Pop & Rock News

The Very Best Of Londonbeat is the 1997 compilation by British dance-pop band Londonbeat, who scored a number of hits during in the early 1990s. By the time this compilation was released, Londonbeat had released a total of four studio albums, Speak, In The Blood, Harmony, and Londonbeat. This 2LP compilation features their biggest hits, including ""I've Been Thinking About You"", ""9 AM (The Comfort Zone"", ""You Bring On The Sun"", ""A Better Love"", ""Failing In Love Again"" & ""No Woman No Cry"". The Very Best Of is available on vinyl for the very first time as a limited edition of 1000 copies on blue coloured vinyl and includes an insert.

Effortlessly hopscotching between vintage acid and 80s Rn’B, insouciant Francophone pop and twinkling electro house, Lou Hayter has delivered something at once utterly unique and defiantly timeless with her much anticipated debut solo LP, released on Skint Records. It has been a long time coming for London native Hayter, who first made her mark professionally as keyboardist for New Young Pony Club, one of THE bands at the epicentre of the white hot day-glo nu rave scene alongside the likes of the Klaxons and Test Icicles in 2006. But, to fully place her debut album in context, it is necessary to rewind a little bit – to the very beginning in fact, with Hayter growing up on a diet of Bowie, Prince, Human League and Jellybean-era Madonna while concomitantly learning classical piano from the age of five. The flames of this deliciously varied musical palette were further stoked by trips to record shops in Soho with her brother (Soul Jazz was a particular obsession), but it was while studying in Cambridge that the match was well and truly struck – she used her student grant to buy a set of Technics and started putting on club nights, before moving to London and working at Trevor Jackson’s seminal Output Recordings, placing Hayter smack bang in the middle of all the action, with disco punk fever hitting full force and bands like the Rapture and LCD Soundsystem first breaking out.

The hugely successful, Mercury-nominated New Young Pony Club followed shortly after, but it’s through her subsequent output that she started to distil and refine her idiosyncratic tastes. And certainly, you can hear hints of both the New Sins, the 80’s New Wave duo she formed with Nick Phillips, and Tomorrow’s World, the swooning Gallic pop act she fronts alongside Air’s JB Dunckel, in her remarkable debut. Full to bursting with evocative electro-soul love letters to her home town of London alongside addictive disco torch ballads, it’s like Kylie meeting Mr Fingers or, Jam & Lewis producing Jane Birkin – something beautiful and melancholic yet sharply modern and new. From the warm, woozy, lysergic harmonies of opener “Cherry on Top”, which sound like a beloved old cassette unravelling, to the fizzy, infectious “Cold Feet”, which calls to mind Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam at their most heartworn, taken in toto the album perfectly nails the essence of gorgeously nostalgic synth-pop with a twist; crisp, stylish and sophisticated music which heralds the next chapter of Lou Hayter quite nicely, actually. Her retro-futuristic results will give 2021 the pop fix it so desperately needs.

LSD is the collaborative consisting of Labrinth, Sia and Diplo. This is a 10 song album (CD was released 12th April 2019) which contains the massive hit single "Thunderclouds" plus new single "No New Friends". Radio support across all mainstream/commercial stations. Over 1 Billion streams to date. Ads, features and reviews across all press. Online/social media activity. Poster campaign. Limited double coloured LP format.

During his long and illustrious career the French composer and musique concrète pioneer Pierre Henry created a lare amount of incidental music to accompany literary texts, both on record and for the stage, from Jules Verne to Victor Hugo, from Lautréamont to Antonin Artaud. This incredibly rare LP from 1959 is a radio play about the life of French pilot and writer Antoine de Saint Exupéry, based on the 1956 book by Luc Estang on the subject. The interpreters are a small theater troupe including French actor Paul Meurisse (1912-1979), famous for popular films and as a member of national theater company, La Comédie Française. Underlying key scenes, Pierre Henry’s contribution to the play consists of electronic and musique concrète sounds, adding a contemporary dimension to the text. A beautiful piece from one of the mid-20th century's truly brilliant sonic explorers.

Die in Sheffield lebende Singer/Songwriterin Lucy Spraggan fühlt sich rundum wohl und möchte dieses Gefühl nach außen tragen - mit der Veröffentlichung ihres fünften Studioalbums »Today Was A Good Day«. Nachdem Lucy lange bei Open Mic-Sessions durch eine harte Schule ging, nahm ihre Karriere 2012 rasant Fahrt auf und machte sie in diesem Jahr zur meistgegoogleten Musikerin des Vereinigten Königreichs: Bei der Casting-Show The X Factor performte sie ihren selbst verfassten Song »Last Night (Beer Fear)« - der sich noch während ihrer Zeit als Kandidatin zu einem Top 20-Hit entwickelte.

Sieben Jahre später kann Lucy Spraggan bislang über 240 Millionen Streams allein bei Spotify, 50 Millionen Views auf YouTube, einen Auftritt beim legendären Glastonbury sowie vier Alben in den britischen Top 30 für sich verbuchen - und damit auf eine märchenhafte Erfolgsgeschichte zurückblicken, der sie nun mit ihrem fünften Album ein weiteres Kapitel hinzufügen möchte.

