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It is quite rare to discover on the Italian Jazz scene a successful
ensemble, which passed unscathed through years. Bands are
usually weakened or put in crisis, most of the times caused by
sudden changes in line-ups.
The "Quartetto di Lucca" is a band of young players which
formerly were part of the amateurial "Hot Clubs" and some years
ago debuted among the pros.
The quartet of Lucca, however, has a peculiarity of its own, the
ability to defend the results and the continuity of a fruitful
collaboration with a compromise: the pure jazz calling, more
congenial and relevant to the quartet, is flanked by a more pop
concert activity with the specific aim of ensuring the survival of
the first through the latter.
The band was born as a quintet at the end of 1957, with the actual
members accompanied by the guitarist Gaetano Mariani, who left
the ensemble in the summer of 1961.
1958 had seen their official debut in Rome at Quirino Theatre, in
occasion of a contest reserved to rising Jazz stars in which they
were awarded first prize. A few months later, they recorded their
first album as a quintet for RCA Italy. It was the birth of a fruitful
collaboration, which still lasts.

Sometimes what you don't do is as important as what you do. Brandt Brauer Frick have made name for themselves producing techno without the technology, using classical instruments in preference to synthesizers and computers. It's a negative that's had positive results. On the Berlin trios third album 'Miami', it's again what Brandt Brauer Frick are not doing that is once again important: they aren't slavishly following the formula of its two predecessors. ''Mr Machine' (2011's sophomore album) the record made with the (ten piece classical) ensemble, especially was very planned and strict,' says Paul Frick. 'We wanted to be more spontaneous this time. We wanted to do something very different, more dark and more rough. We wanted to write songs rather than tracks that slowly evolve.' Another major difference is the appearance of a number of guest vocalists who had a big influence on the direction the album took. There are appearances from Jamie Lidell, Om'mas Keith (Grammy nominated producer of Frank Ocean's 'Channel Orange', Kanye West, Jay Z), Gudrun Gut (Einsturzende Neubauten and German punk band Malaria!), Erika Janunger and Russian DJ and producer Nina Kraviz. The new album is accompanied by a new stripped down live show—no ensemble this time, just the three protagonists and a specially built stage set. The visuals will be created by Brandt Brauer Frick affiliated production company Park Bennett, who make all of the bands videos and also came up with the overall visual concept for the album inspired by Fluxus art of the '60s.

Markey Funk is a producer/DJ/record collector/music historian. When we asked him to remix People of Tomorrow, the song title itself gave him the direction. It reminded him of the cult British children's sci-fi series from the 1970's, "The Tomorrow People". Markey decided to take the song in a chamber-yet-futuristic direction, inspired by the series' title theme (which was created by the legendary Dudley Simpson and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop). The result is eerie cinematic funky psych at its finest.

In den Achtzigern machte der von der FAZ als "Großmeister des Mundstück-Jazz" betitelte Nils Petter Molvaer an der Seite der norwegischen Jazzpioniere Jon Christensen und Arild Andersen in der Band Masqualero auf sich aufmerksam. Später schuf er mit seiner Band Khmer die Grundlage für die inzwischen typisch norwegische Symbiose aus Jazz und Elektro. Er findet auf jedem Album einen neuen musikalischen Ansatz, doch der rote Faden, der sich durch sein Gesamtwerk zieht, ist die Suche nach der optimalen Balance zwischen Synthetischem und Organischem. Auf "Switch" erreicht diese Suche einen weiteren Höhepunkt. Mit dem Pedal Steel Gitarristen Geir Sundstol, Pianist Morten Qvenild und Drummer Erland Dahlen hat Molvaer eine neue Band zusammengestellt. Mit komplexen, elektronischen Sounds aber auch akustischen Klängen bricht er in eine neue Zukunft auf, während er sich mit der Slide-Gitarre und seinen eigenen eher folkloristischen Improvisationen auf die Traditionen besinnt. Der kompositorische Bogen, den Molvaer mit seinen Stücken schlägt, erinnert nicht zuletzt an Pink Floyd. Wann immer man als Hörer in die Musik einsteigt, ist man sofort von der Tiefe und Farbenpracht seiner Welt gefangen

RED ASTAIRE (AKA FREDDIE CRUGER) drops the second volume in his "NUGGETS FOR THE NEEDY" series featuring more illicit mashups and remixes. Double album featuring 14 tracks ranging from reggae influenced downtempo and hip hop to house music. Due out end of Jan 2014. Don't miss this.

