World Of Echo is proud to announce the release of Fully Nowhere: a World Resources Archive, compiling material drawn from limited lathe 7” singles and LPs released by the Aotearoa/New Zealand label, World Resources, predominantly across the 1990s. Supplemented by previously unreleased archival recordings, and material drawn from recent sessions, it’s a revelatory listen, a judicious selection of drone, noise pop, fractured electronics and laminal improvisation from the small community of musicians surrounding the legendary Wellington free noise trio, Surface of the Earth, whose membership drove World Resources.

It’s music that hasn’t found its way into too many ears until now. The World Resources catalogue was both small in its number of releases, and miniscule in edition. The lathe-cuts they released, all made in a record cutting studio in the small Southern Alps town of Geraldine by DIY vinyl manufacturer Peter King, typically didn’t make their way beyond a tiny clutch of devoted collectors – if that. It took the re-release of Surface of the Earth’s 1995 double LP, firstly on CD by Bruce Russell’s Corpus Hermeticum, then again on Utech and finally on vinyl by Black Editions, to draw attention to the body of music made by the World Resources crew.

TRACK LISTING

1. Gorgecop - Quapa-Extension
2. Gorgecop - Slower Power
3. Gorgecop - Squid
4. Gorgecop - Strontium
5. Gorgecop - K-Group
6. Gorgecop - Section Across Europe
7. Lucky Stars - Winter Call
8. Lucky Stars - Nuclear Famine
9. Lucky Stars - Rushlights
10. Lucky Stars - Watch Your Step
11. Sewer - Smell of Man's Room
12. Sewer - Hospital
13. New Zealand Guitar Orchestra - The Bad Shed [Excerpt]
14. New Zealand Guitar Orchestra - Skoda [Excerpt]
15. Surface of the Earth - Shield
16. Surface of the Earth - Commandcom
17. Surface of the Earth - Visa 2
18. K-Group - Screen
19. K-Group - Cars and the Soft Network
20. Sewer - Vacuum
21. K-Group & Omit - Decodes
22. Sewer - Fuel
23. Surface of the Earth - Programme+
24. Surface of the Earth - 2.2
25. Destrifan - Sirens

Last year Reggae Archive Records teamed up with Rob Smith/RSD to release a hand-picked selection of his finest dubstep dub plates recorded between 2006 and 2011 with a very heavy reggae influence. Previously only possible to hear in person wherever Rob deejayed, the two limited edition pressing of the RSD vinyl LP 'Dubplate Archive' rapidly sold out and generated nothing but praise and positive feedback.

Even though Rob had paid particular attention to how heavy the cut was on the LP and made sure it wasn't lacking in bass response, we still received requests for the tracks to be released individually as singles. Having discussed it with Rob we've decided to test the market for individual singles with an initial release of 'Jah the Creator' coupled with a previously unreleased dub version that is exclusive to this release.

RSD 'Jah The Creator / Jah The Creator Dub' will be released as a limited edition vinyl 10" on Reggae Archive Records. In keeping with the minimalistic design approach employed on the album, this 10" also replicates the bare-bones label design of a dub plate cut to acetate.

TRACK LISTING

1. Jah The Creator
2. Jah The Creator Dub

Nia Archives returns with 'Emotional Junglist', an album about love – but not just the shimmering romantic parts. Written throughout 2025 – a year that saw Nia fall in, and horrifically back out of, love – each track will encompass something of the experience.

Marking her biggest sonic leap to date, her alt-jungle sound honed alongside James Ford (Arctic Monkey’s, Blur), Ethan P. Flynn (FKA Twigs, David Byrne) and Julia Michaels (Lady Gaga, Sabrina Carpenter), will see her flirt with everything from dewy-eyed indie pop and nineties electronica, underscored by the syncopated beats and thudding basslines of her jungle roots with a tracklist that features Jorja Smith and Sampha.

The motif for the album is a shell – tough on the outside, but through pressure, maturation and resilience, something precious is built within. Nodding to the female form, the spiral chamber also symbolizes growth and self-development.

TRACK LISTING

1. Feelingz Go Numb
2. Around Tha Bend
3. Danger
4. Vertical
5. This Could Be…
6. Dance With Me 2nite
7. Get Me Down (feat. Jorja Smith)
8. Train Of Thought
9. Superlust
10. There Goes Ma Head
11. Almost Always
12. Tender (feat. Sampha)
13. Tha Darkest Hour
14. Lovers Grief
15. Boys In Blue

"In 1959, when United Artists finally issued Blues in the Mississippi Night after years of deeming it “too controversial”, the artists recorded were given pseudonyms to protect their families. Those were the stakes for speaking such brutal, unvarnished truth. Today, we know that “Natchez, Sib & Leroy” were legendary bluesmen Big Bill Broonzy, Memphis Slim, and Sonny Boy Williamson.

In 1947 Alan Lomax recorded the three giants on a Presto-disc recording machine at Decca Studios in New York City after they had performed as part of his Midnight Special concert series at nearby Town Hall. Lomax asked them to play a few songs and discuss “the blues”, encouraging them to speak frankly about the inequities of black life in America. The result was Blues in the Mississippi Night, a landmark recording of their songs and stories, pinpointing the music’s origins in the blood, sweat, and tears of the African-Americans who inhabited the Mississippi Delta world of Jim Crow exploitation. Simply put, the recordings are stunning in their brutal honesty and spellbinding mastery.

Today, Lomax Archive has digitally remastered the original tapes of this historic recording in order to return it to vinyl for the first time since 1959. Included in the package is a 20 page deluxe booklet that contains a full transcription of the entire recording, plus brand new liner notes from Anna Lomax Wood and an introduction by renowned drummer and producer Steve Jordan (Rolling Stones, John Mayer). “I urge everyone that loves life and truth to listen to this recording”, says Jordan. When you listen to the words and music within, that becomes apparent quickly. This is an essential recording– a cornerstone to any blues fan’s record collection and an indisputable part of American history"

TRACK LISTING

1. Life is Like That
2. Conversation
3. Long Meter Hymn
4. Conversation
5. I Could Hear My Name
6. Conversation
7. Levee Camp
8. Stagolee
9. O'Berta
10. Conversation
11. Murderer's Home
12. Conversation
13. Don't You Hear Po' Mother
14. Conversation
15. Slow Lonesome Blues
16. Another Man Done Gone
17. Conversation Concludes
18. Fast Boogie
19. Black, Brown and White Blues"

3 CD Box Set of Cabaret Voltaire live recordings from 1982 and 1985. Live in Liverpool(1982),live in Sheffield(1982) and Live in Toronto(1985) . Cabaret Voltaire circa 1982 was kind of post Rough Trade,pre Some Bizarre / Virgin.Following on from and with the same line up as the successful dates in Japan(Tokyo,Osaka), resulting in the live album Hai, the 2 live recordings from 1982 on these CDs come from what was referred to as the 2x45 tour. The performances here are unique in that they show Cabaret Voltaire in a period of transition, following the departure of co founder Chris Watson, and had more studio recordings been made of this phase(see record 2 of 2x45) it could have well developed into something very different to the subsequent albums made during the Some Bizarre/Virgin period of 1983-1985. The recording from Toronto was the next to last date of a North American tour from April/May 1985. The Cabaret Voltaire live concerts of the 83-85 period were much more anarchic than the studio recordings and arguably just as interesting in their own way.

TRACK LISTING

CD1 - Live At Liverpool Warehouse
1.Eddies Back
2.Over And Over
3.This Is Entertainment
4.You Can See It
5.Gut Level
6.Diskono
7.Yashar(Version)
8.Walls Of Merseyside
9.Dv Edcay 2

CD2 - Live At Sheffield Lyceum
1.The Shadow
2.Over And Over
3. Gut Level
4.The Bells
5.Diskono
6.Walls Of Sheffield
7.Dv Decay 3

CD3 - Live At Toronto Concert Hall
1.Mao Musak Intro
2.Crackdown
3.Sensoria
4.Animation
5.Big Funk
6.Sleepwalking
7.Ghost Talk
8.Doin Time
9.Kino
10.Do Right
11.Strange Outro

Antal, founder of the Amsterdam-based Rush Hour Records & Store, curates a personal selection from the historic Timeless Jazz label. Antal is renowned for his global DJ touring and eclectic sets spanning house, techno, rare funk, soul, and jazz. For this compilation he handpicked highlights from 1974–1994 by jazz luminaries such as Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, Pharoah Sanders, Carter Jefferson, Gary Bartz, Woody Shaw, and more. “I want to thank the Wigt family for allowing me to dig deeper into their catalog to compile a selection of personal jazz favorites. Their passion for jazz and independent labels has inspired me as a DJ and record store owner. A great song is a great song, no matter when or where it was made,” Antal reflects. For this double album, Antal shares his love for modal and spiritual jazz, celebrating a pivotal era in jazz and creating a must-have for collectors, selectors, and new explorers.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. Pharoah Sanders - Moon Child
2. George Adams - City Of Peace
3. Ronnie Mathews Trio - Selena's Dance

Side B
1. Rodney Jones - Articulations
2. Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers - Oh By The Way
3. John Lee & Gerry Brown feat. Gary Bartz - Rise On

Side C
1. Joe Gilman feat. Joe Henderson - Non Compos Mentis
2. Joanne Brackeen - Haiti B
3. Woody Shaw & Tone Jansa Quartet - Boland

Side D
1. Carter Jefferson - Why
2. Pharoah Sanders - You've Got To Have Freedom

There are some artistic collaborations that are both unexpected and the fruits of that liaison very often fail to see the light of day. This was so nearly the case when it came to the Bristol and Zimbabwe collision that would be between former Bhundu Boys frontman, Biggie Tembo, and the sonic sculptors that were Startled Insects.

The experiment that would yield the tracks that make up the 'House of Stone' album came about after both Biggie and the group had left their respective band and label situations and needed a new way forward creatively. A totally inspired suggestion put the four individuals together, Biggie moved his family to Bristol from Harare to stay with one of the group, work commenced at the Insects studio and nine songs completed. After that, nothing happened.

Three decades later an opportunity was presented for the music to emerge from the vaults. Music curator Dave Massey had worked on a Startled Insects compilation album, heard the tracks and immediately contacted Bristol Archive Records owner, Mike Darby, to insist that this incredible melange of ideas to backgrounds had to be released!

Darby was moved by both the music and the back story to the making of this wonderful offering, to be released as a vinyl album and digitally. The record is both legacy for Bristol and for Zimbabwe. It would close a chapter for all concerned in its making as Biggie Tembo did not live to see his art be recognised. He died in 1995 as his own demons took him over. But nevertheless 'House of Stone' is a soaring tribute to his talent. How the album got made ties in with its importance.

As the group commented in an agile aside 'Having seen them play a number of times in Bristol, we knew the Bhundu Boys and liked them. But the prospect of a fruitful collaboration between a wacky postpunk artsy-fartsy bunch and a fairly middle of the road African "Jit" musician seemed a bit crazy.'

Further memories for the three Insects come thick and fast. 'We came up with a bizarre fusion of African and Western music styles. I remember Mike Darby thinking that this would be a 'world music' album but realizing that it transcended this categorization and would like to avoid the dreaded cultural appropriation scenario. The original idea behind 'Skin' (as a working title) was the idea that the colour of skin, black and white - English and African - was irrelevant to the making of the album. We were just four guys mucking around in the studio, writing and recording music.'

The eight tracks on the vinyl release take the listener on a journey between the veldts and urban sprawl of southern Africa, crashing with the drum and bass dexterity synonymous to the west of England capital, with adroit musicality that infuses every multi-faceted song.

The recordings include contributions from some of the crème de la crème of local musicians. Will Gregory is well known for his work with Tears for Fears, and on a longer-term basis in the extraordinary phenomenon that is Goldfrapp. Rob Merrill likewise has credits with Massive Attack and Roni Size & Reprazent.

Be prepared to be both soothed and confronted. This is deeply felt music, pushed by Biggie's own personal and political experiences and beliefs merging with three Brits who were equally open to new ideas and directions. The end result is a true find, a total gem which is both unique and universal. Take this wonderful travelogue into your life and make your own destination.

