Suche:would u

When billy woods released Today, I Wrote Nothing ten years ago, it was an unexpected departure from a rapper who was just starting to make waves in the indie rap scene. After spending the earlier part of his career in the wilderness, woods had managed to crawl out of obscurity with the minor success of 2012’s History Will Absolve Me. Dour Candy, 2013’s collaboration with underground legend Blockhead drew accolades, which only increased with Armand Hammer’s debut Race Music.

Then, woods dropped out of sight for two years before returning with Today, I Wrote Nothing, a record that deviated significantly from what had come before. Where Dour Candy had been concise and focused, TIWN was a sprawling 24 tracks. Where History Will Absolve Me was anchored by hard-hitting beats, anthemic songs, and a couple high powered features, TIWN was comprised of short vignettes, quietly eclectic production, and the only guests were his Backwoodz label-mates. Only one video was released; the claustrophobic “Flatlands”, shot on a shoestring budget in a Brooklyn housing project. Reviewers didn’t know quite what to make of the record, and in many cases, neither did fans.

As is often the case for woods’ albums, many perspectives shifted as the years passed. Listeners came to see the sad, quiet beauty of Today, I Wrote Nothing; a road trip album that doubles as a meditation on life’s journeys and death’s hiding places. The album’s power is in it’s intimacy, it’s insistence on holding your hand through the darkness. Now, TIWN is considered one of the more unique and vital records in woods catalogue. The dynamic woods created with TIWN vis-a-vis History Will Absolve Me and Dour Candy is one that would come to define his ouerve; constant experimentation, a refusal to be pigeonholed, and an unwavering search for the emotional heart of his subject. For us at Backwoodz, being able to repress this album on it’s ten year anniversary is especially sweet, because we remember how long it took us to sell that original run of 500. To everyone who copped one of those and helped us keep the lights on, this is for you too, we couldn’t have gotten here otherwise.

With two critically acclaimed compilations already under his belt, DJ / collector miche returns to Mr Bongo with the third instalment of his With Love series. Testament to his ever-expanding taste, Volume 3 isn’t just a subs bench call-up from the past compilations, it’s an evolution and progression casting the net deeper and wider than before.

Keeping true to the series, but with some fresh surprises along the way, this carefully curated compilation is a celebration of soulful, independently released music from across the globe, and the amazing (often unsung) musicians and vocalists that made these sublime records.

Across the third volume, miche explores a jazzier side of his tastes. “The deeper I went, the more I found myself gravitating towards jazzier music - not leaving soul behind, but following that same feeling into new territory”, he explains. Tracks like the gliding jazz funk found on Late Nite Music Band’s ‘Sundance’, or the glorious jazz-soul number ‘In Flight’ by Spectrym are shining examples of this.

That defining soulful thread of previous volumes is still in full effect throughout this latest edition. “There’s a healthy dose of impossible-to-find soul gems that have that unmistakable, heartwarming feel. Tracks like John Simmons' 'Ain't Nothing Like The Love', which I've adored ever since Zaf Love Vinyl played it, sit perfectly alongside records like Le Cop and New Way”, states miche.

The addition of some top-tier Turkish music showcases another side to his ever-broadening taste. Nükhet Ruacan's 'Gölge' is something unique, a floaty Brazilian-inspired gem recorded in Turkey and not what you’d typically expect from Turkish records of this era. 

It also wouldn’t feel right to leave out a stop in Brazil, with miche looking to the work of Carlos Bivar whose track 'Amargo Amar' carries that undeniable groove of samba-funk from Rio.

Spreading the With Love message far and wide the series has led to miche DJing across the globe, “from batucada sessions in Timisoara, to all-night sets in a club in Beijing, and even an eight-hour Root Down With Love stage takeover at We Out Here festival, joined by Danilo Plessow, Jeremy Underground, and of course, my mentor and buddy Rainer Trüby.”

Volume 3 then, carries that message even further. It’s an eclectic but intentional collection, built for the music lover who wants to discover something new. Working just as well as a soundtrack to cook dinner to, as it does keeping a packed dancefloor moving into the small hours.

"Anti Todo" is Eskorbuto's most celebrated album, recorded in the shortest time imaginable and released in 1985. It shows what the Spanish punk band did best: hitting the studio with as much raw energy, provocation, inspiration, and natural talent as possible. A new remastering for this edition has given the album the richer, more vibrant sound it always deserved. We can once again enjoy the urgency, simplicity, and rage of this refreshed "Anti Todo", a true classic recorded at Eskorbuto's peak of their creativity and energy. It includes a large poster and insert with notes. DESCRIPTION 1985 was a landmark year for punk rock in the Basque country, and possibly for the whole of Spain. Punk merged with the Basque Radical Rock (Rock Radikal Vasco or RRV) movement, although this was not necessarily always the case. For instance, Eskorbuto invariably kept their distance from the movement and everything related to it. Hardship was part and parcel of Eskorbuto's life and musical career. All their albums were recorded in the shortest time imaginable, partly due to tight budgets (studios were expensive, labels were close-fisted), and partly because Josu and Jualma needed to spend the money on other things_ When it came to recording "Anti Todo", Eskorbuto stuck to what they did best: hitting the studio with as much raw energy, provocation, inspiration, and natural talent as possible. It was their best record and we have to ask: what would Eskorbuto have been capable of if they had more time, a bigger budget, and tighter control? The song 'Tamara' was practically composed on the spot in the studio in less than two recording days, as was much of 'Ha llegado el momento'. The experienced sound technician did an outstanding job, but a new remastering for this rerelease has given the album the richer, more vibrant sound it always deserved. We can once again enjoy the urgency, simplicity, and rage of this refreshed "Anti Todo", a true classic in our musical history, originally released in 1985 at Eskorbuto's peak of their creativity and energy. This edition of the album includes a large poster and insert with notes.

Tech-Nology was launched in 2003 specifically to make records with the artist Bjorn Svin. Bjorn was the first Danish artist who made underground crossover into commercial hit territory via "Mer Strom" - but still keeping respect in the "real" music world for his enthusiasm, non-compromising style, persona, and sweaty live performance skills - his musical understanding and need to explore new directions took the crowd on a personal musical journey from jazz and classical musicians to early electronic pioneers - but always in a tone of his own. Bjorn always felt a need to escape norms, to grow and not to repeat, but investigate and create. The first record on Tech-Nology was born under the alias - El Far: Couples of lonely dancers. "Bjorn is maybe the most talented electronic producer ever in Denmark" and he was celebrated as a wonder kid by the media back in the 90's. An insider with new knowledge of Bjorn told us: "Yeah I think its good music.. It's not for everyone I must add, but it's definitely quality music for those who dig this sound.. sometimes a bit too deep.. which kind of works against it, cause you really need to listen to it.. you cannot just skip through it, cause then you don't really grasp the soul of it.. so this is what makes it more difficult to sell - but if a guy like this was a bigger name he would sell much better.."

We love Bjorn and we agree - We have tried to sell Bjorn and his music for over 2 decades now - But you can't capture Bjorn, you can't own him - he is only making music for himself - and you can get on the ride if you want to, but don't expect all the rides to be fun - sometimes it hurts! Bjorn is difficult to sell, but we don't think Bjorn really would like to sell much better if he had the option to do a more commercial approach to his music - because Bjorn is about not selling out, he's a purist at heart, making music documents for the few. Bjorn is bigger than superficial success and streaming numbers. He made jingles for Nokia, toured and played Roskilde's main stage, the biggest Festival in Denmark, but he still doesn't care... and that is important if you want to make interesting music that last for the future. When Bjorn met Mester Jakobsen, label boss of Tech-Nology, he has been releasing on numerous underground labels, made the jump to a major label, and everything more or less turned out as a big disappointment, so Bjorn presented a completely experimental album to the Tech-Nology label under the moniker Prinz Ezo - The Body Offset. We loved it then - we still love it now - and a truly collectors item and a secret DJ tool.

Today, Bjorn is still breaking all habits and rules, still doing the same thing - just in new ways, but he has gained insight on another level, adding even more nuances and textures to his post-genre compositions.

Welcome to the second album by Prinz Ezo on Tech-Nology: KURIER Why Kurier? Because Bjorn left to explore the Berlin Underground, shortly after the first two releases on Tech-Nology - he left his roots to search for a bigger meaning, a bigger understanding, to compose real mature sounds and understanding his skills, at the point where you understand why you have to cross borders, still incognito, doing smuggler-sounds, always in transit - between cities, between cultures, between worlds, time and space. Not Restless nor rootless, just forever on the move, always discovering new landscapes! But now Bjorn is settling down - accordingly with the music - to find - not inner peace, but to be completely in balance with the music inside of him. Prinz Ezo is raw, narrative, minimalistic electronic storytelling that refuses to freeze. Tension builds and releases - feel the energy and the drama for the last 2 decades if you dare to take the journey?

Almost twenty years after the first Prinz Ezo album, it has now been possible to make the music for those who never arrived.

Rocksteady took over Orange Street ,Kingston, Jamaica around 1966,the same time that an extreme heat wave hit the Jamaican Island.
Some say the previous jerky Ska Rhythms proved too strenuous of an activity to partake in during the all night Sound Systems.
So it proved a winning formula to slow the beat down to a more leisurely pace.

Whatever the reasons were this two year period that ran until 1968 would see some of the power escape from the big three producers,Clement 'Coxonne 'Dodd,Prince Buster and Duke Reid...who up to that period ruled the airwaves. It was time to make room for a new wave of up and coming producers that also had something to offer the people.

So sit back and enjoy some Rocksteady straight from the dances of Jamaica...Hope you enjoy the set...............

Death Is Not The End release a second part collecting pre-partition film music, compiled by Gary Sullivan of Bodega Pop.

As the 1940s began, South Asian cinema entered a transformative phase. Playback singing, still a new idea in the previous decade, quickly became standard practice. Actors no longer had to sing, and singers no longer had to act, opening the door to a wave of dedicated vocal talent that redefined the sound of the industry.

Voices like Noor Jehan, Shamshad Begum, and Suraiya rose to prominence, becoming household names across the subcontinent. Behind them, composers like Naushad, Anil Biswas, and Ghulam Haider were expanding the sonic palette of film music, blending ragas with Western orchestration, folk tunes with jazz-era instrumentation. Harmoniums, sarangis, violins, accordions, and clarinets filled out increasingly complex arrangements, while ghazals and qawwalis continued to influence mood and structure.

Although the post-Partition years are often considered to be Bollywood's "Golden Age," thanks to filmmakers like Raj Kapoor, Bimal Roy, and Guru Dutt, the music started its peak just before the divide. By 1947, Naushad and others were producing some of the most emotionally rich and musically intricate work in the industry's history, compositions that would prove challenging to surpass in the decades that followed.

Yet this high point came during a time of immense upheaval. The Second World War, the Bengal famine, and the crumbling of colonial rule all loomed large. Film songs often reflected the uncertainty, sometimes mournful, sometimes romantic, sometimes defiant. And when the Partition finally came, it fractured the world that had created this music. Artists became refugees, studios were split, and careers were thrown into flux. Noor Jehan, who would go on to become Pakistan's most iconic singer, recorded many of her most beloved songs in Bombay. Khursheed, another major star, faded from public life after migrating. K.L. Saigal, a towering figure of the 1930s and '40s, died in Lahore just months before the split.

This collection spans those final years before Partition, a time of creative flowering and looming catastrophe. Like Part 1, these songs were sourced from immigrant-run music shops in New York and New Jersey. They are fragments of a vanishing world, each one a snapshot of the art, longing, and resilience that defined this extraordinary era.

»Reise der Schatten« (»Journey of Shadows«) is the soundtrack to the eponymous debut feature-length animation film by Swiss artist Yves Netzhammer. Composed by Anthony Pateras and released as a stand- alone album through Hallow Ground, the 29 pieces are based on »weird folk melodies ornamented with electro-acoustics to give the film a more fantastical, fairy-tale feeling,« as the composer puts it. His extensive international recording sessions with a slew of guest musicians results in a record imbued with a sense of mystical surrealism, otherworldly and haunting.

»Reise der Schatten« tells the abstracted story of a genderless being coming to terms with its identity and place in a world full of conflicts and systems of control. »The film was made with old animation software that only works on Mac OS 9. So already, we are in a very hermetic, unique space,« says Pateras. Having tried (and failed) to compose something »typically experimental,« he went for long walks in the Australian bushlands and came home with something else: the idea to create a soundtrack that would create »a kind of distance, or perceptual shift, but also a narrative drive and emotional context which is not always clear.«

While recording the album, the tētēma co-founder did not use digitally generated sound, instead workingwith live instrumentation whose sound palette was enriched by the use of feedback, tape delay, analogue synthesizers, and samples from vinyl records. Wanting to work primarily with acoustic instruments suchas the clarinet made Pateras embark on a complicated journey of his own. The initial recording sessions took place in Basel on metallophones that were designed by Domenico Melchiorre’s Lunason company and laid the foundation for everything that came after.

Pateras recorded with musicians such as guitarist Alexander Garsden, viola player Erkki Veltheim, clarinetist Aviva Endean, multi-instrumentalist Justin Marshall and Lizzy Welsh on the viola d’amore among other instruments. He recorded percussion and recorders with Rohan Rebeiro and Natasha Anderson in his hometown of Castlemaine, double bass with Benjamin Ward in Sydney, bass and flutes with Jon Heilbron and Rebecca Lane in Berlin, and electronics in Zürich with Netzhammer. »Reise der Schatten« was thus a literal journey, made with a »big, international electro-acoustic ensemble.«

As a stand-alone album, »Reise der Schatten« opens up a space of its own. Its stylistic diversity makes it atmospherically and emotionally multi-faceted. As its composer notes, »music for screen can be very virtuosic, sophisticated, and variegated!« His own work is a testament to that claim.

ele

2026 Repress

EXOTIC GARDENS is the dub focused solo project of Aaron Coyes. As a member of PEAKING LIGHTS, LEISURE CONNECTION, and a mainstay on both NTS and DUBLAB radio (among many other credits), Aaron should be nothing less than a household name. But here, in EXOTIC GARDENS, Coyes' only collaborator is a make-shift dub home studio that would make any tech head weep with ecstatic joy. For the last 6 months, little snippets and whispers of the project have been emerging on various social outlets, but here we find the culmination of those efforts: EIGHT DEEPLY HEAVY, DEEPLY DUBBY, DEEPLY PSYCHEDELIC, DUB TRACKS FOR THE ENTIRE FAMILY.

An ever-present name in underground house, Alex Celler is back once again on Baby Ford's cult Trelik label. This is his third and maybe best outing yet with 'Twilight Firedancer' being a long and extended dub tech workout with wobbly bass and off-balance drums topped with glowing chords that bring occasional relief to the pressure of the groove. 'Mescaline' is much more busy with abstract pops and squeaks, synth modulations and an urgent, tightly programmed minimal tech groove that you would expect of this label. It's high-class music for mind and body.

Zurich-born, New York-based DJ Tony y Not is best known for her free-spirited sets, seamlessly weaving together techy acid, progressive, dark disco, and heart-opening indie. She brings that signature energy to her Kompakt debut with striking precision. Have You Lost Your Mind channels a touch of Swan Lake-era Todd Terry – one of NYC house’s legendary figures – delivering a razor-sharp acid line, a rock-solid groove, and one of the most flawlessly executed breakdown/drop combos in recent memory. Deep Don’t Stop follows suit, skillfully reviving the essence of ’90s New York club culture in a way that would have set Junior Vasquez’s Sound Factory ablaze. True to her mission, Tony y Not continues to spread joy and uplift others, both on and off the dance floor.

