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Altın Gün return with a masterful album that widens their critically acclaimed exploration of Anatolian rock and Turkish psychedelic stylings to include dreamy 80’s synth-pop and dancefloor excursions. Yol (Road) brings together all vectors of the AltınGün experience and delivers their most compelling and individual album to date.

Amsterdam’s Altın Gün have built a strong reputation for melding past and present to make brilliantly catchy, psychedelic pop music, as seen with their Grammy-nominated second album, Gece. They are also a renowned live band with strings of sold-out shows on three continents, who have consistently brought a muscular groove to their recordings. Yol, their third album in as many years, excitedly continues these trends; while also digging in deep to unveil a new palette of sonic surprises.

Though it draws from the rich and incredibly diverse traditions of Anatolian and Turkish folk music, Yol is not just a record that reframes traditional sounds for a contemporary audience. The album often presents a textured, avant-pop sound as evidenced by the debut single "Ordunun Dereleri.” Mysterious and atmospheric, the track is a thrilling evolution for the band. It patiently coaxes the listener into a resonant soundworld of down-tempo electro beats, majestic synths and Erdinç Ecevit's yearning vocal of unrequited love.

The album also signals a very different approach in making and recording for the band. Singer Merve Dasdemir takes up the story: “We were basically stuck at home for three months making home demos, with everybody adding their parts. The transnational feeling maybe comes from that process of swapping demos over the internet, some of the music we did in the studio, but lockdown meant we had to follow a different approach.”

Yol displays a noticeable dreaminess, maybe born from this enforced time to reflect. And select elements of late 1970s or early 1980s “Euro” synth pop also shines through. This new musical landscape was nurtured by certain instrument choices; namely the Omnichord, heard on ‘Arda Boylari’, ‘Kara Toprak’ and ‘Sevda Olmasaydi’, and the drum-machine, an instrument that is key to the gorgeous closing number, ‘Esmerim Güzelim’. Dasdemir once more: “bass player Jasper Verhulst loved the song. He said, ‘it doesn’t sound like Altın Gün, this sounds like a Turkish kindergarten music teacher from the 1980s using an 808!”

As ever, the tracks are the result of a true group effort, with ideas on Omnichord, 808 and other elements - such as field recordings and new age-esque ideas - continually kicked about between the six band members. At a safe distance of course. The record also owes something special to its production team, the band working this time with Asa Moto (the Ghent-based producer-crew, Oliver Geerts and Gilles Noë) who mixed the record. Before this Altın Gün always recorded on tape with their own sound engineer.

It would be wrong to say that what made Altın Gün such a loved and successful band has been left to one side. The pressure-cookers ‘Sevda Olmasaydı’ and ‘Maçka Yolları’ are classic cuts from the band. And their signature employment of a dizzying array of ideas and approaches can be heard with the marked Brazilian feel of ‘Kara Toprak’ and ‘Yekte’. Cosmic reggae filters through the grooves of ‘Yüce Dağ Başında’, and there is a steaming version of ‘Hey Nari’ which gives the traditional composition by Ali Ekber Çiçek a kick onto the dancefloor.

But with Yol, Altın Gün have maybe patented their own magical process of reimagining and sonic path-finding, one probably not heard since the late 1960s and early 1970s British folkrock boom. Less of a reworking than a seduction, their recordings transport the listener to a world where the original songs never previously inhabited. Merve Dasdemir again: “After we worked on them, they got a whole new life of their own. Maybe we went a little bit too far (laughs).”

Emmylou Harris made her Nonesuch Records debut with the release of her album Red Dirt Girl 20 years ago, in September 2000. To mark its twentieth anniversary, Nonesuch releases the album – which won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album – on limited-edition, translucent red vinyl.

Harris – whom the Los Angeles Times dubbed ‘the most captivating female artist ever in country music’ – wrote all but one of the twelve tracks on Red Dirt Girl, marking only the second time in her career that she had been so involved in the composition of an album. ‘In songs about lonely journeys and lost companions,’ said the New York Times, ‘Ms. Harris has found herself.’

Red Dirt Girl was produced by Malcolm Burn, who had worked with Harris engineering and mixing her previous solo studio recording, 1995's Wrecking Ball, and features Burn on piano, guitar, and bass; Buddy Miller on lead guitar; Daryl Johnson on bass and drums; and Ethan Johns on drums, guitar, and other miscellaneous instruments. Dave Matthews sings a duet with Harris on the album, and Bruce Springsteen, Patti Scialfa, and Patty Griffin also contribute vocals.

Commenting on her new label and record back in 2000, Harris said: "I take pride in my new association with Nonesuch, a label for whom I have great admiration. Red Dirt Girl is a very meaningful record for me. I’ve only written this much for an album once before – The Ballad of Sally Rose – and I’m very pleased as well with what we have accomplished in the studio."

Nonesuch Records President David Bither said at the time: "We have had the privilege over many years to work with some of the most creative and influential artists and producers in music. This launches a new area of musical exploration for Nonesuch, and we are thrilled that Emmylou is the artist to open this door for us. It is an honor to work with an artist who has such a formidable body of work behind her, but who is now creating possibly the best music of her career."

Harris has since released three additional solo studio albums on Nonesuch, Stumble into Grace (2003), All I Intended to Be (2008), Hard Bargain (2011); reissues of Wrecking Ball (2014) and her 1992 album with the Nash Ramblers, At the Ryman (2017); two duo albums with Rodney Crowell, the Grammy-winning Old Yellow Moon (2013) and The Traveling Kind (2015); two releases in 2006 with Marc Knopfler, All the Roadrunning and Real Live Roadrunning; and vinyl box sets of her early albums, in 2017 and 2019.

Swing From The Sean DeLear is the new four song 12-inch by Kid Congo & The Pink Monkey Birds on In The Red Records. It celebrates a dreamlike bridge between life and memory. Recorded and mixed with Jim Waters (Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Sonic Youth, etc.) at Waterworks Recording in Tucson AZ, the track “Sean DeLear” is a tribute to the late, magical, and ubiquitous Los Angeles underground institution named Sean DeLear. This rocking song uses the metaphor of those passed on as swinging from a chandelier, a festive image everyone hopes is true! Side two of this 12-inch is a fourteen-minute psych, Chicano-groove titled “He Walked In.” The text is based on a visceral fever dream Kid had about his friend and Gun Club bandmate Jeffrey Lee Pierce, who passed away in 1996. Leading the listener back to the theme of feelings sustained between life and memory, the song dreams on as the band spreads their monkey bird wings, featuring Mark Cis-neros on flute, and guest tambourine-queen Cesar Padilla—lost in music but found in sound. In such uncertain times, one thing is most certain—Kid Congo & The Pink Monkey Birds will always bring the party...and the other world

Formed in 2015 as a project of experienced, devoted musicians from German bands in the Black Forest region, THRON's initial goals were to play authentic black/death in the spirit of the early to mid '90s. Although born in Germany, THRON could originate from a Nordic country though : heavily influenced by bands like Dissection, Unanimated, Possessed and Mercyful Fate among others, adding traditional heavy metal flavour a la Judas Priest, the band create a blazing symbiosis of icy melodies, harshness and a haunting atmosphere. THRON released their self titled debut album in 2017; The following year saw the release of the much critically acclaimed ‘Abysmal’, its roaring response vigorously spread the name across the globe thanks to their diabolical twin guitar black/death metal attacks . Metal Hammer (UK) enthusiastically reviewed : ''‘Enhanced Swedish 90's black/death revivalists hit the nail on the head with this one ! ‘. The band delve even further into the musical territory they flirted with as on their debut and reinforce all foundations on ‘Pilgrim’, with more emphasis on slashing wicked fluid melodies infused with energetic, triumphant classic heavy metal swagger . THRON never loses an opportunity to furiously enhance the catchiness of each composition with a greatly balanced and coherent old school feel. Utterly brutalising and masterfully composed, the end result is truly spellbinding. THRON's 'Pilgrim' was recorded and produced by C.Brandes, A.Kovats and P.Hagmann. , Mixed and Mastered by C.Brandes at Iguana Studios in March-Buchheim in May 2020 with additional Sound Design by Stan Berzon. Artwork by created by Khaos Diktator Design.

Distressed of sound and disturbed of subject matter, “Down-Faced Doll” sees the classic indie outfit connect with their dark-sides to deliver a cacophonous alt/folk stomp unlike anything they’ve released before. Based on a chilling true story told through the eyes of a discarded toy, its lyrics like clues, begin to lay evidence to a scene enough to turn anyone’s blood blue.