TRACK LISTING

1. Ndiwe
2. Patrice Lumumba
3. The Sun
4. Family Life
5. Rudo
6. House Of Stone
7. White Cow
8. The Curse Of Columbus 

During the 1980s the late Black Symbol was a massive supporter of reggae music in Birmingham's Handsworth community and thirty years later he offered Reggae Archive Records a similar level of support. Not only did he allow them to release his back catalogue and new music, he also introduced them to many other Birmingham artists with whom they went on to work with.

Sadly, we lost Black Symbol just over two years ago, with the support of his family, Reggae Archive have decided to reissue a classic and very in demand 12" single, 'Loving Jah / Everything Has Its Time'. Two unique and very spiritual slices of UK roots reggae at its best.

This great single barely sold upon release, not because of any lack of quality, but because Black Symbol's brothers and fellow band members had little option but to travel the country by bus and train with boxes of the record, trying get it stocked anywhere that would take it. Few copies made it to shops beyond Birmingham. The record had minimal self-distribution and the London based reggae industry mostly ignored Britain's second city, only being interested in promoting their own releases or in one case offering a pittance for the band's rights, an offer firmly rejected.

It may be a very rare record, but its quality meant that those in the know were soon trying to find themselves a copy, an often-futile task. The arrival of the internet barely made the search much easier with copies appearing infrequently averaging perhaps one copy showing up every two years or less. Inevitably the demand has seen prices climb with copies now fetching in excess of £200, assuming you can beat the competition and be first in the queue to purchase one.

Reggae Archive originally shared both tracks with a wider audience back in 2015 with their Black Symbol compilation album. If anything, that release created even more of a demand for the original 12" single with its extended mixes. Knowing that for many reggae fans it is the format of choice, Reggae Archive are pleased to be releasing a straight reissue of the original 12" as a fitting tribute to our great friend Black Symbol.

TRACK LISTING

1. Loving Jah
2. Everything Has Its Time

The name of Neil Davidge is more familiar for his seminal work with Massive Attack, the link with the dance grooves and adjustments of DNA and for film and TV music credits. By contrast the first half of the 1980's Bristol band Big Outdoor Type was an earlier pop-tinged project with a planet of rhythm thrown in.

Neil and his writing partner, vocalist Tracey Fuller, had managed to come up with something a little more sophisticated than much of the local fare usually on offer. Music journalist Dave Massey picked up on the band and reviewed them to a national readership for Sounds. After that, well nothing much happened. Fast forward some four decades and Massey was able to compile the 'Blue Eyed Boy' album for Bristol Archive Records, saying:
'I was hearing terrific tracks I'd not come across before. The overall quality was so high it was too good not to see the light of day. These tracks, along with a whole mass of home, four-track and Bristol demo studio produced works, have come together in a rather wonderful collection that was a delight to compile.'

Opening track 'Don't be a Stranger' is a beautiful blast of summery warmth. The next tracks are a blissful cross between Swing Out Sister's 'Breakout' and the woozy sway of Associates in 'Sulk' mode on 'Winters Cold', the jive swing of 'The Spell', while the haunting 'Incredible Shrinking Girl' and the later 'Follow Love' are songs that echo the classic Postcard era of Sound of Young Scotland with some southern sweetening. The more jangly angles of 'City of Hell' and spacious, sub psychedelic Latin lusciousness of 'Our Last Man in Brazil' take that process several dance steps further. There is also a hint of the filmic element that would later inform Neil Davidge's future career.

This album collection was for so long a lost possible classic that never was. That's not the case any longer. Dive right in, breathe the refreshing air, enjoy the view and feel the benefit of the great outdoors.

TRACK LISTING

1. Don't Be A Stranger
2. Winters Cold
3. The Spell
4. Incredible Shrinking Girl
5. The Secret
6. Casseybottom Stomp
7. Giants
8. Terrible Friend
9. City Of Hell
10. Follow Love
11. What Happens (Boy)
12. Blue Eyed Boy 

THIS IS A RECORD STORE DAY 2026 EXCLUSIVE, LIMITED TO ONE PER PERSON.

Initially curated as part of the Grammy-nominated Souvenir boxed set (2019), Archive Volume 1 provides a fascinating insight into the alternative creative process of one of the most successful synth-pop groups of all time at their most triumphant.

Six years after the first issue, it makes its vinyl debut. Maintaining OMD’s long tradition of supporting Record Store Day, it’s their ninth such release since 2013.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. Brand New Science
2. Dumbomb
3. Violin Piece
4. Untitled 2
5. Cut Me Down

Side B
1. Radio Swiss International
2. Untitled 3
3. Weekend
4. Organ Ditty
5. Unreleased Idea
6. Cajun Moon

Side C
1. Guitar Thrash
2. SMPTE
3. American Venus
4. Liberator
5. Ambient 1

Side D
1. Unused 1
2. Flamenco
3. Andy’s Song
4. Dynamo Children
5. Flutey
6. Nice Ending

Atef Swaitat (yarghul) and Abu Ali (lead vocals) are popular Bedouin wedding musicians continuing a long family tradition in Jenin and the north of historic Palestine. The album is comprised of immersive field recordings from weddings across the Galilee in the 1970s.

Copyright of Majazz Project / Palestinian Sound Archive

Created by Mo’min Swaitat

***
Over several years, Mo’min Swaitat has amassed an archive of rare tapes and vinyl from Palestine and beyond, spanning field recordings of weddings to revolutionary tracks and synth-heavy 80s funk. Many of these were acquired from a former record label in Jenin in the north of the West Bank. The Majazz Project is a research project borne out of the archive, focused around sampling, remixing and reissuing vintage Palestinian cassettes. It is a collaboration between Arab and non-Arab DJs, producers and artists interested in shedding new light on the richness and diversity of Palestinian musical heritage.

TRACK LISTING

A. Palestinian Psychedelic 1970s Dabka Archive
B. Palestinian Psychedelic 1970s Dabka Archive Pt.2

The beginning of the 1980s wasn't a great time to be young. Between 1979 and 1981 youth unemployment more than doubled to over 900,000. Many approaches were tried to tackle the problem and one of the more innovative was the Arts Opportunity Theatre a charity founded in Bristol by Reynold Duncan and Yvonne Deutschman. Financed by assorted public bodies, it aimed to train young people in a range of performing arts as well as the multiple skills needed to produce, organise and put on shows.

Over a seven year period the Arts Opportunity Theatre put on a succession of shows not only locally, but travelling as far as the Continent and trained hundreds of young people in everything from music to book keeping. People who passed through the collective would go on to form the core of many local bands and be involved in a large proportion of Bristol music releases, especially reggae.

The first show put on in 1981 and 1982 was "Freedom City" which prominently featured Zion Band. In May 1982 the Zion Band musicians from the show went into Right Track Studio in Bristol and recorded four vocals and two dubs that would be released the following January on a 12" single.

Back in 2011 Bristol Archive Records included 'Twelve Tribes' on a compilation and would later also compile 'Babylon Fire/Babylon Dub', but the other three tracks could only be found on the scarce original 12" which in recent years has rocketed in price fetching in excess of £150. We believe music should be affordable and available so 2026 will see Bristol Archive Records reissue the Zion Band 'Freedom City' 12" in it's entirety, complete with its original picture sleeve and insert with a limited pressing of 300 copies on black vinyl.

TRACK LISTING

1. Freedom City
2. Babylon Fire / Babylon Dub
3. Twelve Tribes / Twelve Tribes Dub
4. To See You Smile

'If You Wanna Laugh, You Gotta Cry Sometimes: Archives Vol. 3, 1972-1975' is yet another magical discovery from Georgia-born singer-songwriter and guitarist Robert Lester Folsom’s oeuvre of soft psychedelia and rural Southern rock n’ roll, written and recorded over fifty years ago yet prophetically relevant today. Born of lost summers, new love (and the breaks that follow), and hippie bluegrass shakes, these spirited takes to 4-track tape capture Folsom’s earliest wizardry. A prismatic window into a young artist finding their artistic footing, and a testament to why Folsom’s legacy burns bright to this day.

TRACK LISTING

1. I Don't Know
2. What Are You Thinking Of? 
3. Sitting On The Moon 
4. Mountain Air Rag 
5. Atlanta LaLa 
6. It's Raining Now Outside 
7. And God Made The Pine Trees, Too 
8. One More Song 
9. Burnt Carmine 
10. Gene Autry 
11. This Blue Eyed Boy 
12. Little Ditty 
13. I Want To Tell You 

Glass Minds is the follow-up to the band’s 2022 triple-album set, 'Call to Arms & Angels', which charted Top 10 in countries right across Europe and saw the band headline their biggest live shows to date, culminating at the 15,000 capacity Paris Accor Arena in November 2023.

Talking about the new album, Darius Keeler of Archive said: "The album all started after we composed the song 'Patterns'. We really loved the space and minimalistic power of the song, it reminded us of our debut album 'Londinium', and how we approached writing at that time - heavy rhythm with a melancholy that penetrates the soul. I was listening to Elgar’s Nimrod a lot at the time we started writing the new album, and I wanted to use brass as an added dimension, bringing even more emotion to the songs. Our last album, 'Call to Arms & Angels' was a pretty heavy record in retrospect, due to the whole Covid experience. This one feels like we’re breaking out into a more expansive and uplifting dimension."

TRACK LISTING

1. Broken Bits
2. Glass Minds
3. Patterns
4. Look At Us
5. When You’re This Down
6. So Far From Losing You
7. Wake Up Strange
8. City Walls
9. The Love The Light
10. Shine Out Power
11. Heads Are Gonna Roll
12. Where I Am

Rob Smith, RSD is not only a successful dubstep producer and pioneer of the Bristol sound, but also a very popular deejay travelling the world sharing his music. Coming from a reggae background and well-versed in sound system culture, Rob kept some of his best productions for his exclusive use when deejaying, the only way you would hear these gems was being played in one of Rob's sets. Fortunately, we've managed to persuade Rob to let Reggae Archive Records share these dubplate specials with a wider audience on a limited-edition vinyl LP. Compiled and sequenced in conjunction with Rob, the LP features nine tracks newly edited and mastered by Rob to enhance the bass playback on vinyl - it's cut heavy! The tracks were recorded between 2006 and 2011, a time when one strand of dubstep heavily embraced reggae and dub. Rob calls these tracks reggae infused dubstep and that's what they are, but Reggae Archive Records is a reggae label and this selection of dubstep tracks will most certainly appeal just as much to reggae and dub fans. Fusing dubstep beats, reggae samples, and seriously heavy basslines, this is a joyous celebration of musical cross fertilisation that has been tried and tested in clubs worldwide. In keeping with the dubplate origins of the tracks, we have designed the labels to replicate an old school acetate, while the sleeve pays tribute to seventies pre-releases albums with a replica stamp giving just the artist and title on a plain white sleeve with aged effect. 

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Ruthless selection of reggae inspired dubstep from Bristol legend and Grand Central alumni Rob Smith (Smith & Mighty) composed during arguably, the most fertile period of the genre.

TRACK LISTING

1. Bend Down & Prey
2. Babylonian
3. Bredrin
4. Jah The Creator
5. Do You Believe
6. Risking Dub
7. Jah Is My Light
8. Production Plan
9. Dub Kingdom

Nonna Fab's Movement and Soul Records delivers the second release on the newly formed imprint, and Fab's first ever album, 'Deeper Dance Archives'. Six tracks that bring influences from deep soulful house, broken beat, jazz and ambient soundscapes.

The album is an exploration into deeper sounds and rhythms, incorporating some music from the live tour as well as some fresh music suitable for dance floors and deeper listening sessions.

The opener 'Solstice City Dance' is an extended deep house track with driven 80's synthesisers, a lot of tape saturation, percussive drum rhythms and glimmering synth solos. 'Mizu No Kokoro' is a nod to Fab's love for jazz-dance. 'When The Light Gets In' is a peak-time, soulful house track with a huge driven organ solo that sits alongside the whole track.

The B side gets deeper with 'Point Of Inflection', a bouncy, warm percussive house track with a deep dubbed out guitar solo. 'Ebb & Flow' features vocalist / spoken word artist, Veronica Melkonian for the exclusive feature on the album, broken beat / nu-jazz paired with deep subs, balafon and piano. The album finishes off with 'Chasing Fog', an ambient excursion into depths of soundscapes; a walk in the rain.

