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Blue and green split vinyl with black splatter. Thotcrime, the intercontinental commotion causers seem to have stuck the landing with their intensely non-conventional cybergrind style. Solid instrumentals, chiptunes, synths, and some absolutely furious vocals all come together create something beautiful under the blipping, glitching anger that's itching to scream out under the very chantable melody.

“Sotali” (2010) by Swedish folk duo Pettersson & Fredriksson – featuring members of Otyg and Solsaate – becomes available on vinyl for the first time. Renowned for mastery with the keyed fiddle and mandola, the pair bridges their Västerbotten heritage with influences ranging from Sigur Rós’s avant-garde creativity to José Gonzalez’s serene melancholy. “Sotali” emerges as an opus that balances the energy of traditional melodies with the tranquillity of modern folk artistry.

The new Bishop 88 imprint hits gold from the off here as they offer up an edit of 'Last Night Changed It All' by Esther Williams, a track famously sampled by numerous artists like Boogie Down Productions and Public Enemy. It is a drum-heavy version of a funky tune with conversational melodies and blissful soul vocals next to swooning strings. On the flip is an edit of 'I'm Gonna Love You Just A Little More, Baby' - originally by Kellee Patterson - which itself is a rendition of Barry White's original. These are classy and sophisticated soul sounds for serious heads.

Ein Jazz-Trio ist eigentlich nicht mehr als ein Pianist, ein Bassist und ein Schlagzeuger. Im Falle von Bill Charlap ist ein Jazz-Trio viel mehr: eine ganze Welt aus Rhythmus, Melodie, Kontrapunkt, zupackendem
Drive und ausgefeilter Eleganz. Der mit dem GRAMMY ausgezeichnete Pianist gründete sein langjähriges Trio mit Bassist Peter Washington und Schlagzeuger Kenny Washington bereits 1997 und konnte es schon bald als eines der führenden Ensembles im Jazz etablieren.
Obwohl Bill Charlap und seine beiden Mitstreiter sich „nur“ im Kosmos aus bekannten Jazz Standards und Broadway Tunes bewegen, ist ihre Musik auch nach 27 Jahren und beinahe 20 Alben noch immer so spannend und erfrischend, als hätte man all diese Ohrwürmer noch nie zuvor gehört – besonders wenn man das Trio live erleben kann, so wie bei diesem energiesprühenden Mitschnitt aus dem New Yorker Village Vanguard.

But now it's official: this was no flash in the pan! Voodoo Kiss are back to stay. And their furious second album "Feel The Curse" is even more fun than their debut. With verve, vigor, punky grit and their typical sense of melodic heaviness, Voodoo Kiss blast, fabulate and groove their way through eight powerful examples of how this music of the eighties can be made exciting, original and rousing in the 21st century. Of course, the list of ingredients on "Feel The Curse" also reads like something straight out of the textbook of electric guitar music: the opening title track is a galloping banger with razor-sharp riffs and Pretty Maids flair, "Spellbound By Her Eyes" offers black romanticism and early Maiden vibes, "Dr. Evil" is the semi-acoustic intermezzo with Spanish guitars and eruptive thrash outbursts, "Lords Of Darkness" is a gripping semi-ballad with just the right amount of pathos and the closing "Dead Without A Grave" fires from all cylinders like Motörhead in their prime. Everything in, everything on.

Neues Studioalbum der Neuseeländischen Independent-Helden unter der Leitung des rätselhaften Martin Phillipps. Mit Artwork von Trees' David Costa, meerblaues Vinyl mit Mamor-Effekt, LP inklusive DLC. Dunedin's finest, The Chills, veröffentlichen ihr siebtes Studioalbum "Scatterbrain" zweieinhalb Jahre nach dem enorm erfolgreichen "Snowbound" (2018) und des von der Kritik gefeierten Films "The Chills: The Triumph And Tragedy Of Martin Phillipps' im Jahr 2019. "Es geht um künstlerische Integrität, Selbstverwirklichung, Selbstakzeptanz, und es ist eine Reflexion über Sterblichkeit." (The Guardian) Jetzt, im Jahr 2021, zieht Phillipps Bilanz - über alles. Ja, alles. Das Ergebnis ist das triumphale neue Chills'-Album "Scatterbrain", eine nachdenklich stimmende Aufnahme von einem Mann, der gute und schlechte Zeiten erlebt hat.Eine reife und ehrliche Reflexion über das Leben, das Schicksal und die Geschicke unserer Zeit, vorgetragen in wunderschönen Melodien und mit Phillipps' typischer, prägnanter Wortwahl.Aus der Sicht eines Mannes, der sich seines Alters und seiner eigenen Sterblichkeit bewusst ist, wirft das neue Album einen reifen Blick auf die Dinge, die da kommen, durchaus mit Perspektiven. Scatterbrain" ist ein Leben, das vor Ihren Ohren vorbeizieht, während die Ungewissheit zunimmt und die Fake News weiter rumoren, während Aliens eindringen, Verlassenheit groß wirkt, Welten innerhalb der Welten sich auftun und die Sanduhr sich füllt. Ein bahnbrechendes Album von einem der großen modernen Songwriter, es ist pure Popmusik für eine neue Normalität, spannend zu hören, wie all dies endet...oder weitergeht.

Beneath the steel strings and steely demeanor exemplifying the spirit of bluegrass lies the heart of a wanderer: the heartbroken rambler looking for the next big break and the next story to tell. The Po’ Rambin’ Boys’ Wanderers Like Me is a quintessential bluegrass record, full of melodies that burst with energy and emotion and music driven by melancholy but refusing to succumb to it. They confront their losses with original songs that resonate poignantly across the hills and hollers where bluegrass was born. For The Po’ Ramblin’ Boys wandering is anything but aimless: they ramble not to escape the past but to experience the future.

