quête:st avenue

For our eighth release we are proud to host the Madrid-based producer Arnic with his first full record on tresydos. A familiar face of our label, Arnic not only plays regularly at the tresydos showcases in the Spanish capital, but also already appeared on a VA and delivered a mix for our podcast series.

From the start of the record, the style is strikingly groovy and deep, combining captivating funky basslines, sharp house rhythms, and jazzy harmonics. While some tracks come across as perfect ‘hands-up’ club gems, the production on this record shows a lot of depth to it, encompassing elegantly suspended atmospheres, softly psychedelic touches in its synths-work, and even some downtempo beats. Arnic’s tresydos record debut escapes easy formulations in favor of a strong personality in every single track - tresydos008 is a quality and versatile record not to be missed.

After a year and a half writing and recording rock music, I needed to clear my head. I listened to and made music where things generally happen gradually rather than suddenly. I would set up patches on a Monomachine or Analog Four and listen to them, hearing one sound morph into others, making changes to a patch only after having listened for quite a while, gradually adding elements, and finally manipulating the sounds on the fly. All tracks were recorded live to CD burner, with no overdubs, and executed on one or two machines.

While I was almost exclusively listening to artists such as Chris Watson, Peter Rehberg, Bernard Parmegiani, CM Von Hausswolff, Jana Winderen, Oren Ambarchi, Hazard, Bruce Gilbert, Klara Lewis, Ryoji Ikeda, and so on, I was also inspired by my mental image of John Lennon's tape and mellotron experiments he made at home during his time in the Beatles, as well as events like the first minute of Bowie's Station To Station, ...And The Gods Made Love by Jimi Hendrix, the synths in the song Mass Production by Iggy Pop, and the general idea of Eno's initial concept of Ambient music.

Music being a solitary sculpture in sonic space was the main motivating thought. I was looking at pictures of sculptures and trying to make music that simultaneously conveyed both movement and stillness. I refrained from sudden musical changes, especially avoiding sequences of notes and rhythms. In fact, this music was made from sequences which never exceed a single note, many of these pieces being made on a single pattern. The movement which a good sculptor conveys when the shape of his medium meets the eyes of the viewer who walks around the piece, or the sun changes its position, are the kinds of movement which it was the role of the synth patches to communicate.

I've been listening to music like this since I was 13 or so, but I felt that making it was out of my reach because of the amount of restraint I imagined it required. Once I found myself making this music, it did not feel like a matter of restraint at all. I wanted to build a certain type of building, and hear certain types of movement, and I knew when it was complete. There was no place for sequences of notes and rhythms in my plans.

I also cannot overstate the role that being in my band played. I had previously spent 12 years programming and engineering my own music, and then spent a year and a half making music where my role was basically to write songs and play guitar. When the band's recording phase was completed, I needed to go back to my adopted language. I had done enough with chords, rhythms, notes, defined sections, sharp transitions, etc.. What I needed was to create music from the ground up with nothing but sound, and have that music reflect "being" rather than "doing". It was a therapeutic way of re-balancing myself, before and during my band's mixing process.

This music seeks to just exist, and is not attempting to manipulate or grab the listener in any way. I believe it works well if one listens loud and focuses on it, but also works well at soft volumes and in the background. It can compete with silence on silence's own terms, and it can also happily wipe silence out.

There are two versions of this album. The CD version is pronounced "two" and called : I I . This is the longer version. The vinyl version is pronounced "one", and called . I : This version is shorter, but contains one vinyl-only track. The reason the vinyl is shorter is that some of the tracks have sounds that can not be pressed on vinyl.

John Frusciante

Die Pioniere der elektronischen Popmusik sind zurück und feiern mit ihrem 14. Studioalbum “Point” ihr 40-jähriges Bestehen.

Mit der Debut-Single „Bostich“ eroberten Yello die afro- merikanischen Dance-Klubs von New York . Danach ging ihr Sound – eine Collage von Musik aus aller Welt – um die Welt. Alben wie „You Gotta Say Yes To Another Excess“ (1983), „Stella“ (1985), „Pocket Universe” (1997) und „Toy” (2016) waren Bestseller. Die Evergreens „The Race“, „Oh Yeah“ und „I Love You“ tauchen noch heute ständig im Kino auf. Laute und stille Stimmen wie Shirley Bassey, Billy Mackenzie, Stina Nordenstam und Fifi Rong haben im Yello-Studio gesungen.

