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Sindh presents the Vagali EP, a striking continuation of his tunnelling, futuristic take on techno. Growling synths, driving basslines, alien atmospherics and finely tuned percussion define a sound that feels unmistakably his own.
Following his Komudo series — which has built a devoted following since its debut in 2024 — this latest release leans further into his signature sound design, pairing hypnotic sequences and menacing synth lines which feel right

Sans-i, the new brainchild of Sunny Seppä, aka Sansibar, is a project that takes a deeper dive into a more expressive, expansive and entropic world. The debut Fenno Dub is a two-track EP featuring “Science” and “Paranormal.” Both tracks echo (…echo, echo, echo…) from different sides of the same coin—which one will you choose? Sans-i stirs a potent brew on the Fenno Dub EP, where the sound emerges from the continuum of The Bush Chemists, The Disciples, Jah Shaka, On-U Sound, Conrad Schnitzler, and The Slits, just to name a few.

Words have never been my strongest point. I have many ideas in my head, often too many. I can talk a lot about them, but putting them on paper is not really me. I rather just work on my ideas. ‘cause whatever your thoughts are, as soon as it is out there and people start to listen it becomes theirs. What I might have thought up before, and have as concept behind the music, might not be how someone else listens to it. And that’s okay.
If we keep in mind that my music is time focused, and I love it when it isn’t polished too much, so small errors become part of it, the music should speak enough for itself.
“Continuation” is my first studio album since “En de stilstaande tijd” (2019), and shows a rougher sound staying closer to my live sound. I see this as a continuation of my live performances, though this time with various multi-track recordings brought together as a whole, all done in my home studio “Studio De Baviaan” over the course of 8 months.
--- Sietse van Erve / Orphax, Janauary 2026

Alex Caballero, also known as Doctrina Natura (Seville, Spain), is known for his organic, nature-inspired sound, and this remix follows that style closely. It exists alongside my original track, like two versions in different universes with the same purpose.

In his version, the focus is on punchy, tight drums that give a 90s feel. The track starts dark and moody, then gradually builds into a more intense and powerful climax, keeping its natural and immersive vibe throughout.

This is the second time Alex has remixed one of my tracks. The first collaboration dates back to 2019 on Edgar’s Nferee. While my own sound has changed significantly since then, Alex has remained true to his distinctive style, steadily raising the quality of his work.

Sub Radar 01 repress. Hangar dark Tribe sound. A pure psychedelic experience. No vocals samples. Just sound.

Andreas Tilliander returns to Kontra-Musik in a grand style with his second TM404 album. Titled 'Acidub', this highly anticipated release is much more of an evolution than a repetition of the first superbly self-restricted album, where Tilliander even decided to use only one of the two Roland TB-303 waveforms. Acidub is a more playful and open listening experience, no doubt inspired by his extensive live touring with the TM404 concept. In fact, you can almost hear Tilliander's flock of acid machines breaking free from the restrained modus operandi. Every sound is like a migratory bird with a heart yearning for high altitude and favourable winds. The opening track Alinge paints a lucid picture of these acid birds leaving a cold industrial landscape behind, the flickering black shadows from their wings against the white smoke rising from a forest of chimneys below. The very last seconds of Alinge even echo of the place the silver birds are longing for, but that will remain a secret between Kontra-Musik and the avid listener. Sufficient to say, we can follow these birds of passage as they're heading south towards a warmer climate, fleeing the cold discipline of the North. Mutron Mantra, for instance, brings us to a rainforest full of serpentine lianas, giant leaves dripping with moist and green pools of water bubbling with organic life. Don't Defend Mascot guides us through a steaming savannah at dusk with hundreds of yellow eyes following our every step while Pade vividly describes the perils of the flight and the pace and courage needed to press on. In all, Acidub is a surprisingly exuberant follow-up to the more introspective TM404 album. But while the musical journey of this second album is quite different, the experience of sheer aural eminence remains the same. Andreas Tilliander has done it again, and Kontra-Musik couldn't be prouder.

After ten years 12 Inch Lovers has become a household name not only because of their parties but also because of the fantastic vinyl samplers they released over the past few years, which were sold out in no time and have become true collector's items.

They now continue in the same vein and once again bring a fresh and contemporary mix of hard to find, original house classics or even classics that never had a vinyl release.

These samplers should therefore not be missing from any 12 Inch Lovers collection.

"Gregor Salto" is at it again! Sampler 6 opens with that other and hard to find classic of his "Your Friend". A club classic that has won the hearts of countless clubbers and house fanatics around the world since 2009. And speaking of hearts; Belgian dj-producer "DJ Wout" released this beautiful and emotional remix of "D. Van Horn's" "Somebody Now To Love". A true trance classic and typical in sound for that period that you can find on A2.

On B1 we find a more recent track but which you can already say is a future classic. "MZ" from "Sascha Funke" is still played to this day by top DJs like Solomun and very hard to find on vinyl. A must have! Dutch producer "Karmon" delivered this catchy deephouse remix of "Fabo's" "Where I Stand" in 2012. You can find it on B2.

