Buscar:clouds

Lewis Taylor's legendary magnum opus: The Lost Album. "Now you're talking. That's my favourite LT album. Unlike all of the others, there isn't anything about it that embarrasses me." Straight from the genius's mouth. What can we say about this? Well, it's the most requested record ever at Be With Towers. The Lost Album was the intended follow-up to his first album but Island rejected it for fear of "confusing" the marketplace and its conception of Lewis as a soul artist. Their loss. It's a breezy sunset masterpiece.

The genesis of this incredible record needs unpicking a bit. Lewis stopped promoting the first album after a year and went home to record a completely different record that was the most un-R&B album you could probably ever hear: "I pushed in such an extreme direction the other way with what eventually became The Lost Album. It was a knee-jerk reaction to a perceived ‘trapped in R&B’ feeling I was going through at the time. Some people around me were in favour of it and others weren’t. In the end I think I lost confidence in it and did Lewis II instead." We did at least get Lewis II, which is a remarkable album, and he kept Island happy...for a bit. Not long after, Lewis was dropped. And what was to become The Lost Album could've been...er...lost. Forever.

Thankfully, however, Lewis and longtime partner Sabina Smyth revisited those scrapped demo tracks in 2003. They decided to re-arrange, re-record and then self-release them. So it was that the brand new version of The Lost Album finally dropped in late 2004. It's sheer perfection, and we don't say that lightly. The Lost Album was a fully 50/50 collaboration between Lewis and Smyth. As well as production, Sabina did a lot more writing on it, from the melody to "Listen Here" to the chord sequence for "Let's Hope Nobody Finds Us." Thankfully, Sabina is credited this time around.

No, it's not straight up "soul music" in the vein of his previous work. Yet, in its perfectly formed suite of one dozen songs, The Lost Album is dripping in soul. It's so warm, so effervescent and so alive with possibilities. It features deep, fresh imprints on well-loved, accessible sounds. It's a proper 70s style double album. Just one listen and the musical influences on The Lost Album are fairly self-explanatory, as Lewis recently told us, but it's always nice to hear that, in case we were in any doubt, he was definitely channeling Love, Yes, Brian Wilson, CSN, Laura Nyro and, of course, Todd Rundgren. The influences don't end there: "I’m particularly fond of my bass playing on that album, there’s a lot of Chris Squire going on which is cool."

Deep orchestral opener "Lost" is a sublime, harp-laced, string drenched gem, a cinematic, melancholic Axelrod-esque mini-epic that simply beguiles. Written by Smyth, it evokes Donny Hathaway's celestial "I Love The Lord, He Heard My Cry" from Extensions Of A Man. The only problem is the brief 90 seconds running time. It segues into the classic Brian Wilson-meets-power-pop-rock splendour of "Listen Here" which, with its outstanding extended harp-licked beatless intro, sounds like the younger cousin to Boston's "More Than A Feeling". We then drift into the ringing guitars of classic 70s rock anthem "Hide Your Heart Away". It's Lewis's personal favourite, "especially the multi-tracked guitar solo – I was listening to Boston at the time, which was fun." A-ha!

A new version of the heart-stopping, shoulda-been-a-massive-pop-hit "Send Me An Angel" opens Side B before the arrival of, in Lewis's completely correct words, "the clear standout, "Leader of the Band"; the perfect distillation of everything that album was trying to achieve." Soaring, piano-led Rundgren-esque power pop that makes the hairs on the back of your next stand on end. Truly, otherworldly. This is pure pop for now (and then) people. The simple jangly brilliance meets experimental prog-rock of "Yeah" sounds like simultaneously like prime CSNY and late 90s Radiohead (if they'd had a slightly more accessible bent and could write better tunes).

Oh, you wish The Beach Boys had continued writing amazing songs beyond Holland? Well, allow us to point you in the direction of the downlifting stunner "Please Help Me If You Can" and the warm textures and brilliant atmospherics of goosebump-inducer "Let’s Hope Nobody Finds Us". Words can't really describe the sheer beauty of these songs. So we'll stop trying. Just listen. Listen, listen, listen. Closing out this remarkable side of music, the accidentally Balearic "New Morning" should be blasting out at every sunrise set in Ibiza, this summer and forevermore.

The final side opens with the vaguely Beatlesey "Say I Love You". It's just classic, soaring pop-rock songwriting and should strictly be canonical. It's that good. The sassy, Stonesy swagger of "See My Way" injects enough rock'n'roll attitude to compensate for the rest of record's peace-loving, AOR sun-dappled vibe whilst album closer, "One More Mystery", emerging out of the rubble of the previous track, comes on initially like a Baroque-Pop George Harrison before piling crunching drums and screeching guitar solos atop the dreamy harmonies til close.

When asked what it means to have these records available on vinyl for the first time, Lewis is in no doubt: "It’s great and it’s really nice to be able to offer fans a different listening experience. There’s a whole other dimension with vinyl that taps into that whole nostalgia thing, well for me anyway. Something about the physical aspect of pulling it out of the sleeve and putting it on, it does tend to make you feel like you’re more engaged."

Lewis was adamant that he wanted all new artwork for The Lost Album vinyl sleeve and his brief was just the sort of classic tropical-beach-at-sunset you’d want to see on the front of a record that sounds like this. On the finished sleeve, the beach at sunset is just where we start out, before heading up through the painterly clouds and heading out into the stars. And yes, the lettering is a definite subtle nod to all those in-between-period Beach Boys bootlegs we all love. Simon Francis's sensitive mastering combines with Cicely Balston's precise cut for Alchemy at AIR Studios so the album sounds appropriately outstanding. The immaculate Record Industry double LP pressing will ensure this previously lost masterpiece stays forever found.

Der Titel des zweiten Siamese Elephants Albums ist so etwas wie die Umkehrung des Beatles-Klassikers 'Here Comes the Sun', weil darauf dessen hoffnungsvoller Optimismus auf ein Weltuntergangsszenario umgelegt wird. Darf man tanzen, wenn alles den Bach runtergeht? 'There Goes the Sun' ist ein Versuch, sich zurechtzufinden in dem ganzen Wahnsinn und ein Plädoyer dafür, die Zeit, die uns bleibt, zu genießen.

1000 Die-cut leather structure gatefold with eight artist photo cards & insert.

"Welcome to the America Dream Reserve, home to husband & wife duos, pub legends, one-man-bands, preachers’ sons, and country-lounge entertainers..."

About: America Dream Reserve is a home for kindred souls. An hour-long journey into the world of lo-fi drumcomputer folk, disco-pop-lounge, haunting ballads, obscure vanity pressings, and synthesized string ensembles. A collaborative compilation between Charles Bals, creator of the inimitable Club Meduse, and Smiling C.

Sleeve: This is a premium edition of ADR housed in a die-cut leather structure gatefold. It comes with eight loose double-sided swappable photo cards with artist photos on both sides, and an insert with write-up about the project. Limited run.

Compiled by: Charles Bals & Henry Jones.

Theory Of A Deadman return to Roadrunner Records with their 8th studio album ‘Dinosaur’ releasing on 17th March on CD and Digital with the vinyl version following in July. It features the single and title track from the album ‘Dinosaur’ that was released late 2022 and was A Listed at both Kerrang and Planet Rock Radio as well as brand new single ‘Ambulance’.

The continuing growth of Maik Krahl as a melodic improviser, bandleader, and composer is distinctly evident in this new release. In-Between Flow, Krahl’s third outing as leader, is a portrait of a young artist who has gone through many years of dedicated hard work, study, experimentation, and refinement in order to achieve this level of instrumental and artistic progress. Krahl belongs to a new generation of improvisers who have acquired a breadth of technical and theoretical facility, while not losing the spontaneity and rawness of this music we call jazz. As a bandleader, he chooses his colleagues wisely and for this date is joined on a few tracks by the visionary guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel, whose brilliant playing adds a cherry on top of this already delicious line up.

