Suche:imp

What happens when the mathematical rigor of Johann Sebastian Bach is stripped of its classical facade? With the album SRDNG x LPZG, the duo AMAS, together with double bassist Frithjof-Martin Grabner, delivers a radical answer on May 15th, 2026. The work does not merely translate Bach’s legacy; it consistently reimagines it within the aesthetics of Minimal, Dub-Techno, and Ambient. The creation of this extraordinary abstraction spanned three years and two geographical poles: the raw isolation of Sardinia and the academic precision of Leipzig.

The project found its origin in the seclusion of Pula, at the southernmost tip of Sardinia. There, AMAS extracted and digitally dissected the rhythmic and tonal essence of 14 selected works by Bach. In a temporary local studio, these minimalist sequences fused with field recordings of the surroundings to form a hypnotic framework of electronic structures. Back in Leipzig, this foundation met Frithjof-Martin Grabner. In an intense session held in a hall of the historic HMT Leipzig, spontaneous improvisations emerged that breathe the spirit of Miles Davis’ approach to "Ascenseur pour l’échafaud": free play based on rudimentary sketches, an intuitive reaction to the material—comparable to Davis’ iconic scoring of silent film images. It is a deliberate prioritization of atmosphere over technical perfection. Grabner utilizes the full spectrum of his instrument, creating sounds that, in post-production, often blur the line between analog depth and synthetic texture.

The result is an organic symbiosis: the vastness of Sardinia (SRDNG) meets the intellectual density of Leipzig (LPZG), while the strictness of the Baroque dissolves into the repetitive energy of Minimal Techno. To do justice to this conceptual ambition, the album will be released in an uncompromisingly audiophile edition. Limited to 200 copies worldwide, the double LP is pressed on 180g vinyl and features a front cover with a special 3D effect, continuing the visual tradition of the AMAS series. An album for listeners who understand Bach as a living origin of modern sound art—and for lovers of electronic music seeking a new, organic soul within the repetitive depth of techno.

2026 Repress

TWR72 presents ID3AS - four highly effective and distilled tools, stripped raw for maximum impact.

DINTE present a 14-track tape pulling together rural Greek demotika recordings from the late 1930s to the mid-1950s. Soaring pentatonic improvisations, odd-metered rhythms, and vocal performances oscillate between heartbreaking laments and ecstatic celebrations.

Artwork adapted from Edward Lear's Agia Paraskevi, Epirus, Greece (1857)

There are two versions of this album:

1. numbered 100 copies of limited black 180g vinyl made in collaboration with U JAZZ ME Records

2. transparent orange 180g vinyl

LINER NOTES:

" When AJ Lee stepped back into the ring in September 2025 - after a ten-year break - she introduced herself to a new generation of fans with the words: 'If you haven't heard of me, I am your favorite wrestler’s favorite wrestler.' That is exactly what came to my mind as a lead for this blurb when Pokusa asked me to write it. Because that’s what they are: your favorite indie darlings' favorite indie darlings (even though no one uses that term anymore, let alone identifies as such). They are your favorite cool jazzcats’ favorite jazzcats. And they are probably your favorite young jazz act - if you don’t usually (or ever) listen to jazz.

This, I always thought, is their greatest strength. Half the battle (in my eyes) is recording a sick jazz album - one that a jazz magazine would fawn over. The real win is getting someone wearing a heavy metal T-shirt into it; someone who’s never listened to jazz and has never stepped foot in a place like Pardon, To Tu, but heard Pokusa and decided to change that. I am such a person. I didn't learn about jazz because of them, but they’re definitely the reason I started rating it.
Głowy (Heads) is, in a way, a classic album. If someone played it for me and - relying on my lack of knowledge and gullibility - tried to convince me that it was recorded in the Polish Radio Studios in 1975, at Akwarium Club in Warsaw in 1985, at Club Rura in 1989, somewhere in Tri-City in '94, or at Mózg in Bydgoszcz, I would probably believe it. Its 'classicness' goes hand in hand with its timelessness. I could write about how the album fits into the catalogs of Lado ABC, GOWI, or Biodro Records. I could dig for connections to Yass, Tzadik, or a number of other things.
But what Teo, Natan, and Tymek create here is as important in its experience as it is in its music. For me - an artist active in a similar time - each Pokusa album, including this newest release, is a record of a period of time and the experiences hidden between the notes. The Indian spices in food served before a show in Mózg. A headache from all the cigarettes smoked listening to tapes in Eufemia. Marveling at the graffiti over the sink in Młodsza Siostra. The narrow steps at Chłodna 25. The wider but slippery steps to Pogłos. The quirky and uncomfortable steps in Ziemia. The mosquitoes at Ladomek. The dilemma of whether to wear a nice polo instead of a T-shirt to SPATiF. The wonder of turning off Monciak into Dwie Zmiany. Why is a club like this on such a strip? Why is Pokusa playing here? And why do they sound so good?
On one hand, you can find journalists writing that Pokusa grew out of the classic free jazz of the 1960s; some might mention Albert Ayler. On the other hand, there’s Unsound Festival and young critics writing about 'post-jazz.' All of them are correct. This is universalism. This is that timelessness. Whether you pick up this album the day it comes out or in the year 2046, it will be good. In twenty years, people will still reach for it. Of that, I am certain."
Michał Turowski

There are two versions of this album:

1. numbered 100 copies of limited black 180g vinyl made in collaboration with U JAZZ ME Records

2. transparent orange 180g vinyl

LINER NOTES:

" When AJ Lee stepped back into the ring in September 2025 - after a ten-year break - she introduced herself to a new generation of fans with the words: 'If you haven't heard of me, I am your favorite wrestler’s favorite wrestler.' That is exactly what came to my mind as a lead for this blurb when Pokusa asked me to write it. Because that’s what they are: your favorite indie darlings' favorite indie darlings (even though no one uses that term anymore, let alone identifies as such). They are your favorite cool jazzcats’ favorite jazzcats. And they are probably your favorite young jazz act - if you don’t usually (or ever) listen to jazz.

This, I always thought, is their greatest strength. Half the battle (in my eyes) is recording a sick jazz album - one that a jazz magazine would fawn over. The real win is getting someone wearing a heavy metal T-shirt into it; someone who’s never listened to jazz and has never stepped foot in a place like Pardon, To Tu, but heard Pokusa and decided to change that. I am such a person. I didn't learn about jazz because of them, but they’re definitely the reason I started rating it.
Głowy (Heads) is, in a way, a classic album. If someone played it for me and - relying on my lack of knowledge and gullibility - tried to convince me that it was recorded in the Polish Radio Studios in 1975, at Akwarium Club in Warsaw in 1985, at Club Rura in 1989, somewhere in Tri-City in '94, or at Mózg in Bydgoszcz, I would probably believe it. Its 'classicness' goes hand in hand with its timelessness. I could write about how the album fits into the catalogs of Lado ABC, GOWI, or Biodro Records. I could dig for connections to Yass, Tzadik, or a number of other things.
But what Teo, Natan, and Tymek create here is as important in its experience as it is in its music. For me - an artist active in a similar time - each Pokusa album, including this newest release, is a record of a period of time and the experiences hidden between the notes. The Indian spices in food served before a show in Mózg. A headache from all the cigarettes smoked listening to tapes in Eufemia. Marveling at the graffiti over the sink in Młodsza Siostra. The narrow steps at Chłodna 25. The wider but slippery steps to Pogłos. The quirky and uncomfortable steps in Ziemia. The mosquitoes at Ladomek. The dilemma of whether to wear a nice polo instead of a T-shirt to SPATiF. The wonder of turning off Monciak into Dwie Zmiany. Why is a club like this on such a strip? Why is Pokusa playing here? And why do they sound so good?
On one hand, you can find journalists writing that Pokusa grew out of the classic free jazz of the 1960s; some might mention Albert Ayler. On the other hand, there’s Unsound Festival and young critics writing about 'post-jazz.' All of them are correct. This is universalism. This is that timelessness. Whether you pick up this album the day it comes out or in the year 2046, it will be good. In twenty years, people will still reach for it. Of that, I am certain."
Michał Turowski

