Cerca:the roots

Two tracks from Chicago’s mighty Salem Travelers, from their brief time on the Chess subsidiary Checker in 1968. The A-side, ‘Tell It Like It Is’, goes for around £45 on seven, its follow up, an previously unheralded classic from the same year. Both tracks are a unique funky take on gospel.

‘Tell It Like It Is’ is filled with wah wah guitar chops and some excellent lead breaks that spice up the conga-adorned upbeat; a heady song grasping for the truth.

‘Give Me Liberty Or Death’ is slightly slower, with a Motown-styled backbeat behind a fist pumping anthem that reels in its churchy roots and some great vocal interplay, a message song filled with emotion.

Two fantastic tunes from a transient ever-changing group who, in the 1960s and 1970s, were known for soulful harmonies and glass-shattering lead singing. Typical of their repertoire of songs that provided social commentary on the troubles of the world from the war in Vietnam, drugs, violence, prejudice, civil rights and child delinquency.

Solco Privato, along with his sampler, wanted to return to and embrace his roots for the first chapter of his label, Vinyl only. A tribute to quality house music with two deeply emotive tracks and a warm richness in sound. An opportunity for enthusiasts to fully immerse themselves in the sound and aesthetics of this iconic genre.

Two times UK Blues Award winner second album for APM Records released on CD. HSLB carries the narrative of a bluesman upto no good who when his world falls apart, admits what he’s done and atones. Produced by Phil Dearing (Eliza Carthy, Gretchen Peters, Lauran Cantrell). Features special guest Vaneese Thomas (daughter of Rufus and sister to Carla Thomas). Radio for HSLB : no.1 IBBA radio chart two months running , Top 50 iTunes Blues album chart (US) / no.3 Roots Music Report Blues Album (Global)/ no.1 Roots Music Report Blues song ‘Blind Leading The Blind’ (Global) / Top10 Living Blues radio chart (US) / Top 20 National College Radio (US), airplay on 50 stations (US) / airplay in Netherlands, Australia, Canada, Switzerland, Croatia, France, Italy, Germany, Israel Press for HSLB : Blues In Britain front cover, reviews Blues Matters, Blues in Britain, Rock & Reel, Living Blues (US), Blues Blast (US), Charlotte Blues Society (US), Blues Roadhouse (US), Big City R&B (US) Bluestown (NL) “Mississippi MacDonald riffs like a fabulous Albert King circa his Stax days”. • Mississippi MacDonald is playing: Love Fields Stage-Glastonbury, Linton Blues Festival, Dereham Blues Festival, Brightlingsea Festival, Over The Hill Festival, Mississippi MacDonald won Traditional Blues Artist of the Year 2024 and Acoustic Blues Artist of the Year 2024 at the UK Blues Awards in April. HSLB Nominated for UK Blues album of the year

forgive too slow, Avant Garde artist julia-sophie’s deeply personal debut album is testament to her ability to transform adversity into raw beauty, combining her traditional songwriting roots with her own take on experimental electronica. It features her intimate voice backed by warm and precise electronic sounds whose free spirited explorations give body to the carefully written personal songs julia-sophie comes off the drama of her 2010s rock band, Little Fish, which was signed to a major label. The surreal experiences (like being flown to Las Vegas in helicopters with a bag of slot machine money or given limousines for the day to go shopping), along with having to work in environments where she felt unsafe, drove her decision to leave the fame game. She turned down the offer to emigrate to America and engage with the machinations of the system as it did not feel “true or congruent with who I was”. Instead, she focused her attention on her hometown (Oxford, UK). She started recording lo-fi pop in her garage, using an old laptop, wonky microphones and hitting whatever was around for beats. Candy Says grew to be more of a collective than a band, and eventually co-wrote a film score for indie film Burn Burn Burn and recorded a cover of Running Up That Hill for the Netflix film Close (starring Noomi Rapace). Julia-Sophie soon started recording songs with her friend B, who had a studio stacked from wall-to-wall with analogue recording gear, vintage synths and drum machines. She decided to self-release and the music reached audiences beyond her expectations, including support from BBC Radio 6 and a feature in The Quietus. forgive too slow is Julia-Sophie’s debut solo album, and concerns relationships and the struggles we go through when we “forgive too slow” and can’t break out of patterns from the past. The songs narrate her story of self-destruction (“numb”), love (“falling”), and loss (“telephone”). By the end, embers are still burning and there is no telling if Julia-Sophie has found peace, but we do get a sense that she has gotten closer to the core of her being and is finally living authentically.

