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The musical touchstones of Tom Fleming, former Wild Beasts songwriter, vocalist and multi-instrumentalis, were Bruce Springsteen, Don Henley, Tom Petty alongside Depeche Mode and Swans. He wrote and played everything himself and then brought in Ben Hillier (Nadine Shah, Graham Coxon) on mixing and production duties.
One True Pairing is an album shaped by class frustration and self-despair and there is a continuation of the exploration of masculinity that made Wild Beasts so unique. As well as being deeply personal, OTP has a wider political resonance. "This country is going through a terrible moment and if you listen to the art nobody seems to give a shit,” Fleming says emphatically. He believes that class is entirely discounted from the current conversation about inclusivity and privilege. In its 11 songs of discordant guitar and aggressive synth Fleming channels his discontent with Britain in 2019 and a “feeling of directionless rage and cheatedness which hasn't gone away."
One True Pairing is an album shaped by class frustration and self-despair and there is a continuation of the exploration of masculinity that made Wild Beasts so unique. As well as being deeply personal, OTP has a wider political resonance. "This country is going through a terrible moment and if you listen to the art nobody seems to give a shit,” Fleming says emphatically. He believes that class is entirely discounted from the current conversation about inclusivity and privilege. In its 11 songs of discordant guitar and aggressive synth Fleming channels his discontent with Britain in 2019 and a “feeling of directionless rage and cheatedness which hasn't gone away."
TRACK LISTING
Zero Summer
I’m Not Afraid
One True Pairing
Weapons
Dawn At The Factory
Blank Walls
Reaper Of Souls
Elite Companion
Alive In The Resplendent Flames
King Of The Rats
Only God Can Judge Me
The latest offering from experimental noise masters One Unique Signal is a collaboration between the three core band members and 20 of their contemporaries, who each designed a piece of music inspired by a single riff. Much like the process of continuous recreation that its namesake symbolises, the West London groups third LP, Hoopsnake, devours the seemingly eternal riff and constantly reinvents it to form a series of parallel iterations to the original composition. The riff was born from a repetitious loop originating from the sessions for their previous LP, the Sonic Boom mastered Aether. The band then recorded two versions of it (one a loud, guitar-driven take, the second a softer synth passage) and shared it with friends and collaborators, inviting each artist to create a corresponding sonic interpretation, which have all been mixed into four separate 10 minute long tracks.
The result is a seamless meshing of ideas from some of the best minds in the underground music scene - including The Oscillations Demian Castellanos and Steven Lawrie of The Telescopes - whose recordings span the weird and wonderful, ranging from home made noise box to Godin Artisan ST II recorded on solar power in a caravan, to simply lime green guitar. The roster of musicians and their various tools and instruments has been documented on the vinyl editions printed inner sleeve, and reads like a cross between a tech catalogue and a fantasy novel. The album was originally intended to serve as a second disc for Aether, however an extended, separate version was eventually called for to allow the project to fully realize it's 46 minute cycle, which was inspired by the long, warm summer evenings England experienced in 2013. Despite the new process undertaken for Hoopsnake, the methodically exploritive approach is typical to One Unique Signal, as is the feeling of continuity. The groups Nick Keech explains. From the very beginning, the Signal mythos has been repetition. Fellow band member Byron Jackson continues. The LP destroys itself, reflects upon the destruction, and is finally recreated, ready to repeat the process again. Along with fellow member Daniel Davis, the trio also perform as a part of space rock legends The Telescopes.
The result is a seamless meshing of ideas from some of the best minds in the underground music scene - including The Oscillations Demian Castellanos and Steven Lawrie of The Telescopes - whose recordings span the weird and wonderful, ranging from home made noise box to Godin Artisan ST II recorded on solar power in a caravan, to simply lime green guitar. The roster of musicians and their various tools and instruments has been documented on the vinyl editions printed inner sleeve, and reads like a cross between a tech catalogue and a fantasy novel. The album was originally intended to serve as a second disc for Aether, however an extended, separate version was eventually called for to allow the project to fully realize it's 46 minute cycle, which was inspired by the long, warm summer evenings England experienced in 2013. Despite the new process undertaken for Hoopsnake, the methodically exploritive approach is typical to One Unique Signal, as is the feeling of continuity. The groups Nick Keech explains. From the very beginning, the Signal mythos has been repetition. Fellow band member Byron Jackson continues. The LP destroys itself, reflects upon the destruction, and is finally recreated, ready to repeat the process again. Along with fellow member Daniel Davis, the trio also perform as a part of space rock legends The Telescopes.
TRACK LISTING
1. HS01
2. HS02
3. HS03
4. HS04
Debut album from Manchester's One Window. Recorded over 18 months, the album is a sublime mix of laid back grooves, contemporary beats and simple songwriting, all topped with Zoe Stafford's strong vocals. There's hint's of everything here, from St Etienne, to Morcheeba, to Kings Of Convenience.
Recommended If You Like: Can, Tortoise, OOIOO, Sonic Youth, Ty Segall, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, Bitchin Bajas, The Cars, Liars.
Experimental psych-punk institution Onedia returns with Success, the band’s most guitar-centric, rocking album in decades. Long straddling the gray area between the NYC punk/psych/rock community and the art/experimental world, the music of Oneida is celebrated for its mix of abstract, atmo[1]spheric sounds and pulsing, hammering anthems. Success finds the band getting to the core of what makes minimal rock music
so good - songs pared back to beat and melody with a limited number of guitar chords. If a song or two gets ripped in half later by a corrosive guitar solo, well, what did you expect? This is Oneida.
“Oneida are the rare experimentalists who can hammer away at a riff or idea incessantly and somehow make it really last.” Pitchfork
Experimental psych-punk institution Onedia returns with Success, the band’s most guitar-centric, rocking album in decades. Long straddling the gray area between the NYC punk/psych/rock community and the art/experimental world, the music of Oneida is celebrated for its mix of abstract, atmo[1]spheric sounds and pulsing, hammering anthems. Success finds the band getting to the core of what makes minimal rock music
so good - songs pared back to beat and melody with a limited number of guitar chords. If a song or two gets ripped in half later by a corrosive guitar solo, well, what did you expect? This is Oneida.
“Oneida are the rare experimentalists who can hammer away at a riff or idea incessantly and somehow make it really last.” Pitchfork
TRACK LISTING
1. Beat Me To The Punch
2. Opportunities
3. Low Tide
4. I Wanna Hold Your Electric Hand
5. Paralyzed
6. Rotten
7. Solid
Oneida has been a cornerstone of the Brooklyn underground for nearly two decades. Always evolving, the group has been a beacon of musical exploration and enthralling unpredictability, gaining legendary status among heads that know and expanding the limits of what it means to be a rock band. With a discography spanning over a dozen full-lengths, plus live releases, EPs, singles, and limited one-offs, Oneida has demonstrated a mastery of collective improvisation, off-kilter songwriting, complex composition, and everything in between. In 2011 Oneida lost its home base, its studio dubbed the Ocropolis in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, due to the pervasive gentrification and over-development of the neighbourhood that was once a thriving arts community.
After watching the Monster Island building that housed the Ocropolis transform into a pile of rubble, the band began an intense period of exploration and discovery, retreating from the studio in favor of the stage, and birthing a panoply of limited, uncompromising releases that documented the band’s continuously unfolding journey. Six years after the release of A List of the Burning Mountains, the final emission from the Ocropolis, the band will release their newest studio creation Romance, their first album for Joyful Noise Recordings and a record marked by wild eclecticism, even for a group known for its shape-shifting nature. Recorded over several years in various locales, the 11 songs on Romance are built around deeply developed long-arc rhythm/phase concepts, noise, yearning, blind guitar rage, longing, the lurch of dying electronics, and a multi-modal embrace of human fallibility and artifice. From the crackling synth-led opener “Economy Travel” to the expansive 18-minute epic “Shepherd’s Axe,” Romance is an album in constant flux.
On “Bad Habit” the band employs phasing between organ and guitar to great, disorienting effect, while the primitive riffs of “Cockfight” offer a contrasting vision of rock minimalism. Listen closely on “Lay of the Land” and you will hear constant rhythmic development, with drummer Kid Millions eschewing repetition in favor of morphing patterns of hi-hat and snare. As with all mystery, Romance reveals more through closer attention and multiple listens. Oneida, always formidable in the live environment, will be touring throughout the year.
Kid Millions remains one of the most in-demand drummers in New York, exploring the outer reaches of percussion music with his own Man Forever project, as well as playing with Laurie Anderson, Royal Trux, and People of the North with Oneida compatriot Bobby Matador. Bobby also takes part in the psych-pop duo Nurse & Soldier, and recently formed yet another duo called New Pope. Guitarist Shahin Moita is a co-founder of underground stalwarts Ex Models and Knyfe Hyts. Through it all Oneida remains a powerful collective voice, a propulsive force for wildness and excitement, with Romance heralding the return of the epic, artful ballad version of the journey.
After watching the Monster Island building that housed the Ocropolis transform into a pile of rubble, the band began an intense period of exploration and discovery, retreating from the studio in favor of the stage, and birthing a panoply of limited, uncompromising releases that documented the band’s continuously unfolding journey. Six years after the release of A List of the Burning Mountains, the final emission from the Ocropolis, the band will release their newest studio creation Romance, their first album for Joyful Noise Recordings and a record marked by wild eclecticism, even for a group known for its shape-shifting nature. Recorded over several years in various locales, the 11 songs on Romance are built around deeply developed long-arc rhythm/phase concepts, noise, yearning, blind guitar rage, longing, the lurch of dying electronics, and a multi-modal embrace of human fallibility and artifice. From the crackling synth-led opener “Economy Travel” to the expansive 18-minute epic “Shepherd’s Axe,” Romance is an album in constant flux.
On “Bad Habit” the band employs phasing between organ and guitar to great, disorienting effect, while the primitive riffs of “Cockfight” offer a contrasting vision of rock minimalism. Listen closely on “Lay of the Land” and you will hear constant rhythmic development, with drummer Kid Millions eschewing repetition in favor of morphing patterns of hi-hat and snare. As with all mystery, Romance reveals more through closer attention and multiple listens. Oneida, always formidable in the live environment, will be touring throughout the year.
Kid Millions remains one of the most in-demand drummers in New York, exploring the outer reaches of percussion music with his own Man Forever project, as well as playing with Laurie Anderson, Royal Trux, and People of the North with Oneida compatriot Bobby Matador. Bobby also takes part in the psych-pop duo Nurse & Soldier, and recently formed yet another duo called New Pope. Guitarist Shahin Moita is a co-founder of underground stalwarts Ex Models and Knyfe Hyts. Through it all Oneida remains a powerful collective voice, a propulsive force for wildness and excitement, with Romance heralding the return of the epic, artful ballad version of the journey.
TRACK LISTING
Economy Travel,
Bad Habit,
All In Due Time,
It Was Me,
Good Lie,
Lay Of The Land,
Cedars,
Reputation,
Cockfight,
Good Cheer,
Shepherd's Axe.
After the debut album "Hypnos" and the "Veni Nox Anima" EP finally new material of this New York based composer. With ONEIROGEN, Mario Diaz de Leon creates his own style of hallucinatory music, merging ethereal synths, brutal distortion, dark ambient and noise. The project was initiated in 2012 with the release of "Hypnos", which garnered widespread acclaim among fans of experimental and heavy music for its varied and cinematic intensity. Steve Smith of the New York Times praised the disc for its hallucinatory intensity. While maintaining a strong electronic (and unclassifiable) sound, "Kiasma" offers an intensification of the metal elements present on the debut. Thoughout the album's walls of drumless distortion, melody is a prominent feature, with tracks such as "Numina", "Mutilation", "Pathogen", and "Mortisomnia" exploring revelatory intersections of heavy synths and guitars. The 14-minute "Katabasis" opened nearly every live show of 2012, and is rooted in drone/doom metal, with elements of modern classical and noise. "Gauze" and "Imminence" serve as haunting interludes, and are concise takes on bleak and cold melody. Ranging from melancholic to brutally foreboding, another immersive and visionary album by ONEIROGEN.
TRACK LISTING
1. Numina (6:08)
2. Pathogen (6:50)
3. Mutilation (7:26)
4. Imminence (4:16)
5. Katabasis (14:35)
6. Gauze (2:39)
7. Mortisomnia
You've got to have a lot of self-belief to sing lines like 'Her hips are like seashells / I can hear the ocean when I listen' - Oooer missus! Jonah Matranga, singer / songwriter of New End Original and formerly of Far has bags of it. As Onelinedrawing he's played over 300 shows in the US, UK, and Europe. This CD is full of all the emotional and ultimately uplifting songs his fans have come to expect. It's another quality Jade Tree release.
Daniel Lopatin is a Brooklyn-based musician, composer, and Mercury Prize nominated producer who records and performs as Oneohtrix Point Never. "Again" is his tenth album and is released via Warp Records.
The artwork features an original sculpture by Matias Falkbakken, conceptualized in concert with Lopatin and photographed by Vegard Kleven. Design and packaging was developed by Memory, a newly formed collaboration between Lopatin and Online Ceramics (Elijah Funk & Alix Ross).
The artwork features an original sculpture by Matias Falkbakken, conceptualized in concert with Lopatin and photographed by Vegard Kleven. Design and packaging was developed by Memory, a newly formed collaboration between Lopatin and Online Ceramics (Elijah Funk & Alix Ross).
STAFF COMMENTS
Barry says: Daniel Lopatin is always innovating, from his hugely memorable scores for Uncut Gems or Good Time, but for me it's Lopatin's work as Oneohtrix Point never that shines with all that he has to offer. Bright moments shine through the deep, meticulously crafted electronic hiss and rich audio bath. Classic OPNTRACK LISTING
01. Elseware
02. Again
03. World Outside
04. Krumville
05. Locrian Midwest
06. Plastic Antique
07. Gray Subviolet
08. The Body Trail
09. Nightmare Paint
10. Memories Of Music
11. On An Axis
12. Ubiquity Road
13. A Barely Lit Path
Again (Blu-ray Edition), features an exclusive Dolby Atmos mix by Mike Dean, Tommy Rush & Sean Solymar, & the original OPN album accompanied by all official music videos. The 17-track collectable, out on Warp Records, features contributions from such wide ranging collaborators as Robert Ames, Lee Ranaldo, Jim O’Rourke, Xiu Xiu, lovelivescrushing, and more.
TRACK LISTING
01. Elseware
02. Again
03. World Outside
04. Krumville
05. Locrian Midwest
06. Plastic Antique
07. Gray Subviolet
08. The Body Trail
09. Nightmare Paint
10. Memories Of Music
11. On An Axis
12. Ubiquity Road
13. A Barely Lit Path
14. A Barely Lit Path (Music Video)
15. Nightmare Paint (Music Video)
16. On An Axis (Music Video)
17. Memories Of Music ANIMATIC {Draft} (Music Video)
Daniel Lopatin has never been to afeared to tread a relatively unfollowed path, with his ambient synth excursions of the early 00's sending many a mind into the outer reaches of the stratosphere, before his major label debut with 'R Plus 7' for Warp in 2013. His follow-up outing, 'Garden Of Delete' pushed what was becoming his trademark glitched-out synth excursions into exciting new territories with fragented patchworks and overlapping collages of sound forming a solid but oft missed melodic patchwork.
The newest outing, "Age Of" is Daniel Lopatin’s most cohesive and richly composed work to date, weaving a tapestry of disparate musical histories — early music, country and folk balladry, melodic pop, computer music and much, much more — that demonstrate both the complexity and range of the artist's repertoire. With sounds that are unsettlingly familiar and uniquely his own, "Age Of" guides us through an unclassifiable new world.
The newest outing, "Age Of" is Daniel Lopatin’s most cohesive and richly composed work to date, weaving a tapestry of disparate musical histories — early music, country and folk balladry, melodic pop, computer music and much, much more — that demonstrate both the complexity and range of the artist's repertoire. With sounds that are unsettlingly familiar and uniquely his own, "Age Of" guides us through an unclassifiable new world.
STAFF COMMENTS
Barry says: Oneohtric moves from strength to strength, with his newest outing eschewing the glitched-out cut/paste madness of 'Garden Of Delete' for a more refined, but still comfortingly bizarre robo-choral affair. I've been a big fan of Lopatin since the mid 2000's, and this continues the tradition of excellence. Killer.TRACK LISTING
01 Age Of
02 Babylon
03 Manifold
04 The Station
05 Toys 2
06 Black Snow
07 Myriad.industries
08 Warning
09 We’ll Take It
10 Same
11 RayCats
12 Still Stuff That Doesn’t Happen
13 Last Known Image Of A Song
Warp Records are pleased to announce the release of Oneohtrix Point Never's 'R Plus Seven'. The album contains many familiar sonic touchstones for listeners who have followed the acclaimed electronic music composer’s development over the last half-decade, his Warp Records debut is a major departure from his previous work. Lopatin’s experimental inclinations lurk behind the scenes - in the concepts and procedures he adopted to create the tracks - while the music itself comes as close as he's has ever got to anything resembling traditional song structure. Which, for the producer, is only so close: The work is full of overlapping, abstract musical through-lines, puzzle-like pieces that, taken together, might allow you to glimpse an overarching tableau.
The Brooklyn-based artist has always deftly balanced the experimental with the accessible: He has released several albums under his Oneohtrix Point Never moniker on various independent labels - including the 2013 3-CD/5 LP 'Rifts', a compilation of his early work - as well as amassing a large catalogue of mini-album tape releases. His most recent disc, 2011’s 'Replica', was built around samples of television commercials.
OPN has built live soundscapes at the Museum of Modern Art; collaborated with Montreal-based ambient electronic music composer Tim Hecker on the largely improvised 2012 'Instrumental Tourist'; and recast the title track from his 2010 disc 'Returnal' as an elegant and emotive piece for piano, featuring the otherworldly voice of Antony Hegarty. Advertising powerhouse Saatchi & Saatchi tapped Lopatin for an installation event at the 2012 Cannes film fest and Sofia Coppola’s longtime cohort Brian Reitzell invited him to create original music for Coppola’s The Bling Ring.
'R Plus Seven' is disruptive and hypnotic in equal measure, and the fun of it lies in trusting Lopatin as he guides you past - and often through - its succession of walls and mirrors.
The Brooklyn-based artist has always deftly balanced the experimental with the accessible: He has released several albums under his Oneohtrix Point Never moniker on various independent labels - including the 2013 3-CD/5 LP 'Rifts', a compilation of his early work - as well as amassing a large catalogue of mini-album tape releases. His most recent disc, 2011’s 'Replica', was built around samples of television commercials.
OPN has built live soundscapes at the Museum of Modern Art; collaborated with Montreal-based ambient electronic music composer Tim Hecker on the largely improvised 2012 'Instrumental Tourist'; and recast the title track from his 2010 disc 'Returnal' as an elegant and emotive piece for piano, featuring the otherworldly voice of Antony Hegarty. Advertising powerhouse Saatchi & Saatchi tapped Lopatin for an installation event at the 2012 Cannes film fest and Sofia Coppola’s longtime cohort Brian Reitzell invited him to create original music for Coppola’s The Bling Ring.
'R Plus Seven' is disruptive and hypnotic in equal measure, and the fun of it lies in trusting Lopatin as he guides you past - and often through - its succession of walls and mirrors.
TRACK LISTING
01. Boring Angel
02. Americans
03. He She
04. Inside World
05. Zebra
06. Along
07. Problem Areas
08. Cryo
09. Still Life
10. Chrome Country
AVAILABLE ONLINE ON SATURDAY NOVEMBER 27TH FROM 8AM.
LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.
Oneohtrix Point Never announces an exclusive release for Record Store Day’s Black Friday – a 10” featuring re-workings of album tracks “Nothing’s Special” with ROSALÍA and ”Tales From The Trash Stratum” with Elizabeth Fraser of Cocteau Twins.
Both tracks are available as bonus tracks on the recent Blu-Ray edition release of Magic Oneohtrix Point Never, originally released 20th November 2020 but are now available here for the first time on limited 10” vinyl.
10” in paper inner in printed outer sleeve with spot gloss to cover, includes download card insert.
Limited to 750 copies for the UK and Ireland.
LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.
Oneohtrix Point Never announces an exclusive release for Record Store Day’s Black Friday – a 10” featuring re-workings of album tracks “Nothing’s Special” with ROSALÍA and ”Tales From The Trash Stratum” with Elizabeth Fraser of Cocteau Twins.
Both tracks are available as bonus tracks on the recent Blu-Ray edition release of Magic Oneohtrix Point Never, originally released 20th November 2020 but are now available here for the first time on limited 10” vinyl.
10” in paper inner in printed outer sleeve with spot gloss to cover, includes download card insert.
Limited to 750 copies for the UK and Ireland.
TRACK LISTING
A. Nothing’s Special (Oneohtrix Point Never & ROSALÍA)
AA. Tales From The Trash Stratum (Oneohtrix Point Never & Elizabeth Fraser)
'Rifts' compiles Oneohtrix Point Never's (aka Daniel Lopatin) first three full albums - 'Betrayed in the Octagon', 'Zones Without People', and 'Russian Mind' - alongside a crop of rare and out of- print CDR and cassette material in a deluxe, 5xLP vinyl box set, and 3xCD set.
'Rifts' travels from the outside-in, beginning with the dark space sonatas of Octagon, through the mechanized vistas of Zones Without People and completing itself with the haunting electronic animus of Russian Mind. This journey is"underscored with a natural growth which sees Lopatin developing his unabashed worship of the polysynth as a free standing musical apparatus towards a fully realized OPN world of sound; at"once incorporating synth prog, modern noise, early techno, drone, minimalism and computer music."With Rifts it is possible to zoom out on the OPN project and recognize Lopatin as both an auteur" and alchemist; achieving a signature sound while drawing on a buried history of electronic music."
'Rifts' travels from the outside-in, beginning with the dark space sonatas of Octagon, through the mechanized vistas of Zones Without People and completing itself with the haunting electronic animus of Russian Mind. This journey is"underscored with a natural growth which sees Lopatin developing his unabashed worship of the polysynth as a free standing musical apparatus towards a fully realized OPN world of sound; at"once incorporating synth prog, modern noise, early techno, drone, minimalism and computer music."With Rifts it is possible to zoom out on the OPN project and recognize Lopatin as both an auteur" and alchemist; achieving a signature sound while drawing on a buried history of electronic music."
Warm atmospheric dub techno w/ Vril & Sleeparchive remixes. Real deal OG shit for those who like sonic plasma fields, deep rootism, endless delays and underwater techno. So authentic is the sounds across the whole EP we expect this to be fervently sought after by the reems of dub-techno heads out there.. Be quick if you want in!
TRACK LISTING
A1. Tau
A2. Nebelgelb
B1. Tau (Vril - Vintage Tool Remix)
B2. Nebelgelb (Sleeparchive Remix)
On the eve of her 80th birthday, Dona Onete - ‘the grande dame of Amazonian song’ - returns with Rebujo, a love letter to her hometown of Belém, situated deep in the Amazon. Rebujo brims with two music styles born in Belém: carimbós, influenced by African grooves, and bangues, a ska-type rhythm, plus there’s a cumbia, brega (‘romantic’ music) and samba.
Since the release of her 2017 album "Banzeiro", Onete has become a superstar in Brazil – she composed and sung the theme song for one of Brazil’s biggest soap operas (A Força do Querer), been awarded the Brazilian Ordem do Mérito Cultural in recognition for her contribution to Brazilian culture + her video for "No Meio do Pitiu" has an impressive 9.2m views on Youtube.
Since the release of her 2017 album "Banzeiro", Onete has become a superstar in Brazil – she composed and sung the theme song for one of Brazil’s biggest soap operas (A Força do Querer), been awarded the Brazilian Ordem do Mérito Cultural in recognition for her contribution to Brazilian culture + her video for "No Meio do Pitiu" has an impressive 9.2m views on Youtube.
