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"Never Exhale" ist der Sound einer Band, die keine Atempause einlegt. DITZ sind seit der Veröffentlichung ihres ersten Albums "The Great Regression" (2023) unermüdlich auf Tour. Die Songs ihres neuesten Angebots wurden in ganz Europa geschrieben, oft an freien Tagen und in geliehenen Proberäumen. Man könnte sagen, dass die Band das Aufnehmen und Veröffentlichen von Musik als nachträglichen Einfall betrachtet. Oft spielen sie Songs Jahre vor der Veröffentlichung live und optimieren sie dabei. Die Songs auf der endgültigen Platte können sich ändern, bevor sie jemals als Teil des Albums zu hören sind.

"Never Exhale" wurde grösstenteils in den Holy Mountain Studios in London während eines eiskalten Januars aufgenommen. Der Prozess war voller Hindernisse, da der ursprüngliche Plan, in Rhode Island aufzunehmen, durch das Angebot einer Support-Tour mit IDLES aufgegeben wurde, obwohl das Album immer noch vom ursprünglich vorgesehenen Toningenieur Seth Manchester (Model/Actriz, Lingua Ignota, Big Brave) gemischt wurde. Das Ergebnis ist ein Werk, das durch den Druck seiner eigenen Entstehung gehärtet wurde. Mühsam, aber nicht geliebt.

Die Themen der LP offenbaren sich beim wiederholten Anhören. Von der Erkundung dessen, wie es wäre, seinen Einfluss auf die Welt abzuwägen, dem heiligen Petrus, unnötigem Hass und Spaltung, Altern, der Trennung des Physischen von der Realität. Es ist politisch, aber letztendlich persönlich. Mehr Genet oder Kafka als Orwell oder Huxley. Soundtechnisch hat "Never Exhale" seine Wurzeln in den üblichen DITZ-Einflüssen, klassischem Noise-Rock wie The Jesus Lizard oder Shellac oder dem stumpfen Post-Punk von The Fall, bringt aber auch frische Einflüsse ein. Der letzte Track "Britney" könnte mit Radiohead oder Mogwai verglichen werden. Insgesamt ist das neue Album eine klare Weiterentwicklung ihres Debüts. Und ein Zeichen der Dinge, die kommen werden.

"Never Exhale" ist der Sound einer Band, die keine Atempause einlegt. DITZ sind seit der Veröffentlichung ihres ersten Albums "The Great Regression" (2023) unermüdlich auf Tour. Die Songs ihres neuesten Angebots wurden in ganz Europa geschrieben, oft an freien Tagen und in geliehenen Proberäumen. Man könnte sagen, dass die Band das Aufnehmen und Veröffentlichen von Musik als nachträglichen Einfall betrachtet. Oft spielen sie Songs Jahre vor der Veröffentlichung live und optimieren sie dabei. Die Songs auf der endgültigen Platte können sich ändern, bevor sie jemals als Teil des Albums zu hören sind.

"Never Exhale" wurde grösstenteils in den Holy Mountain Studios in London während eines eiskalten Januars aufgenommen. Der Prozess war voller Hindernisse, da der ursprüngliche Plan, in Rhode Island aufzunehmen, durch das Angebot einer Support-Tour mit IDLES aufgegeben wurde, obwohl das Album immer noch vom ursprünglich vorgesehenen Toningenieur Seth Manchester (Model/Actriz, Lingua Ignota, Big Brave) gemischt wurde. Das Ergebnis ist ein Werk, das durch den Druck seiner eigenen Entstehung gehärtet wurde. Mühsam, aber nicht geliebt.

Die Themen der LP offenbaren sich beim wiederholten Anhören. Von der Erkundung dessen, wie es wäre, seinen Einfluss auf die Welt abzuwägen, dem heiligen Petrus, unnötigem Hass und Spaltung, Altern, der Trennung des Physischen von der Realität. Es ist politisch, aber letztendlich persönlich. Mehr Genet oder Kafka als Orwell oder Huxley. Soundtechnisch hat "Never Exhale" seine Wurzeln in den üblichen DITZ-Einflüssen, klassischem Noise-Rock wie The Jesus Lizard oder Shellac oder dem stumpfen Post-Punk von The Fall, bringt aber auch frische Einflüsse ein. Der letzte Track "Britney" könnte mit Radiohead oder Mogwai verglichen werden. Insgesamt ist das neue Album eine klare Weiterentwicklung ihres Debüts. Und ein Zeichen der Dinge, die kommen werden.

Back in December 2016, Jeshi fell asleep whilst driving home from a party at 5am, and he crashed into a park car, only to be woken up by the airbag exploding in his face. This is the inspiration for album two. The new album is a statement of waking up and levelling up from the last period of his life. This is a new era, and full of energy.

SHORT BIOG

Jeshi doesn't run away from fire; he runs with it. The East London artist is on a quest to feel alive in every sense. To him, feeling alive means being present in each experience, no matter how challenging. For Jeshi - who has spent the last few years establishing himself as one of the most exciting voices of his generation - this is what life and art are all about. Chaos, then, is not something to shy away from, but where great ideas are born.
Jeshi's electrifying second album, AIRBAG WOKE ME UP is a collection of moment-capturing songs built to ignite reactions and start conversations. His scene-stealing jaunts to stages worldwide clearly influence its live-wire sound, as Jeshi and his cohorts smash through moods and tempos like kids let loose on funfair dodgems. "I want to make things that have intent and feel like statements," Jeshi declares. His versatile voice is the conductive thread that pulls everything together. "On Universal Credit, my voice was used in one way, whereas on this it's used in ten ways," he notes.
AIRBAG WOKE ME UP is an exploration into what happens when you emerge from tough times, and how they encourage you to view the world a little differently. It's bolder in ambition and built from renewed energy. Chaotic, but in the very best way. "In my head, this is the real arrival chapter," states Jeshi. "The 'I am here, I've arrived' moment."

