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The hotly anticipated vinyl EP release of Hikaru Utada’s “One Last Kiss” - the title track is the featured theme of the new film 'EVANGELION:3.0+1.0 THRICE UPON A TIME (SHIN EVANGELION)'. In Japan the film has been the highest grossing movie of the year and 35th highest grossing movie of all time. The movie has now been released worldwide on Amazon Prime. The SHIN EVANGELION franchise has been described as a “pop culture phenomenon” and a “grand masterpiece”. Hikaru Utada is a Japanese American singer/songwriter/producer and one of the most successful and celebrated artists in Japanese music history.

Moddullar is back, this time with digital and 12" format released on their own label INNSIGNN.
This EP "Injuries" is the 20th release of the label and to celebrate the occasion, they bring us 4 powerful tracks full of energy with the capability to make you dance and fly with raw synths and groove basslines that will transpose you to another dimension.

For its 20th anniversary, Keplar presents an absolute milestone in the history of IDM and ambient music for the first time in its definite form: »Together Is the New Alone« by Donnacha Costello was originally released on Mille Plateaux in 2001 as the second LP under the Irish producer’s given name and firmly established him as one of the leading artists in the field of forward-thinking electronic music after he had primarily made a name for himself with house and techno releases under the Jayrod moniker. This vinyl reissue with an entirely new artwork comprises all ten tracks originally only included on the CD version in their edited and final form in which they were last presented on the digital re-release under the name »Together,« remastered by Stephan Mathieu and self-published by Costello, in 2015.

Truly prescient artists rarely opt for introspective sounds, however that was the case when Costello set out to produce »Together Is the New Alone« during nightly session in his hometown Dublin between April and July in 2001, and it also explains the album’s enduring appeal and unwavering radiance twenty years on. While many of his contemporaries dedicated themselves to explore the musical zeitgeist and notions of the future in conceptual terms, Costello made them emotionally tangible, allowing his audience to feel their underlying ambiguity rather than just reflect on it. »Together Is the New Alone« is an album that wordlessly speaks of the paradoxical sense of social alienation and isolation expressed by its title and thus seems even more topical today than it did at the time of its release.

Working with elements from techno culture, glitch aesthetics, intricate IDM rhythms and lush ambient textures, Costello never once throughout the album adheres to tried and tested formulas and conventions, but holistically moulds complex compositions out of distinct and discrete parts. The result is a record that is at once easily accessible and deeply affecting, but also infinitely rich and stunningly sophisticated in musical terms. A personal record expressing a universal sentiment—a truly timeless statement that will reverberate for decades to come.

(Kristoffer Cornils)

Composer, electronic music innovator, and Pere Ubu's original synthesist Allen Ravenstine returns to Waveshaper Media with the diptych LP (comprised of 1 EP per side) Nautilus / Rue De Poisson Noir, the final two parts in Raventine’s Tyranny of Fiction series. Waveshaper Media first came into contact with Ravenstine when we interviewed him in 2012 for our modular synthesizer documentary I Dream Of Wires.

Nautilus / Rue De Poisson Noir brings together 21 of the prodigious composer’s recent lyrical and abstract compositions collectively comprised of the sounds of analogue and digital synthesizers, alongside traditional acoustic instruments. The first 10 recordings, subtitled Nautilus, are found on Side A of this LP while the second 11, Rue Du Poisson Noir, comprise Side B.

Using a singular blend of acoustic and electronic instrumentation, each track on Nautilus, weaves its own wayward travelogue amidst stray bits of audio verité and wafting musical fragrances—by turns tropical and foreboding. Rue De Poisson Noir takes cues from its fragmentary companion both in palette and approach, slithering between cinematic intrigue, off-brand jazz, avant-garde mischief, and fried electro without ever batting an eye. Together they form a beguiling collection of hyperrealist miniatures that remains strange, restless, inquisitive and — most of all — evocative throughout.

For those in the know, Allen Ravenstine has been one of the most creative synthesizer players of the past forty-plus years. Ravenstine started out in the mid-1970s experimenting in his Cleveland apartment with an analogue EML 200 synthesizer, eventually creating a piece in 1975 that became known as Terminal Drive. While he had no intention of releasing his compositions, word got out about the kind of sounds he was experimenting with, which led to an invitation to join pioneering “avant garage” group Pere Ubu for the recording of the group’s first 45, “Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo.” He soon joined Pere Ubu full-time, bringing to the band’s sound unpredictable textures, effects, bleeps, squalls, pulsating washes of sound—whatever he felt could enhance the soundscape of the band’s performances and recordings.

By the early 1990s, Ravenstine had grown sick of the road, band infighting and the music industry in general. Deciding a change was needed, he opted to forego music altogether, making his living as an airplane pilot. His music career remained in limbo until 2012, when an interview for the I Dream Of Wires documentary, alongside Robert Wheeler who had succeeded him as Pere Ubu’s synthesist, turned into a recording session for the duo, leading to a series of collaborative releases. As well as having his 1975 Terminal Drive recordings released to great acclaim in 2017, Ravenstine has been prolific in recent years, with Nautilus / Rue De Poisson Noir now marking his 4th solo full-length.

Mondo and WaterTower Music are proud to present Tom Holkenborg's epic complete soundtrack to the fan-fueled phenomenon Zack Snyder's Justice League.

As pure as any film music expression has ever existed, Holkenborg's nearly-four hour opus is as bombastic and singular as the film it compliments, and we are honored to present the premiere physical release of this staggering work of expression.

The filmmaking story behind Zack Snyder's return to his DC Comics juggernaut is well known at this point, but not enough time has been spent on the journey of the film's once-shelved score. The incredible composer behind one of last decade's biggest filmmaking triumphs (MAD MAX FURY ROAD) Tom Holkenborg joined the sadly far too large club of composers, across filmmaking history, to have their blockbuster scores replaced.