TRACK LISTING
1. A1. Festa Do Tubarão
2. A2. CarimbóArrepiado
3. A3. MexeMexe
4. A4. VemChamegar
5. A5. Musa Da Babilônia
6. B1. Tambor Do Norte
7. B2. MisturaPai’dégua
8. B3. Fogo NaAldeia
9. B4. 09 AçãoReação
10. B5. 10 Balanço De Açaí
11. Galante Sedutor (CD ONLY)
Long time friends and established tour compatriots on the Manchester scene – this isn't the first time Onions and The Generalissimos have found themselves shouldered together. Occupying either side of a limited edition, special release 7" – the two impossibly energetic, infectiously buoyant and unashamedly poppy singles are guaranteed to do battle for your attention.
The Onions sound is forged from Jim's catalogue of Tamla seven inches, Martin's wealth of 80's rock double live CDs, Chris' plethora of (legally) downloaded jazz classics mixed with the reasoning that music should be about having a damn fun time and just plain enjoying it!
The Generalissimos honed their own skewed version of pop music over several years in a South Manchester basement, producing several albums worth of home recorded material under various pseudonyms along the way. After recruiting Ted in late 2008 with a remit to provide 'keyboards and weird synth noises' they are now making the colourful, harmony laced, occasionally confounding, but most importantly fun music they have always aimed at!
The Onions sound is forged from Jim's catalogue of Tamla seven inches, Martin's wealth of 80's rock double live CDs, Chris' plethora of (legally) downloaded jazz classics mixed with the reasoning that music should be about having a damn fun time and just plain enjoying it!
The Generalissimos honed their own skewed version of pop music over several years in a South Manchester basement, producing several albums worth of home recorded material under various pseudonyms along the way. After recruiting Ted in late 2008 with a remit to provide 'keyboards and weird synth noises' they are now making the colourful, harmony laced, occasionally confounding, but most importantly fun music they have always aimed at!
Onions are Jim, Martin and Chris, three urban dandies from Withington, Manchester. With a penchant for writing upbeat no-nonsense guitar pop, they formed in the glorious summer of 2005. Already in the short two years together, Onions have played Glastonbury Festival and had one of their hits played on the main stages between acts and subsequently released on a Glastonbury compilation CD nationwide. Prior to this, Onions have supported the likes of Mystery Jets and Jim Noir, and headlined the Euro-Culture festival in Manchester. In addition, Onions have worked in coordination with Channel M on a regular basis to promote their releases, videos, gigs and their ravishing personalities.
In 1980, The Only Ones released their third and final studio album Baby’s Got A Gun. While they produced the previous two albums, for Baby’s Got A Gun they joined forces with the acclaimed producer Colin Thurston, who is best known for his work with Duran Duran, Talk Talk, and The Human League among others. The album features guest performances by lead vocalist of Penetration, Pauline Murray, on the tracks “Fools” and “Me And My Shadow”. “Fools” is the only time that the band had released a cover version, which is originally a song by American country musician Johnny Duncan. Two years after the album release, The Only Ones officially disbanded.
STAFF COMMENTS
Andy says: The Only One's third and final album may well be their best. What a shame this most influential of bands never managed to make it. Incredible songs like Why Don't You Kill Yourself (droll and funny put down to top them all!), Trouble In The World (an incredible encapsulation of the perils of heroin addiction), and the adorable Oh Lucinda fell by the way side in the real world of pop, but were hugely loved by the band's devoted fan base, and still loved and cherished to this day. What a brilliant band.TRACK LISTING
SIDE A
1. The Happy Pilgrim
2. Why Don’t You Kill Yourself?
3. Me And My Shadow
4. Deadly Nightshade
5. Strange Mouth
6. The Big Sleep
SIDE B
1. Oh Lucinda (Love Becomes A Habit)
2. Re-union
3. Trouble In The World
4. Castle Built On Sand
5. Fools
6. My Way Out Of Here
A year after their acclaimed self-titled debut album, The Only Ones followed up with Even Serpents Shine. The sophomore album was met with positive reviews like "Even Serpents Shine doesn’t boast an out-of-the-box classic tune along the lines of 'Another Girl, Another Planet' from the debut, but in many respects, this is the more consistent album, achieving a similar degree of thematic and melodic variety while generating a more coherent sound and feeling”.
STAFF COMMENTS
Andy says: Another moody but exhilarating outing which mixed heavy, brooding numbers with simply gorgeous pop in the likes of Flaming Torch, Out There In The Night and the exquisite Someone Who Cares. Just ask Johnny Marr!!TRACK LISTING
SIDE A
1. From Here To Eternity
2. Flaming Torch
3. You’ve Got To Play
4. No Solution
5. Inbetweens
6. Out There In The Night
SIDE B
1. Curtains For You
2. Programme
3. Someone Who Cares
4. Miles From Nowhere
5. Instrumental
Two years after their formation, the English power pop band The Only Ones released their self-titled debut album in 1978. Led by the raffish and slightly scuzzy romance-obsessed Peter Perrett, The Only Ones played not-so-fast guitar rock that sounded deeply indebted to the New York Dolls and other mid-70s proto-punks. Their debut album The Only Ones is regarded as a classic of the first wave of UK punk and features the brilliant hit “Another Girl, Another Planet”, which is their most successful track and has since been covered by many other performers. Since the Nineties, the album has appeared on several all-time greatest albums lists, including the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die in 2006.
STAFF COMMENTS
Andy says: The Only Ones' debut in 1978 stood at odds with what was going on with the burgeoning UK punk scene at the time. However, they were embraced by said scene even though singer Peter Perret's drawl could be almost Dylan-ish and his lyrics were far away from the anger and posturing of the new breed. In truth they were a superb rock band but with the occasional jerky, up-tempo number to make them seem current. They were above pigeon-holing though and here was an LP to prove it. Includes one of the greatest songs ever written in Another Girl Another Planet.TRACK LISTING
SIDE A
1. The Whole Of The Law
2. Another Girl, Another Planet
3. Breaking Down
4. City Of Fun
5. The Beast
SIDE B
1. Creature Of Doom
2. It’s The Truth
3. Language Problem
4. No Peace For The Wicked
5. The Immortal Story
Holy Mountain launches a new label, Tlon Uqbar: Reissue of this 1983 psychedelic punk single from Japanese artist Keizo Miyanish. "Cortigiana Dal Velo" and "Mune O Tsutsunde" pair acid guitar and bass over tripped out drum programming and loops to produce a psychedelic masterpiece that fits somewhere between the first White Stains seven-inch and Les Rallizes Denudes oeuvre circa 1980.
Devon Hoff, Yuka C Honda, Michael Leonhart, Joao Nogueira, Mauro Refosco, Ches Smith, Johnny Mathar, Sean Ono Lennon - Tzadik is proud to present Asterisms, a beautiful and exploratory instrumental project by Sean Ono Lennon, one of the most creative and versatile musician/ composer/producer/songwriters working today.
Sean has written countless songs, composed film scores, produced, and performed on dozens of albums--and here he steps out as the leader of an all-star band of Downtown luminaries. Years in the making, the music is powerful, trippy, and intensely imaginative, blending rock, electronics, jazz, and more into an exciting new musical soundscape. With driving rhythms, a stunning lyricism, and a brilliant sense of orchestration, this album is sure to surprise and delight music fans the world 'round. Beautifully recorded, this is modern instrumental music at its very best--essential!
Sean has written countless songs, composed film scores, produced, and performed on dozens of albums--and here he steps out as the leader of an all-star band of Downtown luminaries. Years in the making, the music is powerful, trippy, and intensely imaginative, blending rock, electronics, jazz, and more into an exciting new musical soundscape. With driving rhythms, a stunning lyricism, and a brilliant sense of orchestration, this album is sure to surprise and delight music fans the world 'round. Beautifully recorded, this is modern instrumental music at its very best--essential!
TRACK LISTING
1. Starwater
2. Thinking Of M
3. Acidalia
4. Asterisms
5. Heliopause
Following her hugely successful run as curator of London’s Meltdown Festival, this album continues an astonishing bout of creativity for Ono, who is celebrating her 80th birthday with major museum retrospectives around the world, her 10th #1 hit on the Billboard Dance charts, a sequel to her instruction book Grapefruit, winning "Digital Genius" MTV O Award, and spearheading the activist effort against fracking in her home state of New York. A career retrospective book will be published by Genesis in Autumn followed by reissues of her '60s-80s albums in 2014.
“My new album comes at a very special time for me. The energy I have right now, and the desire to continue to make as much great work as I can, is really moving me forward all the time. This album is the culmination of a lot of ideas I’ve been having over the last few years and I feel proud to release it at such an exciting time of my life."
Take Me To The Land Of Hell was recorded in New York and produced by Yoko, Sean Lennon and Yuka Honda. Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band includes members of Cornelius and Cibo Matto, plus – special guests for this album – tUnEyArDs, ?uestlove, Lenny Kravitz, Nels Cline and Andrew Wyatt. The album includes remixes by Mike D & Adrock and Keigo "Cornelius" Oyamada.
“My new album comes at a very special time for me. The energy I have right now, and the desire to continue to make as much great work as I can, is really moving me forward all the time. This album is the culmination of a lot of ideas I’ve been having over the last few years and I feel proud to release it at such an exciting time of my life."
Take Me To The Land Of Hell was recorded in New York and produced by Yoko, Sean Lennon and Yuka Honda. Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band includes members of Cornelius and Cibo Matto, plus – special guests for this album – tUnEyArDs, ?uestlove, Lenny Kravitz, Nels Cline and Andrew Wyatt. The album includes remixes by Mike D & Adrock and Keigo "Cornelius" Oyamada.
If you’ve listened to ‘Feeling The Space’, Yoko Ono’s personalis- political 1973 album, it should come as no surprise that the once-reviled artist is inspiring a new generation of activists in 2017.
On such songs as the righteous chant ‘Woman Power’, the empathetic ballad ‘Angry Young Woman’, the hilarious protogrrrl ‘Potbelly Rocker’ and the satirical ‘Men, Men, Men’, Yoko sings in surprisingly straightforward fashion about the burdens carried by women and the mandate for feminism.
Supported by such skilled studio vets as guitarist David Spinozza, sax player Michael Brecker and drummer Jim Keltner, this is perhaps Yoko’s most accessible album and her most intimate.
‘Feeling The Space’ was recorded during the time when the avant-garde visionary artist became estranged from her rock star husband John Lennon. He plays only briefly on the album (billed as Johnny O’Cean); she produced and wrote all the songs. The result is a definitive soundtrack / document of the era of consciousness raising and of radical critique of the family structure. Yoko and company deliver this hard message soft rock style, or as soft as Yoko could get. Yoko was on the front lines of the women’s liberation movement.
Dedicated “to the sisters who died in pain and sorrow and those who are now in prisons and in mental hospitals for being unable to survive in the male society,” it’s an emotional exploration of the psychological toll of oppression.
Available again for the first time in decades.
On such songs as the righteous chant ‘Woman Power’, the empathetic ballad ‘Angry Young Woman’, the hilarious protogrrrl ‘Potbelly Rocker’ and the satirical ‘Men, Men, Men’, Yoko sings in surprisingly straightforward fashion about the burdens carried by women and the mandate for feminism.
Supported by such skilled studio vets as guitarist David Spinozza, sax player Michael Brecker and drummer Jim Keltner, this is perhaps Yoko’s most accessible album and her most intimate.
‘Feeling The Space’ was recorded during the time when the avant-garde visionary artist became estranged from her rock star husband John Lennon. He plays only briefly on the album (billed as Johnny O’Cean); she produced and wrote all the songs. The result is a definitive soundtrack / document of the era of consciousness raising and of radical critique of the family structure. Yoko and company deliver this hard message soft rock style, or as soft as Yoko could get. Yoko was on the front lines of the women’s liberation movement.
Dedicated “to the sisters who died in pain and sorrow and those who are now in prisons and in mental hospitals for being unable to survive in the male society,” it’s an emotional exploration of the psychological toll of oppression.
Available again for the first time in decades.
TRACK LISTING
Growing Pain
Yellow Girl (Stand By For Life)
Coffin Car
Woman Of Salem
Run, Run, Run
If Only
A Thousand Times Yes
Straight Talk
Angry Young Woman
She Hits Back
Woman Power
Men, Men, Men
This long-overdue vinyl reissue of Yoko Ono’s seminal but massively under-appreciated ‘Plastic Ono Band’ has all the makings of a classic rock nostalgia trip: Ono, John Lennon, Ringo Starr, Klaus Voorman and free-jazz legend Ornette Coleman. All the pieces are here to stir up a dangerous amount of nostalgia but once the needle drops the record achieves something exactly perpendicular to nostalgia.
Released in 1971, the album not only influenced the approach of other musicians for decades, it also sounds absolutely modern 44 years out, eternally fresh despite the forward march of time.
‘Plastic Ono Band’ not only predicted the intersection of the avant-garde and rock that would take place in the second half of that decade, the album would sound right at home at where that intersection is happening today.
Released in 1971, the album not only influenced the approach of other musicians for decades, it also sounds absolutely modern 44 years out, eternally fresh despite the forward march of time.
‘Plastic Ono Band’ not only predicted the intersection of the avant-garde and rock that would take place in the second half of that decade, the album would sound right at home at where that intersection is happening today.
TRACK LISTING
Why
Why Not
Greenfield Morning I Pushed An Empty Baby Carriage All Over The City
AOS
Touch Me
Paper Shoes
Following twenty albums over 50 years, Yoko Ono's Warzone is strikingly different from any record she has made previously, but it is also strikingly different from any album that anyone is making...
Yoko revisits and reimagines 13 songs from her past work, spanning 1970-2009, the lyrics and messages still pertinent—perhaps even more pertinent—in 2018. "The world is so messed up. Things are very difficult for everybody. It's a warzone that we are living in..." says Ono. "I like to create things in a new way. Every day things change."
The recordings and arrangements on Warzone are very stripped down, with a particular emphasis on Yoko's voice and lyrics. Here in this minimalist landscape the content of her message rings clear and unencumbered; sometimes somber warnings, sometimes uplifting encouragement, but her wisdom and fortitude are unflinchingly strong, her power having intensified with time and life experience. She ends the ominous questions of "Now Or Never" (1971) with one of her most famous and inspiring lines: "[a] Dream you dream alone is only a dream, but dream we dream together is reality."
Warzone further builds the legacy of an artist unparalleled in her unique and singular vision. At 85 years young, Ono is already plotting her next album... It is not too late to change the world. We need Yoko now more than ever.
Yoko revisits and reimagines 13 songs from her past work, spanning 1970-2009, the lyrics and messages still pertinent—perhaps even more pertinent—in 2018. "The world is so messed up. Things are very difficult for everybody. It's a warzone that we are living in..." says Ono. "I like to create things in a new way. Every day things change."
The recordings and arrangements on Warzone are very stripped down, with a particular emphasis on Yoko's voice and lyrics. Here in this minimalist landscape the content of her message rings clear and unencumbered; sometimes somber warnings, sometimes uplifting encouragement, but her wisdom and fortitude are unflinchingly strong, her power having intensified with time and life experience. She ends the ominous questions of "Now Or Never" (1971) with one of her most famous and inspiring lines: "[a] Dream you dream alone is only a dream, but dream we dream together is reality."
Warzone further builds the legacy of an artist unparalleled in her unique and singular vision. At 85 years young, Ono is already plotting her next album... It is not too late to change the world. We need Yoko now more than ever.
TRACK LISTING
1 Warzone
2 Hell In Paradise
3 Now Or Never
4 Where Do We Go From Here
5 Woman Power
6 It?s Gonna Rain
7 Why
8 Children Power
9 I Love All Of Me
10 Teddy Bear
11 I?m Alive
12 I Love You Earth
13 Imagine
From Fluxus and performance-art pioneer and Two Virgins to chart-topping dance-music heroine(inspiring punk rock along the way), Yoko Ono has been an innovative and influential force on music and art, while simultaneously campaigning for peace on the world's stage. At 76 years young, Yoko continues to kick ass. "Between My Head And The Sky", a career-defining album made with her new Plastic Ono Band. The record is a gorgeous, mind-melting blend of styles, restating and sharpening themes while plunging into the always-mysterious future. Band includes Keigo 'Cornelius' Oyamada and his band members Yuko Araki and Shimmy Shimizu, Sean Lennon, Yuka Honda (of Cibo Matto) as well as NYC improvisers Erik Friedlander, Shahzad Ismaily, Michael Leonhart, Daniel Carter and Indigo Street. Raw rockers, electronic pulse glimmers, dark late-night improvisations and heart-breaking elegiac ballads- Yoko takes a variety of textual approaches on this beautifully balanced collection of work. A career-defining album by one of contemporary culture's reigning geniuses.
MANIMAL GROUP is excited to announce the sequel to YOKO ONO’S critically acclaimed 2007 collaboration record Yes, I’m A Witch (Astralwerks).
'Yes, I’m A Witch Too' features new collaborations and remixes pairing ONO with Death Cab For Cutie, Peter, Bjorn and John, Sparks, tUnE-yArDs, MiikeSnow, Cibo Matto, Portugal The Man and more.
'Yes, I’m A Witch Too' features new collaborations and remixes pairing ONO with Death Cab For Cutie, Peter, Bjorn and John, Sparks, tUnE-yArDs, MiikeSnow, Cibo Matto, Portugal The Man and more.
TRACK LISTING
1: Walking On Thin Ice
2: Forgive Me My Love
3: Mrs. Lennon
4: Give Me Something
5: She Gets Down On Her Knees
6: Dogtown
7: Wouldnit
8: Move On Fast
9: Soul Got Out Of The Box
10: Approxmately Infinite Universe
11: Yes, I'm Your Angel
12: Warrior Woman
13: Coffin Car
14: I Have A Woman Inside My Soul
15: Catman
16: No Bed For Beatle John
17: Hell In Paradise
William Onyeabor was born outside Enugu, a small, rural town in Eastern Nigeria, he created his own genre of African electronic funk in the late 70s and early 80s, making music completely unique for his time. Today, he is reaching cult status among a growing list of admirers, including everyone from Damon Albarn and Hot Chip to Carl Craig and Madlib, with some likening him to the Kraftwerk of West Africa, or a precursor to LCD Soundsystem.
Among the crate-digging few that knew of him, he is considered a complete myth. While he has never performed live and almost never given interviews, his fantastical biography is scattered and has to this day not been verified. And, though he is still alive, he refuses to speak about anything regarding the past.
According to various rumors, he left home following the Biafran War and went to study cinematography in the Soviet Union, returning in the mid-70s to start his own film company and record label, Wilfilms. He then self-released eight remarkable records from 1978-1985. He wrote and produced everything on his own, and possibly played every instrument himself. Then, at some point of his life, he became born again and denounced his earlier music, deciding it is something he would never speak about.
Among the crate-digging few that knew of him, he is considered a complete myth. While he has never performed live and almost never given interviews, his fantastical biography is scattered and has to this day not been verified. And, though he is still alive, he refuses to speak about anything regarding the past.
According to various rumors, he left home following the Biafran War and went to study cinematography in the Soviet Union, returning in the mid-70s to start his own film company and record label, Wilfilms. He then self-released eight remarkable records from 1978-1985. He wrote and produced everything on his own, and possibly played every instrument himself. Then, at some point of his life, he became born again and denounced his earlier music, deciding it is something he would never speak about.
TRACK LISTING
A1. Tomorrow
A2. Why Go To War
B1. Love Me Now
B2. Fantastic Man
B3. Try And Try
THE PICCADILLY RECORDS REISSUE/COLLECTION OF THE YEAR 2013.
Through its World Psychedelic Classics series, Luaka Bop has succeeded at introducing long-forgotten artists including Os Mutantes, Shuggie Otis and Tim Maia to the world at large. William Onyeabor is as obscure as these other artists were before their Luaka Bop releases, although his recordings from the 70s and 80s are beloved by die-hard record collectors and artists such as Damon Albarn, Devendra Banhart, Four Tet and Caribou, to name a few. The music ranges from synth-heavy electronic dance music to Afrosoul with saxophones and female backup singers, to psychedelic funk with wah-wah guitar and fuzzy keyboards - and often combines all of these elements.
'Who Is William Onyeabor?' may be the most complicated, if also one of the richest, undertakings in Luaka Bop's (rarely straightforward) 25-year history. Following the eight albums Onyeabor self-released between 1978 and 1985, he became a Born-Again Christian, refusing ever to speak about himself or his music again. Various biographies can be found online. Some say he studied cinematography in the Soviet Union and returned to Nigeria in the mid-70s to start his own film company, Wilfilms. Some say he was a lawyer with a degree from a university in Great Britain. Others portray him as a businessman who for years worked on government contracts in Enugu, Nigeria.
By attempting to speak with Onyeabor himself, and by talking to people who seem to have firsthand knowledge, Luaka Bop has been trying to construct an accurate biography of him for the past 18 months...without success.
One thing that's undisputable is that Onyeabor's music is utterly unique and ahead of its time.
The vinyl release comprises 13 tracks spanning Onyeabor's body of work and will include artwork by John Akomfrah, Njideka Akunyili, Harrison Haynes, Dave Muller, Odili Donald Odita and Xaviera Simmons.
"The world might just be better off not hearing [Onyeabor's "Atomic Bomb"], which will burrow and propagate its seed exponentially by the second, into the hearts and souls of all humanity. It's the catchiest song I've ever heard; when it gets in my brain, I can't sleep...He's a mythical character from Nigeria." - Devendra Banhart in Uncut
"Anyone out there who is making music at the moment...will be quite excited by this..." - Damon Albarn on BBC Radio One
"LCD Soundsystem sounds like an American William Onyeabor." - Peaking Lights
"Talked to Luaka Bop about details of the William Onyeabor comp they are working on... Gonna blow minds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" - Four Tet
"People are really going to freak out!" - Caribou
Through its World Psychedelic Classics series, Luaka Bop has succeeded at introducing long-forgotten artists including Os Mutantes, Shuggie Otis and Tim Maia to the world at large. William Onyeabor is as obscure as these other artists were before their Luaka Bop releases, although his recordings from the 70s and 80s are beloved by die-hard record collectors and artists such as Damon Albarn, Devendra Banhart, Four Tet and Caribou, to name a few. The music ranges from synth-heavy electronic dance music to Afrosoul with saxophones and female backup singers, to psychedelic funk with wah-wah guitar and fuzzy keyboards - and often combines all of these elements.
'Who Is William Onyeabor?' may be the most complicated, if also one of the richest, undertakings in Luaka Bop's (rarely straightforward) 25-year history. Following the eight albums Onyeabor self-released between 1978 and 1985, he became a Born-Again Christian, refusing ever to speak about himself or his music again. Various biographies can be found online. Some say he studied cinematography in the Soviet Union and returned to Nigeria in the mid-70s to start his own film company, Wilfilms. Some say he was a lawyer with a degree from a university in Great Britain. Others portray him as a businessman who for years worked on government contracts in Enugu, Nigeria.
By attempting to speak with Onyeabor himself, and by talking to people who seem to have firsthand knowledge, Luaka Bop has been trying to construct an accurate biography of him for the past 18 months...without success.
One thing that's undisputable is that Onyeabor's music is utterly unique and ahead of its time.
The vinyl release comprises 13 tracks spanning Onyeabor's body of work and will include artwork by John Akomfrah, Njideka Akunyili, Harrison Haynes, Dave Muller, Odili Donald Odita and Xaviera Simmons.