Das am 28.08. erscheinende, von Boris Blank und Dieter Meier höchst persönlich produzierte Studioalbum “Point” besteht aus 12 Titeln, deren typische Yello-Klangbilder einen jeden Fan und Kenner sofort
aufhorchen lassen. Die Singles “Waba Duba”, “Out Of Sight” und “Spinning My Mind” sind darauf ebenfalls zu hören.

Dropping in January 2023 is the reissue of DJ Shu�lemaster's album EXP, which Tresor Records first released in 2001. This expanded reissue comes as a 3xLP with new artwork by Japanese designer Sk8thing and combines the original CD release tracks with three tracks from the Angel Gate 12" from the same year, including a remix by Surgeon of Experience. Also present is a previously unreleased version of Innervisions, which replaces the assonant synths of the original with a looped vocal sample upfront. Climb and Guiding Light will feature as digital-only tracks.
Tatsuya Kanamori remains a critical component of the Tokyo techno underground scene, initially coming to the fore through the Subvoice label before releases with Tresor, Theory Recordings, and Japanese record labels such as Disq and Reel Musiq. At the moment of the original release, DJ Shu�lemaster considered the record to draw in disparate and latent ideas into a fully encompassing mesh - "I would like to show my thoughts and everything that I am through the album. If it doesn't reflect my ideas and the reasons that I live for, there is no meaning for me to create an album. Therefore, EXP doesn't contain just one theme or concept."
EXP represents an uncompromising and psychedelic slant on techno, with a purist's focus on the dancefloor. It bridges many avenues within the techno genre, from the minimalist, dubby terrains of tracks like P.F.L.P. and Opaqueness, to more fierce percussive works that share a kinship with the sonic movements in Berlin, Detroit and
the UK. Beyond the technical, pared-down techno found in tracks such as EXP and Onto The Body, the album leaps into unpredictable territories frequently. Angel Exit carries mystical UK steppers moods as if it were a long-lost dubplate of The Rootsman. Kanamori delves deep into looping digital grunge in Flowers of Cantarella and Dawn
Purple, these synthetic worlds enveloping and deforming at will. Bold and as fresh as ever, EXP is an unearthed jewel from Tresor's past for new ears.

Red Vinyl

Breaking from the strange monotony and abnormal norms that took hold during two years of pandemic life, Hammock returns with Love in the Void , an album that looks to the future, seizes the present, and unabashedly relishes the experiences and bonds that bring meaning to our days. Known for crafting orchestral works of stirring cinematic ambience, on Love in the Void the Nashville-based duo of Marc Byrd and Andrew Thompson bring guitar-forward, heart-pounding urgency to songs that shout through and shatter the static of complacency. Since forming as Hammock in 2003, Byrd and Thompson have released 14 critically-acclaimed albums, and are renowned for their unique talent for bringing inexpressible emotion to life. The Covid-19 pandemic followed closely after one of Hammock's career-defining works, the Mysterium, Universalis, and Silencia trilogy that chronicled the incomprehensible loss of Byrd's 20-year- old nephew. At their homes and apart, Byrd and Thompson then recorded Elsewhere, an album of shimmering ambience that channeled alienated longing and displacement into avenues that gave way to worlds and possibilities yet realized. Shaken awake and needing to break free of frustrations and longings, Love in the Void pulses with an unbridled spirit for action and experience and a burning desire for connection Across songs that hammer home the keenly felt emotions of life's highs and lows, Byrd and Thompson crest soaring crescendos awash in reverb and delve to keenly felt moments of quiet introspection, with unflinching lyrics on tracks like "Undoing" and "Denial of Endings'' that weigh choices made and circumstances that can't be changed. Lush and dramatic string orchestration from Matt Kidd (Slow Meadow) and emphatic drumming from Jake Finch heighten the stakes in play, and Christine Byrd's (Lumenette) ethereal vocals leave mysteries lingering in the haze. Love in the Void is Hammock's loudest album to date, embracing daring and vulnerability with palpable vitality at its core, and moving into an unknown future without fear.

