Artist and multi-instrumentalist Flaer looks to the landscape to explore pastoral melancholy on debut release, Preludes.
Ensconced in his family home in rural Leicestershire in the early months of 2020, painter and musician Realf Heygate (b. 1994) picked up his childhood cello for the first time in several years and began to play. Setting himself parameters to only record onto 4-track tape with acoustic instruments – cello, piano and acoustic guitar – he assembled a suite of instrumental compositions that form the basis of Preludes, his debut album as Flaer and the inaugural release on Odda Recordings.
Channelling the tension and unease between the pastoral idyll of the English countryside and the darkness which lurks beneath the surface, the mini-album draws inspiration from the analogue aesthetic of 1970s folk horror films, weaving field recordings of birdsong, church bells and the natural environment into chimerical melodies that reflect on Heygate’s childhood experiences of rural England.
“It was really important not to isolate the sound from its environment,” he explains, describing the compositional and recording process as “site-specific”. Developed over a series of intuitive musical enquiries, the mini-album’s uncanny quality emerges from combining raw demo takes with overdubs of almost orchestral grandeur.
Heygate points to the final track as indicative of the work as a whole: “‘Follow’ really is the mantra for the release and embodies the practical approach I was taking to music making: not to force the music but see where it takes you.”
As a painter, Heygate’s practice takes artefacts through sequences of reproduction that embrace the fluctuating materiality of the copy. Since obtaining a degree in Fine Art from Central Saint Martins in 2017, he has exhibited solo at Peter von Kant and Springseason galleries in London, and has participated in group shows at Saatchi Gallery, Cob Gallery and Senesi Contemporanea.
Describing his artistic practice as one of self-erasure, music instead provides Heygate with a more personal and autobiographical outlet. Where the two worlds combine is on Preludes’ striking artwork, which features paintings of 13th century stone carvings from the font of the church in the town where he grew up.
Speaking to a time where people were connected to the land in a more profound way, each symbol is assigned to a track on the album, which Heygate likens to giving them a title.
“To add that one juxtaposition might open a whole new interpretation or language that might be hard to find otherwise,” he explains.“Over time it might reveal itself to you, which is why I'm excited about it being released. To throw them out there and see what comes of it.”
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Stix Records is a sub-division of Favorite Recordings, recently launched with a first official single by Taggy Matcher Birdy & Nixon (STIX033), who pleased us with two Reggae-Rocksteady renditions of the famous Black Keys. Precisely specialized in the exercise of producing covers with a Reggae twist,
the new label presents his first album entitled "Disco Reggae". Many artists faithful to the stable of Favorite Recordings and its various sub-labels are invited for the occasion: The Dynamics, Blundetto, Grandmagneto, 7 Samurai, John Milk or Taggy Matcher. All came and brought their respective touch to this first compilation, with among other things some of the rarest titles from their Big Single Records' years, but also 4 new and exclusive productions. Each of them delivers a great isco-Reggae version of classic hits by some artists as diverse as Madonna, Herbie Hancock, Justin Timberlake, The Commodores, The O'Jays, Curtis Mayfield, Harry Nilsson or Sugarhill Gang. Whatever the genre or the period, nothing can resist their inventiveness and creativity, to the point sometimes we confuse between originals and covers. Everything is remastered and cut at Carvery Records (UK), known for their expertise in Caribbean and Disco music. The vinyl LP comes in a deluxe version, housed in an old-school Tip-On Jacket.
- Rare and Unreleased New Orleans Funk 1968
Tuff City’s Funky Delicacies imprint has issued the 7th volume in its New Orleans Funk series. This edition has a side of vocal tracks and a side of instrumental ones. These tracks have been hard to find and many were CD only bonus tracks on earlier editions of the series now out of print.
Noted guitarist Little Buck Sinegal opens the record with “Little Boy Blue.” This was first issued in 1969 on the Seven B label. Little Buck (as he was credited on the original record) passed in 2019 after a lengthy career dating back to the late 50’s as a session man for Slim Harpo & Lazy Lester. He also was a touring member of various Zydeco legends like Clifton Chenier, Rockin’ Dopsie and Buckwheat Zydeco. Drummer Chuck Conway leads the next track with the Amars, “Get On Up.” Cover feature Deacon John Moore still lives today. “You Don’t Know (How To Turn Me On)” was a 1970 B-side on the Bell label. Brotherhood issued “Suckey Suckey Feeling” as a 2-sided single in 1974. At some point the track was renamed “Sooky Feeling” and we have Part 2 here. Singer and Pianist Tommy Ridgley’s track “Fly In My Pie” was originally issued on our sister imprint Soul-Tay-Shus on The Best of International City compilation as well as a 7” on that imprint in 1968. Lonnie Jones recorded several singles for Jenmark in the early ‘70’s including the B-side “You Got To Do Better” originally released in 1972. Sam Henry of Sam and the Soul Machine closes out the side with “Loving You.” This track was originally a CD-only bonus track on our Po’k Bones and Rice compilation of that group we issued on Funky Delicacies in 2002.
Kicking off the instrumental second side is a recently located master by Anthony Butler and the Invaders covering the Otis Redding classic “Hard To Handle.” A bit of organ Funk here. Larry Jones jams out the “Funky Jaws.” The exact year is unknown, but the J.B.’s label that issued the original record put their releases out primarily from 1974-1976. Tyrone Chestnut’s B-side of 1969’s “The Bump” is called “Bumping.” Hook and Sling piano legend Eddie Bo has two appearances. The first is the second part of the “Getting To The Middle” single that came out on Bo-Sound in 1970. Louisiana Purchase have “Accept What You Expect” before they moved from New Orleans to Detroit. The Scram Band that backed vocalist Mary Jane Hooper on her “Don’t Change Nothin’” single are here in an instrumental version of that song. The album closes with a 5-minute combined version of Eddie Bo’s “If It’s Good To You (It’s Good For You)” single, issued in 1969 on Scram.
Overall, this album contains 14 previously hard-to-find tracks that would take hundreds if not thousands of dollars to track down the original singles on the used market. These tracks have been recently remastered, including tracks that were issued as CD bonus tracks on earlier volumes.
Consistency Is The Enemy functions as the vinyl component of the Dirtbombs’ 2006 singles collection If You Don’t Already Have a Look. While that two disc, CD-only collection focused on the plethora of out-of-print vinyl singles the band had released up until that point, it also contained new songs and previously unreleased archival recordings. THOSE songs seemed to get lost in the shuffle and consequently, have never been released on vinyl until now. Highlights include tracks like “Here Comes That Sound Again” and “Candyass,” both consistent live favorites, or the quixotic cover of Yoko Ono’s “Kiss Kiss Kiss” not to mention the entirety of the Chariots of the Gods EP from 1999.
Copenhagen’s Terry Tester (Brownswood / BBE) serves up five slabs of deep and gritty Detroit-inspired house on new outing ‘Walkin’’ for Creak Inc., seamlessly weaving snappy snares and crunchy kicks into soulful chord progressions in his trademark MPC-infused sound. For fans of Kyle Hall, Zopelar, DJ Spinna, Jason Hogans or Jay Sound
Within Terry Tester’s two-decade long career as a turntablist and beatmaker his eminent take on house, hiphop and soul has been commissioned by Gilles Petterson for his ‘Bubblers’ compilation series on Brownswood, Jahi ft. singer Dwele, and Marc Mac on BBE remixing alongside DJ Jazzy Jeff.
Terry’s latest efforts has yielded spins from influential selectors such as Carista, Sassy J, Alexander Nut, Mr Beatnick, Soulection and FS Green.
Walkin’ releases via sonic soulseekers Creak Inc. – a Copenhagen-based label specializing in groundbreaking Danish music.
