Suche:to ka project

Ryuichi Sakamoto, Daniel Lanois, Loscil, K Leimer, Deaf Center, Tangerine Dream, Arvo Pärt Wake is a distillation and reflection of the work of three Portland musicians thrown, like the rest of the world, into forced isolation by the continually-mutating curse of a natural world in disequilibrium. The product of involuntarily inward-looking emotional landscapes, Wake emerged sounding surprisingly expansive and confident. The trio uses a variety of instruments –including harp, fretless bass, piano, and a variety of synthesizers– to conjure sparkling panoramas of the imagination that are deep-pooled and impressionistic, bracing yet comforting. Mike Grabarak and Joshua Ward have performed together for years as a duo under the moniker of Location Services, while Derek Hunter Wilson has primarily worked as a solo composer in the classical realm. For the Points Of No Return compilation, Beacon Sound's 50th release and a benefit for the Beirut Musicians Fund, they recorded a collaborative piece entitled "Interdependence In Solitude" that was so promising the label offered to release an album if they continued down the path they had started upon. The resulting eight songs are simply mesmerizing. Made during a period of change and upheaval in the world and society where many people were disconnected from others, the album is the product of a collage-like dialogue built on trust and patience. While the musicians couldn’t physically be together for much of this time, they began sending musical ideas to one another in a conversational back-and-forth that acted as an anchor of stability – something they found they could turn to and depend on when things felt uncertain elsewhere. This comfort zone led to some transcendent moments of experimentation. “Delicate Need”, for example, features recordings of exaggerated pizzicato that were sampled and then run back through processing effects, which were then subsequently performed live over the original track. As things became less risky on the Covid front, they would occasionally meet for backyard rehearsals. Indeed, a recording of one of these rehearsals became the basis for the opening track “Photo Aware”. Wake will be available later this summer as a limited edition LP, with design work by Berlin-based Studio Bernhardt. The cover painting was created by Portland artist Nate Ethington. Highlights: – Derek was invited by the artist Gregory Euclide (Bon Iver, Erased Tapes) to participate in his label project, Thesis, along with artists such as Benoit Pioulard, Loscil, and Julianna Barwick. – Derek‘s first and second albums as a solo artist were released by Beacon Sound (Travelogue, 2017; Steel, Wood, & Air, 2019). – Location Services likewise released their 2019 album Reincorporate on the label. – The artists plan to tour together in 2023. Cascadia release shows TBA. Bios: Location Services is the Portland-based project of multi-instrumentalist Mike Grabarek (Magic Fades) and harpist Joshua Ward. They’ve released music on Beacon Sound and Beer On The Rug. They perform both written and improvised music. Derek Hunter Wilson is a composer and multi-instrumentalist based in Portland. He has released two solo albums on Beacon Sound and has also collaborated with visual artist Gregory Euclide for his Thesis Project label, resulting in a split 10" with Spanish musician Rauelsson. He has additionally collaborated with poets Zachary Schomburg and Brandi Katherine Herrera for several sound and performance pieces. He has performed live on the West Coast and in Berlin, sharing the stage with artists such as Colleen, Amulets, and Liima.

Vessels promise an escape from responsibilities towards the landscape, they facilitate our avoidance of conscientiously feeling our attachment to the mainland. The visual nothingness of deep water and clean horizons fools the brain and delivers a treacherous feeling of independence.

We ignore the truths expressed by landscapes, so we mould them into urban projects for our strange desires. We clean up the irrationalities by which nature constructs itself. Then we look up to the skies, where the abstractions we have to draw in our minds should reside and inspire us.

We peer into the various shades of blue above the waters, the emptiness guarantees possibilities of our abstractions becoming realities. The apathetic stare into neat, straight horizons transforms our ancestral landscape into dirt and danger, when looking back to it.

To be on a ship under quarantine, is an upside down experience, for the promised escape has turned into a forced paralysis. The Lima flag (? - ? ?, in morse code), presented on the outer sleeve of this record, indirectly demands of all passengers to stay aboard and contemplate their escape from the land they now desire to return to.

These four piano pieces could be considered as a classical sonata (allegroadagio-scherzo-rondo). In a recital they are accompanied by four video pieces by artist Karl Van Welden. We picked the videos out of his extensive archive, choosing images intuitively while listening to the piano music. The theme of ships relating to quarantine thus came unannounced but of course, we were in the middle of the pandemic at the time.

Solastalgia was already waiting as a title for the new album before march 2020. I first came across the word in Underland, a book by Robert Macfarlane (2019). He defines the word as "The unhappiness of people whose landscapes are being transformed about them by forces beyond their control". These forces and this unhappiness are, I believe, what constitutes the modern human. Solastalgia, about the music We haven't found them yet, the words to talk to each other about the worrying signs of climate change. Feeling worried when walking on autumn leaves in the beginning of August should be completely normal. But how do we communicate about it? We don't want to be just the next hysterical doomer.

With this music I try to focus on the climate pain itself, gently inviting the listener to investigate their latent feelings of unease and growing concerns about the environment. As in real life, we circumvent the real issues because they are just too big, there are no words, no expressions yet.

This album tries, in four different attempts, to carve out a path towards communicating about a deeper pain that eventually will connect us all. My general method is to start with a comforting melody, full of fake nostalgia, which, after changing gear to autodestruct mode, morphs into a painful question mark.

The first part sets off with an idyllic melody, accompanied by repeated notes, as a far, muted echo of an alarm. The melody starts to explain itself painfully into a dissonant whirlwind in the high register, sounding not unlike Ravel's Gaspard de la Nuit bravura. In the second piece a warm Beatles like melody (And I love her) gets confronted with the weird hippie mantra of a later Lennon song War is over, if you want it. Sentences get reduced to syllables and result in lonely notes that crash and shiver under the burden of too much meaning. Like Shostakovich's latest work, the Sonata for viola and piano.

The descending melody of Bach's Erbarme dich, Mein Gott is echoed in the upper and lower voicings of the third piece, juxtaposed to a typical, threatening Ennio Morricone Western dotted rhythm accompaniment. This rhythm eventually evolves into citing the 1972 Captain Beefheart early ecological warning song Blabber and Smoke (there's a big pane/pain in your window, it's gonna hang you all,... dangle you all). Towards the middle of the piece, the music explodes and the three layers get dispersed all over the keyboard in a virtuosic maelstrom towards another painful question mark. The bitter answer is going back to business with a barely noticeable citation of the first notes of the RZA's Liquid Swords album.

The final piece is some kind of mantra, the same 7/4 pulse all throughout the piece. The dampers of all A's and B's on the keyboard are released by the middle pedal, thus sustaining an ever present resonance. Melodic cells alternate in shifting quantifications with small, bell like percussive cluster playing. While composing this piece an image crept up: walking out of the church on Sunday morning, tolling bells enthusiastically moderating the churchgoers' small talk in the local dialect. Apparently I have tried to evoke this kind of conversation, but injecting it with fictitious alarming conversation topics, the contemporary.

Frederik Croene (August '22)

Saib is the prolific producer and guitarist whose insatiable desire to create comes from his childhood: passionate about Bossa Nova, Japanese Anime Soundtracks, Jazz as well as old school Hip-Hop, he draws his inspiration from composers and musicians such as Yoko Kanno, Joe Pass and Nujabes. Bathing in the cosmopolitan culture of Casablanca, a melting pot at the crossroads of the two African and European continents. This diversity is a constant in his music, where groove and melody are skillfully mixed in a style inspired by the classic hip-hop productions of the 90s. Hip Hop beats form the backbone of Saib’s musical palette, as his style skips from Jazz flavors to lounge experiments and to upbeat four on the floor grooves ... and sometimes within a single track.

Saib’s hyper-productivity has allowed him to release, over the last five years, seven albums and more than a dozen EPs and singles, including releases on labels such as Chillhop Music, Cold Busted, Majestic Casual and Blue Note Records. Saib’s tracks are a regular fixture on Editorial Playlists including Spotify’s “Jazz Vibes” (2 million Likes) and “lofi beats” and have accumulated more than 500 million plays on streaming platforms.

Saib’s new LP, “Unwind” maintains the stupendous head-nodding grooviness that listeners have come to love from the young producer with a healthy added dose of Tropical and Lounge/Bossa-jazz influence. Album and single artwork done by star-Moroccan photographer Ismail Zaidy (IG: @l4artiste) who has seen his work featured in GQ Middle East, Art Basel, BASE Milano, Vogue Arabia, and has done partnerships with The Sims and Adobe. LP design work done by Jakarta label mainstay, Robert Winter. “Unwind” also includes features by Rotterdam’s ØDYSSEE and legendary Hip-Hop MC Masta Ace. Jakarta is ecstatic to share such a career-defining work, arriving digitally and physically September 16th, 2022.

The albums 1st single, “Mushroom Samba” arrives Wednesday, June 29th along with the vinyl pre-order announcement. The track is deliciously groovy, and is a perfect example of the kind of sunny, jubilant grooves to be encountered on the LP. Saib takes the lofi-expertise he’s become known for since his 2015 debut and brings a freshness to the beat-genre. The song is perfect for the onset of summer and will have you humming along to the brass refrain by the songs end.

2nd single, “Pennywise,” will be released July 13 and features legendary Hip-Hop MC Masta Ace on the album’s only vocal track. The track is a surefire splash of hip-hop that’s both nostalgic and forward-moving. Ace sounds as fresh as ever, flowing over a head-bobbing beat with lush, tropical guitar inflections. While the beat brings to mind sandy shores and sun rays, Ace’s two verses invoke skyscrapers and boomboxes, making “Pennywise” a perfect track for your summer hip-hop fix.

Saib’s 3rd single is the stunning, swirling, and utterly smooth “Cosmic Dust” with Rotterdam producer ØDYSSEE arriving August 10. Keeping with the tropical essence, the track comes and goes like waves on a beach. Soft sounds flow like water before the drums and bass wash in, building to a saxophone and piano heavy crescendo. Like the tide, the beat recedes and the track ends as gently as it began, leaving you wanting to hear it all again.

Single 4, the moody “Suave” arrives August 24 and is bossa nova at its core. What starts off with a familiar Brazilian groove quickly takes a hip-hop turn, with a smooth bass drop and crisp drums layered over bossa nova keystrokes. Warm / timeless saxophone punctuate the track, providing a mellow break between basslines and closing out the end. “Suave” is a sunny and soul-soothing fusion of bossa nova, jazz, and hip-hop, perfect for closing out the summer with.

“Unwind” is a project steeped in the beats that keep you moving and grooving but with a sonic and visual aesthetic palette that goes deeper and groovier than the surface level lo-fi artists that have proliferated in the last 5 years. Ranging from FloFilz and eevee imbued vibrations to Jonwayne-styled beats, Saib brings forth a sonic spa session that invokes a state of calm that leaves you an uplifting and energetic plateau. Dig it.

“Klangstof are conducting deliciously evil experiments on indie rock.” – Clash. Klangstof recently returned to attention with the ‘Ocean View’ EP, which was one of two projects they recorded simultaneously in 2021. Its release added to the anticipation for the bigger set that was recorded at the same time, their third studio album ‘Godspeed To The Freaks’, which will be released on September 16th. The band today launch the album by sharing its lead single ‘Disguiser’. ‘Godspeed To The Freaks’ will see the Edison Award (the Dutch equivalent to the Grammy or BRITs) winning band add to the widespread tastemaker attention that has greeted their previous two albums. It’s an album which focuses on self-reflection; finding the courage to confront your inner self and being at peace with your demons. There’s a power that comes with the acceptance that every good day might have a touch of darkness to it. And in a further contrast to the electronic-orientated 2020 set ‘The Noise You Make Is Silent’, this record is focused primarily upon the warmth of its live instrumentation and the intuitive interplay between the band members. Remarkably, the bulk of ‘Godspeed To The Freaks’ was recorded in just two weeks. The trio - Koen van de Wardt, Wannes Salomé, and Erik Buschmann - were boosted by the addition of their touring guitarist Wouter Van Nienes and channelled the energy of their live show, an approach further amplified by recording in a temporary studio in De Bolder, a music venue on the tiny Dutch island of Vlieland. Klangstof essentially rehearsed, recorded and produced the core of the record themselves in that serene environment, giving them a bubble of freedom amidst a world in chaos. Any outside input only followed later, with additional mixing by Sam Petts-Davies (Radiohead, Frank Ocean) and mastering by Heba Kadry (Björk, Slowdive, Big Thief). The album campaign’s visual aesthetic features band portraits courtesy of the iconic photographer and director Anton Corbijn. His timeless photography includes shoots for R.E.M., U2 and Nick Cave, while Nirvana, Metallica and Depeche Mode lead his numerous renowned music videos. He is also a feature-length film director who is best known for the Ian Curtis / Joy Division biopic ‘Control’. Klangstof will play several European shows this summer as guests to Pixies, including Manchester’s Castlefield Bowl on July 5th. They will again link up with Pixies in December for a tour of Australia and New Zealand.

On new record For The Birds, Atlanta-based Neighbor Lady expand the
boundaries of their country-kissed indie rock sound to encompass an
elegant style of lush and textural guitar pop sprinkled with, as songwriter
and vocalist Emily Braden puts it, with "reverb and magic
" Full of gorgeous top- line melodies, spirited rock hooks, and Braden's richly
emotive vocals (and plenty of twang), For The Birds takes a kaleidoscopic
approach to genre. The record features everything from catchy alternative
("Penny Pick It Up") and starry- eyed country ("I'm With You") to straightforward
indie rock ("Scared") and ambient- indebted otherworldly pop ("Haunted").
Neighbor Lady began as Braden's solo project, but is now a four-piece consisting
of Braden, guitarist Jack Blauvelt, bassist Payton Collier, and drummer Andrew
McFarland. The band recorded For The Birds with Jason Kingsland (Kaiser Chiefs,
Band of Horses, Belle & Sebastian) at Diamond Street Studios in Atlanta and it
was mixed by Noah Georgeson (Andy Shauf, Cate Le Bon, Devendra Banhart,
Joanna Newsom.) Though For The Birds is hallmarked by big sonic flourishes
and brave moments of experimentation, the overall feeling is one of intimacy —
four people in a room, making music together; fitting for a group of musicians
who say they feel less like a band and more like a family. "This record came out of
a lot of love and hard work and us caring so much about the music and each
other," says Braden. "And that's pretty much what we're about."

Rhythm master Klaus Weiss knew he had a good thing going with NIAGARA. The first album was a gathering of every outstanding drummer and percussionist he could get hold of and despite the fact that there were only rhythm instruments featured , it became quite a memorable and unique record. Now for the second album “S.U.B.” he felt he had to go other ways, and recorded with a complete rock outfit plus the one or another brass instrument. ‘S.U.B.’ is definitely worth being traded for 180,00 Euros and more among collectors for a clean original and when the needle hits the groove you will realize why. There is a tightly woven web of rhythms from drums and percussions, as the solid and ever pulsating base with a laid back but really present bass guitar adding more depth and power to the beats and clean rhythm guitars with a nifty wah wah effect for the extra kick. From time to time the guitars fire off a memorable steaming riff on top of the rhythm pulse and the horns answer the call for arms. You really have to look at the backcover to find out that this is a German outfit instead of one of these utterly hot and hip US funk rock cult bands of the time. NIAGARA aka Klaus Weiss waive the vocals so it is an instrumental record you face with ‘S.U.B’, but then this band goes so wild in some of the compositions, that you will be left breathless on your knees by all these simmering performances. Each musician participating in this project is a professional, but they all let the music erupt into a climax of sound you can only achieve, when you put your whole heart and soul into it. A masterpiece of funky and utterly unleashed rock music from the early 70s.

Sanna Mun debuts on her imprint, Katabasis, with a three techno cut EP (vinyl & digital).

Sanna Mun is an interdisciplinary artist based in Berlin. Her approach to production is inspired by her work as an archaeologist, using digital modeling and field recordings of ancient sites to extract their psychoacoustics. Sanna's multifaceted sound ranges from ambient to mental and classic techno. Her sense for organically evolving motifs drives her live sets, which resolve to induce a state of meditation. Sanna's music has already received support from O Phase, Developer, and other mainstay techno names.

Katabasis started out as an experimental techno event at Sameheads in Neukolln, Berlin in collaboration with local musicians and visual artists. The vision behind the project is to springboard underrepresented artists reinventing minimal, hypnotic and early techno. Its name and imagery derive from Western esotericism, rooted in Sanna's experience as an archaeologist specializing in occult sciences. The label's first release features tracks exploring Pythagoras' musica universalis, planetary frequencies informed by her studies with Luz Peuscovich.

Presenting a brand new vinyl compilation featuring artists from the electic Funkiwala label – from Brasillian Afrobeat to Bengali Funk to Indo-Cuban-Nigerian Jazz to European Jazz Soul to traditional Baul Myticism - 3 newly released tracks by Phil Dawson, Cubafrobeat and Lokkhi Terra, with other tracks previously released digitally or on CD only - "if further proof were needed that London is a hotbed of cross-culturally inspired expression, it's new record label Funkiwala"Evening Standard

1. QUE BELEZA - Phil Dawson feat Nina Miranda and the +2s (Domenico, Moreno and Kassin)

A funky version of a Tim Maia classic from the legendary 'Racional' period. Guitarist Phil Dawson grooving with Brasillian musicians Moreno Veloso, Domenico Lancelotti and Kassin Alexandre (the +2s), vocalist Nina Miranda and co-producing with Marco Dalle Luche

2. ON A SUMMERS DAY - Archie the Goldfish -

A project co-led by trumpet player Graeme Flowers and guitarist Chris Bestwick. This track is a nod to the great Miles Davis electric albums of 50 years ago, taken from a 5-track EP "Water & Light' incorporating elements of jazz, drum & bass, funk and hip hop (released in 2021)

3. ENI AGEE - Cubafrobeat -

Formed out of the collaboration between London fusionistas LoKkhi TeRra ("probably the worlds best Cuban-Afrobeat-Bangladeshi group"Songlines) and UK's Afrobeat Ambassador Dele Sosimi ("A true legend"Clash), Cubafrobeat was initially the name of their critically acclaimed album from 2018 (" A total Stonking Blinder"All About Jazz). This has evolved naturally into an entirely new musical beast – and this is their first single.

