Sometime in 2005, a lone box of master tapes escaped an estate sale and made its way through a network of collectors, record dealers, and “junkers” into the hands of leading Ohio soul expert Dante Carfagna, who linked them to Columbus, Ohio’s mysterious Prix label (See: Eccentric Soul: The Prix Label). A bit of research turned up Prix proprietor George Beter, who identified most of the unlabelled material. All it took was an endless series of phone calls and letters and two fields trips in Columbus.

But one complete mystery wended its way onto our final Prix compilation. 'You and Me', a simple but irrepressible demo credited only to Penny & the Quarters, was found tacked onto a mixed studio reel. Our survey of every willing lifer left on the Columbus soul scene, including retired DJs, producers, and important local artists, produced not so much as a glimmer of recognition at the name Penny & the Quarters. Though we loved the song from the first play, it may’ve ended up a bit buried on our original compilation, as #18 of 19 tracks.

STAFF COMMENTS

Laura says: Just in time for Valentines day, this absolute gem of a love song. Stripped back sweet, sweet soul.

TRACK LISTING

1. You And Me.
2. You Are Giving Me Some Other Love

Hailing from a place of ancient mariners' secret coves and vast moors beaten by the wind and rain, Backwater Collage is James Hoare's first solo album under the name of Penny Arcade.

Despite leaving London for the West country he grew up in, the Englishman is no stranger to the scene. He has been wandering around as if awakened from a long, not-so-peaceful sleep for some time now. You have most probably come across his washed-out blue eyes several times, in projects including Veronica Falls, The Proper Ornaments and Ultimate Painting.

For this dreamy, hand-stitched record, Hoare has taken his time. Maybe because he had to rescue his songs from various recording sessions tinged with a number of mishaps he amusedly admits he is accustomed to: broken multitracks, failing tape machines, rarely available drummers living in the capital. The eleven intimate and solitary songs which make up the album, delivered in the greatest home recording tradition, are nonetheless cautiously produced. James unfurls pure, uncluttered melodies in which his gentle, melancholic voice mingles with smooth, warm vocals by Nathalia Bruno. Barely saturated guitar solos sometimes disrupt the clear, unpolished musical line. Hopping onboard, longtime friend Max Claps has added keyboard parts which manage to embrace the minimal nostalgia of the tracks while preventing any teary pathos. Similar to Jack Name or Syd Barrett – only less psychedelic – in terms of songwriting and stripped back atmosphere, Hoare is sitting on the Velvet Underground's black-and-white sofa and gives his album a subter- ranean feel. At times restless but light-footed, deprived of any unnecessary effects, the record follows in the steps of a less noisy but just as raw and unadorned Jesus and Mary Chain.

With Backwater Collage, alone at the helm under a stormy sky, James Hoare invites his listeners to s ettle in the sheltered comfort of a cup of tea.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Jona
A2. Don’t Cry No Tears
A3. Want You Around
A4. Dear John
A5. Prodigal Son
A6. When The Feeling Is Gone
B1. Black Cloud
B2. Mr. Softie
B3. Dennis
B4. Garage Instrumental
B5. One More

Composer, pianist and producer Peter Vukmirovic Stevens has teamed up with the prolific punk poet Penny Rimbaud to create ‘S LENCE’, a contemporary experiment of balance between piano and spoken word.

Released on One Little Independent avant-garde subsidiary Caliban Sounds.

Rimbaud’s apocalyptic and dramatic narration is delivered with vivid fervour, while Stevens uses an elegant, emotive approach to counter it. Both find harmony in juxtaposition.

Lyrically, Rimbaud explores a terrain he’s spent much of his later career addressing themes of antimilitarism and the grim details of historic conflict. War is a disturbing, monstrous entity across his poetry, with deeply descriptive prose placing his listener in the dirt itself. As befits his anarcho past, a lot of the writing discusses authority, with the relationship between the privileged and marginalised investigated fully. Wrestling oneself from under the boot of power and the radical fight for freedom may well be his wheelhouse, but here Penny Rimbaud is accompanied by something completely new. The solo compositions from Peter Vukmirovic Stevens were written specifically for these expressive tirades.

