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NOW Music is proud to present NOW That’s What I Call 60s Pop – a celebration of an incredible decade of music! Released on a hit-filled Limited Edition 3LP – 56 track compilation, pressed in stunning white vinyl! Also on 4CD set with – a celebration of this incredible decade with 89 fabulous tracks to showcase the era’s cultural explosion. TV advertising from day one of release to include major programming, terrestrial and satellite (actual program placement available closer to release date).

"L'assoluto naturale" is a 1969 film based on the eponymous novel by
Goffredo Parise and directed by Mauro Bolognini
Many of his films have been scored by Ennio Morricone. The two leading actors are Sylva Koscina and Laurence Harvey.
The film is a bourgeois sentimental drama which was very popular in that era - lead by the well known theme "Metti, una sera a cena"; it's a soundtrack that blends classical, jazz, pop and lounge music in various reworkings of the main theme, a typical Morriconne trademark..

Among the orchestrations directed by
Bruno Nicolai, the track "Assalito dalle rondini" stands out, an abstract composition for strings characterized by tension-laden dissonances and dramatic orchestrations.
Originally released in 1969 and reissued in a few subsequent editions, the soundtrack of "L'assoluto naturale" has not been on vinyl for 40 years. This new release with remastered audio and a new sleeve layout delivers this excellent soundtrack in a classy layout.

180gr. solid pink vinyl edition.

Die Versuchung ist groß, hoid als Sibylle Kefers "opus magnum" zu bezeichnen. Diese Sammlung von 13 Liedern ist ein eindrucksvolles, stimmiges und zugleich vielfältiges künstlerisches Statement der in Wien lebenden und arbeitenden Musikerin, eine Kulmination ihres ständigen Wachsens als Künstlerin. Die reichen Facetten von Kefers Zugang zu Musik, die Qualitäten und das ganze Spektrum dessen, was sie als Komponistin, Texterin und Instrumentalistin - Singer/Songwriterin oder Liedermacherin dafür als Beschreibung zu ungenau, zu eng - macht und zum Ausdruck bringt, macht diese Lieder aus ...hoid als seit 2020 entstandenes, geschriebenes und aufgenommenes Album ist eine Brücke, eine Klammer, für vermeintlich widersprüchliche Erfahrungen und künstlerische Reaktionen darauf. Unser aller spezieller Lebenssituationen durch die Corona-Pandemie, den unmenschlichen Krieg in der Ukraine und den drohenden ökologischen Kollaps sind sein so verunsicherndes größeres wie dynamisches Setting. Mit dem Sibylle Kefer in ihren Liedern nicht zuletzt Rücksprache hält, Fragen dazu stellt und Widerworte oder Anschlüsse sucht. Das Musikmachen, das Liederschreiben schon für sich ein Stück Normalität und Positionierung zugleich. So sehr Sibylle Kefer sich in diesen Liedern mit Ungleichbehandlung, Ungerechtigkeiten und Grenzüberschreitungen befasst, so sehr klingt dabei immer ihre prinzipiell positive, hoffnungsvolle Grundhaltung durch, baut sie immer bewusst "Hoffnungsanstöße" in ihre Lieder ein: "Damit man weiß, wogegen, woran, womit man arbeitet, es zu tun hat."Die Lieder des Albums hat Kefer dabei zunächst im home-recording aufgenommen und zu produzieren begonnen, sich dabei über das Schreiben der Texte und Musik hinaus ein zusätzliches Skill-Set erarbeitet. Da ein Wesen der Musik, des Musikmachens von Sibylle Kefer immer Zusammenarbeit und Austausch bleiben, fanden sich auch in der Immer-Wieder-Isolation der Pandemie Möglichkeiten, mit vielen befreundeten und geschätzten Musiker_innen zu arbeiten. Nicht zuletzt formierte Sibylle Kefer, selbst bei Ernst Molden & das Frauenorchester nicht wegzudenken, während der Arbeit an hoid ihr eigenes Trio, ihre Band. Mit E-Bassistin Sarah Brait und Schlagzeuger Chris Pruckner wird sie zukünftig (nicht nur) die Songs von hoid auf die Konzert-Bühnen bringen. Ganz zentral für die Fertigstellung des Albums die Arbeit mit Martin Siewert, gemeinsam mit dem Musiker und Komponisten wurden die Lieder schließlich in ihre endgültige Form gebracht, in der sie nun auf hoid zu hören sind und darauf warten ihrem Publikum zu begegnen.

In the 1950s, Jamaican dancehall regulars were crazy about the haunting sounds of American Rhythm & Blues. But in the mid-1950s, Rock 'n' Roll began to replace RnB in America, and Jamaican dancehall owners like Duke Reid and Clement Dodd turned to local musicians to record their own versions of American RnB.
The trend of covering foreign hits exploded during the Ska heyday of the early 60s and continued through the Rocksteady and Reggay eras. Jamaican musicians have covered virtually every genre of music, from jazz and rock to film scores, television soundtracks, pop, classical music and more. Over the years, they have also recorded many "versions" of already existing covers. Cover of cover of cover…
Admittedly, some of these covers were futile but many were sublime as this new and eclectic collection of Ska, Rocksteady and Reggay nuggets, compiled by the very competent and very charming D.J. Héléa, brilliantly demonstrates. Attention we are here "undercover", there are no well-known covers. Some of the tracks selected are rare, others unknown or forgotten - but all are excellent and blended in an impeccable mix, in line with previous the Harlem Shuffle compilations... All Killer, No Filler!
REGGAY UNDERCOVER is an exciting musical kaleidoscope of Jamaican and Reggae music from the early 60s through to the mid 70s.
We hope you will enjoy listening to this album as much as we had composing it for you.
All aboard for REGGAY UNDERCOVER!

If you're into the classic sound of the best releases from the seventies and eighties era Jazz-Funk or Fusion with a slightly modern and exciting touch, you don’t want to miss out on Fusion Affair’s first album: Venom! Proudly presented by Parisian label Chuwanaga, Venom is filled with sharp synths, electrifying basslines, serious guitar licks, amazing themes, in-the-pocket drums grooves and true excitement all over the six tracks of the album.

Starting with "Fruits Rouges" which introduces the listener to the beautiful and soulful harmonies spread throughout the album but also an overall overview of how Fusion Affair and Venom brings together strength and delicacy. Then, the impetuous and dangerous ride of "Venom" will leave you either dancing or shocked. A dangerous trip with a perfect climactic ending: watch out for the snakes! The serious but fun-filled groove of "Bounce" will take you back to Herbie Hancock’s seventies, with a jazz-funk style that you cannot resist bouncing your head to! Despite its chordal simplicity, the dreamier yet modern track "Dasha" begins with an unconventional use of berimbau. After several expositions of its beautiful main melody, the track intensifies with a perfectly executed drum and bass interlude. "Missing Cat" returns to a classic Jazz-Funk vibe with late seventies synth brass accentuating its playful theme. This one’s definitely got a vintage vibe! Finally, "Bougie Noire" ends Fusion Affair’s first album with powerful chords and orchestration while keeping it truly mysterious : to be continued...

Fusion Affair brings together the talents of French musicians from Lyon, Paris and Montréal, all gathered by the producer LeMatoux. Following many sessions at the infamous Studio Delta, record label Chuwanaga and the band are ready to spread their infectious groove all over the globe!

