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Whisky soaked, nocturnal, brooding. Aging’s album »Troubles? I Got A Bartender« was a noteworthy, film-noir infused suite that quietly slipped out on cassette in 2015 by a then budding Manchester avant-jazz ensemble, led by David McLean.

In 2020, amidst the pandemic’s tempest and winter's gloom, the idea manifested of showcasing McLean’s slow burning, wistful soirée in a new light via a curated effort by Berlin’s Vaagner label, which invited a series of hand-picked artist to rework selected compositions from the album, rendering its mournful, smoke-tinged resonances into new shapes.

Its result is »Reworks (Rewoven)«, and it presents 6 new interpretations by 5 artists. These range from ruminating, tape smudged ambient works interlaced with sublime acoustic strums by fellow Manchester musicians The Humble Bee and Tape Loop Orchestra, to poignant steel guitar renditions by Nashville based Kelby Clark. Furthermore, Barcelona based Dania and London based Laila Sakini, each present pieces that draw the listener into opaque realms harbored by swooning reverie and eerie, glistening prophecy.

Carefully assembled across two sides of vinyl, McLean’s penchant for hard-boiled detective novels, vintage Japanese crime flicks and film noir iconography have a continued lurking presence in the reworks, yet the new pieces each add a modern facet to the original’s cinematic narrative, its morose and sulky mood now opening into new avenues of interpretation. And whilst some artists have chosen to dive further into the themes of contentious ambivalence and pensive solitude, others have sought to slightly lift the haze, stirring up melodies tinged with a sense of hope, hinting at times, towards instants of poise and vivacity.

In the end this leaves us with a new body of work that manages to feel poignant in its complexity whilst remaining dissonant and elusive in its renditions, hinting at a modern day existence even more opaque, intricate and convoluted than the film noir classics of old might have pictured the world.

We love to just try things at Athens of the North and when Clara and Theo (one of our PR friends) were chilling with us at pikes one evening it came up in conversation that Theo has a lovely singing voice and fancied having a spin in the studio. Roll on a month later, and they were home in Edinburgh, and we threw ourselves into a couple of days of experimenting, this little electro floater we were all super pleased with came out of the session. Tonight is a super late night CR78 drum machine mashed work out with a Theo's floaty falsetto smashing out the park, we flipped the OG with a brilliant dubbed out mix that's not to be slept on either.

Lucy Railton trusts in the nuance of her own creative instincts on an intensely modern, quietly radical new album, her second for Modern Love.

Following her 2018 solo debut »Paradise 94’« and countless collaborations in the time since, Railton’s diverse musical circles here bleed into each other, creating an insoluble testament to a lifelong pursuit of sound. The multi-instrumentalist further articulates her own tonal register, embracing her solo strengths and trusting the process to reveal vulnerable and compelling emotional facets through a fluid mix of composition, and pure expression.

On the simplest level, »Corner Dancer« is a record that revels in the momentum of creation. Through a range of approaches, Railton gradually loosens her grip and allows her identities to expose themselves; cut to the bone, sinew and spirit of music making. Reaching outside tried and tested zones, she lands at a charged space characterised by unmetered pacing and an embrace of imperfection, using cello, viella (a medieval cello), Buchla, 808, a fan, synths, horse hair whips, a hand held harp and her own voice, across 8 tracks that arc from an opening sequence of ruptured asymmetries, to something bordering the sublime on »Blush Study’« the album’s masterful closing flourish.

In between, Railton invokes psychoacoustic, heady spins and repetitions, while also allowing space for live performance, a mode to which she feels most attuned, and here captured best on »Held in Paradise« (her violin debut) and »Rib Cage«.

Collapsing boundaries, Railton harnesses a lifetime of formal training in order to patiently trace more ambiguous, intimate and sometimes deviant shapes, operating to a fuzzed logic that loops back to themes with an ingenious underlying dramaturgy of energies, dismantling the form from the inside out, in a way that bends through feeling, rather than design.

The new the Land Of The Snow album “As Within, So Without” is about what's inside us, how we interact with the outside, and vice versa. Everything we do and experience through our thoughts, our skin, and our actions, constantly influence our inner selves and our surroundings. It’s a constant exchange and confrontation that drives our lives and pushes us to widen our horizons with each step we take.

Fixed Abode labelhead Rainy Miller met Space Afrika through regular nights he runs at Salford’s The White Hotel, a hub for leftfield electronic music. What started out as an idea for a collaborative EP between Rainy and Space Afrika turned into a longer form project, with features from Mica Levi, Coby Sey, Richie Culver, Voice Actor and Iceboy Violet, amongst others. ‘A Grisaille Wedding’ is an immersive experience that fills the space these artists have come to dwell in during their creative journeys. It not only pushes the boundaries of music but also bridges regional dialects within the conversation of contemporary electronic music. Rainy Miller: “‘A Grisaille Wedding’ is a project based in the personification of the semi-fictitious world that Space Afrika have come to build over the years. Using musique concrete and British soundscapes, I wanted to fuse the sonic with both noise and the contemporary.” Space Afrika: “The record’s title figuratively describes the marriage of two similarly motivated perspectives, each affected by a common backdrop and familiar ground tread amongst the scrimmage of urban sprawl, sombre, a boisterous landscape and clouds of uncertainty.” Rainy Miller’s 2022 solo album was included in 6 Music’s Albums Of The Year and Crack Magazine’s Best Albums Of 2022. Following the LP release, Rainy Miller and Space Afrika will be announcing joint UK and EU live shows taking place at the start of 2024. For fans of Actress, Dean Blunt, Lee Gamble, Loraine James

Bruk OG Big Mac returns to the CoOp with a new 3 track E.P for some heavyweight fling foot biznizz. Expect Dub wise heavy Basslines, syncopated drums, crunchy crisp snares n soul claps with hypnotic stabs and electro hooks. immediate bruk floor fillers for the footwork massive. Available at all your usual music emporiums and outlets. Seek and destroy.

First-ever vinyl repress of Sheena Easton’s hit 1983 album.
• Remastered from the original master tapes and pressed
on white coloured vinyl with refreshed artwork including
new inner sleeve.
• Includes the US smash singles ‘Almost Over You’ and
Grammy-nominated ‘Telefone (Long Distance Love
Affair)’ as well as her stunning take on the Dusty
Springfield classic ‘Just One Smile’.
Sheena Easton rocketed to overnight fame in 1980 with the BBC
broadcast of The Big Time - arguably the first pop reality show -
subsequently breaking records with her first two singles ‘Modern
Girl’ and ‘9 To 5’ simultaneously hitting the UK Top Ten. Within
a year, she had topped the US Hot 100 with the renamed
‘Morning Train (Nine To Five)’, recorded the Bond theme ‘For
Your Eyes Only’, released two platinum-selling albums and
become an international sensation.
1983 proved a pivotal year for Sheena as she fully embraced her
burgeoning US stardom following a sell-out US tour, hit TV
specials and regular primetime appearances. ‘Best Kept Secret’
was her first album recorded Stateside. Working with red-hot
producer Greg Mathieson (fresh from holding down the top two
slots with Toni Basil and Laura Branigan) and Grammy-winner
Jay Graydon (Earth Wind & Fire, Dionne WarwickJ) the album
repositioned Easton as a youthful new wave stylist - as capable
of rocking hard on cuts like ‘Devil In A Fast Car’ as she was in
nailing a soaring Streisand-style ballad like the top 5 AC smash
‘Almost Over You.’ Lead single ‘Telefone’ was an out of the box
smash - reinstalling Sheena in the US top 10 pop and establishing
her as heavy rotation MTV star and dance chart regular.
This is the fourth in a series of remastered vinyls of her 1980s
albums, and part of Cherry Red’s on-going reissue campaign of
the star’s EMI catalogue in association with RT Industries.

Repress!

Little Dragon return with a spectacular second album offering in August, a pulsating electro pop epic that Prince would be proud of (only fronted by a beautiful Swedish lady with a sultry voice). A bold and surprising side/two step onwards from their self titled debut, released two years ago to great acclaim especially among specialist circles. Machine Dreams, with its nagging hooks and gloriously infectious tunes, should finally see the band break out into the mainstream.

Recorded in their home city of Gothenburg, Machine Dreams is a gigantic leap on from previous material but still maintains a distinct sound that can only be Little Dragon. Be it Yukimi s warmly inviting vocals, Erik s dextrous drumming, the vast array of synths and bleeps created by Hakan or Frederik s bubbling bass lines, together they don t sound like anything else around right now. The move towards a more electronic sound was a conscious one, as Yukimi explains; The title Machine Dreams seems obvious. These days, humans seem more and more like machines, and as technology evolves, machines feel more human and it becomes fuzzy and beautiful and science fiction-ish. We feel dependent on our machines to create and live, and their sounds reflect us .

Album opener A New breaks us in gently with a single whirring note on the synthesiser, an almost alien sound that gradually morphs into a slow, thumping bassline. Yukimi s vocals flow alongside Hakan s assortment of sound effects interspersed with militaristic drums breaks. A magical opener that sets the scene and seems to sink into itself, taking us with it, until the pace is swiftly ratcheted skywards with Looking Glass , the massive snare, crisp driving beat and experimental synths revealing the band s current penchant for the 80 s. This influence continues apace into stand out track My Step . Utilising a solid drumbeat that nestles next to jagged and playful synthlines, the track breaks down into motorik propulsion with a scuzzy techno bassline that Yukimi works with ease.

Upcoming single Feather finds Yukimi s voice at its most detached and blaze, seemingly nonchalant yet magnificently seductive. Backed by Hakan s keyboard atmospherics, the song creates a soundscape reminiscent of Tears For Fears more reflective moods. Gradually layering more vocals, synths, echoes and reverb, it builds to a quietly psychedelic, dreamy cosmic swirl. Runabout brings forth a mini Airto style percussive breakdown at the tail end of yet another Little Dragon pop gem. Swimming bursts forth into vision with stabbing keys and reflective bass alongside yet another wonderful vocal performance from Yukimi who sings of young love and now so many years have past, my memories as clear as glass . The song is over as quickly as it started, flowing into the next miniature masterpiece in the form of Blinking Pigs

The album closes with the stunning track Fortune , which has already caught the attention of none other than DJ Shadow. It s no wonder really, as the textured melodies blend with the drifting percussion, creating a blissful sonic mood. With a smattering of drums and bass and the magic of Yukimi s voice and Hakan s electronic dynamics floating on top, it s the perfect track to end this fascinating journey through Little Dragon s brave new world.

With disparate influences from Depeche Mode to Prince, LCD Soundsystem to James Holden, Dancehall to R&B, Jazz and Soul, Little Dragon take their place among artists who straddle many genres, yet somehow create their own and in doing so create sounds that make time stop (Yukimi). Futuristic yet somehow retro, Machine Dreams sees Little Dragon achieve something timeless; that elusive pop classic.

EVERIS'S NEW ALBUM FOR THIS CHRISTMAS 2023

Everis has returned this Christmas with yet another Sell Out vinyl that will make your collection the envy of the Soul Music World!

This new offering by the soul legend Everis entitled, Everis - “Songs in The Key of E”. This limited-edition vinyl album is scheduled for a Christmas 2023 release and features some enormous brand-new tracks. This album comprises of two magnificent award-winning singers, two international rappers, from the US & UK, plus one of the UK’s Biggest Sound System Dance MC’s performing on it. This solid Holiday vinyl smash, see’s Everis deliver exciting vocal performances, with a real feel-good factor, over these tough rehashed and fresh sounding beats that are bound to make you wanna get up and dance, there are 8 solid tracks in all.

Grammy Award winning US singing sensation, Shirley Jones of The Jones Girls, best known for her numerous No:1 hit both here and, in the US, has finally jumped on a record with Everis. She last worked with him on her smash solo album entitled “Shirley” many moons ago, and of late as part of the “Soul Syndicate” crew that remixed her ‘Soul Steppin’ track. Now they have come together on a monster track entitled “This I Know - Filly B Mix (featuring Cam Jones)” which is an absolute club banger for sure, an instant underground hit!

The rest of side A called “This Side” has even more really banging tracks, a Club / House Party smasher entitled, “Come Home Tonight” and the coolest sexiest Neo Soul Vibe titled, “Just Say the Word” with Everis giving a spine-tingling vocal performance that would leave the toughest of you feeling weak. The album also features Everis’s last UK Soul Charts No.1 Christmas hit “What You Doing to Me” which totally sold out in just one day, and had Everis’s name and music heard / played everywhere in the UK, and also earned him yet another award. The album is littered with great music from Mr Smooth from start to finish, with Fresh Cuts too, just take a look.

deu Chris Eckman und Carla Torgerson trafen sich 1983, als beide in einer Fischfabrik in Alaska arbeiteten. Beide waren Studenten am Whitman College in Walla Walla im US-Bundesstaat Washington. Chris und seine jüngeren Brüder Grant und Curt hatten bereits in verschiedenen Punk- und Pop-Bands gespielt, Carla war als Straßenmusikerin mit Folk-Songs aufgetreten. 1984 zogen beide nach Seattle, Washington und gründeten die Band The Walkabouts. In den 90er Jahren waren The Walkabouts mehr als nur eine Folkrock-Kultband. Ihre wunderbaren Alben "Devil"s Road" (1996), "Nighttown" (1997) und "Trail Of Stars" (1999) kamen sogar in die deutschen Charts. Anders sah es mit dem US-Duo Chris & Carla aus - obwohl die Musik keinen Deut schwächer war. Dahinter steckten Chris Eckman und Carla Torgerson, die als Walkabouts-Sänger und -Songwriter zeitweise privat ein Paar waren und als Duo auftraten, wenn die Hauptband ihnen Zeit dafür ließ. Das Box-Set enthält 3 Doppel-LPs plus drei CDs, sorgfältig remasterte Vinyl-Versionen der drei Studioalben. "Life Full of Holes" (1995) und "Fly High Brave Dreamers" (2007) und "Swinger 500" (1998) jetzt als Doppel-Vinyl-Set. Alle drei LPs kommen in einer Gatefold-Hülle und das ganze Set wird abgerundet durch eine 16-seitige (LP-große) Broschüre mit vielen unveröffentlichten Bildern und ausführlichen Liner-Notes sowie unveröffentlichten und exklusiven Bonustracks.