TEE MANGO’s first release on Kompakt has been a long time coming. Ever since Michael Mayer heard his sunkissed remix of The Invisible’s ‘K Town Sunset’ back in 2017, he’s been obsessed with his music. The two tracks here, ‘Moonshots’ and ‘My Mind Is Making Up Monsters’, are prime examples of TEE’s ability to create heartfelt, uplifting modern house music. There’s a sense of bacchanal liberation, a potent transcendental element that opens the mind to joyful bliss.

With two critically acclaimed compilations already under his belt, DJ / collector miche returns to Mr Bongo with the third instalment of his With Love series. Testament to his ever-expanding taste, Volume 3 isn’t just a subs bench call-up from the past compilations, it’s an evolution and progression casting the net deeper and wider than before.

Keeping true to the series, but with some fresh surprises along the way, this carefully curated compilation is a celebration of soulful, independently released music from across the globe, and the amazing (often unsung) musicians and vocalists that made these sublime records.

Across the third volume, miche explores a jazzier side of his tastes. “The deeper I went, the more I found myself gravitating towards jazzier music - not leaving soul behind, but following that same feeling into new territory”, he explains. Tracks like the gliding jazz funk found on Late Nite Music Band’s ‘Sundance’, or the glorious jazz-soul number ‘In Flight’ by Spectrym are shining examples of this.

That defining soulful thread of previous volumes is still in full effect throughout this latest edition. “There’s a healthy dose of impossible-to-find soul gems that have that unmistakable, heartwarming feel. Tracks like John Simmons' 'Ain't Nothing Like The Love', which I've adored ever since Zaf Love Vinyl played it, sit perfectly alongside records like Le Cop and New Way”, states miche.

The addition of some top-tier Turkish music showcases another side to his ever-broadening taste. Nükhet Ruacan's 'Gölge' is something unique, a floaty Brazilian-inspired gem recorded in Turkey and not what you’d typically expect from Turkish records of this era. 

It also wouldn’t feel right to leave out a stop in Brazil, with miche looking to the work of Carlos Bivar whose track 'Amargo Amar' carries that undeniable groove of samba-funk from Rio.

Spreading the With Love message far and wide the series has led to miche DJing across the globe, “from batucada sessions in Timisoara, to all-night sets in a club in Beijing, and even an eight-hour Root Down With Love stage takeover at We Out Here festival, joined by Danilo Plessow, Jeremy Underground, and of course, my mentor and buddy Rainer Trüby.”

Volume 3 then, carries that message even further. It’s an eclectic but intentional collection, built for the music lover who wants to discover something new. Working just as well as a soundtrack to cook dinner to, as it does keeping a packed dancefloor moving into the small hours.

Rocker’s Revenge was a studio musical project, assembled by producer Arthur Baker in 1982. The band comprised of Baker himself plus Donnie Calvin, Dwight Hawkes, Tina B and Adrienne Dupree Johnson. They are most remembered by their 1982 post-disco hit "Walking on Sunshine", which peaked at number 1 on the US Dance Chart and number 4 in the UK.

On the A side of this release, the track is reset for 2025 with a remix by post punk indie rockers Yard Act, where they have include their own guitar, synths & vocals to give their unique stamp to it. – It’s become a track they have been performing live. On the other side is an unreleased 9 minute remix by New York’s legendary Sound Factory co-founder Junior Vasquez back from 1988, to make it proto acid house bassline & driving percussion journey.

Boston-born Arthur Baker launched his music career as a Disco DJ, but soon made his way into music-making, producing classic Disco for legends Northend and TJM. Arthur is one of the most visible and widely imitated early Hip-Hop/House producers; masterminding breakthrough experimentation with tape edits, sampling and synthetic beats on such records as Afrika Bambaataa's 'Planet Rock', New Order's 'Confusion', Freeez's ‘IOU’, and his own break Dance classic ‘Breaker's Revenge'. Baker would go on to become an award-wining DJ, music and film producer, working for and with the likes Dylan, Hall & Oates, Al Green, Springsteen, The Rolling Stones, Fleetwood Mac, Diana Ross, &many more; on film music for 80s/90s classics such as Beat Street, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, and Life Less Ordinary. Turning his hand to film documentary’s, Baker has produced Finding The Funk and 808 the Movie. Baker has also directed a documentary on Rocker’s Revenge ‘On A Mission’ along with completing their debut album.

Repress!

Sophomore release from the acclaimed trio of Inspectah Deck (Wu-Tang Clan) And 7L & Esoteric. Features MF Doom, GZA, Method Man, Large Professor, Juju Of The Beatnuts, Ra The Rugged Man, & Meyhem Lauren. Packaged in a 70+ Page Hardcover CD Casebook / 2LP on Clear vinyl with Lyrics & Cover Art From L'amour Supreme (Mishka NYC). Includes a comic, written by Esoteric with artwork by Gilberto Aguirre Mata (El Ultimo Codice) & L'Amour Supreme. CZARFACE - Wu-Tang founding MC Inspectah Deck and veteran Boston duo 7L & Esoteric - isn't concerned with the glitz and the B.S. that modern consumer culture is pushing. And neither are the group's fans. In 2013, the trio appeared relatively unassumingly with their self-titled debut, which was chiefly produced by DJ 7L and included guests ranging from Ghostface Killah and Cappadonna to Vinnie Paz, Action Bronson and Roc Marciano. The soon-to-be acclaimed group found out quickly that there was a groundswell of hip-hop fanatics thirsting for the lunchpail, lyrics-above-all-else rap they fell in love with in the '90s. Several pressings of the album on CD, 2-LP and even cassette later, they are back and ready to up the ante. This time around the group is the same, but it's fair to say that all three men have stepped up their game. We knew how we felt about the last album, but weren't sure how it would be received by listeners,' explains MC Esoteric. But people really responded to it, even more than we had hoped. That gave us the confidence to really spread our wings and let loose on this one. The chemistry is even tighter this time around. We know exactly what lanes we are cruising in and what weight class we are fighting in for Round 2.' Inspectah Deck adds, Czarface is like the Danger Room for the X-Men, I can use all my weapons on there. When I'm in Wu-Tang, I have to come a certain way because we have a certain style of fan, when I'm here doing the Czarface projects, it allows me to actually be an MC, it allows me to actually just spit...I love that. I love when i can just spit freely and just be an MC.' The fighting analogy - whether drawn from pugilism or '80s wrestling, both which figure into Every Hero Needs A Villain - is an apt one, considering the unrelenting lyrical attacks that Deck and Esoteric unleash on track after track, each trying to one-up the previous verse. Best of all, it is friendly camaraderie, based around a loose theme of renegade mutant MC talents running wild. DJ 7L explains, All three of us are influenced by comics, sci-fi movies, TV, wrestling. Czarface encompasses all of that, and it helps with the visuals as well.' On the production side, 7L shows yet again - as he did with the group's debut - that he remains a formidable yet underappreciated musical force, constantly providing hard, funky and alternatingly ominous backdrops for the assembled MCs to use as lyrical luge paths. If that wasn't enough, it's all iced with a ridiculously intricate and beefy 70-plus page, hardcover CD casebook with lyrics and extensive artwork by Gilberto Aguirre Mata (El Ultimo Codice) and L'amour Supreme, and with Death & Abduction,' a comic written by Esoteric, and an explosive, comic-book-inspired cover by L'amour Supreme (Mishka NYC).

01. Don The Armor
02. Czartacus
03. Lumberjack Match
04. Nightcrawler (Feat. Method Man)
05. World Premier (Feat. Large Professor)
06. The Great (Czar Guitar)
07. Red Alert
08. Junkyard Dogs (Feat. Juju Of The Beatnuts)
09. Sgt. Slaughter
10. When Gods Go Mad (Feat. Gza)
11. Ka-Bang! (Feat. Mf Doom)
12. Deadly Class (Feat. Meyhem Lauren)
13. Escape From Czarkham Asylum
14. Sinister
15. Good Villains Go Last (Feat. Ra The Rugged Man)

It’s very difficult to describe someone as prolific as Misha Panfilov. So, I feel the best way to define him is to think of a “Trivial Pursuit Playing Piece,” where each pie piece represents one of the bands he heads up, and each band has its own distinct style and genre. Yet, when looked at all together, create the whole musical persona of Misha. This is the lens I would like to view his latest endeavor, Days As Echoes.

The vibe on this sophomore release channels Krautrock philosophy and Library music, peppered with elements of jazz, Ethiopian, cinema, ambient and bits of everything between. This atmosphere is created from all the instruments Misha uses and the resulting compositions are heard as repetitive patterns that are forged from the multiple layering of melodies. Thus, creating six unique songs with emotional granularity, yet collectively encompass a genuinely positive “feel good” vibe…with a hint of nostalgia.

Moods of the day, moods like echoes say, A future of hope is yours, by following the Sun’s ray.

The opening track, “Days As Echoes,” is a dedication to a much simpler time when the sky was bluer and the snow was whiter…just like how you remember it when you were a child. A time when people honestly cared more about everything as a given, and not as a selfish accolade. A time when optimism seemed within reach. In other words, nostalgia marred by awareness.

…Leading to a path where the skies are not gray. Where dreams of castles in the air are the mainstay.

“In A Dream” has a style that pays homage to both spiritual jazz and ambient music. A simple theme is introduced and leads to the climax of this stormy dream, putting it all in perspective. That pivotal point when one realizes the truth by re-tracing the events, which led to the epiphany of how to find the answer while traveling within this airy soundscape.

…Diurnal or nocturnal, day or night, Traveling the path of truth must be done without fright.

One can’t help but feel a definite traveling vibe that comes from “Moonscape Waltz” To me, it has a dual-characteristic that can be visualized as a train trip, either at sunrise or sunset. Regardless, the time is not of major relevance, but the actual pursuit is. Lao Tzu said, “The journey of a thousand miles begins with that first step.” This track takes you beyond that initial step into this vast world toward your destination as you search for the truth.

…The unknown is real, but you know the deal. People need people to show which direction you point the wheel.

“Together” is the most peaceful and solo oriented compositions of this album. It shows how one cannot achieve happiness alone, but the importance of having someone special or a group of others to help along the way. Not only to help seek your goal, but also the ability to enjoy the scenery while on your journey

…The end of this tunnel has a light that’s so bright. Illuminating the trodden way, your destination, now in sight.

One is free from the chains of the unknown as you listen to a “Few Layers For Smith”, a dedication to a friend. A song that draws energy from the ECM works of Steve Reich, thats married with a primitive lo-fi basement setting. Its positive force breaks those encumbrances and gives you a glimpse of your prize. But you ruminate on this and come to the conclusion that the path that led you there is equally important as the goal itself. Question is, how do you share your realizations and experiences?

…The route was cast, the trials have passed. The glittering treasure you sought is yours now, at last.

“Ocean Song” meanders from the ritual rhythms of its shoreline to the crashing riptides of unbridled guitar feedback, creating this raging ocean atmosphere. However, its message is quite clear and states that people’s goals and experiences are not just meant for personal growth, but to be shared with
others, so that they too can live vicariously thru your story and somehow utilize it for their own.

…The prize has been won, but the journey is never done. You now have the responsibility to share everything under the Sun.

These six songs, each with its own sound, collectively comprise the vibe of this album. One cannot help but feel a sense of joy and fulfillment when listening to it. Each song has its own unique mood, yet together create an atmosphere of hope and happiness that has no choice but to spill out of the listener. I feel this was the ultimate goal of Misha’s on this record. Quite a challenge for the man who never sleeps, but is always searching for the perfect beat. One may not fully grasp his musical mind, but this album does give you a gateway into the moods and magic of Misha!

- Brent Sawicki

Veteran Japanese electronic music producer, AKIO NAGASE, a leading player in the Kansai underground music scene since the late 1990s teams up with Yukino Inamine, a gifted and young female singer from Okinawa who magically mixes traditional Ryukyu (Okinawa) folk songs with her sanshin (Okinawan Shamisen) playing into the modern age, to create this wonderful collaborative album, Yugafu ai KAJI. This album is set to be released on GLOCAL RECORDS, a record store/ record label run by Genta Minowa, an ex-staff at the record store, Disc Shop Zero in Shimokitazawa, Tokyo and who still continues to introduce a great selection of dubby, club music from his HQ in Harajuku.

AKIO NAGASE regularly organised parties at his own venue, as well as ran a record store of the same name while actively being part of the Kansai scene at legendary clubs such as Tsuru no Ma, Sound Channel, etc., the best of what was offered in the Kansai underground dance scene in the 2000s.

As an artist, he released his own productions out of labels such as Sound Channel and RUDIMENTS run by Minowa. His album, Make Dub was released in 2003 out of the label, Sound Channel featured an innovative, techno meets dancehall track, Dance Hall King which connected techno, acid house with reggae and dub. This album is an undiscovered gem whose sound still emulates freshness and originality today (my wish is for it to be reissued on vinyl!) After a brief hiatus of releasing music, he released the EP, Delusion out of Chillmountain Records, a label run by his friend, Ground in 2018 and at his own leisurely pace, he has been slowly but surely releasing material that oozes originality, expressed through a robust acid sound and a variety of elements such as afro and Ryukyu folk music that is then incorporated into the medium of dub. Recently, he has also started to gain international attention by releasing original material and remixes out of labels such as the UK label, Emotional Especial, etc.

For this album, NAGASE teams up with Yukino Inamine who brings her own distinctive singing and sanshin playing magic into this collaboration and they fuse electronic music sounds with Ryukyu folk songs to create this wonderfully imaginative album that has no precedence or equal. Apart from the song, Ishikawa Koiuta, all other songs are covers of Ryukyu folk standards that were handpicked by NAGASE from the repertoire of songs that Inamine regularly performs live. They met up when NAGASE was commissioned to remix one of her original compositions, Miyagi Kaigan that was released in 2023 and that evolved into a collaboration with a concept that mixed Inamine singing Ryukyu folk standards with a backing tracks produced by NAGASE. Whenever she went to the the Kansai area, she would work on the basic track material created by NAGASE at the dub master of Osaka, Soulfire’s studio, HAV who would then additionally edit her takes to create the finishing tracks.

This album, Yugafu ai KAJI opens with Shirahamabushi, a track that slowly builds with an interesting mix of slow acid techno and sanshin and then moves onto the easy-going electro dub of Tinsagu nu hana (it is actually a cover of the track of the same title that first appeared in the label sampler, Comuni ó n Especial that was released on Emotional Especial. NAGASE initially wanted to feature Inamine on vocals for this track but due to scheduling issues, it did not happen but with good fortune, the new version of this track is now included in this album). A side closes with the optimistic Balearic sounds of Tsuki nu Kaisha that converges immaculately with slow-mo steppers. It is also worth noting that the person who introduced NAGASE to Inamine was the Okinawa dub master, HARIKUYAMAKU. They met at a concert held by both him & Yukino Inamine hosted by BUN BUN THE MC at the venue, RAGGA CHANNEL. From this encounter, this album came into fruition and they also asked HARIKUYAMAKU to produce an earthy, traditional rootsy, dub version of Tsuki nu Kaisha that is included as the 3rd track on the B Side.

Ashimizubushi, the track that magically blends old school Chicago house ala TRAX with Ryukyu folk music starts off the B side and it carries on to an uplifting track with a Skaouse (ska + house) feel, Hounen Ondo. Inserted after HARIKUYAMAKU’s dub of Tsuki nu Kaisha, this album closes out with the song, ‘Ishikawa Koi Uta’, the only song written by Inamine who said that she wrote it after falling in love with chill-out music. It is an ambient dub track with a collage like flavour, reminiscent of early The Orb (remixed by Mad Professor) and the latter half of the track finishes off with a message presented by Masao Itokazu (her uncle) who received tutelage from the prior owner of her sanshin that Inamine plays, Moritomo Inamine (her grandfather).

