A box of this limited 7” showed up in the post, The Dahlmanns’ new single.. Norwegian power pop masterminds scoring dues from their whole rock and roll journey, Suzi Quattro, Dictators, Stooges, and all the great Scandinavian power pop / garage rock scene. Its been 15 year ssince their debut, and they still have a knack for perfect pop tunes wit ha hard edge. The A-side is a classic power pop, clap along to this… Line says ”the lyrics are inspired by the images of Finland’s Touko Laaksonen. It’s about a ”Tom of Finland” type character meeting up with his gang to attend shows at Max’s Kansas City in New York”. And on the flip, the Dahlmanns have turned a Prince classic into one of their own, Line explains, ”In my early teens, around the time of the release of his ”Sign O’ The Times” album I was obsessed with Prince. I never cared much for the over-the-top, experimental funk stuff but I liked ”Controversy” and ”Dirty Mind”, the latter includes another pop gem, ”When You were Mine”. ”Dirty Mind” was released on October 8th 1980, Johnny Ramone’s birthday and also mine. Such coincidence in life makes me happy”. A new album is pending, but jump in quick to get ahold of one of these 7”s.
Suche:v a scan 7
Axel Boman’s critically acclaimed double album LUZ/Quest for fire from 2022 gets a remix & dub treatment from one of Scandinavia's finest reggae-and-beyond soundsystems, Trensum Tribe.
”Great, now they sound better that the originals” said Axel when he heard the remixed versions for the first time, excitedly starting to collect the best ones for an album. Having been heavily inspired by Mad Professor’s work for Massive Attack since a young age (listen to No Protection for example), a project like this had been a dream of Axel Boman's for decades.
There is a certain freedom that comes with remixing, where you can step outside yourself as a producer and take risks and chances you might not in your own work, and Trensum Tribe really took an adventurous new path when they approached this music. On this homage to soundsystem and rave culture, jungle, dub, disco and house all become best friends in front of a huge stack of homemade speakers, standing tall on fresh dew in a Swedish forest on a cold summer night.
Limited to 250 copies !
The Deadheads had never had much luck with spaceships. Their first mission had ended in a catastrophic engine failure, leaving them adrift in deep space for weeks. This time, their craft was hardly more reassuring. A hodgepodge of outdated technology and shoddy repairs made it more of a floating death trap than a reliable cruiser. As they began their descent toward the strange planet, the hull creaked and rattled, sending a wave of dread through the crew.
"Hold on," Matt's voice crackled over the intercom, without much conviction, as if he himself doubted they would make it out alive. Outside, a thick, grayish atmosphere swirled ominously, while the planet's gravity became far stronger than anticipated.
“Fuck, we’re gonna burn at the entrance!” M yelled, his hands flailing on the console as sparks flew from the control panel. The ship’s sensors were completely jammed, and the navigation system flickered intermittently, like a dying light. Below, the planet’s surface was a tangle of lava rivers and jagged rock formations, the kind of place no sane person would ever land. But the Deadheads had never pretended to be. They lived in a state of constant emergency.
As the descent intensified, the alarms blared. On the bridge, the screens lit up with red warnings and flashing messages: "SYSTEM ERROR," "UNSTABLE TRAJECTORY," "SUIVITY SYSTEM COMPROMISED." The lines of code scrolled by too quickly to be read, while a mechanical voice repeated relentlessly: "Imminent impact. Structural integrity at twenty percent."
The once pristine shell of the vessel began to disintegrate, with shards of metal breaking away and disappearing into the atmosphere.
With a final, piercing screech, the ship crashed onto the planet's surface, sending up a cloud of dust and debris. The crew was violently thrown from their seats, stunned but barely alive. They struggled to their feet amidst the wreckage, the ship reduced to a charred shell around them.
"Well," M said, wiping the dirt off his suit with a grimace, "at least the air is breathable." Matt scanned the hostile expanse stretching before them and smiled slightly. "Perfect. Let's hope we have better luck with the planet than with our ships."
With that, the Deadheads gathered their equipment and headed into the unknown, while the remains of their ship slowly sank into the unstable soil of the planet.
