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Verbz & Mr Slipz have been jumping on the train (52m, 0 changes) between Croydon and Brighton to reconnect on ‘Where It Started’; a 10-track EP that does everything (and more) you have come to expect from the duo.

Shimmering with nostalgia, but with one eye firmly on the next motive, ‘Where It Started’ offers a front row seat to the trials and tribulations of Verbz & co. doing what they did (and still do) to thrive and survive on the streets of Croydon, expertly scored by the meditative swing of Slipz’ 100% sample-free production.

Think classic hip hop aesthetics, beautifully reincarnated; chunky MPC drums, deeply personal multi-syllables, tales of loss, heartache, learning the hard way but coming back stronger. 5 x vocals and 5 x Instrumentals, Where It Started’ is a 50/50 deep dive into the hearts and minds of Verbz & Mr Slipz; perfectly poised as a duo, the EP is an unmissable trip down memory lane.

After performing at the same Boiler Room a cool decade ago and connecting through a love of the same genre-blurring sonics that have defined their respective careers to date, King Kashmere and Letherette were always destined to make music together.

It was only a matter of time.

And space.

As an artist who champions a dozen or so sounds, rooted in gripping pop culture aesthetics, genre-smashing production and impeccable versemanship, King Kashmere’s quest to perfect the unperfectable has seen him carve out a unique (and ever-shifting) point on the rap map.

Letherette are a duo; two school friends from Wolverhampton, with a rich release history spanning Ninja Tune and beyond, however, their current form fluxes and shifts with each creative endeavour (depending on where either they find themselves at any given fork in the road).

King Kashmere x Letherette’s collaborative EP represents something of a distillation process; avenues of thought and feeling presented as ‘TR3B’; a 7-track EP that feels more like a tapestry than a record, weighted in the experiments of the aforementioned decade, expertly presented for 2022 and beyond.

Selected by Jim O’Rourke for his Tone Glow list of 25 albums that “never got their due”, Org was founded in the early 90’s by Espen Jensen and Kjetil D Brandsdal who would later go on to variously record as Elektrodiesel, Noxagt and Ultralyd in the swirl of the highly active Norwegian underground. “Org" was the only album the pair recorded as a duo, pressed in a meagre edition of just over 100 copies which disappeared almost as soon as they were made, lodged in the memory of the select few who have managed to hear it in the years since.

Made up of three long tracks, the near 20-minute ‘001’ opens the album with an extended organ zone-out matched with scraping factory machinery saturated into a dense cloud of harmonic fuzz. There's something transcendental about the sound that intersects with microtonal Alice Coltrane (particularly the unfairly maligned organ-only edition of "Turiya Sings"), as well as Pauline Oliveros and Ramleh. It’s music that pulls you in subconsciously; before you know it, you're fixating on the uncomfortable grind of metal on metal, buried mechanical rhythms and liturgical organ vamps that wind between industrial cacophony and sacred ritual music. For its last few seconds, we go into a full death metal tearout that fades out before it takes full flight, a glorious wtf.

‘002’ connects between minimalist drone styles and shoegaze, distorting fuzzed organ into pliable, dreamlike warbles that end up sounding like Kevin Shields' ‘Loveless’-era glides, or even Sunn O))) at their most devotional. Never losing the numbing overdriven mettle, its a piece that sounds spiritually entwined with Matthew Bower's Skullflower - a minimalist re-reading of high-contrast guitar music that takes all the psychoacoustic power and none of the annoying posturing.

For ‘003’, subaqueous organ is joined by synth and drum machine, sounding like the inspirational spark for Religious Knives' screwed 'n chopped cosmic psychedelia. The choice of sounds links it to Antena's foundational electro samba recordings too, but the overwhelming drone - a constant on all three compositions - connects the music to minimalist spirituals that have simmered beneath the DIY/avant garde for decades.

‘Org’ sits heavy on the nerves with overproof levels of mulched amp worship and ungodly, palms-down organ chords and wheezing, bezonked lines of melodic thought. 25 years out of sight and marinading in the archives, with the benefit of hindsight we can better understand the role these sounds played in the development of music in the contemporary sphere. It’s an important piece of the puzzle, one that makes valuable connections that, over time, have looked progressively more faint.

2024 Restock

"Warren 'Sonny' Sharrock died of a heart attack at the age of 53 in 1994. At the time of his death, many writers noted that he had recently landed a contract with a major label (RCA) and was perhaps 'destined for big things.' In my opinion, these writers missed the point. Although Mr. Sharrock may not have been successful financially (as though that might be a primary motivating goal for any true artist), he was uncommonly successful aesthetically. Certainly, there are a few dubious moments to be found inside his oeuvre, but Mr. Sharrock produced several of the most mind-shredding avant-garde albums ever recorded. Premier among them is Black Woman.

"Originally released on the Vortex label in 1969, Black Woman may be the universe's first true statement of guitar skronk majesty. It also represents Mr. Sharrock's first date as a leader and stands as the sole documentation of a band that well-understood the essentials of energy. Besides Sharrock's explosive guitar, the band features the omni-directional percussion mastery of Milford Graves (then in the midst of recording Love Cry with Albert Ayler), the gorgeous post-tongue vocalizing of Sonny's then-wife Linda Sharrock, the sinuous bass presence of Norris Jones (later known as Sirone) and some the most explicitly abstract piano work ever recorded by Dave Burrell. That Black Woman was produced by flautist Herbie Mann, a guy not well-known for his affinity to fire music, makes it even more intriguing." – Byron Coley

In the centre of deep space we tune in to the radio broadcasts from an old Class T interstellar spaceship. The emissions endlessly resonate the frequencies of the seventeenth release on the label HC Records by one of the titans of the Valencian scene, The Lost Boys, new pseudonym of the DJ and producer Raszia.

With releases on labels such as Bass Agenda, Subsist or Hxagrm Records, the artist mesmerises our senses with the Exiles of Mars Ep, available in both double vinyl and digital.

Syncopated rhythms are the protagonists across four original tracks together
with remixes by four electro legends: Boris Divider, Estrato Aurora, Dark Vektor, and Filmmaker.

The EP’s first cut is a remix of "Wall Of Bricks" by the legendary Boris Divider, which gives the track an air of crystalline, synthetic and cosmic sound, very much in line with his latest works on the Generative Operations series. Next, we find the original version, where the kick drums are heavier, the synths and basses more colourful and the acid sequences take centre stage in an odyssey of sidereal intensity.

On the record’s flip side, a feeling of overwhelming melancholy takes root in our soul. Valencian Estrato Aurora mentally transports us to the mysterious red sand of Mars in a precise exercise in symphonic minimalism with his remix of "Exiles of Mars", which mutates the original idea with velvety pads, synths and a slow and rapturous hypnotism that sinks us to unfathomable depths.
The Lost Boys' original concept on B2 is a combination of Miami Bass-style breaks and a demonic mantra-like main synth line, backed by what seems like an infinity of pearly effects and secondary melodies, pushing the track towards a crescendo punctuated by a dry and sharp snare.

The second disc’s opener "Bust My Moves" is a masterclass in deconstruction and reconstruction by Dark Vektor with his "Electro Escuadrón Remix”. The genius from Terrassa provides powerful lyrics loaded with a message about the modern rise of the 808 movement. We return to the original Lost Boys version on C2, a futuristic martial discourse takes shape with combating breaks combined with rave chords and brief episodes of respite, almost dreamlike, in the middle and end of the track’s exciting development.

On the D side, rough frequencies verging on distortion materialise through our ship's speakers as we pick up the Colombian Filmmaker’s remix of "Data Recovery For Brains". A psychotronic final appetiser that combines harshness and elegance in the use of the rolling kick drums and saturation of the sound, it is without a doubt the ideal soundtrack to narrate the collision of two galaxies. The closing of the EP features the original track, in which The Lost Boys show us his most mental and lysergic side as the track progresses along a slow and comforting broken rhythm, made dynamic by clever use of diverse acid sequences and clairvoyant stellar melodies.

The complete artistic experience is enhanced in all dimensions with accompanying artwork by
Daniel Requeni and videos elaborated by Frank-F.

Mastering as usual by Steve Voidloss at Black Monolith Studios in London (UK).

Reissued on vinyl for the very first time. Originally released in 1983, this reggae lovers album was recorded by Scientist, produced by Bunny Lee, with the best of Jamaican musicians like Sly & Robbie, Jackie Mittoo, Winston Wright, Earl Chinna Smith ans more...

Edwards was born in Jamaica in 1938 where he was raised with fourteen siblings. Strongly influenced by Nat King Cole, he began performing at the age of 14. He came to the attention of Chris Blackwell in 1959. Edwards had four number one singles in Jamaica between 1960 and 1961, all self-written ballads with Latin-influenced music.

When Blackwell set up Island Records in London in 1962, Edwards travelled with him. Edwards worked as a singer and songwriter for Island, recording as a solo artist and also duets with Millie Small, as well as performing duties such as delivering records. He wrote both "Keep On Running" and "Somebody Help Me", that became number one singles in the United Kingdom for The Spencer Davis Group. He continued to work as a recording artist himself, with regular album releases through to the mid-1980s. Much of his later work was produced by Bunny Lee, and he also worked with The Aggrovators.

In the End It Always does marks songwriter and producer Amber Bain’s long awaited second album as The Japanese House. Featuring collaborations with Matty Healy and George Daniel of The 1975, Katie Gavin of Muna, Justin Vernon of Bon Iver and Charli XCX, it features some of Bain’s most dynamic work to date. Her forthcoming UK headline tour announcement saw her 1600 cap London show sell out instantly with other dates close behind. The Japanese House has been championed by BBC Radio 1, BBC 6Music, NME, i-D, Pitchfork, ES Magazine, The FADER, DIY & more. The album is available on Vinyl and CD.

Jabee's Am I Good Enough is the prolific OKC hip-hop artist’s most ambitious project to date. Several years in the making, Am I Good Enough compiles four EPs of brand-new music (22 tracks total), each recorded entirely with a different producer. The resulting four EPs each could stand alone as powerful individual works, but combine to make one of the most remarkable and compelling artistic statements of Jabee’s career. Am: produced by Derek Minor I: produced by Blu Good: produced by Conductor Williams Enough: produced by Havoc (of Mobb Deep). Am I Good Enough is available on 2xLP, housed in a gatefold jacket with inner sleeves showcasing each of the four EP’s individual covers.

Two of the Bronx’s most skillful emcees have paired up for one of the most promising collaborative albums of 2023. Appropriately titled, Gunz X Bars, the boogie down’s own Cory Gunz and David Bars have joined forces with Respect the Vision (RTV) under the watch of DITC Studios, the label and recording studio akin to one of hip-hop’s most revered crews, comprised of Lord Finesse, Diamond D, Big L, O.C. Fat Joe, Buckwild, Showbiz and A.G. And as you’d expect, the result is top tier lyricism over a soundscape that epitomizes the essence of New York hip-hop. For the past two plus decades, Cory Gunz has made his bones by proving his lyrical prowess time and time again. Son of rapper Peter Gunz (of the famed duo, Lord Tariq and Peter Gunz), it didn’t take long for his talents to be recognized by Lil Wayne, where he appears on his single, “6 Foot 7 Foot” off Tha Carter IV. Gunz also starred in his own befittingly-titled reality show, Son of a Gun (MTV) which documented his journey to fulfill his career in music. David Bars’ trajectory also started at a young age, where he made his name at high school talent shows and industry showcases throughout the city. Releasing his debut project Barcode in 2019, the quick-witted spitter found himself rapping alongside the legendary Fat Joe who appears on the single, “A Star is Born.” However the co-signs weren’t limited by Joey Crack, as the inimitable DJ Premier lent his boom-bap magic to the album cuts, “Beat the Odds” and “Just Like That.” Throughout the project’s eight tracks, Gunz and Bars prove themselves to be both lyrically and sonically compatible. Gunz’ staccato-type flow melds seamlessly with Bars’ smooth delivery. To boot, the production value throughout plays to the strengths of both emcees, with beats provided by So Special, Track Pros, Kofi Cooks and more. It’s no surprise that two of the BX’s most raw and uncut talents would eventually unite, and what better way to join forces than under the auspice of DITC Studios.

Debut Album Nottingham post-punks Do Nothing blend jerky, spidery rhythms with surreal, half-spoken vocals that recall the Fall 's Mark E. Smith . Do Nothing was formed in 2017 by four long-time school friends: frontman Chris Bailey, guitarist Kasper Sandstrøm, drummer Andy Harrison, and bassist Charlie Howarth. All had played in various acts around the city; the band got their start at the popular Maze Club. Bailey, whose father was a singer in an a cappella folk group, grew up listening to the sounds of Simon & Garfunkel , and his own biggest influence was Tom Waits . Initially attempting to copy big names like LCD Soundsystem (as heard on their first 7" single, "Gangs," released in 2019), they eventually became more confident about doing their own thing, and Bailey gave his stream-of-consciousness lyrics and outsider stage persona free rein. Associated with, but wary of, the then-popular post-punk revival, they made clear it was their intention to follow their own path. Their debut EP, Zero Dollar Bill, was released in 2020; another, Glueland, arrived the following year, with an album in the works.