Embracing his career path as an emcee/entertainer, CRIMAPPLE returns with his latest solo effort, El Cantante, which serves as an ode to Hector Lavoe and The Fania Era of salsa music's profound storytelling.

Although devoid of any guest appearances, CRIME is joined by a supporting cast of praise-worthy producers throughout the project whom include Bohemia Lynch (Westside Gunn), Michaelangelo (Avenue, Vel the Wonder) as well as his frequent collaborator, Buck Dudley, among others. And while there’s tracks that borrow aesthetics akin to latin music—such as the syncopated rhythm patterns on “Tuesday,” or the looping pan flute heard on “Out the Way”—you’ll still find the archetypal soundscapes that have defined CRIME’s discography. These include the soulful/zone-inducing loops on tracks like the album opener, “My Song,” as well as “Together,” “Encore,” and “Precious.” And then there’s the chest-pounding bangers like “Cosos,” where CRIME lyrically remains in his bag with unrelenting, braggadocious rhymes: “You cheesecake, rappers know I get on this shit and eat great / Get better at any take and drop on anyone’s release date”.

All in all, El Cantante is a self realization of sorts as the New Jersey emcee shares his current life perspectives as he touches on what it’s like to be considered a hip-hop legend by many, while also reflecting on the path that brought him to this point in his career.

Bassist/composer Christian McBride's 'The Movement Revisited: A
Musical Portrait of Four Icons' is the culminating documentation of a
richly inspired piece lauding four key figures of the Civil Rights
Movement: Rev
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, Rosa Parks and Muhammad Ali.
Marshalling his ever- sharpening skills as a composer, arranger, conductor,
musician and lyricist, McBride has created a historically and culturally
illuminating five- part suite for an 18- piece big band, chorus and narrators that
places the motivating forces as well as the goals of the Civil Rights Movement
within a powerfully relevant artistic context. It is a one- from- the- heart project
McBride was, apparently, destined to undertake.
This recording of The Movement Revisited marks the addition of a fifth
movement, Apotheosis, which acknowledges the election of Barack Obama as
the first African American President of the United States.
2-LP regular weight black vinyl gatefold jacket.

Carry On, issued in 2000, is Pat Green's third album and his last before signing to Universal Republic. One can hear transition in the sound of this record, and traces of Nashville's mighty presence in the production, but this is still very much a Texas record. Carry On is a more mature and artfully rendered collection than anything Green had released before.

The elusive SW. returns to Avenue 66 with okALGORYTHM. His third LP for the label is a semi-opaque wandering through the shadowy byways of memory, driven by tough-yet-supple production and his unmistakable, unerringly original voice. Inspired by all night electronic radio shows of the '90s, okALGORYTHM pulses with rich imagination and a sense of purposeful meandering. Speaking in cryptic fragments, the artist hints at elusive reminiscences "back then on the autobahn, to Berlin, with friends" while also noting that some recollections are "of things that didn't happen that way."

To this end, the album drifts from the knotty synth spirals of opener "WHAtADAY" through the tense, technoid tropics of "stepCLASSixMOtor," the brightly melancholic Larry Heard-isms of "TROPyCALLhytsrIA" to the stately skronk of closer "What endingENDs." The rhythmic undergirding never lets up, suggesting a limitless night drive tinted in deep greens and refracted reds. Each of the album's ten tracks comes alive with warm, analog finesse and a palpable atmosphere, though they play out by turns urgent or unhurried, coaxing or inscrutable. Yet throughout, there's a consistently hypnotic quality which draws the listener deeper into the album's unique balancing act.

If listeners are trained to expect throwback anthems every time the '90s are referenced, here they might find a more apt touchstone in the wilder, left-of-center corners of Chicago's foundational epoch. Throughout the album, the spirit of jacking house is absorbed, metabolized and transmuted. Drawing on lineages of taut, nervy synth-and-drum machine workouts, SW. manipulates his hardware with the delicate, considered touch of a painter. Perhaps the memory that lingers longest from that bygone era is the sense of profound possibility that dawns before forms become rigidly calificed and commodified. Either way, adventurous listeners will find that okALGORYTHM blooms with a uniquely affecting grace and SW.'s inimitably obscure loveliness, infused with a somber glow and marked by shimmering, untraceable contours.

