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R&S present the eponymous, debut, full length album transmission from Lost Souls Of Saturn.
Epic in scope, time and space, this multidimensional mind trip is for fans of Mark Leckey's 'Fiorucci Made Me Hardcore', David Morales' Red Zone dubs, Don Cherry's 'Organic Music Society', The Orb's 'Ultraworld' and KLF's 'Space' and much more besides.
This ambient house masterpiece combines flavours gathered from across the galaxy, stewing them up into a delicious primordial soup. Old sci-fi soundtracks, acid, free jazz, avant garde, musique concrete, world music and more all whirl around an underground-dance-music axis.
Primarily LSOS are Seth Troxler and Phil Moffa, plus further opaque participants congregating to combine music, imagery, and storytelling into an inextricably linked whole, all wrapped-up in a philosophy of their own making.

Will Saul is a key figure in UK dance music. Approaching his twentieth anniversary as a DJ, producer and label founder, Saul has helped break the career of key artists such as Leon Vynehall, Midland and Dusky via his Aus Music label, has himself played some of the world’s finest nightclubs and contributed to !K7’s storied ‘DJ Kicks’ mix series, which he also curates.

Finally returning to the production fold himself with his first full-length album in thirteen years, ‘Open Too Close’ is a condensed trip through the influences, discovery and sense of history that have helped shape his career and drive a forward-facing, unblinking passion for new music. The record’s concept reflects Will’s enormous skill and knowledge as a DJ, and as it’s title suggests, “"represents what I play in a club if an 8 hour set was condensed into 10 tracks.”

Having held residencies and made regular appearances at some of the world’s finest clubs including The End and Fabric in London, Panorama Bar in Berlin, Trouw in Amsterdam and Robert Johnson in Offenbach, Saul is uniquely qualified but this refreshingly straightforward approach. Eschewing the lingering, almost cliched expectations for a dance artist to create an album “that sounds good at home, as well as in the club”, ‘Open Too Close’ instead draws on the timeless futurism at the heart of the music that drew Saul into electronic music culture. Simply put, futuristic, melancholic sci-fi soundscapes meets stripped back raw sample driven house music, all executed with the precision and panache of an artist who truly understands how to move a dancefloor.

It seems KPM have long been fans of Smith and Mudd and, after being introduced to each other by mutual friend Andy Allday, the peerless Balearic maestros were invited to contribute to the library label’s digital-only “Album Shorts” project. The results are predictably wonderful.

With past projects under our belt working with everyone involved so far it made perfect sense for Be With to take on the vinyl release of this instant library classic. But why is it called “Tea With Holger”?

“Holger” is of course Holger Czukay and the whole LP is dedicated to Smith and Mudd’s time spent with him and Ursa Major at Can’s famous Inner Space Studio in Weilerswist, near Cologne.

When not recording it seems they spent a great deal of time sat around being entertained by Holger’s stories and drinking many cups of different sorts of tea from all over the world. These moments provide some their fondest memories of their visits:

“Looking back, it was pretty incredible that we spent part of our lives with Holger in one of the most magical places we’ve ever known, Inner Space Studio. We have our memories and, of course, the Bison album we made with him. But to honour the time we spent with him, we wanted to dedicate an album to him called ‘Tea With Holger’. The names of the tracks are about that time.”

The album was recorded over several years in London, Margate and Gorthleck, a small hamlet in the Scottish Highlands. Mike Piggott, who played with Bert Jansch, handled the strings and played violin whilst Sam Creer lent his virtuoso cello work to the proceedings. The sessions employed a key recording technique from their time with Holger: hit record and play. They wanted to capture magical improvisational moments live and not do the work later on in editing.

In their own words (and in classic library record sleeve style) these tracks are collectively described as “Balearic themes including breezy soul, sun-dappled melodies, warm pianos and sweeping strings”. You want to hear this, right?

The album is vintage Smith and Mudd. The gentle piano ushering in opening track “The Gardener” is soon joined by low, bubbling drums. When the time is just right, lush guitars glisten above a Welsh language vocal that floats like silk. Easy as a sea breeze. “Innerspace” is of course a nod to Can’s aforementioned studio. Dark, heavy piano meets rolling drums before warm chords and luscious strings take over, gliding over moody grooves to drive you home. Closing out side A, “Weilerswist” delivers more beautifully rolling piano and guitars over thumping cellos and building drums.

Side B opens with the full, string-enhanced version of “Away From Me”. This is Smith and Mudd’s prefered version and it’s only available here on this vinyl issue. For us it’s the standout on this all-highlight album. Tribal tones, piano and cello set a melodic staccato for violin to soar over while rolling piano lines and gospel organ chords descend into a drum drop that leads to a glorious vocal lead finale.

Distant synths introduce sun-drenched guitars and uplifting strings in “Kölner Street”, before a spacey Moog solo leads to a spellbinding, sci-fi drop. The sunshine returns before the track ends. The album closes with “Tea With Holger”. Airy vocal swells are punctuated by plucked cellos and picked guitars, all wonderfully warmed by a soulful piano.

Cut by Pete Norman and pressed in the Netherlands by Record Industry, “Tea With Holger” comes in a classic KPM green sleeve complete with track descriptions from Smith and Mudd themselves. The finishing visual touches come courtesy of Richard Robinson. We’ve given this record the same care and attention as we give to each our KPM re-issues, and it’s just as essential.

Speedcore nonstop kicker... Clean sound and dirtu beats !

Sometimes you know it’s coming, sometimes it’s unexpected, but the time to hang your boots will always come. It’s better when you have total control, even better if you end up on a high (or on a low). After seven years of sonic interferences, calibrating the soundscape of field recordings and helping to recreate the old sounds of today, Gonzo is retiring from music. It’s a goodbye, yeah, and a well-crafted one.
But “Ruído(s)” doesn’t sound like an intentional one. You won’t listen to it on any of the thirteen tracks that scavenge for a solution in the space between ambient music and field recordings. You won’t feel it in the intense connection between human and natural sounds and how sometimes everything oscillates in opposite states of mind. You won’t even read it in the intense, but subtle, humor present in some of the pieces. You won’t, because it’s not an intentional goodbye. You only know it is, because you’re reading this.
What is it then? It’s a celebration of random sound. How can you experience something scholastic and, simultaneously, deeply hilarious? Just think about the amazing triad formed by “A Fuga dos Grilos”, “Degredado(s)” and “Cantiga Parva”. First, you’re blessed with six minutes that build up on the idea that sound can be an intense religious experience, echoes going back and forth to create a fantastic Boiler Room feeling (one populated with raving Gonzos doing dabs in front of the camera) that eventually ends up with a cinematic touch: someone saying the title of the song out loud. One second after we are into the Flying Lizards world, with two songs that shake any pretentious seriousness of the previous track.
Is it serious or not? It is. But it doesn’t have to be. In “Ruído(s)” Gonzo recounts pop/electronic history through field recordings and weird-soft beats. More than compiling his seven-year history, Gonzo is more worried to understand where he’s leaving his ideas, Caretaker style. Speaking of Caretaker, Leyland Kirby should think about reviving Caretaker and do a whole album around “Brilhante Cortejo”: it’s haunted ballroom in a ‘cracked’ nutshell.
As the album progresses and the need to revisit it grows, it becomes clearer(?) that “Ruído(s)” is more than an artist self-indulging on his work – in a very good manner. It’s also a condensed catalog of Portuguese music and its sounds, a circular trip down the memory lane of a forgotten country and its landscape. “Ruído(s)” is a goodbye to a country and its traditions. It does it without sulking but with the most respectful loud laugh - the Gonzo way.