Brand new EP by fast-rising UK act Bears In Trees, coming on the heels of a huge year for the band that included releasing their debut LP "And Everybody Else Smiled Back", sold-out headline shows across the UK, and their first ever US tour. The band will be releasing a new collection of songs alongside appearances at Slam Dunk and 2000 Trees Festival, their first US headline tour, and many more UK dates to be announced.

First time on vinyl! Formed from the ashes of the psych/sludge band Cruevo, and preceding guitar player Paul Kott’s work in Matt Pike-fronted Bay Area metal "supergroup" Kalas, High Tone Son Of A Bitch is an innovative, psychedellic stoner/doom band that pulls together a number of influential musicians from bands like Noothgrush, Kalas, Hammers of Misfortune, Men of Porn, Melvins, Hawkwind, Neurosis, High on Fire, Sleep, Witch Mountain, Saviours, Necrot, The Skull, Worshipper and more. This limited release is a vinyl version of the compilation that collects the group’s four EPs from 2003-2020 together.

Say no more. You're safe now. We got medicine for you: a joint EP by Ubahnrider and Quimbie with five dynamic pieces of electronic music. Prancing around you with flags waving, seducing with a foolish wink of our smokey eyes.

What will it do to you? Shoot you to the Moon? Transform everything into strange patterns and colours you haven't tasted yet? Result in a Cosmic Smash? Don't resist - relax. You're going on a billion year trip to love.

It all begins here.

Alba Gitana, Gipsy dawn, is a commencement, a turning point of particular importance in the career of a guitarist labelled as “manouche”. Because despite the universality within that word, (“manu” meaning “man” in Sanskrit), it is often reduced to the almost mystical musical legacy of the genius Django Reinhardt. Steeve Laffont’s dawn sees his artistry break away from the confines of this tradition.

In his original compositions we find the ingredients for an unexpected recipe. There is a manouche feel to it, but the fragrance of flamenco mixes with Indian spices, the bossa nova breaks and klezmer rhythms are coloured by Spain ; Steeve finds comfort in both the journey and it’s unexpected turns. Such is the very essence of Tzigane culture. This album tells the story of an emancipation and the joy of no longer being held to respect a legacy, a tradition, of finally having so many more roots to grow with.

Freedom is key to this project which never compromises on the essential : sharing the pleasure of playing together. In the company of such virtuosos as Costel Nitescu on violin, Dominique Di Piazza on bass and of course the ever-faithful Rudy Rabuffetti on rhythm guitar, the compositions are never shows of strength, rather finely crafted magic tricks.

With such vivid, liquid playing Alba Gitana is an invitation to let go, to submit to a harmonic wandering as deep as it is wide. A high-wire walk between structures and freedom, here is the spirit of jazz at its most elegant and universal.

Opening with euphoric keys and soothing birdsong, Jman & The Argonautz’ debut LP ‘Therapy In Session’ feels like a seminal moment. Not just for the band (it’s not everyday you reveal your debut album to the world) but also in the HF canon.
As a label founded on emcees and breaks, the notion of releasing a fully fledged LIVE studio album, crafted by a 6-piece of likeminded and deeply connected musicians makes for a hugely refreshing kink in the arc, at a time when championing true art has never been more important.
The thing we love most about ’Therapy In Session’ is the sense of togetherness that runs through the album. From the aforementioned opening notes to the very last cymbal, every member bringing out the very best in one another as the track list unfolds. Everything poised and perfectly measured, Jman’s lyrical dexterity and Maddy’s accompanying melodies offering up a rich assortment of emotion and mood for the band to blanket in warm arrangements.

Above all else, ‘Therapy In Session’ represents catharsis for both Jman and The Argonautz; each track a deep dive into the highs and the lows, fears, lessons and regrets that life too often throws at us; 16-tracks, each eloquent and razor sharp at every turn.

Richie Culver had been waiting his whole life to record I was born by the sea. His debut album immediately and messily inscribed the artist into the canon of outsider music and experimental electronics, serving both as an arresting statement of intent and a painful reckoning with the difficult path that lead up to it, stealing one last glance back at a place he always knew he had to escape. Between grim lamentations, faded memories and anxiety attacks, all told with searing honesty and disarming openness, I was born by the sea excavates a space for hope, finding Culver digging through Humberside silt to find a world weary optimism, the raw material from which his visual and sound art is shaped. For this collection of expansions and inversions, Culver invites a collection of kindred spirits, contemporary inspirations and old heroes to wade into the salt water of his formative years spent living for impromptu raves and afterparties, connecting vivid memories of his birth place of Withernsea to artists hailing from as nearby as Preston and Bridlington, further afield, from Manchester and London, Berlin and Paris, before returning back to Hull, to where it all began.

For some, responding to I was born by the sea means diving even deeper into the record’s furthest reaches. Space Afrika clear away the pummelling loops of noise from ‘It’s hard to get to know you,’ revealing a cool and cavernous expanse in its wake. Distant chatter, previously heard as though through thin, plasterboard walls, now echoes from outside the maddening claustrophobia of the original’s Sisyphean sonics, illuminated as a dense storm cloud suspended amidst a more open scene, washed clean by a lighter rain, allowing the tender heart of the track to beat clear. London producer MOBBS stretches out ‘Pigeon Flesh’ into an epic, 10-minute, cold-sweat spiral, strung-out tension wrung from disconnected phone tones twisted in unexpected directions, snatches of Culver’s voice turned inside-out and deep fried bass threatening to tip the track over into oblivion, the build-and-release of a nervous breakdown experienced in real time. In an act of subversive self-reflection, Morgane Polanski switches one kind of ennui for another in her adaption of ‘I was born by the sea,’ swapping the sea for the city, English seaside towns in January for summer evenings in Paris and flashing lighthouses and sparkling oil rigs for the Eiffel Tower and the traffic around L’Arc de Triomphe. Even Culver finds time to revisit ‘Dream About Yourself,’ a track taken from his EP Post Traumatic Fantasy, breathing new words into its glacial drift, the half-remembered testimony of a shut-in: Woke up in the evening / Pray for me / Don’t trust anyone / Pray for algorithm. Reframed in a more melancholy light, the track’s reverberant keys even more clearly evoke a mournful nostalgia, fresh pain felt in old wounds.

Others find a parallel universe in Culver’s visceral world building. Rainy Miller flips the script with a scorched, avant-drill rework of ‘Daytime TV’, threading puncturing hi-hats and queasy low-end surge through the track’s steady ambient cascade, invoking the irresistible Preston beat magic of Miller’s own essential debut album, Desquamation. Aho Ssan melts away the crystalline textures of ‘Love Like an Abscess’ with the ominous crackle of a nascent fire, building through swathes of organic Max/MSP squelch and brittle, nails-down-chalkboard scrape, swelling and metastasising the original to spill over Culver’s desperate hymn to corporeal desire, at once flesh and not. Teresa Winter transports us an hour up the coast from Withernsea to her native Bridlington, replacing the sea wall of synthesis on ‘Nervous Energy’ with muffled ASMR murk and fever dream whispers, transforming Culver’s unflinching observations into a haunting call-and-response, filling in the blanks with her own eerie utterances, a fleeting conversation with a ghost. In a touching victory lap, Fila Brazillia, eccentric stalwarts of beloved ‘90s trip hop imprint Pork Recordings, whose performances at Hull institution The Lamp convinced a young Culver of the necessity to make his mark on club culture, resurface for their first remix in 20 years. Steve Cobby and David McSherry lead a low-slung, heartfelt stroll back through a suite of tracks from I was born by the sea, tracing a full circle saunter from Culver’s origins to his current musical practice, the sounds of his present repurposed by the sound of his youth. In a gesture that reflects the emotional complexity of the project, Fila Brazillia find joy at the end of Culver’s troubled reflection, picking out an undeniable groove in the stasis of feeling trapped in your hometown. Underlining Hull’s vital musical legacy, from Baby Mammoth to Throbbing Gristle, Cobby and McSherry demonstrate that, though there are certainly storms, by the sea there is also sun and through the fog, if you listen, you can hear a singular sound, a sound now carried by Richie Culver.

Participant is a record label and creative studio run by William Markarian-Martin and Richie Culver

Returning to his home base, Rotterdam based electro-techno mainstay Conforce presents a heavy pack of angular, experimental approaches on his latest offering into the Delsin databank.

Boris Bunnik's accomplished machine language has traversed deep and dubby soundscapes with punchy, club-focused fare alike, since 2010's Grace EP he has found a regular home on Delsin and it's always exciting to see what he comes up with next.

Where Conforce has commonly housed Bunnik's more melancholic, introspective work, the sound palette on Sins Of Synthesis is more tipped towards darker dimensions. The shadow of braindance looms large, guiding the music towards twitchy pattern manipulation, alien textural design and dissonant harmonics.

Bunnik's signature sense of melody can still be detected around the edges, from the distant, hazy pads of 'Charlatan' to the lingering chimes of 'Fragile', but this is a pointed new direction for Conforce and it's leading somewhere very interesting...

It's hard to think of any other act whose music being added to digital streaming sites would make as many headlines as De La Soul. It has been followed up with a big reissue project that's brought all their many great albums - they made more than just that one iconic one, you know - back to print. Stakes Is High brought the same high levels of wordplay, great beats and overall narrative as any of the band's albums, and all at a time when hip-hop's initial popularity began to wane. Fact fans, take note - Mos Def guested on one tune 'Big Brother Beat' and Common on 'The Bizness' way before anyone knew who either of them was.

Glitching through pop music, cruising around the borders of the avant garde, passing by the edge of coldwave and tumbling into dance and club vibes: after her debut Bad Woman Céline Gillain is back with her second album: 'Mind is Mud'.

On Mind is Mud' Gillain let herself sink in the swamp of emotional confusion, the perpetual brain fog caused by a post Covid-world asking herself: do we have to get used to paradox as a way of life from now on?*

A musical dissection in nine songs of the mudflow, a flow which reveals its rich complexity the more Gillain dived into it: from the demanding intro 'Together' Céline opens up her highly personal and unique vision, shifting between high definition lost dimensions and emotionsthe mud slowly transfers in a crackling and sparkling stream of consciousness.

The mud is well alive in all its weirdness and unclarity. At times, it even glows in the dark.

The answer to that question is yes. The story of Mind is Mud by Céline Gillain: "Music is a place where intuiting is a work in itself. For me, it's the one place where I'm in charge, free to think and do what I want. Mind is Mud is the fruit of a collaborative practice with a DAW, a research around the palliative power of rhythm and the dancefloor, music as a space where emotions and ideas merge, storytelling, the comic potential and imaginative nature of sound. I don't really write, I copy paste and then I arrange and rearrange. Every sound I use comes from software, field recording, Instagram, movies and midi scores I collect here and there. In the hierarchy of sounds, you might call them cheap sounds. The lyrics are collages as well, made of pieces of texts from various contradictory sources. In addition to using the voice as a vehicle for ideas, I investigate its percussive and polyphonic potentialities, the possibility to have more than one voice/mouth."

Repress!

‘Shapes,’ the third album from London-based multi-instrumentalist, Robohands, fuses elements of jazz, krautrock, hip hop and ambient music. For fans of Khruangbin, Yusef Dayes, CAN, Coltrane and 70s library music moods.

Shapes is the solo project of London based composer, instrumentalist and producer Andy Baxter. His debut LP Green was released on Village Live Records in 2018 and was received with much love and acclaim in the UK Jazz, hip hop and surrounding scenes.

His follow up full-length, 'Dusk’, dropped in 2019, combining soul, funk, Latin & experimental moods. It featured vocalists & musicians from around the world including legendary New York French horn player, John Clark, who has worked with Isaac Hayes, Gil Evans Orchestra, McCoy Tyner, Jaco Pastorius, Ornette Coleman and many more greats.

'Shapes' is inspired by 1970s library music and their legendary composers including Piero Umiliani, David Axelrod, Brian Bennett and co. The album builds on these influences and incorporates modern motifs, contemporary jazz/hip hop drumming styles with a nod to 1990s Mo Wax artists such as DJ Shadow. The theme for the record is future/nostalgia, mixing vintage & modern instruments and production techniques.

Much of ‘Shapes’ was recorded with JB Pilon at Buffalo Studios in Limehouse, London. Due to the COVID restrictions that changed everything in 2020, the remaining parts were recorded in Andy’s flat using a collection of old mixing desk preamps and instruments.

For the heads – ‘Shapes’ features an array of vintage snares, including a 1960's Ludwig Pioneer and a mono, overhead ribbon mic on the drum kit provided extra old school points! The kick drum was re-amped through a huge vintage bass amplifier on a couple of tracks to give it some real character: “My favourite guitar sound achieved on this LP project is a Sontronics Sigma ribbon microphone in front of a WEM Dominator amp, which you can hear on the track 'Odysea'. The bass sound for all the tracks is a 1973 Fender Precision into an old Altec valve preamp, the one used on most Motown recordings."