EVERGREY läuten mit A Heartless Portrait (The Orphean Testament) eine neue Ära ein! Ein Schleier der Dunkelheit legt sich von Göteborg aus über die Welt: EVERGREY schreiben mit ihrem 13.

Studioalbum A Heartless Portrait (The Orphean Testament), 20. Mai 2022 via Napalm Records, ein neues Kapitel der Bandgeschichte. Klangliche Melancholie und ergreifende Texte gehen einher mit progressiver Härte und brennender Emotionalität und lassen den Hörer sprachlos zurück. Ganz ohne Zweifel zementieren
EVERGREY erneut ihren Stand an der Spitze der Szene eindrucksvoller als je zuvor!

Angeführt von Gründer, Sänger und Gitarrist Tom S. Englund, loten die Schweden seit 25 Jahren die Gefilde des Progressive Metal aus, kombinieren diese mit schwerem Melodic Metal und malen so mit bis dato zwölf veröffentlichten Studioalben unverkennbare Klangbilder. A Heartless Portrait (The Orphean Testament), der Nachfolger des erfolgreichen 2021er-Albums Escape of the Phoenix, ist eine 10-Track-Melange, bei der jede Note, jedes Riff und jedes Wort pure Poesie versprüht und eine Intensität erzeugt, die von der ersten Sekunde an fesselt. Tosende instrumentale Kräfte verweben EVERGREY mit der tiefgehenden Gesangsdarbietung von Mastermind Englund - einer der markantesten Stimmen im Metal.

A Heartless Portrait (The Orphean Testament) ist der Beweis, dass EVERGREY müssen niemandem mehr etwas beweisen, zeigen aber dennoch eindrucksvoll, dass der Kreativität auch nach über 25 Jahren keine Grenzen gesetzt sind.

ME LOST ME led by Newcastle-based artist Jayne Dent announces a new album RPG via Upset The Rhythm on 7th July, and is touring across the UK including support dates with Pigs x7. RPG (recorded in Blank Studios with Sam Grant of Pigs x7) is ME LOST ME’s fourth outing as a collective, having transitioned from an ambitious solo project in 2017, Jayne now regularly collaborating with acclaimed North-East jazz musicians Faye MacCalman and John Pope.
ME LOST ME delights in experimenting with songwriting and storytelling, creating a beguiling mix of soaring vocals and atmospheric electronics that playfully weave together disparate genres, drawing influence from folk, art pop, noise, ambient and improvised music. Hauntological in part, RPG is concerned with tales and with time - are we running out of it? Does insomnia cause a time loop? Do the pressures of masculinity prevent progress? Jayne Dent asks these questions and more on RPG, her homage to worldbuilding and the story as an artform, calling back to those oral traditions around a campfire, as well as modern day video games - bringing folk music into the present day as she does so.
ME LOST ME presents sound reaching in opposite directions, straddling time towards the archaic and timeless traditions of folktales, and towards the possible and potential futures of pastoral Britain and the world at large. Part speculation, part reminiscence, what results on the new album RPG is music that sounds ultimately displaced and yet omnipresent, adjacent to a hapless Vonnegut hero whose life is scattered throughout time and history, but full of wonder and curiosity rather than fear.
On track “The Oldest Trees Hold The Earth”, we see time stretched out between the branches of impossibly old beings in the woods. This track was co-written in Aarhus, Denmark with fellow Newcastle folk musician (with Danish heritage) Ditte Elly. The pair wordlessly passed a sheet of paper between each other to write the lyrics, inspired by Højbjerg and Mosegård, the woods they were sitting in. “How long should I wait/Before the moss grows?/On my skin, on my outstretched arms,” the lyrics are sung in a round, the close harmonies delicate and detailed.

A central thesis of this album is the joy of creation, something which is paid homage to in the album’s final track, “Science And Art” (Not because we need it to last/just because we needed to make it - so we invented the words/this language). It is also reflected in the definition that Jayne gives for “folk” itself. She comments, “To me, folk is quite an expansive idea. I think of it as creative work that's often made ad-hoc, with things that are at hand and more often than not it's born of a DIY ethos. It is songs and stories of the people, as in the traditional sense, but also creative coding, game design etc. Whatever outlet someone has for their creative expression could be described as folk. It's the things we make because humans need to make things, and the stories we tell about ourselves and the world around us.”
Crucially, on latest album RPG, Dent expands her songwriting and looks towards the unreal locations of worldbuilding in video games for inspiration. She comments, “I think the main similarity is the importance of a song's setting/environment to inform its narrative and textures, I'm often most inspired when out walking in the natural landscape, in cities and travelling to places I've never been before - the environment I'm in really impacts the work I make. While writing this album, however, I found myself inspired by imaginary landscapes, those in video games, paintings, etc. I was writing stories into these unreal locations instead. Even the songs inspired by real places, like The Oldest Trees Hold the Earth, have a very surreal quality to them in the songs, like they're being warped and turned into something not of this world. I think that's the main difference for me in terms of the thematic content and inspiration behind this album - I've been getting more and more interested in balancing surreal and fantastical environmental elements with ordinary and everyday settings.”
RPG upends the concept of the eternal return - we may be in the midst of inevitable repetition, but we tell stories whilst awaiting the passage of time.
"Being familiar with, and a fan of Jayne's earlier work, it was great to get the opportunity to work with her on the production of her new record. I had in mind a sense of what the record might be, but what came of the sessions, led by the vision Jayne had for the record, totally exceeded my expectations. As far as albums go, it has a breadth of writing and a sonic depth that made it a truly brilliant record. Having Jayne join us on a leg of the Pigs x7 tour in April is going to be ace. The creative nature, the sincerity and bold strokes of ME LOST ME put it in that space outside of any genre pigeonholes, and between our two sets I imagine the audience is going to have a proper sonic bath..."
Sam Grant, Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs, 2023
“The music of Me Lost Me is beguiling, idiosyncratic and cinematic - or should that be video-game-omatic? This suite of songscapes often hits the sweet spot between ancient and modern with its masterful blend of stark folk, neon electronic burbling and unusual arrangements. Jayne's singing is refreshingly straightforward and nuanced - it's exquisite! - and perfectly punctures the nebulae of synths and brass which billow around the old wooden frames of the songs. Whilst listening I had images in my mind of what Northumberland might look like through the eyes of Simon Stalenhag - foggy moors, a robot looking across the sea to Lindisfarne, twinkling lights on metal towers.... that sort of thing. It's a really great album.”
Richard Dawson, 2023

A limited edition of 300 copies of this 1985 masterpiece, remastered and presented in a renewed artwork. Berlin School synth sequences, American minimalism vibes, new age and oriental influences, guitar-synthesizers, genius arrangements... A masterpiece exploring the emerging MIDI technology of the time. A transportive selection of calming ambient soundscapes punctuated by glassy synth work and meditative drum patterns.

Acclaimed by many, Steve Roach himself said: »I heard Traces on vinyl back in the early 80s. It is still one of my top 10 albums. There is just an elegant, efficient, and emotional quality about it that just holds up like it was created today. A truly timeless piece of beauty.«

Recalling the »Traces« times, Wøllo explained: »I quit all the bands I played in. I wanted to work on my own using the modern electronic studio as an instrument, like a painter with his oil canvasses. I wanted to make a music that had expansive synthesizer textures and sequencer patterns, layered together with expressive melodic electric guitars. Working with depth, time and space. In those years in the early eighties the studio technology was new and revolutionary, and I wanted to explore all the new possibilities. To be able to control the infinite variations of electronic sound, using an endless palette for creative expression«.

Finally, a YouTube comment about the record that we enjoyed: »This sounds like vaporwave before vaporwave had anything to be nostalgic over«.

Limitierte creme(weiß)farbene Vinyl-LP! Seit 30 Jahren fliegen die STAGE BOTTLES nun unter dem Radar der Mainstream-Medien, sind aber in ihrer Szene längst eine feste Größe und international erfolgreich. Sie haben sieben Alben veröffentlicht, spielen weltweit live, haben mit unzähligen Bands zusammen gepunktrockt und dabei immer Haltung bewiesen. Jetzt kommt nach zehn Jahren mit "We Need Each Other" wieder ein neues Album. STAGE BOTTLES gründete sich 1993 aus einem engen Freundeskreis der antifaschistischen Skinhead-Szene. Musikalisch prägt das Saxophon den klassisch melodiös-aggressiven Punkrock, der sich stark klassischen englischen Vorbildern orientiert. Textlich liegt der Fokus klar im Aufruf zum aktiven Antifaschismus und zu einer gesellschaftskritischen und antikapitalistischen Haltung. Eine ausgeprägte Affinität zum Fußball und zu subkulturellen Themen erfolgt auf oft auch für den Punkrock nicht konventionelle und sehr offene Art und Weise. Die größten Hits der Stage Bottles sind "Sometimes Anti-Social, But Always Anti-fascist" und "Dead but not forgiven" sowie ,Russia", "All you need is hate", "Too young to die", "Come together", ,One world one crew" und der Song "Solidarity" (angelehnt an die Version der Band Angelic Upstarts"). Am 1.Dezember 2023 wird das neue Studioalbum erscheinen, zeitgleich feiert die Band ihr 30jähriges Bestehen. Seid bereit für weitere Punkrock-Hymnen wie Useless Idiots, Power-Psycho, You'll Never Stop Us (zusammen mit MOSCOW DEATH BRIGADE), She Hates The City sowie dem Titeltrack und erster Single! "We Need Each Other" soll durchaus keine Floskel sein, sondern die grundlegende Parole für das Album. "Ein Lied über Freundschaft, das Älterwerden, das Altwerden mit Menschen, die seit Jahrzehnten mit einem zusammen sind. Daneben soll es aber auch einen Hinweis auf globale Probleme geben. Wenn wir nicht versuchen, die Dinge gemeinsam zu lösen, werden wir nicht genug Kraft haben, um erfolgreich zu sein" so Olaf Rüger, Sänger, Frontmann und Kopf der Band. Aktueller kann ein Titel wohl heutzutage kaum sein, die STAGE BOTTLES sind zurück und sagen, was Sache ist. Aufklappbare Digisleeve-CD mit 16seitigem Booklet, Vinyl-LP mit bedruckter Innenhülle plus 4seitigem-12"-Booklet.

Seit 30 Jahren fliegen die STAGE BOTTLES nun unter dem Radar der Mainstream-Medien, sind aber in ihrer Szene längst eine feste Größe und international erfolgreich. Sie haben sieben Alben veröffentlicht, spielen weltweit live, haben mit unzähligen Bands zusammen gepunktrockt und dabei immer Haltung bewiesen. Jetzt kommt nach zehn Jahren mit "We Need Each Other" wieder ein neues Album. STAGE BOTTLES gründete sich 1993 aus einem engen Freundeskreis der antifaschistischen Skinhead-Szene. Musikalisch prägt das Saxophon den klassisch melodiös-aggressiven Punkrock, der sich stark klassischen englischen Vorbildern orientiert. Textlich liegt der Fokus klar im Aufruf zum aktiven Antifaschismus und zu einer gesellschaftskritischen und antikapitalistischen Haltung. Eine ausgeprägte Affinität zum Fußball und zu subkulturellen Themen erfolgt auf oft auch für den Punkrock nicht konventionelle und sehr offene Art und Weise. Die größten Hits der Stage Bottles sind "Sometimes Anti-Social, But Always Anti-fascist" und "Dead but not forgiven" sowie ,Russia", "All you need is hate", "Too young to die", "Come together", ,One world one crew" und der Song "Solidarity" (angelehnt an die Version der Band Angelic Upstarts"). Am 1.Dezember 2023 wird das neue Studioalbum erscheinen, zeitgleich feiert die Band ihr 30jähriges Bestehen. Seid bereit für weitere Punkrock-Hymnen wie Useless Idiots, Power-Psycho, You'll Never Stop Us (zusammen mit MOSCOW DEATH BRIGADE), She Hates The City sowie dem Titeltrack und erster Single! "We Need Each Other" soll durchaus keine Floskel sein, sondern die grundlegende Parole für das Album. "Ein Lied über Freundschaft, das Älterwerden, das Altwerden mit Menschen, die seit Jahrzehnten mit einem zusammen sind. Daneben soll es aber auch einen Hinweis auf globale Probleme geben. Wenn wir nicht versuchen, die Dinge gemeinsam zu lösen, werden wir nicht genug Kraft haben, um erfolgreich zu sein" so Olaf Rüger, Sänger, Frontmann und Kopf der Band. Aktueller kann ein Titel wohl heutzutage kaum sein, die STAGE BOTTLES sind zurück und sagen, was Sache ist. Aufklappbare Digisleeve-CD mit 16seitigem Booklet, klassisch schwarze Vinyl-LP mit bedruckter Innenhülle plus 4seitigem-12"-Booklet.