Comic book artist, graphic designer and free jazz improviser are only some of the many talents from Beirut born Mazen Kerbaj. After appearing as part of various ensembles on the label, Ariha Brass Quartet (CREP46) and Johnny Kafta Anti-Vegetarian Orchestra (CREP22), Kerbaj finally lands a solo outfit of his own onto the Discrepant dancefloor of insubordination.

14 years after his first (and only) solo album "Brt Vrt Zrt Krt" (Al Maslakh, 2005) Mazen returns with a series of subtle compositions of his own with not one but two(!) solo albums of prepared trumpet that further cement his international position as a serial trumpet botherer.

Whilst Vol. 2.1 showcases his (almost) (un)familiar arsenal of squawks, cackles, howls and squeals, Vol. 2.2 goes deep into the nether regions of waltzing drones and bell tweaks so deep that would make most cetaceans loose their concentration. The notion of being transported to a luring mutant underwater alien community is still present on these long(er) trips with the added meditative pieces being occasionally pierced by noise creepers, nothing is what you want or expect and that’s the way it should be.

If Vol. 2.1 is the classic follow up LP, this one is the beast from the deep, it comes surging and screeching from a deep oceanic sink hole, only to hypnotize you with perverted dance moves before diving back into the sinking, wettest and darkest cave in the world. Vol. 2.2 is a summons album; it shatters any bar there was with its intentional use of everything Vol. 2.1 was denied. It grabs you by wherever available way and it only releases you when you’re ready to listen to it again. Listen to both albums back to back, in no particular order and you’ll know that there’s nothing you can do but come back to it like a doped up seal stranded in a phantom island – appearing and disappearing as the music dictates it to.

180g Gatefold Double Vinyl with poster, sticker & badge

It was at the tale end of what would later be loosely termed ‘The Seventies’, in Lincoln, Merry England, that three teenagers formed, the consequencies of ther actions are captured here.
“You Were So Young” consists of everything that The Cigarettes ever recorded in what was their two year life span. From the very beginnings in the rehearsal room through to tracks recorded for an unreleased third single. It includes the two singles and their ip sides, some tracks that were included on a local compilation album, and their solitary John Peel session along with a handful that never found their way onto a record.
Their debut single ‘They’re Back Again, Here They Come’ , exchanges hands from upwards of £100 and ‘You Were So Young’ has been viewed on Youtube over 1.3m times.
The CD booklet and vinyl inner sleeves include an in depth interview with Rob and Steve, answering pretty much all there is to know about The Cigarettes
Over the years The Cigarettes have gained a wealth of interest, leaving many to scratch their heads and wonder how they slipped under the radar for so long.

Will Saul is a key figure in UK dance music. Approaching his twentieth anniversary as a DJ, producer and label founder, Saul has helped break the career of key artists such as Leon Vynehall, Midland and Dusky via his Aus Music label, has himself played some of the world’s finest nightclubs and contributed to !K7’s storied ‘DJ Kicks’ mix series, which he also curates. Finally returning to the production fold himself with his first full-length album in thirteen years, ‘Open Too Close’ is a condensed trip through the influences, discovery and sense of history that have helped shape his career and drive a forward-facing, unblinking passion for new music. The record’s concept reflects Will’s enormous skill and knowledge as a DJ, and as it’s title suggests, “"represents what I play in a club if an 8 hour set was condensed into 10 tracks.” Having held residencies and made regular appearances at some of the world’s finest clubs including The End and Fabric in London, Panorama Bar in Berlin, Trouw in Amsterdam and Robert Johnson in Offenbach, Saul is uniquely qualified but this refreshingly straightforward approach. Eschewing the lingering, almost cliched expectations for a dance artist to create an album “that sounds good at home, as well as in the club”, ‘Open Too Close’ instead draws on the timeless futurism at the heart of the music that drew Saul into electronic music culture. Simply put, futuristic, melancholic sci-fi soundscapes meets stripped back raw sample driven house music, all executed with the precision and panache of an artist who truly understands how to move a dancefloor.

FILE UNDER: jazz, modal jazz, spiritual jazz
- 2xLP gatefold- 180g pressing- free download card

With 20 years passing since his first foray into recorded jazz, Nat Birchall now ranks as one of the premier saxophonists of his generation. With several highly acclaimed albums in the locker, he now returns with his most ambitious project yet – a tribute to the legend that is Yusef Lateef.

"The Storyteller - A Musical Tribute to Yusef Lateef"

"When Jazzman Gerald first mentioned to me the idea of doing an album as a tribute to the jazz giant Dr Yusef A. Lateef, my first thought was "Where on earth do I start?" Lateef was such a colossus of music, and his scope so broad, that I couldn't hope to begin to cover his musical universe. He was a master of the tenor saxophone, a master of the flute, a master ballad player, a master blues player. Not to mention his skills as a composer and arranger and of course his exploration and use of musical methodology and instruments from all over the world."

"I've always been a great admirer of Lateef, and the challenge was intriguing, so I decided to give it go. We interpreted some of his own compositions (Brother John, Morning & Ching Miau) as well as some compositions by others that he made his own by careful arrangement and interpretation (Love Theme from Spartacus, Ringo Oiwake). I also wrote some original songs that, while certainly not written in his style, might be said to fall into his very broad approach to music making."

"I also wanted to utilise as many different instruments as possible, something I hadn't explored too much until this album. So it was a nice opportunity to finally get around to playing some of the many small instruments I've collected over the years; the Turkish zurna, the mbira from Zimbabwe, the balaphon from Mali and the arghul from Egypt. We have also tried to use varied time signatures in the music, so we have songs in 3/4, 5/4 and 7/4 time, as well as the standard 4/4."

"Ultimately the best music tells a story to the listener and takes them to places they might not have imagined themselves. Yusef Lateef certainly did that, and as such was a master storyteller."

Nat Birchall

Few albums have treated human voice and drone as a whole entity like ABoneCroneDrone, the third in a trilogy for Real World Records that this record closed back in 1996. In Sheila Chandra’s own words “it was about the gateways between vocal techniques from different cultures and how it was possible to cross between them within a single word or phrase.”

Indipop Recordings founder Steve Coe, probably best known for helping to popularise the term World Music in the early eighties, produced and worked with extreme accuracy along with Chandra on all drones and set a new industry standard of what was possible in the treatment of voice. With the help of bagpipes, didgeridoos and guitars, ABoneCroneDrone puts drones under the microscope and encourages listeners to retrain their ears to hear the nuances that musicians have always heard in them. Emitting low, chantlike waves, Chandra sings deep spaced atonal words while haunting chord sounds flow and drones slowly interact with listener.

