The french electronic wizards Jacques & Superpoze made music together. The result is simple: 1 track together and 2 original songs, one by Jacques, one by Superpoze. In their own words: Superpoze and I made music together. We gave birth to an instrumental track. There are no lyrics, but it speaks about time flying, About the feeling of evolving or moving backwards, About repetitive events that don't ever follow the same pattern, About the tragedies that sometimes happen and the fear they would happen again, About discovering enthusiasm, About knowing how to read the future in the past, About being knocked out after holding on to an assumption, About winning a chess game by mistake.
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Christy Essien was one of the leading female recording artists of her time in Nigeria. She was born in Akwa Ibom State in 1960 and enjoyed an accomplished career as a musician and an actress. Having conquered the music and TV worlds Christy moved on to feature in some of the early Hollywood films such as "Flesh and Blood" and "Scars of Womanhood", both of which addressed issues of child abuse and female circumcision. With a desire to make life better for Nigerian artists. She is also credited as having initiated the first meeting that brought about the formation of the Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria in 1981.
Dubbed Nigeria's "First Lady Of Song", Christy produced a respectable 9 studio albums across a number of labels. Her fifth album "Give Me A Chance" was released in 1980 by Afrodisia, and is being officially reissued again by the prolific Nigerian label.
"Give Me A Chance" showcases an impressive move on from her last album with a nice amount of variety. Her classic funky disco sound is most evident in what is her most notable song on the album "Rumours". This much sought after disco number is joined by a couple more disco grooves such as "Nobody Can Stop You" and "Onwu". "Ife" meaning love inflicts a little bit of reggae into the mix while the remaining tracks ("Saboteurs", "Don't Let Me Down", "Ikan Idomo" and title track "Give Me A Chance") take more of a traditional afrobeat - meets ballad approach.
Christy died after a brief illness in 2011. Close to the time of her death, she was involved in numerous successful businesses, organization and running the non-governmental organisation Essential Child Care Foundation involved in child welfare. Christy's achievements and awards are numerous. Too numerous to mention. Perhaps her greatest achievement however is her contribution to building a peaceful and tolerant Nigeria - which, alongside moral uprightness, remain constant themes of her songs.
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Connaisseur posthumously releases Daso's self-titled long player to create a final memento for his musical legacy.
We first came in touch with Daso when we saw him performing live at the
Dachkantine in Zurich around 2006. He really had this stage talent which
fascinated us straight from the beginning. At this party we agreed on the first release on Connaisseur, the "Adventure EP" including the strong "Sam n Max", which was a great presentiment of the many releases to come.
Daso was a unique character with a lovely sense of humour, and surprising quirks which could be like marvels to us. One moment, we would be worried just seeing him crossing a busy street and in the next, he would be rocking the stage with major self-confdence and the attitude of a real rock star.
In our history of Connaisseur, he defnitely was one of our most important
artists, and some of his best music was released with us. He played many label nights, and together we enjoyed uncountable laughs, discovered cities and countries while touring and collected invaluable memories.
It is the way of the world that we as a label eventually focussed on new artists, and Daso, too, embarked in new directions. We still stayed in touch, even though the gaps between our contacts became bigger with time. The frst time we realized that Daso was ill was in the frst quarter of 2016. We had invited him to our 10th anniversary party in Berlin, but he didn't feel well enough to be able to come. Shortly after this, he went to the doctor and was diagnosed with cancer. We were shocked. Daso was always such a positive person, it simply didn't add up for us that someone like him could get sick.
Obviously an irrational and unjust thought, but it just felt so unfair.
When he started chemo therapy I spoke to him on the phone, and my label partner Martin, who lives in Berlin, gave him a frst hospital visit early in summer of that year. A bit later we visited him together, and yes, he was optimistic, still full of humour and also motivated to pick up his career again as soon as possible. This impression was of course only from a distance, but I was delighted to see how confdently he presented himself on socials after all his treatments, and how after recovery he started playing gigs again.
At some point I realized Daso hadn't been active on his socials for a while, which concerned me. This was in the frst quarter of 2018. His last post on Facebook had been made on November 30th and I knew this couldn't bode well. After contacting some common friends I was told his prospects were not good. I was about to go on an Easter holiday but planned to visit him on my next monthly trip to Berlin. I didn't have the chance. On Easter Monday, April the 2nd, 2018 Daso passed away.
At Daso's funeral, which was on a wonderfully sunny day in late spring, his father came up to me and asked if I might be interested in releasing this album, which Daso had been able to fnalise in the last months and weeks of his life. We didn't decide on doing so lightly, knowing that the release of a post-mortem album can bring up certain issues. However, in the end, we agreed to do it, as we sincerely strive to create a fnal memento for Daso's musical legacy.
The self-titled album Daso will be released on April 5th, three days after the first anniversary of Daso's obit.
'Voices In The Night' is 23rd Underpass' third full-time length album, and Costas Andriopoulos has not lost a bit of his talent to write classy and catchy yet dark synth pop-infused Italo disco tracks. Again aided by Nadia Vassipoulou, John Britsas and Panos Papapetros on vocals, the album is comprised of eight brand new tracks including smash hits 'I Hear Voices In The Night' and 'Together Forever', for you to dance on your favourite disco's dancefloor, alone at home or just to dream away on Costas' haunting melodies.
We Are Mattimatti. Two Mattis Living In Different Countries - Sweden (malmö) And Germany (berlin). We Travel Around The World Playing Music While Asking Ourselves, 'who Are We'. The Answer Seems To Change Just As Our Surroundings Do. But The Music Stays With Us And So Does The Friendship. It Is Cliché That It's Hard To Put A Label On Music. And To Say It Has Almost Become A Cliche Itself. But Whole Meaning Of Music Is To Listen To It And Create Your Own World By It. To Create One's Own World One Needs Space. Space That Is Not Interrupted By Either Style Or Defining Categories. Mattimatti Is An Attempt To Step Into That Space Creating Music That Is Solely Built On Improvisation. Our Music Is An Invitation To Places Not Yet Known, Where Rhythmic, Suggestive And Meditative Soundscapes Meet The Present Moment. Music Represents Many Things For Us. First Of All, It Is In-sync With Our Friendship, When The Relationship Is Stuck So Is Our Music. Our Music Is Therapy. We Need To Be Authentic With The Music In Order To Have A Real Friendship And The Other Way Around. As Friends And Musicians We Welcome The Unexpected. This Has Lead Us To Places Where We Never Would Have Ended Up In If It Weren't For The Music. In That Way, Music And Life Walk Hand In Hand. If We Dare To Be Real About It. We Are Living In A World Full Of Confusion When It Comes To Identity. It's Easy To Loose Yourself. All Of A Sudden You Are Standing There Playing Music But Missing The Music At The Same Time, Or Hanging Out With Your Best Friend While Missing The Friendship. We Are Trying To Stay Connected. It Is A Constant Task. We Lose It But Then We Find It Again, Just Like Everybody Else. Sometimes It Ends Up In Music For The Moment. Sometimes It Ends Up In The Shape Of A Record. We Met On The Streets Of Berlin In Spring 2013 While One Of Us Was Playing On The Streets. After We Played The First Time Together, There Was No Question That We Would Travel A Musical Journey Together From That Day. Mattimatti Was Initiated. On Our Quest We Began Playing Improvised Tunes On Sitar And Hang On The Street While Travelling Through Sweden And Germany. This Lead Us To Be Invited To Numerous Festivals All Over Europe While Constantly Developing Our Music And Sound. Since Then Our Set Has Added New Instruments Such As A Drum Kit With Hang, African Harps, Sitar, Guitar, Harmonica, Clarinet, Hank Drum And Vocals On Top Of It Extending The Sound With A Space Echo. The Long, Intimate Tunes That We Are Creating Have An Original Structure And Sound. There Is A Certain Present Resting In The Music Which Is Hard To Describe But Easy To Experience If You Listen To It. Our Live Concerts Have Been Dubbed Mythical, Hypnotic, Magic And Epic. Traveling Is Our Biggest Influence On Music. Mattimatti Are Now Both Based In Berlin & Malmoe And Work Together With The Contemporary Circus, Dance And Music Group - kollektiv Knaster .