As vocalist Ian H. says:

“By far the most disturbing song I’ve ever written. Some songs seem to have a strange compelling energy which no one can rightly claim authorship to. They ‘write themselves’ but of course a great deal of working and shaping occurs too… A true story - well the first two verses are. The last two verses are my attempt to imagine “how did it ever get to this”…”
Customised with discomposing Eastern-inspired guitar riffs and clamouring percussive rhythms, “Down-Faced Doll” instils an unshakable feeling of paranoia, pursuit and unsease to match its haunting storyline. “Ewan and Stephen immediately tuned into its unsettling vibrations to create sounds and dark corners as you are unwillingly dragged through the scenario.” Ian adds.

Created & produced by Bradford (Ian Hodgson, Ewan Butler & Stephen Street), “Down-Faced Doll” was mixed by Stephen Street (Blur/New Order/ Kaiser Chiefs) and mastered by John Davies. It is taken from what will be Bradford’s first new studio album in over three decades: ‘Bright Hours’ - set for release early-on in 2021.

Bradford are a revered indie band formed in Blackburn in 1988. Championed by Morrissey, the band earned a cult status with their acclaimed debut album 'Shouting Quietly' in 1990, a record as-produced at the time by Stephen Street. Touring with the likes of Joe Strummer, The Sugarcubes, Morrissey and more, the band burned brightly and brilliantly. Fading away against the neon glow of the Madchester era, the band split in 1991.

Fast forward to 2018 and a re-mastered 30 song collection entitled ‘Thirty Years Of Shouting Quietly’ was released on Turntable Friend Records. The album was re-appraised as a 'lost English classic'. This rekindling of belief slowly re-ignited the magic and chemistry that always existed between the band now Ian H and Ewan Butler and Stephen Street. So much so, that Stephen decided to join forces with them and become a fully fledged member of the band.

With a new look line-up on illuminating form, as a trio Bradford have lovingly crafted a jewel of a new album: ‘Bright Hours’ to be released early in 2021.

Directly following “Like Water”, their latest single “Down-Faced Doll” is a definitive signal that ‘Bright Hours’ will be every bit worth the long wait...

We’ll forever remember the summer of 2020. In March the world was hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. All over the world cities and countries went in lockdown, bars and venues were closed and live music stopped altogether. After three months of total isolation and not being able to jam or play at Missy Sippy Blues & Roots Club in Ghent —or any other place for that matter— Tiny Legs Tim and his friends decided to book a weekend at The Yellow Tape studio. They wanted to capture the emotional high of finally playing together again. A simple live setup, a 60’s Faylon mixing desk and an old 24-track tape machine were used to record this outburst of musical joy. During that weekend Tim and his musicians reached that point of ‘locking together’ they experienced so often playing late nights at a packed and steamy Missy Sippy. Imagine when four musicians act as one in an energetic dance with the audience, led by the sultry beats of the drums (Bernd Coene), the dirty grooves of the bass (Mattias Geernaert) and the inciting dialogue of the guitars (Toon Vlerick & Tiny Legs Tim).
At the moment these kind of scenes and carefree celebrations of life and music seem like a thing of a long gone past, but as Tim puts it: “We’re always ready to roll, call us when it’s over.” In the meantime, the listener gets a first-hand experience of the positive energy and joy of making music on the spot with a selection of spontaneously arranged songs: some new, some old and one cover by the late RL Burnside.

Die großen Hits der legendären Band REDNEX jetzt als VINYL erhältlich!

Rednex landeten einen Nummer Eins Hit nach dem anderen. Ausgezeichnet mit Goldenen Platten, feierten sie ihren größten Erfolg mit dem Super Hit „Cotton Eye Joe“. Neben diesem Song, ließen Songs wie „Spirit of the Hawk“ und „Wish You Were Here“ ebenfalls die CD Player und Radios heiß laufen. Einfach eine unvergleichlich gute Band, der wir hier eine Greatest Hits & Remixes widmen.

Following on from a series of singles, 'Runnin' Wild', 'Confliction' and 'Jump The Line', First Word Records is very pleased to present a full-length EP from alt-soul artist Olivier St.Louis, produced by Oddisee - 'M.O.T.H. (Matters Of The Heartless)'

Olivier was born in Washington DC of Haitian and Cameroon heritage, but spent his teens studying in the UK. As a teenager, his CD and tape collection would encompass a wide range of genres, from hip hop and r&b to garage and British alternative rock. A bio-science student, Olivier couldn't suppress his true passion of music. After graduating, he took on a "Jekyll and Hyde" lifestyle; working as a scientist in the day, and a musician at night.

His work as a recording artist eventually lead to his debut release in 2011, 'The Mr. Saint Louis EP', released under the moniker Olivier Daysoul and produced by longtime collaborator and fellow Washingtonian, Oddisee, a revered hip hop producer / artist in his own right. From here on, Olivier began laying down vocals, collaborating and touring with a wide-range of artists over the following years, including Hudson Mohawke, C2C, Laura Mvula and German rockers, AnnenMayKantereit.

After taking a hiatus from feature work, Olivier decided to concentrate on nurturing his own sound. Embracing a newfound love for blues, rock and funk, a series of late night sessions saw him engulfed in new soundscapes, and reverting back to his birth name, Olivier St.Louis. This saw him release two critically-acclaimed EPs with Berlin-based label, Jakarta, and the release of 'The Serious EP' with Bibio on Warp Records.

Following world tours with many of the afore-mentioned, Olivier has been working on all-new material, which is now set to be unleashed upon the world via Worldwide Award-winning London label, First Word Records.

The 'M.O.T.H.' EP begins with the downtempo bump of 'Jump The Line' before the adrenaline-racing rhythm of 'Runnin Wild' steps up the pace. Next is second single 'Confliction'; a considerably moodier affair, with Oddisee on assist on the bars as well as on the boards. The flipside begins on a similar vein as the first with the smoothed-out soul of 'All In Love', before we head into the slightly jazzier tinged 'Quit'. 'Serotonin' follows next with a groove and bassline reminiscent of Sly Stone, before we close out with the feel-good uptempo boogie stepper, 'Steady'. With Oddisee on the boards throughout, this EP exemplifies Olivier's unique take on alternative soul.

Comparisons have already been made to something between D'Angelo and Shuggie Otis - big boots to fill, though easy to believe once you've seen and heard this man do his thing. This EP is essentially a classically-structured selection of soul-funk with a rock edge, and a touch of jazz. Each track is laced with Olivier's sweet harmonies and fuzzed-out guitar licks throughout, and mixed down with a little 2020 boom bap thump. A prime example of Olivier's unique talents and a set of quality contemporary alt-soul.

When asked his thoughts on his artistry, Olivier St. Louis simply states "no punches pulled, no compromises, just me".

'M.O.T.H. (Matters Of The Heartless)' is released via First Word Records in January 2021.

‘I envisioned the record as a journey through human expression over the course of one day,’ says Chicago composer and ONO member Jordan Reyes.
When planning the album, Reyes wanted to consider the trajectory of American music, drawing a throughline from the oral traditions enmeshed in blues, country, folk to contemporary underground music, splicing together acoustic instrumentation with an experimental, electronic sensibility. The album begins with human-constructed wind on opening song ‘The Pre-Dawn Light.’.
From there, Reyes adds acoustic guitar, electric guitar, lap-steel guitar, trombone, keyboards, and an electronic drum to the compositional mix.’I wanted to push myself compositionally,’ he says. ‘My first album Close was all eurorack synthesizer, a lot of which was automated by control voltage, but Sand Like Stardust has no modular synthesizers, seeking to channel the warmth, immediacy, and vulnerability of hand-played instruments and voice.’

Tala Vala combine experimental recording methods bridging marginalised genres, synths, brass and strings, jagged guitars and primal percussion.

John Roffe-Ridgard is a producer and former touring musician and Ben Locket is a composer for TV and Film.

The pair began making music in 2017 and self-released their first EP on a limited vinyl run. Mixed by Jake Jackson at Masterchord studios, the records were sold exclusively through Sounds of the Universe and Bandcamp.
Enthused by the interest in the record and selling out the run, the pair set about recording a full-length album expanding on the ideas of the fist ep. The album was again performed and produced by Ben and John using mainly analogue processes, where possible utilising 24 track tape and mixed by Jake. The self-titled record was self-released on vinyl and made it into the Stranger Than Paradise top 10 albums of the year.
Album number two began as a soundtrack project in early 2019, it was abandoned as they became disillusioned with the boundaries the film was imposing. The only remaining music from the soundtrack session is the opening cue which can be heard as the last track of what became Modern Hysteric, album two.
The new album was worked on throughout 2019 and mixed in early 2020 again sticking to mainly analogue processes, avoiding any audio plugins and computer editing. Jim White (Dirty Three, Xylouris White) guest drums on two of the tracks ( Reoccurring Weather & Haxen ) bringing his instantly recognisable style to the Tala Vala sound. In addition to the string quartet and brass sections, a kora player and the manipulated voice of soprano singer, Grace Davidson can also be heard throughout the album.

Modern Hysteric will be released in early 2021 on the bands’ newly set up Number Witch Records distributed via Forte music.