»Today Was A Good Day« markiert für die Künstlerin in mehreren Hinsichten einen Neubeginn: Zum einen ist es ihr erstes Album, das auf dem Label Lucky Number Music erscheinen wird; vor allem aber steht es sinnbildlich als bewältigender Abschluss von schweren persönlichen Zeiten, in denen sie 2013 kurz vor dem Selbstmord stand: I was about to turn my wheel into the central reservation when my dog (her Boston Terrier, Steve) sneezed. I knew I couldn t do it to him and he saved me. I came straight home and started Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and my recovery started from there.

Pirouetting on decadence, meeting eyes with a dizzy sensation, falling and flying at the same time—Lust for Youth have continually held poise through the most vitalizing of times. Their new album, a self-titled collection of eight songs, is surefooted where they had earlier feared to tread, and light-headed for a new set of reasons. The album is driven by a dance-pop agenda, hustling its way through upbeat peaks that level out into reflective ballads. While still taking clear cues from a crop of austere synth-pop, Lust for Youth sound brighter than they ever have before, taking tips from some of the flirtiest Eurobeat to aid their new direction.

On their previous album, Compassion, Lust for Youth examined euphoria and contemporary life with a wry wit. Where facetiousness masqueraded as commitment, compliments and fawning clearly yearned for a true connection. Lust for Youth sees Hannes Norrvide and Malthe Fischer taking some familiar strides, though to another place. The disaffected balearia is this time rendered into brighter pop compositions that bustle with intricate production. No longer galvanizing us with hooks, but with a songcraft unhindered by anxiety, the album presents a cohesion not seen in the project until now. Lyrically, the apprehension still hangs like tinsel. Often garish and celebratory, the droll mischief is this time more pointed, more personal, and far more self-aware. A thread of reflections upon the state of the world is artfully wound throughout the album, casting a quiet force upon the detachment of Norrvide’s vocals.

Pirouetting on decadence, meeting eyes with a dizzy sensation, falling and flying at the same time—Lust for Youth have continually held poise through the most vitalizing of times. Their new album, a self-titled collection of eight songs, is surefooted where they had earlier feared to tread, and light-headed for a new set of reasons. The album is driven by a dance-pop agenda, hustling its way through upbeat peaks that level out into reflective ballads. While still taking clear cues from a crop of austere synth-pop, Lust for Youth sound brighter than they ever have before, taking tips from some of the flirtiest Eurobeat to aid their new direction.

On their previous album, Compassion, Lust for Youth examined euphoria and contemporary life with a wry wit. Where facetiousness masqueraded as commitment, compliments and fawning clearly yearned for a true connection. Lust for Youth sees Hannes Norrvide and Malthe Fischer taking some familiar strides, though to another place. The disaffected balearia is this time rendered into brighter pop compositions that bustle with intricate production. No longer galvanizing us with hooks, but with a songcraft unhindered by anxiety, the album presents a cohesion not seen in the project until now. Lyrically, the apprehension still hangs like tinsel. Often garish and celebratory, the droll mischief is this time more pointed, more personal, and far more self-aware. A thread of reflections upon the state of the world is artfully wound throughout the album, casting a quiet force upon the detachment of Norrvide’s vocals.

Die–cut 300–gr Kraft board jacket. All the elements on the cover have been hand stamped.
Includes download code.
This is the first release on our new Ex Machina collection; "Exit/Accidental (Abstract)" is a carefully chosen selection from the first cassette–only album "Exit/Accidental" (1988) by prolific Berlin–based producer and music publisher Mickeyblitz Finnkrieg, very active in the late 80s who, besides self–producing and distributing his music, also single–handedly ran a thriving underground cassette label called Deaf Eye, releasing about ten different productions and several international compilations. M. Finnkrieg worked in parallel lines to any known music circuit. This might be the main reason why his music has remained highly confidential so far. Incidentally: a Mickey Finn – or simply a Mickey – is a drink laced with a psychoactive drug or incapacitating agent given to someone without their knowledge, intending to incapacitate them.

Heavily indebted to bands like Severed Heads and British Industrials in the vein of Cabaret Voltaire, early Test Dept. or Sonic Youth, the tracks selected on this album present the outcome of many a late practice evening and live sessions well into the small hours, experimenting in a completely self–made music lab with tape loops, resistors, capacitors, transistors, 8–bit samplers, guitars and a nice array of synths (Korg MS–20, Roland SH–1, Roland TB 303, Korg Polysix...), drum machines (Roland TR 505, TR 707, CR–78...) and loads of effect gadgets producing a distinctive sound, not far from proto–techno/electro and industrial–disco with touches of ebm and out–there funk. An all–analogic production and loaded with pre–recorded reel–to–reel samples, this recording, salvaged after 30 years, is a perfect illustration of the DIY philosophy and independent spirits of the time, cutting through time barriers with a sound as valid today as when it was first made.

