Suche:s sense

Following ‘No Closer To Heaven’, The Wonder Years released ‘Sister Cities’, their most transformative work to date.
Recorded at Sunset Sound with Joe Chiccarelli (Manchester Orchestra, The Shins, Spoon) and Carlos de la Garza (Jimmy Eat World, Paramore), ‘Sister Cities’ is an album about distance, connectivity and the way humanity towers above boundaries.

What The Wonder Years do so effortlessly on ‘Sister Cities’ is no small feat; through poetic lyricism, ambient guitar swells and Jimmy Eat World-levels of crashing momentum. On ‘Sister Cities’, they take a massive, unexpected leap forward both sonically and thematically, now speaking confidently to the world at large.

Vocalist Dan Campbell on the inspiration behind ‘Sister Cities’: “It started with journals and photos. We started by documenting. We didn’t know where it would go or if it would go anywhere at all, but we wrote it all down. We took photos of everything. And
then when it came to put it altogether, we had this catalog of how we felt and what it looked like and sounded like and we built from there. Figuring out what the moments were that stayed with me the most. When did I feel most connected to the people around me and why? What did being in this place during this moment teach me? It was a difficult year personally and globally and we experienced that through this lens of being everywhere but home, kind of floating through places and seeing how being there altered our perspective.”
The album is housed in a 200-page, 13”x13”, full-colour book that includes photos, artwork, journal entries and lyrics. LP pressed onto Shinjuku Street Splatter coloured vinyl.
An overpowering sense of earnestness and vulnerability.” - Pitchfork
There is a lifetime yelled in every punk song, captured in the desperate and catchy ‘Sister Cities’.” - NPR MusicFrom the first notes, it’s already clear that The Wonder Years are stepping into uncharted territory.” - UPROXX

'Quiet Pieces' initiates Abul Mogard’s personal imprint Soft Echoes with a definitive self-portrait of calm, contemplative, and discreet inner landscapes made audible. It is the first solo album on vinyl in four years. RIYL Alessandro Cortini, William Basinski, The Caretaker.

While sifting through archived material left idle from earlier projects, a chance encounter with a late uncle’s trove of beloved 78rpm classical and opera records prompted the reworking and completion of what would eventually become the album. Spinning dusty records at 33 and 45rpm, Abul Mogard recombined their enduring spectres with unfinished sketches from his archive. The resulting soundscape blurs distinctions between his memories and those of another, exquisitely short-circuiting the senses with its waking, dream-like lucidity.

This was a process I hadn’t explored in my earlier works. I began sampling brief moments from these records, altering them with studio effects and playing them at slower speeds. In many cases, I wasn’t entirely sure how the original music sounded. These fragments, once further processed, became a source of inspiration for my new compositions. Over time, I realised that the old pieces from the archive and the new material derived from the samples naturally complemented each other.”

The resulting pieces hover over a threshold, a liminal space that harmonises the old and older material. Voluminous waves of quiet and loud undulate between consonance and dissonance, conjuring imagery of a decaying grandeur that humanity’s decadence has surrendered to the elements. Abul Mogard’s seemingly abandoned yet vast landscapes are nevertheless intimate with timbral frissons of red-lined distortion. Elusive, yet as tangible as sea spray or smog, they affect the olfactory senses with a rarified, synesthetic quality that modestly engages one’s emotional register – a hypnotic, distinguishing feature long hailed as one of the hallmarks of his work. A fidelity to memory and dream recall is sensitively probed in the journey from the stately symphonic stasis of 'Following a dream' to the almost industrial, untethered brutality evoked by a looming silhouette that’s never fully visible in 'Constantly slipping away', culminating in the foreboding coda of 'Like a bird'. Those pieces appear to shield the album’s sentimental core, where the tempestuous play of light and shadow of 'In a studded procession' escalates to breathtaking, panoramic climax, while 'Through whispers' evokes an out-of-body-like experience encountered with visceral poignancy.

Looking back, Mogard notes an unexpected influence: “I realise being inspired by Phill Niblock, whose work I had barely known at the time but explored after his passing in 2024. His album 'Boston Tenor Index' changed the way I approached dissonance. It encouraged me to push my sound further, to the edge of a space where I began to feel uncomfortable.”

The album artwork, created by longtime collaborator Marja de Sanctis, features a photograph taken at the Temple of Jupiter Anxur, an archaeological site overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. Captured with an iPhone, the image traces the residual presence of construction techniques and architectural forms of the Romans, where material history is transcribed through contemporary tools. The convergence of ancient and modern technology aims to reverberate the site’s lasting spiritual presence – an echo persisting in what is now perceived as a quiet, emptied space. The spiral gestures towards infinity and light. Past and present dissolve into one another, reflecting 'Quiet Pieces' meditation on sound, memory, and time.

RIYL Alessandro Cortini, William Basinski, The Caretaker

The record is largely sung in Scots language, one of Scotland’s three official languages along with Gaelic and English. “Scots gives me a way of expressing myself which is connected directly with the landscapes I love. It brings the songs alive and it is a fascinating language. The name of the record is in Scots - Forefowk means the people who came before, or ancestors. When we say ‘mind me,’ we can mean a few things- remind, remember, watch over or care for me. The record explores how tradition needs to be constantly reconnected with, built upon, looked after, and shared.”
Quinie sings with a style inspired by Scottish Traveller singers. “I began singing unaccompanied Scots Song in 2015 after hearing Scots Traveller singer Sheila Stewart on the radio. Initially I felt like I shouldn't sing these songs because I'm not a Traveller, and I saw people around me doing that in a way that made me uncomfortable. But on the other hand this music made sense to me and I felt driven to learn. Over the years I have met Traveller friends who taught me that settled people sharing these songs could contribute to raising awareness. Scottish Travellers are marginalised and discriminated against in modern Scotland, despite being custodians of so many of our important traditions. So I started to perform them and tell this story. From there I built on my repertoire and started writing my own songs”.
To develop this record, Quinie travelled across Argyll with her horse. They went on a pilgrimage of sorts through the ancient landscapes of the West of Scotland to explore the interconnected relationships between people, ancestors, animals, and place. The album’s vinyl release is accompanied by a book and film, documenting this unusual research process.
Forefowk, Mind Me was recorded in August 2024 at The Big Shed in Highland Perthshire with support from Creative Scotland. Quinie is accompanied by an ensemble of musicians: Ailbhe Nic Oireachtaigh (viola), Oliver Pitt (duduk, bouzouki, percussion), Harry Górski-Brown (small pipes, violin), and Stevie Jones (double bass, recording, and mixing). Each of these artists brings their own distinctive voice, bridging contemporary experimental practice with worlds of traditional and early music.

