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Ever dream you're in a spaceship on a never-ending journey to an unknowable destination? That's how Nyles Lannon often thought of life in the early part of the pandemic, when time seemed to stand still, before the vaccines or even knowing when there might be any. But whether that spaceship is a desolate prison or a vessel for escaping to a better world depends on how you use it. With literally nowhere to go, the Film School guitarist and his then-12-year-old son Skye, on drums and modular synths, would jam most evenings in Nyles's home studio, just to have something to focus their minds on and counter the tedium of "remote learning." What started out as a way to keep his talented kid busy became a means to process the anxiety and disorientation of that strange, scary stretch of time. The result is Vanishing, a ten-song album of moody melodies, new wave beats, droney rock, and even an electrogroove instrumental interlude, by the father-son project they named Nyte Skye.

The emotional toll of lockdown, our collective grief, the literal darkness that engulfed the sky thanks to devastating wildfires brought on by climate crisis—these are heavy subjects, but the songs also convey how we managed to keep each other sane, and inspired, through it all. Film School devotees will find plenty to love; so will fans of the Police (Stewart Copeland being one of Skye's major

influences), the Cure, Spiritualized, and Elliott Smith. The album's opener, "Dream State (I'm Vanishing)," is a wistful synth-driven indie gem about disappearing into an alternate universe where worries don't exist. "Doing Time," with its massive washes of 12-string guitar and sophisticated syncopated beat, is a shoegazey meditation on holding onto a child's sanguine outlook in the face of adversity. If dream pop track "Take Me Up Again" is the album's bounciest, its counterpoint is "Faded," whose bittersweet melody and gentle rhythm bely themes of physical and emotional frailty.

Ultimately, not only did working on Vanishing help the duo cope with a uniquely challenging situation, but just being stuck at home helped stoke their creativity. "Music was the only thing I did during the pandemic, besides online school," Skye says. "It gave us all this time we didn't have before to make the album." For Nyles—knowing they might never have that kind of time again—to be able to put out a record with his son is, simply, "a dream come true."

Vanishing was written, recorded, and produced by Nyles Lannon and Skye Lannon and mixed by Dan Long, with additional contributions from Zach Rogue (Rogue Wave), Nichole Kreglow (backup vocals), lyricist Neil Rodenmeyer (Lupa Rosa), and Ian McDonald (FUTRVST).

Studio One was founded by Clement "Coxsone" Dodd1 in 1954, and the first recordings were cut in 1963 on Brentford Road in Kingston.[1][2] Amongst its earliest records were "Easy Snappin" by Theophilus Beckford, backed by Clue J & His Blues Blasters, and "This Man is Back" by trombonist Don Drummond. Dodd had previously issued music on a series of other labels, including World Disc, and had run Sir Coxsone the Downbeat, one
of the largest and most reputable sound systems in the Kingston ghettos.
In the early 1960s, the house band providing backing for the vocalists were the Skatalites[3] (1964–65), whose members (including Roland Alphonso, Don Drummond, Tommy McCook, Jackie Mittoo, Lester Sterling and Lloyd Brevett) were recruited from the Kingston jazz scene by Dodd. The Skatalites split up in 1965 after Drummond was jailed for murder, and Dodd formed new house band the Soul Brothers (1965–66), later named the Soul Vendors (1967) and Sound Dimension (1967-). From 1965 to 1968 they played 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., 5 days a week, 12 rhythms a day (about 60 rhythms a week) with Jackie Mittoo as music director, Brian Atkinson (1965–1968) on bass, Hux Brown on guitar, Harry Haughton (guitar), Joe Isaacs on drums (1966–1968), Denzel Laing on percussion, and on horns (some initially and some throughout): Roland Alphonso, Dennis 'Ska' Campbell, Bobby Ellis, Lester Sterling, among others on horns during the era of Rock Steady. Headley Bennett, Ernest Ranglin, Vin Gordon and Leroy Sibbles were included among a fluid line-up, to record tracks directed by Jackie Mittoo at Studio One from 1966-1968.
During the night hours at Studio One from 1965-1968, singers like Bob Marley, Burning Spear, The Heptones, The Ethiopians, Ken Boothe, Rita Marley, Marcia Griffiths, Judy Mowatt, Alton Ellis, Delroy Wilson, Bunny Wailer[4] and Johnny Nash, among others, would put on headphones to sing lyrics to original tracks recorded by the Soul Brothers earlier each day. These seminal recordings included "Real Rock" (by Sound Dimension), "Heavy Rock", "Jamaica Underground", "Wakie Wakie", "Lemon Tree", "Hot Shot", "I'm Still In Love With You", "Dancing Mood", and "Creation Rebel".
Jackie Mittoo, Joe Isaacs, and Brian Atkinson left Studio One in 1968, recorded drums and bass for Desmond Dekker's and Toots' biggest hits at other Kingston studios, then moved to Canada. Hux Brown stayed in Jamaica to record on the soundtrack The Harder They Come, The Harder They Fall, and toured in Nigeria with Toots and the Maytals and Fela Kuti. The Soul Brothers (a.k.a. Sound Dimension) formed the basis of reggae music in the late 1960s, being versioned and re-versioned time after time over decades by musicians like Shaggy, Sean Paul, Snoop Lion, The Clash, String Cheese Incident, UB40, Sublime, and countless other Billboard originals and remakes trying to emulate their original Rock Steady sound at Coxsone's Studio One.

Darker Days Ahead is Terrorizer's follow up to their classic 1989 album World Downfall. It features original members Pete Sandoval (Morbid Angel) and Jesse Pintado (Napalm Death, Brujeria) on drums and guitar with new members Anthony Rezhawk and Tony Norman joining in on vocals and bass. Despite the 16 year gap between releases, the band picked up exactly where they left off in 1989 and created an album full of pure extreme metal that is guaranteed to satisfy all fans of old school death metal and grindcore. The Svart reissue is officially licensed from Century Media and comes on black and limited green wax.

Darker Days Ahead is Terrorizer's follow up to their classic 1989 album World Downfall. It features original members Pete Sandoval (Morbid Angel) and Jesse Pintado (Napalm Death, Brujeria) on drums and guitar with new members Anthony Rezhawk and Tony Norman joining in on vocals and bass. Despite the 16 year gap between releases, the band picked up exactly where they left off in 1989 and created an album full of pure extreme metal that is guaranteed to satisfy all fans of old school death metal and grindcore. The Svart reissue is officially licensed from Century Media and comes on black and limited green wax.

The pioneer of electric pop music, Giorgio Moroder (born April 26, 1940 in Ortisei, Italy) is an internationally acclaimed songwriter and producer who left his trace also in Finnish popular music. Several Moroder’s compositions and productions were released in Finland with Finnish lyrics in the 1970s and 1980s, when Moroder had his most creative peak. This compilation includes twelve Finnish Moroder covers from early bubblegum pop to electronic disco. Giorgio Moroder began his musical career as a singer. He gained success performing bubblegum pop in the late 1960s. He wrote some of his hits himself, but he also sang songs written by others. During his singer years he succeeded with songs Looky Looky (1969) and Son of My Father (1971). The latter became well known also in Finland, where it was covered by one of the most famous Finnish singers in 1960s and early 1970s, Ilkka Lipsanen alias Danny. The song found its way to Finland via Britain, where British band Chicory Tip had covered it first and made it to the charts with the song. Danny was not the only Finnish singer in the early 1970s who looked at Moroder’s repertoire when searching for good songs. Koivistolaiset was a singing and dancing duo of sisters Anja and Anneli Koivisto who were well-known celebrities in 1970s Finland. They released Moroder’s composition Good Grief Christina as On siitä aikaa in 1973. This song was also discovered from Chicory Tip’s repertoire. Cheerful and danceable bubblegum pop was an early 1970s phenomenon and in Finland it was the most popular music played in discos during those years.

Mit der Disco-Hymne 'Terra Firma' schlug die einzigartige Band erstmals auf der Bildfläche auf. Das Jahr 2019 krönten sie mit einer ausverkauften US-Tour und bestätigten gleichzeitig ihre Europatour für das Frühjahr 2020. Das Album ist geprägt von einem Gemeinschaftsgefühl. Aber nicht nur darum geht es. Das Album beschäftigt sich auch damit, wie unser modernes Leben ständig zwischen der Online-und der Offline-Welt zu pendeln scheint; von der Welt in unseren Smartphones zu der, die wir jeden Tag mit unseren physiologischen Sinnen erleben. Was unterscheidet unsere emotionalen Erfahrungen wie Freundschaft, Liebe und Gemeinschaft online von denen, die wir im wahren Leben machen? "Manchmal" erklärt Frontmann Ned, "kann sich der Wechsel zwischen den zwei Welten anfühlen wie ein Wechsel von Schwarz/Weiß zu Farbe. Dieses Phänomen wollten wir auf dem Album ausloten." Die Entstehungs- und Erfolgsgeschichte von 'Dream in Colour' gibt einem wirklich ein gutes Gefühl und nicht nur das: Sie bringt das Phänomen Franc Moody auf den Punkt.

