'Tears Before Bedtime' is the sparkling new album by the Would-be-goods, Jessica Griffin’s band of pop adventurers. Since 'The Camera Loves Me', their cult classic 1988 debut for the legendary él Records, they have blazed a musical trail through indie guitar pop, with a garage band edge and forays into other territories - glam rock, tango, French chanson… The result is unique and timeless.

The songs on 'Tears Before Bedtime' balance delicacy and power. Perfect pop melodies are delivered in Jessica’s gorgeous and idiosyncratic voice. Her lyrics are intelligent and wry, wistful and witty. Every song tells a story, taking us on a journey through space and time, from belle époque Paris to a 1960s London biker café, from a riverbank in ancient Greece to a 1970s teenage bedroom.

Listening to a Would-be-goods album is like wandering through a gallery of portraits. Innocence gives way to experience. Danger lurks amid the lights of the funfair in the 1950s carousel whirl of 'The Gallopers'. The sinister 'Dr Love' promises heaven but sends you down to hell, to the sound of a last dance in a smoky soul basement. A nymph meets a god in disguise in a garage-band take on a Greek myth ('Tears for Leda'). 'The Rose Tattoo' is the tale of a doomed love in a sultry Southern state. 'Don't Come Crying To Me' flames an ex-lover to the sound of Bollywood horns and shivery guitar. In 'Madame X' a portrait painter vents his fury on a spoilt socialite beauty. The album closes with a sweetly jazzy lullaby ('The Moon Doesn't Mind').

The Would-be-goods began playing as a full band in the 2000s and have been previewing some of these songs at recent shows in England, Scotland, France, and Spain. The album was recorded in London with Jessica on guitar and vocals, Peter Momtchiloff (Heavenly, Talulah Gosh) on guitar, Debbie Greensmith (Thee Headcoatees and many others) on drums, and Andy Warren (The Monochrome Set, Adam and the Ants) on bass. Guest musicians have contributed organ, piano, vibraphone, cello, trumpet, and flute to make this the richest-sounding Would-be-goods record yet.

TRACK LISTING

1. The Gallopers
2. Dr Love
3. Tears For Leda
4. The Back Of Your Bike
5. The Tears Of Cora Pearl
6. The Rose Tattoo
7. Don’t Come Crying To Me
8. Witch Hazel
9. Old Flame
10. Carmilla
11. The Bride Wore Black
12. Madame X
13. Away With The Fairies
14. The Moon Doesn’t Mind.

2025 first time vinyl issue of this incredible funk-forward library dub record from the Dubmaster himself. 140g vinyl. Limited to just 1000 worldwide.

A heavyweight library record delivered straight from the Gods; truly, we are all blessed: Dubmaster Dennis Bovell presents 'cLOUD mUsIc'. A miraculous set of loose limbed, slinky funk-forward dub on the A-Side with totally blunted, spaced out trippiness on the grooving versions gracing the flipside.

A pioneer of dub and progenitor of lovers rock, genius producer-arranger Dennis 'Blackbeard' Bovell's prolific and eclectic career encompasses a huge range of music: from dub poetry to lovers rock, afro-beat to post-punk, disco to pop and beyond.

His production work encompasses such diverse figures as Ryuichi Sakamoto, The Slits, Fela Kuti, Linton Kwesi Johnson, The Pop Group, Janet Kay, Saada Bonaire, Orange Juice, Golden Teacher, I Roy, Maximum Joy, Steel Pulse and more.

'cLOUD mUsIc' features 8 new, deep, never-heard heaters, initially created for upstart UK library label FOLD. Dennis had written some music under the influence of Cloud-watching and presented it to FOLD with a view to them presenting it as Library Music to be utilised by anyone interested in having music for incidentals, films, TV and advertising etc.

'cLOUD mUsIc' represents Dennis expressing himself freely and inviting others' to join and express themselves. As Dennis explains: "Library music is what makes the difference between creating for specific reasons and creating for your own individual enjoyment. 'cLOUD mUsIc' was created whenever I felt the urge to create music that I wanted to, with no pressure. It was recorded at various times and in various studios around the world with various musicians’ assistance. Much sonic indulgence with many different recording devices."

Who doesn't like the sound of that?

Thrilling disco-flecked opener 'Rebel Funk' comes bustling out the gate with deeply soulful, driving funk rhythms, a ponderous thumping bass combining brilliantly with a full band and chanting choral vocals. Spirited, joyful and dynamic, it's a true treat from the reggae maestro. The lush, deeply danceable 'Raw Soul' combines funk and soul via bass, drums, electric guitar, sax and trumpet. It's smooth, silky and confident.

The chilled, serene 'Callaloo' presents a sunny, calypso-style reggae with dub rhythms, with steel drums and keyboards providing the sweet melody of deep bass and percussive rhythms. 'Too Funky To Be True' is just that: slow bass and brass-led funk with melodies from strings and organ. It's sleazy, warm and refined. To close out the side, 'Wind Up, Dub Down' is bright and breezy dub reggae with a bouncy rhythm and reflective, contented feel. The B-Side features jaw-dropping dubbed-out, strung-out, spaced-out versions of each of the first 5 tracks. Don't ever say we short change you.

The vinyl features artwork utilising a unique photo by Dennis himself. We picked it from a selection of photos taken by Dennis during his study of cloud formations and how they morph. We think it's pretty striking. As for the title, Dennis explained: "the ‘Clouds’ are where things are being Digitally stored and, that the word Loud was part of their spelling, I thought to invite the listener to play it loudly."

Meticulously mastered and cut by both Simon Francis and Cicely Balston respectively, 'cLOUD mUsIc' has been pressed to the highest possibly quality at Record Industry in Holland. Without question, it deserves to be blasting from a soundsystem to truly appreciate the reverb, echo and rhythm section on each of the ten tracks.

TRACK LISTING

1. Rebel Funk
2. Raw Soul
3. Callaloo
4. Too Funky To Be True
5. Wind Up, Dub Down 
6. Rebel Funk (Dub Lion Version) 
7. Raw Soul (Dub Version) 
8. Callaloo (Dub Version)
9. Too Funky To Be True (Dub Flute Version) 
10. Wind Up, Dub Down (Dub Down Version)

Debuts come and go. Some serve as juvenilia. Others showcase lost promise. Rarely are they cultural touchpoints. Enter This Better be Something Great by Westside Cowboy, an EP rammed with nu-generational indie. It’s been a while since something so era-defining dropped but you get the impression that Westside Cowboy are about to become a reference point. Shorthand for a new movement in guitar music. And when the dust settles, held in similar acclaim reserved for only the most influential of indie bands. With a sound raw as a carpet burn, they ride a thrilling lo-fi boxcar tuned to the melodic precision of Teenage Fanclub and held together with the slacker cool of Pavement. Authentic, fidgety and immediate, the guitars on this record crackle like a twinkling bed of kindling primed to ignite at any given moment and when they do it’s a barn dance of headrush overdrive & blitzkrieg drums leaving listeners raw and fully exposed to each bristling, crackle of magic coming their way. File under: modern classic.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: The apex of the modern sound of loose, jangling indie and off-kilter experimental rock from Manchester's own Westside Cowboy. If the 7" was anything to go by, this latest iteration of their deeply melodic but unusually chaotic grunge-pop indie business is going to go down a STORM. Get in quick.

TRACK LISTING

SIDE A:
01. I've Never Met Anyone I Thought I Could Really Love (Until I Met You)
02. Alright Alright Alright
03. Drunk Surfer

SIDE B:
04. Shells
05. Slowly I'm Sure

2025 first time vinyl reissue of this sensational post-disco Salsoul classic, featuring core members of Mtume, Gary Bartz NTU Troop and D-Train. 140g vinyl

* A surefire Salsoul classic and comfortably one of the label's finest moments, the self-titled LP from The Strangers was originally released in that golden year of 1983 and is one of the greatest albums of the post-disco era. It’s one of Be With's favourite ever LPs and it's a complete honour to be giving it our reissue treatment.

Still strangely overlooked but not for much longer, The Strangers contains flawless tracks with truly top tier production and includes the eternal Paradise Garage favourite "Step Into My Dream."

Are they Strangers to us? Well, no, they shouldn't be. The Strangers were a US electronic-funk studio concept group comprising Edward "Tree" Moore, Howard King and Hubert Eaves III, all key members of Mtume and Gary Bartz NTU Troop and, in the case of Eaves, one half of D-Train.

Now I KNOW you're gonna dig this!

We kick off with the dope electro-funk of "Wanna Take Your Body" which features Gary Bartz on sax (!) and becomes more sensational and irresistible the longer it plays. The wonky super-bomb "Let Me Take You Home" has a punk-funk, post-Prince feel, driving and delicate all at the same time while "Show Me How You Like It" is pure FUNK, the groove just pure fire.

Side B is perfection. It kicks off with the NTS favourite "Love Rescue", a track so slick it positively SLAPS out the gate and, while it bangs throughout, the vocals and melodies elevate this to the status of EMOTIONAL POP.

Next up, "Step Out Of My Dream" swaggers forth, the undisputed masterpiece that was huge with the London DJs and UK Soul fraternity; it's not hard to see why. It's a gliding, smooth, soulful piece of once-in-a-lifetime magic.

The breezy "It's Too Late" is a perfect slow jam before this remarkable set is rounded out with the sickest proto-acid synth-drizzled jam, "Stimulation"; a perfect slab of 80s funk and a strutting vocoder-laced funk workout.

Meticulously remastered and cut by both Simon Francis and Cicely Balston at Abbey Road respectively, it has been pressed to the highest possible quality at Record Industry in Holland.

TRACK LISTING

A1 Wanna Take Your Body
A2 Let Me Take You Home
A3 Show Me How You Like It
B1 Love Rescue
B2 Step Out Of My Dream
B3 It's Too Late
B4 Stimulation

Looking for a fresh 45 to spin this holiday season? Look no further than your friendly neighborhood organ trio Parlor Greens! Their take on The Black On White Affair's classic version of Auld Lang Syne on the a-side, which absolutely crushes. Scone tears the organ to shreds leaving nothing left but a few stockings and some wrapping paper. Flip to over to close the night with a beautiful and mellow instrumental version of William Bell's "Every Day Will Be Like A Holiday." Two sides to this very merry coin.

TRACK LISTING

1. Auld Lang Syne
2. Everyday Will Be Like A Holiday

Rahaan delivers 5 classy gospel edits beautifully re-mastered for the dancefloor.

Don't sleep! Very limited run. 

TRACK LISTING

A1. Freedom
A2. Wait On
B. Everything
C1. Give Your Love To God
C2. Reach
D. Smoke

Remixes and reworks of the Mercury Prize winning album ‘This Could Be Texas’.

“So grateful that some of our favourite contemporary artists and friends were up for doing this with us x" - Lily Fontaine

TRACK LISTING

Albatross (Bug Teeth Remix)
The World’s Biggest Paving Slab (Daniel Avery Remix)
Broken Biscuits (Lewis Whiting Remix)
I’m Not Crying, You’re Crying (Water From Your Eyes Remix)
Mastermind Specialism (SHERELLE’s 160 Steps To Enlightenment Mix)
This Could Be Texas (Baxter Drury Remix)
Not Everybody Gets To Go To Space (Working Men’s Club Remix)
R&B (Max Cooper Remix)
Nearly Daffodils (Matt Maltese Rework)
The Best Tears Of Your Life (FDC DJs Remix)
You Blister My Paint (Silver Gore Remix)
Sideboob (TAAHLIAH Remix)
Albert Road (Blossom Caldarone Rework)

Riding in on an eviscerating vocal alarm call and originally released in 1988 as the final installment of her Masque of the Red Death trilogy, Diamanda Galás' 'You Must Be Certain of the Devil' is as unflinching now as it was on release in 1988. It remains a swaggering, furious fuck-you to those who might cast aside the sick and dying in the name of faith and scripture.

Often misunderstood as simply dark for its subject matter, 'You Must Be Certain of the Devil' in fact shines a light of such total exposure it leaves nowhere to hide, forensically unmasking the fury and pain of real grief and the vast spectrum of emotions rendered by the AIDS epidemic. It is an album that looks you square in the eye, pins you against a wall and makes you look at and feel the horror the virus visited upon a person, the knowledge of certain death in a hostile environment, and the hypocrisy of those who claim to be Samaritans or protectors.

The album twists gospel spirituals into blistering indictments of hypocrisy, using sacred forms to expose the cruelty of churches that damned AIDS sufferers as cursed by God. From the siren-call of 'Swing Low Sweet Chariot' through 'Double-Barrel Prayer', 'Birds of Death', and the title track, she intones as apostate, reaper, and bar-room brawler, detourning spirituals into prayers to a god invented by despair. Begun in 1984 and haunted by her brothers death in 1986, the trilogy moved from anguish to political knowledge, shaped by Americas mounting AIDS epidemic - by 1988 over 46,000 dead, antivirals still years away. Dismissed as the AIDS lady and joining Act Up protests, Galás made the trilogy a work begun in 1984 and not completed until the end of the epidemic, refusing closure: for her there is no escape or reprieve. 'You Must Be Certain of the Devil' spears you in the eternal present of trauma, by an artist who calls herself a Greek orthodox atheist: a person certain of the devil with no hope in God.

TRACK LISTING

1. Swing Low Sweet Chariot
2. Double-Barrel Prayer
3. Let's Not Chat About Despair
4. Birds Of Death
5. You Must Be Certain Of The Devil
6. Let My People Go
7. Malediction
8. The Lord Is My Sheperd

Jeb Loy Nichols is a bonafide Country (Got) Soul legend. 'The Music Maker' presents 21 incredibly deep, grooving and soulful songs from the cream of Jeb's catalogue; from its earliest days to his latest unreleased gems via countless rare and unbelievably good lost-classics. This 2LP set is presented in a gatefold sleeve complete with freshly commissioned artwork courtesy of Jeb himself.

In collecting these uncut, under-heard gems, Be With hope to do justice to Jeb's jaw-dropping artistic brilliance. A man who, in working with Adrian Sherwood, Dennis Bovell, Dan Penn, Larry Jon Wilson and countless other legendary characters, has crafted some of the most deeply affecting folk, country, soul, funk, blues, dub, reggae, gospel, rap and electronic music, ever heard.

TRACK LISTING

1. Countrymusicdisco45
2. Sometimes Shooting Stars
3. Short Cut Home
4. Disappointment
5. Days Are Mighty
6. Don't Dance With Me Tonight
7. You Got It Wrong
8. Ring The Bells
9. Let's Make It Up
10. When Did You Stop Loving Me
11. Just Beginning
12. Wintering Of The Year
13. Let It Rain
14. We Tell Each Other Who We Are
15. Trip To You
16 Dirt
17. Heaven Right Here 
18. If Later Ever Comes 
19. Remember The Season 
20. A Little Love 
21. Weary Traveller

'Colours Yet To Be Named' marks the third album release by Lightning In A Twilight Hour, the latest project of Bobby Wratten (The Field Mice, Northern Picture Library, Trembling Blue Stars), one of the most brilliant and prolific songwriters in recent British pop history.

This is the follow up to 2022's 'Overwintering', which was chosen by BBC 6 Music's Mark Radcliffe, as his album of the year. A soundworld of alternate tunings, experimental guitar, clicks, crackles, strange atmospherics and mournful synths, 'Colours Yet To Be Named' seeks to communicate feelings, long before any lyrical content hits home; knowing that the beating heart of a record is first and foremost the sound palette on display. The album undertakes a journey beginning with American poetry in England and ends with English poetry in Switzerland. Between these two points are visits to mid-sixties Paris and mid-eighties London. A trip to a Nico-inspired subterranean cocoon and a place of authoritarian atrocities and dehumanisation. The latter, drawing parallels between the past and present. In other songs, Brian Eno meets a simple Yoko Ono inspired lyric where the vocal line must continually adjust to the five circling chords underneath and a storm at sea encroaches on an initially tranquil song of friendship that becomes ever more uncertain and adrift.

Written, recorded and mixed between autumn 2024 and spring 2025, the album features Anne Mari Davies taking lead vocals on four tracks and contributing an array of additional vocals ranging from spoken word to unison, to the highly processed and experimental. Beth Arzy sings lead and harmony on the closing song and contributes backing vocals to three others. Michael Hiscock is featured playing bass on seven tracks, and Ian Catt resumes his role as producer and engineer, continuing to push the envelope of what pop can be. Building on techniques developed in the making of 'Overwintering', digital technology was employed to turn improvised landscapes into song shapes which continued to be adjusted as lyrics and vocal parts were written. The sessions were a process of discovery; a road towards a complete self-contained statement of songs of introspection and observation, that slowly revealed itself as each came to fruition, adding another piece to the picture. 

TRACK LISTING

1. Red Comet
2. Fortress
3. Inner Heat
4. Addicere
5. Opaque Retreat
6. Every Flame A Sunset
7. The Quiet And The Confusion
8. The No-sound Of Falling Snow
9. Graph Paper
10. Blue Traces
11. Folk Radio

Let It Be by The Replacements—Paul Westerberg, Bob Stinson, Tommy Stinson, and Chris Mars—is widely hailed as one of the greatest albums of the 1980s and a cornerstone of indie rock. On October 24, the landmark 1984 album returns in a newly remastered and expanded edition on 4xLP and 3xCD configurations.

This deluxe archival edition features a new remaster of the album from the original two-track analog stereo tapes, alongside previously unreleased and rare studio outtakes and intimate Paul Westerberg home demos. Delve into the band's infectious live energy with a complete, previously unreleased concert recorded in March 1984 at Cubby Bear in Chicago, IL.

As music journalist Elizabeth Nelson writes in the liner notes, Let It Be “is a record for girls, for the working poor, for the terminally shy, for anyone who ever felt like a freak in their own skin. And it still is... It is, in short, the blueprint for what so many of us wanted and needed rock and roll to be: a refuge, a provocation, a mother, a middle finger, and, in the end, a way out.”