But the big-budget redemption arc of Zack Snyder's original vision for Justice League presented Holkenborg with the opportunity to build upon what he had started many years ago, with new skills and tools - this time with no other cook in the kitchen but his director and friend.

Composed by Tom Holkenborg
Artwork by Mo Shafeek
Manufactured in the Czech Republic

Keep training!
The Berlin Jazz duo Max Andrzejewski and Johannes Schleiermacher a.k.a. TRAINING and John Dieterich (of Deerhoof) in virtual vastness...
The Corona crisis has presented musicians with difficult tasks over the past year and a half. From album recordings to tour planning. From emergency aid programmes to improvised streaming concerts. There were few musicians who dealt with the difficult situation as playfully as the two jazz musicians Max Andrzejewski and Johannes Schleiermacher from Berlin.
Both have known each other very well for a long time and play together in different outfits. Max as a drummer and Johannes as a saxophonist. Both also like to play synthesizers or samplers. Preferably all at the same time. That's why in the Corona spring of 2020

‘Gather Up’ is the culmination of ten years on Acid Jazz for Matt Berry.
 ‘Gather Up’ comes as a beautifully packaged 4CD hardback book set with 28 pages of
illustrations and notes or a 5LP box set with a 64-page booklet and certificate of
authenticity signed by Matt.
 ‘Gather Up’ is also available as a standalone 21-track ‘Best Of’ on gatefold CD and red
coloured vinyl double LP.
 The 55 tracks on the 4CD / 5LP sets are split between an anthology compilation that
tracks the very best tracks from his eight albums and associated singles for the label over
the last decade, an album of unreleased tracks and rarities, a demo version of his 2020
album ‘Phantom Birds’ (titled ‘Phantom First’) and the previously unreleased ‘Live At A
Festival’ album, which showcases Matt and his band The Maypoles in full flight.
 The book included in both formats has an extended essay by Chris Catchpole which
reviews Matt’s musical career and an exclusive set of photo images culled from the
archive of Matt’s long time photographic collaborator Ben Meadows.
 Following the huge acclaim earlier this year for Matt Berry’s eighth studio album, ‘The
Blue Elephant’, Acid Jazz release ‘Gather Up’, a compilation album encompassing the
singular musical adventures this extraordinary musician has taken over the past decade,
offering a revelatory and fascinating insight into the working process of a genuine musical
maverick and sonic explorer.
 Over 10 years with Acid Jazz, Berry has released nine incredibly diverse albums
(including one live album). From the tangled-folk rock thickets of ‘Witchazel’ and ‘Kill The
Wolf’ (which features the song from which this release gets its name), to the out-there
explorations of ‘Music For Insomniacs’ or ‘TV Themes’’ retro-kitsch delights, through the
soul power in ‘Matt Berry & The Maypoles Live’ or the twilight grooves of ‘The Small
Hours’ to the classic pedal-steel songwriting of ‘Phantom Birds’ and the smorgasbord of
psychedelic sounds on ‘The Blue Elephant’, Berry’s journey has produced a feast for the
ears that twists and turns down more unexpected avenues than most artists could
manage over several careers.
 ‘Gather Up’ pulls together an excellent career spanning collection expertly compiled by
Berry, including non-album tracks such as ‘Snuff Box Theme’. No easy achievement
considering the sheer breadth, diversity and volume of his exceptional musical output.
















p 16 Music for insomniacs [Part 4]

Originally released as a limited yellow vinyl LP in April 2021, this debut from Taiwan’s psych-heads Dope Purple quickly sold out and gained immediate cult appreciation. Now recut and reissued on swanky transparent lavender coloured vinyl. For fans of Acid Mothers Temple, Les Rallizes Denudes, Asian psych etc

'Grateful End’ in their own words ...

"Grateful End" is our album release in 2019 in the form of CD and cassette.

The title "Grateful End" clearly shows that this is our album with the theme of "End", such as "The Last Day of Humanity" and “Good Night, Good Death" are two of our songs with the theme of "End". However, this album also has another theme of " Live", in fact most of the songs on this album are based on our imagination of "Live". “End" is not the antonym of “Live”, "End" is just one of the stages of “Live”, in other words “End" is also our “Live”. “Grateful End" is a meaningful “End" for people struggling to “Live”. It is only when the “End" comes together with “Live” that we can find significance in it and pay attention to how people face the “End" of “Live”. The End of something enables us to understand “Live”.

Most of the tracks for Grateful End was recorded in 2018, before the epidemic, so our music doesn't reflect the situation of epidemic, but there was a time in 2020 when I thought about the reality that humanity was facing the last day of humanity. Thanks to the efforts of many people, humanity is not yet extinct, and thanks to the help of many people, we can now release this vinyl. We are very grateful to all of you.

But at the same time, the plight of the epidemic has re-emerged many humanity and morality issues that we have avoided looking at. Maybe we won't die out, but if we don't face our humanity squarely, we will lose our humanity in the future and will no longer be human. I don't know what our music can do about humanity, but it is true that music is one of the creations of humanity, and music cannot leave humanity. As music music lovers, our creations will always face humanity. I hope that in the future, after the epidemic is over, we can understand and inspire each other through our live and music.

On January 27th, 1990, Helmet entered the stage of New York’s equally famous and infamous CBGB’s. What followed was an explosive live show, set during the earliest days of the band’s career. Getting ready to release their debut album “Strap It On” in March that year, Helmet propelled themselves through a staccato-heavy set of tracks that would soon earn them worldwide acclaim in the Punk scene. The first side of this brand-new live album features the CBGB’s set for the first time ever on vinyl and CD, while the second half contains an equally energetic performance, recorded in 1993 at the Big Day Out Festival in Melbourne, Australia. With tracks such as ‘Ironhead’, ‘Better’ and ‘In the Meantime’, the setlist strikes a perfect balance between the band’s hits and hidden gems from their early years. “Live and Rare” is available on 1LP 180g Vinyl as well as a CD Digipak Edition for the first time ever via earMUSIC, to be released worldwide on November 26th, 2021.

