quête:plenty

THE 1994 ALBUM REMASTERED BY ED WYNNE & RELEASED ON
CLASSIC BLACK VINYL.

One of the most influential bands to emerge from the UK's festival scene, the Ozrics layer ambient & ethereal landscapes with freeform dub trips, incredible rave grooves & psychedelic progressive rock.

It's an open exploration of music & the soul. The band's last release to feature Merv Pepler & Joie Hinton, who left to form Eat Static, 'Arborescence' was the Ozrics' fifth studio effort in as many years. Soundscape textures remained their focus & their strength, with the now trademark Steve Hillage- esque guitar, gurgling & whirling synths & tight rhythm section all wrapped around rave, techno, African & Middle Eastern influences.

The tracks alternate between the power driven ('Myriapod', 'Shima Koto', 'Astro Cortex'), classic Ozric Tentacles space rock ('Dance of the Loomi', 'There's a Planet Here', the title track) & those with an ethnic flavour ('Al- Saloog'). The powerful music here, embellished by plenty of synth dweedling & strong rhythm patterns, takes the listener of open mind & free spirit to somewhere special. Classic Ozrics then. Arborescence' will be released on classic black vinyl via Kscope.

Acid Jazz Group Label Countdown Records is proud to present 'Shake A Tail Feather' - a Vinyl/CD collection from Fast Eddie, one of the early '80s most exhilarating live groups, and a favourite of the Rhythm and Soul powered Mod scene of 1980s. Initially called 'The Investigators', Fast Eddie emerged from Billericay in the wake of Thames Delta Blues pioneers, Dr. Feelgood. Having gained a following playing the raw R&B of the Pub Rock circuit, the band diversified their sound to incorporate classic soul repertoire, alongside their own material, which is documented throughout this collection.

Significantly, the group was also managed and produced by a certain young Eddie Piller - our founder - in his first foray as a music Mogul. Consequently, this collection marks an important document in the formation of Well Suspect Records, Countdown Records and the wider Acid Jazz Story. The LP contains a sharp selection of 16 tracks from their recordings, while the CD and digital version extends this with 4 extra tracks. Their storming versions of 'Shake A Tail Feather' and 'Out Of Sight', show their love of classic club soul, while 'Help Me' and 'My Babe' prove that they could play the blues with plenty of rhythm and feeling.

Coming 40 years after he first started performing in bands in his native North West of England, Butterfly Mind is the most surprising release yet from Tim Bowness. From the short, sharp shocks of Always The Stranger and Only A Fool to the long-form ambition of the sensuous Dark Nevada Dream, the cinematic Electro-Ballroom of Glitter Fades and the dystopian paranoia of Say Your Goodbyes Parts 1 and 2, Butterfly Mind delivers a thrilling fusion of Art Rock invention, Post-Punk energy and epic soulful ballads. Tim’s seventh solo album features the stellar rhythm section of Richard Jupp (in his first major session since leaving Elbow) and Nick Beggs alongside a spectacular guest list including Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull), Dave Formula (Magazine), Peter Hammill (Van Der Graaf Generator), Martha Goddard (The Hushtones), Gregory Spawton (Big Big Train), Mark Tranmer (The Montgolfier Brothers / GNAC), Saro Cosentino (Franco Battiato), Italian Jazz musician Nicola Alesini, US singer Devon Dunaway (Ganga), Stephen W Tayler (Kate Bush) and, marking his first studio work with Tim for nearly three decades, former No-Man violinist Ben Coleman. Produced by Tim Bowness and Brian Hulse (Plenty), the album was mixed and mastered by Steven Wilson. Available as Limited 2CD Edition (featuring alternate mixes and bonus material), and a Limited 180g LP + CD edition featuring special die-cut artwork by Carl Glover. Also available as Digital Album.

We like what Trouble have done with this album, “Plastic Green Head”. The music sounds fairly dissimilar to the completely doom-laden, crushing riffs present on the earlier material, but what Trouble do here sounds every bit authentic. Not to mislead you, this definitely still sounds like Trouble, but they seem to have adopted a more laidback, stoner metal approach; sacrificing sinister atmospheres for more upbeat ones. The first few tracks are completely awesome offerings of vintage Trouble. The playful, thrashy riff of the title track, which opens the album, is a great introduction to the music at hand and Eric Wagner’s distinctive vocals sound powerful overtop. “Plastic Green Head,” “The Eye,” “Flowers,” these are all what you would expect from Trouble, huge churning riffs, 80 bpm drumbeats, Eric Wagners nasal yet powerful voice. They are simple, they are catchy, and they are just plain good. “The Porpoise Song” is a cover of a song by The Monkees, and strangely enough it’s very good. Big wall of guitar noise, and Eric singing in a less nasal and more melodic voice. “Opium Eater” sounds like it could easily be an Alice in Chains song. On this album there is silly plenty of Sabbath worship, but also more of an upbeat, hard rock feel. We would even say that a little grunge has crept into their sound (to be fair, it’s probably the other way around, Trouble influence crept into grunge.) If you’re looking for a nice dose of stoner metal, you’ll find just that right here. There’s plenty of memorable riffs which provide good replay value, and although you won’t find as much doom as you might expect from Trouble, it’s still there if you look for it.

Hooveriii - A Round of Applause Time after time, we all talk about … well, time — often in aphorisms and cliches. X is “a waste of time,” while Y is “time well spent.” We are all apt to lose track of time but, perhaps in equal measure, we have plenty of time on our hands. We think we have all the time in the world -- until we remember that time flies, after which our time runs out and we’re dead (for a long time). Since 2020, internal clocks have had to be readjusted with the pace of life ebbing and flowing. For Los Angeles psych-rock sextet Hooveriii (pronounced "Hoover Three") that adjustment seeped its way into their songwriting and ultimately their forthcoming album, A Round of Applause. The record cherrypicks from an array of genres — pop, girl-group ditties, synth-ish keyboards and funk —but the end result is a cohesive long-player with songs that revolve around the Spanish Inquisition (“Stone Man”); or follow “the legendary Peruvians who run long distances in the Andes Mountains (“The Runner”). “I let my imagination run wild,” Hoover said. Elsewhere on A Round of Applause, the Hooveriii frontman finally recorded a song, “The Pearl,” that he wrote in 2017. “It sounds like a Harry Nilsson jingle like to me, a fantasy song,” he continued. “It's more like a nursery rhyme than a song with an important message. You know, it's just like keeping things fun. … Nilsson didn’t take everything so fucking seriously. We want to avoid that self-seriousness. We're a bunch of goofy musicians.”