TRACK LISTING

DELUXE 3CD EDITION:
Disc 1: Original Album Remastered
1. I WILL DARE (2025 REMASTER)
2. FAVORITE THING (2025 REMASTER)
3. WE’RE COMIN’ OUT (2025 REMASTER)
4. TOMMY GETS HIS TONSILS OUT (2025 REMASTER)
5. ANDROGYNOUS (2025 REMASTER)
6. BLACK DIAMOND (2025 REMASTER)
7. UNSATISFIED (2025 REMASTER)
8. SEEN YOUR VIDEO (2025 REMASTER)
9. GARY’S GOT A BONER (2025 REMASTER)
10. SIXTEEN BLUE (2025 REMASTER)
11. ANSWERING MACHINE (2025 REMASTER)

Disc 2: Rarities
1. GARY’S GOT A BONER (ALTERNATE VERSION) [2025 REMASTER]*
2. FAVORITE THING (ALTERNATE VERSION) [2025 REMASTER]*
3. PERFECTLY LETHAL (2025 REMASTER)
4. TEMPTATION EYES (2025 REMASTER)
5. WHO’S GONNA TAKE US ALIVE (2025 REMASTER)*
6. HEARTBEAT, IT’S A LOVEBEAT (2025 REMASTER)
7. ANSWERING MACHINE (HOME DEMO #1) [2025 REMASTER]
8. ANSWERING MACHINE (HOME DEMO #2) [2025 REMASTER]*
9. STREET GIRL (TAKES 1 AND 2) [2025 REMASTER]*
10. SIXTEEN BLUE (ALTERNATE VERSION) [2025 REMASTER]
11. UNSATISFIED (FULL LENGTH VERSION) [2025 REMASTER]*
12. ANDROGYNOUS (ALTERNATE VERSION) [2025 REMASTER]*
13. 20TH CENTURY BOY (2025 REMASTER)
14. HEY GOOD LOOKIN’ (LIVE) [2025 REMASTER]

Disc 3: Goodnight! Go Home!: Live At Cubby Bear, Chicago, IL, TBD March, 1984
1. CAN’T HARDLY WAIT (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
2. LEFT IN THE DARK (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
3. UNSATISFIED (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
4. I WILL DARE (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
5. FAVORITE THING (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
6. KIDS DON’T FOLLOW (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
7. RUN IT (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
8. COLOR ME IMPRESSED (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
9. HAYDAY (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
10. NOWHERE IS MY HOME (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
11. LOVE YOU TIL’ FRIDAY (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
12. HELP ME RHONDA/G.T.O. (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
13. TAKIN’ A RIDE (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
14. TOMMY GETS HIS TONSILS OUT (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
15. GARY’S GOT A BONER (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
16. JOHNNY’S GONNA DIE (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
17. CAN’T GET ENOUGH (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
18. I’M IN TROUBLE (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
19. DON’T ASK WHY (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
20. TAKE ME DOWN TO THE HOSPITAL (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
21. SHIFTLESS WHEN IDLE (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
22. MR. WHIRLY (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
23. HITCHIN’ A RIDE (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
24. BLACK DIAMOND (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
25. 20TH CENTURY BOY (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
26. GO (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
27. GIMME NOISE (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
28. WHITE AND LAZY (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*

DELUXE 4LP EDITION:
LP1: Original Album Remastered
A Side
1. I WILL DARE (2025 REMASTER)
2. FAVORITE THING (2025 REMASTER)
3. WE’RE COMIN’ OUT (2025 REMASTER)
4. TOMMY GETS HIS TONSILS OUT (2025 REMASTER)
5. ANDROGYNOUS (2025 REMASTER)
6. BLACK DIAMOND (2025 REMASTER)
B Side
1. UNSATISFIED (2025 REMASTER)
2. SEEN YOUR VIDEO (2025 REMASTER)
3. GARY’S GOT A BONER (2025 REMASTER)
4. SIXTEEN BLUE (2025 REMASTER)
5. ANSWERING MACHINE (2025 REMASTER)
LP2: Rarities
C Side
1. GARY’S GOT A BONER (ALTERNATE VERSION) [2025 REMASTER]*
2. FAVORITE THING (ALTERNATE VERSION) [2025 REMASTER]*
3. PERFECTLY LETHAL (2025 REMASTER)
4. TEMPTATION EYES (2025 REMASTER)
5. WHO’S GONNA TAKE US ALIVE (2025 REMASTER)*
6. HEARTBEAT, IT’S A LOVEBEAT (2025 REMASTER)
7. ANSWERING MACHINE (HOME DEMO #1) [2025 REMASTER]
8. ANSWERING MACHINE (HOME DEMO #2) [2025 REMASTER]*
D Side
1. STREET GIRL (TAKES 1 AND 2) [2025 REMASTER]*
2. SIXTEEN BLUE (ALTERNATE VERSION) [2025 REMASTER]
3. UNSATISFIED (FULL LENGTH VERSION) [2025 REMASTER]*
4. ANDROGYNOUS (ALTERNATE VERSION) [2025 REMASTER]*
5. 20TH CENTURY BOY (2025 REMASTER)
6. HEY GOOD LOOKIN’ (LIVE) [2025 REMASTER]
LP 3 &4: Goodnight! Go Home!: Live At Cubby Bear, Chicago, IL, TBD March, 1984
E Side
1. CAN’T HARDLY WAIT (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
2. LEFT IN THE DARK (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
3. UNSATISFIED (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
4. I WILL DARE (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
5. FAVORITE THING (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
6. KIDS DON’T FOLLOW (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
F Side
1. RUN IT (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
2. COLOR ME IMPRESSED (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
3. HAYDAY (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
4. NOWHERE IS MY HOME (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
5. LOVE YOU TIL’ FRIDAY (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
6. HELP ME RHONDA/G.T.O. (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
7. TAKIN’ A RIDE (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
G Side
1. TOMMY GETS HIS TONSILS OUT (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
2. GARY’S GOT A BONER (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
3. JOHNNY’S GONNA DIE (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
4. CAN’T GET ENOUGH (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
5. I’M IN TROUBLE (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
6. DON’T ASK WHY (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
7. TAKE ME DOWN TO THE HOSPITAL (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
H Side
1. SHIFTLESS WHEN IDLE (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
2. MR. WHIRLY (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
3. HITCHIN’ A RIDE (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
4. BLACK DIAMOND (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
5. 20TH CENTURY BOY (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
6. GO (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
7. GIMME NOISE (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*
8. WHITE AND LAZY (LIVE AT CUBBY BEAR, CHICAGO, IL, MARCH TBD, 1984) [2025 REMASTER]*

*Previously Unreleased

Sofia Isella's 2024 and 2025 EPs, 'I Can Be Your Mother' and 'I'm Camera' on CD together.

TRACK LISTING

1. The Well
2. Sex Concept
3. Cacao And Cocaine
4. The Doll People
5. Unattractive
6. I Can Be Your Mother
7. All Of Human Knowledge Made Us Dumb
8. Us And Pugs
9. I Looked The Future
10. Hot Gum
11. Everybody Supports Women
12. Muse
13. Josephine
14. Dog's Dinner
15. Crowd Caffeine
16. Man Made
17. Orchestrated, Wet, Verboten

After over a decade in the shadows, the mysterious and elusive Creative Use return to their secret headquarters for brand new manoeuvres.

Freshly kitted out with new prescience, flair, and a Maestro Echoplex EP-3, they deliver Creative Use 11 via newcomers, Powerhouse Jim & The Fitness Centre, direct from their dojo in the North of England.

The trio of delights offer something for all discerning DJs and collectors alike. This EP won’t be around for long, so we advise to buy or cry.

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Not sure if we're allowed to reveal the identity of Powerhouse Jim yet, but a quick listen to these uplifting moments of contemporary house, disco and boogie might hint at our hard grafting, mega maned young buck. Defo one of the best to do it, from the new school of Manchester's underground.

TRACK LISTING

A1. That’ll Be Busy
B1. Imagine Being Us
B2. Silver Lining Syndrum

On a "Balearic-Jazz trip", the phenomenally hyped Thought Leadership returns with another X ideas: the deck this time chooses the Ace of Swords. In the acclaim garnered by III of Pentacles, there were many whispers of “Balearic” from those in the know. As soon as you drop the needle on XI you will be basking in turbo Balearica.

The sonic palate has been augmented by the addition of synth and bass; there are more guitar layers, more pedals and more organic drums this time – a much fuller production. Still DIY, and still recorded straight to multitrack, just ever so slightly grander in scale; think a rough-hewn, long-lost Claremont 56 cut and you’ll have some idea of how XI opens this future classic LP.

The touchstones so key to the vision of Pentacles (Cocteau Twins, Dif Juz, Durutti Column) are all still present and correct; XII could be a piece from Extractions, XIII is pure Garlands-era Guthrie and, now with the shuffling jazz drums, XV makes TL even more LC – but more disparate influences are found this time out too. ECM guitar legends John Abercrombie and Pat Metheny in the more considered melodic phrasing and harmonic structure of the ideas and a nod to the cosmic Balearic spirit in the overall vibe, means more is offered to the listener across Swords.

XVI and XVII are the biggest indicators to Thought Leaderships’ new found love of The Real Book and their grasp of jazz chords. The former sounds like if Mike Hedges had produced on a heavily sedated ECM date in the early 80s, whilst the latter is Bright Size Life condensed into a most post-punk shard of Strat conversation. The syrupy Phase 90 on the lead parts lends much weight to the guitar melodies, a beautiful tonal counterpoint to the Vox-ish chimes of the plangent chords we’ve all come to love.

The flip again treats us to three extended, improvised jams. XVIII owes as much to Canterbury as it does to Krautrock, another modal voyage through the stars. Light the incense and drift away, guided by delayed cymbals and weaving ribbons of guitar. XIX has almost a New-Wave/Sophisti-Pop energy to it in tone, if not in structure and execution. Something almost Tears for Fears-esque in the chiming chorus guitars. An interesting outlier that has already received a lot of love from those that have heard it. XX is the starkest idea, and the only piece this time with no drums. What we do get, however, is a free exploration over a two chord-vamp. It’s Harvest Time meets Planet Caravan and a fitting end to this Balearic jazz trip.

Be With is honoured to present the first ever vinyl release of Ace Of Swords, carefully remastered by Be With's engineer Simon Francis to ensure it sounds better than ever after its initial tape release. Cicely Balston's expert skills have made sure nothing is lost in the cut at Abbey Road Studios whilst the records have been pressed to the highest possible standard at Record Industry, in Holland. The original tape cover artwork, so crucial to Thought Leadership's striking visual aesthetic, has been rejigged for vinyl issue here at Be With.

The last one flew. You have been warned.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Echoic guitar effortlessly woven around a core of minimalist percussion and rolling bass, occasionally flecked with stabs of saturated synthesisers and soaring solos. There are obviously links to be drawn to other well-known Manchester bands that really like this sort of chorused guitar, but that's certainly no bad thing. Superb.

TRACK LISTING

A1 XI
A2 XII
A3 XIII
A4 XIV
A5 XV
A6 XVI
A7 XVII
B1 XVIII
B2 XIX
B3 XX

‘BMB x OBI II’ sees the continuation of the much sought after collaboration between Minnesota’s afro-psych powerhouse, Black Market Brass, and the young, visionary talent that is Obi Original.

Both sides deliver the raw, tenacious attitudes that the two artists are known for individually with a song selection that spans a wider spectrum than the first installment. Drawing a direct line between the godfather of soul and the father of afrobeat, Obi Original wields the raucous 10-piece ensemble in a way that evokes the stage of Zaire ‘74. These tracks hit hard, stay heavy, and make no apologies.

The A-side, ‘If I Do My Own,’ is funk. Heavy on the one, this track showcases Obi’s band leadership, à la James Brown; if only you could see him dancing in the vocal booth. Stacked horns, a leader barking orders, and a rhythm section that won’t quit leads listeners to the land of the get-down. ‘If I Do My Own’ is a track slated to make the dance hall shake, with horn and vocal hooks that will live rent free in your head well after last-call.

The B-side, ‘I No Be (Colonizer)’, in no way lets its foot off the gas. This song, however, sees BMB returning to their polyrhythmic roots, creating a multivaried weave of time feels, meter construction, and rhythmic emphasis. That challenge is met and answered by Obi’s Ebo infused lyrics and horn melodies that wind around the vocal rather than merely serving as background. Powerful, unembellished, and raw, the trio doesn’t pull any punches when delivering this rhythm break which propels the song into an unrelenting four-on-the-floor vamp featuring a guitar solo turned up to 11 that will dance you right out of your shoes.

TRACK LISTING

A. If I Do My Own
B. I No Be (Colonizer)

Greatest hits’ compilation, the first time a complete overview of The Fall’s career has been available on vinyl.

When the CD was originally released it was seen as the most complete and best overview of the bands recorded work and has yet to be bettered.

As with the other Fall re-issues it has been compiled by Daryl Easlea (who also wrote the notes) in conjunction with Fall expert Conway Patton and has been mastered by long time engineer Andy Pearce with art by Becky

The Fall were an English post-punk band, formed in Manchester in 1976. The band existed in some form until 2018, built around its founder and only constant member Mark E. Smith.

Initially associated with the punk movement of the late 1970s, the group's music went through several stylistic changes over the years, but was often characterised by an abrasive guitar-driven sound and frequent use of repetition, and was always underpinned by Smith's distinctive vocals and often cryptic lyrics. The band was noted for its prolific output: they released over 25 studio albums, and more than triple that counting live albums and other releases. They never achieved widespread public success beyond a handful of minor hit singles.

The band were long associated with BBC disc jockey John Peel, who championed them from early on in their career and cited The Fall as his favourite band, famously explaining, "They are always different; they are always the same."

TRACK LISTING

SIDE ONE
1 Repetition
2 How I Wrote 'Elastic Man'
3 Totally Wired
4 Lie Dream Of A Casino Soul
5 The Classical
SIDE TWO
1 The Man Whose Head Expanded
2 Cruiser's Creek
3 Mr Pharmacist
4 There's A Ghost In My House
5 Hit The North
6 Victoria
SIDE THREE
1 Telephone Thing
2 Free Range
3 Lost In Music
4 Behind The Counter - Single Version
5 Touch Sensitive
SIDE FOUR
1 Theme From Sparta FC - Single Version
2 Blindness
3 Bury
4 New Facts Emerge

Wally Badarou is a synth pioneer and musical polymath. But rarely does he sing over his sumptuous tracks. The 6 songs that comprise new record 'Simple Things' finally realise Wally's vision for select backing tracks from his beloved 'Colors Of Silence'.

The tracks were originally developed back in 2001 for the release of the original CD; here, Wally has “simply" added overdubs and vocals to their mastered mixes with some discerning edits.

Simply put, 'Simple Things' is another slice of simply stunning Wally Badarou genius.

TRACK LISTING

1. It Couldn't Be You
2. You Can't Hide Always
3. We'll Make It Again
4. Walk Straight Ahead
5. Painting My Life Blue
6. Just Two Lovers 

Long-time NuNorthern Soul contributor, B.J. Smith is a man in demand, dividing his time between solo work, playing guitar in Crazy P man James Baron’s popular JIM outfit, collaborating in a variety of well-regarded projects (Smith & Mudd, Bison and White Elephant amongst them) and composing for TV. Due to this impressive list of musical commitments, solo releases have been few and far between of late, with Smith’s most recent NuNorthern Soul release, a stripped back version of his Big Sur single, dropping late 2023.

It's been ever longer since he delivered a volume in his popular and ongoing Dedications To The Greats series, where the singer-songwriter and composer successfully turns his hand to other people’s songs. Since debuting the series on NuNorthern Soul in 2013 via revelatory and inspired covers of tracks by Mos Def and the Pharcyde, Smith has covered cuts by Outkast, Prefab Sprout and Soul II Soul.

On volume four, Smith’s first volume in the series for five years, he delivers a “cover of a cover” – a revolutionary and imaginative interpretation of Billy Swan’s ‘Don’t Be Cruel’, itself a version of a song first made famous by Elvis Presley. It was their mutual love of Swan’s version that brought Smith together with the release’s most prominent guest artist, Joe Harvey-Whyte, whose lilting, bittersweet and deeply emotive pedal steel performances can be heard across the EP.

Smith provides three contrasting takes. The EP is led by the ‘Mother Earth’ version, a slowly unfurling epic in which waves of effects-laden pedal steel and sun-splashed picking acoustic guitars usher in Smith’s eyes-closed vocalisations, settling into a groove reminiscent of his collaborative work with long-time friend and collaborator Paul ‘Mudd’ Murphy that showcases Harvey-Whyte centre stage to joyful effect. As the 14-minute epic progresses, we’re treated to long, languid electric guitar solos, percussion-laden slow-motion builds and hazy, stretched-out organ solos. It’s a breathlessly brilliant concoction that’s a million miles away from either Swan or Presley’s versions.

In contrast, the similarly epic ‘Earth Heart’ version – available in full vocal and instrumental takes – pushes the song front and centre. Following an extended build up, where Tamar Osborn’s gorgeous and fluid flute motifs rub shoulders with languid guitar solos and Harvey-Whyte’s pedal steel, Smith takes to the mic, delivering an emotive performance of the song’s heartfelt lyrics over a hushed, slow-motion groove. The track builds in waves as it progresses, with Smith layering up instrumentation as it rolls towards a fine conclusion.

Completing a superb package is the ‘Root Heart Version’, a Balearic-meets-Americana take built around shuffling drums, toasty bass guitar, extended pedal steel instrumentation, flashes of flute and Smith’s sun-bright acoustic guitar. Loved-up and more than a little saucer-eyed, it’s a bona-fide sunset delight.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Mother Earth Version
B1. Earth Heart Version (Tamar Osborn On Flute)
B2. Root Heart Version

Steve Moore reprises his beloved Lovelock guise by presenting his unique riff on the library breaks genre. Business And Pleasure contains grimy groove and sleazy, funk-laden lounge music.

This vinyl release is hyper-limited, with just 500 pressed for the world.

The LP is ushered in by the spacey synth-funk of the sleazy, woozy title track. This is that serious slo-mo cosmic-balearic head-nod shit. Laidback bass, heavy funk with dreamy synth and electric guitars. An outstanding opener. Up next, the dynamic, swaggering "Last Call" is a sophisticated, elegant stroll - sweeping, mellow strings, a smooth bassline and gorgeous percussion with urgent keys and swelling synths.

"Slinky Strut" is another spaced-out, sleazy funk groove with jazz rock by way of a heavy, heavy guitar riff, mellotron and bass breakdowns which build to brass crescendos. Gigantic. "First Class" closes out the side, and, like classic Hawkshaw / Bennett noir, it's got that mysterious and murky stretched out sleuth / detective soul with a great bassline and percussive elements, with swelling strings, ace synths and smooth Rhodes piano melodies entering the mix halfway through. Dramatic guitars and groovy percussion add extra intrigue. It's 7 minutes of funk!

Side B opens with the stretched-out psychedelic funk and jazz groove of "Stank 49". It takes its sweet time to unfurl, creating enormous - almost sensual - anticipation for the ensuing beauty but, as it does, we're left beguiled and straight-up hypnotised. Heaven-sent synth flourishes and a laidback bassline over smooth drums cement its simple, vivacious grace. "Dangerous Man" is that creeping crime funk we all love; heavy bass and fuzzy guitar riffs, mellow strings and sumptuous piano/synths. It's irresistible, it's ominous and it's pretty gargantuan. It's basically like an El-P hip-hop instrumental. We need to get some rappers over this stuff, stat!

"Stinkbug" is a dazzling and funky groove-fuelled jazz-rock workout with fizzing synth riffs joined by full percussion and drum breaks, building with strings to a strong swagger. Vigour! To close out this remarkable set, the breezy "Win Or Lose" is laidback soul-inflected funk, utilising urgent, skipping drums and galloping basslines. Just stunning.

This collection was written and recorded in Spring and Summer of ’24. Everything was tracked at Steve's home studio in Albany, NY except the drums and percussion, which were recorded by Jeff Gretz at his space in NYC. The whole collection is basically a rhythm section feature, so Steve's Rickenbacker 4003 and Fender Jazz Bass play very prominently. The bass guitar serves as lead instrument in a lot of these tracks. Also, lots of Rhodes and stringers (Solina, Logan etc) and guitar (Strat and Les Paul). He even dusted off my sax for this one, which he doesn’t do as often as he’d like!

This type of groove-oriented library music has been a steady part of Steve's diet since the late 90’s. In heavy rotation while writing this collection were the following classics: “Time Signals” by Klaus Weiss, “Tilsley Orchestral No. 10” by Reg Tilsley, and “Heavy Truckin’” by Simon Haseley. “Voyage” by Brian Bennett was also a big one.

Lovelock started as a dedicated Italo-disco project, but over the years Steve expanded it to include anything directly informed by the commercial/pop side of the music of his childhood (70s/80s). Writing and recording this album was, like a lot of Steve's music these days, basically a test to see whether or not he could do it.

The song titles, like the music, are meant to be evocative yet vague. But there is a bit of a travel theme. Steve imagined this record being the soundtrack to a sleazy salesman’s business trip. The kind of guy who, when asked if he’s traveling for business or pleasure, responds “both.” Beyond the traveling salesman comparison, the title directly relates to the creation of this album. This was something he wanted to do just for his own enjoyment. Yet, like our sleazy salesman, he still found a way to get paid.

The album’s cover was designed by Chris Stevenson, with no little direction from Steve. He knew that he wanted to go with something photography-based for this cover so, in true DIY/cheapskate spirit, Steve started by looking through his own photos. He found the cover image on his phone, taken through an almost empty bottle of beer, and it clicked. The whole album has a very boozy vibe (especially with titles like “Last Call”) so this shot seemed appropriate. We, hic, agree.

Mastering for this vinyl edition was overseen by Be With regular Simon Francis, and it was cut by the esteemed Cicely Balston at Abbey Road Studios to be pressed in the Netherlands by Record Industry. 

TRACK LISTING

A1 Business & Pleasure 5:50
A2 Last Call 6:57
A3 Slinky Strut 4:37
A4 First Class 6:59
B1 Stank 49 6:26
B2 Dangerous Man 4:15
B3 Stinkbug 5:00
B4 Win Or Lose 4:04

After the people asked, The Gallery is finally back open; and what 2 stunning new pieces of Artwork are now on show for everyone to enjoy, and have a lovely, lovely time to…it was worth the wait! You would have heard Harvey, Artwork, Hunnee, Peggy and a few other choice DJ’s showing these beauty’s to the crowds over the last 2 summers…and now you too can own these masterpieces. Be quick before Christies and co make copies unaffordable. Art for all!

TRACK LISTING

A1. All Over The World
B1. Be The Dancer

First time ever official vinyl reissue, gatefold 140g vinyl, remastered from the original Vertigo master tapes.

The Keith Tippett Group's Dedicated to You, But You Weren't Listening is a landmark in cutting edge fusion/avant-jazz. A vital and profoundly adventurous Jazz-Rock record that still swings very hard, it was first released on Vertigo in 1971.

