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NPVR is the avant garde duo made up of the late Peter Rehberg and Nik Void. Editions Mego is proud to present their second and final release. No this is not some kind of Beatles synthetic AI that raises the dead reconstructed recordings but rather a new album made by the humans and their machines.

The initial meeting of Rehberg and Void was in London in 2016 and despite or due to their mutual awkwardness found solace and compatibility in the fact that they both had a similar electronic modular set up, along with matching cases to transport all. The idea to collaborate was an obvious and organic process as a means to connect their individual gear together and observe the outcome. The fruits of these initial experiments, recorded in London, resulted in the playful experimentation of their acclaimed 2017 release 33 33 (eMego 251).

Now in 2024 Editions Mego presents the logically titled follow up, 33 34. These sessions were recorded six months after the initial recordings at Peter’s home in Vienna. This was planned out as a mirror city release to the original London recordings. With Peter having access to his full studio set up this time around we encounter a rich audio landscape which organically folds together a variety of musical genres blurring any distinction between these forms so the resulting music hovers as a new cloud of sound. Any musical form, be it industrial, electro-acoustic, ambient, drone and techno all coexist and melt into the other as the ensuing result unveils a hypnotic swarm of divergent sounds (music). When active there were no lines or contexts with NPVR, either between sound or genre within these recordings or live where NPVR were at home playing at a techno club one night and an avant garde venue the next.

The initial session of these recordings was edited by Rehberg and sent to Void to further develop. Over time the final versions were agreed on and then shelved as other outside projects took over. The awkwardness had been surmounted and the two had become close friends. NPVR performed at a range of venues such as Tresor, Sutton House, Corsica, Blitz, Paris GRM #Focus2, LEV Festival and Rigas Skanumezs Festival. Following Rehberg’s untimely passing Void had difficulty listening back to the sessions but eventually thought it fit to complete and release this album, of which even the artwork (like 33 33, an image from Zurich photographer, Georg Gatsas) had been decided upon prior to Rehberg parting ways.

There is an unmistakable joy to these recordings. One encounters an enthralling exploration of their chosen machines which conveys the excitement of what can be randomly conjured when people speak through such devices. There is no grand statement or argument here, just the sheer thrill of creation and the recorded results of random encounters. The art of collaboration was always a mainstay of Rehberg’s practice from the advent of the MEGO adventure. Rehberg & Bauer was an initial collaboration with former business partner Ramon Bauer. Even at this stage one can hear a relaxed sense of delight in the sheer discovery of sound.

A mix made for the Wire magazine following the release of 33 33 hints at the freedom that comes with endless urge for exploration and discovery. Abstract tracks from Z'EV. Jérôme Noetinger and Jung An Tagen are included alongside British stalwarts The Fall and New Order. There were no lines between pop / academic / underground or mainstream in Rehberg’s world. All of it sat at the same table. It is just matter in the atmosphere, like the diverse exploration found in these recordings that comprise 33 34.

Towards the end of his life Rehberg was obsessing over the immense output of the German ambient musician Pete Namlook. An artist renowned for not only his sprawling catalogue of ambient masterpieces but one who often said his main inspiration was nature. This is apt with regards to the work of NPVR which also aligns with such thought as the intertwining of the two individual artists and their machines results in a natural symbiotic flow, as it happens, just like in the world around us.

Editions Mego is proud to release the new album by Australian producer Jasmine Guffond. Developed over a two year period, Microphone Permission is an unsettling musical journey utilising contemporary tools of communication to display Guffond's ongoing research into online surveillance and sound as a method of investigation.

Source material on Microphone Permission are from various projects Guffond has been working on; a commission to sonify the data of the city of Melbourne, a dance performance about the future sounds of an extinct forest, an installation that sonifies Twitter meta data in real time, a job as a composer for a theatre work about music and feminism by five young female identifying performers in Western Sydney and a site specific installation at the Linachtalsperre dam that employed the harmonic frequencies of electric currents.

The results are a stark, brooding, disorientating journey into a paranoid musical field that sits somewhere between ambient club music and a dystopian soundtrack. Elements of techno, classical music and sound art form a dark intriguing masterwork that questions the nature of invasive, algorithmic and computational listening practices.

For example Microphone Permission refers to the consent we routinely give when installing various apps. onto our smart devices. Inspired by a 2018 scandal in which fans of Spain's most popular soccer team were effectively turned into unwitting spies by granting the La Liga application microphone permission. No matter which make or model, all smart devices are built with a microphone that is by default, forever listening. Listening in these situations often takes on an algorithmic form that enables tech developers to bypass public response to what is intuitively considered invasive practice, that is, traditional modes of eavesdropping such as using the microphone to listen and record audio.

"Ensomheden Vi Deler" ("The Loneliness We Share") is the result of a dialogue between the collages and the music of øjeRum, initiated by IIKKI, between December 2024 and July 2025.

øjeRum is Copenhagen based musician and collage artist Paw Grabowski.

With his collages, the distinctive feature of øjeRum's works is their ability to combine different historical and artistic periods, such as ancient sculpture, medieval frescoes, classical painting and photography, and to make them interact with one another. øjeRum is also renowned for his work as a musician, where he stands out for his surreal, mysterious and poetic universe. His music and art are closely linked. These two sides of the artist's work are constantly intertwined.

In his øjeRum guise, he plucks and strums his treated acoustic instruments, sounding at times like church bells, at times like angelic harp, at time like drones, and suspends the listener in the magic of his melodies. With a deep back-catalogue of releases since 2014 - spanning labels such as eilean rec., Room40, Line, Opal Tapes and many more - he continues exploring his minimal, textural and deeply personal style of ambient music.

The collage and music project "Ensomheden Vi Deler" ("The Loneliness We Share") is an exploration of loneliness, closeness and distance. A meditation on the fragile architectures and hidden shapes of human connection. This is his second release on IIKKI.

Fine Art Book, Ltd. to 500 copies:
Hand numbered & hand stamped / first edition and only edition (no re-print) / hardcover book (15 cm x 21 cm) on Wibalin Natural Cotton White / 80 pages, 35 collages printed on Freelife Vellum 120g/m2 / Swiss Binding / Coloured edges with neon green pantone / Neon Green pantone on front and back cover (logo, slot and circle) / Sticker on front cover.

Twenty years ago, ILL BILL released “What’s Wrong With Bill?”, a raw, unfiltered snapshot of where his mind was at during a dark, creative and transformative time. Chaos and clarity in musical form, a record built from trauma, truth and the New York streets that raised him. He never imagined it would become what it did: a cult classic with a revered mystique that continues to be quoted and debated 20 years later. This album captured ILL BILL at his most urgent, most aggressive and most alert to the madness around him.

For the first time in two decades, “What’s Wrong With Bill?” is being reissued on 2LP vinyl, a complete capsule including an alternate variant cover, 20th anniversary commemorative OBI strip, and, for the first time ever, a cassette edition, alongside a remastered limited edition CD. This is more than nostalgia, it’s encapsulated arcana, proudly representative of an era when Hip Hop was dangerous, fearless and alive. This one is for the true believers who never forgot.

The sixth album from legendary hip-hop group Souls of Mischief, There Is Only Now, is a unique cinematic 90s crime tale of love, loss, and revenge. A conceptual collaboration with producer Adrian Younge and the first release on his freshly launched Linear Labs Records label, There Is Only Now gets its inspiration from a near fatal incident involving group members A-Plus, Opio, Tajai, and Phesto early in their careers. Set in 1994, There Is Only Now serves as a bookend to two decades of music since the release of their seminal debut album, `93 Til Infinity. Souls of Mischief and Adrian Younge have created a hip-hop album like no other. The result of a special moment for all involved, There Is Only Now proves that after two decades in the rap game hip-hop's Fab Four remains committed to the expansion of their legacy as hip-hop innovators and pioneers. Enthält unbegrenztes Streaming von There Is Only Now über die kostenlose Bandcamp-App und außerdem den hochwertigen Download als MP3, FLAC und mehr.

