15 years of studies and accreted knowledge of histories, timelines, and spirits are deftly tattered in the air and rebound in precisely complex ribbons that become all the more impressive by virtue of its in-the-moment recording.

Presented with no overdubs, the six works were recorded by label head and KAKUHAN/goat lynchpin Koshiro Hino across three days of adventurous improvisation capturing the breadth of Tateishi’s vision in a mix of succinct flights of fancy and one durational wonder where he really cuts loose. An opening piece of rapid percussive fingering and rasping sets the tone for increasingly intricate explorations of the shinobue, and bluesy cadence of a reedy Thai khene - antecedent of the shō - whipped into headier harmonic overtones, whilst his 5th piece for Irish flute best recalls Ka Baird or Michael O’Shea’s lysergic impishness, and a 13 minute closing piece most boldly fucks with folk and jazz traditions, in-depth and with the genre short-circuiting audacity of Rahsaan Roland Kirk.

Landing in the wake of prism-shaking works by Will Guthrie & Mark Fell, goat (jp) and Kakuhan; Tateishi’s ‘Presence’ more than lives up to NAKID’s impressive levels, unflinchingly operating by its wits with a verve and dare-to-differ moxie that gets at it from the first hit to the last, harnessing the kind of skill and ingenuity that’s distinctive but still strikingly minimal and overwhelmingly physical. It's a remarkable achievement.

Leng Records’ first album of the year release comes courtesy of two contrasting legends of Italian dance music, Afro-Cosmic pioneer Danielle Baldelli and sometime FPI Project member Marco Fratty (real name Marco Frattini).

Both producers have a wealth of experience. Baldelli first to rose to fame as resident DJ at the near mythical Cosmic Club in the early 1980's, before moving into music production two decades ago. Since then, he’s collaborated with heaps of producers – most notably DJ Rocca, Marco Dionigi and Dario Piana – but “Oil Painting” marks his first collaboration with Frattini, an experienced producer whose bustling discography stretches right back to the Italian house explosion of the late 1980's and early ’90s.

The pair’s debut collaborative release is bold, bubbly, vibrant and funky, with the storied Italian veterans making extensive use of live instrumentation, vintage synthesizers and chugging, floor-friendly grooves. As you’d expect from a Baldelli-related project, the influences are obvious – think funk, dub-disco, cosmic rock, Italo-disco and nu-disco – but the resulting colourful cuts refuse to settle on one specific style.

Firmly focused on the dancefloor, “Oil Painting” is a gleeful, celebratory and excitable as anything either producer has released to date. For proof, check the surging arpeggio style synth-bass, kaleidoscopic synthesizer lines and eyes-closed rock guitar solos of “Automatic Amplitude”, the flute-laden dub disco shuffle of “Jasmine Flavour”, the organ-laden cosmic funk chug of “Oil Painting” and the lolloping disco-funk exuberance of “Steam Engine”, where crunchy guitar licks and Meters style organ stabs wrap themselves around a vintage disco bassline and head-nodding, toe-tapping drums.

The highlights don’t step there, either. Check the percussion and delay-laden Afro-Cosmic funk fusion of “Slinky Funk”, a veritably tropical excursion that repurposes the bassline and incessant cowbells from Cymande classic “Bra”, and the Clavinet-heavy stomp of “Positive Flow”, whose snaking, constantly-changing saxophone solo and flash-fried guitar riffs help create a thrillingly excitable mood.

From start to finish, “Oil Painting” is an album full to bursting with musical joy and umpteen giddy calls towards the dancefloor. From producers of Baledlli and Frattini’s experience, we’d expect nothing less.

Closing out the Special Sound Series in style, we are proud to present the long-awaited vinyl reissue of Shigeo Sekito’s 1985, an instrumental masterpiece that arrived nearly a decade after his iconic Kareinaru Electone Special Sound Series of the 1970s. A true pioneer in the world of Electone music, Sekito’s name—instantly recognizable in katakana—has left an indelible mark on the genre.

This album showcases his signature artistry across eight captivating tracks, blending originals and covers with his distinct sonic palette. The cosmic allure of the original composition “Amish At Dusk” stands out among the set, while the Manhattan Transfer cover “Twilight Zone, Twilight Tone” brims with dynamic, fast-paced arrangements. Meanwhile, Sekito’s take on The Crusaders’ “Rhapsody And Blues” unfolds with a laid-back groove, gradually building into an uplifting crescendo.

Drifting between chill-out and ambient sensibilities, 1985 captures a wistful, melancholic beauty—where the rich textures of the Electone transport listeners into a world of nostalgia and dreamlike introspection.

This final reissue in the series is a must-have for collectors and fans alike. Experience 1985 in its warm, analog glory—now on vinyl.

Closing out the Special Sound Series in style, we are proud to present the long-awaited vinyl reissue of Shigeo Sekito’s 1985, an instrumental masterpiece that arrived nearly a decade after his iconic Kareinaru Electone Special Sound Series of the 1970s. A true pioneer in the world of Electone music, Sekito’s name—instantly recognizable in katakana—has left an indelible mark on the genre.

This album showcases his signature artistry across eight captivating tracks, blending originals and covers with his distinct sonic palette. The cosmic allure of the original composition “Amish At Dusk” stands out among the set, while the Manhattan Transfer cover “Twilight Zone, Twilight Tone” brims with dynamic, fast-paced arrangements. Meanwhile, Sekito’s take on The Crusaders’ “Rhapsody And Blues” unfolds with a laid-back groove, gradually building into an uplifting crescendo.

Drifting between chill-out and ambient sensibilities, 1985 captures a wistful, melancholic beauty—where the rich textures of the Electone transport listeners into a world of nostalgia and dreamlike introspection.

This final reissue in the series is a must-have for collectors and fans alike. Experience 1985 in its warm, analog glory—now on vinyl.

Chris Goss is one of the elusive geniuses of American music As the singer, guitarist and driving force behind Masters Of Reality, he's spent more than 40 years charting his own musical journey, travelling from mystical blues to desert rock to psychedelia-edged beauty via all points in between.

Now Goss has returned under the Masters Of Reality banner with The Archer, their frst new album in 16 years.

Since the start of the 21st century, Goss has balanced his work as a producer with his Masters Of Reality output. There have been three more studio albums under the Masters Of Reality name: 2001's Deep In The Hole, 2004's Give Us Barabbas and 2009's Pine/ Cross Dover. Each was a self- contained musical universe, reafrming Masters Of Reality as a band outside of the mainstream music industry.

Now, 15 years after his last release under the name, Chris Goss has fnally returned with Masters Of Reality. Like everything they've released since their inception over 40 years ago, it's another step on a journey that has continuously moved forward, never repeating itself or being swayed by external infuences.

First Masters Of Reality album in 16 years
Chris Goss is considered "The Godfather Of Desert Rock" having produced records for Kyuss and Queens Of The Stone Age among many others. Extensive touring in 2025

2025 Repress

Berlin-based Frenchman Alexkid lands on Rawax with ‘Wake Up’, a fantastic new album that explores acid from many different angles.
As an early protagonist in the 90s Parisian electronic music culture, Alexkid has been paving his own path for over two decades. Obsessed with drum-machines since his teens, he is a skilled producer and sound engineer who imbues his productions with real soul and warmth, even releasing his own lauded Ableton Live Plugins. He is a Rex club resident, released albums on Laurent Garnier's legendary F Communications and has also appeared on labels like FUSE London, Rekids, Ovum, Freerange, and
Underground Quality. With this new album he proves once again why he is so well respected by presenting eight acid laced beauties on the infamous Rawax, following appearances from iO (Mulen), Shonky, Enzo Siragusa, Julian Perez, and Diego Krause. 'Kick It' is a bristling, in your face and pricking acid banger with restless 303 lines spraying about above
punchy kicks, the mood switches up for the headier and dubbed out, but still acid laced, 'Le Manteau d'Argent', and 'Tribute' then takes you down a deeper, more shadowy and sparse late night path with a warm, bubbly acid bassline leading the way. Sublime atmospherics characterise the spacious, deeply cosmic 'Revolutions' which has contorted drums and bass making you move, followed by the physical force of acid head wrecker 'No Hiss'. The
excellent 'Idle' strips things back to a propulsive drum groove and a molten sub pattern, 'Yussuf Is In Control' is led by the sort of prying, freaky lead synth that is perfect for the afters, 'Your Love Is Fading' is a masterful track of suspensory synths and soulful vocal sounds all fused to a brightly airy house groove making this another fantastically accomplished album from one of the best in the game.



Support by:

Delano Smith, Seth Troxler, Radio Slave, Dan Curtin, Butane, Ian Pooley, Spacetravel, Satoshie Tomiie, Posthuman, Diego Krause, Samuel Deep, Sonja Moonear, Traumer, Akufen, Sakro, Italojohnson, Enzo Siragusa, Laurent Garnier, Dirian Paic, Ryan Crosson, Reiss, Roger Gerresen, Sebo K, Vinyl Speed Adjust, Franck Roger, Mihai Popoviciu, Fabe, Jamie Jones, Raresh

180g audiophile vinyl reissue of guitarist John Abercrombie and pianist Andy LaVerne's 2003 duo album 'Timelines', which is appearing on vinyl for the frst time 40 years ago Bill Evans and Jim Hall recorded two brilliant duo albums called 'Intermodulations' and 'Undercurrent'. Andy Laverne and John Abercrombie whose collaboration dates back to the late 1960s have been inspired by the Evans- Hall recordings and have been experimenting with the format.