One of the best-loved reggae singers of all time. Responsible for many perennial hits that have remained popular with fans since their recording in the late 1960s and early 70s, Slim Smith achieved a lasting influence that trumps the brevity of his vocation and the terribly tragic death that cut everything short. This retrospective includes tracks from Slim Smith & The Uniques period. The second disc collects plenty of examples of his solo career. read on / listen

Three slices of unashamedly old skool (two) stepping action from the Above Sound label and 2Step2 (squared) aka DJ Ruby and Jo Public, that'll transport you back to the Sunday scene and UKG's earliest days. On this EP's lead track 'Give Me Some Of That' the duo perfectly catch that intersection between rave elements - the wispy, eerie synths and pitch shifted vocals - and the sophisticated shuffle of American garage. 'Drop The Bass (2022 Remaster)' leans slightly more towards the hardcore flavour, its choppier beats more evocative of the inspired syncopations of breakstep,, while 'What's Gonna Happen' is the trippiest and most optimistic sounding of the three while still packing plenty of rhythmic punch.

Ghetto Supastar is a song by American rapper Pras, but is also the name of this new 12" from 207737 on the Detroit Techno Records label. It embodies a new sound coming from the celebrated Motor City that draws on everything which went before and adds new perspective, emotion and sound designs. 'Stella' is a lithe and soulful cut with minimal drums and a cosmic atmosphere, while 'Tribal Dance' brings brighter chords and more playful patterns over raw-ass drums. There is plenty of Omar-S's rough hewn drum work in 'Apply Pressure' and elsewhere '8 Mile Boogie' brings a Mediterranean Balearic vibe to the D in superb fashion. An intriguing EP for sure.

Alien Transistor present Alien Parade Japan, a joyous double-album compilation of groups from Japan’s indie-pop and avant-garde undergrounds, all of which feature brass or woodwind instruments as part of their line-up. Compiled by Markus Acher (Alien Transistor, The Notwist, Hochzeitskapelle) with plenty of support and help from his Spirit Fest bandmate, Saya (also of Tenniscoats), it features some familiar names – Tenniscoats, naturally, but also Zayaendo, Tori Kudo’s Maher Shalal Hash Baz – alongside lesser-known groups like Biobiopatata, Mitamurakandadan?, Kourakuen, sekifu, and Noah Lewis Mahlon’ Taits, amongst many others.

The collection of songs here rests upon a simple question, and an interesting parallel: Why do so many groups from Japan include brass and woodwind, and how closely does this echo the scene that Acher is involved with in Munich? The idea was formulated in Acher’s mind after one of his groups, Hochzeitskapelle, had been invited by Saya to Japan in 2019, to take part in the Alien Parade Japan tour. “Saya and her friends recommended a lot of music to me that I didn’t know of,” Acher recalls, “and I was surprised and excited to find so many Japanese bands who use brass and woodwind instruments.”

This approach was something Acher had been familiar with for a while, thanks to his experiences in Munich: “Until then I thought of the Munich scene, where Hochzeitskapelle come from, as being quite unique in having ex-punk and still-indie musicians form loud acoustic bands with many brass instruments and play a wild mixture of styles.” And indeed, that variety is reflected in the twenty-two songs on Alien Parade Japan, which flits from the pastoral melody of Maher Shalal Hash Baz’s “Crossin The Tama River”, through the tenderness of various sighhorns’s “people have called them flowers”, to the folksy lament of Gratin Carnival’s “Just Watching”.

Alien Parade Japan reaches further afield, too, drawing in some groups, like HOSE, Fuigo, and popo, that feature musicians like Toshihiro Koike, Masafumi Ezaki and Taku Unami, who may be better known for their experimental and improvised releases on labels like ftarri and Erstwhile. It also looks back to material recorded in the 1990s - the swinging slide guitars and sax/tuba duet of Strada’s “Swamp”, from 1998, and Compostela’s energetic, rousing “ghhgh”, from 1990. Both pieces were written by, and feature, saxophonist Kanji Nakao; Compostela’s membership also included late saxophonist Masami Shinoda, who was also part of such storied Japanese groups as Pungo, A-Musik, Orquestra Del Viento, Ché-SHIZU, and the fiery free jazz outfit, Seikatsu Kōjyō Iinkai.

Groups like Compostela help to draw some through-lines to the aesthetics of chindon’ya, a type of Japanese marching band made up of costumed street performers who advertise businesses; the music made by these bands is brash, spirited, and full of energy. Alien Parade Japan weaves all of this together – chindon’ya; jazz; indie-pop; psych-folk; big band – into one beautiful, big tapestry of gorgeous melody, sweetness, and melancholy, with plenty of creative fraying at its edges. “The collection is a very personal view of Japanese bands using brass and woodwind instruments,” Acher concludes: “it’s not a representative anthology, it’s mainly held together by my personal taste, experiences, and friendships.” But it’s also a wonderfully coherent collection of some of the most playful and elated music you’re likely to hear this year. As musician and writer David Grubbs says:

„Now it is confirmed: my favorite genre of music is Alien Parade Japan. Hopefully now people will know what I’m talking about when I gush about the unassailable brilliance of longtime favorites like Maher Shalal Hash Baz, Popo, Mitamurakandadan?, Hose, and Tenniscoats, presented here alongside others whose music I have only begun to search out. Please share in my gratitude and enjoyment of this lovingly assembled collection, one that I welcome into my home as I would a long-anticipated guest.“

Cult South Asian New Wave! Naya Beat is proud to announce its second release, Tere Liye, the highly sought after and impossible to find New Wave album by the unsung pioneers of the British Asian music scene, Pinky Ann Rihal. Remastered for vinyl by multi Grammy-nominated Frank Merritt at The Carvery and available for the first time since its limited 1985 release, the album is as fresh and relevant today as it was 37 years ago.

South Asian New Wave. Four words that you will rarely see together. Pinky Ann Rihal were the brainchild of two London-based Punjabi immigrants and progressive rock musicians – Harry Rihal and Jati Sodhi – at a time in the U.K. when progressive rock musicians were almost exclusively white and Punjabi musicians were almost exclusively making Bhangra. Encouraged by their friend and disco pioneer Biddu (yes, that Biddu!), they cut ‘Tere Liye’ – a one-off Hindi-language New Wave album with producer John Hamilton and vocalists Pinky Rihal (married to Harry) and Anne Barrett (married to John). It is an album that exemplifies the cultural collaboration and musical synthesis of the time. Complementing the rich, cosmic and layered synths and drum programming of Hamilton and the distorted guitars of Rihal and Sodhi are the Hindi lyrics of vocalists Pinky and Anne. The result is an amazing one-of-a-kind South Asian New Wave album. Nothing like it has come out before or since.

Stymied on its original release by bungled distribution, poor marketing and plenty of bad luck, this incredible album seemed destined to be lost to history. With Asian electronic music in the U.K. seeing a rebirth and capturing imaginations around the world,‘Tere Liye’ can finally take its rightful place as one of the pioneering albums of the Asian underground.