Nexe Records is back, this time featuring the debut EP from SAMOT, "Forms Of Perception". The NX1 member and label co-owner returns with his solo project delivering a vigorous record including a remix of the French producer UVB.
"Petricor" opens the EP, a slow-burning broken track with electrifying synths driving powerful drums and inducing the listener in an hypnotic dance. "Cutis Ansarina" is a muscle flexing exercise, conceived for the dance floor, solid and classy, executed to perfection.
On the B-side "Kinestesia" is and lightning attack against the mind, wildly acid synth and percussions strike your brain. The UVB remix of "Kinesthesia" is taken to his territory where forcefulness dwells at will, built to raze the club.
Third studio album by American rock legends, originally released on Epic Records in November 1999. Grammy Award nominated and voted 'Best Album Of 1999' by both Rolling Stone and Time magazine. 12 track album pressed on standard black vinyl with download code insert. Marketing activity.
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Last delivered 5 years ago available to reorder, subject to availability
Recorded Between The Release Of Sand (1977) And Lost Secrets(1981), Symphonic Songs Is A Formerly Unreleased Work That Chronicles The Dynamic Shift And Development In Experimental Swedish Composer Ragnar Grippe's Canon.
Following His Seminal Release Sandin 1977, Swedish Experimental Composer Ragnar Grippe Worked On Various Art And Performance Commissions, Often Returning To Stockholm During The Summer Months To Focus His Efforts On His Compositional Practice. It Was There At The Famed Ems Studioswhere He Began Employing The Buchla Synthesizer And The Facilities Multi-tracking Capabilities As New Instruments To Map His Mining Of Sound And Movement.
During The Late 1970's, Grippe Formed A Creative Collaboration With Choreographer Susan Buirge, Specifically Writing Compositions For Her Works restes And tamis, Thus Pushing Grippe To Start Working In A More Intricate Studio Environment. These Passages Inspired Grippe Into A More Complex Layering Process That Focused More On Placement And Structure, Rather Than The Aural Floods And Flourishes Of His Previous Sand Album, Eventually Germinating In His First Full 24-track Composition Entitled orchestra.
After Debuting orchestra In 1980 At The Electronic Music Festival In Stockholm, Grippe Holed Up At Ems Studios With Those Lessons And The Fussy Buchla Synthesizer, In Which Grippe Affectionately Recalls needed To Be Tuned And Calibrated Every 20-30 Minutes. He Emerged With A New Commission For Susan Buirge Later Formally Titled Symphonic Songs And Used In Her Avant-garde Theater Piece ci-déla Which Debuted In Paris In 1981.symphonic Songsshowcased Grippe's Sound Au Courant, Pushing Dense Against Sparse, Calm Into Cacophonous, Using Each Track As Its Own Intersecting Plane. Using The Machinations Of Studio And Structure To Drive Symphonic Songs' Voice, Grippe Culled A Haunting, Often Cinematic Electronic Work That Dots And Darts Into Unexpected Corners With Curious Aplomb.
Listen To The Words, Both Terms Have Their Root In Classical Music, But Not In Its Form But Because Now I Had So Many More Stems Or Voices That Could Be Played Simultaneously Compared To My Earlier Pieces. Coming From A Classical Background, But With Big Nostrils For Pop And Jazz Music, I Can Now See A Thread In Which Classical Got A New Costume, Dressed Up In Buchla Synthesizer And Real Bass Sounds Grippe Says. Since Its Live Theater Debut Over 37 Years Ago, Dais Records Releases For The First Time Symphonic Songs, One Of Grippe's Most Ambitious Compositions, As A Deluxe Double Vinyl Lp (with Limited Edition Color Variants) And On Digital Formats. Artwork Packaging By Artist J.s. Aurelius (ascetic House) With Reflective Linear Notes By Ragnar Grippe.
Time flies when you're having fun and we can't fathom how this can be Ben Sun's 5th EP for Delusions Of Grandeur but it's true enough and once again he comes up trumps in the form of the Place Of Worship EP. Having previously graced such esteemed imprints as Royal Oak, Tru Thoughts, Razor n Tape as well as his own vinyl-only label Voyeurhythm the London based Australian producer continues to be both highly regarded, yet somewhat under the radar but we're sure that's about to change with this incredible new three tracker.
Opening up we have See It Come Shining, just the kind of life-affirming club track which seem to be in such short supply these days, but that we need now more than ever. Gospel flavoured piano chords tug on the heart strings whilst a simple, raw disco groove with added 909 punch creates a warmth and energy that transcends the dance floors that it's destined to liberate.
Flipping over we have Oceanways T150, a deep, analogue jam that harks back to simpler times when breakbeats collided with a house thump, uplifting pianos meld into punching basslines and discovering music through muffled old cassette mixtapes or patchy pirate radio reception was all we knew.
Rounding off the EP we have the perfect closer Atlantis Transfer. Here Ben puts more early influences into the mixing pot with ambient washes cascading down over a sublime 90's deep house bassline. Analogue hats and tripped-out sound FX skirt around a naive synth melody making for a heady late night treat to get lost in.
We Launch A New Vinyl Series, Strictly Limited To 200 Units, No Repress, On Which We'll Be Releasing The Finest Tracks Released On The Digital Pot (digipot).
For This Second Strike, We've Chosen A Couple Of Tracks Released Back In 2015, For Our 10 Year Anniversary.
This Time, Italian Duo Hallucinator, Usual Suspect On Prspct Recordings And On The Biggest Hardcore Events Worldwide, Delivers A Psychodelic Mad Track Called "circus Freak". Banger.
On The Flip, Once Again For This Vinyl Limited Series, French Duo Katharsys Brings A Bunch Of Filthness With Suricate.
The New Creation were a local Los Angeles group who during 1974 recorded the H.B. Barnum produced 'The Fish Song' a tribute song dedicated to the door to door fish sellers of Whiting H&G. With the flipside again a tribute song dedicated to Elijah Muhammad the leader of Afro-American religious and political movement ,The Nation Of Islam. At the time of release the song received little radio airplay due to the radio stations deeming it a commercial song and demanding spot payments for it's promotion. Undeterred the group self promoted and distributed the 45 amongst the local community and the audiences at their shows. The group continued to perform right through until the early 1980's often sharing the stage with Philadelphia's The Delfonic's, L.A,s own The Youngheart's, New York's Cool & The Gang (who also recorded a LP track dedicated to Whiting H&G). Fast forward to the present and 'The Fish Song' and it's flipside 'Elijah Knows' has become a very desirable and sought after 45 (although most copies of the few copies found are not in great shape) amongst Lowrider, Crossover, Sweet and Group Harmony collectors both in Europe and the 45's native USA.
Lakker Return To R&s With Their Stunning New Album, Época. Following 2016's Conceptual 8 Track Maxi-ep struggle And Emerge' (using Field Recordings Of Tv And Radio Broadcasts From The Dutch National Av Archive) Época Is A Bracing Return To Form, Combining Caustic Electronics With Fresh Inspiration From The Prepared Piano Of John Cage, Plaintive Folk Melodies, The Explorative Label Sublime Frequencies And The Raw Rhythms Of Kampala's Nyege Nyege Tapes.
Following A Restorative Creative Break To Pursue Their Own Solo Projects (as Arad And Eomac Respectively) The Duo Finally Returned To The Studio, Finding Themselves Working More Closely Than Ever Before. "we Wrote This Record Together, In The Studio As A Duo." Ian Explains "previous Records Involved A Lot Of Time Working On Tracks Individually, But Época Was Written Almost Entirely Together In The Studio - It Felt Much More Fun, More Organic And Democratic." We Allowed It To Happen Rather Than Push Or Pressure It" Dara Adds.
The Natural Evolution Of The Tracks And Their Rougher, Looser Production Sound Parallels The Duo's Interest In Two Separate Ideas: Ambient And Natural Sound, Especially The Background Noise - A Sense Of Time And Place - That Is Inherent In Old Recordings Of Folk And Classical Music, And An Interest In Herd Dynamics And Flock Patterns / Murmurations, Both In The Natural World And In Human Society. The Movements Which Affect The World At Large Through Cultural And Political Shifts. "like The First Starling That Causes A Wave In A Murmuration," Ian Explains "we Are Really Interested In How This Is Also Reflected In Human Society - A New Idea Appears And Then Reaches Critical Mass And Resonates Through Society As A Whole, And Change Happens (positive Or Negative)."
