Search:michael ja

15 Heavy Funk Rarities Presented As A Double LP Cold Heat is Eothen “Egon” Alapatt’s a follow-up to the famous Funky 16 Corners set he curated in the early 2000s. And like that one, Cold Heat is overflowing with great bits that had barely (or never) been heard by the rest of the world at large. Egon went through a range of rare singles, masters, and demos and came up with tunes that burn with a brightness that's undeniable. The grooves are all on the harder end of the James Brown Funky People side of the spectrum and some tracks are by names that finally got their due here, thanks to Egon, Now-Again, and some of the other funky forces doing the good work over the years.

J.J.Milteau gathers around him some talented accomplices, Michael Robinson, Mike Andersen, Harrison Kennedy, Carlton Moody, under the guidance of Johan Dalgaard... to surf on a soundtrack soaked with blues and all the music he has been programming for over twenty years in his show "Bon Temps Rouler". "My whole life has been determined by the purchase of my first harmonica when I was fifteen. For me, it really was The Key To The Highway ...

Perhaps known as the frontman of Sunfruits and as the drummer for Jade Imagine, Winter McQuinn’s solo music explores psychedelic country and folk rippling with a free-ness similar to Nick Drake, Syd Barrett, Kevin Ayers and more modern 70s soft rock purveyors like Michael Rault and Drugdealer. His impressive 2021 debut album ‘A Rabble Of Bees’ marked the beginning of Winnie’s solo wanderings, showcasing his songwriting talents and DIY inventiveness. Winter McQuinn’s sophomore solo album 'Move To The Trees' is set for April 5th via Third Eye Stimuli Records and Echodelick Records (USA). McQuinn recorded the new album in April 2022 over one weekend in Anglesea, Victoria with Jesse Williams (Leah Senior, Grace Cummings, Traffik Island) as engineer and producer. 'Move To The Trees' showcases a more refined and sonically sophisticated side to Winter McQuinn’s solo music. Featuring talented musicians Jack Kinder and Lewis Mosley from fellow Third Eye Stimuli family, Hot Apple Band, as well as Elena Jones from Sunfruits and Jaspar Robinson, McQuinn and co create a unique space through their artful intersections of hope and tragedy. A series of anthems for the future, settled in a post psych-folk and 70s soft rock energy, McQuinn takes influence from the new-wave of 70s folk and rock influenced artists from the USA's West Coast such as Sylvie, Cut Worms, John Andrews, Anna St Louis, The Lemon Twigs and more. This album showcases a step up in songwriting and production for Winter McQuinn who’s ever evolving style and commitment to creating is inspiring. The album cover design was hand painted by renowned folk / baroque pop artist Leah Senior and portrays McQuinn in different settings around Anglesea and the studio.

Just when you thought you had Kasper Bjørke figured out he comes back with another great musical surprise. His new album Puzzles, which will be released April 5th on hfn music, follows two recent collaborative EPs on Live at Robert Johnson and Mule Musiq as well as his second Kasper Bjørke Quartet neoclassical/ambient album Mother on Kompakt.
Puzzles is Kasper’s love letter to the sound of early 2000s New York - merged with his Scandinavian sense of producing songs that goes beyond conventional club music; combining disco tinged instrumentations mixed with elements of 80s funk, jazz and contemporary pop songwriting, creating something familiar yet, something very fresh and innovative at the same time.
The album includes collaborations with a wide range of musicians and vocalists. From California based indie-disco troubadour Woolfy (DFA, Rong, Permanent Vacation etc.) to the Icelandic dream-folk trio Systur aka Sísý Ey (who also featured on Kasper’s 2014 single Apart, where the Michael Mayer remix became a timeless club anthem), as well as other longtime collaborators and artist friends: Toby Ernest, Jacob Bellens, WhoMadeWho’s Tomas Høffding on bass, Posh Isolation affiliate Frederik Valentin on guitar and the young, rising jazz star Oilly Wallace on saxophone and flute. Essentially, the majority of Puzzles is played and recorded live, including the drums by Rasmus Littauer (School of X, MØ). Many of the songs emerged from chord progressions written during studio sessions between Kasper and Toby - which Kasper then produced into a colourful and effective album, rooted in an expressive live feeling far from programmed patterns.
Puzzles is a new step for Kasper as a producer and artist, showcasing his ability to move and flow freely between genres and expressions, however still deeply rooted in his love and affection for the classic disco groove - which is only natural after more than two decades as an active DJ.
Another piece has been added to the musical puzzle of Kasper Bjørke

Second Compilation Of New Music By Ex-Sarah Records Bands! Under The Bridge 2 is the sequel to the celebrated 2022 compilation album that reunited groups and songwriters who had once recorded for cult label Sarah Records. The new album showcases the continuing creativity of a special group of musicians who have never rested on their laurels. Bigger and more expansive than the first album, Under the Bridge 2 is a double LP, containing twenty brand new tracks. There is a huge range of material here, from intense, dark chamber pop to dense shoegaze to out-and-out indiepop. Exciting new groups are unveiled: The Gentle Spring (a new project by Michael Hiscock of The Field Mice); Vetchinsky Settings (a collaboration between Mark Tranmer and James Hackett of The Orchids); and Mystic Village (which features new songs by Robert Cooksey of The Sea Urchins). You will also see familiar starry names like Even As We Speak, The Orchids and Secret Shine - bands whose line-ups have remained mostly unchanged since the 1990s. And there are established bands who didn't appear on the first album but are now represented - bands like Action Painting! and The Hit Parade. Most of the tracks are exclusive and unreleased: there's the first new song from The Catenary Wires since 2021, a brand new fizzbomb from Jetstream Pony, a haunting instrumental from GNAC. The emphasis of Under The Bridge is on the new. The bands' shared history means they have a shared aesthetic, even a shared ethos - they all believe that the future is more important than the past. They are as independent and as uncompromising as ever, but they are still uncynical - and still excited about what Pop Music can be. Under The Bridge 2 is available as ltd vinyl double LP, CD and digital download. It will not be on streaming sites. CDs and LPs include a 12 respectively 24-page illustrated colour booklet.

Whether they were singing hymns or secular songs, Ladysmith Black Mombazo always raised their voices in glorious harmony

They are the unmatched masters of South African a cappella and this release documents their vocal prowess. This album is comprised of their very best performances from over a long and prestigious and celebrated career. It covers from when they burst onto the scene when they participated with Paul Simon on his hugely successful "Graceland" album and launched their years of worldwide touring to appearances on venues like Saturday Night Live, and providing music for movies with major stars like Michael Jackson and Dolly Parton. Their unparalleled artistry won them great fame and five Grammy awards. They also always found time to lend their voices in Support of South Africa's Struggles away from apartheid rule.