In a world where physical experiences are becoming rarer, artists are looking to connect their process to something more tangible, and with A/V rinsed, scent is an obvious next sense to plunder. Florian TM Zeisig - who last appeared on Somewhere Press as Angel R, goes the extra mile, teaming up with perfumer Angel Paradise to develop a suite of music that plays like a bouquet of memory-triggering aromas, coupled with a fragrance that captures the oily essence of their bucolic alpine setting. The project came about when both artists were living in Hinang, a small farming village in the rural Bavarian alps. Paradise was studying alpine plant behaviour and using her research to inform her approach to scent creation, developing natural perfumes based on the landscape. Zeisig, meantime, composed his own response to the mountains and forests that surrounded them. He wrote ‘Spool’ as a poignant farewell (or spiritual rebirth) as they prepared to leave, considering teenage nostalgia as well as the idyllic locale, and the pastoral suite of lulled loops, field recordings and dissociated instrumental vamps plays like a contemporary Heimatfilme soundtrack, locking into the genre’s idyllic, fantastical simplicity and romance. Drunken horn loops and mushy piano chords concertina around a wobbly axis on ‘Oneandhalf’, met by dreamy guitars and whispered, lysergic vocals. The sweet-smelling notes form an enigmatic compound, prompting us to think of Codeine or Galaxie 500 without solidifying completely. It’s music that works with outlines and traces, catching us off guard with flickers of samples and veiled base notes: the Cocteau Twins-like phased piano on ‘Threeandhalf’ that’s drowned out by gunked tape fog, or the smudges of ‘Spirit of Eden’ ambience on ‘Alright’ that creep between tweezed piano phrases. There’s depth too; Zeisig doesn’t restrict himself to Romance-cum-Basinski loopmuzak, he intersperses his GASeous orchestral waves with serene, relatively demure reflections that capture the pristine beauty of a dewy alpine morning. ‘Four’ is an ASMR-rich blend of crunching leaves and mossy, decelerated pads, and ‘Plus’ burns its drones down to crackling embers, letting the faint harmonies flicker through the coal dust. Importantly, it’s emotional music, but not overly melodramatic, finding peace in nostalgia and the calm of nature.

In 2022, Osàre! Editions founder Elena Colombi approached artists and musicians with a prompt: Every body, everyone needs love to flourish. In her book The Will to Change, the eminent author and social activist, Bell Hooks, invites men to excavate their innermost selves, challenging the way that patriarchal society limits their capacity for intimacy, tenderness, care and emotion. As hooks lays out, feminist thought and work requires the collective participation of all genders in order to realise a liberated world. How can we imagine cross-gender solidarity through music and art? And how can we tell sonic stories that facilitate our full potential as desiring beings? These are the questions that The Male Body Will Be Next starts out from.

The title of the record draws connections between hooks' writing, a film by Rebecca Salvadori and Peter de Potter's stunning photo series of the same name. In de Potter and Salvadori's depictions, men's bodies appear as vulnerable, naked and exposed.

Divided into two parts, the first instalment of The Male Body Will Be Next hinges on colliding energies – the melding of club dance floors and haunting ambient textures, agile techno and noisy experimentation.

'The sun on my skin… it’s so warm and gentle,’ speak-sings Olivia Salvadori on ‘Su Di Te M’Infrango’, visualising utopias. Laurel Halo crafts a dreamscape spun from golden threads of synth and strings. Pensive and reflective, Ben Bertrand’s bass clarinet roams searchingly, its piercing tonality full of longing. Yet, in between these lucid, cinematic passages and spoken word, The Male Body Will Be Next finds space to dance together. Moving in fervent, rhythmic patterns, Sepehr’s ‘Divooneh’ pivots between tension and release. Filmmaker unleashes a wave of energy and The Spy delivers a potent take on vintage electro, the track title hinting at the double-bind of gendered expectations. Propelled between these eclectic styles, the record encapsulates the full spectrum of sonic expression.

REPRESS of the highly acclaimed album. Black Metal is one hell of an album. It's a downbeat, dark folk album, that manages to capture the vibe of the band's earlier work quite well. Pelander has managed to make a "doom album" without actually making one in the traditional sense. Black Metal manages to capture the world weary, woeful, attitude and vibe of doom better than a ton of albums that crank up the Sabbath worship to ridiculous levels. It's a work of darkness and despair and therefore it is another captivating chapter of this band's discography. (New Noise Magazine)

Gold nugget vinyl, limited to 200 copies. Black Metal is one hell of an album. It's a downbeat, dark folk album, that manages to capture the vibe of the band's earlier work quite well. Pelander has managed to make a "doom album" without actually making one in the traditional sense. Black Metal manages to capture the world weary, woeful, attitude and vibe of doom better than a ton of albums that crank up the Sabbath worship to ridiculous levels. It's a work of darkness and despair and therefore it is another captivating chapter of this band's discography. (New Noise Magazine)

Repress!

MIKE’s music carries age beyond his years. Born in New Jersey, he moved to London with his mother before eventually settling in The Bronx for the remainder of his teenage years. Renaissance Man was recorded between the two cities that shaped him, with both regions leaving a distinct mark on his sound. In London, he was immersed in grime and the music of King Krule, while in The Bronx, he gravitated toward the influences of Earl Sweatshirt and MF DOOM.Through his mixtapes Winter New York, Longest Day, Shortest Night, May God Bless Your Hustle, and his EP By The Water, he has made a definitive statement on the state of youth in New York. The releases turned heads outside of MIKE’s immediate community in the city, earning praise from The FADER, The New Yorker, and being selected as Best New Music by Pitchfork.MIKE raps over characteristically lo-fi, and soulfully hazy, self produced beats. Themes about the depression and anxiety that accompany being young and African American abound throughout his music, but a muted sense of hopefulness and certainty that he is moving towards ultimate triumph is the motor quietly propelling things forward.Renaissance Man follows his critically acclaimed Lex Records release, Black Soap

Headek Records returns with its second release, HDK-2: The Eyes of Goa – Syncrosonix EP.

This time, we dive deep into the hypnotic realms of Goa Trance with a truly special EP. Syncrosonix and Goagoa unfold across two tracks, each presented in two versions, making a total of four sonic explorations. Expect a perfect fusion between the raw essence of classic Goa Trance and the futuristic pulse of bleep-infused techno. Pulsating trance basslines intertwine with resonant synths, acid sequences, and shimmering bleeps, creating a mesmerizing vortex of energy. Let yourself be drawn into the infernal spiral of trance and lose all sense of time.

Sometimes records reflect life with an unsettling precision, your own breath sticking to a mirror, confounding or transforming reality. J.H. Guraj, real name Dominique Vaccaro, is back with ‘The Flip Side’, an accomplished work of grace and sprawling elegance documenting struggle and a near-death experience that summons ghosts of Western primitive masters, rollicking free folk, minimalist orchestrations, weeping guitars and smooth psychedelics.

Time stopped for J.H. Guraj in 2021 following a brush with mortality, extensive forced recovery and subsequent hints of depression after an almost fatal bike crash, leaving our wandering soul, once again, at the edges. While his previous record ‘Introspection / Migration’ hinted at Middle-Eastern influences and merged the artists’ Arbëreshë upbringing with stoic ecstasis, free-form structures and guitar wizardry under sepia tone curtains, ‘The Flip Side’ twists, turns, falls down and rises to new heights, the widescreen breadth of Dominique Vaccaro’s cinematic vision projects new colours, a stark contrast of pastoral emerald green and pitch black asphalt, urban decay and mercurial mystery.

