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‘Wax Limousine’ is the third solo album from London’s Wesley Gonzalez. Set for release on 18th March via Moshi Moshi Records, the record is the follow up to last year’s critically acclaimed ‘Appalling Human’ and finds the indie stalwart delivering his most personal album to date, via a collection of 12 irresistible pop songs. The announcement arrives alongside the title track, which received its first play from Marc Riley on 6Music and its accompanying video, the second to be revealed from the record following ‘Greater Expectations’, released earlier this year. In support of the release, Gonzalez heads out on tour this November, headlining Electrowerkz on 25th and supporting Young Knives across the country (full dates below).

With its truly eclectic range of musical influences drawing on Gonzalez’s ever developing sonic palette, the album’s uplifting sound juxtaposes its themes, documenting the end of a long-term relationship and the overwhelming experience of dealing with a family member’s cancer diagnosis and subsequent treatment. ‘Wax Limousine’ navigates these hurdles with a razor-sharp wit and often brutally perceptive self-awareness, nowhere more so than on the new single. Inspired by both 'Faithless' by Scritti Politti and Aretha Franklin, it is Gonzalez’s version of an 80’s gospel song and, as he explains, written at a crucial point over the last 12 months

“This was written right after the breakup and cancer diagnosis. It was that early stage of a breakup where you can't really understand what went wrong for you or for your ex. There was resentment for the extreme change I had suddenly found myself in, and I was asking what it really was I did wrong. The title Wax Limousine came from old phrases like "as useless as an ashtray on a motorbike". I was trying to express how useless I felt within every situation that had just arrived at my doorstep.”

Wesley Gonzalez first made a name for himself as the leader of Let's Wrestle, whose tuneful and eccentric punk earned critical accolades and a devoted audience with three albums, including 2011’s Steve Albini produced ‘Nursing Home’. Gonzalez wasted little time forging his own path and quickly assembled a live band for his solo work, expanding upon the guitar-driven music of his former band, with an interesting concoction of classic 70’s pop, soul, and indie rock. Gonzalez released his debut solo record ‘Excellent Musician’ in 2017, then the follow up ‘Appalling Human’ in June 2020 through Moshi Moshi Records.

12 Beautiful Love songs by Frankie Paul of which most was recorded in the late nineteen ninety
All tracks on various Studio One Rhythms

All of the songs on the single LP are Produced by Noel Alphanso/Bill Sample/Donald Moodie

"The exquisite corpse shall drink the new wine", wrote the French Surrealists almost 100 years ago, and from this missive stems the parlor game in which we partake here. Through obscuring the tower itself, they cobble together meandering staircases in which to ascend with absent-minded haste; spontaneous line-weaving amasses figures and phrases into new planes of thought, therefore holding captive the illusion of creative reciprocity. Although housed in unrecognizable quarters, dull rain now tallies itself upon your window panes just as it once kept count on theirs. Apparitions unknown sound instruments of winding origin in celebration of the ink dry in the well. A graffito of tea leaves stains the porcelain cup.

This cloven tall-tale traces an epistolary journey between id and consciousness upon a page that has been adorned and wiped clean again and again and again. The wet meadow expands and contracts within a breath, moving through the windpipe to expel upon the glistening dew. From this dew rises anthills of diminishing complexity, and busying themselves within insanity, the occupants labor to hold fast against the unseen wave of oblivion.

An exercise in aleatoric sentence-finishing between two aligned performers, The Exquisite Corpse Shall Drink the New Wine mimics the economics of unconscious beauty-making to such a degree that light will neither pass through it nor divert its path. Draw upon it what you will, and ready yourself for the unrelenting ataraxy.

Alas it all ended too soon ... but it's never truly over ..PNFG are delighted to bring you this Vinyl LP pressing of the debut album - One More Won't Kill Us.

Not only is this it's first ever appearance on vinyl but it is being repackaged and remastered with 2 bonus tracks (Bad Charm & Dear Thomas)

Alas it all ended too soon ... but it's never truly over ..PNFG are delighted to bring you this Vinyl LP pressing of the debut album - One More Won't Kill Us.

Not only is this it's first ever appearance on vinyl but it is being repackaged and remastered with 2 bonus tracks (Bad Charm & Dear Thomas)

Double LP of classic tracks from all your favourite Tarantino flicks.

- First vinyl reissue, available on LP for the first time in 20 years - Completely remastered audio and restored artwork - Side D lunar vinyl etching art // After leaving London in 1999 for the sleepy seaside retiree town of Weston-super-Mare, Coil co-founders John Balance and Peter "Sleazy" Christopherson set up shop in a palatial eight-bedroom estate to pursue the outer reaches of the group's heightening cabalistic chemistry. Among the staggering string of late-era masterpieces they produced is lunar opus Musick To Play In The Dark, widely hailed as an artistic zenith upon its release. The sessions that birthed it were in fact so fruitful that a second LP took shape during the creation of the first one. Aided by the recent addition of Welsh multi-instrumentalist engineer Thighpaulsandra, Coil mined further into the recesses of surrealist eldritch electronica Balance termed "moon music" - post-industrial spellcasting at the axis of narcotic and nocturnal energies. Musick To Play In The Dark² spans a full witching hour of bad acid sound design, synthesizer voyaging, opiated balladry, Luciferian glitch, and subliminal hymnals, alternately ominous, oracular, and absurd. Scottish gothic icon Rose McDowall guests on vocals for two tracks but otherwise the album is a hermetic affair, tapping into the group's limitless insular synergy. Opener "Something" is stark and incantational, a spoken word experiment for windswept voids. "Tiny Golden Books" unspools an aerial whirlpool of cosmic synth, both whispery and widescreen. "Ether" is an exercise in funeral procession piano and intoxicated wordplay ("It's either ether or the other"), while "Where Are You?" and "Batwings - A Liminal Hymn" lurk like liturgical murmurings heard on one's death bed, framed in granular FX and flickering candlelight. As a whole the collection skews more muted and remote than its predecessor, as if having grown accustomed to the nether regions of these darkening seances. But music box hallucination "Paranoid Inlay" captures the group's oblique comedic side, always glimmering beneath: over a warped, wobbly beat Balance intones an opaque narrative of serenity, Saint Peter, and suicidal vegetables, accompanied by spiraling harpsichord and stuttering squelches of electronics. "It seems concussion suits you," he repeats twice, like a macabre pickup line, before dictating a dear diary entry about risks and failures, finally concluding with as close to a self-portrait as Coil ever came: "On a clear day I can see forever / that the underworld is my oyster."

