Raekwon’s 'The Emperor’s New Clothes' is a sharp return to form, showcasing the Wu-Tang veteran’s lyrical precision and timeless street wisdom. The album is powerful with equal parts - high-quality bars and carefully sculpted production.

Raekwon recruits a stacked lineup of guests, including Nas, Griselda, Method Man, Inspectah Deck, and Ghostface Killah, injecting the project with gritty energy and legacy chemistry. Marsha Ambrosius and Stacy Barthe provide smooth, soulful hooks, adding emotional layers to the hard-edged verses.

Production comes courtesy of Nottz, Swizz Beatz J.U.S.T.I.C.E League and more.

The LP is a reminder of Raekwon’s enduring power as a lyricist and curator. A veteran artist showing that mastery doesn’t need excess. 'The Emperor’s New Clothes' is regal, streetwise, and sharply tailored for those who value craft.

TRACK LISTING

1. Intro
2. Bear Hill
3. Pomogranite
4. Veterans Only Billionaire Rehab (SKIT)
5. Wild Corsicans
6. 1 Life
7. Barber Shop Bullies (SKIT)
8. Open Doors
9. 600 School
10. The Guy That Plans It
11. Da Heavies
12. Officer Full Beard (SKIT)
13. The Omerta
14. Get Outta Here
15. The Sober Dose Gift (SKIT)
16. Debra Night Wine
17. Mac & Lobster

Having made a solo move to the Berkshire Mountains in upstate New York in September 2020 after years living in Brooklyn, Jensen found herself confronting and enjoying a newfound solitude as the nonstop movement and collaboration of city life had come to a standstill. The first LP she made post-move, Esthesis, is largely devoid of cello, synth heavy, and examines emotions in a self-conscious way from an isolated point of view that is nearly one-dimensional.

Jensen sets new parameters for this new album, placing the acoustic sound of the cello at the fore, and affecting the sound only through a few effects (octave displacement, delay, tremolo and looping). “It felt necessary to return to the rich acoustic sound of the cello that I've loved and produced for nearly my
entire life, and to return to an expression of emotion that's multi-dimensional and sincere,” she notes.

As a soloist, Jensen endeavours to establish a new tradition of solo cello performance that integrates electronics with the storied and beloved performance practice intrinsic to the instrument. She places great importance on finding and working with effects pedals that integrate well with the cello (and avoids overt use of plugins or playback).

The solo cello works of J.S. Bach as a central backdrop to this new album. Bach’s Solo Cello Suites display a rich range of voices created by one instrument. Having found ways to expand the sound and voice of the instrument through electronics, Jensen found it fitting to return to Bach's works as a way to touch back in with the tradition of the instrument.

“… what steps forth, in holiday clothing, out of the great darkness."– Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet

As a composer, Jensen insists that the programmatic elements of her albums align and ring true. She writes that, “the quote from Rilke had been bouncing around my mind for many years; the visualisation of musical ideas being born and echoing inside a ‘great darkness,’ then emerging ‘in holiday clothing’ felt
very beautiful and tangible, and this essay, which to me is a manifesto in celebration of solitude, depicts what so many artists and composers experience when they endeavour solitary work. This album reflects a personal and conceptual exploration of what solo means.”

TRACK LISTING

1. In Holiday Clothing, Out Of The Great Darkness Part 1

2. From A To B €

Cloth let go on ‘Pink Silence’, a bold reinvention that retains their enchanting pull.

Scottish twins Rachael and Paul Swinton sounded like few around them when they released their 2019 self-titled debut. Their appeal lived in tense guitar parts and Rachael’s signature close vocal. In the time since, they have worked to perfect that sound. The 2023 follow-up ‘Secret Measure’ expanded it in every direction, with more layers, more interplay, and gutsier writing. The record received critical acclaim from publications including The Guardian, Pitchfork, CLASH and Uncut, and was shortlisted for the Scottish Album of the Year (SAY) Award in 2023. Cloth have also been championed by 6 Music DJs Mary Anne Hobbs, Guy Garvey, Tom Robinson, and Matt Everitt, and played exciting live sessions for Marc Riley & Gideon Coe (6 Music), Roddy Hart (BBC Radio Scotland) and John Kennedy (Radio X).

