THIS IS A RECORD STORE DAY 2025 EXCLUSIVE, LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.

On vinyl for the first time 'Taste The Blood Of Zombina and the Skeletones' is the long out of print 2002 debut from The band under your bed.

Zaya is a nomadic traveler currently residing in the Arab Emirates. ‘No Words’ is a collection of ideas worked on over a three year period with the occasional swapping of ideas with his best friend in rainy Manchester. A sun-kissed collage of hazy bedroom guitar instrumentals and blissed-out passages of psychedelic? rock..

STAFF COMMENTS

Andy says: If only Whyte Horses, with their beautiful way with melody, were to ever release an instrumental LP......waiiiiit a minute!!!

TRACK LISTING

SIDE A
1. Lost Souvenir
2. Triangular Dreams
3. Interlude 01
4. We Made It
5. Interlude 02
6. Long Way To Get There
7. Tripoli
SIDE B
1. Lonely Jewel
2. Interlude 03
3. Taste Of Gold
4. Interlude 04
5. Thought I Told You
6. Had To Go

Despite the whirlwind that has been sweeping her away since the spring of 2023, Zaho de Sagazan has kept writing and is now set to release an enhanced version of her first album, La Symphonie des éclairs.

This extended version includes seven intimate and previously unreleased songs charged with an undeniable electro energy. While attentive listeners had already caught the very tragic “Dernier des voyages” during her shows, nothing was yet known of “L'Envol” and its existential impulse, the post-breakup tenderness of “Est-ce que tu vas bien?”, the artistic profession of faith on “Ô travers”, the explicit sensuality of “Hab Sex”, or even “Parler l'amour” and lastly “Old Friend” written and recorded with the very one who had given rise to her desire and urgency to make music...”

TRACK LISTING

1. La Fontaine De Sang
2. Aspiration
3. Les Dormantes
4. La Symphonie Des éclairs
5. Les Garçons
6. Langage
7. Dis-moi Que Tu M'aimes
8. Mon Inconnu
9. Je Rêve
10. Tristesse
11. Suffisamment
12. Mon Corps
13. Ne Te Regarde Pas
14. Le Dernier Des Voyages
15. Old Friend
16. Ô Travers
17. Est-ce Que Tu Vas Bien ?
18. Hab Sex
19. Parler L’amour

She may be making her first appearance on NuNorthern Soul, but Zeynep Erbay is no newcomer. A classically trained pianist who took a turn towards the dancefloor while at university, the Turkish DJ/producer earned her first release on Compost Records way back in 2007 after taking part in 2006’s Red Bull Music Academy programme. Since then, her career has been on an upwards trajectory, with releases on Fools Gold and Soul Clap Records confirming Erbay as a genuine rising star of underground electronic music.

On the Healer EP, the Istanbul-based producer showcases the more atmospheric, sun-kissed end of her productions, taking a turn away from synth-powered, disco-leaning club tracks towards something more suitable for al-fresco events, sun-down sets, and sofa-bound listening sessions.

Inspired by a poem inscribed on the back cover of the EP, Erbay’s two original instrumental tracks simply ooze with emotion. The poem tells the story of a whale searching for her family while helping others along the way, which acts as a metaphor for our wider search for belonging and acceptance.

This aural narrative unfolds firstly across ‘Heart of a Healer’, a slowly unfurling stunner in which emotion-rich chords, gentle electronic melodies and Erbay’s poignant and picturesque piano motifs, gently rise above a chunky dub disco bassline and mid-tempo, triple-time drums.

Delving further, the effortlessly emotional, life-affirming composition ‘Healer Whale’, where Erbay’s impeccable piano playing ushers in languid, jazz-flecked drums, dubby bass, sumptuous synth-strings and colourful, slow-moving chords.

On remix dutires, NYC-based Italian Danilo Braca, who also mastered the release, provides a fine club-focused fix of ‘Heart of a Healer’, laced with crunchy machine drums and undulating TB-303 acid lines. NuNorthern Soul regular Marshall Watson handles ‘Healer Whale’, first delivering a fine ‘Remix’ version that effortlessly blurs the boundary between dub disco and Balearic nu-disco, before serving up a shorter, ambient ‘Reprise’ version.

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: It might be pissing it down in the UK right now - but we're in peak season Balearic! Phil Coopers' NuNorthern Soul can always be relied upon for the paradisiacal vibrations and this new one by Zeynep Erbay is no exception. Hammocks at the ready!

TRACK LISTING

A1. Heart Of A Healer [Original]
A2. Heart Of A Healer [Danilo Braca Remix]
B1. Whale Healer [Original]
B2. Whale Healer [Marshall Watson Remix]
B3. Whale Healer [Marshall Watson Reprise]

Nika, the 25-year-old behind Zola Jesus’ creative incarnations, is a singer, sole songwriter and producer.

Written on Vashon Island, WA and mixed in Los Angeles, CA by Dean Hurley, ‘Taiga’ follows the widely celebrated albums ‘Versions’ (2013) and ‘Conatus’ (2011). This is Nika’s fourth fulllength album release.

In regards to the album title, Nika explains, “Taiga is the Russian name for the boreal forest. For me it feels very alive… very expansive. It represents a feral, untapped world that could happily exist without us. There are taiga forests in Northern Wisconsin where I was raised, and also in Russia where my ancestors are from, so it also feels very native.”

Liberated in the present and connected to the past, this album is a transition for Zola Jesus. Masterful layers of composition are bathed in familiar atmospheric vocals but a new sensibility is deeply present.

‘Taiga’ is at once challenging and accessible and is undeniably branded with what Nika terms a “piercing ambition.” Such encompassing purpose, she explains, would be impossible without a newfound sense of artistic self. The album is a declaration of that purpose; one faced with jarring clarity in both its content and production. Nika summates, “For me, it feels like my true debut, because it is the first time I have felt so open and liberated.”

TRACK LISTING

1. Taiga
2. Dangerous Days
3. Dust
4. Hunger
5. Go (Blank Sea)
6. Ego
7. Lawless
8. Nail
9. Long Way Down
10. Hollow
11. It's Not Over

There is a way a voice can cut through the fascia of reality, cleaving through habit into the raw nerve of experience. Nika Roza Danilova, the singer, songwriter, and producer who since 2009 has released music as Zola Jesus, wields a voice that does that. When you hear it, it is like you are being summoned to a place that’s already wrapped inside you but obscured from conscious experience. This place has been buried because it tends to hold pain, but it’s also a gift, because once it’s opened, once you’re inside of it, it can show you the truth. Zola Jesus’s new album, Arkhon, finds new ways of loosing this submerged, stalled pain.

On previous albums, Danilova had largely played the role of auteur, meticulously crafting every aspect of Zola Jesus’s sound and look. This time, she realized that her habitual need for control was sealing her out of her art. Arkhon sees Zola Jesus’s first collaboration with producer Randall Dunn (Sunn O))), Earth, Mandy soundtrack, Candyman soundtrack) and with drummer and percussionist Matt Chamberlain, whose prior work appears on albums by Fiona Apple, Bob Dylan, and David Bowie. Arkhon runs the spectrum from songs whose weight lies in their bare simplicity, like “Desire,” an elegiac piano composition about the end of a relationship that was recorded acoustically in a single take, to towering, groove-oriented tracks like “The Fall” and the tight, interlocking percussion and samples of a Slovenian folk choir in “Lost,” which propel narratives of collective despair and mutual comfort in kind. Through these turns, Arkhon reveals itself as an album whose power derives from abandon. Both its turmoils and its pleasures take root in the body, letting individual consciousness dissolve into the thick of the beat.

Despite the darkness curled inside reality, there is power, too, in surrendering to what can’t be pinned down, to the wild unfurling of the world in all its unforeseeable motion. That letting go is the crux of Arkhon, which marks a new way of moving and making for Zola Jesus.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Zola Jesus' music has always been uncompromising, and had a distinct identity all of it's own, but on 'Arkhon', Danilova mixes her distinctive compositional style with a number of collaborators, resulting in a fractured, visceral hybrid of modern industrial music and abstracted synth-pop.

TRACK LISTING

1 Lost
2 The Fall
3 Undertow
4 Into The Wild
5 Dead And Gone
6 Sewn
7 Desire
8 Fault
9 Efemra
10 Do That Anymore 

For over a decade, Nika Roza Danilova has been recording music as Zola Jesus. She’s been on Sacred Bones Records for most of that time, and Okovi marks her reunion with the label.

Fittingly, the 11 electronics-driven songs on Okovi share musical DNA with her early work on Sacred Bones. The music was written in pure catharsis, and as a result, the sonics are heavy, dark, and exploratory. In addition to the contributions of Danilova’s longtime live bandmate Alex DeGroot, producer/musician WIFE, cellist/noise-maker Shannon Kennedy from Pedestrian Deposit, and percussionist Ted Byrnes all helped build Okovi’s textural universe.

With Okovi, Zola Jesus has crafted a profound meditation on loss and reconciliation that stands tall alongside the major works of its genre. The album peaks of tragedy with great wisdom and clarity. Its songs plumb dark depths, but they reflect light as well.

ARTIST STATEMENT:

Last year, I moved back to the woods in Wisconsin where I was raised. I built a little house just steps away from where my dilapidated childhood tree fort is slowly recombining into earth. Okovi was fed by this return to roots and several very personal traumas.

While writing Okovi, I endured people very close to me trying to die, and others trying desperately not to. Meanwhile, I was fighting through a haze so thick I wasn’t sure I’d find my way to the other side. Death, in all of its masks, has been encircling everyone I love, and with it the questions of legacy, worth, and will.

Okovi is a Slavic word for shackles. We’re all shackled to something—to life, to death, to bodies, to minds, to illness, to people, to birthright, to duty. Each of us born with a unique debt, and we have until we die to pay it back. Without this cost, what gives us the right to live? And moreover, what gives us the right to die? Are we really even free to choose?

This album is a deeply personal snapshot of loss, reconciliation, and a sympathy for the chains that keep us all grounded to the unforgiving laws of nature. To bring it to life, I decided to enlist the help of Alex DeGroot, who has been the only constant in my live band and helped mix the Stridulum EP back in 2010. It will be released on Sacred Bones, the closest group of people I’ll ever have to blood-bound family.

TRACK LISTING

1. Doma
2. Exhumed
3. Soak
4. Ash To Bone
5. Witness
6. Siphon
7. Veka
8. Wiseblood
9. NMO
10. Remains
11. Half Life

For over a decade, Nika Roza Danilova has been recording music as Zola Jesus. She’s been on Sacred Bones Records for most of that time, and Okovi marks her reunion with the label.

Fittingly, the 11 electronics-driven songs on Okovi share musical DNA with her early work on Sacred Bones. The music was written in pure catharsis, and as a result, the sonics are heavy, dark, and exploratory. In addition to the contributions of Danilova’s longtime live bandmate Alex DeGroot, producer/musician WIFE, cellist/noise-maker Shannon Kennedy from Pedestrian Deposit, and percussionist Ted Byrnes all helped build Okovi’s textural universe.

With Okovi, Zola Jesus has crafted a profound meditation on loss and reconciliation that stands tall alongside the major works of its genre. The album speaks of tragedy with great wisdom and clarity. Its songs plumb dark depths, but they reflect light as well.

TRACK LISTING

1. Doma
2. Exhumed
3. Soak 
4. Ash To Bone 
5. Witness 
6. Siphon 
7. Veka 
8. Wiseblood
9. NMO
10. Remains
11. Half Life 

“Seven yers ago, it was winter break at university in Madison, Wisconsin. There was a snowstorm that covered the city with a still white haze. Not a single person in the streets. I was sitting on my bed with a cheap keyboard and a computer, screaming into the void. I barely remember writing the songs. It was a chaotic point in my life. I had no time to think about process or intent. It was a purge. I do remember taking a break from recording, bundling up, and walking through the barren streets while listening to the demos I’d made. The world, at once, felt clear. After writing and producing what would become the Stridulum EP, I contacted a new friend, Alex DeGroot, to come over and record my vocals. He was studying audio engineering and had more knowledge and gear than I could dream of. He helped mix Stridulum, too, because all I had was a pair of headphones. (Since then, Alex has stuck by me, as a live bandmate, technical director, co-producer, mixer, and engineer.) These songs were a huge leap of faith back then. It was my first time singing without layers of distortion, echo, and reverb. It was the first time I peeled back the layers to find out what was at the core. I’m still on that path today, seeing how far I can push myself into unknown places, whether through clarification or destruction. It’s like Stridulum’s still here with me, underneath it all. Still, it’s surreal to think that this record, made by a 19-year-old girl sitting on a bed in a freezing old house in Madison, would make its way into strangers’ ears seven years later.”

-Nika Roza Danilova, June 2017

Collects the early Zola Jesus EPs Stridulum and Valusia in a single volume for the first time.

TRACK LISTING

1. Night (3:37)
2. Trust Me (2:01)
3. I Can’t Stand (4:10)
4. Stridulum (4:22)
5. Run Me Out (3:19)
6. Manifest Destiny (3:16)
7. Poor Animal (4:27)
8. Tower (3:58)

With this previously unreleased 1963 score for Jindlich Polák’s "Ikarie XB-1", Finders Keepers present their third dedicated soundtrack by Zdeněk Liška. Beautifully remastered from the original tapes with the full cooperation of the National Film Archive in the Czech Republic. In a climate where previously lesser-known off- kilter master composers such as Vannier, Kirchin and Axelrod have become widely revered, it is perhaps the perfect time for discerning listeners to advance above the feeding trough and seek out this truly pioneering and revolutionary Eastern European composer.