Gotts Street Park are a proud bunch of throwbacks. The Leeds-based trio - Josh Crocker (bass, production), Tom Henry (keys) and Joe Harris (guitar) - met through various music studies and friendship networks. Individually their tastes are diverse: from North Indian classical to experimental jazz, soul to alternative hip hop but their vision is united: “The idea of doing things live in one room has always been important,” remarks Josh. “That’s how they used to do it. Our identity evolved from that.”

The inception of the collective goes back to around 2012. There have been minor line up tweaks - they currently record with a rotating list of drummers - but the philosophy has stayed the same: an ongoing pursuit to capture the raw, unparalleled vibe that comes from recording music together, usually as one take, sometimes to analogue tape.

That approach is a deliberate call back to the methods made famous by legendary studios like Sun and Stax in Memphis, or FAME and Muscle Shoals in Alabama and their in-house bands. That’s why for years, GSP set up their own studio in a shared house in a tough (but, crucially, affordable) corner of west Leeds, Armley. Gotts Park (historically the home of industrialist Benjamin Gott) was close by - the group’s name was a nod to their local geography but also the fact it sounded like an area plucked straight out of some of their favourite East Coast hip hop releases.

Their work was quickly noticed, and it was from that base where they began working with an eye catching list of collaborators: Rejjie Snow, Kali Uchis, Cosima, Yellow Days, Chester Watson, Greentea Peng and Benny Mails. Tom also played keys in Mabel’s band. Early on, while performing as a band for hire for those artists, they were simultaneously honing their own sound; a deliberately retro “heavy, saturated” atmosphere that married the languid vibe of traditional soul with the pin sharp clarity of contemporary hip hop. Old leanings, sure, but upcycled with their own modern twist. “We’re constantly trying to build a catalogue,” says Tom. “Writing new stuff and sending it out to people.” That’s why after the release of their debut EP, ‘Volume One’, in 2017 the invitations kept coming; most notably from Brits Rising Star award winner Celeste, with whom they recorded two tracks on her debut EP ‘Lately’.

‘Volume Two’ once again features an impressive raft of vocalists - all female - from established names to fresh talent. This time, musically, the overall tone is lighter; less gritty, more optimistic. “It’s definitely not as gloomy,” says Josh. “Still though, there is this kind of dark, mysterious thing that we do a lot that works,” he continues. “Like the song we’ve done with Grand Pax, for example - it’s got that kind of witchy darkness to it. I think if you do a really straight male soul voice, it can be a bit cheesy and sound like you’ve heard it a million times before.”

Their collaborations might be some of the freshest of 2020 but make no mistake: Gotts Street Park are out there looking to create something timeless.

Repress!

Just over a year after his last solo project on The North Quarter, FD returns to the label with ‘Pleasure Rooms’. For this four-track EP, the London-born producer once again shows off his bass line dexterity, along with his trademark grooved percussion and mood-building samples. Heavier, grime-reminiscent tracks ‘Shawn Kemp’ and ‘Mama Told Me’ featuring Bristol MC Hella are combined with a more melody-driven, colourful sound present on ‘Double Drizzle’ and ‘Sails’. Following the major success of his minimal, experimental project LIN000 with Satl, this EP further shows the wide-ranging progress FD has been making in recent years.

Named after the Tottenham venue where FD went to his first rave, ‘Pleasure Rooms’ pays homage to the place that spawned his love for Drum & Bass. FD: 
“Pleasure Rooms was an old rave venue in Tottenham. My main memory is seeing Brockie & Det in a small room, sweat dripping off the ceiling and columns with mirrors on, totally fogged up. And going fucking mental. Being totally immersed in the music and the vibe, super excited and just hyped.

My Pleasure Rooms EP was made with thoughts of these kind of raves and parties in mind as this is a vibe and sound I've been enjoying quite a lot again recently - and it was such an important time for my love of Drum & Bass.

Iceland's Thule offshoot label 66 Degrees was a vital label back in the day. After a 20-year hiatus, it came back strong in August and now follows up quickly with a second superb EP. This one is a carefully curated various artists collection that pulls together some local house anthems new and old. Ozy's 'Sequential Dub' is a super smooth deep house number with lush chord work. Sanasol brings heavier, more raw house drums and grinding bass that will get floors in a sweat. Oz Artists mixes up a raw, mechanical groove with balmy, dreamy pads up top to make for something utterly compelling on 'Atomox; while last of all Terry Cummingz pays homage to dusty Windy City house on his perfectly lo-fi 'Cherry Bon Bon. Classy business for sure.

Maceo Plex's Lone Romantic label signs up new school techno innovators Any Act for the powerful Deti Techno EP.

Since their self-released protest EP ‘Civil Act’, Yaroslavl-based collective Any Act have put out music that is physically, socially and politically powerful. That debut from the TRAM Planet Records associates was an evocative offering that paired dynamic guitar riffs with samples of a policeman's voice and acid-laced basslines. They now continue their mission to unite and strengthen young music communities in their native Russia, as well as around the world, with this new standout release.

The bristling title track opens up with a killer electro-techno groove. Distorted synth stabs and dark vocal samples make for an intense and edgy atmosphere that will fire up any club. 'Jug A Jug' is another visceral track with razor-sharp synths ripping up the groove as busted bass blasts down low. Add in angular riffs and booming kicks and you have an explosive techno rave-up.

The excellent 'Bayla' is another no-frills, lo-fi, high-impact banger with thumping drums and brain-frying synth textures that are all coated in grit and grime. 'Till I Die' shows a different side with its sleazy feel and ghetto bass. A freaky female vocal and pixelated melodies bring late-night rave vibes before closer 'Chin Chin De' takes off on rugged electro drum programming. It's an explosive cut with raw attitude and unbound energy that places you at the heart of a strobe-lit warehouse.

This is a direct and potent EP from the hotly tipped Any Act.

Landing on Cosmocities right on cue for the summer season ahead, Japanese producer Masumi Nishimura alias Inner Science deals out a new entry into his shimmering, shape-shifting mindset. Flying us off to a soothingly dreamy and colourful headspace, bristling with vibrant sound design minutiae to wrap your ears around, Inner Science exhibits the elevating power of his music through three original joints, complemented by two exquisite remixes from multi-faceted British genius Joe Goddard and Giegling staple, Map.ache. The acid-infused glitter of “Unfold” paves the way with understated bravura; a piece of squelchy yet dazzling nature, organically making the rounds between propulsive club music territories and exotica-laced cascades of sound. “Quiet Track 3” follows a similar course with its phantasmagoric landslides of chimey melodies and driving bass traction on stealth mode, all scudding and mingling with haiku-esque spiritual balance, while “Never Fade Away” blows the winds of poetic transcendence through a finely engineered mix of forward-racing groove and a honey-dripping, rainbow-like shower of elementally lush textures and envelopes.

Flip it over and here’s Joe Goddard taking “End of the Beginning" for a slower, slightly less sign-busy jaunt across sun-soaked clearings and pastures. Laying further focus and emphasis on the synth work and build-up here, Goddard channels Inner Science's many facets and wildland-like exuberance through a more directed, further orchestrated pathway. Tackling “Momentary Spread”, map.ache treats us to a further dynamic, floor-friendly approach, routing its listener onto proper functional, gridlocked tracks. Bleached-out pads evaporating into aether as the bass etches into your mind with durable effect, it’s a proper oneiric roller that engulfs you down its gushing throat of faded escapism and brittle, post-discoid melancholy

Originally released in 2012, the second album by the São Paulo-born composer Rodrigo Campos marks a turning point in both lyrical and aesthetic inspiration. “Bahia Fantástica” is the result of the absorption of a then recent influence of soul music (especially Curtis Mayfield) and is in the middle of this path marked by an unlikely geography in the lyrical part (São Mateus, Bahia, Japan) and by an expansion of sound ( from samba to the indefinable, with a passage through black American music).