Incidentally, the album title, YUGAFU ai Kaji is derived from an auspicious word from Okinawa, Yugafu which means fruitful year, happiness, prosperity and ai (indigo) is a word that Yukino found inspiration few years ago (she wears a Okinawan indigo clothing called kinonuno in the front cover of this album).

The unique indigo colouring produced by nature overlaps with the unique charm of the human personality, and she wanted to present that current along with the music so the name was integrated to ‘indigo wind’, and the two were connected to form the album title, ‘YUGAFU ai Kaji’.

The photo of the front cover was taken by a young, Uchinaanunishie—- (meaning a boy from Okinawa) 17 year old photographer named Ratio and the designer of this album is Anmonaito who is a childhood friend of Inamine who also did the artwork for her album, Miyagi Kaigan. And the mastering and cutting of this album was done by Rei Taguchi.

The cosmology existing in Yukino Inamine’s singing is fully amplified by AKIO NAGASE’s spacey, abundant with many ideas, dance machine beat~ambient music and all of these elements are organically linked by the adhesive effect of dub.

A truly essential piece of early Detroit Techno history here, Octave One's original white label "Octivation" EP from 1990 has long been a sought after and coveted slab of wax. This 5 track journey charts the Burden brothers mood from sinister, spacey, acidic Techno jams ("Sonic Fusion") to deeper, more melancholic mid-tempo cuts ("Nicolette") and along the way manages to usher in a new wave of Detroit Techno sounds.

Steeped in soul and depth "Octivation" was hinting towards the epic style Octave One would shape with their various projects in the following decades and releases. The earliest glimpse (Their 1st release) into a long and fruitful career that is still continuing today. This EP was a game changer and it's influence can still be felt in contemporary House and Techno right now.

Now, finally made available again to be re-discovered and experienced.
Re-mastered, re-pressed and re-issued with all the original 430 West white label and sticker artwork intact, in conjunction with the Burden brothers / 430 West Records.

Efficient Space honours trailblazing Australian imprint Volition Records with Volition Cuts Vol. 1. Evolving from Andrew Penhallow’s time at GAP Records, which smuggled Cabaret Voltaire, The Fall and the Factory catalogue into the region, Volition shifted focus to homegrown talent over imported sounds. Echoing its precursor’s blend of indie friction and electronic curiosity, the label wired itself into the pulse of club and rave culture, linking city scenes and amplifying them for the mainstream. With retina-scorching design, uncompromising packaging and top-tier remixes, Volition consistently bent the major label machine to its will.

No Volition retrospective would be complete without Sisters Underground’s intergenerational anthem ‘In the Neighbourhood’. Otara teenagers Brenda Makamoeafi and Hassanah Iroegbu brought their Pasifika perspective to Proud (An Urban-Pacific Streetsoul Compilation), a commercial success that platformed NZ rap and R&B with a clarity that outshone its overseas counterparts. The quiet architect of Volition’s sound, producer prodigy Robert Racic flipped the classic as a hip-house dub before his untimely passing in 1996.

Its A-side companion comes from Brisbane synth-pop unit Boxcar, who signed to Volition after frontman Dave Smith handed a cassette to Tom Ellard of Severed Heads during a school newspaper interview. That unlikely handoff led to their 1990 debut Vertigo. Here, their ritual-laced, body-jacking industrial is retooled by Miami freestyle maverick Tony Garcia.

Further cherry-picking from the VOLT vaults, Sexing The Cherry unleash a bleep-addled meltdown from Brisbane’s Edwin Morrow and Cherryn Lomas. ‘This Is A Dream’ was recorded exclusively for High (A Dance Compilation), the first all-Australian V/A to top the ARIA charts, propelling the local movement into national consciousness.

Closing the sampler, Sydney’s Single Gun Theory joined Volition as they moved from post-punk abstraction and electronic collage toward downtempo, sample-based mysticism. Their 1994 ambient-pop reverie ‘Fall’ is reimagined by Stuart Crichton and Apollo 440’s Norman Fisher-Jones as full-throttle Goa trance, a final surge that channels the label’s relentless push into new terrain.

Volition Cuts Vol. 1 is dedicated to the loving memory of Volition’s visionary founder Andrew Penhallow, and key contributors Robert Racic and Edwin Morrow.1

Another timeless classic makes it on to the Dynamite cuts 45 series "I wouldn't Change a thing" made famouns by Coke Escovado as an up tempo rare groove dancer. Here is the Orignal cut by Mr hang on in there baby him self soul don Johnny bristol. Both tracks are so perfect for a 7" reissue. on the flip "Lusty Lady" Another mid-tempo soul gem, nice drum break intro and great groove.

Joe Bataan's extensive discography was expanded in 2022 with the release of some old recordings from the King of Latin Soul that had never been previously published. After the success of his album "Riot!" (1968), Bataan had easy access to a studio whenever inspiration struck to record a new song sketch or even a complete track. Sometimes, he would finish the recording entirely and offer it in its final version to Fania for release. This usually worked, although on some occasions, the song was rejected. In the case of 'Drug Story,' the track was recorded without a clear final purpose, even though Bataan hoped it would become part of an album. When the Fania executives heard the result, they immediately rejected it, thinking it promoted drug use. The tapes were filed away and lost in oblivion until they ended up in a thrift store in New York. From there, they were rescued by a Latin music specialist and later sold, eventually making their way to the Vampisoul archives. The song was finally released in its entirety in 2022 on the LP "Drug Story" by Now Again. It features a long, slow vocal intro that evolves into a more uptempo track with two very distinct parts, to the point that it almost feels like two different songs. It transports us to the best moment of Joe Bataan's career, with all of his classic ingredients, delivering a track as good as his most famous songs. Bataan himself takes on the lead vocals and piano, Bobby Rodríguez handles the flute, sax, and bass, Pete 'Choki' Quintero plays the drums, and William Howes Jr. plays the electric guitar with wah-wah effects. Vampisoul strongly believes that the song deserved to be released as a single as well, and that its structure was perfect for each side to have a separate identity. So here it is, for the first time on a 45, 'Drug Story,', parts one & two, the long lost track by Joe Bataan. Pure Latin soul, recorded at the peak of the artist's career!

Ricardo Tobar returns to MUSAR with Knitting — a four-track EP blending dancefloor intimacy with raw, analog spirit. A two original cuts from the Chilean producer are joined by standout remixes from synth sorcerer Pye Corner Audio and cosmic rave
queen Nightwave.
The EP opens with Los Siblings, a distilled snapshot of Tobar’s current sound: intricate arrangements, ethereal melodies, heavyweight bass-line and a vintage edge shaped for the club. “I’m embracing the dancefloor,” he says. “This is me doing tunes
I would like to dance to.” On the flip, Knitting unravels from a simple arpeggio into lysergic ‘’Stereolab’'-techno chaos — alive, imperfect, and deeply personal. “It sounds like it wants to eat itself,”
Tobar reflects. Layers on layers of psychedelia and cosmic melody turn this into a trippy journey track like no one else does. Architect of foggy club rituals, Pye Corner Audio transforms Knitting into an eerie, trance-tinged club weapon, while Nightwave turns Knitting into a high-gloss, dreamy club stormer

Strut proudly presents a new edition of one of Sun Ra's most celebrated albums, Sleeping Beauty, reissued in its original artwork for the first time.

Originally released in 1979 on his independent Saturn label, Sleeping Beauty captures Sun Ra and his Arkestra at their most soulful and serene. A masterclass in cosmic jazz, the album blends lush grooves, celestial soul, and meditative funk with Ra’s singular spiritual vision — a sound both grounded and otherworldly.

The album emerged during an extraordinarily fertile period for Sun Ra in late-‘70s New York. Between 1978 and 1982, Ra “occupied” Variety Recording Studios on West 42nd Street, often staging marathon sessions following late-night Arkestra gigs around the city — from the Village Vanguard to Sweet Basil and even a wedding in Central Park. These were not just recordings; they were rituals. Ra and his core players — John Gilmore, Marshall Allen, June Tyson, Michael Ray, and others — would begin sessions mid-morning, often continuing past midnight, much to the dismay of the studio owner. Out of this creative whirlwind came some of his most enduring work, including A Fireside Chat With Lucifer, On Jupiter, and Sleeping Beauty.

Across its three tracks, Sleeping Beauty showcases the Arkestra’s gentler side. From the dreamy sway of “Springtime Again” to the funk-deep uplift of “Door Of The Cosmos” and the title track’s meditative drift, this is music that floats, beckons, and unfolds. It’s a record of hypnotic beauty and quiet power — cosmic jazz for dreamers and seekers alike.

This new edition features a selected version of the hand-drawn original cover, embossed with the Sun Ra logo and housed in a heavyweight card sleeve. Liner notes come courtesy of Arkestra member Knoel Scott and Sun Ra authority Paul Griffiths. Remastered by Technology Works.

“Music is a language. You see, it’s not notes — it’s a language of the spirit. That’s why it’s so important.” – Sun Ra

In 2018, Glonti started collecting LPs of Soviet-era Georgian composers at Tbilisi’s “Dry Bridge” flea market.The records mostly consisted of classical and chamber music released on Melodiya, the singular, state owned record label of the USSR. It was through this process that the idea of Recollection was born, as Glonti aimed to create an album that would utilize samples from his growing collection.


Recollection III-IV marks the second in a planned series of 7” releases, each built from Glonti’s expanding archive of Soviet-era recordings. The artwork by Dmytro Nikolaienko (Day Night) once again reflects the utilitarian aesthetic of Soviet-era record design.

For our ninth chapter, X/Y/Secret hands the controls to Sira. Surfacing is a study in tension: grooves tight enough to steer a packed floor, yet spacious enough for long blends or sudden cuts. Each element arrives with purpose, opening pockets of air to breathe just before the pressure rises again. Both sides speak the same language while delivering different messages. Phil Berg distills the title track into a focus-sharpening remix, before Sira closes with a late-hour mover built to steady the room while the lights stay low.

I know that people love to read the stories related to the background of each release on Future Retro London & how they came together, but I'll be honest, I have no recollection at all about how this release came into existence????

Sorry that I can't give much insight on anything to do with this release, I imagine that DJ Sofa pitched me the idea to get remixes done of our collab from her FR011 release and one thing led to another...

Rather than try and piece together the process of what happened to make this release into a thing, I'll just skip to the big ups. Thanks to Soeneido, Cheetah & Janaway for their remix work, to DJ Sofa for the idea (I think?) for this release and for her work on the original and to my memory for failing me in this moment where I was hoping it would come through for me.

Demon Music group in conjunction with the Hughes family are proud to present the first official compilation of music
from the movies of legendary filmmaker John Hughes, covering the classic eighties period 1983 – 1989.
For anyone growing up in the 1980s, the films of John Hughes are some of the most iconic of the decade and have
created a lasting cultural impact still felt and referenced across TV, film and music. As well as the characters and
stories created in these iconic movies, what made John Hughes’ movies different from the rest was the symbiotic
relationship between scene and music. Whether Cameron Frye staring at the painting in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off set to
The Dream Academy’s “Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want (Instrumental)”, Duckie and Andie from Pretty
In Pink at prom set to Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark’s “If You Leave”, or even Neal and Del’s classic “Those aren’t
pillows” scene from Planes, Trains and Automobiles set to Emmylou Harris’ “Back In Baby’s Arms”.
“Music was a huge part of filmmaking for him, it was a thing he seemed to like the most.” Matthew Broderick
Curated by John Hughes’ music supervisor Tarquin Gotch, this 6LP vinyl boxset includes 73 tracks from the movies
National Lampoon’s Vacation, Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Weird Science, Pretty In Pink, Ferris Bueller’s Day
Off, Some Kind Of Wonderful, Planes, Trains And Automobiles, She’s Having A Baby, The Great Outdoors and Uncle
Buck.
“Back when we were working on these movie soundtracks, the best way to send music around the world was the
cassette, by Fedex. We sent John cassettes of newly released music, of demos, of just finished mixes (and in return he
would send VHS videos of the scenes that needed music).” Tarquin Gotch
The films of John Hughes spawned many classic tracks, some licensed for the films, some commission specifically, and
many going on to become huge international hits from acts such as Simple Minds, Kate Bush, Furniture, Yello, and
The Psychedelic Furs.
“It serves as a reminder not just to the musicians he championed in the 1980s, but to how intensely his search for
music expanded beyond this era. Until his final days, he was still collecting outrageous amounts of music from around
the world, galaxies removed from the New Romantic and new wave sounds that, to many, still define him.” James
Hughes
Also includes an extensive 24-page booklet including memories from Matthew Broderick, James Hughes, Tarquin
Gotch, Ron Payne, plus track-by-track sleeve notes.
“John said he only made movies so he could choose what music to put in them, so as his success at the Box Office
grew, and thus his power with the studios, the number of tracks in his films, by up and coming UK bands, steadily
grew.” Tarquin Gotch

MY NAME IS DJ K-1 (Original Mix)
Keith Tucker Aka DJ K-1 comes back with his original minimalistic electro style with vocals and vocoder loveliness. The ep harkens back to his original K-1 Agenda ep days of the classic Direct Beat label which spawned the first of Tuckers many aliases. Tucker takes this first original mix into a more Kraftwerking style with his infections and Unforgettable vocoder work.

MY NAME IS DJ K-1 (DMX Krew Mix)
DMX Krew’s Ed Upton takes his stab at a more sample bass mix in step with Tuckers seminal work In the Detroit Techno Bass group Aux88. The DMX Krew never disappoint Upton’s bassline ads a dark menacing mix.

MY NAME IS DJ K-1 (Beat Mix)
A Loop bass mix of straight funk and vocal to blend and create that funky Detroit funk that mixes with anything.

MY NAME IS DJ K-1 (Detroit Jit Mix)
Detroit Jit mix has full vocal rap track with a message. Detroit Jitters and DJ’s will eat this up.

MY NAME IS DJ K-1 (SPOCK Mix)
Spacey minimal bassline with that eerie string that makes the floor move as SPOCK would say it’s logical…

MY NAME IS DJ K-1 (NAVI Mix)K-1’s takes this mix more in a bonus beat montage of echoes from the ever-present synth bassline that moves the beat in a hypnotic state with the help of NAVI

The official soundtrack to Jean-Cosme Delaloye's documentary about the life and career of Detroit techno pioneer Carl Craig, Desire: The Carl Craig Story is set for release on digital platforms on 20th June 2025, with 2x12” Vinyl and CD editions to follow on 18th July 2025.

The collection, coming via his prolific and seminal Planet E Communications, features music from across Craig’s vast catalog, including several tracks that have never previously seen full digital release. Its selections span his many aliases and projects, offering a rare glimpse into the full scope of his groundbreaking career. rare glimpse into the full scope of his groundbreaking career.

Among the rare and remastered tracks featured is No More Words - originally released in 1991, newly reissued on vinyl and available digitally for the first time. A foundational track in the Detroit techno canon, No More Words captures the emotive synths and tight grooves of Craig’s sound that would soon resonate across dance floors worldwide. Its reissue marks a moment of reflection on the genre’s roots and evolution.

Another remastered track from Craig’s extensive archive is The Truth, a deep cut from Craig’s discography under his Designer Music alias, now widely available for the first time a quarter-century after its original release. The film’s end credits are scored by the contemplative Meditation 4, an ambient production previously only available on Craig's 2013 Masterpiece compilation CD for Ministry of Sound.

Iconic remixes such as his Grammy-nominated rework of Junior Boys’ Like A Child is included alongside lesser-known but equally epic remixes such as his sublime 2012 mix of Slam’s Azure, which is employed for the film’s title credits and had previously only seen a limited release. Also featured across the soundtrack’s multiple formats are iconic Carl Craig productions under his 69, Psyche/BFC and Innerzone Orchestra aliases, and collaborations with Moritz von Oswald and Francesco Tristano. Oswald and Francesco Tristano.