Ever the loose cannon, the Andromeda Mega Express Orchestra remains reliably unpredictable with their third album for Alien Transistor: renowned for their elaborate and intricate studio recordings, the genre-smashing 18-piece Orchestra didn't even set foot in a studio this time around, but instead returns with a live album, recorded in May 2012 at Berlin-Neukölln's Heimathafen

We at Fifty Fathoms Deep are proud to release the stunning debut long player from Frederick aka Peter Oakden.

After releasing solo & duo projects throughout 2013 on Local Talk, Deep Shades of House, Miseredits and also a feature on Lay-Far's album 'So Many Ways', Peter will begin 2014 releasing his debut LP on shared label Fifty Fathoms Deep in which he runs with Craig Smith (6th Borough Project).

For someone so relatively new to the game this debut is all the more remarkable given the maturity of sound and quality of production. There's a real narrative to this collection of music that draws the listener in from the very first note, to the very last. This isn't just a random collection of dance tracks or some singles with fillers; this is music with substance that transcends genres. No gimmicks just real lasting quality.

New CD Album for this famous Italian guitarist / composer , head of a formidable lineup with 9 new compositions Contemporary Jazz wide-ranging melodic and refined. Music contaminated with Latin influences , rock , funk, and with a great sense of typically Italian melody . Fabio Mariani is one of the top Italian guitarist . Author of the "Treaty of Jazz Guitar " (1984) and "Treaty of Contemporary Guitar Vol 1" (2014) . He has recorded 7 CDs as Band Leader . He has given concerts and master classes all over the world, from New York to Los Angeles, Chicago , San Francisco , London, Paris , Montreux and many other cities. He has collaborated with many important jazz and pop artists such as Claudio Baglioni, Teresa De Sio , Bruno Martino , Ivan Graziani , Roberto Gatto , Danilo Rea , Maurizio Giammarco , Massimo Moriconi , Stefano Di Battista , and many others.

The man behind Kokolo Afrobeat Orchestra is back! Ray Lugo and his new project L.E.S Express return with two brand new singles in combination with rising soul star Roxie Ray (Dojo Cuts/Lack Of Afro/ The Underbelly). On the A side "Love Me Good" lays down some heavy tropical vibes over a fast-paced and ear-catching rhythm, while Miss Ray accompanies with a set of steamy vocals. On the flip, "If It Ain't True" delivers a lazy sunshine melody packed with afro influences and island punch, with Roxie Ray crooning over the laid-back grooves. With this second 45 L.E.S Express confirms that when Ray Lugo gets down to business, no dancefloor can be considered safe!

* 180 gram audiophile vinyl
* Gatefold sleeve incl. additional liner notes
* Remastered audio
* First-time ever 2LP edition incl. 2 bonustracks

So much has been said and written about Miles Davis' Kind Of Blue, it's virtually impossible to summarize all the necessary info to the length of this page. We could simply list some facts (best sold Jazz album ever worldwide). We could try to explain why it's the best Jazz album ever made, but the music itself will do that to you.

As Bill Evans said in the original liner notes for the record, the band did not play through any of these pieces prior to recording. Miles Davis laid out the themes before the tape rolled and the band improvised. The end results were fragile and wondrous. Recorded during 2 sessions in 1959, Kind of Blue worked on many different levels and will do so for many years to come.

We're proud to announce a very special version of the most influential (Jazz) album ever. We present the orginal album in remastered form plus an extra LP containing 2 tracks that weren't available on vinyl before (an alternate take of "Flamenco Sketches" and a version of "On Green Dolphin Street" recorded prior to the Kind of Blue sessions, with the legendary line-up of Bill Evans, John Coltrane, Paul Chambers and Jimmy Cobb.)

We've graced this first-time ever 2LP edition of this musical masterpiece with a gatefold sleeve with additional liner notes.

