quête:son

Die Story der steirischen Psychedelic-Rock Band Hide & Seek zählt zu den bemerkenswertesten Kapiteln der österreichischen Rockgeschichte. Im Jahr 1969 katapultierte sich die junge Grazer Combo in kürzester Zeit zu landesweitem Erfolg und beinahe bis an die Spitze der Ö3-Hitparade. Kurz darauf, an der Schwelle zum internationalen Durchbruch, wendet sich das Blatt und die Band löst sich nach einigen wenigen Veröffentlichungen wieder auf. Was dazwischen passiert ist großes Kino und vor allem ganz großartige Musik. Keine andere österreichische Rockband dieser Zeit traf den Ton des britischen Sounds zwischen Freakbeat, Psychedelia und frühem Hard Rock besser als diese bemerkenswerte Formation. Die vier tollen Singles, die Hide & Seek von 1969-1971 veröffentlicht haben, sind heute international gesuchte Sammlerstücke, selten und ausgesprochen teuer. KONKORD Records veröffentlicht das Gesamtwerk der Band nun auf dem Album ,I Can Fly - The Complete Recordings 1969-71". Eine bisher unveröffentlichte Aufnahme aus dem Jahr 1970 ergänzt die Zusammenstellung. Al Bird Sputnik von den Wiener Trash Rock Archives hat die Geschichte dieser erstaunlichen Band aufgeschrieben, ein reich bebildertes Booklet liegt dem Album bei.

„Live in Japan“ ist ein Doppel-Livealbum von George Harrison, das ursprünglich im Juli 1992 erschien. Es
entstand während Harrisons Japan-Tournee 1991 – seiner ersten kompletten Konzertreihe seit den 1970erJahren – und präsentiert eine Mischung aus Solomaterial und legendären Beatles-Songs, alle begleitet von
Clapton und seiner erfahrenen Band. Es war Harrisons zweite offzielle Live-Veröffentlichung nach dem
bahnbrechenden „Concert for Bangladesh“ zwei Jahrzehnte zuvor.

Der Grammy-nominierte Altsaxofonist Immanuel Wilkins veröffentlicht sein erstes Live-Album, aufgenommen in der legendären New Yorker Jazz-Institution Village Vanguard. Wilkins‘ Quartett, bestehend aus
Micah Thomas am Klavier, Ryoma Takenaga am Bass und Kweku Sumbry am Schlagzeug, entfaltet in dem
von Jazz-Geschichte durchdrungenen Raum seine volle musikalische Kraft und reiht sich ein die Liste der
Jazzgrößen, die dort wegweisende Live-Aufnahmen gemacht haben, darunter John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins,
Joe Henderson, Bill Evans und viele andere.
Vol. 1 erscheint als LP + CD, Vol. 2 (17.04.) und Vol. 3 (15.05.) erscheinen ausschließlich digital.

Wie Amerika selbst ist auch die Geschichte von Chess Records eine Geschichte von Chancen in neuen Ländern, in denen Grenzen zwischen Hautfarbe und Kultur überwunden wurden, um Rhythm and Blues-Musik
zu schaffen, die Zuhörer auf der ganzen Welt beeinflusste. Das beeindruckende Künstleraufgebot von Chess
– und seine Gründer – haben den Blues von Volksmusik zu populärem Sound weiterentwickelt und verändert.
Chess Records wurde 1950 von den polnischen Einwanderern Leonard und Phil Chess gegründet und entstand im Süden Chicagos, aber der Einfluss ist weltweit und über Generationen der Popmusik hinweg spürbar
– von Acts der British Invasion wie den Beatles, den Rolling Stones und Eric Clapton, die Chess-Künstler
als ihre Vorbilder nannten, bis hin zu den heutigen Stars wie Beyoncé, Jack White, Questlove und Bruce
Springsteen.
Im Jahr 2025 feiert Chess Records sein 75-jähriges Jubiläum. Anlässlich dieses historischen Meilensteins
wird Chess im Oktober dieses Jahres eine umfassende Jubiläumsreihe mit einer kuratierten Auswahl audiophiler Vinyl-Neuauflagen starten, beginnend mit Muddy Waters’ „The Best of Muddy Waters“ und Howlin’
Wolfs „Moanin’ in the Moonlight“.
Die fortlaufende monatliche Serie wird Veröffentlichungen von legendären Künstlern aus dem renommierten
Chess-Kader präsentieren, darunter Chuck Berrys „Berry Is on Top“, Etta James’ „At Last“, Little Walters
„The Best of Little Walter“ und Sonny Boy Williamson IIs „The Real Folk Blues“.

Wie Amerika selbst ist auch die Geschichte von Chess Records eine Geschichte von Chancen in neuen Ländern, in denen Grenzen zwischen Hautfarbe und Kultur überwunden wurden, um Rhythm and Blues-Musik
zu schaffen, die Zuhörer auf der ganzen Welt beeinflusste. Das beeindruckende Künstleraufgebot von Chess
– und seine Gründer – haben den Blues von Volksmusik zu populärem Sound weiterentwickelt und verändert.
Chess Records wurde 1950 von den polnischen Einwanderern Leonard und Phil Chess gegründet und entstand im Süden Chicagos, aber der Einfluss ist weltweit und über Generationen der Popmusik hinweg spürbar
– von Acts der British Invasion wie den Beatles, den Rolling Stones und Eric Clapton, die Chess-Künstler
als ihre Vorbilder nannten, bis hin zu den heutigen Stars wie Beyoncé, Jack White, Questlove und Bruce
Springsteen.
Im Jahr 2025 feiert Chess Records sein 75-jähriges Jubiläum. Anlässlich dieses historischen Meilensteins
wird Chess im Oktober dieses Jahres eine umfassende Jubiläumsreihe mit einer kuratierten Auswahl audiophiler Vinyl-Neuauflagen starten, beginnend mit Muddy Waters’ „The Best of Muddy Waters“ und Howlin’
Wolfs „Moanin’ in the Moonlight“.
Die fortlaufende monatliche Serie wird Veröffentlichungen von legendären Künstlern aus dem renommierten
Chess-Kader präsentieren, darunter Chuck Berrys „Berry Is on Top“, Etta James’ „At Last“, Little Walters
„The Best of Little Walter“ und Sonny Boy Williamson IIs „The Real Folk Blues“.

Fuzzy Bears offers a forward-thinking and immersive listening experience that pushes the boundaries of jazz and electronics — equal parts experimental laboratory and live concert. On stage, the adventure takes its most daring form. Instead of relying on the original vintage synths, the trio reinterprets the studio’s electronic textures with a streamlined setup designed for live performances.