TRACK LISTING

Ikarie XB-1
Surveillance On Standby/Alpha Centauri
A Small Stone In Space
Sunflower For A New Star
The Backwoods Of The Universe
Silver Ball (Věra In Cameo)
E.V.A. Will Teach You
The Tigers Breath
The Dark Star
Do Not Eat The Fruit
The Awakening
Voyage To The End (Of The Universe)
The White Planet

‘Sweet Whispers’ is more than a run-through of some of Vaughan’s most popular songs. It’s not hard to imagine the immense task in selecting those songs, after all, Vaughan’s recording career spanned 50 years notching up almost 60 albums (plus nearly 30 again in compilations and box sets). Through a thoughtfully chosen selection of songs, formed across months in collaboration with producer, and the album’s clarinettist and saxman, Giacomo Smith – Zara journeys through the musical life of Sarah Vaughan, from her first to last recording, bringing to life and breathing new life into some of her best and less familiar songs. But importantly, the songs that mean the most to Zara.

Zara McFarlane said “It was when I started to listen to Sarah Vaughan that I really began to appreciate jazz vocals. She had such control across her range and a vocal command that was cheeky, playful and fun yet sophisticated and articulate. I really wanted to pay homage to her as I feel she has been somewhat overlooked amongst the jazz singers. Although I do love Ella and Billie, it's all about Sarah for me.”

‘Sweet Whispers – Celebrating Sarah Vaughan’ was recorded analogue at Durham Studios, London. Giacomo assembled a stellar cast of musicians - Joe Webb on piano, Ferg Ireland on double bass, Jas Kayser on drums, Marlon Hibbert on Steel Pan and Gabriella Swallow on cello – to record 11 tracks live to tape; with minimal overdubs, the recording has retained a live, vintage feel.

A celebration of Sarah Vaughan could be in no better hands than that of Zara McFarlane, who makes an inspired homage to the ‘Divine One’. Beautifully performed in Zara’s own inimitable style, with her own playful swoops and slides, she has added her own touch to the music. With a silken voice and timbre that brings emotional depth, attitude and personality to this collection of Sarah Vaughan songs, this is a masterful celebration.

TRACK LISTING

1. Tenderly
2. Mean To Me
3. Inner City Blues
4. September Song
5. Great Day
6. If You Could See Me Now
7. Interlude
8. Obsession
9. The Mystery Of Man
10. Stardust
11. Sweet Whispers

In 1999, Modest Mouse struck out for Chicago to record their major-label debut for Epic Records. Amid indie circle cries of “sellouts,” a largely untested producer, and a half-built studio, the trio recorded the instrumental basics of The Moon & Antarctica … and then singer/songwriter Isaac Brock got his face smashed by a hooligan in a park.

With barely any vocals recorded, Brock emerged from the hospital with his jaw completely wired shut, and returned to a mostly empty studio. And there, on a diet of painkillers, in a neighborhood that wanted to purge the band from its borders, a creative alchemy took place that would redefine Modest Mouse and indie rock at large.

The fact that the band finished the album at all is surprising. The fact that it is now considered by critics as “hands-down one of the greatest records ever made” (NME) is perhaps an utter miracle.

The Moon & Antarctica is an album so strange and enigmatic, from those sweet opening notes, to the plunging depths of the middle, to the shocking, furious end, that you almost hesitate to listen to it again for fear of it losing its chaotic magic. But then you do, and you discover all-new sounds-a lost harmonic here, a stray percussion element there, a fresh interpretation of a lyric that leaves you thunderstruck.

And that ever-looming question, years on: How the hell did Modest Mouse pull this off?!

Wewantsounds is delighted to announce the reissue of Ziad Rahbani's cult album "Amrak Seedna & Abtal Wa Harameyah," one of his praised albums from the 80s, released on the sought-after Lebanese label Relax-in in 1987. This release is an event as the album, recorded at Rahbani's By-Pass studio, was only released in Lebanon at the time. Mixing Arabic music with Funk and Fusion Jazz and hints of Boogie, it's a bonified Rahbani classic, sought after by Arabic groove DJs and collectors around the world. The reissue features audio remastered by Colorsound Studio in Paris and a 2 page insert with a new introduction by Mario Choueiry from Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris (English/French).

TRACK LISTING

1. Al Muqademah 1 (Introduction 1)
2. I'alan (Advertisement)
3. Mashad Al Fahes (Examination)
4. Tango
5. Break
6. Al Muqademah 2 (Introduction 2) - Inst.
7. Al Muqademah (Introduction) - Inst.
8. Tagheer Awal (First Change)
9. Oghniyat El Shahadeen
10. Tagheer Thani (Second Change)
11. Al Piano
12. Tagheer Thaleth (Third Change)
13. Al Jeel (The Generation)
14. Hake Ad Ma Baddak Fee
15. Oghniyat El Gharam
16. Mashhad Al Hob
17. End Of Chapter 1
18. Kabbaret Dancing
19. Kbareah Wa Mhajjaren
20. Slow
21. Mashhad Al Serk
22. Final - Al Adala

Psychedelic tinged, electonica / pop from this hotly tipped young Welsh band. Hints of Gorkys, Spiritualized and Super Furry Animals in their mellower moments!

Venice-based DJ and collector Zaffa is next up on the ever-superb Scruniversal label with a couple more delightful disco dancers. 'Trip Through The Galaxy' is a slow-motion cosmic trip that is vast in scale and high on soul thanks to the warm vocal that floats amidst funky riffs and glowing keys. Things stay just as sensuous and steamy on the flip with 'Supernova Child', another fluid and funky jam with oodles of synth magic and gentle grooves all soothing mind, body and soul. The real kicker is the vocal samples that add extra spaced-out funkiness.

TRACK LISTING

Trip Through The Galaxy
Supernova Child

Brighton's cool Puma Strut label brings us this mellow hip hop tune (vocal and instrumental mixes) from this Californian based crew. Fresh rhymes, fresh beats and cuts by Westafa.

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

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

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

TRACK LISTING

A1. Moving
A2. My Luv
B1. Flatspot
B2. Page 365

Simona Zamboli's first album on Mille Plateaux "Ethernity" is a piece of haunting music - vibrating, pulsing and cutting through the concrete and the chaos at the same time. Hushed and intimate in places, whilst in others, ruthlessly destructive, the album is a journey through trans-reality, not only as a melancholic drama, but also as a travel to alien worlds, hence as a necessity of an electronic intervention. "Ethernithy" is radical fictioning in a non-expressive, non-melancholic and ultrablack sense. Profound music demands blackness, not silence. When we speak of communication or mediation, the reference is always that of the mystical tradition of the via negativa; mediation and communication always imply the dissolution of sender and receiver, leaving not only the message that is the gulf or abyss, but a perception out there, which senses should be able to recognize and even love.

In this way the album conveys all these primal and ancient emotions in a cybernetically enhanced manner; smothered in a dissolute darkness that only the deepest recesses of space and reveal... 

TRACK LISTING

Side 1
1. Bless (interlude) (2:14)
2. Dream But Be Careful (5:50)
3. Noise Hub (6:11)

Side 2
1. Take Me Somewhere (5:30)
2. A Lightning Bolt Strikes The Mountaintop (3:40)

Side 3
1. Compossibility (7:04)
2. Let It Drain From You All (3:46)

Side 4
1. Russian Galaxy (4:29)
2. Trittico (feat Transgressorcorruptor) (4:22)
3. Ethernity (3:47)

Dusty in Memphis, Dusty Springfield's beautiful and bizarre magnum opus, remains as fine a hybrid of pop and rhythm and blues as has ever been made. In this remarkable book, Warren Zanes explores his own love affair with the record. He digs deep into the album's Memphis roots and talks to several of the key characters who were involved in its creation, many of whom were - like Zanes - outsiders drawn to the American South and mesmerized by its hold over the imagination.

ZAN's latest album is currently 26 in the UK soul chart s it's no wonder the label it came on has pressed up this 12" with a couple of mixes of one of its standout tunes on as well as a new jam. The first is an extended mix of 'Follow My Heart' that has timeless synth soul and lush boogie disco drums with wet claps and cowbells a plenty. Then comes Bangsy's 808 disco mix which is a little more blissed out and low-slung with funky guitar riffs and lovely vocal hooks. Also included is the new cut 'Everlasting' which is a dubbed-out, reverb-drenched street soul stepper with retro keys to melt the heart.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Follow My Heart (extended Mix)
A2. Follow My Heart (Bangsy 808 Discomix)
B1. Everlasting

Zac and Louis are back as Zanzibar Chanel, inaugurating the slightly obscene Pig Sweat imprint with the fresh dancefloor pressure of "Killer", unreleased classic "Big Bone Bitch" and a whacked out edit offered by fellow ex-Melbournite Bell Towers. After a hallucinatory snatch of Peppa Pig, our hosts get down to business, working 8-bit sequences into a basement weapon par excellence. The funk of the 'jazz club' is all but forgotton as ZC pay homage to Prescription classics on a cheap and trashy studio set up. Drifting, swelling pads almost to lift us up to the heavens, but the scuzzy aethetic keeps things down low and dirty. Switching to the flip, ZC treat us to the first vinyl outing of their slamming, stomping, voguing classic "Big Bone Bitch". Giving NYC's Ballroom scene and Chi-Town's Dance Mania catalogue a fresh and modern twist, the crew top a squelching b-line and rattling drum groove with some life affirming, sleazy and totally ridiculous lyrics - it's one hell of a party. Bell Towers drops by on the B2 to treat us to his interpretation of their Gok Wan groover, laying down a Fingers Inc-inspired backing before sending those vocals through the chopper - did I mention it was party time?

TRACK LISTING

A1. Killer
B1. Big Bone Bitch
B2. Big Bone Bitch (Bell Towers Edit)

Funky Nothingness, the working title Frank Zappa used for this project, is comprised of studio cuts from 1970. This release is basically the follow up to The Hot Rats Sessions. Frank Zappa used a very stripped-down combo featuring Don “Surgarcane” Harris on violin and vocals. The music concentrates heavily on instrumental and blues-oriented material. This album consists of many unreleased tracks that Frank Zappa bypassed but kept his eye on during his career. He just never got around to releasing them. Some of the tracks were almost included on The Lost Episodes album. 90 minutes of music will be mixed for the first time. The remaining music was mixed and edited by Frank Zappa. The vinyl will only contain the tracks FZ edited and mixed.

TRACK LISTING

2LP
Side 1
Funky Nothingness
Tommy/Vincent Duo I
Love Will Make Your Mind Go Wild
I'm A Rollin' Stone
Side 2
Chunga's Revenge (Basement Version)
Basement Jam
Side 3
Work With Me Annie / Annie Had A Baby
Tommy/Vincent Duo II
Sharleena (1970 Record Plant Mix)
Side 4
Khaki Sack
Twinkle Tits

3CD
CD 1: Funky Nothingness - The Album
Funky Nothingness
Tommy/Vincent Duo I
Love Will Make Your Mind Go Wild
I'm A Rollin' Stone
Chunga's Revenge (Basement Version)
Basement Jam
Work With Me Annie / Annie Had A Baby
Tommy/Vincent Duo II
Sharleena (1970 Record Plant Mix)
Khaki Sack
Twinkle Tits
CD 2: Zappa/Hot Rats ’70 Session Masters And Bonus Nothingness
Chunga’s Revenge (Take 5)
Love Will Make Your Mind Go Wild (Take 4)
Transylvania Boogie (Unedited Master)
Sharleena (Unedited Master)
Work With Me Annie/Annie Had A Baby (Alternate Edit)
Twinkle Tits (Take 1, False Start)
Twinkle Tits (Take 2)
CD 3: Zappa/Hot Rats ’70 Session Masters And Bonus Nothingness
The Clap (Unedited Master-Part I)
The Clap (Unedited Master-Part II)
Tommy/Vincent Duo (Unedited Master)
Chunga’s Revenge (Take 8)
Halos And Arrows
Moldred
Fast Funky Nothingness

"A fascinating collection of mostly instrumental live and studio material recorded by the original Mothers of Invention, complete with horn section, from 1967-1969, Weasels Ripped My Flesh segues unpredictably between arty experimentation and traditional song structures. Highlights of the former category include the classical avant-garde elements of "Didja Get Any Onya," which blends odd rhythmic accents and time signatures with dissonance and wordless vocal noises; these pop up again in "Prelude to the Afternoon of a Sexually Aroused Gas Mask" and "Toads of the Short Forest." The latter and "The Eric Dolphy Memorial Barbecue" also show Frank Zappa's willingness to embrace the avant-garde jazz of the period. Yet, interspersed are straightforward tunes like a cover of Little Richard's "Directly From My Heart to You," with great violin from Don "Sugarcane" Harris; the stinging Zappa-sung rocker "My Guitar Wants to Kill Your Mama," and "Oh No," a familiar Broadway-esque Zappa melody (it turned up on Lumpy Gravy) fitted with lyrics and sung by Ray Collins. Thus, Weasels can make for difficult, incoherent listening, especially at first. But there is a certain logic behind the band's accomplished genre-bending and Zappa's gleefully abrupt veering between musical extremes; without pretension, Zappa blurs the normally sharp line between intellectual concept music and the visceral immediacy of rock and R&B. Zappa's anything-goes approach and the distance between his extremes are what make Weasels Ripped My Flesh ultimately invigorating; they also even make the closing title track -- a minute and a half of squalling feedback, followed by applause -- perfectly logical in the album's context." - All Music.

