quête:bodie

"My Black Country: The Songs of Alice Randall" is the companion album to Alice Randall's new book "My Black Country," which offers a lyrical, introspective, and unforgettable account of her past, her search for the first family of Black country music, and the radical joy in realizing the power of Black influence on American culture. The album is a powerful compilation of Black female country artists re-recording the greatest songs of Alice's catalog, bringing to life the Black characters and portraits of the Black west embedded in her songs. The album is produced by Ebonie Smith (engineer of 'Hamilton', founder and president of Gender Amplified, and the in-house producer for the Atlantic Records studio in New York). Alice Randall is a New York Times bestselling novelist, award-winning songwriter, and educator. She is widely recognized as one of the most significant voices in modern Black fiction and has emerged as an innovative food activist committed to reforms that support healthy bodies and healthy communities. She lives in Nashville where she writes country songs.

With base notes of Texas country, full bodied Americana and flutters of rim-shot percussion, Elliott BROOD infuse their own experiences into the 1970s hit. Transformed into a true country ripper, “Bluebird Wine” chirps and hops along with a peppy verve. True to form, Elliott BROOD layer on their signature stomp and clap sound and their unique blend of vocal tones, creating an elixir of lifestyle, a feeling to imbibe that brings joy and fullness.

My art investigates the rich area of resonance and I engage in dialogue influenced by past works, current concerns and new directions. Works attempt to immerse the senses bringing to the fore natural phenomenon. I believe that sound can heal and that the conscious investigation of harmonic tunings, acoustic resonance as well as social relationships can yield powerful experiences. One of my objectives as an artist is to expose natural phenomena. I am interested in the physical aspects of sound and have developed a sensibility that focuses heavily on Resonance. Vibration is at the core of my experience of Resonance. I am moved by natural resonances that exist around us all. My own work strives to develop and nurture Resonances by negotiating sensitive relationships among a number of what I identify as critical ingredients for psychedelic phenomena: resonant bodies exciting harmonic energy creating diverse waves, beating and phase patterns diffused spatially with full dynamic range and a deep attention to the body and how it engages with the environment.

“My heart is loud,” Julia Holter sings on her sixth album Something in the Room She Moves, following an inner pulse. The Los Angeles songwriter’s past work has often explored memory and dreamlike future, but her latest album resides more in presence: “There’s a corporeal focus, inspired by the complexity and transformability of our bodies,” Holter says. Her production choices and arrangements form a continuum of fretless electric bass pitches in counterpoint with gliding vocal melodies, while glissing Yamaha CS-60 lines entwine warm winds and reeds. “I was trying to create a world that’s fluid-sounding, waterlike, evoking the body’s internal sound world,” Holter says of her flowing harmonic universe.

“What is delicious and what is omniscient?” she sings on “Spinning”, the album’s incantatory centerpiece. “What is the circular magic I’m visiting?” Or as Holter put it: “It’s about being in the passionate state of making something: being in that moment, and what is that moment?” She found it anew on Something in the Room She Moves, singing in somatic frequencies.

“My heart is loud,” Julia Holter sings on her sixth album Something in the Room She Moves, following an inner pulse. The Los Angeles songwriter’s past work has often explored memory and dreamlike future, but her latest album resides more in presence: “There’s a corporeal focus, inspired by the complexity and transformability of our bodies,” Holter says. Her production choices and arrangements form a continuum of fretless electric bass pitches in counterpoint with gliding vocal melodies, while glissing Yamaha CS-60 lines entwine warm winds and reeds. “I was trying to create a world that’s fluid-sounding, waterlike, evoking the body’s internal sound world,” Holter says of her flowing harmonic universe.

“What is delicious and what is omniscient?” she sings on “Spinning”, the album’s incantatory centerpiece. “What is the circular magic I’m visiting?” Or as Holter put it: “It’s about being in the passionate state of making something: being in that moment, and what is that moment?” She found it anew on Something in the Room She Moves, singing in somatic frequencies.

ZOMBI melden sich mit ihrem neuen Album Direct Inject zurück, auf das sie lange gewartet haben! Es fängt den Geist früherer Alben wie "Escape
Velocity" und "Surface To Air" ein und erweitert gleichzeitig die Klangpalette der Band, die von 80er-Synth-Rock ("Direct Inject") bis zu
saxophonlastigen Slow Jams ("Sessuale II") reicht.
Direct Inject ist ein unverzichtbares ZOMBI-Album und möglicherweise ihr bisher vielfältigstes und fesselndstes. Direct Inject ist ZOMBI in ihrer besten
Form, bei der sie aus Improvisationen Gold schürfen.

After 7 studio albums with both Secretly Canadian and Western Vinyl Records over the last 20+ years, Early Day Miners have returned with their latest offering, and their first with Solid Brass Records, titled Outside Lies Magic. Early Day Miners' surroundings have always been reflected in their sound. Their early compositions, while in Bloomington, IN, mirrored the seemingly inescapable expanse of the Midwest. Now based in New Orleans their sound has yielded a subtle but correlative shift in the band. Outside Lies Magic offers an audible lightness. Most notably Dan Burton’s voice, once hushed and at times hesitant, is now full-bodied and sure; his heart, once tenuously carried on his sleeve, is now firmly in his throat. And though this might be the leanest the lineup has been, they are focused and warm, exuding the maximalism of their new home with nuance and a laissez-faire approach. Early Day Miners sound as unhurried as ever, but never aimless; Early Day Miners have finally arrived.

After 7 studio albums with both Secretly Canadian and Western Vinyl Records over the last 20+ years, Early Day Miners have returned with their latest offering, and their first with Solid Brass Records, titled Outside Lies Magic. Early Day Miners' surroundings have always been reflected in their sound. Their early compositions, while in Bloomington, IN, mirrored the seemingly inescapable expanse of the Midwest. Now based in New Orleans their sound has yielded a subtle but correlative shift in the band. Outside Lies Magic offers an audible lightness. Most notably Dan Burton’s voice, once hushed and at times hesitant, is now full-bodied and sure; his heart, once tenuously carried on his sleeve, is now firmly in his throat. And though this might be the leanest the lineup has been, they are focused and warm, exuding the maximalism of their new home with nuance and a laissez-faire approach. Early Day Miners sound as unhurried as ever, but never aimless; Early Day Miners have finally arrived.