This is the first vinyl pressing. It includes a fold-out insert with a new Sheila Chandra interview, original sleeve notes edited by Chandra herself and unseen pictures taken from the 1996 sessions. Limited to 500 copies, no digital release this time.

“The artistry of ABoneCroneDrone is in the attention to detail. The album is beautifully performed, mixed and compiled with intelligence and strong sense of structure. It makes good use of a listener’s valuable time while issuing a challenge to hear in a fresh way.” John L. Walters, The Wire issue 150.

* The one piece of connective tissue throughout the film, besides the subject itself, is the film's score, from Los Angeles electronic minimalist outfit The Acid. Throughout a harrowing parade of images and fleeting moments of whimsy, the droning, pulsating music underneath brings an alternating sense of dread and power.' - Indie Wire
* This is an ambient electronic soundtrack to the award-winning film 'The Bomb'. * Recently The Acid performed live at the Nobel
Peace Prize ceremonies in celebration of ICAN (International Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament) winning the prestigious award this year.
* Confirmed appearance at Sydney Festival in January 2018 with further dates to be announced and further screenings at film festivals across the world.

The visionary singer, songwriter and composer returns to her Havana roots
A sun-baked, vibrant record backed by a killer band of fellow Cubans The new album from Daymé Arocena is a vivid return to her Havana roots. Backed once again by a killer band of fellow Cuban musicians, the visionary singer, composer and songwriter has stripped everything back to the core. Holding sessions in a simple, repurposed artist’s studio in Havana, Daymé produced the record herself, taking the reins to make “Sonocardiogram” her most raw and arresting outing yet.

A jazz-tipped record rooted in the rhythms of rumba, she draws on the island’s intertwined rituals of family, music and religion. Ringing with echoes of the greats, songs nod to the likes of Tito Puente and La Lupe, inspirations which carry the sound of Cuba’s sun-baked, vibrant daily existence. Odes to Santería deities are underscored by the sacred frequencies of the batá drum, translated to be played on a Western drum kit. It’s an intoxicating window into a singular artist’s worldview. An important voice in Latin music, Daymé has collaborated with influential peers in Cuban music, like Roberto Fonseca, and US heavyweights like Dexter Story and Miguel Atwood-Ferguson. From a recent appearance at Primavera Festival, to sold out tours across Japan and the US, her spectacular live show continues to draw crowds around the world.

Gilles Aiken is not short of space in which to express his distinctive ideas about fusing dancefloor minimalism with a global palette. While his more streamlined house and techno fare is generally released under his Edward alias, Desert Sky has carried some of his wilder ideas with stunning results. The first few releases came shrouded in mystery on a self-titled label, but since then Desert Sky has landed on Assemble Music and Baby Ford's iconic PAL SL. Aiken returns to the latter now with a hefty album project that gives Desert Sky the appropriate room to breathe, and Aiken sounds free spirited and expressive through every inch of tumbling percussion, deft handclaps, spooked out textures and more besides. It's a heady trip through dusty samples configured in fresh, invigorating ways, ranking among the strongest artistic statements Aiken has made to date thanks to its worldly inspiration and otherworldly end results.

Ever since their debut 7” landed on our doorstep unannounced, we have been captivated by the powerfully understated movements of the duo known as Undefined. Sahara (keys/bass/programming) and Ohkuma (drums) have deep roots in the Japanese dub and reggae scenes (Heavymanners, Soul Dimension) and operate their own experimental dub label, Newdubhall. Recent collaborations with Kazufumi Kodama (of dub elders Mute Beat), dBridge, and Kabuki are nudging the group further into a spotlight that they richly deserve.

Named for the 3-feel of its colossal groove, “Three” is a locked groove of pure downtempo dubwise, techno in its repetition, hip hop in its tempo and swagger, motorik in its muscularity, meditative in its clarity. Featuring the unmistakable voice of ZamFam Rider Shafique, showcased in a moment of profound introspection and vulnerability, “Three" banishes all thoughts of flash-in-the-pan “big tunes” for an incredibly deep and immersive dive.

“Three Dub,” a version in the classic sense, strips out the vocal entirely to focus on the rockstone riddim, crafted of one of the most captivatingly beautiful bass tones we’ve ever heard, combined with wicked drum turnarounds, lightning hi-hat work, and extremely subtle & sophisticated dubbing technique. A masterclass in dubwise essentialism and profound attention to detail, stripped down to the foundation yet incredibly lush and alive.

Strictly limited to 600 copies for the world. No digital, no repress. Design & screen print by Polygon Press. Mastered by Sam Precise.

Should you find yourself taking a Thames-side stroll in the shadow of the City of London, keep an eye out for the headphone-clad figure of Ilan Pdahtzur. While be-suited bankers and frustrated office workers scurry home to their families, Ilan can frequently be found casting admiring glances towards the blinking lights of towering skyscrapers while filling his ears with the synthesizer-driven sounds of lesser-known 1980s dance music.

Ilan, an avid but little-known record collector best known for sharing the artwork of obscure and under-appreciated early-to-mid ’80s club cuts on his popular Instagram feed, has been digging for vibrant, kaleidoscopic records since his teens. Now, thanks to Spacetalk, he’s been given a chance to offer a glimpse into his neon-lit nocturnal musical world.

The result is Night City Life, a killer collection of 1980s synthesizer songs inspired by Ilan’s admiration for the glow of London’s late night skyline. Over the course of 13 essential tunes, Ilan escorts us on a vibrant sprint through rare Italo-disco, steamy South African synth-boogie, fizzing American freestyle, oddball Austrian electrofunk and so much more.

There are naturally a fair few sought-after cuts present, but also a fine selection of under-appreciated gems that for one reason or other have been all but ignored since they were released three and a half decades ago. In fact, some selections are so obscure that barely any information exists about them online.

Check for example Preludio’s “Mysterious Nights”, an evocative fusion of slow electronic grooves, dreamy chords and twinkling piano motifs previously buried on a lesser-known album of unremarkable German synth-pop, or the dollar-bin brilliance of Fragile’s sweet synth-pop gem “We’ve Got Tonight, Boy”, a cut that Ilan says is capable of “wrapping itself like tendrils around your soul”. He’s not wrong.

At the other end of the scale you’ll find the ultra-rare Italo-disco breeziness of Friend of Mine’s incredible “Just Your Pride” and Mac & Monica’s soulful 1986 South African synth-boogie cut “You’re So Good To Me”, copies of which regularly change hands for hundreds of pounds online. Ilan originally reached out to the men behind the record last year to tell them how one of their other forgotten gems had been played on a Boiler Room session; naturally, they were thrilled.

There’s plenty to admire elsewhere on the compilation, too, from the waves of analogue synths, bubbly melodies and bobbing beats of the instrumental dub version of Brian Tatcher’s “Hot Love” – a cold-war era cut inspired by the idea of love blossoming in the midst of a nuclear meltdown – to the Bobby Orlando-esque freestyle bustle of Janelle’s “Don’t Be Shy (Dub)” and the sparkling post-boogie brilliance of Jarmaz’s “Night City Life (Disco Remix)”, a track Ilan has listened to countless times while admiring the midnight skyline of his home city.