As the album title suggests, SAGA completed an imaginary circle with their 13th studio album "Full Circle" in 1999. Tracks such as "Remember When (Chapter 9)", "The One", "Timebomb" or "Uncle Albert's Eyes (Chapter 13)" continue the conceptional and musical success formula of their first five releases stylistically. "Full Circle" marks another great album especially for those who love classic SAGA as it features plenty of creative songs, a powerful delivery and that special unique characteristic of SAGA. "Full Circle" is a real charmer – available on vinyl for the first time ever, the album will be released on heavyweight vinyl as a gatefold edition as well as a Deluxe Digipak edition with enhanced artwork and personal liner notes by Jim Gilmour.

Apart from a series of successful studio albums and worldwide hit-singles such as ‘Wind Him Up’, ‘On The Loose’, or ‘How Long’, it’s mainly been SAGA’s haunting concerts that have inspired their fans and – as a direct result – have been the reason for the outstanding success of their live albums. ‘Detours (Live)’ was recorded over the course of eight shows in Germany, Austria and France, using a mobile recording studio. It was originally released in 1999 as a truly worthy SAGA live album that captures the fantastic atmosphere at the concerts and leaves nothing to be desired thanks to its captivating set list. For the first time ever, this brilliant live album is now available on vinyl – as a 3LP gatefold edition on heavyweight vinyl. The reissue also comes with enhanced artwork and personal liner notes by Jim Crichton.

With the release of Sweet Inspirations At Muon, the first appearance on vinyl of Tori Kudo’s mythical early ‘80s primitive rock gang Sweet Inspirations, another piece of the seemingly endless puzzle of the Japanese underground has fallen into place. Recorded some time in 1982 at Yokohama venue Muon – precise details are sketchy – we’re now given another chance to discover what was going on in Kudo’s mind just before he formed the group he is now best known for, the ragtag gang of pro and amateur musicians that was Maher Shalal Hash Baz.

Sweet Inspirations were one of several groups formed by Kudo around this time. He’d already released the visionary naïve-art album, Tenno, in collaboration with Reiko Omura, in 1980, and a trip to New York the following year led to the recording of Atlantic City, under the name La Consumption 4. Returning to Japan, Kudo first formed Guys’N’Dolls with Jun Yoshiwara (bass) and Kiyoaki Iwamoto (drums); Yoshiwara carried over into Sweet Inspirations, who existed for a few years, their membership, at various times, featuring Asahito Nanjo (High Rise etc.), Jutok Kaneko (Kousokuya), Yoshio Kuge (Les Rallizes Denudes etc.), 3C123 and many more.

The material here was originally released, without permission, by the Cragale label on CD-R in 2000. It was one of a sudden wave of archival CD-Rs that Cragale pumped out that year of material recorded at Muon, which was owned by Kohei Iehara, who co-founded Cragale with Tamotsu Hongo. In the context of the recent unleashing of material from the Kudo archives – the 9CD At Goodman set, the reissue of the first two Maher Shalal Hash Baz cassettes and the Noise LP, and the tantalising glimpses of other historical gems via Tori’s own Bandcamp page – hearing Sweet Inspirations with such clarity fills in a significant piece of the puzzle; here is Kudo, just before Maher, channelling the rough conceptualism of Red Krayola and the glinting, staggered rhythms of Syd Barrett into extended blooms of ragged glory, sketching out future classics like “Manson Girls”; A bonus CD includes a cover of a song by legendary South Korean rock group San Ul Lim.

The Ethiopians are one of the great vocal groups to come out of Jamaica. Singing songs of life and times as they found them, themes that resonated with the people of the Island that made them such a treasured group. Lenard Dillon (b. 9 December, 1942, Port Antonio, Jamaica) the founding member of the Ethiopians began his singing career at Clement 'Coxonne' Dodd's Studio One. Initially he recorded under the name of Jack Sparrow, and backed by the Wailers, cutting 'Ice Water' and 'Suffering In The Land'. Under The Wailers encouragement, he went on to form his
own vocal group. Recruiting singers Stephan Taylor (b.1944, Portland, Jamaica) and Aston 'Charlie' Morris to become The Ethiopians. They cut 'Live Good', 'Why You Gonna Leave Me Now' and 'Owe Me No Pay Me'. Although receiving favourable response, Aston Morris decided to leave the band and the remaining pair carried on and cut 'I'm A Free
Man' and 'Don Dead Already' and 'For You'. On meeting contract builder Leebert Robertson who had recently returned to live in Jamaica, ashad he wanted to get into the music business, a session was booked for Treasure Isle Studios. The session produced their seminal 'Train To Skaville' track, which became an immediate hit in Jamaica and in the UK, when in 1967 it reached number 40 in the charts. They also cut 'Engine 54', which became the title of their debut album. Its
follow up 'I Need You / Do It Sweet', did not fare so well and the band moved over to Sonia Pottinger's stable, where they cut 'The Whip / Cool It Amigo' which revived their fortunes and proved another big hit for the band. Two more hits followed 'Stay Loose Mama' and 'The World Goes Ska', after which the band decided to return to a trio, adding
Melvin 'Mellow' Reid to the line up. The band now hit another run of successes with producer JJ Johnson 'Everything Crash, 'Gun Man', 'Hong Kong Flu' and 'The Selah'. Many hits followed leading the band to work with a variety of Jamaican producers. Such tracks as 'I Want To Be a Better Man, ' Conquering Lion', 'Fire A Mus Mus' Tail', and the timeless 'Reggae Hit The Town' to name a few. Two albums 'Reggae Power' (1969) and 'Woman Capture Man' (1970), pulled a lot of these tunes together. Sadly Taylor was killed in 1975 after been struck by a van in a road accident. Dillon returned to Port Antonio till 1977, when he was persuaded to return to Treasure Isle studios with producer Niney The
Observer and cut the Rasta based album 'Slave Call'. Additional members who joined for this album were Bro Fatty, Bro Ewing, Bro T, Mello and Hychi Dread. An album that showed all the Ethiopians magic had not been lost.
For this release we have included the full 'Slave Call' set, 'Ethiopian National Anthem', 'Slave Call', 'Guilty Conscience', 'Hurry On', 'Mus Follow Babylon'(on CD Edition), 'Train To Skaville (1977 version, on CD Edition), 'Culture', 'Obeah Book', 'Let It Be' and 'I Love Jah'. Alongside some of the bands early hits including the original version of 'Train To Skaville', 'Engine 54', the great and poignant 'Everything Crash', 'Reggae Hit The Town' and 'The Selah'. An interesting set to remind us what a great group the Ethiopians really were.