Gatefold Double LP Pressing of Leave a Whisper on Clear Blue Colored Vinyl.

Multi-platinum, record-breaking band Shinedown - Brent Smith vocals, Zach Myers [guitar], Eric Bass [bass, production], and Barry Kerch [drums] - have sold more than 10 million albums and 10 million singles worldwide, earned 14 platinum and gold singles, five platinum and gold albums, and amassed more than 2.7 billion total streams. Recent hits "Atlas Falls," "ATTENTION ATTENTION," "GET UP," "MONSTERS" and "DEVIL" bring their total to 17 No. 1s on the Mediabase Active Rock Chart and 16 No. 1s on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs Chart, breaking the record for the most No. 1s ever in the history of the Billboard chart. Additionally, all of Shinedown's 27 consecutive career singles have reached the Top 5 of the Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs Chart, another unparalleled achievement.

As part of their “Atlas Falls” COVID-19 relief effort, Shinedown has raised more than $300,000 for Direct Relief, one of the largest providers of humanitarian medical resources in the world whose mission is to improve the health and lives of people affected by poverty or emergency situations by mobilizing and providing essential medical resources needed for their care.

Hailed for their high-octane live shows, Shinedown continues to engender diehard love from millions of global fans and has racked up countless sold-out tours and headlining festival sets.

‘Pacific Kiss’ is the fourth album from Australian musician David West’s underground pop band, Rat Columns. It was engineered by Griffin Harrison and DW in New York City and Perth, and mixed by Mikey Young in Victoria. ‘Pacific Kiss’ sees Rat Columns plunging headfirst into an azure sea of power pop, rock’n’roll and indie. The tones are bright and optimistic, though fans of confusion and gloom will still find solace in the album’s darker moments, of which there are a few. Rat Columns emerged from San Francisco via Perth, Western Australia in the late 2000’s with the mope ’n’ jangle of their first self-titled cassette release, from which several tracks were drawn for their first vinyl release, a four-song 7” on the San Francisco based indie label, Smartguy Records. From that moment, DW and a constantly evolving troupe of friends and co-conspirators have forged a persistent trail of albums and EP’s on a number of interesting small labels such as RIP Society, Upset The Rhythm, Blackest Ever Black, Syncro-System, Adagio 830 and now the London-based Tough Love Records, who have also released many of David’s eponymous pop records. DW has also found time to play in a number of other interesting outfits, such as Rank/Xerox, Lace Curtain, Liberation, Scythe, Total Control and Burning Sensation over the years. ‘Pacific Kiss’ was primarily recorded in a dingy but comfortable practice space in East Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The core of the record is DW, bassist Max Schneider-Schumacher, drummer Dylan Stjepovic and keyboard wiz Joey Fishman. Additional fairy dust was sprinkled by Amber Gempton and Raven Mahon (vocals), Jef Brown (saxophone) and Mikey Young, who found time to contribute some off the wall guitar solos during the mixing process. ‘Pacific Kiss’ is a record for those astral voyages into the spheres conducted from bedrooms, kitchens, grassy fields and open car windows.

‘Pacific Kiss’ is the fourth album from Australian musician David West’s underground pop band, Rat Columns. It was engineered by Griffin Harrison and DW in New York City and Perth, and mixed by Mikey Young in Victoria. ‘Pacific Kiss’ sees Rat Columns plunging headfirst into an azure sea of power pop, rock’n’roll and indie. The tones are bright and optimistic, though fans of confusion and gloom will still find solace in the album’s darker moments, of which there are a few. Rat Columns emerged from San Francisco via Perth, Western Australia in the late 2000’s with the mope ’n’ jangle of their first self-titled cassette release, from which several tracks were drawn for their first vinyl release, a four-song 7” on the San Francisco based indie label, Smartguy Records. From that moment, DW and a constantly evolving troupe of friends and co-conspirators have forged a persistent trail of albums and EP’s on a number of interesting small labels such as RIP Society, Upset The Rhythm, Blackest Ever Black, Syncro-System, Adagio 830 and now the London-based Tough Love Records, who have also released many of David’s eponymous pop records. DW has also found time to play in a number of other interesting outfits, such as Rank/Xerox, Lace Curtain, Liberation, Scythe, Total Control and Burning Sensation over the years. ‘Pacific Kiss’ was primarily recorded in a dingy but comfortable practice space in East Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The core of the record is DW, bassist Max Schneider-Schumacher, drummer Dylan Stjepovic and keyboard wiz Joey Fishman. Additional fairy dust was sprinkled by Amber Gempton and Raven Mahon (vocals), Jef Brown (saxophone) and Mikey Young, who found time to contribute some off the wall guitar solos during the mixing process. ‘Pacific Kiss’ is a record for those astral voyages into the spheres conducted from bedrooms, kitchens, grassy fields and open car windows.

• Joe Brown is the English musician who has being working as a rock and roll singer and guitarist for more than six decades and continues to play over 100 shows every year. Often described as a ‘musician's musician’, Brown is admired by fellow artists and fans alike.
• In the early 1960s the hits began to roll in for Joe and his backing band the Bruvvers with tracks such as ‘A Picture Of You’, ‘It Only Took A Minute’ and ‘That’s What Love Will Do’ – all of which are included on this new Gold collection. Brown’s career continued to grow throughout the 60s and included headline British tours that featured the Beatles, Del Shannon and the Crystals.
• This new compilation features 16 of Brown’s best loved tracks pressed on 180g heavyweight gold-coloured vinyl, housed in a printed inner sleeve

Leeds-based art-rock trio Mush release their feverish second
album, ‘Lines Redacted’, via Memphis Industries. The new
release, which finds the group recruiting Lee Smith (The Cribs,
Pulled Apart By Horses) on mixing duties, arrives just under a
year after their debut, ‘3D Routine’, capping off what has been
an obviously tumultuous but remarkably prolific year for the
band. With any prospect of live shows decimated, the group,
led by songwriter Dan Hyndman, have found the time to
release two EPs (‘Great Artisanal Formats’ and ‘Yellow Sticker
Hour’) and now a duo of full-length albums.
Tipped previously by the likes of 6 Music, Loud & Quiet, Uncut,
Q, Stereogum, DIY, The Line of Best Fit, Dork and more, Mush,
comprised of Hyndman (guitar/vox), Nick Grant (bass/vox) and
Phil Porter (drums), present their own sonic idiosyncrasy. It’s a
sound that blurs the lines of abstract surrealism, existentialism
and social commentary; utilising guitars as tools in 2020 to
stave off malaise whilst simultaneously commenting on the
nation’s ability to fall into such dire straits. It’s a sensory
overload of wiry tones that zig-zag between punk, prog and
sardonic-funk with a relentless ability to reflect society’s faults
and apathy in a unique and acerbic manner.
Whereas the band’s debut was very much a product of its time,
something part-inspired by the political atmosphere of mid-
2019 and a genuine moment of optimism when the prospect of
a socialist government in the UK was on the cards, this new
record uses tongue-in-cheek cynicism as a coping mechanism
for the environment that we now find ourselves in. From one
song to the next, ‘Lines Redacted’ introduces a string of
different narrators with each providing a different reflection on
the Armageddon scenario that we are slowly entering, whether
that’s bemoaning it or gleefully willing it along. ‘3D Routine’
presented a bed of scathing political jibes latching onto themes
and decisions of the time. ‘Lines Redacted’ mutates these ideas
into something slightly more sinister whilst maintaining all of
Hyndman’s razor-sharp wit that permeates the album.

In the 2000’s Chee Shimizu helmed an untouchable Tokyo DJ collective called Discossession alongside Dr Nishimura (House music buyer for Cisco Records at the time). Balancing out this unit were a young Scotsman-abroad named Jonny Nash (who’d later form Sombrero Galaxy ESP001 and Gaussian Curve as well as the Melody As Truth imprint), and the late guitar virtuoso and tattoo artist Zecky. Formidable DJs and multi-talents on the Tokyo scene, Discossession released two EPs on Kenji Takimi’s Crue-L imprint and various mixes individually on lovefingers, all holding well-deserved eternal cult status. Chee’s Denshi Meisou 2006 and Follow My Dream 2007 for Lovefingers as well as his legendary “listening sessions” at HiFi lounge SHeLTeR in the Tokyo suburb of Hachioji, laid foundation for what would become known to his followers as “Organic Music” or “Obscure Sound”, the former extending as the name of his record shop and the latter as the title of his 2013 book.