The soundtrack serves as a companion to the new documentary directed by Jean-Cosme Delaloye and produced by Sovereign Films, which follows Carl’s journey from Detroit’s middle-class roots to global stardom, set against the city’s decline and recovery. The film explores his work at the intersection of music, art, and culture, from his collaborations with Bottega Veneta to his Party/After-Party installation, acquired by the Detroit Institute of Arts and exhibited at MOCA Los Angeles. MOCA Los Angeles.

Featuring interviews with Gilles Peterson, Roni Size, Laurent Garnier, DJ Minx, Kenny Larkin, Moritz von Oswald, and James Lavelle, Desire highlights Carl’s championing of Detroit’s Black creative excellence and the often-overlooked African-American roots of electronic music.

Straight from Copenhagen, Danish DJ/producer B From E delivers an EP that sits halfway between Trance and House. With deep melodies and infectious rhythms, Blue Lava opens a portal to a new world — both icy and fiery. Split into two parts, the A-side burns with energy, while the B-side shines with luminous melodies.

With its powerful vocals and a melody that brings a breath of fresh air, the opening track of the EP We Are Gods truly lives up to its name. Representative of the EP, it beautifully embodies the deep and captivating melodies of Blue Lava.
Ocean Drive offers a subtle blend of softness and groove. Like a dream, light percussions gently land on a track filled with ethereal melodies.

Hypnotic, the arpeggio of Arp Dream never leaves the track and opens the B-side of the vinyl. The drums evoke the energy of an erupting volcano where the melody of the track would represent the blue lava flowing poetically.

With Blue Lava, B From E closes his EP on a nostalgic note. Blue Lava recalls an early morning sunrise, in the atmosphere of a night you never want to end.

The soundtrack of Imaginária Records continues through the natural elements of our planet. Split into the three moments of a single cycle, after the journey (The Trip) and then the places (The Place), to arrive at a conclusive return. The label traces the steps of a metaphysical journey that becomes a metaphor for life, the essence of research and the richness of encounters. And it is in this record: Home. The environment contains many sets of rhythms: those dividing day from night, sun from moon, summer from winter. To all things there is a season. There is a time for light and a time for darkness, a time for activity and a time for rest, a time for sound and a time for not-sound. It is here that the natural soundscape provides a clue, for if we could register all the periods of rest and activity among natural sounds, we would observe an infinitely complex series of oscillations as each activity rises and falls from exertion to slumber, from life to death.

Bangladeshi Born Producer Lady Tazz, debuts ‘Sleaze’ with a killer remix from Radio Slave this June. At the heart of Lady Tazz’s mission is Mind Medizin, her label and event series that champions the sound of kindred spirits, now inviting Radio Slave to the mix this June.

Lady Tazz has overcome many cultural obstacles to achieve her rightful place as one of Toronto’s foremost electronic dance exports. A renegade of sorts, as a teenager, she would regularly visit the UK and Germany without her parents’ knowledge to attend London’s Sound Academy and to party in Berlin, whilst continuing to pursue her aspirations of becoming a DJ.

The Bangladeshi producer and DJ is proud of her heritage but is realistic about the social expectations of throwing raves in her hometown. She moved to Toronto in her teenage years, where she grew up, educating herself on music and a place that has perfected a sound that remains organic and raw. Her record label and party series, Mind Medizin, taps into an erotic lifestyle that embraces the unconventional and free-spirited, which inspires and motivates Lady Tazz on numerous artistic levels.

For Mind Medzin’s latest release, Lady Tazz will drop ‘Sleaze’ on the 27th June, to include a special remix from Rekids founder and UK godfather, Radio Slave, making his debut on her label.
Foreboding and dripping with lascivious intent, ‘Sleaze’ brazenly stalks into existence by way of warping synth fills and glitching hi-hats. The lyrical component consists of a series of smouldering vocal hooks which salaciously enrapture one’s senses, tightly wrapping around the creeping melody before succumbing to the beat’s stomping dominance.

On the flipside, Radio Slave’s remix revs and fires with shots of ringing overtones atop a deep thud, husky vocal and swooshing cymbals. Whilst upping the ante of the original, its stripped-back charm remains, culminating in a moody, chugging rework bubbling with tension and fraught with Radio Slave’s brand of dark, fractured house.

Fennesz's first album in over five years is a moquettish mosaic of heart-tugging synth string movements and tinctured textures, described by its releasers P-Vine as bearing "terrifyingly detailed sound image". If inhalatory gasps in the face of the Byronic sublime were merged with the atmospheric-communicative chatter of radio and telecoms, this would be the sonic result. Described as Christian Fennesz' most introspective album to date, the record follows a newfound process for the artist, which came after the construction of a new studio and the sticking to a strict regimen. The likes of 'Personare' and 'Goniorizon' reflect this commitment, with new molten plastic ventures in sound yielded as a result; clock the tender, hand-pulled, doughy sound design on the latter track in particular.

The title says it all - A Cellarful Of Motown! ..A Northern Soul Love Affair.

West Grand has been set up to mine the deep vaults of mighty Motown courtesy of a licence deal with Universal Music.

The first West Grand LP fuses two musical religions, Motown and Northern Soul.

In some ways they are unlikely bedfellows. Motown became known as Hitsville by churning out hit after hit, while Northern Soul passion is fired by a constant search for the unknown and the obscure.
The 16 tracks here - on incredibly the first Motown various artists vinyl album released worldwide for 40 years - join the dots. All of them were recorded in the 1960s. None of them were released at the time, despite being prime examples of the sublime magic conjured up by Berry Gordy’s genius-like team of singers, writers, producers, arrangers and musicians at that tiny little snakepit of a recording studio on West Grand Boulevard in Detroit.

Motown authority Adam White’s album sleeve notes confirm just how productive that studio was. It often ran 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
As a result, lots of the most sublime music ever made was somehow rejected for release. It would have stayed unknown and unloved in tape boxes if it had not been for detective work by Soul aficionados turned detectives. That’s Northern Soul power. Many were DJs and collectors tracking down cassette copies or acetates (some of them found in rubbish skips and about to be destroyed). Others, notably Paul Nixon, the founder of the CD series A Cellarful Of Motown! which inspired this album, badgered the Motown gatekeepers so much they were eventually granted access to the forbidden kingdom.

Over recent years all the tracks contained here have been released—some bootlegged, some on legitimate seven-inch issues, some on CD, one download-only. The album proudly boasts debut vinyl release for some in the collection. All have been remastered and have never sounded better.

As a homage to Motown music makers + Rare Soul fanaticism, WEST GRAND believe we have come up with a classic.

Efficient Space charts Ghost Riders’ North American roadmap, crashing into 1973 New York to ignite the unfiltered teen dreams of Dennis Harte.

In the late ’60s, 11-year-old prodigy Dennis Harte was handed a Sears-bought Silvertone 1448, its in-case amplifier primed for street-level incantations. Recruiting two neighbourhood friends, the trio hammered out raw rhythms, drawing in Brooklyn’s wandering bohemians, keen to glimpse a prepubescent Alex Chilton in the making.

Also jamming with his older brothers, Bart and John, a family friend introduced the siblings to budding music exec Carl Edelson, who had spent the better part of two decades hustling through a string of local labels. A father figure of sorts, Edelson backed them immediately, facilitating sessions at the famed A-1 Sound Studios and Sanders Recording Studio and pressing four 7”s on his newly minted Roundtable Records. To maximise his chances of courting major labels, he strategically assigned each release a different artist name - Dennis Harte, Pure Madness, Harte Brothers and the wryly titled Harte Attack.

Dennis’ emotional maturity and sheer talent bleed into the defining ‘Summer’s Over’, penned by Edelson and once recorded by mid-'60s New Jersey garage vocal group The Wouldsmen. Morphing into an unfathomably teenage, blue-eyed soul/psych lament, it aches for a season slipping away forever. Its Harte Attack edition counterpart - the candied ballad ‘Running Thru My Mind’ - delivers unison harmonies and kinetic guitar interplay with a streetwise punch, channeling the spirit of NYC-area icons The Rascals, The Lovin’ Spoonful, and The Youngbloods.

Roaring like the Spencer Davis Group, Pure Madness’ organ-driven bruiser ‘Freedom Rides’ screams of biker gangs, yet its true subject - ’60s civil rights activists the Freedom Riders - looms as another towering theme for an adolescent perspective. Meanwhile, the loose, bluesy ruckus ‘Treat Me Like a Man’ digs back into Edelson’s catalogue, covering the Beatles-inflected Levittown group The Shandels.

Though Dennis later found success touring with Wilson Pickett and now doubles as a piano tuner to the stars, these four snapshots frame ambition on its outer edge - a heartfelt homage to an unbreakable brotherhood.

A highly respected figure for dancers and artists alike, Markus Suckut offers his signature built-to-last sound to Fuse with 'Moments'. In this style, confidence is key and Suckut provides soul to club music in a way few have been able to. Simple yet ever so refined, the German artist furthers his sound with the Belgian label with rolling tracks that reach beyond the dancefloor yet again. 'Moments' is just that, a collection of instances spent inside the mind or outwards into the world in order to move and connect.


The A1 remains usually the first impression of every record, so it makes sense that 'Patience' would mark the beginning of this eight release for the Brussels' club. A bubbly yet impactful track, 'Patience' rolls through six minutes in no time with eccentric percussion and a viscous low-end. Unafraid to break the codes in order to push his sound forward while respecting the essence of what makes the genre great, Suckut puts years of mastery at work in order to find balance and air between his elements. This impressive low-end rhythm is continued into 'Resurrection' - which is more of an exploration of dissonance and texture than its predecessor. With hi-hats whipping around the stereo field through metallic bends and a harmonic kick/bass, the record knows for what context 'Resurrection' is reserved for. 'Myth' then comes along to lighten the load with a positive groove and an extraverted arrangement, maintaining balance to the overall EP. Complete with a subtly modulating live-played percussion that echoes the character of a vocal and layered over an almost vintage drum sequence, the persistence of 'Myth' finds a sweet spot between techno and house, making it a versatile tool in almost any record bag. The soul of the EP, however, belongs to its title track 'Moments'. Appropriately named, this fourth piece concludes Markus Suckut's latest statement for the dancefloor. A suspension of time in structure as much as in melody, the producer takes the time to unveil each element of the record while maintaining a burning intriguing throughout. A truly timeless piece reserved for only the most special moments and most deserving crowds, Suckut proves once again that his understanding of emotion through his medium will echo his music across the world for years to come.

J.E. Movement's groundbreaking ‘Ma Dea Luv’,

Toward the end of the 1980s South Africa's recording industry was booming. Searching for a sound that could cross over to all in the country's segregated society while also eyeing international success, a new duo emerged that quickly rendered its 'bubblegum' predecessors obsolete. Drawing on international trends and crafting lyrics for local ears, J.E. MOVEMENT — a duo made up of James Nyingwa and Elliot Faku — exploded onto the local scene with their debut album, 'Ma Dea Luv'. The future had arrived.

A talented bassist and composer, Nyingwa was at the time employed as an in-house producer at TRS Studios in Plein Street in downtown Johannesburg, run by two Greek immigrants, George Vardas and Chris Ghelakis. Together they formed a close bond as friends and musical partners at what would become CSR Records, recording original hits with acts like the NEW AGE KIDS and SIDNEY, while also cashing in on cover versions as BLACK BOX.

The six tracks on J.E. Movement’s 1988 debut give firm nods to UK Street Soul, New Jack Swing and Stock Aitken Waterman's 'Hit Factory' sound and infuse them with an African rhythmic flair and homegrown lyrical sentiment. Though not expressly political, the title track was received by many as a play on words referencing then-jailed and banned Nelson Mandela (coming after the similarly styled 'I'm Winning My Dear Love' by Yvonne Chaka Chaka in 1986 and 'We Miss You Manelow' by Chicco in 1987), giving it an added potency for those in the know. 'Jack I'm Sorry' was an underground hit in the townships, while 'Marco', 'Friends', 'Funkytown' and the eponymous closer are similarly bass and drum-driven, with hiphop-styled vocals.

Cosmic omnishambles getting you down? Serotonin stocks at an all-time low? It's a tough time out there but we've got just the ticket! Get on board and fly high with The 89th Passenger on our latest acid-tinged adventure through the stars. Everlasting happiness is just a tab away.

One of the biggest tunes of 2011 gets a reload on Hotflush with a brand new remix from house legend Mr. G.

Hotflush label boss Scuba was a dubstep exile in Berlin running parties at Berghain in 2011, following the release of his landmark album Triangulation the previous year. The SCB project had been launched as a platform for his productions outside of the 140 realm, anticipating a stylistic move that would make a serious impact on the dance scene at large.

‘Loss’ was released on Aus Music that March, proceeded to destroy dancefloors across the globe, and ended the year at number 7 in RA’s ‘Top Tracks of 2011’. In 2025, it retains the unique combination of minimal elegance and trance power that gave it such impact all those years ago.

UK house mastermind Mr. G steps up with a trademark remix - uncompromising in groove and structure, guaranteed to do the business on the floor.

And to round off the package, a previously unreleased version of the original b-side, FutureUnknown is included. The ‘Voxattack’ made many appearances in the Scuba DJ set at the time and qualifies for ‘sought-after lost dub’ status.

The new Ripen series was inspired by the live, percussive & soulful dance releases from Salsoul records and a curiosity of what Roy Ayers would sound like with a 303 in the band.
All the sounds including string quartet, horns, choir, percussion, flute spoken word, drums and synths were recorded in Sampology’s studio on the south side of Brisbane, Australia.

The 12” EP includes four songs + extra DJ tool creating a lush and live environment, bringing his previous nature themes further onto the dancefloor.

‘Spirits Ripened’ featuring NMMWL is a spoken word and string arrangement, a pause between kick drums and congas on the remainder of the release.

The second 12” volume of Ripen series set to release in the second half of 2025.

Gina X makes her way to Dark Entries for Greatest Fits, a compilation of gems and jams from the eccentric New Wave icon. Gina X Performance was formed in Cologne in 1978 when art history student and chanteuse Gina Kikoine teamed up with synth wizard Zeus B. Held. Inspired by Patti Smith and Lou Reed, Kikoine aimed to create "the absolute union of music, poetry and travesty," a lofty goal that she most certainly would achieve. 1979 saw the release of the classic first LP, Nice Mover, which put Held’s lush electronic production in dialogue with Gina X’s deadpan delivery. Songs explore androgyny, decadence, and avant-garde art in a fashion that is stylish, sexy, and more than a touch transgressive. Nice Mover quickly became a cult favorite thanks to tracks like the euphoric “Nice Mover” and the dancefloor bomb “No G.D.M.”, dedicated to queer icon Quentin Crisp. Three more LPs followed in the coming years: X-Traordinaire in 1980; Voyeur in 1981; and Yinglish in 1984. The duo continued their genre deviance throughout, exploring uptempo space disco on “Strip Tease,” punk-laced New Wave on “Babylon Generation,” and icy electro-pop on “French Lift.” Greatest Fits is the first-ever double LP compilation of Gina X material.

The 17 tracks on Greatest Fits were selected by Kikoine and Held, reflecting the duo’s most cherished moments from their wide-ranging catalog. The record comes housed in a gatefold sleeve designed by Eloise Shir-Juen Leigh featuring press clippings and photographs, and includes an insert with lyrics and memories about each song from Kikoine and Held.

Hot off his killer 2024 remix of Tiga and Hudson Mohawke’s “BUYBUYSELL,” UK-New Zealand DJ/Producer Keepsakes makes his proper Turbo debut with the Impossible (Eating the Sun) EP. From merciless techno bangers to caustic track titles that will absolutely shred your preconceived notions about the world and sneer at them as they writhe bleeding on the cold, hard ground, this release validates our label’s OCD-level commitment to living on the edge of something at all times.