REPRESSED !!

Wolfsheim are a synthpop duo from Hamburg, Germany consisting of Markus Reinhardt (music) and Peter Heppner (lyrics and vocals). The band was founded in 1987 by Markus Reinhardt and Pompejo Ricciardi and was named after Meyer Wolfsheim, a fictional character from F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel 'The Great Gatsby'. Ricciardi soon left the band and was replaced by Peter Heppner, a childhood friend of Reinhardt's. Together they produced their first demo tape, Ken Manage', in 1988.

After making a second demo tape, Any But Pretty', in 1989, Wolfsheim applied at various labels until they caught the attention of independent record label Strange Ways Records. They are best known for their debut breakthrough single, "The Sparrows and the Nightingales', the first single to be released on Strange Ways in 1991. The band's musical style takes cues from the 1980s New Romantics, new wave, synthpop, and darkwave. The track's sombre synths were produced by Carlos Peron of Yello. Reinhardt says the lyric was inspired by 'The Great Gatsby', "in the 'onomatopoeic tension' between predator and security." Over six minutes, the narrator describes being lost, unsure of where his life is heading, using highly metaphorical language. On the flip is a brand new remix by German producer Ancient Methods, a pseudonym of Michael 'Trias' Wollenhaupt, who provides a driving, EBM-leaning, amphetamine-laced club ready cut.

All songs have been remastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. Designer Eloise Leigh has updated the record's original design with two sparrows enclosed in a blood moon circle against a deep black purple backdrop. Each copy comes with a black and white photo postcard notes by Carlos Peron and the song's lyrics. This release comes in time to celebrate the single's 25th anniversary.

The 20th milestone release in the Generation Series lineup, this 5-LP abridged set features 82 tracks that play in the first half of Shenmue III, which takes place in Bailu Village. Comes in a top lid box (similar to recent Generation Series releases from Brave Wave) with liner notes, archival artwork and a digital download code for all 196 tracks.

he 20th milestone release in the Generation Series lineup, this 5-LP abridged set features 82 tracks that play in the first half of Shenmue III, which takes place in Bailu Village. Comes in a top lid box (similar to recent Generation Series releases from Brave Wave) with liner notes, archival artwork and a digital download code for all 196 tracks.

Title says it all!

The next killer tune in the brand-new series of alltime classic Studio One party bombs available on super loud 12” - Brentford Road All Stars’ 'Greedy
G’ is the ultimate reggae record to crossover into
hip-hop. The all-time epic sample for Boogie Down
Productions’ seminal ‘Jack of Spades’ and based
on James Brown’s funk bomb ‘Get on the Good
Foot’.
The flipside is another Brentford Road All Stars
essential cut, ‘Granny Scratch Scratch’, the
heaviest, funkiest dub monster ever.
100% essential monster tunes that rock any
dancefloor.

BMG is proud to present a brand-new reissue of Little Girl Blue, which has been justifiably celebrated as a timeless classic. In her essay written specifically for this release, Daphne A. Brooks, author of such acclaimed books as Liner Notes for the Revolution, puts it best when she asserts that Little Girl Blue presents “an astonishingly daring, dazzlingly confident, endlessly adventurous artist with a deep well of formidable instrumentality up her sleeve as well as a wide and robust, rich and varied knowledge of jazz, blues, American songbook, folk and spiritual standards and aesthetics.”

Little Girl Blue’s multi-phased release begins on June 1 with a digital release (on high-definition and standard audio) that coincides with African-American Music Appreciation Month, while August 13 is the date Little Girl Blue comes out globally on “clear blue” 180-gram vinyl, 180-gram black vinyl and CD. Additionally, this reissue boasts a fresh stereo mix done by four-time Grammy winner Michael Graves as well as a vinyl remastering by the renowned Kevin Gray.

Little Girl Blue features two of Simone’s most well-known tracks. Her sensational rendition of “I Love You, Porgy” was a big hit upon release, and was her only song to crack Billboard’s Top 20. Her jaunty performance of “My Baby Just Cares for Me” brought Simone renewed public interest after it was used in a popular 1987 Chanel No. 5 TV commercial.

After his first LP Stranger Já Catem Traboi, Tchiss decided to further experiment with reggae and funaná, inspired by the local rhythms of the island of Santiago. Gathering some of the best Cape Verdean musicians of the time, in 1984, together with Zé António on guitar, Bebethe on bass and Alírio on drums, he recorded his second LP Já Bô Corre D’Mim. An album that sings of a young man far from home, his unrequited love and saudade, the struggles of street life in a foreign land and a world of inequality. Recorded in just 3 days at the Pomodoro Studio in Sutri, the album fully expresses the deep and layered sound of Tchiss’ music, where upbeat tempo, powerful vocals and electrifying guitar solos tangle together in a dynamic mix of traditional melodies and cosmic reggae.