Andy LaVerne remarks, "Over the years we have collaborated as a duo many times in concerts, club dates, workshop sessions. I guess Bill and Jim set a wonderful example to us of what could be achieved by the piano/guitar instrumentation".

This album - with 8 of the 11 original tracks making the LP cut - though is neither recreation nor copying of the original material, is an evolution of the predecessors.

John Abercrombie: guitar
Andy Laverne: piano
Recorded September 2002

Following several releases that continue to establish Glitterbox as the hub for independent house and disco worldwide, four sought-after mixes that have soundtracked the label's parties appear on wax for the first time. Leading Glitterbox Jams Volume 7 is label head Melvo Baptiste alongside Detroit trio Dames Brown with the infectious 'Sweat', a track that made waves in 2023 with its irresistible rhythms and stellar vocals. Marking their first original track on the label, Lovebirds ‘Burn It Down’ showcases the Berlin-based duo as the house and disco authorities that they are. Next up, Art Of Tones & Inaya Day make dancefloor magic with their uplifting collaboration 'Give My Love', before sensual earworm ‘Smooth Sweet Talker’ by Young Pulse & Fleur De Mur closes out the compilation. This four-track package once again shows the disco, funk and soul sound of Glitterbox at its very best.

Discover the captivating musical universe of David ‘Yacouba’ Jacob, Trust's emblematic bassist since 1996. This versatile and passionate musician has explored a variety of horizons, from world music to blues and jazz, collaborating with talents such as Geoffrey Oryema, Ilène Barnes and Ladell McLin.
In 2018, the double bass conquered him, taking him to the frontiers of classical, contemporary and jazz. Today, at the head of his own group, the ‘YACOUBA TRIO’ - with Nicolas Noel on piano and Hakim Molina on drums - he presents some unique compositions. These pieces fuse the jazz of the 60s with the ethnic influences that have always nourished him

30th Anniversary Vinyl Re-issue of Debut Album on limited-edition translucent green vinyl.

2018 original compilation now expanded! All the Dwarves songs from 2000-2024 featuring rock legend Nick Oliveri on lead vocals (and bass of course)! Featuring tracks from 9 different releases showcasing the raw exuberance and mayhem of the Dwarves featuring Oliveri as Rex Everything. Fans of Kyuss, QOTSA, Mondo Generator take heed! Standout tracks include We Only Came To Get High, Head Right (Remix), Love Is Fiction, Sixteen. This expanded reissue contains seven bonus tracks not appearing on the 2018 limited original 12 track album on Spanish Bang! Records. The updated reissue sleeve art is orange coloured.

Finally after all those years, Dutch producer Peter Aarsman presents the re-issue of his iconic peak-time tracks called Entangled. Originally released on Deviate in 1995, this 13 minute techno trip caused mayhem on dancefloors across the world. Peter's love for early Detroit techno in can be heard in the beautiful Res*lute. Warm strings, deep basslines and a repetitive synth theme provide for a stunning track which was used by Carl Craig in his selection for the influential DJ Kicks series. Res*lute also comes in a rawer house remix by Frame Of Mind label head Gerd.

Top tier US house head Stefan Ringer has many different styles up his sleeve and many of them come to fore on this new dance floor heater on his FWM Entertainment. 'Fever' is built on fat, mid-tempo drums with rattling hits and congas peppering the beats next to snippets of vocal that bring a sense of sensuality and sexuality as pixelated synths also make their mark. On the flip, the remix by Ben Hixon has jazzy, live-sounding percussion and deft drum patterns that are organic and loose. Vamping chords build some energy while steamy vocal words layer in intimacy and emotional intensity. It's a brilliantly original sound packed with real heart.

High Roller Records, 180g black vinyl, ltd 700, 425gsm heavy cardboard cover, insert, 2-sided poster, Original transfer by Marcus Mossmann (R.I.P.) at PHONOGRAPHIC ARTIFACTS in March 2021. Audio cleaning, restoration and mastering by Patrick W. Engel at TEMPLE OF DISHARMONY in April 2021. Cutting by SST Germany on Neumann machines for optimal quality on all levels.The ultimate audiophile edition of this eternal NWOBHM classic!

High Roller Records, 180g black vinyl, ltd 700, 425gsm heavy cardboard cover, insert, 2-sided poster, Original transfer by Marcus Mossmann (R.I.P.) at PHONOGRAPHIC ARTIFACTS in March 2021. Audio cleaning, restoration and mastering by Patrick W. Engel at TEMPLE OF DISHARMONY in April 2021. Cutting by SST Germany on Neumann machines for optimal quality on all levels.The ultimate audiophile edition of this eternal NWOBHM classic!

Neon Orange & Black Vinyl. With Information (2019), Cleveland-raised, New York-based producer and DJ Galcher Lustwerk marked his debut LP on Ghostly International, having already carved out a lane of low-key hip-house music with his instant classic 100% GALCHER mixtape: deep, smooth, psychedelic, equally cut for the club, after-hours, night drives, and headphones. Lustwerk leveled up for Information, experimenting with more live drums and jazz saxophone to create a new dynamic, what he considered a hookier, more bittersweet, Midwest mindset. Lustwerk emerged in 2013 with the game-changing 100% GALCHER for the beloved mix series Blowing Up The Workshop, later named a mix of the decade by Resident Advisor. The signature sound - a smoky stream-of-consciousness baritone shadow-boxing with beats, informed by funk, rap, rhythm, and blues - felt like an epiphany distinctly linked to the expanse of Midwest driving and the strobe-lit detachment of club culture. Now over a decade into his musical vision, Lustwerk remains an elusive nightlife narrator, embodied by the hooks and a growing catalog that's proven influential and singular.

Mario & Luigi is the collaborative album between rappers Babytron & Certified Trapper. Originally released on July 10. 2024, the 13 track album clocks in at just under 30 minutes of blistering bars and enough brazen schemes to make your head crack. Akin to the greatest brothers in video game history, the link up between Babytron & Certified Trapper is perhaps the greatest link up in scammer history. The album focuses on Babytron & Certified Trapper trading off rounds of elite shit talking, braggadocious rhymes, and witty worldplay. Pressed on Picture Disc vinyl and limited to 1000 copies.

Soul Jazz Records’ special new 20th anniversary one-off limited-edition heavyweight special-edition yellow coloured vinyl pressing (+ download code) exclusively for Record Store Day 2025 of their out-of-print classic ‘Sugar Minott - Sugar Minott at Studio One’.
Legendary singer, record producer and sound system operator who brought 'lovers rock' reggae to worldwide recognition with a string of massive hits in the 1970s and 80s. Minott is renowned as one of the most important and renowned reggae artists of all time.
This is the first retrospective of Sugar Minott at the label and most of these recordings have never been widely available outside Jamaica.
Long-out-of-print re-release of this classic Sugar Minott album on Soul Jazz Records bringing together the best of his groundbreaking material recorded at Studio One in the 1970s.

This definitive collection brings together all of Sugar Minott's hits at Studio One. Tracks such as Vanity, Never Give Up, Roof Over My Head laid down the template for much of Jamaican music that followed and signalled the arrival of dancehall around the world.

Soul Jazz Records’ special new 20th anniversary one-off limited-edition heavyweight special-edition yellow coloured vinyl pressing (+ download code) exclusively for Record Store Day 2025 of their out-of-print classic ‘Sugar Minott - Sugar Minott at Studio One’.
Legendary singer, record producer and sound system operator who brought 'lovers rock' reggae to worldwide recognition with a string of massive hits in the 1970s and 80s. Minott is renowned as one of the most important and renowned reggae artists of all time.
This is the first retrospective of Sugar Minott at the label and most of these recordings have never been widely available outside Jamaica. Long-out-of-print re-release of this classic Sugar Minott album on Soul Jazz Records bringing together the best of his groundbreaking material recorded at Studio One in the 1970s. This definitive collection brings together all of Sugar Minott's hits at Studio One. Tracks such as Vanity, Never Give Up, Roof Over My Head laid down the template for much of Jamaican music that followed and signalled the arrival of dancehall around the world.

Denzel Curry's forthcoming King Of The Mischievous South Volume 2 finds him presenting a sequel to the project, and bringing back the sound, that helped launch his career. While the first installment of King Of The Mischievous South was performed from the perspective of his Raven Miyagi persona, a name bestowed upon him by Raider Klan founder SpaceGhostPurrp, Volume 2 finds Curry operating under his Big Ultra persona -- an elevated version of Raven Miyagi that is bragadocious and revels in the success that Curry has seen over the last decade of his career. Creating King Of The Mischievous South Volume 2 has been a goal of Curry's for some time, though his earliest attempts to do so ultimately morphed into other projects, namely his 2016 album Imperial and 2020's 13LOOD 1N + 13LOOD OUT. It wasn't until he stopped overly attempting to create Volume 2 that its songs started to emerge naturally. 