The songs of this exciting experiment are collected on a self-titled album, to be released on March 20th 2026 via Marcel Records. First single 'The Happy Are Being Born' is out on January 8th.

credits
Fulco Ottervanger: Synths, Piano - Harmonic and Melodic info
Lieven Van Pée: Synths, Bass - Low-end info, Mastering
Simon Segers: Synths, Percussion - Rhythmical info
Peter Desmedt: Serge Patching & Sound processing, Recording & Mixing
Special Thanks: Rikkert Brok & Hans Kulk
Recorded at Willem Twee Studios, ‘s Hertogenbosch
Mixed at Studio Ledeberg, Gent

The Grace EPs by legendary singer-songwriter Jeff Buckley, is a 19-track, five x EP box set, comprising the following EPs: 'Peyote Radio Theatre' July 1994, 'Last Goodbye' January 1995, 'So Real' [June 1995], 'Live From The Bataclan' [October 1995] and 'The Grace EP' [February 1996],

This unique package contains all five twelve inch vinyl records each in their own full colour jacket, a double sided full colour insert with extensive liner notes, all carefully packed in a heavyweight leather laminate textured 15mm-spined outer sleeve.

The five discs that make up the Grace EPs box-set are a collection of live performances, B-sides and studio versions from songs that originally appeared on Buckley's "Grace" album.

Peyote Radio Theatre and So Real were promotional-only releases that weren't commercially available. The others are rare imports: Live from the Bataclan came out in France, The Grace EP in Australia, and Last Goodbye in Japan,

This EP set features "Last Goodbye", "Grace", "So Real" and two amazing live versions of his classic hits "Hallelujah" & "Mojo Pin".

The Grace EPs also features a whopping 12-minute version of Van Morrison's "The Way Young Lovers Do," a medley of "Je N'En Connais Pas la Fin/Hymne A l'Amour," Hank Williams's "Lost Highway," and a 14-minute take on Alex Chilton's "Kanga-Roo."
Finally there is a bonus track added to the The Grace EP; "Tongue," a spooky ambient 11-minute studio instrumental.

Ten years after their last collaboration, Jacques Duvall and Benjamin Schoos return with Plein Sommeil, a duo album that is at once melancholic, ironic, and tender—a poetic mirror of the fatigue of the modern world.

The legendary lyricist for Lio, Chamfort, and Daho meets the indie pop producer and sonic adventurer of Freaksville, in a generational union as improbable as it is natural.
Between Brussels and Paris, they weave songs about slowness, worn-out love, and resistance through gentleness.

Blending original compositions and delicate covers (The Kinks, Higelin, Daho), the album evokes a sensual and lucid refuge amid the overheating of everyday life.
Recorded with Bertrand Burgalat, The Loved Drones, and lush string arrangements, Plein Sommeil embraces a handcrafted, timeless aesthetic.

Its motto: “Slow business” — a manifesto against the speed and emptiness of contemporary times.

Each song, balancing irony and elegance, celebrates fragility and humanity.

INTERWOVEN' is a four-track split EP that binds together two of Denmark's most forwardthinking heavy acts: HIRAKI and Meejah. Built on a shared appetite for boundary-pushing intensity, the collaboration channels the urgency of electronic hardcore, the spaciousness of experimental rock, and the emotional depth of cinematic metal into an immersive work that is at once confrontational and deeply connective. As a part of Denmark's flourishing underground scene for dark and heavy music, the HIRAKI trio deploys an aggressive style of progressive synthpunk from the edge of the abyss. The band presents this sonic assault to accompany the inevitable fact that our world is sick, and we all take part in maintaining the fucked up systemic structures. MEEJAH is a Post/Experimental Danish-Korean band from Copenhagen weaving together Nordic Melancholia & Korean Ancestry. The results sound like Heaven, Thunder, Mountain, Earth, Wind, Fire, Water, Lake. Across these four tracks, both bands challenge each other to step past familiar contours, unraveling and recombining their musical identities until a new hybrid shape emerges_volatile, textured, and unmistakably alive. FOR FANS OF The Body * The Armed * Sightless Pit * Massive Attack * Julie Christmas * Death Engine

INTERWOVEN' is a four-track split EP that binds together two of Denmark's most forwardthinking heavy acts: HIRAKI and Meejah. Built on a shared appetite for boundary-pushing intensity, the collaboration channels the urgency of electronic hardcore, the spaciousness of experimental rock, and the emotional depth of cinematic metal into an immersive work that is at once confrontational and deeply connective. As a part of Denmark's flourishing underground scene for dark and heavy music, the HIRAKI trio deploys an aggressive style of progressive synthpunk from the edge of the abyss. The band presents this sonic assault to accompany the inevitable fact that our world is sick, and we all take part in maintaining the fucked up systemic structures. MEEJAH is a Post/Experimental Danish-Korean band from Copenhagen weaving together Nordic Melancholia & Korean Ancestry. The results sound like Heaven, Thunder, Mountain, Earth, Wind, Fire, Water, Lake. Across these four tracks, both bands challenge each other to step past familiar contours, unraveling and recombining their musical identities until a new hybrid shape emerges_volatile, textured, and unmistakably alive. FOR FANS OF The Body * The Armed * Sightless Pit * Massive Attack * Julie Christmas * Death Engine The single colour edition comes as white vinyl!

From the cold North of Sweden, NORNA and LEGBITER deliver a six-track document of contrast, convergence, and uncompromising heavy music. Bringing together two distinct voices, the release explores the many shapes heaviness can take_stretching from crushing, slow-moving atmospheres to sharp, volatile bursts of aggression. Formed by musicians with deep roots in the European underground, Norna approach heaviness as a vehicle for emotional gravity. Their sound is expansive and deliberate, built on massive low-end, tectonic rhythms, and an acute sense of restraint. Legbiter approach heavy music as direct, confrontational, and unrelentingly physical. Rooted in hardcore and metal's most ferocious intersections, the band thrives on immediacy and impact. Legbiter compress time, delivering short, explosive bursts that hit with the force of a live wire. Their sound is lean, aggressive, and unapologetically raw. "Even though we sound very different sonically I think we all have a lot of common ground, not only in being parts of the 90's scenes, but also musically in the somewhat dissonant and harsh guitar parts", says Legbiter guitarist (Rickard Nordström. "Personally, I love splits with bands that don't sound exactly the same, but share some common traits and vibes." "Contrast is everything, we have always tried to flow between despair and beauty. Dynamics are important to us. This split will give you that contrast", comments Norna guitarist and vocalist and former Breach vocalist Tomas Liljedahl. FOR FANS OF Handsome * Quicksand * Fireside * Breach * Helmet * Superheaven * Narrowhead * Metz

Rom Com is the debut album from Disco In Sochi; a Liverpoolborn duo injecting full-throttle glam rock theatrics into modern pop. Built on strutting guitars, neon synths, & unapologetically huge hooks, their sound is loud, glossy, and engineered for the spotlight. Drawing from the lineage of glam’s excess and pop’s instinct for spectacle, Disco in Sochi trade subtlety for swagger. Their songs are designed to hit hard and fast — all attitude, amplification, and choruses made to be yelled back from the front row. It’s music that treats the stage like a catwalk. Disco in Sochi make pop music for outsiders who dress loud, move louder, and don’t believe in playing it cool. Equal parts flash and force, they arrive with the confidence of a band ready to turn volume into a statement.