An hour of finely crafted grooves where cosmic atmospheres meet late night bangers !

While on a break due to a certain pandemic, L’Eclair threw itself in the making of a new album. Until that point recording sessions were usually really short. Former albums were made in only a few days and recorded mostly live on tape. That changed as the band decided to do four recording sessions over nine months, hence allowing the group and its sound engineer/manager Benoit Erard to spend more time and energy on the production. With the ability to step back and reflect on the work in progress, L’Eclair had the occasion to take things a step above in terms of arrangements, compositions and structures. The result is an hour-long 12 tracks record, which is more diversified and concise than previous efforts.

Titled “Confusions”, the album shows L’Eclair’s obsession with groove in all its forms. It blends club vibes with psychedelic grooves, rhythmic trances and ambient comedowns while retaining a true coherence. Produced and organic, danceable and ethereal, spontaneous and cerebral, joyful and melancholic, “Confusions” is always on the fence between very different moods without ever wandering off. The band’s never fading influences are still there: you can hear hints of CAN, Piero Umiliani or Tangerine Dream here and there. But it’s melted with different universes, such as late 80s Madchester or Aphex Twin and Boards Of Canada’s textured worlds. There is also a strong Hip Hop feel with sampled-based tracks and non-binary beats that recall the likes of great producers like Madlib, MF DOOM, J Dilla or even Timbaland. The record also has its fair share of dub and house influences, which connect with the group’s attachment to the club vibe.

The Berliners present an unusual live album that is a testimony of strange times: their Phanerozoic concept album performed live in its entirety at a time when no shows were happening anywhere in the world. 3 LPs / 2 CDs plus DVD and access to HD video download and streaming. Phanerozoic I was streamed live from Pier 2, a big hall in the port of Bremen, on March 25, 2021. Phanerozoic II, recorded at "Die Mühle" studio, aired on April 16, 2021 as part of the digital edition of Roadburn Festival, this year abtly named Roadburn Redux. Both shows couldn't have been more different: where the first part boasts with a pompous, mesmerizing lighting production on a big stage, the 2nd part is quite the opposite: intimate, almost cosy, focused on musicianship rather than performance. A stripped down setup in a dark barn, with moody, minimal but not any less efficient lighting. "We wanted to give people 2 totally different experiences", says band leader Robin Staps. "In Bremen, we had the chance to record a proper Ocean live show, the way people know us. We played facing towards the front of the stage, to an invisible crowd, essentially to a huge empty room_ but we knew people were watching, even if we didn't see them. There was the same rush of adrenaline right before going on stage as you get before going on at any big open air festival_ maybe with a little extra anxiety added, because knowing that so many people are watching you without being able to see them yourself was super weird." This release is yet another master class of record packaging from Norwegian artist and long term friend and collaborator, Martin Kvamme: the trifold is made from thick, rough and incredibly fibrous cardboard, adorned with a filigrane copper foil embossing of a bitmapped live fotography from the Bremen event. It contains 3 vinyl records in printed inner sleeves or 2 CDs, plus a DVD and a concert ticket with a streaming and HD video download link to both concerts.

Now Here Is Nowhere is the debut studio album by American alternative rock band Secret Machines. It was originally released on May 18, 2004.

The band’s epic, drawn out melodies are reminiscent of classic rock bands such as Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin, with influences from krautrock and shoegaze. Now Here is Nowhere received widespread critical acclaim, saying the band is locked-in and steady while Garza’s imperturbable drums stand strong against Brandon Curtis’ guitar explosions and Ben Curtis’ psych-rock keyboard scribbles.

The album was released online before it was released physically, which was uncommon at the time, but it did help the band gain more press coverage. The song “Nowhere Again” was used as a promotional single and appeared in the 2006 video game Driver: Parallel Lines.

• The “Fickle Heart” LP was a real team effort. Initially, demos were brought to Chiswick Records by drummer/producer Lou Salvoni. Though more associated with the bar band and punk end of music, Chiswick was much more musically diverse. There is a drive in the lead track ‘Driver’s Seat’ which was the signature sound of what was a tougher record than much of the similar music around it. Engineer Barry Farmer was brought in from Pathway Studios, where he had been at the controls for some earlier Chiswick releases as well as those on Stiff. This was older school than the new upstarts and the band was made up of some of the top musicians around London at the time. Much of it was recorded at Regents Park Studio, where Steve Lipson joined the production team.

• ‘Driver’s Seat’ first came out in the UK in October 1978, as well as in Spain, Holland and Germany, where it charted. But it was the July 1979 US release through Atlantic when it really took off, with a Top 20 chart position. The album came out in November of that year.

• Though ‘Driver’s Seat’ is the featured track, it is far from being a one-track album, with confident arrangements and musicianship throughout and production that all adds up to an enduring record of great songs. Though set in its period, it transcends it, still sounding fresh today, some 43 years after its release.

• The album hasn’t been available on vinyl since 1995; remastered from the original tapes, it sounds better than ever.

