THIS IS A BLACK FRIDAY 2022 EXCLUSIVE AND WILL BE AVAILABLE INSTORE ON FRIDAY NOVEMBER 25TH ON A FIRST COME FIRST SERVED BASIS, LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.

IF THERE ARE ANY REMAINING COPIES THEY WILL BE MADE AVAILABLE ONLINE AT 8AM ON SATURDAY NOVEMBER 26TH).

Limited Edition Picture Disc of #2 Album 'The Overload' never been pressing on a Picture Disc before. 

THIS IS A BLACK FRIDAY 2025 EXCLUSIVE AND WILL BE AVAILABLE INSTORE ON FRIDAY NOVEMBER 28th FROM 10AM ON A FIRST COME FIRST SERVED BASIS, LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.

IF THERE ARE ANY REMAINING COPIES THEY WILL BE MADE AVAILABLE ONLINE AT 8AM ON SATURDAY NOVEMBER 29th).

Released for the first time on double LP alongside a brand new dub mix of the album from the band on the second disc, pressed on special effect ‘white line on black’ vinyl and housed in a gatefold sleeve with brand new alternative artwork including a taped hidden message.

TRACK LISTING

1. Still Running
2. Shame
3. Feasting
4. 27
5. Rain Or Shine
6. Sirens
7. Old Rock N Roll
8. Nest
9. Liberated
10. John Doe
11. Dare Me
12. Get Started
13. 37 Dub
14. Various Big Cats Dub
15. Jesus Demon Dub
16. I Heard You Call Dub
17. Congo Square Dub
18. Real Milk Not Nestlé Formula Dub
19. Jane Dub
20. How Can We Be Free Dub
21. Devil Boots Dub
22. Shameless Dub
23. Spin The Bottle Dub
24. It’s All Over Dub

THIS IS A BLACK FRIDAY 2025 EXCLUSIVE AND WILL BE AVAILABLE INSTORE ON FRIDAY NOVEMBER 28th FROM 10AM ON A FIRST COME FIRST SERVED BASIS, LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.

IF THERE ARE ANY REMAINING COPIES THEY WILL BE MADE AVAILABLE ONLINE AT 8AM ON SATURDAY NOVEMBER 29th).

To celebrate the legendary Young Fresh Fellows' 40th anniversary, the band took one day off their hectic touring schedule to head to Wilco's LOFT studio in Chicago. The band got GRAMMY-Award winner Tom Schick behind the boards and some legendary guests across the album, including Neko Case (sings lead on 'Destination'), John Stirratt of Wilco (harmony vocals), Morgan Fisher of Mott The Hoople (keyboards), Jonathan Segel of Camper Van Beethoven (violin), Jenny Conlee of The Decemberists (accordion, harmony vocals), Mark Greenberg of Eleventh Dream Day (vibraphone), Peter Buck of R.E.M (12-string guitar), and Dave "Max" Crawford of Poi Dog Pondering (trumpet). This finished record, 'Loft', has never been released before and is finally seeing the light of day for the Young Fresh Fellows' 40th anniversary. The record is pressed on splash colour vinyl and limited to 1,000 copies worldwide. 

TRACK LISTING

1. Overture
2. I’m A Prison
3. Killing Time In Union Square
4. Three Gasconading Saints
5. Before The Deluge
6. Death Becomes Us
7. Entr’acte
8. Books Don’t Burn Twice
9. Destination
10. Whispering Hole
11. 1987
12. Harpoon In The Hay
13. The Exit Music
14. Theme

As part of National Album Day 2025’s celebration of rock, Secretly Canadian are making Yeah Yeah Yeah’s fifth album available on limited edition Twister Vinyl. It could only be called alchemy, the transformative magic that happens during the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' most tuned-in moments in the studio, when their unique chemistry sparks opens a portal, and out comes a song like "Maps" or "Zero" or the latest addition to their canon, "Spitting off the Edge of the World featuring Perfume Genius" — an epic shot-to-the-heart of pure YYYs beauty and power.A thunderstorm of a return is what the legendary trio has in store for us on Cool It Down, their fifth studio album and their first since 2013’s Mosquito. The eight-track collection, bound to be a landmark in their catalog, is an expert distillation of their best gifts that impels you to move, and cry, and listen closely

TRACK LISTING

A1.Spitting Off The Edge Of The World - Featuring – Perfume Genius
A2.Lovebomb
A3.Wolf
A4.Fleez
B5.Burning
B6.Blacktop
B7.Different Today
B8.Mars

THIS IS A RECORD STORE DAY 2020 RELEASE AVAILABLE ONLINE ONLY AS PART OF THE OCTOBER 24TH DROP DAY AT 6PM.
LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.

Yann Tiersen’s Lagniappe Session is a special limited edition 12” of 3 tracks recorded for the Los Angeles-based audio journal, Aquarium Drunkard. Originally created to support Yann’s most recent album, Portrait, where he re-recorded a number of tracks from throughout his career, these tracks all fit the mood of that recording and Yann’s most recent tours. Pieces that could be described as minimalist are uprooted and placed into entirely different realms, as Tiersen tackles a 16+ minute Steve Reich piece, a classic Françoise Hardy chanson, and a tune by country gospel musician E.C. Ball. In the hands of Tiersen all become transformed.

THIS IS A RECORD STORE DAY 2025 EXCLUSIVE AND WILL BE AVAILABLE INSTORE ON SATURDAY APRIL 12TH ON A FIRST COME FIRST SERVED BASIS, LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.

IF THERE ARE ANY REMAINING COPIES THEY WILL BE MADE AVAILABLE ONLINE AT 8PM ON MONDAY APRIL 14th.

'A Paradise In The Hold' is an album of yearning. It’s about Ivor Novello Award winning Yazz Ahmed’s dual heritage, drawing on traditional music and folklore as well as her own personal experience as a British-Bahraini woman. A sweeping epic where tradition meets innovation, she melds ancient rhythms with contemporary musicianship. The record is a tribute to the sorrowful songs of Bahrain’s pearl divers, the strength of Arab women, and the celebratory rhythms of women's traditional drumming circles, while also telling the story of Yazz’s own decade-long voyage of self-discovery.

The album also marks Yazz’s first foray into writing lyrics, in both English and Arabic, bringing a new dimension to her expansive sound. The project features an impressive roster of collaborators, including vocalists Natacha Atlas, Brigitte Beraha, and percussionist Corrina Silvester. 'With A Paradise In The Hold', Ahmed delivers a groundbreaking fusion of tradition and innovation, creating a contemporary jazz project that is set to make a lasting impact on the genre.

TRACK LISTING

1. She Stands On The Shore
2. A Paradise In The Hold
3. Mermaid’s Tears
4. Her Light
5. Al Naddaha
6. Dancing Barefoot
7. Into The Night
8. Though My Eyes Go To Sleep My Heart Does Not Forget You
9. To The Lonely Sea
10. Waiting For The Dawn

2011’s "Finding My Way Home” is the debut album by British-Bahraini trumpet player Yazz Ahmed. The album blends original compositions and improvisations, reflecting Yazz's Arabic heritage and classic jazz influences from the 1950s and 60s. Inspired by her grandfather, jazz trumpeter, Terry Brown, Yazz developed a passion for the trumpet, leading to this unique musical exploration.

The album features collaborations with many notable musicians, including bass guitar virtuoso Janek Gwizdala. Yazz and Janek reconnected through Facebook after a decade apart, resulting in a recording session of duets, incorporating Arabic scales in pieces like "Embarkation" and “Al Muharraq”. Recorded in London, the intimate tracks highlight the synergy between flugelhorn and bass guitar.

Yazz's original compositions, "Conciliation" and "Flip Flop", are performed by her first quintet, featuring a classic jazz line-up. However, with the addition of percussionist, Corrina Silvester, now an ever-present collaborator, and bass clarinettist, Shabaka Hutchings, on "Wah-Wah Sowahwah", we get a glimpse of what’s to come as Yazz’s music evolves.

The album culminates with the expansive title track, weaving together various elements key to Yazz’s style, and capturing the essence of the album's musical journey.

TRACK LISTING

A1 Embarkation
A2 Wah-Wah Sowahwah
A3 Al Muharraq
A4 Conciliation
A5 The Birth Of The Fool
B1 Affirmation
B2 Birthdays, Birthdays
B3 Finding My Way Home 

In 2017, Bahraini-British trumpeter and flugelhorn player Yazz Ahmed revolutionised jazz with her album "La Saboteuse," blending her dual heritage with electronic effects to redefine the genre. The record delves into her British and Bahraini roots, featuring musicians like Lewis Wright and Shabaka Hutchings, and is characterised by its Middle Eastern melodies and evocative rhythms, exploring themes of self-doubt personified by a female saboteur.

Yazz’s early years in Bahrain and her grandfather's trumpet playing in London inspired her musical journey, with the influence of modern-day contemporary jazz artists - and Ahmed’s own contemporaries – like Kamasi Washington and Sons of Kemet also seeping in. Her unique sound incorporates Arabic melodies, reflecting her cultural heritage and British jazz influ- ences. Yazz also challenges the male-dominated jazz sphere, empowered by a rising number of female musicians. Despite improvements, she believes more progress is needed.

Looking forward, Yazz Ahmed plans to create a piece inspired by the universe's ever-changing structures, signalling her continuous innovation in jazz. Her work positions her as a vital part of the evolving jazz landscape, bridging cultural and musical divides.

TRACK LISTING

A1 Inhale
A2 Jamil Jamal
A3 Misophonia
A4 The Space Between The Fish And The Moon
B1 La Saboteuse
B2 Al Emadi
B3 Inspiration Expiration
C1 The Lost Pearl
C2 Bloom
D1 Beleille
D2 Whirling
D3 Organ Eternal
D4 Exhale 

Yazz Ahmed's album ‘Polyhymnia’ celebrates female courage, determination, and creativity. Commissioned by Tomorrow’s Warriors in 2015, she wrote an extended work for their Nu Civilisation Orchestra, performed at the Women of the World Festival on International Women’s Day at the QEH, London. Channelling Polyhymnia, the Greek Muse of music, poetry, and dance, Yazz created a suite of movements dedicated to outstanding women role models. This album contrasts her previous work, "La Saboteuse," which was driven by her inner-destroyer or anti-muse.

Since the premiere performance, the music evolved and deepened, with Yazz choosing to feature a wider pool of artists, including members of her Hafla band and other musical friends, on this recording. Yazz shares her musical response to the stories and achievements of exceptional women, including Rosa Parks, Haifaa Al-Mansour and Malala Yousafzai, and simultaneously illuminates the creativity and talents of her musical collaborators. She hopes to inspire others, echoing Malala's words, "to be brave, to embrace the strength within themselves, and realise their full potential."

TRACK LISTING

A1 Lahan Al Mansour
A2 Ruby Bridges
B1 One Girl Among Many
C1 2857
C2 Deeds Not Words
D1 Barbara

“Suffering is promised to us all, but so is joy. You have to find peace in that duality,” says Yaya Bey, who commits to life’s delight — humor, love, the power of human movement and connection — even if she has to do it afraid. With her new album, which follows a run of critically acclaimed releases and marks her debut on art-forward indie label drink sum wtr, the Queens, New York singer-songwriter thrives across uplifting, effervescent material. A rejection of past narratives projected onto her, ‘do it afraid’ finds Bey reclaiming her story with resolutely fun, full-hearted, and nuanced songs that pull from R&B, hip-hop, jazz, soul, and dance music, including the soca stylings of her family’s Bajan roots. do it afraid celebrates all sides of Yaya as part of a collective lifeforce that doesn’t subscribe to fear but to the moments that move us.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Super smooth modern soul music, with rippling electric piano and jazzy percussion providing the perfect backdrop for Bey's athletic vocals and crisp harmonies.

TRACK LISTING

1. Wake Up B*tch
2. End Of The World (feat. Nigel Hall & Butcher Brown)
3. Real Yearners Unite
4. Cindy Rella
5. Raisins
6. Spin Cycle
7. Dream Girl
8. Merlot And Grigio (feat. Father Philis)
9. Breakthrough
10. A Surrender
11. In A Circle
12. Aye Noche (feat. Rahrah Gabor And Exaktly)
13. No For Real, Wtf?
14. Blicky
15. Ask The Questions
16. Bella Noches Pt. 1
17. A Tiny Thing That’s Mine
18. Choice

Yaya Bey is one of R&B’s most exciting storytellers. Using a combination of ancestral forces and her own self-actualization, the singer/songwriter seamlessly navigates life’s hardships and joyful moments through music. Bey’s new album, ‘Remember Your North Star’ (out June 17), captures this emotional rollercoaster with a fusion of soul, jazz, reggae, afrobeat and hip-hop that feeds the soul. The artist’s knack for storytelling is best displayed in the album’s lead single, “keisha”. It’s an anthemic embodiment of fed-up women everywhere who have given their all in a relationship, yet their physical body nor spiritual mind could never be enough.

Bey’s ability to tap into the emotionally kaleidoscopic nature of women, specifically Black women, is the essence of the entire album. With themes of misogynoir, unpacking generational trauma, carefree romance, parental relationships, women empowerment and self-love, Remember Your North Star proves that the road to healing isn’t a linear one – there are many lessons to gather along the journey.

“I saw a tweet that said, ‘Black women have never seen healthy love or have been loved in a healthy way.’ That's a deep wound for us. Then I started to think about our responses to that as Black women,” Bey says of ‘Remember Your North Star’s title inspiration, an entirely self-written project featuring key production from Bey herself, with assists from Phony Ppl’s Aja Grant and DJ Nativesun. “So this album is kind of my thesis. Even though we need to be all these different types of women, ultimately we do want love: love of self and love from our community. The album is a reminder of that goal.”

The artist’s raw, unfiltered approach threads ‘Remember Your North Star’. “big daddy ya” finds the artist tapping into her inner rapper, channeling the too-cool and confident factor that artists like Megan Thee Stallion and City Girls are well-known for. “reprise” captures women’s exhaustion everywhere, with its lyrical tug-of-war of bettering oneself while trying to cut yourself off from toxic relationships. There’s also “alright” (co-produced by Aja Grant), a soothing, jazz-inspired ditty that showcases Bey’s love for the genre’s icons like Billie Holiday, while the carefree “pour up” highlights the artist’s friendship with DJ Nativesun (the song’s producer) and will immediately rush hips to the dancefloor.

There is no fakeness when it comes to Bey’s music, and her authenticity can be partly attributed to her upbringing in Jamaica, Queens. Early childhood memories included watching her father (pioneering ‘90s rapper Grand Daddy I.U) record in his studio – which also doubled as Bey’s bedroom – and listening to records by soul legends Donny Hathaway and Ohio Players around the house. Beginning at age nine, the artist’s father would leave space for her to write hooks to his beats, using her favorite artists like Mary J. Blige and JAY-Z as inspirations.

Bey quickly grew out of New York City and moved to D.C. at age 18. Calling it her second home, the city further ignited the artist’s creativity as she worked at museums and libraries, as well as tapping into poetry and attending protests. Her first release ‘The Many Alter - Egos of Trill’eta Brown’ in 2016 that incorporated a digital collage and a book, was praised by Solange’s Saint Heron agency, FADER, Essence, and many more. Bey followed up with fellow critically acclaimed projects like 2020’s ‘Madison Tapes’ album and 2021’s ‘The Things I Can’t Take With Me’ EP – the first release on Big Dada’s relaunch as a label run by Black, POC and minority ethnic people for Black, POC and minority ethnic artists – that received support from Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, NPR, Harper’s Bazaar, FADER, HotNewHipHop, Dazed, Clash, FACT, Crack Magazine, The Line of Best Fit and Mixmag.

In 2021, Bey was also profiled by Rolling Stone for their print magazine, contributed to the publication’s The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list, and curated a playlist for Document Journal. The artist’s “september 13th (DJ Nativesun Remix)” and “made this on the spot” singles received strong radio support from BBC Radio 6 Music and BBC 1 Xtra’s Jamz Supernova. Last May, Bey was interviewed on BBC 1Xtra and performed three tracks for Jamz Supernova’s “Festival Jamz” including The Things I Can’t Take With Me’s “fxck it then” and “september 13th” that December.

Bey is also a critically acclaimed multidisciplinary artist and art curator, creating the artwork for her music through collages of intimate photos and self-portraits. In 2019, her work was featured in the District of Columbia Arts Center’s “Reparations Realized” exhibit and Brooklyn’s Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts (MoCADA)’s “Let the Circle Be Unbroken” exhibit. She also completed multiple fine art residencies with MoCADA, curating programs that reflect the same theme that drives her music: the Black woman's experience.

‘Remember Your North Star’ continues Bey’s personal and artistic evolution as she strives to be a soundboard for Black women everywhere. “I feel empowered in music because I can transform anything that happens to me into something that is valuable. Music helps me to see the value in what's going on in my life,” she explains. “There’s a spirit in music. It’s a culture and I'm in that community, contributing my story which keeps us connected.”

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Seriously, get on this! Landing somewhere between Green Tea Peng, Amy Winehouse and Erykah Badu (!!) with that adoration for retroistic jazz and soul influences showered in sunshine and delivered with her own highly individualistic, localized vocal flow. She's also provocative, stylish and outspoken, making her a perfect star for 2022. Gonna blow up!

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. Intro
2. Libation
3. Big Daddy Ya
4. Keisha
5. Nobody Knows
6. Alright
7. Meet Me In Brooklyn
8. It Was Just A Dance
9. Pour Up (feat. DJ
Nativesun)
10. Uh Uh Nxgga

 Side B
1. Reprise
2. Rolling Stoner
3. Don't Fucking Call Me
4. I'm Certain She's There
5. Street Fighter Blues
6. Mama Loves Her Son
7. Either Way
8. Blessings

Yaya Bey unveils her latest studio album Ten Fold via Big Dada, available on standard black LP and translucent red indie LP.