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2020. Full On Lockdown: Musician LaurenceMasonputs together this off the wall idea meshing together two of his biggest musical heroes, Dave Greenfield of the tough 1970's proto-punk band The Stranglers with the oh so cool 1960's jazz of Dave Brubeck. He puts up his demo on Youtube not really expecting much in the way of feedback. And gets ONE MILLION hits. And hundreds of requests for a release. Jazz Room Records Head Honcho Paul Murphy says "Do you wanna record that and release it?"."Affirmative!" The result is this grooving Soulful and Funky Jazz version of "Golden Brown". We're rush releasing this as when announced we were swamped with requests asking when it will be available.
On the "B" side is a languid and super cool version of "Walking On The Moon", originally by 80's Supergroup The Police.
Each copy of the Take Vibe E.P. will contain a Cut Out and Keep Fully Customizable Front Cover Sticker Sheet
This is just a taster for what we're confident will be a must have album to be readied for 2021 release.
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From Northern Ireland and the South of England hail Jetplane Landing - which, for the last two decades has been variously composed of: Jamie Burchell (Bass/Vocals), Raife Burchell (Drums), Andrew Ferris (Vocals/Guitars), Cahir O’Doherty (Guitars/Vocals) and Craig McKean (Drums). Big Scary Monsters are releasing their debut album Zero For Conduct on vinyl this January as well as putting their entire back catalogue back on streaming services. Their debut album ‘Zero For Conduct’, was recorded on an 8-track tape machine in Jamie's parents' garage in Bognor Regis and mixed during engineer Sean Doherty’s downtime in a London studio owned by a diamond mining company. Hailed a 'masterpiece’ (5Ks - Kerrang!) upon its release in 2001 - it contains fan favourites ‘This Is Not Revolution Rock’ and ‘Summer Ends’ and perfectly encapsulates the vitality of the 00's post-hardcore DIY scene that inspired its creation. Deriving their name from the moment a blissed-out Burchell/Ferris witnessed At The Drive-In perform ‘One Armed Scissor’ on their debut British TV performance - “Fuck me Ferris, they sound like a jet plane landing!” - ZFC channels that riotous energy across its heart-felt eleven cuts. Delicate acoustic confessionals sit alongside full-throated math-rock experimentation; this is an album as varied as it is ambitious. Jamie: “We initially set out to track the record during a two-week period Andrew had off from work. At the end of those two weeks, we didn’t even have all the drums recorded let alone the overdubs. So the idea emerged that Ferris and I would drive down every weekend from London to my parents’ house and we would make the album that way. Cut to… one year later…” Andrew: “When I listen back now, I can physically feel the conversations we had on those long drives, all those micro-decisions - getting the songs to be… right. It was a long process, but truthfully I’d have been happy to let it go longer. Jamie gave me so much confidence and pushed me to places I didn’t know I had or even needed to be. It was a really special time.”. Jamie continues, “There was this weird fusion between us musically which seemed to just work.” Fans of Elliot Smith, Nick Drake, J Mascis, and Stephen Malkmus will feel right at home with this lovingly crafted set. Spoiler alert: heavier sounds and bigger rooms were to come for Jetplane but on Zero For Conduct their musical universe feels at once expansive and deeply personal.
Death metal is the great undead of subgenres: rising, again and again, to take revenge on the living with maximum violence. Servants of the zombie code and masters of old school brutality, Germany’s ENDSEEKER have made their intent to kill again more than apparent over the last nine years. Formed in Hamburg in 2014, the quintet have swiftly built a reputation as one of European death metal’s most dynamic wrecking crews. From the aspirational evisceration of first full-length Flesh Hammer Prophecy, to Metal Blade debut The Harvest in 2019, and the widely acclaimed Mount Carcass two years later, Endseeker have cooked up such a formidable formula that their rise to glory seems almost inevitable. But like everyone else, they were stopped in their tracks by the Covid pandemic and its aftermath. As that global horrorshow fades in the rear-view, Endseeker are poised to return with their most crushing and charismatic album to date: Global Worming Death metal is a serious business and Global Worming is Endseeker’s most focused and sophisticated offering to date. Nonetheless, there is always room in the underground sewers for a brain-eating monster or two, and fans of zombie-centric death metal will be more than satisfied with the new album’s brilliant, bloody contents. Consumed in its belligerent entirety, Global Worming soon emits the acrid stench of a future classic. Endseeker have stayed true to their deathly roots, while also writing some of the most imaginative songs in their history. Supremely catchy but as brutal and ugly as the arcane gods demand, Global Worming promises to burrow under the world’s skin with maximum force.
History has shown that the greatest bands–bands with that certain, ever elusive quality called lasting power–neither conform to nor buck the trends of their time, but rather force the times to catch up to them. Sheer Mag has such lasting power in droves. After almost a decade spent carving out a career that has already become the stuff of modern underground legend, the band’s new stand-alone single, “All Lined Up,” comes alongside the announcement of their signing to Third Man Records–their first partnership with a larger independent label–who will also be physically and digitally re-releasing the entirety of Sheer Mag’s back-catalogue, including their cult-beloved early EPs I (2014), II (2015), and III (2016), as well as their first two breakthrough LPs, Need To Feel Your Love (2017) and A Distant Call (2019). Sheer Mag’s sensibility, as fervently beloved by baseball-tee clad garage rockers and tattoo-less indie kids as it is by leather-and-stud-loyal punks, finds its strength in an unconventional mixture of refined complexity and straight-forward pop prowess. Seamlessly trading between head-turning guitar heroics and a charmingly timeless blend of disco, hard rock, and garage inflected hooks, Sheer Mag’s oft-referenced, never-replicated sound has played an undeniably large role in stoking the current resurgence of interest power-pop forward rock music. While quickly adopted as a fan-favorite amongst the sweat-caked crowds of the early 2010’s underground, time has attested to Sheer Mag’s singular cultural mutability: though never straying too far from their home-town Philadelphian origins
What we love about this compilation is that it’s not one of these boring best off type of stuff, but a gathering of all songs that were published on rare vinyl releases that Hooded Menace put out during the last 15 years. So, in case you had no chance to buy any or all of these 7”s or splits (that go for high prices these days) this compilation is a chance for you to hear some more splendid stuff from these masters of horror. All songs are presented in chronological order, so... The feast begins with two songs which also ended up on the debut album of Hooded Menace “Fulfill the Curse”, but recorded in different versions the year before the album was recorded. We all love how Hooded Menace combines heavy, Doomy riffage with that gloomy, horror atmosphere and some melody. And of course their Doom is strongly infected with old school Death Metal, so this is also why the music of Hooded Menace speaks to many of you so well. Later there’s some stuff from the split with Anima Morte, splits with Coffins, Asphyx and Ilsa. All in all, we have to say that “Gloom Immemorial” is a fantastic compilation of rare stuff from one of the best Doom/Death Metal bands ever. We would love to have them all as originals, as playing such music in vinyl format is simply pure magic and it always give you a special feeling, but if you cannot have what you want, you will be very happy with this substitute. The band and the label took it all seriously and came up with a fantastic booklet, which shows you each original release in details - with lyrics, original artwork and band photographs from that era. It cannot be done better, so this is just a near-perfection type of release with 75 minutes of horror soundtrack on a killer 2-LP.