"As Bill Orcutt’s most mature and exhilarating LP to date, Music for Four Guitars was a slab of undeniable Apollonian beauty. Its approachability and obvious novelty landed it not only on the year- end lists of every key-pushing codger in the underground in 2022, but also on NPR in the form of the Bill Orcutt Guitar Quartet, an ensemble assembled to perform this music and featuring Wendy Eisenberg, Ava Mendoza, and Shane Parish in addition to Orcutt. But while their Tiny Desk Concert gave a whiff of the quartet’s easy intimacy, the sterile confines of the virtual recital medium still left a puzzle unsolved: how might these brutally mannered bricks of minimalist counterpoint sound on a stage in front of actual breathing bodies?" "This was the question foremost in my mind when I first saw the quartet in San Francisco a few months before this double live LP was recorded. I was already familiar with the prowess of Eisenberg and Mendoza, two of the most technically intimidating shredders to blast out of the noise/improv underground, and knew Parish as the mastermind behind the epic translation of Orcutt's quartet recordings into a fully notated score. I was ready to be 'blown away'—and I most assuredly was. The quartet navigated Orcutt's jaggedly spiraling right angles into the shining core of the compositions with joyous ease, faithful to the originals in nearly every way (though their tempos were slightly ramped up, Blakey style, to communicate their breathless rush). The renditions were flawless, stellar and inspiring. I had expected nothing less." "Which leads us to this album, Four Guitars Live, recorded in November of 2023 at Le Guess Who? festival during the quartet’s first European tour. The true essence of this set is not simply in its faithfulness to the source compositions, but in the group's easy familiarity (no doubt the result of weeks on the road) and the generosity of their improvisations, both collective and solo. Orcutt, clearly cognizant of both the caliber of his collaborators and the singularity of their voices, has given everyone room to stretch out, and all have delivered some of their most moving passages to date." "One of this record's great thrills for me is imagining a listener, perhaps unfamiliar with the outer limits of contemporary guitar improvisation (or the Tzadik catalog), slammed into catatonia by Mendoza's liquefying lines on Out of the corner of the eye, then revived and healed by the languid, breathy lines of Parish's unaccompanied, spaced-out breakdown of the track's main theme, finally only to be crushed by Eisenberg’s staggering extended solo on Only at dusk (somehow channeling both Eugene Chadbourne and Buck Dharma)." "There's another peak, which begins at the end of side B, in Orcutt's own languid solo, encapsulating the flowing focus of his recent solo LPs, and serving as an introduction to the next side's ensemble tour de force, the psychic heart of the album, On the horizon: its melodic core passing first to Orcutt, launching into a sublime solo turn by Eisenberg, a duo of Parish and Mendoza, before parachuting back into the ensemble for a smashup rendition of Barely visible and Glimpsed while driving (renamed Barely driving) knitted together with an softly bubbling ensemble improvisation. The transfer is orchestrated yet seamless, its tonal form undeniable even in the presence of obvious dissonance." "The breadth of Four Guitars Live gives lie to the false notion that agile, polytonal improv is necessarily without soul, is necessarily inaccessible. Rather, Four Guitars posits a human avant-garde music that the most conservative will recognize as virtuosic and revel in its classic intervals, boiling counterpoint, and precisely- layered facets. Even the rockers in your life might dig it, so why not pass it on?"—Tom Carter

Aural architect Skygaze follows his 2022 ‘Astral Trip EP’ for Flumo Recordings, offering an advanced fusion of house, broken boogie, and future jazz, with five brand new reinterpretations from the extended Flumo family.

Skygaze’s diverse sound, breaking down barriers between house and techno, broken beat, jazz, ambient, hip hop, jungle, and even esoteric IDM, has been showcased across a growing catalogue of releases across Guayaba records, Riverette, Flumo and Thirty Three Circular, and remixes for Ed is Dead and Contours & Yadava; earning the producer support from the likes of Mr. Scruff, Simbad, k15, Bandcamp’s Andrew Jervis, and Gilles Peterson.

Feted singer, musician and producer Alysha Joy, rising producer Divorce From New York, ones-to-watch, Footnote and Karmasound, and Skygaze himself under his Jailed Jamie guise, joined by Lorenzo Soria, put a new spin on ‘Astral Trip’, whilst staying true to the originals’ spirit.

The multi-talented Allysha Joy, of 30/70 Collective & LCSM fame, remixes ‘’Night Heat’’, enhancing the groove with broken beats and her undeniable first-rate vocals.

Jailed Jamie & Lorenzo Soria, reshape ‘’Gimme Five’’ with rough synths and jacking bassline driven “Think” beats.

Divorce From New York boosts the tempo and infuses ‘’Wagwan’’ with Latin rhythms, perfectly balanced by high-energy synth lines.

Italian producers, Footnote and SofaTalk, delve deeper into ‘’Minor Mood’’, adding softer, retro-infused sound structures in a broken boogie mould.

Barcelona’s Karmasound explores the ruminating nature of ‘’City Cathedratics’’ and its counterbalance between broken beat and house.

The diverse but complementary set of remixes is sure to move bodies on sophisticated dance-floors this year and shed further light not only Skygaze’s production but also his talent for melody and song-writing. A feather in his and Flumo’s bow.

DJ Support:

Ashley Beedle (Back To The World Records)

Bolam (Lobster Theremin)

Crazy P (Hot Toddy / 2020 Vision)

Dan Curtin (Mobilee)

Fouk (Heist / Toy Tonics)

Joshua James (XOYO, Glorias, Rinse)

Laurent Garnier (F Communications)

Severino / Horse Meat Disco (Strut / !K7 Records)

Speaking Minds (Circoloco, Italy)

Daniel Romano returns with his first new music since the release of the massive, singular, La Luna in those long ago days of autumn 2022 (an impossibly long time in this famously prolific artist's career) - Too Hot To Sleep is simultaneously a transcendent document of the spirit, and a swaggering, street level blast of power-pop and Stone's derived rock 'n' roll; a surprisingly direct shout down of the corrupt politicians and techno fascists that police our bodies, pollute our world, assault our connections; a reason and occasion to dance, to sweat together at one of The Outfit's legendary live shows wherein everything comes faster than the next, no breaks, no outside, there is only now, there is only all of us here together, alive

Partiboi69 strikes poses, chords and hot irons. Australia’s spiciest export since INXS’s front man is a sensation on many (meta-)levels. Musically, aesthetically and hedonistically exhilarating, the man’s man shows his sensitive side on Running Back. Four tracks answer the Call of the Void with a showcase of sounds and moods that are as much informed by the rules of old school dance music (Bodies) as they draw inspiration from classic rave closing tracks (Playin’), plangent pop (Feel This) and a former new romantics band that just discovered house music pre-internet (Call of the Void): surprisingly serious and simultaneously not-so-serious. Composed and executed with serious songwriting skills and an uncanny feel for the aural world of Running Back Records. A mutual pleasure, indeed.