Bristol-based DJ/producer Jay Singh a.k.a. Indian Man has been a regular on the festival and club circuit for several years, bringing to the dancefloors his distinct blend of musical influences, from electronica to the Punjabi sounds of his Indian roots. Championed by the WOMAD festival, his first official release is a mixtape of tracks he has created with a truly international cast of collaborators he met on his travels with the global music festival from the UK to Europe and South America, including stars such as Emmanuel Jal, La Dame Blanche, and Dobet Gnahoré.

Upon returning from his extensive travels, Indian Man honed his craft in the spare room of his grandmother’s house where he lived as a carer. He spent his evenings playing DJ sets and producing dance music on a midi keyboard left there from his father’s band, inspired by melodies his gran sang around the house. Packed with dance beats, playful melodies, and spin-chilling vocals, the result is Gran’s House — both a tribute to the loving family and diverse cultures that made him who he is, and the bold coming-of-age of a rapidly-rising talent.

The band name is a nod to the eponymous album by Sonny Rollins from 1962, but the project refuses to sound nostalgic. Every performance leads to completely new music, with every player bringing influences from their own generation and background. Recorded by Bartosz Szkielkowski at Pardon To Tu, Warsaw, October 3rd, 2022 (except for LP format extra track). In this quartet Amado gathers three of his strongest longtime influences: German pianist Alexander von Schlippenbach, Norwegian double bass player Ingebrigt Håker Flaten and American drummer Gerry Hemingway. For Amado this band represents a deep dive into his own formative roots, something he has been dealing with more and more in these last few years. With Schlippenbach, Håker Flaten and Hemingway by his side, Amado has the perfect context to explore the classic materials he considers to be the basis of his journey as a musician, an impulse that is part him and part history. This is a quartet whose name really represents, aside from a direct homage to Sonny Rollins, a bridge between different languages, backgrounds and generations, all united through improvisation. Rodrigo Amado - tenor saxophone Alexander Von Schlippenbach - piano Ingebrigt Håker Flaten - bass Gerry Hemingway - drums

'You've Changed' was a transcontinental creation that was first released in 1986 on the Sally B label. It melds Jamaican roots with Canadian electronic enhancements at the legendary Channel One Recording Studio. Jamaican reggae don Horace Martin drew inspiration from greats like Dennis Brown, and Horace Andy, and comedy legends like Richard Pryor and Charlie Chaplin and has an eclectic career spans albums like Watermelon Man from 1985 and this one, the avant-garde gem that arrives now on Arabusta. It's a busy and digitally infused reggae sound with elements of dance hall and plenty of catchy rhythms which all lead to international success, performances across 24 countries and having more than 400 songs aired on 9000 radio stations around the world.

Seit fast zwei Jahrzehnten streben American Aquarium nach der raren Form von Rock'n'Roll, die in jeder Hinsicht eine Offenbarung ist. "Für uns ist der
Punkt erreicht, an dem du eine Rockband hast, die dich dazu bringt, jedes Wort mitzuschreien, und erst, wenn du nachts um drei Uhr zu Bett gehst,
merkst du, dass diese Worte etwas Wahres über dein Leben aussagen", sagt Frontmann BJ Barham.
Auf ihrem neuen Album The Fear of Standing Still verkörpert die aus North Carolina stammende Band diese Dynamik mit größerer Intensität als je
zuvor, indem sie ihre düstere Art von Country-Rock mit Barhams bisher mutigstem und prägnantestem Songwriting verbindet.
The Fear of Standing Still ist die zweite Zusammenarbeit von American Aquarium mit dem Produzenten Shooter Jennings - einem dreifachen
Grammy-Gewinner, der auch für die Produktion des Albums Lamentations aus dem Jahr 2020 sowie für Alben von Brandi Carlile und Tanya Tucker
verantwortlich war.

Warehouse Find!

