Buscar:ther

Arma Records is about to drop its 25th release, an album by Vakula, an Ukrainian producer, active contributor to the underground community that has been united around Moscow's Arma17 since early 2010s.

On the 25th of June, '108 Mysteries' — a double vinyl comprising 9 tracks created by Vakula at his studio, mostly by the artist himself, few in collaboration with the vocalist Amrita Ananda — will be available on major distribution platforms.

Affected by circumstances, the release was repeatedly postponed until a mutual decision to move forward with its publication was made by the artist and the label. The tragedy that was forced upon Ukrainian and Russian people, throwing both nations into an unthinkable circle of pain, hatred and death, had a devastating effect on our cultures, historically perceived as a whole. The catastrophe unwraps further, taking lives, burning homes, destroying connections between people. At that terrifying moment we, the community of artists, still have the voice that used to bring us together — our music.

Philosophical and meditative, '108 Mysteries' is a new chapter in Vakula's discography. 'Highest Love', 'A Breath Of Life', '?????? ?????', 'Spirit Okarine' are a high-spirited mix of oriental and Ukrainian folk motifs — an unusual combination that happens to sound so full of life.

Released in partnership with SEGA of Japan and composer Tomoya Ohtani, The Music of Starfall Islands is a collection of beautiful instrumental and classical-inspired tracks which are used as the background music for the various islands in Sonic Frontiers. The music for each island is presented as a suite, containing several movements that layer upon one another and build up to a climax, each with its own distinctive tone and feel, much like the islands themselves, which range from green meadows, to arid deserts, volcanoes and beyond. The music, composed solely by Tomoya Ohtani, is often stripped down, melancholic, and unexpectedly experimental, featuring an array of unusual sound sources (including Iranian percussion, Celtic vocal samples and Armenian folk instruments). In other moments, it is often rhythmic and emotive, with the addition of subtle electronics and the grandiose strings of The Nashville Scoring Orchestra.

While this release is by no means the complete soundtrack to Sonic Frontiers, we are thrilled to be able to present these beautiful and intriguing tracks as a collection on their own. With its downbeat tone and new compositional approaches, this music is unlike any Sonic soundtrack that has come before and may well subvert the expectations of some long-term fans, but should also surprise and delight audiences both new and old.

As Tomoya Ohtani explains in his liner notes for this release: “I wanted to create an atmosphere for each song that, despite the sadness it carries, also has a glimmer of hope. I do not believe there are many other pieces of Sonic game music that focus so much on the atmosphere as the tracks on Sonic Frontiers do.”

Cutting their teeth as teens in a West Bromwich bedroom, The Sea Urchins were nothing like the heavy metal that seemed to fill every bar in the UK Black Country. Fringe haircuts, perfect trousers, suede jackets and infectious tambourines gave plenty of hints as to their youthful ambition, but nothing could fully prepare you for just how utterly spellbinding these songs would be. Compiling their fanzine-only flexi material with the full complement of singles for Sarah Records, Stardust runs chronologically from late 1986 to the middle of 1989, beginning with the singles split for Clare Wadd’s Kvatch and Matt Haynes’ Sha La La, before hitting the first of what would be an even hundred releases from the new label Wadd and Haynes would form - Sarah.

The song that launched a legendary label and defined a sound, a scene, a place and time; “Pristine Christine” still rings out as immediate and magical today as it did on first listen. What a glorious jangly rush racing around the corners of pop’s history! The band would reach such heights time and again over the course of this three year burst. The melancholy swinging folk of “Everglade” and it’s wonderfully yearning vocal; the organ-fueled british invasion garage rock sing-a-long of “Solace”; the playful psych pop of “A Morning Odyssey”; the acoustic sweep of “Wild Grass Pictures”; the perfectly named “Summershine” leaving you with a ramshackle smile out on the dancefloor. All of it is just so filled with delicate humanity, yet somehow absolutely perfect.

As Bob Stanley said about the shimmering ballad “Please Rain Fall” while bestowing it with NME Single Of The Week (an honor also bestowed upon “Pristine Christine”), “think of some variations on the word marvelous and you’re most of the way there.”