Short: Partiboi69 strikes poses, chords and hot irons. Showing his sensitive side for Running Back with four tracks that are as much informed by the rules of old school dance music (Bodies) as they draw inspiration from classic rave closing tracks (Playin’), plangent pop (Feel This) and a former new romantics band that just discovered house music pre-internet (Call of the Void). A sensation on many meta-)levels and a mutual pleasure, indeed.

Hailing from Brittany, historical center of France's industrial scene and in close proximity to Belgium's infamous rave and EBM innovations, Ekors set out to deliberately blacken and burn the sophisticated sounds emanating from Paris. With releases on Amsterdam's harsh Leyla imprint, fellow French hardcore iconoclast Umwelt's Flesh or Die, and JoeFarr's User Experience, the trio undoubtedly made their name in their lonely redoubt in the timberland, and Rant & Rave is honored to host their theme EP, Forest Killers, as our fifth release.

'Woodchip' conjures nightmares of dead bodies run through a woodchipper rather than more pastoral scenes, its distorted kicks, bone-crushing bass and blasted-apart leads chopping air and anyone unlucky enough to stand in its way. Title track 'Forest Killers' is murderous, the lurching breakbeat and shrapnel percussion approaching like axe falls ever closer until the horror score melody enters, then accelerating frantically as the killers close in. 'Evil Sapp' only seems subdued in comparison, its hammering techno pulse providing scant breathing room as industrial machinery fells nearby trees. Self-explanatory 'Chainsaw Requiem' ups the discomfort as the titular tool buzzes overhead, more Texas Chainsaw Massacre than weekend warrior woodpile work. Amidst squalling leads, ricocheting percussion, fearful blasts of noise, and pounding bass and kicks, Ekors escort us out of the haunted wood, sighs of relief and evil laughs joining in chorus.

Record label boss, producer / DJ, and revered collector Marc Davis returns to his Chi-Talo series with the much-anticipated second volume. A concept of a split EP, taking one ultra-rare Chicago gem and the other a scarce Italian disco record and re-interpreting them for the modern dancefloor aesthetic.

With the first volume, released on Marc’s own Black Pegasus label, now trading hands for considerable amounts of money, round two sees him impart another double dose of digging sorcery for this Mr Bongo 12”.

Marc began his illustrious career in the Windy City in the ‘80s and was one of the first out of Chicago to be recognised for his eclectic approach to DJing. Presenting a global sound palette that took in choice cuts from Brazil, Africa, jazz fusion, house, soul and disco, whilst mixing it together Chicago style. Decades of knowledge and experience that is now distilled down into the Chi-Talo series.

The Italo selection came via a tip from Marc's Swedish friend, Julian Wareing. Hearing the track led Marc down the rabbit hole to secure a copy of this Italo-Disco, album cut oddity by the New Sound Quartet from 1979. The original of 'Bass Construction', measures in at four and a half minutes and is already a feverish funk groover. But Marc saw an opportunity to extend and re-edit the track, keeping in the vein of the original but giving it space to breathe. Tweaking out every last ounce of goodness, Marc locks you into a hypnotic groove for maximum dancefloor deliverance.

The Chicago side is as rare, as the rarest of hens-teeth, only ever existing as a one-off acetate by the band The Saucer Planes. One of the members of the group was the sadly passed-away older brother of Marc’s DJ mentor, Jahmal Anderson. From the very first listen, Marc knew he’d been hooked up with an undiscovered boogie gem. A long-lost track that the world needed to hear. But the project has remained dormant until now, not least due to the fact that the original recording of this low-fi vocal boogie groove is housed on an ever-deteriorating solo acetate. Rescued, restored and given a brand-new lease of life, Marc has turned the track into a low-slung, psychedelic instrumental boogie bounce. Raw, rough and mesmerising, it’s a refreshed relic that is a testament to Chicago’s club sound and swagger.

Whichever side you draw for, this is guaranteed to move bodies as much as it wins over hearts.

UK duo Wrecked Lightship debut on Peak Oil with a six-track slate of cyber aquatic alien bass music as placeless as it is precise: Antiposition. Comprised of Laurie Osborne (Appleblim) and Adam Winchester (Dot Product), the pair share a fascination with destabilized rhythm and retro-futurist dreaming, smudging dub, drum n bass, synthetic tribalism, and kinetic sound design into fresh electronic frontiers.

Antiposition both refines and refracts the project’s vision. From wobbly interstellar ascension (“Hex”) and cavernous industrial dub (“Bizarre Servants”) to junglist murk (“Sunken Skies”) and fractal shuffle (“Diminished Ark”), Wrecked Lightship move between haze and hyperspace, mythos and mystery. It’s less deconstructed than reconstructed, fashioned from galactic debris and congealed by the gravity of outer spheres.

The 28th split of the series exudes a sweet perfume of raw energy and sweaty bodies banging in a feverished cellar. On the A-side, Switzerland-based duo Bound by Endogamy, coming from the punk scene, delivers three industrial-synth-rave-hardcore bombs that will definitely destroy your brain. On the B-side, italian producer Antonio Barbetta aka Raw Ambassador delivers two strong dark electroid cuts designed to heat up dancefloors around the globe. This is Acid Body Music, punks !