Original copies are now very tricky to score and, as most of you really should know, it’s aged ridiculously well.

A legendary work, this Be With re-issue has been newly remastered from the original Vertigo master tapes, demonstrating just why this deserves to be back in press. The stunning gatefold jacket fully restores Roger and Martyn Dean's original, arresting album artwork to complete this must-have reissue.

Alive and bursting with a joyful energy that has to be heard to be believed, Dedicated to You, But You Weren't Listening flirts with perfection. It's truly magical and forever essential.

A brilliant jazz pianist, composer, arranger and bandleader "who could make the outlands of modern music feel like the most hospitable of places" (The Guardian), Keith Tippett's second album is oft-regarded as his Canterbury album.

Indeed, not only does he draw heavily on Soft Machine members past, present and future but the album title itself archly references a Soft Machine composition. Ray Babbington handles bass alongside Neville Whitehead and the drums are shared between Brian Spring (Nucleus), Robert Wyatt(!) and Phil Howard (who would go on to replace Wyatt in Soft Machine). Gary Boyle (Isotope) is on guitar whilst the great percussionist Tony Uter is enlisted for his conga and cow bell expertise. Elton Dean on Alto Saxello, cornetist Marc Charig and Nick Evans on trombone round out this quite stunning ensemble.

Dedicated to You, But You Weren't Listening presents a collective of superhuman musicians really, *really* enjoying themselves in the studio. The sheer exuberance of the performance is totally infectious. It's wild, energetic, atmospheric and, bluntly, bordering on chaotic at points. In a word, it's beautiful.

Robert Wyatt's drumming opens the record with a bang on the majestic Be With favourite "This Is What Happens". Some have described his work here as "easily the most inspired of his career on record." It's an ultra-funky conga-driven groove that truly sparks via the duelling interplay between the three horn players. In the background, Keith's insistent piano, in conversation with those unignorable drums, is the anchor that keeps this piece rollicking away. Breathtaking.

The epic, energetic "Thoughts to Geoff" is a 10-minute jammer that tends towards the dissonant and improvisational but becomes more fluid, laconic and melodic as it unravels. The interplay between soloists and ensembles is particularly dazzling here - blazing solos by Evans, Charig and Tippett himself in a flourish of angular arpeggios interspersed with chordal elocution. Phew.

Up next, the no less-urgent Mingus-referencing "Green and Orange Night Park" is a soaring example of ambitious jazz mixed with rock aggression, with Dean strutting his stuff by launching into a scorching solo. An absolutely jaw-dropping piece. Arguably the highlight of this album of huge highlights!

Though much of the album tends to fall on the raucous side ("Gridal Suite" approaches free-jazz at its most chaotic and, dare we say it, "difficult"), there are a few more sedate, at times spacey numbers, such as the deeply impressionistic "Five After Dawn". The rhythmically complex "Black Horse" is the most accessible track here, a sort of swinging Big Band number with tight grooves, soaring horn & reed melodies, a sizzling Boyle guitar solo and tasty electric piano riffs from Tippett. An hypnotic climax to a staggering record.

This Be With edition of Dedicated to You, But You Weren't Listening has been remastered from the original Vertigo master tapes, Simon Francis’ mastering working together with Cicely Balston's cut at Abbey Road Studios to weave their usual magic with these wonderful recordings. The stunning gatefold sleeve has been restored in all its brainchild glory so you know you're dealing with the definitive reissue, here. Now, are you listening?

TRACK LISTING

A1 This Is What Happens (5:45)
A2 Thoughts To Geoff (10:19)
A3 Green And Orange Night Park (8:12)
B4 Gridal Suite (6:13)
B5 Five After Dawn (5:24)
B6 Dedicated To You, But You Weren't Listening (0:36)
B7 Black Horse (5:53)

One Oh Eight returns with that Lowslung goodness just in time for summer. The A side features 45 stalwart Jim Sharp with a Pittsburgh themed lowslung affair. Combining old school and new school R&B flavours, Jim takes it back in the day with Neo Soul vocals. The AA side aptly features Canadian party rocker DJ Double A - who takes a 90s R&B classic, notches up the BPMs and turns it into a future boogie killer. Both sides will be delivering donuts to the countless Shazam attempts that will take place on the dancefloor.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Jim Sharp - Back In The Dang
B1. Double A - Wanna Be Down

Lady Gaga, Adele, Amy Winehouse, Dua Lipa, Bruno Mars, Miley Cyrus, the Barbie soundtrack. Behind some of the biggest musical moments in the past two decades is one man: Mark Ronson. Now, his memoir Night People captures the music, characters, escapades and energy of his formative DJ days in 90s New York.

Mark Ronson was born a night person. With hedonistic creatives for parents, parties became his playground. Yet, having moved to New York City from London at a young age, he always felt like a bit of an outsider, until discovering himself in the pulsing, unifying joy of the city’s parties and hip-hop scene.

Each night brought a heady mix of music, ambition, danger, delight, and possibilities. Having well and truly caught the DJing bug, he worked to find his place and make his name in the city that never sleeps. Night People conjures the undeniable magic of 90s New York, when clubs were diverse, glamorous, a little lawless.

It evokes the rush of a time and place where fashionistas and rappers on the rise danced alongside club kids and 9-to-5'ers – and invites us into the tribe of creatives and partiers who came alive when the sun went down. A heartfelt coming-of-age tale, Night People is the definitive account of a cultural moment and the making of a musical mastermind.

Indonesia’s own Thee Marloes treat us to a new non-stop 7” while they finish recording their sophomore album due out in 2026. Following up on the international success of 2024’s Perak, Thee Marloes will be touring the US and Europe this year and this new single is right on time for all of it. The A side “I’d Be Lost” is a sweet love song where Natassya Sianturi sings praises to a man that needs nothing but her love in return. The gorgeous four on the floor backing track makes this one an instant stepper for the dance floor. Keeping in the timeless 7” tradition of plug & ballad pairings, the B side “What’s On Your Mind” is as proper heavy drum driven slowie with climbing sitars and frantic piano chases. Tassya sings of the mysteriousness and intrigue of instant attraction, keeping her cool and professing her desire to let her guard down.

TRACK LISTING

I'd Be Lost
What's On Your Mind

Reissue of Sofia Isella's 'I Can Be Your Mother', the 2024 EP also features b-side stand alone singles and includes hit tracks 'All Of Human Knowledge Made Us Dumb' and 'Hot Gum'.

TRACK LISTING

1. The Well
2. Sex Concept
3. Cacao And Cocaine
4. The Doll People
5. Unattractive
6. I Can Be Your Mother
7. All Of Human Knowledge Made Us Dumb
8. Us And Pugs
9. I Looked The Future
10. Hot Gum
11. Everybody Supports Women

Max Essa is a firm part of the neo-Balearic mafia and shows off his trademark take on the summer-ready sound with this return to Is It Balearic? 'Camel Night-Rate (Clear To The Ocean)' kicks off with a great blend of chug, dubby low ends and shimmering synth work while 80s chords light it up with good vibes. A Be.Lanuit remix is more serene and stripped back for late night dreaming then 'Love's New Meridian' sinks into a melancholic and downbeat world of sunset charm with wispy pads. The Coyote Mellow remix reworks it as a gently breaking wave on a moon-lit beach. Classy tackle all round.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: There's some lovely jangle to Max Essa's new slice of Balearic downbeat business with two laid-back originals and a duo of deep reworks. The pick for me here has to be the Johnny Jewel-y thrum of 'Love's New Meridian', but they're all worth the entry price alone.

TRACK LISTING

Side 1
1. "Camel Night-Rate (Clear To The Ocean)"
2. "Camel Night-Rate" (Be.Lanuit Remix)

Side 2
1. "Love’s New Meridian"
2. "Love's New Meridian" (Coyote Mellow Remix)

Limited Press, full sleeve & centre label design by Ciaran Birch. Mastered by Beau @ 1087 Studios.

The Babyfather members have been on a roll recently, and this one is no different. Following 24's single 'Open Up' for Accidental Meetings, Tusk & Massiah link up once again on the Bristol imprint.

Lord Tusk serves up a killer beat on Might Be The One, a raw and breezy stepper with Tusk's trademark drums and synth work sprinkled all over. With it's tempo coming in on the slightly quicker side for the dance floor, James Massiah's flow is perfect as per to meet it, ice cold delivery from the London poet with sharp verses and lyric work. Another gem from two of London's finest.

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Pure London vibes from Dean Blunt collaborators James Massiah and Lord Tusk with a fiery 7" that nods to grime and dubstep with its urban rhythms and stream-of-consciousness flow.

TRACK LISTING

A1. James Massiah Meets Lord Tusk - Might Be The One
B1. James Massiah Meets Lord Tusk - Might Be The One (Version)

Mysticisms returns, looking to the source, Detroit City, with the beautiful house music of Soiree Records International and their 1995 deep vocal bomb, "That’s How Lovers Be".

Established in 1990 by Derrick Thompson, Soiree has long focused on the deeper side of house and late night rhythms across over 70 releases. Never making a shout out about it, the label might not of garnered the kudos it deserves while laying down a tight standard of cosmic sonic delight.

Featuring in the main on Thompson’s own Drivetrain releases, his production skills are deployed on this one time project. Written and sung by Montaze Armstrong, alongside the smooth accompaniment of Merchon Bower, the production is ubiquitous Drivetrain. His main mix sets the scene; hats proffering swing and impetus while bass and chords underpin the vocal interplay to skyward perfection.

Once again the label conjoins a latter day contemporary and admired producer to offer their own retake and who better than the essential producer of all things deep, Nail. A huge influence on the label during the formative years of (free party) house music’s ascent, his recent return has been widely welcomed. His mix is full of respect and perfect pitch, adding his distinctive low-end rumble, hypnotic hats, skips, loop and shake.

To close, it’s all about the legend that is Scott Grooves. Nothing more needs be said, his 9-minute ride show jazz roots worn firmly. Rhodes, claps, piano and vocal are all that’s needed. Loose, funky and soulful from a true master.

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Smashing, lost Detroit house track by unsung Motor City hero Drivetrain. Repressed here by Mysticisms who, fair play to 'em, seem to mining the lesser explored crevices of the dance for their reissue releases.

TRACK LISTING

A1. That's How Lovers Be (Drivetrain Mix)
A2.That's How Lovers Be (Nail Mix)
B.That's How Lovers Be (Scott Grooves That's How Dub's Be) 

Riddim Research Lab and Lay-Far are back on GAMM with a killa 7" exploring the bridges between Jamaican sound systems and UK 90's club culture.

Side A delivers an uptempo dub vs breakbeat tune that probably could've been championed by someone like Grooverider or similar in the mid 90s.

On the B side we find a fierce original jungle version with those Amen drums hitting bang on.

Riddim Research Lab continue their flawless form for GAMM. Recommended!

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: One of my favourite releases on GAMM for ages, that original baggy breaks reggae version is simply killer! Lovin' the jungle tip too (though unlikely it'll get too much rotation in my particular circles sadly). RRL fail to put a foot wrong!

TRACK LISTING

A. Riddim Research Lab Vs Lay-far - Cry Fi Dem
B. Riddim Research Lab Vs Lay-far & Ant To Be - Cry Fi Dem

This very special second​ album was recorded in a secluded location in the north of Iceland with producer Sam Petts-Davies, and follows on from the Black Country band’s 2023 debut ‘Morning Ritual’.

The dynamic of the band feels wholeheartedly distinct, the four-piece are intimately intertwined and each of the band’s experiences informs their new material with the remote recording location providing a sanctuary from personal struggles. The band continues their precedent of equality with the instruments they play and lead vocals interchangeable, and swerve the traditional tropes of indie bands, using their instruments and production techniques in unusual and thrilling ways.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Brilliantly athletic arty progressive rock music, with strong roots in folk music and your classic singer-songwriter dynamic but with a firm grasp of the avant garde and an unbelievable ear for melody and production. Nothing else sounds like this.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
Bless You & Be Well
Fixin'
I'm Losing It
Kid Won't Eat
Offerings
More

Side B
Sequence Of Voices
Fold
Holiday From Normal Dreaming
Moon Man
By July

Norman Connors' Mr. C is a masterclass in sophisticated modern funk and boogie-infused soul that was way ahead of its time. Originally released in 1981, the album finds the renowned jazz drummer/producer at a creative crossroads, boldly diving deep into street-level boogie-funk without losing his soulful, jazzy touch. What once might have puzzled jazz purists now delights soul/funk aficionados; it has quietly become a cult favourite and now, nearly 45 years later, Mr. C sounds fresher than ever. Brimming with infectious heavy funk, lush arrangements and soul-stirring performances, it's an album that flirts with perfection, ensuring its enduring significance in the boogie/jazz-funk-soul canon.

From its opening moments, Mr. C makes one thing clear: this is Norman Connors at his funkiest. The majority of the album is a straight-up party: think dancefloor-ready beats complemented by punchy horn riffs and slick early-80s boogie vibes. There’s heavy use of synths and drum-machines, demonstrating Connors' gleeful embrace of contemporary funk trends. Each track shines in uniquely thrilling fashion, showcasing Connors’ versatility and happy knack for blending genres whilst crafting unforgettable melodies.

Irresistible thumper “She’s Gone” opens the album with a dyno-Rhodes electric piano groove and a seriously thick boogie-funk rhythm. Lush string accents and horn stabs weave through the funky bassline, while the vocals (handled by a young Beau Williams) soar with gospel-tinged emotion. Over four decades later, it endures as a masterpiece. Living up to its name, the shimmering “Party Town” brings deep Electro-Funk Energy by layering bubbling synth bass and shiny lead synth lines. The groove is downright addictive, a brisk, brass-kissed jam that implores you to move. Up next, the sophisticated funk of “Keep Doin’ It” is a low-slung post-disco glider, propelled by a sleek vibe, leaning into the late-night boogie sound. Funky guitar, tight drumming (with Connors’ jazz-honed chops in the pocket) and smooth vocals urge you to “keep doin'” whatever it is that's working. “Stay with Me” works a bit of island flavour into the mix, riding a thick Caribbean groove complete with tropical percussion and an upbeat tempo that could almost be calypsoul. The fusion of Caribbean rhythm elements into an R&B context demonstrates Connors’ willingness to experiment with global sounds while keeping things soulful and danceable.

Side B opens with the sassy funk-deluxe workout, "Anyway You Want" dripping with that soulful strut. Bringing a real quiet storm swagger, “Sing a Love Song” slows the tempo ever so slightly into a sexy, swaying jazz-funk gem, featuring a young Glenn Jones on lead vocals. The arrangement is elegant, built on warm keys and an undeniable groove. The celestial “Love’s In Your Corner” is all about soulful uplift. Featuring the legendary Jean Carn's powerhouse vocals soaring over a brass-kissed driving funk, it's an R&B burner. The refined, jazzy instrumental “Mr. C” is a slinky, smooth, funk-filled mid-tempo groove, with sax and warm keys gliding effortlessly. Connors combines jazzy arrangements into the post-disco/boogie framework one last time, and the result is sublime. It’s sophisticated and cool and, as a finale, “Mr. C” wraps up the album in classy style.

On release, Mr. C flew under the radar but time has been exceptionally kind to this record. DJs, collectors and soul connoisseurs alike have since rediscovered its magic. As ever, this crucial reissue has been lovingly remastered by Simon Francis, cut by engineer of the year Cicely Balston at Abbey Road Studios and pressed to perfection by Record Industry in Holland. Norman Connors was something truly extra. He was a visionary. And Mr. C is proof.

TRACK LISTING

A1 She's Gone 4:54
A2 Party Town 5:00
A3 Keep Doin' It 5:22
A4 Stay With Me 3:20
B1 Anyway You Want 3:25
B2 Sing A Love Song 3:16
B3 Love's In Your Corner 4:34
B4 Mr. C 4:23

First time vinyl reissue, expanded and deluxe double gatefold 140g double vinyl, remastered audio with restored artwork and fresh liners written by Paul Hillery (Folk Funk & Trippy Troubadours)

Alan James Eastwood's glorious 'Seeds' is a certified folk-funk lost-classic.

But who was Alan James Eastwood? He had never hit the big time and commercial success eluded him. By the mid-1970s, his musical career was pretty much over and he was almost unknown except among deep heads, amongst whom he would gain cult status.

Original copies of the 1971 vinyl release of 'Seeds' exchange hands for high sums, if you can find one. This expanded 2LP contains an extra record, collecting 9 rare non-album singles and is presented in a gatefold sleeve complete with freshly commissioned liner notes courtesy of Paul Hillery (Folk Funk & Trippy Troubadours).

With the long overdue deluxe reissue of this prized artefact, we hope to finally shine a light on the unheralded genius of Alan James Eastwood. RIYL Nick Drake, Rodriguez, Richie Havens. 

TRACK LISTING

1. She's Getting Married In August
2. Evenin' Rain
3. Les Papillons
4. Zeena
5. Virgin Morn
6. Seeds 
7. Crystal Blue 
8. Lady Carole 
9. Lotus Child 
10. Last Prayer 
11. Hymn For Today
12. Boston 
13.Blackbird Charlie 
14. My Sun
15. Closer To The Truth 
16. Strange News
17. Moonchild 
18. Red Shoe Truckin' 
19. Beautiful 
20. Opal Blue Sunday

Nine Inch Nails returns with their new single 'As Alive As You Need Me To Be' taken from the motion picture TRON: Ares. Pressed on black vinyl. Features the B-Side 'Empathetic Response'.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: A particularly thumping cut from the upcoming film Tron : Ares soundtracked by the untouchable Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. It's very Quakey in theme, lots of driving rhythms and clean lines, but honestly it's classic Trent all the way through. Always essential.

TRACK LISTING

1. As Alive As You Need Me To Be
2. Empathetic Response

The Armed return with their new album The Future Is Here and Everything Needs to Be Destroyed, the follow up to 2023’s critically acclaimed album Perfect Saviors. After completing a trilogy of albums laser-focused on dissecting artistic authenticity in the Information Age, The Armed began work on new material with no premeditated rules or concepts favouring only raw expression and urgency to herald a new era for the project.

What emerged is a furious and confrontational new album—The Future Is Here and Everything Needs to Be Destroyed. Still genre-defying, yet overtly pissed, it's an unfiltered expression of Weltschmerz, the German term describing the anguish of the world’s reality versus our idealized visions of what it should be. “This record rejects sanitized, G-rated rebellion curated for upper middle-class tastes,” vocalist Tony Wolski explains. “It’s music for a statistically wealthy population that somehow can’t afford food or medicine—endlessly scrolling past vacation photos, gym selfies, and images of child amputees in the same feed. It reflects the dissociation required just to exist in that reality.”

The album includes performances by Ken Szymanski, Patrick Shiroishi, Urian Hackney, Kurt Ballou, Troy Van Leeuwen, Meghan O’Neil, Cara Drolshagen, Tony Wolski, Brian Wolski, Justin Meldal-Johnsen, Ben Chisholm, Prostitute, Zach Weeks, Mark Guiliana, Kayleigh Goldsworthy, and Derek Coburn.

TRACK LISTING

1. Well Made Play
2. Purity Drag
3. Kingbreaker
4. Grace Obscure
5. Broken Mirror (feat. Prostitute)
6. Sharp Teeth
7. I Steal What I Want
8. Local Millionaire
9. Gave Up
10. Heathen
11. A More Perfect Design

Folk music has a bad habit of being presented as a deathly serious concern. It’s something you cry to, it’s overly sacred, it’s solemnly considered by critic-historians. But Folk Bitch Trio, former high school friends Heide Peverelle (they/them), Jeanie Pilkington (she/her) and Gracie Sinclair (she/her), have a shared sense of humour that is embedded deep in their music, and that sets it alight, safe from the self-serious traps of the genre. 'Now Would Be A Good Time', their debut album, tells vivid, visceral stories, and is funny and darkly ironic in the manner of writers like Mary Gaitskill or Otessa Moshfegh. Their music sounds familiar, but the songs are modern, youthful, singing acutely through dissociative daydreams and galling breakups, sexual fantasies and media overload, all the petty resentments and minor humiliations of being in your early twenties in the 2020s. Folk Bitch Trio have already toured across Australia, Europe and the US, supporting bands as disparate as King Gizzard, Alex G and Julia Jacklin. They’ve signed with Jagjaguwar, a home for singular icons and iconoclasts (Bon Iver, Angel Olsen, Sharon Van Etten, UMO and others), and they’ve found their first diehard fans with dazzling harmonies and acerbic lyricism that transcend genre expectations and audience lines. These are the stakes: Learning how to live a life free of lovesickness and loser exes, when to sink into contemporary nihilism and when to have a laugh with your friends, and why being alive can feel so ephemeral and unreal. In this sense, 'Now Would Be A Good Time' feels like a manual for modern living: a missive from three proud Folk Bitches finding beauty and wisdom where they can, together.