RE-PRESSED ON CLEAR VINYL!!! The long-anticipated collection of rare A-sides, B-sides, covers and unreleased outtakes from influential punk rock favorites and emo granddaddies JAWBREAKER. A twenty-track Alpha-Omega of rare and previously-impossible-to-find songs presented chronologically from their first demo in November of '88 (before they were even named Jawbreaker ) to their final studio recording, a version of "Boxcar" re-worked at the end of the DGC Dear You sessions. Beautifully packaged with inviting artwork and track-by-track commentary and lyrics (printed courtesy of AARON COMETBUS). 24-Hour Satisfaction Therapy, indeed.

The ridiculously prolific Bay Area band Thee Oh Sees are back with another full-length long-player. Warm Slime is guaranteed to please fans of their whacked-out garage / psych / punk jams. Recorded by Sacramento sultan of sound Chris Woodhouse, Warm Slime carries on in the same tradition as the group's previous In The Red release, Help, showcasing their more electrified and rocking side, in comparison to other recent home-recorded releases. The centerpiece is undoubtedly the mind-bending title track, which clocks in at nearly 14 minutes and takes up the entirety of the album's first side. It's a psychedelic epic of "Inna Gadda Da Vida" proportions! John Dwyer's guitar playing is at its quadraspazzed best here, and the vocal interplay with Brigid Dawson gives it a B-52s-at-their-least-cheesy-crossed-with-the- Troggs vibe. The results are stunning. "Thee Oh Sees incorporate the oft-referenced Nuggets stuff in a way that feels reverential. With grinding guitars and bah-bah-bah vocals, but with the punk and new-wave elements also at play, they don't feel trite or plagiarized. This is like meat and potatoes prepared by a master chef-totally familiar but utterly delicious." -Pitchfork Recorded by Chris Woodhouse (Mayyors' guitarist and producer for The A-Frames, Hospitals, Coachwhips, Erase Errata, etc.) This is one of the best sonic blasts you will trash your speakers with this year....Raw, and real! Opening track is 13 minutes long, yes, we'll take it...

What's the first thing you think of when someone mentions Thee Oh Sees? Probably their riot-sparking live show, right? Visions of a guitar-chewing, melody-maiming John Dwyer careening across your cranium, rounded out by a wild-eyed wrecking crew that drives every last hook home like it's a nail in the coffin of what you thought it meant to make 21st-century rock 'n' roll? Yeah, that sounds about right. But it misses a more important point-how impossible Thee Oh Sees have been to pin down since Dwyer launched the project in the late '90s as a solo break from such sorely missed underground bands as Pink and Brown and Coachwhips. (While Dwyer still records songs on his own, Thee Oh Sees is now a five-piece featuring keyboardist / singer Brigid Dawson, guitarist Petey Dammit, drummer Mike Shoun and multi-instrumentalist / singer Lars Finberg.) That restlessness extends to everything from the towering, thirteen-minute title track of 2010's Warm Smile LP to the mercurial moods of 2008's The Master's Bedroom Is Worth Spending a Night In. Now, Thee Oh Sees chase the home-brewed symphonies of Castlemania with the scrappy, high-wire hooks of Carrion Crawler / The Dream. Originally envisioned as two EPs, it was cut live to tape in less than a week at Chris Woodhouse's Sacramento studio in June, reflecting the battering-ram bent of the band's live show better than any bootleg ever could. "As I'm sure most would agree," explains Dwyer, "Castlemania was more of a vocal tirade. This one's meant to pummel and throb." That it does, whether one blasts the slow, speaker-bruising build of "The Dream," the sunburnt organs and dovetailing guitars of "Crack in Your Eye" or the interstellar instrumental "Chem-Farmer," a perfect example of what happens when one takes a well-oiled machine-a gang of rabid road warriors, really-and adds a second, groove-locked drum set to the mix. To listen is to realize that Dwyer's music is as manic as the underground comic inclinations of his artwork; colorful and confusing in a way that's more than welcome. It's downright refreshing, like a slap in the face at 5:00 in the morning. Or, as Dwyer puts it, "You have to leave a mark somehow."

Mit Punkrock (1991) markierten Die Goldenen Zitronen ihren entscheidenden Wendepunkt - weg vom Fun-Punk der 80er hin zu einer politisch scharfen, stilistisch mutigen Band. Nach dem Album Fuck You (1990) suchten sie einen direkteren, ehrlicheren Sound - roh, schnell und ohne Studio-Perfektionismus. Gemeinsam mit Billy Childish, dem britischen Garagen-Guru aus Rochester/Kent, nahmen sie die Platte im Januar 1991 in nur drei Tagen auf. Keine Tricks, keine Nachbearbeitung - nur übersteuerte Pegel, Live-Energie und Haltung. Childish klebte die Anzeigen am Mischpult ab, mischte nach Gefühl und erklärte, dass jeder Mix höchstens 30 Minuten dauern dürfe. Das Ergebnis ist ein Meilenstein: ein raues, kompromissloses Album zwischen 60s-Garage, Punk und politischer Dringlichkeit. Songs wie "80 Millionen Hooligans" spiegeln die aufgewühlte Stimmung der frühen Nachwendezeit - Wiedervereinigung, Fremdenhass, Orientierungslosigkeit - und wirken heute wie ein unheilvolles Echo ihrer Zeit. Punkrock wurde zum Kultdokument einer Ära des Aufbruchs und der Widersprüche. 2009 wurde das Album remastered - der rohe Geist blieb, nur klarer denn je. Ungefiltert, übersteuert, unvergesslich - Punkrock, das Statement einer Band, die keine Kompromisse kannte.

The Lost Highway of Hank Williams and the Highway To Hell of AC/DC are indeed the same damn road. Featuring 12 classic outlaw country songs done in their own inimitable style, the album was recorded completely live in the studio. The bad are supporting the release of the album as well as their 25th Anniversary with extensive live touring and festival throughout the UK, Ireland, and Western Europe throughout 2026. Full UK Tour starting FEB 11 Nerve Centre Londonderry. 12th Whelan's Dublin. 13th The Empire Music Hall Belfast. 14th Liquid Room Edinburgh. 15th PJ Molloys Dunfermline. 17th The Georgian Theatre Stockton-on-tees. 18th Docks Academy Grimsby. 19th Pocklington Arts Centre. 20th The Hairy Dog Derby, 21st Picturedrome Holmfirth. 22nd The Drill Lincoln. 24th 53 Degrees Preston. 25th Queens Hall Narberth, 26th HAYSEED DIXIE Cardiff. 27th Sin City Swansea. 28th Crickhowell. MAR 1st HAYSEED DIXIE Merthyr Tydfil. 3rd The Fleece Bristol, 4th Roadmender Northampton. 5th The Factory Live Worthing. 6th The Harlington Fleet. 7th MK11 Milton Keynes. 8th Hertford Corn Exchange.