Tears are in the eyes of Xabiib Sharaabi, nicknamed the Somali King of Pop when he entered the stage of Berlin’s HKW. It is a mix of nostalghia, pain and joy. Like many Somalis he had been deprived overnight of both glamour and friends, the war in his homeland had sent him into exile. The glamorous discos and beachfront stages Mogadishu had once been famous for, had disappeared as the city was bombed to the ground. The King of Somali pop found himself stranded in Sweden, others like the members of Dur-Dur Band Int. ended up in London which until today has the largest Somali diaspora in Europe.

In the last decade many early recordings of Somalia’s funk, soul and disco era have been reissued. This record is not a reissue. The Berlin Session – is the first studio album of its kind since the golden days of Mogadishu came to a halt three decades ago. It is the living proof that Somali music is hot, funky and (!) well alive.

The record captures a historic reunion which took place in 2019 in Germany’s capital Berlin. London-based Dur-Dur Band Int. an eight-piece powerhouse of Somali live- music unites with three legendary Somali singers: Xabiib Sharaabi, Faduumina Hilowle and Cabdinur Allaale for a concert at Berlin’s HKW. Fueled with a restored sense of pride, the freshly reunited musicians decided to get together in a Neukölln studio for two amazing days of recording.

Female vocalist Faduumina Hilowle opens the album with an invitation to kickass: “Let’s shake off the dust, boys!” (Inta ka hurguf). Grooving with such a strong accent on the off-beat, any non-Somali listener may think of Reggae. But when you ask the musicians, they tell you: “They took it from us! It’s Dhaanto! It’s our rhythm”. Originating from the Ogaden region (now in neighbouring Ethiopia’s borders), Dhaanto dates back to the era of “clap & chant”. Some say it is an imitation of the camel’s bounce. Xabiib Sharaabi was once nick-named Somalia’s King of Pop for the body language and magnetising voice with which he incorporated the latest global musical trends - even recording two disco albums entirely in English. On the album Xabiib chooses to sing his Somali adaptation of “Lady” originally by Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti. Not unlike the Motown Sound of Detroit and Kingston’s Studio One: a small scene of musicians were fueling that new Somali Disco scene in Mogadishu. Cabdinur Allaale, the third vocalist on the album comes from neighbouring Djibouti. In the heydays the leader of then famous Sharaf Band was a frequent visitor, flying back and forth between Mogadishu, Hargeisa, Kismayo & Djibouti entertaining his fans on the Horn of Africa.

Dur-Dur Band Int. ‚The Berlin Session‘ brings the spirit, joy and hope of this era back: In the last decades Somalis stars have lived among us, spread all over the world, it is time to see them step into the limelight again.

Nicolas Sheikholeslami:
In 2015 Berlin-based Nicolas Sheikholeslami became fascinated by Somali music and ended up compiling a mixtape to share his passion. He did not know that his tape Au Revoir, Mogadishu Vol. 1 - Songs From Before The War would spark a massive international interest for Somali music. Soon later Nicolas co-compiled Sweet As Broken Dates: Lost Somali Tapes from the Horn of Africa for Ostinato records which got a Grammy-nomination in 2017. Berlin’s venue HKW took notice and asked him to set up a show with a selection of Somali artists from the golden era. This lead to this remarkable reunion. A studio was booked and within 2 days this album was recorded. The Berlin Session captures this emotional moment. In 2021/22 Nicolas Sheikholeslami finally sat down and mixed the recorded material. This record is the living proof that Somali music is hot, funky and well alive.

Repressed!

Berlin-based contemporary composer Nils Frahm has built a steady reputation for his intimate, poignant piano recordings, yet they so ...

When the pandemic hit, Hannah van Loon adopted a dog named Gizmo, who became a much-needed companion while the Bay Area musician wrote her second album as Tanukichan. Aptly Named after her new four-legged friend, GIZMO is an exercise in release, whether from situational hindrances—a forced lockdown, for one—or from self-imposed hedonistic coping mechanisms.“ A theme I always had floating around was escape,” van Loon explains of her follow-up to 2018’s Sundays. “Escaping from myself, my problems, sadness and cycles.”

To channel the more uplifting spirit she wanted for GIZMO, van Loon turned to the radio pop-rock of her childhood: “I was struck by the in-your-face positivity of the lyrics,” she adds,referencing artists like 311, The Cranberries, and Tom Petty. “I wanted to bring that positivity while writing about the sad and helpless emotions I’d been grappling with.” But GIZMO’s lightheartedness doesn’t make it shallow: “I think that I could let it go, as beautiful as snow,” she murmurs on “Don’t Give Up,” a nu metal-meets-Cocteau Twins groove about the sudden awareness that all the relationships you depend on could vanish instantaneously. Van Loon’s main collaborator on GIZMO was Toro y Moi’s Chaz Bear, and the jangly pop earworm “Take Care” showcases the heavily distorted, in-your-face guitar work reminiscent of Bear’s own psych joints What For? And Mahal. On the hypnotic, wall-of-sound-rocker “Thin Air” featuring Enumclaw, van Loon channels the triumphant grit of The Smashing Pumpkins as she ponders the impermanence of even the most impactful relationships: “I’ll always have the memories/Of how you used to make me see/Until they fell in the ocean/They’re not swimming/They’re not floating.”

Existentialism aside, GIZMO also sees van Loon break out of her sonic comfort zone. “One ofthe main changes of how I’m approaching music now is that I want to have more fun in the process,” she says, and she walks the line between melodrama and whimsy gracefully: “I can learn something because I’ve been here before,” she sings on the soaring, bittersweet “Been Here Before.” Deftones-inspired thrash drums and screeching electric guitars are gracefully contrasted with van Loon’s hypnotic, almost deadpan vocal style and a crystal clear acoustic guitar she describes as “cute.” Gizmo the dog suddenly passed away right as van Loon finished the album, but he’s immortalised with his photo on the cover—a fitting emblem of this new era of Tanukichan.

Clear Vinyl

Kate Fagan took the Chicago punk scene by storm in the early 80's with her self-released single "I Don't Wanna Be Too Cool", which became the best-selling single ever by a local artist at the legendary Wax Trax! Records. Today, Captured Tracks is thrilled to present an expanded, re-mastered edition of I Don't Wanna Be Too Cool as a full-length vinyl album. Fagan wrote "I Don't Wanna Be Too Cool" after moving to Chicago from New York in the late 70's. The track is a critique of the emergent "hipster" attitude of the disco crowd and the posturing she was witnessing among her peers in New York. With its surf-inspired drum machine, irresistible melody, and defiant lyrics, "Too Cool" was immediately embraced by club DJs, radio stations, and independent record stores. Its b-side, "Waiting For The Crisis," also gained notice for its raw musical style and politically charged Reagan-era lyrics, which still resonate today. In the years that followed, Fagan continued to break new ground In 1980, she co-founded the enormously popular ska band Heavy Manners (whose dance parties are still legendary), and with them opened shows for The Clash, Grace Jones, Peter Tosh, The English Beat, and many more. The "Too Cool" single became a sought-after rarity among record collectors for decades after its initial release, until Manufactured Recordings gave it a proper reissue in 2016. Captured Tracks' expanded 2023 follow-up features four unreleased songs, which encapsulate the gutsy, new wave energy that pulses through the original single. The final track, the reggae-tinged "Say It", features production from the reggae legend Peter Tosh and Bob Marley's guitarist Donald Kinsey, who flew in from Jamaica to record with Heavy Manners after witnessing their impassioned live show. While the 2016 reissue re-established Fagan's cult-classic status for a new audience, this new expanded release solidifies her place in a tradition of trailblazing, powerhouse frontwomen.