Miche "A fearless fusion of electronic experimentation and jazz feeling...Nonna Fab delivers something deep, cinematic and full of soul - future-minded dance floor music with a feeling that moves between ambient warmth and club energy, a real journey that wouldn't feel out of place in New York or London"

Jeremy Underground "Really nice music and very well produced"

Volcov "Excellent project all the way through"

Moe El-Amin "Obsessed with this record - Groove driven deep house, tailor made for dancers"

TRACK LISTING

A1. Solstice City Dance
A2. Mizu No Kokoro
A3. When The Light Gets In
B1. Points Of Inflection
B2. Ebb & Flow
B3. Chasing Fog

Since the turn of this century, perhaps no other modern composition has had a more resonant healing effect than The Disintegration Loops. Composer William Basinski’s deteriorating analog tape loops evolved from melodic symphonies to melancholic silence over a span of time that uncannily turned passing minutes into pensive lifetimes. In her foreword for the new box set reissue of The Disintegration Loops, the pioneering multimedia storyteller Laurie Anderson describes the impact of this transformation in poetic detail: “These dissolving sounds, this emptying space, has gained my complete confidence. They are taking me somewhere. I am willingly following these sounds, becoming more and more transparent.” The Disintegration Loops – Arcadia Archive Edition is an expansive new box set that includes the entire 5-hour suite of iconic work. Newly remastered from the original recordings by Josh Bonati, the hefty package includes eight vinyl records (or four CDs for the less analog-inclined) in sturdy full-color jackets featuring the restored original artwork, and a new 1000-word foreword by Laurie Anderson – all housed in a striking heavyweight, case-wrapped box. It is the ideal encapsulation of one of the 21st century’s most truly transcendent works. As Anderson concludes in her foreword, “this music has created another world, a world to be carried away in.”

TRACK LISTING

1. Dlp 1.1 (1:03:35)
2. Dlp 2.1 (10:50)
3. Dlp 2.2 (32:41)
4. Dlp 3 (41:53)
5. Dlp 4 (20:12)
6. Dlp 5 (52:19)
7. Dlp 6 (40:32)
8. Dlp 1.2 (20:41)
9. Dlp 1.3 (12:02)

The funky, atmospheric, evocative and sometimes downright weird output of companies such as DeWolfe, Cavendish, Burton and the ubiquitous KPM have always been a guiding inspiration for ATA Records, as evidenced in the spooky soundtrack works of The Sorcerers, the big band brass of The Yorkshire Film & Television Orchestra and even in the soul-jazz of The Lewis Express ('Theme From The Watcher).

Everything released on ATA is written and guided by the label heads Neil Innes and Pete Williams, who frequently dip their toes in the Library pond while working on other projects. These occasional one-off tracks have accumulated over the past few years and have now found a home on the first volume of an ongoing series : The Library Archive

Ranging from heavy big band brass (Whack, Slap & Blow, Kaye Okay) to evocative thriller soundtrack (Midnight Heist, Wiretap, The Needlenose) via introspective ethereal soundscapes (Nuclear Wind, Siren's Sea) these 11 tracks faithfully recreate the feel of the Library music catalogues of the 60s and 70s.

TRACK LISTING

1 Slap, Whack And Blow
2 Duck Strut
3 The Needle Nose
4 Wiretap
5 Wigged Out
6 Nuclear Wind I
7 Kaye Okay
8 Siren's Sea
9 Midnight Heist
10 Nuclear Wind II
11 Planet Nine

Some bands come and go, others leave an impression so strong that even decades later, their songs feel like old friends you've just rediscovered. Crashland are one of those bands.Formed in the mid - 90s and quickly touted by NME as "Britain's best new band,"Crashland had everything: killer songs, a compelling live energy, and a frontman in Alex Troup whose melodic instincts and lyrical heart made him one of the most quietly gifted songwriters of his generation.

Spanning recordings from 2018 to 2025, 'Archive Vol. 1' is a curated collection of outtakes, alternate versions, and previously unreleased tracks that didn’t find a home on the band’s three studio albums. The band describes the project as “an album that came together almost by accident,” born from revisiting forgotten demos and half-finished ideas that, when assembled, revealed a cohesive and emotionally resonant body of work.

The album features 18 tracks, including fan-favourite live staples and experimental interludes.

With its blend of shoegaze textures, new wave energy, and introspective songwriting, 'Archive Vol. 1' offers a unique glimpse into the creative process behind Pale Blue Eyes’ evolving sound.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: I always think it can give you a good impression of a band if you listen to their outtakes as well as their LP's and this one really leaves me thinking 'why would you leave that off?' Ram-packed with moments of divine beauty. Mixed and mastered by Dean Honer.

TRACK LISTING

1. The Park
2. New Boots
3. Daisy
4. This House
5. Signify
6. Don’t Hurry Time

7. Believe It All
8. Records
9. How Long Is Now (Alt Version)
10. Loops
11. Not The End Of The World
12 Outro (Narcissist)

"Stiletti City Tape Archives" is the fourth Stiletti-Ana album, showing off the Finnish mastermind’s talent for making electronic music that’s immediately inviting while generously rewarding the focused listener. Following stand-out work for labels like Public Possession and Höga Nord – not to mention all sorts of odd jobs within the Sex Tags multiverse – Stiletti-Ana presents his latest offering: eight irresistible jams cooked up in the hallowed halls of Helsinki’s Haista II studio.

Here, vintage and modern synths join forces with live drums and the occasional robot-voiced interjection, resulting in a body of work that’s dazzlingly off-kilter, rich in detail and instantly addictive. The artist himself states: “I think the music has a sense of urgency which relates to city life. Still,
Stiletti City is a small and cozy place, a bit freaky and not gentrified.” Stockholm label Studio Barnhus is delighted to invite fellow travelers into this secret town – welcoming, full of auditory surprises and gleefully hallucinatory. 

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Intriguing sonic curio from the ever-intriguing Studio Barnhus who seem very adept at signing electronic artists with a degree of both production finesse and eccentric ingenuity.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Fifteen Steps To Fulfill The Dream
A2. Hang On A Minute
A3. Ai Jai Jai
A4. The Great Cloud Boogie
B1. Transformation
B2. Bermuda Beats
B3. Rytmos
B4. Crossing An End Of A Day In Thin Air

ATA Records go from strength to strength with their recent issues, Work Money Death’s 'People of the Fast Flowing River' and The Sorcerers’ 'Other Worlds and Habitats'. 2025 sees the release of the fourth volume of their regular soundtrack series, the Library Archives. An honest and forthright homage to the golden age of library recording, this new release is no exception – with nods to David Shire, Roger Webb, 60s/70s Hollywood, early anime and golden era video games.

Hammond & Farfisa organ, soul flute and vibraphone are joined by the Baldwin electric harpsichord, alto flute and trumpet, all colouring the usual high-end rhythm section of drums and bongos, electric bass, piano and guitars. Moods range from the dynamic The Galata Extraction to the whimsical Travers and the romantic Redford in Sheepskin, from the brooding Tatsuya, the Sword to the sensual Dunaway’s Eyes. Walter in Gabardine and Sutherland fly the ATA library flag of 70s-era NYC soundtracks – and both A Dilemma for Holbrook and Roundtree are drenched in soul flute so funky, it should be on the cheese counter.

Now four volumes (and a couple of singles) in, The Library Archive will eventually stand as a testament to the love the ATA producers and artists have for the original composers and performers of the great music libraries of the past.

TRACK LISTING

1. The Galata Extraction
2. Walter In Gabardine
3. Roundtree
4. Travers Popping
5. Kien With The Iron Claw
6. Dunaway’s Eyes
7. A Dilemma For Holbrook
8. Redford In Sheepskin
9. Tatsuya, The Sword
10. Greer’s Long Weekend
11. Sutherland
12. The Two Akiras

A Treasure Trove of NYC Post-Disco Gems from 1980–1983

New York City, early 1980s. Post-Disco and Boogie Funk pulse through the streets, clubs, and studios—and Richie Weeks stands at the heart of it all. A true force in the scene, Richie had just dropped the now-classic “Rock Your World” in 1981. Signed to the iconic Salsoul Records, he was riding high: performing at legendary venues like Paradise Garage, Studio 54, Roseland, and Bond International, touring Europe, and recording tirelessly with top-tier vocalists and musicians in studios across the city.

With his projects The Jammers and Weeks & Co. storming the charts both in the U.S. and abroad, Richie was unstoppable. Fueled by a relentless creative drive, he spent countless hours in the studio—writing, arranging, and producing a massive catalog of dancefloor anthems, many of which never saw release. Until now.

Jerome Derradji and Past Due Records are proud to present Richie Weeks – The Love Magician Archives: Boogie & Post Disco. NYC 1980–1983 Vol. 3, the third installment from Richie’s personal archive. Spanning 1980 to 1983, this collection features eight electrifying, previously unreleased tracks from The Jammers and Weeks & Co., as well as the futuristic grooves of Kaviar and Hot Cargo. Richie shines through the entire record—his writing, production, vocals, and arrangements are absolute killers.

Housed in a deluxe double LP package with an insert featuring the second chapter of Richie’s musical journey—penned by Jerome Derradji—this volume is a vital piece of New York’s post-disco history.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Hot Cargo - If You Were Mine (Version 2)
A2. Weeks & Co. - Rockin’ It In The Pocket (Instrumental)
B1. Hot Cargo - What's In It For Me (Short Mix)
B2. The Jammers - Out To Get You (Demo)
C1. Kaviar - Love Robots (Version 2)
C2. Weeks & Co - Knock Knock (Demo)
D1. The Jammers - Flaunt It
D2. The Jammers - Dance 2000

In the annals of Bristol music history Glaxo Babies could have a book and a zone of greatness all of their own. Singles and EP's such as 'Christine Keeler' and 'This Is Your Life', along with the seminal 'Avon Calling' compilation John Peel recorded session version of 'It's Irrational', stormed the zeitgeist of late 70's, early 80's UK post punk.

Four decades on, in 2025, another great leap forward brings the story to a stunning new destination with the vinyl and digital release on Bristol Archive Records in conjunction with their own imprint Liberated Sound Development of 'Men of Stone', the band's first new album in some forty years.It's a major chapter telling of reinvention, restructuring and in no way taking stock. For this missive the Glaxo's use not one, but two new vocalists adding their own voice to a collection of songs mainly written by long-time Glaxonian and original guitarist, Dan Catsis. Dan was also a massive part of nationally recognised Bristol luminaries, The Pop Group and Maximum Joy.

Other Bristol notables come into the new material's mix with Steve Bush, main-man of former NME faves Essential Bop, contributing lyrics to the darkness descends vibe of second side opener 'I Don't Want to be Loved', while Massive Attack producer and collaborator Neil Davidge adds a sonic sound-bed sheen to the track. Two of the new band members have an important Bristol back story. Bassist Steve Street was a centre-piece of studio recording at his SAM set-up in the city, and drummer Jamie Hill played with early Nellee Hooper/later Roni Size drummer linked percussion powerhouse outfit Mouth and later with ex Pop Group/Cortinas/Clash driven Virgin 80's act Head.

'Men of Stone' is a record that nestles right in there with Glaxo's earlier classics. It distils their past and present with plenty of other new goodies and angles to appreciate. You know it's going to play a blinder from the full on, visceral thrill guitar attack of opening track 'Living the Dream'. This is side-bar alt-rock heaven, a heady blend of classic LA howling blackout in a red room street love and hate meeting grunge in a dark alleyway. This album is so relevant that the pleasure of it almost hurts. Let it bleed into you.

TRACK LISTING

1. Living The Dream
2. Waiting For Something
3. Give Me
4. Anymore
5. Drifting
6. I Don't Want To Be Loved (Remix)
7. Stop Me Now
8. Men Of Stone
9. Change Is Forever

This album is pure, concentrated, 100% vintage Bristol Sound at its best. For those of us who were here, and even for those who weren't, it's a time portal back to those lazy days of late eighties Bristol when this music was radical and new, and we had the joy of hearing each of these tunes for the very first time. You reach a certain age and it's easy to reminisce through rose-tinted glasses. That's not the case here - we knew these were special the first time we heard them. Nearly forty years later, many, many people have followed their blueprint, and these originals have only grown in stature.