The Rich And Deep Work Of Época Finds The Duo Reinvigorated From Their Hiatus, Using Their Own Voices Extensively For The First Time, Alongsides Regular Vocal Collaborator Eileen Carpio. As Dara Explains "we Had Been Experimenting With Our Own Voices In Our Solo Music, So It Felt Like This Was The Moment To Step Out From Behind The Curtain And Put Our Own Vocals Front And Centre In A More Natural Way". This Leads To An At Times More Melodic And Poppier Feeling, Balanced Out By The Off Kilter Rhythms And Blasts Of Feedback And Weathered Reverbs That Intertwine Throughout The Record.
Once Again The Duo Look To The Outside World For Sonic Inspiration. Alongside The Use Of Physical Modelling Synths The Album Contains Recordings And Samples Of Violin, Guitar And Bodhrán, The Stringboard Of A Piano At Ems Stockholm, Phone Recordings Of Family Gatherings In Dublin And 1970's Dance Music From Jaipur.
'época' Is A Rich, Challenging Album Of Diverse And Intense Soundscapes That Expands On The Scope Of Lakker's Already Multifaceted Music That Finds Them At The Peak Of Their Artistic Powers.
'we Are Living Through Volatile Times, And As Musicians It Is Impossible To Avoid That Being Reflected In Our Work. Época Is A Our Personal Response To The Atmosphere Of These Times And The External Political And Cultural Events That Are Shaping Our World. Some Positive And Hopeful, Some Despondent And Angry, And Some Reflective And Introspective.'
1 colored white LP in single sleeve with 3mm spine. Printed inner-sleeve. Collectors edition CD album included.
Vinyl (Limited Colored Edition)
Bananarama"s fifth album "Please Yourself" was released in 1993 by London Music Stream and is the first album which features the band as a duo. The album includes the singles: "Movin On", "Last Thing On My Mind", "More, More, More"
Bananarama are often cited as the UK"s most successful ever girl group with 5 UK singles and 10 top 10's.
They were the girl group that defined the eighties with their run of pop hits which sound tracked the lives of fans around the world. The news of Bananarama"s reunion, after nearly 30 years, was met with universal approval and saw the band celebrated all over again. In 2017 the trio reassembled for a UK Tour in a pop reunion only dreamt of in the wildest imaginations by many quarters. The band reunited in their original line up for the first time in years. For many Siobhan stepping back into her natural habitat once again is pop"s very own version of Morrissey and Marr re-uniting. The band play their final dates as a trio this summer in a run of gigs including Edinburgh Castle, British Summer Time and Smukfest.
Special Remarks: 1 colored pink LP in single sleeve with 3mm spine. Printed inner-sleeve. Collectors edition CD album included.
Vinyl (Limited Colored Edition)
Bananarama"s fifth album "Pop Life" was released in 1991. It is the only album released which features Jacquie O"Sullivan who replaced Siobhan Faley in Bananarama upon her departure in 1988
The album includes the singles: "Preacher Man", "Long Train Running", "Only Your Love", "Tripping On Your Love".
Bananarama are often cited as the UK"s most successful ever girl group with 5 UK singles and 10 top 10's.
They were the girl group that defined the eighties with their run of pop hits which sound tracked the lives of fans around the world. The news of Bananarama"s reunion, after nearly 30 years, was met with universal approval and saw the band celebrated all over again. In 2017 the trio reassembled for a UK Tour in a pop reunion only dreamt of in the wildest imaginations by many quarters. The band reunited in their original line up for the first time in years. For many Siobhan stepping back into her natural habitat once again is pop"s very own version of Morrissey and Marr re-uniting. The band play their final dates as a trio this summer in a run of gigs including Edinburgh Castle, British Summer Time and Smukfest.
German producer, DJ and label-owner Phonk D, who has risen fast to stardom in 2018, is back once again on NDYD Records with his sequel-release Disco Goodies Pt.2, an outstanding four-tracker that should instantly do the trick to boost his career even further.
From Talking Vintage, an quite energetic floor-filler with a feel-good sound thanks to the percussions that will last in your memory for some time, to Gettin Down, a homage to the French 70s on the southern shores of the Cote dAzur, the charismatic producer keeps the level at the very top of the game. The b-side complements the funky ride with the pumping disco-sensation Can Do It while Disco Africana, with its lovely afro disco-touch rounds up the picture of the 30th release on the emerging German label from the city of Frankfurt.
MODU:LAR Music is a new label project born from established Liverpool-based collective, which has now been running for five years. Promising to release straight-up party tracks made for the dancefloor, the label will showcase and expose emerging talents from it's home city and beyond.
First up is a debut four-track EP from Scouse duo, Danny Mc and James Hall a.k.a. UZU. 'The A1' fires off with a swinging, housey groove that's brought to life by danceable pads, kicks and hats, interweaving warm melodies across the duration of the opening track - before a sharp change of direction with 'The A2' sees the feeling head down a contrasting electro-tinged beat with percussive highlights coming through strongly once again, likely the product of Danny Mc's influence on this debut vinyl release as an accomplished musician and drummer.
On the reverse, 'The B1's glossy and sophisticated breakbeat core sweeps into warm synths and vocal constructions that put forward a real garage-like note that'll be a strong fit with different environments and play times. Rounding up the record is a punchy, driving roller that features complex electronic, spacey accents polished off finely by Jim Hall - a signature of both artists production style that'll become more and more evident in future work.
Nyami Nyami Records present a lost piece of Zimbabwean musical history: the only album from local legends the New Tutenkhamen, combining Jazz, Soul, Folk and Township rhythms. There are only 2 known copies of the original LP - this reissues make the music available again for the first time in over 40 years.
The New Tutenkhamen included many stars of Zimbabwean township music: Elisha Josamu was an alumnus of the fabulously-named Hallelujah Chicken Run Band (alongside Thomas Mapfumo), and Green Jangano's long-running Harare Mambos, and would later form Two Plus Two with bassist Christopher 'Chex' Tavengwa. Jethro Shasha played the drums, and would arguably become the New Tutenkhamen's most famous export, making continental waves working with likes of Salif Keita. Paul Sekerani played the rhythm guitar, with Amos Chatyoka on the organ, while the enigmatic Maggie Mbuli provided vocals and F. Manda played the sax.I WISH YOU WERE MINE was recorded at Teal Records and was produced by Crispen Matema, a talented jazz drummer in his own right who had played drums on the all-time classic 'Skokiaan', and had backed Louis Armstrong on his 1960 Rhodesia visit. Combining the heavyweight producing talents of Matema and the writing chops of Josamu, the New Tutenkhamen band created an album showcasing various musical styles popular at the time.
From the afro-jazz jam session aesthetics of 'Tutenkhamen Theme', 'Big Brother Malcom' and 'Forever Together', to the almost Van Morrison-sounding 'Sunday Morning'; from the upbeat rock ballad 'True Love', to the funk-infused dance song 'Togetherness'; from the bouncy jazz exhortations to work hard in 'Ane Nungo', to the brassy, raunchy foot-stomper 'Me & Dolly'. The title track 'I Wish You Were Mine' is a ska-infused ballad that wouldn't be out of place in post-war Birmingham, while the star of the show is 'Joburg Bound', itself a fast-paced rock piece with Motown undertones and funky guitar lines.
I was thrilled when Joe Goddard asked if he could make an EP for the label and were even more thrilled when I heard it. The fact that he roped in the legendary Kool Keith to appear on one track just kept on bringing the thrills.
Here are some lovely words from Joe about this release - 'It's an honour to release some music for this label. I feel that due to the ravages of unrestrained and brutal capitalism, people across the world are finding life particularly difficult right now- both economically and emotionally. Capitalism is an insidious and elusive enemy and many people are currently turning to intolerance and hatred instead of recognising that at these times what we really should attempt to do is love and respect each other as much as possible. Therefore I support Keith's efforts wholeheartedly, and on a personal level I couldn't think of a nicer or more talented person to release an EP with.'
AF Trax's message is very simple. The far right ultimately wish for the destruction of our way of life and indeed the lives of many of the people we love. The message is love. The message is solidarity. The message is No Pasaran - They shall not pass. It is a call to stand together, it is a call to stand up, it is a call to ACT. Individually we may be powerless, but together we are strong.