By now you’re probably familiar with our wildly popular Brown Acid series of rare, lost and unreleased proto-metal and stoner rock singles from the 60s-70s. In the endless pursuit of those glorious gems, we often uncover equally brilliant rarities from the late-70s to late-80s Golden Age of Heavy Metal that also just must be heard, but they don’t fit the series’ aesthetic. Scrap Metal, Volume 1 collects some of the greatest unknown and lost Heavy Metal tracks, long buried beneath the avalanche of the era’s classic output.
We all know the old adage that history is told by the winners. But sometimes the losers tell the best stories. And while none of these bands found fame and fortune, this artifact and the volumes to come are testament to the enduring power of heavy music. You can hear the blood, sweat and beers that went into each of these singles. The recordings may be low budget, but the inspiration and talent is immutable. Not only are the amps turned up to 11, the boyish sexual innuendo is cranked to 69. You can hear the convergence of influences — NWOBHM, thrash, glam metal, doom, etc — colliding at once as the era birthed a wellspring of subgenres.
Many of these singles are self-released and were thus limited to a small run of copies. Those that remain are hoarded by collectors and sold for exorbitant amounts. We’ve collected the best of the best for you here. As with Brown Acid, all of these tracks are licensed legitimately and the artists all get paid. Because it’s the right thing to do.
LINER NOTES:
Rapid Tears launch this series with the perfect christening. The Toronto, ON quintet’s 1981 single “Headbang” is such the pinnacle of heavy metal madness that it almost sounds like a spoof. There’s also enough of the rapid-fire sputum that inspired Metallica to bang the head that doesn’t, as such, engage in said practice, to be found on the band’s sole full length Honestly. But “Headbang” is a straightforward glammy anthem for the ages.
Air Raid’s “69 In A 55” may be lyrically so sophomoric that it’s actually pretty clever, but this 1983 Bay Area power metal single is loaded with sleek Judas Priest riffs and interwoven melodies that are downright sublime. The band’s sole release, the 2-song Rock Force 7” features a curious band photo in which 3 band members — dolled up in Crüe makeup and leather — are sexually menacing the lead singer/guitarist tied to a bed. Another low budget highlight is when singer/guitarist Tommy “Thrasher” Merry imitates a delay effect on his vocals as he sings, “tonight!...tonight...night.”
Hades’ “Girls Will Be Girls” has a real demo cassette feel to its vastly uneven mix, but the energy to the performance makes this an undeniable keeper. The long running Paramus, NJ quintet’s 1982 2- song debut 7” titled Deliver Us From Evil features this blistering thrasher dominated by shimmering leads and confident vocals that show why the band went on to near-fame on Metal Blade Records.
Resless don’t need no T to prove that they’ve got “The Power” with this 1984 driving mid-tempo rocker in the vein of Mötley Crüe and Ratt. The River Vale, NJ quartet’s tight crunch wails all over Bon Jovi posers but it’s the band’s unique and subtle deployment of background vocals that gives this rager its staying power.
Pittsburgh, the Steel City, is home to Don Cappa, a band that pays tribute to the burgh, the metal, and the awesomeness of both with “Steel City Metal.” Their lone single, issued in 1987 with only 300 copies released, sounds like the work of some serious steel driving men, with a drummer who might’ve forgotten to wear a hard hat one too many times on the construction site.
The Beast has more of a punk feel to their aggressive “Enemy Ace” track from the 4-song Power Metal EP from 1983 — something like Dr. Know meets D.O.A. But their look, artwork and lyrics all prove that Heavy Metal is where their hearts lie. And this hook filled monster delivers repeated lines like, “I command them all in my lofty realm,” with commendable conviction.
Dead Silence from Denver, Colorado, debuting in 1984 is not to be confused with Dead Silence from Denver, Colorado, who also debuted in 1984. The former a workman’s hard rock bar band, the latter a political peace punk band and neither knowing of the other’s existence throughout their tenure. The pre-internet days were a marvel, indeed.This Dead Silence spits out a slick, Nugent tinged rocker called “Can’t Stop” about life on the road.
The Danger Zone is, by all accounts, not the place to be. And, Hazardous Waste of Boston, MA saw fit to add their two cents on the matter with this 1986 single that combines Van Halen’s flashy musicianship with NWOBHM aggression that sounds so awesome it teeters on itself entering the “Danger Zone.”
Czar’s heavy, doomy “Iron Curtain” single from 1982 hearkens to the sleazy sounds of Saint Vitus and Pentagram with its cranked up DOD Distortion pedal in a Peavey combo amp guitar tone and meaty, barking vocals. The upstate NY quintet only issued this 2-song single, but its driving rhythm, nosedive whammy-bar guitar solos and comparatively mature Cold War subject matter show they had real potential.
Not much is known about Real Steel’s majestic “Viking Queen” from 1987, other than it rocks hard and the 7” 45 sells for upwards of a grand on the collectors market. The Flint, Michigan band recorded at the home studio of local radio personality Bill Lamb, who primarily released Christian Gospel recordings. So, perhaps the band was struck down by a bolt of lightning shortly after this rare single’s release. Whatever the case may be, it’s a must have for fans of classic metal mayhem.

clear vinyl / incl. poster

The music of Parallax is part of the foundation of Zodiak Commune Records since 1998. With ZC002 - Sinister Projects EP- and ZC005 - Occult Technology EP, Parallax created timeless underground anthems which are being reflected in the Archive EP. With previously unreleased live recordings, this EP is a well-preserved document of the past whilst being relevant in today's underground techno and acid scene. Parallax his live set was recorded at the legendary "old" Effenaar (Acid City Eindhoven, The Netherlands) while the Zodiak Commune's 10th anniversary was being celebrated. With its massive and no-nonsense acid-techno sound, Parallax transformed the dancefloor into a vortex, fueling up people with positive energy while taking them on his musical journey. A nostalgic journey that will make you crave for more timeless underground bliss! With 2002 Live Pt1 being over 12 minutes long a true story is being told. Enjoy this fine release of the purest acid-techno around!

2003 Live Pt1
A dark entrance, heavy basses that make the roof rattle, the smell of stale beer and sweaty people who all seem to speak another language but listen to the same... Those of seemingly soulless beats, but which ultimately take you closer to one self and each other than most religions have managed to realize...
Enjoy 12:30 minutes of storytelling!

1998
Clashing raw 303's, brutal beats colliding mid-air, ear piercing percussion. The soundtrack of the battle of 1998 is all but merciful, sending shivers down your spine.

2003 Live Pt2
Time seizes to exist. Beats provide the energy needed on a journey so loud there is no choice but to join. Guided by musicians, they who make you walk but not go anywhere but inside. Rebel minds choose to renounce their disobey, for their worries to be taken far, far away.