For 14 years Throat have been the sonic equivalent of forcing a square peg into a round hole; often abrasive, causing utmost irritation at times and on a rare occasion a feverishly pleasant dose of brooding darkness in one's otherwise dull existence. The peg now fits. We Must Leave You sees Throat dropping pegs of all shape and size through the same hole. The last confines of musical genres are behind them, resulting in an album which can be regarded as the easiest listening Throat has ever presented or simultaneously their most difficult and puzzling work to date. Thematically what we have here is a breakup album. Never ones for thinking small, Throat breaks up with the world. Enough is enough. Bring back lockdown. No need for petty social commentary on how the world is burning. Let it burn. Throat is already walking away and it remains to be seen where they end up next. If anywhere. Breakups always require dramatic music and We Must Leave You more than fits the purpose. Throat have already hinted at new directions and new sounds on their previous two albums, but here it all breaks loose. Rooted in the same heavy, dark rock sound as always, but a touch of gothic drama from the 80s has been injected to the band's sonic palette which obviously means a few deeper shades of black. The noise and dissonance remains, but this time it all has been dipped in honey and black grease paint. We Must Leave You was written over a few years time and finally recorded in 2023 at Tonehaven Recording Studio with Tom Brooke and the band's own Amplified Human Audio. Once again, Andrew Schneider mixed the album at Acre Audio and Carl Saff handled mastering duties at Saff Mastering. Photography by Dorota Brzezicka and design by Stefan Alt of Ant-Zen.
Common Courtesy is the fifth album from A Day to Remember and is reissued on both CD and double LP vinyl for the first time since 2016. The newly packaged vinyl includes updated cover art and pressed on lemon and clear color in color vinyl with die-cut album packaging. Since its initial release in 2013 Common Courtesy has gone on to amass over 500k in total consumption and includes some of the bands biggest hits including "Right Back At it Again" and "Sometimes You"re the Hammer, Sometimes You"re the Nail". Over the course of the past several years, each of A Day To Remember"s releases have hit No. 1 on Billboard"s Rock, Indie and/or Alternative Charts, they"ve sold more than a million units, racked up over 400 million Spotify streams and 500 million YouTube views, garnered two gold-selling albums and singles (and one silver album in the UK) and sold out entire continental tours, amassing a global fanbase whose members number in the millions.
Symphonic metal powerhouse SERENITY unleash their new studio album, Nemesis AD! The successor to their previous full length, The Last Knight (2020), which landed #25 on the German album charts, is out on October 27, 2023 via Napalm Records and is the first record with Marco Pastorino (Temperance) as additional guitarist and backing vocalist. Known for their thematic albums inspired by historic characters and stories of the past, on Nemesis AD, SERENITY draw inspiration from the life and highly influential art of painter Albrecht Dürer of the German renaissance. Grandiose intro track “Memoriae Alberti Dureri” sets the scene for the album, before legendary singer Roy Khan (Conception, ex-Kamelot) lends his impressive vocals on the mighty “The Fall of Man”. ""Ritter, Tod und Teufel (Knightfall)” (named after Dürer’s famous artwork) features lyrics sung partially in German, for the first time in the band’s history spanning over more than two decades. The powerful track showcases SERENITY’s signature blend of orchestral arrangements, heavy guitar riffs, and soaring vocals. Heart-wrenchingly emotional yet empowering “Reflections (of AD)” mesmerizes the listener with its awe-inspiring instrumentation, multifaceted vocals and brilliant changes throughout the gripping eight-minute track. Theatrical “Sun of Justice” leads the listener to a faraway fantasy world while the vocal performance of skilled singer Georg Neuhauser ultimately unlocks the track's hit potential. “The End of Babylon” represents one of the darker, heavier tracks on Nemesis AD - climactic arrangements carry the dramatic storyline. Monumental orchestral version of “The Fall of Man” closes the album on a thrilling note that is sure to send a chill up your spine. With Nemesis AD, SERENITY add yet another bombastic symphonic metal masterpiece to their notable discography - there is no doubt that the talented unit’s standing in the scene is well deserved. BLURB "The Fall of Man" - Single No 2 Symphonic metal unit SERENITY unleash “The Fall of Man”, a mighty single off of the band’s new album Nemesis AD! With vocal support from legendary singer Roy Khan (Conception, ex-Kamelot), the song is a sure future hit with fans old and new. SERENITY’s previous studio album, The Last Knight (2020), hit #25 on the German album charts, and the band has gained millions of Spotify streams and YouTube views with their earlier efforts.
British rock legend GRAHAM PARKER returns with his first album of new material since 2018. LAST CHANCE TO LEARN THE TWIST finds the veteran singer-songwriter in top form, offering up thirteen new compositions with exquisitely tasteful backing by The Goldtops (bassist Simon Edwards, drummer Jim Russell, guitarist Martin Belmont and keyboard player Geraint Watkins) and frequent contributions from the Easy Access Orchestra horns and backing vocal duo The Lady Bugs. It's a dazzlingly diverse album: sweet classic soul grooves and roots rock sounds dominate, framing lyrics dripping with Parker's vintage "Wicked Wit" (as one song title has it) and his inimitable, impassioned vocal delivery. Two early singles have hinted at the record's depth: the devastatingly stark "We Did Nothing" with its heartbreaking examination of the cost of inaction on both the personal and global stages, and the delightfully playful reggae-tinged "Them Bugs." The beautifully bittersweet ballad "It Mattered To Me" is set to follow, while the folk-informed meditation on mortality "Last Stretch Of The Road" has proven an instant fan favorite at recent solo performances. But there's much more waiting to be discovered on the full album, which is at once one of Parker's most relaxed and boldest statements to date.
Two visionary maestros, Pierre Bastien and Michel Banabila, unite in their first collaborative album, Baba Soirée. The veterans of electronic music bring their unique expertise to the table, resulting in a captivating fusion of experimental styles. Bastien’s mechanical loops and experimental instrumental setups merge seamlessly with Banabila's sound design and impeccable skills of sampling collages. It's not a dance party, nor is it an avant-garde intervention. It's a soirée: a cultivated evening of sonic alchemy hosted by these two charismatic gentlemen.
Pierre Bastien is a composer and multi-instrumentalist with a background in French literature. He has spent decades crafting an idiosyncratic world of experimental sound with his self-built mechanical orchestra Mecanium. It was most notably showcased in audiovisual releases on Aphex Twin's Rephlex label. Bastien's creations are a mesmerizing combination of traditional instruments (he has a vast collection) and mechanical automatons. The violin in the track Rotomotor, for example, is physically played by one of his machines. In Baba Soirée, Bastien also plays a prepared cornet (Slow Dance, Banbas Aura), infusing the recordings with a breathy, dreamy dimension.
Michel Banabila, a sound artist, composer and producer, possesses an eclectic musical repertoire that defies genres. His seamless blend of minimal electronica, tribal ambient, and neo- classical influences has earned him a prominent place in the world of experimental music, and an impressive discography (Knekelhuis, Bureau B, Séance Center, a.o.). Banabila serves as the creative sampling editor for Baba Soirée, expertly weaving together the recordings to craft an evocative sonic tapestry.
The two share a curiosity for traditional instruments from various cultures. The instruments used in the recordings are shown in the cover artwork. A mutual admiration for each other's work paved the way for this fruitful artistic partnership of the Rotterdam-based artists: Collaborating on a single as a fundraiser for Yemen in 2022 set the stage for the creation of Baba Soirée.
For Pierre Bastien, Dada, Fluxus and International Situationism have played a significant role in shaping his artistic vision. The title Baba Soirée is an homage to Kurt Schwitters and Theo van Doesburg's "Kleine Dada Soirée" collaboration which took place exactly a century ago. There's an unmistakable stoicism and an anarchic not-giving-a-f*** attitude in these recordings by Bastien & Banabila, which resonates in the light of this Dada reference.
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AhGeeBe is the stage name of Welsh songwriter, pedal-steel player and general all-round multi- instrumentalist, Rhodri Gwyn Brooks. Through the past decade performing and recording with various artists (Melin Melyn, Gia Margaret, Novo Amor, Georgia Ruth & Ivan Moult to name a few), Rhodri has drawn on inspiration from artists such as George Harrison, Wilco and Neil Young, to produce his distinct brand of country Americana.