Escape Music are pleased to announce the release date for long awaited Turkish Delight studio album titled “Volume 1" with 500 limited edition double Vinyl “Side A+B Snowy White colour and side C+D Skull Gold colour” all will be numbered 1-500! ‘Turkish Delights Volume One’ celebrates the absolute joy that Escape Music co-owner Khalil Turk has for the kind of music he loves so much and has spent the last thirty and then some years championing. Indeed, his enthusiasm for a new band or a new song today is no different from when I first met him in the mid ‘80’s. I lost count of the number of phone calls he made to me when I was working for ‘Kerrang!’ magazine, where he would excitedly tell me ‘Dave, you just have to listen to this! It’s brilliant! You’ll love it!’ before playing me something over the phone – new and often obscure - he had picked up on his international record buying trips. Nine and a half times out of ten he’d be right!! Khalil’s quality control has been such that the record label he co-founded with fellow melodic rock enthusiast Barrie Kirtley in 1995 remains reliably and solidly in place all these years later. Escape continues to deliver monthly doses of quality hard rock, melodic rock and AOR to a very devoted following. Khalil had first entered the music business in the early ‘90’s, effectively as a talent scout for the German owned Long Island label. However, after the company folded, Turk felt that, rather than look at opportunities with other labels, he had the enthusiasm and now had rather more knowledge of the inner workings of the music business to put something together himself alongside the equally enthusiastic and astute Kirtley. We’ve seen hundreds of solid album releases from a huge variety of acts (including AXE, Steve Walsh (Kansas), John Elefante (Kansas), Lonerider, Shadowman, Alliance, Pinnacle Point, Mass, Heartland, Grand Illusion, Overland, Last Autumn’s Dream, Punky Meadows, ColdSpell, Chris Ousey, Ozone and Touch, to name just a few) as well as reissues (from Aviator, Sugarcreek, Jon Butcher Axis, Franke And The Knockouts, FM, Tantrum and Surrender, Zon, Hanover Fist etc) ever since. So here we are, over twenty-five years since that first Escape Music album appeared hot off the presses (Heartland’s ‘III’ album in November 1995, if you’re asking) and this collection of songs, personally chosen by Khalil, reiterates that pure joy he still possesses for the music he is utterly immersed by. With material from the pens of Steve Overland (FM), Chris Ousey (Heartland), Steve Morris (Export/Ian Gillan/Heartland), Mick Devine (Seven), Steve Newman (Newman/Compass) and Tommy Denander (Radioactive) there’s also a list of musicians culled from Khalil’s contact book that, quite frankly, is VERY impressive. Just a few names appearing on ‘Turkish Delights’ to throw at you include Ronnie Platt (Kansas), Billy Greer (Streets/Kansas), Billy Sheehan (Talas/David Lee Roth/Mr Big), Gary Pihl (Sammy Hagar/Boston/Alliance), Gene Black (Device), Jeff Pilson (Dokken), Jeff Scott Soto, Chris Childs (Thunder), Mike Slamer (City Boy/ Streets/Seventh Keys/ Steelhouse Lane) Joel Hoekstra (Whitesnake/Joel Hoekstra’s 13), Mark Mangold (American Tears/Touch/ Drive, She Said), Mark Stanway (Magnum), Mat Sinner (Sinner), Marco Mendoza (Thin Lizzy/Whitesnake/Journey), Ricky Phillips (The Babys/Bad English/Styx), Robin Beck, Robin Mc Auley (Grand Prix/MSG), James Christian (House Of Lords) Steve Overland (FM), Jerome Mazza (Pinnacle Point/solo), Terry Brock (Strangeways) and Vince DiCola (‘Transformers’/Thread/Storming Heaven). This is a cast of thousands. Well, it at least appears that way! It’s a very interesting package and, as Khalil would surely say, you’ll love it! - Dave Reynolds / August 2022. Produced by Khalil Turk for Turkish Delight Productions / Mixed and Mastered by Stephen DeAcutis at Sound Spa Studio, New Jersey, USA / *Mixed by Andy Zukerman / *Mastered by Fredrik Folkare / **Mixed and Mastered by Brian J Anthony (Vinyl Only) - Artwork Design by Hugh Syme (Rush/Bad English/Elton John) - Turkish Delights: The Musicians are: Ronnie Platt: Lead vocals (Kansas) / Billy Greer: Lead vocals (Kansas/Seventh Keys/Streets) / Jeff Scott Soto: Lead and backing vocals (Talisman/Yngwie Malmsteen/Trans-Siberian Orchestra) / Robin McAuley: Lead and backing vocals (Michael Schenker Group/Grand Prix/solo artist) / Chris Ousey: Lead vocals and Backing vocals (Heartland/Ousey-Mann/Virginia Wolf/Ozone)/ Jerome Mazza: vocals (Pinnacle Point/Steve Walsh) / James Christian: Lead and backing vocals (House Of Lords)Terry Brock: Lead vocals (Strangeways/Kansas) / Lee Small: Lead and backing vocals (Phenomena/Lionheart/Shy) / Mick Devine: Lead and Backing vocals (Devine Intervention/7/solo artist) / Ronnie Romero: Lead and backing vocals (Rainbow/Michael Schenker Group) / Tony Harnell: Lead vocals and backing vocals (TNT/Westworld/Starbreaker/Morning Wood) / Steve Overland: Lead and backing vocals (Lonerider/FM/Shadowman/solo artist) / Robin Beck: Backing vocals (solo artist) / Matt Sinner: Bass (Primal Fear/Sinner) / Joel Hoekstra: Guitars (Whitesnake/Trans-Siberian Orchestra/13) / Mike Slamer: Guitars (City Boy/Streets/Seventh Key/Steelhouse Lane) / Jeff Pilson: Bass (Foreigner/Dokken) / Gary Pihl: Guitars (Sammy Hagar/Boston) / Steve Morris: Guitars and Keyboards (Heartland/Lonerider/Ian Gillan Band/Shadowman) / Gene Black: Lead Guitars (Tina Turner/Rod Stewart/Device) / Billy Sheehan: Bass (Mr Big/The Flood/Talas) / Tracy Ferrie: Bass (Stryper/Boston) / Ricky Phillips: Bass (Baby’s/Styx/Bad English) / Rocky Newton: Bass (Michael Schenker Group/Lionheart) / Josh Devine: Drums (One Direction/Levara/Devine Intervention) / Takeaki Itoh: Bass (Pinnacle Point) / Jim Kirkpatrick: Slide guitar (FM/The Flood/Bernie Marsden Band) / Chris Childs: Bass (Thunder/Lonerider) / Steve Mann: Keyboards (Michael Schenker Group/Lionheart/Ousey/Mann) / Vince DiCola: Keyboards (Rocky4/Staying Alive/Transformers/Storming Heaven/Thread) / Mark Mangold: Keyboards (Touch/American Tears/Drive She Said) / Alessandro Del Vecchio: Keyboards (Revolution Saints/Edge Of Forever/Hardline) / Stevie D: Lead guitar / Marco Mendoza: Bass (Whitesnake/Thin Lizzy/Journey) / Jimmy Nicholas: B3 (Faith Hill/Kenny Loggins/Van Zant/Jim Peterik/Juice Newton) / Tommy Denander: Guitars and keyboards (Radioactive/Steve Walsh/Robert Hart)) / Brain J Anthony: Bass (Steve Walsh/Lonerider/Robert Heart/Robbie LeBlanc) / Brian Tichy: Drums (Whitesnake/Dead Daisies/ Foreigner) / Mark Stanway: Keyboards (Magnum/Grand Slam) / Robin Beck: Backing vocals (solo artist) / Nikolo Kotzev: Lead guitars (Brazen Abbot/Robin Gibb) / Fredrik Folkare: Guitars (Unleashed/Heartwind) / Mikael Rosengren: Keyboards (Heartwind) / Steve Newman: Guitars/keys/backing vocals (Newman/Compass) / Eric Ragno: Keyboards (Baby’s/Joe LynnTurner) / Fredrik Bergh: Keyboards (Talk Of Town/BloodBound) - CD Track listing: Intro; Live Again; Crazy Days; Bad Enough; Never Will Forget; Harder They Fall; Get Out Of Here; Believe; Hangman Blues; State Of Mind; Belly Of The Beast*; Holy Water; Sweet Serenity; Take It Away; Bad To Good. Vinyl Track listing: Intro; Live Again; Crazy Days; Bad Enough; Never Will Forget; Harder They Fall; Get Out Of Here; Believe; Hangman Blues; State Of Mind; Belly Of The Beast*; Holy Water; Sweet Serenity; Take It Away; Bad To Good; The Year 2000; Frozen Rose

For Fans Of... El Michels Affair, Adnan Younge, Roy Ayers, Karnem Riggins, The Roots, Khruangbin. Producer "Grimez"” has been making music for 20 years deep, Grimez has ghost produced tracks for 50 cent, Hi-Tek, Kool Keith, Stick man (DEAD PREZ), Killah Priest, Sadat X, MOOD & Talib Kweli, and Mighty Diamonds to name a few. Gritty & raw analogue instrumentals. Very limited black vinyl LP. Genre: Hip Hop. Doctor Bionic is back on the airwaves. The newest album from Cincnnati based executive producer Jason Grimez is an instrumental collection of classic soul, jazz, and hip-hop sounds. The first instalment of a three-part series, Terrestrial Radio offers 37 minutes of carefully curated jams. Tune in to catch the vibe on 1/26/2024. Jason Grimez is an engineer, executive producer, and the owner of Chiefdom Records. Growing up in the 90s, he fell in love with hip hop at an early age. He started scratching on a pair of 1200s and sampling records with an MPC 3000 in high school Years of sampling, mixing, producing, and sharing his own music led him to where he is today. His independent label Chiefdom Records has released close to 30 albums in the last seven years. His studio persona Doctor Bionic was one of the first to see a release on the new implant. The project features a rotating cast of incredibly talented session musicians. Jason is responsible for writing, recording, producing, mixing, and releasing the records. Grimez sets the scene on track one of Terrestrial Radio, aptly titled “Time Continuum.” The listener is greeted with the scrubbing sound of a radio dial We pause for a few seconds when the signal is strong enough to catch an ad-read from an old cereal commercial, or to gather an update from a sports announcer. Grimez takes the listener to a new era each time he spins the dial. Our search comes to an end on the channel where we’ll cruise through the next six songs, hand-picked by the Doctor himself. Terrestrial Radio features some of Cincnnati's best session musicians. “Keep Your Kids in School” highlights a killer rhythm section. Brian Batchelar-Glader recorded the organ over an effortlessly funky foundation formulated by Manan Havéans (drums) and Aaron Jacobs (bass). With an equally punchy bass line, funky guitar jabs , and thoughtful trumpet arrangements (Michael Mawnidoglou), “Wire Fraud” s the perfect soundtrack for your next bank heist. The remainder of the record offers everything from shuffling gospel grooves to head-nodding drum breaks. As Doctor Bionic, Jason Grimez has carved out a niche for a community of musicians to thrive in and build upon. Grab a copy of Terrestrial Radio on 1/26/2024 and stay tuned for the second instalment in the series.