“Last summer, Maestro were invited to the Chateau du Fëy in French Burgundy to perform live. Instead of going for their usual power trio formula, they dropped almost all their instruments arsenal, kept one synth, a minimal drum kit and invited a string quartet to create stripped down chamber orchestra versions of their songs. The result was beyond everyone's expectations. And luckily it was recorded. I always love hearing great bands demos and alternate takes (like The Beatles, Bowie...), when the things are still rough, stripped down. Then you can really hear the essence of a song. That's what's so beautiful with this record, Fred's intricate string arrangements cast a new light on Maestro's sophisticated compositions, Mark's lyrics and voice take you far away, their music shines like never before. One last thing, if they ever play in your town, do yourself a favor and go see them live.” - Joakim

Mamman Sani"s electronic organ music, first recorded in 1978, made him a national hero in Niger, led to him writing the Niger"s new national anthem, and has long been cherished by aficionados for its unique blend of traditional Nigerien melodies and synth experimentation. Mamman"s music embodies a sense of intimacy, echoing the presence of a solo artist in the room with the listener.

Following on from the hugely succesful 1CD format released last year, UMC are proud to present a double vinyl LP pressing of Marc Almond's Hits & Pieces . The first comprehensive Marc Almond singles since 1991's Memorabilia gathers together hits from his solo years and as part of Marc And The Mambas and Soft Cell. It includes such landmarks as the era-defining 'Tainted Love', and 'Say Hello Wave Goodbye', Marc's definitive cover versions of 'Jacky' and 'The Days of Pearly Spencer' and smash hit collaborations with Bronski Beat ('I Feel Love') and Gene Pitney ('Something's Gotten Hold Of My Heart'). Hits And Pieces also includes the 2016 single 'A Kind Of Love'. (Download card included)

Born in Majorca, Marc Melià is a composer/producer, who’s been based in Brussels for over 10 years. First spotted alongside Françoiz Breut, Lonely Drifter Karen or Borja Flames, he released Music for Prophet in 2017. It was issued on Gaspar Claus’s label Les Disques du Festival Permanent, as part of Flavien Berger’s curation.

On that first album, Marc Melià had explored the possibilities of a mythic synth; on Veus, as if sloughing, he applied the process of sound modification to his own voice, until becoming an android. But an android who sings of love and dreams, a sensitive automaton who plays with the tropes of pop music. Through this device, Marc Melià knowingly seeks poetry and beauty within transgenics, in the search of a universe where one can surf though waves of profoundly moving chord patterns, hear voices unconstrained by range limitations, or dance freely, as in zero gravity.

Part of the album has been recorded in Une ferme dans les Vosges, courtesy of Rodolphe Burger. It was recorded with Roméo Poirier, one of the most promising figures of ambient, and the elegant multi-talented Lou Rotzinger. As if progressing in parallel with his own linguistic experience, to add another layer to the sloughing, side A is sung in Catalan, Marc Melià’s mother tongue, and side B in French, his adopted language.

Like an echo to his previous album, Veus opens with an instrumental, “Pulse on a E”, which starts with a sequence created with a single note transposed to its octave, just like “Fata Fou”, the last song on Music for Prophet.

Although the title seems to reference an iconic 80s synth, “DX7” is actually about the seven days of the week. It is a love song, about the temperamental oscillations which make every morning the blank canvas of an unpredictable story. Wednesday, I hate you, Sunday, I love you. With few words and a lot of emotion, a synthetic voice is trying to grow more human each day.

“Dent de Serra” deals with the weight of memory on our relationships, but also with the way we revisit them constantly in order to integrate souvenirs within present relationships. Suddenly, the song stops and enters a new dimension, everything is different, as if what had just happened was now forgotten forever.

Oxytocin (“Oxitocines” in Catalan) is said to be the hormone of love. This song deals in a playful way with the duality between science and faith, between rational and magic, when it comes to sentimental relationships. Love is a universal theme, it is everywhere in the world, and love songs have been written for a very long time. But this particular love song is an ode to an aspect of love that has been less sung about: biology, which makes it possible to feel like you’re floating in space when you fall in love.

“Les étoiles” is a trio with Flavien Berger and Pi Ja Ma. The song is about attraction. What attracts humans to each other, but also the inevitable gravitational attraction. The song is also about accidents, magic moments that take us outside of our daily lives and give us the possibility to imagine a sidereal, infinite love.

“A propos d’une chanson” was born after Marc Melià had dreamed he had written the most beautiful song he’d ever created. When he woke up, he realized that song was actually O Superman by Laurie Anderson.

Aside from these songs, Marc Melià offers a few breaks, instrumental but no less narrative.

“Final d’hivern” conjures these quiet moments between two intense events; sleeping at night between two days; the calm that settles in after a hard winter, right before spring properly starts.

Using a musical language that clearly references Ryuichi Sakamoto, “Romain”, with its theme based on a melancholic chord pattern, could be the soundtrack to a 1970s movie lost in time. Little by little, elements that seem to come from a completely different context find their place, while turning the initial mood into something strange and unexpected.

Finally, “Retorn”, which finishes the album, is a reprise of the theme of “DX7”.

From the chords that make up a song, to the days that make up our lives, existence is but a cycle, and Veus is an exploration of them. Marc Melià keeps on drifting on his personal path, between homage to the past and visions of the future.

