quête:from r

The new DIEVERSITY album "IV" can only be described in superlatives! The songs on "IV" definitely set a new benchmark in songwriting and production for DIEVERSITY! The new album "IV" is modern metal par excellence, that easily stands up to any international comparison and operates entirely at the pulse of the times. DIEVERSITY from Germany – as sharp-edged as ever, but with a new razor-sharp blade! Listen to the album and you will get addicted immediately"! Be prepared for something BIG!

“There's a clarity here that feels hard-won. Honing ideas first explored with his Organic Music series, Tiago Sousa unlocks the final puzzle pieces on Sustained Tones Vol 1. This music is enchanted, the way each layer moves in conjunction with the others: complex structures that feel less constructed than discovered, like stumbling upon ancient mechanisms still whirring beneath the earth. "Readily Reliance" opens as an effervescent sea, waves gilded in neon creating an enveloping sense of eternal motion. Bright organ timbres throw silhouettes and cast Sousa as the deft puppeteer keeping everything moving with an effortless precision. These evolving shapes suspend listeners somewhere between the physical and the cosmic, held in place by nothing but intention and sound.

Drones build rippling foundations in other places, using slower tempos to construct immersive, off-kilter sound worlds where minimalism becomes emotive, almost poignant. The fluctuating tones have a gossamer sheen, creating this interesting sonic dichotomy: a solid surface with fragile rotations beneath. It's music that commands attention; it is so much more than simply aural furniture. Sousa writes these beautiful sequences that are all interconnected, intricate sonic architecture that pulls us further into some kind of unknowable ether.

On the piano pieces, "Smooth Flow Into It" and "Swirling Mist and Thin Dust," Sousa shines sunlight through all the cracks. Washes of melody are effervescent, clouds clearing to reveal the day has not gone. Not yet. Positioned in the middle of Sustained Tones Vol 1, these pieces ground the album in something transcendent yet still earthen: moments of breath inside all that cosmic drift. Darkness finds its way through on "Restlessness," where Sousa smears sinuous electronics into a ghostly sonic mesh that seeps through the skin. It feels like a slow inhale, time suspended long enough to take note of where we are and how we feel before moving forward. Expressive, almost sparkling synth arrangements return to send us back into reality on closer "Becoming a Landscape." Its title hints at larger concepts at play throughout this album, where lines between our physical beings and the wider environment are blurred. The tones that echo throughout these six pieces mirror the echoes inside our bodies, from heartbeats and voices to something quieter, something much smaller and more elemental. By immersing us inside these mesmerising, beautiful soundscapes, Sousa immerses us within ourselves.’’

Brad Rose, 2025

A reflection on how we hold each other and how we let go, ‘Secular Music Vol 1’ is the first instalment in a triptych of albums by multi-limbed live dance music outfit Girls Of The Internet. Continuing their ongoing policy of “therapy through music”, the album touches all points on the shifting landscape of human connection: belief, doubt, loss, forgiveness. Emphasising human elements of songwriting, performance and production within the lineage of house, disco and electronic music; this first record furthers the band’s flair for manifesting the creative and communal spirit that birthed the scene. Joining the dots that have not been joined for a long time, the collective takes on people of all sexualities, gender expressions and body types. House music was created as an inclusive artform and Girls of the Internet are here to assert we are all invited. The group is completed with a rotating assembly of talented collaborators, including the live band with Nandi and Wynter on vocals and Tommy Peach on bass and trumpet. ‘Secular Music Vol 1’ also features guest appearances from Dani Siciliano, Sió, Pinty, i am an island, and James Alexander Bright - also a regular member of the live band. Girls Of The Internet’s 2024 album ‘When I Was Lost, I Found Myself’ was the follow-up to the acclaimed ‘Girls FM’, one of BBC 6 Music’s Albums of the Year in 2019. Firmly on the radar of key DJs Gilles Peterson, Tom Ravenscroft, Trevor Nelson, Pete Tong, and Lauren Laverne for some time, the band’s songs have more recently found fans in BBC Radio 1’s Sian Eleri and BBC 6 Music’s Nick Grimshaw as well as around the rest of the planet on tastemaker stations Byte FM, FIP, NTS, KALW, KCRW, KEXP and Soho Radio. Girls Of The Internet have performed on home turf at Glastonbury, The Warehouse Project’s Homobloc, Drumsheds, Printworks, Latitude, Lost Village festival, and a residency this summer at London’s Colour Factory. With Ibiza shows at Pikes and Glitterbox at #1 Club in the World Hï; this July saw Tom take on their first US dates with DJ sets in New York, LA and San Francisco. The live band are currently in the middle of an extended live tour that runs through to December. ‘Secular Music Vol 1’ is set for release on 14th November 2025 on Girls Of The Internet's own recently launched House Of the Internet label.

Autosimilar presents its second VA on vinyl - a deep exploration of the mind through four hypnotic techno cuts from leading artists Kaiser, A4, Pulso, and Vibrations of Gravity.

Challenger was the debut and unique album from the iconic and unique italo disco band Baby's Gang. Altough oficially it had only two singles (Happy Song and Challenger), some other labels found extra tracks to be released as single (America) when Memory Records decided to focus on new releases. Produced by Anfrando Maiola (KOTO), Stefano Cundari and Alessadro Zanni, 'My LIttle Japanese Boy' is one of those tracks so it was worth buying the album. The album did not neither included the original version for Happy Song, but a 'Remix'. Probably someone back in the days should have made this EP including both track...now we have done it. This 12" included the original versions plus two Razor's Edit to make it more DJ Friendly.

"Aroop Roy Vs Opolopo - Shigo Disgo" sees the two producers going head to head on another Canopy release, serving up club focused re-interpretations of two different Afro cuts : Chicco - Shigomase, a 1990s synth house bomb from South Africa and Spirit Konekson - Disco Party, a funky piece of 1970s Nigerian disco.

First up Aroop Roy takes on Chicco's proto house beast "Shigomase", dialling up the low end throb before bringing proceedings to a synthed out, hands in the air, euphoric crescendo.

Following on he takes his scalpel & bass guitar, chopping & flipping the Moog led funk of "Disco Party" into a restless Afro-boogie workout.

On the alternate side Opolopo channels extra sleaze into Shigomase, adding dirty dancefloor gristle and a raunchy back end, taking the vibe straight to the basement.

Rounding out proceedings Opolopo transports "Disco Party" into the present day with muscular drums and crunchy synth solos complimenting the loose limbed swing of the original

Permanent Vacation proudly presents a double A-side collaboration from Gold Panda and Fort Romeau: El Espíritu / El Fantasma. Bringing together two distinct artistic voices, the release blends
Gold Panda’s emotional, melodic sensitivity with Fort Romeau’s refined, hypnotic dancefloor touch. El Espíritu radiates warmth and shimmering detail, while El Fantasma drives deeper into late-night territory with atmospheric tension. — a standout meeting of two producers at the height of their craft.