Through Bubblewrap, Rhodri has released lo-fi home
recordings and a couple of EP’s under his own name, as well as a Welsh Music Prize nominated album ‘Pontvane’, alongside Eugene Capper. Now, a decade in the making, AhGeeBe’s debut album ‘Chin Up, Chief‘ drops on November 3rd, through Bubblewrap Collective.
Rhodri shares some of his thoughts and processes...
Over the years I’ve come to realise that I much prefer playing for other artists, and collaborating with people, more than writing and releasing my own music with all the ffaff and headspace it takes up. But here we are.
The name of the record comes from a line in TV show Fargo, where police officer Molly tries to cheer up the police Chief. It stuck with me and seemed all too fitting a title for the songs as a whole.
Musically I wanted to make an album with all the sounds and feel I really love from artists like George Harrison, Wilco, Neil Young etc with piano and acoustic guitar, interupted by spikey electric guitars or mad fuzz solos with a solid slight funk to the rhythm section - my attempt to sound like a David Axelrod record. I got a pedal steel guitar around 3 years ago so there’s a veriety of bottleneck slide, lapsteel, and pedal steel guitar on the record. And then on the flip side, have moments of calm and sparsity, with room to woozily meander around.
Death metal is the great undead of subgenres: rising, again and again, to take revenge on the living with maximum violence. Servants of the zombie code and masters of old school brutality, Germany’s ENDSEEKER have made their intent to kill again more than apparent over the last nine years. Formed in Hamburg in 2014, the quintet have swiftly built a reputation as one of European death metal’s most dynamic wrecking crews. From the aspirational evisceration of first full-length Flesh Hammer Prophecy, to Metal Blade debut The Harvest in 2019, and the widely acclaimed Mount Carcass two years later, Endseeker have cooked up such a formidable formula that their rise to glory seems almost inevitable. But like everyone else, they were stopped in their tracks by the Covid pandemic and its aftermath. As that global horrorshow fades in the rear-view, Endseeker are poised to return with their most crushing and charismatic album to date: Global Worming Death metal is a serious business and Global Worming is Endseeker’s most focused and sophisticated offering to date. Nonetheless, there is always room in the underground sewers for a brain-eating monster or two, and fans of zombie-centric death metal will be more than satisfied with the new album’s brilliant, bloody contents. Consumed in its belligerent entirety, Global Worming soon emits the acrid stench of a future classic. Endseeker have stayed true to their deathly roots, while also writing some of the most imaginative songs in their history. Supremely catchy but as brutal and ugly as the arcane gods demand, Global Worming promises to burrow under the world’s skin with maximum force.
History has shown that the greatest bands–bands with that certain, ever elusive quality called lasting power–neither conform to nor buck the trends of their time, but rather force the times to catch up to them. Sheer Mag has such lasting power in droves. After almost a decade spent carving out a career that has already become the stuff of modern underground legend, the band’s new stand-alone single, “All Lined Up,” comes alongside the announcement of their signing to Third Man Records–their first partnership with a larger independent label–who will also be physically and digitally re-releasing the entirety of Sheer Mag’s back-catalogue, including their cult-beloved early EPs I (2014), II (2015), and III (2016), as well as their first two breakthrough LPs, Need To Feel Your Love (2017) and A Distant Call (2019). Sheer Mag’s sensibility, as fervently beloved by baseball-tee clad garage rockers and tattoo-less indie kids as it is by leather-and-stud-loyal punks, finds its strength in an unconventional mixture of refined complexity and straight-forward pop prowess. Seamlessly trading between head-turning guitar heroics and a charmingly timeless blend of disco, hard rock, and garage inflected hooks, Sheer Mag’s oft-referenced, never-replicated sound has played an undeniably large role in stoking the current resurgence of interest power-pop forward rock music. While quickly adopted as a fan-favorite amongst the sweat-caked crowds of the early 2010’s underground, time has attested to Sheer Mag’s singular cultural mutability: though never straying too far from their home-town Philadelphian origins
On 'A Little Longer', Leavy's first major solo artistic statement, she deftly explores nostalgia and melancholy over ten tracks that wash over the listener like a gentle ocean tide. Indeed, the record's sound harkens to an era when the SoCal sound dominated the FM dial. Now a resident of Lafayette, LA, this collection of songs was written while Leavy was living in Boston and New York. However, it's clear that growing up on California's central coast was foundational to Leavy's songwriting. Lush mid-1970s production courtesy of Robin MacMillian shows up in the horns on "Cigarettes and Coffee" or the pedal steel on "I Have Been Trying."
Expansive vocal harmonies permeate "Please Don't Ask Me To Be Friends" or "I Won't Be Dreaming Anymore" which reference everything from Motown to The Beach Boys. Experienced as a whole, 'A Little Longer' is startlingly cohesive and masterful in tone and writing. Take note because this young artist has arrived as a songwriting force.
Jenny from Thebes begann, wie viele Alben der Mountain Goats, mit John Darnielle am Klavier, bis ein Text entstand. Dieser Text, "Jenny was a warrior / Jenny was a thief / Jenny hit the corner clinic begging for relief", wurde zu "Jenny III", einem Song, der eine Herausforderung darstellte, der er sich nie zuvor gestellt hatte: eine Fortsetzung zu einem seiner beliebtesten Alben zu schreiben.
Der Katalog der Mountain Goats ist voll von wiederkehrenden Charakteren_Jenny, die ursprünglich in dem ihren Namen tragenden Stück All Hail West Texas auftaucht, sowie in "Straight Six" von Jam Eater Blues und dem Transcendental Youth side two jam "Night Light", ist einer von ihnen, jemand, der unerwartet in einen Song eintritt und die Ohren der Fans spitzt, die darauf erpicht sind, die verschiedenen Erzählstränge fortzusetzen, die sich durch die Diskografie der Mountain Goats ziehen, bevor sie im Nebel verschwinden.
In diesen Liedern wird Jenny weitgehend durch ihre Abwesenheit definiert, und diese Definition wird ihr von anderen Charakteren gegeben. Sie läuft vor etwas weg.
Diese Merkmale sind betörend, sowohl für die Figuren, die ihre Geschichte bisher erzählt haben, als auch für den Zuhörer. Sie laden zu bestimmten Fragen ein: Wer ist Jenny wirklich? Wovor läuft sie weg? Nun, sie ist eine Kriegerin und eine Diebin, und da es sich um ein Album der Mountain Goats handelt, ist es eine sichere Wette, dass das, wovor sie flieht, etwas Schlimmes ist. Etwas katastrophal Schlimmes. Jenny from Thebes ist die Geschichte von Jenny, ihrem Haus im südwestlichen Ranchstil, den Menschen, für die dieses Haus ein Ort der Sicherheit ist, und der westtexanischen Stadt, die sich mit ihrer Existenz nicht anfreunden kann. Es ist eine Geschichte über das Individuum und die Gesellschaft, über Sicherheit und Schutz und diejenigen, die sich dafür entscheiden, sich um sie zu kümmern, wenn es sonst niemand tut. Aufgenommen im legendären The Church Studio in Tulsa, Oklahoma, mit der Grammy-prämierten Produzentin/Technikerin Trina Shoemaker, ist Jenny from Thebes eine üppige Sammlung von Songs, die Darnielle als Sängerin und die Mountain Goats als Band vorantreibt, indem sie ihre klangliche Palette wieder einmal erweitert und sich an Einflüsse wie Godspell, Jim Steinman und The Cars anlehnt. Getragen von den Bläser- und Streicherarrangements von Matt Douglas, der verträumten Gitarre der Bully-Leaderin (und Bleed Out-Produzentin) Alicia Bognanno und den Backing Vocals von Kathy Valentine von den Go-Go's und Matt Nathanson, ist Jenny from Thebes ein Musical von großem Ausmaß, ein Melodram mit detailreichen Charakteren und mitreißenden Emotionen.