New York-bred R&B vocalist Yaya Bey conjures a comprehensive self-portrait on her new studio album, Ten Fold.

Where her previous works were earnest and mindful, Yaya’s new LP is definitive, harkening back to aspects of her past while examining the future of the world that surrounds her with a stream-of-conscious intentionality.

Over rapturous production from Corey Fonville of jazz group Butcher Brown, Karriem Riggins, Jay Daniel, Exaktly and Boston Chery, Yaya delivers a free-spoken masterpiece that speaks to the intricacies of persevering through a year punctuated by grief and loss, life-altering milestones and everything in between.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: A biographical tale, told through the words of poet and vocalist Yaya Bey. Richly rendered R&B grooves and flickering electronic shards all work beautifully beneath Bey's often spoken-word storytelling. 'Ten Fold' takes the classics of disco, house and hip-hop and filters them through Yaya Bey's distinctive modern filter.

TRACK LISTING

1. Crying Through My Teeth
2. The Evidence
3. Chrysanthemums
4. Sir Princess Bad Bitch
5. East Coast Mami
6. Chasing The Bus
7. All Around Los Angeles
8. Slow Dancing In The Kitchen
9. So Fantastic (feat. Grand Daddy I.U.)
10. Eric Adams In The Club (feat. Exaktly)
11. Me And All My Niggas
12. Iloveyoufrankiebeverly
13. Career Day
14. Carl Thomas Sliding Down The Wall
15. Yvette's Cooking Show
16. Let Go

After what seems like an aeon of anticipation, Yugen Blakrok returns bolder than ever with 'The Illusion of Being', a raw, fearless exploration of emotion and resilience. This album is a call to triumph. Through poetic lyricism and experimental soundscapes, this project offers the listener a journey into the heart of uncertainty and the power of perseverance. Created and recorded in a world in flux, 'The Illusion of Being' reflects the artist's evolution as a storyteller and resonates directly with the era that shaped her.

Driven by incisive lyrics andsoundscapes blending grunge, trip-hop, and 90s spirit, this project tests the boundaries of alternative hip-hop. Here, rhythm speaks louder than reason, and the acceptance of "Being" becomes the thread that ties each track together. This album captures a bold new chapter in Yugen Blakrok's discography. While rooted in the lyrical mastery and poetic precision that fans cherish, it marks a departure from the familiar, embracing a more unfiltered and experimental approach. The collaborations seem purposeful, and match this intensity: Sa-Roc delivers combative and sisterly energy,Cambatta brings his visceral urgency, while Hannah Allen offers a touch both delicate and impactful. Instrumentally, the arrangements dare to break new ground: wailing electric guitars,enchanting flutes, and hypnotic beats create a striking sonic alchemy. As described by Yugen in three words: Free. Involved. Anti.Free from convention. Involved in the fight. Anti-establishment. In many ways this album is a sonic manifesto. Each track resonates as a call to rebellion, an anthem for those who refuse to bow down.

'The Illusion of Being' is not just a work of art; it’s a statement: for freedom, for community, against oppression. A mirror of our collectivestruggles and a light for those who keep moving forward. It promises its listeners a deeply personal connection, offering a glimmer of hope amidst despair and a soundtrack for their fight.

TRACK LISTING

1. Mesmerize
02. Osiris Awakens Feat Mohama Saz
03. Fighter Mantra
04. Earthlinguist
05. The Shining
06. Being Here
07. Tessellator Feat Cambatta
08. Hold Ground
09. Hidden Pillar
10. The Grand Geode • Feat Sa-Roc
11. Milario
12. Loner
13. Regrettably Feat Hannah Allen
14. Grand Rising

girl. power. pop.

Hailing from Hull but now based in Manchester, singer/songwriter Yasmin Coe creates music that is solely hers.

Yasmin Coe infuses shoegaze and indie-pop to accompany her intimate confessions and experiences.

"if what you’re looking for is tenderly sung songs with a pop edge and a dreamy finish, Yasmin Coe demands to be on your radar... her tunes are as if Mazzy Star had a baby with Sabrina Carpenter and raised it amidst Manchester’s undeniable cultural influence" - Far Out Magazine

“A sweet of indie-popping goodness, cottoned in plumes of come-of-age candy, Yasmin Coe blushes with wry retrospection and disclosures of self-reservation” - So Young Magazine.

TRACK LISTING

1. Opener
2. When You Can't Have Her
3. Expected As Much
4. Linen
5. Closer

‘On The Wing’ is the debut album from Yoshika Colwell - a captivating and sophisticated collection of eleven songs that traverse the outer regions of folk, it is a record of acceptance and self-discovery, rooted in solitude and personal healing, from one of the UK’s most exciting new singer-songwriters.

Life, for us all, comes in seasons: the bitter frosts and balmy awakenings that herald the literal passing of time, but also the periods of retreat and re-emergence that bookmark our own individual paths along this mortal coil. For Yoshika, the last decade has found her existing at both ends of the spectrum. Following a period of complete dislocation fuelled by a move to a new town, lockdown and a traumatic break-up all striking in quick succession, it would take a stretch of restorative isolation to bring her back to full creative and personal health. Now, however, all of that sadness and pain, acceptance and slow-dawning hope has been channeled into ‘On The Wing’. Speaking about the album, she says:

“This album is a bit of a shrine I suppose to all of the pivotal experiences that shaped me during my twenties and it’s also, I feel, a tentative lean towards hopefulness for the future.

It is, at its core, an album about acceptance and release, and freedom from old binds. It was an extremely emotional and cathartic record to make. It was a challenge to put all of the things I was scared to say into these songs, to finally let them out of my head without shying away from the ugly or unpalatable emotions, but it felt like the only thing to do.

The process felt quite ritualistic, akin to writing down the things you know you need to let go of on a piece of paper and burning it.”

Produced by Oli Bayston (Barry Can't Swim, Rachel Chinouriri), the album was recorded at Studio Orbb, where Yoshika recorded her critically acclaimed debut EP ‘There’s A Time’. Since then, a string of releases have seen support from The New Cue, BBC 6Music, Paste, The Line of Best Fit and Stereogum, to name a few, whilst Yoshika has played her first shows in the US at SXSW. This summer she plays The Great Escape, Moseley Folk Festival and End of the Road.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Beautiful flickering folky melodies and silky smooth vocals, rich in the folk tradition but also awash with non-traditional production and an uncharacteristic levity and easy joy. That's not to mention the more meditative pieces that could easily sit on the greatest Laura Marling albums, seamlessly sitting next to these joyful ballasts. It's stunning.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
On & On
Last Night
In Bloom
Turn My Face Away
It’ll Never Be Enough
Into The Water

Side B
There’s Got To Be A Loser Babe
Fighting On The Wing
A Poem About Walking
Once In A Blue Moon
Maybe

Multi-instrumentalist, producer, and composer Yussef Dayes releases The Yussef Dayes Experience (Live from Malibu), featuring music from his critically acclaimed debut solo album, Black Classical Music. Dayes is joined by his longtime collaborators Rocco Palladino, Venna, Elijah Fox, and Alexander Bourt on the new release, which was originally shared as a live-performance video filmed in the Malibu mountains last year and is available on YouTube.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Istanbul
A2. Tioga Pass
A3. Tidal Wave
A4. Portrait Of Tracy

B1. Black Classical Music
B2. Malibu
B3. Mountain Steppa
B4. The Colour Purple

‘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

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Oooof, this is an absolute wealth of rich groove and the seamless pulling together of myriad influences from drummer and renowned London jazzer, Yussef Dayes. Filled with collaborative talent, 'Black Classical Music' manages to draw from a wealth of sound worlds without breaking step. Afrobeat, soul funk and jazz fans take note.

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 

Between poignant introspection and bold sonic exploration, Yasmine Hamdan returns with ‘I remember I forget بنسى وبتذكر ’, a free-spirited and vibrant new album where memory, identity and personal commitment intertwine with grace.

A trailblazer of Arabic indie electronic pop and a key figure in the underground music scene, Hamdan blurs the lines between traditional sounds, electronic textures and hypnotic melodies.

‘I remember I forget بنسى وبتذكر ’ delves into the turmoil of her native Lebanon through poetic, universal writing, enriched by prestigious collaborations and a constant dialogue between past and present.

Co-produced with Marc Collin (Nouvelle Vague), the album captures the very essence of Yasmine Hamdan: a singular voice at the crossroads of cultures, capable of making the personal and the political dance in the same breath.

From her early days with the duo Soapkills to her solo releases on Crammed Discs, and collaborations with the likes of Mirwais and Jim Jarmusch, Yasmine Hamdan has forged a unique path, acclaimed worldwide. With ‘I remember I forget بنسى وبتذكر ’, she delivers a powerful, timely work, crafted to stir both hearts and minds.

TRACK LISTING

Hon هون
Shmaali شمالي
Shadia شادية
The Beautiful Losers الحلوين
الخسرانين
I Remember I Forget بنسى
وبتذكر
Vows سبع صنايع
Abyss حويك وزويك
Mor مر التجني
DAYA ضياع 3
Reminiscence غروب

'The Crystal Hum' is the debut vinyl release by Taiwan-based artist Yuching Huang and her first release for Night School. A beguiling dreamscape of crackles, spluttering, love-struck Casios presided over by the the spectral vocal and guitar work of Huang, Yuching sings love songs at the end of this world and the beginning of the next. Recorded during a hiatus from her group Aemong (a duo with artist Henrique Uba) in Berlin, these songs elevate Huang’s unique vocal style and grasp of atmospherics. 'The Crystal Hum' deconstructs balladry, Garage, guitar music and reforms it into a unified ghostly otherworld version of these languages.

'The Crystal Hum' thrums with buried desire, trails of nocturnal reverb seeping out of apartment windows, diaristic vocal performances and deeply emotive, evocative Western-style strings. Formulated by Yuching Huang after periods of frustration and experimentation, the album is an exercise in minimalism and paring back, with some tracks like 'JohnJohn' featuring little else than an elastic bass, spring reverb trails, an interjecting vocal and swelling, dislocated synths. The effect is spellbinding, the soundtrack to getting lost in the labyrinthine, closed streets of Venice, Taipei, Hong Kong, or mirror versions of them in the imagination.

On opener 'Fly! Little Black Thing', a subterranean funk bassline roots Huang’s singing, a rudimentary, unreliable beat floundering in whimsy underneath. Demure, dream Dance music, Huang references classic lo fi experimenters Suicide and Arthur Russell as well as Night School label mates The Space Lady and Ela Orleans. In fact, after the release of Aemong’s third album 'Crimson', Huang credits the direction of 'The Crystal Hum' to being enchanted by The Space Lady’s Greatest Hits, the landmark lo-fi recording made by Susan Dietrich Schneider in 1990. The new, minimalist approach to her sound world reveals and shrouds in equal measure. On the heart-melter Love, a sultry mid-tempo Casio + bass backing drops into the ether with Huang’s vocal swimming in preternatural void before emerging anew, in awe at the world. Every chord change heralds new perspectives, every guitar flurry swells and drips emotion, nothing is wasted and space billows out from between the grooves.

Huang never reveals more than necessary, making this an in-between love album: the right amount of mystery and darkened mirror shines wanely on 'The Crystal Hum' while remaining fragile and vulnerable in the sweet spots. Turning over in pillowing smoke and night in the dark corners, Huang sings in both Mandarin and English. The songs speak of earthly matters seemingly at the edge of dissipating into nothing. Distorted, beguiling Sambas warble like sweating dancehalls in an imagined Lynchian 60s, as on Thoughts. Closer You, An Illusion warps a classic 60s Girlgroup bassline beloved of the likes of Les Rallizes Denudes into a slight ballad on the edge of the void, held back by the teary-eyed, wistful and enveloping vocal cooed by Huang. Each song feels like a love song dedicated to the bits between worlds, between beats, the negative space between people where desires, feelings and loss hangs in the air, resolute and unresolved.

TRACK LISTING

1. Fly! Little Black Thing
2. Love
3. Confessions From A Soul
4. Thoughts
5. Thunder In Heaven
6. In My Room
7. The Song Of Summer
8. JohnJohn
9. Alright
10. You, An Illusion

On his new album 'All Cylinders', Yves Jarvis expresses a brazen songcraft and pure musicianship. 11 tracks he played himself, without a single additional contributor, transforming his now four-time-Polaris-nominated vision into the stuff of verses and choruses, hooks and hits, vibrating like a cosmic anthropology. Whereas once he had fetishized analog tape, now Jarvis appreciated the value of working without any such preciousness: much of All Cylinders was recorded on bare-bones Audacity, sans plugins, channeling the spirit of Paul McCartney’s II.

Jarvis is an omnivore, and 'All Cylinders' smashes together a stunning array of influences: Serge Gainsbourg, Judee Sill, Sheryl Crow, Captain Beefheart, Jackson Browne, Throbbing Gristle, Ray Charles, Brian Eno, Fleetwood Mac… All distilled into tunes that feel like taking sips from a cup, or drags from a cigarette. Vivid and self-contained songs that are just two or three minutes long. “I feel like this is the least contrived thing I’ve ever done,” Jarvis declares. Lyrics that matter. Vocals up front, where people will actually hear them. “If something’s true to you,” he explains, “it’s probably true to a million other people.”

The first run of 'All Cylinders' on limited edition vinyl sold out, leading to this highly anticipated second pressing. This edition includes 4 bonus tracks, making it an essential piece for fans and collectors alike. Originally released via In Real Life to critical acclaim from Pitchfork, Financial Times, NPR, Aquarium Drunkard, Far Out Magazine, New Noise, Out Front, KCRW, RANGE, Atwood Magazine, The Luna Collective, Billboard Canada, The Fader, Blamo! Podcast, Stereogum, and Guitar World.

Pitchfork: https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/yves-jarvis-all-cylinders/

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Funky indie songcraft which draws comparisons from Shuggie Otis to Beck. Jarvis says this is his purist and most sincere body of work to date - just his vocals and his instruments, recorded into a simple DAW with very little outboard processing. You can hear the honesty and sentiment throughout.

TRACK LISTING

With A Grain
Gold Filigree
One Gripe
Decision Tree
Ive Been Mean
Im Your Boy
Warp And Woof
All Cylinders
The Knife In Me
Patina
Lucks Last Luster

The borders between London’s musical tribes have always been porous. For Yussef Kamaal, the sound of the capital – with its hum of jungle, grime and broken beat – has shaped a selftaught, UKtipped approach to playing jazz. In the states, the genre’s longrunning to-and-fro with hip hop – from Robert Glasper to Kamasi Washington – has reimagined it within US culture. On Black Focus, Yussef Kamaal frame jazz inside the basssaturated, pirate radio broadcasts of London.

Taking inspiration from the anything-goes spirit of ‘70s jazzfunk, on albums by Herbie Hancock or the Mahavishnu Orchestra, it’s a loose template with plenty of room to experiment. The pair, made up of Yussef Dayes and Kamaal Williams (aka Henry Wu), have had little in the way of formal training. Instead, their musical tastes – and approach to playing – are indebted to Thelonious Monk’s piano as much as the drum programming of Kaidi Tatham.

“It's all about the drums and the keys,” Williams says. “Not to take anything from anyone else, but that's where it all originates from: the chords, the rhythm of the chords and the drums.” Born out of a oneoff live session to perform Williams’ solo material for Boiler Room, it soon became a project in its own right. Coming together as Yussef Kamaal, they played a series of live shows where little more than a chord progression would be planned before taking to the
stage.

Bringing that unspoken understanding to the recording sessions (engineered by Malcolm Catto of The Heliocentrics), the unplanned, telepathically spawned grooves retain the raw energy of their live shows. “It's not so much about complete arrangement, it's more about flow,” Dayes says. “A lot of the tracks are just made spontaneously – Henry will be playing two chords, I'll fill in the groove and we'll just leave the arrangement naturally.” Both hail from South East London, crossing paths in 2007 as teenagers playing their first pub gigs around Peckham and Camberwell. Dayes drums for cosmicallyinclined, afrobeat outfit United Vibrations, while Williams – on top of drumming and playing keys in different incarnations over the years – has made waves with his solo, synthdraped house 12"s for muchfêted labels like 22a and Rhythm Section.

Moving in the same circles but never playing together previously, rhythm underpins an innate musical understanding. As Williams explains, “The way we approach it is all about the energy and the feeling. We just get in there and we feel it out.” Drawing influence from all corners of London’s shapeshifting musical makeup, the sound of Black Focus is distilled – or focused – down to the core interlock between drums and keys.

STAFF COMMENTS

David says: The purists might argue that this isn't strictly jazz, I'm happy to argue back. It might use elements of broken beat and house on its journey but jazz is the final destination.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Black Focus
A2. Strings Of Light
A3. Remembrance
B1. Yo Chavez
B2. Ayla
B3. O.G.
B4. Lowrider
B5. Mansur's Message
B6. WingTai Drums
B7. Joint 17

Cowboy Bebop (Soundtrack from the Netflix Original Series) is now available on vinyl! Yoko Kanno and the band SEATBELTS, the artists behind the music in the original anime series of Cowboy Bebop, have returned to bring their signature dynamic, jazzy sound to the Netflix live-action show. The resulting compositions are characters themselves - constant companions to the crew of the Bebop and brimming with just as much personality.

COWBOY BEBOP is an action-packed space Western about three bounty hunters, aka “cowboys,” all trying to outrun the past. Long on style and perpetually short on cash, bounty hunters Spike, Jet and Faye trawl the solar system looking for jobs. As the crew of the Bebop, they make up a ragtag team that chases down the galaxy's most dangerous criminals. They'll save the world... For the right price!

This release is a treat for Bebop fans in an additional way - it features over twenty new tracks only available on vinyl! This wide release is pressed on red marble vinyl discs in a gatefold jacket with printed inner sleeves. 