- First vinyl reissue, available on LP for the first time in 20 years - Completely remastered audio and restored artwork - Side D lunar vinyl etching art // After leaving London in 1999 for the sleepy seaside retiree town of Weston-super-Mare, Coil co-founders John Balance and Peter "Sleazy" Christopherson set up shop in a palatial eight-bedroom estate to pursue the outer reaches of the group's heightening cabalistic chemistry. Among the staggering string of late-era masterpieces they produced is lunar opus Musick To Play In The Dark, widely hailed as an artistic zenith upon its release. The sessions that birthed it were in fact so fruitful that a second LP took shape during the creation of the first one. Aided by the recent addition of Welsh multi-instrumentalist engineer Thighpaulsandra, Coil mined further into the recesses of surrealist eldritch electronica Balance termed "moon music" - post-industrial spellcasting at the axis of narcotic and nocturnal energies. Musick To Play In The Dark² spans a full witching hour of bad acid sound design, synthesizer voyaging, opiated balladry, Luciferian glitch, and subliminal hymnals, alternately ominous, oracular, and absurd. Scottish gothic icon Rose McDowall guests on vocals for two tracks but otherwise the album is a hermetic affair, tapping into the group's limitless insular synergy. Opener "Something" is stark and incantational, a spoken word experiment for windswept voids. "Tiny Golden Books" unspools an aerial whirlpool of cosmic synth, both whispery and widescreen. "Ether" is an exercise in funeral procession piano and intoxicated wordplay ("It's either ether or the other"), while "Where Are You?" and "Batwings - A Liminal Hymn" lurk like liturgical murmurings heard on one's death bed, framed in granular FX and flickering candlelight. As a whole the collection skews more muted and remote than its predecessor, as if having grown accustomed to the nether regions of these darkening seances. But music box hallucination "Paranoid Inlay" captures the group's oblique comedic side, always glimmering beneath: over a warped, wobbly beat Balance intones an opaque narrative of serenity, Saint Peter, and suicidal vegetables, accompanied by spiraling harpsichord and stuttering squelches of electronics. "It seems concussion suits you," he repeats twice, like a macabre pickup line, before dictating a dear diary entry about risks and failures, finally concluding with as close to a self-portrait as Coil ever came: "On a clear day I can see forever / that the underworld is my oyster."

- First vinyl reissue, available on LP for the first time in 20 years - Completely remastered audio and restored artwork - Side D lunar vinyl etching art // After leaving London in 1999 for the sleepy seaside retiree town of Weston-super-Mare, Coil co-founders John Balance and Peter "Sleazy" Christopherson set up shop in a palatial eight-bedroom estate to pursue the outer reaches of the group's heightening cabalistic chemistry. Among the staggering string of late-era masterpieces they produced is lunar opus Musick To Play In The Dark, widely hailed as an artistic zenith upon its release. The sessions that birthed it were in fact so fruitful that a second LP took shape during the creation of the first one. Aided by the recent addition of Welsh multi-instrumentalist engineer Thighpaulsandra, Coil mined further into the recesses of surrealist eldritch electronica Balance termed "moon music" - post-industrial spellcasting at the axis of narcotic and nocturnal energies. Musick To Play In The Dark² spans a full witching hour of bad acid sound design, synthesizer voyaging, opiated balladry, Luciferian glitch, and subliminal hymnals, alternately ominous, oracular, and absurd. Scottish gothic icon Rose McDowall guests on vocals for two tracks but otherwise the album is a hermetic affair, tapping into the group's limitless insular synergy. Opener "Something" is stark and incantational, a spoken word experiment for windswept voids. "Tiny Golden Books" unspools an aerial whirlpool of cosmic synth, both whispery and widescreen. "Ether" is an exercise in funeral procession piano and intoxicated wordplay ("It's either ether or the other"), while "Where Are You?" and "Batwings - A Liminal Hymn" lurk like liturgical murmurings heard on one's death bed, framed in granular FX and flickering candlelight. As a whole the collection skews more muted and remote than its predecessor, as if having grown accustomed to the nether regions of these darkening seances. But music box hallucination "Paranoid Inlay" captures the group's oblique comedic side, always glimmering beneath: over a warped, wobbly beat Balance intones an opaque narrative of serenity, Saint Peter, and suicidal vegetables, accompanied by spiraling harpsichord and stuttering squelches of electronics. "It seems concussion suits you," he repeats twice, like a macabre pickup line, before dictating a dear diary entry about risks and failures, finally concluding with as close to a self-portrait as Coil ever came: "On a clear day I can see forever / that the underworld is my oyster."

After just over a year-long hiatus from the Earthly Tapes series – the 3rd Chapter is finally upon us. Offering more mind-altering tracks to the series, we welcome 6 new members to the Earthly Measures familia!

We kick things off with ‘Comets (part I & II)’, the first release by ORSO, the new musical project from Jean Dasso AKA Yeahman, stepping into club and drum music. Alongside faster rhythms, with influences of UK Break music, African dances and traditional instruments, we’re taken through a two-chapter journey led by modular melodic loops, old traditional voices samples and ORSO’s own recordings.

Up next is a trip to Argentina as we welcome Balam to the EM family, join him as he takes you on a daydream across the Latin-American rainforest where synthesizers and nature collide to create the perfect mix, guided by a voice from the deep jungle. ‘Ensueño’ is a dance-floor tool fitting for both the start and end of the night.

Japanese native Mamazu steps up the tempo for the third track ‘Tombi’. Transporting us to a hypnotic and hedonistic state as delightful aerophones sound with the exotic chant, delivering the feeling of a dry breeze from the unseen frontier. Another dance floor ripper!

The B-side starts with ‘Voces’, a track inspired by the music that Chilean artist DJ Raff’s mum listened to when he was a teenager making beats in his bedroom. He used to take her records and tapes to sample and make boom-bap beats. Voces is influenced by both Spanish and Chilean 70’s music, although deconstructed to make an amazingly catchy melody. .

Ditti takes us through an ever-twisting groove as we swim upstream, spot a wave and take off... welcome to ‘Poly Party’. The soundtrack to a carnivalesque funked out ballad on a Polynesian beach shifting between the rhythms of a guitar & riding the surf, cutting synths & dripping flows.

We wrap things up with ‘Small Town Rebellion’, a story told by Scottish producer Kusht – this downtempo chugger reflects the story of a young man in a dead-end town with no future. He needs to break his fate and carve his own path by revolting and manifesting his own destiny.

Ltd. Pink Vinyl initial pressing. Lucius returns with their highly-anticipated new album Second Nature. Produced by Dave Cobb and Brandi Carlile, the album features ten new songs, with writing contributions from BRIT Award and Mercury Prize nominated Jenn Decilveo, amongst others. The new album is a portrait of singer and songwriters Holly Laessig and Jess Wolfe's shared reflection, chronicling each other's seismic life shifts_motherhood, divorce, unplanned career pauses. On Second Nature, Wolfe explains, "It is a record that begs you not to sit in the difficult moments, but to dance through them. It touches upon all these stages of grief_and some of that is breakthrough, by the way. Being able to have the full spectrum of the experience that we have had, or that I've had in my divorce, or that we had in lockdown, having our careers come to a halt, so to speak. I think you can really hear and feel the spectrum of emotion and hopefully find the joy in the darkness. It does exist. That's why we made Second Nature and why we wanted it to sound the way it did: our focus was on dancing our way through the darkness." Recorded primarily at Nashville's historic RCA Studio A, the 10-song album was written by Laessig and Wolfe and features their longtime band members Peter Lalish, Dan Molad alongside Solomon Dorsey with additional contributions from Drew Erickson, Rob Moose and Gabriel Cabezas with mixing by Rob Kinelski and Molad as well as Carlile and Sheryl Crow on backing vocals. Second Nature is Lucius' third full-length album and first since 2016's Good Grief. Widely acclaimed since their debut album, The New York Times declares, "Luscious, luminous, lilting lullabies," while NPR Music asserts, "gorgeous, joyful songs" and Pitchfork praises, "powerful voices and a keen sense of melody." In addition to their work in the band, Holly Laessig and Jess Wolfe have recorded with Sheryl Crow, Harry Styles, The War on Drugs, Ozzy Osborne and John Legend and toured extensively alongside Roger Waters.