Given the project's sound, which pays homage to the great musical heritages of the South -- from Memphis to Houston and Curry's own South Florida -- its features include the region's greats, both old and new, as well as others whose style is indebted to the South's musical legacy. Features include fellow former Raider Klan member Key Nyata, Memphis stalwarts Juicy J and Project Pat, Texas' Maxo Kream, That Mexican OT and Mike Dimes, North Carolina’s TiaCorine, Atlanta's 2 Chainz and Kenny Mason and South Florida's Ski Mask The Slump God and PlayThatBoiZay, as well as ASAP Ferg and ASAP Rocky, among others. The project more broadly and the intentional inclusion of Rocky and Ferg is Curry's attempt to show what could have been had relationships not soured with SpaceGhostPurrp, fulfilling the promise that existed at the rise of their respective careers in the early 2010s.  

With all of the otherworldly adventures Denzel has taken listeners on over the course of his last few conceptually-driven albums, this project serves as a showcase for the fun, spontaneity and technical mastery that has made him one of rap's most in-demand talents over the course of the last decade. 

The first in a new sub series from Audiotrix Records, Kolabzz 1 feats the one and only MC Scallywag, famous for his unforgettable shouts back in the heady days of Spiral Free Raves in the U.K.
Music was composed in the Audiotrix soundlabz Brandenberg Division and Vocals were recorded in RMS rehearsal studios Putney, London.
Synth by Fred’s Lab Manatee apart from in Busted by Novation Circuit.
Graffix are also a colaboration between Audiotrix resident Graphist Feenix 13 and Ixindamix.
Mastered at Finyl Tweek.

The tenth release represents a long and true friendship between us from Club Vision and Atimpuri, the producer of the EP “Epic Wave”.

On the A-side, the opening track “Critical moments” gives an instant message of what is to come, a positive energy a light breath of house bringing the dance floor into a state of euphoria. “Epic Wave” the trance journey, energetic drums, hypnotic leads, a rif that keeps playing in your head.

On the B-side “Morning Crying” recalls from the beginning the 90s house sound, pads that transport to another dimension, the bass line gives that aggressive touch and makes the track complete. “Smwm” is a timeless break track, an arrangement of sweet sounds, string pad and deep fx conclude this fantastic EP

Atimpuri managed to capture elements from the past and present giving them a new perspective through his sound. Club Vision records will release this EP at the end of February 2025

Max Buchalik has been shaping Frankfurt’s music scene for many years now. Thanks to the deep connection to his hometown and the artists surrounding him, Max has constantly developed his production skills that now fuel his rising career.

His debut EP “Higher State” released in 2024 turned heads and his remix for Lauer’s “Don’t Let The Music Stop” on the Spanish imprint SOULMEEX truly made waves. Now, the Madrid-based label proudly presents Max Buchalik’s latest EP: Lucid Dreams.

With “Lucid Dreams”, reality blurs into fiction: a personal dreamscape entwines with the pursuit of perfection. The track soars into cosmic dimensions – timeless and weightless. Driving basslines blend with sparkling synth textures and shimmering pads, crafting an immersive, emotional atmosphere. It takes you on a journey where your feet stay grounded while your mind takes flight – Lucid Dreams become endless!

“Soar and Sway” is a pulsating ode to life – a celebration of constant growth despite the ups and downs of reality. The soundscape ventures through rhythmic percussion and radiant harmonic melodies. At times, ethereal pads take center stage; at others, punchy kicks and sharp hi-hats dominate. Continuously evolving, Soar and Sway radiates a vibrant aura, seamlessly merging energy, motion and harmony.

By teaming up with the charismatic and passionate artists Chinaski and Llewellyn for the remixes both tracks have been infused with fresh perspectives and luminous energy, making the EP shine even brighter.

DJ Support: Pete Tong, Adam Beyer, Black Coffee, Demi Riquisimo, Nic Fanciulli, Tronik Youth, Duke Dumont, Argy, Phantoms

A techy double A slice of house from label head Kaz James thats been doing the rounds with some heavy hitting DJ piers. Both tracks have been staple part of Kaz's sets at Art Basel, Desa Kitsuné Bali, Burning Man, Brooklyn Mirage, Pacha Ibiza, Koko London, Mayan Warrior Tulum, his Mykonos residency Alamagou and beyond.

The release follows 'Sun is Shining' which was supported by the likes of Keinemusik, Black Coffee, and Pete Tong as Essential New Tune.

Rhythm N Vibe label head Marc Cotterell strides into 2025 with a killer new three-track EP featuring plenty of his signature garage and house crossover jams. 'Annihilate The Rhythm' gets things underway with some rave-ready sirens and tightly programmed beats and bubbly bass. UK talent JACKARD steps up to remix and does so with razor-sharp hi-hats and low-slung kicks that bring the sleaze. 'Floor Dance' then brings the funk with some playful chord sequences and swirling pads and fFeed Your Soul' shuts down with aching vocal hooks and old school piano energy over some fresh US house drums.

Entering its 26th year of activity, the morphing, Los Angeles based experimental outfit, Sissy Spacek, joins Shelter Press with Entrance, among the project's most captivating outings to date. Encountering the duo of John Wiese and Charlie Mumma joined in various configurations by an incredible cast of collaborators - Tim Barnes, Marco Fusinato, Aaron Hemphill, Brad Laner, Katsura Mouri, Ralf Wehowsky, and C Spencer Yeh - collectively transformed into a series a deeply intimate and delicate gestures of musique concrète, Entrance radically repositions the possibilities presented by group improvisation outside of time and place. Founded at the end of the last millennium, the Los Angeles based project, Sissy Spacek, initially emerged from the knotted, fiery context 1990s American noise and grindcore, producing sheets of visceral sonority that quickly set the scene on its head. Going through numerous evolutions, before eventually settling as a duo of John Wiese and Charlie Mumma - joined by a rotating and often recurring cast collaborators - over the last 25 years the band has continuously entered states of evolution that have defied the expectations of its own context, seeding the sonic extremes noise with subtle and sophisticated approaches to free improvisation and musique concrète. Fiercely positioning its efforts within the outer reaches of contemporary experimental music, while resisting the constraints of a singular sound or proximity, Wiese regards Sissy Spacek as being primarily centred around the practice of musique concrète and the pursuit of extremes. From its earliest releases - collage treatments of material gathered from the band's full throttle practice sessions - the project's conceptual framework has continuously evolved within a deeply engaged process of experimentation, not only reworking tactical approaches, but also definitions and perception regarding the location and action of their work. In recent years, this has led to an increasingly varied and diverse output. Percolating within, is a thread marked by a striking sense of delicacy and intimacy, driving forward while doubling as an unexpected challenge, in real time, to perceptions connected to the band's past. Entrance is the most recent of these. Embarking upon the four compositions that comprise the finalized four sides of Entrance, Wiese and Mumma enlisted longstanding collaborators, Tim Barnes, Marco Fusinato, Aaron Hemphill, Brad Laner, Katsura Mouri, and C Spencer Yeh, as well as new initiate, Ralf Wehowsky (of the seminal German electronic noise collective P16.D4), requesting a contribution of sounds from each, determined by a general set guidelines that dictated certain qualities the given sonorities, while allowing for the expression of each player's distinct creative voice. The sets of resulting recordings were then chopped, harvested, manipulated, and reassembled as the four tape compositions that make up the album - Web Of Unfolding Appearance, Figure Of Reflected Light, Trancher And The Inheritors, True Dimension (From The Opaque - Spike) - each blurring the lines of authorship and clear creative proximity in remarkable ways. Where historical gestures of musique concrète tend to draw upon non-instrumental sound sources - regarding its sonorous material as raw elements, unburdened by inherent meaning or association, to be transformed and imbued with musicality - Sissy Spacek turns this position on its head. Entrance comprises works of musique concrète that not only draw upon instrumental sound sources, with all their possible meanings or associations, but also individual characters and personalities of their players, crediting each resulting piece to its respective configuration of contributors. As such, Entrance is an effort of sound collage defined by a rare sense of intimacy and humanity: four pieces that often take on the resemblance of group improvisation, but have, in fact, been assembled outside of time and place. Bent under the ever-present hand of Wiese's tape treatments and manipulation, each of the album's four compositions unfurl startling states of sonic abstraction and percolating texture, marked by a striking sense of hard-shifting structure, that culminate as tense, driven manifestations of ambient music: scrapes, squeals, rattles feedback, rolling drums, bouncing tones, whispers, bent electronics, electric artefacts, and seemingly everything else under the sun, configured into immersive, sublime mediations in sound from the most improbable events.