Editions Mego is proud to release the new album by Australian producer Jasmine Guffond. Developed over a two year period, Microphone Permission is an unsettling musical journey utilising contemporary tools of communication to display Guffond's ongoing research into online surveillance and sound as a method of investigation.
Source material on Microphone Permission are from various projects Guffond has been working on; a commission to sonify the data of the city of Melbourne, a dance performance about the future sounds of an extinct forest, an installation that sonifies Twitter meta data in real time, a job as a composer for a theatre work about music and feminism by five young female identifying performers in Western Sydney and a site specific installation at the Linachtalsperre dam that employed the harmonic frequencies of electric currents.
The results are a stark, brooding, disorientating journey into a paranoid musical field that sits somewhere between ambient club music and a dystopian soundtrack. Elements of techno, classical music and sound art form a dark intriguing masterwork that questions the nature of invasive, algorithmic and computational listening practices.
For example Microphone Permission refers to the consent we routinely give when installing various apps. onto our smart devices. Inspired by a 2018 scandal in which fans of Spain's most popular soccer team were effectively turned into unwitting spies by granting the La Liga application microphone permission. No matter which make or model, all smart devices are built with a microphone that is by default, forever listening. Listening in these situations often takes on an algorithmic form that enables tech developers to bypass public response to what is intuitively considered invasive practice, that is, traditional modes of eavesdropping such as using the microphone to listen and record audio.
Following 2018's acclaimed collaboration with Simon Fisher Turner, "Care", Swedish sound artist Klara Lewis returns with "Ingrid", her third solo release for Editions Mego.
"Ingrid" is a departure from Lewis's previous solo outings, drifting from the eerie rhythmic variations of "Too" and "Ett" and moving assuredly into long-form experimentation. The piece retains those records' pulsing core and builds on a single cello loop that is steadily enveloped by a surge of distortion. It's almost like a voice or chant, shifting pointedly from a whisper into a scream before singing peacefully into the light.
At times, "Ingrid" reminds of William Basinski's looping melancholy or Steve Reich's controlled and innovative phase experiments, while at others, it recalls the chaotic Scandinavian physicality of black metal. Yet the entire composition is anchored in Klara Lewis's distinct emotional world. By dissolving familiar and beautiful strings in baths of noise, Lewis allows something violent but tender to grow in its place. In a society struck through by cynicism, "Ingrid" is a cathartic listening experience and a beacon of hope.
- A1: Rone - The Dolphin Ambassador
- A2: Mézigue & Swooh - Broken Roll To Venice
- A3: Kink - Give Me
- B1: Belaria & Madben - Into The Void
- B2: Oniris & Benjamin Rippert - Sonate
- C1: Legowelt & Cuften - Liar
- C2: Zaatar & Trunkline - Come Into The Light
- C3: Scan X & Electric Rescue - Lost In Time
- D1: Manu Le Malin & Kmyle - Little Big Man
- D2: Célélé & Théo Muller - Drum And Drift
Astropolis Records — the label born from the legendary electronic French festival — celebrates a decade of electronic devotion with a generous and deeply emotional anniversary compilation - a bit late, but never short on flair.
This double vinyl gathers the many faces of the Astropolis galaxy: in-house artists, long-time companions of the festival, and rising voices from a perpetually vibrant French scene. Across 18 artists, listeners are invited on a sonic journey where rave legacy, electronic dreamscapes, and collective fervor intertwine — true to the DNA of a festival that’s never known boundaries.
The record opens with grace and wonder courtesy of Rone, whose electronic touch channels both the intimate and the infinite. Between electronica and downtempo, The Dolphin Ambassador bathes in luminous melancholy, offering a moment of calm before the storm. In the same contemplative vein, we’re proud to unveil one of the first productions from Célélé alongside Théo Muller: Drum and Drift, a subtle blend of dubby vibrations and sunlit textures.
Astropolis has always thrived on happy collisions — and this compilation is proof of it. The unlikely meeting between Mézigue and Swooh sends house spiraling into a g-tech vortex on Broken Roll To Venice, a playful burst of groove, hybrid energy, and cheeky mischief. The same spirit of alchemy fuels Belaria & Madben, whose Into The Void burns bright as a 90s rave-meets-EBM anthem wrapped in hypnotic trance. Zaatar & Trunkline bring raw intensity to Come Into The Light, a sweaty, visceral banger at the crossroads of techno, dark disco, and EBM.