"The world might just be better off not hearing [Onyeabor's "Atomic Bomb"], which will burrow and propagate its seed exponentially by the second, into the hearts and souls of all humanity. It's the catchiest song I've ever heard; when it gets in my brain, I can't sleep...He's a mythical character from Nigeria." - Devendra Banhart in Uncut
"Anyone out there who is making music at the moment...will be quite excited by this..." - Damon Albarn on BBC Radio One
"LCD Soundsystem sounds like an American William Onyeabor." - Peaking Lights
"Talked to Luaka Bop about details of the William Onyeabor comp they are working on... Gonna blow minds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" - Four Tet
"People are really going to freak out!" - Caribou
TRACK LISTING
1. Body And Soul
2. Atomic Bomb
3. Good Name
4. Something You Will Never Forget
5. Why Go To Ware
6. Love Is Blind
7. Heaven And Hell
8. Let’s Fall In Love
9. Fantastic Man
LP EXCLUSIVES – NOT AVAILABLE ON CD OR DIGITALLY:
10. When The Going Is Smooth & Good
11. The Way To Win Your Love
12. Jungle Gods
13. Love Me Now
RIYL: Wet Leg, Es, Devo, LITHICS, Maraudeur, NOTS, The Staches, The Fates, Y Pants, Raincoats, Kleenex/Liliput, Chrisma.
German post-punk band Onyon scrambled our brains when we heard them for the first time last year, so much so that we signed them & reissued their eponymous debut cassette EP (originally co-released in limited quantities by the Flennen/U-Bac labels) in June of ’22. “Last Days On Earth” is the band’s latest & first proper full-length for Trouble In Mind.
The oddball, synth-soaked world of Onyon is disorienting at first - the band’s herky-jerky rhythms may operate in a familiar fashion to bands like Devo, Kleenex/Liliput or label-mates LITHICS, but Maria Untheim’s woozy synth squiggles that populate & punctuate the band’s songs keeps everything at arms-length. Flirting with the primitive cool of 80’s minimal-synth and the wire-haired cretinism of 60s garage, especially on tunes like the manic ‘Dogman’ or first single ‘Alien, Alien’. Guitarist Ilka Kellner’s six-string salvos rage unpretentiously with edges torn & frayed, rarely (if ever) soloing, but never afraid to unleash a spindly lead-line over Florian Schmidt’s rubbery bass lines & Mario Pongratz’s stuttering drum patterns that phase in & out of time imperceptibly like drunks doing their best to seem sober. Kellner & Untheim share vocal duties (in both English & German - sometimes in the same song), but the real magic comes when the two sing together, voices merging in loosely harmonic gang vocals; one deadpan, the other slightly unhinged. The group’s beguiling lyrics add to the mystique - inscrutable neu-world fables about egg machines, ghosts, worms that talk, and urges to consume newspaper that ooze a rural, old-world understanding of life & the imperceptible spaces in between reality & fiction, transmuted thru a modernist sci-fi lensflare.
German post-punk band Onyon scrambled our brains when we heard them for the first time last year, so much so that we signed them & reissued their eponymous debut cassette EP (originally co-released in limited quantities by the Flennen/U-Bac labels) in June of ’22. “Last Days On Earth” is the band’s latest & first proper full-length for Trouble In Mind.
The oddball, synth-soaked world of Onyon is disorienting at first - the band’s herky-jerky rhythms may operate in a familiar fashion to bands like Devo, Kleenex/Liliput or label-mates LITHICS, but Maria Untheim’s woozy synth squiggles that populate & punctuate the band’s songs keeps everything at arms-length. Flirting with the primitive cool of 80’s minimal-synth and the wire-haired cretinism of 60s garage, especially on tunes like the manic ‘Dogman’ or first single ‘Alien, Alien’. Guitarist Ilka Kellner’s six-string salvos rage unpretentiously with edges torn & frayed, rarely (if ever) soloing, but never afraid to unleash a spindly lead-line over Florian Schmidt’s rubbery bass lines & Mario Pongratz’s stuttering drum patterns that phase in & out of time imperceptibly like drunks doing their best to seem sober. Kellner & Untheim share vocal duties (in both English & German - sometimes in the same song), but the real magic comes when the two sing together, voices merging in loosely harmonic gang vocals; one deadpan, the other slightly unhinged. The group’s beguiling lyrics add to the mystique - inscrutable neu-world fables about egg machines, ghosts, worms that talk, and urges to consume newspaper that ooze a rural, old-world understanding of life & the imperceptible spaces in between reality & fiction, transmuted thru a modernist sci-fi lensflare.
TRACK LISTING
1. Alien, Alien
2. Talking Worms
3. Egg Machine
4. Goldie
5. Two Faces
6. Dogman
7. Blue Lagoon
8. Yahtzee
9. Invisible Spook
10. I Would Like To Eat The Newspaper
11. O.U.T.
12. Mower
ONYOU have been stirring around the Chicago scene for a multitude of years now. The band has spent hundreds of hours laboring away in their underground layer perfecting their noxious brew. During that time they have appeared on the surface briefly to litmus test the toxicity through heavily dosed live performances. Seemly as rare as a hen’s tooth, those lucky enough to experience onYou first hand, walk away shrouded in sweat and subsequently drippy nightmares. These boy’s don’t mess around, they stoke the flames of some seriously fucked up psychosis and hypnogogia. We have been drinking onYou’s brew for years, telling everyone in the aftermath how necessary the experience is.
Having dropped six releases for Captcha Records, Ultimum Photon A Sole is the card they’ve held close to their chest for the last year, perfecting it week after week. The result is a very heady ethereal and tribal record that veers to the darkside with mantric vocals, heavy guitar shredding and dual drumming. Skillfully traversing a massive ascent to the peak of the aside, summiting this album features onYou at the top of their game. Heads will tremble when this batch of psych gets mainlined. Freaks jonesing for bands like Les Rallizes Dénudés and CAN will find close company in onYou.
Having dropped six releases for Captcha Records, Ultimum Photon A Sole is the card they’ve held close to their chest for the last year, perfecting it week after week. The result is a very heady ethereal and tribal record that veers to the darkside with mantric vocals, heavy guitar shredding and dual drumming. Skillfully traversing a massive ascent to the peak of the aside, summiting this album features onYou at the top of their game. Heads will tremble when this batch of psych gets mainlined. Freaks jonesing for bands like Les Rallizes Dénudés and CAN will find close company in onYou.
New York Jazz ensemble Onyx Collective release their debut album ‘Lower East Suite Part Three’ via Big Dada. It has been included in The Guardian’s Ones To Watch For 2018, the new album follows two acclaimed EPs released on Big Dada in 2017. Isaiah Barr, leader of Onyx Collective, has frequently collaborated with other New York musicians such as Dev Hynes (Blood Orange), Nick Hakim, Julian Soto and Wiki (Ratking). Onyx Collective were also featured in Gilles Peterson’s Best Of 2017 list at Number 16. They will be supporting Kamasi Washington on his UK tour this May including London’s Roundhouse. For fans of Nick Hakim, Ezra Collective, Yussef Kamaal, BadBadNotGood, Shabaka Hutchings, Moses Boyd. Isaiah accompanied Ibeyi for their debut performance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert in March. He also features on David Byrne’s 2018 album ‘American Utopia’.
STAFF COMMENTS
Millie says: Big loud jazz, this hits the spot for any keen jazz-listener. With the list of names associated with supporting Onyx Collective like Dev Hynes, Giles Peterson and Kamasi Washingston you know you’re in save hands.TRACK LISTING
ONYX Court
Don't Get Caught Under The Manhattan Bridge
Battle Of The Bowery
There Goes The Neighborhood
2AM At Veselka
Delancey Dilemma
Rumble In Chatham Square
Eviction Notice
Magic Gallery
FDR Drive
The wiggy wanderings of Oog Bogo wind up on the same island of lost joys all at once, manufacturing a virtual jukebox of singles and side flips that won’t unplug, and just keeps reeling and raging on instead. A bright metallurgy of guitar pop, psych, post-punk and apocalypse disco embosses the sleek, multicoloured flash of ‘Plastic’.
Oog Bogo are a four-piece rock band from Los Angeles and their new album is ‘Plastic’, an electrifying set of songs and sounds that just don’t stop, working like a machine that makes joy and endless flips and repetitions, whether in front of the turntable or out in the real world.
In the past several years, Oog Bogo dropped two records that previewed this explosion in wildly divergent ways: 2019’s ‘Oogbogo’ EP, with wigged-out production, its contorted fun house mirror images pulling punk, psych and new wave in and out of focus in a chaotic procession of mutant tunes. 2021’s ‘EP2’ radiates a starkly different vibe, as chilled-out guitar-pop tunes conjure a flowing medley of plaintive echoes and atmospheres in a mellow mist of hiss.
Kevin Boog recorded these records in a largely hermetic state: at home on 4-track, playing all the parts, slowly drawing out the sounds. The songs for ‘Plastic’ were demoed this way too, as a starting point for a group interpretation - but when, for obvious reasons, logistics prevented everyone from getting in the same room to even rehearse, the planned recording session at Ty Segall’s Harmonizer Studios took on a different shape.
Starting off with only drummer Thomas Alvarez (Audacity) to accompany him, Kevin realized that any obstacles to getting the record made were also opportunities, for something else that was also right to happen. Rather than reach for the design of the demos, he kept himself in the present moment, approaching every passage as fluidly as possible, playing what he needed to play, staying open to what he needed to know. It didn’t hurt that the laptop with all his songs crashed right after he walked into the studio! There was no way possible but forward.
The direction was right on with the guys at Harmonizer - Ty Segall’s sense of imagination made him the ideal production counterpart to walk together with Kevin into this world, psyched to experiment and ready to get weird at any time. Ty and engineer Matt Littlejohn met all requests and requirements in the form of sounds, with gear and approaches that amazed and delighted, and an eternally ebullient spirit.
As this was Oog Bogo’s first time recording away from home, Kevin was a kid in a candy store - where the store owner turns out to be a Wonka-esque philanthropist. As band members Mike Kreibel (Dirty & His Fists) and Shelby Jacobson (Shannon Lay) joined the session, there was a synchronicity and community with everyone involved, finding an unexpected road to realizing the songs, with all the colours and hues they added making everything pop that much harder.
Fluidity was key: ‘Plastic’’s tunes depict a polymorphic cast of characters. As in life, they leap avidly from style to style; from pretty psych rock to new wave apocalypse disco and harsh post punk bleakness, sometimes in a verse and a half. Corkscrewing over and over like a riff-driven space-coaster, morphing in and out of each successive moment with increasing momentum and gravity, ‘Plastic’ defines and redefines Oog Bogo, with sweet tunes, barely-controlled intensity and sharp production moves - a killer first album and an equally killer evolving state of mind.
Oog Bogo are a four-piece rock band from Los Angeles and their new album is ‘Plastic’, an electrifying set of songs and sounds that just don’t stop, working like a machine that makes joy and endless flips and repetitions, whether in front of the turntable or out in the real world.
In the past several years, Oog Bogo dropped two records that previewed this explosion in wildly divergent ways: 2019’s ‘Oogbogo’ EP, with wigged-out production, its contorted fun house mirror images pulling punk, psych and new wave in and out of focus in a chaotic procession of mutant tunes. 2021’s ‘EP2’ radiates a starkly different vibe, as chilled-out guitar-pop tunes conjure a flowing medley of plaintive echoes and atmospheres in a mellow mist of hiss.
Kevin Boog recorded these records in a largely hermetic state: at home on 4-track, playing all the parts, slowly drawing out the sounds. The songs for ‘Plastic’ were demoed this way too, as a starting point for a group interpretation - but when, for obvious reasons, logistics prevented everyone from getting in the same room to even rehearse, the planned recording session at Ty Segall’s Harmonizer Studios took on a different shape.
Starting off with only drummer Thomas Alvarez (Audacity) to accompany him, Kevin realized that any obstacles to getting the record made were also opportunities, for something else that was also right to happen. Rather than reach for the design of the demos, he kept himself in the present moment, approaching every passage as fluidly as possible, playing what he needed to play, staying open to what he needed to know. It didn’t hurt that the laptop with all his songs crashed right after he walked into the studio! There was no way possible but forward.
The direction was right on with the guys at Harmonizer - Ty Segall’s sense of imagination made him the ideal production counterpart to walk together with Kevin into this world, psyched to experiment and ready to get weird at any time. Ty and engineer Matt Littlejohn met all requests and requirements in the form of sounds, with gear and approaches that amazed and delighted, and an eternally ebullient spirit.
As this was Oog Bogo’s first time recording away from home, Kevin was a kid in a candy store - where the store owner turns out to be a Wonka-esque philanthropist. As band members Mike Kreibel (Dirty & His Fists) and Shelby Jacobson (Shannon Lay) joined the session, there was a synchronicity and community with everyone involved, finding an unexpected road to realizing the songs, with all the colours and hues they added making everything pop that much harder.
Fluidity was key: ‘Plastic’’s tunes depict a polymorphic cast of characters. As in life, they leap avidly from style to style; from pretty psych rock to new wave apocalypse disco and harsh post punk bleakness, sometimes in a verse and a half. Corkscrewing over and over like a riff-driven space-coaster, morphing in and out of each successive moment with increasing momentum and gravity, ‘Plastic’ defines and redefines Oog Bogo, with sweet tunes, barely-controlled intensity and sharp production moves - a killer first album and an equally killer evolving state of mind.
TRACK LISTING
Goon
Culprit
Cuckoo
Plastic
New State
A Side
Canary
Interstate
Paint
So Well
Idle
OOIOO’s seminal album ‘Gold & Green’ is finally widely released on vinyl for the first time. Presented as a deluxe double LP in a gatefold jacket with spot metallic ink and full colour inner sleeves featuring glorious artwork. Pressed on virgin vinyl with free digital download coupon.
OOIOO have always created a musical language all their own. Under the leadership of Yoshimi, a founding member of Boredoms, the group have recorded six albums that have subverted expectations and warped perceptions of what constitutes pop and experimental music.
‘Gold & Green’ features guest appearances from Sean Lennon, Seiichi Yamamoto (Boredoms) and Yuka Honda (Cibo Matto).
OOIOO’s Yoshimi is to release an exhilarating new album this Autumn with her group SAICOBAB, featuring sitarist Yoshida Daikiti, bassist Akita Goldman and percussionist Hama.
“‘Challenging’ music doesn’t get more fun than this.” - NPR Music
“OOIOO traffic in a crafty kind of post-punk primitivism… the synths, power chords, polyrhythmic drumming and wordless chants building into an irresistible, throbbing whole” - The Wire
“An extraordinary band.” - New York Times
“OOIOO is tight, lithe and anything but robotic.” - Washington Post
OOIOO have always created a musical language all their own. Under the leadership of Yoshimi, a founding member of Boredoms, the group have recorded six albums that have subverted expectations and warped perceptions of what constitutes pop and experimental music.
‘Gold & Green’ features guest appearances from Sean Lennon, Seiichi Yamamoto (Boredoms) and Yuka Honda (Cibo Matto).
OOIOO’s Yoshimi is to release an exhilarating new album this Autumn with her group SAICOBAB, featuring sitarist Yoshida Daikiti, bassist Akita Goldman and percussionist Hama.
“‘Challenging’ music doesn’t get more fun than this.” - NPR Music
“OOIOO traffic in a crafty kind of post-punk primitivism… the synths, power chords, polyrhythmic drumming and wordless chants building into an irresistible, throbbing whole” - The Wire
“An extraordinary band.” - New York Times
“OOIOO is tight, lithe and anything but robotic.” - Washington Post
TRACK LISTING
Moss Trumpeter
Á
OOIOO is a name that should be familiar to anyone who’s waded into the world of rock - and so should their leader YoshimiO’s. Percussionist and founding member for the Boredoms and Saicobab and a longtime collaborator of Kim Gordon (of Sonic Youth), Susie Ibarra and Robert Lowe, among others.
It’s no surprise that each OOIOO record has been as energizing and enthralling as the last, which might be the most consistent thing about their eight records - each focus on and offer listeners something new.
‘Nijimusi’ was mainly recorded using a conventional rock ensemble of two guitars, bass and drums but often feels more than that, the phrasing and rhythms becoming something new slowly and then all at once. It’s rock but hard to pin down exactly; psychedelic, shimmering distortion, shouts and tight instrumentation giving way to a controlled burn of instrumental breakdowns.
Founded in 1995, OOIOO continue to wow. After six years without releasing new music internationally they’ve created a new album that goes back to the roots of being a four-piece band.
OOIOO’s members came together as musicians who move freely between the audible and inaudible, rhythm and non-rhythm, noise and silence. ‘Nijimusi’ can be considered music but it is also a work of art that stimulates the sense of touch and smell, while being atmospheric and ethereal at the same time.
“A monument to the endless possibilities afforded by an improvisational spirit, but more importantly it highlights Yoshimi and her band’s tireless and ever-evolving voice.” - Pitchfork
“In the seemingly impenetrable, fantastic murkiness of Japanese experimental psych pop, more often than not, Yoshimi has been a beacon.” - FADER (cover story)
It’s no surprise that each OOIOO record has been as energizing and enthralling as the last, which might be the most consistent thing about their eight records - each focus on and offer listeners something new.
‘Nijimusi’ was mainly recorded using a conventional rock ensemble of two guitars, bass and drums but often feels more than that, the phrasing and rhythms becoming something new slowly and then all at once. It’s rock but hard to pin down exactly; psychedelic, shimmering distortion, shouts and tight instrumentation giving way to a controlled burn of instrumental breakdowns.
Founded in 1995, OOIOO continue to wow. After six years without releasing new music internationally they’ve created a new album that goes back to the roots of being a four-piece band.
OOIOO’s members came together as musicians who move freely between the audible and inaudible, rhythm and non-rhythm, noise and silence. ‘Nijimusi’ can be considered music but it is also a work of art that stimulates the sense of touch and smell, while being atmospheric and ethereal at the same time.
“A monument to the endless possibilities afforded by an improvisational spirit, but more importantly it highlights Yoshimi and her band’s tireless and ever-evolving voice.” - Pitchfork
“In the seemingly impenetrable, fantastic murkiness of Japanese experimental psych pop, more often than not, Yoshimi has been a beacon.” - FADER (cover story)
TRACK LISTING
Nijimusi
Nijimu
Jibun
Tisou
Asozan5
Bulun
Walk For “345” Minutes, while Saying “Ah Yeah!” with A “Mountain Book” in One Hand, Until A shower Of Light Pours down
Kawasemi Ah
Oojami is the alias of Turkish native Necmi Cavli. After spending many years living in London and collaborating with numerous artists from around the globe, "Walk Alone" is the product of his recent move to Manchester. Joining him is Ben Helm on vocals and Nicola Cavli on voilin the album is a true outernational melting pot of influences - spanning almost every genre imaginable but with the undercurrent of Turkish key signatures and exotic instrumentation its glue.
Oojami has previously released six albums, with "Bellydancing Breakbeats" establishing the artist in the international bellydancing scene,
Oojami has previously released six albums, with "Bellydancing Breakbeats" establishing the artist in the international bellydancing scene,
TRACK LISTING
A1. Rosalina
A2. Open Up
A3. Walk Alone
A4. Hold Me
A5. Voodoo
B1. For Today
B2. Release Me
B3. Rising Sun
B4. Love Is Gone
B5. You And I
Ó (formerly Eskimeaux) is the recording project of songwriter and producer Gabrielle Smith. In it’s earliest days, the project was markedly experimental, the work of an artist with a knack for ambience and a fascination with sound. The next wave of material, most of what landed on 2011’s Two Mountains, didn’t quite read as a solo project anymore and represented a shift toward traditional song structures, albeit still happily atmospheric, nature-centered musings on how to find one’s place in the world.
Their live 7” features two intimate yet momentous songs, “Alone at the Party” and “Broken Necks”, both from 2015’s O.K., the bedroom pop tour de force released on Double Double Whammy Records. “Broken Necks” is notably arresting as the fi rst 40 seconds is a fi nger-picked invitation to the audience to join in singing the chorus, only to explode into full band ferocity with Smith’s saccharine, solid vocals uniting naturally with her backing band, Oliver Kalb (synthesizer), Felix Walworth (drums), and Jack Greenleaf (bass).
Their live 7” features two intimate yet momentous songs, “Alone at the Party” and “Broken Necks”, both from 2015’s O.K., the bedroom pop tour de force released on Double Double Whammy Records. “Broken Necks” is notably arresting as the fi rst 40 seconds is a fi nger-picked invitation to the audience to join in singing the chorus, only to explode into full band ferocity with Smith’s saccharine, solid vocals uniting naturally with her backing band, Oliver Kalb (synthesizer), Felix Walworth (drums), and Jack Greenleaf (bass).
TRACK LISTING
A1. Broken Necks
B1. Alone At The Party
Hailing from Brighton, Oom are a four piece fusing beautiful vocals with broken electronics and noisy guitars. Their music, if you wanted to squish it into a pigeon-hole, could be described as the mutant offspring of Bjork, The Aphex Twin and Nine Inch Nails... sort of. Vocalist Debs is currently writing and singing with Massive Attack on various projects.
Hello and welcome to Cult Value, the new album from Manchester-based band Oort Clod, released by Safe Suburban Home in the UK and Repeating Cloud in the US this April. We are very excited to introduce this mercurial and unique collection of songs. The album includes garage stompers such as “#7”, off-kilter indie whining like the title track “Cult Value”, perfect indie pop songs like ‘Car Talk’ and much more.
Featuring members of Unpaid Intern, the Hipshakes, Jeuce and the Early Mornings, Oort Clod was originally conceived by songwriter Patrick Glen as a fluid project with shifting members. Over the course of pandemic-era practices above the empty Peer Hat pub (the epicentre of DIY music making in Manchester) the current line-up solidified. In 2021 Oort Clod released a split E.P. with fellow Manchester band Priceless Bodies, pursuing a darker and more experimental sound. The EP received international airplay including BBC6 Music and KSFX.
After playing gigs with bands like Porridge Radio, Jeffrey Lewis, and Garden Centre and even more practices above the Peer Hat, Oort Clod have mounted up once more to make Cult Value.
The album’s sound is hard to pin down but it is Oort Clod’s most accessible and complete work so far. The band finds common ground in the alternative rock bands of the 1980s and 1990s, the post-punk and indie bands on Flying Nun Records and trashy compilations of post-British Invasion 60s garage gems like Nuggets. All of which come through, warped by Oort Clod’s particular sensibility, on this record made at Delicious Clam studios in Sheffield under the watchful eye of Ed Crisp. You’ll even get their cover of ? &the Mysterians “96 Tears”—rated the best ever cover of the song by the Blanketing Covers podcast, beating Jonathan Richman, Aretha Franklin, the Stranglers and Suicide (this actually exists, honestly).
So there you have it the short and sweet lowdown on the new album Cult Value by Oort Clod. We hope you enjoy listening to it as much as they did making it and spread the good word as you see fit. Good luck in your endeavours and take care.
Featuring members of Unpaid Intern, the Hipshakes, Jeuce and the Early Mornings, Oort Clod was originally conceived by songwriter Patrick Glen as a fluid project with shifting members. Over the course of pandemic-era practices above the empty Peer Hat pub (the epicentre of DIY music making in Manchester) the current line-up solidified. In 2021 Oort Clod released a split E.P. with fellow Manchester band Priceless Bodies, pursuing a darker and more experimental sound. The EP received international airplay including BBC6 Music and KSFX.
After playing gigs with bands like Porridge Radio, Jeffrey Lewis, and Garden Centre and even more practices above the Peer Hat, Oort Clod have mounted up once more to make Cult Value.
The album’s sound is hard to pin down but it is Oort Clod’s most accessible and complete work so far. The band finds common ground in the alternative rock bands of the 1980s and 1990s, the post-punk and indie bands on Flying Nun Records and trashy compilations of post-British Invasion 60s garage gems like Nuggets. All of which come through, warped by Oort Clod’s particular sensibility, on this record made at Delicious Clam studios in Sheffield under the watchful eye of Ed Crisp. You’ll even get their cover of ? &the Mysterians “96 Tears”—rated the best ever cover of the song by the Blanketing Covers podcast, beating Jonathan Richman, Aretha Franklin, the Stranglers and Suicide (this actually exists, honestly).