Seit sie die Wiener Musikszene mit ihrem Debüt ,Trouble" (2022) und dem Nachfolger-Album ,Lightning Trails" (2023) im Sturm erobert haben, etablierten sich die Jangle-Pop-Maestros Laundromat Chicks in jenem seltenen musikalischen Terrain, in der sich Humor, Übermut und Verletzlichkeit überschneiden. Von pubertären Power-Pop-Hymnen bis hin zu knackigem Jangle-Pop sind Laundromat Chicks die Art von Band, die einen an alle Lieblingsbands auf einmal erinnert. Auf ihrem Album ,Sometimes Possessed" (Siluh Records) erweitert die Band ihre Soundpalette. Mastermind Tobias Hammermüller führt sein Songwriting in neue Bahnen, indem die gewohnt schlagfertigen Gitarrenhymnen mit abstrakteren, sanfter klingendenmusikalischen Ideen abwechseln. Das Quartett, bestehend neben Hammermüller (Gesang/Gitarre) aus Theresa Strohmer (Gitarre/Gesang), Felix Schnabl (Schlagzeug) und Lena Pöttinger (Bass), war von Anfang an sehr produktiv - sowohl bei Laundromat Chicks als auch bei anderen Projekten. So spielen Strohmer und Pöttinger auch in der Garage-Pop-Band Topsy Turvy, während Schnabl sein eigenes 60er-Jahre-Garage-Punk-Projekt Salamirecorder hat und in der Psychrock-Gruppe Telebrains Schlagzeug spielt und singt. Laundromat Chicks' erste beiden Veröffentlichungen bei Siluh Records, sind eine Fundgrube an zu entdeckenden Gitarrenpops, z.B. die Single ,You're on the Line" ist so witzig undeindringlich wie jede pubertäre Powerpop-Hymne diesseits von Buzzcocks und The Undertones, während ,Nobody Believes Me" den eisigen Fatalismus von Joy Division mit dem knackigen Jangle von The Babies and Girls verbindet. Es steht außer Frage, dass die Laundromat Chicks in nur 20 Minuten eine Band sein können, die dich an alle deine Lieblingsbands auf einmal erinnert, aber auch gleichzeitig in neue, aufregende Gefilde entführen kann. Auf Sometimes Possessed erweitert diese speziellen Gebiete erheblich: Die bislang gewohnten 20 Minuten dehnen sich nun zu einem inspirierten 30-minütigen Fiebertraum aus. Damit sich die Gefühle entfalten konnten, musste der Startpunkt des Albums irgendwo aus einem abgelegenen bzw. fast vergessenen Fundus kommen. Das Ergebnis ist Laundromat Chicks' hitzeverzerrte Interpretation der von Ray Davies geschriebenen 60ties Ballade ,This Strange Effect", ein schwindelerregendes Duett, dargeboten von Sänger Hammermüller mit Gitarristin Theresa Strohmer als Duett.

Das 1981 erschienene Debüt des legendären Pianisten von Eberhard Webers Colours Band und später der
Jan Garbarek Group, Freigeweht, präsentierte Rainer Brüninghaus als höchst originellen und eigenwilligen Klangmaler, begleitet von den ECM-Koryphäen Kenny Wheeler am Flügelhorn und Schlagzeuger Jon
Christensen sowie dem Oboisten Brynjar Hoff. In einer Besprechung des Albums aus dem Jahr seiner
Veröffentlichung führte die Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung des Pianisten Einflüsse und minimalistische
Gestaltungsgabe auf Steve Reich zurück und nannte Brüninghaus ”den phantasievollsten Verwender der
Minimal Art. (...) Er nutzt die Minimal Art weder als Ideologie noch als Rhythmusgruppenersatz, sondern
spielerisch-konstruktiv als Element, das man aufgreifen kann. Als brillanter Konturenzeichner der Themen
und als genialer Improvisator ist der Trompeter Kenny Wheeler der ideale Partner.” Jon Christensen verleiht
Brüninghaus’ lyrischen Themen, die von Wheeler und Hoffs kontemplativen Tönen eindrucksvoll untermalt
werden, kompromisslosen Antrieb. (Die Luminessence-Edition von Freigeweht erscheint in einem Tip-on
Gatefold und mit neuem Begleittext)

Rob Mazurek graces the Keroxen Records waves with a genre defying album of field recordings, modular electronics, trumpet harmonies and spirit call chants.

An unstoppable force since his first recordings in the early 90’s Rob Mazurek has been at the forefront of experimen-tation and adventurous improvised music for most of the last 4 decades. The American composer, cornetist, and visual artist has been developing his own style of improvisational music with a myriad of collaborators, too many to list but amongst them true giants of the 20th and 21st century music cannon like Bill Dixon, Pharoah Sanders, Jeff Parker, Roscoe Mitchell, Yusef Lateef and Naná Vasconcelos amongst many many others.

Nestor’s Nest is yet another addition to Mazurek’s mammoth catalogue of cosmic unity, coming like a spur of the moment whilst staying at Nestor and Pura’s house in Tenerife during the Keroxen Festival edition of 2023. Dead time doesn’t exist for the American cornetist and whilst hanging at the organisers house Mazurek decided to record and interact with his colourful tropical surroundings. Mangos, Papayas and Star Fruits all make an appearance here as does the quietness of an idyllic garden juxtaposed with Mazurek's stormy interferences, unleashing his modular synths and other acoustic paraphernalia into an ecstatic mix of pure celestial energy. As he beautifully states on the albums back cover:

Fruit from the trees of life, Stop All War. Stop the Killing, Open the senses, Breath. Listen . Feel!

Rob Mazurek: Modular Synths, Moog Sub 37, PolyEvolver, Trumpets, Voice, Bells, flutes

Made from field recordings in and around the Keroxen Tanque and the House of Nestor and Pura in Tenerife, Canary Islands.

Final mix at Marfa Experimental Studio, Marfa Texas
Mastered by Daniel Baez
Cover photo by RM

Jam packed with west coast twang and tongue-in-cheek lyrics, the Doohickeys' debut album All Hat No Cattle tackles classic country topics like gettin' groped, tiny trucks, and LA traffic. Produced by two-time Grammy nominee, Eric Corne, the record will have you two-steppin' along and laughing out loud. The opening track, Rein It In Cowboy, includes rippin' licks from Dwight Yoakam's touring guitarist Eugene Edwards, as well as back-up vocals from Hayley Orrantia (The Golbergs, The Masked Singer). World-famous comedian Jim Jefferies makes an appearance at the end of Please Tell Me You're Sleepin' (he infamously suggested the song idea to the duo). "This Town Sucks" earned an award for Outstanding Songwriting in the 2023 Great American Song Contest and the music video for "Rein It In Cowboy" won The American Songwriter music video contest.

Dive into the cosmic grooves of Nebulous, the 8th album by UK's most enigmatic library music composer, to be released on digital and vinyl in January 2025.

This 9-track odyssey takes The Natural Yogurt Band’s signature sound to an even richer galaxy with keyboardist Huw Rees aka The Oracle, who adds warped organs and electric pianos over gritty drum breaks and electric pulses, echoing the raw energy of space's farthest reaches—ideal for jazz heads seeking a unique listening experience.

“This is a true story”

Fargo is a fantastic dark comedy-crime drama television series created and written by Noah Hawley and inspired by Joel & Ethan Coen’s 1996 movie of the same name. Both Coen brothers serve as executive producers on the series. The show stars Martin Freeman (The Hobbit trilogy), Billy Bob Thornton, Bob Odenkirk (Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul) and more.