4. HARMONIUZINHO - Lokkhi Terra

Taken from their debut CD album "No Visa Required" (2010), this is one of the tunes that put Lokkhi Terra on the map. Recorded in Kishon Khan's home studio the track captures the beginning of this London band's journey.

5. KANDE REVISITED - Lokkhi Terra

This a reworking of Lokkhi Terra's version of a classic Bangla Folk song written by Hason Raja. Maintaing the spirit of unique sound clashes, the track combines a typical London Afro Funkiness with the sublime Bengali vocals of Aneire Khan, Sohini Alam and Aanon Siddiqua. The original version was released on their 2012 CD album "Che Guava's Rickshaw Diaries".

6. NUORACLE - Justin Thurgur

Originally released as a digital single, this release from Justin Thurgur, composed in collaboration with Kishon Khan, is a Cuban Jazz track that features driving Timba bass lines and Afrobeat inflected horns and is a nod to the Nuyorican Latin Jazz scene of the '50's, '60's and '70's, which has been a big inspiration to them.

7. EU TOPO - Beiju

Beiju is the combined work of two unique practictioners: Firstly, Adma Macedo Newport from Salvador da Bahia, a singer who has integrated the great Afro-brazilian musical traditions of her native city with that of those she's lived in on her travels. Secondly, Phil Dawson, a London-based guitarist and music writer who has collaborated with many stylistic originators internationally, including those from all four corners of Africa. .

8. SHADHO KI RE AMAR - Shikor Bangladesh All Stars

Taken from their debut album "Soul of Bengal" - This Folk super group is made up of legendary session musicians from Bangladesh. This track features the late great Baul Rob Fakir and is written by the great mystic, Baul Lalon Shah, whose songs are still be found throughout the Bengal today.

2022 Repress

Second Woman is the collaborative project featuring Turk Dietrich of Belong and Joshua Eustis of Telefon Tel Aviv.
Josh and Turk have been friends for over 17 years, having met in New Orleans in the late '90s through mutual friend and future collaborator, Charlie Cooper. The duo have been working on music together on and o since that time.
The concept of Second Woman began with the idea of taking tropes from footwork, dub, house, and techno, and twisting these ideas into something kaleidoscopically liberated from the grid. Their work first materialized with two LP's and an EP on John Elliott and Peter Rehberg's Spectrum Spools.
Second Woman tweak the perception of time and space within the audio field into something ASMR-inducing and ultimately satisfying to listen to. Both Josh and Turk experience ASMR in response to certain rhythms and sounds, and e ort was made to incorporate these triggers into the music, hopefully for other people to experience as well.
With Apart / Instant, Second Woman present their signature sound as well as a new, more measured dimension to their work.

Aidan Baker is a classically-trained multi-instrumentalist using the electric guitar as his primary instrument. Using prepared and alternate methods of playing the guitar, along with various electronic effects, Baker creates music which generally falls within the ambient/experimental genre but draws on influences from rock, electronic, classical, and jazz. A highly prolific artist, Baker has released numerous recorded works, both solo and with various group projects - most notably the duo Nadja - on such independent labels as Karlrecords, Important Records, Southern Lord, and his own imprint, Broken Spine Productions. Baker is also the author of several books of poetry. A regular live performer, Baker has toured extensively around the world, including appearances at such international festivals as FIMAV, SXSW, Incubate, Unsound, and Mutek, among others. Originally from Toronto, Canada, Baker currently resides in Berlin, Germany. Recorded mid-pandemic, Songs of Undoing cannot help but have a sort of mid- or post-apocalyptic overlying concept, lyrically dealing with themes of exodus and travel / wandering, self-reliance, the weight of history...with pointed references to two post-apocalyptic, societal / environmental collapse novels, Octavia Butler's "Parables of The Sower" and Kate Wilhelm's "Where Late The Sweet Birds Sang." Musically, the songs move between minimal slowcore and a sort of textural noise-rock or what might be called deconstructed grunge, taking influence from artists like Lungfish, American Analog Set, PJ Harvey, and Stina Nordenstam.

Glenn Astro and Hulk Hodn (to some known as mighty Hodini) release their new full-length record “Ghosts” via Kommerz Records on August 26th.
Producers Astro & Hodn‘s first joint album “Turquoise Tortoise” in 2018 combined uptempo beats, hiphop and spaced out lo-fi slow jams effortlessly. On “Ghosts” the duo develops their exploration of new
aesthetics even further through synthesized soundscapes and numerous collaborations with young talent from all over the world. Artists such as Danish neo soul discovery AGGi, King Krule collaborator Gal Go, Kamohelo from Studio Barnhus band Off The Meds, Berlin-based voice experimentalist Yosa Peit and many more deep dived into the collaboration and transformed the album into a sonic multiverse.
New Release Information
Glenn Astro and Hulk Hodn are connected through a long lasting musical friendship. With their Detroitinspired house releases they gained wider recognition by critics and listeners alike. Nevertheless,
they’ve never been one dimensional artists. Berlin-based Glenn Astro‘s diversified approach to production as showcased on labels such as Ninja Tune and Tartelet bridges the gaps between ambient, hip-hop, techno and bass.
Meanwhile Cologne‘s Hulk Hodn gained the status of a German underground hip-hop legend. Through his records and shows with rapper Retrogott he gathered a cult-like following besides dropping high quality projects with other beat makers such as Hubert Daviz and Twit One and rappers such as Eloquent. Most recently he dropped the instrumental LP “Sparklez” on Sichtexot sub Casual Low Grind.

New Zealand-based, award-winning duo TRUTH are champions of contemporary dubstep. Back with their first studio album in over 4 years, TRUTH unveil the second and final single taken from Acceptance. The mystical title track from the LP “Acceptance” is due for release Friday, July 2 via Deep Dark & Dangerous.

Following a long, quarantined year and a string of heavily-trafficked Twitch streams, TRUTH is now back in full effect with ‘Acceptance’ - their 5th album. Combining their razor sharp synchronization and innovative flair, this 13-track opus is a dreamlike journey through lush basslines, eerie rhythms, and vintage synths. At the heels of “Pages,” the widely-celebrated lead single from the album, TRUTH unveils the album’s namesake and title track “Acceptance.” A brilliant follow up to its predecessor, “Acceptance” is at once technical, ethereal, and deeply affecting. A psychedelic musing that encompasses the kaleidoscope fractals of sound that make up the album, “Acceptance” is a cornerstone of the project it belongs to.

After Dinner’s Paradise of Replica is a concise nugget of tomfoolery that occupies a whimsical no man’s land between art pop, Japanese folk music and full-assed Art Zoydian avant proggery. Gentle, arcane and covertly sweeping, it typifies that friendly strain of experimentalism that Eastern music seems so predisposed towards and which curious minds find such great delight in.

Assembled by the enigmatic chanteuse and composer known simply as Haco, After Dinner was less a band and more of a loose art collective that utilized a plurality of different musical disciplines stapled together through free improvisation sessions. And some of this does come through on Paradise of Replica—the record is a scrapbook of bells, strings and koto humming under Haco’s ethereal vocals, and the effect, while perfectly tuneful, does come off more as a musical project than a conventional album.

But Paradise of Replica is far from an impenetrable scholastic endeavor—in fact, there’s something of an Elephant 6-like quality in its ability to warp conventions while still coming off more or less like pop music. Counter to the ramshackle hostility of much improvised music, After Dinner’s choices are melodious and feel deliberately sequenced. Even crescendos don’t tend to rise above a murmur, and there are even apparent hooks on tracks like “A Walnut” and “Ironclad Mermaid.”

Ultimately, there’s not much to be said about Paradise of Replica that can elucidate more than actually hearing it will be able to. Proggy, playful and lush, it’s a brief glimpse into something in the vicinity of genius, and just outside the realm of commercial music. It’s a quietly bold project that shows a softer side of the avant-garde, and makes a perfect companion to Stereolab and Magma at once.

New Darius album, featuring Wayne Snow, Kadhja Bonet, Benny Sings...

After the release of his last EP "OASIS (Prelude) on Roche Musique, Parisian producer Darius reveals his second album "OASIS" with the powerful track "EASE YOUR MIND". A groovy dancing track reminiscing of his early trademark electro dance sounds with catchy R&B lead from Devin Tracy. The acclaimed and certified artist is now ready to unveil his new project, teased since the release of the +10 Million streams "EQUILIBRIUM" in 2020.

2022 repress, 45 rpm
incl. download code

Second Woman is a new collaborative project featuring Turk Dietrich of Belong and Joshua Eustis of the renowned Telefon Tel Aviv. As one would imagine, Second Woman is a nonpareil debut of futuristic electronic music fusing the coveted genetics of the duos respective previous endeavors into an alluring new enigma of ASMR-inducing kaleidoscopic dub. Second Woman is a fully realized entity; a well-crafted sound world and a refreshing shared effort which is inspiring in its purity and painstaking in its design.

The opening "100407jd7" wastes no time exhibiting mastery in both sound and structure, contorting the frequency spectrum into a psychoactive mirage with its mutating tectonics and vaporous tone clouds. Cuts like "200601je6" and "700358bc5" are bar-raising examples of veteran craftsmanship and vision, refining and reengineering the blue prints of their early works to create an original and dynamic album. The deliberation and control over every particle is obsessive, but the end results of each individual track unfold with an organic temperament unparalleled in a grid-locked world of DAW shaped musics and rat's-nest modular aleatory. Words fail where essential sonics are concerned, and this vital new creation speaks for itself.

When Rey Sapienz was eight years old, the Democratic Republic of Congo was plunged into the Second Congo War. The conflict last five years and was the bloodiest since World War II, leaving an indelible mark on East Africa and creating mass displacement and loss of life. But Sapienz endured, cutting his teeth as a young rapper at twelve, first performing to celebrate Congo's independence day. When he finished school, he headed to nearby Kampala to hone his craft and collaborate with local producers. But civil war broke out back home and he was forced to extend his stay in Uganda. Since then, Sapienz has established himself as a force to be reckoned with, co-founding the Hakuna Kulala label, teaching his Ableton Live skills to Kampala's young producers and releasing two acclaimed EPs. For his debut album, Sapienz embarks on an ambitious project that travels beyond the avant beatscapes of his early material. Alongside traditional percussionist, vocalist and dancer Papalas Palata and rapper Fresh Doggis, he has formed The Congo Techno Ensemble, utilizing their skills and experience to offer a statement that speaks to the past, present and future of the DRC. On "Eza Makambo", the trio channel rich musical traditions and historic tension, evolving electronic and traditional forms into boundless sci-fi mutations. The track breaks open the stories all three artists accumulated in the DRC, augmenting radioactive techno-dancehall beats with radical, open-hearted words and rhymes. "Eza Makambo" is a heady cocktail of stylistic futurism and harsh reality that could be compared with Zizou Bikaye's seminal "Noir et Blanc or Danis Mpunga & Paul K.'s genre-breaking electronic experiments. But marked by the DRC's recent scars, it's a critical work that stands painfully alone.

Alexandra Sauser-Monnig and Amelia Meath have been yodeling together for upwards of fifteen years – in the backseat of a Prius while on their first cross-country tour, on back porches and backstages. It’s what led them to Fruit, their debut release as The A’s – a joyous ten-song collection spanning genre and decades, with interpretations of traditionals, lullabies, and an original song, it weaves between the weird and the wonderful. “Why I’m Grieving,” originally recorded by the DeZurik Sisters, was the inspiration for the A’s existence. The A’s reach into the past to hold hands with the DeZurik Sisters, two farm girls from rural Minnesota who taught themselves to yodel amongst all their animals, in a continuing celebration of the tradition of folk eccentricity and whimsy. The A’s played their first show together in 2013 after Sauser-Monnig first moved to North Carolina, where Meath had been living at the time, but it wasn’t until summer 2021 that they thought seriously about making Fruit. They decamped to Sylvan Esso’s Chapel Hill studio, Betty’s, for two weeks in the midst of a balmy and blooming Carolinian summer. They rehearsed during the day, deconstructing yodeling parts phonetically and staring absurdly into each other’s eyes as they practiced tongue twisting harmonies - and recorded in the nighttime, candles lit, a flickering glow against the windows framing the violet twilight outside. “There was a lot of giggling during the session,” Sauser-Monnig explains. “At one point I was getting a tangle out of my hair and was like, oh, my God, that sounds really cool – the sound of my hands in my hair. And then I thought, what if we recorded hair for a percussion track? And then it just sort of snowballed.” Across the record, the A’s employ a bizarre-o ghost orchestra of strange noises that are percussive and melodic. The credits include nylon shorts, string (singular), hair, shoes, ice chunk, gravel, frog sample, and shoelace, among other unexpected makeshift instrumentation. The backing band is built out by a more traditional group of players: saxophone from Sam Gendel on “Copper Kettle,” backing vocals from Jenn Wasner (Flock of Dimes, Wye Oak) on “When I Die,” string arrangements from Gabriel Kahane on “He Needs Me,” and more. Fruit is made up simply of songs the A’s love to sing – there are lullabies and love songs; “He Needs Me,” written by Harry Nilsson and first released by Shelley Duvall in the 1980 Popeye film; traditional ballads like “Swing and Turn Jubilee,” “Copper Kettle” and closer “Buckeye Jim,” a multiplying song about frogs and nature. The sole original track to appear on the album is the penultimate “When I Die,” written by Meath. It contains both wishes and instructions for the celebration of her death, a low synth bubbling beneath Sauser-Monnig and Meath’s voices. It’s a collection of ten seemingly incongruous songs, but with the throughline of Sauser-Monnig and Meath’s vocals and sense of humor working in tandem, they fit together into a cosmic yodeling-folk masterpiece. Fruit feels like blowing the dust off a precious artifact of decades past, but also winking and modern. Sauser-Monnig sums up their ethos on the project succinctly: “If it doesn’t make you cackle or cry, it doesn’t belong.”

Following several tragedies in his personal life, New York rapper El Gant had a decision to make—face those losses head on or bury them deep within. Luckily for us, he chose the former. The result is O.S.L.O., the emcee’s most gripping and personal project yet. It’s also his most relatable, because it shows what we’re all capable of when we’re equipped with the right tools to cope and, in El Gant’s case, transform that tragedy into something powerful.

The album arrives nearly a decade after his previous solo effort, 2014’s great Beast Academy, and after several years spent touring and recording with his group, Jamo Gang, with Ras Kass and J57. Despite the highs associated with that time, El Gant also experienced major personal losses. In particular, he lost three close friends—The Last Original, Bones, and Jim Misa—all of whom had a major impact on his life and career. In fact, the album’s title, O.S.L.O., references the Last Original, because it’s an acronym for “Our Sun the Last Original.”

But it wouldn’t be an El Gant project without some straight-up dope hip-hop, too. Tracks like “Avirex (feat. Innocent? & King Magnetic)” and “Chromed Out (feat. Ras Kass & Planet Asia)” are absolute bangers filled with shape-shifting flows and crazy wordplay.

There’s a reason for these tonal shifts, too; El Gant didn’t want to simply create a linear album. “I want to take the listener on a few ups and downs, just like life does for most of us,” the emcee says. It’s those qualities that make O.S.L.O. so immediately satisfying, and why it’s his most accomplished work to date.

This mega-rare 1969 album pays tribute to the Bronx and Brooklyn neighborhoods where young Latinos had invented the boogaloo a few years earlier. This record highlights the quality of Peruvian boogaloo and the talent of musicians such as pianist Otto de Rojas and percussionist Coco Lagos. First time reissue. In the mid-sixties, when young Latino musicians in New York fused Afro-Cuban rhythms with rock, soul and jazz, they had no idea that their boogaloo bang bang would reverberate just as strong and loud in a distant South American country. From 1955, La Sonora Macedo, took Cuban music to every corner of Peru, backed the leading musicians of the Peruvian tropical universe, such as Ñiko Estrada, Joe di Roma, the double bass player Pepe Hernández, and the trumpet players Tito Chicoma and Charlie Palomares. All diehard fans of Cuban music, always alert to any new artist arriving from the island. In the early sixties, light rock, doo-wop, ballads, Italian songs and bossa nova paraded across Lima's stages, making performances by Cuban bands, previously so frequent, a thing of the past. Moreover, the unanimous success of the Beatles from 1964 onwards, gave the impression that music from the English-speaking world would dominate the rest of the decade. But this was not the case. In large part because of Manuel Guerrero's good relations with U.S Latino labels, such as Alegre Records, which released the initial recordings by Johnny Pacheco and Charlie Palmieri, allowing listeners in Lima to follow the development of the salsa movement almost from the beginning. MAG was undoubtedly the best representative of these new sounds. In 1969, the LP "Acabo con Lima, huyo pa' Nueva York" was released on this label, a project which brought together three figures from Lima's show business world: Manuel Antonio Guerrero, owner and founder of MAG, who wasn't shy of joining in on the chorus and percussion during recordings, Pablo Villanueva "Melcochita", a multifaceted artist from a talented musical family from the popular district of La Victoria, was responsible for the vocals and percussion on the album. And the third Lima show business figure in this project was the musician, singer and comedian Alberto Montroy Laostervened, who gained fame in the sixties while still in his twenties for his imitation of Cantinflas, the Mexican actor. Alberto bore a devilish resemblance to Cantinflas, not only in his gestures but also physically. Under the name of Pepe Moreno "Karamanduka" he also went on to record songs abroad such as "El boogaloo de Cantinflitas". "Acabo con Lima, huyo pa' Nueva York" was immediately re-released in other countries, highlighting the quality of Peruvian boogaloo and talent of musicians such as pianist Otto de Rojas and percussionist Coco Lagos, who feature prominently on the album. Songs such as 'Vuela mi descarga', 'Peruvian boogaloo' and 'Peruvian guajira', pay tribute to the Bronx and Brooklyn, neighborhoods where young Latinos had invented the boogaloo a few years earlier.

