Homosexuality has been a part of post-war popular music since its very inception. Until the early 70s, however, it wasn’t talked about openly in that world: it was coded, hidden, secret. This of course mirrored society - during the 50s and 60s, the gay community felt like outcasts: harassed by the police, demonised by the media and politicians, imprisoned simply for being who they were.

This compilation spans the time before and after Bowie, reflecting both the coded nature about the topic in the 50s and 60s and the greater openness that occurred in the early 70s. It begins in late 1955, with the extraordinary success of Little Richard; continues through early-60s pop and pop art; Tamla and soul, glam rock, the early 70s funk and disco that was played in the underground New York clubs, and then moves on to the omnipresence of disco, in the late 70s.

This double CD compilation is about freedom - and freedom for all. Whilst some of the artists identify as LGBTQ+, then or now, some are included simply because they were played in gay or lesbian clubs — where their lyric or sound proved useful and enjoyable to the patrons - or because they were shaped in some way by the gay aesthetic or gay managers. It’s a love letter to the entwined world of music and sexuality in all its many guises and we hope you enjoy the ride.

TRACK LISTING

Disc One
1. I Hear A New World - Joe Meek & The Blue Men
2. Tutti-Frutti - Little Richard & His Band
3. Esquerita And The Voola - Esquerita
4. Wondrous Place - Billy Fury
5. Strawberry Blonde (The Band Rocked On) - Frank D'rone
6. Foot Stompin' - The Dovells
7. Johnny Remember Me - John Leyton
8. Peppermint Twist (Part 1) – Joey Dee & The Starliters
9. Sally, Go ‘Round The Roses - The Jaynetts
10. You Don't Own Me - Lesley Gore
11. Needle In A Haystack - The Velvelettes
12. Get Down With It - Bobby Marchan
13. I'll Be Your Mirror – The Velvet Underground & Nico
14. Heaven Must Have Sent You - The Elgins
15. Stand Up Straight And Tall - Jackie Shane
16. Women Is Losers – Big Brother & The Holding Company
17. No Stranger Am I - Norma Tanega
18. Pretty Golden Hair - Al Stewart
19. David Watts - The Kinks
20. Nothing But A Heartache - The Flirtations
21. Stand! - Sly & The Family Stone
22. Life & Death In G & A - Abaco Dream
23. Nathan Jones - The Supremes
24. Walk On The Wild Side - Lou Reed
25. Coochi-Coo - Polly Perkins
26. I'm A Man - Jobriath
27. Soul Makossa - Manu Dibango
28. Law Of The Land - The Temptations

Disc Two
1. Get Dancin' Part 1 – Disco Tex & The Sex-O-Lettes Featuring Sir Monti Rock Iii
2. Lady Marmalade - Labelle
3. Nobody's Gonna Change Me – The Dynamic Superiors
4. Ain't Nobody Straight In L.A. - The Miracles
5. I Need A Man (12-Inch Version) - Grace Jones
6. I Feel Love - Patrick Cowley
7. Orgasm Addict - Buzzcocks
8. Fuck Off - Jayne County & The Electric Chairs
9. Glad To Be Gay - Tom Robinson Band
10. I Was Born This Way (12-Inch Version) - Carl Bean
11. Prison (12-Inch Version) - Space
12. Disco Dance (Mega Mix) (12-Inch Version) - Michele
13. I Need Somebody To Love Tonight (12-Inch Version) - Sylvester

The Seeds’ second album released in 1966 is a pop-art garage rock classic. ‘Mr Farmer’ was to become a Billboard Hot 100 single in 1967 and the second side of the album features the 14-minute epic ‘Up In Her Room’.

This deluxe gatefold edition features the original stereo mix along with an 8-page insert.

“A Web Of Sound” deluxe comes with a second LP stuffed with mono versions, outtakes and more. 

TRACK LISTING

Side One
1. Mr Farmer
2. Pictures & Designs
3. Tripmaker
4. I Tell Myself
5. A Faded Picture
6. Rollin' Machine

Side Two
1. Just Let Go
2. Up In Her Room

Side Three
1. The Wind Blows Your Hair (Version 1)
2. Dreaming Of Your Love (Version 2)
3. Out Of The Question (Version 4)
4. I Tell Myself (Take 1)
5. Pictures & Designs (Take 14)
6. Just Let Go (Take 4)

Side Four
1. Mr. Farmer (Single Edit)
2. Rollin' Machine (Take 3)
3. Up In Her Room (Single Edit)
4. A Faded Picture (Take 1)
5. Tripmaker (Mono Mix) 

Rodion-Ladislau Rosca spent his lifetime creating music that was ambitious, groundbreaking and innovative. He was a pioneering composer, a talented multi-instrumentalist and producer. He pushed musical boundaries to their limits. This he did as a solo artist and with his group Rodion G.A.

Despite being popular in their native Romania, Rodion G.A. had to work under an oppressive Communist regime only releasing two tracks that appeared on a compilation album in 1981. Rodion, however, made extensive recordings in his home studio. This new collection of material recorded between 1981 and 2017 is taken from that archive. Rodion died in 2021 aged 67. He has also been described as “the Godfather of Romanian electronic music.”

Rodion G.A.’s music has been curated on a number of releases “The Lost Tapes” (2013), “Behind The Curtain (The Lost Album)” (2014) “Delta Space Mission” (2014) and “Rozalia” (2018).

This new collection – compiled by Derek Anderson – draws on unreleased material from his personal archive. Some tracks sound like a metallic Foxx-era Ultravox! Others showcase electronic melodic pulsebeats and psychedelic workouts. We also see the first release of ‘Acolo Unde E Mister’ plus ‘Aminitiri’ originally released in 1981 on the “Formatii Rock 5” LP compilation and ‘Stele Si Lumini’ best-known for being performed on Romanian TV on New Years’ Eve in 1981.

Rodion G.A.’s music has been critically acclaimed in the music press and this new collection will be welcome amongst his international legion of fans. 

TRACK LISTING

Side One
1. Acolo Unde E Mister
2. Lupta Lui Thibald
3. Ciuperci Otrăvitoare
4. Un Pahar Cu Apa
5. Intervale

Side Two
1. Punct
2. Balkan
3. Joc
4. Stele Si Lumini
5. Poftiți La Control

Side Three
1. Halou Cosmic
2. Tu Rea Ce Esti
3. Cz 5000 Tragedy
4. Vine Iarna
5. Talk To Me
6. The Journey (Del's Edit)

Side Four
1. The Final Farewell (Del's Edit)
2. Catacombe
3. Final Journey (Del's Edit)
4. Amintiri
5. Goodbye (Fade Away) (Del's Edit)

In 1972, Rick Hall moved distribution of his Fame label from Capitol to United Artists. This was to give his label more heft internationally as well as Stateside. The first single from this new agreement was Candi Staton’s ‘In The Ghetto’ which was released in May 1972. Not only did the single do well, but Staton received a personal note from Elvis Presley telling her how much he had enjoyed her version of the song.

Two more successful singles – ‘Lovin’, You, Lovin’ Me’ and ‘Do It In The Name Of Love’ – followed before her third Fame album – “Candi Staton” – became the first LP to be distributed under the new agreement with United Artists.

Containing all three singles and B-sides such as ‘You Don’t Love Me No More’ and ‘The Thanks I Get For Loving You’ “Candi Staton” is a ten track beauty, a fantastic album and a cornerstone of Southern Soul.

Ace have already reissued Staton’s first two Fame albums – “I’m Just A Prisoner” and “Stand By Your Man” – which received rave reviews and put Staton’s classic music on the turntables of an old and new generation. This is the third card in that three card trick to complete the series.

With liner notes by our own Ian Shirley and fantastic photos from the FAME archive, “Candi Staton” looks as good as it sounds.

Buy it in the name of love.

TRACK LISTING

Side One
1. Do It In The Name Of Love
2. Darling You're All That I Need
3. Blackmail
4. In The Ghetto
5. Wanted: Lover

Side Two
1. The Best Thing You Ever Had
2. Lovin' You, Lovin' Me
3. I'll Drop Everything And Come Running
4. You Don't Love Me No More
5. The Thanks I Get For Loving You 

Alex Kassian's extended rendition of E2–E4 promises a 12-minute electronic odyssey, tailor-made for diverse dancefloors from it’s spiritual home Ibiza and beyond. On the flip side, Mad Professor embarks on a club-oriented version excursion, a rare gem in its own right. This reimagining breathes new life into the classic, offering fresh perspectives for music aficionados everywhere. Hot tip for release of the Summer!

TRACK LISTING

A1. E2–E4
B1. E2–E4 (Mad Professor’s Qantas Crazy Remix)

Inspired by the Buddhist sutras, Blitzen Trapper's radiant new album, 100's of 1000's, Millions of Billions, offers a captivating take on rebirth and transcendence, navigating its way through the space beyond dreams and reality, beyond gods and mortals, beyond life and death.

The songs here are as sincere as they are surreal, rooted in rich character studies and deep reflection, and the production is intoxicating to match, blending lo- fi intimacy and trippy psychedelia into a mesmerizing swirl of analog and electronic sounds. Add it all together and you've got a gorgeous collection of stripped-down bedroom folk wrapped in lush layers of synthesizers and washed out electric guitars, a poignant, expansive exploration of perception and purpose that manages to look both forwards and backwards all at once.

Launched roughly two decades ago in Portland, OR, Blitzen Trapper broke out internationally with 2008's Furr, which cemented their status at the forefront of the modern indie folk revival. Rolling Stone hailed the band's "hazy, psychedelic Americana," while NPR praised their "explosive live performances and infectious roots- rock swagger." Dates with Fleet Foxes, Wilco, and Dawes followed, as did festival appearances at Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, Newport Folk, and Coachella, among others. The band would go on to release six more similarly lauded studio albums, culminating with 2020's Holy Smokes Future Jokes, which Mojo proclaimed "sound[s] like the Beatles at Big Pink."

TRACK LISTING

Ain't Got Time To Fight
Dead God Of The Green Arising
Cosmic Backseat Education
Hesher In The Rain
Cheap Fantastical Takedown
So Divine
Planetarium
Hello Hallelujah
Long Game
View From Jackson Hill
Upon The Chain
Bear's Head
At The Cove

When Nathan Salsburg’s daughter was a baby, he often sang her to sleep in a rocking chair. At one point, he remembered a song he had taught himself as a teenager: “The Evidence” by Lungfish, the Maryland band who coined a singular brand of post-punk in the 90s and 00s. Salsburg realized he could play the guitar part with one hand, singing while holding Talya in his other arm. Though the original version of “The Evidence” is only five minutes long, it’s essentially a repetitive mantra, so Salsburg could extend it as long as he wanted–10 minutes, 20 minutes, even an hour. “It was therapeutic and calming and just lovely for me,” he says.

“And it worked on her.” Eventually Nathan and Talya moved on from their ritual, but his lullaby cover stayed in his head. So he proposed to his fellow Louisville collaborators Bonnie “Prince” Billy (aka Will Oldham) and Tyler Trotter that they record a version with Salsburg on guitar, Oldham singing, and Trotter adding drum machines and synths. They decided to pair it with a rendition of another Lungfish song, “Hear the Children Sing,” playing each tune for more than enough time to fill two sides of an album. The result is the beguiling Hear the Children Sing the Evidence, an album that displays the strengths and visions of the participants while showcasing how richly powerful Lungfish’s songs are.

TRACK LISTING

1. Hear The Children Sing (19:56)
2. The Evidence (21:08)

Louis Cole, Jules Buckley and the Metropole Orkest team up on “nothing” for a raucous musical trip that veers from funk-fuelled mayhem to sombre balladry with the orchestra dialling up the emotional power to 11. Louis Cole is an LA-based singer-songwriter and sickeningly talented multi-instrumentalist with a strong DIY aesthetic. Thundercat describes him as “one of Los Angeles's greatest musicians”. He composed a suite of brand new music for this project – bigger, bolder, and more expansive than ever – plus there are nods to his GRAMMY-nominated 2022 album “Quality Over Opinion”. Based in Netherlands, Metropole Orkest is the world’s leading pop and jazz orchestra, having shared the stage with the likes of Herbie Hancock, Snarky Puppy, Jacob Collier and Robert Glasper. Conductor, arranger, curator and composer, Jules Buckley is a unique and rare breed of artist. The GRAMMY winner has redefined the rulebook of orchestral music and the role of a conductor. 

TRACK LISTING

A1. Ludovici Cole Est Frigus
A2. Things Will Fall Apart
A3. Life
A4. It All Passes

B1. Cruisin’ For P
B2. A Pill In The Sea
B3. Nothing
B4. Who Cares 1
B5. Who Cares 2

C1. Wizard Funk
C2. Weird Moments
C3. High Five
C4. These Dreams Are Killing Me
C5. Shallow Laughter : Bitches (orchestral Version)

D1. Let It Happen (orchestral Version)
D2. Doesn’t Matter
D3. You Belonged

“Listening closely, influential visions of aquatic realms, such as the mythic Atlantis, and evocations of flying birds (and, perhaps, humans) may reveal themselves. No matter if Statik inspires you to soar above or below the horizon, Actress and Smalltown Supersound promise you a safe and transcendent journey.”

TRACK LISTING

SIDE A:

A1. Hell
A2. Static
A3. My Ways
A4. Rainlines
A5. Ray
A6. Six

Side B:

B1. Café Del Mars
B2. Dolphin Spray
B3. System Verse
B4. Doves Over Atlantis
B5. Mellow Checx 

Funkyjaws Music has decided to offer up its first solo EP here having decided to make the previous four volumes of its Let's Dance series various artists collections. JKriv gets the nod here and doesn't disappoint. First up is the leggy mid-tempo disco of 'Share The Night' with its chattery Chicago house style drums and rasping bass. 'Big Chief' is a brilliant mid-tempo jumble of percussion, toms, hits, grinding bass and lazy kicks and 'Let's Do It Right' then takes off on nice clean piano house grooves full of uplifting joy. 'Acid Fantasies' closes out a truly varied EP with a more raw and direct acid house jacker.

STAFF COMMENTS

Mine says: Funkyjaws is churning out yet another of their popular Let's Dance 12"s, a solo venture rather than a various artists affair this time, and while I'm usually a sucker for a compilation I think this one's the best yet...

TRACK LISTING

Share The Night
Big Chief
Let's Do It Right
Acid Fantasies

Dave Lee's Z Records looks back to go forward as it offers up a spiffing new 12" of contemporary reworks of 4 classics cuts of various vintages from the ZR back catalog. Kicking things off in fantastic fashion is a slap bass and wah clav powered take on Raven Maize's 'Forever Together', originally released in1989, this was the first house cut to feature the now iconic keys riff. Dave's Heavenly Star mix of 'One Kiss' (first out in 1991) is pure hip-swinging soulful disco. Joey Montenegro (who could that be?) offers two classic cuts on the flip side. 'Make A Move On Me' (Original Disco Mix) sees the crossover hit from 2005 get a Chic like makeover with its zippy leads and timeless diva vocals. Whilst the special 25th Anniversary Mix of 1998's 'Can't Get High Without U' closes things off with some peak time, tension filled, disco house action!

TRACK LISTING

Side 1
1. Raven Maize - "Forever Together" (Closer To The Source Mix)
2. Pacha - "One Kiss" (Dave's Heavenly Star Mix)

Side 2
1. Joey Montenegro - "Make A Move On Me" (Original Disco Mix)
2. Joey Montenegro - "Can't Get High Without U" (25th Anniversary Mix)

The Owl & Posse EP brings together several artists on one fresh 12" that explores many Leftfield disco sounds and adjacent grooves. Pete Le Freq opens things up with the vocal-infused disco-funk of 'The Way Down' complete with splashy cymbals and elastic bass. The Owl's 'JBs Funk' is a horn-led jam that draws its samples from James Brown and Fingerman & Chewy Rubs's 'Revolution NY' has some big synth strings and unifying vocal calls over a nice organic rhythm. Monsieur Van Pratt's 'Guaranteed' is a pure good time groove with joy in its bones and soul in the lung-busting diva vocals.

TRACK LISTING

Side 1
1. Pete Le Freq - The Way Down
2. The Owl - JBs Funk

Side 2
1. Fingerman & Chewy Rubs - Revolution NY
2. Monsieur Van Pratt - Guaranteed

A compilation to celebrate the release of the brand-new book – To Ease My Troubled Mind: The Authorised Unauthorised History of Billy Childish written by Ted Kessler. When the idea for the book was mooted Billy wanted to put a succinct double album compilation together to summarise his 47 years of making music. This is the result.

My name is William Ivy Loveday, aka Steve Hamper, aka Guy Hamper, aka Jack Ketch, aka Billy Childish. I was born on the Medway, Kent, where I still live. I left school in 1976 when I was 16. Because I have no qualifications I was turned down by art school so went to work in Chatham dockyard as an apprentice stonemason. I later managed to get onto a painting course at St. Martin’s School of Art on the basis of my paintings. Me, Bruce, big Russ, and little Russ formed The Pop Rivets in 1977 and made our first recordings. Our inspiration was punk rock, TV21 and The Swinging Blue Jeans. I learned to play guitar then in 1979 I worked for four weeks at Oakwood Mental Hospital as a ward porter, then me, Mick and Bertie formed The Milkshakes. Our inspiration was Link Wray, the Beatles Live at the Star Club LP, the track ‘Gotta Get the First Plane Home’ by The Kinks and our hatred of new romanticism. Then I was expelled from St. Martin’s School of Art for writing what was described as “the worst type of toilet wall humour.” I beat my father up on his release from prison for drug smuggling. We never paid ourselves in The Milkshakes and put all the money back into making our own records. I kept the money in a bank account under the name of Kurt Schwitters. I lived on the dole for 12 years. In 1985 we formed Thee Mighty Caesars. Our inspiration was Bo Diddley and The Troggs. I became a member of Greenpeace. In 1989 me and Bruce formed Thee Headcoats. Our inspiration being Son House and Downliners Sect. In 1999 me, Wolf and Johnny Barker formed The Buff Medways. Our inspiration was Jimi Hendrix in Beatle boots and The Who before Roger Daltry started wearing his nan’s curtains. Around 2008 me and Julie formed The Musicians of the British Empire. That morphed into CTMF. That blurred into The Chatham Singers. Our inspiration was based on us. Next up it was time for me and Neil to form The Spartan Dreggs, inspired by Homer and A. E. Housman. Other groups arose and fell - making sure no one knew who we were or why. In 2019 The William Loveday Intention emerged - the inspiration being Hollis Brown and the Mississippi Sheiks. Guy Hamper showed up once again, joined by Jamie on Hammond. Some of these group remain; many have departed for distant shores with sharp hidden rocks.Mainly I paint and write poetry and novels. Along with the music I play nothing I do has ever been particularly fashionable but that is rather the point. Even in 1977 we enjoyed saying no. Then, when punk turned into new romanticism, we descended backwards into early rock ‘n’ roll and the blues. In The Milkshakes we were told that we released too many LPs and were committing commercial suicide, so we released four different LPs on one day.Every now and then someone famous comes along and a small crumb rolls across the table and splashes into our tepid soup. Other times nobodies emulate us and prove to be only better. I love pop, but not pop stars. I am only interested in sound and colour and being small scale. I don’t hide behind volume and off stage mixing. I don’t need to play a show because I prefer to sit and have a cup of tea. My work belongs low, close to the ground, to instinct and the elemental. I believe in homemade music, homemade art and homemade cooking. I want to bring back the tram and the horse. Music has been a rewarding hobby over the years. I have met and worked with many good friends, and God saved me from fame.