As I-Robots launches a new compilation series that celebrates the roots and influences of Italo disco in Turin and the Piedmont region, the Opilec Music boss also offers up various singles from it with some special remixes and edits. After an EP from Johnson Righeira last summer comes the latest one featuring the legendary Captain Torkive and two of his tracks as well as some special versions by I-Robots. Captain Torkive is Daniele Torchio, an Italian artist active in the late seventies & early eighties who got his nickname from a love of UFOs and space, in fact the titles here are inspired by the Superman DC Comics classic.
He has worked with the likes of Valero Liboni and all the material here is officially licensed from Ponzo Records master tapes. His tracks here are some of the most rare 7" Italo space disco tunes from Turin's rich history and feature synthesizers and electronic effects that he made himself, as well as guitars and keys he also played. Up first comes the I-Robots 1979 Reconstruction of Flying Saucers To Krypton which marries both tunes into a lush retro space odyssey that shimmers and rockets through the cosmos with live drums and jangling bass. Rounding off the A side is 1979 original version of Krypton' which is just as dazzling and spaced out with layers of synths and arps all sounding squelchy beneath some robot vocals. Kicking off the B side is the I-Robots 1979 Space Reconstruction of Flying Saucers To Krypton that strips some of the layers and keeps one lead synth line and some ascending spaceship sounds, as well as a lovably loose groove that really stomps along with real character. Last but not least is the original 1979 version of Flying Saucers, a cosmic tune with sci-fi sounds and melodies shooting about above big disco grooves with the keys and synths that carries you away to another galaxy. This is another essential package from Opliec Music that shines a light on an artist and era that deserves all the attention it can get.

Back in stock.
Cratere Centrale, a Sicilian band formed between the volcanic slopes of Mount Etna and the urban area of Catania, debuts on Roots Underground with an EP consisting of five tracks with a strongly Mediterranean flavour in which jazz, funk and club culture come together for a surprising result.

First time reissue of “Quiero…” by Peruvian-Cuban singer and composer Króffer Jiménez, leader of Poppy y sus Pirañas, one of the key figures in Peruvian tropical music.Recorded in 1969 but not released until 1972, this album comprises guarachas and cumbias that were ahead of their time, mostly original compositions. Unfortunately the album went almost unnoticed back in the day, becoming a sought-after collector’s item in recent times. Quintets such as Compay Quinto, Pedro Miguel y sus Maracaibos and Los Totos were the stars of the Peruvian tropical scene at that time, winning over listeners with their powerful rhythm section and fast-paced melodies. In contrast, the dozen guarachas and cumbias on "Quiero..." are slower and more relaxed, where the elegant intonation displays Króffer’s Cuban roots, with the Pirañas contributing during the more festive moments. The cumbia 'Mala mujer' and the guarachas 'Amar en el mar' and 'El sortilegio' were ahead of their time, as the singing style adopted would only become fashionable from 1971 onwards. 180g vinyl.

BALTHVS is THE premier eclectic & psychedelic world funk trio from Bogotá, Colombia, sparking a counterculture revolution in their home country.

Cause & Effect is BALTHVS's second record. An evolution from its initial chill psychedelic sounds portrayed in 2020's 'MACROCOSM'. Owing to its Colombian roots, the album has plenty of Latin American rhythms, as well as ventures into Deep House, Turkish Music, Vaporwave, Trip-Hop and Disco. Their signature psychedelic elements are always present, ready to engulf the listener in a hypnotic trip across time, space, cultures, and different eras.

The name of the album reflects an ancient hermetic axiom. Nothing is accidental, everything is invoked. Chance or fate are names for a cosmic law not comprehended. Everything you do, consciously or unconsciously will come back at you, nothing happens without reason.

The Punishment Of Luxury was Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark's thirteenth studio album, but surprised everyone commercially with the first album since 1991 to reach the UK Top 10. The album continued the sound they created with 2013's English Electric. A sound strongly tied to their roots, but this time a bit more stripped down. As Andy McCluskey describes it: ""There’s a little bit more sort of crunchy industrial sound in a few things, a bit glitchty-er. But you know, the bottom line is that have a sense of melody that we just can’t throw off"". Even after almost 40 years, the band are still able to surprise their fans, making The Punishment Of Luxury a must for all synthpop fans. The Punishment of Luxury is available as a limited edition of 1000 copies on blue coloured vinyl. The record is housed in a jacket with die-cut and includes a printed innersleeve.