"Art is awe, art is mystery expressed," writes Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith. "Art is somatic, even if it is experienced cerebrally. It is felt." The central mysteries of Smith's ninth studio album, Let's Turn it Into Sound, have to do with perception, expression, and communication: How can we communicate when spoken language is inadequate? How do we understand what it is we're feeling? How do we translate our experience of the world into something that someone else can understand? For Smith, a self-described "feeler," the answers are inspired by compound words in non-English languages, translation, sculptural fashion, dance, butoh, wushu shaolin, and other forms of sensory and somatic experience. Just like fashion uses lines, shapes, colors, textures, and silhouettes to communicate on a sensual level separate from the conscious mind, Let's Turn it Into Sound strives to use sound to communicate what words alone cannot. "The album is a puzzle," Smith says. "It is a symbol of receiving a compound of a ton of feelings from going out into a situation, and the song titles are instructions to breaking apart the feelings and understanding them." The energized "Is it Me or is it You" comes from traversing the gaps between how you see yourself and how another might see you, through a filter of their own projections. The hushed sense of revelation that brackets "There is Something" refers to the feeling of walking into a room and being subconsciously aware of the dynamic present. All the while, Smith interprets these feelings through sound. This auditory interpretation process, driven by earnest curiosity, led Smith to record some thoughts and questions that popped up along the journey in Somatic Hearing_a booklet which accompanies the album. Over three frenzied months, recording alone in her home studio, Smith allowed herself to pursue new experiments to accompany her usual toolkit of modular, analogue, and rare synthesizers (including her signature Buchla), orchestral sounds, and the voice. She created a new vocal processing technique, and gave herself permission to pursue a pacing that felt intuitive, rather one that followed typical song structures. She walked around in the windiest season with a subwoofer backpack and an umbrella, listening to the low end of the album amidst 60mph gusts. She listened to herself, and, in doing so, to an inner community which suddenly opened to her. Underlying the album is a dynamic relationship between what Smith describes as six distinct voices, each a multifaceted storyteller. By acknowledging these characters, she was acknowledging her whole being: the woven plurality of self, the complex process of noticing and resolving inner conflicts, and the joy of finding harmony in flux. "I started to feel so embodied by all of these characters. This is all the felt, unsaid stuff my inner community wants to communicate but it doesn't have the English language as its form of communication, and so this album was a form of giving space to let it talk and not judge it and just let it play." By not adhering to expected song structures, each song feels even more like a conversation, with each character getting to express themselves in full.

"Art is awe, art is mystery expressed," writes Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith. "Art is somatic, even if it is experienced cerebrally. It is felt." The central mysteries of Smith's ninth studio album, Let's Turn it Into Sound, have to do with perception, expression, and communication: How can we communicate when spoken language is inadequate? How do we understand what it is we're feeling? How do we translate our experience of the world into something that someone else can understand? For Smith, a self-described "feeler," the answers are inspired by compound words in non-English languages, translation, sculptural fashion, dance, butoh, wushu shaolin, and other forms of sensory and somatic experience. Just like fashion uses lines, shapes, colors, textures, and silhouettes to communicate on a sensual level separate from the conscious mind, Let's Turn it Into Sound strives to use sound to communicate what words alone cannot. "The album is a puzzle," Smith says. "It is a symbol of receiving a compound of a ton of feelings from going out into a situation, and the song titles are instructions to breaking apart the feelings and understanding them." The energized "Is it Me or is it You" comes from traversing the gaps between how you see yourself and how another might see you, through a filter of their own projections. The hushed sense of revelation that brackets "There is Something" refers to the feeling of walking into a room and being subconsciously aware of the dynamic present. All the while, Smith interprets these feelings through sound. This auditory interpretation process, driven by earnest curiosity, led Smith to record some thoughts and questions that popped up along the journey in Somatic Hearing_a booklet which accompanies the album. Over three frenzied months, recording alone in her home studio, Smith allowed herself to pursue new experiments to accompany her usual toolkit of modular, analogue, and rare synthesizers (including her signature Buchla), orchestral sounds, and the voice. She created a new vocal processing technique, and gave herself permission to pursue a pacing that felt intuitive, rather one that followed typical song structures. She walked around in the windiest season with a subwoofer backpack and an umbrella, listening to the low end of the album amidst 60mph gusts. She listened to herself, and, in doing so, to an inner community which suddenly opened to her. Underlying the album is a dynamic relationship between what Smith describes as six distinct voices, each a multifaceted storyteller. By acknowledging these characters, she was acknowledging her whole being: the woven plurality of self, the complex process of noticing and resolving inner conflicts, and the joy of finding harmony in flux. "I started to feel so embodied by all of these characters. This is all the felt, unsaid stuff my inner community wants to communicate but it doesn't have the English language as its form of communication, and so this album was a form of giving space to let it talk and not judge it and just let it play." By not adhering to expected song structures, each song feels even more like a conversation, with each character getting to express themselves in full.

Clear Vinyl
2022 repress, ltd. edition of 300 copies, 45 rpm
incl. download code

Second Woman is a new collaborative project featuring Turk Dietrich of Belong and Joshua Eustis of the renowned Telefon Tel Aviv. As one would imagine, Second Woman is a nonpareil debut of futuristic electronic music fusing the coveted genetics of the duos respective previous endeavors into an alluring new enigma of ASMR-inducing kaleidoscopic dub. Second Woman is a fully realized entity; a well-crafted sound world and a refreshing shared effort which is inspiring in its purity and painstaking in its design.

The opening "100407jd7" wastes no time exhibiting mastery in both sound and structure, contorting the frequency spectrum into a psychoactive mirage with its mutating tectonics and vaporous tone clouds. Cuts like "200601je6" and "700358bc5" are bar-raising examples of veteran craftsmanship and vision, refining and reengineering the blue prints of their early works to create an original and dynamic album. The deliberation and control over every particle is obsessive, but the end results of each individual track unfold with an organic temperament unparalleled in a grid-locked world of DAW shaped musics and rat's-nest modular aleatory. Words fail where essential sonics are concerned, and this vital new creation speaks for itself.

Mice Parade returns from a decade of silence to release lapapọ, an album that spans the many styles of their storied career,and features guest singer appearances by Angel Deradoorian (Dirty Projectors) and Arone Dyer (Buke & Gase). The rock is louder; the West-African-inspired highlife breaks are chubbier; the dueling drumkits are more complex, the instrumental passages more serene. What started as a home recording project in the late 90s soon morphed into a formidable and completely unique live band of incredible musicians from around the globe, all live-mixed and effected by legendary UK engineer Brandon Knights (aka Dub Warrior), the longtime sound engineer for Lee Scratch Perry, Soul II Soul, Gladiators and others. After 9 albums and nearly 15 years years of worldwide touring, including festivals across the UK, Iceland, mainland Europe, Turkey and Japan, and supporting Stereolab across the US, Mice Parade fans can finally hear some new music, and the live band hopes to safely reunite later this year. Throughout it all, Adam has mostly recorded with same ethos: allowing only one take for each track, forcing him to either leave in mistakes or address them with mutes or distractions, and embracing the Bob Ross concept of 'happy accidents.' This was a strict rule for the first several albums, and while he eventually became less strict about it, it's still a goal that is achieved more often than not. Perfection is not the goal - indeed, there should be no such thing in music. Most songs are not even written before pressing the record button, but instead are built piece by piece in improvised fashion. lapapọ is a Yoruba word meaning something akin to "totally" or "altogether."

• 180 GRAM AUDIOPHILE VINYL
• INCLUDING PRINTED INNERSLEEVE
• 4-PAGE BOOKLET WITH LYRICS AND PICTURES
• 2019 ALBUM FEATURING ELEW, ERIC HARLAND, KASSA
OVERALL AND JAMAICAN SINGER CHRONIXX
• MASTERED & MIXED BY GRAMMY AWARD WINNING
PRODUCER BOB POWER (D’ANGELO, ERYKAH BADU)
• LIMITED EDITION OF 750 INDIVIDUALLY NUMBERED
COPIES ON TRANSLUCENT BLUE COLOURED VINYL

Star People Nation is a project described by Theo Croker himself as an intimate exploration of “the everyday rituals of blackness”. A translation of his personal, spiritual and creative experience, the album is a self-reflective collection of powerfully passionate and boundary-busting compositions that speak to our greater, shared human existence. The album features jazz pianist ELEW on “The Messenger”, which is a great combination of a smoky blues piano with a traditional swing rhythm, locking into the pocket and showcasing Croker’s mastery of the swing.

Star People Nation is available as a limited edition of 750 individually numbered copies on translucent blue coloured vinyl. The vinyl package includes a printed innersleeve and 4-page booklet with lyrics and pictures.

Runhild Gammelsæter and Lasse Marhaug are two Norwegian musicians/sound artists. Both started in the early 1990s music underground and have worked in many constellations with a wide range of collaborators.

Despite knowing each other for a long time, Gammelsæter and Marhaug’s first collaborative work was the “Quantum Entanglement” LP in 2014. The album ignited a collective spark that both wanted to pursue further. Still, other commitments got in the way, and the project lay dormant until Stephen O’Malley, and Greg Anderson invited them to open for Sunn O))) for a special gig in the St. James Church of Culture in Oslo in the autumn of 2019. The two gathered for a long series of rehearsals, and after the successful performance, it was clear that it was time to start working on new compositions and recordings. That process initiated in late 2019 and continued to early 2021, encompassing before and after the world went through the lockdown. The result of this long development to be heard accumulated upon their new album “Higgs Boson” on Ideologic Organ Music.

Throughout the profound process of creating “Higgs Boson”, Gammelsæter and Marhaug drew inspiration from various subjects and artists. For Marhaug, it was concepts informed by the structuralist experimental cinema of Japanese directors Takashi Ito and Toshio Matsumoto, futurist worlds of French comic book artists Philippe Druillet and Jean Moebius Giraud, landscape photography of Fay Godwin, Kåre Kivijärvi, and Tamiko Nishimura, amongst others.

It became a metaphysical juxtaposition involving Gammelsaeter’s research and lyrical ideas based on several seemingly unrelated principles. A process of association inspired by “the Glass Bead Game” by Herman Hesse. The discovery of the Higgs Boson as a confirmation of the physical universe. The work of Ernst Schrödinger on the uncertainty principle. The four forces of physics. The Force. Helplessness under armed forces - as the war sailors in World War II. The influence of magic as expressed in tarot.

Gammelsæter experiments with a boundary involving the thresholds amongst various states of focus and legibility by forensic experimentation with techniques such as exclusive expression of consonants, syllabic repetition, retrograde text vocalisations and multi-lingual layering. Her vocal inspirational sources include Sidsel Endresen, Diamanda Galas, Natacha Atlas, the choral works of Rachmaninov, and the bands Carcass and Grave.

Two worlds coming together, making the music special. Mixing hard facts with science fiction helps create a kaleidoscopic cross point between the complex realities of the past and a possible future.

“Quantum Entanglement” featured two long-form pieces centred around a prepared piano and layered voice, while “Higgs Boson” developed a much more elaborate and ambitious compositional work. Across eight parts, the two artists brought a broad palette of instrumentation and sound. Electronic and acoustic, objects and field recordings, and pipe organ define the structures of which the centre is Gammelsæter’s magnificent voice. She has become known for her legendary voice, with her vast and unique range of inflective techniques and affective colour through her 30 years creating music. In the mix, Lasse approached the instrumental elements like landscapes, then Runhild’s vocals as characters that inhabit those worlds. Often, Gammelsæter multiple characters fused with the landscape. Make them occupy space, sometimes blend into it, sometimes dominate it. Constructing and setting visual guidelines helps set focus and open possibilities.

As an album, “Higgs Boson” is direct and focused, drawing on song structures. Within these tracks are vast strata of sound, an immersive multi-dimensional depth of music. Creating a feeling of depth while working with a flat two-channel stereo format - and how dimensions of texture and distortion can help develop the illusion of a space. The album structure is a story-like arc, a malleable subjective path, set as the album traverses oblique and suggestive areas, opening the concepts for the listener to unpack as they like.

– exclusive consultation with Gammelsæter & Marhaug, edited by Stephen O’Malley, June 2022

UK label Dawn State continue their hot streak this summer with further eclectic moods for the dance floor and beyond. On the tools for the fifth outing on the label is KIDWHO, a blossoming talent who through the last years whilst enduring the pandemic found light by burying himself in his studio experiencing new creative flows. The “Warez House” EP varies in tastes, similar to the highs and lows of the times that just passed us by.

Diving into the deep end is the title track, “Warez House”, loopy and hypnotic, swaying between shades of low end leaned house and techno. Off kilter synths and pads maneuver their way around the driving force of the track. “It came together layer by layer, eventually turning into a dense (and at times, unruly!) groove. A final touch
of atmospherics from an old Roland ROMpler and the track was done - bar a generous helping hand in mixdown from Joel Kane (who also turned out a heads-down dub version which might make an appearance!).”

Leaning in a more hazy direction is the blissful cruiser, “Leploop Lagoon”, a deep and emotive vibe crafted especially for the early mornings. A sophisticated deep house energy from the talented producer. “‘Leploop Lagoon’ is the oldest track on the EP, a cleaned-up version of a rough jam I made around four years back. It takes its name from the Leploop, a quirky semi-modular analogue groovebox of sorts, hand-built in Italy. A very unique and unpredictable machine, it’s on bass duties here as well as providing some percussion sounds via the MPC sampler.”

On the flip side lies “Spectral Pattern”, and it packs a certain punch. The rolling arrangement converses in harmony with icy hi-hats that flash in and out teasing the energy, all of the elements having space to breathe and work their magic.“‘Spectral Pattern’ came together quickly one very productive weekend in the studio last year. It developed from the bass sequence, which comes from a Yamaha TG-33, an unassuming 80s digital synth known for its glassy mix of ROM samples and FM tones - very New Age sounding, or 90s computer game soundtracks. But when you strip it back to basics, it punches hard in the low-end.”

Slipping on to the B side is a five minute transcendental trip, offering yet another series of textures to this otherworldly EP. The final track “At Least We Hav Music” is an ethereal soundscape waiting to be explored, wandering amongst ambient realms throughout. “The label was keen to include an ambient track on the release, and I wanted to record something specially for them. At first I had in mind something droning and melancholic, but after a few experiments with cassette
loops and reverb pedals this was the one that stood out. It was recorded during one of the lockdowns, and I guess I needed to create something that sounded more hopeful than brooding. I messaged DS boss Tom Haus with a rough version, and we went on to have a grumble about the gloomy state of things, locked-down in our respective cities and missing friends, family, activities… At some point I wrote ‘at least we have music’ - and almost as soon as I had sent it I knew I had found the track’s title. I’m very lucky to have had my home studio as a refuge through the long months of lockdown, and I’m honoured to have the chance share some of my output from this period on this record.”
KIDWHO fitting the Dawn State ethos to a tee here as they set up shop for what looks to be another fantastic release. “Each of these tracks came about in quite different ways. Like many creative people, I had moments of struggle during the pandemic, where the lack of variety and day-to-day stimulation lead to periods of writer’s block, and so I used those times to focus on smaller, more manageable projects such as making synth patches, recording sounds and and throwing together short loops in my samplers for later use. A number of
these short loops eventually laid the foundations for title track ‘Warez House’. Big thanks to Dawn State, Joel Kane, El Choop and everyone else who has helped make this happen.” -

KIDWHO

Rediscover the anthems of the French Electronic Scene in a double vinyl With : Bob Sinclar, Mr. Oizo, Dj Gregory, St Germain, Guts, Soha, Laurent Garnier, Stereo Action Unlimited, Kid Loco, Vitalic, Superfunk, Thylacine, Gotan Project, Agoria ...














m 2.5 Cheek - Venus (Sunshine People) DJ Gregory Remix

‘Reich’s music expands from minimalist austerity to more full-bodied passages and back again. Reminiscent of his earliest work, it is very beautiful.’ – Financial Times

‘The music has tender energy, and an undercurrent of melancholy. Its droning tones sometimes seem to be pulling apart – like taffy, or like Richter’s stretching spaghetti stripes of color.’ – New York Times

Nonesuch Records releases the first recording of Steve Reich’s Reich/Richter, performed by Ensemble intercontemporain and conducted by George Jackson. The composition was originally written to be performed with German visual artist Gerhard Richter and Corinna Belz’s film Moving Picture (946-3).

Reich describes Richter’s book Patterns, which served as source material for the film: “It starts with one of his abstract paintings from the ’90s. He scanned a photo of the painting into a computer and then cut the scan in half and took each half, cut that in half and two of the four quarters he reversed into mirror images. He then repeated this process of ‘divide, mirror, repeat’ from half to quarter, eighth, sixteenth, thirty-second, all the way up to 4096th. The net effect is to go from an abstract painting to a series of gradually smaller anthropomorphic ‘creatures’ (since the mirroring produces bilateral symmetry) to still smaller very fine stripes.

“Belz described the film in terms of ‘pixels’. It begins with two-‘pixel’ stripes and the music begins with a two-sixteenth note oscillating pattern. When the film moves to four ‘pixels’, the music moves to a four-sixteenth note pattern, then to eight, and sixteen,” the composer continues. “After that, I began introducing longer note values – initially eighth notes, and later to quarter notes. By the middle of the film, when the images move from 512 to 1064 pixels, the music really slows to dotted half notes. Finally, as the ‘pixel’ count begins to diminish, the music moves back into more rapid eighths and then ending with the most intense rapid sixteenth movement.”

After more than one hundred performances of Reich/Richter at The Shed in New York in 2019, it was performed in London at the Barbican by the Britten Sinfonia conducted by Colin Currie and then in Paris at the Philharmonie, where this recording was made. The Austrian ensemble Windkraft Tirol, led by Kasper de Roo, will perform Reich/Richter on September 8 at Szentrum, Silbersaal in Schwaz, and the LA Phil New Music Group, led by Brad Lubman, performs the piece, accompanied by Richter and Belz’s film, at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles on April 1, 2023.

Nonesuch has recorded every new piece of music by Steve Reich since 1985, beginning with The Desert Music and continuing through 2018’s Pulse/Quartet, resulting in twenty-two albums and the two box sets Phases in 2006 and Works: 1965-1995 in 1997. The label will put out a collection of his complete works in 2023.

