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New York, NY (May 09, 2023) - Techno powerhouse, Charlotte de Witte releases her highly anticipated EP, Overdrive as the anchor to her larger Overdrive Campaign within the KNTXT Label. Following de Witte’s breakthrough to the top of the electronic music scene in 2019 with her signature sonic approach that refuses to be boxed in, Overdrive is a reflection of this ethos. The EP aims to showcase street style that is both rough and energizing, while delivering high-energy tracks meant to pull listeners into the fast-paced thrill that unlocks one's turbocharged version of themselves. Listen HERE.

“While making Overdrive, I didn’t fully realize how applicable the lyrics are to my philosophy of life,” said de Witte. “The fast-paced tempo, which goes full force without looking back, is all about the feeling of being on the edge and living life to the fullest.”

Best known for her “dark and stripped-back” brand of techno and underground music, DJ, record producer, and label head de Witte pushes the boundaries of the electronic genre with music that has a distinct and unforgettable sound that is uniquely her own. De Witte’s innovative ability allows her to seamlessly blend genres and styles that have won her a dedicated fan base and critical acclaim.

“Overdrive is a love story between hip hop and techno, it’s inspired by both genres, but coated in a techno jacket,” said de Witte. “It’s meant to be played loud while driving at night and watching the city lights pass by, and where better to experience that than in New York City?”

Overdrive marks de Witte’s first release since her single “High Street,” and first EP on her KNTXT label since her last EP, “Apollo” which was released in October 2022 as well as her collaboration with fellow techno artist Enrico Sangiuliano on the “Reflection” EP in March 2023. De Witte had previously worked with Sangiuliano on their remix of “The Age Of Love”, which amassed over 40 million streams on Spotify and achieved certified gold status in Belgium. De Witte’s other recent releases include her “Universal Consciousness” EP in 2022 and her “Formula” EP in 2021, which featured the chart-topping lead track “Doppler”.

Tre D'ambrocia - vibraphonist and first tenor with Ben Pirani & The Means Of Production- steps to the lead microphone to deliver this charming, funky, ultra smooth two stepper. Closer & Love Is Gonna Let You Down were recorded by Pirani's former iteration Benjamin but Here they are reimagined and rearranged at a late night cool down tempo. Backed by The Means Of Production Tre draws on his deep knowledge and musical experience, tapping into Jazz, Disco and even Musical Theater. on Closer D'ambrosia captures an innocent yet sophisticated mood, beckoning a love interest, gently, to come closer. Love Is Gonna Let You Down, a song of consolation pulses with a mighty heavy rhythm track while Tre's falsetto soars above. altogether a double sider for a night in or a night out

MARMO, a collaborative project between Christian Duka (Vādin / Amoenus) and Marco Maldarella (Sinestesie), was born out of friendship and shared passion for music-making. Starting off respectively as the electric guitarist and singer in a metal band nearly a decade ago, the pair have worked their way through various flavours of electronic music inhabiting someplace between ambient and dance music, arriving at their singular aesthetic on this, their second album and first for Utter.

'Epistolae' - Latin for 'written letters' - was created between London and Bologna during the COVID-19 pandemic, an ode to friendship and as a way to keep connected during a time of isolated separation. The album is conceived as one continuous musical experience, with each track flowing effortlessly into each other in sequence as is heard on the final cut you are listening to now. A veritable sonic journey, as one might say.

The outcome is an undulating collage carrying emotion as its common thread, with rich ambient textures giving way to bursts of percussion, simmering with shrouded whispers and spoken word, embossed with rhythms and borrowing influences from downtempo, dub, breaks, techno and tribal electronica.

'Epistolae' is available on limited vinyl and digital formats, mastered & Cut by Anne Taegert at D&M. Artwork by Marco Maldarella.

In the debut EP 'We Are The Ones/Fire/Forever', Chicago DJ legend Rahaan collaborates with an incredibly talented group of musicians, including Marcus J. Austin on lead vocals, Nancy Clayton on backing vocals, Carnell C. Newbill (also known as Spike Rebel) on keyboards and backing vocals, Todd Swope on guitar, and Lou Terry on bass. Together, they create a 3-track EP that perfectly showcases Rahaan's production skills and the musical talents of the entire group. Rahaan's experience and expertise as a DJ and producer are evident in each track, with grooves that are sure to keep the dancefloor moving. The title track, 'We Are The Ones', is a story of adventure and return, with a twist. Created by Rahaan and The Ones while under the influence, the track was lost for years as it was unnamed on his computer. However, Rahaan's determination to find it paid off, and with the help of Ohio Players' Kenny Anderson on the horns, he built upon the elusive skeleton track. With Marcus J. Austin on lead vocals and Nancy Clayton on backing vocals, 'We Are The Ones' delivers a soulful, 4-to-the-floor anthem that showcases the vocal talents of the group. And in 'Fire', Todd Swope's guitar skills shine through, creating an epic production that draws spiritual inspiration from traditional AfroBeat rhythms. It's worth noting that The Ones features some truly talented musicians, including Carnell C. Newbill (Spike Rebel) on keyboards and backing vocals. Spike Rebel is a well-known producer and musician in his own right. With his soulful vocals taking center stage, Carnell Newbill leads the charge on "Forever," he also superbly delivers on bass, keys, percussion, and guitar. Expertly mixed by Rahaan, this track is sure to become a dance floor anthem. In summary, 'The Ones' EP is an impressive collaboration between some of the most talented musicians in the Chicago underground House and Disco scene. With Rahaan at the helm, this project is sure to be a hit with anyone who loves to dance. Mastered with Love by the Grammy nominated The Carvery Studios, this is one for any worthwhile DJ’s record bag.

The sleeve from Lilas Dupont is a pure jewel.

The music opens with our praised IND and a mystic Acid Tribe tune, thinlace of acid glass bubbles... The l'Art Cene and Severus tunes brings a sweet kick experimentation. The flip is in the same vein : mental and delicate acid fairy tales.

Feel the ground shake beneath your feet as swarms of infected march towards your colony! The soundtrack for They Are Billions was composed by Nicolas de Ferran, a prolific composer who already has about fifteen soundtracks to his credits and experience as a Music Editor on OSTs like A Plague Tale: Innoncence, Vampyr, and more.

Due the game's humble beginnings, the music was originally produced on a low budget, using only samples and virtuals instruments.