In March 2022, EMPIRE assembled some of Africa's finest singers and songwriters, the musical equivalent of Ocean's Eleven, at a writing camp in San Francisco. The result is Where We Come From, Vol. 1, a 15-track compilation featuring Afrobeats royalty Wande Coal, Tiwa Savage and Olamide as well as Tanzanian duo Navy Kenzo, Cape Verde's June Freedom and a host of other stars across Nigeria and Ghana - KiDi, Fireboy DML, Kizz Daniel, Tolani and more. The sounds traverse East, West and South of the continent, incorporating drill, amapiano, trap and Afrobeats in fashioning an album that at once sandwiches luxury between lust and love while also being a flagpost to hedonism. The cover art, created by Nigerian artist Dricky Stickman, incorporates all 15 songs into the final product, illustrating unity, community and culture. “This project ‘Where We Come From, Vol. 1’ is a perfect example of music having no limitations,” Kareem Mobalaji, Regional Head West Africa said. “Yes we are from Africa, but we are truly determined to reach the entire world with our voice, which is music.”

De La Soul is never far away from the conversation about great music but as of late, they have been back in the headlines more than ever as their music finally got added to digital streaming sites. Buhloone Mindstate is a lesser-known but just as good album as the most famous Three Feet High and Rising and was a critical success at the time. The lead single has samples of Michael Jackson's 'I Can't Help It' and Smokey Robinson's 'Quiet Storm', there is a collab with Biz Markie on 'Stone Age' and MC Shortie No Mas appears on many tracks including the particularly standout 'In The Woods'.

If you are a death metal fan, GRACELESS shouldn’t need an introduction. Three full lengths and two split EPs have granted the Dutch ensemble a respectable reputation across the globe. Closer to home, the four piece has played countless live shows since their 2016 inception. The rock solid line up -unchanged since day one- has delivered ferocious, high energy live performances at Eindhoven Metal Meeting, Into the Grave, Party San Metal Open Air, Ruhrpott Metal Meeting, Stonehenge, SDF2021 and many more festivals and clubs. Joining forces with LISTENABLE RECORDS in 2023 is the next thundering milestone for GRACELESS. Tirelessly working on their fourth full-length, the next chapter for GRACELESS will be another step deeper into the abyss that started with Shadowlands (2018), via Where Vultures Know Your Name (2020), to Chants from Purgatory (2022). For fans of DEATH, ASPHYX, GORGUTS, BOLT THROWER, AMON AMARTH, BLOODBATH.

Three years after his last album ‘I Need Space’, Mounika. is back on his favorite playground: electronic music, which arouses his curiosity since his beginnings. He is now ready to unveil ‘Don't Look At Me’, a new opus that takes us, by other paths, to his unique universe. Recorded during the confinement in the intimacy of his home studio, the French artist reveals little by little another facet of his artistic personality, more raw and affirmed, without totally abandoning the cottony sounds already proposed on titles like ‘Cut My Hair’ (diamond single) or ‘Tender Love’ (gold single). We discover sensitive compositions, still inspired by his love for trip-hop, piano and artists who made his musical culture during his youth: Moby, Ratatat, Air or Bonobo. After all, a Mounika. album without a tribute to these figures is not really an album...

But something new was needed to distinguish this opus from the previous ones. From the very first tracks, we can clearly feel this need for exploration that has always guided the French producer. ‘BonXair’ or ‘Nomadics’ take us, for example, in a more straight electronic, more heady than usual. In the same spirit, the rhythms close to the deep house of a track like ‘See You Dancing In The Dark’ offer to the album a new direction, and yet is quite representative of the work undertaken by Mounika. these last years.

In this new record that will also satisfy the fans of the first hour (a sample loop well felt, as on ‘Little Love’ or ‘I Looked Into Her Eyes’, always makes its effect), the French artist has also opened to collaborations of choice. Mounika. works on the heart, and thus wished to welcome those who have particularly marked him during his more or less recent discoveries. The American artist Roland Faunte lends his voice to the effective ‘Little Love’, while Ural Thomas & The Pain (discovered notably on the series ‘It's Bruno’) takes care of the chorus of ‘I Looked Into Her Eyes’. The British rapper Lord Apex delivers a spellbinding performance on ‘Memories’.

Finally, if you listen carefully, you can even hear Mounika. singing on some tracks... like ‘20’ or ‘Don't Smoke’. Put together, these appearances perfectly complement the energy transcribed by Mounika. throughout ‘Don't Look At Me’.

And what could be better than an amazing graphic universe to open the doors of this album like no other? Meet Carl & TJ, two cartoonish characters created in collaboration with Berlin-based artist Joe Taylor, who take care of guiding the listener through this new adventure. One is dreamy and contemplative, the other asks himself a lot of questions... and between them, they form a colorful duet illustrating with tenderness the universal emotions that punctuate this third opus, and that Mounika. will notably defend in the first part of Wax Tailor's French tour starting next April.

The successive pianos composing the productions of ‘When In My Heart In Your Heart’ then ‘Outro’ come, at the end of the record, to conclude the setting in orbit proposed by this ‘Don't Look At Me’. One more step in the sensory journey that Mounika. is committed, from the intimacy of her room to the international success, to build relentlessly.

Repress!

**NEW 2018 ALBUM FROM KIKAGAKU MOYO**The shifting dimensions of Masana Temples, fourth album from psychedelic explorers Kikagaku Moyo,are informed by various experiences the band had with traveling through life together, ranging from the months spent on tour to making a pilgrimage to Lisbon to record the album with jazz musician Bruno Pernadas. The band sought out Pernadas both out of admiration for his music and in an intentional move to work with a producer who came from a wildly different background.

With Masana Temples, the band wanted to challenge their own concepts of what psychedelic music could be. Elements of both the attentive folk and wild-¬-eyed rocking sides of the band are still intact throughout, but they're sharper and more defined.
Kikagaku Moyo started in the summer of 2012 busking on the streets of Tokyo. Though the band started as a free music collective, it quickly evolved into a tight group of multi-¬-instrumentalists. Kikagaku Moyo call their sound psychedelic because it encompasses a broad spectrum of influence. Their music incorporates elements of classical Indian music, Krautrock, Traditional Folk, and 70s Rock. Most importantly their music is about freedom of the mind and body and building a bridge between the supernatural and the present. Improvisation is a key element to their sound.



More than the literal interpretation of being on a journey, the album's always changing sonic panorama reflects the spiritual connection of the band moving through this all together. Life for a traveling band is a series of constant metamorphoses, with languages, cultures, climates and vibes changing with each new town. The only constant for Kikagaku Moyo throughout their travels were the five band members always together moving through it all, but each of them taking everything in from very different perspectives. Inspecting the harmonies and disparities between these perspectives, the group reflects the emotional impact of their nomadic paths. The music is the product of time spent in motion and all of the bending mindsets that come with it.

In 2016, After Reissuing Two Bruce Haack Albums, Haackula And Electric Lucifer Book Ii, Telephone Explosion Began Speaking With Ted Pandel (bruce's Lifelong Friend And Business Partner) About Working On The 1970 Masterpiece The Electric Lucifer. It Turned Out There Was Another Matter That He Wanted To Discuss: Finding A Final Resting Place For The Bruce Haack Archive.

We Were Shown Test-pressings Of The Electric Lucifer Board Mixes From His Columbia Studio Sessions, Countless Pieces Of Written Music, A Large Number Of Personal Photos, An Invitation From Raymond Scott Inviting Bruce To Play His Newly Created Electronium
Instrument (now Owned By Devo's Mark Mothersbaugh), Poems, Press Clippings, And, Most Importantly, A Heavyduty Shelf Containing 213 Reel-to-reel Tapes. All Of The Chosen Material On The Preservation Tapes Is Unreleased, Has Only Been Heard By A Handful Of People And Showcases A Relatively Unknown Period In Bruce's
Musical Career Where Bruce Was Recording For Sparrow Records (who Billed Themselves As "america's Best Christian Music Record Label'). Bruce's Signature Farad Vocoder Continues To Feature Prominently, But The Lyrical Content Is Decidedly More Religious.
The Bruce Haack Archive Is Now Resting In The Provincial Archives Of Alberta, In Edmonton,
Alberta, Canada.

Debut vinyl by Cruz Perro Maldito, a Tenerife based trio forever imbued in the collective imagination and folklore myths of the magical and misty mountain of Agua García, located in Tacoronte district at the foot of Teide Volcano (Tenerife/Canary Islands). Their music is an explosion of free jazz improv where sophisticated sound textures emerg-ing from modular synths and processed guitar create abstract and random rhythmic patterns with complex saxophone lines guiding the ensemble from quiet to menacing passages of sudden bursts of noise and frenzy.


Entitled Truquetin Resorte, the album takes inspiration from the rich history of mechanical automata, such as Talos, the bronze giant who defended the island of Crete and was eventually defeated by Jason and his Argonauts. Or Apega de Nabis, a replica of King Nabis’ wife whom crossed unsuspecting victims with its iron spikes hidden in the device's lower arms, hands and breasts.

Or even René Descartes and his infamous daughter- like Automaton replica, an eerie creation from the renown philosopher to evoke his dead daughter
These myths and more serve as reminder of a mechanical world’s past, a world of complex automata stories with me-chanic ‘imitating’ beings as its problematic protagonists. An eerie counterpoint to our current uber modern digital world and its rapid advancing A.I.s.

Deepriver is the recently formed intercontinental project of Cape Town-based Jason van Wyk and long time Stockholm-based collaborator Joni Ljungqvist.


Having worked previously in collaboration mining the more introspective side of trance, Deepriver’s inaugural aural statement, “Volume One”, finds the two experimenting with atmosphere and composition to maximal effect. Van Wyk's recent viscerally experimental direction seamlessly coalesces with Ljungqvist's conceptually reflective approach in a way that recalls the sounds and nostalgia of electronic music from decades past.

Four of the most rapturous re-edits out there coming courtesy of the Crates Motel camp. Classics reworked with care, proceed with caution.

One of this year’s breakout success stories from the UK’s current thriving independent music scene,
critically acclaimed seven-piece Black Country, New Road present here their highly anticipated second
album ‘Ants From Up There’ via Ninja Tune.
 Debut album ‘For the first time’ was shortlisted for the 2021 Hyundai Mercury Prize. The band
performed ‘Track X’ live on BBC 4.
 ‘Ants From Up There’ was written in lockdown in the early part of 2021 when the band were unable to
go on tour as planned to support their album release. The result is a stunning collection of songs and a
move in direction to a more crossover, alternative sound beyond the experimental and ‘post-punk’
nature of their debut.
 New album expands on their unique concoction to create a singular sonic middle ground that traverses
classical minimalism, indie-folk, pop, alt rock and a distinct tone that is already unique to the band.
 Extensive global touring in 2022, including their biggest London show to date at the Roundhouse, full
UK and European Tour in April/ May. Sold out 2021 shows include Brighton, Liverpool, Manchester,
Birmingham, Glasgow, Bristol and Dublin and more.
 2021 festival dates include End Of The Road, Latitude, Fusion, Roskilde, Dour, Bol Festival, Pohoda,
Le Guess Who, Dour. In 2022 they’ll play Primavera Sound, Dour, Way Out West, Bad Bonn Kilbi, Bol
Festival.
 For fans of IDLES, Black Midi, Squid, Phoebe Bridgers, Jockstrap, Nick Cave, The National,
Radiohead.
 Deluxe 4LP 140g vinyl box set with bonus ‘Live from the Queen Elizabeth Hall’ double LP, black paper
inner sleeves, 4 art prints, lyric booklet and sticker.

New Copenhagen, Denmark based imprint Inherent Futurism shines a light on an unsung gemstone from the Detroit Electro genre, Autobot-1000's '3 Dimension Of Space'. Inherent Futurism is a new label coming out of Copenhagen, Denmark and headed up by Morten Kamper, a staple in the Danish electronic music scene who's been involved in it for more than 30 years and nowadays is running the 313vinyl_collective record store in the capital.

Inherent Futurism will focus on a blend of unearthed old records and new material with no real boundaries, just a focus on quality electronic music in all forms with an inclination towards Techno and Electro. To inaugurate the label, Morten will release Autobot-1000's debut album on vinyl for the first time, the project was only out on CD and released in 2001 on Hoodwink Records from North Carolina, US. Run by James B. Boggs who also was executive producer on the album.

Across the '3 Dimensions Of Space' LP, Autobot-1000 treats us to an array of classic Detroit Techno and Electro cuts, fusing an amalgamation of crisp analogue drums, intricately intertwined synth strings, squelchy acid licks and arpeggios alongside silky snaking bass grooves, twinkling chimes and vocoder vocal lines. The entire project embraces and encapsulates the futuristic, spaced out aesthetic synonymous with the Electro sound of its it's time and place, namely Detroit at the turn of the millennium.

Welcoming the inimitable DJ and Producer Dan Shake with his forthcoming EP Verde, set for release on May 26 2023.
Renowned for his infectious charm in the booth and an expert ear for funk, soul and disco rarities, the producer who cut teeth making maximum impact dancefloor groovers is now taking an introspective new direction. Dan was inspired after his relocation to Devon from London where a new found feeling of escapism and appreciation for nature allowed him to experiment with his own sound more than before, including using his own vocals at the forefront for the very first time.

Dan Shake (Daniel Rose-Weir) began his notoriety with the Mahogani Music released 3AM Jazz Club / Thinkin’ in 2014, using Moodymann’s seal of approval as a springboard for his ambitions. Even as dancefloor-igniting releases piled up year on year, such as the Ibiza-smashing ‘Claudia’s Trip’, or any number of Shake Tapes white label edits, Shake’s expertise as a DJ began to match his production chops. This makes for two combined sides of what Dan Shake represents: an explosion of colour, variety and flavour, no matter whether he’s jamming on a rotary in the booth, or juicing fresh joy from old samples in the studio. Basements, lofts, tents, festival stages with the production dialled up to 11 – all are welcome opportunities to let loose. But as his sound has evolved and his reputation as a killer DJ has grown, Shake’s love of connecting to the dancers in front of him has remained, well, unshakable.