Let's go back to Italy with the dynamic duo Marvin & Guy aka Alessandro Parlatore and Marcello Giordani.

On their first release for Live At Robert Johnson they team up with another dynamic duo: Hard Ton - and you guessed right, they're Italian too.

So what else to expect than some real cool contemporary Italo Disco just in time for summer? »Save Me« comes in two different mixes: The »Disco Mix« and the »Club Mix« - both featuring the marvelous falsetto voice of Hard Ton's singer Max - himself quite a passionate singer in the field of Heavy Metal - AND Disco - yes, you heard right. But fear not, the Heavy Metal part isn't audible at all. We're talking Hi-NRG sounds galore and of course D.I.S.C.O. - the Munich style disco of someone like Giorgio Moroder doing his thing with Donna Summer or Harvey Fuqua's and Patrick Cowley's work with LGBT legend Sylvester - yes, the »You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)« Sylvester. Not a bad company to get name-dropped, right?

Especially the »Disco Mix« of »Save Me« features many of those typical sounds of said producers and is a beautiful tribute to the golden disco era. The slightly darker »Club Mix« does a great job too by pulling all dancers straight onto the floor with its drum machine generated bass drum and its euphoric claps.

Marvin & Guy's solo track, the aptly named »Supported By Your Favourite DJ« will surely be supported by everyone of our favourite DJs: It's a happy and positive track which definitely will not fail as a secret weapon in everybody's DJ bag.

Now let's get saved by Marvin & Guy - and let's support the Italian scene - it's mighty real!

In late 1996, after two years of persistent touring, Chisel was eager to document its quickly evolving sound. Decamping from their native D.C. to Brooklyn's Rare Book Room, the power trio of Ted Leo, Chris Norborg, and John Dugan teamed with engineer Nicolas Vernhes and came away with Set You Free, a remarkable, but largely overlooked, classic of the era. Originally issued on the venerable Gern Blandsten imprint in April 1997, Set You Free presaged the turn of the century 60s rock revival, providing a counterpoint to second-wave emo. This deluxe 25th anniversary edition has remastered and expanded the original's 17-song track list with five period alternates and rarities, plus a booklet of lyrics, photos, and an essay by Jes Skolnik. Get ready for the invasion.

In late 1996, after two years of persistent touring, Chisel was eager to document its quickly evolving sound. Decamping from their native D.C. to Brooklyn's Rare Book Room, the power trio of Ted Leo, Chris Norborg, and John Dugan teamed with engineer Nicolas Vernhes and came away with Set You Free, a remarkable, but largely overlooked, classic of the era. Originally issued on the venerable Gern Blandsten imprint in April 1997, Set You Free presaged the turn of the century 60s rock revival, providing a counterpoint to second-wave emo. This deluxe 25th anniversary edition has remastered and expanded the original's 17-song track list with five period alternates and rarities, plus a booklet of lyrics, photos, and an essay by Jes Skolnik. Get ready for the invasion.

Bladder Flask’s debut (in fact only) LP, originally issued by Orgel Fesper Music in 1981, is one of the most eclectic albums of the post-Industrial era. It is both challenging and perplexing… So, put down your puny instruments of normality and breathe in the frenzied fungal spores of Bladder Flask.

The fact that Steven Stapleton of Nurse With Wound is a big fan of this album is testament to its greatness: »I love Bladder Flask’s »One Day I Was So Sad That The Corners Of My Mouth Met & Everybody Thought I Was Whistling« and what a great title, perhaps my favourite ever. I must have listened to the album so much in the ’80s. I listened to it again recently and it was like welcoming an old friend.«

Personnel: Richard Rupenus, Philip Rupenus + Sean Breadin, John Mylotte, Nigel Jacklin Recorded at Wrongrong Studio and Spectro Arts Workshop 1980-1981 Audio Restoration & Mastering: Colin Potter @ IC Studio

David Cunningham was born in Ireland in 1954. His work ranges from pop music to gallery installations including several collaborations with visual artists. His first significant commercial success came with The Flying Lizards' single "Money," an international hit in 1979.

Originally released in 1976, Cunningham's first solo album Grey Scale has become a landmark statement of DIY minimalist composition – continuing in the vein of the wild explosion of arthouse experimentation from the early '70s. Cunningham, then a student at the Maidstone College of Art in Kent, drafted fellow student non-musicians and (using whatever instruments available) crafted an endlessly shifting sonic palette with an improvisor's keen sensitivity to space, texture and tone.

As Cunningham states in the liner notes, his approach was to "pursue something (which may appear trivial or meaningless) so rigorously or relentlessly to the point that it reveals something new."

Cunningham was influenced by live performances he was attending at the time by English composers Cornelius Cardew, Gavin Bryars and Michael Nyman as well as free improvisors Evan Parker, Derek Bailey, David Toop and Paul Burwell.

The inaugural release on Cunningham's own Piano label, Grey Scale was indeed "something new" in 1976. The artist quickly integrated his experimental sensibilities to produce art-rock pioneers This Heat, whose debut appeared on Piano in 1979. His popular success performing as The Flying Lizards (with two electro-punk albums on Virgin during the New Wave era) was presaged by this seminal work of fascinating sound collage and tonal freedom. First-time reissue.

Knapp vier Jahre ist es her, dass Adel Tawil sein letztes
Album veröffentlicht hat. In der Zwischenzeit erschienen
Singles wie "Niemandsland" und "Labyrinth" mit dem
Hamburger Rapper Bozza. Im März 2023 erscheint
endlich das langersehnte vierte Studio-Album
"Spiegelbild". Wie der Albumtitel schon erahnen lässt, ist
Reflexion und der Blick nach innen und außen das
Leitthema der Platte. Dieses zeigt sich sowohl musikalisch
als auch textlich. "Ich war die meiste Zeit meines Lebens
darauf fokussiert, den Menschen ein positives Gefühl zu
vermitteln. Es gibt Momente auf diesem Album, die ich
früher definitiv gekillt hätte, weil sie mir zu persönlich,
auch zu dark gewesen wären. Der Song ?Autobahn' ist
beispielsweise so ein Moment. Aber ich musste das
machen. Alles andere wäre nicht ehrlich gewesen.? Der
Sound ist neu, aber der Kern ist classic Adel: die Essenz
all dessen, was Adel Tawil zu einer der prägendsten
Stimme des Deutsch-Pops und einem der grössten
Songwriter des Landes macht.
Das neue Album "Spiegelbild" mit 16 Songs inkl. der
Singles "Niemandsland", "Labyrinth (feat. Bozza)",
"Autobahn" und "Die Welt steht auf Pause" im exklusiven
DigiPac. Die Doppel-Vinyl zum neuen Album "Spiegelbild"
erscheint handsigniert von Adel Tawil.