Reich released a book last month, Conversations, that includes dialogues with past collaborators, fellow composers, musicians, and visual artists who have been influenced by his work, including: David Lang, Brian Eno, Richard Serra, Michael Gordon, Michael Tilson Thomas, Russell Hartenberger, Robert Hurwitz, Stephen Sondheim, Jonny Greenwood, David Harrington, Elizabeth Lim-Dutton, David Robertson, Micaela Haslam, Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker, Julia Wolfe, Nico Muhly, Beryl Korot, Colin Currie, and Brad Lubman. Booklist said in its review, ‘Iconoclastic American composer Steve Reich is singular in his own right, and when he is in conversation with other equally iconoclastic composers, conductors, sculptors, musicians, percussionists, and video artists, sparks not only fly, they sparkle. Reich and his colleagues conduct lovely give-and-takes during which they share stories, creative approaches, and viewpoints. Reich's Conversations is the best kind of eavesdropping.’

Steve Reich has been called ‘America’s greatest living composer’ (Village Voice), ‘the most original musical thinker of our time’ (New Yorker), and ‘among the great composers of the century’ (New York Times). His music has influenced composers and mainstream musicians all over the world. Music for 18 Musicians and Different Trains have earned him two Grammy Awards, and in 2009, his Double Sextet won the Pulitzer Prize. Reich’s documentary video opera works – The Cave and Three Tales, done in collaboration with video artist Beryl Korot – have been performed on four continents. His recent work Quartet, for percussionist Colin Currie, sold out two consecutive concerts at Queen Elizabeth Hall in London shortly after tens of thousands at the Glastonbury Festival heard Jonny Greenwood (of Radiohead) perform Electric Counterpoint followed by the London Sinfonietta performing his Music for 18 Musicians.

In 2012, Reich was awarded the Gold Medal in Music by the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He has additionally received the Praemium Imperiale in Tokyo, the Polar Music Prize in Stockholm, the BBVA Award in Madrid, and the Golden Lion at the Venice Biennale. He has been named Commandeur de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres and has been awarded honorary doctorates by the Royal College of Music in London, The Juilliard School, and the Liszt Academy in Budapest, among others. ‘There’s just a handful of living composers who can legitimately claim to have altered the direction of musical history and Steve Reich is one of them’, states the Guardian.

Pierre Boulez founded the Ensemble intercontemporain in 1976 with the support of Michel Guy (who was France’s Minister of Culture at the time) and the collaboration of Nicholas Snowman. The Ensemble’s thirty-one soloists share a passion for twentieth and twenty-first century music. Under the artistic direction of Matthias Pintscher, the musicians work in close collaboration with composers, exploring instrumental techniques and developing projects that interweave music, dance, theater, film, video and visual arts. In collaboration with IRCAM (Institut de Recherche et Coordination Acoustique/Musique), the Ensemble intercontemporain is also active in the field of synthetic sound generation. New pieces are commissioned and performed on a regular basis. Resident of the Cité de la musique – Philharmonie de Paris, the Ensemble performs and records in France and abroad, taking part in major festivals worldwide.

George Jackson, winner of the 2015 Aspen Conducting Prize, came to attention after stepping in at short notice with Orchestre de Paris, where he stepped in for Daniel Harding. Recent highlights include leading Ensemble intercontemporain at Festival Romaeuropa, the Rainy Days Festival in Luxembourg, and Festival D’Automne in Paris, as well as conducting the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra, the orchestra of Opéra de Rouen and the world premiere of Tscho Theissing’s Genia with Theater an der Wien. His varied operatic experience includes performances at Opera North, Hamburg State Opera and Opera Holland Park, as well as conducting a new production of Hänsel und Gretel at Grange Park Opera.

Back in 2016, producer Seth Applebaum released two EPs that marked the inauguration of the band Ghost Funk Orchestra. `Night Walker' and `Death Waltz' were conceived as one-man-band, reel-to-reel tape recorded experiments that would bring together elements of all the sounds that Seth most adored at the time: tape-saturated drums, gratuitous spring reverb, surfy guitar, Latin-style percussion, odd time signatures, and Spanish-language female vocals. Initially released only in the digital domain and on a short run of cassette tapes, these two EPs that defined the early era of GFO are now finally available together on a single LP via Colemine Records. The tracks have been lovingly remastered by Doug Krebs. We invite you to take a dive into the humble beginnings of a project that has continued to grow, shape shift, and accrue new and exciting sounds for its sonic palette.

After 20 years of a restful sleep, the legendary Icelandic house label has been resurrected. Three deep cuts exhibiting what is in store for the year 2022.

It begins with "Can Ride", a neo-disco anthem from former resident Justin Simmons. Nifty groove with an acid-bassline - topped with all the razzle and dazzle that is needed to get the dancefloor moving.

The flipside starts with a proper minimal percussion-driven groove from Kate & Joan, a side-project of Dole & Kom from the renowned label BCC music. The Detroit-influenced dub house anthem will, without a doubt, be a useful tool for any DJs to get the crowd going.

The second cut on the B-side is from a Reykjavik-based beatmakers Oh Mama. Its wild style sample-based approach caught the label's attention and the result is a worthy debut vinyl release. Hypnotic, sexy and groovy - with a big and dirty bassline.

DJ Feedback

Raresh:
"Super thanks for this! Will play again the Kate & Joan track, so nice to hear it remastered! Much love from Bucharest."

Roger Gerressen:
"Great quality as always :) thanks for sharing."

Andrei Tripmastaz:
"The tribe is my fave"

Rick Hopkins:
"Once again thank you for the promo. Love it. All 3 cuts essential for any discerning lover of sounds from the deep!"

Andy Green:
"Thanks for sharing - this is a sweet versatile VA EP. The Kate & Joan track chugs sweetly along underneath the skippy percussion. Good tool to bridge house and techno vibes. I'm especially fond of the Laugardalur track Oh Mama with its wobbly, slightly sinister bassline that still works at both ends of the pitch fader."

Ben Btndk:
"Oh yes!! That B1 has been on my wish-list for ages!!"

Dotan Bibi:
"Really good house vibes over here! My favorite is the A2 thanks a lot for sending."

New version on Solar Orange Vinyl. RIYL: Slowdive, DIIV, Electric Youth, The Cure, My Bloody Valentine. Solo project of Los Angeles based Matthew Doty (ex-Saxon Shore). For Matthew Doty, Deserta has always been about exploring a sonic universe that allows him to express a kaleidoscope of emotions, without having to say much at all. Through a patchwork of reverb-tinged textures – drone guitars, lingering synths and driving percussion – the Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist weaves together stories of care, frustration and catharsis that ultimately stretch to a gentle resolve. On new album Every Moment, Everything You Need, Doty chronicles the kind of year we all fear, full of uncertainty, tension and sustained pressure, and transforms it into a celebration of perseverance. It’s an essential reminder that we have the power to shape the stories we tell. The pandemic meant that Doty had to give up his studio and downsize a lot of his gear and instead, carve out a space in his two-bedroom apartment to craft the next chapter of Deserta. Sharing the space with his wife and son, Doty and his partner are also essential healthcare workers, which meant the couple would often have to tag-team childcare, along with 13-hour shifts in PPE and people constantly calling with questions about the ever changing guidelines and protocols. Once the blueprint for Every Moment, Everything You Need was set, Doty reached out to a number of collaborators to stitch together his vision for the sonic landscape. James McAlister (Sufjan Stevens, The National, Taylor Swift) came onboard to perform and record drums, while Caroline Lufkin (Mice Parade) wrote and performed vocals on the ethereal “Where Did You Go.” Elsewhere, the LP was mixed by Dave Fridmann (Tame Impala, Mogwai, Interpol), with Beach House and Slowdive producer Chris Coady engineering and co-producing, making this the first time Fridmann and Coady had worked together on a project. While the vocals are more prominent than Deserta’s previous albums, it’s their amalgamation with the instrumental aspects that secures Every Moment, Everything You Need as Deserta’s most confident and assured release to date. An affecting emotional candor teamed with persistent riffs and tenacious rhythms sees Doty unafraid to dive deeper; an unrestrained approach that ushers in a lustrous purging of agitation and anxiety. Showcasing those dark, exhaustive thoughts through crucial swells and looped, electronic soundscapes, it’s an LP that’s infinitely layered, with something new to discover with each and every enchanting listen.

“Irreverent and playful” MOJO // “...an utterly distinctive, mental world.” The Financial Times // “From keening ballads to haunting waltzes, Paradise has never seemed stranger” Shindig // “There’s a buoyancy to even the most lacerating lines now, a liberating relief in pressing on” Uncut // Way back when, before the pandemic, and before the release of Alex Rex’s last album Paradise escaped the confines of lockdown, Alex Neilson took a break from the road and set about putting together a record of poems extracted from the collapsed goldmine of his brain. Returning to his experimental roots, Mouthful of Earth’s cutting and oft heart-wrenching stanzas are set to music largely from underground legends Alastair Galbraith, Richard Youngs and Alex’s cult experimental drone record Belsayer Time (originally released on Time Lag Records in 2006. This is the first time that this music has ever been made available digitally). And for one track, Alex reunites with ex-Trembling Bells mucker Lavinia Blackwall for some free-form experimental jazz, reminiscent of the more psychedelically unhinged moments of Cammell/Roeg´s Performance soundtrack. To quote Stuart Maconie’s sleeve notes for the record, “One of the first things I learned about Alex’s musical imagination and modus operandi was a joy in collaboration, and Mouthful Of Earth continues in a tradition that has seen him work with many kindred spirits across many genres; Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy, Current 93, Jandek, Kan Mikami, Shirley Collins, Six Organs of Admittance, Josephine Foster and Baby Dee. The list is disparate and stellar, the results are always interesting and alive.” Continuing in the spirit of collaboration, Mouthful of Earth’s words and music are accompanied by a digital book of drawings by Kent-based visual artist, musician and art psychotherapist, Benjamin Prosser (Insta: @benjaminprosser). These are not so much literal illustrations as reactions. The combination of poems and visuals works a suite of haunted vignettes, dense with bleak humour and hallucinatory images. “The phantom hand of a lover pressed over the mouth of your mother” / “the whole gurning universe” / “the collapsed farmhouse of my mouth”. Mouthful of Earth is both visceral and corporeal, flecked with blood, sweat and beers. Or as Alex puts it "a continuous project of describing the human spirit pushed to the point of crisis”. Mouthful of Earth finds beauty in scarring and peace in torment. It’s both an assault and a balm of sorts. Life, says Neilson “is not a golden arc / It's a bent aerial / connected to a vast and terrible machine/operated by a child”. But listen hard and you will also hear beauty… “The song of yourself, roaring like a cloud, explicable only by light”. With sleeve notes by BBC Radio presenter and author Stuart Maconie, Mouthful of Earth is released on limited edition vinyl (300 copies only) and digitally via Neolithic Recordings. Reminiscent of his early work with Trembling Bells, and again featuring Lavinia Blackwall on vox, the track is a red herring; a nod towards a lighter shade of darkness.

DoomCannon presents a meticulously crafted debut album ‘Renaissance’ available on a 12” LP vinyl, CD and digital formats on 15th July 2022. Journeying through an awakening and reimagining of the young Black British experience. Sequentially moving through a rich breadth of soundscapes, ‘Renaissance’ signifies the birth of a new era in DoomCannon’s trajectory. Inspired by an accumulation of experiences over the past four years and defined by significant events like the global pandemic to the worldwide outcry of the Black Lives Matter movement in the summer of 2020.

The album has garnered early support from Gilles Peterson & Tom Ravenscroft at BBC 6Music, Jazz FM, Worldwide FM, NTS, Rinse France, FIP, Radio Nova plus features on Spotify & Apple. Almost 130K combined streams on Spotify alone for his first two singles ‘Amalgamation’ & ’Times (feat. Lex Amor)’.

DoomCannon spearheaded a plethora of forward-thinking, improvised Jazz-inspired outfits (Project Karnak, Triforce) and is the Musical Director of award-winning vocalist, Celeste, performing live at the Brit Awards and Later with Jools Holland. He presented his solo project at Abbey Road Studios & was selected via Jazz Re:freshed as part of the SXSW/ British Council collaboration. Invited to curate sessions at the legendary Ronnie Scotts, DoomCannon is set to hit numerous stages, including his debut headline show at Peckham Audio, the Worldwide Awards, World Island Festival & We Out Here this Spring/Summer.

Within Melbourne's cinematic soul scene sit the The Pro-Teens. Helmed by prolific drummer Hudson Whitlock (Karate Boogaloo, Surprise Chef), this breakaway studio project involves an interchangeable collective of incognito instrumentalists playing under outlandish pseudonyms such as 'Dead Honest' Dean Amazing and Libby Clique-Baite.

This release presents two iconic MF DOOM tracks reinterpreted by The Pro-Teens. It follows breakout album Snooch Dodd & The Pro-Teens - I Flip My Life Every Time I Fly (College Of Knowledge/Mr Bongo), which received BBC 6 Music's Album Of The Day. This is the second 7" single of The Pro-Teens' MF DOOM tribute material, following 2021's Peachfuzz b/w One Beer, taken from forthcoming full-length album tribute to MF DOOM.

Support from BBC6 Music, NTS, KCRW Morning Becomes Eclectic, Worldwide FM.

Brown vinyl LP. For the first time ever released on vinyl, this brilliant 2012 LP features an all-star cast of musicians and actors lead by Tim Robbins, Dr. John, Bill Frisell, Ralph Steadman, Annie Ross, John Joyce III and Will Forte.

Hunter S. Thompson's classic Gonzo reportage on the 1970 Kentucky Derby is summoned brilliantly to life through spoken word and musical composition. Conceived by executive producer Michael Minzer for his Paris Records label, the project was produced by Hal Willner, who brought Bill Frisell in as composer/arranger/conductor. Bill then assembled a stellar group of musicians including Curtis Fowlkes (trombone), Ron Miles (trumpet), Eyvind Kang (viola), Doug Weiselman (woodwinds), Jenny Scheinman (violin), Hank Roberts (cello) and Kenny Wolleson (drums, percussion).

Ralph Steadman does double duty portraying himself in the narration and contributing original artwork for the project. In 2021, Kramer re-Mastered the original audio for this historic re-release on limited-edition 'Horse-Shit Brown' vinyl for his Shimmy-Disc label.

The LP ‘All Welcome on Planet Ree-Vo’ due for release on 29th July could only really have been made in one city steeped as it is in Bristol’s decades of less conventional hip hop and bass music. Tweaked and fine tuned during the summer of 2020 the record punches with a mix of red eyed paranoia to a playful future funk.
The album was all recorded, produced and mixed by Andy at Christchurch Studios, Bristol (home of Mezzanine era Massive Attack) with all vocals written and performed by T. Relly.
During 2021 the first two singles from the LP were released. The first was the juggernaut that is ‘Groove With It’. T. Relly growling out polemic against the relentless cacophony spun by Andy Spaceland, The brutality of the bass and horns is temporarily smoothed with Relly’s soulful, swaggering placation of ‘Turn your speakers on/ Till ya speakers blown baby/ If you’re feeling strong baby/ We can keep it going baby’.
This was followed in April by the 12” release of Combat featuring a thumping remix by Surgeon (Tresor Records) and an extended electro remix by Ree-Vo themselves.
2022 began with the limited red 7” release of remixes by NØISE and Batbirds with stunning original artwork by Shepard Fairey who came to the project via mutual friend Joe Cassidy (Butterfly Child). The release was announced on OBEY’s website
‘Spacebox’ which will be the last single to be released in time with the album is their hookiest, a party throwing chorus spinning tipsy visitors around the intergalactic control booth of mission control.
“Lift off, blast off, shirt off, dance off! Naked in the dancehall SPACE BOX!” is the beamed mantra, Relly transmitting to all occupants of the galaxy.
“We wanted to make a hedonistic and colourful dancehall track, a bold response to the suppressive circumstances of the last two years”.
About Ree-Vo:
T. Relly​ is pure Bristol hip-hop royalty – known in the community variously for his links to all of the city’s major club nights, his passion and support for the most disadvantaged (through his work with the youth and prison leavers), through to compering stages at St Paul’s Carnival and his seminal 2018 LP with DJ Rogue ‘Let Them Know’. He collaborates with many crews including Innalife and Killer Crab Men.
Andy Spaceland​ (AKA Andy Jenks) got involved in Bristol bass music as soon as he moved to the city with Static Sound System​ and a collaborative 12” with Rudy Tambala (​AR Kane​) as Sugarboat Vs Sufi, before his band ​Alpha​ were signed to ​Massive Attack​’s label Melankolic, whilst he also became one of their tour DJ’s. His CV of collaborations range from ​Smith and Mighty​ to Madonna. He has released music on Dj Die’s label, Gutterfunk as White Bully and he is also currently releasing music with US producer ​Butch Vig​ in the band ​5 Billion in Diamonds​, whilst working on new tracks with ​Mark Stewart (The Pop Group) including remixes by Adrian Sherwood. His signature sound can also be heard on this remix for ​Elizabeth Fraser​ -

The LP ‘All Welcome on Planet Ree-Vo’ due for release on 29th July could only really have been made in one city steeped as it is in Bristol’s decades of less conventional hip hop and bass music. Tweaked and fine tuned during the summer of 2020 the record punches with a mix of red eyed paranoia to a playful future funk.
The album was all recorded, produced and mixed by Andy at Christchurch Studios, Bristol (home of Mezzanine era Massive Attack) with all vocals written and performed by T. Relly.
During 2021 the first two singles from the LP were released. The first was the juggernaut that is ‘Groove With It’. T. Relly growling out polemic against the relentless cacophony spun by Andy Spaceland, The brutality of the bass and horns is temporarily smoothed with Relly’s soulful, swaggering placation of ‘Turn your speakers on/ Till ya speakers blown baby/ If you’re feeling strong baby/ We can keep it going baby’.
This was followed in April by the 12” release of Combat featuring a thumping remix by Surgeon (Tresor Records) and an extended electro remix by Ree-Vo themselves.
2022 began with the limited red 7” release of remixes by NØISE and Batbirds with stunning original artwork by Shepard Fairey who came to the project via mutual friend Joe Cassidy (Butterfly Child). The release was announced on OBEY’s website
‘Spacebox’ which will be the last single to be released in time with the album is their hookiest, a party throwing chorus spinning tipsy visitors around the intergalactic control booth of mission control.
“Lift off, blast off, shirt off, dance off! Naked in the dancehall SPACE BOX!” is the beamed mantra, Relly transmitting to all occupants of the galaxy.
“We wanted to make a hedonistic and colourful dancehall track, a bold response to the suppressive circumstances of the last two years”.
About Ree-Vo:
T. Relly​ is pure Bristol hip-hop royalty – known in the community variously for his links to all of the city’s major club nights, his passion and support for the most disadvantaged (through his work with the youth and prison leavers), through to compering stages at St Paul’s Carnival and his seminal 2018 LP with DJ Rogue ‘Let Them Know’. He collaborates with many crews including Innalife and Killer Crab Men.
Andy Spaceland​ (AKA Andy Jenks) got involved in Bristol bass music as soon as he moved to the city with Static Sound System​ and a collaborative 12” with Rudy Tambala (​AR Kane​) as Sugarboat Vs Sufi, before his band ​Alpha​ were signed to ​Massive Attack​’s label Melankolic, whilst he also became one of their tour DJ’s. His CV of collaborations range from ​Smith and Mighty​ to Madonna. He has released music on Dj Die’s label, Gutterfunk as White Bully and he is also currently releasing music with US producer ​Butch Vig​ in the band ​5 Billion in Diamonds​, whilst working on new tracks with ​Mark Stewart (The Pop Group) including remixes by Adrian Sherwood. His signature sound can also be heard on this remix for ​Elizabeth Fraser​ -

Bloodywood from India are the hottest new band in the Metal-genre. Millions of followers online and a growing fanbase! The self-released debut “Rakshak” finally released as a proper vinyl edition!