French techno pillars Scan X & Electric Rescue deliver a masterclass in elegant machine soul on Lost In Time. When Manu Le Malin teams up with Kmyle, the result is as sharp as it is cinematic: Little Big Man pulses with dramatic tension, balancing raw emotion and restrained fury. Elsewhere, Oniris & Benjamin Rippert reconnect with the melodic techno spirit of the label’s early days on Sonate, guided by a craftsman’s sense of harmony.
For the machine lovers, Legowelt & Cuften resurrect the spirit of early electroclash on Liar, a carnal fusion of analog synths and DIY attitude. And for the diehard dancefloor devotees, KiNK finally releases a cult track from his live sets: Give Me, a breakbeat-meets-vintage-house stormer tailor-made for those late-night sweats.
This anniversary compilation reaffirms the label’s openness to new generations and hybrid sounds, while paying tribute to the techno roots that shaped its foundation. Like the festival itself, it embodies sincerity and collective energy — a small manifesto linking generations, aesthetics, and territories, celebrating roots without nostalgia and the future without bending to trends.
- Vinyl 1
- Morbid Jester - Until The Battle Is Won
- Vinyl 2
- Sphinx - Here We Are
- Vinyl 3
- Starstruck- Thru´ To You
MORBID JESTER „Until The Battle Is Won“ - Dieses Kleinod deutscher Metalkunst erschien 1994 auf CD und wurde von S.L. Coe in den Dust Studios produziert. Eben jener dürfte eingefleischten Metalfans noch als Sänger auf der zweiten LP von ANGEL DUST, sowie von SCANNER ein Begriff sein.
Rund 2000 CDs konnten von der Eigenproduktion (!) abgesetzt werden, darunter auch viele Exemplare in Griechenland und vor allem Japan, wo die Band ein Geheimtipp wurde. Das Coverartwork stammt von niemand geringeren als Ken Kelly (Manowar, Kiss). Auftritte mit u.a. SAXON waren nur eine logische Folge. MORBID JESTER vereinen auf „Until The Battle Is Won“ Elemente des German Metal mit einer US-MetalPräzision, was für eine ganz eigene Mischung sorgt. Die transparente und dennoch druckvolle Produktion mit einem natürlichen Drumsound, wie man ihn heute oft vermisst, lässt das Songmaterial glänzen. Das respektvolle Remastering für diese Wiederveröffentlichung bringt all die Vorteile noch ein Stück weit nach vorne. Der Stilmix aus Progressive Rock und Heavy Metal wurde von Bands wie Dream Theater kultiviert, aber keinesfalls erfunden. In ihrer Konsequenz waren SPHINX im Jahr 1981 ihrer Zeit um einige Jahre voraus. Die Band aus dem Raum Stuttgart, 1977 gegründet, bestand zum größten Teil aus italienischen Gastarbeitersöhnen, was der Gruppe einen internationalen Flair verlieh. „Rock Made In Italy“, wie man auf der Originalhülle von „Here We Are“ lesen kann, war also nur ein Promotiongag, oder eben nur die halbe Wahrheit.
Ganz besonders auch deshalb, weil der Gitarrist Thomas Metzger niemand Geringeres als Tommy Newton ist, der später mit der Band Victory, anschließend auch als Produzent bekannt wurde. „Here We Are“ erschien 1981 bei Peak, einem Label der Firma GAMA, die zu diesem Zeitpunkt noch ganz neu im Geschäft war und ein solch erstklassiges Produkt noch nicht durchsetzen konnte. 1985 erschien die LP als „Burning Lights“ ein zweites Mal. Mausoleum und auch Camel (ebenso ein GAMA Label) versuchten mit einem typischen Heavy Metal-Coverartwork und umgestellter Tracklist dem Album eine zweite Chance zu geben. 1984 veröffentlichte die Band STARSTRUCK aus Karlsruhe ihr einziges Lebenszeichen: Die LP „Thru´ To You“. Aufgenommen wurde die Platte im Spygel Studio mit Engineer Batze Kramer. Eben dieser hat auch kultige Scheiben von Bands wie Tyrant, Stormwitch, Bloody Six, Vampyr, Gravestone, Restless oder Necronomicon veredelt. „Thru´ To You“ ist purer Zeitgeist und dazu passt auch das
Cover, welches beim genauen Hinschauen viel Humor beweist. Stilistisch wechselt man geschickt zwischen Hardrock und Heavy Metal.