If Talk Show’s exhilarating full-length debut, Effigy, feels more like a film than an album, that’s no coincidence. The band crafted the collection to soundtrack to a fictional nightclub. “One of the biggest influences on this record was the intro to the movie Blade, where this character’s being dragged through a meatpacking plant and into the vampire rave,” says frontman Harrison Swann. “There’s so much tension and anticipation and intimidation in that scene. We wanted to create the kind of music we’d play if we were performing in that club, to put ourselves into that scene and see how far we could push it.” With Effigy, Talk Show do more than just push their sound; they completely reinvent it. Produced by Remi Kabaka Jr., of Gorillaz, the record offers up a bold and exhilarating showcase for the band’s dramatic evolution, drawing on everything from The Chemical Brothers and The Prodigy to Nine Inch Nails and The KLF as it taps into a raw, primal sound at the intersection of techno, electronic, industrial, and rock music. The songs are dark and gritty, fueled by blistering guitars and explosive drums, and Swann’s vocals are nothing short of hypnotic, leaning on repetition and restraint to reach for transcendence in the midst of swirling sonic chaos. The result is an immersive, multi-sensory experience, one that conjures up a dark, sweaty warehouse packed with moving bodies all radiating heat and desire, anxiety and release, ecstasy and desperation

This is a drug record, but not in the way you might think. Chances are, if you’re reading this you’re burnt out. You’re tired, you’re stressed, you’re working. You’re surviving. So what do we do? We consume. Turning to screens, alcohol, substances and transactional relationships for a quick fix of dopamine, a little endorphin rush, a sharp boost of oxytocin. As we move along, our tolerance for all of these things rises, and our capacity to operate without them falls. We block up our neurotransmitters, and need more and more hits just to function and feel human. Put simply, it’s addiction. It’s ruining our brains, taking over our lives, but it’s all so… gratifying. Set in a not-too-distant and - crucially - not-at-all-unrealistic future, Normandie’s fourth album, ‘Dopamine’ finds the band asking and answering two unsettling questions: what if we pushed our brains and bodies far beyond their limits? And what if we already are? “The whole album is about the chase for different highs and natural chemicals: oxytocin, serotonin, dopamine, endorphins, adrenaline…” starts frontman Philip Strand. “What if dopamine had to be clinically provided because we've burned through our receptors?” “Making this album futuristic and dystopian came very naturally when we started discussing the current state of the world. We’re all on overdrive. We’re upping the stakes all the time, and everybody has a higher tolerance now for stress in a way that nobody saw coming,” he explains.

A lot of water has flown under the bridge since Błoto released their last album. Sadly, in Polish rivers it wasn't just water flowing, but also all sorts of sewage of unknown origin, which destroyed the condition of these once vibrant bodies of water; it eventually led to a real catastrophe on the Odra River, which, after all, surrounds the entire city of Wroclaw, the band's birthplace. It is time for a decisive response. Błoto is making a comeback with a seven-inch vinyl and their first singles in over two years - "Szlam" and "Ścieki".

Climate change had already led to a permanent hydrological drought, which was echoed on Erozje LP. Today, as many as 91.5 percent of Poland's rivers are in very poor condition. It is not only drought that threatens rivers, but also excessive salinity. This is precisely the kind of disaster that happened on the Odra river. It resulted in 360 tonnes of dead fish and death of the river along a stretch of almost 500 km, and the reason for that was short-sighted human activity that could have been avoided. Still, the decision was made to turn the river into a cesspool.

Two years of hiatus is far too long. During this time, reality has not let up for a moment, providing new inspiration. Szlam (eng. sludge) is the sediment that forms on the river bed and sometimes the river banks. The Polish word derives from German (Schlamm), which means swamp - or mud. Szlam is therefore a sticky and unsettling remorse that rests somewhere at the bottom of the human consciousness.

In "Szlam" and "Ścieki" tracks, you will not only hear references to Erozje, but also to Kwasy i Zasady LP. For it is also a metaphor for everything that pours out of the media, smartphones, and then flows into one's head. The constant bickering, conflicts and dirty play in political campaigns, scandals to which we are already numb. On top of this, hate speech, low-quality stupefying influencer content, resulting in an ever-decreasing cultural capital of a society that breeds conformists, individualistically-minded egoists and mindless consumers. This state of affairs spawns a society of egoists, incapable of critical reflection, questioning and rebelling against reality.

The sound and genres explored by the band are, as usual, difficult to pigeonhole. These two musical miniatures contain a lot of anxious and neurotic sounds, as well as synth glitches evoking emotions such as fear, anger, sadness and guilt. The quartet consisting of Wuja HZG, OlafSaxx, Cancer G and Latarnik managed to distill this mental state by encapsulating it in shades of breakbeat ("Szlam"), and broadly defined house music ("Ścieki").

The 7" vinyl will be released on January 08th 2024 by Astigmatic Records.

Skylax Records Is Proud to Introduce You to the Sound of Uk Artist De La Phoenix, Introducing "Dancefloor Fatale" - an Explosive 12 Inch Driven by the Revolutionary Soundscape Crafted by Klf, Kraftwerk, and the Infectious Allure of Italo Disco. This Ep Unleashes a Formidable Assault on the Dancefloor, Merging Futuristic Beats, Pulsating Rhythms, and Infectious Melodies. "Dancefloor Fatale" Showcases Five Electrifying Tracks: "1991 Ultra," a Nostalgic Homage to the Early '90s; "Dancefloor Fatale," an Irresistible Anthem Commanding Bodies to Move; "Blade Runner," a Cybernetic Voyage Through Dystopian Soundscapes; "Prometheus," an Epic Odyssey of Melodic Euphoria and Sonic Rebellion; and "The Rite," a Ritualistic Experience Defying Conventions. These Tracks Resonates With the Spirit of Resistance, Igniting Raves in Northern England During the Era of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act. De La Phoenix's Sonic Artistry Proudly Follows in the Footsteps of Justified Ancients of Mu Mu. Embark on a Bold Auditory Journey That Challenges Norms and Leaves an Indelible Mark. "Dancefloor Fatale" Epitomizes De La Phoenix's Innovative Vision, Pushing Sound Boundaries to Invigorate the Electronic Music Scene. Brace Yourself for a Revolution That Captivates and Energizes....

Into the void hits from second one. Strong beats lead the way into this dreamlike soundscape, where metallic drum elements and effortless reverb tails take us on a journey. We get lost in a slow build and an unassuming bass-line drives us home, until the track collapses just to hit twice as hard coming back in. Dreamy vocals float over dirty synth lines, melodies that feel familiar guide the way to continuous build ups, where we can’t help but move our bodies to the gritty, thumping bass-line pushing us forward relentlessly.

Tempest is all about the beat. Simple, yet endearing, it reels us in and guides us on an endless rise where fragile synth swells and powerful percussion elements tease our ears. High-pitched glimmers dance across the soundscape with ease. A track that rises again and again, yet never quite implodes in-between. Instead it builds, in the most natural way, skilfully and exquisitely, whilst sirens add a well-rounded urgency, that’s hard to resist.