Jenny from Thebes begann, wie viele Alben der Mountain Goats, mit John Darnielle am Klavier, bis ein Text entstand. Dieser Text, "Jenny was a warrior / Jenny was a thief / Jenny hit the corner clinic begging for relief", wurde zu "Jenny III", einem Song, der eine Herausforderung darstellte, der er sich nie zuvor gestellt hatte: eine Fortsetzung zu einem seiner beliebtesten Alben zu schreiben.
Der Katalog der Mountain Goats ist voll von wiederkehrenden Charakteren_Jenny, die ursprünglich in dem ihren Namen tragenden Stück All Hail West Texas auftaucht, sowie in "Straight Six" von Jam Eater Blues und dem Transcendental Youth side two jam "Night Light", ist einer von ihnen, jemand, der unerwartet in einen Song eintritt und die Ohren der Fans spitzt, die darauf erpicht sind, die verschiedenen Erzählstränge fortzusetzen, die sich durch die Diskografie der Mountain Goats ziehen, bevor sie im Nebel verschwinden.
In diesen Liedern wird Jenny weitgehend durch ihre Abwesenheit definiert, und diese Definition wird ihr von anderen Charakteren gegeben. Sie läuft vor etwas weg.
Diese Merkmale sind betörend, sowohl für die Figuren, die ihre Geschichte bisher erzählt haben, als auch für den Zuhörer. Sie laden zu bestimmten Fragen ein: Wer ist Jenny wirklich? Wovor läuft sie weg? Nun, sie ist eine Kriegerin und eine Diebin, und da es sich um ein Album der Mountain Goats handelt, ist es eine sichere Wette, dass das, wovor sie flieht, etwas Schlimmes ist. Etwas katastrophal Schlimmes. Jenny from Thebes ist die Geschichte von Jenny, ihrem Haus im südwestlichen Ranchstil, den Menschen, für die dieses Haus ein Ort der Sicherheit ist, und der westtexanischen Stadt, die sich mit ihrer Existenz nicht anfreunden kann. Es ist eine Geschichte über das Individuum und die Gesellschaft, über Sicherheit und Schutz und diejenigen, die sich dafür entscheiden, sich um sie zu kümmern, wenn es sonst niemand tut. Aufgenommen im legendären The Church Studio in Tulsa, Oklahoma, mit der Grammy-prämierten Produzentin/Technikerin Trina Shoemaker, ist Jenny from Thebes eine üppige Sammlung von Songs, die Darnielle als Sängerin und die Mountain Goats als Band vorantreibt, indem sie ihre klangliche Palette wieder einmal erweitert und sich an Einflüsse wie Godspell, Jim Steinman und The Cars anlehnt. Getragen von den Bläser- und Streicherarrangements von Matt Douglas, der verträumten Gitarre der Bully-Leaderin (und Bleed Out-Produzentin) Alicia Bognanno und den Backing Vocals von Kathy Valentine von den Go-Go's und Matt Nathanson, ist Jenny from Thebes ein Musical von großem Ausmaß, ein Melodram mit detailreichen Charakteren und mitreißenden Emotionen.
Garçon Voyage is the first single in French from Courrier Sud's upcoming EP on Délicieuse Records. The song paints a fresco of that special and unsettling moment at the beginning of a relationship when one of the two falls in love, but isn't sure if they'll be loved in return. Its rhythm is heady like a beating heart, set to a mix of minimalist synths, somewhere between Metronomy and Flavien Berger.
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In March of 2020, after learning that a dear friend’s life was coming to an end, Johansing sat down and in one sitting wrote the song “Daffodils”. An elegiac tribute to someone facing death with grace and curiosity, the lyrics confront Johansing’s own mortality by observing the brief lifespan of a Hlower. Only a week later when the world came to an abrupt standstill, she soon found herself processing this recent loss while trying to make sense of a new global reality. Across the ensuing months, Johansing found herself increasingly untethered by a world of isolation and political upheaval.
Having been a frequent touring member of bands like Hand Habits and Fruit Bats, and often being called into the studio to lend her harmonies and multi-instrumental talents to records, Johansing’s phone no longer rang. Living in Los Angeles she feared her musical community was vanishing, as friends and collaborators continually announced they were leaving the city. It was in returning to her piano nightly that she found the greatest solace, feverishly writing the songs that would be collected on her next album. Resulting from this new sense of time and focus was a deepening of her songwriting. As Johansing recalls, “I felt like a metamorphosis happened during that time. There was a lot of personal growth and healing.”
Throughout Year Away Johansing traverses uncharted emotional landscapes brought upon by the changes occurring all around her. The forced self-reflection of the moment is aptly captured by “Old Friend”, featuring an aching melody and swooning production that recalls the best of Harry Nilsson. The epic piano and saxophone-driven “Smile with My Eyes” addresses the loss of community as friends became distant and political divides between family grew. On “Smile” Johansing pushes her vocals further than ever, expanding her range and using her peerless voice as the singular instrument it is. Facing the loss of a family home due to environmental destruction, “Shifting Sands” is marked by soaring Hlutes, Hield recordings and glassy synthesizers that nod to Japanese New Age.
“Daffodils”, the stunning album centerpiece, is built from a pastiche of looping samples, swirling Mellotron and dazzling vibraphone. “Keep your heart open wide, you never know your time / Keep your heart wild, true Hlower child”, Johansing sings as she says goodbye to an elder, while the band reaches a grief-stricken crescendo of woodwinds and chiming bells. On the title track, Johansing takes listeners on an eerily meditative journey of collective experiences. “I wanted to keep the progression simple and repetitive so that musically we could add new elements little by little, while the emotional tone of the lyrics becomes increasingly more strained and expressive”. The song grows to a fever pitch as Johansing sings higher than she thought possible; the tension of the repeating chords Hinally resolving into a hopeful coda as multiple soloists weave around each other.
Amidst heavier themes, Johansing still leaves room for her love of irresistible pop melodies and lush production. The driving “Last Drop” and mid-tempo “Valley Green” are two of her catchiest songs to date. On the former Johansing sings the anthemic chorus, “As if it were the last drop, and nothing ever lasts forever / As if it were the last stop, too far out to come back ever”, longing for a love that she’ll never take for granted, while also admitting that she doesn’t always know how good she has it. “Valley Green” features shimmering layers of 12- string guitars, stacked horns and an impeccable solo by co-producer and multi- instrumentalist Tim Ramsey (Vetiver, Fruit Bats), hinting at a love for bands like NRBQ.
Having been eager to capture the initial spark of songwriting, Johansing booked time at Highland Park’s 64 Sound Studio the week that it reopened. Over the course of three days, she and her band gathered basic tracks for 10 songs, before returning home to Hinish the record with Ramsey. Setting forth to make an album that paid homage to the music that kept them company during the months spent alone together, the duo pulled inspiration from a wide net including Burt Bacharach, John Carroll Kirby & Haruomi Hosono. Ramsey’s newfound love of early digital synthesizers dovetailed effortlessly with Johansing’s fondness for classic 70’s horn and string arrangements, creating a sound that is distinctly modern yet warm and familiar.
Once again Johansing called upon some of the Hinest players of Northeast Los Angeles’ vibrant music community to lend a hand with the record. The 70s R&B-folk of “Watch It Like a Show” features an electric guitar solo from Hand Habits’ Meg Duffy, while album closer “Endless Sound” boasts backing vocals from electronic musician Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith and swooping Indian-inspired violins from Amir Yaghmai (HAIM, The Voidz). The record shines brightly thanks to an ace mix from veteran producer Rob Schnapf (Beck, Elliott Smith, Cat Power), woodwinds from Logan Hone (John Carroll Kirby, Eddie Chacon), and a featured rhythm section of drummer Josh Adams (Jenny Lewis, Bedouine) and bassist Todd Dahlhoff (Feist, Devendra Banhart). Recorded across multiple studios including LA’s famed Sunset Sound, the album remains steadfastly buoyed by the adept engineering of Tyler Karmen (MGMT, Alvvays).