Since its founding back in 2014, Blume has carved a unique place in cultural landscape, issuing free-standing works, spanning the historical and contemporary, that represent singular gestures of creativity within the field of experimental sound. Joining their broad efforts in building networks of context and understanding that already includes the works by Werner Durand, Sarah Hennies, Bruce Nauman, John Butcher, Jocy de Oliveira, Mary Jane Leach, Valentina Magaletti, Alvin Curran, Julius Eastman, Alvin Lucier, and shortly after returning with the first ever vinyl release to attend to James Tenney’s legendary “Postal Pieces”, the label is now offering a brand new, ambitious work by the American composer Ben Vida, entitled “Vocal Trio”, conceived, performed, and recorded in Bremen, Germany, during the Spring of 2022. A truly stunning work of compositional conceptualism, combining the ideas of systems based synthesis with real-time vocal collaboration - issued in a highly limited vinyl edition of 200 copies mastered by Stephan Mathieu, featuring specially commissioned liner notes by Bradford Bailey and a leporello insert offering the piece visual score - it’s a landmark in contemporary experimental practice and arguably the most forward-thinking and exciting piece by one of the most exciting American artists working today.

Ben Vida first emerged during the mid 1990s within a loose constellation of experimental musicians, centred around a performance series of improvised workshops at the Myopic Bookstore in Chicago, alongside Jim O'Rourke, Kevin Drumm, Chad Taylor, and the other future members of Town and Country - Jim Dorling, Joshua Abrams, and Liz Payne - the band within which he would gain widespread recognition over the following years. Like many other members of that scene, Vida remains a restless product of a fleeting context - Chicago during the 1990s and early 2000s - continuously undermining concrete notions of idiom and signifier within a practice that witnessed him rendering bristling abstractions within Pillow, glacial melodies with Town and Country, the art-rock mayhem of Bird Show Band, and the angular, driving indie rock of Joan of Arc, before becoming immersed in a practice of systems based synthesis, beginning in the 2010s, that guided much of his first decade of output as a solo performer and composer.

As early as 2013, he began to incorporate acoustic sound sources - specifically the human voice - into his work. It was this shift, evolving and refining itself over the last decade, that underscores radically the leap in his practice represented by “Vocal Trio”, a work that encounters Vida composing for the human voice with the ideas that allow for synthesis - transferring the underlying concepts and structures of both subtractive and additive synthesis to the acoustic realm - without using a synthesiser.

During the Spring of 2022 Vida was in Bremen, Germany, collaborating on a dance piece with the choreographer Fay Driscoll, when the production fell into delays. Finding himself with time on his hands, a space at his disposal, and the company of two dancers - Amy Gernux and Lotte Rudhart - who were also singers, the idea for the piece - to utilising the larynx as audio paths (multi-harmonic or harmonically pure) while conceptualising each person’s mouth as a filter to sculpt the timbre and resonance of a given tone - began to take shape in his mind. Considering how typographical scores might be developed into a non-linguistic social framework, Vida drafted a single page of text - what became the score for “Vocal Trio” - accompanied by a set of harmonic suggestion and loose parameters, seeking a core meaning from each word's phonic make-up by each of the three singers (Vida, Gernux and Rudhart) singing as slowly as possible.

At the core of the pulsing vocal drones - intoxicating, harmonically rich long-tones - that make up the duration abstraction of “Vocal Trio”, is Vida’s regard for music as a social space. It is an experiment that seeks liberation through the act of collective music making, by challenging the terms through which the act of composing is perceived and then relinquishing control. The piece’s rehearsals were simply the three performers hanging out, allowing their knowing each other and natural dynamics to contribute to its form as the score, before recording during a single afternoon at the end of a number of days sharing company and space.

Creatively visionary and groundbreaking on numerous terms, as well as being intoxicatingly beautiful and remarkably listenable, Ben Vida’s “Vocal Trio” represents a striking step forward for one of the most ambitious and outstanding sonic artists working in the United States today. Issued by Blume in a highly limited vinyl edition of 200 copies mastered by Stephan Mathieu, featuring specially commissioned liner notes by Bradford Bailey and a leporello insert offering the piece visual score, this is hands down one of the most important contemporary records we’re likely to encounter in 2024.

Biomes are little worlds of organic relationships, full of struggles, symbiosis, and sheer obsolete noise. In "De Silenti Natura," Henrique Vaz is meticulously crafting synthetic auditory biomes, sprouting from their own fuzzy logic. Unfolding across two distinct acts, the Brazilian artist interprets and replicates the complex, often ambiguous sounds of (un)natural environments, creating imaginary systems to inhabit over two sides of tape. The soundscape of the first side and title track is entirely algorithmically synthesized, with no samples used, leveraging Supercollider for real-time sound generation. The environment thus built is a flourishing one, seemingly unable to escape its own grandeur as insect-like buzzing and crackles expands into mountain ranges and forests of erupting sonorous drama. The second side introduces 'hydrophone' water synthesizers, submerged in a goldfish bowl to interface with the unfurling waves of electronic chords, creating a unique blend of damp and unwieldy sloshing movements, prismatically scattered into a luscious soundscape, and resembling everything from the bridge of a starship to the echoed drip-drip of stalactites.

Both sides of the album slowly unwrap and uncrinkle, revealing layers of hisses, distant digital choirs, warm enveloping chords, and juddering bleeps. Despite their unwieldy and strange nature, myriad elements convey a familiar sense of environment, flitting between the blossoming of new (manmade) life and the doom and destruction of the (real) world.

As the ringing of bells (fully synthetic; no samples were used) hove into view during the closing movement of side one, a simulacrum cacophony of voices is ushered in. It’s a reminder of the holy nature of sound itself, beamed into our heads intangibly. The flipside’s water ritual, frantically dunking ‘water synthesizers’ to birth swooping melodies and yawning tones, is jabbing at sleeping giants. It’s pushing and pulling the stars in the night sky into place. It’s both a simple act of beautiful creation, and a storm in a teacup.

Midwestless is the fifth and newest album from St. Louis, Missouri rock failures The Conformists. Once again recorded with Steve Albini at the majestic Electrical Audio, this album marks their first recorded output as a trio. Formed in November of 1996 deep within a basement bedroom somewhere between the corn fields and strip malls of Southern Illinois, The Conformists began as four teenagers with a desire to create Ugly Rock Music. Eventually, they grew up and now dabble in moments which could even be described as quite beautiful and melodic. Elsewhere, elements of insistent repetition with an initial appearance of stasis reveal — with multiple listens — intricate details under the surface.

Ali Berger has been churning out top-tier, thoughtful house music with plenty of soul and bounce for some time now. Whether he’s releasing via his own label Trackland, or dropping 12”s on labels like Spectral Sound, Clave House, Firm Tracks, and FCR, or DJing either solo or collaboratively with Davis Galvin as Hits Only, Ali’s signature feel is always palpable…there’s a genuine spirit to it all.