TRACK LISTING

Thee Mighty Caesars – You Make Me Die
The Buff Medways – Archive From 1959
The Milkshakes – For She
The William Loveday Intention – You Gotta Move
Thee Headcoats – Fingers In The Sun
The Spartan Dreggs – Headlong Fly The Achaens
Thee Headcoats – Punk Rock Ist Nicht Tot
CTMF – Last Punk Standing
CTMF – Bob Dylan’s Got A Lot To Answer For
The Buff Medways – Troubled Mind
Billy Childish And The Singing Loins – I Don’t Like The Man I Am
Billy Childish And Holly Golightly – Upside Mine
The Guy Hamper Trio Feat. James Taylor – Moon Of The Popping Trees
CTMF – All Our Forts Are With You
The Musicians Of The British Empire – Christmas 1979
The Delmonas – I Feel Like Giving In (French)
The Musicians Of The British Empire – Thatcher’s Children
Thee Mighty Caesars – Lie Detector
The Pop Rivets – Fun In The UK
Thee Headcoatees – Hurt Me
CTMF – A Song For Kylie Minogue
The Shall I Say Quois Feat. CTMF – It’s So Hard To Be Happy
Jack Ketch And The Crowmen – Brimful Of Hate
CTMF – Failure Not Success (ALT)
Thee Headcoats – Davey Crockett
The Musicians Of The British Empire – Joe Strummer’s Grave
The Buff Medways – Medway Wheelers
CTMF – You Can’t Capture Time (Slight Return)
The Spartan Dreggs – A Shropshire Lad
The William Loveday Intention – Sex And Flies
Thee Headcoats – The Same Tree
Thee Mighty Caesars – Cowboys Are Square
Billy Childish And The Singing Loins – Song Of The Medway

Funkyjaws Music comes though with more of that lovely loose-limbed disco goodness that is never going to fail in energising a decent dance floor. Let's Dance Volume 4 is another various artists affair that launches with James Greenwood & Aniello's feel-good 'Look Of Love' which has it all - the sweet female vocal, the florid strings, the rolling bassline and big brass leads. Scruscru & Los Protos's 'Corason' brings some Latin flavours with a more deep and seductive groove and Jkriv and Love Drop offer up two b-side jams packed with soul and irresistible rhythms that effervesce with uplifting vibes.

TRACK LISTING

Side 1
1. James Greenwood & Aniello - Look Of Love
2. Scruscru & Los Protos - Corason

Side 2
1. Jkriv - Moonlight Dance
2. Love Drop - Ain't Never

Originally released digitally as two separate volumes in 2022, Wonderwheel is happy to present a 12" release of Populous' "Moonbahtons" - a collection of dark reggaeton and moonbahton style dance floor tracks influenced by the magic & mystery of the zodiac. cuts inspired by the zodiac, magic, and mystery of the universe. Things kick off with "Flauta Magica," focusing around the clave and a brooding synth line and a dembow style beat interweaving itself with the flute & a little bit of acid vibes for good measure, while "Sapo," a distant, foreboding track with a monster of a beat & bassline complimenting a childlike fairy tale melody on top. On the flip, "Glass Dubplate" is a percussive track with emotive pads, a melody reminiscent of finger piano and synth bleeps, while "Berlinese Dubplate" goes into tougher, late night territory with deep bass, roiling percussion and dubby electronics.

TRACK LISTING

1. Flauta Magica
2. Sapo
3. Glass Dubplate
4. Berlinese Dubplate

Sounds as diverse as Tropical Disco, Afro Funk, Highlife, Juju, Disco, Soukous & more combine effortlessly on the Debut full LP from Bosq & Kaleta. Brilliant songwriter and former member of legendary African groups like Fela Kuti’s Egypt 80 & King Sunny Ade’s African Beats, Kaleta helms the vocal duties with his signature chants in a mixture of Yoruba, Goun, French, English & Fon.

Bosq brings his renowned balance of organic & electronic production to give the album a current but timeless feel. A fantastic cast of guest musicians from as far and wide as Colombias Choco region on the Pacific Coast, to Brooklyn, to Port Novo, Benin & Lagos Nigeria bring a depth of musicianship & musical histories to the beautiful group of tracks.

TRACK LISTING

A1. No Be Today
A2. I No Dey Play
A3. Ose
B1. Sonayon
B2. Mifon
B3. Ipade
C1. Miselou
C2. Meji Meji
C3. Debiteur Insolvable
D1. Ajanaku
D2. Ariya Tide
D3. Robojiyan

After 12 years of instrumental albums (ranging from a pair of Solo Pianos, chamber music, collaborative albums with Boys Noize, Jarvis Cocker and Plastikman and even a best-selling Christmas record), Chilly Gonzales has a lot to get off his chest.

The notebooks that sat unfilled since 2011’s orchestral rap opus “The Unspeakable Chilly Gonzales” started to fill up again in early 2022 after ending a lengthy decade of psychoanalysis. Coincidence? Hardly.

Behind the wordplay and name-dropping (Ron Jeremy, Marie Kondo, Genghis Khan and Phillip Glass to cite a few) the songs that made it to the new album Gonzo reveal an ongoing tension between persuasion and confession, delusion and self-awareness and finally, gratitude. The tension between creativity and commerce also continues to be a career-long exploration for Gonzo.

But is this truly a rap album? Instrumental pieces such as the Stravinsky-esque “Fidelio” or the tearjerking “Eau de Cologne” will remind listeners of Gonzo’s extravagant “musical genius” persona, as the words and rhymes from previous verses settle into their ears. 

TRACK LISTING

1. Gonzo
2. Surfing The Crowd
3. High As A Kite
4. Fidelio
5. Open The Kimono (Feat. Bruiser Wolf)
6. Neoclassical Massacre
7. Cadenza
8. F*CK WAGNER
9. I.C.E
10. Eau De Cologne
11. Poem

Vocal house duo Bäs Noir’s ‘My Love Is Magic’ receives edits from British DJs Bushwacka! and Mark Broom on Nu Groove. Hailing from Philly, the female duo of Morie Bivens and the late Mary Ridley first released ‘My Love Is Magic’ as Bäs Noir in 1988, with the Rhano Burrell production going on to chart in the UK. Today, the record remains a favourite of tastemakers everywhere, with Big Love label boss Seamus Haji dropping the OG at Defected Croatia in 2023. The hugely influential British DJ and producer Bushwacka! now returns to the legendary NYC label Nu Groove, following his four-track EP ‘House Sounds Vol. 1’, to bring out the percussive power of ‘My Love Is Magic’ with its distinct piano bassline and modern synth work. Also a Nu Groove returnee, the seasoned DJ Mark Broom delivers a techno A-12 Edit and house Dub Re-Touch of the Bäs Noir vocal house staple.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Bushwacka! Edit
A2. Club Mix
B1. Mark Broom’s Dub Retouch
B2. Mark Broom’s A12 Mix

Limited Edition Gatefold 180gm Double Vinyl edition of 250

All profits from the release are donated to mind.org.uk

The third Emperors New Clothes album recorded and produced in 1996 by Trevor 'Underdog' Jackson, rejected and ridiculed by the bands original label, the album sat unheard for decades and unreleased in its original intended format anywhere till now.

A gloriously twisted mix of jazz, post-rock, dub, no wave, noise & abstract beats played by a live five piece, the album sounds as strangely relevant today as it was wildly ahead of its time in 96.

In founder member Luke Hannam's own words.

"Just two months before the recording took place at the chapel studios in Lincolnshire ENC went through a major line up change with Leo Taylor recruited on drums and David Bateman added on guitar & additional programming, Ian Girdlestone on decks & tape looping and the two founding members Andy Knight- Sax, electronics, flutes, programming, keys & percussion and Luke Hannam on Bass.

The band had come along way from its earliest days as a three piece in the late 80s based in the northeast . ENC were always an unusual band formed around Andy's deep musicality and knowledge of free jazz and experimental music and Luke's love of intense groove and dark post punk. They were an unlikely pairing in someways but they lived closely and supported each other for years.

The 'Surreal Estate' project began as the third album loomed into view. Trevor Jackson who had contributed some fantastic remixes on previous material was hired as producer with Corrine 'The Sea' Pennington as an engineer. The band headed to their Brixton arch and set about making the most adventurous music of their career. The tracks that's you hear on this album were mostly recorded during extensive sessions at The Chapel residential studios in Lincolnshire followed by various additional session in London and also at Trevor's home studio. Recording sessions are funny things, stuff works, stuff fails, bands implode, and sometimes great albums get made, stability never makes the best music and this album probably proves both are true.

My memories of these sessions are pretty vivid, we worked through the night creating our own private universe playing music as freely and intensely as we could. Andy provided, as he always did a sense of otherworldly concentration, I always found him like a man in the centre of a storm building circles and cycles, spinning patterns of sound rhythm and melody. Leo was a relative newcomer at the time but as afar as I was concerned produced beats so intense, so perfect, they pulled my bass into line … visceral and exact. David Bateman listened and carefully spun delicious guitar parts finding space where others thought there was none to be found … it was beautiful to watch and when I listen I can see him in the shadows immersed in the music. Ian's loops and analogue textures found their perfect embrace with Andy's subsonic samples and electronic depth charging …. The whole thing lurched like an obscure On U sound recording colliding with Sun Ra in Trevor's hip hop universe".

TRACK LISTING

1. Trainpiece
2. Cinema Green
3. Twister
4. Strange Charm
5. Tarang
6. Dub Tune
7. Gamelan Melodica
8. Lalit
9. Boogie Electric
10. Guitar Comet
11. More Bodies

Renowned composer Simon Fisher Turner presents his brand new album Instability of the Signal, released via Mute.

Recorded by Simon Fisher Turner and Music Producers Guild Awards winner Francine Perry, this 13-track album is an intricate exploration of sound, inspired by the creative minds of Breda Beban, Hrvoje Horvatic, and poet Harold Pinter, whose verses, 'Democracy' and 'The Special Relationship’, feature on the record. It pulls together four strands of Fisher Turner's sonic experimentation, which he identifies as Slivers, Sounds, Strings, and Singing. The 'slivers' are tiny snippets of audio he used as source material for the tracks, all originally created by Salford Electronics (aka David Padbury), and reworked by Fisher Turner into foundations for entire tracks. The record also includes beautiful string arrangements by the Elysian Collective, who have toured with Pulp and feature on the latest releases from The Last Dinner Party and Pet Shop Boys.

Like Fisher Turner's long and varied career, Instability of The Signal is an accumulation of experience, effervescent memories, sounds and textures. It contains hidden learnings. It is about how restorative singing of ourselves and to ourselves can be but is also a document of times and places delivered in beautifully impressionistic palettes of sounds and voices. It is also another document of Fisher Turner's remarkable life and unshakeable curiosity about sound.

TRACK LISTING

Barefeet
Turning Slowly
She Lowers Her Arms
I Can’t Hear Anything
Thrashing It Out
Fishscales
Boymanduet
Toast
Democracy
Tape Ends
The “Special Relationship”

An expanded and remastered 25th anniversary edition of the mythical Olympia, Washington, trio’s out of print singles and compilation tracks, A Single History 1991-2001 gathers odds and ends from across Unwound’s first decade. From their earliest post-hardcore squeals on “Crab Nebula” to the dub-inspired death march of “Behold The Salt,” this 23-track double LP fills in the distorted gaps of their initial seven album run.

TRACK LISTING

SIDE A

1. You Speak Jealousy
2. Stumbling Block
3. Crab Nebula
4. Caterpillar
5. Miserific Condition
6. Eternalux
7. New Radio Hit

SIDE B

1. Broken E-Strings
2. Totality
3. Mkultra
4. Negated
5. Said Serial
6. Census
7. Plight

SIDE C

1. Seen Not Heard
2. Mile Me Deaf
3. Solo Sonata
4. The Light At The End Of The Tunnel Is A Train

SIDE D

1. Corpse Pose
2. Everything Is Weird
3. Torch Song
4. Lazslo
5. Behold The Salt

Limited edition repress of the 2014 mini album from Royksopp & Robyn 'Do It Again'. Pressed on white and black marble LP

TRACK LISTING

1. Monument - Royksopp & Robyn
2. Sayit - Royksopp & Robyn
3. Do It Again - Royksopp & Robyn
4. Every Little Thing - Royksopp & Robyn
5. Inside The Idle Hour Club - Royksopp & Robyn

Overmono first performed their version of The Streets’ seminal 'Turn The Page' at the 2022 edition of Lost Village Festival to a rapturous response. Hailed by Rolling Stone UK as a "glitchy techno banger”, it has since grown into a word-of-mouth phenomenon and a pinnacle moment in the duo’s critically acclaimed live show. From their Coachella debut to their viral Boiler Room and more recent sold-out headline show at London’s Roundhouse, the track continues to resonate across continents, solidifying its status as a timeless dancefloor anthem. Now available for pre-order on 12” black vinyl with laser etched lyrics on the b-side.

TRACK LISTING

1. Turn The Page

'Young Blindness' followed The Murlocs' 2014 debut LP 'Loopholes', built upon a solid foundation of distorted licks and melodic intuition. The hearty compositions are emboldened by the distinct vocal tremolo of singer Ambrose Kenny-Smith. Lyrically, themes of young paranoia and self-doubt are viewed through a lens of experience, exploring the blurred meeting point with an air of blues-borne world-weariness.

TRACK LISTING

1. Happy Face
2. Young Blindness
3. Adolescence
4. Rolling On
5. Wolf Creep
6. Compensation
7. Unknown Disease
8. Let Me Down Lightly
9. Think Out Loud
10. Improving Solutions
11. Reassurance

The first live release from The Murlocs is a career-spanning 22 song set recorded at The Teragram Ballroom in Los Angeles. The show capped off a busy 2022 for the Melbourne-based band, which saw the release of their 6th album (Rapscallion) as well as a performance at Red Rocks (supporting King Gizzard, with whom the band share two members) and their biggest US headlining tour to date.

TRACK LISTING

1. Living Under A Rock
2. The Royal Vagabond
3. Virgin Criminal
4. Francesca
5. Wickr Man
6. Withstand
7. Eating At You
8. The Ballad Of Peggy Mae
9. Bowlegged Beautiful
10. Bobbing And Weaving
11. Subsidiary
12. Bellarine Ballerina
13. Russian Roulette
14. Farewell To Clemency
15. What If?
16. Comfort Zone
17. Compos Mentis
18. Growing Pains
19. Skyrocket
20. Reassurance
21. Noble Soldier
22. Rolling On

Let the sound of the night drums and the cry of the horns empower you! The crate diggers of Jazz Dispensary are proud to present a collection of jams propelled by the spirit of nature, protest, and freedom, featuring songs from pioneering musicians Joe Henderson, Gary Bartz, Ran Blake, Azar Lawrence, A.K. Salim, and The Dungills. 

TRACK LISTING

SIDE A:
1. Afro-Centric – Joe Henderson
2. Freedom One Day – Gary Bartz Quintet
3. Theme For A New Day – Azar Lawrence
SIDE B:
4. Afrika – A.K. Salim
5. Night Drums – The Dungills
6. Three Seeds (A Suite): I) Regis Debray; II) Che Guevara; III) Malcolm – Ran Blake

Across the last 15 years, Ryan Gustafson of The Dead Tongues has emerged as one of modern folk’s most distinct voices. As idiosyncratic and spectral as the songs have sometimes been, Gustafson has always tied his visions and verses to the kinds of hooks you tuck away like talismans, pulled out in case of emergency. Dust, Unsung Passage, Desert: The Dead Tongues’ albums remain some of the more compelling and curious works in their field on this side of a century. The latest edition to The Dead Tongues’ catalog, the song-centric and magnetic Body of Light and the discursive and wonderfully elliptical I Am a Cloud, is 16 complete tunes split across interweaving and disparate albums.

The albums feature performances by Jenn Wasner (Wye Oak, Bon Iver), Mat Davidson (Twain), Matt Douglas (The Mountain Goats), Joe Westerlund (Califone, Megafaun), Jeff Ratner (Bing and Ruth), and more. Gustafson wanted to dedicate the studio time to not just recording songs but also making something new, with new improvisations.

The two albums, released digitally as distinct standalone releases, join together in the physical format as a beautiful, deluxe, double album. The 2LP package features a meticulously embossed cover, and gorgeous custom inner-sleeves for each album.

TRACK LISTING

Body Of Light:
Body Of Light
Dirt For A Dying Sun
Dreamer
Fading Away
Daylily
Moonshadow
Wolves
Big Nothing
Hard Times, Sore Eyes

I Am A Cloud:
Lightning
I'm A Cloud Now
Formations
A Bridge
Where Love All Happened
Letters Of Returning
Even Here, Even Now

The secretive Only Music Matters label rolls out its seventh EP here and it's from an unknown producer or producers who seem to have a love of tech house. Opener 'AAA001A' is a warped cut for freaky 'floors with trippy vocal details and gloopy beats and bass. 'BBB001B' is more airy and light in its silky minimal rhythms but is detailed with some paranoid pads that keep you on edge while 'BBB002B' rides a nice gritty, propulsive beat and has some wonky, detuned keys adding colour. Another great outing from this low-key but high-quality label.

TRACK LISTING

Side 1
AAA001A

Side 2
BBB001B
BBB002B

Jacken Elswyth is a London-based folk musician, banjo player, and instrument builder. At Fargrounds is her third solo album, her first for the Wrong Speed label and the latest in a rich catalogue that repositions the spectral, vulnerable sound of the banjo away from its familiar role as signifier of the past and onto lands brave, new and unexplored. The living wood is imbued with qualities that require engagement and understanding. Working with cherry, oak or walnut involves naming it an equal partner. The parallel, synchronous transformations of wood into instrument, of growing tree into resonating sound, musical tradition into musical flourishing, lie at the heart of Jacken Elswyth’s practices both as an instrument builder and as a creative musician.

One might consider her primarily as a worker in wood, but whose craft and fields of expression are absorbed by those transitional and interim processes that manifest change. The traditional tunes included here have been cultivated and maintained by generations of players and collectors, pruned, grafted, and shaped over time. However, in this setting, their long-established forms seem to morph and shift. They audibly accrue unique qualities, blossoming and swelling into new modes of being, bright-stepping arrangements unfolding with a liveliness hinting at practices of ritual and community. Meanwhile, other pieces, creative cornerstones of this collection, appear fluid, partially formed. They suggest not the cultivation of new growth from established stock, but instead the actions of something on the verge of taking form. Working with raw elements of melodic and tonal abstraction, they illuminate the process of emergence and evolution.