So there you have it the short and sweet lowdown on the new album Cult Value by Oort Clod. We hope you enjoy listening to it as much as they did making it and spread the good word as you see fit. Good luck in your endeavours and take care.
TRACK LISTING
1. The Lake
2. #7
3. Car Talk
4. Cult Value
5. Politicians' Eyes
6. AC Greed
7. Paper Cuts
8. Wrong Attention
9. 96 Tears
10. Imagination
11. Inner Rat
Chicago’s Oozing Wound are a mass of contradictions: weed lovers whose music hits you with its breakneck head banging force. The band deal with nihilism, yet remain addictively fun. Their music is equal parts sludge and thrash, noise and riff-loaded rock. High Anxiety is an unabashed mocking of the madness of modern living, its chemical induced adventures and establishment absurdity, deriding the industrial complex behind established institutions such as NASA while savaging those who deny science. Oozing Wound on High Anxiety are nihilistic pied pipers making us laugh our way to the apocalypse. The album finds guitarist and vocalist Zack Weil drummer Kyle Reynolds and bassist Kevin Cribbin blending their ferocious energy, sonic experiments and blunt lyricism for a pummeling enjoyable head-banger with an irresistible sneer.
On High Anxiety, Oozing Wound’s songs have become more complex, their attacks more ferocious, and bass and guitar lines more captivating. The album was recorded in four days at Steve Albini’s Electrical Audio studio. The trio ripped through live-tracking and overdubs, leaving space to experiment with new sounds and effects. The band, having an affinity for the complexities of prog music, managed to bring prog elements to High Anxiety without sacrificing any of their songs punch. Subtle layers of saxophone, flutes and synths were blended into guitar tones, adding depth and texture without cluttering arrangements. Fist-pumping blasts of whitehot riffing become a Trojan horse for sonic weirdness. The resulting recordings are at once some of their most sonically rich, immediate, and impactful.
High Anxiety drips with a caustic vitriol that is both riotous and intoxicating
On High Anxiety, Oozing Wound’s songs have become more complex, their attacks more ferocious, and bass and guitar lines more captivating. The album was recorded in four days at Steve Albini’s Electrical Audio studio. The trio ripped through live-tracking and overdubs, leaving space to experiment with new sounds and effects. The band, having an affinity for the complexities of prog music, managed to bring prog elements to High Anxiety without sacrificing any of their songs punch. Subtle layers of saxophone, flutes and synths were blended into guitar tones, adding depth and texture without cluttering arrangements. Fist-pumping blasts of whitehot riffing become a Trojan horse for sonic weirdness. The resulting recordings are at once some of their most sonically rich, immediate, and impactful.
High Anxiety drips with a caustic vitriol that is both riotous and intoxicating
TRACK LISTING
1. Surrounded By Fucking Idiots
2. Filth Chisel
3. Tween Shitbag
4. Die On Mars
5. Birth Of A Flat Earther
6. Riding The Universe
7. Vein Ripper
Oozing Wound are comprised of members Zack Weil (guitar, vocals), Kevin Cribbin (bass) and Kyle Reynolds (drums).
The members of Oozing Wound are veterans of Chicago’s underground scene, having played in Cacaw, Unmanned Ship, ZATH and Bad Drugs
The members of Oozing Wound are veterans of Chicago’s underground scene, having played in Cacaw, Unmanned Ship, ZATH and Bad Drugs
TRACK LISTING
Bank Account Anxiety
Total Existence Failure
The Good Times (I Don’t Miss ‘Em)
Hypnic Jerk
Crypto Fash
Between Cults
Chudly
Midlife Crisis Actor
Old Sludge
Face Without Eyes
Oozing Wound are a thrash trio featuring veterans of Chicago’s underground scene who have played with High On Fire, The Body, Ash Borer, Wolf Eyes, Nazoranai and Black Pus, among many others.
A horrifying concoction of apathy and malaise wrapped in a delectable sheet of hatred drowned in a bath of contempt.
“Oozing Wound are the Chicago trio ripping up the rule book of thrash.” - The Guardian
“Chicago trio Oozing Wound play loud, brash and snotty crossover thrash with a penchant for the kind of big, obnoxious riffs that can’t fail to plaster a huge grin across your face.” - Terrorizer
“Their songs barrel along like Iron Lung bitch-slapping the first Megadeth album or meaty Testament-like guitar gallops infused with an air of frenetic power violence irreverence.” - Metal Hammer
“A whole sweaty, stinking ruck of basement smashing fun” - The Quietus
“So refreshingly anti-bullshit are Oozing Wound that they could conceivably turn out to be the Nirvana of thrash.” - Noisey
A horrifying concoction of apathy and malaise wrapped in a delectable sheet of hatred drowned in a bath of contempt.
“Oozing Wound are the Chicago trio ripping up the rule book of thrash.” - The Guardian
“Chicago trio Oozing Wound play loud, brash and snotty crossover thrash with a penchant for the kind of big, obnoxious riffs that can’t fail to plaster a huge grin across your face.” - Terrorizer
“Their songs barrel along like Iron Lung bitch-slapping the first Megadeth album or meaty Testament-like guitar gallops infused with an air of frenetic power violence irreverence.” - Metal Hammer
“A whole sweaty, stinking ruck of basement smashing fun” - The Quietus
“So refreshingly anti-bullshit are Oozing Wound that they could conceivably turn out to be the Nirvana of thrash.” - Noisey
TRACK LISTING
Rambo 5 (Pre-Emptive Strike)
Diver
Deep Space
Mercury In Retrograde Virus
Weather Tamer
Everything Sucks, And My Life Is A Lie
Eruptor
Tachycardia
You Owe Me, Iommi
Sky Creep
Pyramid Stage Specials, wrong-speed 3rd wave Koln tekkers, Priceless Zouk & totally unknown Stockport Psych all bunch up on this debut record from Manchester’s OPEN SECRET crew - 2 of the city’s most esteemed DJs who joined forces to put on the best underground night anyone’s seen in years… here come 4 of their secret weapons, from an undisclosed Miles Platting location to ur ears.
STAFF COMMENTS
Matt says: Ruffy and Boggy join forces to cement some of the psychedelic sounds from their now cult adored mushroom speak easy onto wax. The results are spectacularly lysergic renditions and tweaks of tracks you'd have to jump down the wormhole to discover.TRACK LISTING
A1. Untitled
A2. Untitled
B1. Untitled
B2. Untitled
The legendary Test Pressing blog launch their new offshoot label, Test Pressing Catalogue with street soul tinged music brought to you by Apiento and Andrew Hale of Sade with vocals by the truly talented Laura Groves (who has recently released her new album and been working with Sampha).
Guided by the influential Andrew Hale of the legendary band Sade, this collaboration channels the timeless soul, jazz, and R&B essence that defines Sade's iconic sound. Andrew's expertise, honed through years as Sade's keyboardist, seamlessly intertwines with Apiento's vision, producing street soul music that pays homage to Sade's enduring legacy.
Guided by the influential Andrew Hale of the legendary band Sade, this collaboration channels the timeless soul, jazz, and R&B essence that defines Sade's iconic sound. Andrew's expertise, honed through years as Sade's keyboardist, seamlessly intertwines with Apiento's vision, producing street soul music that pays homage to Sade's enduring legacy.
STAFF COMMENTS
Matt says: Test Pressing opens up a new collection, jumping on the street soul hype with deep and restrained movements of e-soul.TRACK LISTING
A1. Tied
A2. Tied (Instrumental)
B1. Control
In 1994, UK ambient pioneers O Yuki Conjugate recorded their landmark Equator album. To mark the 30th anniversary of this musical milestone, many of the same personnel – Roger Horberry (co-founder of O Yuki Conjugate), Dan Mudford (ex-Sons of Silence and co-creator of the Shaun of the Dead soundtrack), Joe Lamb (ex-Sons of Silence) and Malcolm McGeorge – came together to make New Meridian, reflecting the range of influences they’ve picked up over the intervening years.
Generously described as “almost like normal music”, the eight tracks of New Meridian feature instrumentation ranging from classic analogue to actual wooden logs. The result takes you on a rain-drenched, open-top ride from Electronica Avenue to the drone caverns of Uranus, with various Fourth World ambi-dub diversions along the way. File under: duress.
Generously described as “almost like normal music”, the eight tracks of New Meridian feature instrumentation ranging from classic analogue to actual wooden logs. The result takes you on a rain-drenched, open-top ride from Electronica Avenue to the drone caverns of Uranus, with various Fourth World ambi-dub diversions along the way. File under: duress.
TRACK LISTING
A1 Dark Blue Trees 00:03:07
A2 Spiral Jetty 00:04:38
A3 Cold Stars 00:05:04
A4 Hiraeth 00:04:56
A5 Left Home 00:04:57
B1 Below Mono 00:05:43
B2 Fogou 00:06:32
B3 The Chasmic 00:09:40
Choppy riffs open this, then you're tumbling into the comforting open (sorry) arms of familiar, softly jangling dreampop. Makes sense, 'cause The Cocteau Twins' Simon Raymonde is the producer and this song combines an urgent, yearning clench-fisted chorus with swirling, blissed-out verses. Perfect.
The band have spent the summer holed up in the studio recording their debut album, due to be released early next year with Richard McNamara and the first fruits of these endeavours can be heard on this EP. It shows just how much the band have evolved this year and is guaranteed to turn a few heads. The band have found their musical feet and the songs on the EP are a representation of where they are now and what is to come. Their second single, "Diane", caught the ears of Jonathan Ross, Colin Murray, achieved an XFM national playlist and were the featured band on Gary Crowley's London calling show. "Change In Nature" is already set to make 2009 the year of the Operahouse.
Recommended If You Like: Tomberlin, The Cranberries, Barrie, Kacey Musgraves, Japanese Breakfast, The Weather Station, Slow Pulp, Lala Lala, Big Thief.
First full length since Almost (2018). Featuring Julien Baker.
After 2018’s critically acclaimed Almost opened The Ophelias to a world beyond their Cincinnati home, the indie rock quartet craved a return to a sense of community. The band members no longer lived in the same city bandleader Spender Peppet (she/her) and new bassist/longtime music video collaborator Jo Shaffer (they/them) live in New York, while drummer Mic Adams (he/him) and violinist Andrea Gutmann Fuentes (she/her) remain in Ohio. When it came time to record the candid, expansive Crocus, The Ophelias purposefully focused on the experimental, communal spirit that fueled their first record.
Crocus was recorded at night in a converted “2000 percent haunted” Masonic lodge, which surely had an effect on the album’s ability to weave darker tones through the taut song structures. Engineer John Hoffman kept spirits high at The Lodge KY, ensuring the Ophelias had the freedom to experiment in the grey area between pain and rebirth. Despite The Lodge’s eerie nature, the ghosts remain personal, finding Peppet facing herself and her own truth without blinking. Through songs equally infused with references to the Bible and The Twilight Zone, The Ophelias extract mystic emotion out of the spaces between their past, present, and future.
The four core Ophelias members provide a wide-reaching exploration into genre, emotion, and sonic textures over the course of Crocus. That expansiveness shines on album highlight “Neil Young on High,” a track that finds Peppet’s firefly vocals backed by harmonies from Julien Baker. On “Spitting Image” Gutmann Fuentes leans hard into country swing, showing her range as a violinist while a chorus of voices sing the taunting “ha ha ha” hook below her. Shaffer’s bass intertwines seamlessly with the drums on “Becoming a Nun,” which explodes into feedback and punk-inspired textures beyond what The Ophelias have previously created.
Peppet’s direct delivery of intimate lyrics draws you in - detailing the murky line between the things we mourn and the things we remember. “Crocus represents that state of flux, between dreaming and reality or internal reflection and external action. I had to wring this out of my chest,” and as a listener you immediately identify with her. The Ophelias’ growth has been marked -- so much has been transformed and rebuilt. Crocus is a safe haven, built with trust, love, and the assuredness that comes with growing up.
First full length since Almost (2018). Featuring Julien Baker.
After 2018’s critically acclaimed Almost opened The Ophelias to a world beyond their Cincinnati home, the indie rock quartet craved a return to a sense of community. The band members no longer lived in the same city bandleader Spender Peppet (she/her) and new bassist/longtime music video collaborator Jo Shaffer (they/them) live in New York, while drummer Mic Adams (he/him) and violinist Andrea Gutmann Fuentes (she/her) remain in Ohio. When it came time to record the candid, expansive Crocus, The Ophelias purposefully focused on the experimental, communal spirit that fueled their first record.
Crocus was recorded at night in a converted “2000 percent haunted” Masonic lodge, which surely had an effect on the album’s ability to weave darker tones through the taut song structures. Engineer John Hoffman kept spirits high at The Lodge KY, ensuring the Ophelias had the freedom to experiment in the grey area between pain and rebirth. Despite The Lodge’s eerie nature, the ghosts remain personal, finding Peppet facing herself and her own truth without blinking. Through songs equally infused with references to the Bible and The Twilight Zone, The Ophelias extract mystic emotion out of the spaces between their past, present, and future.
The four core Ophelias members provide a wide-reaching exploration into genre, emotion, and sonic textures over the course of Crocus. That expansiveness shines on album highlight “Neil Young on High,” a track that finds Peppet’s firefly vocals backed by harmonies from Julien Baker. On “Spitting Image” Gutmann Fuentes leans hard into country swing, showing her range as a violinist while a chorus of voices sing the taunting “ha ha ha” hook below her. Shaffer’s bass intertwines seamlessly with the drums on “Becoming a Nun,” which explodes into feedback and punk-inspired textures beyond what The Ophelias have previously created.
Peppet’s direct delivery of intimate lyrics draws you in - detailing the murky line between the things we mourn and the things we remember. “Crocus represents that state of flux, between dreaming and reality or internal reflection and external action. I had to wring this out of my chest,” and as a listener you immediately identify with her. The Ophelias’ growth has been marked -- so much has been transformed and rebuilt. Crocus is a safe haven, built with trust, love, and the assuredness that comes with growing up.
TRACK LISTING
1 Crocus
2 Sacrificial Lamb
3 Neil Young On High
4 Vapor
5 Spirit Sent
6 Biblical Names
7 Mastermind
8 Becoming A Nun
9 Spitting Image
10 Under Again
11 The Twilight Zone
12 Vices
Number 4 in Jex's "Bad Timin'" series is here, featuring a quartet of proggy house tunes perfect for your late night club set, clued-in radio show or pumped-up gym session.
"Pneumatic" rides those 90s rhythms and gated synth lines proudly, harking back to an authentic free party sound that should keep the original Castlemorton crew gyrating in their reading glasses. "Catalytic" employs some more dreamy tones, yet retains that up-all-nite energy. When those spine-tingling breakdowns immerge I'd be surprised if there's a static jaw across the entire dancefloor.
"Molecools" introduces a bouncy, UK house flavour on side B with fizzy stabs and gated vox trailing through another solid array of house beatz. Finally, "Catalytic Conveter Mix" concludes with a suitably end-of-night glow - it's hefty beats complimenting the drifting hypnotic musical elements beautifully. Play to a rising sun for maximum effect!
RIYL: Roza Terenzi, D. Tiffany, Regular Fantasy, Sasha & Digweed, Fantazia, open air free parties etc etc.
"Pneumatic" rides those 90s rhythms and gated synth lines proudly, harking back to an authentic free party sound that should keep the original Castlemorton crew gyrating in their reading glasses. "Catalytic" employs some more dreamy tones, yet retains that up-all-nite energy. When those spine-tingling breakdowns immerge I'd be surprised if there's a static jaw across the entire dancefloor.
"Molecools" introduces a bouncy, UK house flavour on side B with fizzy stabs and gated vox trailing through another solid array of house beatz. Finally, "Catalytic Conveter Mix" concludes with a suitably end-of-night glow - it's hefty beats complimenting the drifting hypnotic musical elements beautifully. Play to a rising sun for maximum effect!
RIYL: Roza Terenzi, D. Tiffany, Regular Fantasy, Sasha & Digweed, Fantazia, open air free parties etc etc.
STAFF COMMENTS
Matt says: Jex Opolis treads the on trend trancy and proggy ley lines to create a day-glo'd fist-pumper that'll make you feel like your smoking sputnik in the back of a VW Commer circa '94; lost in the English countryside whilst a speaker stack the size of a bungalow pumps out ecstasy friendly hits.TRACK LISTING
1 Pneumatic
2 Catalytic
3 Molecools
4 Catalytic Converter Mix
Canopy enlist Opolopo to get involved with the label's superstar Alafia. Collaborating on a new transmission, "Axxanxxan" and "Axxiove" are two addictive percussive monsters, perfectly designed to lock the dancefloor into a tribal throb.
"Axxanxxan" has more musical elements thrown in, metallic bass, guitar chops, synth swirls and such like; making for a melting point of tropical disco carnage. "Axxiove" is a much more drum-centric affair, imparting onto the listener a hypnotic pulse of rhythm that's scorching hot. Add a few flange sweeps and modern fx sweeps and you've a real beast that'll work across genres and on most dancefloors.
Essential stuff from Canopy!
"Axxanxxan" has more musical elements thrown in, metallic bass, guitar chops, synth swirls and such like; making for a melting point of tropical disco carnage. "Axxiove" is a much more drum-centric affair, imparting onto the listener a hypnotic pulse of rhythm that's scorching hot. Add a few flange sweeps and modern fx sweeps and you've a real beast that'll work across genres and on most dancefloors.
Essential stuff from Canopy!
STAFF COMMENTS
Matt says: Excellent for building up tension on the dancefloor, or utilizing over other tracks as a percussive DJ tool; these two drum-centric broilers from Opolopo and Alafia should find favour right across the DJ spectrum.TRACK LISTING
Axxanxxan
Axxiove
Triple deluxe 7” pack on 3 different coloured vinyl.
After eight years fronting New Zealand's acclaimed "trouble gum art punks" The Mint Chicks, Kody Nielson unveils a new project Opossom with the captivating album Electric Hawaii. Following a June release in Australia and New Zealand on Create/Control, the album will be released in the rest of the world via Fire Records in August.
The Mint Chicks chapter in Kody's career closed with the band splitting time between their American base in Portland OR and hometown Auckland. Brother Ruban formed a new band, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, and Kody began producing diverse projects including Bic Runga's recent album and Auckland punk up-and-comers, The DHDFD's.
Electric Hawaii presented a new challenge, an album written and performed with just a little help from others - Bic Runga lending a vocal while Kody's father Chris Nielson (a regular Mint Chicks collaborator) plays trumpet. The rest comes directly from the brain, hands and heart of Kody. Home-written, recorded and mixed by himself with just the final mastering courtesy of Howie Weinberg, Electric Hawaii is a unique beast - it is not the singer-songwriter solo album of a former punk rock band singer. It's a further exploration of Kody's musical journey into a lively, engaging world of carefully layered sonic layers of light and dark. It's an album about love, DIY, drugs and freedom. And why end up Opossom? The mental escape from daily life during the creation of "Electric Hawaii" produced Kody's nocturnal instinctive animal... feisty, vicious and enigmatically cute.
The new direction and new sounds incorporate what Kody terms as an overt attempt to add some of his personal Polynesian background to his blend of beatnik psychedelica made from out of context genres, surf rock to the Velvet Underground, modern and ancient electronica and jazz.
After eight years fronting New Zealand's acclaimed "trouble gum art punks" The Mint Chicks, Kody Nielson unveils a new project Opossom with the captivating album Electric Hawaii. Following a June release in Australia and New Zealand on Create/Control, the album will be released in the rest of the world via Fire Records in August.
The Mint Chicks chapter in Kody's career closed with the band splitting time between their American base in Portland OR and hometown Auckland. Brother Ruban formed a new band, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, and Kody began producing diverse projects including Bic Runga's recent album and Auckland punk up-and-comers, The DHDFD's.
Electric Hawaii presented a new challenge, an album written and performed with just a little help from others - Bic Runga lending a vocal while Kody's father Chris Nielson (a regular Mint Chicks collaborator) plays trumpet. The rest comes directly from the brain, hands and heart of Kody. Home-written, recorded and mixed by himself with just the final mastering courtesy of Howie Weinberg, Electric Hawaii is a unique beast - it is not the singer-songwriter solo album of a former punk rock band singer. It's a further exploration of Kody's musical journey into a lively, engaging world of carefully layered sonic layers of light and dark. It's an album about love, DIY, drugs and freedom. And why end up Opossom? The mental escape from daily life during the creation of "Electric Hawaii" produced Kody's nocturnal instinctive animal... feisty, vicious and enigmatically cute.
The new direction and new sounds incorporate what Kody terms as an overt attempt to add some of his personal Polynesian background to his blend of beatnik psychedelica made from out of context genres, surf rock to the Velvet Underground, modern and ancient electronica and jazz.
TRACK LISTING
1. Girl
2. Fly
3. Blue Meanies
4. Getaway Tonight
5. Watchful Eye
6. Why Why
7. Cola Elixir
8. Electric Hawaii
9. Outer Space
10. Inhaler Song
For fans of minimal wave and DIY electronic pop, Oppenheimer Analysis's self-released 1982 debut cassette, New Mexico - little more than an extended demo cassette - has become something of a collector's item. While it has been reissued digitally since, it never received a vinyl release. In tribute to Martin Lloyd (the other half of the duo, alongside Andy Oppenheimer), who passed away, Minimal Wave has decided to make New Mexico available on wax. While the sound quality is appropriately dusty (it was badly recorded in the first place, of course), the music remains magical - bubbling, evocative, left-of-centre leftfield pop created with home-made synthesizers, modular hardware and little else. It's no wonder many consider it a classic album (even if was never officially released first time round).
STAFF COMMENTS
Mine says: A must have for any minimal wave / synth fan. Truly addictive!TRACK LISTING
Side 1
1. "The Devil's Dancers"
2. "Radiance"
3. "Martyr"
Side 2
1. "Cold War"
2. "Don't Be Seen With Me"
3. "Modern Wonder"
Side 3
1. "Subterranean Desire"
2. "Scorpians"
3. "New Mexico"
Side 4
1. "Behind The Shades"
2. "Men In White Coats"
3. "You Won't Forget Me"
The second ultra limited installment of Richard Norris' journeys into the outer reaches of dub has landed.
Mixing influences from roots reggae to On U Sound to Basic Channel and beyond, these six tracks offer warm and lush sonic landscapes to sink into.
Praise for Volume One - "Richard Norris is making the music of his life right now. All of Oracle Sound is smooth, completely enveloping and utterly hypnotic, with sounds and textures you want to reach out and touch." (Joe Muggs, Bandcamp Electronic Music of the Month)
Mixing influences from roots reggae to On U Sound to Basic Channel and beyond, these six tracks offer warm and lush sonic landscapes to sink into.
Praise for Volume One - "Richard Norris is making the music of his life right now. All of Oracle Sound is smooth, completely enveloping and utterly hypnotic, with sounds and textures you want to reach out and touch." (Joe Muggs, Bandcamp Electronic Music of the Month)
TRACK LISTING
1. Regal Dub
2. Pagan Dub
3. Mystery Dub
4. Glory Version
5. Rockers Sci Fi
6. Stronger Together
Orange 9mm were one of the most influential American post-hardcore bands of the 90's. Formed in 1994 as a product of New York's legendary hardcore scene of the late 80's / early 90's, they released their debut EP on Revelation Records before signing to East West for their debut album "Driver Not Included". The band enjoyed some mainstream success as a result of signing with a major and toured regularly throughout the 90's with contemporaries such as Quicksand, Helmet, Biohazard and Deftones. Thirty Something Records is proud to announce this 25th anniversary re-issue of Orange 9mm´s second full length album TRAGIC. Originally released by Atlantic Records in 1996 and available here on vinyl for the first time.