The album turns ten years old in 2022 and exudes vitality. The soul reference takes on a different aroma when it passes through the filter of the composer and his band – formed by Kiko Dinucci on guitar, Marcelo Cabral on bass, Maurício Fleury on keyboards, Maurício Takara on drums and Thiago França on sax: it has Brazilian sauce, hints of afrobeat and a very particular seasoning. The lyrics bear the artist's mark: they project scenes in the listener's imagination and design the characters and environments with their own style of subjective chronicle. Bahia is both imaginary and intimate in Rodrigo Campos’s music.

Eli Brown steps up to unveil his highly anticipated debut release on Drumcode.

The UK artist hailing from Bristol has long been on Adam Beyer’s radar. He made his debut on Drumcode’s sub label Truesoul in 2019, teaming up with Will Clarke for their standout EP, ‘Our Love’. Since then, Eli Brown’s sound has continued to evolve and develop, with his signature dark and subversive sonics exhibiting on labels such as on Filth On Acid, We Are The Brave and his Arcane imprint earning high praise in techno circles.

His maiden contribution to Drumcode is in the form of his high-octane four track EP ‘Deep Down’. The title track ‘Deep Down’ has been a go-to weapon for Adam Beyer who’s been slaying it at Awakenings, Ultra Europe x Resistance and Loveland. It’s a dynamic, vocal-led production driven by a squelchy psy-laced synth line. ‘Nazareth’ is a pumping acid-infused stomper that galvanised the masses at Tomorrowland. Brown draws inspiration from Detroit for ‘Can’t Stop The Feeling’, a track that delicately balances an exuberant soul vocal with a nostalgic rave vibe. The EP rounds out with the thrilling highlight, ‘Pressure’, as 90’s house chords and gritty synths combine with a luring vocal hook for an ecstatic conclusion to the EP. It went down a treat when Beyer played it at Drumcode’s Off Sonar party in June.

Das Sony Classical-Debütalbum "Arctic" der international hochgelobten norwegischen Geigerin Eldbjørg Hemsing ist eine musikalische Reise durch die Arktis mit neuer Musik u.a. von den Star-Komponisten Jacob Shea ("The Blue Planet") von Bleeding Fingers Music und Frode Fjellheim ("Frozen"). Zusammen mit dem Arctic Philharmonic Orchestra zelebriert Eldbjørg Hemsing darauf die zerbrechliche und weithin unentdeckte Schönheit eines Ökosystems, das in einem beispiellosen Ausmaß vom Klimawandel bedroht ist. "Die Arktis wird oft als ein schroffer, unbewohnbarer Ort verkannt, dabei handelt es sich um eine Region von einmaliger Schönheit und voller Leben, die auf faszinierende Weise illustriert, wie alles in fragilen Kreisläufen zusammenhängt. 'Arctic' ist eine musikalische Reise durch diesen einmaligen, gefährdeten Naturraum", erklärt Eldbjørg Hemsing. "Ich möchte mit diesem Projekt den Menschen zeigen, wie großartig und schützenswert diese Landschaft ist und auf die Bedrohung durch den Klimawandel hinweisen, die Auswirkung auf uns alle hat." "Arctic" ist voller mitreißender Melodien und beeindruckenden orchestralen Klanglandschaften, die sich beim Anhören des Albums aufbauen, wie die atemberaubenden Lebensräume der Arktis im Lauf der Jahreszeiten. Für die musikalische Gestaltung ihres Albums hat die im norwegischen Valdres geborene Musikerin mit einer Vielzahl an Komponisten zusammengearbeitet und ein einmaliges Album kreiert, das amerikanische Filmmusik mit europäischer Klassik verbindet. So enthält "Arctic" neue Musik von den Filmkomponisten Jacob Shea von Bleeding fingers Music und Frode Fjellheim wie auch neue Arrangements von Melodien der Komponisten Selim Palmgren, Einojuhani Rautavaara, Henning Sommerro, Ola Gjeilo, Ole Bull, Edvard Grieg und James Newton Howard. Aufgenommen wurde das Album in Bodø innerhalb des norwegischen Polarkreises mit dem Arctic Philharmonic Orchestra. "Ich wollte einmalige, einprägsame Melodien mit einem malerischen orchestralen Klang verbinden, der dem großen Panorama der Arktis entspricht, um diese emotionale Geschichte zu erzählen. Entstanden ist eine sehr abwechslungsreiche Art Filmmusik für den Konzertsaal oder ein Soundtrack für eine innere Reise", sagt Eldbjørg Hemsing über die Musik von "Arctic". Das zentrale Werk des Albums ist die 20 Minuten lange "Arctic Suite" des amerikanischen Filmkomponisten Jacob Shea von Bleeding Fingers Music, der zusammen mit Hans Zimmer die millionenfach gespielte, ikonische Musik zu "The Blue Planet" geschrieben hat. In den sechs Teilen der "Arctic Suite" vertont Jacob Shea die einmaligen arktischen Naturphänomene und findet Melodien für "Frozen Worlds" im Winter, die "Aurora" in der Polarnacht oder den "Sunrise" in der Morgendämmerung des Polartages. Er gibt den Fischschwärmen im Malmström einen Klang in "Rush of Life" oder dem poetischen Pfeifen der "Polar Winds" und endet mit einem melancholischen Blick auf aktuelle Veränderungen in "Sea Ice Melting". Komponist Frode Fjellheim ist bekannt von seiner Arbeit zu "Frozen". Er entstammt den Samen, einem Volk, das bereits seit Jahrhunderten den europäischen Polarkreis bewohnt. Für seine Kompositionen "Under the Arctic Moon" und "The Return of the Sun" lässt er sich von den traditionellen Liedern der Samen, den "Joik", inspirieren. In "The Return of the Sun" singt er sogar eine dieser traditionellen Melodien. Die musikalische Reise durch die "Arctic" umfasst weitere neue und farbenfrohe Orchesterarrangements von Werken nordischer Komponisten wie das klangmalerische "Snowflakes" von Selim Palmgren, "Whispering" von Einojuhani Rautavaara, "Dawn" von Ola Gjeilo und "Vårsøg" von Henning Sommerro. "Vårsøg" ist eine bekannte Melodie in Norwegen und steht sinngemäß für die "Suche nach einem neuen Frühling". Das ursprünglich als Folk-Pop Song geschriebene Lied verkörpert damit die Hoffnung auf einen Neuanfang im Leben. Arrangeur Ben Palmer hat die Melodie in eine emotionale Hymne für Violine und Orchester gebettet.

MEMORIAM needs no introduction ‐ they are living legends of Old School Death Metal. Not only because the former fields of activity of the Brits belonged and still belong to the pioneers of UK Death Metal, but because they managed to follow their master plan more than precisely. MEMORIAM has built up their own loyal fan base over the past
seven years and developed its own musical identity. It would certainly have been easy for them to just follow the old paths, but the true art of the band is that they never deny their origins, but gradually incorporate something new ‐ with every album a few new nuances and facets are added.

The sheer speed of their creative output shows how consistently MEMORIAM follow this path: Following the initial success of the HELLFIRE DEMOS trilogy, MEMORIAM signed with Nuclear Blast in 2016. The band went on to release FOR THE FALLEN (2017), THE SILENT VIGIL (2018) and REQUIEM FOR MANKIND (2019) ensuring within a very short time that MEMORIAM were firmly established among loyal Death Metal fans. This wassupported by dozens of concerts, which have taken the band from selected club shows to major festival appearances (e.g. Hellfest, Wacken, Summer Breeze, Graspop). Following the success of this initial trilogy, MEMORIAM switched to the young label Reaper Entertainment. The album TO THE END, the first of a new trilogy, was released in 2021. The second album of the trilogy, RISE TO POWER, will be released in early 2023.

RISE TO POWER will not only once again offer an atmospherically dense Dan Seagrave cover, the war theme stylized on it also runs through Karl Willetts’ lyrics: With 'Never Forget, Never Again (6 Million Dead)' about the Holocaust and the, unfortunately, more than current 'Total War' about the war in Ukraine, Karl is more political than ever. "I am
writing 'our burden and shame' instead of 'their' as I believe it is our collective responsibility to ensure that something like the Holocaust never happens again. I feel that it is my responsibility as a frontman and lyricist to write about the things that I feel are important," explains Karl. MEMORIAM transforms aggression and grief into
uncompromising Death Metal energy. Also musically the mentioned above development process continues.