In their time, they might have seemed wildly out of step, but it’s not crazy to say that things could have been very different for the likes of Radiohead, The La’s, and Oasis without The Sea Urchins. Liner notes by Television Personalities legend Dan Treacy.

Orange Vinyl

Cutting their teeth as teens in a West Bromwich bedroom, The Sea Urchins were nothing like the heavy metal that seemed to fill every bar in the UK Black Country. Fringe haircuts, perfect trousers, suede jackets and infectious tambourines gave plenty of hints as to their youthful ambition, but nothing could fully prepare you for just how utterly spellbinding these songs would be. Compiling their fanzine-only flexi material with the full complement of singles for Sarah Records, Stardust runs chronologically from late 1986 to the middle of 1989, beginning with the singles split for Clare Wadd’s Kvatch and Matt Haynes’ Sha La La, before hitting the first of what would be an even hundred releases from the new label Wadd and Haynes would form - Sarah.

The song that launched a legendary label and defined a sound, a scene, a place and time; “Pristine Christine” still rings out as immediate and magical today as it did on first listen. What a glorious jangly rush racing around the corners of pop’s history! The band would reach such heights time and again over the course of this three year burst. The melancholy swinging folk of “Everglade” and it’s wonderfully yearning vocal; the organ-fueled british invasion garage rock sing-a-long of “Solace”; the playful psych pop of “A Morning Odyssey”; the acoustic sweep of “Wild Grass Pictures”; the perfectly named “Summershine” leaving you with a ramshackle smile out on the dancefloor. All of it is just so filled with delicate humanity, yet somehow absolutely perfect.

As Bob Stanley said about the shimmering ballad “Please Rain Fall” while bestowing it with NME Single Of The Week (an honor also bestowed upon “Pristine Christine”), “think of some variations on the word marvelous and you’re most of the way there.”

In their time, they might have seemed wildly out of step, but it’s not crazy to say that things could have been very different for the likes of Radiohead, The La’s, and Oasis without The Sea Urchins. Liner notes by Television Personalities legend Dan Treacy.

Red Vinyl

Adrian Borland and Graham Bailey might be better known as members of legendary post-punk group The Sound, but the two were childhood friends and had been playing together even earlier in The Outsiders, and continued their deep musical rapport as a duo, creating these intense and engaging songs as Second Layer at the same time as their higher profile band output.

Combining their early recordings, including the 1979 Flesh As Property EP and 1980 State Of Emergency EP, Courts Or Wars takes its title from the first song that served as the pair’s introduction to listeners. Right from the beginning you are enveloped in what The Quietus described as, “a monochrome worldview morbidly obsessed with the dehumanizing effect of war, nuclear weapon annihilation, and the fracturing and negation of the self within an increasingly distorted and technologically mediated society.” Where The Sound fit snugly next to Echo And The Bunnymen, Second Layer had far more in common with the pulsing menace of Suicide.

Borland’s familiar vocals and sense of melody hold a connection to his other songwriting, but within these songs he takes far more risks in his guitar work to suit the subject matter. What really drives everything is Bailey’s propulsive bedrock, formed by his homemade pre-drum machine rhythm generators, creating an innovative mechanical approach that somehow inserts a jittery neurotic touch that merges perfectly with his electronic layers driven by the wasp synth, various unique effects boxes or tape loops. Adding in Bailey’s own distinctive bass playing, the results feel personal and experimental, pointed and harsh, while also bracingly accessible and covered in dark manic energy.

Over forty years later, these recordings feel shockingly appropriate. In painting a bleak reality and frightening future, there is real desperate beauty here.