This 12” is four bumpers that balance sunshine and introspective, heady, thumpin’ house. A1 “Sun Rising On Harmony” has an ear-worm bass line hook driving the tune with an infectious melody on top riding shotgun. A2 “Inside” brings some acidic tendencies to a back-to-basics house sound we’re always in the mood for. Flip to the B-side and “Thoughts Like Light Snow” give us an electro reprise. B2 “Mint Leaf” brings us home with a swelling bass line and snares that dew-drop over the 4/4 with luscious pads and brain-itch scratching zoinks playing at your ear in the background. House music that’s like fine chocolate. Unpack and indulge!

Two titans of modern disco and funk unite to produce a present-day love ballad (or rather love ache), drenched in 80s nostalgia, complete with melodic arpeggio, thumping drums, electric guitar solos and plenty of vocoder action. Heartbreaker is the title of the project, brought to you by none other than Purple Disco Machine & Chromeo. The 12-inch is released with an extended cut alongside the original mix and an instrumental version for good measure. An upbeat electronic track with early Daft Punk influence

Simon Huxtable’s alias Inhmost, returns to Tonight's Dream Records with a new album, Breaks & Dreams, a continuation of his 2022 release, Space & Awareness. This album is a captivating blend of deep baselines, downtempo breaks, and atmospheric ambient textures. Its rhythmic breaks and ethereal melodies create a nostalgic tranquillity that invites you to immerse yourself in its delicate atmosphere and let your mind wander and dream.

ddwy the duo from London is back on Public Possession. Naomi and Ronan aka Nangi and Inner Totality continue to impress with their blend of organic, rhythmic dance music. Mystic vocals intertwine with layers of cosmic melodies. This record is a must for Balearic D.J.s, but will likely also be played out in sleazy dark basements or Pubs in the British countryside. You’ll place it, people will embrace it. That’s a guarantee!

Back in 1993... Early acid Techno from the U.S. … Golden age of the Electronic Music... When Trance, techno and Breakbeat were one and only scene called Rave ! 25 years later, here comes a reisuue of these praised records, remastered by Isotop, cut by Simon The Exchange... The second vinyl brings 3 remixes : one from Biri & The Geezer for a bloody Hackney Acid style ! Another oldschool acid story for a familly meltdown... Then comes a Magy remake more than a remix, re-playing all instruments and all melodies entirely... Sampless tune ! For the last track we have this Big-Beat/Breakbeat version from Monstafunkaz... The remix EP coming with the album is the result from a little challenge remix done on social medias last year... Visual is from Artcoton.

Black Truffle is thrilled to announce a reissue of Chico Mello and Helinho Brandão’s self-titled release from 1984, the first return to vinyl of this classic of Brazilian experimental music with its original cover art and complete track listing. An under-recognised figure whose work inhabits a singular terrain where radical new music techniques and music theatre meet musica popular brasileira, Mello has lived and worked in Berlin since the late 1980s. A student of Dieter Schnebel, Mello played in the 90s iteration of Arnold Dreyblatt’s Orchestra of Excited Strings alongside compatriot Silvia Ocougne, with whom he produced a radical and hilarious deconstruction of MPB classics on Musica Brasileira De(s)composta (an early and rather atypical release on Edition Wandelweiser).

On this release, his only recording predating his move to Europe, Mello works with the alto saxophonist Helinho Brandão, who appears to be otherwise unknown outside Brazil. The record’s six tracks range from solo saxophone improvisation to densely layered ensemble works bridging minimalism, acoustic sound art and a plaintive melodic sensibility that calls up Edu Lobo or Milton Nascimento. Beginning with a dramatic, dissonant wind and string surge from which emerge ominously pounding piano chords, opener ‘Água’ slowly builds in intensity, a halo of clustered vocal harmonies gradually closing in on Brandão’s squealing sax until the piece opens up to reveal a gorgeous passage of melodic singing. The piano accompaniment reduces to tolling bass notes as the voice begins a repeated incantation, suggesting a ritualistic atmosphere reminiscent of parts of Xenakis’ setting of Oresteia. Dissonant, sawing tremolos on the strings climb to a crescendo before disappearing into the sounds of water being poured and splashed into metal vessels, presented not as a field recording but as a percussive element performed by the ensemble. A child’s voice then appears, singing to piano accompaniment the same melody heard earlier in the piece. After a brief solo alto improvisation from Brandão, working with the guttural pops and fleeting melodic gestures of Braxton or Roscoe Mitchell, the remainder of the first side is dedicated to the leisurely unfolding of ‘Baiando’ over the course of twelve minutes. A trio for Brandão on soprano saxophone, Mello on a very period-appropriate phased nylon string guitar and Edu Dequech on bongos, the performance eases its way hypnotically through subtle variations on a set of rhythmic and melodic patterns, almost derailed at points by Brandão’s wild forays into extended technique but held together by Mello’s droning guitar notes.

The second side opens with another multi-part epic for a larger ensemble, ‘Matraca’, which makes use of strings, electric guitars and a wide range of South American percussion instruments. Rasping violin harmonics hover as drum hits, repeated guitar notes and triangle accompany a slowly descending bass glissando. A sudden change in direction introduces a thrumming, incessantly repeated bowed bass tone, beginning a series of episodes of minimalist phasing and pattern variation, the combinations of electric guitars and orchestral instruments giving the ensemble an ad hoc charm like the early Penguin Café Orchestra but with more percussive drive. Eventually the piece is overrun by a cacophony of the titular matracas (a kind of ratchet/cog rattle). Following a lyrical trio improvisation by Mello, Brandão and Gerson Kornin on bass, the final ‘Danca’ focuses entirely on Mello’s layered acoustic guitars and vocals, using this restricted palette to build up a haunting piece of almost orchestral density, reminiscent of the 70s work of Egberto Gismonti in how it thickens a folkish ambience with harmonic sophistication.

Arriving in a starkly beautiful gatefold sleeve and sounding better than ever in its new remaster, one might call the stunning music contained on Chico Mello/Helinho Brandão ahead of its time. But what (other than some of Mello’s own work) produced in the years since its initial release has really touched the organic fusion of minimalism, free improvisation, radical instrumental technique and popular song achieved here? Forty years after its first release, Chico Mello/Helinho Brandão remains music of the future.