Limited opaque yellow vinyl format of the album that was released March 8th on CD. Continuing radio support across R1, R2, ILR and country music specialists. Ongoing press features, interviews and reviews. Online/social media activity. UK tour dates across May.

Maria Chiara Argirò's album "Closer" departs from her prior work, fueled by an indescribable, dreamlike feeling. The album's core duality of blurred lines and clarity reflects Argirò's philosophy. A philosophy encapsulated in the urgency of her production process and the unique lucidity with which she weaves ambient, dance, jazz, and experimental pop seamlessly together. The album defies easy definition, emphasising an inner self-discovery process, detached from external influences, not only breaking sonic ground but signifying a deeply personal journey, anchoring Argirò to her creation. Argirò has previously seen critical success with support from Pitchfork, The FADER, FLOOD, Brooklyn Vegan and Clash Magazine. “Closer” will be released on the 26th of April 2024

Hyperdub launch new sub-label Flatlines for the release of ‘On Vanishing Land’, an audio-essay by Justin Barton and the late Mark Fisher. ‘On Vanishing Land’ evokes a walk along the Suffolk coastline in 2006, from Felixstowe container port ("a nerve ganglion of capitalism") to the Anglo-Saxon burial ground at Sutton Hoo. A walk under immense skies, through zones of deep time, and within sunlit, liminal terrains, into the eerie. Everywhere there are charged atmospheres, shadowy incursions, enigmatic departures. A derelict radar base, coastal heathland, drifting thistledown, towers of overgrown shipping containers - music haunted by wider levels of reality, narrations about rarely visited zones and potentials, voices of dreams and stories. This music includes newly-composed tracks by John Foxx, Gazelle Twin, Baron Mordant, Raime, Pete Wiseman, Farmers of Vega, Skjolbrot, Eerie Anglia, Ekoplekz and Dolly Dolly. Alongside these are glimpsed views toward M.R.James’s ‘Oh Whistle and I’ll Come to You My Lad’ (1904), Joan Lindsay’s ‘Picnic at Hanging Rock’ (1967), and Brian Eno’s ‘On Land’ (1982). Beyond the surface of the day something becomes visible, a way forward, an escape-path from capitalist reality. ‘On Vanishing Land’ is about following the lines of terrains and dreams. It is about a micropolitics of escape, of disappearance. A micropolitics of waking the faculties. ‘On Vanishing Land’ was initially part of an exhibition commissioned by The Otolith Collective and The Showroom in London, and after ‘londonunderlondon’ (2005) it was the second audio-work collaboration by Justin Barton and Mark Fisher.

The LP cover features photos taken by Mark Fisher, and a short essay by Justin Barton. Pressed on 180g vinyl, in deluxe rigid board sleeve, with free mp3 download code.

A travelogue that unites physical and inner space, a series of trance states rendered in vivid colour, a delirious portal into the ether.
Marlene Ribeiro’s first albumunder her own name is all of this and much more. Toquei No Sol is a fresh new chapter for this unique artist, by far the most melodic and transcendent outing yet for her hypnotic dreampop.

This is only the latest release in a long history of sonic experimentation for Marlene, which includes her previous work as Negra Branca across a series of releases on labels such as Tesla Tapes and Zamzam and a long period as a member of audial iconoclasts and Rocket mainstays GNOD, not to mention collaborations with the like of Valentina Magaletti and Thurston Moore.

Toquei No Sol is also a record with a very distinctive and potent sense of place, paradoxically despite having been woven together from recordings made in Ireland, Wales, Portugal, Madeira and Salford.
It’s genesis came via a visit to Marlene’s maternal grandmother Emilia, whose influence as well as the sounds of her kitchen in Portugal.
can be heard on the album’s first track ‘Quatro Palavras’.

“Emilia ended up getting excited about me being able to record things there and then and - total news to me - told me she used to sing a lot when she was younger to the point of getting offered studio time but refusing it as she was fearful of what that could imply in those times” relates Marlene “From that point I planned to include her in this record as sort of the chance she never had of getting her voice out there.”

Elsewhere, a disarmingly catchy and irresistible grace is married to
a utilitarian approach to sound and texture. The ritualistic “Sangue De Lua de Lobo” (first released on a Sofia records compilation Songs Of The Lunar Eclipse) contains random objects from Marlene’s then-garden in Ireland, whereas on the drifting, beatific ‘Forever’ the percussion tracks are constructed from the sounds of pots and pans in her own Salford kitchen.

Yet at all times her fleet-footed approach to melody rings through even as the tracks conjure visions of heat-hazes, meditative spaces and late-night epiphanies. Although listeners may hear echoes of the
loop-driven psychedelia of Panda Bear’s Person Pitch or the incantatory ululations of Pocahaunted in these beguiling soundscapes and magick-strewn mantras, the truth is that the aesthetic here is
very much Marlene’s alone.

“It’s all a big misty haze of nostalgia, playfulness, self-reflection and hopefulness” is what Marlene reckons herself. Yet Toquei No Sol
is also a transporting vision from an artist both returning to her roots
and looking out to new celestial horizons.