The title In-Between Flow refers to ever evolving progression of our human condition. As in nature, the human spirit can expand and unfold, maturing to a new state where it may settle for a while until some new impulses inspires another transition. These transitions, sometimes subtle, sometimes abrupt; as well as the times of contentedness and serenity are the inspirations for this music.

The record opens up with an ode to the town Krahl calls home. Cologne 4 AM, begins with a haunting melody by Krahl’s soft yet powerful horn before settling into a perfect vehicle to display his command of melodic and motivic story telling. There is something about the time of 4 AM that seems to permeate literature and music, and this track will add to the canon of artistic references to this magical time where the night meets the morning.

Mr. Rosenwinkel joins the band for Slosetta, which is a great example of Krahl’s ability to craft a tune. As is to be expected, Rosenwinkel weaves through the changes with grace and mastery, obviously enjoying the communication with the rhythm section, who are undeniably inspired by his harmonic, rhythmic and melodic ingenuity.

Jakob Kühnemann, a Bandleader and composer is his own right, has been an in demand bassist on the German and European scene for several years, and his contribution to this record is proof of why that is. Although Krahl takes the lead on Drizzle Counter, in a great display of technical virtuosity, it is Kühneman who stands out on this track. It is not only in his improvisation, but more so in his poly rhythmic pulses dancing up from the deep and the harmonic insinuations in his accompaniment of Krahl’s solo that demonstrate his musical mastery.

Rosenwinkel joins again for No Claim Claim, a composition so balanced that I would not be surprised to hear other artists recording or performing it in the future. After Krahl’s melodically inventive statement, Rosenwinkel shifts the band to the next gear building the intensity towards the out head.

Constantin Krahmer has been Krahl´s piano player since his debut record, Decidophobia. His patience, ingenuity, and big ears make him a perfect accomplice to Krahl, and his sensitive yet powerful approach and accompaniment on Reconstruction of a Dream as well as his harmonic and melodic inventiveness on Vinaceous Clouds (where he plays Fender Rhodes) make it clear why he is an integral part of this unit.

Ms Ludgate is a funky composition with angular melody that is another feather in the cap of the band leader. Kurt Rosenwinkel is back, and seems more than willing to engage in some rhythmic dialogue with the spectacular young drummer on the date, Fabian Rösch. Throughout this entire record Rösch is subtly but strongly guiding the band, playing his role as a supportive and interactive proponent to the music. We will surely be hearing much more from this young man with such a refined sound and clear rhythmic conception.

Flawless Sunday, a perfect closing statement for this record. The melody is another great example of Krahl’s growth as a composer. The whole rhythm section really shines on Krahmer’s choruses, where the three colleagues push and dare each other rhythmically as well as harmonically before Krahl enters and brings the record to a close with his beautiful rich tone and melodic playing.

It is a great pleasure to hear the growth of a young artist with such dedication and vision. Hearing how Krahl and his band mates navigate through the vicissitudes of this music is an inspiration that can be mirrored in everyday life. A lesson in accepting the ever changing flow from one state to another. Growing, learning, and evolving into a new state, until the process begins anew. In-Between Flow.

In the 1980s, Michael Morley helped to push the jangly New Zealand music scene towards rougher, more exploratory realms, as a member of Wreck Small Speakers on Expensive Stereos, The Weeds, and the almighty Dead C. His gnarled, distorted guitar tone and aggressively moan-based vocal style are both as distinctive as they are secretly beautiful. Morley has released dozens of solo recordings—starting in the late 1980s as Gate, then more recently under his own name, and as the Righteous Yeah. He’s also unafraid to tackle entirely new genres and sounds, and to move into interactive installation-based music as well. Birdman is beyond excited to present the first vinyl release of this archival Gate release. “...I think it is classic Gate material. The idea of the palette is fascinating as I think I did approach it with a set of limited instrumentation and the desire to make something again that could sound like rock music. There is certainly a direct line from Wreck Small Speakers On Expensive Stereos, through the Dead C, and to Gate. I think I was also inspired by listening to infamous and tragically short-lived early 1980s band the Double Happys, and remembering their performances as a duo with the drum machine. There was such utter chaos and anarchy during their sets, with a desire to represent punk rock at its nascent truth, I wanted to see if it was possible to re- imagine that feeling. I was possibly also listening to the Stooges and MC5. —Michael Morley

INDUSTROLLUTION: The lethal audio toxin of rhythmic machinery.




Drivetrain (Detroit, USA)
“Spin The Record”
Functional, purposeful and guaranteed to ignite any dance floor; put the needle on the record and wait for the climatic twist.

Jay Strata (Glasgow, Scotland)
“Heart Strings”
Drenched in rich, creamy chords, the seduction of a deep, melodic rapture, effortlessly takes control.

Teknobrat (Ottawa, Canada)
“Acid Barnako”
With elements known and beyond integrating in acid oscillation, the magnetic chorus refrain pushes the frequecy spectrum.

DJ Mourad (Tunis, Tunisia)
“Illegal Alien”
A mysteriously abstract high-tech warning signal clouds the atmosphere while the unforgiving thunder-pulse clears the air.

Blue Marbled Vinyl

Opening the EP we have a serious sensory treat from Aural Imbalance, as he ditches his own rulebook unleashing a myriad of rapidly combining elements synergising over glorious echoed intro-beats, before an uncharacteristically heavy slice of breaks punches its way into the track, electrifying the atmosphere while the trademark melodies dance above like fireflies in the night.

A2 - Luminosity

An airy intro slowly welcomes in snappy snares, staunch forthright bass tones and those delicious airy pads we know Aural
Imbalance so well for, gradually enveloping the listener in a luscious web of glorious serenity. Layers of intricate textures and rhythms build upon one another, creating a mesmerizing and hypnotic sonic journey inviting repeated listens.

AA1 - Moonscape

Aural Imbalance crafts a true gem here as Moonscape opens with a serene hit of soothing pads before the wonderfully analogue breakbeats join the party, laden with hi hats and subtle poise. The backdrop exudes whimsical birdsong until halfway we are treated to a true earworm melody carrying us through to the clean ritualistic outro.

AA2 - Sunlight Through Clouds

Simon closes the EP with Sunlight Through Clouds, opening with wistful muffled grooves before the bubbly apache break reveals itself and whisks us on a synthful audio feast, built on the immersive, meditative soundscapes he is so well known for. The track has a soothing, reflective vibe and fits perfectly as a curtain call for his latest extended player.

Words by Chris Hayes (Spatial / Red Mist)