"Back in the 1990s original Verve pressings of this record were hot items pushed into prominence in great part by write-ups in The Absolute Sound, particularly by my friend Frank Doris. I found a few, and even a few in pretty good condition, but none of them begin to compare to this double 45 RPM set that offers more of everything, particularly transparency and instrumental separation. ...Ella's on a microphone with a slightly rising high end but if it sounds icy, don't blame the recording or the mastering. It's your system. If it's well-balanced and your cartridge is a good tracker, the vocal transparency and clarity are spooky and the sibilant articulation is precise. These double LPs cut at Sterling Sound use the original tapes, not copies of the original tapes and the clarity and transparency coupled with QRP's drop-dead silent pressings are remarkable. The original pre-MGM buyout LP has a pleasingly nostalgic quality and the added warmth produces a bit more room sound, but in my opinion it can't compare to this reissue unless you like hearing things through rose-tinted loudspeakers. Elegantly produced, arranged and recorded and easy to recommend ..." Music = 9/11; Sound = 9/11 - Michael Fremer, February 15, 2013.

Fourteen numbers from the heyday of swing, composed sometime between 1930 and 1945 - played and sung time and time again in ballrooms, or on the radio to advertise biscuits or war bonds, were recorded by Ella in completely new and personal interpretations in 1961. No one should be put off by the rather unfortunate cover. Clap Hands... is absolutely top notch as regards musicality, perfect recording quality, superb accompaniment by a small ensemble, with room for improvisations; it offers a wonderful opportunity to discover something new in these evergreens, despite the occasionally banal lyrics. The songs of this recording conjure up bygone days, with listeners in the 21st century being offered a highly personal homage to one of the most successful periods in the 100-year history of jazz.

Whitney Houston’s self-titled debut album has few parallels. Viewed solely through the lens of sales numbers, Whitney Houston is a watershed statement on par with the most commercially successful and culturally dominant LPs ever released. Having sold more than 14 million copies in the U.S. and upwards of 25 million units worldwide, the 1985 LP became the equivalent of the television show or blockbuster film that everyone collectively experiences and discusses. Nearly four decades later, it’s lost none of its appeal or magnetism — and its artistic significance and historical import have only grown.


Sourced from the original master tapes, pressed at RTI on MoFi SuperVinyl, and strictly limited to 4,000 numbered copies, Mobile Fidelity's 180g SuperVinyl LP of Whitney Houston presents the breakthrough in audiophile sound for the first time. The signature traits Houston exhibits on every song — her three-octave range, radiant warmth, personal conviction, impossibly controlled register — come across with exceptional clarity, focus, and presence. Free of artificial ceilings and constricted dynamics, this reissue plays with an openness, airiness, and balance that put the singer’s once-in-a-lifetime instrument and immortal artistry into proper perspective.

It does the same for the songs’ cascading melodies and captivating arrangements. Individually produced by one of four renowned industry veterans — Kashif, Micheal Masser, Jermaine Jackson, and Narada Michael Walden — each composition feels grander, closer, more genuine. A vocal spectacular, Whitney Houston benefits from the high-end characteristics of SuperVinyl, which include a nearly inaudible noise floor, superb groove definition, and dead-quiet surfaces. This is how an album that changed the direction of popular music — opening previously inaccessible doors for Black artists; bringing smooth-singing vocalists back into the mainstream; kickstarting a movement that soon included several “divas” who would command the charts through the early 21st century — should look and sound.

Though Houston’s seemingly effortless performances suggest otherwise, creating the record Rolling Stone ranks as the 257th Greatest Album of All Time wasn’t easy. Nearly 18 months were required to identify songs suitable for a still-unknown singer who did not fit into the conventional frameworks of the mid ‘80s. Confident, powerful, and prodigiously talented, Houston would forge her own parameters with Whitney Houston. In the process, she obliterated the stubborn lines between R&B and pop, Black and white radio. She dared to reimagine who could be a superstar and then went out and defined the role. Recorded for nearly $400,000 and released on Valentine’s Day, the LP exceeded the wildest expectations of those most closely associated with it — save for Houston and her family.

Having made her first public appearance at the age of 11 singing at a Baptist church, Houston understood pressure and knew her way around, inside, and through a song. The invaluable guidance and support she received from her mother, Cissy, an accomplished gospel vocalist who backed Aretha Franklin and Elvis Presley, are on display throughout Whitney Houston. They arrive in the types of authoritativeness, discipline, and diction rare for even most seasoned veterans — and unheard-of for a 21-year-old newcomer. Houston brings a soulful elegance, understated glamour, and in-the-moment rapture to every note. Moving up, down, or staying in the middle of the vocal ladder; channelling softness or sweetness; showing restraint or increasing the volume, she is a marvel of emotionalism, a dynamo who can seamlessly transition from one mood to another within a verse.

Though the 10-track LP largely concerns itself with the ballad tradition, Houston covers the bases, getting into an R&B groove on the fleet “Thinking About You,” turning up the heat on the duet “Take Good Care of My Heart,” and investing the contagious dance-pop confection “How Will I Know” with all the anxiety, hope, energy, and enthusiasm its lyrics demand. Featuring her mom on background vocals and Houston’s pitch-perfect tone, uncanny precision, and skyscraper highs (no AutoTune here, friends), the synth-based anthem propelled Whitney Houston into the stratosphere, the vocalist into regular MTV rotation, and the term “crossover” into popular parlance. The double-platinum single reached No. 1 on the Hot 100, Hot R&B, and Adult Contemporary charts — a trifecta that foreshadowed accomplishments that would ultimately crown Houston as the most-awarded female artist of all time.

Whitney Houston became the first album by a Black female performer to top the Billboard charts. It remained there for 14 non-consecutive weeks en route to claiming the title of the best-selling LP of 1986. It stands as the first debut and first album by a solo female artist to spawn three No. Hits, as well as the first album by a Black female artist to top the year-end charts in Australia and Canada. These are just a handful of the accolades — along with four Grammy nominations — that surround a set that also contains the unforgettable ballad “Saving All My Love,” string-accompanied “Greatest Love of All,” and sensual “You Give Good Love.”

As TIME observed in an article written two years after the album took the world by storm: “This is infectious, can't-sit-down music, and her performance dares the listener not to smile right back.” We’re still smiling.

Returning to the action and spectacle that have captured moviegoers around the world, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts take audiences on a ‘90s globetrotting adventure with the Autobots and introduce a whole new faction of Transformers – the Maximals – to join them as allies in the existing battle for earth. It's the seventh instalment in the Transformers live-action film series. Directed by Steven Caple Jr. and starring Anthony Ramos and Dominique Fishback, the film was released in June 2023. The soundtrack was in hands of Jongnic Bontemps, who gave the film a new sound. The score also features a reimagining of familiar musical compositions from the earlier movies by Steve Jablonsky. Bontemps felt his goal was influencing the score from the first five films directed by Michael Bay, but as the movie takes place after the events of Bumblebee (2018), which deviated from the timeline of the original films, he also needed to provide new fresh music. During the soundtrack's production, different musical styles were experimented with. However, Bontemps said they quickly realized that ""an organic, orchestral, emotional score, that sound we are all familiar with, and has such a deep history, goes a long way for we as the audience to connect with these robots."" Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (Expanded Edition) is available as a limited edition of 500 individually numbered copies on Autobots Red (LP1) vs Decepticons Purple (LP2) coloured vinyl. The vinyl edition features 5 bonus tracks and it includes a 4-page booklet with liner notes by the director, composer, and music executive of Paramount."

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts by Jongnic Bontemps, released 29 March 2024, includes the following tracks: "Autobots Enter", "More Than Meets the Eye", "Museum Heist", "Fallen Hero" and more.

This version of Transformers: Rise of the Beasts comes as a 2xLP. This release comes with (a) Booklet.

The vinyl is pressed as a red disc. Another vinyl is pressed as a purple disc.

Intranced bestehen aus Musikern der jüngsten Classic-Metal-Welle, die an der US-Ostküste aufgekommen ist (Mitglieder von unter anderem Fortress und Poisoned Chalice), und Sänger James-Paul Luna (ehemals Holy Grail und White Wizzard). Die Band gehört nach nur einer EP und Single zu den heißesten Newcomern der Szene.