João Almeida (trumpet) and Pedro Melo Alves (drums), two of the most creative and prolific Portuguese jazz musicians of their generation, are MOORIS. Recorded in May 2021, right after the second lockdown in Portugal, “I” shows them freely exploring their instruments of choice but also finding and creating sound with “objects”, as they describe.

Both musicians leave behind familiar ground and use their instruments to create sounds that appear ceremonial or even manifest themselves as rituals. “+” sets the tone, dark, sparse and haunting, and the next four tracks (all on the "positive" side, with “+” added to each title) make use of the freedom proposed by this experiment with the uncanny. The “objects” start appearing, creating movement, confusion and dancing around different genres, from dark metal to industrial.

Flashes of jazz can be heard throughout, particularly on the B side (the "negative" side), with all tracks following the same conceptual logic as the A Side (“-”, “- -”, etc.). The atmosphere is clearer here. João’s trumpet ascends to a new level and creates new concepts in the fourth world realm. In a matter of seconds, it shifts naturally to somewhere else, the dense/dark atmosphere experienced on the A side becomes a distant memory and we are now flowing with the sounds, not trapped in them. A beautiful release after a tense/intense beginning.

After spending the last year constantly listening to “I”, MOORIS' debut still sounds brutal and unforgiving. A rare breed.

Repress!
It's always great to have access to quality masters from some of the world's greatest-ever artists and Gladys Knight hits that spot, especially via the original 12 inch version of Love Is Always On My Mind is another one of those impossible rare Buddah 12 inch from the mid-70s.

This is really a 10 minute plus tour-de-force of relentless Disco with Gladys's impassioned vocals doing their usual superlative job. Mint 12 inch copies are reputedly worth £200 but the fact is that there's no mint original ones left anymore. Until now. Additionally we've cheated slightly by including one of Gladys Knight & The Pips in-demand Columbia recordings on the flip - the Ashford & Simpson penned classic Bourgie Bourgie on which Gladys laid down the definitive vocal to this club classic on the full 4.37 original 12 inch mix.

Two definitive dance-floor gems on one 180 gram 12 inch pressing mastered from the original tapes. What more could you want

2023 REPRESS - Rare Brazilian Bossa Nova - Latin album - Comes with insert/liner notes & packaged in a gatefold jacket - 180g TANGERINE COLORED vinyl limited to 500 copies w/obi strip // Marcos Valle needs little introduction, born in Rio de Janeiro in 1943, Mr. Valle is an award-winning/chart-hitting Brazilian singer, songwriter and record producer. He was raised on a staple diet of classical, Brazilian popular music and North American jazz. Marcos Valle grew up to be one of the most influential & innovating musicians of the Bossa nova period and is regarded as one of the greatest Brazilian artists of all time. He has recorded albums for North American labels such as EMI, Warner Brothers & Verve_cementing his career with a series of tight musical workouts moving seamlessly between funk, samba, soundtracks, soul, jazz, dance and rock. Valle contributed to some of the most important recordings by artists including Sarah Vaughan, Frank Sinatra, Sergio Mendes, Leon Ware, Chicago and Airto Moreira. Mr. Valle's work has been sampled/remixed by major artists from the likes of Jay-Z, Kanye West & Madlib.One of Valle's favorite bands to frequently collaborate with was no doubt Azymuth, who took their name from a Valle song!Azymuth (Bertrami-Malheiros-Conti) started their individual careers in the 1960s in the emergent Bossa nova and jazz scene of Rio, living in the same bohemian block in Copacabana and playing in small bars as session musicians under various other names.It was the early 1970s when Azymuth really began to cause a stir and Marcos Valle invited them to record on a soundtrack LP he was doing. The unique Azymuth sound was now born: a mix of electronic music, samba, funk and jazz that they defined as MPB-jazz (MPB stands for Musica Popular Brasileira). Over the decades Azymuth released extremely successful albums (selling millions of copies) on labels such as Polydor, Som Livre and Atlantic. Hitting the charts on multiple occasions, Azymuth played at the Monterrey and Montreux jazz festivals and at venues around the globe.The band has worked with legendary musicians from Joe Henderson to Stevie Wonder and they've also been remixed/sampled by artists such as Flying Lotus, will.i.am, MF DOOM and Peanut Butter Wolf. Their unique brand of fusion-music has influenced three generations of musicians, DJs, and producers. Music journalists across the spectrum from mainstream to underground, celebrated these raw yet wildly imaginative and musically accomplished tracks that were a revelation of jazz, funk and disco, with some even stating that the roots of EDM were on display in their early recordings.On the album we are presenting you (Brazil by Music - Fly Cruzeiro) the listener is getting yet another fantastic early Valle/Azymuth collaboration. Released in 1972, this rare album was pressed and gifted to customers of the `Cruzeiro' airline company. This promotional record came as no surprise because the connection between Cruzeiro Airlines and Valle was very tight (Valle's father was the manager and his brother was a co-pilot there).Next to the Valle/Azymuth material present, other songs include some of the all-time best Brazilian standards originally written by renowned artists such as Jorge Ben & Antonio Carlos Jobim. Take a flight with us through this fantastic album and into some of the best Jazz, Funk & Bossa Nova the Brazilian musical landscape has to offer.Tidal Waves Music now proudly presents the first ever vinyl reissue of `Fly Cruzeiro' since its release in 1972 (only 500 copies were pressed upon its original release in 1972).

Plastic-free disc production: Under the Waves OST vinyl is the first of its kind Biovinyl, with all petroleum in S-PVC replaced by recycling used cooking oil or industrial waste gasses. Plus this vinyl comes in a nice transparent green color called "petrol"

Eco-friendly packaging: this 2xLP gatefold packaging is made of 100% recycled paper and cardboard, and printed with sustainable inks made from plant oils.

Eco-friendly design: we set up a minimalist approach throughout the whole design to save the use of paper and ink: no printed booklet, no large plain-colored full-surfaces, only 1 color used.

Under the Waves OST is a 21-track piece of art composed by Nicolas Bredin, influenced by Icelandic composers such as Valgeir Sigurdsson and Ólafur Arnalds, as well as post-rock bands like Mogwai, Sigur Ros and Radiohead. Released by Kid Katana Records, it had to be consistent with the game’s ecological commitment, especially when talking about a physical edition. That’s why Kid Katana has found the most eco-friendly solution: this OST vinyl will be manufactured in Germany using the brand new Biovinyl process developed by one of the leading manufacturers in Europe, Optimal Media.

DINGGGDONGGGDINGGGzzzzzzz!!!!!!! In the newest record by the iconoclastic Brooklyn-born composer Charlemagne Palestine (b. 1947), find two mesmerizing works for carillon, the keyboard-controlled bell tower derived in the 16th century. On side A, a new piece recorded at the artist's studio in Belgium_a high-ceiling, stuffed-animal-packed paradise he calls Charleworld_among friends and "divinities," his name for the thousands of plush toys he's amassed since the '60s. On the flip side, Blank Forms Editions' very first and long out-of-print release appears on vinyl for the first time: a cathartic street recording of the minimalist composer's 2018 musical eulogy for his late friend Tony Conrad, performed on the bells of St. Thomas Episcopal Church where the two first met. Two mesmerizing "klanggdedangggebannggg" sessions in the Quasimodo of 53rd Street's unmistakable improvisatory style. Perhaps more than any of his contemporaries in the bustling, cross-disciplinary downtown New York arts scene of the '60s and '70s, Charlemagne Palestine has embodied the notion of the artist as playful polymath, testing and transcending nearly every creative form imaginable in his more than six-decade career. Originally trained in Jewish sacred singing to be a cantor, he began his artistic life as a musician, studying piano and accordion, accompanying figures like Tiny Tim and Allen Ginsburg on percussion, using early synthesizers as an assistant to Alwin Nikolais, and eventually landing a long-running gig as the carillonneur at Midtown's St. Thomas Episocal. This libertine spirit of experimentation soon led to adventures in other aesthetic arenas: making kinetic light sculptures with Len Lye, devising choreographed performances with Simone Forti, and producing over a dozen visceral videotapes with the Castelli Gallery. In the '70s, he was particularly prominent on the burgeoning loft movement, becoming well-known for his sparse, intense, and exacting long-form piano concerts, that seemed to bend the very nature of time and space. Beginning in the '80s, he spent decades in self-imposed exile from the new music scene, absconding to a palace in Europe and privately honing his hermetic sonic and visual practice, until his resurgence among record fanatics in the mid-'90s.

Two years after his debut album under the moniker Aboukir, Ralph Maruani returns with a new record titled “Change”. Fitting title for a record that was written and recorded during a period of great turmoil in his life. The intimacy of these songs are reflected in the music itself.

Whereas “Digital Introversion” was floating in a sea of psychedelic infused echoes and reverb, “Change” is much more stripped down, sporting a singer-songwriter ethos. The album was recorded between December 2022 and March 2023 in Paris, France almost entirely by Maruani except for the drums which were recorded by Louis McGuire in Berlin, Germany and pedal steel by Reggie Duncan in Mississippi, USA.

The album opener “Alright” is an upbeat number with guitars reminiscent of John Fogerty’s Creedence Clearwater Revival, Strawberry Fields inspired Mellotron and Stereolab aesthetic on the outro, assuring that whatever may come next, everything will be alright. Then followed by “Release” the track that makes a direct link with “Digital introversion”, an 8 minutes Floydesque hazy jam. “Rolling on” shows a different side to Aboukir’s music as it opens up to folk/country accents in a 1970s singer-songwriter vibe. “Croz” is Maruani’s immediate reaction to David Crosby’s passing. A tribute to one of his lifelong influence and inspiration.

The album then unveils itself going back and forth between more stripped down tunes and psychedelic ones, eventually reaching its climax with “Changes”.

Erstmals auf Vinyl: Das zweite Album UNION (2009) der britischen Indie-Rock-Band The Boxer Rebellion mit der Single 'Evacuate', das My Morning Jacket von Platz 1 der US-Alternative-Alben bei iTunes verdrängte und zum ersten Album einer Band ohne Vertrag wurde, das nur als digitale Veröffentlichung in die Billboard Top 100 Album-Charts einstieg. Limitierte, remasterte Auflage auf bronzefarbigem Vinyl.

Some Songs Of A Dumb World

'The light at sunset is mysteriously pinkish.'

After Trip Trap, TRIP's sub-label GALAXIID releases the debut album by the Species Of Fishes duo. The record, originally released by the Dutch experimental label Korm Plastics in 1994, has influenced two generations of post-Soviet musicians. 'Some Songs of a Dumb World' is like a quest that you can either take up or appreciate as a mosaic of different music styles.

Igor Kolyadny and Vitaly Stern initially worked separately but later shared ideas during home sessions to build their own psychedelic world. They used a large number of cassette samples, including the voices of physicists, paranormal researchers, astronomers, and wildlife TV show hosts, combining them with pulsating rhythms inspired by various electronic music genres. The result, as the duo
described it in an Inverted Audio interview), is 'a sort of alienated, extraterrestrial, studying view on the sound component of human activity.'

For the very first time, the tracks from the debut album by Species Of Fishes are now available on vinyl. The double LP reissue with the refreshed version of the original artwork includes the original tracks, mixed between 1993 and 1994, but re-edited and remastered by Igor Kolyadny in 2021. Two tracks were released on the lesser-known follow-up 'Songs of a Dumb World Part 2', while "Salmon Hunting/Kaluga-Mars" is being released for the first time.

Reissue des 2018er Debütalbums von Hot Mulligan, eine der vielseitigsten und zutiefst bewegenden Bands des US-Emo-Undergrounds, deren Musik ein kathartischer Aufschrei nach Wachstum einer Generation zukunftsorientierter Mittelwestler ist, die - in den Getrieben eines verrosteten Systems gefangen - verzweifelt nach Hoffnung suchen.

Reissue der 2020er, einseitig mit 5 Tracks bespielten EP von Hot Mulligan, eine der vielseitigsten und zutiefst bewegenden Bands des US-Emo-Undergrounds. Erstmals auf orangefarbigem Vinyl.

NOW Music is proud to present the second in our ongoing series of vinyl compilations, NOW That’s What I Call 80s Dancefloor. Each edition features an essential collection of tracks representing key genres from the incredible diversity that were all part of 1980’s Dance music.

This volume, featuring 29 tracks across 2-LPs, pressed on 1 Purple and 1 Pink vinyl, presents the best in DISCO and ELECTRO.

Following the height of its’ popularity in the late 1970s, Disco in the early 1980s retained the irresistible melodies and beat but became primarily synth driven. The era saw some of the genres’ biggest hits including this collections’ opener ‘Flashdance…What A Feeling’ from Irene Cara – this theme from the film ‘Flashdance’ was not only a massive selling single, but the song also won multiple awards including an Academy Award. Lipps Inc. produced a timeless hit with ‘Funkytown’, and Shalamar with ‘A Night To Remember’, Odyssey with ‘Use It Up And Wear It Out’ and Indeep’s ‘Last Night A DJ Saved My Life’ were all huge commercial Disco hits.