Every so often an album of such deceptive genius, of such aesthetic clarity, comes across our desk and transfixes us. Thought Leadership's III Of Pentacles is one such work of art. It's an instant classic and glides into the pantheon of timeless guitar-soul totems. Originally out on cassette only, we present the first ever vinyl issue. It's a hideously limited pressing of 300 for the world, so don't sleep on this.

Thought Leadership has already garnered big support from such tastemakers as Ruf Dug, Jason Boardman, Nathan Gregory Wilkins, J Walk, Evan Woodward, Justin Robertson and Heavenly's Jeff Barrett. The first time we heard III Of Pentacles, we nearly wept at the thought that something so beautiful, so bursting with real hope, could even exist in this brutal world. To quote the Quietus, "imagine if Stockport was situated somewhere along the Pacific Coast Highway rather than the M60, and you’ll have some idea of the coordinates to the post-industrial, sunburnt dream space opened up here."

So, who is Thought Leadership? What do we know about them? They reside in Stockport and are obsessed with ethereal guitar records. That’s about it. That and these X ideas shared with you, the listener.

Captured on a multitrack recorder in a terraced house in Stockport, this is as DIY as it gets. Glaringly obvious is a love for classic Factory and early 4AD. Perhaps it is the proximity to the River Mersey where the ideas arrived, and there being but three miles between where this and the Durutti Column’s classic “LC” was recorded, as the two operate across a familiar aural plain. Be it geographic or otherwise, limited by a true economy of means, namely guitar, pedals and drum machine, the fruit borne from these humble tools has been indelibly shaped by the perma-gloom that hangs low over the Manchester and Stockport environs.

Ushered in on 808 kicks, “I” opens the record as a beautiful Sketch for Stockport; a chiming maj7 chord dripping in chorus and delay sets us on our way. The Vini Reilly comparisons are unavoidable. “II” is all John McGeoch, with its trippy goth-psyche arpeggiated pattern cascading across the stereo image. Do those drums swing? But goths don’t swing?! They do here. We’re treated to a bit of crunch on the lead guitar part and some really lush reverb. We even step forth into shoegaze territory, albeit briefly, for the middle eight. “III”, a firm Be With favourite, continues the dreamy psyche leanings of the previous track, with an even bigger melody this time. We’re hearing The Teardrop Explodes on quaaludes here. A proto-dream pop cut soaked in melancholy. But watch out! The coda finds Johnny Marr has gotten into the ‘ludes and gatecrashed the final bars with some incredibly ignorant B minor pentatonic noodling.

“IV” ditches the drum machine for the first in a suite of three beatless electric guitar duets. The first of these semi-improvised rubato ideas is a striking departure from the earlier playful pieces, coming over emo and moody. Greyscale sulking for Stratocaster. Sign us up. “V” contains some really lyrical phrasing; a gorgeous conversation between two guitars. Real Stopfordian Primitive; meditative, crude, rain-soaked. We cycle through the same feels, then end on an alluring chord that breaks the pattern. Sometimes thoughts are like this. “VI” creeps in all plaintive, then a huge reverberating descending guitar line comes tumbling in like something off those classic Dif Juz 12”s. There’s some Maurice Deebank in there too, for sure, and the coda nods to early Meat Puppets.

“VII” rounds out the A Side, and succinctly presents a summary of all ideas explored thus far on our journey. The drum machine is back, this time with some wispy delay, before both guitars enter together playing interlocking lines. As we start, we end, with the delayed 808 guiding us out.

Opening Side B, “VIII” sees us embark on the other side of our journey as we slow down and space out. The drum machine is here, but the guitars are different now. Think Sensations Fix or Göttsching at his most peeled out. Drones, ambient drifts of broken chords and distorted lead lines all swirl round the mix. Side B is one for headphones for sure. “IX” is almost too exquisite for words. A New Age Mixolydian voyage through the cosmos. If you’re unmoved by the end you’ve probably got no pulse. We were left blunted ineffable by this one, such is the smudged elegance radiating from this idea. All hail the Thought Leader.

“X” is a full circle moment, and a fitting end. If you’ve not already elsewhere across the platter, you will be getting heavy Robin Guthrie vibes from this piece. Like the rest of Side B, this improvised jam sticks within a framework of related chords but the celestial energies channelled might invite us to wander “outside”, especially when the Tubescreamer is engaged.

RIYL Durutti Coulmn, Cocteau Twins, Dif Juz, Sensations Fix, Spike and adjacent guitar musicks – but, ultimately, this is just its own thing; such is the strength of ideas presented. "It’s good music to chill out to." (??)

Be With is honoured to present the first ever vinyl release of III Of Pentacles, carefully remastered by Be With's engineer Simon Francisco to ensure it sounds better than ever after its initial tape release. Cicely Balston's expert skills have made sure nothing is lost in the cut whilst the records have been pressed to the highest possible standard at Record Industry, in Holland. The original tape cover artwork, so crucial to Thought Leadership's striking visual aesthetic, has been rejigged for vinyl issue here at Be With. Its stark presentation befits the music contained within. They inform us that they shuffled their tarot deck to ask what the album should be called and the card you see on the cover popped out. The III Of Pentacles tarot card represents teamwork, shared vision and the ability to achieve goals through collaboration. We like to think Thought Leadership and Be With have nailed this one.

Kneading dough is tricky – you should know how it’s supposed to feel. If you try too hard you could make it worse. It’s a beautiful practice – creation with a gentle touch, to work at something so it can be left alone. “If it’s too drawn out it’s awful. It’s easy to give too much.” Dance in the mirror. Contemplate your veiny hands. Who do they remind you of?

You begin by mixing flour and water. “What happens when your people die? Why’d they move the rock to the other side of Ulster Park?” Eliza Niemi asks two seemingly unrelated questions in a rising melody with guitar accompaniment, like fingers playing spider up to the nape of your neck. Gentle pressure. Strands of gluten form to bind the mix. A new question lingers in the binding. When she admits “but I don’t know how to tell if I’m feeling it or not,” that question surfaces through the text. It is reiterated throughout the album. When I’m working with dough I think the same thing to myself.

On Progress Bakery, her second album as a solo artist, Eliza knows to leave some questions alone – to let juxtaposition and tension be the proof. It doesn’t have to be hard. The feelings and revelations they provoke rise in the heat. The smell is sweet. Crispy on the outside and soft all the way through. She playfully slip-slides through words and sounds and images, delighting in surprise, skimming ideas like stones cast across clear water, touching down briefly with uncommon grace.

The question provoked between those opening lines resurfaces in the strands between songs – “Do U FM” is fully formed and beautifully layered, while “Novelist Sad Face” is a short, acapella rendering of gentle curiosity. What is holding these ideas together? Some songs demand more, seem to carry a whole load – eventually the skipping stone will halt to sink and resume its idle duty – while others drift in and out of focus, the way thoughts and dreams become interwoven before the mind is sunk into true sleep.

Music and words don’t always have to interact. Where she decides to keep them apart gives a new contour to where and how she puts them together. The kind of thing you’re supposed to take for granted with songs and their singers comes alive in Eliza’s hands – the little miracle of mixing, kneading, stretching, and stopping.

So often on Progress Bakery, Eliza teases out truth and meaning by asking questions. “Do I wanna be crying?” “Do you want me good or do you want me bad?” “Do I need an eye test?” “I’m writing songs in my head while you’re going over stuff with me — is that cruel??” In “Pocky” Eliza ends with a question that feels to me like the actual biography, succinct and revealing:

I don’t wanna be made to see
I just wanna ask “what’s that?”

Grace that ought to be rare, but in its care and precision is offered humbly, with great generosity, and without announcing itself. Eliza’s simple, miraculous music is given further form and shape by a group of collaborators – invaluable guest musicians Jeremy Ray, Evan Cartwright, Steven McPhail, Kenny Boothby, Ed Squires, Carolina Chauffe, Dorothea Paas, Louie Short, and Avalon Tassonyi. Together with Louie Short, who recorded, mixed, and produced the album along with Jeremy Ray and Lukas Cheung, Eliza has cultivated a richness in sound and texture that prods and provokes the ticklish ear. Barely audible guitar tinkering, a brief lo-fi field recording of trumpets, the harmonic clicking of a looped synthesizer, a flourish of reeds, a child’s conversation, each uncanny sound perfectly placed, rippling out under a soft breeze.

Lay in bed alone at night and ask aloud to the stillness,

“What were you doing at the Albuquerque Airport?
What were you doing there??”

And hear your question answered by a dream of swelling, undulating cellos. Try to grasp at the melody and structure. It’s not an answer (if there could be one), but it moves deeper, closer to the weird layer of fleeting moments and disconnected images, barely perceptible at its core. Wait for the dream reel to click into place.

Eliza took me for a ride in Nicole (her beloved Dodge Grand Caravan) and told me she’d been thinking of the album as an embodiment of transition – and I think every transition, known or unknown, carries the weight of new meaning, skittering off the surface tension of life as you know it, creating ripples, sometimes bouncing off and sometimes breaking through. There is a trick you can use to tell if a dough is glutinous enough. You’re supposed to stretch it out as thin as you can without breaking it and hold it up to the light. If you can see through, even if it renders the world murky and uncertain, you should leave it alone. I love this trick. It’s one that Eliza seems to know intuitively: work gently and ask questions and don’t always expect answers, and when you can, take a glimpse at something new, and then leave.