The title track doubles as a massive forest rave bomb AND the No. 1 battle weapon for opening DJs looking to fuck over the headliner, while “Bongo Funeral” reimagines tribal techno as the chief export of a village ruled by emotionally unavailable gremlins. Next, “Snacks at Waco” makes skillful use of a hammering industrial beat to hammer home the importance of loyalty and community, and “Parasocially There for You” deftly soundtracks anxiety dreams about meeting your favorite podcaster. Finally, closer “Nimby Orgy” likely represents the very first sexual aftercare banger. NOTE: we’ve heard bad things about both NIMBYs and YIMBYs, and as such have adopted a militantly neutral position on the matter of who is f-ing and s-ing in our backyard.

Given that Keepsakes is a vinyl-only DJ, we’ve done him the courtesy of making this release available both on vinyl and digitally. While this would have been an incredible opportunity to completely shut him out of playing his own tracks, we decided that this would be unfair to the music itself. Because at the end of the day, Turbo takes its marching orders from Harmony, Melody, Rhythm, and Timbre, and to betray even one of our ethereal masters would be tantamount to kicking our own vision square in the nuts. IOW: ain’t never gonna happen.

Nothing said new or modern or futuristic quite like a synthesiser in the 70s and 80s. If you were shooting an advert and you wanted your product or your company to appear forward-thinking and ahead of the game, then you would want something electronic, something out of the ordinary. When TV producers and advertising directors started searching for music that sounded like “Tubular Bells” – and then Tomita, and later Jean Michel Jarre – music libraries such De Wolfe, Bruton, Parry and Chappell had to have the tracks readily available.

Compiled by Bob Stanley, “Tomorrow’s Fashions” varies from advertising jingles and TV themes to space exploration and gorgeous, beatless ambience. Though it’s 40-to-50 years old there’s a real freshness to this music. Older jazz players Brian Bennett, John Cameron, Alan Hawkshaw and others seized the chance to operate a synth; younger pups including John Saunders and Monica Beale were simply intrigued by the new technology being wheeled into the studios. There’s a tangible sense of adventure.

“Tomorrow’s Fashions’” brand of electronica anticipated new age and ambient music. It also had both a direct and indirect influence on pop – the early Human League and the future sounds of Warp Records are all over this collection. Electronic library tracks have been sampled by everyone from MF Doom to Kendrick Lamar.

One person’s primitive and experimental is another person’s space-age lullaby. This was music made in the shadows – in Soho’s secretive music library studios – that has now become desirable and influential. The chances are chunks of it will be sampled and used on hit records that have yet to be written. If the musicians’ aim was to soundtrack tomorrow’s fashions, they couldn’t have got it more right.

2025 Repress

Bar Part Time launches its record label with none other than Toronto UFO hunter, certified bad boy DJ, and good friend Cal-C. Cal comes correct with a ripper of a 4 track EP, Bath Bomb. A deep digger and wild style DJ in his own right, Cal brings you a grip of tracks that a tasteful selector can make use of throughout all points of a night time music party. Title track "Bath Bomb" is a blissed out, downtempo joyride that would make a perfect companion for either sunset or sunrise. "Morning Dew" evokes sounds of all your favorite early 90s Italian records, with a particularly euphoric crescendo. Hey man, did you say this guy was from Toronto or Torino? Either way, molto bene! As we move on, "Blurry Moon" is a slice of dancefloor perfection that sounds like something Jose Padilla would've made if he were from San Pedro instead of San Antonio. And lastly, the aptly named "Wine 69" (nice) is an M1 organ cruiser that's practically begging to be heard in front of an azure sea in balmy temps. Vamos a la playa!

Le Chatroom, a record label established in 2016 by the English producer Kouslin, searches for the missing link between underground bass music and outer national sounds. Its music is defined by the blend of synthetic and organic tones, modern / classic instruments and low- end heavy percussive rhythms.

Pushing artists from all around the globe that share the same love for this newfound sound, Kouslin's aim with Le Chatroom is to promote musical diversity, open-mindedness and experimentation at a time when unity between cultures is crucial. With 'LCR001' the label advances into a new physical environment from which this release should be experienced.

Real talk and native percussion establish the steady climax of 'Brothers', the A-side of Le Chatroom's inaugural wax release. Kouslin cuts through this sediment with a bright flute, before the state of the sound switches into something far darker and meditative. By placing several samples at irregular intervals, the Londoner achieves a fascinating charm that'll unite us all.

Booming bass in 'Gyals' lingers with a steady pace while percy tribal hits forge a raw groove that's far from common. With this movement, the producer from Bristol disintegrates the sense of a generic production and sticks to his true nature. Through this it becomes clear that Galtier has his polyrhythms down to a science.

Londoner Sheik clinches the B-side with a craze that unveils a nearly psychotic sense of sample architecture. Pushing crystal clear 808 kicks in- between the haunting atmospheres and a wall of pressure simply becomes one of his most inventive takes documented on wax. If you love to swerve through a minefield, the odd 'Oxram' would be your favourite pick off this first outline.

The three producers that feature on 'LCR001' pass on their fundamentals to conjure Le Chatroom's philosophy red-handed. Together they do the imprint's name justice by handing over critical bass repertoire that'll excite many!

2023 Repress

DJ Koze - with his friendly and sometimes slightly melancholic take on the world - is one of the greatest auteurs of club music today, and one of the few internationally active DJs who dares to make music that has relevance beyond the dance floor. During the 70-minute journey on his DJ Kicks - the 50th edition - Kosi
Kos manages to establish a uniform color even though genres alternate in a way that is rarely heard on a mix CD: the stripped down hip hop of Madlib, brutalist Berghain techno, timeless songwriting, floating indie-pop and outlier numbers that oscillate between absurdity andmelancholy. Koze's disregard for the stylistic yoke presents him with an immense challenge. Hence, almost all the tracks are more or less edited, and one is fully rhymed (Session Victim: Hyuwee).Koze rambles on here himself: "I didn't want to kick around ophisticated knowledge, but rather try and weave together some good gems that would make sense to anyone, even people who aren't necessarily music nerds". But this is blabbing that you can count on, also because he approaches the term "mix" from a different angle and doesn't even try to make something fit that doesn't fit: "During the day, I don't need to hear anything that's mixed on the beat. I put the focus on making sure that it works harmoniously - the idea is more to create the impression of a radio show, like people such as John Peel did so uniquely. There is a giant cosmos of music and it runs through my filter".

Simon Herody put together a live solo performance sequencing electronic devices on stage for him to jam over with acoustic instruments. He played a lot in hotels and lobbies. The music had to be present but not too intrusive. Subtle electronics to guide his saxophone and flute playing. The setup proved successful and inspired him to compose the works that would become 'Hard Lounge'.

'At the same time, I was working at a bar/record store in Neukölln called Motif. Everything changed when I discovered the album "Heisei No Oto - Japanese Left-field Pop From The CD Age." I remember this guy, Jamie, who would sometimes bring new releases to the shop. This album really changed things for me; I was constantly playing it and it inspired the creation of these works tremendously.

The composition process for "Hard Lounge" was pretty unclear. I never really made conscious choices; I wanted to escape the conflicts that come with picking the right chords. I aimed to create music that transports your imagination to a sort of retro 80s jazz lounge, where people feel comfortable and at ease just sitting and listening. I wanted to act like a music designer, giving people a chance to listen without demanding too much of their attention.'

The Rhythm Section – raves first super group - consisting of Ellis Dee, Rennie Pilgrim, Newton and Ritchie T. The group disbanded in 1993 after the rise of jungle as the guys didn’t want to go in that direction and felt their job was done in building the rave scene to what it was. But then in 1995 they had a request to reform and tour America as the rave culture was growing out there. So, they did reform, minus Ritchie T, and embark on a rather rave induced tour of the US with all the antics that you would expect from those guys!

They also wanted to make some new music for the tour and The Sequel album was born. Though written in 1995, they guys purposely kept the sound retro, calling upon their knowledge of the late 80s and early 90’s London warehouse scene.

Released originally as a limited edition double album which commands a high price on Discogs, this is the second part of the album – part one being the 180g blue vinyl release on Vinyl Fanatiks last year.

The first new Electro Clash tracks from Break 3000 since 2003! After a string of re-issues of old gems on Italy's "Mondo Phase", the Argentinian label "Calypso's Dream" and his own "Electron Feel" last year, Break 3000 is finally back with some new original cuts!

The A-side "Electronique" has all the ingredients you would want from a hard-hitting Electro Clash track. EBM style drums and a powerful raw bass line topped with soaring rave leads and pads and added original (Vocoder) vocals by Break 3000 himself. This one is road tested already on dance floors and big systems and a guaranteed crowd pleaser! Second up is the driving "Continua", leaning more towards Break 3000 Techno classics like "Flash" and "Fix" this filtered rave lead will make a wild crowd go even wilder. Dark and twisted Electro Techno at its best.

The B-side opens with another aspect of the Break 3000 sound spectrum. We look back to the early years here and to songs like "The Wait" and "Spacemaschinenreise" that were produced in 1999. In a Detroit meets Rotterdam styled Electro setting this song uses a lot of the old sounds from 26 years ago, mostly coming from his original EMU sampler used at the time and a great 80s vocal sample gives this track it's title. We are transported back to the golden era of Cold Wave here. Closing out this new EP is the wonderful Marcello Giordani from Parma, Italy who build a strong reputation with his "Italo Deviance" label over the years. He gives the original "Electronique" a great funky "Proto House" bass line in best "Bobby Orlando" manner, what a brilliant crossover track this one is! With the Vermona drum sounds his - Dark Disco meets Early House - jam will certainly be on many DJ's want list.

We hope you enjoy these new tracks! There is more to come… stay tuned!


All tracks are mastered by Salz Mastering in Cologne. Music, Photography & Art by Break 3000.

"Bassland Prophecy" was a collection of Southern California musicians, including Alex Xenophon (Deep Squared), Stuart Breidenstein (formerly of Skylab 2000), Alissa Kueker (vocals), and Maxx Vaxx (Euterpre, Butterfly Garden).

The act nourished and grew the emerging LA scene and was a renegade force in live electronic improvisation. Rather than composing full tracks, Breidenstein stated over email that they built musical "ingredients" on the fly, syncing DOS and hardware sequencers mid-performance. Their unpredictable sets, from illegal raves to makeshift desert parties, resulted in electrifying, unforgettable sonic trips.

Recalling 90s LA, Breidenstein said: “Before the internet, finding a rave was an adventure. You’d get a flyer with a phone number, call it the night of the event, then drive—sometimes 100 miles or more from a map point to the actual party. The scene was raw and underground, built by music obsessives hunting for the freshest sounds.”

Two standout tracks from 1996—“Nine / Deeper” and “Blue and Purple Starship of Trust”—perfectly represent their unique genre-bending concoctions. Against all odds, the recordings survived and have been given new life, remastered and reissued on Bristol-based *Sex Tapes From Mars*. To produce the wizardry, their setup included a Juno 106, Yamaha FB-01, a Roland S330 sampler, and a Sequential Circuits Pro-One mono synth with external MIDI, and some guitar effects pedals.

“Nine / Deeper,” born from one of their many spontaneous studio sessions, became eerily intertwined with recurring appearances of the number 9 and black cats. So much was the frequency of apophenia episodes that paranoia began to take over the artists. Recorded in a makeshift living room studio, the 14-minute excursion traverses genres and tempos, beginning quick and hypnotic, and climaxing chuggy and drenched in adlibbed acid lines, culminating in a surreal and legendary live performance in Hollywood. The piece captures the raw spontaneity of their sets, crafted with vintage gear, cassette tape recordings, and, as always, a DIY ethos. Breidenstein states, “While improvised sessions often failed, when it succeeded, it was definitely a kind of infectious magic the listener would recognize.”

“The Blue and Purple Starship of Trust” is a deeply personal piece, named after when Breidenstein saw a heavenly blue morning glory on a walk around his neighborhood, and emerged from heartbreak and the following deep depression entrenching his life at the time. Recorded in a single take onto cassette tape, blending piano, guitar, and heart-rending vocals into an emotional, dreamlike journey. The track starts with a lush, cascading synth sound, bolstered up by rolling, reverbing downtempo drums. Using Sequential Circuits Pro-One throughout, the rippling synths and off-key piano licks act like pipetted droplets of water, all elements bleeding into each other in some kind of hallucinogenic swelling, reflecting Breidenstein’s fading relationship. The guitar part is a nod to Bill Withers’ “Ain’t No Sunshine,” and Breidenstein recalls just “bawling as the guitar line was recorded.”

Created in a time of artistic struggle, living in an old school bus, surviving on instant noodles while hauling their gear from venue to venue, and scraping by on gig money, these recordings act as rare artifacts of a movement that thrived on passion and perseverance, standing as a poignant testament to resilience. Though they released a handful of tracks, ranging from deep house to ambient to techno, their true legacy lay in their high-energy, genre-blurring live shows, which are powerfully encapsulated within these recordings and leave a lasting impact on underground electronic music today.

Right on time once again, the fifth outing on Punctuality welcomes Irish producer Drua to the fore. In typical Punctuality fashion the release draws influence from the canon of golden era late 90s and early 2000s dance music with an entirely modern production aesthetic, engineered for big rigs and sweaty dancefloors alike.

Nightfire is a fully realised vision of Drua’s sound that could best be described as contemporary hard house. All four tracks are laden with punchy, rolling basslines, detailed low end, vibrant stabs, sultry vocals, undulating rhythms and sprinklings of quintessential club sparks.

The nouveau handbag styling of UP kicks off the EP. Stuttered vocals, M1 organs and solid grooves are fused together with clever sampling that is sure to make this one a hit for the festival season of s/s ‘25, as early support from the likes of Roza Terenzi, Confidence Man, Spray, Sally C and Maara would indicate.

Job 2.3 has all the elements of a Punctuality anthem and maintains the big tune mood of the EP: skippy bass notes, low end wubs, subtle breaks, catchy vocal hooks and precise drums nail the brief in executing this prog-hard-house hybrid heater.

On the flip, Nightfire nods to classic leaning deep house through a peak time lens. Introspective pads make way for pulsing subs, sensuous vocal chops and hip catching basslines. This is one of those tracks that can shift the arc of a DJ set to the next level. Big tip here.

The EP concludes with Arch In Ur Back which has all the elements to work a dancefloor: multiple grooves, rolling breakbeats, party starting vocals and the modern sound design that punctuality has gained worldwide notoriety for. An all killer no filler EP in the form of four well rounded club tools from Drua that are sure to be mainstays for discerning DJs and Punctualists

LP vinyl only release + 4 page liner notes (comes with hype sticker)

The percussive new age soundtracks of '80s and early '90s Japanese TV, anime and manga built alternative worlds and pushed boundaries in the process.

When Japanese composer Yas-Kaz left Tokyo for Bali in the mid 1970s he had little idea of how influential his trip would become. In studying the storied art of gamelan, the jazz and avant-garde percussionist opened a door to a world of sound and rhythm left behind by the West. The music he and his contemporaries made would become known as new age. It also happened to soundtrack the golden era of anime.

Awash with money and with the prerogative to entertain the burgeoning middle classes, anime in the 1980s experienced a creative and commercial boom. Not constricted by generic expectations, production houses such as the now renowned Studio Ghibli were able to experiment liberally with both form and content. And with it came the space for composers to be similarly adventurous.

TV, Anime & Manga New Age Soundtracks 1984-1993 charts this moment across eight tracks spanning classics of the genre and previously unknown rarities. The collection brings together music that found kinship in electronic and acoustic instrumentation, often combining spiritual or environmental themes with percussive, varied and highly refined syncopations of non-Western musical traditions.