On the A-side, STIPP and Vromo deliver a dense, timeless, straight-to-the-point four-on-the-floor cut, followed by an immersive floor-filler from STIPP.
Flipping to the B-side, Khas showcases his signature sound with two powerful, deep and hypnotic techno tracks.

Bruit's sound is a tectonic collision of raw noise and patient, cinematic structure: layers of metallic percussion, low-end rumbles and fractured melodic fragments that creep, accumulate and then converge. Balancing soaring melancholy and industrial grit with meticulous dynamics, they turn long-form pieces into physical architectures where silence, resonance and sudden force are equally important. In this reissue of their staggering debut EP `Monolith', Bruit give us the opportunity to rediscover their first ever release, the completely self-produced and recorded record that defined their direction and introduced their world-shattering sound. `Monolith' is an epic portrayal at the centre of the human experience, the band's use of melancholia, industrial textures reimagined through patient dynamics, sculpted resonances, and a singular attention to momentum gives listeners access deep and power terrains. `Monolith' is the first expression of Bruit's exploration of material sound and human scale. Building on the dense palette of integrity and compositional mastery, Bruit interrogates what long-form composition can hold: memory, pressure, and a cinematic coalescence. Bruit's sound captures the exorbitant nature of the times, the outrageousness of humanity at a moment in time that is grotesque in scale and overwhelming in scope. Two long tracks for FOR FANS OF Hans Zimmer * Nils Frahm * Godspeed You! Black Emperor * Balmorhea * Max Richter * Olafur Arnalds * A Silver Mount Zion * Boards Of Canada

Bruit's sound is a tectonic collision of raw noise and patient, cinematic structure: layers of metallic percussion, low-end rumbles and fractured melodic fragments that creep, accumulate and then converge. Balancing soaring melancholy and industrial grit with meticulous dynamics, they turn long-form pieces into physical architectures where silence, resonance and sudden force are equally important. In this reissue of their staggering debut EP `Monolith', Bruit give us the opportunity to rediscover their first ever release, the completely self-produced and recorded record that defined their direction and introduced their world-shattering sound. `Monolith' is an epic portrayal at the centre of the human experience, the band's use of melancholia, industrial textures reimagined through patient dynamics, sculpted resonances, and a singular attention to momentum gives listeners access deep and power terrains. `Monolith' is the first expression of Bruit's exploration of material sound and human scale. Building on the dense palette of integrity and compositional mastery, Bruit interrogates what long-form composition can hold: memory, pressure, and a cinematic coalescence. Bruit's sound captures the exorbitant nature of the times, the outrageousness of humanity at a moment in time that is grotesque in scale and overwhelming in scope. Two long tracks for FOR FANS OF Hans Zimmer * Nils Frahm * Godspeed You! Black Emperor * Balmorhea * Max Richter * Olafur Arnalds * A Silver Mount Zion * Boards Of Canada

"I want nothing more than to be a loner," Emily Kempf sings early on Flower of Devotion, the new album by Chicago trio Dehd. It's a startling admission coming from a songwriter who, just a year ago on Dehd's critically acclaimed Water, wrote eloquently about the joys and pains _ more than anything, the necessity _ of love, compassion, and companionship. But then, "admission" isn't really the right word here, given the stridency of Kempf's tone. "Loner" is a declaration. The record ups the ante on Dehd's sound & filters in just enough polish to bring out the shining and melancholy undertones in Jason Balla and Emily Kempf's songwriting, even as it captures them at their most strident. Balla's guitar lines at times flirt with ticklish cosmic country, while at others they reflect the dark marble sounds of Broadcast. Kempf, meanwhile, establishes herself as a singer of incredible expressive range, pinching into a high lonesome wail, letting loose a chirping "ooh!," pushing her voice below its breaking point and letting it swing down there. When she and Balla bounce descending counter-melodies off one another over McGrady's one-two thumps, or skitter off over a programmed drum pad, they sound like The B-52s shaking off heartache. What makes Flower of Devotion so impressive is how its creation seems to have strengthened its creators, both as individuals and as a unit, even as they've stared down their own limitations. It's also striking just how much fun they seem to be having in the process. "It's okay to be lighthearted in the face of despair," Kempf says. It's a theme that runs through the album, from the opening back-and-forth build of "Desire" to the click-clacking chorus of "Haha," which finds them deflating their own history. Flower of Devotion was recorded in April and August of 2019 in Chicago. It will be released on Fire Talk Records on July 17th 2020.

Saint Etienne kündigen mit 'International' ihr 13. und zugleich letztes Studioalbum an, das am 5. September 2025 bei Heavenly Recordings erscheint. Nach 35 Jahren Bandgeschichte, unzähligen Stilwechseln und Projekten jenseits der Musik ziehen Sarah Cracknell, Bob Stanley und Pete Wiggs damit einen Schlussstrich unter ihr gemeinsames Schaffen im Studio. International ist ein stilistisch vielseitiges Album, das von langjährigen Weggefährten, Heldinnen und Freundinnen mitgestaltet wurde – darunter Confidence Man, Vince Clarke, Erol Alkan, Paul Hartnoll (Orbital) und Nick Heyward. Die Songs spiegeln sowohl den nostalgischen Rückblick als auch die ungebrochene kreative Neugier der Band wider. Mit dem bewegenden Abschlusstrack Last Time verabschiedet sich das Trio endgültig von seinen Fans – aufrichtig, wehmütig und voller Wärme.

Mesh-mainstay Jinjé teams up with A. Montane for a collaborative EP born out of live improvised sessions, and composed over the period of a year.

Taking a slowed approach to the production of Neon Garden EP, the two hardware aficionados met sporadically for live jam sessions - an homage to the importance of not rushing the process, and letting ideas build over time. Each session consisted of an intense burst of musical propositions followed by a careful editing framework, giving space for each moment to flourish. Oscillating between moments of catharsis and intense rhythmic play, the EP merges disparate musical sources into exciting new structures.

‘Ikeya Seki’ launches with glistening arpeggiations and subaquatic frequencies that interact over UKG-adjacent drums. ‘Vrem’ marches to a slow-stepping half time beat, building through yearning vocals before breaking down into a storm of pointillistic percussion. On ‘Yū’, rich melodies and bouncy, bass-led rhythms dance below chopped up vocals. Closing things off, ‘Velvet People’ builds a spatial setting with bells ricocheting through malfunctioning flutters.

A nod to the joys of improvisation, Neon Garden EP takes the spirit of spontaneity and lays out new structures for its ideas to grow.

Iconic hip-hop duo The High & Mighty, composed of rapper Mr. Eon and producer DJ Mighty Mi, make their long-awaited return with Sound of Market, their first studio album in over twenty years. The release marks a powerful comeback for one of underground hip-hop’s most celebrated duos — a project steeped in nostalgia, boom-bap grit, and the timeless energy of East Coast rap.

Named in honor of Sound of Market Street, the legendary Philadelphia record store that served as a hub for crate diggers, DJs, and hip-hop heads for decades, the album pays homage to the culture that shaped The High & Mighty’s sound and identity. Much like the store itself, the record celebrates deep cuts, rare finds, and the shared love of vinyl that connects generations of hip-hop fans.

Across 17 tracks, Sound of Market revives the duo’s trademark wit and sharp lyricism while showcasing an impressive lineup of collaborators, including Kool Keith, The Alchemist, Your Old Droog, Large Professor, O.C., Chubb Rock, King T, Skillz, and many more. The result is a cohesive, sample-driven experience that bridges the classic and contemporary — reaffirming The High & Mighty’s status as true architects of independent hip-hop.

From the opening anthem “Two Man Crew” and the surreal swagger of “Pinky Tuskadero” with Kool Keith, to the cinematic boom of “Mighty’s Big 5 (Live from The Palestra)”, the record moves effortlessly through sharp lyricism, layered production, and a shared reverence for the foundations of the genre. Sound of Market is both a return and a reminder — a record that feels timeless in its authenticity.

Yes's 1972 3-track recording masterpiece, Close to the Edge, presents a snapshot of an adventurous rock band at the peak of its powers, daring to push itself musically, both as individuals and as a unit.