Knapp vier Jahre ist es her, dass Adel Tawil sein letztes
Album veröffentlicht hat. In der Zwischenzeit erschienen
Singles wie "Niemandsland" und "Labyrinth" mit dem
Hamburger Rapper Bozza. Im März 2023 erscheint
endlich das langersehnte vierte Studio-Album
"Spiegelbild". Wie der Albumtitel schon erahnen lässt, ist
Reflexion und der Blick nach innen und außen das
Leitthema der Platte. Dieses zeigt sich sowohl musikalisch
als auch textlich. "Ich war die meiste Zeit meines Lebens
darauf fokussiert, den Menschen ein positives Gefühl zu
vermitteln. Es gibt Momente auf diesem Album, die ich
früher definitiv gekillt hätte, weil sie mir zu persönlich,
auch zu dark gewesen wären. Der Song ?Autobahn' ist
beispielsweise so ein Moment. Aber ich musste das
machen. Alles andere wäre nicht ehrlich gewesen.? Der
Sound ist neu, aber der Kern ist classic Adel: die Essenz
all dessen, was Adel Tawil zu einer der prägendsten
Stimme des Deutsch-Pops und einem der grössten
Songwriter des Landes macht.
Das neue Album "Spiegelbild" mit 16 Songs inkl. der
Singles "Niemandsland", "Labyrinth (feat. Bozza)",
"Autobahn" und "Die Welt steht auf Pause" im exklusiven
DigiPac. Die Doppel-Vinyl zum neuen Album "Spiegelbild"
erscheint handsigniert von Adel Tawil.

Die ultimative
Fanbox zum neuen Album "Spiegelbild". Die Box
beinhaltet neben der CD ein exklusives Adel Tawil
Kartenspiel-Set, Beanie-Mütze, Early-Entry-Pass für alle
Adel Tawil Solo-Konzerte in 2023, schwarzes Lanyard mit
gewebtem "Adel Tawil - Spiegelbild" - Schriftzug.

In the wake of their acclaimed comeback album Figures (2020), Aksak Maboul took a playful sideways step to create this total work, a 63-minute, continuous suite of fifteen pieces, which could be described as an experimental audio play. The thread running through Une aventure de VV (Songspiel) is Véronique Vincent"s text, an enigmatic philosophical-poetical tale unfolding through monologues and dialogues, spoken and sung by a series of characters. The music was written & arranged by Marc Hollander and features his characteristic genre-hopping tendencies: strands of electronica, pop, jazz, collage, techno, ambient, improv, krautrock, contemporary classical & systems music are merrily woven together, in the inimitable Aksak Maboul style. The album"s subtitle, Songspiel, highlights its theatrical/musical aspect: the work pays oblique homage to the those experimental radio plays that once emerged from the creative workshops of the BBC, the RTF and the RAI, and especially to those German Hörspiels which, at their best, might combine spoken word, instrumental or electronic music, songs and sonic research. The album features appearances by Alig Fodder, Audrey Ginestet & Benjamin Glibert (Aquaserge), Lætitia Sadier (Stereolab), Blaine L. Reininger (Tuxedomoon), Don The Tiger, and the members of AKsak Maboul"s current live line-up.

In late 1996, after two years of persistent touring,
Chisel were eager to document their quickly
evolving sound. Decamping from their native DC to
Brooklyn’s Rare Book Room, the power trio of Ted
Leo, Chris Norborg, and John Dugan teamed with
engineer Nicolas Vernhes and came away with
‘Set You Free’, a remarkable, but largely
overlooked, classic of the era.

Originally issued on the venerable Gern Blandsten
imprint in April 1997, ‘Set You Free’ presaged the
turn of the century 1960s rock revival, providing a
counterpoint to second wave emo.

This deluxe 25th Anniversary edition, available on
River High Brown coloured vinyl or black vinyl, has
remastered and expanded the original’s 17-song
tracklist with five period alternates and rarities, and
both formats include a booklet of lyrics, photos,
and an essay by Jes Skolnik

In late 1996, after two years of persistent touring,
Chisel were eager to document their quickly
evolving sound. Decamping from their native DC to
Brooklyn’s Rare Book Room, the power trio of Ted
Leo, Chris Norborg, and John Dugan teamed with
engineer Nicolas Vernhes and came away with
‘Set You Free’, a remarkable, but largely
overlooked, classic of the era.

Originally issued on the venerable Gern Blandsten
imprint in April 1997, ‘Set You Free’ presaged the
turn of the century 1960s rock revival, providing a
counterpoint to second wave emo.

This deluxe 25th Anniversary edition, available on
River High Brown coloured vinyl or black vinyl, has
remastered and expanded the original’s 17-song
tracklist with five period alternates and rarities, and
both formats include a booklet of lyrics, photos,
and an essay by Jes Skolnik

Slade were unstoppable throughout the seventies becoming one of Europe's biggest bands, releasing 6 smash hit albums, including three UK No-1’s, a run of 17 consecutive Top 20 singles and their hits are synonymous with the glam era.
First released in 1983, this splatter vinyl of ‘The Amazing Kamikaze Symdrome’ hears the band smash through a series of hits including Run Runaway, My Oh My and Ready To Explode.

The inception of 49North marks the beginning of a brand new era for Duncan Forbes; who most emphatically made his mark on the WW scene as one half of legendary duo - Spooky - alongside Charlie May; releasing a string of landmark singles and albums over 3 decades, not to mention timeless remix / production work for International heavyweights like Depeche Mode, M83, Sasha, William Orbit, Mr.G and Apparat.
A1: ‘Burning Bright As Magnesium’
“Heading up this second ‘Distilled & Amplified’, 12” sampler is one of Duncan’s most leg-sweeping, curveball originals to date - 'Burning Bright As Magnesium'... a super tripped-out, Techno head-spinner; powered by an eerie, almost spectral kind of funk.
B1: ‘In The Mansion Of The Gods’ (Mr G’s ‘Home Alone’ Remix)
“And on the flip, we see Duncan’s second ever solo release - 'In The Mansion Of The Gods' - get the rework treatment from close friend Mr G, and his unrivalled brand of analogue magic. And if you haven't heard the Phoenix G man go full-throttle before - you're in for a barn-storming treat.”

3 Feet High and Rising is the debut studio album by hip hop trio De La Soul and was released on March 3, 1989

It marked the first of three full- length collaborations with producer Prince Paul, which would become the critical and commercial peak of both parties. Critically, as well as commercially, the album was a success. It contains the singles, "Me Myself and I", "The Magic Number", "Buddy", and "Eye Know".

The album title came from the Johnny Cash song "Five Feet High and Rising". It is listed on Rolling Stone's 200 Essential Rock Records and The Source's 100 Best Rap Albums. When Village Voice held its annual Pazz & Jop Critics Poll for 1989, 3 Feet High and Rising was ranked #1. It was also listed on the Rolling Stone's

The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. Released amid the 1989 boom in gangsta rap, which gravitated towards hardcore, confrontational, violent lyrics, De La Soul's uniquely positive style made them an oddity beginning with the first single, "Me, Myself and I". Their positivity meant many observers labeled them a 'hippie' group, based on their declaration of the 'D.A.I.S.Y. Age' (Da. Inner. Soul. Yall).

Sampling artists as diverse as Hall & Oates, Steely Dan and The Turtles, 3 Feet High and Rising is often viewed as the stylistic beginning of 1990s alternative hip hop (and especially jazz rap).