Alfred E Neuman's alter ego MadDisco Edits has been making dance floors go mad with his resent vinyl releases, well now the man himself is releasing more edits but with a more Psychedelic/Balearic/Leftfield flavour on his new label Ideophone Records:

1. First up we have a super funked up tripped out affair, panning slide guitars with fx's galore and cymbals crashing all over the place, file under chilled out psychedelic explosion.

2. Next we have a Balearic and folk space trip, a truly beautiful ambient track with both acoustic and analog instruments including signing violins and an acoustic guitar that provides the rhythm to this chilled journey.

3. A simply divine little edit to get things going on the B side, again on a balearic folk tip with a gorgeous array of percussion instruments resulting in a tropical rhythm to die for with underlining melodies weaving away and sax solos towering over the top.

4. And finally we arrive in the future with this space tingled delight of an tune, vocoder, lush synths, chilled dope beats combining in a hypnotic track sure to put you into a trance, don't sleep on this one!!

A previously unissued set of nine excellent tracks from one of Philadelphia's most underrated groups. Which is available in both vinyl and cd format.

Mighty Mighty kommen aus der florierenden und immer bunten finnischen Jazzszene. Die Kreation um den Pianisten und Komponisten Kari Setälä, unter Mithilfe eines Kollektivs aus Helsinki's Jazz A-Promis, navigiert mühelos zwischen den verschiedenen Geschmacksrichtungen des Jazz. Zudem springt die Band spielerisch zwischen energetischem und swingenden Hard-Bop und Vintage Jazz Funk und allem, was dazwischen liegt.

'To Dust' sees Alice exploring every letter of the soul lexicon. From the Prince-esque strut of 'Hard And Strong' to the epic intensity of the title track. Heartstring tugging 'I Loved You'; the sonically smooth yet emotionally raw 'Twin Peaks' to the pulse-quickening build of 'Let Go (Breakdown)' & psychedelic social consciousness of 'Citizens' Alice is never less than scintillating as she displays emotions so real you feel you could reach out & touch them. The idiosyncratic structure of the LP, peppered with interludes & reprises, makes for a unique & satisfyingly whole 'album' experience.

From Italy to Brasil, Latin America, the USA, Japan and back to Scandinavia and Germany, 'The Modern Sound Of Nicola Conte' takes us on a journey into the most tasteful sounds you can get when it comes to Bossa flavored Jazz, Latin excursions and soulful grooves.

London label Critical Heights will be releasing lo-fi pop queen Keel Hers new album on 10 February 2014. Known for her prolific songwriting and soundcloud posting Rose Keeler-Schffelers debut album features eighteen powerfully but economically packed tracks, cherry picked from her vast repertoire. Keel Hers songs are intimate vignettes drawn from Roses own experiences delivered in a chatty, honest and delightfully conversational manner. Guitars and synths vie for melodic prominence over vast swathes of fuzz and feedback, where Roses indecipherable vocals swim amongst buzzing melodies, swampy reverb and broken beats. Although much of her sound and aesthetic harks back to 90s slacker culture, the variety of styles she has absorbed makes it harder to specifically pinpoint her sound. Veering sonically from Beat Happening to Ariel Pink, Wavves to Bikini Kill, Real Estate to Guided By Voices and all the way back again, it wasnt long before her bedroom pop reached the ears of home recording supremo R. Stevie Moore. The R Stevie Moore collaboration started when Rose wrote a song for him called Robert. He was won over and they recorded the double A-side single Boner Hit/With Me Tonight. Rose invited Moore to remix the album track Id Be Your Slave, which also sees him playing bass. Other tracks include a more scuzzed-up, reworked version of the single Riot Grrrl as well as 7 A-side Dont Look at Me, which sees her return to full-tilt, dream-fuzz tune-age. Having grown up in Winchester, Rose Keeler-Schffeler began writing and recording in her bedroom at an early age and for over a year posted tracks online at an alarming rate. Now residing in Brighton, she remains blissfully unconcerned with glossy production values, clichd lyrics and formulaic hooks and instead taps in to seemingly bottomless well of creativity on her own terms.