Celebrating their 10th anniversary, Slowly Rolling Camera's sixth studio release, 'Silver Shadow,' is inspired by the dynamic interplay of film montages—infused with soul-stirring rhythms, magnetic melodies, and a lush spectrum of emotional tones.

Since bursting onto the scene in 2013, Cardiff's Slowly Rolling Camera has crafted a distinctive niche in the European jazz tapestry, effortlessly weaving together soul-stirring rhythms, magnetic melodies, and a rich palette of emotional hues. Known for alchemical compounds of jazz finesse, cinematic gravitas, and electronic flair, Slowly Rolling Camera fashions sound, perpetually pushing the boundaries of musical creativity.

"This album reflects our fascination with the cinematic approach, not just in sound, but in how we construct our music". SRC’s latest album, 'Silver Shadow,' delves even deeper into that cinematic realm. Inspired by the visual and musical interplay infilm montages, 'Silver Shadow' centers around a fictional protagonist, encapsulated both in the album’s narrative arc and its striking artwork. The tracks, concise and emotionally consistent, mark a departure from earlier long-form composition, aiming instead for more immediate impact.The core trio of Dave Stapleton (keys), Deri Roberts (sound design & production), and Elliot Bennett (drums) drive the band's collective ethos, further ornamented by a vibrant ensemble of collaborators including Jasper Høiby on bass, Josh Arcoleo onsax, Stuart McCallum on guitar, and Verneri Pohjola on trumpet. The band’s genre-defying approach and profound emotional depth has earned comparison with iconic groups The Cinematic Orchestra and GoGo Penguin and captured the hearts ofmany thousands of fans worldwide.

Geprägt durch die britische Punk Bewegung Anfang der 70er Jahre ist seine Musik getrieben von eingängigen Melodien und schnellen Beats. Seinen ganz eigenen Klang, der zwischen Post-Punk, Indierock und Avantgarde mäandert stellt er auch in seinem Album „Copperfield“ unter Beweis. Das Album ist das Erste, nach seinem Signing bei einem Label, wodurch bei vielen Liebhabern Angst aufkam, das Album würde seinen typischen Indie Sound verlieren. Doch ganz im Gegenteil. „Copperfield“ zeigt mit poetischen Texten
und avantgardistischen Melodien Grenzen des Konsums, wie in „ Laugh, Planet“ auf oder beweist in einem an die Punkband Clash erinnernden Song (”Kill Your Ideals”) den Post-Punk-Charakter der Band.

Für ”Copperfield” engagierte Phillip Boa den Briten John Leckie, der als Produzent bereits Platten von Pink Floyd, Simple Minds oder den Woodentops erfolgreich betreute. Das Album hielt sich über 6 Wochen
in den deutschen Albumcharts.

Für Plattenliebhaber und Fans von Phillip Boa And The Voodooclub erscheint jetzt am 09.08.2024 die ReEdition des Albums sowohl als hochwertige 2 LP transparent Vinyl, als auch als 2CD Digipack, Reworked & Remastered , inklusive 5 brandneuer, bisher unveröffentlichter Songs und neuer Live Recordings sowie
noch nicht veröffentlichter Mixes.

2024 Reissue

EQ is a legend in the game of hardcore and rave. The former in-house engineer for Formation Records and DJ SS and the head honcho at F-Project Records, this guy has been involved in so much of the scene’s history. But around 1994 he stopped producing under the name EQ and moved onto other things. That is until now. He is back once again and reinvigorated by the popularity of the rave repress culture and has started to write new material… but in the style of the early 90’s, using lots of old skool hardware to produce his music to keep that authentic UK sound.

His first EP for nearly 30 years takes us right back to the raves of the Midlands, the music of an era. Creative sample usage, rolling breaks, kick drums… melodies and rave stabs! This EP has something for all. Not only that, he has completed his follow up EP already which is due out in 2023 and is as equally impressive.

Back again, the renegade master!

2024 Repress

Harri Pierson bangs the box with his new EP for Duca Bianco, a full thrill mix of disco and house sounds that want to get the party going. 'Instant Message' has a dense mix of raw drum sounds and squelchy synths with interesting melodic designs and steamy female coos. 'Techno Native' is laced up with piano stabs and a hint of old school energy then 'Trippy Too' cuts loose with a head-twisting mix of drums and whistles and bass and pads. 'Young Australians' then brings some big guitar licks to a Balearic beat that is for dancing under the stars. All four of these cuts are unique and compelling.

Konkolo Orchestra ist das Züricher Projekt des Multiinstrumentalisten und Produzenten Alexis Malefakis und mit seinen jazzigen Afrobeat- und Highlife-Referenzen eine Hommage an Innovatoren wie Fela Kuti, Tony Allen und Ebo Taylor. Das Debütalbum 'Future Pasts' setzt das warme, lebendige, perkussive Motiv der beliebten 2022er Single 'Blue G' fort. Malefakis beherrscht das Afrobeat-Genre souverän, seine Tracks haben einen ausgeprägten Charakter, Struktur und fröhliche Melodien und featuren talentierte Gastsänger wie Nongoma (Südafrika), Sir Frank Karikari (Ghana) und Kitio Batola (Kongo), neben Eric Owusu (Ghana) an den Drums.