Skepta and fellow BBK member Jammer launch house label Más Tiempo, with the pair collaborating for the debut EP ‘Mas Murder’

The release sees the Mercury Prize-winning MC, songwriter, and producer showcase his house sounds ahead of the label launch party at London’s KOKO on 30th April 2023.

Skepta, the influential Mercury Prize-winning MC, producer, designer, director, and founding member of seminal British grime collective Boy Better Know, unveils his new label Más Tiempo on 28th April alongside instrumental LOTM founder and BBK mainstay Jammer, as the pair launch the house-centric project with their ‘Mas Murder’ EP.

Featuring London talents J Kolo and Ossie (Club Bad/Madhouse), the debut EP showcases a first glimpse of the musical direction of the label, with the imprint set to provide a platform for producers to ‘expand their current portfolio range’ - with Skepta building on his iconic DC10 debut for Circoloco last summer, plus forthcoming appearances in Milan, Ibiza and more.

“‘This generation rules the nation, with version’... that really resonated with us for the Más Tiempo journey. Musical Youth sampled on ‘Mas Murder’ was perfect to showcase the way we feel about giving people our spin on house production with instrumentals while paying homage to the ones that came before us.” - Jammer.

Collaborating on the lead cut, Skepta and Jammer’s ‘Mas Murder’ is a low-slung, heady house cut shaped for bustling terraces and built for clubs, fusing crisp percussion, a snaking bassline and eerie melodies for a heads-down effort. Handing over to Jammer, who links up with J Kolo and Ossie, ‘Touch Me’ draws from UK house influences for a skippy, slinking production.

Alongside the EP, Más Tiempo will also take over legendary London venue KOKO on 30th April, with the event being the first standalone show for the collective, having collaborated with The Martinez Brothers and Cuttin Headz at The Beams in December. Featuring performances from Benji B and DJ Maximum alongside sets from both label heads, the show will see Skepta return to the venue for the first time since 2016 following the release of his critically acclaimed LP ‘Konnichiwa’.

This visionary record, a precursor to the math music of the new millennium, skilfully blends stripped- down, repetitive guitars with angular, minimalist drum patterns. The original 1999 recording was helmed by Bob Weston (he of Shellac fame) Also of note is that Lynx included in its ranks guitarist Dave Konopka who went on to be a founding member of the group Battles.

This deluxe edition is augmented by a second vinyl entitled Human Speech, an EP featuring three unreleased tracks recorded in 2021 but composed more than 20 years ago. The entire collection, LP and 12" is released by Computer Students" in their Expanded Reissues series. It includes a massive double-sided poster and is housed in a sleek, tactile aluminium packaging.

Freestyle Records are proud to reissue Ambiance II Fusion's mid-80s fusion rarity "Come Touch Tomorrow" - originally recorded in Hollywood CA October/November 1984 and released in 1985.

Following a yearly run of 4 albums self-released between 1979 and 1982, Nigerian-born saxophonist, flutist, and clarinettist Daoud Abubakar Balewa then took a few years off before returning with 1985's "Come Touch Tomorrow", the first of two albums issued under the updated name of Ambiance II Fusion. Combining the afro-spiritual jazz & be-bop inflected fusion of his earlier work as Ambiance, this record took the project into more modern & distinctly cosmic planes with the introduction of spacey pads and drum machines working alongside somewhat tighter arrangements and solid rhythm sectons. Of particular note here is the B1 track "Boy What a Joy" on which a sublimely funky synth & drum machine throwdown is presented in prophetically lo-fi fashion - recalling recent stylistic approaches from the likes of Dâm-Funk among others.

Participating Musicians:

"AMBIANCE II FUSION"

Stanley Dominguez - Guitars

Dr. Isacc Ford - Drums/Electric Drums

Ralph Rodriguez - Percussion

Juliian Breeton - Bass

Jardin Wilson - Bass

Lee Williams - Keyboards/Syntheziers

Daoud Abubakar Balewa - Alto & Tenor Saxophone/Percussion

Larry Dominguez - Alto Saxophone

Suzanne Daniels - Vocal Sounds

"AMBIANCE II FUSION ENSEMBLE"

James "Kino" Cornwell - Keyboards

Randy Landis - Basses

Rick Smith - Percussion

Jim Lum - Guitars

Arnold Ramsey - Drums

Daoud Abubakar Balewa - Soprano Saxophone/Percussion

Recorded at Sound Images Recording Studios - Sound Images Entertainment Complex - North Hollywood, CA & Classic Sound Studios - Hollywood, CA. October/November 1984.

Underground mainstay Guy Gerber is back on his own Rumors label with new EP Leave It On. Across three tracks he showcases his famously emotive and melodic house sounds.

Gerber has been a core part of the underground for years, headlining the world's most revered clubs and festivals, collaborating with P. Diddy, bringing all new party concepts to Ibiza, and serving up serene and synth heavy soundscapes that move people physically and emotionally on labels like Cocoon, Italians Do It Better and Rumors.

This one kicks off with the lush deep house elegance of 'Leave It On' with its languid bass and live sounding drums. Swirling pads and atmospheric vocals bring a romantic feel to this late-night jam. 'Leave Me' then picks up the pace with more percussive but still smooth grooves, this time doused in sweeping chords that bring sunshine and soul. 'Jupiter Blues' closes out with a cosmic exploration, the gently tinkling keys shining like stars as warm, rubbery drums carry you onwards and upwards.

This is another classy EP from Guy Gerber.

RAWAX proudly welcomes Losoul to the artist family!
We are more than happy to present you his upcoming release
which comes on the RX-series, called "Urban Works"!

RAWAX proudly welcomes Losoul to the artist family!
We are more than happy to present you his upcoming release
which comes on the RX-series, called "Urban Works"!

Classic madness and violence! Death Metal history, the ultimate edition! Death Strike need little introduction to anyone who would consider themselves seasoned in the realm of Death Metal, the legendary Paul Speckmann’s debut foray into the genre has garnered pretty much cult status now as a genre classic and not without good reason. This reissue of 1991 album compiles the debut demo from ‘85 together with four other tracks for the rather aptly titled “Fuckin’ Death”, and being brutally honest, could you possibly have a more suitable description for the sensory annihilation present on these recordings? It’s that fact that half this material was recorded back in the mid-eighties that really makes it stand out, Death Metal was still in its infantile stages back then with extreme metal making a transition between the Crust influenced filth of Hellhammer and the ilk to a more brutal strain with bands like Possessed and Slaughter emerging out of the underground with a significantly more potent and brutal form of metal unlike anything heard before, and when you realize it came out at the same time as two monumental releases by the aforementioned bands you wonder why the fuck it never got quite as much attention as it was just as influential if not more so than those classics. If you’re one of the unenlightened still wondering who the fuck Death Strike are, “Fuckin’ Death” was essentially just the first Master album under a different moniker, and along with Master’s debut and “On the Seventh Day...” are Death Metal classics. The first four tracks as previously mentioned are from 1985 and astonishingly ahead of their time. It’s basically ‘Hellhammer on crack’, fast brutal and utterly primal Death Metal with that huge hardcore influence shining through. Paul’s vocals are a maniacal and wretched reverbed howl that just add to the chaos conjured with Kirk’s unbridled leads, the d-beat styled drumming and thundering, bowel shaking bass. Songs like “Pay to Die” and “Re-Entry and Destruction” are impossible not to like, it’s extreme metal heaven (or hell, whichever you prefer), straight-forward, catchy and downright punishing.

BABY BLUE VINYL

"Workin' all day, trying to forget about the old me." Like most of us, Martin Frawley is busy trying to work himself out. He lives alongside the long shadow of his late dad, musician and songwriter Maurice Frawley, a cultural icon of the Australian underground and collaborator of Paul Kelly, Tex Perkins and Mick Thomas. Most of Martin's 20s were spent writing and playing songs in locally beloved Melbourne band Twerps - a collection of pals who were on the forefront of the city's jangle pop renaissance. A few albums, US tours and band rotations under its belt, Twerps split up in 2018 and Martin turned his compass towards a solo project. His first album, Undone at 31 (2019), was a bit of a reckoning; a wild ride through the wreckage of both a band and longterm romantic break up. His new album The Wannabe is a personal, cheeky and, at times, self-depreiciating collection of songs unpacking the reality of finding his way as an adult without his dad around, and ultimately falling back in love with life, music and someone new. Martin and his band - friends Dan Luscombe (The Drones), Steph Hughes (Boomgates, Dick Diver), Nik Imfeld (Tyrannaman) and Dan Kelly - had heaps of fun recording The Wannabe in Melbourne. The title track is a particularly spicy take on an entertainment industry that seems to give more shits about marketing than music. The album is a bit of an emotional tour, from anger and derision, through to comedy, through to deep and honest love. It's positive with a lot of sadness. Not unlike Martin himself. As well as the guitar, Martin had some fun playing the piano on this record. The technical term is `multiinstrumentalist' but Martin's more of a musical explorer of sorts. No one is exactly sure how these things work - if Martin was born into music or if it was born into him, but it doesn't really matter. Music is what he loves. It's what he does. It's not about the industry or about success - not anymore. It's about the freedom of creating songs on his own terms, and trying to let go of the feeling he has something to prove: to his dad, to his critics, and to himself. And while he's not sure he'll ever fully shake that feeling, he's at least relaxing and having a bit of fun doing it. Like his dad, Martin has a reputation as a `musician's musician'. He hosts a pretty sporadic podcast Dive For Your Memory, where he has fast and loose chats with musicians while doing a deep dive into their musical inspirations and canon. He and his fiancé Lauren also make wine under the label El'More Wines, named after the farm and small town where his dad grew up. It's all come a bit full circle, really.

Über Iris aus dem Raum Stuttgart/Esslingen ist nicht viel bekannt. 1981 hat die siebenköpfige Band ihr einziges Album für das kleine Label PEAK aufgenommen, die natürlich nicht die finanziellen Mittel hatten, Iris zu etablieren. Zudem klang das anspruchsvolle und dennoch teils hart rockende Material nach dem, was man allgemein als Krautrock bezeichnet, oder bezeichnen kann. Somit war ein Drängen in die damals angesagte NDW-Richtung absolut ausgeschlossen.

Der Übergang von den späten Siebzigern zu den frühen Achtzigern war musikalisch auch in Deutschland extrem spannend. Iris hielten stilistisch eher an den Siebzigern fest, was ihnen heute mit dieser Wiederveröffentlichung posthum neue Fans bringen wird. Auch in der Hardrock- und Heavy Metal-Szene gibt es immer mehr junge Bands, die mit der Klangästhetik spielen, die auch auf „Iris“ zu hören ist. Ein
„veralteter Sound“ wird wieder modern.

Die CD und LP kommt mit Liner Notes von Fachmann Michael Lörber. Ausserdem wurden alle Komponenten des Albums, also auch das Textblatt, gescannt und hinzugefügt. Den Audiotransfer hat Patrick Engel (Sony Music, High Roller, etc.) vorgenommen, das Remastering erfolgte durch Neudi.

Ein in Zukunft nicht mehr vergessenes Stück deutscher Rockgeschichte!

Not much is known about Iris from the Stuttgart / Esslingen area.

In 1981, the seven-member band recorded their only album for the small label PEAK, which of course did not have the financial means to mainstream Iris. In addition, the sophisticated yet sometimes hard rocking stuff sounded like what is generally called, or can be called, Krautrock. Thus, a push towards the NDW style that was in vogue at the time was absolutely out of the question.

The transition from the late seventies to the early eighties was musically extremely exciting, even in Germany. Iris stuck stylistically more to the seventies, which will bring them new fans posthumously today with this re-release. Also in the hard rock and heavy metal scene there are more and more young bands playing with the sound aesthetics that can also be heard on „Iris“. An „outdated sound“ is becoming modern again.

The CD and LP comes with liner notes by expert Michael Lörber. In addition, all components of the album, including the lyric sheet, were scanned and added. The audio transfer was done by Patrick Engel (Sony Music, High Roller, etc.), the remastering was done by Neudi.
A piece of German rock history that will not be forgotten in the future!