Obscure Sound chronicled his tastes in detail and has since become a sort of diggers bible for peers and younger generations. At the ESP Institute’s inception in 2009, Shimizu contributed two tracks to Lovefingers’ Concentration Vol 1 compilation as apéritifs to a later release. “Later” eventually became “forever” and the mythical piano track (appearing only as a demo on Golden Age and Dekmantel 061) is still, to this day, not ready for formal release. Skip a dozen years, musical interests and major life changes, and Chee has now unveiled something quite special in accordance with his Obscure Sound—rather than making new out of old rope, he presents a collaboration with Tokyo guitarist miku-mari a.k.a. Takahiro Matsumura. The artists frequently collaborate at the experimental audio/visual event, Sacrifice, held irregularly at Tokyo’s ForestLimit, and in 2018 when Chee was invited to DJ at Japan’s only Ambient festival Camp Off-Tone, he and miku-mari endeavored to expand these works into a 2-hour improvised performance. Chee collaged various percussion samples and personal field recordings utilizing four CDJs, supplementing with live windchimes and Andean chajchas, while miku-mari coupled a guitar-controlled synthesizer, Sound Tube software (developed by Japanese Ambient composer Hiroshi Yoshimura) and more live elements such as Tibetan bells and pyramid crystals. Rehearsals for this performance were held prior to the festival at ForestLimit, recorded as multi-tracks and edited into these two cerebral Reconstructions.

Main Source’s paean to the simple pleasures of relaxing with friends is built over two tried-and-tested samples. The dreamy, swoony sounds of Vanessa Kendrick’s timeless ‘90% of Me is You’ is ever-present during this stone-cold classic, while Sister Nancy’s unmistakeable ‘Bam Bam’ lends several elements to the mix. Throw in some Skull Snaps and Sweet Charles and you’ve got the perfect soundtrack for a roll call of Large Professor’s nearest and dearest.

There are plenty of reasons why so many regard ‘Breaking Atoms’ as an all-time classic album, and the sheer variety of singles lifted from it is chief among them. Large Professor was happy to roam over varied topics at a time when many rappers had a manic focus on one thing.

And where better to hang out with friends than at a barbecue? ‘Live at the Barbecue’ is rightly regarded as one of the best posse cuts of all time, and famous for showcasing the debut of one Nasty Nas. While he delivers a dope verse full of quotables over drums from Bob James’ oft-plundered ‘Nautilus’, credit is also due to the other guests. Fatal and Akinyele aren’t disgraced in this company, and Large Professor tops it off with a rare verse of pure brag-rap.

An undisputed entry in the pantheon of head-nod hip-hop, this is its first official UK release, and another debut on 7”.

• Samples Sister Nancy’s unmistakeable ‘Bam Bam’

• Taken from the all-time classic album ‘Breaking Atoms’

• Features the debut of Nas

• Limited Edition Purple vinyl

Signed to Parisian label N F rmat! (home to Oumou Sangar , Blick Bassy & M lissa Laveaux), Soweto-based 4 piece band Urban Village present their debut album, ‘Udondolo’.
Marrying the day-to-day experiences of black South Africans with ebullient elements from traditional Zulu music, Urban Village is the alias of four experimental musicians all born & raised in the township of Soweto at the tail end of apartheid.
Urban Village release music under a name which specifically references the blend of cultures, music & rites which were assimilated into the now 1 million strong population of Soweto, when black South Africans from multiple provinces were brought to the area during the establishment of apartheid, under strict segregation from Johannesburg’s white suburbs.
Born for the most part in the last years of apartheid, whilst growing up the band plunged happily into house and dance music that turned the page of a heavy past. Guitarist Lerato came across older Zulu musicians and their style of maskandi playing. Lerato has since mixed styles from homelands and rural areas, sharpened in club jam sessions (where he went on to meet Tubatsi and form Urban Village) during which spoken word, hip-hop and jazz rub shoulders freely.
‘Udondolo’ - partially recorded at legendary Downtown Studios in the heart of Johannesburg and at Figure of 8 studios in the leafy suburbs of Randburg, - is a journey through all the colours of Soweto. This is where it draws its consistency, strength & identity. That of Soweto itself - a dormitory town designed to
monitor those who were sent there, it has become a laboratory of music where the hopes of an entire people resonate, even today.

Alkisah is the new album by Indonesian duo Senyawa. Alkisah is co-released by a multitude of independent record labels from all over the globe each with different packaging and design, with multiple version of remixes by various artists.

Senyawa is an experimental music duo made up of Rully Shabara (extended vocal technique) and Wukir Suryadi (homemade instrument). The music that they create is a combination of extended vocal technique and a homemade instrument. The instrument was handcrafted by master instrument builder Wukir out of one long piece of bamboo, it is a string instrument with guitar pick-ups—it is amplified and processed through several effects pedals but at times is played as an acoustic instrument, percussion and string instrument.

They are located in the ancient city of Jogjakarta, Central Java, Indonesia and their music is a reflection of their traditional Javanese heritage filtered through a framework of contemporary experimental music practices. Senyawa try to push the boundaries of both traditions in an attempt to mix the musics’ of the east and the west to create a new sound.

As a duo they have been performing and playing together extensively for the last 3 years and we have toured Indonesia several times over. Last year they were invited to perform internationally for the first time at the Melbourne International Jazz Festival sharing the stage with many great musicians such as Faust, Yoshida Tatsuya, Tony Conrad and Charlemagne Palestine.

Mondo, in partnership with Sony Masterworks, is proud to present the premiere physical release of Gustavo Santaolalla and Mac Quayle’s soundtrack to the highly anticipated 2020 sequel, THE LAST OF US PART II.

The music for THE LAST OF US is striking and emotionally powerful. In the original, the plucky guitar performance by Gustavo Santaolalla almost singlehandedly took the post-apocalyptic horror narrative of the game and grounded it firmly in the western genre. For PART II, with dual revenge narratives and opposing perspectives, the games team brought on an additional composer to bring another sonic soundscape into the mix: Mac Quayle. His synth contributions to the soundtrack to PART II might be the most terrifying, underlining the true physical and psychological horror that players face.

This vinyl release features stunning new artwork and double-sided cover by Tula Lotay, liner notes by Co-Writer / Director Neil Druckmann.

Music by Gustavo Santaolalla. Additional Music by Mac Quayle

MSG is a legendary name. After two phenomenal records under the guise of Michael Schenker Fest, a true guitar hero is returning to his roots. By forming Michael Schenker Group (MSG) back in 1979, Michael Schenker laid the foundations for one of hard rock’s most glorious solo careers of all times. And while nobody expected anything less from a former guitarist for Scorpions and UFO, it’s close to impossible mentioning everything Michael has built over the past 50 years, or the countless people he influenced or played with. This, truly, is the stuff that hard rocking myths are made of.

“I never looked back,” is how Michael dryly sums up an extraordinary career. Due to this mindset, he only realised much later what a huge impact his playing had made on the world of metal and hard rock. Very few guitarists can be cited as a primary influence for the likes of James Hetfield, Kirk Hammett, Dave Mustaine, Dimebag Darrell, Slash or Kerry King. However, to understand Michael Schenker means to understand one primary thing: he’s not here to be worshipped or adored, he’s not here to get rich, he’s here to play. And at 65, he’s doing it with the same swagger, verve and dizzying artistry as always. “I’m still 16 in my head,” he laughs.

Right in time for his 40th anniversary as a solo artist and his 50th birthday as a musician, he resurrects the immortal Michael Schenker Group. “Immortal” is also the name of his new album, recorded by likely the strongest line-up in his long history. Its a lightning bolt of an album that sounds fresh, bloodthirsty and agile. “Immortal” showcases the gargantuan vocal talents of Chilean hard rock prodigy Ronnie Romero (Rainbow), backed by singers Ralf Scheepers (Primal Fear), Joe Lynn Turner (ex-Deep Purple) as well as Schenker’s brother in arms, Michael Voss (Mad Max) who again produced the record alongside Michael Schenker – flawlessly, punchy and at full steam as if their very lives depended on it.
Next to Michael Schenker caressing his iconic black and white Dean Flying V, we hear bass player Barry Sparks (Dokken), keyboard player Steve Mann as well as the three drummers Bodo Schopf, Simon Phillips (ex-Toto) and Brian Tichy (ex-Whitesnake) pumping gallons of fresh blood through the tracks. And that’s not all, keyboard wizard extraordinaire Derek Sherinian (Dream Theater, Black Country Communion) gives the listener a baptism of fire in the blistering, heavy hitting opener “Drilled to Kill”, powered by Ralf Scheepers’ unbelievable vocal tornado.