PPP: a whirlwind new link-up between contemporary club heartthrobs Piezo, DJ Plead and DJ Python. A trio of the best in the game come together for a new collaborative project on Facta and K-LONE’s Wisdom Teeth imprint.

The project was recorded gradually over a two year period at Piezo’s studio in Milan. Initial sketches were written when Python came to stay for a few days in late 2023. Later, when Plead travelled through the city, he stopped by to add his own contributions - and the record grew incrementally and organically from there across multiple visits.

The initial MO was to workshop a warped take on early 00s minimal and tech house - but at a certain point the record took on a life and soul of its own, spreading out in a number of disparate yet interconnected creative directions: from the peak-time euphoria/melancholia of ‘Wisco’ through to the shoegazed minimal of ‘Plz’, via proggy psychedelia (‘Bborn Again’), glitched Perlon reconstructions (‘Pez’) and downbeat downtempo (‘Coni’).

At points you can clearly hear their individual voices break through: be it Python’s whale-song melodies on ‘Coni’, Plead’s frenetic hand drums on ‘Wisco’, or Piezo’s sound-design freakouts on ‘Pez’. At other points the joins are harder to find as the record takes on a unique voice far beyond the sum of its parts.

A deeply hypnotic and beautifully crafted statement from one of the true masters of subtle groove and atmosphere. Playedby‘s label boss himself, returns to his very own imprint Tripsi Records with a stunning new vinyl release. Pure hypnotic brilliance, essential for selectors, collectors, and lovers of deeply crafted electronic music.
Tripsi Records is more than just a label. It is an audio-visual world created by Cristi Klebleev, where sound and image come from the same hand. Every release features only his own music, accompanied by original artworks painted by Cristi himself on canvas, making each record a fully personal expression, both sonically and visually. A perfect example of why Tripsi Records continues to stand out in a crowded world. Finest mastering and Cut, 180g Vinyl!

Terry Francis stands as one of the original architects of acid tech house, a genuine pioneer whose influence shaped the sound and spirit of London’s underground scene in the 90s. From the seminal projects with Housey Doingz to his enduring tenure as a core resident at fabric, Terry has remained a constant and uncompromising force at the heart of the scene.

His contribution is impossible to overstate. Across three decades, Terry’s unmistakable sound, forward thinking approach and steadfast dedication have inspired artists across the globe. His work helped define an era and continues to resonate today.

Following a widely acclaimed run of reissues from the golden age of the early 2000s London underground, where the label was born, Sushitech Records now joins forces with Terry for a landmark moment, his first Sushitech LP, featuring various tracks from over the years alongside unreleased session recorded at Strange Weather Studios in 1999.

This special collection brings together eleven tracks, officially remastered from the original tapes and source material for the very first time. These are timeless productions, restored to reveal new depth, clarity and detail while preserving the raw energy that made them so vital and sought after, pressed on 180g vinyl. The release also features standout collaborations with Ricardo Afonso, Gideon Jackson and Haris, further cementing its status as an essential document of an era. A landmark collection, restored with precision and reintroduced in its fullest form.

A dynamic DJ and producer, the Galway-born, Berlin-based artist is driven by mood not genre, gleefully scribbling outside the lines to craft rhythmic, high-vibration dancefloor cuts that make them a delicious match for the Chunkers. Just reference their pin-sharp releases on Radiant, Punctuality, Planet Euphorique and their own World of Worlds imprint. While anyone who’s caught their throwdowns at Draaimolen’s legendary forest stage, Horst Festival or London’s infamous queer party Club Are already knows what’s up.

Their contribution to the BSC catalogue is bang on. Lead cut ‘Track Like’ is a straight-up Chunker. Beginning life as an instrumental, it’s a pumping house cut marked by a grooving bassline, tight drums and a contained ravey energy, before Eoin DJ added that vocal that took the production into peak-time party territory.

A producer who requires no introduction – Jennifer Loveless join the Chunkers fold with a full-bodied remix of ‘Track Like’. Lock in for a funky maximal re-rub with the attitude turned up to 11. Back in Eoin DJ’s corner, the crisp ‘n’ punchy ‘Pure U’ is driven by fat kick drums, euphoric chords and a chunky rolling bassline. Exquisite stuff. A tight Dub version is included in the pack. The EP rounds out with the perky ‘Feel Deeper’, which channels ‘90s New York house and circuit sounds and is built around a hooky vocal line and rhythmic drums.

Eoin DJ follows BELLA, Eliza Rose, Papa Nugs, Paperkraft and remixes Peach and CARISTA in joining the Big Saldo’s Chunkers family as Sally C delights in growing the label via a carefully curated roster of artists.

“I loved the label already, so I was super stoked when Sally asked me to do a release. Chunkers is always

so on-point and consistent with its output. All of the releases are certified party starters – fat basslines, catchy vocals, full of energy and tuned to perfection to hit on the soundsystem. I used that as a jumping off point when making the EP. You could say it’s Chunkers – Eoin DJ style.” – Eoin DJ

“I was hooked on Eoin’s sound since they released ‘Ode to Beachball’ in 2024 on Punctuality Records. I love their ability to weave emotion and groove so seamlessly. It’s been a pleasure working on this EP – I’ve been endlessly rinsing all of the tracks. Such a great producer!” – Sally C

PURE GARAGE RETURNS WITH A CAREFULLY CURATED SELECTION OF COLLECTIBLE CLASSICS.

Pure Garage, the best-selling UKG compilation of all time, returns with a fresh stack of high value collectible classics on DJ friendly vinyl.

With a host of gold & platinum selling compilation albums under it’s belt, plus countless sold out events across the UK, Pure Garage is known and trusted by both hard-nosed purists & the casual listener.

This latest foray coincides with an incredible resurgence in interest for the UK Garage sound, bringing together 8 high collectible infectiously funky cuts, spread across a DJ Friendly 2 slices of vinyl.

Pure Garage Collectible Classics Volume 1 opens with Buggin Me by garage pioneer Zed Bias alongside Al Brown, a groovy bassline, funky beats and a great vocal hook combine perfectly to showcase the mighty Zed Bias at his funky best.

Set It Off, by Chris Mack / Flavour, is a truly collectible record. Originally only available on vinyl as a limited white label press, copies of Set It Off have been trading hands on sites such as Discogs for as much as £130… It’s worth buying this compilation purely to get hold of this track on vinyl!