If you're not outraged, you're not paying attention!
Alt. folker Will Oldham - better known as Bonnie 'Prince' Billy - is set to drop a joint record with gently psychedelic crew Trembling Bells
Just four years after their debut album Carbeth, Trembling Bells are amassing a formidable body of work at a startling velocity. Just twelve months after the release of their critically acclaimed third album The Constant Pageant, the Glasgow quartet return to share the billing with a similarly restless creative spirit. A few thousand miles separate Will Oldham and Trembling Bells' drummer and principal songwriter Alex Neilson, but their stories intersect as far back as 2005, when the young Leeds-raised Neilson found himself playing drums on Alasdair Roberts' No Earthly Man, with Oldham producing. In time, a friendship between mentor and student became one between two kindred musicians. Neilson augmented his work with free-psych-drone practitioners Directing Hand by playing with the Bonnie 'Prince' Billy band. The drummer's eagerness to experience new epiphanies yielded unforgettable memories. In Big Sur, he recalls, 'we took mushrooms at midnight, then visited a natural hot spring built into the dramatic cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The stars were as vivid as frozen fireworks.' All of which is worth dwelling on, because without that background of mutual openness and empathy, it's hard to imagine The Marble Downs existing.
Neilson recalls a conversation about a 'collaboration' in the summer of 2010, though stresses that it 'was nothing too formal at first'. By the end of that year, a limited-edition seven-inch New Year's Eve Is The Loneliest Night of the Year showed what an inspired match the vocals of Trembling Bells singer Lavinia Blackwall and Will Oldham made. The cut-glass precision of the classically-trained student of medieval music and the worldly, careworn tones of Oldham created an unlikely chemistry. It must have seemed that way to Neilson too. He set about assembling a cache of songs with the purpose of further harnessing that chemistry. The result is an album that has, once again, redrafted the boundaries of what Trembling Bells can achieve together. Indeed, genre-lines aren't terribly helpful this time around. Yes, Trembling Bells' love affair with traditional music remains a constant — most emphatically so on the unaccompanied Blackwall/Oldham two-hander, My Husband's Got No Courage In Him. Then there is Blackwall's musical setting of Dorothy Parker's poem Excursion Into Assonance — and the thorough-going new-found classicism of Neilson's increasingly assured songwriting. Albeit delivered with Trembling Bells' rain-lashed sense of abandon, Love Is A Velvet Noose sounds like a standard of sorts — a warped consequence of Neilson's increasing fascination with the songbooks of Cole Porter and Hoagy Carmichael. 'I'm not saying I stand any chance of emulating them,' he adds, 'but the appreciation is definitely there.'
The knowledge that Oldham and Blackwall would be sharing centre-stage on The Marble Downs gave Neilson extra impetus to flex his songwriting muscles. I Can Tell You're Leaving finds both vocalists on irresistible form, dissecting their dying relationship with no heed to the other's feelings. 'You treat me like a child,' sings Oldham. 'I need a man,' she responds, barely catching breath. 'Now like Merle Haggard, you'll see the fighting side of me,' he later promises. 'I guess that's one of the lighter moments on the album,' ponders Neilson, 'I was trying to get a Planet Waves-era Bob Dylan feel there, with the piano and walking bassline.'
Here and elsewhere, the band — Blackwall, Neilson, bassist Simon Shaw and guitarist Mike Hastings — has never sounded more psychically attuned to one-other. On the slow-reveal sonic establishing shot of I Made A Date (With An Open Vein), two minutes of manic modal chaos elapses before Oldham takes the narrative reins of a majestic call-and-response folk-rock epic. The electrifying free-folk portent of Riding — a revival of the Palace Brothers classic — is no less compelling, calling to mind the words of broadcaster Stuart Maconie when he praised Trembling Bells for their ability to invoke simultaneously 'the charm of folk music and the power of rock.' Ditto Ain't Nothing Wrong With A Little Longing, in which Neilson slams down a four-to-the-floor beat over a synergy of demonic krautrock keys and a dialogue between Oldham and Blackwall that scales Nancy & Lee levels of romantic intrigue.
With nine songs gone and one remaining, the album's sonic undulations find an arresting denouement in the form of an inspired cover. Adapted from Robin Gibb's 1970 solo masterpiece Robin's Reign, Lord Bless All sees Trembling Bells tease out the hymnal qualities of Gibb's original with a slow volcanic upswell which — on four minutes — explodes into heavy psychedelic technicolour. What pleases Alex Neilson when he listens back is 'a sense of a common vocabulary and identity being forged.' If, by that, he means that there isn't another band on the planet that quite sounds like Trembling Bells, it would be hard to disagree. The evidence is right here.
'I didn't know anything about Trembling Bells. I just heard them and was knocked out. I instantly became a fan.' Paul Weller
'Trembling Bells are my kind of band.' Joe Boyd
"Jesus fucking shit! These jamz claw so hard at the tatties below methinks the Lord misnamed them, having intended to say Trembling BALLS." Will Oldham
'A poetic incantation of British identity far brighter than Michael Gove's GCSE syllabus.' Stewart Lee
'This time, I'm attempting to reclaim the art of songwriting from the charity shop bargain bin.' Alex Neilson
Virtuoso compositions, subtle synthetic atmospheres, voices oscillating between pure intentions and dreamlike fantasy, a confusion of feelings and desires, time and space...Garden of Love, the 3rd album by electro duo Scratch Massive makes an impression from the first moments that you hear its enigmatic beauty. Like a ghost train moving along a tightrope - between shadow and light, failure and redemption, violence and melancholy - this fourth studio album reaffirms the Parisian DJ/Producer duo style/vibe with their hybrid sounds and sensory experiences. For 15 years, Maud Geffray and Sebastien Chenut have maintained artistic and aesthetic control as they participated in the 'revolution of the dancefloors'. In the early 2000s, 'Made in France' electro became known for its hedonism and as the savior of an entire techno generation ready to fight (or at least on the dancefloor!) for a future that was increasingly frustrating and hypothetical.
On first glance, Garden of Love, appears to be an invitation to love and peace, however, nothing is ever that simple, as the album cover evokes a multitude of interpretations. The lyrics speak to the depths of the soul, covering a range of emotion from love, emotions, and fears ... Garden of Love is for our hearts and bodies to become receptive again: the disenchanted poetry of the Last Dance, the sumptuous opening track set against a backdrop of electro-pop murmured in the light and shadows as painful caress; the psychedelic scent of Sunken (a duet recorded with the complicit and poisonous voice of Léonie Pernet); and the dark-tech shores of "Fantome X" with the evanescent and hypnotic pop clarity of Feel The Void (both magnified by the vocals of Romain Thominot of the Reims pop band Grindi Manberg). Scratch Massive draws the outline of an electronic music in search of redemption - reinventing their icy grooves and confronting it with a naive elegance and a disillusioned romanticism that embodies our time.
Third LP of Cabaret Contemporain, French band (featuring Fabrizio Rat on keys) who use acoustic instruments (piano, guitar, bass, drums, contrabass) to produce a « hand-crafted » club music infused with techno. Inspired by Jeff Mills, Robert Hood or Drexciya, the five members already had a career on classical scene; their idea is not to replay classical techno tunes but to create a new path for the electronic music. 2 tracks featuring with the label boss, Arnaud Rebotini.
« Ballaro », which opens Cabaret Contemporain's third album, begins with light percussions, which seem to turn on themselves, while being conveyed by reverberations close to dub. After a few minutes of convolutions, the piece gets out of hand, transporting the listener into a rich form of pulsating trance, irrigated by a soaring melody and punctuated by persistent piano tones. « La selva »; more subdued, has the same energy, the track ending in an even more powerful way, a kind of paroxysm.