Obscure World is a re-issue label focused on 90's electronic music.

Cosmic Galaxy was founded in Rome by djs and producers Massimo Berardi & Luca Cucchetti pioneers of Roman Techno & House underground scene, originally released on Virtual World in the year 1994.

Walkin' on the moon is reworked by DJ GLC newcomer producer and dj of the roman techno & house scene.

Formed in Bradford in 1980, New Model Army's beginnings were inspired by Northern Soul, Punk Rock and the incendiary atmosphere of the times. Since then, they have had a long, creative and eventful journey. They have been massively influential in 'post-punk', 'folkrock', 'political-rock', 'goth', 'metal' and all kinds of musical sub-cultures but they have steadfastly refused to belong to any club or style. Members have changed over the years and musical styles have evolved but at the heart of the band Justin has remained, along with a distinct and sincere belief in the power of music to inspire and effect change on both a personal and political scale, locally and globally. 'From Here' was recorded earlier on the tiny Norwegian island of Giske at the beautiful Ocean Sound Recordings studio and reflects the spectacular isolation of that environment yet has profound messages for the world we all live in and the times we are experiencing. The album was mostly written in just two months and recorded in only nine days and is the follow up on the two hugely acclaimed albums Between Dog And Wolf (2013) and Winter (2016). New Model Army decided to work again with Lee Smith and Jamie Lockhart, with whom they have developed a productive relationship over a few years and who persuaded them to leave a lot of the details of the music to spontaneity. “This album has a feel that is different to our other albums, but it still contains all the elements that characterise our peculiarly unidentifiable music – perhaps even more than ever. And “From Here” was an obvious title. The record belongs to a very special place and a particular time – what is happening in the world, where we are as a band and where we are as people.” Print ads:Vive Le Rock, Classic Rock, Record Collector, Classic Pop). Artist undertaking promotion/interviews/press (Classic Rock, Record Collector, Vive le Rock, Louder than War, Long Live Vinyl). Extensive UK live tour Oct 8th - Dec 21st.

For Fans Of…Aretha Franklin, Betty Davis, Lyn Collins, Sharon Jones, Ann Peebles. Pink vinyl 45 is limited and for Indies only. 1000 copies Barbara Howard's On The Rise is more than just another rare soul LP. It's a love story. It's a dream. It was an attempt to break through. And although Barbara certainly never became a star, one song did become a staple in rare soul and funk DJ sets, keeping interest in Barbara Howard just under the surface. And as fate would have it in 2016, a sealed copy of the LP would find its way into Plaid Room Records in Loveland, OH and kick start the revival of her story and her music. In 1968, as an outgrowth of a community movement and talent search program called "Operation Step-Up", Steven Reece wanted to take his community movement to the next level. This is when the idea of founding an independent label came to mind. The idea was to self-produce quality records and through successful sales attempt to land major label distribution. Steve identified Barbara Howard as the talent and set to producing her record. The idea was to produce an LP with a variety of tracks that could be marketed to a variety of radio formats and markets (gospel, pop, soul, jazz, etc.). And while the record fizzled shortly after its release, Steve and Barbara ended up getting married shortly afterwards making this possibly the most romantic production of a record is soul music history. "I Don't Want Your Love" is the only track they produced that was NOT featured on the LP, so we're proud to get this deep funk banger back into the world at large!

Concentric Circles presents ''For the Moment'', which features tracks from some of Di Stefano's early cassette releases, as well as a number of unheard explorations of Indian polyrhythms from the early 90s. Di Stefano’s prescient and unique work will appeal to fans of Cybe, Joel Graham, UnknownmiX, Zru Vogue, and provides a fascinating view of the 80s US electronic underground.

American-born, Japan-based composer John Di Stefano self-released a number of cassettes as part of the 80s DIY underground on his own imprint Oktron Produktions, including Klang's Drift, a collaboration with Joel Graham.
Living in San Francisco, Di Stefano had access to multiple University electronic music studios, where he had an impressive array of synthesizers at his fingertips, including both Buchla and Serge modular systems. Combining his knowledge of modular synthesis with a background in percussion, his early releases were a uniquely human approach to electroacoustic music, with flourishes of post punk in the mix. Di Stefano developed an interest in world music, studying Indian music theory and tabla, and after an extended trip to Indonesia in the mid 80s, he was particularly drawn to Javanese gamelan music. Future recordings would forever be indebted to the sounds he heard during those travels.

Beacon Sound and Jacktone Records are pleased to announce a limited edition joint vinyl release by Hugo RA Paris titled Threaded Habitat. The new LP from Paris follows two of Jacktone’s most popular releases: Mystique Youth (2015) and Horizons Beneath The Surface (2016), which appeared under his alias, Lavender.

The transition to the Hugo RA Paris moniker with this album marks a more personal shift in approach. Threaded Habitat combines ambient textures and techno rhythms to reflect tension between humanity and nature—particularly the cyclical nature of collapse and renewal. It also marks Jacktone's first collaborative release with the record store and label Beacon Sound, which has put out works from veteran experimental musicians like Terry Riley and Colleen. Beacon Sound is an important node in Portland, where Paris also lives and developed the flagship modular product for leading Eurorack manufacturer 4MS: the SWN.

The album's closing track was entirely composed on a SWN prototype and recorded in one take. In fact, much of his work is done in layers of single takes with minimal processing to preserve its raw emotion and embrace minor imperfections. As an MIT-trained engineer and physicist, working with hardware—from modulars to guitar pedals and tape loops—is essential to his process of not only making but exploring sound.

Threaded Habitat captures moments of claustrophobia and bliss in seven tracks and three accompanying videos directed by New Zealand artist Sam Hamilton. Visual art plays a central role in many of Paris’s projects, which include intricate audio-visual performances and scores for full-length films like The Modern Jungle (La Selva Negra) and its forthcoming follow-up.

The LP will be available to pre-order on July 1st with a limited, exclusive content sample pack. The handmade vinyl package features photography by Sam Hamilton and will be released July 19 through Jacktone and Beacon Sound’s webshops, with worldwide sales beginning August 2nd. A remix release will arrive later in the Fall.

MiguelA.Ruiz is a veteran experimental/electronic musician from Madrid, Spain that has worked under numerous monikers since the early 80s as Técnica Material, Orfeón Gargarín, Codachrom, Dekatron II, Michel Des Airlines,Funeral Souvenir, etc. Some of these projects still active today.

Entering the world of Ruiz is a wonder to the mind and ears, each project yields authentic masterpieces of experimental electronic music. "Climatery" was originally recorded in the summer of 1986 and was published by the Madrid label Proceso Uvegraf and later again by Esplendor's Geométrico label (EGK 017). Its Ethnic Industrial sound of mantric loops and futuristic soundtracks draw similarities to Muslimgauze, O Yuki Conjugate, Cabaret Voltaire, and the avantgarde world rhythms of John Hassell.