Formed in 2016 as a fun band, Bloodywood from New Delhi, India are the hottest metal band right now! They bring everything you need in 2022: aggression, global ideas, visionary views, politically correct behavior and standing up for minorities from all walks of life. The band around the three heads Jayant Bhadula, Karan Katijar and Raoul Kerr managed to break into the international charts on their own and gathered an incomparable fan following. What started out six years ago with Bollywood and Linkin Park-covers has grown to a size that's expanding by the day. Bloodywood fans can now be found all over the world, millions of people have heard their songs and watched their videos, the wave can no longer be stopped. Now the debut “Rakshak”, which the band self-released in early 2022, is finally out on vinyl! In the summer of 2022 they will storm the European festivals, make their point in the USA in September and return to play their long-awaited clubtour through Europe, which was postponed due to the pandemic, at the beginning of 2023. Tickets are already running low. In a year at the latest everyone will know who Bloodywood is. Tom Morello (Rage Against The Machine) already knows it and has drawn his fans' attention to the Indian metallers with a tweet: "Rocking!" he calls the Indian sensation. Among other things, the musicians are involved in animal welfare and social projects and use traditional Indian instruments such as the tabla, dhol or bamboo flute. They mix it with rough thrash metal, urban rap vocals (English/Hindi/Punjabi) and rock-hard grooves. That creates a lot of uproar, at times sounds like open street fighting and, despite the regional references, has an absolutely international level. Especially since moderate sounds also find their place on “Rakshak” (Hindi for “protector”), as can be heard from the tracks 'Zanjeero Se' and 'Jee Veerey'. Bloodywood definitely deliver Linkin Park-standards here and even open themselves up to target groups that are less metal-savvy. The majority of this album rages like an unleashed tropical storm ('Dana-Dan', 'Chakh Le') is decked out with an impressively rabid force and hardly allows the listener any breaks. This mix is what makes it so successful: the album entered the Billboard charts, making them the first Indian metal band to do so.“Rakshak“ was also successful on Bandcamp, where it topped the platform's album sales upon release and was ranked as the 22nd best-selling new release of all time (as of March 2022) and the 3rd best-selling metal release. Rock for a rebellion that will be unstoppable!

Bloodywood from India are the hottest new band in the Metal-genre. Millions of followers online and a growing fanbase! The self-released debut “Rakshak” finally released as a proper vinyl edition!

Formed in 2016 as a fun band, Bloodywood from New Delhi, India are the hottest metal band right now! They bring everything you need in 2022: aggression, global ideas, visionary views, politically correct behavior and standing up for minorities from all walks of life. The band around the three heads Jayant Bhadula, Karan Katijar and Raoul Kerr managed to break into the international charts on their own and gathered an incomparable fan following. What started out six years ago with Bollywood and Linkin Park-covers has grown to a size that's expanding by the day. Bloodywood fans can now be found all over the world, millions of people have heard their songs and watched their videos, the wave can no longer be stopped. Now the debut “Rakshak”, which the band self-released in early 2022, is finally out on vinyl! In the summer of 2022 they will storm the European festivals, make their point in the USA in September and return to play their long-awaited clubtour through Europe, which was postponed due to the pandemic, at the beginning of 2023. Tickets are already running low. In a year at the latest everyone will know who Bloodywood is. Tom Morello (Rage Against The Machine) already knows it and has drawn his fans' attention to the Indian metallers with a tweet: "Rocking!" he calls the Indian sensation. Among other things, the musicians are involved in animal welfare and social projects and use traditional Indian instruments such as the tabla, dhol or bamboo flute. They mix it with rough thrash metal, urban rap vocals (English/Hindi/Punjabi) and rock-hard grooves. That creates a lot of uproar, at times sounds like open street fighting and, despite the regional references, has an absolutely international level. Especially since moderate sounds also find their place on “Rakshak” (Hindi for “protector”), as can be heard from the tracks 'Zanjeero Se' and 'Jee Veerey'. Bloodywood definitely deliver Linkin Park-standards here and even open themselves up to target groups that are less metal-savvy. The majority of this album rages like an unleashed tropical storm ('Dana-Dan', 'Chakh Le') is decked out with an impressively rabid force and hardly allows the listener any breaks. This mix is what makes it so successful: the album entered the Billboard charts, making them the first Indian metal band to do so.“Rakshak“ was also successful on Bandcamp, where it topped the platform's album sales upon release and was ranked as the 22nd best-selling new release of all time (as of March 2022) and the 3rd best-selling metal release. Rock for a rebellion that will be unstoppable!

In the Beginning (Vol. 2) continues the treasure trove of the early works of Declaime & Madlib, the longtime collaborators who helped usher in a new sound and style from the city of Oxnard, Calif. This collection is brimming with previously unheard tracks from this beyond-creative duo that blends hip-hop with funk, jazz, soul, and psychedelia to lay the groundwork for so many other emcees and producers.

For Declaime (a/k/a Dudley Perkins), this series serves as a way to honor his friends and the city that raised them. He shouts out names like The Almighty Metaphor (aka MED), Oh No the Disrupt, DJ Romes, Kazi, and more, who he says “created a lane for the city of Oxnard to get the recognition it deserves.” Some of them make an appearance in one form or another on this collection, too—Romes, for example, mastered the project—that compiles 10 previously lost tracks that were recorded from 1993 to ‘96.

In The Beginning (Vol. 2) is entirely produced by Madlib, who provided all the cuts as well. His instrumentals are on that raw and dusty vibe as they move freely through genres and sounds, like on standout cuts “Bandwagon,”WLIX,” and “Signs (feat. Wildchild).” Those are all highlights for Declaime, too, and they demonstrate his ability to blend his observations of the world with bravado and third-eye insights. Even as young kids just getting their feet wet in the studio, these two were firmly on their path.

Organic sounds, eclectic compositions and infinite grooves – we’re proud to present our very first label compilation BEATS LIKE SUMMER, Vol. 1. Composed of 17 instrumental tracks that circle HipHop, Jazz, RnB and Soul, this project is a journey through different soundscapes. It unites some of the finest beat makers and instrumentalists from around the world, including Kiefer, K, Le Maestro, DAO, Saltyyyy V, Shuko, agajon and many more. Artwork by GABE and Alex Plesovskich. Creative Direction by Robert Winter.

Limited edition LP release with inside out sleeve, main artwork embossed, sticker on the back!

It’s the desire to celebrate their sonic bounty that first got Oberst and the band excited about
the idea of comprehensive reissues. But this wouldn’t be a Bright Eyes project if a moment
devoted to appreciating the past weren’t turned into an opportunity to connect with the future.
That’s where the companion EPs (on Opaque Gold vinyl) come in. Or as Oberst puts it, “the
supplemental reading” for the primary reissues: one six-track EP per reissued album, each
featuring five reworked songs from that album. “My thing was they had to sound different from
the originals, we had to mess with them in a substantial way.” Plus one cover that felt “of the
era” in which that particular albums was made - a song that meant something to the band at
the time. To help the EPs come alive in the fullest way, Bright Eyes called in lots of old friends,
like Bridgers, M. Ward, and Welch and Rawlings, as well as new ones like Katie Crutchfield of
Waxahatchee.
 ‘Fevers And Mirrors’ is pressed on Merlot Wave coloured double vinyl

It’s the desire to celebrate their sonic bounty that first got Oberst and the band excited about
the idea of comprehensive reissues. But this wouldn’t be a Bright Eyes project if a moment
devoted to appreciating the past weren’t turned into an opportunity to connect with the future.
That’s where the companion EPs (on Opaque Gold vinyl) come in. Or as Oberst puts it, “the
supplemental reading” for the primary reissues: one six-track EP per reissued album, each
featuring five reworked songs from that album. “My thing was they had to sound different from
the originals, we had to mess with them in a substantial way.” Plus one cover that felt “of the
era” in which that particular albums was made - a song that meant something to the band at
the time. To help the EPs come alive in the fullest way, Bright Eyes called in lots of old friends,
like Bridgers, M. Ward, and Welch and Rawlings, as well as new ones like Katie Crutchfield of
Waxahatchee.
‘Fevers And Mirrors’ is pressed on Merlot Wave coloured double vinyl.

It’s the desire to celebrate their sonic bounty that first got Oberst and the band excited about
the idea of comprehensive reissues. But this wouldn’t be a Bright Eyes project if a moment
devoted to appreciating the past weren’t turned into an opportunity to connect with the future.
That’s where the companion EPs (on Opaque Gold vinyl) come in. Or as Oberst puts it, “the
supplemental reading” for the primary reissues: one six-track EP per reissued album, each
featuring five reworked songs from that album. “My thing was they had to sound different from
the originals, we had to mess with them in a substantial way.” Plus one cover that felt “of the
era” in which that particular albums was made - a song that meant something to the band at
the time. To help the EPs come alive in the fullest way, Bright Eyes called in lots of old friends,
like Bridgers, M. Ward, and Welch and Rawlings, as well as new ones like Katie Crutchfield of
Waxahatchee.
‘Fevers And Mirrors’ is pressed on Merlot Wave coloured double vinyl.

On new record For The Birds, Atlanta-based Neighbor Lady expand the
boundaries of their country-kissed indie rock sound to encompass an
elegant style of lush and textural guitar pop sprinkled with, as songwriter
and vocalist Emily Braden puts it, with "reverb and magic
" Full of gorgeous top- line melodies, spirited rock hooks, and Braden's richly
emotive vocals (and plenty of twang), For The Birds takes a kaleidoscopic
approach to genre. The record features everything from catchy alternative
("Penny Pick It Up") and starry- eyed country ("I'm With You") to straightforward
indie rock ("Scared") and ambient- indebted otherworldly pop ("Haunted").
Neighbor Lady began as Braden's solo project, but is now a four-piece consisting
of Braden, guitarist Jack Blauvelt, bassist Payton Collier, and drummer Andrew
McFarland. The band recorded For The Birds with Jason Kingsland (Kaiser Chiefs,
Band of Horses, Belle & Sebastian) at Diamond Street Studios in Atlanta and it
was mixed by Noah Georgeson (Andy Shauf, Cate Le Bon, Devendra Banhart,
Joanna Newsom.) Though For The Birds is hallmarked by big sonic flourishes
and brave moments of experimentation, the overall feeling is one of intimacy —
four people in a room, making music together; fitting for a group of musicians
who say they feel less like a band and more like a family. "This record came out of
a lot of love and hard work and us caring so much about the music and each
other," says Braden. "And that's pretty much what we're about."

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‘Cranes In The Sky,’ was originally written by Beyonce’s baby sister Solange alongside Raphael Saadiq, for her album back in 2016 that was cited by Rolling Stone as one of the most important 500 records of all time. The words exploring a fearless journey inward, pulling up the root of a problem, and the first glimpse of blue sky after the storm has passed.

Fast forward to 2022 - Ross Allen and Andy Thompson’s Foundation Music Productions enlist the expertise of Baltimore club legend, Dj Oji, together with Tracy Hamlin (Pieces Of A Dream), to take Solange’s breakout delivery to the dancefloor. Soulful vocals will heal you, while the mid-tempo moments will mellow the masses, and UK Funky grooves will keep the shuffle moving along way into the early hours. Three remixes come in the form of the ethereal DJ Pope Funkhut Reprise, a signature Joe Goddard groover and the Star One. KDA. Meltdown Dub.

DJ Feedback:

FRANCOIS K
Yes! I played the vocal version the other day again.

KAI ALCE
Dope re-interpretation from Baltimore stalwarts OJI, POPE & Tracy!

GREG WILSON
What's not to like? Love the orig Solange jam!

DANNY KRIVIT
Nice, I like a lot of DJ Oji.

SOUL CLAP/ ELI GOLDSTEIN
Fire right here

DAZ I KUE/ BUGZ IN THE ATTIC
Yea I love this one…cool vibes.

THATMANMONKZ
Oh yeah, love the Solange original, and I’m a big Oji fan! That reprise version might come in very useful for the right set!

TERRY FARLEY/ FAITH
Got to be contender for single of the month with that story x

HOT TODDY
Simply beautiful.

CRAIG SMITH/ 6TH BOROUGH PROJECT
Loved the original of this from Solange a few years back, this is a real nice interpretation of it. Liking the reprise and Dub, handy tools

CHARLES WEBSTER
Nice soulful groover. Like this.

FISH GOO DEEP/ GREG DOWLING
Lovely re imagining of one of my favourite tracks of all time

FRANK BOOKER
Love this package. Reprise mix is the one for me. Very cool!

NICK V/ LA MONA
Thanks a lot I actually prefer the dub version :)

JIMPSTER/ FREERANGE
Killer groove on this and really nice to hear a housed up version of Cranes which is such a stunning song in it’s OG form. Def something I’d like to play out.

FELIX JOY/ SWU.FM
Yes ! I flippin love a good reprise mix and this one is doing it for me. Love the original version by Solange and this is a really great rework!

STEVE PARRY / FOR SASHA
Really Smoove love it.

GROOVE ARMADA/ TOM FINDLAY
THIS IS LOVELY!!

RALPH SESSION/ HALF ASSED RECORDS
Wow the dubstrumental really gives it new life.

QUENTIN HARRIS
I love this package.

GRAME PARK/ THE HACIENDA
This is tremendous

HECTOR ROMERO/ DEF MIX
Good to see this one got picked up. I’ve played this a few times since 2018 but will get it back in rotation. Glad to see this song is getting some traction. I look forward to the unreleased versions.

ANDY BUCHAN
What a sun-dappled slice of beauty! Full support on this, what a gorgeous EP. And those drums are ace, really propulsive.

DANIELLE MOORE/ CRAZY P
Yeah I really like this. I mean I love the original but theres something quite interesting about this. Nice yeah x

MARC MEISNERE/ SOL POWER SOUND
Yes please! Can’t wait to play this one!

STEFANO TUCCI/ HELL YEAH
This is one of the best best vocal of recent times, I love It, the crescendo towards half of the track is nothing but gorgeous!

TREVOR FING/ GRAFITTI KINGS
Love these remixes.

MAX P/ HELL YEAH
Yeah, full pack is what I needed !

HORSE MEAT DISCO/ SEVERINO
Really into this!

SEAN JOHNSTON/ ALFOS
I wouldn't play it, but it's a beautiful piece of work

GRAEME PARK/ THE HACIENDA
I’m gonna enjoy playing this its lovely.

NICK V/ LA MONA
Thanks a lot I actually prefer the dub version :)

TREVOR FUNG/ GRAFITTI KINGS
Love this !!

QUENTIN HARRIS
Being a fan of the Original I love everything about this.

ALAN DIXON/ MIDNIGHT MAGIC
Killer!!!!

DAVE JARVIS/ FAITH
This is amazing! Absolutely love xx

NICK V/ LA MONA
This is a fantastic track!

MAX P/ HELL YEAH
Oh yeaahhhh

RICK GILL/ OUTLAWS YACHT CLUB
Beautiful soulful house. Quality production and top draw vocals.

MICKEY JUKES/ 1BTN
Ooof! Such a strong record to step to but i love this. Classy production, vocals are killer. All round winner!

TOMMY TURBO JAZZ/ JAXX MEDICINE
I was a fan of the OG but I really needed this cut!!

RUSSELL FORMAN/ PIKES/ HARRYS KEBABS
This is great .... I'm writing an article on the Coney Island Boardwalk house parties atm.

JIM LISTER/ 1BTN
Loving the reprise and the dub!I'm a big fan of the Solange original, so it's nice to hear a new angle on it

CHRIS DE BEURRE/ THE EAGLE
Gorgeous vocal! And such a deep production - really like this! Infectious x

DAIRMONT/ ROOM WITH A VIEW
Amazing track. Loving it!

STEVE PARRY/ FOR SASHA
Beautiful super smooth.

LES CROASDAILE/ FREIGHT ISLAND
Tune this, reminds of Southport weekender!

From a previous album dedicated exclusively to Soul music by the Roman producer Nerio Papik Poggi, this new project in the artistic name 'The Soultrend Orchestra' was born in 2017. The album titlereleased that year, '84 King Street', definied the musical genre to which it is dedicated. In fact, the address is that of the legendary New York club Paradise Garage from where Disco music in the late 70s was definitively launched all over the world by deejays David Mancuso and Larry Levan in the first place. So Soul and Disco are the predominance of this first album which has had great success in the sector so much so that the band has performed live in important European festivals.

This new album entitled Live For Funk starts from where the first left us musically to enter much more on the Funk sound, especially the English one of the early 80s and the American one linked to jazz musicians such as Donald Byrd or Roy Ayers who have been re-evaluated so much in the years starting from the Acid Jazz scene from the 90s onwards.