TRACK LISTING

S Lence
Paper Devils
Not They
Of Summer’s Passing
In Silence
S Lence II
Within Dark Streams
Shadows
Pity In The Poetry
I Am The Enemy
S Lence III

The rags-to-riches chronicle of Penny Penny's life would be remarkable if he had only released his smash debut Shaka Bundu and packed houses for a few years. But the inimitable South African singer and dancer known for his trademark top ponytail and emphatic anthems was no one-hit wonder. In the aftermath of Shaka Bundu's nationwide explosion, far beyond his country the album resonated with ever bigger audiences. He performed up and down the continent, building fanbases in more than a dozen countries. So his sophomore album Yogo Yogo - released in 1996 - solidified Penny Penny's standing in pop music nationally and provided new energy to his pan-African stadium-filling adventures. "I was very busy between Shaka Bundu and Yogo Yogo. Shows every week, local and outside the country. There was no relaxing from 1995 until 1999." The album also reflects the era in which it emerged. If Shaka Bundu arrived triumphantly amid newfound political freedom in South Africa with the end of Apartheid and Nelson Mandela's election, Yogo Yogo was a next level expression for the maturing artist. He wanted to get a message out.

Composed with Joe Shirimani, who also produced the album, the sound and compositional style echoes the earlier recording but the topical nature of the lyrics became more deliberate, more didactic. In the song "Ingani" Penny proclaims, we are all one people even though we may speak different languages, we are all Nguni—a larger historical grouping that includes many of the ethnic groups in modern South Africa. "Kulani Kulani," which means grow up, urges young people to say no to drugs and yes to education. Ama Owners, referring to the public transport drivers involved in violent rumbles, asks the nation's drivers to relax because we need them for our safe arrival. Penny's success as a Xitsonga artist should not be under-estimated in the context of popular music at the time in South Africa.

"When I started with my own style and image, first time in Shangaan we had artist like me," Penny explains. "Our music was traditional before. But I brought a mix of rock and disco and it became the bomb. Every star won't be popular without your own style." It took them eight days to finish album, writing the songs in the studio. Penny says, "The songs just happened. Joe is very good at listening and producing, he has lots of patience. When he played the keyboard I would sing, standing behind him once he finished the rhythm, I would sing it all in one take, non-stop. We were not using computers to record, we were singing live. And we pressed the music on cassette and vinyl - not CD - back then."

TRACK LISTING

01. Ibola Aids
02. Ingani
03. Amarumasi
04. Kulani Kulani
05. Hai Kamina
06. Dodomedzi (CD Bonus)
07. Yogo Yogo
08. Ti Samaboko 
09. Ama Owners
10. Kulani Kulani (Remix) CD Bonus

Co-founder of '70s/'80s anarchist punk band Crass, activist, poet, novelist, painter and philosopher Penny Rimbaud has recorded a live recital of ‘How?’, backed by jazz cellist Kate Shortt. ‘How? Is a reinterpretation of Allen Ginsberg’s classic 1954 poem ‘Howl’ wherein Penny, like Ginsberg before him, seeks to challenge the establishment and encapsulate the righteous anger and frustrations of a generation.

In January 2003, alongside a jazz quartet, Penny performed ‘Howl’ as his first gig at London’s Vortex Jazz Club. Ginsberg’s poem was chosen because it had been seminal in Penny’s development as a writer and because it seemed so well suited to a jazz setting. After the show, he was asked to do a repeat performance as part of that year’s London Jazz Festival. After happily agreeing, he reached out to the copyright holders expecting the process to be a mere formality, but it wasn’t. HarperCollins Inc is owned by News International, the militarist, industrialist, nationalist wing of media-magnate Rupert Murdoch. 