TRACK LISTING

1. God's A Different Sword
2. Hotel TV
3. The Actor
4. Moth Song
5. I’ll Find A Way
6. Cathode Ray
7. Foreign Bird
8. That’s All She Wrote
9. Sarah
10. Mary’s Playing The Harp

A supremo Italo-boogie doubler banger from Giovanni Damico here on Star Creature. Two faves taken from the long out of print "Fall In Your Groove" album. A mid-tempo psychedelic boogie jam on the A-side with "Be Your Lover", and an Afro-Italo lip-smacker on the B-side, full of those classic drum boxes and massive Zanzibar energy. Comes in a replica 7" jacket.

TRACK LISTING

A. Fall In The Groove
B. Be Your Lover

Jukebox Disco Divas makes a fine entry into the world of wax with this first too-classic-to-fail edit offering. First up is an instrumental rework of a well-known and strident disco delight from the golden 70s era. It's sympathetically done with big drums, hooky trumpets and enough original vocals from the Moroder-style gem to make sure the floor catches fire. On the flip, an equally delicious tweak of an equally great original. This first 7" sets a fine standard for what is sure to be a very useful new label for lovers of old and new disco and plenty of sounds in between.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: A lovely pair of instrumental edits on Jukebox Disco Divas that take you all the way down to the floor and back, without having to trim the fat too much. Classic disco sounds for the busy enthusiast.

TRACK LISTING

Bad Girls (Funk 45 Instrumental Re-Edit)
Got To Be Real (Classic Instrumental Edit)

Thee modern masters of sweet soul return with two killer 6/8 ballads that explore the messy particulars of love lost and love found. The moody, blues forward “Somebody Knew” tackles the former as singer Josh Lane bares his soul with a tale about a sensitive subject many of us can relate to- processing the shame and pain associated with losing the one you love to another. Tracked during the sessions for Got A Story to Tell and a stand out in their live set, “We Don’t Have to Be Alone” is a gorgeous, floaty ballad that deals with two folks coming to terms with the fact that it’s ok to find comfort and joy in love at a provisional level.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
Somebody Knew
Side B
We Don’t Have To Be Alone

First ever vinyl release of Stimulator Jones's formative early boom-bap beat experimentations on 140g vinyl.

On December 25th, 2023 - an Instagram post. Stimulator Jones shared half a dozen FIRE tracks from his beat tape archive. Be With Records were immediately drawn to the rough hewn boom bap and commented "I'd release that".

Hours of material was shared and the result is this: 'Cool Green Trees (1999-2005)'. A collection of beats and loops Stimulator Jones created between the ages of 14-20 at home in his basement, bedroom and computer room in Roanoke, Virginia. You will not believe the profound soulful genius contained within these naive schoolboy melodies.

In the wake of his Stones Throw breakthrough - 'Exotic Worlds & Master Treasures' - Stimulator Jones was pegged by many as a 90s throwback artist. However, he literally IS a 90s artist. He's been recording music most of his life and he's now 40. He created the bulk of 'Cool Green Trees' as a teenager. Everything before 2004 was recorded when Sam was still in school. He was in 8th grade when he made the 1999 tracks - he didn't even have his learner's permit. This album is a snapshot of a young man in a simpler time. Things were still mysterious back then and he was flying blind, relying on his ears and having to figure things out for himself.

Opener 'Pharoah Jones' was inspired by Yesterday's New Quintet and Madlib's ability to capture that classic 70s sound whilst playing all the instruments. Up next, 'Ghost Gospel' utilises a dope loop from a gospel record and adds some soul-funk drums overtop, whilst working that filter knob. Says Sam: "The loop reminded me of something Ghostface would rap over. The sample was in 3/4 waltz time but I flipped it for a 4/4 groove, a technique I picked up from RZA. 'Ill Feeling' uses sped-up pieces from a dusty old funk record and putting them over a classic NOLA drum loop; gain chopping up a slow, bluesy 3/4 time signature and bending it to a 4/4 groove. Classy shit. 'Capital Punishment' features drums tapped in live, inspired by MF Doom's 'Special Herbs' series. 'Do Not Adjust' consists loops found on a compilation of 70s French music at Happy's Flea Market, a classic Roanoke digging spot.

The sublime, evocative title track, 'Cool Green Trees' was created when Sam was still living at home. He dumped samples off his SU10 into the family desktop and arranged them in a demo version of Pro Tools: "This track was sort of my ode to the DJ Shadow style of sample based production. Super spacey, slow, and moody. The heavily filtered drums were inspired by Alec Empire's 'Low on Ice' album. I later added some scratches and sounds from a Spider Man storybook record." 'Chill Scratch' snags the final bit of a bossanova record and pairs it with a drum loop before adding experimental scratching run through an Electro Harmonix Memory Man echo pedal. 'Poisonous Fumes' was made using a sampler, mixer and a turntable; a kind of mixtape beat collage with added scratches and sounds from various records. Using dialogue from superhero records was a nod to Madlib. 'Welcome Aboard The Starship' is dark, downtempo trip-hop with a spooky bent. Sam paired a slow, hard drum loop with a guitar sample grabbed off a psychedelic rock record. To finish, he added various backwards sounds and weird atmospheric effects and a little scratching. Swoon.

Side B opens with 'Keep On Runnin', made on a borrowed Roland SP202 sampler. Having always loved the sound of the Lo-Fi filter on those machines, reminiscent of the Emu SP1200, Sam always imagined Del or another of the Hieroglyphics crew rapping over this beat. You can certainly hear why. 'Sounds Impossible' sees Sam experimenting with layering multiple kick samples at different volumes to create patterns similar to those heard by Showbiz and Lord Finesse during their God-level 1995 period. 'Painted Faces' was made by chopping up a [REDACTED] record which he had gotten from Happy's Flea Market and paired it with a [REDACTED] drum loop. By the time Sam recorded 'The Knew Style', he had acquired a shitty old 1960s portable turntable off eBay. It didn't function properly when he bought it but his brother opened it up, cleaned it out and got it working: "I remember he told me that there was a bunch of sand inside of it when he opened it up, as if its previous owner had taken it to the beach. I would take that turntable on my Happy's Flea Market digs so I could preview records...that's how I found this loop."

Sam explains just how much these tracks mean to him: "They all have immense historical and sentimental value and I'm proud of them. These beats come from an innocent, simple time when I was just figuring out how to craft these sounds. They're something very personal to me. They are the initial part of a journey that I really was taking *alone*. There was no YouTube. I couldn't Google shit. I didn't even know any other beatmakers, producers or DJs in my town that could teach me anything. It was always just me, alone, in a room with some equipment - chasing the funky symphonies that filled my head and my dreams. What I was doing wasn't cool. Most of my peers thought I was a weirdo and couldn't care less. Creating these sounds was an anti-social endeavour. In a sense, I felt like it was me against the world, and all I had to instruct and assist me were the recordings produced by my heroes - RZA, DJ Premier, Erick Sermon, Beatminerz, Showbiz, Diamond D, Beatnuts, Prince Paul, The Bomb Squad, Pete Rock, Q-Tip, E-Swift, Mista Lawnge, DJ Shadow, Cut Chemist, Peanut Butter Wolf, El-P and so many more...I dedicate this collection to them, and to my older brother Joe who has always been a musical and technical guiding light for me.

The cover photo is a picture of Sam standing on his back porch in the latter part of 1998, just before he got his first sampler. He was 13 years old, in 8th grade. His dad took the picture with his 35mm film camera. Mastering for this vinyl edition was overseen by Be With regular Simon Francis and it was cut by the esteemed Cicely Balston at Abbey Road Studios to be pressed in the Netherlands by Record Industry. 

TRACK LISTING

1. Pharoah Jones
2. Ghost Gospel
3. Ill Feeling
4. Capital Punishment
5. Do Not Adjust
6. Cool Green Trees
7. Chill Scratch
8. Poisonous Fumes
9. Welcome Aboard The Starship
10. Keep On Runnin 
11. Sounds Impossible 
12. Painted Faces
13. The Knew Style 
14. Chicken Wing Blues Sauce 
15. Kool Breeze 
16. Sexx Bullets
17. Soul Child 
18. Take Off Runnin 
19. Centurian 
20. Bozack 
21. Church 
22. Splash One
23. Hank
24. 73 Goatee

UNIVERSITY, the Crewe-based four-piece formed of Zak Bowker (vocals/guitar), Ewan Barton (bass), drummer Joel Smith and Eddie (mascot), announce their debut album, ‘McCartney, It’ll Be OK’, following last year's incredible debut EP and a slew of shows that have them firmly established as one of the best live bands in the UK right now.

With influences from the 80's DIY noise underground, emo-core, Burroughs and obscure arthouse cinema and the likes of 'Windmill' scenesters Black Midi they're the most exciting group to emerge from Crewe since, well, ever. The tightest of friendships thrust them together in a void of culture, where in-jokes, a fourth member who plays computer games on stage whiles they thrash out (and maybe writes all the songs!?!?!), these charismatic young upstarts invite you into their gang, where the riffs are melodic, the lyrics emotional yet humorous and the drums are set to eleven.

Recorded with producer Kwes Darko (Sampa The Great, Denzel Curry) at Damon Albarn’s Studio 13 in London, ‘McCartney, It’ll Be OK’ furthers the extremely exciting beginnings of UNIVERSITY’s 2023 debut EP, ‘Title Track’, with the hooks now brighter and more melodic, the breakdowns heavier and the lyrics more refined. The band recorded ‘McCartney, It’ll Be Alright’ totally live, and it retains the delightfully unhinged energy that’s defined their work so far, with everything thrillingly close to falling apart at any minute.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Frenetic, clattering noisy indie rock that's nestled nicely into blasts of punky drums and snappy distortion, athletic guitar shapes and screaming vocals. Fantastically weird, angular mayhem.

TRACK LISTING

1. Massive Twenty One Pilots Tattoo
2. Curwen
3. Gorilla Panic
4. Hustler’s Metamorphosis
5. GTA Online
6. Diamond Song
7. History Of Iron Maiden Pt. 1
8. History Of Iron Maiden Pt. 0.5

After their hit debut single 'More More More', opening for The Sex Pistols at the Royal Albert Hall, closing down Soho with their pop up performance and selling out a headline UK tour - The Molotovs are back with their latest single and your summer anthem 'Today's Gonna Be Our Day'. 

TRACK LISTING

1. Today's Gonna Be Our Day
2. No Time To Talk

After leading the cult performance art collective Lazarus Kane, Ben Hambro took a more introspective, lyrically driven approach with vegas water taxi. Their debut album, 'Things Are Gonna Be Alright', was self-released in November 2023—a beautiful yet jarring collection of songs capturing the chaos and contradictions of your twenties.

The album is getting reissued with its first-ever vinyl release via PNKSLM Recordings on June 13, 2025. The reissue includes four exclusive bonus tracks recorded live at The Windmill. Hambro, who's also collaborated with artists such as Katy J Pearson, continues to craft music that resonates and surprises.

TRACK LISTING

1. Creative Director Blues
2. Dog Race
3. Jukebox
4. Six Music Dads
5. Twenty Year Cycle
6. Shout
7. Get Clean
8. Modern Love
9. Get Clean (Live)
10. Birkenstocks (Live)
11. Six Music Dads (Live)
12. Creative Director Blues (Live)
13. Modern Love (Live)

Since the release of his 2023 record, 'The Happiest Times I Ever Ignored', Pedigo earned widespread critical acclaim, performed a stunning NPR Tiny Desk Concert, toured non-stop with the likes of Jenny Lewis, Devendra Banhart and Hiss Golden Messenger, and more. He then decamped on a 20,000-acre ranch at an artist residency in Wyoming to write his new album, which he’d later record in Ojai with Scott Hirsch and name for a “pretty devastating” episode of Little House on the Prairie from 1978. The resulting album, 'I’ll Be Waving As You Drive Away', is the final installment of what Pedigo has dubbed 'The Motor Trilogy’ – his three latest solo albums, tied together by their vehicular Jonathan Phillips artwork. An innovator of the instrumental genre, challenger of the stereotypical, and son of a truck-stop preacher, Pedigo has crafted an intentionally maximalist, genre-resistant work of warped instrumental Americana on this release, which he calls “a micro-dose psychedelic album…as if somebody had cut up a tab of LSD and put on a Fahey record.” 

STAFF COMMENTS

Laura says: On his latest album Hayden's mesmerizing finger picked guitars conjure up images of dusty sunbaked landscapes and endless highways. A wonderfully evocative album, perfect for lazy Sunday listening.

TRACK LISTING

1. Long Pond Lily
2. All The Way Across
3. Smoked
4. Houndstooth
5. Hermes
6. Small Torch
7. I'll Be Waving As You Drive Away

‘Let All That We Imagine Be The Light’ is the eighth studio record from Garbage and was recorded at Red Razor Sounds in Los Angeles, Butch Vig’s studio Grunge Is Dead, and Shirley Manson’s bedroom. The record was produced by the band and longtime engineer Billy Bush. The album is unmistakably Garbage. All the hallmarks and signatures for which they are known are present here. Big angular guitars, precise, propulsive beats and cinematic soundscapes all lurk beneath Shirley Manson’s expressive voice, her lyrics bristling with attitude. It is the sound of a group at the peak of their creative powers - characteristically harnessing sonic juxtapositions and moods to create an album that thrums equally with both light and shade.

“Going into making this record, I was determined to find a more hopeful, uplifting world to immerse myself in. The title of the album, Let All That We Imagine Be The Light is a perfect, headline statement for the record as a whole. When things feel dark it feels imperative to seek out the forces that are light, positive and beautiful in the world. It almost feels like a matter of life and death. A strategy for survival” - Shirley Manson

STAFF COMMENTS

Ashley says: I had a real soft spot for Garbage around the first two / three albums, and still consider 'Version 2.0' one of my favourite indie electronic albums of all, so I was excited to hear the new one. Fortunately, it has all of the propulsive drive and soaring, anthemic glory we've come to know and love from the STILL ORIGINAL line-up, long may they continue.

TRACK LISTING

1. There’s No Future In Optimism
2. Chinese Fire Horse
3. Hold
4. Have We Met (The Void)
5. Sisyphus
6. Radical
7. Love To Give
8. Get Out My Face AKA Bad Kitty
9. R U Happy Now
10. The Day That I Met God

Deep West Coast Jazz-Rap instant c-l-a-s-s-i-c alert!

Perfect to chill to, Headnodic + Jazz Mafia's astounding self-titled record blends hip-hop and jazz effortlessly, bringing the two genres together with their intrinsic beauty intact. Here we get hip-hop beats made from the box (SP-12 / Maschine / Laptop / MPC etc.) that still feel like that good ol' loop-based Boom-Bap knock, mixed with an equal dose of timeless organic musicianship, shining with spontaneity, humanity and soul. This vital project came about when we opened an email from Thes One (of the mighty People Under The Stairs): "I want to introduce you to my good friend and collaborator Headnodic". Boy, are we glad he did.

Jazzy hip-hop on that mellow-melodic tip, Headnodic + Jazz Mafia is an unforgettable album with nothing but dope beats and dope bars. There's a strong chance these artists have, until now, passed you by. However, we truly believe this to be a hip-hop jazz masterpiece that'll be beloved for years to come. By way of introduction, Headnodic is a part of the fabric of underground hip-hop. From his contributions to the groundbreaking group Crown City Rockers (AKA Mission), to his production work with Lateef & the Gift of Gab as The Mighty Underdogs (Def Jux / Quannum Records), Headnodic embodies the spirit of hip-hop in a way that is both unique, rare and universal. A phenomenal talent, then, and one we were delighted to be put in touch with by Thes.

In the year 2000, trombonist, bassist, composer, arranger, and producer Adam Theis co-founded Jazz Mafia – an eclectic artist collective of forward-thinking and accomplished players in Electro, Hip-Hop, World, Classical, and Jazz. 25 years in the making, Jazz Mafia is a prolific staple of the quintessential San Francisco sound, uniting creative and accomplished Bay Area instrumentalists, vocalists, MCs, composers, and arrangers. The collective quickly garnered a reputation for its collaborative and risk-taking spirit, and over the years has worked with Roy Ayers, Lyrics Born, Zion-I, Latyrx and Blackalicious, to name a few.

Headnodic has been making beats since he was a teenager and, around the same time, he played electric and upright bass in jazz ensembles. The two genres were always intertwined for him: the jazz he loved had grit and groove and the hip-hop he loved sampled those very records, bringing that human touch to programmed beats. This album is a true collaboration between Headnodic and Adam Theis, along with The Jazz Mafia collective of musicians. In essence, Headnodic made the beats, Adam reacted with the horn arrangements but, with the extended family of musicians they pulled in, it made it feel like they were painting with infinite colours.

Indeed, some musicians - like vibraphonist Dan Neville - would replay and improvise over sampled loops, blurring the line between live performance and production. Other times, they’d strip out the sample entirely and build from the ground up with live players, leaving a recognisable loop to become a faint but welcoming echo of the original idea. How fresh is that? They enlisted some amazing vocalists and emcees: Genra, Do D.A.T., Ozay Moore (Lightheaded), Eligh (Living Legends) and Breathless brought raw lyricism.

Be With doing the vinyl for Headnodic + Jazz Mafia felt like the perfect match for all involved. As Headnodic explains, "the label’s catalog champions the spirit and sonic aesthetic we aimed for on this record — that warm, organic thickness of ’70s library records, like the re-releases they did with the KPM and Themes catalogs, mixed with Cali Hip-Hop a la Freestyle Fellowship. We wanted to channel 70s era’s rich textures, blending them with live musicianship to bring the sound full circle: from the records we’d sample for hip-hop back to musicians in a room, playing with the same raw energy. Be With gets the deep crate-digging sensibilities and love for boom-bap hip-hop, much like we do. It feels good to release music, knowing this record lives comfortably somewhere between Nohelani Cypriano and Bahamadia."

It's been mastered for vinyl by Be With stalwart Simon Francis, cut by our favourite engineer Cicely Balston at Abbey Road Studios and pressed at the legendary Record Industry in Holland. Quality to the end.

TRACK LISTING

A1 Rambissimo
A2 Zugulala
A3 Maiden Voyage
A4 Rise
A5 Risk Pt. 1
A6 Risk Pt. 2
B1 Subinodima
B2 Flummox
B3 Both
B4 All That You Could Be
B5 Talkin'
B6 Apex
B7 Roll The Credits

To launch the new Lunar Module imprint from Castles In Space, Gordon Chapman-Fox presents us with an album of cinematic ambient music, stepping away from his usual analogue synthesizer tones.

“I wanted to stretch my legs and create something more long form, organic and immersive than my Warrington-Runcorn persona” says Gordon. “I hope the title speaks for itself. This is ambient music, but it's not background music. This is very much for the foreground. To be played loudly and to lose yourself in this world of sound.”

The four tracks on offer present a different side to Gordon’s skills, the tracks are stripped of the usual soaring melodies and arpeggios of Warrington-Runcorn, but maintain the oppressive melancholy through tones and textures.

“There’s quite substantial use of orchestral sound libraries on this” says Gordon. “I wanted to hear the sound of a bow scraping across a cello or the breath of a choir. Not having either an orchestra or choir to hand, sample libraries had to fill the gap.”

TRACK LISTING

1. Components
2. Fringe
3. Emphasis
4. Singular

An English composer and multi-instrumentalist, Daniel O'Sullivan’s career has been marked by versatility and innovation. In addition to his work with Sonoton, he has composed extensively for the legendary KPM music library, contributing to its storied legacy of production music. As a deep virtuoso and collaborator, O'Sullivan has also played in a number of influential projects, including Ulver, Sunn O))), This Is Not This Heat, Grumbling Fur and Miracle (with Steve Moore), leaving an indelible mark on the contemporary experimental music landscape.

A stunning song cycle of hypnotic, experimental contemporary chamber music composed for a 14-piece ensemble. Combining minimalism, complex syncopation, detailed acoustic textures, weird intervals and samurai precision, this record will elegantly blow your mind.

When Daniel first sent us this, he pitched it as “Liquid Swords meets Michael Nyman”. Trust us, he wasn't wrong. A "unique hybrid orchestral music", it presents a confluence of Daniel's longstanding fixations; indeed, there's elements of Nyman, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Magma, Aaron Copland and RZA. But this is wholly O'Sullivan's.