TRACK LISTING

A1. A Day In The Bebop*
A2. Kickin' Colt
A3. A Hole To The Universe*
A4. What Planet Is This??*
A5. Twilight*
A6. Weekend Ana*
A7. Julia's Song
A8. The Adventures Of Losers
B1. Rouge*
B2. Sleuthing Two*
B3. Suit And Tie*
B4. Funky Stuff
B5. Faye's Sky Fall*
B6. Time*
B7. IKA Pod*
B8. Net Rush
B9. Headphone*
B10. Ein*
B11. Waltz In High Socks
B12. Beans Be
C1. TANK!
C2. Cat Attack Part 1
C3. Dedicated To Sergio*
C4. Woodcock
C5. Rooftop Kung Fu
C6. Milky Cheat
C7. My Bean At 5*
C8. Blood Brothers
D1. Sad End Fad*
D2. Muddy Road*
D3. Lord Of The Empty
D4. Sushi Truck*
D5. Into Noir*
D6. The End Of Friendship*
D7. The Fate Of Three
D8. Earthland Entrance*
D9. El Rey Bar*
D10. Hello To Ya Blues*

*Vinyl Exclusive Track 

A private press rarity that few know of, ‘Song of Island’ was the third album from pianist Yasuhiro Kohno’s trio, recorded live at the jazz club and live house (gig venue) ‘Again’ in August 1985. Pressed up in small numbers, ‘Song for Island’ was issued on the private ASCAP Records, set up by pianist and band leader Yasuhiro Kohno. The album is a follow up to Kohno-san’s previous two albums, ‘Peace’ and ‘Roma in the Rain’, released on the cult Aketa’s Disk label. However, unlike the ‘Peace’ and ‘Roma in the Rain’ albums, ‘Song of Island’ has never been reissued before – until now. The title track was included on J Jazz volume 3. This is a very special album that captures a special time in Japanese jazz, when exemplary acoustic jazz was still being performed and recorded by dedicated and talented artists at the height of mid-80s synth pop. ‘Song of Island’ features four original compositions by Yasuhiro Kohno plus a distinctive take on a jazz standard. Yasuhiro Kohno was born in Nara, southern Japan, in 1953 and made his professional debut as a member of Japanese rocker Eikichi Yazawa's band before going on to accompany actor/singer Masatoshi Nakamura. As well as recording and performing under his own name, Kohno has also played with American musicians such as Richard Davis and Mal Waldron and continues to perform regularly in Japan. ‘Song of Island’ will be issued as a full reproduction of the original work, with inserts, translated original sleeve notes, plus new sleeve notes, photos, and interview with Yasuhiro Kohno by Tony Higgins.

TRACK LISTING

1. Song Of Island
2. Time For Peace
3. Love For Sale
4. Mr Nilson
5. Village Festival

Yazmin Lacey returns with 'Teal Dreams' - her soulful, fearless second album, rich with real-life storytelling and sonic flair.

Following the breakout success of her debut album 'Voice Notes', praised by Billboard, Fader and Pitchfork (who likened her to Erykah Badu and Lauryn Hill), Yazmin’s star continues to rise. Last year saw her headline London’s Village Underground and KOKO, as well as perform with Ezra Collective on Strictly Come Dancing and Radio 1’s Live Lounge, the unforgettable voice behind firm festival favourite 'God Gave Me Feet for Dancing'.

With 'Teal Dreams', she builds on her signature sound blending soul, ska, lover’s rock and indie into a vivid, emotionally sharp record shaped by real life, late-night reflections, and a last-minute trip to Thailand.

Collaborating with some of the best in class Miles Clinton James (Little Simz ‘Lotus’), Barney Lister, Matt Maltese and more, Yazmin has expanded and elevated her sound on this album. 'Teal Dreams' is a bold, honest evolution, and proof that Yazmin Lacey is only just getting started. 

TRACK LISTING

1. Teal Dreams
2. Two Steps
3. Wallpaper
4. Love Is Like The Ghetto
5. Worlds Apart
6. Rear View
7. Grace (Reflective Dub)
8. No Promises
9. Wild Things
10. Ain’t I Good For You
11. Crutch
12. Ribbons
13. Water
14. Longest Way Around

Born and raised in Manor Park, East London, she relocated to Nottingham whilst working for a children's charity and initially only considered making music as a way of having fun with friends. However, a chance encounter lead to her earning a place on Future Bubblers - Gilles Peterson's development programme devoted to discovering and nurturing fresh UK talent - and enthused by the experience, Lacey recorded some songs in her living room, then in 2017 self-released her debut EP, 'Black Moon'. The more polished 'When The Sun Dips 90 Degrees' EP followed in 2018, and then 'Morning Matters' EP in 2020 – the EP's title track has clocked up over 14 million plays on Spotify and also saw Yazmin make her COLORS debut performing 'On Your Own'.

TRACK LISTING

Flylo Tweet
Bad Company
Late Night People
Fools Gold
Where Did You Go?
Sign & Signal
From A Lover
Eye To Eye
Pieces
Pass It Back
Tomorrows Child
Match In My Pocket
Legacy
Sea Glass

Yazmin Lacey emerged onto the new jazz scene with her beautiful sound, her new release When the Sun Dips 90 Degrees is on First Word Records.The EP follows on from her two recent singles, '90 Degrees' and 'Something My Heart Trusts', both of which are included here, along with three previously unreleased tracks, 'Heaven', 'Body Needs Healing' and 'Burn & Rise'. This set illustrates again Yazmin's candid songwriting delivered in her uniquely laidback soulful style, whilst a glorious fusion of neo-soul and jazz performed by Pete Beardsworth and her trusty band rides throughout. Initially a Brownswood 'Future Bubbler' graduate, Yazmin self-released her debut EP, 'Black Moon', last year. This lead to a Maida Vale session late 2017 with Jordan Rakei, Moses Boyd, Oscar Jerome and now label-mates, Children of Zeus. She kicked off the year with a performance at the Worldwide Awards with Skinny Pelembe, and has recently done shows with artists such as Ezra Collective, Tall Black Guy and Fatima. Yazmin has a UK tour scheduled for later in the year, as well as several festival appearances across Europe locked in. There's a lot more to come from this Notts-based Londoner yet. In Yazmin's words: "'90 Degrees' is about that time of the day / night when there's a shift in pace and energy. When you decide to lock off from the 'outside' world and create your own atmosphere, take some time to give thanks for what's breathing love into your life and smoke off the fuckeries. Everyone needs a little routine for self preservation."

STAFF COMMENTS

Millie says: Beautifully warm vocals layered on top of relaxed neo-soul vibes and jazz elements has created this perfect sound that I’ve fallen in love with.

TRACK LISTING

1.  90 Degrees
2.  Something My Heart Trusts
3.  Burn & Rise
4.  Heaven
5.  Body Needs Healing 

This excellent 1965 album from the always versatile Yusef Lateef runs the gamut musically, from the Coltrane influenced “Semi-Octo” to soulful reads of standards from Hammerstein/Kern, Fats Waller and Erik Satie, and a beautifully rendered original ‘Bamboo Flute Blues’. This Verve By Request title is pressed on 180-gram vinyl at Third Man in Detroit.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. Psychicemotus
2. Flute Blues
3. Semiocto
4. Why Do I Love You?
Side B
5. First Gymnopedie
6. Medula Sonata
7. I’ll Always Be In Love With You
8. Ain’t Misbehavin’

Directed by Isao Takahata, 'Grave of the Fireflies' is now available on vinyl! It's a collection of music from the film's original soundtrack, along with some dialogue and sound effects from the film. Completely remastered with a complete overhaul of the cover, 1 obi, and 16-page booklet with commentary, score, excerpts from the script, and more.

TRACK LISTING

1. Drama
2. Setsuko And Seita ~ Main Title
3. Burned Field
4. Mother's Death
5. Grave Of Fireflies Early Summer
6. By The Pond
7. To The Sea
8. Beach
9. Parasol
10. Drama
11. Under The Cherry Blossoms
12. Drops
13. Moving
14. Brothers
15. Firefly
16. Grave Of Fireflies Grave Of Fireflies
17. Sunset
18. Shura
19. Elegy
20. Futari ~ End Title\"

There’s a fury at the core of Yoko Ono’s 1973 rock opus ‘Approximately Infinite Universe’ that was not apparent on previously recorded efforts. Ono has always been a master of turning pain and sadness into art but here there’s a clenched-fist intensity that sets it apart in her deep, unparalleled catalogue.

Ono is angry. She proved that one can carry a boundless love for humanity and still be furious - furious at male/female relationships, at war, at your partner. Meanwhile, on a sonic level, Ono ups the ante on the more centred rock & roll sounds she approached with 1971’s ‘Fly’.

The album is one of the most traditional-sounding rock chapters in Ono’s sprawling catalogue. There are moments here that absolutely rival Jersey legends the E Street Band, though of course Ono’s vision leads her band down darker, more mystical paths than the E Street Band ever dared tread.

‘Approximately Infinite Universe’ is an essential and progressive piece of Ono’s output, both in the advancements she made as a songwriter/conceptualist and as a solidified statement of her staunch feminist role within the very male-dominated mainstream rock ghetto of the mid-1970s.

TRACK LISTING

Yang Yang
Death Of Samantha
I Want My Love To Rest Tonight
What Did I Do!
Have You Seen A Horizon Lately
Approximately Infinite Universe
Peter The Dealer
Song For John
Catman (The Rosies Are Coming)
What A Bastard The World Is
Waiting For The Sunrise
I Felt Like Smashing My Face In A Clear Glass Window
Winter Song
Kite Song
What A Mess
Shiranakatta (I Didn’t Know)
Air Talk
I Have A Woman Inside My Soul
Move On Fast
Now Or Never
Is Winter Here To Stay?
Looking Over From My Hotel Window

If you’ve listened to ‘Feeling The Space’, Yoko Ono’s personalis- political 1973 album, it should come as no surprise that the once-reviled artist is inspiring a new generation of activists in 2017.

On such songs as the righteous chant ‘Woman Power’, the empathetic ballad ‘Angry Young Woman’, the hilarious protogrrrl ‘Potbelly Rocker’ and the satirical ‘Men, Men, Men’, Yoko sings in surprisingly straightforward fashion about the burdens carried by women and the mandate for feminism.

Supported by such skilled studio vets as guitarist David Spinozza, sax player Michael Brecker and drummer Jim Keltner, this is perhaps Yoko’s most accessible album and her most intimate.

‘Feeling The Space’ was recorded during the time when the avant-garde visionary artist became estranged from her rock star husband John Lennon. He plays only briefly on the album (billed as Johnny O’Cean); she produced and wrote all the songs. The result is a definitive soundtrack / document of the era of consciousness raising and of radical critique of the family structure. Yoko and company deliver this hard message soft rock style, or as soft as Yoko could get. Yoko was on the front lines of the women’s liberation movement.

Dedicated “to the sisters who died in pain and sorrow and those who are now in prisons and in mental hospitals for being unable to survive in the male society,” it’s an emotional exploration of the psychological toll of oppression.

Available again for the first time in decades.

TRACK LISTING

Growing Pain
Yellow Girl (Stand By For Life)
Coffin Car
Woman Of Salem
Run, Run, Run
If Only
A Thousand Times Yes
Straight Talk
Angry Young Woman
She Hits Back
Woman Power
Men, Men, Men

What you hear on ‘Fly’ is Yoko Ono’s disarming combination of opacity and visceral, personal transparency in full bloom. It’s one of the most unbridled, most captivating soul albums ever made. And that’s right where she wants you: vulnerable, wide open to any-andeverything, ready to have your world tipped onto its head. She’s a master of spinning your head around.

First, you get the Bar Band from Hell of ‘Midsummer New York’ to kick things off. It’s about the last thing you’d expect from Ono coming off Plastic Ono Band.

At 16-minute-plus, the tranced-out, motorik-inspired boogie ‘Mind Train’ is rough-and-ready for your next basement get down.

Then we have the absolutely gutting blues of ‘Don’t Worry, Kyoko (Mummy’s Only Looking For Her Hand In The Snow)’. Full of ache and raw emotion, the song is a love note, a plea for forgiveness, to her estranged daughter Kyoko shot across the universe on a flaming arrow.

Ono follows this stampede of emotion with the selfreferential torch song ‘Mrs. Lennon’, a wounded song that gets right into the Universal Loneliness.

Available again for the first time in decades.

TRACK LISTING

Midsummer New York
Mind Train
Mind Holes
Don’t Worry Kyoko (Mummy’s Only Looking For Her Hand In The Snow)
Mrs. Lennon
Hirake
Toilet Piece / Unknown
O’Wind (Body Is The Scar Of Your Mind)
Airmale
Don’t Count The Waves
You
Fly
Telephone Piece

This long-overdue vinyl reissue of Yoko Ono’s seminal but massively under-appreciated ‘Plastic Ono Band’ has all the makings of a classic rock nostalgia trip: Ono, John Lennon, Ringo Starr, Klaus Voorman and free-jazz legend Ornette Coleman. All the pieces are here to stir up a dangerous amount of nostalgia but once the needle drops the record achieves something exactly perpendicular to nostalgia.

Released in 1971, the album not only influenced the approach of other musicians for decades, it also sounds absolutely modern 44 years out, eternally fresh despite the forward march of time.

‘Plastic Ono Band’ not only predicted the intersection of the avant-garde and rock that would take place in the second half of that decade, the album would sound right at home at where that intersection is happening today.

TRACK LISTING

Why
Why Not
Greenfield Morning I Pushed An Empty Baby Carriage All Over The City
AOS
Touch Me
Paper Shoes

Following twenty albums over 50 years, Yoko Ono's Warzone is strikingly different from any record she has made previously, but it is also strikingly different from any album that anyone is making...

Yoko revisits and reimagines 13 songs from her past work, spanning 1970-2009, the lyrics and messages still pertinent—perhaps even more pertinent—in 2018. "The world is so messed up. Things are very difficult for everybody. It's a warzone that we are living in..." says Ono. "I like to create things in a new way. Every day things change."

The recordings and arrangements on Warzone are very stripped down, with a particular emphasis on Yoko's voice and lyrics. Here in this minimalist landscape the content of her message rings clear and unencumbered; sometimes somber warnings, sometimes uplifting encouragement, but her wisdom and fortitude are unflinchingly strong, her power having intensified with time and life experience. She ends the ominous questions of "Now Or Never" (1971) with one of her most famous and inspiring lines: "[a] Dream you dream alone is only a dream, but dream we dream together is reality."

Warzone further builds the legacy of an artist unparalleled in her unique and singular vision. At 85 years young, Ono is already plotting her next album... It is not too late to change the world. We need Yoko now more than ever.

TRACK LISTING

1 Warzone
2 Hell In Paradise
3 Now Or Never
4 Where Do We Go From Here
5 Woman Power
6 It?s Gonna Rain
7 Why
8 Children Power
9 I Love All Of Me
10 Teddy Bear
11 I?m Alive
12 I Love You Earth
13 Imagine 

From Fluxus and performance-art pioneer and Two Virgins to chart-topping dance-music heroine(inspiring punk rock along the way), Yoko Ono has been an innovative and influential force on music and art, while simultaneously campaigning for peace on the world's stage. At 76 years young, Yoko continues to kick ass. "Between My Head And The Sky", a career-defining album made with her new Plastic Ono Band. The record is a gorgeous, mind-melting blend of styles, restating and sharpening themes while plunging into the always-mysterious future. Band includes Keigo 'Cornelius' Oyamada and his band members Yuko Araki and Shimmy Shimizu, Sean Lennon, Yuka Honda (of Cibo Matto) as well as NYC improvisers Erik Friedlander, Shahzad Ismaily, Michael Leonhart, Daniel Carter and Indigo Street. Raw rockers, electronic pulse glimmers, dark late-night improvisations and heart-breaking elegiac ballads- Yoko takes a variety of textual approaches on this beautifully balanced collection of work. A career-defining album by one of contemporary culture's reigning geniuses.

MANIMAL GROUP is excited to announce the sequel to YOKO ONO’S critically acclaimed 2007 collaboration record Yes, I’m A Witch (Astralwerks).

'Yes, I’m A Witch Too' features new collaborations and remixes pairing ONO with Death Cab For Cutie, Peter, Bjorn and John, Sparks, tUnE-yArDs, MiikeSnow, Cibo Matto, Portugal The Man and more. 

TRACK LISTING

1: Walking On Thin Ice
2: Forgive Me My Love
3: Mrs. Lennon
4: Give Me Something
5: She Gets Down On Her Knees
6: Dogtown
7: Wouldnit
8: Move On Fast
9: Soul Got Out Of The Box
10: Approxmately Infinite Universe
11: Yes, I'm Your Angel
12: Warrior Woman
13: Coffin Car
14: I Have A Woman Inside My Soul
15: Catman
16: No Bed For Beatle John
17: Hell In Paradise 

On Gut Buster, Yosa Peit spawns fleshy sonic escapades, a swarm of vigorously processed vocals and soulful bass, set to a backdrop of visceral percussive structures. Full of roguish curiosity, the record is cast with an air of lo-fi experimentation, but with a platinum glint of pop sensibility. Peit’s second album grapples with the destructive force of modern consumption, Gut Buster is an anti-capitalist battle cry that syntheses intimacy and hostility; a surrealist-punk affirmation and a testament to Peit’s singular vision and unique approach.

The free-ranging sound of Yosa Peit recalls the intense arrangements of a cyber-era Prince with the surrealist tones of Arthur Russell and early Björk. At the album’s core, “World Eaters” unleashes scorching guitars in search of humankind’s end, “I was born on a planet, I got hungry and I ate it.”

