Cerca:man power

LIMITED 180GM OPAQUE ORANGE VINYL.

BUFFET LUNCH are a Scottish group who make it their mission to craft satisfyingly imperfect pop songs filled with imagery and humour.The group’s elementary parts are Perry O’Bray (Vocals/Keys/Guitar), Neil Robinson (Bass), John Muir (Lead Guitar) & Luke Moran (Drums), united by a shared love of music on the ABBA-to-Beefheart axis.

These four ricochet between Glasgow and Edinburgh, creating music that bristles with DIY spirit and upbeat wonkiness. Their tracks are vigorous excursions, meandering into clattersome terrain as often as hiking up into the breezy, melodious foothills.The desire to lead the listener along a curious tale helps tie things together, showcasing a lyrical playfulness that pins down their puzzle of sound.

Having been an active band for a few years, playing regularly north of the border with like-minds such as Irma Vep, Robert Sotelo and Kaputt, Buffet Lunch spent early 2020 working on the follow-up to their two EPs on Permanent Slump.The fruits from such labour bore out as the band’s debut album ‘ThePower of Rocks’, out may 7th on UpsetTheRhythm.

‘ThePower of Rocks’ was recorded in a Crofters cottage/studio on the banks of Upper Loch Fyne in Argyll, over four nights and five days at the beginning of March 2020, before Covid-19 made itself such an ongoing concern. Back then four people could occupy the same space and make music, lunch and dinner together. Days fell into a pattern of long sessions and long meals.The album came together as a luminous mix of Buffet Lunch’s live chestnuts, some sparky recent songs and some new material entirely written and recorded in situ. All tracks were recorded by Neil Robinson acting as the in-house engineer.

As the seriousness of the virus and talk of national lockdowns developed - there was a feeling of anticipation more than fear in the air, but being holed up in cottage in a wild corner of Scotland surrounded by snowy mountains still took on an apocalyptic feel, albeit an apocalypse where the band were safe and overdubbing vocals. After leaving the cottage, reality (as it must) set in and finishing the album became a more remote task.

Over the following months, an extended period of listening awarded the recordings a deeper realisation, as they bounced between band members computers. Perry also started writing on his Casio keyboard and collaborated on a couple of songs (‘Ten Times’ & ‘Ashley’s New Haircut’) with Jayne Dent (of electronic music project Me Lost Me), drawing on her ethereal singing voice as a counterpoint to his own more ‘spoken’ vocals on the album. These gauzy, dreamlike tracks were then sent to other members of Buffet Lunch to add their respective parts, creating evocative new dimensions to close each half ofthealbum with.

The Power of Rocks’ rattles along like a short-story collection, exploring a variety of narratives. When it comes to the music itself, Perry describes their approach as “see what happens” but admits to a preference for simple synth melodies, plenty of percussion, and prickly guitar-parts. ‘Red Apple’ opens the album with a dizzy swagger, guitars and keyboard notes swirling in forays whilst its lyric tackles notions of social bravado. ‘Orange Peel’ follows equally serpentine with its blattering tune and jagged, yet jolly melodic twists.The themes across the album are wide-ranging and personal, from irritation with out of touch politicians (‘Pebbledash’), to love letters to seaside living (‘Bladderwrack’), to even the frailty and confusion of old age (‘Said Bernie’, ‘It Helps to Know’). Title track ‘ThePower of Rocks’ is an ode to the power of nature sunk within a rolling wave of cheery jangle. “Do you believe in the power of rocks when the sun is too hot on your face?” sings Perry as the song zigzags with consequence. ‘He Wore Two Hats’ sports similarly bop-worthy riffs and addictive nods as it deals with its story of savvy man who’d bitten off more than he could chew.

Buffet Lunch’s debut album accomplishes a lot in its brief 38 minutes. It stuns and startles, intrigues and entwines, drawing the listener further into its characterful world. When asked about any intent posed with this debut record Perry confides that “we hope people can hear the joy the band had making the album and the curiosity and frustration that went into the writing. There was no process or design, but there is detail, and deliberateness in our wish to explore and create.” It’s this attentive focus alongside a keen sense of humour that really sets Buffet Lunch apart, with ideas darting wilfully to and from the poignant truths at hand.

Two bodies dancing hot in the New York City winter before being pushed inside for the rest of 2020. Two hearts that, in the span of 6 months, faced the loss of both of their mothers, the matriarchs that bore them to this planet full of wonder. They held on tight to the beauty of living, together. With this shared language and the confines of quarantine they lost and loved even harder. Battling packed boxes and lost jobs, the two celebrated their tragic journey with broad shoulders forcing power chords and the harmonized chants of utter release. They huddled together for the future while leaking their hearts into pop melodies that collide effortlessly with both a shared melancholy and simultaneous hope. MAN ON MAN (also M.O.M.) is a new gay lover band made up of Joey Holman (HOLMAN) and Roddy Bottum (Faith No More, Imperial Teen, CRICKETS, Nastie Band). Their upcoming self-titled record, MAN ON MAN, is infused with indie-rock distortion and soaked in gay pop confidence while still maintaining the dry acerbic sense of humor they both share. M.O.M.'s music videos take their magical collaboration to another level with otherworldly cinematographic dimension, and of course, the subversive playfulness of two gay lovers unmistakably flirting with their audience and each other. Upon the release of their debut single, “Daddy”, their video (chock full of the pair dancing seductively in their white briefs) was removed from YouTube for violating their “sex and nudity policy.” At this moment, the band solidified their political visibility as queer artists who are not ok with being silenced or removed from history because of their age or size. Bottum told Rolling Stone, “There’s enough representation in the gay community of young, hairless pretty men." Roddy and Joey’s love for each other and their own bodies, histories, and truths are what make this project so tender and lovable. MAN ON MAN’s music transcends both genre or decade, creating a timeless appeal for so many kinds of listening. The varied influences and textures of the record are a meditation on the myriad of emotions of lockdown, as well as this particular moment in their own lives, collectively and independently. The shoegaze whirlpools of “Stohner” transition into the square wave synths of “1983” with ease, while tracks like “It’s So Fun (To Be Gay)” open us up to a new type of queer anthem for the 2020s.

Recorded live on 9th November 2018 (their only UK show of 2018), ‘education entertainment recreation’ is a brand new live album from London’s Alexandra Palace.
Sonically spectacular, spanning 2 hours 20 minutes, the show joyously mixed New Order classics, their latest acclaimed album ‘Music Complete’ and Joy Division’s finest.
Opening with ‘Singularity’ from ‘Music Complete’, they eased back in time to 1993’s ‘Regret’, to ‘Love Vigilantes’ from 1985’s ‘Low-Life’ to ‘Ultraviolence from 1983 debut ‘Power, Corruption and Lies’.
Later, their power over the dance floor was proven by sublime performances in the manner of the celebrated extended 12 inch remixes they are synonymous with - on ‘True Faith’, ‘Blue Monday’ and ‘Temptation’ before a four song Joy Division mini set to end

Straight Outta Caledonia is the first commercially available “Greatest Hits” of the outsider songwriter Jackie Leven, an artist
who has largely remained in obscurity in his native Scotland despite being one of the greatest wordsmiths – and singers – it ever
produced. A well-travelled musician who began making psychedelic, progressive music in the late 60s before emerging as an
epic storyteller full of pathos, humour and humanity in the 90s, Leven lived and wrote like many of the fragile, gregarious
characters of his songs; large, full of life and empathy. Leven passed away in 2011 after recording 30+ albums under different
guises or with his briefly successful New Wave band Doll by Doll. Straight Outta Caledonia is a compilation collated by Night
School Records on its Archival label School Daze that seeks to introduce Leven’s music to new generations.
In an age of isolation, alienation and loss of visceral experience, Jackie Leven’s music can be massive and welcoming. It feels
connected to some universal humanity and vibrates with vitality. His songs are often full of tragedy and comedy simultaneously,
cutting straight to the heart, often plugging directly into the nervous system of the listener. His lyrics are rich, dense with imagery
that can veer from apocalyptic to the comically banal in a sentence, with a songwriting panache that can be heavy handed to
almost bursting point before skewering the song with a clownish, warm punchline. His productions ranged from Bob Dylan’s
Rolling Thunder Revue style rock band orchestrations with strings and organ as on the epic Ancient Misty Morning or they could
be pared down to the purest form of folk song as on Poortoun: Leven on stage alone with an acoustic guitar, albeit played with a
mastery of the instrument that he often only hinted at. Musically his sound can bend traditional structures or stay completely
confined within them yet still forever push towards an ecstatic release, as on the cinematic Snow In Central Park.
The most exciting, jaw-droppingly effective tool at Leven’s disposal was his voice. A multi-octave instrument that, though
damaged during a savage assault in Fife, he used with flair; he had both a brazen disregard for the rules and a deep humility, all
of which is evidenced with every phrasing. A baritone that could flit up through the register – always touched by his gentle
Kirkcaldy accent – it’s the prime delivery method for his songs. Leven’s voice enabled him to inhabit the characters in his songs to
an uncanny degree, a skill that in turn enables the listener to empathise with them and, subsequently, the singer. It’s most evident
in stand out song The Sexual Loneliness Of Jesus Christ, a breathtaking re-telling of the life of its protagonist, not as a pure,
sinless messiah but as a sexually frustrated, solitary man condemned to an existential loneliness no one else will ever feel. In
many ways the track is the archetypal Jackie Leven song. Produced by Pere Ubu’s David Thomas, what strikes the ear first –
after the samples of unemployed workers in Glasgow following the closing of the Clyde shipyards – is the audacious, rhythmic
tremolo effect Leven employs through the verses before the production opens up to allow Leven’s vocal to lift into a soar, a
freeing glide powered both by the force of the singer’s chutzpah and the inherent, doomed destiny of the protagonist. With any
other singer such subject matter could come across as gauche or worse, pretentiously sonorous, but Jackie Leven’s genius was
such that he could be this cinematic and brazen while touching something elemental and true in the beholder. It’s a skill evident in
every song on Straight Outta Caledonia, the trademark of a songwriter who revelled and excelled in intensity with a lightness of
touch.
In his lifetime, Jackie Leven toured, wrote and recorded at a ferocious rate. He recorded under aliases to avoid record contract
restrictions, played house shows in Europe after or instead of official concerts, events which were often spoken word story telling
masterclasses as well as performances of his often bewilderingly dense songbook. His music has traditionally been catalogued
as “folk” music and has been largely banished to a small, dedicated group of international fans and apostles both private and well
known, like author Ian Rankin or Glenn Matlock. Since his passing in 2011 however, there has been a growing recognition
amongst a newer generation, with artists like James Yorkston or Molly Nilsson publicly stating the influence of the unsung
troubadour on their own craft. Jackie Leven’s fairytales for hard men are often forensic deconstructions of masculinity, sad and
ecstatic, light and shadow, always endlessly rich, a resource as bountiful as Leven himself’s human spirit undoubtedly was.