The first half of the 1970s was an especially fertile period for British progressive rock, laying claim to classics such as Tarkus, Selling England by the Pound, Larks' Tongues in Aspic, The Dark Side of the Moon, and Thick as a Brick. Collectively these and other works represent the best British progressive rock had to offer. Yet, many reviewers cite Close to the Edge as the ultimate prog rock album.

Author and music journalist Will Romano writes: "Yes had previously penned epic tracks for The Yes Album and Fragile, but nothing on the magnitude of the musical gems appearing on Close to the Edge. It's something of a small miracle — perhaps even magic — that the virtuoso quintet crafted such a cohesive and compelling album during an often-hectic recording process that very nearly relegated this monumental work to the dustbin of history."

The album's centrepiece is the 18-minute title track, with themes and lyrics inspired by the Herman Hesse novel Siddhartha. Side two contains two non-conceptual tracks, the folk-inspired "And You and I" and the comparatively straightforward rocker "Siberian Khatru." Original drummer Bill Bruford found the album particularly laborious to make, which culminated in his decision to quit the band after it was recorded, to join King Crimson.

Close to the Edge became the band's greatest commercial success at the time of release. It peaked at No. 4 on the U.K. Albums Chart and No. 3 on the Billboard 200 in the United States, the highest position Yes has reached on the latter chart.

In 2020, Close to the Edge was ranked at No. 445 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Mastered by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio. Pressed on 180-gram vinyl at Quality Record Pressings, and housed in a tip-on old style gatefold double pocket jacket with textured stock by Stoughton Printing.

Analogue Productions (Atlantic 75 Series) Celebrating the 75th Anniversary of Atlantic Records! Rolling Stone list of 500 Greatest Albums 265/500 for 2012 180-gram 45 RPM double LP Pressed at Quality Record Pressings Tip-on old style gatefold double pocket jacket by Stoughton Printing The Genius of Ray Charles, his sixth studio album, released in 1959 by Atlantic Records, eschewed the the soul sound of his 1950s recordings, which fused jazz, gospel, and blues, for swinging pop with big band arrangements.

Charles is joined bymany ringers from the Count Basie and Duke Ellington bands for the first half of this program, featuring Charles belting out six songs arranged by Quincy Jones. "Let the Good Times Roll" and "Deed I Do" are highlights, and there are solos by tenorman David "Fathead" Newman, trumpeter Marcus Belgrave, and (on "Two Years of Torture") tenor Paul Gonsalves. The remaining six numbers are ballads, with Charles backed by a string orchestra arranged by Ralph Burns (including "Come Rain or Come Shine" and "Don't Let the Sun Catch You Cryin'"). Charles' voice is heard throughout in peak form, giving soul to even the veteran standards. Pressed on 180-gram vinyl at Quality Record Pressings, and housed in a tip-on old style gatefold double pocket jacket by Stoughton Printing.

Wailin' Rhythm 'n' Blues ravers THE BREADMAKERS from Melbourne, Australia, first formed back in 1989, delivering an explosive mixture of Garage Rock Revival and rockin' Rhythm 'n' Blues

Featuring members of SHUTDOWN 66, THE BO-WEEVILS, and THE PURITANS, these guys have long achieved cult status in the Garage Punk scene. Following their selftitled LP released on SOUNDFLAT RECORDS in 2020, we couldn't get enough of their wild sound. Thankfully, our prayers have been answered with a brand-new hit record from the fantastic BREADMAKERS!

The album includes two smashing cover versions: Bo Diddley's classic "She's Fine, She's Mine" and Andre Williams' "Mojo Hannah" , alongside some fabulous BREADMAKERS originals. Whether it's the catchy, wild tunes like "Marisa In Your Ear", "Existential Homesick Blues" and "Mojo Hanna", or the cool, bluesy vibes of their take on Bo Diddley's "She's Fine, She's Mine" and the moody "Stuck In The Past", these guys prove they have rock 'n' roll coursing through their veins.

"Lonesome Sundown" is yet another fantastic release from Australian Garage Punk legends THE BREADMAKERS!

The capstone of Miles Davis’ electric period, Agharta reigns as a funk-rock fireball — a blazing comet streaked energy and elan, a fearless organism feasting on adventure and freedom, a seven-headed Godzilla stomping its way through Osaka, Japan. Recorded on February 1, 1975 at Osaka Festival Hall at the first of a two-show stand, the double album offers an endless abundance of surprises and shifts — as well as a road-proven ensemble whose chemistry and abilities equal that of any of Davis’ celebrated bands. If the true measure of jazz is the capacity to adapt to the moment and challenge perception, Agharta is consummate.

Sourced from the original master tapes, housed in a Stoughton gatefold jacket, and pressed at Fidelity Record Pressing in California, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered-edition 180g 33RPM 2LP set of this epic live release presents it in audiophile sound on a domestic pressing for the first time. Offering greater degrees of separation, detail, and richness than the compressed CD editions and more clarity, openness, and presence than older vinyl copies, this version of the 1975 release helps bring the concert stage to your home. Just make sure your turntable and speakers are up to the challenge of Davis and Co.’s explosive performances — and producing the decibels they demand.

Teeming with vibrant colors, tones, and pace, Mobile Fidelity’s reissue captures the hear-it-to-believe-it flow, sweep, and moodiness of the music. Though the group honors looseness and freedom with religious verve, the specificity and scale rendered by this remaster allows you to detect methods behind the alleged madness that are often otherwise harder to discern. This insight extends to the understated changes in volume, harmonics, and phrasings. In many ways, you can listen as Davis himself did that early February evening as he helped coordinate the overall direction and decided on whether to blow his wah-wah-wired trumpet or take a turn on the organ.

Tellingly, Agharta would likely never have been made if not for Davis’ ventures overseas and, specifically, to the Land of the Rising Sun. Having for years faced a backlash on his native soil for his choices to experiment and blow past all known borders, Davis was welcomed with open arms in Japan. The concert documented on Agharta — as well as the day’s later show, captured on the equally exciting Pangea — stemmed from a sold-out three-week tour that would ultimately mark Davis’ final public appearances for years, as he soon settled into semi-retirement and nursed the wounds connected to an unprecedented stretch of restless and relentless output.

For all the band-fueled merit of Agharta — and there’s plenty, given the cast of saxophonist Sonny Fortune, bassist Michael Henderson, drummer Al Foster, percussionist James Mtume, and guitarists Reggie Lucas and Pete Cosey seemingly blasts off to outer space and travels distant galaxies by the time this minimally edited record runs its course — Davis’ own playing often remains overlooked. As critics Richard Cook and Brian Morton observed, it is “often fantastically subtle, creating surges and ebbs in a harmonically static line, allowing him to build huge melismatic variations on a single note.” He attacks like a man on a mission, out to prove naysayers wrong and bent on trailblazing another new path forward. Convention and skeptics be damned.

Noisy and furious, dark and discordant, abstract and off-balance, radical and intense, abrasive and atmospheric, strangely beautiful and hypnotically eccentric: Agharta evades simple description, and refuses to be pinned down in any established category — rock, jazz, punk, ambient, prog, avante-garde, or otherwise. Shot through with trench-deep grooves, screaming riffs, scalding solos, and free-improv leads, its cosmic thrust comes on as the equivalent of an animated pointillist painting comprised of millions of textured dots, dashes, and dabs that hold your attention so raptly you want to revisit the ideas again and again.

Always steps ahead of everyone else, Davis knew what he was doing even when Agharta debuted in Japan before later hitting U.S. markets. Though “Maiysha” and “Theme from Jack Johnson” are identified in the track listing, the record contains a number of uncredited references to other Davis works, including a nod to “So What.” This decision to bypass labels only adds to the art of the reveal — the rare black magic in which Agharta expertly deals.

Rakkit Records is a brand new label that specialises in darkside jungle techno.

Heading in a different direction to Radman's older releases, this EP is inspired by two of his young loves: London squat parties and militant EA raves. That darkside hardcore sound you'd hear in the morning at the squats, with the energy of the main event at a Thetford Forest party. Dark, stompin', and drenched in 303s.