While the opener still serves the essential Death Metal groove, MEMORIAM becomes more variable with each additional song and keeps adding new dynamics into their Old School Death Metal sound ‐ from brutal grooves ('Annihilation's Dawn') via doomy‐melodic parts like in 'I Am The Enemy' up to aggressive Nordic riffing like in 'Total War'. RISE TO POWER is an extremely varied album, as Karl confirms: "That's Scott's style, he comes from a different generation than Frank, Spike and me. He brings in influences from bands I haven't even heard of. It gives us the balance between old and new, and it works pretty well for us.” (Thomas Strater)

HEUT IST EIN GUTER TAG. Gegenwart mit Blick nach
vorn. Endlich. Es ist da, das neue Studioalbum: "Heut
ist ein guter Tag".
15 Songs mit geballten Fäusten und für immer Grinsen
im Gesicht. Positive Grundstimmung, ja. Aber kein
zahnloses Happy-Go-Lucky-Statement. Sondern: Wut,
Witz und WTF.
Das neue Album der DONOTS kommt zur richtigen Zeit.
Es ist nicht weniger als eine Wohltat. In ihren
besten Momenten kommt die Scheibe so nah an die
Live-Energie der Band wie keins ihrer vorherigen Alben.
An den entscheidenden Stellen aber ruht sie wie
selbstverständlich in sich und nimmt sich die Zeit, die sie
braucht, um ihre Wirkung voll zu entfalten.
HEUT IST EIN GUTER TAG verbeugt sich zeitgemäß
vor den Old School-Einflüssen der Band: Punk, Rock,
HC, Indie und Pop. Dabei hebt die Platte jedoch alle
Trademarks der DONOTS elegant auf das nächste
Level. Keine Wiederholungen, keine Kompromisse.
Natürlich wurden sämtliche Spielarten der klassischen
DONOTS Sportgitarre ausgelotet. Doch was auf früheren
Platten ähnlich, aber besser zu finden war, wurde sofort
verworfen.
So entstand in liebevoller Kleinarbeit ein Meilenstein der
Bandgeschichte. HEUT IST EIN GUTER TAG ist eine
weitere erfolgreiche Zusammenarbeit mit Produzent und
Bandfreund Kurt Ebelhäuser, der schon für Alben wie
"Coma Chameleon" und "Lauter als Bomben"
verantwortlich zeichnete. Beim Mixing der Platte sorgte
das Jungtalent Michel Wern verlässlich dafür, dass HEUT
IST EIN GUTER TAG bei aller Vielfalt wie aus einem
Guss klingt

James Brandon Lewis is a New York-based jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, and bandleader. His instrumental voice marries the emotional power of gospel and the grit and groove of blues and R&B to the modal and vanguard influences of Albert Ayler and John Coltrane, and Sonny Rollins" expressive melodic and tonal discipline. Moments, his 2010 debut, was followed by two outings for Sony Masterworks" revived OKeh imprint: Divine Travels in 2014 and the widely celebrated Days of Freeman the following year. After working American stages and clubs, he toured European and Asian festivals. Radiant Imprints, a duo outing with drummer Chad Taylor, appeared in 2018 and was followed by the quintet offering An UnRuly Manifesto a year later. In 2021, after he was selected as the "Rising Star Tenor Saxophonist" in the Downbeat International Critics Poll, Lewis issued The Jesup Wagon, his debut for Tao Forms. Along the way, Lewis drew the attention of many improvising artists, most notably the saxophonist and jazz deity Sonny Rollins, who doesn"t offer effusive praise very often. Moved by Lewis" deep, spirit-seeking sound, Rollins said "When I listen to you, I listen to Buddha, I listen to Confucius ... I listen to the deeper meaning of life. You are keeping the world in balance." Eye of I opens with 44 seconds of gritty, high-throttling low-down groove, an ear pulverizing opening designed to cleanse all traces of ordinary from the palette. From there, Lewis offers a prayerful cover of Donnie Hathaway"s "Someday We"ll All Be Free" and then the first of his disarmingly addictive originals, "The Blues Still Blossoms" in addition to many others.

EMA’s Woozy label returns with Sha Ru’s Match My Sway EP; a powerful club record that sits proudly in the canon of modern protest music. Dubstep-influenced electronics meet spoken word on the continued struggle of oppressed nations’ fight for liberation. Comes with a slamming Walton remix, with all artist profits going towards the Kyiv Angels and Repair Together charities in Ukraine.

Sha Ru are a New York-via-Berlin based duo renowned for their deft mix of spoken word and club electronics, gaining notoriety thanks to their exhilarating productions and renowned live, hybrid and DJ sets. Having spent most of their time based between two different countries, the covid pandemic unexpectedly united the band in Belarus and subsequently Ukraine for an extended period of time. They quickly found themselves immersed in each country’s respective electronic music scene, building strong relationships within each community. It quickly became apparent that both countries were actively fighting for their future freedom, and the duo felt compelled by the unity they experienced in this to respond with music. This resulted in Match My Sway, a record chronicling resistance both lyrically and sonically that found a suitable home on EMA’s impressively futurist-leaning Woozy imprint.

The EP opens with Temporary Iteration, a fierce steppers track with plummeting subs that chronicles a moment of transition into clarity by focusing on the ‘now’; staying true to your belief by moving directly towards your goal together. Not Fluctuating ups the sonic ante with hefty kicks, drill snares and potent throbbing bass, while the vocals describe the feeling of ultimate resistance in the name of seeking the truth.

Side B enters with Synced Energies, acting as the EP’s thrilling climax. Percolating synths pogo around a 2-step beat providing chest-gripping catharsis. Lyrics repeat a mantra of unity, refuting divisions. Tectonic and Ilian Tape affiliate Walton sees us out with the intense stuttering rave mechanics of his Not Fluctuating remix, a modern techno monster that deserves to be enjoyed on a 10ft tall rig; a complimentary take on a powerful original.

The Soninke collective consciousness finds its origins in a founding myth, a blood pact: the legend of Biida and the decadence of the empire of Ghana or Wagadu (evoked by Léopold Sédar Senghor as a land of plenty in his poem Le Kaya Magan). From the 3rd century AD, gathered in the region of Sahel, on the edge of the Sahara desert, the Soninko ruled over their kingdom and its capital Kumbi Saleh. According to folklore, they were blessed with abundant rain and nuggets of gold could be picked directly from the ground.

They owed this prosperity to a providential but cruel protector: the Wagadu Biida, a seven-headed serpent who lived at the bottom of the Kumbi well. Every year, as a reward for his favours, the Biida demanded an offering: the life of the most beautiful virgin woman in the community. Sacrifices took place for generations, until the 13th century AD, when fate chose Siya Yatabéré, Maamadi Sehedunxote's sweetheart...

Centuries later in 1977, Gaye Mody Camara, a young Soninke raised in Mali's Kayes region, settled in France to found his own empire. Initially selling wax, kola nuts and other goods in his Parisian outlets, he rapidly started distributing cassette tapes and eventually producing a multitude of recordings for his own label: Camara Production.

Crossing paths and collaborating over the next four decades with legendary artists, griots and industry moguls like Boncana Maïga, Jean-Philippe Rykiel, Ganda Fadiga, Diaby Doua or Ibrahima Sylla, Camara became one of the great independent music producers of his generation, and a pilar of the Parisian Soninke diaspora.

Released in close collaboration with Gaye Camara and with the assistance of Daouda N'diaye, one of A.P.S' (Association pour la Promotion de la langue et de la culture Soninké) historical members, this selection of songs and accompanying notes aim to shed a light on an intricate culture and its modern music, injustifiably unknown outside of West Africa and the various Soninko diasporas around the world.

From Malian Zouk to Mauritanian Reggae and other psychedelic groovers originally released on cassettes or digitally, we have given the utmost attention to bringing this music to a new format. It has been carefully remastered and pressed on a couple of 180g vinyls, with riso printed liner notes.

Radio Slave teams up with Nez for all-new versions of the club smash, ‘Wait a Minute’.

The first single from Radio Slave’s forthcoming 2023 LP, ‘Wait a Minute’ sees the UK legend pair with grammy nominated multi-hyphenate Nez for a hard-hitting, rap-infused house track that has become a staple of the handful of DJs who had upfront versions this summer.

Initially meeting via Radio Slave’s incendiary remix of the FELIX DA HOUSECAT co-produced ‘Lift Off’ released via Three Six Zero/Sony in 2021, LA’s Nez and Berlin-based Radio Slave made plans to work together as soon as possible, and a new version of 2020’s ‘Wait A Minute’ is the result. Featuring remixes from Rekids’ own Mark Broom and coming complete with an instrumental version, Radio Slave feat. Nez ‘Wait A Minute’ is released through Rekids on 26th August 2022.