2024 Repress
Grey Marbled Vinyl

Focus mode to the fullest. Berlin-based Lars Huismann strikes back on Voxnox Records, with his four-track EP "Take The Step".

Self-titled "Take The Step" kicks in first by delivering filthy hat shuffles on even nastier drums and a growing arpeggiator line. With small, yet effective vocal pieces emerging over the place, mysterious pad shapes build a tremendous climax ready to roll further into the future on this one. It's a Voxnox Fam thing with this perfect introduction!

With "Not The Same" stepping up next, Huismann showcases an ever-evolving percussion line on top of some tasty claps and flowing synthesizer plugs. Small voice parts enter the situation too as we get into deeper, atmospheric vibes bringing us a never stopping joy.

And so it's said that the B-sided "Bulletproof" takes nothing less but marching drum patterns and melody glitches coming out of nowhere to prove a forward-directed vibe afterwards. Eventually taking us back to the good old raving area, where eclectic synth lines were the regular state, followed by clever arrangement moves.

Rounding up this EP is the delivered "Bulletproof" remix by Manchester's powerhouse AnD. Taking a faster pitch on the original stems, this remix is a forward-moving rave machine par excellence. With synthesizers marching around the room, proofing that nothing can stop them, we get lost inside this epic round up for the 44th Release of VNR.

1. SINGLE - EN Crowned by expert, airtight vocal domination from frontwoman Skye “Sever” Sweetnam, “Bystander” owns the listener with its aggressive, fast-paced attack of low, grooving metal riffage, relentless, erratic drums and slinking electronic accents. Tied together with a gritty hook, the track cements what “Cycos” can expect from the heavier side of Initiation. 2. SINGLE - EN Sauntering, forceful and haunting, “No Surrender” track shines as a prime pick on Initiation. The anthem fills the room with a pointed vocal attack and chugging lead riff of the heaviest metal, underlined by creeping electronic murmurs, seamlessly blending several more under-the-radar genre influences ranging from industrial to world while never losing its primary hard rock flavor. 3. SINGLE - EN Purely electrifying and in-your-face throughout, “Vertigo”, unlike its title suggests, is nothing but balanced – connecting like a sucker punch as soon as its electro-laced intro breaks into the first verse. Featuring the production mastery of Juno Award-winning producer Kane Churko (Ozzy Osbourne, In This Moment, Papa Roach), the anthem stands tall with its airtight, gritty pop rock sensibility. 4. SINGLE - EN As unpredictable and infectiously manic as the news itself, “Bad News” is a rollercoaster of charging, metallic rock riffage, jolting rhythms and catchy, sing a-long vocal lines. Poised as one of the most eclectic offerings on Initiation, lyrically, the timely track careens the listener down a road all too universally familiar – exploring tensions and eventual emotional explosions ignited by the cycle of never-ending bad news that has seemingly saturated the world.

Clear Vinyl

Post-minimalist American composer Rafael Anton Irisarri makes his Umor Rex debut with his new album, The Shameless Years. Inspired by a troubled socio-political climate, buried melodies punch their way through a bleak cover of noisy drones, periodically veering into some of Irisarri's most eerily pertinent music to date.

One of Rafael Anton Irisarri's most thematically and sonically cohesive records to date The Shameless Years came together in a relatively short burst of creativity starting at the end of 2016. Rediscovering some relatively older tools - namely Native Instruments' Reaktor, Absynth, and Kontakt software - Irisarri combined them with his collection of guitars, pedals, amps, and analogue processing gear, turning his Black Knoll Studio north of NYC into a powerful writing tool. Completed quickly by Irisarri's standards, let alone during a period of social upheaval in American society, the record faces down several key personal themes. The title, suggests Irisarri, could in fact be seen as a reflection of the era of shamelessness we're currently living in, a time of fake news and alternative facts.

Two tracks were completely remotely between Irisarri in New York and Umor Rex veteran Siavash Amini from his home in Tehran, Iran. This music came together at the peak of all the anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant rhetoric happening in the USA, not to mention the banning of Iranians from entering the country, explains Irisarri. The diptych with Amini, 'Karma Krama' and 'The Faithless', seems bathed in additional waves of sorrow and dread. The wash of symphonic stormclouds of synth drones and processed notes on the latter gradually appears and disappears over the course of thirteen mournful minutes.

'Rh Negative' marches gigantic guitars through towering valleys of scarred ambient noise dealing with Irisarri's own heritage, many of his ancestors having come to America to escape poverty and oppression. The refusal of modern America to extend similar sanctuary to refugees escaping turmoil weighs heavily on the composer. Elsewhere an emotional onslaught of notes buried in mounds of greyscale noise on 'Sky Burial' aims to deal with Irisarri's very own mortality - something he was recently confronted with following health scares, an accident, and a near-death experience in 2016. Pushing 40 as this album was being made, the composer is constantly aware that he's already outlived his own father, who died at the age of 32. Facing down both intolerance and the void, the epic soundscapes of The Shameless Years are a vast cry of emotion from Irisarri. The clock is ticking - gotta make the most out of it while you still can.

All songs written and performed by Rafael Anton Irisarri, except #5 & #6 written and performed with Siavash Amini. Design by Daniel Castrejón, photos by Camilo Christen. Mastered by James Plotkin.

It is with extreme pleasure that we, Basement Boys Records proudly announce our 100th single release and 30th year in the music business as an active recording label!

Holding down our 100th release is the legendary multi-faceted singer/songwriter/producer Byron Stingily. As one third of the Chicago-bred, world renown trio, Ten City and as its primary lead vocalist, Byron’s velvety falsetto graced such House Music staples as “Devotion”, “That’s the Way Love Is”, “My Piece of Heaven” along with scores of other classic House music favourites. As a solo artist, Byron went on to create such memorable House jewels as “Get Up” & “It’s Over” a classic collaboration with the Basement Boys for his project on Nervous Records.

“We Belong Together” contains four mixes. The Monday Night Vocal Dub and Instrumental are up first, with percolating congas and swinging violins that accentuate the well-paced drums and percussion of this delectable mix. The brassy horns sing in tandem with Byron as he tugs on the heartstrings with his romantic, chromatic vocal adlibs and signature riffs. The sugar-laden strings and sparkling pianos brings to mind the 90's Ten City production of Marshall Jefferson.

DJ/songwriter/musician/producer, Maurice Fulton is one of House music’s true originals, back where he started. Maurice had the first release on Basement Boys Records with Sticky People "Kong". A man with a mind-blowing complexity behind all that is deep, dark and funky.

Fulton’s mix takes a more soulful tech approach employing a host of electro sounds. A fervent polyrhythmic vortex of percussive wind chime effects, married with classic snares, tom toms & hi-hats, deep sub bass and a meaty kick all define this masterful alignment of electro and acoustic elements. At the midway point, Maurice turns the suspense-filled symphonic intro from the previous mixes into this electro breakdown groove fest sure to drive dancers into a frenzy complete with Byron’s heartfelt lyric.

Closing it out the Main Mix in all its glory, hi-powered, dense bottoms and percussive elements, sweet R&B “boogie” style chords, neatly placed horn accents with Byron slaying the lyric as he always does in his exquisite, soulful pleading falsetto telling the object of his affection, “We Belong Together”.

"Matasuna" brings together two important pioneers of funk on its latest release: "The Meters" from "New Orleans"and "The Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band" from "Los Angeles". The song "Giggin' Down 103rd" by "The Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band" was first released as a single in 1968 (as Misspress) and is now available again for the first time. The song "Sing A Simple Song" by "The Meters" even premieres as a 45! Both tracks have been remastered to offer the best possible sound.

The A-side opens with "Sing A Simple Song" by "The Meters", a cover version of a song by "Sly & Family Stone" written by "Sly Stone". In direct comparison, "The Meters" cover sounds much more energetic and powerful. The ingredients are simple but effective: heavy drum breaks, funky guitar riffs, deepe bassline and a lively organ. A killer instrumental joint that exudes roughness & funkyness from the first second to the last!

On the flipside "The Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band" follows up in similar fashion with the song "Giggin' Down 103rd". Instead of an organ like "The Meters", the band offers a super thight horn section backed by killer drums, guitars & bass. A special spicy recipe that thematically fits perfectly for this Funk45!

"The Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band" was formed by "Charles Wright". Charles, a musician & composer born in 1940 in "Clarksdale, Mississippi", moved to "Los Angeles" in the 1950s. There he played as a singer & guitarist in various doo-wop groups. Beginning in 1962, he formed his own band, "Charles Wright & The Wright Sounds", which was joined in the following years by other musicians who would become known in the future band. The name "The Watts 103rd Street Band" was established in 1967. That same year they signed a record deal with "Warner Bros. Records" and released their first album. More LPs were released in the following years.

The band played mainly cover versions of popular R&B hits in the early years, but began to create their own songs and form their own sound in the late 1960s, which would have a strong influence on other musicians at the time.

Starting in 1969, the first members left the band to work on other projects. Charles also left the band in 1972 to further his solo career and release various albums.

In 1965, the group "The Meters"was founded by "Art Neville"with three other musicians in the musical epicenter of "New Orleans". They quickly made a name for themselves in the local scene. The musician "Allen Toussaint", who was to become one of the most influential record producers of the 1960s, discovered the band and signed them to his label "Sansu Enterprises". They first played as a backing band at live and studio performances of artists of the New Orleans scene, before getting their own record deal with "Josie Records". On this label they released three albums, before releasing more in the following years on "Reprise Records" and "Warner Bros. Records". The band officially disbanded in 1977 and reunited a few years later in 1989.