Der Titel des fünften SATURNUS-Albums, "The Storm Within", spielt sowohl auf die Stürme an, die in der Natur tosen, als auch Aufruhr in der Seele. Es ist recht offenkundig, dass die lange Zeit, welche die Dänen für dieses Album gebraucht haben, und die persönlichen Gründe, die hinter dem Umbruch in der Band standen, dessen künstlerischen Ausdruck stark inspiriert haben. SATURNUS haben sich mit "The Storm Within" selbst übertroffen. Die musikalischen Themen Meer, Regen und stürmische Gewässer ziehen sich wie ein roter Faden durch die Songs, in denen sich Wut, Verlust, Melancholie und Schmerz gleichermaßen widerspiegeln. Die handwerkliche Reife des Albums verleiht seinen erhabenen aber auch ruhigen Momenten sowie den gelegentlichen brutalen Ausbrüchen eine äußerst spannende Dynamik. Obendrein sorgt die erneute Zusammenarbeit mit Produzent Flemming Rasmussen, dem legendären dänischen Produzenten der METALLICA-Klassiker dafür, dass der Sound von "The Storm Within" seiner herausragenden musikalischen Qualität mehr als gerecht wird. Die Anfänge von SATURNUS liegen im Jahr 1991 als Sänger Thomas A.G. Jensen im Umfeld der dänischen Hauptstadt Kopenhagen nach Mitmusikern suchte, um eine Death-Metal-Band zu gründen. Nach mehreren Umbenennungen und Umbesetzungen wurde der Name SATURNUS schließlich im Jahr 1993 in Beton gegossen. Die Band veröffentlichte ihr erstes Album "Paradise Belongs to You" im Januar 1997 und erhielt sofort eine Einladung zum berühmten Roskilde Festival. Der Auftritt wurde vom norwegischen Rundfunk (NRK) aufgezeichnet und in ganz Skandinavien ausgestrahlt, was die Band binnen kürzester Zeit in Nordeuropa zu einer Marke in Sachen Death Doom machte. Nach ihrem zweiten Album "Martyre" (2000) und dem ikonischen dritten Studioalbum "Veronika Decides to Die" sowie ständigem Touren durch Europa und zunehmend auch darüber hinaus, erschien 2012 "Saturn in Ascension", das erneut von Flemming Rasmussen produziert wurde. Zur Feier ihres 20-jährigen Bestehens kehrten SATURNUS auf Europas Straßen zurück und traten unter anderem bei renommierten Festivals wie dem Brutal Assault (CZ), Copenhell (DK) und ArtMania (RO) auf. Von 2014 bis 2017 tourten die Dänen nur mit gelegentlichen Unterbrechungen, was sie bis nach Russland und in den Nahen Osten führte. Nach einigen signifikanten Umbesetzungen stießen die Gitarristen Indee (ehemals CLOUDS und EYE OF SOLITUDE) und Julio von AUTUMNAL im Jahr 2020 zu SATURNUS. Trotz weiterer Hindernisse, die durch die Pandemie entstanden, begann die Band schließlich mit der Arbeit an ihrem nächsten Album und setzte dabei auch die Zusammenarbeit mit Flemming Rasmussen fort. Die lange, schwierige Entstehung von "The Storm Within" verlangte SATURNUS auf dem Weg einige schmerzhafte Opfer ab. Blut, Schmerz und Schweiß haben ihre Spuren auf diesem Album hinterlassen. Doch aus jeder Note spricht eine brutale Ehrlichkeit. SATURNUS offenbaren ihre Seele und genau das macht "The Storm Within" zu einem brillanten Stück Musik.

Der Titel des fünften SATURNUS-Albums, "The Storm Within", spielt sowohl auf die Stürme an, die in der Natur tosen, als auch Aufruhr in der Seele. Es ist recht offenkundig, dass die lange Zeit, welche die Dänen für dieses Album gebraucht haben, und die persönlichen Gründe, die hinter dem Umbruch in der Band standen, dessen künstlerischen Ausdruck stark inspiriert haben. SATURNUS haben sich mit "The Storm Within" selbst übertroffen. Die musikalischen Themen Meer, Regen und stürmische Gewässer ziehen sich wie ein roter Faden durch die Songs, in denen sich Wut, Verlust, Melancholie und Schmerz gleichermaßen widerspiegeln. Die handwerkliche Reife des Albums verleiht seinen erhabenen aber auch ruhigen Momenten sowie den gelegentlichen brutalen Ausbrüchen eine äußerst spannende Dynamik. Obendrein sorgt die erneute Zusammenarbeit mit Produzent Flemming Rasmussen, dem legendären dänischen Produzenten der METALLICA-Klassiker dafür, dass der Sound von "The Storm Within" seiner herausragenden musikalischen Qualität mehr als gerecht wird. Die Anfänge von SATURNUS liegen im Jahr 1991 als Sänger Thomas A.G. Jensen im Umfeld der dänischen Hauptstadt Kopenhagen nach Mitmusikern suchte, um eine Death-Metal-Band zu gründen. Nach mehreren Umbenennungen und Umbesetzungen wurde der Name SATURNUS schließlich im Jahr 1993 in Beton gegossen. Die Band veröffentlichte ihr erstes Album "Paradise Belongs to You" im Januar 1997 und erhielt sofort eine Einladung zum berühmten Roskilde Festival. Der Auftritt wurde vom norwegischen Rundfunk (NRK) aufgezeichnet und in ganz Skandinavien ausgestrahlt, was die Band binnen kürzester Zeit in Nordeuropa zu einer Marke in Sachen Death Doom machte. Nach ihrem zweiten Album "Martyre" (2000) und dem ikonischen dritten Studioalbum "Veronika Decides to Die" sowie ständigem Touren durch Europa und zunehmend auch darüber hinaus, erschien 2012 "Saturn in Ascension", das erneut von Flemming Rasmussen produziert wurde. Zur Feier ihres 20-jährigen Bestehens kehrten SATURNUS auf Europas Straßen zurück und traten unter anderem bei renommierten Festivals wie dem Brutal Assault (CZ), Copenhell (DK) und ArtMania (RO) auf. Von 2014 bis 2017 tourten die Dänen nur mit gelegentlichen Unterbrechungen, was sie bis nach Russland und in den Nahen Osten führte. Nach einigen signifikanten Umbesetzungen stießen die Gitarristen Indee (ehemals CLOUDS und EYE OF SOLITUDE) und Julio von AUTUMNAL im Jahr 2020 zu SATURNUS. Trotz weiterer Hindernisse, die durch die Pandemie entstanden, begann die Band schließlich mit der Arbeit an ihrem nächsten Album und setzte dabei auch die Zusammenarbeit mit Flemming Rasmussen fort. Die lange, schwierige Entstehung von "The Storm Within" verlangte SATURNUS auf dem Weg einige schmerzhafte Opfer ab. Blut, Schmerz und Schweiß haben ihre Spuren auf diesem Album hinterlassen. Doch aus jeder Note spricht eine brutale Ehrlichkeit. SATURNUS offenbaren ihre Seele und genau das macht "The Storm Within" zu einem brillanten Stück Musik.

Der Titel des fünften SATURNUS-Albums, "The Storm Within", spielt sowohl auf die Stürme an, die in der Natur tosen, als auch Aufruhr in der Seele. Es ist recht offenkundig, dass die lange Zeit, welche die Dänen für dieses Album gebraucht haben, und die persönlichen Gründe, die hinter dem Umbruch in der Band standen, dessen künstlerischen Ausdruck stark inspiriert haben. SATURNUS haben sich mit "The Storm Within" selbst übertroffen. Die musikalischen Themen Meer, Regen und stürmische Gewässer ziehen sich wie ein roter Faden durch die Songs, in denen sich Wut, Verlust, Melancholie und Schmerz gleichermaßen widerspiegeln. Die handwerkliche Reife des Albums verleiht seinen erhabenen aber auch ruhigen Momenten sowie den gelegentlichen brutalen Ausbrüchen eine äußerst spannende Dynamik. Obendrein sorgt die erneute Zusammenarbeit mit Produzent Flemming Rasmussen, dem legendären dänischen Produzenten der METALLICA-Klassiker dafür, dass der Sound von "The Storm Within" seiner herausragenden musikalischen Qualität mehr als gerecht wird. Die Anfänge von SATURNUS liegen im Jahr 1991 als Sänger Thomas A.G. Jensen im Umfeld der dänischen Hauptstadt Kopenhagen nach Mitmusikern suchte, um eine Death-Metal-Band zu gründen. Nach mehreren Umbenennungen und Umbesetzungen wurde der Name SATURNUS schließlich im Jahr 1993 in Beton gegossen. Die Band veröffentlichte ihr erstes Album "Paradise Belongs to You" im Januar 1997 und erhielt sofort eine Einladung zum berühmten Roskilde Festival. Der Auftritt wurde vom norwegischen Rundfunk (NRK) aufgezeichnet und in ganz Skandinavien ausgestrahlt, was die Band binnen kürzester Zeit in Nordeuropa zu einer Marke in Sachen Death Doom machte. Nach ihrem zweiten Album "Martyre" (2000) und dem ikonischen dritten Studioalbum "Veronika Decides to Die" sowie ständigem Touren durch Europa und zunehmend auch darüber hinaus, erschien 2012 "Saturn in Ascension", das erneut von Flemming Rasmussen produziert wurde. Zur Feier ihres 20-jährigen Bestehens kehrten SATURNUS auf Europas Straßen zurück und traten unter anderem bei renommierten Festivals wie dem Brutal Assault (CZ), Copenhell (DK) und ArtMania (RO) auf. Von 2014 bis 2017 tourten die Dänen nur mit gelegentlichen Unterbrechungen, was sie bis nach Russland und in den Nahen Osten führte. Nach einigen signifikanten Umbesetzungen stießen die Gitarristen Indee (ehemals CLOUDS und EYE OF SOLITUDE) und Julio von AUTUMNAL im Jahr 2020 zu SATURNUS. Trotz weiterer Hindernisse, die durch die Pandemie entstanden, begann die Band schließlich mit der Arbeit an ihrem nächsten Album und setzte dabei auch die Zusammenarbeit mit Flemming Rasmussen fort. Die lange, schwierige Entstehung von "The Storm Within" verlangte SATURNUS auf dem Weg einige schmerzhafte Opfer ab. Blut, Schmerz und Schweiß haben ihre Spuren auf diesem Album hinterlassen. Doch aus jeder Note spricht eine brutale Ehrlichkeit. SATURNUS offenbaren ihre Seele und genau das macht "The Storm Within" zu einem brillanten Stück Musik.