TRACK LISTING

1. Part I
2. Part II
3. Part III
4. Part IV

Ahead of Esa's "Amandla: Music To The People" comp, Soundway hit us with a heavyweight 12" featuring Penny Penny's impossible to find 2001 kwaito house smasher "Shilingu" with a fresh remix on the flip. The original is a super tough, hypnotic, percussive, groove-driven anthem featuring chanting in Tsonga, celebrating South African icon Penny Penny’s Shangaani roots. On the flip is the acid-soaked “Shilungu (Esa & Mervin Granger ‘99 Mix)”, re-interpreting the track with key elements from the original which are extended into a late night, Chicago House influenced chugger. Esa Williams is an ambassador for the South African music scene within the crowded landscape of the European nightlife - balancing a hectic DJ schedule, a monthly radio show on Worldwide FM and various live projects. 

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Ooh yeah. Nice bit of tribal house action to keep me bouncing in my chair this Thursday afternoon. Back with a deep and techno Esa & Granger mix I'm sure you'll be hearing me and Mr. Levi Love smashing this record out at the heady summer dances...

TRACK LISTING

Shilungu
Shilungu (Esa & Mervin Granger ‘99 Mix)

Cubical frontman Dan Wilson finally releases his first solo album. It’s a major musical departure from his previous work, with a more introspective and lyrically orientated sound in the classic alt folk tradition of Leonard Cohen, Johnny Cash, Nick Cave & Nick Lowe. Drawing on the musical talents of producers Kal Ross and long-time Cubical producer Keith Thompson, All Love is Blind walks the fine line between the raw and the refined. This mixture of genres that blend folk, old blues and country along with a little rock n roll, all serve as wonderful settings for Wilson’s debut . The album utilises the evocative and purifying sound of cello and violin to create a perfect backdrop in which Wilson’s voice and lyrical prowess can feature.

Title track “All Love is Blind” is a rich absorbing ode to the futility of love in which the fine production work of Kal Ross comes to the fore, with an intricate use of backing vocals and percussion that work in unison with the strings and Wilson’s vocal to tug at the heart strings. “The Waves” on the other hand is a rumbling whirl of intense brooding and rhythmic convulsion that speaks of a dark world of judgment and is hurried along by the frenetic violin of Rod Leung and the primordial percussion of Cubical rhythmical stalwart Mark Percy. Add to this the backing vocals of Laura Campbell (Mulu/Legends of Flight) and the fine production work of Keith Thompson and what results is a cacophonous track of raw and spellbinding power.

“Lonely Drunk” is a boozy country folk ballad well versed in the tradition of late night crooning and tears in one’s beer. The double bass and then trombone solo of musical genius and theatre composer Andy Frizzell (Wizards of Twiddly) is worth the fee alone and works wonders with Randy Newman and Nick Lowe –esque lyrical introspection that verges on the ridiculous. “5 Nights Long” is raw Wilson, in Cubical mode, beset with jealousy and growling. This rough and ready blues stomp is driven by the wonderful slide playing of Cubical lead guitarist Alex Gavaghan. The penultimate track on the album “Where Did All The Love Go?” is a lullaby best enjoyed with a late night whisky, a gentle and tender piece that mixes the fragile vocal and acoustic guitar of Wilson with the luscious and sorrowful tones of Siofra Ward’s cello. A wonderful way to end such an absorbing journey. More than simply a break up album this is more like a get back together and then break up again album. Try saying that after you’ve had a few.

“Wilson makes Waits sound like Tiny Tim." - THE GUARDIAN. 

TRACK LISTING

All Love Is Blind
Five Nights Long
The Waves
Love Was Calling Me
Lonely Drunk
Deny You This Kiss
Loved But One Woman
The Rain
So Long My Sweet World
Where Did All The Love Go?
I Tried To Reach You.

Sicilian Saxophonist, flutist, composer and arranger Nino Rapicavoli is one of the unsung heroes in the world of Italian soundtracks of the 1970s. A musician with a solid background in jazz as well as a long-time member of Italy’s state-owned RAI TV orchestra, Rapicavoli has only a handful of library albums to his name, but each is of the highest quality. This Divagazioni (Ramblings) is probably the best of the lot, an album that mixes jazz, easy listening and a pinch of prog with that exclusively Italian taste for eccentricity.