Inspired by the Buddhist sutras, Blitzen Trapper’s radiant new album, 100's of 1000's, Millions of Billions, offers a captivating take on rebirth and transcendence, navigating its way through the space beyond dreams and reality, beyond gods and mortals, beyond life and death. The songs here are as sincere as they are surreal, rooted in rich character studies and deep reflection, and the production is intoxicating to match, blending lo-fi intimacy and trippy psychedelia into a mesmerizing swirl of analog and electronic sounds. Add it all together and you’ve got a gorgeous collection of stripped-down bedroom folk wrapped in lush layers of synthesizers and washed out electric guitars, a poignant, expansive exploration of perception and purpose that manages to look both forwards and backwards all at once. This LP is pressed on clear blue vinyl and limited to 1,000 copies worldwide. Launched roughly two decades ago in Portland, OR, Blitzen Trapper broke out internationally with 2008’s Furr, which cemented their status at the forefront of the modern indie folk revival. Rolling Stone hailed the band’s “hazy, psychedelic Americana,” while NPR praised their “explosive live performances and infectious roots-rock swagger.” Dates with Fleet Foxes, Wilco, and Dawes followed, as did festival appearances at Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, Newport Folk, and Coachella, among others. The band would go on to release six more similarly lauded studio albums, culminating with 2020’s Holy Smokes Future Jokes, which Mojo proclaimed “sounds like the Beatles at Big Pink.”

Unfold is the beginning of the next phase in Bukkha's musical journey. Its purpose is to explore different territories of sound and expose the people to a variety of tempos and styles. Kicking it off Planet I-N-I is a slow and low riddim that blends roots and future sounds carried by atmospherics and textures.
On the flip we have revered author and dub poet Roger Robinson taking us into the depths of reality. He shares with us a story that brings further awareness on profiling and police brutality. The story is accompanied by a minimal beat with echoing stabs and a pulsating sub. Enjoy the
journey in the first chapter of the Unfold series.

The Remedy is a classic, soulful house bounce with glossy, sultry jazz infusions - peak Summertime vibes. I also pay tribute to my afro-electronic, percussive roots with Ritual which is the complete opposite of The Remedy. Ritual is mighty on the low end, it's seductive with hypnotic horns, an earth-shaking bass line and a rhythmic groove throughout. This track is an absolute weapon for the club :)

2024 Restock

BaianaSystem are from Bahia, the state with the strongest African cultural heritage in the country and a motherlode for Brazilian music. BaianaSystem manifest and champion the sound of the Black Atlantic, deep and future connections between Africa, Brazil and the Caribbean, from the roots of samba to global bass culture.

After a 12-year hibernation, Beachwood Sparks emerges with 'Across The River Of Stars,' a transcendent and succinct sonic odyssey. Under the guiding hand of Chris Robinson, the band's revival showcases their growth and musical maturity. From their indie roots to this celestial return, the album bridges the past and present, offering a journey through cosmic and earthy landscapes. Within it's nine songs Across The River Of Stars invites listeners to rediscover Beachwood Sparks.

After a 12-year hibernation, Beachwood Sparks emerges with 'Across The River Of Stars,' a transcendent and succinct sonic odyssey. Under the guiding hand of Chris Robinson, the band's revival showcases their growth and musical maturity. From their indie roots to this celestial return, the album bridges the past and present, offering a journey through cosmic and earthy landscapes. Within it's nine songs Across The River Of Stars invites listeners to rediscover Beachwood Sparks.

AJ Lee & Blue Summit are an award-winning, energetic, and technically jaw-dropping bluegrass band quickly rising on the national roots music scene. Based in Santa Cruz, California, the group met as teenagers, picking together as kids at local bluegrass festivals until one day, they decided they would be a band. Their Signature Sounds debut, City of Glass is a spellbinding collection of original songs and covers that’s just as much country soul and gritty, bluesy Americana as it is rock club and festival-ready string band fare, all framed through a California folk lens. City of Glass not only focuses on AJ Lee’s songwriting and once in a generation voice, but also features the Bakersfield sound of guitarist and second lead vocalist Scott Gates on three tracks along with the guitar wizardry and indie rock influence of Sullivan Tuttle, the younger brother of Bluegrass superstar Molly Tuttle.