AVKRVST wurde von Martin Utby und Simon Bergseth gegründet - zwei Musikern und Freunden, die zusammen aufwuchsen und einen Pakt schlossen, dass sie eine Band gründen würden, wenn sie älter sind. Jetzt, 22 Jahre später, ist ein Album fertig: 49 Minuten Musik, inspiriert von allem, was sie in ihrer Kindheit gehört haben - von Mew, Anekdoten und Porcupine Tree bis hin zu Opeth, Neal Morse und King Crimson. "The Approbation" ist ein Konzeptalbum über eine düstere Seele, die nur mit ihren Gedanken allein gelassen wird, isoliert in einer Hütte tief in den dunklen Wäldern, weit weg von der Zivilisation. Das Album führt den Hörer durch die Gedanken eines Mannes, der mit der Akzeptanz des Todes kämpft und in den Abgrund gezogen wird. Klanglich ist "The Approbation" ein wuchtig klingendes Stück Musik: Es bietet alles von üppigen, melancholischen Stimmungen bis hin zu schweren, aggressiven Atmosphären. Es versucht, das Gefühl eines kalten, düsteren Herbstes einzufangen - ein dunkler Himmel, gefüllt mit Sternen, die über dem Nebel schweben. Das gesamte Album wurde in einer Hütte in Alvdal (Norwegen) während eines regnerischen, kalten Herbstes und Winters geschrieben und aufgenommen. Während des gesamten Albums kann man Regengeräusche und das Hupen eines Zuges aus der Ferne hören, die tatsächlich nachts unter dem Sternenhimmel in der Hütte aufgenommen wurden. Das Artwork von "The Approbation" ist ein Werk von Mastermind Eliran Kantor, der Folgendes über das Cover zu sagen hat: "Ich wollte das Element der vergehenden Zeit während einer Zeit der Abgeschiedenheit und Selbstreflexion in einer Waldhütte finden und dachte an die Sterne über mir. Alles auf dem Boden schläft und schlummert, während direkt über uns das Universum auf niemanden wartet. Das passte gut zu vielen Texten, da in ihnen die Elemente des Himmels immer die Rolle spielen, die unaufhaltsam ist und ständig auf den Menschen da unten einwirkt, der nach oben starrt und sich von der Schwerkraft seiner Umgebung mitreißen lässt und wie sie ihn zum Nachdenken anregt."

LDS takes no prisoners on this blistering new techno workout for Exos' Planet X & X/OZ labels.

Opener 'Karplusfunk' is a 100-mile-an-hour assault with caustic hit hats over clipped, kinetic drums. Manic synth lines ride up and down and the energy levels are off the chart. 'Mvoper FM' is slightly paired back but is still warp-speed icy techno to take dance floors on a white knuckle ride through the cosmos.

The Exos remix of 'LD5' has snares that sound like sheet metal blowing in the wind while solar clouds peel off the groove. The flip side offers two more cuts of head-melting techno experimentalism.

The 4th Pumpkin Witch album released by Deathbomb Arc, and their first non-reissue for the label. Nothing can keep the Pumpkin Witch dead for long. The Witch is back! And her web of evil is larger than ever, her vile plans call for nothing short of world domination... The Three Dark Figures have conjured up 11 new tracks of creepy cackles and crazed cacophony that create an audiological kaleidoscope of terror. An emphasis on percussion and an evident influence from goth club music blends with the horror soundtrack-fueled dark ambience of albums past, making this perfect listening for any unholy ritual or cemetery soiree. You can lock your doors, board up your windows, and say your prayers but nothing can protect you from "The Return of the Pumpkin Witch"!

white vinyl

Eric Emm and Jesse Cohen of Tanlines are indie-rock lifers turned reasonable, happy middle-aged fathers of two, figuring out their place in a chaotic culture and industry that can no longer command their full attention. They are emblematic of a particular time and place that doesn't really exist anymore, yet here they are existing, and thriving, in 2023. The Big Mess came together when Emm and his family moved from Brooklyn to rural Connecticut, while Cohen launched a marketing career and a successful podcast and stayed in the city. Emm continued writing songs_hundreds of them _ through all the weirdness of the past few years, but he wasn't exactly sure who he was writing them for. "I spent years figuring out in my mind, `What is my musical life going to look like?'" he says. "I just kept writing." Cohen gave Emm his blessing to continue Tanlines, even if his own contributions would be limited due to his own non-musical obligations. "I'm like, `Whatever you can do to keep this thing going, do it,'" Cohen says. And with that, Tanlines was reborn. By January 2022 Emm felt he had a body of work that made sense as a Tanlines album. Cohen spent ten days with Emm at his Connecticut studio, along with unofficial third Tanline Patrick Ford (!!!). This was tied together with a sleek final mix from Peter Katis (The National, Interpol) at his famed Tarquin Studios, resulting in a clear vision of what Emm's musical life was going to look like: The Big Mess. The first sounds on The Big Mess are the title track's coiled guitars and thumping drums, building into the kind of outsize, choral rock anthem artists like Tanlines were almost a reaction to. It is warm and nostalgic, and Cohen likens a lot of the prevailing mood to "a sepia filter on a digital photo." He continues, "we were pretty intentional about making this the first song on the album, underlining the way that this is a new phase of the band." Cohen says. The moody, scintillating "Burns Effect" serves as one of the biggest pushes forward for the Tanlines sound, and for Emm as a lyricist. He says that the song is "deep and dark and dangerous, but in a fun way. It's one of the more personal tracks on the album where this ungrounded part of my personality surfaces, but with an over-the-top machismo, almost an ironic character." Other tracks like "New Reality" and closer "The Age of Innocence" are also demonstrably guitar-forward in ways that wouldn't seem obvious for Tanlines (despite Emm's pedigree in austere avant-garde math-rock outfits Storm & Stress and Don Caballero), but Emm is less sure The Big Mess is a total departure. "I'm trying to make these absolutely simple things," he says. "I think of these songs as Rothko paintings: They're big and they're bold and they're seemingly straightforward, but they have a lot of depth and they engage with you and make you feel something."

Joaquín Cornejo is back on Earthly Measures with 'Vision Versions' his 2nd vinyl release - a unique reimagining of Markandeya's dub album 'Vision Dubs'. Journeying through the depths, the Ecuadorian producer reinterprets Markandeya’s works with his signature flavour, space echoes, dub sirens, digi delays, organic grooves and all to provide the perfect follow up to the hugely popular 'Las Frutas' EP.

DJ Feedback:

Valentina Montalvo – “Beautiful and uplifting, gracias!!”

Severino Panzetta (Horse Meat Disco) – “LOVELY”

Jaye Ward – “wow!! this is super lovely.. so so deep and well balanced.. brilliant want to love heart the whole thing because its a proper long player version excursion”

Balearic Clouds – “Mountain High my favorite but all sounds beautiful!!”