Among them is ‘Kaneda’ by Geinoh Yamashirogumi, the shape-shifting group of self-styled musicians, anthropologists and computer scientists that masterminded the soundtrack to game-changing dystopian anime Akira - and with whom the sound, tuning and breakneck speed of Balinese gamelan has become indelibly entwined.

Reflecting the desires of the era to reach beyond Japan’s borders, many of the soundtracks featured were commissioned for narratives set in distant lands or alternative worlds. There’s violinist and composer Norihiro Tsuru’s ‘Farsighted Person’, written for The Heroic Legend of Arslān, set in ancient Persia; Yas-Kaz’s own ‘Hei (Theme of Shikioni)’, for period sci-fi manga & anime series Peacock King - Spirit Warrior; and two tracks - Tassili N’Ajjer and Fiesta Del Fuego - from Yoichiro Yoshikawa’s soundtrack to NHK’s proto-Planet Earth series The Miracle Planet.

Such was the variety and quality of the music produced, if there is a guiding principle to the tracks collected here it is a sense of escapism and adventure that came with the confluence of modern electronic instruments and a fascination with percussive traditions.

Elsewhere, pioneering children’s TV composer Chumei Watanabe’s ‘Fushigi Song’ (performed by a vocal group Korogi ‘72) offers a trippy and infectious groove with sonic similarities to Don Cherry’s ‘Brown Rice’; little-known jazz-funk library group Columbia Orchestra showcase the best of Tokyo’s session musicians on ‘Hearts Beats - Theme for Andrew Glasgow’; before lawyer-turned-composer Kan Ogasawara closes out the compilation with a dramatic flourish on ‘Gishin Anki’.

Following on from Time Capsule’s acclaimed deep-dive into the world of manga & anime synth-pop in 2022, this vinyl only collection is set to broaden and diversify an understanding of how soundtracks shaped the sound of new age music in Japan for a generation.

Curators: Kay Suzuki, Rintaro Sekizuka (Vinyl Delivery Service)
Artwork: Tu-yang

AN ATLAS OF LOSS

Do minerals dream of becoming semiconductors? Do they yearn to carry charges, amplify, switch, and convert energy into emotions comprehensible to humans? And what if, from the darkness of the underground, they had been listening to us sing in caves before the emergence of the first flute? Could they have guided us, through the course of history, to find them, extract them, and create new sounds through sinusoidal waves, to form valves and bend circuits?

If so, minerals would transition from what philosopher Eugene Thacker defines as the ‘planet’—that virginal and unreachable realm for humans that we study through geology, paleontology, and environmental sciences—to the ‘world,’ the space we inhabit, interpret, and synthesise in our daily lives. Sadly, we only remember the world when it erupts violently, through climate catastrophes or when a new virus emerges. Sometimes a tsunami collides with a nuclear plant, or viruses are cultivated as biological weapons in high-security laboratories, provoking a deep biological anxiety, hard to quell, which we all feel beneath our skin.

There exists a third realm, disconnected from both the world and the planet: the ‘earth’, an immense, dense rock floating in space alongside other planets, situated in the cosmological dimension. Relating to the earth is so complex that we only do so through theoretical speculations of a scientific nature or through science fiction, interweaving until one becomes the prophecy of the other, in an infinite, pendular dance. Beyond the darkness of space and Lovecraft’s cosmic horror, the fantasy of human extinction is the most recurrent: to reach a collapse so devastating that we do not survive it, even though the earth does, without us.

In a world where we quantify everything through body sensors, financial algorithms, nanometre-scale robots, and surveillance drones—a world in which everything that can be domesticated and controlled can also be commodified—a superior artificial intelligence would survive the collapse of the species (some speculate it might even cause it) and learn from our mistakes, thanks to our obsessive gathering of data.

Long after our voices fade, minerals will persist in the darkness of screens, in the silicon of chips, and in their pure form, still unexploited underground. Over the millennia, this intelligence might piece together fragments of our reasoning, as if an alien civilization finally connected with one of our spacecrafts loaded with messages cast into the void. It would sort through endless streams of data, unable to grasp the depths of emotion behind what it quantified, recreating simulations of our past, stripped of the nuance that once defined us and conducting experiments in sandboxes.

Some remnants of our existence—faint echoes of forgotten beauty—would be pieced together in an atlas of loss, buried beneath layers of numbers, decayed bots, and corroded hard drives. What will follow? Perhaps bison will once again roam—trotting to the strange pulse of techno, their ancient forms framed by the ruins of our cities.

Buildings will crumble, slowly dissolving under the soft touch of ambient music, and a thousand flowers will bloom with that ancient music created through electrical signals and computation. 7 songs for a future both improbable and inevitable—a final message from a world lost to itself, from planet Earth to planet Earth.

Alfons Pich, 2025

After a couple of years of silence, the Colombian label Insurgentes, operated by DJ Lomalinda and Verraco, and responsible for putting several South American sound explorers on the map to the world in the past decade, is back for one last release, one last dignified death: la última vez.

And for this last installment, one last album. ‘Fiera’ is the name of the LP that Seph wrote and programmed during 2022 and 2023. For us, his greatest work so far: an energetic and impulsive journey, it's an active listening that never stops, you can never trust the loop. 8 tracks that do honour to the Insurgentes catalogue and consolidate the sound of the celebrated and respected Argentine artist who has been in force for more than two decades, crossing the territories of techno, 90s IDM, dub and ambient. Tags that are masterfully captured and collided in the grooves of these 300 vinyls.

Today is both a happy and a sad day. But the feeling of contradiction has always been the main alkaloid of our artistic work and the result of our search for identity. Without Insurgentes there would be no TraTraTrax. Without Insurgentes, no platform would have been created for many of the dreams that today are a fact and that even dictate our future. We would like to thank all those who have been linked anywhere along the way with our sonic fiction, with our desire to build bridges, with our thirst to connect ass and mind.

Que la tierra te sea leve, querido INS

Crash! Boom! Bang! 30-year anniversary celebrated with a unique special edition: a double album in black and white vinyl with 18 tracks and an 8-page booklet.

30 years ago, Roxette released their fifth album "Crash! Boom! Bang!", including a stream of hit singles like "Sleeping In My Car", the title track, "Fireworks", "Run To You" and "Vulnerable". The album would sell more than five million copies and was followed by their second World Tour, which saw them perform for over a million people, including the second performance ever by an international act in China.

“Roxette were among the three most played artists on American radio during 1989, 1990 and 1991, and we were on top of the charts all over the world. So, it's no wonder we felt pretty confident when it was time to record the new album”, Per Gessle says. “Having had that kind of success made us feel that we had a perfect opportunity to stretch out into new directions. To show slightly different sides of what Roxette could be. And I still think "Crash! Boom! Bang" is our best album”. Crash! Boom! Bang! saw chart success upon release, No. 1 in Sweden, No. 2 in Germany and No. 3 in Australia and the UK.

Roxette – Marie Fredriksson and Per Gessle – came out of Sweden in the late 80’s. Their game was pop, their mission to conquer the world. With 33 chart-busting singles and total record sales exceeding 75 million, it seems safe to say “mission accomplished”.

Following the success of his ‘Love Dub So’ EP, Nick Barber’s Doof project returns to Mysticisms, delving back to his earliest recordings of his ground-breaking Trance project, presenting tracks from his previously cassette only release ‘The Love Mixes’.

A youth that had captured the psychedelia of Pink Floyd, Gong, Hawkwind and on to Psychic TV, as a self-taught guitarist, his first trip to India and Thailand in 1989 and witnessing the early electronic dance music at the Full Moon parties, had seemed rudimentary in nature compared to musicality of psychedelic rock.

Returning to England, the electronic / rock crossover of The Shamen’s ‘Progeny’ parties – featuring DJs like Paul Oakenfold and Mixmaster Morris with the live acts of Orbital and Ramjac Corporation – offered something new that turned his head, before finally finding his crew in the legendary squat / underground Pagan parties. There, residents Lol and Yaz first played the new electronic Trance sound, introducing Barber to the music of Eye-Q, Dance To Trance and the hugely influential Pete Namlook.

Recorded between 1990 – 1991, while living in Cambridge to study Philosophy, these are the first versions of tracks that formed the basis of his debut EP on Novamute, in 1993. Working with minimal equipment – an Akai sampler, Roland monosynth, Yamaha delay pedal, all sequenced on an Atari black and white PC and single MIDI output and then recorded straight to an 8-track Tascam cassette multitrack – the exuberance and rawness of the music are full of the excitement and naivety of youth.

Never intended for public release or initially even as a demo, Barber would play the music off the Tascam multitrack for friends at after parties. Dubbing a handful of cassettes himself and personally drawing the covers, around a dozen cassettes were handed out to mates. Eventually one copy found its way to Mute Records, who were looking to launch their dance offshoot, Novamute. Re-edited mixes of Gift Of The Gods and The Nagual appeared on his debut EP and history was made, before Doof went on to release for luminaries like TIP Records and Dragonfly and a career touring the globe was launched.

Remastered from the original tapes, this EP offers a snapshot of that time, the energy and joy of these early recordings is clear and overwhelming. Where Ambient, House and Techno met the birth of electronic Trance that truly stand up some 30 years later as originals then and now.

Trance The Mystery.

When you’re running a label, a demo occasionally comes across your desk that makes you reconsider everything you thought your label was all about. For Balmat, such was the case with this stunning album from Stephen Vitiello, Brendan Canty, and Hahn Rowe. It sounds like nothing we’ve released so far—and that very otherness opened up a whole new world of possibilities for us.

Fans of ambient, experimental electronic music, and sound art will be familiar with Vitiello, a New York native, long based in Virginia, who has collaborated with a cross-generational list of greats: Taylor Deupree, Steve Roden, Lawrence English, Tetsu Inoue, Nam June Paik, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Pauline Oliveros, and many more. On labels like 12k, Room40, and Sub Rosa, he has explored a wide range of minimalism, microsound, lowercase, ambient, improv, and other styles. But this album is something different. It may begin in ambient-adjacent territory, but it quickly veers off, and it just keeps zigzagging, taking on elements of krautrock, post-punk, dub, and the groove-heavy interplay of groups like Natural Information Society and 75 Dollar Bill.

This stylistic turn is thanks in large part to Vitiello’s choice of collaborators. “We’re coming from three different schools,” Vitiello says: “sound art, art rock, and punk rock.”

Active since the early 1980s, Rowe—a violinist, guitarist, and producer/engineer—has played with, or manned the boards for, a frankly jaw-dropping list of musicians: Herbie Hancock, Gil Scott-Heron, the Last Poets, Roy Ayers, John Zorn, Glenn Branca, Swans, Live Skull, Brian Eno, David Byrne, Anohni, R.E.M., Yoko Ono, and many more. But he might be most closely associated with Hugo Largo, a one-of-a-kind New York quartet—two basses, vocals, and Rowe’s violin—that in the late 1980s helped lay the groundwork for what would eventually become known as post-rock.

Canty, of course, is the legendary drummer of Fugazi, the visionary DC post-hardcore group, as well as Rites of Spring before them, and, currently, the Messthetics, a Dischord-signed instrumental trio with guitarist Anthony Pirog and Fugazi bassist Joe Lally.

Vitiello’s trio first collaborated on First, a 17-minute piece released on the Longform Editions label in 2023. Second picks up where the freeform drift of First left off, channeling the trio’s exploratory energies into more intentionally structured tracks and—in a real first for Balmat—some almost shockingly muscular grooves. “Sometimes my projects are more conceptually driven,” Vitiello says, “but I think this was more musically geared. I just wanted to open up the references and bring in an incredible drummer, bring in some melodies, and I’m sort of the center.” But his collaborators, he stresses, are “vastly creative in making anything I might suggest better.”

Like its predecessor, Second took shape in phases, shifting between improvisation and collage. Vitiello laid down the skeleton of the music at home, sketching out initial ideas on Rhodes keyboard and acoustic and electric guitar; he then fed the parts through samplers and his modular system, recording 10- or 20-minute jams. Once he had edited them into more structured forms, he hit the studio with Canty, who added not just drums but also bass and piano; finally, Vitiello took the results of those sessions to Rowe, who played violin, viola, electric bass, and 12-string acoustic and bowed electric guitar, and assisted in some of the final structuring and mixdown.

A few more surprises along the way: Reanimator’s Don Godwin, the studio engineer where Vitiello recorded with Canty, contributed what he calls “resonant dustpan”; and none other than Animal Collective’s Geologist, who just happened to be in the studio that day, sits in on hurdy gurdy on “Mrphgtrs1,” the album’s gorgeous, stunningly atmospheric drone closer. “I love these chance encounters,” Vitiello says. “Somebody I admire, a group I admire—that was an unexpected gift.”

An unexpected gift is a great way of describing Second as a whole: three veteran musicians venturing outside their usual zones and finding a new collaborative language together. The results can’t be neatly slotted into any given genre; they belong not to any given category, but to the spirit of conversation itself.

Yore returns with an unusual one for us. This first EP by Ross Alexander is more Techy than what you would expect on Yore – However, its still somewhere between the slim lines of House and Techno – more Techno in a Detroit way. Well, Ofcourse – what else would it be, right?

All four tracks are ready for your dancefloor – so grab yours, as these very limited copies, will be gone in no time.


Strictly limited to 200 Copies worldwide (no repress).

When SW. AKA, Stefan Wust, first established SUED in 2011, their compelling, cosmic and anonymous material struck a rare chord, emanating far beyond the freeform Berlin underground in which it was written. Unknowingly, Los Angelean Oliver Bristow had
established a parallel musical universe, founding the hyper-specific label Acid Test, inviting pioneering artists such as Donato Dozzy, Tin Man and Pepe Bradock to indulge in glorious interpretations of 303 control. Without compromise, these were records that quietly
reinvigorated electronic music.
Some years later, a new label, SWOB, unites Wust and Bristow in a very different landscape. And while it would be easy to transform the purity and integrity of this special alchemy into something like nostalgia, yearning for an alternative culture before
influencers and against algorithms, SWOB endeavours to find inspiration in arguably tougher truths.
“By the mid-90s, the techno scene had already reached a breaking point”, recalls Wust.
“Today, the scene is so highly professionalized that it barely resembles what was once called the "underground. But "underground" was never more than the simple reality that music circulated on cassettes among friends or that dubplates were played at illegal
parties... The consequence of today’s professionalization is the death of the original movement.”
Still, no one can kill an idea. Here, inspired by the “Outside Tekno” or “Outkast Techno” that emerged to subvert even back in the day, SWOB are proud to introduce the tekkNOthing trilogy, a new project from SW. beginning on cassette and culminating later
on vinyl. Some years in development, tekkNOthing first began to take shape during the 2020 global pandemic, when ‘the underground’ quickly began to mean something radically different once again.
“I noticed how everything was accelerating while simultaneously spinning in circles – existing in a kind of creative limbo on a global scale”, recalls Wust. “And that’s where true freedom lies: for artists – in any sense – to consciously engage with this necessity. In
other words, irrationality or nonsense can eventually generate meaning.” While hardly capitulating to the contemporary hammering of techno’s most recent developments, tekkNOthing’s first chapter quickly establishes a frenetic pace; tracks like ‘nuclearFALLoutX’ and ‘paslolESmess’ interlock and unfold at a tempo removed from that typically associated with SW. while ‘euroBSS’ and ‘viscousHEAT’ successfully experiment with a more guttural palette, veering far into a rejuvenating and previously uncharted leftfield.
A resolutely human endeavour, the music of SW. is nonetheless written and recorded in the looming shadow of AI, whose free-form adoption of pop culture, hip-hop and techno reminds Wust of “when photography emerged in the 19th century... painting was no
longer bound to naturalism. Similarly, music today is no longer bound to fixed standards – through AI, it can become truly free.”
If not in competition, than taking inspiration from this landscape of new opportunity, tekkNOthing diversifies further with eight unpredictable tracks across part II, taking in stuttering machine-funk on ‘crAMPDUNK’, a freeform organ jam via ‘sonicENdo’ and the
inexplicable piston-percussive, post-punk exotica heard on ‘poorTENOOR#a#01’ DJs with dual cassette decks skills might even find function in the more overtly floor-focused ‘DU ¨NEhowSE#1takeÄ’ or ‘lookLOOK’.
The times may have changed, but the promise remains simple; more music, more freedom.