It's now six decades since Dionne Warwick went into a New York studio to record her million-selling versions of "Anyone Who Had A Heart" and "Walk On By". Demonstrating admirable confidence, our Bristolian heroes tackled the brace of Bacharach and David classics - only instead of the luxury surrounding of New York's Bell Sound Studios; populated with the cream of New York session musicians, they had a tiny studio on Ashley Road with basic equipment and no budget. They may have been short of funds and equipment, but they had an abundance of ideas and talent. "Walk On" starts off pretty straight, Jackie Jackson singing the hook over for 22 seconds then everything changes as the beats and bass line usher in the future of Bristol music. Just listen to all the ideas that are crammed into just over four minutes as Dionne's beloved pop/soul classic, is turned inside out and reinvented as cutting-edge dance music.

The first of the pair that was released is even more direct, "Anyone" jumps straight into reshaping expectations and the future of music with an instant assault of beats and bass line. "This Is The Time" takes "Anyone" and turns it into a raw hip hop outing; hip hop with a British, Bristolian twist. We close out Side A with "Mix Me Down Maestro" another more polished hip hop outing showcasing the lyrical talents of M.C. Kelz and the scratching talents of Lynx, it also features the reggae influence, so synonymous with Bristol's music.

If side A focuses on vocals, Side B kicks off all about the beats, and bass with vocals reduced to snippets and samples, sharp, hard repetitive beats with bass lines that will swallow you up like a tsunami depositing you on a strange new shore a few minutes later. "Clash Of The Beats," Killa," and "Different Chapter", tough tunes then and tough tunes now. Rob's former bandmate in Restriction, Eric "The General" McCarthy gives us the most obviously reggae-influenced selection, complete with "No, No, No" vocal sample with "Time To Rhyme", a nice change of pace before rounding things off and travelling almost full circle with the always popular "Walk On (Mellow Mix)".

With money tight Three Stripe focussed on releasing singles that could recoup costs quickly, yet both this title and our previous album of unreleased material "Connected Sequences" amply demonstrate how easily Smith and Mighty could have pre-empted both their peers and the many who followed in their footsteps with a strong, coherent, and cutting-edge album as early as 1989. It's intriguing to speculate what may have happened if that path had been taken, for now we present this as both a compilation of essential singles that have more than stood the test of time and a "what if" album that could have been released in 1989.

TRACK LISTING

Side A:
1. Walk On
2. Anyone
3. This Is The Time
4. Mix Me Down Maestro
5. Brain Scan
Side B:
1. Clash Of The Beats (Instrumental)
2. Killa
3. Different Chapter
4. Time To Rhyme Featuring The General
5. Walk On (Mellow Mix)

Fresh off the worldwide success of 'Natural Brown Prom Queen', Sudan Archives levelled up, evolving from a hands-on DIY artist to executive producer of her third album – her most ambitious record to date.

Recorded in Los Angeles, Chicago, and Detroit, 'THE BPM' is this innovative artist’s most club-forward music yet, with Sudan Archives taking a dancefloor-ready approach to her unique brand of violin-infused music.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Sudan Archives' unique brand of rhythmic, violin-led staccatoed soul hits the dancefloor for a souped-up electronic reimagination of her core sound. Bracing and rhythm-led but with breaks of rhythm and modern production tricks abound.

TRACK LISTING

1. DEAD
2. COME AND FIND YOU
3. YEA YEA YEA
4. TOUCH ME
5. A BUG'S LIFE
6. THE NATURE OF POWER
7. MY TYPE
8. SHE'S GOT PAIN
9. DAVID & GOLIATH
10. A COMPUTER LOVE
11. THE BPM
12. MS. PAC MAN
13. LOS CINCI
14. NOIRE
15. HEAVEN KNOWS

It takes something special to change someone's life and plot a course for it. It was a new age for an 18 year old Alan Griffiths when he experienced the Television and Blondie gig at Bristol's then Colston Hall in 1978. He even gave his first 'serious' band an American style name - Apartment. It would link into the motives behind this and his second group, also based in Bristol. This was to be The Escape. That escape through his music was away from suburban mundanity and that of his day job.

Bristol Archive Records have decided to celebrate his musical life, seven years on from his death in 2017. This is in the form of a 'Sound Clash' between the two bands which shows an artistic journey starting in the era of punk, through new Wave and into the early 80's post-punk period.

In keeping with the punk/New Wave ethos that drove the three-piece Apartment, their featured tracks on the Clash have some rawness and edge. All of the songs show off a lyrical directness and vivacity which is backed up by the playing. 'New Age' blasts out of the blocks in a flurry of angled attack that viscerally thrills. 'Living Like This' has that similar energy, in this case from the adrenalin of a scorching live show. This is a glorious snapshot in time of a band on very much top form.

Alan's absorption of the Nuggets anthologies of late 60's and early 70's American psychedelia and general out there weirdness found their way into a song like 'Distractions'. This fused with a shot by both sides shake of New York explorations of the likes of Television, as the ringing guitar lines zing their way into your ears. Poison is a narcotic dream but without the drug taking - the band was never into that. But there is a lysergic launch that hits when the mid-section soars away taking the listener with it.

'Broken Glass' is a true epic and one of the centre-pieces of an Apartment gig. Alan recorded more than one version of this song, but this take replete with slashing Verlaine and Lloyd flavoured guitar, the Billy Ficca feel drumming and the full range of teenage angst in Alan's voice tells the full melodrama brilliantly. The whole vibe is of CBGB's in New York, a club that Alan had never been to and would only get to visit many years later. But he had been there 'in his head'. 'Broken Glass' was Apartment's very own Marquee Moon.

If a musical genre's or group's period of prominence could be a matter of months or a couple of years, then the chance to make an impact could be less than '24 Hours'. This London recorded attempt by The Escape at laying down their Comsat Angels/Killing Joke driven groove works a treat. Bassist Stuart Morgan and drummer Emil, who had followed Alan from Apartment into this new trio, lock everything down, as they do on the follow-up, 'Truth Drug'.

'Eden' and 'Relapse Collapse' were more London session productions and also songs toured extensively. The band used this recording as the backing for making a video of 'Eden', appropriately filmed at Ashton Court mansion, to the west of Bristol, for the BBC 'yoof' programme The Oxford Show in 1982/3. The later Bath superstars Tears for Fears were on the same edition and would become Phonogram label mates as well as a future working option for Alan. Stuart would later go on to work with U2.

'Relapse' and another meat grinder of a tune 'Flowers in the Dark' were typically set in the darker corners that The Escape loved to explore. The muscular 'Difference Between' is the one home recorded Escape offering, highlighting how much Alan's prowess at nailing a demo had moved on. Difference was one of the quartet of songs that comprised the collection that secured an eventual recording deal with Phonogram.

That pre major label period has however been captured perfectly in the sizzling sextet of goodies on this side. The band's sizeable recorded legacy of demos and sessions is one that stands tall and stands proud, as does that of Apartment.

TRACK LISTING

1. Apartment - New Age
2. Apartment - Distractions
3. Apartment - Poison
4. Apartment - Living Like This (Live)
5. Apartment - Broken Glass
6. The Escape - 24 Hours
7. The Escape - Truth Drug
8. The Escape - Flowers In The Dark
9. The Escape - The Difference Between
10. The Escape - Eden
11. The Escape - Relapse Collapse

Since the 1940s, Library Music has lurked in the shadows, peripherally touching our lives through TV and film. Among the stalwarts of the industry was UK's Studio G, with cues heard on Doctor Who, and sampled by the likes of The Chemical Brothers, and Tyler, the Creator. Jazz Dispensary's Dream a Dream with Studio G: Cratedigger's Archive (1970–2009) culls some of their most sought-after cuts, with liner note commentary from Saint Etienne’s Bob Stanley, and illustrations by Ivan Minsloff.

Deluxe 2LP Edition of Terry Hall’s second solo album pressed on Red Vinyl exclusively for Dinked. Includes the singles ‘Ballad of a Landlord’ and ’I Saw the Light’.

Features an alternate sleeve and includes new liner notes by journalist Pete Paphides, including reflections from Damon Albarn, Ian Broudie and Stephen Duffy.

Originally released in 1997 on the Southsea Bubble Company label, Terry Hall's Laugh, followed his acclaimed debut with a blend of wit, melancholy, and melody that marked him as one of Britain’s most distinctive voices.

Much of Laugh was co-written with former Smiths guitarist Craig Gannon, with further collaborations from a stellar cast including Stephen Duffy, Sean O'Hagan (The High Llamas), and Damon Albarn of Blur—who had previously worked with Hall on his 1995 Rainbows EP. The album was produced by Hall himself, alongside Gannon and Cenzo Townshend, and has since gained cult status for its sharp songwriting and intimate, understated arrangements.

This special edition expands Laugh across two discs:
Disc One: The original studio album, newly mastered by Phil Kinrade at AIR Studios.
Disc Two: B-sides, live recordings, and acoustic versions—all appearing on vinyl for the first time.

STAFF COMMENTS

Laura says: This second solo LP from Terry Hall is an absolute gem. As with his debut, Home, it's a collection of witty, melancholic pop songs, delivered in his own inimitable style. It also includes a cover of Ted Rundgren's "I Saw The Light" (IMO better than the original!) And being a Dinked Edition it's beautifully packaged with a bonus disc of added extras too.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
Love To See You
Sonny And His Sister
Ballad Of A Landlord
Take It Forever
Misty Water

Side B
A Room Full Of Nothing
Happy Go Lucky
For The Girl
Summer Follows Spring
I Saw The Light

Side C
Ballad Of A Landlord (Acoustic Version)
Working Class Hero (Live)
Close To You
Music To Watch Girls By

Side D
Bang Went Forever
Love To See You (Acoustic Version)
Misty Water (Acoustic Version)

Lost and unreleased works. Although other acts would be the ones to see huge worldwide success with the Bristol Sound the combination of reggae infused basslines, elements of hip hop, female and male vocals and a laid-back tempo were pioneered on Ashley Road, St. Paul's at the Three Stripe studio by Rob Smith and Ray Mighty.

Gary Bartz (alto & soprano sax, vocals) - Charles Mims (piano, syntheziser) - Curtis Robertson (electric bass, back vocals) - Howard King (drums). A fantastic live recorded in Bremen on 8th November 1975 set from reedman Gary Bartz – captured here with his ultra-hip NTU group – who you might know from their classic albums on Milestone in the 70s! 1 hour and 46 minutes of free and spiritual jazz.

TRACK LISTING

1. Nation Time (Live)
2. Ju Ju Man (Live)
3. Medley: Rise / Celestial Blues / The Sounding Song / Incident / Uhuru Saga (Live)
4. Peace And Love (Live)
5. Sifa Zote (Live)
6. I've Known Rivers (Live)
7. Sweet Tooth

A new vinyl album from Nat Birchall, this is the Dub version of his Dimension of the Drums LP, a roots reggae instrumental set that was very enthusiastically received last year, ending up on many best Of The Year lists.

For this album Nat has remixed the tracks in classic early to mid - 1970s style. Inspired by the classic Dub LPs like Keith Hudson’s ‘Pick A Dub’ and Winston Edwards’ ‘King Tubby Meets The Upsetter at the Grass Roots of Dub’ the tracks have been reimagined in Roots Dub fashion, some with new horn lines and all with hand drums, giving the album a very authentic Rootsy sound. Additionally there are two different mixes of a new rhythm track that wasn’t on the previous album.

Once again Nat plays all the instruments and did all the recording, mixing and mastering.

Drums in Dub features eight tracks of instrumental Dub delight, specially designed for the 1970s Dub connoisseur. 

TRACK LISTING

1 Jungle Trek
2 Further Shores
3 Bongo Man Dub
4 Solomon Dub
5 Eastern Dub
6 Sahara Dub
7 Granby Street Rock
8 Sheba Dub

DAYBREAKERS, a new London based label focusing on the deepest of deep house, from classics to rarities, dubs, hits & b sides.

First up for the label is a focus on Jeffrey Collins’ Music Station label from Englewood, New Jersey. Music Station was a staple on dancefloors across the USA in the 90s. This EP selects four of the best from the label.