"Six long environmental themes with ethnic and exotic touches, within a repetitive minimalism and layers of Korg Polysix synthesizer, combined with loops created with a sampler. Sequenced tribal rhythms, leathery and dragging, remind us of the origins of Techno and Industrial music. To the mix we only need to add the connective tissue of experimentation and the avant-garde, which make each theme acquire its own distinctive body" - La muerta tenía un blog

This is the first time this record is released on vinyl. Remastered by Miguel A.Ruiz and Sountess studio. Limited edition of 300 copies.

On 28th June 2019, drummer / producer / composer Myele Manzanza will release his eagerly anticipated third album 'A Love Requited' on First Word Records (winner of Worldwide Awards 'Label of the Year' 2019).

Produced with award winning Australian bassist & long time musical collaborator Ross McHenry and featuring a plethora of New Zealand and Australia's finest young instrumentalists, 'A Love Requited' is as much a musical journey as it is an attempt to process, work through and come to terms with the life around him.

"The music on this record was written often as a place of psychological refuge from the tensions of an ultimately failed relationship at home, as well as an attempt to come to grips with thought patterns and personal history that caused an often problematic relationship to music itself. Meditating on themes of love, fear, family, anger, death, ego and acceptance has helped create a narrative arc that grounds the album as well as a mode of therapy to begin working through these issues for myself.

'A Love Requited' is easily my most personal work to date and my hope is that beyond the music itself it may be of help to others, if only to say that your not alone in your struggle to make sense of the world".

This album also features the stellar talents of APRA award winning NYC based pianist Matthew Sheens (John Pattitucci, Cecil McBee, Ross McHenry Trio), alto saxophonist Jake Baxendale (Antipodes, The Jac), trumpeter Ben Harrison (Dave Douglas, Horns Of Leroy), trombonist James Macaulay (The Lagerphones, Epic Brass), multi-reedist Jason McMahon (The Shaolin Afronauts), flautist Adam Page (NZSO, John Psathas, Noel Gallagher), guitarist Django Rowe (Wizard Tone Records) as well as additional keyboard contributions by longtime collaborator Mark de Clive-Lowe (Ropeadope Records, Mashibeats), Brenton Foster and Jack Strempel.

Where Manzanza's debut album 'One' presented his ability as a producer / beatmaker, and his sophomore album 'OnePointOne' showcased his live performance and band leader prowess, 'A Love Requited' puts Manzanza's skills as a composer to the fore.

"Over the last few years I've really enjoyed the process of getting away from music software tools and just sitting at a piano with some manuscript paper and a cup of coffee and seeing what comes of it. I'm a very amateur pianist and my music theory knowledge is fairly limited, but in some ways that's an advantage as I'd be starting with a basic barometer of "does this sound good to me?", without too much consideration for formal rules and structure. From there, developing the arrangements to present to musicians forced me to get a better understanding of melody, harmony and orchestration and to really hone in on refining my ideas to a point where I now feel as much satisfaction and confidence putting myself out on the world stage as a composer as I do playing the drums."

'A Love Requited' will be available on vinyl & digital from the 28th June 2019.

“A genius” - Nai Palm
“One of the most incredible live performances I’ve seen” - Gilles Peterson
“He's like a human centipede sewn out of all the greatest musicians from the past 80 years” - Liam Pieper

Emerging from Brisbane’s music-art bohemian West End in 2008, self-taught, prodigious musician Lachlan Mitchell aka Laneous, began his eclectic and colourful journey in music as the leading member of funk band KAFKA, stamping his trademark falsetto croon on an Australian music landscape that wasn’t quite ready for an artist whose standout influence was D’Angelo’s ‘Voodoo’. Word of their talent soon reached UK’s perennial tastemaker Gilles Peterson who featured the band on his compilation, Brownswood Bubblers Four alongside other breakthrough acts at the time, Mayer Hawthorne, Floating Points and Lone. A world-class guitarist, vocalist, composer, visual artist and – significantly - muse, Mitchell’s unique ability to shine, create and inspire across genres was his obvious forte, even then. Regularly sought after to provide features for other bands and cover art for Hiatus Kaiyote albums Tawk Tomahawk and Choose Your Weapon, he worked diligently to support his community. But while Hiatus’ Nai Palm told media Laneous was “a genius” he often credited music and drawings to pseudonyms.

In 2016, after 8 years of humbly dominating the Australian underground art, soul and jazz scene [with ‘mutant-soul/croon punk’ cult group Laneous & The Family Yah, reggae band Kooii and improv-jazz-beat trio, Vulture Street Tape Gang] Mitchell relocated to Melbourne - a move that would instigate and inspire the long-awaited debut solo LANEOUS record that fans and peers had been craving for nearly a decade. Excited to create new music with an artist they’d previously referenced as an inspiration, Paul Bender and Simon Mavin (Hiatus Kaiyote) came on board swiftly, joined by Hudson Whitlock (Cactus Channel) on drums and Donny Stewart (Jazz Party) on vibraphone and flugelhorn - a key element in bringing Mitchell’s vision of an exotica/soul infused album to life. In classic Laneous fashion, the musical references for the record run deep, winding through an eclectic array of artists from Martin Denny, Burt Bacharach and The Beach Boys to Shuggie Otis, Wild Cookie and Wu-Tang.

The debut single Modern Romance was unleashed in October 2018 with a kinky, captivating visual accompaniment that marked the return of the Laneous legacy. After selling out the Melbourne launch of the single, the band was invited to headline Gilles Peterson’s Worldwide FM x Northside Records live Melbourne broadcast, teasing exclusive album cuts and drawing high praise from Peterson, stating it was “..one of the most incredible live performances I’ve seen’.

Out May 10 via Soul Has No Tempo, Mitchell’s MONSTERA DELICIOSA stands as a sublime genre work, peerless in Australia - his magnum opus bears the name that’s backed him from day one:

The Vega Records 5 Pack Vinyl Unreleased Projects have become very sought after pieces amongst vinyl enthusiasts and collectors, thanks to Vinyl Parties and Performances by Louie Vega at Phonica Records in London and Rush Hour Records In Amsterdam (during ADE).

Previously only available as a 5 pack 12" which now commands high prices on discogs and have never available outside of a few select stores worldwide.

Now available as unique 12"s for the first time the fifth part features Sa'd Ali - Asylum (Louie Vega Remix).