On C1 we find the beautiful "Andain" classic in the "Gabriel & Dresden Unplugged Mix". "Beautiful Things" was picked up by "Tiësto" at the time and has made it a true classic. Hard to find on vinyl.

"Moko" "Fly" on C2 is a very catchy and quirky track from 2010 that never had a vinyl release! Highly recommended!

D1 brings the dreamy and highly sought after "Today" from "POB & Taylor" in the "Seismic" remix after which we close with D2 with a true classic.

"My Moon My Man" by "Feist" is probably that record which remix is better than the original. "Boys Noize" was responsible for this in 2007 and the rest is as they say history.

With absolute joy we can announce that one of our favorite dubplates of the last years is finally going to be released. If you heard Lion’s Den play, you heard this one. This is Violinbwoy’s take on a Belarusian traditional song. A beautiful interpretation by Laboratorium Pieśni remixed for sound system play by Violinbwoy in his laboratory.

A tune gathering the ancient spirits - from that time to this time… play it loud and feel the vibrations!

2026 Repress

Producer and bassist Huw Marc Bennett presents ‘Tresilian Bay’, a new project that draws from artists such as Tim Maia, Augustus Pablo and Idris Muhammed as much as the jazz scene and community he has found in south-east London. The languid, sultry sound fuses both modern and vintage, travelling from South London electronica, to Brazillian groove, Nigerian Afrobeat and Ghanaian Highlife along with a streak of Welsh psychedelia.

‘Tresilian Bay’ is a nod to hedonistic summer nights, whether spent on the Glamorgan coast or the hot Lewisham streets. The album is titled in honour of the bay near where Huw grew up, an area steeped in stories of ancient Welsh royalty, smugglers and pirates.

The album started out as a lost live session recorded at the Total Refreshment Centre studios, featuring Chelsea Carmichael (sax), Rosie Turton (trombone), Shirley Tetteh (guitar) and Jake Long (drums) with Huw at the helm on bass and compositions. With glorious vocal contributions from Miryam Solomon; Huw utilised his human style of production and multi instrumentality heard in his Susso project (Soundway Records, 2016) to mold these recordings into this mature and emotional debut.

The album was mixed and mastered by Albert's Favourites co-founder Adam Scrimshire with artwork by Jonny Drop.

Four chunky funkers from Cadence.

King Tehuero features four cuts, including two dub versions on the B-side by Don Fe, who also mixed and mastered the entire record.

The record opens with the Guitar Version. Guitar as a lead in sound system culture is far from the norm, giving the track a distinctive edge shaped by Andalusian tones and echoes of ancient Iberian lore.

The remaining cuts strip the guitar away, shifting the focus back to rhythm and low end. On the B-side, both dub versions explore deep, dark territory, with the second pushing further into bass-heavy, dubwise pressure.

[a] a1. King Tehuero [Guitar Version feat. Martincore]

[c] b1. King Tehuero [Don Fe Dub]
[d] b2. King Tehuero [Don Fe Dubwise Cut]

East London's Jeigo works alongside North London perfume house Nosu on this quietly inventive release from Fleurella Records that extends beyond the usual club framework and intertwines scent and sound. Opener 'Placid Shimmers' drifts between organic house, lo-fi ambient and introspective worlds with swung rhythms and soft focus synths, while 'SPF 50' leans into melancholic breaks and 90s IDM echoes. It feels delicate but still moves you and is where texture and mood carry the groove into something subtly uplifting and tactile. A beatless version of the opener is included for pure dreamy escape.

In this, the return of the one and only XI to the last standing first wave US Dubstep label LoDubs, which brought him out onto the scene over a decade and a half ago with the Jazz-step a’la Silkie preceding anthem “G-Funk 3000”, XI once again shows he has an indelible gift for making choons that are system rocking and cerebral all at once.

Heavy support from a slew of sound system stretchers. Currently being heavily featured by Distinct Motive on his tour spots, of which XI is joining the DM on selected dates.

Ikadub have been shaping their sound for a decade, oscillating between digital pulse and analog sounds. Character and rhythm that the duo offers to several singers according to style and mood, for a discography rich in beautiful encounters.

Tell The Truth is an example, if not the best, of a collaboration that rings true, hits hard and sounds killer! Prince Jamo delivers impeccable vocals to lyrics that resonate as current events prove him right, served by a riddim that makes you nod your head from the first bars. I want to say BIM!

UnOwn is back with a third outing of magical edits and this time the enigmatic Fava Luva is cooking up the heat. First up is an edit of 'Roze', a disco gem that gets pulled apart and rebuilt in slow, sensuous fashion. The drums are loose, the funk is real and the vocal is full of tease that will warm up any setting in any season. On the flip, 'Fishy' is just as much of an elastic and playful sound, this time with a sleazier vocal and some mad, cosmically inclined synth expressiveness and plenty of Parliament-style vocal oddness. A pure heater from this ever-more-vital label.