O’Sullivan’s first foray into classically informed chamber music, Eros is a culmination of his long-standing fixations and expansive musical influences. The album features arrangements that are as detailed as they are emotionally resonant, showcasing his unparalleled ear for intervals and mastery of counterpoint. The music brims with complex rhythmic syncopation and a sensitivity to texture and space, resulting in a soundscape that is both intoxicating and dauntingly precise.

Recorded June 2023 and February 2024, in Brussels, London and Carmarthenshire, Wales, Eros features members of Echo Collective (Neil Leiter and Margaret Hermant), Thighpaulsandra (from seminal post-industrial band Coil), and jazz pioneer Oren Marshall. Daniel's sonic weapons of choice, in his own inimitable words, were "Big Bad Drum, Pee Anne Oh, Low End Brass, Willowy Winds & Samurai Strings." You get the picture. As a cyclical suite, this is a record that really needs to be heard in its entirety, from start to finish, to truly appreciate the genius at work here.

A jaw-dropping statement of intent, the minimalist "Golden Verses" sets the tone with its complex cue which has your neck snapping right when it feels like it needs to. Listen and you'll understand. A syncopated tangle of sharp strings, crunchy bass, drums percussion and bright piano and mallets vie for position with French horn and woodwind melody in the most compelling and unexpected ways. Quite simply, it's one of the finest album openers I've ever heard. It's followed by the atmospheric rippling minimalism of "Lyre Lyre", a gorgeous gem with shimmering chimes, bright melody, human percussion and syncopated pizzicato strings. It kinda comes on like a less-abstract Boards Of Canada, bursting with typical wonderment. The piano and string-drenched "Dolorous Stroke" effortlessly builds its warm, pastoral orchestration with flowing piano arpeggio, steadfast drums, expressive string quartet, rich low brass, woodwind and lyrical flute. Just sublime.

The insistent frenetic propulsion of "Plain Paper" is utterly beguiling, featuring a determined string motif, urgent drums and percussion, driving low brass and breathless, energetic flute. The haunting, interweaving string arpeggios that propel "Grapes Draped" presents a claustrophobic minimalism for chaos and darkness, with growling low woodwind and brass, spiky harpsichord, skittering flutes and tight drums. Up next, "Xanix Annum" is a stately minimalist waltz with expressive lyrical string quartet and delicate woodwind, anchored by drums and percussion. "Painting Rose" is a bouncy stop-start track with angular syncopated strings and a piano pulse underneath bright harpsichord and flutes. "Rotunda Garden" presents ethereal textural minimalism for landscapes and reflection with flowing string arpeggios, warm, low woodwind drones, floating choir and cymbal swells. Closing out this extraordinary side of music, the glowing, flowing minimalism of "Flowry Orb" features urgent organ, piano and woodwind arpeggios, half-time drums with shimmering cymbals, a soaring, beautiful violin solo and hypnotic vocal chant.

Side 2 opens with "Theia Mania" a determinedly off-kilter, angular track featuring low wind, brass and drum stomp in dialogue with lively string trio, woodwind and solo horn. The light, airy minimalism of "Painting Percy" is built around an interplay of rhythmic motifs for piano, low brass, bassoon, fluttering flutes, urgent strings, drums and percussion whilst "For Archetypes" is a delicate, gently syncopated chamber cue for nostalgia, nature, reflection and moments of calm, with steady piano motif, intimate woodwind and French horn, and warm, graceful strings. The urgent Ars Memoriae is a propulsive march for progress, processes and industry, underpinned by driving tuba, with determined strings, resolute drums, and vivid, expressive flute, clarinet and French horn.

The syncopated energetic minimalism of "Mirrored Seven" presents layers of melodic and cyclical piano, drums, low brass, harp, flute and strings. "Pure Ornament" follows, a slowly evolving chamber cue with flowing clarinet, string and harp arpeggio, plodding tuba and percussion, fluttering flute and graceful, lyrical solos. Stunning! Up next, "Brave Boy" moves from its tender, warm, lullaby-like intro with lyrical flute, clarinet and strings before opening into a playful backend driven by a bouncy tuba riff and syncopated piano, woodwind, string trio, and drums and percussion. Rounding out this astonishing piece, "Waxen Waned" is a warm, pastoral chamber cue with light lyrical woodwind, tender French horn and subtly pulsing string trio.

Mastering for this vinyl edition was overseen by Be With regular Simon Francis, and it was cut by the esteemed Cicely Balston at Abbey Road Studios to be pressed in the Netherlands by Record Industry. 

TRACK LISTING

A1 Golden Verses
A2 Lyre Lyre
A3 Dolorous Stroke
A4 Plain Paper
A5 Grapes Draped
A6 Xanix Annum
A7 Painting Rose
A8 Rotunda Garden
A9 Flowry Orb
B1 Theia Mania
B2 Painting Percy
B3 For Archetypes
B4 Ars Memoriae
B5 Mirrored Seven
B6 Pure Ornament
B7 Brave Boy
B8 Waxen Waned

To Be is the first album release from Karman Line Collective. Recorded by artist Wolfgang Buttress with Kevin Bales and Tony Foster (Spiritualized, Julian Cope) and Justin Goodyear, To Be is a phenomenal, immersive new soundscape for Buttress’ latest art installation - BEES: A Story of Survival - a multi-sensory experience at World Museum, Liverpool. This exhibition highlights the essential role these ingenious pollinators play within the planet’s ecosystems, as well as the existential threat faced by both bees and humanity alike due to our mistreatment of the planet.

Eight years ago, along with thousands of bees, Wolfgang Buttress worked with Bales and Foster as BE to soundtrack his multi award-winning art installation The Hive in Kew Gardens, London. The album ONEcollected that soundscape and was released on Caught by the River’s Rivertones label to much critical acclaim and featured in multiple best album of the year lists, including those of Rough Trade, The Quietus and The Guardian.

The soundscape for BEES: A Story of Survival builds on and evolves the group’s previous work on The Hive and develops it as one of the exhibition’s main narrative devices. Buttress has likened moving through the exhibition to following the contours of a song: verse, chorus, verse, chorus, middle eight, drop, chorus, chorus - much like how the eight installations in the piece meld into and inform each other. The music - along with light, sound, projection and scent - take the visitor on an emotional and sensorial journey into the secret world of bees.

Created over three years of writing and recording, To Be beautifully combines previously unheard recordings of bee communications with deeply enveloping meditative music. These unique bee communication sounds are used as raw musical stems within the composition; some are processed through guitar pedals to augment the music creating an entirely new library of sounds. Throughout the record, the listener will hear bees communicating in various ways, from the vibrations produced by their famous ‘waggle dance,’ to the sounds melittologists refer to as bees’ tooting, quacking and purring.

Over the course of the record, Karman Line Collective take the listener on a reflective journey, making connections to the changing seasons of life and our increasingly fragile relationship with nature. The music flows with it’s own mysterious beauty offering a sense of empathy and connection where the sounds of bee and human are harmoniously integrated..

To Be was recorded, mixed and produced by Karman Line Collective (Kev Bales, Wolfgang Buttress, Tony Foster, Justin Goodyear) with help from Camille Christel (words, vocals), Deirdre Bencsik (cello), Robert Howard (guitar), David Harris (trumpet) and Ian Downing (saw).

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Crackling, bucolic drones and glistening melodies hidden beneath washes of string and slowly building mountains of reverb and delay. An impeccably built world that's both hugely listenable and evocative, straying just the right amount into fantastical storytelling and earthly, natural majestly.

TRACK LISTING

1. Melittology
2. Portal
3. Meadow
4. Be
5. Swarm
6. Vanishing
7. Memory
8. Symphony 

Sex Mask is a 3 piece post-punk/alternative rock band based in Melbourne, Australia, drawing members who hail from various parts of the globe.

The self-contained writing/production unit comprises Vicente Moncada on drums/production, Ry Gray on vocals and lyrics, and Kaya Martin on guitars and synths.

Their music is described as "vague pop instilled with the ancient genius of your own blood," suggesting a blend of introspective lyrics, innovative soundscapes, in a context of absurdist punk.

Sex Mask has released several tracks, including "Tv Movie," "How To Be Cool At Parties," and "Birds." They have a growing organic base of listeners on streaming platforms.

Their captivating live show in 2024-25 has seen them support Fcukers, Big Special, Fat White Family and festival stages around Australia.
Following an exciting Bigsound Brisbane and SXSW Sydney in late 2024, the chaotic trio will embark on their first UK tour this spring, covering stages at Dot To Dot, Great Escape, Get Together as well as their debut headline show in London.

TRACK LISTING

A. How To Be Cool At Parties
AA. Circe

Heading up the B-Town scene back in 2012 alnogside Peace and Swim Deep, JAWS announced a fairwell tour for 2025 and have treated us to this 10th anniversary reissue of thier beloved debut album, 'Be Slowly'. 

STAFF COMMENTS

Liam says: Perfect slice on mid-10s indie. A band that meant everything to me when I was 17 and a band that still hold a real special place in my heart. They've recently completed their farewell tour, so picking up this LP is the perfect way to commemorate the band -JAWS FOREVER

TRACK LISTING

1. Time
2. Cameron
3. Gold
4. Swim
5. Home
6. Be Slowly
7. Think Too Much, Feel Too Little
8. Filth
9. Sunset State
10. Surround You
11. NYE

On its 40-year anniversary, this crossover dancefloor gem gets a re-issue AND a brand-new remix from Scandinavian superstar OPOLOPO courtesy of the musical melittologists over at A's & Bee's. His remix drops a bassline of all basslines over the Philadelphia quartets rare 1985 mid-tempo groover, giving it a fresh lease of life for the dancefloors of 2025. This is a charity release, and the label will, as ever, donate proceeds to BBKA, who will use the funds to help educate people about the importance of our flying friends, and how to help in their well-being. Limited edition press in a Dylan Kendle designed A's & Bee's sleeve.

TRACK LISTING

A1. OPOLOPO Dub Remix
B1. Original 12 Inch Vocal Mix
B2. Original 12 Inch Instrumental Mix

In April 2010, indie-pop band Scouting for Girls released their second album, Everybody Wants To Be on TV, which featured their Easter #1 single This Ain’t A Love Song beating Lady Gaga and Usher to the top spot where it remained for 2 weeks. The album reached #2 in the UK albums charts and is certified platinum.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
This Ain't A Love Song
Little Miss Naughty
Good Time Girl
Famous
Silly Song
On The Radio

Side B
Blue As Your Eyes
Posh Girls
1+1
Take A Chance On Us
Gotta Keep Smiling
A New Day

Lady Wray treats us to an unstoppable two-sider while she and Grammy-nominated producer Leon Michels (Clairo / El Michels Affair) put the finishing touches on her forthcoming album. The A side “Be A Witness” showcases one of the new directions Lady Wray is taking her sound. Nicole's vocals soar over bottom heavy drum machine and Nick Movshon's funky basslines making this a proper mid-tempo dance floor filler. Lady Wray sings about a love destined to happen, celebrates the joys that come with it, and spreads the good vibes to everyone in earshot. The B side “Best For Us” is a gorgeous tune about love, commitment, intention, and overcoming the tough times. Synths and background vocals float over Homer Steinweiss' signature in-the-pocket drums creating the perfect backdrop for Cole's world-renowned voice. This one will be an instant two-step classic.

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

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

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

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

2024 was a defining year for Dublin quintet Fontaines D.C., whose fourth album ROMANCE was lauded as one of the year’s very best, cementing their status as one of the most exciting bands in contemporary music. Topping multiple ‘album of the year’ lists around the world, ROMANCE was quickly certified gold in the UK and saw the band nominated for two GRAMMYs and a BRIT Award among a host of accolades; a celebration of Fontaines D.C.’s ambitious world-building and bold musical evolution.

Today, Fontaines D.C. - Grian Chatten (vocals), Carlos O’Connell (guitar), Conor Curley (guitar), Conor Deegan (bass), and Tom Coll (drums) - launch into 2025 with brand new single, “It’s Amazing To Be Young”. Produced by ROMANCE album producer James Ford, it’s Fontaines D.C. at their most anthemic and is set to soundtrack a huge year of live shows for the band. The single is accompanied by a video from acclaimed BAFTA-winning filmmaker Luna Carmoon (Hoard, Shagbands), who previously directed the videos for Fontaines D.C.’s “Here’s The Thing” and “In The Modern World”. “It’s Amazing To Be Young” completes the cinematic trilogy, bringing together “In The Modern World”’s Martin (Ewan Mitchell) and “Here’s The Thing”’s Spider (Grace Collender) in an unlikely but beautifully surreal love story.

The single release precedes a huge year of live activity for Fontaines D.C., who will perform to 100,000 people across four sold out UK outdoor headline shows in London, Manchester, Newcastle and Cardiff this summer, including a 45,000-capacity event at London’s Finsbury Park on 5th July.

TRACK LISTING

A Side:
"It's Amazing To Be Young"

B Side:
“Before You I Just Forget"

Every so often an album of such deceptive genius, of such aesthetic clarity, comes across our desk and transfixes us. Thought Leadership's III Of Pentacles is one such work of art. It's an instant classic and glides into the pantheon of timeless guitar-soul totems. Originally out on cassette only, we present the first ever vinyl issue. It's a hideously limited pressing of 300 for the world, so don't sleep on this.

It has already garnered big support from such tastemakers as Ruf Dug, Jason Boardman, Nathan Gregory Wilkins, J Walk, Evan Woodward, Justin Robertson and Heavenly's Jeff Barrett. The first time we heard III Of Pentacles, we nearly wept at the thought that something so beautiful, so bursting with real hope, could even exist in this brutal world. To quote the Quietus, "imagine if Stockport was situated somewhere along the Pacific Coast Highway rather than the M60, and you’ll have some idea of the coordinates to the post-industrial, sunburnt dream space opened up here."

So, who is Thought Leadership? What do we know about them? They reside in Stockport and are obsessed with ethereal guitar records. That’s about it. That and these X ideas shared with you, the listener.

Captured on a multitrack recorder in a terraced house in Stockport, this is as DIY as it gets. Glaringly obvious is a love for classic Factory and early 4AD. Perhaps it is the proximity to the River Mersey where the ideas arrived, and there being but three miles between where this and the Durutti Column’s classic “LC” was recorded, as the two operate across a familiar aural plain. Be it geographic or otherwise, limited by a true economy of means, namely guitar, pedals and drum machine, the fruit borne from these humble tools has been indelibly shaped by the perma-gloom that hangs low over the Manchester and Stockport environs.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: There are echoes here of Durutti Column, sure but there is a lot more influence that has been drawn from across the musical spectrum with folky interludes and shimmering, shoegazey atmospheres. Some of the riffs here sound like they could be Smashing Pumpkins ambient drifters or the more upbeat Tropic Of Cancer pieces, but it all swims with a hazy, bucolic air.

Following the reissue of their sophomore, self-titled LP, Acopia return to CWPT for a limited-edition vinyl 10” featuring two remixes from Daniel Avery and JD Twitch of Optimo.

Extended and remastered for dancefloors, Daniel Avery transforms the skeletal intimacy of ‘Be Enough’ into skittering, hardcore-indebted, warehouse material, as lead singer Kate Durman’s gossamer vocal holds strong beneath an onslaught of kicks and atop powerful bass weight.

JD Twitch conjures his extensive knowledge of brooding outsider music throughout a rich, lucid dub of ‘Holding On’. Coaxing out the band’s gothic undertones, Twitch pulls away a billowing sheet to reveal layers of guitar feedback that recall the resplendent gloom of This Mortal Coil or Sunn O))).

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Two futureproof sound system bangers. Avery opts for a high speed dnb rinse out while Twitch goes for crushing slice of tectonic avant-dub.

TRACK LISTING

A. Be Enough (Daniel Avery Remix)
B. Holding On (JD Twitch Dub) 

There's iconic. Then there's *iconic*.

Tumblack really is a gorgeous late-70s disco-not-disco essential. It's an absolute MONSTER that will completely blow you away; and, yes, it's as compelling and trance-inducing as the cover. The audio for Tumblack has been carefully remastered by Be With regular Simon Francis, ensuring it sounds better than ever.

Cicely Balston's expert skills have made sure nothing is lost in the cut whilst the records have been pressed to the highest possible standard at Record Industry in Holland. The cover of Tumblack is so iconic and we sought special permission from original artist Hélène Majera to recreate this at Be With HQ. It absolutely zings off the print and serves as the perfect finishing touch to this long overdue re-issue.

A MASSIVE speaker-smashing release, decades overdue. It's been bootlegged - shamefully so, many times over the years - but finally we present the first ever officially licensed reissue of this truly special Afro-disco-not-disco LP from 1979. A favourite of Harvey, Antal, Young Marco and, er, every great DJ to ever play deep records ever, basically. It's not hard to see - or, indeed, *feel* why.

Gem after gem of relentless, irresistibly funky gold, it's an incredibly revelatory album with endlessly complex drum patterns and basslines to dive into, throughout. Truly, this is uniquely FIRE music, unlike anything else you've ever heard, based on Gwo ka music from the gorgeous islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique. A thrilling synthesis of primal, hypnotic drums - the most tribal of percussive elements high in the mix throughout - with the loping synth pyrotechnics of, amongst a whole host of other greats, Wally Badarou and bass power of disco funk don Sauveur Mallia (Arpadys, Spatial & Co.)

Originally released on the seminal French label Barclay, you'd be hard pressed to even find an original copy in nice condition anywhere, let alone for a reasonable price, so it's high time an officially licensed, remastered reissue came around. It's just the latest in a long line of Be With reissues where the music sounds like the - drop-dead dazzling - cover. This here is a true drum attack. BUY ON SIGHT!

Tumblack was a short-lived project, produced and arranged by electronic wizard Yves Hayat and it can certainly be regarded as one of the first examples of Zouk, mixing powerful disco-funk arrangements with Gwo ka, traditional music from Guadeloupe. Gwo ka is an Antillean Creole term for "big drum". You can say that again! It refers to both a family of hand drums and the music played with them, which is a major part of Guadeloupean folk music.Whilst the first side is credited to the exceptional Tumblack band, the flip is given over to "Tumblack & Friends". These weren't just any old friends. Oh no, they were the absolute cream of the French scene (think Arpadys, Voyage, Le Club, Giant, CCPP, Synthesis, Swing Family) such as Sauveur Mallia, Wally Badarou, Marc Chantereau on percussion, Slim Pezin on guitar and Jean-Paul Batailley and Pierre Alain-Dahan handling drum duties.

The urgent, frantic "Fracas" gets things moving straight away with a cavalcade of drums and percussive funk before giving way to the stratospheric "Invocation", one of the album's many, many highlights. It's effectively one long heavenly drum break, a really hard, raw, tribal drum workout without a whole lot else going on - and all the better for it! One to make you sweat, no question. Up next, "Jubilé" is announced with a bellowing accapella voice, chanting the titular name before the heaviest of kicks smashes out your system and lulls you into an absolute state of bliss for nearly 6 minutes. Whoooooosh! Rounding out the sensational A-Side, "Vaudou" is a scratchy, funky patterned drum workout which - yep, yet again - absolutely slays your neck muscles, making them snap and contract in extraordinary fashion. TURN IT UP!

Ushering in the B-Side, the brief, fidgety, African chant-funk of "Parlement" segues seamlessly, beautifully into "Waka", an overwhelmingly rich gem of percussive funk. You do not want this to end, once it hits its stride. For maximum heavenly drum pleasure, you'd need to go a long way than the moment "Waka" feels like it's fading out before it kick-drum-blend into the mighty "Caraïba (Intro)". It's just staggeringly good. It's a minute-long layered drum prelude to the gigantic track which follows. Indeed, "Caraïba" is arguably the best loved and most well-known cut off the LP. And with good reason...featuring that Mallia bass, warm Rhodes and clavs, synth magic, memorably alto sax lines and, of course, tribal chanting.

Another mighty super-ahead-of-its-time classic, the bouncing bass heavy synth funk of "Chunga Funk" deploys Mallia and Wally Badarou (on Mini Moog) exceptionally well. I mean, come on, that bassline is just ridiculous. Try not to move to this one. This extraordinary record closes out with the more traditional Gwo ka sounds of "Bateau La Passé", the tribal chorus making the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. 