Even in the face of planetary doom and personal obstacles, Yosa evokes our propensity for mischief, humor and pleasure. “bb moon” processes sound solely from her bass into wicked oblivion. “CALL ME,” a song about friendship, chews up it’s anthemic melody into a gnarled strut worthy of an A$AP Rocky production, while “HAD3S” urges us to find balance, nodding to the mystical fuzz of Prince. Yosa’s work has been called “personal, punk, poignant, deep” yet her genre-defying production, as textured as it is catchy, escapes definition.

Gut Buster takes that collective playground for creation to planetary reaches, congregating friends from Berlin, Cologne, and New York’s fuzzy musical underbelly: Employee, Funkycan, Gerry Franke, Glenn Astro, Nauker, Paingel, Tbz, and UCC Harlo. The record was mixed by Brainfeeder affiliate Benjamin Vukelic in Portland and Jan Brauer in Berlin.

“Glitchy yet supple, the broken beats and warped abstractions are wholly unpredictable yet deliciously odd, like an esoteric mashup of Bjork, Aphex and Laurie Anderson” Electronic Sound.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
A1 Twixx
A2 Had3s
A3 Tower Flower
A4 Dnuora Kool
A5 Shelly
A6 Call Me
Side B
B1 World Eaters
B2 Aol Slyt
B3 Bb Moon
B4 Nbp
B5 Alma
B6 Portimao
B7 Look Around
B8 Pepper Plane
B9 Gut Is God (Gate Of Discord)

Debut from genre-defying producer, Yosa Peit. Laurie Anderson meets Bjork; Prince overlapped with Arthur Russell and the hum of Blue Velvet, with jarred and splintered ambient production reminiscent of Aphex Twin. ‘Phyton’ gets a special expanded edition via Fire Records, featuring unreleased tracks; ‘Tyrann’, a live version of the haunting album track ‘Serpentine’ and end of the night lament, ‘Rise’.

‘Phyton’ is a conundrum with its own humour and beauty amid the electronica soundtracking; it’s a record that’s defied genre categories when first released on Tax Free Records two years ago. Yosa’s ascension from singer to producer is now complete.

“In my head I was making a movie,” Yosa told No Wave magazine, “I dreamed up a Coen Brothers’ movie scene for a few tracks.” The result is a haunting, provocative sound; a soundscape where songs merge and splinter, a trip that’s never predictable.

"The production is super fresh" Holly Herndon.

“Warped lo-fi meets glitchy electronica and pop” The Vinyl Factory.

TRACK LISTING

A1 Precious Lies
A2 Serpentine
A3 Anthy
A4 Curls
A5 Leaf I
B1 Serious People Chuckle
B2 Elephant
B3 Leaf II
B4 Lin
B5 New Stars
B6 Palm Tree Antenna
B7 Tyrann

Download Extras:
1. Serpentine (Live Bonus)
2. Rise (Bonus)

Wewantsounds is delighted to continue its Yoshiko Sai reissue program with the release of "Mikkou", the Japanese singer-songwriter's 2nd album released in 1976 on Black Records. The album, produced by ace arranger Isamu Haruna, keeps the same formula as "Mangekyou" with Yoshiko Sai's beautiful songs and dreamy vocals over cool funky arrangements, this time featuring legendary guitarist Masayoshi Takanaka. This is the first time "Mikkou" is widely available outside of Japan, with remastered audio, original artwork and a 4 page insert including new liner notes by Hashim Kotaro Bharoocha who interviewed Yoshiko Sai for this special occasion.

TRACK LISTING

1. Theme ～ Kaasama No Uta
2. Kagami Jigoku
3. Haru
4. Kinu No Michi
5. Hito No Inai Shima
6. Nemuri No Kuni
7. Tenshi No Youni
8. Hyouryuu Sen
9. Mikkou

Following the release of his widely regarded solo classic Kakashi, from 1982, and the otherworldly Utakata No Hibi, by Mariah in 1983, he went into the studio the following year with frequent collaborators, producer Aki Ikuta and Morio Watanabe (bassist of Mariah), to record a mystifying collection of experimental dance music.

Utilizing cutting-edge technology and studio trickery, Kiren showcases Shimizu's trademark playfulness, marrying richly layered production techniques to off-kilter, sometimes traditional sounding rhythms and melodies. Unreleased until now, Kiren represents an important period of Shimizu's artistic expression, an artist at his peak, while successfully exploring the intersections of fusion, synthpop, new wave, and jazz.

By contextualizing the lyrics, reevaluating Ocean’s post-album release festival run, and presenting new information about the songs’ production, the book decodes the enigma that is Blonde. Frank Ocean’s Blonde is a contemporary classic. Sandwiched between Elvis Presley and the Sex Pistols at #79 on Rolling Stones’ 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list, Blonde defined a generation in the almost nine years since its release.

Yet, the album is still a mystery to so many. Besides a handful of interviews, a hefty 360-page zine titled Boys Don’t Cry, and Tumblr posts from around the time of the album’s release, Frank Ocean has distanced himself as much as possible from the album and the conversations involving it. It is one of the seminal works in the 2010s Afrofuturism revival, which this book highlights by pointing at the role of modern technology in society, including a dialogue about its misgivings and its ability to manipulate time, memory, and emotions.

It spotlights the summer leading up to the album, the album’s release, a track-by-track rundown illustrating the album’s narrative, along with a discussion about its lasting cultural impact. This is a man who headlined Coachella 2023 despite releasing only ten singles and no album in the eight years prior. How did he manage to maintain such a prophetic status for all those years? The answer is simple: Blonde.

An exquisite collection of standards performed by two maestros. At long last, the highly anticipated analog edition is here!

A dignified and beautiful dialogue unfolds between two living legends of the Japanese jazz scene. The swinging, bluesy touch of Tsuyoshi Yamamoto is grounded by Yoshio Suzuki’s powerful groove. Together, these two masters - each with a sound uniquely their own - deliver a supreme musical experience.

Limited Japanese import with Obi strip. 

TRACK LISTING

A1. The Loving Touch
A2. Softly As In A Morning Sunrise
A3. Blues For Edith
A4. Cleopatra's Dream
B1. Misty
B2. Summertime
B3. Last Tango In Paris

THIS IS A RECORD STORE DAY 2014 EXCLUSIVE, LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.

RSD 2014 exclusive - RED vinyl pressing limited to 500 copies only

Mambo was the must-have Yma Sumac record...the one that led to her rediscovery by ad agencies and movie music supervisors.

TRACK LISTING

Bo Mambo
Taki Rari
Gopher
Chicken Talk
Goomba Boomba
Malambo #1
Five Bottles Mambo
Indian Carnival
Cha Cha Gitano
Jungla
Carnavalito Boliviano Mambo And More

Wewantsounds is delighted to announce the release of Yukihiro Takahashi's debut solo album 'Saravah!'. One of the key Japanese albums of the 70s, it was released in 1978 at a key time when, following his tenure with Sadistic Mika Band, Yukihiro Takahashi had just joined the nascent line up of Yellow Magic Orchestra. A sophisticated mix of Disco Funk, synth Pop, Ambient, French Exotica and Bossa Nova, the album has the stylish feel of a night out clubbing in Paris circa 1978. It is the missing link between the City Pop scene of the late 70s and the synth sound of YMO which was about to revolutionise the world. Newly remastered by renowned engineer Mitsuo Koike, the LP features original artwork with photos by Masayoshi Sukita (David Bowie's Heroes), a 4-page insert and a new Introduction by Benjamin Barouh (Saravah Records).

TRACK LISTING

1. Volare (Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu
2. Saravah!
3. C'est Si Bon
4. La Rosa
5. Mood Indigo
6. Elastic Dummy
7. Sunset
8. Back Street Midnight Queen
9. Present

‘∞’ (Infinity) is the follow up to 2011’s ‘Skyline’, which was described by Mojo as “life affirming”, by Clash as a “remarkable musical talent” and in Drowned in Sound’s 8 star review as “euphoric”.

Conceived in Iceland, where work began on the album, and in Ushant Island, Brittany. The album was produced by Yann Tiersen and mixed by Gareth Jones with Yann Tiersen and Daniel Miller.

For this album Tiersen has worked with native language speakers to include tracks sung and spoken in Breton (‘Ar Maen Bihan’), Faroese (‘Grønjørd’) and Icelandic (‘Steinn’). ‘Ar Maen Bihan’ is a story written by Emilie Quinquis in the Breton language, and was then translated by Amiina to Icelandic to create the track ‘Steinn’. Elsewhere on the album Aidan Moffat (Arab Strap) and Ólavur Jákupsson (a member of Tiersen’s live band) both contributed tracks on the same theme - stones - Moffat’s in English and Jákupsson’s in Faroese.

Hailing from Brittany, Yann Tiersen is one of the most revered artists of his generation, with a reputation first established by his studio albums (which included 1997’s ‘Cascade Street’, 1998’s ‘The Lighthouse’ and 2005’s ‘Les Retrouvailles’). The early albums were combined and used for the ‘Amelie’ soundtrack (2001), earning him global recognition. Recent Mute albums ‘Dust Lane’ (2010) and ‘Skyline’ (2011) has seen his prominence build, along with projects such as the recent live score to the Fantômas series which he curated at the Théâtre de Châtelet with guests Tim Hecker, James Blackshaw, Loney Dear and Amiina.

Ten tracks. Ten locations. Ten field recordings. One piano.

Eusa, the brand new album from Yann Tiersen comprises 10 new solo piano pieces, each relating to a specific location on the island of Ushant off the coast of Brittany (‘Eusa’ in Breton), where Tiersen lives.

The album, recorded in Studio 1 at Abbey Road features Yann on piano accompanied by field recordings from the exact spot referred to in the piece of music. Between each piece we hear the sounds of the island, and Tiersen’s improvisations that are all titled ‘Hent’. Hent translates from Breton to English as Path – Tiersen is leading the listener across the landscape to the new location.

Eusa is the album fans have been waiting for and sees Yann return to the piano and the music the world fell in love with on the soundtrack to Jean-Pierre Jeunot’s 2001 movie Amélie.

Yann Tiersen presents his brand new album ‘11 5 18 2 5 18’ via Mute. Reprogrammed, resampled and reimagined, ‘11 5 18 2 5 18’ is a collection of 9 tracks that serve as a translation of Tiersen’s live show, taking songs from his 2021 release ‘Kerber’ plus additional tracks from his catalogue, completely restructured to present a brand new album.

"ALL" is the first album to be recorded at Tiersen’s new studio, venue and community centre, The Eskal, built in an abandoned discotheque on the island of Ushant, a small island positioned in the Celtic sea between Brittany and Cornwall, Tiersen’s home for the past 10 years. The album, mixed and co-produced by Gareth Jones, continues the themes of environment and a connection to nature first explored on EUSA, incorporating recordings from outside of Brittany, such as the redwood forests of California as well as field recordings from Tempelhof airport in Berlin (on ‘Tempelhof’), plus guest vocalists.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Since the Amelié soundtrack, i've been in love with Tiersen's work, and this is most certainly the culmination of all of his previous works. It's a stunningly delicate, but beautifully emotive collection, more classically focused than Arnalds or Frahm but as tender as either (i'm not throwing shade here, i'm mad for a good pianist). Beautiful.

TRACK LISTING

Tempelhof
Koad (Wood)
Erc’h (Anow)
Usal Road
Pell (Far)
Bloavezhioù (Years)
Heol (Sun)
Gwennilied (Swallows)
Aon (Fear)
Prad (Meadow)
Beure Kentañ (First Morning)

Yann Tiersen has sold hundreds of thousands of records worlds wide and even more soundtracks. Since 2009 he has been focused on playing live, with 270 shows spread over three world tours, which touched every continent. This Autumn Tiersen returns home and is releasing four beautifully re-mastered editions of his first four albums; La Valse Des Monstres (1995), Rue Des Cascades (1996), Le Phare (1998) et (Tout Est Calme 1999).

With his whimsical, melancholy music, Yann Tiersen has become a sought-after composer, not only for his soundtrack work, but in his own right. Borrowing from French folk music, chanson, musette waltz and street music, as well as rock, avant-garde, and classical and minimalist influences, Tiersen's deceptively simple style has been likened to Chopin, Erik Satie, Philip Glass, and Michael Nyman. Tiersen became popular outside his native country for his score to Jean-Pierre Jeunet's film Amélie, but this was no over night successes. He had been working for years before the film's success brought him international acclaim.

Tiersen was also composing soundtracks for short films and accompaniment for plays. Several of these pieces ended up on his first album, Valse des Monstres, in 1995 and introduced his delicate but deeply emotional style, and which also featured intricate arrangements incorporating instruments as varied as toy piano, banjo, harpsichord, melodica, and carillon, as well as piano and guitar. If Valse des Monstres and its follow-up, 1996's Rue Des Cascades, were intial slow burners Tiersen’s third album, 1998's La Phare, met a different fate; its single, "Monochrome," which was sung by French pop star Dominique A., was a radio hit and propelled the album, and Tiersen, to mainstream success in France. As Tiersen's acclaim grew, so did the scope of his records. That year's Black Sessions -- a live album of a radio performance -- featured collaborations with Dominique A. and the Divine Comedy's Neil Hannon, as well bands like Les Têtes Raides and the Married Monk, who also appeared on 1999's more the rock-oriented album Tout Est Calme. Soon after, Tiersen was preparing his next album when he was contacted by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, who wanted Tiersen to score his next movie, Amélie. Jeunet had heard Tiersen's music while driving and had been so taken with it that he bought all of Tiersen's albums. His Amelie score featured new and old compositions, and the film's success spun off to Tiersen's music. 

TRACK LISTING

1/ J'y Suis Jamais Allé
2/ Rue Des Cascades
3/ Pas Si Simple
4/ Comptine D'été N°2
5/ Comptine D'été N°3
6/ Déjà Loin
7/ La Chambre
8/ Mouvement Introductif
9/ La Muette
10/ Noami
11/ Soir De Fête
12/ Le Vieux En Veut Encore
13/ Toujours Là
14/ C'était Ici
15/ Prière N°2
16/ Comptine N°1
17/ La Fenêtre
18/ Prière N°3
19/ La Pièce Vide
20/ La Vie Quotidienne

‘Kerber’, the new album from Yann Tiersen, is a beautifully textured, highly immersive and thoughtfully constructed piano based album fused with electronic music. Piercing piano keys merge with swirling soundscapes, as Tiersen explores the possibilities of infinite smallness. The album was created and recorded at The Eskal, the studio he built on Ushant (the island where he lives), and ‘Kerber’ is named after a chapel in a small village on the island while each track sonically maps the landscape that surrounds Tiersen’s home. 

TRACK LISTING

1 Kerlann
2 Ar Maner Kozh
3 Kerdrall
4 Ker Yegu
5 Ker Al Loch
6 Kerber
7 Poull Bojer

Yann Tiersen presents the final piece of the Kerber project, Kerber Complete; a CD box set including a brand new Solo Piano version of Kerber, the original album, Kerber Remixes with bonus material, and Tiersen’s live translation of Kerber, 11 5 18 2 5 18.

Kerber was initially released in 2021 and was very much a new chapter in the Breton artist’s work. Although there is piano at the core, the album was the most overtly electronic material he had presented to date. It was recorded in The Eskal, the studio he built on Ushant where he lives, and was named after a Chapel in a small village on the island. This was followed up by Kerber Remixes (a 12” of remixes from Terence Fixmer, Beatrice Dillon, Laurel Halo, Iku Sakan and remix competition winners) and 11 5 18 2 5 18 (a record of reprogrammed, resampled and reimagined tracks from Kerber and additional tracks from his catalogue that serves as the perfect insight into Tiersen’s live interpretation of the original album).

This CD box set exhibits the full evolution of the Kerber story, moving from its origins of stripped back piano into its electronic resolution, 11 5 18 2 5 18. It also see Kerber Remixes available for the first time on CD, featuring a new Terence Fixmer remix of ‘Ker al Loch’, a variety of Yann Tiersen’s remixes of tracks by NEU!, Keeley Forsyth, Michael Price, and Simon Fisher Turner and Edmund de Waal, as well as a brand new song titled ‘Nivlenn’. 

TRACK LISTING

CD1 Kerber (Solo Piano)
1 Kerlann (Solo Piano)
2 Ar Maner Kozh (Solo Piano)
3 Kerdrall (Solo Piano)
4 Ker Yegu (Solo Piano)
5 Ker Al Loch (Solo Piano)
6 Kerber (Solo Piano)
7 Poull Bojer (Solo Piano)

CD2 Kerber
1 Kerlann
2 Ar Maner Kozh
3 Kerdrall
4 Ker Yegu
5 Ker Al Loch
6 Kerber
7 Poull Bojer

CD3 Kerber Remixes
1 Nivlenn
2 Ker Al Loch (Terence Fixmer Remix 2, Edit)
3 Lieber Honig (Yann Tiersen Remix)
4 Ker Al Loch (Beatrice Dillon Remix)
5 Ker Al Loch (Sote Remix)
6 Wash (Yann Tiersen Remix)
7 Kerlann (Laurel Halo Remix)
8 Ker Yegu (Iku Sakan Remix)
9 The Anatomy Of Clouds (Yann Tiersen Remix)
10 A Quiet Corner In Time (Yann Tiersen Remix)

CD4 11 5 18 2 5 18
1 11 5 18 2 5 18
2 11 5 18. 1 12. 12 15 3 8
3 1 18. 13 1 14 5 18. 11 15 26 8
4 16 1 12 5 19 20 9 14 5
5 3 8 1 16 20 5 18. 14 9 14 5 20 5 5 14
6 11 5 18 12 1 14 14
7 11 5 18. 25 5 7 21
8 16 15 21 12 12. 2 15 10 5 18
9 13 1 18 25 (6 5 1 20. 17 21 9 14 17 21 9 19)

Portrait. A collection of brand-new analogue recreations of songs from throughout Yann Tiersen’s career - 25 tracks including 3 new songs. Recorded in Yann’s home studio in Ushant with an array of collaborators. Features 3 tracks originally featured on the Amelie From Montmartre soundtrack including Yann’s signature tune, ‘Comptined’UnAutreÉté (L’Après-Midi)’. Includes collaborations with John Grant, Gruff Rhys (Super Furry Animals), Blonde Redhead and Stephen O’Malley from Sunn O)))

All vinyl editions will be packaged with an exclusive 7” single including alternative versions of ‘Comptined’UnAutreÉté (L’ Après-Midi)’ from the Amelie From Montmartresoundtrack and the title track from his debut album, Waltz of the Monsters. These versions will be exclusive to the vinyl and not available anywhere else.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: One of the most legendary voices in modern classical and sountrackery (who could forget the 2001's 'Amélie'?) joins us with his most recent outing, a revisiting of some of his most unforgettable moments, and joined by some of the most important voices in modern music (John Grant, Stephen O'Malley of Sunn, Blonde Redhead etc.) a stunning collection, and yet more proof Tiersen stands as the figurehead he does today.