2022 Repress

During the 80's dancehall era a number of record producers claimed to be the real authentic sound of downtown Kingston but Ossie Thomas' Black Solidarity label, operating out of Delamare Avenue in the heart of the ghetto, was the real deal ....

This was the start of the 70's when the political rivalry got heated between JLP and the PNP, - also the shots start fire ....
I said to myself if you're going die, you're going die ... from that me not scared of Kingston' Ossie Thompson.

This album provides an insightful glimpse into life in these unforgiving Kingston neighbourhoods describing not only the poverty and desperation, but also how at times, styles, fashions and the cathartic joys of music, and the dancehall could transform this harsh environment into one of joyous celebration ...

'Hear what happen now! We used to punch the juke box lunchtime... Me and me friends had a kinda thing like the juke box was our sound system and we'd use our lunch money to play the baddest tunes on the juke box.

We were aided and abetted by a kinda dodgy little shop keeper cause we were kids and we were in the rum bar punching the juke box when we weren't supposed to be allowed! So we were breaking all the rules... punching the juke box and taking turns to play the wickedest tunes in the juke box...' - Ossie Thomas.

Breaking rules from the outset Ossie Thomas had furthered his childhood fascination with music while still attending Oberlin High School and many more rules would be broken when together with Phillip Morgan he set up the Black Solidarity label in 1979 on Delamare Avenue deep in the heart of the Kingston ghetto...

'I used to tell people that dance hall was like styles and fashions, if you have a wicked style and you have the fashion you go make it in the dancehall... You understand... - Ossie Thomas.

Mr Projectile, one of our favorite IDM producers from back in the day, has given La Luna the chance to share some of his unreleased IDM tracks from the early 2000’s. The album is an eclectic blend of ambient, IDM and experimental electronics.

These sounds are a time machine to simpler, less chaotic times and have become essential listening these days. We envision this album spinning on a sunny Sunday afternoon, filling your room with the delicate and deep textures of electronic music and soothing your uncertainty. Enjoy a nice cup of coffee and explore your thoughts as you speed through time and space. Hopefully serving as a special reminder that we are all in this madness together.

Not only is the music stellar, but we are honoured to have Marcello Raeli, an Italian artist and car designer, accompany the music with his wonderfully mind bending artwork. Marcello is an artist who has designed some of the most insanely beautiful/fast cars on the planet. Here we get to take a deep look into his mind and marvel at the incredible interconnectedness created in this piece and appreciate the sense of depth and space created for this album.

Founded in 2014, Katalyst Collective has never been one for labels. Rather than strictly a live act, they've acted as an incubator for a fresh crop of local talent, helping hone the voices and talents of individual members, while collectively advancing like a phalanx. Each 'Kat' writes their own solo material, and everyone contributes and works together on each project, feeding off the communal energy. Leading to the group's upping collaboration for Jazz Is Dead, Katalyst has poised themselves as the next breakout stars of Los Angeles' rapidly expanding Jazz universe - a small army of creative firebrands, each burning more brightly together.

Purple Vinyl

Founded in 2014, Katalyst Collective has never been one for labels. Rather than strictly a live act, they've acted as an incubator for a fresh crop of local talent, helping hone the voices and talents of individual members, while collectively advancing like a phalanx. Each 'Kat' writes their own solo material, and everyone contributes and works together on each project, feeding off the communal energy. Leading to the group's upping collaboration for Jazz Is Dead, Katalyst has poised themselves as the next breakout stars of Los Angeles' rapidly expanding Jazz universe - a small army of creative firebrands, each burning more brightly together.