The saying goes that "God only gives you what you can handle." Well God didn't grow up in my atheist, Wiccan, fame-laden, oversexed, teetotalling, drug-free, cloistered, chaotic, non-communicative, workaholic, feral-feeling house.'For Moon Unit, daughter of musician Frank Zappa and his 'manager', Gail, processing a life so unique, so punctuated by the whims of creative urges, the tastes of popular culture and the calculus of celebrity, has at times been eviscerating. But it is her deep sense of humour and unshakeable humility that keeps her - and this memoir - pinned to the ground. A child-star at age 14 after her accidental international hit single (recorded with her father), 'Valley Girl', turned her into a reluctant celebrity, Moon Unit Zappa's life has been utterly extraordinary from her birth in 1967 into a family that was already blessed/cursed as music royalty thanks to the acknowledged genius of Frank.

But what are the consequences of growing up in a family who spend most of their time naked arguing about sexual/extra-marital liaisons and practising white magic in a free-for-all state of nonconformist, virtuoso abandon?Earth to Moon is a reckoning with self-esteem, the ghosts of the past and a mother and a father who, in the process of leaving their mark upon on the world, scarred their first daughter on home soil. Brutally self-deprecating and funny as hell, it belies a rose-tinted perspective on the 70s and 80s west coast American scene, from within the belly of the beast of the rock and roll world.

Rarely heard Tanzanian gogo music meets slick electronic production, for a borderless but powerful fusion sound. Tanzania’s Msafiri Zawose has been one of the biggest slept-on musical forces from the region, but all that is about to change with the imminent arrival of a new album that will redefine the boundaries of gogo music. The Wagogo people are Msafiri’s traditionally nomadic tribe from the center of the Tanzania, known for their musicality and made famous by Hukwe Zawose - Msafiri’s father, who toured the world as a part of Peter Gabriel’s Real World roster in the 80s and 90s. The album has been produced in collaboration with Sam Jones from Sound Thread, whose recent works with Orlando Julius and remixes for Mugwisa International and Sarabi have been rapturously received.
The tracks remain profoundly ‘gogo’ with traditional instruments and singing, but are infused with an organic electronic aesthetic. This is an afro-futurist journey that takes in dub, Balearic, ambient and electronic vibrations alongside Zawose’s hypnotic playing and emotive, plaintive vocals.

STAFF COMMENTS

Patrick says: Hypnotic, percussive and trance inducing grooves from Msafiri Zawose here. Fusing traditional rhythms and melodies with buzzing synth bass, off kilter mallets and fx abuse, the Tanzanian musician has created a killer LP which should find favour with the more exotic fringes of the disco/Balearic communities.

Zdehvedo Gob is a collective of musicians who all hail from various cities around the world. It consists of Udacha label head Alexey Kalik as well as drummer Roman Shestaev and Gamayun associates Anton Dvoenko and Stas Mitrofanov and they all got together in the studio in summer 2023 and the results are now presented on this new album. It's a gorgeous mix of world, jazz, spiritual percussive, experimental music that rides on nice loose and vibrant rhythms with a great mix of synthetic and organic sounds all offering plenty for the mind as well as the body to get excited about.

TRACK LISTING

Embodiment
Harp Phantasma
XB
Tidal Wave
Alliluya To Love
Volgo Rite
Saturday Daily
Law Inactivating Pholk

This Brazilian library funk beauty is the soundtrack to Carlos Imperial's 1975 film of the same title. Echoing European soundtrack maestros such as Roy Budd and Ennio Morricone, but with a Brazilian swagger, Ze Rodrix's score is a sublime gem that needs rediscovery.

Rich in 70's soundtrack cool, the score is packed with orchestrated jazz, chase scene- funk, breaks, psychedelic freakouts and plenty of drama. The loose and quirky break- beat jazz- funk of 'Assalto' feels almost tailor- made for today's hiphop production aesthetic. The opening drum break of 'Esconderijo' is a sampler's dream and has already been reinterpreted by the Turkish Rapper Anil Piyanci, as well as Brazil's DJ Caique.

Carlos Imperial wrote liner notes and was an actor, filmmaker, television presenter, and media figure. His film 'O Esquadrao da Morte' is a violent heist movie starring Beto Bandeira, Claire Chevalier, and Baby Conceicao; in the vein of exploitation films and gritty, raw B- Movie cinema of the day. Both the film and album share striking, macabre artwork by artist Benicio. The instrumentalist, arranger, and singer- songwriter Ze Rodrix has worked with the cream of Brazilian music, having written songs covered by the greats, including Quarteto Em Cy, Ronald Mesquita, Elis Regina, Karma, and Celia, to name just a few. His written arrangements have graced the music of Luli Lucinha E O Bando and Helio Matheus. He was a member of the iconic group Som Imaginario and played piano and synthesizer on Secos & Molhado's classic 1973 album.

Mr. Bongo are super pleased to make this dusty treasure available again. It is a wonderful soundtrack score that more than holds its own with its European and American counterparts of the era.

TRACK LISTING

1. Esquadrao Da Morte
2. Um Homem E Um Homem E Um Homem 
3. Chorinho Pro Tio
4. Tema De Amor
5. Bolero De Mangaratiba
6. Motoqueiros 
7. Mundo!
8. Assalto
9. Esconderijo
10. Rhumba

'Estudando O Samba' is an incredibly unique concept album from the one and only Tom Ze, originally released by Continental Brazil in 1976 - a tough one to find at a good price in its original form now. ‘Estudando do Samba’ (or ‘Studying The Samba’) is a post-Tropicalia studio experimentation laiden with layers of hypnotic percussion, effects & samples that deconstructs the ‘samba’ form. Recorded during what was arguably his most creative period. David Byrne found the record in Rio in the late 90’s and included several songs on his Tom Ze collection for Luaka Bop a few years later. At that time Tom was not recording or touring much; playing low-key shows in Sao Paulo and contemplating a move back to Irara to work at a service station owned by one of his cousins. Byrne’s project helped to reignite his career and he hasn’t looked back since.

TRACK LISTING

Ma
A Felicidade
Toc
To
Vai (Menina Amenha De Manha)
Ui!
(Voce Inventa)
Doi
Mae (Mae Solteira)
Hein?
So (Solidao)
Se
Indice

Special limited gatefold edition on 180g premium vinyl. Tom Ze is considered the most iconic voice of all Tropicalistas - Brazil's artistic movement that arose in the late 1960s. He came from Bahia, but his wry urban poetry, infused with the sounds of the largest metropolis of South America, is pure Sao Paulo.

Five of the songs from this album were in included on Brazil Classics Vol.40 - The Best of Tom Ze, compiled by David Byrne and released on Luaka Bop in 1990. "This was the record that took me out of circulation, explained Tom Zé. "Until then I was played on the radio." However, he admitted that "This album is something so joyful that I've done, that I don't even know how to explain. It was the best thing I've accomplished after years of incomprehensible lack of motivation. I noticed that my heart could stand being unpopular, and this conviction spread comfortably inside me. This record had the faculty of bringing back my internal joy. It has brought back the joy of singing, of making music, of creating, of accomplishing."

TRACK LISTING

1. Complexo De Epico
2. A Noite Do Meu Bem
3. Cademar
4. Todos Os Olhos 
5. Dodo E Zeze
6. Quando Eu Era Sem Ninguem
7. Brigitte Bardot
8. Augusta, Angelica E Consolacao
9. Botaram Tanta Fumaca
10. O Riso E A Faca
11. Um "Oh" E Um "Ah"
12. Omplexo De Epico

Inspiring and crisply produced pop punk blitzreig bop with a clean, punchy guitar sound, driving rhythm section and uplifting, clenched fist lyrics delivered through hip hop influenced vocal harmonies. The sound is a little harder than their previous two lps and probably benefits from that.

Rachel Zeffira’s new single ‘Break The Spell’ is set for release. Its B-side will be a remix of her previous single ‘Here On In’, a Tom Furse (The Horrors) Extrapolation.

Both ‘Break The Spell’ and ‘Here On In’ are taken from Zeffira’s debut solo album ‘The Deserters’.

Rachel Zeffira's debut solo album 'The Deserters' is both beautiful and beguiling - a rapturous tour de force that recalls the baroque pop of John Cale and the hazy experimentation of My Bloody Valentine.

Fans of everyone from Bat For Lashes to The Horrors will find something to enjoy here.

The artwork features photos from celebrated fashion photographer Yuval Hen.

The album was written and produced entirely by Rachel and was recorded at Miloco’s The Pool and Abbey Road Studios alongside engineer Ben Thackeray.

After a break of two years, Zefur Wolves return with a brand new album, beating a path to the promised 2019 follow up to their acclaimed debut. The three-piece’s distinct brand of languid, emotive, alt-rock takes the commanding role with Truth is in the Stars, released on Strangetown Records.

The band have once again teamed up with M h of human consciousness and empathetic resistance to injustice. r. Kobo who hasn't disappointed with the beautiful and intricate sleeve artwork and lovingly presented by Mark James Works. For the audiophiles the gorgeous deep berry coloured vinyl will be a feast for the eyes as well as the ears.

Studio sessions helmed by producer and former live band member, Super Furry Animal’s Cian Ciarán, have driven the band to greater intricacy and an audible sense of playfulness, toying with compositional and recording technique. Having crafted their debut album in California, evocative of their cited inspirations including Spiritualized and Beach House, the upbeat trailblazing first single Flying High, recorded at Strangetown Studios in Caridff, suggests new and fertile creative ground has been found to ‘one up’ an already glinting reputation

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: For all of you that love the thrashing, but cohesive madness of the Lovely Eggs, the Zefur Wolves are here to brighten up your day. Throbbing guitars and snapping percussion are coated in an entirely non-eggy haze of shoegazing distortion and extended reverb. Thoroughly brilliant.

TRACK LISTING

1) Truth Is In The Stars
2) Flying High
3) Letting Go
4) Contact High
5) Friend Of Mine
6) Under Waves
7) The Polygon
8) Revenir A Vous
9) Sunset In Mendocino
10) Strada Del Paradiso
11) Stars Of Omaha

Manchester's king of dub-techno is back. You might know James from across the road in Vinyl Exchange, or you might not. What you need to know is that this cool cat has been dropping heat that's up there with the best bits of Deepchord, Basic Channel, Echochord and other dub-techno technicians for the best part of 20 years!  

A much anticipated return to Kontakt sees three highly atmospheric and unfathomably detailed cuts that ripple, plume and sway with pure finesse. A massage for the mind with rising pads, delicately plucked notes echoing through the mix, deeeeeep as you like bass, rotary arpeggios and shards of electrostatic crunch. The middle (quite literally) piece of the Detroit-Manchester-Berlin dub-tech puzzle! Recommended.

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Another big, epic, dub-techno jaunt from James from across the road! Smothering us with his weighted blanket of dubbed-out synthetics and deep, heady sounds. A cerebral pick-me-up for your mind's eye.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Momentum
B1. Exodus
B2. Resolve

Born and raised in New Jersey, Ardio Zemog delivers the goods for the next Obia Records release. Soulful harmonic percussion filled tracks with a whiff of Latin. Passed on from generation to generation people inherit their ancestral spirits and devotional practices to create vibrations that lift our souls. Ardio Zemog takes on the skin of Obiaman for a sonic trip through connected spirits both young and old. The main cut “Generations” takes the dancer and listener on a wholesome state of well-being. Soothing percussion rhythms with a solid signature bassline drives the listener into a never ending feeling of bliss, the youngest generation has spoken.

Followed by “Yeochu” a deeper more mature arrangement of drums characterizes the unseen spirit from the father figure. A message of analogue synth stabs and pads deliver a blessing followed by hypnotic piano riffs. Instructions and spiritual advice are given for those who are able to open up.

“Nights in Leblon” behold the oldest wisest spirit of them all. A breathtaking deep harmonic pad layered by countless drum percussion. The presence of ever evolving synth stabs and piano chords define the tracks rhythm and timbre.
To finish the EP Wendel Sield takes us on a completely different ancestral path. Flipping the script on “Nights in Leblon Acidic Rework” with a solid tb-303 acid line layered with tr-505 drums. The rework focuses on playful rhythm and minimal usage of elements. Surprisingly the record takes on a different harmony mid tune what makes the track ideal for DJs who like to switch it up during their sets.

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Straight up tribal deep house business in a similar vein to Ron Trent or Joe Clausell. "Yeochu" sounds a lot of like Henrik Schwarz's remix of Code 718's "Equinox".

TRACK LISTING

Generations
Yeochu
Nights In Leblon
Nights In Leblon (Wendel Sields Acidic Rework)

Fronted by the talented and articulate "Gleavey Twins", this is motorized modern day ska with a distinctly northern flavour, drawing its influences from Two Tone, Jamaican ska, Motown and possibly even The Fall. Propelled by driving rhythms, a brilliant, exuberant brass section and a unique, ascerbic vocal style, this is a rare treat from a criminally overlooked outfit.

Wonky beats and woozy melodies, pitched vocal cuts and mournful strings. Rhythmic fragments of melody breathe in and out, punctuating the start-stop breaks. On the flipside, Malik Ameer features on a Thatmanmonkz remix, and turns the whole affair into a slamming rhythmic hip-hop stormer. Perfectly punctuated rhythms and rhymes float above the remixed original. Top stuff. 

TRACK LISTING

1. Every Lil' Bit
2. Every Lil' Bit (Thatmanmonkz Remix Feat Malik Ameer)

The Zephyr Bones’ psychedelic rock expands in a precise and determined sophomore album. A warm and accessible record that speaks about love, self-affirmation, loss and hope.

RIYL: Tame Impala, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, Spacemen 3, TOPS.