TRACK LISTING

A1 Introductory Movement (Feat. Stephen O’Malley)
A2 The Long Road
A3 Monochrome (Feat. Gruff Rhys)
A4 Chapter 19
B1 Rue Des Cascades
B2 The Old Man Still Wants It
B3 Gwennilied (Feat. Emilie Tiersen)
B4 Prad (Feat. Stephen O’Malley)
C1 Diouz An Noz (Feat. Emilie Tiersen&ÓlavurJákupsson)
C2 PorzGoret
C3 La Dispute
C4 Pell (Feat. Emilie Tiersen)
D1 Erc’h (Feat. ÓlavurJákupsson)
D2 The Wire (Sur Le Fil)
D3 The Waltz Of The Monsters
D4 Closer (Feat. Blonde Redhead)
E1 Naval
E2 The Jetty
E3 Koad (Feat. ÓlavurJákupsson)
E4 Prayer No.2
E5 Gronjord (Feat. ÓlavurJákupsson)
F1 Kala (Feat. ÓlavurJákupsson)
F2 Comptined’UnAutreÉté (L’Après-Midi)
F3 Tempelhof (Part 2)
F4 Thinking Like A Mountain (Feat. John Grant & Stephen O’Malley)
G1 Comptined’UnAutreÉté (L’Après-Midi) [Harpsichord Version]
H1 The Waltz Of The Monsters [Harpsichord Version]

Yann Tiersen unveils his latest two-part album, ‘Rathlin from a Distance | The Liquid Hour’, released via Mute.

‘Rathlin from a Distance | The Liquid Hour’ is an album divided into two distinct, interconnected parts, each with its own unique sonic characteristics: ‘Rathlin from a Distance’ is eight tracks of introspective instrumental piano, ‘The Liquid Hour’ is an expansive, genre-defying blend of electronic synthesis and dynamic psychedelic rhythms.

‘Rathlin from a Distance’ - named after an island in Northern Ireland - features eight instrumental piano pieces, each named after a location Tiersen visited during his 2023 sailing tour. From the Atlantic’s Fastnet Lighthouse to the Faroe Islands, Shetland and the tranquil waters of the Caledonian Canal in Scotland, these tracks reflect a journey of self-discovery and self. Tiersen’s piano work creates an almost hypnotic atmosphere, each stop on the journey marking a deeper level of consciousness. The music evokes a sense of space, introspection, and quiet contemplation.

While ‘Rathlin from a Distance’ is meditative, ‘The Liquid Hour’ - which Tiersen was working on when he decided things needed to be torn down - is a bold and urgent musical statement, which opens with an epic, sweeping track that channels Tiersen’s desire for social and political change. The inspiration for this section of the album was rooted in Tiersen’s experiences at sea, particularly a moment when he gazed upon the lights of Belfast, alone at the helm of his sailboat in the middle of the night, after nearly two months at sea. This moment of serenity led to deep reflections on the city’s troubled history and its connection to broader political struggles. The expansive sonic palette of ‘The Liquid Hour’ blends atmospheric ambient music, hypnotic grooves and striking electronic instrumentation, with the haunting vocals of Émilie Quinquis adding a powerful dimension to the album’s message.

TRACK LISTING

‘Rathlin From A Distance’
Ninnog
Fastnet
Rathlin From A Distance
Tórshavn
Norðragøta
Papa Stour
Bigton
Caledonian Canal

‘The Liquid Hour’
Stourm
Ninnog At Sea
Arne
The Liquid Hour
Dolores

Yann Tiersen has sold hundreds of thousands of records worlds wide and even more soundtracks. Since 2009 he has been focused on playing live, with 270 shows spread over three world tours, which touched every continent. This Autumn Tiersen returns home and is releasing four beautifully re-mastered editions of his first four albums; La Valse Des Monstres (1995), Rue Des Cascades (1996), Le Phare (1998) et (Tout Est Calme 1999).

With his whimsical, melancholy music, Yann Tiersen has become a sought-after composer, not only for his soundtrack work, but in his own right. Borrowing from French folk music, chanson, musette waltz and street music, as well as rock, avant-garde, and classical and minimalist influences, Tiersen's deceptively simple style has been likened to Chopin, Erik Satie, Philip Glass, and Michael Nyman. Tiersen became popular outside his native country for his score to Jean-Pierre Jeunet's film Amélie, but this was no over night successes. He had been working for years before the film's success brought him international acclaim.

Tiersen was also composing soundtracks for short films and accompaniment for plays. Several of these pieces ended up on his first album, Valse des Monstres, in 1995 and introduced his delicate but deeply emotional style, and which also featured intricate arrangements incorporating instruments as varied as toy piano, banjo, harpsichord, melodica, and carillon, as well as piano and guitar. If Valse des Monstres and its follow-up, 1996's Rue Des Cascades, were intial slow burners Tiersen’s third album, 1998's La Phare, met a different fate; its single, "Monochrome," which was sung by French pop star Dominique A., was a radio hit and propelled the album, and Tiersen, to mainstream success in France. As Tiersen's acclaim grew, so did the scope of his records. That year's Black Sessions -- a live album of a radio performance -- featured collaborations with Dominique A. and the Divine Comedy's Neil Hannon, as well bands like Les Têtes Raides and the Married Monk, who also appeared on 1999's more the rock-oriented album Tout Est Calme. Soon after, Tiersen was preparing his next album when he was contacted by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, who wanted Tiersen to score his next movie, Amélie. Jeunet had heard Tiersen's music while driving and had been so taken with it that he bought all of Tiersen's albums. His Amelie score featured new and old compositions, and the film's success spun off to Tiersen's music. 

TRACK LISTING

1/ Plus Au Sud
2/ Les Grandes Marées
3/ La Crise
4/ Tout Est Calme
5/ La Rupture
6/ La Relève
7/ La Pharmacie
8/ La Terrasse
9/ L'étal
10/ La Découverte

Yan Tregger, born Edouard Joseph Scotto Di Suoccio, is a prolific French-Italian composer, trumpeter, arranger, and library music specialist.
Tregger built a vast and varied catalogue of over 1,400 works registered with SACEM as a library music composer.
His output spans funk, jazz-funk, psychedelic disco, electronic experiments, film soundtracks, advertising jingles, and even relaxation music.
This LP is a compilation of rare or unreleased tracks made by the Maestro in The 70's.

TRACK LISTING

A1.Bad Shot
A2.Hard Way
A3.Huff
A4.Scarlett Room
A5.Mister Kunz

B1.The Girl In The Gold
B2.My Next Life
B3.Mineral
B4.Henny

Symphonic music, library music, movie and TV soundtracks, advertisements, French variété, pop, disco, electronic, experimental or relaxation music, Yan Tregger (born Edouard Scotto di Suoccio) took up all genres, styles and formats through a career spanning from the end of the '50s to this day.

TRACK LISTING

1. Creative Blow
2. Gold Calf Dance
3. Zodiac
4. Pavillon Des Rêves
5. Shmastar
6. Passage Of The Red Sea
7. Deo Volente
8. Sun Adoration
9. Bubble Bubble
10. Across The Jourdan
11. Bloodnight
12. Slow Zoom
13. Chandigargh
14. The Crash

Few projects at the forefront of contemporary art truly push visceral sonic boundaries in the way that Yves Tumor does. With an arc that impartially sits between psych-rock and modern pop, comparisons only serve as limitations intended to define that which cannot be. Yves Tumor melds restraint and chaos; diluting reality by giving meaning to the abstract and allowing for dissonance to be seen and heard as harmony.

Heaven To A Tortured Mind - written and composed by Yves Tumor and produced by Yves Tumor and Justin Raisen (Sky Ferreira, Ariel Pink, Charli XCX) - marks the fourth official full-length release from Yves Tumor and the follow-up to 2018's critically acclaimed and era-defining Warp release, Safe In The Hands Of Love. Breakout singles "Noid", "Licking An Orchid" and "Lifetime" shifted critical perception into media such as the New York Times, Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, the Fader, NPR and more awarding the album as one of the best releases of the year.

Yves Tumor has steered the project into a whole new realm with Heaven To A Tortured Mind, piercing through contradiction, redefining expression through song, and catapulting Yves Tumor into the next phase of illusion and evolution. Heaven To A Tortured Mind finds its place in music history as a collection of anthems for a generation.

TRACK LISTING

1. Gospel For A New Century
2. Medicine Burn
3. Identity Trade
4. Kerosene!
5. Hasdallen Lights
6. Romanticist
7. Dream Palette
8. Super Stars
9. Folie Imposée
10. Strawberry Privilege
11. Asteroid Blues
12. A Greater Love

Yves Tumor’s highly anticipated follow-up to ‘Heaven To A Tortured Mind’. Produced by Noah Goldstein (Frank Ocean / Rosalía / FKA Twigs / Rihanna / My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy).

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Never one to go with expectations, Yves Tumor has moved from jagged electronics and woozy lo-fi hip-hop to a strikingly modern, wildly inventive mash-up of classic rock, soul and noise that's just on the right side of unfathomable. Their constant musical evolution is both baffling and thoroughly enjoyable.

TRACK LISTING

01. God Is A Circle
02. Lovely Sewer
03. Meteora Blues
04. Interlude
05. Parody
06. Heaven Surrounds Us Like A Hood
07. Operator
08. In Spite Of War
09. Echolalia
10. Fear Evil Like Fire
11. Purified By The Fire
12. Ebony Eye 

Following on from 2016's superb 'Serpent Music' on label extraordinaire, PAN, Yves Tumor follows up by moving to Warp for the brilliant new LP, 'Safe In The Hands Of Love'. 

From the throbbing sidechained electronics and fragmented vocal accentuations of 'Economy Of Freedom' it becomes clear that we're in for something pretty special. Equally obtuse and euphoric, fragments of sound are smeared liberally across a detritus-riddled backdrop of throbbing bass and static crackling before lurching into a beautiful and eerie redux. 

This sort of dystopian noise is riddled throughout, but liberally freckled with moments of cohesive and frankly mindlblowing songwriting. 'Noid' for example, is based upon a clattering percussive loop and driving bass (Mr. Tumor really loves that bass synth), but encompasses aspects of hip-hop and soul to boot, vocals rhythmically bobbing in and out of the stereo field, lending a momentous urgency to proceedings before the swooning yang to the former's yin, employing similar vocal phrasing but swapping about the clattering instrumental maelstrom for a sleazy, warped lounge turn. 

There are moments of divine clarity scattered throughout the whole LP, balancing the sometimes overwhelming cascade of noise and malaise, but it's these moments that make the comparitive unease so satisying, lending moments of calm to an otherwise claustrophobic affair. Perfeclty balanced spine-tingling melodies are teased out of the decay, fittingly warped and then put to work alongside the dystopian foreground. As ever, a stunningly written and perfectly balanced juxtaposition of chaos and peace. 

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Yves Tumor smashes it out of the park once again for this shuddering, post-apocalyptic suite of scattered melodies, broken rhythms and oppressive atmospheres, punctuated with moments of deserved beauty and blessed resolution. Killer.

TRACK LISTING

1. Faith In Nothing Except In Salvation
2. Economy Of Freedom
3. Honesty
4. Noid
5. Licking An Orchid Ft. James K
6. Lifetime
7. Hope In Suffering (Escaping Oblivion & Overcoming Powerlessness ) Ft. Oxhy, Puce Mary
8. Recognizing The Enemy
9. All The Love We Have Now
10. Let The Lioness In You Flow Freely

Ground-breaking artist Yves Tumor continues to unlock the perception of reality with a psychedelically bent off-kilter rock offering, "The Asymptotical World EP" out now on WARP. The boundary smashing 6 song EP is the next era from the pop auteur and first release from Yves Tumor following the critically acclaimed 2020 album "Heaven To a Tortured Mind". Yves Tumor continues to manipulate the genre terrain by challenging mainstream music constraints further and shifting the boundaries of contemporary art and culture in a boundlessly visceral and authentic sonic signature.

The "Asymptotical World EP" (co-produced and engineered by longstanding collaborator Yves Rothman) includes the massive single, “Jackie”, also co-written/produced by Chris Greatti (Yungblud, Poppy). The single arrived with the radical electrifying DeepFake visualizer directed and produced by Actual Objects. “Jackie” is a punctuated tale of connection in a fever dream realm featuring emotive guitars over an upbeat drum pattern, evoking the volatile magnetism between lovers that has garnered millions of streams across platforms and has received a multitude of praise. 

STAFF COMMENTS

Patrick says: Barry and I were only discussing the challenging genius of Yves Tumor the other day, and now we're in possession of an EP of brand new material. The shapeshifting, genre shredding artist is in chart conquering rock mode here, serving superbly psychedelic, surprisingly catchy indie. Highest recommendations all round I think!

TRACK LISTING

Jackie
Crushed Velvet
Secrecy Is Incredibly Important To The Both Of Them
Tuck Feat. NAKED
...And Loyalty Is A Nuisance Child
Katrina

After a feature on last year’s VA Family Affair comp, Tokyo-based producer Yuu Udagawa drops her first solo EP on Razor-N-Tape. With releases on Freerange and Compost under her belt, Yuu has been developing a subtle and moody deep house sound that she displays across the 3 original songs of the Urban Physicality EP. Each track vibrates with dark chordal textures, pulsating drums and chopped vocal samples, beautifully layered to develop and slowly build. To round out the record, Tokyo producer Takuya Matsumoto turns in a throbbing late-nite remix of the EP’s title track, with a tougher drum profile, cavernous bass and masterful sound design.

TRACK LISTING

A1. In Your Eyes
A2. Recollection
B1. Urban Physicality (Takuya Matsumoto Remix)
B2. Urban Physicality

After soaring with Social Politics and Pretty Face, the five piece all girl band Yassassin (featuring ex members of The History Of Apple Pie, Lust, Bonfire Nights, and Loaded) release their debut EP Vitamin Y via Babelogue. Produced by Dave Allen (The Cure, Neneh Cherry) and mixed by Mike Moore (Liam Gallagher), Vitamin Y is released on a limited edition transparent blue 12" vinyl. Lead track Cherry Pie is dark, sleazy and psychy which hints of The Big Moon, Veruca Salt, Dream Wife and the Breeders.

TRACK LISTING

Cherry Pie
Mermaidistic Personality Disorder
Seasoned Like A Chicken
Pretty Face

Y Dail (‘The Leaves’) is the musical project of 20-year-old Huw Griffiths from Pontypridd, south Wales. Starting in 2020, the band have released a string of singles which have received excellent reviews and single-of-the-week awards on music blogs and websites.

Forthcoming debut album Teigr has been several years in the making, and is partly inspired by Griffiths’s love of 70s Welsh-language pop he remembers from school discos and his parents’ record collection. He also cites Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci, Joe Meek, Television and early Prefab Sprout as influences.

With the album’s completion and release delayed by the inevitable pandemic story, 2021 saw the deceptively young Griffiths juggling finalising the record with studying for his A Levels, eventually putting the finishing touches to the record with producer Kris Jenkins (ex Super Furry Animals) at Grangetown Studios, Cardiff in the lull following.

Since then, Marc Riley has championed the band on his BBC 6Music show, calling Griffiths’ songs “perfect pop”, and national treasure Gruff Rhys has called the band “magnificent”, with Y Dail previously performing a radio session for BBC 6music’s Huw Stephens, who has been a long term fan

TRACK LISTING

1. The Piper Pulled Down The Sky
2. Dyma Kim Carsons
3. O'n I'n Meddwl Bod Ti'n Mynd I Fod Yn Wahanol
4. Silly Boy
5. Clancy
6. You Don't Have To Be Blue Forever
7. Pedwar Weithiau Pump
8. Whizz Kids
9. Y Tywysog A'r Teigr
10. My Baby's In The FBI
11. Tennessee Skies (1956)
12. Feel The Sun
13. Tarth Y Bore

The ‘All Nyte’ EP collects together the singles ‘Aight Boom’ and ‘Drowned’, along with two brand new tracks, ‘When I’m With You’ and ‘Holding On’.

The 12” finds Y U QT further expanding on their sound and experimenting with eclectic influences whilst pulling them all together with the unmistakable Y U QT energy and talent for a memorable hook that runs throughout their catalogue.

From the bass-heavy club banger ‘Aight Boom’ and the techno and Prodigy-influenced ‘Drowned’, through to the UKG and house influences on vocal-led ‘When I’m With You’, the EP provides further evidence that Y U QT are one of the most exciting artists in the UK underground scene at the moment.

The EP release will be followed by Y U QT heading out on an ‘All Nyte’ UK headline tour in early 2023.

TRACK LISTING

Aight Boom (feat. Scrufizzer)
Drowned
When I’m With U
Holding On (feat. Sophia Saffarian)

UKG trailblazers Y U QT return with a new vinyl release collecting together new single ‘Think About You’ and previous hit ‘Heavy Lovers’.