Like passages from some archaic songbook what astonishes is how detailed the new compositions are, a warm embrace like ‘Way To Long Goodbye’, counterpoint pianos leading the way down a Gershwin avenue; ‘You Got It All Wrong So Did I’ with its Van Dyke Parks arrangement; the 9 minute epic ‘Us As Ghosts’ a haunting ballad that resolves into kosmische landscapes; the muted symphony of ‘Fake Af’ and the spectral disorientation of ‘Nothing I Can Do But Flow’. Gentle drumming from collaborator Gianluca Panici augment the eeriness of ‘The Flip Side’, motions that create a sense of suspension and yearning.

For its latest release, Last Year in Marienbad welcomes back French producer Moonee, who delivers an EP brimming with his signature blend of euphoric and emotive grooves.

One of François Lefevre’s main aliases, Moonee explores the airier side of dance music, crafting deeply immersive sonic experiences that evoke introspection and escapism. While initially focused on deep house, his sound has evolved across recent releases, particularly on his Sandquest LP for OATH. His finely curated approach highlights fluid, intuitive soundscapes that invite repeat listens.

His new EP, Brotherhood, is perhaps his most refined and carefully poised work to date. The title track’s Glitched version opens with a sense of urgency, combining a stepping garage beat, lo-fi vocal snippets, and deep basslines. Existenzfollows, elevating four-on- the-floor energy with intricate rhythmic textures and a rich, orchestral-like melodic palette. Panorama rounds off the EP’s initial arc with playful vocal samples and an uplifting bassline—perfect for late-night city wanderings.

Closing out the release, Oath affiliate Moomin reinterprets the title track with an electro-infused remix. More understated than the original, his version builds gradually, offering a masterclass in energy control.For those seeking enriching grooves, entrancing melodies, and warmth, Brotherhood delivers. It’s a journey through electronic currents, shifting effortlessly between moments of calm and surging energy—press play and dive in.

Causa Sui return with the perfect companion to last year's tour de force, "From The Source". Whereas that record was a tightly structured piece of work, that condensed many aspects of the band's sound into a concise 45 minute LP, "In Flux" presents the more loose and impulsive side of Causa Sui. After an introductory suite in classic Causa Sui territory, with deep fuzz riffs and syncopated grooves, things gradually become more outlandish. The following three vinyl sides see the band channeling Hot Rats-style jazz fusion, the oceanic post-rock of late-period Talk Talk, and the impulsive, anarchic experimentalism of Can's "Tago Mago" into their own beatific brew. On "Spree", the band abandons guitar entirely, relying on a dual synthesizer on top of drums and bass instead, yet maintains that uniquely Sui-an vibe.The centerpiece in this set, "Astral Shores", unfolds over 16 minutes - from gently hypnotic, ritualistic folk, through motoric psychedelia and back again. It's been many years since Causa Sui have sounded this unmoored on a studio record. "In Flux" is an essential chapter in the band's ever-changing oeuvre. The double 10" format might seem like an odd choice, but splitting the album into four short, distinctive parts makes perfect sense stylistically. Each side has a character all off its own, taking the listener somewhere different. Still a continious CD version is available as well.

“In my category, I’m the one and only,” proclaimed Oakland legend Too $hort on his 1990 single “Short But Funky.” Few disagreed then, and even fewer would do so decades later. First appearing in the mid-1980s, slinging homemade tapes out of his car trunk, the man born Todd Shaw has always stayed true to himself. Although he is known more for the dirty side of his rap game, on “Short But Funky,” he also reminds listeners of an important fact: “There’s a serious side to everything I say.” Short Dog’s In The House, was $hort’s sixth studio album, and his second for the Jive label. By the time it hit, he was a West Coast legend, but his rep was growing Eastwards, as the rest of the country started opening its ears to new sounds. Peaking at #20 on the national Billboard 200 chart, the album was exactly what his dedicated fans expected funky, 70s drenched beats made for cars on the boulevard, and no nonsense lyrics that made more sense and dropped more knowledge than he was ever given credit for. For examples of his conscious side, look no further than the P-Funk fueled “It’s Your Life” or the album’s lead single, “The Ghetto.” The album’s second single “Short But Funky” landed somewhere in the middle of $hort and Todd Shaw, talking about where he was at as the new decade broke, and making it clear that he wasn’t going anywhere. His mortality was mainly on his mind after rumors had surfaced the year before that he had died in a crack house. He speaks directly to this crazy episode on “Dead Or Alive.” And although it’s mostly a solo affair, he brings in some heavy artillery and a lot of not for the kids profanity on “Ain’t Nothin’ But A Word To Me,” featuring none other than Ice Cube In between, $hort distributed plenty of tales and charisma for fans to eat up, continuing to build his legendary status as one of the rap trailblazers of the era. Get On Down has repressed this 1990 Bay Area classic album on Blue and Ruby Color-In-Color vinyl

"Amazing! Like stumbling on a treasure-trove of unheard Charlie Patton and Blind Willie McTell 78s, but imbued with the spirit of Mahlathini and Ladysmith." Joe Boyd

'But for this compilation of rescued songs masterfully restored from rare 78 rpm shellacs, few could imagine the diversely beautiful roots of Zulu Guitar Music emerging during the period 1950 – 1965. Story-tellers and master musicians appropriate outlaw personae, re-purpose country and western, Hawaiian and other styles, to stretch and challenge our notion of “the Zulu guitar”.

Twenty-five songs (18 on vinyl) plunge us into the depths of the migrant experience. Translations in the liner notes offer us glimpses of pugnacity, melancholy and heartache, all coloured by the paternalism that circumscribed the singers’ apartheid-dominated lives.

The early *mbaqanga* undertow in many of the songs subverts the wanderlust of Country and Western music into a fugitivity burdened by nostalgia. Something irretrievable has been lost, prompting a blending of ideas and cultures to make sense through thankless acts of musical divination. Inadvertently they have been thrust into the role of the antihero, where outwitting competition for lovers is as important as evading the Black Jacks (apartheid’s municipal cops) and their informants.

Considering the politically repressive period that this music emerges from, we can surmise that the specificity in the storytelling went a long way towards evading censure. But even when words are absent, there is a narrative arc suggested by the musical expression.

With most of the master tapes wilfully destroyed or lost, modern transcription and restoration techniques from the original shellac discs present the original sound most likely more clearly than ever heard before.'

Produced for reissue by Chris Albertyn and Matt Temple at Matsuli Music and Siemon Allen at Flatinternational.
Artwork design by Siemon Allen.
Liner note and translations by Kwanele Sosibo.
Audio restoration and lacquers by Frank Merritt at The Carvery and pressed at Pallas, Germany.
Original 78rpm recordings sourced from the collections of Chris Albertyn at Matsuli Music, and Siemon Allen at the Flatinternational Archive.