LP Black Vinyl, DL card. ‘Until We Fossilize’ is the debut album from Marta Del Grandi, an eclectic singer songwriter from Italy. This is an award-winning jazz vocalist set in new territory, crossing borders of genre and style from West Coast ‘60s to ambient exotica, from plaintive Lynchian etherealism to dramatic Morricone scores. Marta gathers influences from near and far to create a unique genre-splicing style who’s now travelling her own unique and unchartered path. Newly signed to Fire Records, this debut is an unravelling of time and distance; a breathtaking journey from mainland Europe to the Far East and back again, delivered as an eerie, soundtrack by a captivating vocalist. A self-produced gem; filled with lush strings and electronic ambience and an eclectic vocal that transcends boundaries. Lead single ‘Amethyst’ takes inspiration by the myth of Amethyst, filled with Greek mythology, touching the wildest manifestation of imagination, it’s the story of a woman who frees herself from the expectations imposed on her by patriarchy. Composed with Indian drummer Tarun Balani, Marta sounds like Sandy Denny backed by Eno on Gamelan with a nod to Sun Ra. ‘Until We Fossilize’ is a lyrically aware set of dramas littered with life-affirming couplets over gorgeous, dramatic turns. “It’s modern and ancestral at the same time.”

What a collection of talent on this rarity from the Brunswick label— production by disco maestro Tony Valor, arrangements by Chi-Soul legend Eugene Record, and mix by the great Tom Moulton. Not to mention instrumental accompaniment from Valor’s highly esteemed Tony Valor Sounds Orchestra...no wonder this 1976 release is deemed a stone-cold proto-disco classic across the globe (it’s been reissued on CD in Japan multiple times).

For its first vinyl reissue, we’re giving it the Real Gone treatment, with a new remastering for vinyl by Mike Milchner at Sonic Vision, and a clear with blue, green, and pink swirl (to match the cover art) pressing limited to 900 copies (note: check out the version of the Chi-Lites’ “Stoned Out of My Mind” for instant soul salvation).

Mashrou’ Leila described as ‘The voice of their generation’ and ‘The Arab world’s most influential independent band’ by CNN and The Financial Times respectively mark their 10th anniversary with the release of ‘The Beirut School’- a compilation of their classic tracks and new material.

The album brings together the key songs from their first four albums, and also features three new songs ‘Cavalry’ , ‘Salam’ and ‘Radio Romance’ that were produced by Joe Goddard of Hot Chip from sessions in the band’s studio in Beirut and at the legendary La Frette Studios in Paris.

‘Salam’ features Roisin Murphy on vocals. The original version was first released as part of ‘Block9’s Creative Retreat’, created at Banksy's Walled Off Hotel, Palestine.













[l] 12. Salam [with Roisin Murphy]

Mateo Kingman conceives of his second album Astro as a cure for the healthy. It’s a journey across the constellation of the snake, a journey at once earthly and cosmic. The poetic text expressed with a multiplicity of vocal timbres drives the musical journey, starting with the decision to face up to our demons, passing through a deep sense of vertigo and sacred healings, to return us to ourselves, reconciled and grateful.
 
Musically, Astro expresses an intense investigation, tying together different threads: contemporary urban song (trap, hip hop, and elements of electronic music), traditional Latin American melodies influenced by shamanic icaro chants, and the emphasis on synthesizers, resulting in a new, hypnotic kind of sound. 
In a world in which we increasingly need more stimuli and approval from the outside, Astro invites us to take a look inside and explore all the aspects of the self, from the darkest to the lightest. On this record, Mateo Kingman shows a strong point of view as the author, although he moves away from the sounds and themes with which he made his name, daring to mix current trends, urban rhythms and vocal experiments, forming a constellation through which we can all travel, showing a clear personal and musical evolution.   

Ten years after its release, the reissue of this fabulous Matt Elliott record seemed essential to us since it was eagerly expected! It is undoubtedly the most dramatic sequel to the songs trilogy being outstanding for its darkness, from which he has progressively turned away. The Songs Trilogy is over, A new chapter entitled 'The Broken Man' is about to open and is the most delicate of Elliott's albums to date. The angry noise has all but abated, making way for more fragile melodies and a more subtle approach to intensity to immerse the listener. Ideally listened to in total darkness to discover the hope hidden deep within the guitars, voice, choirs, bells, ethereal trumpets, the howl of the dog beneath the skin, in the sincerity of the music. Inspired by the ghosts of European folk music, the voice often resigned but always expressive. Always finding new ways of working, Elliott collaborated with Katia Labeque who interpreted an improvisation of his that became the backbone of one of the central epic pieces on this album 'If Anyone Ever Tells Me That it is Better to Have Loved and Lost Than to Have Never Loved At All I Will Stab Them in the Face'. 'Dust Flesh and Bones', another of the epic pieces on this album, is perhaps Elliott's most beautiful and moving work to date, simple in it's form but emotionally profound. 'The Pain that's Yet to Come' hints at a new almost psychedelic era to come. 'The Broken Man' is an album to be discovered gradually over many listens, and with each one a new depth is surrendered until one can appreciate the panorama in it's entirety. Each track is an invitation to explore one mans analysis of his own descent reflecting the frustrations and sadness that touch us all at some point. Mixed by Yann Tiersen this album is a bridge between the more acoustic work of 'Songs' and the more electronic, ethereal work of Third Eye Foundation. It is finely balanced in the centre of Matt's musical universe.