In this context, the title At Fargrounds is telling. It suggests a point set at some distance from any centre of human concerns, a liminal space in which the cultivated world encounters the world of other living things in their living state. Here, the innate strangeness of the maintained environment–vast lawns, sculpted hedges, vacant playing fields–encounters sprawling vistas of driftwood, dense thickets of brambles, stony hillsides. Across a full century-and-a-quarter, long-standing rural and pastoral musical traditions, at some distance from their origins, have been preserved, nurtured and re-shaped under the folk revival. Placed here, these artefacts now sit in alignment with unvarnished documents featuring the raw elements of sound-making. Their working-together is achieved through a universally-applied interest in musical growth and development.

The juxtaposition and combination of these elements gives evidence of new, emerging approaches to community and social music: familiar, known, yet charged with an alien vitality.

TRACK LISTING

1. Singing Birds/Jack Lattin
2. Warm Machinery
3. Private
4. Lost Gander
5. Waken Workshops
6. White Cockade/BigSciota
7. Sussex Waltz
8. Princess Royal
9. Who Remembers
10. A Fisherman's Song For Attracting Seals/Full RiggedShip
11. Falls Of Richmond/Squirrel Hunters
12. Coffin Maker

Previous Industries is three Chicagoans with a deep, shared history—Open Mike Eagle, Video Dave, and STILL RIFT—who currently reside in LA. In a city where transplants often say they find it hard to connect with new people, these guys found a way around that by delving into the past to rekindle old connections.

When that connection was made, they seemed to stay in the past, rapping about anything and everything but always bolstered by nostalgia and shared memories.

Service Merchandise, their debut LP as a unit, is named after a largely defunct retail chain, as are many of the songs on the album. Orbiting the dead mall as a spiritual concept, Previous Industries tackle nostalgia, heartbreak, joy, and disposability from three distinct points of view, weaving in and out of beats by Child Actor, Quelle Chris, and Smoke Bonito to create something new from a discarded past.

The record was mixed by Kenny Segal (Armand Hammer, billy woods) and mastered by GRAMMY-winning engineer Daddy Kev (Flying Lotus, Thundercat).

TRACK LISTING

SIDE A:
Showbiz
Pliers
Braids
Roebuck
Montgomery Ward
White Hen

SIDE B:
Babbages
Fotomat
Dominick’s
Zayre
Kay Bee

For its next outing, the Nebraska label has curated a mini best-of EP that serves up a quartet of tunes that have been digital only until now. Side A opens with 'Senza Parole,' featuring a weird and wonderful vocal sound and some loose hand claps under Italo-infused disco-funk drums. 'Let Me Be The One' is a nice tripped out and slow motion 90s downtempo jam and 'Funkbraska' is an homage to French Touch with filtered synth loops fizzing with sugar goodness over a characterful bassline, and last of all is 'Love + Hate', another low slung house groove that oozes cool and has a fantastic bassline propping it up.

TRACK LISTING

Senza Parole
Let Me Be The One
Funkbraska
Love + Hate

Beings are... Zoh Amba, Steve Gunn, Shazad Ismaily & Jim White.

On Beings’ There Is A Garden, shapeshifting melodies highlight each players’ voice. In one second, the album may sound hectic, teeming with craggy, unpredictable melodies, but by the time the next track rolls around, it’ll transform into a psychedelic reverie or blossom into a sprawling drone. For Beings, the NYC-based supergroup quartet of Zoh Amba, Steve Gunn, Shahzad Ismaily, and Jim White, the music fl­ows naturally: It’s an ever-transforming organism built on the quartet’s openness and willingness to explore, together.

TRACK LISTING

1. Small Vows
2. Flowers That Talk
3. God Dances In Your Eyes
4. In The Garden
5. Face Of Silence
6. Sun Greeted
7. Happy To Be
8. Morning Star
9. Do Come Again

The brand-new album by David Gilmour, ‘Luck and Strange’ was recorded over five months in Brighton and London and is Gilmour’s first album of new material in nine years. The record was produced by David and Charlie Andrew, best known for his work with ALT-J and Marika Hackman, with lyrics mostly written by Polly Samson, Gilmour’s co-writer for the past thirty years. The album features eight new tracks along with a beautiful reworking of The Montgolfier Brothers’ ‘Between Two Points’, which sees Romany Gilmour, who performs backing vocals across the album, on vocals and harp. Musicians contributing to the record include Guy Pratt & Tom Herbert on bass, Adam Betts, Steve Gadd and Steve DiStanislao on drums, Rob Gentry & Roger Eno on keyboards and the string and choral arrangements are by Will Gardner. The title track also features the late Pink Floyd keyboard player Richard Wright, recorded in 2007 during a ‘Barn Jam’ at David’s house. The album’s cover image, photographed and designed by renowned artist Anton Corbijn, is inspired by lyrics written by Charlie Gilmour for the album’s final song ‘Scattered’.

TRACK LISTING

Side 1
Black Cat (Gilmour)
Luck And Strange (Gilmour/Samson)
The Piper’s Call (Gilmour/Samson)
A Single Spark (Gilmour/ Samson)
Vita Brevis (Gilmour)
Between Two Points (Tranmer/Quigley)

Side 2
Dark And Velvet Nights (Gilmour/Samson)
Sings (Gilmour/Samson)
Scattered (D. Gilmour/Samson/C. Gilmour)

B2 Recordings is back with a second release that is every bit as good as the first. This one comes from Reece Johnson and is a joyous mix of uplifting disco sounds with a timeless edge. 'Comin' In Hot' is a lose-limbed opener with percussive edgy and low-slung drums topped off with dazzling chords. 'Glass Heart' then brings the funk with more expert looseness and this time some hooky and soulful vocals. 'Sup America' keeps the party rolling with instrumental disco brilliance and a Spanish vocal to add real heat while 'Feelin' The Beat' and 'Got To Be Free' close out with higher tempos but no less class.

TRACK LISTING

Side 1
1. Comin' In Hot
2. Glass Heart

Side 2
1. Sup America
2. Feelin' The Beat
3. Got To Be Free

Spanning the tracklist of the original album, the fresh, exciting, and utterly surprising reinterpretations create new content for longtime Talking Heads fans and introduce a new generation to the magic of the music. The brilliant selection of artists recontextualizes 'Stop Making Sense' in popular music and culture, with a focus on generational and stylistic breadth.

TRACK LISTING

1. Miley Cyrus - Psycho Killer
2. The National - Heaven
3. Blondshell - Thank You For Sending Me An Angel
4. The Linda Lindas - Found A Job
5. Él Mató A Un Policía Motorizado - Slippery People
6. Paramore - Burning Down The House
7. Dj Tunez - Life During Wartime
8. Teezo Touchdown - Making Flippy Floppy
9. Jean Dawson - Swamp
10. The Cavemen - What A Day That Way.
11. Bad Bad Not Good (Feat. Norah Jones) - This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody)
12. Kevin Abstract - Once In A Lifetime
13. Toro Y Moi (feat Brijean) - Genius Of Love
14. Girl In Red - Girlfriend Is Better
15. Lorde - Take Me To The River
16. Chicano Batman (Feat. Money Mark) - Crosseyed And Painless

In the last decade, Daniel Davies has become a lauded composer of atmospheric, synth-heavy instrumental music—for film and TV scores, alongside John Carpenter on the director’s Lost Themes albums, and on solo releases like Signals and Spies. But in his previous musical life, Davies was a rocker, touring all over the world with heavy bands like Year Long Disaster and Karma to Burn. After setting rock music aside to focus on his soundtrack and instrumental work, the multi-instrumentalist has found himself falling back in love with loud guitars over the past couple of years.

Ghost of the Heart, the first full-length alt-rock album Davies has ever released under his own name, captures the excitement of that rediscovered love. After a decade of making music that either had to match a filmed image or create a mental one, he sounds liberated by the concrete, reliable logic of verse/chorus/ verse. The songs on Ghost of the Heart don’t fit neatly into any one subgenre: they’re moody, heavy, and a little proggy, but with a strong pop sensibility and lots of melody. The album divulges Davies’ affinity for hooky, forward-thinking bands like Radiohead and Blur, but more than anything, Ghost of the Heart feels natural, like he’s tapping back into something fundamental about himself as a musician. “My first love is writing rock songs,” Davies says. “It just felt like the right time to get back to it.”

Ghost of the Heart is a special album for Davies. It sees him returning to his origins in rock music, but it also couldn’t have been made without the lessons of his time in the film world. In the truest sense, it’s a career-defining work, one that showcases everything he’s learned in his decades as a musician. It reveals a door that, now opened, can take Davies anywhere he wants to go.

TRACK LISTING

1. I Know Why
2. Presence On The Hill
3. In To You
4. It Takes A Lot
5. Ghost Of The Heart
6. Still The Servant
7. Big Crush
8. Wait
9. Those Eyes 

LAST REMAINING COPIES - PRE-ORDERS ESSENTIAL!!

The Flightpath Estate in association with the Golden Lion have compiled a double vinyl album.

'Sounds From the Flightpath Estate'

9 exclusive tracks plus a previously unavailable Two Lone Swordsmen track. An exclusive cover of 'Smokebelch' by Andy Bell plus one-off recordings by Hardway Bros, Timothy J. Fairplay, Justin Robertson, Richard Sen, Sons Of Slough, Rude Audio, 10:40 and a world renowned Belfast based DJ and producer.

The Flightpath Estate is a Facebook group dedicated to the music, art and work of Andrew Weatherall. It began life in 2013 and has become a virtual home to his fans, friends and family. It is also the host of the Weatherdrive - thousands of hours of recordings of Andrew Weatherall’s DJ sets, mixes and radio shows.

'Sounds From The Flightpath Estate' is a compilation celebrating people and places, the outlook, aesthetic and music Andrew Weatherall was known for, and the sense of community and love of music centered around The Golden Lion.

The sounds are forward thinking, created with a deep understanding of the music of the past but future facing, dance floor oriented and made with love.

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Limited edition double black vinyl, 500 copies only. Gatefold jacket with notes.

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Mastered by Andrew Liles

Sleeve art by Personality Crisis

Labels by Walter Russ

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: The first full length compilation to arrive from the creative hub / musical ashram that is The Golden Lion in Todmorden. Working with Andrew Weatherall’s friends, family and collaborators (plus two large online communities), the compilation even includes an unreleased Two Lone Swordman track and will likely be one of the most sought after releases on this incredibly strong and prolific label.

TRACK LISTING

A1 - Two Lone Swordsmen - The Crescents
A2 - Sons Of Slough - Red Machine (GL Soundcheck)
A3 - Timothy J. Fairplay - Centurion Version

B1 - Justin Robertson's Deadstock 33's - Curtains Twitch On Peaks
B2 - Richard Sen - Tough On Chug, Tough On The Causes Of Chug

C1 - Rude Audio - Running Wild
C2 - 10:40 - Three Rings

D1 - Hardway Bros - Theme For Flightpath Estate
D2 - The Light Brigade - Human : Remains
D3 - Andy Bell - Smokebelch II

Geographic Music are proud to announce the expanded soundtrack to Graham Eatough’s Fringe First award-winning stage adaptation of David Keenan’s 2017 cult novel, This is Memorial Device. Written by Stephen Pastel and Gavin Thomson (formerly of Glasgow band Findo Gask and The Pastels’ resident soundman), the soundtrack comes across as a third iteration of the book, establishing a whole new angle on the myth of Memorial Device through reworked home recordings from the era and expanded versions of music originally scored for the theatre production.

TRACK LISTING

1. Introduction To Why I Did It
2. We Have Sex
3. Occluded By Chemistry
4. The Most Beautiful House In Airdrie
5. Square Peg In A Black Hole
6. I Started Painting Landscapes
7. What Is A Memorial Device?
8. Chinese Moon
9. Footsteps In The Snow
10. Lights Out For Forever
11. The Morning Of The Executioners

Kiasmos – Icelandic composer Ólafur Arnalds and Faroese musician Janus Rasmussen – are returning, renewed and restored, with II. The triumphant follow-up to their universally acclaimed self-titled debut in 2014, which re-envisioned minimal techno with orchestral flourishes and weightless production. They’d made most of that album in just two weeks; this time it’s been 10 years. The making of II was a test of their friendship, but also testament to how great musical chemistry can always go the distance and be just the same as it ever was.

They worked on a lot of II during the lost year of 2020-2021, including a trip to Ólafur’s studio in Bali. “We spent a month there and wrote a few songs that ended up on the record,” says Janus. The pair sampled traditional Balinese percussion like the gamelan and incorporated Janus’s field recordings of their natural surroundings – the sound of birds, crickets and, on standout track ‘Dazed’, echoing the sunrise over the lush landscape.

Kiasmos have an enviable knack for conveying complex emotions and evocative visuals with instrumental music. But this time they’ve got more experience as producers to draw on. The album’s expansiveness can be linked to Ólafur’s intervening years as a Grammy-nominated composer and prominent soundtracker in film and TV. And they’ve subtly shifted from four-to-the-floor to the frenetic broken beats of UK dance music, experimenting more with BPMs, echoing Janus’s time spent DJing in major venues worldwide. There are still those aching melodies that fans know and love but they’re catchier too: tracks like ‘Laced’ and ‘Bound’ have an irresistible, elastic bounce beneath the ethereal palette.

“We just want to make electronic music that there isn’t so much of right now,” says Janus, “to take you on a great journey that is a little bit unconventional.” “You have to develop into a new space,” Ólafur adds. But they had to impose limits, too, to keep them both on track and make something memorable. Often Ólafur would refuse to move on to the next idea until they’d perfected a chord progression or beat, to help them stay focused and forge, he says, a “deep understanding of what the song is.”

“II is livelier,” says Janus, “but it still retains the signature Kiasmos style of transitioning from a whisper-quiet ambience to an explosive dance beat that can blow your socks off.”

TRACK LISTING

1. Grown
2. Burst
3. Sailed
4. Laced
5. Bound
6. Sworn
7. Spun
8. Flown
9. Told
10. Dazed
11. Squared

Originally released in 1994, Mother Earth’s ‘The People Tree’ is a gem of an album that encapsulates a love of soul, funk and folktinged ‘70s rock. To mark its 30th Anniversary, it is set for a special edition 2LP reissue that includes the original album, three previously unreleased tracks, and a further six that have neverbefore been on vinyl. It has been remastered from the original analogue recordings.

One of the best-loved albums in Acid Jazz history, it was the product of over a year of sessions, led by label-founder Eddie Piller, and features guest appearances from Paul Weller, Dee C Lee, and Brand New Heavies’ Simon Bartholomew. Bonus tracks include the previously-unreleased alternative ‘Apple Green’ with a distinctive female backing vocal, an alternative version of ‘Illusions’, and the title track.

First-time vinyl cuts include the alternate master of ‘Jesse’, ‘A Trip Down Brian Lane’ and the heavy funk of ‘Slide Sweet Baby’. The album is presented in a beautiful ‘wide-spine’ layout, with two printed inner sleeves, adorned with in-depth notes form Eddie Piller and unseen photos from the original cover shoot by Gerald Mankiewicz.

TRACK LISTING

1. Institution Man
2. Jesse
3. Startdust Bubblegum
4. Mr. Freedom
5. Dragster
6. Find It
7. The People Tree
8. Apple Green
9. Time Of The Future
10. Saturation
11. Illusions
12. A Trip Down Brian Lane
13. Jesse (Alternate)
14. Institution Man (Edit)
15. Warlocks Of The Mind (Pt. 1)
16. Time Of The Future (Alternate EP Mix)
17. Find It (Radio Edit)
18. Almost Grown
19. Apple Green (with Harmony Vocal)
20. Illusions (No Horns Mix)
21. A Trio Down Brian Lane (7” Mix)
22. Slide Sweet Baby
23. The People Tree (No Mellotron)
24. Jesse (Brendan Lynch Radio Mix)

DEADLETTER were one of the most talked about band's of 2023, with their critically acclaimed debut EP 'Heat!' gaining nods from tastemakers including NME, CLASH, DIY, DORK and The Guardian, 2024 brings in the band's debut album, Hysterical Strength.

Having played together in groups prior, DEADLETTER was formed at the start of 2020, days before the pandemic struck. After some lineup experimentation, the addition of Will King (Guitar), Sam Jones (Guitar) and Poppy Richler (Saxophone) completed the group. Bound together by a recognition of frenetic energy and rhythm and leaving any wider ideological goal open to interpretation by the listener, it’s clear the release of their debut album heralds the next level for DEADLETTER.

TRACK LISTING

1. Credit To Treason
2. More Heat!
3. Mother
4. Bygones
5. A Haunting
6. It Flies
7. Hysterical Strength
8. Relieved
9. Deus Ex Machina
10. Practise Whilst You Preach
11. Mere Mortal
12. Auntie Christ 

Following on from the recently released limited edition “Nice Town” 12”, celebrating the legendary Metronomy’s signing to Ninja Tune, the band bring the second chapter in their Posse EP series out on Friday 12th July. The Posse EP series, where Metronomy invite a hand-picked selection of rising talent to collaborate, Posse EP Volume 2 expands on the series, including the previously released “Nice Town”, a collaboration with Pan Amsterdam.

The first Posse EP came out in 2021, and featured the likes of Biig Piig, Spill Tab, Sorry, Brian Nasty and Folly Group. The lead single from the EP, “405”, has since become one of Metronomy’s biggest tracks with more than 15M streams on Spotify alone.

Volume 2 sees Joseph Mount continue to flaunt his tastemaker talents, showcasing the likes of Nourished by Time, Lynks, Miki, Master Peace, Faux Real, TaliaBle, SPIDER, as well as Naima Bock and Joshua Idehen, who join him on new single “With Balance”, which will be released alongside the EP’s announcement.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Nice Town - Metronomy X Pan Amsterdam
A2. With Balance - Metronomy X Naima Bock X Joshua Idehen
A3. Contact High - Metronomy X Miki X Faux Real

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B1. My Love - Metronomy X Nourished By Time
B2. Typical - Metronomy X Lynks X SPIDER X Master Peace X TaliaBle

Music for Swimming Pools has put together their first-ever compilation here and it's a self-titled series that launches with Volume One. It's an assembly of their friends and label family members in with newly discovered gems. Some cuts are exclusive and some of them hint at projects to come, while some are making vinyl debuts. Pete Herbert kicks off with a seductive downbeat jam, Max Essa's 'Sacaton Skylines' is a new age delight and Gafas Du Soul lays down deep sunset house vibes on the gorgeous 'Embers' amongst many other highlights. A fine first collection for sure.

TRACK LISTING

Side 1
1. Pete Herbert - Legzira Sunrise
2. Fabulous Lover - Note To Self
3. Uj Pa Gaz - Lulu (Pete Herbert Remix)
4. Gafas Du Soul - Embers
5. DSD - Canto Recanto

Side 2
1. Pete Herbert - Far Flung (Goldsuite Restring)
2. Fernando - Venus Banfield
3. Max Essa - Sacaton Skylines
4. Pete Herbert - South Seas (Rudys Midnight Machine Reprise)

Vancouver duo Potatohead People (aka the duo of Nick Wisdom & AstroLogical) make their long awaited return to Bastard Jazz with their 4th album, 'Eat Your Heart Out'. Jumping off on the clean & musical production sensibilities that they have become heavily fetishized for over the last decade, the album finds the duo further stepping out from the shadow of the boards and stepping into the spotlight as vocalists, songwriters, players and musicians standing strong in their own respect.