Radio Slave, aka Matt Edwards, is responsible for some of the most recognisable underground dance tracks of the past 20 years, including ‘Grindhouse’, ‘Don’t Stop No Sleep’, ‘Another Club’, and many other timeless cuts. His collaboration work with Joel Martin as Quiet Village and solo work as Rekid has received critical acclaim, and he remains one of the most in-demand and consistent remixers around.

Nez has worked with the likes of Chance The Rapper, A$AP Rocky, Tinashe, ScHoolboy Q, and many more before dropping the dancefloor focussed ‘Midnight Music’ EP in 2021. Growing up in Chicago, Nez absorbed the rich musical lineage of the Windy City, and now distils these into his own unique creations and collaborations.

After Prette (pronounced as ‘pret’ which means fun in Dutch) successfully launched a stage to perform art, it only felt natural to also launch a platform to release art.

Prettemusic is an independent imprint that releases limited vinyl records.

Prettemusic hits the ground running with its first release – a stunning four-track debut EP from head honcho Koperblond. Koperblond (real name Wouter Beek) delivers a mix of Arabic hip-shaking and emotional trance euphoria to evoke intense dance floor ecstasy.

The opening track is ‘Kunti’, an Italo disco destroyer with a bold Bollywood spirit that will lure you in and awaken those hips. Next up is a remake of the brave starter – this new cocktail with hints of the original track has a high-energy zap-crazed feel and a groovy-moving non-stop sound. Two 100% floor fillers, guaranteed to raise the roof of your nearest discotheque!

On the flip side ‘I Want Your Love’ – an emotional love story with a journey through the track that feels like a taste of real love. From happiness and grief to hope and hopelessness, it bursts loudly and with great force. It is a true reminder that love will save the day. Multi-instrumentalist DJ and producer Rose Ringed reinterprets this ode to love using his typical sound palette. The result is a big room banger ready to be served alongside fireworks and CO2 cannons. It is Rose Ringed’s first vinyl outing following releases on his label, Closed Eyes Records, and Solomun’s world-famous Diynamic.

This Prettemusic release comes on exclusive Koperblond-coloured (copper blond in Dutch) vinyl alongside a unique two-front artwork from abstract painter Harry Markusse and fine-art photographer Pieter Bas Bouwman.

If naming is a form of claiming, of being claimed, how is one tethered to both the physical landscape that surrounds us, as well as our own internal emotional landscape_at times calm, at times turbulent, and ever changing? H.C. McEntire's new album Every Acre grapples with those themes_themes that encompass grief, loss, and links to land and loved ones. And naming_claiming land, claiming self, being claimed by ancestry and heritage_permeates the hauntingly beautiful landscape that is this poignant collection of songs. The songs straddle the line between music and poetry. In "New View," McEntire cites poets "Day, Ada, and Laux, Berry, and Olds"_fixtures in the world of writing, whose works are beacons of light over bleak horizons. The beginning of the song is backed by soft guitar plucks that fall on the downbeat and spangle like stars, and, throughout, guitar, bass, and drums swell together gently, mimicking ebbing and flowing tides under the moon. McEntire's voice (at once tender and fierce) intones the truth of both giving and taking, releasing and claiming: "Bend me, break me, split me right in two. Mend me, make me_I'll take more of you." Permeated by heartbeat-like drums, "Shadows" develops quiet ruminations on surrender and loss_reminiscing, moving on. This ponderous, dreamlike song asks the question of how "to make room." How does one make room, for self and for renewal and surrender, when it is so difficult to leave what you know behind? Playing with slivers of descending chromatics, along with the occasional downward-stepping bass, here McEntire yearns for home, and for nesting. Perhaps one of the more grief-stricken songs, "Rows of Clover" is a lamentation, one that touches on the loss of a "steadfast hound." The lone piano in the beginning of the song is rhythmically hymn-like. The stark verse arrangement gradually leads to a chorus that reads like a moody exhale, swollen with lush guitar strums and a Bill Withers-esque understated soul groove. But what stands out the most is an image of being "down on your knees, clawing at the garden"_the only explicit mention of a person in the song. "It ain't the easy kind of healing," sings McEntire, seemingly from further and further away as her voice echoes; and healing ta;kes time, time takes time_truths that linger painfully. "Dovetail" is a song that tells of various women. The song moves back and forth between solo piano and the addition of bass and drums under vocals. McEntire's gentle, trembling vibrato_harmonized in thirds in a celebratory manner_calls to mind a rejoicing psalm and shines through these images, leaving the listener cuttingly fraught with emotions_such as wonder, sadness, nostalgia_that can only arise with these juxtapositions. Gracious (and graceful) with its lilting melodies and lush harmonies, Every Acre ex - plores the acres of our physical and emotional homes. These songs are reaching for the kind of home that we all seek: one where we can rest and lay down (or tuck away) our burdens of loss. And maybe, moving through every acre of a world that often tries to tear our sense of identity and heritage down, McEntire sheds light on what it is to be human in this life_both stingy and gracious, both hurtful and kind.

Orange Viny

If naming is a form of claiming, of being claimed, how is one tethered to both the physical landscape that surrounds us, as well as our own internal emotional landscape_at times calm, at times turbulent, and ever changing? H.C. McEntire's new album Every Acre grapples with those themes_themes that encompass grief, loss, and links to land and loved ones. And naming_claiming land, claiming self, being claimed by ancestry and heritage_permeates the hauntingly beautiful landscape that is this poignant collection of songs. The songs straddle the line between music and poetry. In "New View," McEntire cites poets "Day, Ada, and Laux, Berry, and Olds"_fixtures in the world of writing, whose works are beacons of light over bleak horizons. The beginning of the song is backed by soft guitar plucks that fall on the downbeat and spangle like stars, and, throughout, guitar, bass, and drums swell together gently, mimicking ebbing and flowing tides under the moon. McEntire's voice (at once tender and fierce) intones the truth of both giving and taking, releasing and claiming: "Bend me, break me, split me right in two. Mend me, make me_I'll take more of you." Permeated by heartbeat-like drums, "Shadows" develops quiet ruminations on surrender and loss_reminiscing, moving on. This ponderous, dreamlike song asks the question of how "to make room." How does one make room, for self and for renewal and surrender, when it is so difficult to leave what you know behind? Playing with slivers of descending chromatics, along with the occasional downward-stepping bass, here McEntire yearns for home, and for nesting. Perhaps one of the more grief-stricken songs, "Rows of Clover" is a lamentation, one that touches on the loss of a "steadfast hound." The lone piano in the beginning of the song is rhythmically hymn-like. The stark verse arrangement gradually leads to a chorus that reads like a moody exhale, swollen with lush guitar strums and a Bill Withers-esque understated soul groove. But what stands out the most is an image of being "down on your knees, clawing at the garden"_the only explicit mention of a person in the song. "It ain't the easy kind of healing," sings McEntire, seemingly from further and further away as her voice echoes; and healing ta;kes time, time takes time_truths that linger painfully. "Dovetail" is a song that tells of various women. The song moves back and forth between solo piano and the addition of bass and drums under vocals. McEntire's gentle, trembling vibrato_harmonized in thirds in a celebratory manner_calls to mind a rejoicing psalm and shines through these images, leaving the listener cuttingly fraught with emotions_such as wonder, sadness, nostalgia_that can only arise with these juxtapositions. Gracious (and graceful) with its lilting melodies and lush harmonies, Every Acre ex - plores the acres of our physical and emotional homes. These songs are reaching for the kind of home that we all seek: one where we can rest and lay down (or tuck away) our burdens of loss. And maybe, moving through every acre of a world that often tries to tear our sense of identity and heritage down, McEntire sheds light on what it is to be human in this life_both stingy and gracious, both hurtful and kind.