This is Naya Beat’s second release in a series of reissues, reworks and remixes, and compilations dedicated to uncovering electronic and dance music from the overlooked ‘80s and ‘90s South Asian music scene. Their first release Naya Beat Volume 1: South Asian Dance and Electronic Music 1983-1992 was named by the Vinyl Factory as the Number 1 reissue of 2021.

There is never any doubt that soul is in the house, when you hear the poetic guitar and organ licks from Cold Diamond & Mink starting to twirl together, and out of nowhere Carlton Jumel Smith steps effortlessly inside the groove. "Heaven In My Arms" is the second in line of Carlton's new trio of singles on Timmion, and what a treat it is: deep as Mississippi mud, light as a feather.

This time our trans-Atlantic tag team delivers a melodic beat ballad of the highest order, which should sweep fans of lowrider soul off their wheels. Spanish Harlem-bred Carlton has been steadily churning out gems since meeting the Timmion folks some years back and shows no signs of stopping yet. This is a love song with plenty of heart to give everybody. Just take it all in, and enjoy the instrumental on the flipside while you're at it.

Y U QT are back on Time Is Now, and with them they're bringing the sun. "Sweet Fantasy" EP sees the Leicester duo return to what they do best: capturing UKG at its least po-faced, and most energetic.

And who better to help kick off proceedings than the one of the most recognisable voices in today's UKG revival? Ell Murphy's smooth-as-syrup vocals add another level of dynamism to the already-buoyant 4x4 garage banger "Fantasy", coming complete with a hook just as irresistible as the ones which shot their previous releases to success. "Buss Down" picks up the energy with propulsive kickdrums and old school MC vocal chops before "Leaving All Your Cares Behind" follows suit, adding a feel-good vocal melody for an extra serotonin hit. It's up to the more light-footed "Just Be Friends" to leave a sweet taste in our mouths. Euphoric Korg organ stabs give a sense of nostalgia whilst a meandering bassline lends it plenty of swing.

On new record For The Birds, Atlanta-based Neighbor Lady expand the
boundaries of their country-kissed indie rock sound to encompass an
elegant style of lush and textural guitar pop sprinkled with, as songwriter
and vocalist Emily Braden puts it, with "reverb and magic
" Full of gorgeous top- line melodies, spirited rock hooks, and Braden's richly
emotive vocals (and plenty of twang), For The Birds takes a kaleidoscopic
approach to genre. The record features everything from catchy alternative
("Penny Pick It Up") and starry- eyed country ("I'm With You") to straightforward
indie rock ("Scared") and ambient- indebted otherworldly pop ("Haunted").
Neighbor Lady began as Braden's solo project, but is now a four-piece consisting
of Braden, guitarist Jack Blauvelt, bassist Payton Collier, and drummer Andrew
McFarland. The band recorded For The Birds with Jason Kingsland (Kaiser Chiefs,
Band of Horses, Belle & Sebastian) at Diamond Street Studios in Atlanta and it
was mixed by Noah Georgeson (Andy Shauf, Cate Le Bon, Devendra Banhart,
Joanna Newsom.) Though For The Birds is hallmarked by big sonic flourishes
and brave moments of experimentation, the overall feeling is one of intimacy —
four people in a room, making music together; fitting for a group of musicians
who say they feel less like a band and more like a family. "This record came out of
a lot of love and hard work and us caring so much about the music and each
other," says Braden. "And that's pretty much what we're about."

Nightlands is the solo project of The War on Drugs’ bassist and multi-instrumentalist Dave Hartley. Amid massive global paradigm shifts Dave Hartley (aka Nightlands) became a father twice over and left his native Philadelphia for Asheville, where the pace of daily life is slower and it's easier to maintain a zoomed-out perspective on modern life. From the newfound refuge of a studio he built using the bones of a barn attached to his hundred-something-year-old house in the mountains, Hartley has tailored a collection of well-crafted pop rock, pointedly titled Moonshine. Guided by some of the harmonic sensibilities that have helped make The War on Drugs a force in modern music, Moonshine combines immaculate-yet-dense vocal stacks and billowy clouds of effected keyboards with classic songcraft, revealing previously unseen acreage in the unfurling dreamscape that is Nightlands. The surrealistic album art by Austin-based illustrator Jaime Zuverza depicts an archway opening to the stars over the surface of an idyllic sea flanked by both moon and sun. Similarly, Moonshine reveals portals within portals leading to ever deeper places in Hartley's vocal-centered labyrinth. Throughout the album, there are plenty of buoyant high moods where the pitter-patter of drum machine and humming digital organ hints at Hartley's low-key tropicalia streak, but the lyrics anchor the dreaminess in real-world sorrow and resignation. Nowhere are these sentiments more apparent than on the title track, a nearly acapella recitation of "America the Beautiful" that poignantly hovers over a mirage of soft keyboards before dovetailing into Hartley's own words about the hypocrisy of the American dream. "This was never intended to be an overtly political record" he admits. "I have so many friends who are able to process the frustration of current events gracefully or with wisdom or in a nuanced way, but I often find myself just consumed with anger about it all. I decided to just let that come out, and it manifested itself lyrically." Moonshine's wide-eyed, utopian instrumental backdrops provide sharp contrast to Hartley's lyrics, which sting even harder within the sweetness. Even in light of the album's vocal emphasis, Hartley's history as a bassist brilliantly beams through Moonshine, giving effortless and sprightly movement to songs like "Down Here," which also features an extended section of saxophone lent by his Western Vinyl labelmate, Joseph Shabason. In addition to Shabason, the album hosts a short list of remote collaborators including four of Hartley's bandmates from The War on Drugs, Robbie Bennet, Anthony Lamarca, Eliza Hardy Jones, and Charlie Hall, as well as exotica virtuoso Frank Locrasto (Cass McCombs, Fruit Bats), and producer Adam McDaniel (Avey Tare, Angel Olsen). Hartley was forced to keep the guest list small out of the necessity of pandemic isolation, coupled with his move to a smaller city, all of which challenged him to do most of the album's heavy lifting right down to the mixing duties, resulting in the most independent effort of his career. By that measure, Moonshine is also the clearest image yet of Dave Hartley as a person and creator.

Tartelet are proud to introduce the blissful, psychedelic electronic soul sound of ABUNAI on his sophomore album Chrysalis out May

20th. Across 11 songs the Oakland, CA-based multi- instrumentalist lays down a dreamlike style which should chimewith fans of Tame Impala, Khruangbin and James Blake alike. As well as the sun-soaked surrounding of his Californian home, ABUNAI’s family connection to Hawaii casts its influence over an album which has all the makings of a crossover success. Look no further than early support from the likes of Gilles Peterson, Don Letts, and Wayne Snow for further proof this album is set to blow up.