TRACK LISTING

1. The Formula
2. Keepin'; It Kool (feat. Kendra Dias)
3. Last Nite (feat. Redman)
4. Angelwings (feat. Shafiq Husayn & Ivan Ave)
5. Distant Luv (feat. Kapok)
6. Follow Your Heart
7. Come Home (feat. Abstract Rude, T3 & Kapok)
8. Paradise (feat. Diamond Cafe)
9. Secret Mission (feat. Frank Nitt & Reggie B)
10. Everything U Need (feat. Kendra Dias)
1.1 For The Soul (feat. Moka Only)

Acclaimed jazz artist Bill Evans’ Momentum album is the 1972 live album recorded at a concert at Stadsschouwburg in Groningen, the Netherlands. The trio includes, next to Bill Evans on piano, Eddie Gomez on bass and Marty Morell on drums. The ensemble plays compositions by Bill Evans, Miles Davis’ “Nardis” and Michel Legrand’s “What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life”. The album received the prestigious German award Preis Der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik. The 2LP Momentum is available on vinyl for the first time.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. Re: Person I Knew
2. Elsa
3. Turn Out The Stars

Side B
1. Gloria's Step
2. Emily
3. Quiet Now

Side C
1. My Romance
2. Sugar Plum
3. The Two Lonely People

Side D
1. Who Can I Turn To
2. What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life
3. Nardis

Deep Nyabinghi drumming and chanting on a version of the Ethiopian national anthem gets things underway on Slave Call, a majestic journey through the spiritual roots of reggae. Later songs add guitars, bass, keyboards, and horns to build a more standard reggae sound on that foundation, but there’s always a dignified restraint and the profundity of the nyabinghi beat. the entire album revolves around Leonard Dillon’s Rastafarian beliefs, with even the cover of the Beatles’ “Let It Be” rewritten to a religious end.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. Ethiopian National Anthem
2. Slave Call
3. Guilty Conscience
4. Hurry On
5. Nuh Follow Babylon

Side B
1. Train To Skaville
2. Culture
3. Obeah Book
4. Let It Be Me
5. I Love Jah

'Dancing On The Frontline' is the companion record to Enter Shikari's UK #1 album 'A Kiss for the Whole World'. The new record brings together remixes, non-album singles (featuring the likes of Wargasm, Cody Frost, AViVA and Fever 333’s Jason Aalon Butler), plus live recordings from the BBC Radio 1 Rock Show and Future Sounds shows.

'Dancing On The Frontline' also comes with a Blu-ray of the band's headline performances at Slam Dunk Festival 2023 and Germany's Vainstream Festival. Their much-lauded live show has since been all around the world, covering the USA, Australia, Europe, UK, Ireland and more. Audiences in the UK also witnessed the band's biggest ever headline tour to date of the country's arenas, an audio-visual spectacular that The Guardian awarded four stars and heralded as "the beginning of Enter Shikari’s greatest chapter."

TRACK LISTING

1. Goldfish (Shikari Sound System Remix)
2. Bloodshot (Shikari Sound System Remix)
3. The Void Stares Back
4. Bull
5. STRANGERS
6. Losing My Grip
7. It Hurts (BBC Radio One Future Sounds Session Version)
8. Bull Feat. Cody Frost (BBC Radio One Future Sounds Session Version)
9. 2 Be Loved (BBC Radio One Future Sounds Session Version)
10. (pls) Set Me On Fire (BBC Radio One Rock Show Session Version)
11. A Kiss For The Whole World (BBC Radio One Rock Show Session Version)
12. Bloodshot (BBC Radio One Rock Show Session Version)

More than a collection of songs, “Psalms of Yellow House” embodies the culmination of a journey that is both artistic and deeply personal. The album stands as a testament to the relentless pursuit of meaning and beauty. Each track is a psalm, a hymn that serves as a reflection of experiences lived and lessons hard-learned. These psalms are woven together into a narrative that is as diverse musically as the life that inspired its creation. The conception of the album began when Emile was living secluded in a farm cottage hidden in the mountains of South Africa’s Western Cape. Far removed from society, Emile was left to confront his innermost thoughts in stark isolation. Initially, the long-sought freedom was euphoric, almost spiritual, but this soon gave way to an overwhelming darkness. Trapped in a cycle of manic bliss and despair, compounded by a battle with substance addiction, this period inspired songs such as “Trouble Always Finds Me”, “Leave the City” and “Comedown King”. Newly in love and spurred on by a desire for change, Emile returned to the city to face his demons and rebuild his life. During this period, he reflected on his life and recognized that parts of himself needed to be cut loose to create room for rebirth. Turning to his music, he tackled the lingering childhood pains, strained relationships, and the challenges of embracing newfound sobriety through his songwriting. These themes are intimately explored in the album opener “Saviour Complex”. With his demons now behind him, light and hope began to flood back into Emile’s life. This resurgence of joy was amplified by the birth of his daughter, with fatherhood instilling an undying sense of purpose in his life. Grounded upon a foundation that transcends the self, Emile set out to complete the production of “Psalms of Yellow House”, marking a final goodbye to his former self and welcoming a new era. This transformation inspired songs such as “Don’t Cry (It’s Just Goodnight)” and “Blowing Away”. True to its namesake, “Psalms of Yellow House” is a journey through darkness into light. It offers a vulnerable chronicle of life that demonstrates how beauty, power and meaning can be salvaged from the depths of any experience.

TRACK LISTING

1. Saviour Complex
2. Trouble Always Finds Me
3. Milk & Honey
4. Say You Will
5. Leave The City
6. Blowing Away
7. Comedown King
8. Don’t Cry (It’s Just Goodnight) 

The album features an array of guests including Depeche Mode's Dave Gahan, Midlake's Tim Smith, Isobel Campbell, and Ed Harcourt, amongst others.

Commenting on the album, Marshall says... "During a time when the world seemed to teeter off its axis, and I grappled with personal illness and losses, music became my lifeline once more. Like a soothing medication, each note and lyric offered a glimmer of hope in the midst of darkness. Collaborating on the tracks felt like a shared journey through the universal language of music, allowing me to find my voice amidst the chaos. The title, On The Edge Of A Lost And Lonely World, felt deeply fitting then and continues to resonate now, embodying the essence of this profound musical exploration. I truly believe this album represents my finest work yet, a testament to resilience and the power of art to illuminate even the darkest of times."

On The Edge Of A Lost And Lonely World will be released on July 26th via Bella Union.

TRACK LISTING

1. The Beginning Ft Carl Hancock Rux
2. Too Many Rivals Ft Tim Smith 
3. The Immortal Ft Ed Harcourt
4. This Holding Pattern Ft James Cox
5. Brother Ft Dave Gahan
6. Born To Be Ft Peter Hayes
7. Keep Me Safe Ft Rachel Fannan
8. Dark Side Of Your Window Ft James Allan
9. Love You More Ft Isobel Campbell
10. The End Ft Madman Butterfly

In January 2023, Tom Skinner and his ensemble performed material from his recently released album Voices of Bishara at London club “mu”— a venue founded by the curators at Brilliant Corners and named after the seminal Don Cherry live album. The set was augmented by a rendition of Tony Williams’ “Red” and three pieces by Abdul Wadud, whose 1977 self-released solo cello album, By Myself, was a primary inspiration for Voices of Bishara.

The soloists featured on the album — Shabaka Hutchings and Nubya Garcia— are replaced in Skinner's live ensemble with saxophonist Robert Stillman (who also plays with Skinner in The Smile) and saxophonist / flutist Chelsea Carmichael. The extended rhythm section of Tom Herbert (double bass) and Kareem Dayes (cello) round out the lineup, with Skinner on drums. It’s clear from the jump that this band’s aim is to excavate the deep corners of this material, kicking the set off with a 15-minute rendition of Skinner’s own composition “Bishara” that employs the same relationship to rhythmic and tonal freedom found in the Abdul Wadud cello work that inspired it. That aesthetic connection is even more clear by the time the group moves into their 20-minute exploration of Waded’s “Oasis,” the stunning centerpiece of the set.

Hearing Skinner’s compositions - flexed and stretched with extended improvisation, and in context with works by Wadud and Williams - both places them and this band firmly in the creative music continuum they honor, and provides us with an unobstructed view of where that continuum is leading us.

TRACK LISTING

1. Bishara
2. Red 2
3. The Journey
4. The Day After Tomorrow
5. Oasis
6. Camille
7. Happiness

Buzz-worthy post-punk outfit HighSchool continue their ascendant 2024 with the release of their highly-awaited second studio EP, Accelerator.

Collating singles ‘August 19’, ‘Doesn’t Matter’ and ‘She Took You to Narnia’, HighSchool’s second EP builds seamlessly on the sounds of their 2021 cult-classic debut Forever At Last.

Having spent the intervening years polishing their craft across Melbourne and their adopted home of London, Accelerator was produced by rising producer Finn Billingham, mixed by GRAMMY-winning engineer Philippe Weiss (Earl Sweatshirt, Nas, Drake) and mastered by Blur and Depeche Mode producer Ben Hillier.

The resulting five-track collection is suffused with emotionally charged and elliptical songwriting, conjuring the tangible aura of the band’s post-punk forebears as filtered through a lens of contemporary lo-fi bedroom pop.

TRACK LISTING

1. August 19
2. Doesn’t Matter
3. She Took You To
4. Narnia
5. Heaven’s Gate
6. Mondo Cane

Soul Jazz Records’ classic, ‘Delta Swamp Rock’, features a killer all-star line-up of seminal artists who first blended rock, soul and country together to create a stunning new sound of southern American music in the 1970s.

Featuring the Allman Brothers, Dan Penn, Leon Russell, Tony Joe White, Johnny Cash, Bobbie Gentry, Big Star, Link Wray, Area Code 615 and loads more.

This album comes as a classic black vinyl edition complete with extensive original sleevenotes, interviews and exclusive photography, all spread over a 12-page fullsize magazine and two bespoke inner sleeves.

‘Delta Swamp Rock’ is an interstate southern road trip through the United States of America where country, rock and soul met at the crossroads - an exploration of the musical and cultural links between the cities of Memphis, Muscle Shoals and Nashville in the 1960s and 70s.

At the start of the 1970s, a new type of music emerged out of the southern states of Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, Mississippi and Florida. Southern rock, the creation of young blue-collar white Americans, blended rock, soul, country and blues music together to present a new vision of the south - a post-civil rights southern identity complete with a celebration of the regions natural landscape and its way of life.

The Allman Brothers and Lynyrd Skynyrd epitomised the definitive southern rock groups - a mixture of blues-rock and country with a southern rebelliousness and attitude. Unfortunately, both The Allman Brothers and Lynyrd Skynyrd were to be struck by tragedy, which would affect the movement’s rise and fall.

The backstory to southern rock is the fact that a number of the people involved in its creation had been central to the production of southern soul music in the 1960s mainly in Memphis, Tennessee, and the small town of Muscle Shoals (population around 10,000) deep within the Bible Belt, liquor-free, deeply segregated state of Alabama, creating 100s of R&B hits on an almost daily basis.

Here in Muscle Shoals, with its proximity to Memphis and Nashville, an all-white group of in-house musicians, (famously referred to by Lynyrd Skynyrd in the song ‘Sweet Home Alabama’ as the ‘Swampers’), created countless classic soul records for the likes of Aretha Franklin, Wilson Pickett, Etta James, Clarence Carter and more during the 1960s.

This album charts the rise and fall of southern rock from its funky swamp roots in southern soul to its phenomenal success in the first half of the 1970s, including its influence on Nashville’s ‘outlaw’ country and tracing it right back to the arrival of rock and roll in the 1950s - the first meeting of black and white American music at the crossroads.

TRACK LISTING

1. Lynyrd Skynyrd - The Seasons
2. Barefoot Jerry - Smokies
3. Joe South - Hush
4. Bobbie Gentry - Papa, Won’t You Let Me Go To Town With You
5. Area Code 615 - Stone Fox Chase
6. Cher - I Walk On Guilded Splinters
7. Cowboy - Please Be With Me
8. The Allman Brothers - Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More
9. Link Wray - Be What You Want To
10. Boz Scaggs - I’ll Be Long Gone
11. Lynyrd Skynyrd - Comin’ Home
12. Bobbie Gentry - Seasons Come, Seasons Go
13. Leon Russell - Out In The Woods
14. Tony Joe White - Polk Salad Annie
15. Barefoot Jerry - Come To Me Tonight
16. Dan Penn - If Love Was Money
17. Linda Ronstadt - I Won’t Be Hangin’ ‘Round
18. Waylon Jennings - Big D
19. Big Star - Thirteen
20. Bobbie Gentry - Mississippi Delta
21. Travis Wammack - I Forgot To Remember To Forget
22. Johnny Cash & June Carter - If I Were A Carpenter
23. Billy Vera - I’m Leavin’ Here Tomorrow, Mama

With song titles alluding to the life cycle of an insect, ‘Ar’ (‘Scars’, for non-Scandinavians) deals with the human psyche in its most base forms. The album is meant to be a bruising and challenging encounter with the ugly, shameful and disappointing parts of the human experience. It confronts the listener head-on with all the noise, desperate and threatening screams and brutality this Danish three-piece can muster.

“We purposefully recorded these songs to be abrasive and angular to force the listener to feel the sweaty anxiety and sonic grime. Using the album as a way of dealing with personal issues, both past and present, it is an amalgamation of experiences lived and experiences common on the road”.

Mixing raw and sludgy post-metal and intense noise rock with dissonant chords and aggressive rhythms and vocals, mining in Amphetamine Reptile Records’ signature sound territory but maintaining a distinctly Scandinavian identity, ‘Ar’ will scratch a certain aching itch whilst giving comfort to the lost and lonely.

TRACK LISTING

1. Ar
2. Autofagia
3. Dod
4. Form
5. Dekomposition
6. Kokon
7. Transformation

Originally released in 1979 on the ITAL MUSIC label, this cult album was reissued only on CD in 1998 by the RAS label. Recorded at CHANNEL ONE and mixed at KING TUBBY studios by Scientist, it features THE original ROOTS RADICS backing band with Flabba Holt on bass, Style Scott on drums, Bingi Bunny and Jah Sowell Tempo on guitar, Winston Wright on keyboards, Bongo Herman on percussion, Glaston Anderson on piano and, of course, Peter Broggs on vocals. This magic formula, which combines the best engineers and musicians on the island, hits the nail on the head and delivers a real DIAMOND in the rough, 100% pure ROOTS, where everyone excels. By far, one of the finest reissues of Roots Reggae in recent years, remastered and delivered as a 180 g vinyl with 350 g sleeve and a remastered CD. A MUST HAVE for all reggae fans.

TRACK LISTING

1. Never Forget Jah
2. Don't Get Weary Rasta
3. Jah Jah Help Us
4. I Don’t Know
5. Cool Down
6. Forward Natty
7. Having A Party
8. Live Up
9. River Jordan
10. Give Thanks

Clean Hands Go Foul (2009) generously offers more of everything: voluminous drones, clashing dissonance, mysterious subharmonic swells, escalating terror, and environments drenched in heavy anticipatory dread. The final hour of the band’s first decade sees Khanate, as always, making “music that, even in the realm of extreme music, is dark and distorted” (Pitchfork). Clean Hands Go Foul would be followed by the ultimate minimalism, as the Khanate entity sat shrouded in silence until the release of 2023’s To Be Cruel.

TRACK LISTING

1. Wings From Spine
2. In That Corner
3. Clean My Heart
4. Every God Damn Thing 

Largely recognized as their breakthrough album, Khanate was confident enough by the two-song, forty-minute Capture & Release (2005) to peel back its layers of thick mossy droneand reveal the minimalist underpinnings, a change either interpreted as maturity or an implied threat. “It’s a grim, avant-garde exercise in tension and paranoia. Dense, leaden drones fill up the spaces between O’Malley’s sparse, deeply sustained guitar chords. Vocalist Alan Dubin’s anguished vocals seem to convey the tortures of the damned as if there were not a shred of hope left for existence in this world. Capture & Release is not dissimilar to black metal in how it so violently conveys such a bleak and ultra-nihilistic world outlook. But while the standard tempo on a black metal album typically strays into the triple digits in terms of beats per minute, Khanate’s plodding pace keeps the BPM soundly within the singledigit range.” (Tiny Mix Tapes).

TRACK LISTING

A1. Capture
B1. Release 

Look through any self respecting quality music publication or web site and peruse through a list of the most important and influential psychedelic albums of all time and you can be pretty sure to see KALEIDOSCOPE’S ‘Tangerine Dream” ranked high up there, along with your ‘Sgt Peppers’, your ‘Forever Changes’ ‘Satanic Majesties Request’ ‘Axis Bold As Love’ ‘Odyssey & Oracle’ and ‘The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators’……..

This seminal album of quintessential English psychedelia is one of the most highly prized artifacts that define the psychedelic genre and like some of the most highly collected and prized albums from that time, mint copies can now go for way in excess of £1000.

Thus given the record`s rarity & collectability, matched to the recent explosive interest in all things psyche, garage & underground, you would be excused for thinking that this slice of perfect late 60’s progressive underground pop would have been given the full reissue and remastering treatment already. Surprisingly though, you would very much be mistaken. But to those of you who know the checkered history of Kaleidoscope this will perhaps come as no surprise!?!!

Thankfully after 3 years of painstaking detective work, chance encounters with Universal archivists, heavy negotiations with major label legal executives and some good fortune, we are delighted to announce that this record will finally not only get its first proper official reissue in over 5 decades, but thanks to a lot of pure persistence it can now be presented to its listeners in the manner in which it was supposed to have been heard, following the discovery of a batch of the original master tapes that were languishing in the vaults of Universal that have laid largely unheard for 50 years!

Furthermore following a couple of shared festival billings at Austin and Copenhagen Psyche Festival, with another legend of the scene, Mr Pete Kember aka SONIC BOOM of SPACEMEN 3 fame, Sonic has been holed up in his Lisbon studio, painstakingly remastering the album from the original ¼” tapes.

The remastering of these ¼” tapes though is only part of the story, as along with the discovery of these a significant number of ½” tapes and other material was also discovered which is penned for a future release when the band`s entire works will be presented in a definitive boxset of all four of their studio albums (including all their Fairfield Parlour recordings) plus BBC Sessions, live recordings, alternative takes, new mixes, unreleased tracks and material from the band`s own archive including pre-Kaleidoscope demos when they were known as both The Sidekicks and The Key.