ILIO welcomes Frances 'Serious A'. A record exploring textures, space and time for the home and the floor... Rhythm is Strength - Limited to 150 copies. X

Goldfrapp’s fifth studio album, Head First, was originally released on 19 March 2010. The album debuted at number six on the UK Albums Chart, selling 23,000 copies in its first week and went on to sell over 70k units in the UK alone, It featured three singles Rocket, Alive and Believer and received a Grammy nomination for Best Electronic/Dance Album. Following the reissue series of Black Cherry, Supernature & Seventh Tree by Mute/BM, this is the first time Head First has been reissued and will appear on 140g Transparent Magenta vinyl with an exclusive 12x12 art print in a gatefold sleeve.

Gary Barlow’s first ever Christmas album - ‘The Dream Of Christmas’. Featuring brand new original songs and beautifully orchestrated Christmas classics, ‘The Dream Of Christmas’ is a glorious, sleigh-belled, snow-filled magical ride through the sound of Christmas and the perfect musical accompaniment to the festive season. The album is brimming with festive cheer and Christmas spirit and Gary’s contemporary compositions, in which he sings of warm Christmas memories, sit perfectly alongside timeless classics well-known and loved by many.

A new LP collection of incredible performances by the virtuosa of theremin, Clara Rockmore, accompanied by her sister Nadia Reisenberg on piano.

160 gram vinyl comes in old school tip-on jacket and includes an 8-page full-size booklet of interviews, photos, and insights with Clara Rockmore, Nadia Reisenberg, Robert Moog, and more.

Recorded in 1975 and never before released on vinyl, this compendium features stellar performances of compositions by Bach, Chopin, Schubert, Gershwin and more, and even features a cello ensemble on a few songs!

Some of the finest examples of Clara Rockmore’s unrivaled art - rich with bittersweet moments of air, electricity, human grace and emotional composition all merging into some new thing that is transcendent of time.

The Italian singer Chiara Civello and the French producer Marc Collin are back together for a second time. After Eclipse, they present « Chansons: Chiara Civello Sings International French Standards ».


A tracklisting of 12 classic songs dating from 1945 to 1975 all by French song writers.

From Michel Legrand to Charles Aznavour, Charles Trénet, Édith Piaf, Jacques Brel or Gilbert Bécaud and Francis Lai. Household names for French music lovers, but not necessarily so for international audiences.

Hungry Shells, the seventeenth entry in RVNG Intl.’s intergenerational collaborations series FRKWYS, brings together vocalist, multi- instrumentalist, and sound artist Ka Baird with avant-garde composer and radical performance art pioneer Pekka Airaksinen. Recorded six months before Pekka’s passing, Hungry Shells alchemizes separate but similar spiritualistic practices, canvassing Baird’s voice and synthesizer rituals and Airaksinen’s lysergic sound explorations into startling, surreal landscapes.

Pekka Airaksinen, who left this realm for another in May 2019, is recognized as a pioneering composer both in and outside his native Finland’s fringe art community. A founding member of the late 60s art and music collective The Sperm, Airaksinen discovered Buddhism in the early 1970s, eventually establishing a number of meditation centers around Finland. Throughout his career Airaksinen embraced a degree of obscurity and anonymity that was inspired by his Buddhist learnings, and afforded him complete creative freedom. As he explained, “The less success you have, the more time there is to develop things.”

Ka Baird, who found her musical footing in Chicago playing in Spires That In The Sunset Rise before moving to New York to pursue her solo career, has developed a practice based in forms of active and engaged embodiment. Inspired by Charlemagne Palestine’s Body Music, Baird’s performances explore physical extremes as a catalyst for charged immediacy and presence. “I’m interested in the

places between precision and something unrestrained,” she told The Wire in 2019. Drawing on minimalism’s ecstatic deployment of duration and endurance, her recordings explore the outer limit sounds of her voice and its synthesis with developing music technology.

Airaksinen and Baird convened in Utrecht in the fall of 2018 to write, rehearse, and record Hungry Shells ahead of a performance at the Dutch festival institution Le Guess Who? Sessions took place between contemplative walks along the city’s medieval canals, and, for Airaksinen, lengthy meditations in his hotel room. Early on in the trip, Pekka shared ODO with Ka, a collection of Buddhist parables that he divinely received while meditating. After translating several of these texts from Finnish to English the duo used them as text for the album, and a sort of psychic foundation.

The gala evening at the Paris Opera on December 19, 1958 was announced in the press as "the greatest show in the world". Maria Callas, at the height of her glory, performed for the first time in front of a Parisian audience. The diva delivered all the facets of her art through the Italian classics that she loved, with the theatrical genius that is proper to her. Paris gave her a triumphant evening!

The original recording of this evening, broadcast in Eurovision throughout Europe, has been newly restored with the greatest care.

Presentation by Benoît Duteurtre, novelist, essayist and music critic.

Excerpts from Norma by Bellini
Excerpts from Il Trovatore by Verdi
Excerpts from Il Barbiere di Seviglia by Rossini
Complete second act of Tosca by Puccini

With Companion, Otto A Totland completes his album trilogy of personal, sparse piano compositions, following in the footsteps of 2014's Pinô and 2017's The Lost.

As a self-taught pianist, Otto further determines himself as a timeless composer who follows nothing but his own gut and heart. The outcome is something so pure it’s hard to not be affected. The development of his pieces over the years has grown into something so himself that it's almost immediately recognisable. With Companion he has matured in his own craft, and the various pieces here feel confident and absolutely beautiful in a way that sees the end of the trilogy as a warm, empathic document for the times.

As with the previous two albums, Companion was again recorded at Nils Frahm's Berlin studio for optimal warmth and space, Pinô and The Lost at his previous Durton Studio while Companion at the historic Studio 3 at Funkhaus. All three records are released by Sonic Pieces in hand-crafted limited edition covers as a statement showing that craftmanship and humanity still exists in this world constantly moving towards the exact opposite.