Since then they have been on stage in different formations as "The Meters", "The Funky Meters" or "The Meter Man".

Their innovative musical style, which was influenced by traditional New Orleans second line music, West African rhythms, Soul and rReggae, set a standard that would influence many musicians. Also, their music had a significant impact on the Hip Hop community, which sampled their songs hundreds of times.

Can was founded in 1968 by Irmin Schmidt, Holger
Czukay, Michael Karoli and Jaki Liebezeit who
formed a group which would utilise and transcend
all boundaries of ethnic, electronic experimental
and modern classical music.
This classic album of tracks was recorded at the
beginning of Can’s life and features original
vocalist Malcolm Mooney.
‘Thief’ is now a rejuvenated Can classic having
been covered by Radiohead and since then
discovered by a new generation of fans.
Can’s powerful influence has never diminished and
their indelible mark is apparent in the bands who
freely acknowledge their importance - from
Portishead, James Murphy, New Order, Factory
Floor, Public Image Ltd, Mogwai, Kanye West and
Radiohead - as well as across other disciplines
such as visual art and literature.
“Can are impossible to classify and it’s impossible
to ignore their seismic influence on so many
diverse musical paths” - Richard Hawley
“Can are the most revolutionary band ever” -
Stephen Morris (New Order)
Now available on pink vinyl with digital download
code.

Legendary NYC house label Strictly Rhythm is celebrating a mammoth 3 decades of cutting edge, roof-raising house music. Truly a benchmark.

Originally founded in 1989 by the dynamic pairing of music industry man Mark Finkelstein and A&R expert Gladys Pizarro, Strictly tapped directly into the fertile New York underground and after hours club scene, helping to launch and bolster the recording careers of dance music luminaries like Armand Van Helden, Roger Sanchez, Ultra Nate, Todd Terry, Wamdue Project, DJ Sneak, Louie Vega and many more. Strictly Rhythm is easily one of the most recognisable and respected dance music powerhouses of all time.

Across 3 limited double vinyl offerings, the Strictly catalogue has been expertly picked over to present you with a snapshot of some of the most earth shattering house music to emanate from the streets of New York City. A who's who of producers and artists, all killer and no filler. End to end classics that help to tell the story of one of dance music's most well loved labels. Classic cuts and essentials from DJ Sneak, Wamdue Project, Louie Vega (Sole Fusion), Essence and more all feature on part 2 in their unedited, 12" mix glory.

Fully legit, remastered and selected with love courtesy of Strictly Rhythm and Above Board distribution for 2020. Happy birthday Strictly Rhythm!

“After all is said and done, after 30 years, after a
pandemic which shattered the world, after
thousands of kilometres travelled and many more
thousands of notes played and sung, what
remains?
“A deep love and respect for great music and the
greatness in music, a deep love for the humanity
that is brought to life by it, a deep appreciation for
the gift of friendship and for the power and
resonance that brought and kept us together all
these years, and for that curiosity and passion, that
meticulous quest to unveil the deepest mysteries
of music, that drives us always onwards.
“Finally, we’ve given it a name: ‘Afterallogy’.” - Noa
LP pressed on 180g vinyl.

Serj Tankian is the vocalist of iconic much loved metal band System Of A Down

2020, The Year Of Our Pandemic: A year of social unrest, police violence and a monumental US election. The year of COVID-19 and its mounting death toll. A massive explosion and mass death in Lebanon. Political upheaval in Belarus. A spiraling world economy. Global protests. If ever a stage was set for new music from Serj Tankian, this is it.
With his trademark eclecticism and one-of-a-kind vocal style, Serj delivers, Elasticity, a five song EP that run the gamut from hard-driving, electronically enhanced anthems like the title track to rallying cries for his beloved Armenia (“Electric Yerevan”) to the tongue-in-cheek political mash-up of “Your Mom.” Elasticity is comprised of songs originally intended for System Of A Down. But it didn’t quite work out that way.

The EP will delight fans of System who have waited a long time for new music. Alongside the release of the EP, Serj will release the documentary ‘Truth To Power’ which he directed himself and is released in conjunction with Oscilloscope Laboratories and Live Nation. The documentary features music from the EP and there are comarketing initiatives in place with the film company.

Optimo Music presents “Janara” the new album from Italy’s José Manuel. We always have our ears open for music that is unique, powerful and that can conjure up a ritualistic atmosphere, and this meistrerwerk did all that, and then some. We knew we had to release it after the first listen.

We’ll let José tell you about it….

This album is a result of the necessity of exploring and opening my mind to new musical horizons, by testing the main traditional instrument of the Italian region Campania, whose name is “Tammorra”. It is a big drum, which must not be confused with the typical tambourine, made from a wrap of wood shaped in a circle and covered with dried skin (almost always goatskin or sheepskin). This instrument was used during playful events, especially during rituals and ceremonies, such as the frequent devotional pilgrimages in honour of the Virgin Mary. By using this instrument, the sound, the rite and the magic could take possession of the mind and the body creating a perfect union. Also, the dancers, as if they were bitten by a tarantula and possessed by a strange evil, launched themselves to an uncontrolled dance by moving every part of their body.

In addition to the Tammorra, I also inserted some texts, which have been written by some Neapolitan friends and interpreted with Neapolitans voices, in honour of the “JANARA”. The Janara represents a popular belief of the Southern Italian regions, particularly of the Benevento area. The Janara is one of the many types of witches represented by folktales belonging to the rural tradition.

The Janara was expert in medical herbs, which were also be used for her magical practices, such as the manufacturing of ointment. The ointment gave her the power to become incorporeal with the same nature as the wind. According to the tradition, in order to snatch the Janara it was necessary to grab her by the hair. It was also said that if anyone was able to capture the Janara during her incorporeal moment then Janara herself would offer protection to them and their family for seven generations, in exchange for her freedom.

With this work I hope that the listener might get carried away by the spirit of this pagan and popular legend that can be still be considered as current. As a matter of fact, the folk tales speak of a probable comeback of the Janara, who after being burned at the stake seems to be thirsting for revenge for the evil suffered.

Los Angeles emcee Pawz One returns with Featured Unreleased Collab Kollection Issue Two (F.U.C.K I.T!), the second installment in the series that features guest appearances, unreleased songs and remixes.

The 16 track album includes artists like Talib Kweli, Ras Kass, A.G. of D.I.T.C and others are featured on the album along with artwork done by Gift Revolver who recently did artwork for Conway, Wu-Tang and Big Pun. Producers include Snowgoons and many others from Japan, Netherlands, Chicago and Los Angeles.





e 05: Mind Power (Remix) [feat. Termanology & Ras Kass]




[j] 10: Avalanche Warning (Remix) [feat. Percee P]





[e] 05: Mind Power (Remix) [feat. Termanology & Ras Kass]




[j] 10: Avalanche Warning (Remix) [feat. Percee P]

Following recent super-deluxe editions and multi-format releases of classic Who albums – ‘My Generation’, ‘Tommy’ and ‘Quadrophenia’, and the success of ‘Live at Fillmore’, we follow with The Who Sell Out – this set shaping up to be the most superlative of all…!!
Released in December 1967 – the album reflected a remarkable year in popular culture. As well as being forever immortalised as the moment when the counterculture and the ‘Love Generation’ went global, 1967 produced tremendous musical upheavals as “pop” metamorphosed to “rock”.

Originally planned by Pete Townshend and the band’s managers, as a loose concept album including jingles and commercials linking the songs styled as a Radio London broadcast – born out of necessity as the band’s managers wanted a new album and there weren’t enough songs.

The original plan was to sell advertising space on the album – Jaguar cars, Coca-Cola etc. The jingles pay tribute to the pirate radio stations and expose the myths of ‘pop-culture’ and mock consumer society – way ahead of their time…

The homage to pop-art is evident in both the advertising jingles and the iconic sleeve design – created by David King (art director at the Sunday Times) and Roger Law (who invented Spitting Image) producing four giant images for each band member – Odorono deodorant, Medac spot cream, Charles Atlas and Heinz baked beans (Roger apparently caught pneumonia from sitting in the cold beans for too long).

Photography by renowned portrait photographer David Montgomery (rare out-takes included)

The album is a bold depiction of the period in which it was made – the tail-end of the ‘swinging-60s’ meets pop-art mixed with psychedelia and straight-ahead pop craft. It’s glorious blend of classic powerful Who instrumentation, melodic harmonies, satirical lyrical imagery crystallised for what was only the group’s third album – the ambition and scope is unrivalled by the Who, or any others from that period.

Within the bold concept, were a batch of fabulous and diverse songs – I Can See for Miles (a Top Ten hit) is a Who classic, Rael, a Townshend ‘mini-opera’ with musical motifs that reappeared in Tommy and the psychedelic blast of Armenia City in the Sky and Relax are among the very best material of the 1960s.

One of the most extraordinary albums of any era – it’s The Who’s last ‘pop’ album. Two years later came Tommy – a double concept album about a deaf, dumb and blind kid…

“We were hoping to get free Jaguars. We got fifty tins of free Baked Beans”

Pete Townshend

Incl. Chris Geschwindner Remix

To kick off with their series, SINM presents its first record: First try Fridays (incl. Chris Geschwindner remix). The tree tracker consists of a blend between UK Garage, House and Electro to bring forward cutting edge rave sensations with futuristic vibes.

A side takes you straight to a two-stepper projectile, setting the tone with "First Try Fridays" and its powerful wobble sub and short electric stabs. Perfect for threatening the dance-floor in peak time hours alongside mysterious DDA's approach.

On the flip side, Realness teleports you to a nostalgic scenario with its polished chord progressions and breakbeat strikes. Slowly building up with vocal cuts and glitchy transitions, B2 reaches a both nostalgic and mysterious climax. To close the EP, Beam Dump's boss man captures the beautiful essence of Realness bringing beach-like sensations to a tune that's perfect for warming up a dance-floor or enjoying the after-hours.

More to come soon from the SINM crew, stay tuned!

LEGENDARY SESSION ! FIRST TIME EVER ON VINYL AND CUT DIRECTLY FROM THE ORIGINAL MASTER TAPES WITH NO DIGITAL PROCESS WHATSOEVER!!!