However, following the overwhelming success of the Early Access, the music was re-orchestrated and completely re-recorded with the National Slovak Symphony Orchestra in Bratislava. A 60-piece orchestra recorded the music for the game for an entire day in the concert hall of Slovak Radio, with sound engineer Peter Fuchs (known for Fable, Total War, Call of Duty and more).

With its cinematic epicness, stressful ambiences and inspiring melodies, this album is a must-have awaited by the whole community! "They Are Billions has been an incredible experience in my career and I'm very happy to be able to keep the music of this game alive with Microids Records" Nicolas de Ferran

ME LOST ME led by Newcastle-based artist Jayne Dent announces a new album RPG via Upset The Rhythm on 7th July, and is touring across the UK including support dates with Pigs x7. RPG (recorded in Blank Studios with Sam Grant of Pigs x7) is ME LOST ME’s fourth outing as a collective, having transitioned from an ambitious solo project in 2017, Jayne now regularly collaborating with acclaimed North-East jazz musicians Faye MacCalman and John Pope.
ME LOST ME delights in experimenting with songwriting and storytelling, creating a beguiling mix of soaring vocals and atmospheric electronics that playfully weave together disparate genres, drawing influence from folk, art pop, noise, ambient and improvised music. Hauntological in part, RPG is concerned with tales and with time - are we running out of it? Does insomnia cause a time loop? Do the pressures of masculinity prevent progress? Jayne Dent asks these questions and more on RPG, her homage to worldbuilding and the story as an artform, calling back to those oral traditions around a campfire, as well as modern day video games - bringing folk music into the present day as she does so.
ME LOST ME presents sound reaching in opposite directions, straddling time towards the archaic and timeless traditions of folktales, and towards the possible and potential futures of pastoral Britain and the world at large. Part speculation, part reminiscence, what results on the new album RPG is music that sounds ultimately displaced and yet omnipresent, adjacent to a hapless Vonnegut hero whose life is scattered throughout time and history, but full of wonder and curiosity rather than fear.
On track “The Oldest Trees Hold The Earth”, we see time stretched out between the branches of impossibly old beings in the woods. This track was co-written in Aarhus, Denmark with fellow Newcastle folk musician (with Danish heritage) Ditte Elly. The pair wordlessly passed a sheet of paper between each other to write the lyrics, inspired by Højbjerg and Mosegård, the woods they were sitting in. “How long should I wait/Before the moss grows?/On my skin, on my outstretched arms,” the lyrics are sung in a round, the close harmonies delicate and detailed.

A central thesis of this album is the joy of creation, something which is paid homage to in the album’s final track, “Science And Art” (Not because we need it to last/just because we needed to make it - so we invented the words/this language). It is also reflected in the definition that Jayne gives for “folk” itself. She comments, “To me, folk is quite an expansive idea. I think of it as creative work that's often made ad-hoc, with things that are at hand and more often than not it's born of a DIY ethos. It is songs and stories of the people, as in the traditional sense, but also creative coding, game design etc. Whatever outlet someone has for their creative expression could be described as folk. It's the things we make because humans need to make things, and the stories we tell about ourselves and the world around us.”
Crucially, on latest album RPG, Dent expands her songwriting and looks towards the unreal locations of worldbuilding in video games for inspiration. She comments, “I think the main similarity is the importance of a song's setting/environment to inform its narrative and textures, I'm often most inspired when out walking in the natural landscape, in cities and travelling to places I've never been before - the environment I'm in really impacts the work I make. While writing this album, however, I found myself inspired by imaginary landscapes, those in video games, paintings, etc. I was writing stories into these unreal locations instead. Even the songs inspired by real places, like The Oldest Trees Hold the Earth, have a very surreal quality to them in the songs, like they're being warped and turned into something not of this world. I think that's the main difference for me in terms of the thematic content and inspiration behind this album - I've been getting more and more interested in balancing surreal and fantastical environmental elements with ordinary and everyday settings.”
RPG upends the concept of the eternal return - we may be in the midst of inevitable repetition, but we tell stories whilst awaiting the passage of time.
"Being familiar with, and a fan of Jayne's earlier work, it was great to get the opportunity to work with her on the production of her new record. I had in mind a sense of what the record might be, but what came of the sessions, led by the vision Jayne had for the record, totally exceeded my expectations. As far as albums go, it has a breadth of writing and a sonic depth that made it a truly brilliant record. Having Jayne join us on a leg of the Pigs x7 tour in April is going to be ace. The creative nature, the sincerity and bold strokes of ME LOST ME put it in that space outside of any genre pigeonholes, and between our two sets I imagine the audience is going to have a proper sonic bath..."
Sam Grant, Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs, 2023
“The music of Me Lost Me is beguiling, idiosyncratic and cinematic - or should that be video-game-omatic? This suite of songscapes often hits the sweet spot between ancient and modern with its masterful blend of stark folk, neon electronic burbling and unusual arrangements. Jayne's singing is refreshingly straightforward and nuanced - it's exquisite! - and perfectly punctures the nebulae of synths and brass which billow around the old wooden frames of the songs. Whilst listening I had images in my mind of what Northumberland might look like through the eyes of Simon Stalenhag - foggy moors, a robot looking across the sea to Lindisfarne, twinkling lights on metal towers.... that sort of thing. It's a really great album.”
Richard Dawson, 2023

Catorce reflexiones sobre el fin (Fourteen Reflections on the End) originated from an installation exhibited at the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Oaxaca, Mexico, in 2019. Fourteen magnetic bodies of tape that dialogued with the fourteen pieces of electroacoustic music now contained in this album composed from the sound anthology of Angélica Castelló. Thus, Catorce reflexiones sobre el fin is a complex piece consisting of multiple parts that, although articulated with each other, hold a life of their own.

Like every body, these have a unique history made up of mixed fragments spun by Angélica, ranging from field recordings, references, and self-references to previous pieces, experiences, and voice recordings made specifically for these compositions re-recorded in various formats, from lo to high fidelity, analog and digital, composed, decomposed and recomposed (Castelló, A., 2019). Likewise, as any body, they also reflect on their end, whether absolute or temporal, of the many ways of being finite and of saying goodbye.