Now, three records in, they embrace letting go of expectation. ‘Pink Silence’ is unafraid to go big in the quest to make something lasting. With Owen Pallett, Adrian Utley (Portishead), and Stuart Braithwaite (Mogwai) contributing, this mission is supported by some of their musical heroes.

“It was a conscious decision to go bigger, more muscular and less subtle,” says Paul. “There was a willingness to push ourselves as far as we could go in terms of how cinematic we could make things.”

The central prompt to ‘let go’ was given to Rachael by the band’s producer Ali Chant (Yard Act, Perfume Genius, PJ Harvey) when she asked him if he noticed any common threads when artists create their best work.

“He said ‘the artist always lets go’, and he didn't really expand on it”, Rachael says. “So I took this phrase away and just ruminated on it for ages, viewing letting go as something that could be helpful. I started applying it to different things, like the writing, not trying to get caught up in that feeling of ‘is this good enough? Do I need to work on this again?’ It was more instinctual.”

With ‘Pink Silence’, the band entered the studio to make the ten strongest songs they possibly could, and they left a stronger band.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: I love Cloth. Their 2023 album, Secret Measure was my personal album of the year in 2023 and remains a favourite to this day. Obviously I was delighted then to hear they had a new one coming for favourite label, Rock Action but also delighted to hear that it's equally brilliant, angular post-rock indie business to that stunning debut. If anything it's even more tuneful and cathartic and inventive. Brilliant.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. Pink Silence
2. Polaroid
3. Stuck
4. Golden
5. The Cottage

Side B
6. It’s A Lot
7. I Don’t Think So
8. Stones
9. Burn
10. Write It Down

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).

Recorded to mark the 30th Anniversary of their debut ‘Dad Man Cat’ and the follow-up ‘High Havoc’, Corduroy return with an new mini-album: ‘Men of the Cloth.’

Sitting perfectly at the corded fringe between acid jazz and rising Britpop, Corduroy emerged in 1991 out of the ashes of cult band Boys Wonder, and made three increasingly brilliant albums on Acid Jazz. They also became one of the top live acts of their generation. After an 18-year hiatus, they returned with ‘Return of the Fabric Four in 2018, and remain a draw on the live circuit.

Featuring the popular sides from last years limited-edition 7” single ‘No More Me Me Me’ and ‘Hypnotoad’, ‘Men of the Cloth’ features four new cuts from the same Corduroy cloth - a heady mix of swinging sixties soundtracks, pop art imagery and Jazz-Funk in equal measure. A must-have addition to one of the founding acts of Acid Jazz.

Glasgow-based twin-sibling duo Cloth (Rachael and Paul Swinton) release ‘Secret Measure’ their first full-length release on Rock Action Records (Mogwai, Arab Strap, The Twilight Sad) following the four-song ‘Low Sun EP’ (2022). The album was produced by Ali Chant (Yard Act, Katy J Pearson, Squirrel Flower) at Toybox Studios.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Angular post-rock structures and flickering percussion sit perfectly below the hypnotic hushed vocals. Driven, dreamy and full of moments of unexpected syncopation and cumulative heft. A feat of songwriting prowess, and a really enjoyable listen.

Glasgow’s Cloth announce their return with new music by way of a 4 track EP and their first release for their new label Rock Action Records. “Lucid” is resplendent yet brooding, offering airy dream-like, haunting vocals over dark guitar riffs and resonating percussion - a perfect moment of minimal alternative rock. Guitarist Paul Swinton says ”It was the first song we wrote for the EP and it felt like it set a tone for where we should go with the other songs - somewhere darker and bigger. The song is about being wrapped up in a situation you feel you have no control over then realising you do have the ability and agency to change things for the better.”

This physical EP is a limited pressing and is available on ice blue coloured 12" vinyl and includes download code.

It will appeal to fans of The XX, Cocteau Twins, Beachhouse and Warpaint.