TRACK LISTING

1. Kaleidoscope
2. Please Excuse My Face
3. Dive Into Yesterday
4. Mr. Small, The Watch Repairer Man
5. Flight From Ashiya
6. The Murder Of Lewis Tollani
7. (Further Reflections) In The Room Of Percussion
8. Dear Nellie Goodrich
9. Holidaymaker
10. A Lesson Perhaps
11. The Sky Children

Bonus 7"
1. Kaleidoscope (earliest Known Recorded Version)
2. Dream For Julie (earliest Known Recorded Version)

Canadian cult songwriter Sean Nicholas Savage is renowned for his bitter sweet ballads, and beautifully raw live performances, his singing delicate and brave, full of energy and space. Each new record is an adventure in sensitivity and nuance. 'Trilogy' collects standouts from Savage's fan-favourite string of cassette releases: Magnifcent Fist (2016), Yummycoma (2017), Screamo (2018). Now available on LP for the first time, this pressing commemorates a remarkable era in Savage's career.

TRACK LISTING

1. Music
2. Screamo (Video Mix)
3. Let Me Out
4. Everything Baby Blue
5. Opposing Truths (I Want You)
6. Over The Night (Lost Mix)
7. Splash (Video Mix)
8. Abracadabra (Video Mix)
9. Maybe Chain
10. The Last Emperor (Lost Mix)

‘Black Classical Music’ is a 19-track record taking listeners through a looking glass into the exalted artist’s past and present whilst exploring themes of home and family. The album draws influence from his musical heroes Miles Davis & Rahsaan Roland Kirk and Yussef’s extensive travel around the globe that has deepened his study of rhythm.

Honourable features on “Black Classical Music” - Chronixx, Jamilah Barry, Tom Misch, Shabaka Hutchings, Miles James, Sheila Maurice Grey, Nathaniel Cross, Theon Cross and the Chineke! Orchestra, plus Venna, Rocco Palladino, Charlie Stacey & Elijah Fox

TRACK LISTING

A1. Black Classical Music Ft. Venna & Charlie Stacey
A2. Afro Cubanism
A3. Raisins Under The Sun Ft. Shabaka Hutchings
A4. Rust Ft. Tom Misch
A5. Turquoise Galaxy

B1. The Light Ft. Bahia Dayes
B2. Pon Di Plaza Ft. Chronixx
B3. Magnolia Symphony
B4. Early Dayes
B5. Chasing The Drum

C1. Birds Of Paradise
C2. Gelato

C3. Marching Band Ft. Masego
C4. Crystal Palace Park Ft. Elijah Fox
C5. Presidential Ft. Jahaan Sweet

D1. Jukebox
D2. Woman's Touch Ft. Jamilah Barry
D3. Tioga Pass Ft. Rocco Palladino
D4. Cowrie Charms Ft. Leon Thomas & Barbara Hicks 

TRACK LISTING

Side A (Act 1: Getting Honest)
1. The One That Loves You
2. It’s Alright Kevin (Manhood 2023)
3. I’m Going To Get Free
4. Coming Home

Side B (Act 2: Attitude To Women)
1. The Feminine Divine

Side C (Act 3: The Relationship)
1. My Goddess Is
2. Goddess Rules
3. My Submission
4. Dance With Me

Side D (The Concert: Part 1)
1. Soon/Plan B
2. I’ll Show You
3. All In All (This One Last Wild Waltz)

Side E (The Concert: Part 2)
1. Until I Believe In My Soul
2. Free
3. Come On Eileen

Side F (Encore)
1. Geno
2. Jackie Wilson Said (I’m In Heaven When You Smile)
3. Tell Me When My Light Turns Green
4. Carrickfergus

Kalita are proud to announce the first ever 7” single reissue of what is possibly the most coveted gospel disco record in existence, the Al-Dos Band’s soulful masterpiece ‘Doing Our Thing With Pride’. This iconic reissue is backed by the band’s previously unreleased recording ‘Love Jones Coming Down’. At long last, Kalita revives this South Carolinian grail single, housed in a limited-edition picture sleeve. Originally penned and produced in 1976 by husband-and-wife duo William and Elizabeth Robinson in Greenville, South Carolina – a city steeped in musical heritage – the record was released in a run of just 200 copies the following year on their own label, Warmer Productions. ‘Doing Our Thing With Pride’ epitomises the best in uplifting crossover gospel disco, equally suited to both peaceful listening and dancefloor action. Despite garnering some attention upon its original release, the single struggled to make headway against the prevailing music forces of the time. Coupled with mounting academic and familial obligations, the release faded into obscurity, eventually becoming a highly sought-after gem, commanding exorbitant prices whenever an original copy surfaced for sale—a rarity that occurred only once every decade. Now, following their successful unearthing of the band’s unreleased album in 2021, Kalita present this remarkable record in a limited-edition 7” picture sleeve single.

TRACK LISTING

A. Doing Our Thing With Pride
B. Love Jones Coming Down

John Rossiter (Young Jesus) had quit music to study permaculture and to work in landscapes and gardens. His last album, 'Shepherd Head', was too much time spent on the computer. Working with soil and plants gave him some life back. He said, “You know, when gardening, the right decision to make for the landscape is usually the one that is already happening. It just takes time to read what that is."

So, John left the orchard to meet Shahzad Ismaily (Feist, Lou Reed, Arooj Aftab) for lunch. They instantly bonded, talking about improvisation, rhythm, the heart. On a lark, Shahzad invited John to New York.

Songs started to form, songs about shame and grief, love and redemption. They came fast, a song a day for two weeks. It was different from past albums, which felt like years of hammering out lyrics and ideas. This one came in the wake of a long illness, where tunes came in a rush, as if they were physical, as if the body couldn’t heal without them. An almost involuntary outpouring, overrunning his usual self-consciousness.

Rossiter had to sit and transcribe without judgment: let the ideas grow on their own. Shahzad was in LA one day when John sat down at the piano and played them for him. They decided to record them at Shahzad's Figure 8 Studios in Brooklyn – these songs would blossom into Young Jesus’ album, 'The Fool'.

Inner landscaping requires presence and bravery. It can get pretty dark and strange the deeper you walk into that jungle. And it’s from the absolute pits of that inner landscape that the truest music rises from.

At the end of the last session, Rossiter and Alex Lappin sat down and drew tarot cards. John drew The Fool.

TRACK LISTING

1. Brenda & Diane
2. Two Brothers
3. Rabbit
4. Rich
5. Moonlight
6. MOTY
7. The Weasel
8. Am I The Only One?
9. Sunrise
10. Dancer
11. God's Plan

Nice Swan Records is ecstatic to unveil the highly anticipated 2nd volume of "Nice Swan Introduces." This compilation, following in the footsteps of its predecessor, showcases the best releases from the past two years on the Nice Swan Records Label. Just like Volume I, this release comes alongside an exclusive limited run of only 250 vinyl records, ensuring you'll own a piece of Nice Swan history.

Prepare to be captivated once again by a diverse array of musical talents, reminiscent of the Volume I lineup. Featuring exceptional artists like Prima Queen, Deadletter, Chalk, Cowboyy, Human Interest, and a host of others who have graced the Nice Swan roster over the last few years.

Your collection won't be complete without this addition. Nice Swan Introduces Volume II continues the tradition of introducing new and exciting talent to the world, reinforcing Nice Swan's status as one of the UK's most reputable indie labels. Stay tuned for further signings and releases in the coming weeks, as we continue to fulfill our mission of discovering and nurturing emerging artists.

Just as Volume I marked a significant milestone in our journey, Volume II is another step forward for the cult indie label. With acts from our roster gaining prominence on BBC Radio 1 and 6 Music airwaves, and receiving extensive tastemaker approval, this compilation couldn't be arriving at a better time.

In memory of the late Mark Edwards, a true nice swan.

TRACK LISTING

Side A:

1. Deadletter - Pop Culture Connoisseur
2. Prima Queen - Chew My Cheeks
3. Saloon Dion - HEY HEY
4. Splint - 145
5. Cowboyy - Gmaps

Side B:

1. Yabba - Get By
2. Human Interest - Mixing Paint
3. Shady Baby - Come To Life
4. Avice Caro - At The End Of The Day (Its The End Of The Day)
5. Chalk - The Gate

Fresh from winning ‘Best Live Act’ at NI Music Prize 2023, Chalk relentless ascent continues to gather thrilling pace, with EP lead single ‘The Gate’ landing on the BBC 6 Music playlist (alongside PJ Harvey, IDLES, Sampha) to kick off 2024, whilst widespread praise throughout the press community (The Independent, NME, DIY, Dork, So Young, The New Cue, Rough Trade, Consequence of Sound) has certainly positioned the trio at the very forefront of the emerging indie elite.

TRACK LISTING

1. The Gate
2. Claw
3. Kevlar
4. Bliss

Black Decelerant, the duo of Khari Lucas, aka Contour, and Omari Jazz, explore spiritual jazz traditions through contemporary tone and texture, fostering sonic meditations on themes of Black being and nonbeing, life and mourning, expansion and limitation, and the individual and collective. Their self-titled debut album, and the collaboration’s core intention, inspires a space for listeners to find stillness and solace, while providing a basis for a movement beyond “the moment”

Black Decelerant is an album guided by process and intuition. Since meeting in 2016, Lucas and Jazz dreamed of a collaborative album that could utilize formless music in both political and poetic ways. They eventually cultivated the project in 2020 across six months of remote sessions (living in South Carolina and Oregon respectively), communicating through improvised instrumentals and sample-based production as reflections of their inner and outer worlds.

“It felt like a remedy to some of the existential stress we were feeling during the time,” says Lucas. “Simultaneously being in the height of lockdown and thinking about encroaching fascism and anti-Blackness, in the US especially. The making of the record felt very meditative and offered a dimension to ground us.”

Listening and responding to one another in real time, the sessions became a vessel to channel ideas around Black humanity primordiality and ontology, and slowness as a cumulative technology for protection against violence and extraction. The album’s ten compositions configure vast, resonant landscapes with signals, weathers and spirits, suspended in memory and distilled in time.

The Black Decelerant machine recalibrates archival relics and acoustic impulses into collages of amalgamated timbres, where harmony exists not without discordance. Across the expansive space of the record, cadent storms of modulated sound ascend beside serene melodic spells. Piano keys and bass lines tumble in free fall throughout the release, accompanied on tracks “two” and “eight” by the spectral trumpet improvisations of Jawwaad Taylor.

The duo arrived at their name upon reading Aria Dean’s Notes on Blacceleration, an article which explores Accelerationism within the context of Black being or non-being as a foundational tenet of capitalism. Coupled with the record’s intended effect, “Black Decelerant”references the music being an invitation to slow down, while hinting at the shared politics between themselves and the artists and thinkers who inspire them.

“Part of it is about challenging the space that asks that you do more than your natural state and actively pushes you towards over-exertion or exhaustion, and all these late stage capitalist ideas,” says Jazz. “Rest is so wrapped up in that and the absence of it for Black people is something that needs to be challenged in multiple ways.”

The record emerges as a portal and a mirror to a way of living, which as Lucas and Jazz explain, is about leaning into the mind and body’s natural inclination to do what is nourishing for it, away from commodified or virtuous iterations of rest and care attached to capitalism and white supremacy. Black Decelerant serves as both a tonic and journal in a tradition laid forth by musical and philosophical ancestry, a radiant offering and invitation.

Black Decelerant will be released June 21st, 2024 in vinyl and digital editions. The album represents the second volume of Reflections, a new series of contemporary collaborations orchestrated by RVNG Intl.

TRACK LISTING

1. Three
2. One
3. Six
4. Seven ½
5. Two
6. Five
7. Nine
8. Eight
9. Four

After a long hiatus from his world of Edits & Overdubs, Joaquin Joe Claussell brings you this Limited Edition 12" sampler taken from the forthcoming Joe Claussell "Praise" 6xLP box set. Joe raids the vaults of the legendary Savoy Records, the Strictly Rhythm of Gospel music! On the A-Side he takes the mid-tempo stomper 'So Much to Live For' by Myrna Summers and invokes the holy ghost, fortifying the drums and rearranging the vocals so you are left humming the chorus long after it has ended. The hook 'So Much to Live For' in itself sums up all of the 'Praise' series, a cry to instill hope and meaning in what is often perceived as the mundane of daily life. On the flip is a previously unreleased Joe Claussell take of 'Jerusalem' by Bishop Jeff Banks. Here the sermon takes off right from the jump, a floor filling call and response four to the floor version finished in classic Claussell style. Wailing organs, driving percussion and vocals that will make you want to jump out of your skin. Both sides cut LOUD at 45RPM! One press and gone forever. 

TRACK LISTING

A1. Myrna Summers And The Combined Choirs Of The Refreshing Strings
So Much To Live For 5:15
B1. Bishop Jeff Banks And The Revival Temple Mass Choir
Jerusalem (New Edit) 8:30

FEATURING AN ALL NEW 11TRACK DOUBLE 12INCH VINYL DANCE MUSIC COMPILATION COMING FROM NEW JERSEY/NEW YORK FEATURING BRAND NEW MUSIC BY RON TRENT, TIMMY REGISFORD, VICK LAVENDER, JOVONN, MARK FRANCIS, DJ PUNCH, CASEY AND JOAQUIN JOE CLAUSSELL.

It was two and a half years ago when a conversation took place between Sal Carmona and Dj Producer Jovonn Armstrong; talks of which planted a seed in Sal Carmona’s ear, which years later would manifest what was once a dream into a reality. No stranger, nor a newcomer in the world of dance music, Sal’s experience in the club scene goes way back to the days when his sisters, to whom he credits for helping shape the person he is today, took him to Dave Mancuso's The Loft. An experience that he recalls being nothing short of magical. It was a spiritual encounter that immediately took over thus steering him towards the direction of clubs such as The Paradise Garage, Bentley's, Underground, Red Parrot, Latin Quarters, Roseland, Studio 54, just to name a few. Years later, Sal decided to take on the role, of which he became quite successful at, of promoting his own events in New York City; throwing regular parties at venues such as Park Circle & USA roller skating rinks, Red Parrot, The Palladium, The Copacabana and many others, soon becoming one of the premier go to promoters in NYC. Taking a long and well-deserved hiatus from the club scene, in 2012 Sal decided to make his return back to what he loves. It was around this time that he began thinking what it would be like to venture into creating his very own record label. Envisioning his first release being a bona fide House Music Album, one that would include some of his favorite producers. Not one to let dreams drift into the ether, while recollecting on that conversation with Jovan way back, Sal set out to make that vision manifest into a reality and thus emerged this dope compilation titled Banger “Make My Body Shake” “Make the Speakers Shake”

A great idea which brings together an interesting mix that includes highly sought out and respected veteran producers in the scene, such as Timmy Registford, Ron Trent, Dj Jovonn, and Joe Claussell. Alongside with up and coming DJ producers who are garnering their own adulation of fans, in the likes of Vick Lavender, Mark Francis, Conway Kasey, and DJ Punch. With valuable directional contributions from friend Joe Claussell, this, to say the least, has become far more than just a seriously dope compilation that consists of a unique coming together of serious dance music. More than the aforementioned, Sal Carmona has manifested a dream into a game changing music scripture that is one of a kind, especially in this day and age where it seems where things are thrown together hoping for something to stick. On the contrary, this is well planned and thought out dopeness at A higher level consisting of all new house music that hasn’t been brought together like this in a very long time and probably not for a while afterwards. 

TRACK LISTING

A1. Adira Kasey Cover (Conway Remix) 
A2. Ron Trent - Star Strut  
B1. Vick Lavender - Day Light 
B2. DJ Punch - Make My Body Shake 
C1. Timmy Registford Instrumental - Funa 
C2. Vick Lavender - MJs Revenge 
C3. Joe Claussell - A Deeper Grace LP Version 
D1. Jovonn Armstrong - Latin Deep 
D2. DJ Punch - Afro Congo Traxx 
D3. Mark Francis - Everlasting
D4. Conway Kasey - Caminho Espiritual (4:00) 03:00

Fat Dog are the most exciting breakthrough band of the past few years, conjurers of the sort of frenzied and wild live shows not seen in the capital for years and now the creators of ‘WOOF’., a brilliant and mind-bending debut album. A thrilling blend of electro-punk, rock’n’roll snarling, techno soundscapes, industrial-pop and rave euphoria, ‘WOOF’. is music for letting go to or, in the words of frontman Joe Love, “screaming-into-a-pillow music”.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
Vigilante
Closer To God
Wither
Clowns

Side B
King Of The Slugs
All The Same
I Am The King
Running
And So It Came To Pass

In January it was revealed that Thom Yorke composed the original score for Daniele Luchetti’s film Confidenza, an adaptation of the Italian drama based on Domenico Starnone’s novel of the same name. XL Recordings announces that Thom Yorke’s Confidenza original soundtrack will be released digitally on April 26, with vinyl and CD to follow on July 12.

Confidenza follows Yorke’s previous full-length score and original soundtrack for Luca Guadagnino’s 2018 Suspiria remake, Suspirium receiving a GRAMMY-nomination for Best Song Written for Visual Media. Produced by Sam Petts-Davies (Suspiria, The Smile Wall Of Eyes), Confidenza sees Petts-Davies and Yorke working again with the London Contemporary Orchestra alongside a jazz ensemble which included Robert Stillman and fellow The Smile bandmate Tom Skinner. In 2019 Yorke contributed music to Edward Norton’s Motherless Brooklyn and in 2022 he wrote two original tracks for the series finale of Peaky Blinders.

As of late, Yorke has been touring with The Smile (Tom Skinner, Jonny Greenwood, Thom Yorke), who released their second studio-album Wall Of Eyes in January which follows the band’s 2022-debut album A Light For Attracting Attention.

TRACK LISTING

1. The Big City
2. Knife Edge
3. Letting Down Gently
4. Secret Clarinet
5. In The Trees
6. Prize Giving
7. Four Ways In Time
8. Confidenza
9. Nosebleed Nuptials
10. Bunch Of Flowers
11. A Silent Scream
12. On The Ledge

It's a year later and everything has gone from bad to worse.

Machiavellian Art and Riot Season Records present "Population Control". A Sonic Examination of the Mechanisms of Control.

An intense exploration of societal and self-imposed controls, encapsulated in a dynamic contrast between Side A's visceral anger and the introspective ambiance of Side B. This duality mirrors the contrasting themes of external control versus internal reflection.

"Population Control" extends beyond its predecessor, "Indoctrination Sounds," in both musical depth and thematic scope. The album confronts a broad spectrum of modern-day addictions - not just to substances, but to technology, social media, and the relentless 24-hour news cycle. These themes manifest across tracks like "A Slow Death," "Population Control (1) + (2)," "Fear of the Outside World," and "Crisis," each exploring the resulting isolation, paranoia, fear, and hopelessness. "Seaside Holiday," a critique of environmental negligence, specifically highlighting the issue of untreated sewage being dumped into Britain's waterways by private companies.

They’re back! This time the Finnish seers Mahti venture even deeper into the unknown on their third release Musiikki 3, assisted by the creativity of English musicians Richard Dawson and Sally Pilkington.

The music reaches for space and roots at the same time bringing forth Mr. Dawson's earthy guitars and angelic voice while Ms. Pilkington weaves ethereal layerings with her synths and joins occasionally the choir.