RAMPAGE’s Veil of Mourn is superlative in every sense. There’s a distinct ruggedness to the band’s ceaselessly shifting style of thrash. Mind you, NOT necessarily “rawness” – although the album’s production certainly tends toward the rough – but RAMPAGE’s execution eschews the super-clean sharpness that thrash metal was largely heading toward in the post-Master of Puppets era. With form meeting content, the power-trio’s songwriting similarly takes all sorts of labyrinthine paths short of being qualified as “tech,” racing around and restarting with sometimes-maddening fury. Hooks thankfully abounded, and RAMPAGE’s attack undeniably possessed a death metalled underbelly not unlike Dark Angel or aforementioned Oz cult icons Hobbs Angel of Death. With that songwriting often reaching a fever pitch of diabolism and all three members barely keeping that fury in check, Veil of Mourn becomes a palpitating experience, a veritable ‘80s horror movie turned into a thrash record. The creepy cover art only heightened this sensation.

Produced in collaboration with Jessy Lanza, Paul White, Greg Abrahams
and regular collaborator Joe Brown, Lapsley's third album is an intimate
but universal exploration of those Cautionary Tales that - eventually - may
also prove the making of you
As eclectic as it is unguarded, the album is a form of therapy in the truest sense:
a talking cure and a hauntingly beautiful confession, resulting in a thrilling yet
soulful work of love, loss and growth.

Produced in collaboration with Jessy Lanza, Paul White, Greg Abrahams
and regular collaborator Joe Brown, Lapsley's third album is an intimate
but universal exploration of those Cautionary Tales that - eventually - may
also prove the making of you
As eclectic as it is unguarded, the album is a form of therapy in the truest sense:
a talking cure and a hauntingly beautiful confession, resulting in a thrilling yet
soulful work of love, loss and growth.

Formed in Louisville, KY in 1991, Falling Forward was a band made up of childhood friends Benjamin Clark, Gary Bell, Jonathan Mobley, Ben Lord, and Chris Higdon. Started in their early teens, the band released a handful of recordings on a few different labels (Noble Recordings, Initial Records, and Doghouse Records) before disbanding in 1995. Higdon, Mobley, and Lord would immediately regroup as the renowned atmospheric post-hardcore band, Elliott. Falling Forward's first 7" was originally released as the first (and only) title on local Louisville imprint, Noble Recordings, in a scarcely limited edition of 500. Shortly thereafter, they signed to rising Detroit-turned-Louisville label, Initial Records, for their lone full-length album, Hand Me Down. Founding member Benjamin Clark then left, replaced by Endpoint's Pat McClimans. In 1995, as their popularity and influence were peaking across the United States, Falling Forward released two final singles: an acoustic split 7" with fellow Louisvillians, Metroschifter; and a self-titled 7" EP on the prolific Midwestern indie label, Doghouse Records. All of those releases are long out-of-print, and Falling Forward's entire catalog has remained unavailable in any format for over 20 years. Let These Days Pass: The Complete Anthology 1991-1995 documents the entire recorded history of a young band who met in their pre-teens, wore their hearts on their collective sleeves, and incidentally inspired and influenced thousands of kids and dozens of bands (most notably Thursday) across the world with their unique union of chunky, metallic riffs, pop-punk-inspired hooks, and startlingly infectious, Sunny Day Real Estate-inspired melodicism. Restored and remastered from the original master tapes by Alan Douches at West West Side Music (The Promise Ring, Converge), Let These Days Pass is packaged in all-new artwork culled from elements of the band's history, and includes a 20-page full-color booklet of rare and unpublished photos, fliers, and lyrics.

In recent years, there has been a resurgence of interest in the incomparable 90’s band known as Brainiac. This is in part due to a 2019 full feature documentary about the band (Transmissions After Zero) plus the reemergence of surviving band members to celebrate their music in the last several years. In addition, a substantial pair of archival releases (Attic Tapes 2xLP, From Dayton Ohio 2xLP) were unearthed for release on Record Store Day 2021 by Touch and Go Records. Now, in 2023, comes the latest missive of the archive, harkening back to the band’s latter era - and their most prolific and confident period. The Predator Nominate EP is a celebration of what was to come before the tragic exit of ringleader/singer Timmy Taylor. Listen to these realized demos and imagine what only could have been the confident seed of what the group might be capable of in this future century versus the last one. The world will never truly know. BIO: Brainiac began in 1992 as the basement experiments of Dayton, OH natives Tim Taylor (vocals, synth), and Juan Monasterio (bass), who first met playing cello in fifth grade. Upon completing the lineup with Michelle Bodine (guitar) and Tyler Trent (drums), they released two full-lengths and toured vigorously, establishing themselves as the latest peg in Ohio’s diverse musical timeline. In 1994, Michelle left the band and was replaced by John Schmersal. In 1996, the band made their full-length debut on Touch and Go Records with the album Hissing Prigs in Static Couture. On May 23, 1997, only weeks after the release of Electroshock for President EP and the band’s return from a European tour supporting Beck, Tim lost his life in a car accident.