Den Grund dafür erkennt man, wenn man die sechs Stücke ihres Erstlings Intranced (2022) und die zwei Songs von Rogue Warrior (2023) hört, denn das Quartett aus L.A. vereint schillernde Musikalität mit erhabenem Songwriting, was ihre Musik im Grunde genommen vom Start weg unverwüstlich macht.

"Ich wollte ein Old-School-Metal-Projekt starten, das immer noch ein Rock-Feeling aufweisen sollte", erklärt Sänger Luna. "Wie zu der Zeit, als sich Hardrock langsam in Metal verwandelte, aber immer noch Groove, Funk und Boogie enthielt." Ob traditioneller US-Power-Metal in Verbindung mit Rock'n'Roll-Großspurigkeit wie in ‚Upside Down', die Punk-Attitüde des ansonsten wehmütigen Epos ‚Dream Lover' oder die rasante Band-Hymne ‚Intranced' - Intranced setzen die Messlatte mit ihren ersten acht Songs unglaublich hoch an.

Die von einem Cover des legendären Künstlers Michael Whelan gekrönte EP ist nun zum allerersten Mal auf Vinyl erhältlich, inklusive Rogue Warrior als Bonus, um die Zeit bis zur Veröffentlichung von Intranceds erstem Album im Laufe des Jahres 2024 zu verkürzen.

Red Vinyl

Intranced bestehen aus Musikern der jüngsten Classic-Metal-Welle, die an der US-Ostküste aufgekommen ist (Mitglieder von unter anderem Fortress und Poisoned Chalice), und Sänger James-Paul Luna (ehemals Holy Grail und White Wizzard). Die Band gehört nach nur einer EP und Single zu den heißesten Newcomern der Szene.

Den Grund dafür erkennt man, wenn man die sechs Stücke ihres Erstlings Intranced (2022) und die zwei Songs von Rogue Warrior (2023) hört, denn das Quartett aus L.A. vereint schillernde Musikalität mit erhabenem Songwriting, was ihre Musik im Grunde genommen vom Start weg unverwüstlich macht.

"Ich wollte ein Old-School-Metal-Projekt starten, das immer noch ein Rock-Feeling aufweisen sollte", erklärt Sänger Luna. "Wie zu der Zeit, als sich Hardrock langsam in Metal verwandelte, aber immer noch Groove, Funk und Boogie enthielt." Ob traditioneller US-Power-Metal in Verbindung mit Rock'n'Roll-Großspurigkeit wie in ‚Upside Down', die Punk-Attitüde des ansonsten wehmütigen Epos ‚Dream Lover' oder die rasante Band-Hymne ‚Intranced' - Intranced setzen die Messlatte mit ihren ersten acht Songs unglaublich hoch an.

Die von einem Cover des legendären Künstlers Michael Whelan gekrönte EP ist nun zum allerersten Mal auf Vinyl erhältlich, inklusive Rogue Warrior als Bonus, um die Zeit bis zur Veröffentlichung von Intranceds erstem Album im Laufe des Jahres 2024 zu verkürzen.

Get ready to hit the dance floor with the Tech-House Remix by DFRST of Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’, presented by Deacon Frost Music. This song infuses the classic with fresh and electrifying rhythms, perfect for any party. Celebrate the 40th anniversary of ‘Thriller’ with a remix as fresh as it is nostalgic. Keep the legend alive and your feet moving with more remixes from Deacon Frost Music.

This is the Tech-House Remix by DFRST… First and foremost, this album is a tribute to the pop legend, the incomparable Michael Jackson, on the 40th anniversary of his best-selling album of all time, Thriller. Additionally, I want to express my gratitude to my loved ones for their unwavering support since my return to music production.

Undoubtedly, this is one of my most anticipated projects since I started producing music, although back in 1983, I used to cower in fear to cover up when those Jupiter 8 tracks came on the radio… I would like to express my gratitude to Lenny Jay for believing in my project and delivering an impeccable performance that showcases his talent and devotion to the artist.

Furthermore, I appreciate my engineer and vocal arranger, Austin, from Austin Music Spain, for his exceptional contribution to this track, always inspiring me with his friendship and motivation. It’s impossible not to mention my musical father, mentor, cricket player, and great friend, Mike Platinas.

He not only provided valuable guidance but also recorded the vocals, portraying Vincent Price in earnest. His work is unsurpassed

WHAM! eroberten 1983 mit ihrem ersten Album "Fantastic" die Weltbühne und die Musik war nie wieder dieselbe. Mit den großen Hits "Bad Boys", "WHAM! Rap (Enjoy What You Do)" und "Club Tropicana" landete das Album auf Platz 1 in Großbritannien und verkaufte sich weltweit millionenfach. Fantastic" ist nun zum ersten Mal seit über 30 Jahren auf Vinyl erhältlich, und zwar in limitierter Auflage auf transparentem rotem und schwarzem Vinyl.

WHAM! eroberten 1983 mit ihrem ersten Album "Fantastic" die Weltbühne und die Musik war nie wieder dieselbe. Mit den großen Hits "Bad Boys", "WHAM! Rap (Enjoy What You Do)" und "Club Tropicana" landete das Album auf Platz 1 in Großbritannien und verkaufte sich weltweit millionenfach. Fantastic" ist nun zum ersten Mal seit über 30 Jahren auf Vinyl erhältlich, und zwar in limitierter Auflage auf transparentem rotem und schwarzem Vinyl.

'Moments Remixes' began from a conversation with Jlin. We did an interview together for Talkhouse in fall of 2019, in season with the original Moments release on Unseen Worlds. Her poignant and effusive dialogue sparked the inspiration for us to do a remix together. That organically evolved into a full project idea. Xiu Xiu did the second remix in January 2020, and before things continued further - the pandemic was upon us. During the course of the pandemic, it evolved more, and organically became a more focused project for the isolation and lack of in-person collaborative environments/performance halls. All of but one remix were completed by 2021, and then refined and curated further over the following (four) years. The highlighted dialogue across the album is how these sparse, melodic minimalism of piano and vibraphone could manifest in a diversity of experimental sub-genres: electronica, IDM, avant-rock, drone/ambient. The careful curation and illustrative collaborators elicit the transportive 'new moments' and permeable qualities of the core compositions, that discover uncharted life in this project. (Michael Vincent Waller, October 2023)

Miles Davis' A Tribute to Jack Johnson is the best jazz-rock record ever made. Equally inspired by the leader's desire to assemble the "greatest rock and roll band you have ever heard,” his adoration of Johnson, and Black Power politics, Davis created a hard-hitting set that surges with excitement, intensity, majesty, and power. Bridging the electric fusion he'd pursued on earlier efforts with a funkier, dirtier rhythmic approach, Davis zeroes in on concepts of spontaneity, freedom, and identity seldom achieved in the studio — and just as infrequently accepted by the mainstream.

Sourced from the original analog master tapes, pressed on MoFi SuperVinyl, and housed in a Stoughton jacket, Mobile Fidelity's 180g LP reissue brings it all to fore with startling realism. Benefitting from SuperVinyl’s nearly inaudible noise floor, superb groove definition, and clean, ultra-quiet surfaces, this 180g LP showcases everything — from the bold tonality of the headliner's white-hot trumpet solos to the decay of crashing cymbals, carry of wiry guitar notes, and echoes of the studio — in reference fashion.

Bristling with exuberance, Davis' high-register passages explode with authority and commanding presence. Around him, a barrage of urgent backbeats, knifing riffs, and supple bass lines emerge amidst black backgrounds. One of the most prominent differences long-time fans will notice is how much more aggressive, immediate, and vibrant the music sounds, with those aspects central to the composer's original desires.

Utilizing wah-wah and distortion, the go-to instrumentalist of the performances— guitarist John McLaughlin — attacks with a nasty edge, slashing style, and vicious streak that allows A Tribute to Jack Johnson< cross the until-then-impenetrable divide between rock and jazz. Davis puts both feet in the former camp and erases any gap. The stories of the record’s creation are nearly as legendary as the sounds within: Two sessions, multiple jams, different sets of musicians (several uncredited), and near-miraculous production perfectionism that made it all appear cohesive.

The least-well-known masterpiece of Davis' career, the 1971 record — seamlessly assembled and spliced together by producer Teo Macero — was a victim of limited record-label promotion. Audiences also didn’t immediately know what to make of its original cover art — faithfully replicated here. In addition, the powers that be at Columbia Records were directing the public’s attention to Miles at Fillmore, a completely different kind of album guided by two keyboardists. A Tribute to Jack Johnson practically lives in a different universe, one from the future. To many listeners who did manage to hear it — among them critic/musician Robert Quine, Stooges leader Iggy Pop, and renowned critic Robert Christgau — it surpassed everything that came before.