Black Truffle is pleased to announce the release of this genuine head-scratcher, the first collaboration between DJ/mixtape-compiler Kayo Makino and underground legend Tori Kudo. Originally created to be played between acts at the launch of Eiko Ishibashi’s acclaimed The Dreams My Bones Dream and then reworked and refined for LP release, the two side-long pieces are sonic environments constructed by Makino for Kudo’s piano to inhabit, or, as the LP’s credits suggest, a cinéma pour l’oreille in which Kudo’s piano plays the starring role. Beginning with a soothing field recording of crickets dramatically punctuated by smashing glass, the first side finds Kudo playing his way repeatedly through one of Satie’s 1897 Pièces froides. Best known to many listeners for his role as leader of the ecstatically shambolic rock unit Maher Shalal Hash Baz, Kudo’s performance of Satie’s whimsical yet haunting melody is alternately halting and fluid, delighting in the hesitations of unstudied technique and the subtle variations between repeated attempts. While the combination of Kudo’s piano and the background of crickets initially suggests a documentary approach to recording – as if the we are simply hearing incidental sounds creeping through an open window – things take an unexpected turn a few minutes in when Kudo’s piano is suddenly doubled. Layering two separate attempts at the same piece of top of each other, Makino’s unorthodox mixing blurs Satie’s original into a fog of stumbling echoes that becomes increasingly dreamlike as the chirping crickets are overtaken by pattering rain, German dialogue and traffic sounds. The second side begins in a similarly inscrutable vein, with snatches of birds and film music providing a gentle backdrop for Kudo’s improvisational variations on a chord progression that, as his performance builds over its twenty-minute duration, somehow begins to suggest the sadly swaggering grandeur of Mick Taylor-era Rolling Stones. Makino accompanies and eventually overwhelms Kudo’s piano with a bizarre layer of digitally processed voice and drums, stretched out into a disorienting haze before suddenly retreating to leave Kudo’s piano accompanied only by a barking dog. Seemingly unrelated to anything else being produced in the world of contemporary music, this is a striking collaboration between two unique musical personalities that bridges the mundane and the surreal, opening up a dream-space both haunted and hospitable.

The 2 songs are remixed by south London-based artist Klein (Hyperdub), and Tokyo-based
experimental hiphop musician Killer Bong (Black Smoker Records)
Mastered by Bunsho Nishikawa, who is known for his works with goat and Tenniscoats,
among others.

The ominous clockwork nursery song “Kazega Fuitara Sayonara” (Goodbye When The
Wind Blows) was originally written by Koichi Yamanoha and released under the name of
Grimm Grimm via Kevin Shields (My Bloody Valentine) and Charlotte Marionneau (Le
Volume Courbe)’s Pickpocket Records / Honest Jons in 2014.
London-based Tokyo-born singer-songwriter experimentalist Koichi Yamanoha has been
operating under the guise of Grimm Grimm since 2013. The project is an outlet for his
fragile, haunted, otherworldly forays into baroque folk, futurist lyricism and electroacoustic
oddities. His debut album, “Hazy Eyes Maybe”, was released by ATP Recordings in 2015. A
track “Last Word Is Mine” from the album was used over the end credits for the Aaron
Brookner / Jim Jarmusch directed documentary film “Uncle Howard” (2016), featuring
William Burroughs. His sophomore album, “Cliffhanger” was released in June 2018.
And currently the 3rd album has been mixed and co-produced by Marta Salogni.

The virtual 3D music video for Klein remix has been directed and edited by London based
film maker Kenichi Iwasa. He filmed the footage in Tottenham using Super 8, 3rd
generation iPhone and 4K Camera, and created the zero zone virtual world with glitchy SFX
work by William Cunningham. Iwasa is also known for his legendary Krautrock Karaoke
night as well as being a sought after collaborator throughout Europe.

‘Autonomy’ is a fiercely independent album and serves as a testimony to the united couple’s instinctive DIY attitude; for 10 years now, everything The Golden Filter has done from, producing, mixing, releasing, to shooting videos and press shots is a sovereign endeavour. Here, the duo finds themselves at a point of fearless positivity and an unbreakable creative synchronicity. This is undoubtedly one of their most focused and ambitious releases so far.

Born out of their own self-contained studio in Peckham, free from external influence, Penelope and Stephen set about on a mission of self-searching and solipsism drawing influence from their love and unity that sternly defies the damage caused by the ever-growing daily trauma of capitalism and politics. Staunchly feminist and optimistically reflecting on the growing human disconnect from reality, ‘Autonomy’ pulls subtly from the gloomier sides of British life and culture, The Golden Filter’s home now for the last four years.

‘Autonomy’ mines dark and experimental electronic tones; simultaneously conjuring dystopian synthscapes, EBM, post-punk, motoric electro and minimal wave. ‘Coercion’ is a mournful new wave cut that places Penelope’s recent brand of “inky dream pop” underpinned by Stephen’s pulsating synths as the perfect soundtrack to the rapture.

Tracks like ‘Autonomy’ and ‘Infinity’ find The Golden Filter in more familiar territory, thrusting post-punk electronics that straddle the gap between Panorama Bar staples and wayward, thought provoking art-pop. ‘Electric Light’ is an updated homage to old-school sounds of Siouxsie and New Order that take on the duo’s message of finding light in the dark and remaining open minded to each other as humans. Album closer ‘All The Queens’ is the most front-facing example of the duo’s political inspirations; imagining a new world, reborn under the rule of divine femininity.

Straight out of one of the UK’s most innovative bass music hotspots, Bristol, two of the scenes fastest rising stars Glume and Phossa join the Subaltern roster with their massive debut split EP.
A - Glume & Phossa - IMHK A collaborative effort from the two talented producers, the EP opener IMHK packs double the punch as well as showing a lot of love for the details. Setting the eerie vibe of the release straight off the bat, IMHK is a surprisingly refreshing track that will light up any dance. Waterfalls of melodies meet hard bass hits, all surrounded by a masterfully-composed, rich-in-details and continuously-evolving drum beat. Get ready to walk into a medieval world of wizards, spells, castles and dragons - Glume and Phossa will be your guides.
B1 - Glume - Shriek Time to enter the dungeon and follow our loyal conductors deep underground. Relentless is the term that comes to mind when indulging in this stone cold, yet somewhat uplifting banger. Glume’s solo piece on the EP delivers pulsating bass waves accentuated by tonal percussion lines, embedded into a horror-movie-like atmosphere.
B2 - Phossa - Deathly Stare It’s Phossa’s time to tell the tale on the third track of the vinyl, showcasing some of his signature style synth lines embedded in an ever-creeping atmosphere. Heavy standing bass walls accompany the trippy cascade of sound, ever enchanting and luring the listener deeper into the maze. Will we find our way out?

Mario Pierro aka Raiders of the Lost ARP (ROTLA) returns to Edizioni Mondo. “Trasmissioni” is his debut LP under this moniker, using fictitious TV show themes as an excuse to create his musically most eclectic record so far. Departing slightly from the Balearic and prog rock influences of the previous “Laguna” EP, in “Trasmissioni” ROTLA covers many territories: opening with the science-celebrating arpeggios of “Progressi della Scienza” (Italian for “advances in science”), to the funky, off-beat grooves of “Telemusic”, then taking a step into a disco during “Nightlife”, before programming his rocket towards eerie nordic drum machines and Hammond organs in “Esterno Neve” and “Effetto Notte”, and many planets more. A welcome edition to the ever expanding Edition Mondo universe and a record you can’t grow tired of. Eco-Friendly green artwork that shows how tiny we all are. Good listening!



The name MONDO has its roots in “MONDO MOVIES", an italian movie genre born in the 60’s. Mondo movies are characterized by documentary-like content that addresses several topics from around the world ("mondo"). The Mondo label has the goal to produce music that is descriptive of concepts, images and environments. Mondo is inspired by library music, a genre frequently used as theme or background music in radio, film and television in that very same period. Production music libraries typically offer a broad range of musical styles and genres describing everything ranging from deserts to war and sports. Library music composers and session performers had no constraint at all. They typically work anonymously, have rarely become known outside their professional circle and they have produced what probably is the most creative music catalogue ever. The Mondo productions start with four releases dedicated to seascapes; scenarios range from sea fauna to poaching, from natural parks to sea dunes.