TIP ON SLEEVE PRINTED JUST LIKE THE OLD NIMBUS LP’s FROM THE 70’s and 80’s… BRAND NEW ARTWORK FROM ORIGINAL SESSION PHOTOS AND LINER NOTES BY Mark Weber

At long last…On Vinyl…From original tapes. 3/5ths of the Quintet that recorded "‘the Giant is Awakened’ LP in 1969…this album sat unreleased for 20+ years before it saw a small run on cd (with poor mastering the early 2000’s), now, 40 years after it was recorded, finally released in the original format it was intended for….This LP sounds fresh and amazing…if you’ve only heard the cd, you’ve not truly heard this lost gem in its full glory. edition of 500




Born in Mississippi in 1937 and beginning to play the saxophone at 14, Billie Harris relocated to Los Angeles in 1965 after a 4 year stint in the Air Force, becoming one of the great, unsung forces of underground jazz in the city for many years (he later relocated to the Mojave Desert, where, at last record, he still plays in a church band). A Venice Beach street musician and longtime member of the Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra - you can hear him playing on Live at I.U.C.C. and Flight 17, as well as Jesse Sharps Quintet & P.A.P.A.’s Sharps and Flats (reissued in 2018) - he was also director of the AZZ IZZ jazz club in Venice Beach during the 70s.




On April 29 and May 3, 1980, Harris entered the studio, backed by Horace Tapscott on piano, David Bryant on bass, Daa’oud Woods on percussion, and Everett Brown Jr on drums, recording, over those two days what was to be his only outing as a leader. Once heard, the tragic lack of further material can’t be ignored. It is a truly stunning piece of work, even more surprising for the fact that it sat unreleased for over 20 years, only to be released as a small, poorly mastered edition on CD during the early 2000’s. Now, finally appearing very first time on the format and label for which it was intended, 40 years after it was recorded, we can hear this lost gem in all its glory.




Harris was 43 years old at the time of the Nimbus West sessions that resulted in I Want Some Water, and the power and experience of his playing, honed over three decades, shows in full force. The band is equally imbued with power, sensitivity, and experience. Tapscott, Bryant, and Brown’s working partnership goes back to 1969, when they recorded Tapscott’s debut as a leader, The Giant Is Awakened. In quintet’s hands, channeling the heavy modal relationships pioneered by Coltrane, heavy spiritual groove lock and unfurl, threaded by the release via incredibly forward-thinking improvisation.




Like so much of the work that came out of the Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra scene, I Want Some Water has a giant sound, each track long in length, building slowly over time toward towering heights that leave the listener immersed in one of the greatest treasures of spiritual jazz that almost nobody ever heard. Rhythmic, rollicking, and tonally inspired, the joyous interplay of the band goes deep, locked in, and challenging the predictable path, while making nods to numerous, discreet traditions of music.




As far as reissues go, Nimbus’ first ever vinyl pressing of Harris’ I Want Some Water is about as good as it gets. Not only does it deliver some of the best music we’ve heard all year, but it takes huge steps toward allowing a crucial artist to be celebrated in a way that he’s always deserved.

Cut directly from the original master tapes, featuring brand new artwork from the original sessions and liner notes from Mark Weber, and issued in a limited edition of 500 copies, it’s an absolute must that can’t be missed.

KOOL KEITH is the most legendary trailblazer of hip hop music. With characters spanning from Dr. Octagon to Tashan Dorsett to Black Elvis to Dr. Dooom, Keith is always delivering realness, spectacles in word and sound, and creating new worlds with his many auras. SCORN is the electronic beat project of acclaimed exNapalm Death drummer Mick Harris, the Dark Lord of ambient dub. Mick Harris' prolific ventures across numerous projects include Painkiller (with John Zorn and Bill Laswell), Quoit, Lull, Monrella, and many more. SUBMERGED is the King of Underground Drum n Bass DJs, having pioneered the scene for the hard sound from Astana to Sao Paulo to Kiev to Brooklyn. He is the founder of Galactic Enterprise that is Ohm Resistance. DISTORTION is a collaborative single with some of the 100% certified dopest Kool Keith verses. He is tuned into his co-authors, dropping lines about "Power sources, Mediterranean bosses", going "52 states, European, Worldwide", discussing "more power to explore", and knowing how to "stick my hand out the speaker and reach y'all". A massive energy liftoff occurs as Keith joins his multiverse with that of the Ohm Resistance artists. Mick Harris' instantly recognizable bludgeoning beat carries the weight, as he trades off bass blast duties with the organic overdriven bassline of Submerged. A warning shot fired in advance of Scorn's album, "The Only Place", this single adds the missing element to Scorn that brings out the richness and flavor of Mick Harris behind the mixing desk. "I'm so happy to be working with a great voice - I could do more of, it adds another dynamic to Scorn." says Harris. Submerged explains his usual streak of unusual luck - "I had a bassline I had written and wanted to send to Mick Harris for Scorn. When the opportunity came to work with Kool Keith, Mick made his beat, and my riff fit exactly - so we coordinated the forces to put this record together". With Kool Keith being one of the most-named influences by many of the Ohm Resistance artists, his arrival to the label couldn't have come at a better time - a integrated circuit across 4 dimensions, connecting 3 legendary musicians around the globe. Mixed by MJ Harris in the Lad's Old Room B14; Vocals by Kool Keith Recorded at Studio G Brooklyn; Engineered by Tony Maimone, Assisted by Ross Colombo; Bass Guitar by Submerged at Blue Site I, Saaremaa; Mastered by Daniele Antezza for Dadub Mastering Studio; Artwork by Sagana Squale, Layout by MachineÖ

17 Track compilation of all of their studio recordings, remastered and pressed on Electric Blue Vinyl. Presented in gatefold sleeve with never seen before photographs ,a printed lyric inner sleeve and poster.
The VIP’s were formed in 1978 while at Warwick University. Within weeks they were gigging at clubs in the Midlands, often on the same bill as THE SPECIALS in Coventry. Soon they found a manager, Clive Solomon, who with Timmy Mallet (now a TV and Radio presenter) and both students at the university, financed the group’s first single the EP ‘Music For Funsters. In the summer of 1978 they built up a loyal following in London. The single was picked up by John Peel, who played it constantly on his BBC radio show through the year. The 3 track EP, featuring ‘I’m Perfect’, ‘I Believe’ and ‘Boys of the City’ was released on Clive Solomon’s own ‘Bust’ label.
In 1979 the VIP’s could be found playing all over the country, frequently on the same bill as Squire, stablemates on Clive Solomon’s label.
In early 1980 they went into Olympic Studios in Chiswick to record some tracks with ex-THE ANIMALS bass player and SLADE/Jimi Hendrix manager Chas Chandler. The track ‘I Thought You Were My Friend’ was recorded at these sessions A few weeks later a major record deal was agreed with Gem Records/RCA and ‘Causing Complications’ came out in March. To coincide with the release the VIP’s went on tour supporting SECRET AFFAIR.
After the tour the single ‘The Quarter Moon’ was released, another track produced by Mike Leander. It received extensive airplay around the UK and beyond, and was also picked as BBC Radio 1’s Record of The Week by DJ Mike Reid on his Morning Show, as well as being Radio Luxembourg’s ‘Power Play’ for two weeks. The constant touring, recording and radio play had earned them a spot on Top of The Pops but they were suddenly told -on the afternoon that they were due to appear - that an industrial dispute at the BBC had resulted in the show being cancelled. Disappointed, they continued to record and tour, this time with MADNESS, THE BEAT and DEXYS MIDNIGHT RUNNERS amongst others. This time Bob Seargent (of The BEAT and HAIRCUT 100 fame) was recruited to give ‘Need Somebody To Love’ that sparkle and edge to capture The VIP’s live sound on vinyl. Although perhaps the most representative of the band’s sound, Top of The Pops again eluded them.
By the end of 1980 the VIP’s were selling in Spain, Germany, Italy and France through the RCA label but they seemed to be losing heart with the business. Illness -Jed had been touring with a collapsed lung - and tensions saw the band play their last concert at Leicester University. A fourth and final GEM single, ‘Things Aren’t What They Used To Be’ (a song taken from their earlier Mike Leander recording sessions) proved to be their last. With several songs still to be recorded, it was a frustrating time for all.
Paul Shurey and Guy Morley has already made alternative plans for THE NEW VIP’s and recruited Simon Smith from THE MERTON PARKAS to play drums while Paul returned to his native keyboards. With Tony Conway on guitar and Andy Godfrey on bass they became MOOD SIX.
Paul Shurey played a central part in the birth and proliferation of the Rave movement in the 80’s, 90’s and 2,000’s, initiating a great a great many DANCE RAVES all around the world. Very sadly he died in 2017. He was also a gifted artist/cartoonist, and it’s his picture which graces the album’s sleeve. He is a brother very greatly missed.
Guy Morley works in film editing and Andrew Price is involved in developing community projects in and around his native Bristol.
“We became lifelong friends and shared a great and very exciting rock and roll dream.”

One Night in Miami is a 2020 American drama film directed by Regina King (in her feature directorial debut), from a screenplay by Kemp Powers, based on his stage play of the same name.

It had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on September 7, 2020 and was the first film directed by an African-American woman to be selected in the festival’s history. It received overwhelmingly positive reviews, with critics praising King’s direction, the performances and the writing.

It is scheduled to be released in a limited release on December 25, 2020, followed by digital streaming on Prime Video on January 15, 2021

On one incredible night in 1964, four icons of sports, music, and pop culture gather to celebrate one of the biggest upsets in boxing history. When underdog Cassius Clay, soon to be called Muhammed Ali, (Eli Goree), defeats heavy weight champion Sonny Liston at the Miami Convention Hall, Clay memorialized the event with three of his friends: Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir), Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.) and Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge).

Based on the award winning play of the same name, One Night In Miami is a fictional account of the actual night that these formidable figures spent together in the hotel. It looks at the struggles these men faced and the vital role they each played in the civil rights movement and cultural upheaval of the 1960s.

More than 40 years later, their conversations on racial injustice, religion, and personal responsibility still resonate.