Disco royalty Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards of Chic feature here in their roles as producers and writers with Diana Ross’s massive hit ‘Upside Down’, ‘Why’ from Carly Simon, and the peerless ‘Spacer’ from Sheila & B. Devotion and in 1984 remixed Sister Sledge’s ‘Lost In Music’ which became a massive hit again and is included here in its full 12” version.



Amii Stewart’s classic version of ‘Knock On Wood’ was remixed and a hit again, Donna Summer enjoyed huge success with ‘She Works Hard For The Money’, and other established Disco superstars celebrated returns to the charts with an 80’s Disco sound including, and featured on this collection, KC & The Sunshine Band, Patrick Cowley feat. Sylvester and Evelyn “Champagne” King.



The prevalence of the synth in the 1980s gave rise to new and exciting sounds and to tracks that were created with fusions of genres. On this collection we are celebrating ‘ELECTRO’ – a sub-genre of Electronic Dance music that combined elements of Disco, Funk and Hip-Hop and featuring a heavy synth backing, and the commercial Electro-Pop hits it produced. In 1984, Chaka Khan who had achieved huge success with the Disco classic ‘I’m Every Woman’, had a worldwide smash with a cover of Prince’s ‘I Feel For You’ which combined Disco, Funk, R&B, Synth-Pop and Hip-Hop – to stunning effect. Also a hit in 1984, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis produced a classic fusion of Disco, R&B, Funk and Synth-Pop for the S.O.S Band with ‘Just Be Good To Me’ and also included here are hugely influential Electro-Pop gems from Freeez, Rockers Revenge feat. Donnie Calvin, Malcolm McLaren, Break Machine, and Rock Steady Crew.



In the latter half of the 80s, Disco and Electro-Pop continued to evolve and fill dance-floors. Taking influences from both genres, Expose and Company B enjoyed ‘freestyle’ hits and DJ, remixer and producer Jellybean had a string of hits including ‘Just A Mirage’, and Whitney Houston became a global superstar. One of her signature tracks ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)’ serves as a stellar example of how Dance music had evolved through the decade and remained as vital and uplifting as ever.

Um die neuseeländische Reggae-Superstars L.A.B. in Europa vorzustellen, veröffentlicht das Loop-Label ein Best-Of der ersten 5 Alben der Band als exklusiven 10-Track-Vinyl-Sampler.

Circular patterns morphing through time, loop and ritual form the fabric of Proserpine, the latest work by Leeds-based musician, Teresa Winter. Recorded from a summer to a winter through 2021 and 2022, Proserpine is Winter's most cohesive, focused music to date: confidently revelling in space, fixating on isolated sounds and giving way to satisfying, swirling waves of vocal and electronic buzz. Proserpine is Teresa Winter's debut recording for Glasgow-based label, Night School.

On Proserpine, musical patterns revolve and intersect with each other, transmogrifying the music's narrative. Over-arching themes emerge: continual change, elusiveness. Insubstantiality emerges into concrete reality in the form of recognisable field recordings: the purring of a pet cat, the hum of a live cable. The loops and patterns are sometimes just out of sight, the click and whirl on Child Of Nature is the backdrop to hymnal vocalisations by Winter, who intones spell-like text in conversation with herself. On opener Circles, Winter's vocal is pre-linguistic, detached syllables falling into flowing streams, before Plume's field recordings seem to juxtapose nocturnal and diurnal wildlife. "You said I was a Flower Of The Mountain" sings Winter, as James Joyce's Molly Bloom does but the carpe diem desire in Ulysses is dissipated here, spread out by gauzy, droning organs. Here desire is blown up and out, changed into something undefinable but no less powerful.

Change is at the heart of the album. The Roman goddess Proserpine, herself a reimagined version of the earlier Greek goddess Persephone, is always between: between summer and winter, the land of the living and the underworld, constantly emerging into new states of being. It's a fitting metaphor for Winter's work. Like an Apple feels like it soundtracks this in-between state, long, trailing reverb smudging synth keys and Winter's achingly beautiful vocal performance. The effect is stirring but flitting in and out of perception, sometimes Winter's presence feels of this world, of musical instruments and practises and at others it feels like the music is about to phase into a different plane, a different universe.

While Proserpine references the myths and cults of the classical, pre-Christian era, Winter's restless preoccupation with the mechanics of religion informs the album in other ways. Ritual is present through out, either in the mantra-like vocalisations or even the private rituals we are invited to witness: on Fireworks the listener eave drops into the protagonist's private bonfire. On the stunning Lamento, layers of Choral vocal interlock in celestial patterns that recall catholic mass: it's an overt effect that simulates the ecstasy of religious fervour and also reminds the listener of the use of vocal that runs through Proserpine. Winter's vocals often echo with the euphoria of obliteration, of disintegrating in an awful bliss. It's an effect achieved with finality by the closer New Water as the piece begins with voice before burning up in the atmosphere of elegiac violins and enveloping undertows of whirring synth patterns and ghostly pads. Proserpine is forever turning, changing, always elusive and quietly revelatory.

Recorded Live in Italy in October 1985 and mastered directly from the old dusty cassette, here's a previously unheard Steve Lacy recording from a rare duo appearance with pianist Martin Joseph, a little known yet fascinating British musician who had worked with Harry Beckett, John Surman, Ian Carr, Tubby Hayes among others, and who later became a regular presence on the Rome mid 70's creative Jazz scene. This recording gives us an opportunity to listen to the soprano sax giant in a repertoire not frequently found on his other duo recordings with pianists. The set list includes some of Lacy's finest compositions like "Prospectus", "Flakes" and "Coastline", plus Thelonious Monk’s classic "Bemsha Swing" a tribute to Monk's visionary mastery where Joseph’s contrapuntal response to Lacy's angular lines leads the music towards a multidimensional space, a quality to be found throughout the whole album, This is a wonderful discovery! and a significant addition to Lacy's discography and legacy.

Contains printed inner sleeve with archival photos and extensive liner notes by two Italian soprano saxophone specialists Roberto Ottaviano and Eugenio Colombo, and pianist Martin Joseph himself.

Brachiales Drumming, ein massiv drückendes Basslick und kreischende Gitarren - so eröffnet der heißeste Postpunk-Newcomer vom Monte Scherbelino - dem Trümmerberg aus dem 2. Weltkrieg auf dem Birkenkopf Stuttgarts - sein unverschämt souveränes Debütalbum "Scherbenhügel". Die 2021 gegründeten BERLIN 2.0, um die mit ihrer sonoren Stimme gesegneten Ausnahme-Vokalistin Elena Wolf, liefern damit ein absolutes Highlight ab, unter dessen waviger Oberfläche immer eine nicht von der Hand zu weisende, rohe Punkrockbasis lauert, die sich natürlich auch in den exzellenten deutschsprachigen Lyrics niederschlägt. Hardcore-Versatzstücke vermengen sich mit dem Einfluss von US Deathrock, bergen aber eben auch diese herrliche Pop-Affinität, die die 10 Stücke von "Scherbenhügel" gleichsam so fordernd und fragil wie dringlich und emotional wirken lassen. Zwar erwachen durchaus wohlige Erinnerungen an Bands wie Xmal Deutschland, II. Invasion, EA 80, Hysterese oder die Terrible Feelings, BERLIN 2.0 definieren auf "Scherbenhügel" aber meisterhaft ihren ganz eigenen wehmütig-desillusionierten Sound, der einen sofort einfängt und einfach nicht mehr los lässt.

Die Symphonic Metal-Piraten VISIONS OF ATLANTIS begeben sich erneut auf hohe See! Nachdem sie sich auf ihrem letzten Studioalbum Pirates so selbstbewusst wie nie zuvor präsentiert hatten und damit die Top 20 der deutschen Albumcharts erreicht haben, folgte im Frühjahr ihr fulminantes drittes LiveAlbum Pirates Over Wacken sowie ausgiebige Tourneen durch die USA und Europa. Aber nun gönnt sich das internationale Quintett keine Pause, sondern veröffentlicht am 1.

Dezember 2023 eine exklusive rein orchestrale Version ihres Erfolgalbums Pirates, das unter dem Titel A Pirate’s Symphony über Napalm Records erscheinen wird. Die Band lädt die Zuhörer ein, mit ihnen auf eine Reise durch faszinierende Klanglandschaften zu gehen, aber dieses Mal ohne Gesang, ohne Schlagzeug und sogar ohne Gitarren.

Das Quintett lässt die symphonische Schönheit der Musik für sich selbst sprechen und präsentiert damit erneut eine andere Seite der Band, die stark an Filmmusik erinnert. Die exzellenten Orchestrierungen wurden sorgfältig von Lukas Knoebel erstellt und können nun ganz für sich selbst stehen.

deu Chris & Carlas" "Life Full of Holes" präsentiert eine breite Palette an Gastmusiker*innen, die ein stimmungsvolles Album schaffen, das den Walkabouts in nichts nachsteht. Zu den Gästen gehören unter anderem Peter Buck von R.E.M. und die Tindersticks. Musikalisch ist alles dabei, von barocken europäischen Folk-Tunes bis hin zu avantgardistischem Noise. Es gibt fast zu viele Highlights, um eins herauszupicken. Jetzt als Doppel-Vinyl erhältlich

Spock's Beard, an American progressive rock band formed in Los Angeles, plays a brand of progressive rock with pop music leanings, drawing much influence from Yes, Genesis and Gentle Giant. The band is known for their intricate, multi-part vocal harmonies and use of counterpoint vocals.

The band was formed in 1992 by brothers Neal (lead vocals, keyboards) and Alan Morse (vocals, guitars), John Ballard (bass) and Nick D'Virgilio (drums). Brief Nocturnes and Dreamless Sleep is the eleventh studio album and was released on April 2, 2013.

It is their first album with singer Ted Leonard and drummer Jimmy Keegan in place of Nick D'Virgilio, while former member Neal Morse co-wrote two tracks, including "Waiting for Me", on which he plays guitar. The album has received positive reviews from music critics and has continued the return to progressive rock shown in its predecessors Spock's Beard and X

Spock's Beard, an American progressive rock band formed in Los Angeles, plays a brand of progressive rock with pop music leanings, drawing much influence from Yes, Genesis and Gentle Giant. The band is known for their intricate, multi-part vocal harmonies and use of counterpoint vocals.

The band was formed in 1992 by brothers Neal (lead vocals, keyboards) and Alan Morse (vocals, guitars), John Ballard (bass) and Nick D'Virgilio (drums). Brief Nocturnes and Dreamless Sleep is the eleventh studio album and was released on April 2, 2013.

It is their first album with singer Ted Leonard and drummer Jimmy Keegan in place of Nick D'Virgilio, while former member Neal Morse co-wrote two tracks, including "Waiting for Me", on which he plays guitar. The album has received positive reviews from music critics and has continued the return to progressive rock shown in its predecessors Spock's Beard and X

Spock's Beard, an American progressive rock band formed in Los Angeles, plays a brand of progressive rock with pop music leanings, drawing much influence from Yes, Genesis and Gentle Giant. The band is known for their intricate, multi-part vocal harmonies and use of counterpoint vocals.

The band was formed in 1992 by brothers Neal (lead vocals, keyboards) and Alan Morse (vocals, guitars), John Ballard (bass) and Nick D'Virgilio (drums). Brief Nocturnes and Dreamless Sleep is the eleventh studio album and was released on April 2, 2013.

It is their first album with singer Ted Leonard and drummer Jimmy Keegan in place of Nick D'Virgilio, while former member Neal Morse co-wrote two tracks, including "Waiting for Me", on which he plays guitar. The album has received positive reviews from music critics and has continued the return to progressive rock shown in its predecessors Spock's Beard and X

"After releasing EPs like 2018’s Stereo and 2019’s Friends, as well as the full-length Ivory album, fans have been keeping track of Omar Apollo’s growth as a person and musician over the years. On December 1st, 2023, the Grammy-nominated singer released his latest body of work, a new EP titled Live For Me. Altogether, Live For Me has been transcribed as a “transitional” era for Apollo’s music. The EP features four tracks: “Ice Slippin,” “Live For Me,” “Angel,” and “Pilot.”


For Omar Apollo, longing is an art form—and he’s mastered it. The young singer/songwriter’s aching, visceral musings on love and heartbreak have earned him connection with a devoted fanbase as well as industry-wide recognition, including a GRAMMY nomination for Best New Artist, two Latin GRAMMY nominations for Record of the Year and Best Alternative Song (“Te Olvidaste,” with C. Tangana), Variety’s Future Icon award, and most recently his first RIAA-certified platinum record for viral hit “Evergreen (You Didn’t Deserve Me at All)”—which was also his Billboard Hot 100 debut. He ushers in his next chapter with a new EP, Live for Me, with some of his most personal writing to date, expressing themes he hasn’t previously spoke about. Born in Hobart, Indiana, to parents who immigrated from Mexico, he often felt isolated as a minority in his hometown. As he draws on another year of life, love, and longing for his latest chapter, Apollo’s promise is limitless."