“My sound is definitely influenced by the live music I grew up with in the Bay Area,” says ABUNAI. “There's plenty of musical legacy here, including the '60s psychedelic and counterculture movements, the '90s rave scene, and the hyphy movement. "I'm always trying to connect the dots and blend all of my influences.

Chrysalis was, like so many recent albums, a project made largely in isolation during the pandemic, although ABUNAI did reach out to close collaborators Gravity and Raquel Marie to contribute some guest vocals, Kevin Farzad from Sure Sure for the acoustic drum parts and a few additional production touches from Tartelet regulars Glenn Astro and Max Graef. He bills the songs as an exercise in therapeutic self-care through lockdown as much as a balm for others. “It's music for healing,” ABUNAI explains, “for the listener to be able to marinate in the slow tempos, the dreamy textures, the swirling vocals, and the lush synthesizers. It’s very much about growth, re-emergence, and dreaming of a better future.”

As well as dealing in ear-catching pop melodies and sweet vocals, there’s an underlying theme of the ocean, which stems from his coastal surroundings and his family roots in the Pacific. “I think the album is aquatic,” he reflects, “and it feels like a voyage to me, or like a long shower, being reborn in the water. I played the album for my grandpa, who's a veteran sailor and pilot from Hawaii, and he said it was the perfect music to play when you're sailing on the open ocean at sunset.” Cast in nostalgic, soft-focus tones and endlessly soothing for the soul, Chrysalis is your new favourite record for tender moments, hazy days and starry-eyed reveries alike.

Produced by Heidecker, Drew Erickson, Eric D. Johnson and Mac DeMarco, High School sees Heidecker emerging as an increasingly playful and poignant story teller, infusing childhood tales with new gravity. In conjunction, he announces Tim Heidecker Live! Featuring Tim Heidecker and The Very Good Band, his first two-act tour of comedy and music. Since 2016, Tim Heidecker has chronicled the annals of adulthood on a series of supreme singer-songwriter albums. The crushing devastation of divorce and the existential malaise of middle-age, the minutiae of home ownership and the ritual of family vacation, child rearing and global warming: Heidecker has handled it all with humor and heart. But, there’s one pivotal lodestar of human development he has yet to mine that’s right, High School. First single “Buddy” is a composite of a few woebegone friends, which finds Heidecker reminiscing on the familiar tragedy of the adolescent stoner, manifesting the destiny of undiagnosed depression and parents who didn’t care much. The song itself is a jangly delight, but it’s hard not to mourn for “Buddy,” then re-count whatever blessings you may have. After initial and fruitful sessions with Jonathan Rado, Heidecker started recording tunes with DeMarco and Erickson, who had also worked on 2020’s collaboration with Weyes Blood, Fear of Death. At DeMarco’s studio, they added drum machines and synths and sidewinding solos to Heidecker’s big strummed chords. Johnson (Bonny Light Horseman, Fruit Bats) helped Heidecker finesse the tunes even more, making the music as rich as the feelings. Kurt Vile contributed to one song, as well. Through all those sessions, it slowly became clear: Heidecker was writing not only about the adventures and misadventures of life as a Pennsylvania teen in the early ’90s, but also how it felt to lose a juvenile sense of mystery and possibility as an adult. He was writing about high school and, really, the way it helped shape everything else. Back at Pennsylvania’s Allentown Central Catholic High School, Heidecker dreamed of making it with one of his many rock bands — Time and Other Things, Shaggy’s Beltbuckle, and (incredibly) The Pulsating Libidos. Two years shy of his graduating class’ 30th anniversary, Heidecker admits he had little of substance to say when he was 17, like all but the rarest of precocious minds. In college, though, he found the friends with whom he built his comedy career, largely apart from music and without much thought for his time back at Central Catholic. He was focused on his future. It is fitting, then, that as Heidecker has become such a delightful singer-songwriter and collaborator, he returns to the first scene of his time as a musician. Maybe he’s right — he didn’t have anything to say or sing about life back then. But across the earnest and amusing High School, he finds plenty to say about those weird and wonderful and ordinary times.

Rome’s own disco wizard L.U.C.A. aka Francesco De Bellis is back for his second LP Terra, hot on the heels of his Venus 12” EP earlier this year. In this far-reaching album, the Edizioni Mondo founder explores the deteriorating relationship between Man and Nature, and the dire consequences. The album is split into two themes - part one is Consacrazione (Consecration) and side two is Coscienza (Conscience) - as L.U.C.A. charts a trip through mankind’s psychic universe, and imagines worlds beyond our physical dimension.

The opening composition Cities is an uptempo number that slowly comes into focus, as dreamy drum machines emerge from the urban bustle, before settling into a soulful groove as keyboard, upright bass and guitar figures dance across bright percussion. As it builds up a head of steam, the piece gives way to an ambient, tribal breakdown, which is also echoed in the following song, Drum Talk. This second tune sets up in a fourth world dreamscape of drums, synths, and abstracted echo effects, and is peppered with word fragments from the bush of ghosts. By the time we’ve reached the third track, Congiunzione sounds like travelling at singularity speed, beaming in from a future where human consciousness and gaia can finally dance on a cosmic plain.

Part two of Terra details how revelation of the spirit can guide the mind, as Time Spirals rises out of a drum motif with a nod to classic ragas, as a disembodied voice asks questions on the nature of corporeality. The sound design is just as front and centre as the sitar and fretless bass, and the song gives way to a richly-layered soup that sounds like the vast space between atoms. It’s this shift from composition to ambience that is the dynamic core of Terra, giving L.U.C.A. plenty of space to showcase his next-level audio and arranging skills. Midway through part two, Giallo Assoluto begins with reverb tails and choral voices before expanding in brightness and texture until the audio field is practically levitating your hi-fi speakers, vibrating them with drones, twinkling keys and shards of digital noise. The closing composition Ritorno al Domani is a perfect balance of optimism and mystery. Tension and release collapse in on themselves as waves of ambient pads crescendo and then break over stretched-out sonic turbulence, before reversed synths bring the listener to a closing door, and the end of the journey.

It’s a mind-expanding musical exploration of other worlds and parallel universes which are surely all around us, and in many ways serve to remind us of the marvel that is our own planet.