Hannu Saha conjures ancient Karelian spirits with his kantele while Muumu, Lehtibabba and Mätky mesmerize the listener with their unique mix of electro, rock and noise.

The end result is an album full of Musiikki unlike you've never heard before!

“These ancient musicians played their ‘mahti’… and the sound they produced was called ‘musiikki’”

Hannu Saha - string kanteles ,Tomi Leppänen - sequencer/drum brain/synthesizers , Jussi Lehtisalo - noise/vocals, Teemu Elo - guitar/synthesizers, Richard Dawson - guitar/vocals , Sally Pilkington - keyboards/vocals

Brand new album from electronic titan Kieran Hebden who continues his futuristic creation of sound across eight elegant and fantastic tracks. Utilizing a now well versed palette which seems to effortlessly merge organic instrumentation and hybridized vocals into digitally processed pastoral soundscapes. All the usual Hebdenian traits are audible on album opener "Loved" - from his well loved live drum breaks to the slightly melancholic piano lines. Quickly ushering in a more liminal experience, "Gliding Through Everything" is a crystalline waterfall that reimagines H2O as a 4D particle cascading through your fingertips. "Storm Crystals" quickly soothes with twangy mallets, downbeat groove and healing tones; the moment you quietly settle into your seat, expectations met and suitably zoned in for the rest of the LP. Hebden concludes side A with the accelerated pace of "Daydream Repeat"; which doesn't drift too far from themes explored throughout the side but ups the bpm and buoyancy.

Side B slows us back down, ready for the second half of the trip; emotive guitar lines picked from the ether as angelic vox are gently smudged and diced before our ears - a sonic trademark the producer has previously used on tracks such as "Love Cry" and "Baby". "31 Bloom" bounces out of the mainframe at another slightly increased tempo, glitched arpeggios and highly sequenced piano fragments beautifully coalesced into a moment of transcendental ascension. Penultimate track, "So Blue" allows us a moment of reflection, stark elements imparting such strong emotions - there's few producers who can squeeze so much human feeling out of their machines. Finally, "Three Drums" concludes in suitable form - a slowly spiraling semi-orchestral fury into a white hot, retina-scorching sun'; almost hallucinatory in its saturation yet carried along at a languid pace; allowing the listener to unwind into a paradisical dream state of Hebden's own creation.

Have to say he's done it again. It's nicely succinct and sequenced to perfection, with the four tracks on each side perfectly 

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: I've always been a massive fan of the ol' Four Tet, and while I think the more recent outings share characteristics with the glitched melodies and syncopated percussion of Pause or Rounds, it's a far more relaxing affair in all, owing a lot more to ambient music than the dancefloor-focused outings of the past. 'Three' is possibly his most focused and enjoyable work to date, and that's really something for a man with such a stellar discography.

TRACK LISTING

01 Loved 4:03
02 Gliding Through Everything 4:08
03 Storm Crystals 6:40
04 Daydream Repeat 6:09
05 Skater 4:16
06 31 Bloom 5:52
07 So Blue 5:30
08 Three Drums 8:16

“Everything’s been fucked since David Bowie died or they started up the Hadron Collider” say The Janitors. This feeling is epitomised in the title of their riveting new album: An Error Has Occurred. Marking over two decades of activity for the Swedish psych-rockers, the recording is informed by heartbreak and loss as well as the dismal state of the entire planet. For The Janitors, these two polarities intertwine constantly: “What’s personal is political and vice versa.” To channel their frustration and anger, the band revived certain songs they’d shelved during the pandemic when working on the acclaimed Noisolation Sessions. They added others, written since, that suited the mood of sticking a middle finger up to the oppressive world around us. Whereas previous recordings were often layered up gradually, this time the full band (Henric Herlenius, Jonas Eriksson, Anders Thorell and Wilhelm Tengdahl) rehearsed intensely together before laying down everything live, over two days and nights, in a converted missionary church. The songs on Side A have the menace of Melvins, the swagger of The Stooges and the cosmic heft of The Heads. These are the more simply constructed and poppier pieces... or so the band believe. (One friend of theirs did consider this “delusional”.) ‘In A Bliss’ acts as the album’s radiant centrepiece. A palette-cleansing love song which recalls The Jesus And Mary Chain at their most starry eyed, it finds The Janitors searching for solace and strength in straightforward companionship. After this come the dronier numbers, drawn out with soundscapes and textures influenced by The Velvet Underground’s sonic experiments and the equally immersive atmospheres of electronic acts like Massive Attack. Hence, ‘Operator’ swings threateningly like a space-rock Swans, while the approach on ‘Farewell Spacegirl’ is jazzier and more meditative. “It can be hard to muster up some, or even any, positive energy at this point in time,” says Henric. “We are eternally grateful to have the creative output that this constellation gives us. Neither me or Jonas would probably be here, or be the same people we are, if it wasn’t for The Janitors. We’ll leave you with a quote from an old anarchist: ‘Every society gets the criminals it deserves.’”

TRACK LISTING

Anger The World
Kalfjället
Lies
In A Bliss
Operator
What Is Real?
Farewell Spacegirl

For Fans Of: Angel Olsen, Sam Evian, Youth Lagoon, Kevin Krauter, Whitney, Tame Impala, MGMT. Through his project Lionlimb, New York-based singer/songwriter/producer Stewart Bronaugh crafts unfurling soundscapes that feel mysterious and otherworldly, yet timeless and nostalgic at the same time. He presents his most ambitious vision of these inner vistas on his new album, Limbo, arriving May 24th on Bayonet Records. Inspired by a palette of '70s Italian film soundtracks, '60s girl group music, and funk and soul ballads, Bronaugh brings these influences together to invent an immersive sound all his own with help from close collaborator Joshua Jaeger, whose live drums bring a rawness to Limbo's meticulously layered production. Led by the smoldering single "Dream of You," featuring Angel Olsen, Limbo taps into universal themes of romance, longing, and loss, while still offering a hazy escape from our present reality. Bronaugh penned the songs with "classic" songwriting in mind, transforming his personal struggles with grief and addiction into love songs. Using images inspired by nature (like the sun, moonlight, hurricanes, and deep water), he expresses being overtaken by a force greater than himself, as the psychedelic production evokes a sense of being plunged into this vast landscape. Limbo benefits from its eclectic influences, as Bronaugh overlays sitar-sounding guitar on top of funky basslines, melodramatic string arrangements, and fuzzed out guitar, making for music that could easily belong on Twin Peaks just as much as a Western cowboy film. An album of duets, Limbo features a host of female vocalists Angel Olsen, Ewa Synowiec, Justine Orrall, Bri Abram, Zoey Huynh, and Taylor Belle who each add a textural counterpoint to Bronaugh's understated vocal performance. "I think about vocals as just another instrument," he explains. "When we first tried to have someone else sing, I liked it, because I felt more akin to a producer than a songwriter." There's a dreamy quality to how these singers trade off with Bronaugh, both parties expressing his inner emotions. Limbo is a culmination of Bronaugh's years of production experience, as he composed, produced, and mixed the project almost entirely by himself, with additional recording from Robin Eaton. Always inspired to make bold and experimental choices that capture his instincts in the moment, Bronaugh's production style is informed by "wanting to do the weird thing that engineers wouldn't approve of," as he describes it. "My favorite part of making music is the mistakes." 

TRACK LISTING

Sun
Hurricane
Underwater
Hiss
Dream Of You (feat Angel Olsen)
Runaway
Two Kinds Of Tears
Nowhere To Hide
Til It's Gone
You Belong To Me

Finom's (aka Ohmme) third LP. Not God produced by Jeff Tweedy. Recommended If You Like: The Beths, Soccer Mommy, Palehound, New Pornographers, Melkbelly, Lala Lala, NNAMDÏ, The Breeders, Jeff Tweedy/Wilco, The Roches. Not God is the new album from Chicago’s beloved two-headed monster, Finom (fka Ohmme). You can ask them to go into more detail about the boring reasons why they changed their name, but for now, the answer is going to be polite refusal. No. Co-fronted by Sima Cunningham and Macie Stewart, Finom’s influences run vast and varied, and they put a premium on change. Produced by Jeff Tweedy in the Wilco Loft, Not God is a marvel of growth, a progression from the roots of this collaborative band whose history can be traced back to its improvised conception. This is owed in no small part to their hometown of Chicago, the life raft to so many persisters in musical adventurosity. That energy combined with Finom's dramatic vocal and musical gifts puts them in the peripheries of the legacies cemented by The Roches, Roxy Music, the B52s, Kate Bush, Cate Le Bon, and Wilco. Cunningham and Stewart are brilliant harmonizers, but harmony doesn't equate to a utopia. In Finom's maws harmony can also be a fight, holding the line until the volcano erupts. This realistic depiction of a creative relationship jolts throughout the songs of Not God, and brings the whole damn thing to life. Finom are more than one person with more than one dream. But still, they grow together, harnessed by their shared love of pop songwriting, control, chaos, and being generally freaky-deaky. Freaky in that way that is only really fun when you're doing it with a friend. As the globe spins and advancements advance, it can feel essential to return to relationships that make us feel whole, that generate energy of strength and relief. Which puts double the weight on the reality that Sima and Macie continue to pledge allegiance to each other, at the base of the volcano, in the front seat of the car as it pulls off the highway. 

TRACK LISTING

Haircut
Dirt
Naked
Hungry
Not God
A Petunia
Cyclops
Cardinal
As You Are

The Telescopes Radio Sessions collects together the essence of three live session recordings in 3 different countries over a three year period between 2016-2019. This is the third in a series of radio session releases from Tapete Records that have so far included The Monochrome Set and Comet Gain. More session releases are being lined up for the rest of the year and beyond - enjoy the sonics and stay tuned.

Over the years I have read a lot on people’s impressions of The Telescopes. Some folk think it’s a collective, others imagine it used to be a band and feel nostalgia towards what they consider to be the original line-up (even though many had come before, during and since) and some people refer to it as currently a solo career. In a way this is all true and none of it is. When faced with these kind of questions, along with questions about the style of music that The Telescopes make I often say The Telescopes house has many rooms, which explains things perfectly for me but for people on the outside looking in it only serves to increase their confusion. For me, confusion isn’t such a bad thing. Everything is born into confusion, the sense we try and make of that chaos is interesting and excites me. The universe often disorientates, it sends me a jumble of thoughts and impressions coupled with a feeling of something I need to express… if I could only decipher the encryption. This is how The Telescopes music comes to be and it is also how The Telescopes came to me.

I regard The Telescopes as an entity of it’s own that introduced itself in my darkest hour and I was chosen as its vessel. From the second it arrived I was obsessed to the point where there was nothing else. A bit like having an imaginary friend. As the obsession grew it began to infect others, everybody loved my imaginary friend and wanted a piece of it. As its success grew however, so did the corruption, until one day the entity fell silent. The silence lasted for years, I tried everything to reconnect but it was having none of it. I had been a bad caretaker, I had let the house become infested and I had lost my way. This epiphany served to remind me of simpler times when anything felt possible with this entity by my side. It had trusted me with something so simplistically profound and I had let it down. The realisation of this was a eureka moment. I am not The Telescopes, I never was and never will be, I am the caretaker, the lighthouse keeper and if a job is worth doing it is worth doing well.

With this dawning, I felt a crack open up in the cosmic egg and a familiar confusion in my head. The entity had returned. It was time to start untangling its tangled threads once more, to make sense of what it was saying, this time without corruption. It’s all about listening. I listen to what my cosmic friend sends me and channel this expression into what you hear through your speakers. It may take one person to achieve this, it may take more. There is no set line up or instru- mentation that can hold The Telescopes. Whatever it takes to hit the zone, whatever is available, absolute focus is imperative. Sometimes it takes sabotage to keep that line of vision intact, there is no room for preconceptions or complacency in making the music. The Telescopes music is the now incarnate and a state of total being is necessary to achieve. From the outside looking in... again, it’s all about listening. What comes through your speakers is the only thing that matters. The music either reaches you or it doesn’t. Everything else may seem interesting or confusing but ultimately it is corruption. So if you’ve bought the record, read the sleeve notes and bought a ticket to see a live show, don’t be surprised if the line-up is or isn’t the same as the recording. The only thing that is for sure is that The Telescopes as an entity is speaking to you in its own voice in every scenario. Of course the difference between albums and live shows is that you can play the record over and over again to the point where you know every line and every note that was played. Whereas with live events you are left with an impression that can only be replayed in your mind. It can be frustrating at times. When you are touring with a great line-up and feel like something exciting is happening, you want everyone to hear it, not just the people at the shows but the people that couldn’t make it on the night as well. There is no guarantee that there will be the same line-up at a live show as there is on the album. This is why live sessions are important, they document a side of things that is often fleeting.

Here we have three sessions, all different people transmitting The Telescopes sound on each. Some are regulars, some dip in and out and some were just passing through. In each case The Telescopes chose them as their vessel and as the lighthouse keeper I did everything I could to help them on that journey while trying to be a good caretaker to the house of many rooms. The Telescopes have been invited in for many sessions over the years, the first two were for John Peel on BBC Radio 1. We also recorded a session for Marc Riley and Mark Radcliffe before their celebrity when they had a show on BBC Radio Manchester. We could have compiled this album from those sessions, it was certainly considered but Tapete and myself believe this selection gives an exciting glimpse into that fleeting side of The Telescopes in a constant state of flux that is left mostly to myth and imagination. For those who listen to the records but have never had the chance to take in the live experience, welcome to the other side. For those that follow us live, here’s a little reminder and a keepsake. Infinite suns.

Stephen Lawrie
February 2024.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Handful Of Ashes (Radio Sessions)
A2. The Perfect Needle (Radio Sessions)
A3. Violence (Radio Sessions)
B1. Strange Waves (Radio Sessions)
B2. We See Magic And We Are Neutral, Unnecessary (Radio Sessions)
B3. You Can't Reach What You Hunger (Radio Sessions)
B4. Something In My Brain (Radio Sessions)

“How the fuck are we going to turn this into a song?” That’s the question Lou Barlow and John Davis have asked themselves since co-founding The Folk Implosion in the early 1990s. Beginning with improvised jams featuring Barlow on bass and Davis on drums, the duo develop their beat-driven pop collages from the ground up. It’s the process they used on their debut cassette, Walk Through This World with the Folk Implosion, and one they’ve returned to 30 years later on their spellbinding, self-referencing reunion, Walk Thru Me.

Separated from their homes in Massachusetts and North Carolina, Barlow and Davis collaborated remotely, flashing back to their early friendship as penpals. A sweaty bass and drums session went down in Barlow’s attic, before they booked studio time with producer Scott Salter (St. Vincent, Spoon, The Mountain Goats).

Contrasts and comparisons are the keys to unlocking Walk Thru Me, and the Folk Implosion as a whole. Beyond the audible differences between Barlow’s soft voice and Davis’s urgent, reedy proclamations,

their approaches to songwriting are strikingly distinct. While Barlow approached his lyrics from a protective paternal perspective (“My Little Lamb”), Davis paid tribute to his late father, shining a light on their complicated relationship (“The Day You Died”). Finally, Davis’s Persian music studies in weekly Zoom lessons inspired him to integrate traditional Middle Eastern instruments such as the setar, oud, saz, and tombak.

“Because we’re so separate, part of this album is me desperately trying to telepathically communicate to John and Scott, who are 700 miles away from me,” Barlow concludes. “A big part of what I consider to be the Folk Implosion is taking disparate things and turning them into pop.”

TRACK LISTING

1. Crepuscular
2. The Day You Died
3. Walk Thru Me
4. My Little Lamb
5. Bobblehead Doll
6. The Fable And The Fact
7. Right Hand Over The Heart
8. Water Torture
9. O.K. To Disconnect
10. Moonlit Kind

Written after a relationship’s end, Rowena Wise’s Senseless Acts of Beauty is a stunning and searingly honest record.

A new yet accomplished artist, Rowena grew up in the Western Australian surf town of Margaret River perfoming in her family’s folk band. Now grown up and living in Melbourne, her electric solo live performances of recent years has seen a real word of mouth build around her.

A songwriter inspired by the strong storytelling sensibilities of 60s folk icons, Senseless Acts of Beauty delivers on the promise hinted at by her live show. Full of emotional depth, its ten tracks offer heady ruminations on love, loss, and alienation. And by electing to record them all live in the room, often in one take, the kinks and blemishes add weight to the lived experience of Rowena’s lyrics.

TRACK LISTING

A1. In For The Kill
A2. Nobody’s Saviour
A3. 26 Hours
A4. Forgiving Up
A5. Indifferent
B1. Life Of The Party
B2. New Years
B3. Knife
B4. We Are Nothing
B5. Gone

British four-piece rock band Collateral are set to release their highly anticipated sophomore album Should’ve Known Better on May 24, 2024. The album is distributed worldwide by Cargo. The album will be released on CD, red vinyl, picture disc, limited edition cassette, and digital. Friday February 9th will see the release of the lead single “Glass Sky.”. The new single “Glass Sky” and the forthcoming album Should’ve Known Better is produced by Dan Weller (Those Damn Crows, Enter Shikari, Monster Truck, Kris Barras, Holding Absence, Bury Tomorrow). "I love massive riffs, massive hooks and feel-good guitar music,” says Weller. “When Collateral sent me their demos, I jumped at chance to produce their new record. I’m proud of what we managed to create. It’s Collateral mk2 - ambitious, daring and refined. I can’t wait for people to hear it." Since the band released their debut album (Top 5 UK Rock Album Chart) at the start of 2020 Collateral have spent no time standing still. Covid came only weeks after the debut album was released and forced the band to cancel their highly successful tour with Phil X (Bon Jovi) halfway through. This made the band hungry to keep the momentum. With innovative ways to produce top quality live streams, the band became special guests supporting the likes of Skid Row, H.E.A.T and Reckless Love.

The exciting and flamboyant Kent-based rock and roll band are comprised of Angelo Tristan (lead vocals, guitar), Louis Malagodi (guitar), Jack Bentley-Smith (bass) and Ben Atkinson (drums). On October 21, 2022, Collateral independently released a re-mixed and re-mastered version of their debut album “Re-Wired” which featured Jeff Scott Soto, Phil X, Kee Marcello, Rudy Sarzo, Danny Vaughn, and Joel Hoekstra. The re-release saw the band in the Official UK Rock Charts at #12. After the gruelling back-to-back tours with Skid Row, H.E.A.T and Reckless Love, the band ignited a spark and strengthened their already loyal fanbase leading them to win the opening slot at 2023s Stonedead Festival, leading the band to perform their biggest show. Collateral’s hotly tipped sophomore album looks like it will take them to the next level. A lot of people don’t know what to expect from the new album, as the band have been tight-lipped about the new songs. Collateral have created a state-of-the-art rock album that will immerse listeners in their rock music universe, enabling fans to feel the blood, sweat and glory that went into the recording of every song. “We felt that our debut album was lacking the production,” reflects Collateral’s frontman, Angelo Tristan. “For the sophomore album, I wanted to make sure that this time we left no room for error and so got one of the hottest producers in the music industry, Dan Weller, to help lift these songs into a new dimension. With Dan’s pioneering studio expertise, this album has massive production quality that enables you to get lost in each character-filled track. Dan really brought out the emotions we were trying to portray and has achieved it with his own unique style.” “We wanted this album to express where we were in our own lives since the release of our first. So much has happened since then, I mean the world shut down for what felt like a lifetime! And it was obvious that people were going to need some sort of optimism. I hope ‘Glass Sky’ is one of those songs that gives people the belief to find themselves again.” “Whereas, the feel-good ‘Just One Of Those Days’ is trying to find the good side of a bad day. Me being me, couldn’t help but to write a big power ballad, ‘The Long Road’, that I wrote from a very hard and deep place, in hope that it could maybe bring some peace and comfort to people who need it. I think there’s all aspects of life running though this album and what it means to us will remain in our hearts forever. ”Should’ve Known Better” is an album that goes beyond specific music genres,” says Angelo. “It’s almost like a soundtrack to a beating heart. It’s an album that will remain timeless in years to come.”