Reissue of both EPs on one single vinyl: "Ruiner." on side A, "Clean." on side B. * Gatefold: cover of "Ruiner" is on the front, cover of "Clean" is on the back. Since their inception in 2010, Whores. has laid waste to both presumption and audial functioning. Beginning with 2011's Ruiner EP, Whores.brought a welcomed new vision to the often-tired "extreme music" scene. Two years later saw the release of the Clean. EP, a six-track musical display of visceral rancor and songwriting brilliance. Highly anticipated by critics and fans alike. For Whores.,the cavalcade of anticipation provides no pressure or expectation as Lembach states: "We don't just want to fill in the blanks." The only pressure here is to maintain authenticity, and to that end, Whores. are the quintessential example of genuine malice. "You have to bring a sense of realness to the music, otherwise it's fake, and it sounds fake. You have to be honest about it, and it's about getting to the really ugly stuff inside of you, and that's what we do." Classic black vinyl, pn: split cover that is the main product image here is just a mockup (original front showing the Ruiner.cover art)

60’s pop, 70’s junkshop glam and the best of catchy punk from Ramones to Jay Reatard come together in one irresistible power pop package. “Hangin’ Out” and “Sticker Song” both deal with some of the most basic aspects of the rockers' everyday life: standing around on corners, listening to Sheena on the radio, playing pinball and crate digging while avoiding local enemies. Hooks for days and absolutely relentless playing make sure this lands firmly in the thrilling-rather-than-tired camp for anyone who has ever loved catchy fast music.
In this light “Terry” is an obvious choice for a more DIY-oriented makeover that fully retains the originals sense of up-yours fun while upping the tempo and infusing it with vocal harmonies that are more New York Dolls than high gloss and giving the guitar solo a punked-up Thin Lizzy treatment.

Tàrrega 91’s straightforward take on Discharge-inspired hardcore punk is a glass of fresh water in a polluted sea of bands trying to break through the algorithm and grab a few seconds of our ever-decreasing supply of attention. There are no gimmicks on Ckaos Total, just simple three and four-chord riffs, a driving drumbeat (you can guess which one), and thoughtful lyrics delivered with power and passion. Tempos vary from fast, to really fast, to ultra fast, with most songs in the latter category. Without studio effects, silly costumes, or metal chops to distract, the focus falls on the songs themselves, which distill a profound sense of hopelessness and frustration into a few defiant words to yell into the void. In their lyrics and artwork, Tàrrega 91' continues to draw inspiration from the 1991 uprising in their town that ended with the arrest of 86 young people, a history that makes them keenly aware of exactly what they’re pushing against. While so many contemporary bands emulate the aesthetics of punk’s classic era, on Ckaos Total Tàrrega 91 taps into the power of bands like Discharge, Wretched, and MG-15 by creating simple, sincere—and sincerely pissed—protest music.

There are bands that you feel you have known forever -- recent ones, new
ones even -- because you are already so familiar with what you know they are
going to offer, familiar with the anticipation and the need, with the pleasure
you expect them to, quite rightfully, provide the masses (by which I mean
people who have once considered calling their first-born Kang)
VERDICT is such a band. It has members of MEANWHILE, NO SECURITY,
WARCOLLAPSE, 3- WAY CUM, TOTALITAR, and too many other bands, and even
though I have never actually met any of them, I still have had more interactions with
them through (over)playing and rocking to their records than I have had with some
members of my family, which, to be honest, is definitely for the best. VERDICT is a
rather new (but experienced in the things of the D) kang hardcore band, and they know
exactly what they are doing and how to do it. Had they produced something different,
that would have completely taken me aback -- something horrendous like ska- punk
would have made so little sense that I would have had to quit punk altogether. Alright,
what about The Rat Race, then. This is the follow-up to last year's Time to Resign, and
this one has even more punch, fury, and pummeling power than its predecessor.
Unoriginal, in a good way, and thoroughly checking all the correct boxes: the
drumming is pure and relentless, the riffs' efficiency is religiously executed in a
"Scandicore 101" way, the vocals are angry, direct, and raspy. Think a joyous orgy
between NO SECURITY, UNCURBED, and TOTALITAR.
This is the kind of record that makes the world a better place to rock. Thank you
Phobia Records. Kang up your life.

Rising musical visionary Reuben Vaun Smith's latest album, Land of Music, is a vibrant and atmospheric collection of tracks that transport listeners to a tropical soundscape of chilled beats, lush synths, and laid-back vocal musings. Remarkably, Smith recorded the entire album aboard a fishing trawler docked in a marina in Gibraltar, transforming the tight space into a creative sanctuary.

Blending dreamy synthesizer pads, groovy beats, and smooth vocals, Land of Music evokes a relaxing, high-vibe journey from start to finish. Collaborations on the album enhance its eclectic sound, with standout performances from vocalist Lucy Saddler, who lends her ethereal voice to “Lost in Space” and the title track “Land of Music.” Additionally, labelmate and guitar virtuoso Chico Mann brings his signature funky guitar licks, infusing the album with fresh energy and dynamic flair.

Smith’s Land of Music offers listeners an imaginative escape from the everyday, a vibrant sonic retreat that balances experimentalism with a deep sense of relaxation. Visually, it's paired perfectly with the striking album art courtesy of Brazil-based artists Uinverso, comprised of sisters Nadiuska and Priscila Furtado. Whether you’re tuning in on a quiet evening or drifting through a sun-soaked day, this album promises to be the perfect soundtrack for living the good life.

Canadian bowed guitarist and multi-instrumentalist C. Diab announces his fifth album Imerro, out February 16th, and presents the trip-infused lead single 'Lunar Barge'.

(Real name) Caton Diab creates soundscapes that evoke the spectacular wilderness of his childhood home in northern Vancouver Island. Incorporating experimental textures, folk overtones and tape manipulations, C. Diab uniquely finds the unseen spaces in-between, and fittingly dubs his creations "post-classical grunge". Imerro explores new sonic realms and is the culmination of a sound world that Diab has built up since the critically acclaimed 'No Perfect Wave' (2016, Injazero) and subsequent releases 'Exit Rumination' (2018), 'White Whale' (2020) and 'In Love & Fracture' (2021). The Wire calls it "ambient music in the best sense - music for living, which can be both non-invasive and immersive...epic"

Imerro was recorded in late July and August of 2021 at Risque Disque Studio in Cedar, BC, during the summer's unprecedented second "heat dome", which saw temperatures soaring to over 40 degrees. Recorded with regular collaborator and engineer Jonathan Paul Stewart, the pair journeyed by boat to the studio to a place with minimal distraction with a plan of "simple ecstatic improvisation." Diab explains: "I wanted to place myself in a space for creation with little thematic pretence, with the belief that music 'shows its face' as you move along. I would pick up an instrument, whether I had experience playing it or not, and make a sound. If it wanted to be played, it would play."

Tee Pee Records is proud to announce a limited edition pressing of this classic on marbled Tiger's Eye vinyl. Annihilation Time are an incendiary mix of '70s rock and '80s hardcore, with riffs personified by their legendary bar brawls and bloody-faced performances. Then again, constant touring with Municipal Waste and Caustic Christ - during their murky beginnings - can have that effect.