Apparently, despite the rumours, pre-fusion acid jazz-rock is alive and well, living it up in Southern California, USA! Psicomagia is the joint forces of leading members of noted prog and stonerrock outfits Astra & Radio Moscow. The band is serving up a mixture of the same essence that Soft Machine, Tony Williams Lifetime & Magma pioneered during that magical period just seconds before progressive electric jazz was grabbed by the institutional jazz scene. A formula, thought lost until this day, when seemingly out of the blue, the relentless force of Psicomagia appeared. Spearheaded by multi-instrumentalist & producer Brian Ellis's roaring saxophone, constantly interplaying Tyler Daughn's franticly screaming organs and synthesizers, the soul of Psicomagia is in the endlessly permutated busts of energy of the two. The relentless heart, however, is kept going by drummer Paul Marrow (Radio Moscow), who carves out a constantly brooding and shifting rhythmic base along with the heavy, travelling bass of Trevor Mast. Together they balance a line between an insanely tight and rhythmic notion of progress, as well as transgressing each instrument's carved path on this cataclysmic journey of musical events. Imagine, on top of that, 2 poets, repeating obscured mantras, rumbling bells and gongs and you're getting closer to playing your own Jodorowskydoes- jazz movie playing in your head via Psicomagia. If Psicomagia sounds like a thing of the past, it's simply because they have inherrited a unique quality lost in music today: grabbing onto a wide array of genres, and permuting them into their own distinct musical landscape. Roaring with the same neverendless energy of SoCal brothers Earthless, Psicomagia forges a path like that of a time travel: it opens up a dimension thought lost in music - reshaping a new possible outcome of progressive rock, building their own present time. It is beound doubt that Psicomagia is not a pastice retro band - they are the real deal. True to original formula, the album is produced with a grace and warmth maintaining a full dynamic range. Mastered on analogue tape by Causa Sui's Jonas Munk

Legendary keyboardist and composer Bob James is one of the major architects of the '70s jazz-funk sound, and is also notorious among a younger generation raised on hip hop. His early albums have been plundered for samples countless times, and his tunes "Nautilus" and "(Take Me To The) Mardi Gras" are two of the most revered b-boy classics, acknowledged as musical foundations of the hip hop movement. Amazingly, until now there has been no collection that focused on the funkiest side of the keyboardist's vast catalog, the years when his instrument of choice was the classic Fender Rhodes electric piano. Previous Bob James collections have attempted to please smooth jazz aficionados who know the man for his later, synthesized-based sound, throwing in a token representative or two of the rougher, groove-based tunes of his early career. Compiled by Wax Poetics magazine's contributing editor Andrew Mason, Rhodes Scholar makes no concessions to fans of the smooth jazz sound and goes straight for the funk jugular. The 22 songs here are the gold that beat-diggers sift through stacks of albums to find, with all of James' heaviest (and most heavily sampled) tracks included. Fans of rappers Wu-Tang Clan, Run-DMC, Arrested Development, De La Soul and EDM/house music stars Royksopp, Moodymann and Dmitri From Paris will hear familiar themes as this compilation lays bare the sources of some of their biggest hits. An extremely scarce alternate mix of one of James' biggest and most controversial tracks, "(Take Me To The) Mardi Gras", is
included for the first time since its Italian-only 1975 release. Previously unseen vintage photos plus detailed liner notes by Mason with comments from Bob James himself further enhance this long awaited package.

Hailing from New York during the mid 1970s, Tony Aiken and Future 2000 was a musical group whose funky brand of R&B-meets-dance featured a distinct sound reminiscent of a combination of Carribbean music and Afrobeat. Their strong arrangements, pulsating beats, and unique orchestrations made them underground darlings for much of the mid-70s. Their Kimsha Records release Unity: Sing It, Shout It was a joyous, booty-shaking pile of East Coast disco at its most raw. Aiken has since gone on to work with artists such as Dennis Brown, Frankie Paul, Chosen Few, and many more, but the original Unity album has largely been forgotten to the sands of history...until now! In association with Traffic Entertainment, Kimsha Records is proud to present this sterling reissue of the original Unity LP, right on down to the recreation of its original jacket. Features hard-hitting funk tracks like "Better Days", and soulful cuts like "Time Tunnel", with bouncing bass-lines and sinuous keyboards. Unity's crown jewel however is its' title track, a 9+ minute long stomper with hints of reggae and tastes of early-disco vibes. An obscure gem, and a classic for any fan of fine afro-centric music. REISSUED FOR THE FIRST TIME IN A RE-CREATION OF THE ORIGINAL SILK-SCREENED JACKET BY ANTIDESIGNS USA!