Ecstasy and delirium—Amterdam’s duo Match Box transport us once again, getting us back on bright, trance-leaning club sounds; while Berlin-based Olsvangèr takes on remix duties with patient in waveform form—dubby, radiant and groove-led. X-File’s is an ep leaned into pure ecstasy made for this summers festival calendar and beyond.

303 synthesiser leads, driven bouncy baselines, infectious chopped vocal samples from the nineties—Match Box sit somewhere between euphoric trance and high-energy progressive house, shaping the sound of the EP.
On B1, Olsvangèr takes Stone Again into dubby territory with his signature prog touch, full of intricate textures and depth.

This 4th chapter of the Dubatriation Dubplate Style series presents Philosofy, an epic melodica instrumental crafted by Italian producer Crazy Hertz in a combination with his mentors and UK dub legends Alpha & Omega. While most of the lead instruments have been played by A&O, bass, drums and soundscapes have been provided by Crazy Hertz who also showed his terrific mixing skills on both sides, delivering an immersive dub on the flip.

Foley steps forward with the inaugural 12” on Pyramid Fields — an EP rooted in nineties trance that delivers a sound that feels unearthed rather than recreated. Pulling from the Sasha & Digweed / early Paul van Dyk school, but cutting out the excess compared to classic trance, balancing groove and emotion in equal measure — controlled, melodic, and dialled in for the floor without losing its pull. Body Clinic returns on remix duties — recently featured as an emerging artist of 2025 by DJ Mag — sharpening the edges with a more direct, prog club-ready take — two distinct lanes, same forward momentum.

Dave Mech presents Berlin Seite on 12" vinyl and digital. A powerful LP featuring 10 tracks loaded with robust and elegant Techno. The first four tracks deliver modern Techno sounds, with celestial pads that wrap around you from the very first beat. A record that will become a permanent piece in your DJ bag. The release is completed with six additional digital-only tracks, recorded live in different clubs across Berlin, capturing that raw and untouched magic.

Bit of this, bit of that. 4 cuts of everything groove and swing.

After a sold out first release, NY’s Superflux is back for Round Two with a debut release from arguably the most unsung hero of the Midwest underground. Uplink is a REDACTED-based hardware specialist known for their work running a series of labels and organizing parties that have helped define the region’s sound for more than a decade. Crafted using time-honored tools of the trade, these four dubby, tracky, and raw cuts – lifted from live stereo board recordings – will sit comfortably alongside releases from STL, Skudge, and MRSK.

The A1, Audio Sport, is a dubby groover with almost-steppy hats and bit of bite; a reverb-drenched lattice of delayed pads bends your sense of time and space until you realize you’re 12 hours into the warehouse function and someone’s just thrown a piano off the roof. A2, Blue Untitled, is a deep stomper reminiscent of the early WAX records. A big & shifty bassline turns this into a true head-nodder. B1, Temporary Machine 1, is a more subdued dubbed-out tech house cut anchored on a rolling bassline and flanked by dusty percussion and prescriptive stabs. Proper warm up tackle or hazy after-afters fodder: the choice is yours. Connoisseurs of a fine B2 rejoice – this one is it. Dokta is a moody, tripped out late night techno affair with a dash of bounce for good measure. All that hisses is gold.

Written by Colin Boardway

Rinascimento Elettronico presents its first vinyl release: R/E001 — Divide By Zero EP by Translate, featuring a remix by Psyk. Out May 28th.
Argentinian artist Translate, a well-established name within the hypnotic techno scene, delivers a refined and immersive EP built on deep, looping structures, textured atmospheres and subtle rhythmic progression. His sound navigates between tension and introspection, maintaining a strong focus on hypnotic continuity and dancefloor functionality.
On remix duties, Spanish master Psyk reinterprets Inactive with his distinctive signature — stripped-back, precise and driving — adding a powerful and functional edge to the release.
With Divide By Zero EP, Rinascimento Elettronico sets the tone for its vinyl series, focusing on forward-thinking techno rooted in depth, repetition and sonic identity.

In-demand AfroColombia Remix Vol. 1 finally repressed!
A collection of Afro-Colombian classics (Champeta, Son de Sexteto, Currulao) revisited by talented producers from the global club scene.
Ten years ago, a sound was born that bridged roots and reinvention. Today, Galletas Calientes Records is proud to announce the official reissue of AfroColombia Remix Vol. 1 on vinyl, in collaboration with legendary Colombian label Palenque Records.
Originally released a decade ago, this project brought together visionary producers and timeless Afro-Colombian rhythms, creating a dialogue between tradition and the global electronic underground. Now, remastered and pressed on wax again, the record returns with renewed depth—warmer, richer, and ready to be experienced the way it was always meant to be heard.
This limited vinyl edition celebrates the legacy of the original release while honouring the artists, communities, and sounds that inspired it. Whether you’ve been with us since day one or are discovering it for the first time, this reissue is an invitation to reconnect with a pivotal moment in Afro-Colombian musical fusion.