Paul Cottam – “Holy Father Feat. Cedric Myton (Joaquín Cornejo Version) is a BELTER”

Mark Sampson - “Favourite has to be 'Holy Father' because I love Cedric Myton's voice.”

Pete Herbert - “Superb!”

Roberto Rodriguez – “Lovely dubs”

Max Essa – “Deeply Satisfying!”

Chris Coco – “These are beautiful”

Bart Skils comes in strong with a career highlight offering, ‘Roll the Dice’.

We can always rely upon the Dutchman to craft a breath taking dancefloor heater. ‘Roll the Dice’ sees him level up again. The title track is driven by his sharp reverb-heavy bottom end that’s coloured by a brain spangling vocal sample that counts down in Arabic to thrilling effect. From a raucous tour of South America to Space Miami, it’s highlighted every gig he’s played.

Its accompaniment is ‘Into the Clouds’, a dreamy Balearic-tinged slice of techno that featured in all of Adam Beyer’s Ibiza sets last summer.

Die Musik von Soul Supreme bewegt, groovt, pocht und schlägt mehr denn je. Die farbenfrohe Klangpalette von 'Poetic Justice' bietet die bisher größte Besetzung mit Gastmusikern: darunter Drummer J-Zone, Bassist Glenn Gaddum Jr., Jeroen Verberne (Gallowstreet) und Johnny Biner und Euan Jenkins (beide Radiohop). Mit seinem bewährten Set-up und einem neu hinzugefügten Clavinet klingt Soul Supremes Schmelztiegel aus Jazz-Funk, Hip-Hop-Grooves, gefühlvollen Cuts und Library-Funk reicher als je zuvor.

Pointillist club rhythms and dense, porous dub clouds encircle the Wrecked Lightship as Laurie Osborne and Adam Winchester set sail for phantom islands once more. The nocturnal boatswains chart a course guided by pronounced percussive impulses, using physicality to navigate the looming atmospheric pressure that has become their signature style.

Opening tracks ‘Arial’ and ‘Third Law’ speak to the roots of Osborne and Winchester’s respective work as Appleblim and Wedge, dealing in dancefloor abstractions where techno, electro and dubstep once stood, but there’s much more at play than simple genre tags could ever express. ‘Third Law’s electro-static interference calls back to Winchester’s work in Dot Product, while the twitchy urgency and gnarly bass echoes Osborne’s ALSO project with Second Storey.

Wrecked Lightship is an anchorless concern, free to drift into experimental waters if the currents surge that way, and so ‘Kill Mirror’ and ‘Hydrotower’ head away from forthright structures to play around with sound design and full-frequency manipulation. It’s too kinetic and jagged to be considered ambient, even if it willfully shirks the dancefloor. But for every starboard swerve there’s a prevailing wind, and the likes of finely-tuned club weapon ‘Take It Back’ whip ahead with laser-eyed focus.

Nailing their split interests between immediacy and the avant-garde to the mast, Wrecked Lightship deepen the reach of their project on their second album. Whatever shape a specific track might take, Oceans & Seas serves as a paean to the art of sonic manipulation and spatial processing.

Written and produced by Adam Winchester and Laurence Osborne
Artwork by Chloe Grove
Layout by Takashi Makabe
Text by Oliver Warwick
Mastered and cut by Simon at The Exchange

Eric Emm and Jesse Cohen of Tanlines are indie-rock lifers turned reasonable, happy middle-aged fathers of two, figuring out their place in a chaotic culture and industry that can no longer command their full attention. They are emblematic of a particular time and place that doesn't really exist anymore, yet here they are existing, and thriving, in 2023. The Big Mess came together when Emm and his family moved from Brooklyn to rural Connecticut, while Cohen launched a marketing career and a successful podcast and stayed in the city. Emm continued writing songs_hundreds of them _ through all the weirdness of the past few years, but he wasn't exactly sure who he was writing them for. "I spent years figuring out in my mind, `What is my musical life going to look like?'" he says. "I just kept writing." Cohen gave Emm his blessing to continue Tanlines, even if his own contributions would be limited due to his own non-musical obligations. "I'm like, `Whatever you can do to keep this thing going, do it,'" Cohen says. And with that, Tanlines was reborn. By January 2022 Emm felt he had a body of work that made sense as a Tanlines album. Cohen spent ten days with Emm at his Connecticut studio, along with unofficial third Tanline Patrick Ford (!!!). This was tied together with a sleek final mix from Peter Katis (The National, Interpol) at his famed Tarquin Studios, resulting in a clear vision of what Emm's musical life was going to look like: The Big Mess. The first sounds on The Big Mess are the title track's coiled guitars and thumping drums, building into the kind of outsize, choral rock anthem artists like Tanlines were almost a reaction to. It is warm and nostalgic, and Cohen likens a lot of the prevailing mood to "a sepia filter on a digital photo." He continues, "we were pretty intentional about making this the first song on the album, underlining the way that this is a new phase of the band." Cohen says. The moody, scintillating "Burns Effect" serves as one of the biggest pushes forward for the Tanlines sound, and for Emm as a lyricist. He says that the song is "deep and dark and dangerous, but in a fun way. It's one of the more personal tracks on the album where this ungrounded part of my personality surfaces, but with an over-the-top machismo, almost an ironic character." Other tracks like "New Reality" and closer "The Age of Innocence" are also demonstrably guitar-forward in ways that wouldn't seem obvious for Tanlines (despite Emm's pedigree in austere avant-garde math-rock outfits Storm & Stress and Don Caballero), but Emm is less sure The Big Mess is a total departure. "I'm trying to make these absolutely simple things," he says. "I think of these songs as Rothko paintings: They're big and they're bold and they're seemingly straightforward, but they have a lot of depth and they engage with you and make you feel something."

"Sad music for happy people - happy music for sad people?

Ran Nir ist in Tel Aviv geboren und aufgewachsen, tourte als Bassist und Gründungsmitglied von Asaf Avidan & The Mojos um die Welt und ließ sich 2014 endgültig in Berlin nieder. Am 26.05. wird er sein zweites Soloalbum via Clouds Hill auf Vinyl veröffentlichen.

Eine wahrhaft israelische Version von Bon Iver, einem erstaunlichen Künstler, der als Bassist in einem Kollektiv begann und sich langsam, aber stetig in einen Solokünstler verwandelte, der sein Herz auf der Zunge trägt. Folk, Rock, Country, Pop, Blues, Elektronik, alles
vermischt - das ist die große Bandbreite an Einflüssen, die seine erhaben bittersüße Musik prägen.

It’s back to the heart of disco with the next release — our sixtieth! — in Most Excellent Unlimited’s long-running series of collaborations with master editor Danny Krivit, this installment on long-play 12-inch vinyl.

Our A-side features the work of Euro-disco maestro Alec Constandinos, whose symphonic suites and long form arrangements for stars like Cerrone and Don Ray made him an essential ingredient on many a glittering dancefloor in the late ’70s. Love & Kisses was one of his earliest disco projects, and one of his most popular. Their song (the “band” was a studio fabrication of Constandinos) “I Found Love” stretches across the entire side of an LP in its original form, but for discerning disc jockeys who leaned towards the funkier side of the spectrum, the percussion and bass breakdown is where it’s at. And if you are a long-time follower of Mr. K, it will come as no surprise that it is here that he focuses his metaphoric razor on the iconic breakdown, and we are left with a tough, driving track that will suit throwback sets as well as slot nicely into modern uptempo programming. As an added bonus, stick around to the very end when Krivit lets the song’s memorable acapella sample (“And I suppose you thought it was all over??”) finish it out.

It simply does not get much bigger than Donna Summer in the world of disco. Her song “Heaven Knows,” a duet with Brooklyn Dreams singer “Bean” Esposito, is one of the many gems in her catalog, and one that still evokes powerful reactions in heads, both old and new. Produced by the dream team of Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte, the power and groove are propulsive and indisputable. Krivit begins with an extended "Mac Arthur Park" horn crescendo that teases the emotion before introducing a newly stripped down singalong verses and chorus of “Heaven Knows”. As the song progresses, a fabulous building effect until the end, a six-minute run through the clouds, enveloped in the ecstasy of that same horn crescendo. A sudden finale, fading into the ether, takes us out and leaves the listener (and DJ) with an open path of which musical road to take next, a master’s touch from an editor who excels at his craft.