Steve Bicknell returns to KR3, once again unleashing his mastery of power electronics!
Following his two reinterpretations of last year's "JK Flesh Remixes" and four years after his solo EP "A Day In The Life" in 2021, Bicknell takes us deep into the realms of his sonic mysticism, marking a significant milestone in the fifth anniversary of the label.
Several Streams of Thought LP - is an unrelenting and immersive odyssey, presented through nine tracks, seven of which will be available on a double 12-inch vinyl, with two exclusive cuts in a limited 7-inch format.
The album hits hard, straight to the brain, with no warning, across sides A, B, and C. Each side is a raw, untamed techno experience, with Bicknell's unmistakable signature dominating throughout, delivering unwavering intensity and relentless impact.
However, on side D, a transformation takes place: a 15-minute soundscape that turns the embedded waves into breath - a blinding light emerging from the darkness. It's a moment of tribalism and evocative magic, offering a refreshing pause, a return to balance after the intensity of the shadows.
The 7-inch, available in a limited edition under the title "the eye of the invisible world", contains two tracks - one on side E and the other on side F.
The mystical sounds complete this dual experience: one part filled with dark, untamed energy, while the other brings a sense of mental lightness, emphasizing breathwork and emotional self-
healing.
S | B is back, stronger than ever!

Recorded at Dreamland Studios (a literal converted church) in 2017, this long-out-of-print record is now back in print on both vinyl and, for the first time, CD formats. The Bobby Lees’ “Beauty Pageant” overflows with the kind of raw punk energy you can only bottle once—when you’re young enough to play every chord like it might be your last. “A Woodstock, New York garage-rock quartet with sex, sweat, and lightning bolts of electricity surging through their collective veins.”- POPMATTERS. “Primal, rural, feral, rock’n’roll.” - LOUDER THAN WAR. “Storming to the scene with a howling sense of rebellion and nonconformity.” - ALTERNATIVE PRESS

Little Blue, the latest album from Nashville artist Kristina Murray was recorded with producers Misa Arriaga and Rachael Moore. The collection grapples with loneliness, desperation, and existential crises through a series of cinematic snapshots of small-town burnouts and last call lovers. Murray is a country artist in the truest sense, a genuine craftswoman with a keen eye and ear for the little details that bring her working-class characters to life, and her delivery is timeless, blurring the lines between the old school honky-tonk, swampy Americana, and R&B-infused southern rock she grew up on in her home state of Georgia. If Murray sounds like a seasoned vet on Little Blue, that’s because she is. While the album marks her Normaltown debut, Murray’s spent the last decade since moving to Nashville paying her dues in an endless series of dive bars and juke joints, and the result is an electrifying introduction to an artist only just beginning to get the kind of wider recognition her talent has long warranted. “I’ve been to some pretty low places these last ten years,” Kristina Murray confesses. “Faced a lot of heartbreak and loss and grief, but you have to learn to live with those things if you’re going to survive. You have to persevere.” That spirit of perseverance forms the bedrock of Little Blue.

Spincycle records presents the second imprint on their label – a two track split EP from Neil E & Big City Bill on 180g heavyweight vinyl.

Bill and Neil met deep in the mountains 20 years ago.
With work drying up in the mountains, they tobogganed into the city to find their calling.

For years in dim garages, they studied with diligence strange hieroglyphs projected on the wall by the reflection of fluorescent lamps through emptied vessels.
At first, none of it made sense. All they knew was that it was important.

They began posting their findings online, and after a time of thinking they may have gone crazy, they began to receive anonymous messages: “Click here to join a guild of amazing artists: link redacted.”; “Follow me, and I’ll follow you back. Let’s grow together!”; “Do you want 10k+ follows? We can help!”
This was the encouragement they had been waiting so eagerly for. And so on they went. They joined a few guilds and continued to hone their practice, mining their depths, searching for that ineffable thing, whatever it was, wherever it was locked away.
After years of deep contemplation, the breaking of sacred tools, fiddling around, and the collection of various bevelled talismans, a revelation struck.

Two fantastic thoughts struck them both simultaneously.
These are those thoughts.

2025 Repress

As a trained dancer, movement has always guided GiGi FM’s work, whether through developing movement based instruments, or questing to make you move via sound-systems across the world. These ephemeral moments of altered sleep patterns and dance are now present in the music of ‘Sea~rène’, sounds for a trip in the mind held with a desire to dance.

A sense of brightness prevails in ‘Movimiento’, the feeling of white light rising from the dark of your mind as you lay with closed eyes.



Opener ‘Gabriella’ takes you by the hand to spin you across the ballroom floor, dancing in a dusky glow. Piano twinkles along with your step; a gradual ascension as a graceful dance can be. Lost in thoughtful yet thoughtless drift to the rumble of sound, we can confront parts of ourselves and our connection to others, the spirit of B side opener ’Awakening The World’s Heart’.



Place is important to movement also, as heard in the kinetic motion of ‘Tempelhof’, reminiscent of the feld in Berlin (GiGi’s home) itself. Blurred lines of people weaving their way through, either high speed on skates or on a leisurely stroll. It's summer in the city, where the nighttime shortens and daylight extends, yet the simulated night of the club never ends. Eventually reaching slumber, ‘Lucid Dreaming’ is the record's swan-song, a final lift of propulsion to remind that the dream of dance is a physical act, belonging to the imagined and the real. Digi bonus ‘Raspberry Pie’ is a sweet treat at the end of the dance, a familiar taste and a reminder of joy, ready for the next ‘Movimiento’.

12" EP. Azmari is thrilled to announce the release of their fourth opus, 5-track EP 'In Oculis'. The EP is a reflection of the band's collective desire to reinvent themselves. With a more minimalistic approach, the four musicians have created an eclectic, intense, and vibrant body of work, recorded during various residencies in Belgium and abroad. The result is a fusion of genres that range from powerful grooves to cinematic jazz, from floating melodies to entrancing soundscapes.

For this new project, Azmari teamed up with a long-time collaborator, Guillaume Souffrice (alias Mosso Mosso), who had already been Azmari's guitarist in the band's early days. Souffrice's expertise as a music therapist and multi-instrumentalist, combined with his passion for cross-cultural rhythms and melodies, adds a new depth and dimension to the band's sound.

Souffrice's extensive travels have taken him from Iranian Kurdistan, where he studied the daf (a large frame drum used in Sufi ceremonies), to northern India, where he immersed himself in the modal subtleties of the shehnai (Indian oboe). His love for psychedelic guitar tones and the classic wha-wha pedal remains at the heart of his musical approach, creating a fusion of tradition and experimentation.

The EP opens with 'Night Plants Can Run,' a track that starts with a rhythmic loop on the Berimbau, a Brazilian percussion instrument traditionally used in Capoeira. The song offers a steady, groovy journey between Rio de Janeiro and Sarajevo, with a guitar theme doubled by the saxophone, all underpinned by a deep 4/4 groove. The middle part of the track introduces a lot of percussion (an Azmari signature move) that gives a sense of urgency and chase, inspired by the band's experience playing the track in the studio, imagining a pursuit through the depths of the Amazon.

Next, 'Disassembling the Matrix' takes listeners on a 9/4 march that feels both elusive and powerful. Born from a jam session where an arpeggiator loop wouldn't stop, the band decided to continue with it, highlighting the beauty of a spontaneous creation once again. 'Lizzard's Dream' is a guitar-driven trip that gradually intensifies in energy. The song surprises with a sudden groovy break - a moment that was initially the core of the track - before returning to its soft and introspective theme, closing out the A-side of the vinyl.

The fourth track, 'Eyelights,' was born from the shores of Vevey Lake in Switzerland. It reflects the result of a long period of mental observation and rhythmic exploration. Three different time signatures were used to create the song's intro, which comes together as they go along. The melody loops with a peaceful and nostalgic vibe, creating a dreamlike atmosphere. Under the direction of Frederik Segers, who produced the EP, 'Eyelights' takes on a cinematic feel, with classical upright piano sounds that are a first for Azmari.