DJ Vandel and Benedetti present Baby Viche, a psychedelic journey through mature house music, blending Medellín’s raw street sound with the flavor and rhythm of Cali’s tropical heat.

Two tracks that pull you into a nonstop dancefloor trip. Vicheventura is pure groove, a hood party vibe, a subtle fusion of Latin soul and electronic energy. Coco Sensación takes you into a hypnotic trance somewhere between jungle landscapes and the ocean breeze of Colombia’s Pacific coast. Nobody’s gonna want to escape the groove.

Baby Viche it’s spiritual. With psychedelia, flavor, and a whole lot of love.

Banger playing 45 !
Deep cut and fresh sound !

Second vinyl release for this Northeastern America experimental label.
New scenes, new sounds, new beats, new ideas... An efferv'essence.

Crazy project ! Full support !

Old school Les Boucles Etranges Style : Bass Kicks and spaces electro sounds...

Strom UA delivers a remix with deep basslines and hypnotic sounds that create a strong atmosphere from the start. The track develops slowly, adding small, subtle new elements along the way which are not recognised at first but at the end they come together and form a full story.
To me it feels like traveling in a tunnel where the light slowly disappears. It creates a cold and mysterious feel which then keeps you interested and encourages you to progress further.
It doesn’t demand attention, it absorbs it.

Release description Chesster lands on Rutilance Recordings with a four-track EP rooted in classic deep house. Blending old-school influences with a modern touch, the project captures the essence of his sound: groove-led, warm, and true to its foundations. Originally from Italy and now based in Los Angeles, Chesster has been building strong momentum across the global house scene, with a run of standout releases and defining moments over the past year. This EP marks an important step in that journey - not only as his first on the label, but also as a more personal statement. After a run of highenergy, peak-time records, the project sees him step into a deeper, more refined lane. The EP also features a special contribution from Rutilance boss DJ Steaw, adding an extra layer of character and tying it closely to the label’s identity.

Melody As Truth and Future Days Radio present ‘At the Emerald Pool’, an album by Tomo Katsurada and Jonny Nash.

Netherlands-based artists Tomo Katsurada (Ex-Kikagaku Moyo / Future Days Radio) and Jonny Nash (Melody As Truth) combine forces for an exploration into the sonic potential of the guitar duo, rooted in their experiences performing together over the last 12 months.

Friends and admirers of each other’s work for a decade, their musical collaboration began in 2024 with Katsurada asking Nash to contribute guitar to his debut EP ‘Dream Of The Egg’. Sensing the need to explore this further, they spent the following year performing together in different configurations, with Nash joining Katsurada’s trio and Katsurada in turn playing with Nash as a duo, across a wide spectrum of spaces, from churches and temples to concert halls, theatres and outdoor festivals. With new ideas developing organically out of these performances, recording new material became the next logical step. A short period of three days was set aside with a clear goal: to capture the essence of their fluid, intertwining melodies and guitar playing in a way that felt as direct and unfiltered as possible. Working from a handful of pre-existing sketches, they left ample room for experimentation to unfold within the process.


The results are presented on ‘At The Emerald Pool’, a collection of ten pieces that offer the listener a full immersion into the pair’s sound. With guitar as the primary instrument for both artists, it is no surprise that the core of the album lies here, specifically in the fluid interplay between the two players. Layers of gentle, delay-soaked fingerpicking often make it almost impossible to distinguish where one player ends and the other begins. As soloists, both Katsurada and Nash have a gift for crafting melodic lines that feel open and ascending, expressive and hopeful without becoming saccharine. Longer, more abstract pieces are counterbalanced by a series of shorter songs, with five vocal tracks appearing across the album. The decision to share vocal duties lends the record a unique quality and a strong sense of variation, bringing a wide expressive range out of a deliberately focused musical framework.


‘At The Emerald Pool’ represents the first chapter in an ongoing musical dialogue, an attempt to capture a moment of connection, openness and discovery, laying the foundation for what continues to unfold.

The follow up to 2022’s ‘Return to the Island’ LP is a new 6 track EP influenced heavily by the evocative powers of incense and a deep sense of escapism. The EP has a more organic sound palette than its predecessor, from both the use of samples and appearance of various guest musicians. Lead track ‘Morning Star’ features long standing collaborator Mike Burn (Udaberri Blues & Mama Capes) who adds his trademark liquid gold lead and rhythm guitar lines with live bass from Fernando Pulichino.

The guest on ‘Savanna’ is frequent Jack J collaborator Linda Fox, who provides emotive and melancholy sax over a Dub House backing track with a particularly dreamy chord progression. The EP features Instrumental Dubs of both tracks, alongside two other new productions, the 80s leaning ‘Hands Across the Sea’ and ‘Wah Fix’, which rounds off the more Dub influenced B side with a 125 BPM bouncy Dub House excursion.