TRACK LISTING
A1 Fire In The Hole
A2 Tragic
A3 7
A4 Gun To Your Head
A5 Stick Shift
A6 Dead In The Water
B1 Method
B2 Crowd Control
B3 Muted
B4 Take You Away
B5 Failure
B6 Feel It
B7 Kiss It Goodbye
The Orange Alabaster Mushroom
Space And Time: A Compendium Of The Orange Alabaster Mushroom
Feral Child
Having been mooted for a number of years now, it’s the enigmatic new London label ‘Feral Child’ that has the honour of reissuing this revered psych classic, initially issued on the Earworm label in 2000 - with original vinyl copies now reaching £75 upwards online.
The OAM revolves around the studio (bedroom / D.I.Y?) genius of Ontario based Greg Watson, who’s killer musicianship and ear for that authentic Nuggets era sound has arguably never been bettered in the last two decades. Recommended for absolutely everyone into Syd era Floyd, The Seeds, Chocolate Watchband, The Prunes et al. Every track here just bathes in that fried out, oilwheel 60s feel we all adore; Hammonds, Farfisas and FUZZ figure in equal abundance….
It seems crazy that it’s taken so long to reissue this treasured collection. But ‘Feral Child’ have somehow pulled it off. The label that brought you a dubious reissue of the Clothilde/Delphine French Girl / Psych Pop 45s, alongside Pete Astor singles, a recent New Lines LP, yet somehow - indeed, seek pleasure from - exist without any net presence or even contact point.
They also release the imminent debut LP from SNAILS, the new Psych Pop outfit outta’ Bristol, beloved by the likes of Stephen Pastel and having attained 6Music plays aplenty. More on that elsewhere, but The OAM here is dressed up in suitably psych sleeve, coloured wax and in a pressing of 500.
The OAM revolves around the studio (bedroom / D.I.Y?) genius of Ontario based Greg Watson, who’s killer musicianship and ear for that authentic Nuggets era sound has arguably never been bettered in the last two decades. Recommended for absolutely everyone into Syd era Floyd, The Seeds, Chocolate Watchband, The Prunes et al. Every track here just bathes in that fried out, oilwheel 60s feel we all adore; Hammonds, Farfisas and FUZZ figure in equal abundance….
It seems crazy that it’s taken so long to reissue this treasured collection. But ‘Feral Child’ have somehow pulled it off. The label that brought you a dubious reissue of the Clothilde/Delphine French Girl / Psych Pop 45s, alongside Pete Astor singles, a recent New Lines LP, yet somehow - indeed, seek pleasure from - exist without any net presence or even contact point.
They also release the imminent debut LP from SNAILS, the new Psych Pop outfit outta’ Bristol, beloved by the likes of Stephen Pastel and having attained 6Music plays aplenty. More on that elsewhere, but The OAM here is dressed up in suitably psych sleeve, coloured wax and in a pressing of 500.
From the first bars of the opener “Glow Out Of Time”, Orango pull no punches and let you know exactly what Evergreens is all about: grit, groove and melody. Or is it? Taking a sideways step from the album’s predecessor The Mules of Nana, Evergreens eschews some of the polish, opting for a more stripped-down, harder-rocking sound, filled out by the band’s signature vocal harmonies. It also shows Orango at their most adventurous, as evinced by the album’s title track and closer, the 16-minute epic “Evergreen”. This track alone is worth the admission price; flutes, organ, adventure-inspiring bass runs that could be approved by Iron Maiden, melancholy and contemplation giving way to ecstasy.
You thought you knew Orango?Orango’s confident brew of good ol’ southern rock, west coast style vocal harmonies and an amazing live energy, has been fine tuned with every album, peaking with the recording of their new album, Evergreens. The music was recorded purely out of internal inspiration; playing for the love of music in itself, and not compromising on their true affection for the genre´s influencers.
You thought you knew Orango?Orango’s confident brew of good ol’ southern rock, west coast style vocal harmonies and an amazing live energy, has been fine tuned with every album, peaking with the recording of their new album, Evergreens. The music was recorded purely out of internal inspiration; playing for the love of music in itself, and not compromising on their true affection for the genre´s influencers.
TRACK LISTING
1) Glow Out Of Time
2) Loco
3) Old Shores
4) Hillside Man
5) Blue Heart
6) Sunny Bay
7) Evergreen
'‘Metallic Spheres’ by The Orb and David Gilmour, the guitar and voice of Pink Floyd, has been reimagined and remixed as ‘Metallic Spheres In Colour’ and will be released on 29th September. Of this new reimagining producer Youth says ‘The idea for Metallic Spheres In Colour, was that Alex Paterson (founder of The Orb) could have done more on the first version, and he didn't really have the opportunity because we had a philosophy of making the music like the Blade Runner soundtrack meets Wish You Were Here. So, I asked him why don't we remix it and make it like an Orb classic? And in doing that, it's almost like a completely different album.’
The original ‘Metallic Spheres’ album was initially released in 2010 was created almost by accident. In 2009 David Gilmour entered the studio to record the Graham Nash track"Chicago/Change The World", originally by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, in aid of the British Hacker Gary McKinnon, who was facing extradition to the USA. The song also featured vocals fromChrissie Hynde, Bob Geldof and Gary himself and the campaign was also supported by Peter Gabriel, Sting and the actress Julie Christie.
The original ‘Metallic Spheres’ album was initially released in 2010 was created almost by accident. In 2009 David Gilmour entered the studio to record the Graham Nash track"Chicago/Change The World", originally by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, in aid of the British Hacker Gary McKinnon, who was facing extradition to the USA. The song also featured vocals fromChrissie Hynde, Bob Geldof and Gary himself and the campaign was also supported by Peter Gabriel, Sting and the actress Julie Christie.
The Orb (Alex Paterson and Michael Rendall) return with a new album that features Youth (Killing Joke), Steve Hillage (Gong, System 7), Roger Eno (co-creator of the Apollo album with Brian Eno & Daniel Lanois) & Jah Wobble (PiL, Primal Scream Orb, Invaders of the Heart). Really The Orb should need no introduction by now, but in essence they’re a rotating cast of members helmed by Paterson that began in 1988 and still thrives to this day. They were there since UK acid house day one, providing a unique ambient take on the musical milieu and soon rising to chart-topping, huge-venue-headlining prominence. They’ve released 19 albums plus EPs, singles, compilations and live recordings, influencing countless other musicians along the way.
TRACK LISTING
1. Daze - Missing & Messed Up Mix
2. House Of Narcotics - Opium Wars Mix
3. Hawk Kings - Oseberg Buddhas Buttonhole
4. Honey Moonies - Brain Washed At Area 49 Mix
5. Pervitin - Empire Culling & The Hemlock Stone Version
6. Afros, Afghans And Angels - Helgö Treasure Chest
7. Shape Shifters (in Two Parts) - Coffee & Ghost Train Mix
8. Say Cheese - Siberian Tiger Cookie Mix
9. Ital Orb - Too Blessed To Be Stressed Mix
10. The Queen Of Hearts - Princess Of Clubs Mix
11. The Weekend It Rained Forever - Oseberg Buddha Mix (The Ravens Have Left The Tower)
12. Slave Till U Die No Matter What U Buy - L’anse Aux Meadows Mix
Fifteenth studio album and 30th anniversary release from the pioneering UK ambient house duo. Features guest contributions from Hollie Cook, Roger Eno, Youth (Killing Joke, The Fireman), Jah Wobble (PiL), Guy Pratt (Pink Floyd), Brother Culture. Includes singles "Rush Hill Road" and "Doughnuts Forever", with the album receiving positive press from Mixmag, Resident Advisor, Vents, XS Noize, Tiny Mix Tapes. The Orb have sold 700K+ albums worldwide and their catalog has been streamed 7M+ times. Previous album "COW/Chill Out, World!" (2016) received praise from Record Collector, PopMatters, Resident Advisor & Mixmag.
Existing, long serving fans know they're not gonna be disappointed by now - their brand of playful, low-slung, almost 'baggy'-era blend of electronics, downbeat and pop has more than stood the test of time; with The Orb a highly celebrated beacon of UK pop culture. They haven't changed direction, they've just come a long way... baby!
Existing, long serving fans know they're not gonna be disappointed by now - their brand of playful, low-slung, almost 'baggy'-era blend of electronics, downbeat and pop has more than stood the test of time; with The Orb a highly celebrated beacon of UK pop culture. They haven't changed direction, they've just come a long way... baby!
STAFF COMMENTS
Barry says: The Orb, legendary purveyors of blissed-out house and mellow ambient electronica return for their newest LP, 'No Sounds Are Out Of Bounds'. Brimming with smooth, rolling percussives and simmering dubby breaks, all stitched together with the skill and lightness of touch that only such veterans could achieve. A stunning, evocative collection.TRACK LISTING
1. The End Of The End
2. Wish I Had A Pretty Dog
3. Rush Hill Road
4. Pillow Fight @ Shag Mountain
5. Isle Of Horns
6. Wolfbane
7. Other Blue Worlds
8. Doughnuts Forever
9. Drift
10. Easy On The Onions
11. Ununited States
12. Soul Planet
The skies have opened and dropped a trio of kids from Geelong, Australia, packing some seriously futuristic sludge: ORB.
A heaping helping of proto-metal chops meets paranoid sci-fi fantastical ravings, replete with some tasty synthesizer werk that breaks it up just so. Close-mic’d to perfection by Total Control’s own Mikey Young, these epics swing with demonic swagger and crackle with the static of a menacing future, twisting and churning through loose-limbed riffery, all punctuated by a wail that sounds as if it’s coming from every hidden camera outside the Ministry of Love. A proggy but in-the-pocket head-trip hard rock record for the table, and hopefully these Aussies will be bringing their dystopian groove your way soon.
A heaping helping of proto-metal chops meets paranoid sci-fi fantastical ravings, replete with some tasty synthesizer werk that breaks it up just so. Close-mic’d to perfection by Total Control’s own Mikey Young, these epics swing with demonic swagger and crackle with the static of a menacing future, twisting and churning through loose-limbed riffery, all punctuated by a wail that sounds as if it’s coming from every hidden camera outside the Ministry of Love. A proggy but in-the-pocket head-trip hard rock record for the table, and hopefully these Aussies will be bringing their dystopian groove your way soon.
TRACK LISTING
1. Iron Mountain
2. Reflection
3. New Moon
4. First And Last Men
5. Electric Blanket
William Orbit returns with his first new album in over eight years. Entitled ‘The Painter’ it is unmistakeably William Orbit and features vocal collaborations from an array of artists including Katie Melua, Beth Orton, Georgia, Polly Scattergood, Ali Love and more.
TRACK LISTING
1. Duende (feat. Katie Melua)
2. Bank Of Wildflowers (feat. Georgia)
3. I Paint What I See (feat. Beth Orton)
4. William Orbit & Hukwe Zawose - Heshima Kwa Hukwe
5. Nuestra Situación (feat. Lido Pimienta)
6. The Diver (feat. Natalie Walker)
7. William Orbit & Polly Scattergood - Colours Colliding
8. Gold Coast
9. Second Moon
10. Promethean Lies (feat. Ali Love)
11. Planet Sunrise
12. No Other World (feat. Beth Orton)
13. Free Glo (feat. Gloria Kaba And Laurie Mayer)
14. I Paint What I See (feat. Beth Orton) (Epic Mix) (VINYL ONLY EXCLUSIVE TRACK)
After a barnstorming live reunion which saw them play to ecstatic audiences across Europe throughout 2017, Britain’s giants of electronic music Orbital are back for good - with new music and an upgrade of the legendary live show that transformed festivals across the world.
Throughout 2018 they played a string of high-profile festival dates and headline shows, featuring new material alongside classics like "Chime", "Belfast" and "Impact". This surge of creativity shows how reunited brothers Paul and Phil Hartnoll have rebuilt one of electronic music’s best-loved partnerships after Orbital’s surprisingly bitter break-up in 2012. They’ve been onstage with Stephen Hawking at the Paralympics, in front of the whole world. They’ve remixed Madonna. They’ve played Glastonbury many times and travelled the world - yet were driven apart by music’s strange and infamous brother-vs-brother dynamic (that I'm sure the brothers Gallagher know absolutely nothing about... - ed). But now the brothers have a pact: whatever happens, Orbital does not stop. They’ve learned to talk and accept each other. As Paul says, 'If we were both the same, then it wouldn’t be Orbital.'
Anyway, forget all that, the most important thing to note here is that mother fu**iiiing Brian Cox is all up in the area! Today's spokesperson for all things Science, the ex-D-Ream keyboardist graces "There Will Come A Time" with the kind of gentle, enthusiastic and wonder-struck delivery that only he is really capable of. Ellie Wyatt and Philipa Alexander provide a good chunk of voice on tracks "Monsters Exist", The Raid" and "The End Is Nigh" also.
But will it cut the mustard with old school and cult fans? The simple answer is - yes! More than proficient at writing hits that transcend the dancefloor into general consciousness, the trancelike and sprawling arrangements of the nineties have been tightened up somewhat for current audiences; and with a sharper, more direct sound palette to boot. The kicks in particularly hit hard, and there's a full-frequency aesthetic to most of the tracks - making them as suitable for main stage stadium play as much as they'll be soundtracking midnight drives down motorways, freeways and autobahns across the world. Orbital are back and we love it!
Throughout 2018 they played a string of high-profile festival dates and headline shows, featuring new material alongside classics like "Chime", "Belfast" and "Impact". This surge of creativity shows how reunited brothers Paul and Phil Hartnoll have rebuilt one of electronic music’s best-loved partnerships after Orbital’s surprisingly bitter break-up in 2012. They’ve been onstage with Stephen Hawking at the Paralympics, in front of the whole world. They’ve remixed Madonna. They’ve played Glastonbury many times and travelled the world - yet were driven apart by music’s strange and infamous brother-vs-brother dynamic (that I'm sure the brothers Gallagher know absolutely nothing about... - ed). But now the brothers have a pact: whatever happens, Orbital does not stop. They’ve learned to talk and accept each other. As Paul says, 'If we were both the same, then it wouldn’t be Orbital.'
Anyway, forget all that, the most important thing to note here is that mother fu**iiiing Brian Cox is all up in the area! Today's spokesperson for all things Science, the ex-D-Ream keyboardist graces "There Will Come A Time" with the kind of gentle, enthusiastic and wonder-struck delivery that only he is really capable of. Ellie Wyatt and Philipa Alexander provide a good chunk of voice on tracks "Monsters Exist", The Raid" and "The End Is Nigh" also.
But will it cut the mustard with old school and cult fans? The simple answer is - yes! More than proficient at writing hits that transcend the dancefloor into general consciousness, the trancelike and sprawling arrangements of the nineties have been tightened up somewhat for current audiences; and with a sharper, more direct sound palette to boot. The kicks in particularly hit hard, and there's a full-frequency aesthetic to most of the tracks - making them as suitable for main stage stadium play as much as they'll be soundtracking midnight drives down motorways, freeways and autobahns across the world. Orbital are back and we love it!
TRACK LISTING
CD:
Monsters Exist
Hoo Hoo Ha Ha
The Raid
P.H.U.K.
Tiny Foldable Cities
Buried Deep Within
Vision OnE
The End Is Nigh
There Will Come A Time Feat. Prof Brian Cox
CD 2 (Deluxe Version Only):
Kaiju
A Long Way From Home
Analogue Test
Oct 16
Fun With The System
Dressing Up In Other People’s Clothes
To Dream Again
There Will Come A Time (Instrumental)
Tiny Foldable Cities (Kareful Remix)
LP 1:
Monsters Exist
Hoo Hoo Ha Ha
The Raid
P.H.U.K.
Tiny Foldable Cities
LP 2:
Buried Deep Within
Vision OnE
The End Is Nigh
There Will Come A Time Feat. Prof. Brian Cox
Legendary electronic music duo Orbital return in Spring 2023 with new album Optical Delusion, the Hartnoll brothers first studio album since 2018’s Monster’s Exist. Recorded in Orbital’s Brighton studio, Optical Delusion includes contributions from Sleaford Mods, Penelope Isles, Anna B Savage, The Little Pest, Dina Ipavic, Coppe, and perhaps most surprisingly, The Medieval Baebes.
For the first single Orbital have joined forces with Sleaford Mods on their fabulous, furious new single “Dirty Rat” Featuring a searing vocal from Jason Williamson over kinetic, driving beats, “Dirty Rat” is Orbital at their most vital, still utterly relevant and pushing forward over 30 years since they broke through with their landmark single “Chime”. Think KLF or Underworld 'Born Slippy’ - ‘Dirty Rat’ is a primal scream which crosses genres and generations.
For the first single Orbital have joined forces with Sleaford Mods on their fabulous, furious new single “Dirty Rat” Featuring a searing vocal from Jason Williamson over kinetic, driving beats, “Dirty Rat” is Orbital at their most vital, still utterly relevant and pushing forward over 30 years since they broke through with their landmark single “Chime”. Think KLF or Underworld 'Born Slippy’ - ‘Dirty Rat’ is a primal scream which crosses genres and generations.
STAFF COMMENTS
Martin says: Having been a driving force of Electronic music since the 90's, it's always exciting to hear a new LP from rave auteurs Orbital. 'Optical Delusion' sees the duo joined by a host of collaborators (inc. Jason Williams of Sleaford Mods) and ends up being a development of their established sound, but renewed with a fierce political vigour and hearty resolve.TRACK LISTING
Ringa Ringa (The Old Pandemic Folk Song) (feat. The Mediaeval Baebes)
Day One (feat. Dina Ipavic)
Are You Alive? (feat. Penelope Isles)
You Are The Frequency (feat. The Little Pest)
The New Abnormal
Home (feat. Anna B Savage)
Dirty Rat – With Sleaford Mods
Requiem For The Pre Apocalypse
What A Surprise (feat. The Little Pest)
Moon Princess (feat. Coppe)
Originally released on September 30, 1991, ‘The Green Album’ contains landmark Orbital tracks including their breakthrough 1990 single ‘Chime’, and the evergreen comedown classic ‘Belfast’.
Following the success of ‘Chime’, Pete Tong signed Orbital to London/ffrr Records, and Tong allowed the Hartnolls the freedom to record the album they wanted to make. Where their contemporaries on the rave circuit would knock out ten formulaic 4/4 piano bangers with guest vocalists and call it an album, for their debut Orbital wanted to explore wider textures, different rhythms, stranger mind spaces. “Our heroes were always Kraftwerk, Cabaret Voltaire, the Severed Heads – people who made proper, satisfying, full albums,” explains Paul, “and we were like, yeah, that’s what we want to do.”
It was this ambition that led to Orbital becoming giants of electronic music. The Hartnoll brothers would go on to redefine what dance music could do and the place it took within popular culture itself. Their music has influenced and inspired artists from Björk to Bicep and they have collaborated with minds as diverse as Madonna, Kraftwerk and Professor Brian Cox.
Following The Green Album their second self-titled album – aka The Brown Album – cemented Orbital’s position as musical visionaries. A career of creative leaps quite unlike those usually seen in the fast turnover world of dance music followed, including creating soundtracks for Hollywood films including 1997’s Event Horizon, and most recently for Mike Myers Netflix series The Pentaverate.
Alongside their boundary-pushing work in the recording studio, Orbital earned a reputation as one of the best live acts on the planet. This year marks the 30th anniversary of their legendary 1994 Glastonbury performance, often cited as converting the festival to dance music.
Following the success of ‘Chime’, Pete Tong signed Orbital to London/ffrr Records, and Tong allowed the Hartnolls the freedom to record the album they wanted to make. Where their contemporaries on the rave circuit would knock out ten formulaic 4/4 piano bangers with guest vocalists and call it an album, for their debut Orbital wanted to explore wider textures, different rhythms, stranger mind spaces. “Our heroes were always Kraftwerk, Cabaret Voltaire, the Severed Heads – people who made proper, satisfying, full albums,” explains Paul, “and we were like, yeah, that’s what we want to do.”
It was this ambition that led to Orbital becoming giants of electronic music. The Hartnoll brothers would go on to redefine what dance music could do and the place it took within popular culture itself. Their music has influenced and inspired artists from Björk to Bicep and they have collaborated with minds as diverse as Madonna, Kraftwerk and Professor Brian Cox.
Following The Green Album their second self-titled album – aka The Brown Album – cemented Orbital’s position as musical visionaries. A career of creative leaps quite unlike those usually seen in the fast turnover world of dance music followed, including creating soundtracks for Hollywood films including 1997’s Event Horizon, and most recently for Mike Myers Netflix series The Pentaverate.
Alongside their boundary-pushing work in the recording studio, Orbital earned a reputation as one of the best live acts on the planet. This year marks the 30th anniversary of their legendary 1994 Glastonbury performance, often cited as converting the festival to dance music.
TRACK LISTING
Double Vinyl Tracklisting:
Disc 1
A1. The Moebius
A2. Speed Freak
A3. Macrohead
B1. Oolaa
B2. Desert Storm
Disc 2
C1. Fahrenheit 303
C2. Steel Cube Idolatry
C3. High Rise
D1. Chime (Live)
D2. Midnight (Live)
D3. Belfast
4LP Vinyl Boxset Tracklisting:
Disc 1
A1. The Moebius
A2. Speed Freak
A3. Macrohead
B1. Oolaa
B2. Desert Storm
Disc 2
C1. Fahrenheit 303
C2. Steel Cube Idolatry
C3. High Rise
D1. Chime (Live)
D2. Midnight (Live)
D3. Belfast
Disc 3
E1. Torpedo Town (PKA Untitled)
E2. Satan
F1. L.C.1
F2. Belfast / Wasted (Wasted Vocal Mix)
F3. Crime
Disc 4
G1. Fahrenheit 3D3
G2. Open Mind Jam
G3. The Other One
H1. Satan (Rhyme And Reason Vocal Mix)
H2. Midnight (Sasha Remix)
2CD Tracklisting:
CD 1
1. The Moebius
2. Speed Freak
3. Oolaa
4. Desert Storm
5. Fahrenheit 303
6. Steel Cube Idolatry
7. High Rise
8. Chime (Live)
9. Midnight (Live)
10. Belfast
11. I Think Its Disgusting
CD 2
1. Torpedo Town (PKA Untitled)
2. Macrohead
3. Satan
4. L.C.1
5. Belfast / Wasted (Wasted Vocal Mix)
6. Crime
7. Fahrenheit 3D3
8. Open Mind Jam
9. The Other One
10. Satan (Rhyme And Reason Vocal Mix)
11. Midnight (Sasha Remix)
4CD Boxset Tracklisting:
CD 1
1. The Moebius
2. Speed Freak
3. Oolaa
4. Desert Storm
5. Fahrenheit 303
6. Steel Cube Idolatry
7. High Rise
8. Chime (Live)
9. Midnight (Live)
10. Belfast
11. I Think Its Disgusting
CD 2
1. Torpedo Town (PKA Untitled)
2. Macrohead
3. Satan
4. L.C.1
5. Belfast / Wasted (Wasted Vocal Mix)
6. Crime
7. Fahrenheit 3D3
8. Open Mind Jam
9. The Other One
10. Satan (Rhyme And Reason Vocal Mix)
11. Midnight (Sasha Remix)
CD 3
1. Chime 12”
2. Deeper 12”
3. Omen - The Fool
4. Omen - The Tower
5. 2 Deep
6. Open Mind
7. Midnight
8. Choice
9. Analogue Test Feb '90
10. Choice (I And Eye Mix)
CD 4
1. Synergy (Live):
1.1. Satan
1.2. LC1
1.3. Chime
1.4. Son Of Chime
2. Mystery Gig 1991 (Live):
2.1. Choice
2.2. Fahrenheit 303
2.3. Chime / Crime
2.4. BIT
2.5. Oolaa
2.6. Speed Freak
Music by legendary, iconic, UK pioneering electronic duo ORBITAL (Paul & Phil Hartnoll) (Peaky Blinders, Pusher, Tormented, Keen Eddie, Octane) ORBITAL has contributed music featured in: The Saint, Event Horizon, xXx, Spawn, Test Drive 4, Mortal Kombat, Mean Girls, Peaky Blinders, The Beach, Wipeout, Hackers, Teen Spirit, American Ultra and many more.