Arcane and long time friend Humb join forces for “The Coils EP”. A seriously hefty 3 tracker from 2 of the South Wests finest beat manipulators. All killer no filler.......

Soul Visions is an instrumental journey into the world of Deheb, who, after several years of continuous sound research, continues to draw inspiration from jazz, soul, funk, and progressive rock records, first discovered through his father and then through his fellow collectors and DJs, including his partner DJ Marrrtin from Funky Bijou.
The Breton artist is renowned in the beatmaking world for his collaborations in New York in the mid-2000s (Moka Only, Sean Price, Torae, Tye Phoenix, Apani B, etc.) and for his album “LEAF”, released in 2015 with Swiss producer Chief. He is best known for producing classic Funky Breaks in the global breakdance scene with Marrrtin under the name Funky Bijou, whose tracks have been played at the world's biggest breakdance events since 2011 (Battle Of The Year, Red Bull BC One, etc.). All their tracks have been listened to more than 30 million times on various platforms and social networks.
A prolific artist who draws much of his inspiration from funk and jazz, he is based in Nantes and has collaborated with groups from the French Neo Soul scene, such as J-Silk from Bordeaux, Jo Wedin from Sweden, and Keysuna from Nantes. Close to the dance scene, he has also collaborated with dancer and choreographer Mackenzy Bergile, which led him to join the CCNRB's choreographic project “Earthbound” by choreographers Saïdo Lehlouh and Johanna Faye in 2023.
Deheb has also been composing for documentary projects since his first collaboration with director Shyaka Kagamé in 2015 for “Bounty”. In 2024 and 2025, he worked on two critically acclaimed projects: “Boulevard du village noir”, produced by Radio Television Suisse, and “IMIHIGO, le pacte rwandais”.
This year, 2025, he brings us “Soul Visions”, a journey through the cinematic sound of the early 1970s to the soul funk and jazz funk of the late 1970s, a pivotal period in his own musical identity that contributed to the funk sound of his guitars and the texture of his synthesizers and electric pianos.
Soul Visions is first and foremost a tribute to the artists and composers, the geniuses of that era, such as the Mizell brothers in “Larry and Fonce”, the Bell brothers in “Ron and Don”, and giants of the genre such as Isaac Hayes, Yuji Ohno, Roy Ayers, and Clarence Reid. All these masters of the genre had their own distinctive sound and arrangements, which were easily recognizable and which are among Deheb's major inspirations.

First Word Records are proud to bring you 'Penny Ballads', a 5-track EP from Royce Wood Junior. Royce Wood Junior is a Grammy & Mercury Award-nominated musician, songwriter and record producer from London, currently based in Brighton. As a multi-instrumentalist, he's collaborated with a litany of brilliant artists over the years, such as Jamie Woon, Nao, Disclosure, Jessie Ware, Olivia Dean, Joy Crookes, Jamie Lidell and Jordan Rakei, additionally to touring with the likes of the legendary Thomas Dolby. He's released two acclaimed solo albums to date ('The Ashen Tang' in 2015, and 'No Two Blue Ticks' in 2021). 'Penny Ballads' demonstrates RWJ's varied talents, with a collection of alternative soul compositions, each one as unique as the next. It includes the first two singles, the Poplife-Prince era flavoured 'Go Get Your Money', and the double-time future funk adrenaline shot, 'Clean Up', along with three previously-unreleased tracks. 'Beretta' is low-slung soul funk, beginning with quirky squelchy synths, before the soulful lead vocal of feature artist Lucey Way breezes in to melt everyone's hearts. 'Things' sweeps in next, an infectiously soulful midtempo heavy soul bop, with an instant earwork of a hook, like a modern-day Steely Dan / Doobie Brothers, complete with a head-nodding string section to end the track. The collection concludes on a more melancholy downtempo tip with 'Rolling'; an almost-folktronic anthem, with a key refrain that wouldn't be out of place on a 70's Stevie piece. RWJ (aka Jim Wood) says of this project… "Back in the 17 and 1800's Troubadours and minstrels would go from Tavern to Tavern selling Penny Ballads, single sheets of music and lyrics written quickly and frivolously to make a quick buck.. It strikes me that we're in a similar phase in the way we value music in 2025. An old Penny Ballad was cheap and dog-eared, ink-smudged, sung aloud by firelight, Now songs live in the digital ether, dissolved in the air, a ghostly breath paid in micro cents. The new era of Penny Balladry is here, and weird. This EP is a snapshot of my writing over a two year period. Focussed on minimal recording styles, one mic on the drums, generally first or second takes on parts and vocals, I wanted the music to feel like small moments with lyrics that talk about the weird nuances of being alive as a latter stage human on the cusp of the Ai revolution. Culturally so evolved, but physiologically still just a bunch of mammals walking about with primitive fears and needs. Just trying to reconcile it all moment to moment…" Previous support for Royce's music has included Radio 1's Future Sounds, BBC 6 Music's New Music Fix, Annie Mac, Clara Amfo, Jo Whiley (BBC Radio 2), Mary Anne Hobbs, Jamz Supernova, Tom Robinson, Huw Stephens (BBC 6 Music), Zane Lowe and MistaJam. There have been sessions previously for the likes of Red Bull and press from Huck, Line of Best Fit, Clash, Aesthetica & DIY magazine. Entirely self-written and self-produced, this EP gives a solid taste of RWJ's talents. A deeply funky diverse set of music from an immensely talented individual. 'Penny Ballads' is due to be released on vinyl & digital, 24th October 2025. The vinyl version also includes an exclusive additional mix of the first single 'Go Get Your Money'. TRACKLIST: 01: Clean Up (EP Mix) 02: Go Get Your Money 03: Beretta (feat. Lucey Way) 04: Things 05: Rolling 06: Go Get Your Money (B-Sharp Mix) Deconstructed Mixes

Already fifteen years that Cléa Vincent has been stepping on stage with that childlike fervor, that passion for pop and its elasticity, from her early days in Parisian bars to last year’s show at the Bataclan for the release of her third album Advitam Æternamour. You could say she needs no introduction, her name being inseparable from some of the most exciting work to emerge in contemporary French independent music. From the very beginning, she asserted her taste for spontaneous, candid, sunlit music, turning her songs not only into spaces of introspection but also into small capsules for dialogue. She collaborates constantly, with Kim Giani, Jeanne Balibar, Alison Wheeler, Jacques, NUSKY & VAATI, João Selva, Les Clopes…driven by a desire for sharing, for visions that meet and collide across genres. Alongside her work as a composer, she dedicates herself to giving a voice to the artists around her, notably through her show Sooo Pop, broadcast on YouTube in 2018 and 2019, where she welcomed guests as varied as Christophe, Moodoïd, Mathilde Fernandez, Katerine, and The Pirouettes. Like others of her generation, she claims the influence of francophone pop from the 1980s, but rather than being a successor to Jacno, Cléa draws from everything that shapes her era, fully plugged into the present, its faces, its energies, its collisions. She travels too, a way of reshuffling the cards of her inspiration, and her discovery of South America, of bossa nova and samba during her tour dates, became the catalyst for her series of EPs Tropi-Cléa.