A quicksilver track that glides on a buoyant bassline and glistening melodic interplay, “No One” is the sound of joy. While it’s easy to pigeonhole it as a dreampop track, there’s undoubtedly hints of psych, funk and Kraut all nestled in there, The Zephyr Bones blurring the lines with ease in this intoxicating track that shows growth in their sonic heft without losing their feathery lightness.
Beats per Minute

"No One" opens up like a traditional indie dance track, with sparkling guitars and a vibrant synth lead reminiscent of a cut from The Strokes or Tame Impala. But it progresses in a fascinating way, bringing in a crunchy psychedelic guitar solo and a funky instrumental breakdown at the end. This track has a variety of sounds, but it's prog rock more than anything, as the dynamic instrumentation sticks out the most. Every layer here is not only an excellent piece to the larger puzzle while also being technically impressive on its own. Despite these nods to the more experienced rock nerd, what's the most fascinating is how accessible the tune really is. The wild drum beats, dense synth layers, and lightning-quick guitars demonstrate the true cerebral chemistry of the group. The sheer musical talent doesn't hurt either.
Earmilk

When The Zephyr Bones first burst into the scene they crushed everything that got in their way. Their music slapped us like a wave when it reaches shore. It took us by surprise and left us asking yearning for more. They coined their style “beach wave”. All this became a first album titled Secret Place, something like the sonic coordinates of a sunny place with a soundtrack of guitars with reverb and intoxicating melodies. You can’t tell whether you’ve been there or not, but you definitely want to go back.
In Neon Body they are the same people, but it hits differently. Their melodies and suggestive guitar riffs are on point. They are able to take you back to places. You will never finish these 10 tracks in the same place where you were when you first hit play. Speaking of The Zephyr Bones is speaking of pure freedom. And yet, in this second album we get to know them in a different way, more determined and with a renewed intensity. The landscape has also changed and now the tone reminds us of the twilight, and in some songs you can even feel the reflection of neon light on your skin.

But let’s not lose the point. What matters here are the songs, and in this album you can find pretty damn good ones. “No One”, the first single, is an excellent entry into the universe created in Neon Body. Addictive and irresistible, it will instantly get you dancing and singing along. “So High” is a dizzying and fast-paced first track. By the time “Verneda Lights” arrives, you have fully surrendered to Brian Silva (vocals, guitar and synthesizers), Jossip Tkalcic (guitar and vocals), Marc López (drums) and Carlos Ramos (bass). “Sparks” shines with its own light: it is a controlled fire until the final part of the song makes everything burn again. “Plastic Freedom” goes all-in with an infallible riff. “Velvet” is as elegant as its title suggests, and “Rocksteady” hits the bullseye again with a chorus that hits like a poisonous dart. “Neon Eyes’’ lifts you up with heavenly back up vocals and “Afterglow” keeps you with your feet on the ground – Why? Because begs you to dance. And then comes “Celeste V”, a song that speaks about loss that puts an end to the recording. 

TRACK LISTING

1. So High
2. Verneda Lights
3. No One
4. Afterglow
5. Sparks
6. Neon Eyes
7. Plastic Freedom
8. Rocksteady
9. Velvet
10. Celeste V

Zero 7 were formed in 1997 by producers Henry Binns and Sam Hardaker. In 2001 their debut album "Simple Things" was released selling over a million copies to date and was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize. Zero 7 were also nominated as Best Newcomer at the Brit Awards 2001. "Simple Things" peaked at no.28 in the UK album chart and spent 89 weeks on the chart. Stateside, the album hit no.4 on the Billboard Dance / Electronic album chart and stayed on that chart for 52 weeks.

Singles taken from the original album included ‘I Have Seen’ featuring Mozez, ‘Destiny’ featuring Sia & Sophie Barker, "In the Waiting Line" featuring Sophie Barker and "Distractions" featuring Sia. The LP has been out of print for almost two decades and second-hand copies of the original pressing are changing hands on Ebay and Discogs for upwards of £100!

STAFF COMMENTS

Andy says: Beautiful, lushly produced downtempo grooves topped with sweet melodies, somewhat akin to French masters Air but with soul and jazz flavours, this is a timeless classic, and every home should have one!

TRACK LISTING

LP:
I Have Seen
Polaris
Destiny
Give It Away
Simple Things
Red Dust
Distractions
In The Waiting Line
Out Of Town
This World
Likufanele

CD:

Disc 1:
I Have Seen
Polaris / Destiny
Give It Away
Simple Things
Red Dust
Distractions
In The Waiting Line
Out Of Town
This World
Likufanele
End Theme

Disc 2:
Simple Things (KFOG Session)
Destiny (KFOG Session)
In The Waiting Line (KFOG Session)
Monday Night
Spinning
Salt Water Sound
Distractions (Version Idjut)
In The Waiting Line (Dorfmeister Con Madrid De Los Austrias Dub)
End Theme (Herberts Chop Dub)
Distractions (Block 16 Mix)
Destiny (Photek Remix)

The Garden is another timelessly classic album from a seminal electronic band and an essential soundtrack to any laidback listening.  Zero 7 were formed in 1997 by producers Henry Binns and Sam Hardaker. In 2001 their debut album Simple Things was released selling over a million copies to date and was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize. They released their third album The Garden in 2006 it also peak at no 4 UK album chart spending 7 weeks in total there. It has sold over 125k copies. In the USA, it entered the Billboard Dance/Electronic chart at #2 and stayed in the Top 20 of that chart for 5 weeks. Singles taken from the album include Futures featuring Jose Gonzalez, Throw It All Away and You’re My Flame both featuring Sia

TRACK LISTING

CD1:
Futures
Throw It All Away
Seeing Things
The Pageant Of The Bizarre
You’re My Flame
Left Behind
Today
This Fine Social Scene
Your Place
If I Can’t Have You
Crosses
Waiting To Die

CD2:
Dreaming
Thistles
Carolina
Futures (Acoustic Version)
Seeing Things (Extended 12” Version)
Left Behind (Live Session)
Today (Live Session)
Dreaming (Live Session)
You’re My Flame (Live Session)
Crosses (Live Session)
The Pageant Of The Bizarre (Live Session)

LP1:
Futures
Throw It All Away
Seeing Things
The Pageant Of The Bizarre
You’re My Flame
Left Behind

LP2:
Today
This Fine Social Scene
Your Place
If I Can’t Have You
Crosses
Waiting
To Die

Zero 7 were formed in 1997 by producers Henry Binns and Sam Hardaker In 2001 their debut album 'Simple Things' was released selling over a million copies to date and was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize. They released their second album 'When It Falls' in 2004.

'When It Falls' was a Top 10 album, peaking at No.4 in the UK album charts and spent 24 weeks in total in the charts. It has sold over a quarter of a million copies. Stateside the album entered the Billboard Dance/ Electronic chart at #3 and stayed in the Top 20 of that chart for almost thirteen months. Singles taken from the original album include "Home" featuring Tina Dico, and "Warm Sounds" featuring Mozez . Sia and Sophie Barker also feature on the album, with tracks such as "Somersault" (a UK Top 100 single), "In Time" and Speed Dial No. 2.

TRACK LISTING

Warm Sound. (feat. Mozez)
Home (feat. Tina Dico)
Somersault (feat. Sia)
Passing By (feat. Sophie Barker)
Over Our Heads (feat. Mozez)
When It Falls (feat. Mozez)
The Space Between (feat. Tina Dico)
Speed Dial No. 2
Look Up
In Time (feat. Sophie Barker)
Morning Song

Zero 7’s 4th album Yeah Ghost from 2009, spans everything from dance pop to acoustic folk and everything in between it's an idea-splattered work of genius that even includes a quartet of instrumental tracks derived from their experimental side projects and sampled, overdubbed and rebuilt from scratch. From the evocative intro 'Count Me Out' to the album's shuffling, twitchy closer 'All Of Us' - via the haunting 'Solastalgia' and 'Ghost sYMbOL' avant-garde electronic and distorted vocals - it's Zero 7 as you've never heard them before. 'Destiny' this aint. One thing that remains consistent though is the roll call of up-and-coming talent on vocal duties, including singer ESKA Mtungwazi. The Londoner, whose collaboration credits include Matthew Herbert and Bugs In The Attic, appears on 'Mr McGee', 'Medicine Man', 'Sleeper' and 'The Road' & folk singer songwriter/ painter / filmmaker Martha Tilson for Pop Art Blue.

TRACK LISTING

LP Tracks:
Disc 1
1. Count Me Out
2. Mr McGee
3. Swing
1. Everything Up (Zizou)
2. Pop Art Blue
3. Medicine Man

Disc 2
1. Ghost SYMbOL
2. Sleeper
3. Solastalgia
1. The Road
2. All Of Us

CD Tracks:
1. Count Me Out
2. Mr McGee
3. Swing
4. Everything Up [Zizou]
5. Pop Art Blue
6. Medicine Man
7. Ghost SYMbOL
8. Sleeper
9. Solastalgia
10. The Road
11. All Of Us
12. E Sgwers (demo Version)
13. Methods
14. Ghost SYMbOL (Klang Version)

From 79 through to 83 The Zero Boys ruled the Mid-West hardcore scene. "History Of" is the first release of their 'Lost' second album. Whilst contemporaries concentrated on aggression and turbo-charged ferocity, The Zero Boys pointed a way to a scene which could include melodicism, intelligence and rock 'n' roll suss. Craig Finn of The Hold Steady has written a feature about this band (as one of his primary influences) for The Guardian. Re-mastered from the original tapes, with liner notes by Jack Rabid.

When the Ramones lost it, the Zero Boys found it; adding a slam brigade fist to the Blitzkrieg Beat. The Zero Boys managed to come with one of the best early 80’s punk records, or one of the best records ever, period.

From 1979 to 1983, the Indianapolis-based Zero Boys were the finest hardcore blitz in the Midwest if not all the lower 48 states. Compiled and released as a post-mortem following the band’s breakup, History Of… is the proof, if more was needed, that their take of American hardcore wasn’t all white bread numbers. Yeah, they played shows with Minor Threat, Dead Kennedys, Subhumans, and others but in Terry “Hollywood” Howe’s guitar there was harmonious terror and unstoppable cadence. Terry’s licks and chops — a leap beyond two or three chord punk — offered a zone and measured count for drummer Mark Cutsinger and bassist David “Tufty” Clough, a rhythm unit in par with the Minutemen if not The Meters, to run lines like quicksilver. Meanwhile, frontman, Paul “Z” Mahern provides a constant wash from beginning to end. Originally released in 1984 with a limited-edition reissue in 2009, this 40th anniversary edition includes the original LP of ‘History Of…’ and a 7” featuring four live recordings never previously pressed to vinyl and recorded at iconic hardcore/punk venue Crazy Al’s in 1980: “Livin’ In The 80’s”, “Stick To Your Guns”, “Commies”, and “I’m Absent”.

TRACK LISTING

LP - Side A
01 Drive In
02 Black Network News
03 Splish Splash
04 Inergy
05 Johnny Better Get
06 Dingy Bars Suck
07 Seen That Movie Before
08 High Places
09 Blood's Good

LP - Side B
10 Human Body
11 Mom's Wallet
12 Positive Change
13 Amerika
14 New Generation
15 Livin' In The '80s
16 Stoned To Death
17 Stick To Your Guns
18 I'm Bored
19 Piece Of Me

7” - Side A
01 Livin’ In The 80s (Live At Crazy
Al’s, September 6th, 1980)
02 Stick To Your Guns (Live At
Crazy Al’s, September 6th, 1980)
7” - Side B
03 Commies (Live At Crazy Al’s,
September 6th, 1980)
04 I’m Absent (Live At Crazy Al’s,
September 6th, 1980)

Zero Down are a three piece punk outfit hailing from LA and are the latest additions to the Fat Wreck roster. The members possess a sterling punk rock resume, having spent time in bands like Strung Out, Down By Law and Pulley. With some slower moody pieces and the usual high standard of Fat Wreck sound this is a brilliant debut.

The Zeros is a pioneer punk rock band formed in 1976 in Chula Vista, California. Comparisons with The Ramones are often made when describing the energetic and fierce guitar driven sound of the group. This release compiles all their early singles, some rare tracks (including the previously unreleased ‘Left to Right’) and songs taken from a 1978 live show.

Featuring South Lancashire's most adept Etheric Noblemen...
All compositions have been radionically tapped in real-time from the infinite sonic wisdom of the cosmos and dimensions beyond. Magnetically captured by the divine technological wonders of VHS and its equally majestic audio equivalent - the C90 Cassette Tape.
For the listeners' full enjoyment, safety and peace of mind - full assurance is given that during the process of duplication any physical tape material has been shielded from rogue malicious extra-dimensional entities, and from any real-time psionic black magick interference (or any variant or overlaid magnetised psi-programming)
Recorded at Cerberus Development Laboratories 2014/15

Vocal appearances by:  Elizabeth Six & Don Lovedog. 

Compiled and edited by Ste Spandex. Additional Musings by Anturio.

Includes unlimited streaming of Shadowcasters via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: The Cerberus space ship rockets onwards! This stupendously good star cruiser is like Manuel Gottsching or Ash Ra beamed deep, deep into a wormhole and coming out sometime close the very end of the known current universe. You know how the new Hubble is gonna show you light from the very beginning of time, well this is the sound vibrations transmitted at the very END of time and captured now, without any red shift. Get ya head 'round that pop pickers.

Los Angeles-based bonehead savants Zig Zags are no-nonsense ’80s style thrash with a magpie eye for deepfried pop culture detritus. These guys give so few fucks while they are out ripping faces that it’s tough to say much about them that hasn’t been said before—they shred so that we may raise beers in non-ironic salute to their Voivod worship, to a world in which young heshers subscribe to New Wave of British Heavy Metal and practice early Slayer solos while watching daytime TV, to waking and baking as you watch the world burn. Running Out of Red is the soundtrack to getting high and driving around in your shitty car in your small town, occasionally getting laid…occasionally getting laid out at the local liquor store by an older dude. Gang vocals: check. 1-2 pit beat: on lock. Shredder solid state guitar heroics: ripping, and so should you, the bong is packed and I think there’s still pizza in the fridge. I can smell your pants from here, dude.