Having become one of the premier German death metal bands - and rapidly rising the ranks of the genre as a whole - Endseeker storm back into the fray with Mount Carcass. Building on the groundwork laid down on 2017’s Flesh Hammer Prophecy and having the difficult task of besting 2019’s stunning The Harvest they have returned with a streamlined, powerful collection that further raises the bar. To keep the genre sounding fresh in 2021 Endseeker focused on the production, having just a touch of the old school vibe to remain rooted, and they did not limit themselves too hard to the Swedish death metal style of songwriting they previously embraced, but also let other influences into their songs. “You can hear all kinds of stuff that is inspired by bands like Morbid Angel, Bolt Thrower, Slayer, Dissection, Gorefest, etc. We listen to so many different bands and somehow a bit from all of this keeps adding to our music.”

Master craftsman James Welburn’s new LP, Sleeper in the Void, marks the 50th Miasmah release.The six years after his monumental debut have bred six tracks Welburn brings to fruition with the help of past co-conspirators from the Norwegian underground scene - Tomas Järmyr (Motorpsycho, Zu, Barchan), Hilde Marie Holsen (Hubro Records), and vocal artist Juliana Venter (W/V, Phil Winter).

On Sleeper in the Void, Welburn expands the domain of his sound, unveiling surprises until the very end of the album’s 36 minute playtime. While the character of the record is unmistakably his own, the tracks veer into many different territories, including a banging foray to the dancefloor.

The LP begins slowly with Raze, where Järmyr’s ritualistic cymbals introduce layers of Welburn’s signature sculpted bass drones and noise, building into a heart-wrenching epic of a track. This is perhaps the closest we ever get to Hold - Welburn’s previous LP. Falling from Time immediately surprises with it’s subdued mechanical techno beat, stark and cold as a glacier. Welburn’s texture-work is the star of the show, creating curious nooks and crannies of drone adorned with eerie melodies straight out of oblivion. This sense of wonder shines through to the album’s title track as well, where Welburn and Järmyr build another patient, echoing, and deeply cinematic piece, the drum patterns slowly shifting around a metallic hum that evokes the vision of church bells, ringing out under tonnes of seawater.

Sleeper in the Void feels like a story in two parts, rising lethargically, but with gargantuan power. The second begins with the momentous In and out of Blue, where Juliana Venter’s disembodied, spectral dirge takes center stage among the furious drums and bassy riffs, reaching a full crescendo with seconds to go. Parallel marks a release - Hilde Marie Holsen’s nostalgic soundscapes, pristine as glass, meeting the distant thunder of Welburn’s strings on the horizon. And finally, Fast Moon ends the record in a most surprising way - a tribal industrialized banger, complete with vile distorted beats and every other spice in demand on a blackened dancefloor.

Welburn’s Sleeper in the Void is a generous shapeshifter. Every inch of its soundwave breathes emotion and imagery - an invitation to take a dive and linger.

For it’s 4th release, Melodeum Records embarked on an epic quest in the search of a treasure which has remained hidden in the musical ether for many suns. After months of digging, a hidden gem emerged, a true diamond in the rough, a life form who only goes by the name of Roluce.
Roluce mastered the binding powers of enthralling House with the drawing influence of Minimal rhythms. Every frequency on the Rogustine EP was individually curated to forge this powerful composition. All 4 original tracks have the power to destroy dancefloors and cause mass euphoria - please play with the utmost care.


Support:
Dewalta, Arapu, Sascha Dive, Norm Talley, Herck, Cosmjn, Sublee, Andrea Ferlin, Barbara Preisinger, Pheek, Charliee, Matheiu, Dan Primaru,

A conceptual album featuring five long tracks with raw in–your–face sound and production, over–charged fuzz & wah wah guitar, powerful vocals with killer echo/reverb and studio effects. This is must for any hard rock / metal / heavy psych aficionado, reissued for the first time on vinyl and remastered from the original tapes.

Including insert with liner notes and rare pictures from the archive of Vicente Feijóo, the original guitarist & vocalist from Zarpa. Heavy carboard sleeve + OBI.

Formed in Mislata, Valencia, in 1977 by four teenager friends (Vicente Feijóo on lead vocals & lead guitar, Eduardo Feijóo on bass & vocals, Javier Herviás on guitar and Jesús Martinez on drums), Zarpa Rock (“Claw Rock”), later shortened to Zarpa, evolved from a group called Wolframio. After spending most of 1977 learning how to play their instruments, they were approached by a management agency called Zeus Rock, joining their roster in company of bands like Doble Zero.

Under Zeus Rock guidance, the band did their first recording: a conceptual album titled “Los 4 Jinetes del Apocalipsis” (The Four Horsemen of Apocalypse) which due to low studio budget, was recorded “live in the studio” in a single one-hour-and-a-half take. After the bankruptcy of Zeus Rock, the proposed album project was shelved. Zarpa shared stage with legends like Ian Gillan and later on, in the heyday of Heavy Metal in Spain, they managed to release two more LP’s which established them as a very popular band, even opening for Barón Rojo, true Metal Stars in the early 80’s. They’re still in active.

“Pretty much heavier and more loaded with crazed lead guitar than any of the other big ones from Spain like Storm, Tapiman, Leño or anything else I can think of” – Rockadrome

“Their music combines the slightly bluesy mid-70s Spanish hard rock sound of bands like Storm, which channeled Sabbath and Deep Purple, with a just-this-side-of-NWOBHM early heavy metal sound”
-Shit-Fi

Breaking up South London soul man, Ashong’s vocals into a ghostly exchange with a mind-bending bass line and double-time rhythm, the 'Street Dub' is unmistakable Matthew Herbert quirkiness.

DJ, producer, songwriter & Femme Culture label founder, Elkka, brings her unmistakeable energy & power to Joyfulness. What was once a soothing, mellow-soul excursion is now a direct & inspiring dance-floor cut. Thumping kick drums, swirling hi-hat rhythms, jittery synth and robotic-steel-drum melodies reform Hector and Alexa's sublime production.

On the B-side, Broken Beat legend Daz I Kue delivers a squelchy sub-heavy workout, full of percussive punchiness and new orchestral dimensions.

Meanwhile south-London producer and DJ Shy One takes another Andrew Ashong collaboration, formerly playlisted on BBC Radio 6 Music, and goes deep, phasey and peculiar. Chopping outcuts of chat between Andrew and Hector, ethereal vocals and synths and delivering a heavy kick drum, with a touch of broken beat magic.

Available again on vinyl for the first time in seven years, ‘The Fact Facer’ is
now pressed on jaundice vinyl (clear with hi-melt green and yellow).
Holy Sons is Emil Amos, a musician whose chameleonic tendencies and
technical versatility has lead to him becoming an in demand multiinstrumentalist as a founding member of Grails and Lilacs & Champagne, as
well as a member of Om and a hired gun for Jandek, to name a few.
Holy Sons is at the centre of his many musical personalities and is his
longest standing project, acting as an outlet for some of his most personal
and direct songs. In Holy Sons, Amos puts his restless imagination to work
using a variety of inventive home recording methods to turn melodic slowburners into multi-layered, atmospheric missives.
While his methods and prolificacy provide a kinship with Sebadoh, Ariel Pink
and other musicians who have offered countless transmissions from their
bedroom floor, Holy Sons comes from the mind of someone who has
internalized the minutia of 70s rock music and eschews the stereotypical lofi sound for a much deeper and more varied palate.
‘The Fact Facer’, his Thrill Jockey debut, bathes Amos’ thoughtful and even
at times philosophical, songs in Technicolor darkness and reinforces Holy
Sons as his musical centrepiece. The album is a collection of home recorded
atmospheric slow-burners steeped in 70s rock with an experimentalist edge.
The songs on ‘The Fact Facer’ creep up on the listener, their fiercely
addictive melodies unravelling slowly and purposefully. Jumping smoothly
between many facets of Amos’ songwriting, the album does much to
establish him as a talented multi-instrumentalist.
From the lysergic leads of ‘Selfish Thoughts’ to the Danny Kirwan
referencing solos of ‘Transparent Powers’ and the skilful acoustic flourishes
of ‘The Fact Facer’, Amos proves himself as adept and creative a guitarist as
he is a drummer.
It is telling that Amos has built up two Holy Sons bands simultaneously: one
based in Portland and one based in New York. Wherever the wind takes
him, there are musicians willing to pick up their instruments and follow his
lead.
“The most admirable thing about Amos’s songwriting is his willingness to
leave empty space in his songs, even though multiple tracks of vocals and
instruments go into each composition” - Pop Matters
“‘The Fact Facer’ is easily Amos’ most focused offering yet, and a perfect
entry point into a back catalogue that’s sure to have listeners drinking the
Kool-Aid again and again.” - Exclaim

Four veteran musicians who share a broad background of music influences and experiences. The album ’Doorways of Time’ is a unique trip through a musical landscape that contains hints of psychedelics, Rock and Metal. It has been said that you cannot relive the 70’s and 80’s but Butterfly manage to give you just that experience. Powerful vocals, twin harmonies and a pounding rhythm section keep your attention focused. Hints of NWOBHM as well as influences of bands such as Kiss, AC/DC and Led Zeppelin manage to blend in together flawlessly. This is not just a nostalgia trip, this is a window to the future... And guess what; the future is looking bright! A solid revolution of Rock music that will drive all the turmoil away.

PRIMAL FEAR's ferocious new record “Metal Commando” has been an undisputed highlight of 2020. The German power metal band's 13th full length detonated in the midst of a raging pandemic, leaving no stone unturned in its path. The whole world got stuck in, achieving the 6 piece some of their highest chart positions in their 20+ year career, which included; a top ten in Switzerland (6), Germany (7), Japan (7), Finland (9) and Sweden (9) next to multiple high entries in countries such as Austria, Spain, France and the USA.

PRIMAL FEAR are Germany’s metal band of the hour, again. Right now however, they want to show us something new, a different side to them - after releasing a string of heavy and hard-hitting singles from “Metal Commando”, mastermind Mat Sinner and vocal force Ralf Scheepers have something extraordinary up their sleeves; a 5-track single, built around an exclusive new rendition of their achingly beautiful ballad ‘I Will Be Gone’, re-recorded with none other than Finnish metal diva extraordinaire, Tarja Turunen.