...And I Mean It is an amalgam of girl group, new wave, blues, pop, and folk-rock by Genya Ravan. To hear her exquisite voice on "Night Owl" soaring above her own backing vocals is intense, imagine Etta James backed by the Sex Pistols doing a rock version of "Earth Angel." Of all Ravan's work, ...And I Mean It is possibly the most concise and picture-perfect statement of what the woman is musically about. A girl group pioneer who worked with Richard Perry prior to his finding the Pointer Sisters groove, there is no doubt Ravan influenced that major producer, and his work did the same for her. "Pedal to the Medal" is high-end treble rock before it came into vogue. This is the other side of Siren, the album Genya produced for Ronnie Spector, with more emphasis on a good-time rocking party. "I'm Wired, Wired, Wired" is a rock & roll anthem for people who burn the candle at both ends, while "I Won't Sleep on the Wet Spot" embodies the unbridled sexuality of this album. The music crunches while Ravan uses her voice, her production skills, and her legacy to create something far removed from her days in Ten Wheel Drive. The horns are replaced by searing guitars and Charlie Giordano's magical piano work. The sound of the keyboard and its erratic splashes really are key to "I Won't Sleep on the Wet Spot," while the guitar and bass battle it out. "Steve...," on the other hand, is Goldie & the Gingerbreads ten years after. This Ravan/Conrad Taylor composition was the 45 from the album, and it has "hit" written all over it. 20th Century just didn't have the right mechanisms in place to get some of the great music they put out on radio, such a pity as Harriet Schock, Randy Edelman, and the fake soundtrack for All This and World War II (a Beatles tribute album) contained songs that should have been big hits. What did hit off this album, on FM radio as an album track, is the brilliant duet by Ian Hunter and Ravan, the subtle and folky "Junkman." Released on Hunter's excellent Once Bitten Twice Shy CD on Legacy in 2000, the song and the performance are timeless. Ravan once said: "I was asleep with the tv on, and was saying to myself...that's my voice...that's my song...that's me! I woke up to find "Junkman" on TV in a film." The song got placed in a cable movie without the producer's knowledge! "Junkman" was a sound not heard on FM radio prior to its release, much like MTV's "unplugged" versions of songs, but it is more unplugged than most of this material -- take the rocked-out version of Motown that is the cover of Marvin Gaye's "Stubborn Kinda Girl," or the Springsteen-style blast that is "It's Me," a tune Springsteen should cover.

...And I Mean It is an amalgam of girl group, new wave, blues, pop, and folk-rock by Genya Ravan. To hear her exquisite voice on "Night Owl" soaring above her own backing vocals is intense, imagine Etta James backed by the Sex Pistols doing a rock version of "Earth Angel." Of all Ravan's work, ...And I Mean It is possibly the most concise and picture-perfect statement of what the woman is musically about. A girl group pioneer who worked with Richard Perry prior to his finding the Pointer Sisters groove, there is no doubt Ravan influenced that major producer, and his work did the same for her. "Pedal to the Medal" is high-end treble rock before it came into vogue. This is the other side of Siren, the album Genya produced for Ronnie Spector, with more emphasis on a good-time rocking party. "I'm Wired, Wired, Wired" is a rock & roll anthem for people who burn the candle at both ends, while "I Won't Sleep on the Wet Spot" embodies the unbridled sexuality of this album. The music crunches while Ravan uses her voice, her production skills, and her legacy to create something far removed from her days in Ten Wheel Drive. The horns are replaced by searing guitars and Charlie Giordano's magical piano work. The sound of the keyboard and its erratic splashes really are key to "I Won't Sleep on the Wet Spot," while the guitar and bass battle it out. "Steve...," on the other hand, is Goldie & the Gingerbreads ten years after. This Ravan/Conrad Taylor composition was the 45 from the album, and it has "hit" written all over it. 20th Century just didn't have the right mechanisms in place to get some of the great music they put out on radio, such a pity as Harriet Schock, Randy Edelman, and the fake soundtrack for All This and World War II (a Beatles tribute album) contained songs that should have been big hits. What did hit off this album, on FM radio as an album track, is the brilliant duet by Ian Hunter and Ravan, the subtle and folky "Junkman." Released on Hunter's excellent Once Bitten Twice Shy CD on Legacy in 2000, the song and the performance are timeless. Ravan once said: "I was asleep with the tv on, and was saying to myself...that's my voice...that's my song...that's me! I woke up to find "Junkman" on TV in a film." The song got placed in a cable movie without the producer's knowledge! "Junkman" was a sound not heard on FM radio prior to its release, much like MTV's "unplugged" versions of songs, but it is more unplugged than most of this material -- take the rocked-out version of Motown that is the cover of Marvin Gaye's "Stubborn Kinda Girl," or the Springsteen-style blast that is "It's Me," a tune Springsteen should cover.

"Another Love Song - The Frames are an Irish indie rock band formed in Dublin in 1990. The band is known for their passionate and emotive sound, which blends elements of rock, folk, and traditional Irish music. Over the years, they have released several critically acclaimed albums, including ""Another Love Song,"" which is widely regarded as one of their most influential works.
""Another Love Song"" was released in 1991 and marked a turning point in the band's career. The album featured a raw, stripped-down sound that was a departure from their earlier, more polished work. The songs on the album were deeply personal and introspective, exploring themes of love, loss, and the complexities of human relationships. The album's title track, ""Another Love Song,"" became an instant classic, showcasing the band's signature sound with its driving rhythms and soaring vocals. The song's bittersweet lyrics and haunting melody struck a chord with listeners and quickly became a fan favourite.
In addition to ""Another Love Song,"" the album features several other standout tracks, including ""Say It to Me Now,"" ""The Dancer,"" and ""Downhill."" Each song on the album showcases the band's dynamic musicianship and poetic lyricism, earning the album a reputation as a seminal work in the Irish indie rock scene. Over the years, The Frames have continued to evolve and innovate, releasing several more critically acclaimed albums and earning a dedicated following of fans around the world. With their unique blend of raw emotion and musical artistry, The Frames continue to inspire and captivate audiences with their powerful, soulful music.


Fitzcarraldo - ""Fitzcarraldo"" is the sixth studio album by the Irish rock band The Frames, released in 1995. The album marked a significant departure from the band's earlier work, with a more experimental sound that blended rock, folk, and experimental elements.
The album takes its name from the Werner Herzog film of the same name, which tells the story of a man who attempts to build an opera house in the Amazon jungle. This theme of ambition and perseverance in the face of adversity runs throughout the album, as frontman Glen Hansard explores themes of love, loss, and the human experience. The album opens with the hauntingly beautiful track ""Revelate,"" which sets the tone for the rest of the album with its soaring vocals and intricate guitar work. From there, the album takes the listener on a journey through a diverse range of sounds and emotions, from the upbeat rock of ""What Happens When the Heart Just Stops"" to the melancholic balladry of ""Fitzcarraldo.""
One of the standout tracks on the album is ""Lay Me Down,"" a tender and heartfelt ballad that showcases Hansard's powerful vocals and poetic lyricism. The song has become a fan favourite and is often performed live by the band. Another highlight of the album is the epic nine-minute track ""Fitzcarraldo,"" which features lush instrumentation and intricate guitar work. The song is a tribute to the film of the same name and explores themes of ambition and determination in the face of seemingly insurmountable obstacles.
Overall, ""Fitzcarraldo"" is a powerful and deeply personal album that showcases The Frames at their most ambitious and experimental. With its diverse range of sounds and emotions, the album remains a fan favourite and a landmark in the Irish rock canon.

Dance the Devil
Dance the Devil is the fourth studio album by the Irish rock band, The Frames. Released in 1999, it marked a significant departure from the band's earlier sound and was a critical and commercial success.
The album features 10 tracks, including the hit single ""Pavement Tune,"" which received extensive radio play and helped to propel The Frames to greater prominence in the music industry. Dance the Devil showcases the band's versatility and musical prowess, blending elements of rock, folk, and pop to create a unique and compelling sound. The lyrics are introspective and poetic, exploring themes of love, loss, and self-discovery.
Produced by Steve Albini, the album was recorded in just five days, giving it a raw and unpolished feel that perfectly captures the energy and passion of The Frames' live performances.
Dance the Devil remains a beloved album among fans of Irish music and continues to inspire new generations of musicians. Its enduring popularity is a testament to the artistry and vision of The Frames and their commitment to pushing the boundaries of what is possible in rock music.
"

"Another Love Song - The Frames are an Irish indie rock band formed in Dublin in 1990. The band is known for their passionate and emotive sound, which blends elements of rock, folk, and traditional Irish music. Over the years, they have released several critically acclaimed albums, including ""Another Love Song,"" which is widely regarded as one of their most influential works.
""Another Love Song"" was released in 1991 and marked a turning point in the band's career. The album featured a raw, stripped-down sound that was a departure from their earlier, more polished work. The songs on the album were deeply personal and introspective, exploring themes of love, loss, and the complexities of human relationships. The album's title track, ""Another Love Song,"" became an instant classic, showcasing the band's signature sound with its driving rhythms and soaring vocals. The song's bittersweet lyrics and haunting melody struck a chord with listeners and quickly became a fan favourite.
In addition to ""Another Love Song,"" the album features several other standout tracks, including ""Say It to Me Now,"" ""The Dancer,"" and ""Downhill."" Each song on the album showcases the band's dynamic musicianship and poetic lyricism, earning the album a reputation as a seminal work in the Irish indie rock scene. Over the years, The Frames have continued to evolve and innovate, releasing several more critically acclaimed albums and earning a dedicated following of fans around the world. With their unique blend of raw emotion and musical artistry, The Frames continue to inspire and captivate audiences with their powerful, soulful music.


Fitzcarraldo - ""Fitzcarraldo"" is the sixth studio album by the Irish rock band The Frames, released in 1995. The album marked a significant departure from the band's earlier work, with a more experimental sound that blended rock, folk, and experimental elements.
The album takes its name from the Werner Herzog film of the same name, which tells the story of a man who attempts to build an opera house in the Amazon jungle. This theme of ambition and perseverance in the face of adversity runs throughout the album, as frontman Glen Hansard explores themes of love, loss, and the human experience. The album opens with the hauntingly beautiful track ""Revelate,"" which sets the tone for the rest of the album with its soaring vocals and intricate guitar work. From there, the album takes the listener on a journey through a diverse range of sounds and emotions, from the upbeat rock of ""What Happens When the Heart Just Stops"" to the melancholic balladry of ""Fitzcarraldo.""
One of the standout tracks on the album is ""Lay Me Down,"" a tender and heartfelt ballad that showcases Hansard's powerful vocals and poetic lyricism. The song has become a fan favourite and is often performed live by the band. Another highlight of the album is the epic nine-minute track ""Fitzcarraldo,"" which features lush instrumentation and intricate guitar work. The song is a tribute to the film of the same name and explores themes of ambition and determination in the face of seemingly insurmountable obstacles.
Overall, ""Fitzcarraldo"" is a powerful and deeply personal album that showcases The Frames at their most ambitious and experimental. With its diverse range of sounds and emotions, the album remains a fan favourite and a landmark in the Irish rock canon.

Dance the Devil
Dance the Devil is the fourth studio album by the Irish rock band, The Frames. Released in 1999, it marked a significant departure from the band's earlier sound and was a critical and commercial success.
The album features 10 tracks, including the hit single ""Pavement Tune,"" which received extensive radio play and helped to propel The Frames to greater prominence in the music industry. Dance the Devil showcases the band's versatility and musical prowess, blending elements of rock, folk, and pop to create a unique and compelling sound. The lyrics are introspective and poetic, exploring themes of love, loss, and self-discovery.
Produced by Steve Albini, the album was recorded in just five days, giving it a raw and unpolished feel that perfectly captures the energy and passion of The Frames' live performances.
Dance the Devil remains a beloved album among fans of Irish music and continues to inspire new generations of musicians. Its enduring popularity is a testament to the artistry and vision of The Frames and their commitment to pushing the boundaries of what is possible in rock music.
"

The continuing growth of Maik Krahl as a melodic improviser, bandleader, and composer is distinctly evident in this new release. In-Between Flow, Krahl’s third outing as leader, is a portrait of a young artist who has gone through many years of dedicated hard work, study, experimentation, and refinement in order to achieve this level of instrumental and artistic progress. Krahl belongs to a new generation of improvisers who have acquired a breadth of technical and theoretical facility, while not losing the spontaneity and rawness of this music we call jazz. As a bandleader, he chooses his colleagues wisely and for this date is joined on a few tracks by the visionary guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel, whose brilliant playing adds a cherry on top of this already delicious line up.

The title In-Between Flow refers to ever evolving progression of our human condition. As in nature, the human spirit can expand and unfold, maturing to a new state where it may settle for a while until some new impulses inspires another transition. These transitions, sometimes subtle, sometimes abrupt; as well as the times of contentedness and serenity are the inspirations for this music.

The record opens up with an ode to the town Krahl calls home. Cologne 4 AM, begins with a haunting melody by Krahl’s soft yet powerful horn before settling into a perfect vehicle to display his command of melodic and motivic story telling. There is something about the time of 4 AM that seems to permeate literature and music, and this track will add to the canon of artistic references to this magical time where the night meets the morning.

Mr. Rosenwinkel joins the band for Slosetta, which is a great example of Krahl’s ability to craft a tune. As is to be expected, Rosenwinkel weaves through the changes with grace and mastery, obviously enjoying the communication with the rhythm section, who are undeniably inspired by his harmonic, rhythmic and melodic ingenuity.

Jakob Kühnemann, a Bandleader and composer is his own right, has been an in demand bassist on the German and European scene for several years, and his contribution to this record is proof of why that is. Although Krahl takes the lead on Drizzle Counter, in a great display of technical virtuosity, it is Kühneman who stands out on this track. It is not only in his improvisation, but more so in his poly rhythmic pulses dancing up from the deep and the harmonic insinuations in his accompaniment of Krahl’s solo that demonstrate his musical mastery.