"• Originally released in 2002, Soulfly’s 3rd album hit #46 in the US
• Charted globally in UK #61, Germany #14, France #28, Australia #24, Austria #12 and Belgium #27
• Features guests including Christian Machado (Ill Nino) and cover of Sacred Reich’s “One Nation”"

"• Originally released in 2000, Primitive is Soulfly’s highest charting in the US to date, hitting #32
• Charted globally, including: #45 UK, #16 Germany, #20 France, #26 Australia, #8 Austria and #22 Finland
• A Guest appearances include: Tom Araya (Slayer), Chino Moreno (Deftones), Sean Lennon and Corey Taylor (Slipknot)"

"• Originally released in 2004, Soulfly’s 4th album hit #82 on the US Charts
• Charted globally: UK #103, Germany #24, France #38, Australia #49 and Austria #15
• Includes a cover of Helmet’s “In The Meantime”"

"• Originally release in 1998, Soulfly’s debut album hit #79 on the US Album Charts and is certified GOLD
• Also certified GOLD in Australia and SILVER in the UK
• Charted globally, including UK #16, Germany #29, France #14, Finland #18, Australia #33, Belgium #12 and Austria #28
• Guest appearances include: Chino Moreno
• (Deftones), Burton C. Bell & Dino Cazares (Fear Factory) and Fred Durst."

5 NEW TRACKS INCLUDING A UNRELEASED “GRAVE-MOI LE COEUR” After the albums “JOHNNY” in 2019 and “ACTE II” in 2021 whose cumulative sales exceed 700,000 copies and after a JOHNNY tour SYMPHONIC TOUR having brought together more than 50,000 spectators in France, Yvan Cassar, musical director of Johnny Hallyday, produced 4 new titles: Gabrielle, Grave-Moi Le Coeur, J’ai Oublie De Vivre, Derriere L’Amour and offers us as a bonus masterful version of “Allumer Le Feu” captured in Nice on this special limited 45RPM vinyl Edition

"North London’s midnight man tumbles out his treehouse to deliver twelve potions of minor healing in “Iron Day”, his questing, soul-salvaging songbook. Brimming with majesty and maraud in equal parts, Genghis Cohn synthesises trad. English folk and woe with surrealist dream sequences on this debut long-player. A romance of two hedgehogs, devotional bone temples, broken shadows and sausage kings, GC conjures Brent Hayward strolling through the silver birch and presents to us, in a warmly recognisable form, a grand slab of folk music that challenges its ancient rewards.

Previous acquaintance with GC's lean, amorphous strain of experimental home recordings may encounter a menacing apprehension whilst trying to settle in the splendour of "Iron Day", unnerved by it's posture and the anticipation of songs dissolving or amalgamating in rust and gob at any moment. Still minimalist and direct, but delivered by an altogether different jester, songwriting that has featured in many previous works is smithed into fine, well-wrought suites that build and blend through paced, tempered sequencing and playful, intricate storytelling.

Amidst cavernous inner-dialogue and brilliant, contorted pastoral sequences, GC’s guitar (reported to be over 100 years old!?) laps and thrashes alongside accompaniments of Lauren Collier’s aching violin, a lethargic harmonica and emphatic hand-percussion that drifts in and then out. A dynamic, earthy collection that places future barn-stormers like “Underneath The Oak” and the gentle blaze of “Onion” in cadence with the doom-stricken, ghostly slides as on “Misunderstood” and “Secrets”, all recorded in dazzling clarity that captures the cascading instrumentation as clearly as the settled, tormented humour of GC’s blues. Indispensable candlemeat and essential, joyous listening for fans of; Davy Graham, The Godz, Leonara Carrington, Smelly Feet, Martin Carthy..."

Repress!

James Brown. Who doesn't know about the godfather of soul Who doesn't know about the milestone anthem Cold Sweat' Maybe there is nobody, but we are sure that many of you don't know that hidden on that particular song, and in all of James Brown's productions, is one of the best kept secrets in soul music: Mrs. Martha High.

She is the one who sings that crazy soprano note at the very beginning of the song and she is the one who sang behind James Brown for about 35 years. She was with Brown and the Jb's in Boston on the infamous night after the Martin Luther King assassination, she flew with him in the dangerous Vietnam skies to entertain the US soldiers, and was also in Zaire celebrating the Rumble in the Jungle' between Ali and Foreman. Martha was truly a friend, confidant and supporter of the godfather of soul.

Maybe she was just too young and shy to jump over the other soul divas to ask for a solo record. Today is different.

singer of Maceo Parker's band but now she is on fire because finally, she has recorded the album she never made but always wanted to make.

11 killer original tunes produced and arranged by Luca Sapio, the Italian soul ambassador, in true analog super sound. The tunes evoke the best productions of the golden era of Southern soul as well as the sonic landscapes of the Italian soundtracks of the 60's. Here is the middle ground where these two unheralded musical traditions meet and Martha is the undisputed Queen.

Don't miss the chance to take a listen. This record is made of truth, soul, love, and pain - a full spectrum of emotions that only a Queen can deliver to your ears. She spent much time in the studio with Luca and his guys to make it happen. This is not a revival, this is not retro, this is NOW. She took it as a challenge and we are sure that she won.

Repress!

Here's a true West Coast soul-jazz gem originally released on pacific jazz in 1961. Les McCann's warm and emotional singing shines over some gorgeous big band arrangements signed by the great conductor and bandleader Gerald Wilson. McCann's usual trio with Herbie Lewis on bass and Ron Jefferson on drums is augmented by a phenomenal bunch of West Coast top musicians including clarinetist Buddy Collette, tenor sax lions Charles Lloyd, Teddy Edward, and Harold Land, and two absolute guest stars: tenor sax giant Ben Webster and organ stylist Richard "groove" Holmes, what else?

Soul-jazz and blues at their best. Allmusic Guide

PRESSED ON FRUIT PUNCH COLORED VINYL WITH HAND NUMBERED OBILIMITED TO 2000 COPIES

The contemporary realm of hip hop music can be seen as polarized between two sides; mainstream versus underground, industry versus independent, at a base level boiled down to catchy sounds & infective hooks over higher quality lyrical content. These elements don’t need to be mutually exclusive, but these days it’s rare to find an act that can please all sides of the discussion. Clipse are one of the few groups that successfully and consistently caters to both sides of rap’s splintered psyche, simultaneously serving the scene with upbeat bangers that get the club poppin’ & subwoofers rattlin’ while crafting clever quotable compositions deserving of repeated headphone submersions. Though their preceding official albums Lord Willin’ (2002) & Hell Hath No Fury (2006) made bigger splashes commercially, 2009’s Til The Casket Drops is surely no slouch, a gem which deserves to be revisited with fresh ears – good thing Get On Down has given it the proper treatment it deserves with its first-ever vinyl pressing!
Til The Casket Drops was a departure from the duo of Malice & Pusha T’s previous works in that it was their first LP not completely produced by The Neptunes. However, the celebrated team who brought us ‘Grinding’ & ‘Mr. Me Too’ still helmed 8 of the album’s 13 tracks, thus dominating the soundscapes and aesthetic of the album anyway. With the remaining beats handled by Hitmen Sean C & LV (Jay-Z, Big Pun, Ghostface) and Aftermath’s DJ Khalil (Kendrick Lamar, Aloe Blacc, Eminem) clearly Clipse stock hadn’t lowered in the game. While boasting notable vocal features from Kanye West, Pharrell, Cam’ron, Keri Hilson, Yo Gotti & their Re-Up Gang affiliate Ab-Liva, Casket Drops leaves ample space for the core emcee duo of Pusha & Malice to shine in the spotlight, with verses revolving around each other succinctly in-synch and bonded by an exceptional creative rhythm only biological brothers could share.
Clipse have always delighted in dualities, juxtapositions and contradictions, unabashedly celebrating the capitalistic lifestyle and the grind as the kings of ‘coke-rap’, while taking hard looks at society’s mores and those of their own individual journeys. We hear Malice’s eventual transition to No Malice taking form on this album as he found religion, warning others who might follow in his path on ‘Footsteps’: “don’t let my wrongs give you the right of way/ to emulate my past escaping the law’s grasp” while refusing to be pinned down in one lane: “it weights on my conscience and I hate conscious rap”. Meanwhile Pusha T continues his lyrical ascent into the King Push persona with bars like “pompous motherfucker, look what them jewels made me/ I’m only finding comfort in knowing you can’t replace me/ What a thing to say, but what am I to do/ I’m role-playing a conscious nigga and true is true/ Cocaine aside, all of the bloggers behooved/ My critics finally have a verse of mine to jerk off to” decisively on album opener “Freedom”.
Since it dropped, the Clipse have stated that Casket… is their final album together while subsequently alluding to the possibility of an eventual reunion. Only time will tell, but until then it’s time to re-celebrate one of hip hop’s most dynamic duos by hearing Til The Casket Drops in a whole new light with its long-overdue, first time on vinyl pressing via Get On Down featuring all 13 original tracks on wax and cover art by the legendary KAWS! It’s kinda like a big deal…

Kid Katana Records teamed up once again with Dotemu, Tribute Games and Nickelodeon to release TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge Dimension Shellshock OST, a brand new musical experience composed by Tee Lopes!

Inspired by the music of one of the most iconic pop culture licenses of all time, this OST was fully composed by Tee Lopes, the talent behind the music of Sonic Mania and Streets of Rage 4: Mr X’s Nightmare and of course Shredder's Revenge vanilla game OST. His musical vision echoes the spirit of the turtles and this specific game specificities: tributes to classic TMNT tunes with a good dose of fun and switching fluidly between 80s/90s electro, funk, rock, and jazzy tunes with chiptune vibes.

This edition includes:
-> 1x 12-inch vinyl featuring the 15 tracks in the Dimension Shellshock DLC
-> 2 colored vinyl labels with the two new playable characters: Usagi Yojimbo and Karai

-> Exclusive sticker board with all playable characters and iconic items from the game

Following split EPs from DeFeKT and Rico Casazza, plus Tripeo and Cycloplex, Cultivated Electronics Ltd (CE's vinyl only sister label), returns with Volume 3 of their in demand 'For the Floor' series. As the name suggests all the tracks in the series are primed for the dance floor with Volume 3 featuring two more tracks apiece from two artists making waves in the Electro sphere. Electro heads should already be very familiar with Scand resident, Steve Allman who's also released stellar tracks on Soma's sister-label, Avoidant and A-Future's EON label. While Alex Jann is well known for being the man behind the excellent Censor Music as well as appearing on the likes of 20/20 Vision and brokntoys. Get ready for some no-holds-barred floor fillers to update your record box.

The live reunion of Bob Dylan and The Band during 1973-74 yielded one of the decade's most celebrated, dynamic, and astonishing tours. Captured on Before the Flood, the results portray the two artists' shared chemistry as well as Dylan's instinctive ability to challenge audiences, his group, and himself via inventive rearrangements of classics that simultaneously ward off nostalgia and renew with meaning. Said by noted critic Robert Christgau to be "at its best, the craziest and strongest rock and roll ever recorded," Before the Flood crackles with intensity, relevance, and unhinged performances.

Arriving at a crucial time for both Dylan and The Band, Before the Flood is the furthest thing possible from a nostalgia trip. It's where Dylan begins his now-trademark feat of turning songs upside-down, taking risks, challenging expectations, and leaving audiences riveted to the edge of their seats in anticipation of what might come next. He sings with unabated passion, the moods spanning bitterness to jubilation. And his willingness to play fast and loose with the music gives way to compelling shifts, under-the-surface textures, complementary intricacies, and a sense of newness and discovery on par with that of an adventurer embracing total freedom.

Before the Flood buries any notion of limits, safeguards, or borders. It is an open map, each song a route begging for exploration without need or concern for exactness or an appointed leader. Collaborative in every sense, it's a portrait of six inimitable musicians feeding off one another, trusting in their past history as they hurdle towards uncharted territory, using soulfulness as a compass and opportunity as their vehicle.

Wholly different than the live episodes heard on Bob Dylan Live 1966, The "Royal Albert Hall" Concert, Before the Flood is equally seminal and, from the perspective of witnessing an artist dare not only his audience but himself to break through to a new plane, even better. Utterly astounding.

Hot off of the success of their multi-platinum self-titled debut, The Youngbloods shuffled their line-up (with the departure of co-founder Jerry Corbitt) and used their heightened caché to go big on their follow up, the Charlie Daniels-produced Elephant Mountain. Over multi-layered acoustic-folk and electric-rock instruments, Jesse Colin Young, Banana Levinger, and Joe Bauer create a free-feeling set of tunes that playfully careen between front-porch folk and stadium rock (best exemplified in the classic single "Darkness, Darkness"). That this diverse set of musical influences remained cohesive and artistically daring makes it an underground classic whose admiration continues to grow today. Impex is proud to bring it to you in pristine all-analogue glory!

40 years after their last album ‘Secret’ was released in 1983, Classix Nouveaux are back with a brand new album entitled ‘Battle Cry’. Containing nine tracks including seven brand new compositions plus ‘Never Never Comes’ and ‘Interlude/Inside Outside’ which have been re-imagined for the 21st century. Featuring a very guitar-rock sound and also contains a couple of instrumentals which is something that the band used to do on their early albums. In the words of lead singer Sal Solo, this is how the album came about: “The reason this project came about after 40 years is really because of the fans. About 10 years ago, some of the Classix fans were making Facebook pages but it didn’t really come to our attention until a couple of years back. We realised these people are really dedicated and decided to give them a kind of birthday present. I said to the guys ‘Why don't we do a recording together and surprise the fans?’ Everybody said yes and so we did a quick remake of one of our old songs “Inside Outside” and to our surprise everyone's immediately talking about new material! We’d never thought about doing new Classix material - we thought it was over years ago. After a few weeks of agonising, we suddenly realised we could be as we are now. In the light of our increased experience and the fact that our fans are mature as well, we decided we would just make the music that we like today. It didn’t take a lot of persuasion to get everyone on board. It's the original line-up from the first two albums - what people consider the ‘classic’ line-up. We've all been in other bands, but somehow, we've all just seemed to gravitate back to Classix Nouveaux. It feels like a natural home. We hadn’t been in touch for many, many years and so this album is really what’s brought us back together.”