Finally, the strangest and most minimal « Cactus », features a singular groove, which evokes the most brutal house from Chicago, or the sometimes obsessive techno from Detroit. Just like other tracks such as « Transistor » or « TGV », fuelled by sweat and trance, Séquence Collective bears all the intensity of a techno cut for clubs' dancefloors. The only difference being that their music is not played with synths, drum machines or software, but with acoustic instruments. Dual curriculum The band is composed of five musicians and a sound engineer: Fabrizio Rat on piano, Giani Caserotto on guitar, Julien Loutelier on drums, Ronan Courty and Simon Drappier on double bass and of course Pierre Favrez on console. They are all in their thirties and met at the prestigious Paris Conservatoire in the late 2000s. However, all the musicians in the band have a double curriculum and navigate freely between the institutional realm and the underground or pop music scenes. Through classical or contemporary music, jazz and improvisation, rock and experimentation, they share a common passion for the original and futuristic techno of the 1990s, that of Jeff Mills, Robert Hood or Drexciya, which they have decided to reinvent and further in their own way. Not as a simple stylistic exercise practiced by virtuoso musicians, but rather as a new path for modern music, and for their generation. « The original idea » they say, « was to make club music by hand, like craftsmen. Like in the early days of jazz, our band managed to transform itself into a kind of dancing machine. Our music is therefore functional because it is danceable, but also mental and abstract, while offering several layers of listening. You can dance and play, have a purely physical and sensory connection to the music. But you can also immerse yourself in its listening, perceive refined harmonies or more complex rhythmic superpositions »
If the tones of Cabaret Contemporain are truly unique it is because each member of the band has developed a very personal approach through the use ''prepared'' instruments. The strings of their piano, guitar or double bass may recall strange machines with literally incredible sounds, obtained using objects such as chopsticks, clothes pegs, foil, hangers, a tiny pie mould or many other utensils from a DIY store. A collective energy
Cabaret Contemporain is first and foremost a live band that has been performing in venues and festivals since its inception in 2012 (Nuits Sonores, Siestes Electroniques, L'Aéronef, Le Trabendo, Philharmonie de Paris, Gaîté Lyrique, Rewire, Dancity, Barcelona Accio Musical...), both at traditional jazz and contemporary music venues, and more often at electro music hubs. When facing the audience, the band, which plays each of its sets in one go, without a break, shows an intense physical presence, which competes with the musical power of DJs who share the stage with them. Their performance, full of tension and repetition, which requires maximum concentration and a state close to trance from the musicians, is sometimes, according to them, « a mental journey and a mystic experience ». A dimension that brings to mind the historical techno culture and its dancers who, communicating on the dancefloor, were carried until the early hours of the morning by the power of the beat. An album inspired by the stage Since their beginnings, their compositions on record have drawn their energy directly from the practice of their concerts, whether referring to Terry Riley (2014) or Moondog (2015), an EP and an album dedicated to the repertoire of the two American artists, the original compositions of Cabaret Contemporain (2016) and Satellite EP (2017), as well as this new album. Séquence collective can be listened to as a condensed transcription of their inventions and their live experiments. The tracks, more than half of which were improvised during sessions held in the former Vogue studios near Paris, were recorded in live conditions, « like an old school rock band » they say. As usual, they invited a new musician to join them in the studio. After collaborating with Étienne Jaumet or Château-Flight, Arnaud Rebotini, César winner for best film music, added a welcome synth touch on two tracks (Pro- One, Prophet 600), which boosted the group's formidable collective energy. The album ends with « October Glide », again performed with Rebotini, a lyrical and lively track, built on a powerful and slow progression of timbres and percussions, which would ideally find its place at the core of a techno party « peak time »
Mireia Records is exstatic to welcome back Johannes Klingebiel . Johannes has steadily carved a niche for himself with his distinct brand of emotive, yet playful house music. Coming out strongly with his debut 'Latewood' in 2015 and following up with the poignant 'Nightlife' on Mireia Records in 2017. Now he's continuing his knack for contemplative, melodic and danceable music on 'It's OK To Cry'. Opener 'It's OK To Cry' is as tender as you would imagine. It is brilliantly doleful, with thoughtful keys and deep, lo fi drums all tugging at the heart strings. The foolproof 'Piano Thang' again shows off Klingebiel's musical credentials with nimble keys glistening over a more uplifting drum line as cosmic synths elevate your spirits. Kicking off the B-side is the superb 'Really' which journeys back into an insular reverie, with pained synth sounds and a sense of longing pervading the deep house atmospheres and masterfully arranged keys. Next up we have 'Time Is Now' , a slow burning but subtly euphoric number that raises you up on percolating bass and glistening, deep space keys. The package completes with more deep excellence in the form of 'Steel Away' , with meandering pads encouraging your mind to drift as cavernous kicks create a warm and welcoming environment in which to get lost. Inspirited by the music, labelheads RSS Disco set out to find a striking visual reflection of this release. The vinyl is housed in thick inside-out cardboard with hand stamped labels and features an inlay card (surprise).
Chemistry between individuals is an amorphous and elusive notion. It is usually seen as something that occurs between two people who are sharing a physical space, with access to each other's body language and energy. However, modern technology has provided many other opportunities for chemistry to blossom and be explored and this record is just one example of that: Vent is proud to present Kina, a double LP of musical collaborations between MAYa and Tolga Baklacioglu.
Tolga Baklacioglu is an associate professor in aeronautical engineering. He is also a musician. For several years, he has been steadily building a body of work that explores the outer boundaries where techno and abstract textures merge and blur. In 2014, Tolga created a label, VENT, as a platform for his explorations and those of likeminded travelers within this sonic realm.
MAYa Hardinge works in film. She is also a musician. She has collaborated with numerous artists. Beginning in 2008, She released 4 EPs under her solo guise MAYa. Considering her background in film, it comes as no surprise that her work has a strong visual element. Pre- dating Beyonce´'s Lemonade by many years, her last two EPs were visual albums made in
collaboration with various directors.
It makes total sense that MAYa and Tolga should have made an album together. Their interests and backgrounds overlap and diverge meaningfully in a way that has all the hallmarks of good musical chemistry. There is however one unusual element to their collaboration: they have never met. Tolga lives in Eskisehir (Turkey) and MAYa lives in New York City.
Always on the look out for inspiration and new collaborators, Tolga stumbled across MAYa's videos online. What he saw and heard inspired him to reach out and contact her. After some correspondence they decided to experiment with the prospect of making music together. Perhaps deprived of the traditional notions of chemistry defined by proximity, they found inspiration across time and space in the name of exploration and discovery. Tolga began by sending MAYa files of beats and ambiance. Upon finding the ones that spoke to her, MAYa went to work disassembling, adding, subtracting and rearranging. MAYa's work would then go back to Tolga, a world away, for further input and then back again. In this way each track was painstakingly constructed and a true chemistry was born. One built on sensitivity, support and honest artistic communication. In a word: LISTENING.
The songs cover a broad spectrum of topics, from the deeply personal feelings and experiences, to world events, and the fundamental aspects of life and death. Kina is a document of two artists from different backgrounds and their shared visions of the interplay
between one's private microcosm and the global macrocosm of our time; a testament to the fact that, for all its vastness and diversity, this world offers inspiration and potential collaboration around every corner. The music contained within has traveled around the world many times before reaching your ears. As MAYa and Tolga have done before, it is now your turn to LISTEN.
Both Stephen Vitiello and Taylor Deupree are seasoned collaborators. Each new collaboration is a new context, a new conversation and a unique opportunity to learn. Vitiello has worked with musicians such as Scanner, Steve Roden, Ryuichi Sakamoto and Machinefabriek. As an artist often
represented in galleries and large scale sound installations he has also had the frequent opportunity to work with visual artists from the likes of Tony Oursler to Julie Mehretu and Joan Jonas. Deupree has a long history of collaboration including early works with Christopher Willits and Richard Chartier as well as Marcus Fischer, Ryuichi Sakamoto, and Bon Iver's S. Carey. Fridman Variations is Vitiello and Deupree's third release
together and continues their tradition of exploring their unique form of experimental improvisation.
Stemming from a live performance at NYC's Fridman Gallery, Fridman Variations was co-produced by the gallery and will remain as part of the gallery's publications. Fridman Gallery is a visual exhibition space that also boasts a unique dedication to experimental music through their annual New Ear Festival, at which Vitiello and Deupree performed and recorded the main piece for this album.
Side A of Fridman Variations is the live recording, edited for vinyl while side B contains two pieces made with some of the same source material as the live performance and intended to be related, but entirely new, works. Guitar, modular synthesizer and a small tape synthesizer are at the heart of these songs. The improved layers draw on buried melodies and hint of feld recordings and found textures. Not overly melodic, not
overly noisy, Vitiello and Deupree like to fnd the edge between the pretty and the obscure, often suggesting more than laying their intentions bare. This type of sound is one that the duo often explores as an opportunity for Deupree to adventure beyond his melodic comfort zone and for Vitiello to work and experiment with new instruments and how they interact with his signature guitar.