TRACK LISTING

1. They Came For Us
2. No Brains No Balls
3. The Sadist
4. Total Recall
5. Lizard
6. Sin Eaters
7. Giving Up The Ghost
8. Can?t Afford The Basics
9. My Lighter
10. Meat Man
11. Afraid Of The Dark
12. Night Of The Knife

Los Angeles April 18, 2024:
The origin of this record is a weird one. In 2019, we had just returned from two long European tours when we decided to take a “little break” from the road. You all know what happened next. That “little break” turned into a couple of years and during that time Dane, our drummer, decided to quit the band and music in general (no hard feelings).. Sean and I had a discussion and thought about ending the band as a whole, but I knew I had to go out on my own terms. I had an ace in the hole, though. Jeff Murray, drummer from LA rippers The Shrine. I had been friends with Jeff and The Shrine’s founder, Josh Landau since our “Scavenger” 7” came out, around 2012. We had run into them in Berlin a few months back and I knew they weren't playing anymore. I called Josh first, ‘cause asking a dude if you can take his drummer, is like asking your girlfriend's Dad if you can marry her. And Josh said “go for it”. And Jeff was in.

Honestly if he had said no, that would have been the end. I had written a ton of stuff since our last album but I had shelved most of it. I was trying too hard - basically. Eventually Sean, Jeff and I said, ‘Fuck it, let’s make a “Fake Live” record’ - like Kiss or Slayer did. John Dwyer from Osees was opening his new studio, Discount Mirrors and it seemed like the perfect place to record it. We settled on re-recording a bunch of old stuff while simultaneously demoing our new material, as the three of us were now starting to really get in the groove. The result is Strange Masters Vol. 1.

These are not new songs. These are Zig Zags classics re-recorded with a ripping-ass band that’s old and angry and just wants to get on with it. We are already on to recording the next album of new songs. That one is coming soon, but in the meantime, enjoy this one…while you still can!-Jed Maheu-Guitars-Vocals-Zig Zags

TRACK LISTING

1. Scavenger
2. Fallout
3. Brainded Warrior
4. Magic
5. Voices Of The Paranoid
6. Punk Fucking Metal
7. My Lighter
8. No Blade Of Grass
9. They Came For Us
10. Bloodstains

AMAZING new album from LA’s Zig Zags..honing their skills to create a fierce brew of US hardcore skate punk and UK Nwobhm ..like the first wve of US thrash from 83.. get on it!! “Everyone puts photos of Sid Vicious up on Instagram. The other night I watched ‘D.O.A’, the documentary about The Sex Pistols, first and only U.S. tour. In it - Sid's a mess, he and his annoying girlfriend. And they're the only ones who get interviewed! Maybe John Lydon and Steve Jones (not to mention the drummer) didn't want to participate. Maybe Nancy made Sid do it. But it whatever the case, I didn't wanna watch it. The rest of the band is crushing! They sound just like the record! As a musician in a touring band, I can't stand Sid Vicious.

He’s cartoon character with a Swastika shirt, nodding off while everyone else loads the gear. I don't care if it's punk - you still gotta be able to play.” - J. Maheu, lead vocals and guitar for Zig Zags 8 years, 7 singles, 3 albums, 3 bass players, 2 drummers and God knows how many shows later - Zig Zags has continually evolved, mutated, transitioned and transformed, rising again and again, like a phoenix emerging from the flame. The addition of the newest member of our triumvirate - multi-instrumentalist, designated bassist (and longtime Zig Zags sound engineer) Sean Hoffman - recalls those golden moments past, when destiny stepped in...like when Neil Peart joined Rush or Bob Rock teamed up with Metallica. In short - the circle is now complete, the cornerstone has been set and the winged serpent rises - once again. Some say it’s luck, but really, it’s about patience.

A band is like a relationship. You have to know when to push, and when to hold back. You gotta listen and you gotta learn. We look to the masters. Like Henry and Glenn, we’ve gone from drinking hooch to pumpin’ iron. We quit smoking. Two of us are married, for chrissakes! After 2017’s brutal European tour, which left us coughing blood and taking names, we sought out Lemmy’s Doctor (Feel Good), who diagnosed us with,”Rock’n’roll Pneumonia”. Like Lemmy, we were pushing too hard. And if you push too hard you’ll end up in an apartment above The Rainbow Room, playing video poker on Christmas Eve (which is also your birthday)...but that’s another story.

TRACK LISTING

01. Punk Fucking Metal
02. Killer Of Killers
03. Fallout
04. No Way Out
05. Ms 45
06. The Shout
07. Why I Carry A Knife
08. They'll Never Take Us Alive
09. Nothing To Do
10. God Sized

A super limited coloured vinyl reissue of Batman Begins, the first film soundtrack in the batman trilogy. A first time ever coloured vinyl release for this much admired and innovative Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard score

• A limited edition of just 500 copies WORLDWIDE
• Gatefold sleeve double album
• Orange Vinyl

TRACK LISTING

SIDE 1
1. Vespertilio
2. Eptesicus
3. Myotis
4. Barbastella
SIDE 2
1. Artibeus
2. Tadarida
3. Macrotus
SIDE 3
1. Antrozous
2. Nycteris
3. Molossus
SIDE 4
1. Corynorhinus
2. Lasiurus

THE WORLD OF HANS ZIMMER – PART II: A NEW DIMENSION is the highly anticipated sequel to the acclaimed 2019 album The World of Hans Zimmer – A Symphonic Celebration. Melding the grandeur of symphonic music with the dynamic power of his cinematic compositions, Zimmer transforms 17 more of his most successful soundtracks into new epic orchestral suites on this double album. Highlights of the over 2 hours long record include a short, captivating “cello-concerto-like” version of Final Ascent from No Time to Die, a tranquil rendition of A Time of Quiet Between the Storms from Dune II, and a new romantic suite from The Prince of Egypt. Additionally, Zimmer revisits one of his classic 90s soundtracks with a newly crafted suite of The Rock.

THE WORLD OF HANS ZIMMER – PART II: A NEW DIMENSION features Zimmer accompanied by a stellar ensemble of soloists and collaborators, including singers Lebo M, Lisa Gerrard, Gan-ya Ben-gur Akselrod, and Nokukhanya Dlamini; multi-woodwind wizard Pedro Eustache; bass player Juan García-Herreros; guitarist Alexios Anest; pianist Eliane Correa; cellist Mariko Muranaka; violinist Rusanda Panfili; and percussionists Aleksandra Šuklar, Luis Ribeiro, and Lucy Landymore. Together, they perform alongside the Odessa Orchestra & Friends and the Nairobi Chamber Choir, under the baton of conductor Gavin Greenaway.

The World of Hans Zimmer – Part II: A New Dimension is available as a 2-CD set and a limited edition 3 x 180g audiophile vinyl.

TRACK LISTING

Part 1
Man Of Steel Suite: Part 1 "What Are You Going To Do When You Are Not Saving The World?
Driving (Miss Daisy)
The Rock: Two Parts Suite
James Bond: Two Parts Suite
Interstellar: Two Parts Suite
Dune II - Part 1: Intro + Part 2: "A Time Of Quiet…"
The Prince Of Egypt: Three Parts Suite
Wonder Woman: Two Parts Suite
Sherlock Holmes: Three Parts Suite
Inception: Part 1: Dream Is Collapsing + Part 2: Time

Part 2
The Dark Knight
Gladiator: Four Parts Suite
Pearl Harbor: Two Parts Suite
Kung Fu Panda: Two Parts Suite
Power Of One: Mother Africa
The Lion King: Four Parts Suite
Pirates Of The Caribbean: Two Parts Suite

Over a career that spans half a century, Zimmerman’s discography is a sonic memoir. A sprawling collection of records that have explored folk, 12-bar blues, full-band rock concertos and classical piano compositions, his work is also a tribute to the people, experiences and sounds that have shaped his life, amassing in a deeply personal and resonating songbook.

“After years of writing and filling a box with over 500 song sheets, I had finally found my path, my originality, my voice. It had become clear to me that songs of only one kind were worth spending time on: those which had a positive message and a peaceful vibration [...] Just poetry. Little hums that perhaps might lift us all above our daily worries and fears, little hums that try to make the world a better place to live in.” – Tucker Zimmerman

Despite sailing under the radar throughout most of his storied and multi-layered career, the 83-year-old native Californian has received praise from contemporaries like Big Thief’s Adrianne Lenker (“Tucker Zimmerman is one of the greatest songwriters of all time,”) and even from one of the greats (David Bowie called Zimmerman, “too qualified for folk.”). Inspired by Lenker’s appreciation for his work, Zimmerman was brought to the States to record the album, with Big Thief (and collaborators Mat Davidson and Zach Burba) serving as his backing band. On many tracks, Lenker meets Zimmerman half-way, their vocals fusing together in a soothing harmony; Zimmerman’s beloved wife, Marie-Claire, who graces the album’s cover also joined the chorus line.

With 'Dance Of Love', listeners will find a multi-faceted and heartfelt record from a songwriter who has had a full and exciting life decorated with meaningful friendships, hard but valuable lessons, worldly experience, and ultimately, lots of love.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Beautifully warm country-adjacent ballads and folky psychedelic rock that's so perfectly matched to the whole vibe of Big Thief, that their involvement doesn't surprise me in the slightest. Zimmerman's work is evocative and beautiful, and a perfect listen for any fans of Adrienne Lenker or Big Thief.

TRACK LISTING

1. Old Folks Of Farmersville
2. Idiot’s Maze
3. Lorelei
4. The Season
5. Burial At Sea
6. They Don’t Say It (But It’s True)
7. Leave It On The Porch Outside
8. The Ram-a-lam-a-ding-dong Song
9. Don’t Go Crazy (Go In Peace)
10. Nobody Knows

New studio album from Zion Train. This album is produced by Neil Perch in the Alte Ziegelei studio and features the world renowned Zion Train brass section along with vocals from Zion Train singer 'Cara' and the award winning poet Roger Robinson. Featured on several tracks is Paolo Baldini playing guitars and bass guitar alongside veteran musicians - Trinny Fingers, Blacka Wilson, Dreada One and Professor Skank who hails from Crete.

For this album Zion Train return to their roots with copious amounts of analogue Dub mixing performed by Perch on his TAC Scorpion vintage mixing desk. With mastering at the Pressure Mastering, and artwork by the highly acclaimed anarchist artist Marko Gin from Croatia, this album presents Zion Train at their creative, anarchic best.

TRACK LISTING

1. Corridors Of Breath
2. Travelling
3. Cosmic Serpent
4. Move To Love
5. Love To Dub
6. Rwandan Holiday
7. Protection By Complexion
8. Recession Dub
9. Mother Of Creation
10. Sloe Revenge
11. Things Fall Apart
12. Nepantla (The In Between Space)

Some things take time to happen, some things perhaps take a bit longer than they should but, finally, we are delighted to present an issue of the iconic, and sought-after, Brazilian album 'Alucinolândia' by Zito Righi e Seu Conjunto from 1969.

The trippy, surrealist 60s cover design with hands holding eyeballs is somewhat confusing. Rather than the stoner acid rock record that the art may suggest, 'Alucinolândia' is actually a quintessential 60s gem, mixing samba, MPB, bossa nova, quirky organ-led mod-jazz groovers and easy-listening crooners with a relaxed cool swagger.

Zito Righi aka Isidoro Righi, the Brazilian saxophonist, instrumentalist, conductor and composer brought together an illustrious cast for this masterpiece, including the much-loved vocalist Sônia Santos. Sônia delivers a masterclass on the album's opener, and maybe its crown-jewel 'Poema Ritmico Do Malandro'. The song is fierce and driving with an enticing funk intro that bursts into a Samba / Batucada workout. A real monster that works magic on the dancefloor. Sônia would later re-visit this track in 1971 on a recording for Copacabana Records, which Mr Bongo released as part of the Brazil45 series. The Brazilian songwriter Roberval penned three tracks on the record, including another highlight and the far too short 'Birimbau'; a catchy Brazilian jazzy-samba dancer at its finest. Other musicians include the drummer Fernando who also recorded with the greats Dila & Guilherme Coutinho.

The fact the record was released in 1969 meant it was probably a bit out of step with its contemporaries in comparison to the works of artists such as Os Mutantes, Gilberto Gil et al. The core of 'Alucinolândia' is that of a more optimistic early to mid-sixties party feelgood vibe rather than the angsty, psychedelia, and rebellion of the Tropicália movement. Over 50 years since its release, the work can finally be judged on its own merit; and what a beauty it is.

TRACK LISTING

Poema Ritmico Do Malandro
Somos Todos Irmãos
Once In A While
Birimbau
Primeira Conjugacao
Bye Bye
Love Is Here To Stay
Isnt' A Dream
Sou Feliz Aqui
Adeus Amor
Alvorada
Hert

(Experimenteller Elektronik-Underground DDR 1989) Bureau B presented a compilation of experimental, electronic music from the GDR's underground cassette scene in 2017 under the title "Magnetband" and now the Hamburg label is following up this thematic focus with the release of "MEZ 31,00" by Dieter Zobel aka Didier Leboz, recorded in 1988 and originally released on Thomasius' Kröten Kassetten label in 1989.