In 2026 the Jura Soundsystem project enters its 10th year and is the creative musical outlet of Isle of Jura founder Kevin Griffiths. All tracks produced at IOJ HQ in Moana, Adelaide between 2022 and 2025 with support from the incense gods of Cedarwood, Jasmine and Sandalwood. The 12” is housed in a 3mm spine full sleeve designed by Bradley Pinkerton.

Charlie Conway and his PHAASER crew are putting the Nashville underground techno scene on the map. Funky, raw, driving techno. No bullshit, all groove.

The titular “Rudded” A1 cut has a bass line you never want to stop and a delightfully maddening synth crunch squealing to psychotic ecstasy…it’s not too far off from some of the rolling minimal tech DOO records from the past few years. A2 “Zinc” brings a stomping, mineral techno funk. Some of the sounds are reminiscent of Acid Planet / Bunker Records, hardware torqued up and overflowing. The B side consists of “Why Do You”, a 12 minute masterclass in speedy, funky, groovy minimal techno. Heads have been waiting for this one!!

Back in 2022, Is It Balearic? Recordings founders Coyote (AKA long-serving producers Richard Hampson aka Ampo and Timm Sure) took time out from releasing music on their own labels to deliver a near perfect mini-album on Phil Cooper’s similarly mind-ed NuNorthern Soul imprint, Everything Moves, Nothing Rests.

A superb exploration of their trademark sound, where gentle downtempo rhythms and nods to dub came cloaked in colourful ambient chords, sun-bright melodic motifs, organic instrumenta-tion and quirky spoken word samples, Everything Moves, Nothing Rests deserved a sequel. So, three and a half years on, the duo has delivered just that: a fine six-track EP that offers an even deeper and more atmospheric exploration of their signature sound.

It is a sonic approach that should now be familiar to Balearic en-thusiasts the world over. Aside from delivering a steady stream of singles, albums and remixes on their own imprint, Hampson and Sure have also showcased their skills and loved-up musical mis-sives on International Feel, Music For Dreams, Needwant, MM Discos and Citizens of Vice.

The Higher The Sky, The Deeper The Ocean, their hotly anticipated NuNorthern Soul return, is named in honour of a quote from Ped-ro Alonso’s documentary series On the Ship of Enchantment, an extended voyage in which the Money Heist movie star meets healers and masters of ancestral medicine across his native Mexi-co.

There’s naturally a meditative and slightly psychedelic sound to much of The Higher The Sky, The Deeper The Ocean, which offers a subtly varied exploration of Coyote’s style and influence. Yearning, soft-focus opener ‘Muted Beauty’ – the kind of immersive, effects-laden and sample-sporting ambient bliss found nestling on Fila Brazillia albums of the mid 1990s – is followed by the similarly gentle ‘Go All The Way’, where delay-laden acoustic guitars, spo-ken word snippets and gaseous chords stretch out atop a languid, slow-motion groove.

‘A Drop in the Ocean’ picks up the pace a little via a glorious hat-tip to turn of the 90s ambient house – all dub-wise bass, heady deep house sonics, spaced-out chords and half-buried references to sunrise-ready Balearic synth-pop records of the late 1980s. Late psychedelic guru Terrence McKenna appears in sampled form on ‘Dolce Far Niente’, a tabla-driven drift and musical hallucination which conjures mental images of lying in the Mexican desert, gazing intently at a starry sky.

In contrast, ‘Riviera Sound’ is a chunkier, brighter and more sun-splashed affair – all deep, dubby bass, sustained piano parts, punchy downtempo breaks and the duo’s trademark ambient pads – while superb closing cut ‘No Coincidences’ fixes jazzy double bass samples, twinkling keyboard motifs, subtle acid lines and Latin-laced percussion to a street soul-adjacent beat.

Heady, impeccably crafted and thoroughly enveloping, The Higher The Sky, The Deeper The Ocean is Coyote at their dazzling best. It marks another significant chapter in their ever-evolving musical journey.

XKatedral Anthology Series II (An Anthology Of Slowly Evolving Timbral Music), featuring exclusive music from Kali Malone, Jessica Ekomane, Mats Erlandsson, Theodor Kentros, Wilma Hultén, and Maria W Horn.

"XKatedral Anthology II is the second instalment in a series of archival releases dedicated to presenting music by composers affiliated with XKatedral working within the realm of slowly evolving harmonic and timbral music. This double-vinyl set contains an array of pieces dating from 2018 - 2020. This collection of pieces focuses on the use of synthetic sound and algorithmic composition languages as tools for precise work within the realm of spectral exploration. In addition to this, the electronic instrumentation in many of the pieces is augmented by acoustic instruments.

The first piece on side A is Kali Malone’s Music for Low Quartet. This piece is an adaptation of the composition “Rose Wreath Crown” originally released on The Sacrificial Code in 2019. In this iteration, the music is scored for two double basses played by Vilhelm Bromander and Zach Rowden, and sine tone electronics performed by Malone herself. The recording of this piece was made at EMS in 2019.