Though born of turbulent times, Year Away is ultimately interested in moving forward. The album ends with “Endless Sound,” where Johansing laments seismic global changes, (“The water is hotter, the mighty thaw / The current’s reversing, the last are lost”) but vows to keep going (“No storm can take me down / Endless light, endless sound”). It’s Year Away’s resilience that shines through despite the darkness. It’s a sound all her own and Johansing’s most cohesive set of songs yet.
Move into the Luminous is the debut album by the trio Makushin.
Double bassist Jon Thorne (Lamb, Yorkston Thorne Khan), guitarist Peter Philipson (Jane Weaver, Fenella) and singer Nancy Elizabeth (Leaf Label, James Yorkston) lead this inspiring collective whose work explores the intersection between folk, jazz and ambient music.
The album also features contributions from Andrew Wasylyk, Raz Ullah, David A Jaycock and more.
Nancy Elizabeth is a singer and multi-instrumentalist who has released three chamber folk albums under her own name on the Leaf Label. She has also previously played with James Yorkston and recorded with the late ambient composer Susumu Yokota.
Jon Thorne is a double bassist best known as a member of the pioneering electronic band Lamb and, more recently, Yorkston Thorne Khan. He has worked with many other musicians, including Jon Hopkins, Robert Fripp and his mentor Danny Thompson, as well as releasing his own music.
Peter Philipson is a guitarist who has previously performed with Jane Weaver as her guitarist for a decade and has collaborated with her and Raz Ullah on two ambient albums under the artist name of Fenella. He has also released a number of instrumental guitar albums under his PJ Philipson guise.
Shpritsz (derived from a colloquial German word for “syringe”) is the second studio album by Dutch rock and roll and blues group Herman Brood & His Wild Romance. The album produced two singles: “R & Roll Junkie” didn’t chart, but biggest hits, charting in Europe as well as the United States. Shpritsz remains one of Brood’s most critically and commercially successful albums. In a 2008 poll by leading Dutch music magazine OOR, Shpritz was voted the fourth- best Dutch album of all time.second single “Saturday Night” ended up becoming one of his
This two-time Grammy nominee’s career has taken Cidny from singing back-up on tour with Elton John, working with Bob Dylan, Rod Stewart, and singing three lead vocals on the “Grease” movie
soundtrack to having nine critically acclaimed solo albums, including the award winning Somewhere Between Heaven and Earth. Cid’s friends on the albums include friends Bonnie Raitt, Lucinda
Williams, Steve Earle, Bryan Adams, Emmylou Harris, Delbert McClinton, and Sir Elton John himself.
Cidny has also co-written many Country songs in Nashville, including Radney Foster’s hit “Hammer and Nails”. Since 2007, Cidny has been one-third of “super-group”, The Refugees with Wendy Waldman and Deborah Holland. In 2011, Cidny made the difficult and daunting decision to start transitioning from female to male, from Cindy to Cidny. He has written and has been performing his one-person theatrical show Somewhere Between: Not An Ordinary Life all over the U.S. An award-winning documentary short about his life called The Gender Line screened at major film festivals around the world from 2019-2022. Cid will be releasing his first album as “Cidny Bullens” Little Pieces in the fall of 2023. Cid’s memoir, TransElectric: My Life as a Cosmic Rock Star, with foreword by Sir Elton John was released on June 6, 2023, and is now available for purchase at all major bookstore sites.
There's a new band in town! comforter2 is the new baby of Meetsysteem, Tammo Hesselink & Marianne Noordzij. Born from a residency space in Arnhem as they we're being snowed in over the pandemic, comforter2 is a band for club heads and a club act for band heads. Sometimes two worlds meet - and through this conversation love is found - that's a quote from the album > there's a lyric sheet included with the cassette so you can read along. If you're familiar with their solo projects you won't be surprised by the size of this debut; 16 fresh, club-leaning, indie pop/rock tunes that we'll release on cassette as well as digital. The tracks are formed by all members: Tammo's knack for bass and rhythms, Meetsysteem's song- writing skills (the album is sung in English) and together by Marianne's designs and voice, adding a touch of blissful psychedelia. It's an honest, upfront album about the highs and lows of modern life, seen through the eyes of a raver at their peak. It lends their sound a sense of alluring melancholy, a beautifully bittersweet sense of mood that stays with you long after the rhythms have finished. Like lullabies, for the dancefloor.
On "II" the band continue to go even further into the dark. Gloomy melodies all wrapped up with Erica Li Lundqvists fantastic vocals. Imagine a mix of She Past Away with Linea Aspera and you won't be too far away from the result.
The album is released on two different 180g deluxe vinyl with inserts and CD.
The perfect soundtrack to a dark autumn. Abu Nein is for sure ready to take the next step.
Planet P Project is Tony Carey's pseudonym for his science-fiction themed progressive rock side venture from his more pop-oriented rock releases. Its first three albums, Planet P, Pink World, and Go Out Dancing, Part I (1931) were released in 1983, 1984, and 2005, respectively, and the first two saw a fair amount of MTV video airplay. Planet P's most well known singles were Why Me?, a sweeping, energetic romp about outer space and isolation, and the downbeat Static. Go Out Dancing, Part I (1931) is the first of a trilogy; part two, titled Go Out Dancing, Part II (Levittown) was released in May 2008 and Go Out Dancing Part III (Out in the Rain) was released in 2011.
Planet P Project is Tony Carey's pseudonym for his science-fiction themed progressive rock side venture from his more pop-oriented rock releases. Its first three albums, Planet P, Pink World, and Go Out Dancing, Part I (1931) were released in 1983, 1984, and 2005, respectively, and the first two saw a fair amount of MTV video airplay. Planet P's most well known singles were Why Me?, a sweeping, energetic romp about outer space and isolation, and the downbeat Static. Go Out Dancing, Part I (1931) is the first of a trilogy; part two, titled Go Out Dancing, Part II (Levittown) was released in May 2008 and Go Out Dancing Part III (Out in the Rain) was released in 2011.
Exarde’s just keep it spinnin’. This time our protagonist was originally born in Transylvania, so he knows something about the dancing vampires you often see at parties. This is confirmed by the fact that his release also contributed a lot to the gothic side of the dancefloor.
MAR.C is obsessed with dark sounds but specifically loves a guitar, acid and weirdly uplifting electro sounds. So, by his words this EP is exactly concentrated on frequencies between these two spectrums. On the remix duty’s we got P.O with his interpretation which gives an even more unique vibe as a groover for the closing scene.
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Early 90s' UK club oriented project comprised by "two young lads that made a record", as innocently described by Mark Lloyd, one half of Deep Pearl together with Mark Robertson. Originally released on mysterious private press label called "Big Apple" based in Croydon (South London).
A dancefloor oriented production that seems to transition from earlier acid sounds into more hypnotic early progressive directions, propelled by an established Mediterranean appreciation of its epoch combined with a somewhat naive rawness and energy in the studio, keeping it simple and effective at upper 130's BPM. Clearly the work of someone with veteran status in rave mileage. A-side features dreamy female vocals (courtesy of two other young lads from Germany, at the time, also known as "Air Liquide"), easy to imagine being played over a dusky horizon in Ibiza or an airfield in Suffolk. B-side mix is another peak dancefloor torpedo armed with heavy breakbeat shrapnel, hard to miss - if you know you know - newly re-issued with new artwork channeling Sean Connery memorabilia in acid mode "Hunt for Tie-dye October".