Sistro (Sistrum) is a kind of percussion instrument that has had several incarnations and names in various cultures since the time of the Sumerians and throughout history has always been associated with religious rituals. It’s from this relationship between music and the transcendent that Nuno Oliveira (Nuno O, Judas Triste, José Pinhal Post-Mortem Experience), Tito Silva (Vasco da Ganza, José Pinhal Post-Mortem Experience) and Rodolfo Oliveira (Oficinas TK) were gradually inspired to create a trio that pays homage to this instrument of ancient times.

The project was born casually and without intentionality throughout several incursions into megalithic monuments in the hills and mountains of northern Portugal, culminating in an unusual two-day session of musical experimentation in Esposende, in September 2019. In this two-day session, codenamed “Arménio Sessions”, the trio explored a sound based on sea soundscapes, electronic beats, electric noises and the strings of na altered guitar. Channeling the strength of the elements and the mystique of the place in the form of a musical experience.

In 2021, Sistro collaborated with Mario Klingemann (aka Quasimondo) who created a music video especially for the band, created using a vintage video mixing board. Then using feedback loops and a process that Klingemann calls “Neural Edit”, which uses an artificial intelligence algorithm to correlate the raw video material with the sound.

After a long period of incubation, the group's first full-length release sees the light of day on the 31th October, 2023, moment in which a sequence of rituals begins to present and celebrate the relationship between music and the transcendent. Sistro's debut album will be released by Favela Discos, having been mixed by Tito Silva and mastered by Pedro Augusto. The photography and graphics are by Oficinas TK.

Kastil, aka of the spanish Mario Castillo, is well known and especially for his role as a producer of furious and intricate techno works with a high industrial influence. But at 30D we like that our close people (and Kastil is very close, since he is responsible for the mastering of all our label's releases) have absolute freedom to release what they consider appropriate, here is a clear example: Mario leaves aside his usual four-to-the-floor vision to immerse himself -completely on purpose- into classic IDM and into the most beautiful, musical and even epic electronica. Only one of the four tracks that conform the EP ('Polymorphic') clearly looks to the dance floor although it shares, along with the three remaining tracks, the artist's passion for the timeless sound of the 90's. QuadroQuill EP will be released on 30D Records' sub-label ExoPlanets, in both, vinyl (strictly limited edition) and digital format.

Returning to UFO Inc. in high spirits, DJ Europarking steps up for a seriously playful package of rolling rave pieces. Following on from last year's Bitte Everyday, the mischievous Dutchman returns with an unhinged collection of genre-blending tracks, merging impeccable production skills with a healthy dose of humour and experimentation. A loveable rogue in both his productions and DJ sets, DJ Europarking uses an impressive flair for sound design in the funnest way possible, resulting in an absolutely unmissable EP.

The A side contains the track “Forever”, featuring Nikolaj on melodica duties, who delivers deeply meditational melodies reminiscent of the great Augustus Pablo. This melodica version is performed over the “Always” riddim, sang by Clive Hylton on our previous 7” release (ALDBS7017).

On the B side we find the track “Forever Dub”, a dub version mixed live by Ojah that takes us into a world of modulations that range from the subtle to the extreme.

Hand-stamped and served in a thick custom reversed kraftliner sleeve. Produced by Ojah, recorded at Alchemy Dubs Studio, London.
Melodica by Nik Torp, recorded at Eastcote Studio 4, London.
Mixed by Oscar Pablos “Ojah" at Alchemy Dubs Studio, London.
Mastered by Oscar Pablos at AD Mastering, London, 2022.
Graphic design by Victor Castro.

We’re happy to announce our new 7”, a collaboration between producer Ojah and Jamaican singer Clive Hylton.

The A side contains the track “Always”, featuring Clive Hylton on vocals, who delivers a timeless reggae track. Clive Hylton (a.k.a. Colour Red) is a veteran Jamaican singer who amongst others worked with Lee Perry at Black Ark Studio back in the day.

On the B side we find the track “Always Dub”, a dub version mixed live by Ojah that takes us into a different territory, making the listener appreciate sounds and layers that were half hidden on the vocal version.

We are also releasing a melodica version called “Forever” (ALDBS7018) over this riddim, featuring Nik Torp from The Specials.

Hand-stamped and served in a thick custom reversed kraftliner sleeve.
Produced by Ojah, recorded at Alchemy Dubs Studio, London, U.K.
Vocals and lyrics by Clive Hylton, recorded at Yaad A Fame Studio, Kingston, Jamaica.
Mixed by Oscar Pablos “Ojah" at Alchemy Dubs Studio, London, U.K.
Mastered by Oscar Pablos at AD Mastering, London, 2022.
Graphic design by Victor Castro.

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Leon Rosselson has been at the forefront of songwriting in England for over sixty years For 'Chronicling the Times', Rosselson delved into his storied political satirist's song catalog to assemble seventeen of his favorite recordings. Featuring English folk luminaries such as Martin Carthy and Billy Bragg, this collection proves that Rosselson, now well into his 80s, has created an oeuvre comparable to other social critics such as Phil Ochs. He started performing in the early days of the folk revival as a member of the Galliards with whom he made many radio and TV broadcasts. His early songs were topical-satirical, but eventually absorbed many different influences from around the world. He has recorded many albums and published two songbooks. His song "The World Turned Upside Down" was taken into the pop charts by Billy Bragg and covered by artists including Dick Gaughan and Chumbawamba. Rosselson has also published seventeen children's books, the first of which, 'Rosa's Singing Grandfather', was shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal in 1991. Billy Bragg deftly summed up his career: "Leon Rosselson is the embodiment of the original ideals of punk rock- using fearless wit and political integrity to highlight the hypocrisies of those in power."

Meteora - a chain of Greek-Byzantine monasteries was built around the 14th century on top of sandstone rock formations in the fading range of the Pindus Mountains, in the Thessalian lowlands of Greece At an over 600 meters high, some of them were only accessible by rope ladders or winches for hundreds of years. Makiko Hirabayashi learned of this place during a concert tour to Athens and was immediately captivated by its symbolic power: the isolated units which nevertheless exist in a larger context; fragile and floating, but at the same time firmly grounded. The opening title of the new, fifth album of her trio seems to have been perfectly chosen; "Warp", relating to the space above the early monasteries on the rock formations, as well as connecting the album to her previous release Weavers, in which much was woven with warp threads. A high-pitched bass, the subtle use of electronics, like everything else that follows, seem to emerge somehow from outer space. These are seemingly simple structures that only reveal themselves as complex architecture upon repeated listening - meditative and fleeting, but at the same time permanently carved into the rock. Minimalistic piano figures from which melodic fragments emerge, in their very clarity offer ample material for improvisation. With onomatopoeic percussion, an impressionistic and scenic painting is sketched in "Birds Ascending", whereas enthralling rhythms lead the way in "Chestnut Alley" or the sky-racing "Meteor". In between those, you find the improvised miniatures like "The Door" or "Slip", aspherical connections between worlds: imaginary doors, rope ladders or hinges. After the lockdown album Weavers, Makiko Hirabayashi is back in the piano trio setting with Klavs Hovman on bass and the legendary percussionist/ drummer Marilyn Mazur, reclaiming her space and time. Some of the material produced here has been part of their live repertoire for some years and gone through a maturing process, becoming an integral part of the whole album put together in the spirit of Meteora.

Oddisee's breakthrough album: Imbued with love, honesty, and selflessness, The Good Fight is virtuosic in its musicality, direct in its language, and infinitely relatable In a landscape overrun with abstract indulgence and shallow trend-chasers, the Prince George's County, Maryland artist has created a record that reminds you that it's music before it's hip-hop. For Oddisee, "The Good Fight" is about living fully as a musician without succumbing to the traps of hedonism, avarice, and materialism. It's music that yields an intangible feeling: the sacral sound of an organ whine, brass horns, or a cymbal crash. It's a meditation on our capacity to love and the bonds binding us together. It's our ambition and greed warring with our sense of propriety - a list of paradoxes we all face when living and striving. Oddisee's production simmers in its own orchestral gumbo. You sense he's really a jazzman in different form, inhabiting the spirit of Roy Ayers and other past greats. The Fader's compared him to a musical MC Escher, calling hailing his "grandiose and symphonic sound" and "relevant relatable messages." Pitchfork praised his "eclectic soulful boom-bap.

Essence of Life was formed in 1973 in Charlotte North Carolina at Johnson C Smith University.

Towan Butler and Craig Young were basketball players on scholarship who were singing in the shower after practice, when a man named Jock Johnson who was a business major who had graduated heard Towan and Craig singing in the shower and asked if we would like to be in a singing group that he was putting together, if we did he asked us to meet him later that evening at a location on campus.

When we arrived we were introduced to Jerry Johnson, who is Jocks brother, Kenny Lock and Larry Graves and Essence Of Life was formed. Essence Of Life has performed with such groups as Blue Magic, The Whispers and The Barkays to name a few.

Essence Of Life sang and danced their way into the hearts of fans all over the United States spreading love through high impact performances.

ACIDEZ returns with 13 ripping new songs about beer, war and apocalypse that mix classic UK82 style in the vein of GBH, Discharge, with the heavy style of modern bands like Inepsy and Toxic Holocaust Beer Drinkers Survivors thrashes with a shredding metal edge in comparison to their first punk record. Recorded at Noise Devil Studio in Guadalajara, Mexico and mastered in Portland, USA by Brad Boatright (From Ashes Rise) & Joel Grind (Toxic Holocaust) at Audiosiege Studios

Lab Music 4th record is a solo Ep by Slak with a massive Answer Code Request remix, exploring the world of ambient rooted break-techno with a drum and bass excursion in the remix.

On the A side we find the first two tracks, Reflexion a club oriented break-techno track, combining dark ethereal textures with driving beats and sharp synths. Before Midnight, an elegant yet powerful gem with tribal reminiscences, Roland drums and light pads.

On the B side we have New Horizon, delivering melodic ambient rooted pads and the usual 909 broken beats. Furthermore we have a special drum and bass rooted remix of the same track from Answer Code Request, exploring Idm and d’n’b, combing dreamy moments with strong breakdowns.

Mr. Joe Jackson Presents: MAX CHAMPION in ‘WHAT A RACKET’! The genre started in the pubs and streets of London in the mid-19th century and grew into the first form of mass entertainment to be created by the working classes. By 1900 it regularly drew huge audiencesfrom acrossthe whole spectrum ofsociety, from prostitutes to princes, allsinging along with superstar performers in gorgeoustheatres (some of which still survive). Like its American cousin Vaudeville, Music Hall featured magicians, acrobats, and ventriloquists – elements that we still see today in musical theater and cabaret shows. One of the most fascinating of the Music Hall performers was Max Champion. We know little about him, except that he was born in London in 1882. Champion was almost completely forgotten until the sheet music of his songs was found in Valletta, Malta, in 2014. How it got there is a complete mystery. “What A Racket!” presents eleven of Max Champion’ssongsforthe first time in more than a century. According to producer Joe Jackson, ‘These were wonderful songs in their time, but they’re surprisingly modern, too. Sometimes it’s almost as if Max is speaking, from his London of the early 20th century, directly to us in the early 21st’. What may sound different to the Joe Jackson you know at first listen, in fact corresponds to his consistent artistic development. This record is 100% Joe Jackson. And perhaps you already guessed it: Joe Jackson and Max Champion have more in common than it appears at first glance. Formats; CD, LP.

Deafheaven’s monolithic second LP Sunbather, was not only a massive success in 2013, it created a radical shift in heavy music culture, an acceptance of the genre by previous outsiders, and a trailblazing sound that heretofore hadn’t been heard outside of learned circles. It was a reville introducing the changing of the guard in metal, featuring phenomenal reviews across the board, and breaking the mold used by buttoned-up indie types and false-flag musical dilettantes intent on keeping the status quo. A maverick release in every facet, the cornerstone for the triumph that is Sunbather truly lies in its world class songwriting. From the opening anthem “Dream House,'' it's clear to see that Deafheaven was soaring triumphantly into the unknown, through the emotional highs and lows, the fire and rain, and onto the unseen road ahead. Lyrically, Sunbather examines themes of existentialism, diving headfirst into the abyss, and the pursuit of self-discovery. The album's title itself is similar in scope, representing the embrace of the light and movement out of the dark unknown. Sunbather takes influence from the majesty of early Emperor and underground US heroes Weakling, the dark beauty of France’s Alcest, the introspective nature of post-rock and shoegaze gods like Mogwai and Slowdive, as well as the DIY spirit of punk ranging from Fugazi to Man is the Bastard to create a new realm for their emotional and expansive epics.

The career defining fourth full length album from US Brutal Death legends CONDEMNED. 5 years in the making, 'Daemonium' is the album everyone was hoping for - with razor sharp production and an elevated sense of heaviness throughout, it proves a perfect follow up to 2017's critically acclaimed 'His Divine Shadow'. Essential listening for all fans of classic Californian Brutal Death Metal.