"Es muß alles rein, was ich noch heute gut oder zumindest interessant finde." - So die Devise für Max Goldts musikalische Werkschau mit Musik von 1980 bis 2000. Die Stücke gab es gesammelt als 6-CD-Boxset, randvoll mit Solostücken und Werken von Foyer des Arts, Nuuk und anderen Projekten. Ein Extrakt daraus - das Feinste vom Feinsten aus 20 Jahren Max-Goldt-Musikgeschichte - erscheint nun als Doppel-LP und auf CD. Max Goldt, geboren 1958 in Göttingen, 1977 Umzug nach West-Berlin, Ausbildung zum Fotografen. 1981 Gründung von Foyer Des Arts zusammen mit Gerd Pasemann. Goldt war Kolumnist für die Periodika "Ich und mein Staubsauger" und "Titanic". Ab 1981 veröffentlichte er mit Foyer des Arts, mit Stephan Winkler als Nuuk und solo etliche Alben, Tapes und Singles. Goldt publizierte zahlreiche Bücher und Hörbücher und ist der breiten Öffentlichkeit heute als Schriftsteller bekannt. Max Goldt sei für Deutschland was die Residents für Amerika seien, eine Institution und Fixstern in Sachen guten Geschmacks und Avantgarde hieß es in der Zeitschrift "Ox" anlässlich der Wiederveröffentlichung des Albums "L'Eglise Des Crocodiles" 2011. Während die Bezugnahme auf die kalifornischen Maskenmänner umstritten ist, herrscht weitestgehend Einigkeit bezüglich Fixstern, Avantgarde und guter Geschmack.

Building on the musical material of the first record, VOICES 2 extends the musical language into a purely instrumental and abstract direction. Where the first part of the project is very focused on the text of The Universal Declaration Of Human Rights, the 2nd part opens up a musical space to let these words and ideas sink in.

The second of two ace new Polytechnic Youth LPs for late June; this one sees Liverpool based, Harry Sumnall’s Melodien debut on PY after releases on sister label Deep Distance amongst others. Eight kosmische flavoured synth pop nuggets, heavy on nods to the Sky label oeuvre of later Cluster, Wolfgang Reichmann, Harald Grosskopf, Deutsche Wertarbeit and co; yet with a freshness and boldness very much of today.

Each track is underpinned in the most part by driving, sequenced motorik rhythms hugely recommended to all fans of the above…

The LPs’ title “Enanriodromia” is the constancy of change and the emergence of the unconscious diametric in the course of time - everything that exists turns into its opposite (Carl Jung); and Harry himself describes the album as an idyllic backdrop to an imagined world where “Iasos’ Crystal Vista is repeated on loop across all TV channels, where Luboš Fišer composes Olympic gold medal anthems, where Marcel Schwob and Jane de La Vaudère works are free from your local book exchange, where Josef Svoboda designed your local shopping center, where Richard Pinhas plays at your village fete, and the most popular YouTube channels give advice on sequencer ratcheting and psychopharmacology!”

On ‘As Long As The Light’, Michael Rother (NEU!,
Harmonia) collaborates with the Italian musician
Vittoria Maccabruni.
 Vittoria Maccabruni creates predominantly dark
moods with her sound constructions, which then
create a reciprocal emotional play with Michael
Rother’s melodies and guitar harmonies.
 The result of this collaboration manifests itself
under the title ‘As Long As The Light’, an unspent
joy of playing in eight songs that also breaks new
ground with regard to Rother’s broad oeuvre,
which now spans half a century.
 Now available on vinyl.

The album features the offbeat unworldliness of the single, My Tentacles and the mesmeric standout track, Think Like a Swarm, reminiscent of Laurie Anderson's art meets pop music sensibilities. The album bristles with quirky, dysfunctional beats and chimeric fusions. Her Tentacles are truly her own, for this free-spirited
champion of outsider art pop.

The album features bass by Teitur Arnason & Renell Shaw, acoustic guitar & backing vocals Sam Carter, electric guitar by David Cunningham, Viola by Ella Burch, Cello by Francesca Ter-Berg & Lucinda Skinner, Trumpet by Eddie 'Tan Tan' Thornton.

Recorded / Mixed / Produced by Mieko Shimizu & Peter Morris at Street Furniture Studios, Soho, London. Mastered by Keith Tenniswood at Curve Pusher My Tentacles by Mieko Shimizu will be re- released on 13th March 2024 on Street Furniture Records.

It was originally released in 2011. This digitally remastered version has been repackaged with new designs by We Are Noisy.

Miguel Atwood-Ferguson lebt in seiner Heimatstadt Los Angeles und ist einer der herausragenden Musiker, Orchestratoren, Arrangeure und Komponisten unserer Zeit. „Les Jardins Mystiques Vol.1“ ist sein lang erwartetes Debütalbum. Es präsentiert uns eine leidenschaftliche Liebeserklärung und ein Reich der schönen Möglichkeiten.