Repress

Berlin's Monnom Black is back again with the King of The Sewers EP; four cuts of pulsating techno from two of electronic music's most uncompromising young figures, DAX J & UVB. Already well-known for its more fundamentally rugged take on modern electronics, the label's 19th release is another intense transmission deep from the underworld.

The menacing tone of the EP hides the friendship that's developed between these adopted Berliners, two young men who met in the city and discovered a shared passion for raw analogue audio and electronic sounds that marry starkness with depth. Although they began DJing at the same warehouses since 2014, the duo have waited until the right moment to bring together their mutual love of unique mechanised noisescapes and the high-end production values they ve developed over years of experience and experimentation. The King of The Sewers is that record, a gritty soundtrack inspired by forgotten lives beneath eastern-bloc cities.

For Monnom Black this latest release continues a run of unmistakable techno records that challenge the mainstream with a non-conformist philosophy. The label's ethos is to push boundary-testing music by artists who are unafraid to explore a chaotic, divided world in the belief that distinctive music can still create moments of grace and community. This is music for the deepest, darkest parts of the night, breaking beyond the dancefloor and into the liminal spaces where analogue and digital, body and mind meet. The King of The Sewers EP represents another step forward in the development of a record label pressing at the borders of what contemporary techno can be.

Remastered 6 song mini LP​ originally produced in the
mid-80s *very in-demand with funk record collectors and
DJs worldwide. Featuring ​6 upbeat synth-driven, boogie
funk dance tracks​ *first officially licensed vinyl reissue*
Colours of the Rainbow contains the best 6 tracks from two rare South African LPs by recording artist Bibi
the Kid Msomi: 4 tracks from the ​1985 album Searching​, and 2 tracks from the ​1986 LP What Kind of Love
is This?
South African funk music from the 80s​ has recently gained recognition as ​some of the best funk
productions in the world​; yet so many titles remain virtually unknown outside of South Africa, especially
due to the scarcity of the original pressings (due in part to the destruction of any music perceived as
subversive by South African government censors at the time).
The level of musicianship on these recordings is simply world-class. Even ​Paul Simon​ ​was trying to work
with Bibi Msomi​ while recording his Graceland album in South Africa (read more about it in this ​exclusive
interview​).
Combining American and South African funk influences, these 6 upbeat dance tracks feature ​popular
synths and drum machines of the day​. The subversive lyrics and infectious grooves on these recordings
address the political turmoil during the peak Apartheid years in a way that was just subtle enough to slip
under the radar of stringent government music censors. ​Deep messages of freedom and universal
brotherhood are backed by​ some of South Africa's greatest musical talent​, including:
Mac Mathunjwa (​Street Kids, Neville Nash​), Sello Mphatsoane (​Bayete​), ​The Hot Soul Singers​, Cisco the
Champ Mokoena, Blackie Sibisi (​Step Ahead, Brenda & The Big Dudes​), Alistair Coakley (​Hotline, Stimela​),
Ladysmith Black Mambazo​, Jantshi Mayo (​Sipho Mabuse​), Peter Mokoena (​Pure Magic​), Solly Ledwaba
(​Juluka​), Joey Mabe (​Mahlathini and the Mahotella Queens​), Deborah Fraser (​Brenda Fassie​), Zamo
Mbutho, Banzi Kubheka (​Banjo, CJB​), Cyril Mnculwane (​CJB​), and ​Stimela​ ​vocalists​: Marilyn Nokwe, Tu
Nokwe, Hlengiwe Maphumulo, Beaulah Hashe.
Meticulously ​re-mastered with love for maximum impact on the dancefloor​; we hope you enjoy the
songs contained on this spiritual boogie masterpiece.

Following the reissue of ZiadRahbani's "Abu Ali" album, Wewantsounds is pursue its exploration of great Lebanese music with the reissue of "Wahdon," released in 1978 by legendary Middle Eastern diva Fairuz and recorded during the Abu Ali sessions and including the Lebanese dancefloor cult classic “Al Bostah“. 1978 is a turning point for the Lebanese Diva. The 70s had seen her rise as an international star, playing sold out concerts in the US and in Europe, and appearing on national TV in France. She had had a long-lasting artistic collaboration with her husband AssiRahbani and his brother Elias (aka The Rahbani Brothers) who, together, had penned most of the singer's classics. In 1978, Assi who had suffered a brain haemorrhage in 1972 got weaker and the collaboration finally ended (together with their personal relationship). Their 22 year old son Ziad took over Fairuz's musical reins and set to work on their first album together, "Wahdon" ("Alone"), serving as her mother's producer, composer and musicaldirector. Wahdon typifies this key moment in Fairuz's career when she switched from traditional to more modern arrangements. The first side of the album encapsulates the more traditional side of the singer with such mesmerising songs as "Habaitak Ta Neseet Al Naoum" ("I loved you so much i forgot to sleep") or "Ana Indi Haneen" ("I'm Nostalgic"), filled with gorgeous arabic strings and percussion. The Second side though is a whole different affair. Recorded in Athens at the EMI Greece studio at the same time as the Abu Ali sessions, the two long tracksbrings a hipper, contemporary funk and disco feel that has made the album such a collector's item with DJs and diggers around the world. Clocking at almost nine minutes "Al Bostah" ("The Bus") tells the story a woman in love remembering a bus journey with her lover under a scorching heat, enhanced by an hypnotic uptempofunkified disco beat, while "Wahdon" brings a slower and jazzier underlay to Fairuz's superb singing. These tracks shocked some of the diva's fans at the time but they've since passed the test of time and have become highly sought after. Whadon has since become both aclassic Fairuz album and a cult ZiadRahbani production that Wewantsounds isdelighted to bring to a wider audience for the first time.

Special coloured vinyl which is grey on one side and white on the flip, comes in a printed sleeve.

Platform 23 returns with the reissue of songs from Canadian project, Vini Vidi Vici. With just one privately pressed mini-album in 1989 that bridged the gap between the later years of New Wave and the early vestiges of House, the music included in this edited EP highlights a thriving Montreal scene in its heyday.

Vini Vidi Vici was created out of two different music backgrounds. Paul Klopstock was a classical pianist, while Mario Langlois was a DJ, self-taught musician and radio producer, who came together when both worked at the underground arts / club Le Lezard. Starting in 1986 the space mixed painting, drag shows and bands alongside the latest alternative sounds, from Rap to New Beat, Electro to Acid Jazz.

As House and Techno started to filter through, Mario (aka Ave Mario) and the other resident DJs laid the ground of what was to come. From this Paul and Mario collaborated from late 1987 through in to 1988 and created the mini-album, however this EP concentrates on the duo's self penned work.

Recorded at Oliver Sudden Production studio, the A side is made up the raw House of 'Club Stuff" and Native American meets avant percussion of 'Vini Vidi Vici'. Showing a confidence and experimentation beyond their years, the two tracks production and all round hypnotic danceability, highlight why original copies are so prized (and expensive).