“I’ve been playing since I was 11 years old,” says Charlie Gabriel, the most
senior member of the legendary Preservation Hall Band. “I never did anything in
my life but play music. I’ve been blessed with that gift that God gave me, and I’ve
tried to nurse it the best way I knew how.”
 While he’s faced plenty of challenges nursing that gift for more than 78 years,
none likely rank with last winter’s passing of his brother and last living sibling,
Leonard, lost to COVID-19. For the first time ever, Gabriel put down his horn,
filling his days and weeks instead with dark reflection, a stubborn despondency
broken now and then by regular chess matches in the studio kitchen of Hall
leader Ben Jaffe, working overtime to bring his friend some light.
 One such afternoon also included Joshua Starkman, sitting off in a corner
playing his guitar and half-watching the chess from a distance. When Charlie
returned the next day, he brought his saxophone. “I was just inspired to try it, to
play again. It had been a long time, and a guitar makes me feel free. I do love the
sound of a piano, but it takes up a lot of a space, keeps me kind of boxed in.”
That day was to be the first session for ‘Eighty Nine’, almost entirely the work of
Gabriel, Jaffe and Starkman, recorded mostly right there, in the kitchen, by Matt
Aguiluz.
 Charlie Gabriel’s first professional gig dates to 1943, sitting in for his father in
New Orleans’ Eureka Brass Band. As a teenager living in Detroit, Charlie played
with Lionel Hampton, whose band then included a young Charles Mingus, later
spending nine years with a group led by Cab Calloway drummer J.C. Heard.
While he’s also fronted a bebop quintet, played and/or toured with Ella
Fitzgerald, Tony Bennet, Aretha Franklin and many more, this is the first time his
name appears on the front of a record, as a bandleader.
 Since 2006, Gabriel has been a member of the Preservation Hall Jazz Band,
featuring prominently on ‘That’s It, So It Is’, and ‘Tuba to Cuba’. ‘Eighty Nine’ was
different, and not simply due to a smaller ensemble. “We had no particular plan,
or any particular insight on what we were gonna do. But we were enjoying what
we were doing, jamming, having a musical conversation,” Charlie says, further
musing, “Musical conversations cancel out complications.”
 The album includes six standards and three newer pieces on which Gabriel is a
writer: ‘Yellow Moon’, ‘The Darker It Gets’ and ‘I Get Jealous’. The record also
marks Charlie’s return to his first instrument, clarinet, on many of the tracks. “The
clarinet is the mother of the saxophone,” he says. “I started playing clarinet early
in life, and this taught me the saxophone.”
 Finally, ‘Eighty Nine’ includes three tracks of Charlie singing. “I always sung, but
it wasn’t my forte to become a singer,” he says. “The truth is, people often
develop a real relationship with a song once they hear the words. Sometimes I
enjoy singing them.”
 First pressing on translucent gold Loser Edition coloured vinyl

Coming 40 years after he first started performing in bands in his native North West of England, Butterfly Mind is the most surprising release yet from Tim Bowness. From the short, sharp shocks of Always The Stranger and Only A Fool to the long-form ambition of the sensuous Dark Nevada Dream, the cinematic Electro-Ballroom of Glitter Fades and the dystopian paranoia of Say Your Goodbyes Parts 1 and 2, Butterfly Mind delivers a thrilling fusion of Art Rock invention, Post-Punk energy and epic soulful ballads. Tim’s seventh solo album features the stellar rhythm section of Richard Jupp (in his first major session since leaving Elbow) and Nick Beggs alongside a spectacular guest list including Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull), Dave Formula (Magazine), Peter Hammill (Van Der Graaf Generator), Martha Goddard (The Hushtones), Gregory Spawton (Big Big Train), Mark Tranmer (The Montgolfier Brothers / GNAC), Saro Cosentino (Franco Battiato), Italian Jazz musician Nicola Alesini, US singer Devon Dunaway (Ganga), Stephen W Tayler (Kate Bush) and, marking his first studio work with Tim for nearly three decades, former No-Man violinist Ben Coleman. Produced by Tim Bowness and Brian Hulse (Plenty), the album was mixed and mastered by Steven Wilson. Available as Limited 2CD Edition (featuring alternate mixes and bonus material), and a Limited 180g LP + CD edition featuring special die-cut artwork by Carl Glover. Also available as Digital Album.

A deeply meditative soundscape for inner exploration and a dance of sonic textures. composed to be experienced inside a floatation tank, Noiro creates a moment of calm over the 50 minute concept record (2x 25 minute sides). Think Space-Music..
The debut LP is his first entirely solo Ambient Electronic LP, encouraged by the purchase of an old piano with warmth and plenty of character. Recorded in London during the sweltering summer of 2018, the final product is timeless and powerful, whether experienced afloat or just in a horizontal position.

Inside the tank is a whole different experience, touching on the euphoric. The depravation of other senses lead to the music stimulating the mind to fully transport the listener to another realm with maximum effect.

Feelings of immense calm and reassurance come from the experience. Intimate and delicate melodic moments let the mind settle and explore the ambient scape. Later moments build with a sense of the epic, where the listener is left feeling that any obstacle can be overcome.

Johannes Kolter is Kolter, an artist formerly known as DJOKO, and now a hotly tipped breaks and garage head who has already got plenty of attention. Here though he makes a grand and widescreen statement with the first release on the all-new Pilot label. It is a stylish and adventurous record with plenty of killer cuts from the downbeat hip hop opener to the deep house delights of 'Journey' via the elastic and energetic future house kicks of 'Roboflow.' Showcasing both a knack for well craft synths and expert drum programming precisions, this record plays out like a mini DJ set with all the twists and turns you need to keep you on your toes and fully engaged.

A spellbinding tribute from one multi-faceted artist to another. New York-based artist Aki Onda (b. 1967) conjured a transduction to the Korean multi-media pioneer Nam June Paik (1932-2006). Aki himself describes the project:

“Nam June’s Spirit Was Speaking to Me occurred purely by chance. In 2010, I was spending four days at Nam June Paik Art Center in South Korea for a series of performances and had plenty of free time to wander. The building was packed with Paik’s artwork and related material. I have always felt a close kinship with him as an artist, and so it was a great opportunity to immerse myself in his works and ephemera.

It was that night I made the first contact, via a hand-held radio in a hotel room in Seoul. It was literally out of the blue. Scanning through the stations, I stumbled upon what sounded like a submerged voice and I began to record it in fascination. I concluded this was Paik’s spirit reaching out to me.

The project continued to grow organically as I kept channeling Paik’s spirit over long distance and receiving cryptic broadcasts/messages. The series of séances, conducted in different cities across the globe, began in Seoul in 2010, and continued in Köln, Germany in 2012, Wrocław, Poland in 2013, and Lewisburg, USA in 2014. The original recordings were captured by the same radio which has a tape recorder, with almost no editing, save for some minimal slicing and mastering.

Paik is known for his association with shamanism, a practice that constantly surfaces in his works all through his career. In an interview, he stated “In Korea, diverse forms of shamanism are strongly remained. Even though I have created my work unconsciously, the most inspiring thing in my work came from Korean female shaman Mudang.” Paik himself was a master shaman and vividly used shaman rituals and symbols for staging his performances and installations.