The fifth release on Blue Matter is a debut album from a guy whose performance and writing would easily give the impression that he is a seasoned campaigner. The confidence and the musicality are of a standard rarely heard. Michael Cullen Murphy was born and raised in Nashville, and moved to the UK when he was 11. His father was friends with the great Peter Rowan and many other country and folk artists, and since childhood, understandably, Mike has been dabbling in folk and country. However, Mike is better known as a reggae specialist, and has kept his special musical talents extremely quiet. Even though we had been friends with Mike for years, we had no idea he was an accomplished singer, player and songwriter, which is why we were so amazed when he played us the almost completed album. Not only does he have a great singing voice, but his songs have an impressive depth and sense of melody. If one had to put some kind of label on the music contained within this record, it would probably contain the words 'Americana' and 'folk’, but that doesn't tell the whole story. There are touches of classic singer/songwriter and psychedelia too. Suffice to say, you need to give it a listen and decide for yourself. Blue Matter are really proud to be able to release this fabulous debut album. We think Mike Murphy certainly has all the necessary credentials to make his mark. Will it happen? Who knows? Your call, folks.

THE FRIIMEN MUZIK COMPANY (also known as FRIIMEN) was formed after the Biafran war in 1973-1974 in the town of ABA in the eastern part of Nigeria. Aba was the Number 1 Music Hub in the entire Eastern Region of Nigeria. While bands and artists like ‘Ofege’ and ‘Fela Kuti’ ruled the LAGOS scene, bands like ‘Friimen’ and ‘The Apostles’ were ruling the ABA scene. Before forming the band, most of its members were already working together as freelance session musicians backing up solo artists on several recordings and concerts (or were playing in military bands that gradually became civilian bands because the war had just ended). FRIIMEN members’ credits were numerous and they played, wrote or performed on recordings from well-known acts like The Funkees, The Jets, The Apostles…and countless others. When they started concentrating on writing their own songs, the group instantly took off and became an overnight hit that resulted in them doing multiple successful nationwide tours. FRIIMEN would go on to record three albums: Free Man (1976), We Can Get It On (1978) and Merry Man (1979). All three albums were released on the Aba based label Anodisc Records (THE key label to be on if you wanted your music heard and out there), Anodisc also released hit records by ‘Sweet Unit’ and ‘Voice Of The Cross’ but The Friimen Muzik Company was the label’s signature band. The album we are presenting you today (Free Man from 1976) was recorded at the famous Decca Studios in Lagos and comes swinging right out of the gate with a set of no less than EIGHT monster tunes. Expect nothing less than crazy afrobeat and over the top melodic funk influenced by a wide array of artists (both local and international). Mesmerizing solos, captivating grooves, impeccable sequences that turned many heads…everything you need to get a dancehall into a complete uproar. The musicians’ skills are just plain incredible! FREE MAN is a quintessential record that every serious collector or fan needs to have in his/her collection.