One of the biggest inspirations to the artists for this work was the hushed and dreamy state of the audience during the performance. The late-night ambience added to the immersive quality of the surround speakers and helped to channel creativity and a sense of sharing
Both artists feel that recording live performances is an opportunity to capture a unique moment that simply won't happen again. Despite a performance's faws or imperfections the energy and interaction is a special moment in time for the performers and audience. The opportunity to not only document it for the listeners who were present but also to be able to share the moment with those who weren't there is a positive one.
To further be able to expand on the ideas in the controlled studio environment serves to enrich the experience and further the communication.
'Best electronic live set i've seen in two years!' CHRIS CUSACK (BOOKER, BLOC GLASGOW)
Fresh and heady slice of cerebral techno and out-there electro flavours.
EXTERIOR is the artist moniker of Edinburgh producer Doug MacDonald. Exterior represents his transition to electronic music and an embrace of the dancefloor. Doug played hardcore and noise-rock for a long time before eventually abandoning collaboration, nostalgia and formulaic rebellion in favour of synthesis. What he gained on the way was an understanding of the power of live drumming and years of finely honed performance-skills, something of an aberration in dance music.
Exterior thus represents a convergence of disparate personal and musical pleasures. Accordingly Exterior draws on rhythmic mavericks as divergent as Fugazi//Battles//Swans as well as DJ Spoko//Clark//Hieroglyphic Being. In addition, there is a deep undercurrent of melody and texture, drawing on the likes of Burial//Miles Davis//Bjork. Eschewing the modern home computer in favour of an exclusively hardware based approach, Exterior espouses a physical relationship to what is at heart an abstract practice, composing electronic dance music.
Perhaps it's unsurprising, then, that one of the things which really sets Exterior apart is his intoxicating live show. He gets the crowd going every single time he performs, so infectious is his energy, as he throws shapes and struts his stuff behind the gear, clearly 100% in the moment and his element.
His debut EP 'Public Transport' was released on London/Barcelona-based Land Recordings earlier in 2018. Having made his international headlining debut in Berlin in September, more continental sorties are currently being arranged (see below).
This record represents a significant move forward in sophistication and club-readiness.
On remix duties, anonymous analogue techno lover DALI returns on the back of four slices of extended club gear released via two Hobbes Music 12"s (2017-18), boasting colour-themed, screen-printed sleeves and an uber-simple design for that evergreen minimal aesthetic with a hint of mystique. These gained excited support/plays from the likes of Ben UFO, Nina Kraviz, Daniel Avery, DJ Deep, Laurent Garnier, Avalon Emerson, Twitch, XDB, Bill Brewster, Bawrut, Tom Findlay (Groove Armada) and many more... Clocking in (again) at just over 9 minutes, her 'Collapsing Star' remix is another marathon-length effort and does exactly what it says on the tin. Setting the beats to classic electro, everything's pushed hard until it all seems ready to fall rapidly apart (and it very nearly does), before dissolving in a fiery sizzle: a more visceral, dance floor accompaniment to Exterior's heady affair.
In a career spanning 45 years, Leo Sayer has sold more than 80 MILLION records worldwide.
To coincide with Leo's forthcoming return to the UK for his 22-date 'Just A Boy At 70' tour, 'The Hollywood Years
1976-1978' is the second of a series of three Vinyl LP box sets.
'The Hollywood Years 1976-1978' comprises Leo's three studio albums. 'Endless Flight' (released 1976/UK
#4) 'Thunder In My Heart' (released 1977/UK #8) and 'Another Year' (released 1978/UK #15) and marked a
clear departure from his early albums.
Leo recorded these three albums with legendary producer Richard Perry, who brought in a variety of songwriters
and collaborators to work on the projects with Leo; it was a venerable Who's Who of the record industry.
Each vinyl LP Box set in this Limited Edition release, will be pressed on heavyweight 180g clear vinyl and contain
a signed 12'x12' print.
This project has been overseen by Leo Sayer, who remains one of the UK's great singer/songwriters of all time.
"In 2013, the For Those That Knoe imprint burst into record shops with a release from one of the UK's unsung heroes, Jaime Read under his LHAS alias. 5 years later, we're proud to present a reissue of a selection of Jaime's music from his 1997 album ""The End of the Beginning"".
Jaime's take on futuristic chi-town influenced house is present across the selections. Written 21 years ago, the music is more relevant that ever. Serene galactic themes and time travel optimism permeate the collection: the music tells tales of optimism rather than the bleak images carved by other similar compositions of the time. Originally pressed in finite numbers, this is an opportunity to get a copy of the key material on vinyl again, split across two 180g 12"" EPs with a free digitial download code.
"
CAVE are kind of beyond time. You might feel like it's been
awhile since you've seen or heard them but when you see
or hear them again, that moment will feel like 'Allways'.
During the making of the last album, 'Threace', CAVE was
in the process of becoming a quintet. They toured the
world afterwards, playing on four continents and eighteen
countries - as close to everywhere as they could get. Then
they took a minute. They recorded it over time, in Chile
and then Chicago. You can hear all of this, the energy of
liveness, the reps, and consolidating expanded possibilities
within their new alignment, the time away, the distance
and the freshness of returning to recorded sounds,
everywhere on 'Allways'.
In the past, much has been made of CAVE's use of
particular compelling tropes but their inspiration comes
from everywhere - Miles, psych, beats, exotica, library
music, rock, punk, the Germans, the New York guys too,
minimalists, the Dead, music from India, everywhere. This
is a bunch of guys playing rock-based music in a way that
pushes them forward from everything they've experienced.
When you listen to the new CAVE you hear guitars - lots of
them - bubbling under, scratching, fanning, locking in and
taking off, soaring on acid-washed wings, with keys that
pump, burr and whoosh in and out of the rhythms.
Half-speed mastering of 'Allways' at Abbey Road has
allowed the activity at all frequencies to present with a
liquid fullness and ripe detail. 'Allways' is a blueprint for
your ears to read and a map for CAVE to follow through
the world.
Italian producer Mennie teams up French producer Julien Sandre to release the third of their collaborative EP's. Previously releasing on Housewax and Poker Flat the duo now grace Infuse with a superb three track EP of exquisite grooves!
The A Side 'Time On Our Side' is a deep, textual, bumping beat of a track. On the flip and 'Pulsar' ups the ante and jacks the groove with an added dose of tech-n-acid. Finally 'Telstar' takes us on a wonderfully wonky journey and bleeps us into orbit! Now on its thirtieth release Infuse maintains the pedigree and once again rocks the floor!
Genre: Electronic, World (Arabic). 180gram vinyl includes 12'x24' art print poster + 320kbps DL card. RIYL: Matar Mohammad, Pauline Oliveros, Nadah El Shazly, Lucrecia Dalt, Chino Amobi, Sote, Arca, Fatima Al Qadiri, Tacita Dean, Stan Brakhage. Jerusalem In My Heart (JIMH) returns with Daqa'iq Tudaiq, the third full-length album from the Montréal-Beirut contemporary Arabic audio-visual duo, following the acclaimed 2015 release If He Dies, If If I f If If If (ye ar-end li sts at The Wire (#39), The Quietus (#24) and A C loser Listen (Top 10), among other accolades).
Featuring voice, electronics, buzuk and other instrumentation from composer-producer Radwan Ghazi Moumneh (Matana Roberts, Suuns, Big Brave) and abetted by the 16mm analog film work of Charles-André Coderre in live performance, JIMH continues to expand the horizons of its profound conceptual and aesthetic engagement with Arabic/Middle-Eastern traditions. Daqa'i q Tudaiq translates as 'minutes that bother/oppress/harass'—which presumably needs no further explanation—and features two distinct album sides of music. Side One realizes a long-held dream of Moumneh's to record a modern orchestral version of the popular Egyptian classic 'Ya Garat Al Wadi' by the legendary composer Mohammad Abdel Wahab. JIMH assembled a 15-piece orchestra in Beirut, enlisting the celebrated Montréal-Cairo composer Sam Shalabi (Land Of Kush) as arranger and musical director for the session. Anchored by the stately hypnotic pace of mallet and percussion instruments (riq, santur, derbakeh, kanun), the piece unfolds with lush, languid, reverb-drenched manoeuvrings through virtuosic Maqam shifts (Oriental scales). Moumneh's melismatic lead vocals and electronic production sensibility pay homage to the genre's documented historical recording traditions, while pushing things subtly and respectfully into new territories of sonic distortion and noised, artefact-laden transmission.