Michael Schenker doesn’t live to play, he plays to live, and there’s no better way of summing up his relationship to his music than this – now for half a century and counting. The most emblematic representation of this relationship is the monumental closing track “In Search Of The Peace Of Mind”, a new recording of the very first song he ever wrote. “I composed this track in my mother’s kitchen back when I was 15,” he looks back half a century and smiles broadly: “The solo is just so perfect, I wouldn’t change a single note even today. This is the most important song of the last 50 years for me. It’s what started it all.”
When it finally got released in 1972 on the Scorpions’ debut “Lonesome Crow” Schenker had already moved on to UFO. What followed were several decades of pure hard rock ecstasy on and off stage, featuring a rotating cast of stellar players, always pressing the pedal to the metal. Now, in 2020, he reaps what he sowed. Alongside many of his peers, friends and contemporaries, he is celebrating 50 years of hard rock – fittingly with an album that is something like a zeitgeisty reminiscence of everything he’s ever done. The massive midtempo smasher “Don’t Die On Me Now” sees Joe Lynn Turner going all in, Ronnie Romero works his magic in “Knight Of The Dead” while Michael Voss cuts a grand figure before the microphone as well as behind the mixing desk on the furious second single “After The Rain”.
Towering above them all, Michael Schenker and his guitar prove they’re truly and utterly invincible. The celebrated icon pulls out all the stops – including his legendary “howler”, the fabled magnet he’s used on his fingerboard for a while now. And here’s yet another thing that’s just so archetypically Schenker, when bringing up his fiery and dedicated performance on “Immortal” he nonchalantly shrugs it off: “I simply played from the heart, as always.” This, dear Michael, is the understatement of the year – all the more so for a record that is already one of the top contenders for hard rock/metal album of the year.

MSG is a legendary name. After two phenomenal records under the guise of Michael Schenker Fest, a true guitar hero is returning to his roots. By forming Michael Schenker Group (MSG) back in 1979, Michael Schenker laid the foundations for one of hard rock’s most glorious solo careers of all times. And while nobody expected anything less from a former guitarist for Scorpions and UFO, it’s close to impossible mentioning everything Michael has built over the past 50 years, or the countless people he influenced or played with. This, truly, is the stuff that hard rocking myths are made of.

“I never looked back,” is how Michael dryly sums up an extraordinary career. Due to this mindset, he only realised much later what a huge impact his playing had made on the world of metal and hard rock. Very few guitarists can be cited as a primary influence for the likes of James Hetfield, Kirk Hammett, Dave Mustaine, Dimebag Darrell, Slash or Kerry King. However, to understand Michael Schenker means to understand one primary thing: he’s not here to be worshipped or adored, he’s not here to get rich, he’s here to play. And at 65, he’s doing it with the same swagger, verve and dizzying artistry as always. “I’m still 16 in my head,” he laughs.

Right in time for his 40th anniversary as a solo artist and his 50th birthday as a musician, he resurrects the immortal Michael Schenker Group. “Immortal” is also the name of his new album, recorded by likely the strongest line-up in his long history. Its a lightning bolt of an album that sounds fresh, bloodthirsty and agile. “Immortal” showcases the gargantuan vocal talents of Chilean hard rock prodigy Ronnie Romero (Rainbow), backed by singers Ralf Scheepers (Primal Fear), Joe Lynn Turner (ex-Deep Purple) as well as Schenker’s brother in arms, Michael Voss (Mad Max) who again produced the record alongside Michael Schenker – flawlessly, punchy and at full steam as if their very lives depended on it.
Next to Michael Schenker caressing his iconic black and white Dean Flying V, we hear bass player Barry Sparks (Dokken), keyboard player Steve Mann as well as the three drummers Bodo Schopf, Simon Phillips (ex-Toto) and Brian Tichy (ex-Whitesnake) pumping gallons of fresh blood through the tracks. And that’s not all, keyboard wizard extraordinaire Derek Sherinian (Dream Theater, Black Country Communion) gives the listener a baptism of fire in the blistering, heavy hitting opener “Drilled to Kill”, powered by Ralf Scheepers’ unbelievable vocal tornado.

Michael Schenker doesn’t live to play, he plays to live, and there’s no better way of summing up his relationship to his music than this – now for half a century and counting. The most emblematic representation of this relationship is the monumental closing track “In Search Of The Peace Of Mind”, a new recording of the very first song he ever wrote. “I composed this track in my mother’s kitchen back when I was 15,” he looks back half a century and smiles broadly: “The solo is just so perfect, I wouldn’t change a single note even today. This is the most important song of the last 50 years for me. It’s what started it all.”
When it finally got released in 1972 on the Scorpions’ debut “Lonesome Crow” Schenker had already moved on to UFO. What followed were several decades of pure hard rock ecstasy on and off stage, featuring a rotating cast of stellar players, always pressing the pedal to the metal. Now, in 2020, he reaps what he sowed. Alongside many of his peers, friends and contemporaries, he is celebrating 50 years of hard rock – fittingly with an album that is something like a zeitgeisty reminiscence of everything he’s ever done. The massive midtempo smasher “Don’t Die On Me Now” sees Joe Lynn Turner going all in, Ronnie Romero works his magic in “Knight Of The Dead” while Michael Voss cuts a grand figure before the microphone as well as behind the mixing desk on the furious second single “After The Rain”.
Towering above them all, Michael Schenker and his guitar prove they’re truly and utterly invincible. The celebrated icon pulls out all the stops – including his legendary “howler”, the fabled magnet he’s used on his fingerboard for a while now. And here’s yet another thing that’s just so archetypically Schenker, when bringing up his fiery and dedicated performance on “Immortal” he nonchalantly shrugs it off: “I simply played from the heart, as always.” This, dear Michael, is the understatement of the year – all the more so for a record that is already one of the top contenders for hard rock/metal album of the year.

MSG is a legendary name. After two phenomenal records under the guise of Michael Schenker Fest, a true guitar hero is returning to his roots. By forming Michael Schenker Group (MSG) back in 1979, Michael Schenker laid the foundations for one of hard rock’s most glorious solo careers of all times. And while nobody expected anything less from a former guitarist for Scorpions and UFO, it’s close to impossible mentioning everything Michael has built over the past 50 years, or the countless people he influenced or played with. This, truly, is the stuff that hard rocking myths are made of.

“I never looked back,” is how Michael dryly sums up an extraordinary career. Due to this mindset, he only realised much later what a huge impact his playing had made on the world of metal and hard rock. Very few guitarists can be cited as a primary influence for the likes of James Hetfield, Kirk Hammett, Dave Mustaine, Dimebag Darrell, Slash or Kerry King. However, to understand Michael Schenker means to understand one primary thing: he’s not here to be worshipped or adored, he’s not here to get rich, he’s here to play. And at 65, he’s doing it with the same swagger, verve and dizzying artistry as always. “I’m still 16 in my head,” he laughs.

Right in time for his 40th anniversary as a solo artist and his 50th birthday as a musician, he resurrects the immortal Michael Schenker Group. “Immortal” is also the name of his new album, recorded by likely the strongest line-up in his long history. Its a lightning bolt of an album that sounds fresh, bloodthirsty and agile. “Immortal” showcases the gargantuan vocal talents of Chilean hard rock prodigy Ronnie Romero (Rainbow), backed by singers Ralf Scheepers (Primal Fear), Joe Lynn Turner (ex-Deep Purple) as well as Schenker’s brother in arms, Michael Voss (Mad Max) who again produced the record alongside Michael Schenker – flawlessly, punchy and at full steam as if their very lives depended on it.
Next to Michael Schenker caressing his iconic black and white Dean Flying V, we hear bass player Barry Sparks (Dokken), keyboard player Steve Mann as well as the three drummers Bodo Schopf, Simon Phillips (ex-Toto) and Brian Tichy (ex-Whitesnake) pumping gallons of fresh blood through the tracks. And that’s not all, keyboard wizard extraordinaire Derek Sherinian (Dream Theater, Black Country Communion) gives the listener a baptism of fire in the blistering, heavy hitting opener “Drilled to Kill”, powered by Ralf Scheepers’ unbelievable vocal tornado.

Michael Schenker doesn’t live to play, he plays to live, and there’s no better way of summing up his relationship to his music than this – now for half a century and counting. The most emblematic representation of this relationship is the monumental closing track “In Search Of The Peace Of Mind”, a new recording of the very first song he ever wrote. “I composed this track in my mother’s kitchen back when I was 15,” he looks back half a century and smiles broadly: “The solo is just so perfect, I wouldn’t change a single note even today. This is the most important song of the last 50 years for me. It’s what started it all.”
When it finally got released in 1972 on the Scorpions’ debut “Lonesome Crow” Schenker had already moved on to UFO. What followed were several decades of pure hard rock ecstasy on and off stage, featuring a rotating cast of stellar players, always pressing the pedal to the metal. Now, in 2020, he reaps what he sowed. Alongside many of his peers, friends and contemporaries, he is celebrating 50 years of hard rock – fittingly with an album that is something like a zeitgeisty reminiscence of everything he’s ever done. The massive midtempo smasher “Don’t Die On Me Now” sees Joe Lynn Turner going all in, Ronnie Romero works his magic in “Knight Of The Dead” while Michael Voss cuts a grand figure before the microphone as well as behind the mixing desk on the furious second single “After The Rain”.
Towering above them all, Michael Schenker and his guitar prove they’re truly and utterly invincible. The celebrated icon pulls out all the stops – including his legendary “howler”, the fabled magnet he’s used on his fingerboard for a while now. And here’s yet another thing that’s just so archetypically Schenker, when bringing up his fiery and dedicated performance on “Immortal” he nonchalantly shrugs it off: “I simply played from the heart, as always.” This, dear Michael, is the understatement of the year – all the more so for a record that is already one of the top contenders for hard rock/metal album of the year.