Eine neue Kraft erwacht. Sie dehnt die Grenzen des Bewusstseins aus. Sie verschlingt alles, was sich ihr in den Weg stellt. Sie läutet die "Reaperdawn" ein. IN APHELION könnte der ultimative Extrem-Metal-Adrenalinstoß sein. Es ist die euphorische Black-Metal-Idee des Gitarristen und Sängers Sebastian Ramstedt (bekannt als Gitarrist und Songschreiber von Necrophobic). Dunkler, seltsamer, epischer und progressiver als von den Bewunderern seiner Arbeit erwartet, ist dieses neue Ventil für dunklen, künstlerischen Ausdruck entstanden, der fest mit der Bösartigkeit des nordeuropäischen Black Metals verbunden ist, aber gleichzeitig eine tiefe Verbundenheit mit dem klassischen, traditionellen Heavy Metal und der schwarzen Magie der psychedelischen Wiederholung aufweist. Basierend auf einer Kernbesetzung, bestehend aus Ramstedt (Gitarre/Gesang), Schlagzeuger Marco Prij (auch Cryptosis), Rhythmusgitarrist Johan Bergebäck (Necrophobic) und Bassist Tobias Cristiansson (Necrophobic, ex-Grave...), haben IN APHELION den kompromisslosen DIY-Weg eingeschlagen, um ihren aktuellen Status als neue Century Media Band zu erreichen. Die Atmosphäre von "Reaperdawn" ist ein wirbelnder Strudel aus obsidianem Funkeln und schillerndem Ruß. IN APHELIONs meisterhafte Mischung aus obskurer Blasphemie und grandiosem Old-School-Gestöber hat eine neue Potenz-Ebene erreicht, da Songs wie der imposante Opener "The Fields In Nadir" und das hymnische "When All Stellar Light Is Lost" den Black-Metal-Ethos weiter unterwandern; mit übermenschlichen Blasts und schädelrasselnden Thrash-Passagen, die einige wahrhaft euphorische und inspirierende Wogen der melodischen Bosheit untermauern.

On 9 August, 2024, Merge Records reissues David Kilgour's A Feather in the Engine, remastered and pressed on vinyl for the very first time. Originally released in 2002, A Feather in the Engine followed two full-band efforts_1997's David Kilgour & the Heavy Eights and The Clean's 2001 album Getaway_and is thus almost startling in its intimacy. Recorded at home and mostly alone (The Verlaines' Graeme Downes provides lush string arrangements), Kilgour once called A Feather in the Engine "the most solo LP I've made." Interpolating his genius for guitar pop through acoustic guitars and gorgeous instrumentals, its melodies unfold gently, suggesting that the 13 songs here, written over the course of four years, were searching Kilgour as much as he was searching them. The dichotomy between A Feather in the Engine's pop songs and instrumentals fascinates the ear, drawing the listener closer and closer to Kilgour's virtuosic guitar playing when his lyrics aren't imparting his breezy charm. The depth of style he achieves_the psych pop of "Today Is Gonna Be Mine," the Velvet Underground-esque churn of "All the Rest," the chamber folk of "The Perfect Watch"_is daunting; listening to it now, every song feels capable of generating a dozen playlists, or like the spawning point of a new microgenre. Perhaps anomalous upon release, it's A Feather in the Engine's instrumentals that feel weightiest in this regard now. "Sept. 98" and "Backwards Forwards," respectively the opening and closing tracks of the album, are elegant, pastoral epics that call out into the yawning expanse, presaging the simmering ambient country of William Tyler and SUSS, while "Instra 2" pushes out the boundaries of Eastern-influenced psychedelia. Lovingly remastered (and in some cases remixed) from the original tapes by Tom Bell at Port Chalmers Recording Services, the vinyl reissue of A Feather in the Engine is a crucial opportunity to rediscover one of David Kilgour's best records, a handcrafted gem that perfects guitar pop's past while pointing to its future, idiosyncratic in its making and tantalizing in its potential. There is good reason for David Kilgour to be your favorite musician's favorite musician. A Feather in the Engine is good reason for him to become yours.

Since surfacing into the Scandinavian synth-pop scene 16 years ago, Nicklas Stenemo and Christian Hutchinson Berg aka KITE have steadily grown from local icons to a global phenomenon, yet until now they've never released a full-length studio album. VII breaks the ice, collecting 14 of the duo's deepest and most dynamic anthems into a stormy saga of immersive, apocalyptic emotion. Sourced from a series of six 7-inch singles released over the past half-decade, the collection persuasively showcases KITE's distinctly cinematic strain of Swedish darkwave in all its glory and desolation. Stenemo and Berg had both logged time in other bands before joining forces in the mid-aughts, although their unique chemistry became apparent immediately. After forming in Malmö, Sweden, they soon relocated to Stockholm, further refining their fusion of brooding synths, booming rhythm, and vocal theatrics over a string of celebrated, numbered EPs (named I through VI). Despite their rising profile, KITE then and now have largely refrained from publicity, allowing their music to speak for itself - which it clearly has, as KITE's live performances have become the stuff of legend, prompting frequent festival invitations, international tours, and limited engagements on prestigious stages (recently at the Royal Swedish Opera, and Dalhalla, the former limestone quarry turned open air amphitheater, to name a few). VII offers a compendium of KITE's potent recent discography, including collaborations with Blanck Mass, Anna von Hausswolff, and Henric de la Cour. From yearning dystopian pop ("Hand Out The Drugs," "Bowie `95"), to widescreen existential balladry ("Tranas Stenslanda," "Glassy Eyes"), and sleek New Romantica ("Remember Me," "Teenage Bliss"), KITE's wavelength is one of soaring heights and abysmal depths, anguish and ecstasy, pouring one's burning, battered heart into the here and now. Their years of visceral commitment and artistic integrity have been hard fought and hard won; it bleeds between the words and melodies in one holy moment after another: "I switch my ways / To seize the day / To face my life / Not fade to gray."

Since surfacing into the Scandinavian synth-pop scene 16 years ago, Nicklas Stenemo and Christian Hutchinson Berg aka KITE have steadily grown from local icons to a global phenomenon, yet until now they've never released a full-length studio album. VII breaks the ice, collecting 14 of the duo's deepest and most dynamic anthems into a stormy saga of immersive, apocalyptic emotion. Sourced from a series of six 7-inch singles released over the past half-decade, the collection persuasively showcases KITE's distinctly cinematic strain of Swedish darkwave in all its glory and desolation. Stenemo and Berg had both logged time in other bands before joining forces in the mid-aughts, although their unique chemistry became apparent immediately. After forming in Malmö, Sweden, they soon relocated to Stockholm, further refining their fusion of brooding synths, booming rhythm, and vocal theatrics over a string of celebrated, numbered EPs (named I through VI). Despite their rising profile, KITE then and now have largely refrained from publicity, allowing their music to speak for itself - which it clearly has, as KITE's live performances have become the stuff of legend, prompting frequent festival invitations, international tours, and limited engagements on prestigious stages (recently at the Royal Swedish Opera, and Dalhalla, the former limestone quarry turned open air amphitheater, to name a few). VII offers a compendium of KITE's potent recent discography, including collaborations with Blanck Mass, Anna von Hausswolff, and Henric de la Cour. From yearning dystopian pop ("Hand Out The Drugs," "Bowie `95"), to widescreen existential balladry ("Tranas Stenslanda," "Glassy Eyes"), and sleek New Romantica ("Remember Me," "Teenage Bliss"), KITE's wavelength is one of soaring heights and abysmal depths, anguish and ecstasy, pouring one's burning, battered heart into the here and now. Their years of visceral commitment and artistic integrity have been hard fought and hard won; it bleeds between the words and melodies in one holy moment after another: "I switch my ways / To seize the day / To face my life / Not fade to gray."