The A Side has Mixes of Elaine Monk’s - Something For Nothing, mixes so good we had to include them both. On the Flip, the Club Dub of Cherie Lee’s 'Love Me Or Leave Me' will keep the dancefloor rolling, and then B2 is the Smack Rain Vibe Mix of Gerideau’s 'Take A Stand', a deeper than deep anthem perfect for any discerning red lit basement full of dancers.

Don't miss out, buy or cry.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Elaine Monk - Something For Nothing (Vocal Mix)
A2. Elaine Monk - Something For Nothing (D.A.P. Dub Mix)
B1. Cherie Lee - Love Me Or Leave Me (Club Dub)
B2. Gerideau - Take A Stand (Smack Rain Vibe Mix)

There has always been a broad picture of the scope of music that has come out of the Bristol and Bath areas. It may surprise observers that some of that heady creativity included the more commercial end of straight up pop music.Did it lead anywhere, or have any merit? Were they, the acts, any good? Did they get any exposure and recognition? In the end the 18 tracks on the CD and 11 on the vinyl editions of the compilation do the 'talking'. It's a treasure trove of glorious commercial, but savvy and sexy pop music. Get into the groove of this wonderful west of England sonic pleasure feast!

With the new acido 038, Budde & Osti from 100 Records present almost a small sample library, which they have called their "experimental playground" - in order to offer listeners an additional listening perspective that allows an insight into their work. A jazz and house-heavy six-track with the experimental highlights of the Trash Archives - a collection of 99 pieces that can be freely downloaded from Bandcamp. All pieces were recorded live in the studio using largely analogue equipment and masterfully mastered here by Mike Grinser.

TRACK LISTING

A1. 40
A2. 13
A3. 36
B1 74
B2. 30
B3. 57

Bristol Archive present an album of the cream of Bristol's 1980s 'Goth' scene. With sleeve notes from Pete Webb; a member of one of Bristol's earliest Goth bands; Necromancy, quotes from Jon Klein of Specimen and in beautiful trans red vinyl. This is another hugely valuable document of the music and scene in Bristol and the Southwest.

The Bristol Goth Explosion was a key part of the growth of the whole scene in the UK in many ways. Two bands on this compilation were formed in 1981: Specimen and Necromancy. Specimen made the move to London in 1982 and started the Batcave club now synonymous with the Goth story. The other; Necromancy stayed in Bristol and played and partied at the Bastille Club, a similar club to the Batcave, but a hidden and less known transgressive den for the emerging Gothic Punk scene. The Bastille was infamous; you saw Quentin Crisp partying there, Friar Tuck locked in a dancer's cage, Stan the Man a guy in yellow speedos on roller skates gliding around the dance floor and a 70-year-old regular flashing her knickers whilst doing the Can-Can! Members of The Cure, Bauhaus and Echo and the Bunnymen passed through the club and Bristol's beautifully preened punks waltzed to the Blue Danube by Strauss one minute and Bauhaus the next.

The Bastille run by David Darling was a meeting point, party scene and the one part of the musical glue that tied these bands together. This album features Specimen, Claytown Troupe, Fear of Darkness, Necromancy, Temple, Exit Stance and The Long March many of whom frequented the Bastille. It is an album that represents the darker side of Punk and Post Punk and then the scene that became known as Goth, but it represents the variety of musical influences and styles that were involved in those scenes.

The album is dedicated to the key people, clubs and venues that contributed to its flourishing; the Bastille and its founder David Darling, music journalist Dave Massey (NME, Sounds) who supported and wrote about this scene in the mainstream and local music press at the time, the members of these bands and the people who went to the gigs and the clubs and who travelled the country looking and dressing in an incredible way. Another project instigated by Mike Darby and the wonderful Bristol Archive Records.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. Specimen - Stand Up Stand Out
2. Fear Of Darkness - Lay Me Down
3. Temple - Book Of Dreams
4. Temple - Spine
5. Exit Stance - Conspiracy Of Silence

Side B
1. Claytown Troupe - Prayer
2. The Long March - Weakness
3. Necromancy - Waltzing
4. Necromancy - Save Your Praise
5. Exit Stance - Esthetics

Bristol is a city that has managed to not only surprise the wider world with its output but has managed to do the same to the citizens of the place. The 1980's was a decade that personified that aspect to music making out west and the second volume of the Bristol Post-Punk Explosion has managed to capture the vibe to perfection. Feat tracks from Electric Guitars, Essential Bop, Art Objects, Moskow and more.

Archive is a compilation album composed of early tracks by the band recorded from 1977 to 1979. The tracks were compiled from Cardiacs' demo albums The Obvious Identity (1980) and Toy World (1981), as well as three pieces recorded by Tim Smith and Dominic Luckman for a side project The album was originally released on cassette in 1989 exclusively available to the Cardiacs Yousletter Family and was reissued on CD in 1995. Cardiacs are an English rock band formed in Kingston upon Thames by Tim Smith (guitar and lead vocals) and his brother Jim (bass, backing vocals) in 1977 under the name Cardiac Arrest. One of Britain's leading cult rock bands, Cardiacs' sound folded in genres including art rock, progressive rock, art punk, post-punk, jazz, psychedelia and heavy metal (as well as elements of circus, baroque pop, medieval music, nursery rhymes and sea shanties), all of which was topped by Smith's anarchic vocals and impressionistic lyrics. Their bizarre sound and image made them unpopular with the press, but they amassed a devoted following Tim Smith was the primary lyricist, noted for his complex and innovative compositional style. He and his brother were the only constant members in the band's regularly changing lineup. The band created their own indie label, the Alphabet Business Concern, in 1984 and found mainstream exposure with the single "Is This the Life?" from their debut album A Little Man and a House and the Whole World Window (1988). Their second album, On Land and in the Sea (1989), was followed by Heaven Born and Ever Bright (1992), which displayed a harder edged, metal-leaning sound retained in the subsequent albums Sing to God (1996) and Guns (1999). Tim Smith was hospitalised with dystonia resulting from a cardiac arrest in 2008, which brought increased and belated critical recognition to Cardiacs, with several music outlets calling Sing to God a masterpiece.

TRACK LISTING

1. Aukamacic
2. Icky Qualms
3. Piffol Four Times
4. Scratching Crawling Scrawling
5. As Cold As Can Be In An English Sea
6. T.V.T.V.
7. My Trade Mark
8. The Obvious Identity
9. Piffol One Time
10. A Game For Bertie's Party
11. Piffol Three Times
12. Rock Around The Clock

When punk rock started to fizzle out many of the UK's disaffected youths had already moved sideways into Modernism and fell in love with The Jam. Inspired by Paul Weller's song writing skills Thin Air started out life as Out of Order and supported The Jam at the Bristol Locarno in 1980 (on the day of John Lennon's death), Thin Air were never an authentic Mod band appealing to a strictly Mod audience, they were a Jam influenced, power pop outfit concentrating on writing edgy yet commercial, catchy pop rock music. Enjoy the sound of the underground 42 years later than you should have.

It's fair to say that the inclusion of Iganda's sole 7" single "Mark Of Slavery" / "Slow Down" spread across the first two volumes of the "Midlands roots explosion" series, has not only greatly raised the profile of the band, but also sent the price of the original release through the roof.

TRACK LISTING

Mark Of Slavery
Slow Down

We are delighted to bring you the follow up to the successful 'The Bristol Punk Explosion (1977-1979) album released in November 2023 - a twelve-track compilation entitled 'The Bristol Punk Explosion Vol 2 (1977-1981).'The sleeve notes are written by Tim Williams author of the 1977 Loaded Fanzine. Tim talks about the transition from Soul to Punk, the demise of Prog Rock and the fashion culture that sat seamlessly alongside the music. There are three previously unreleased tracks never before available on vinyl.

The Cortinas were the first. They played the Roxy Club, released two singles on Mark Perry and Miles Copeland's Step Forward label, graced the front cover of Sniffin' Glue and recorded a Peel Session. Taking their cue, bands like Social Security (the first band on Heartbeat Records), The Pigs (whose 'Youthanasia' single was released by Miles Copeland's New Bristol Records), The Media, 48 Hours and Private Dicks gave Bristol one of the strongest provincial early punk scenes.

The area of Barton Hill gave us The X-Certs, who by 1978 could already pull audiences of five hundred into Trinity Hall. Though we did not realise it at the time, they effectively bridged the gap between the late 70s Bristol scene and what our American cousins like to term the UK82 bands.

In time bands from the suburbs of Bristol started to appear on the scene, Misdemeanor (who were managed by the late Dennis Sheehan U2's tour manager for thirty plus years), Apartment from Downend (whose photo adorns the front cover) and Noiz Boiz from Weston Super Mare, the seaside town just down the road.

This compilation is designed to give all fans of Punk a snapshot of what Bristol Punk was all about during that period. We close side Two of the album with The X-Certs Clash infused /reggae single 'Together' and follow it with one of Bristol finest Roots reggae bands Talisman and their single 'Wicked Dem'. The punky/reggae party had truly started as we move into the 80's Bristol Stylee! Bristol Boys Make More Noise! 

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. The Cortinas - Fascist Dictator
2. The Media - Wanna Be A Number
3. The Pigs - Psychopath
4. Private Dicks - She Said Go
5. Misdemeanor - Radio Radio
6. The X-Certs - Queen And Country

Side 2
1. Apartment - The Car
2. 48 Hours - Train To Brighton
3. Noiz Boiz - Noiz Boiz
4. Social Security - Stella's Got A Fella
5. The X-Certs - Together
6. Talisman - Wicked Dem

From the ' Sounds of North American Frogs' to ' Speech After the Removal of the Larynx' , Folkways documented the audible nooks and crannies of existence on hundreds of LPs produced by field recordists, scientists, and experimentalists probing the margins of the human soundscape. Seventy- five years later, electronic music duo Matmos have diced, looped, stretched, and recontextualized these recordings on their new album ' Return to Archive' , which was assembled entirely from the so-called non-musical sounds released on Folkways. On just the album's first track, dolphins, beetles, telephones, humans stretching the limits of their vocal cords, a shortwave radio, and metal balers co-mingle in a fantasia of sound both everyday and extraordinary. Each track on Return to Archive morphs its source material into something completely unexpected, honoring and expanding on Folkways' legacy of sonic exploration. Featuring Evicshen and Aaron Dilloway.

TRACK LISTING

1. Good Morning Electronics
2. Injection Basic Sound
3. Mud- Dauber Wasp
4. Music Or Noise?
5. Why?
6. Lend Me Your Ears
7. Return To Archive
8. The Way Japanese Beetles Sound To A Rose
9. Going To Sleep

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

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

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

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

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

TRACK LISTING

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

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

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

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

Nia Archives is not interested in being one fixed thing. Since emerging in 2020, the 24-year-old producer, DJ, singer and songwriter has been at the forefront of the latest era of jungle. The Bradford-born, Leeds-raised artist has garnered accolades including placing third in the prestigious BBC Sound Poll for 2023, alongside a nomination for the Brit Awards’ Rising Star prize, plus wins at the DJ Mag, NME, the MOBOs and Artist and Manager Awards. She has also toured the world – be it North America, Europe or Asia – and even opened a show in London as part of a little something called Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour. She’s renowned as a party-starter in her own right, too, with takeovers at Glastonbury, Warehouse Project and her own Bad Gyalz day event. She’s done official remixes for the likes of Jorja Smith, had a huge summer hit with her Yeah Yeah Yeahs rework ‘Off Wiv Ya Headz’, and worked with brands like Corteiz, Nike, Flannels, Burberry, FIFA and Apple. In just three years, it’s fair to say that Nia Archives has become a need-to-know name in dance music.

On Silence Is Loud, her much-anticipated debut album, Nia Archives sounds thrillingly free as she looks to make music for beyond the rave. Working with Ethan P. Flynn (known for his work with FKA twigs and David Byrne) Nia is intent that Silence Is Loud is taken in as a full body of work of something “more song-focussed, putting interesting sounds on jungle.” It means that this is a record which finds gloomy Britpop, warm Motown, soaring indie, a love for Kings of Leon’s Aha Shake Heartbreak, skittering IDM, Madchester, classic rock, old skool hardcore and more, woven and fused into her ragga and junglist tapestry, all layered with feeling, imbued with her songwriterly lyricism about loneliness, relationships, family, navigating her 20s, and the intense potential power of silence.