Rosenwinkel joins again for No Claim Claim, a composition so balanced that I would not be surprised to hear other artists recording or performing it in the future. After Krahl’s melodically inventive statement, Rosenwinkel shifts the band to the next gear building the intensity towards the out head.

Constantin Krahmer has been Krahl´s piano player since his debut record, Decidophobia. His patience, ingenuity, and big ears make him a perfect accomplice to Krahl, and his sensitive yet powerful approach and accompaniment on Reconstruction of a Dream as well as his harmonic and melodic inventiveness on Vinaceous Clouds (where he plays Fender Rhodes) make it clear why he is an integral part of this unit.

Ms Ludgate is a funky composition with angular melody that is another feather in the cap of the band leader. Kurt Rosenwinkel is back, and seems more than willing to engage in some rhythmic dialogue with the spectacular young drummer on the date, Fabian Rösch. Throughout this entire record Rösch is subtly but strongly guiding the band, playing his role as a supportive and interactive proponent to the music. We will surely be hearing much more from this young man with such a refined sound and clear rhythmic conception.

Flawless Sunday, a perfect closing statement for this record. The melody is another great example of Krahl’s growth as a composer. The whole rhythm section really shines on Krahmer’s choruses, where the three colleagues push and dare each other rhythmically as well as harmonically before Krahl enters and brings the record to a close with his beautiful rich tone and melodic playing.

It is a great pleasure to hear the growth of a young artist with such dedication and vision. Hearing how Krahl and his band mates navigate through the vicissitudes of this music is an inspiration that can be mirrored in everyday life. A lesson in accepting the ever changing flow from one state to another. Growing, learning, and evolving into a new state, until the process begins anew. In-Between Flow.

Repress!

One of the gems on the smash hit album 'Soulmatic', Purple Disco Machine & Boris D'Lugosch's, 'Love For Days' gets the remix treatment three ways.

First up the master Kenny Dope - crisping up that shuffling rhythm with some added percussion and synthesiser arps to turn what was already a peak time soulful anthem, into a close to 8 minute extended journey drawing you in more and more with each build up and breakdown. Next up the PDM offers up an extended mix of the original, a welcome sight for those DJs on the club scene who have been rinsing this since the album dropped last year.

Finally, Motez takes you into raunchy, r&b tinged, garage territory, really honing in on Karen Harding's incredible vocals whilst incorporating brooding pads and sweeping fx's to create a special twist on the original.


DJ Support:

Aeroplane (Aeropop / Eskimo Recordings), Klingande / Kungs / Michael Calfan c/o (Unity Group Promo Sorter), Autograf (Counter Records), Treasure Fingers (Psycho Disco! / Fool's Gold), Malente (Southern Fried Records), Satin Jackets c/o (Eskimo Recordings / N.E.W.S.), Eric Sharp (9G Records), Gregor Salto c/o (Spinnin' Records), DJ Blake Jarrell (Armada Music), Jerome Price (Throne Room Records), DJ Licious (Spinnin' Records), Travis Emmons (Weapons Music), Electronic Youth (KMS), Solidisco (Fool's Gold / Ultra) :: Mark Knight c/o (Toolroom Knights), Mike Mago (Boemklatsch), Muzzaik (Spinnin' / Toolroom), The Disco Boys (We Play Music), Trevor Mac (Jalapeno Sound System), Ferdinand Weber (Spinnin' Deep), LCAW (Ultra), Plastic Plates (Sweat it Out), Mark Lower (Nurvous), Don Diablo c/o (Axtone / Spinnin' Records), Eton Messy, Après (Love & Other Records), Spada (Ego Music / Hysterical), Eelke Kleijn (Spinnin' / Suara), Horsemeat Disco (Strut Records / K7! Records), Horsemeat Disco (Strut Records / K7! Records), Adriana Lucia (Get Physical), Broc Roc (Dj B-Roc of The Knocks), Chordashian (Mullet Records), Hector Romero (Saw Recordings), Just Kiddin (Nervous Records)

Idris Elba c/o (Connaisseur Records / 7Wallace), Klingande / Kungs / Michael Calfan c/o (Unity Group Promo Sorter), Shiba San c/o (Suara / CUFF), Malente (Southern Fried Records), Rudimental (Asylum / Big Beat), Sirus Hood (Under No Illusion / Dirtybird), Marc Spence (This Ain't Bristol / Skint), Martin Solveig c/o (Spinnin' Records), Horsemeat Disco (Strut Records / K7! Records), Riva Starr c/o (Hot Creations), Mike Mago (Boemklatsch), Kokiri (Love & Other), Fred Falke (Work It Baby Records), Claptone c/o (Exploited), Roger Sanchez (Stealth Records / Astrx), Don Diablo c/o (Axtone / Spinnin' Records), Icarus (FFRR / SubSoul), Pezzner (Dirtybird), Jourdan Bordes (Phonetic Recordings), Mahalo (Toolroom / Bunny Tiger), AC Slater (Night Bass), Chordashian / Felix Feygin (Mullet Records), Fei-Fei Wang, Kristina Sky (Ultra / Armada), Thee Cool Cats (Toolroom / Bunny Tiger), Solidisco (Fool's Gold / Ultra), Infected Mushroom c/o (HOMmega Productions), DJ Blake Jarrell (Armada Music),Travis Emmons (Weapons Music), Human Life (LIFEX / Exploited), Treasure Fingers (Psycho Disco! / Fool's Gold), Hector Romero (Saw Recordings), and Danny Howard (BBC Radio 1 / Nothing Else Matters)

Black Truffle is pleased to announce Symphony No. 107 –The Bard, a previously unheard archival recording of the legendary improvising ensemble MEV (Musica Elettronica Viva), captured in concert at Bard College, New York in 2012. Formed by a group of American expat composers in Rome in 1966, the MEV ensemble played an important role in the development of free improvisation, bridging the live electronics tradition begun by Cage and Tudor and the high-energy squall of free jazz. Early recordings like Spacecraft or The Sound Pool unleash volleys of metal and glass amplified with contact microphones, howling winds, primitive synthesizer bleep and raucous audience participation, the intensity of which puts much later ‘noise’ to shame. In later decades, the ensemble would go through many iterations, often including legendary free players like Steve Lacy and George Lewis. In its final years, MEV settled into the core trio of founding members heard here: Alvin Curran, Frederic Rzewski, and Richard Teitelbaum, using piano, electronics, and small instruments.

Curran, Rzewski, and Teitelbaum were life-long friends blessed, as Curran says, with ‘incompatible personalities’: major figures in the post-Cagean experimental tradition, they explored countless divergent and even contradictory paths as composers and performers, from agitprop songs to brainwave-controlled synthesis. MEV is the sound of these three personalities coming together, their contributions radically individual yet attaining a state of ‘fundamental unity’ that Rzewski, in a text written in the collective’s earliest years, defined as the ‘final goal of improvisation’. Of course, listeners familiar with aspect of the trio’s individual works might hazard some guesses about who is doing what: the crisp piano figures are probably Rzewski’s, the cut-up hip-hop samples most likely Curran’s, the sliding, squelching synth possibly Teitelbaum’s. But often these identities are dissolved in a constantly shifting hall of mirrors, the listener unable to tell which of these pianos is live and which is a sample of a past virtuoso, or whether a horn blast derives from ethnographic documentation or Curran cutting loose on Shofar. The two side-long sets here occupy a similar terrain of constantly shifting texture and instrumentation, unexpected interruptions, and moments of sudden beauty. The first set is sparser, at times almost ominous, as a bell repeatedly sounds across wheezing harmonica, seasick orchestral textures, and creaking wood, making room for episodes of yodelling and delicate prepared piano before exploding into a storm of buzzing synth and piano fragments. The second set is more frenetic, moving rapidly across centuries and continents: cars crash into post-serial piano pointillism, wailing voices collide with chopped and screwed hip-hop samples, Hollywood strings are buried under layers of electronic gurgles. The performance slows in its final moments, making way for a sampled voice repeating the phrase ‘protest and the good of the world’, reminding us that MEV’s idea of freedom was always more than musical. Symphony No. 107 –The Bard is a beautifully recorded example of the endlessly multi-layered later MEV sound, accompanied by new liner notes by Alvin Curran (now the only surviving member of the group) and a selection of previously unseen photographs from across the many decades of the group’s activity. Arriving in an elegant sleeve bearing a beautiful photograph by Francis Zhou of the Olin Hall at Bard College where the concert was recorded, this is an essential document from a major group in the history of experimental music. As Rzewski wrote, this music is ‘like life, unpredictable, sometimes making sense, mostly not’.

Robin Saville - one half of the influential duo ISAN - returns to Morr Music with »Lore«, his fourth solo album to date. After 2020’s »Build A Diorama«, the British musician takes his love for field recordings, whirring pads, hovering bells and subtle electronics further, adding extra depth to both his sonic palette and his storytelling, focussing on biological diversity and its implications for human life.

For many years now, ›look and listen‹ has been Robin Saville's motto on his regular environmental explorations. The avid ambler does not just enjoy being out and about in nature; it is an important inspiration for his creative work as well. Sounds, smells, colours and even soil properties add to the experience. Equipped with a microphone and a recording device, Saville documents his strolls, using these recordings as a base for his compositions. »The field recordings on the album were made very locally this time, for obvious reasons,« he says. Welcome to the sonic landscape of the UK's East Anglia.

»Judith Avenue«, the opening track, is a great example of how Saville evolved his perspective on the sounds of nature: »It is a residential street, fading into a scrubby, wild landscape. There, I made a recording of nightingales at dusk. Such romantic birds! The males fly here from Africa a couple of weeks ahead of the females. They find a good territory, and at dusk, when all the other birds are going quiet, they start to sing to tempt the females down from their migratory flight paths. This has happened for thousands of years. However, the patch of ground where I made the recordings is earmarked for development and I don't suppose it'll happen there again. The recordings therefore become part of the history of that place, the lore.«

Recording the sounds of nature and enriching them with electronic sorcery, Saville is not only a documenting preservationist; he also translates these recordings into meaningful musical miniatures. Building on the soundscapes that marked his previous LP »Build A Diorama«, »Lore« is dominated by both open-hearted melancholy and more upbeat rhythms. But even when the music sounds quirky and loose, there is always deeper meaning. The album is characterised by an ever present melancholy about the threatening loss of living spaces, and a celebration of their beauty. This simultaneity turns the tracks into existential meditations about our human habitat. Saville enriches our lives musically by addressing the very issues we often ignore. At the same time, he becomes an agent of hope and change. Moving between light and dark, »Lore« is a musical allegory of where we stand today.

»The album is a document of places and times and while it is certainly a celebration of those things, it is also a record of things we are losing. That's how interaction with nature feels to me nowadays: something precious and amazing, but with an underlying sadness about the destructive relationship that humanity seems inevitably to have with the world around it.«

Let's not lose any more things.

The third Mollono.Bass Album is dedicated to what we need most. We as inhabitants of the same planet, we as members of a free society, and we as a culture. We have to stick together more than ever, rather than drifting further and further apart. At the same time, Together brings together everything Mollono.Bass stands for since more than 20 years: Ritualist Afro-influences and acid loops, the sensual physicality of House, the laid-back boost of Dub Techno, analogue depth and digital highs, hope transcribed into groove and utopia set into rhythmic motion. It’s the dynamic novelty and pioneering spirit of the arrangements that reflect the unmistakable signature style of this producer. True to the traditional idea of an album, complete with previously unreleased tracks and special versions, Together is a highly immersive listening experience from start to end and works beautifully on the dancefloor and far beyond it.

In the 1980s, Michael Morley helped to push the jangly New Zealand music scene towards rougher, more exploratory realms, as a member of Wreck Small Speakers on Expensive Stereos, The Weeds, and the almighty Dead C. His gnarled, distorted guitar tone and aggressively moan-based vocal style are both as distinctive as they are secretly beautiful. Morley has released dozens of solo recordings—starting in the late 1980s as Gate, then more recently under his own name, and as the Righteous Yeah. He’s also unafraid to tackle entirely new genres and sounds, and to move into interactive installation-based music as well. Birdman is beyond excited to present the first vinyl release of this archival Gate release. “...I think it is classic Gate material. The idea of the palette is fascinating as I think I did approach it with a set of limited instrumentation and the desire to make something again that could sound like rock music. There is certainly a direct line from Wreck Small Speakers On Expensive Stereos, through the Dead C, and to Gate. I think I was also inspired by listening to infamous and tragically short-lived early 1980s band the Double Happys, and remembering their performances as a duo with the drum machine. There was such utter chaos and anarchy during their sets, with a desire to represent punk rock at its nascent truth, I wanted to see if it was possible to re- imagine that feeling. I was possibly also listening to the Stooges and MC5. —Michael Morley

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Label boss Coco Bryce aka DJ-Y finally delivers the second volume of Faces Of Bass, the Myor sublabel focussing on 4x4 hardcore in all its shapes and forms.

Speed Fever is one for the Gabber and Acid heads alike. Its mixture of distorted kick drums, ruffneck 303 melodies and rushy rave stabs echoes the late 90s squat party heydays of the Netherlands.

Get On Up sees Coco opting for a slightly more subtle approach, blending acid bleeps with warm chords and a moody Reese bassline over a rolling Jungle Techno framework.

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Number 060 in our catalogue, and we are keeping it tight and sharp. Oscar Mulero is the mind behind this creature, offering three cuts of merciless techno exercises both physically and digitally.