Cosmic Sounds is a collaborative concept album, based on the signs of the Zodiac and originally released in 1967 by Elektra Records. Mort Garson, who is known for his collaborations with Doris Day and Glen Campbell, was asked to compose the psychedelic rock music and record it together with producer and The Limeliters co-founder Alex Hassilev. Different session musicians were brought in to contribute to the recordings, including most notably Moog synth guru Paul Beaver and narrator Cyrus Faryar.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. Aries - The Fire-Fighter
2. Taurus - The Voluptuary
3. Gemini - The Cool Eye
4. Cancer - The Moon Child
5. Leo - The Lord Of Lights
6. Virgo - The Perpetual Perfectionist

Side B
1. Libra - The Flower Child
2. Scorpio - The Passionate Hero
3. Sagittarius - The Versatile Daredevil
4. Capricorn - The Uncapricious Climber
5. Aquarius - The Lover Of Life
6. Pisces - The Peace Piper

Ohh those Chicago cats do make me blush! Seemingly ignorant of the UK's fridget and conservative view on all things *ahem* sex related; our Chicago house brethen have always turned heads in the club with their many evolutions on ghetto house. From DJ Funk to Jackmaster Dick - English nightclubbers sometimes have nowhere to hide from these expilicit murmerings!

Demonstrated perfectly here by the ever-present and hot-to-trot Dirty Blends crew which on this latest mission enlist Zodiac for the downright filthy: "Thanksgvin Beat". Adult content aside, it's that chuggy, low-tom & woodblock combo that's won me over here - irrestible dancefloor hypnosis from a profecient technician. 

Label leader The Jak gets busy with Ron Hardy & Robert Owen's Jackmaster Hater track - "Your Mind" - accentuating the dark throb and ghostly drum patterns that populate this anthemic slice of Chi-town voodoo. 

One of the best from this champion label! Kipping unrecommended. 

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Hard not to blush for the x-rated booty track "Thanksgvin Beat"; but I'm really here for the Ron Hardy sampling "Itz In Ur Head" which receives a tasty update in keeping with the TCP-soaked, Music Box aesthetic.

TRACK LISTING

Zodiac - Thanksgvin Beat
The Jak- Itz In Ur Head

The second of May’s pair of ace new Deep Distance LPs, sees a second studio full length from Brighton based kraut / kosmische juggernauts ZOFFF.

Described recently as "the finest purveyors of kosmische heaviness on the planet right now" by Shindig! Magazine, the band release their eagerly awaited follow up to the quickfire sell out of “ZOFFF I” in 2017 (separated by an equally hastily sold out live album on Drone Rock recs); “FFF” is released first week of May and again is expected to move out quick style.

Over to Ben Graham for a few words: “ZOFFF are all about light and shade, and the dynamic movement from the subtlest curlicues of gentle sound to the full raging storm of sonic attack, and back again. On their second studio album ‘FFF’, the south coast psychedelic five piece serve up six tracks of improvised instrumental experimentation that blend seamlessly into a consistent whole: a trip, if you will, from First Faltering Feelings to Final Full-blown Freak-out.

'Ye' assembles around a lonesome trumpet overture, before the drums and dirty fuzz guitar kick in and we're off, with no messing around and no ambient noodling: direct to the cranium and the groove with high-energy space rock reversing the polarity and shaking out the ghosts. 'Vav' takes it up another notch: tense and urgent, it climaxes in Coltrane-like sheets of sound over double-time drumming, before 'Har' arrives at a relatively gentle pace, dub-like sonic action swooping and fluttering over a rock-solid beat until the bass takes over and the direction becomes clear: FFForward!!!

Side two starts with the appropriately titled 'Dig'. All the elements are in balance and the band are firing at Full Force. 'Ca' kicks off with horn, static and splash, a classic slow burn taking us up to the final eleven-minute climax of 'Zeta'. This surprisingly exploratory piece doesn't just aim to go out with a bang but takes time to set up new possibilities and juxtapositions, opening new doors right to the end where other lesser bands would already be packing up the scenery.

Recent years have seen ZOFFF reaping acclaim and blown minds wherever they've appeared.

Their live album, (2017’s KOZFEST MMXVI baring striking testimony to this), with psychedelia an increasingly devalued term, ZOFFF remain the connoisseur's choice. That's ZOFFF with three Fs by the way. We wouldn't want you to forget now…”

The LP is released as a (clear) vinyl only pressing of 300 on Deep Distance, the go-to London label for kraut flavoured kosmische with a sold out back catalogue of 60/60 releases including Cavern of Anti-Matter, JD Emmanuel, Colin Potter and many others… 

Supernatural Cat is the label run by Malleus Rock Art Lab, artistic collective featuring two members of the psychedelic doom trio Ufomammut. After a busy 2012, the label seems to have been laying low. However, little did we know, behind the scenes they have been busy working on the vinyl release of ORO and preparing to unleash two new musical projects – the first of which we can proudly unleash today...

Enter Zolle, self-proclaimed rednecks, on the loose and ready to run amok with the release of their self-titled debut album, an ode to yokel ways of living.

They might not take themselves so seriously but don't be fooled, their music is no hayseed dixie, brace yourself for a ferocious, rampant record of thunderous riffs and robust drum blasts.

Zolle are - Marcello (Lan of Morkobot) playing meaty riffs and Stefano who beefs things up on drums and xylophone. The duo commenced work on their debut album throughout the summer of 2012, and in just two months they had the music ready to commit to tape.

Their self-titled album was recorded in September of the same year by Michelangelo Roberti at Mizkey Studio (MoRkObOt) and mastered by Giovanni Versari (zu, Morkobot, OvO, One Dimensional Man).

It was played almost live, with overdubs reduced to the bone. The drums are of considerable proportion and made of copper and the amplifier an old digital model of the '50s which makes for a mammoth sound. Urlo from Ufomammut and Roberto Rizzo of Quasiviri/Runi add a little synth seasoning to flesh out the album also.

The resulting album is mightily heavy, the short songs are direct and song titles are entrenched in references to redneck living. For example 'Mayale' is a play on the Italian word for pig [Maiale] but is written like 'Maya' to reflect the sacred image of the Mayan pig face adorning the album's cover. Similarly, 'Heavy Letam' is suggestive of 'Letame' which means manure in Italian – not to mention being an anagram of 'heavy metal'.

Zolle may be a no-frills band but there is much more to them than meets the eye. They are far from restrained and their debut album will definitely give you something to chew on.

TRACK LISTING

01 - Trakthor
02 - LeeQuame
03 - Forko
04 - Mayale
05 - Man Ja To Ya!
06 - Melicow
07 - Heavy Letam
08 - Weetellah
09 - Trynchatowak
10 - Moongitruce

Fifteen years in and Zombie Zombie are going way back, the cinematic French synth trio's sixth studio album 'Vae Vobis' veers away from the science fiction overload of their 2017 opus 'Livity' to plunge their music deep into the Middle Ages. Joined by soprano singer Ange`le Chemin and Francois & The Atlas Mountains' Laura Etchegoyhen as part of the Doomed Angels choir on vocals, lyrics are sung in Latin, drawn from the proverbs of the Dutch humanist Erasmus.

"We wanted to remain mysterious, to send cryptic messages" the pair say, "to dive back into a language from another time, like the copyist monks of the Middle Ages".

Recorded with Laurent de Boisgisson at Studio One Two Pass It in Bagnolet, the result is something akin to a reverberating doom orgy. Previous work has always lent itself a cinematic edge - reaching its culmination in the form of two film soundtracks, for French films Irreprochable and L'Heure De La Sortie respectively - but here the sense of atmosphere and the scale of the sound has been blown up yet further. The choral arrangements hint at the work of David Axelrod or Ennio Morricone, with chanted syllables ominously arcing over the top of the likes of Lacrymosa bouncing analogue synth work and Consortium's portentous swirls of gothic sound.

There are bangers to be found within the caverns too. “Nusquam et Unique” admittedly isn't your average 122 BPM floor filler but moves forward with an ominous dubby propulsion while vocoder vocals cut menacingly through. Ring Modulus meanwhile veers between minimal and maximal as it shudders along its more subtle gridlines.

The ubiquitous vocoders are pushed to their limits on the album, while sax, trumpet and percussion come and add further colour.

TRACK LISTING

1. Introitus
2. Vae Vobis
3. Nusquam Et Unique
4. Ring Modulus
5. Aurora
6. Lacrymosa
7. Dissolotum
8. War Is Coming
9. Lux In Tenebris
10. Modus Operandi
11. Erebus
12. Consortium

'Funk Kraut', Zombie Zombie's second LP on Born Bad is a fine example of the style the trio has been embodying: instrumental music played live, for synths and drums.

The album kicks off with 'No Cruise Control', a big bad sedan that effortlessly eats up the distance at 120 BPM. Kraut as can be, with a twist. And as far as funk goes, it's not Bootsy Collins, but there's a whiff. Space is structured by synth patterns, for optimized drumming: forward, straight and fluid, top- notch suspension (Cosmic Neman and Dr Schoonberg take care of business on drums). They treat themselves to a diversion via Darmstadt to take some musique concrete on board: mechanical birds chirp, the odd atonal piano here and there. Nerds will appreciate liner notes detailing the equipment used: about twenty synths and they still describe it as minimal.

This was a quick affair, recorded by Laurent Deboisgisson in the studio of Cheveu's singer. A pretty straightforward job, and a far cry from their previous concept album. Let us praise Krikor Kouchian's mix: drums have been resampled with some restraint, and that LinnDrum kick lightens up the overall mix. It marks a notable evolution in the band's sound and adds some dynamic.

The cover, designed by DDDXIE, sets the tone with its reference to 'Motorik Vibes & Stereo Grooves'.

TRACK LISTING

1. No Cruise Control
2. Densite
3. Jungle The Jungle
4. Helix
5. Aurillac Accident
6. Double Z
7. Dodorian
8. Funk Kraut
9. Snare Attack
10. Magmavox Odyssey

This great collection of beautifully crafted songs has long been hailed as one of the best albums to emerge from the Sixties. And yet "Odessey & Oracle" was overlooked by both the media and public when it was first released back in 1967. It may have been because The Zombies had passed their peak in terms of chart success and were being overshadowed by the Beach Boys and The Beatles. Nevertheless their album - with its swirly psychedelic cover and miss-spelt title (it should have been "Odyssey"!) - began to attract more attention. Eventually, one of its stand-out songs, the soulful and funky "Time Of The Season" got to Number 3 in the US Billboard singles chart. Yet that was in 1969, two years after the group had split up, frustrated at their lack of recognition. The strident piano playing of Rod Argent and of Colin Blunstone's richly melodic vocals imbue these confident lively pop songs with a special quality that makes this special 40th anniversary CD package all the more satisfying and attractive. The 2 CD set, which includes both Mono and Stereo versions of the classic album, plus 6 bonus tracks, includes a detailed booklet, which includes an interview with leader Rod Argent, and reminiscences of 'Swinging London' and the live music scene in the golden era of 60s psychedelia.

Recorded at EMI’s Abbey Road Studios in 1967 during the final months of the original group’s career, this British Psych-pop masterpiece yielded their last great hit ‘Time Of The Season’, but was destined for release after the Zombies had first broken up. It is the British pop group’s all-time classic ‘concept’ album.

To find an original mint Mono copy involves a long wait and a budget of around £1,000+ to land one. The Stereo version is not far behind either. But we have returned to Abbey Road for our re-issue versions, a more affordable option, now available again in either Stereo or Mono LPs.

All serious record collectors will savour a work that has been the subject of a huge revival of interest. Listen and you will know why American songwriter, producer and musician Al Kooper insisted that Columbia put out the album in the USA, when it was in danger of being overlooked.

This Repertoire reissue is mastered at Half Speed at the legendary Abbey Road Studios, then pressed onto 180g vinyl, offering the listener the best ever sounding version of the album.

The recordings are remastered by Jon Astley (The Who, Led Zeppelin, George Harrison etc).

The sleeves are printed from superior quality scans with detailed reproduction artwork.

STAFF COMMENTS

Andy says: This record is often name-checked by Paul Weller as one of the best psych-pop albums ever. He was right. It's glorious!

Just in time for Halloween. Zombina and the Skeletones are returning from the dead to bring you their first full-length album in ten years ‘The Call of Zombina’.

The Band Under Your BedTM returned to the studio (or in this case a creepy old church in Liverpool) to make their first album in ten years, with Stephen Cole from the avant garde “post-music” act a.P.At.T producing. ‘The Call Of Zombina’ is Hammer Horror melodrama as art-therapy, the pank roots of goth-rock meets the strings and harpsichords of baroque.

‘The Call Of Zombina’ seeks to mirror the clamic portmantean horror of ‘The House That Dripped Blood’ or ‘Asylum’, with each track telling its own self-contained story. Musically it’s death rock/ baroque, Joe Meek and James Bernard meets The Damned uptown. Lyrically, the schlocky Americanistas of old have been eschewed in favour of the no less pulpy vernacu lar of Pan Classics paperbacks... and of course the whole thing was recorded in an old spooky church, to capture some of that creaky atmosphere and gigantic reverb.

TRACK LISTING

1) Blood Rite For The Resurrection Of A Sleeping Countess
2) Cemetry World
3) The Black House
4) Vampire’s Kiss
5) Don’t Kick My Coffin
6) I’m Horrified
7) Valley Of The Shadow
8) Dead Birds
9) Ghost Train II: Oblivion
10) No Wonder I’m Always Anxious

The ever-prolific ZOMBI return once again with a brand new classic rock covers album! ZOMBI & Friends, Vol. 1 sees the band faithfully covering tracks ranging from The Doobie Brothers, to The Alan Parsons Project, Dionne Warwick, and Neil Diamond! ZOMBI & Friends, Vol. 1 features guest appearances from members of The Sword, Trans Am, Pinkish Black, Zao and more!