The soundtrack features selections from the show’s original music composed by Jeff Russo (Power, Necessary Roughness, About Cherry). Its score is well done, with different motifs or instruments assigned to different characters. For Lester Nygaard (Martin Freeman’s character) it’s that nearly-whimsical main theme. For the drifter Lorne Malvo (Thornton’s character) it’s sleigh bell chimes that represent his animalistic nature coming out.

This is a limited edition contains of 666 individually numbered copies on transparent green vinyl. The package includes an insert with pictures of the characters.

Diagonal Records proudly welcomes a new face to the label. Off the back of recent 13th birthday celebrations, Diagonal is now looking to the future with an exciting release from Australian upstart, Jonus Eric. Jonus has recently appeared on Gerd Janson's iconic Running Back label. This 12" EP features centre label artwork by Guy Featherstone inspired by Peter Saville's work for Factory Records.

The "Diode" EP comprises 6 tracks of sample – laden, psychedelic house music. EP opener, "Darkwhirl" brings to mind Theo Parrish, a regular reference point across the release. "Crimewave" offers an irresistible, funk soaked bassline. "Shapeshift" is when things get gnarly! "Antibiotics" reimagines a classic Todd Terry rave cut whilst EP closer "Polarity" provides a 90's IDM inspired finale.

Soolmaan is a sextet led by Belgian oud player and composer Tristan Driessens, accompanied by Nathan Daems, Christos Barbas, Annemie Osborne, Andrea Piccioni, and Levent Yildirim. Together, they create sound tableaus that float freely between the Bosphorus and India, with flute, sax, ney, cello, piano and tamburello igniting an imaginary folklore infected by jazz. Releasing their second album ‘Kashgul’ on the 24th of January with Zephyrus Records. (Vinyl / CD)

Driessens began his career immersed in the classical music of the Ottoman court, founding the Lâmekân Ensemble in 2011. After training under oud virtuoso Necati Çelik in Istanbul, he returned to Belgium in 2016 to form Soolmaan, an ensemble that reflects his multi-faceted identity. Rooted in Eastern modal traditions, Soolmaan’s music bridges jazz, folk, and classical influences, creating a unique and contemporary sound.

Their 2017 debut album, ‘Letters to Handenberg’, was described as "oriental chamber jazz," with Istanbul serving as a common thread. With Kashgul, their latest release, Soolmaan explores Ottoman makam, Indian raga and Anatolian halk muzigi, blending these traditions with a contemporary modal language. Created during Driessens' artist residency at the Concertgebouw of Bruges, the album features original compositions alongside reimagined works by Ravi Shankar, Amjad Ali Khan, and Art Pepper.
With improvisation as a connecting factor, Soolmaan’s music invites listeners into rich, boundary-crossing soundscapes where tradition and innovation meet. Kashgul exemplifies the ensemble’s ability to craft an immersive musical experience that resonates deeply with diverse audiences.

Upcoming concerts

December 8, 2024
Begijnhofkerk, Sint Truiden, BE

December 12, 2024
De Bijloke, Ghent, BE

December 14, 2024
De Bijloke, Ghent, BE

Vincent Arthur’s masterpiece LP ‘Esi Vivian’, originally inspired by and named in tribute to his daughter Vivian, was the work of a skilled group of musicians from Africa, The Caribbean and Germany. The record remained relatively unknown for 30 years, apart from a small circle of collectors, until a very well known DJ closing Dekmantel reached the climax of his set with an 'unknown' euphoric afro disco track. Taking to the forums, internet sleuths didn’t stop until it was found that this anthem was ‘Travel With The Music’!

Remastered by the ever patient and talented Frank at The Carvery, SFA002 breathes new life into the 3 standout tracks from Esi Vivian, allowing these timeless sounds to be shared on new dancefloors. It is no understatement that we shared a goosebumps moment in the studio listening to the results, where we both looked at each other and realised how special the music sounds. All three tracks have been elevated whilst staying true to the original and cut at 45rpm for ideal club playback.

‘Travel With The Music’ takes pole position on the A-side, a piece of music perfect in every way. Mixing afro, disco and that euphoric gospel-like chorus, this is the record you want to hear played out with all your friends at once.
Leading the B-side is Afro Disco, a track that always works on the floor, it’s tempo shift injecting a playful energy that leads the party into it’s next stage. Closing out the release, ‘Jubilation’ takes us deeper and in the right dance, is a powerful end-of-the-nighter.

Mysterious and unconventional, Hermeth is an valencian artist based in Switzerland. Known for wearing a striking Rorschach-patterned mask, his identity dissolves into his music a dynamic fusion of breakbeat, techno, house and dubstep.

This new five-tracks-EP, including a Ben Pest remix and a featuring with Stelmakh, is a pure dancefloor bangers collection, for those who like saturated breaks and ghetto vibes.

Play it loud, party animals !

Foundation, the first ever collaboration I did with Kloke, finished in April 2020 & released on the first Meeting Of The Minds release a few months later.

Probably one of my favourite collabs in the series & the main reason behind me starting this Meeting Of The Minds VIP series, because I had an idea of doing a VIP of it, in a slightly darker style than the original.

When I had the VIP done, I liked how it sounded and wanted to put it out but thought it'd be cool if Kloke did his own VIP of it as well, in whatever style he felt like doing to go with it. He did a great VIP version of it and that sealed the deal on the first Meeting Of The Minds VIP release.

Studio, the influential project of Swedish musicians Dan Lissvik and Rasmus Hägg, presents their legendary 2006 debut in remastered form, in partnership with Ghostly International. Available in limited edition "Fog Machine Vinyl", CD, and cassette. "One of the finest pieces of electronic music you'll hear this year.” - The Guardian (2006). Included in year-end best-of write-ups by Pitchfork, FACT Magazine, and Rough Trade. Physical copies have long been out of print for West Coast, and the album has also been notably absent from most streaming services until now.

“Somehow, I knew I wanted to make a conceptual record that, although only imaginary at that point, could represent or define how our city sounded,” says Lissvik of Gothenburg's influence on West Coast. Some called Studio, the project of Swedish musicians Dan Lissvik and Rasmus Hägg, “the missing link between The Cure and Lindstrøm,” Pitchfork heard Durutti Column and Can, as the duo’s story became swept up in a loosely developing scene — adjacent first to the label Service (Jens Lekman, The Whitest Boy Alive) and later Sincerely Yours (The Tough Alliance, jj) — and a precursor to the 2010s boom at the axis of electronic and psychedelic music guided by indie greats like Caribou, Four Tet, and Darkside.