Wiederveröffentlichung des 2018er Albums!

Umse ist ein Kind des Ruhrpotts – und ewig Reisender. Ein Malocher-MC mit langem Atem, der sich endlich auszahlt. Der Top-20-Künstler chartete mit seinen letzten beiden Alben „Kunst für sich“ (#36) und „Haiwanischer Schnee“ (#16), die über die Indie-Institution Jakarta Records erschienen. Für sein neues Album nahm er sich zwei Jahre Zeit, musste Tiefschläge überwinden, um „Durch die Wolkendecke“ gehen zu können. Heute präsentiert er mit „Bescheid“ das erste Video zu seinem neuen Album, das am 28. September erscheint.

In zwei Jahren hat sich einiges angestaut: an Texten und Erfahrungen. So veröffentlichte Umse erst im Mai die 6-Track starke „Flammenwerfer“-EP und nun bereits Ende September ein neues Album. Der Ruhrpott-Rapper, der in einer Tugend-Tradition mit den lokalen Legenden RAGund Too Strong steht und doch nach State of the Art klingt, tourte jahrelang durchs Land und erspielte sich von Konstanz bis Kiel einen exzellenten Ruf als Live-MC.

Über die Jahre hat sich Umse eine loyale Fanbase aufgebaut, die ihn für seine Bodenständigkeit schätzt. Er verkörpert die Werte der alten Schule, vereint Technik und Tiefgang und befriedet mit seinem Neo-Boombap-Entwurf die Rap-Generationen. „Durch Die Wolkendecke“ setzt diesen Weg konsequent fort und zeigt dabei neue Impulse und Perspektiven auf. Der Titel deutet bereits an, dass es düsterer und nachdenklicher zugeht; er steht aber auch sinnbildlich für: „Sky is the limit“.

Dieses Limit ist für den Grown-Man-Rapper noch lange nicht erreicht: Er ist weder hängengebliebener Oldschooler noch gesichtstätowierter Mumble-Rapper, und doch fruchtet sein Scheuklappen-freier, samplelastiger Trademark-Sound im Hier und Jetzt. Mal erinnern die Sing-Sang-Hooks an den frühen 50 Cent, mal an die Crowd-Control-Choruse der Dilated Peoples.

Das Regionale und das Reisen sind zwei Konstanten und Extreme, die sich durch die Karriere von Umse zu ziehen scheinen. Nachdem er sich mit Hofproduzent Deckah für die Produktion von „Hawaianischer Schnee“ in einem Landhaus in der niederländischen Provinz einmietete, flogen sie für „Durch Die Wolkendecke“ bis nach Colorado und Teneriffa. Der Track „Wenn Die Ferne Ruft“ thematisiert dieses Fernweh, das für Umbeck so inspirierend wirkt, mit markanten Lines: „Man tut es wieder, wenn man merkt, das Reisen Wunder bewirkt.“

Der Opener „Bescheid“ ist nur vordergründig ein Representer und offenbart bei genauerem Hinhören reife Reflexionen eines Mittdreißigers. Auf „Mach Das Kleine Groß“ zeigt Umse dialektisches Talent, schließt von dem Großen auf das Kleine, vom Lokalen aufs Globale, von sich als Individuum auf die Gesellschaft und Szene. Das rührende Outro „Jederzeit“ klingt wie eine Art Testament, mit der sich Umse endgültig in den Real-Rap-Analen als eine der wichtigsten Stimmen seiner Generation verewigt.

Umse sagte einmal sinngemäß über die Langlebigkeit von Alben: „Es interessiert keine Sau, wie lange du daran gearbeitet hast, es zählt, wie lange sie rotiert.“ Und eine lange Haltwertszeit hat dieses zeitlose, detailverliebte Werk ganz sicherlich.

Andrew Hargreaves’ Tape Loop Orchestra makes his first mark of the year with a post-rock deep dive that continues the themes of his ‘Liminal Live’ (2020) tape.

’Temporal In-Between’ is presented as a conceptual soundtrack to a metaphysical road trip, a journey through infinitely open space imbued with phantomatic energies”. Hand-in-hand with the cover art by collaborator Keith Ashcroft, the two-part record evokes its subject with a lesser- heard (as in, have we heard him do this before?) use of electric guitar and a patented grasp of liminal, hypnagogic atmosphere to summon sustained arcs of phased chords and an almost wind- played motorik momentum that makes it feel like gliding over unlit moors at night.

The spirits of Eno & Fripp colour proceedings as TLO’s elliptical tape loop system accretes and unfurls its information in slow motion from the shimmering keys and guitar strokes of ‘Upsurge’, and its gorgeous transition to heart-in-mouth sensations, and the soothing plangency of ’Situated Presence’, where signature choral motifs are found occluded by the atmosphere, parting thru the clouds occasionally, but more often pushed to the background, as though heard from a distance like phosphorescent city lights spied from its meridian. More simply; dream food for fans of Romance, The Caretaker, Eno.

Dauw presents 'babel', the debut album from Belgian duo ZONDERWERK. The duo’s name means ‘’without work’’, but it also comes from “bijzonder werk”, where bijzonder is particular, special, unique. They like to work with images/paintings that are “bijzondere werken”, odd works.

babel is an ambitious exercise in translating images into sound. babel was initially created for the eponymous theatre piece by architect and artist Steve Salembier. Inspired by the biblical legend, Salembier envisions the legendary city as an abstract, sprawling modern metropolis in continuous flux. Its steel and glass skeleton is a representation of both an accumulation of overlapping contemporary cityscapes and a metaphor for the anonymous repetitiveness of our daily routines mirrored by the architecture. Subway lines, sky scrapers and whirling highways converge into a megalopolis of monstrous proportions. Despite the composition’s initial context as soundtrack for a theatre play, for the band this album is seen as a standalone work, whose complex sonic material can be appreciated without having seen the piece.

Their score focuses on fleshing out the imposing imaginary universe both in terms of scale and meaning. One of their biggest inspirations were Michael Woolf’s photographs, which served as the basis for the original theatre piece. His use of grey and repetition is translated into looped harmonies and fine-grained drones that progressively open up like blooming ice flowers.

With sounds of bells and metal as their primary materials, Carrijn and Sanders build soundscapes that are at once seductive and unsettling. The atmosphere on tracks like “DreamArp4Kort4” make for majestic, mysterious synths conjuring otherworldly visions, while the angelic glockenspiel set against subtle explosions in “VuurFeest” suggest a serene yet potentially dangerous place. Other tracks like “RoomCarousselTapeLoop5” create multi- layered textured drones through the process of tape decay, a commentary on the cannibalistic nature of the city.

Resulting from an arduous improvisational processusingold samplers with elements such as the Beam harp, a self-made metal instrument with piano strings, reel to reel tape recorders, field recordings and violin, babel perfectly captures the oxymoron of the man-made concrete jungle that is at once inhospitable yet endlessly awe-inducing.

ZONDERWERK is a duo consisting of Linde Carrijn and Dijf Sanders who started this project during the pandemic as a way of exploring their relationship as creative partners. Carrijn has a background in acting but recently came more to the fore as composer/performer with original scores for theatre and her other band Brik Tu-Tok founded with multi-disciplinary artist Maxim Storms. Sanders is a composer and gear enthusiast, more well-known for his eclectic works that draw from a wide-array of non-Western music. His milestone-album Moonlit Planetarium paved to way to a broader audience and recognition from major press in Belgium. In 2021, his work as a producer was recognized with a nomination at the Music Industry Awards.

Atheris joins the Amniotes with a 2-part egg:
ZRS-1: Instant Molting 1.0 (blue pill)
ZRS-2: Instant Molting 2.0 (red pill)

Chose one or ingest both for a wild ride at the Zion Cave #reloaded.