Es gibt eine Fülle von Möglichkeiten, sich Miguel Atwood-Fergusons Musik zu nähern - und es gibt keine Grenzen, wohin sie jemanden führen könnte. Als Komponist, Arrangeur, Multiinstrumentalist und Produzent hat er an mehr als 600 Alben und Soundtracks für genreübergreifende Künstler:innen gearbeitet, darunter Flying Lotus, Thundercat, Anderson .Paak, Mary J. Blige oder Seu Jorge. Seine Klangpalette umfasst Jazz, Klassik, Hiphop, Electronica, Avantgarde, Pop und vieles mehr. Zu seinen gefeierten Live- und Aufnahmeprojekten gehören die innovative orchestrale Neuinterpretation des Repertoires von J Dilla, „Suite For Ma Dukes“ (2009), seine produktiven Werke mit seinem langjährigen Freund und Kollaborateur Carlos Niño, darunter das improvisierte Album, „Chicago Waves“ (2020), auf International Anthem, und seine Gruppen wie das Quartetto Fantastico und das Miguel Atwood-Ferguson Ensemble. „Les Jardins Mystiques“ ist ein Projekt, das Miguel Atwood-Fergusons musikalisches Universum offenlegt und mit anderen teilt. Es hat sich über ein Dutzend Jahre hinweg entwickelt, wurde größtenteils von ihm selbst finanziert und zeigt seine ausgesprochen elegante Musikalität (u. a. auf Geige, Bratsche, Cello und Keyboards) sowie seine freigeistigen Dialoge mit mehr als 50 Instrumentalist:innen. ‚Volume 1‘ ist hierbei bloß der erste Teil eines geplanten Triptychons, das insgesamt ganze zehneinhalb Stunden origineller und erfrischend ausladender Musik umfassen wird. Atwood-Ferguson verband sich mit seinen Gastmusiker:innen auf vielfältige Weise: durch gesellige Studiodialoge, durch Fernkommunikation während der Pandemie und durch die Energie von Live-Auftritten in seiner Heimatstadt, darunter im Del Monte Speakeasy (das herrlich belebende, von einem Klavier begleitete „Dream Dance“) und im Bluewhale (u. a. „Ano Yo“ mit dem temperamentvollen Alt-Saxophon von Devin Daniels und den kosmischen Harmonien von „Cho Oyu“). Bennie Maupin, der legendäre US-Multi-Blasinstrumentalist, zu dessen Repertoire auch Miles Davis' Fusion-Opus „Bitches Brew“ gehört, spielt Bassklarinette auf der hinreißenden Eröffnungsnummer „Kiseki“. Im Laufe seiner illustren Karriere hat Miguel Atwood-Ferguson mit Künstler:innen wie Rihanna, Ray Charles, Lana Del Rey, Lady Gaga, Anderson .Paak, Dr. Dre, Kamasi Washington, Mary J. Blige, will.i. am, Big Boi, Arthur Verocai, Bonobo, Lianne La Havas, Kaytranada, Moses Sumney, Seu Jorge, Common, The Roots, The Cinematic Orchestra, Jamael Dean, Shafiq Husayn, Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Carlos Niño, Bilal und viele mehr zusammengearbeitet.

American industrial metal band Ministry was founded by lead singer Al Jourgensen in 1981. Originally a new wave synthpop outfit, Ministry changed its style to become one of the pioneers of industrial metal in the mid-‘80s. In Case You Didn’t Feel Like Showing Up is a live album by the band. The record was originally released in 1990 and contains the live show performed in Merrillville on February 22, 1990. It is six songs long, but delivers big time for each of them. The energy, the maniacal chaos and an order under the surface of this chaos. In 2005 In Case You Didn’t Feel Like Showing Up was ranked number 328 in Rock Hard magazine’s book “The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time”.

In Case You Didn’t Feel Like Showing Up is available as a limited edition of 1000 numbered copies on silver vinyl. The package includes an insert.

Debütalbum des Electro-Pop-Künstlers Josh Mills aka Missions aus Los Angeles, der bereits mit den prämierten "Stranger Things"-Komponisten Kyle Dixon und Michael Stein und der Pariser Electro-Pop-Kollegin Lou Rebecca gearbeitet hat. Die 10 Tracks auf "Subcreature" bestechen mit infiziösen Electro-Rhythmen, durchsetzt mit Momenten cineastischer Schönheit, Ingredienzen aus HipHop und R&B und Vocoder-Vocals aus der Früh-1980er Ära des Electro-Boogie.

Ready for Romance is the third studio album by German duo Modern Talking. The album spent five consecutive weeks atop the German chart and also topped the charts in Austria and Switzerland, while reaching the top 10 in Finland, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain and Sweden. The album spawned two successful singles, “Brother Louie” and “Atlantis Is Calling (S.O.S. for Love)”.

Available as a limited edition of 2500 individually numbered copies on transparent red vinyl. The package includes an insert and contains gold- spot varnish on the Modern Talking logo on the front cover.

Pioneers of the British music scene, ‘Blackest Blue’ will be the band's 10th studio album in a discography that spans three decades. 2020 saw Morcheeba unable to tour or perform live, which gave Skye Edwards & Ross Godfrey “time to write songs and really get to hone them,” as Godfrey puts it. “There weren’t so many pressures so we could really take our time getting the songs right,” adds Edwards.