Big Sigh brings together the best of Marika's previous works as an indie musician and adds a new layer of epic sounds and full-bodied production. Big Sigh is the "hardest record" Marika has ever made. As the title suggests, it is a relief of sorts - of sadness, of stress and lust, but mostly relief. Co-produced with Sam Petts Davies (Frank Ocean, Radiohead, Red Hot Chilli Peppers) & Charlie Andrew (Alt J, Wolf Alice, London Grammar). Lyrically there's always romance a longside grief, with elements of vulnerability and feeling trapped. "This album took a long time I got to the end of it I was quiet. I wanted to be away from it and let it sit in its own space. Now the dust has settled and I've got to re-enter the world of big sigh, and I'm excited." Stepping into a new world, moving forward, chipping away. Breath in, breath out. Big sigh."

‘WAVES’ will make you dive deep in bodies of water, making you get lost in a mixture of downtempo, modern music with sounds of nature and passing time. The dualities of sounds were gathered on a sampler and used to produce beats, rhythms, deep reverbs and delayed echoes via a vintage drum machine.
The opposites of nature are felt through this release, side A containing Cosmic dance tracks and side B relaxing tunes to meditate to at any time. Take it easy and enjoy the slow, lapping atmosphere.

With lush seascape artwork on body and case insert, two inserts with download code.

Clear Vinyl

On Rock Island, their second LP, Palm produces evidence of a distinct musical language, developed over time, in isolation, and out of necessity. On the island, melodies are struck on what might be shells or spines. Rhythms are scratched out, swept over, scratched again. Individual instruments, and sometimes entire sections, skip and stutter. There is the sense of a music box with wonky tension or a warped transmission in which all the noise is taken for signal.

Like other groups so acclaimed for their compulsive live show, Palm has been burdened by the constant comparison between their recorded material and their touring set. On Rock Island, they render this tired discussion moot, using the album form to present that which could never be completely live, reserving for performance that which could never be completely reproduced.

Despite appearing behind the instruments typical of rock music, Palm trades in sounds of their own making. On these songs, one of the guitars and the drum kit are used as MIDI triggers, producing an index that can be combed through later and replaced with new information. The percussion is sometimes augmented so as to suggest a multiplication of limbs. The strings are manipulated to choke, crack, and hum like other instruments, or other bodies, might.

Working again with engineer Matt Labozza, the band spent the better part of a month in a rented farmhouse in Upstate New York. With the benefits of time and space, Palm recorded the various elements piecemeal, only rarely playing together in groups larger than two or three. While some members tracked, others holed up in the next room, experimenting with quantization, beat replacement, and other methods borrowed from electronic music. Even accounting for the many labors that brought them to be, these materials seem produced by an organic logic. Their complex friction forms a habit of thought, scores a network of grooves on the floor of the mind.

This is music with dimensionality. Sonic objects are deployed, developed, and dissected in various states of mutation. The listener flits about between the field and the lab. The tone is warm in a way only the sun could make, the pace as forceful and as variable as a gale. Whether one locates Rock Island in a sea or in a refinished attic (as in Greg Burak's album cover), whether one escapes to there or is banished, its psychic environs are charted clearly enough. Only at this remove from the mainland can we sense the conditions necessary for such a strange species of sound.

iPhupho L’ka Biko, the highly acclaimed Africanist experimental jazz band, is thrilled to announce the release of their debut EP, ‘Azania’ vinyl through Canadian record label, We Are Busy Bodies. Following the success of their two acclaimed singles, ‘Abaphezulu’, released through Brownswood Recordings, and ‘uThixo uKhona’, distributed by Platoon.

The band dedicated the year 2022 to recording and producing this eagerly awaited EP. Azania delves into a rich tapestry of themes that are close to the hearts of the band members, including spirituality, Pan Africanism, freedom, love, ritual, tradition, culture, and displacement. The EP showcases iPhupho L’ka Biko's unique musical fusion, blending jazz with indigenous African music of imvumane in tracks like Qamata, and infusing jazz with gospel influences in songs like Singabakho. This eclectic approach reflects the fluidity and diversity of the band’s sound, promising an immersive and captivating musical journey.

The band’s dynamic sound has been honed and perfected through their numerous live performances across the country, which have garnered them a devoted and loyal fan base. iPhupho L’ka Biko’s ability to connect with audiences through their energetic and soul-stirring performances has elevated them to become one of Johannesburg’s most revered musical collectives. “Azania the EP is an introduction of iPhupho L’ka Biko to the world, marking the beginning of a new era,” shares Nhlanhla Ngqaqu, the band's founder and composer.

"Richard Edwards is in the pocket. He’s been there for several albums now: 2017’s Lemon Cotton Candy Sunset, 2020’s The Soft Ache & the Moon, and 2022’s Ghost Electricity/Vampire Draw. Just as the Margot records defined his twenties, this “Beach Bum” era, as he calls it, may well define his thirties. That era is expanded in Two Sad Little Islands Drift Together, Two Lonely Little Monkeys Find A Tree: Rare and Unreleased 2015-2023.

Beginning with Lemon Cotton Candy Sunset, Richard has been steering his ongoing body of work toward capturing a feeling of being at sea. Life can find us at sea in any number of ways–in a marriage or partnership, or in longing for one; in parenting, and its ceaseless wonders and worries; in bodies and minds that confound understanding (whether just our own, or also that of professionals); in our rotting world, which we’ve fucked up beyond all repair.

“What does that sound like, though?” you may ask. Like Mike Bloom’s cascading fingerpicking in “Lil Dead Eye-d (b.),” or the tranquilizing combination of Dave Palmer’s piano and Perla Batalla’s multi-tracked vocals on “Love (b.)” Like the L.A. based Section Quartet on “True Love Waits,” or the triumphantly stoned Velvet Ocean jam-session that is “Jane Greer With A Gun.” Like Richard’s use of melody and imagery on “Pink Lightning (b.)” and lead single “Benzedrine,” where he is masterfully accompanied by Erin Rae (on the former) and Maria Taylor (on the latter).

Unlike Richard’s past archival releases which have often featured home demo recordings, everything on Two Sad Little Islands has been produced in-studio. With this 3-LP vinyl set, Richard presents just over two hours of material that once again makes his case as one of the “most underrated songwriters of our time” (LA Review of Books)."