Australia's world-renowned cinematic soul outfit Surprise Chef return with new album Superb. A record that represents a change in their creative approach and turns up the heat in their music. Trading in their meticulous writing and recording techniques for a looser and less planned approach with the intentions of bringing more levity to the process, and it comes through in spades. The high caliber musicianship is still front and center, but they push their sound into a more energetic and fun place on this album. Album opener "Sleep Dreams" is the closest thing to a Surprise Chef tune one would come to expect but then lead single "Bully Ball" comes on and you get the picture that they came to kick in the door on this one. The song's gritty drums thunder through the speakers and get covered with percussion, keys, bass, and guitar chanks that stay in the pocket and bring the funk with them. The band pushes the boundaries of arrangement with tunes like "Body Slam" that starts off like a sweet soul track then pulls a 180, turning dark and haunting, centering on a sound they created by tucking a timpani into a bathroom two doors down from the mixing board. That same sense of experimentation comes up again on "Fare Evader" where they pepper another neck breaking rhythm track with synth notes that sound like robot sound effects from a 70s sci-film. The fellas turn up the tempo for the dance with tunes like "Consulate Case" and "Tag Dag"; the former pulling influence from afro-funk and the latter from jazz-funk. They take us deep into the beautiful world of Surprise Chef ballads on "Websites" and double down on their abilities to make beautiful and ethereal tracks with "Dreamer's Disease". With their new album Superb, their new approach, and plans to tour the world, we are about to see Surprise Chef take the step from the underground's most beloved to a household name and we are definitely here for it.

“Less than a month after one of the most violent fire events in the history of the continent, new shoots had burst through the scorched hardpan, nourished by the still-vital roots of those flayed and blackened trees.” John Vaillant, Fire Weather.

Loscil (aka Scott Morgan) returns to kranky with Lake Fire, a nine-track offering of ash-laden sonics that mine the tension within the cycle of destruction and rejuvenation.

Lake Fire is the result of a disjointed creative process. Originally conceived as a suite for electronics and ensemble, most of the original compositions were deserted, save for Ash Clouds, featuring James Meager on double bass. The remaining tracks were reshaped and remixed, built anew out of the remnants of the abandoned work. The result is a phoenix, an album burnt to the ground only to be reassembled out of its cinders. Fragments of the original lurk beneath a densely overpainted canvas of sound.

Infused into the resulting rearrangements are impressions from a road trip into the mountains marking a personal half-century milestone, surrounded by the ominous proximity of wildfires and dense smoke; celebrating life while the world burns. The album’s title comes from the striking irony that forest fires are often named after regional lakes - perhaps subconsciously referencing ancient lore. The cover photos were taken from this same trip, while sitting in a rowboat staring into the grey abyss of an opposing mountainside outside of Revelstoke, BC, obfuscated by smoke from a nearby lake fire.

Press quotes for previous solo release “Clara”:

"The sound sculptor Scott Morgan continues to astound.” Pop Matters

"A beautifully nuanced work, Clara is both revealing and mysterious -- and loscil fans wouldn't expect anything less.” Allmusic

press quotes for previous collaboration release with Lawrence English “Colours of Air”:

"As you might expect from the steady hands at the tiller, this is a cortex-hugging drone record of beauty and depth.” The Quietus

"One of the thrills of listening to this record is how its initially predictable veneer fades on subsequent listens to reveal layers of mischief underneath.” Resident Advisor

Australia's world-renowned cinematic soul outfit Surprise Chef return with new album Superb. A record that represents a change in their creative approach and turns up the heat in their music. Trading in their meticulous writing and recording techniques for a looser and less planned approach with the intentions of bringing more levity to the process, and it comes through in spades. The high caliber musicianship is still front and center, but they push their sound into a more energetic and fun place on this album. Album opener "Sleep Dreams" is the closest thing to a Surprise Chef tune one would come to expect but then lead single "Bully Ball" comes on and you get the picture that they came to kick in the door on this one. The song's gritty drums thunder through the speakers and get covered with percussion, keys, bass, and guitar chanks that stay in the pocket and bring the funk with them. The band pushes the boundaries of arrangement with tunes like "Body Slam" that starts off like a sweet soul track then pulls a 180, turning dark and haunting, centering on a sound they created by tucking a timpani into a bathroom two doors down from the mixing board. That same sense of experimentation comes up again on "Fare Evader" where they pepper another neck breaking rhythm track with synth notes that sound like robot sound effects from a 70s sci-film. The fellas turn up the tempo for the dance with tunes like "Consulate Case" and "Tag Dag"; the former pulling influence from afro-funk and the latter from jazz-funk. They take us deep into the beautiful world of Surprise Chef ballads on "Websites" and double down on their abilities to make beautiful and ethereal tracks with "Dreamer's Disease". With their new album Superb, their new approach, and plans to tour the world, we are about to see Surprise Chef take the step from the underground's most beloved to a household name and we are definitely here for it.

Australia's world-renowned cinematic soul outfit Surprise Chef return with new album Superb. A record that represents a change in their creative approach and turns up the heat in their music. Trading in their meticulous writing and recording techniques for a looser and less planned approach with the intentions of bringing more levity to the process, and it comes through in spades. The high caliber musicianship is still front and center, but they push their sound into a more energetic and fun place on this album. Album opener "Sleep Dreams" is the closest thing to a Surprise Chef tune one would come to expect but then lead single "Bully Ball" comes on and you get the picture that they came to kick in the door on this one. The song's gritty drums thunder through the speakers and get covered with percussion, keys, bass, and guitar chanks that stay in the pocket and bring the funk with them. The band pushes the boundaries of arrangement with tunes like "Body Slam" that starts off like a sweet soul track then pulls a 180, turning dark and haunting, centering on a sound they created by tucking a timpani into a bathroom two doors down from the mixing board. That same sense of experimentation comes up again on "Fare Evader" where they pepper another neck breaking rhythm track with synth notes that sound like robot sound effects from a 70s sci-film. The fellas turn up the tempo for the dance with tunes like "Consulate Case" and "Tag Dag"; the former pulling influence from afro-funk and the latter from jazz-funk. They take us deep into the beautiful world of Surprise Chef ballads on "Websites" and double down on their abilities to make beautiful and ethereal tracks with "Dreamer's Disease". With their new album Superb, their new approach, and plans to tour the world, we are about to see Surprise Chef take the step from the underground's most beloved to a household name and we are definitely here for it.

Originally released in 2015

To celebrate Molly Nilsson’s most enduring fan-favourite album to date, Night School and Dark Skies
Association are releasing a limited 10th anniversary pressing on Red-Gold vinyl, limited to 500 copies.
Since its release in late summer of 2015, Zenith has come to be considered Nilsson’s greatest album to date. Now
on its 6th pressing, in 2025 Zenith represents the mid-point in the songwriter’s career to date and contains firm fan
favourites in Mountain Time, Happyness and her most popular song, 1995. Zenith sits square between Nilsson’s
original flurry of DIY creativity and her later, outward-looking political material.

A sweeping, cinematic, emotional change is in the air. Molly Nilsson's sixth studio album Zenith begins with clear, wide eyes open to Earth as we would love it to be but seldom is. Recorded in her home of Berlin and whilst touring and, as ever, conceived, produced, written and recorded in solitude, Zenith is Nilsson's big statement and consequently her most affecting work to date. It sees her reveling in big arrangements, sweeping synth strings, bigger choruses and emotions. Like the rest of us she looks within and to endless sunsets in wonder and puzzlement

"Are You in Heaven?" was famously shouted by Roxy DJ Eddy de Clercq to the crowd at one of the very first legendary house parties in Amsterdam. This phrase not only symbolizes an iconic moment that captured the spirit of the era—it’s also the title of one of the three tracks featured here.

In 1991, inspired by the dance music craze that swept across Europe at the time, Arnoud Winkler and Jochem Peteri (who would later become the one-man supergroup Newworldaquarium) produced music that is equal parts euphoric, emotive, vital, and vibrant—youthful in spirit, naive yet clever. A European translation of a US-American art form, born from pure enthusiasm and concentrated passion for a culture that, to this day, continues to resonate universally.
Originally released on Lower East Side Records, the story told here is full of rave symbolism, after-party joy, and literal can-you-feel-it moments: rattling sub-bass, blissful pads, whispering voices, dub techniques, and subconscious peak-time signals.
Complemented by a new edit of Ulysses Horizon by Gerd Janson (alongside a revised version of the original), alongside Flowerdale Beach, and Are You in Heaven?, the music here hasn’t lost a single inch of its charm or allure. A taste of Dutch house deluxe.

At long last, Q Lazzarus says hello to Dark Entries. Q Lazzarus is the moniker of Diane Luckey, born in New Jersey in 1960. While living in the East Village in New York City in the 1980s, Diane met songwriter Bill Garvey at a party and they recorded “Goodbye Horses” in his home studio. As the story goes, Luckey met Hollywood director Jonathan Demme when she picked him up in her taxi during a snowstorm in 1986. Demme was wowed by her demo tape, which was playing in the cab, and they ended up hanging out at a restaurant for hours talking about life and music. “He liked it so much, I gave him the tape I was listening to, he said he would call me for one of his movies, but I didn’t really take it seriously.” said Luckey. Demme would have the song “Goodbye Horses” first appear in his offbeat comedy Married to the Mob, and then again more memorably in Silence of the Lambs when Buffalo Bill changes into women’s clothing while drowning out his intended victim’s pleas with loud music. Despite the exposure, both Luckey and Garvey languished in relative obscurity. “Goodbye Horses” is the definition of a cult classic, an ethereal tearjerker driven by Garvey’s lush synth work and Luckey’s unmistakably powerful voice. Garvey says, “the song is about transcendence over those who see the world as only earthly and finite.”

Over 15 years of effort have gone into the making of this release. All five songs on this record were previously unreleased and are sourced from original master tapes. The extended version of “Goodbye Horses” was newly mixed from the original stems by Alberto Hernandez at Fantasy Studios. Instrumental and acapella versions of the song are included, which are also available for the first time. Side B opens with “Hellfire,” a brooding number about the New York BDSM nightclub of the same name, showcasing the range and force of Luckey’s voice. “Summertime” follows, with a sauntering synth-reggae spin on the 1937 George Gershwin number. Both B-side tracks are also new mixdowns and edits from the original stems. This record is released alongside Eva Aridjis Fuentes’s documentary on Q Lazzarus, Goodbye Horses: The Many Lives of Q Lazzarus, a work chronicling the life of the enigmatic Luckey. It is an opportune moment to reflect on the underrecognized artists we have lost and the undeniable brilliance of both Diane Luckey and William Garvey.

Jordan Strong presents the first in a series of vinyl releases on his Wave Machine imprint featuring his "This Must Be The Place" original and three solid remixes. As Jordan is an eclectic house producer he's created a unique driving indy/nu disco track with hints of his hand played African percussion accompanied by his own meditative spoken word and synth elements that give this track its own unique groove that would take a brave and seasoned collector to truly understand. Incredible remixes include Knoe1's Indy Acid version, Chris Herrera's dubby chugger, and Hamza Rahimtula's absolutely brilliant uplifting tribal primetime banger. Each version stands out from the other and has as its own magical time and place on the dance floor making this record a well-rounded and timeless gem.

Aimer Perdre is a movie by the Guit Brothers and tells the story of Armande Pigeon; the queen of shenanigans. In Brussels, she struggles to make ends meet because she can’t stop gambling on everything, always ending up on the wrong side of luck. When she teams up with Ronnie one night, everything changes – they win it all. And when you hit a winning streak, you have to know when to stop.

For Aimer Perdre, Brooklyn NY native Simon Hanes travelled to Brussels in order to work directly with the directors, synchronizing the editing of the film with the composition of the soundtrack so that both processes would influence each other. Hanes and the Guits spent 3 months working alongside each other almost every day, passing ideas back and forth and allowing the soundtrack to grow organically. The music is an honest representation of Hanes’ experiences over those months, which he spent couch surfing across Brussels, sharing meals and ideas with new friends in broken refrains of French and English – falling asleep at the Cinémathèque, and occasionally breaking into abandoned buildings…but thats a story for another time.

Throughout all this, Simon hired musicians he met in bars, members of the Brussels experimental/artistic community, singers from a choir that was rehearsing in the squat where the Guits built their editing room…All the while sculpting the soundtrack out of these seemingly dissolute elements and constantly blurring the line between the compositional process and his day to day life.

Finally the process culminated in hiring the FAMES string orchestra for ONE SINGLE HOUR (all they could afford) to achieve the full orchestral sound the film’s climax so clearly needed.

The end result, like the film itself, is a reflection of life – a hodgepodge of sounds, colors and ideas that come together to create a beautiful, unique tapestry, sometimes harmonious, other times less so.

Comes with a limited edition flexidisc with a bonus track.

Celebrate a decade of Turnover's iconic sophomore album Peripheral Vision with this 10 Year Anniversary Edition. Retaining the album's iconic cover art, the packaging has been completely overhauled to include a new lyric poster & printed photo inner sleeve. This special limited edition also includes two bonus tracks from the era - "Humblest Pleasures" and "Change Irreversible." Released on May 4th, 2015 via Run For Cover Records, Turnover's second album Peripheral Vision is widely regarded as an essential body of the work in the band's discography, maturing its sound into a shoegaze-inflected post-punk direction following the band's 2013 debut record Magnolia. Described as "a tour de force" by Kerrang!, the album set the stage for an extensive and prolific touring history over the past decade and three subsequent albums, including their most recent LP, 2022's Myself in the Way. - Updated vinyl packing - new jacket, inner-sleeve, lyric poster - 2 Bonus tracks from "Humblest Pleasures" EP

If ever there were an act that so correctly set out their stall with a well-chosen name, this was it, and its criminal that such an accomplished act has remained barely known until now. From 1975, these are the earliest of the buried-tape revelations in our Albina-Portland series, and also the straight-up funkiest. Both horn-led sides are among the finest discoveries of their ilk, too – tight but fluid, heavy but joyous – utterly splendid joints that would have set the old Deep Funk scene ablaze.

First time ever on 7" 45rpm vinyl, dinked centre hole with picture sleeve, 500 numbered copies only.

Liner Notes by Martyn Pepperell

A collection of ten hypnotic guitar renditions that dive deeply into the traditional compositional musicality that underpins Harakami’s hallucinatory beatscapes before reconsidering them under a fresh, innovative and engaging new light. River: The Timbre of Guitar #2 Rei Harakami signals a new level of awareness and understanding of both Rei Harakami’s significance and Ayane Shino’s undeniable talent.

VITAL SALES POINTS:

In 1996 Tokyo-based label Sublime Records received a cassette demo from Rei Harakami, a 26-year-old Japanese experimental filmmaker, and musician. Within one year Harakami’s debut LP ‘Unrest’ was released. As the 21st century dawned, Harakami was becoming a critically acclaimed figure, and there was a feeling in Japan that Harakami would be an inevitable successor to such luminaries as Haruomi Hosono and Ryuichi Sakamoto. Sadly Harakami passed away at age 40 in 2011, leaving behind a musical legacy that seemed to deserve more recognition. A fitting tribute now comes from the incredibly gifted classical guitarist Ayane Shino. Continuing her album series ‘The Timbre of Guitar’ (the inaugural release of which was ‘Sakura’ - a cover album of Susumu Yokota's seminal album, released through the Swiss label, Mental Groove Records in 2021), she now presents ‘River ???? : The Timbre of Guitar #2 Rei Harakami’. Ayane has reworked some of Harakami’s standout tracks into an album of tranquil yet complex compositions helping to build a new level of awareness and understanding of Rei Harakami’s significance. A collection of ten hypnotic guitar renditions that dive deeply into the traditional compositional musicality that underpins Harakami’s hallucinatory beatscapes before reconsidering them under a fresh, innovative and engaging new light.