Grammy®-winning Arooj Aftab is set to release Night Reign, the follow up to her critically-acclaimed album Vulture Prince, on 31 May on Verve Records. Aftab makes the night the focus of this nine-song collection. Entirely in her own voice and through her own story, she delves into the multifaceted, bold and fascinating realm that comes to life after dark. Some nights are for falling in love, some are for solitude and introspection, some are to be annoyed at a forced social gathering–and so go the stories of Night Reign. The album features new friends like Cautious Clay shredding on flute, Moor Mother echoing Aftab’s sentiment of how cruel the world is, and Chocolate Genius aka Marc Anthony Thompson lending his tender sensibilities to a song about being grounded. Longtime collaborators Petros Klampanis and Maeve Gilchrist also continue their musical partnership as core members of Arooj’s musical family. The resulting new music again showcases Aftab’s striking ability to build a thing of beauty from distinct elements. Night Reign is a clear departure from tradition or the reinvention of ancestral music. It’s a reflection of Aftab’s 15 years living in New York City and her unapologetic commitment to stay true to herself. With open-heartedness, candour and wit, Aftab lets us get even closer to her.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. Aey Nehin
2. Na Gul
3. Autumn Leaves (ft. James Francies)
4. Whiskey
5. Zameen (ft. Chocolate Genius, Inc.)
Side B
1. Raat Ki Rani (version Exclusive To Vinyl)
2. Saaqi (ft. Vijay Iyer)
3. Bolo Na (ft. Moor Mother & Joel Ross)
4. Last Night (Reprise) (ft. Cautious Clay, Kaki King, Maeve Gilchrist)

Inspired by Dua’s own self-discovery, Radical Optimism is an album that taps into the pure joy and happiness of having clarity in situations that once seemed impossible to face. The hard goodbyes and vulnerable beginnings that previously threatened to crush your soul, become milestones as you choose optimism and start to move with grace through the chaos.

Infused with the energy of Dua’s hometown, London, the attitude of the album embodies the rawness, honesty, confidence and freedom of ‘90s Britpop. Radical Optimism transports its listener to a dreamy pop world rich in musicality, lyrically unapologetic and sonically liberating.

The 3x GRAMMY and 7x Brit Award-winning global pop powerhouse worked with a team of core collaborators throughout the project including Caroline Ailin, Danny L. Harle, Tobias Jesso Jr. and Kevin Parker.

TRACK LISTING

1. End Of An Era
2. Houdini
3. Training Season
4. These Walls
5. Whatcha Doing
6. French Exit
7. Illusion
8. Falling Forever
9. Anything For Love
10. Maria
11. Happy For You

Celebrating 45 years of Blancmange, Everything Is Connected (Best Of) is the first collection to be curated by Neil Arthur, tastefully blending a mixture of hits and personal favourites. Originally from the UK’s post punk DIY scene, Blancmange found success in 1982, long player ‘Happy Families’ selling Gold in the UK, and its 3 singles becoming international hits. They went on to have 7 Top 40 hits and 70 weeks in the UK album charts. Long-standing admirers include Moby, John Grant and Honey Dijon, who states that “British synth pop was hugely influential in the burgeoning house music scene and Blancmange was a big part of that.”

TRACK LISTING

LP:
Side One
1 Living On The Ceiling
2 Waves
3 Blind Vision
4 Don’t Tell Me
5 The Day Before You Came
Side Two
1 What’s The Time?
2 Distant Storm
3 Mindset
4 Reduced Voltage
5 Some Times These

CD:
Disc 1
1 Sad Day (Original Version)
2 I’ve Seen The Word
3 God’s Kitchen
4 Feel Me
5 Living On The Ceiling
6 Waves
7 Game Above My Head (12 Inch Version)
8 Blind Vision
9 That’s Love, That It Is
10 Vishnu
11 Don’t Tell Me
12 The Day Before You Came
13 What’s Your Problem
14 Lose Your Love
15 Why Don’t They Leave Things Alone
16 Drive Me
17 I’m Having A Coffee
18 The Western
19 Just Another Spectre
Disc 2
1 The Fall
2 Last Night (I Dreamt I Had A Job)
3 Jack Knife (Red Shift EP)
4 What’s The Time?
5 We Are The Chemicals
6 Anna Dine
7 Distant Storm
8 I Smashed Your Phone
9 Not A Priority
10 Mindset
11 This Is Bliss
12 Clean Your House
13 Commercial Break
14 Some Times These
15 Reduced Voltage
16 Take Me
17 Again, I Wait For The World
18 Wish
19 Empty Street 

Newly signed to SO Recordings and with a debut album proper in hand, The Joy Hotel have become a word-of-mouth success story in the Scottish DIY scene, and have since taken their live show across the UK and Europe, playing festivals including Hidden Door, Doune the Rabbit Hole, Connect, TRNSMT, Twisterella, Latitude, Sound City and The Great Escape.

The band spent eleven days at Rockfield, the legendary studio in Monmouth, Wales, recording live-to-tape. When they left, they had a sound. It is often contradictory, in that it combines the songwriting sensibilities of pop and country with arrangements reminiscent of the psychedelic scene of the 60s, six-part vocal harmonies with elements of noise rock, beautiful balladry with a sense of humour, and a cinematic quality. The result of those eleven days is debut album 'Ceremony', a record that searches for the profound in the seemingly routine, and reaches out with arms wide open to wring celebration out of each moment.

TRACK LISTING

1. I Decline
2. Forever Tender Blue
3. First Joy
4. Jeremiah
5. Black Balloon
6. Rapid Eye Movement
7. Old Man's Eyes
8. While You're Young
9. No Use
10. Twenty Three (A Comedy) - Part 1
11. Twenty Three (A Comedy) - Part 2
12. Killing Time
13. Small Mercy

A relentlessly curious DJ, producer, radio presenter, curator, remixer, audiophile and host, Colleen 'Cosmo' Murphy is unquestionably dance music’s renaissance woman. This third instalment of her hugely acclaimed compilation series is another sunshine-soaked homage to that most amorphous of aural outposts – Balearic. Here there are no rules, just an ever-shifting musical essence that echoes Jose Padilla’s assertion that Balearic is not a sound, but rather a way of life. A spirit.

Most of these tracks have never been available on vinyl before, the others are long out of print. 

TRACK LISTING

1.Jonathan Wilson - Desert Raven
2. Jacob Gurevitsch - Elevation In Minor (Cosmodelica Remix)
3. Shawn Lee’s Ping Pong Orchestra - San Diego (Tour Werks After Hours Mix)
4. Quintus Project - Night Flight (Original)
5. Pigeon - Infinity (Josh’s Extended Disco Mix)
6. Shunt Voltage - Generator
7. Mildlife - Return To Centaurus (Prins Thomas Diskomiks)
8. David Holmes Featuring Raven Violet - Stop Apologising (Cosmodelica Instrumental)
9. Zero 7 - On My Own (12" Version)
10. Primal Scream - Uptown (Andrew Weatherall Remix)

Joe Goddard has been thinking about thinking. For the past few years, the producer, songwriter, and all-round polymath of UK dance and indie music has been trying to get more in touch with his own intuition. “This idea of trying to divorce your conscious mind from the music-making process – not trying to force meaning on the music or your collaborators, allowing that process to be very empathetic.”

The wonderful result is his third solo album 'Harmonics', a record rooted in instinct and empathy. Across 14 tracks of left-of-centre dance music – touching on UK garage, house, hip-hop, pop, and disco – Goddard opens the floor for a number of collaborators. The voice of Ibibio Sound Machine’s Eno Williams rides the afro-house groove of 'Progress', while starry-eyed boom-bap track 'When Love’s Out of Fashion' features UK rapper Oranje. Former Wild Beasts frontman Hayden Thorpe lends his uniquely expressive vocal to the low-slung house of 'Summon', and Joe’s Hot Chip bandmates Alexis Taylor and Al Doyle both appear on the gleaming half-step ballad 'Heal Your Mind'. Other guests on 'Harmonics' include Tom McFarland of the London dance-pop group Jungle, Bronx-raised singer Fiorious, Guinean vocalist Falle Nioke, and UK jazz musician Alabaster DePlume.

For all the collaborators that Joe brings into his world, there are a handful of solo songs like 'Follow Me' that capture the more reflective and inward-looking side of his music. “With all the different people on this record, I’ve been working on how to respect the contribution they make and not trying to be the one who has to lead everything,” Joe says. “That follows through into the songs where I’m singing. I tried to write words without having too much of an idea of what I’m trying to express, where I’m just writing a stream of consciousness.”

This openness towards collaboration and the acceptance of people’s individual human nuances is where 'Harmonics' gets its name from. The history of dance music is replete with words like ‘ecstatic’, ‘euphoric’, and ‘uplifting’ – but here, those words do not describe hands-in-the-air clichés, but the spiritual and human side that Joe explores in his music. “Part of the reason why I wanted to call this Harmonics is that I was trying to create something very inclusive and empathetic, something harmonious,” Joe says. “There’s a lot of aggressive division in the world, and I wanted this to be loving, romantic – and fun.” This is the soulful thread that runs through all of Joe Goddard’s favourite music – genres from soul and funk, to house and garage, that were born in Black America and adopted by the UK. Harmonics is not just a title but a promise fulfilled – an unbridled celebration of compassion, collaboration, and creation.

TRACK LISTING

1. Moments Die Featuring Barrie
2. Progress Featuring Ibibio Sound Machine
3. Destiny Featuring Findia 4. New World (Flow) Featuring Fiorious
5. When Love’s Out Of Fashion Featuring Oranje
6. Follow You
7. On My Mind
8. Summon Featuring Hayden Thorpe
9. When You Call Featuring Findia
10. Out At Night
11. Mountains Featuring Alexis Taylor And Al Doyle
12. Ghosts Featuring Tom McFarland
13. Miles Away Featuring Falle Nioke
14. Revery Featuring Alabaster DePlume

In celebration of 20th Anniversary of The Streets most iconic album: ' A Grand Don't Come For Free' - comes a limited edition coloured repress on double vinyl (dark red). Originally released in 2004, the record features legendary tracks such as 'Dry Your Eyes' + 'Fit But You Know it' and original artworks shot by counterculture photographer Ewen Spencer. A must-cop for any fan interested in relishing in the nostalgia of early 2000s Uk Garage, spoken word and hip-hop. 

Formed in Trondheim in 2016, the quartet consists of Ragnhild Fangel, Martin Miguel Tonne, Ola Djupvik, and Jonas Krovel. Since their inception, they've released two critically acclaimed albums and mesmerizing live performances, solidifying their status as one of Norway's most exciting musical exports.

Their third album Champion features their dynamic soundscapes, characterized by energetic rhythms, intricate guitar work, and Fangel's distinctive vocals, which have garnered widespread acclaim. With influences ranging from art-rock to jazz, Pom Poko's music defies genre boundaries, delivering a fresh and innovative sonic experience. Speaking of the record, the band said... "This record is a kind of experiment to see what happens when the four of us in Pom Poko make music without any input from the world around us, from the first idea of a song until the last note is recorded. This time, we've recorded and produced absolutely everything ourselves, a process that has been surprisingly comfortable. With this album, we landed, almost unconsciously, on the fact that the songs needed more space and less fussiness in the production than what we've been drawn to before.

The songs also feel slightly more concise and focused on this album, perhaps, in addition to the lyrics telling more or less understandable stories - about connection, relationships, weird situations, hopes, and dreams. We were generally drawn to trying out some new things on this record, so this is the first time we've sent music to be mixed abroad, specifically to mixer and producer Ali Chant in Bristol. His clear and straightforward style suits the music very well and really brings out the songs as they are, without unnecessary frills. All in all, this feels like our most mature album so far, but hopefully not completely devoid of childlike joy and energy nonetheless."

TRACK LISTING

1. Growing Story
2. My Family
3. Champion
4. You're Not Helping
5. Pile Of Wood
6. Bell
7. Go
8. Never Saw It Coming
9. Druid, Fox And Dragon
10. Big Life 
11. Fumble

Fontaines D.C. announce details of their highly-anticipated fourth album, Romance. Romance is the band’s first album with producer James Ford and is without doubt their most assured, inventive and sonically adventurous record yet. It’s set to build on the success of the Dublin-made, now London-based band’s acclaimed 2022 album Skinty Fia, which reached number 1 in the UK and Irish album charts and saw the band receiving a host of accolades including “International Group of the Year” at the 2023 BRIT Awards.

Heralding Fontaines D.C.’s latest creative (r)evolution is the explosive lead single “Starburster”. Inspired by a panic attack lead singer Grian Chatten suffered in London’s St Pancras station, the song is punctuated by sharp feral intakes of breath. Its propulsive beat and unrelenting lyrics establish self-destruction as fantasy before a brief moment of sobering clarity when the drums fall away and Chatten moves from spitting, almost-rap into an almost-psalm, his baritone rich and dreamy. It’s accompanied by a cinematic music video from director Aube Perrie (Megan Thee Stallion, Harry Styles, The Hives) that captures the song’s cathartic intensity to brilliant effect.

Romance is Fontaines D.C.s most ambitious, expansive record yet, its 11 tracks constellating ideas that have been percolating among Grian Chatten (vocals), Carlos O’Connell (guitar), Conor Curley (guitar), Conor Deegan (bass), and Tom Coll (drums) since they released Skinty Fia in 2022. These ideas crystalised while touring the U.S. and Mexico with Arctic Monkeys as the five band members shared music and found a throughline with artists that deftly build out their own sprawling creative worlds: the attitude and aesthetic sheen of artists like Shygirl and Sega Bodega, the bolshy sonic palettes of hip hop and heavy metal, Mos Def, A$AP Ferg, OutKast and Korn. They had time apart to build more singular visions for what future music could be: O’Connell went to Spain’s Castile-La Mancha and later became a new father, while Chatten spent time in LA, and Deegan in Paris. They laid deeper roots in London. Each member spent time pushing their boundaries – experimental riffs, chord progressions, and far-flung lyrical references without intentions for a record. After wrapping up the US arena tour in Autumn 2023, they spent a month writing together again, three weeks of pre-production in a North London studio, and a month in a chateau close to Paris, sleeping among studio equipment, completely immersed.

Of the album’s title, Conor Deegan says, “We’ve always had this sense of idealism and romance. Each album gets further away from observing that through the lens of Ireland, as directly as (Mercury Prize-nominated debut) Dogrel. The second album (the GRAMMY-nominated A Hero’s Death) is about that detachment, and the third (Skinty Fia) is about Irishness dislocated in the diaspora. Now we look to where and what else there is to be romantic about.”

Expounding on the theme, Chatten recalls Katsuhiro Ôtomo’s anime Akira, where the embers of love develop despite a maelstrom of technological degradation and political corruption around its characters. “I’m fascinated by that - falling in love at the end of the world,” he says. “The album is about protecting that tiny flame. The bigger armageddon looms, the more precious it becomes,” while O’Connell adds “This record is about deciding what’s fantasy – the tangible world, or where you go in your mind. What represents reality more? That feels almost spiritual for us.”

The sonic evolution of the band, who bared their teeth in early records with antagonistic punk sensibilities, is an ascent into grungier breaks, dystopian electronica, hip-hop percussion, and dreamy Slowdive-esque textures that may surprise fans. The shoegaze touchpoints first pressed on Skinty Fia unfold on Romance like a purpling bruise. But any “retro aesthetic”, as Chatten describes it, is left behind. Reflecting on the impending release, Chatten says, “We say things on this record we’ve wanted to say for a long time. I never feel like it's over, but it’s nice to feel lighter.” The fantasy is felt for better or worse, and Fontaines D.C. welcome either end of oblivion.

TRACK LISTING

1. Romance
2. Starburster
3. Here's The Thing
4. Desire
5. In The Modern World
6. Bug
7. Motorcycle Boy
8. Sundowner
9. Horseness Is The Whatness
10. Death Kink
11. Favourite

The excellent Minimal Wave serves up a long-awaited LP here that features unreleased treasures from the influential UK duo, Vicious Pink, who first met at The Warehouse night-club in Leeds in the late 1970s and went on to reshape synth-pop. They notoriously lent their backing vocals to friends Soft Cell but went on to have success as a duo with avant-garde singles that defied norms and climbed the UK dance charts between 1982 and 1986. Now, Unexpected offers glimpses into their creative process and is packed with pop experiments recorded on the fly, some of which are with Dave Ball of Soft Vell/Grid fame. A true collector's gem.

STAFF COMMENTS

Mine says: If I had to describe the perfect song it would probably contain the words catchy and weird. This compilation of previously unreleased Vicious Pink tracks is full of songs that match that description - some are more catchy than weird, some more weird than catchy, others find the perfect balance. Can't wait for this to land and annoy everyone by playing it to death.

TRACK LISTING

Side 1
So You Want To Love Me
Alien Patience
South Side
Chaos 303
Move Up Closer

Side 2
Undercover
Not Your Kind Of Girl
Slightly Ahead
Perpendicular
Night Drive

This limited edition 12” serves as an accompanying piece to Fixmer’s brand-new album. The vinyl features 6 dark electronic tracks from the record, all infused with his signature energy and thoughtful sound design. This comes with an audio download code of the full-length record, including 6 additional tracks spanning across the landscape of techno music.

Terence Fixmer is celebrated for his innovative and genre-defying approach to music production. With a career spanning over two decades, he has released numerous albums and EPs on some of the most prestigious techno labels. His remixing talents have extended to tracks from industry giants such as Depeche Mode, Yann Tiersen, Sven Väth, Dave Clarke, Front 242, Nitzer Ebb, Indochine, and more.

This release underscores Fixmer's versatility and dedication to expanding his musical horizons, embodying the modest yet noteworthy influence he has had in the realm of electronic and techno music. 

TRACK LISTING

1. Ephemere
2. In Synthesis
3. Evolve
4. Shore Break
5. Glacier
6. Dark Enough?

All Black Everything, the debut EP by UK-based, Parisian bassist, vocalist and composer Amy Gadiaga, is an expansive, boundary-pushing 5-track collection showcasing prodigious bass playing and a voice brimming with power and emotion. It's a profound exploration of self-acceptance that presents both a celebration and acknowledgement of Gadiaga's deep-seated darkness.