3 Feet High and Rising is the debut studio album by hip hop trio De La Soul and was released on March 3, 1989

It marked the first of three full- length collaborations with producer Prince Paul, which would become the critical and commercial peak of both parties. Critically, as well as commercially, the album was a success. It contains the singles, "Me Myself and I", "The Magic Number", "Buddy", and "Eye Know".

The album title came from the Johnny Cash song "Five Feet High and Rising". It is listed on Rolling Stone's 200 Essential Rock Records and The Source's 100 Best Rap Albums. When Village Voice held its annual Pazz & Jop Critics Poll for 1989, 3 Feet High and Rising was ranked #1. It was also listed on the Rolling Stone's

The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. Released amid the 1989 boom in gangsta rap, which gravitated towards hardcore, confrontational, violent lyrics, De La Soul's uniquely positive style made them an oddity beginning with the first single, "Me, Myself and I". Their positivity meant many observers labeled them a 'hippie' group, based on their declaration of the 'D.A.I.S.Y. Age' (Da. Inner. Soul. Yall).

Sampling artists as diverse as Hall & Oates, Steely Dan and The Turtles, 3 Feet High and Rising is often viewed as the stylistic beginning of 1990s alternative hip hop (and especially jazz rap).

180 GRAM AUDIOPHILE VINYL
PVC PROTECTIVE SLEEVE
GATEFOLD SLEEVE WITH VELVET SPOT VARNISH ON THE OUTSIDE AND IMAGES OF ICONIC MOVIE POSTERS ON THE INSIDE
4-PAGE INSERT
A SELECTION OF DEFINING MORRICONE SONGS, FEATURED IN CLASSIC MOVIES AND SERIES “VERUSCHKA”, “SLALOM”, “ALIBI”, “VIOLENT CITY”, “MACHINE GUN MCCAIN”, AND MANY MORE
LINER NOTES BY CLAUDIO FUIANO
PART OF THE MORRICONE THEMES COLLECTION
THE SPINES OF THE FIVE TITLES FORM ONE IMAGE TOGETHER
MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE SERIES ON MORRICONEONVINYL
BLACK VINYL

Lounge is the third in a series of five double vinyl releases that bring together some of Ennio Morricone’s greatest soundtrack music. Each collection centres on a different movie genre, together they allow the listener to rediscover the unmatched genius of the greatest movie composer of all time. The Maestro. This collection was announced before Ennio Morricone passed away on July 6, 2020. We’ll continue to release the series to honour this great composer.

The term Lounge Music is not one that Ennio Morricone would have heard at the time he was composing these pieces for the movies that they enhanced, but it is one has been retrospectively applied to a certain type of music, and it is a style that Morricone has contributed a great deal towards.

Lounge refers to a type of easy listening music that began to be popular in the 1950s and developed right through the 1960s and into the 1970s. This was sophisticated music for an adult audience. Lounge music combined its American influences with music that was popular outside the USA such as Latin, Hawaiian, Polynesian, French , and many others. This was an era that was inspired by new inventions. Lounge mimicked the space-age sound effects of the time and the advent of stereophonic technology allowed spatial audio techniques to be used to full effect.

This collection is not about a specific genre of music for film, it is a celebration of Lounge style pieces by Morricone that are capable of evoking in the listener thoughts of easy living, sophistication, romantic moods, and the excitement of a 1950s cocktail lounge or a 1960s nightclub.

Starting 70 years ago as an arranger for the piece Mamma Bianca, Ennio Morricone is the emperor of scores and soundtracks. Morricone has always been a huge influence for the likes of Hans Zimmer, Danger Mouse, Muse, Metallica and many more musicians. He was one of the most successful composers of all-time, selling over 70 million records and winning dozens of awards.

Lounge on black vinyl includes a 4-page insert with liner notes written by Claudio Fuiano. The gatefold sleeve contains a velvet spot varnish on the outside and images of iconic movie posters on the inside.

Wipe your blade clean. The bloodline of Eastern European kosmische and groundbreaking, grinding cinematic psych rock finally emerges from fifty years of forbidden forestland to fill your thirsty grails. Poland’s prime progressive provocateurs Żuławski and Korzyński finally expose the jagged roots of Possession and The Silver Globe and give the devil his due via this historical vinyl release.

If an opening strapline that reads “Forget everything that you thought you knew about the history of psychedelic rock and horror movies” appeals to you, then further potentially hyperbolic phrases like “Lost Grail” and “Banned Forever” will surely clinch the deal, leaving the hugely significant wider context of this dream come true release surplus to requirement. But as we hope you have come to expect from Finders Keepers releases “The devil is in the detail” and the fact that any mention of the perpetually elusive original master tapes to a 1972 project entitled Diabeł and the phrase “Holy Grail” have become synonymously associated only adds the twisted irony that surrounds this genuine masterpiece of both aforementioned fields.

For those fastidious enough to pursue the hunt, these unearthed recordings represent the crowning glory of the lifelong unison of Maestro Andrzej Żuławski and filmmaker Andrzej Korzyński, two genuine mavericks of Polish experimental cinema who challenged artistic and societal norms, on both sides of a politically restricted regime and on an international artistic stage, without compromise. Friends since childhood, Korzyński and Żuławski may have become divided by limelight and geography (Żuławski the intrepid emigre), but they remained united in their kaleidoscopic creative vision, resulting in a fractured stream of troublesome and mind-bending golden era collaborations such as Possession, The Silver Globe, and Third Part Of The Night. This long-awaited liberation of the psychedelic masterpiece known as Diabeł finally completes the duo’s full vista with what many consider the most vital piece of the prism.

If we want to look into the future, we have to start considering the implications more holistically. All too often, science fiction is a dystopian projection of the current era's grimmest realities spiked with pragmatic historical hindsight - but what if instead it was able to reflect our needs, hopes, and dreams? On "SPINE", award-winning Danish composer SØS Gunver Ryberg considers a sustainable alternative, buoyed by interconnectedness, empowerment, and understanding. Channeling her dextrous sound design into advanced, time-bending music that fluctuates through techno, experimental ambient, and soundsystem-vibrating bass music, she maps out an artistic landscape that's futuristic and complex, but never oppressive.

Ryberg is an accomplished producer who's developed her sound over many years, playing concerts and working tirelessly on video game soundtracks, film scores, dance, performance, and multichannel installation pieces. Her first solo album "Entangled" appeared in 2019 on Berlin's esteemed Avian imprint, and was praised for its sensitive approach to noise and abstracted techno, while its EP-length followup "WHYT 030" was nominated for the Nordic Council's prestigious music prize this year. "SPINE" is the inaugural release on Ryberg's own label Arterial, and stands as a thematically dense statement of intent. The label provides a platform to extend Ryberg's artistic goals and reflect not just her world but a world she wants to see develop in the future: somewhere connected and creative, where exploration and free expression is prioritized over genre division and petty compromise.

This philosophy is central to the sounds on "SPINE", which have been carefully sculpted to accurately lay out Ryberg's worldview. Opening track 'Unfolding' presents a sonic ecosystem that flourishes as it spreads itself out, and quivering kick drums vibrate alongside unstable atmospherics. There's the faint fingerprint of Chain Reaction's notional dub techno in there somewhere, but Ryberg interrupts the thought before it can coagulate, assuring the listener that her vision isn't ponderous but playful and optimistic. This mood flickers into view again on the title track 'Spine', as fragmented breaks rumble beneath disorienting synths, faint images of a life we once knew refracted into cosmic beams of light. 'Mirrored Madness' meanwhile is warm, assertive, and optimistic, contrasting skittering cybernetic percussion with dense, enveloping harmonies.