For over six decades, Charlemagne Palestine (b. 1947, New York) has been a pioneering composer, performer, and multimedia artist, celebrated for his ecstatic sonic explorations and ritualistic, metaphysical performances. Emerging from the cross-disciplinary New York art scene of the 1960s and ’70s, he helped shape a heretical edge of minimalism alongside figures like Conrad, Riley, Niblock, and Glass. Trained as a Jewish cantor and later as the carillonneur at St. Thomas Church, Palestine cultivated a deep fascination with resonance and overtone—an obsession that evolved through his use of percussion, early synthesizers, and monumental piano works, influencing artists from John Cale to Nick Cave.

Animated by a spirit of ecstatic play and what he calls his »meschugge« (Yiddish for »crazy«) sensibility, Palestine’s universe blends the sacred and the absurd, filled with soft toys, ritual gestures, and immersive sound environments. Rejecting the »minimalist« label in favor of a maximalist, »spontanimalist« approach, he creates long-form, resonant performances that transform spaces into vibrating, living organisms—opening portals into the nature of time, sound, and devotion.

In the same vein, the aptly titled live record »The Organ is the World’s Greatest Synthesizer« – performed during the Sonic Acts Festival at Amsterdam’s Oude Kerk in 2025, and taking its title and cover art from a drawing realized by Palestine himself during the concert – adds to his opaque yet vibrant personal mythology and intimate transcendence, marking a return to the Staalplaat catalog after »Fffroggssichorddd« (2020) and »Music for Big Ears« (2001).

Beginning with a resonating bell and his falsetto overtone singing, then surrendering to the endless, wild soundscapes of tone-feeling and beat frequencies generated by the church’s organ, across 40+ minutes, single sound sources evolve into clusters, entangle fully with one another, and establish their own spatial existence and aural architectures. We witness the traces of something that can be described as a perpetual performance, a test for the ever-changing interaction between artist, instrument, space and, ultimately, us.

Since Palestine has always defined his execution as a form of anti-composition - of simply »being in the music« as if inhabiting a space - the true power of »The Organ is the World’s Greatest Synthesizer« lies in encapsulating a moment of Palestine’s practice in its most authentic, live dimension. Sound becomes at once subtle substance and strange telluric force, animating physical forms from some unknown channel beyond and within, accessible only through our sensorium. The point in this liminal temple of tone, timbre and frequency is not to learn anything but to simply enter. Palestine earns once again his self-given title of contemporary shaman by keeping this sonic portal open, allowing us to witness and make it last.

»I have always felt and heard and mixed the sounds in my world as liquids not as solids. Sonic liquids are material that is endlessly transformable. But I’m not crazy about people who go around defining stuff.«

Limited Plum Colored, Full colored Vinyl 12” Jacket 12 Inch Release

Hot on the heels of the recently released Divine Harmonics – From Then Until Now (Part One of Two) the limited orange vinyl edition that sold out within weeks, we are thrilled to announce the arrival of the highly anticipated Part Two of Kuniyuki and Joaquin “Joe” Claussell’s Divine Harmonics imprint.

This next installment is expected to surpass the excitement of both earlier releases, especially as it comes as a plum colored vinyl packaged in a stunning full-color jacket designed by the incomparable Akemi Shimada. As with all Divine Harmonics editions, this is a strictly limited full 12-inch package, created with collectors in mind.

About the Record

Recorded in a fully equipped studio in Brooklyn, New York, this project was born from the idea of gathering musicians who deeply admire Kuniyuki’s work and inviting them to contribute to the composition.

A timeless classic - coming up on nearly 20 years since the original 12's were released and the very first time this LP has collectively been available on wax. (over 15 years since last in circulation) This edition was remastered to analog perfection from the legendary Stefan Betke (POLE) sonically sculpting the original work into a true masterpiece - this album has never sounded so alive! This is truly a multidimensional sound experience; it's like taking a swim in an analogue ocean and being immersed into the deepest end of the Marianas Trench. This edition features two cuts, "A Night To Remember" (as featured on Richie Hawtin's ENTER: Ibiza 4XCD mix) & "Under The Ocean" from the original 2009 edition of the album. The remaining tracks were selected from CD2 including "Tswana Dub" (Phase90 Restructure) as featured on Deadbeat's classic mix "Radio Rothko" on NYC's theAgriculture. Also included is a "live" (recorded from the house booth) performance at "dub echoes" in NYC (a screening for the feature film).

a A1. A Night To Remember Remastered 11:07
b A2: Ocean View Remastered 5:30
c B1. Kingston’s Burning Dub live in nyc 8:08
d B2: De Lion’s Den Remastered 4:20
e C1: Never Forget Remastered 9:06

g D1: Love In Lofi Remastered 13:00
Remastered 4:44

a A1. A Night To Remember Remastered 11:07
b A2: Ocean View Remastered 5:30
c B1. Kingston’s Burning Dub live in nyc 8:08
d B2: De Lion’s Den Remastered 4:20
e C1: Never Forget Remastered 9:06

[g] D1: Love In Lofi [Remastered] 13:00
[Remastered] 4:44

Groggy, engrossing new work from Ulla under their newly minted U.e. tag, riffing to the sublime on a set of (mostly) acoustic reveries that tap into the kind of smokey vapours favoured by the likes of Vincent Gallo, Voice Actor, Jonnine.

A new year, label, album and handle for Ulla, a multifaceted artist who has draped our pages with wonder, under numerous aliases and collabs, for almost a decade. On ‘Hometown Girl’ they distill transience and flux into a quiet set of chamber works subtly resembling the room recorded nuance of their ‘Jazz Plates’ side with Perila - here taken a step further into more elusive, low-lit dimensions.

In a mode that’s wistful and melancholic, listening to the album’s dozen discrete pieces feels like leafing thru a journal of hand-written notes, reflecting on the feelings that come with separation from loved ones and displacement from familiarity. Ulla performed and recorded all of the instruments themselves, lending a tangible tactility to layered arrangements of woodwind, keys, strings, drums and voice, lightly speckled with electronics and perfused with open window field recordings.