Indeed, Davis treated it as a personal manifesto: An opportunity to salute the Black championship boxer admired for his threatening image to the establishment and impeccable taste in clothes, cars, women and music. Davis explains in the liner notes his affinity for Johnson — a stance mirrored by the defiant music, which hits with a prize fighter's force and reflects the graceful elegance with which a pugilist navigates the ring — and closes the album with a Johnson quote read by Brock Peters.

Inspired not only by Johnson but by Jimi Hendrix and Sly Stone, Davis changed his approach and his band. He surrounds himself with a cadre of musicians in their 20s and, in the case of bassist Michael Henderson, a 19-year-old fresh from touring with Stevie Wonder. Henderson gives Davis what he requested: boogie-based grooves that don’t lose shape or direction. Soprano saxophonist Steve Grossman, drummer Billy Cobham, and organist Herbie Hancock adhere to a similar aesthetic that prizes brazenness, innovation, and energy.

In that vein, during a portion of “Yesternow,” Davis segues into a separate performance (which became known in its entirety as “Willie Nelson”) played by guitarists McLaughlin and Sonny Sharrock, bass clarinetist Bernie Maupin, keyboardist Chick Corea, bassist Dave Holland, and drummer Jack DeJohnette. Dig it!

Talking with jazz scholar Bill Milkowski — who himself noted how McLaughlin’s unrestrained style, decibel-forward volumes, and rapid-fire power chords engendered himself to the rock crowd at the same time that his harmonics and syncopation still definitely made him a jazz player — guitarist Henry Kaiser summed up part of the appeal of A Tribute to Jack Johnson as well as anyone, saying: “It’s a jazz record that way way more open than other jazz records at the time, but still not free jazz. McLaughlin’s rhythm guitar playing on ‘Right Off’ — the use of different chords in a rock shuffle than what anybody had used before — was revolutionary.”

And to think that’s just one aspect of a record that contains multitudes. “Never let them forget it.” Indeed.

An avant-garde masterpiece, a vocal-instrumental suite, a work of collective improvisation, directly addressing the racial and political issues of it’s day, We Insist! Max Roach’s Freedom Now Suite is one of the most important artistic statements of Civil Rights Movement and one of the most groundbreaking jazz albums of all time. Max Roach was already almost a decade into his career as one of the most influential jazz drummers and composers when he teamed up with lyricist Oscar Brown Jr. to collaborate on a piece they planned to perform at the centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation in 1963. Recorded just months after the February 1960 Greensboro sit-ins, the album stands as an early musical testament to the burgeoning rage, anger and passion that would take the Civil Rights Movement from its early victory in Montgomery in 1955 into a future that would dramatically alter race relations in the United States. The second release from the newly launched New York City based jazz label Candid Records, and produced by label co-founder, famed music critic and social activist, Nat Hentoff, the album is a bold statement, focused on civil injustices in black history ranging from slavery to contemporary racial prejudices, and featuring some of the finest jazz musicians ever, including Abbey Lincoln, Coleman Hawkins, Eric Dolphy, Booker Little, and Michael Babatunde Olatunji. The five movements of the work are organized as a historical progression through African-American history, a shape similar to the one in Duke Ellington’s Black, Brown and Beige. The Freedom Now Suite moves from slavery to Emancipation Day to the contemporary civil-rights struggle and African independence. The LP includes extraordinary liner notes written by Hentoff himself, giving a context and insight that adds to the experience of hearing these magnificent performances.

Third album from Norwegian jazz musician Bendik Hofseth. His career started in Oslo with the bands Chipahua and The Heavy Gentlemen together with Knut Reiersrud. He then went to study in the United States, where he also worked for several years as Michael Brecker's successor in the band Steps Ahead (1987-92) "Planets, Rivers and .... IKEA" first released in March 1996 is an album divided into three main parts. Four IKEA songs performed with pop/rock musicians. Performed with things like a piano prepared with screws from IKEA, rubbish bin, and a homemade Berimbau. Four "River songs" with a more jazz-oriented band and Three "Planet" melodies performed by a string quartet and a horn quintet. Despite an apparently wide-ranging use of musicians, it appears as a well-composed and coherent album, with an unmistakable Bendik Hofseth touch!

"Brothers Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, and Michael Jackson formed the R&B pop band The Jackson 5 in 196Originally released in 1979, Boogie is the compilation album of both previously released and unreleased songs by The Jackson Included on the album are ""ABC"" and Grammy Award nominated ""Dancing Machine"" (sampled by MC Hammer's in his hit ""Dancing Machine""), ""Never Can Say Goodbye"" and seven more songs. Boogie is considered as one of the rarest Jackson 5 albums, as it was released on the Motown subsidiary record label Natural Resources. Boogie is being reissued for the first time since its original release in 1979."

Boogie by Jackson 5, released 15 March 2024, includes the following tracks: "ABC", "One Day I'll Marry You", "Oh, I've Been Blessed", "Just Because I Love You" and more.

This version of Boogie comes as a 1xLP.

"Idris Muhammad is an American jazz drummer and bandleader and is one of contemporary music’s most sampled drummers. His resume includes nearly 500 recording credits that range across the genre spectrum and 12 studio albums as a bandleader, including the 1976 House of The Rising Sun. The album is arranged by David Matthews, also known as leader of the Dave Matthews Band (DMB), and produced by Creed Taylor, founder of CTI Records. The track ""Sudan"" is arranged by jazz trumpeter Tom Harrell. The album features several guest performances by New York studio aces, including Joe Beck, Don Grolnick, David Sanborn, Fred Wesley, and Michael Brecker amongst others. House of the Rising Sun is available on black vinyl."

House Of The Rising Sun by Idris Muhammad, released 7 March 2024, includes the following tracks: "Hard to Face the Music", "Sudan" and more.

This version of House Of The Rising Sun comes as a 1xLP.

The Rhythm Method veröffentlichten 2019 ihr Debütalbum und kündigen heute, vier Jahre später, den Nachfolger Peachy an, der am 8. März auf Moshi Moshi Records erscheint. Publikationen wie The Guardian, Dazed, Dork, i-D, Loud + Quiet haben die Band schon früh gelobt und sie mit Künstlern wie Pet Shop Boys und Squeeze verglichen. The Rhythm Method kehren nun mit einem völlig anderen Sound zurück, und, wie sie sagen, mit einem "zusammenhängenden Meisterwerk". Das neue Album, das von Bill Ryder-Jones produziert wurde und an dem auch Aoife Power von Whenyoung mitwirkt, ist das erste Mal, dass sie Musik in einem richtigen Studio aufgenommen haben. Es ist von dem Wunsch beeinflusst, das eigene Potenzial voll auszuschöpfen und sicherzustellen, „dass man es auf dem Sterbebett nicht bereut", so The Rhythm Method, die von Mike Skinner bis Michaela Coel gefeiert werden.


Über die neue Single „Have A Go Heroes“ sagt das Duo:

"Nach einem Gig in Hull im Jahr 2018 hatte Rowan einen psychotischen Anfall. Pech gehabt. Er machte (entgegen allen medizinischen Ratschlägen) mit einer kompletten UK-Tournee weiter. 'Have A Go Heroes' ist das Ergebnis davon.

Es ist eine Collage der britischen Regionallandschaft: Tankstellen, einsame Hügel, euphorische und mörderische Gedanken in einem."

Nils Økland is interested in the journeys and dialogues of music across time and space, a music without national and traditional borders. At the same time, he is also very inspired by local music from many places and often prefers old fiddlers and singers who have a unique personal playing style. The first concert with Nils Økland Band took place in 2014, and since then, they have released the Norwegian Grammy nominated "Kjølvatn" on ECM and "Lysning" on Hubro, which won the award. It has been seven years since their last release. On March 1st, the highly anticipated album "Gjenskinn" (Gleam) is set to be released. The band has been working on the album for a long time, resulting in a genre-defying, cohesive work inspired by influences from around the world. Nils Økland, known for his innovative playing style on the Hardanger fiddle, violin, and viola d'amore, comes from the folk music tradition and is internationally recognized. He has collaborated with major orchestras, composed music for various mediums, and played on albums with notable musicians. Additionally, he is a member of the rock trio Lumen Drones (ECM), their latest release (Umbra) was released on Hubro, and he was a member of the improvisation band 1982 (Hubro), bridging folk, classical, and improvisational music. The Nils Økland Band consists of several of the foremost musicians in Norway: Rolf-Erik Nystrøm (saxophone), Sigbjørn Apeland (organ), Håkon Mørch Stene (percussion), Mats Eilertsen (double bass). These are musicians who, individually, have collaborated with Økland for a long time, but many of them had not played together before Økland formed the band. Rolf Erik Nystrøm has played in the genre-crossing contemporary music trio Poing for several decades, in addition to being a soloist with large orchestras, playing with world and folk musicians, and in various jazz bands. Sigbjørn Apeland has a long history of collaboration with Økland. They play a lot as a duo and have also played in the band 1982 for ten years, along with drummer Øyvind Skarbø. Percussionist Håkon Mørch Stene plays in the contemporary ensemble Asamisimasa and has also released critically acclaimed albums featuring music by Laurence Crane, Gavin Bryars, and Michael Pisaro on Hubro. Mats Eilertsen is the leading jazz bassist of his generation. He has played with a number of prominent jazz musicians such as Tord Gustavsen, Trygve Seim, Bendik Hofseth, and has released several albums under his own name on both Hubro and ECM. The Band - Nils Økland: Hardangerfiddles and violin, Rolf-Erik Nystrøm: Alto and baritone saxophones, Sigbjørn Apeland: Harmonium and Fender Rhodes, Håkon Mørch Stene: Percussion, vibraphone and electronics, Mats Eilertsen: Double bass.