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Polish jazz rebels sneaky jesus are back with their second studio album For Chaching Taphed.The highly imaginative quartet out of Wroclaw comprising Maciej Forreiter (Guitar), Matylda Gerber (Saxophones), Ben Łasiewick i(Bass) and Filip Baczyński (Drums) have won fans around the world for their restless, quirky brand of jazz which takes in breakbeats, twisting chord progressions and improvisation as well as a wealth of musical influences.
The band have been touring their asses off ever since they surprised the world with their debut album For Joseph Riddle in 2021. From out of nowhere their debut LP of 500 copies sold out in a month and they quickly went on to sell close to 1,000 CDs of the album. Fast-forward to 2023 and the band are sharing stages with artists such as Ill Considered and Theon Cross.
For Chaching Taphed was created in complete isolation. The group locked itself in a barn at the Museum of Agricultural Technology in Piotrowice Świdnickie. It worked on its sophomore output surrounded by machinery, trucks and carriages. These new compositions mirror the abstract conversations which the group frequently has just for fun. Contrary to For Joseph Riddle, this album is simple and does not rely on ongoing grooves. This enabled the group to be much more experimental. The band was joined by friends Flautist Mariya Mavko on Piękno Niemożliwe (Impossible Beauty) and her playing is sampled in Hipotetyczny Taras (Hypothetical Terrace). Pięciu Pszczelarzy (Five Beekeepers) closes the album featuring EABS' Jakub Kurek on trumpet. His fiery solo is one of the most intense moments of the album.
Spacer Po Nadodrzu (A walk around Nadodrze) opens the album and is inspired by one of the districts of Wrocław. It is a sonic story depicting a walk through Nadodrze late at night. A steady bass rhythm imitates a careful pace and the responding sax line is a spooky theme that might pop to oneʼs head in a moment of uncertainty.
The album's first single Krztusiec (Whooping Cough) finds the group diving head first into their most recent influences. The trackstarts with drum improvisation, rolling into a solid hip-hop backbeat provided by Ben Łasiewicki on Bass and Drummer Filip Baczyński. Sax and Guitar weave steady but dissonant lines, written by Maciej Forreiter after many hours spent listening to the Ethiopian jazz greats. The track takes off right after that. Matylda Gerber delivers a fiery Sax solo, while the group picks up the tempo and quickens the groove. The essence is the middle section, a dubby collective improvisation. Forreiter, Gerber and Baczyński take turns playing both classic dub phrases and fierce avant grade lines. Łasiewicki keeps everybody in check with a steady bassline. The energy slows down until Baczyński's drum solo, which explores phrasing detached from the rest of the tune.
Second single Chiński Sprzedawca Smażonych Kasztanów (Chinese roasted chestnut seller) is a fusion of breakbeats, energized songo rhythms and motifs inspired by South African melodies. Presenting the group with spacious and rhythmic horn lines, guitarist Maciej Forreiter wrote a chord progression while Beniamin Łasiewicki and Filip Baczyński took care of the rhythm section. This first part of the track suddenly drops out and explodes into the dramatic main motif which includes double sax and fierce guitar playing in harmony, plus the rhythm section playing more and more jungle-esque. Powerful guitar and sax solos feature before we return to the main theme with a completely different rhythmic backdrop.
W Klatce z Bykiem (In a cage with a Bull), starts like a race. The music plays with an incredible nerve and when the theme is right on edge it suddenly stops. It is followed by an animalistic growl on the saxophone and a doom metal-esque bash of downtuned, distorted guitars and heavy drums. In this heavy fashion it slowly approaches the finishing line hitting one final metallic clang.
Piękno Niemożliwe (Impossible Beauty) features wonderful flute playing of Mariya Mavko (Kadabra Dyskety Kusaje). Her work in the opening motif evokes sounds of Polish and Ukrainian folklore. This brief mellow moment serves as a contrast to the usual frantic sounds of sneaky jesus. It is an appreciation of thepolish jazz music of the past, intrinsically-linked to folklore. The band took this idea and reworked it into their own unique style.
Hipotetyczny Taras (Hypothetical Terrace) is built on top of a lengthy vamp in an unusual 7/8 time-signature. The bass anchors the quartet in a simple line, while the rest of the quartet share an emotional conversation. This track is the most open of the whole project and it ends accordingly. The final burst is a call back to the basics ofspiritual jazzand the whole band shows every emotion simultaneously and gracefully fades out.
Pięciu Pszczelarzy (Five Beekeepers) is For Chaching Taphed's conclusion and is a non stop assault of heavy horn lines, punk rhythms and noise. The band is joined by the extraordinary trumpeter Jakub Kurek from EABS, who blends in perfectly with sax and guitar. His exchange of solos with Maciej Forreiter is a combination of classic jazz phrasing and discordant clatter. In the same fierce manner the whole group works within the motif, switching up accents and breaks.
In the short space of two years, sneaky jesus has gone from ambitious upstart looking to break out from its home city playing spit and sawdust venues, to touring Europe as well as prestigious Jazz clubs such as Jassmine in Warsaw. In the process, it has delivered two full-length albums that don't stay in lane or pander to established jazz sub-genres as so many groups do. Some artists make the same record twice or even more than that, but not sneaky jesus. For Chaching Taphed shows the band as restless, experimental, fun, irreverent but purposeful as never before.
“A lot of over-hyped improv / jazz projects out there at the moment and Sneaky Jesus are genuinely excellent and out on their own. Drawing on the expansive atmospherics of a barn as the recording's setting, the album immediately pulls you in with the unsettling 'Spacer Po Nadodrzu' and lifts off on 'Krztusiec', effortlessly moving from angular, abrasive jazz to trippy dub and cinematic intrigue. Tempos shift and intensities shift naturally. The whole set warrants a deep listen from start to finish and watch out for two great guest features from flautist Mariya Mavko and Jakub Kurek bringing some mad fuzz licks to the boisterous closer. Brilliant album.”
Quinton Scott — Strut Records
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Scott Monteith is the Berlin-based but Canadian-born artist best known as Deadbeat. But here, for the first time in some two decades, he steps out with new alias Ark Welders Guild. It is an audio-visual performance and recording project with Italian singer and curator Letizia Trussi, whom he met in winter 2021 and has since formed a strong creative bond. They work in Trussi's Rooms of Kairos studio and have already cooked up two album length pieces that come on Monteith's BLKRTZ imprint. Mons Clepsydra is the first and is an epic drone in four parts with string recordings permeating the moody, grainy, heavy atmospheres.
Wake Dream is proud to present Cumbayá a new EP by French musicians Gilbert Cohen (of Versatile Records fame) and Cosmic Neman, drummer of Zombie Zombie. One summer not too long ago the two decided to gather in the mysterious “Marienia Pension”, an artist’ residency in a historic surfer spot. Over the course of 1 week they set up studio in the library of the house, surrounded by a collection af antique science and biology books, and channeled sandy percussion and analog Atlantic tubular waves of their synths into these four pieces. Mixed by the one and only ICube.
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Joe Sutkowski (Dirt Buyer)'s new album is a documentation of making it to the other side. Sutkowski grew up in New Jersey, and although he lives in Brooklyn now, he remains " an emo kid at heart ," garnering inspiration from bands like My Chemical Romance and Muse, the latter of whose theatrical, dramatic performances inspired the band's own vocal-forward, soaring takes. Initially working together as a duo while Sutkowski and Ruben Radlauer (Model/Actriz) were at school in Berklee, the band's self-titled 2019 debut album was recorded on an IPhone in their practice room on just drums and guitar, and the quietly striking, nuanced stylings earned them accolades far beyond the " fake record label " the two made up to originally release their music. The band's new album, Dirt Buyer II , was recorded in February 2020, and represents a foray into heavier material that marks a deeper shift for the band. Now working as a trio, Sutkowski is flanked by Tristan Allen on bass and Mike Costa on drums, a fellow Berklee grad who cut his teeth playing in bands across Boston including past collaborations with Sutkowski. Half-recorded while the band was on tour with Surf Curse, the record finds Sutkowski reaching out for places, people and beliefs to ground him. Throughout the album he attempts to wrap his head around the idea of fate and how you can brush up against other people and then leave them behind. The songs themselves play with this concept of light and dark intertwined. Oscillating between urgency and cathartic release and more stripped-back elegies, Sutkowski faces the reality that while the people he'd rather forget can still live on through music, he is able to move on at the same time. Half-recorded in his mother and uncle's upstate house where he turned the living room into a studio, he contemplates the beauty and disaster around him - all refracted through visceral visual imagery of how the physical earth meets the unknown to converge in something greater than ourselves. " This is all a living chronicle of all I want to do, which is feel good and be happy ," he admits. " I'm a completely different person now - a better version of myself ." Processing the past, Sutkowksi has emerged with newfound belief, fully intact and with a new path forward to the future.