TRACK LISTING

A1 Fracas 1:36
A2 Invocation 4:59
A3 Jubilé 5:54
A4 Vaudou 4:09
B1 Parlement 1:40
B2 Waka 3:10
B3 Caraïba (Intro) 1:06
B4 Caraïba 3:47
B5 Chunga Funk 4:23
B6 Bateau La Passé 2:11

It’s easy to forget just how deeply weird the ’90s were. On a global scale, you had the collapse of the Soviet Union and its Warsaw Pact satellites (Sputnik’s Down!). Hundreds of millions of people were thrown to the wolves of economic chaos and misery, and the Cold War that had provided the defining framework for understanding the world over the previous half century suddenly evaporated. Hapless theorists were left to speculate about “the end of history,” even. Confusing! At the local level it was a time when one could sit down with one’s father as he watched NASCAR on TV and hear 'Natural One' by underground music friends the Folk Implosion — their song inescapably employed as bumper music before the next commercial break. Also confusing! One gets the sense it was a little confusing for The Folk Implosion’s John Davis and Lou Barlow, too. They were in the middle of recording 'Dare to Be Surprised', the follow-up to their 1994 debut album, 'Take A Look Inside', when it happened. The KIDS stuff — the handful of songs and instrumental tracks they’d contributed to the soundtrack of the now infamous Harmony Korine/Larry Clark film — had been something of a lark, but it was while recording it at Boston’s venerable Fort Apache that they met Wally Gagel. A happy accident: Gagel happened to be the house engineer on duty the day they showed up, but they found in him someone whose general sensibilities, and, critically, enthusiasm for new wave, matched their own.

The results marked a shift from earlier Folk Implosion efforts. The partnership between Lou Barlow, already an indie-rock veteran with two of the era’s most influential bands in Dinosaur Jr. and Sebadoh amongst his credits, and John Davis, the erstwhile librarian whose skeletal solo work paired elliptical guitar figures with lyrics that evoked the language poets, seemed at first like an opportunity to get silly with it in ways that wouldn’t have sat quite right with their other projects. What came out of Fort Apache was different: mannered, moody, dubby even (they sampled Erik Satie, for crying out loud!). Lacking the budget to go back to the proper studio that the KIDS gig had afforded them, the Folk Implosion settled instead on Gagel’s small recording space in Boston’s South End. There were rules, rules born from frank conversations. No chords. No strumming. No indie rock! They whiled away afternoons in the park writing lyrics, trading lines. And over a year of episodic sessions, a weekend here, a few days there, an album came together. When 'Natural One' blew up it could’ve changed the calculus — the opportunity was there to scrap what they’d been working on and start over with major-label money — but they elected instead to stay the course, confident in the process.

It seems a bit of a shame from this remove that 'Dare to Be Surprised' was destined to live in the shadow of the KIDS soundtrack’s success, but the ’90s were a weird time, and it was sometimes hard to recognize things for what they were. What this was, it’s clear now, is the sound of a band truly finding its feet, and forging something genuinely new in the process.

TRACK LISTING

1. Pole Position
2. Wide Web
3. Insinuation
4. Barricade
5. That's The Trick
6. Checking In
7. Cold Night
8. Park Dub
9. Burning Paper
10. (Blank Paper)
11. Ball & Chain
12. Fall Into November
13. Dare To Be Surprised
14. River Devotion

Discos Martos' second release: a 45-vinyl single from Rocksteady Romantics, celebrating the irresistible sounds of…you guessed it…rocksteady. True to the label's dedication to analog productions, this release offers what Jamaican music culture is known for: Dub music and classic soul covers in its own style.

The A-side features a fantastic dub track featuring Tibstar, designed for loud soundsystems and clubs. With its catchy and powerful horn section, this track is guaranteed to get the dance floor moving.

On the B-side, the band presents a lovely Spanish version of the classic soul tune "I'm Your Puppet," sung by Tito Ramírez. This fresh interpretation blends the original's charm with a rocksteady twist.

With this release, Discos Martos continues to honor timeless sounds while infusing them with contemporary energy.

TRACK LISTING

1. Be A Rocker (feat. Tibstar)
2. Soy Tu Títere (feat. Tito Ramirez)

Colin McCann, Brian Gossman, and Eric Fiscus periodically return to the grid from the remote mountains of Northern California to document their evo/involution as Vulture Feather. Touring the states throughout much of 2024, they brought the sharpened machine back to Tim Green's Louder Studios to capture their second album, 'It Will Be Like Now'.

In literary terms, the record is a work of man versus nature, except man and nature are both secret identities of a third, unnamed thing. Tears and the ocean and death are the main characters, and the initiated may get the sense that these too, belong to the absolute. It all ultimately resolves as a terrifying and beautiful love story. Sonically speaking, 'It Will Be Like Now' reports from a place where PiL and Jah Wobble never parted ways, where Johnny Marr righted the ship, where songs only need one part: the good part.

The heads will know McCann and Gossman from their time in the prehistoric Don Martin Three (recently re-issued catalog by Numero Group) and later, Wilderness (Jagjaguwar). While prior efforts are beside the point, this is undeniably the sound of people who have been making music together for 25+ years. Glistening as much as howling, the guitar and vocals function as duet, delivering The Only Story Ever Told over a concise and thunderous rhythm section. It's the sound emulating from everywhere, all the time, through thick carpets of clouds, reverberating off canyon walls, through troubled waters, and finally to your devices, your ears, your heart, if you choose to hear it.

TRACK LISTING

1. Blood Knot
2. Into Space
3. Flesh And Electronics
4. Calling From Afar
5. Sweetest Friend
6. Like Now
7. Only/Holy Names
8. Let It Through

Crucial version of the classic Deniece Williams number! Karen Dixon sings it in a Lovers Rock style. From the Neville King archive and licensed for it’s first ever 7 Inch press. Complete with Instrumental Version on the flip!40 years of endless play!

TRACK LISTING

A1. I Just Want To Be Free
B1. Dub To Be Free

With her new “Let Me Be Your Fantasy” remix package, Anané continues to solidify her position as one of the most talented and charismatic recording artists in the world today. It’s never easy to take on a classic disco tune, which in this case is a song originally released in 1978 by The Love Symphony Orchestra. But working with producers Two Soul Fusion (Louie Vega and Josh Milan), Anané has crafted a new version of this song that retains the glamour of disco while also injecting a raw toughness and rhythm perfectly suited for today’s dancefloors. As is her custom on her remix packages, Anané has pulled together an outstanding team of producers to lay down their own very unique and high impact mixes, including Masters At Work, Dimitri From Paris, Mousse T, Blackchild and Moplen. Not only that, but the string section was arranged and conducted by Leroy Burgess and the instrumental credits reads like a who's who of session musician royalty. An incredibly well put together package. Limited copies!

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Here's Nervous with another one of their expansive, deluxe, 12" double packs. Featuring a plethora of royal remix talent (just look at that list!), it's a modern take on disco anthem "Let Me Be Your Fantasy" and should have the Horse Meat Disco / Southport Weekender / Glitterbox / La Discotheque crowds whipped up into a mirror ball adoring frenzy.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Let Me Be Your Fantasy (Dimitri From Paris Club Mix)
A2. Let Me Be Your Fantasy (Dimitri From Paris Dub)
B1. Let Me Be Your Fantasy (Masters At Work Clap Yo Hands Dub)
B2. Let Me Be Your Fantasy (Moplen Remix)
C1. Let Me Be Your Fantasy (Mousse T. Fantastic Shizzle Mix)
C2. Let Me Be Your Fantasy (Blackchild Remix)
D. Let Me Be Your Fantasy (Two Soul Fusion Remix) 

I’ll Be Your Rainbow is the only recorded album by classic soul singer Bobby Wilson. Originally released in 1975, the album is a perfect blend of the styles of soul that were running through the east coast underground of the early 70s. It includes elements of the burgeoning club scene on the more up-tempo songs, and sweet warm vocals on the strong mellow cuts. The album was recorded in Detroit, Philadelphia and Miami, produced by Vernon Bullock and orchestrated by Paul Riser. It features the UK soul scene hit “Deeper and Deeper”. It is the first time the record is pressed on coloured vinyl and the first repress since its original release in 1975.

TRACK LISTING

SIDE A
1. Deeper And Deeper
2. Hey, Girl (Tell Me)
3. Let Me (Put Love Back In Your Life)
4. I'll Be Your Rainbow
5. Here Is Where The Love Is

SIDE B
1. Don't Shut Me Out
2. You Make Me Feel Good All Over
3. I'll Take Good Care Of You
4. All I Need (I've Got)
5. When I Don't See A Smile On Your Face

A collaboration between Duncan Bellamy (Portico Quartet) and Belinda Zhawi (MA.MOYO), Jump Ship, Sit Lean, Be Still, Stand Tall is a collection of sonic-poetry that sets Zhawi’s illuminating, elliptical words in dialogue with diffuse, explorative music and sound by Bellamy. Fluctuating between expansive contemporary classical arrangements and intimate layered vocal experiments, together they render these disparate forms into something distinct, melancholic and luminous.

Belinda Zhawi is a literary & sound artist based in London & Marseille, author of Small Inheritances (ignitionpress, 2018), & experiments with sound/text performance as MA.MOYO. Her work explores African diaspora research and narratives, and how art and education can be used as intersectional tools. Her literary & sound works have been featured on various platforms including The White Review, Vogue, NTS, Boiler Room & BBC Radio. She’s held residencies with Triangle-Asterides, France; Cove Park, Scotland; Serpentine Galleries; ICA London and was a Brixton House Associate Artist 2022 - 24. Belinda’s the co-founder of literary arts platform, BORN::FREE. She is working on her first full poetry collection.

Duncan Bellamy (b. Cambridge, UK, 1986) is a multidisciplinary artist based in London. His diverse practice encompasses painting, silkscreen, photography, sound and music. His work examines the shape of time, loss and our relationship to the past and present in a period of compressed transformation. He is a founding member of Mercury Prize nominated Portico Quartet, and has contributed sound work to the artist Hannah Collins audio-visual installation I Will Make Up A Song. Bellamy is working on a debut exhibition and new music.

TRACK LISTING

Dancesing
Stockwell
Jump Ship
Shield
Water
Tomb
Dream Sequence
La Recherche
Holes
Your Absence

Especial is a label always on a mission to unearth left-of-centre perspectives on club music. This new EP, Be Honest, is just that from long-time friends Lipelis and Arsenii, who are based in Belgrade and New York but seek inspiration in the New York sounds of the 80s and hook up with Gayana for some woozy and lovelorn vocal additions. 'Be Honest' is a dubbed out and swaggering deep disco groove that comes as long, dub and cappella versions on the A-side. The 12" dance mix brings some superb house drums into the picture and the Dubplate VIP is a fresh jungle rhythm. This is an EP with something for all.

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Arsenii & Lipelis deliver a mega track that's presented in both boogie, proto-house and jungle flavours. Nice up the sounds whatever time of day, or night. Top ranking.

TRACK LISTING

Side 1
1. Be Honest (Extended Mix)
2. Be Honest (Dub)
3. Be Honest (Acappella)

Side 2
1. Be Honest (12" Dance Mix)
2. Be Honest (Dubplate VIP)

The Twilight Sad are celebrating the 10th anniversary of their acclaimed fourth studio album ‘Nobody Wants To Be Here And Nobody Wants To Leave’, with a special limited edition ‘Demos’ version.

‘Nobody Wants To Be Here And Nobody Wants To Leave - Demos’ features a full album line up of demo tracks, with the original working titles, laid down in preparation for recording the official version of the album.

TRACK LISTING

1. Badlands

2. January

3. How To Shoplift
4. Proper Stranger
5. Forget Paris
6. The Airport
7. How To Jump Off The Roof

8. Better Hang Onto Yrsel
9. Interrupted

10. Sell The House See The Car
11. Cities Of The Plain

Be With Records reaching 10 years feels like a landmark worth celebrating. So we proudly present Joyride (the record) and Labour Of Love (the book) in one beautiful slipcase. We're not doing this for self-indulgent reasons. This book and record package was conceived as an opportunity to praise, shine a light on and above all else show gratitude to all the artists we've worked so closely with over the last 10 years. But not just the artists - all of the amazing people who form part of the wider Be With family.

Without question, this package represents the most exciting, daunting and rewarding thing that the label has ever put together. Some time in 2023, we had the idea that 2024 should feature some special releases, events and, well, "things". The "thing" is the very book and record you're reading about. Thanks to the brother Jim - writer and editor of the very thing - for suggesting we do a book. (I thought he was joking). Anyway, how could Be With do a book, shaped like a record sleeve and sized the same, without including a record inside to complete a very special package of "Be Withness"?

THE RECORD: JOYRIDE
10 tracks for 10 Years of Be With from 10 of our favourite artists we've ever worked with over the past decade. As a happily "all over the place" label, the music, accordingly, had to be varied in vibe and style.

We start with a gorgeous acoustic folk track from Thomas Almqvist. I first heard this when our dear friend Andre Allday - who first suggested and then facilitated the Nyanser reissue - played it during our release party for the record at the amazing Hosoi in Stockholm. As something to grab your attention from the off, it's a pretty good opener, I reckon - it'll stop you in your tracks.

We move into an almost totally "lost" Lewis Taylor track, known to and beloved by only his hardest of hardcore fans. Before now, it has only ever seen the light of day on some obscure late 90s CD of "lullabies" compiled by Joan Armatrading. Us neither!

Mic Murphy from Sass/The Mighty Soulmates/The System (!!!) allowed us to use an unreleased track from his mysterious late 90s period. He sent over 7 stunning tracks and, over breakfast one winter morning with my two sons, Rocco and Bruno, the 3 of us selected the track that made us bounce the most while chomping on our cereal.

In deep fall of 2023, myself and Steven (The Funky Paramedic™) had the great pleasure of visiting Tony Henry, leader of the legendary Manchester 80s soul-funk act 52nd Street (those who "put the dance into Factory") to speak some more about a forthcoming retrospective that's been in the works for 5 years now. Fear not - it's coming! Anyway, we went into Tony's amazing studio and he played us the track you hear, here. A demo originally meant for Phyllis Hyman (I mean, come on!), he's very kindly let us use it for this record. A thousand thank yous. It's sensational.

Side A closes out with an elegant exclusive from our favourite Japanese duo, Coastlines, a tropical jazz-funk-fusion track that only they can so effortlessly craft. Sublime.

Side B opens with another total exclusive, and the title track of this compilation. "Joyride" is like some kind of swinging, G-Funk library from the Californian master of modern cinematic soul - Maston. We love everything about this dude. Speaking of California, next up is possibly the coolest ex-pat Manc in all of the Golden State.

Kenny Dickenson's instant classic "Stupid Rain" knocked me out the first time I heard it. The way it starts as a beautifully ornate ambient piece before introducing the barest of pulses to then segue into a full slo-mo cosmic chugger just gets me every time. Man's a genius.

Our great friends from Wilco, Pat and John, comprise The Autumn Defense. Two of the nicest humans in the game and "Bluebirds Fall" is chiming folk-rock at its finest. What they do best and, beyond a tiny-run CD EP decades ago, this is the only way to own this majestic stunner.

Stimulator Jones is a Stones Throw artist who we've loved ever since the epochal "Soon Never Comes" graced our ears. We're putting out his archive beats and when I asked if he had anything fresh that hadn't yet found a home, he sent over a modern / spiritual jazz movement that just blew me away. It's here.

We round out the compilation with a staccato funk-rock track from a Prince alumnus, the one and only Andre Cymone. If this track isn't blasting from radio stations from Dublab to Gilles to NTS then there's no justice in the world.

Of course, as is our way, none of these tracks have ever appeared on vinyl before. This is the only way to own them on wax. Pretty cool. As ever, all we ever want to hear is music with soul and personality. And that's what's contained here. We think we've nailed it. We think you'll like it too.

THE BOOK: LABOUR OF LOVE
Created in conjunction with the editor and design team behind Disco Pogo, Labour Of Love is our first ever book and serves as a brilliantly rich and varied document of Be With's first 10 years. It surveys our entire catalogue with the artwork for every single release faithfully reproduced in full colour accompanied by Rob's inimitable reviews.

The book contains fresh, exclusive interviews with Ned Doheny, Leon Ware, Lewis Taylor, Tommy Guerrero, Wally Badarou, Steve Moore, Pete Fowler, Kimiko Kasai, Tony Henry (52nd Street), The Autumn Defense, Coastlines and The Mighty Soulmates.

There's also fantastic contributions from a whole host of well regarded fans of the label. We have Gilles Peterson on Ned, Trevor Jackson on Nucleus, Efficient Space on Steve Hiett and the joy of collaboration in a competitive industry, Bill Brewster on Marti Caine, Balearic Mike on Kylie and Lou Hayter on her beloved Air.

We explore the development of the Be With logo and also take an insider's look at the journey of a typical Be With record; from the mastering stage with Simon Francis, cutting it up with Cicely Balston, the artwork ordeals with Chris Stevenson, pressing matters with Record Industry, slinging product with ace distributors Word And Sound, stocking product with our favourite London record shop When Spaceships Appear and even packing records for direct orders with our very own Funky Paramedic.

There's also an irreverent look at the legendary Reissue Request Line over on Facebook, with many hints at things to come. 

TRACK LISTING

A1 Thomas Almqvist - Lullaby For Zak
A2 Lewis Taylor - Cherry Blossom
A3 Mic Murphy - Salon Du Chocolat
A4 52nd Street - I'd Fallen In Love (With The Wrong Kind)
A5 Coastlines - Hot Wind
B1 Maston - Joyride
B2 Kenny Dickenson - Stupid Rain
B3 The Autumn Defense - Bluebirds Fall
B4 Stimulator Jones - Aquarius-Pisces Cusp
B5 Andre Cymone - Sex Love Experience

The Rills have certainly shed a skin or two to reach this point, on the eve of their effervescent debut album ‘Don’t Be A Stranger’. Produced by Dave McCracken (the indie mastermind behind many Ian Brown solo records and key works by dEUS and The Rifles as well as lending a hand to albums by the likes of Depeche Mode, Sports Team, The Snuts and Beyoncé), ‘Don’t Be A Stranger’ sees these three young friends take that untapped energy that made them viral sensations and darlings of the grassroots scene and direct it something more considered, complete and heartfelt.

Warner-Webb and frontman Mitch Spencer met in their native Lincoln as young teens, losing their spare time in a skate park. A few years later, that same urge to kill smalltown boredom saw them pick up guitars and start jamming together. A brief stint living in Sheffield chasing some of that Arctic Monkeys magic saw them soon return home to university where Essex lad Mason Cassar joined as drummer and their line-up was complete. Often referenced in their music, there’s a Lincoln Imp spirit baked into The Rills’ DNA - notably in their ability to always see over the horizon and carve something out for themselves when no one else will.

TRACK LISTING

1. Seasick
2. I Don’t Wanna Be
3. Drive
4. Dads Car
5. Mistake
6. POV
7. Bones
8. Dream Of You
9. Sirens
10. Stranger
11. Angel In The Snow

“All the songs started out as poems,” says Margolin of the work that became 'Clouds In The Sky They Will Always Be There For Me', “I wanted to challenge myself.” In a song, Dana argues, the writer can always hide behind the tricks of the music and well-worn techniques such as repetition. “In a poem, though,” says Dana, “it’s just words and that’s it.” Recorded in the Somerset countryside in early 2024 by longtime Big Thief and Laura Marling engineer Dom Monks, 'Clouds In The Sky They Will Always Be There For Me' is Porridge Radio’s new album and first new music in two years. The UK band’s new album is a coming-of-age moment inspired by burnout, the music industry, the brutal collapse of a relationship and - crucially - Dana’s own increasing immersion in her craft as an artist.

“A lot of this album is about a more frenetic and desperate kind of love,” says Dana, “it is about completely losing my sense of self in a relationship, and the deep residue of insecurity and pain that lingered and clouded a new relationship.” Songs that were written as love songs - like 'In A Dream I’m A Painting' - took on new meanings as Margolin viewed the songs with a new distance. “There was a lot of love and confusion, all interspersed with exhaustion and pain.”

The Clouds sessions took place in Frome as Winter melted into early Spring at the beginning of 2024. “There were a few breakdowns,” grins Dana, in a fair assessment of recording such intimate and personal songs, “after some takes I would just collapse on the floor, so upset.” An environment was fostered where Dana could express herself and be nurtured. “We would have these big communal meals every night,” she says, “it felt very close knit and caring and warm and special.”“Our little house looked over a big hill,” remembers Dana, “there was a river running through it, it was big and bright and beautiful.” The studio itself was bright - full of beaming natural light from the large windows, a blessing for musicians used to the sealed tomb world of most recording studios, and for once the band were all able to record in the same room as the producer.