These recordings also became a way for me to explore the mythic form of radio—a medium which is full of mysteries. The transmissions captured may be “secret broadcasts” on anonymous radio stations. There are in fact hundreds of those stations around the world, although the numbers dwindle as clandestine messages can now be sent via encrypted digital channels. Some of these stations were likely for military use or espionage or relics of the Cold War. But many others continue without apparent explanation. These are just some of the questions that remain unanswered.”

Commissioned in 2017 by documenta 14's radio program “Every Time A Ear di Soun,” these recordings were continually broadcast on eight radios stations around the world that year. Nam June’s Spirit is a beautifully formed homage, I cannot think of any other like it. An intimate, flickering language discovered through the air. The LP comes replete with a booklet of photographs of Paik on the set of Michael Snow’s unreleased film Rameau’s Nephew (1974).

Sean McCann, 2020
Aki Onda, 2017

20-page art booklet including rare photographs of Nam June Paik from the set of Michael Snow’s film Rameau’s Nephew (1974), two essays on radio-wave phenomenon (by Onda and Marcus Gammel), and a remembrance of Paik by Yuji Agematsu

Side A / Double A / The Game

Are you ready to play the game? More big drums heat for the dance floor, courtesy of label boss, Double A. Breaks everywhere, huge fills, horn stabs, some sneaky dancehall vocal samples, and a cheeky breakdown keep this one rolling. 1970’s afro funk business for sure, with plenty of elements across multiple genres to pique the interest of any crowd.

Side B / DJ Fleg (feat. Lean Rock) / Dimension Five / Latin Escapades

If you’re a b-boy or b-girl then there’s no introduction necessary here for Fleg or Lean Rock.
For everyone else, get ready for a party breaks master class. Fleg brings the classic loop heat on “Dimension Five”. Expertly produced, this one snaps hard. If you didn’t know, you’d never guess it started its life as a mellow jazz track. For “Latin Escapades” Fleg teams up with Lean Rock for some completely bananas breaks action over latin horn stabs. Both of these are instant party starters and versatile enough for any funky set.

Hermione FRANK aka rRoxymore has spent the past decade cherry picking the labels she works with whilst building up a totally unique signature sound - DBA, Timedance and recently Ideophone.

Hermione's Aus EP sounds soft and intricate yet punchy and powerful. Beautiful synth licks and crunchy drums melded together with plenty of UK attitude. A daydreamer’s delight, it offers restrained weight and it’s the perfect elixir for any morning
dance floor.

A brand new multi genre label. Releasing Jungle, Hardcore and Jungle Techno that pay's tribute to the orginal 90's vibe but presents it with a modern take. TufStuf focuses on the harder and faster side of rave, with rough layered breakbeats, deep sub bass, and emotive and catchy melodies.

With already some very experienced, talented and create producers signed to the label there is many exciting things to come. The second EP focuses hard and heavy amen Jungle with deep soundscapes, melodic vibes and emotive vocals with plenty of heavy basslines as well.

EP comes with a 12 x 12 inch full colour double sided artwork insert.

Faze Action return with a classic original house track "Paradise" managing to seamlessly fuse Italo house with the New York sound of the late 80's early 90's. Finely mixing a cocktail of heavenly piano house riffs with dreamy vocals and dubby bass lines, topped off with some classic breakdown moments to tease the most discerning dancefloors into hysteria.
We have also included two tracks for the first time on vinyl, the classic Rudy's Midnight Machine - "Open to Your Love" and Faze Action's - "I Wanna Dancer" (Old School House Mix) plus we have the floor filling ST House Mix of "Freak for Your Love".

DJ Feedback

Jkriv:
"10/10 - Classic FA vibes! Love it, thanks guys."

Alan Dixon:
"10/10 - Quality, as always :-)"

Grant (Daddy G) Massive Attack:
"8/10 - Takes me back to the sound of Flying Records "

Andy Taylor (We are the Sunset):
"8/10 - Bouncy with plenty of piano power... thinking of Adriatic nights already. Thanks for sending."

John Le Visiteur:
"10/10 - Classic vibes all the way on this, love it and happy to support."

Phil Cooper Phil Cooper Nu Northern Soul Various Ibiza :
"8/10 - Full support. Lovely stuff. House music I understand and dig right here."

Guy Williams Flash Ibiza:
"8/10 - Nice retro bumpy - vibes will be supporting."

Liam Gallagher is not the kind of artist who was going to be stopped by the sizeable problem of not being able to play to an audience during lockdown. So when the idea of playing a playing and filming a live stream show came up, he looked at the precedent set by the Sex Pistols and The Clash and decided to hit the River Thames, armed with a boatload of attitude, a phenomenal live band (including Bonehead) and an arsenal of classic songs.



The show has been captured in full on the new live album ‘Down By The River Thames’, which will be released on May 27th via Warner Records.



Originally streamed on December 5th 2020, the show became one of the most memorable performances of the lockdown era. From iconic Oasis favourites (‘Supersonic’, ‘Cigarettes & Alcohol’) to big hitters from his two all-conquering #1 solo albums (‘Wall of Glass’, ‘Once’), Liam’s inimitable snarl boomed across the Thames and dominated London’s gloomy winter skyline. There were plenty of welcome surprises too: debut solo performances of the Oasis songs ‘Hello’, ‘Fade Away’ and ‘Headshrinker’, and the first live version of ‘All You’re Dreaming Of’. Liam’s voice is absolutely on point throughout, with a full-throttle snarl of anger and attitude that doesn’t compromise any of the finesse of the studio recordings.



Liam commented, “So here it is, the gig they said we could never pull off! As we were in lockdown, bored and depressed, rock ‘n’ roll came to save the day once again. It was a top night and a top gig and it’s captured here on record for you to all enjoy.”



‘Down By The River Thames’ is now available to pre-order now. It will be released on orange double-vinyl, CD and digital formats. The CD and download formats will be available at a special price of £5.



‘Down By The River Thomas’ provides a timely reminder of Liam’s live experience, which returns this month when he headlines a Royal Albert Hall show for the Teenage Cancer Trust. It will be followed by his summer UK headline tour, which includes two nights at Knebworth Park – all 160,000 tickets sold-out in a matter of moments – as well as other mammoth outdoor shows in Manchester, Belfast, Glasgow and Dublin. Please see his website for a full list of his international tour dates.



Liam will also release his eagerly anticipated third studio album ‘C’MON YOU KNOW’ on May 27th. Previewed by ‘Everything’s Electric’, the biggest solo hit of his career so far after hitting the Top 20, the album is available to pre-order now.