After a long lockdown and moving to Berlin, the label is back with the next release on Lost Control 2097. They've been waiting for too long to release this record but it's finally here. And OH, it was worth the wait. Salford's very own 'The Fly Insect' (a lot will know him as Johnny Abstract in the Bohemian Grove era) has amassed a large silo container worth of radioactive mutant funk that he's been holding onto for a long while, literally 100 years. Lost Control have been lucky enough to open the taps on this Fly tanker and this EP/mini album is just a slippery snippet of the the sub-aquatic machine-musik. There is 6 tracks of dripping 90s.......the 2090s; ranging from cybernetik techno to ambient electro and back straight at it with heavy robotics. There is one emotional monster of a moment called '12 (Acresfield)' which is a tribute track to the late great Dave Ball aka D-Ball (another electronic legend from Salford). It's been getting repeated plays on our NTS show for good reason. But Decay is the lead track, AND LEAD US IT WILL...into the utter depths of another Fly based multi-verse. Don't sleep on your chance to grab Fly history and don't say so we didn't warn ya. Limited to 300 copies. Digital will also be available for those not wanting wax. This is one for the all the mutants out there. Stay Bzzzzzzttttttttttttttt!

The second single to be pulled from upcoming BBE album ‘Strata Records – The Sound of Detroit – Reimagined By Jazzanova’, ‘Saturday Night Special’ features remixes by Kai Alcé and DJ Amir & Re.decay, as well as The Lyman Woodard Organization’s 1975 original. Possibly the best-known piece of music from the Strata label’s diverse and innovative catalogue, the unique, low-fi, moody, understated aesthetic of ‘Saturday Night Special’ has captured the hearts of music fans and DJs worldwide. “When I first heard the Lyman Woodard Organization ’Saturday Night Special’,” says DJ Amir, “I thought it was a song from a Blaxploitation soundtrack. Once I realized that Lyman was from Detroit, I immediately thought that if there was ever a ’theme song’ for Detroit that ’Saturday Night Special’ would be it. There is such a cinematic vibe to the song full of grit, rawness, and determination that just soaks into your veins. This album/song will always be in my bag of records to survive the apocalypse with!’” When DJ Amir and Jazzanova began work on the ‘Reimagined’ project, breathing new life into the Strata Records archive, this jazz-funk classic was right at the top of the list of ‘musts’ for the band to re-interpret. “I had no idea what direction they were going to go, musically” says Amir. “The original song had been sampled more than a few times, but in my opinion, it was never done tastefully. However, from the first practice session, I knew that they were spot on with the right direction! Their version is the perfect blend of Detroit and Berlin!” Kai Alcé’s ‘NDATL’ remix of ‘Saturday Night Special’ (named, like his label, after his three hometowns of New York, Detroit, ATLanta) brings a sure-footed lightness to Jazzanova’s version of the song, making the absolute most of the track’s stellar horn solos. “After hearing the unreleased Kamasi Washington/Gregory Porter remixes he did, I knew I had to reach out Kai” says Amir. “With this remix, he stretches out the track into a seven minute groove, in the direction of a soulful house/future jazz interpretation.” Alongside his Berlin production partners, Re.decay DJ Amir turns in a low-slung rework of ‘Saturday Night Special’, using as many parts from the Jazzanova version as possible. “We tried to emulate the intro to one of my favourite jazz dance tracks, ‘Expansions’ by Lonnie Liston Smith” says Amir. Mission accomplished.

Hot off the heels of Official UK no.1 and soundtrack to the first summer after lockdown Afraid To Feel, skyrocketing duo LF SYSTEM satisfy fans' cravings for a powerful disco anthem with follow-up single Hungry (For Love).

Still relishing in the success of Afraid To Feel, the duo have now earned over 150M total global streams, landed Clara Amfo’s ‘Hottest Record’ on BBC Radio 1 and certified Platinum, all before being crowned the Official UK no.1 after rocketing past Beyonce, Harry Styles, Drake, George Ezra and knocking Kate Bush off the no.1 spot.

Remaining there for eight consecutive weeks as the longest running no.1 record of 2022 behind Harry Styles, Afraid To Feel is the longest running dance no.1 in chart history, matching Calvin Harris’ One Kiss and cementing the nation’s appetite for a credible dance smash.