Double LP on Metallic Gold & Black Vinyl, with Colour Gatefold Jacket and Inserts “The fast paced electro beat offers a thrilling score that is sure to catch the viewers’ attention” mxdwn.com
Double LP on Metallic Gold & Black Vinyl, with Colour Gatefold Jacket and Inserts “The fast paced electro beat offers a thrilling score that is sure to catch the viewers’ attention” mxdwn.com
TRACK LISTING
1. Professor Clark Arrives
2. The Box - Theme
3. Ken And Reilly At C.A.C.A.
4. Patty
5. Drug Cart Ride
6. Pent TV - Ident 1
7. Introducing Mentor
8. Concludiato
9. Approaching Niagara
10. Initiato
11. Donet Makes Your Brown Eyes Blue
12. The Musk
13. The Maester
14. Pool Table Stand Off
15. Ken Enters The Pentaverate
16. Let’s Make Some Waves
17. The Demetrius Protocols
18. I’m A Free Man!
19. Skip Arrives
20. Pent TV - News Bed
21. Accusations
22. The Spare Key
23. The Red Robes
24. Pent TV - Ident 2
25. Ken’s Turning Point
26. The Box - Sting Horn
27. Hall Of Mirrors
28. The Box 3
29. Ken On Trial
30. Bruce Takes Control
31. Patty To The Rescue!
32. War Council
33. I’m Sorry
34. Bruce’s Plan
35. Enter Mentor
36. Mentor Reboot
37. Murder Montage
38. Pent TV - Ident 3
39. I’m Just A Local News Guy
40. Reilly All Along
41. Lakeside Conversation
42. Get The Canadian!
43. The People Are Too Stupid
44. Charge Of The Liechtenstein Guard
45. Don’t Move Or The Sheila Gets It!
46. The World Has Changed
47. Pent TV - Orange Alert
48. The Box - Ken Into Kentor
49. Kentor Start Up
50. The Box - The Septaverate
Orbiting Human Circus’ new album is called Quartet Plus Two. What is Orbiting Human Circus? It is the continuing evolution of Julian Koster (Neutral Milk Hotel, The Music Tapes), whose music and storytelling under this moniker have encompassed immersive theatre and a Night Vale Presents podcast, as well as more traditional albums.
Central to the album are the “two” referenced in the title: North and Romika, the singing saws, whom Koster doesn’t “play” so much as encourage. “I think saws sing like angels,” says Koster. “I always have. Since I was a little boy. When you encourage them to sing, they do so earnestly and beautifully. It’s an honest and real sound.”
The origins of Quartet Plus Two are as magical and seemingly unlikely as everything else in Koster’s career. While walking through New York’s Central Park, he stumbled upon Gauvain Gamon and Kolja Gjoni—a standup bass player and drummer, respectively—playing Gershwin and Mingus, and a musical partnership was born.
Pianist Benji Miller rounds out the titular quartet, with Koster’s longtime collaborators Robbie Cucchiaro (horns) and Thomas Hughes (orchestral arranging and chimes) of The Music Tapes also contributing to the record.
The music they make together is at once familiar and unrecognizable, as Koster and Orbiting Human Circus interpret jazz compositions by Irving Berlin, Duke Jordan, George and Ira Gershwin, and others, alongside Koster’s three originals. The use of the term “composition” is intentional and speaks to Koster’s relationship with the music of Quartet Plus Two in far more evocative terms than “cover” or “standard.”
“To me it was always magical that there were these people called ‘composers’ who created symphonies and popular songs for other people to breathe into life and existence all over the world and throughout time,” he explains. “They traveled into our homes as sheet music, endless recorded interpretations, or were passed from hand to hand, village to village, like folk tales, changed by every hand that touched them. That music was something that came to life in our own living rooms and lives, songs that our grandmothers might have sung in a choir that we might sing just as earnestly. I just think it’s nice, and I would love to share that feeling in any way we can.”
Central to the album are the “two” referenced in the title: North and Romika, the singing saws, whom Koster doesn’t “play” so much as encourage. “I think saws sing like angels,” says Koster. “I always have. Since I was a little boy. When you encourage them to sing, they do so earnestly and beautifully. It’s an honest and real sound.”
The origins of Quartet Plus Two are as magical and seemingly unlikely as everything else in Koster’s career. While walking through New York’s Central Park, he stumbled upon Gauvain Gamon and Kolja Gjoni—a standup bass player and drummer, respectively—playing Gershwin and Mingus, and a musical partnership was born.
Pianist Benji Miller rounds out the titular quartet, with Koster’s longtime collaborators Robbie Cucchiaro (horns) and Thomas Hughes (orchestral arranging and chimes) of The Music Tapes also contributing to the record.
The music they make together is at once familiar and unrecognizable, as Koster and Orbiting Human Circus interpret jazz compositions by Irving Berlin, Duke Jordan, George and Ira Gershwin, and others, alongside Koster’s three originals. The use of the term “composition” is intentional and speaks to Koster’s relationship with the music of Quartet Plus Two in far more evocative terms than “cover” or “standard.”
“To me it was always magical that there were these people called ‘composers’ who created symphonies and popular songs for other people to breathe into life and existence all over the world and throughout time,” he explains. “They traveled into our homes as sheet music, endless recorded interpretations, or were passed from hand to hand, village to village, like folk tales, changed by every hand that touched them. That music was something that came to life in our own living rooms and lives, songs that our grandmothers might have sung in a choir that we might sing just as earnestly. I just think it’s nice, and I would love to share that feeling in any way we can.”
TRACK LISTING
SIDE A
1. I Cover The Waterfront
2. Maria
3. Into The River Thames
4. It’s So Peaceful In The Country
5. Sea In 3
SIDE B
6. How Long Has This Been Going On?
7. If I Did, Would You?
8. Let’s Face The Music
9. Koliada
10. Maria Pt. 2
An exciting development from under strange Australian lablights: ORB re-spawn from last year’s Birth with a further mutated slab of paranoid heavy shred, Naturality. They bring the dread with a kinetic muscularity and a pleasantly evolving synthetic strangeness, as if having eaten of the wrong part of the garden, causing familiar things start to seem less so. The effects of these spores on the modern brain, already clogged with a steady drip of zips and zooms, are fresh and confusing.
ORB are young and fleet fingered, and certainly know their way around a riff, but bring everything into an almost alien clarity both blunted and futuristic. ORB, you see, have ripened quite radically, and one can only think at an accelerated pace upon their travels with King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard.
This album finds them sprouting new appendages and clawing at their enclosures. This is potent stuff—be careful! Shroomed out doom rock extra-special… early Sabbath, Edgar Broughton Band, Buffalo…down tuned and grooving up the stoned rock …
ORB are young and fleet fingered, and certainly know their way around a riff, but bring everything into an almost alien clarity both blunted and futuristic. ORB, you see, have ripened quite radically, and one can only think at an accelerated pace upon their travels with King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard.
This album finds them sprouting new appendages and clawing at their enclosures. This is potent stuff—be careful! Shroomed out doom rock extra-special… early Sabbath, Edgar Broughton Band, Buffalo…down tuned and grooving up the stoned rock …
Setting out to create a future Balearic anthem while doffing a cap to street soul and synth-heavy Italo-disco B-sides of the early 1980s, Orbs of Light’s debut single, ‘Billion Days’ lands on Leng after a tip-off from Mind Fair duo Dean Meredith and Ben Shenton, who booked the duo to play live at their Rotation festival last summer.
Orbs of Light’s Baz Bradley and A Girl Called Kate have been friends for decades and have collaborated musically in the past, though it was only a couple of years ago that they dreamed up this project. It was first trialled via a 2021 remix for Andres y Xavi on Hollis Recordings (‘Perfect Timing’) on which Kate added new vocals to Bradley’s interpretation of the track. Since then, regular recording sessions have taken place, with the duo first crafting tight instrumental tracks before – in Bradley’s words – “dream up the best songs we can” with “melodies that will hopefully stay in your head all day”.
It would be fair to say that they’ve achieved that goal on ‘Billion Days’, a hooky and addictive affair whose vocal hooks and strong chorus could well inspire Balearic sing-alongs in the months ahead. Their original mix (B1 on the vinyl version of the EP, track 2 on the digital EP) is joyous, cheery and kaleidoscopic, with steel pan style melodies, bouncy synth stabs, jaunty lead lines and Kate’s wonderful lead vocal riding a shuffling, post street soul beat and a bubbly bassline.
The accompanying remix package is naturally very strong too. San Francisco crew 40 Thieves, fresh from dropping a killer single of their own on Leng (‘The Gift’, with disco legends Gary Davis and Cinnamon Jones), step up first with a take that stretches out and builds on Orbs of Light’s original mix – think wobbly nu-disco synth bass, fresh flute sounds, dubbed-out vocal snippets and a locked-in groove that’s just perfect for sun-soaked alfresco dancing.
Fittingly, the second and final revision comes from Mind Fair, whose email to Leng HQ about Orbs of Light got the ball rolling. Opting for a rubbery, body-popping beat inspired by vintage electro, they deliver a joyful, effects-laden Balearic dancefloor ‘Dub Mix’ that somehow makes a genuinely life-affirming record even more loved-up and saucer-eyed – despite the presence of only a fraction of Kate’s addictive lead vocal.
Orbs of Light’s Baz Bradley and A Girl Called Kate have been friends for decades and have collaborated musically in the past, though it was only a couple of years ago that they dreamed up this project. It was first trialled via a 2021 remix for Andres y Xavi on Hollis Recordings (‘Perfect Timing’) on which Kate added new vocals to Bradley’s interpretation of the track. Since then, regular recording sessions have taken place, with the duo first crafting tight instrumental tracks before – in Bradley’s words – “dream up the best songs we can” with “melodies that will hopefully stay in your head all day”.
It would be fair to say that they’ve achieved that goal on ‘Billion Days’, a hooky and addictive affair whose vocal hooks and strong chorus could well inspire Balearic sing-alongs in the months ahead. Their original mix (B1 on the vinyl version of the EP, track 2 on the digital EP) is joyous, cheery and kaleidoscopic, with steel pan style melodies, bouncy synth stabs, jaunty lead lines and Kate’s wonderful lead vocal riding a shuffling, post street soul beat and a bubbly bassline.
The accompanying remix package is naturally very strong too. San Francisco crew 40 Thieves, fresh from dropping a killer single of their own on Leng (‘The Gift’, with disco legends Gary Davis and Cinnamon Jones), step up first with a take that stretches out and builds on Orbs of Light’s original mix – think wobbly nu-disco synth bass, fresh flute sounds, dubbed-out vocal snippets and a locked-in groove that’s just perfect for sun-soaked alfresco dancing.
Fittingly, the second and final revision comes from Mind Fair, whose email to Leng HQ about Orbs of Light got the ball rolling. Opting for a rubbery, body-popping beat inspired by vintage electro, they deliver a joyful, effects-laden Balearic dancefloor ‘Dub Mix’ that somehow makes a genuinely life-affirming record even more loved-up and saucer-eyed – despite the presence of only a fraction of Kate’s addictive lead vocal.
TRACK LISTING
A1. Billion Days (40 Thieves Version)
B1. Billion Days
B2. Billion Days (Mind Fair Dub)
After releasing their outstanding 17th album 'Abolition of The Royal Familia' earlier this year, The Orb are back with further guest appearances on their remix album 'Abolition Of The Royal Familia - Guillotine Mixes' (April 2021). Including mixes from David Harrow, Moody Boyz, Youth, Violeta Vicci, Andy Falconer and more.
TRACK LISTING
DISC 1
SIDE A
1. Daze - David Harrow Remix (BLM Remix23)
2. Queen Of Hearts - Moody Boys Remix (Duck Or Drown)
3. Ital Orb - Gaudi Remix (Iron Chair)
SIDE B
1. Narcotics – David Harrow Remix 2 (Head Crusher)
2. Hawk Kings - Lost Stoned Pandas Remix (Pear Of Anguish)
3. Honey Moonies – Paul Metamono Remix (Burnt At The Stake)
DISC 2
SIDE A
1. Slave Til U Die - Andy Falconer Remix (Water Boarding)
2. Weekend - Dom Beken & Kris Needs Remix (The Judas Triangle)
3. Pervitin - Violeta Vicci Remix (The Saw Torture)
SIDE B
1. AAA - Violeta Vicci Remix (Hung, Drawn And Quartered)
2. Shape Shifting Part 1 - Youth Bring In The Clown Remix
The Orb’s pulsating discography grows ever more huge, with their 18th album, and 3rd helmed by core duo Alex Paterson and Michael Rendall. Despite the connotations of its title, here they continue to rollick freely without inhibition across ambient, house and dub, but also tangent into poetry, pop, full-blown drum ‘n’ bass and actual reggae.
The LP features electronic musicians David Harrow (whose CV includes Anne Clarke, Psychic TV, Razormaid, Adrian Sherwood and Andy Weatherall) and Gaudi (whose credits include Max Romeo, Capleton, Johnny Clarke and Desmond Dekker). Other guests include Orb regular Youth, violinist Violeta Vicci, Kompakt records alumnus Leonardo Fresco, Metamono man Jono Podmore, Guitarist and Alex’s old schoolchum David Lofts, plus vocalists Eric Von Skywalker, Andy Cain and Rachel D’arcy. ‘Prism’ begins with the epic winding journey of ‘H.O.M.E’, which features a poem by Paterson, and traverses through dark ambient into star-surfing Fingers-style house, before ‘Why Can You Be In Two Places At Once…’ kicks into a funked-up, afrobeaty chug.
With Paterson’s decades-long love for Jamaican music and output oft drenched in the dubwise, it should come as little surprise that The Orb have now gone full reggae, on the ebullient nostalgia tale of Von Skywalker’s youthful romance, ‘A Ghetto Love Story’. The album then disappears down a wormhole of rubadub head-music called ‘Picking Tea & Chasing Butterfiles’, which sounds like Colourbox meets Popul Vuh in Shanghai, and also echoes back to Weatherall’s Ultrabass II remix of ‘Perpetual Dawn’.
Flipping the script entirely, by sprinkling a large bag of disco dust, is the slinky boogie wonderland of ‘Tiger’ (the name and nickname of Paterson’s son and late brother respectively), which juxtaposes but somehow coheres with the melodica-tinged thunderous bass music of ‘Dragon Of Oceans’ and it’s Sirius B gazing wordplay. The expertly-executed, floaty 90s trance dance of ‘The Beginning Of The End’ works very nicely within its own familiar parameters; which contrasts sharply with ‘Living In Recycled Times’, which ignites over ten plus minutes into fully-fledged, rave-ready D&B fire, which although out of their comfort zone still sounds very Orb.
Music for the ‘Prism’ of your mind, the album ends with its title track – a big ambient epic in done in fine style – as awe inspiring as the cold, infinite expanse from whence it came.
The LP features electronic musicians David Harrow (whose CV includes Anne Clarke, Psychic TV, Razormaid, Adrian Sherwood and Andy Weatherall) and Gaudi (whose credits include Max Romeo, Capleton, Johnny Clarke and Desmond Dekker). Other guests include Orb regular Youth, violinist Violeta Vicci, Kompakt records alumnus Leonardo Fresco, Metamono man Jono Podmore, Guitarist and Alex’s old schoolchum David Lofts, plus vocalists Eric Von Skywalker, Andy Cain and Rachel D’arcy. ‘Prism’ begins with the epic winding journey of ‘H.O.M.E’, which features a poem by Paterson, and traverses through dark ambient into star-surfing Fingers-style house, before ‘Why Can You Be In Two Places At Once…’ kicks into a funked-up, afrobeaty chug.
With Paterson’s decades-long love for Jamaican music and output oft drenched in the dubwise, it should come as little surprise that The Orb have now gone full reggae, on the ebullient nostalgia tale of Von Skywalker’s youthful romance, ‘A Ghetto Love Story’. The album then disappears down a wormhole of rubadub head-music called ‘Picking Tea & Chasing Butterfiles’, which sounds like Colourbox meets Popul Vuh in Shanghai, and also echoes back to Weatherall’s Ultrabass II remix of ‘Perpetual Dawn’.
Flipping the script entirely, by sprinkling a large bag of disco dust, is the slinky boogie wonderland of ‘Tiger’ (the name and nickname of Paterson’s son and late brother respectively), which juxtaposes but somehow coheres with the melodica-tinged thunderous bass music of ‘Dragon Of Oceans’ and it’s Sirius B gazing wordplay. The expertly-executed, floaty 90s trance dance of ‘The Beginning Of The End’ works very nicely within its own familiar parameters; which contrasts sharply with ‘Living In Recycled Times’, which ignites over ten plus minutes into fully-fledged, rave-ready D&B fire, which although out of their comfort zone still sounds very Orb.
Music for the ‘Prism’ of your mind, the album ends with its title track – a big ambient epic in done in fine style – as awe inspiring as the cold, infinite expanse from whence it came.
STAFF COMMENTS
Barry says: There are few bands making electronica today that have a more profound impact on afterparty culture than The Orb do, mostly owing to their perfectly manicured mix of euphoric acid, crisp dub and otherworldly melodies. 'Prism' has all of that in spades, moving effortlessly from dancefloor to the sofa and everything in-between. Classic Orb.TRACK LISTING
1. ‘H.O.M.E’
2. ‘Why Can You Be In Two Places At Once When You're Not Anywhere At All’
3. ‘A Ghetto Love Story’
4. ‘Picking Tea Leaves & Chasing Butterflies’
5. ‘Tiger’
6. ‘Dragon Of The Oceans’
7. ‘The Beginning Of The End’
8. ‘Living In Recycled Times’
9. ‘Prism’
West Africa's most iconic dance-band are back. A decade on from their last album and almost half a century since their formation, Senegal's Orchestra Baobab return with a timeless set of classic, swaying tunes fusing Afro-Cuban rhythms and African tradition in the group's trademark style. Recorded locally in Moussa X's Dakar studio, the new recordings sound fresh and yet reassuringly familiar, retaining the ripeness of the sound that made Orchestra Baobab a legend but interpreted with a vigour and vibrancy, and with a few twists, that are vital and captivating. As enduring as the mighty African Baobab tree from which the group derives its name, the veteran core of the band remains as strong and sturdy as ever. Vocalists Balla Sidibe and Rudy Gomis, saxophonists Issa Sissoko and Thierno Koite and the long-serving, rock steady rhythm section of Balla Sidibe, timbales, Charlie Ndiaye bass and Mountaga Koite on congas.
Alongside this impressive continuity there have been changes in the ten years since Baobab's last World Circuit album, 'Made in Dakar' - but they have been executed seamlessly. Guitarist Barthelemy Attisso, now a lawyer in Togo, is absent due to the demands of his day job but kora player Abdouleye Cissoko from the Cassamance region in southern Senegal is a welcome addition. It's the first time Baobab has numbered a kora player in its permanent ranks but Cissoko's rippling strings have blended seamlessly into the sound and lent a fresh dynamic. Elsewhere Baobab's distinctive two saxophone attack - which combines the vibrato laden declamatory style of Issa Cissoko with the softer more lyrical playing of Thierno Koite – has been bolstered by trombonist Wilfried Zinzou and the young virtuosic guitarist Rene Sowatche, both from the fertile musical pastures of Benin.
Veteran vocalist Balla Sidibe is a commanding presence on the album with his triple threat of musical influences - Manding from Guinea/Mali, creole from Cassamance and Afro-Cuban. Two special guests memorably add their voices to the mix. Cheikh Lo dropped by the studio to add his soulful tones to 'Magno Kouto' and Thione Seck - who left Babobab in 1979 for a career as one of West Africa's biggest solo stars – reunites with his old band mates for the first time in over 35 years to reprise his first hit 'Sey'.
Alongside this impressive continuity there have been changes in the ten years since Baobab's last World Circuit album, 'Made in Dakar' - but they have been executed seamlessly. Guitarist Barthelemy Attisso, now a lawyer in Togo, is absent due to the demands of his day job but kora player Abdouleye Cissoko from the Cassamance region in southern Senegal is a welcome addition. It's the first time Baobab has numbered a kora player in its permanent ranks but Cissoko's rippling strings have blended seamlessly into the sound and lent a fresh dynamic. Elsewhere Baobab's distinctive two saxophone attack - which combines the vibrato laden declamatory style of Issa Cissoko with the softer more lyrical playing of Thierno Koite – has been bolstered by trombonist Wilfried Zinzou and the young virtuosic guitarist Rene Sowatche, both from the fertile musical pastures of Benin.
Veteran vocalist Balla Sidibe is a commanding presence on the album with his triple threat of musical influences - Manding from Guinea/Mali, creole from Cassamance and Afro-Cuban. Two special guests memorably add their voices to the mix. Cheikh Lo dropped by the studio to add his soulful tones to 'Magno Kouto' and Thione Seck - who left Babobab in 1979 for a career as one of West Africa's biggest solo stars – reunites with his old band mates for the first time in over 35 years to reprise his first hit 'Sey'.
TRACK LISTING
Foulo
Fayinkounko
Natalia
Magnokouto
Mariama
Woulinewa
Sey
Caravana
Douga
Alekouma
Fantastic Oakland, California-based ensemble ORCHESTRA GOLD offers up a kaleidoscope of sound deeply rooted in the Malian tradition while introducing a genre-bending nod to the future through their rare and artful fusion of African Psychedelic Rock. Spearheaded by the dynamic MARIAM DIAKITE, whose raw and hypnotic vocal stylings deliver heartfelt and thought-provoking lyrics in the highly symbolic Bambara language. While paying homage to Malian musical traditions, this fierce new sound is supported by heavy swinging rhythms, a funky fresh brass section and cosmic guitar licks.
"Mali's musical heritage is vast... and Mariam's voice channels that history."—Banning Eyre, Senior Editor Afropop Worldwide.
"Mali's musical heritage is vast... and Mariam's voice channels that history."—Banning Eyre, Senior Editor Afropop Worldwide.
Behind Oakland CA-based ensemble Orchestra GOLD’s original sound is a decade-long story of knowledge, respect, and collaboration between Mariam Diakite of Mali and Erich Huffaker of Oakland. Blending the traditions of Mali and American Rock/Funk with a retro feel, OG represents a world of powerful cross-cultural experience. The group transcends borders and boundaries to be a force of healing within the community. OG offers a kaleidoscope of magical sound deeply rooted in the past while boldly blazing towards the genre-bending future: African Psychedelic Rock. OG’s vibrant sound is spearheaded by the dynamic Mariam Diakite, whose raw, hypnotic vocals deliver heartfelt and thought-provoking lyrics in the highly symbolic Bambara language. While paying homage to Malian musical traditions, this fierce new sound thrives with heavy swinging rhythms, a funky fresh brass section, and cosmic guitar licks. With the January 2023 release of their third album, Medicine, this profoundly spiritual and danceinducing ensemble continues their pursuit of spreading healing and community through the universal gift of music.
In celebration of the 40th anniversary of OMD’s fourth studio album, Dazzle Ships, UMR/EMI are pleased to announce the release a brand new expanded version of the album. The set comprises of the original album, plus a bonus LP of unreleased demos and rarities which has been compiled and mixed by Paul Humphreys.