Sitting in the push and pull between melancholy and euphoria, Nia’s work is always a snapshot of where she’s at when she’s making it. This might not be the debut album you were expecting, but that’s what makes Silence Is Loud so special. Nia Archives has learned the rules of her sound, and is unafraid to break them, pushing jungle and herself into new, unchartered territories that, in turn, go some way to map the history of the greats of British dance music. More than that, it plants her firmly in that lineage.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: 'Silence Is Loud' sees the brilliant Nia Archives flawlessly pulling together soul, jungle and synth-pop influences into a distinctly after-party flavoured groove thats both hugely enjoyable and undeniably skilled. A ground-breaking and hugely enjoyable debut from one of the biggest upcoming names in UK dance music.

TRACK LISTING

Silence Is Loud
Cards On The Table
Unfinished Business
Crowded Roomz
Forbidden Feelingz
Blind Devotion
Tell Me What It’s Like?
Nightmares
F.A.M.I.L.Y
Out Of Options
Silence Is Loud (Reprise)
Killjoy !
So Tell Me…

This album covers the period 1979 to 1987 and features 14 tracks.

When punk rock started to fizzle out and Squat Punks started to appear on the streets, many of the UK's disaffected youths had already moved sideways into Modernism and fell in love with bands like The Jam, Secret Affair, The Purple Hearts, The Lambrettas and The Chords but lets also remember our love for The Beat, Madness and The Specials.

The West Country embraced the scene and produced its own authentic Mod bands like The Reaction, Mayfair and The Newbeats. Alo features The Rimshots, The Review and more

The start of a musician's career is not only an intriguing collection of what happened, but maybe even more important is a gaze into what their future might hold. With musical artist Neil Young, Archives Vol. I: 1963-1972 offers the sounds of his first decade, but just as importantly holds a light on the future of what's to come. Young's world of sound and spirit remains a never-ending adventure. It starts here.

Neil Young Archives Vol. I: 1963-1972 is the first in a series of archival box sets encompassing Young’s entire career. Vol. I was originally released on June 2, 2009, in three formats: A 10-disc deluxe edition in either Blu-ray or DVD and an 8-disc CD box.

Out of print for over a decade, the 8-CD box set is now being re-issued in its original format – housed in the “Garypak”, a unique package designed by Young’s long-time art director, the late Gary Burden. Each CD has its own custom sleeve.

TRACK LISTING

DISC 1 EARLY YEARS (1963-1968):
1 Aurora The Squires
2 The Sultan The Squires
3 I Wonder The Squires
4 Mustang The Squires
5 Iʼll Love You Forever The Squires
6 (Iʼm A Man And) I Can’t Cry The Squires
7 Hello Lonely Woman Neil Young & Comrie Smith
8 Casting Me Away From You Neil Young & Comrie Smith
9 There Goes My Babe Neil Young & Comrie Smith
10 Sugar Mountain Neil Young
11 Nowadays Clancy Canʼt Even Sing Neil Young
12 Runaround Babe Neil Young
13 The Ballad Of Peggy Grover Neil Young
14 The Rent Is Always Due Neil Young
15 Extra, Extra Neil Young
16 Flying On The Ground Is Wrong Neil Young
17 Burned Buffalo Springfield
18 Out Of My Mind Buffalo Springfield
19 Down, Down, Down Neil Young
20 Kahuna Sunset Buffalo Springfield
21 Mr. Soul Buffalo Springfield
22 Sell Out Buffalo Springfield
23 Down To The Wire Neil Young
24 Expecting To Fly Buffalo Springfield
25 Slowly Burning Neil Young
26 One More Sign Neil Young
27 Broken Arrow Buffalo Springfield
28 I Am A Child Buffalo Springfield

DISC 2 TOPANGA 1 (1968-1969):
1 Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere Neil Young
2 The Loner Neil Young
3 Birds Neil Young
4 What Did You Do To My Life? Neil Young
5 The Last Trip To Tulsa Neil Young
6 Here We Are In The Years Neil Young
7 Iʼve Been Waiting For You Neil Young
8 The Old Laughing Lady Neil Young
9 Iʼve Loved Her So Long Neil Young
10 Sugar Mountain Neil Young
11 Nowadays Clancy Canʼt Even Sing Neil Young
12 Down By The River Neil Young With Crazy Horse
13 Cowgirl In The Sand Neil Young With Crazy Horse
14 Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere Neil Young With Crazy Horse

DISC 3 LIVE AT THE RIVERBOAT (TORONTO 1969):
1 Sugar Mountain Neil Young
2 The Old Laughing Lady Neil Young
3 Flying On The Ground Is Wrong Neil Young
4 On The Way Home Neil Young
5 Iʼve Loved Her So Long Neil Young
6 I Am A Child Neil Young
7 1956 Bubblegum Disaster Neil Young
8 The Last Trip To Tulsa Neil Young
9 Broken Arrow Neil Young
10 Whiskey Boot Hill Neil Young
11 Expecting To Fly Neil Young

DISC 4 TOPANGA 2 (1969-1970)”
1 Cinnamon Girl Neil Young With Crazy Horse
2 Running Dry (Requiem For The Rockets) Neil Young With Crazy Horse
3 Round And Round (It Wonʼt Be Long) Neil Young With Crazy Horse
4 Oh Lonesome Me Neil Young With Crazy Horse
5 Birds Neil Young With Crazy Horse
6 Everybodyʼs Alone Neil Young With Crazy Horse
7 I Believe In You Neil Young With Crazy Horse
8 Sea Of Madness Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
9 Dance Dance Dance Neil Young With Crazy Horse
10 Country Girl Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
11 Helpless Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
12 It Might Have Been Neil Young With Crazy Horse

DISC 5 NEIL YOUNG & CRAZY HORSE–LIVE AT THE FILLMORE EAST (NEW YORK 1970):
1 Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
2 Winterlong
3 Down By The River
4 Wonderinʼ
5 Come On Baby Letʼs Go Downtown
6 Cowgirl In The Sand

DISC 6 TOPANGA 3 (1970):
1 Tell Me Why Neil Young
2 After The Gold Rush Neil Young
3 Only Love Can Break Your Heart Neil Young
4 Wonderinʼ Neil Young
5 Donʼt Let It Bring You Down Neil Young
6 Cripple Creek Ferry Neil Young
7 Southern Man Neil Young
8 Till The Morning Comes Neil Young
9 When You Dance, I Can Really Love Neil Young With Crazy Horse
10 Ohio Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
11 Only Love Can Break Your Heart Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
12 Tell Me Why Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
13 Music Is Love David Crosby, Graham Nash & Neil Young
14 See The Sky About To Rain Neil Young

DISC 7 LIVE AT MASSEY HALL (TORONTO 1971):
1 On The Way Home
2 Tell Me Why
3 Old Man
4 Journey Through The Past
5 Helpless
6 Love In Mind
7 A Man Needs A Maid/Heart Of Gold (Suite)
8 Cowgirl In The Sand
9 Donʼt Let It Bring You Down
10 Thereʼs A World
11 Bad Fog Of Loneliness
12 The Needle And The Damage Done
13 Ohio
14 See The Sky About To Rain
15 Down By The River
16 Dance Dance Dance
17 I Am A Child

DISC 8 NORTH COUNTRY (1971-1972):
1 Heart Of Gold Neil Young
2 The Needle And The Damage Done Neil Young
3 Bad Fog Of Loneliness Neil Young With The Stray Gators
4 Old Man Neil Young With The Stray Gators
5 Heart Of Gold Neil Young With The Stray Gators
6 Dance Dance Dance Neil Young
7 A Man Needs A Maid Neil Young With The London Symphony Orch.
8 Harvest Neil Young With The Stray Gators
9 Journey Through The Past Neil Young With The Stray Gators
10 Are You Ready For The Country? Neil Young With The Stray Gators
11 Alabama Neil Young With The Stray Gators
12 Words (Between The Lines Of Age) Neil Young With The Stray Gators
13 Soldier Neil Young
14 War Song Neil Young & Graham Nash With The Stray Gators

From the instrumental cinematic-soul outfit behind 2021's critically acclaimed The Black Stone Affair comes Whatitdo Archive Group's most recent foray into the realms of the esoteric and arcane, and their most adventurous album to date.

After The Black Stone Affair enthralled record collectors by traversing the cinematic landscape of an imagined 1970s Spaghetti Western, Palace Of A Thousand Sounds finds Whatitdo Archive Group entrenched deeper in the worlds of mid-century exotica and library music—from the Tropicalia-steeped Amazon to the minor key tonalities of the far-out Near East.

When the dust finally settled from their debut album, composer and tireless sound scientist Alexander Korostinsky set out to discover the band's new direction, with the ultimate goal to breathe new life into the mid-century era sound with the compass of modernity as his guide.

From its conception in 2021, Palace has sought to carry on a legacy set in motion by the likes of Martin Denny, Les Baxter and Juan García Esquivel. Korostinsky, guitarist Mark Sexton, and drummer Aaron Chiazza recorded the album in marathon sessions from Korostinsky's Studio "A," in Reno, Nevada—a mysterious sonic laboratory where the year 1970 has yet to happen, and vintage analog equipment interfaces with modern musical perspectives and experimental recording techniques to produce era-defining sounds.

Not content to appeal to the sensibilities of armchair anthropologists, Palace Of A Thousand Sounds finds the band interrogating the genre itself while making studious tributes to the real places and times it draws from. It's in this tension between here and there, fantasy and reality, that Whatitdo Archive Group find their groove.

Drawing from a century of pop and folk sounds from around the world the way only 21st-century crate-diggers can, Palace is rooted in an undercurrent of heavy funk that is decidedly here and now. Whatitdo Archive Group showcase the breadth of their influences with disarming confidence, equally at home behind sweeping harp, loungey vibraphone or Turkish bağlama saz. A lush seventeen-piece orchestra commanded by award-winning composer Louis King (Janelle Monáe, Monophonics) completes the instrumental mélange, enticing listeners to imagine a borderless planet unified by melody and rhythm.

The album is unafraid to explore the strange and uncomfortable in pursuit of an authentic musical identity, subverting expectations in pursuit of forwarding the genre while paying homage to its past. Fans will appreciate the architectural complexity of the record accessible only through multiple listens—each visit to the palace yielding new details to marvel at, curiosities to ponder, grand mysteries to explore.

Once the needle drops, W.A.G carefully guides you from room to room, sound to sound within the walls of the album's sonic palace. Listening becomes an aural journey providing glimpses into different worlds both real and imagined; you are everywhere and nowhere all at once—a guest in the grand halls and hanging gardens of time and sound.

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Cinematic and engrossing arrangements which drift between stylistic boundaries. This Milanese group should be on the radar of lovers of global grooves and esoteric exotica.

TRACK LISTING

1. Enter The Palace
2. Beyond The Crimson Veil
3. Astral-Desia
4. Delirium
5. Exotique
6. Sun Harp
7. The Cashmere Chamber
8. Iron Tusk
9. Secrets In The Sand
10. Mirage
11. Ritual Of Gods
12. The Second Moon
13. Forbidden Cove

A Celebration of the glimpses of gold that characterised WU LYF’s short reign-Featuring New Essays, Original Art, Photography & Lyrics.

Whilst preparing the 10th Anniversary Re-issue of the Singular WU LYF LP- "Go Tell Fire to the Mountain" a long forgotten hard drive was unearthed that held a pristine archive of the golden years of the LYF's creative output.
On it we found many snapshots of early Live Performances, Scans of all the Collaged Art works and Paintings, numerous Beautiful Photos captured by Friends and Lovers.

For those directly involved browsing over it provoked some giddy nostalgia for a well spent youth - a glorification of what was and some starry eyed speculation as to what could have been…

The conversation then arose that it would be a real shame to leave the work of WU LYF entirely overlooked in cultural history, lost to the sands of time, left as mere digital ash decaying in discarded digital urns.

So why not share it all?

Featuring text by and interviews by our very own Liam with Joe, Tom, Ellery and Evans. Plus additional text by Warren (War God) Bramley, JD Beauvalet, Matt Wilkinson, Beatrice Miniconi, Mino Tristovskij & Sean Wood.