During the Catorce reflexiones sobre el fin, Castelló takes you on a journey that is difficult to locate. An ethereal space between shattered glass, stridulation of cicadas, war drums, murmurs in French, Italian maledictions, and soft recitations in Spanish. From uproar to solace, all wrapped in a soft abstraction that only allows access to the subtle whisper of these expressions. A gesture between invitation and sharing because who does not recognize oneself in this emotional storm?

First, the approach of the winds, the first breeze that caresses the body. Then the bewilderment announced by the scent of uncertainty condensed in the air’s humidity. The prelude to the storm, to something that will shake you from head to toe, something from which there will be no return.

To the acceleration of the winds comes the percussions, the tremor of the storm with its lightning. la Ira (1). A vibration running through the whole body, unstoppable. This reverberating sound, resulting from its re-percussion with our body acoustics, owes its tones and echoes to the cavities and organs of different masses. From what is hollow and what is full; what is void and what is matter. There is no turning back. It is a dive into the void; to fight and resist because there is no other way to go. It is a matter of survival.

Ma fin est mon commencement Et mon commencement ma fin (2)

After this, the cicada resumes at the crack of dawn, a gentle breeze, and solitude, that temporarily musical silence of embraces (3) with hints of harpsichord and bells.

The breaking of the waves in Sicily is accompanied by the antenna that picks up radio transmissions that already invite other tastes. The Mediterranean and its currents mingle and divide tense routes of escape, exchange, and struggle between Blutorangen, tides, and birdsongs.

An immersion into deep waters.

And in the end, we all commit sins! Queste maledette! (4)

Lorena Moreno Vera, 2023

El Nido: a welcoming embrace in uncertain times. The world changed forever in the second quarter of 2020. The life we were used to ceased to be, as we were overcome by constant fear, distrust in all that surrounded us and a fatalist attitude towards the world we lived in. With the pandemic came lockdown, mandatory isolation for months, empty streets, face masks, hand sanitizer, the fear of going out, an absurd roll call of Covid fatalities, the daily tension of not knowing when it would all end and the urge to "get back to normal," something that certainly never happened. Out of that pandemic saturation and that urge for "normality" came El Nido ("The Nest"), the third album by Italy-based Colombian producer Montoya, who describes this record as "becoming virgins of destiny again, facing up to that fatalist world and creating that longing for tranquility. Savoring that moment prior to the pandemic, that instant when the most important thing wasn't the immediate reality or the global situation." Montoya sees El Nido as that quiet place that you think of when you close your eyes; it is a beach or a mountain, a sunrise or a sunset, a wave in the sea refreshing your body, or an almost-whispering wind that immediately silences everything around you. On his previous records, Iwa in 2015 and Otún in 2019, his work as a producer prevailed, feeding the growing wave of Latin American electronica, fusing IDM and techno with indigenous root music, Andean folklore and rhythms from the tropical Caribbean coast and ancestral Pacific in terms of instrumentation. But on El Nido Montoya splits the balance, offering us five merely instrumental tracks and six collaborations with Latin American artists, including Colombians Nidia Góngora on "Soñé," Montañera on "Sierra" and Pedrina on "Nubecita." It also features Mexican artist Pahua on "Flor del Mar," the Peruvian Lara Nuh on "El Faro" and the Franco-Venezuelan La Chica on "Palosanto." Starting from the name itself ("The Nest"), an evocation of home, El Nido is also a Filipino municipality on the island of Palawan, a place that turned out to be Montoya's last live experience before the pandemic. That place with crystal clear seas and white sand became the scene and starting point for this work, reflecting on the abstraction of a chaotic world and proposing blurred destinations with each song, like places that exist within memories when we close our eyes, letting us inhabit them, for a couple of minutes at least. On the other hand, it's a record that approaches love; as a yearning and a refuge, as a guide and an anchor, but also as a rhetorical figure that makes us vibrate and elevates us, while at the same time keeping us grounded and letting us settle in the place that we can use as our shelter.

A1 - Burst Transmission

ASC returns with another stellar solo EP and Burst Transmission dives straight in head first to kick things off, pulsing crafted breakbeats and computer FX intertwine and stack with smooth synths, keys and trademark vocal hits. A powerful undertone bassline perfect for the dancefloor keeps the momentum going with blissful speckles of detail in the composition, including expertly tuned bongo drums scattered throughout.

A2 - Whispers

Sci-fi vibes take center stage as ASC channels that classic 720 energy with Whispers, a track which utilises sharp stabbing snares in distinct, forceful drum patterns which develop and adapt over halcyon synthwork. Respite comes in the middle of the track as the breaks change and settle the vibe briefly, before we are thrust forward again with those epic breaks commanding our attention once more.

AA1 - Psionic bond

ASC continues the retro sci-fi vibes with Psionic Bond, entering with zapping laser FX and a haunting vocal sample echoing before thunderous breaks thrash their way into the track, epic kicks and sharp thrusting snares dominate proceedings while through the wooshing layers of synthwork a distinctive bassy melody elevates the composition. This one is going to send the lucky discerning dancefloor into extra-sensory fever.

AA2 - Future Music

Ending the EP with something a little different, Future Music gives us a true taste of the old school brand new. A building intro lashes you with jabbing bass and effects, classic hi-hats rattle and slowly the 90's jungle breakbeat edits are released in waves as the piece progresses. The construction of the breaks is staggered sparingly, weaved with an influx of effects and samples creating a truly unique experience.

Tresor is proud to present the debut split 12" from Chloe Lula and Ireen Amnes. Meeting in the darker, harder-edged side of the Berlin techno scene in 2019, the pair have regularly collaborated and performed together, but Synergy marks the first time they've shared a record sleeve. Amnes describes Synergy as "the world we built while thinking about our journey as friends and the connection we share as people and artists," and while the record highlights their relationship and shared influences, it also showcases how each has grown into their respective lane.

Amnes' tracks lean into significantly more distorted territory, characterized by a dense fog of grainy pads punctured by sharp, expertly-programmed percussion. On "Our Bodies," these fragments are sculpted into driving hardware gear, replete with distant vocals and acidic squelches, where "Fragments of Desire" makes space for a more somber attitude, descending into murky, psychedelic electro.