Kneading dough is tricky – you should know how it’s supposed to feel. If you try too hard you could make it worse. It’s a beautiful practice – creation with a gentle touch, to work at something so it can be left alone. “If it’s too drawn out it’s awful. It’s easy to give too much.” Dance in the mirror. Contemplate your veiny hands. Who do they remind you of?

You begin by mixing flour and water. “What happens when your people die? Why’d they move the rock to the other side of Ulster Park?” Eliza Niemi asks two seemingly unrelated questions in a rising melody with guitar accompaniment, like fingers playing spider up to the nape of your neck. Gentle pressure. Strands of gluten form to bind the mix. A new question lingers in the binding. When she admits “but I don’t know how to tell if I’m feeling it or not,” that question surfaces through the text. It is reiterated throughout the album. When I’m working with dough I think the same thing to myself.

On Progress Bakery, her second album as a solo artist, Eliza knows to leave some questions alone – to let juxtaposition and tension be the proof. It doesn’t have to be hard. The feelings and revelations they provoke rise in the heat. The smell is sweet. Crispy on the outside and soft all the way through. She playfully slip-slides through words and sounds and images, delighting in surprise, skimming ideas like stones cast across clear water, touching down briefly with uncommon grace.

The question provoked between those opening lines resurfaces in the strands between songs – “Do U FM” is fully formed and beautifully layered, while “Novelist Sad Face” is a short, acapella rendering of gentle curiosity. What is holding these ideas together? Some songs demand more, seem to carry a whole load – eventually the skipping stone will halt to sink and resume its idle duty – while others drift in and out of focus, the way thoughts and dreams become interwoven before the mind is sunk into true sleep.

Music and words don’t always have to interact. Where she decides to keep them apart gives a new contour to where and how she puts them together. The kind of thing you’re supposed to take for granted with songs and their singers comes alive in Eliza’s hands – the little miracle of mixing, kneading, stretching, and stopping.

So often on Progress Bakery, Eliza teases out truth and meaning by asking questions. “Do I wanna be crying?” “Do you want me good or do you want me bad?” “Do I need an eye test?” “I’m writing songs in my head while you’re going over stuff with me — is that cruel??” In “Pocky” Eliza ends with a question that feels to me like the actual biography, succinct and revealing:

I don’t wanna be made to see
I just wanna ask “what’s that?”

Grace that ought to be rare, but in its care and precision is offered humbly, with great generosity, and without announcing itself. Eliza’s simple, miraculous music is given further form and shape by a group of collaborators – invaluable guest musicians Jeremy Ray, Evan Cartwright, Steven McPhail, Kenny Boothby, Ed Squires, Carolina Chauffe, Dorothea Paas, Louie Short, and Avalon Tassonyi. Together with Louie Short, who recorded, mixed, and produced the album along with Jeremy Ray and Lukas Cheung, Eliza has cultivated a richness in sound and texture that prods and provokes the ticklish ear. Barely audible guitar tinkering, a brief lo-fi field recording of trumpets, the harmonic clicking of a looped synthesizer, a flourish of reeds, a child’s conversation, each uncanny sound perfectly placed, rippling out under a soft breeze.

Lay in bed alone at night and ask aloud to the stillness,

“What were you doing at the Albuquerque Airport?
What were you doing there??”

And hear your question answered by a dream of swelling, undulating cellos. Try to grasp at the melody and structure. It’s not an answer (if there could be one), but it moves deeper, closer to the weird layer of fleeting moments and disconnected images, barely perceptible at its core. Wait for the dream reel to click into place.

Eliza took me for a ride in Nicole (her beloved Dodge Grand Caravan) and told me she’d been thinking of the album as an embodiment of transition – and I think every transition, known or unknown, carries the weight of new meaning, skittering off the surface tension of life as you know it, creating ripples, sometimes bouncing off and sometimes breaking through. There is a trick you can use to tell if a dough is glutinous enough. You’re supposed to stretch it out as thin as you can without breaking it and hold it up to the light. If you can see through, even if it renders the world murky and uncertain, you should leave it alone. I love this trick. It’s one that Eliza seems to know intuitively: work gently and ask questions and don’t always expect answers, and when you can, take a glimpse at something new, and then leave.

We are beyond excited to release new remixes of an absolute classic tune by none other than Aural Float, the legendary collaboration between Pascal FEOS, Gabriel Le Mar and Alex Azary. Originally released on their debut album „Introspectives“ on the mighty Elektrolux records back in 1995, „South Of The Clouds Pt.2“ quickly became the standout track of the longplayer and an absoute fan favorite as it encapsuled the very essence of the no nonsense hypnotic sound of Frankfurt at the time. On the A-Side, label head honcho Gregor Tresher presents an epic 11-minute journey that pays homage to the timeless original while updating it for the modern day dancefloor. Through layers and layers of subtle percussion lines, Gregor´s remix builds up over time, with bold breakdowns that gives the distinctive melody line time to breathe, only to eventually culminate in bringing the massive beat back to take things to the next sonic level. On the flip, our good friends Extrawelt deliver another outstanding production once again, that has their signature sound written all over it. The boys respectfully incorporate the original melody line, while perfecting their remix by adding their unmistakeable trademark sound and sophisticated beat structures. Aural Float, we salute you and are forever grateful for this seminal piece of music, that easily stood the test of time and will continue to do so for generations to come.

Danish drummer Daniel Sommer completes his internationally acclaimed Nordic Trilogy (featured in Stereogum, Downbeat Magazine, Bandcamp"s Best of Jazz and more...) with the release of Lost Threads on March 21st, 2025, via April Records. Following As Time Passes and Sounds & Sequences, the highly anticipated third chapter features Finnish pianist Artturi Rönkä and Swedish bassist Thommy Andersson. Together, the trio embarks on a deeply introspective exploration of time, space, and their shared Nordic spirit of improvisation. Described by Sommer as "a process-oriented project prioritizing musical risk and flow," the Nordic Trilogy has sought to illuminate Nordic approaches to composition and improvisation across generational and stylistic divides. With Lost Threads, this vision culminates in a collection of music that embraces vulnerability, spontaneity, and togetherness. "Most of the music emerged as Daniel and I improvised in my living room in Helsinki," Rönkä recalls. "Later, when Thommy joined us for a couple of concerts and recording sessions... his highly personal way of playing the bass inspired Daniel and me to try to develop the music in further, unexpected directions." The result is a dynamic and emotionally resonant album, recorded live in a Helsinki studio with all three musicians in the same room, without headphones or edits whatsoever. The title track and Den ensommes dans pulse with energetic groove and rhythm, while pieces like Meditation, Silent Steps, and Forgotten Song float with a haunting, rubato lyricism. With influences ranging from Nordic folk, Western Classical music and the jazz tradition, Lost Threads continues the trilogy"s history of blurring the boundaries between composition and improvisation. The trio"s collective sound-anchored by Rönkä"s nuanced piano, Andersson"s deeply personal bass tones, and Sommer"s textural drumming-creates a sonic landscape both timeless and contemporary. As the trilogy closes, Lost Threads invites listeners into a contemplative space where silence and sound intertwine, offering a balm for the modern world"s relentless pace. True to the spirit of the Nordic Trilogy, it stands as both a conclusion and a testament to the boundless possibilities of collective improvisation.

It’s always fun to let our audience peer through the party peephole with some hot behind-the-scenes info. For months, Black Light Smoke’s Control EP has supplied several of label head Tiga’s secret DJ weapons. In fact, he’s been sneaking out constantly after 9pm to play it out anywhere they’ll have him. And it’s little wonder to those who wonder why, as the Chicago-born producer’s top-flight mix of EBM, electro and Benadryl-soaked vocals has all the right people dancing.

Leadoff track "New York Is Dead” eulogizes the famous Big Apple Dance Party Scene in a way that will confuse the many who have embraced the city’s thriving “Groove With the Avengers” day rave series in Times Square. But the nihilism-liking doesn’t stop there, with the Friday-Til-I-Die attitude of “Black Hole at the Disco,” the pleather-dreaded post-cyberpunk of “Last Song Before Sunrise”, and the oxygen-deprived acid of “Break Your Back” culminating in the 11:45am-peak-time industrial trance of closer “Mind Control.”

Because we want this to be available to as many inhabitants of the blasted apocalyptic landscape we have pencilled in for 2034 or so, we have decided to make this release available both digitally and on vinyl. So whether you’ve managed to jack in illegally to a Spotify Wind Farm or you’re relegated to the hand-cranked misery of a Victrola while living in a barn or something, we’ve got you covered!