Today, Dana reflects on 'Clouds In The Sky They Will Always Be There For Me' with the enthusiasm of a real creative breakthrough. “It feels like the first time we’ve made something,” she explains, audibly delighted at the album, “it captured something about our friendship and the way that we have learnt to play together. I love the songs, I love playing them, they haven’t gotten old and it feels like it’s a special thing.” A pause. “It’s taught me so much. Following your gut to the nth point, trusting your friends and their loyalty, trusting to be able to fight with people properly. How I want to live is how I want to make records, because making records is my life because my work is my play is my job is my life. It all ties together in this thing, and there are ways to do this that might not kill me.”

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Deeply emotive pieces that are filled with moments of grand cathartic orchestration and equally, moments of shimmering calm and relatively unadorned simplicity. Brilliantly textured throughout, and endlessly appreciable.

TRACK LISTING

1. Anybody
2. Hole In The Ground
3. Lavender, Raspberries
4. God Of Everything Else
5. Sleeptalker
6. You Will Come Home
7. Wednesday
8. In A Dream I’m A Painting
9. I Got Lost
10. Pieces Of Heaven
11. Sick Of The Blues

Stimulator Jones returns to Tim Zawada's orbit with this release on Star Creature side label Tugboat Editions. A soulful, r&b tinged boogie cover of Ben White's modern soul masterpiece in both vocal and instrumental mixes. Suits you sir! 

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: After slaying us earlier in the year with a full EP of original music on Star Creature, Samuel Jones Lunsford dips his toes into the Tugboat - gifting the label an inspired cover of Ben White's "I Would Have To Be A Fool".

TRACK LISTING

Side 1
I Would Have To Be A Fool

Side 2
I Would Have To Be A Fool (instrumental)

A collection of warmly melodic electronic sketches, with tracks alternately drifting beatless on the breeze or underpinned by lo-fi drums, sometimes barely held together with a delicate construction of odd synth patches and ping-pong percussion. Each piece is short and to the point, a record of perfect miniatures. Whilst this description may sound utopian, the album is conceived around themes of late stage capitalist brutality, hyper consumerism, online doom and alogorhithmic apocalypse. Beauty in the face of planetary collapse and 24/7 livestreamed genocide.

Rumoured to have been discovered by Aphex Twin sleeping on a park bench in Tokyo, Raczynski first appeared on the scene in 1999 with 3 albums in that year alone. He went on to explore hallucinatory, bassbin-rattling IDM, outsider junglism and traditional Polish folk music amongst other paths, collaborated with Björk, produced a soundtrack for a PlayStation game, and remixed the likes of Autechre, Jonsi, and CLIPPING. In 2019, Disciples began looking after his Rephlex era catalogue, putting together the Rave 'Till You Cry compilation of unreleased gold from the vaults, and reissuing his classic Samurai Math Beats LP. His last studio album, ADDLE, came out on Planet Mu in 2022.

"Bogdan was a massive inspiration for some of my tracks on the Drukqs album, the fact he was doing it all on a shit PC tracker… totally amazing. This was before 99.9 percent of people used the computer for everything. His records are so underrated." - Aphex Twin

TRACK LISTING

1. Gearee
2. Newdiv
3. Fairalign
4. Coughyspns
5. Bangsaft
6. Djstus
7. Hundrecision
8. Zownthram
9. Visionsrevisions
10. Bowgh
11. Fallybli
12. Faq
13. Yewt
14. Shttwobe
15. Sicksicksicks
16. Deweyedair
17. Rew
18. Gauq

This is the very first reissue of the much in demand double sided killer single released in 1970 on the Upsetter label. The A side is a beautiful yet wicked cover of Let It Be by the Beatles, produced by Lee Perry and performed by the Soulettes. The B side is Big Dog Bloxie, an even wackier version of the A side by Lee Perry!

TRACK LISTING

The Soulettes - Let It Be
The Upsetters - Big Dog Bloxie

SSW Mayu, a multi-talented singer who has appeared in musicals and TV dramas, covers the classic songs of yesteryear as a single cut from a compilation album by Cafe Music!

TRACK LISTING

1. You Gotta Be (Slow Night Mix)
2. Eh Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say) [Lovers Reggae Mix]

Near-ambient arrangements that float in a space between The Durutti Column, Steve Cropper and Ashra, Down On The Road By The Beach also crowns Hiett the master of recontextualization with his zero-gravity blues visions of Roll Over Beethoven, Santo & Johnny’s Sleep Walk and the 1967 Eddie Floyd soul hit Never Found A Girl.

For the first time since its inception 36 years ago, Steve Hiett’s elusive Down On The Road By The Beach is finally made available outside of Japan. Most recognized in the fashion sphere as an English photographer and graphic designer, Hiett‘s transportive audio portraits amplify his serpentine guitar to the infinite blue, recorded across Paris, Tokyo and New York with no coastline in sight. Now widely celebrated as a desert island disc, very little is actually known of its unfathomable genesis.

A career devotee of Brian Wilson’s ground breaking harmonies, Hiett shot The Beach Boys for Rolling Stone - as well as The Doors, Miles Davis and Jimi Hendrix (in one of his final performances at the 1970 Isle Of Wight Festival) - while establishing himself as a fashion photographer. Decamping to Paris in 1972, he began what would become 20-year collaborations with Vogue Paris and Marie Claire, printing his signature warm, saturated and vibrantly hued snapshots.

In 1982, representatives from Tokyo’s Galerie Watari visited him to propose a solo exhibition. Asking if he could insert a 7” of original music into the back of the exhibition catalogue, Hiett laid down ‘Blue Beach - Welcome To Your Beach’ in a Parisian radio station, playing all of the instruments himself, and two more cuts in New York with Yoko Ono, The Doobie Brothers and Steely Dan hired-gun Elliot Randall. Once dispatched, the phone began ringing off the hook with requests for him to fly to Tokyo. Assuming these long-distance callers were wanting him to check proofs for the book, it wasn’t until he arrived that he discovered CBS/Sony had facilitated an entire album. Heitt hastily gripped some petty cash, bought a guitar and retreated to his hotel room to start writing.

Entering the studio the following day, he was further surprised by a waiting room of session players known as Moonriders - one of Japan’s most acclaimed rock bands of the 1980s. Intimidated by their indecipherable sheet music, Hiett suggested Randall join them and with money being no object for major labels at the time, his wingman was on the next plane out of New York to finalise the high production indulgence.

STAFF COMMENTS

Patrick says: An underground favourite amongst Balearic and Ambient collectors, original copies of this cool and contemplative LP from Steve Hiett dried up recently, making this reissue a must have. Hiett's soundscapes and reflective guitars are every bit as beautiful as his cover photo.

TRACK LISTING

1. Blue Beach - Welcome To Your Beach
2. Never Find A Girl (To Love Me Like You Do)
3. By The Pool
4. Roll Over, Beethoven - Out Of The Beach
5. In The Shade
6. Looking Across The Street
7. Long Distance Look
8. Hot Afternoon
9. Crying In The Sun
10. The Next Time
11. Miss B.B. Walks Away
12. Sleep Walk
13. Standing There

Erland Cooper’s new album Carve the Runes Then Be Content With Silence is released – 3 years from the day the only master tape was planted deep into the Orkney soil.

The album is a recording of Cooper’s brand new three-movement composition for solo violin and string ensemble. The work marks the centenary of celebrated Orkney poet George Mackay Brown, as 2021 marks 100 years since his birth.

Inspired by natural landscapes and ruminating on time, hope, community and patience, the sole recording of the work – on ¼ inch magnetic tape, with the digital files permanently deleted – has been planted to grow and be nurtured or “recomposed” by the earth, before being exhumed and released in three years’ time. Whilst Cooper will not be unearthing the tape until 2024, he has left a trail for anyone to search and find it if they wish. A map with clues to the location of the planting site will be released via his digital platforms. If the planted tape is found, Erland will invite the discoverer to his studio to embark on a journey together for the treasured first listen. It will then be released exactly as it sounds from the earth.

Erland Cooper says, “Music can so often feel undervalued and for some, being unable to perform live has at times felt like being buried. When an idea forms there is often an urge to share it as quickly as it develops but like spotting a bird, I want to let this fly and land in its own place and time. The work is one part remembrance and one part celebration of a landmark time.” He adds: “The material on the tape may erode naturally, disintegrate and create drops of silence or the peaty soil may preserve it perfectly well. It may or may not get better with age. I may or may not fall out of favour with my composition. Any alterations to the sound and music [when it comes out of the earth] will be reincorporated into the pages of a new score and live performance, as orchestral articulations.”

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: As fascinating as the concept is of burying an album for ages and then releasing it, degradation and all (including deleting the digital files for a 'no-takesie-backsies' scenario), it's actually listening to this modern classical masterpiece where the real joy lies. Brimming with atmosphere and (ahem) dirt, it's a perfect combination of concept and execution.

Steve Moore returns to the library music fold and it's a total doozy: Cursed Objects is truly sensational prog-synth-wave. Featuring epic electronic explorations with chamber music and symphonic flourishes, it's our favourite thing Steve has ever done. In keeping with the horror heat of the music contained within, this vinyl release is frighteningly limited, with just 500 pressed for the world.

New York-based multi-instrumentalist/producer/film composer Steve Moore is probably best known for his synthesizer and bass guitar work as Zombi, together with Anthony Paterra. But he is also part of Miracle and Titan as well as being a prolific solo artist releasing music as Gianni Rossi, Lovelock and under his own name. Steve’s music has found a home across hallowed labels like Future Times, Mexican Summer, LIES, Static Caravan, Kompakt, Death Waltz, Ghost Box and, of course, Be With Records.

Steve released Cursed Objects for fresh library label Fold. Run by ex-KPM head Paul Sandell, it's a library with values we can all get behind. It's the first production music platform working exclusively with independent labels, publishers and artists to create a truly authentic artist-led sound, at production music rates. Here's what Steve had to say: "I had worked with Paul before, at KPM. After he left, he mentioned that he had started a new library - Fold - and I was very interested in being a part. And I happened to be working on a bunch of music at the time that I thought could fit." So here we are!

The LP opens by letting in "The Uninvited One". Calm and relaxed arpeggiated synths build around sweeping strings and plucked harp to create a mystical and hopeful feel. The title track sees dark synths merge and swell with a piano, string and harp melody that is dark, mysterious and brooding. "Evolutionary Steps" is an electro synthwave track that builds with epic strings and beats, offering an expansive and dreamy approach with a mystical and driving rhythm. Next up, "The Icarus Feather" is daring, pulsing and cinematic synthwave that builds with arpeggiated synths to a hopeful end. "Daily Affirmations" offers calm and meditative ambient synths with plucked harp and strings for a reflective, peaceful, daydreamy feel.

“Mesmer's Bauble” ushers in side two, its dark synth backing builds with plucked harp and strings building with a sense of unknown and dread; it's introspective and heartfelt. "Quiet Springs" is all mystical synths, harps and strings, building to an epic panoramic scope with a hopeful and poignant atmosphere. "Festival Of Samhain" presents a dark and brooding piano melody which builds with synths and strings to create a slow and desolate feel. "The Icarus Feather (Revisited)" is epic building synthwave with arpeggiated synths and strings and a driving rhythm - the beat builds with the strings entering a forceful and marching mood. To close, "Shard Of Medusa" rides a serious and dark piano melody and, in concert with harp and strings, it creates a suspenseful and solemn atmosphere.

Steve recorded Cursed Objects, as always, at his home studio in Albany, NY. For synths, he mostly used his trusty Prophet 6, as well as his Moog Minitaur and lots of Korg Polysix too. But he also utilised a lot of virtual instruments - he doesn't have the budget for a full string section, or a harpist, alas.

The album’s cover was designed by Chris Stevenson. The artwork is a nod to first wave cyberpunk and in particular Neal Stephenson’s Snow Crash and the idea of mind viruses and cursed data. Mastering for this vinyl edition was overseen by Be With regular Simon Francis, and it was cut by the esteemed Cicely Balston at AIR Studios to be pressed in the Netherlands by Record Industry. Far from being cursed, this is another future classic library LP.

TRACK LISTING

A1 The Uninvited One
A2 Cursed Objects
A3 Evolutionary Steps
A4 The Icarus Feather
A5 Daily Affirmations
B1 Mesmer's Bauble
B2 Quiet Springs
B3 Festival Of Samhain
B4 The Icarus Feather (Revisited)
B5 Shard Of Medusa

The recording sessions for Let It Be were actually begun as rehearsals for a proposed return to live stage work for the Beatles, to be inaugurated in a concert at a Roman amphitheatre in Tunisia. Here, Steve Matteo delves deep into the complex history of these recording sessions. He talks to many of the people involved in the recording of these songs, and the accompanying documentary.

To honour AC/DC’s 50-year reign as the world’s greatest rock and roll band, Columbia/Sony Legacy proudly announce that the band’s catalogue will be available as gold-coloured vinyl LPs. Each of these limited edition LPscomes with an album-specific 12”x12” print featuring newAC/DC 50 artwork,suitable for framing.

Initially released in Australia in March 1977, a modified international version featuring the first appearance of the iconic AC/DC logo was unleashed that Summer. It’s said that while recording the solo on the title track, Angus’s amp overheated and caught fire!

Belgian artist Gratts wrote 'Sun Circles' as an empowerment anthem for his two sons and it dropped to plenty of acclaim last year. In its wake, Gratts DJed with Adelaide's multi-talented Alexander Flood on percussion and after some conversations he was enlisted to bring his jazz background to a remix of the original. He did so live as part of a quintet and the result is a super summery, airy rework with soulful vocals that linger long in the air. Detroit-based techno and ambient maestro John Beltran appears on the flip to bring a classy Balearic remix that will have you dreaming of longer, warmer nights and plenty of sun-kissed dancing fun.

TRACK LISTING

Sun Circles (Alexander Flood Live Rework)
Sun Circles (John Beltran Project Remix)

Belgian DJ and producer Gratts have joined forces with London-based vocalist Mr. Beale to follow up on to success of their well-received 'Sun Circles' release last year. Here, on the sublime 'Submerge Me', they are in fine form once more with a brooding sound that features the uniquely mesmerising mantras of Beale and plenty of raw, compelling and percussive grooves that fully lock you in and get you going. Versatile Records' own Gilb'r then steps up on the flip and manages to take things even deeper with some fine liquid dub excursions to complete a top 7"

TRACK LISTING

Submerge Me (Original Version)
Submerge Me (Gilb'r Remix)

For over 20 years, The Decemberists have been one of the most original, daring, and thrilling American rock bands. Their distinctive brand of hyperliterate folk-rock set them apart from the start, releasing nine full-length albums that are unbound by genre and highly ambitious. Now the beloved indie band is back with their first new album in six years, As It Ever Was, So It Will Be Again - not only the longest Decemberists album to date (and their first intentional, proper double-LP) but also their most empathetic and accessible, its 13 songs like semaphores of mutual recognition for our fraught times and faint hope. The first dozen songs are punchy, pithy gems all, reflections on mortality and loneliness, longing and cynicism, expectation and unease. The band animates them brilliantly, pushing out and pulling in at the perfect moments. John Moen practically dances beneath the jangle of opener “Burial Ground,” breathing the life into this song about spiraling toward the end.

From the irrepressible “Oh No!" and guileless tenderness and absolute surrender of “All I Want Is You,” to the romantic ghost story that shimmers behind pedal steel in spite of the specter in "Long White Veil," these 12 songs alone would constitute a dazzling Decemberists album, rich with woe and love, anxiety and honesty. But a keening little choir and arid electric guitar invoke “Joan in the Garden,” the band’s first full-on prog escapade since The Crane Wife. Though rooted in doubt, much like the album it ends, “Joan in the Garden” ultimately lands as a celebration of music’s ability to convey valence and ambiguity, to frame an endlessly complicated story in instantly compelling terms. This, songwriter Colin Meloy will tell you proudly, is the best Decemberists albums and perhaps the ultimate realization of 22 years of work. In many ways, As It Ever Was, So It Will Be Again feels like an aptly titled renewal for The Decemberists. The first full-length release on YABB Records, the band’s own label, after a run of nearly two decades with Capitol. As they were once, here are the Decemberists again, now an independent band empowered by singing stories that sound instantly familiar and convey some bit of hard-won wisdom.

TRACK LISTING

1. Burial Ground
2. Oh No!
3. The Reapers
4. Long White Veil
5. William Fitzwilliam
6. Don't Go To The Woods
7. The Black Maria
8. All I Want Is You
9. Born To The Morning
10. America Made Me
11. Tell Me What's On Your Mind
12. Never Satisfied
13. Joan In The Garden

If ever an album could transport you to the hazy sunshine and imagined halcyon paradise of Southern California in the mid-1980s, could capture the early evening warmth of hanging at an inclusive boogie jam as it approaches “magic hour” in Santa Ana or Anaheim, then it’s Vaughan Mason and Butch Dayo’s Feel My Love. A brilliantly produced deep slung, low rider funk classic originally released on Salsoul in 1983. It’s a masterpiece of “funk love music”.

Yes, this is indeed a perfectly formed five track “mini LP” of unparalleled heat, but there’s one song here that, above the rest, represents Orange County boogie-funk. A straight killer beloved by all that have had the pleasure of moving to it. A track that can fill up a dance floor within seconds of its starting. That song is the eternal title track, “Feel My Love”.

This is a work of art that made people fall in love with the funk. It transcends the limitations of genre. “Feel My Love”’s deceptive simplicity makes it perfect to drop during a house set, a classic funk party or at a west coast rap jam. It’s sexy, deeply emotional, melancholic, hopeful, passionate and just radiates so, so much raw energy. This is music.

The rest of the record is hardly filler though. Opener “Oh, Love” is a dizzying, emotional slow jam. With heaven-sent vocals riding gorgeous, sweeping keys that alternate between sweet twinkling lines and funk-fuelled stabbing. It’s sensational. A rollerskating jam named “Rollalong Songs” is an ultra-swish piece of dance floor dynamite. Its slick drums, staccato piano and neck snapping claps underscore Dayo’s buoyant vocals. It’s essentially “Bounce, Rock, Skate, Roll Part II”.

The flip begins with “Party On The Corner”. Smoother than silk vocals, day-glo synths, a bubbling bassline and guitar licks that surely received the Prince seal of approval. It’s another example of how Vaughan Mason and Butch Dayo flirt with perfection so routinely. The most majestic closer, the kaleidoscopic, cow-bell-assisted synth-funk heater “You Can Do It” is a proto-rap groover that truly smokes.

This prized LP is a stone cold jam and finding original copies on vinyl at affordable prices has been tough for years. Mastered brilliantly by Simon Francis, cut by Pete Norman and with lovingly reproduced artwork, this fresh Be With reissue ensures this legendary LP now sounds, looks and feels as sensational as it should.

TRACK LISTING

A1: Oh, Love
A2: Rollalong Songs
A3: Feel My Love
B1: Party On The Corner
B2: You Can Do It

Ned Doheny’s Hard Candy, originally released in 1976, is widely considered the finest blue-eyed soul album of all time. It has long been a source of great frustration then, that this perfectly-formed Southern California masterpiece has been unavailable on vinyl for almost 40 years.

Be With Records continues apace by marking its third release with the first officially licensed reissue of Doheny’s nautical classic. Perhaps most famously, this impeccably smooth set features the timeless “Get It Up For Love”, a wonderful example of mid-70s mid-tempo white-(hot)-funk.

Produced by the legendary Steve Cropper, it featured a veritable who’s-who of the Laurel Canyon soft-yacht sound (JD Souther, The Eagles, Linda Ronstadt, the entire horn section for Tower of Power!) yet bombed mysteriously. It’s been a cult record since.

Pressed on audiophile 180g vinyl and featuring the original artwork for both jacket and full colour inner sleeve, this limited reissue is one not to be missed.

TRACK LISTING

A1: Get It Up For Love (4:42)
A2: If You Should Fall (3:36)
A3: Each Time You Pray (3:39)
A4: When Love Hangs In The Balance (5:12)
B1: A Love Of Your Own (3:46)
B2: I’ve Got Your Number (3:15)
B3: On The Swingshift (3:03)
B4: Sing To Me (3:37)
B5: Valentine (I Was Wrong About You) (5:07)

Hardly Art debut by Brooklyn-based artist Nick Llobet, aka youbet, follows their 2020 debut album on Ba Da Bing! Records.