Another track that is going for big money on reseller sites is Romantic 2001 by DJ Deller. With this minimal 2 step riddim having sold for up to £120. This is definitely one for the collectors.

Funkaholics aka Jeremy Sylvester rounds off the first piece of vinyl on this album with the bass heavy Down 2 Da Ground.

Vinyl 2 kicks off with the sing-a-long classic from 1998, Anthill Mobs’s track Don’t Leave Me, followed hotly by the speed garage sounds of Body Grooving by M.F. Project.

Finally, Deep Impact drops My Fantasy followed up with a regular name of the Pure Garage live event line ups, Scott Garcia drops his soulful club classic Music Takes You, rounding out an impressive batch of tracks representing everything exciting about the UK Garage genre.

PURE GARAGE COLLECTIBLE CLASSICS VOL 1 will be released on double vinyl 16th December 2022!

A few words for the album
Moment’s Aeternity:
a 12/8 composition celebrating the raw power of the “moment”, marked by whirling improvised moments between drums, bass clarinet and Harris P’s Armenian duduk.

Pajko, fire in the forest on the mountain:
in Sokratis own words: “I have a really vivid memory as a child. I was staring at the Djena mountain from my window in Archangellos which sits on the Pajko mountain. A little beam of light shone far in the horizon; it was a fire that in my little eyes looked as if the giants of Almopia were trying to communicate with each other using phryktoria (a way of contacting through fire in Ancient Greece).”

Footprints of some Giant Steps:
While the classic compositions of two true Jazz Giants- Wayne Shorter and John Coltrane- are certainly different, they do both connect in a mystical way. Rearranged in 5/8 combining half of each melody and half of each one’s chord progression, keeping the form of the piece for improvisation, still in 5.

Oson Zeis Fainou (Seikilo’s Epitaph):
found in a tomb stone in the Northeast of Greece, this is the only melody saved from the ancient times. It is accompanied by lyrics contemplating the meaning of life:
Ὅσον ζῇς φαίνου
μηδὲν ὅλως σὺ λυποῦ πρὸς ὀλίγον ἐστὶ τὸ ζῆν τὸ τέλος ὁ xρόνος ἀπαιτεῖ.
‘’While you live, shine
don’t feel blue for anything because our life is short and time demands an end.’’

Here is to Oghene K:
’’Hey man, where is the groove?’’, he would say, just to trigger another wave of inspiration for Sokratis. Oghene was a true force of nature, a well of kindness, a masterful artist that left this world too early. This one is for him.

Balkan Riff (for Milcho Leviev):
Milcho Leviev (1936-2019), was a long-time friend and collaborator and a true inspiration for expression, creativity and colorfulness. Expressing the deep sentiments evoked by the Balkan sound and history, this is a sorrowful dialogue between bass clarinet and contrabass.

Spirits of Djena:
one of the most esoteric and personal moments of the album. Composed and recorded during the challenging times of the COVID-era, you can hear the baritone and tenor saxophone firmly grounded on a crispy, hypnotizing contrabass groove.

Sokratis Votskos Quartet
Kostas Anastasiadis / Giorgos Klountzos - Chrysidis: Drums
Leandros Pasias: Piano
Vaggelis Vrachnos: Contrabass
Sokratis Votskos: Soprano Saxophone, Bass Clarinet and Compositions


Sokratis Votskos is a jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, composer, educator, and bandleader from Greece. Deeply invested in unearthing the folk sounds and heritage music of Greece and Eastern Europe, he weaves these into modern jazz compositions though the use of melodies, polyrhythms, and his reedy, timeless tone. He leads the Sokratis Votskos Quartet, he is one half of Kolida Babo and member of the Reggetiko Project. A highly regarded sideman and ensemble player, he has worked extensively with renowned jazz musicians with several highly acclaimed releases (MiC, Jazzman, Walt Disney and now Fair Weather Friends Records).

He has performed his music in numerous venues and festivals worldwide from Vinterjazz in Copenhagen, to the EFG London Jazz Festival where he performed at the legendary Ronnie Scott’s alongside Greg Foat.

He is also an archaeoacoustics researcher and enthusiast, having completed his Master studies on the field of ancient ritualistic caves of Greece research.

Leandros Pasias was born in Thessaloniki, Greece. At age 10 was introduced to piano, continuing his studies at the Modern Conservatory of Thessaloniki and later at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam in the department of jazz piano.Ηe holds a classical harmony diploma and a BA at the Department of Music Studies at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. In 2020 he received jazz improvisation lessons from Aaron Parks.

With a series of appearances in multiple international jazz festivals, Leandros has collaborated with a wide range of musicians from Nicolas Masson and James Wylie to Marina Osk, Ivo Papasov and Haris Lambrakis, among others.

A member of the Yako Trio, he released “OdesSea” on Fair Weather Friends Records (2021).

Vangelis Vrachnos was born in Thessaloniki, Greece, in 1989. While he started playing the bass at the age of 12, alongside his brother, his studies would commence a few years later. Introduced to double bass at the age of 23, he undertook jazz double bass studies at the Codarts Αcademy of Rotterdam. He has participated in several festivals such as the Technopolis and Odessa international jazz festivals. Since returning to his hometown, in 2015, he has been a founding member of Mordana and Yako Trio and has collaborated with a series of musicians like James Wyllie, Sokrates Votskos and Dimitis Agelakis, among others.

Kostas Anastasiadis is a tireless researcher, that has been diligently studying Tradition and its evolution, creating a fresh amalgam of sound moods. His mature improvisational virtuosity highlights a uniquely individual artistic expression and was recognized with the ̈Unique Individual Stylist" award by the PIT (Percussion Institute of Technology) in Los Angeles, California. He has been associated with various ensembles that have garnered significant interest in the global music scene. As an educator, he is the founder of "The Harmony of Rhythm" musical method, which aims to explore and establish the elements that constitute the concept of rhythm.

Giorgos Klountzos-Chrysidis was born in Thessaloniki in 1991. Following studies at the Modern Conservatory of Thessaloniki, he moved to France and the Conservatoire de Nice. With performances at well-known festivals like Nice Jazz Festival, Nuits du Sud and Jazz à Vienne, he had the opportunity to meet the American drummer Leon Parker, who encouraged him to move to Paris, where he spent the next two years under his tutoring and guidance.

In 2016, came a defining moment in his career as he traveled to New York for the first time. He participated in the quartet of saxophonist Diego Rivera for a series of performances and attended lessons by Rodney Whitaker and Randy "Uncle G" Gelispie at Michigan's State University.

Collaborations include Xavier Davis, Ricky Ford, Nicolas Masson, Diego Rivera, Craig Bailey, Baptiste Herbin, Marc Abrams, Pantelis Stoikos, Antonis Anissegos, David Lynch, Ziad Rajab and Ivo Papasov, among others.

“Onomatopeikoa II” follows on from Irazoki's 2017 Gitarra Onomatopeikoa release, and that album's sense of untethered, questing curiosity is not only carried over but expanded upon even further here. Combining a fully committed approach to the guitar with an almost egoless lightness of touch, this album builds upon the already impressively scopious range of Gitarra Onomatopeikoa to dizzying effect.

Irazoki makes full use of an impressively broad palette. Yet nothing feels forced, nothing is for show – there’s just a sense of open-hearted generosity.