For Fans Of... Magic Sam, Otis Rush, GA-20, Albert King, Elmore James. Never before heard blues from 1969! The 2023 RSD release is now also available on black vinyl and CD! Pressed right in Cleveland, Ohio at Gotta Groove Records. On Remined Records, Colemine's re-issue imprint. Produced by Eli 'Paperboy' Reed. Recorded by Eli's father in 1969. Tapes have been hidden for over 50 years, now being released for the first time ever. "Fred Davis was a legend, but only in my living room. As a teenager, I started digging deeper and deeper into the blues records in my Dad’s collection. That was when I started to get the Fred Davis story in fits and starts. Fred could play like T-Bone Walker and had a keen voice like J.B. Lenoir, he said. He used to front a jump band in Kansas City, before something went down that sent him to prison at Leavenworth. In the summer of 1967, he ended up working alongside my Dad at Harco, the Cleveland factory where my grandfather was an executive. They became friends, bonding over the B.B. King and Bobby Bland records blaring from the AM radio on the factory floor. Fred taught my Dad the rudiments of blues guitar, but his style. Instead of barring with his first finger, he wrapped his thumb around the back of the neck. That left his other fingers free to create big, ringing voicings that imitated the Kansas City horn sections he heard in his youth. Fred could play up and down the neck and, even when he played and sang just by himself, he sounded like a full band. Or, at least, so the legend went. These were only foggy memories from thirty years previous, passed down from a father to a son. But then we found the tape. A quarter inch reel in a plain white cardboard box, hiding on a shelf in the attic. My Dad explained how it came to exist: He found some friends (acquaintances really) who had a band and some equipment. They setup in my grandparents living room where the upright piano was, and he invited Fred over to record some of his songs with the band backing him up. We found a place nearby that could dub the tape and put it on a CD for us. When we finally got the transfer back, the legend became real. With this music now professionally transferred and remastered, I can only hope that Fred Davis can finally receive the acclaim that he deserves; that he never received in his lifetime. The legend can finally go behind the confines of my living room and, with any luck, to the whole world." Eli 'Paperboy'

Some of the most unique Italian jungle exotica mambo music you'll hear!
You won't usually find those words together but because this record,
released in the late 50s only on reel to reel tape, was twice produced
layering cultural madness! This gem was originally designed to be a
Francis Bay album of Italian music and Cuban Mambo, until the masters
were sold to producer Kirby Allen who with the help of faux African
tribesman, Chaino, added African style percussion and animal sounds up
the wazoo!
If the much-bandied-about word exotica stands for anything, it stands for
disparate cultures playing well together with others, and Temptation: The
Exotic Sounds of Chaino is a case study in international relations that
could serve as a teacher's guide in how to set up a Model UN
If there's a more quintessential example of the African- Cuban- Italian- SpanishPolynesian- American Songbook as recorded by a Belgian combo, this author is
unaware of such an artifact. - Gaylord Fields (WFMU)

The new 12” series on Ballyhoo Records is dedicated to what label owner ‘Thee J Johanz’ describes as ‘Triptech Journeys’. The series takes the listener on a journey traversing old school house to mystical acid and everything in-between.

On volume 1, titled ‘There Is Power In Love’, side a gives us ‘Afrobot and Steven Pieters’ who deliver the perfect message of love. The artist ‘Strange’ then provides us with his stunning Indian style Charanjit Singh rag reworks. We then have raving madness from Goa’s finest ‘Deka’ whose track ‘Dance with me’ was a secret weapon played at a number of major festivals over the summer.

Flip it over to side b, we have ‘Thee J Johanz’ providing us with the perfect intro/outro tool for DJs (lets face it, there is simply not enough good ones on vinyl!) We then have ‘Sintaro Fujita,’ Ballyhoo’s best Japanese friend, delivering sharp and mystical vibes with his track ‘Are We Still Friends.’ Last but by no means least, snake charmer ‘Sid Ua’ slows it all down leaving us in a trance like state with his stunning track ‘Feels Familiar.’ Weird and wonderful music from a fabulous bunch of weird and wonderful talented outsiders, this cannot be missed!

Southern California hard rock mainstays FU MANCHU are announcing details of their forthcoming new album, itled "GIGANTOID," out June 9th the band's own At The Dojo Records distributed throughout the US and Europe via Cargo Records. After almost 25 years together, and following last year's Scion A/V Club split 7" with friends MOAB and 2009's "Signs of Infinite Power," Scott Hill and company return with their first full-length album in close to five years. Recorded with Andrew Giacumakis, singer / guitarist for he aforementioned MOAB at his studio in Simi Valley, CA, the album features a slightly more primitive, raw and ultra fuzzed-out sound than previous releases. "We wrote 17 new songs for this record and got our favorite 9 songs out of that together," says Hill. "We were planning on releasing a 'part 2' record later this year but have plans for some of the other songs to appear in early 2015 to line up with our upcoming 25-year anniversary."

DJ Crisps is starting to make some handy garage moves after a couple of various artists' appearances and a fine EP on Time Is Now Germany in July. Now they link up with Oldboy who appeared on Burnski's other label Vivid back in 2022.

As you should expect these are four hardcore and rudely garage cuts with plenty of swagger, naughty samples and bass-face potential. 'On My Way' is the standout with its shuffling one-two drum punch, distant police sirens and warped basslines underneath a timeless and irresistible female vocal full of soul. A summer scorcher for sure alongside three more very useful weapons.

Following his impressive debut EP ‘Mirror In Man’, which touched on cosmic folk jams and Balearic pop, the Belgium singer-producer Mozes Mosuse aka Movulango has announced his second project ‘The Irony’, a 5 track EP out 24th November via Soulwax’s DEEWEE label.

Movulango’s musical paintings are a visual and intuitive reflection of what it feels like to be him. His weekly radio show, Radio Atlantis on StuBru, Belgium, is a clever alias he uses to explore different worlds, deconstruct existing music and blend it with his own musical experiments.

His latest project ‘The Irony’ is further insight into Movulango's devine mind, building deeply personal stories on feeling and emotion that bundle into soaring melodies and lyrics. You can try your best to understand what it all means or you can sit back and let them bewitch your mind and soul.

The Brazilian Singer Ed Mottais one of the greats in Jazz / Funk, not onlyin the South American Music-Scene, but world-wide.He has been one of the leading artists at the forefront in Brazil with a hugefollowing in his Home-Country and around the world With his new album "Behind The Tea Chronicles" he embarks on a new musical journey, crossing genres from Jazz to Funk, over to Soul. Having worked with many renowned musicians over the course of his career (Greg Phillinganes, Chucho Valdez, Roy Ayers and many more) he established his own style of creating music with a message. On this latest album Ed Motta is singing in English, telling stories that resonatewhich a broad audience. Recording the rhythm in Brazil, backing vocals in LA -featuring the legendary Paulette McWilliams and Phillip Ingram - strings in Prague and horns in Detroit, he worked with the best musicians he could find to find an astonishing sound, that will be recognised by the audiophile audience as top of the class. Being recorded with the highest standard, Ed Motta made sure to raise the bar once more.

140 Gram White Vinyl Limited Edition Of 1500 worldwide. Includes full album download + 2 bonus download tracks from the out of print 1999 Suz EQ /to whom it may consume 7-inch. Originally released in 2000 as Enon burst on the scene to wide acclaim +++ Pitchfork called Enon lyricist / guitarist John Schmersal “one of indie rock’s most consistently compelling songwriters.” Long, long ago, at the beginning of the new millennium, the world begot Enon. It was before Willliamsburg was, like, totally over, before beards made you cool, and just at the cusp of all this modern computer recording tomfoolery. What a time, before innocence lost. From all this came a much beloved and oft-overlooked record – one Touch and go is damn proud to re-issue on vinyl today – Believo! This record makes a bridge between the 20th and 21st centuries – full of effects, samples, pop sensibilities, and a complete respect for and disregard of The Rules. In 2000, Enon was all Brooklyn style, comprised of John Schmersal of Brainiac and Rick Lee and Steve Calhoon of Skeleton Key. John and Rick bonded over a penchant for suitcases full of electronics and battery powered trickery – portable musical distractions capable of making tracks on the fly. That’s what this era was all about for Enon – the suitcases, and being in the moment wherever they were. Though the band would later evolve to 2007’s lineup of Schmersal, Toko Yasuda and Matt Schulz, you’ve got to know where you’re coming from to see how you got to where you are today. So, come along with us, please, to the re-birth of Believo!

Leatherette’s 2022 debut album Fiesta offered an intense, inspired and individualist take on post-punk, their caustic riffs, fevered saxophone blasts and impassioned vocals revealing the five-piece skilled purveyors of the form.

The group's second album Small Talk, however, is clearly the work of a group ready to take flight in a new direction all their own. As they toured Fiesta across Italy and Europe, Leatherette grew tired of the genre's constrictions and yearned to spread their wings. Small Talk transcends all the group have done before and coins a voice uniquely their own, driven by the same furies that propelled Fiesta, but finding fresh new forms for expression.

The album boasts some of Leatherette's most unabashed pop-songs to date – albeit pop that's deftly twisted, pointedly perverse and ready to explode when you least expect it.

It also contains some of the group's most challenging and uncompromising noise yet, the violent swinging back-and-forth between ugly din and nagging tunefulness a (molotov) cocktail that grows only more addictive with each listen. Where Fiesta saw the group enter the studio with a batch of anthems they'd honed on the road, their approach for Small Talk was very different, leaving the sessions open to moments of on-the-fly invention and sparks of mad genius. The interplay between the five musicians is so much stronger this time around, the group say, a result of the months of touring the band put in following the release of Fiesta.

Living out of rucksacks and spending hours on the motorway in a tour van might not be everyone's idea of a good time, but that's what Leatherette credit with sharpening their intra-group bond, their almost telepathic feel for the sounds that will complement what their bandmates are playing. “We were more free to play and to rearrange, because we knew each other better now,” says guitarist Andrea Gerardi, “and the interplay is more focused on this album as a result.” The sessions for Fiesta were frustrating, Andrea says, because “we were playing the same songs over and over”.

Their approach was radically different for Small Talk, however, which saw the group file into Bronson, a local club where they've often played before, and record the album on the premises. After the sessions, the album was mixed in Bristol by Chris Fullard (Idles) and mastered in Portland at the legendary Telegraph Audio Mastering by Adam Gonsalves. "We recorded live, all playing together at the same time, rather than overdubbing the instruments," says Michele. The process, he says, "made us more coherent, and the songs more spontaneous." "Our strength is live performance," adds Andrea, "so we tried to capture that interplay. Sometimes we made errors, but we didn't care, because it sounded great. This music is our lives - it doesn't need correction. We were free for the two weeks we recorded the album, and the ideas soared in the most amazing way." Indeed they did. The album's see-saw between angular noise and pop coherence is very much its strength, and very much the sonic identity of this singular group

Reissue number seven for Heels & Souls Recordings sees them look back to the sounds of South Africa’s townships in 1991, cherry picking four of Tashif Kente’s finest cuts from his sought after album A Boy And A Dream, giving them space to breathe on a 12" pressing.

Clearly influenced by the flavours bubbling over from the UK and US in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, from R&B through to boogie, proto house to new jack swing, Tashif’s productions are a melting pot of ideas and influences, laced with a distinctive South African flavour.

Born in Soweto, Mzwandile ‘Tashif’ Kente, cut his teeth with Harari for a brief period, a group that birthed greats like Condry Ziqubu, Sipho Mabuse and Alec Khaoli, before going solo in 1984 and releasing just one album as Tashif Kente, 1991’s ‘A Boy And A Dream’. An album that speaks of love, lust and longing, produced by Kente and Selwyn Shandel with Marc Rantseli also joining the fold, it has that signature South African synth bass, drum machine and killer keyboard combo of the Bubblegum and Kwaito scenes, topped with Kente’s buttery vocals.

Heels & Souls Recordings take four favourites from the LP and press them loud on either side of a 12”. On the A, the audacious new jack, dancefloor bubbler ‘Tell Him I Became Your Lover’ leads into the lovestruck, boogie-tinged grooves of ‘Somebody’s Got My Love’. Flip it over to find a jealousy jam of the highest order with the synthy soul number ‘Who’s That Boy’, before ‘I Like The Way You Love Me’, a lights down low, R&B flavoured lovesong rounds off the EP.

Licensed from Gallo, who transferred the original ¼ inch tapes for their archives, Heels & Souls have enlisted the expertise of Justin Drake to remaster these South African beauties for a new generation of listeners.

Satoshi Suzuki (鈴木慧) described his musical practice perfectly on the OBI strip of his 1987 privately pressed LP - Tokyo Contemporary! consisting of 40% Jazz, 30% Soul, 20% Brazil, and 10% Kayokyoku - a musical mixture not too far off from what is now referred to as City Pop.

However, this archival compilation of Satoshi Suzuki's works presents a perspective of the City Pop sound not from affluent 1980s Japanese bubble economy-era studios and highly paid studio musicians, but from a one-person band making the most of the instruments in their home studio, inspired by musical traditions from around the world.

With notes of city pop, AOR, jazz, soul, bossa, and kayōkyoku - Satoshi Suzuki's intimately recorded pop songs are charming and full of wit, with a seasonal and poetic approach to these musical forms using only a drum machine and an array of digital synthesizers. Sounding a little like Pacific Breeze played on a Casio keyboard and drum machine, Uku Kuut soundtracking a SEGA video game, or the wonderful lo-fi works of Suzuki’s lo-fi homemade pop & jazz contemporaries Ronald Langestraat, Lewis, and Joe Tossini — though most of all, SUZUKI's works show a new and singular perspective of the bubble-era city pop of the Showa period.