When she pushes rhythm into the background, like on the cinematic 'We tumble on the edges', Ryberg's compositional skill is placed under the microscope. We're presented with the opportunity to examine another dimension of her work, the mystery beneath the stone, hearing saturated, alluring pads infused with hidden harmonies. In these moments, Ryberg implores all of us to consider the environment, asking us to think about the earth's essential nutrients on the dreamy 'Phosphorus Cycle', and what we might do to save ourselves on the delirious 'Where do we go from here'. Ryberg's concern isn't chastising, it's laid out in a warm embrace. The future could still be bright - there's something beautiful in the complexity if you just take the time to look closely.

The 1990s were a time when hip-hop infused with R&B became pop music, and at the forefront of this movement was En Vogue. Their most commercially and critically successful album, Funky Divas, stands as one of the best pop/R&B albums to emerge from that time, incorporating soul, hip-hop, pop, dance, and rock to create one of the era’s most diverse, dazzling, and exciting pieces of work. The album scored no less than five hit singles, three of which became Top 10 pop hits. It includes the unstoppable “My Lovin’ (You’re Never Gonna Get It)”, which was one of the biggest hits of 1992 and additionally the remake of “Giving Him Something He Can Feel,” “Give It Up Turn It Loose,” and “Free Your Mind”.

Funky Divas is available as a limited edition of 1500 individually numbered copies on purple coloured vinyl and includes an insert.

Ten years after our initial survey of Afro-Latin accented rhythm & blues from the mid-century, Jazzman proudly presents a fourth installment, packed with as many musical surprises as the first. With music plucked from an era spanning the late 1940s into the early 60s, Jukebox Mambo IV highlights yet again the unparalleled musical creativity of the post war era, and shows how the infusion of afro-latin rhythms was key to these revolutions.

Lovingly and painstakingly researched and curated, the album boasts 23 tracks, many previously uncompiled, touching on jazz, blues, doo wop, calypso, rock & roll, gospel and more. Featuring individual track notes for every song along with some never seen before photographs of the artists, Jukebox Mambo Vol IV maintains the same high production values of each previous volume, and indeed the wider Jazzman catalogue.

Light in the Attic’s Pacific Breeze series has supplied the world’s growing legions of Japanese music fans with an expertly curated selection of the most sought-after City Pop recordings—the mesmerizing and nebulous genre of Japanese bubble-era music of the ‘70s-’80s that encompasses AOR, R&B, jazz fusion, funk, boogie and disco. These familiar sounds are spun through the unique lens of optimistic, cosmopolitan fantasy colored by Japan’s affluence at the time. Much of the music has previously been nearly impossible to acquire outside of Japan and continues to captivate listeners with its unique blend of groove-laden escapism, even birthing wholly new genres such as Vaporwave.

Pacific Breeze 3: Japanese City Pop, AOR & Boogie 1975-1987 marks the latest chapter in the famed series and features holy grails plus under-the-radar rarities. The collection bursts at the seams to reveal some of the greatest Japanese tracks ever laid to tape, pushing towards the edge of City Pop to reveal glimmers of the next waves of styles to spring forth from the country’s creative minds. The appearance of Pizzicato Five hint at the emergence of Shibuya-kei while the influence of hip hop and electro as an emerging global trend are also evident here through the prevalence of heavier programmed drum beats on tracks such as “Heartbeat” by Miho Fujiwara.

This volume of Pacific Breeze, like its predecessors, is a female-forward offering with many tracks being voiced by women who would become household names in Japan as actresses and pop idols. Their songs here subvert the norm and brim with an innovative spirit that shatters gender roles in favor of sonic transcendence. Techno-pop classics from Susan, Miharu Koshi and Chiemi Manabe sit alongside sublime funk from Atsuko Nina and Naomi Akimoto while Teresa Noda slides into the mix with a sultry reggae jam. The genre span is stretched wider with hypnotic jazz fusion by Parachute and Hiroyuki Namba, a synthesizer fantasy from Osamu Shoji, and magnetic pop by Makoto Matsushita and Chu Kosaka.

Although not front and center, the visionary members of Yellow Magic Orchestra are still very present on Pacific Breeze 3, with Haruomi Hosono, Ryuichi Sakamoto, and Yukihiro Takahashi taking up producer and musician roles on many of these tracks. Pacific Breeze 3 serves up a captivating musical journey that adds an essential chapter to the iconic compilation series.

Tracklist:

Naomi Akimoto - Bewitched (Are You Leaving Soon), Atsuko Nina - Tonkachi, Miho Fujiwara - Heartbeat, Miharu Koshi - Scandal Night, Chu Kosaka - Shirakechimauze, Teresa Noda - Tropical Love, Makoto Matsushita - Business Man Pt. 1, Susan - Ah! Soka, Yukako Hayase - Suiyoubi Madeni Shinitaino, Parachute - Kowloon Daily, Hiroyuki Namba - Tropical Exposition (Who Done It? Version), Pizzicato Five - Boy Meets Girl, Mari Iijima - Love Sick, 1986 Omega Tribe - Cosmic Love, Osamu Shoji - Pub Casablanca, Chiemi Manabe - Untotooku

Started as a reggae band, Chequers were formed by the Matthias Brothers, John & Richard, in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire in 1973. Inititally releasing in the early part of the 1970s (with their first single Rudi's In Love charting in the UK) their sound then developed to also incorporate Philly soul influences in the mid-70s, then releasing a rare but solid LP 'Check Us Out', in 1976. The group eventually evolved into a seven piece funk outfit in the late 70s, playing shows to larger and larger audiences and touring throughout the UK & Europe.

1980 saw the birth of the Matthias brothers' own small independent outlet for the group, Matthias Records. The press release of the new label's first single declared that their "roots in the reggae and soul music of the last mod era" were being brought up to date, now embracing "the music of today and tomorrow...". That 45 (the cheeky pop-punk meets ska cover version of Midnight Hour, backed with the uptempo instrumental funk of Move Up) didn't necessarily come good on that promise. 3 years would then pass until this 45 showcased the throughly-updated & stellar electro-boogie sound of Hard Times and it's equally strong b-side If You Want My Love.

Following this neither Matthias Records nor Chequers as a group ever released anything further - the record's scarcity (and hideously inflated prices on today's secondhand market) hint at low sales and potential distribution problems upon it's original release, perhaps leading to the label and the group calling it a day. Conjecture aside, there's really no denying this record slaps, and with discogs prices reaching beyond ridiculous levels there is only one option - get it before it's gone!

MORE EPHEMEROL is one of the most fresh and surprising minimal synth project we have heard in months at Oráculo Records. Recorded with a fully analog systems, the simplicity and quality of the arrangements and the overwhelming vocals reminds to the best era of the genre back in the 80’s but with a new approach that makes it sound so fresh and new. The L.A.’s duo, with an amazing album coming up soon after this presentation EP, will be for sure an important player on the international synth scene. Comes presented in one-off truly limited edition of 300 copies lacquered pressed on 180gr. high quality solid black vinyl. All tracks have been specially remastered for long cut vinyl by Daniel Hallhuber at Young and Cold Studios.