“On course towards future raucous, beer-soaked headline festival
sets.” - NME
“Screw-you power, relentless motorik rhythms and impressively large
choruses.” - The Guardian
“Unrelenting, gritty energy” - Daily Star
Sprints unearth their frenzied new EP, ‘Manifesto’, out via Nice Swan
Records.
Produced by Daniel Fox of Girl Band - Dublin’s answer to Steve Albini
- the four tracks make for a hard-hitting gloom-punk journey you
can’t miss. Like the Irish guitar acts who have paved the way for
them - Fontaines D.C., Silverbacks and Girl Band - Sprints sound
urgent and vital at every turn.
‘Swimming’ is a confluence of rabble-rousing stadium rock, sleazy
garage rock and Sonic Youth experimentation. Lyrically, there’s a lot
to hang on to too, which is unsurprising given how topical the band
are: ‘Drones’ took on imposter syndrome; ‘Manifesto’ tackled
homophobia.
‘Swimming’ scorns on the increasing lack of opportunity after
following prescribed paths to become society’s idea of a ‘success’.
Sprints singer Karla Chubb explains: “While the homeless crisis
worsens, the city is sinking in debt and everyone can barely keep
their heads above water, you see an article stating that a new €25
million white water rafting centre is being developed after approval
by Dublin City Council. Sometimes you’d just rather drown.”
Sprints have hit a nerve. The velocity of this argument comes from
personal anguish but will chime with a generation. And with such
honesty running through their core it’s no wonder The Guardian,
NME and BBC Radio 1 and 6Music have tipped them for big things.
Tourdates - October 7 Roisin Dubh Galway, 8 Kasbah Limerick, 9 The
Grand Social Dublin, 21 The Waiting Room London, 23 Heartbreakers
Southampton, 26 Sneaky Pete’s Edinburgh, 27 The Attic Glasgow, 28 The
Castle Manchester, 30 The Sunflower Lounge Birmingham, 31 Bootleg Social
Blackpool, November 2 Surf Cafe Newcastle, 3 Sidney & Matilda Sheffield, 6
Mutations Festival Brighton, 7 Festival of Voice Cardiff, 9 The Shipping
Forecast Liverpool, 10 Oporto Leeds.

Long and intermittent running duo of Discrepant head honcho Gonçalo F Cardoso and Angela Valid's Alex Jones, with sometime collaborator Phil Laney aka Kenny Hosepipe joining in somewhere along the way, Hair & Treasure crossover from Sucata Tapes to Discrepant wax via 'Disc Rot'. Described by the duo, in their cryptic and scatological fashion, as "a fetid spread from the buttery catacombs of Hair & Treasure", one can only speculate on the mindset, if not for the scenario, for these file swap recording sessions. As if decaying throughout this back & forth process, the synthscapes, field recordings, voices from who knows where? and subliminal pulses assembled in these 11 pieces all coalesce into this out-there murk where invocations of "a" real are mangled into unhinged, squinting eyes moments of near- consciousness.

Compared to previous Hair & Treasure ventures like 'Two Fucking Tapes' or 'Forked Piss Blues', 'Disc Rot' forgoes side-long tapestries by focusing on shorter and clearer transmissions from the netherworld. Still, the feeling of pieces of discarded hardware and sound hubris lying around and turned music of the duo remains unscathed, filtered through a newfound precision. After the opening feverish threat of 'Warm Night', the suspended synth pads and working machinery of 'Byzantine Turd Skirt' actually comes as a relief, pulling away (a bit) of the dread to resurface with the Texas Chainsaw Massacre OST ambience of 'Amateur Depravity' and 2004-ish Midwest noise stylings of 'Busy Hubby's Flight to Gstaad' and 'Tit Ale'. 'Roads Gonad Today' and 'Just Jerkers' are not that far removed from a lower fidelity take on Black Dice circa 'Creature Comforts', while -'Professional Babies' goes back a couple of years to their collabs with Wolf Eyes, bust mostly, all of this sounds like nothing but Hair & Treasure themselves. If you know, you know.

POISON IDEA’s momentum hasn’t slowed down one bit; this is still their brand of loud, potent powerthrash. Slightly more metal than in the past but the accent here is on the force and fury. Scorching. Each song on War All the Time flows into the other in a natural sequence for maximum impact and the whole thing blows over before you know it, but everything stays in your head, banging against the walls of your frontal bone. All this makes a good album, but what turns War All the Time into an amazing album are the lyrics and their delivery. Jerry A took the negative side of the world around him and expressed it in detail, rendered with words that can be read in a universal manner, expressing everything trivial and worthy of our puke in a language better suited to talk about the beauty of life. And those words remain as true to this day as the band’s riffs are brutal.

Halo Studios und Laced Records haben sich zusammengetan, um die ikonische Musik der ursprünglichen Halo-Trilogie zum ersten Mal auf Vinyl zu veröffentlichen.

Diese Box enthält 83 Titel aus den ersten drei Halo-Alben, die speziell für Vinyl neu gemastert und auf acht heavyweight LPs gepresst wurden. Jeder Soundtrack befindet sich in einer breitrandige Außenhülle und einer bedruckten Innenhülle. Diese wiederum befinden sich in einer stabilen Sammlerbox aus Karton mit silbernem Laminatüberzug und geprägtem Halo-Logo.

Das Original-Cover-Artwork stammt von Art Director und Concept Artist Isaac Hannaford (alias Rhizus / Space Ship Guru), dem ehemaligen Lead Concept Artist und Mitwirkenden an Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST und Halo Reach. Das zusätzliche Artwork der Box wurde von der Grafikdesignerin Maren Landsnes erstellt.

Halo: Combat Evolved war der Inbegriff des Konsolen-Ego-Shooters und sein Soundtrack legte den Grundstein für den legendären Sound der Serie. Der Soundtrack ist von verschiedenen Genres inspiriert und kombiniert schwungvolle Orchesterklänge mit marschierenden Militär-Snares, Prog-Rock-Percussion und - wer könnte den gregorianischen Mönchsgesang vergessen?

Für Halo 2 taten sich die Komponisten mit hochkarätigen Musikern zusammen und verpassten dem Halo-Thema mit dem neuen „Mjolnir Mix“ ein Heavy-Metal-Makeover. Es war der erste Videospiel-Soundtrack, der es in die Billboard 200 schaffte.

Halo 3 zeichnete sich durch Tribal-Drums und Prog-Rock-Refrains aus, während Klaviermelodien, begleitet von einem 60-köpfigen Orchester und einem 24-stimmigen Chor, dem Soundtrack emotionale Tiefe verliehen.

- 83 Tracks aus Halo: Combat Evolved, Halo 2 und Halo 3
- Speziell für Vinyl neu gemastert
- Cover-Artwork von Isaac Hannaford (ehemaliger Lead Concept Artist, Bungie)

This is a recorded document performed by Mark Holub, Johanna Pärli and Sofía Salvo.

As a trio, they had not met until sound-checking for their gig at Berlin’s Cashmere Radio on September 1, 2023 — a fact that may be concealed by their immediate understanding as a musical entity but is obvious by their artistic freedom and curiosity towards each hoc encounters, flexible and steadfast in its performance, and that culminated in an experience that shook the floor of the radio station’s headquarters.

The day after, Sofía, Johanna and Mark gathered in Adam Asnan’s studio and deepened their quest for a communal language. They ignored any musical fetters or conventions, enjoyed the possibilities of a wider time frame without a live audience — and exceeded all hopes of what three personalities can achieve when they are given the space and time to experiment, detached from any restrictions.

Mark Holub is a drummer of outstanding versatility and responsiveness, full of ideas and quick on his feet. Through his playing as well as his experience as a band-leader and composer he is able to steer this coequal group towards thundering crescendo, but sits equally comfortable in the centre of complex and fine rhythm probing in response to impulses thrown in by his companions.

Johanna Pärli makes use of her double bass’s entire body, extracting an armada of multi- layered sounds with an immensely high sonic spectrum that is also reflected in the diversity of her musical projects. She is both patient and wildly adventurous in her performance, and in this trio her contribution wanders from considerate bow work to brisk fingerpicking, gnarly string strikes and pedal use to startling effects.

Sofía Salvo unleashes the full unbounded potential of her voice by taking advantage of her baritone saxophone’s broad range of possibilities. She is one of Berlin’s most singular musicians and her widely proven capabilities cover gentle additions to support and underline pulsive interplay just as masterfully as rapid licks and roaring bursts of noise, spurring the collective to unpredictable intensity.

If music of this particular kind often gives the impression of a constant search, this international trio certainly managed to find common ground and capture a special moment in time for listeners to (re-)discover. Contrary to what frequent misconception sometimes suggests, it’s also tremendous fun.

NERR — Filling Open Spaces was instantly composed and performed live in studio by Mark Holub on drums, Johanna Pärli on double bass and Sofía Salvo on baritone saxophone, recorded in Berlin on September 2, 2023 and mixed by Adam Asnan. Mastered and cut by Rashad Becker, vinyl pressed at Pallas. Artwork and design by Stefan Lingg, produced by Christoph Berg and Stefan Lingg.

Halo Studios und Laced Records haben sich zusammengetan, um die ikonische Musik der ursprünglichen Halo-Trilogie zum ersten Mal auf Vinyl zu veröffentlichen.