Presented by Julian Muller.

For polymath artist Wesley Joseph, writing a song is like shooting a film - he sees in terms of scenes and colors, lighting the proper mood, drawing the right emotional arc. Music and filmmaking are Joseph’s two great loves. Film came first—he started making DIY videos at age 12 to entertain himself and his friends growing up in a small town in the UK. “There wasn’t really much happening,” he remembers, “and from a young age it created this mindset that doing everything myself was the only way to do it.”

But when he moved to London to study as a filmmaker, he discovered something in the freedom and independence of city life that demanded to be captured in song, and found a crew of collaborators—including A.K. Paul, Dave Okumu, Joy Orbison, Leon Vynehall, Lexxx, Loyle Carner and his childhood friend Jorja Smith—to help him do it. The result was his breakthrough single ‘Ghostin’’ and the 2021 debut ULTRAMARINE - released on his own imprint EEVILTWINN - a deeply textured collection of avant-R&B and soulful future-pop that stretched from psychedelic ballads to hard hip-hop bars (often in the span of a single track) and crystallized the mood of a young cohort trying to find love and live their dreams while the world is falling apart. Whilst his collaboration with Loyle Carner on single ‘Blood On My Nikes’ lead to him featuring on the artist’s critically acclaimed - and #3 charting album - earlier this year.

Now the nascent auteur returns with his Secretly Canadian debut GLOW, eight more songs of love, loss, anxiety, and joy about coming of age at a time of unprecedented change. Showcasing his range across songwriting, performing, and production—not to mention his flawless transitions between singing and rapping, between character studies and raw emotional honesty—it’s a stunningly beautiful work that makes it clear Joseph’s on the path to becoming a world-changing talent.

GLOW opens with the title track’s warm analog synths and cascading vocals that channel the harmonious Northern soul Joseph’s dad raised him on, a shimmering bed of clouds for the project’s opening credits. But like any good director, he quickly deepens the mood, drawing together disparate influences and emotions to build a unique sonic world spilling over with synchronicities and juxtapositions. “MONSOON” conjures nocturnal hedonism at the same time as it contemplates grief.

As on previous projects, Joseph is providing his own visual accompaniments for GLOW, creative directing its artwork and adding to his growing filmography as a director—he’s repped by the renowned production company Stink—with its first video. “COLD SUMMER” finds Joseph singing from a supervillain’s perspective over woozy film-score strings, and the concept bleeds over into its video accompaniment, a cryptic post-post-Tarantino film shot in Kazakhstan.

“I've never really seen them separately,” Joseph says of music and film. “They kind of just constantly drift into each other. And when they come together, it's like it was meant to be in my head the whole time.
It’s usually hyperbole to call an artist as young and new as Joseph “visionary,” but it’s undeniable that he has a vision, one that transcends old ideas of genre and medium, one that seems to get bigger and richer every time he steps into a studio or behind a camera. GLOW is one of the deepest and most satisfyingly cinematic listening experiences of the year—and Wesley Joseph is just getting started.

Junior Jack’s timeless 2004 disco/house fusion ‘Stupidisco’ receives a spread of dynamic remixes from some of the most talented remixers around.

Kicking things off is Spanish DJ and producer David Penn, who takes the stems and gives them an immaculate polish! Taking JJ’s Pointer Sisters sampling goodness and working into a re-sliced, disco-house filter journey with punchy kicks, tremulating basslines and an anthemic piano that is guaranteed to bring the sun out from the clouds.

Next up is Germany's Deeperlove with the toughest mix in the package with it's tech house inspired drums and bassline.

On the flip side, Aussie based Kiwi Jolyon Petch jumps in, delivering 2 killer remixes with his Italo inspired Jolyon Petch Remix and a nu-disco treat under his Elektrik Disko alias.

Das vierte Temples Album 'Exotico', das von Sean Ono Lennon produziert wurde, spielt in dieser wundersamen Umgebung einer utopischen Insel, die sich Sänger/Gitarrist James Bagshaw, Bassist Tom Walmsley, Keyboarder/Gitarrist Adam Smith und Schlagzeuger Rens Ottink ausgedacht haben. Mit ihrer schillernden Collage aus Psychedelia, Glamrock und Dream-Pop erweckt 'Exotico' diese bunte Welt mit gefühlvollen Melodien, futuristischen Synthesizern und fesselnden Gitarrenriffs zum Leben und erkundet dabei ein ganzes Spektrum existenzieller Themen. "The idea of the record is that we’re transporting people to a place they’ve never experienced, a beautiful destination that’s meant for everybody", erzählt Bagshaw.

Abgemischt von Dave Fridmann (Beach House, Spoon, The Flaming Lips) und hauptsächlich in Lennons Studio im Bundesstaat New York aufgenommen, setzt 'Exotico' die Zusammenarbeit fort, die auf der von Lennon produzierten Single 'Paraphernalia' (2020) begonnen wurde. Dafür erweiterte die aus Kettering stammenden UK-Band ihre musikalische Palette um eine enorme Bandbreite an Instrumenten - passend für ein Werk, das von klassischen Symphonien über italienische Horror-Soundtracks bis hin zu Girlgroups der Brill Building-Ära inspiriert ist.

Limited Whirlpool Blue Vinyl! Auckland, New Zealand post-punk group Guardian Singles return to Trouble In Mind for their follow-up to 2021's debut with "Feed Me To The Doves", a ten-track socio-political burner addressing our collective spiritual chaos that pulls influence from across the history of punk & permeates it into something decidedly Aotearoan & uniquely their own in ways that are both personal & universal. "Feed Me To The Doves" is the first album to feature the current, long-standing lineup of Thom Burton (guitar, vocals), Fiona Campbell (drums), Yolanda Fagan (bass), and Durham Fenwick (lead guitar). The band has been playing live together now for a few years & it shows. The songs herein vary from the deeply personal, to sketches or postcards, as Burton says "_scribbled while watching the dregs of a delirious culture war play out through broken smartphones and praline vape clouds." Expertly recorded at Neil Finn's Roundhead Studios in Auckland by engineer Steven Marr, who Burton says had a "great sense of being able to keep the urgency of the songs while adding lushness and keeping things sounding like they're about to break at any second". Marr helped turn the album's scrappy beginnings into something more cohesive and beautiful.

Like many debut solo albums from musicians in bands, Jared Mattson’s Peanut didn’t originally come from a need to break away. As a composer for the Mattson 2, Jared Mattson was working up a batch of new songs through the winter of 2019-2020, looking ahead to the next album he and brother Jonathan Mattson, the blitzkrieging drummer, would record. As the pandemic hit stateside, Jared holed up in his home studio and kept developing the new music. And during that process it became increasingly clear to them that this wasn’t shaping up to be the next Mattson 2 album. This was a Mattson 1 album.

Jared had been absorbing the guitar work on records by reggae stalwarts Aswad and Burning Spear, and also the Police’s Andy Summer and the ways he gives songs space. And Jared wanted a prominent bass sound, too, where the guitar itself sometimes settles into the passenger seat so that the bass can drive. Lyrically, the album taps into our rattled world, where anxiety, loss, violence, and regret are sometimes pierced by the promise of love. The time spent working on the album was a profoundly introspective time as he reflected on past relationships while living through and writing during the pandemic, he also never lost sight of this truth about himself: Life is great with music.

One of the album’s standout highlights is “Burn Down Babylon,” which is propelled by the bass’s funk-you-say groove. You don’t often encounter many pop songs with so blunt an opening line as, “I got punched in the face last night by a neo-Nazi,”—a true experience that was delivered many years ago in a bar brawl in Carlsbad, California. But to hear the music that goes along with this tale manages a vibe that is less melee and more backyard jubilee.