STAFF COMMENTS

Liam says: In 2021, I had the privilege of being able to contribute to the LYF ARCHIVES 1998-2012 by interviewing members Ellery, Joe and Tom. Fast forward to July of this year, LYF ARCHIVES saw life. Documenting the short but spirited life of this seminal band, this is a must for anyone who followed the WU in any capacity during their brief existence.

Ben Salisbury and Geoff Barrow are known for their scores for the Ivor Novello Award winning ‘Ex Machina’ and ‘Devs’, along with their work on ‘Annihilation’, ‘Free Fire’, ‘HANNA’ and more.

Inspired by the popular podcast of the same name, ‘Archive 81’ depicts the life of a man who comes across videotapes full of a mysterious woman’s adventures in an even more mysterious apartment building. What seemed to be an ordinary job turns into a nightmare as the strange creature that took the woman’s life in the past seems to have found a way back to him 25 years in the future.

TRACK LISTING

CD
Archive 81 - Titles
The Visser Ritual
Tape Cleaning
Losing Track Of Time
Jess Opens Up
Journey To The Compound
Seizure
Ghost Story / Cracking The Code
Otherside
Mold
Someone In There
Séance
Cameras
The Greenstone Totem
Dan’s Theme
I’m A Spirit Receiver
Church Seizure / The Compound
The Cult Of Kaelego
A Connection Through Time
Tamara’s Opera
Dan’s First Lucid Dream
I Need To Find Her
Pep Talk
Going Rogue
Fucking Smothering Me
The Ritual Space Recreated
Song Of The Otherworld
What Are You Playing?
Stay Out
Archive 81 - Credits

Archive 81 - Titles
The Visser Ritual
Tape Cleaning
Losing Track Of Time
Jess Opens Up
Journey To The Compound
The Greenstone Totem
Dan’s First Lucid Dream
Otherside
Song Of The Otherworld
Someone In There
Séance
Cameras
Dan’s Theme
Tamara’s Opera
I Need To Find Her
The Ritual Space Recreated
Stay Out
Archive 81 - Credits

In years from now, anyone seeking to make sense of what life was like during a global pandemic should extend their research beyond the newspaper clippings and dive into the art produced during the period. Archive Material - the aptly-titled second album by Dublin-based art-rock quintet Silverbacks - will make for a particularly illuminating listen on the subject. Capturing the absurd mixture of monotony and creeping disquiet experienced by many of us this past 18 months, it’s simultaneously sobering and wickedly droll.

Spend more than five minutes in the company of brothers/band founders Daniel and Kilian O’Kelly and you’ll quickly realise this playfulness is hardwired. Reminiscing about their upbringing in Brussels, they gently rib one another about their early creative abilities. “When Kilian started writing music, around the age of 14/15, it was like, oh shit, that's better than what I've been doing - maybe I should latch on to him a bit,” older brother and lead singer Daniel chuckles. “And that’s still the case,” guitarist/vocalist Kilian bats back, grinning.

They laugh too recalling how - prior to the existence of streaming services - they used their dad’s extensive record collection as a lending library, much to his disapproval. “The rule in the house was [you could borrow] just one CD at a time,” Daniel explains. “It was like borrowing a book: you’d check it out for a night and then the next day he'd be immediately chasing up on the CD asking, ‘Where is it?’ And then he’d fine us.”

It was via these limited loans that the pair first discovered the work of Frank Zappa, the Beatles and Miles Davis, as well as some of the records and bands that would go on to inspire their output in Silverbacks specifically. “Television’s Marquee Moon was a big one,” Daniel recalls. “Pavement’s Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain was another. And then Sonic Youth generally.”

The siblings’ songwriting partnership only began in earnest when Daniel moved to Kildare to study music in 2008, with the pair swapping ideas over email under the band name Mighty Good Leaders. Two years later, Kilian joined Daniel at college in Maynooth and - after changing their name to Silverbacks - they expanded the line-up, recruiting course mates Peadar Kearney on guitar and Emma Hanlon on bass, alongside a revolving cast of drummers. This arrangement continued until 2014, when Peadar left Ireland to live in France and the band reverted back to being a bedroom project. The current incarnation of Silverbacks officially began two years later, upon Peadar’s return to Dublin, with drummer Gary Wickham completing the line-up.

The five-piece’s first release together - ‘Just For A Better View’ - arrived in 2017, instantly picking up praise from an array of blogs. 2018-single, the BBC 6 Music playlisted ‘Dunkirk’ extended their audience even further, showcasing Daniel’s sardonic lyrical style as he played a man having a mid-life crisis on the site of the former battleground. As a result of the single’s success, they gigged solidly for the next two years, touring Ireland extensively, and playing shows across the UK and Europe with Girl Band, in-between working on their full-length debut, Fad.

Recorded with Girl Band-bassist Daniel Fox - who the band had initially admired for his production work with Paddy Hanna - its release was initially scheduled for November 2019, before being put back to March 2020 for logistical reasons. When the music industry was derailed by the pandemic, its release was postponed indefinitely. Frustrated, the band took control and opted to put it out in July 2020, against the advice of their label. Daniel explains, “We knew it was a risk, but just for our own sanity, we just needed to get it out there and move on to the next thing.

It was a leap of faith that paid off, with the Irish Times declaring the 13-track collection “seriously exciting”, DIY Magazine calling it “an excellent example of how a debut should be done” and it getting nominated for the RTE Choice Music Prize Irish Album of the Year. Not that the band hung around to revel in the acclaim: they were already hard at work on the follow-up.

Archive Material only cements Silverbacks’ status as one of Ireland’s most fascinating bands. Recorded at Dublin’s Sonic Studios in November 2020, with Daniel Fox undertaking production duties once more, it finds the band leaning into their early influences, delivering idiosyncratic indie-rock packed with intricate, Tom Verlaine-esque “guitarmony”. Other reference points for the record included Neil Young, Weyes Blood and - on ‘Wear My Medals’ in particular - Bradford Cox and Cate Le Bon’s collaborative record Myths 004.

Where Fad found Silverbacks focused on recapturing the live experience rather than reveling in studio experimentation, Archive Material skillfully traverses the line between the two. As a unit, they replicate that irrepressible live energy via complex arrangements incorporating everything from wistful Rhodes (‘Carshade’) to congas and Gang Of Four-style bass (‘Different Kind Of Holiday’).

Thematically, the record is every bit as rich, displaying an anthropological approach as exemplified by the album’s artwork. The initial premise for ‘They Were Never Our People’ came from a YouTube comment, portraying the decline of a town that has lost its footfall as the result of a bypass. Meanwhile, ‘Central Tones’ is an empathetic character study of someone seemingly content to trade off former glories, but secretly deeply unhappy.

On several songs, the pandemic functions as a particularly effective prism through which to examine ideas of community. ‘A Job Worth Something’ finds Daniel reflecting on his real-life experiences working in insurance while his sister treated patients on a COVID ward, and the feelings of futility and guilt he felt at the time. ‘Different Kind Of Holiday’ was inspired by the ways in which previously uncommunicative neighbours bonded with each other during periods of enforced confinement. Throughout, his observations arrived drenched in the same surreal strain of gallow’s humour that many of us were forced to adopt to lighten the toughest moments of the lockdown.

Daniel explains, “I can't remember who it was, but I saw a musician who said that they'd be keeping away from writing anything about the pandemic, because who wants to hear about that? But I’d much rather hear about an event via someone who actually lived through it, rather than someone writing about it retrospectively.”

Keenly observed and vividly rendered, Archive Material is an eye-witness account of human resilience as much as it is a compelling indie-rock record. Future historians take note.

TRACK LISTING

Archive Material
A Job Worth Something
Wear My Medals
They Were Never Our People
Rolodex City
Different Kind Of Holiday
Carshade
Central Tones
Recycle Culture
Econymo
Nothing To Write Home About
I’m Wild

Archive Series Volume No. 5: Tallahassee is the lost-in-time debut album from Iron & Wine. A collection of songs recorded three years prior to his official Sub Pop debut, The Creek Drank the Cradle (2002). A period before the concept of Iron & Wine existed and principal songwriter Sam Beam was studying at Florida State University with the intent of pursuing a career in film. Tallahassee documents the very first steps on a journey that would lead to a career as one of America’s most original and distinctive singer-songwriters.

Creek arrived like a thief in the night with its lo-fi, hushed vocals and intimate nature, while almost inversely Tallahassee comes with a strange sense of confidence. Perhaps an almost youthful discretion that likely comes from being too young to know better and too naïve to give a shit. The recordings themselves are more polished than Creek and give a peak into what a studio version of that record might have offered up.

Tallahassee was recorded over the course of 1998-1999 when Beam and future bandmate EJ Holowicki moved into a house together. Beam had not been performing publicly, however he was known for playing an original song or two in the early morning glow of a long night. Holowicki also in the film program and who would go onto a career as a sound designer at Skywalker Sound, had a mobile recording device and after some prodding convinced his friend to record these late-night meditations.

Together they would record close to twenty-four songs, ideas and sketches, with EJ on bass and Sam on vocals, guitar, harmonica and drums. The recordings – all captured in the house where they lived – have a “live in the room” feel akin to say Neil Young’s Harvest or Nick Drake’s Five Leaves Left, rather than the homespun lo-fi 4-track home recording experiment taking place at the time.

These recordings, minus one track, have never been made available and were instead left preserved on a hard drive for the last twenty years. The one track that floated out there, called “In Your Own Time” was shared without a title to childhood friend Ben Bridwell (Band of Horses) at some point. The song became known as the “Fuck Like A Dog” song and Ben shared it with more than a few folks during the golden era of mix cd’s. Two of those folks were Jonathan Poneman from Sub Pop and journalist Mike McGonigal, who included it on his best songs of 2001 mix cd, passed out to friends and acquaintances. And for many that is where the Iron & Wine story begins, until now…

Tallahassee is the foreword to your favorite book that you’ve somehow skipped over time and time again. It’s an alternative history mixed with some revisionist history told over the course of eleven songs. It’s also the debut record by Iron & Wine some twenty years after the fact. 

TRACK LISTING

Why Hate The Winter
This Solemn Day
Loaning Me Secrets
John's Glass Eye
Calm On The Valley
Ex-Lover Lucy Jones
Elizabeth
Show Him The Ground
Straight And Tall
Cold Town
Valentine

NBN Archives is proud to debut a forthcoming series of Hip-Hop and R’n’B reissues with a little known Californian project from "108", a short lived Bay Area group which consisted of rappers Encore (Shaya Bekele) and Grand The Visitor (Everett Aknowledge) along with composer-producer Sedric Edwards. Originally released in 1996 in a very limited quantity of one hundred CD's, the album "Mission Infinite" never really got the attention it deserved until now.

By the mid 90s Encore and Grand had already been gravitating around the San Jose Hip-Hop scene, releasing music in connection with Bay Area Hip-Hop Icon Peanut Butter Wolf - both featuring on one of Wolf’s first 12’s “Step On Our Ego's?” (1996, South Paw Records). In the same year, Grand released his first solo single “The Visitor” on Blind Side Recordings produced by PB Wolf and Encore's first single was one of the very first releases on Stones Throw in 1997. Sedric Edwards was a sound engineer working locally when he met Chris Cut (aka PB Wolf). They set up a studio together where he met the two MC’s. According to Encore: "One day, Sedric was playing some of his Jazz-infused instrumentals in between sessions, and we were like: ‘We should try something with this!’”

Working with Sedric’s simple homestudio set-up and with local musicians adding instrumentation to his bass playing, they managed to achieve a "live feel" on the album. Released upon completion via Wake Up Records, the LP was promoted with a couple of shows in small clubs around the San Jose area - where most of the CD's were sold. However without distribution or promotion the record fizzled out. It remains a mystery up until today how this album remained so slept-on for over two decades.

At a time when rapping over live instrumentation was not very common, a style popularized by bands like The Roots, the 108 project truly stands out amongst other Hip-Hop releases of that era. NBN Archives is extremely proud to present this 90's Hip-Hop underground masterpiece, remastered from the original DAT tapes, for the Jazzy Hip-Hop Aficionados.