The song's original title (with lyrics penned in 1928 by the poet Ahmad Shawqi) translates as 'Oh Neighbour Of The Valley', but JIMH takes a different line from the original lyric as the new title for its orchestral-electronic re-interpretation. 'Wa Ta'atalat Loughat Al Kalam' (' The Language Of Speech Has Broke Down') is an expression of wordless love and transcendent communication between two lovers' eyes in Shawqi's poem; JIMH re-titles the song with this line, exploding the sentiment with more complexity, tragedy and socio-political meaning - also prefiguring the formal aesthetic ruptures JIMH bring to the piece itself. Love in a time of politics, politics in a world conspiring against love, and the specificity of Arab diasporic experience in our brutish 21st century. Side Two comprises four tracks of non-ensemble 'solo' material by Moumneh which push rupture and decomposition/recomposition of tradition further into avant-garde territory - voice, buzuk and electronics take the lead on a suite of emotive and evocative songs, including the percussive loopdriven instrumental 'Bein Ithnein' ('Between Two' ) and the stunningly unsettling processed vocal track 'Thahab, Mish Roujou', Thahab' ('(The Act Of) Departing, Not Returning, Departing'). Daqa'iq Tudaiq is a masterful, mesmerizing artistic statement and confirms Jerusalem In My Heart as one of the most engaged and forward-looking avant-Arabic projects at work in contemporary music today. Thanks for listening.
out of Stock
Last delivered 5 years ago available to reorder, subject to availability
Limited retail edition in double transparent yellow vinyl.
Explosions in Slow Motion is the new album from Brock Van Wey's transcendent bvdub project.
Van Wey's previous n5MD album Heart- less found him harnessing the turmoil around him to create something vast, emotive, and brooding, yet somehow comforting, allowing you to cradle in its weight.
Months after Heartless' release Van Wey moved from turbulent times of his native California home to the chilling winter of Warsaw Poland. A divergence. Alone against the icy cold, confined to the indoors in search of protection against the world outside, Van Wey channeled, as he always does, his surroundings as they coalesced with his self-imposed aberration. The outcome of this move, and period of near total isolation, is Explosions in Slow Motion.
Featuring four long-form songs accompanied by four 'ember' vignettes, Explosions in Slow Motion is quite possibly Van Wey's most mournfully isolated work in his massive discography to date.
Filled with swelling arcs of spectres from the past appearing then slowly drift away. Foggy memories of friends, loved ones, and even adversaries seem to achingly sweep across Explosions in Slow Motion's eighty-minute runtime.
There is a forlorn thread of shrouded nostalgia throughout the album which by album's end leads to catharsis, acceptance and the finality of progres- sion.
It's that time again. The skies are calling and its time to board our trusty jet for the 5th outing of Africa Seven's premiere class compilation Africa Airways. For volume 5 its time to brace yourselves for 10 slices of Afro boogie goodness.
We up the boogie time groove with The Black Bells Group (the first band of lead singer Sidney 'Patrick Duteil' who went on to become the godfather of French hip-hop and a well know TV presenter. Here the groove is swinging... the perfect opener. Next up is German-based Cameroonian musician and cousin of Manu Dibango, Charly Kingson with this bass-synth boogie stomper. Big brass and jazzy trumpets add layers of sparkle too.
Next its time for some highlife inspired boogie from Ghanian Gyedu Blay Amboley. Highlife fused with reggae, disco, boogie and jazz just as the lyrics say.
Next we pair up with Africa Seven friend Eko once more under his Dikalo guise. The Cameroonian master musician is on fine form with his heavy brass and deep percussion with a driving afro boogie groove. To round off Side A its off to Cameroon again to groove with Jean 'Mekongo President'. Think Bernard 'Chic' Edwards on the bass with some African style and you can see it's the bottom end groove and afrobeat drums that power this gem along.
We open the second side slowly and purposefully with the highly sought after 'French Girl' from Fotso. Drippy bass synth grooves and a wondrous percussion and drum shuffle pair with piano riffs to make this a unique sounding track. Our friend Tala AM is next with the foot-stomping 'Sugar Lump'. JK Mandengue is next with most definitely the catchiest chorus you will hear today. Nigerian Jide Obe gets synth and clavinet rich with his doe to sensible dating advice 'Too Young'. We close off the album with a track from label good friend Jo Bisso under his Mulamba guise. Sounding like a long lost TV theme from a late night TV show circa 1977. Let's get down and boogie with the brand new dance in town folks... the Dashiki.
Until Volume Six takes flight it is time to unbuckle those seat belts folks.
As Metronomy work on their forthcoming sixth album, they take a moment to reflect on the 10th anniversary of their breakthrough album 'Nights Out'. Metronomy's Joseph Mount has delved into the archives for 'Nights Out: 10th Anniversary Edition' which will be released on February 8th on Because Music.
It features the original critically acclaimed album alongside a second LP which expands upon Mount's vision with a set of unreleased demos, rarities and b-sides - many of which make their first appearance on vinyl. Two of the highlights come with alternative versions which have become staples of the Metronomy live set: a bedtime dub version of 'Holiday' which takes it into a darker, glitchier direction, and a French-language version of 'Heartbreaker'.
Mount's Francophile leanings are also explored in Breakbot's remix of 'A Thing For Me', which contrasts French touch vibes with Mount's distinctly English-accented vocals. Previously issued on an exclusive Rough Trade bonus disc, 'Over' is an instrumental of cinematic scale, while the disc closes with four previously unreleased demos including the leftfield minimalism of 'Das Booty'.
Although Metronomy's 2006's debut album 'Pip Paine (Pay The £5000 You Owe)' was discovered by those in the know, it was 'Nights Out' that captured the imagination of a much wider audience. Mount achieved the seemingly impossible: he highlighted both the joyous atmosphere of a big night out and a taste of the resultant comedown in a set that playfully veered towards being a concept album.
About Nights Out Joseph Mount says: 'Oscar reminded me the other day how I said to him on completing Radio Ladio 'I think I've just written my first number 1'. I hadn't. We also reminisced about the day we borrowed the Honda Insight for the album artwork: I found the owner on an enthusiast chat room, we gave his daughter two Kate Nash tickets and a meet and greet with Kate in exchange for a few shots with the vehicle... simpler times. Shout out to Myspace.'
Metronomy's most recent album 'Summer 08' was released in 2016 to widespread critical acclaim. DIY described it as a 'pure-pop odyssey' and NME concluded, 'Mount has done it again. He could write music about the impact of Brexit on the UK's trade with China and make it sound amazing. He's that good.'
Metronomy bring 2018 to a close when they play Edinburgh's Hogmanay Street Party on December 31st. The 65,000 capacity show is headlined by Franz Ferdinand and completed by Free Love.
From four individual parts, with distinct musical pasts but also
overlapping histories, a new unified chapter begins with Piroshka and
the quartet's thrilling debut album 'Brickbat'.
The album is named after the word for a missile, which nails the
record's heavyweight lyrics if not the music's gorgeous, bittersweet
and euphoric pop. Think of 'Brickbat' as a wolf in sheep's clothing -
which suits the name Piroshka, the Hungarian take on the wolf
terrorised fairytale hero Little Red Riding Hood - a subtle nod, too, to
a certain red hairdo that stood out in the 1990s Brit-guitar-pop
scene...
The four band members are former Lush vocalist / guitarist (and
former redhead) Miki Berenyi, former Moose guitarist KJ 'Moose'
McKillop, Modern English bassist Mick Conroy and former Elastica
drummer Justin Welch. The connections between them are a
veritably tangled family tree. Before they lived together and raised a
family, Miki and Moose were notable figures on the so-called
shoegaze scene, while Elastica were Britpop peers. After post-punk
pioneers Modern English split for a second time, Mick became a
latterday member of Moose, while Justin joined the reformed Lush in
2015. And when Lush required a bassist for what proved to be their
final show (in Manchester) in November 2016, Mick stepped in.