If naming is a form of claiming, of being claimed, how is one tethered to both the physical landscape that surrounds us, as well as our own internal emotional landscape at times calm, at times turbulent, and ever changing? H.C. McEntire’s new album Every Acre grapples with those themes that encompass grief, loss, and links to land and loved ones. And naming claiming land, claiming self, being claimed by ancestry and heritage permeates the hauntingly beautiful landscape that is this poignant collection of songs. The songs straddle the line between music and poetry. In “New View,” McEntire cites poets “Day, Ada, and Laux, Berry, and Olds” fixtures in the world of writing, whose works are beacons of light over bleak horizons. The beginning of the song is backed by soft guitar plucks that fall on the downbeat and spangle like stars, and, throughout, guitar, bass, and drums swell together gently, mimicking ebbing and flowing tides under the moon. McEntire’s voice (at once tender and fierce) intones the truth of both giving and taking, releasing and claiming: “Bend me, break me, split me right in two. Mend me, make me I’ll take more of you.” Permeated by heartbeat-like drums, “Shadows” develops quiet ruminations on surrender and loss reminiscing, moving on. This ponderous, dreamlike song asks the question of how “to make room.” How does one make room, for self and for renewal and surrender, when it is so difficult to leave what you know behind? Playing with slivers of descending chromatics, along with the occasional downward-stepping bass, here McEntire yearns for home, and for nesting. Perhaps one of the more grief-stricken songs, “Rows of Clover” is a lamentation, one that touches on the loss of a “steadfast hound.” The lone piano in the beginning of the song is rhythmically hymn-like. The stark verse arrangement gradually leads to a chorus that reads like a moody exhale, swollen with lush guitar strums and a Bill Withers–esque understated soul groove. But what stands out the most is an image of being “down on your knees, clawing at the garden” the only explicit mention of a person in the song. “It ain’t the easy kind of healing,” sings McEntire, seemingly from further and further away as her voice echoes; and healing takes time, time takes time truths that linger painfully. “Dovetail” is a song that tells of various women. The song moves back and forth between solo piano and the addition of bass and drums under vocals. McEntire’s gentle, trembling vibrato harmonized in thirds in a celebratory manner calls to mind a rejoicing psalm and shines through these images, leaving the listener cuttingly fraught with emotions such as wonder, sadness, nostalgia that can only arise with these juxtapositions. Gracious (and graceful) with its lilting melodies and lush harmonies, Every Acre explores the acres of our physical and emotional homes. These songs are reaching for the kind of home that we all seek: one where we can rest and lay down (or tuck away) our burdens of loss. And maybe, moving through every acre of a world that often tries to tear our sense of identity and heritage down, McEntire sheds light on what it is to be human in this life both stingy and gracious, both hurtful and kind.

green vinyl / printed sleeve / 180 grams
Hadone's nine-track LP shares a first glimpse of his immersive 'Things We Never Did' concept.

November 2022 sees the inception of not only Hadone's first ever feature LP but also his artistically driven and expansive label project 'Things We Never Did'. Marking the first release on the imprint, 'What I Was Running From' spans nine individually unique records, including a special collaboration with friend and fellow French producer Askkin. One of the standout breaks tracks on the LP, it was the first track they made together.

A culmination of all things influential in modern underground techno, blending 4x4 raw techno tracks with more spirited melodic pieces, Hadone's debut LP is a telling celebration of several immersive sub-genres combined with his renowned sonic despondency. The result: a careful balance of richly electronic emotional cuts and racy industrialised techno with a gritty minimalist feel. "Not only the music is destined to evolve, but the whole environment that goes with it will be rethought on a recurring basis" adds Jeremy.

Title track 'What I Was Running From' was made after he finally found inspiration after the pandemic and was written in an hour. "I think my best tracks are made fast, as they don't reply in any intention but feelings only, therefore they are natural and reflect my true style" adds Jeremy.

Its fast paced bassline and jittery stabs, give the track a choppy break beat influenced vibe opening the album with true intent. 'What I Was Running from' offers a transcendental eye through the looking glass at a project that incorporates music, a digital interactive universe, a fashion collaboration with precocious
Parisian footwear brand Phileo. A creative collaboration which has resulted in a limited collection of 2 styles, available on both TWND's digital universe and Phileo direct.

For the 1st year designs, graphism by Raphael Clerget "leverages the power of art to underline the importance of saving our relation to time and improve focus." Raphael brings his vision of complexity and darkness through refined aesthetics carried out for the digital universe, label and merchandise.

• There was plenty of genuine discontent in Britain at the tail end of the 1970s, and it had little to do with bin strikes or dark rumours about overflowing morgues. In the world of popular music, the most liberating after-effect of the Sex Pistols was that anyone with something to say now felt they could make a 7” single. “Winter Of Discontent” is the sound of truly DIY music, made by people who maybe hadn’t written a song until a day or two before they went into the studio. It’s spontaneous and genuinely free in a way the British music scene has rarely been before or since.

• “Winter of Discontent” has been compiled by Saint Etienne’s Bob Stanley and Pete Wiggs, the latest in their highly acclaimed series of albums that includes “The Daisy Age”, “Fell From The Sun” and “English Weather” ("really compelling and immersive: it’s a pleasure to lose yourself in it" - Alexis Petridis, the Guardian). The era's bigger DIY names (Scritti Politti, TV Personalities, the Fall) and the lesser-known (Exhibit A, Digital Dinosaurs, Frankie’s Crew) are side by side on “Winter Of Discontent”. Mark Perry’s Sniffin’ Glue command – “Here’s one chord, here’s another, now start a band” – was amplified by the Mekons and the Raincoats, whose music shared a little of punk’s volume, speed and distortion, but all of its obliqueness and irreverence.

• The discontent was with society as a whole. No subject matter was taboo: oppressive maleness (Scritti Politti); deluded Britishness (TV Personalities); gender stereotypes (Raincoats, Androids of Mu); nihilistic youth (Fatal Microbes); alcoholism (Thin Yoghurts); self-doubt and pacifism (Zounds). The band names (Thin Yoghurts!) and those of individual members (Andrew Lunchbox!) had enough daftness to avoid any accusations of solemnity.

• “Winter Of Discontent” is the definitive compilation of the UK DIY scene, and a beacon in grim times.

Two of underground music's most undeniable and unpredictable forces of nature have collided: END and Cult Leader join together to release their split EP, Gather & Mourn, out on Closed Casket Activities. This four track collection finds each of these each of luminaries firing at full blast with the kind of heavy music that simultaneously repulses as it enraptures, fusing grind, hardcore, and death metal with an ominous intensity befitting of a world on fire.

 With ‘Resonanzen’ (Resonances), Johanna
Summer has extended her extraordinary art and
deepened the way she re-tells the music of
classical composers through improvisation.
 The album spans a wide range, starting with Bach,
Schubert, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Grieg and
Ravel and ending with Mompou, Ligeti and
Scriabin.
 Johanna Summer’s deep insights into the two
worlds of composition and improvisation are the
result of the particular path along which she has
developed as a musician. In her childhood and
youth, she solely studied classical music. Jazz and
improvisation came relatively late, but when they
did, it was with a powerful focus.
 Her classical grounding remained in place, and yet
there were many things that she needed to relearn for ‘Resonanzen’. As she says: “It was very
important that I should master the original pieces
first. That was particularly demanding for
‘Resonanzen’, because each of these very
contrasting compositions makes very different
demands on me as a player. At the same time,
improvisation is also an art which you have to keep
practising and developing, so that the music can
attain its own natural flow. To do justice to both of
these sides, and to find a balance between them,
these really are lifelong tasks for me.”

“Avada Kedavra Deluxe,” by Seattle rapper AJ Suede, is a 21-track, self-produced, self-referencing, double-vinyl labyrinth of experimental boom-bap. Building on a signature style that SPIN magazine describes as “stream-of-consciousness rhymes, containing everything from socio-political commentary and blunted cinematic allusions to psychedelic visions,” Suede’s creation is as compelling as it is unclassifiable. On the first LP, Suede demonstrates his substantial skills as a beatmaker and rapper, chopping up what Seattle’s KEXP calls “the smoothest, jazziest, weirdest samples” and overlaying parkour bars about Grunge, success, and social justice. From the first cut, “Nebuchadnezzar,” which New York’s Major Stage describes as a “powerful chant-like hypnotic loop,” these 10 tracks capture an elusive mood of too many hours inside watching YouTube and trying to piece together fractured connections. The album’s title is derived from an Aramaic spell: “Let this thing be destroyed.” On the second LP, Suede invites 13 guests to “destroy” the original songs. This disc of remixes and reworkings showcases underground voices from across the Northwest (Seattle’s Wolftone, Khrist Koopa, Portland’s Fines Double), from across America (New Jersey’s Fatboi Sharif, California’s mudwater, Ohio’s Lord Olo, New York’s Bloodblixing), and around the world (Tel Aviv’s Argov and Japan’s Wazasnics). Seattle rappers Astral Trap, Blake Anthony, Mika’il, and Greg Cypher are featured on a bonus “posse” cut. AJ Suede has been grinding for years in the underground, building a solid, devoted global fanbase. He’s released acclaimed cassettes and CDs through respected labels such as Fake Four Inc., Candy Drips, Chong Wizard, and Blackhouse. In May 2022, a 100-copy vinyl run of his album “Metatron’s Cube” sold out in less than four hours. With “Avada Kedavra Deluxe,” AJ Suede has tapped into the moment, using what Deeply Rooted Hip-Hop calls “a subconscious steeped in the mystical.” As KEXP says: “Quite predictably, the whole album bangs.”