Closing side A is Jessica Ekomane’s ‘First Light’. This computer music piece focuses exclusively on digital sound, layering razor sharp synthetic textures into an otherworldly dynamic weave. The music heard here is a reworked version of a piece originally commissioned by Semibreve in 2020.

Side B contains the work ‘Hands Melt In The Sun’ by Mats Erlandsson. This composition is built from electronically processed tuned zithers and synthetically generated tones arranged in a series of chordal inversions over a sustained fundamental tone. This music, written as a love-letter to the localized drone tradition of Stockholm in the years 2008-2012, was composed and recorded in seven days while in residence at Ställbergs Gruva in Bergslagen, in the summer of 2018.

Opening the second half of the collection is Rough Draft v.7 by Theodor Kentros. Kentros’ compositional practice usually combines acoustic and electronic source material and in this piece he molds the sound of the Buchla 200 and a collection of recorded wind instruments into a molten mass of sound. In its original form, this music was presented as a multichannel immersive work and even in the current stereo configuration it retains some of that enveloping sense of depth.

The second piece on side B, Inertia, is by Wilma Hultén, who makes her debut on record here. An exclusively synthetic piece, Inertia utilizes internal digital feedback in a sealed synthetic system to manifest a harmonic field that swells and abates throughout the length of the piece, interspersed by small gestural elements.

Closing Anthology II is Maria W Horn's work ‘Dies Irae’ for female vocal quartet, pitched glass and synthesis. ‘Dies Irae’ uses a modified form of traditional tonal harmonic language to invoke an uncanny and restless middle ground between the classical western polyphonic vocal tradition and contemporary electronic music. The version heard here is a live recording from Eric Ericssonhallen in Stockholm on May 30th 2020. Performing the piece here are the vocalists Katarina Henryson, Lisa Holmgren, Vilma Ogenblad and Paula Wegmann, as well as Maria herself on glass and electronics."

Death Is Not The End collaborate with Uzbek label Maqom Soul to deliver an LP counterpart to last year's mixtape of the same title, compiling specially picked & fully licensed individual belters from the ex-soviet studios of Central Asian republics between 1978 and 1989 - incl. Uzbek, Tajik, Kurdish & Uyghur artists pulling traditional folk motifs together with pop & rock and psych elements.

"These recordings do not form a smooth or coherent history. They feel more like a sequence of discoveries made at different moments and in different circumstances. Songs and instrumental pieces that once lived inside specific contexts radio broadcasts, philharmonic programs, touring routes now sit side by side, revealing hidden connections as well as clear fractures between them.

Nasiba Abdullaeva appears here as a voice from the end of an era. Trained within a conservatory system, she worked inside the format of the Soviet pop song while filling it with melodic logic that did not come from Moscow or Leningrad. Her voice is soft and sustained, shaped by Eastern melisma, and it never functions as decoration. Even in tightly structured songs there is a sense of resistance, an effort to preserve a musical language rooted in Uzbek tradition rather than fully adapted to an all Union standard.

The ensemble Sintez, later renamed Navo, represents a different path. Beginning as a student rock group, the band was gradually absorbed into the official VIA system with all its limitations and compromises. Yet it was precisely within those boundaries that Sintez and Navo developed a recognizable sound. Electric guitars and jazz rock harmonies do not overpower the folk material but remain in tension with it. Their recordings feel like negotiations between what the musicians wanted to play and what they were allowed to perform.

The Tajik ensemble Gulshan reflects an institutional approach carried to a high professional level. Formed under television and radio structures, the group treated folk material almost as a written score. Carefully constructed arrangements, close attention to orchestration, and restrained use of pop techniques define their sound. There is less spontaneity here, but a strong sense of discipline and structure, where national melody becomes part of a carefully controlled sonic framework.

Koma Wetan occupies a very different space. Formed in the 1970s, this Kurdish rock group approached poetry and folklore as tools of cultural assertion. Their psychedelic rock never feels like a stylistic borrowing. Instead it functions as a contemporary vessel for language and themes that might otherwise have remained unheard. Even today these recordings sound fragile and stubborn at the same time.

The Uyghur ensemble Yashlik, closely connected to a musical drama theatre, operated somewhere between stage performance and popular music. Their songs are built on folk melodies but shaped for wide audiences. What emerges is a constant attempt to preserve the recognizability of Uyghur musical identity without freezing it in a folkloric frame. Yashlik's music exists in a state of balance between representation and development.

Digging Central Asia does not attempt to establish hierarchies or offer a single wayof listening. Names and dates matter less than the sound itself. Tape noise, abrupt transitions, and unexpected timbres remain part of the material rather than flaws to be corrected. This music existed at the crossroads of multiple routes geographic, cultural, and ideological. Heard today in a new context, it no longer feels peripheral. Instead it stands as a reminder that the history of popular music is far more fragmented, layered, and polyphonic than it is usually allowed to be."