Opening track is "Tormenta", Storm in spanish, a fast paced groove with almost all elements up from the very beginning. Wisely distorted drums, continuous filtered sequences, a sharp elastic line running and mutating across the structure. Direct and mental at the time.

"Espectro Rojo", Red spectrum translated begins with obsessive distorted evolving lines, shuffled hi hats and precise kicks. The stereo field is constantly worked out augmenting the experience exponentially.

"Gradiente de Voltaje" closes the EP, the overall feel is less distorted and more opaque and lo-fi. The liquid filtered bassline is soon joined by distorted hats, alternating patterns and twisting the sounds wisely. No sudden interruptions, no abrupt changes, just the right dose of hypnosis to use as a powerful tool.

The Search for God is a wake-up call for a troubled world that’s still worth saving, animated by a belief in the power of small connections to add up to big changes. At 10 songs delivered in a brief 15 minutes, Jimmy Whispers’ long-awaited sophomore album feels present in a way that feels brand new for the cult auteur. Like many of us, Jimmy has been affected by the pressure of the past few years. After embracing sobriety in 2019, and now as a filmmaker sharing the stories of lesser known Los Angeles community members, he’s brought his dreaming down to earth, while turning its direction even further out.

Recorded with his longtime friend Ziyad Asrar of the band Whitney (and re-recorded after a hard drive incident destroyed the original files), The Search for God was created in the wake of Jimmy’s COVID isolation, and returns to some teen influences that are out of step with the chill/lo-fi LA indie rock scene he’s found himself lumped in with. Created mostly with two vintage synths, a single Roland CR5000 drum machine, and a busted karaoke machine, it channels Midwestern emo, the Beach Boys’ Smile, subtle nods at hyper-pop production, and forgotten jewel-box era college radio of the early aughts into a pure pop sound that transcends easy categorization.

The album’s standout single—and its statement of purpose—is “Hellscape,” which packs more into a minute and 40 seconds than you’d think possible: multiple immediately-unforgettable hooks, kaleidoscopic keyboards, and a bracing reminder that even the most transcendent moments are rooted in a world full of suffering. “This is a fucking hellscape,” Jimmy sings. “This is real life / this is happening.”

That may sound like punk nihilism, but The Search for God is anything but. Every lyrical acknowledgment of how fucked things are right now comes with a promise that we can still make positive changes. Jimmy calls it “God”; you might call it Love or Peace or A Place In the Universe That Makes Some Kind of Sense.

Will The Search for God deliver whatever that is to you? Of course not. At its heart, it’s still just a really good pop album. But maybe that’s enough. For a minute or two at a time, Jimmy’s music cracks open a space where the divine can enter our lives. The utopia we’ve all been dreaming of is already here if we’re just willing to build it. Jimmy Whispers is there, ready to add his voice, whenever we want to reach out.

Das sechzehnte Album der New Yorker Noise-Rock-Urgesteine Swans um deren Kopf und Sänger Michael Gira, inklusive einer Schar an namhaften Gästen wie Ben Frost.

"Nach zahlreichen pandemiebedingten Tourabsagen für das vorherige Swans-Album 'leaving meaning' und einer scheinbar bodenlosen Grube des Wartens, Wartens, Wartens und der seltsamen Orientierungslosigkeit, die mit dieser plötzlichen, aber nicht enden wollenden erzwungenen Isolation einherging, beschloss ich, dass es Zeit war, Songs für ein neues Swans-Album zu schreiben und alles andere zu vergessen. Es fiel mir relativ leicht, sie zu schreiben, immer in dem Bewusstsein, dass es meine letzten sein könnten. Als ich endlich in der Lage war, mit den Songs in der Hand nach Berlin zu reisen, um mit meinen Freunden an diesem Album zu arbeiten, war das Gefühl ähnlich wie der Moment in 'Der Zauberer von Oz', wenn der Film von Schwarz-Weiß auf Farbe wechselt. Jetzt fühle ich mich ziemlich optimistisch. Meine Lieblingsfarbe ist rosa. Ich hoffe, dass euch das Album gefällt."

'The Beggar' erscheint auf Doppel-Vinyl in einer braunen Spanplattenhülle, als Doppel-CD in einem braunen Spanplatten-Digi-Pack sowie digital. Der knapp 44minütige CD-Track 'The Beggar Lover (Three)' liegt der LP als Download-Karte bei.

- Ltd. 2LP: (Doppel-Vinyl in einer braunen Spanplattenhülle mit einer Download-Karte für zusätzliche 44 Minuten Musik)

Over the course of eight thrilling tracks, ‘Royal’ leads listeners on a topsy-turvy journey from Middle Eastern exotica to Spaghetti Western style scores, via scorching Mediterranean beaches.
Highlights of the album include the surf-meets-Western delights of “Silver Lining”, where irresistible guitar lines are piled high and topped with euphoric synths and rock drums, resulting in a timeless soundtrack for both headless nights in dive bars and heedless days at the funfair.
“Juda” follows, a deadly combination of Zepellin and Middle Eastern rock with subtle hints of synth funk. The track is named after living legend and Middle Eastern guitar hero, Yehuda Keisar, who also joins the band for this song, contributing a scorching solo. The thunderous guitar riffs are matched pound-for-pound by the irresistible percussive groove.
Boom Pam, widely renowned for their spellbinding Middle Eastern guitar music, have unveiled their highly anticipated fifth album, 'Royal'. Celebrating their twentieth anniversary, the Tel Aviv based band combine cinematic atmospherics and high-powered surf rock on
their first album for international ambassadors of Middle Eastern grooves, Batov Records.

Boom Pam “Rock the Casbah” on title track “Royal”, revealing another card up their sleeve, as they transform a famous 80's Israeli radio theme into a discoinspired super jam with a punk edge.

The band maintain their reputation for first-rate and distinctive surf rock on the fast paced “Daber Yafé” and “Monsour”.
The sonic imprint is both warmed and widened by the rare addition of a tuba supplying the lower frequencies.
Meanwhile, opener “Lava Tongue”, and “Golden” emphasize the melodic side to the band, conjuring dreamy sunset mirages to hypnotize the listener.

Boom Pam have established themselves as pioneers of modern Middle Eastern surf rock, combining sophisticated yet catchy guitar riffs, with roaring tuba basslines and fiery drums. In the past decade the band have frequently collaborated with and backed legendary Turkish folk singer-songwriter, Selda Bagcan, on stage and record, and performed at some of the world's most renowned festivals, including Primavera Sound, Lollapalooza, Fuji Rock, the Montreal Jazz Festival and many more.
An engaging listen from beginning to end, ‘Royal’ is the perfect representation of Boom Pam’s incredible 20-year journey, showcasing their superior skills in pushing the boundaries of their genre.

All Her Plans, the third album from Melbourne, Australia's Cable Ties, finds the trio of Jenny McKechnie, Shauna Boyle, and Nick Brown at their punchiest and most assured. The ferocious, kraut-influenced blend of post-punk and garage rock of Merge debut Far Enough remains, but McKechnie's lyrics invite the listener closer than ever before. The urgency and fury that have marked Cable Ties' output thus far is more nuanced on All Her Plans.

The unfettered rage of their calls to action endures tackling subjects like broken mental healthcare systems and the burden of familial care that is largely placed on women…while holding space for gratitude, love, and acceptance. All Her Plans is a breakthrough moment for Cable Ties. It is the sound of a group that is exhilarated to be making music together again, both a celebration of their resilience and a massive step forward into a future they can finally claim as their own.

All Her Plans, the third album from Melbourne, Australia's Cable Ties, finds the trio of Jenny McKechnie, Shauna Boyle, and Nick Brown at their punchiest and most assured. The ferocious, kraut-influenced blend of post-punk and garage rock of Merge debut Far Enough remains, but McKechnie's lyrics invite the listener closer than ever before. The urgency and fury that have marked Cable Ties' output thus far is more nuanced on All Her Plans.

The unfettered rage of their calls to action endures tackling subjects like broken mental healthcare systems and the burden of familial care that is largely placed on women…while holding space for gratitude, love, and acceptance. All Her Plans is a breakthrough moment for Cable Ties. It is the sound of a group that is exhilarated to be making music together again, both a celebration of their resilience and a massive step forward into a future they can finally claim as their own.

Balearia series stunning with a more groove-driven tracks made for the dancefloor. Starting with four new dancefloor tracks, a combination of 90s underground energy with modern grooves, a summer feelings the sea spoils you just like good wine and lots of sun... Includes Ricky Montanari remix

While Duster went into hibernation in the year 2000, Clay Parton's four-track never stopped rolling. Recorded alone at home over several years, Birds In The Ground is an album of 30-something, post-9/11 malaise. Under his Eiafuawn (Everything Is All Fucked Up And What Not) acronym, Parton hides beneath layers of fuzzy and clean guitars, his hesitant, cottony vocal disappear into noise. This deluxe pressing is packaged in a gorgeous tip on sleeve and includes the complete lyrics for this cryptic entry of the Dusterverse.

Bunny White Vinyl! While Duster went into hibernation in the year 2000, Clay Parton's four-track never stopped rolling. Recorded alone at home over several years, Birds In The Ground is an album of 30-something, post-9/11 malaise. Under his Eiafuawn (Everything Is All Fucked Up And What Not) acronym, Parton hides beneath layers of fuzzy and clean guitars, his hesitant, cottony vocal disappear into noise. This deluxe pressing is packaged in a gorgeous tip on sleeve and includes the complete lyrics for this cryptic entry of the Dusterverse.

Straight from brittany, the Floorfillers (thomas & matteo) have devoted a cult since their earliest childhood to Crydamoure, Roulé, DJ Sneak, Paul Johnson and all the 90s french touch.

Recent favorite of skylax records, they are for us more the turbulent little brothers of Daft Punk & Mr Oizo, their sound is incredibly rudimentary and at the same time so close to the ideals of house music which have disappeared from radar screens for at least the last 5 years (thanks to these IG's DJs a$$holes), they are the next generation, they are the hope.

All may not be dead. Their 12 inch is and will be a deflagration on the dancefloors. A must.

It is undeniable that Billie Holiday's singing changed in her later years. Her voice darkened and shifted to a lower range. Her economy of expression distilled her sound to its essence — a kind of heightened speech. The classic LP Songs for Distingué Lovers — her best work of the 1950’s — has also deepened and become burnished with time. Verve’s Acoustic Sounds Series features transfers from analog tapes and remastered 180-gram vinyl in deluxe gatefold packaging

Latincore is a musical journey that begins with this compilation. latincore is a virtual club. latincore is an attempt to reflect with artists whose origins share the same soil.

This compilation brings together 14 sound propositions, offering a snapshot of a latinx, political, migrant and diasporic underground scene. Curated by Marion Stucky Callañaupa and Juan José Moreno Izquierdo.

Nachdem er zunächst als Frontmann von Lloyd Cole & The Commotions und später solo insgesamt sechzehn Alben veröffentlicht hat, erforscht Lloyd Cole nun, was es bedeutet, ein Singer-Songwriter im 21. Jahrhundert zu sein. Mit einer unersättlichen Neugier zeigt Cole auf "On Pain" eine ausgefeilte Sparsamkeit und verstärkt diese durch suggestiven Einsatz analoger Synthesizer-Sounds. Diese Songs
blinken und flackern wie Neonlichter im Halbdunkel: stimmungsvoll, melodisch, nachdenklich, offenherzig – das ist Lloyd Cole in seiner besten Form.

Fabrizio Lapiana returns to his Attic Music label for more well-crafted techno trips, signing his third EP of the year, this time with a remix from renowned sonic sculptor Donato Dozzy.

The Stoned Immaculate is the sixth studio album by American hip hop recording artist Curren$y. It was his major label debut, which was received well and remains his highest charting album to date. It debuted at #8 on the US Billboard 200 and #2 on the Rap/Hip Hop Album charts and features the singles "What It Look Like" and "Jet Life" with guests Big K.R.I.T. and Wiz Khalifa. The album features many more guest appearances, including Pharrell, Estelle, 2 Chainz, Marsha Ambrosius, Daz Dillinger, Corner Boy P, Young Roddy, and Smoke DZA amongst others.

Monkey is the second single by The Rellies since releasing 'Isabella is Annoying/ Brainwaves' in 2020. Ryan, guitarist and dual singer and songwriter for the band describes the making of 'Monkey' during lockdown with his brother Riley. "During covid we got very bored. Originally, we wanted to get our Monkeys and run them over with our dad's car, but we settled for filming them falling down the stairs and writing a song about it. When the other members of band finally heard the song, they liked the Monkey and then we made a clip with our friends and some TV monkeys. Everyone sang 'I like the Monkey' and soon everyone liked the Monkey!" Helicopter is Ryan's sonic representation of "hunks of steel flying through the sky. I'm an aviation nerd." He doesn't disappoint. Helicopter's opening riff is catchy and travels. Ryan's vocal powers through the song and the background vocals from kid brother Riley kicks it up a notch as he improvises his way through the chorus begging for a ride. The Rellies ages range from 13-16 and developed at Kings Cross Conservatorium. The brothers began writing and recording at age 9 and 11 respectively and doing shows as The Rellies in 2018 with Jarlath Kiernan on drums. In 2021, the band replaced guitarist Aiden Burke with Lachlan Knight when Aiden decided rehearsal was too loud. Ryan: "We love the Beatles but lately we've got more of a punk energy in our songs. Also, Riley likes a lot of different stuff like Tyler the Creator... his lyrics are inspiring us to be creative with humour."