A lovely album of layered melodic pop-rock arrangements fusing rock and electronic instrumentation with Nick Llobet’s poignant, witty, and vulnerable lyrics.

Nick Llobet (they/them) was ready to throw in the towel. Llobet, who grew up in South Florida, learned to play guitar at a very young age, dabbling in everything from classical, blues, classic rock, and flamenco. They’d spent much of their early 20s searching for their voice as an artist and as an individual, as well as for a musical community. Llobet would eventually move to Brooklyn, but after three years of looking for a hopeful artistic breakthrough, they spent much of their time in seclusion, consumed by social anxiety and imposter syndrome—and they were considering abandoning songwriting completely.

One day, while commuting through Penn Station en route to their partner’s family home in Virginia (that would also lead to the crucial purchase of a secondhand Tascam cassette recorder), they noticed Patti Smith sitting alone, waiting for a train. The typically shy Llobet decided to approach the icon, who was, in turn, delighted to see that Llobet was carrying a guitar. At the end of their interaction, Smith offered some parting wisdom: “She wished me luck and said, ‘Practice hard, Nick.’” Llobet took her advice to heart, and this chance encounter kicked off a personal and artistic rebirth.

They started performing as youbet, a play on their last name, and began “changing [their] vision for what a song could be.” youbet’s debut, Compare & Despair, a delightful gem of a record that showcases Llobet’s propensity for freewheeling whimsy and emotional intensity. In May 2019, inspired by a song-a-week writing group that produced Compare & Despair, Llobet started a second club in which contributors would upload that week’s song to a private Bandcamp. Invigorated by this small musical collaboration, the feedback, and the accountability, Llobet wrote 18 songs throughout the duration of the club, twelve of which became Way To Be.

After this songwriting marathon, Llobet spent 2020 focusing on instrumental guitar work and political engagement. By the summer of 2021, they were ready to revisit the Way To Be tracks. Over the next year-and-a-half, Llobet worked on the record relentlessly, refining the lyrics, recording, and arrangements from their apartment. Llobet self-produced Way To Be and describes the process as an enormous, labor-intensive undertaking that felt akin to “making a whole film.” Along the way, Llobet was joined by collaborators, including Julian Fader (Ava Luna), Adam Brisbin (Buck Meek), and Daniel Siles.

Across Way To Be’s 12 delightfully off-kilter tunes, Llobet uses wordplay and tongue-in-cheek humor to obliquely explore dysfunctional relationships, regret, self-confidence or the lack thereof, queerness, and self-discovery. Fuzzy at the edges and filled with playful, kinetic arrangements, Way To Be is a bridge into the entrancing world of youbet. You won’t want to leave.

TRACK LISTING

1. Carsick
2. Way To Be
3. Nurture
4. Seeds Of Evil
5. Alive To You
6. Do
7. Deserve
8. Lost
9. Peel
10. Trauma
11. Vacancy
12. Still

Over the past year, GRAMMY Best New Artist-nominated Vermont singer & songwriter Noah Kahan has exploded from his New England roots into the global mainstream and has been touted as one of this year’s biggest and best new artists.

The global sensation is back with a deluxe version of Stick Season (We’ll All Be Here Forever). The Deluxe CD showcases seven additional tracks from Kahan’s Platinum-Certified Stick Season album as well as his

Double Platinum-Certified and first career top 10 hit “Stick Season” and Platinum-Certified top 40 hit “Dial Drunk”.

Leeds indie frontrunners English Teacher announce debut LP ‘This Could Be Texas’. Preceded by initial LP reveals ‘The World’s Biggest Paving Slab’, ‘Nearly Daffodils’ and ‘Mastermind Specialism’, which were all A-listed on the BBC 6 Music playlist, English Teacher’s remarkable ascent continues to reach new levels, having completed sold-out debut UK and US headline runs last autumn, following their thrilling debut appearance on Later With...Jools Holland. Announced as Independent Venue Week Artist Ambassador for 2024. Lead singer Lily Fontaine explains, “I want this album to feel like you’ve gone to space, and it turns out its almost identical to Doncaster. It’s about in-betweens, it’s about home, and it’s about Desire Paths." In several songs, Fontaine reflects on growing up as a mixed-race individual in a place, she says, “where many didn’t have any tolerance towards people who are different” in a post-Brexit landscape.

The debut album by Leeds frontrunners ‘This Could Be Texas’ will be released on 12th April 2023.

Lead singer Lily Fontaine explains, “I want this album to feel like you’ve gone to space, and it turns out its almost identical to Doncaster. It’s about in-betweens, it’s about home, and it’s about Desire Paths."

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: It’s impossible to categorise ‘This Could Be Texas’ accurately, I mean, we’ll whack in in the indie section because in places, it does broadly fall under the sort of music you’d expect to find there. We’ve got distorted guitars, soaring synths and snappy percussion beneath Lily’s perfectly placed, athletically chameleonic vocals, but keep listening and there are hints of post-punk and art-rock, modern classical and even folk seeping through as things move further along.

For me, the perfect opening piece is the beautiful and mysterious ‘Albatross’ which is so melodically intricate and deftly delivered that while it gives you an idea of what thematically diverse delights are in store, it doesn’t show you quite how well the band manage to pull together the sometimes disparate sound worlds. There are playful, minimalistic growers like ‘Mastermind Specialism’ which could comfortably sit on an Explosions In The Sky album, or the vocoded rhythmic nu-jazz leanings of ‘Best Tears Of Your Life’. A particular highlight for me is the dreamlike lounge of ‘Blister My Paint’, which sounds like a touch of psychedelics in a smokey late night bar, or the acidic groove and wry vocals of the instantly recognisable ‘R&B’. While there are moments in ‘This Could Be Texas’ that feel like they stick out enough to not smoothly transition to the next phrase, the fear is never realised. A wonderfully forged, impeccably conceived album and a sure sign of what’s to come from English Teacher.

Sometimes you have to move backwards to move forwards. Just ask punk cultural commentators BODEGA, whose new album sees them carve a new future from fuzz-soaked, consumerism-skewering shards of their past.

‘Our Brand Could Be YR Life’ is BODEGA's first album release through Chrysalis Records. “It’s something we’ve been wanting to do for years,” guitarist and vocalist Ben Hozie explains of ‘Our Brand Could Be Yr Life’ – a collection of catchy indie-rock ruminations on the slow-creep of corporate-think into youth culture, first written eight years ago.

‘Our Brand Could Be YR Life’'s 15 tracks explore indie-rock subgenres, self-critique and everything in between. "I think it’s our best- sounding record to date,” says Hozie, "I t’s got dance-punk. There's some shoegaze on there. There's slacker rock on there. There's psychedelic rock on there. R.E.M, too. We wanted to be another band in a long stream of missionaries, proselytising a certain type of rock subculture.” 

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: It's been a couple years since Bodega's last LP, and 'Our Brand...' shows that the Brooklyn band have honed their propulsive, soaring garage-adjacent rock and with it brought in a wealth of perfectly integrated influences. Brilliantly produced and beautifully performed, it's definitely the most exciting of their releases to date.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. Dedicated To The Dedicated
2. G.N.D. Deity
3. Bodega Bait
4. Tarkovski
5. Major Amberson
6. Stain Gaze
7. Webster Hall
Side B
1. ATM
2. Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Drum
3. Protean
4. Born Into By What Consumes
5. Cultural Consumer I
6. Cultural Consumer II
7. Cultural Consumer III
8. City Is Taken

Keyboardist and composer Carl Moore originally wrote, recorded and pressed only 100 (!) copies of these tracks, grabbing a quick moment of studio time during a tour of Japan in the early 1980s. Moore’s purple patch saw him becoming peers with artists such as Phyllis Hyman, Jean Carn, Janet Jackson and ‘The King of Gospel’, James Cleveland.

Carter Lake is an energetic 2 minutes 30 second blast of pure dance floor joy, that looks back at carefree days, teenage love and love lost. Moore’s voice soars, and showcases his love for the powerful stylings of jazz and gospel. On the flip, Must Be The Beat sees him explore very different textures and could easily be a long lost Prince recording found in the vaults in Paisley Park. Sounding like something jammed late at night, this one is perfect for the afterhours when there are 30 sweaty dancers left on the floor at 5am that just don’t want to go home!

This is the first release on Sweet Free Association, a new label founded by Sam Don, the DJ and curator responsible for the recent lovers rock and UK soul comps For The Love of You and Just A Touch. Born out of the wish to find another way of sharing ‘the fruits’ from his Free Association radio show and parties, these impossibly rare disco tracks are now available to a wider audience for the first time, as the vast majority of the original copies have been long lost.

Mastered at The Carvery, the lo-fi recordings have been skilfully lifted by Frank Merritt to sound big in the club, while retaining the original charm in the sound that made the tracks stand out to Sam in the first instance.

TRACK LISTING

Carter Lake
Must Be The Beat

4th studio album from the New York singer songwriter who is based in Cambridge, UK.

TRACK LISTING

Black And White
Do You Want To Start A Fight
I Just Realised
Big Grey Couch
Leather Chair
Dance We Do
18 Years
Lofted Houses
After The Storm
Should've Seen It Coming

Breakwater’s earth-shattering “Release The Beast” is unquestionably the standout song from their 1980 funk masterpiece LP Splashdown. It also came out as a now-hen’s-teeth-rare 7" in the same year and when it came to putting it out as a 7" again we just had to do it in a miniature version of the Splashdown sleeve. It’s one of the best album cover shoots of all time.

For the b-side, we’ve backed Breakwater’s biggest track with Be With’s favourite: the quietly majestic gem “Let Love In”, another winner from the same LP.

Possessing a sound and a feel that was lightyears ahead of its time, “Release The Beast” is a showcase for Breakwater’s phenomenal power-funk capabilities. The energy is astounding. It rips out of the grooves on a deep funk tip, with speaker-smashing, room-shaking drums competing with distorted funk-rock guitar, bumping bass and space-age synths. But it’s not without its compellingly haunting elements too. What else can we say? It’s a genius piece of music.

And, yes, of course this is the tune Daft Punk sampled for their 2005 track “Robot Rock”. Let’s be blunt, they lifted the Philly act’s funk-rock vamping pretty much wholesale. But to be fair to them we wouldn’t have messed with the perfection of the original either and those Parisians shone a much-needed spotlight on an innovative band from the halcyon period of post-disco funk.

On the flip, “Let Love In” is a smooth, easy glide that demonstrates Breakwater’s superb, sophisticated musicianship. The tight horn section and irresistible bass make for an undeniable groove. However, it also reveals a depth to their lyricism that’s often overlooked. In these dark days, the sentiment of the opening lines is truly one to we should all take to heart:

“It feels good to be friends with everyone, Walk around and the feeling’s in the air, No more hate can’t you see, This is really for me.”

A feel good hit for the summer if ever there was one. 

TRACK LISTING

A1 : Release The Beast (4:50)
B1 : Let Love In (4:35)

Over a year since the release of their exhilarating debut Could We Be More, Kokoroko present a new collection of remixes of tracks from their first album. The record brings together a dizzying, globe-spanning array of contemporary music’s most forward-thinking artists, each bringing their own unique identity to the project while maintaining the immersive sound-world of the original. Could We Be More Remixes is due 10th November 2023 via Gilles Peterson’s Brownswood Recordings.

All the remixers share a common approach with the band, filtering global influences and backgrounds through the lens of their hometown. As a result, each remix explores and stretches the core elements of the debut in different ways. Home-grown London talents Eun and Demae, both associates of the Touching Bass collective that sprouted from the same scene as Kokoroko, turn in a spaced-out version of ‘Tojo’ that manages to be introspective and driving at the same time, reminiscent of some of the best work on Moodymann’s imprints. 

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: A gorgeous selection of reworks from Kokoroko's brilliant 'Could We Be More'. The remixes here fit seamlessly alongside the original material, taking the original sounds and stretching their peripheries outwards, resulting in something that's a perfect listen as an extension of the original story rather than a retelling.

TRACK LISTING

1. Tojo (Eun Remix Feat. Demae)
2. Somethings Going On (Miles James Remix)
3. Home (anaiis Remix)
4. Ewà Inú (Vanyfox Remix)
5. Ewà Inú (Dreamcastmoe's Smoked Out Remix)
6. We Give Thanks (KeiyaA Remix)
7. Dide O (Ash Lauryn & Stefan Ringer Remix)
8. War Dance (Hagan Remix)

DJ and producer Gratts returns to his own imprint with the third instalment of the "Balearic but bumpin'" trilogy. Here, the Belgian puts forward a captivating piece of organic, Body & Soul NY inspired deep house, assisted by Cata Mansikka-aho on vocals. As always, an instrumental is provided for maximum nightclub daydreaming. On the flipside, British duo Faze Action up the energy levels with an equally musical disco version that hits in all the right spots. Artwork once again by Mads Cooke.

TRACK LISTING

Rhythm Of Love
Rhythm Of Love (Daydreamin' Instrumental)
Rhythm Of Love (Faze Action Remix)

On 7" for the first time ever, one of the most important rap records ever.

It's timeless, it's genius, it's just pure beautiful brilliance. It's Common's masterpiece.

One of the best songs in all hip-hop history, “I Used To Love H.E.R.” was the first single from Common's eternal 1994 LP, Resurrection. He personifies hip-hop as an ode to the art form he once loved, lamenting how the genre became too commercialised and, due to a mass influx of mainstream rap in the 90s, some of the purity and freshness of the culture was being lost.

Common uses a first-person romance narrative to detail the history of hip-hop, resulting in an extended metaphor that's sophisticated, clever, and delivers a moral message that touched millions of people and still absolutely blows minds at the song's conclusion: "'Cause who we're talkin' about, y'all, is hip-hop"

Perfectly produced by No ID and incorporating a gorgeous, melancholic sample of George Benson’s “The Changing World”, the plaintive sonic landscape provided the ideal foundation for Common’s innovative storytelling. Almost 30 years later, “I Used To Love H.E.R.” remains one the most significant moments in hip-hop: a classic in every sense of the word.

Common did discuss the true meaning of the track in a 1995 interview on “Yo! MTV Raps”, stating: “H.E.R. stands for Hip-Hop in its Essence is Real. And all I’m talking about his how I first came into contact with hip-hop music and how it evolved into where it is now. And it’s like all these gimmicks going on, all the phoniness, ain’t nobody being real with it. Everybody’s stressing that it’s real but ain’t nobody being true to it. I think that came about because — once it started becoming a business, then people started losing their soul and they started looking at it, taking it more as a business than an artform.”

On the flip, we've stayed faithful to the track used for the original 12" release. And what a track it is. Destined to be overshadowed by the behemoth on the A-Side, the frenetic neck-snapping jazz-rap "Communism" has it all - those horns at the start, the lyrical dexterity, the beat. Oh my.

So, one of the greatest pieces of music ever, in any genre. This is not merely music. It's high art. Speaking of which, we've recreated the striking original artwork from the 12" and shrunk it down to the 7" format. It looks and sounds stunning. The most important song in rap history, if you really think about it. We all miss her. We all miss hip-hop...

TRACK LISTING

A I Used To Love H.E.R.
B Communism

Hailed as "the reigning heavyweight champions of Southern rock" (No Depression), Atlanta-based quintet Blackberry Smoke is back with their 8th studio album, Be Right Here, produced by Dave Cobb. Be Right Here follows 2021's You Hear Georgia, which was the best-selling Country and Americana/Folk album in the country, entered at #7 on the Billboard Rock Albums chart and #4 on the Billboard Top Albums chart. Released to critical acclaim, No Depression praised the band for being “as much students of singer-songwriter-folk and outlaw country as they are of jam-based, chest-pumping rock,” ” while Guitar World declared "Many try to reproduce that holy grail, golden-era-of-classic-rock sound through their six-string escapades, yet only a handful ultimately succeed. One such band who succeeds in spades is Blackberry Smoke, whose most recent album You Hear Georgia serves up 10 tracks of pure rock ‘n’ roll bliss.” In addition to Blackberry Smoke—Starr (vocals, guitar), Richard Turner (bass, vocals), Brit Turner (drums), Paul Jackson (guitar, vocals) and Brandon Still (keyboards)—the album also features background vocals from longtime collaborators The Black Bettys.

TRACK LISTING

1. Dig A Hole
2. Hammer And The Nail
3. Like It Was Yesterday
4. Be So Lucky
5. Azalea
6. Don't Mind If I Do
7. Whatcha Know Good
8. Other Side Of The Light
9. Little Bit Crazy
10. Barefoot Angel

Pajaro Sunrise has a new album and that is very good news."The Future Is Not What It Used To Be" presents a wonderful collection of songs that capture, almost unintentionally, the complexity of modern life.

Since his last album,"Man Of Many Faces", Yuri Méndez's days have been busy with five moves, a pandemic, several soundtracks and the surprise release of three singles in Spanish. And despite –or thanks to– the many unopened boxes, studio work, global emergencies and an unnecessarily large number of different rooms, out of those convulsive years emerged a luminous album that speaks lucidly of the passage of time, of truncated expectations that herald liberations and of growing old not as a drama, but as the long process of "learning not to worry and to love the bomb".

Throughout the album, irony shines through, as in 'Small Circus, So Many Clowns' or 'Parking Lot', while pop innocence sparkles in 'Devotion' or 'Hey Matisse'; combined also with Pajaro Sunrise's more somber moments, such as 'The Mute And The Blind', 'Shallow Waters' or 'Inhale', where Mendez's voice reaches a new degree of maturity without completely shedding the candor ofhisfirst albums.

Pajaro Sunrise is a rare specimen in Spanish independent music, a guy who treads his own path with a catalogue of exceptional songs and a diverse body of soundtrack work. He is a craftsman who has produced a flawless album which leaves room at times for traces of Mark Fisher and Ken Kesey, while other moments feature post-Lacanian puffy-cheek trumpet sounds.

TRACK LISTING

1. The Mute And The Blind
2. Small Circus, So Many Clowns
3. Devotion
4. Parking Lot
5. Hey Matisse
6. Not Hungry
7. Inhale
8. Lover Lover
9. The Real Top Of The Pops
10. Shallow Waters
11. Pointless
12. The Sweetest Thing

When Ben White was 25 years old Eddy Bongo Brown of the Funk Brothers brought him to Motown to play with Marvin Gay, 5 years later he recorded this single 'I would have to be a fool' and released it himself. Ben comes from a long line of musicians in his family, his cousins are Cab Calloway and Otis Redding.

Over the years he sessioned for Marvin Gay, Bloodstone, Carl Carlton, High Energy, Harold Johnson, J.W. Alexander, Richard T & The Salsoul Orchestra

Unfortunately, as is often the case, children came along and Ben moved away from music, this and forthcoming AOTN single 'Give Me Love' were his only solo recordings unless we can find the tapes of his lost LP further down the line.

TRACK LISTING

1. I Would Have To Be A Fool
2. Just Give Love A Try

New York’s Cleopatra label gets the Numero treatment. Hailing from Tommy Falcones swarm, Beehive lead Vickie & The Van Dykes were the sound of the coming youth revolt - Vickie had rock ‘n’ roll inher bones and rawhide in her voice. ‘I Wanna Be a Winner’ and ‘Outcast’ were songs tailored to her rebellious personality.

TRACK LISTING

1. I Wanna Be A Winner
2. Outcast

Until now, Art Feynman the eccentric alter ego of accomplished producer Luke Temple has strictly been a solo act, a way for the artist to explore surprising sonic landscapes without the burdens of identity. Slightly twisted takes on Kosmische musik, worldbeat, and art pop can all be found scattered across the Art Feynman discography, but with his new album Be Good The Crazy Boys, Feynman fully immerses himself into pools of collective madness.

Unlike his first two albums, Crazy Boys was recorded live in the studio with a full band, a first for Feynman, capturing a spirit of restless anxiety that recalls the most frenetic work by Talking Heads, or Oingo Boingo at their darkest. Despite these callbacks, the collection remains firmly rooted in modern concerns, with songs about fearing the end of the world and struggling with FOMO narratives that would be relatable if they didn’t sound so completely unhinged.

With Be Good The Crazy Boys, Art Feynman proves to be more than just a character. He represents the part of the modern collective consciousness that’s struggling to maintain balance in a toxic, chaotic world. In less skilled hands, that concept could result in a very somber listen. Fortunately, when Art Feynman gets his hands on the chaos of the modern age, it simply makes you want to dance.

TRACK LISTING

01. Early Signs Of Rhythm
02. In CD
03. Therapy At 3pm
04. All I Can Do
05. He Dances Light
06. Passed Over
07. Chasing My Life
08. Desperately Free
09. I Do