Five albums, sixty tracks and still counting. Cool Million are back with a new album!

Ten years ago the euro soul duo Cool Million released their first album 'Going Out Tonight' on UK soul label Expansion Records. The album took the soul crowd by surprise, cause who were these guys that out of the blue, could recreated the soulful sound of the 80's hey day like no other?

The answer to that question is; Rob Hardt and Frank Ryle. One a super musician from Germany with skills you can only dream of. The other a Dj/musicfreak from Denmark with a masterplan – both of them with tons of dedication and passion for thier craft.

Thier passion and ambition have kept them in the came for a decade and they have worked with a long list of artists, some known some not, some forgotten some on their way up! The list include names such as: Jean Carne, Keni Burke, Shirley Jones, Eugene Wilde, Meli'sa Morgan, Rena Scott, Leroy Burgess, Peggi Blu, Yvonne Gage, Marc Evans, Alton McClain, Kenny Thomas, Lisa Stansfield, Tom Moulton, Joey Negro, Dimitri From Paris and John Morales, Glenn Jones, Marc Sadane, Tim Owens, Gavin Christopher, Michael Jeffries.

Cool Million tells that they feel privileged and humble when they look at the list of names they have worked with over the ten years. Futhermore they add; 'Who would have thought that two dudes from northern Europe would be able to create music with people that talented, we hope we could do it, when we started but that we actually done it, is amazing and wonderful'.

Reflecting on the first decade of Cool Million it's fair to say that Rob & Frank are two determined and ambitious gentlemen with extraordinary talent.

So what can Cool Million tell us abouth their new album? 'It's a classic Cool Million album where we work/collaborate with various artists, staying true to our original concept both in terms of genre and how we think a album works best. Having say that we think that our fans will be a little surprised with the fact that this is our slowest album to date. We believe we have more variety than ever and it's a fact that the music on the new album is slowed down in terms of more ballads and mid-tempo songs compared to our other albums'.

'The reason for this development is that we wanted to try something that was a little out of our comfort zone. Also we felt that we wanted to prove that we can do quality slow jams aswell. You could also argue that is's beause we both turned fifty this year.. haha'.

After a limited self-financed release this self-titled album can be seen as the proper debut by Indigo Girls. The album immediately boosted them up the charts, earning them a Grammy back in 1989, eventually reaching platinum in
1991. Featuring the complementing songwriting of Emily Saliers and Amy Ray and guest vocals by R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe, the album is a showcase for jangling folk-rock, beautiful balladry and poetic lyrics.

In the wake of the new acoustic song-based styles of Suzanne Vega, Tracy Chapman and 10,000 Maniacs, Indigo Girls would manage to garner respectable mainstream success and maintain their rabid core following throughout the three decades after this release.

KLAN sind die Brüder Michael und Stefan Heinrich, die ihren deutschsprachigen Indiepop mit politischem Bewusstsein, gesunder Selbstironie und der
richtigen Menge Drama zu einem unverwechselbaren, verspielten sowie erfrischenden Gesamtkunstwerk verstricken. Mit ihren Alben „Wann hast du
Zeit?“ (2018), „Zwei Seiten“ (2020) und „jaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!“ (2022) tänzeln sie in schlafwandlerischer Sicherheit auf dem schmalen Grat zwischen
Eingängigkeit und Abseitigkeit. Große Lovesongs, kleine Anekdoten. Rock, Pop, Indie. Alles da, alles KLAN. Mal mit einer Träne im Knopfloch, mal mit
dem Schalk im Nacken und doch jederzeit kompromisslos offen, avancierten die Brüder mit Songs wie „Nie gesagt“ feat. Mia., „Baby Baby“,
„Gleichzeitig“, „Dass du mich liebst“ feat. LEA, „Mama“ oder „Internet“ feat. Alligatoah zur Band für alle Fälle. 2023 kehren KLAN mit neuer Musik
zurück – die erste Single „Das Ende der Welt“ läutet ein neues Kapitel in der kuriosen Klanographie ein, denn jedes Ende hat einen Anfang und dieser
ist genau jetzt.

The eagerly awaited debut album from the London-based four-piece * At the forefront of the new generation of Black British guitar music with Big Joanie and Bob Vylan * Supporting Slowdive on their UK tour in February * Singles playlisted by BBC Radio 6 Music, Spotify and others Whitelands are Etienne, Jagun, Vanessa and Michael and they are ostensibly a shoegaze band ever since Etienne stumbled across Slowdive's KEXP session in his recommended videos on YouTube a few years ago. However, they come at the resurgent, Gen Z-soundtracking genre from a refreshingly different angle thanks to their mishmash of musical backgrounds. There's also the fact that their line-up is fully PoC in what is traditionally seen as a predominantly white genre. "There's an underlying narrative that it's OK for white men to be romantic, sensitive, emotional and make dreamy music and, by contrast, young Black men should be making angry music," says Vanessa. "We've all grown up with these stereotypes and therefore I think people are mystified when they see Whitelands." "I consume a lot of media," says Etienne of his wide range of influences. "Videogames, music, news, paintings, manga, animations and film are my go-to, especially anime. There is this drive to want to understand and feel the whole weight of an expression. So, the songs are based on other songs, pictures, aesthetics, 'vibes', an emotion someone else felt. Fundamentally, you are what you eat." As a result of this diet, the lyrics are stunning, dealing with everything from unbalanced relationships and vulnerability to depression, being diagnosed with ADHD and, on the new single 'Tell Me About It' (featuring vocals by Dottie from the band's Sonic Cathedral labelmates deary), trying to navigate love following that diagnosis. The album is bookended by two poetically political songs - 'Setting Sun' and 'Now Here's The Weather' - that deal with imperialism, racism and performative ignorance. "We've experienced tokenism, micro-behaviours, envy and resentment," concludes Vanessa. "So we feel we have to continually prove ourselves. We know we're making a positive impact, but I want Whitelands to really break some barriers."

Limited edition release of this project featuring Chris Braide of The Producers (Trevor Horn,
Chris Braidqe, Lol Crème), Andy Partridge (ex-XTC) and Tim Weller (Divine Comedy).
Recorded in Los Angeles and London, this release will appeal to fans of all three artists as
well as being a strong release in its own right.
Chris Braide is a British producer & songwriter who has co-written, produced and
collaborated with a wide array of artists, including Sia, Hans Zimmer, Beyonce, David
Guetta, Lana Del Rey, Adele, Baz Luhrmann, Nicki Minaj, Selena Gomez, Halsey, Madonna,
Starrah, Demi Lovato, Robin Schulz, Yuna, Elle King, Afrojack, Wrabel, Paloma Faith, Britney
Spears, Christina Aguilera, Bibi Bourelly, Kylie Minogue, Zendaya, Bebe Rexha, Theophilus
London, LP, Natalie Portman, Celine Dion, Kate Hudson, Beth Ditto, Toni Braxton, Tate
McRae, Snoop Dogg, Big Sean, Jason Mraz, Donna Missal, Julia Michaels, Kali Uchis, Jessie
Reyez, Lucy Hale and many more.

First official vinyl reissue of this sought-after psychedelic folk-rock / Americana / SSW album from 1976.

Major Arcana was a group led by counter-culture Milwaukee icon JIM Spencer, featuring a revolving cast of musicians / collaborators. The core of the band was Jim Spencer (guitar, vocals); Randall Dubis (electric guitar); Michael Burdecki (bass, slide guitar) and Jim Kitchen (percussion, harmonica). They were helped in the studio by some friends / musicians like Sigmund Snopek III and Barry Patton among many others.

Released on Jim Spencer’s own private label (A Major Label, home also to Anonymous of “Inside The Shadow” fame), the album opens with the terrific psych-folk of “Western Wind” and closes with an acid-folk rendition of “Greensleeves”. In between, you’ll also find some blues rock, SSW ballads, jazzy bits…

File next to groups like Pearls Before Swine or Bermuda Triangle.