When “Please Come Here,” with an intro that slinks along like a Cadillac on a Sunday morning drive, kicks in, it’s typical of the album’s melodic pop flourishes, but the twist here is that the vocals are in Japanese (The Mattson 2 have toured Japan 20 times and covered many Japanese pop songs on 2018’s Vaults of Eternity: Japan). Ween’s “She Wanted to Leave” is the lone cover, but the way Jared reimagines the song makes it fits seamlessly within the album’s sonic template. The song’s inclusion was also a personal way to honor one of Jared’s best friends, who died from cancer two years ago. The two had always bonded over the song and marveled at its inherent beauty. Ultimately, Mattson’s solo debut unfolds like a string of fascinating clouds: These are not songs in a hurry; they shift around as they float by, and, most notably, they carry their unique kind of electric charge.

NF is the stage name of rapper and composer Nate Feuerstein, whose raw emotions and honest lyrics launched him into the upper reaches of the charts with his 2017 album Perception. Initially emerging in 2010, NF gained wider attention after his 2015 album, Mansion, and 2016 follow-up, Therapy Session, both reached number one on the Christian charts. That success set the stage for his 2017 breakthrough. Buoyed by the Top 20 hit "Let You Down," Perception hit number one on the Billboard 200. NF's second Billboard 200 chart-topper, The Search, arrived in 2019 and was followed in 2021 by the mixtape Clouds.

This album originally came out on vinyl only in Europe, so there is still a lot of pent-up demand for a new LP reissue of this 1991
classic from the Voïvod catalog (especially in Canada, where the
band is worshipped). Produced by Terry Brown of Rush fame, Angel
Rat moved the band further into spacy psychedelic territory with
such tracks as “Golem” and the title track. A mesmerizing, moody head trip of a record. Metallic blue vinyl pressing. Remastered for vinyl by Peter Moore

Denver producer and visual artist John T. Hastings aka RUMTUM returns to Bastard Jazz for his second album on the label, "Arcadian Daze". The album is a contemplative drive down a nostalgic highway, reflecting on a period of his late adolescence growing up in Ohio, spending time at Arcadia Beach on Lake Erie and discovering the likes DJ Shadow, Madlib, Fila Brazilla, early Four Tet, the original Ninja Tune roster and more. Revisiting these coming of age memories, John purchased an older MPC 2000XL and set out to musically capture the excitement of putting his first nascent loops together, inspired by this pivotal era of electronic music that has since birthed movements like such as Lo-Fi/Chillhop, Vaporwave, LA's mid-2000s Beat Scene / Low End Theory, etc.

The end result of "Arcadian Daze" is indeed filled with that nostalgic spirit paying homage to those aforementioned sounds, but also presents a forward thinking musical palate that's very much grounded in RUMTUM's sensibilities as a producer and time spent learning to program new & vintage outboard gear. The album moves away from the warm, dreamy sounds of last year's "Isles in Indigo" LP, and touches more into a mystical, pensive vibe with elements of darkness and light.

Born in Milan to a Cameroonese father and a Polish/Lithuanian mother, Nathan Dawidowicz moved at the age of 6 to Jerusalem. He was spending his childhood in a Jewish ultra-orthodox environment playing the piano and dreaming of being a Fashion designer and musician. After waking up from the reality he was raised in, he moved to Venice and started to explore the "outside world" of the mental barriers of religion. Music and fashion were his medicine, and he quickly became addicted to musical textures and vinyl. His love for music brought him quickly to Berlin, where he currently lives and loves.

Sanctuary Of Ideas is a very personal and optimistic journey by Nathan Dawidowicz. His first solo album is a spiritual path, as cosmic and adventurous as Nathan`s trajectory, with beautiful twists and psychedelic twirls into Dawidowicz personal rabbit hole. A record full of memories and positive affirmations, filled with Jazzy yet psychedelic Cosmic and Krautrock elements. A fusion of inspiration - and a perfect reflection of Dawidowicz heritage.

Idea`s Eve is a stargate to our ancestral power. The source of our inspiration is connected to our past - to the spirits of our ancient memories. Dawidowicz leaves a lot of space to breathe in this magical opener. Enchanting melodies and bubbling sounds surround the listener while his voice keeps repeating a mantra of an ancient love spell. A track where you feel your DNA spiraling up the ladder of evolution. Yet so natural and healing.

Full Moon Dance is the spiritual continuation of the first track. A swirl of magical melodies, yet jazzy but truly cosmic walking up the ladder to another dimension, where warm moon rays and fluffy clouds surround love. The synth lines represent the playful and smooth moon rays reflected on a rhythmical heart-beating ground where tears can be joyfully spent to honor the emotions we usually oppress.

To close the EP, Nathan Dawidowicz worked a half a year to finalize the last track in full detail. 23 Minutes and 18 Seconds long is the Capricorn Rising Over Jerusalemite Temple. This story is where the listener is brought to a higher level of consciousness. Against the rules of our consumerist world, Nathan Dawidowicz focuses on a dramaturgy full of patience for our own lifetime. Acidic lines come and go, powerful synth solos trigger unknown brain parts, and an epic melody accompanies the listener and lets dark emotions melt in a brass-filled part where a voice tells us that time is on our side. The song ends with an epic twist and promises a new start, where our most lovely memories stay in a vortex of light. Beam me up Nathan.

Public Image Ltd. (PiL) will release Hawaii on 7” limited edition vinyl on 31st March. The release follows an incredibly brave and well received performance on The Late Late Show Eurovision Special on Friday 3rd February, in which John Lydon’s heartfelt emotions were visibly on show.

The track is the most personal piece of songwriting and accompanying artwork that Lydon has ever shared. The song is a love letter to John's wife of nearly 5 decades, Nora, who is living with Alzheimer’s. A pensive, personal yet universal love song that will resonate with many, the song sees John reflecting on their lifetime well spent and in particular one of their happiest moments together in Hawaii. The powerfully emotional ballad is as close as John will ever come to bearing his soul. “It is dedicated to everyone going through tough times on the journey of life, with the person they care for the most,” John says. “It’s also a message of hope that ultimately love conquers all.” Celebrating their 40-year anniversary in 2018, Public Image Ltd. haven’t been going quite as long as John and Nora, however, the band is widely regarded as one of the most innovative and influential bands of all time.

PiL’s music and vision has earned them 5 UK Top 20 singles and 5 UK Top 20 albums. With a shifting line-up and unique sound - fusing rock, dance, folk, pop and dub – Lydon guided the band from their debut album First Issue in 1978 through to 1992’s That What Is Not, before a 17 year hiatus. Lydon reactivated PiL in 2009, touring extensively worldwide and releasing two critically acclaimed albums This is PiL in 2012 followed by their 10th studio album What The World Needs Now… in 2015, which peaked at number 29 in the official UK album charts and picked up fantastic acclaim from both press and public. (The album also peaked at number 3 in the official UK indie charts and number 4 in the official UK vinyl charts). What The World Needs Now… was self-funded by PiL and released on their own label ‘PiL Official’ via Cargo UK Distribution. John Lydon, Lu Edmonds, Scott Firth and Bruce Smith continue as PiL. They are the longest stable line-up in the band's history and continue to challenge and thrive. PiL will be releasing their new album ‘End Of World’ this year. Details to be announced soon…

“Uncharacteristically soul-bearing” - Pitchfork

“a swooning, poignant ballad awash with memories of happier times… He’s remarkably tender as he croons: “Don’t fly too soon / No need to cry, in pain / You are loved.” It’s the vulnerability that is most striking. Lydon’s love for his wife shines through like sunrays breaking through clouds, casting everything in a golden light: “I remember you,” he reassures her. He’s backed by harmonising chants of “aloha”, the Hawaiin term that is both a greeting and a farewell. It’s a message from the heart, overflowing with spirit and compassion. What better word for what Lydon is trying to convey here?” - The Independent

“a beautiful and rueful ballad written by 66-year-old Lydon to his wife Nora, who suffers from Alzheimer’s. It’s a peach of a track: both pensive and personal, it reflects on one of their happiest times together in Hawaii. “Remember me/ I remember you… You are loved,” not-so-Rotten sings over a lush soundscape of gently twanging guitars vaguely reminiscent of Fleetwood Mac’s Albatross.” - Telegraph