In lesser hands such a whirlwind tour of style and form might risk failing to get its hooks in deep enough, yet not only does Irazoki have the imaginative scope to tackle these varying approaches to the instrument, he has the technical chops to pull it off. Each composition seems to have an openness of intent that is utterly disarming; all cards are on the table and nothing is held back, resulting in a creative tour de force that builds, piece by piece, to a unifying cohesiveness that makes the whole far greater than the sum of its parts.

Featuring contributions from long-time OTO favourites Rhodri Davies and Raphael Roginski,

“Onomatopeikoa II” is nevertheless unmistakably a work of singular craft and vision.

FFO: Jeff Parker, Loren Connors, Keiji Haino

Limited edition vinyl of 250 copies

presented by Hegoa with a cover designed by Pablo Mirón.

Born and raised in the birthplace of House Music, Paul Johnson was known for his raw, soulful, and infectious sound, that helped shape Chicago's house scene and inspired generations of DJs worldwide in particular he was a massive inspiration to Daft Punk and the 'French Touch' scene.
Releasing a vast amount of music throughout the 1990s for some of the most consistently underground dance labels including legendary Chicago imprints Cajual, Relief and Dance Mania he finally gained global fame with his 1999 hit “Get Get Down,” a dancefloor anthem that topped charts across Europe. Despite facing physical challenges, including losing both legs in accidents, he remained an unstoppable force in music—touring, producing, and uplifting others with his resilient spirit and signature groove.
Re-pressed for our 35th anniversary, Paul Johnson’s classic 1995 debut album on Peacefrog, Bump Talkin is a timeless showcase of Paul’s signature deep, soulful house sound, blending irresistible peak-time, piano-driven anthems with a playful touch of bouncy Ghetto House energy.
They dont make em like this anymore...
RIP Paul Johnson.

NOSUCHKEY makes a bold debut on the Art of Memory label with a deadly four track EP of masterfully reduced but stylish and evocative minimal techno. NOSUCHKEY is actually a side project from Nico Purman. He served up the first two releases on the label and this new alias is focused on straight forward techno. Over more than a decade Purman has established himself on Vakant, Crosstown Rebels and Curle, and now heads in an exciting new direction designed to make a huge impact on the floor. Opener 'Stages' is post minimal techno with a focus on mind melting melodic riffs that ripple over the rooted drums. It is sci-fi in style with a hint of Detroit greats like Jeff Mills and really takes you into the future. The excellent 'FMFMFM' is another fluid bit of deep techno that is wired up with languid synths constantly wrapping and warping round the drums. Keeping up the pressure is 'Lunch', with a stripped back but impactful techno style built on rubbery kicks and with modulated synth lines constantly shapeshifting throughout the mix. Direct but dynamic, it is excellently timeless techno that leads on to closer 'ACD RDFN'. There is urgency, paranoia and cyber tension in this one that really keeps you locked as it journeys deep into a blackened yet cinematic cosmic abyss. NOSUCHKEY is a false address, a lack of a word, a character or sign that makes a whole code unable to find its final path: The Specified Key does not exist.

180g Heavy double vinyl LP with liner notes by Tyran Grillo. Limited Japanese Obi for the first pressing. Original artwork by Russell Mills and photography by Jean-Baptiste Mondino.

The third Time Capsule is a body of dub reinterpretations by celebrated producer Bill Laswell of Ethiopian singer Gigi. Curated by Tokyo record collector, music researcher and seasoned reissue supervisor Ken Hidaka, it is the first time Illuminated Audio is pressed to vinyl after its CD release in 2003.

Ejigayehu Shibabaw was born in 1974 in Chagni, northwestern Ethiopia and by pursuing a career as a singer, went against her father’s strict, traditional gender roles. As Gigi, she embraced the same musical freedom she had strived for in her personal life, incorporating the Ethiopian church, funk, hip-hop, West and South African music into her work. She first settled in Nairobi, then Addis Ababa, where she quickly established herself as one of the city’s leading singers. A move to San Francisco in 1998 led to a long and fruitful creative partnership with bassist and producer Bill Laswell.

Around the same time, Chris Blackwell had stepped away from Island Records to start the art house film company and label Palm Pictures. He took an interest in Gigi and together with Laswell, pulled together an all-star cast of musicians for her self-titled US debut album, including Herbie Hancock, Pharoah Sanders and Wayne Shorter. It won international critical acclaim, not just for its musicianship but for making Gigi a “defining voice for the Ethiopian expatriate community”, as journalist Tyran Grillo praises in his Time Capsule liner notes. From the nation-defining 1896 victory over Italian invaders to the quiet revolutionaries who wear simple shemma garments, Grillo believes the themes in Gigi make it “a shower of sunlight on her homeland for those ignorant of its struggles.”

After its success, Blackwell encouraged them to go back into the studio to rethink the album and Illuminated Audio was born. “Anyone can make a voice sound worldly”, Grillo remarks, “but rare are those who can make one sound inner-worldly.” Gigi was clear with Laswell to give her vocals a minor role “because it’s already been done.” Instead her Amharic verse is fleeting, exhaling through the textures like ghostly fragments; soaring yet muted. Yet the album is still titled under her name, an assertion by Laswell of her central role in the album’s creation. Not only was it a fully endorsed project by Gigi, but she would be present throughout its development, giving feedback on half-finished ideas as Laswell played them back in the studio. “It works perfectly”, she reflected after the album’s release. “We wanted to capture the whole spirit of each track, and Bill’s remixes create a different music language that really puts you in a pleasant place”.

This new vocabulary takes its lead from a technical approach that Laswell had been perfecting during a furtive creative period at the turn of the millennium. Much like his ambient interpretations of Miles Davis (Panthalassa, 1998), Bob Marley (Dreams of Freedom, 1997), and Carlos Santana (Divine Light, 2001), Laswell approached Illuminated Audio by returning to the original multitrack masters. Gigi wasn’t just reworked, but recomposed into an expansive lattice of instruments, submerged in a watery ambience of dub and trance undercurrents.

Sonically, this new language that Gigi refers to, is manifested by the original album’s more understated parts being pushed to the fore. Explaining his contrasting methods, Laswell saw Gigi as being “put together in a way that fits”. Contrastingly, in Illuminated Audio, “a lot of things that I featured in the remix weren’t as audible in the original.” Instrumentation laying near-dormant, deep in the mix, are brought to the fore: the acid rock guitar and Wayne Shorter’s saxophone on ‘Tew Ante Sew’, Graham Haynes’ flugelhorn on ‘Nafekeñ’, Laswell’s bass on ‘Kahn’, the melodica in Mengedegna or the floating synths and talking drums in ‘Gud Fella’.

Brought to his attention by mentor DJ Nori, Hidaka describes Illuminated Audio as a “masterful sonic exploration into ethereal ambience and dub” and made sure this reissue also contained a full remaster to give its “deep musicality” much better dynamics and density in the overall sound. Hidaka admits that Laswell's music “is sometimes so out-there, it is often misunderstood” and, indeed, to dub album non-believers this might seem like a prolific producer imposing himself on another artist’s work; eternally developing rearrangements that never quite get to its destination. But that’s missing its true power and triumph. This is more than the reissue of a remix, but “a wholly unique musical entity”, as Hidaka describes. Illuminated Audio refers to the illuminated manuscripts that comprise the major part of Ethiopian art and its new compositions stand in proud solitude as a rare body of reworks that both informs and enhances their originals.