“There were three famous vocalists on our final wish list,” Mat Sinner comments. “That it was Tarja who got involved in this song is a matter of pure joy for all of us. Working together on the song and video was totally relaxed and professional – a great experience also because Tarja’s and Ralf’s voices go together incredibly well. Now, we can expand the ‘Metal Commando’ saga with a unique chapter. We’re all really proud of this single.”

The Finnish icon can only agree: “I was very happy to receive the invitation to take part in PRIMAL FEAR’s beautiful song ‘I Will Be Gone’. We started our careers nearly at the same time many years ago, and finally got a chance to work together. I love the song and personally it helped me to stay connected and rock again, even if at the studio this time. I really hope that people will like this collaboration and that it will bring them joy especially during these difficult times we are living through at the moment.”
The song, fragile and touching, gets an altogether new and deeply melancholic vibe with Tarja’s unbelievably emotional performance, showcasing a different facet of PRIMAL FEAR. Yet, it’s not the only gift they deliver on this 5-track sensation - just take ‘Vote Of No Confidence’ for example, an all-new, previously unreleased beast of a song. Clocking in at over six minutes, this storming, furious anthem gives a brilliant glimpse of things to come. Previously only available as bonus tracks on the limited “Metal Commando” digipack, three more tracks complete this release; enchanting guitar instrumental ‘Rising Fear’, massive mid-tempo smasher ‘Leave Me Alone’, and heavy metal monument ‘Second To None’, making ‘I Will Be Gone’ so much more than just another off shoot of a successful album.

“Metal Commando” is so much more than just another album by a veteran band. The songs are too strong, the hooks too merciless, the refrains too huge, and their trademark phalanx of three guitars too indomitable for any meek kind of listener response. “We’re simply an awesome team,” Sinner laughs. The “we” he’s talking about are of course himself on bass guitar and vocals, fierce vocalist Ralf Scheepers, guitarists Tom Naumann, Alex Beyrodt and Magnus Karlsson as well as that brand-new whirlwind of a drummer, Michael Ehré.

After six albums “abroad”, “Metal Commando” saw the band return to their first home Nuclear Blast. Where some bands would give in under such pressure, changing labels for PRIMAL FEAR has unleashed a huge amount of sublime heavy metal energy. Heck, we bet this seismic shock was visible on the Richter scale! “We wrote and wrote and realised quite early on that we had a lot of good ideas going”. Good ideas? The songs are bangers as only PRIMAL FEAR anthems can be – a sound that’s long become a trademark just got new, shiny alloys.

New track ‘I Will Be Gone’ showcases PRIMAL FEAR’s mellow, bittersweet side – available on multi coloured vinyl, shaped vinyl, CD digipack or digitally. Let’s all take a deep breath now; soon enough it’ll get loud again on stages around the globe.

PRIMAL FEAR's ferocious new record “Metal Commando” has been an undisputed highlight of 2020. The German power metal band's 13th full length detonated in the midst of a raging pandemic, leaving no stone unturned in its path. The whole world got stuck in, achieving the 6 piece some of their highest chart positions in their 20+ year career, which included; a top ten in Switzerland (6), Germany (7), Japan (7), Finland (9) and Sweden (9) next to multiple high entries in countries such as Austria, Spain, France and the USA.

PRIMAL FEAR are Germany’s metal band of the hour, again. Right now however, they want to show us something new, a different side to them - after releasing a string of heavy and hard-hitting singles from “Metal Commando”, mastermind Mat Sinner and vocal force Ralf Scheepers have something extraordinary up their sleeves; a 5-track single, built around an exclusive new rendition of their achingly beautiful ballad ‘I Will Be Gone’, re-recorded with none other than Finnish metal diva extraordinaire, Tarja Turunen.

“There were three famous vocalists on our final wish list,” Mat Sinner comments. “That it was Tarja who got involved in this song is a matter of pure joy for all of us. Working together on the song and video was totally relaxed and professional – a great experience also because Tarja’s and Ralf’s voices go together incredibly well. Now, we can expand the ‘Metal Commando’ saga with a unique chapter. We’re all really proud of this single.”

The Finnish icon can only agree: “I was very happy to receive the invitation to take part in PRIMAL FEAR’s beautiful song ‘I Will Be Gone’. We started our careers nearly at the same time many years ago, and finally got a chance to work together. I love the song and personally it helped me to stay connected and rock again, even if at the studio this time. I really hope that people will like this collaboration and that it will bring them joy especially during these difficult times we are living through at the moment.”
The song, fragile and touching, gets an altogether new and deeply melancholic vibe with Tarja’s unbelievably emotional performance, showcasing a different facet of PRIMAL FEAR. Yet, it’s not the only gift they deliver on this 5-track sensation - just take ‘Vote Of No Confidence’ for example, an all-new, previously unreleased beast of a song. Clocking in at over six minutes, this storming, furious anthem gives a brilliant glimpse of things to come. Previously only available as bonus tracks on the limited “Metal Commando” digipack, three more tracks complete this release; enchanting guitar instrumental ‘Rising Fear’, massive mid-tempo smasher ‘Leave Me Alone’, and heavy metal monument ‘Second To None’, making ‘I Will Be Gone’ so much more than just another off shoot of a successful album.

“Metal Commando” is so much more than just another album by a veteran band. The songs are too strong, the hooks too merciless, the refrains too huge, and their trademark phalanx of three guitars too indomitable for any meek kind of listener response. “We’re simply an awesome team,” Sinner laughs. The “we” he’s talking about are of course himself on bass guitar and vocals, fierce vocalist Ralf Scheepers, guitarists Tom Naumann, Alex Beyrodt and Magnus Karlsson as well as that brand-new whirlwind of a drummer, Michael Ehré.

After six albums “abroad”, “Metal Commando” saw the band return to their first home Nuclear Blast. Where some bands would give in under such pressure, changing labels for PRIMAL FEAR has unleashed a huge amount of sublime heavy metal energy. Heck, we bet this seismic shock was visible on the Richter scale! “We wrote and wrote and realised quite early on that we had a lot of good ideas going”. Good ideas? The songs are bangers as only PRIMAL FEAR anthems can be – a sound that’s long become a trademark just got new, shiny alloys.

New track ‘I Will Be Gone’ showcases PRIMAL FEAR’s mellow, bittersweet side – available on multi coloured vinyl, shaped vinyl, CD digipack or digitally. Let’s all take a deep breath now; soon enough it’ll get loud again on stages around the globe.

Bill MacKay and Nathan Bowles’ debut is well titled: keys are what they play
and keys unlock things too. Their trad bonafides are balanced with
inquisitive playing that adds surprise as a formal songwriting and arranging
tool. Spirited 21st Century folk music made of equal parts bluegrass,
classical, country, gospel and improv.
‘Keys’ is, on first blush, a collection of guitar and banjo duets - but from the
opening moment, it is clear that Bill and Nathan’s agreed-upon duo is a
living organism, growing as it goes. Behind the stately figures of ‘Idumea’, a
19th Century southern hymnal played out on their stringed instruments, a
low organ drone hums persistently, signalling that this music, while coming
from traditional places, is asking more of itself, seeking sparks of inspiration
to light the path forward.
Bill and Nathan met a few years back, if time has any meaning. It didn’t
seem to at the time - after the first night they hung out, it seemed as if
they’d known each other for a while already. A year later, in 2018, they
were booked as a duo at Cropped Out. Preparing for the show involved a
correspondence exchanging lots of provisional ideas, thoughts and music
back and forth from Chicago to Durham NC, then dashing through the ideas
again on the festival grounds an hour before the show. From this seemingly
hectic preparation, their playing that night was remarkably serene, a
spiritual treatise clothed in the casual and natural manner of the proverbial
porch, or in this case, riverside-jam, as the stage literally straddled the edge
of the Ohio River. It was a stellar, simpatico first moment that asked for
more moments like it.
After several more sets the following year, they felt ready to roll tape (as the
saying goes) and chose to do so in Chicago, with Nick Broste at The Shape
Shoppe. Again, an easy rapport prevailed, allowing them to work through
their collected ideas quickly and freely, with the moments of spontaneous
decision that can come only with comfort and trust in each other’s presence.
Throughout ‘Keys’, Bill and Nathan propel their power-folk engine with intent
and feeling, joy and solemnity, as images of wariness, wonder, anger,
deliberation, forgiveness, trust and devotion rise up from the music and roll
it forward into the unknown, a place we can sense both players are happy
to go.
Eight of the ten songs featured are originals, with the other two coming
from different centuries to this one. The diversity of song is matched by the
instrumentation: in addition to Bill’s guitar and Nathan’s banjo, they add
voice, piano, percussion, pump organ, requinto and electric organ to the
richness and rusticity, the traditionalism and open space of the
compositions.

The popular mixture of extreme metal mixed with timeless melodies, driving riffs and epic parts as well as the aggressive screams and the choral vocals was retained and expanded with a lot of flair by several nuances. WOLFCHANT was founded in 2003 in Sankt Oswald, Lower Bavaria by Lokhi, Skaahl, Gaahnt and Norgahd. After the two demo self-productions "The Fangs Of The Southern Death" and "The Herjan Trilogy" WOLFCHANT signed their first record deal in 2005. With the albums "Bloody Tales Of Disgraced Lands" (2005) and the groundbreaking "A Pagan Storm" (2007) WOLFCHANT was able to gain a large fan base. This was shortly thereafter expanded internationally with the albums "Determined Damnation" (2009) and "Call Of The Black Winds" (2011) and the band played more tours, concerts and festivals in other European countries. The typical melodic pagan metal of Wolfchant was strengthened from this point on by the clear vocals of Michael Seifert (Rebellion) and the epic factor of the songs was expanded. After the release of "Embraced By Fire" (2013) and "Bloodwinter" (2017) WOLFCHANT managed to take another big step forward and further develop their fanbase worldwide. In addition to festivals such as Wacken, Summer Breeze, the 70000 Tons Of Metal (USA), WOLFCHANT played numerous national and international festivals, concerts and tours and earned a place at the forefront of German Epic Pagan Metal. In 2020 the band signed a new contract with REAPER ENTERTAINMENT and for 2021 the new disc "OMEGA : BESTIA" is now in the starting blocks waiting to be released. Blurb IG#1: With their first single "Komet" epic metal heroes WOLFCHANT strike back with everything they have! Blasting straight into the listeners ears "Komet" might become a new WOLFCHANT classic. Blurb IG#2: Der Geist und die Dunkelheit: A powerful hymn with a groovy and driving riff, combined with superb guitar playing and a epic chorus and lyrics in german!