Having already made her name in different UK scenes and subcultures, Eva has previously collaborated with Swindle, Mungo’s Hi Fi, Gardna, Benny Page and Zed Bias. Through Brandy Kisses, she explores an amalgamation of sounds and genres that have shaped her artistry. Effortlessly jumping from soulful croons to punchy rap verses, Eva showcases all avenues of her incredible singing and songwriting ability to create a seamless body of work. The album is entirely produced by UK Hip Hop Stalwart and beat maker extraordinaire, Dirty Dike - Adding to his already very impressive list of production credits, having produced LPs & EPs for names such as Rag'n'Bone Man, Ocean Wisdom, Ronnie Bosh, and more... it is safe to say that the production on this is top notch.

With endorsements from MTV UK, Clash Magazine, Line Of Best Fit, Crack Magazine, an epic album launch party at Rough Trade Bristol as well as a mesmerising acoustic set on BBC Radio 4 - ‘Brandy Kisses’ is tipped to to be one of the R&B albums of the year.

180 gram vinyl LP of Freddie's 1979 album with extensive sleeve notes
Produced by: Winston 'Niney The Observer' Holness
Recorded, Voiced & Mixed at: Channel One ecording Studio, 29 Maxfield
Avenue, Kingston 13
Engineers: Anthony 'Crucial Bunny'/'Bunny Tom Tom' Graham & Lancelot
'Maxie' McKenzie
Musicians:
Drums: Max 'Feelgood' Edwards & Leroy 'Horse Mouth' Wallace
Bass Guitar: George 'Fully' Fullwood
Lead Guitar: Earl 'Chinna' Smith
Lead Guitar & Rhythm Guitar: Albert Valentine 'Tony' Chin & Eric 'Bingy
Bunny' Lamont
Keyboards: Jamaba Johnson & Keith Sterling
Tenor Saxophone: Enroy 'Hot Train' Grant
Trumpet: Arnold 'Willie' Brackenridge & Donald Vidan-Greaves
Percussion: Herman 'Bongo Herman' Davis & 'Brooksy'
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First released 1983, all tracks produced by A Ranglin, except Hard Times
& Only Your Picture produced by V Buckley
Recorded & Mixed at: Channel One Recording Studio, 29 Maxfield Avenue,
Kingston 13, Jamaica
The Maytones are Gladstone Grant & Vernon Buckley
Original cover by C More Tone
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Bad Colours is back with his sophomore album, "Always With U," out on Bastard Jazz Recordings in November, 2022. The London-born, Maryland-raised, Brooklyn-based DJ, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist - aka Ibe Soliman - continues to build on the well-deserved acclaim from his 2021 debut LP, "PINK," as well as a slew of standalone singles and collaborations with the likes of Shabazz Palaces, Jarv Dee, and Stas THEE Boss.

"Always With U" sees Ibe further develop his talents as a songwriter and producer, while maintaining the signature balance of banging dance music and dense bars that he's quickly becoming known for. The album expands Ibe's role to a collaborator, band leader, and all-around star-of-the-show; it's certainly still a dance record, but there's also so much more. Live instrumentation accompanies every track, with the notable contributions of Nigerian bassist Akin-Alade Ogo heard across the album, as well as the NY-based saxophonist Carras Paton on the jazzy, upbeat house number, "Heartache + U."

The lead single, "Maybe I Should Move to LA," sees the proudly Brooklyn-based Bad Colours contemplate a move out West – an idea that came about following a trip to LA for the 20 Years of Bastard Jazz anniversary party (which he DJed) in November last year. Bright pads, a thumping four-on-the-floor beat, and a catchy vocal line make it the perfect accompaniment to a top-down joy-ride up PCH. The album's second single, "You Don't Know," features frequent collaborator and PNW darling Jarv Dee, as well as KAS and JVDE who have both been making waves in the Brooklyn scene (KAS for his work with Grammy- nominated producer Harmony Samuels featured on BET, and JVDE as the lead-singer of alternative band Blind Benny). "You Don't Know" turns up the heat with Jarv and KAS trading dense, rapid-fire verses over a high-tempo beat and detuned vocal; the kick cuts out for the bridge, replaced by syncopated keyboard stabs and JVDE's stacked vocals. "You Don't Know" is high-energy hip house at its finest: Super catchy and irresistibly dancey.