The EP closes with "17th Tiger Print," which takes us to the banks of the Ganges. Souffrice's shehnai leads the track into a hypnotic, hallucinatory dimension, where the interplay between his instrument and the baritone saxophone creates a textured, mystical atmosphere. This track encapsulates the essence of Azmari, a sound that bridges cultures and emotions in a minimalist yet highly effective way.

'In Oculis' marks another milestone in Azmari's musical evolution, blending the band's signature style with new influences and experimentation. Whether you're a longtime fan or new to their sound, this EP promisesto take you on another ride around the world.

Transversales Disques proudly presents the first official LP reissue of "Deserted Palace", studio album written & performed by Jean Michel Jarre in 1972, during his work experience at G.R.M. (Groupe de Recherches Musicales).

In 1971, an order was placed with producer Francis Dreyfus to provide sound for public places such as airports and libraries. He decided to pass the project on to Jean-Michel, who had recently been signed by his record company.

These fifteen tracks are made with only two synthesizers (EMS VCS3 & Farfisa organ) in an experimental and very minimal style.

"It was a crazy album, totally homemade, with rhythms that I made in my student room, with a minimum of equipment and at the same time electronic sounds that I stole from the GRM where I went at night after stealing the keys to the studios. It is a pirate record, in every sense of the word, in which we find what I did afterwards.” JMJ

Audio restored & remastered

Psycho Bummer is thrilled to present our latest release from QUAAD, a leading figure in Seattle’s emerging jungle scene and, in our opinion, one of the finest tracker enthusiasts out there.

Made on an Amiga 1200 with Octamed, QUAAD's “PAULA EP” is a nod to the Amiga's revolutionary sound chip of the same name, as well as a love letter to the primitive sampling techniques and demoscene aesthetics that the Amiga is famous for.

PAULA’s characteristic grime and grit is evident on tracks like EP opener “King Russ”, which cuts up a gorgeously degraded smooth-jazz sample across lethal amen chops and brutal subs. Likewise, the absurdly heavy drop of “Gone Postal” is offset by QUAAD’s particular sense of humor, striking a balance between caricature and dancefloor devastation. “Erb Man Dub” and “Van Nuys Crew” round out the EP, the later switching up the intensity for a more laid back R&B vibe, hinting at QUAAD’s versatility.

Rafael Marín, best known as Rapha Mundi, is back on Buenobueno Discos with a solid 6 track EP titled Bonanza. The super prolific, hard working hero from the small town of Murchante, in Spain, keeps pushing boundaries on his personal journey through music.

On this record Rapha explores the deeper sides of House and Techno with a minimalistic production and a truly amazing sense for hypnotic grooves. Always club ready, always dj friendly. He also even delivers a beautiful ambient track called 'Otra Luz' as the cherry on top.

Also don't miss his show 'Slaps U' on Relativa Radio where he shines as an incredible record selector.

Rocket Recordings’ new Black Hole Series is a place where the unorthodox, otherworldly and esoteric can flourish, and there could be no more fitting first release for it than the most powerful metaphysical travelogue yet from Moundabout. Journeying still further into and beyond the landscapes from which this duo have unearthed inspiration, ‘Goat Skull Table’ is a transmission to give flight to spectral visions and include trance-states in abundance.The vibrations and manifestations of the duo of Paddy Shine(GNOD) and Phil Langero (Los Langeros, Damp Howl, Bisect) has always resonated within a very specific sense of place, transcending linear narratives and astral planes in a quest to unite timeless spirits with inner space. This third release for Rocket Recordings sees them colluding with
the landscape of their surroundings, transcending linear narratives and astral planes in a quest to unite timeless spirits with inner space.The title track marks a focal point here; a Shamanic rite on which Langero’s charismatically charged mantras collude with an audial landscape somewhere on the map between the abstract spell-casting of Nurse With Wound and the druidic gnosticism of Julian Cope. This is Moundabout at their darkest and most ritualistic. Elsewhere, the hypnotic repetition of the twin ten-minute extrapolations ‘Blood On My Blanket’ and ‘Wagon’, and the potent incantatory chants of ‘Am I Not’ and ‘Brave New World’ glow with a rugged and
charged dynamism redolent of the Swedish Psychedelia of Träd, Gräs & Stenar, uniting a minimal aesthetic with maximal impact.
Dauntless, feverish, and reaching new heights of primal intensity ’Goat Skull Table’ is a formidable field guide to the earthen and other

Songs From The Harbour is the third studio album of original avant-rock and experimental ballads by the critically acclaimed World Sanguine Report (WSR) WSR’s new iteration, created collaboratively by celebrated musicians Andrew Plummer, Matthew Bourne, Ruth Goller, and Will Glaser, marks a significant milestone for WSR, and is due for release via revered label, God Unknown Records
There’s a quality about the album that echoes the likes of Tom Waits, Michael Gira, Nick Cave, and Captain Beefheart, hollerers and raspers, singing as if laid low by life, down and out. However, the sense of beat-up black and blues, of ramshackle rock, is deceptive. Songs From The Harbour was developed by vocalist/guitarist Andrew Plummer in close partnership with long-standing collaborators: versatile doyens of the jazz and Improv world, avant players par excellence, including Ruth Goller (bass, vocals), Matthew Bourne (harmonium), and Will Glaser (drums). On tracks like ‘She Is All', with it’s searing-hot guitars reminiscent of John Fahey’s Red Cross, they cut across each other, deceptively roughshod, but with subtle interplay, crashing,burning, bending and colliding with exquisite, geometrical correctness.

Following the hyperactive “Blood Karaoke” (2022, Reading Group), “Performing Belief” builds rhythmic thickets from gathered sounds interwoven with synths, drum machines and other samples. Having built these rhythmic nests, Krivchenia then called on two contemporary mages of the low end: electric bassist and fellow Angeleno Sam Wilkes (Wilkes/Gendel) and double bassist/multi-instrumentalist from Krivchenia’s native Chicago, Joshua Abrams (Natural Information Society). Wilkes and Abrams bring the presence of a grounding human witness to the rhythmic undergrowth, providing a centering and even at times melodic voice to the gathering. This alchemy carries a profoundly fresh sense of time, blurring the edges of the quantized grid and the generic boundaries of electronic music.