The B side follows with two tracks recorded in Mario's home closet studio. Lo-fi to the max and improvised, the no wave / world beat experience of title cut, 'Ou Sommes Nous' and the proto-electro-wave of 'AA HHH' are like something again, a mesmerising fusion and quite unique.

Self pressed, the project ventured to live performance and (sadly unreleased) remix work, before the partners went their separate ways, however this archival document can be seen as their own special conquest.

Bastard Jazz is proud to present the new EP from Vancouver's AstroLogical, also known as one half of production duo Potatohead People. With a long list of collaborations outside of the group ranging from Pomo, Phife Dogg, Illa J and Chin Injeti - Astro's new EP "Private World" resides somewhere in between jazz, soul, ambient and future electronic vibes with it's lush keys, chunky breaks, and deep musicality.

Nate Drobner aka. AstroLogical is a multi-instrumentalist producer/composer based in Vancouver, B.C. Canada.
After releasing a number of solo instrumental hip-hop projects through the net label Jellyfish Recordings in the early 2010's under the AstroLogical alias, he had began focusing his energy on the producer duo Potatohead People; a collaborative project with his old friend Nick Wisdom, eventually getting noticed signed by Brooklyn-based record label Bastard Jazz in 2012 (with the help of Nightmares On Wax). Their 2018 full-length sophomore album 'Nick & Astro's Guide To The Galaxy' was released to great acclaim and led them to be invited to Jazzy Jeff's annual Playlist Retreat alongside such luminaries as Lord Finnese, Young Guru, and Pharaohe Monch.

At the end of last year we quite enjoyed the little spat when Simon Cowell's chosen one, Joe... Something or other had his Christmas number one spot whipped away from under his nose by Rage Against The Machine. Still whilst we enjoyed the sight of the X Factor being given a bloody nose as much as anyone else, there was also an undercurrent of the ridiculous prejudice that ROCK = GOOD & MEANINGFULL whilst POP = CRAP & DISPOSABLE to the whole thing that we found less agreeable.

Here at Hot Pockets we have no truck with such orthodoxy, no, what we need is suite simply better pop music, made with all the passion and spirit of your finest indie troubadour but filtered through the prism of a 3 minute teenage symphony. Listen back to the likes of Roxy Music or Pet Shop Boys and you have music that is as equally up to the task of inspiring as it is of soundtracking a quick fumble on the dancefloor, that is the beauty of great pop music.

Thankfully for those of us that do like smart, clever pop that doesn't come hurtling off a production line but instead is crafted with much love and precision :Kinema: have arrived with their debut release a classic double A-side of pop perfection, Recreation/My Girls.

First up we have Recreation, a slow burning slice of South coast electro-soul inspired by an insatiable thirst for fun and those who would pass judgement on our basic human need for intoxication and ecstatic night time rituals. All in all a bonafide late night disco classic. Flip the virtual release over and you'll find the band's stunning cover version of Animal Collective's My Girls, a live favourite the track has already been the subject of a blogging frenzy when a demo leaked back in December. Finally available the whole world can now enjoy this smooth, autotuned refix of the indie classic.

The new pop revolution starts here

Dub echo, hip-hop lyricism and heavy guitar fuzz are boiled down into a heady, characteristic musical brew.

On “Dreaming Is Dead Now”, multi-talented wonder Skinny Pelembe meditates on grief, heartache, stunted aspirations and fresh possibilities in post-recession Britain. For his debut album, the Johannesburg-born, Doncaster-raised artist weaves together a patchwork of personal and musical touchstones; memories and observations are dreamily laced together, sun-dazzled California folk diced with the murkier corners of the UK dance lineage.

Tipping a hat to West London broken beat as much as My Bloody Valentine, the album was co-produced by Malcolm Catto (of The Heliocentrics, who’s previously worked with Yussef Kamaal, DJ Shadow, and Madlib), who helped to distil down its bounty of ingredients into the record’s distinctive flavour. Tough, tight-programmed rhythms are washed over with fuzzy overtures, and the title track is the product of a studio session with a foundational drum & bass duo (credited under the covert alias of The Bleeding Edge). It’s the rare kind of record where the messy, in-between musical spaces are given a light to shine.

First discovered through the Gilles Peterson- and Brownswoodfounded Future Bubblers programme, Skinny has since made it onto Peterson’s iconic Brownswood Bubblers compilation series, performed and collaborated with fellow Future Bubbler Yazmin Lacey, and been tipped by the likes of Ghostpoet and James Lavelle. Praise has also come from The Observer, The Quietus and Huck, with previous singles “Spit / Swallow” and “I Just Wanna Be Your Prisoner” bumped up onto heavy rotation on BBC 6 Music’s A-List. He’s also been in demand for live sessions with The Vinyl Factory and Worldwide FM, and supported Nightmares on Wax and Maribou State.

The mysterious Teisco LP is perhaps the most bizarre artefact to emerge from the phenomenal world of Italian Library music. Originally scored for a 1978 RAI television documentary, the album titled Tuscan Castle and Country Seat conforms to nothing you know or understand about library music. Studying composition under maestro A.R Luciani, the young Teisco composed innovative home studio recordings that parallel the outsider technique of French soundtrack composer Francois De Roubaix. With little resemblance to the standard cues usually found on library music LPs, this is stoned underground psychedelic music of the most eccentric kind. Imagine lyrical Moog oscillations drifting loosely over baroque and hallucinogenic atmospheres, or alternatively, think the DIY guitar jamming of the Velvet Underground and Dream Syndicate mixed with the electronics of some lesser-known Krautrock band. Wherever this recording sits among the dusty shelves of forgotten stock music, it is highly personal, deeply rewarding and without a doubt the most mind-blowing library record you will hear this year. This record is soon to be an outsider classic.

Soul Jazz Records are releasing this stunning new collection, The World of Keith Haring, featuring
music influential to the artist Keith Haring.
The art of Keith Haring is today one of the most recognisable of any visual artists of his generation,
defining 1980s New York during an intense period when downtown artists and musicians collaborated
like never before. Haring’s musical inspiration took in the punk/dance downtown sounds of clubs like
The Mudd Club, underground disco at Larry Levan’s Paradise Garage, as well the early days of hip-hop
and electro.
The album is released to coincide with the opening of the first major exhibition in the UK of Keith
Haring’s work at Tate Liverpool and which runs for the next six months.
Haring’s many friends included Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol, Madonna, Fab Five Freddy,
William Burroughs, Jenny Holzer, Yoko Ono, Grace Jones, Larry Levan, Futura 2000.
If you were looking for a person to guide you through the wide variety of nightclub scenes of
downtown New York in the 1980s, then Keith Haring would have been your man.
This album comes in deluxe artwork and three formats – Double CD + 48-page book, a deluxe 3xLP +
bonus 7” + download code vinyl version, and a standard 3xLP + download standard vinyl version. All
formats of the album feature stunning photography, extensive sleevenotes and interviews.
The music here includes the work of a number of Haring’s close friends, including Jean-Michel
Basquiat, Yoko Ono, Larry Levan, John Sex and George Condo (The Girls), as well as healthy dose of
rare disco, early electro and New York punk/dance tracks.