Dieses Doppel-LP-Set enthält die Musik aus dem Spiel, mit dem alles begann, speziell für Vinyl neu gemastert und auf heavyweight LPs gepresst. Die Schallplatten befinden sich in einer breitrandigen Außenhülle und zwei bedruckten Innenhüllen.

Das Original-Cover-Artwork stammt von Art Director und Concept Artist Isaac Hannaford (alias Rhizus / Space Ship Guru), dem ehemaligen Lead Concept Artist und Mitwirkenden an Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST und Halo Reach. Das zusätzliche Artwork des Sets wurde von der Grafikdesignerin Maren Landsnes erstellt.

Halo: Combat Evolved war der Inbegriff des Konsolen-Ego-Shooters und sein Soundtrack legte den Grundstein für den legendären Sound der Serie. Der Soundtrack ist von verschiedenen Genres inspiriert und kombiniert schwungvolle Orchesterklänge mit marschierenden Militär-Snares, Prog-Rock-Percussion und - wer könnte den gregorianischen Mönchsgesang vergessen?

- 26 speziell remasterte Titel aus dem Spiel von 2001
- Cover-Artwork von Isaac Hannaford (ehemaliger Lead Concept Artist bei Bungie)

Label head Len Faki continues his legacy of personalized remixes with this two-tracker, combining a personal favorite of him with a more recent output from his peers.

First up is the euphoric 010X by Benjaming Damage, whose anthemic chords have been ringing in our ears ever since its first release back in 2013. Faki reframes the standout lead and packages it neatly within his own jacking percussion, beefing up the low end and giving the melodic original a pronounced bassy drive.

Rewinding yet another decade, Aquatrax' Stabilize pulsates with the relentless energy of late 90's techno, formative years for Len Faki as an artist and also club regular. His take on the UK classic introduces a hypnotic dubby swirl, one of those perfect loops that is captivating from start to finish. The details ebb and flow with a subtlety unusual for his Hardspace alias, creating an immersive journey that's impossible to tap out of.

Produziert von Will Yip (Turnstile, Title Fight, Mannequin Pussy, etc.), der auch schon an der 2023er "Psychic Dance Routine" EP der Hardcore-Band Scowl aus Santa Cruz mitgewirkt hat, findet man auf "Are We All Angels" die giftige und antagonistische Band, die ihre Aggression durch eine expansivere Version ihrer selbst leitet. Das Album wurde von Rich Costey (Fiona Apple, My Chemical Romance, Vampire Weekend, etc.) gemischt. "Are We All Angels" ist geprägt von Entfremdung, Trauer und Kontrollverlust, und setzt sich größtenteils mit ihrem neu gefundenen Platz in der Hardcore-Szene auseinander, einer Gemeinschaft, die die Band in den letzten Jahren sowohl umarmt als auch zu einer Art Blitzableiter gemacht hat. Auf "Are We All Angels" erkunden Scowl auf Schritt und Tritt ehrgeizige neue Richtungen und verbiegen Genre-Normen. Sängerin Kat Moss macht die am unmittelbarsten erkennbare Entwicklung, indem sie einen strukturierteren und manchmal zarten Ansatz wählt. Sie spielt mit Harmonien und melodischem Feingefühl, das selbst die eingefleischtesten Scowl-Fans überraschen dürfte. Moss nennt eine breite Palette von Einflüssen außerhalb des harten Rock - alles von Billie Eilish bis Radiohead, Car Seat Headrest bis Julien Baker. "Die meisten von uns waren wirklich keine geübten Musiker, als die Band begann", gibt sie zu. "Es war in dieser Hinsicht sehr Germs-esque, wie die erste Hardcore-Band eines Babys, was großartig ist. Jetzt wissen wir vielleicht immer noch nicht, was wir tun, aber wir haben eine bessere Vorstellung davon, was wir tun wollen." Instrumental gibt die Band Einflüsse von Negative Approach, Bad Brains, Hole, Mudhoney, Garbage, Ramones, Pixies, Sonic Youth, Rocket From The Crypt und anderen an. Bassist Bailey Lupo merkt an: "Das Songwriting für die neue Platte war das bisher kollaborativste in der Geschichte von Scowl. Jeder hat so viele Ideen eingebracht, und wir konnten sie alle in Ruhe analysieren und uns Zeit nehmen. Wir haben alle so unterschiedliche Geschmäcker, Einflüsse und Persönlichkeiten, und das kann man auf diesem Album wirklich in jeder Ecke hören." Selbst durch diesen eklektischen Ansatz verlieren Scowl nichts von ihrer Schärfe und schaffen es immer noch, die Wut und Frustration zu vermitteln, die dahinter steckt. Sie sind zutiefst dem Ethos des Punk und seinem Gemeinschaftssinn verpflichtet. "Hardcore und Punk haben uns geprägt, wie wir arbeiten, was wir als Band tun wollen und wie wir uns beteiligen", sagt Greene. "Im Kern sind wir eine Punk- und Hardcore-Band, unabhängig davon, wie sich der Song verändert." Das Album wird von dem bereits veröffentlichten "Special" eröffnet, einen Song mit großer, hymnischer Energie, der die rohe Intensität von Scowl beibehält. Scowl haben sich schnell als einer der dynamischsten und fleißigsten Acts in der Rockszene etabliert und ausgiebig in den USA und international mit Bands wie Limp Bizkit, Destroy Boys, The Bronx, Militarie Gun, Show Me The Body, Zulu, Touche Amore, A Day To Remember, Speed, Sunami und vielen anderen getourt, sowie Festivalauftritte beim Coachella, Reading & Leeds, No Values, Outbreak, Primavera und Sick New World, um nur einige zu nennen, absolviert. Die Band - Malachi Greene (Gitarre), Bailey Lupo (Bass), Cole Gilbert (Schlagzeug), Mikey Bifolco (Gitarre) und Kat Moss (Gesang) - gründete sich 2019 und feierte 2021 mit ihrem Debütalbum "How Flowers Grow" ihren Durchbruch. Seitdem sind sie unaufhaltsam auf dem Vormarsch.

dreamcastmoe is the recording project of singer, songwriter, producer, and DJ Davon Bryant, a lifelong resident of Washington, DC. His music moves freely between moods and modes, hypnotic, romantic, traversing electronic, R&B, funk, soul, and hip-hop... Resident Advisor dubs it "soulful, cross-genre dance music." This ability to adapt and finesse, to twist in different directions while staying true and coherent in vision, can be traced to his home city and its complex cultural history. "Most Black kids in DC don't ever get to this point," he says. "This is what I am making this music for, in the DC tradition of soul and empathy and love that is rooted in this city. My music is for real people dealing with shit every day." A versatile, modern artist and collaborator, dreamcastmoe has thrived in the underground since his first uploads to Soundcloud and Bandcamp in 2017 and subsequent releases with labels like People's Potential Unlimited, Trading Places, and In Real Life Music. Bryant's laid-back personality, emotional honesty, and infectious energy shine through his work and how he talks about it, as Crack Magazine notes in their 2021 Rising feature: "a steady combination of confidence, creativity, and calmness." He grew up playing drums in church; he's worked dead-end jobs, had ups and downs, even sold off all his gear one time, but never stopped reinvesting in himself. He is quick to praise his co-producers, rattle off influences _ the visual feel of NBA 2K, the comedic timing of Bernie Mac, the savvy legacy of Duke Ellington, for starters _ and credit resourceful DC breakouts like Ankhlejohn that showed him the roadmap. His voice, a steady instrument, seemingly connects it all, capable of slow falsetto flow, swaggering talk-rap, and outright croon. His storytelling style is choppy yet fluid, like a mixtape, which is how Bryant sees Sound Is Like Water, his debut on Ghostly's International's freeform label, Spectral Sound. The two-part project culminates as a full-length LP release in November 2022. The first side, released as Part I, opens on the blurred beats of "El Dorado," which dreamcastmoe dedicates to his journey. It's a head-nodder, an off-kilter earworm co-produced by Max D (Future Times, RVNG Intl, etc.), with Bryant harmonizing hooks with synth jabs and a pitched-down presence. "Complicated" is the slow jam, delivered smoothly from a Saturday night crossroads. dreamcastmoe is contemplative and committed... gliding and locking ad-libs into skittering rhythms courtesy of co-producer Zackary Dawson _ but also willing to let something go, "acknowledging that everything in life IS NOT easy." "RU Ready" takes off from the jump as a tribute, challenge, and promise to his partner and his city ("The times you sat with me when I needed you the most / Told me the things that I needed to see / Young black man, really trying to be what I can be / And I'm really from DC). In its potent two-plus minutes, the sonics (co-produced by ZDBT) press the message, all cymbal crashes, breakbeats, and serrated synth lines. "Cloudy Weather, Wear Boots" is a blitzing dance-punk track made in collaboration with Jordan GCZ on Bryant's first trip to Amsterdam. The album's flipside opens on "Much More," the first of two synth-and-beat ballads co-produced by ZDBT. Later on "Long Songz," he claims, "I'm not writing love songs no more," prioritizing the vibe with "all my day ones." He calls it "a cry for more normal moments. Everything doesn't have to be a fantasy love story, more time spent getting to the money, growing, and making a way." He saves two of his most propulsive cuts for the finale, co-produced by Sami, co-founder of DC dance label 1432 R. As their titles suggest, "Take A Moment" and "Make Ya Mind" operate as anthems for movement, with Bryant free-flowing commands above wildly-styled percussion. Per Bryant, the latter is both "wake & bake jam" and a "dance floor bomb." His parting line: "Action / You got to show me action / Reaction." The world of dreamcastmoe straddles virtual reality and the realness of DC, images both imagined and lived-in. Bryant has a knack for unexpected melodies but what makes his music so exciting is his capacity to defy the expectations of genre and image. A fluid ingenuity and vulnerability bottled by Sound Is Like Water, and this is just the beginning.