It's dedicated to one of his partners in crime of the time, Phil Sayer, who introduced him to much of the above and always pushed Radman to keep releasing tunes, with his support and brutal critique. Radman took samples of one of Phil's original poems for the track ACAB, from his performance in his old living room. Phil loved vinyl, 303s, darkside and hardcore, so we think he woulda been chuffed.

Just 150 copies getting pressed. Once they're gone, they're gone.

Supergroups existed before Emerson, Lake & Palmer formed in 1970. And, as we all know well, many came after. But few, if any, matched the English trio’s chemistry and its elevated combination of virtuosity, vision, and verve. Having influenced a multitude of followers, ELP’s prowess was obvious from the start. The band’s self-titled debut stands as a towering statement of creative imagination, execution, and discipline more than five decades after its original release.

Mastered at MoFi’s California studio, housed in a Stoughton jacket, and pressed at Fidelity Record Pressing, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered-edition 180g 33RPM LP of Emerson, Lake & Palmer presents the benchmark album in audiophile sound. Clear, dynamic, and balanced, this collectible edition honors the perfectionist approaches that both informed the playing and recording of the record.

Distinguished with black backgrounds, this reissue brings to light the epic scope, tonal depth, and mind-bending degrees of musicianship on display. Aspects — textures, nuances, effects, melodies, tempo changes — that go hand-in-hand with the trio’s compositions and interplay are rendered amid broad soundstages and delivered with pinpoint detail. Whether you’ve owned multiple copies of this touchstone or seeking out your first version, you’ll relish the presence, separation, imaging, and crispness that help make every song come across as if the group has set up shop in your listening space.

Opening the door to the seemingly infinite possibilities of progressive rock while steering clear of excess, Emerson, Lake & Palmer achieved a rare feat in that its complex, cerebral music didn’t prevent it from attaining mainstream success. The gold-certified effort launched the career of a band that would sell tens of millions of records. It also landed a Top 50 single in the form of the ballad “Lucky Man,” whose vocal harmonies, folksy strumming, multi-tracked instrumentation, and breakthrough Moog solo almost feel quaint in the face of the other fare on the album.

Comprised of genre-defying originals and hybrid arrangements of two classical pieces, the album Rolling Stone originally and rightly said is “best heard as a whole” matches outrageous ambition with the otherworldly skills of three musicians who remain among the finest to ever pick up their respective instruments. While Emerson soon drew the lion’s share of headlines for his ability on keys — clavinet, Moog, piano, Hammond organ, and pipe organ included — Greg Lake’s aptitude on guitar and bass, along with well as Carl Palmer’s monster talents behind the kit, created a three-headed hydra that devoured everything in front of it.

That extends to the radical reinterpretation of Bela Bartok’s “The Barbarian” that begins the LP, a performance that in less than four-and-a-half minutes runs the gamut from distorted to churchy to angular and blustery. More classical flourishes, keyboard wizardry, hard-rock heaviness, and gothic signatures emerge throughout “Knife-Edge,” which reimagines music by Leos Janacek and J.S. Bach — and ultimately invites you to explore a cathedral of sound teeming with separate bursts of keys and percussion.

And did someone say “drumming”? Check out Palmer’s monster salvo on “Tank,” a rhythmic showcase that marches out with knee-bent notes and mirror-reflected passages. Or dive into the mythological suite “The Three Fates.” Replete with three parts and Emerson playing the pipe organ at Royal Festival Hall, it shoots off sonic fireworks via sophisticated arpeggios, jazz improvisations, dancing counter-meters, sizzling chords, and a few explosions. Please don’t hold anyone at MoFi responsible if your system cannot handle it; this is heady stuff.

Indeed, everything on Emerson, Lake & Palmer is there for a purpose. Whether you aim to attempt to dissect all of the notes, shifts, and polyrhythmic bluster or just want to absorb this album as one living, breathing organism, this version invites you to do both as many times as you desire.

The song titles on Van Halen's aptly titled Fair Warning don't lie. The likes of "Unchained," "Mean Street," "Push Comes to Shove," "One Foot Out the Door," and more indicate the mood the band channels on its double-platinum 1981 record — the nastiest, darkest, and fiercest album of the group's storied career. For the fourth time in four years, Van Halen throws down the gauntlet to all challengers and emerges victorious.


Sourced from the original analog tapes, pressed on MoFi SuperVinyl at Fidelity Record Pressing, and strictly limited to 5,000 numbered copies, Mobile Fidelity's UltraDisc One-Step 180g 45RPM 2LP set plays with unfettered clarity, dynamics, and immediacy. Benefitting from superb groove definition, an ultra-low noise floor, and dead-quiet surfaces, this vinyl edition captures what went down in the studio with tremendous realism and involving presence.

Taking a more controlled approach in the studio and still completing everything in less than two weeks, Van Halen and producer Ted Templeman relied on studio amplifiers to direct the sound. Further diverging from the live-on-the-floor approach of its earlier albums, the ensemble also employed overdubs to great effect. The result: Dense, stacked architecture that underlines the hard-hitting tenor of the songs — and which comes alive like never before on this reference edition that looks as good as it sounds.

The premium packaging and gorgeous presentation befit the reissue's select status. Housed in a deluxe slipcase, it features special foil-stamped jackets and faithful-to-the-original graphics that illuminate the splendor of the recording. Aurally and visually, it is made for listeners who want to immerse themselves in everything involved with the album, including the iconic cover art adopted from William Kurelek's haunting painting, "The Maze."

Isolated frames from Kurelek's childhood-inspired work — including a man bashing his head into a brick wall, a guy pinning down an adversary as he delivers bare-fist blows to his face and others watch with apparent glee, a boy tied down on a conveyer belt and being sent through the equivalent of a meat saw — adorn the front and back covers. The sunnier visual disposition of Van Halen's prior efforts gives way to something sinister and tortured, traits reflective of the music within. The band members, too, are visually depicted not in glamorous shots but in a serious black-and-white portrait in which the quartet is clad in black leather jackets.

Tough, aggressive, stark: Fair Warning comes on like a series of bare-knuckled punches to the solar plexus and boasts lyrical narratives to match. Though not a concept record, the concise album revolves around themes of roughing it on the streets and struggling to survive amid dim prospects. Singer David Lee Roth reportedly penned many of the initial lyrics after traveling to Haiti and observing extreme poverty. The characters and situations populating Fair Warning reflect hardscrabble existence, last-chance desperation, and underlying danger.

Witness the crazies, poor folks, and hunters of “Mean Street”; the former prom queen turned pornographic actress on “Dirty Movies”; the menace and vice of “Sinners Swing!”; the streetwise hustle of “Unchained”; the isolation and alienation of “Push Comes to Shove”; the desire for escape on “One Foot Out the Door”: A carefree California beach party Fair Warning is not.

Having said he felt angry and frustrated during the sessions, guitarist Eddie Van Halen uses the forceful arrangements as a playground for his seemingly unlimited arsenal. Supported by a crack rhythm section and a hyped-up Roth, he performs with an almost impossible combination of punk-like intensity, technical finesse, lyrical fluidity, and unbridled emotion. The virtuoso was increasingly butting heads with Templeton and seeking a freedom in the studio he believed denied him.

No wonder he plays like a bat out of hell. Listen to the rapid-fire manner in which he slaps the high and low E strings on the 12th fret of his instrument on “Mean Street,” instilling the tune with funk flair and metal-spiked sharpness. For the pouty strut of “Dirty Movies,” Eddie Van Halen contributes slide guitar magic made possible after he sawed off the lower portion of a Gibson SG so he could reach further down the fretboard.

Related intensity, urgency, and daredevil momentum punctuate the surging “Sinner’s Swing!” A heavily flanged, delicately melodic introduction frames the attitudinal “Hear About It Later,” among the most creative arrangements of Van Halen’s career. And do riffs come any bigger or magnetic than those on the high-wire kick of “Unchained”? As for the out-of-left-field “Sunday in the Park,” an instrumental composed on an Electro-Harmonix micro-synthesizer: Who but Eddie Van Halen to supply creep factor in such an ingenious way?