South London-based band Soothsayers are set to release their ninth studio album 'We Are Many'. Held together by heavy basslines, solid grooves, and socially and politically charged lyrics; the album takes the listener into different sonic spaces with elements of dub, Afrobeat, improvisational jazz and electronica.

The initial steps in recording 'We Are Many' came in January 2019 when the band's founders - saxophonist Idris Rahman and trumpeter Robin Hopcraft - set out on a journey to Brazil. With executive production in the Sao Paulo studio by renowned music journalist and author David Katz, they hooked up with bass player and producer Victor Rice who they'd met sharing the bill at Freedom Sounds festival in Cologne, Germany a year earlier. Victor organised a session in Studio Traquitana, home of acclaimed Brazilian band Bixiga 70, and invited a selection of local musicians. Percussionist and singer Ligia Kamara contributed lyrics and melodies written in the studio, and drummer Bruno Buarque, guitarist Joao Erbetta and bassist Victor provided some solid, personality-driven input. Fresh and vital, what came out was a fascinating blend of Soothsayers' dub and Afrobeat mixed with distinctly Brazilian inflections.

After arriving back in the UK, Idris and Robin set about creating the remainder of the album in a different, yet complimentary way, and called on the services of Wu-Lu and Kwake at their The Room studio in South London. Things started to take shape very quickly, Wu-Lu and Kwake combining Soothsayers' music with electronic elements, while also referencing elements of the current UK jazz scene.

When lockdown hit in March 2020, there was still a lot of work to do in order to complete a full album and Robin and Idris set about working on tracks with their musicians remotely. Having time to consider the album as a whole, they found strong connections between the music recorded in Brazil and the tracks recorded in London and they set about fusing and combining these elements further into a satisfying whole.

UK based Sengalese singer Modou Toure was enlisted to guest on one track while percussionists Satin Singh and Maurizio Ravalico were engaged to help affirm a sound-world where Brazilian flavours, such as the low-end Surdo drum, were combined with sounds more readily associated with reggae and Afrobeat.

Soothsayers' three part vocal harmony is a defining factor in this album. With strong references to the vocal styles of reggae legends such as The Gladiators, Mighty Diamonds, Heptones, and Abyssinnians; it has benefited from the long-standing friendship between Robin, Idris and Julia Biel. Lyrics, melodies and harmonies were presented, discussed, explored and recorded at Idris' and Julia's home studio in Streatham in a relaxed and positive way, with concepts from social and political commentary turned into powerful songs.

Themes cover political observations of Trump and beyond alongside Brazil's president Bolsanaro (Rat Race), speaking out against increasing levels of violence from the Brazilian government towards its native and indigenous people (Love And Unity) and keeping hopeful despite the impending horrors of a no-deal Brexit (We Won't Lose Hope).

Elsewhere they discuss striving to create space for meditation and reflection against the background noise of 24/7 news and social media (Move In Silence), the daily grind (No Sacrifice) and workers' rights (Slave), while highlighting those that fall through the cracks in society and end up without a permanent address, what led to this and how close we all are from this happening (One Step Away).

'We Are Many' represents a positive and uplifting statement in the face of challenging times - the overriding force, power and positivity of the music to continue forward, pushing the boundaries of musical concepts into the future.

"Whilst heavy questions of life and death and the future of our species surround us all, music is a guide that can help us perceive the challenges in a different way - a guide that can help us towards a deep inner peace. If we listen, music can help light the way. We hope you will listen, and we hope you will experience the joy, meditative power and beauty in the connection of different musical cultures that was experienced in the creation of this album."

‘Giants of All Sizes’ was recorded at Hamburg’s Clouds Hill Studio, The Dairy in Brixton, 604 Studios in Vancouver and Blueprint Studios in Salford with additional recording taking place at various band member’s home studios spread across Manchester. As with their previous four studio albums, ‘Giants’ was produced and mixed by Craig Potter. Guests across the album include Jesca Hoop, The Plumedores and South London newcomer Chilli Chilton.

Given such bleak, if ultimately redeemed, subject matter, it is also, perversely, the most relaxed record which elbow have made in some time. On ‘Giants of All Sizes’, each band member extended their usual process of working on demos alone and followed their vision to its conclusion rather than, as Craig Potter puts it, ‘taking the edges off things to find compromise’. In tandem with this, they returned to playing live in the studio, encouraged to experiment with the banks of analogue equipment at Clouds Hill in Northern Germany, giving songs a looser, more live feel. The result is the most starkly dynamic record from the band in recent times, “Sonically unabashed”, as Guy would have it. Whilst album closer ‘Weightless’ has the gossamer melodies and communal harmonies for which the band have latterly been known, this album echoes earlier elbow work at times whilst also breaking new ground.

‘White Noise White Heat’ is motorik, metal machine soul driven by a vocal that is rage incarnate, ‘Doldrums’ mixes John Carpenter with The Plastic Ono Band to brilliantly disturbing effect and ‘On Deronda Road’ hitches stark bass beats and glitches to an ad-hoc choir. ‘Empires’ delivers dark resignation via an insidious melody and ‘Seven Veils’ continues the subversion by inverting the perception of elbow as a band for lovers into a band for haters, a double-barrelled fuck-you song par excellence. ‘The Delayed 3:15’ marries mariarchi guitars to jazz dynamics, Morricone via Buddy Rich, and ‘My Trouble’ is a clockwork, analogue shuffle housing a delicate melody that builds over the course of the song into a fragile monolith to the power of love.

Lead track, ‘Dexter & Sinister’, released on 10” ahead of the album, encapsulates the whole. A seven-minute musical journey that blends deep bass grooves, sudden keyboard stabs, dislocated piano and guitar runs and soul stylings then abruptly shifts gear, parts the storm clouds and takes wing, flying towards the heat of the sun. It is the soundtrack for these ‘hope free, faith free, charity free days’, a denial of the divine and a reconciliation, two songs in one song, two emotions for one emotion, human, fragile and brilliant like the album which it opens.

2 printed inner sleeves, insert. first ever legal reissue with permission of Phil Newtons family and Heir, the copyright owners. Sleevenotes by band members and family.

a masterpiece of progressive rock, heavy yet melodic, dominated by phil newtons brilliant guitar playing and songwriting. remastered sensitively to retain the power of the original which was lost in all the previous pirated editions. the record collector edition was unofficial. 6 perfect songs ranging from the melodic charm of dawn and leaving, to the fab riffs of saga of the sad jester. a string of mishaps destroyed a career that should have seen grannie the equals of stray and wishbone ash. instead the world is left with one lp, badly mixed in 1971 by amateur srt engineers, and a legacy of just six songs on one of the most cohesive, consistent and masterful lps of the early seventies. one of the only uk private lps that may attain classic status alongside Argus and Led Zep IV.

Originals have sold for over £5000.

This is a particularly deluxe edition with die-cut sleeve, inner sleeves and special art work, hence slightly more.

'Leone' is the first meeting of electric guitarists Loren Connors and Oren Ambarchi. It's somewhat surprising it's taken this long as these two are connected by ongoing collaborators, like Jim O'Rourke and Keiji Haino. Connors, for more than 40 years, developed an iconic sound tethered to radical permutations of the blues. Ambarchi's own multi-decade transfiguration of the guitar inhabits a rarefied realm of abstracted tones and dissonance pitched between improvisation and composition. This album, like its title, is a sum of parts: solo performances by Connors and Ambarchi bookend a duo. On 'Lorn,' Connors unravels an aggressive ternary form, with an opening section wrapped in distortion and extreme phasing that contrasts against ghostly, distant single notes. Ambarchi's 'Nor,' supplants a guitar performance with melodic, shifting organ-like tones that are swallowed into a fluttering, glitchy squall. On 'Ronnel,' the duo, each audio landscape created by the two slowly rotates and overlaps the other, as if each is drawing the others' portrait on opposite sides of a translucent sheet. Recorded November 2017 by Bob Bellerue at the Issue Project Room. Mixed and mastered by Joe Talia and cut by Carl Saff. Cover illustration by Marissa Huber. Edition of 500; includes download.

Washington DC’s The Archives and Montserrat House, the label owned and operated by Thievery Corporation’s Eric Hilton, present Carry Me Home. A Reggae Tribute To Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson.
Carry Me Home is a highly ambitious collaboration featuring an array of guests (including Puma Ptah, Raheem DeVaughn, Addis Pablo and Kenyatta Hill) celebrating the works of the late, great poet and musician Gil Scott-Heron and close collaborator Brian Jackson.
The LP is standard weight black vinyl in a gatefold sleeve and includes download card.