When the ghost in the machine meets the breath in the reed, expect sparks. Electronic sound artist Robin Rimbaud – Scanner joins forces with acclaimed British bass clarinetist Gareth Davis to create an album where circuitry hums, wood vibrates, and the air between notes crackles with possibility.
This is no polite meeting of minds — it’s an elegant collision. Scanner’s intricate electronic textures weave around Davis’s deep, resonant tones, blurring the boundary between acoustic breath and digital pulse. The result is a sound world that’s at once intimate and expansive, familiar yet thrillingly unpredictable.
Think late-night conversations in abandoned buildings. Think fog rolling over neon. Think sound that slips through your fingers even as it takes hold of you.
The songlines in question , memories and distorted images of travels across various continents, form an imagined biography of places that might or might not have been but somehow seem to exist . Landscapes of blurred statements , lost words and echoes of meandering structures.
"If Miles Davis had been raised on shortwave radio static and midnight phone calls, it might have sounded like this."
- 1: Lexachast I
- 2: Lexachast Ii
- 3: Lexachast Iii
- 4: Lexachast Iv
- 5: Lexachast V
- 6: Lexachast Vi
- 7: Lexachast Vii
- 8: Lexachast Viii
- 9: Lexachast Ix
Lexachast is an ongoing collaborative work by Amnesia Scanner, Bill Kouligas & Harm van den Dorpel.
Initially birthed as a joint, improvised performance between Amnesia Scanner and Kouligas at the ICA, London in 2015, it was later recreated and extended with visual artist van den Dorpel into a 15-minute online-only audiovisual work – known simply as Lexachast. Since then, it has expanded into a live show that has been performed at Transmediale, CTM Festival, Unsound Krakow & Adelaide, Next and LEV Festival and during Paris Fashion Week in collaboration with the brand Ottolinger. Now to be released on PAN, is a new document of Lexachast in its current, full-grown form.
Whilst broadly inspired by the experience derived from and exposure to algorithmic patterns as generated by visual artist Harm van den Dorpel’s specially- devised program, the work is a sonic reference to the fallouts of avant-EDM and cyberdrone. This in turn is simultaneously mirrored by the perturbing visuals, created by a unique algorithm that sources and blends various filtered imagery from DeviantArt and Flickr in real time – with a bias towards the NSFW, extreme banality, and ornamental melancholia. The results were a perfect fit for the deliberate intention of non-intent, an anti-video of sorts, which ended up as a defining element for the project.
- 1: The Harder They Come (Live At Madstock 992)
- 2: Lovestruck
- 3: Johnny The Horse
- 4: Drip Fed Fred (The Conspiracy Mix)
- 5: Shame And Scandal
- 6: Girl Why Don’t You
- 7: Sorry (Radio Edit)
- 8: Nw5 (Radio Edit)
- 9: Dust Devil (Radio Edit)
- 10: Sugar And Spice (Radio Edit)
- 11: Forever Young (Melt Music Radio Edit)
- 12: My Girl 2 (Radio Edit)
- 13: Never Knew Your Name
- 14: How Can I Tell You (Radio Edit)
- 15: Misery
- 16: La Luna
- 17: Mr.apples (Toerag Mix)
- 18: Can't Touch Us Now
- 19: Bullingdon Boys
- 20: C'est La Vie
- 21: Baby Burglar
- 22: Round We Go (Single Version)
Experience the modern era of Madness with 'Hit Parade Vol. 2 1992-2024'. This 22-track 2LP set relives the more modern, contemporary years of Madness; containing a selection of hit singles, fan favourites and much-loved tunes. Including 'NW5', 'Shame and Scandal', 'Sorry', 'Drip Fed Fred', 'Mr Apples' and the Top 10 single 'Lovestruck'.
Beautifully packaged in a deluxe, gatefold sleeve, this 2LP collection is pressed on translucent blue vinyl. The fully illustrated inner sleeves contain new liner notes with various band members and long-time producers Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley, in conversation with renowned author and journalist Paul Sexton.