Inspired by the 2020 Black Lives Matter movement All Black Everything confronts racial identity complexities and the challenges of being a societal 'black sheep' and sees Gadiaga courageously transform her insecurities into a narrative of self-empowerment.

Born to parents of Senegalese, Gambian, and Malian descent, and hailing from the outskirts of Paris, the multitalented Gadiaga has been making waves in the UK music industry since she moved to London aged 18. With a fresh and unique style that bridges the old school jazz tradition of musicians such as Betty Carter and Wayne Shorter with the raw, rootsy modern sound of artists such as D'Angelo, Stevie Wonder and Twinkie Clark, Gadiaga's breadth of ambition and revitalising approach have brought early critical acclaim and ardent fans.

Signalling the arrival of a significant new voice on the London music scene, All Black Everything communicates the liberating essence of embracing individuality and presents a journey through Gadiaga's personal struggles, standing as a testament to art's transformative power and encouraging listeners to find strength in their uniqueness. "All Black Everything is very much an exploration and embracing of one of my archetypes in life which is the black bird/black sheep" she explains. "That feeling of not thinking you belong anywhere, of being misunderstood and really tending to your own. No helping hand. But it's ok sometimes because you also feel like nobody can compete with you, you're one of a kind."

TRACK LISTING

1. Paloma Negra
2. Soar When I'm Alone
3. Full Sun (해찬)
4. Petite
5. All Black Everything

London, 1979. From the rubble and ashes of punk a new youth cult was emerging. Divinely inspired by Bowie, Roxy Music and Kraftwerk, a new tribe the press started labelling New Romantics, or Futurists, discarded punk’s old-hat claims towards authenticity and protest, in pursuit of glamour, make-up, dressing up and dancing. Their home was The Blitz Club, a tiny wine bar at the edge of Covent Garden and what went on there between 1979 and 1980 would genuinely change the world. The other name for this cult? Blitz Kids.

Without necessarily knowing it, The Blitz was birthing the next wave of British pop stars. A young Boy George ran the cloakroom, its host and doorman was a young Steve Strange, soon-to-be the frontman of Visage, Spandau Ballet played their first gig there and on a given night you might find yourself dancing next to a member of Ultravox. Fashion designers in Regency ballgowns mingled with secretaries in rubber, post boys dressed as Biggles danced next to art school kids dressed as Pierrot. David Bowie assembled his extras for the ‘Ashes To Ashes’ video from the Blitz kids. Mick Jagger was refused entry. Too square.

And the club had a mighty soundtrack, assembled painstakingly by its resident DJ Rusty Egan. Rusty’s sets brought together heroes like Eno, Iggy, and Lou Reed cool European electronic pioneers like Kraftwerk, Telex and Yello, the electronic side of disco (Cerrone, Hot Chocolate, Amanda Lear) and cutting-edge film soundtracks from the likes of Vangelis, Giorgio Moroder and Barry De Vorzon. Rusty also span the nascent sounds of Britian’s next new wave – Japan, Landscape, the Human League, Visage, Ultravox, Fad Gadget…

Compiled exhaustively from his DJ sets, ‘Rusty Egan Presents The Blitz’ brings together the sounds of a night at the club circa 1980 on either 66 track 4CD or 36 track 4LP sets. Beautifully presented with contemporary photography from Sheila Rock, Peter Ashworth and Terry Smith, the booklets also contain sleeve notes from Alexis Petridis and Rusty himself.

TRACK LISTING

LP One

Side A
1. The Human League / Being Boiled (Fast Product Version)
2. Tubeway Army / Down In The Park
3. Fad Gadget / Back To Nature
4. Vice Versa / New Girls Neutrons
5. Throbbing Gristle / Hot On The Heels Of Love

Side B
1. The Normal / Warm Leatherette
2. Cabaret Voltaire / Nag Nag Nag
3. John Foxx / Burning Car
4. Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark / Electricity (Dindisc 1980 Version)
5. Shock / R.E.R.B

LP Two

Side C

1. Ultravox! / Hiroshima Mon Amour
2. Magazine / Permafrost
3. Hot Chocolate / Put Your Love In Me
4. Visage / Moon Over Moscow

Side D
1. Sparks / The Number One Song In Heaven (Long Version)
2. The Glitter Band / Makes You Blind
3. The Regents / 7 Teen
4. Roxy Music / Angel Eyes (Extended Remix)

LP Three

Side E

1. The Men / I Don’t Depend On You
2. Barry De Vorzon / Theme From ‘The Warriors’
3. Rinder And Lewis / Willie And The Hand Jive (12” Version)
4. Grace Jones / La Vie En Rose

Side F
1. Kraftwerk / Schaufensterpuppen
2. Ultravox / Passing Strangers
3. Iggy Pop / Nightclubbing
4. Gina X Performance / No G.D.M.

LP Four

Side G
1. Mick Ronson / Only After Dark
2. Simple Minds / Changeling
3. Skids / Animation (Edit)
4. Japan / Life In Tokyo (1979 Single Version)
5. Amanda Lear / Follow Me
6. Spandau Ballet / To Cut A Long Story Short

Side H
1. Yello / Bostich (album Version)
2. Giorgio Moroder / Chase (From ‘Midnight Express’ Soundtrack)
3. Visage / Fade To Grey (1980 Dance Mix)
4. Lou Reed / Perfect Day

After a 10-year hiatus, Balearic Mike and Kelvin Andrews return to continue the journey of the Balearic Beat with another edition of their distinguished Down To The Sea And Back compilation series, presenting a formidable new set of rare and obscure records.

With Vols. 1 and 2, the well loved duo showed us that not only are they serious collectors but chroniclers of a scene, assembling lost gems and unheard marvels into Balearic mythology. Reaping, along the way, accolades such as Piccadilly Records’ Compilation of the Year, and featured on Lauren Laverne’s BBC6 Music show. For Vol. Tres, Mike and Kelvin team up with Copenhagen-based Music For Dreams label – themselves no strangers to the Balearic archives. The compilation features 16 tracks, every selection accompanied by an essential background story in the liner notes of the gatefold vinyl and CD booklet.

As fellow comrade and beloved friend Luke Una puts it: “From Greek acid folk, Balearic bossa, outsider pop and electronic chug, to cosmic machine soul, majestic songs, odd numbers, proto-techno new wave to dubbed out 5am technoid, bass buggin deepness and ethereal outer-space Detroit via San Francisco. This album is a story. A story from the heart, with over three decades digging and grafting in the trenches. In a world of faux, pastiche, counterfeit and aggrorhythm fakes, it oozes a wholesome intuitive authenticity. Majestic songs, odd numbers, cosmic dreaming and late night astral travelling as we all hold on together.” 

TRACK LISTING

A1 Josete Ordonez - Objetos Perdidos (Dagobert Böhm Version)
A2 Robert Williams - I Believe You're The One
A3 Lee Ryda - Electro Eyes
A4 Francisco - Heal Yourself
B1 Vidderna - Villfarelser
B2 Meo - Cikuana
B3 The Emperor Machine - Dying By Wits (Original Mix)
B4 Tri Atma - Yummy Moon (Long Version)
B5 Pressure Drop - Unify /Rip Up (instrumental)
C1 Enzo Carella - Malamore
C2 Ad Vissar & Daniel Sahuleka - Giddyap A Gogo
C3 Le Couleur - Underage (Original Mix)
C4 Sunshine Jones - Fall In Love Not In Line (Extended Vocal Version)
D1 Car Crash Set - Fall From Grace
D2 Len - Steal My Sunshine (Version Idjut)
D3 Mcraft - She Sells Sanctuary

In 2016, Foals frontman Yannis Philippakis was offered the opportunity of a lifetime: a two-day session working with the great drummer Tony Allen, who he admired intensely for his influential, multi-genre work with the likes of Fela Kuti, Sébastien Tellier and Jeff Mills.

Heading into a smoke-filled, ‘70s throwback studio in Paris, Yannis had expected them to make a nostalgic Afrobeat record. Yet something very different emerged. As the pair quickly established an intuitive telepathy, the music germinated from jams and loops, its varied touchpoints - rock, funk, jazz, dub and more - were complemented by a unique atmosphere of two cultures and creatives colliding, their expression liberated by making music in and for the moment itself.

Joined by Tony’s regular collaborators Vincent Taeger (percussion, marimba), Vincent Taurelle (keys) and Ludovic Bruni (bass, guitar) that first meeting resulted in a handful of near complete songs, which were further developed during a couple of subsequent sessions. But between scheduling issues and Covid restrictions, the recordings were never completed before Tony passed away in April 2020 at the age of 79.

Yannis felt a deep duty to complete the project, not only as a bittersweet way to honour and celebrate his friend, but also because Tony had been so eager to share these songs with the world. The result is the upcoming five-track EP, ‘Lagos Paris London’, under the Yannis & The Yaw umbrella - a project that he plans to return to in the future for further collaborations with inspiring musicians from across the globe.

‘Lagos Paris London’ EP is high-spirited, loose-grooved exuberance completed by the complex rhythms and unhurried style of the man who inspired it. It’s a communion with the past that provides an escape in the present day.

TRACK LISTING

1. Walk Through Fire
2. Rain Can't Reach Us
3. Night Green, Heavy Love
4. Under The Strikes
5. Clementine

“Into The Blue is the clearest portrait of who I am as an artist. It’s me through and through,” says multi-instrumentalist Aaron Frazer. A daring blend of soul, psychedelia, spaghetti western, disco, gospel and hip-hop, Into the Blue represents the impressive range of Frazer’s sonic talents. Frazer maintains the unmistakable falsetto and classic songwriting he’s known for, but plants Into the Blue firmly in the now with a hip-hop mentality at its core, weaving together genres and production techniques to form something new.

Into The Blue was conceived, like so many classic records, out of actual heartbreak. Frazer moved cross-country from Brooklyn to Los Angeles and embarked on a journey that’s reflected in the album’s themes of grief, loneliness, and searching for healing. “Into The Blue really means heading into the unknown. That has been the last year of my life and I’m still in the blue,” Frazer explains. “But there are also songs here that celebrate love and the giddiness of a new relationship and all that. That’s part of a breakup to me, processing the whole thing, remembering the things that were right as much as the things that were wrong.”

Frazer wrote on every track and played several live instruments on the album. The title track, “Into The Blue”, is a haunting, resolute anthem, combining cinematic strings and tough-as-nails breakbeats as Frazer heads west. “Here I go, to a place where the broken heart knows,” he sings. “It’s all I can do. Back into the blue.” “Payback” is an explosive dancefloor heater, featuring shimmering tambourines and driving bass lines. Northern soul drums meet snarling fuzz guitar, hurdling towards its epic conclusion.

The album features moments of towering arrangements, recalling David Axelrod and Ennio Merricone, balanced by rawness, incorporating iPhone recordings and one-take vocals. For Into the Blue, Frazer enlisted Grammy-winner Alex Goose as coproducer, known for his crate-digging samples and collaborations with hip-hop artists like Freddie Gibbs, Madlib and Brockhampton. Frazer also experimented with samples for the first time on a record, drawing from unexpected sources like 90s R&B group Hi-Five. Though Into the Blue is born out of heartbreak, Frazer hopes it leaves listeners with a sense of optimism. “You know, you can still laugh on a day when you’re grieving,” he says, “there’s no peaks without valleys,” he says, but Into The Blue sees Aaron Frazer at new heights.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1) Thinking Of You
2) Into The Blue
3) Fly Away
4) Payback
5) Dime Feat. Cancamusa
6) Perfect Strangers

Side B
7) Time Will Tell
8) I Don’t Wanna Stay
9) Play On
10) Easy To Love
11) The Fool

Mike Paradinas, veteran producer and Planet Mu label owner has written a new album called ‘Grush' and it's full of weird bangers that reclaim the 'dance' part of the woeful term IDM. A back-to-first-principles record, inspired in part by the group of artists IDM was coined for; melodic dance music that didn't come out of urban scenes, but interpreted them from a distance. The tracks on ‘Grush’ are all road-tested live favorites developed with feedback from Mike's touring partner and visuals guy Mora (Jan Moravec). It's a detailed and energetic journey which replicates the flow of a live gig. A lot of the tracks have been made in hotel rooms in response to shows, ‘Imperial Crescent’ is named after a Japanese Hotel, as is ‘Belvedere’ in Prague, while some tracks such as ‘Hyper Daddy’ were created specifically to play live. Drums are confidently at the fore here and the album feels like it traces Mike's musical history and interests neatly around his sweetly nostalgic melodies, with atmospheres and structures which twist and turn with a charming softness which contrasts with the tension in the drums. Take ‘Hyper Daddy’s’ spiralling notes and twinkling piano which remind one of early Black Dog or Omni Trio rushing alongside splashy jungle drums, or the aquatic acid footwork of the title track with its drums softly bubbling and kicking. Elsewhere there's territory which harks back to his Tusken Raiders pseudonym, like the heads down Drexciyan funk of ‘Windsor Safari Park,’ which transforms from moody electro into a sunny hardcore track midway.

The album is interspersed with Reticulum A, B and C at the start middle and end of the album which suggest a theme which carries across the music in an effortless and joyful way. ‘Grush’ is a strong album that works both for listening and DJing and a great snapshot of where Mike Paradinas musical head is at in 2024.

TRACK LISTING

1. Reticulum A
2. Hyper Daddy
3. Fogou
4. Magic Pony Ride (Pt.4)
5. Imperial Crescent
6. Reticulum B
7. Grush
8. Belvedere
9. Raver
10. Windsor Safari Park
11. Hastings
12. Manscape
13. Metaphonk
14. Reticulum C

Known for her ethereal voice and eclectic musical style, Torrini gained international recognition with her album "Love in the Time of Science" in 1999. One of Torrini's solo successes came with the release of "Jungle Drum" in 2009. The single gained widespread acclaim and reached the top of the charts in several European countries. 2024 sees Emiliana Torrini come back with her first studio album in nearly 10 years. The new album combines all of Emiliana`s strengths and marks a fulminant return.

TRACK LISTING

1. Black Water
2. Lady K
3. Waterhole
4. Dreamers
5. Miss Flower
6. Black Lion Lane
7. Let`s Keep Dancing
8. Love Poem
9. The Golden Thread
10. A Dream Through The Floorboards

Flavia Coelho hypnotises us right from the start with her song ‘Mama Santa’, a nod to her mother. The Garota do Rio, who took the French music scene by storm in 2011 to prove to her father that she was a true artist.

Flavia Coelho is continuing her exploration of identity and her quest for authenticity, tackling the themes of reconstruction, courage, and resilience, with her loyal producer and arranger Victor Vagh-Weinmann, whom she met in her early days in France. Together, they initiated and designed all the compositional material, electro pads, organs, keyboards, guitars, and percussion. These ingredients, combined with the catchy melodies and sublime voice of the bewitching Flavia, have given life to the ten nuggets of ‘GINGA’.

The writing of this new opus began two years ago, after a key phrase, heard by the artist: "We live our first twenty years, then the next twenty serve to understand the first twenty.” 43-year-old Flavia Coelho has precisely reached this stage in her life.

To create ‘GINGA’, the singer immersed herself in all the music of her youth, particularly South American songs from kitschy telenovelas.Then Flavia recorded her ideas on her Dictaphone, and began writing and producing her songs in the studio between August and December 2023, in a vital urgency, like a personal challenge to be taken up and a typically "Coelhian" saudade, bursting with emotion.

Funk, house, Latin American, samba, reggae and amapiano, in ‘GINGA’, Flavia Coelho fuses genres and heritages, orchestrated with varying degrees of sensuality and vibrancy, the fruit of over a hundred hours of recording. For the first time, Flavia Coelho has entrusted the mixing of her album to renowned collaborators, as if she needed to entrust her work to them and take a step back to give a whole new dimension to the songs that are so close to her. Tom Fire, Prince Fatty, Paul from Synapson and Guts were given the delicate task of mixing the final version of the album.

Flavia takes flight and takes us on a journey, from Brazil to London via Provence, Paris and everywhere in between. ‘GINGA’ is a sharpened set of legs that takes us through the sound system of Flavia Coelho's life, while continuing to accompany our own.

TRACK LISTING

1. Mama Santa
2. Nordestina
3. Mais Amor
4. Lapa
5. Passageiro
6. Nosso Lar
7. Sistema Solar
8. Tamarindo
9. De Vous À Moi
10. Bira

Placenta is the fourth collection of broadly imaginative and highly collaborative Carlos Niño & Friends music released on International Anthem since 2021. But perhaps more notably for the zeitgeist of today, it is the first new music to be released by Carlos Niño & Friends following the November 2023 release of André 3000’s New Blue Sun – an album which Carlos produced alongside André, while co-writing, performing, and co-mixing every song. The announcement of Placenta also comes while Carlos is in the middle of tours with André to support New Blue Sun, where Carlos wields an immense presence as music director, bandleader, and percussionist, and performs alongside many of the same musicians that are present on his recent & Friends albums, including this new one.

Placenta is announced on the 1st solar return of Moss Niño, of whom Carlos and his partner Annelise are Earth parents. Their experience of pregnancy, labor and delivery were all profoundly impactful for Carlos. Becoming a father again (a whole 25 years after the birth of Azul Niño, who has become a regular artistic collaborator for Carlos) he felt total Inspiration for this set of recordings, and hence it is perhaps the most conceptually-grounded Carlos Niño & Friends album we've yet to present–fully connected to the spirit of family, birth, and "how we get here."

In Niño’s words, Placenta is “dedicated to Mothers, Children, Babies, Aunties, Doulas, Midwives, Birthworkers...,” and a short list of track titles includes: "Love to all Doulas!," "Some Rest for the Midwives," "Real Vital Organs," and "Generous Pelvis." The centerpiece of the album, the sprawling "Placenta, Nourishment, New Home, The Galaxy," is an unbelievably vivid immersion in the sonic architecture of Niño's memory-scape...like being present in his energy field...or being present in a birthing room, or maybe even being born yourself. And it just might be the most powerful, unique piece of music Niño has ever created.

Featured artists on Placenta, in order of their entry on the album, include: Nate Mercereau, Jamire Williams, Sam Gendel, Jamael Dean, Dexter Story, Brandon Eugene Owens, Maia, André 3000, Jesse Peterson, Ariel Kalma, Surya Botofasina, Annelise, Haize Hawke, Aaron Shaw, Devin Daniels, Tiffany de Leon, Michael Bolger, Michael Alvidrez, Moss, Iasos, Photay, Deantoni Parks, Adam Rudolph, Andres Renteria, and Cavana Lee.

TRACK LISTING

1. Love To All Doulas!
2. Some Rest For The Midwives . . .
3. Real Vital Organs
4. Surges, Expansions
5. In Appreciation Of Chico Hamilton's Vast Influence On The West Coast Sound
6. Birthworkers Magic, And How We Get Hear . . .
7. This "I" Was Not
8. Placenta, Nourishment, New Home, The Galaxy
9. Carla's Beads
10. Moonlight Watsu In Dub
11. Generous Pelvis
12. Bi-Location
13. "Play Kerri Chandler's RAIN"