Ba-da-boom! The Tramp Records crew celebrates its 10th anniversary with one more fantastic release in the Story of series. Another wonderful musician which deserves to be (re-)discovered: Professor Earl Lett. Although his songs have been dance floor favourites of both soul and funk DJs all over Europe, this is the first-ever compilation of his funkiest 1960s/70s material.
Earl Lett was born in 1945 and grew up in Monroeville, Alabama. His musical career started after his demobilization in 1961 when he went back to Massachusetts to go on tour with his first professional circuit band: Earl Lett & the Blendaires.

Hamid Drake - drums
Kent Kessler - bass
Ken Vandermark - clarinet and tenor sax
+
Mats Gustafsson - tenor and baritone sax
Paal Nilssen-Love - drums
Massimo Pupillo - electric bass

Mastering: Martin Siewert
Artwork: Lasse Marhaug
Foto: Peter Gannushkin

One of the leading US jazz trios, based in Chicago, led by composer and saxplayer Ken Vandermark, came together in mid-90s and released several cds to great critical acclaim.
Here they are joined at the Brötzmann-curated festival in Wels, Austria 2011 by their European comrades from THE THING and ZU. Very intense, very passionate music.
The CD has a trio piece and two sextet pieces, the vinyl version features both sextet tracks.

From Italy to Brasil, Latin America, the USA, Japan and back to Scandinavia and Germany, 'The Modern Sound Of Nicola Conte' takes us on a journey into the most tasteful sounds you can get when it comes to Bossa flavored Jazz, Latin excursions and soulful grooves.

(180 gr vinyl + download card) The new Flying Horseman album (nr 3) sears the soul to the rhythm of a torrid summer's day. While the previous album, Twist, evoked the atmosphere of the deep, dark woods, City Same City is a breath of desert air.
The new Flying Horseman album - their third - sears the soul to the rhythm of a torrid summer's day. While the previous album, Twist, evoked the atmosphere of the deep, dark woods, City Same City is a breath of desert air. Still, each track is imbued with an ominous light, a sense of the gathering storm.

Buoyed by a rhythm section that's at once playful, pared-down and percussive, the songs flow like a river, governed by their own laws only. Unpredictable and marvellously eccentric, the overall effect recalls the work of other utterly unique musical artists (early Fleetwood Mac, late Talk Talk, Brian Eno, Talking Heads, Joy Division). There's also a distinctly African influence - particularly Nigerian juju music and Malian desert blues.

The album consists of twelve songs, divided into two parts.(City and Same City) The band's wealth of individual talent, combined with the strong vision of producer Koen Gisen and frontman Bert Dockx results in a varied, layered masterpiece; a gripping, hypnotic fever dream in twelve chapters.

Bert Dockx is clearly on a roll. He delivers this pièce de résistance, barely a year after Twist and a few months after I/II by Dans Dans, his other - much acclaimed - band.

This album is a compilation of the musical score for the well-known play 'Faust I & II' by
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. It was composed by Albrecht Ziepert and comissioned by
director Mark Zurmühle for a "Faust" production of the "Deutsche Theater Göttingen" in 20
It is the result of intense collaboration between Zurmüle and his cast, Ziepert, and the other
musicians he involved. The album also acts as a best-of, which documents the ever changing
nature of the production during the making and staging of it while the score was performed
live each night. The music is inspired by various contemporary genres - especially electronic
music - as well as classical instrumentations.
Albrecht Ziepert is a german musician and composer best known as member of the up-and-
coming band, "Pentatones". Since 1999 he has been composing for various theatre
productions, films and other audiovisual & modern dance projects. In 2010 he received an
award at the Novara Cine Festival in Mailand for his film music of 'Stiller See', a movie
directed by Lena Liberta. During 2011 he became the musical director for various projects at
the Deutsche Theater Göttingen and in 2012 he arranged his first commissioned piece of the
renowned MDR Sinfonieorchester.