Distant Travel Companion (​遠​い​旅​の​同​行​者​) introduces Suzuki's musical works to a wide audience for the first time, featuring remastered songs originally released over three privately pressed LPs from the 1980s, as well as a previously unheard CD from 1993. The original works were released in an impossibly limited edition of 100 copies each - printed and assembled on printing equipment at Suzuki’s company office and scarcely distributed, recording these songs at his home studio in his free time. The compilation's design and accompanying OBI and liner notes are a direct homage to the original releases.

Satoshi SUZUKI is a Japanese keyboardist, singer, songwriter, and music arranger. He is also an author of literature and winner of the "Shin-nihon-bungaku" (New Japanese Literature) Award. He was born in 1958 in Tokyo, Japan.

The forever exploring electronical entity of a band, Gusgus, has opened yet a new era in their unique sonic multiverse. With their 12th album, the course is set to a strange mysterious place called DanceOrama. A Rave-Mall in a nostalgic future, DanceOrama is the place to be, where you can experience infinite freedom, genre and gender free. Moving from the pulsating new-wave influenced techno pop of the last album “Mobile Home” (2019), Gusgus emits the vibe of DanceOrama on their new album as an arousing, melody-rich hybrid of 80s/90s parties and raves. The 9- track album is slated for a November 10th release. The release is evenly split up in euphoric fusioned pop anthems and genre-free instrumental journeys.

Gusgus‘ last album “Mobile Home” was the later of twin albums that found the band exploring early 80’s new wave influences and reviving them in the iconic Gusgus soundscape. The highlight on the album was a pulsating techno reggae track called “Higher” that introduced a new member into the band, Margrét Rán, the lead singer of “VÖK”.

Whereas on “Mobile Home”, the concept was stationed in a rural environment of a dystopian side reality, Gusgus now moves to the city. In this city of strange discomforting future omens, DanceOrama stands out as the rave-mall of freedom. Leaving the new wave influences, this album is a strange hybrid of the 80’s and 90’s parties twisted into a genre-free blend of arousing experiences.

The album consists of 5 instrumental tracks and 4 vocal pop songs, ranging from 105-158 bpm and exploring various influences from the 80’s and 90’s and even the 70’s in a strange fusion of techno, trance, italo-disco, house and pop that emits the rawness and innocence of previous decades. The pop songs are quite strictly set as stories related to the mysteries and rumors of DanceOrama. One track in particular will be very exciting for our fans, as it has been a regular final track on our live show since the album “Arabian Horse” in 2011. This is the track “Breaking Down” that was recorded during the album “Mexico” in 2013 with “Earth” and “Högni” on vocals but, due to emotional turmoil, has never been released until now.

It might be his debut album, yet Peacey’s “Play It By Ear” is a body of work crafted as though by a scholar. And where better for this work to emerge from than Derby, UK’s Atjazz Record Company, a label with a rich heritage and many strings to its bow?

This eclectic sonic journal catalogues the evolution of Peacey, documenting his interactions with, and influences from, some of dance music’s notable players. It’s an album that will attract discerning ears and open minds; minds attuned to a multitude of genres as it visits Hip Hop, R&B, House, Garage and Fusion.

'Culture Bandit' is the 2nd single taken from this colossal album, and gives us a great understanding that Peacey really knows where to hit it! It’s a deep banger of course, with a hint of tech-house, deep-house and even the more percussive side of afro-latin house, but with the electrifying vocals of Vanessa Hidary atop, this will go down in history as “One of those tunes”. To say this song has life is an understatement. So we’ve covered that, did we mention that Osunlade & Atjazz have also remixed this killer slice? Ah, well they have, and they join Peacey on this pristine release to give alternative angles on this wild, spoken and edgy outing.

FROM RAY CHARLES TO SELAH SUE, FROM NINA SIMONE TO IBEYI, FROM BARRY WHITE TO ALOE BLACC, DISCOVER THE BEST OF THE GREATEST VOICES OF SOUL MUSIC OF ALL TIME IN A 5 VINYLS BOXSET

First Word Records are very proud to bring you a new album from Don Leisure with Amanda Whiting. 'Beyond The Midnight Sun' expands upon ground first explored on Don Leisure's track 'All Praises Due', which also featured Amanda (with Angel Bat Dawid), and featured on his previous album 'Shaboo Strikes Back'.

This is a full-length project that these two formidable Welsh artists have collaborated on together. To bring you up to speed, Cardiff DJ and beat-maker Don Leisure has been twice nominated for the Welsh Music Prize, with the afore-mentioned album 'Shaboo Strikes Back', and a previous project, 'Steel Zakusi'.

As well as being 50% of Darkhouse Family with Earl Jeffers, he's released music under various monikers on labels such as Metalheadz, International Anthem, Fat City, Earnest Endeavours, Group BraCil and on Rough Trade with another regular collaborator, Gruff Rhys. Other collabs have included Charlotte Church, Om'Mas Keith, DJ Spinna and First Word label-mate Tyler Daley ...

On Side A, smile your way through two songs by The Teacher Haters — in fact, we challenge you to get through these tracks without smiling. Even the name of the band invokes a chuckle as it suggests what these guys are about — and that’s the P-A-R-T-Y. Straight out of the 60s comes a group that could have been played with Sam The Sham & The Pharaohs back in the day. These whimsical works are deceptively deep as they take us to a time when garage punk fused with R&B.

Big Pig Alley is uncomplicated, and that’s what makes it great — it sounds like a bunch of college guys having a good time, writing lyrics on the spot: “If you’re lookin’ for romance, take a train, take a plane...or a raft to France.” The guys have something other than romance on their minds as they chug along on acoustic guitar and trash can drums (and possibly other things). What really makes the track, though, is the witchy background voice — the performance is loose enough, while the witch is doing his own thing entirely.

The witch returns on the second track on Side 1 in the up-tempo, dance-ready Cut Loose. No obscure artistry here — these guys tell you exactly what the song is for in the title. In fact, just in case you missed it, they state their thesis in the opening lines: “I wanna shake all night, I wanna do it right, I wanna dance, dance, dance with you…” All of their collegiate effort is put toward getting you to move your hips in this groovy, rockabilly-flavored mix.

Let's talk about Side B...

We Got A Thing is up first — a crossover soul dancer that invites you to sing along with an infectious, call-and-response chorus. It pairs nicely with The Teacher Haters as fun, simple party music from the 60s — though this time from a female perspective.

Things go deeper with Guys Today. As the name suggests, the content is about the enduring tension between the sexes and the heartbreak it can lead to. It’s a deep soul beat ballad in the vein of Betty Wright or Helene Smith. A grand opening is followed by a clear, crisp female vocal that brings the singer’s lament into focus. The band is tight, and it all comes together to portray a woman who has made up her mind and is offering a warning about guys today: I know you love your man, but I know they will hurt you in every way they can.

At first glance, these artists seem to share only a few things in common — party-themed music conceived in the 60s with an R&B flavor. But between sides A and B, it feels like these groups are talking to each other — perhaps different perspectives of the same party. Perhaps the party itself and then the fallout. The result is a balanced EP release that feels whole and satisfying. We hope you feel the same as we proudly present these found recordings as an exclusive 12” on 180 gram vinyl. Please enjoy.

"Join us as we welcome back New York Underground Funk Band with two more unreleased funk tracks from the early 1970s, “Funk & Soul” and “Wanna Be Free” — a more psychedelic take on their funk sound.

Funk & Soul states, “I’ve got funk and soul...don’t have to worry about a doggone thing” — and we’d have to agree. Yet another excellent track from NYUFB, though a little more psyched-out this time: imagine Sly and the Family Stone getting Jimi Hendrix for a session, then asking him to drop a fuzzed-out guitar solo. You might then end up with “Funk & Soul” — the heaviest, fuzz-driven Sly track you’ve never heard. Though it’s also NYUFB from start to finish.

Now that you’re in the right frame of mind from side A, you’re ready for “Wanna Be Free” — the deep funk B-side that trades out the spirit of Jimi Hendrix for the spirit of Jim Morrison. With all the respect that is due to these greats, NYUFB crafts their own psychedelic sound in this raucous cut that features thunderous drums and alluring interplay between organ and guitar. This was certainly designed to free your mind, and we believe the group succeeds.

These two tracks comprise one of our most exciting releases yet, as that promising band from the New York or New Jersey area further displays their remarkable range. These songs simply cannot remain buried. They’ve finally found their way to you on PP007, and we hope you’ll get a hold of it while you can."

"Join us as we welcome back New York Underground Funk Band with “Funk & Soul”, “Wanna Be Free”, and a previoulsy unreleased EP-bonus track ""By The Time I Get To Phoenix"" from the early 1970s — all a more psychedelic take on their funk sound.

Funk & Soul states, “I’ve got funk and soul...don’t have to worry about a doggone thing” — and we’d have to agree. imagine Sly and the Family Stone getting Jimi Hendrix for a session, then asking him to drop a fuzzed-out guitar solo. You might then end up with “Funk & Soul” — the heaviest, fuzz-driven Sly track you’ve never heard. Though it’s also NYUFB from start to finish.

Now, you’re in the right frame of mind for “Wanna Be Free” — the deep funk B-side that trades out the spirit of Jimi Hendrix for the spirit of Jim Morrison. With all the respect that is due to these greats, NYUFB crafts their own psychedelic sound in this raucous cut that features thunderous drums and alluring interplay between organ and guitar. This was certainly designed to free your mind, and we believe the group succeeds.

The B Side holds a very special treat— dig New York Underground Funk Band’s version of “By the Time I Get to Phoenix,” the Jimmy Webb-penned classic that gets a heavy soul treatment on PP12007. While covered many times, this hyper-syncopated interpretation is a standout with its long rap intro, call-and-response style singing and shimmering vocal harmonies.

These three tracks comprise one of our most exciting releases yet, as that promising band from the New York or New Jersey area further displays their remarkable range. These songs simply cannot remain buried. They’ve finally found their way to you on PP12007, and we hope you’ll get a hold of it while you can."

"From the first fuzzed out note of guitar on this record you'll know you're dealing with two heavy instrumental Psychedelic Funk sides. For our 14th regular release, we reached back into our acetate archive to bring you the never heard before Chordata. This recording seems to be related tangentially to Mancefield & Brother Man Band. And though we believe the group is likely from NJ/NY, we haven't been able to pin it down.

""Super Dynamite"" on the a-side features heavy guitar work, punchy horn stabs and arrangements, and heavy percussion. And what great Funk song doesn't have a drum break? Two thirds of the way through the side, Chordata delivers a pure drum and percussion break that extends while the guitar player and horns add a discordant layer to the mix.

The b-side, ""What It Is"" takes us on a jazzy trip that is like a group of teenagers dropping acid and trying to recreate a mix of Miles Davis' ""Bitches Brew"" and a lost Funkadelic session. It’s heavy, sonic, drenched in sweat, and amazing. The guitar player goes off on this side and is the focus. And while this is a less accessible recording, it might end up being your favorite side after repeated listens. "

"From the first fuzzed out note of guitar on this record you'll know you're dealing with two heavy instrumental Psychedelic Funk sides. For our 14th regular release, we reached back into our acetate archive to bring you the never heard before Chordata. This recording seems to be related tangentially to Mancefield & Brother Man Band. And though we believe the group is likely from NJ/NY, we haven't been able to pin it down.

""Super Dynamite"" on the a-side features heavy guitar work, punchy horn stabs and arrangements, and heavy percussion. And what great Funk song doesn't have a drum break? Two thirds of the way through the side, Chordata delivers a pure drum and percussion break that extends while the guitar player and horns add a discordant layer to the mix.

The b-side, ""What It Is"" takes us on a jazzy trip that is like a group of teenagers dropping acid and trying to recreate a mix of Miles Davis' ""Bitches Brew"" and a lost Funkadelic session. It’s heavy, sonic, drenched in sweat, and amazing. The guitar player goes off on this side and is the focus. And while this is a less accessible recording, it might end up being your favorite side after repeated listens. "

A vivid portrayal of Zaltsman’s direction, My Luv delivers 4 hard hitting club tracks, with rhythmic percussion and heavy basslines throughout. ‘The hook’ remaining a staple of this release, the tracks are all equally useful in peak time club scenarios as they are for after-hours listening.

The stripped back, bouncy ‘Moving’ features the vocals of London based poet and musician, James Massiah. An eerie synth runs throughout, complimentary to the vocals and choppy drums. The lead track, 'My Luv', is an out and out club-weapon. Chopped up vocals and a deep dark sub bass. This has seen a Summer of being deployed by some of the best DJs in the scene, taking advantage of its ‘obnoxiously long’ breakdown, before descending into chaos.

Complimenting these two tracks, 'Page 365' is a more sensitive body of music, engaging listeners with a strong bassline hook, before progressing into a more heavy hitting club track, with a large focus on groove, taking influence from the UK Funky scene. Finally, the most club-driven track from the record. 'Flatspot' is dominated by its forceful bassline and rolling percussion. This is out and out designed for peak-hour fun.


Early DJ Support:
Moxie, Saoirse, Louise Chen, Leon Vynehall, Ben UFO, Parris, Moopie, D.Tiffany, re:ni, Amaliah, Stenny