Lucius returns with their highly-anticipated new album Second Nature. Produced by Dave Cobb and Brandi Carlile, the album features ten new songs, with writing contributions from BRIT Award and Mercury Prize nominated Jenn Decilveo, amongst others. The new album is a portrait of singer and songwriters Holly Laessig and Jess Wolfe's shared reflection, chronicling each other's seismic life shifts_motherhood, divorce, unplanned career pauses. On Second Nature, Wolfe explains, "It is a record that begs you not to sit in the difficult moments, but to dance through them. It touches upon all these stages of grief_and some of that is breakthrough, by the way. Being able to have the full spectrum of the experience that we have had, or that I've had in my divorce, or that we had in lockdown, having our careers come to a halt, so to speak. I think you can really hear and feel the spectrum of emotion and hopefully find the joy in the darkness. It does exist. That's why we made Second Nature and why we wanted it to sound the way it did: our focus was on dancing our way through the darkness." Recorded primarily at Nashville's historic RCA Studio A, the 10-song album was written by Laessig and Wolfe and features their longtime band members Peter Lalish, Dan Molad alongside Solomon Dorsey with additional contributions from Drew Erickson, Rob Moose and Gabriel Cabezas with mixing by Rob Kinelski and Molad as well as Carlile and Sheryl Crow on backing vocals. Second Nature is Lucius' third full-length album and first since 2016's Good Grief. Widely acclaimed since their debut album, The New York Times declares, "Luscious, luminous, lilting lullabies," while NPR Music asserts, "gorgeous, joyful songs" and Pitchfork praises, "powerful voices and a keen sense of melody." In addition to their work in the band, Holly Laessig and Jess Wolfe have recorded with Sheryl Crow, Harry Styles, The War on Drugs, Ozzy Osborne and John Legend and toured extensively alongside Roger Waters.

‘This Here Feels Good’ is the sound of an artist using music as
their second language. With all music self-produced / written,
Kay Young is defining an original generation of Black British
Music.

Moving between tightly rapped verses and glorious vocal
performances, often within the space of one track as well as
across the whole EP.

The release is a stunning collection of songs which expands
upon the sonic blueprint Kay has already laid out, that caught
the attention of Jay Electronica and Jay-Z, who later signed her
to Roc Nation.

She delves deeper into dance and soul while continuing to
explore themes of familial legacy and cultural relation, keeping a
perfect balance between lyrical vulnerability and musical uplift.

Live TV performance for Other Voices (Dec 2021), TV
performance for BT Sport (May 2021), Clash New Gen Artist
(autumn 2021), plus performances last year at Boiler Room
Festival, South Facing Festival, BBC Intro Live Summer By The
River, Live at Leeds Festival and more.

Supporting Jay Electronica for UK tour.

“uplifting groove” - The Fader

“pertinent, powerful lyrics” - Cool Hunting

“Young will undoubtedly keep shining” - Line of Best Fit

“Pure and bright promise.” - Beats Per Minute

“Kay Young finds a balance between smooth vocals and hardhitting lyrics” - Gigwise

“one of the UK’s most promising up and coming talents.” - Alfitude

“...an extremely exciting future ahead.” - CLASH Radio - 6 Music, BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio London, BBC 1Xtra, Amazing Radio A-List.

A masterful mix of timeless American soul with vintage 1970s African samples in a most rewarding way – musical traveler Eamon teams with production duo Likeminds for No Matter The Season, his second album for Now-Again. “I’ve been singing since I was a tike, promoters used to call me ‘the boy wonder’, but with this record it felt new, almost like I was singing every note as if my life depended on it,” says Eamon from his home in Southern California, a far cry from his native Staten Island, New York City. But you wouldn’t know his birthplace from the way he sings, especially on No Matter The Season, where Eamon put a new spin on vintage samples from the Now-Again catalog, crafting beats from various African rhythms such as Amanaz’s Zamrock, the Hygrades Nigerian funk, and Ayalew Mesfin’s Ethiopian tezetas. Shortly after the release of his last Now-Again project, Captive Thoughts, he began working with the production duo on two original compositions that appear on No Matter The Season. But as time went on, he came upon the idea of completing the album by sending the duo samples from the Now-Again catalog to work with. Which were expanded upon with a multitude of live instruments. “There was something special about combing through the African records at Now-Again,” Eamon reflects. “I had never heard the variety of funk and soul that existed in places like Lagos and Addis Ababa, it was like a history lesson in Rhythm & Blues. I was hearing the godfathers of the movement here in the US. I wanted to pay my respect to that lineage. Since singing in my father’s doo-wop group as a kid, I’ve always used music from the past to create and express something new in the present. But to be able to do that across continents and get back to the roots…that was really impactful for me.” Likeminds, helmed by Chris Soper and Jesse Singer, two East Coast transplants to LA who are as comfortable chopping up samples on an MPC as they are playing classic instruments, using vintage microphones, or recording to tape, offer up what could be described as a West Coast spin on the revivalist soul sound championed by Daptone Records. “For sure, the album is soaked in an old school feel, but to still tap into the depths of my soul today is always the end goal,” Eamon states. All but two tracks are based on Now-Again samples, using the classic rhythms as accompaniment to showcase Eamon’s emotional singing style that is still as honest and raw as when he was a 16, singing about heartbreak. The end result, No Matter the Season, is a celebration of the musical relationship between Africa and America and the thrilling soul music that relationship has spawned since the 60s and 70s. “My hope is people know that I’m not leaving anything on the table in this chapter of my career,” Eamon reflects. “Only thing I can do is pour my heart out on every single line. Even though I’m writing and screaming to the heavens about my joy, my pain, my love…these are songs for everyone, everywhere, anytime. You’re gonna walk away feeling something. This is why I titled the album No Matter The Season.”

Upon completion of the Stu Cook produced Roky Erickson & The Aliens LP in the summer of 1979, Roky decided to return home to Austin from San Francisco

He needed a band and The Explosives came highly recommended to Roky's manager, Craig Luckin - Introductions were made and rehearsals began. Roky & The Explosives immediately hit it off, musically and personally. They played together in Texas and California from 1979-1981 logging in around 50 shows.
13th Floor Elevators drummer John Ike Walton remarked to Explosives drummer Freddie Steady Krc "You guys played more shows with Roky than the Elevators did!" The guys got in the van and barnstormed all over the Lone Star State.
Bootleg recordings began to emerge that were sub- quality live performance recordings that everyone was making money off except Roky and The Explosives.
Craig and Freddie agreed Freddie would review all the recordings they could find from 1979-81. Almost all were in Craig's possession. Upon final review, Freddie would select the best performance of each song they were playing live from that time period. Some like 'Heroin' and 'I've Just Seen a Face' were called on the spot by Roky at a show, performed once and never played again. After the music was selected, Craig and Freddie went through their personal collection of photos,
poster images and added a complete show itinerary from 1979-81.
'Halloween' is a loving collection of performances documenting a time of Roky's re- emergence into the rock music world. It was something most thought they would never see after his final days with 13th Floor Elevators, following drug busts and his plunge into mental illness eventually ending in his stay at Rusk State Mental Hospital. This record is a testimony of Roky's personal strength and will to return to performing and songwriting. Long live his music!