KingUnderground releases Other Mirror’s debut record. The album is mixed by legendary engineer ‘No Sleep’ Nigel, who has worked with a plethora of the UK Hip-Hop scene since the late ‘80s.
Other Mirror are James Tilley, Amelie Chevalier and Jonny Cuba. The 3 formed the band in 2018. They had talked for many years about starting a project together and after several years of pursuing their own creative endeavors, the school friends found themselves reunited and finally creating music with one another. Although the Self Titled LP is Other Mirror’s band debut, they’re far from newcomers. Jonny Cuba has been an active musician since the late 90s, with other collaborative highlights including The Herbaliser, Mike James Kirkland, and production for legendary British Library labels KPM, Bruton, and Cavendish. Tilley has had multiple releases with his first band, Fabric, from the early, to late 90s, and has collaborations with DJ Food, and recording sessions with John Peel. Chevalier is an accomplished vocal coach, dancer, and choreographer with various session work, including live shows at Glastonbury Festival, and Bestival. Rounding out the trio with her mystical vocal delivery and groovy bass lines.

The results of the band’s initial collaborations feel reminiscent of a Quintin Taratino movie, cinematic and groovy in nature. Other Mirror are particularly drawn to the power of music within film and TV. It’s ability to support and affect the narrative is similar to how the band taps into direct emotions.

“The music can be partially improvised with unexpected sections. Like films are made in the edit, we follow a similar approach when we are composing.” - Amelie Chevalier

The Other Mirror debut reflects the bands long standing rapport together. It often feels like there is a conversation happening within the music between the old friends. Their unconventional approach to composing adds a familiar flavor in each track on their self-titled LP.

Café Society opened the 69th annual Cannes Film Festival to rave reviews. Woody Allen became the first and only director to have three opening night films selected for the Cannes Film Festival.

It’s New York in the 1930s. As he has more and more trouble putting up with his bickering parents, his gangster brother and the family jewelry store, Bobby Dorfman feels like he needs a change of scenery. He decides to go and try his luck in Hollywood where his high-powered agent uncle Phil hires him as an errand boy.

In Hollywood he soon falls in love, but unfortunately the girl has a boyfriend. Bobby settles for friendship – up until the day the girl knocks at his door, telling him her boyfriend just broke up with her. All of a sudden Bobby’s life takes a new turn, and a very romantic one at that.

The soundtrack features a great collection of the music from the 1930’s. The music is featured prominently in the movie and has been chosen by Woody Allen himself and features newly recorded jazz standards by Grammy Award winners Vince Giordano & The Nighthawks and classic recordings from Ben Selvin, Benny Goodman and Count Basie.





RELEASE: 9-4-2021

Woody Allen says about the soundtrack: “The soundtrack consists of music from the
1930s since that’s when the picture takes place. Most of the material is Richard Rodgers and [Lorenz] Heart, who was very dominant in those years and Lorenz Heart has that bitter sweet romantic quality that defines the spirit of the movie itself.”

This limited edition contains of 500 individually numbered copies on solid gold coloured vinyl. It includes a 4-page booklet with pictures from the film and credits.

Dizzy Gillespie: Dizzy Gillespie At Newport 1957 180g. Limited Edition
High-Definition Premium Vinyl Pressing “Dizzy Gillespie’s second great big band at the peak of its powers. This brilliant album captures one of the high points of Dizzy’s remarkable career and is highly recommended.” (Scott Yanow)
DIZZY GILLESPIE & His Orchestra:
Dizzy Gillespie, trumpet & vocals; Lee Morgan, E.V. Perry, Carl Warwick, Talib Ahmad Dawud, trumpets; Melba Liston, Al Grey, Ray Connors, trombones; Jimmy Powell, Ernie Henry, alto sax; Billy Mitchell, Benny Golson, tenor saxes; Pee Wee Moore, baritone sax; Wynton Kelly, piano; Mary Lou Williams, piano on B4 only replacing Kelly; Paul West, bass; Charlie Persip, drums.
Recorded live at the Newport Jazz Festival, Newport, Rhode Island, July 6, 1957.
Original recording produced by Norman Granz.

‘Cuba: Music and Revolution’ is a new album compiled by Gilles Peterson and Stuart Baker (Soul Jazz Records) that explores the many new styles that emerged in Cuba in the 1970s as Jazz, Funk, Brazilian Tropicalia and even Disco mixed together with Latin and Salsa on the island as Cuban artists experimented with new musical forms created in the unique socialist state of Cuba.
The album comes as a deluxe double CD and heavyweight triple vinyl, complete with extensive sleeve notes, jam-packed with heavy basslines, synth and WahWah guitar funk combined with the heavyweight percussion, powerful brass lines and the all-encompassing Latin rhythms of Cuban music known throughout the world.
The album is released to coincide with the massive new deluxe large format book ‘Cuba: Music and Revolution: Original Cover Art of Cuban Music: Record Sleeve Designs of Revolutionary Cuba 1959-90’, which is also compiled by Gilles Peterson and Stuart Baker (Soul Jazz Records) and which features the music and record designs of Cuba, made in the 30-year period following the Cuban Revolution.
The music on this album features legendary Cuban groups such as Irakere, Los Van Van and Pablo Milanés, as well as a host of lesser known artists such as the radical Grupo De Experimentación, Juan Pablo Torres and Algo Nuevo, Grupo Monumental and Orquesta Ritmo Oriental, groups whose names remain largely unknown outside of Cuba owing to the now 60-year old US trade embargo which remains in place today and which prevents trade with Cuba - and thus most Cuban records were only ever available in Cuba or in ex-Soviet Union states.
The music on this album reflects the most cutting-edge of Cuban groups that were recording in Cuba in the 1970s and 1980s - who were all searching for a new Cuban identity and new musical forms that reflected both the Afro-Cuban cultural heritage of a nation that gave birth to Latin music - and its new position as a socialist state. Most of the music featured on this album has never been heard outside of Cuba.
Both Gilles Peterson and Stuart Baker have been involved in Cuban music for more than two decades - Gilles Peterson with his many Havana Cultura projects for his Brownswood label and Stuart Baker with a number of Soul Jazz Records albums recorded in Cuba. This Soul Jazz Records album is released in conjunction with Egrem, the Cuban state record company, and has been put together after the many crate-digging trips that both compilers have made on the streets of Havana and beyond in Cuba stretching over a 20-year period, searching out rare and elusive original Cuban vinyl records.
Press - Reviews & features in Mojo, The Wire, The Guardian, The Times, The Telegraph, Pitchfork, Irish Times, The Observer, Clash, Vice, Metro, Record Collector, Uncut, Independent, Q.

There’s something new under the sun. If you look at it closely,
something new is only (and always) created at crossroads –
when different and signi¦cant traditions are connected and
combined. On their own, these traditions have often existed
for a while. However, in this new form they have never
appeared together. The latest manifestation of something
new can now be found on the album “No Future Dubs”, the
interpretations of “No Future Days” – the most recent album
by German band Messer – by Finnish producer and old
friend of the group Kimmo Saastamoinen aka Toto Belmont.
The intentional traditions that merge on this grand and
digni¦ed album are post-punk, dub and techno. A new
chapter in the culturally constant narrative of dub is written
here. Through their past and parallel activities in hardcore
and post-punk bands, Messer drummer Philipp Wulf met and
befriended Kimmo, originally a drummer too. In their
continuous dialogue discussing their musical journey, Philipp
and Kimmo over the years more and more immersed
themselves in the aesthetic possibilities of dub and reggae.
Indeed, lots of musicians do not listen to the type of music at
home that they write and play in their respective projects
(Take me as an example: House is the music that I produce
and put on as a DJ. On my own, I listen to various stuff,
music by Monk and Messer for example). The same applies
to the protagonists involved here. By discussing dub und
through Toto Belmont’s steadily increasing producingexpertise, the idea of creating dub versions of selected
Messer tracks was born. The Messer album “No Future
Days”, released in 2020, proved to contain the perfect raw
material as the songs on this album are already produced in
a much more transparent way than on previous LPs – and
are hence more suitable for dub. Still, it’s a giant leap from
the originals to the dubs. These add a third dimension to the
described character of the post-punk/dub amalgam: techno.
The result is a sound that hasn’t existed before, especially
not with German lyrics (which scarcely, however, carry
meaning or messages here. Hendrik Otremba’s voice is used
more like an instrument, as if he was the ghostly ¦gure which
he often sings about and which now §oats and screams
through the sound space). The history of mutual contact and
in§uence of (post-)punk and dub (reggae), which Messer
have kept on writing, is glorious and reaches back far in
musical history. Still, it has always been a rather marginal
chapter not only in punk but also in dub history. But already
in the beginnings of punk (the British version, less the
American one), the presence and in§uence of reggae was
obvious in many places as both are united in their resolute
attitude as rebel music. This is how the two genres
recognized each other – especially the punks regarded
reggae as rebellious. As is known, already Johnny Rotten
mainly listened to dub in private. By using the name John
Lydon, he then – together with bass player Jah Wobble –
established the group PiL as one of the most exemplary
bands at the crossroads of dub and punk. The Slits, Pop
Group, Killing Joke, The Ruts and last but not least The Clash
along with the Mick Jones offshoot Big Audio Dynamite –
the thriving British music scene in the early 80s was full of
dub-in§uenced acts. The echoes meandered everywhere. In
the USA, it took longer until the in§uence of dub became
noticeable and it has never been as distinctive as in the UK.
The history of US hardcore, however, cannot be told without
bands like Bad Brains from Washington D.C. who on their
albums occasionally inserted conscious reggae and dub
tracks between breakneck hardcore tracks. Another
important group is Blind Idiot God who similarly included
dub tracks on their LPs – the contrast between densely
droning rock tunes and widely breathing dub versions can be
experienced very vividly here. In the 90s, dub’s in§uence on
post-punk decreased while turning up even more distinctively
somewhere else: Techno was in many respects susceptible
to dub, to say nothing of the music from the so-called British
hardcore continuum (jungle, drum & bass etc.), which directlydeveloped from dub and reggae. But also “pure” techno –
meaning techno without breakbeats – discovered its a¨nity
for the possibilities of dub at an early stage, in England for
instance in projects like Left¦eld or The Orb. In addition, the
project Rhythm & Sound was established in Berlin with close
ties to the Hardwax record store. With regard to this project,
you can’t really say where dub ends and where techno begins
(or vice versa) because of the interconnection of the two
genres here – everything is based on the steppers pulse
which links the two styles like a common DNA. With dub
techno a new genre was created. Until the present day, there
are producers who don’t produce anything else and DJs who
don’t put on any other music. The Messer dubs are
characterized by a grand majestic manner and force that
presumably someone like Mad Professor is able to produce
and that is also inherent in many Scandinavian productions
of the last 15 years; a crystal-clear aesthetic which locates
itself far away from Kingston or Brixton, but features a pulse
referring clearly to Berlin and Helsinki. The songs appear in a
completely new and deconstructed form, the instruments are
exclusively used as particles and raw material, not as riffs;
merely glaring guitar textures ¦ll the wide dub space. There
are many new elements that were added by Toto Belmont,
especially synthesizer sounds and drums. The ¦nal result
creates an enormous aesthetic power and dignity, and an
atmosphere you don’t want to leave anymore. “No Future” is
a well-chosen title as a reference to the protagonists’ punk
association; as a main thrust of the album, however, a
comma between these two words is imaginable as well.