Hardwood Vinyl. Narrow Head's highly anticipated new LP 12th House Rock arrives August 28th on Run For Cover Records. The Houston-based band's latest entry is the distillation of the greatest moments in 90's alternative and hard rock with a fresh set of ears, thirteen tracks of their signature brand of bludgeoning lullabies bursting at the seams with creative ideas, new directions and yes, massive, monolithic riffs. In between the sparkle and smash, open-hearted and emotionally naked songwriting showcases a core piece of the band's identity- showcasing 12th House Rock as one of the best releases of 2020.Delving into deep-seated themes of self loathing, desolation, self-medication, the loss of loved ones and hopeful redemption,12th House Rock is, as the title suggests, a rock-focused LP themed on transition- exploring the vast abyss of darkness just before the sun cracks upon the horizon. Using distorted guitars as their primary vehicle, Narrow Head's wall of riffs add stark contrast to their best quality- deceptively sweet pop melodies that channel the lessons of My Bloody Valentine, Cocteau Twins, Helmet, Deftones and Guided by Voices all at once.

OBERHEIM! is the love child of Gothenburg's alternative backyard, born from the union of scattered guerrilla groups such as URAN, Exorcist GBG, Dirty Burger, The Population, Melody Fields, Lady Banana, and Tentakel. Their self-titled debut album is a psychedelic garage rock explosion that draws its lifeblood from bands like The Stooges, Can, Kraftwerk, and The Gun Club.

"Jordan Hamilton's ""Project Freedom"" revolves around the non-traditional ways Jordan applies the Cello to play chords, layer melodies, and create songs. This is a record about breaking limitations and boundaries - a fusion of RnB, Soul, Hip-Hop, Electronic, and Jazz.

Located halfway between Detroit and Chicago, Project Freedom was written in Kalamazoo, Michigan where cellist Jordan Hamilton began his journey as a songwriter, producer, and artist. This is Cello-Beats and Folk-Soul Rhythms.

This introspective journey is narrated by Jordan's lyricism that expresses the wisdom gained through life's lessons at home, chasing dreams, living with loss, and falling in love. These are the lessons that earned him the ability to move through this world all the more free.

This is an album made to accompany you through all of life's changes."

Fourth volume of Library Music miniatures by Daniel O’Sullivan (Ulver, Æthenor, This is Not This Heat, etc) for VHF, this time commissioned by the legendary German Music Library, Sonoton. Another sampling of O’Sullivan’s versatility and brilliance as a composer, performer, and sound designer, the focus on The Pastoral Machine is more “electronic” compared to the three previous albums O’Sullivan recorded for KPM (also issued on LP by VHF), with simpler arrangements and a focus on gentle and emotive synthesised soundworlds. Even without as many full ensemble arrangements, there’s still a wealth of diversity—“Empathogen” opens the record with latticed arpeggiating sequences recalling Japanese “environmental music” or Persian Surgery-era Terry Riley, “Fruit Of Stream Entry” burbles with gentle ripples evoking the album’s title, while “The Silversmith Of Space” mines a simple chord sequence evoking Eno’s ’70s classic short instrumentals. “Superstrings” is a series of hypnotic overlapping guitar patterns, like a lost Ash Ra or Achim Reichel track. The brief “Star Lore” is a heavy highlight with deep bass washes and grainy, tape-laminated melodies, followed immediately by Rose Keeler Schaffeler’s vocal feature on “The Oscillating Love” recalling futurist new-age pop in the vein of Enya or Virginia Astley. Housed in a jacket and heavy euro-style inner featuring collages by O’Sullivan, soon to be the subject of an art book published by Timeless Editions in mid-2024.

One of the prominent growing voices in Timmion Record's roster, singer Emilia Sisco blesses your turntable with another deep soul ballad. Joining hands with Cold Diamond & Mink, Emilia pours a generous helping of deep soul magic into "Let Me In", gliding over the southerntinged beat with melodic grace. It's almost impossible to remain ambivalent to Emilia's talent when the spine-tingling chorus with its clever twists rolls in. The bittersweet love song's timeless feel pours over the listener like the flooding Mississippi, anthemic but understated. Flipping the single, we get to revisit Emilia's previous single "Love Can Carry Me" but this time in instrumental mode, titled as "Way Past Midnight". It's not just a vocal strip down, but this time Cold Diamond & Mink has equipped the track with a jazzy Grant Green styled lead guitar. Tasty. You would have to be a cold-blooded robot not to feel something from this soulful double sider. Forget the dance floors and bedrooms for a minute, these songs are the best fertilizer for your personal mind garden.