West Coast, their seminal 2006 debut, captured a faraway romanticism of Balearic brushed up against Krautrock, disco, dub, and afrobeat, with pop lyricism lifted from new wave, all made modern by two art school grads in Gothenburg. First pressed in a small vinyl-only run via their own Information label, the album has been notably absent from most streaming services, and the internet’s record of its initial impact is all but fossilized from a bygone blog era, while its sound is simply untraceable to any one moment in music.

Outside of three 7” releases, they’d keep the music to themselves for several more years. In 2005, Hägg remembers, “We got our degrees and were kicked out of our studio spaces so all these recordings were just piled up. A year later we dusted them off and started to deconstruct and assemble them in a more drawn-out fashion.” In the same breadth, they cite DJ Screw, J Dilla, and Joy Division, along with early ‘80s European live DJ sets from the likes of Beppe Loda, Dj Mozart, and Baldelli as reference points.

“The anything-goes mentality was very encouraging and was a big cornerstone to the Studio sound,” says Hägg. “But there’s so much more to the picture, we were not that young then and had lots of musical baggage in our suitcases, the new thing was that we finally let it all come through, not bound by any borders that was often the case with music identity in Sweden during the 90s.” In the afterglow of the record’s 2007 reception, Studio receded from view, clouded behind a mountain of remix requests (including one for Kylie Minogue that saw release) and label bureaucracy. “It’s easy to wish we would have done some proper recordings of our own instead,” Hägg reflects. But both artists, now well into respective careers beyond Studio, have come to peace with West Coast as their most enduring effort together. Lissvik adds, “It serves as a good reminder for me to keep to that decision and promise and to continue exploring and growing

Named after a metro station located in East Paris, Pointe du Lac originated in 2014 as the brainchild of analogue gear enthusiast Julien Lheuillier, joined shortly after by multi-instrumentalist Richard Francés, followed by Quentin Rollet on Saxophone a few years down the line. Les siphonophores des eaux froides et profondes de l'Arctique (“Siphonophores of the cold, deep Arctic waters”) is the project’s third studio album, the first one written as a three-piece as well as their first release on Hands in the Dark.

Like the organisms the album title refers to, Pointe du Lac’s music is highly polymorphic and complex, using a subtle and distinctive blend of Electronica, Krautrock, Jazz and Kosmische as vessels for the band’s fantastic instrumental imaginary voyages. Compared to previous albums and EPs -which tended to suggest cosmic odysseys- this new cinematic outing is diving deep and intends to shed light on fascinating, mysterious and diverse creatures and their habitats. Supported by (paradoxically) warm and impeccable sonic forms, the exploration turns out to be an unsurprisingly expansive one, yet accessible and oddly familiar sounding. There is a sense of assurance and serenity in the French trio’s latest offering, the musicians mastery and open-ended approach to free ambient music lets their ideas flow and never stagnate. The narrative of this expedition is one that will be remembered long after the listening finishes.

Theresa Stroetges returns to Karaoke Kalk with her second album for the Berlin-based label, her fifth solo full-length with her Golden Diskó Ship project in total. Having released records with the Indian-German band project Hotel Kali as well as Painting, a group dedicated to audio-visual concepts, »Oval Sun Patch« sees her embrace influences from club culture, advanced electronic music, and pop more firmly than ever before. Over the past 15 years, Golden Diskó Ship has served a vessel with which the Berlin-based multi-instrumentalist has traversed a variety of genres and circumnavigated all conventions in the process. With »Oval Sun Patch,« Stroetges again sets sail into unknown waters with what is perhaps her catchiest album so far—beat-driven, playful, atmospheric, and at times thoroughly anthemic. This is the sound of Golden Diskó Ship moving forward.

A life lived in transit, the vastness of bodies of water and the isolation of islands as well as more generally notions of processes and progress have been recurring motives throughout Stroetges’ previous records and also mark »Oval Sun Patch.« In fact, the foundation for the six pieces was laid when she was working abroad and at times close to the sea. The massive three-part album closer »Earth Before The Space Race« was conceived as a multi-channel audio-visual performance piece during a 2021 residency at Zaratan Arte Contemporânea in Lisbon. The others were written in the following year during two other residencies when Stroetges first spent time in Austria at the sound art festival Klangmanifeste in Lindabrunn and then visited Portugal once more for a stay at Goethe-Institut in Lisbon. With the help of Shelley Barradas, who lent her a guitar, and Julia Klein, who helped her setting up a temporary studio in the Goethe-Institut Portugal’s auditorium, she made the preliminary recordings of what would later become this album.

»Oval Sun Patch«, later refined in Berlin and mixed in close collaboration with London-based engineer Hannes Plattmeier, is a direct result of Stroetges having to work with what was available to her at the time of writing and recording. While her distinct guitar playing—evocative yet funky, complex but catchy—once more features heavily and she uses her voice in manifold ways to sometimes harmonise with herself or creating complex canons as counterpoints to her her own lead vocals, the electronic gear she worked with dominates the album both compositionally and sonically. Stroetges’ music has always displayed a passion for club culture and advanced electronic music, but on »Oval Sun Patch« she proves once and for all how well these influences can be integrated into her unconventional approach to songwriting.

However, the punchy beat and Moroder-like bassline that form the backbone of »Dolphins With Soft Helmets,« the throbbing house and techno grooves underneath »Ephemeral Carnivores« and »Well-Oiled Machine« as well as the jittery IDM rhythms of »Google Your New Name« and her nods to trip-hop with »Tiny Island« do not so much follow established formulas as they use them as a starting point for wild experimentation instead. Stroetges juxtaposes complex rhythms with interlocking melodies and rich harmonies in ways that continue to surprise throughout and still leave enough space for the occasional wistful guitar or vocal passage. Nowhere does this approach feel more epic than on the 12 ½ minutes long »Earth Before The Space Race,« which takes its time to unfold, changing its pace and mood throughout.

»Oval Sun Patch« is an album about change. The lyrics describe constant transformations of sceneries, relationships, physical and emotional states as well as the climate throughout its running time. Stroetges in the meanwhile leads the way as a singer, songwriter and producer who lets her music evolve constantly. This is sound, moving forward.

Die zweite LP des Duos aus Megan Louise und Johnny Jewel (Chromatics) wurde in LA und Palm Springs, Kalifornien, geschrieben und aufgenommen. Inspiriert von der ultralebendigen Welt der 1970er Giallo-Filme schrieben Desire den Soundtrack ihrer Träume mit ihren Lieblingsinstrumenten: Minikorg, Jupiter 8, 909, Mellotron, Simmons Rhythm Modules, String Machine, D-50, Fender Rhodes. Während House-Rhythmen die Grundlage ihrer Erzählungen bilden, ergänzen pulsierende Synthwave- und Daytime-Drama-Seifenopern die Farbpalette des Albums. Gesungen wird auf Englisch, Französisch und Koreanisch, was der Mischung noch mehr Dramatik verleiht. Durch all das hindurch gibt es den Optimismus des Kompasses der wahren Liebe, der uns durch all das Chaos navigiert, das das Leben zu bieten hat.