TRACK LISTING

1. Old Stories
2. Lucid
3. Low Sun
4. Sidecar

Following up one of the most truly obscure, cult electronica offerings to date, BYO-JO finally get round to dropping release no. 2, twenty four years later!! Somewhat of a golden treasure around these parts, BY01 - the "Space Disco EP" by Slow Rota and various artists fetches upwards of £80 if and when it surfaces 2nd hand. I think there MAY be a copy in Vinyl Exchange at the moment if you're lucky! Unheard through online platforms, googling the release's titles ain't gonna get you very far either... there's very few records left with so much mystery surrounding them!

Anyway, label owner and contributor, Andrew has been kind enough to bring forth the latest offering. Artist going under the name Caution! Horses. The vibe sees cushion soft electronics toying with cerebral drones and organic chimes. Recalling the childlike brilliance of fellow North West experimentalist, Solar Power Buddha whilst paying respect to industrial pioneers Chris & Cossy and their Throbbing Gristle moniker. There's more than a nod to Detroit techno and its futuristic slant; yet there's a primitive and simple beauty to the tracks displayed, shunning them from a particular chronology. Crowning glory for me is "Moment Is The Message", which sees hardwired, DIY electronix merged with splurging analogue phlegm and a Kraut-informed drum palette. "K-Balcony" is a shimmering, content and sublime number, unpacking your woes and strains on a white sandy beach as the waves lap around your ankles. Caution! Horses' skilled piano work rubs you up and down as a highly musical piece is rolled out effortlessly; bliss is the air and vigor on the horizon! "Every Cloud" concludes the breathtaking long player in a suitably otherworldly way; recalling the best bits of B12 and Model 500 as eerie atmospheres wash over rigid, mechanized beats. It's another stone cold epic addition into the annals of UK electronica and in particular the freeform and creative sprit of the North West. Stupendously limited and most recommended - get those skates on folks!

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: A wonderful & completely under-the-radar offering of DIY electronix, forward-leaning techno and industralized utopia from local legend Andrew Odia. First release is one highly coveted and sought-after piece!

TRACK LISTING

1. Blue Mood (additional Production By Danny Webb)
2. Charlton Place
3. Jokers' Playtime
4. Occasional Tracks #1
5. Movement Is The Message
6. K-Balcony
7. Every Cloud

‘A Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing’ (2006) is an unusual album, first because it does things with classical music that aren’t usually done. The songs Josephine Foster sings here are classical pieces, written (the texts are German poems) by some of the greatest German composers of the 19th century, Franz Schubert, Robert Schumann, Johannes Brahms, and Hugo Wolf. “Foster has found perhaps the most appropriate vehicle yet for her singular and affecting talents – 19th century German art-songs, wholly reconstructed here via Foster’s skeletal arrangements of voice and guitar” Pitchfork. Remastered and repackaged with new artwork

TRACK LISTING

1. An Die Musik
2. Der König In Thule
3. Verschwiehene Liebe
4. Die Schwestern
5. Wehmut
6. Auf Einer Burg
7. Nähe Des Geliebten

The return of the legendary Tad Doyle of TAD, Hog Molly & Sub Pop fame.

Keeping up a long-held tradition of bringing forth some of the heaviest music from the darkness of the Pacific NW, Seattle’s legendary Tad Doyle (formerly of TAD, Hog Molly), delivers his strongest songwriting and playing to date with his newest band Brothers Of The Sonic Cloth.

This powerful trio of musicians, with Tad on guitar/vocals, veteran bass player Peggy Doyle and drummer Dave French (the Annunaki) release their long-awaited debut LP on Neurosis’ own Neurot Recordings. Brothers Of The Sonic Cloth bring together the collective and extensive rock histories and experience of the three members in the worlds of punk, hard rock and metal.

Recorded at Robert Lang Studios and Tad Doyles’ own Witch Ape Studio in Seattle and mixed by Billy Anderson, Brothers Of The Sonic Cloth’s self-titled full length consists of five immense songs, with two bonus tracks on the CD. The record begins with an ominous eruption of riffs forged from deep within the earth, with “Lava”, and continues on this path throughout; a mammoth, relentless spirit on a timeless journey. This album is as much a persistent thudding body punch of sonic destructive force as it is a thoughtful statement of awareness and the inescapable raw condition of life.

Perfect for removing dust, grease and fingerprints from your precious vinyl.