It's hard to fathom Martin Bramah's trajectory from his beginnings as a guitarist/writer behind two crazily influential postpunk albums - The Fall's Live At The Witch Trials and Blue Orchids' The Greatest Hit (Money Mountain) (vocalist on the latter too, of course) - then nearly three decades of sporadic-at-best activity, offering releases just frequently enough to remind fans of his peculiar brilliance . . . before another stay in the void. Chalk it up to what you want - Mark E. Smith's utter usurpation of The Fall, his split from partner Una Baines after Blue Orchids' debut, the vague collapse of rash experimentation in `underground' music as early `80s nu-pop and American college rock diluted any real spirit, a few failed attempts at working with with Mark again . . . and maybe just life getting in the way. A sense of lost opportunities isn't tough to justify. Inasmuch as Martin was originally the singer for The Fall - Mark began as guitarist but couldn't play! - and given that the group's mythology was born in an era before that gang of Mancunian misfits had even thought of playing, it's high irony that 49 years after The Fall began, Martin has both become wildly prolific and the leader of a band with more rights of inheritance to The Fall's credibility than any other living person could justify . . .yet the band isn't remarkable for that as it is for the range and wealth extent of their collective powers and talent: two great and original guitarists, three of the UK's most daringly-skilled drummers, a genuine bass legend, and a brilliant spare Blue Orchid guitarist. Four albums in, the HOUSE Of ALL is getting ambitious, with each album a subtle improvement on the last, forging a path away from their pasts without denying a thing. Inklings differs from the first three for not having being largely improvised at first, with sounds, rhythm, groove and melody later forged into songs. They rehearsed! They had fun doing it! They're going on an extended tour! There were even extra tracks! We'll leave it to fans and critics to sit down and analyse the specifics of it all, but Steve, Si, Pete, Phil, Karl and Martin have made a bold and powerful album unlike any other you'll hear in 2026 . . . stately, majestic, bold and worthy of a group of real survivors. In perverse form, the album will be officially announced and preceded by a song not on the album!

When Saracen released their debut album ‘Heroes, Saints & Fools’ back in 1981, the UK Rock scene certainly took notice. Their combination of Magnum-like melodies and Uriah Heep intensity and vocal stylings immediately endeared them to fans of the NWOBHM scene, and fans of classic British Rock in general.
All songs and lyrics were written by lead guitarist Rob Bendelow, who left prior to the release of their second album, ‘Change Of Heart’, in 1984. While this sophomore effort still contained a few Bendelow songs, the band had changed direction, moving away from the almost Pomp and NWOBHM of the debut for a more polished and Melodic Rock direction.
Unfortunately, this new direction didn’t resonate with the fans, and the band broke up not long after.
However, Bruce Mee of Now & Then Records had always been a massive Magnum and Saracen fan. Having already convinced Bob Catley to start a solo career in the late 90s, he also had very productive talks with Rob Bendelow. This great friendship resulted in the band reforming and the release of ‘Red Sky’ in 2003. Rob Bendelow and Saracen were back.
Later signing to Escape and releasing several more great albums, Rob Finally retired from the music scene a few years ago, but the band gamely soldiered on, keeping his songs and legacy alive for their many adoring fans.

In an instance of total cosmic kismet, that same Bruce Mee was also co-organiser of the inaugural ‘Tower of Fire’ UK festival, and in 2024 invited Saracen to play the event along with other well recognised names of the scene such as Nitrate, Remedy, Atack, White Skies and Gabrielle de Val. The event was multi-track recorded, and the results of the Saracen set were so good that it was decided to release a very first live album.

The title of the live album is taken from the name of their crushing opening song: ‘Crusader’. And in a further act of unbelievable karma, the magnificent album artwork and design are created by Sebastian Kozak, the very same creative artist responsible for the brilliant artwork on the band’s come-back album ‘Red Sky’ back in 2003.
All but one of the songs that day were from that incredible debut and those 5 songs, along with 3 others previously recorded live by the band, make up this totally amazing live album. For fans of Saracen and NWOBHM, this is a moment we never thought we’d ever see: a brilliant live Saracen album with vocalist Steve Bettney sounding as incredible as he did over 40 years ago.

London quartet The Leaf Library return with their bold new album After The Rain, Strange Seeds. A luminous collection of pastoral indiepop, drawing inspiration from suburban isolation, unreliable memories and the surreality of the weather. Their most immediate and melodic work to date, the richly evocative songs brim with chiming guitars, buzzing organs and warm, dulcet strings, evoking Yo La Tengo’s more contemplative moments, The Clientele’s autumnal jangle pop and early Stereolab’s motorik melodicism. The sound of the album is defined by mixer John McEntire, whose work with Stereolab and Yo La Tengo (as well as a member of Tortoise/The Sea And Cake) have been major inspirations to the band.
The album explores themes of memory and place, albeit through an abstract haze – returning again and again to specific moments frozen in time: midsummer bright hot days in the Chilterns (“Sun In My Room”), meteorology and the strange movement of the weather (“Colour Chant”), red kites circling over suburban motorways (“Some Circling”), and the uncanny feeling of dusk and nighttime creatures on “The Reader’s Lamp” (titled by celebrated film director Peter Strickland). The lyrics are vivid yet elliptical, strung with abstract ideas and imagery, conjuring a gently unsettling, though never unwelcoming atmosphere. Not quite trusting your own recollection of things, while marvelling at the oddness of the natural world, the album’s title a good summation of the mix of strangeness and hope contained within.

As on past albums the band - founded by singer Kate Gibson and ex-Saloon guitarist Matt Ashton in the mid 2000s, and now completed by drummer Lewis Young and bassist Gareth Jones - have involved their extended musical family, including guitarist Mike Cranny (of fellow drone pop travellers Firestations) and keyboardist Irina Shtreis, both members of the Leaf Library live band. The album also sees the return of James Underwood’s Iskra Strings, a quartet that features on 4 tracks, with sumptuous arrangements by Daniel Fordham, as well as regular contributor Melinda Bronstein on vocals and Will Twynham (Dimorphodons) on harpsichord. They also welcomed Paddy Milner (on Hammond organ) and Scott McKeon (guitar) – both current members of Tom Jones’ band – for a startlingly delicate rolling crescendo to closing track “There Was Always A Golden Age”.
After The Rain, Strange Seeds is their 4th studio album. The result is The Leaf Library’s most accomplished and affecting work, John McEntire’s mix bringing a bold clarity to the band’s meticulous arrangements – closer to how they sound live than anything they’ve done before.