In counterpoint to Amnes' deep atmospherics, Lula's contributions are driven by intricate sound design and a focus on dancefloor
impact. Taking cues from Regis and the Birmingham techno sound, she reins in the distortion of 2021's Errant Bodies for aufnahme + wiedergabe in favor of rolling techno and breakbeat-inspired rhythms that nod to her EBM influences. Making use of the extra space, she builds tension through heaving, textured basslines and crescendos of noise, and on EP closer "Event Horizon," she carves through the beat with her own metallic vocals.

Synergy includes a digital bonus track from each artist. Lula's sees her pushing deeper into finely-tooled techno territory, her drums at a swift, driving gallop, surrounded by ominous swaths of reverb. In contrast, Amnes crafts a gritty warehouse trip, sharpening the angles of her drums and detuning her synths until they sound bent and alien. Complete with the EP's physical cuts, these tracks are a testament to how the pair can simultaneously complement and contrast with each other, departing from their shared sonic origins and ending up in wildly dierent destinations.

A1 - Interconnected

Taking the reigns again for his latest solo EP, Aural Imbalance opens in style as Interconnected blends delicate keys and ambient soundscapes swirling together creating a sumptuous, serene intro before brisk amen patterns gently roll their way into the mix, filtered perfectly and set over silky, graceful 808 undertone bass, transporting your mind across the oceans to distant shores - while equally catering for the discerning dancefloor.

A2 - Solitude

Aural Imbalance showcases all aspects of his incredible production journey on Spatial with Solitude, an anthemic, almost spiritual track with enveloping escalating swathes of powerful somber mood ambience, set upon finely crafted rousing drum patterns which punctuate proceedings perfectly. Solitude is a track which lives long in the memory - it is an experience you will identify with on your own level, within, as the title suggests.

AA1 - Subliminal Messages

A melancholic, unnerving amtmosphere introduces Subliminal Messages, shaped with enchanting synthwork and light hi hats, accentuating a mournful audio landscape. As the tightly constructed breakbeats unfold, immersive sub bass adds depth and presence to the mix and the listener is taken on a meditative voyage to the inner spirit, challenged to understand and reflect.

AA2 - Sentience

Closing the EP, Aural Imbalance shakes things up again as Sentience carves a more upbeat vibe, a beautiful addictive earworm melody composed with gently refined keys instantly grabbing the attention. Filtered breaks are slowly introduced before announcing themselves fully, a sublime drum loop layering a dynamic percussive energy as the catchy melody captivates us throughout.

The label is crated by Mathtiiaas Rosén (Mattias Lindgren) AKA Microman in 1995 in Stureby outside south of Stockholm Sweden.
in the beginning as a way of getting out things that Plumphuse Records did not...

After moving to UK in 98 more got in to it´s own "style" much because of London and that market, ...The label is just Microman´s backyard for experiments and try fix the holes in a dj set, the tunes needed in between the other. A techouse deep house funk house techno hybrid, now lately with the Ahab 13 taking the jump in to Brake Beat and Jungle looking back paying respect to 1998 old school.

Ahab 15 is here and Microman is on the case with a four track ep called: Freja - With a melodic yet stomping sound for both the bar before the gig.

A1: Stoopid Geneie 126 BPM a dark random bass and motion progressive rhymes.
A2: Omberg 122 BPM deep house soft rumble bass positive cords... To the more Techno style.
B1: Freja 132 BPM hybrid techouse journey with a brake down after 03:30 going into strings and full bass line revealed.
B2: Lite mer forskning 130 BPM balearic style sound with electric live bass and steel guitar melancholic melody.

After five years of adventure, Label Affaire finally unveils its first vinyl release with its deep house-tinged 5-track project: Coalescence!
The performance is a fusion between crew's producers (A-Link, yAs, Dis-Louis) and special guests (Denyl Brook & Romeo Louisa), offering a technical and cutting-edge experience.

As fresh as a bivouac night, the EP is the next freeze-dried expedition: light and unusual, yet vital and tasteful. Let yourself be guided on the journey offered by colorful, vibrant tracks, put on the sunglasses and don't forget the sunscreen.
Visually, "Coalescence" is the fruit of meticulous research and development over many months. Designed by Eiviloks and Hugo Wirth, it completes the experience with refined elements, such as a majestic summit offering a detailed panoramic view.

Get ready for a unique musical journey, and don't forget your water bottle!

Memoria Recordings warmly welcomes Costin RP. After his amazing releases over the past few years, this artist doesn't require an introduction.

The title track of the EP is called "Astro". As you expect from Memoria, very melodic and warm sound combined with perfectly shaped drums.

As usual, we take things a little deeper on the B-Side of our releases. "Intre Patru Ochi" & "Sidef" by Costin demonstrate once more that he has a lot to offer. Versatile in its strategy, and each track works!

This EP is a classic in the making and belongs in every record bag.

Armand is the debut of a sound collage project called PVNCTVM, which refers to Roland Barthes' term "Punctum". A handful of field recordings, taken during extensive walks through nature and landscapes of certain places, evoke memories in a similar way as sometimes photographs do. Based on this material, personal impressions, literature, photographs, sketches and more a process of various sound experiments begins to create soundscapes which reflect the deterioration of memories between various states of mind. Instruments and other sound sources are used symbolically, as are elements of musique concrete, ambient, glitch and drone.

Ein exzellentes Album, das jedem Black, Death oder Symphonic Metal Fan gefallen sollte! Zum ersten Mal auf Vinyl! Hollenthon ist eine Symphonic Death Metal-Band, die von Martin Schirenc von Pungent Stench gegründet wurde. Hollenthon debütierten 1999 mit "Domus Mundi" und erlangten mit ihrem zweiten Album "With Vilest of Worms" Kultstatus.mit ihrem zweiten Album "With Vilest of Worms to Dwell" im Jahr 2001. Nach diesem Album wurde es ruhig an der Hollenthon-Front, da Schirenc sich darauf konzentrierte, Pungent Stench wieder zusammenzubringen. Nach zwei Pungent Stench-Alben kehrte Schirenc jedoch zu Hollenthon zurück und "Opus Magnum" war das Ergebnis."Opus Magnum" zeigt eine neue Entwicklung des Bandsounds, da die symphonisch-orchestralen Elemente nahtlos mit dem gebotenen Death Metal verschmelzen. Das Album zeichnet sich durch großzügige Chöre, Synthesizer, Streicherarrangements und weiblichen Soprangesang aus, die sich perfekt mit Schirencs
klassischen und ethnischen europäischen Folk-Elementen verbinden. Das Gitarrenspiel hat ein neues Niveau erreicht, mit unglaublichen Soli auf dem gesamten Album. Das Album ist ein perfektes Ganzes, bei dem jeder Song anders ist, aber dennoch einwandfrei zusammenarbeitet. Hollenthon experimentiert auf diesem Album furchtlos mit verschiedenen Sounds, und das funktioniert unglaublich gut. Das Album ist ein durchgehendes, hochenergetisches Erlebnis, und jeder Song ist einzigartig und doch zusammenhängend. Fans von Therion und Symphonic Extreme Metal werden "Opus Magnum" lieben, das unserer Meinung nach sogar besser ist als alles, was Therion seit langem veröffentlicht hat. Insgesamt,"Opus Magnum"
ist eines der besten Extreme-Metal-Alben des Jahres 2008! Sehr empfehlenswert!