Gatefold Single LP Pressing of Threat To Survival on Clear Red 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.

Accomplished trumpeter, composer, bandleader and educator, Kamal Abdul-Alim has been actively involved in creative music for decades. He has toured Africa, Europe, the Caribbean and the United States. He has recorded with all kinds of bands, large and small, and performed in festivals all over the world. “He takes the postbop of the 50s and free-form jazz of the 60s and turns it into an even balance of fine textures. Alim, who is highly underrated, has one of the most beautiful tones and concepts of jazz. A master of improvisation, he knows the art of weaving different ideas, whether they stem from Manhattan’s lower East Side or Europe” (Hugh Wyatt, New York Daily News). “Dance” was recorded in 1983 but first released on vinyl in 1987. Rhythm section includes drummer Idris Muhammad. Original pressings are extremely rare and expensive. “Brotherhood” is a much sought after track on the jazz dance scene. There is a high demand for this title again on vinyl and pressings are limited to 1000 copies, all individually hand numbered.

High Focus Records are proud to present the latest collaboration from Verb T & Illinformed. ‘Stranded in Foggy Times’ both continues and completes the trilogy that began back in 2015, with ‘The Man with the Foggy Eyes’, before broadening the horizons with last year’s release ‘The Land of the Foggy Skies’. This final chapter returns to the same conceptual landscape as its predecessors, but also sees Verb T & Illinformed returning to a more classic approach to album making. In spite of its concept, the Foggy Trilogy is something of a personal outpouring for Verb T, with the original aim being to vicariously discuss the trials and tribulations that play a part in his life, including his struggles with chronic illness and the feeling of alienation from leaving his hometown, while also reflecting on the state of the world as a whole. Their approach to making the album meant taking it back to the most natural form, where the idea for the track would be outlined, Illinformed would make the beat, Verb T would write to it and then they would tweak and adjust accordingly. The result is 19 of the most finely crafted tracks to emerge from the UK shores this year. As with the previous albums, ‘Stranded in Foggy Times’ finds Illinformed moving away from the more rugged sound that has shrouded the British scene over the last few months, thanks to his collaborations with the likes of Datkid and Wish Master, instead providing Verb T with an arguably more mellow backdrop. From the string and piano driven introduction on ‘Legacy’, to the blissful head-nod vibes of the closing track, ‘Blind Faith’, the union between beats and rhymes sits at the perfect level. The album also boasts one of the most impressive guestlists of the year, one that is very much a product of both players’ worlds. Thanks to Illinformed’s Bristol connection, there are features from the likes of Res One, Datkid, Leaf Dog, Smellington Piff and Chillman, as well as some locally sourced cuts from DJ Rogue. While on Verb T’s side of the fence, we have features from Rye Shabby and Moreone, along with a collaboration that reignites the same creative spark he found in his early days, as King Kashmere steps into the booth on Feeling Strange. All in all, ‘Stranded in Foggy Times’ does exactly what it sets out to do, by drawing the trilogy to a close while also providing insights into Verb T’s personal world and the world at large. The fact that it also happens to be one of the strongest rap albums of the year is the icing on the cake

Following the release of the dreamy and bewitching darkwave debut single “Mirror Twin”, Harsh Symmetry announces the release of a full-length debut Display Model on Fabrika Records, home of Selofan, Lebanon Hanover, and She Past Away, whose own Doruk Öztürkcan mixed and mastered the LP. With a vocal style reminiscent of Cocteau Twins collaborator Cinder (This Mortal Coil, Cindytalk), and Ian McCulloch of Echo & The Bunnymen, Harsh Symmetry’s Julian Sharwarko is the epitome of old-school and post-punk and goth, capturing a vision that perfectly matches his sound, while physically resembling his music forebears to the point where he looks like he just stepped out of a copy of Smash Hits circa 1983. Hailing from Sacramento, California, Sharwarko’s love of music began at the tender age of 8, with parents who influenced his early music tastes by playing the music of Siouxsie and The Banshees, The Birthday Party, Iggy Pop, Depeche Mode, and Bauhaus. David Lynch’s work also made a profound impact on his style, specifically the short film The Grandmother.

Spiritual, intimate and revolutionary, yet firmly rooted in Brazil's folklore. Africadeus was the breakthrough album of the mighty Naná Vasconcelos, in which he discovered the berimbau to the world and took the instrument to a universal level, abstracting it from its original context of capoeira. Having played in the shadows for other artists such as Milton Nascimento, Gato Barbieri or Som Imaginario, Naná is here finally in the spotlight.

Recorded in 1973 in France for Pierre Barouh's Saravah label, this is the album that definitely imprinted Naná's name in the international scene, on his track to becoming one of the best percussionists of all times.

Immensely proud to offer a quality reissue of both his early 70s albums for the French label Saravah.

Africadeus comes in its original gatefold cover, and is available in standard black vinyl and a limited edition of 200 copies on red transparent vinyl.

Sanam is a free-rock post-folk sextet consisting of Sandy Chamoun, Antonio Hajj Moussa, Farah Kaddour, Anthony Sahyoun, Pascal Semerdjian and Marwan Tohme. The group first formed as part of a performance with Hans Joachim Irmler from the legendary German experimental group Faust, at the Irtijal music festival. Their music and performances are akin to a ritual, a marriage and an exorcism of traditional Egyptian song/Arabic poetry and improvised rock, free jazz and noise. They recorded their first albumAykathani Malakonin a traditional house in the village of Saqi Reshmaya, which was then mixed by Radwan Ghazi Mounmeh (Jersualem In My Heart).

The Nu’rons were a family group consisting of two sets of brothers and cousins, the four young men in question being brothers Daryl Howard and Raymond Gibson (Daryl’s mother registered him under his father’s surname of Howard and Raymond under her maiden name of Gibson) together with Otho Bateman and Charles Bateman. They were all born and raised in Salem, New Jersey and from the age of ten and eleven began singing with a fifth member and Gibson brother Rudolph as a group called The Gospel 5. They eventually decided to crossover to secular music and as a group known for their energetic dance routines they came up with the new performing name of ‘The Nu’rons’ (taken from the word ‘Neuron’ which is a cell that transmits nerve impulses). However Rudolph was soon to leave the group due to physical illness. Also Daryl Howard and Charles Bateman had also been part of a working group known as The Devotions prior to becoming The Nu-Ron’s.Following hours of practice The Nu’rons eventually felt confident enough to put their own shows together and began to perform at local dances and parties around New Jersey and Philadelphia, often being used as a non-paid warm up act for bigger named artists. They moved between several different managers including Jimmy Bishop (Duo Dynamic Productions) until they came under the tutelage of WDAS radio DJ Georgie Woods (his wife Gilda, being the owner of the Philadelphia Gil, Dion and Top & Bottom record Labels). It was Georgie who introduced them to Manny Campbell who in turn invited them to an audition at his and partner Charles Bowen’s Emandolynn Music studio in Chester P.A. The song The Nu’rons chose to audition with was the self penned “I’m A Loner”, the audition went well, as during late January/early February of 1970 Manny and Charles took The Nu’rons into the Sigma Sound Studio’s with Tom Bell and the TSOP musicians to record “I’m A Loner” and “All My Life” which was released on the Nu-Ron label in April of the same year. The two studio takes presente don this release came short after the band moved on from the collaboration with producer Emanuel Campbell to take music matters in their own hands. Beside recording "Disco Hustle" to be part of the disco boom in Philly of the times, they recorded also “You Came Thru”, a rough yet beautiful heavy bassline driven soul funk recording, and the just amazing “Hurry Up Tomorrow”, here presented in one of the original Studio takes.