Mixed by Simon Lam (Kllo, Armlock) and mastered by Grammy-nominated engineer Andrei Eremin, the album features collaborations with British talent including rising spoken-word artist Emmeline, Mancunian ambient producer Frameworks, and Nattica from Fickle Friends on the single 'Oh My'. Speaking on the album, Fractures says: "There's no overarching theme to this album, not lyrically anyway. It's cobbled together like short diary entries of someone journeying through a sort of middling stasis in their life, a time of nothing particularly noteworthy, and that in itself provokes deeper and maybe darker introspection.

I didn't feel like needlessly plugging holes with lyrics, just light dabs here and there, light and shade to complete the visual I pictured in my head. The through line of the album is more within the sonic palette. There's a murkiness, a sort of dust in the audio that is cast over every song. Noth

Inspired by the long tradition of radical country and folk artists, longtime friends Sally Buice and Molly Rochelson use their passion for literature and storytelling to craft an album that reckons with the current global fever pitch. The album's 12 introspective, thematically and sonically layered tracks chart a transformative pilgrimage through an inextricably connected world. A woman desperate to save her community from a gas pipeline in "Plains of Ohio," a devout grandmother traveling across the world to Yugoslavia in search of the Virgin Mary in "Our Lady," and a trouble- making Bible College misfit in "Loud and Clear" are just a few of the archetypes listeners meet.

The Cincinnati-based duo cut their teeth as teens busking on Market Square in Knoxville, TN. Produced by Eli LoPinto (Chris Stapleton), the duo opted for a bigger sound and the result is a bonafide, left-of-center indie country record. Path of Totality does not shy away from the weight of political strife and catastrophe, opting instead to boldly confront it, bringing to bear the power to unite us all.

He was trying to survive. The album was born from loss, written in the quiet aftermath of his closest friend Dean Jendoubi's passing. In that stillness, Burnside stripped everything back. Gone were the dense textures and surreal folk tales; what remained were bare, trembling songs that told the truth.

‘What It’s Like to Be a Bat’ is the first album of producer and composer Finn Streuper. The record takes its title from a well-known philosophy paper on consciousness, exploring its ideas through sound. The fragmentary music opens up a delicate, weightless world of sound, combining jazz, electronic and library music.

In 2026, 62 years after the first release, she releases the LP Tomorrow's Yesterday, and it cannot be ruled out that this may be her last physical album. All the songs are recorded in duo or trio format. The musical sounds are excitingly combined with her voice and Rob Luft on guitar, John Surman on saxophone/ bass clarinet on side A. Whilst on side B we hear Karin Krog with Erlend Slettevoll on piano/electric piano and Rob Waring on vibraphone.

"Love, Peace & Harmony - The Best of Bow Wow Wow is a compilation of the iconic new wave group Bow Wow Wow, released in 2008. The band was formed by Malcolm McLaren, the manager of the Sex Pistols. McLaren recruited members of Adam and the Ants to form the band, featuring 13-year-old Annabella Lwin on lead vocals. Over the next four years, the band dominated the British charts, with nine singles entering the UK Top 100. ""Go Wild in the Country"" and ""I Want Candy"" even made it into the top 10. Their success didn't stop in the UK; they also enjoyed success in Australia, the US and the rest of Europe. This version of the compilation includes the song “The Man Mountain”, which reached the top 10 in Belgium and the Netherlands. Love, Peace & Harmony - The Best of Bow Wow Wow is available as a limited edition of 1000 individually numbered copies on slightly gold coloured vinyl. "

Wild and exciting self-penned material.

Spanning dance and indie movements since their formation in Liverpool at the end of the last millennium, Ladytron have earned a unique position by carving out new sonic and conceptual space, and refusing to abide by formula or trend. In the early 2000s, the fiercely individual group were placed at the forefront of the so-called electro-clash scene (which now enjoys another revival), but with time, they came to appreciate the pop cultural moment that they had reluctantly become part of. The new album follows a period of renewed cultural presence for the band. Their 2002 single "Seventeen" unexpectedly went viral on TikTok, introducing Ladytron's sound to a new generation and amassing hundreds of thousands of fan- made clips. Their legacy was further acknowledged recently with "Destroy Everything You Touch," one of their most celebrated tracks, featured in the GRAMMY- nominated original Motion Picture Soundtrack of cult movie Saltburn, reaffirming Ladytron's enduring appeal

Here we find ourselves, among the Canadian miscreants Egregore whereupon they return from whence the wind howls like a damned choir and the Earth knows no master, to chart a broader sonic wilderness via ‘It Echoes In The Wild’. And much as sea-rogues and freebooters sought fortune upon blackened waters, so too does Egregore venture musically into diabolic and ungoverned lands. Presenting something more expansive, elemental and untamed on ‘It Echoes In The Wild’, the early occult Black Death Metal lunacy embraces atmospheric breadth equally alongside primitive force to delve deep into not only geographic wilds, but the psychological, esoteric and spiritual hinterlands at the edges of complete madness. Dark invocations and secret tongues draw forth echoes from forest and fen, cave and cliff, tempting the temporally tethered to receive the curse, all the while driven by a primal, unknowable sardonic menace. Though the voyage be perilous, to succumb to ‘It Echoes In The Wild’ is to become ensconced in a lawless dominion of the soul in service of a higher call. Mirroring nature’s unbridled forces and the hidden echoes that dwell within, Egregore’s second album takes the band’s mystical insanity and magickal perversion to the edge of the abyss and plunges forward.

- For all fans of the Wamono series!

- All tracks selected by DJ Yoshizawa Dynamite. Includes the first ever vinyl release of The Peanuts' "Ohara Bushi" track, originally released only on tape in 1970.

- Fully licensed King Records masters.

- Mastering and lacquer cut by Jukka Sarapaa at Timmion Cutting Lab, Helsinki, Finland.

- 180g heavy vinyl pressing, reverse board jacket.

- Artwork by Nicolas Kerembellec (Nker).

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Active as a professional DJ in Japan since the late eighties, DJ Yoshizawa Dynamite is also a renowned remixer, compiler and producer. An avid record collector and an expert of Wamono music, Yoshizawa has published in 2015 the now-classic Wamono A to Z records guide book, which instantly sold-out. The book unveiled a myriad of beautiful and rare records from a highly prolific, but still then unknown, Japanese groove scene. He has also selected a large part of the music in our highly acclaimed Wamono compilations.

For this brand new chapter in the series, Yoshizawa explores King Records' legendary catalog and unearths exceptional, rare and unknown musical gems. King Records has been releasing music since 1931 and is one of the most prestigious labels in Japan. Traditional Japanese music, known as "Minyo", are ancient songs once sung by fishermen, coal miners and sumo wrestlers. They are reimagined here with vibrant afro latin, rock, rare groove and funky arrangements in this killer selection of music released on King between 1963 and 1979. Also worth mentioning is the track Ohara Bushi by The Peanuts, which was released only on tape in 1970 and is now available for the first time ever on vinyl format.

Put the needle on the record, turn up the volume and dig right now into the Wamono sound - the cream of the Japanese funk, soul, rare groove and disco music developed throughout the years since the end of the fifties in Japan!