We here at TSTD are longtime fans of UK producer/musician/Label maker MATT HUGHES. For a few years he is delivering tasteful, deep, dubbed reworks for Too Slow To Disco, some in Edit form, but also his 2 official remixes for Goodvibes Sound on The Sunset Manifesto 2.
Both new TSTD Edits on this 7 inch are slow disco masterworks, he is giving the originals his trademark deep, warm versions. Who is the guy….?
Matt Hughes is a music producer from the north of England. A purveyor of all things funk, soul, disco, jazz and house! Most recent releases have been with Outcross Records, Bubblegum Pop, Editorial and Too Slow To Disco. A large number of Matt's works have been released under the MAM project with Miguel Campbell remixing the likesof the Climbers, Deadmau5 and Flight Facilities, as well as putting out releases via Wolf+Lamb, Future Classic, Hot Creations, Outcross Records, BPitch Control and Editorial Records to name a few.
Among his most notable collaborations are works with Derrick McKenzie, drummer of Jamiroquai; Drop Out Orchestra, Art Of Tones, amongst others. Each of these collaborations has allowed him to explore new musical dimensions, enriching his characteristic sound with diverse and fresh influences.

With a musical style deeply rooted in disco, funk and jazz, Monsieur Van Pratt combines classical elements with contemporary touches, creating a sound experience that is both nostalgic and innovative. His work not only stands out for its technical quality, but also for its ability to connect emotionally with the listener, making him a central figure in the evolution of modern dance sound.

KITCHEN. LABEL is proud to present AGATE, the latest album by Japanese artist MEITEI, marking a deepening of the world he first shaped through his Kofū trilogy released between 2020 - 2023.

Named after the mineral agate, a stone formed through slow accumulation, pressure, and time, the album reflects MEITEI’s patient approach to sound. AGATE brings together extended and newly rearranged works from across the Kofū cycle alongside new compositions and passages, refining material developed through years of performance and sustained practice.

The album presents seven tracks:

HAŌ (Previously unreleased track)
SHIN-OIRAN (Remodeled from Oiran I, Kofū 2020)
SHIN-SADAYAKKO (Remodeled from Sadayakko, Kofū 2020)
SHIN-WAROSOKU (Remodeled from Wa-rōsoku, Kofū III 2023)
KYŪGEKI (Remodeled from Shinobi and Akira Kurosawa, Kofū II 2021)
SHIN-OIRAN II (Remodeled from Oiran II, Kofū 2020)
SHIN-EDOGAWARANPO (Remodeled from Edogawa Ranpo, Kofū III 2023)
Across these works, MEITEI expands the musical vocabulary first introduced in Kofū, a sound he once described as “lost Japanese mood.” While Kofū drew from fragments of folklore, theatre, ghost stories, and forgotten urban memory, it was never an act of historical reconstruction. Rather, it reflected a sensibility of the past observed from the present. With AGATE, this worldview is clarified as Shinpu, a process of discovery in which historical awareness becomes a foundation for contemporary creation rather than a constraint.

During five years of Kofū tours across Japan, Europe, and Asia, MEITEI performed this material in a wide range of spaces, from underground live houses and listening rooms to culturally significant sites. These environments influenced pacing, dynamics, and structure, shaping how the material evolved over time. AGATE is therefore not only a studio album, but the result of material refined through repeated performance.

If the Kofū albums were windows into forgotten eras, AGATE explores what lies beneath, sediment and strata formed through time and pressure. MEITEI’s approach to sound mirrors the nature of agate itself. Grains become texture. Texture becomes narrative. Voices drift through decaying layers of sound, while ancient instruments are used in non-traditional ways, forming distinctive percussive rhythms and melodies that appear and vanish without fixed resolution.

The album’s visual materials were developed under MEITEI’s direction through physical art-making processes. The cover artwork originates from a letterpress print created by Kamisoe, a Karakami atelier in Nishijin, Kyoto, using Kyo-karakami paper. The original artwork, produced through traditional woodblock techniques on handmade washi, was subsequently reproduced on print for the album edition. Kamisoe continues to reinterpret this historical Kyoto craft with a contemporary sensibility.

The title calligraphy was created by Bio Xie, whom MEITEI personally invited to participate in the project. During his performances abroad, MEITEI encountered in Taiwan a lingering atmosphere reminiscent of “Shitsunihon” — a sense of old Japanese memory that quietly endures beyond time. He was deeply drawn to Bio Xie’s distinctive use of Chinese characters, which resonated with this experience, and asked him to contribute to the visual expression of AGATE.

In parallel, MEITEI continues to reinterpret Japanese sensibility through his concept of “Shitsunihon,” presenting it as a contemporary musical language. The refined Kyoto motifs envisioned by Kamisoe and the distinctive calligraphic expression by Bio Xie intersect with MEITEI’s singular artistic direction, weaving together a newly articulated worldview.