They locate a crackling frisson of personality in the voice notes and day-dreaminess of their mottled inscapes, gauzily demarcating lines between past and present selves. In that aesthetic and approach we can also hear similarities to Jonnine’s blue-skied ‘Southside Girl’ or crys cole’s poetic sensuality, often leaning into the domestic surreal.

A frayed, opening salutation ‘Good Morning’ signals a delirious half hour in Ulla’s company, variously swaying to the downstroked jazz swing of a ‘Lavender (NF)’ spritzed with clarinet, whilst ‘Froggy Explorer’ stirs the air like Jan Jelinek on a barely-there tip. The Basinski-esque fritz of degraded loops really snags the imagination along with a twinkling nightlight ‘Ball’, as the album opens out into its most fully resolved songs with a closing couplet of disarming wonders ‘Drawing of Me’, and a blurry ‘Mute’ that feels like Ulla 〜almost〜 reveals too much before retreating back into the shadows.

One of the leading Japanese alternative rock band, GEZAN’s leader, MahitoThePeople’s director debut film, i ai was released in March 2024, and it is an atypical coming-of-age film decorated with tinge of red.

　The film takes place in Akashi and Kobe, Hyogo prefecture. This film’s main characters are Ko (Kentaro Tomita), a rookie member of a band and a brother-like figure of his, Hee (Mirai Moriyama) who Ko idolizes and the story of this movie is based on their struggles with life and death. The story is also based on Mahito's real-life experiences and while reality and fiction are duplicated, the boundary between them slowly melts away. The film co-stars Honami Satoh, Kazuki Horike, Mitsuru Fukikoshi, Eita Nagayama, Kyoko Koizumi, K-BOMB, Ichi Omiya and many other unique personalities. It should also be noted that the transparent images filmed by photographer, Masafumi Sanai gives the film, a special emotional quality.

　The film is not bound by any film theory but it poses a theme common to GEZAN's recent works and Mahito's writing activities: How can we live in a crumbling society while interacting with others? We can never live alone but living with others is also never easy. How can we overcome this time of extreme division of the world?

What left quite a strong impression in this film that not only Mahito personally directed but also wrote the script and composed the soundtrack as well was the main theme song, entitled “i ai”. This new piece of GEZAN is an extension of the work that this band has continued doing over the last few years. This 12" single, contains the song, “i ai” and it will be the first time released on vinyl.

Led by soft guitar arpeggios, the song gradually builds to a fever pitch, condensing the mood of the film which encompasses both tranquillity and intensity. The chorus of ineffable, multiple voices united together sounds like a lament that has spilled out of society or a cry of joy. GEZAN's collaboration with the 15-member chorus group, Million Wish Collective has been in development of late and the cultivated sensibilities through their activities are put to use in this song.

The song can also be considered a slow, relaxed dance track that lasts 9 minutes and 8 seconds. It has something in common with organic dance tracks from South America and other regions, and it is significant that GLOCAL RECORDS which represents glocal music from around the world in Japan are releasing it as a DJ-friendly 12-inch single.

The B-side features a remix by COMPUMA who is also closely associated with GEZAN. The song starts with an African styled percussion, with a thumb piano in the middle of the song and then returns to that memorable chorus. This song feels like a 18 minutes and 18 seconds long short movie like suite, with some dizzying changes from the beginning to the end. It is remix filled with enormous drama!

The cutting and mastering of this 12” was done by TOREI who is also active as a DJ and the artwork was created by jvnpey, a visual artist and graphic designer based in Tokyo. Their loving work also makes this 12" very special.

When I asked AI to find a synonym for the word, “division,” it displayed in succession, a series of words: “integration,” “consolidation,” “unification,” “unity”, and “reconciliation". All of these phrases are somewhat whitewashed and embarrassing but the mirage-like chorus echoing in the song, “i ai” seems to be trying to find a new word, that is a synonym for the word, "division. In this film, “i ai”, the message, “Let's live together after the end roll” was thrown out but included in this 12-inch, the message, “Let's live together after the music stops”, emerges.

"Eau" is the lovely new album from aus, the solo project of Tokyo-born composer and producer Yasuhiko Fukuzono, who has gained attention, in Japan and overseas, for his thoughtfully paced and sensitively skillful music as well as his intriguing sound design for exhibitions and experimental cinema. Having worked primarily with keyboards and electronic sound up to this point, "Eau" is a slight yet fascinating shift for aus; the album, while still primarily an electronic work, revolves around the sonic world of a stringed acoustic sound source, the koto, that most characteristically Japanese of musical instruments. The very accomplished Eden Okuno provides the delicate-yet-rich koto sounds on offer here; Fukuzono, in the liner notes, acknowledges the importance of Okuno's artistry to the project.

The compositions on the album are designed to balance the sound of the koto, with its subtly variable attack and flickering resonance, with the timbre of other instruments. The delicate decay and metrical flexibility of the koto is enveloped by sustained synthesizer sounds and contrapuntally constructed piano melodies, creating a flowing ambience with absorbing undercurrents, a languid and liquid quality that reveals the suitability of the title.

Avid fans of contemporary Japanese music might hear the influence of pioneering works such as the the 1979 Hiroshi Yoshimura composition "Clouds for Alma", realized by koto player Tadao Sawai, and the 1993 album "Koto Vortex I: Works by Hiroshi Yoshimura" which featured performances of Yoshimura's works by the Japanese koto quartet Koto Vortex. These works attempted to remove the koto from its traditional context and place it within the context of ambient and techno. "Eau" is available on CD/LP/cassette/digital, with E/J liner notes by aus. "Eau" is the first collaborative release by EM Records and FLAU, the label run by Yasuhiko Fukuzono (aus).

Throughout her long career, Lucinda Williams has never shied away from writing about difficult but real things. If you think about it, you could call "Change The Locks" a topical song ahead of its time. There were several biting and brave songs on her Good Souls Better Angels album, as well as the post-Covid masterpiece Stories From A Rock N Roll Heart. With World’s Gone Wrong, Lucinda ups the ante on topical songs. It is a pure reflection of our very turbulent times, intense and musically powerful.