Just as one can smell a storm swelling on the horizon, the cataclysmic tremor that is IMMOLATION approaches to unleash its latest, immense creation: ACTS OF GOD. Due to be released in winter of 2022, this 11th studio album serves as the next chapter of IMMOLATION’S Death Metal epic. With 5 long years passed since the most recent studio album, ATONEMENT, ACTS OF GOD vigorously showcases IMMOLATION’s ability to consistently create fascinating sounds, while still keeping their feet firmly rooted in the old school, New York Death Metal for which they are renowned.

Emblazoned with a haunting new masterpiece by artist Eliran Kantor, ACTS OF GOD displays a trifecta of angelic beings desperately trying to prevent one another’s flesh from melting in a blackened light from above. The muted colors and ethereal images will ring familiar to fans of IMMOLATION’s previous album covers. “We wanted this cover to feel much darker; more melancholy and hopeless. The music has always been very dark, and a lot of Kantor’s work had the feeling that we were going for; the semi-surreal colliding with a classic, almost renaissance feel,” explains founder and vocalist/bassist Ross Dolan. “It’s unnerving. It really reflects the music perfectly,” agrees founder and guitarist Robert Vigna.

The album’s third track “The Age Of No Light” is a powerful, hard hitting song with an extreme yet catchy melody. “It’s quick, hits hard, and gets straight to the point” explians Vigna. Consistently changing speeds and patterns throughout, the song is short but remains both dynamic and memorable.

“Blooded” has all the usual IMMOLATION elements: the slow, the fast, the explosive, the big overlaid sections of groovy harmony eventually dropping into evil, ripping guitar work. “It’s a little powerhouse,” describes Vigna, “it’s straightforward, and it has all the elements you would expect from us in a nice, neat package.”

A song like “Immoral Stain” is a slightly mid-paced track with an intense, creepy atmosphere. Equipped with plenty of unusual moments, the beat is catchy, dark, and echoing. Searing guitar starts to recite a story and then quickly begins a conversation with thunderous vocals and a vociferous beat. “That whole section of build up just needed to be done exactly as it is. That’s what makes it sound different and interesting,” describes Vigna. Much like the rest of the album, while the lyrics cover the usual, general topics of genuine evil and the great deception of religion, the specifics are most certainly left to the listener’s interpretation. Fortunately for IMMOLATION fans, there is no shortage of corruption and catastrophe in this world.

Fittingly, the concluding track “Apostle” was the last song written for the album. “Some of those chorus sections have a weird almost dream-like quality,” describes Dolan. Its steadily growing momentum discharges rounds of guitar solos and relentless vocals which eventually lead way to an explosive finale to the album.

The creative journey for ACTS OF GOD began with years of notes, and an abundance of inspiration. With Vigna at the helm of the structural writing as usual, further composing and concepts were tossed back and forth amongst all 4 members. Eventually, they began to skeletonize the beginning of what would become a full length, studio album. While the recording process and entering the studio can be a very sterile experience for some musicians, the ferocity of the demos combined with the expertise of long time friend and recording counterpart Paul Orofino of Millbrook Studios (BLUE OYSTER CULT, BAD CO, GOLDEN EARRING), assured that this would not be an issue for IMMOLATION. “Having such a level of comfort is key,” remarks Dolan. Final touches were brought about on the mixing and mastering by Zack Ohren of Castle Ultimate Studios.

Firmly aligned with Nuclear Blast Records, the often coveted sound of IMMOLATION has reemerged from the depths of a cursed and cruel world to illuminate our minds and ears with exquisite, sonic destruction.

Born in Detroit, living in Brooklyn and with releases out already on Balkan, The Bunker New York and even legendary house label Nervous, Lauren Flax now makes her Super Rhythm Trax debut with 4 fresh tracks to get you tweaking !!

The tracks are full of attitude with razor sharp percussion, wet 303s and plenty of blips and bloops for the Bleep heads.

"Sun Salt & Air," is Mellow Drunk band leader Leigh Gregory's latest fulllength solo record released on limited edition LP.Recorded in Leigh's
home studio during the pandemic all of the main tracks (guitar and
vocals) were first laid down at home, then backing vocals, violin, cello,
and drums were added by additional friends and musicians remotely due
to the lockdown
San Francisco engineer/ producer Damien Rasmussen pulled all the tracks
together and mixed the record and Nikos Lavdas mastered the record for Tip Top
Recordings. Based in San Francisco Leigh Gregory has opened for the likes of
Supergrass, Luna, trashcan sinatras, The Church, The Clientele, The Morning After
Girls, LILYSand Gorky's Zygotic Mynci as part of Mellow Drunk."Sun Salt & Air" had
its beginnings back in January 2020 when I was working on a handful of new
demos. Suddenly COVID hit and the rest of the year became free to write and
polish up the tunes and finish a fully realized record. It was quite inspiring to have
plenty of free time to develop parts for the songs, plus being at home I could run
into the home studio and spend as much time as I wanted trying out guitar
sounds, vocal melodies, and lyrics as they came to mind. I wanted "Sun Salt & Air"
to be a classic vinyl record with five individual songs per side that fit together
seamlessly and flow from one song to the next. I really like the sequencing on the
record in that it has longer songs with improvised endings, short songs, an
instrumental, and an acoustic song without drums. What I've always loved about
a ten song vinyl record is that it takes you on a little musical journey from side to
side which by the end you're ready to flip over and listen again and again."

Spanish singer-songwriter Rosalia is back with her third studio album and one that is a hugely conceptual and experimental affair. She herself describes it as "her most personal and confessional album" and that is embodied by the lead single, 'Saoko', which celebrates transformation and change. It is an album of pop leaning, reggeaton inspired sounds and plenty of nods to dembow, champeta, flamenco, bachata, hip-hop and piano melodies. The artist's own fierceness and unapologetically brave attitude helps make this the force that it is.

There is never any doubt that soul is in the house, when you hear the poetic guitar and organ licks from Cold Diamond & Mink starting to twirl together, and out of nowhere Carlton Jumel Smith steps effortlessly inside the groove. "Heaven In My Arms" is the second in line of Carlton's new trio of singles on Timmion, and what a treat it is: deep as Mississippi mud, light as a feather.

This time our trans-Atlantic tag team delivers a melodic beat ballad of the highest order, which should sweep fans of lowrider soul off their wheels. Spanish Harlem-bred Carlton has been steadily churning out gems since meeting the Timmion folks some years back and shows no signs of stopping yet. This is a love song with plenty of heart to give everybody. Just take it all in, and enjoy the instrumental on the flipside while you're at it.