The album’s seemingly brief tracklisting belies a work of great beauty and depth, and one which turned into a one-man crusade for singer/guitarist Lars Andersson, intertwining deeply personal stories with his love for the era of Romanticism. “Every time I go to a museum and I’m about to pass through the era of Romanticism I stop in awe,” says Lars of the enduring appeal of the 18th century artistic movement. “Whatever it is – stories, paintings, music – it triggers something deep within me, something profoundly human. It really hits a nerve, and it utterly immerses me to a point where I can’t move.” The album replicates this feeling; a gloriously over-the-top blend of Slowdive and Sigur Rós, mixed with the single-mindedness of Daniel Johnston and the noisiness of Nirvana, it’s as bold and beautiful and every bit as ornate as the art that inspired it. Unlike their acclaimed debut, 2019’s All That Ever Could Have Been, which gradually came into focus with a 15-minute opening track, Picturesque hits home from the very first note of the short and sweet opener, ‘Ballerina’. That’s not to say there aren’t epics here – ‘Metamorphosis’ is essentially a 12-minute suite of three movements; blistering closer ‘The Lot’ is 11 minutes of Swans-inspired heaviness – but everything is much more direct and focused. This isn’t an album to lose yourself in, it’s one to get swept away by. “‘More is more’ was definitely the credo when making this record,” agrees Lars. “A big inspiration were bands like Pond and the way they manage to fill their songs up with stuff to the absolute maximum. While I definitely tried to give the listener some room to breathe at certain points and while, in good old post-rock fashion, it still builds up and breaks down, it relies much more on simple melody and harmony as opposed to noisy experimentation to transport feeling.” Never more so than on the first single, ‘The Golden Age’, which is the album’s centrepiece; a soaring slice of über-shoegaze that is so stunning you can’t take your eyes or ears off it. Like all the songs on the album, it’s based around a fairy-tale from the Romantic era. In this case, it’s Heinrich von Ofterdingen by the German poet, author and philosopher Novalis (other influences are: The Steadfast Tin Soldier by Hans Christian Andersen; The Seven Ravens and Hans in Luck by the Brothers Grimm; Undine by Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué and The Golden Pot by E.T.A. Hoffmann), with Lars drawing parallels between the titular character’s mystical and romantic searchings and his own personal quest. This is apt as the album has been an overriding obsession for Lars for the past two-and-a-half years; as well as writing and recording the songs (bandmate Phillip Dornauer played drums), he also mixed and mastered them at his Alpine Audio studio and Picturesque is very much his Brian Wilson or Kevin Shields moment. MOLLY were in the middle of their European tour when Covid hit in early 2020, forcing Lars to retreat back to his home outside Innsbruck and giving him time and space to think about every detail of the record. “Well, I was on a quest I guess,” he admits. “Like everyone, I was stranded at home and at some point I just said to myself, ‘If not now, then when?’ It was an intense process. I’ve worked on music from other bands and artists before but producing and mixing your own music is an utterly different animal. It was probably the most intense thing I’ve ever done, but it was also incredibly rewarding and the feeling of it all coming together piece by piece is incomparable.” The artwork is just as effective. “I think of Radiohead’s OK Computer – what you hear on the record is what you see on the cover,” explains Lars. “We were inspired by what we call ‘wimmelbilder’ hidden pictures in German, a very specific style in art where there are a lot of little things happening. When you see it from further away, it looks organic like a lost painting from the area of Romanticism, but the closer you look the more digital it gets. It’s a nice analogy.” He’s right, it perfectly sums up the conflict between Romanticism and 21st century life. “Romanticism was basically an answer to the Industrial Revolution as well as the social and political norms of the Age Of Enlightenment,” concludes Lars. “Now, we all live in a much more industrialised, materialistic, individualistic and sterile society than any early Romanticist could have ever possibly imagined. Over 200 years later the Romanticists have lost the battle.” With the divine and downright pulchritudinous Picturesque, MOLLY begin the fightback.1.Ballerina 2.Metamorphosis 3.The Golden Age 4.Sunday Kid 5.So To Speak 6.The Lot

This September sees the fourth release from the label Either. Label founder Jamie Clarke is behind the title track ‘Angor Animi feat. Emdee’ and a second track featuring Emdee, the third track is a remix of the title track from Romania’s Barac.

Either is built on Clarke’s sure feel for early hours dance floor tunes. The releases to date are enriched by remixes from Pablo Mateo, Ryan Crosson, Silverliining…

On Clarke’s title track Emdee’s vocals carry us along over squelchy acid bass, gritty stab lines, saturated drums and tribal-tinged percussion. On track 2 ‘Extraction’ Clarke picks up the journey theme. Here the mood brightens and trips-out, Emdee’s chanting vocal carry us over sonorous organs, swinging rhythms. Track 3 returns to the dynamically processed elements of the title track, Romanian minimal maestro and Moment Records Boss Barac sweeps us into a twelve-minute rushing tide of organic drums and swaying subs.

2023 Repress

Bump 'n Grind Wax strikes again in 2022! A close friend of the Bump 'n Grind camp, Jacques Renault brings disco flare and funky house to two infectious edits on this limited release 7". One to make the vinyl diggers salivate.

The Let's Play House records boss shows off his affection for the baby-powered dancefloor on the A-side, "That's What You Are". A progressive tune that eventually leaves the listener swinging from a disco ball suspended from lush clouds overhead. Playful cymbals and guitar stabs decorate the sing-a-long hook, reminding us: we are all diamond-drenched dancing fiends.

Jacque's B-side edit of "My Love is Guaranteed" is a funky chokehold of a groove. A driving bassline of love leaves no doubt. A song filled with golden horns and a glimmering sample becomes the perfect selection for a DJ playing at a massive festival... or a wedding. Versatility!

2023 re-issue, 140g vinyl, reproduction of the classic Tele Music sleeve, full colour insert with liner notes and archive photographs

Wow! Tonio Rubio's Rhythms is a stone-cold killer, a heavyweight library breaks LP and the inaugural release in Be With's new partnership with legendary French library label Tele Music. Yes, you lucky people, there's lots to come. For this extremely special 50 year anniversary re-issue, we've reproduced the classic Tele Music sleeve with a full colour insert featuring rare photographs, fresh liner notes and personal memories of Tonio from the likes of Jean-Claude Vannier, Jean-Claude Petit and Janko Nilovic.

Sumptuous opener “Latin Leitmotiv” is all funky phasing effects and a killer montuno, with what sounds like piano and bass in tandem, stoking straight up Latin fire. The gritty hard funk of blaxploitation groove "Red Medium" is dripping in wah-wah attitude and head-nod oddness. The atmospheric, exotica-tinged "Dead Slow" emulates the languid, sensual afro groove of Quincy Jones’ wild masterpiece “Gula Matari” whilst the proggy, electric jazz fusion epic "Rock 73" is 9+ minutes of moody, rolling menace.

But the *real* highlight of this cult classic - and why it has long been *so* desirable - is the devastating, deep, hypnotic minimalist groove of "Bass In Action N°1". Very much in conversation with Quincy's rendition of "Hummin'", the loping, rumbling bassline and sweet electric piano over clean, crisp drums making it one of those tracks that sounds like a hip-hop beat 20 years ahead of time. Sensational. “Bass In Action N°2“ features Tonio's own vocal scat performance. Remarkable.

Antonio "Tonio" Rubio Garcia got his start playing the double bass in jazz clubs. In 1962, Tonio joined the Golden Stars, the first backing band of France’s teenage idol Johnny Hallyday. A genius musician with a unique guitar sound, he played on standards of French chanson including Serge Gainsbourg and Brigitte Bardot’s "Bonnie and Clyde", Françoise Hardy’s "Tous les Garçons et les Filles", Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin’s "Je T’aime, Moi Non Plus" and Serge and Charlotte Gainsbourg’s infamous "Lemon Incest". Tonio also lent his brilliance to such legendary figures as Janko Nilovic, Jean-Claude Petit, Hervé Roy, and Jean-Claude Vannier. The latter remembers Tonio as “a secretive, mysterious man, with an endearing personality, albeit difficult to reach out to. His virtuosity as a bass player allowed me to write very innovative basslines, because he was able to play any of my eccentricities!”

The audio for Rhythms has been remastered by Be With regular Simon Francis whilst Christopher Stevenson has brought the original and iconic Tele Music sleeve back to life in all its striking glory as the finishing touch to this long overdue re-issue.