Blues and Soul Award winner and double MOBO Awards nominee Ronnie Herel is back with his 2nd volume of his excellent compilation series Neo-Soul Sessions. Ronnie, a massively important figure in the UK Black music scene, is a radio presenter with Mi Soul and includes BBC 1xtra in his broadcasting credits. He is a DJ of international renown and was one half of the Quartz production duo which scored memorable hits with Dina Carroll. His undisputed love for and knowledge of the Neo-Soul genre shines through in the Neo-Soul Sessions and this latest, volume 2, is no exception. Featuring tracks from artists such as Vula, Terri Walker, Aname Rose and Slakah the Beatchild, among others, Neo-Soul Sessions volume 2 is a brilliantly curated and pieced together selection of twelve tracks that absolutely nails the beauty of the later releases in the Neo-Soul genre. Played from start to finish the track selection and order is a pre-made DJ set that flows in a way that would soundtrack a dancefloor, a house party and an excellent backdrop of tunes for any time and day of the week. Ronnie's passion for championing independent artists is also evident in his selections here and the compilation serves as a platform for those voices who deserve to break through. The decision to choose six of his favourite tracks to sit alongside six exclusive and unreleased gems means that a light is now shined on every artist featured on the compilation. An absolute must for serious lovers of Neo-Soul, RnB and Black Music, Neo-Soul Sessions volume 2 is released on double vinyl LP and CD formats.

Naive Melodies is a bold and visionary tribute to the music of Talking Heads, reinterpreted through the lens of Black musical innovation. Curated by Drew McFadden — the creative mind behind BBE’s acclaimed Modern Love (David Bowie tribute album) — this new collection dives deep into the Afro-diasporic rhythms and experimental soul roots that helped shape Talking Heads’ unmistakable New Wave sound. Inspired by artists like Fela Kuti, Parliament, and Al Green — whose influences loomed large in the band’s rhythmic DNA — Naive Melodies shines a light on the Black music traditions that underpinned their artistry. Far from a conventional tribute, Naive Melodies reframes the band’s catalog through the voices and visions of a new generation of genre-defying artists. These interpretations illuminate the foundational grooves and sonic textures that fueled Talking Heads’ rhythm-forward aesthetic, bringing them full circle with authenticity. “With Naive Melodies, I wanted to spotlight the deep and often overlooked influence of Black music on the sound of Talking Heads, drawing from the rhythmic foundations of Afro-diasporic traditions, soul, gospel, Latin, and spiritual jazz. This project is a chance to reimagine Talking Heads’ legacy through the lens of the very innovations that helped shape it, bringing those influences to the forefront through the voices of today’s most forward-thinking artists.” — Drew McFadden The album features a globally minded lineup, including Liv.e, Bilal, Rogê, Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, Aja Monet, Georgia Anne Muldrow, Theo Croker, Kenny Dope, Rosie Lowe, Pachyman, W.I.T.C.H., and more — spanning Afrobeat, jazz, soul, funk, gospel, dub, electronica, orchestral, and Latin styles. It reflects not only the boundary-pushing ethos of Talking Heads, but also the influence of Black music as a cultural force that helped shape it. This is not just a tribute album — it’s a recontextualization. A cultural conversation. A rhythmic reawakening.

The second cover album, released in 2013, is now available on vinyl for the first time! It features songs from a variety of genres, both Japanese and Western,
arranged in Clammbon's signature style.



[c] a3. U & I (After School Tea Time [Yui Hirasawa, Mio Akiyama, Ritsu Tainaka, Tsumugi Kotobuki, Azusa Nakano])

“The GRILL will fucking rule things…” – Backengrillen’s debut album out in January "Backengrillen's music is a paean to chaos and destruction. The basic idea is to take a death/doom metal, or noiserock riff and play it until it loses meaning and then break it apart like a ravenous cat would a tiny forest mouse. It's filled to the brim with the self-hatred endemic to the province of Västerbotten from whence the member’s hail. The record was written on a Thursday during their first ever rehearsal, performed live on a Friday and recorded on a Saturday, so what you're hearing is raw, stupid, gut instinct music played by seasoned purveyors of hardcore punk, metal, free jazz, noise et cetera. Record no 2 is in the making, less stupid, more ugly. Stay tuned and fuck the pigs." - Backengrillen, November 2025 Backengrillen is a new ensemble with their roots in HC, punk, noise and free Jazz. All members from Umeå, with roots in the original version of Refused – and one with starting points in the jazz-rock ensemble Nirvana (1980). With a solid and yet varied background in the creativities of Refused, TEXT, INVSN, Fire Orchestra, The International Noise Conspiracy, The End, Serpent, The Thing, Final Exit and other classic jazz combos we will now start our journey of 4 colliding locomotives, creating a new form of beauty and energy. Antifascist, antiracists free form death – jazz – in the memory of Lars Lystedt – Backengrillen arrives with new perspectives on jazz. And punk. In-your-face HC jazz inspired by The Cramps, Little Richard, Albert Ayler, Polly Bradfield, Entombed, John Zorn, Misfits, Stooges, Lars Gullin, Can and much more. Backengrillen’s self-titled debut album is out on January 23rd, 2026 on vinyl, CD, and digitally on Bandcamp via Svart Records. Backengrillen Dennis Lyxzén – vocal and effects Mats Gustafsson – saxophones, flutes and live electronics Magnus Flagge – bass David Sandström – drums and electronics

“The GRILL will fucking rule things…” – Backengrillen’s debut album out in January "Backengrillen's music is a paean to chaos and destruction. The basic idea is to take a death/doom metal, or noiserock riff and play it until it loses meaning and then break it apart like a ravenous cat would a tiny forest mouse. It's filled to the brim with the self-hatred endemic to the province of Västerbotten from whence the member’s hail. The record was written on a Thursday during their first ever rehearsal, performed live on a Friday and recorded on a Saturday, so what you're hearing is raw, stupid, gut instinct music played by seasoned purveyors of hardcore punk, metal, free jazz, noise et cetera. Record no 2 is in the making, less stupid, more ugly. Stay tuned and fuck the pigs." - Backengrillen, November 2025 Backengrillen is a new ensemble with their roots in HC, punk, noise and free Jazz. All members from Umeå, with roots in the original version of Refused – and one with starting points in the jazz-rock ensemble Nirvana (1980). With a solid and yet varied background in the creativities of Refused, TEXT, INVSN, Fire Orchestra, The International Noise Conspiracy, The End, Serpent, The Thing, Final Exit and other classic jazz combos we will now start our journey of 4 colliding locomotives, creating a new form of beauty and energy. Antifascist, antiracists free form death – jazz – in the memory of Lars Lystedt – Backengrillen arrives with new perspectives on jazz. And punk. In-your-face HC jazz inspired by The Cramps, Little Richard, Albert Ayler, Polly Bradfield, Entombed, John Zorn, Misfits, Stooges, Lars Gullin, Can and much more. Backengrillen’s self-titled debut album is out on January 23rd, 2026 on vinyl, CD, and digitally on Bandcamp via Svart Records. Backengrillen Dennis Lyxzén – vocal and effects Mats Gustafsson – saxophones, flutes and live electronics Magnus Flagge – bass David Sandström – drums and electronics

Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera is one of the most celebrated musicals of all time, and this original London cast recording from 1986 remains the definitive recording. Michael Crawford’s Tony Award-winning performance as The Phantom and Sarah Brightman’s portrayal of Christine Daaé helped make this the best-selling cast recording in history. Re-issued for the first time in decades, this classic album brings the unforgettable score to a new generation of listeners. From the title song to “The Music of the Night” and “All I Ask of You,” every track reflects the power and beauty that continue to make The Phantom of the Opera a global phenomenon nearly forty years after its debut. Since its premiere, The Phantom of the Opera has been seen by more than 160 million people in 195 cities and has received over 70 major theatre awards. It holds the record as the longest-running show in Broadway history and was the first British musical to debut at number one on the music charts. The recording has been certified Platinum in six countries.