Belle and Sebastian's A Bit of Previous is a classic album that found the pair at their melodic best. It showcase their superb knack for songwriting and will fill your head with earworms and pithy lyrics that you will not be able to forget. Amongst the self-produced tunes are some moments of beautiful melancholia as well as lots of what you would expect from the band. It is infused with the experience and sense of responsibility that comes with age as well plenty of musical bravado. There's a reason this is one of the UK's best love pop acts.

Belle and Sebastian's A Bit of Previous is a classic album that found the pair at their melodic best. It showcase their superb knack for songwriting and will fill your head with earworms and pithy lyrics that you will not be able to forget. Amongst the self-produced tunes are some moments of beautiful melancholia as well as lots of what you would expect from the band. It is infused with the experience and sense of responsibility that comes with age as well plenty of musical bravado. There's a reason this is one of the UK's best love pop acts.

Northlane are a chart topping, award-winning metal band from Sydney,
Australia
Their new offering, Obsidian, is their most expansive and dynamic album yet. Selfrecorded and self- produced, the sound Northlane have been working towards
over the span of their career has been fully realised on Obsidian.
Sonically spanning the gamut of their entire discography, Northlane's trademark
heavy comfortably coexists with techno, drum and bass, intriguing synths,
perplexing time signatures and widescreen choruses. It's this fearless evolution
that keeps them light years ahead of everyone else in heavy music.

Felipe Gordon dives deep into the Local Talk vault and selected his favourite tracks for a proper rework.

First up we got two stalwarts of the house scene, Kyodai and Fish Go Deep.

Kyodai's 'Breaking' needs little introduction, the track is an anthem and got massive support from Kerri Chandler to Laurent Garnier and is still played to this day in clubs.

Felipe puts his spin on the track, a Latin Jazz Rework that is destined to become a classic in its own right.

Fish Go Deep made their debut on Local Talk with 'Off Script' back in 2016, it's a pure goosebumps track, dubby techno-soul at its finest.
Felipe adds his twist with plenty of swing and clever drum programming.

Rare 1966 Brazilian album with a jazz/bossa nova take on songs by the Beatles, all served up with plenty of great keyboard work from the legendary Manfredo Fest who would later become member of the Sergio Mendes band. The songs are all played with imaginative scents that really take them from their roots as pop songs and open them up as groovers filled with keyboard improvisations. First time vinyl reissue. DESCRIPTION Rare 1966 Brazilian LP with a jazz/bossa nova take on songs by the Beatles performed by the very talented Manfredo Fest and his trio. It was originally released right after their classic 1965 RGE album and has a very similar jazz-based sound. Manfredo Fest was part of the gathering of Brazilian musicians of the late-'50s who were developing the bossa nova movement, and he made a number of trio recordings in that vein from 1961 to 1966. After emigrating to Minneapolis in 1967, Fest moved to Los Angeles where he served as keyboardist and arranger for Bossa Rio and toured with Sergio Mendes. This recording is all instrumental, strongly jazz-based, with piano as the main solo instrument, soaring over the top of some tight, crackling rhythms! The songs are all played with imaginative scents that really take them from their roots as pop songs and open them up as groovers filled with keyboard improvisations. A nice slice of how the bossa nova sound was evolving in its homeland as well as the international impact the Beatles were having on countries outside of the U.S., England, Japan, and Germany. First time vinyl reissue.

25TH DELUXE ANNIVERSARY EDITION OF AMERICAN BABYLON FEATURING LIVE TRACKS WITH BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN Grushecky and his band had been a club fixture in the Northeast for nearly 25 years when they released American Babylon in 1995. The Pittsburgh band had proven themselves to be the consummate bar band with occasional flirtations with national success. American Babylon found them teaming up with Bruce Springsteen, who handles production, plays on several tracks, and wrote two songs for the album. The title track is an uptempo rocker detailing the disintegration of societal mores. There are plenty of songs outlining love gone wrong and the struggles of common folk, all delivered in Grushecky’s warm, well-worn voice over a barroom mixture of blues-based traditional rock. However, delivered with such earnestness and spirit makes American Babylon a worthy contender and an enjoyable listen for fans of Mellencamp, Seger, and, especially, Springsteen. The 25th anniversary deluxe reissue edition will include LIVE tracks from the Houserockers’ legendary October Assault Tour recorded at an enthusiastic hometown show that same year. “American Babylon is an impassioned, sharply-etched portrait of working-stiff triumphs and travails.” -Rick Reger, Chicago Tribune “As the leader of the Pittsburgh-based Iron City Houserockers, Joe Grushecky hammered out four heartland rock albums in the late 70s and early 1980s. These won over more critics than fans, so he became a special education teacher to support his family. Still, he maintained a close relationship with Bruce Springsteen, and in 1995, they teamed up for American Babylon. The two remain tight and play together at least once a year, but this album remains their greatest joint accomplishment.” -Rolling Stone “At a time when rock had splintered into grunge, industrial, alternative, and more, Joe Grushecky planted a defiant flag in the soul of rock and roll with American Babylon--one of the very best and undeservedly overlooked albums of the 1990s, and one that sounds just as fresh, vibrant, and relevant 25 years later. Bruce Springsteen may have helped bring the album to life, but his contributions only elevate a collection of songs that in another time would have been radio classics on their own.” -Ken Rosen, E Street Shuffle

LDI Records serves up a celebration of The Hague's famous electro sound with native Cliff Dalton aka Sander Evers behind four originals and fellow West Coast legends Legowelt and Rude66 both remixing. Cliff Dalton is a relatively new project from a long-time Dutch music great. Sander Evers is the drummer in psychedelic stoner rock band Monomyth and has played with other notable groups including 35007 and Gomer Pyle. Next to those projects, he has always had his ear tuned into the region's enduring techno and electro scene and now offers up his own fresh take on it. The EP's title refers to the fact that all these artists are bound by geography, but is also a nod to the fact that The Hague is the largest Dutch city by the sea. The opener 'We Are The Little Ones' is about an evil robot factory in a futuristic dystopian city. It is a coruscated electro-funk workout with crisp analogue drums and nimble bass overlaid with withering sci-fi melodies. 'We Don't Need A Real World' is a superbly cinematic eight-minute excursion with widescreen synth work taking you to the stars as you ride an elastic bassline. The majestic 'City Under The Sea' then layers up neck-snapping snares with cosmic arps and plunging bass and 'Cleopatra's Matrix' soundtracks an ancient Egyptian city with its mystic leads and eerie pads luring you into a late-night electro trance. West Coast pin-up and hugely prolific electronic innovator Legowelt remixes 'We Are the Little Ones'. His version has plenty of his textbook intrigue, lo-fi texture and magical synth charm, and finally key Bunker Records associate Rude 66 flips 'City Under The Sea' into a snaking dub rhythm with hypnotic acid lines and seductive vocal whispers woven in deep. The Blue City EP is a timeless package of West Coast electro direct from the source.