Ltd Edition! Augustus Muller (Boy Harsher) kündigt die Filmmusik für den Film My Animal an, unter der Regie von Jacqueline Castel feat. Amandla Stenberg (The Hunger Games, Star Wars) und Bobbi Salvör Menuez (I love Dick, Something In The Air).
Die Filmmusik ist Mullers Debüt als Spielfilmkomponist.
My Animal (Premiere auf dem Sundance Film Festival 2023), Drehbuch von Jae Matthews (Boy Harsher), erzählt die Geschichte von Heather, einer starken, aufmüpfigen jungen Frau, die in einer ländlichen Stadt im Norden lebt und unbedingt in der örtlichen Hockeymannschaft spielen möchte. Sie lernt Jonny kennen und verliebt sich in ihn, einen Eiskunstläufer, der neu in der Gegend ist. Ihre Beziehung gedeiht trotz Heathers versteckter persönlicher Probleme mit ihrer alkoholkranken Mutter, ihrer nicht akzeptierten sexuellen Orientierung und einem familiären Fluch, der sie, ihre Zwillingsbrüder und ihren Vater einmal im Monat in wilde Wölfe verwandelt. Das Stelldichein von Heather und Jonny gerät bald in Konflikt mit ihrer kleinen Gemeinschaft, bringt die Wahrheit ans Licht und führt zu einer leidenschaftlichen, gewalttätigen Nacht der persönlichen Verwandlung. Augustus Muller schrieb und nahm die Filmmusik in seinem Heimstudio in Northampton, MA, auf, wobei er hauptsächlich Hardware und analoge Synthesizer verwendete. Gemeinsam mit der Regisseurin Jacqueline Castel huldigt Muller Klaus Schulzes Musik für "Angst" und John Carpenters "Assault on Precinct 13" als Haupteinflüsse. Muller begann seine Karriere als Komponist im Jahr 2019 mit der Erstellung von fesselnden Filmmusiken für zwei Kurzfilme für die Erwachsenenfilm-Website "A Four Chambered Heart". Die Partituren mit dem Titel "Machine Learning Experiments" wurden 2020 veröffentlicht und stellten mit ihren innovativen Klangwelten sein Talent unter Beweis. Im Jahr 2023 arbeitete Muller erneut mit "A Four Chambered Heart" zusammen und komponierte zwei weitere Partituren mit dem Titel "Cellulosed Bodies".

New York techno luminary Adam X debuts on Pinkman with 4 tabs of extra-strength acid specially designed for peak-time club sets. Opening in typically thunderous fashion, the overdriven kick of A1's aptly-named Laying It On Thick sets a tone that doesn't relent for the duration of the record. No-nonsense and straight to the action, Adam X's distinct approach to crafting dancefloor hits shines throughout as multiple 303 refrains weave through stripped back drum patterns for unforgettably hypnotic results. While A2's Trailing Effect drops the tempo a couple of notches, its head-scrambling acid psychedelia would take any bustling dancefloor on a trip long into the early hours. The three remaining tracks give no let-up, fostering a frenetic energy that just can't be contained. In the game since the very beginning, the Sonic Groove label-head has dedicated years to his craft and they're all on display here with slick, classy productions that punch through the speakers to move bodies and minds.

Mount Maxwell returns with another full-length journey into memory, melody, and geography - this time roaming beyond the BC environs of his previous records into a stranger, less knowable country. While still woozily nostalgic in the vein of Only Children and The People’s Forest, this outing feels more exploratory and wide ranging in scope, with a denser mixture of influences at play. The somnambulistic drift of Sea of Milk sets the stage with a series of wavering synth pulses that push us languidly toward land, eventually setting us down on the sands of Maze Crete, where a shadowy latticework of hand drums, flutes and synths await. From there we ascend to the aptly named Sky Eye, a rolling mixture of acoustic beats and analog string machines that gives us our first bird’s eye view of the album’s landscape. A Long Road pushes the acoustic instrumentation further, with shimmering tambourine marking time for a collection of hand drums and shakers, while Ages summons up an occult-like dream of glacial arpeggios and whispering synths. Slow Moves and Tree Motion float effortlessly along on beds of lazy congas and woodblocks before finally giving way to the title track - a heady juggernaut of distorted synths and trundling rhythms that propels us through the album’s second half like a locomotive through darkening hills. Drawing the record to a close, the gently repeating keyboard phrase of Mist blooms unexpectedly into a rainbow of human voices before evaporating into the oceanic swells of Hi Traveller. And there Littlefolk leaves us as it found us; adrift in a rolling sea.

Swarm Intelligence’s unique take on industrial techno is back, with the second instalment on his self-titled label, coming this November.

Fiercely intense, dramatic and cutting-edge, Swarm Intelligence’s distinctive take on techno has garnered him a solid following amongst the true underground of the scene. Following on from the widely supported launch of his label, SWRM002 is a striking next step – a testament to the quiet confidence of a skilled artist unafraid to eschew norms and carve his own path. This second EP continues to draw inspiration from dystopian themes of new and imagined technologies and their resulting societal impact.

‘Critical Signal’ was produced during the global pandemic, and iteratively refined over the following years. Grinding basses and tense atmospherics sit atop a thunderous four-to-the-floor. Its message to humanity is as relevant now as it was then – “you are resilient, you will prevail”. In ‘Mass Disinformation’ a visceral, bleak and unsettling sonic landscape punctuated by a slamming groove is an apt metaphor for the psychological warfare being unleashed on the world today.

Opening the B-side, the uplifting glory of ‘Digital Immortality’ lifts the tone of the release. Here, Swarm’s signature glitchy, broken beats complement beautiful melodic swells and a rolling bass line. The track imagines a digital afterlife where, upon uploading our consciousness, we leave our bodies behind. Bringing the EP to a close, “Singularity Dawns” is the most freeform, cinematic composition. Its obscure broken rhythms and traversing sequence tells the tale of an AI becoming self-aware and discovering its capacity to feel.

After two years, Carl and Andreas present their second album, and once again, it opens up a wide associative space for us. What strikes us initially is the uncommon instrumentation: a church organ, harpsichord, glass tubes, and more. Like their first album (The Aporias of Futurism), it is mysterious and dark. But it also carries a strong touch of rebellion and adrenaline, sometimes quite pointedly. The pieces are now shorter and feature intricate yet irresistible rhythms. The impact is immediate, yet it maintains a sense of solemnity and ceremony. The Apollonian complexity of the rhythms and subtle melodic interweavings is transformed into a Dionysian, ecstatic, hypnotic, and at times tribal context. "Music for Unknown Rituals" oscillates between primitive instincts and avant-garde intrigues.