After a 30-year interstellar silence, the enigmatic producer Alien Signal—pioneering alias of Italian electronic composer Alex Silvi—reemerges with Whispers from Distant Suns, a transcendent odyssey that bridges retro-futurism and modern electronica. Hailed as a magnum opus, this album transcends genre boundaries, captivating ambient purists, downtempo aficionados, and even experimental listeners with its hypnotic fusion of analog warmth and digital precision.

Cosmic Tapestry of Sound
Drawing comparisons to Vangelis’ Antarctica and Alpha—but reimagined through a 21stcentury lens—Whispers from Distant Suns marries nostalgic synth textures with cuttingedge production. Silvi’s mastery of melody shines through in tracks like “Stardust
Memories” and “Fragile Eden” where shimmering arpeggios and celestial pads drift over robotic, glitch-infused drum patterns and sparse, meditative percussion. The result is a paradox: a retro-futuristic soundscape that feels simultaneously ancient and alien, familiar yet unexplored.

Listener Testimonials
Fans and critics have flooded forums with praise:

“An auditory revelation! It’s like Vangelis met Jon Hopkins in a nebula—vintage soul with a futuristic heartbeat.”
“The textures are gorgeously cinematic. Closing your eyes, you’re adrift in a Tarkovsky film scored for the Andromeda galaxy.”

The Vinyl Experience
Pressed on heavyweight vinyl, the album’s physical release amplifies its immersive qualities. The gatefold sleeve, adorned with surrealist astrophotography and metallic
foiling, mirrors the music’s cosmic ethos. Side A leans into Balearic serenity, with sundappled grooves and aquatic synth ripples, while Side B delves into darker, more
experimental terrain—think Aphex Twin’s Selected Ambient Works colliding with the organic rhythms of Jon Hopkins.

Maturity in Motion
This album is a testament to Silvi’s evolution. Tracks like “Seeds Of Light” and “Message from Andromeda Galaxy” showcase his refined ear for dynamics, balancing silence and sound with surgical precision. Vintage drum machines spar with glitches, while field recordings of crashing waves and interstellar static blur the line between Earth and cosmos. The closing track, “The Star Charts We Shared” crescendos into a 6-minute ambient requiem, leaving listeners suspended in a state of weightless awe.

Final Transmission
Whispers from Distant Suns is more than an album—it’s a transcendent odyssey. Spanning time, space, and the artist’s own creative evolution, this immersive work invites listeners to lose themselves in its ebb and flow. Designed for moments both intimate and expansive, its balearic-tinged atmospheres resonate equally through dawnlit Mediterranean terraces or the solitary glow of headphones in darkness. These are compositions that pulse, morph, and haunt the air long after the final note fades. A living soundscape meant to accompany life’s quiet revelations and clandestine joys—a soundtrack to your most personal moments, crafted as what the artist calls ‘private dance music.’

Tailored for the Discerning Listener
Whispers from Distant Suns is designed with the true connoisseur in mind. This album is a must-have for:

Vinyl Collectors & Audiophiles: Those who value the warmth and tactile experience of heavyweight, limited edition pressings
Electronic Ambient and Downtempo Fans: Listeners who appreciate immersive soundscapes that merge retro analog charm with modern digital innovation.
Retro-Futurism Enthusiasts: Fans of pioneering artists like Vangelis, Boards of Canada, and early Warp Records who seek music that bridges nostalgic synth textures with futuristic experimentation.
Experimental Music Explorers: Individuals drawn to sonic narratives that invite deep, contemplative listening—perfect for both introspective moments and immersive listening sessions.
This release is not just an album; it’s a curated experience for those who desire music as a multidimensional art form, merging the vintage allure of analog sound with a contemporary, cosmic vision.

For fans of: Vangelis, Biosphere, Jon Hopkins, early Warp Records.

Back in what now feels like a golden period in music and creativity, in the 1970s, many bands were formed by students. It almost seems like so many people could either sing, play, dance or write songs! This was also the case of several Woodland High School students in New York, who created Newban with fellow classmates.
The group started gigging around the tri-state area of New York, Connecticut and New Jersey, and were soon brought to the attention of legendary Bell Recording Studios audio engineer Malcolm Addey, who recorded with the band over a two-month period in 1974. Three years later the tracks made up two superb and sought-after albums released by tax scam label Guinness.
In 1977, Newban headed out to play the Los Angeles nightclub scene, closed a deal with A&M, and changed the band name to Atlantic Starr at the request of Herb Alpert.
For the first time on a 7” format, Soul4Real brings you two of the best songs from Newban. Enjoy the music...

Japanese artists Yumiko Morioka and Takashi Kokubo unite for Gaiaphilia, a journey through ambient soundscapes that seamlessly blends Morioka’s graceful piano compositions with Kokubo’s immersive field recordings and atmospheric synthesisers.

This collaboration brings together two of Japan’s most influential pioneers in ambient and new age music, each with decades of groundbreaking work. Morioka, celebrated for her 1987 album Resonance—reissued to critical acclaim by Métron Records—infuses her introspective playing with Kokubo’s vivid environmental textures, creating a dialogue between nature and melody.

After releasing Resonance, Morioka stepped away from music, moving to America to raise her family. For years, her work was quietly cherished by fans, only gaining wider recognition with its reissue in 2020. A devastating wildfire destroyed her California home seven years ago, prompting her return to Tokyo where she became a chocolatier before rediscovering her passion for the piano in recent years, playing live shows and making new recordings.

Takashi Kokubo’s legendary discography spans over 30 years, and has found wider acclaim in recent years via YouTube algorithms and bootleg uploads, wracking up tens of millions of plays. Yet he is probably best known for his sound design work, specifically the Japanese earthquake alert sound as well as credit card payment jingles - his creations are pervasive in Japanese society.

“From our love and concern for our planet, we both offer a unique sensibility and spirit of inquiry which we express through our music.”

Rooted in shared philosophical interests, Gaiaphilia reflects a profound reverence for nature’s resilience and harmony. Themes of Gaia, Mother Earth’s renewal, and the interconnectedness of life are central, with inspirations drawn from cosmology, sacred geometry, and Japan’s mystical Katakamuna tradition. The album invites listeners into a meditative space where sound mirrors the delicate balance of the natural world.

A master of sound design, Kokubo enhances this vision with his distinctive field recordings, captured using a self-made binaural microphone shaped like a crash test dummy’s head. From the jungles of Borneo to the gentle rhythm of ocean waves, Kokubo’s globe-spanning recordings transform into immersive soundscapes that perfectly complement Morioka’s introspective piano compositions.

“The title, Gaiaphilia, is a newly created word to encompass our love and respect for nature and life, this feeling is the theme we hoped to express.”

Released on Métron Records on 12/03/25 and with artwork from Ventral Is Golden, Gaiaphilia marks a remarkable new chapter for Morioka and Kokubo. Recorded at Kokubo’s log house studio named Studio Ion in Yamanashi, their collaboration offers listeners a deeply emotional and transcendent experience, rooted in the timeless beauty of Japan’s natural landscapes.

The Rotterdam-based label and agency On Board Music proudly marks its 10-year anniversary with a carefully curated compilation of likeminded artists. This milestone release showcases those who have shaped the label's sound and identity, while also setting the tone for the years to come. On Board 10 features nine tracks on vinyl, complemented by five exclusive digital bonus tracks. The collection traverses a diverse spectrum: from the immersive depths of Altinbas' atmospheric journey Submersion to the intricate, rhythmic craftsmanship of Polygonia's drum-workout Broken Temptation, and from GiGi FM's ethereal dub-techno exploration Maova and Dorisburg's percussive, Nordic-techno gem Sensorik. The release blends introspective meditativeness with dancefloor-ready energy - a balance between home listening and club environments. It's atmospheric, trippy, dubby, broken, ambient, techno - all the sounds that define the essence On Board Music.

The 2x12" vinyl compilation brings together Altinbas, Dorisburg, Efdemin, GiGi FM, Luigi Tozzi, Massimiliano Pagliara, Polygonia, Psyk, and Steffi.

The release also includes a download card with five additional digital tracks by Ina Kacz, Jin Synth, Justine Perry, Paula Koski, and On Board Music label head Laura BCR.