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180GWALP08 - Manufactured and distributed by 180g.

Driveline Records launches its catalog with a focused four-track vinyl EP built for the dancefloor, presenting four distinct yet cohesive techno cuts driven by groove, atmosphere and functionality.

The A-side opens with Invexis - "Roots", a hypnotic builder that slowly unfolds into a funky-driven rhythm. Tight hi-hats and rolling basslines carry the track forward, culminating in a subtle yet engaging melodic progression that lifts the energy without losing tension.

Next, Pylot - "Observation" delivers a highly functional club tool based on steady loops and an aquatic sound design. Aggressive low-end and raw basslines support an atmospheric and hypnotic flow, making it a solid choice for mid-set pressure and long blends.

On the B-side, Berlin-based duo Disguised contribute "Gitty (Dub Mix)", a dub-influenced and dreamy track designed to keep the dancefloor moving while creating a floating, immersive mood. Deep grooves and spacey textures balance rhythm and emotion.

Closing the EP, Shadow Hrym - "Delia" explores more melancholic territory, combining tribal and funky rhythms with emotive soundscapes, offering a powerful and memorable ending to the record.

A strong debut statement that defines Driveline Records' sonic vision: DJ-oriented techno with depth, groove and atmosphere, pressed on vinyl for dedicated selectors.

GAEREA ist nichts weniger als ein fantastisches Rätsel, tief verwurzelt in Extremen und leidenschaftlicher Hingabe. In weniger als einem Jahrzehnt hat das maskierte Kollektiv, das in der portugiesischen Stadt Porto gegründet wurde, unzählige dunkle Facetten des Metal getestet und präsentiert nun mit "Loss" sein fünftes Album sowie Debüt bei Century Media Records.
"Wir haben das getan, was wir immer getan haben - wir sind unserem Instinkt gefolgt", sagt der anonyme Sänger von GAEREA. "Doch etwas sagt mir, dass dieses neue Album Elemente hat, die sowohl unsere neuen als auch unsere alten Fans lieben werden - aber es ist nicht gerade genau das, was sie von uns erwarten."
"Loss" definiert GAEREA neu und verquickt Elemente aus ihrer Post-Black-Metal Vergangenheit mit eindringlichen Melodien zu raffinierten Klanglandschaften. Dabei schlüpft die Band aus dem kreativen Kokon, um sich in etwas ebenso Mitreißendes wie Unerwartetes zu verwandeln: Es gibt Klargesang. Es gibt Refrains, die so eingängig und leidenschaftlich sind wie die besten Rock- und Metal-Songs. Und doch ist es unverkennbar GAEREA.
Die maskierte und ritualisierte Bühnenpräsenz der Band ist nicht nur Teil einer Show, sondern ein integraler Bestandteil von GAEREA, der ihre musikalische Extremität auf ein philosophisches, avantgardistisches Level hebt. Ihre Uniformen bieten dabei eine gesichtslose und androgyne Leinwand, die es ihnen erlaubt, sich in vollkommen in ihre Performance zu stürzen, die nicht zuletzt durch eine gewisse Körperlichkeit in ihren Bann zieht. Trotz ihrer dunklen Präsenz versprüht die Band stets einen Hauch von Transzendenz und Positivität. Mit "Loss" verschmelzen GAEREA die Ästhetik des Extreme Metal, die Offenheit des Post-Rock und einen freigelegten, emotionalen Nerv zu einem neuen musikalischen Paradigma.
Das ist GAEREA.
"Loss" ist erhältlich als: Ltd. CD Digipak in O-Card, LP, Digital Album

The first resonant space Zosha Warpeha played in was the Emanuel Vigeland Museum in Oslo, Norway. Built as a mausoleum, its walls reach up into a gradual archway, creating an environment where sound expands and reverberates for twelve seconds before decaying into silence. Warpeha was greeted only by dim lights when she entered, and it wasn’t until she had spent several minutes listening that she was able to make out the frescoes that covered every inch of the room: graphic depictions of the cycle of life from conception through death. As the sound of her Hardanger d’amore encountered the walls and these slowly emerging scenes, they obscured its point of origin in both time and space, augmenting its own life cycle. The experience sat in the back of her mind over the next several years as she developed her own patient style of composition and performance, one that comes into full bloom on her new album I grow accustomed to the dark.

When Warpeha was selected as an artist in residence at Brooklyn’s ISSUE Project Room in 2025, she saw it as an opportunity to more intentionally explore how her music might fill a room with ample natural reverb. I grow accustomed to the dark documents two single-take solo performances for Hardanger d’amore and voice at IPR, with both pieces composed in a unique tuning system developed to interact with the space itself. Listeners can trace resonance from the contact of the bow on gut strings into the body of the instrument, its five sympathetic strings offering another layer of refraction, before the sound is thrown about the cavity of the room. The echoes emerge like a photographic double exposure, or wisps of smoke that linger in the air, creating ghostly harmonic convergences that blur the line between what is there and not-there. Sound begins to act like light, a synesthetic alchemy that transforms drones into beams and ornamental trills into flickers.

Both side-long compositions, “filament” and “visual purple,” exemplify a duality that animates Warpeha’s music: an expressive, individualistic style that draws on extensive knowledge of her instrument’s history in folk traditions, and an austere, devotional quality maintained by focus and precision. Though very different in character and structure, both pieces evolve slowly through numerous repetitive phrases, passages of stillness, and bursts of intensity. “filament” opens with a cycle of delicate melodic fragments played and sung around a drone before blossoming into an outpouring of swooping arpeggios, harmonics flying from the strings like sparks off a bonfire. The disorienting pulsation of harmonic beating forms the core of “visual purple,” the close-tone dissonance building to a swarm of open strings ringing boldly throughout the space. After the knotty tones reach their climax, the piece collapses into studied quietude, hushed, but without any drop in intensity.

When Warpeha first visited the Vigeland Museum in 2019, she was in Oslo to deepen her relationship to the Hardanger fiddle through the study of Norwegian traditional music, which is primarily passed down aurally. The experience of learning songs by ear, not only internalizing the tune but also absorbing the techniques and tonalities by listening, was a crucial step in her development as a composer. The years since have seen her sharpen those skills as a prolific member of the New York avant-garde and improvised music communities. Warpeha’s music encourages listeners to join her in this journey, to listen closely with each repeated phrase and through each dramatic shift. Like the frescoes on Vigeland’s walls, with time and intention, the depth of I grow accustomed to the dark comes on like a revelation.

“Tectonic” is a concise portrait of SIMON BERZ’s geological sound explorations across continents over the last 15 years: drums, electronics, and a set of electronically manipulated basalt stones from Iceland.

SIMON BERZ is a transdisciplinary drummer, sound artist, and music educator based in Switzerland and Berlin. Working at the intersection of improvised music, sound art, and performance, and deliberately crossing boundaries between disciplines, his aesthetics are shaped by a sustained engagement with natural materials, particularly stone, and their sonic transformation through electronic manipulation. Beyond his performance work, BERZ founded BADABUM as an art label and a music school.