It was the rehearsals for that Manchester show that laid the
foundations for Piroshka. 'We sounded great!' says Justin. 'Like a
proper punk band. Mick brings a huge amount of enthusiasm and
livens up the room, and I thought, this is the kind of band I want to
be in again.' Mick agreed. 'I'd seen Lush so many times, it was like
playing with old friends. Miki agreed it was good fun too. And with
Moose available, we thought, let's all have a bash, see what
happens.'
Though 'Brickbat' kicks off with a squeal of feedback, the album is far
from a proper punk record, with as much sublime delicacy as physical
force, with guitars to the fore but also electronic flourishes in all
manner of spaces. Combined, they drive the nuggety melodic bombs
long associated with Miki's songwriting
LP format includes digital download code.
Eduardo De La Calle has been doing his thing since the early 2000s, but the last couple of years have seen him move into overdrive. Releases on Planet E, Hivern Discs, Nitsa Trax, Turbo Recordings, Gigolo and Darkroom Dubs to name just a few have shown he is both prolific and consistent, and this new four-track collection is just as compelling as his recent output.rnrnDistortion Theory III is a whirring hypnotic machine jam that melds shimmering synth snippets to mind-bending FX undulations and throbbing low end. Disorientating and wonky as hell, it's the sound of a funky computer malfunction somewhere in deep space.rnrnLight Tunnel continues the theme, coming across like the dying throes of space station spinning out of control due to excessive amounts of sub bass. It's a dizzying, disorientating ride.rnrnAcid Aaron C (Edit) wastes no time getting down to business with its gurgling, incessant 303 line present from the get-go. Shuffling percussion rubs up against heady female vocal lines and wonky detuned 8-bit synth blips, the undercurrent of the track swelling and calming seemingly at will. rnrnThe Dub Math takes things down a notch with hazy sounds and plodding sub bass combining with heavily reverbed vocal incantations which all combine to bring together the vibe referenced in the title.
DJ Overdose is back again on your favorite record label, Dalmata Daniel, this time sharing a record with an old-school legend from the land of Dalmatas and Daniels, Sematic4.
Both sides are full of great tunes of hard-hitting electro, but both are a bit different in mood and sounds.
The style and sound of DJ Overdose is so distinctive, you can spot it from miles away. The first track has a groovy title, with a car symbol and silly characters. Great music for driving your white convertible in the Detroit sunset, it's dark, repetitive, the usual genius with impressive drums. The title of Funky Mess is no lie, it's a funky song with a Japanese telecom sampler resembling the Detroit underground scene. The last track RZ-1-DMX is classic electro with some nice slow melodies, that you can nod to.
Sematic4 is operating with more classic electro elements on Dream Creator with some spacey tunes, while North Star '78 is a rather hard-hitting club music with a nice groove, interesting drums and some super melodies. One Nite In Heaven recalls the atmosphere and soundscape of the golden days of the Hague electro scene - a way of showing respect to the era.
Sematic4 is an oldschool dj and producer from Hungary, who started spinning records in the 90s, a well-made and active dj, who started buying his own gear and all kinds of gadgets, and producing music on his own. A real music geek, who lives for music with releases on Bass Agenda, Tropical Underground and legendary Dave Clarke plays his songs.
The OUER guys just live down the road from us in Berlin and we have been crossing paths many times these past years so it is with great joy we can finally present a full EP with their unique approach to electronic music on Dirt Crew Recordings. Since their debut on 'HEIST' in 2016 Xaver and Oliver have consistently pushed their sound and production, on their own OUER imprint they released four EP's up till now and the latest called 'E' is just a few weeks old as we speak. The A side opens with the title track 'Stingray Nebula', a bliss composition of layered arpeggios underlined by a deep sub bass, building steadily towards etheric strings setting in and descending again with a break beat ending that builds perfect grounds for the following dance floor stomper 'Undine'. That second A side track is a great mix of Deep House and Electronica and is what makes OUER's music so special, almost entering trance territories here but keeping those Chicago and Detroit references alive. When we head over to the B side we encounter some new tracks that really made us want to release this EP in the first place. The beautiful 'Thales' contains live bass and percussive instrumentation and is a crossover indie-tronica gem. Following that is the deep 'Inside' where an 'emo' piano themed House jam meets clever vocal sampling and filtered synth stabs to produce a great going groove. Closing out we have some real ambience electronica for you in 'Train Ride to Bratsk', again played mostly live and using acoustic instruments recorded in their Berlin studio the OUER guys are crossing borders again and turned out this piece of goodness. Enter the world of OUER, we hope you like it as much as we do!
The second release on AF Trax, again with all profits being donated to Hope Not Hate, is the debut from Al Jerry who has the following to say -
I was initially picturing Al as an ambivalent character trying to evoke in his music deep issues and emotions related to Middle Eastern cultures, but not without a certain self-depreciating sense of humour and a questionable taste for stereotypical arabesque harmonies.
On a personal level, I'm from a family who is half-French, half-Armenian (from Turkey). I grew up with this sort of historical ambivalence in mind, born and bred in the relatively untroubled French culture but not completely oblivious (how could I) of the troubled past of my modern Armenian ancestry who had experienced the first genocide of the 20th century - which as you may know some people and countries still deny its very existence as we speak now in 2018. So, instead of doing something purely on my personal history and origins, I just wanted to celebrate/acknowledge the modern history of the both fascinating and chaotic Middle Eastern cultures.
When I introduced that vague idea of a project/alias to B with an early version of Sana'a Riots, he got instantly into it. The hybrid feel of the project really allowed us to experiment and mess around with odd tonalities and enthused solos. It was the first time for both of us that we manage to collaborate on an EP with someone else. We had never tried something together before and it actually turned out to be a lot of fun. More to come from Al then :)
AF Trax = Against Fascism Trax and is a new label project instituted by JD Twitch/Optimo Music. Its aim is to make a musical and cultural protest in opposition of rising far right politics and ideology in the world. Encouraging artists to make music intended to interrogate these toxic ideas, and with all label profits donated to Hope Not which campaigns to counter racism and fascism. Against Fascism Trax's intent is to provoke conversation, inform and financially support the opposition to fascist thinking. Its simple idea is that we must do something more than just talking. The moral thing to do is to act
Mystique Sound Explorer Scherbe Is Bursting Out Danceable Groove Science Between Epiphany And Delusion. Urban Misty Visions Of A Past And Current Future Deconstructed And Cludged Together Again, Twisted And Dubbed Into Danceable House.
The Ep Contains 6 Tracks In Mid Tempo, Each Of Them Having A Distinct Emotive And Dense Energy. Ready To Be Played In Clubs As Well As Tailored To Accompany You In Your Everyday Frenzy.
Steady Work By Dear Friends, A Heidelberg (germany) Based Label, Is Feeling Honoured To Disseminate His 3rd Release Featuring Scherbe, Who Used To Live A Long Time In Heidelberg And Is Now Based In Dresden. This Release Fits Well Into Scherbe¥s Discography Who Yet Released A Variety Of Records On Numerous German Underground Labels Like Uncanny Valley, Or*s, Kashual Plastik And Big Bait.
In the cracks that sprawl between electronic and analog music, visual art, and craft creation, Yamila dances on the edge of sound and conceptual heights. The Spanish composer, cellist, singer and producer is based between Belgium, Holland and Spain. In recent years Yamila has created music for contemporary dance productions in places such as The Gothenburg Opera, Netherlands Dans Theater, and Dance Forum Taipei, among others. Her projects have been presented at festivals such as Sonic Acts Festival (Amsterdam), Arts Electronica (Linz), Seoul International Computer Music Festival, STRP Festival (Eindhoven), and Today's Art festival (The Hague) to name a few.
With 'Iras Fajro' (Forbidden Colours), her debut album, Yamila, summons in 11 songs with the strength of electronic sounds in front of a fragile voice that at times unfolds in small coral clusters. The brilliant electronic arpeggios and rhythms dissolve in the velvety voices of the cello, which are sometimes intertwined with the creations of two collaborators, the British producer and composer Clark (Warp) and the multifaceted ex- flamenco Nin~o de Elche (Sony).
My love wears forbidden colours My life believes My love wears forbidden colours My life believes in you once again