"Oyster Cuts", das vierte Album und Merge Records-Debüt von Quivers, zeigt, dass die in Melbourne, Australien, ansässige Band in der Art von Emotionen schwimmt, in denen sich die meisten Menschen zu verlieren fürchten. Der überdimensionierte Gitarrenpop von Quivers schimmert wie die Oberfläche eines Ozeans, unter der ein Riff liegt, das abwechselnd schön und schmerzhaft ist, dessen Züge fremdartig und scharf genug sind, um zu verwunden. Angetrieben von Melodien, die manchmal an Galaxie 500 und The Pretenders erinnern, machen Quivers Musik, die zart und hart ist und den Hörer dazu zwingt, immer wieder einzutauchen, wobei jeder Song einen neuen Gefühls-Blickwinkel eröffnet. "Oyster Cuts" ist Sonnenschein-Pop mit Blut im Wasser. Die Verluste und Lieben, die Quivers' Musik seit ihren Anfängen geprägt haben - der plötzliche Verlust eines Bruders im gebrochenen Optimismus von "We'll Go Riding on the Hearses" (2018) und das Leben in und nach der Trauer von "Golden Doubt" (2021) - fließen in "Oyster Cuts" ein, das sich dem Weitermachen verschrieben hat, während es akzeptiert, dass einige Gefühle, wie Trauer, ein Kreislauf sind. Entscheidend ist, dass Quivers sich verpflichten, miteinander Vorwärts zu gehen. Ohne den Chor und die Streicher von "Golden Doubt" ist "Oyster Cuts" ein Beispiel dafür, was immer noch möglich ist, wenn vier Leute - Sam Nicholson (Gitarren), Bella Quinlan (Bass), Michael Panton (Gitarren) und Holly Thomas (Schlagzeug) - zusammen Musik machen. Durch die Verwendung von Tape Loops - die "Oyster Cuts" eröffnen und schließen und das Album wie Haie umkreisen - legen Quivers Wert auf Wiederholung, setzen gemusterte Riffs ein und navigieren durch kreisförmige Gedanken, bis sie an ihre Grenzen stoßen und schließlich zu einem neuen Song zusammenfinden. Ihr verträumter, sonnenverwaschener Jangle-Pop ist dadurch schlanker und muskulöser geworden, und ihre Sound-Palette wird durch Anklänge an The Cure, Echo & the Bunnymen und The Durutti Column verdunkelt. Innerhalb dieses Rahmens betreten Quivers als Band Neuland, indem sie ihrem charakteristischen Gruppengesang eine neue Dimension hinzufügen: Quinlan übernimmt bei vier Songs die Leadstimme, die ineinander verwobenen Gitarren von Nicholson und Panton werden in den Mittelpunkt gestellt und der zielgerichtete Groove von Quinlan und Thomas treibt das Ganze voran. Die Songs von Quivers fühlen sich wie lange Gespräche zwischen Freunden an, in dem Sinne, dass ein Gespräch sowohl ein Akt der Sprache als auch ein Raum ist, den Menschen füreinander einnehmen. Die ersten beiden Tracks auf "Oyster Cuts", "Never Be Lonely" und "Pink Smoke", nehmen diese privaten Universen, die aus gemeinsamer Sprache, Erinnerungen, Songfetzen und dem Licht eines Handybildschirms mitten im Doomscroll bestehen, und verwandeln sie in ein Leuchtfeuer, in suchende Texte, die von massiven Hooks entfacht werden. "All I ever wanted was a true friend / All I wanted was a friend with benefits / All I ever wanted was transcendence" singen Quinlan und Thomas zu Beginn des Albums, und von da an spult "Oyster Cuts" in den Horizont hinaus. Die vier Mitglieder von Quivers erforschen diesen Raum nicht nur, sondern füllen ihn auch so weit wie möglich mit sich selbst aus, indem sie sich aneinanderbinden, egal wie unklar und chaotisch Herzensangelegenheiten werden können. Jeder Moment der Katharsis, den Quivers aus dem Äther zaubern, ist eine Einladung, sich ihnen anzuschließen. Wenn man ihnen zuhört, wie sie dort aufsteigen, wo andere grübeln würden, ist es unmöglich, ihrer Einladung zu widerstehen.

Lullaby for the Debris is the second album from Moses Brown of Institute’s solo project Peace de Résistance. Those of us who loved Peace de Résistance’s 2022 debut, Bits and Pieces, will be pleased to hear that much of what made that album so memorable—the glam-infused art rock sound, the gritty yet richly textured production, and Moses’s bluntly class-conscious lyrics—carries over into Lullaby for the Debris. Yet Lullaby for the Debris also sounds more refined, more timeless than its predecessor, with “40 Times the Rent,” “Coddle the Rich,” and “Ain’t What It Used to Be,” all built around chooglin’ Lou Reed-style riffs beamed in from the great rock and roll beyond. Elsewhere on the record, Moses’s arty side shines through, with “The Funny Man” and “Pay Us More” full of uncanny sounds that invite the listener to bathe in their rich sonic textures. “I Am” and “You Are Absurd” move into a new territory Brown calls “despondent funk,” their rubbery bass sounds and eerily progressive soundscapes evoking Station to Station-era Bowie, while the title track closes the album on a pensive note, landing somewhere between 70s minimalist composition and the mellower moments from Eno’s solo albums. The real strength of this record, though, is Brown’s ever-developing songwriting skills, which meld wry social observation and Crass-style confrontational politics to melodies you’ll sing along with for the rest of your life

A group of three disillusioned teenaged punks find themselves
transported into a terrifying alternate universe in The Devil's Egg, a new
fantasy rock opera from Missouri music renegades The Hooten Hallers
Throughout 13 spellbinding tracks, the music flows through a rainbow of musical
genres from R&B and metal to punk and prog rock. Captivating audiences with
their high-energy romps for nearly 20 years, the satisfying vocal pairing of John
Randall 's gravel and Andy Rehm 's falsetto, along with Kellie Everett 's low
woodwinds, weave between basslines and melodies to round out one of modern
music's most unexpected power trios. While musically diverse, the rock opera's
coming- of- age storyline ties it all together, conjuring the science fiction of
Stranger Things and the folklore of the Coen brothers to transport characters
through an epic and transformative quest. In the end, the kids form unusual
alliances to attempt their escape, allowing The Hooten Hallers to take listeners
on their wildest, most cinematic journey yet.

Konkolo Orchestra ist das Züricher Projekt des Multiinstrumentalisten und Produzenten Alexis Malefakis und mit seinen jazzigen Afrobeat- und Highlife-Referenzen eine Hommage an Innovatoren wie Fela Kuti, Tony Allen und Ebo Taylor. Das Debütalbum 'Future Pasts' setzt das warme, lebendige, perkussive Motiv der beliebten 2022er Single 'Blue G' fort. Malefakis beherrscht das Afrobeat-Genre souverän, seine Tracks haben einen ausgeprägten Charakter, Struktur und fröhliche Melodien und featuren talentierte Gastsänger wie Nongoma (Südafrika), Sir Frank Karikari (Ghana) und Kitio Batola (Kongo), neben Eric Owusu (Ghana) an den Drums.