Despite selling fewer quantities than Van Halen’s prior efforts, Fair Warning remains for many diehards the record that epitomizes all of the band’s immense strengths —Roth’s manic energy and tongue-wagging humor, Alex Van Halen’s rhythmic heartbeat-in-your-chest bombast, and Michael Anthony’s lucid bass lines included. Arriving when the New Wave of British Heavy Metal and new-wave movements were taking flight, it signaled a shot across the bow from a band determined to stay a step ahead and provide proof nobody could touch what it delivered.

More than four decades later, Fair Warning still sounds that alarm.

At the end of the project’s 20th anniversary celebrations, ROME tolls in the next era of the band with two fresh and visionary albums: ‘The Hierophant’ and ‘The Tower’. Whatever the great poets have affirmed in their finest moments is the nearest we can come to an authoritative religion or truth. It is in this spirit that ROME welcomes the listener into the temple of ‘The Hierophant’, ROME’s final album of its second decade of existence.

‘The Hierophant’ represents the enigmatic accompanying piece to the more introspective and seclusive recent work (of ‘The Tower’). Starting its journey during ‘Days of Assembly’, from the opening ‘Secret Harbour’ along ‘On Sorrow's Embankment’ to its logical finale in the mythical North with ‘Apollo of Hyperborea’, ‘The Hierophant’ is a spiritual travelogue seeking out the word and world of this ‘My Frail Ambassador’, the proclaimer of the sacred truce, interpreter of the ancestral laws and our guiding light through these darkened times.

James Brown wants to know one thing before he and his band begin Sex Machine. “Can I get into the thing, really?,” he asks. His cohorts enthusiastically respond in the affirmative. And for the next hour and change, Mr. Dynamite gets into it and more, turning in a sweat-soaked, feet-moving, hip-swiveling, emotion-purging, in-the-red, drop-everything-you’re-doing-and-dance performance for the ages. Ranked by Rolling Stone among the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, the sweeping 1970 effort towers as a testament to Brown’s inimitable legacy as well as the peak powers of his voice, vibrancy, and bands.

Sourced from the original master tapes, pressed at Fidelity Record Pressing, and housed in a Stoughton gatefold jacket, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered-edition 180g 33RPM 2LP set presents Sex Machine in audiophile sound for the first time. It explodes with the energy the lightning-strike music demands. Dynamic, immediate, present, airy: Everything from the brassiness and fluidity of the horns to the snap and decay of the snare to the swell and carry of the organ comes across in full-range perspective.

Then there’s Brown’s superhuman singing, which here emerges with a purity, naturalism, and transparency that ensure you feel everything. Screeching, shouting, pleading, moaning, preaching, stinging, commanding, testifying, crooning, humming: The Godfather of Soul contributes one of the finest vocal performances known to man. This definitive 55th anniversary reissue of Brown’s monster funk statement further exhibits a combination of clarity, solidity, separation, and imaging that helps bring to light what he and his crack ensembles committed to tape. Both in the studio and on the stage.

Just how lifelike does this reissue sound? Senior Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab engineer Krieg Wunderlich, who handled the remaster, notes: “There were some artifacts that sounded a bit like mistracking. But they turned out to be breath blasts on the vocal microphone. That is part of history. JB was workin' hard, and breathin' hard. And there was an edit the timing of that was truly strange. Again, a part of history.”

Originally marketed as a live album, Sex Machine contains six songs recorded in the studio and later overdubbed with canned crowd noise and reverberation. Save for “Low Down Popcorn,” the tracks on the latter half stem from a phenomenal performance captured in October 1969 at Bell Auditorium in Brown’s adopted hometown of Augusta, GA. The special relationship between the singer, the audience, and the location is palpable.

As the 1960s gave way to a new decade, Brown experienced immense success and dealt with unexpected change. Soul Brother Number One soon expanded his idea for an official live album captured in Augusta when the ensemble that backed him on that date morphed into the original version of the world-famous J.B.’s just months after the show. The virtuosic abilities, sticky chemistry, and rhythm-forward nature of the J.B.’s prompted him to book a one-off session in Cincinnati, OH, on a late July night.

Anchored by brothers William “Bootsy” Collins and Phelps “Catfish” Collins, the group — as well as two different drummers — laid down a nearly 11-minute rendition of “Get Up I Feel Like Being Like a Sex Machine” and a thrilling medley of “Bewildered,” “I Got the Feeling,” and “Give It Up or Turnit a Loose.” A pair of then-recent studio singles cut in separate locations in 1969, “Brother Rapp” and “Low Down Popcorn,” each featuring his prior group, took care of the second LP worth of material that complements the originally planned live set.

Complicated? Somewhat. Unusual? Definitely. But just as he elevated the expectations for all present and future R&B artists, Brown not only makes it all work. He makes it positively electrifying.

“Get Up I Feel Like Being Like a Sex Machine” is alone deserving of a dissertation on the art of funk music, seeing it moves up and down akin to an oil derrick, witnesses Brown unleashing a trademark series of grunts, squeaks, and “good god” asides, and glides to a hypnotic groove that won’t quit. Or look to the syncopated rhythms of “Brother Rapp (Part I and Part II),” one of multiple pieces here that signify the point where Brown began viewing every instrument as a percussive tool. Brown closes the three-song medley with his new band with a skedaddling “Give It Up or Turnit a Loose,” which provides jolts on the order of sticking your finger into a socket.

Not that the actual live material falls short in any way. Setting an insistent tempo for the vitality that follows, “I Don’t Want Nobody to Give Me Nothing” positions Brown as a role model, leader, and self-sufficient entrepreneur. All simmer and boil, the short and sweet “Licking Stick” dares you to keep pace. The floating, almost comforting “Spinning Wheel” spotlights the instrumental prowess of Maceo Parker and company, and functions as a seamless segue into the tender, horn-saluted “If I Ruled the World.”

And Brown and his mates still aren’t done. Just try to resist the one-two closing punch of “I Can’t Stand Myself (When You Touch Me)” and “Mother Popcorn.” Mercy.

Ain’t it funky? Sure ‘nuff.

American Nightmare's "Year One" collection on 180 gram vinyl for its 25th anniversary. Available again for the first time in decades. Originally released in 2001, the Boston hardcore band’s 25th anniversary release of "Year One" pays tribute to their formative years. This collection unites their first two 7”s, originally released by Bridge 9 Records founder and then-roommate Chris Wrenn, on a 180-gram LP, with all tracks recorded by Kurt Ballou at God City. Originally designed by Jake Bannon (Converge), this edition has been reimagined by Del Jae (Futurismo Records) and singer Wesley Eisold, and comes packaged in a gatefold with an insert of handwritten lyrics and collaged images. "Year One" doesn’t just celebrate a milestone; it reaffirms American Nightmare’s enduring legacy. Their music raised the bar for emotional depth in hardcore, adding a distinctly poetic and existential lyrical approach that set them apart and changed the rules of the scene, paving the way for countless bands that followed

The duo Adjustment Bureau, return with another deeply hypnotic 12" on their own Hypnosapiens imprint. Following the label’s first two vinyl-only gems, The Others expands their sound palette between deep house, microhouse, and subtle breaks, all wrapped in a refined analog warmth.
Pressed on black 140-gram vinyl, The Others continues Hypnosapiens’ mission to showcase the minimal scene’s most sophisticated and soulful side. Functional yet emotional, understated yet timeless, crafted for DJs who value precision, patience, and space.

This is the first new Andy Boay album since 2013’s In The Light. I recorded it in January 2024 to a Yamaha MT8X 8-track cassette recorder in my room at the New York Center for Creativity & Dance in the East Village of Manhattan.

I mixed it in June 2024 with Joe Santarpia and Roberto Pagano at the Idiot Room in San Francisco. The three songs on Side A (“HBM,” “If I Ever Come Off,” and “You’re In The Air Now”) were initially arranged over several live performances using a multi-track looper. When I then sat down to track them to my tape machine, I meticulously sang and played out all repeating parts, layering and ping-pong-bouncing each doubled take to another tape-track. In this way I hoped to maintain the hypnotic quality of the looped parts while keeping them organic, singular, and fleeting. Side B is a triptych of more carefully arranged pop songs: a tremolo & mod-delay elegy to youth called “Careless,” bookended by two variations on the same theme — the stark, mellotron prayer of “One & One” and the lonesome after-hours funk of “I Want More”. The line “You took that walk for the two of us” has a dual meaning. In 2011, my friend Spencer Gilley took a long walk through Montreal while listening to demos I’d recorded.