Acid Jazz subsidiary Countdown Records presents a new release from Graham Day: ‘Master of None’.

The former Prisoners front man emerged in the Bill Childish / Medway scene. While not enjoying the recognition and commercial success of some of his contemporaries at the time, he has emerged as one of the most enduring and prolific songwriters of the era.

‘Master of None’ is a unique addition to the Graham Day canon, featuring 12 new songs, with all instruments recorded entirely by the man himself - a measure of the depth of talent on display and his continuing creative vision.

The Prisoners were regarded as one of the best live bands of their time, and they maintain a loyal fanbase, for whom this release can be considered vital.

Recorded in Brooklyn, NY and in Accra, Ghana.

Osei Korankye is a master musician and singer from Accra, Ghana. Known as one of the very last remaining seperewa musicians in Ghana.

These tracks are a throw back to the classic styles of Afro-Funk in 1970s Ghana.

Recorded to tape and produced by Super Yamba bandleader and drummer Daniel Yount and engineer/bassist Vince Chiarito (Ikebe Shakedown/Charles Bradley/Black Pumas).

Upon a trip to the United States in 2017 Korankye linked up with Yount for a few gigs in New York City. Yount learned Korankye’s music and played drums on the gigs. “After that I knew I wanted to collaborate with Osei on some of the songs Super Yamba had written in the style of Ghanaian funk.” The collaboration came together effortlessly and the result is two beautifully psychedelic funk tunes made for dancing time!

RIYL: Japanese Breakfast, Clairo, Perfume Genius, Sufjan Stevens. Follow up to 2019’s breakout debut ‘Happy To Be Here’, which ranked #21 on Billboard Heatseekers Chart upon release. Early singles “Frankie” and “Dig” praised by Stereogum, The Line Of Best Fit, Billboard, Consequence, and Under The Radar. Radio support from SiriusXMU, KCRW, KEXP, BBC 1, BBC 6 & Triple J. Headline dates in NYC, London, Paris and Los Angeles. Tour dates supporting Sunflower Bean down to Texas, where Barrie will be showcasing as an official artist at SXSW 2022. Release week instore performances at record shops across the UK. On Barbara, the sophomore album from Brooklyn-based songwriter and producer Barrie, she battles the loss of a parent, the start of a new relationship, and the impulse to separate herself from her music. This result is a beautifully peculiar, and quietly ambitious collection of synth-pop, art-pop, indie rock and folk songs that reflect a new willing- ness to let listeners into her world. Two events redefined Barrie Lindsay’s life and shaped the direction of Barbara. In the summer of 2019, she met her now-wife, the musician Gabby Smith. Simultaneously, Lindsay’s father learned that his lung cancer had worsened. In January of 2020, she moved home to Ipswich to spend time with family and begin work on her album. Three months became nine, thanks to the pandemic. Lindsay wrote Barbara while quarantining with Smith in Maine, while her father was dying, and while she was falling in love. Lindsay finds catharsis from the ambivalent desperation of losing a parent on the album’s centerpiece, “Dig.” You can hear her newfound boldness as she wails the song’s central refrain, giving herself over to emotion: “I can’t get enough of you / Where did you come from?” Despite the grief, personal and collective on Lindsay’s mind while making Barbara, she often pauses to embrace joy. “Jenny,” is a simple, acoustic guitar ode to meeting Smith. Similarly, her fantasy of a roman- tic but bloodied afternoon, “Quarry,” sounds eerie and aque- ous, before erupting into a euphoric geyser of synth and drums. “Barbara isn’t an album specifically about grief or love. It’s just an album where I let myself actually feel my emotions,” Lind- say says. “That was something I’d never done before in music.” UK Dates – 24th March Portsmouth, UK @ Pie & Vinyl, 25th Brighton, UK @ Resident, 26th London, UK @ Banquet, 28th Nottingham, UK @ Rough Trade Nottingham, 29th Bristol, UK @ Rough Trade Bristol, 30th Leeds, UK @ Jumbo Records, 31st London, UK @ Rough Trade East. Track listing: A side 01. Jersey 02. Frankie 03. Jenny 04. Concrete 05. Dig 06. Bully B side 07. Harp 2 Interlude 08. Harp 2 09. Quarry 10. Basketball 11. Bloodline

Last October, when Bernard Allison returned to his old haunt of Bessie Blue Studios, Tennessee, to be greeted by fabled producer and career- long collaborator Jim Gaines, it felt like coming home. And when Allison fired up the amps, counted in the band and embarked upon his latest studio album, Highs And Lows, everything felt right with the world. “Just to be able to create music again after the pandemic,” he says of that long-awaited rebirth, “was incredible.”
For 56 years, music has been Bernard Allison’s essence. As the youngest son of the much- missed Chicago bandleader Luther Allison, he was a bluesman from birth. One week after graduating high school, Bernard cut his teeth on the road with Koko Taylor’s Blues Machine lineup – and ended up staying for most of the ’80s. By the close of the decade, however, he assumed a twin identity, leading and
writing for his father’s band, while forging a solo career that exploded in Europe off the back of early albums like The Next Generation (1990), No Mercy (1994) and Funkifino (1995).Now, released in February 2022 on Ruf Records, Highs And Lows sees Bernard acknowledge his lineage through two classic songs by his
father – Gave It All and Now You Got It – while offering nine originals. Try the irresistible groove of Hustler: a funk gem written by Bernard with Andrew Thomas, whose horn-and-harp groove evokes the strut of the title character. Or the masterful Last Night, which shifts tempo from an upbeat chop to a weeping slow- blues, capturing the changing moods of a man chasing his runaround woman. As for the title track, Bernard says it speaks for anyone left bemused by life’s rollercoaster: “It’s a part of life, the ups and downs that everyone deals with.”Right now, with a new album of stellar material to take out on his New Year tour, Bernard Allison is back in the ascendency – and the man can’t wait to return to his natural habitat. “The song So Excited is basically about the excitement of being able to be back on the road again,” he says. “I think everyone can relate to that.”

Sigourney Discs presents its third release following BACK by Dark Vektor and CZ200 by PLOM. Rinse Repeat is the new EP from Barcelona-based French producer La Fraicheur and Berlin-based French producer Leonard de Leonard.

The Rinse Repeat EP shows the duo’s wide spectrum of love affairs with techno’s rich universe of sounds and moods. The title track Rinse Repeat is built around a raspy and ever-evolving playful acid bassline with added drama from sound design and distorted glitchy gimmicks. Mind The Step is taking the sound design-induced drama a step further with a slow burning spacious and epic cavernous fantasmagoria that flips itself on the head half way through, becoming a vengeful track driven by a menacing yet groovy gritty bassline.

Rounding up the EP is the apt-titled Fairies Bootcamp. Ethereal and eerie skidding melodies balance out a grounded martial rhythm as if you had, on a forest walk, stumbled upon an army of fairies in a training camp caught mid-flight arming themselves to take their land back. The soundtrack of a supernatural call for arms.

On remix duty, Sigourney Discs co-founder Yandira leaves the war behind to focus on the otherworldly elements of Fairies Bootcamp and offers a trippy floaty dreamstate rendition for open airs and early morning rising suns.