In celebration of the fifth Piano Day, Nils Frahm will release his acclaimed All Encores album on 3LP vinyl. Originally only available as a CD and digital download in October, All Encores encompassed the three Encores EPs as one full length featuring 80 minutes of music, following his masterful 2018 album All Melody. Whilst Encores 1 focused on an acoustic pallet of sounds with solo piano and harmonium at the core, and Encores 2 explored more ambient landscapes, now Encores 3 sees Nils expand on the percussive and electronic elements in his work. “The idea behind All Encores is one we had from before All Melody; to separate releases each with their own distinct musical style and theme, perhaps even as a triple album. But All Melody became larger than itself and took over any initial concepts. I think the idea of All Encores is like musical islands that compliment All Melody.” Moulded during All Melody but refined by his live performances, All Encores is testament to Nils’ exceptional ability to craft his art on stage. Artificially Intelligent which showcases his ‘mad professor’ organ, and All Armed which has been a live favourite for some time, appearing on set lists since 2015, are now available to hear on record for the very first time. The final track of Encores 3, as well as the whole series, Amirador, perhaps aptly nods to the Spanish word for ‘lookout’ and hints at what’s to come.

First Word Records is extremely proud to welcome the legendary New Sector Movements to the label, and the first new release from this moniker in 15 years! A 5-track EP for 'These Times', comprised of street soul, hip hop, jazz and bruk-tinged vibes.

Founded, headed and produced by DJ & musician IG Culture (CoOp Presents / LCSM), this all-new quasi-group project also features the vocal talents of Allysha Joy, Mike City and Natalie May with additional accompaniment from Wonky Logic, Wayne Francis, Alex Phountzi and the NSM Fusion Starship!

New Sector Movements (aka NSM) were the first out the gate at the dawn of the original broken beat movement, releasing their first single 'Groove Now / New Goya' on the People label in 1997, then releasing several singles and EPs through to the late noughties, and dropping a classic album on Virgin entitled 'Download This'. The previous incarnation featured several other artists from the bruk foundation era, including Kaidi Tatham, Izzy Dunn, Julie Dexter and Eska Mtungwazi amongst others.

Awarded a 'Lifetime Achievement Award' at the 2019 Worldwide Awards, NSM's IG Culture is a hugely pioneering prolific artist in the UK music scene. His catalogue of releases over the years has seen numerous aliases, collaborations, remixes and productions. Appearing on the scene in 1990 as part of Dodge City Productions, to producing several solo albums throughout the noughties, to recent years with his hugely-acclaimed cosmic jazz outfit LCSM (Likwid Continual Space Motion), additionally to co-running the CoOp Presents label, continuing the legacy of the award-winning club night whilst showcasing new artists, IG Culture has been omnipresent at every corner of British black music for three decades deep, influencing many a sound.

This is all additionally to projects like NameBrandSound, Likwid Biskit, Da One Away and Son of Scientist to name just a few. His work has appeared on releases by Roots Manuva, Young Disciples, Les Nubians and Monday Michiru, while remix work over the years has included Gang Starr, Femi Kuti, José James, Miraa May, Slum Village, Digital Underground, Luniz, Naughty By Nature, Airto Moreira & Flora Purim.

As a DJ, he's shut down dances all over the world, recently at places like Fabric, We Out Here festival and Summer Dance Forever in Amsterdam, as well as regularly rocking the airwaves on Worldwide FM and combining the two at BBC 6 Music's All Points East stage in the Summer. IG Culture also founded Selectors Assemble; a collective of forward thinking DJs and producers.

So, as we head towards Winter 2022, New Sector Movements has returned (but don't call it a comeback!). After a turbulent few years in the world, it seemed a poignant moment to reinvigorate the soul, and reflect upon 'These Times'. Here we have five brand new tracks, each illustrating a pertinent mood and attitude representing the current climate. Allysha Joy leads the vocal on EP opener 'These Times', a sumptuous slice of street soul with a deeply infectious horn hook. 'Stand' is next - uptempo boom bap for the dancers, this one featuring the soulful pipes of Mike City. 'Hope' is a midtempo jazz-funk dub again feature vocal licks from Allysha, and introducing the mysterious NSM Fusion Starship into the fold. 'H.E.A.T.' picks up the pace with some infectious jazz-bruk business, this one lead by Natalie May on the vocals, who explains "heat = movement, motion". And finally 'Bless' with closes the set on a four-four riddim with bruk sensibilites, inviting Mike City back with an uplifting vocal requesting we "bless the people just trying to make it".

An essential EP of cross-genre vibes to resonate cross-generations, New Sector Movements do not ramp. IG Culture and crew proceed to give you what you need for 'These Times'.

'These Times' is released on vinyl and digital worldwide via First Word Records late February 2023.

Grant Green’s musical style evolved to embrace jazz-funk as the decade turned to 1970. The guitarist’s vibrant album Green Is Beautiful is a highlight of the era with his distinctive tone shining on a set that included covers of James Brown (“Ain’t It Funky Now”), The Beatles (“A Day In The Life”) & Burt Bacharach (“I’ll Never Fall In Love Again”).

This Blue Note Classic Vinyl Edition is stereo, all-analog, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original master tapes, and pressed on 180g vinyl at Optimal.

Futurismo present their new anthology series: Altered Vision, beginning with SUBURBAN ANNIHILATION The California Hardcore Explosion / From The City To The Beach: 1978-1983.

This aggressive collection draws from California’s rich history of punk, more specifically hardcore: a new sound that eschewed melody for intensity, a sound that took punk harder and faster, a sound intrinsically American. Whilst hardcore was also burning over on the East Coast, it was in California that it had ignited and sprawled, a sonic punch in the face that raged socio-political disdain and total abandonment for commercialism, fuelled by a crumbling American Dream and the collapse of family values.

Suburban Annihilation takes you from the major cities, to the coastal towns, to the SoCal suburbs, showcasing some the most important bands of the West Coast. Blasting off with the Adolescents ‘I Hate Children’, it heads from the year zero of Middle Class’s ‘Out Of Vogue’ to the surf punk of Agent Orange’s ‘Bloodstains’, from the blues tinged outlaw of The Gun Club’s ‘She’s Like Heroin to Me’ to the classic anti-anthems: ‘Live Fast Die Young’ by the Circle Jerks, lifted from their seminal Group Sex album, and the hardcore staple ‘California ÜberAlles’ by the Dead Kennedys. Also present are so many other bands integral to the era: T.S.O.L, Wasted Youth, Germs, Social Distortion, Suicidal Tendencies, Negative Trend, Flipper and many more.

Though the music was designed to repel, this historical document has been lovingly designed to remind us that this genre created some of the most immediate and acutely-realised music ever produced. Making this collection of choice cuts essential for long-time fans of hardcore and punk, just as those new and inquisitive about one of the most angry and pissed off genres to have given birth in America.

This 2xLP comes in a choice of limited edition coloured vinyl, it has a tracklist co-curated by Henry Rollins, it contains liner notes by Lisa Fancher of Frontier, a bio by award winning author Benjamin Myers, and contains a booklet featuring an array of images by the legendary punk photographer Edward Colver.