He described the experience to me as magical, ecstatic, inspiring. His encouragement from that moment still echoes every time I sit down to write or record. Less than a year later, I met Florida musician Thomas Fekete. We formed a deep, brief friendship that lasted until his death in 2016. Thom entered my life during a chaotic time and helped me find direction and courage. He took me on a tour that shifted the course of my life. We bonded over surviving cancer as young men, Florida’s noise scene, and the strange lives we led as touring guitarists (he in Surfer Blood, me in Mac DeMarco’s band). Thom could always warmly anticipate all of my joy, humor, and curiosity—and all of my pain, anxiety, and fear. In this way, it felt like he was also taking that walk for the two of us—gently guiding me down a path he had already traveled. Andy Boay (Andy White) began playing and recording music as a teen in Orlando during the early 2000s, exploring noise, psych, and pop in bands and solo projects.

He has played in the duo Tonstartssbandht with his brother Edwin since 2007. He spent six years playing guitar in the touring band for Mac DeMarco. Andy Boay’s music taps the euphoric and the sorrowful, both onstage amongst friends and strangers, and tracking alone at his 8-track in the studio. These days he lives and works in the East Village neighborhood of New York City.

House of Harm are proud to announce the forthcoming release of their new album Playground, out December 1st, 2023. The new record builds and expands upon the three-piece’s enthralling shadow-pop sound, a mix of midnight atmospherics, 90s era jangle pop, and contagious synth drenched hooks that further elevate the transcendent vocals of lead singer Michael Rocheford. Rounded out by Cooper Leardi (guitar / synths) and Tyler Kershaw (guitar / synth), House of Harm have amassed an impressive following as something of a best kept secret among their growing fanbase, leading to sold out shows on both coasts by the power of word of mouth alone.

The band members have been drawn to music for as long as any of them can remember, and the drive to be around like-minded artists and make their own noise drew them all to Boston after high school. There they all quickly enmeshed themselves, playing in other bands before meeting each other. Ever since, House of Harm have been quietly making a name for themselves among music fans with darker pop persuasions via a steady stream of releases in single, ep and album form.

That attention to detail and workmanlike approach at the expense of chasing instant gratification seems to be paying dividends after years of steady effort. The journey of their new album Playground saw House of Harm stay true to that ethos. The band painstakingly narrowed the record down to an efficient 10 tracks that they felt made the most sense, both standing on their own as well as fitting into an LP that built a cohesive world for the listener to get lost in. The album’s name also reflects the experimentation and happy accidents that came about during the writing and recording process.

On “The Face of Grace” they set out to explore different dynamics by writing a song entirely without drums, but couldn’t help themselves from putting emphasis on the song’s 6/8 waltz time signature. “Two Kinds” is another first for House Of Harm in that it’s predominantly driven by acoustic guitar. That aforementioned vulnerability shows up in other areas of the songwriting process as well with “Two Kinds”, one of their most revealing songs to date from a lyrical standpoint, written from a place of reflection and weakness and tackling feelings uneasy to be put on display for public consumption.

Taken as a whole, the end result is an album representing a collection of the band’s most raw and expressive songs yet.

SPTLP007 - ASC - Vanishing Point LP

Evolving further with each release, ASC delivers his latest monumental album on Spatial, a varied and memorable journey through stunningly realised fusion of modern and classic atmospheric breakbeats.

A1 - Mystic Street

Setting a murky tone with light cymbals and synthwork flecking the intro, Mystic Street calmly purrs and growls towards a drop of analogue kicks and a sparse, menacing drum pattern to kick off this incredible album. Enveloped by a dense cloud of darkly atmospherics, the track coils with tension, each element rippling through the mix like distant memories as the suitably enigmatic bassline rumbles beneath.

A2 - Convergence

Straight into the beats with a DJ-friendly two step intro, ASC utilises sparse, sci-fi hits and persistent danceable breakbeats with a melodic bassline. As the atmosphere builds, percussive tones punctuate the swirling pads, creating a luscious sense of forward motion with echoing samples and effects combining in the mix to create a dreamlike soundscape perfect for the dancefloor and headphones alike.

B1 - Invisible Borders

No ASC album would be complete without an amen workout, and we certainly have that here as Invisible Borders rushes into view with simmering intent, melodic samples tore from battlegrounds of yesteryear providing a truly epic atmosphere, rippling breakbeat trickery teasing the listener before crushing full contact amens arrive with panache and veracity - twisted across yearning bass with an unflinching fighting spirit.

B2 - Celestial Bodies

Up next a moment of calm as we soak up the charms of the dreamlike Celestial Bodies, a soothing journey of beats, breaks and atmosphere from Spatial's label head. Melodic notes ripple across the mix with old school breaks filtering to and fro, conjuring images of a cosmic journey unfolding, where old school breakbeat rhythms pulse like distant constellations, echoes shimmering in the vast expanse of ASC's versatility.

C1 - Losing Track Of Time

Into an absolute stunner next as ASC unleashes a modern classic which has a wonderfully instant familiarity to it - like it was lifted directly from the golden era of atmospheric drum & bass. The old school breaks have a distinctive feel while a variety of pads teaming with life swirl around above. A myriad of spirited melodies develop and maintain your attention with classic 808 basslines to complete this remarkable composition.

C2 - Slipstream

Switching up the vibe in style, ASC delivers an intense, cosmic intro to Slipstream which builds gradually with whooshing effects and long female vocals before a crisp, crunchy slice of Hot Pants breakbeat heaven tears through the mix, chock-full of excitable edits portrayed in a brilliant clarity. Warm sub bass punctuates the track while a reverberating earworm melody slowly etches itself into your mind.

D1 - Paradigm Shift

A good old fashioned roller up next as Paradigm Shift sees ASC blend a superb 2-step rhythm with a sumptuous smooth bassline - guaranteed to move the dancefloor. Atmospherics take no back seat either as elegant synthwork swirls and washes across the soundscape with subtly used vocal samples adding texture and warmth to an impressively layered mix that maintains its pace right through to an echoing conclusion.

D2 - Transmitter

Sending us back to interstellar space for an inspired mission through vast unexplored star systems, Transmitter sees ASC create a stunningly evocative, ethereal collage of atmospherics with sonar-like beeps punctuating and persisting throughout. Driving the track along are the superbly programmed drums, filtered and layered with twisted, distorted vocal samples to complete this exhilarating album in pure Spatial style.

Long regarded as singular architects within European post-rock, EF have built a catalogue defined by dynamic patience, melodic clarity, and widescreen emotional reach. Across two decades of touring, the Gothenburg ensemble have carried that language to clubs and theatres at home and abroad, earning a reputation for meticulous, high-impact live shows and a body of work that has steadily gathered critical regard and a devoted international following. Reimagined and with expanded production including strings and brass, this edition is a considered re-engagement with the material that first crystallised EF's voice. The band returns to thesesongs with the benefit of twenty years' craft, presenting new arrangements that stretch time and deepen narrative, while retaining the quiet-to-catharsis arc that has always set their music apart. "Since it's our precious first born we wanted to give it the love it surely deserves. We felt we didn't want to celebrate its big 20th birthday by just remastering it and we surely didn't want to make the songs too modern and unrecognisable for the old fans. We wanted to give it a tighter, more dramatic and bombastic make over_ a gentle touch of today's EF." (Niklas Åström) Originally released in 2006, `Give Me Beauty_ or Give Me Death!' introduced EF's signature blend of cinematic guitars, patient dynamics and aching melody. For this new edition, along with an incredible cover illustration by Phillip Janta and brand-new bonus track `Noll', the band returned to the material with fresh ears and clear intentions: to open more space in the arrangements and to enrich the melodic lines with orchestral colour. `Give Me Beauty_ or Give Me Death!' (20th-Anniversary Edition) is a document of growth rendered with care: more instrumentation, more time, more consequence. The album is an act of stewardship_ both a homage and a forward-looking manifesto for EF and for discerning listeners everywhere. FOR FANS OF Explosions in the Sky, Mogwai, Caspian, Gospeed You! Black Emperor, Yndi Halda, Mono Black or White Double Vinyl, Digisleeve Single CD. Includes bonustrack Noll.