South London-based band Soothsayers are set to release their ninth studio album 'We Are Many'. Held together by heavy basslines, solid grooves, and socially and politically charged lyrics; the album takes the listener into different sonic spaces with elements of dub, Afrobeat, improvisational jazz and electronica.

The initial steps in recording 'We Are Many' came in January 2019 when the band's founders - saxophonist Idris Rahman and trumpeter Robin Hopcraft - set out on a journey to Brazil. With executive production in the Sao Paulo studio by renowned music journalist and author David Katz, they hooked up with bass player and producer Victor Rice who they'd met sharing the bill at Freedom Sounds festival in Cologne, Germany a year earlier. Victor organised a session in Studio Traquitana, home of acclaimed Brazilian band Bixiga 70, and invited a selection of local musicians. Percussionist and singer Ligia Kamara contributed lyrics and melodies written in the studio, and drummer Bruno Buarque, guitarist Joao Erbetta and bassist Victor provided some solid, personality-driven input. Fresh and vital, what came out was a fascinating blend of Soothsayers' dub and Afrobeat mixed with distinctly Brazilian inflections.

After arriving back in the UK, Idris and Robin set about creating the remainder of the album in a different, yet complimentary way, and called on the services of Wu-Lu and Kwake at their The Room studio in South London. Things started to take shape very quickly, Wu-Lu and Kwake combining Soothsayers' music with electronic elements, while also referencing elements of the current UK jazz scene.

When lockdown hit in March 2020, there was still a lot of work to do in order to complete a full album and Robin and Idris set about working on tracks with their musicians remotely. Having time to consider the album as a whole, they found strong connections between the music recorded in Brazil and the tracks recorded in London and they set about fusing and combining these elements further into a satisfying whole.

UK based Sengalese singer Modou Toure was enlisted to guest on one track while percussionists Satin Singh and Maurizio Ravalico were engaged to help affirm a sound-world where Brazilian flavours, such as the low-end Surdo drum, were combined with sounds more readily associated with reggae and Afrobeat.

Soothsayers' three part vocal harmony is a defining factor in this album. With strong references to the vocal styles of reggae legends such as The Gladiators, Mighty Diamonds, Heptones, and Abyssinnians; it has benefited from the long-standing friendship between Robin, Idris and Julia Biel. Lyrics, melodies and harmonies were presented, discussed, explored and recorded at Idris' and Julia's home studio in Streatham in a relaxed and positive way, with concepts from social and political commentary turned into powerful songs.

Themes cover political observations of Trump and beyond alongside Brazil's president Bolsanaro (Rat Race), speaking out against increasing levels of violence from the Brazilian government towards its native and indigenous people (Love And Unity) and keeping hopeful despite the impending horrors of a no-deal Brexit (We Won't Lose Hope).

Elsewhere they discuss striving to create space for meditation and reflection against the background noise of 24/7 news and social media (Move In Silence), the daily grind (No Sacrifice) and workers' rights (Slave), while highlighting those that fall through the cracks in society and end up without a permanent address, what led to this and how close we all are from this happening (One Step Away).

'We Are Many' represents a positive and uplifting statement in the face of challenging times - the overriding force, power and positivity of the music to continue forward, pushing the boundaries of musical concepts into the future.

"Whilst heavy questions of life and death and the future of our species surround us all, music is a guide that can help us perceive the challenges in a different way - a guide that can help us towards a deep inner peace. If we listen, music can help light the way. We hope you will listen, and we hope you will experience the joy, meditative power and beauty in the connection of different musical cultures that was experienced in the creation of this album."

- Idris Rahman and Robin Hopcraft

Originally conceived as a quarantine EP collecting material recorded in Memphis during sessions for ‘The Unraveling’, the project quickly grew to include provocative new songs written and recorded over what Drive-By Truckers co-founder Patterson Hood calls “this endless summer of protests, riots, political shenanigans and pandemic horrors.”
Tracks such as Hood’s ‘Watching The Orange Clouds’ - inspired by the protests which followed George Floyd’s murder by Minneapolis police - and a fiery cover of The Ramones’ classic ‘The KKK Took My Baby Away’ (vocals by bassist Matt Patton) were exchanged between Hood, cofounding singer / songwriter / guitarist Mike Cooley, bassist Patton, keyboardist / multiinstrumentalist Jay Gonzalez and drummer Brad Morgan and then mixed by long-time Drive-By Truckers producer David Barbe.

‘Del Rio’ is the third album from the Austin triumvirate of guitarist Craig Clouse (Shit and Shine), bassist Nate Cross (Marriage, Expensive Shit) and drummer King Coffey (Butthole Surfers) and the band’s first release to feature vocals from Colby Brinkman (Taverner). While their two prior albums (2017’s ‘Laredo’ and 2019’s ‘Matamoros’) were somewhere on the periphery of rock music , ‘Del Rio’ is a step or several beyond and a real testament to human imagination (maybe you’re impressed by Tesla Powerwall batteries but that’s because you’ve not heard “Soft Taco”, yet)

Coming off a pair of records their respective labels could barely keep in stock and critical assessments that put reviewers’ own chops to the test (see below), USA/Mexico have delivered their most fully realized statement to date.

Prior praise for ‘Matamoros’ :

“Laredo was a bent-out sunstroke of processed vocals and noise-laden riffs, and its follow up Matamoros is slower, freakier, and somehow louder…too defiantly weird and alien for pigeonholing, that’s how they fit inside Austin’s storied noise rock and experimental music scenes: by refusing to fit exactly in anywhere.” Andy O’Connor, Pitchfork

“Monolithic without being monotone: dirty sounds and gritty textures sliding over each other like sandpaper wiped across a chalkboard.” Marc Masters, Bandcamp

“The amplifiers sound broken, the vocals suggest someone's got their leg caught in a mantrap while deep in the woods trying to poach fat brown hares, and the mixing desk squeals as if it is undergoing physical tort

Gold Black Marble version....


Co-founder and label custodian Zanias makes her debut on Fleisch with a journey through climate catastrophe. Composed in Berlin and mixed in Queensland with the smell of bushfire smoke in the air, she addresses the primary anxiety of our time with four tracks designed to draw the body into movement and the mind into action. Body music elements are wrought with mournful melodies and studded with samples recorded from the fast-disappearing natural world, while her voice guides the way through the darkness.

Take a much-loved UK soul gem, Loose Ends classic from ‘85 ‘Hangin’ On A String’ and hand it to the godfather of house, Frankie Knuckles to work his unquestionable magic and there was no doubt the result would be a slice of house music heaven. South Street Records unlock the vaults once again, reissuing this melding of transatlantic minds presenting a triple threat that sees both Frankie’s 1992 Club Mix and the elusive Classic Club Reprise sit alongside the Loose Ends Original 12 Inch Mix, on either side of a 12 inch.

Taking the best of London’s soul and coupling it with the heart of Chicago, the master Frankie Knuckles purrs this one out across the highways with a slung-back house interpretation of ‘Hangin’ On A String’. A bumping beat, punchy bass line and effortless percussive touches give the perfect platform for Loose End’s vocal dynamics to provide a power, emotion and sincerity often lacking in modern dance music.

Flip it over to find the Classic Club Reprise - straight up sunset business with Frankie side-lining the vocals to let the instrumentation sing with added trademark flourishes in true spiritual style. Finally, the Original 12 Inch Mix gets a well-deserved inclusion which, back in 1985 was a true game changer bridging a multiplicity of scenes in the UK with its use of drum machines and synthesizers whilst maintaining that pure soul vibe. A track that topped the US Billboard R&B chart, making Loose Ends the first ever British band to do so, it’s a UK soul classic drenched in drum machine hits, soaring synths and crunchy guitar licks that’s infused with an ‘80s electro style and a quintessentially London flavour.

his is the first vinyl re-issue of Marc Almond’s 4th solo album, “The Stars We Are”, since the album’s original release in September 1988. This re-issue is a limited edition double vinyl that couples the original album with a second record that compiles together all the Bsides of the associated singles as well as two first-timeon-vinyl extended versions of album tracks ‘The Stars We Are’ (Full Length Version) and ‘These My Dreams Are Yours’ (Through The Night Mix). The final extra track included is Marc's solo version of ‘Something’s Gotten Hold Of My Heart’, which after the album’s original release, was re-recorded with the 1967 hit song’s original singer Gene Pitney, creating a duet that became a UK #1 single for four weeks in early 1989.