Now set to share a slice of Scotland across the UK with their new release, LF SYSTEM will host the ultimate pattie parties with pop up raves at independent fast food chains across Edinburgh, Manchester, and London. Meanwhile, later this month LF SYSTEM will give 100 fans a chance to hear Hungry (For Love) for the first time in an exclusive live set at Metropolis Studios with a special vinyl pressing that features Afraid To Feel on the b side, marking the first time the smash hit will be available on vinyl since its release.

For Conor Larkman and Sean Finnigan of LF SYSTEM, their success follows humble beginnings in the Scottish countryside, playing football against each other as teenagers on rival teams and raving at Scotland’s best clubs. They give credit for their dance hits to home village parties, soundtracked by Motown where Sean's Dad would share classic 70s records with them to dig into. Naturally, LF SYSTEM soon dropped disco edits of their own in 2020 including Dancing Cliché, which Danny Howard discovered and played for nine weeks on his BBC R1 show, earning over 4M streams and further plays from Sarah Story and Charlie Hedges.

Since then they have captured the attention of the whole industry and have played a bucket list headline Boiler Room set in Edinburgh, marking a full circle moment for the lads who were previously club residents for its promoters FLY CLUB. Continuing a flourishing tour schedule across the summer, LF SYSTEM graced BBC Radio 1’s Dance Party Weekend in Ibiza, played b2b with Danny Howard at Amnesia and sold out their first headline show at Night Tales in London.

Hungry for their next anthem, LF SYSTEM demonstrates a soaring dexterity of two ambitious producers deep in their creative prime, now whisking up a weapon exuding vibrancy and disco-edged orchestral joy. Sampling Sandy Gang’s bubbly 70s record Hungry and featuring warm sonic textures blended with rousing strings, Hungry (For Love) is set to leave fans drooling for more.

NO(w) Beauty is a jazz quartet in its most traditional form.
In the perfect continuity of the history of this music, these four young musicians have gathered in Paris, where Hermon Mehari, trumpeter of American origin, has settled, like many of his peers before him. There, in the detours of the jazz clubs, a dialogue was created, then a friendship, thanks to the common language of music. Their personalities and influences mingle and define their sound. Jazz standards, blues, French and European classical music, soul, hip-hop, but also modern jazz and the avant-garde. A traditional quartet, but one that wants to be in tune with the times, and that looks ahead.
The three Frenchmen, in addition to having studied jazz, are largely rooted in French popular and learned music and their influences range from improvised music to Olivier Messiaen via Claude Nougaro... Enzo Carniel and Damien Varaillon both studied at the CNSM in Paris, renowned for its excellence and its very "European" aesthetic. Stéphane Adsuar studied at the Berklee School of Music in Boston, the leading school in the United States. Hermon Mehari, originally from Kansas City, Missouri, brings his unique heritage to the table, while innovating in the tradition of the great American trumpeters.
Together they create a space where all these influences intermingle, without nationality, without borders.

Alignment is back on Charlotte de Witte's KNTXT label for a fourth time with his Attack EP. It offers four more forward-thinking tracks of trance infused techno.

Berlin-based, Italian-born artist Alignment, whose real name is Francesco Pierfelice, has emerged as a real force in the techno world in recent years. He has had an outstanding array of vital productions, and his sound helps carry forward the diversity and musical identity KNTXT stands for. His sound has smartly evolved since as he continues to pick up new influences. All that comes out on this superb new release.

Says the artist, ‘I am more than happy to contribute with ‘Attack EP’, another release on such a renowned imprint like KNTXT. Charlotte has supported me since day one, and I am hugely grateful to release for the fourth time on her label. Four tracks that are straight to the floor, they are the outcome of touring clubs and festivals again now in 2022. Enjoy this selection and see you soon on the dance-floor!’

Says label boss Charlotte de Witte, ‘Alignment is one of my favourite producers out there. His high energy style and sound always deliver on the dancefloor. I'm very proud and honoured to have him once again on board for another four killer tracks on KNTXT.’