The process began in Döblitz, a small village on the Saale river in Germany, inside an old church that houses an organ built in 1886 by Johann Adolph Ibach. Carl and Andreas gained access and secluded themselves there for a few days, accompanied by the organ, an instrument made of glass tubes, and a set of modular synthesizers. After recording the basic tracks in Döblitz, the work continued in Munich and Berlin. Carl played electric guitars, harpsichord, bass, metallophone, xylophone, Indian harmonium, and various percussive instruments. Andreas added layers of electronic sounds, noises, and atmospheric drones. He also created percussive structures extracted and derived from recorded material of technical and industrial noises, which contrasted with the acoustic drums played by Carl. The antithetical approach continues with the dichotomous arrangement of the instruments, often panned hard left and right in the stereo field, creating an antiphonic communication. Some parts, especially the use of the electric guitar, evoke memories of the psychedelic sixties. However, this is anything but a nostalgic album—these musical references are merely remnants, set pieces, and fragments used from a contemporary, post-modern, post-youth-cultural, and post-romantic perspective.

Although Andreas and Carl continue on their chosen path of composing music with an almost literary narrative structure, this album is conceptually and formally completely different from their first effort. If “The Aporias of Futurism” was a revolutionary manifesto (in a pataphysical sense), "Music for Unknown Rituals" is more like the implementation in action; it is the practical application of the previous statement. To put it another way, if "The Aporias of Futurism” was the conceptual manifesto of a dark utopia of modernity, "Music for Unknown Rituals" is the staging of free will surrendering to the myths and catharsis of a Greek tragedy. And in response to this, the artwork features a leitmotif of histrionics with hands, the hands being the first and intuitive part of the body to express something: a ritual, a prayer, a defeat...

— Andreas Gerth is one half of Driftmachine, and Carl Osterhelt is part of F.S.K and collaborates with Hans-Joachim Irmler of Faust. Both became connected through their participation in the Tied & Tickled Trio.

The earth rotates, seasons change_there is but one long day_ Time is a beguiling, indistinct entity_sometimes standing still, sometimes bending back upon itself with premonitions or memories of the future. Growing out of a pen pal style correspondence that took place over the course of a year, separated by the Atlantic Ocean, Gloria de Oliveira and Dean Hurley passed thoughts and music back and forth that would eventually form their collaborative album, Oceans of Time. The result is an aural tapestry of that exchange: woven from conceptual threads of the celestial within, mortality and the realm beyond stars. The duo's partnership is an effortless merge, yet it's the steady presence of de Oliveira's vocals that endows the record with its sense of potency. Throughout the album, there is an innate understanding of how a lyric across a chordal color can sharpen an emotional truth. Much like a sunbeam that pierces a spiderweb to reveal its intricacy, her lyric and melody are purposely aimed in order to illuminate the truths deep within oneself_a process that ties us all to the universal. The Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard, a professed influence, wrote about the truth as something that was inherently subjective, less about the concrete reality of what is believed and more about how it is experienced by the believer. Frequent David Lynch collaborator Dean Hurley sets the tonal and sonic landscape of each track on the album, lending a layered ether that envelops, frames and holds de Oliveira's vocals. With its impressionistic synths, shimmering guitars, and ethereal sonics, Oceans of Time at moments recalls the foundational dreampop of 4AD acts like Cocteau Twins and Lush. The album feels especially attuned to the connections between the physical and transcendental realms, and the best dreampop has a way of making the veil between two worlds feel just a little bit thinner. Oceans of Time is a key that has the power to release its listener from the handcuffs of reality, however briefly_

The earth rotates, seasons change_there is but one long day_ Time is a beguiling, indistinct entity_sometimes standing still, sometimes bending back upon itself with premonitions or memories of the future. Growing out of a pen pal style correspondence that took place over the course of a year, separated by the Atlantic Ocean, Gloria de Oliveira and Dean Hurley passed thoughts and music back and forth that would eventually form their collaborative album, Oceans of Time. The result is an aural tapestry of that exchange: woven from conceptual threads of the celestial within, mortality and the realm beyond stars. The duo's partnership is an effortless merge, yet it's the steady presence of de Oliveira's vocals that endows the record with its sense of potency. Throughout the album, there is an innate understanding of how a lyric across a chordal color can sharpen an emotional truth. Much like a sunbeam that pierces a spiderweb to reveal its intricacy, her lyric and melody are purposely aimed in order to illuminate the truths deep within oneself_a process that ties us all to the universal. The Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard, a professed influence, wrote about the truth as something that was inherently subjective, less about the concrete reality of what is believed and more about how it is experienced by the believer. Frequent David Lynch collaborator Dean Hurley sets the tonal and sonic landscape of each track on the album, lending a layered ether that envelops, frames and holds de Oliveira's vocals. With its impressionistic synths, shimmering guitars, and ethereal sonics, Oceans of Time at moments recalls the foundational dreampop of 4AD acts like Cocteau Twins and Lush. The album feels especially attuned to the connections between the physical and transcendental realms, and the best dreampop has a way of making the veil between two worlds feel just a little bit thinner. Oceans of Time is a key that has the power to release its listener from the handcuffs of reality, however briefly_

New York-based label Kindergarten Records is thrilled to unveil Ayesha’s debut album, ‘Rhythm is Memory’ – 10 boundary-pushing tracks, a shape-shifting percussive journey with electric moments.
While intended for maximum dancefloor impact, Ayesha’s first LP is also conceptually thought-provoking and playful, exploring how bodies store and channel creative knowledge.

A self-taught producer, Ayesha relies on her instincts to make music: sensing what her body wants to feel and hear. To her, essential to building a groove is channeling what is already inside us –
memories – whether they are based on lived experience or coded in the body: culturally, ancestrally, or intergenerationally. The result is this Indian-American producer’s distinct rhythmic voice, with its
many configurations boldly expressed across her debut album.

Kindergarten first released Ayesha’s material in 2020 with her ‘Natural Phenomena’ EP, a four-track journey which she described as “an undulating love letter to nature and the dancefloor, a space
where her biophilia collides with her yearning for the dancefloor.” Subsequently, she continued to build upon her luminous, scintillating sound with a contribution to ‘Fluo II’ titled “Aspara Dub”, followed
by “Varanasi” and “Downpour” on ‘Ether’, a split release with Sha Ru in 2021. With each release, Ayesha's sound evolved, adding shades, layers, and perpetual rhythmic nuance to a mind palace of
dancefloor possibilities.

That is why her and Kindergarten are a perfect match -- driven by their mutual fascination with exploratory sonics and a shared commitment to the community that inspires them. Kindergarten
Records has shaped itself into a trailblazing label, uniting a diverse and innovative collective of local and international producers, while embodying a strong familial atmosphere.This debut LP represents
a significant step-up for both the artist and the imprint, as they strive harmoniously towards a shared goal: delivering a sonic experience full of colorful, otherworldly bass-fueled expansion.