TRACK LISTING

1. Guilty
2. Suspicions
3. I Can't Tell You Why
4. Sirius-Eye In The Sky
5. Take You Back (Street Corner Song From Rocky)
6. Takin It To The Streets
7. The Captain Of Her Heart
8. Deja Vu
9. You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine
10. America

Among discerning listeners, anticipation for new Zomby material is now high but outside of him teasing fans with a few out-takes via the internet, there hasn't been much to go by in recent times. That was until the end of last year when hauntingly beautiful new track 'Natalia's Song' appeared unannounced in a Burial and Kode9 mix for Radio 1. Catching people off-guard, it served to pour fuel on the fire and leave all anticipating what was to follow. Having signed a worldwide deal with 4AD, that wait is over. ‘Natalia’s Song’ has being afforded a proper release as a single and is also included on this, his second album, 'Dedication'. A wholly different record to its predecessor, Zomby returns from his hiatus with typical style. It is both a dark and absorbing listen that engulfs the listener, running between sparse electronics, techno hooks and minimal piano riffs. Making up for lost time, 'Dedication' continues to put Zomby at a distance from his peers. By the time they’ve caught up, he’ll no doubt be somewhere else entirely.

ZOMBY, one of the UK’s most enigmatic electronic producers, underscores his already illustrious succession of releases with his latest EP “GASP!" ZOMBY’s ability to effortlessly shift aesthetics across his career has firmly stationed him as a producer that can’t be boxed, and “GASP!" sees him altering his often jungle-driven sound yet again, furthering him as a sonic chameleon among an ever-increasing landscape of musical similitude.  In his signature spirit of cryptic variety, “GASP!" explores another tectonic revision in ZOMBY’s style. A shift forward indeed, the compact, 3-track EP is a relentless, hardware-driven behemoth of beats and breaks that fit somewhere between a chugging steel factory and a darkened dancefloor.

TRACK LISTING

A1. GASP!
A2. ZKITTLEZ
B1. ZPRITE

Zomby's enjoyed an illustrious career thus far. His "Where Were U In '92" immediately saw the producer rocket into our stratosphere while collaborations with Burial have ensured his credentials and desirability throughout the underground. Last year's "Ultra" album saw him exploring new territory - stark, barren lands of low-life microcosms, radiation scorched landscapes and varying levels of gravity and pressure - making for a completely alien and otherworldly listen. Plummeting even further into said environment is "Mercury's Rainbow", an album totally befitting for interplantary exploration. Apparently created between 2008-2009, it was actually conceived more as an Eski-concept album, paying tribute to one of girme's most iconic artists and sounds. Innovating the structure with a bewildering, modal style, shimmering is a 3-dimensional world, it recalls fellow space explores Seekers International; whilst shunning said act's pursuit of interstellar dub and reggae in search of something altogether more supernova in its creation.

'While it’s difficult to say with certainty, if Mercury’s Rainbow was issued at the same time it was created, it may have arguably altered the course of UK grime instrumentals in much the same way Wiley’s original template coined a whole new genre, essentially making it the last word in grime futurism, proper.' (Boomkat).

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Stark hi-octane arpeggios and bit-crushed chugs meet street-level kick-slinging, crackling videogame refrains and icy, progressive utopian futures. Fearless, and fantastic.

TRACK LISTING

1. Mercury's Rainbow 02:05
2. Choke 02:05
3. Poison 01:51
4. Static 01:40
5. Delvaux 03:28
6. Silver Ocean 02:19
7. Immersion 01:52
8. Waterfall Of Ice 03:01
9. Rigamortis 02:06
10. Whirlpool 02:14
11. Tet5uo 02:48
12. Solar Ashes 03:44
13. Horizon 03:02
14. Patina 01:31
15. X Ray 03:06
16. Atoms

Since issuing a clutch of 12”s in the late-noughties and the 2008 release of his debut album 'Where Were U In 92?' - a rave-homage made using equipment from the period - Zomby has consistently proven himself to be a unique presence in an increasingly cluttered field. A purist and afficiando in the truest sense, he’s spurned every chance to board the EDM bandwagon to make a quick buck, instead preferring to stay faithful to the ideals of the music he grew up with.

Following the success of his debut, it took him three long, thoughtful years to next break cover, this time with an altogether different record. 'Dedication' (2011) was an after-hours meditation on mortality, weighed down with an audible sadness, and it was abundantly clear why he had taken time out. Not only did it deliver an unexpected twist, its surprisingly human qualities also offered a rare, candid glimpse of an artist who prefers anonymity and little fanfare. The response was unanimous - he had written a modern masterpiece. An accompanying seven-track EP (Nothing) followed six months later, acting both as an encore bow and cue to retreat back to the shadows.

'With Love' is Zomby's third album. An astonishing 33 tracks that collectively trace an arc through dance music’s history, revealing an artist in his most creative phase yet. Touching upon rave, jungle, house, techno, and grime, Zomby once again marks himself as a genre savant free of the cosy nostalgia that weighs down many of his peers. Across two volumes that move invariably between a dancefloor focus and darkened emotional introspection, Zomby points to a different future.

A sonic palimpsest written of true experience, 'With Love' is the work of a producer who has absorbed the shifting textures and plains of electronic music first hand, and reconfigured them into a definitive, sprawling love letter to the soulful dance music of his past.

The debut album of Berlin’s finest two-thirds Welsh, one-third Danish instrumental psych-disco trio.
Imagine Jaki, JJ and Jarre*** locked in a room together, with a memo from John Carpenter that reads “Goblin + Swans = ?”. Something like that. Raw drums, bass, vintage organs and synths are utilised to brutal effect via 7 epic songs that deliver krautrock disco disquietude, oscillating horror soundtracks and beyond. Or, as the band themselves insist: "the Nicki Minaj of dungeon synth".

The band name, according to Anthony Burgess, is the Greek classifying nomenclature for man: aka The Talking Animal.

TRACK LISTING

1.BRON
2. FANTASTIC SAVAGE
3. Y MARIONET
4. VOID CANTATA
5. IX-XEMX
6. THEME FROM SILVER LOCUST
7. SATELLITE COMMUNICATIONS

"Zorch demonstrate how good 'weird' can be." SPIN.

The debut full length by Austin duo Zorch is the end result of nearly 5-years worth of material similarly collected, then shredded, condensed and completely remolded into a solid whole. It sounds like two hyperactively creative minds finding ways to cleverly merge together effervescent synth blips, blue-eyed soul vocals, gang-chant backups, blurting EDM bass lines, frenetic drums, hazy psych-drone and even the proverbial kitchen sink taking leads here and there. Each song sounds like it could've been crafted out of samples from several different decades of pop culture history, though it's entirely the work of two exceptional musicians.

If Zzoorrcchh sounds like a photomosaic looks, it's because there is similarly a meticulously organized logic to it all. When Zac Traeger (keyboards, omnichord, vocals) and Shmu (drums, omnichord, vocals) first started playing together in 2008 while studying music in college in Boston, the pair would improvise and record many hours worth of ideas. Some of these songs are direct descendants of those jams; the duo picking out pieces of those recordings, re-organizing and reworking them multiple times and in various studio settings while also adding on and creating new ideas. Demo versions of some of the songs on this album were previously released, only to again be redone a couple of times over for the album. And, Zorch even previously offered up all of the basic audio tracks from early EPs for fans to remix their own versions.

The band are just as intensive about its live shows, often playing upwards of 20 shows during the 4 days of SXSW. Zzoorrcchh kicks off fittingly by easing listeners into their world with a slow fade-in to whirling synths, a stately piano loop and countless layers of sounds comprising "My Joy is Explosion." The minute-long tune immediately segues into the blissfully hyper celebration of life, "We All Die Young." Here, Shmu's rollicking drum pattern that might make Neil Peart's head spin drives Zac's frantic synth arpeggios while several layers of voices sing, "what a day, let's celebrate it/ I want to feel elated." Elsewhere, on "This Is The Way It Goes" neo-rave staccato chords sounding like computer error tones, marimbas and pounding toms meet cheerful vocals singing the song title's seeming lament. "Inopportune Sailing" starts off like a repetitive, perky chiptune from an imaginary 80s video game that morphs into a full-fledged living pop-soul jam. It sounds like Zorch actually beat Daft Punk to the punch at making their own organic recordings sound like vintage song samples. "Zut Alors", a longtime fan live favorite lyrically pokes fun at conspiracy theories of reptilian overlords with the refrain, "giant surprise/ We are lizards disguised/ And we're controlling your lives/ With trilateral spies."

The album is a wild auditory amusement park that gets more and more exciting with each visit. Early support/features confirmed with Pitchfork, Spin, Magnet, Alarm, Consequence of Sound, MSN and much more.

TRACK LISTING

1. My Joy Is Explosion
2. We All Die Young
3. Its Kind Of A Deal Where…
4. This Is The Way It Goes
5. Mutwa
6. Zut Alors
7. Inopportune Sailing
8. Cosmic Gloss
9. Oceans Dawn

John Zorn. Rituel * Une Crise de Nerfs * Prière Empoisonné * L’heure des Sorcières John Zorn returns to his original instrument with a new volume of organ improvisations recorded at his infamous Weekend in Paris in April 2017. The organ at the Grand Salle Pierre Boulez is one of the most powerful and versatile in France, and Zorn approaches it with great sensitivity and wild abandon. Includes both the full 40 minute concert recording, and over 30 additional minutes of Zorn alone at the manuals in rehearsal the same day.

Zorn’s compositions for a cappella voice are some of his most sensual and sublime creations. This CD presents his two books of Madrigals scored for six female voices. Beautifully performed by his long time ensemble the “Sapphites” the music is even more varied and challenging than his previous masterpieces The Holy Visions and Shir Hashirim, touching upon minimalism, tonal and atonal counterpoint, textural experiments and more. Inspired by the visionary poetry of 19th century British Romantic Percy Blysse Shelley, a charming lyricism and subtle spirituality rides through the music from first note to last. 

Sacred Visions presents two Zorn masterpieces touching upon the mediaeval world. The Holy Visions is a Mystery Play in eleven strophes concerning the life, work and philosophy of 12th century composer, healer and visionary mystic Hildegard von Bingen, and is one of Zorn’s most beloved and acclaimed works for voice. Here is it coupled with Zorn’s latest string quartet The Remedy of Fortune, six tableaux depicting the changing fortunes of romantic love, which was inspired by the work of 12th century troubadour Guillaume de Machaut and receives a precise and passionate reading by the brilliant JACK quartet. Two brilliant modern compositions drawing on mediaeval spirituality, both sacred and secular! 

Zorn’s string quartets are some of the most important modern contributions to the canon and a new Zorn quartet is truly a cause for celebration. His sixth quartet is inspired by the hermetic Angelic actions of John Dee and his mystical medium Edward Kelley and contains some of the most intense contrapuntal writing he has yet achieved. Replete with the procedures of distillation, calcination, crystallization, sublimation, purification, rotation as well numerology, prayers, canons, contrapuntal complexity and the ghost of a familiar fugue, this music is part séance, part science, and all Zorn—in short, a trip through an alchemist’s laboratory! Performed here by Zorn’s own Quartet, this is the definitive recording of this important and powerful string quartet, already considered a modern classic. Also included is Zorn’s mystical response to the ancient Newgrange sacred site in Ireland, a beautiful and evocative setting of Amergin, one of the oldest Celtic sacred texts, written for three female voices.

Drawing upon traditions as varied as Messiaen, Xenakis, Ligeti, Bach, Tournemire,Ives, Korla Pandit and The Phantom of the Opera, Zorn’s organ improvisations are transcendent, inspiring, ecstatic experiences, offering a direct line to the workings of his rich compositional imagination. Performed at St. Paul’s Chapel at a time when the organ was undergoing extensive reconstruction, the limited number of stops available to him focused his imagination to new heights, resulting in Zorn’s most revelatory recital to date. The second volume documenting these legendary organ recitals is a transcendent experience filled with moments of passion, tenderness,
fragility and extraordinary power.

Zu are an Italian instrumental / experimental music band from Rome.

Zu release their brand new full length via Ipecac Recordings, entitled ‘Cortar Todo’, recorded in the countryside near Bologna, Italy, in the summer of 2014.

The album features some very special guests including keyboard player Joey Karam (The Locust), Italian guitar maverick Stefano Pilia (who plays regularly with the likes of Mike Watt, David Grubbs and Rokia Traore) and, perhaps most unexpectedly, a field recording of an indigenous Shipibo medicine man recorded by Zu bass player Massimo during his travels around the Amazon.

The band have previously toured with Mike Patton as Zu / Patton Quartet.

For Fans of John Zorn, Mike Patton, Noise.

“... combining the abstractions of Sonic Youth with the out-there explorations of the best free jazz” - The Times

One of Jamaica's most talented artists, Tappa Zukie has had an equal impact on both sides of the recording deck, as both a hitmaking toaster and as a producer who has worked with the cream of Jamaica's vocalists. In addition, his early ties to the punk community in both London and New York was instrumental in the crossover of roots reggae into the mainstream. The album 'Escape From Hell' saw its initial release in 1977 as a ten track album. It has been somewhat overlooked due to the small numbers of its original pressings. Tappa was at the height of his peak period as a roots producer with Sly & Robbie and the Revolutionaries house band and then up-and-coming engineer Prince Jammy, who would replace Philip Smart as right hand man at King Tubby's legendary Waterhouse facility. The opening cut, Sidewalk Dub, sets the tone as a totally dubwise reading of Tappa's devotional 'My God Is Real', followed by the instantly recognizable "Massacra Dub", an enthralling cut of Prince Allah's wonderful anthem, 'Burial'. Population Dub takes the 'Take Five' riddim, itself being an adaption of Dave Brubeck's jazz favourite. Then there is Weather Umbrella a well known riddim originally made popular by Ray-I as 'Weatherman Skank', who used the Treasure Isle classic 'It's Raining'. Next up comes King Alpha In School, a spirited re-cut of the Ebony Sisters' 'Let Me Tell You Boy' that Tappa used earlier for Horace Andy's 'Stop Your Brutality', followed by the outstanding Experience Dub, a subtle counterpart to Horace's 'Natty Dread Weh She Want' (which borrowed lyrics and structure from an earlier Soul Syndicate hit whilst also making use of the melody of Alton Ellis' Studio One classic, 'Hurting Me'). 