TRACK LISTING
LP1 - Side A
Radio Prague
Genetic Engineering
ABC Auto-Industry
Telegraph
This Is Helena
International
LP1 - Side B
Dazzle Ships (Parts II, III And VII)
The Romance Of The Telescope
Silent Running
Radio Waves
Time Zones
Of All The Things We've Made
LP2 - Side A
Telegraph 82 (Very Early Demo)
Silent Running (Demo)
Sold Our Souls (the Avenue Demo)
Shakespeare 82
LP2 - Side B
Untitled Instrumental 82
In Heaven Above (4- NEU Demo)
Telegraph Live 1984
1CD
Radio Prague
Genetic Engineering
ABC Auto-Industry
Telegraph
This Is Helena
International
Dazzle Ships (Parts II, III And VII)
The Romance Of The Telescope
Silent Running
Radio Waves
Time Zones
Of All The Things We've Made
Telegraph - Very Early Demo / 1982
Silent Running - Demo
Sold Our Souls - The Avenue Demo
Shakespeare '82
Untitled Instrumental '82
In Heaven Above - 4- NEU Demo
Telegraph - Live 1984
To kick off the start of a year-long 40th anniversary campaign, we are reissuing four of OMD's albums on 180g vinyl. They will all be half speed mastered by Miles Showell at Abbey Road and housed in original packaging.
Organisation is the band's second studio album which reached #6 in the UK chart and features top 10 single 'Enola Gay'.
Organisation is the band's second studio album which reached #6 in the UK chart and features top 10 single 'Enola Gay'.
TRACK LISTING
1. "Enola Gay" Andy McCluskey 3:33
2. "2nd Thought" McCluskey 4:15
3. "VCL XI" Paul Humphreys, McCluskey 3:50
4. "Motion And Heart" Humphreys, McCluskey 3:16
5. "Statues" McCluskey 4:30
6. "The Misunderstanding" Humphreys, McCluskey 4:55
7. "The More I See You" Harry Warren, Mack Gordon 4:11
8. "Promise" Humphreys 4:51
9. "Stanlow" Humphreys, McCluskey 6:30
Originally released in 1980 on the Alberika label, Orchestre Les Volcans du Benin ‘Vol. 1’ has long been a holy grail for Afro-Cuban aficionados.
It now sees its first official reissue on Acid Jazz Records, with four infectious tracks across the two sides, including ‘Oya Ka Jojo’, Latin dancefloor dynamite and a DJ must-have.
Remastered by Nick Robbins at Sound Mastering and presented in a wonderful colour sleeve, it’s an opportunity to finally own this special and highly sought after LP.
It now sees its first official reissue on Acid Jazz Records, with four infectious tracks across the two sides, including ‘Oya Ka Jojo’, Latin dancefloor dynamite and a DJ must-have.
Remastered by Nick Robbins at Sound Mastering and presented in a wonderful colour sleeve, it’s an opportunity to finally own this special and highly sought after LP.
TRACK LISTING
Bella
Oya Ka Jojo
Mercenariat Africa
Gbemeho
Acid Jazz Records continue their exclusive licensing agreement with Albarika Store, the legendary record label that defined the sound of Benin and influenced the entire region of West Africa and beyond.
Recorded and issued in 1974, Le Sato is one of the earliest releases on the Albarika label and it is also one of the deepest. Sato is the term for the traditional rhythms that soundtrack Vodun (Voodoo) rituals and ceremonies in Benin. Performance of Sato is reserved for these sacred rites, which evoke the spirits of the dead and can last for several days and attract hundreds of people. Sato rhythms cannot be played outside of Vodun.
A large ceremonial Sato drum is used, which measured over 1.5m in height. This drum is played using wooden stick beaters, the drummer dancing while playing. The Sato drummers are supported by percussionists and other drummers playing smaller drums. Together, they create unique, layered, trance-inducing poly-rhythms.
Recorded and issued in 1974, Le Sato is one of the earliest releases on the Albarika label and it is also one of the deepest. Sato is the term for the traditional rhythms that soundtrack Vodun (Voodoo) rituals and ceremonies in Benin. Performance of Sato is reserved for these sacred rites, which evoke the spirits of the dead and can last for several days and attract hundreds of people. Sato rhythms cannot be played outside of Vodun.
A large ceremonial Sato drum is used, which measured over 1.5m in height. This drum is played using wooden stick beaters, the drummer dancing while playing. The Sato drummers are supported by percussionists and other drummers playing smaller drums. Together, they create unique, layered, trance-inducing poly-rhythms.
TRACK LISTING
1. Gan Tche Kpo
2. My Love
3. Gnonnou Ho
4. Min E Wa..We Non Dou
Lost sounds are the archives of a forgotten history. The raucously raw, Vodoun-inspired rhythms of Cotonou have confirmed Benin as a mecca of 70s Afro-funk sounds and revived the story of its people, but the unopened vaults housing the country's catacombs of musical riches are endless. With this as our compass, Analog Africa charters its fifth expedition to Benin, traveling far north to delve deeper into the obscured repertoires and tales of the Bariba and Dendi people.
Originating from the Kwara state of northwest Nigeria, the Bariba - a predominantly Islamic people - now dominate the Borgou department of Benin with the market city of Parakou at its heart. The rhythms of their culture constitute just one domain of the Islamic Funk Belt - a distinct musical swath of land encompassing northern Ghana, Togo and Benin. Once frequented by Muslim merchants and traders, the belt has yielded a rich harvest of talent with the likes of Uppers International (Ghana), Orchestre Abass, the Black Devils (Togo), Anassoua Jazz (Benin) and, undoubtedly the most powerful band from Parakou, Orchestre Super Borgou, who were first introduced to the West via Analog Africa's defining release, "African Scream Contest."
The birth of modern African music in Parakou is inextricably linked to Super Borgou. Their reinvention redefines what contemporary audiences classify as the "Afro" genre.
Originating from the Kwara state of northwest Nigeria, the Bariba - a predominantly Islamic people - now dominate the Borgou department of Benin with the market city of Parakou at its heart. The rhythms of their culture constitute just one domain of the Islamic Funk Belt - a distinct musical swath of land encompassing northern Ghana, Togo and Benin. Once frequented by Muslim merchants and traders, the belt has yielded a rich harvest of talent with the likes of Uppers International (Ghana), Orchestre Abass, the Black Devils (Togo), Anassoua Jazz (Benin) and, undoubtedly the most powerful band from Parakou, Orchestre Super Borgou, who were first introduced to the West via Analog Africa's defining release, "African Scream Contest."
The birth of modern African music in Parakou is inextricably linked to Super Borgou. Their reinvention redefines what contemporary audiences classify as the "Afro" genre.
The long-awaited new album from the best pop band in Scotland...
The Orchids were making sophisticated pop music right back in the early 1990s when Sarah Records first started. Their songs were as emotionally pure as anything else on that label, but they were always a step ahead of their peers in terms of song arrangements and musical ambition. With a casual, unpretentious air they made writing perfect pop songs seem easy, almost accidental, and several great releases followed. The Orchids gained a passionate following: people knew a good thing when they heard it and they hugged it close. But maybe now it’s time for the rest of the world to be let in on the secret.
The songs themselves are a beautiful mix of strength and gentleness. They wrap you in a powerful embrace, making you feel comfortable and secure – and then whisper their insecurities and anxieties into your ear. They say: ‘it’s OK to admit weakness. It’s OK to be fragile. That’s where true strength comes from’. From Glasgow, and proudly Scottish, the band shares a musical lineage with other great groups from that city, from Aztec Camera to Orange Juice, Lloyd Cole to Teenage Fanclub - bands that specialise in song-writing that can tell big stories through small personal fragments, that can make the ordinary extraordinary.
Ian Carmichael has helped the band create a perfectly produced masterpiece. He subtly accentuates the drama of the songs, with a sophisticated choreography and gloss that never overwhelms the tenderness of the music. In ‘This Boy Is A Mess’ (the first single from the album), the lyric confesses frailty while the arrangement gets stronger and stronger. It is bittersweet and exhilarating at the same time. ‘I Want You, I Need You’ has harmonies as big as a house – but the yearning message remains intimate and close. ‘I Don’t Mean To Stare’ is an elegant version of the song that first appeared on Skep Wax compilation Under The Bridge.
Album opener ‘Didn’t We Love You’ daringly opens up empty spaces where the reverb of the drums is the only thing you can hear... and then floods your ears with a harmonised chorus, sweet guitar melodies and sweeping effects. Even then, the lyrical lament, expressing the desire to live in a better place - a place unspoilt by the greedy phonies who’ve taken over – comes across as clearly as if Hackett were leaning over for a friendly chat in the snug bar of The Orchids’ favourite Glasgow pub.
The Orchids were making sophisticated pop music right back in the early 1990s when Sarah Records first started. Their songs were as emotionally pure as anything else on that label, but they were always a step ahead of their peers in terms of song arrangements and musical ambition. With a casual, unpretentious air they made writing perfect pop songs seem easy, almost accidental, and several great releases followed. The Orchids gained a passionate following: people knew a good thing when they heard it and they hugged it close. But maybe now it’s time for the rest of the world to be let in on the secret.
The songs themselves are a beautiful mix of strength and gentleness. They wrap you in a powerful embrace, making you feel comfortable and secure – and then whisper their insecurities and anxieties into your ear. They say: ‘it’s OK to admit weakness. It’s OK to be fragile. That’s where true strength comes from’. From Glasgow, and proudly Scottish, the band shares a musical lineage with other great groups from that city, from Aztec Camera to Orange Juice, Lloyd Cole to Teenage Fanclub - bands that specialise in song-writing that can tell big stories through small personal fragments, that can make the ordinary extraordinary.
Ian Carmichael has helped the band create a perfectly produced masterpiece. He subtly accentuates the drama of the songs, with a sophisticated choreography and gloss that never overwhelms the tenderness of the music. In ‘This Boy Is A Mess’ (the first single from the album), the lyric confesses frailty while the arrangement gets stronger and stronger. It is bittersweet and exhilarating at the same time. ‘I Want You, I Need You’ has harmonies as big as a house – but the yearning message remains intimate and close. ‘I Don’t Mean To Stare’ is an elegant version of the song that first appeared on Skep Wax compilation Under The Bridge.
Album opener ‘Didn’t We Love You’ daringly opens up empty spaces where the reverb of the drums is the only thing you can hear... and then floods your ears with a harmonised chorus, sweet guitar melodies and sweeping effects. Even then, the lyrical lament, expressing the desire to live in a better place - a place unspoilt by the greedy phonies who’ve taken over – comes across as clearly as if Hackett were leaning over for a friendly chat in the snug bar of The Orchids’ favourite Glasgow pub.
TRACK LISTING
1. Didn’t We Love You?
2. Limitless #1
3. What Have I Got To Do?
4. This Boy Is A Mess
5. I Never Thought I Was Clever
6. Echos
7. Isn’t It Easy
8. Something Missing
9. I Should Have Thought
10. I Don’t Mean To Stare
11. A Feeling I Don’t Know
12. I Want You, I Need You
13. Limitless #2 (Hurt)
Never before released on vinyl, this is the Sarah Records’ legends at their finest on their debut session for John Peel in 1990. The four songs here include a cracking version of live favourite ‘Caveman’ (better than the Lyceum mini-LP version, how the band wanted it!) and two others destined to end up on their Unholy Soul album – plus one song never properly released at all. Precious package also features a set of six postcards with unseen pics from studio and tour and download codes.
TRACK LISTING
Caveman
Frank De Salvo
Dirty Clothing
And When I Wake Up
Now you’re gonna want this – more unreleased Orchids material! This is the enigmatic Scottish five-piece’s second session for John Peel, four years after the first, by which time they’d started phoning in football reports to the legendary DJ. Two of these songs were never released at the time, though one came out as a demo about 25 years later (the shoulda-been-single ‘Patience Is Mine’) – and the other two were very different on Striving For The Lazy Perfection. Package also features a set of six postcards with unseen pics from their famous session at Toad Hall Studios in Glasgow.
TRACK LISTING
Patience Is Mine
Waiting Seems Vain
A Living Ken And Barbie (Back To Basics Mix)
The Searching
The mysterious Orchid joins Multi Culti with a vibrant homage to the golden era of Spanish trance, infused with dewy drops of glowing Balearic beauty. Firmly believing that musical innovation is now a relic of the past., Orchid looks back and resurrects a sense fun and passion so often lacking in the realm of contemporary business techno and commercial dance. Living in isolation in a far off nation which never kissed by a proper psychedelic movement, Orchid operates with a deep sense of nostalgia for a scene he never got to experience first-hand. Digging through the archives, he developed a profound appreciation for the atmosphere of sex, power, love, and sweetness - elements he believes are masterfully blended in the music of Spanish-speaking cultures. 'Techno Valencia' invites listeners to experience the nostalgia, the passion, and the unadulterated soul of a time when music was not just heard but felt deeply.
TRACK LISTING
A1. Controla Del Amor
A2. Espiral
B1. Maria Me Gusta
B2. Dolor
B3. Amen Explosion
Recorded under the castle in Lewes, East Sussex, 'Lore Of The Land' is the debut release from the Order Of The 12. Featuring Rachel Thomas on vocals, with Stuart Carter on guitars, and Richard Norris on keyboards, drums and production. The music looks to the South Downs and the Sussex folk tradition for inspiration, with echoes of psych folk acts like Trees or Mellow Candle.
TRACK LISTING
A1. Against The Tide
A2. Eye Of A Lens
A3. Somewhere Nearly Gone
A4. Money Can't Buy
A5. Lore Of The Land
B1. The Forest At Night
B2. The Black Knight
B3. Save Me From The Carnival
B4. Wishing Well
B5. Down To The Ring
oreglo is made up of c-sé (keys), Linus Barry (guitar), Nico Rocco (drums) and Teigan Hastings (tuba), who all met growing up in London. Nico and Linus met at secondary school, before Nico went on to meet Teigan and c-sé through the youth organisation Tomorrow’s Warriors, bringing them all together.
Across the 'Not Real People' EP, oreglo showcase their innovative take on multiple genres: freewheeling through heavy rock riffs to drill-inspired percussion and breezy reggae, the quartet have cultivated a unique sound that acts as a melting pot of all the sounds they know and love from London.
Since officially forming just over a year ago, they've already been hand-selected by Ezra Collective to win the 2023 Lambeth Sounds Emerging Artists x Cross The Tracks competition; played the recent Steam Down–curated World Island event in Leeds; supported Gabriels at Somerset House; composed for The 1975's North American tour; and have seen support from Steve Lamacq, Jack Saunders + more across national radio.
Across the 'Not Real People' EP, oreglo showcase their innovative take on multiple genres: freewheeling through heavy rock riffs to drill-inspired percussion and breezy reggae, the quartet have cultivated a unique sound that acts as a melting pot of all the sounds they know and love from London.
Since officially forming just over a year ago, they've already been hand-selected by Ezra Collective to win the 2023 Lambeth Sounds Emerging Artists x Cross The Tracks competition; played the recent Steam Down–curated World Island event in Leeds; supported Gabriels at Somerset House; composed for The 1975's North American tour; and have seen support from Steve Lamacq, Jack Saunders + more across national radio.
TRACK LISTING
1. J.A.C.K.
2. Oreglo Theme
3. Peck
4. Levels
5. Comet (feat. Bel Cobain)
6. Opedge
7. Peck Reprise
Orgōne is back in California and coming in hot with Chimera, a fire-breathing spectacle of psychedelic Afro-soul. Produced by Sergio Rios (Neal Francis, Say She She), Chimera is an electrifying, dream-like odyssey, tripping through the hazy swamps of New Orleans, weaving textures of entrancing voodoo soul, thrumming Afro-funk, and stoney psych-rock.
Taking its name from a mythical beast with the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and the tail of a serpent, Chimera conjures a state that is at once trance-like and heart-poundingly exciting. The album opens like a heady puff of smoke in the face with “Hallowed Dreams,” drawing the listener into a state where reality blurs and the music takes control. The focus track, “Zum Zum,” is a hooky Afro-funk dance floor heater that synchronizes your heart rate to its propulsive percussion, the hypnotic rhythm building into a raucous, psychedelic climax.
On the raw and rousing “Tula Muisi (Dance Like Them),” a tapestry of Afrobeat and heavy psych-rock bolsters the singer calls for unity and respect, which translates to “Hear the music, and dance like them.” Known for their gripping instrumentals and incendiary live show, the band is firing on all cylinders and the earned confidence of this time-tested, cult-favorite crew is on display throughout Chimera. From its inception, Orgōne has always been a chimera — a multifaceted creation and the physical manifestation of impossible quixotic dreams.
Chimera will delight fans of early Orgōne while showcasing the band’s effortless and endless ability to shape-shift. It’s an electrifying, mesmerizing record sure to exceed expectations and keep the listener rapt.
Taking its name from a mythical beast with the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and the tail of a serpent, Chimera conjures a state that is at once trance-like and heart-poundingly exciting. The album opens like a heady puff of smoke in the face with “Hallowed Dreams,” drawing the listener into a state where reality blurs and the music takes control. The focus track, “Zum Zum,” is a hooky Afro-funk dance floor heater that synchronizes your heart rate to its propulsive percussion, the hypnotic rhythm building into a raucous, psychedelic climax.
On the raw and rousing “Tula Muisi (Dance Like Them),” a tapestry of Afrobeat and heavy psych-rock bolsters the singer calls for unity and respect, which translates to “Hear the music, and dance like them.” Known for their gripping instrumentals and incendiary live show, the band is firing on all cylinders and the earned confidence of this time-tested, cult-favorite crew is on display throughout Chimera. From its inception, Orgōne has always been a chimera — a multifaceted creation and the physical manifestation of impossible quixotic dreams.
Chimera will delight fans of early Orgōne while showcasing the band’s effortless and endless ability to shape-shift. It’s an electrifying, mesmerizing record sure to exceed expectations and keep the listener rapt.
TRACK LISTING
1. Hallowed Dreams
2. Lies And Games
3. Basilisk
4. Peace For You
5. Parasols
6. Zum Zum
7. Running Low
8. The Husk
9. Tula Muisi (Dance Like Them)
On La Vita Olistica (their second-and-a-half album!?), The Orielles take last year’s stellar Disco Volador and bring it back down to earth, reimagining it as a soundtrack which draws as much from la nouvelle vague as New York’s new wave music scene. Full of instrumental detours, maverick synth-led twists, and more pop hooks than you can shake a disco stick at, it’s a less “produced” affair than its shimmering predecessor - those virtuosic guitars, drums à la Can school of jazz-punk-groove, dream-laden vocals, and understated bass gymnastics are all still here though, just clearer and tighter than ever before. There’s something so classic and charismatic about the way they write songs too, calling to mind - but never imitating - the greats of indie songwriting: Edwyn Collins, Laetitia Sadier, Bradford Cox, et al. La Vita Olistica shows the mighty O’s at their most inspired yet - and it’s a beautiful thing to watch.
STAFF COMMENTS
Barry says: Eschewing the more dancefloor-ready elements of last years' 'Disco Volador', the Orielles return with the lysergic smudged atmospheres and hazy psychedelic groove of 'La Vita Olistica'. A brilliantly immersive and impeccably performed outing from a band showing their wide range of influence, as well as their deftness crafting those influences into something new and exciting.
Sidonie Hand Halford is a Christmas temp at the Post Office in Liverpool, her younger sister Esme is studying English literature at Manchester, and their friend Henry Wade is preparing to sit his A-levels in Halifax next summer.
From the first jangling sunshine chords on opening track ‘Mango’, Silver Dollar Moments announces itself as a proper piece of indie pop goodness. Then, across 45 minutes, it takes all kinds of turns, into ESG-ish yips and funk, dreamy-arch harmonies, disco synth-pows and stoner bongos, unsettling submerged voices - with all that and more it still flows like a fountain of indie pop, fresh and catchy and altogether.
Maybe one reason it all coheres so beautifully is that The Orielles are a close-knit unit: two sisters and their best mate. “We met Henry at a house party a few years ago,” says Sid. “I mean, it’s a bit lamer than that sounds. It was a friend of our parents, she was having a 40th birthday party, and we went along, and Henry was there too, with his parents.” They’ve been writing songs together ever since, Esme singing and on bass, Sidonie on drums, Henry on guitar. They’ve played live all over the UK as well as Europe and North America, and this year they signed to Heavenly Recordings and headed into Eve Studios in Stockport.
From the first jangling sunshine chords on opening track ‘Mango’, Silver Dollar Moments announces itself as a proper piece of indie pop goodness. Then, across 45 minutes, it takes all kinds of turns, into ESG-ish yips and funk, dreamy-arch harmonies, disco synth-pows and stoner bongos, unsettling submerged voices - with all that and more it still flows like a fountain of indie pop, fresh and catchy and altogether.
Maybe one reason it all coheres so beautifully is that The Orielles are a close-knit unit: two sisters and their best mate. “We met Henry at a house party a few years ago,” says Sid. “I mean, it’s a bit lamer than that sounds. It was a friend of our parents, she was having a 40th birthday party, and we went along, and Henry was there too, with his parents.” They’ve been writing songs together ever since, Esme singing and on bass, Sidonie on drums, Henry on guitar. They’ve played live all over the UK as well as Europe and North America, and this year they signed to Heavenly Recordings and headed into Eve Studios in Stockport.
TRACK LISTING
1. Mango
2. Old Stuff New Stuff
3. Sunflower Seeds
4. Let Your Dog Tooth Grow
5. Liminal Spaces
6. The Sound Of Liminal Spaces (edit)
7. I Only Bought It For The Bottle
8. Henry’s Pocket
9. 48 Percent
10. Borrachero Tree
11. Snaps
12. Blue Suitcase (Disco Wrist)
The Orielles have created their first genuinely contemporary record – an experimental double album self-produced in collaboration with producer Joel Anthony Patchett (King Krule, Tim Burgess). In doing so, the Orielles have utilised holistic jazz practices, oblique 21st century electronica, experimental 1960s tape loop methods, otherworldly AutoTuned vocal sounds, the downer dub of Burial, Sonic Youth’s focus on improvisation and feedback, and Brian Eno’s legendary Oblique Strategy cards.
TRACK LISTING
Chromo I
Chromo II
Airtight
The Instrument
The Improvisation 001
Television
Some Day Later
Darkened Corners
Honfleur Remembered
Beam/s
To Offer, To Erase
The Room
By Its Light
Transmission
Drawn And Defined
Stones
Defiant in the face of existential dread, The Orielles were always going to approach their second album with nothing but stellar levels of intent. Disco Volador sees the 4-piece push their sonic horizon to its outer limits as astral travellers, hitching a ride on the melodic skyway to evade the space-time continuum through a sharp collection of progressive strato-pop symphonies.
“Its literal interpretation from Spanish means flying disc but everyone experiences things differently. Disco Volador could be a frisbee, a UFO, an alien nightclub or how you feel when you fly; what happens to your body physically or that euphoric buzz from a great party,” suggests bassist and singer, Esme. “But it is an album of escape; if I went to space, I might not come back.”
Voyaging through cinematic samba, 70s disco, deep funk boogies, danceable grooves and even tripping on 90s acid house, Disco Volador is set to propel The Orielles spinning into a higher zero-gravity orbit. Written and recorded in just 12 months, it captures the warp-speed momentum of their post-Silver Dollar Moment debut album success; an unforgettable summer touring, playing festivals like Green Man and bluedot, and deepening their bond whilst witnessing the sets of their heroes Stereolab, Mogwai, and Four Tet. Disco Volador’s library catalogue vibes stem from a band lapping up and widening their pool of musical discovery whether nodding to Italian film score maestros Sandro Brugnolini and Piero Umiliani, or the Middle Eastern tones of Khruangbin and Altin Gün. “All the influences we had when writing this record were present when we recorded it, so we completely understood what we wanted this album to feel like and could bring that to fruition,” tells drummer, Sid. “This is the sound of where we are at, right now.”