A sunny and flamboyant spirit, the brazilian João Selva carries us away with his new wave album “Onda” - Underdog Records /2025.

Navegar (“to sail”) in 2021, Passarinho (“lit-tle bird”) in 2023... through the titles of these last two albums, João Selva will have displayed his ambitions and ideals: to fluidly and swiftly connect the musical components of a Black Atlantic that would extend from Brazilian samba to Angolan Semba, from Cape Verdean funaná to Caribbean zouk via Congolese rumba and American funk. His new album Onda continues to ride this same wave, crowning a luminous transatlantic artwork, imbued with sensuality and joie de vivre.

An ingenious musician with a harmonious sense of melody, French pianist and composer Maxence Cyrin releases Passenger, his 9th album, composed and performed entirely on the piano. With influences ranging from Ryuichi Sakamoto and Brian Eno to Philip Glass and composers such as Erik Satie and Frédéric Chopin, this album weaves together ambient, minimalism and neo- classical music. This time around, the artist has sought to convey his emotions and ideas in a more intuitive and spontaneous way, even keeping improvisations such as "Under A Glass Bell" and "Dive" recorded during a residency in Brittany. Maxence Cyrin is one of France's most internationally acclaimed pianists.

The Queen of Jazz and 'Satchmo' had duetted earlier in their illustrious
careers. But it wasn't until Producer Norman Granz came up with the
idea of putting them together for specific albums that their true
chemistry was revealed. The Platinum Collection features two iconic
albums Ella & Louis and Ella & Louis Again. Both albums feature Jazz
At The Phil regulars Oscar Peterson (Piano), Herb Ellis (Guitar), Ray
Brown (Bass) and Buddy Rich (Drums) with the exception of Louis
Bellson replacing Buddy Rich on Ella & Louis Again recording. Now it's
time for Fitzgerald to 'take it Ella - swing it'....

Melbourne label ‘Felt Sense Recordings’ invites Detroit based Artist Bit-Map to join the roster for their 10th release.

6 tracks of Garage, IDM and breaks by way of the motor city with an acid heavy remix from Drip-133.

LP limited to 500 LP copies. Nina Garcia ’s first solo record widely available via international distribution. Nina has collaborated with artists like Stephen O’Malley, Sophie Agnel, Fred Frith, Antoine Chessex, Louis Schild, Leila Bordreuil, and supported for bands like Sonic Youth, SUNN O))). After a decade of performing concerts under the Mariachi guise, Nina Garcia has finally unveiled her unique approach in Bye Bye Bird, her first album under her name. Bye Bye Bird is her second solo album. With no pretence or demonstration, the album is a captivating blend of chiaroscuro, melodies, and raw emotion. Nina Garcia’s album takes on an almost documentary-like quality by adopting a simple approach to gesture and sound recording. It offers a candid portrayal of a moment, a lack, a state, and a breathtaking energy. With ostinato as her only credo, Nina Garcia’s music is an experiment in freedom, where the peaks answer the abysses, and the power of movement and the emotion of sound serves as her compass. From very short (01:28) to never very long (07:34), the eight tracks that make up this set explore a moment, a space, a mechanism, an intention or a way of doing things. As a common feature of almost all these pieces (all but one, the last), Nina Garcia explores a new technique. She adds to her instrumentation, reduced to the essentials (a guitar, a pedal and an amp), an electromagnetic microphone which, when held in hand, makes it possible to listen in on the exact zones where the vibration of the string creates a sound amid vast spaces of silence. The guitar is unplugged, and the body/instrument relationship changes in dimension. In this series of variations, you can get caught up in masses of noise seen from very, very close up, evocations of melodies in the making, feedback on ridgelines, pulsations that hold their own, modulations weakened by exhaustion and harmonic bursts that hint at better days to come. Neither hopelessly chthonic nor beatifically ethereal, Bye Bye Bird is a sum of musical pieces that make a whole and give voice to echoes of what has been, the presence of what is and the hope of what will be, a record movement in the form of flight and salvation. Since 2015, Nina Garcia has been researching and creating around the electric guitar, halfway between improvised music and noise. On numerous stages in Europe and North America, she has played occasionally with Stephen O’Malley, Sophie Agnel, Fred Frith, Antoine Chessex, Louis Schild or with Luke Stewart and Leila Bordreuil’s Feedback Ensemble, in addition to more regular formations in which she participates, such as the ensemble Le Un, mamiedaragon, Autoreverse (with Arnaud Rivière), duets with trombonist Maria Bertel and percussionist Camille Émaille, and the installation piece De Haut En Bas, De Bas En Haut Et Latéralement (with Christophe Cardoen, Jennifer Caubet, Etienne Foyer, Anna Gaïotti and Romain Simon). “Nina Garcia has been actively moving the art of noise guitar into surprising and intriguing new spaces. She has been at it for some time now, a bit of a secret weapon all the while hiding in plain sight. As I listen to her music and ruminate upon seeing her perform it brings me to a realization which I have with very few musicians: the ego inherent in making art can be transcended through a purity of direct action. At least that’s the feeling I have when experiencing Nina’s music which comes across as serious and radical and wholly engaged in the moment of its creative impulse.

From day one, Linkin Park built the band upon the premise of fusing all of their favourite styles of music-as disparate as they might be-into one signature sound. Fast-forward 12 years to LIVING THINGS and the same six players have not only developed new tools to make that philosophy a reality, but they're finally comfortable embracing-and coalescing-every aspect of their career. OK, maybe not the XXL work shirts and neon hair dye of the early days. But in their music, the band has spent the past year reinventing how to tastefully bridge the gap between all the musical destinations they've visited, and how to marry all the ideas they've accumulated. And as LIVING THINGS began taking shape, for the first time Linkin Park was eager to use every tool in their toolbox. With each song, they flexed their expertise with both cutting-edge and classic gear, and they infused their vocals with an honest, thrilling enthusiasm; they picked apart their own ideas of what defines a song, and what defines Linkin Park. LIVING THINGS is a personal album, centered on human emotions and relationships implied by the title. It is informed by and built upon all previous Linkin Park albums, while still pushing the band's sound into new territory. It's spirited, energetic, daring and unafraid to hybridize the past, present and future. It's absolute proof to a radical theory six musicians have devoted their lives to testing.