This quote by Norwegian philosopher Guttorm Fløistad seems an appropriate connection to both Otto's music and the way we are all heading : “The only thing for certain is that everything changes. The rate of change increases. If you want to hang on you better speed up. That is the message of today … In order to master changes, we have to recover slowness, reflection and togetherness. There we will find real renewal.” With this in mind, Companion is exactly what it's title sets out to be. A friend that can follow and comfort in both good or bad times.

If The Fall truly is a cult band, then Slates both benefits from and reinforces such shrouded obsessions. In presenting these six particular songs as a 10-inch EP, the inherent and attractive difficulty of The Fall's sound is made physical, framing the urgency of their singles from this period (notably How I Wrote 'Elastic Man' and Lie Dream of a Casino Soul) alongside lengthy rumblings normally restricted to long players.

The tumbling and phased "Middle Mass" begins on an incredible high note, segueing into the snake-charm hypnotism of "An Older Lover Etc." "Slates, Slags, Etc." is built on stretched VU-inspired riffing, complete with ace feedback bleed that doubtlessly went on long after fade-out. Ultimately, it's the piercing chimes of guitar and marching drum grind of "Prole Art Threat" that elevates Slates beyond oddity. Truly one of Mark E. Smith's finest, busiest and most enigmatic performances, equally matched by a band at the peak of their powers.

Superior Viaduct's edition is the first time that Slates has been available on vinyl since its initial release in 1981. Liner notes by Brian Turner.

Emilie Levienaise-Farrouch’s dark, throbbing score to
Prano Bailey-Bond’s horror debut ‘Censor’ is out now on
vinyl, after previously being released on digital platforms.
 The vinyl is pressed on clear vinyl with black smoke effect
and comes housed in a deluxe spined sleeve with double
sided printed insert featuring beautiful imagery from the
film.
 Emilie Levienaise-Farrouch manages to inhabit a space
between Ennio Morricone, Goblin and John Carpenter in
her stunning score to ‘Censor’.
 “I wanted the original score to focus on two different
elements of the film’s storytelling which slowly intertwine
as the movie progresses,” Emilie told Booklyn Vegan.
 “One sound palette represents the trauma of our lead
character Enid, with a use of manipulated vocals and
synthesisers, slow moving, almost suspended, and at
times disorientating cues, with short melodic motives, little
lullabies Enid might softly sing to herself to sooth her
anxiety and guilt of having lost her sister. The other palette
is much more anchored in the time period (1980s) and
genre the film explores.” She calls that second sound
palette a “love letter to classic Carpenter and Goblin
soundtracks, using vintage synths, rare Japanese
instruments and choirs to bring us deep into the fun,
surreal, and meta elements of the film.”
 ‘Censor’ received critical acclaim upon its release,
including a 5-star review in The Guardian, and is available
to watch now.

‘Gather Up’ is the culmination of ten years on Acid Jazz for Matt Berry.
 ‘Gather Up’ comes as a beautifully packaged 4CD hardback book set with 28 pages of
illustrations and notes or a 5LP box set with a 64-page booklet and certificate of
authenticity signed by Matt.
 ‘Gather Up’ is also available as a standalone 21-track ‘Best Of’ on gatefold CD and red
coloured vinyl double LP.
 The 55 tracks on the 4CD / 5LP sets are split between an anthology compilation that
tracks the very best tracks from his eight albums and associated singles for the label over
the last decade, an album of unreleased tracks and rarities, a demo version of his 2020
album ‘Phantom Birds’ (titled ‘Phantom First’) and the previously unreleased ‘Live At A
Festival’ album, which showcases Matt and his band The Maypoles in full flight.
 The book included in both formats has an extended essay by Chris Catchpole which
reviews Matt’s musical career and an exclusive set of photo images culled from the
archive of Matt’s long time photographic collaborator Ben Meadows.
 Following the huge acclaim earlier this year for Matt Berry’s eighth studio album, ‘The
Blue Elephant’, Acid Jazz release ‘Gather Up’, a compilation album encompassing the
singular musical adventures this extraordinary musician has taken over the past decade,
offering a revelatory and fascinating insight into the working process of a genuine musical
maverick and sonic explorer.
 Over 10 years with Acid Jazz, Berry has released nine incredibly diverse albums
(including one live album). From the tangled-folk rock thickets of ‘Witchazel’ and ‘Kill The
Wolf’ (which features the song from which this release gets its name), to the out-there
explorations of ‘Music For Insomniacs’ or ‘TV Themes’’ retro-kitsch delights, through the
soul power in ‘Matt Berry & The Maypoles Live’ or the twilight grooves of ‘The Small
Hours’ to the classic pedal-steel songwriting of ‘Phantom Birds’ and the smorgasbord of
psychedelic sounds on ‘The Blue Elephant’, Berry’s journey has produced a feast for the
ears that twists and turns down more unexpected avenues than most artists could
manage over several careers.
 ‘Gather Up’ pulls together an excellent career spanning collection expertly compiled by
Berry, including non-album tracks such as ‘Snuff Box Theme’. No easy achievement
considering the sheer breadth, diversity and volume of his exceptional musical output.
















[p] 16 Music for insomniacs [Part 4]

In 2014 The Soul Santas’ first, and only, gig at a
Christmas School Fair was a roaring success, after
which they decided it couldn’t be bettered so didn’t
try. Until, that is, some rehearsal recordings were
found on a phone. These recordings inspired
‘Christmas Crackers, Volume 1’, recorded over two
days in October 2020 at Invada Studios.
 The album was released last winter digitally and is
now available on vinyl for the first time.
 Pressed on green or red vinyl. The colour isn’t
marked on the packaging so the colour received
will be a lucky dip.