WRWTFWW Records is deeply honored to announce the release of Chu Ishikawa & Der Eisenrost’s soundtrack for experimental action drama Tokyo Fist, released in 1995 and directed by legendary director/producer/writer Shin’ya Tsukamoto (Tetsuo: The Iron Man and its sequels, Bullet Ballet, Hiroki The Goblin, Nightmare Detective). Previously only published on CD in Japan, the cult movie soundtrack is available on vinyl for the first time ever and housed in a heavy 350gsm sleeve.
The Tokyo Fist soundtrack gorgeously blends explosive industrial music, heavy percussion, martial rhythms and noise experimentations with contemplative ambient and emotion-filled synth soundscapes, perfectly encapsulating the nihilistic pain felt by the characters of the movie and the brutally visceral rebirth they go through. Ishikawa and Der Eisenrost’s compositions hit hard, sometimes truly terrorizing, sometimes heart-gripping in gloomy and bewitching ways. This is no holds barred music, a venture into the darkest yet most strangely beautiful corners of the human mind (and heart).
The late great Chu Ishikawa was one of the innovators of the industrial and experimental scene in Japan and has collaborated with Shin’ya Tsukamoto on numerous movies. He also worked extensively with Takashi Miike, another visionary filmmaker from his home country. Ishikawa was the leader of groundbreaking Industrial-Metal-Percussion unit Der Eisenrost whose live performances around Japan left an indelible mark on the genre’s history.
This new project by WRWTFWW Records follows previous Japanese soundtracks from the catalogue: Ghost in the Shell, Patlabor 2, Evil Dead Trap…and more to come.

Red Vinyl

It has been exactly ten years since Finders Keepers first intrepidly entered Andrzej Korzyński’s cavernous musical vault, but it is only today that we are able to proudly announce the safe retrieval on what we consider the true heavy psych holy grail of the Polish composer’s mind-bending oeuvre. By cruel coincidence this welcome event has sadly come during the same year as the composer’s tragic passing. However, in true Korzyński style, alongside his previous Finders Keepers releases, the legacy he has left behind in this one final lost soundtrack project alone has come with musical riches beyond anyone’s wildest expectations.

The comprehensive elusive archive of the deeply psychedelic soundtrack to Andrzej Żuławski’s forbidden film Diabeł (The Devil) is perhaps the most detailed dossier one could wish to find – including audio sketches, rejected proposals and pre-butchered variations that play out like an intense and veritable creative conversation between the director and the maestro, both of whom are widely recognised as true mavericks of socialist-era Poland’s fertile artistic landscape. Never intended for anything as conventional as a straightforward movie tie-in promotional disc (state owned Eastern European record labels rarely did this), the music in this archive has required special forensic inspection. Let’s say the devil is in the detail. The 7” record you are now holding is more than just a companion piece, and it is far from a selection of the (non-existent) poppy title themes to promote a full feature-length album. This standalone release is wholly unique in its own right, giving Finders Keepers listeners a final access all areas snoop into the mind of one of the pillars of our alternative musical community.

As those familiar with Żuławski and Korzyński’s long-running relationship will understand (a methodology best exemplified in the schizoid soundtrack to the film Possession), their exchanges were deeply nuanced and often complicated, with lots of artistic “tennis” thrown into the mix. The key plot in this behind-the-scene fable is that after delivering his original off-kilter psychedelic score to the director, maestro Korzyński was asked to make the music “totally unique, like something from another planet”, to which Korzyński took his tapes, pulled down the vari-speed to a guttural grind and continued to recompose over the top using avant-garde electro-acoustic techniques while deploying psychedelic skills of guitarist Winicjusz Chróst. This limited record release proudly boasts Korzyński’s original uptempo awkward psychedelic pop music prior to the doom laden growls that make the official films soundtrack a true Goliath of Eastern European soundtrack composition. Which, when recontextualised, will stand as a veritable face-melter for stoner rock fans. As one of Finders Keepers deepest conquests, we are delighted to share The Devil Tapes… What is a grail without the wine.

A pure journey inward into the headspace of an artist, that reveals his gaze at the earth-ly zones he walks in: “Song for Joni”, the new album by Japanese musician Shunji Mori, brings pure natural music full of artificial nuances who create in conversation with ana-logue tones a new kind of musical nature, loaded with vibrant seasons, unknown to us, the unwise humans. moreover, the album is a fine continuation of Japan’s rich ambient leaning music traditions, carrying them into Lorren Connor’s like pending guitar galaxies.

In the 1990s Tokyo based Mori was part of the trip hop, nu-jazz, deep house, and down-tempo duo natural calamity, releasing a string of albums and EP’s on labels like legend-ary London based imprint Nuphonic, Japanese Idyllic Records or Down 2 Earth Record-ings.

In 2003 he launched the instrumental guitar duo Gabby & Lopez with his buddy Masayuki Ishii. Together they created three albums and performed live. Additionally, Mori plays improvisational concerts with Japanese musician, multi-instrumentalist, and stage direc-tor Daiho Soga and finds time to invent his very own, charismatic guitar music.

His solo work now finally gets introduced with a full-length album for Studio Mule, con-sisting of recent and a decade ago compositions, all merely recorded with the electric guitar, pedals, and field recordings.

In the center of “Song for Joni” is the guitar, spreading longing, drifting melodies. Free floating, yet deeply felt compositions, performed in an accurate journey music style. around the string notes, ambient landscapes soar and vanish.

In some moments, the guitar works like a slow-mo yacht rock lead, flying speed less over and under imaginative sonic clouds. Then, Mori’s music distributes psychedelic ef-fects in the tradition of krautrock legends like Günter Schickert, just without the echo fuzz.

Additionally, in warm vibrating seconds, his creations remind on the calm flashes in the musical work of English photographer, musician, and artist designer Steve Hiett, while Mori’s ambient spheres come close to the magic vibe of records like “Pier & Loft” by his fellow countryman Hiroshi Yoshimura.

A mixture, that transports considerate listeners into the meditative world of Shunji Mori, a calm island of bliss, made for all those that follow the heedful path of life.

incl. 3 Tracks for download

Better known as one half of the Stavroz quartet, Pieter De Meester and Maxim Helincks turn up on A Tribe Called Kotori with their self-titled third studio effort as Shady, following up to "Your Skin" EP on Beat & Path last year. Grinding a wide set of influences through oddball, genre-bending compositions, the pair has been carving out its own wonky, cross-curricular sound grammar away from normative restrictions and creative-hindering behaviourism - like the weird brainchild to Soulwax, Nicolas Jaar and Connan Mockasin.

"Can I Be Yours" gets the ball rolling on a spectral pop tip, blending together the vaporous spook of ultra-processed riffs with mischievous drum play and hypnotically smooth-tongued vocals dissolving in rippling delays. A further nocturnal affair, "Cruisin" goes a more sensuous, electro-friendly route, beaconed with hints of washed-out folk and cosmo-ambient spaciousness. The Cali vibes meet spoken Brit post-punk motif'd (think Baxter Dury out for a quick surf session with the Beach Boys) "Sun" rounds off the ride on a catchy Mod-like note, merging to perfection the swinging London's debonair charm with that of the west coast's typical carefreeness of being. That's ocean-spray bottled in a tune.

Download

1. Shady - Cruisin
2. Shady - CIBY
3. Shady - Sun

In a Hip Hop match-up as heavy as Freddy vs Jason was to horror cinema, Los Angeles emcee's Mykill Miers and Pawz One have announced a collaborative album titled "Double Homicide". The project is packed with multi-syllabic lyrical barrages and DJ cuts as gritty as the boom-bap backdrops for a journey through the dark underbelly of the city of angels.

Mykill Miers, the self-proclaimed "Hitchcock Of Hip Hop" has been a threat on the mic since the late 90's, coming up in the same circle as notables including Planet Asia, Dilated Peoples and Phil The Agony. Pawz One has been releasing music for the past decade has been repping hard for the real ish. Speaking on their initial link-up Pawz recalls "I had obviously known of Myk for a while from killing it on the "Wake Up Show" to all the work he dropped. I was circulating around shows in LA a few years back and we ended up on the same bill a few times. We exchanged contact and did a few songs and I felt like it was a combo people would like to hear more from."

Production on the album includes work from Default Beats, Big Bob, Phaisrok, DJ Ray Swift, Science and Mykill Miers himself. Turntablists including DJ Rhettmatic, DJ Merk1200, DJ Breeze, DJ Romes and DJ Fastcut lend their skills and emcees including Ruste Juxx, Mic Handz, Edo.G, El Da Sensei, King Magnetic and Buddah.