15 songs in total, including three covers, all three already released as digital singles. The three covers are remakes of cult songs from past
years in the Disco Funk world and exactly Get Down Saturday Night by Oliver Cheatham, Outstanding by the Gap Band and Act Like You
Know by the Fat Larry's Band. In the project Nerio Poggi brought with him his historical musicians such as Alfredo Bochicchio on guitars, Peter De Girolamo on keyboards, Massimo Guerra on trumpet, Fabio Tullio on sax, Simone 'Federicuccio' Talone on percussion and Luca Trolli on drums. In addition to a dozen other guest musicians also 8 different singers among which the names of Alan Scaffardi, Al Castellana, Kenneth Bailey and Danny Losito of Kaigo stand out

"Animist Pools" was released July 1, 2016 in a cassette limited edition on Human Pitch records. Originally released as "Hippies Wearing Muzzles", pseudonym of Lee Evans. "A shifting center in a stream of rippling analog tones, the music of Hippies Wearing Muzzles is orchestrated to transfix, echoing sounds heard in nature with modular synthesizers and the powerful element of chance. Evoking the Fourth World Music of Jon Hassel or the kosmische innovations of Cluster, Animist Pools marks its composer, Lee Evans’ first full-length release for Human Pitch. Accompanied its popping, glyphic art design and video, the project’s hypnotic aptitude is heightened to full-effect. Citing his background in painting as a chief influence on his musical approach and thought process, Evans composes with a strong sense of space––each sound an event in a slowly expanding landscape, zooming out to reveal a world of scale in which depth and contrast take precedent over rhythm and melody. Embracing the generative compositional nature of working with the modular synthesizer, Evans himself is the final filter through which all sounds pass. The boundary between programmed repetition and human choice is subtle, but detectable, highlighting Evans’ careful, nuanced guidance of his auto-compositions. The result is ultimately an improvised structure––a living, breathing, musical creature, acting on a mixture of impulse and memory. Animist Pools is a functional body of music for everyday human applications, with the implied invitation to tune out and back in at one’s discretion. The cleanly organized musical space of Animist Pools encourages a tidying up of the mind. On a psychoacoustic level it is one, breathing life into the dusty corners of one’s headspace. Animist Pools is an immersive, meditative, and therapeutic experience."

Princess Diana of Wales, by London-based Australian Laila Sakini, is A Colourful Storm's latest and most curious project. Someone, no one, a notion, a feeling... Sakini offers clues but no simple answers. Vocal-led pieces 'Still Beach' and 'Fragments of Blue' are brittle and intoxicating, contemplating recklessness and unfulfillment of a past life: "Watching the future wash away / Giving it up to have this day". She studies closeness and, incredulous of the feelings that emerge, wonders if detachment is impermanent. She catalogues these emotions as a series of memories, colours and images. 'Evaporate', sedated and hushed, is a secret confession and ode to resolution, albeit, fatally, only a temporary one: "Take some form / Later on when I can do this / When we can do this / Together".

Behind the album is a stage of dubwise disorientations evoking in-between states of the everyday. 'Swing' and 'Closer' are woozy and dreamlike, their voices summoning ghosts of fortunes past while 'Exhaust' finds an aperture in our protagonist's daydream. A perilous foreshadowing of the incantatory 'Choir Chant', whose spell pacifies her inquisition, submerging both self and feeling into the deep blue sea. RIYL: Grouper, Kali Malone, Drew McDowall.

Kari Faux is a multi-faceted artist - rapper, singer, producer, DJ and
clothing designer - from Little Rock, AR - She is known for her bold
fashion and genre-bending music, fusing elements of southern hip-hop,
funk, and alternative soundscapes
Her unique style of rhyming, dashes of sultry vocal harmonizing and confidence
have helped garner a cult following and make her a force amongst the new
generation of hip-hop's most fearless and outspoken female voices. At the start
of her career, Kari's hit 'No Small Talk' was remixed by Childish Gambino and
featured on HBO's Insecure. Since then, she has made an imprint on the music
industry as an independent artist who has released four projects, headlined tours,
opened for acts such as Steve Lacy and Mick Jenkins, and has written or
produced on tracks for artists such as The Internet. Kari Faux's forthcoming
album, Lowkey Superstar Deluxe, drops September 24 and features fellow heavyhitters Smino, J.I.D, Yung Baby Tate, Jazz Cartier and Deante' Hitchcock. Lowkey
Superstar represents a new chapter along Kari Faux's creative journey. What
started as a phrase has turned into two independent albums, a record label,
clothing line and identity representative of Kari's innate superstar qualities mixed
with her lowkey demeanor. The Lowkey Superstar Deluxe album is a sonic
conglomeration of Kari's longtime influences, including funk, alternative, and
southern rap soundscapes and covers a range of topics from self-preservation to
dating to braggadocious raps.

It started with a night out at New York’s Sound Factory - and turned into an obsession, Inner City main man Kevin “Reese” Saunderson and his then manager, Neil Rushton, were at the NY uber house club when The Pressure by The Sounds Of Blackness got its’ debut World play, with the ecstatic response from the crowd meaning it was spun three times in a row.

Nobody was more knocked out than Kevin who vowed there and then to come up with a Detroit answer, much to the delight of Soul mad Rushton, co-owner of the Network label.

The idea of The Reese Project was quickly turned into House Heaven reality as Kevin recruited Detroit vocalist diva Rachel Kapp to record the anthemic Direct Me & The Colour Of Love as the first two singles.

Network made the group a main priority, coming with a whole slew of remixes to complement the original USA mixes on the subsequent album. Three of the most loved Network remixes are on this wonderful timeless 12.

The Dave Lee Joey Negro mix from 1991 is rated by many as one of Network’s finest moments, and maybe Lee’s finest ever “remixed with extra production” epics.
Rushton remembers meeting Lee to collect the remix, and instantly phoning Saunderson proclaiming “you won’t believe this”.

Underground Resistance’s Mike Banks added his magic to the 1991 original mixes of “The Colour Of Love” and the results were so overwhelming great that the idea of subsequent remixes was daunting.but the classic 1994 Network remix by The Playboys flew the flag for U.K. House.

C.J, Mackintosh set the production standards for U.K. Soul filled House and his 1993 remix of “So Deep” - sung by La’Trece - is a gem to be cherished forever and a day.

Network’s passionate crusade to crossover The Reese Project from House Music superstars to Pop success came tantalising close but never quite happened. But the Network remixes are a glorious legacy of House Music’s golden age and three of the very finest are remastered here and presented on one glorious 12.

Reese Project - Songs Not Slogans.

Poltergeist has that strange power of attraction that these personalities with their icy, mysterious aura hold. As soon as Ari Girard (aka Poltergeist) appears, something happens, he catches the light and strikes the spirits.

Kämpfer LP is a ghost story where Poltergeist invites Joy Division, New Order, Talking Heads, The Cure, Can, Kraftwerk, Nine Inch Nails or Jeff Mills for its first album. At the Poltergeist banquet, the crows of cold wave and the barbarians of krautrock, the metallers of indus rock and the freaks of techno meet.

The epicentre is Berlin, the Wall, Lou Reed's Gotham, the Bowie/Eno trilogy and the toxic nights of underground clubs...

Kämpfer LP, Poltergeist's first album, reveals its dark and disturbing universe. Marked by a heavy, deep and majestic atmosphere, this project evokes, without ever saying it openly, the climatic urgency, the ineluctable destiny, the human obsession to be first, to leave a trace of its passage and the nightmares which agitate the nocturnal spirits.

Between frenetic synths, bewitching waves and marked foot, this implacable album marks the beginning of the Poltergeist era.

Scratching synths, a dark and heavy universe: we can understand Vitalic's crush, who decided to sign the project at the first listening on his label Clivage Music.

Kaiju is the floor-shaking, speaker-knocking new album from Canibus, one of hip-hop’s greatest lyricists who continues to push himself as an artist. It also serves as his first solo release since 2015’s excellent Time Flys, Life Dies... Phoenix Rise, which was produced entirely by Bronze Nazareth. It’s only fitting, then, that ‘Bus would once again work with only one producer for this project, which finds him spitting mind-melting bars over beats from Oxnard, CA beatsmith/rapper Body Bag Ben.

The 11 tracks on Kaiju strike a balance between personal experiences and striking grandiosity that ‘Bus expertly crafts with his pen. They also all boast the rewind-worthy lyrics you’d want from one of the genre’s most creative and truly timeless talents. You can hear this immediately on the opening track, “Curmudgeon,” where he spits raw bars with his signature growl over BBB’s monstrous production. That vibe carries on throughout the record, from the snarling, DMX-assisted “Entameta (Remix)” through to the hip-hop epic of “Verzuz.”

This is truly Canibus at his best, blending surrealist wordplay and turns-of-phrase with sharp, witty commentary about the state of the world today. Even better, he’s backed by some of BBB’s best production to date, which rumbles and stomps as much as it sounds like it’s covered in a thick layer of grime. It’s much like the inspiration for the album’s title—a giant monster (kaiju, in Japanese) like Godzilla rising from a slumber, ready to wreak havoc on his opponents.

Clear Vinyl

"Flux" is the 1981 debut solo outing of Robert Turman, an American multi-instrumentalist and avant-garde composer. Until recently, Turman was perhaps best known for his contributions to the ballistic NON project with Boyd Rice, as well as other obscured U.S. industrial acts such as Z.O. Voider.

In the summer of 1981 Turman decided he would take a drastic turn from the noisy/electronic/industrial work of his compatriots, and began work on what is now the classic "Flux" cassette. "Flux" was originally self-released in extremely limited numbers. Weary of the noisescapes of old, he set out to create long-form minimalism utilizing kalimba, piano, "Mini-Pops Jr." drum machine, and tape loops to create a complex bed of interweaving micro-stasis'. The results of these new experiments were as beautiful as they were perplexing.

A curious dusty fidelity carries these classic tracks across four sides of vinyl, including all of the original "Flux" content. These compositions glow with a sprawling, slow motion haze that's light years ahead of its time. "Flux" reveals wide spectrums of sound from melancholic kalimba and percussion patterns to slowed down, syrupy Exotica. Turman had complex ideas in his mind yet only the simple technologies of the day were at hand. Hear the click of the stopping and starting Tascam 3340 open-reel tape machine as one hand presses the "record" and "play" buttons and the other plays piano phrases. While there are similarities in style to Classical Minimalism, Turman's sound and vision is his own and is exclusive to his limited discography.

Released in a limited edition 2xLP set. Lovingly remastered and cut by Rashad Becker at Dubplates & Mastering from the original C-60 cassette master. Original cassette artwork and scans provided by Aaron Dilloway.

Spectrum Spools released in association with Editions Mego

This is the second collaboration between the Berlin based groove-outfit Onom Agemo and the Malian guitarist, singer and songwriter Ahmed Ag Kaedy. After the successful release of their first project, a 7inch single titled “Onin Okalan” in 2017, they are now presenting a full album which they recorded in Berlin and Bamako between 2018 and 2020.

The title “Tartit” roughly translates to unity, as it unifies not only Funk Psychedelica with Desert Blues, but also unites musicians whose backgrounds are as different as can be, but whose musical tastes are surprisingly in tune.

Beginning life in 2018 in the home of songwriter Myles McCabe experimenting with shouty, electronic bedroom pop ME REX are equipped with multitudes of “surging gargantuan hooks”, McCabe was quickly joined by longtime friends Kathryn Woods (guitar/vocals), Phoebe Cross (drums/vocals) and Rich Mandell (bass/keys/vocals). In 2021 the band released their debut album Megabear: a record built from 52 short tracks intended to be played in shuffle mode in order for the listener to create their own perfect combination of songs. In 2022 they dove headfirst into follow-up EP Pterodactyl which saw them change pace and tact throughout — constructing delicate vocal layers with luscious swathes of guitars and keys to build a bridge between their raw DIY past and a bright, creative future. Across all four songs on new EP, Plesiosaur, ME REX focus their attention on catchy choruses and snappy rhythms. With Toilet of Venus acting as an extension of Lager Door, the former track looks at present struggles as opposed to the latters inherent nostalgia, Jupiter Pluvius looks theologically at the idea of projecting strength and power onto inanimate objects, all wrapped in sharp wordplay and vibrant fuzzed out guitars and keys that are addictive as hell. Described as “nothing short of an artistic triumph” by Brooklyn Vegan— as well as seeing praise from Pitchfork, DIY, Rocksound, Line Of Best Fit, BBC 6Music, Radio X, Amazing Radio, Audiotree, The I Paper and Baby’s Alright— ME REX are showing no signs of slowing down.

The music of Ugly Season was written for Perfume Genius and choreographer Kate Wallich's immersive dance piece, The Sun Still Burns Here. The work was commissioned by the Seattle Theatre Group and Mass MoCA and was performed via residencies in Seattle, Minneapolis, New York City and Boston throughout 2019. During this time, Perfume Genius shared two of the dance project's compositions - Pop Song and Eye In the Wall. "It's the sound of dancefloor euphoria," said Pitchfork. "The color of lights flashing as you move through a crowd, the touch of skin damp and warm against everyone else's." Now the entirety of the project's original music can be heard in Ugly Season. The album was produced by Perfume Genius and GRAMMY-winning producer and long-time collaborator Blake Mills and was created in collaboration with Hadreas' long-time partner Alan Wyffels.

Katy J Pearson shares details of her stunning new album,
‘Sound of the Morning’, released on Heavenly Recordings.

 Written and recorded in late 2021, Katy’s latest effort is coproduced by Ali Chant (Yard Act and the helm of Katy’s debut,
‘Return’) and Speedy Wunderground head-honcho Dan Carey
(Fontaines D.C.).

 Katy’s recent extracurricular activities have shown that she can
dip a toe into a multitude of genres - providing guest vocals on
Orlando Weeks’ recent album ‘Hop Up’; popping up with Yard
Act for a collaboration at End of the Road festival; singing on
trad-folk collective Broadside Hacks’ 2021 project ‘Songs
Without Authors’. ‘Sound of the Morning’ takes that spirit and
runs with it.

 ‘Sound of the Morning’ is an album that’s as comfortable
revelling in the more laid-back, Real Estate-esque melodies of
lead single ‘Talk Over Town’ - a track that attempts to make
sense of her recent experiences, of “being Katy from
Gloucester, but then being Katy J Pearson who’s this buzzy
new artist” - as it is basking in the American indie pop of ‘Float’,
penned with long-time pal Oliver Wilde of Pet Shimmers, or
experimenting with the buoyant brass of ‘Howl’, in which
Orlando repays the favour with a vocal guest spot.

 ‘Sound of the Morning’ is available on CD and on clear vinyl in
‘Tip on’ sleeve with folded poster insert and digital download
code. (Once the above vinyl format has sold out, a standard
black vinyl version - HVNLP204 - will be made available.)

 Katy heads out in September for a headline UK tour, before
which she plays a number of summer festivals across the
country.

 Tourdates - August 19 Green Man, 21 Beautiful Days Devon,
September 8 Trinity Bristol, 9 Cornish Bank Falmouth, 10 Cavern
Exeter, 11 Joiners Southampton, 13 Chalk Brighton, 14 Olby’s
Margate, 15 Electric Ballroom London, 17 Brudenell Social Club
Leeds, 18 The Cluny Newcastle, 20 Voodoo Rooms Edinburgh, 21
Mono Glasgow, 22 Gorilla Manchester, 24 Float Along Sheffield, 25
Rescue Rooms Nottingham, 27 Clwb Ifor Bach Cardiff, 28 Hare &
Hounds Birmingham, 30 The Bullingdon Oxford.

In their first outing since They Can't Be Saved, released on Skam in 2020, they enlist British rapper King Kashmere, who features on two tracks. Where James Ruskin has appeared
on Tresor Records for his seminal albums Point 2, Into Submission, The Dash and his recent Siklikal EP, the only appearance of Mark Broom on the label is a 2002 remix of
The Golden Apple by Eddie “Flashin” Fowlkes.

The duo unveiled this new work and collaboration with King Kashmere in a live show for a 30th Anniversary event for
Tresor Berlin televised on Arte, performing amidst a battery of lights and fogged-up refraction. It demonstrated their
rough-hewn fundamentals, roving melodies and investigative power, newly advanced by voice.

Death Switch is the first appearance by King Kashmere, savaging questions on segregation and suering, encoding
into our brains the much-repeated refrain - “You wanna know, why they wanna flip the death switch“. Spinning Globe
captures Kashmere in a gritty flow over a swaggering beat, bouncing and resonant. This unsanded voice lends an
enhanced texture and tension to the highly-processed sonic palette of Broom and Ruskin, accumulating with innate mettle.

Elsewhere, Appi dredges depths as widescreen beats lurk, digital artefacts pave the way to a hauntingly melancholic
coda. Lacovset features singer Ella Fleur who has worked with Mark Broom on his solo release Fünfzig. It enacts a
pointillist gated vocal alongside dolphin-like percussive communications. On LFIVE, the duo embalms their sonic textures with digital eects that flutter austerely with
syncopation in the crosswind of a beat that recalibrates at points.

An urgency slowly draws in on title track Slinky through fizzing electronics and fractured drums all corroded. Eem
locates a semblance of euphoria, with a tranceinducing release led by swirling arpeggios. Closer KZAP finds
the calmest moment on the record, with its wafting, nebulous synths and swamped hip hop beat.

Slinky finds an ever-evolving project, The Fear Ratio shapeshifting by bringing in the voice into their work and
continually pushing with their incredibly-eected rhythmic styles and peculiar, wandering synthesis.

Technoindigenous Studies is the newest outlet of producer/composer Gabriel Reyes-Whittaker, aka Gifted & Blessed, serving as a platform for his many alter egos and side projects. As the name implies, Technoindigenous Studies is the union of modern musical technology with the ways and intentions of the ancestors.