Joe Sutkowski (Dirt Buyer)'s new album is a documentation of making it to the other side. Sutkowski grew up in New Jersey, and although he lives in Brooklyn now, he remains " an emo kid at heart ," garnering inspiration from bands like My Chemical Romance and Muse, the latter of whose theatrical, dramatic performances inspired the band's own vocal-forward, soaring takes. Initially working together as a duo while Sutkowski and Ruben Radlauer (Model/Actriz) were at school in Berklee, the band's self-titled 2019 debut album was recorded on an IPhone in their practice room on just drums and guitar, and the quietly striking, nuanced stylings earned them accolades far beyond the " fake record label " the two made up to originally release their music. The band's new album, Dirt Buyer II , was recorded in February 2020, and represents a foray into heavier material that marks a deeper shift for the band. Now working as a trio, Sutkowski is flanked by Tristan Allen on bass and Mike Costa on drums, a fellow Berklee grad who cut his teeth playing in bands across Boston including past collaborations with Sutkowski. Half-recorded while the band was on tour with Surf Curse, the record finds Sutkowski reaching out for places, people and beliefs to ground him. Throughout the album he attempts to wrap his head around the idea of fate and how you can brush up against other people and then leave them behind. The songs themselves play with this concept of light and dark intertwined. Oscillating between urgency and cathartic release and more stripped-back elegies, Sutkowski faces the reality that while the people he'd rather forget can still live on through music, he is able to move on at the same time. Half-recorded in his mother and uncle's upstate house where he turned the living room into a studio, he contemplates the beauty and disaster around him - all refracted through visceral visual imagery of how the physical earth meets the unknown to converge in something greater than ourselves. " This is all a living chronicle of all I want to do, which is feel good and be happy ," he admits. " I'm a completely different person now - a better version of myself ." Processing the past, Sutkowksi has emerged with newfound belief, fully intact and with a new path forward to the future.
‘Hey don’t touch that dial, good news Punk Rock Is Back!’ Mal-One
Mal-One’s new album starts with running through the radio dial, looking for some suitable music to listen to. These snippets are actually samples of songs from his previous album ‘It’s All Punk Rock’. Leading the listener nicely into a new set of songs to get their Punk Rock teeth into.
Songs that cover… the great New York punk scene of the 1970’s that grew out of a little bar in the Bowery District of New York City called CBGB’s ‘New York City Punk’. The Clash’s first album discussed in ‘When The Two 77’s Clashed’. The excitement of London’s Roxy Club revisited with its one line chant ‘Down The Roxy’. Those great ‘Punk Rock Fanzines‘, that kept us all so well informed. An early Sex Pistols gig at the Chelsea School of Art, ‘Machine Bubble Disco’. So named after what was to be the main event of that nights entertainment!!!.’45 Random Punk Memories’ sprang from Mal-One’s own reminisces. Talking of memories ‘Looking At The Decals On Steve Jones Guitar’, the recollection of Steve Jones, future guitarist of the Sex Pistols, stealing Mal-One’s bike when he was the tender age of seven years old. An incident that might have triggered this whole road of discovery in the first place.
A reflection on London’s harsh setting in those heady Punk times in ‘Corrugated London’ alongside a call and response to remember that ‘London’s Turning’ all the time for better or worse and that we can’t always pick and choose the bits we want to keep. The self-explanatory, ‘We Will All Lose Some Good Friends Along The Way’. ‘Shakespeare Meets Chuck Berry On Shepherds Bush Green’, a great story when Joe Strummer was asked by a reporter what he was up to and what he might call The Clash’s next album, which would turn out to be the timeless ‘London Calling’. Joe’s rather
tongue in cheek answer was “Shakespeare Meets Chuck Berry On Shepherds Bush Green’’.
A place close to Mal-One’s heart and a great title, that was crying out to be reused. Which Mal-One does via what he calls his Punk Art Poetry. Sometimes these lines are turned into lyrics and reworked into songs.
The album ends with such a call, ‘An Open Letter To…’ all those people who helped influence us all along the way. As the lyric states often without thought of financial gain, but done so, quiet simply because it had to be done.Maybe some young guns might in some small way, be inspired and find in Mal-One’s current efforts that ‘anything is possible’ and the true meaning of Punk was in fact, ‘Do It Yourself’.
The vinyl version of this release includes a poster that is part of Mal-Ones continuing Street Art project that involves putting up posters around London. This time declaring the news ‘Punk Rock Is Back!’. Included in the album packaging also is a signed and blind stamped limited print of one of Mal-One’s works ‘What Is It About Punk That’s So Different So Appealing’. A punk collage that just carries one word in among its multiple punk images and that word is PUNK. We hope you enjoy the indulgence.
German jazz singer with Belgian roots Sophie Tassignon has built up a solid reputation in Germany. She has a whole series of well-received records to her credit, which not only showcase her musical versatility but also demonstrate what an incredible vocalist and composer she is. Sophie is a musical chameleon, constantly seeking to challenge and renew herself.
When the refugee crisis erupted and millions of Syrian refugees flocked to continental Europe in search of a better life and safety, it resulted in a lot of fear and opposition from the European population. The perception on refugees is often very negative and creates divisions on the political field.
When a shelter was started up two blocks from Sophie's home in Berlin, she decided to help and take care of some refugees. To get a better understanding on the culture and stories of those people and to bridge with our culture, she decided to study Arabic. Meanwhile, we are more than five years on, and not only is she proficient in Arabic, but she has also gained a better understanding of the culture and customs of the Arab community. Friendships for life were formed.
She decided to incorporate Arabic into her own musical language - jazz - fusing two worlds. From this was born the project and the eponymous record "Khyal. The word refers to the imagination and is literally translated as "remembering and/or longing for something from the (distant) past." With this project, Sophie especially wants to encourage tolerance and acceptance towards people regardless of their cultural background or religion and show how intercultural interaction can lead to very beautiful and artistic results.artwork &
When the two brothers Alex and Mikael Lachan grew up in the small town of
Finspang, music was the highway and the world was the destination.
Playing together in the basement every day since they were kids, they formed a
bond that would translate into an explosive live show years later. The rejuvenated
band hammers out a sound that is energetic enough to sustain a live show
revolution, talented enough to keep your attention and welcoming enough to let
your voice sing the anthemic choruses like there was no tomorrow.
Over the span of their career they have released three full length albums (soon to
be four), two EPs and multiple digital singles. They have toured Europe many
times and played with bands such as Millencolin, Street Dogs, Asta Kask and
received praise from bands such as Dropkick Murphys for their heart-and-soulpacked melodic punk rock.
Now in 2023 they are back with a brand new full length album called Wanderlust
& Hardships. Recorded with the acclaimed producer Niels Nielsen, known for his
work with In Flames, Dead Soul, Ghost, and MCC, the album showcases the
band's signature sound that blends hard- hitting instrumentals with anthemic
lyrics. Fans can expect a celebratory and energetic tone that is sure to get them
involved.