Konkolo Orchestra ist das Züricher Projekt des Multiinstrumentalisten und Produzenten Alexis Malefakis und mit seinen jazzigen Afrobeat- und Highlife-Referenzen eine Hommage an Innovatoren wie Fela Kuti, Tony Allen und Ebo Taylor. Das Debütalbum 'Future Pasts' setzt das warme, lebendige, perkussive Motiv der beliebten 2022er Single 'Blue G' fort. Malefakis beherrscht das Afrobeat-Genre souverän, seine Tracks haben einen ausgeprägten Charakter, Struktur und fröhliche Melodien und featuren talentierte Gastsänger wie Nongoma (Südafrika), Sir Frank Karikari (Ghana) und Kitio Batola (Kongo), neben Eric Owusu (Ghana) an den Drums.

New Jersey producer, DJ and Inimeg Records head honcho Joey Anderson takes on the role of Obiaman for Obia Records 005. Well known for his deep and intriguing records Joey Anderson takes the label far into the night sky with Vanish EP. Accompanied by label owner Wendel Sield the EP sets to serve a variety for all tastes.

Anderson’s style of hypnotic rhythm and cosmic synth work finds common ground with the labels African background in “Masked Ones”. With haunted vocal shots and elegant drum work. Minimalistic use of elements fill the track exceptionally well.

“Vanish”, the records main cut fills any ear with an astonishing panned bassline accompanied by loosely layered hihats. Strange and eerie pads float around the bassline, while piano chords give structure to the music. Followed by “Escape” this well-crafted jam explores the deep even further. Jumping synth lines that sound from another planet edge the depth of Anderson’s amazing musical ear. The track is layered by dirty low frequencies that suck you in with weird noises and atmospheric melodies.

Orbiting an icy moon Wendel Sield's “Cultivate” shows itself at the end of the EP. A pulsating synth line dominates the track main character. Intricate percussion patterns drag the track along to a dirty mono sequence. Big open snares makes this a track a slap in the face to its listener.

2024 Restock

A mix of post-Tropicalia Brazilian rock and some of the more soulful elements filtering through the country's music in the early 70s  and one of the most enigmatic albums by this unique singer! Sergio's got a sound that's incredibly hard to describe  at once sweet and melodic, but also kind of twisted, in an intimate singer/songwriter mode. The production of the album is compressed with a number of post-Beatles touches that make it sparkle like work by Caetano Veloso in the mid 70s, or some of the Peruvian rock by groups like We All Together  and hearing the record gives us the same sort of excitement of new discovery as when we heard their best work. Titles include "Rulzito Seixas", Viajei De Trem, "Pobre Meu Pai", "Labirintos Negros", "Filme De Terror", and Lero E Leros E Boleros

Record producer, composer, singer, and pioneer of the dub music genre Lee Scratch Perry passed away in August 2021. His influence over popular music since the 1970s is hugely significant, with artists including Bob Marley & The Wailers, The Clash, Beastie Boys, Max Romeo, Junior Murvin and The Orb all enriched by Perry’s legendary touch, innovative studio techniques and production style.

Conceived, written and recorded during the COVID pandemic, ‘King Perry’ was produced by Daniel Boyle, and features guest performances from Greentea Peng, Shaun Ryder, Tricky, Marta, Rose Waite and Fifi Rong. Two tracks were also co-produced with Tricky, who releases Perry’s last recorded performances on his False Idols label.

Over a career spanning six decades, Lee Scratch Perry left the music world with a huge catalogue of albums, productions and appearances that cannot be underestimated. Releases for Island Records, Trojan, Adrian Sherwood’s On-U Sound, Mad Professor’s Ariwa...the list goes on. It was in 2014 that Perry teamed up with UK producer Daniel Boyle, and from this collaboration came the Grammy nominated album ‘Back At The Controls’ and was followed up five years later with the ‘Black Album’.

The ‘King Perry’ album was born out of a request from Perry that he “wanted to do something new, something different but still with a dub framework”. And so, armed with influences as diverse as synthwave, big beat, drum & bass and electronica, Boyle and Perry traded ideas, beats and lyrics in a project that continued to grow as its various guest performers were added, resulting in a kaleidoscopic and engaging melting pot of rhythms, melodies, and voices. Poignantly, closing track ‘Goodbye’ was Perry’s last ever recorded vocal performance.

One of the prominent growing voices in Timmion Record's roster, singer Emilia Sisco blesses your turntable with another deep soul ballad. Joining hands with Cold Diamond & Mink, Emilia pours a generous helping of deep soul magic into "Let Me In", gliding over the southerntinged beat with melodic grace. It's almost impossible to remain ambivalent to Emilia's talent when the spine-tingling chorus with its clever twists rolls in. The bittersweet love song's timeless feel pours over the listener like the flooding Mississippi, anthemic but understated. Flipping the single, we get to revisit Emilia's previous single "Love Can Carry Me" but this time in instrumental mode, titled as "Way Past Midnight". It's not just a vocal strip down, but this time Cold Diamond & Mink has equipped the track with a jazzy Grant Green styled lead guitar. Tasty. You would have to be a cold-blooded robot not to feel something from this soulful double sider. Forget the dance floors and bedrooms for a minute, these songs are the best fertilizer for your personal mind garden.

2024 repress.


Repress Back in March 2003 Claro Intelecto announced his arrival in the electronic world with his Peace Of Mind EP on Ai Records. Now, a decade later, Delsin, the label on which he released his latest LP, is re-releasing it in all its glory. Across four perfectly formed tracks the EP proved Manchester's Mark Stewart to have a fine grasp on techno, electro and dub, and that he was able to do his own unique things with each.

Arguably the most well known cut from the EP is 'Peace of Mind (Electrosoul)', a busy bit of chattery house-come-electro that is wired up with many zithering melody lines and Claro's trademark lush strings. 'Tone' is then a much more frazzled and aggressive bit of techno with raw, slapping percussion, gurgling synth lines and plenty of dystopian electro vibes. 'Contact' then settles into a deep, dubby, spacious groove with airy hi hats and a delightful bassline and carries you along effortlessly, and final track 'Signifier' closes things out in beautifully serene style with ambient swirling pads, organic synths and a curious bassline that rises and falls like the tide. Seminal stuff that still fetches a high price on Discogs, it was the start of a remarkable career for Claro Intelecto.