Fourth release for the London-based E2-E8 Records. Whilst continuing on the path set by Orphic’s widely acclaimed “Shelter EP”, this one marks a return to the label’s beginnings. Music comes from rapture wizard Miro Sundaymusiq, who featured on E2-E8’s first release and previously appeared on Carl H’s Animals On Psychedelics. And the Animals On Psychedelics sound is very much what’s channelled here with ITWT (we’ll let you figure out what the acronym stands for!). A suspended number with plenty of tension in the first minutes, with a change in atmosphere when you least expect it.

On the B-side we are delighted to have S.O.N.S providing his interpretation of ITWT. One for peak times and booming speakers, a sea of low and high frequencies blending together. This one will appeal to discerning dance floors while firmly standing the test of time.

Loek Frey's Add Interaction is an exercise in damp, eerie atmospherics and intricate drum patterns. Released through Omen Wapta, the Dutch producer gets experimental through drum and bass, IDM and breakbeat deconstructed with unexpected tempo shifts and effects. Produced during the pandemic, the EP conjures loneliness, solitude and unfamiliarity. Expect tunneling, meditative, low-end structures fit for a journey through the earth's layers down to its core. And expansive, pearlescent vocals evoking spiritual bodies. Soundscape-leaning IDM weave into polyrhythms and muted breakbeats. Frey's release positions him as a teacher of brooding textures. The unpredictability can draw you deep into the sonic abyss -- if you let it.

The magic duo Rydm Sectors (Nicola Loporchio and Michele Lamacchia) is back on Cosmic Rhythm and you know what to expect from this. Nothing but proper deep house vibes, just in time for the summer season.

A quick five-year jump from 2018 takes us to the long-awaited comeback of the Will & Ink imprint. The Amsterdam collective was inaugurated exactly 10 years ago and has since gained fame for its exciting catalogue of forward-thinking, wonky techno experiments.

One of their mainstays for years, Yaleesa Hall, now presents (drops) a fresh batch of absolute dance floor madness with the Cullen EP. The EP features four experiments in highly energetic stepping electro, broken techno, and rumbling subs. It marks an exciting return and serves as a promising taste of what's to come.

Somewhere in the Lower-Franconian vineyards lies a hidden and mostly unknown canyon, a place that often returns to the thoughts and dreams of Läuten der Seele’s Christian Schoppik. Though a much rarer occurrence now as a consequence of environmental change, chance encounters upon the area in the past would sometimes reveal small ponds amongst the reeds, teeming with life and populated by colonies of newts and the now endangered yellow bellied toad. The transience of the water and the wildlife it hosts, dependent on season or climate, lends the area an almost fantastical, dream-like quality. Was it ever even there at all? A secret place that may or may not be present holds vast appeal to some enquiring minds… Ertrunken Im Seichtesten Gewässer, the third Läuten der Seele album in two years, is inspired directly by these experiences. Translating as ‘drowned in the shallowest stretch of water’, a title as pregnant with dread as it is wonder, the themes present speak both to personal memories and a wider understanding of place and time, and how we might interpret our own position within an ever-changing, sometimes disappearing world.

The record is presented as two long-form pieces divided into four separate movements, each titled so as to reflect this natural environment and its intersection with imagination, relying on processes of collage that draw from myriad indeterminable samples, field recordings and various recorded instruments. Those familiar with Schoppik’s work, both as Läuten der Seele and with Brannten Schnüre, will find present many of his signature tropes - the way deeply layered collages render abstracted visions of the past alive in the present - though what is always significant about his approach is not so much aesthetic as the wider concepts it attempts to express and emote. Indeed, emotional response is key to the Läuten der Seele sound, how overlapping notions of nostalgia, memory and identity calibrate experience and understanding of who we are and the world around us, whether it’s a world that’s gone or another imagined into being. If you observe the artwork closely enough, you may find a clue as to the canyon’s location, though such specifics are besides the point. The music itself infers a wider sense of the impermanence that characterises hidden worlds, wherever they might be or whoever they might belong to.

The state51 Conspiracy is proud to announce Wacław Zimpel’s long-awaited fourth solo album, ‘Train Spotter’, due for release on 31 March 2023 on state51 Records.

In the seven years since the release of his debut solo album, ‘Lines’, Wacław Zimpel has developed from his idiosyncratic approach to jazz to growing into a potent and inventive force in the field of electronic music.

‘Train Spotter’ was created for a specific brief from The City of Warsaw: to capture the Sound of the City of Warsaw. But, as Zimpel soon found out, the sounds of a city don’t exist in isolation; they’re part of a wider environment that is itself undergoing upheaval against a background of internal and external forces.

“Train Spotter is about my experience of a city that recently went through a pandemic, endless anti-government demonstrations against human rights violations against women’s right to choose and the LGBTQ community, as well as waves of war refugees from Ukraine and the extraordinary solidarity of people willing to help and unite across political divides to help others in need.”

Spread over six tracks, the manipulated samples are blended with Zimpel’s own electronic production flourishes and playing to create a seamless blend that’s uniquely his. Recording a variety of mechanised and repetitive sounds including tramlines, baggage carousels and bouncing basketballs in municipal parks among many other found sources, Zimpel fed the results through a host electronic equipment including synthesisers, keyboards and plug-ins.