‘THE CONGREGATION - Jazz Alliance International’ compilation is the latest offering from Mono Jazz label. Compiled by Massimiliano ‘Jazzcat’ Conti - a DJ, broadcaster and internationally respected
selector with over 150,000 followers on Mixcloud - and featuring liner notes by Paul Bradshaw (from the iconic ‘Straight no Chaser’ magazine), ‘THE CONGREGATION’ is an innovative, largely
contemporary selection of tracks that they feel is representative of the current era - a true manifesto of the international jazz scene of the present days.

The release was received with great enthusiasm by some of the leading DJs and music critics of the scene – from the UK, to Germany, to Japan – getting early radio support by Patrick Forge (NTS), Colin
Curtis (Hitmix Radio), Kevin Beadle (TWR), Rainer Trüby (Compost Records), Shuya Okino (Kyoto Jazz Massive), Raffaele Costantino (Rai Radio 2), Ilya Rasskazov (Headz.FM), Michael Rütten (Soul Searching), David Patterson (JFSR), Simon Harrison (Basic Soul) & more.

Built around a near mythical, unreleased song by Japanese producer Yellowtail featuring legendary beat generation jazz singer Mark Murphy, the selection of tunes contained in this album ventures far and wide. Soulful offerings by Anthony Joseph and Jimetta Rose & The Voices of Creation, percussive and spiritual renditions by the likes of Malcolm Strachan, Right Tempo’s own Francesco Sotgiu and Nicola Conte, Latin-flavoured explorations by Mexican giant Tino
Contreras and Acid Jazz’s signed Mama Terra and a hip-hop spiced cut by Portuguese producer Azar Azar are some of the many moods that can be found in ‘THE CONGREGATION’

Die Wiener Samsara Joyride mit ihrem zweitem Longplayer, dem ersten auf Tonzonen. Von Beginn an stand für die Band eine Fusion des klassischen Rocksounds der 70er und 90er Jahre im Mittelpunkt, dabei bewegt sich die Band stilistisch frei zwischen Blues-, Psych- und Stoner-Rock. Eingängige, hypnotisierende Riffs, durchsetzt mit euphorisierenden Gitarrensoli und markanten Bariton-Vocals bestimmen die Songs - ein Spiel zwischen Altbewährtem und Experimentellem, zwischen Wiederholungen und Wendungen. 2023 wurden sieben neue Tracks geschmiedet, die zwar noch erkennbar im Stil des Debütalbums gegründet sind, sich aber in Sachen Komplexität und Experimentierfreude deutlich abheben. "The Subtle And The Dense" tritt schon vom ersten Ton an nicht nur deutlich heavier und progressiver, sondern vor allem selbstbewusster auf. Es wurde deutlich mutiger mit dem Einsatz von Hintergrundstimmen und Gesangsharmonien experimentiert. Leadgitarrist Michael Haumer übernimmt den größten Teil des Background-Gesangs, wobei sein kräftiger Tenor Miehes dunklen Bariton perfekt ergänzt. Aber auch Laura Fichtenkamms klare und weiche Frauenstimme bildet einen harmonischen Kontrast zur Hauptstimme. Verglichen mit dem ersten Album ist der Gitarrensound von Miehe und Haumer gleichzeitig subtiler und dichter. Wo früher noch live improvisiert wurden, finden sich heute fast ausschließllich in akribischer Kleinarbeit ausgearbeitete Lead-Gitarren-Parts, die mühelos zwischen Blues-, Metal und Stonerrock wechseln. Andreas Mittermühlners mal peitschenden, mal wuchtig stampfenden, immer jedoch punktgenauen Drums und Daniel Batliners vibrierend-groovender, alles andere als im Hintergrund stehender Bass, bilden gemeinsam das Rückgrat und den Puls der Platte, und bieten so den schneidenden Höhen von Haumers Sologitarre Fundament und Rahmen zur Entfaltung. Daraus ergibt sich ein großes Ganzes, das manchmal nach Kyuss, manchmal nach Danzig oder Black Sabbath, manchmal sogar noch Tool oder All Them Witches klingt, immer aber nach Samsara Joyride und als Gesamtwerk weit über die Summe seiner Teile hinauswächst.

On Everything Harmony, the fourth full-length studio release from New York's The Lemon Twigs, the prodigiously talented brothers Brian and Michael D'Addario offer 13 original servings of beauty that showcase an emotional depth and musical sophistication far beyond their years as a band, let alone as young men. Everything Harmony successfully blends the brothers' distinct personalities while giving voice to their eclectic influences. Opening the album with the unassuming acoustic folk of plaintive "When Winter Comes Around," which echoes the sophisticated grandeur of classic Simon & Garfunkel recordings, they immediately switch things up to the sunny classic pop motif of "In My Head." "Corner of My Eye" channels an Art Garfunkel-like vocal melody over a moody, vibraphone-tinged backing track suggesting the chamber pop of Brian Wilson. While they had no grand concept for Everything Harmony, both the D'Addarios felt a "palpable mood of defeat" prevailed while writing and recording it. "New To Me" was inspired by their shared experience with loved ones suffering from Alzheimer's, "What You Were Doing" is dressed in the tortured jangle of vintage Big Star, while "Born To Be Lonely," written after watching John Cassavetes' Opening Night, deals with what Brian calls "the fragility that often comes with age." Everything Harmony is a unified song cycle born of shared blood and common purpose. With two musical heads being better than one, there's no shortage of ideas to draw on. Their only impediments are time and the challenge of keeping up with their own prolific musical inspiration. "We share an intuition and tend to be influenced by one another," says Brian, "so the lyrical ideas on this record tend to complement each other. Writing has never been the issue for us. It's completing, editing and compiling that takes the time. We're trapped in a web of songs!"

Mit dem wachsenden Wunsch nach früheren Werken von ELOY, dem gemäß Musikpresse "deutschen Flaggschiff des Art-und Progressivrock" kommt nun am 23.02.2024 mit "Destination" ein Album aus dem Jahr 1992 erneut auf den Markt, welches schon seit langem nicht mehr verfügbar ist. Da zu jener Zeit der frühen Neunziger die Vinyl-Platte quasi komplett "out" war, erscheint "Destination" nun als physisches Produkt erstmals auch auf Vinyl. "Destination" ist ein Album, auf welchem wir viele unterschiedliche Inspirationen und stilistischen Elemente verarbeiteten und vermischten. Obwohl Bassist Klaus Peter Matziol während der laufenden Produktion erstmals wieder für die Band zum Bass griff, entstand das Material überwiegend in der Zusammenarbeit von Michael Gerlach und mir, und es kam eine Melange aus atmosphärischen, aber auch sehr rockigen Klängen dabei heraus, wobei ich mich noch im Satzgesang mit mir selbst herausforderte, und wir durch diverse Fremdinstrumente das noch immer nicht komplett neu besetzte Line Up auffüllten. Es herrschte nach dem Erfolg des Vorgängers RA, welches ELOY nach dreijähriger Pause sofort in die offiziellen deutschen Albencharts zurück katapultierte, rege Aufbruchsstimmung. Der Sound und die Melange der Musik gelangen so, wie geplant." (Frank Bornemann, 2023)

Devon Hoff, Yuka C. Honda, Michael Leonhart, João Nogueira, Mauro Refosco, Ches Smith, Johnny Mathar, Sean Ono Lennon. Tzadik is proud to present Asterisms, a beautiful and exploratory instrumental project by Sean Ono Lennon, one of the most creative and versatile musician/composer/producer/songwriters working today.

Sean has written countless songs, composed film scores, produced, and performed on dozens of albums—and here he steps out as the leader of an all-star band of Downtown luminaries. Years in the making, the music is powerful, trippy, and intensely imaginative, blending rock, electronics, jazz, and more into an exciting new musical soundscape. With driving rhythms, a stunning lyricism, and a brilliant sense of orchestration, this album is sure to surprise and delight music fans the world ’round. Beautifully recorded, this is modern instrumental music at its very best—essential!

Clear Vinyl

Blue Lake is the musical moniker of American born, Copenhagen based multidisciplinary artist and musician Jason Dungan, who signs to the Tonal Union imprint for the release of his new longform album ‘Sun Arcs’. It follows 2022’s release ‘Stikling’, earning a nomination for ‘Album of the Year’ at the Danish Music Awards plus warm praise from The Hum blog and musicians and DJs alike including Jack Rollo (Time is Away/NTS) and Carla dal Forno. A self taught player, Dungan began freely experimenting with self-built multi-string instruments, preferring to build his own hybrid 48-string zither and working in the realms of left-field ambient music, off kilter folk and improvised acoustic minimalism.