The first release on the label is from one of Gabriel's lesser known monikers, The Reflektor. We know The Reflektor as half of the west coast electro funk duo POLY, and since then he released an EP with Kyle Hall's Wild Oats label titled Las Ruinas Mayas, which paid homage to the ancient Mayans. This new EP, simply titled Taíno, is a tribute to his own indigenous Caribbean ancestors. Each of the 4 track titles is taken from the Taíno language. Call it techno, electro, music to move to, whatever you wish. There's room for your own personal interpretation. That's what makes the Gifted & Blessed sound what it is.

repressed !

A nice collection to relax in a warm and cosy musical atmosphere

An absolutely legendary album from Lebanon by Issam Hajali’s group Ferkat Al Ard, “Oghneya” stands out as one of the great musical gems of the Arab world. A groundbreaking release from 1978 that represents the meeting point of Arab, jazz, folk and Brazilian styles with the talent of Ziad Rahbani, who did the albums arrangements. Filled with a variety of sounds and genres, from Baroque Pop to Psych-Folk to flashes of Bossa Nova, Tropicalia and MPB, “Oghneya” is like if Arthur Verocai took a trip to Beirut in the 70’s to record an album.

In 2015 we heard Ferkat Al Ard’s music for the first time, a Lebanese trio compromised of Issam Hajali, Toufic Farroukh and Elia Saba. It was a stunningly unique release that blends traditional Arabic elements, jazz and Brazilian rhythms hand in hand with poetic-yet-politically engaged lyrics. The band was active in the left-wing movement of Lebanon of the time and they communicated their political ideas candidly through their songwriting.

In our mind the idea was to see whether Issam was interested in re-releasing “Oghneya.” He was not opposed to it, but also made it clear that it was not his priority for a first project. He suggested we start with his first album, before Ferkat Al Ard was formed, “Mouasalat Ila Jacad El Ard,” which was recorded in 1977 in Paris together with his friend Roger Fakhr (whose work we have been privileged to re-release in the meantime as well.) “Mouasalat Ila Jacad El Ard” is melancholic, stripped-down, guitar-based folk intertwined with jazz-fused breaks, and the unique sound of the santour glistens through. While the music is very accessible, some song structures are rather atypical, neglecting common patterns of verse, hook, verse, hook. The lyrics mostly trace back to the poetic work of Palestinian author Samih El Kasem, with one song also written by Issam, who composed the music for the whole album.

We re-released Issam’s “Mouasalat Ila Jacad El Ard” in 2019 to a great reception, with positive reviews all over the place and an ongoing appreciation for the album. This meant it was time for us to undertake an “Oghneya” re-release again!

If you compare “Mouasalat Ila Jacad El Ard” and “Oghneya,” one apparent distinction is the strong Brazilian influence in the music. Issam Hajali explained that you can already hear traces of this influence on his debut, but it’s “Oghneya” where this musical relationship really peaks. Lebanon and Brazil have had a strong connection for nearly a century due to the continuous flow of immigrants from one country to the other. Today, Brazil has the largest Lebanese diaspora in the world, the “Brasilibanês”. The migratory route was not a one-way street, however, and some Lebanese returned to their home country, taking recordings of the music they learned to love in Brazil with them. They were followed by Brazilian musicians who visited primarily Beirut during the 1960’s and the first half of the 1970’s, just like many other musicians from around the world. In these years between the independence and the beginning of the civil war, Beirut became even more of a cultural center and regional hub than it already was.

Bossa Nova, at that time, was one of the defining sounds of Brazilian popular music. Issam Hajali remembers hearing it at a bar in Beirut’s Hamra district in 1974, which hosted musicians from Brazil playing the occasional gig. When Issam had returned from Paris in 1976 he got to know Ziad Rahbani, son of Fairouz, who had a shared passion with Issam for a lot of things, among them Brazilian music. Issam showed him some of the tracks he was working on, and Ziad agreed to help with arranging. The music that evolved from this cooperation between Ferkat Al Ard and Ziad Rahbani’s arrangement is, to put it lightly, outstanding. Issam’s singing is embedded into the uniquely beautiful string arrangements backed by the band’s poignant, swinging groove. The lyrics of the songs on “Oghneya” are based on poems by Mahmoud Darwish, Samih Al Qasem and Tawfiq Ziad, three pillars of Palestinian poetry within the last century, and their influence on “Oghneya” was itself a strong political statement during the Lebanese war.

“Oghneya” was eventually released in 1978 by the band themselves on cassette tapes. Finding a blank tape that fit the playing time proved to be impossible during the war so they needed to open up the case of each cassette to physically cut down the tape and customize it to the playing time. The album was well received, though some cultural critics deemed it too “occidental” in its sound. While the cassette was circulating, Ziad Rahbani started a label called Zida, together with Khatchik Mardirian. They decided to help the band with a re-release on vinyl in 1979, a year after “Oghneya” was originally released on cassette.

Sadly, there are two tracks from the original release of “Oghneya” that did not make it onto the reissue. “Ghfyara Ghaza” was replaced by the song “Juma’a 6 Hziran.” while “Huloul” was taken off without a replacement. This happened as a precondition from the band for this reissue to happen. We would have loved to include all tracks, but the decision ranged between having either a reissue like the one we put out or no reissue at all. Thus, an easy choice for us.

As always both vinyl and CD come with an extensive booklet with an interview with Issam as well as unseen photos from the recording sessions.

The music world is most fortunate that the past two decades have witnessed the rediscovery of mind-opening music that went under-recognized when originally released, and the wellspring of musical content produced by a generation of brilliant musicians. One such musician was the late great drummer Steve Reid, whose reissued eclectic recordings on his own Mustevic Sound label gave his career a second wind.

Though teased on a well-received compilation, one Mustevic release never saw reissue: New Life Trio’s Visions Of The Third Eye, a tremendous collaborative effort between Reid, guitarist Brandon Ross and bassist David Wertman.

Due to overwhelming demand, Early Future Records and Finders Keepers Records are proud to announce a second limited edition pressing of the classic and final Mustevic recording. The release also includes a 20-page written zine featuring an in-depth testimonial and interview with Brandon Ross, and an explorative essay by Finders Keepers’ Andy Votel, as well as a wealth of archival photos, scores and reviews.

Reid’s long and varied career began in his native New York City, where he was involved early on as a member of the Apollo Theater House Band and the R&B scene of the 1960s, including recordings with Martha Reeves and James Brown. In the late 1960s, Reid spent three years in West Africa absorbing musical traditions and experimenting with artists such as Fela Kuti, Guy Warren and Randy Weston. After a stint in prison for dodging the draft as a conscientious objector, the drummer came out swinging in the 1970s. He worked regularly as a session and Broadway musician even while immersing himself into the jazz world, from the straight-ahead styles of Freddie Hubbard and Horace Silver to the otherworldly sounds of Sun Ra and Charles Tyler.

The do-it-yourself ethos of the New York Loft Scene inspired Reid to create his own label, Mustevic Sound, on which he began releasing his own recordings and those of a couple of friends. One of these trusted friends was David Wertman, a young bassist from New York who released his own Kara Suite on Mustevic in 1976.

New Life Trio’s story began when Wertman moved from New York to the more sedate but creatively vibrant town of Northampton, Massachusetts. Here Wertman met Brandon Ross, a young guitarist from New Jersey who had relocated there with his brother to join a coterie of New York expats who had found a comfortable, collaborative environment amidst the liberal college towns in the area, including avant-garde legends Archie Shepp and Marion Brown. Wertman and Ross became friends and began to perform together regularly, both formally and informally.

A string trio of Wertman, Ross and violinist Terry Jenoure was set to record, but Jenoure dropped out just prior to the date. This led Wertman to call his friend Steve Reid to come join the two at the Tin Pan Hollow Studios in Vermont to record what would become Visions Of The Third Eye on December 6, 1978. Originally conceived as an all-acoustic date, the recording would morph slightly when Ross added electric guitar muscle on a number of pieces. Reid would then take the helm and release the recording in 1980, giving a very auspicious birth to what has now become a classic spiritual jazz recording.

Fast forward to 1995…..New Life Trio gets a belated second wind from Stuart Baker’s inclusion of the Ross-voiced “Empty Streets” on his Universal Sounds of America compilation. The brief, haunting lead track just hinted at what the full Visions Of The Third Eye album had to offer. Audience awareness resulted in the pursuit of out-of-print original LPs, thus the rarity of Visions Of The Third Eye led to it becoming a kind of “holy grail” record for collectors of jazz and creative music. The album’s cover image was even incorporated into the cover of Freedom, Rhythm & Sound (SJB, 2009), a wonderful coffee table book presenting album covers from those revolutionary decades in Black creative music. The recording’s legend was cemented.

New Life Trio’s legend continues to grow partly due to the brevity of its existence. The triumvirate of Reid, Ross and Wertman would never work together again. Each member would continue along his own path, finding success in numerous projects. Reid’s career was reinvigorated with the reissue of the bulk of his Mustevic Sound recordings in the early 2000s, which led him to a rewarding partnership with Four Tet’s Kieran Hebden until Reid’s untimely passing in 2010. Wertman balanced life between Florida and Massachusetts as a regular in the local jazz scene, recording numerous projects with his wife, Lynne Meryl, before passing away in 2013. The fantastically creative Ross has remained active in the New York creative music scene with a number of projects, most notably with Henry Threadgill, Cassandra Wilson and Harriet Tubman, a wildly eclectic co-led band with underpinnings of rock, dub and free jazz.

Solo bedroom-pop project of Michael Ramos (Flowertown, April Magazine, Hectorine). Mostly recorded between last Christmas and New Year's during a window of isolation at home, “Hey There Flower” preserves Tony Jay’s prowess at making beautifully eerie lo-fi pop; like a hazy memory where your favorite Sixties girl-group melody is perpetually slowed down. Without a band to practice with, Tony Jay recorded the music alone, but recruited a slew of friends to remotely record backing vocals: Karina Gill (Cindy), Griffin Jones (Galore), Kati Mashikian (Mister Baby), Alexis Harper (Al Harper), & Hannah Lew (Cold Beat). "Hey There Flower", the most recent release from the prolific and mysterious Tony Jay delivers real melodies -- both lacey with vocal harmonies and dusty with layered guitars -- as fans have come to expect. This release also carries forward and elaborates on Tony Jay's tradition of songs that express a kind of naked honesty about things we all know -- love and loneliness and all that -- while communicating at the same time a wry edge of skepticism, so that the songs are like coins spinning on edge before landing heads, tails, or lost under the couch. Tony Jay brings us into a nostalgia where we recognize moods from music of the past -- Marc Boland definitely comes to mind, as well as Velvet Underground of the Nico era, and Tony Jay even covers Francoise Hardy on this collection -- but the songs create a three dimensional space with what feels like a thousand layers so that instead of being thrown back in time, it's like stepping into a little world with its own laws of nature, of which the listener gets just a few hints. - Karina Gill, Cindy/Flowertown. “Hey There Flower” is introduced by thudding snare beats eliciting reverb-stained tattered noisy guitar scrapes, to weave abrasive shimmery emotive vibrations, imbued with shattered nostalgic dreams, lit by brittle yet dazzling forsaken keyboard flows, over submerged and distorted male vocal’s whispery deluge of obsessive longing, lonely melancholy, and dark desire to exude a hazy gritty concoction of awkward sadness and brooding unrest.” White Light // White Heat // “What Tony sketches are concise commentaries on love, loneliness and a few things in between. His mode of expression is sparse, intense, and captivating. The arrangements are invariably lo-fi and slow tempo, blanketed with a fuzzy hiss. And it only took one listen to decide that it is a very special album. It has a '60s feel, albeit washed in an eerie slowcore machine. An ace example is "September Skies", which could be the 1965 'last dance' at the prom for the introverted students.” - When You Motor Away

Vinyl now gone back to June. RIYL: Slowdive, DIIV, Electric Youth, The Cure, My Bloody Valentine. Solo project of Los Angeles based Matthew Doty (ex-Saxon Shore). For Matthew Doty, Deserta has always been about exploring a sonic universe that allows him to express a kaleidoscope of emotions, without having to say much at all. Through a patchwork of reverb-tinged textures – drone guitars, lingering synths and driving percussion – the Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist weaves together stories of care, frustration and catharsis that ultimately stretch to a gentle resolve. On new album Every Moment, Everything You Need, Doty chronicles the kind of year we all fear, full of uncertainty, tension and sustained pressure, and transforms it into a celebration of perseverance. It’s an essential reminder that we have the power to shape the stories we tell. The pandemic meant that Doty had to give up his studio and downsize a lot of his gear and instead, carve out a space in his two-bedroom apartment to craft the next chapter of Deserta. Sharing the space with his wife and son, Doty and his partner are also essential healthcare workers, which meant the couple would often have to tag-team childcare, along with 13-hour shifts in PPE and people constantly calling with questions about the ever changing guidelines and protocols. Once the blueprint for Every Moment, Everything You Need was set, Doty reached out to a number of collaborators to stitch together his vision for the sonic landscape. James McAlister (Sufjan Stevens, The National, Taylor Swift) came onboard to perform and record drums, while Caroline Lufkin (Mice Parade) wrote and performed vocals on the ethereal “Where Did You Go.” Elsewhere, the LP was mixed by Dave Fridmann (Tame Impala, Mogwai, Interpol), with Beach House and Slowdive producer Chris Coady engineering and co-producing, making this the first time Fridmann and Coady had worked together on a project. While the vocals are more prominent than Deserta’s previous albums, it’s their amalgamation with the instrumental aspects that secures Every Moment, Everything You Need as Deserta’s most confident and assured release to date. An affecting emotional candor teamed with persistent riffs and tenacious rhythms sees Doty unafraid to dive deeper; an unrestrained approach that ushers in a lustrous purging of agitation and anxiety. Showcasing those dark, exhaustive thoughts through crucial swells and looped, electronic soundscapes, it’s an LP that’s infinitely layered, with something new to discover with each and every enchanting listen.

Soul / Electro / jazz / trip hop. It was in 2019 that Matteo (one of the 3 members of the band Chinese Man and co-founder of the label CMR) met the first musicians who would be part of the project "Matteo & Bro". Starting with guitarist Karim Addadi and bassist Christophe Lincontang (with whom he collaborates on a film score), Matteo then surrounded himself with drummer Hugo Pollon and saxophonist, flutist and Duduk (Armenian flute) player Lamine Diagne. A real desire to launch a project where the musicians are at the heart of the creative process progressively grew as the meetings went on. The artists gather in Bron (near Lyon) for the composition of the eponymous opening track. On this album we also find the voices of two female artists, Isadora (Belgium) on "Sweet Shadows" and Tania Saleh (Lebanon) on "Sakakeen", as well as General Elektriks with its keyboards and its sublime groove on several tracks ("Bina" & "Prumirim"). Between programming & electronic production, arrangements and composition, the demos take shape, the groove and the universe between soul, funk, trip hop and world music extend the desire and the production of an album. Due to the health crisis, the album is finally recorded in late 2021 with the help of Sodi, sound engineer and producer of many albums (Fela & Femi Kuti, Saul Williams, Deluxe, IAM ...). For the orchestration of the tracks "Path" and "Sakakeen", Matteo also called on Franck Lebon (film music composer) to add a cinematic dimension to these two tracks. Tracklist : 01 – Bron / 02 - Prumirim ft. General Elektriks / 03 - Sweet Shadows ft. Isadora / 04 - With S / 05 - Path ft. Franck Lebon / 06 - Sakakeen ft. Tania Saleh / 07 - Bina ft. General Elektriks / 08 – Playa

Ted K. Kaczynski is notorious for both tragically murdering three people (and wounding an additional 23) via bombs sent in the mail and for his numerous writings on the evils of technology he composed during his primitive residency in the woods of Montana. Film director Tony Stone's choice to have the renowned electronic artist Blanck Mass score the film is somewhat ironic and creates an obvious tension perfect for the controversial and complex subject matter. 2020 saw the first Blanck Mass movie score, for the soundtrack to Nick Rowland's acclaimed cinematic debut Calm with Horses. This expansion into new areas of melodic composition and textural exploration won Blanck Mass many new fans, with the BBC's acknowledged number one film buff Mark Kermode proclaiming the work the soundtrack of the year. In 2021, Blanck Mass won the prestigious Ivor Novello Award for Best Original Film Score and has firmly established himself at the forefront of the latest wave of experimental soundscape wizards. Recording during lockdown at his studio in Edinburgh, Scotland, Blanck Mass's Ben Power was in the perfect setting for a musical piece intended to capture the isolation central to Kaczynski's story. Power was also working with a director in a time zone 10 hours behind and thus many sessions required working in the middle of the night, which added a fitting intensity to the composition process. He said of the project "I wanted it to feel like an `epic'" and drew on the legends Sergio Leone and Ennio Morricone for inspiration in encapsulating the energy of the perceived good vs. evil. The gentle madness of sound achieved is exquisite and slowly builds in intensity and desperation as the score moves along. Power is able to perfectly capture the complexity, the terror and the deep emotionality of the film while presenting an often breathtakingly beautiful and always masterful album that stands on its own as a work of art. For Fans of Tim Hecker, Oneohtrix Point Never, DJ Shadow, Coil, Arca, Andy Stott, Fuck Buttons.

The clandescent Federico Sutera and Laurent Schmidhäusler form the insidious duo Rotkeller, known for their excursions into ponderous and maundering interpretations of electronic music. Their last release on Thrènes was an experimental and perplexing delight that perpetuated their virtuosity. The Swiss pair has returned to release a pressing technoid sound on the Thrènes imprint entitled Antimatter.

The project kicks off the track 'Antimatter'. It has distinctive and emphatic patterned percussions and a wandering pad that wistfully saunders in and out. There are clever uses of claps, crisp hats and insisted clicks. The track lays the foundation of the sound to expect from the EP with comprehensive yet wonderous beats.

'DipK' follows the opening track, which has a bit more body and sways. It was made for the waning hours of a club when it might be getting bright outside, but the crowd doesn't want to leave. It has a captivating synth that runs throughout and an infectious bassline; the sound allows the mind to roam free but rhythmic drums, hits and snares make the body move.

Midway through is the Kangding Ray remix of 'Tetra4'. The French-born but Berlin-based artist is known for his mastery in blurring the lines between techno and experimental, and this track is a testament to his talents. The cut has a classic underground club feel as it simply keeps up the tempo. The oscillating synth is compounded with spacy fluttering stabs with a kick drum that adds resounding velocity to the track.