Peter Zummo (born 1948) is an American composer and musician. He plays the trombone, valve trombone, euphonium, synthesizer, other electronic instruments, and also sings. He is associated with the postminimalist and Downtown aesthetics, and he describes his music as "minimalism plus a whole lot more." He’s well-known for his work with Arthur Russell.

“In this project for Optimo, the listener can hear that my musical food pyramid has musicians at top, or maybe they are at the bottom. In any case, they are important. That is why, from track to track, I selected segments in which one player or another is featured in the take. Some may think that we musicians do multiple takes to get the perfect performance, but I like to find the special interactions lurking in each excursion. Different players came forward in each of the takes, which were recorded in the studios Seaside Lounge and Headroom, in Brooklyn, and live in performances at Cube Cinema, in Bristol, U.K., as well as in Long Island City and on Staten Island, New York.

In order to escape the tyranny of the lyric, I am exploring in this release the possibilities of nonsensical and non-emotional lyrics. These kinds of lyrics bring the singing voices into the mix without an overweening message. The tracks include open-form compositions in which the duration was not specified.”

STAFF COMMENTS

Patrick says: Downtown legend and Arthur Russell collaborator Peter Zummo lands on Optimo Music with a sublime set of spiritual frequencies in strung out sleeping bag style. Indian percussion, loose bass and echo drenched trombone float freely on an LP perfect for horizontal journeys and sofa-based space excursions. Jazzy, Balearic and a little bit silly, this should please anyone looking to bathe in the light of the miracle...

TRACK LISTING

1. The Tape Is Chill
2. How Does It Feel?
3. Well Let Me Say Something
4. Do You Know What To Wear Do You Know?
5. What Do You Want To Do?
6. Life Is Real
7. Break Up The Pill
8. Well Let Me Tell You Something

RIYL: Hallelujahs, Nagisa Ni Te, Roy Montgomery, Grouper, Manuel Gottsching

With IV, World Of Echo inaugurates a series of reissues by Japanese guitarist, Naoki Zushi. Perhaps best known for his stellar guitar contributions to psych folk group, Nagisa Ni Te, Zushi has had a parallel career, for several decades, slowly releasing solo albums that spotlight his exultant guitar playing. Originally released to CD only by Shinji Shibayama of Nagisa Ni Te’s Org imprint in 2018, IV has Zushi playing and writing at a peak, its six songs slowly unfurling with a kind of paradoxical understated grandeur.

This is psychedelic guitar music at its most paced and considered, yet given to flights of inspiration, and in this respect, Zushi sits within a lineage of guitarists who’ve used their instrument both as textural anchor and improvisatory tool – think of figures like Phil Manzanera and Robert Fripp, but also Roy Montgomery, Liz Harris of Grouper, even Tom Verlaine on his instrumental solo albums. Like those artists, Zushi locates moments of deep emotional resonance amidst luxuriant textural and melodic exploration.

Zushi’s history stretches back to the mid 1970s. While for many, he first appeared on the scene as a founding member of noise legends Hijokaidan, alongside Jojo Hiroshige, his musical contributions predate that encounter. He started out playing progressive rock and improvised music, making home recordings of when he was in high school. He was a member of Rasenkaidan (Spiral Staircase) alongside Hiroshige and Idiot (Kenichi Takayama), the group that soon mutated into Hijokaidan (Emergency Staircase).

Zushi and Takayama would soon form Idiot O’Clock, in 1982; Zushi also led his own Naoki Zushi Unit, starting in 1983. But for many, Zushi’s first significant appearance on record was as a member of Shinji Shibayama’s mid-eighties psych-pop group, Hallelujahs, whose sole album was recently reissued on vinyl. That group mutated into Nagisa Ni Te, and Zushi has played a significant role as their lead guitarist for several decades.

His own solo music has appeared sporadically – Paradise (1987), Phenomenal Luciferin (1998), III (2005) and IV, with a few recent, meditative offerings, For My Friends’ Sleep (2021) and Nocturnes (2022). With IV, though, Zushi achieved something remarkable, a kind of extended exploration of the time-altering properties of echoplexed, hypnotically spiralling guitar interplay.

The opening ‘Mirror’, “a song about the mirror inside me,” Zushi explains, starts out as a lush psych-folk song, slow and gentle, but soon takes to the skies with a cat’s cradle of Fripp-esque guitars, before thick, droning chords sweep the song to a drowsy coda. ‘Nocturne’ weaves silver skeins of guitar melody around a cyclical chord pattern; it gathers energy and quiet intensity through insistent repetition. The rest of the album explores the nuance Zushi can draw out of simple elements, building on what ‘Mirror’ and ‘Nocturne’ offer – the profundity of a chord change; the melancholy of a few quietly sighed words; the exhilaration of a guitar solo bursting out of the speakers; the subtle shifts in emotional register offered by tone and touch.

Throughout, there’s something quiet, yet ineffable, shading the contours of the songs, such that it makes perfect sense when Zushi says, “What I want to express through music may be ‘sense of mystery’.” A few of the songs had their basic parts recorded at LM Studio and Studio Nemu with Shibayama and Masako Takeda joining on bass and drums, respectively; much of the album, however, was tracked at Zushi’s home studio. That seems appropriate for a collection of songs that are expansive in their intimacy.

Asked what drove the sessions, Zushi answers, “I thought I’d make IV an album that particularly focuses on the guitar play.” And focus it does, as Zushi’s sky-scraping, soaring, elemental tone is front and centre throughout. But these are no guitar heroics; rather, Zushi uses the guitar as conduit and diviner, a tool for spirit location, and IV is his most eloquent expression yet of such singular magic.

TRACK LISTING

Side A:
1. ɏ

Recorded at Abbey Road Studios with legendary songwriter and producer Nile Rodgers, alongside the band's original producer Ian Broudie. The multi-platinum selling band released three studio albums between 2004 and 2008, scoring 9 UK Top 40 singles including two Top 10s with ‘Why Won’t You Give Me Your Love?’ and the all- conquering ‘Valerie’, the latter a triple-platinum hit for Mark Ronson and Amy Winehouse. Today they return to share the fruits of their extended time away. The Big Decider comes into view as an album of stark significance to the band, completed by Dave McCabe (guitar, lead vocals), Abi Harding (saxophone, vocals) and Sean Payne (drums, vocals). Written against the backdrop of a decade and a half’s worth of lived experience, it is born under the weight of family tragedies, lives lost and created, reality checks, and home truths faced up to and stared down. Wrestled into shape under the kind of steam that only decades-long friendships - with all their messy fall-outs, make-ups, breakdowns and ultimately love - can muster, The Big Decider became the sound of water passing under the bridge, and love for music, love for each other, and love for creating together becoming the most important thing of all.

TRACK LISTING

1. Creeping On The Dancefloor (Nile Rodgers)
2. Creeping On The Dancefloor (Ian Broudie)

Recorded at Abbey Road Studios with legendary songwriter and producer Nile Rodgers, alongside the band's original producer Ian Broudie. The multi-platinum selling band released three studio albums between 2004 and 2008, scoring 9 UK Top 40 singles including two Top 10s with ‘Why Won’t You Give Me Your Love?’ and the all- conquering ‘Valerie’, the latter a triple-platinum hit for Mark Ronson and Amy Winehouse. Today they return to share the fruits of their extended time away. The Big Decider comes into view as an album of stark significance to the band, completed by Dave McCabe (guitar, lead vocals), Abi Harding (saxophone, vocals) and Sean Payne (drums, vocals). Written against the backdrop of a decade and a half’s worth of lived experience, it is born under the weight of family tragedies, lives lost and created, reality checks, and home truths faced up to and stared down. Wrestled into shape under the kind of steam that only decades-long friendships - with all their messy fall-outs, make-ups, breakdowns and ultimately love - can muster, The Big Decider became the sound of water passing under the bridge, and love for music, love for each other, and love for creating together becoming the most important thing of all.

TRACK LISTING

1. Creeping On The Dancefloor
2. Pauline
3. Water
4. In Your Arms
5. Disappear
6. Company
7. The Big Decider
8. Rise
9. Best Of Me

US poet Ellen Zweig combines experimental spoken word with ambient, fourth world minimalism for the first ever release of key 70s and 80s works Fiction of the Physical.

In the 1970s, Ellen Zweig was a young poet experimenting with poetry as performance. Her presence in New York’s Downtown scene, even during a period of such creative and artistic fertility, represented an astute and profoundly expressive voice. By 1980, and her two pieces “Network of Letters” and “Sensitive Bones” (both collected here on Fiction of the Physical), Zweig had introduced and perfected a technique she named the “human loop”, directing multiple performers to repeat a single poetic phrase over and over as they recorded to tape. Inevitably, the loops phase in and out of synchronisation over time, creating a sonic collage of drifting, rippling syllabic waves that rise and fall with natural tides. The text becomes performance, and in turn it becomes dreamily and hypnotically abstracted from the written word.

An astonishingly singular collection, created from a unique creative vision, Fiction of the Physical offers few reference points. Zweig intentionally disrupts of fourth wall convention and applies of spoken word as a musical device, a pioneering early female voice in underground avant garde scenes. Even her veil of “ambient music” is made porous enough to allow challenging and atonal sonics into the tapestry.

TRACK LISTING

1. Sensitive Bones
2. Act Of Watching
3. Network Of Letters
4. If Archimedes 

"My name is Stephen Evans and I am the bass player from the band Twisted Wheel. I have played in many bands before joining Twisted Wheel, most of which you will have probably never heard of.

I've always loved the process of writing and recording music, and during the last few years I have compiled quite a large collection of songs. The idea of ZX+ was to write and record songs under rules and guide lines, whether it be time restraints, conceptual ideas, or any other unusual restrictions that do not accompany the freedom involved with writing. I especially liked the songs which resulted from the idea of time restraints, with their unusual structures, and production techniques that were used to disguise mistakes and rushed recordings. The combination of these factors made for a very interesting sound, one entirely different to the songs I would usually write. After the idea of writing songs with rules got a bit boring, I decided to try and write some songs that had similar structures and production techniques to those written under time constraints, without the idea of time constraints preventing me from improving them. I recorded about 30 songs with this idea in mind, and picked the best ones for this album.

I love vinyl, and I still consider it the best way to listen to music. Holding the sleeve of the record, marvelling at it's artwork, reading the notes, watching the record spin - these are all physical aspects of listening to music that are being lost through the way in which digital has taken over the listening experience. This album is only available on vinyl, I hope you enjoy it."

Zy The Way hails from Taiwan and are a jazz ensemble that interlaces their dynamic sounds with ancient Chinese poetry compiled by Confucius. They also bring in more contemporary compositions which results in an utterly original sound and great gateway to some of the world's oldest literary works. They recently finished a debut full-length album and now the single 'Blue Collar' from it comes on limited edition vinyl. The track tells the ancient tale of young scholars in love with a powerful narrative and moving melodies. The one and only DJ Spinna steps up on the flip to offer his own classy deep-house remix.

TRACK LISTING

Side 1
Ten Acres

Side 2
Ten Acres (MdCL Remix)

LA via Paris classically trained keyboard wizard David Zylberman AKA Ghost from Egyptian Lover's spaced out synthfunk backing band follows up his sold out Star Creature debut with another set of contemporary electronic jazz-funk primed for peak hour dancefloor action. After flipping bananas covers of Lonnie Liston Smith and Roy Ayers, he drops an original production that gives that same synth driven, rhythm forward dance vibe. The B Side takes us straight to deep space with an uptempo cracker of a remix of Brian Bennett's "Solstice" done in a zero-gravity flavor previously considered impossible. The promo copies have already seen major support from Chicago and NYC heavyweights and we here at Picc HQ reckon this is gonna blow up much like his "Expansions / "Everybody Loves The Sunshine" 7" from 2022.   

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: A real special release from Star Creature which sees Zylberman follow up on what many regard as the label's hottest release to date - Ghost's "Expansions / Everybody Loves The Sunshine". Taking on a Brian Bennett masterpiece and also dropping a self-penned original, that highly mellifluous, heavy grooving blend of disco and jazz-funk is apparent once again. Sending us spiralling into the speaker stacks in a gleeful abandon. Do not sleep!

TRACK LISTING

A) New Perspective
B) Solstice

The Best of ZZ Top (10 Legendary Texas Tales) is a greatest hits album by American rock band ZZ Top, released November 26, 1977.[4] Spanning the years from 1971 to 1975, this compilation album does not contain any songs from Tejas, which was released the year before. The first ZZ Top Compilation with hits from their first six albums, including La Grange, Tush and Just Got Paid. This was released in the US last year and will now be available everywhere

TRACK LISTING

Tush
Waitin' For The Bus
Jesus Just Left Chicago
Francine
Just Got Paid
La Grange
Blue Jean Blues
Backdoor Love Affair
Beer Drinkers And Hell Raisers
Heard It On The X