Firmly established as national treasures and as one of the UK’s most cherished and beloved bands, Madness are adored by their loyal and huge following. Their consistently sold-out shows illustrate their enduring qualities resulting in their popularity continuing to grow and grow.
- 1: The Prince
- 2: One Step Beyond
- 3: My Girl
- 4: Night Boat To Cairo
- 5: Baggy Trousers
- 6: Embarrassment
- 7: The Return Of The Los Palmas
- 8: Grey Day
- 9: Shut Up (Single Edit)
- 10: It Must Be Love
- 11: Cardiac Arrest
- 12: House Of Fun
- 13: Driving In My Car
- 14: Our House
- 15: Tomorrow's (Just Another Day)
- 16: Wings Of A Dove
- 17: The Sun And The Rain
- 18: Michael Caine
- 19: One Better Day
- 20: Yesterday's Men (Single Edit)
- 21: Uncle Sam (Single Edit)
- 22: Sweetest Girl (Single Edit)
- 23: (Waiting For) The Ghost Train
- 1: The Harder They Come (Live At Madstock 992)
- 4: Drip Fed Fred (The Conspiracy Mix)
- 5: Shame And Scandal
- 6: Girl Why Don’t You
- 7: Sorry (Radio Edit)
- 8: Nw5 (Radio Edit)
- 9: Dust Devil (Radio Edit)
- 10: Sugar And Spice (Radio Edit)
- 11: Forever Young (Melt Music Radio Edit)
- 12: My Girl 2 (Radio Edit)
- 13: Never Knew Your Name
- 14: How Can I Tell You (Radio Edit)
- 15: Misery
- 16: La Luna
- 17: Mr.apples (Toerag Mix)
- 18: Can't Touch Us Now
- 19: Bullingdon Boys
- 20: C'est La Vie
- 21: Baby Burglar
- 22: Round We Go (Single Version)
- 2: Lovestruck
- 3: Johnny The Horse
Beautifully packaged in a deluxe slipcase, this 4LP box set combines the red vinyl.
Volume 1 and blue vinyl Volume 2 2LP collections. The fully illustrated inner sleeves contain new liner notes with various band members and long-time producers Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley,
in conversation with renowned author and journalist Paul Sexton.
- 1: Dølgsmål
- 2: Sommermørket
- 3: Cæsar
- 4: Trosten
- 5: Helgen
- 6: Astralreiser
- 7: Sjelefred
Something is brewing in the state of Norway! Kronstad 23 are the latest trailblazers from northern Scandinavia: a creative force exploring the boundaries of musical genres, including but not limited to: psych rock, jazz, post-rock & scandinavian folk music. The group of young players follows the footsteps of Motorpsycho, Elephant9 & El Paraiso’s own Lotus, Fra Det Onde & Kanaan, carving out their path through the musical landscape in seemingly effortless ways! One minute you’re floating on cosmic Pharoah Sanders waters, the next you’re ascending on electrified if-Tortoise-played-Allman Brothers-style jamming.
The band describes their approach as: “Sommermørket is an escape from inhumane technology and politics in search of something that feels authentic. The music breathes in the little that is left of old air and rises slowly into the hazy summer twilight like brittle thoughts that try to connect and fade away.”
Kronstad 23 was formed in Kronstad, Bergen, Norway in the Autumn of 2023. As old friends and musical collaborators, they rekindled a creative spark that had been dormant for over 10 years. Rarely rehearsed and often caught on first take, Sommermørket was recorded live on tape in the studio of Keyboardist Øyvind Vie Berg in Bergen, Norway. The record captures three sessions across one year, from spring and late summer in 2024 to winter of 2025.
- Music To Kill Bad People To
- Evil Death Roll (Demo)
- Dirt (Demo)
- Bit Bit Bit Bit Bit Bit Bit
- Sketches Of Brunswick East (Demo)
- Demo No. 79
- Planet B (Demo)
- The Bird Song (Demo)
- Muddy Water (Demo)
- Mars For The Rich (Demo)
- Footy Footy (Demo)
- Stevie Ray Horn
- Automation (Demo)
- Fishing For Fishies (Demo)
Music To Kill Bad People To ist eine Zusammenstellung von Demos und seltenen Aufnahmen der australischen Acid Rockband King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, aufgenommen zwischen 2011 und 2020. Teil der offiziellen Bootlegger-Serie, diese LP hat exklusive Cover-Art des visuellen Künstlers Griffin Scanlan, beherrscht von Joseph Carra.