Y U QT have been building a buzz across a string of single releases and their reworkings of classic tracks, along with their series of sold out Y U QT club nights. This release looks to further cement their status at the forefront of the UK underground garage scene, demonstrating Y U QT’s unique modern take on the genre, with irresistible hooks, moving progressions and ear worm vocals that stick.

Available to independent retailers on 12” vinyl

The release also features an exclusive 2 step mix of ‘Heavy Lovers’ and an instrumental version of ‘Think About You’ that are not available anywhere else.

TRACK LISTING

Think About You
Think About You (Instrumental)
Heavy Lovers
Heavy Lovers (2 Step Mix)

Band founder, Nicholas Galanin is one of the most vital voices in contemporary art. His work spans sculpture, video, installation, photography, jewelry and music; advocating for Indigenous sovereignty, racial, social and environmental justice, for present, and future generations. Indian Yard is a compelling document of humanity centered in an Indigenous perspective. Created by one of the world’s foremost Indigenous artists, the irrepressible Indian Yard is an intense illumination of feeling and interconnectedness. On the groups’ debut offering, "Close the Distance”, Galanin “reflects on the universal need for connection and the expression of desire across distances. The official video, directed by Stephan Gray (Shabazz Palaces “Dawn In Luxor,” “Deesse Du Sang”), extends beyond human experience to consider physical expressions of desire in biological, mechanical, and celestial forms."

TRACK LISTING

Knives (feat. Portugal. The Man)
Light The Torch
Born Into Rain (feat. Rum.gold & Tunia)
At Tugáni
Get Yourself Together
Close The Distance
We Just Sit And Smile Here In Silence
A Feeling Undefined (feat. Nick Hakim & Iska Dhaaf)
Synthetic Gods (feat. Shabazz Palaces & Stas THEE Boss)
Gently To The Sun (feat. Tay Sean)
Back In That Time (feat. Qacung)

As a singer, writer and producer, Yabby You created some of the greatest roots classic in the history of reggae. A must-have for roots reggae fans and all those interested in classic reggae!

Vivian "Yabby You" Jackson was, along with Lee "Scratch" Perry, Augustus Pablo, King Tubby, Burning Spear and Culture, one of the key creators of the roots reggae style and dub revolution which swept the world in the 1970s.

'Dread Prophecy: The Strange And Wonderful Story Of Yabby You' is a stunning collection of Yabby You's classic recordings of himself and other artists he produced as well as sought-after rarities presented in a "long" DVD-style package including 3 audio CDs with 56 tracks - over 3 hours of music with 10 previously unreleased tracks and 30 tracks never previously on CD. It includes a 28-page booklet with many extensive personal essays from people who knew him: David Katz , Alex Peacemaker and Randall Grass.

TRACK LISTING

Disc: 1
1. Deliver Me
2. Conquering Lion
3. Yabby You
4. Anti Christ
5. Carnal Mind
6. Run Come Rally
7. Jah Vengeance
8. Tubby's Vengeance
9. One Love
10. Pound Get A Blow
11. Fire Fire
12. Fire Dub
13. Chant Down Babylon Kingdom
14. Beware Dub
15. Give Thanks And Praise
16. Man Of The Living
17. Free Africa
18. Live Trap
19. Love Thy Neighbor
Disc: 2
1. Love And Unity -mashdown
2. Babylon A Fall
3. This Economical Crisis
4. Praise Jahova
5. Fire Deh A Mus Mus
6. Fleeing From The City
7. Love In Zimba
8. Gwaan And Lef Me
9. Rock Man Soul
10. Love Of A Woman
11. Get Lost Babylon
12. How Long
13. Stop Your Gang War
14. Blessed Are The Poor
15. Peace
16. Jah Mercies
17. Dreadlocks Man
Disc: 3
1. Daughter Of Zion
2. What A Sufferation
3. I Must Achieve What Is Mine
4. Words Of The Prophets
5. Freedom Of Life
6. We Want Our Liberty
7. Beyond The Hills
8. Mercy And Truth
9. Blackstar Liner
10. King Of Kings
11. Education For Free
12. Reggae Make You Feel Alright
13. Natty Roots Man
14. Half Pint
15. Oh City Of Zion
16. Hail The Children
17. Warn The Nation
18. Jah Vengeance
19. Black Is Our Color
20. Run Come Raw Dub

Although it can’t be stated as any genre outright, 'A Way In' lends itself to the worlds of Afrobeat, Cumbia, Salsa, Jazz, Reggaeton and Soul; a stirring of potent rhythms and enigmatic melodies that make Mitchum Yacoub’s sophomore album stand tall in the world of groove music. Across the syncopated dance tracks, ethereal soundscapes, and steady backbeats, are tales of anguish, love, uprising, and healing. Ten tracks that expose and celebrate the human spirit.
Yacoub engineered, produced, and mixed the entirety of the album, ensuring the meticulously layered sound appreciated by fans of his debut 'Living High in the Brass Empire'. We are reunited with Travis Klein, Bradley Nash, and Wesley Etienne, his inimitable horn section not to be missed on record or on stage. Featuring the rising voices of Divina Jasso and Lourdes Iri on half of the tracks, 'A Way In' has no shortage of stand-out singles that will carry you from morning into night.

TRACK LISTING

1. Mr. Terrestrial
2. 89
3. Hurtin’
4. Profecía
5. Sala
6. When I’m With You
7. Away
8. Deseo Celestial
9. De La Selva
10. Gold

Dreamt up across New York, London and Seoul, With A Hammer sees Yaeji contending with a lifetime’s worth of both societal and self-imposed repression. The resulting 13-track full-length from the producer, vocalist, DJ, visual-artist and creative director is an exploration of shapeshifting sonics - blending Yaeji’s original dance music roots with Korean indie rock, electronica and pop from the ‘90s and early 2000s.

With A Hammer follows Yaeji’s journey as she wades through the murkiness of sorrow and doubt and releases the frenzy of anger, with the help of a metaphorical hammer - Hammer Lee - which she wields to smash the rigid rules, expectations, and barriers that have prevented her from speaking her fullest truth. Through this transformative process she eventually meets the thrilling self-determination and hope that awaits on the other side, and invites her listeners and fans to do the same.

Yaeji enlisted some close friends to join her on the record as features, including British musician Loraine James, up and coming Baltimore singer Nourished By Time, plus NYC-based producers K Wata, Enayet from Yaeji’s extended crew SLINK NYC. Yaeji once again floats back and forth between English and Korean to convey what’s on her heart with the utmost sincerity. It’s in this sincerity, deep care and awareness that Yaeji is seen in the U.S. and Korea as a musical renegade who has carved out her own world that exists in-between the traditional and conventional, the personal and the universal.

After breaking out with her 2017 debut EPs that featured singles “Raingurl” and “Drink I’m Sippin On,” Yaeji featured on Charli XCX’s 2019 album Charli, produced remixes for Dua Lipa, and Robyn, collaborated with the beloved Seoul-based polymath OHHYUK for stand-alone singles “29” and “Year to Year”, headlined her own and festival stages around the world, and launched her bespoke lifestyle webstore JI-MART. Born in Flushing, Queens in 1993, she has roots in Seoul, Tokyo, Atlanta, and New York City, all serving as the backdrop for her singular, hybrid-sound that synthesizes influences of Korean indie rock and electronica, late ‘90s and early 2000s hip hop and R&B, and leftfield bass and techno. With her critically-acclaimed 2020 mixtape WHAT WE DREW 우리가 그려왔던, she sharpened her vision as a musician who is creatively unbounded by language and geography, leading to collaborations with timeless entities such as PAC-MAN. Named by Pitchfork as one of the “25 Artists Shaping the Future of Music” in 2022, she’s also graced the cover of Crack, The FADER, MixMag, and Burdock, among others, and has been featured in programming at the V&A Museum, Serpentine Gallery, and MoMA PS1. Her highly anticipated debut album, With A Hammer, sees Yaeji excavating her inner world with full force, smashing everything in order to build it back up into the true visions of her dreams.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: A sleek and perfectly produced juxtaposition of dancefloor-ready rhythms, crystalline synth work and cavernous bass grooves, all forming the perfect bed for Yaeji's otherworldly vocals. Chaotic in places and swooningly placid in others, but never less than impeccable.

TRACK LISTING

Submerge FM
For Granted
Fever
Passed Me By
With A Hammer
I’ll Remember For Me, I’ll Remember For You
Done (Let’s Get It)
Ready Or Not
Michin
Away X5
Happy
1 Thing To Smash
Be Alone In This

Susumu Yokota returns with one of his most engaging albums to date, with every track a gently glowing gem. The set features the vocal talents of Casper Clausen (Efterklang), Anna Bronsted (Our Broken Garden), Claire Hope (The Chap), Panos Ghikas (The Chap), Nancy Elizabeth, Caroline Ross and Kaori. Yokota creates an album full of great songs within a mesmerising web of sound made of subtle rhythms and deep tones. From the almost soft bossa vibes of "Love Tendrilises" to the fractured folk of "A Flower White", the electronic jazz of "A Ray Of Light" and the Twin Peaks beauty of "Meltwater", this as an album that repays deep and repeated listening.

Tracklisting
1. Love Tendrilises - vocals by Casper Clausen (Efterklang) & Anna Bronsted (Our Broken Garden)
2. Breeze - vocals by Nancy Elizabeth
3. A Ray Of Light - vocals by Nancy Elizabeth
4. A Flower White - vocals by Nancy Elizabeth
5. The Natural Process - vocals by Caroline Ross
6. Reflect Mind - vocals by Nancy Elizabeth and Kaori
7. Inside Foresighted - vocals by Kaori
8. Meltwater - vocals by Caroline Ross and Kaori
9. Tree Surgeon - vocals by Kaori, ClaireHope (The Chap) & Panos Ghikas (The Chap)
10. Suture - vocals by Casper Clausen (Efterklang) & Anna Bronsted (Our Broken Garden)
11. Bonda - vocals by Kaori
12. 12 Days 12 Nights - vocals by Nancy Elizabeth
13. Warmth

Chicago's Yakuza kick off this aural assualt with a Tibetan monk drone, that's just before some humungously large riffs drop into your lap and twist your goolies into a contorted knot. They're not averse to a bit of subtelty and invention either, in fact this is an indescribable mix of avant metal, jazzcore and post-apocalyptic psychedelia. The album ends with "01100011101", a cerebral forty-three minute instrumental that has large dollops of post hardcore about it as well as superb guitar and bass riffing. Terrorizer magazine observes 'When Yakuza hit their mark they come off as a jazz-inflected mixture of early 90s experimental thrash (Bastro seems to be a major influence) and post Helmet groove metal'.

Yoshino Shigihara came into 2019 needing a change. The Japanese artist had been based in Bristol ever since co-founding the now defunct Maloya-infuenced raucous psychedelia collective Zun Zun Egui. She then blossomed on her own across an EP and two albums of more meditative but no less territorially transcendent records as Yama Warashi. As in her music, though, Yoshino has always had a sense of wanderlust and it was perhaps no surprise that she’d eventually want to move again – this time to London.

“Moving to London gave me the chance to work with more diverse musicians” Yoshino says. “And I wanted to be here too because of the high creative energy, the diversity of the music and art here and the people who live here.”

The first material to come out of her relocation is a bold advancement of her sound, her third album Crispy Moon. Recorded at the Total Refreshment Centre in London with Kristian Claig Robinson, with most of the mixing coming from Hannes Plattmeire and mastering by Zun Zun Egui guitarist Stephen Kerrison, there are new contributing members, including Cathy Lucas of Vanishing Twin (with whom Yama toured with in 2021), Aletta Verwoerd on drums and Mermaid Chunky’s Moina Walker on sax. Compared to the more lo-fi, homespun feel of early releases such as Moon Zero and Moon Egg, there’s larger brush strokes at play, a bigger sound and an understated but self-assured grandeur.

Much of the move to London and Yoshino’s experiences of being in the capital have made their way into the themes of the record. For Yoshino, though, while the lyrics are important, they’re also largely personal. The drive for her is to get across the universality of her music, to keep an open ear and absorb everything that she can before returning it back out into the world. Moving to London has only strengthened that for her, with new collaborators, fresh experiences and altered perspectives. Crispy Moon is the colourfully brilliant end result.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. Makkuroi Mizu
2. Dividual Individual
3. Saku Saku
4. Umi No Mon
Side B
1. Ha Ha No Uta
2. Makai No Keyaku
3. Dou Dou Meguri
4. Yuru Yuru

Seminal Japanese jazz album from 1971. Journeys through jazz fusion, soul and big band moods. Impossible to obtain in its original format these days, it rests on a spiritual and serene plane, conjuring up expansive and exotic landscapes from far flung places. Obviously, some of the instrumentation and playing is nothing short of breath-taking, but with sleeve notes mainly in Japanese you're gonna have to do some serious research to find out who's responsible!

Official Mr Bongo reissue with original artwork and super fresh, clean vinyl pressing. Recommended!

TRACK LISTING

Kokiriko Bushi
Sado Okesa
Tairyo Utaikomi
Soma Bon-Uta
Komoro Mago-Uta
Nanbu Ushioi-Uta
Itsuki No Komori-Uta
Hietsuki-Bushi
Yasuki-Bushi
Yosakoi-Bushi
Kuroda-Bushi

Spacious, psychedelic electronica meets desert rock, laced with lyrical other-worldliness from a collective of iconic musicians led by this Warsaw born/London raised artist living full time in the Mojave Desert. “Now that the sounds of freedom rattle the glass and fill our lungs with bronchitis, they must be on red alert, ready to shine the light” sings Patti Yang on Sounds of Freedom, the first single from her forthcoming album War On Love, out November 22 via Requiem Records. She is talking about her home in the Mojave Desert, California, which although is both stunning and unusual, is also within eyesight and earshot of the largest Marine Corps base in the US; 29 Palms. As expected, training exercises are common and the Marines set up a community phone line for civilians to call in with comments and impressions. It’s the jumping off point for War On Love, a record concerned with privacy and digital voyeurism, the tenuous relationship we hold with our sense of reality, existential sabotage and impermanence. “I began working on the album by setting myself a challenge: to break out from the daily life cycle”.

Patti explored ancient medicine and the properties of sound by studying at the Integratron, a renowned temple dedicated to sonic bliss via quartz bowls played like a giant analog synthesizer. Following an inner call, she moved from London to Joshua Tree, a small town in the Mojave Desert, California. “I fell in love with the soft, infinite silence and the open spaces which gave foundation to my research and creative work”. Songwriting began in Joshua Tree where recording spanned to London and Brooklyn, NY, at Rare Book Room, where the album was also mixed. Untethered by a specific style, the journey oscillates between unadorned hyperrealism and chaotic narratives, linked by dreamlike pop soundscapes. The collaborators are: Chris Mackin (Le Volume Courbe, Primal Scream), Matty Skylab (Skylab, David Holmes), Jagz Kooner (Reverend and the Makers, Manic Street Preachers, Primal Scream), Martin Craft (M. Craft, Jarvis Cocker), Chiara Giovando, Nicolas Vernhes (Deerhunter, Animal Collective, Daughter, Dirty Projectors, The War on Drugs). 

TRACK LISTING

01 Sounds Of Freedom
02 Technicolor Dream
03 Wonder Wells
04 Comfortably Wrong
05 Jerusalem
06 Falling
07 Bright Lights
08 Grace Me 

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.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Foals' Yannis Philippakis and legendary drummer Tony Allen met and recorded some music together along with Allen's collaborators allll the way back in 2016, and now one pandemic later and 'Lagos Paris London' finally hits the shop floor. Brilliantly conceived by a bunch of musicians that have real chemistry, and the final result is the perfect tribute to Tony Allen's huge influence on the music world.

TRACK LISTING

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

6-track live album, recorded at sold-out shows in Paris and Amsterdam last year from Yannis & The Yaw, following the release of the critically acclaimed 'Lagos Paris London' EP (featuring Tony Allen)

'Onstage' includes a previously unreleased composition '3' plus a dazzling cover of the Tony Allen masterpiece 'Afrodisco Beat' from his groundbreaking 1979 record 'Progress, Jealousy'.

The recordings showcases the expansive, old school Afrobeat-inspired jams from the EP, capturing the spirit of the musicianship and personality that made the late, legendary Tony Allen such an inimitable figure.

Foals frontman Yannis Philippakis led the touring party and was joined by joined by key EP collaborators Vincent Taurelle (keys) and Vincent Taeger (drums) along with Dave Okumu (guitar, The Invisible) Seye Adelekan (bass, Gorillaz) and the project's visual collaborator Kit Monteith (percussion, synths).

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: A brilliant selection of live cuts from Yannis' tour of the album he collaboratively made with the late Tony Allen. Funky Afrobeat, thundering, hip-shaking percussion and oodles of groove : The absolute best amount.

TRACK LISTING

1. Under The Strikes (Live In Paris)
2. Walk Through Fire (Live In Paris)
3. 3 (Live In Paris)
4. Night Green, Heavy Love (Live In Paris)
5. Afrodisco Beat (Live In Amsterdam)
6. Rain Can't Reach Us (Live In Paris)

Wewantsounds is delighted to announce the release of Akiko Yano's cult 1979 album 7 O'Clock in Tokyo, recorded live in September 1978 at a pivotal moment in Japanese music history, just as Yellow Magic Orchestra was about to take the world by storm (Yano would tour the world with the group in 1979). Featuring a very funky Yano performance accompanied by Haruomi Hosono, Ryuichi Sakamoto and Yukihiro Takahashi, plus Tatsuro Yamashita and Minako Yoshida, the album is presented outside Japan for the first time, with remastered audio, original artwork, and a four-page insert including new liner notes by Paul Bowler.