The ever-prolific and established artist Alan Abrahams aka Portable makes a swift and very welcome return to Circus Company with the impressive lead single "Guiding Me", giving us an early taste of his forthcoming album Augmented Dreams to be released in the fall.

Conceptually the direction of this new project refers to the use of technology to alter our dreams, inadvertently or not, as so much tech advancement becomes available and ingrained in our daily lives. The timely lead single here inspired by Abraham's South African ancestors the Khoi San people and the guidance they provide, appropriately exuding both futurist formed sonics and dream-like tenderness in content, led by his dulcet-toned vocals and delivered with the super solid production we've come to expect. Wonderful multi-purpose electronic music which will find itself right at home on late-night discerning dance floors, or indeed guiding the listener through their respective travels, solo meditations or get-downs in headphones.

Along with the excellent "Guiding Me" original mix, we are graced with a masterful remix by Hamburg's Lawrence of Smallville and Dial fame, who takes the track into an even more floor-focussed realm with his patented rolling sub-bass lines which will guarantee plenty of summertime sound system finessing, as well as the EP-exclusive B2 track "Vigor" in which Portable goes even deeper in tone with classic styled vocal cut-ups and repurposed shards of tasty sound design added to keep the dancers endlessly entranced when and wherever they may be.

In August 2020, following some typical delays at the plant, Fourth Dimension Records released the limited edition 2LP (and now sold out) set of Kleistwahr's This World Is Not My Home and Over Your Heads Forever albums, originally released by the same label in 2014 and 2016 respectively. Packaged together in a single sleeve with printed inners reproducing all the artwork found on the original CDs, the 2LP was always designed to represent the first volume in a series of them. This next volume gathers everything on the next two albums, Down But Defiant Yet and Acceptance is Not Respect, both also initially released on CD in, respectively, 2017 and 2018, and presented in the exact same way. 2017's long sold out at source album, Down But Defiant Yet, collects four lengthy cuts which catch Gary Mundy (also known for Ramleh, Breathless and Broken Flag Records) furrowing his distinct and recognisable take on a kinda contemporary psychedelia with dystopian leanings. Each piece nods towards the fug generated by certain ‘krautrock’ groups whilst retaining threads of those uncompromising power-noise surges he built his reputation on, this is music guaranteed to take you to new spaces before forcing you to nervously look over your shoulder. 2018's Acceptance is Not Respect collects two lengthy pieces themselves broken down into seven parts often tempered to the point restraint assumes new, often disturbed (and disturbing) psychedelic or even filmic, properties, this music arrives like a spitting and foaming scream into the insanity of the void and the myriad challenges and questions it inexorably keeps hurling at us. Whereas Ramleh captures the sound of at least two people dealing as best they know how with the constantly rising rivers of shit around us, Kleistwahr is akin to one man having scaled a great height poking out of an infinite chasm and wondering why he bothered. This is uneasy listening sometimes renderedvirtually elegiac by dint of a prowess rarely found in such realms. Of this, Gary himself quite prophetically, in light of how events have shaped the world since said, “I was trying to make the music more spiritual sounding this time as the album is about belief. The first half is about personal and political belief and the second half about religious belief. I was wondering about whether in the 21st Century, you can seriously get anyone to completely change their beliefs and [am] asking is there anything you believe that you would be willing to die for, and the difference between the way that most beliefs have been accepted/tolerated and [are] supposedly respected in recent times in [the UK]. Now our society is starting to break down, it becomes clear that that acceptance tends not to actually be the same thing as respect at all.”

Next up is an overdue reunion with a familiar face. After his outstanding contribution to Cocoon Compilation S and his first solo EP on Cocoon Recordings, Raxon is back with a more than equally fascinating sound. The Egyptian-born and now Barcelona-based artist is back on it again, delivering two tracks that will take you on a journey through the depths of robotic soundscapes.
Intricate beats, hypnotic synthesizer melodies, deep bassline grooves, and distinctive EFX sounds create Raxon’s very special signature sound.

Straight drum programming paired with chirping percussions takes us away to embark on a travel through space and time while distinctive claps poke through a futuristic nebula of floating and shifting sequences. The twisted melody of “Robotalia” carries us to a parallel dimension of machine sound and if you listen closely, you can hear the robots’ screwing and sawing. Warping bleeps and mechanical effects complete the robotic feeling. Raxon’s understanding of structures and architectural abilities are reflected through the arrangement, slowly increasing to ecstasy.

“Kryptonite” scores with alien soundscapes. Stuttering vocals are the questions, while futuristic and dramatic chord stabs are the direct answer. A straight, radiant sound appears as an electronic trombone from outer space, offensively supporting the driving bassline. The symbiotic interplay between the euphoric synthesizer hook line and the relentless beat with pushing sharp hi-hats visualize powerful images in one's mind's eye. Suddenly the beat stagnates and results in a morphing break going head over heels developing a start-stop pitch effect that not only builds up tremendous tension but also bears an increased risk of melting your brain. We just love tape delay!

Persekutor 'Snow Business' is pure black 'n roll heavy metal majesty. Conceived in a forgotten corner of Eastern Europe, PERSEKUTOR channel the tradition of early black metal champions like Venom, Celtic Frost and Bathory through the unflinching hard rock efficiency of AC/DC into their own infectious strain of Carpathian heaviness. No album ever demanded to be launched back through time and inserted as score into Escape from New York or The Warriors more convincingly than Snow Business. Bask in its glory or flee for your pathetic life. First album 'Permanent Winter' was on tastemaker label Svart Records! Limited to 300 copies ww, pressed on dark blue and permafrost yellow swirled/color merge vinyl!

Cory Hanson"s third solo LP follows upon 2020"s luminescent Pale Horse Rider, upping the heat to molten levels, six strings at a time. In search of further adventures, Cory draws with vampiric glee from the madness coursing through the world outside; a spiraling shitshow that"s reawakened a compulsion in him - an old ambition, even! - to crush brutality and elegance together into a fresh set of rocks to hail down upon us. Western Cum is a high-stepping, hard-dancing, first love/heartbreak, tonight"s-the-night, future nostalgia kind of good time - the sound of guitars through the speakers of luxury cars. Like the dream you had once, alone, asleep in an amplifier, blasting Guns N" Roses through every last orifice in your body. And it"s coming through! Western Cum"s map to the treasure is less about pastiche, though; more toward executing the songs by executioner"s axe, rolling their decapitated rhythm heads and soaring melodies, the panoply of Cory"s melodic impulses with guitars, guitars, guitars. Harmony leads are just the tip of the iceberg, but be quick - the guitars like to melt everything in their path! The eight songs of Western Cum are driven by the stalwart bass of brother Casey Hanson and the drums of Evan Backer with a few passing acoustics from Cory and the intermittent spirit-moans of Tyler Nuffer"s steel guitar. The quartet sound - two guitars, bass and drums - acts as beat-making principle/phrasing device, as well as template for Cory"s layers of six-string and vocal textures. From the rooftop of their musical safe house - the band in their makeshift hut and Cory ensconced in an outhouse - they let loose with a blast both face-melting and mind-blowing: a social service that gives constipation a good name.

Freut euch auf teilweise noch schnellere Songs, aber auch eingehendere, experimentellere sowie düstere Elemente, alles zusammengefügt im Rahmen einer breiten Mischung aus Speed und Thrash Metal, Hardcore und Punk.

180g double LPs, 45 RPM. Hot off the back of this year's critically-acclaimed new album 'New York City', Brooklyn punk institution The Men are back already with a Fuzz Club Session album due out digitally and on limited double LP vinyl June 23rd. Recorded live to tape at Brooklyn's Serious Business Studio by Travis Harrison, the live session sees the Men storm through three tracks from 'New York City', one from 'Devil Music', a cover of English punk band Blitz and nine-brand new tracks that have never seen the light of the day until now, ranging from blistering noise-rock and cathartic rock'n'roll to lo-fi country-rock and hypnotising drones. This is the 20th release in the Fuzz Club Session series from London-based label Fuzz Club, which has previously hosted the likes of A Place To Bury Strangers, Night Beats, Holy Wave, The Entrance Band and more.

Florida Guilt, Bay Faction's second and final LP, saw the band expand their sound while maintaining a core of relatability and 20-something angst. The album blends the indie/emo guitar-based sound and hard hitting hooks of their cult classic debut with a slightly more minimalist approach and electronic elements. Long out of print, Counter Intuitive Records is once again teaming up with Bay Faction (their debut LP launched the label in 2015) to bring Florida Guilt back to vinyl alongside the first LP.

Twenty-five years later, Little Plastic Castle feels like a greatest hits collection. Her highest charting release on Billboard (peaking at #22) and containing her third Grammy nomination for Best Rock Performance - Female (“Glass House”), Ani DiFranco’s ninth studio album shows the Little Folksinger grappling with her independent career bubbling up into the mainstream — dissection of her fashion choices, a new expanded listenership encroaching on the die-hards, examination of what it means to sell out — encapsulated in singalongs so indelible that they’re staples of her live set decades later. This 25th Anniversary Edition sees a new remaster by Heba Kadry, the addition of three bonus tracks mixed by Tchad Blake, and a new CD package and first-time release on vinyl (2 LP). To make Little Plastic Castle, Ani returned to one of her favorite places to record in that era—the live-in studio the Congress House in Austin, Texas. In this relaxed setting she commented, "This album seemed to happen more organically than earlier studio releases." Ani is joined by drummer Andy Stochansky and bassist Jason Mercer who played with her on her 1997 tours, as well as bassist Sara Lee who toured with Ani in 1996. LPC also prominently features outside musicians including drummer Jerry Marotta (Peter Gabriel, Indigo Girls), a horn section composed of three Austin session musicians who add flavor to "Little Plastic Castle" and "Deep Dish," and trumpeter Jon Hassell (Brian Eno, Talking Heads) providing the sustained subtle solo on the 14-minute final track "Pulse." The three bonus tracks are recordings of Ani playing with the rhythm section of Sara Lee and Jerry Marotta, a trio that never reassembled after their single day of tracking. Though Ani described it as “the most light-hearted album I’ve made in a long time,” this record covers a wide range of topics — the impermanence of existence ("Fuel"), mutual respect ("Pixie"), forgiveness ("As Is"), drugs (“Two Little Girls”) — and emotions.

Twenty-five years later, Little Plastic Castle feels like a greatest hits collection. Her highest charting release on Billboard (peaking at #22) and containing her third Grammy nomination for Best Rock Performance - Female (“Glass House”), Ani DiFranco’s ninth studio album shows the Little Folksinger grappling with her independent career bubbling up into the mainstream — dissection of her fashion choices, a new expanded listenership encroaching on the die-hards, examination of what it means to sell out — encapsulated in singalongs so indelible that they’re staples of her live set decades later. This 25th Anniversary Edition sees a new remaster by Heba Kadry, the addition of three bonus tracks mixed by Tchad Blake, and a new CD package and first-time release on vinyl (2 LP). To make Little Plastic Castle, Ani returned to one of her favorite places to record in that era—the live-in studio the Congress House in Austin, Texas. In this relaxed setting she commented, "This album seemed to happen more organically than earlier studio releases." Ani is joined by drummer Andy Stochansky and bassist Jason Mercer who played with her on her 1997 tours, as well as bassist Sara Lee who toured with Ani in 1996. LPC also prominently features outside musicians including drummer Jerry Marotta (Peter Gabriel, Indigo Girls), a horn section composed of three Austin session musicians who add flavor to "Little Plastic Castle" and "Deep Dish," and trumpeter Jon Hassell (Brian Eno, Talking Heads) providing the sustained subtle solo on the 14-minute final track "Pulse." The three bonus tracks are recordings of Ani playing with the rhythm section of Sara Lee and Jerry Marotta, a trio that never reassembled after their single day of tracking. Though Ani described it as “the most light-hearted album I’ve made in a long time,” this record covers a wide range of topics — the impermanence of existence ("Fuel"), mutual respect ("Pixie"), forgiveness ("As Is"), drugs (“Two Little Girls”) — and emotions.

JAG PANZER not only are one of the most important US Heavy Metal bands, but also one of the first ones. The band was formed in 1981 in Colorado, and released their debut album entitled "Ample Destruction" just 3 years later, in 1984.

Today, almost 40 years later, the album – which already presented the band’s very own and unique style - is known as one of the pillars of American Heavy Metal, and is often referred to as the trailblazer of the Power Metal scene. In the last few decades the Heavy Metal scene was going through ups and downs, and so was the band’s career.

Nevertheless, JAG PANZER managed to release 10 more studio albums, and earned the status of an absolute legend of the genre. Yes, they are being called legends, they are being called veterans – but it absolutely doesn’t mean that the band sounds outdated. Exactly the opposite applies:

Their new concept studio album entitled "The Hallowed" of course includes all trademarks and sounds like a classic JAG PANZER album. But it also includes an impressive dose of energy and high-octane in-your-face attitude that will please both old school die-hard fans and young enthusiasts of the genre alike!