Captivating, ethereal and majestic, Mammal Hands (saxophonist Jordan Smart, pianist Nick Smart and drummer and percussionist Jesse Barrett) has carved out a refreshingly original sound from a disparate array of influences: drawing on spiritual jazz, north Indian, folk and classical music to create something inimitably their own. Hailing from Norwich, one of Britain's most isolated and most easterly cities, they have forged their own path away from the musical mainstream and their unique sound grew out of long improvised rehearsals. All three members contibute equally to the writing process: one that favours the creation of a powerful group dynamic over individual solos. Their records are entrancing and beautiful affairs, while their hypnotic live shows have seen them hailed as one of the most exciting bands in Europe as they push their unique line-up to the outer limits of its possibilities.

Shadow Work is their third album and the first they have self-produced. Recorded at 80 Hertz Studios, Gondwana Records home from home in Manchester, it is the result of 18 months of intensive touring and mammoth writing sessions. The energy from their exhilarating live performances has fed into the writing process and yet there is a quiet reflective side to this album, giving it an expanded emotional range that draws the listener deep into Mammal Hand's sound world. One that builds on the sound of their previous recordings, Animalia and the beautiful Floa, but is wider than ever, with the use of prepared piano strings, more prominent effects and field recordings all adding to the band's most ambitious and accomplished album to date. The striking artwork is by Daniel Halsall and reflects the organic, natural influences underpinning the band's music alongside a darker, modern minimalism.

The Copenhagen-based, Scottish-born composer Clarissa Connelly’s music is evocative of the whimsical and almost child-like, tainted by an undercurrent of dark sensuality, disquietude and existential dread. Characterized by complex arrangements, big compounded chords, as well as a broad array of instruments, effects and sounds, her songs orient the listener towards utopian beauty that lie somewhere between the baroque and the primordial. With an experimental approach to vocal techniques, her voice can manifest benevolent fay-like creatures as easily as banshees and maleficent spirits singing melodies that retain the accessibility typically associated with pop-music. The compositions are lyrically and aesthetically grounded in Celtic folklore and Scandinavian vitalism. The threshold between the mundane and the fantastical are accentuated in her work, in such a way that the pursuit for – and the ability to recognize – real beauty in the world become anchored in the realm of work, everyday anxiety, motivation, human brilliance and failure.

With forthcoming album The Voyager, Connelly sets out to not only to study the relationship between nature and music, but also its relationship with time. She says: “I’ve always been especially excited about times in the north before Christianity came, and how the Pagan culture and Christianity became intertwined in people through rituals and formations in the landscape - burial mounds, passage graves, dolmens, etc.” She continues: “In some way, it’s very difficult to translate nature into an understandable movement of change. Looking at a mountain I often view a still picture of time – a moment right now – but sometimes, I can look at the mountain and see millions of years of change and movement. I believe that this point of view can be assisted by art and music. In a landscape ornamented with ruined Viking fortresses or ancient burial mounds, I find that I, for whatever reason, seem to be able to perceive time and comprehend history (the history of nature and culture) as a series of changes in a more salient way.”It is here that The Voyager derives so much of its power. It roots itself in history, mythology, capable of intertwining and unravelling both past and present. Songs such as Holler and The Hills Are Crying – opening and closing tracks on the album, respectively – conjure images of these ancient Danish sites, offering something more than just a fluid, long-forgotten way, and instead a tangible reverie that can educate, engage and thrill in equal measure. Connelly explains: “I have the idea, that the mystical and fantastical nature of these olden barrows and ruins can kindle a more dynamic and historically informed perspective. I think that an understanding of time as a movement is articulated when looking at the landscape in this way and can maybe bring us out of our little bell jar, and into a greater experience of life as a whole.”

The Voyager is released in conjunction with an app Vandringen (released 27 september 2020), conceived and created by Clarissa Connelly - along with the contributions of 21 other Danish musicians, painters, sculptures, performers - which highlights special ancient Danish locations, not viewable on Google Maps. These locations are presented with local knowledge and a number of them are interpreted for the modern day by the creatives involved. Connelly concludes: “I am very eager to write music that sounds like something that is happening now but has also happened a very long time ago. I have always found it fascinating to view history through changes in the landscapes around us, and therefore I started created this app and wrote this album.”

The three players in Chicago’s Moontype orbited each other for years before they came in phase. Bodies of Water, their debut album for local label Born Yesterday, documents travel, insecurity, friendship, and the titular element—all of which are representative of the band members’ strong connection to place and to one another. “Being rooted in the landscape became important to me while studying geology, which completely changed how I think about the world,” offers songwriter, vocalist and bassist Margaret McCarthy of the album’s central themes. The arrangements themselves feel like open-hearted negotiations; sparse fingerpicking gives way to saturated tube-screaming as naturally as the changing of tides. Over twelve tracks, Moontype revels in the woozy concoction of its many influences, but always lands on punchy hooks, shifting between arrangements both spacious and mystifying without abandoning their conversational warmth.

Conservatory students at Oberlin College’s prestigious music program, each member focused on exploring different sounds. Guitarist Ben Cruz, who came up on classic rock shredding and migrated into jazz performance, admired the indie pop of Fountains of Wayne, the groundbreaking composition work of pianist Vijay Iyer, and the genre-morphing folk of heavy hitters like Neil Young and Joni Mitchell. He played in several projects alongside Emerson Hunton, who’d drummed from age six and entrenched himself in the Twin Cities improvised music scene before even heading to college. Margaret—who grew up outside of Boston playing piano, singing in choirs and writing on guitar—spent her time creating knotty, riot grrrl-and-hyperpop inspired songs for bass and voice, as well as noise soundtracks for art installations. Inspired by artists like Adrianne Lenker and Gillian Welch, she recorded the EP bass tunes at home in an apartment over the town’s optician, releasing it upon graduation. A week later she migrated even farther west to Chicago, where Ben and Emerson had already enmeshed themselves in several projects, from avant garde ensembles to a country group.

Ben was instantly impressed by Margaret’s songs, at once “challenging and unlike anything I had played before.” The duo decided to try performing together, but knew this special music would be even better fortified with drums. Emerson was the obvious choice—as Ben puts it, “He’s our great friend and also the best drummer we know. Who else do you call?” Moontype-as-trio gigged around town, eventually embarking on a first fall tour in Emerson’s Prius. On that trip, they felt the music morph into something living, and the care and trust between them intensified. They decided to put together songs for a record, recorded at the end of 2019 with Jamdek Recording Studio’s Doug Malone, a dependable collaborator whose patient process perfectly captured the magic of their newfound familiarity. While Margaret’s skeletal demos still informed the bulk of Moontype’s full-band debut (some of which are re-recordings of bass tunes cuts), the resulting arrangements are songs reborn and strengthened by the three musicians’ absorption of one another’s ideas.

On Bodies of Water, Margaret’s soothing, unadorned alto is often peppered by the gliding, eerie harmonies of her bandmates. “We love the act of singing together,” explains Ben, who describes it as “connecting and grounding and wholesome.” The push-pull search for common ground characterizes the instrumentals as well. Round basslines occupy higher octaves, trading space with guitars chugging in lower registers, and all the while drums break apart and glue back together in idiosyncratic grooves that never lose the pocket. Of the complicated rhythms that sometimes result: “Any mathy moments are based on how the lyrics fall naturally, which feels like it frees us up from having to stay in one time signature,” says Emerson. “Rhythmic elements never feel like they’re being added in, more like they’re already there and we just float on through.”

Touring’s restlessness informed these songs, but so did the DIY scene that welcomed Moontype to Chicago—including, according to Margaret, the “wild harmonies” of Ohmme, the “deadpan explanatory rock” of Ratboys, and the “luxe math rock pattern music” of The Knees. Working at beloved venue Sleeping Village inspired Margaret’s observational vignettes; “We are sitting at the desk and you are mixing all the bands,” she reports in the middle of the dextrous folk hammer-ons of “3 Weeks,” gently admitting, “I am trying to have fun and I am trying to get paid” in a world of bikes, trucks, and velvet. “About You,” a robust power-popper written about a post-gig romp around Richmond with artist Bebé Machete, opens with a Phair-ian quip: “Looking at you with my fuck me eyes / Do you wanna get inside of mine?” Meanwhile, the spectre of lost camaraderie looms over “Ferry,” an atmospheric and anthemic standout that questions, “If I’m not your best friend / then who am I to anyone?” Alongside water, this preoccupation with friendship is a focal concern lyrically, but the palpable love between Moontype’s players is essential in communicating that desire for connection, and all three members are dedicated to exploring sound and meaning organically and together. Care and generosity are at the core of Moontype, and Bodies of Water is a clever album full of insightful music, as cosily enveloping as it is incisively honest.