Born and raised in Argentina, Morita Vargas is an experimental artist and producer based in Buenos Aires. She manipulates her voice through reverbs, delays and whispers, singing in a self-invented 'language'. The sound of Morita’s voice is a portal into her thriving, dreamlike world brimming, shimmering and beating with unrefined natural sensations which stimulate something primordial yet strangely contemporary.

As far back as 2014 she began work on her first productions - early sketches which later became the basis for ‘8’. It all started off as voice memos on her phone (recorded while roaming the streets and riding the trains of Greater Buenos Aires). Later on, Morita introduced various instruments into her vision: kalimba, harmonica, keyboard, flute, tambourine, chajchas, and cajón. Composed and performed from that period until its original release in 2018, ’8’ features 10 original voice-led compositions that in scope recall evocative portraits of synthesized landscapes and rainforests, attuned to a vibrant modern pulse and enchanting vocals. Morita Vargas “8” has achieved a kind of polyphonic soundscape which evokes unfamiliar realities through voyages within and between the realms of ambient and experimental music.

In numerology the number 8 symbolizes the transition between heaven and earth, the illumination of our infinite capacity for various metamorphoses. Tackling ideas of transformation, mutation, cyclical processes, death, creation, melancholy, and joy, the album you are holding is a monumental and deeply personal statement. You are invited to walk barefoot down the mystical path and indulge in the process of spiritual expulsion and renewal that is ‘8’. The path lies along the route of infinite meanings, somewhere on the border between dream and reality.

Unfettered by studio time limitations with their own home base of Echo Canyon, SYR 2 shows Sonic Youth chasing the shadows of predecessor SYR 1 and the series' distinct aesthetic: total exploration of freedom and further discovery. While the cover art evokes European contempo classical releases of yore, Sonic Youth distinctively reinvent their own personal output potential the way those kinds of records revolutionized a previously defined genre. Their ethos of utilizing the roots of the Ramones, Television, VU, Stooges, and No Wave to shape their first decade now find the band in later years bullet-pointing fascination in AMM, MEV, improvised music, free jazz and other outer-limit/organic refractions of traditional rock. While Sonic Youth's spontaneous-creation moments had long been showcased in their recordings, Peel Sessions, and live, SYR 2 sums up the band's state in 1997: rolling lots of tape, fine-tuning ideas and presenting great moments of exciting new directions, allowing deep-listener type fans to gain better insight into their sound process. Add to that the alchemy of Jim O'Rourke's gradual entry into the core band which would soon be fully on display for SYR 3, and this series is an X-ray of evolution, dissection and reconstruction.

George Clinton’s imagination knew no bounds and, defying normal music industry convention, by 1978 had five bands signed to three different record labels. One of these comprised of three Parliament / Funkadelic female backing singers working under the name of Parlet, whose debut single, ‘Pleasure Principle’ was released on Casablanca Records in March 1978.

It was Clinton’s idea that two other backing singers, Lynn Mabry and Dawn Silva, become the Brides Of Funkenstein, a character he invented for the 1976 Parliament LP, “The Clones Of Dr Funkenstein”. “I have to be honest – at first, I hated the name and I thought George was kidding,” Mabry told Blues & Soul, “But I have gotten to like it – especially just the Brides.”

Clinton got the Brides signed to Atlantic Records and their first single was ‘Disco To Go’ / ‘ When You’re Gone’. The A-side was written and produced by Clinton and Bootsy Collins and had originally featured in live shows by Collins’ live band. Clinton was asked by Black Echoes why the song was recorded by the Brides rather than Bootsy. “He could, and it would have been a smash too,” he replied. “But we thought it sounded too much like James Brown, so we gave it to the girls. Now it don’t sound like James Brown.” It certainly did not and this electronic bass and horn-powered banger – complete with an Old MacDonald nursery rhyme refrain – debuted on the Billboard Hot Soul Singles chart at #80 on 30th September 1978. By the time the P-Funk crew were flying across the Atlantic in early November it had peaked at #7. Sadly for UK fans, ‘Disco To Go’ was only available on import although a Black Echoes review stated it was a “Slow chunky handclapper. It sounds not unlike Funkadelic’s own ‘Coming Round The Mountain’”.

‘Disco To Go’, went gold in America selling over 500,000 copies. It was the perfect springboard for the Brides debut LP, “Funk Or Walk” which quickly climbed into the upper reaches of the R&B chart and even saw the duo embark upon a signing tour of record stores. All of the songs on “Funk Or Walk” were written by legends of P-Funk, such as Bootsy Collins, Rodney Curtis, Bernie Worrell, Gary Shider and Clinton. “George has got thousands of tracks,” Mabry told Black Echoes. “When we go into the studio he says, ‘Like this one?

The last great African rock LP from Nigeria's post civil war underground. Be Nice to the People was recorded in 1977 by Fela producer Odion Iruoje as he chased the runaway success of high school band Ofege. The Western world was in the throes of peace, love and flower power as Nigeria descended into civil war in 1967. The rock scene that developed during the following three years of bloodshed and destruction would come to heal the country, propagate the world-wide ideal of the modern Nigerian, and propel Fela to stardom after the conflict ended in 1970. The members of Question Mark were children when the Nigerian civil war ended and by the time they recorded their only album in 1977 they were college students, chasing rock n' roll dreams as Afro-beat turned to Afro-disco. Theirs is a fiery reminder of a once vibrant scene

DIA ist das zweite Album der in Kolumbien geborenen und in New York lebenden Elektronik-Pionierin nach ihrem Debüt ACTS OF REBELLION (2020). Wo sich Acts of Rebellion noch bewusst klein anfühlte, wie ein Club mit spätnächtlichen Träumereien, ist DIA sowohl introspektiv als auch expansiv, die Ausdehnung der Songs offenbart mehr von Minus als Person und Produzentin und setzt Elas persönliche Reise in einer Ausdehnung von elektronischem Sound und Gesang fort.




d A4 IDK




d A4 IDK

DIA ist das zweite Album der in Kolumbien geborenen und in New York lebenden Elektronik-Pionierin nach ihrem Debüt ACTS OF REBELLION (2020). Wo sich Acts of Rebellion noch bewusst klein anfühlte, wie ein Club mit spätnächtlichen Träumereien, ist DIA sowohl introspektiv als auch expansiv, die Ausdehnung der Songs offenbart mehr von Minus als Person und Produzentin und setzt Elas persönliche Reise in einer Ausdehnung von elektronischem Sound und Gesang fort.




d A4 IDK

Super sweet sleepover core from the turn of the millennium. When not at the mall or elementary school, Jessica, Ayden, Janet, and Mary created a suburban Spice World all their own, singing, dancing, and making videos in anticipation of a global pop takeover. Summer 2000 expands their home-burned Y2K CD-R Stardust, encapsulating girl group R&B, trip hop, Eurofunk, and pool party heartbreak into a revealing portrait of millennial girlhood. Party til 2, sleep til 1, come on baby let's have some fun.