For the last 30 years, BERZ has been performing in Japan, China, Russia, the USA, Cuba, Iceland, Turkey, and across Europe. He has collaborated with artists including BILL LASWELL,BABY SOMMER, DAMO SUZUKI (CAN), JAMES TURRELL, JIMI TENOR, JOHN SINGLAIR, JOJO MAYER (NERVE), KONDO TOSHINORI, KIDD JORDAN, LAUREN NEWTON, LEE “SCRATCH“ PERRY, MAURO PAWLOWSKI (dEUS), NILS PETTER MOLVÆR, NIKI GLASPIE, NORBERT MÖSLANG, PAUL LOWENS, PFADFINDEREI, ROB MAZUREK, SKÚLI SVERRISSON, and he was the live drummer for APPARAT. As BERZ understands artistic practice as energy emerging from nature and through dialogue with people, his recorded output is intentionally selective, with one highlight being “Beats versus Breath” with KONDO and LASWELL (2023). Alongside a regular drumkit and electronics, he has developed his own instruments such as the “Lithophon” in which resonating stones are turned into amplified sound through water drops, and “Tectonic”, a set of Icelandic basalt stones shaped through electronic manipulation. These self- built instruments form the material basis for his performances, installations, and sound recordings.

“Tectonic” is also the title of BERZ’s latest work: a summary of his geological sound explorations across continents. From Iceland to Indonesia and Bali, from New Orleans to China, in caves and at shores, BERZ carried his millions-of-years-old basalt stones as both instrument and collaborator. On Java, he met Baron, a builder of stone gamelan instruments. At the Pacitan Tabuhan Cave (Indonesia) he performed with MISBACH BILOK and WUKIR SURYADI (SENYAWA) who work with corals as instruments. BERZ brought these encounters and “field recordings” to the Stöðvarfjörður studio in Iceland, where he recorded with his “Tectonic” set-up, drums, and electronics. The music was later mixed in Berlin by DIRK DRESSELHAUS (SCHNEIDER TM). The resulting album moves from club-driven tracks to ambient passages, from gamelan-inspired textures to HipHop-like beat patterns. It resists easy categorization while staying direct and physical in its impact.

GRAMMY-prämierte Rap-Ikone Nas und DJ Premier – zwei der einflussreichsten und angesehensten Persönlichkeiten der Hip-Hop-Geschichte – veröffentlichten ihr mit Spannung erwartetes Kollaborationsalbum „Light-Years“ am 12. Dezember digital über Mass Appeal Nach den limitierten Day Ones Editionen gibt es nun die regulären Editionen mit Artwork, ab 20. Februar 2026.

Nach jahrzehntelanger Vorfreude ist „Light-Years“ die Wiedergeburt einer 30-jährigen Zusammenarbeit. Die Partnerschaft von Nas und DJ Premier ist tief in der DNA des Hip-Hop verwurzelt. Ihre Geschichte begann 1994 mit „Illmatic“, das Hits wie „N.Y. State Of Mind“, „Memory Lane“ und „Represent“ hervorbrachte. „Illmatic“ etablierte Nas als Ausnahmetalent und festigte Premiers damals aufstrebende Karriere. Ihre musikalische Chemie vertiefte sich im Laufe des folgenden Jahrzehnts durch Klassiker wie „I Gave You Power“, „2nd Childhood“, „Nas Is Like“ und „N.Y. State Of Mind Pt. II“.

Angeführt von Mass Appeals bahnbrechender Reihe „Legend Has It…“, die einige der wichtigsten und einflussreichsten Hip-Hop-Künstler aller Zeiten feiert und ins Rampenlicht rückt, präsentierte die Reihe ein ganzes Jahr lang historische Veröffentlichungen von Kultur prägenden Künstlern wie Slick Rick, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Mobb Deep, Big L und De La Soul. Mit „Light-Years“ liefern Nas und DJ Premier den krönenden Abschluss dieser legendären Reihe, in der ihre unbestreitbare Synergie nach wie vor einzigartig ist.

2006 zierten Nas und DJ Premier das Cover des Scratch Magazine und kündigten ein gemeinsames Projekt an, das die Begeisterung der Fans erneut entfachte und die zwei Jahrzehnte währende Vorfreude beflügelte. Letztes Jahr taten sich Nas und Premier zusammen, um das 30-jährige Jubiläum von „Illmatic“ mit der Veröffentlichung des neuen Tracks „Define My Name“ zu feiern, mit dem sie erstmals ihr wegweisendes Kollaborationsalbum ankündigten.

„Light-Years“ ist ein wahrer Beweis für den Einfluss beider Künstler, ihr Vermächtnis und die Zeitlosigkeit ihrer gemeinsamen Musik.

2026 Repress

Portuguese techno mainstay Dextro drops cultured EP 'Covil Dos Abutres' for his label debut on Mutual Rytm.

Dextro has been immersed in electronic music and DJing since the early 90s. In the decades since, he has become synonymous with a sound deeply rooted in simplicity and authenticity. Fuelled by a passion for his craft, his production process is guided by intuition and spans a diverse range of styles, from tunnelling grooves to more potent techno with deep and hypnotic layers. He has held several key residencies and released on top labels like CLR and Missile Records, and he adds to those with a first outing on SHDW's Mutual Rytm with 'Covil Dos Abutres'.

The five-track 12" and eight-track digital EP has a sleek, stripped-back style, with wide-spanning corners of the techno realm explored. 'Covil Dos Abutres' is a deep space transmission with journeying, frictionless beats and deft sci-fi motifs that recall classic touches synonymous with the genre's pioneers. 'Correct Incorrect' keeps the pressure on with more rubbery, dubbed-out groves beautifully decorated with delicate melodies. 'Vida E Morte' is another sublime and hypotonic minimal techno sound with funk in the kicks and a freaky late-night spirit. 'Element One' again combines perfectly reduced drum groves with atmospheric pads and curious samples that keep you intrigued, and 'Beautiful Day' closes out with sonar-like synth pulses over the most skeletal but captivating rhythms. Digital cuts 'Time Line', 'Savana Urbana', and 'Diferencas' further explore the intersection of minimalism with cosmic synth designs that take you off into distant astral worlds.

On this 8 track EP every song has UK and USA lyricists side by side as equals. It includes older icons of Hip-Hop, established talent from the current underground rap scene, and young emerging rappers who haven't been given a platform until now. This project is a collaboration between producer Sam Seed, a dozen rappers, 4 record labels,

the 05:21 music platform and a DJ night. No filler, all killer.


Introducing Sam Seed

A rising name on the underground rap scene. North London producer Sam Seed has a list of top tier production credits to his name with artists including Vinnie Paz, Billy woods,

Mickey Diamond, Conway the Machine. The Unaligned Vol.1 is his eagerly awaited debut EP.