Genesis' Foxtrot is the band's fourth studio album, released in 1972. Regarded as one of the seminal albums of the progressive rock genre, it marked a significant milestone in Genesis' discography.

AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine says Foxtrot is where where Genesis began to pull all of its varied inspirations into a cohesive sound. The startling thing about the opening "Watcher of the Skies" is that it's the first time that Genesis attacked like a rock band, playing with a visceral power, he writes, giving the album a 5-star review.

"There's might and majesty here, and it, along with 'Get 'Em Out by Friday,' is the truest sign that Genesis has grown muscle without abandoning the whimsy. Certainly, they've rarely sounded as fantastical or odd as they do on the epic 22-minute closer "Supper's Ready," a nearly side-long suite that remains one of the group's signature moments. It ebbs, flows, teases, and taunts, see-sawing between coiled instrumental attacks and delicate pastoral fairy tales. If Peter Gabriel remained a rather inscrutable lyricist, his gift for imagery is abundant, as there are passages throughout the album that are hauntingly evocative in their precious prose." — AllMusic

This is the rare art-rock album that excels at both the art and the rock, and it's rightly celebrated for its enduring impact on the progressive rock genre, making it an essential listen for Genesis fans.

Analogue Productions has given Foxtrot the deserving full reissue treatment: Mastered directly from the original master tape by Chris Bellman at Bernie Grundman Mastering and cut at 45 RPM. Pressed on 180-gram vinyl at Quality Record Pressings, and housed in tip-on old style gatefold double pocket jackets with film lamination by Stoughton Printing.

Twoosty Mayonez is a duo consisting of Bartosz Wolert (drums) and Kornel Karolak (synthesizers), creating post-jazz music and is considered to be part of the new Polish wave of this genre. The album is a continuation of the story begun in 2123, when Captain Harrison Focus, as a result of an emergency landing of his rocket, lands on the unknown planet Carmin. This story was described and released by U Know Me Records and this is how the (universe) world learned about Twoosty Mayonez. Their latest album is a story about what happens on the surface of the mysterious planet Carmin. This time, the main character of the album is Triceradiplodocus. The songs show changes in mood and atmosphere. The music is full of energy, harmony and emotions that reflect the diversity of the world the hero goes through.

All compositions were created on a weekend in September 2023, as a result of the duo's collective improvisation. The recordings were made at the Twoosty Room studio in Warsaw by the band's drummer.

The album features guest appearances by: Alicja Sobstyl (flute), Ola Szmidt (vocals), Wojtek Mazolewski (double bass), Olaf Węgier (sax). The cover was designed by Dominika Kiszkiel, and the mix and mastering was done by Maciek Goliński (Envee). The album, released in LP and digital formats by U JAZZ ME Records, is scheduled for January 9, 2025.

The process of making this mini-album “anaiis & Grupo Cosmo” was truly life-altering for me. It changed my approach to making music and really brought me back to the roots of what creation is about. I went to Salvador for a month-long artist residency in February 2020 and during that time, I not only fell in love with Brasil’s culture and music, but I also wrote “Toda Cor” with the wonderful Luedji Luna. A few years later, I reached out Biel who’d co-produced “Estrela Acesa” with Sessa to see if they’d be interested in re-developing “Toda Cor” with me. They were enthusiastic and we fully reproduced the record in December, remotely. The connection between us all was electric and it felt like there was a collective enthusiasm for creating more together so I flew out to Brasil in April 2023 to continue this exploration. The beauty behind this record really lies in the experience of making it. We all stayed together in Biel’s house in Ilhabela for a week with Cabral, who co-produced the record with us and plays bass. We would go to the beach, eat communally, share stories, be around the kids, but then spend most of the days creating and jamming together. Each day we would record our songs live to tape, not a computer in the room. By the end of the week we had this album. It was refreshing to make music in this way. The music and approach really held us in that moment and gave us a chance to create freely, in a big moment of transition in our lives in a way that truly embraces imperfection, spontaneity, just very human.

For her new and most radical album »Electroacoustic Works for Halldorophone«, Martina Bertoni used the electronic instrument at EMS Stockholm to create four pieces that are massive in scale and incredibly intimate, sonically restrained and emotionally overwhelming—almost ambient and always demanding your full attention.

Martina Bertoni returns to Karlrecords with »Electroacoustic Works for Halldorophone,« her most radical album yet. The foundation for the four electroacoustic pieces was laid during a residency at Stockholm’s legendary Elektronmusikstudion (EMS) that the Berlin-based cellist and composer used to explore the curious instrument, originally designed by Halldór Úlfarsson in 2008, as an algorithmic system in order to examine tunings and the mathematical relationships between Aiming to analyse and understand their interaction beyond the composer’s control, Bertoni sought to engage more deeply with the concepts of time, tuning, and, most importantly, control. Accordingly, her four »Electroacoustic Works for Halldorophone« seem both massive in scale and incredibly intimate, sonically restrained and emotionally overwhelming— almost ambient and always demanding your full attention.

While the halldorophone—famously used by Hildur Guðnadóttir for her »Joker« score—roughly resembles a cello and can be played like one, it is an electronic instrument. The vibration of its strings is being picked up, amplified, and then routed through a speaker. This creates a feedback loop that becomes increasingly complex depending on how much gain is added to individual strings. Úlfarsson gave Bertoni a carte blanche for how to handle the instrument, but she stresses that she relied on »minimal interventions—some string strumming and plucking« that set the interactions of different sounds and frequencies into motion. »I decided to not approach it like a cellist would,« she explains. »Instead I used it as a kind of generative organ by turning it into a feedback machine, with tuned feedback triggering more feedback depending on the tuning, which was based on tetraphonic scales that I could apply on the four main strings as well as the sympathetic group of strings.«

Bertoni recorded the material in the EMS studio, later composing and arranging the four complex pieces in her home in Berlin, after which they were mixed and mastered by Ciaran O’Shea. While this can be considered a compositional abstraction process, traces of her concrete work as a performer are firmly ingrained in the music. »The halldorophone doesn’t have a line output, just a double set of speakers, which is why I recorded all sounds with two microphones in the EMS studio,« she explains. »That’s why there’s plenty of breathing sounds here and there—label owner Thomas Herbst and I jokingly refer to the album as my ›chamber music record‹.« And indeed, there is a striking sense of intimacy to these four pieces throughout which individual sounds, harmonic frequencies, and even subtle rhythmic figures seem to move both on their own accord but also according to a underlying vision that steers their interplay.