The accompanying visual imagery, including the liner photographs, was created by photographer Hiroshi Okamoto, who was also responsible for the visual direction of MEITEI’s previous work, “Sen'nyū.” It draws from MEITEI’s lived experiences of winter seas, solitary cliffs, and breaking waves. These scenes symbolize the inner conflicts of the ten years he spent living in Hiroshima, and his confrontation with solitude and the sounds he creates.

AGATE will be released on 17 April 2025 via KITCHEN. LABEL on 180g vinyl, CD, and digital formats. The album is mastered by Kelly Hibbert, known for his work with Flying Lotus, Madlib, and J Dilla.

With AGATE, MEITEI returns to the material of Kofū with greater focus and discipline, continuing an ongoing process of working forward with inherited material.

This is not a Ben Vida, Booker Stardrum, and Will Epstein record; it’s a Play Time record. That’s a subtle but important distinction, for a couple reasons. One, the sound of Magic Object—a polymetric blend of improv and pulse minimalism for saxophone, drums, and Moog—doesn’t really sound anything like any of their many other ensembles or respective solo projects. And two, it was only while making Magic Object, their debut album, that Play Time realized they were a band at all.

Let’s back up. The roots of the trio date to 2020-21, when Will and then Booker moved to the Hudson Valley, where Ben was already living. The three got into the habit of playing together at Ben’s house, and they soon realized that their hang sessions felt fundamentally different from making music in some falling-down studio in Bushwick. Where those experiences were rushed and cramped, a new sense of time and space now suggested itself. Where once they rat-raced the music, now they relaxed into it.

Early gigs yielded similar revelations. A booking at Tubby’s, the beloved Kingston venue, evolved into a kind of residency. Tubby’s is a small space, fitting around 100 people, with a bar in the front room and a stage in the back. Play Time decided that they didn’t want to play on the stage; they wanted to play in front, among the people in the bar. Rather than hogging the spotlight and overpowering the other voices in the room, they blended with the energy of their surroundings and emerged as a sort of minimalist-jazz-krautrock bar band.

Gradually, they discovered a newfound “elasticity”—Ben’s word—that reshaped the music from inside. “It’s this communal thing,” he says. “It’s vibes. And it’s embedded in the community up here, which feels really vital and nourishing.” They were jamming, but it wasn’t just a free-for-all; they found themselves listening to each other in new ways. “Ben and Booker joke that they’re always playing in different time signatures,” Will says. “We’re all going forward with our own ideas, but we’re open to each others’ as well, and they’re all sort of dancing together.”

“We all have our painterly solo projects,” Will says—where, Booker adds, “we do a lot of studio arranging and thinking and composition that takes shape over a period of time.” Play Time, on the other hand, is all about being in the moment. That spontaneity was key to the process of recording the album. They booked two days in their friend Joey’s studio, a converted wooden barn. “It’s just a live room,” Booker says. “There’s no separation or anything. So we’re all in the space together and it’s got this beautiful, woody sound, and that’s very much the sound of the record.” For two days, they just jammed, for seven or eight hours each day. When it was over, they went through, edited down the portions they liked, and added very judicious overdubs designed to enhance the original recordings without fundamentally altering them, staying true to the spirit of the sessions.

The result is something like a snapshot and a mission statement all rolled into one. “You’re hearing us discover the voice of the band in real time,” Ben says. “We finished those sessions and we were like, ‘Oh, that’s what our band sounds like now.’”

Now, with Magic Object, the rest of us get to find out too.

—

Balmat is a label with a cloudy outline. Jointly shepherded by Albert Salinas and Philip Sherburne, two friends living in Cardedeu, Catalonia, and on the Balearic island of Menorca, Balmat grew out of Lapsus Radio, a weekly show born almost ten years ago. Balmat’s mission is simple: to foster new ideas, expand upon personal obsessions, and put enveloping sounds out into the world.

“Balmat” means “empty” or “void” in Catalan. But quite apart from any negative connotations, we prefer to think of it in terms of possibility: a space waiting to be filled.

Ubisoft and Laced Records have forged a new trade alliance, expanding their economic tree to bring the lavish music of Anno 117: Pax Romana to glorious vinyl.

This vinyl set celebrates the ornate score for Ubisoft's richly detailed city builder, capturing the spirit and splendour of the Roman Empire at its peak. From the beautiful heartland of Latium to the mysterious Celtic wetlands of Albion (where no civilized Roman wants to be), every musical cue is steeped in world-building and crafted with remarkable care.

The outer sleeve features striking landscape art from the game, while the inner sleeves present detailed track lists framed with ornate motifs inspired by Roman architecture and pattern work. The result is a set that feels like a treasure from the imperial archives.

The soundtrack charts a journey across the empire, weaving together atmospheric strings, ancient-inspired instrumentation, and sweeping orchestral cues that capture both the serenity of prosperous provinces and the political tensions throughout. The music reflects every choice you, the governor, must make. Diplomacy or domination, tradition or transformation. An emotionally rich and immersive soundtrack worthy of Rome itself.