TRACK LISTING

1. God's Loyal Love/Tokyo Wa Yoru No Shichi-ji (7 O'clock In Tokyo) [Live]
2. Water Ways Flow Backward Again (Live)
3. Satchan (Live)
4. Go For It, Yanagida (Live)
5. Riding In The Balloon (Live)
6. Imomushi Gorogoro (Live)
7. Kataroon Karurun (Live)
8. Shiny Moments (To-Ki-Me-Ki ) [Live]
9. Walk On The Way Of Life (Live)

Yanuka is the solo project of acclaimed keyboardist, composer and producer Tomer Zuk and here he makes his debut on Ma Ze Music with Hashrika and No Tomorrow. Known for his cinematic touch and eclectic style, Zuk blends Middle Eastern motifs, hypnotic grooves, and meditative atmospheres into what feels like a modern-day Morricone from the desert. There are psyched out 60s elements, Library music overtones, funk, soul and jazz instrumentals and great sound designs all bringing these two mysterious and enchanting sounds alive. The first is a late-night wander that echoes Khrangbuin and the second is all wah-wah magic and slick, rolling rhythms.

TRACK LISTING

Hashrika
No Tomorrow

Nilüfer Yanya has built a reputation as one of the UK’s most distinctive and compelling voices, seamlessly blending indie rock, soul and jazz into a sound uniquely her own.

She released her third studio album, ‘My Method Actor’, on September 13th, 2024, via Ninja Tune. The album received widespread critical acclaim, earning the No. 13 spot on Pitchfork’s list of The 50 Best Albums Of 2024.

Now, she releases her highly anticipated four-track EP, ‘Dancing Shoes’, co-written with her frequent collaborator Wilma Archer

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. Kneel
2. Where To Look

Side B
1. Cold Heart
2. Treason

Though she’d been writing songs in her head since she was six, and on the guitar since she was 12, it took a long time for Nilüfer Yanya to work up the courage to show anyone her music. 'I knew I wanted to sing, but the idea of actually having to do it wasreally horrifying,' says the 23-year-old. When she was finally persuaded to do so, by a music teacher in West London where she grew up, she says 'it was horrible. I loved it'.

At 18, Nilüfer, who is of Turkish-Irish-Bajan heritage, uploaded a few demos to SoundCloud. Though she’s preternaturally shy, her music, which uniquely blends elements of soul and jazz into intimate pop songs with electronic flourishes and a newly expressed grungy guitar soun, isn’t. And it didn’t take long for it to catch people’s attention. She signed with independent New York label ATO, following three EPs on esteemed London indie label Blue Flowers, and earned a place on the BBC Sound of 2018 longlist. She also supported the likes of The XX, Interpol, Broken Social Scene and Mitski on tour.

Now, Nilüfer is ready to release her debut album, "Miss Universe". Though she recorded much of it in the same remote Cornwall studio she used to jam in as a much younger person, it is bigger and more ambitious than anything she has done before. "Angels", with its muted, harmonic riffs, channels ideas 'of paranoid thoughts and anxiety' - a theme that runs through the album, not least in its conceptual spoken word interludes which emanate from a fictional health management company WWAY HEALTH TM. 'You sign up, and you pay a fee,' explains Nilüfer of the automated messages, which are littered through the album and are narrated by the titular Miss Universe. 'They sort out all of your dietary requirements, and then they move onto medication, and then maybe you can get a better organ or something... and then suddenly it starts to get a bit weird. You're giving them more of you and to what end?'

TRACK LISTING

1 WWAY HEALTH ™
2 In Your Head
3 Paralysed
4 Angels
5 Experience?
6 Paradise
7 Baby Blu
8 Warning
9 Heat Rises
10 Melt
11 “Sparkle” GOD HELP ME
12 Safety Net
13 Tears
14 Monsters Under The Bed
15 The Unordained
16 Give Up Function
17 Heavyweight Champion Of The Year

One of the most exciting musicians today, Nilüfer Yanya returns with a brand new studio album ‘My Method Actor’ set to release Sept 13th via Ninja Tune. With a unique blend of soulful melodies, indie rock grit, and jazz influences, Yanya’s music continues to captivate audiences worldwide. The new body of work being a development and evolution from her previous sound. Her first album ‘Miss Universe’ and its 2022 follow-up ‘Painless’ cemented her as one to watch and a staple in the indie scene, lauded by critics on both sides of the Atlantic. Since her debut, she has performed on The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon, Late Night with Stephen Colbert, Later with Jools Holland and NPR’s legendary Tiny Desk.

STAFF COMMENTS

Martin says: Nilüfer Yanya first came to our attention with ‘Painless’; 2022’s stunning showcase - aided by long time collaborator Will Archer - of her singular approach to creating music. In contrast to her debut ‘Miss Universe’, ‘Painless’ wasn’t an unruly expression of each of her diverse musical influences but a turbulent, coherent statement of intent.

‘My Method Actor’ follows a different path again; the distinctive, hollow picked guitar still runs through, as does the eloquent, candid introspection, mainly around the torment and vulnerability of romantic relationships, her gorgeous voice the perfect foil. The distortion driven urgency of its predecessor is, however, only apparent in the majestic “Like I Say” and title track; the remainder relying on understatement for it’s beauty and power, never more so than on “Binding”, with it’s sparse echoes of The Smiths’ ”Suffer Little Children”. All that extra space allows the soul searching room to cut through, at times to the bone. Single minded and open hearted, she’s a prodigy in a field of one.

TRACK LISTING

1. Keep On Dancing
2. Like I Say (I Runaway)
3. Method Actor
4. Binding
5. Mutations
6. Ready For Sun (touch)
7. Call It Love
8. Faith’s Late
9. Made Out Of Memory
10. Just A Western
11. Wingspan

Painless is the follow-up to Nilüfer Yanya’s renowned 2019 debut album Miss Universe, which fully established her as a singular artist and a distinctive voice that simply has to be heard. The critically acclaimed Miss Universe - a widescreen concept record that took a tongue in cheek swipe at the most self-involved corners of the health and wellness industry - was followed last year by the three song EP Feeling Lucky?, which further explored Yanya’s fascination with ‘90s alt-rock melodies and drew on themes of resentment, her fear of flying, and the concept of luck. Pitchfork summed up Feeling Lucky? and her now peerless songwriting aptitude best: “Nilüfer Yanya’s melodies have a pull so strong they almost necessitate their own law of physics.” Yanya also re-released her early EPs on vinyl for the first time this year on the record Inside Out. The release is a fundraiser for Artists in Transit, a collaborative not for profit group she founded with her sister Molly that delivers art workshops to displaced people and communities in times of hardship.

As the daughter of two visual artists (her Irish-Barbadian mother is a textile designer and her Turkish-born father’s work is exhibited at the British Museum) creativity was always destined for Nilüfer Yanya’s future. Now she enters the next stage of her creative journey, Yanya is running head first into the depths of emotional vulnerability on her sophomore record Painless. The album was recorded between a basement studio in Stoke Newington and Riverfish Music in Penzance with Miss Universe collaborator and producer Wilma Archer, DEEK Recordings founder Bullion, Big Thief producer Andrew Sarlo, and musician Jazzi Bobbi.

Where Miss Universe stretched musical boundaries to include a litany of styles from smooth jazz melodies to radio ready pop, Painless takes a more direct sonic approach. By narrowing down her previously broad palette to a handful of robust ideas that revolve around melancholy harmonies and looped industrial beats to mimic the insular focus of the lyrics, Yanya has smoothed out the idiosyncrasies of previous releases without losing what is essential to her.

Painless is a record that forces the listener to sit with the discomfort that accompanies so many of life’s biggest challenges whether it be relationship breakdowns, coping with loneliness, or the search for our inner self. “It's a record about emotion,” Yanya explains. “I think it's more open about that in a way that Miss Universe wasn't because there's so many cloaks and sleeves with the concept I built around it.” She adds, summing up the ethos of the new album, “I'm not as scared to admit my feelings”.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Poppy melodies, clashing percussion and Yanya's unmistakeable voice weave around each-other, sometimes hinting at the vocal rhythms of R&B, but much more akin to a stylistic mix of electronic indie and scattered art-rock.

TRACK LISTING

1. The Dealer
2. L/R
3. Shameless
4. Stabilise
5. Chase Me
6. Midnight Sun
7. Trouble
8. Try
9. Company
10. Belong With You
11. The Mystic
12. Anotherlife

Since this was originally released, Yard Act have gone on to be one of 2022’s defining artists with the release of their debut album ‘The Overload’, and their rise has been as entertaining as it has been meteoric. And as well as touring the world and smashing sales records, they’ve still found time to continue Zen FC, releasing acclaimed 7”s from Baba Ali and Benefits.

Being the budding record industry moguls that they are, they couldn’t bear to see the Dark Days EP languishing out of print. So they commandeered a Danish pressing plant and rudely shoved their way to the front of the queue, picked a new colour (silver in honour of the Overload finishing second in the album charts) and rushed through a repress in time for the summer. And while they were at it, they sorted out a run on the format of the future, cassette.

So there you have it: while you’re thinking about putting ‘The Overload’ at the top of your albums of 2022, you can enjoy the EP of 2021 all over again.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Dark Days
A2. Peanuts
B1. Fixer Upper
B2. The Trapper's Pelts

Formed in 2019, Yard Act began life when friends Ryan Needham (Bass) and James Smith (Vocals) started creating minimalist rock tracks using a primitive drum machine and borrowed bass guitar. Later drafting in George Townend on drums, and Sammy Robinson on guitars whom they met at their spiritual home The Brudenell Social Club / Leeds

After a handful of singles, Leeds' Yard Act drop their hugely anticipated debut album. ‘The Overload’ is a record of great dexterity and curation, the output of a band who were raised on a 00s digital-revolution buffet of wide musical influences. Growing up on US MTV Hip-Hop, minimal 70s No-Wave and sharp-witted British indie, Yard Act benefit from this rich tapestry of musical near-history, using it to create something that feels like more than a trendy pastiche.

In a world of great polarity, nuance is normally the answer. We may shame and bicker and amplify our outrage, but at the core of it all, we’re all still inhabitants of the same ecosystem, most of us trying to tow the delicate line between empathy and self-preservation. If nothing and no-one is purely good nor evil, true societal improvement can only come from recognizing some kind of middle ground.

In many ways, Yard Act is a project that exists through the fusion of seemingly opposing entities. Old friends in a new band, they seek out shades of socio-political grey, imbibing their stories with sharp, satirical spoken-word humour. Spearheaded by James Smith (vocals) and Ryan Needham (bass), the now four-piece, completed by Sam Shjipstone (guitar) and Jay Russell (drums), have built a sound that speaks inherently to their birthplace of Leeds, West Yorkshire, and yet ties together observations from all walks of modern British life – the small-town bloke in the local pub, the anti-capitalist stuck at a desk job, the tired activist in all of us torn between easy complicity and the desire to fight. Their sound and ethos might be progressive, but it’s not about pointing fingers so much as opening eyes.

“Lyrically, I think it’s a record about the things that we all do - we're all so wired into the system of day to day that we don't really stop and think about the constructs that define us,” says Smith. “But also beyond that, it's kind of exciting, because there’s still so much we don’t understand; how a hive mindset is forged, how information spreads, how we agree and presume things without thinking. Some people think more than others, but a lot of this sloganeering - 'I'm on the left, I'm not wrong' - doesn't achieve anything. Gammons, Karens, Snowflakes, whatever – I find it all so boring. I'm just not into that.”

What Yard Act are into is ideas. Having grown from relatively casual pub acquaintances to housemates, Smith and Needham found living together to be conducive to a high work rate, racking up demos in quick succession. Settling into a system of programming, looping and layering, the alchemy between the two created a base from which to build their narrative world. “Ryan is a vibe guy, whereas I overthink everything,” laughs Smith. “It’s been the greatest creative partnership I've ever had. When you find a groove that works, it just kind of looks after itself.”

With just three hometown shows under their belt, world events intervened. But rather than letting the pandemic derail them Yard Act set up their own imprint, Zen F.C. and across the course of 2020 and into early 2021 released four increasingly coruscating, hilariously dark singles with ‘The Trapper’s Pelts’, ‘Fixer Upper’, ‘Peanuts’ and Dark Days’ all securing BBC 6Music play, and despite the circumstances developing a remarkable, ever increasing fanbase.

“One of the first reasons we started the band, before anything even took off, was to play live because we had fun playing live,” says Smith. “but very quickly, we realised that we just loved writing songs, and writing songs isn't just about jamming in a room and writing those long noodly songs. It’s a massive cliché, but we've always been influenced by pop music, and finding a way to present it in a way that feels like ‘us’. The more people reacted to the spoken word thing, the more we felt encouraged; you can kind of hear how it gets more and more ridiculous as the singles came out. Positive reinforcement is how you explore and push the strongest bits to the extreme. And our extreme is just me talking loads — I'll talk until the track runs out!

Far from the self-indulgent bluster that Smith jokes about, ‘The Overload’ is a record of great dexterity and curation, the output of a band who were raised on a 00s digital-revolution buffet of wide musical influences. Growing up on US MTV Hip-Hop, minimal 70s No-Wave and sharp-witted British indie, Yard Act benefit from this rich tapestry of musical near-history, using it to create something that feels like more than a trendy pastiche. “There are generations of digital crate-diggers now that just absolutely love music and know how to navigate it,” says Smith. “Old music becomes new music. It's made everyone less worried about the now I think.”

While time-travelling in parts sonically, ‘The Overload’ weaves a very-2021 storyline. The group made the decision early on to leave ‘Fixer Upper’ and ‘Dark Days’ off their album debut (“it sounds arrogant, but we felt we had enough good songs without ‘em”), but the joyous specificity of their early lyrical observation is still in fine evidence, plotting a visceral, satirical journey through capitalism and greed. Across the album’s 11 tracks, an unnamed character – a bricolage of characters that Smith has met, imagined, or himself been – finds himself in quite the financial pickle, ricocheting from desk job to desperate illicit activity to police investigation, before culminating in the kind of half-cut personal epiphany that even the most law-abiding among us could relate to. Bookended by cheeky cameo’s from ‘Fixer Upper’s' Graeme and a clear structure of four parts, there is no getting around it — Yard Act have written a soap opera.

“At Ryan's insistence, the record was actually called ‘Yard Act The Musical’ for a long time, but I've got a really weird relationship with musicals, as in I fucking hate them,” deadpans Smith. “I don’t want to overthink it, but I do like concept albums, and I do think stuff works better when it's given time to be gestated and let people pick at lyrics and think what they mean.”

“We had about six standout tracks when we started thinking about an album, and from those, I saw a theme of money and capitalism, a sort of mockery of it. It's basically just a man in their late 20s, early 30s, who's always tried to fight against the system, stood up for things that they believe in and had a very strong moral compass. But it kind of crushes them in as many ways as it makes them happy – you sacrifice your beliefs for a life of comfortability, and still have to carry the burden of that decision.”

For a record of some potential heaviness, a dark sense of humour is integral. The record’s title track – its opener — plays like a raucous spaghetti western-themed night at the Hacienda, while ‘Land Of The Blind’s loose-swinging bass and jabbing guitars gives acerbic pace to its sordid tale of financial exploitation. The influence of post-punk is apparent, but the shackles of ‘authenticity’ have been shaken loose - “I think we could all feel that this post-punk thing was getting tired; ‘Land Of The Blind’ felt like quite a pivotal song in switching us away from what people thought we were.”

Even through Smith’s openly cynical lens, the world isn’t an entirely cruel and hopeless place. As our character finds themselves in the reflective epitaph of the final three songs, they explore how they might have come to be; the narcissistic peers they grew up with (‘Tall Poppies’), the Friday nights setting the world to intoxicated rights (synth-tinged “Pour Another’), and then ‘100% Endurance’, a poignant, emotional release which finds some kind of freedom in the futility of it all, an opportunity rather than an oppression; “It’s all so pointless/ But it’s not though is it?” As a closer, it’s entirely pivotal for the juxtaposition they’re trying to achieve.

“When that came right at the end of the record, it felt like it really completed it by sounding different to the rest .” says Smith. “It’s a little bit like a slip of the mask, which felt really important after a record of me being quite sarcastic, which I’m quite good at. It feels a bit like a gateway to where we can go.”

Pulling off a debut album in a pandemic isn’t easy, but somehow, Yard Act have made it work. Recording with Ali Chant (PJ Harvey, Perfume Genius, Aldous Harding) at his Bristol studio, those prolific demos have been sharpened down into something that speaks to the times we live in, creating a statement of intent that survives on nuance – a record of retro influences, recorded in a modern way, that manages to poke fun at society without punching down from a place of lefty superiority. ‘The Overload’ is a political record, but in the same way that all great observations of human nature are – a messy, complex, knowingly hypocritical snapshot of our current state of play.

“I just hope it makes people laugh at the peculiarities of human nature,” says Smith. “The world feels very heavy at the moment; it has done for a while, and when bad things happen, the weight of the world makes you panic, you want to change everything like flipping a switch. But that's not how it works. All you can do is plant seeds. I don’t think good and bad really exists, and I don't think you can change people's minds any other way.

“So that's what I hope, but I also just hope people can just enjoy it. And I hope it lasts. I hope people like the detail - I think we can learn a lot about each other through an observational smirk. Jenessa Williams

TRACK LISTING

Vinyl Tracklist:
Side A
1. The Overload
2. Dead Horse
3. Payday
4. Rich
5. The Incident
6. Witness (Can I Get A?)
Side B
7. Land Of The Blind
8. Quarantine The Sticks
9. Tall Poppies
10. Pour Another
11. 100% Endurance

Deluxe Vinyl Tracklist:
Side A
1. The Overload
2. Dead Horse
3. Payday
4. Rich
5. The Incident
6. Witness (Can I Get A?)
Side B
7. Land Of The Blind
8. Quarantine The Sticks
9. Tall Poppies
10. Pour Another
11. 100% Endurance
Side C - NPR Tiny Desk Home Concert Recording
1. Rich
2. Payday
3. Land Of The Blind
4. Fixer Upper
5. 100% Endurance


CD Tracklist:
1. The Overload
2. Dead Horse
3. Payday
4. Rich
5. The Incident
6. Witness (Can I Get A?)
7. Land Of The Blind
8. Quarantine The Sticks
9. Tall Poppies
10. Pour Another
11. 100% Endurance

The Trench Coat Museum is  on limited edition black vinyl, signed by no one and definitely not numbered, hand printed, stamped, and comes with no bonus prints, stickers or postcard
      
All well and good, but, what does it actually sound like!? Basically  this brand new track feels like something of a step up for this superb band. More propulsive and percussive with dare I say a funkier feel, frontman  James Smith spins a typical yarn about, well......find out for yourselves!