Super Session (1968) was conceived by Al Kooper and features the work of guitarists Mike Bloomfield and Stephen Stills. Kooper and Bloomfield had previously worked together on the sessions for the ground-breaking classic Highway 61 Revisited by Bob Dylan. For Super Session, Kooper recruited keyboardist Barry Goldberg and bassist Harvey Brooks, both members of the Electric Flag, along with well-known session drummer 'Fast' Eddie Hoh.

On the second day of recording, with the tapes ready to roll, Bloomfield did not show up. Kooper hastily called upon Stephen Stills, also in the process of leaving his band Buffalo Springfield. Regrouping behind Stills, Kooper's session men cut mostly vocal tracks, including 'It Takes A Lot to Laugh, It Takes A Train to Cry' from Highway 61 and a lengthy and atmospheric take of 'Season of the Witch' by Donovan.

The album peaked at #12 on the Billboard 200, and has been certified a Gold record. The success of this record opened the door for the 'supergroup' concept of the late 1960s and 1970s — Blind Faith, Crosby, Stills & Nash, and the like.

From the shadows of Slovenia, Shadow Universe is an instrumental music project, creating breathtaking cinematic soundscapes from post-rock, neoclassical/ambient and post-metal elements. Their third album, Subtle Realms, Subtle Worlds is released on 11 March 2022 worldwide on Monotreme Records. Formed in 2017 by Peter Dimnik and Žan Šebrek, Shadow Universe merge contrasting textures of shimmering ambient soundscapes and heavy anxious darkness to portray the diversity of nature and life on earth and beyond. Subtle Realms, Subtle Worlds: Every person experiences the world differently, which puts us into our own unique bubbles, subtle worlds. Subtle Realms, Subtle Worlds finds the band turning their songs into living, breathing ecosystems, carefully dissecting every moment of peace and chaos alike. The album sees the building particles of the universe as separate worlds, with their own story, perception, rules and individual inner realm. Opening track Organism, which portrays the coherence of forming organisms; from a vast universe itself down to the tiniest building particles of it, sets the tone with its slow, tense build to crushing, exhilarating peaks. Don’t Look at It and You’ll See It evokes free-flowing spontaneity through beautiful cascading piano and emotive violin, towering guitars, and soaring synths. Masterfully harnessing both the quiet and the loud, Hymn for the Giants glorifies our almighty and precious trees, with moments of calm cut apart by vast swathes of brutal, yet considered, cacophony. Losing Home’s portentous, droning synths and trumpet ratchet up the suspense, while on Antares Goes Supernova the band carve out layer upon layer of affirming and effecting riffs, each one more powerful than the last. Season of Eternal Maze wraps up the album with a meditative piano and harmonium, wide guitar driven melodies and guides you to your inner maze.

Hailing from Liege in Belgium, David Body has been put on our radar with releases on the fine Endless Music — but this EP for Exploited’s Black Jukebox series looks set to propel him to a new level.

‘I Bird You’ is a seriously charming affair, led by a colourful, sugary-sweet refrain that twinkles and sparkles in cute fashion. A warm deep house groove crafted through swirling Rhodes chords builds the vibe before the flowery melody explodes into life, pushing the track into an altogether more magical direction.

‘Jack Me Baby’ channels rubbery bass and a galloping house beat, with minor piano chords creating a dramatic feel as a classic vocal sample whoops away in delight. The enormous snare-rolled propelled build-up thrusts the track into overdrive, with a delightful, balmy synth line woven in to provide a mystical counterbalance.

‘The Talking Mouettes’ is a supremely feel-good slab of Balearic-tinged house, with choice piano chords cut up and cascading over a high-energy groove. Big squelchy melodic bass wiggles under the chords and shoulder-popping chime riff, with plenty of power and punch scattered throughout to keep the vibes rolling.

‘Endless Love’ is an absolute monster to close the EP, a soaring, triumphant electro beauty that overflows with euphoric melody and ecstatic, eyes-closed-and-rolling tingles. It just keeps building and building through layer upon layer of synth mastery to an explosive, epic climax.

Kris Barras Band return armed with towering anthems on the heaviest
album to date; 'Death Valley Paradise', available on CD, transparent red
vinyl and digitally
Produced by Dan Weller (Enter Shikari, Bury Tomorrow, SiKth) and recorded at
VADA Studios in Alcester, they return heavier, darker, more introspective but
enormous at the same time. Barras decided to remove all shackles and began
collaborating with songwriters, such as the heavyweights; Jonny Andrews (Three
Days Grace, Fozzy), Bob Marlette (Alice Cooper, Airbourne, Rob Zombie), Blair
Daly (Halestorm, Black Stone Cherry) and Zac Maloy (Shinedown, Tyler Bryant).
Death Valley Paradise started life as a song before it was dissected and spread
across the album. Death Valley is a place of extremes, where living things are
said to not be able to survive.
For 18 months the world stood still and the realisation set in that there was no
control of ourselves anymore. For the ex-MMA/cage fighter, there was only one
way out, to re-focus, and started with no preconceived plan for the album.
But now, Death Valley Paradise is ready to be unleashed upon the masses, who
are yearning to rock out, fist pumping in the air.

Alt-R&B singer, songwriter, and producer Marshall Vincent announces his new EP 'In No Particular Order', a collection of five tracks on SA Recordings. Inspired by his time living in Berlin, New York, and Chicago, Marshall weaves together a soulful blend of orchestral, electronic, pop and folk elements to tell stories of life and love in vivid colour. Songs that are a mix of heartfelt ballads, haunting basslines, and dramatic strings draw a strong line to the alternative R&B of Moses Sumney, and the folky inspired songs of Kate Bush. Following a series of EPs that have garnered him critical praise - as well as landing him a support set for Kelsey Lu - In No Particular Order draws upon a multidisciplinary background spanning orchestral and theatrical training to explore the idea of ‘provocative healing’ - the use of pain, conflict, and emotional turmoil to create love, honesty, and intimacy. Sonically, Marshall’s music can be defined as intimate R&B, but there are threads of classical, folk, and electronic present, and all woven together with the aim of honest, universal storytelling. More important than genre is the pursuit of clarity and meaning, and as such, the references found within Marshall’s work are abundant. "I have always been quite sensitive, since I was a child. I also experienced hardships that made me closed off, cold and detached. I had to learn to face my pain. This fight manifested itself into creation. The ability and need to create my own world helped me see myself in others. In a way, it feels no different than the creation of a universe… my mania, my intensity, and my stress go into themselves, and they explode in these moments… sonic textures, movements, visual cues… all acting as tools to put me back together." - Marshall Vincent

Gang of Youths today announce their biggest tour of the UK, including London’s O2 Academy Brixton to launch their upcoming album ‘angel in realtime’ which is out on February 25th through Warner Records. This week will see them support Sam Fender on his arena tour around the UK and play their own instantly sold-out club shows.

Gang of Youths say, “the album is about the life and legacy of Dave's father, indigenous identity, death, grief and God. And also the Angel, Islington.”

Despite and indeed because of frontman Dave Le’aupepe’s father’s absence, his influence permeates every talking point that the album offers. At times it’s solely focused upon the precise, personal experiences of loss: the dichotomy of intensity and peace that comes as someone passes through their final days; the overwhelming feeling in the wake of their death that life will never be the same, even if the rest of the world at large remains utterly unchanged.