Hailu Mergia & Dahlak Band's Wede Harer Guzo is the third release on Awesome Tapes From Africa for Ethiopian keyboard and accordion maestro. In the years since Shemonmuanaye, Mergia has revamped his touring career, playing festivals and clubs worldwide, including a recent tour supporting Beirut. By 1978, Addis Ababa's nightlife was facing challenges. The ruling Derg regime imposed curfews, banning citizens from the streets after midnight until 6:00 am. But that didn't stop some people from dancing and partying through the night. Bands would play from evening until daybreak and people would stay at the clubs until curfew was lifted in the morning. One key denizen of Addis' musical golden age, Hailu Mergia, was preparing a follow-up to his seminal Tche Belew LP with the famed Walias Band. It was the band's only full-length record and it had been a success. But his Hilton house band colleagues were a bit tied up recording cassettes with different vocalists. Still Mergia, amidst recording and gigs with the Walias, was also eager to make another recording of his instrumental-focused arrangements. So he went to the nearby Ghion Hotel, another upmarket outpost with a popular nightclub. Dahlak Band was the house band at Ghion at the time. Together they made this tape Wede Harer Guzo right there in the club during the band's afternoon rehearsal meetings, with sessions lasting three days. Dahlak Band catered to a slightly more youthful, local audience, while Mergia's main gig with the Walias at Addis' swankiest hotel had a mixed audience that included wealthy Ethiopians, foreign diplomats and older folks from abroad. Therefore, their sets featured lighter fare during dinnertime and a less rollicking selection of jazz and r&b. Meanwhile, Dahlak was known more for the mainly soul and Amharic jams they served up for hours two nights a week to a younger crowd. Mergia released Wede Harer Guzo ("Journey to Harer," a city in eastern Ethiopia) with Sheba Music Shop, which was located in the Piazza district but has long since shut down. His cassette copy is the only known source we could find. Jessica Thompson at Coast Mastering managed to restore the recording to clean up layers of hiss, flutter and distorted frequencies, made worse by years of storage. Although there are some remaining sonic artifacts of the era's recording and cassette duplicating quality, this reissue captures the band's inimitable vibe. Recalling the audience's positive reaction to Wede Harer Guzo's novel arrangements, he says it sold well and found many fans. However, as no trace of the tape can be found online, there's no indication as to why the cassette appears largely forgotten until now

After leaving BMG, Theo Lawrence returns to independence with the launch of his own label Tomika in 2020 and a busy year in 2022: opening acts for Robert Plant & Alison Krauss and Charley Crockett, Americana Fest (Nashville), SXSW and a European tour, Theo Lawrence unveils a new album entitled Chérie. A 12-track jewel case, recorded in Nashville and sailing between ultra- romantic and thrilling ballads, Louisiana Cajun sounds, silky string arrangements and epic vocal flights taking you back to the Pop Music heyday of Roy Orbison and Frank Sinatra. Theo Lawrence is a young French-Canadian songwriter based in Bordeaux. His music is rooted in the country music of the 50"s and 60"s, while borrowing elements from soul, pop and rock&roll of the same era. A mixture of styles and sounds, with a deep love of tradition, while bearing the stamp of modern times. Theo brings a new sound to traditional American music, and with this new album confirms that he is part of the prolific new North American country scene.

‘Change’ is the brand-new album by Anika, the first solo music from theBerlin based artist in 8 years.
A British ex-pat and former political journalist, Anika has collaborated withBEAK>and Tricky and released two albums with Mexico City’s Exploded.
View to great acclaim. The single ‘Change’ tackles personal growth as well as wider issues and grapples with eternal questions as to whether one can ever truly change.
It has been 11 years since the release of her last solo album, 2010 cultfavourite ‘Anika’; she suddenly found herself with a lot to say. “This album had been planned for a little while and the circumstances of its inception were quite different to what had been expected. This coloured the album quite significantly. The lyrics were all written there on the spot. It’s a vomit of emotions, anxieties, empowerment and of thoughts like - How can this go on? How can we go on?”
The intimacy of its creation and a palpable sense of global anxiety are
seemingly baked into the DNA of Change. Spread across nine tracks, the central feeling of the record is one of heightened frustration buoyed by guarded optimism. The songs offer skittering, austere electronic backdrops reminiscent of classic Broadcast records or ‘High Scores’-era Boards of Canada, playing them against Anika’s remarkable voice - Nico-esque, beautifully plaintive and - in regards to the record’s subject matter - totally resolute. Incantatory tracks like ‘Naysayer’ and ‘Never Coming Back’ are both a call to arms and a warning. “‘Never Coming Back’ was written after reading Rachel Carson’s ‘Silent Spring’,” she explains. “I was living in the old East countryside outside of Berlin, where there seemed to be no shortage of birds. Apparently their numbers have dropped significantly, but it is one of these changes that we never really stop and notice. We take things for granted, until it’s too late. With all this other noise
going on, care for the environment has quickly been moved to the backburner. So long as we get what we want NOW and on demand, who cares about whether we are taking care of the future?”

Sublime Frequencies is honored to release the third LP from Baba Commandant and the Mandingo Band. Sonbonbela was recorded in the beginning of 2022 in the Republic of Burkina Faso. The group continue to hone their trademark fusion of Mandingue and afro-beat styles. The Mandingo Band are a hit machine, sculpting seven new tracks of near Beefheart/Magic Band dynamics, Fela inspired groovers dusted out in the Sahel zone, rather than the humidity and sweat of Lagos, creating one of the most original and propulsive musical statements to come from the contemporary West African cultural juggernaut. As with previous releases, the band features the legendary guitar pyrotechnics of Issouf Diabate, truly one of the greatest West African (or Earth for that matter) guitarists of the last forty years. The band is completed by a near bottomless barrel of artistry from the Ouagadougou and Bobo Dioulasso musical talent pool. On bass guitar, Wendeyida Ouedraogo, on drums Abbas Kabore, and on percussion and balafon, Nickie Dembele. Leading the charge again is the captain himself, Mamadou Sanou on the Doso Ngoni featuring one of the most distinctive voices of the modern era. The opposite of the banal trends of auto-tune that have pervaded most of West African popular music, Baba’s voice still impresses with its gravel and grit, showcasing a range that is ancient and defiant in equal measure. This LP is a non-stop hit parade of afro-beat bangers destined to light dance floors and living rooms ablaze!!! This album is dedicated to the memory of Massimbo Taragna, the bass player extraordinaire who was an integral part of the Mandingo Band’s trance stun musical power. He passed away in early 2022. RIP TRACKLIST: Side A: CHASSER LES SACHETS, KAMELEBA, AFRO MANDINGO, SEMAYALA Sida B: SEREJUGU, SONBANBELA, WARIKO

'Turning (Inside Out)' is the new 12" dance single from Arbutus Records, a collaboration between Canadian synthpop artist Moon King and Baltimore production team Visors, with added vocals from fellow Bmore rapper DDM and, in a surprising turn of events, saxophone from the Neptunes' Chad Hugo, under his St Charles alias.
The 'pandemic-era online collab' has given us some strange and unlikely gems, of which this record is certainly one - a mesmerizing
mid-tempo groove with Moon King and DDM's call and response vocals floating above, culminating in a catchy chorus: 'feels like turning inside out, when I need you there, you're not around'.