The A side is a whopping 8 minuts long but flip it over and there's an Arthur Baker ( yes, THE!) remix which makes the whole 12 a most desirable package,, no hand print, poster, sticker or number notwithstanding !!!

STAFF COMMENTS

Andy says: A brilliant step forwards for one of our favourite bands Love it!

TRACK LISTING

A-Side – The Trench Coat Museum
B-Side – The Trench Coat Museum (Arthur Baker Remix) (!)

Where’s My Utopia? is the follow up to the Leeds band’s critically-acclaimed debut record The Overload which arrived in January 2022. The Overload was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize after a slew of positive reviews, national radio playlistings and a placing at #2 in the Official Charts. The new album is a co-production between Yard Act and Gorillaz member Remi Kabaka Jr. 

Since first steering their golden Rover into swift public acclaim back in 2020, Leeds quartet Yard Act have become one of the great indie success stories of the decade so far. Along the way, they’ve ticked off milestones ranging from a Number Two chart placing and Mercury Prize nomination for debut album The Overload, to a co-sign from Elton John who joined the band to guest on a string-laden reworking of album closer ‘100% Endurance’.

Yet, whilst the band’s trajectory continuously shot upwards, vocalist James Smith and his wife had also welcomed in a son. And it’s this duelling sense of responsibility and ambition, guilt, love, drive and everything in between that forms the narrative backbone of brilliantly exploratory second album Where’s My Utopia?

Written in snapshots of time between a relentless touring schedule, and produced jointly by the band and Gorillaz’ Remi Kabaka Jr, the quartet’s second act is a giant leap forward into broad and playful new sonic waters. “The main reason that ‘post-punk’ was the vehicle for Album One was because it was really affordable to do, but we always liked so much other music and this time we've had the confidence to embrace it,” James explains. Across the record, influences ranging from Fela Kuti to Ennio Moricone via Spiller’s ‘00s pop smash ‘Groovejet’ make themselves known.

It’s a celebratory palette upon which Smith allowed himself to reach lyrically deeper into himself than ever. Gone, largely, are the outward-facing character studies of yore, replaced with a set of songs that stare fully into the headlights of life, wrangling with the frontman’s own fears and foibles to create a sort of Promethean narrative - but with jokes. “You can commit to the idea that we’re just animals who eat and fuck and then we die, and that’s fine,” he suggests. “But for me, creativity always seems to be the best way of articulating the absolute minefield of what human existence is.”

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: It’s not easy to write about Yard Act. You immediately want to find other wry social commentators to group them in with – Mark E Smith, Sleaford Mods, Mike Skinner, Jarvis Cocker - but James Smith is none of these people. Less vulgar and course than Mark or Jason, more poetic than Skinner, and without Cocker’s romantic filter; James Smith tells his tales with both wit and simplicity, highlighting humour in the mundane with incredibly fast and clever prose. “This Is My Utopia“ does however, have its more tender moments: “Down By The Stream” ends with him vehemently chastising school bullies and other abusers; while “Blackpool Illuminations” is a beautiful, personal, heartfelt message to his (recently born) son. They could well end here; but instead gift us one last hurrah via the arms-aloft anthem: “A Vineyard For The North” (which alongside “We Make Hits“ and “When The Laughter Stops“ comprises the album’s big indie-disco hits).

The band possess incredible depth and dimension. From jagged and jovial outbursts to lavish and luxurious orchestrations, sophisticated and structured arrangements seem to encompass more than they should, all with elegance and swagger. There’s sharp call-response vocal quips and jibes between Smith and his bandmates; while intricate, (sometimes) vocodered vocal harmonies, subtle dubs and plunderphonic sample usage a la Avalanches & DJ Shadow all contribute to a very ambitious album which pours out the contents of Yard Act’s hearts for us, the listener to digest and surmise: rock stars aren’t all that different to the rest of us.

TRACK LISTING

1. An Illusion
2. We Make Hits
3. Down By The Stream
4. The Undertow
5. Dream Job
6. Fizzy Fish
7. Petroleum
8. When The Laughter Stops
9. Grifter’s Grief
10. Blackpool Illuminations
11. A Vineyard For The North

Where’s My Utopia CD Fanzine edition. The second editions of the Yard Act Fanzine, designed by us for you for no other reason than to tear down more trees.

Where’s My Utopia? is the follow up to the Leeds band’s critically-acclaimed debut record The Overload which arrived in January 2022. The new album is a co-production between Yard Act and Gorillaz member Remi Kabaka Jr. The brand new album out 1st March 2024 features lead single ‘Dream Job’, which is out now.

The zine if printed on 140gsm uncoated paper and house in a beautiful 350gm uncoated cover. Includes the CD album.

TRACK LISTING

1. An Illusion
2. We Make Hits
3. Down By The Stream
4. The Undertow
5. Dream Job
6. Fizzy Fish
7. Petroleum
8. When The Laughter Stops
9. Grifter’s Grief
10. Blackpool Illuminations
11. A Vineyard For The North

THIS IS A RECORD STORE DAY 2014 EXCLUSIVE, LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.

Splatter coloured vinyl, limited to 400 copies.

Charly Records presents THE BEST OF THE YARDBIRDS.

The Yardbirds blend of blues, rock and pyschedelia paved the way for heavy rock… The definitive introduction to one of the UK's most successful and influential groups of the Sixties. This comprehensive band overview draws on the hugley important Giorgio Gomelsky recordings that defined the sound of The Yardbirds during their pivotal period 1963 through 1966. The distinctive and groundbreaking blues style of Eric Clapton features on half these tracks, whilst Jeff Beck and his pioneering brand of swaggering, ear-bending, psychedelic rock takes lead guitar duties on the rest. The compilation features the group's hits from the era, including the top 10 singles “Shapes Of Things”, “For Your Love”, “Still I'm Sad” and “Heart Full Of Soul”, as well as “Stroll On” from the soundtrack to the cult 1960’s film ‘Blow-Up’ scored by Herbie Hancock. Part of a new and lavish “Best of” series highlighting the key artists in the Charly Records catalogue.

TRACK LISTING

1. The Train Kept A-Rollin'
2. For Your Love
3. You're A Better Man Than I
4. Evil Hearted You
5. Shapes Of Things
6. I Ain't Done Wrong
7. Heart Full Of Soul
8. Good Morning Little Schoolgirl
9. Still I'm Sad
10. I Wish You Would
11. I'm A Man
12. I Ain't Got You
13. Stroll On (From The Motion Picture "Blow Up")
14. I'm Not Talking

Featuring Jimmy Page and Jeff Beck, "...Where the Action Is!" has rare versions of hit singles, the most complete BBC archival recordings assembled, previously unavailable recordings and photographs, and was compiled with some of the old Yardbirds giving a hand.

YARD are the electrifying three-piece electropunk band from Dublin. Known for their intense and immersive live shows, YARD bridges the gap between electronica and post-punk, creating an auditory onslaught that leaves audiences sweaty, energised, and strangely unnerved.

Since their inception, YARD has shared stages with the likes of A Place To Bury Strangers, Psychotic Monks and Mandy Indiana. Their electrifying live performances, akin to Death Grips, Nine Inch Nails and The Prodigy, have earned them coveted slots at festivals such as Les Transmusicales, Haldern Pop and Into The Great Wide Open.

With a recent live performance on KEXP, continued support from Rolling Stone, BBC Radio 6, Clash and Louder Than War among others, a string of European festival appearances, featured tracks in Netflix’s ‘House of Guinness’ as well as Nicolas Cage’s ‘The Surfer’ and the release of their second self-titled EP, YARD are set to continue their meteoric rise in 2026.

A recent live review captured the YARD experience perfectly: “In their presence, you see and feel them painstakingly crafting every note and sound with their bare hands, wrestling with different sockets, switches, strings, or even their voices. The venue was transformed into this factory of raw, unadulterated noise which kept us all at the mercy of the sound - collectively banging our heads in synchronicity.”

TRACK LISTING

Side A (EP1)
Trevor
Appetite
Slumber
Sunlight

Side B (EP2)
Essential Tremor
Big Shoes
Friction
Lawmaker
Auto Erotic

Yassokiiba makes his debut with a two-track release, selected from his modular jam sessions filmed in his Tokyo apartment. Infused with his deep love for dub, reggae, electronica, and ambient, these tracks deliver pure MAXIMUM-DUB-PRESSURE — TOKYO STYLEE

TRACK LISTING

A. Dub 5
B. Dub 3

Over 35 years since their formation, Yazoo - Vince Clarke and Alison Moyet - are still acclaimed as one of the UK’s greatest pop duos. During their short time together they made two classic albums Upstairs At Eric's and You And Me Both, released seminal hit singles ‘Only You’, ‘Don't Go’, ‘Situation’ and ‘Nobody's Diary’ and toured before disbanding in 1983. Their legacy was a sentiment and a sonic style which sent shock waves through the early-80s charts and continues to be heard in the latest pop hits and throughout contemporary electronica.

TRACK LISTING

Side 1:
1. Don't Go (2018 - Remaster)
2. Too Pieces (2018 - Remaster)
3. Bad Connection (2018 - Remaster)
4. I Before E Except After C (2018 - Remaster)
5. Midnight (2018 - Remaster)
6. In My Room (2018 - Remaster)

Side 2:
1. Only You (2018 - Remaster)
2. Goodbye 70's (2018 - Remaster)
3. Tuesday (2018 - Remaster)
4. Winter Kills (2018 - Remaster)
5. Bring Your Love Down (Didn't I) [2018 - Remaster]

Released in 1982, Upstairs at Eric's is the groundbreaking debut album by Yazoo. It features the international hits ‘Don’t Go’ and ‘Only You’, alongside fan favorites ‘Goodbye 70s’ and ‘Midnight’ plus the haunting ballad “Winter Kills.” Produced by Eric Radcliffe and Yazoo, the album is a masterclass in electronic pop, blending Vince Clarke’s innovative synth work with Alison Moyet’s idiosyncratic vocals.

TRACK LISTING

Side 1
1. Don’t Go (2018 Remaster)
2. Too Pieces (2018 Remaster)
3. Bad Connection (2018 Remaster)
4. I Before E Except After C (2018 Remaster)
5. Midnight (2018 Remaster)
6. In My Room (2018 Remaster)

Side 2
1. Only You (2018 Remaster)
2. Goodbye 70s (2018 Remaster)
3. Tuesday (2018 Remaster)
4. Winter Kills (2018 Remaster)
5. Bring Your Love Down (Didn’t I) (2018 Remaster)

Over 35 years since their formation, Yazoo - Vince Clarke and Alison Moyet - are still acclaimed as one of the UK’s greatest pop duos. During their short time together they made two classic albums Upstairs At Eric's and You And Me Both, released seminal hit singles ‘Only You’, ‘Don't Go’, ‘Situation’ and ‘Nobody's Diary’ and toured before disbanding in 1983. Their legacy was a sentiment and a sonic style which sent shock waves through the early-80s charts and continues to be heard in the latest pop hits and throughout contemporary electronica.

TRACK LISTING

Side 1:
1. Nobody's Diary (2018 - Remaster)
2. Softly Over (2018 - Remaster)
3. Sweet Thing (2018 - Remaster)
4. Mr Blue (2018 - Remaster)
5. Good Times (2018 - Remaster)

Side 2:
1. Walk Away From Love (2018 - Remaster)
2. Ode To Boy (2018 - Remaster)
3. Unmarked (2018 - Remaster)
4. Anyone (2018 - Remaster)
5. Happy People (2018 - Remaster)
6. And On (2018 - Remaster)

A new album from Ye, the artist formerly known as Kanye West. The rapper has inked a partnership deal with the independent music company gamma. for the release of 'BULLY', his 12th studio album.

TRACK LISTING

1. Preacher Man
2. Beauty And The Beast
3. Last Breath
4. White Lines
5. I Can't Wait
6. Bully
7. All The Love
8. This One Here
9. Highs And Lows
10. Mission Control
11. Circles
12. Damn
13. Losing Your Mind

On paper, Ye Nuns are a tribute band. An all-girl celebration of The Monks, proto-krautrock garage punkers formed by a gang of American GIs stationed in Germany who legendarily sported tonsures and nooses on stage. But Ye Nuns are more than a tribute band. Formed by seven London ladies in 2006, Ye Nuns send witchy, six-part harmonies crashing over scratchy guitars, layer on evil fuzz bass and add pounding drums. Lead vocals screech and soar. Electric banjo hacks relentlessly. Vintage keyboard sounds stab. Yet it’s still music that puts grins on faces and gets feet moving.

In an arena where youth is often prized above talent, a band of seven women north of 35 is virtually unprecedented. Their experience and assured poise shines through on stage. There’s no need for faux-sexy posing or cute apologetic stylings. Members’ other bands include Curve, Mambo Taxi, Thee Headcoatees, Gay Dad, The A-Lines, Echobelly, Joanne Joanne, The Werewandas and The Priscillas.

Debut album Nun More Black grinds, grooves and assaults. Recorded in two days flat on old-fashioned tape at Gizzard Studios, there are proper tunes, moments of astonishing avant-garde sonic assault and lashings of righteous ire which you can dance to. Again, Ye Nuns are more than a tribute band. “I love watching Ye Nuns! It was fun watching you guys do this! I love Ye Nuns!” Eddie Shaw (original member of The Monks)

“Conceptually, it’s perfect: an all-female tribute band who play the songs of The Monks while dressed as nuns.” Stool Pigeon

“The music has a simple, visceral effect delivered with such joy that the crowd in the packed tent are in motion from the first banjo twang to the last organ parp. The Monks’ warped genius has passed by musical osmosis to this unholy sisterhood.” SoundsXP

“Bad ass garage rock and roll, played with flair, experience and total confidence, and with unexpected psychedelic twists and turns.” TheGirlsAre.com

Recorded live in a house in Galway, with acclaimed producer Philip Weinrobe (Big Thief, Adrienne Lenker) at the helm, the powerful and cinematic album features deeply evocative original songs infused with memory, tribute, and gratitude. Throughout, a strong sense of home prevails, both their own hard-won digs, past and present, and an inner refuge for anyone longing for connection beyond time and geography. “All these songs have addresses,” says co-frontman Diarmuid Mac Gloinn. “They’re about specific locations and specific people.” The brothers cite fiction writers George Saunders and Claire Keegan as particular inspirations on this record.

The brotherly harmonies and multi-instrumental abilities of Diarmuid and Brían Mac Gloinn were joined on ‘All Tied Together’ by multi-instrumentalists Shahzad Ismaily (Laura Viers, Cass McCombs) who flew over from Brooklyn, Alain Mc Fadden, Caimin Gilmore, Kate Ellis, Sam Amidon, Romain Bly and Louise Gaffney.

While initially achieving renown as purveyors of their ancestors’ music mixed with folk-based originals, the Mac Gloinn brothers – Brían and Diarmuid - have increasingly focused on honing their own material, enlisting trusted co-conspirators to distill voice and vision into potent tunes. They have brought their interpretation of the Irish folk tradition to global audiences, going from Trad sessions to touring with the likes of Hozier and boygenius.

‘All Tied Together’ follows the duo’s previous acclaimed 2022 album ‘Nine Waves’ and standalone single ‘I’m A Rover’, which won them an RTE Radio One Folk Award for Best Traditional Folk Track. Ye Vagabonds were also named Best Folk Group for the second time at the 2021 ceremony, where they hold the record for most awarded artists.

‘All Tied Together’ is the tenth album to be released by River Lea (run by Geoff Travis, Jeannette Lee and Tim Chipping) following records by Lisa O’Neill, Brìghde Chaimbeul, John Francis Flynn, a compilation of Irish music from the archives compiled by Lankum’s Ian Lynch, Sam Amidon, Poor Creature and Ye Vagabond’s previous albums ‘The Hare’s Lament’ and ‘Nine Waves’.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: A particularly lovely set of harmonic folk music, all shimmering acoustic guitars and staggering vocals, slowly growing orchestration and delightfully understated drive. There are moments of upbeat groove (The Flood) but even then, it's bucolic chill shines through. Stunner.

TRACK LISTING

1. On Sitric Road
2. The Flood
3. Danny
4. Cuckoo Storm
5. I’ll Keep Singing
6. Gravity
7. Where The Heart Lies
8. Mayfly
9. Young Again
10. Four Walls
11. Long Grass
12. We Always Forget About The Rain

Ye Vagabonds return with a limited 7", featuring live recordings of two new
songs - 'On Sitric Road' and 'Mayfly'.

The band explain "These songs are about real people and places encountered over the course of a decade living in the Stoneybatter neighbourhood of Dublin's north inner city during an ongoing housing crisis".

Featuring Kate Ellis on Cello, Caimin Gilmore on Double Bass and long-time collaborator Alain MacFadden on Harmonium, Synth and E- Bowed Mandolin. Recorded live in a bookshop on the actual Sitric Road.

Available on 7" vinyl only - not on streaming services. 

TRACK LISTING

1. On Sitric Road
2. Mayfly (Live)

This South Coast outfit mix skacore, folk and good old fashioned punk rock and produced a violin led frenzy of sound. Laconic S'thern vocal delivery (the singer has a nice sneer in his voice) and bags of energy. New on Household Name.