Long regarded as singular architects within European post-rock, EF have built a catalogue defined by dynamic patience, melodic clarity, and widescreen emotional reach. Across two decades of touring, the Gothenburg ensemble have carried that language to clubs and theatres at home and abroad, earning a reputation for meticulous, high-impact live shows and a body of work that has steadily gathered critical regard and a devoted international following. Reimagined and with expanded production including strings and brass, this edition is a considered re-engagement with the material that first crystallised EF's voice. The band returns to these songs with the benefit of twenty years' craft, presenting new arrangements that stretch time and deepen narrative, while retaining the quiet-to-catharsis arc that has always set their music apart. "Since it's our precious first born we wanted to give it the love it surely deserves. We felt we didn't want to celebrate its big 20th birthday by just remastering it and we surely didn't want to make the songs too modern and unrecognisable for the old fans. We wanted to give it a tighter, more dramatic and bombastic make over_ a gentle touch of today's EF." (Niklas Åström) Originally released in 2006, `Give Me Beauty_ or Give Me Death!' introduced EF's signature blend of cinematic guitars, patient dynamics and aching melody. For this new edition, along with an incredible cover illustration by Phillip Janta and brand-new bonus track `Noll', the band returned to the material with fresh ears and clear intentions: to open more space in the arrangements and to enrich the melodic lines with orchestral colour. `Give Me Beauty_ or Give Me Death!' (20th-Anniversary Edition) is a document of growth rendered with care: more instrumentation, more time, more consequence. The album is an act of stewardship_ both a homage and a forward-looking manifesto for EF and for discerning listeners everywhere. FOR FANS OF Explosions in the Sky, Mogwai, Caspian, Gospeed You! Black Emperor, Yndi Halda, Mono Black or White Double Vinyl, Digisleeve Single CD. Includes bonustrack Noll.

“Godzilla just walked into the room. People just stood there with their eyes and mouths wide open.” To hear Randy Holden describe the audience’s reaction in 1969 to his solo debut performing with a teeth-rattling phalanx of 16 (sixteen!) 200 watt Sunn amps is about as close as one will get to truly experience the moment heavy metal music morphed into existence. However, at last Riding Easy have unearthed the proper fossil record. Population II, the now legendary, extremely rare album by guitarist / vocalist Holden and drummer / keyboardist Chris Lockheed is considered to be one of the earliest examples of doom metal.

Though its original release was a very limited in number and distribution, like all great records, its impact over time has continued to grow. In 1969, Holden, fresh off his tenure with proto-metal pioneers Blue Cheer (appearing on one side of the New! Improved! Blue Cheer album and touring for the better part of a year in the group), aimed for more control over his band. Thus, Randy Holden - Population II was born, the duo naming itself after the astronomical term for a particular star cluster with heavy metals present. “I wanted to do something that hadn’t been done before,” Holden explains. “I was interested in discordant sounds that could be melodic but gigantically huge. I rented an Opera house for rehearsal, set up with 16 Sunn amps. That’s what I was going for, way over the top.” And over the top it is. The six-song album delves into leaden sludge, lumbering doom and epic soaring riffs that sound free from all constraints of the era. It’s incredibly heavy, but infused with a melodic, albeit mechanistic, sensibility.

Troubles with the album’s release bankrupted Holden, who subsequently left music for over two decades. It was bootlegged several times over the years, but until now hasn’t seen a proper remaster and has yet to be available on digital platforms. “The original mastering just destroyed the dynamics of it,” Holden says. “They flattened it out. Now we got a really nice remaster that should be the closest thing to the original recording.”

Vinyl gatefold jacket includes a 12x12 insert reproduction of the original LP jacket art.Recorded in 1956 and released in 1957, Supersonic Jazz is arguably the first long-playing album by Sun Ra and His Arkestra on his Saturn label. However, it was not recorded as a debut. Rather, the album was assembled from tapes recorded during a number of sessions at two Chicago studios (RCA Victor and Balkan), and several tracks had been released as singles before their inclusion on this album. (Sunny's first fully realized commercial album was 1957's Jazz by Sun Ra, produced by Tom Wilson on his short lived/soon to be defunct Transition label.) Prior to these sessions, Sunny was still arranging for the Red Saunders Orchestra and singer Joe Williams, in addition to arranging for and coaching doo-wop ensembles. As Sunny's ambitions achieved liftoff, the Arkestra coalesced, began building a repertoire (mostly of Ra's originals), and making forays into studios. Deciding it was time for commercial releases, Sunny and business partner Alton Abraham launched Saturn (sometimes called El Saturn) as a record company in 1956. As a first offering, Supersonic Jazz is a pinnacle Sun Ra release. While reflecting many prevailing bebop, Latin, and R&B conventions of the mid-1950s, it's evident that Sun Ra's musical voice and vision were starting to propel him away from the jazz mainstream. Biographer John Szwed finds on these recordings "characteristics which seemed alien to swing, bebop, or the new, more soulful and hard-edged music which was coming to be called hard bop."

The recording unites Colombian folk traditions with Latin American rhythms, Spanish flamenco, and jazz harmony across fourteen tracks-- twelve of them original-- that travel from the valleys of Colombia to the coasts of Peru and beyond. Centered on voice and guitar, the arrangements feature subtle touches of bass, percussion, flute, and accordion, revealing Gomez's gift for lyrical storytelling and emotional clarity. Two decades later, Cantos De Agua Dulce remains a timeless expression of Gomez's vision; music that flows with grace, bridges cultures, and honors the poetry of everyday life.

The LP and CD are the first reissues of this album from 1976. The LP is re-issued in its original format due to demand that has driven the value of the pressing on All Platinum to in excess of £400. The CD is the first issue here in this format and comes complete with two preceding singles and a post album release of the 12' mix of My Man Is On His Way' in 1978, the only 12' release on all Platinum. This makes the CD the complete collection of Retta Young songs including her UK Top 40 chart hit (Sending Out An) S.O.S. which appeals to both northern soul and disco audiences. The complete album is a gem for connoisseurs of quality modern soul from the 70s.

Lunfardo presents “Aurora" introducing the fourth conceptual album that deep dives into Uruguayan culture and misticism once again.

On March 3, 1976, Ángel María Tonna, owner of the ¨La Aurora¨ ranch in Paysandú, observed a strange flash of light near his shed. Upon approaching, he found a spaceship suspended 75 meters high, with an intense circular light that caused radiation effects later discovered in the ground. Simultaneously, a blackout occurred in the nearby cities of Paysandú and Salto, and several witnesses of lights crossing the sky were documented in the local press by major newspapers such as El Telegrafo.

Thereafter, Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon, visited Uruguay and the ranch several times, eight times to be exact. He shared photos of flying objects with Tonna and left a drawing in the house depicting space and "supreme beings." Despite UFO reports throughout Uruguay, ¨La Aurora¨ remains a mystical place. The truth is out there, or as it is sayed beneath there.

“Aurora EP¨ immerses us in two sides divided between Molen and Qasio. Side A invites us to explore the inexplicable in an abduction, a “close encounter” (Encuentro cercano) that transports us directly on a journey through outer space but also immerses us in the mysteries of "Ulimen." Side B offers a profound guide to worlds of "dark matter” (Materia Oscura), disconcerting presences, “orbs”(Orbes), and galaxies above our heads

The tale of this disc that has been given the name “Flashbacks” come from two brothers from Uruguay, Nico and Fede Lampariello. The vast knowledge of musical production has been demonstrated, all within the true style of the underground. Produced with a Uruguayan flavor, putting that cherry on the top that we all know and love. With the musical flavor that the Lampariello’s have provided its essence can be felt through whole of the dark universe as its existing. It is an utmost pleasure to be welcoming these particularly talented siblings to the label with these four club-ready cuts, that has been pressed for the specific time when the action needs to be shown. The mechanical quantum gears of it have begun shifting and spinning rapidly for the unified idea of love for the nonstandard audio frequencies.