For all its production methods, ‘Train Spotter’ bears an organic warmth that reflects the city that inspired it. But what also adds to the sonic intrigue is a rise in intensity within each of the individual tracks that themselves become ever more forceful as the album continues.

On their sophomore effort Tusky, surrealist duet Robbie & Mona ascend beyond the lo-fi scrawlings of their debut album to something altogether more grandiose. Between the lights down drama of sprawling opener ‘Sensation’, to the ‘roll credits’ coda of closer ‘Always Gonna Be A Dead Man’, Tusky exists as a glitzy, lucid journey playing out before the listener.
While debut album EW captured William Carkeet and Ellie Gray as they were finding their feet with one another, creating Tusky was a wholly symbiotic process from day one. “We got better at knowing what each other wanted,” William offers. “This was the album that we were trying to make from the beginning.”

Simultaneously evoking multiple eras of music, the album drifts through worlds of synth pop, jazz, trap, drill, ballroom waltz and leftfield electronica, with the scatterbrain sound palette melded by a peppering of instrumental motifs and William’s addiction to sampling sounds across multiple tracks. “I wanted there to be this weird dimensional thing going on,” William explains, “where songs from the album are playing in multiple places.”

The record sees an expansive cast of musicians assembled, with a much heavier focus on live instrumentation than previous outings. Alongside the expected fare of crackly synths, samplers and drum machines, Tusky gets its glossy sheen from a rich tapestry of jazz drums, double bass, grand piano and saxophone.

Most of the tracks are laden with improvised saxophone from Campbell Baum (Sorry, Broadside Hacks) and Ben Vince (Housewives, Joy Orbison), much of which was scrambled by William in post-production, lifting scraps from one song and layering them atop an entirely different track. Elsewhere, session musicians were cherry picked, including Bingo Fury, his drummer Henry Terrett, and a string ensemble led by Caelia Lunniss and Jo Silverston (Spindle Ensemble).

Most surprising is a rap feature from Monika (of South-East London collective Nukuluk), who brings album centrepiece ‘Mildred’ to new heights with a fiery verse on pain. Aside from being the most unlikely addendum to a sombre piano ballad, it demonstrates Robbie & Mona’s natural state of playfulness, forever following emotions and sensuality over any notion of traditional compositional boundaries.
Many of Tusky's tracks owe their inception to cinema, be it the soundtrack to Betty Blue, the glowing films of Wim Wenders, or the surprising parallels between La Belle Et La Bete and Bad Boys. Equally, much of Robbie & Mona's new-found sense of tension and spectacle comes from William’s recent work soundtracking independent filmmakers, while Ellie gave greater priority to threading a narrative through her stream of consciousness writing style.

In all its majesty, Tusky celebrates creativity with creation. “If you begin to see fiction as real, you can reincarnate and become different things. You can grow,” Ellie implores. “Nothing stays the same. You can shed old characters in yourself. There’s great joy in that.”

Singular Texan musician Craig Clouse hurtles unstoppably towards the 20th birthday of his dancefloor-splintering electronic project Shit And Shine, releasing a landmark LP, his first full-length for The state51 Conspiracy, ‘2222 And AIRPORT’. Acid house, minimal techno, electro, funk, krautrock, hip hop, found sound, spoken word, live percussion and industrial are blown apart stupendously and then reassembled – mad-scientist style, in a way peculiar to Clouse – into 13 hypnotic and transportative tracks.

Lead single SWISS, out 24 March, is a gloriously minimalist funk jam that sounds like the exact point at which someone turns the lights off at a lowkey house party and a wild night for the ages gets under way. An almost scornfully skeletal riff, sounding like a misfiring Cyberdine Systems Model 101 summoning up a Prince circa Sign “O” The Times riff while crashing head first into the hyper-processed early work of Prefuse 73, also featuring a cheeky sample of revered Mancunian DJ Luke Una talking about “existential fucking darkness”.

This is followed on 4 April by INFINITE SHITE, arguably the epic central track to the album, is a Shit And Shine banger for the ages, its dancefloor affect, undeniable. An unforgiving, pulsating Byetone-style bass drone worthy itself of being blasted on a Funktion-One rig, is just the background for a colossal acid b-line, destroying all in its path.

Micro details bristle at the liminal level, threatening to only reveal themselves to those in a club, those listening on headphones or those experiencing a heightened sensory state.

Following up on his much acclaimed debut album ‘Opal’ released in 2022, Batu heads into a new year introducing A Long Strange Dream : a new imprint dedicated to his spontaneous musical explorations, conceived with the aim to follow curiosities and share his own music in a back-to-basics and spontaneous fashion.

The inaugural release « For Spirits » is packed with some of the Bristol based producer’s most psychedelic dancefloor studies to date. Flowing seamlessly as a whole piece, this long-form EP showcases Batu’s versatile and deep personal sound, as well as a riveting talent for electronic experiments ranging from trance-inducing ambient to peak-time techno wreckage.

We are super excited to present this third slice of exclusive and brand new music from friends and family of the label. We hope you love these big orange slabs of vinyl as much as we do.

Volume 3 takes another deep dive into the diverse range of styles that we love here at SB. Ranging from disco and soul tinged house, to some deeper goodness and on to raunchy acid and techy stompers. Everything you would expect to hear at any one of our parties.

As always a huge thank you to all the incredible artists who’ve contributed to this edition. These wouldn’t happen without you… Now grab your mates, stick these tunes on loud, and DANCE!

"Bastian Epple makes an eagerly anticipated return to marionette under his elusive MinaeMinae guise that imagines rich sonic architectures for the journeying spirit to voyage to. Räumlichkeit is Epple’s debut album and third release to date following Gestrüpp from 2020, venturing further into melodic electronic nostalgia and percussive beat oriented soundscapes.

Growing up in a small village in southern Germany, Bastian Epple was never interested in kitschy folk sounds, rather he took solace in the time he would spend meditating to repetitive and hypnotic patterns. His guitar strumming and what sounded to his mother like a young Philip Glass on a cheap Casio keyboard encouraged little Epple to tread on this self-taught path of developing his own musical language. This led him to start experimenting with a tape recorder and layering sounds with non-musical samples to eventually working with a DAW.

Bastian went on to study Media Art at the Center for Art and Media (ZKM) in Karlsruhe and graduated with a diploma in film and documentary media - where he now works as a freelance filmmaker and lecturer at Stuttgart Media University. However, this never stopped him from creating and playing with wide-eyed sounds, eventually amassing a vast collection of tunes and finally emerging from this anonymity.