The Power Station celebrates the 40th anniversary of the band and their debut album, with a 2LP gatefold vinyl of the remastered album and a 4CD including the remastered album, the unreleased live performance from 1985 as well as Live Aid recordings, raw instrumentals and remixes.
The Power Station were a rock and pop music supergroup from the 1980s/1990s comprising of singer Robert Palmer, former Chic drummer Tony Thompson, and Duran Duran members John Taylor and Andy Taylor.

Marking 50 years of David Bowie’s groundbreaking tenth studio album, the limited-edition picture disc LP is pressed from the same master and includes an exact reproduction of the original promotional poster used at release.

For this anniversary edition, the Half Speed Master album has been recut on a customised late-model Neumann VMS80 lathe with fully recapped electronics, sourced from 192kHz restored masters of the original Record Plant master tapes. No additional processing was applied, delivering the closest possible representation of the album’s original sound.

NEW VERSION ON WHITE VINYL! After turning heads with the relentless 2024 EP Råtner på rot, Jordsjuk are back with their full-length debut: Naglet til livet (translates to 'Nailed to life'). Across twelve tracks and 36 minutes, the band delivers a visceral strike of raw, uncompromising metal - free of gloss, gimmicks and nonsense. Naglet til livet is a kaleidoscope of destruction, decay, and ugliness, the band states. From the thrash-fueled chaos of "Grovt skadeverk" and the suffocating aggression of "Parasitt", to the punk-driven decay of "Rennestein" and the gloomy introspectiveness of "Svikter den neste", this is the sound of filth, concrete, ruin, and rage. Twelve tracks of in-your-face, riff-driven and organic metal. Jordsjuk consists of Renton (drums), Mannevond (vocals), Sagstad (guitars), and Larsen (bass) - seasoned musicians from the Norwegian underground. Their sound sits somewhere between black, death, thrash, punk, and rock, forging a sonic identity as raw as it is deliberate. The lyrics, written in Norwegian, dive into personal collapse, trauma, and apocalyptic despair, delivered with uncompromising honesty. Drums were recorded at PhatCat Studios (Rygge, Norway), with the rest captured at various locations in Oslo. Mixing was handled by Kurt Ballou (Converge) at God City Studios (Salem, MA), while Brad Boatright took care of mastering at Audiosiege Studio (Portland, OR). The result is exactly what it needs to be: dirty, sharp, and heavy. Jordsjuk is necro music for necro times, says the band, and after hearing Naglet til livet, it's hard to disagree. The band were booked to by:Larm festival and Midgardsblot in 2025, and it's on stage that their sonic violence truly takes over. For those who've seen them live, expectations are high. For everyone else - prepare to be run over.

For years, Jackson C. Frank was as ghostly a legend as they come. Even the relatively few record collectors who revered his work were usually only aware of the lone album that he released in his lifetime. For all most listeners knew, Frank put out a celebrated LP and vanished, despite that record having been produced by Paul Simon.

1975 Mekeel Sessions features six tracks recorded in the mid-'70s at a studio in Lake Hill, New York about five miles from Woodstock where Frank was living at the time. Only discovered in the mid-'90s, these recordings still hum with the same mysterious warmth that defined Jackson at his peak. His guitar work, alternating between strummed and fingerpicking, is consistently adept. His stark and somber voice more weathered than the lighter tone heard on his 1965 debut.

The Mekeel tapes were intended for Frank's sophomore album (titled Marlene), but alas it never came to be. What one hears is not a singer-songwriter fading out of view; it is a singular artist who never stopped trying to build his own world, even when no one was watching. For fans of everyone who Jackson influenced: from Nick Drake, Sandy Denny, Bert Jansch and John Martyn to more contemporary acts like Elliott Smith and Iron And Wine who surely used Frank's sparse approach as a template.

**2010 Grammy Award Winner: Best Traditional Folk Album **

‘Marvelous…exuberant’ - Rolling Stone

Nonesuch Records releases a fifteenth anniversary edition of Carolina Chocolate Drop’s 2010 Grammy Award-winning album Genuine Negro Jig, featuring founding band members Dom Flemons, Rhiannon Giddens, and Justin Robinson. The reissue includes the original album and nine bonus tracks: seven previously unreleased tracks plus a 2025 remaster of ‘City of Refuge’ and a 2025 mix of ‘Memphis Shakedown’. This release marks the album’s first time on vinyl since its original pressing in 2010.

Genuine Negro Jig was released on February 16, 2010, reaching the top ten on the Billboard Folk chart and the top of the Bluegrass chart. It won the 2011 Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album. Produced by Joe Henry, it was the first of three releases on Nonesuch followed by The Carolina Chocolate Drops/ Luminescent Orchestrii EP (2011) and the Grammy nominated album Leaving Eden (2012), produced by Buddy Miller. Widely acclaimed as one of 2010’s best, Genuine Negro Jig appeared in year-end lists of NPR, Paste, and more, and was featured in Rolling Stone’s 25 Best Country-Soul Albums in 2024.

“Genuine Negro Jig remains fresh fifteen years later not only because of the Carolina Chocolate Drops’ influence on American popular culture but also because it’s an excellent record in itself,” says Dr. Dwandalyn Reece and Dr. Steven Lewis of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in the album’s liner notes.

Carolina Chocolate Drops formed after band members Dom Flemons, Rhiannon Giddens, and Justin Robinson met at the Black Banjo Gathering in Boone, NC in 2005. All three trained in the Piedmont banjo and fiddle musical tradition under the tutelage of Joe Thompson, who was one of the last musicians of his era and his community to carry on the southern Black string band tradition. While old-time Southern string music is often associated with Caucasian musicians from Appalachia, Giddens pointed out in an NPR interview that “it seems that two things get left out of the history books. One, that there was string band music in the Piedmont, period. And that Black folk was such a huge part of string tradition.” Carolina Chocolate Drops sought to not only correct this misunderstanding but also to keep the centuries-old string music tradition alive and developing.