Following their recent singles, ‘the angel of 8th ave.’ , telling of falling in love in a new city and making a home in another, and ‘the man himself’, a song created around a sample recording from the island of Mangaia in the Cook Islands that is about living without the guiding hand of your own father, today they release ‘tend the garden’.

Although the album is eclectic - influences range from American minimalism and contemporary classical, to drawing upon the legacy of Britain’s alternative/indie scenes, from drum ‘n’ bass to the most transcendent moments of Britpop -- it’s equally rooted in Le’aupepe’s Samoan heritage, with the majority of tracks featuring samples from David Fanshawe’s recordings of indigenous music from the Polynesian islands and the wider South Pacific. ‘angel in realtime’ also features contributions from a cast of talented Pasifika and Māori vocalists and instrumentalists.

Le’aupepe says, “I hope the record stands as a monument to the man my father was and remains long after I’m gone myself. He deserved it.”

‘angel in realtime’ will be released on digital, double white vinyl and CD and is now available to pre-order. Fans who pre-order the album will receive instant downloads of ‘tend the garden’, ‘the man himself’, ‘unison’ and ‘the angel of 8th ave.’. HMV and select independent stores will offer a special edition of the vinyl which feature an alternate cover.

Fans who pre-order the album will receive access to a pre-sale for the band’s 2022 UK and European tour. The pre-sale will open at 9am local time on Wednesday, November 17th, and remaining live until remaining tickets go on general sale from 9am local time on Friday, November 19th.

Gang of Youths are: Dave Le’aupepe (vocals, guitar), Max Dunn (bass), Jung Kim (guitar, keyboards), Donnie Borzestowski (drums) and Tom Hobden (keyboards, guitar, violin).

“Let’s trade... love,” or so propositions Josh Lane into the waiting ears of a lover on the whispering intro of Thee Sacred Souls‘ latest offering. “Trade of Hearts” is a perfectly coquettish hand-held stroll in the vein of an early Marvin and Tammy duet, on which hearts are traded like so many kings and queens in a playful hand of lovers’ bridge. On the flip, Jensine Benitez dips in with a soaring refrain for the hook of a mid-tempo groover, calling upon a wanted one to let their charm be felt and heard. Without mercy, an infectious rhythm erases any space that might have remained between two dancing souls. The Souls have already captured the hearts of Southern California and beyond with their unique soul sound, at once raw and honey sweet, yet this freshest platter can only tighten that embrace. Hold your cards close, cause they’re playing for keeps!

Regal shares the final remix EP of his debut album, "RWYS Remixes Pt.03". With reworks from Alignment, Thomas P.Heckmann, _asstnt & Roll Dann, Sita Abellan & the Involve Records head himself.

Regal's "Remember Why You Started" LP faces its final rework. The last package welcomes Regal and Sita Abellan, Thomas P.Heckmann, _asstnt & Roll Dann and Alignment to shine their production skills to the Spanish techno luminaries first album.

Regal & multi-faceted Spanish artist Sita Abellan collaborated for the rework of "Cult Of Personality". Their rendering leans heavily into the realm of electro, with heavily distorted synth lines marching through like a freight train. Darting keys rush and reverberate back upon themselves before a powerful female vocal sample takes over from the male voice that commanded the original. Germany's Thomas P Heckmann takes on "Before I Die". Heavier and beefier than the original, the kick drum and baseline of Heckmann's remix take control and dominate the landscape. He retains Pau's distinct vocals, leaving a familiar dash of the original in this bolder rework. Percussion takes a front seat in this version, with snare drums and cymbals combating the bitter main synth melody.

Straight from Madrid's underground scene are producers _asstnt & Roll Dann, who team up for the remix of "Respect". A cut up, distorted rework that grows darker and more robust throughout. Bottomless kick drums ring out, while a heavily distorted electric guitar sample brings grime and a sonic haze to the track. The American male vocal sample is kept on from the original and remains even more powerful in it's reworked state than before. Italian producer Alignment wraps up with the accurately placed track "The Last Dance". In this final remix of the series the kick drum received a complete overhaul, instantly pivoting the track into a darker place. Only the curious melodic key sequence pours light into the track and brings with it an overwhelming sense of positivity to the closer. The baseline backs up the melody before percussion breakdowns take centre stage and the two fight for dominance until the final beat.

Following the collaborative releases with DJ Duckcomb, Emotional Rescue teams with “discodub” specialist NAD aka Dan Tyler (Idjut Boys) in the continual documentation of the crucial role played by the Caribbean diaspora in Britain’s music history.

Of the many who have made a mark, Clifton “Sonny” Roberts maybe one of the most unheralded. Upon arrival in the early migration from the Caribbean, Roberts used his carpentry vocation to build and operate the first Jamaican recording studio and then black owned record shop in the country.

Working alongside and sharing offices with a young Chris Blackwell and Trojan founder, Lee Gopthal, Roberts’ trailblazing through his Planetone and Orbitone labels were pivotal in bringing first Ska, then Reggae and on to Lovers Rock to prominence, as well as releasing influential Afrobeat and rising Disco sounds of the day.

It is on the sub-label Cartridge that the mega-rarity I Want You appeared in summer 1982. Teaming up with vocalist Joseph “Remy” Martin, the original 12” is a wonderful mixture of all their influences; soulful vocals, unrelenting boogie groove, afro keys, all pinned by reggae bass.

A heavily saturated Discomix is then created by Dan Tyler aka NAD. A dub masterclass with live desk filter passes and flanging, all running through spring reverb for a true Tubby disco-rockers ride, this is a sound system treasure with more to follow soon.

Khruangbin and Leon Bridges announce their latest collaborative EP, ‘Texas Moon’, out on Dead Oceans.

 An extension of the two’s chart-topping four-song ‘Texas Sun’ journey, ‘Texas Moon’ is an introspective stroll through the dark. “Without joy, there can be no real perspective on sorrow,” say Khruangbin. “Without sunlight, all this rain keeps things from growing. How can you have the sun without the moon?”

 Crediting their mutual home state for inspiration, ‘Texas Moon’ pensively examines Texas’ musical perception, while paying homage to the marriage of country and R&B that’s become synonymous with the lone star state. Propelled by rolling guitar licks, conga and bongo, lead single ‘B-Side’ meditates on meeting in a dream and frolics across the nearing contemplative night-time state with its longing joy.

 Elsewhere on ‘Texas Moon’, the artists channel a newly intimate musical scope that’s illustrated most dramatically when the spacy sensuality of the minimalistic ‘Chocolate Hills’ leads into the stark spirituality addressed on ‘Father Father’, a reminder of both acts’ gospel roots. Over a simple rolling guitar figure, Bridges pleads with the heavens - “Look at the mess that I made / Just a man with unclean hands” - only to be reminded of God’s eternal love.

 For Khruangbin, one song in particular was indicative of the trust that Bridges put in them. “The song ‘Doris’ is about his grandmother making the transition from this world to the next realm,” says Khruangbin’s Donald Ray ‘DJ’ Johnson Jr. “It’s a very somber, very deep record. And when someone places that kind of work into your
hands, the last thing you want to do is junk it up, overproduce it, or do too much. We treated it with the respect it deserved, and treated Doris with the respect she deserves.”

 “It’s like a short story...,” says the band’s Laura Lee of the music. “And it leaves room to continue having these stories together. It’s not Khruangbin, it’s not Leon, it’s this world we created together.”