Utilizing modular synth, self made tape echos, synthetic sounds, recordings of ethnic percussion and guitar, MinaeMinae understands musical material similar to documentary footage which he would splice, repitch, and rearrange intuitively into captivating worlds."

RNT welcomes Amy Douglas to their ever-growing lineup of illustrious talent with a double A-side 7" of pulsating, Rough-N-Tumble NYC Disco.

Known to the heads as a voice and pen behind Horse Meat Disco, Roisín Murphy, and as the face of HARD FEELINGS (her project with Hot Chip’s Joe Goddard), Amy’s distinctive vocal swagger and songwriting talent are on full display on this EP. Co-written with and produced by RNT co-honcho JKriv, both tracks are bass heavy instant earworms, and wickedly naughty party starters.

Grab this pair of future modern disco classics, conceived by a pair of experienced dance-floor auteurs.

Hailing from the seaside communities surrounding Enoshima, a small island located 50 km southwest of Tokyo, Maya Ongaku is a ragtag collective of local musicians whose brand of earthy psychedelia transcends widely beyond the roots of their inner souls. The name derives not from any kind of ancient civilization, but rather a neologism defined as the imagined view outside one’s field of vision. The band—currently a trio of Tsutomu Sonoda, Ryota Takano, and Shoei Ikeda—finds sanctuary at the Ace General Store, a beachy vintage shop and salon-like space just hidden from sight from the bustling, touristy riverside Subana Street. Between discussions on music and art, curating the vinyl section and manning the register, and chatting up with locals young and old, the members find time to jam and record their spontaneous ideas in the studio tucked away in the back. It’s in this unlikely setting where Maya Ongaku finds its origins, the culmination of what Sonoda describes as 自然発生 (shizen hassei), meaning spontaneous generation, or the supposed production of living organisms from nonliving matter.

Approach to Anima, the group’s debut album released on Guruguru Brain, finds Maya Ongaku building a foundational groove while tapping into their innermost psyche. Sonoda’s malleable guitar and vocals, Takano’s sinuous bass lines, Ikeda’s floating woodwinds, and a sprinkling of delicate percussion—all coalesce into an aural experience that’s assertive yet abstract, calm but unsettling. The slow building, sax-laden “Approach” serves as an introduction to Maya Ongaku’s world, while the appropriately-named “Water Dream” floats its way toward the gentle finale of “Pillow Song.” It’s a concise distillation of their many interests and influences, from Neo-Dada and Fluxus, to where contemporary art intersects with the development of modern recording technology in the ‘60s and ‘70s.

As the title suggests, Approach to Anima is not intended to be a terminus; it’s merely the beginning of an exploration. The three childhood friends that comprise Maya Ongaku are always looking beyond the confines of the idyllic but rapidly gentrifying enclave of their beloved Enoshima. Feeding off of the energy that still radiates from the triumphant, decade-long journey of their label bosses’ band Kikagaku Moyo, who rose to global prominence from scrappy beginnings busking on the streets of Takadanobaba, they hope to go wherever inspiration takes them, to anywhere around the globe where their music can find a home.

Ultimately, Maya Ongaku’s uninhibited world-building will make it possible for us to see the unseen, expand the possibilities of the naked eye—all through the unbridled vibrancy of their music.

Toronto-based Soul/R&B artist Aphrose is back and ready to release her soulful,long-anticipated single, "Good Love" from her upcoming 7" vinyl release on LRK Records.

A dreamy, evocative slow jam that is sure to make you feel like you've been transported back to the heyday of the 70s, "Good Love" features Aphrose's undeniable vocal prowess supported by layers of bass, drums, string synths,percussion, and luxurious vocal harmonies.Drawing inspiration from the late Teddy Pendergrass, early MJ, and the sounds of the 70s Soul era, Aphrose and her production team SafeSpaceship Music (Scott McCannell, Chino DeVilla & Ben Macdonald) crafted this deep-cut soul classic that drenches you in lush vocals and string synths, met by undulating bass and drum sounds.Aphrose was inspired to write about experiencing that "good love" that surpasses all barriers, even theself-sabotaging ones we put up to protect ourselves. "Good Love" also features Kyla Charter-one of Toronto's most brilliant artists- on background vocals,as well as Ben Macdonald on tenor saxophone, which is the cherry on top.

Yaya to be announced soon..

Releases July 7, 2023
Currently in the UK soul chart at number 14

Got to number one on The Grenada Soul Chart

Played on all the soul stations , starpoint radio, solar radio, misoul etc Played on national Italian Radio Capital by Massimo OldaniNational Spanish radio show "Como Lo Oyes" on Radio 3,

"Sounds So beautiful" blog featured "Good Love" by Aphrose on the front page

PREMIERED in "Canadian Beats"

Spun on cbc on afterdark by Odario Williams

Antonin Appaix's songs oscillate between pop, acoustic experimentation and electronic ballads. After "???????????", his first EP released in April 2020 on Cracki Records, the singer from Marseilles returns with "????????".

A debut album of soft, hybrid, organic and strange productions, somewhere between Miel de Montagne, Domenique Dumont and Sébastien Tellier, evoking childhood, friendship, adventure, the intoxication of the deep and the wounds of the heart.

Obsessive tekno/grime experiment from London's lostdomain producer Leeway following the great great Krevet EP. Very compatible with ~160 BPM hardtek/trance. Grainy desaturated claustrophobic sound progressing to full, crisp and dreamy with alien salival textures...

Whole album varies on two or three circling themes. Super zoney and subdued and spiritual but then jumps right out of the speakers with violence.

Born of a thousand nights lost in a surrender to stillness and contemplation, In The Air is Anna St. Louis’ second full length album and her most considered work yet. St. Louis’ debut If Only There Was a River seemed to emerge fully formed out of the recesses of her mind; a gritty, mesmerizing affair, filled with jagged edges and ghostly apparitions. The type of record that announces a new voice; one haunted by what has come before.