TRACK LISTING

Side A:
1. Territoire
2. Premier
3. Metafora
4. Diritto
5. Erea

Side B:
1. Fidele
2. Istinto
3. Altimetria
4. Autogeno
5. Corpus

‘Bad Penny’ is the debut album from Spectrals aka 21 year old Louis Jones. Mixing ingredients of pop, soul, doo wop, and a garage rock ballad, it sounds vintage but current, while the Yorkshire lilt in his voice (a result of his hometown, Heckmondwike) places him firmly in the UK, rather than Detroit.

Inspired by the music he grew up listening to as a child, from the Rolling Stones (the only CD’s his mum ever has in her car) to The Style Council, Elvis Costello and The Ronettes, it’s all “just about love really”.

In eleven original songs, not heard on any of Spectrals previous tapes, 7″s or E.P’s, he documents his relationship with his girlfriend, who he has known since school, from the great to the not-so-good. “Love songs are the kind of songs I like” says the guy who once turned Beyonce’s Single Ladies upside down (‘Peppermint’) “‘not all of them are nice, but they’re all feelings I’ve had”. As if he wasn’t attached to these songs enough, Louis recorded nearly all of the instruments on Bad Penny, with his brother, Will Jones, the only other musician on the album, on drums.

Recorded with Richard Formby (Wild Beasts, Hood, Telescopes, Spectrum) in early 2011, on Bad Penny, Spectrals’ knack for writing a great tune is more obvious than ever. “I just love these songs” he says “all I’d hope is for people to come away saying, ‘they were 11 ace songs’ or if there’s a a guy or girl getting messed about, that it makes sense to them. I’m not wanting to make out I’m a genius, I hate it when groups do that. People don’t like being talked down to, y’know? This is just songs”.

TRACK LISTING

1. Get A Grip
2. Lockjaw
3. You Don't Have To Tell Me
4. Big Baby
5. Many Happy Returns
6. You Can't Live On Love Alone
7. Doing Time
8. Confetti
9. Luck Is There To Be Pushed
10. Brain Freeze
11. If I Think About The Magic Will It Go Away?

"Penny Sparkle" was made over the last year with the band journeying between New York and Stockholm to work with production duo Van Rivers and The Subliminal Kid (Fever Ray, Glasser) with additional production work undertaken with Drew Brown (Beck, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Radiohead). As with their previous album, "23", Alan Moulder (Depeche Mode, My Bloody Valentine, Yeah Yeah Yeahs) was enlisted to mix it.

Kazu Mazino from the band speaks of the record: “I can't say what Penny Sparkle is about just yet. I remember talking to Ed (from 4AD) one day and telling him that I had a vision that I was traveling to far away places to complete it. (Then) I landed in snowy slippery Stockholm... and here. Henrik and Peder in Stockholm and Drew in NY and after with everyone in NY again. I fell in love with the music like falling for someone you've known for a long time. It was dreamy and sometimes was very stormy. At times, I felt like a shepherd who was trying to herd five stallions into a yard (unsuccessfully). I felt like I was a link to everyone. I remained still and the others were constantly moving around it. I am not sure what Penny Sparkle is but I hope I offered to them as much as they offered me. I know that we have never made a record this way and if I could go back in time, I would do it exactly the same way again”.

This collection of nine exclusive tracks by the cream of Belfast's musical talent swings from folktronica to shoegaze to power pop and back again, and features an exclusive track by David Holmes. The "Oh Yeah Sessions" was recorded in support of the The Oh Yeah Centre, a creative nexus for Belfast's burgeoning art and music scene. The Centre was founded by Gary Lightbody (Snow Patrol), Stuart Bailie (former Editor of NME) and Tim Wheeler (Ash). At the centre's heart is Start Together Studios, a project run by Rocky O'Reilly (from BarNone Records' Oppenheimer) and Ben McAuley.