 Upon its release, ‘Texas Sun’ soared to the No. 1 slot on Billboard’s Emerging Artists Chart along with landing the No.1 on spot on Americana/Folk Albums, among many others. Significantly, both parties’ musical directions were deeply affected by their time working together on ‘Texas Sun’.

 Khruangbin’s most recent studio album, ‘Mordechai’, moved their own vocals to the forefront, a change they readily admit was a direct result of working with Bridges.
Their sound was also tapped for remix / reinterpretation of a Paul McCartney song for the ‘McCartney III Imagined’ project. Meanwhile, in addition to his genre-defying Grammy-nominated album ‘Gold-Digger’s Sound’, Bridges has put out several other challenging, shared collaborative tracks, including work with John Mayer, Lucky Daye and, most recently, Jazmine Sullivan. Each of the artists appeared recently on Austin City Limits and will tour throughout the new year.

Khruangbin and Leon Bridges announce their latest collaborative EP, ‘Texas Moon’, out on Dead Oceans.

 An extension of the two’s chart-topping four-song ‘Texas Sun’ journey, ‘Texas Moon’ is an introspective stroll through the dark. “Without joy, there can be no real perspective on sorrow,” say Khruangbin. “Without sunlight, all this rain keeps things from growing. How can you have the sun without the moon?”

 Crediting their mutual home state for inspiration, ‘Texas Moon’ pensively examines Texas’ musical perception, while paying homage to the marriage of country and R&B that’s become synonymous with the lone star state. Propelled by rolling guitar licks, conga and bongo, lead single ‘B-Side’ meditates on meeting in a dream and frolics across the nearing contemplative night-time state with its longing joy.

 Elsewhere on ‘Texas Moon’, the artists channel a newly intimate musical scope that’s illustrated most dramatically when the spacy sensuality of the minimalistic ‘Chocolate Hills’ leads into the stark spirituality addressed on ‘Father Father’, a reminder of both acts’ gospel roots. Over a simple rolling guitar figure, Bridges pleads with the heavens - “Look at the mess that I made / Just a man with unclean hands” - only to be reminded of God’s eternal love.

 For Khruangbin, one song in particular was indicative of the trust that Bridges put in them. “The song ‘Doris’ is about his grandmother making the transition from this world to the next realm,” says Khruangbin’s Donald Ray ‘DJ’ Johnson Jr. “It’s a very somber, very deep record. And when someone places that kind of work into your
hands, the last thing you want to do is junk it up, overproduce it, or do too much. We treated it with the respect it deserved, and treated Doris with the respect she deserves.”

 “It’s like a short story...,” says the band’s Laura Lee of the music. “And it leaves room to continue having these stories together. It’s not Khruangbin, it’s not Leon, it’s this world we created together.”

 Upon its release, ‘Texas Sun’ soared to the No. 1 slot on Billboard’s Emerging Artists Chart along with landing the No.1 on spot on Americana/Folk Albums, among many others. Significantly, both parties’ musical directions were deeply affected by their time working together on ‘Texas Sun’.

 Khruangbin’s most recent studio album, ‘Mordechai’, moved their own vocals to the forefront, a change they readily admit was a direct result of working with Bridges.
Their sound was also tapped for remix / reinterpretation of a Paul McCartney song for the ‘McCartney III Imagined’ project. Meanwhile, in addition to his genre-defying Grammy-nominated album ‘Gold-Digger’s Sound’, Bridges has put out several other challenging, shared collaborative tracks, including work with John Mayer, Lucky Daye and, most recently, Jazmine Sullivan. Each of the artists appeared recently on Austin City Limits and will tour throughout the new year.

In over thirty years of regularly meeting with reggae artists and musicians in the UK and Kingston, I never encountered anything like the feeling of being around the Xterminator camp during the nineties. It wasn’t just the depth of talent that owner Philip “Fatis” Burrell could call upon or even the quality of his productions, but the sense of purpose he instilled in people. At times, it felt as if he and his group of largely Rasta artists had aligned themselves with a higher power - not just in their reasoning sessions, but when someone stepped to the mic and opened their heart, as well as their mouth. If you recorded for Fatis, you went into the studio empty-handed - no lyrics - and put your trust in the Almighty. That was the rule and the artists who passed through Xterminator had to really feel what they were singing or deejaying about.

TIME magazine counts Gifted Gab amongst the top female rappers in America. "Cause & Effect" is her vinyl debut, showing off Gab’s singular style, mixing complexity with wit, confidence with seduction, bars-upon bars of rapping with R&B melodies. Half of the album is hard-hitting gangsta murder music, while the flip side is effortlessly smooth. "It's for the after-party, the kickback. When you finally got the one you’ve been vibing with all night up close and personal,” as DJ Mike Ramos describes in the liner notes. Seattle underground hip-hop label Crane City Music is proud to release a special, limited-edition vinyl version of “Cause & Effect” on transparent red wax. The record is the color of blood and love, both appropriate analogies for its twin sides. It has been specially mastered by Adam Straney, has liner notes from DJ Mike Ramos, and is limited to 1,000 numbered copies.

The development of the rock steady sound, late in 1966, enabled a new generation of young, dynamic music makers to make a mark upon Jamaica’s recording industry and of these, few proved more successful or influential than Clancy Eccles. In 1969 he scored his biggest hit, the rambunctious ‘Fattie Fattie’, which sold in huge amounts both at home and the UK. The single’s popularity prompted Trojan Records to issue Eccles’s debut long-player, Freedom, which gathered the best of his self-produced recordings as a singer. Freedom’s sleeve photo is one of the classic reggae music images, with Clancy riding a motorcycle through a rugged terrain absolutely screaming relaxed cool.

Available as a limited edition of 750 individually numbered copies on orange coloured vinyl.

South London genre-blending story tellers Alabama 3 are set to further add to their rich musical heritage with a new single ‘Whacked’, available April 30th via Submarine Cat Records, with an album to follow later inAugust.

‘Whacked’ is the first taste of fresh Alabama 3 material since the tragic passing of their beloved and unconventional frontman and songwriter Jake Black, aka The Very Reverend D. Wayne Love, in May of 2019. Jake had Addison’s disease and passed away several days after falling ill during a show at the HighestPoint Festival in Lancashire at only 59 years old.

Then, with the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown upon the world, the band got creative and submerged themselves in their music, teaming up with producer Cam Blackwood(George Ezra, Jack Savoretti, Tom Walker, Frank Carter and the Rattlesnakes…) to focus their minds on something vital, new and fresh. This can clearly be heard in ‘Whacked’, a song which pays respect to the late co-writer of the song, Pete Dunne.

"A product of old skool Brixton, the legendary Seven Kevin’s Pete Dunne threatened us with this song prior to his untimely death,” explains founding member Larry Love. “Despite the heavy manners we are proud to declare we rose to the challenge."

“Whacked was made in the early weeks of the first UK lockdown in March 2020,” remembers producer Cam Blackwood. “I think the hedonistic spirit of the song was amplified a million times by the fact we were making the record remotely - with the musicians in the band recording their parts at home, sending them all to me to collate and arrange - then I would send the instrumental track to Larry to record vocals on. The energy was pretty insane - we were like caged animals desperate to get out.