Diese neue (!) Compilation vereint klassische Radiosessions der TVPs, den Meistern des DIY-Post-Punk und Indie-Pop. Die Doppel-LP enthält zwei BBC-Sessions aus den 80er Jahren, die bei John Peel und Andy Kershaw aufgenommen und ausgestrahlt wurden, sowie ein sehr rares WMBR-Set von 1992 mit Coversongs von Buzzcocks, Raincoats und Daniel Johnston sowie bisher unveröffentlichten Songs (und als digitaler Bonus die WFMU-Session von 1993). "Catchy hooks and schoolboy wit are in abundant supply." Pitchfork Die großartigen DIY-Fähigkeiten der Television Personalities und ihr liebenswertes, klappriges Auftreten haben sie auf so manchen subversiven Trip geführt, sowohl auf Platte als auch bei Live-Auftritten. Aber es war das Radio, das sie zum ersten Mal der Welt vorstellte, in einem Wirbelsturm wiederholter Airplays. John Peel ließ Außenstehende überall in TVPs alternative Welt eintauchen. Und auf dem Höhepunkt des Punk parodierten sie bereits die neue Revolution, ihre Single ,Part Time Punks" wurde zu einem Peel-Hit, und die Nachfrage nach weiteren Songs führte schließlich zu einer Session im Jahr 1980. In den 80er Jahren war Daniel Treacy so zu einem begnadeten Geschichtenerzähler gereift, der die moderne Welt aus seinen eigenen, verschwommenen Blickwinkel beschrieb. Seine Songs waren liebenswert, sofort identifizierbar und witzig, klare, scharfe Beobachtungen von oft magischer Tiefe. Treacy wurde zu einer Inspiration und unverzichtbaren Alternative des üblichen (auf der Insel nicht soo schlechten) Radioprogrammes, eines Mediums, das die TVPs zum Ende der 80er Jahre so gut wie aufgegeben hatte. "Tune In, Turn On, Drop Out" fängt den Weg dieses Pilgers ins Pop-Nirvana ein, ein psychedelisches Wunderland, das von dunklen und grüblerischen Momenten gezeichnet ist. Gehört wie durch ein knisterndes, Vintage-Transistorradio, welches vielleicht sogar unter dem Kopfkissen versteckt ist, so dass diese Skizzierungen der Gesellschaft ganz nah und intim Daniel Treacy's Psyche zeigen. Limitierte Doppel-LP, klassisch schwarzes Vinyl, Linernotes, gratis DLC mit Bonustracks!

For the hotly anticipated third release on her critically acclaimed new record label Uppers and Downers, Dr. Rubinstein has tapped one of her favorite producers--Yerevan's Dave N.A.--to take the helm and deliver a smart and stunning rave EP pitched at the intersection of acid and jungle. A prolific producer, adventurous DJ, and co-founder of the ABC Community, Yerevan's collective hub for amplifying breakbeat,jungle, and drum & bass sounds in the Armenian rave community, Dave N.A. is no stranger to Uppers and Downers, just having contributed a vivacious, jungle influenced reinterpretation of Rubi's track "Extacid" to the label's second release, Rubi's Acid Spa Remixes. For the past decade, Dave N.A.'s productions have reliably offered a fresh, frenetic yet finely tuned take on classic rave genres and their acid-drenched antics while exploring the cutting edge of international experimental bass and hard rave idioms. 'XLSoundwaves' proves to be no exception, taking listeners on a boisterous yet atmospheric, tight yet sprawling sonic journey that combines acid, jungle, hard trance, breakbeat, and IDM influences amid a striking wash of captivating, high-definition ambient studio sound design.
'XL Soundwaves' kicks off with "BFLY," an expansive track that features tunneling hard trance 303 lines deftly weaving through bouncy jungle breaks at a sprightly 165, all emerging from and ultimately fading back into an ethereal plenitude of ambient pads punctuated by a soulful, resonant vocal refrain. Next up, "Radiance" offers an infectiously groovy, sidewinding jaunt through cheeky acid breaks that evolves into a crescendo of lush, eyes-to-the-sky ecstasy. "XL," the EP's third offering, brings the heat with fat basslines, frequent turntablist rave licks, and a freaky sense of humor, almost cinematically projected onto a vast horizon of sumptuous strings. The EP comes to closewith "A.I.R.," a thoughtful banger with a mischievous IDM sensibility that sets acid jungle adrift on an ocean of shimmering orchestral sampladelia and ambient synth radiance.
To some, Dave N.A.'s acid jungle opus might seem like an unexpected plot twist in thecuratorial trajectory of Uppers and Downers. Much to the contrary however, the 'XL Soundwaves EP' is a perfect early release, helping to establish the mission of Uppersand Downers as continuing the search across diverse international rave genres, traditions, and communities for producers and productions that resonate with Dr.Rubinstein's lifelong pursuit of soundtracking her ideal rave: one that offers ravers access to an ecstatic, joyful, affirmative, and inclusive sense of home, of feeling at homewith both oneself and one another through the music.

Come Ahead ist das 12. Album von Primal Scream. 11 neue Songs, mit denen Bobby Gillespie sich darauf
vorbereitet, einige der persönlichsten Songs der Bandkarriere zu veröffentlichen.
Der Songwriting-Prozess für Come Ahead begann 2019. Zu diesem Zeitpunkt hatte Bobby Gillespie noch
keine Ahnung, ob er noch einmal ein Album von Primal Scream machen würde. Zum ersten Mal kamen
die Texte vor der Musik. Die Geschichte kam zuerst. Bobby schrieb allein, mit einer Akustikgitarre. Die
Ideen flossen schnell, in langen Inspirationsschüben. Dieser Prozess, zusammen mit der Ermutigung durch
Produzent David Holmes, bot einen neuen Einstieg. In Zusammenarbeit mit Holmes und Primal ScreamGitarrist Andrew Innes wurden die Come Ahead-Sessions in Belfast, London und Los Angeles durchgeführt.
„Ich bin sehr aufgeregt über dieses Album, so als würde man seine erste Platte machen. Wenn es ein
Gesamtthema für Come Ahead gäbe, wäre es vielleicht ein Konflikt, ob innerlich oder äußerlich. Der Titel
ist ein Begriff aus Glasgow. Wenn jemand droht, mit dir zu kämpfen, sagst du: ‚Komm schon!‘ Es erinnert
an den unbezwingbaren Geist der Glasgower, und das Album selbst vermittelt diese aggressive Haltung und
Zuversicht. Sie haben da oben ein Wort dafür: gallus. ‚Come Ahead‘ ist auch ein ziemlich frecher Titel.“
Bobby Gillespie