The members of Carolina Chocolate Drops, who came from diverse musical backgrounds, shared singing duties and swapped instruments throughout their sets. The band recently reunited for a single show at Rhiannon Giddens’ Biscuits and Banjos festival in Durham, North Carolina in April 2025. In celebration of the 20th Anniversary of the Black Banjo Gathering, the documentary Don’t Get Trouble In Your Mind: The Carolina Chocolate Drops’ Story by Filmmaker John Whitehead was released on Amazon Prime, Apple TV, and YouTube Free4all streaming platforms.

‘Clyppan’ is an Old English verb meaning “to embrace” or “to clasp.” It also referred to an ancient ritual in which people gathered in a circle, singing together around a sacred shrine. It’s a fitting title for the latest release from Newcastle’s Smote – a visceral document of the band’s electrifying live set, captured within the walls of London’s Bear Bites Horse recording studio.
Following the release of their acclaimed 2024 album ‘A Grand Stream’, Smote embarked on an intensive tour schedule, refining their live performance along the way into something transcendental – a full-spectrum psychic voyage. Anyone who caught them at Supernormal, Supersonic, or this year’s Roadburn Festival can attest: Smote are an unforgettable sonic presence, a near religious experience.
Recognising the urgency and potency of the band’s current live form, Rocket Recordings encouraged Smote’s founder and sonic architect Dan Foggin to document their live set in the studio. It was a sound too powerful to be left undocumented – it was something that needed to be clasped for future generations.
On January 22, 2025 – the day before their thunderous performance at London’s ICA alongside labelmates Teeth Of The Sea – the four members of Smote entered Bear Bites Horse studio. With producer Wayne Adams at the controls, they laid down a live set brimming with raw, elemental power.
What emerged is ‘Clyppan’ – four drone-and-repetition driven incantations, distilled from the primal essence of Smote’s sound. These tracks channel something ancient and urgent, summoning spirits and revelations in their wake. It’s music as ritual, as invocation – pure aural sorcery.
So gather together. Form a circle. Join hands. And embrace the ecstatic, untamed energy of Smote in their most untethered and primal form.

To mark what would have been Mikis Theodorakis' 100th birthday in 2025, Intuition released a very special album: 'Lost Songs' - fourteen previously unpublished compositions by the world-renowned Greek composer, presented here for the first time in a remarkable solo piano version by German pianist Henning Schmiedt. A remarkable moment took place in 2009 at Mikis Theodorakis' studio in Athens: Henning Schmiedt personally played his piano arrangements of the 'Lost Songs' to Theodorakis himself. Some of the melodies sparked the composer's memory, while others did not - but he listened attentively, offered comments and gave guidance that directly influenced the final versions of the pieces.

As such, 'Lost Songs' can be considered a posthumous release with the composer's blessing. These pieces offer a glimpse into Theodorakis' expressive power and artistic maturity from a very young age - most of the 'Lost Songs' were written in the early 1940s and provide a compelling window into the formative years of one of the most important composers of the 20th century.

'Lost Songs' is available on 180g vinyl and digipak CD editions.

Axel Boman’s critically acclaimed double album LUZ/Quest for fire from 2022 gets a remix & dub treatment from one of Scandinavia's finest reggae-and-beyond soundsystems, Trensum Tribe.
”Great, now they sound better that the originals” said Axel when he heard the remixed versions for the first time, excitedly starting to collect the best ones for an album. Having been heavily inspired by Mad Professor’s work for Massive Attack since a young age (listen to No Protection for example), a project like this had been a dream of Axel Boman's for decades.
There is a certain freedom that comes with remixing, where you can step outside yourself as a producer and take risks and chances you might not in your own work, and Trensum Tribe really took an adventurous new path when they approached this music. On this homage to soundsystem and rave culture, jungle, dub, disco and house all become best friends in front of a huge stack of homemade speakers, standing tall on fresh dew in a Swedish forest on a cold summer night.

repressed !

4 To The Floor is committed to delivering seminal house music to wax, making sought after heritage tracks readily available on vinyl for crate diggers to add to their collections. Classics Volume 2 kicks off with a slice of Defected 2012 goodness; ‘Around (Solomun Vox)’ by Noir & Haze. When Solomun took his turn at remixing this Ibiza anthem, it was heard everywhere from Hackney warehouses to Pacha Ibiza, and showed a different side to the heavier original. On the B-Side is the Moodymann Edit, where he makes subtle changes to Solomun’s mix by interweaving tribal drums and stripping back some of the techier elements, followed by Chicken Lips’ electro banger ‘He Not In’ which thunders through. An instantly recognisable record, even if they’re not aware of its name or who wrote it, with an unmistakable bassline that has truly stood the test of time.

Man O To from the elusive producer NU is finally set to be released as a single on Crosstown Rebels, featuring remixes from Parisian producer Pépé Bradock who producers two amazing takes on the original. Since its inclusion on Acid Pauli's Get Lost Compilation in 2012, the track has gained huge support and become a modern-day electronic classic.
A nomad of modern times, NU has travelled the continents with his diverse music to unearth his imitable style. Represented heavily in Man O To, where instruments amalgamate with electronic production to become solid rhythms. An extra spark come from its lyrics, outtakes from an old Persian poem from the well known poet Rumi, who speaks of true happiness in love here performed by Ghazal Shakeri from an original recording made by renowned French composer Armand Amar.
Julien Auger aka Pépé Bradock is a widely respected producer best known for his ground breaking remixes and releases on labwes such a Avatisme, Classic and Versatile Recordings. As a DJ, he has spun in almost every major club in the world and is known for his versatile, and mesmerising style. Bradock conjures a trippy remix and dub version of Man O To and fitting ode to the original.

“Innovative, hooky and full of depth” - Far Out Magazine

“Songs that lodge into your brain in the opening ten seconds” - Brooklyn Vegan

“Breezy, melodic… a clear ear for a hook” - UNCUT

“Playful and unexpected, emotional but not overstated” - CLUNK

‘Crows’ is the new single from Bristol’s Langkamer and the first to be revealed from their new album ‘No’, which is due for release on 22nd January 2026. Their fourth album in as many years, ‘No’ saw the prolific band taking to the mountains at the invitation of veteran producer Remko Schouten (Pavement, Personal Trainer, Bull). The much loved Bristol band holed up for a week in the wilds of Southern Spain at his brand new Zarzalico studio. Over a week, under the Murcian heat, they laid down the perfectly formed eleven tracks that make up ‘No’.