Indeed, »Electroacoustic Works for Halldorophone« is an album built on and marked by contrasts. The soothing polylogue of single sounds in the higher register on opener »Omen in G« is counterpointed by massive bass drones, while the second piece, »Nominal in D,« plays a cunning game of repetition and difference by combining thick textures with all kinds of rhythmic elements. »Fades in C«—the longest of the four pieces, clocking in at 17 minutes—unlocks the emotional potentials of the sonic qualities of the halldorophone, sounding at once serene and anthemic, and »Organon in D« closes the album by underscoring how Bertoni’s unconventional approach allows her to seamlessly transform simple, quiet tones into complex, towering walls of sound.

Since 1992, Robin Storey (founding member of the pioneering post-industrial band Zoviet*France) has been creating innovative and thought-provoking music under the Rapoon moniker. Drawing inspiration from his early days with Z*F, he continues to push the boundaries of ambient, industrial, and world music genres, earning him a dedicated following across the globe.

Originally available in 1994 as a limited-edition DAT tape through Staalplaat Records, Cidar was later included as a bonus CD in the reissue of another Rapoon classic, Fallen Gods. Now, after years of anticipation, fans can experience this mesmerizing work as a stand-alone release – remastered and expanded with three previously unreleased tracks from the original 1994 recording sessions.

Cidar showcases Robin’s signature sound – a seamless blend of Z*F-inspired drones and loops intertwined with vibrant African percussion and hauntingly beautiful Asian string instruments. This combination creates an immersive, trance-like atmosphere that transports listeners into a world of meditative sonic exploration.

With its enchanting rhythms and deeply textured layers, Cidar stands as a testament to Robin’s unparalleled ability to craft music that defies genre boundaries while remaining instantly recognizable. Fans of both Zoviet*France and Rapoon will find themselves drawn into the hypnotic sounds of this timeless masterpiece.

The standalone release of Cidar marks an important milestone in the history of experimental music, offering audiences worldwide the opportunity to rediscover or experience for the first time one of Robin Storey’s most influential works.

Communique Records USA is re-issuing the next big release from their impressive catalog.
Communique011 by Invisible aka Kevin Whitley from 1995!!! Midwest Acid Techno at it's best!
Recorded from original DAT and re-mastered.

Siren Selector launches its mixtape series with a companion release to Remy Solar’s - ‘Heavy Terrain’ cassette.

“Jamaican music grows in rings like an old tree. From a core of early riddims, the genius of Studio One, versions of original basslines and melodies evolve over time New releases of the same tune follow each other through the 70s, 80s, 90s, into this millennium. Generations of the same family. And then there’s the unreleased versions, the frontier dubs built strictly for sound systems, held close by those who got them and only gradually circulated into the wider audience of selectors and collectors. These are the ones where the bass is heavier, the echoes more mind- bending, the effects wilder and the drums harder. Older sound followers tell stories of how these dubs defined dances, flattened opponents in clashes, inspired a dozen rewinds. Younger followers remember these tales and pass them down. These dubs are folklore.

Who knows how many such versions there are in the vast worldwide archives of Jamaican music? Not me. But as a little taster of a lifetime’s musical journey you can open your ears right now to a few moments: Lacksley’s Castell’s “Unkind”, transported from the sprightly riddim which underpinned it on his Princess Lady album and reengineered into a thunderous version of Ras Michael’s None A Jah Jah Children; “Deceivers” by the Heptones, stripped back into something simultaneously ethereal and bathyspheric; Keith Hudson’s “I’m No Fool” emerging from a pressure cooker of bass and drum; Jah Lloyd’s “Black Moses”, busting down walls with its epic echo and siren opening.

I started collecting these dubs in the late 90s. We were going to Shaka at the Rocket, Aba Shanti in the Arches, then Imperial Gardens. Entebbe somewhere off Mare Street. Iration Steppas in Kingsland Road, Jah Tubby’s in the Rec. We were doing our own parties at the time in east London, Bohemia Place, then Trenz, Dungeons, the old social services office by London Fields. Building up a sound, taking it on the road, crew sitting on the speaker boxes in the back of a Mercedes 508. Under the stars or in warehouses with sweat dripping from the ceiling, lugging crates and amps across fields or up flights of stairs, stringing up boxes under bridges, in car parks or on roundabouts. Waiting for the moment to drop the dubs.

This tape is dedicated to my crew and all the music providers and anyone who also knew or wants to know these moments.“

Fifty Physical Copies - 60 mins - No digital

Melchior Productions Ltd. returns to his own My King Is Light imprint with a brand-new 12″—this time alongside Romanian-Russian pianist-producer Mischa Blanos, one third of the acclaimed Amorf trio, Jupiter Tracks pt. 1 is a beautiful record, deep and emotional, as if beamed in from another world—yes, Jupiter.

Across “Push,” “First Eva,” and “Spirit Of 23,” the pair interlace meticulous programming and crystalline sound design into an ever-shifting strain of minimal house. Dispensing with overt drama, the EP zooms in on nuance: textures flicker between digital shimmer and tactile grit, while Melchior’s trademark restraint leaves ample space for Blanos’s melodic Midas touch to radiate quietly.

Venus Flux is a new four-track EP by Lord Of The Isles on Amsterdam’s Far Blue label. The record opens with Mushroom Talk, a beatless ambient piece built from slow-moving analog tones, inspired by the honesty of altered states. Two live-improvised dub techno tracks, Betuladub and Pedaldub, form the core of the EP, shaped by intuition and in-the-moment connection rather than fixed arrangements. The closing track, Venus Flux, is an electro piece that feels reflective and unresolved.

Baby Ford perfected the minimal sound with his impeccable early run of releases. Now, one of them gets reissued many years on and it still sounds as strikingly new as ever, not least because it has been remastered by the legendary Dubplates & Mastering in Berlin. The sought-after EP from Peter Adshead emerged during his shift toward stripped-back techno and tech-house and captures a deeper, more hypnotic side of his craft. 'Serpentine Tale' coils through hissing rhythms and shadowy bass pressure, while 'Night D3 Died' pairs crunchy drums with mournful synth chords. Closing cut 'The Introducer' drifts into warm, spacious territory.

In Gianfranco Rosi’s portrait of Naples, Sotto le Nuvole, the ground shakes periodically. Between Mount Vesuvius and the Tyrrhenian Sea, the fumaroles of the Phlegraean Fields hiss volcanic gas and steam. Below the sleeping volcano, modern day Naples emerges in black and white and fills with voices, with lives. From the traces of history and the concerns of the present, Rosi documents a city immersed in its continuous past, with Daniel Blumberg’s minimal soundscape hovering in a sonic space between liquid and air.
Tasked with creating a soundscape that would suspend space within Rosi’s film, Blumberg called upon the extended technique of saxophonists Seymour Wright and John Butcher to create a gossamer fabric of traces and sounds abstracted from their instruments. Having transitioned from theoretical physics to the saxophone, John Butcher has always deeply considered space in the context of his playing. His concerns are with flow, density and how the saxophone is situated in the living world. Zeroing in on the core sonic properties of the mechanical and acoustic components of the saxophone, Seymour Wright has integrated its every breath, reed vibration, keypad clatter and hissed microtone of his alto into his own, unique improvisational language. In his work with these two seminal players, Blumberg makes his most concentrated soundtrack to date - reinforcing the film's sense of overlapping time and space, and pushing at the limits of experimentation.