The result of this time is a refined 10 track album that fuses previous incarnations and sound of the band - such as downbeat, chill, electro-pop & soul - into one cohesive record that dives deep into the soul of the band’s genre-mashing musical heritage. As usual, the band didn’t approach the album with any pre-conceptions, and instead created an organic journey that represents everything great about Morcheeba.

Edwards’ lyrics are primarily focused on positivity and overcoming personal adversity that lies within. ‘Sounds Of Blue’, is a stunning cut that puts Skye Edward's sultry vocals to the forefront, floating high above an ethereal backdrop.

The album includes features with Duke Garwood (known for his work with Mark Lanegan, amongst others) and Brad Barr (The Slip, The Barr Brothers). “

Morcheeba’s global reach is impressive, taking them to every corner of the world . Their signature chilled electronic/organic sound has been border-hopping ever since the London-based band emerged as a household name. The past year has been one of introspection for the duo, as they take stock of their renewed global fan base and look forward to being able to play the new album live in the not too distant future. “This was the first time since I was a teenager that I’d spent a year off the road and I enjoyed the tranquility, although I missed playing my guitar in far off lands,” says Godfrey.

Recorded in 1985, Water Music is the first “Japanese” solo album by Mott The Hoople keyboard player Morgan
Fisher, released on Satoro Takazawa aka Pneuma’s label LLE. There are four am-bient tracks that are played out as
a multi-sensorial improvisation on Yamaha DX7 digital syn-thesizer, grand piano, tape delays, bowed guitar, and
shell chimes. The effect is highly con-templative album that flows as a powerful yet ethereal journey through the
element of water. Completely remastered in 2018 with 2 bonus tracks recorded in Tokyo in 1995, this gatefold
edition features new notes from Morgan Fisher.

MR TOUT LE MONDE presents “YOU”, the final part of his SUN-HER-YOU albums trilogy, releasing September 13th.

This album marks a key moment for the French producer, blending indie pop and EDM styles. Following successful tours in Canada and Germany, he’s set for a 9-date US tour in September and his Paris headline debut at Le Trianon on November 15th, sold out 4 months in advance.

“YOU” showcases MR TOUT LE MONDE’s versatility across genres. The lead single “Before You Go” (featuring Oaks) deliver infectious electronic energy when “I Don’t Know” offers introspective indie pop. Fan favorites “Thinking Of” and “Wonderful World” reinforce the unique aesthetic that has become the artist’s signature.

The album’s concept revolves around fan experiences, with each track inspired by listener stories, reflected in the album’s striking cover art. Inspired by fan stories, the album resonates with MR TOUT LE MONDE’s core 18-35 demographic.

Available for the first time on vinyl - a 20th anniversary release of The Mystic Chords Of Memory's seminal, unique DIY psych-folk debut. By Beachwood Sparks singer/songwriter Chris Gunst & Aislers Set's Jen Cohen. Mastered at Abbey Road. The seeds of this exquisite album are scattered among the tracks of Make The Cowboy Robots Cry - the LP Beachwood Sparks hung their hats on before a ten year break. A further step forward from west coast country psych towards something with folkier roots but new, mysterious and above all free. Chris and Jen's conjuring of magical, unforced, domestic spirituality. Recorded in a little wood cabin amongst the redwoods overlooking a running creek with a range of collected musical toys. Just give it 5 minutes once you’ve dropped the needle & you’ll be right there. Here’s Amanda Petrussich’s brilliant write up in Pitchfork - “With its soft melodies, sweet vocals, and scratchy DIY production, Mystic Chords of Memory is also an overwhelmingly intimate record, focused and domestic - much closer to Elliott Smith than former-benchmarks the Byrds and Buffalo Springfield…. The duo's wordy moniker was lifted from Abraham Lincoln's first inaugural address, a lecture delivered in the spring of 1861 and boldly eternalised at the base of Mount Rushmore... Appropriately, the band's sound is just as archaic as a truly striking political speech: Gunst and Cohen blend tinkling bells, melodica, harp, keyboards, bits of samples, tinny drums, and strummy guitars, presenting a vaguely contemporary update on the British folk phenomenon of the late 1960s with more blips. Mystic Chords of Memory is a surprisingly coherent re-introduction to Gunst, and his professional coupling with Jen Cohen has proven both a freeing and inspired move.” Two decades later it’s obvious how seminal a record they conjured up. They forged a path that came to define the wave of US indie that followed for a while. In our opinion, the original has a natural, guileless, effortless beauty that trumps them all. Without a whiff of Starbucks. "Mystic chords of memory speech I interpreted the meaning as the underlying psyche fabric we are all creating on this land together. Jen and I thought it would be a great name to inspire our music together. This was really close to post 9/11 times and we were thinking about all of this and also wanting to improve our own contribution to the psychological fabric of the world.” Chis Gunst.

Nation of Language hail from Brooklyn, New York.
 The band self-released their debut album
‘Introduction, Presence’ in May 2020.
 ‘A Way Forward’ marks their first album since
signing to Play It Again Sam.
 For fans of Future Islands, OMD, The National,
Working Men’s Club.