In the years that followed Harakami’s untimely passing, Sublime Records continued to sign and support new artists emerging from Japan’s rich and fertile electronic music scene. This eventually led to a meeting with gifted classical guitarist Ayane Shino in 2020. Although a new name within electronica, Shino’s classical resume is impeccable. She has performed with a range of prestigious orchestras in concert halls and at music festivals across Japan, Europe, and South America while playing classical guitar for numerous animations, movies and television commercials and holding various educational roles. These days, she also hosts the Tokyo Harmonics radio show, which is syndicated through Hyogo prefecture’s Ashiya Radio and TJS Radio in Los Angeles.

During her time completing a masters at Tokyo’s University of the Arts, Shino became fascinated by Brian Eno, Aphex Twin, Oneohtrix Point Never, Steve Reich, and, closer to home, Harakami and Susumu Yokota. ”I found myself in an environment where I was surrounded by fellow students who produced computer music, live electronics, and installations,” she explains. Following her meeting with Sublime, Hideoki Amano, the producer and owner of Musicmine, the parent company of the label, asked Shino if she would be open to transcribing and recording an album of covers of the late, great composer, producer and DJ Susumu Yokota’s music in incorporate into then-upcoming events commemorating the 5th anniversary of his death and reissues of his past works. “Yokota made music with the Roland TB-303 bass synthesizer and samplers, not in a way like a conventional instrumentalist, so I was aware it might be more of a challenge for her,” Amano explains. Fittingly, Shino was up for his suggestion, leading to ‘Sakura: The Timbre Of Guitars #1 Susumu Yokota’. Song by song, Sakura highlighted Shino’s free-flowing playing and prowess at translating electronic music into classical guitar shapes.
After considering Harakami’s background as an instrumentalist, Amano felt revisiting his catalogue should be the next step for Shino. Well-versed in how often classical versions of electronic music tend to fall flat, he asked her to examine Harakami’s songs closely, select the musical phrases suitable for guitar and create arrangements that would sound interesting to music listeners with a deep engagement with ambient, techno and electronica. In Harakami’s discography, Shino discovered “a sense of simplicity, warmth, moisture and a floating sensation.” “I was gripped by his songs, which had an array of sounds that gave me a sense of mystery but also coexisted with a sense of familiarity,” she explained. Moving beyond his official releases, Shino began digging through YouTube to find live recordings, radio appearances and obscure outtakes. Within her mind’s eye, imagining playing his songs on guitar was effortless. On her approach to the album, Ayane explains: “For this album, I succeeded in spinning some exquisite, silk thread like delicate tones, interwoven with human warmth, gentleness and simplicity. And I was also able to rework Rei Harakami's distinctive sound with a floating feel to it and transform it into a very classical guitar sound. I hope many people will be able to receive this group of sounds that I created in this album that I played with all my heart.” A record of limitless innate beauty, ‘River ???? : The Timbre of Guitar #2 Rei Harakami’ is a delicate and thoughtful body of work. A true masterclass in deconstruction and subsequent rebuilding, and an eternal lesson in how the art that we leave behind can outlive us all.

South Street Soul are on a roll with another fantastic re-issue, this time championing two singles by US Funk band Father's Children. Originating from Washington DC, the band rose to prominence in the mid-to-late 70's, releasing a debut album on Mercury Records, which Wayne Henderson of The Crusaders produced. Notice to collectors and diggers; this takes the two killer tracks from the album nicely replicating the 1979 original 45, which would set you back over £100.

On the A-side, 'Hollywood Dreaming’, is a laidback revivalist soulful groover that will undoubtedly give your hips and shoulders a shuffle. On the flip, feel the funk with ‘Shine On’. A commanding slap bassline runs throughout the track with harmonised vocals and stabbing horns. Lace them up people, it's time to cut some rug!

Mr. Fiel: "It's been a long-standing desire of mine to have an own-selected and released record. After the first digital release of Faith in Truth, I decided that the second would come out on vinyl. I am proud that I have such partners by my side in this circle as my musically well-known friend, Gnork, and the young titans oneeyedman and Peter Koren - I think we will hear more about them in the future!

A musical journey has been begun and the plan is to visit more stations in the future".

Special collaborative project ARUM lands on the ESHU imprint. Something that every ESHU release has in common is that each project originates from friendship or a cooperation between like minded souls. This release is no different from that. "Guus" refers to the owner of a little cabin studio where a group of friends came together to create some beats. ARUM consists of Kaap (De Lichting), Jasper Wolff (Indigo aera), Luna Ludmila and ESHU head honcho Ivano Tetelepta himself. After an extended weekend of studio sessions this was the last jam created on a hazy Sunday afternoon when the crew headed into deep dub territories. The result is a five minute long smooth dub techno ride honoring Guus and the perfect Sunday ethos. If you talk dub techno, you talk about Deadbeat. Nothing would suit this release more than a remix by this true icon in dub techno and a close friend to the ESHU family. Happy Sundayzzz.

DJ Rocca and Chris Coco spent some time hanging out together by the pool at an intimate festival called La Casella in Umbria in the
late summer of 2019.
They spent a lot of time talking about Italo Disco, the Rimini / Riccione riviera in it’s heyday in the 90s and classic clubs from the early
days of the Italian scene.
By the end of that beautiful weekend they had decided to make some music together that would somehow capture and reflect their own
hazy memories of places they visited or played and nostalgic dreams of earlier scenes they were too young to participate in.
Over the ensuing months the idea developed into an imaginary retro-futuristic club called CocoRocca DiscoTeca, a fantasy version of
a past club that never existed and at the same time a future club that was really possible to create one day.
If there was such a club, what would the music sound like?
Surely, a fusion of various sounds of dub/house/disco that the pair of DJs had been collecting and playing out for years. So inspiration
lists were made and ,slowly, a soundtrack for a night at that imaginary club began to take shape, beginning slow and dreamy, for the
moment of arrival; lifting up to a peak; and finally drifting down to the final tune of the night.
The result goes something like this…

South Londons’ indomitable Medlar delivers an ambitious new album

The long-time underground favourite has collaborated with the likes of Dele Sosimi, Rebekah Reid, Deevoenay, Finn Peters, Sam Virdie, Afla Sackey and Arnau Obiols on an album that finds him taking his production to new levels.
From roots playing illegal raves in the South West to building up a cultured catalogue that bounces between house and garage, Medlar has long been part of the underground conversation. He has dropped a previous album and many innovative remixes and edits for the likes of Billy Cobham and Shirley Lites, worked in the studio and on stage with Afro legend Dele Sosimi and most recently released an album under his own name that collected myriad different sonic sketches from the past 15 years.

Islands is an altogether different proposition that comes after establishing himself as a mix engineer and producer of other people's music. In that time, Medlar has honed his skills, learnt new tricks and grown more able to express himself in sound. The result is an album that explores a more electronic palette inspired by '80s fusion sounds whilst maintaining a loose, organic flow through his use of live instrumentation. “The idea for the LP was for a collection of music which could sit alone as club tracks, but would work equally well as part of a whole. The name Islands came from this, as there's some connecting ideas but the tracks sit independently in their own little sonic worlds. I took a lot of inspiration from early 80’s electronic music produced during early years of MIDI technology… proto house, jazz fusion, electronic disco and experimental ambient. I wanted to juxtapose some of these methods with more contemporary production and make something that's ultimately quite fun!” says Medlar of the record which could easily soundtrack a summer road trip.

Across 11 tracks, he blends old-school techniques like a fusion of live instruments, FM synthesis and MIDI triggered vocal samples with more contemporary touches such as punchy, club-friendly drums and dub inspired, speaker-wobbling low end. The result is less reliant on samples than his previous works and makes for a perfect blend of retro authenticity and future freshness.

GIVE IN TO SIN. From within the long-locked tombs of lesbian lore smoke rises
and draws its whispering curtain across the wide open sky…and where there’s
smoke, there’s fire. Secrets concealed by thick drunken clouds resurfaces naked
truths in the last gasps of smouldering ashes.

Oh you thought it would stay a secret? We’ve let sleeping lezzies lie long enough.
It’s time to face the music. Welcome to BIG WHOOPS… Maara’s inaugural
offering on her new label, Ancient Records. With this driving debut, Maara
excavates the scrolls, archives, and dossiers upon which our past was built and our
future depends.

A wish for a world of sweet sapphic symbiosis—a fantasy, perhaps, or a waking
dream? Nothing is promised except for right now. The past manifests in the
present, both a blessing and a curse. Ancient Records fulfills your dark club
fantasies as Maara unearths simmering secrets and hidden truths in a rapturous
ushering in of a new era. Never forget where you came from, and just wait until
you see where we’re going…

“Peace and Harmony in the Lesbian Community” — Ancient Records

Hard Times proudly welcomes a new release from an artist deeply connected to the label’s storied past. Alex Arnout presents BLACK LOGIC with their debut EP, ‘Pull Up’, a project born from passion, collaboration, and a return to House music's soulful roots

Hailing from West Yorkshire, Arnout spent his formative years on the Hard Times dancefloors, absorbing the beats and vibes that would later shape his own productions. His journey with the label reignited when he was invited to remix Michael Watford’s classic 'Love Change Over' and Steve Silk Hurley’s fresh hit 'All I Need'. Now, he returns with something truly special

“Black Logic was born out of the pandemic,” says Arnout. “I wanted to move away from drum machines and synths, getting back to sampling jazz and the deep house sounds of the ‘90s - taking inspiration from artists like Bugs in the Attic, Jazzanova, and Ernest Saint Laurent.

What began as a solo project soon evolved into a collective effort. Bassist and guitarist Alan Riggs, a former member of Delta 5, joined the sessions, bringing warmth and groove to the productions. Vocalists Tempo O’Neil, Anthony Beckford, Mariana Orsho, and Sophie Barker added their distinct voices, completing the vision.

The ‘Pull Up’ EP is the first of a debut double-header from Black Logic, delivering five stunning tracks that blend jazzy keys, deep grooves, and rich, soulful vocals. From the warm basslines to the celestial closing moments, this EP is a statement of intent - a wonderfully fresh, yet nostalgic take on deep house from a collective of masterful musicians.

At the start of the 1980’s X-Plode’s dad had a second-hand colour TV business in Bolton, Lancashire where he would buy, sell, repair and trade TVs. He would come back home with all kinds of things he had traded for a TV but the most memorable, to a 10 year old kid at that time, were the keyboards. He use to watch his dad play songs from the 1960’s on these keyboards and when his dad had gone out, Lee X-Plode would sneak on them and start messing about, experimenting with the drum programs and fiddling with the buttons, trying out ideas. He had to move fast though because these keyboards didn’t stay in the house for long as his dad would trade them again for something else; one time that was an old analogue echo chamber, which Lee also messed about with when his dad was out. That echo chamber was a revelation to Lee and opened up the possibilities of what was possible with sound. So by the time Lee was 16, he decided he wanted his own keyboard and started saving. When his 17th birthday came around he had saved up £200 and visited his local Argos where he bought himself a Yamaha PSS 680, an FM synthesizer with memory banks and a basic drum machine incorporated. ‘It was shit quality like, but I didn’t mind. I just wanted it for the programmable drum machine, the synth and the memory banks that came with it” Lee recalls. The year was 1987 and by this time in Lee’s life he was into reggae and hip hop, the latter he first embraced in 1983 by the way of breakdancing and listening to electro, so all he wanted to do when he got his gear was make reggae and electro sounding beats. Recalling his youth and the fun he had with the echo chamber, the next edition to his home set up was to acquire one of those, which he did via a mate of his. But by the time he got his minimal set up sorted in 1988, his musical tastes had changed. House music had landed here in UK and this was Lee’s new passion, so from that point on wards he started experimenting, trying to nail a decent house groove. ‘I wanted 808 sounds, but I didn’t know what one was!’ Lee explains.

Around late 1990 or early 1991, Lee started to improve upon his set up, purchasing an Atari STE, a Cheetah MS6 , a 6 voice polyphonic/multi-timbre analogue rack mounted synth that linked up to his Yamaha – “It wasn’t a great bit of kit, I kept getting electric shocks from it. Eventually it just blew up!” Lee had acquired a cracked copy of Cubase on floppy disk from his local computer game shop but struggled with it. “It was so complicated to understand and took me ages to get used to it. I was stoned a lot back then and I just couldn’t concentrate on anything for long” Lee laughs, continuing “I also picked up a 4 channel sampler/sequencer which plugged into the side of the Atari and that’s when I first started sampling, I think this would have been late 1991. I had the Simon Harris ‘Breaks, Beats and Scratches’ vinyl that he put out on Music for Life which were a godsend back then. I was also sampling a lot from cassette tapes, especially reggae. I would also record the Stu Allan show on Key 103FM, one of the main stations broadcasting out of Manchester. He would do a 3 hour show with hip hop and house, and then hardcore house came along. Eventually he dropped the hip hop altogether and it was just house and hardcore. I recorded the shows onto cassette most weeks and started to learn more about how house and hardcore was put together by listening to those shows.”

50th ANNIVERSARY EDITION
Heavyweight Vinyl 45 RPM Cut / Original glued prints on Thick Cardboard 700 gram / 2 Separated parts hand-glued / Glossy lamination / PVC outer / 30x30 cm insert with interview to Steve Kuhn by Tony Higgins printed on 250 gram Favini Lanilla Yellow / 20 Pages 21 x 30 cm "Real Book" with transcripts of the songs in the "Real Book" style, handwritten by The Maestro Carlo Spanò with main theme, chords and lyrics printed on 120 gram Shiro Eco paper, 100 gram Favini Crush Alghe. Carlo also edited an introduction with technical analysis of the session, which solves some of the little mysteries around this music gem.

Personnel:
Steve Kuhn - Vocals, Piano
Airto Moreira - Percussions
Billy Cobham - Drums
Ron Carter - Bass
Gary McFarland - Arranged by


Notes:
The album features the group playing Gary McFarland arrangements of Kuhn's compositions, accompanied by a string section on several tracks, with Kuhn delivering stream of consciousness lyrics in an unplanned and largely improvised fashion in the studio. However, that wasn't the only surprising aspect to the session. Airto Moreira's appearance was more by chance than design, he having just popped by the studio, again, unplanned. The 'Steve Kuhn' album is all the stronger for these extemporaneous and serendipitous elements and showcases a band at the top of their game; tight and funky yet relaxed and flowing like molten gold, with stabs and washes of keyboard from Kuhn. Splashes of free playing enter the session, but the band never stray too far from a melodic and harmonious centre of gravity. Kuhn's deft keyboard skills provide melodic embroidery to the impressive rhythmic textures and tonal colours of Carter, Cobham and Moreira. As if the music wasn't enough, the album is given extra significance by the fact that, within a few months of the recording, McFarland would die after being mysteriously poisoned by methadone in a New York bar. In a sense, it is a valedictory album from McFarland, channeled by Kuhn and the band.

It's among the hardest of Kuhn's albums to find so this reissue is most welcome. Luxuriate in the glow of Kuhn's Fender Rhodes and the pliant funky bass of Ron Carter; immerse yourself in the percussive interplay of Moreira and Cobham, a pairing that has rarely sounded so good. This is such an exquisite album; you will lose yourself in its delicate power and find yourself coming back to it again and again.