‘Rhythm is Memory’ captures Ayesha’s signature love for driving techno and organic percussion, while at moments veering into newer electro territory while keeping it psychedelic, spacious, dubby, and
always playful. This feels intuitively right for a producer at a crossroads in her career. All tracks intricately weave together pulsing drum grooves, slinky synths, nuanced melodies, and delightfully
unexpected twists. No single genre can do justice to describing this project as Ayesha delicately nods to many, reveling in the spaces between.

Undoubtedly, across A and B sides, 'Rhythm is Memory' imparts the joy of sonic experimentation to listeners and dancers. Ayesha invites us into her creative process and its steady evolution – rooted in
many days and nights of exploration, reflection, and repetition. "The ritual practice of cultivating and tending a garden is what comes to mind if I were to visualize this record. Beautiful things can emerge
from care and consistent attention," says Ayesha. While she refers to her specific experience making 'Rhythm is Memory,' this powerful album culminates a decade of working in nightlife for Ayesha – a
project slated to leave an indelible mark on the underground. To mark this impressive milestone in their catalog, Kindergarten Records is proud to return to pressing vinyl after a hiatus since 2020,
recognizing the significance of putting out a physical release to behold such a moment in both the label's and the artist's trajectory.

In a harmonious tale titled "The Dancer And The Bear," Joe McLeod bares his soul, embracing vulnerability and unearthing a profound honesty within himself. This, his second full-length album, unfolds like a duet of emotions, its first half dancing to upbeat pop rhythms while the latter sways to the introspective melodies of folk. Divided into two halves, The Dancer and The Bear embarks on a heartfelt journey, where Joe's breakup with a long-term partner ignites introspection on life's pursuits and the smallest details that weave the tapestry of happiness. Through melodies and lyrics, Joe paints
a canvas of raw emotions, inviting listeners to join him in a cathartic dance with the bear of truth.

Hailing from Alexandra and nicknamed "Ratau" (meaning "lion"), saxophonist Mike Makhalemele (1938-2000) was a force of nature with a robust yet soulful tone and seemingly endless breath. He embraced the pop music scene as an enthusiastic collaborator and staked his territory at the intersection of township grooves with modern currents in soul, funk and disco. As a solo artist, he delivered a formidable run of albums in the 1970s that that made him the most prolific recording artist in South African jazz during this era. First issued in 1975 by the maverick independent label Jo’Burg Records, his debut The Peacemaker was a tour de force that introduced Makhalemele’s heavyweight sax prowess (deftly accompanied by Jabu Nkosi on keys and Sipho Gumede on bass) while showcasing his innovative approach as a composer and arranger. To mark the arrival of a new
saxophone colossus, the album’s profile portrait cover boldly evoked the iconic Yakhal’ Inkomo by the Mankunku Quartet from 1969. Mike Makhalemele and Winston Mankunku Ngozi would go on to share
the spotlight on a collaborative release entitled The Bull and the Lion in 1976

Zwei der berühmtesten und einfallsreichsten Schlagzeuger der Post-Punk-Ära, Lol Tolhurst von The Cure und Budgie von Siouxsie & The Banshees und The Creatures, sowie der herausragende Produzent und Multiinstrumentalist Garret 'Jacknife' Lee, haben eine der unwahrscheinlichsten Alternative-Supergroups gegründet und die letzten vier Jahre damit verbracht, eines der außergewöhnlichsten Alben für das Jahr 2023 aufzunehmen.

Wenn man die Tracklist mit Gastauftritten von unter anderem James Murphy von LCD Soundsystem, Bobby Gillespie, IDLES Gitarrist Mark Bowen und The Edge von U2 durchstöbert, fragt man sich vielleicht zu Recht, was der 13-Track-Longplayer bereithält. Die Antwort: Eine knallharte und zwanghaft forschende 55-minütige elektronische Gehirnwäsche, die auf unvergleichlicher rhythmischer Kompetenz basiert, mit einem Arsenal an Synthesizern, Gitarren, oft überlagert von Streichern und Bläsern der Spitzenklasse, und dann von Lee universell verdreht, manipuliert und meisterhaft geformt.

The new Lorelei K album, Gucci Doom, features an expansion on the band's familiar dreampop sound, with a new, glamorous approach to production and songwriting. From song to song, there is an overarching juxtaposition of fashion, music and cerebral lyricism. Lead singer and songwriter Dahlia Knowles took another deep dive to source the materials used throughout the record. Themes of heartbreak, trauma, and gender dysphoria are set to surreal, emotional pop anthems. Vocals travel from soft, reluctant and raw, to full, confident and powerful. Lorelei K is a Dallas-based dreampop band fronted by artist and songwriter Dahlia Knowles. The band parallels post punk, shoegaze, and alternative pop influences, and translates a complex, emotional world into ethereal and glamorous music. Limited Edition Translucent Blue Vinyl LP version of Gucci Doom album by Texas based Dream Pop group Lorelei K

Folk duo lilo's ascent continues with second EP, I Don’t Like My Chances On The Outside. Having met at school aged 11, Christie Gardner and Helen Dixon’s friendship runs over a decade deep. Starting out with homespun recordings and YouTube covers, by the time they moved to London in their late-teens, they had an unshakeable creative bond that forms an incredible bedrock for them to flourish from. Their exceptional debut EP Sleep Country (Practise Music) came out in late-2021. Taking cues from alt-folk and classic country, it showed a maturity and dexterity that belied their years. As Loud & Quiet said of the band in a recent interview, "what sets them apart from their contemporaries is a real understanding of Americana-influenced folk’s lineage as a genre. Think Emmylou Harris’ soul bearing and the pitchperfect vocal glide of Karen Carpenter." New EP, I Don’t Like My Chances On The Outside, is a truly brilliant follow-up that underscores that we're no longing talking about promise with this duo. Working with producer friend Joseph Futák, they're now firmly in their stride, deftly counterbalancing delicate moments and harmony-led pop highs across a full-bodied band sound. Their lyrics speak for their generation too, encapsulating the panic, anxiety and love of twenty-somethings at a time of great uncertainty; from single 'Settled' where the financial realities of needing to move back in with your parents to the sheer relief of ending a relationship on 'I Don't Love You Anymore' and 'Just A Thought's failing attempts to pull a friend away from a bad person ("It's your hill to die on," they warn), nothing is off the plate.