Since the band’s conception, Langkamer have worked out of anywhere affordable and available, whether it be the basements of renowned venues (‘West Country’, ‘Red Thread Route’, ‘Langzamer’) or secluded cottages (‘The Noon And Midnight Manual’). Over the years, their frenetic pace and quality of writing has earned them fans across the world, plaudits at UK media, and built an ever-growing musical community around them - not least via Breakfast Records - the independent label that is home to Getdown Services - formed by Langkamer’s Dan Anthony and Josh Jarman in 2006 alongside acclaimed singer-songwriter Jasmine 4.T.

To call Langkamer ‘your mid-level indie bands favourite mid-level indie band” sells them short. They have always scraped by on irregular incomes, plagued both by daily financial pressures and the occasional cash sinkhole so well known to any musician in the current impossible climate. Once Schouten offered to host them at his new studio (Zarzalico), they couldn’t refuse. A relentless recording schedule found the group only breaking for the daily long lunch and to occasionally fire an airgun across the hills. If the last half a decade had been a pressure cooker of constant touring and recording, their brief time in the remote Zarzalico could not have been more symbolic. Lead single ‘Crows’ perfectly captures this nervy balance and is a wiry slice of atmospheric proto-punk, drawing from the shadows of the late-70s UK landscapeit also defies these conventions, striking an anthemic chord from beginning to end. From the scaling chromatic guitars at the breakdown, to the final chants of ‘suffer’ and ‘struggle’, there’s a loud desperation and defiance to ‘Crows’ that lends it an unparalleled urgency. As singer/drummer Josh Jarman states:

“Crows is a song about the crazy shapes we contort ourselves into trying to create art in the era of late-stage capitalism. Working a thousand jobs. Writing songs with the left hand while writing emails with the right hand. Your day is already doomed the moment you open your eyes. Everything’s a bad omen.”.

With ‘No’ arriving early next year, ‘Crows’ is the perfect introduction to Langkamer, a band that has only taken new bold steps with each release, always hiding a keen experimentalism behind a charming hook. It is also the surest sign yet that they are ready to step up, and take on the road once again vision unclouded.

2025 repress.

Rhythm Section International proudly presents it's 8th offering from local boys Chaos in the CBD. Born in New Zealand, but based in Peckham for the last few years (literally just around the corner from Henry Wu and Bradley Zero), these brothers have made a real mark on the scene here in London town and with their latest set of productions are set to take this message further afield.

Having already released internationally on labels such as ClekClekBoom (Paris), Hot Haus (London) and Amadeus (Montreal), the duo's approach to production has matured immeasurably in the last year, as is evident in the restrained potency and poetic subtlety on the 4 tracks across this accomplished EP, Midnight in Peckham.

Taking it's title from the locale the boys have come to know as home, the record channels a delicate late night energy - equally indebted to the hypnotic incantations of Ron Trent as it is to the hazy suburban atmospheres of Burial. These 4 classic cuts pay homage to deep house in it's truest sense - at once sublime, melancholy and meditative . Chaos in the CBD have clearly taken their cue from the mid-west masters of the genre but have not been afraid to let their own influences and environ creep in, and in doing so have created something that is unmistakablely London and infact, timeless.

Originally released in 1991 as the debut record on Ron Allen and Hayden Andre’s cult label Strobe Records, Metamorphasis contains six tracks ranging from deep, pad-soaked house to tougher, bleep-tinged warehouse grooves. Powered by warm sub-bass, dreamy atmospheres and razor-sharp drum programming, this reissue brings back a timeless statement from two Canadian pioneers.

Rochelle Jordan is proudly stepping into her diva era. To those in the know, the Los Angeles-based British-Canadian singer and songwriter has long been an underground force coaxing together the mutually flirtatious scenes of daring alt-R&B and heart-pumping electronic music. With her longtime creative director/producer KLSH, she’s cultivated a singular marriage of sound — mixing soulful sensuality, house bump, DnB wildness, hip-hop swagger, and pure experimentalism — that’s spread not only through certain circles, but also to the mainstream. At the same time that her gauzy 2014 single “Lowkey” was going viral in 2023 — racking up 21 million streams on Spotify alone — she was in the studio cooking with tastemaking beatsmiths like KAYTRANADA and Sango, quietly preparing to melt dance floors and headphones alike.

Now, as the timelines merge, Jordan is approaching success with the sparkle of a brand new star and the stance of someone who’s earned everything she has. Her new musical chapter aims to carry forward the magic that fans feel in her coquettish vocals and bold soundscapes even as she reaches deeper into her pop bag. The fact that her first single of 2025, the darkly dazzling “Crave,” was produced by Chicago house legend Terry Hunter (Janet Jackson, Mariah Carey, Beyoncé) speaks volumes to this exact moment in Jordan’s ascendent trajectory.

“My goal when I first started making music was to bring back something that I felt had started to fade away for me,” says Jordan. “That certain essence or sound that would give me butterflies in my stomach when I’d listen to music — it would unleash some kind of chemical that would make me feel happy and excitable and curious, something that would make my soul shine. My number one goal is always: How do I give people that feeling when they listen to my music?”

Jordan grew up in Toronto raised by British-Jamaican parents. She remembers hearing one of her older brothers cycling through a variety of music at maximum volume in the room next to hers. “Reggae to soul to drum and bass to garage music to gospel,” Jordan recalls. “It was all intertwining for me at such a young age.” She developed her own sound quietly, and soon met KLSH through MySpace. They traded multiple songs back and forth daily until he flew her out to L.A. to record what would become her debut project, 2011’s R O J O. That collaboration hasn’t faltered since, resulting in sonically surprising, subtly infectious sets like Jordan’s breakthrough 2014 album 1021 (with “Lowkey”) and 2021’s dance-steeped revelation, Play with the Changes.

“If you’re talking about Rochelle Jordan, you’re talking about KLSH,” she says. “It’s one and the same. We come from the same inspiration source.” With him at her side to this day, Jordan is crafting new listening experiences as radiant as refracted light glimmering through a prism — an incredible space from within which to explore love in all its iterations — from romantic infatuation to self-affirmation, and strength in womanhood to pride for what she’s accomplished thus far.

More than a decade into her career, Jordan has arrived at a new stage of life and creativity — she’s a seasoned professional, a fully realized woman, and she’s excited to continue growing. “I know my story isn’t necessarily a new one,” she says. “I look at 2 Chainz, who became 2 Chainz way later on in his life. I look at Tina Turner, who became Tina Turner at 40. I want to be another story of resilience for people.” As she prepares to unveil more of her vision, and fans clamber for a long-awaited fourth album, Rochelle Jordan is casting aside self-doubt, and appreciating and underlining her status as a verifiably influential reigning diva in her one-of-one sonic space.