Attack opens up with hammering drums and turbo-charged synths. It is an all powerful track that drills deep and brings a real sense of rave to the club. There is an ever present sense of euphoria to Dream State as the trance synth loops bring real light and emotion to the flat footed and slamming drums. Some steamy vocals add that all important hook and ensure real dance floor destruction. Multiverse brings bouncing techno funk beneath edgy synth stabs and industrial percussion design for soot-black warehouse spaces. Last of all is The Way, another unstoppable and supersized techno offering with hands-in-the air synth designs and drums that just don't quit.

This is another fiery offering of new school techno from Alignment.

For the first time on CD and LP, an anthology celebrating the work of composer, arranger, producer and pianist Webster Lewis from his time at Epic Records. The era of 1976-1981 is one of polished, luxurious jazz funk and soul, defined by Webster across his four albums at Epic supported by an array of guest musicians, lush string sections and often uncredited singers. This collection contains the artist’s signature tracks “Barbara Ann”, “Give Me Some Emotion”, “El Bobo” and recently uncovered gems from the vaults “Reach Out”, “Boston” and “Japanese Umbrella”. The CD features an exclusive essay written by Will Fox with unique insights from the legendary DJ Patrick Forge. The recently discovered recordings appear on vinyl for the first time on the LP edition.

Draconian Times is probably the main album for Paradise Lost, so much so that they still tour the album today, which remains one of the milestones in the Metal scene of all time. Recorded at The Forum in London, this live set includes a few fan favorite tracks from their extensive back catalogue which rounded out a truly spectacular performance. Are there any highlights? Oh yes. Opening track ‘Enchantment’ still ranks as one of the best songs this band has penned and the moment when the haunting piano intro gives way to the rest of the band kicking in is a real shiver-down-the-spine moment. ‘Hallowed Land’ and ‘Forever Failure’ (complete with Charles Manson intro) sound as powerful and relevant as when they first came out, and the performance of ‘Shadow Kings’ stands head and shoulders above the original. After being released on DVD and CD, the album was also released on double vinyl, here you will find two new unreleased colors and a truly exceptional packaging: this album comes out in deluxe Triple Gatefold edition, in two colors (Gold / Silver) 500 limited edition each.

Some cities just know how to produce bands by the bucketload. Take Detroit, for instance: we don’t need to rattle through a full list or anything, but safe to say that if your town has given the world the likes of Motown, Derrick May and J Dilla - before we even start to think about The Stooges et al - then you could be forgiven for thinking there must be something in the water round those parts. So whaddya say? Should we get to know two more fine exponents of melodic wonder from the Motor City? Only seems fair. This split LP between citymates The Stools and Toeheads certainly isn’t a letdown as far as the illustrious company of their forebears goes. In fact, it’s a fast-paced thrill ride that oscillates between hip-shaking rock’n’roll swing and bone-shaking hardcore energy. You might already be familiar with The Stools thanks to their ludicrously addictive Feelin’ Fine 7”, which dropped via Drunken Sailor (hey, those guys sound familiar…) early in 2021. If you though that short EP was a good time, wait ‘til you see what they’ve got in store here: right out of the gate, opener Dead Man’s Ford smashes the devil-toed boogie of the MC5 at their slinkiest into the teeth-clenched intensity of Negative Approach (and that’s a pretty decent John Brannon-style roar they deliver too). They maintain this quality and velocity across their side, which is brilliant. There’s no let-up from Toeheads either - their side of this split sounds like someone revved up The Gun Club and aimed fireworks inside their exhaust. This is the sound you always knew you were working towards when you got into this rock’n’roll business; guitars blazing, lungs bursting, a wall of sound collapsing while we all dance in the debris. Does it sound like anything new? Fuck no, but that’s not the point. Much like The Stools, there’s nothing you can say about Toeheads that can’t be summarised with the phrase ‘total exhilaration’. So there you have it. Another compelling case for Detroit as home to the finest sounds around, put forth by two young bands who make playing loud, fast and dumb sound easy. Call it conviction, call it chutzpah… hell, call it talent if you want, I ain’t gonna stop you. But chiefly, call it a fucking good time and put the damn record on. This slays. Will Fitzpatrick.