The starting point of ‘Sun Arcs’ saw Jason travel for a week alone to Andersabo, a cabin set in the idyllic Swedish woods just outside of Unnaryd, known also as the music project, festival and residency space which has been run by Dungan since 2016, hosting artists like Sofie Birch, Johan Carøe and Ellen Arkbro. Whilst writing 1-2 pieces per day, a conscious decision was made to leave behind everyday distractions and shut out the outside world to instead focus on the natural passage of time as Dungan recalls: “My only sense of time came from these daily walks out in the woods with my dog, and an awareness of the sun’s path as it moved across the sky each day.”

The album’s immersive world unfolds with the opener ‘Dallas’, an ode to his home state and a musical synthesis of these two disparate spaces (Texas and Denmark), the touchstones of Dungan’s life. A folk-esque single acoustic builds to a flowing arrangement of clarinets, organ and cello drones coupled with percussion. ‘Green-Yellow Field’ chimes in as the first of two solo oriented zither recordings twinned with the dreamlike title track ‘Sun Arcs’, both densely rich as cascading and overlapping harmonic tones resound. ‘Bloom’ emerges with a krautrock psyche before an eruption of cello drones, slide guitar and free-ranging zither playing, ushering in the anticipation of spring. With half of the recordings conceived in Andersabo, Jason returned to Copenhagen to form the album's centre piece ‘Rain Cycle’ which features a tempered Roland drum machine alongside shifting zither improvisations. ‘Writing’ explores the shimmering harp-like qualities of sweeping playing figurations with Dungan mapping out adjusted tuning “zones” on the zither for unconventional but creatively liberating effects. ‘Fur’ captures the feeling of openness and the momentum of time, seeing Dungan perform waves of solo clarinet, often in one takes and embellished with textural drones, a zither solo, and layers of guitar. ‘Wavelength’ the album's closer is fondly inspired by the film works of Michael Snow and Don Cherry’s seminal live album ‘Blue Lake’ (1974), as it builds out from a drone-generated zither chord and features an alto recorder solo. Dungan found a deep connection to Cherry’s stripped back performance ethos, focusing on the core beauty of minimal instrumentation creating a genre-less meeting between folk and jazz. A dialogue is formed between the solo and the bandlike performances, interlinked in a geographical duality with all finding a sense of commonplace as musical sketches of visited landscapes. The bountiful instrumentation ebbs and flows as further layers emerge with Dungan constructing his material much like an artist would, recording and reviewing, adding and subtracting.

Musically it portrays a form of double life led by an American-identifying person living in Scandinavia, and a new found presence in Denmark, seeking out underdeveloped marshlands and barren stretches of beach adrift from other rhythms and distractions. Highlighting their individual and potent importance Dungan concludes: “Both places feel like “me”, I think on some level the music is always some kind of self-portrait.” ‘Sun Arcs’ depicts the intricate balance of nature’s cycles and the paths outlined by the seasons, from a winter dormancy to a warm sun drenched scene. The album scales new glorying heights and further defines Dungan’s musical narrative, inhabiting a unique space in left-field, improvised and experimental music, borning his most accomplished compositions to date. A singular and visionary expression, drawing on an array of instruments and sound worlds with a renewed sense of joy and discovery.

The album's rich tapestry was mixed by Jeff Zeigler (Laraaji, Mary Lattimore, Kurt Vile /Steve Gunn) and mastered by Stephan Mathieu (Kali Malone, KMRU, Félicia Atkinson).

"Echoes Of Light" ist das neueste Album von CHAPEL OF DISEASE und das Ergebnis eines noch tieferen Eintauchens in die Möglichkeiten einer Band, die sich von jeglichen musikalischen oder genrebezogenen Grenzen befreit.

Aufgenommen von Oktober 2022 bis Januar 2023 in den Q7 Studios mit Michael Zech (THE RUINS OF BEVERAST, SECRET OF THE MOON) von den drei Gründungsmitgliedern (Laurent T., Cedric T. und David D.), ist ein Album entstanden, das mit vielen verschiedenen Stimmungen spielt und zu einem Ganzen wird, indem es Gegensätze vereint und sie zu einer individuellen Klanglandschaft formt. Das Album besteht aus sechs Songs und will den Hörer auf eine Reise mitnehmen, auf der er dem Licht nachjagt, nur um es schließlich zu zerstören...

- Aufgenommen und gemischt von Michael Zech und Laurent Teubl in den Q7 Studios, München.
- Gemastert von V. Santura in den Woodshed Studios, Landshut.
- Cover-Artwork von Waeik.
- Logo und Überarbeitung des Siegels durch Thibaut Wantz.

Gold Vinyl

"Echoes Of Light" ist das neueste Album von CHAPEL OF DISEASE und das Ergebnis eines noch tieferen Eintauchens in die Möglichkeiten einer Band, die sich von jeglichen musikalischen oder genrebezogenen Grenzen befreit.

Aufgenommen von Oktober 2022 bis Januar 2023 in den Q7 Studios mit Michael Zech (THE RUINS OF BEVERAST, SECRET OF THE MOON) von den drei Gründungsmitgliedern (Laurent T., Cedric T. und David D.), ist ein Album entstanden, das mit vielen verschiedenen Stimmungen spielt und zu einem Ganzen wird, indem es Gegensätze vereint und sie zu einer individuellen Klanglandschaft formt. Das Album besteht aus sechs Songs und will den Hörer auf eine Reise mitnehmen, auf der er dem Licht nachjagt, nur um es schließlich zu zerstören...

- Aufgenommen und gemischt von Michael Zech und Laurent Teubl in den Q7 Studios, München.
- Gemastert von V. Santura in den Woodshed Studios, Landshut.
- Cover-Artwork von Waeik.
- Logo und Überarbeitung des Siegels durch Thibaut Wantz.

Starkes Debütalbum der britischen Band Brown Horse, die sich musikalisch zwischen 70er Country-Folk-Rock und 90er Jahre Alternative-Rock bewegen!

Die sechsköpfige Alternative Country Band aus Norwich in England verbindet gitarrengetriebenen 90er-Jahre-Alternative-Rock mit den Folk- und Country-Klängen der 70er-Jahre und setzt dabei auf einen gemeinschaftlichen Ansatz beim Songwriting. Folk-Quartett und verbrachten ihre ersten Tage damit, in Pubs in ganz England alte Standards, Michael Hurley-Cover und eigene Songs zu spielen. Als die Gruppe 2022 nach der Pandemie wieder zusammenkam, wandte sie sich einem schwereren, gitarrenbetonten Sound zu. Als sie Ben Auld als Schlagzeuger in die Band aufnahmen, begannen Brown Horse, sich in der wiederauflebenden Szene ihrer Wahlheimat Norwich einen Namen zu machen. Als Phoebe Troup im Sommer 2023 das Line-up vervollständigte, machten sich Brown Horse auf den kurzen Weg nach Norden zu den Sickroom Studios, wo sie vier Tage lang mit Owen Turner ihr Debütalbum aufzunehmen. Die Songs von 'Reservoir' sind zum einen in der Tradition des Folk-Country-Rock der 70er Jahre verwurzelt, aber auch Einflüße von Uncle Tupelo, Silver Jews, Lucinda Williams und Jason Molina sind auf dem Album deutlich hörbar!

NOW Music is proud to present the next instalment in our ongoing ‘Yearbook’ series – and the second to celebrate the ‘90s, NOW – Yearbook 1990; 79 tracks from a fantastic year in Pop! Available on 4CD deluxe book format with 79 tracks , 4CD std digi with 79 tracks and 44 tracks from a fantastic year in Pop, pressed on gorgeous translucent triple orange vinyl. Disc One includes #1s from New Order, New Kids On The Block, Steve Miller Band, and The Beautiful South, as well as Pop smashes from The KLF, The B-52’s, Kylie Minogue, Whitney Houston Kim Appleby, and concluding with the theme from Twin Peaks, Julee Cruise’s ‘Falling’, Chris Isaak with ‘Wicked Game’ and Pet Shop Boys defining ‘Being Boring’. Dance floor-fillers kick off Disc 2 from Deee-Lite with ‘Groove Is In The Heart’, #1s from SNAP!, and from Adamski & Seal plus club classics from Bass-O-Matic and Adventures Of Stevie V with ‘Dirty Cash (Money Talks)’, plus the unexpected collaboration between DNA & Suzanne Vega. Disc 3 opens with the still-breathtaking interpretation of Prince’s ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’ from Sinéad O'Connor. Up next are film related hits; Maria McKee’s ‘Show Me Heaven’, from the ‘Days Of Thunder’ soundtrack, and the ‘Young Guns II’ track ‘Blaze Of Glory’ from Jon Bon Jovi