But this time, St. Louis is no longer concerned with what could have been and sets her sights to exploring what could be. It’s an outlook on the world that was formed when her immediate one was small. The intervening years since her last album found St. Louis in a small one-bedroom cabin in the middle of the woods of upstate New York with a new love and time to think of what she wanted to express with her music. For weeks on end, the only trips she took were to and from her job as the front desk clerk at a nearby hotel. The previous years she had spent on tour and performing constantly in the venues of Los Angeles felt like they had occurred in another lifetime.

“It really compelled me to surrender to the unknown,” she says. And in this surrender, she found liberation. St. Louis is more self-assured, open-hearted and ready to say what she wants. St. Louis describes the writing period as one of a slow harvest; a fertile time but one that required a newfound patience. Instead of documenting her first thoughts, she spent more time with each song, going deeper with the themes and ideas she wanted to express.

This slower approach also guided the sonic textures of the album. Working with producer Jarvis Taveniere (Purple Mountains, Woods) in two extended recording sessions in Los Angeles in 2021, St. Louis used the studio in a previously unexplored way, opening up her songs to more experimentation featuring brighter tones and a more orchestral sound to accompany her new perspective. To that end, she was aided by a cast of friends and collaborators including Jess Williamson, Kacey Johansing, Oliver Hill (Kevin Morby, Vagabon) on strings, Alex Fischel (Spoon) on piano, Josh Adams on drums (Bedouine, Tim Heidecker) and Keven Lareau (Cut Worms, Hand Habits).

In the Air has the sound of a joyous consideration of the present moment; a quiet morning revealing a new snowfall outside, steam coming from the kettle, just before it whistles, St. Louis with her guitar, staring out the window, with a few free hours before work. She’s reflecting on the scene in front of her, imagining the times yet to come. You can hear it; she’s a long way from the noisy bars of Los Angeles, the rigors of the road. As she intones in “Rest”: “You spend your whole life believing in the chase. And then you realize that being somewhere doesn’t matter like it used to.” She doesn’t need a river to carry her anymore ... She’s in the air.

Third in a trilogy of LPs of Library Music miniatures from composer and multi-instrumentalist Daniel O’Sullivan (Æthenor, Ulver, This is Not This Heat, etc) following 2020’s Electric Māyā and 2021’s Fourth Density. For heads, the term “Library Music” in 2021 might evoke dodgy Italian gray market LPs and crate diggers hunting for “funky breaks” - but London’s venerable KPM Music is working with groundbreakers like Daniel to open up new avenues for composers to experiment. The 15 tracks on “The Physic Garden” are fully-formed and orchestrated compositions, which would be highlights on anyone’s LP, never mind as incidental music. Of the music, Dan says: “The Physic Garden is an album of diverse instrumentals inspired by a swathe of verdant vistas from manicured gardens and follies to urban common land, overgrown and forgotten. Convalescent memories in the shape of psychedelic auditory botanics.”

Key tracks include the droning acoustic folk of the title song; the Canterbury-esque rolling horn and woodwind melody of “Return the Heart” (with expert drum kit from Frank Byng); The prog-ish odd meter interlude “Buttercup Tea”; The quiet ambience and delicate melody of “Dusty Feather:”; and the Eno-like drift of “Vapourer Larvae.”

“Library music. Akasha. Here you accept that music behaves like a thing to accentuate another thing, seemingly unrelated. A beautiful, shining blankness. Not passive. An opportunity to wade. A brief encounter with an open-ended destiny. As in, you never know who or what it will be partnered with. With library music the emphasis tends to be on functionality and less on sonic self-portraiture. So it compels you to be concise, like what is the function of this work? The distance is liberating. It’s less “What Am I? and more “What Is This?”. It compels you to be brief, each little cell is a world of its own in an assemblage of miniatures all vibrating in their collective identity. Then there is the occult nature of library music which is fetishized by many for its ability to induce time travel, often to send us back to some televisual memory. However, despite its broad-brush strokes, the library can be so profoundly alien, especially when experienced independently of the televisual realm; an unruly chimera of genre mutations, compositional curiosities and the deepest wallpaper you ever laid ears on. Perhaps the observances of library music can help unshackle us from our artistic insecurities and delusions, where one is drawn to the shape of music as a whole instrument unto itself; as a vehicle carrying our intention and consisting of everything we have to give at that moment; so things that are seemingly unrelated are ultimately connected.” – Daniel O’Sullivan

One of Japan’s most riveting artists follows that KAKUHAN mindmelt from last year (our number 5 album, 2022) with an engrossing suite of wild field recordings and polymetric percussion featuring a whole raft of additional players weaving drums, wind and brass instruments, cello and electronics into a bewildering Acousmatic matrix. Highly recommended listening if you’re into Marginal Consort, Beatrice Dillon, Will Guthrie, Mark Fell, François Bayle.

Having made his mark on these pages over the last few years with appearances as part of Japan’s cult entities Goat and YPY, Koshiro Hino’s turn last year as KAKUHAN took things to a whole other level with an album that felt like some alchemical mix of elements borrowed from Autechre, Photek, Arthur Russell and Mica Levi - a complete stylistic futureshock that worked as well in the club as it did fuelling extended flights of the imagination.

For 2023, Hino takes us into a completely different headspace, assembling a cast of 11 players - the mighty Joe Talia and KAKUHAN’s other half Yuki Nakagawa among them - for a suite of untamed field recordings, clanging percussion, brass and synthesis that are about as far removed from the diaristic ambient de jour as you could possibly imagine. Instead, the ensemble conjure vibrant sound ecologies teeming with detail, mirroring the natural world and communal traditions to form shapeshifting, organismic soundworlds.

‘Geist II’ was written for 20 speakers, referencing François Bayle’s acousmatic music and David Tudor’s electro-acoustic environments. It paints a richly detailed scene of a nocturnal rainforest, replete with avian hoots and a skin-crawling patina of insectoid chatter that moves around the soundfield, stealthily growing in density with a more “musical” presence of super low end drone and drums converging form the peripheries to a ritualistic climax. In the second part, focus shifts to remarkably pure percussion-like tropical rain, invaded by swarms of scuttling and winged invertebrates that give way to a water music-like polymetric slosh, resolving to ringing tones and more mellifluous gestures that hark back to GRM’s most poetic, romantic urges.

It's a deeply psychedelic experience that harmonises tiny electronic fluctuations with bird calls and scraped, resonant drones that phase in-and-out of the mix. It's sound you can practically chew, and another crucial despatch from the contemporary Japanese avant-garde.