The core of the album is a lush, opulent matrix of percussion ranging from the familiar—hand claps and drum machines—to the mysteriously verdant, sampled largely from Krivchenia’s own performed field recorded collection. For years, he would record any and all of his musical encounters with natural objects: performing on a particularly resonant log on a hike, throwing rocks into a pristine pond, tap dancing in the mud. This archive of “natural” sounds became the fertile soil out of which the tracks on “Performing Belief” grew. What is gained in the process is not just a novel set of sounds, but a new rhythmic language. The particular give, the anticipatory rustle, the extra breath of a hollow log when functioning as a kickdrum provides a greenness that overtakes the rhythmic grid, giving this music a peculiar kind of stickiness. This rhythmic language, set in Krivchenia’s long-fermenting electronic musical palate, feels like a revelation, even while it calls back not only to his wonderfully elastic timekeeping behind the kit with his beloved band Big Thief, but also to his prior work in computer music as well as his deep study and love of the vast human archive of drumming. “Performing Belief” is in good company in the rank and file of the legendary Planet Mu label. From the foundational early releases of the likes of Jega and Venetian Snares, to the contemporary envelope-warping work of Jlin and hundreds of brilliant releases in between, Planet Mu has been a beacon of forward-thinking rhythmic music for decades, informing Krivchenia’s own sense of the weird metaphysics of musical time since he was a kid. Krivchenia’s contribution to this history calls to mind the principle of organic danceability that subtends Mu’s whole catalogue, while bending our sense of rhythm in new and gracious dimensions. Krivchenia brings out the loamy complexity of natural rhythms, a clearing as generous as it is inviting. Let the drummer give you some.

For the quartet led by NIGHTRAGE frontman Konstantinos Togas, 2025 is shaping up to be a stellar year. In February, Greek progressive metallers HERTA toured Eastern Europe. On May 2, 2025, the playful Athens-based group will release their debut album, “Crossing The Illusion” (LIFEFORCE RECORDS). HERTA’s sound is characterized by groove- and rhythm-driven compositions that continually offer surprises and fresh impressions. Despite the complexity and technical prowess of their music, the songs remain accessible and catchy. The band’s keen sense of atmosphere and melody shines through, creating ten eventful tracks that captivate listeners from start to finish. “Crossing The Illusion” immediately enchants with its sophisticated creativity. The band delivers impressively majestic songs that blend heaviness and pathos in a compelling mix. Guest appearances by Sakis Tolis (ROTTING CHRIST) and George Prokopiou (POEM/MOTHER OF MILLIONS) further attest to HERTA’s approach to expanding the variability and complexity of their prog metal continuously. The album was produced and mixed by Fotis Benardo at Devasoundz Studios and mastered by Johann Meyer at Silver Cord Studios. FFO: GOJIRA, LAMB OF GOD, MASTODON and MACHINE HEAD

»Carpet Of Fallen Leaves« is an introduction to the folk-pop world of Eddie Marcon. It follows in the footsteps of other collections of Japanese artists on Morr Music, such as yumbo, Andersens, and the »Minna Miteru« compilations. »Carpet Of Fallen Leaves« draws together songs from Eddie Marcon’s twenty-two-year history, including fragile, yet rich in melody material, collected from a prodigious run of limited edition, self-released CD-Rs.

Eddie Marcon is the project of Eddie Corman and Jules Marcon, who met through their involvement in Japan’s underground music scene. Eddie was a member of noise-rock duo Coa, while both Eddie and Marcon were part of psych-rock collective LSD-March. Forming in 2001, Eddie Marcon’s sound is markedly different from these groups, though they do, at times, share a sense of psychedelic dislocation, through the gentle, limpid pace of their songs. But with Eddie Marcon, melody and gentleness is at the music’s core.

They’ve long marked out their own, unique territory within a worldwide community of psych-folk and folk-pop artists; sharing their music through a subterranean network of colleagues and friends, they count groups like The Pastels and The Notwist as their fans, and Eddie has collaborated with the likes of Shintaro Sakamoto, and Aki Tsuyuko (in Tondekebana, and with Marcon and Ippei Matsui in the quartet Wasurerogusa). Eddie Marcon have also recently worked with drummer Ikuro Takahashi, who’s played with groups such as Fushitsusha, Maher Shalal Hash Baz, and Nagisa Ni Te.

Across the songs on »Carpet Of Fallen Leaves«, Eddie Marcon’s songs are performed by Eddie on guitar, organ and vocals, and Marcon on bass; they’re variously joined by Takahashi, Yojiro Tatekawa (drums), Tomoko Kageyama (vibraphone), Yasuhisa Mizutani (flute), Madoka Asakura (vocals), and Ztom Motoyama (pedal steel). The arrangements are pared back to best serve the core of each song, and the playing is gorgeous – fluent but not showy; capable of great intricacy, but aware that simplicity is key to direct communication.

Songs like »Mayonaka No Ongaku« stretch their limbs languidly, the music shivering with beauty as guitar and cymbal drift across Eddie’s poised vocal delivery. »Tora To Lion« began as an improvisation, but it’s become a firm favourite of the group’s fans: as Eddie says, »it has become a very important song for us, to the extent that it can be said to be our representative song.«

Perhaps the most moving thing about »Carpet Of Fallen Leaves«, though, is the way it captures the subtle yet significant moments of everydayness that ask for our attention. »Shoujo«, a song for a beloved cat who passed away, possesses rare emotional resonance. »At the end of the song,« Eddie remembers, »I wanted to have her throat rumbling endlessly.« When the song was cut, a television voice appeared behind the purring, saying ›thank you‹. »For us, it felt like words from Poco-chan, and tears came to our eyes.«

Even the name is mysterious-Black Honey Cult evokes a sense of intrigue and the otherworldly, a fitting moniker for a band born out of deep roots in Los Angeles' storied underground music scene. The story begins in the early '90s, when Johnny DeVilla and Jake Cavaliere first crossed paths, performing in various bands at the legendary JabberJaw, a hub for raw talent and boundary-pushing sound. Fast forward to 2003, when Spencer Robinson joined forces with Jake and Johnny in The Lords of Altamont, solidifying a creative bond that has endured for decades. Over the years, this trio found themselves collaborating time and again, refining their chemistry and exploring new sonic landscapes. It wasn't until 2010 that Black Honey Cult began to take shape, though the journey to a definitive lineup was a winding road. After several incarnations, the band finally coalesced into its current form with the addition of Garey Snider on drums, and Travis Petersen on guitar, whose contributions completed the puzzle. Jake and Garey, longtime conspirators with a shared desire to work together, brought their vision to fruition, creating a group that feels both destined and uniquely fresh. Drawing inspiration from pioneers like The Velvet Underground and psychedelic icons, The 13th Floor Elevators, Black Honey Cult infuses their sound with shades of early goth, post-punk, and krautrock. The result? A hypnotic, genre-defying blend of dark, atmospheric psychedelia that transports listeners to another plane - like dropping LSD on Mars. The band's sound was brought to life by the legendary Paul Roessler (of Screamers and 45 Grave fame) at Kitten Robot Studios, a perfect match for their haunting and transportive vision. Black Honey Cult stands as a testament to years of collaboration, creativity, and perseverance, offering an immersive experience for those ready to step into their enigmatic world. Prepare to follow the cult and lose yourself in the spellbinding sounds of Black Honey Cult.