ASMR for Suicidal Thoughts' marks Varg2™ back in collaboration with Chatline, an enigmatic figure long in orbit of Northern Electronics. Recorded live to tape, the record resists comfort. Contained within are two harrowing demonstrations that drag on emptiness, anxiety, and abject pleasure. And though terse and severe, that very void becomes the vessel for its mottled meaning.

Unopen to exploration, 'ASMR for Suicidal Thoughts' locks the listener into its own saturated atmosphere. Stripped back and unchanging, and suffocatingly cold at the best of times, funereal melodies pepper cyclical noise so brittle it can barely repeat itself. Disturbingly intimate glints of memories are passed over out of reach, yet with the alarming immediacy of déjà vu. The sensation amounts to no more than this.

Recorded live to tape in Västra Skogen, Sweden 2023–2024
Mastered by Giuseppe Tillieci at EnissLab, Rome

Following the acclaimed reissue of Sa Discossa earlier this year, Jo Tongo's third solo album Those Flowers returns to the spotlight.

Originally released just a year and a half after Sa Discossa, this 1982 gem came out on the small Context label and, in Tongo's own words, the two records are "like twins." Recorded with many of the same musicians, Those Flowers continues the vibrant fusion of disco-funk and reggae - this time dedicating one side to each, leaning slightly more into his Western influences.

But there's more than groove beneath the surface. Tracks like "People Need Peace" and "We Human Beings" channel his enduring themes of resistance, identity, and freedom. The synthesizer at the beginning of the song mimics the ominous drone of warplanes, and lyrics speak directly to global struggles - reminders that his music is both deeply personal and powerfully political. "I paid for these ideals in my career," Tongo reflects, alluding to the personal costs of his outspoken stance against colonialism and injustice.

Still, Those Flowers carries joy at its heart. Songs like "Ain't No Man Like A Real Friend" celebrate trust and loyalty, while the title track offers a tender ode to love and kindness - "picking flowers from the soul," as Tongo puts it. These songs reveal the inner world of a man who has always viewed music as a mirror of life.

This reissue marks the second installment in the African Edge series from The Outer Edge label. Fully restored and remastered, Those Flowers is now set to bloom again - another vital chapter in the legacy of Jo Tongo.

Bone w/ black splatter vinyl. NYC ska/reggae legends The Slackers are back with a new collection of rarities - or as they put it, "Tales of Mirth, Heartbreak, and Woe!" - from their extensive catalog with the release of Lost & Found Vol 2 on Pirates Press Records. In their well over 30-year career, The Slackers have been one of the most consistently prolific artists in the game. While that means their legions of worldwide fans are never wanting for new material, it can also mean that once in a while, even dedicated fans can miss a new song here or there. Thus, it's helpful that the band periodically collects some of these lesser known and sought-after gems for wide release under the Lost & Found banner! Lost & Found Vol 2 includes some of the rarest Slackers tunes of them all. Live versions of several songs as well as the studio track "Diskambobulated" come from ultra-rare lathe cut singles. Still others come from limited one-time-only single pressings on PPR, including two 12" singles and one collaborative 7" which features vocals by Japanese dancehall sensation Papa B. Finally, it includes a dub mix of "Time Won't Set You Free" that is previously unreleased.

LIMITED 300 ONLY TRANSPARENT SKY BLUE LP. HOUSED IN FULL COLOUR SLEEVE WITH POLYLINED INNER BAG & DOWNLOAD CODE
Two fields of existence collide as Nolla (Finnish psych/space rockers) & Mike Vest (Maximalist guitar guru, Bong, Blown Out, Drunk In Hell, Artifacts & Uranium, Modoki, Tomoyuki Trio, Mienakunaru etc) merge their creative visions for the third time.

Creating a steady and surreal exploration through astral planes. Nolla improvised the ground layer in their signature minimal space-rock style and MikeV wrapped everything up in lavish layers of fuzz, phased and U-Wah layered guitars.
Blending octaval tones, around an array of electronics & vocal harmonies. Resulting in a constant trance like psychedelic drone rock.
It's time to join the extraterrestrial communion, beyond the skies, convert into the mode of light and pay homage to his mighty eminence.

To celebrate two decades of passion, innovation, and dedication to underground music, Playbeatz Labels Network proudly launches "Tribe", a new compilation project that pays tribute to the artists and sounds that have shaped its journey.
For over 20 years, Playbeatz has been a platform for creative freedom and genre-crossing experimentation—championing independent voices and uncovering unique talents from across the electronic music spectrum. "Tribe Vol. 1" is the first chapter in a special series of releases that reflect the label family’s diversity and forward-thinking spirit.
Kicking off with a limited edition vinyl, Vol. 1 features four carefully curated tracks by long-time Playbeatz affiliates —each bringing their unique sonic identity, from house to melodic textures, tech tools to soulful grooves.

A1. Erly Tepshi – Dreamer Emotionally charged and atmospheric, a deep dive into the melodic house realm, “Dreamer” wraps a haunting male vocal around lush synth lines and hypnotic rhythms.

A2. DJ Simi & Antonio Grassia – Nuestro Fuego With its driving groove and minimal yet powerful arrangement “Nuestro Fuego” is crafted as a peak-time tech and house tool. The track is all about raw energy and club efficiency.

B1. Mind The Gap DJs – Eclipse Of The Soul This old-school house jam delivers uplifting piano riffs, classic drum programming, and a timeless sense of groove. A heartfelt homage to the golden era of house, reimagined for today’s floors.

B2. Giomini & Marcus Raute – Tape Sweat A fresh and summery house cut with shimmering grooves and playful percussion. The track recalls the clean, infectious style of Deetron, blending crisp drums with melodic finesse. A pure dancefloor delight for the warmer seasons.

The duality of "man" is a subject that has been explored in art for centuries, from writings of the Bible to Descartes, all the way up to filmmakers like Lynch, Cronenberg, & Carpenter. Who is your "true self" & what do they want? With their sixth studio album "Wish Defense" (again for longtime home Trouble In Mind Records), Chicago trio FACS take a good, long look in the mirror to face themselves. The return of original member Jonathan Van Herik - who stepped away from the group just before their debut album "Negative Houses" was released in 2018 - replacing longtime bassist Alianna Kalaba brings renewed vigor & a marked angularity from the band's more recent output. The songs still hit hard, but the approach is sideways - the roles have changed since Van Herik's original tenure & his previous time with Case & powerhouse drummer Noah Leger in Disappears; now on bass, Van Herik was originally the group's guitar player and features on the debut, while current guitarist Brian Case played bass. This role reversal has helped the band's dynamic, offering up a different musical perspective than before, now revisiting the trio's long-going collaboration with some distance and time. Case notes that the lyrics on "Wish Defense" revolve around doppelgängers or "doubles", tackling the idea of facing yourself and observing your ideas and motivations. Look no further than the album's title track; "Enter the mirror / Double walker / An intimate / Wish defense / Is it real? / You beside me / The detail / Terrifying / Abject self / Your grief / A public / Performance". Case lays out the entire album's theme in one stanza; Are your actions & emotions your true self? Or are they a performative aspect of that "other" person you put forward? Case says that ultimately the sentiment is "_don't let the bastards get you down, there's something beyond this moment, like hope - but not in the naive belief that ultimately people are good". "Wish Defense"s artwork is also a subtle reference to "Negative Houses"' art, returning to that album's black & white starkness & minimalism. The album's checkerboards everywhere are offset reflections of themselves, mirrored with the album's lyrics printed front & center on the cover. Everything is out in the open. A final note; "Wish Defense" is the last album engineered by Steve Albini. Two days were recorded at Electrical Audio in early May of 2024 before Steve's untimely passing, with renowned engineer & friend Sanford Parker stepping in to finish the session 24 hours later, tracking the last bits of vocals and overdubs. Longtime collaborator John Congleton mixed the album as Albini would have; in Electrical Audio's A room, off the tape, using Albini's notes about the session.