Crave Tapes is thrilled to announce the first vinyl release on the label which will be the second album from Frankfurt's underground post-punk/dark wave band Babes of Enola Grey, Krieg und Wohlstand.
Krieg und Wohlstand sees Babes of Enola Grey follow the path of their 2021 debut, Anfang vom Ende, and take a step further into the realm of melancholic and disillusioned soundscapes. While keeping a certain retro character to the songs, Deborah Vision, Salvador Islero and Fabian van Castorp focus on quite contemporary themes, which some might call the most German obsessions:
War and prosperity.
But this is not the only reference to the band's heritage. Sometimes more, sometimes less, there are musical allusions to various German influences and contributions to (modern) music and music history. While Doppelt Frei is a nod to EBM and bands like DAF or the early Die Krupps and Wie auf Schienen as well as Die Heuschrecken pay homage to German düster punk bands like Fliehende Stürme or EA80, Panik and the title track Krieg und Wohlstand refer to the romantic German art song tradition of the 19th century (not to mention the obvious hint at a certain successful German Schlager in Die Kugeln und das Herz).
This makes Krieg und Wohlstand not only a worthy epigone of the band's debut, but also takes the album and the artistic approach to another level.
Commenting on the chosen format (12" vinyl), the band members said: "It was clear to us that we wanted to release this album on vinyl. When you look atGerman history, war and prosperity have to be seen as two sides of the same medal, or in this case of a record".

Introducing the 4th instalment of the Pacific Coast House rebirth. We bring back another much sought-after 12” from The Coastal Commission & Jesse Outlaw. “Bring down the Walls” was a nod to Raze’s “Break for Love”, Robert Owens “Bring Down the Walls” and Ritchie Hawtin’s use of the Roland 606 throughout “Sheet One”. Long out of reach and fetching $100+ on Discogs, Atjazz’s freshly remastered editions are finally available .. “Let it Go” was never mastered & only ever cut to dub-plate. It has now been mastered & available in all it’s glory.

Coastal Commission “Bring Down the Walls” “Bring down the Walls” was a nod to Raze’s “Break for Love”, Robert Owens “Bring Down the Walls” and Ritchie Hawtin’s use of the Roland 606 throughout “Sheet One.” We gave the tune a Californian psychedelic twist with conga laden drums, a moody synth, low pulsing 303 patterns + Benjamin Zephaniahs patois call to “Move the Body Rhythmwize!” The first PCH releases had dropped Worldwide to International acclaim from DJ’s far and wide across the Globe with support in London, Paris & New York. However the local scene here in L.A that preached “Love, inclusion & Unity” was anything but that. L.A at that time was very tribal & divided up into 3 camps. If you weren’t affiliated with any of them (aka independent) then you were pretty much locked out of getting any kind of gig support or the Dj’s from those camps actually playing the music. The local feedback from Dj’s was that what we were making wasn’t “house,” but “Techno” which was absurd to me. “Bring Down the Walls” was a mantra to “move the bod”y and in doing so “bring down the walls” of separation not just in L.A but throughout society in general. Thank goodness for support from people like Terry Francis, Eddie Richards, DJ Deep & Philly Stalwart King Britt. After years of copies going for upward of $100+ on Discogs the now freshly remastered copies by At Jazz’s Martin Iveson are finally hitting the platters this Spring.

Jesse Outlaw “Let it Go” I met Jesse at Beatnonstop Records on Melrose Ave with Miguel Placencia in the late 90’s. Miguel (RIP) was a mainstay in the Underground scene and had always been very supportive of my endeavors. He had had success with a huge release on Yellow Orange and was working with Jesse under the moniker “When Worlds Collide.” I signed “Brighter Days” & “Set you Free” from them and released the tracks on my Seductive imprint. They told me that they were making the tracks on a Sony Playstation “Music Now” program and I was like FFS “What.s more Underground than that!?” Later Jesse gave me some of his solo work. The track “Let it Go” was never mastered & only ever cut to Dub-plate and featured on my 1st PCH mix “Pacific Coast House Sounds.” It has now been mastered by Martin Iveson and is available in all it’s glory. The dreamy vocal “You need to let it go” beckons over the top of driving percussive Latin beats and church organ which is a great compliment to the flip side of “Bring down the Walls.” All in all two West Coast stompers now finally available remastered on PCH in Orange vinyl.

I Made It All Up For You is the new record by Hugo Race Fatalists, their 6th studio album, set for release March 20, 2026 thru Gusstaff Records / Helixed on LP/CD and digital.
"In his 40-year career, Hugo Race has lived a thousand lives and played the role of songwriter, producer, musician, performer, head of a record label (Helixed). His music went from folk to lounge, from "trance industrial blues" to psychedelia, from world music to electronics. Starting from post-punk Melbourne in the 1980s, he took fascinating paths that led him from Africa to Turkey, from Berlin to Romagna…"
Hugo Race returns after highly successful collaborative albums with Michelangelo Russo (100 Years), The Church frontman Steve Kilbey (Speed of the Stars) and Gianni Maraccolo (The Vigil, winner of the prestigious Premio Ciampi) with I Made It All Up For You, an epic album with his Italian band Fatalists - existential songwriting framed by the band's signature fusion of roots music, electronica, Italian soundtracks and desert rock.
"I wanted to create something melodic and beautiful in defiance of our current reality. The songs started as bare acoustic sketches written in a remote mountain cabin in Italy where I had two weeks off during a solo tour. The weather turned into a raging blizzard, the days a struggle to keep the wood fire lit and the smoke out of the house. I wrote about twelve songs, threw them all away, started again with an unplugged electric guitar in front of that
damp fire, searching for the album's theme. When the smoke cleared, I was at the crossroads of a long term relationship unraveling under a blazing antipodean sun.
Fatalists recorded the basic tracks at the floating studio on the Puccini lake an hour out of Florence - Giovanni Ferrario (Scisma, PJ Harvey) on guitars and synth, Francesco Giampaoli (Brutture Moderne) on bass and Diego Sapignoli (Sacri Cuori) on percussion.
Violinist Massimiliano Gallo met me in Sicily for a short tour to learn the new songs, adding layers of his Calabrian magic to the mix. Jennifer Charles (singer of New York band Elysian Fields) and I had been talking for a long time about making new music and this was the occasion when we made it happen. Jennifer's distinctive voice graces this
album on the songs I Collide and Broken Love, the lyrics of which were written by author and designer Alannah Hill. My longtime road brother Michelangelo Russo also dusts the tracks with his otherworldly electric harmonica on Against The World, Born To Fly and Open Field. A lot of joy and pain and reflection went into the making of this album and I hope that comes across; this is about the darkness yes, but also the light. Everything changes and every ending is a new beginning but it's how we experience transformation that really matters. I hope you love this album. I made it all up for you."
Hugo Race, Naples, 2025