2025 Repress
After 15 years of shaping Hungary's electronic music events scene, Technokunst proudly unveils its record label. The inaugural 12" kicks off a series of collaborative releases, featuring some of the collective's favourite Artists. Each release in the 'Split Series' will consist of both original tracks and reworks.
The first EP brings together Rrose and Luigi Tozzi for a dive into very deep waters across four cuts of mental Deep Techno. These are functional, floor-focused workouts - built for keeping the floor moving through all phases of the night.
Mastered by Giovanni Conti at Artefacts Mastering. Lacquer cut by Simon at The Exchange. Limited pressing on 180gr heavyweight white vinyl in full color sleeve. The artwork is based on a digitally scanned painting on canvas by Technokunst's own Dorka Berkes. The release is accompanied by a printed insert featuring the artwork and key pieces of information on both sides.
Early support from the likes of Adriana Lopez, Blazej Malinowski, Claudio PRC, Danieli, Deepbass, Kaspiann, Na Nich, Ness, Orbe, Reeko, Save Your Atoll, Vera Logdanidi and Volster.
In May, fans were treated to the first new music from Trentemøller since 2022. A new single, "A Different Light," showcased a stunning blend of prismatic space rock and folk. For anyone wondering if it foreshadowed the release of a full-length, Dreamweaver will drop in September, on Friday the 13th.
Featuring 10 tracks that traverse Trentemøller's many musical strengths, Dreamweaver also represents an obvious artistic leap, treading new ground while retaining the overall plot. Tracks featuring vocals come courtesy of of Iceland's Disa, who has been in Trentemøller's fold since the Memoria tour.
Dreamweaver's nylon string-led opening track, and first single from the album, "A Different Light," contains many of Trentemøller's trademarks: exploring dichotomies, musical shadowplay, Nordic frigidity, and warm waves. It opens the door for the steady, hypnotic "Nightfall," with its tetherless vocal, wistful guitars, and early morning desert chill. The third track in the opening trifecta, "Dreamweavers" finds its footing with a percussive soft trot, which starts after what feels like a shortwave radio scan in search of the right chords, eventually dialing in a weightless voice. Ostensibly keeping a ruminative pace with the previous two tracks, the song and, by extension, album soon opens up as the rest of the elements drop into place with a grand, luxurious burst.
Dreamweaver is about to enter its next phase. With the hatch blown off of the portal, the noisy "I Give My Tears," driven by its glissed and fuzzy bass line, pours into the void. It's followed by its sibling, the most chaotic track on Dreamweaver, "Behind My Eyes." Arriving as a piece of noise rock pandemonium, "Behind My Eyes," can't be contained in its plush vault. A whip-crack snare and convulsing guitars smash against each other in the song's verse chamber. The tension builds, as the particles collide, pushing past the point of critical mass, kicking off the chain reaction which is the chorus. At times it harkens back to the proto-gaze tracks that gave birth to dream pop, at others it newly defines what that is. There's no time to contemplate it, though, as the song disintegrates in a microphonic feedback instant.
A respite follows with the somnambulistic pair of "Hollow" and "Empty Beaches." Then, a moment of intensity returns as the soaring textures and tribal drum bursts of "In A Storm" take control, before being taken out with the ambient slo-core of "Winter's Ghost" and "Closure." This diptych wraps up an album which certainly feels on-script for Trentemøller, but is also much more psychedelic than previous offerings.
Dreamweaver will be released on Trentemøller's own In My Room label. It is an exceedingly immersive experience, bound to release any dormant hallucinations you may be harboring.