Initially recorded in Daniel’s flat in London, Butcher and Wright centre themselves around long, consistent tones, so soft that it seems breath is being gently pulled from the saxophone's bell by an invisible hand. Blumberg himself adds haunting bass harmonica, and recordings of Wright’s launeddas - a traditional and ancient triple pipe polyphonic reed instrument from Sardinia, Italy. Blumberg then travelled to the volcanic region of Baia, next to Pompeii. Once a flourishing classical Roman city loved by Nero, Baia slowly sank under hydrothermal pressure, leaving the city in a kind of geological purgatory. Using specialised geophones and hydrophones, Blumberg took those initial recordings and amplified them underwater, sending them calling out across the ruins of Baia’s mosaics, Nymphaeum statues and villas.

“It was important to me that the music was whispered in the same landscape that Gianfranco has worked for the past three years, so that you can hear the volcanic air gulping, the lapping of the waves, the steam and bubbles popping against John and Seymour’s saxophone breaths – an echo from a suspended time.”
What emerges is deeply melancholic, tender, subtle and right at the edges of audio technology. Submerged in an aquarian mausoleum, the mysterious vibrations of the saxophone and its bell become an echo of an echo, wading from the future into the past. ‘Sotto le Nuvole’ is less a soundtrack than a process of aeration - a sonic puncture in the material of the film which allows its central message to breathe, and a remarkable experiment at the limits of the saxophone’s possibility.

Named after the tendency to impose familiar likenesses, such as faces, on random - usually inanimate - objects, Pareidolia is Jake Muir's way of interpreting the consonances between so-called “ambient” music and extreme heavy metal. Extracting the headiest, most atmospheric sections from hundreds of death metal and black metal tracks, Muir plays the role of both DJ and electroacoustic composer, concocting a lysergic elixir of fractal distortions and prolonged, decelerated riffs that slowly evaporates into iridescent vapor. If there's any trace of the original sources left, Muir makes sure that residue is subtly bewildering, like clouds in the sky that form imposing, larger than life images, or trampled bracken that falls into the shape of “trve kvlt” insignia.

The idea for the album materialized when Muir was working on 2022's Talisman, his collaborative album with multi-instrumentalist Evan Caminiti. Processing guitar for the first time, Muir began to unpack his long relationship with rock music and its Escher-like maze of sub-genres, from the tech metal he obsessed over as a teenager to Loop and Main's drone-y, textured variants. Scraping the internet for unconventional contemporary metal albums, he stumbled across music that seemed to hover between different realms, merging its frenetic, noisy sections with psychedelic interludes that harmonize with classic industrial and avant-garde music, material like :zoviet*france:, Nocturnal Emissions and Z'EV.

In 1979, Neil Fraser (artistically known as Mad Professor) founded Ariwa Sounds, the longest-serving and one of the most influential independently owned Reggae studios and record labels in the UK. From humble beginnings set up in the front room of Neil's home in South London recording on 4-track and homemade equipment, Ariwa would go on to record and release over 300 albums including works from some of the most impactful and storied artists of their time in the genres of Reggae, Dub, and Lovers Rock

Whilst our previous release in collaboration with Ariwa captured the label's early sound, a shared performance with Neil in Osaka and regular visits to his South London studio inspired us to assemble this 15-track compilation, showcasing the label's output across 45 years. Our release emphasizes some of the label's greatest vocalists: Johnny Clarke, Sandra Cross, Kofi, U Roy, Sister Nancy, Queen Omega, Aisha, Garnett Cross, Abel Miller, Horace Andy and more — presenting the Motown and Stax influences in the Lovers Rock, but also provides a glimpse into the dubbier and more experimental side of the label, showcasing Ariwa's commitment to quality but also their personality, philosophy and their humour. Love songs, break-up songs, socially engaged songs, dub experimentations — this compilation is not a "best of" Ariwa but a diverse and honest celebration of the label through the lens of Melodies International.

The compilation will be out in July in vinyl 2xLP, CD, digital formats, mastered from the original tapes by Frank Merritt (the Carvery), pressed at Optimal, artwork created by Jason Evans with design and assembly contributions from Nevil Bernard and Will Sweeney, animated teaser by Nevil Bernard and Melozine designed by Mafalda Meireles.

For the sixth release on their imprint, Voodoos and Taboos deliver “Other Land”, a 4-track EP showcasing their signature blend of diverse sonic landscapes. The record flows seamlessly through 90s-inspired Progressive House, sharp Electro, atmospheric Breakbeat, and clinical Minimal-Techno, balancing driving peak-time energy with deep, futuristic textures. A versatile 12″ designed to bridge the gap between different club aesthetics with high-fidelity precision.

Ampoule's Pub returns with a fresh remaster of the classic 'Summer' and a brand new track titled 'The Fragile Root'

'Summer' was originally released 20 years ago on the Vertical Form label - a result of a multitude of completely live and improvised studio sessions, that gently swell and evolve over the tracks 16 minutes.

'Fragile Root' is a brand new track, think vintage idm - intricate rhythms and melodies crossed with massive dub chords.

Mastered by Dubplates & Mastering

Forest Drive West returns to Mantis with a double pack of crooked, finely chiseled rhythms and porous, tactile atmospherics. Hovering comfortably between the distinct energies of drum & bass and techno, Joe Baker has helped define the creative upsurge in crossover tempos and tones with a practice that focuses on mood and presence rather than genre tropes. His first releases appeared 10 years ago on influential labels like Livity Sound, Rupture and Hidden Hawaii. He reconvenes on Mantis after delivering the first release for the Delsin series back in 2020. The scope across these eight new tracks is steeped in Baker's trademark restraint and subtlety, but equally he explores a broad scope of energies and tempos. From ambient, spacious downtempo and slow-motion, heavily dubbed drum mantras through to crisp, techy drum funk and dancehall-coded swagger, the range within the distinctive Forest Drive West sound is more versatile than ever. It's a range cemented further by the guest appearances on the album, as Patrick Russell comes on board for snarling, D&B-coded workout 'Uromastyx' and DB1 lends his chops to mesmerising closing breakbeat trip 'Planes'. Exquisite sound design with a mysterious streak binds these various approaches together. With club impact matched by spatial immensity, Mantis 1920 furthers the surefooted, intentional sound Baker has been shaping out as Forest Drive West for the past decade.

The third installment of the Collaborations series by Artefakt on their own De Stijl imprint welcomes KMRU. The Nairobi-born, Berlin-based sound artist is known for his immersive use of field recordings, ambient textures and experimental compositions. Together they recorded an extended dialogue rooted in improvisation, shaped by environment and close listening. Artefakt and KMRU blur the lines between ambient, acoustic and electronic forms, creating a spacious and contemplative collection of improvisations.

AS THE WORLD TURNS is the newly founded label by Rob Manga -- a platform created to channel his distinct sonic identity while cultivating a community rooted in shared energy and expression. The label emerges from a clear intention: to push a personal sound forward while opening space for others to connect, contribute, and evolve alongside it. It is both a statement and an invitation -- a place where sound becomes a meeting point. The first release marks this vision with a four-track EP, weaving together soulful textures, deep atmospheres, and club-driven impact. Each track reflects a different facet of the dancefloor, balancing introspection with movement, and depth with raw energy. With this debut, AS THE WORLD TURNS sets the tone -- not just as a label, but as a growing circle centered around sound, rhythm, and connection.