“We managed to find time three months later (when the first lockdown ended in July 2020) to get together and put the finishing touches to the song,” continues Cam. “Being in the studio with a few beers seemed like a fitting way to finalise the tune and put the last 1% of energy into the recording. This song feels like classic Alabama 3 to me. It’s a banger!”

Indeed it is. A low-slung groove propelled by frontman Larry Love’s infamous throat rattle, with the addictive chorus refrain ‘everybody’s getting whacked on something, something that makes them feel good,’ ‘Whacked’ will loop around your brain like a recurring dream you can’t wake from. These are hedonistic conscious unconscious times.

“You can praise the Lord, you can pass the ammunition, you can be woke you can be wicked you can have the wisdom of Solomon but unless you are ready to get whacked with Alabama 3 there’s no point in dreaming,” states Larry. “Rearrange the rubble, paint your bomb shelters and make sure everybody in the neighbourhood feels good cos we feel like getting stooped and you need to get whacked.”

Alabama 3 are very much back. Time to get whacked.

Heavenly Recordings announce the release of ‘Heavenly remixes 3&4 - Andrew Weatherall volume 1&2’, a brace of compilation albums collecting together some of the finest remixes from the label’s long-time friend, collaborator and go-to remixer. These compilations follow ‘Heavenly remixes 1 & 2’, which showcases some of the label’s other great remixes.

 By the time Heavenly was born in the spring of 1990, Andrew Weatherall was already an inspirational sounding board, as well as a fellow traveller on the bright new road that stretched out ahead, thanks to the massive cultural liberation of acid house. Back then every energised meeting could be turned into a fortuitous opportunity in this burgeoning new underground economy. Bored of your job? Start playing records out! Start a club night! Get in the studio!
Start a label! Just don’t stand still. Commandments Andrew would follow for the rest of his life.

 At the start of things, Andrew was a regular visitor to Capersville - the pre-Heavenly press office run by label founder Jeff Barrett (soon to become Andrew’s manager). It was there that he famously picked up a copy of Primal Scream’s unloved second album and singled out a
track that would later become ‘Loaded’, after being given an instruction to “fucking destroy” it by the band’s Andrew Innes; it was there too that the idea to remix the first Heavenly release
came about.

 Andrew’s mix of that first Heavenly record is very much a product of its time. ‘The World According To Sly and Lovechild’ is a swirling bass punch topped with a hypnotic marimba line and the kind of ecstatic diva vocal that you’d hear coming out of the speakers all night at postShoom clubs like Yellow Book.

 His take on the label’s next release - Saint Etienne’s ‘Only Love Can Break Your Heart (A Mix of Two Halves’) - would set the template for his next three decades of audio exploration. A drawn-out imperial dub, the track builds and builds with a moody intensity (partly down to the
melodica played by Weather Prophets legend Pete Astor) that’s far more Kingston JA at dusk than Kingston-upon-Thames at kicking out time. It’s both a dancefloor record to get lost in and
headphone psychedelia of the highest order - a perfect example of what he did better than anyone else.

 Between 1990 and his untimely death in 2020, Andrew fed more Heavenly bands through the mixing desk than those of any other label. Consistently, he returned visionary music to the
office, often in person for (at least) one ceremonial playback - a ritual that would involve the volume cranked up high and Andrew rocking back on his heels, eyes closed, lost in the alchemy of it all.

 Each time, he would warp and twist originals into beautiful new shapes - elasticated club records that might evoke Detroit techno one second and Throbbing Gristle the next, before wheel-spinning into something akin to The Fall produced by King Tubby.

 Andrew’s studio adventures would always be guided by that early advice to destroy the source material. It’s why he was the first name that came up when remixes were discussed; the first number on the speed dial. Listening back to these remixes now - to thirty years of glorious outsider sounds - it bangs home again just how fucking good Andrew was.

The new album by the Peruvian-born / Berlin-based experimental artist Ale Hop was conceived in a context of immobility and provides six sonic vignettes that wonder about location, circularity, rootedness and experience. In collaboration with Ana Quiroga,
Concepcion Huerta, Daniela Huerta, Elsa M'balla, Felicity Magan, Fil Uno, Ignacio Briceño, KMRU, Manongo Mujica, Moises Horta, Nicole L'huillier, Raul Jardín, Sukitoa Onamau, Tomas Tello.

Following her explorations on music's inherent fixation to geographic space and time, be it through the longing of home ("Apophenia" 2019) or scientific magnification of invisible worlds ("The Life of Insects" 2020), Berlin-based Peruvian-born experimental composer Ale Hop's fourth album, "Why Is It They Say a City Like Any City?", was conceived in a context of immobility. During the lockdown
months, she started a process of remote collaboration, by sending messages, posted from various cities along a South American trip, to thirteen musicians from around the world. She journaled her impressions upon these places to an intimate fictional character while reflecting on matters of time,
sound, space, cosmology and colonial memory. The thirteen musicians dialogued with this voice by taking upon the challenge of responding to the messages with sound collaborations.
Field recordings, mouth drumming, drone cellos, electronic loops, arrhythmic rhythms and voices came back from this experiment. Ale assembled them, by layering, twisting and turning, into sonic vignettes that wonder about location, circularity, rootedness and experience, making it the first time she's set her guitar aside. Expect no answers to the album's title question, but an innermost psychedelic rumination.
"Despite the technological resources that appear to dilute distances, the simulation of closeness mirrored on the digital space is an emptied body, a state of precarity, a flat surface; unable to withhold an experience of exchange," Ale states. "So, I began this project by asking myself, how can we escape from the reduced experience of the virtual? The idea behind this experiment was that my messages and the places they describe could drive the composition, be a catalyzer, a
score. Thus, to use geography as a tool to remember and imagine, to allow new soundscapes to emerge."
"Memory, diffuse and divergent, sometimes reaches out to the future in its search for form, taking shape from the reflections and echoes that come back … like throwing a rock in a pond and having a rock thrown back at you."

In the Spring of 2021 we were finally able to travel outside of 5km from home. To take much needed breaks from being in the city, my colleague and I would drive to the seaside, choosing a new beach, a new town each trip as we were both foreigners in a new city, observers to the landscape. Walking and listening, we would take in the fresh air, the smell of saltwater, the call of gulls, and the drone of the ocean. The field recordings on this album are from two of these seaside trips, recorded between the both of us. To build upon the serene atmosphere that was experienced during this time, I composed music on top of them using synth, guitar, and a portable radio. -- Nicholas Maloney

Al YoungBoy 2, the Billboard-topping, lyrical masterpiece from the still rising, Multi-Platinum rap superstar YoungBoy Never Broke Again and featuring the hit singles ‘Make No Sense’, ‘Self Control’ & ‘Sime Mentality’, is out on vinyl on January 28th 2022.

With 76 total RIAA certifications and over 72.5M certified units under his belt thus far, YoungBoy Never Broke Again is without question among the landmark hip-hop artists of this or any era. 2020 and 2021 have both seen him become America’s #1 most video on demand streamed artist of any genre. His second studio Album, TOP, is officially platinum certified after an explosive debut at #1 on the SoundScan/Billboard 200 upon its September 2020 release. YoungBoy was also last year’s #3 most audio on demand streamed artist industrywide and is currently #5 for 2021 thus far and it serves as a testament to his remarkable talent and versatility, showcasing the Baton Rouge, LA-native’s true heart & soul.