The penultimate track, 'Skpp Skpp', features B.Skupin. It has an enchanting heavy breath prominent throughout the cut, accompanied by ethereal choir chants and a deep repetitive voice before being replaced by a siren-like synth. The beats fluctuate by dropping in and out, enhanced by the catalyst of deep drums and luring drops.

The final cut is the original mix of 'Tetra4', which keeps the same modus operandi of the remix. The telling differences come in the pensive drops and ability to slow tempo momentarily with hypnotic synths and drifting rhythms.

Strictly limited to 10,000 numbered copies, pressed on MoFi SuperVinyl at RTI, and mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelity's ultra-hi-fi UltraDisc One-Step 180g 45RPM 2LP collector's edition enhances the blockbuster work for today – and the ages to come. Surpassing the sonics of any prior version, it peels away any remaining limitations to provide a transparent, lively, ultra-nuanced presentation of a record that won six Grammy Awards – including prizes for Album of the Year, Best Male Rock Vocal Performance, and Best Rock Song. The expanse and depth of the soundstage, fullness of tones, natural snap and extension of the guitar strings, realistic rise and decay of individual notes, and roll of Clapton's vocals all attain demonstration-grade levels.

Housed in a deluxe box, the UD1S Unplugged pressing features special foil-stamped jackets and faithful-to-the-original graphics that illuminate the splendor of the recording and the reissue's premium quality. No expense has been spared. Aurally and visually, this UD1S reissue exists as a curatorial artifact meant to be preserved, touched, and examined. It is made for discerning listeners that prize sound quality and production, and who desire to fully immerse themselves in the art – and everything involved with the album, from the images to the finishes.

Truly, everything about Unplugged matters. Having sold more than 10 million copies in the U.S. and more than 26 million copies worldwide, the 1992 work resonates with listeners of all generations and speaks a universal language. Recorded for MTV before a very small audience on January 16, 1992, the 14-track set became the signpost for future acoustic-based endeavours that witnessed artists of all stripes re-examining their catalogues and, in many instances, as Clapton does here, placing familiar originals in fresh contexts and unveiling spirited versions of cover material. Needless to say, Clapton's session turned MTV's series into can't-miss programming for which the likes of Rod Stewart, Tony Bennett, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and more would soon participate.

Kicking off his performance with a spirited instrumental to establish the mood, Clapton immediately wades into the style that originally caught his attention as a British teenager in the early 1960s: American blues. Backed by a superb band that includes guitarist Andy Fairweather Low, pianist Chuck Leavell, bassist Nathan East, and drummer Steve Ferrone, Slowhand delivers a rhythmic, toe-tapping rendition of Bo Diddley's "Before You Accuse Me" that announces he's come to reconnect with his muse. What follows over the course of nearly the next hour stirs the heart, shakes the soul, moves the mind, and invigorates the senses.

Of course, there's no talking about Unplugged without keying in on "Tears in Heaven," the striking ballad Clapton penned about the death of his four-year-old son. More emotional, direct, spare, and healing than the studio version released a year prior, it crackles with an intimacy, maturity, poignancy, honesty, sweetness, and integrity that inform the entire concert. Indeed, how Clapton frames other favorites here – transforming "Layla" into a relaxed, comfortable stroll and ruminating on the seasoned ripples flowing throughout "Old Love," for example – indicate both a creative rebirth and gleeful acceptance of the next phase of his career.

And that very direction (two of Clapton's next three albums would be all-blues projects) is what really makes Unplugged so indispensable. Equivalent in mastery if not in volume to the output that earned him his "God" nickname, interpretations of Jesse Fuller's "San Francisco Bay Blues" (complete with kazoo!), Big Bill Broonzy's "Hey Hey," Robert Johnson's "Walkin' Blues" and "Malted Milk," and Muddy Waters' "Rollin' & Tumblin'" showcase a learned professor in his element and all the wheels turning.

In every regard, Clapton's Unplugged session was appointment listening when it came out in August 1992. With the arrival of MoFi's UD1S pressing, that sensation is more urgent than before.

More About Mobile Fidelity UltraDisc One-Step and Why It Is Superior

Instead of utilizing the industry-standard three-step lacquer process, Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab's new UltraDisc One-Step (UD1S) uses only one step, bypassing two processes of generational loss. While three-step processing is designed for optimum yield and efficiency, UD1S is created for the ultimate in sound quality. Just as Mobile Fidelity pioneered the UHQR (Ultra High-Quality Record) with JVC in the 1980s, UD1S again represents another state-of-the-art advance in the record-manufacturing process. MFSL engineers begin with the original master tapes and meticulously cut a set of lacquers. These lacquers are used to create a very fragile, pristine UD1S stamper called a "convert." Delicate "converts" are then formed into the actual record stampers, producing a final product that literally and figuratively brings you closer to the music. By skipping the additional steps of pulling another positive and an additional negative, as done in the three-step process used in standard pressings, UD1S produces a final LP with the lowest noise floor possible today. The removal of the additional two steps of generational loss in the plating process reveals tremendous amounts of extra musical detail and dynamics, which are otherwise lost due to the standard copying process. The exclusive nature of these very limited pressings guarantees that every UD1S pressing serves as an immaculate replica of the lacquer sourced directly from the original master tape. Every conceivable aspect of vinyl production is optimized to produce the most perfect record album available today.

MoFi SuperVinyl

Developed by NEOTECH and RTI, MoFi SuperVinyl is the most exacting-to-specification vinyl compound ever devised. Analog lovers have never seen (or heard) anything like it. Extraordinarily expensive and extremely painstaking to produce, the special proprietary compound addresses two specific areas of improvement: noise floor reduction and enhanced groove definition. The vinyl composition features a new carbonless dye (hold the disc up to the light and see) and produces the world's quietest surfaces. This high-definition formula also allows for the creation of cleaner grooves that are indistinguishable from the original lacquer. MoFi SuperVinyl provides the closest approximation of what the label's engineers hear in the mastering lab.



SACD



Mastered from the original master tapes, Mobile Fidelity's numbered hybrid SACD enhances the blockbuster work for today – and the ages to come. Peeling away remaining sonic limitations to provide a transparent, lively, ultra-nuanced presentation of a record that won six Grammy Awards (including prizes for Album of the Year, Best Male Rock Vocal Performance, and Best Rock Song), it places Clapton and company in your room. The expanse and depth of the soundstage, fullness of tones, natural snap and extension of the guitar strings, realistic rise and decay of individual notes, and roll of Clapton's vocals all attain demonstration-grade levels. A perennial audiophile favourite, Unplugged now tosses its hat into the ring as a demonstration disc.

140g Black vinyl LP – Printed inner sleeve – Sealed plastic sleeve



In Trux We Pux is an editorial project organized by the Porto based label and collective Favela Discos. Focusing on the city’s thriving experimental and improvised music scene, it sets out to portrait in a series of four volumes some of the characteristic sounds and collaborative practices that have been in development in Porto during the last few years.

In Trux We Pux 04 is the last in a series of four records organized by Favela Discos, set out to shine a light on Porto’s thriving experimental and improvised music scene. Throughout the collection the label tries to expose the eclectic sound and collaborative practices that have been in development in the last few years in the city by promoting the collaboration between artists and the creation of new collective improvisation pieces.

As the first album dwelled into the electronic spectre of the scene, this volume veers itself to the physical side of experimental and improvised explorations. Although there is space for outsiders manipulating the sound by electronic means, most of the music in this album is plucked, bowed, percussed or sung. The artists themselves are as varied as the music they played, among the 13 artists that collaborated for the creation of this album are many promising newcomers but also some of the more recognizable and relevant names in the scene, with the presence of the Sonoscopia founder Gustavo Costa, João Pais Filipe one of the most characteristic drummers in Portugal, and the DIY duo and underground staple Calhau!.

As we could suspect, the diverse selection of musicians, while providing us a view on the various kinds of musical languages that populate the city’s scene, also creates a dynamic collection of sounds. Spanning a large gamut of sub-sub-genres, from near-musique concrète to tribal noise, the album is a rollercoaster collage that miraculously achieves logic and cohesion, like a voyeur listener taking us on a journey through an abandoned mall where most of the bands in Porto rehearse, whose halls reverberate with a cacophony of music.

In 2020, Sahel Sounds hosted a project called Music from Saharan WhatsApp. This series consisted of ephemeral digital EPs, documenting live performances by some of the most exciting acts in the Sahel playing music, including Nigerién techno, wedding rock, Woodabe guitar, WZN, traditional music, Mandingue music, and more.

Responding to an open call from our network of artists, musicians recorded a handful of tracks on their cellphone and sent them over the popular mobile app WhatsApp. Each session was hosted for a month on Bandcamp and sold on a sliding scale, with all profits wired directly to the musicians. After a month, the EP would disappear, replaced by another one.

Now, some of the label's favorite tracks from this series are collected for the first time outside of Bandcamp as the Music from Saharan WhatsApp compilation LP. This LP features tracks by established Sahel Sounds artists such as Etran de L'Aïr, Hama, Alkibar Jr, Amaria Hamadaler (of Les Filles de Illighadad), and artists new to the label like Bounaly and Andal Sukabe.

Ted K. Kaczynski is notorious for both tragically murdering three people (and wounding an additional 23) via bombs sent in the mail and for his numerous writings on the evils of technology he composed during his primitive residency in the woods of Montana. Film director Tony Stone's choice to have the renowned electronic artist Blanck Mass score the film is somewhat ironic and creates an obvious tension perfect for the controversial and complex subject matter. 2020 saw the first Blanck Mass movie score, for the soundtrack to Nick Rowland's acclaimed cinematic debut Calm with Horses. This expansion into new areas of melodic composition and textural exploration won Blanck Mass many new fans, with the BBC's acknowledged number one film buff Mark Kermode proclaiming the work the soundtrack of the year. In 2021, Blanck Mass won the prestigious Ivor Novello Award for Best Original Film Score and has firmly established himself at the forefront of the latest wave of experimental soundscape wizards. Recording during lockdown at his studio in Edinburgh, Scotland, Blanck Mass's Ben Power was in the perfect setting for a musical piece intended to capture the isolation central to Kaczynski's story. Power was also working with a director in a time zone 10 hours behind and thus many sessions required working in the middle of the night, which added a fitting intensity to the composition process. He said of the project "I wanted it to feel like an `epic'" and drew on the legends Sergio Leone and Ennio Morricone for inspiration in encapsulating the energy of the perceived good vs. evil. The gentle madness of sound achieved is exquisite and slowly builds in intensity and desperation as the score moves along. Power is able to perfectly capture the complexity, the terror and the deep emotionality of the film while presenting an often breathtakingly beautiful and always masterful album that stands on its own as a work of art. For Fans of Tim Hecker, Oneohtrix Point Never, DJ Shadow, Coil, Arca, Andy Stott, Fuck Buttons.

180g vinyl pressing.

During the late 2010s, music lovers around the world began obsessively listening to increasingly esoteric albums on Youtube. More often than not, they’d leave the browser on autoplay. This was how Facundo Arena, the composer and producer behind The Kyoto Connection, discovered the technonaturalistic pleasures of Kankyō Ongaku (environmental music), a distinctly Japanese interpretation of European, British and American minimalist composition and ambient music. “It was a kind of algorithmic magic,” he says.

Upload by upload, the utopian music of Hiroshi Yoshimura and his 80s Japanese contemporaries transported Facundo back to his childhood. When he was five, his father placed him in karate lessons and began watching martial arts movies with him. From those early experiences, Facundo became fascinated Japanese history, tradition, and culture, particularly that of Kyoto - the cultural capital of Japan. Kankyō Ongaku reminded him of hearing the sounds of Japanese folkloric instruments as a young boy, and suddenly, the way the influence of Japan had manifested in his music made sense. “I had the sensation that for many years, I’d been doing something similar to the style,” he explains.

Inspired, Facundo used an iPad and an old Akai cassette deck to record Postcards, his homage to Japanese minimalism and Kankyō Ongaku. By this stage, he was twelve years deep with The Kyoto Connection, the musical project he launched in 2005 in his hometown of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Over that late 2000s and 2010s, Facundo, later on joined by collaborators Rodrigo Trado (drums), Jesica Rubino (violin) and Marian Benitez (vocals, now his wife), released numerous D.I.Y albums. Project by project, they followed the threads between 80s synth-pop, ambient, new age, house, techno and acoustic composition.

Postcards introduced The Kyoto Connection to listeners around the world and brought Facundo into our orbit. During Argentina’s covid lockdown, Facundo received a set of soundscapes recorded in Kyoto by the Japanese musician and sound designer Masafumi Komatsu. Over several insular months, he decorated them with synthesisers, samples and subtle rhythms, creating The Kyoto Connection’s next album, The Flower, The Bird and the Mountain to be released via Isle Of Jura offshoot Temples Of Jura.

Ostensibly made up of twelve distinct tracks, listening to The Flower, The Bird and the Mountain feels more akin to spending calm, meditative time in twelve specific environments. Although the foundations they rest on are recordings made in geographic locations around Kyoto, Facundo has yet to visit Japan. As a result, the landscapes he paints sit somewhere between fiction and fact, richly pictorial sonic imagination juxtaposed with echoes of reality. Regardless, as his bubbling melodies and glistening synthesisers glide against Masafumi Komatsu's recordings, Facundo guides us into a blissful zone of tranquillity well worth spending time within.

Kavinsky is a zombie who came back from the dead after his Testarossa crashed in 1986.

His first song, "Testarossa Autodrive", was an instant success, and was followed by two singles. In 2007, he was chosen by Daft Punk to open their now legendary "Alive" tour.

In 2011, his track "Nightcall", produced with Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, became the theme song for the film "Drive", and consequently a worldwide success.

Kavinsky's first album, "Outrun", was released in 2013, followed by a collaboration with The Weeknd on the song "Odd Look".

In 2022, Kavinsky is back with "Reborn", his second album recorded at the famous Motorbass studio in Paris, due March 25th. While recording it, Kavinsky had this special project to record a sequel to his hit song "Nightcall", which after all sounded almost like a movie scene. This sequel would be called "Zenith".

Therefore, like in the original, he composed a duet between a girl and a man, but reversed:
the verse is sung by the woman, the chorus by the man.
Prudence (formerly from the successful duet The Dø) is the female vocalist, Morgan Phalen (who sung with Justice and is the vocalist of the band Diamond Nights) plays the male character along with a special guest: the saxophone.

"Zenith" showcases Kavinsky's romantic side on a muted and futuristic sound.

On textstar+ Jan Jelinek brings together the material from the CMYK series, four EPs he released between 1999 and 2002 under the pseudonym farben (the German word for both colours and paints), on a vinyl double LP for the first time. The selection of tracks has been remastered from the original tapes, joined by two additional pieces that appeared on compilations during the same period.

A Polaroid. Still life with tangled leads and consumer electronics, late twentieth century. Black and various shades of dirty white are the dominant non-colours. The image’s spatial depth remains diffuse, the links between its elements speculative. A note stuck to the wall (a legend, perhaps, or an all-explaining blueprint in text form?) is impossible to decipher. You can’t see what connects the picture’s signs. You have to hear it.

farben says: Every sound is a text. A bearer of meaning in search of a reader. Hoping the ideas inscribed in its autonomous existence will be understood as intended. While its beauty lies precisely in misunderstanding, in reading the coded message a new way every time. A thousand colours of sound, a thousand different ways to hear, to see, to understand.

On textstar+ Jan Jelinek brings together the material from the CMYK series, four EPs he released between 1999 and 2002 under the pseudonym farben (the German word for both colours and paints), on a vinyl double LP for the first time. The selection of tracks has been remastered from the original tapes, joined by two additional pieces that appeared on compilations during the same period. Another new element is the Polaroid, showing the origins of a world: Jelinek’s home studio in Berlin at the time.

farben says: Move your body! The project has its roots in Jelinek’s love of house as a reductionist vision of soul. Of four to the floor as a proposition that can be accessed anywhere. Of electronic dance music as a realm of possibility that can be continually expanded. farben was written as contemporary house music. As a text about excitement and euphoria. The arrangements were made directly while recording to DAT, on a twelve-channel mixing desk. Several track titles suggest a link to live concerts, coupled with the context of machine music and bedroom recording. Others affirm pop music’s most extravagant stock phrases about various states of love.

Jelinek produced the tracks with the aim of making music for dancefloors. An idea that failed very productively. In the locations to which it was originally addressed, the project barely figured. But people did listen, and they listened all the more closely to this music that opened up new acoustic and associative scope for house. farben is the opposite of genre: a music spawning new terms (clicks & cuts, micro-house) that never manage to fully capture it.

farben says: Signifiers. The four CMYK EPs are designed as a network of references that cannot be missed but that can also never be precisely deciphered. The vectors of sound, word and image point to Isaac Hayes and Ornette Coleman, to Detroit and the first generation of the Red Army Faction, to Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. So multifarious that they are distorted to the point of recognition. Overall we hear sonic docufictions whose appealing vagueness derives precisely from this oscillation between clarity and ambiguity, which is also the source of their poetry: the lyricism of the pure circulation of signs.

The artwork is based on photographs of former Red Army Faction members, broken down into the four colours of the CMYK model. The motifs dissolve into individual dots of a single colour, so close to the faces that their expressions are only hinted at. Taken together, the individual colours compose a new whole out of fragmentary material, defying definition and thus maintaining their vibrancy. The same occurs on the level of sound. The sampler Jelinek used for these tracks had to be fed with floppy disks, imposing a memory limit of 1.44 megabytes per audio quotation from soul or jazz records. As a necessary consequence of this, the individual references, like the dots of colour, are dissolved into details and abstractions. They appear as splinters that recombine in new ways to create new meanings. The joy of collapsing metaphors.

farben says: New departures. Even two decades after its original release, textstar+ does not come across as an epitaph to the modern era. Instead, it appears as a euphoric affirmation of the utopias of the twentieth century, translated into new sound texts via the aesthetic strategies of abstraction, collage, networking and speculation. 1.44 megabytes of history, one thousand signifiers, one album. From “Live ...” to “... Love”.

Arno Raffeiner, 2021