TRACK LISTING

1. Mission Infinite
2. Always
3. Chocolate Brown
4. Definition Of A Dollar
5. Inner City Parasites
6. Venus
7. Black Plague
8. Critical Meltdown
9. Kumalox
10. Baby Song
11. Renaissance
12. Dilemnas
13. Venus Original Version
14. Venus - Acid Soul Mix
15. Venus - Love Mix
16. Chocolate Brown Remix

Recorded in 1982 but never released "Feel It" is a moving slice of digital reggae. In addition to the vocal there are three dub mixes which are perhaps the earliest available examples of Rob Smith productions. These recordings may be seen as the start of Rob's illustrious career which includes Smith & Mighty, Three Stripe, More Rockers and RSD. The dub mixes in particular with their sparse instrumentation and use of a drum machine's programmed beats foreshadow the UK digi-dub scene pioneered by artists such as Nick Manasseh and The Disciples as well as labels including Conscious Sounds and Riz. Released via the impeccable Reggae Archive, this 10" pressing sound super clean and should be a welcome addition to any reggae collectors box... Recommended!

TRACK LISTING

A1. Feel It
A2. Feel It (Dub Version 1)
B1. Feel It (Dub Version 2)
B2. Feel It (Dub Version 3)

The Future Sound of London's long and varied history stretches back almost 25 years and as such a vast amount of unreleased material exists in the FSOL archives. "Archived 9" brings together another 12 such tracks; in some cases these are completed but unreleased songs from that time, in others the songs have been reconstructed or enhanced and then further mixed to form the journey. This album is not just a collection of random off-cuts. It is a fully realized album, worthy of sitting alongside the rest of the band's critically acclaimed work. Did you know - The Future Sound of London were the first band to distribute their music via the internet, in 1994. Did you know - The Future Sound of London were the first band to use ISDN technology to transmit their music via the internet and also to radio stations across the world - a system that has now been adopted by the radio industry worldwide. (No I did not; but as I often say, every day's a school day here at Piccadilly Records... - ed).

TRACK LISTING

1. Ocea
2. Semi Conscious Participant
3. Silent Midnight
4. Halfer
5. Embodied
6. Super Tide
7. Without You It's Meaningless
8. Oska Traveller
9. Slow Moving World
10. Propagate
11. Photographs Of An Object
12. A Constantly Changing Mind
13. Confirmation Bias
14. These Days
15. Riverbed
16. Extruded
17. Views Of A Empty Sky

Neroli record founder Volcov returns with the second volume of compilation series ‘From The Archive’ on BBE Music.

It’s been a busy two years for Enrico Crivellaro (Volcov) since the release of ‘From The Archive Vol. 1’. His Neroli label has seen stellar releases from Dego (2000 Black), Lars Bartkuhn, Trinidadian Deep and Alton Miller among others, leading to a hectic schedule of DJ sets across the globe.

In ‘From The Archive Vol. 2’, Volcov’s musical roots are once again evident in a jazzy collection of hidden gems spanning genres and continents. As Volcov puts it: “the spirit and the sound of this album follows the frst volume: choosing more songs that i thought were overlooked and deserved more attention. This time, with such a crowded marketplace for reissues and compilation of 70s-80s music, I decided only to focus on songs from the last 10-15 years.”

‘From The Archive Vol. 2’ features several tracks never before released on vinyl, including ‘Afterlife Vol.2’ by 'Black Renaissance' composer and Roy Ayers collaborator Harry Whitaker and Ron Trent’s homage to French violin genius Jean-Luc Ponty, ‘Ori Space’. Taking in intimate downtempo soul, extraterrestrial jazz sounds and straight up club music, ‘From The Archive Vol. 2’ paints a vibrant and eclectic musical picture, autographed with a couple of signature edits by Volcov himself.

TRACK LISTING

1. Carleen Anderson – All That Glitters
2. Collective Peace – Let The Music Play
3. Ruth Koléva – Turn It Around (Eric Lau Remix)
4. The Rebirth – Caterpillar
5. Ron Trent – Ori Space
6. Ian O'Brien – Spiraling Prism
7. Intuit – Planet Birth (Xantoné Blacq Remix – Volcov Edit)*
8. Numbers – Moonblood (IG SOS Mix)
9. Quentin Kane & Simon Sheldon Feat. TK Blue – The Blue Room (Kaidi Tatham’s Shokazuku Remix)
10. Honey Sweet Feat. Cindy Mizelle – I Put A Spell On You
11.Skymark – Finding The Peace*
12.Harry Whitaker – The After Life Part 2
13.Tony Williams – Lawra (Volcov Edit)*
*CD Only

Join two of BBE’s most prolific artists and compilers, Mr Thing & Chris Read on a voyage into the mysterious, strange and wonderful world of Library Music, courtesy of Cavendish Music. Founded in 1937 and originally known as Boosey & Hawkes Recorded Music Library, Cavendish Music is the largest independent Library Music publisher in the UK and also represents a host of music catalogues across the globe.
During the Library Music heyday of the 60s and 70s, thousands of original instrumental tracks were produced across a broad range of genres for companies like Cavendish, who then created vinyl and tape collections, often arranged by theme or mood, for their customers in radio, television and film. Cult British TV shows such as The Sweeney and The Professionals as well as documentaries and feature films relied heavily on these catalogues, and companies like KPM, De Wolfe and Boosey & Hawkes went a long way toward defining the sound of British popular culture at the time.
Never commercially available, music created for these libraries that never made it to the promised land of TV or Radio was destined to languish in Cavendish Music’s vast London vault; only recently unearthed by a new generation of DJs and producers searching for rare gems or a perfect sample.
Mr Thing & Chris Read were first invited to examine the contents of the Cavendish Music archive in 2014 as part of WhoSampled’s ‘Samplethon’ event in which producers created new tracks against the clock using sample material mined from the catalogue. Whilst digging through box upon box of records and tapes looking for interesting sounds, the pair also discovered a host of 70s library music which has not only stood the test of time, but deserves to be heard in its original form.
From dramatic big band numbers reminiscent of Lalo Schifrin’s film scores to atmospheric proto-hip hop instrumentals produced before the genre’s existence, right through to fairly straightforward jazz and funk cuts; this amazing collection of music is sure to inspire and delight DJs and beatmakers the world over.

Speaking about the self-produced new album, founding member Darius Keeler said “I think just knowing that we were working on our tenth album made this one feel like a landmark record. Our history as a collective has been a mad journey, we’ve trodden such a strange path to arrive at where we are today, and I think in a way that informed the new record and emboldened us to make what is probably the Archive album that I’m most proud of to date”.

Talking about the genesis of the album title Keeler says; “People are going to read in to who or what The False Foundation is I guess, but they’re going to have to draw their own conclusions. I have my own take on it, let’s just say there are a lot of potential candidates out there in the world today.”

TRACK LISTING

1 Blue Faces
2 Driving In Nails
3 The Pull Out
4 The False Foundation
5 Bright Lights
6 A Thousand Thoughts
7 Splinters
8 Sell Out
9 Stay Tribal
10 The Weight Of The World

"The Midlands Roots Explosion Volume One", saw the culmination of many years work spent tracking down artists and tapes to shine a light on one of England's greatest, yet most overlooked musical scenes; the home grown take on reggae that briefly flourished from the mid-seventies and had almost disappeared little more than a decade later. Mixing themes of struggle, resistance, justice, equality, identity and Rastafari played and sung from the heart with both conviction and skill, our first volume received a rapturous reception from critics and purchasers alike. Now Reggae Archive return with more of the same, but if anything they've surpassed Volume One with an even stronger selection.

Volume Two starts off in exactly the same way as its predecessor with Handsworth's biggest musical exports, the legendary Steel Pulse and "Bun Dem produced by Dennis Bovell. Natural Mystique are next with their 1982 single "Generals". Then there are A and B sides from some of the most popular artists included last time, with Iganda's "Mark Of Slavery", Carnastoan's "Sweet Melody" and yet another "Generals", this one from Musical Youth. "Africans" from Bass Dance featuring a second appearance from former Steel Pulse guitarist / vocalist Basil Gabbidon, is the first of four previously unreleased tracks. The other three that we've managed to track down on long forgotten tapes, are Leicester's Groundation with "Rebel", "Cannot Take It Away"; another lost gem from Handsworth's Mystic Foundation and "Equalisation" another lost slice of early eighties roots from Wolverhampton's Capital Letters. The late Linton Haughton is another new name with his scarce Shield label 12" cut "Hustling Man".

Also making their first appearances, are Afrikan Star with "Run And Hide" originally issued in 1980 on Black Vinyl Records and from the Crucial Music stable, Sledge Hammer with "Ruled By The Stone" released as a 7" single on the Crucial Music Inc. label. The remaining three tracks are provided by label favourites and key players in the Birmingham scene, Black Symbol, Sceptre and Eclipse and showcase songs from the individual albums we've previously released by each band.

Producing under the moniker Isoul8, as well as teaming up with Domu under the Rima alias for the incredible jazz / fusion album 'This World', Volcov is a truly important player in the underground music scene. Remixing artists such as Frankie Valentine, Azymuth & Taylor McFerrin, running his two labels Archive and Neroli, as well as DJing all over the World has given Volcov a rare knowledge of soul, funk, disco and deep house music; knowledge which is very apparent throughout this album.

'From The Archive' comprises a lovingly chosen collection of obscure funk, disco and boogie tracks, alongside three very special edits produced by the man himself. From Chez Damier's sun-drenched remix of The Urban Crew's 'Go' to Bembe Segue's emotional 'Sun On My Back' via Shuya Okino's disco epic 'Still In Love', this record takes the listener on a joyful journey deep into Volcov's musical mind.

TRACK LISTING

CD:
1. Are & Be - The Sound Of The Memory Of Many Living People
2. The Urban Cru - Go (Chez Damier Classic Mix)
3. Manfredo Fest - Arigo (Volcov Edit)
4. TGB Feat. Patricia Shannon - Do The Right Thing
5. Oneness Of Juju - Turning On To Me
6. Hot Quisine - Keep The Same Old Feeling
7. Shuya Okino Feat. Navasha Daya - Still In Love
8. Shokazulu - Part 4
9. Chanan Hanspal - Footprints In The Sand (Shannon Harris Urbancity Reinterpretation)
10. Fanfair - Gotham Odyssey (Volcov Edit)
11. O'Donel Levy - Sophisticated Disco (Volcov Edit),
12. The Antilles - Simon's Melody
13. Bembé Segue - Sun On My Back.

LP:
A1. Are & Be - The Sound Of The Memory Of Many Living People
A2. The Urban Cru - Go (Chez Damier Classic Mix)
A3. Manfredo Fest - Arigo (Volcov Edit)
B1. TGB Feat. Patricia Shannon - Do The Right Thing
B2. Oneness Of Juju - Turning On To Me
B3. Hot Quisine - Keep The Same Old Feeling
C1. Shokazulu - Part 4
C2. Chanan Hanspal - Footprints In The Sand (Shannon Harris Urbancity Reinterpretation)
D1. O'Donel Levy - Sophisticated Disco (Volcov Edit)
D2. The Antilles - Simon's Melody
D3. Bembé Segue - Sun On My Back.

Volume 2 of 5 (so far) of ultra rare psychedelic masterpieces on Bacchus Archives.

The latest helping of American garage rarities from the 1960's, a wide ranging selection of tracks from tough R&B stompers to melodic janglers oozing maudlin self-pity. Overdose on the bathos with groups like Her Majesty's Coachmen, the Rock Shop and the Soultans as well as the equally well known Sonny Villagas and the Trojans of Evol. Nuff said... £13.99 The latest helping of American garage rarities from the 1960's, a wide ranging selection of tracks from tough R&B stompers to melodic janglers oozing maudlin self-pity. Overdose on the bathos with groups like Her Majesty's Concern, the Topsy Turbys and the Soultans as well as the equally well known Sonny Villagas and the Trojans of Evol. Nuff said...

The series continues with big name acts like The Bram Rigg Set, The Burlington Express, The Topsy Turbsys and the Seven Dwarfs. The same mix of acid and acerbity--about as underground as it gets.

Previously only out as a poor quality bootleg this is the official release of what has come to be regarded as one of the handfull of really essential 'Surf' albums from those halcyon days of 1966. One of the main tracks is the classic "Time Bomb" (covered by the Bomboras) and now you don't have to pay the $300.00 to get it.