Downwards present Alexander Tucker in metamorphosis from psych folk to techgnostic bard, aided by notable guests – Justin K Broadrick, Regis, Phew, Karl D’Silva, JJOWDY, and Elvin Brandhi – in a quest for disordered convention and new thrills. One up to Tucker’s outings for Alter and The Tapeworm, and spiritual successor to his »Nonexistant« trio on Downwards, »Clear Vortex Chamber« is an enigmatic take on the brownfield edgelands where the eldritch intersects electronic heck. Decades of work spread between hardcore punk, psych rock, folk, and drone — including work with Stephen O’Malley (Ginnungap) and Neil Campbell (Astral Social Club, ESP Kinetic) — feed forward into this album’s unsteady machine rhythms and cranky junkyard atonalities, where Tucker panel-beats aspects of his previous sound with a newfound industrial thrust and cyber-punky lust that suits him dead well.
A crafty example of how to mutate without losing sight of yourself, the album’s eight parts feel like a cyborg patching itself into modernity. On opener »Udug« Tucker’s signature falsetto peals from a A Scanner Darkly-style scramble suit of stereo-strobing electronics, setting a melodramatic, neo-gothic tension that riddles the album thru the knotted, fractured industrial dancehall bullishness of »Mallets« with Yeah You’s feral gob Elvin Brandhi, via a pair of standout »Fedbck« parts with Tucker’s personal idol, Justin K Broadrick (Godflesh, Jesu, and the rest), featuring the Brum deity’s claw-handed riffs and howl on the first, and smeared with Karl D’Silva’s brass in its noctilucent second part.
Regis also proves a staunch foil for the album’s most robust, club-ready cut »Zona«, hammered out from buzzing metallic drums and monotone bass drones, and pitting his severed vox against Tucker’s own androgynous harmonies to recall aspects of The Ephemeron Loop via British Murder Boys, whilst scene legend, Can and Ryuichi Sakamoto spar Phew (aka Aunt Sally) ideally tempers the flow in a relatively soothing »Sansu«, sharing more cyber-romantic, recombinant sentiments with the channelling of Robert Wyatt gone Funk Bruxaria on »Folded«.
- 1: Act Of Tenderness
- 2: Power And Posession
- 3: What I Need
- 4: New Romance
- 5: Last Train's Come And Gone
- 6: Operation
- 7: Quit Doing Me Wrong
- 8: Fallen Angel
- 9: Bonsai Garden
- 10: Miracle Of The Rose
- 11: Wandering And Solitude
- 12: A New Love Is Believing
Cindy Lee is the diva alter-ego of singer / guitarist / drag queen Patrick Flegel, the one-time captain of heralded Canadian experimental guitar pop act, Women. In Flegel's working on / as Cindy Lee exclusively over recent years, their songwriting makes a move toward high atmospherics, often achieving a mysterious sweetness rooted equally in beauty and ache.
As Cindy Lee's first long-form statement, Act Of Tenderness makes use of antipodal themes to create a living sound: static with grace, distortion and sugar, all masterfully arranged with crooked nods toward pop classicism. The layered vocal on "Power And Possession" creates a palpable haunt, bringing historical girl-group lament to choir-esque heights. The feedback shriek and industrial grind of "Bonsai Garden" provides near-operatic damage, yet never stumbles into the irrevocably grave. These snowy pieces give the album a decidedly cinematic feel, albeit one bent more towards Eraserhead.
Originally released in a scant private edition in 2015, Superior Viaduct's imprint W.25TH is pleased to give Act Of Tenderness its deserving wide release.
Fog is Marija Rasa’s debut album on Short Span as emer, and her first cut to wax. It follows a single featuring Ugnė Uma for Stroom and a wonderful debut tape for the now cult (I hope!) incubator label Lilerne Tape Club.
It’s for dreamers. Very dub. Soul. Ambient too. A bit of Detroit-like post industrial imagining. You can read it is as a new and different version of a very classic dub technique from the producer in many ways - Marija at the mixing console and effects desk, conjuring a new versioned music through radical restructuring and an instinctive reshaping of space + melody + lyric in studio experimentation.
Tracks are pinned down by thick and enveloping bass while other elements float in and out, fleeting narcotic or hypnagogic notes of fantasy and song form bob in and out of focus. Scant colours and disorienting voice and melody sit suspended, occasionally coalescing and breaking out into moments of radiant beauty and slowly burning manifestations of warmth and presence shooting through the heart and gut.




