Gold nugget vinyl, limited to 350 copies. Even the name is mysterious-Black Honey Cult evokes a sense of intrigue and the otherworldly, a fitting moniker for a band born out of deep roots in Los Angeles' storied underground music scene. The story begins in the early '90s, when Johnny DeVilla and Jake Cavaliere first crossed paths, performing in various bands at the legendary JabberJaw, a hub for raw talent and boundary-pushing sound. Fast forward to 2003, when Spencer Robinson joined forces with Jake and Johnny in The Lords of Altamont, solidifying a creative bond that has endured for decades. Over the years, this trio found themselves collaborating time and again, refining their chemistry and exploring new sonic landscapes. It wasn't until 2010 that Black Honey Cult began to take shape, though the journey to a definitive lineup was a winding road. After several incarnations, the band finally coalesced into its current form with the addition of Garey Snider on drums, and Travis Petersen on guitar, whose contributions completed the puzzle. Jake and Garey, longtime conspirators with a shared desire to work together, brought their vision to fruition, creating a group that feels both destined and uniquely fresh. Drawing inspiration from pioneers like The Velvet Underground and psychedelic icons, The 13th Floor Elevators, Black Honey Cult infuses their sound with shades of early goth, post-punk, and krautrock. The result? A hypnotic, genre-defying blend of dark, atmospheric psychedelia that transports listeners to another plane - like dropping LSD on Mars. The band's sound was brought to life by the legendary Paul Roessler (of Screamers and 45 Grave fame) at Kitten Robot Studios, a perfect match for their haunting and transportive vision. Black Honey Cult stands as a testament to years of collaboration, creativity, and perseverance, offering an immersive experience for those ready to step into their enigmatic world. Prepare to follow the cult and lose yourself in the spellbinding sounds of Black Honey Cult.

The Crippled Flower was a post-punk band from Düsseldorf - and they arrived late. However, unlike many young, unsuspecting, hairsprayed hopefuls from that time, in 1985 they could sense that the end of their era was approaching. They knew too much to want to take the world by storm. They were four individualists searching their own way. Each of the band members only found their calling after the time that they had spent together – but that's exactly what makes The Crippled Flower still seem really interesting today, this static energy that does not discharge, but is simply there.

Searching dreamers should sound like that and that's what they were. Singer Phil Elston, for example, had brought his love of Kraftwerk from England to Düsseldorf. Even his bandmates found this strange, but they were also entangled in their own longings. This is because the times were still so crazy and these searchers were "on fire". A fire that glows in the band's recordings.

Listening to the songs today, The Crippled Flower sound like they are hugely at the height of their game; think of Wire, Felt, Scritti Politti or Minimal Compact. The variety of musical themes, as well as different soundscapes, which the band created can only be listened to in amazement. Often, it is only Phil Elston's Sprechgesang that confirms that this is really the same band. However, it was back in 1985 when, importantly, the catalyst that brought the musicians together - the short lived eclectic record store "Heartbeat" in Düsseldorf Bilk - occured. It was there where post-industrial and pop, melodic minimal music and sound attacks awaited those who wanted to discover music by artists and bands they did not yet know.

Cassette releases. All recorded on 4-Track. The Crippled Flower succeeded in this medium. Firstly, with a cassette just entited The Crippled Flower, working from project-like studio recorded sketches. Four more tracks from the short-lived band appeared in 1986 on "A Heartbeat Rendezvous“. A demo tape submitted to Les Disques du Crépuscule, however, did not lead to a worldwide career and so, unfortunately, it was soon over.

Stefan Krausen moved on to the follow-up project Deux Baleines Blanches with Stefan Schneider, which, in 1994, gave rise to the band Kreidler. Krausen was already drumming with the I-Burnettes on AtaTak and much later he studied painting in Munich. Nina Ahlers moved from Düsseldorf to Paris to study art, because in the 80s it was still the case that Paris was the destination of choice for those really wanting to become an artist – and that's what she did. Her work is characterized by a non-academic minimalism focusing on everyday objects. Stefan Schneider remained connected to music. Only Phil Elston, who helped sabotage fox hunts in England and wrote these observant lyrics about environmental destruction and time travel, seems to have escaped the social-media world. Whether he found Kraftwerk-fulfilment in Düsseldorf or moved on disillusioned remains a mystery to us. And somehow this also fits in with that peculiar, special band. - Oliver Tepel, Köln 2025 (Translation by Philipp Elston)

DESCRIPTION
Looming above Hastings on the South Coast of the UK, carved into East Hill, three black shapes are visible from a distance. Mysterious and ominous, they assume the aspect of the entrance to a church or a portal to dimensions unknown. Closer inspection however reveals them to be no more than mere follies carved and painted into the rock, as hoaxster John Coussens sought to convince visitors that an elaborate subterranean kingdom lurked within. Centuries later, this coastal town remains a place that serves as a magnet to the wyrd and the mischievous. And it’s here that the meeting of minds took place that led to 'Folly' - the second release for Rocket’s Black Hole series - an imprint focused on the unorthodox, otherworldly and esoteric. The journey that led to ‘Folly’ began in the dingy cellar of a wine bar in the town. Black Arches formed around a regular local experimental night in such environs aptly named Weird Shit, initially as a freeform musical outlet for author and musician Gareth E. Rees’ later incorporating Matt Frost from his garage rock troupe The Dirty Contacts, and frequent collaborator James Weaver, to form a vehicle for wild experimentation and psychic abandon. Given he was also a regular attendee, it was no surprise when Sexton Ming, arch maverick outsider artist and uncompromising iconoclast of over four decades standing, entered the picture. Soon after a perplexing but serendipitous chain of events took place, with demons conjured up via improvised sessions, poetic licence taken, dystopias chronicled, audio files gone awry, vocals overdubbed and laptops lost, Somehow amidst the sturm-und-drang ‘Folly’ was summoned in all its murky glory. As we embark on the second quarter of an uncertain century, just maybe this psychic travelogue is a dark prism to make sense of the chaos we confront. Whichever, it remains a spectacle as compelling as that by which Black Arches were named

Nothing is lost on Cash Langdon. It’s something you can hear in the observational lyrics of his last record, 2022’s Sinister Feeling; but on its follow-up, Dogs, you can also hear it in the camaraderie he cultivates playing live with his band Meadow Dust, a sonic energy that gives off the heat of his native Birmingham. The trio’s fuzzy take on heavy country rock has a worn-in no-fussiness that recalls Neil Young & Crazy
Horse – nothing overthought, nothing understated. And like Young, Langdon’s voice is simultaneously earnest and world-weary – but there’s a sense of humor, too, and a resignation to keeping on (“Dogs,” “Magic Again”). Recorded at Portside Studios (the former location of the legendary Muscle Shoals Sound) in just two days, engineer Brad Timko (Dan Sartain, St. Paul and The Broken Bones) captured Langdon and Meadow Dust at their fiercest yet. The title track “Dogs” and side B heater “Dead Dogs” both take inspiration from the wild dogs Langdon encountered in his neighborhood at the time of writing the record, where he wondered about the sick twist of fate that renders one dog a pet and another a threat. Across songs, he examines how oppressive cycles overlap, intersecting the personal and the societal at all times. The heavy yet melodic “Lilac Whiskey Noise” is the heartbeat of the record, written following an active shooter event that Langdon witnessed at work in 2016. It’s an indictment – not of the perpetrator – but of the systems of power that enable such an act. It’s a microcosm for all of the themes on the album, too: the ongoing violence of simply being awake to the world around you, and the resolve to stay awake anyway.
On the crunchy album-closer “Nothing’s Good Anymore,” Langdon sings about overhearing someone say just that – and you can tell he’s tempted to agree. He’s going to find what kernel of beauty he can. Dogs is a sonic map for finding that beauty in just about anything.