“The Stars We Are” was the first of two albums recorded for Parlophone and was Marc Almond’s return to a highly infectious and chartable pop. The first single ‘Tears Run Rings’ confirmed the revitalised, unabashed pop that characterised the record and reached #26 on the UK Singles Chart. The album was recorded with an assembled band ‘La Magia’ which comprised of former Willing Sinners members Annie Hogan, Billie McGee and Steve Humphries as a core unit. The album is a shimmering arc of musical textures, compulsive melodrama and euphoric uplift. As well as further
singles ‘Bitter-Sweet’ (UK#40) and ‘Only The Moment’ (UK#45), the album contains an homage to goth sensibilities in ‘Your Kisses Burn’ a duet with Nico (her last ever studio recording) as well as an extravagant mini-operetta, ‘Kept Boy’, a duet with cult chanteuse
Agnes Bernelle.

Contains sleeve notes from celebrated cult poet and biographer, Jeremy Reed.

68 SOFT ROCK MASTERPIECE - UBER RARE MONO MIX!
Take A Picture blends Margo’s infectious and highly intelligent songcraft with her absolutely unique voice - equal parts girl group innocence and seductive torch. One of the most endearing and delicious soft rock records from its era, this unique mono mix was previously only available as a radio station promo!

Kiwi Jr. is a phenomenal "rock" and/or "punk" and/or "indie-rock" (whichever you like more) band from Canada, made up of Jeremy Gaudet (mic, guitar), Brohan Moore (drums), Mike Walker (bass), and Brian Murphy (guitar). Cooler Returns is their second album, and their first for Sub Pop. Despite being a snapshot of the pandemic-infused beginnings of this decade, Cooler Returns is truly a whole lot of fun. RIYL indie-pop from down under, things that are smart/exuberant/catchy all at once. Buildings burning in every direction; macabre unknowns in your friendly neighbor's basement; undecided voters sharpening their pencils: under pressure we could call Kiwi Jr.'s Cooler Returns "timely." But what year is it, again? On Cooler Returns, Kiwi Jr. cycle through the recent zigs & looming zags of the new decade, squinting anew at New Year's parties forgotten and under-investigated small town diner fires, piecing together low-stakes conspiracy theories on what's coming down the pike in 2021. Put together like a thousand-piece puzzle, assembled in flow state through the first dull stretch of quarantine, sanitized singer shuffling to sanitized studio by streetcar, masked like it's the kind of work where getting recognized means getting killed, Cooler Returns materializes as a sprawling survey from the first few bites of the terrible twenties, an investigative exposé of recent history buried under the headlines & ancient kings buried under parking lots. Not so long since their debut Football Money in archaeological time, unending gray eons later in the dog years of quaran-time, spiritually antipodean Canadians Kiwi Jr return to disseminate this year's annual report to the shareholders, burying the incriminating numbers in the endless appendices of a longform narrative record, a 3,000 word tract for stakeholders to pore over. These stories - memories of Augusts past, unrepressed & transcribed fast - go down easier thanks to meaningful changes enacted in 2019's KiwiCares Pledge: delivering on a promise to transition from Crunchy to Smooth by 2021, the caveman chug of Football Money has been steamed & pressed with the purifying air of a saloon piano - operated with bow-tie untied - and a spring green side-salad of tentatively up-tempo organ taps & freshly fluted harmonica. A chronically detuned spin of the dial through swivel-chair distractions & WFH daydreams, an immersive ctrl-tab deluge cycling through popular listicle distractions like the unentombing of Richard III, or the deja vu destruction of the Glasgow School of Art, Kiwi Jr. sing this song to an indoor audience, crisscrossing canceled, every other prestige distraction source wrung dry, only songwriting remaining to deliver engrossing tales to the populace, just how I imagine it worked in the old days. Fixing loose ingredients into a sturdy whip, Kiwi Jr. beam in live from the 9-5, striding into 2021 with a mastered brainwave that comes equally from the back room of the record store as the penalty box. And how do we, left holding this box of deliberate entanglements, sign off to those as yet uninitiated, undecided, uncertain, unseen, absent return coordinates - Best Wishes, Warm Regards, Good Luck? Cooler Returns, Cooler Returns, C o o l e r R e t u r n s ! Cooler Returns was produced by Kiwi Jr., mixed and engineered by Graham Walsh (METZ, Bully) in Toronto, and mastered by Phillip Shaw Bova at Bova Labs in Ottawa, Ontario.

LTD. LOSER EDITION

Kiwi Jr. is a phenomenal "rock" and/or "punk" and/or "indie-rock" (whichever you like more) band from Canada, made up of Jeremy Gaudet (mic, guitar), Brohan Moore (drums), Mike Walker (bass), and Brian Murphy (guitar). Cooler Returns is their second album, and their first for Sub Pop. Despite being a snapshot of the pandemic-infused beginnings of this decade, Cooler Returns is truly a whole lot of fun. RIYL indie-pop from down under, things that are smart/exuberant/catchy all at once. Buildings burning in every direction; macabre unknowns in your friendly neighbor's basement; undecided voters sharpening their pencils: under pressure we could call Kiwi Jr.'s Cooler Returns "timely." But what year is it, again? On Cooler Returns, Kiwi Jr. cycle through the recent zigs & looming zags of the new decade, squinting anew at New Year's parties forgotten and under-investigated small town diner fires, piecing together low-stakes conspiracy theories on what's coming down the pike in 2021. Put together like a thousand-piece puzzle, assembled in flow state through the first dull stretch of quarantine, sanitized singer shuffling to sanitized studio by streetcar, masked like it's the kind of work where getting recognized means getting killed, Cooler Returns materializes as a sprawling survey from the first few bites of the terrible twenties, an investigative exposé of recent history buried under the headlines & ancient kings buried under parking lots. Not so long since their debut Football Money in archaeological time, unending gray eons later in the dog years of quaran-time, spiritually antipodean Canadians Kiwi Jr return to disseminate this year's annual report to the shareholders, burying the incriminating numbers in the endless appendices of a longform narrative record, a 3,000 word tract for stakeholders to pore over. These stories - memories of Augusts past, unrepressed & transcribed fast - go down easier thanks to meaningful changes enacted in 2019's KiwiCares Pledge: delivering on a promise to transition from Crunchy to Smooth by 2021, the caveman chug of Football Money has been steamed & pressed with the purifying air of a saloon piano - operated with bow-tie untied - and a spring green side-salad of tentatively up-tempo organ taps & freshly fluted harmonica. A chronically detuned spin of the dial through swivel-chair distractions & WFH daydreams, an immersive ctrl-tab deluge cycling through popular listicle distractions like the unentombing of Richard III, or the deja vu destruction of the Glasgow School of Art, Kiwi Jr. sing this song to an indoor audience, crisscrossing canceled, every other prestige distraction source wrung dry, only songwriting remaining to deliver engrossing tales to the populace, just how I imagine it worked in the old days. Fixing loose ingredients into a sturdy whip, Kiwi Jr. beam in live from the 9-5, striding into 2021 with a mastered brainwave that comes equally from the back room of the record store as the penalty box. And how do we, left holding this box of deliberate entanglements, sign off to those as yet uninitiated, undecided, uncertain, unseen, absent return coordinates - Best Wishes, Warm Regards, Good Luck? Cooler Returns, Cooler Returns, C o o l e r R e t u r n s ! Cooler Returns was produced by Kiwi Jr., mixed and engineered by Graham Walsh (METZ, Bully) in Toronto, and mastered by Phillip Shaw Bova at Bova Labs in Ottawa, Ontario.

• The Creation was formed in 1966 from beat combo The Mark Four, and was quickly signed to a production deal with Shel Talmy, The Who’s producer. The first release was the urgent “Making Time”, which featured guitarist Eddie Phillips playing his guitar with a violin bow, two years before Jimmy Page started doing so.
• Issued in 1967, “We Are Paintermen” was the only Creation LP released during their original 60s incarnation, and then only in Germany. With the exception of “Making Time” and “Try And Stop Me”, this release features the 2016 stereo mixes of Creation classics “Through My Eyes”, “Biff Bang Pow”, “Can I Join Your Band?” and “Painter Man” (as later covered with huge success by Boney M).
• Pressed on 140 gram clear vinyl, the inner sleeve features 60s photos of The Creation from the collection of designer Phil Smee.

• The Creation was formed in 1966 from beat combo The Mark Four, and was quickly signed to a production deal with Shel Talmy, The Who’s producer. The first release was the urgent “Making Time”, which featured guitarist Eddie Phillips playing his guitar with a violin bow, two years before Jimmy Page started doing so.
• Alongside the “We Are Paintermen” LP, “How Does It Feel To Feel” rounds up the remainder of the recordings they made with Shel Talmy. This LP features the 2016 stereo mixes of Creation classics “How Does It Feel To Feel” (both the UK and US versions), “Life Is Just Beginning” and “Sylvette”. The last 60s lineup of The Creation, which featured future Face and Rolling Stone Ron Wood, is represented by all four sides of their two single releases.
• Pressed on 140 gram clear vinyl, the inner sleeve features 60s photos of The Creation from the collection of designer Phil Smee.

a A1. How Does It Feel To Feel UK version


[d] A4. How Does It Feel To Feel [US version]