Returning to Stockport’s Eve studios where the band cooked together, went swimming, took walks, and relaxed in the soundwaves of an occasional gong bath, Henry, Sid and Esme called a family reunion under the watchful whisker-twitching of studio cat, Adam (“He was probably a producer in a past life,” they say). With keysman Alex now adding texture through his classically trained know-how, they re-joined engineer Joel, and producer Marta Salogni (Liars, Björk, The Moonlandingz) whose vast expertise of drones, delays and mad effects were so intrinsic to their Disco Volador vision – sketched out by the band in Sharpie doodles on the studio wall. “Marta is so positive, she has a great way of getting the best out of us,” guitarist, Henry tells. “Marta is the 5th Orielle,” affirms Sid. “Because we’d worked together before, we were even tighter; it’s a shared mind-set.” For Marta, the feeling is mutual; “It’s sonic tidying really, the band just do their thing and I work with that.”
Built from instrumentals around the concept of “boogie to space, space to boogie,” Disco Volador’s energy comes from the melodic fission of tension and release. Recurring motifs explore space, not only of earth’s celestial atmosphere, but also what happens within the gaps and how sound manipulation has the power to carry, or displace, its listener. “We like throwing in wide curveballs by taking the music somewhere different then figuring our way back… like jumping off,” says Henry. “Jez from ACR taught us about pauses and that’s massive on this record; space can be the most beautiful part of a song.” In fact, by unleashing the tension with their own smattering of esoteric noise through delay pedal fuckery, the layered poetics on ‘Whilst The Flowers Look’ and ‘Memoirs of Miso’s saxophone stylistics (loaned by Glasgow band Lylo’s Iain McCall), filling voids is exactly what gives the album its magic. “Those unplanned moments are great,” Sid says, “mistakes can become something special. For these next shows we’ll have to change our tech spec up so much!”
At times haunting and unsettling, Disco Volador’s film-like structure flows from fact to fiction. Its tales are culled from waking life as easily as they become a soundtrack for lucid dream sequences. Watching Foley-inspired 70s thriller Berberian Sound Studio whilst recording may account for the album’s dynamic sound effects – created with Eve’s array of instruments plus Henry’s flexatone - a Secret Santa gift from Esme. Lynchian outros capture the album’s thematic dread as they spiral into infinity and pave the way for potential loops, imitating the fades between the songs of the band’s summer DJ sets. Brian Eno-inspired dreams about a rocket-fuelled mission may or may not have inspired ‘Rapid’ or ‘Come Down On Jupiter’ after ideas sunk deeper into their subconscious. “I’d been reading about phenomenology and Czechoslovakian writer Milan Kundera’s ideas about existence; the weight of your own body, what you feel and how that interacts with your surroundings,” hints Esme, at possible inspiration behind the lyrics.
Whilst the future of the world and its current cosmic wasteland might be up in the air, The Orielles’ new album has its feet beating out a much-needed four to the dancefloor. Welcome to Disco Volador; time really does fly when you’re having this much fun.
Opening track “Come Down On Jupiter” is a heavily phased and flanged waltz before its driving middle section and grooving outro, whilst elsewhere there’s saxophone, congas, handclaps galore, and an ever burgeoning love affair with Manchester’s very own A Certain Ratio. Lead singer Esme has such a sweet, unaffected voice in which a tiny sense of longing can be detected, though not in any navel gazing way, she’s probably pining to meet somebody out on the astral plain or she’s dreaming of space travel, cosmic connectivity or just another dimension altogether! This is music to get you off your arse alright, the drums and percussion are just incredible throughout, as is the overall production, so tasty, so nuanced, so many flavours. I really think they’re one of our best bands right now.
“Its literal interpretation from Spanish means flying disc but everyone experiences things differently. Disco Volador could be a frisbee, a UFO, an alien nightclub or how you feel when you fly; what happens to your body physically or that euphoric buzz from a great party,” suggests bassist and singer, Esme. “But it is an album of escape; if I went to space, I might not come back.”
Voyaging through cinematic samba, 70s disco, deep funk boogies, danceable grooves and even tripping on 90s acid house, Disco Volador is set to propel The Orielles spinning into a higher zero-gravity orbit. Written and recorded in just 12 months, it captures the warp-speed momentum of their post-Silver Dollar Moment debut album success; an unforgettable summer touring, playing festivals like Green Man and bluedot, and deepening their bond whilst witnessing the sets of their heroes Stereolab, Mogwai, and Four Tet. Disco Volador’s library catalogue vibes stem from a band lapping up and widening their pool of musical discovery whether nodding to Italian film score maestros Sandro Brugnolini and Piero Umiliani, or the Middle Eastern tones of Khruangbin and Altin Gün. “All the influences we had when writing this record were present when we recorded it, so we completely understood what we wanted this album to feel like and could bring that to fruition,” tells drummer, Sid. “This is the sound of where we are at, right now.”
Returning to Stockport’s Eve studios where the band cooked together, went swimming, took walks, and relaxed in the soundwaves of an occasional gong bath, Henry, Sid and Esme called a family reunion under the watchful whisker-twitching of studio cat, Adam (“He was probably a producer in a past life,” they say). With keysman Alex now adding texture through his classically trained know-how, they re-joined engineer Joel, and producer Marta Salogni (Liars, Björk, The Moonlandingz) whose vast expertise of drones, delays and mad effects were so intrinsic to their Disco Volador vision – sketched out by the band in Sharpie doodles on the studio wall. “Marta is so positive, she has a great way of getting the best out of us,” guitarist, Henry tells. “Marta is the 5th Orielle,” affirms Sid. “Because we’d worked together before, we were even tighter; it’s a shared mind-set.” For Marta, the feeling is mutual; “It’s sonic tidying really, the band just do their thing and I work with that.”
Built from instrumentals around the concept of “boogie to space, space to boogie,” Disco Volador’s energy comes from the melodic fission of tension and release. Recurring motifs explore space, not only of earth’s celestial atmosphere, but also what happens within the gaps and how sound manipulation has the power to carry, or displace, its listener. “We like throwing in wide curveballs by taking the music somewhere different then figuring our way back… like jumping off,” says Henry. “Jez from ACR taught us about pauses and that’s massive on this record; space can be the most beautiful part of a song.” In fact, by unleashing the tension with their own smattering of esoteric noise through delay pedal fuckery, the layered poetics on ‘Whilst The Flowers Look’ and ‘Memoirs of Miso’s saxophone stylistics (loaned by Glasgow band Lylo’s Iain McCall), filling voids is exactly what gives the album its magic. “Those unplanned moments are great,” Sid says, “mistakes can become something special. For these next shows we’ll have to change our tech spec up so much!”
At times haunting and unsettling, Disco Volador’s film-like structure flows from fact to fiction. Its tales are culled from waking life as easily as they become a soundtrack for lucid dream sequences. Watching Foley-inspired 70s thriller Berberian Sound Studio whilst recording may account for the album’s dynamic sound effects – created with Eve’s array of instruments plus Henry’s flexatone - a Secret Santa gift from Esme. Lynchian outros capture the album’s thematic dread as they spiral into infinity and pave the way for potential loops, imitating the fades between the songs of the band’s summer DJ sets. Brian Eno-inspired dreams about a rocket-fuelled mission may or may not have inspired ‘Rapid’ or ‘Come Down On Jupiter’ after ideas sunk deeper into their subconscious. “I’d been reading about phenomenology and Czechoslovakian writer Milan Kundera’s ideas about existence; the weight of your own body, what you feel and how that interacts with your surroundings,” hints Esme, at possible inspiration behind the lyrics.
Whilst the future of the world and its current cosmic wasteland might be up in the air, The Orielles’ new album has its feet beating out a much-needed four to the dancefloor. Welcome to Disco Volador; time really does fly when you’re having this much fun.
STAFF COMMENTS
Andy says: Wow, no second album worries whatsoever for The Orielles, then! Crashing into our hearts with their supernaturally energised blend of psych, post-punk, dream pop, disco, Tropicalia and good old fashioned indie-pop, this record absolutely does it all. Some of the baggy grooves on their debut have been whipped up to speed; this is a taught, funky, crisp and punchy sound. I’d say it's also a more experimental record, definitely more challenging, but that doesn’t mean the tune count is any lower: these are massive, dead catchy pop songs, designed for the dancefloor but especially the live experience; what a shame that’s been denied them (and us!) in this annus horribilis.Opening track “Come Down On Jupiter” is a heavily phased and flanged waltz before its driving middle section and grooving outro, whilst elsewhere there’s saxophone, congas, handclaps galore, and an ever burgeoning love affair with Manchester’s very own A Certain Ratio. Lead singer Esme has such a sweet, unaffected voice in which a tiny sense of longing can be detected, though not in any navel gazing way, she’s probably pining to meet somebody out on the astral plain or she’s dreaming of space travel, cosmic connectivity or just another dimension altogether! This is music to get you off your arse alright, the drums and percussion are just incredible throughout, as is the overall production, so tasty, so nuanced, so many flavours. I really think they’re one of our best bands right now.
TRACK LISTING
1 Come Down On Jupiter
2 Rapid
3 Memoirs Of Miso
4 Bobbi's Second World
5 Whilst The Flowers Look
6 The Square Eyed Pack
7 7th Dynamic Goo
8 A Material Mistake
9 Euro Borealis
10 Space Samba (Disco Volador Theme)
Original Cast Of Standing At The Sky's Edge
Standing At The Sky's Edge: A New Musical (Songs By Richard Hawley)
Pink Moon
'Standing at The Sky' Edge' is the 2023 Olivier Award-winning Best New Musical - written as a love letter to Sheffield and the city's iconic Park Hill Estate, is directed by Sheffield Theatres' Artistic Director, Robert Hastie and features songs by the legendary Sheffield singer-songwriter, Richard Hawley.
With a hilarious and gut-wrenching book by Chris Bush, 'Standing at the Sky's Edge' charts the hopes and dreams of three generations over the course of six tumultuous decades, navigating universal themes of love, loss and survival. 'Standing at the Sky's Edge' is a multi-award-winning production, winning 'Best New Musical' at the 2023 Olivier Awards with Sheffield singer-songwriter, Richard Hawley and Tom Deering also winning 'Best Original Score and New Orchestrations'.
It was recently awarded the internationally recognised 'Made in Sheffield' accolade, the first time a theatre production has received this unique trademark. Previously it has won the 2020 South Bank Sky Arts Award for Theatre and 'Best Musical Production' at the UK Theatre Awards in 2019. First commissioned by Sheffield Theatres and Various Productions, 'Standing at the Sky's Edge' had its world premiere at the Crucible Theatre in 2019.
Following a hugely successful, sold-out run, it returned to the Crucible Theatre in December 2022, selling out again, before making its London premiere in the National Theatre's Olivier theatre in early 2023 where it continued to sell out and receive standing ovations.
With a hilarious and gut-wrenching book by Chris Bush, 'Standing at the Sky's Edge' charts the hopes and dreams of three generations over the course of six tumultuous decades, navigating universal themes of love, loss and survival. 'Standing at the Sky's Edge' is a multi-award-winning production, winning 'Best New Musical' at the 2023 Olivier Awards with Sheffield singer-songwriter, Richard Hawley and Tom Deering also winning 'Best Original Score and New Orchestrations'.
It was recently awarded the internationally recognised 'Made in Sheffield' accolade, the first time a theatre production has received this unique trademark. Previously it has won the 2020 South Bank Sky Arts Award for Theatre and 'Best Musical Production' at the UK Theatre Awards in 2019. First commissioned by Sheffield Theatres and Various Productions, 'Standing at the Sky's Edge' had its world premiere at the Crucible Theatre in 2019.
Following a hugely successful, sold-out run, it returned to the Crucible Theatre in December 2022, selling out again, before making its London premiere in the National Theatre's Olivier theatre in early 2023 where it continued to sell out and receive standing ovations.
TRACK LISTING
1. As The Dawn Breaks
2. Time Is
3. Naked In Pitsmoor
4. I'm Looking For Someone To Find Me
5. Tonight The Streets Are Ours
6. Open Your Door
7. My Little Treasures
8. Coles Corner
9. There's A Storm A Comin'
10. Standing At The Sky's Edge
11. Our Darkness
12. Midnight Train
13. For Your Lover Give Some Time
14. There's A Storm A Comin' (Reprise)
15. After The Rain
16. Don't Get Hung Up In Your Soul
17. Finale
18. As The Dawn Breaks (Reprise)
Ela Orleans has released music on Warp, All Saints Records, Parental Guidance, La Station Radar, Night People, Clan Destine Records, Twisted Nerve and more.
Fans of her work include David Lynch, Thurston Moore and Ian Rankin.
Ela has scored ballets, stage productions, films and TV shows and performed / worked with Dirty Beaches, Lee Renaldo, Magic Markers, Julia Holter, Space Lady, Lower Dens, Vaselines, The Pastels, Baby Dee, James Pants, Tara Jane O’Neill, Remember Remember and Jackie O Motherfucker, to name but a few.
‘Upper Hell’ was produced by Howie B. Ela is the first artist signed to his HB Recordings label.
Artwork by Mat Cook from Intro London.
“She is Moondogmatic in her intransigent commitment to producing compositions of subtlety and incongruent beauty. These are polysemous confections which make you feel that you are listening to pop music for the first time again” - Time Out
Fans of her work include David Lynch, Thurston Moore and Ian Rankin.
Ela has scored ballets, stage productions, films and TV shows and performed / worked with Dirty Beaches, Lee Renaldo, Magic Markers, Julia Holter, Space Lady, Lower Dens, Vaselines, The Pastels, Baby Dee, James Pants, Tara Jane O’Neill, Remember Remember and Jackie O Motherfucker, to name but a few.
‘Upper Hell’ was produced by Howie B. Ela is the first artist signed to his HB Recordings label.
Artwork by Mat Cook from Intro London.
“She is Moondogmatic in her intransigent commitment to producing compositions of subtlety and incongruent beauty. These are polysemous confections which make you feel that you are listening to pop music for the first time again” - Time Out
“With Ela’s music I feel emotional, engaged… I can’t help but feel she’s always looking for a sense of belonging and it seems to inform all the music that she makes. Glasgow must have more of that belonging feeling than most cities because she’s spent the most time here, an exotic bird in a rainy city she maybe finds a lttle bit of comfort in. It’s a pleasure to have her here, in this awful time to be living in Britain, her illuminations feel important and hopeful. A stubborn light; someone making great timeless music out of the humdrum of the everyday.” - Stephen Pastel
Movies For Ears is a retrospective collection of works by Polish-born, Glasgow-based artist Ela Orleans which navigates almost two decades of songwriting in the heart of the global pop underground. This remastered collection casts an ear over what Orleans might call the ‘pop sensibility’ within her back catalogue. Released previously on a number of small DIY labels, Orleans’ music coincided with the explosion of auto-didactic musicians finding their voice in the age of the blogosphere, artists emboldened by the democratisation of music-making afforded by the internet. From the outset, Orleans’ childhood studying formal music mixed with cut-up techniques, sampling, sound-art and experimentation to create a distinctive signature cloaked in an innate melancholy and playfulness. Fully remastered by James Plotkin, featuring extensive sleeve-notes and rare photos from Orleans’ archive, Movies For Ears presents an appraisal of the musician’s work, painting a portrait of an artist with an uncanny ability to evoke emotions and ghosts of memories in the listener.
Each song pulls sunshine from its surroundings, moments of pleasure plucked from eulogies. The Season employs a hypnotic loop with Orleans’s prophetic voice heralding the season we’re doomed to repeat. In fact the singer is often cast as the changing protagonist in her songs: on Walkingman, a hazy ballad heavy with ennui, the narrator is laden with the world’s weight, forever pacing a groundhog day world blank, a pissed-off actor in a Kafka-esque melodrama. On Light At Dawn we’re in a seedy kitsch bar-room go-go scene, a ghostly rock’roll romance with shimmering percussion, poledancing in a Lynchian half-dream. Movies For Ears’ moods straddle memory and fantasy: scratchily invoking halfremembered exotica, the flickering shadows of europhile cinemas screens, a delicately woven world anchored in Orleans existential meditations on longing, intimacy, solitude and the search for love. These rich textures in every song don’t overpower some crystalised moments of emotion however: on In Spring Orleans sings simply “I have been happy two weeks together,” summarizing that feeling of elation when emerging from a depression, a long winter. It’s a moment that perfectly illustrates the lightness of touch and clarity in the singer’s voice.
The power of the loop and Orleans’ weaving songwriting that breaks its spell is illustrated perfectly by I Know. Over an aching chord progression, the vocal takes flight into bittersweet loneliness, Pachelbel’s Canon played at a wedding where only one person shows up. The repeated refrain “I know, I know” ascends to the heavens as the chords descend to the dumps and the listener is left in the middle, happy but not knowing why, maybe a little changed, two weeks together. On Movies For Ears, Ela Orleans lets us into a secret: the rare moments of joy to be found in the joins of the loop, the spaces between things, the spring after the winter are the moments that last after the day has faded.
Movies For Ears is a retrospective collection of works by Polish-born, Glasgow-based artist Ela Orleans which navigates almost two decades of songwriting in the heart of the global pop underground. This remastered collection casts an ear over what Orleans might call the ‘pop sensibility’ within her back catalogue. Released previously on a number of small DIY labels, Orleans’ music coincided with the explosion of auto-didactic musicians finding their voice in the age of the blogosphere, artists emboldened by the democratisation of music-making afforded by the internet. From the outset, Orleans’ childhood studying formal music mixed with cut-up techniques, sampling, sound-art and experimentation to create a distinctive signature cloaked in an innate melancholy and playfulness. Fully remastered by James Plotkin, featuring extensive sleeve-notes and rare photos from Orleans’ archive, Movies For Ears presents an appraisal of the musician’s work, painting a portrait of an artist with an uncanny ability to evoke emotions and ghosts of memories in the listener.
Each song pulls sunshine from its surroundings, moments of pleasure plucked from eulogies. The Season employs a hypnotic loop with Orleans’s prophetic voice heralding the season we’re doomed to repeat. In fact the singer is often cast as the changing protagonist in her songs: on Walkingman, a hazy ballad heavy with ennui, the narrator is laden with the world’s weight, forever pacing a groundhog day world blank, a pissed-off actor in a Kafka-esque melodrama. On Light At Dawn we’re in a seedy kitsch bar-room go-go scene, a ghostly rock’roll romance with shimmering percussion, poledancing in a Lynchian half-dream. Movies For Ears’ moods straddle memory and fantasy: scratchily invoking halfremembered exotica, the flickering shadows of europhile cinemas screens, a delicately woven world anchored in Orleans existential meditations on longing, intimacy, solitude and the search for love. These rich textures in every song don’t overpower some crystalised moments of emotion however: on In Spring Orleans sings simply “I have been happy two weeks together,” summarizing that feeling of elation when emerging from a depression, a long winter. It’s a moment that perfectly illustrates the lightness of touch and clarity in the singer’s voice.
The power of the loop and Orleans’ weaving songwriting that breaks its spell is illustrated perfectly by I Know. Over an aching chord progression, the vocal takes flight into bittersweet loneliness, Pachelbel’s Canon played at a wedding where only one person shows up. The repeated refrain “I know, I know” ascends to the heavens as the chords descend to the dumps and the listener is left in the middle, happy but not knowing why, maybe a little changed, two weeks together. On Movies For Ears, Ela Orleans lets us into a secret: the rare moments of joy to be found in the joins of the loop, the spaces between things, the spring after the winter are the moments that last after the day has faded.
TRACK LISTING
1. The Season
2. Walkingman
3. Light At Dawn
4. In Spring
5. Something Higher
6. In The Night
7. I Know
8. Black And White Flight
9. Myriads
10. Neverend
11. Planet Mars (CD/Digital Bonus Track)
12. Apparatus (CD/Digital Bonus Track)
13. Elegy (CD/ Digital Bonus Track)
Circles Of Upper and Lower Hell is the grandest, deepest work to date by Polish-born, Glasgow-based sound artist and composer Ela Orleans. The seventh album under her own name, Orleans' expansive vision, loosely based on Dante's Inferno but infused with deep personal experience, incorporates sound art, orchestral textures, synth pop and electronic music to construct a world equally peppered with loss and inspiration. Circles Of Upper and Lower Hell pulls all the strands of Orleans' previous work together, an epic depiction of turmoil wide in scope but reveling in detail. From her beginnings inaugurating a lo-fi, homespun sound that has since developed fully into a language uniquely her own, from tentative live outings featuring multiple instruments to a now-masterly command of sound, Orleans has become one of the most consistently surprising musicians of the global underground.
"Circles" documents Ela's research into dark sonic interiors and a far more personal approach to conventional songwriting. Previously, Orleans' sonic textures have relied on samples cleaved out of context, buried songs beneath warped aural gauze, but Circles blows every element of Orleans' art upwards and further apart. Circles begins with a masterful, sparse composition, The Gate, that instantly showcases the expert mastering by Jon Brooks before melting into You Go Through Me (featuring Stephen and Katrina from The Pastels), one of the most direct, aching pop moments. Ghost and Whispers is a hit from another universe, a sparkling propulsion instantly recognizable as an Ela Orleans composition; light of touch and almost unbearably, ghostlily human. Circles Of Upper and Lower Hell is an honest portrayal of a descent; be it personal or metaphorical and there are times, like on the minimal, string-led Tower, when the listener feels submerged, alienated from comfort. Through-out there's a massive, cinematic scope to the album, rumbling synth textures escalating into celestial harmonies, the stereofield sparkling with sound, shimmering melodies crackling with the sort of pathos that Ela has made her recognisable trademark. It's a weighty journey, pitched aurally between Ghost Box records and a mournful classicism, drawing references from literature and autobiography.
Circles... is really without parallel in Orleans' discography, though its most obvious sister record, 2015's Upper Hell, gave some streamlined, carved-up hints at Circles Of Upper Hell's majesty. Orleans' previous work has always suggested threads, blurred ghost-ideas from an artist always growing. In 2016 Orleans has mastered her craft completely, never heavy-handed but deftly handling themes of loss, chaos, documenting personal journeys sometimes arduous with an ever-deeper understanding.
"Circles" documents Ela's research into dark sonic interiors and a far more personal approach to conventional songwriting. Previously, Orleans' sonic textures have relied on samples cleaved out of context, buried songs beneath warped aural gauze, but Circles blows every element of Orleans' art upwards and further apart. Circles begins with a masterful, sparse composition, The Gate, that instantly showcases the expert mastering by Jon Brooks before melting into You Go Through Me (featuring Stephen and Katrina from The Pastels), one of the most direct, aching pop moments. Ghost and Whispers is a hit from another universe, a sparkling propulsion instantly recognizable as an Ela Orleans composition; light of touch and almost unbearably, ghostlily human. Circles Of Upper and Lower Hell is an honest portrayal of a descent; be it personal or metaphorical and there are times, like on the minimal, string-led Tower, when the listener feels submerged, alienated from comfort. Through-out there's a massive, cinematic scope to the album, rumbling synth textures escalating into celestial harmonies, the stereofield sparkling with sound, shimmering melodies crackling with the sort of pathos that Ela has made her recognisable trademark. It's a weighty journey, pitched aurally between Ghost Box records and a mournful classicism, drawing references from literature and autobiography.
Circles... is really without parallel in Orleans' discography, though its most obvious sister record, 2015's Upper Hell, gave some streamlined, carved-up hints at Circles Of Upper Hell's majesty. Orleans' previous work has always suggested threads, blurred ghost-ideas from an artist always growing. In 2016 Orleans has mastered her craft completely, never heavy-handed but deftly handling themes of loss, chaos, documenting personal journeys sometimes arduous with an ever-deeper understanding.
STAFF COMMENTS
Barry says: 24 tracks? Some short, some long... that would usually be a red light right there, but in this case, you'd be wrong. This is a cohesive and flowing collection, varied but with a similar ilk of instrumentation and drive. Electronic and percussive, but studded with acoustic elements. There are organs in there, pianos and guitar weaving through the fog of electric drone. On top of all that, vocals segue in and out, punctuating the chaos with divine melody. A skilled and meticulous construction of acoustics and electronics.next 100