Sub Pop and Pissed Jeans mark 15 years of King of Jeans, Pissed Jeans' thunderous third album, with a fresh clear-vinyl pressing, limited to 1,000 copies. If 2005's Shallow was Pissed Jeans coping with moving out of their parents' homes, and 2007's Hope for Men their initial reaction to the mechanical lifestyle of a wage-earner, King of Jeans is their formal and uneasy acceptance of adulthood, by way of one hell of a rock record. Working with renowned producer Alex Newport (who holds a Fudge Tunnel pedigree and has worked with such luminaries as At the Drive-In, The Locust and Sepultura), Pissed Jeans have pushed further into the raw, minimal core of heavy rock music with King of Jeans. Masters of the mundane, beasts of the banal, high priests of the humdrum: these four, white, male high school graduates hardly look further than their own appendages for artistic inspiration, content to execute their own brand of brash and heavy punk music in the Joe Carducci-approved standard rock formation of guitar, bass, drums and vocals. From simple minds and simple fabrics comes this King of Jeans. And there can be only one.

WRWTFWW Records is delighted to announce the first official worldwide reissue of Satsuki Shibano’s Wave Notation 3: Erik Satie 1984, the final album from the sound-defining Wave Notation environmental music series curated by Satoshi Ashikawa. Originally released in 1984 on the Sound Process label, Wave Notation 3 followed Ashikawa’s own Still Way (1982) and Hiroshi Yoshimura's Music For Nine Postcards (1982).

The highly sought-after album, sourced from the original master tape, is available as a double LP (housed in a luxurious heavyweight sleeve) for the first time ever. Digipack CD and digital formats are also available. This exclusive reissue, including English and Japanese liner notes by the artist, was supervised by Japanese ambient legend Yoshio Ojima.

Wave Notation 3 is a splendid tribute to seminal French composer and pianist Erik Satie, himself one of the main influences behind kankyo ongaku / environmental music (alongside Brian Eno, John Cage to name a few). The alphabetically-sequenced album features 26 pieces showcasing Shibano's unique piano interpretation of Satie’s works.

The artist explains: « For this album, I sequenced the compositions in alphabetical order of each title, irrespective of the period of each composition or style. By doing this, I attempted to effectively create ‘Music as an environment’ and at the same time, allow the listener to genuinely experience Satie’s music. »

Satsuko Shibano’s minimalistic approach to ambient classical is simply perfect and offers a beautiful and tranquil listening experience, furniture music with extra comfort and soothing simplicity, relaxing to the mind and to the soul. This Wave Notation deserves a spot among the pillars of Japanese environmental music, next to Midori Takada’s Through The Looking Glass, Hiroshi Yoshimura’s Green, and Satoshi Ashikawa’s Still Way.

Lungu Boy is the third studio album from global superstar and Nigerian singer/songwriter, Asake. The album promises to captivate fans with its vibrant rhythms, soulful melodies, and poignant lyrics that reflect Asake's unique artistry and cultural roots. Lungo Boy showcases Asake's signature blend of Afrobeats, Amapiano, hip-hop, and highlife, creating a rich tapestry of sound that is both innovative and deeply rooted in African musical traditions. Each track on the album tells a story, weaving personal experiences with universal themes of love, struggle, and triumph. The album features collaborations with some of the biggest names in the music industry, like Travis Scott, WizKid, Central Cee, Stormzy, and LUDMILLA – adding exciting dynamics to Asake's already impressive sound.

Produced by a team of top-notch producers, Lungo Boy is a testament to Asake's commitment to quality and his relentless pursuit of musical excellence. The album also narrates the transition of Asake growing up on the streets of Lagos to becoming a global icon and living life in urban cities around the world. It identifies with the sights and sounds of Lagos (Eko, Lagos Island, Idumota Street), London (Hackney, Shoreditch, Brixton, Peckham), and New York (Brooklyn, Harlem).

"One Grass Skirt To London" ist eine Reise über 8.200 Kilometer, von Malawi nach London, wohin Malia als Jugendliche auswanderte. Eine nusikalische, geografi sche als auch zeitliche Reise. Doch vor allem ist es eine sentimentale Reise, da die 14 sorgfältig ausgewählten Songs auf diesem Album von einem unschätzbaren persönlichen Wert sind. Fast alle Cover stammen aus Filmsoundtracks, von "Everybody's Talkin' " aus "Midnight Cowboy" bis "Take My Breath Away" aus "Top Gun", von "Pure Imagination" aus "Charlie und die Schokoladenfabrik" bis "Here on My Own" aus "Fame". Jeder dieser Songs hat die einzigartige Fähigkeit, durch die Musik und die von ihm hervorgerufenen Bilder, eine Emotion wiederherzustellen, die Malias eigene Identität geprägt hat. Malia gelingt es, einige der schönsten Themen der Filmgeschichte neu zu interpretieren und dieses Album zu dem wohl persönlichsten ihrer Diskographie zu machen.

The Leaves’ sophomore album weaves blues, folk and garage together through kaleidoscopic shards of psychedelia to bring listeners All The Good That’s Happening. On translucent chlorophyll green vinyl! Fired by youthful exuberance and a well-rounded repertoire of musical fashions, The Leaves, by all rights, should have turned into major stars. Despite the fact the band’s second and final album, “All The Good That’s Happening,” parented no winning singles and isn’t quite as potent as the first disc, the platter remains terribly underappreciated. Tracks such as the moody stupor of “On The Plane” and the ping-pong pulsations of “Lemmon Princess,” which carries a chaotic circus-like air, are decorated in psychedelic decals, while “Twilight Sanctuary” features some hard-driving harmonica blowing chained tight against giddy blues rock jamming.

The band’s blues influences additionally prevail on honest recyclings of Jimmy Reed’s raspy-throated “Let’s Get Together” and Buffy Sainte-Marie’s candidly cryptic “Codine,” along with “Flashback (The Rhythm Thing),” a retooling of John Lee Hooker’s “Crawling King Snake” that morphs into an intense boogie woogie instrumental. A copy of Manfred Mann’s “The One In The Middle” weighs in as another blues based item, and “To Try For The Sun” is a stark and haunting folk ballad. Snapping guitars, compounded by strong and solid harmonies give the album a strutting garage rock edge, where smatterings of offbeat arrangements and curious effects zone in on the freakier side of The Leaves. To call the album trailblazing would be stretching the truth, but there are enough amusing and exciting ideas to keep listeners awake and interested. Personnel issues, paired with lack of promotion prevented “All The Good That’s Happening” to be heard, resulting in the end of a band that died on the vine (pun intended) way too soon.