The two singles are emblematic of the rest of the album, which largely alternates between vocal and hip house, sometimes jazzy, other times touching on R&B or dancefloor influenced pop. Dave Giles II and Cor.Ece (who recently both contributed to Beyoncé's chart-topping "Renaissance" LP and Honey Dijon's "Work" single) feature on "Flow," while Toribio (of the acclaimed Brooklyn band Conclaves) provides vocals for "Do Better;" both tracks are on the mellower side, reminiscent of late-90s New York mid-tempo garage. Rising artist N.O.V. features on the second track, "Ready," rapping over a bass-heavy beat; MarcusHarmon makes a return after appearing on "PINK," with smooth vocals on the romantic "Come Closer." Aforementioned JVDE can be heard throughout the album, contributing to "You Don't Know," "Flirtation Avenue," and "Easy Come, Easy Go."

While Ibe's career has spanned nearly two decades - as both a DJ (alongside the likes of James Murphy, Mark Ronson, and Q-Tip) and producer (for Kendrick Lamar, Faith Evans, Keyshia Cole, and Rick Ross, among others) - the Bad Colours name only came into being in early 2020, with the debut LP, "PINK," being released in February, 2021 on the Brooklyn tastemaker label Bastard Jazz. By tapping into his deep network of artist friends, Ibe compiled a treasure-trove of vocal samples, snippets, sketches, and fresh instrumental loops into a beautiful debut record that touches on hip-hop, house, and left-field electronic, while remaining danceable.

A slew of singles throughout 2020 and 2021 included "Feelin' Like," featuring the Seattle rapper Jarv Dee, has become an underground hit, popping up everywhere from Best Buy ads, Hulu's "Woke," celebrity Peloton instructor Emma Lovewell's playlist, and even as a soundtrack to the Mayor of Madrid's TikTok video. Most recently, "Feelin' Like" had a prominent placement in the #1 Netflix film "Spiderhead," directed by Joseph Kosinski ("Tron: Legacy;" "Top Gun: Maverick") and starring Chris Hemsworth, Miles Teller, and Jurnee Smollett. The breakout success of "Feelin' Like" further led to a collaborative EP with Jarv Dee, titled "BLAKHOUSE," which saw additional features from fellow PNW natives Shabazz Palaces ("Clouds," featured in Hulu's "Shoresy") and Stas THEE Boss ("Black Skin"). This year, Bad Colours dropped the early Summer banger "Hit The Breaks," and served as the musical director for the influential MADE New York festival, a two-day fashion, music, and arts event presented by Public School NYC and Paypal, that saw performances by Nas, Heron Preston, and Bearcat among others.

"Always With U" is a testament to Bad Colours' versatility as a producer and artist, which has allowed him to bring together such a diverse group of friends and collaborators. Yes, the house and hip-hop roots remain, but "Always With U" shows an evolution of the Bad Colours sound into masterfully crafted dancefloor sounds. It's a truly stunning follow-up from an artist undoubtedly on the rise. The album is out on all platforms, via Bastard Jazz Recordings, November 11th, 2022.

OVERVIEW: Following both a global pandemic and an acclaimed, landmark debut album, inimitable Irish Alt-Folk act Junior Brother returns today with details of his
new album The Great Irish Famine, and a new single titled “No Snitch”. The album follows his much lauded 2019 Pull The Right Rope and is out 2nd September via multidisciplinary Irish label Strange Brew.

The Great Irish Famine leaps boldly forward into an exciting new chapter, and into a shaken new world - staggeringly profound, brutally beautiful in its epic sweep. The lead single “No Snitch” - which is released digitally with a 7” release to follow – is an intoxicating first taste of this new material. A track of towering, bruised catharsis, Kealy’s emotive and powerful vocals fluctuate across the tracks temperamental instrumentation which is both at once tumultuous and calming. The single is also accompanied by a dark and surreal new video

Speaking about the themes across the album Kealy further explains, "I was very conscious to bring each element of the debut into this follow-up, but dramatically dig ten times deeper and stretch ten times further down into each avenue”. “No Snitch" soars amidst darkly comic self-reflection ("This Is My Body"), anxious reflexes on modern living ("No Country For Young Men"), and the painful role the past plays in a nation's present ("King Jessup's Nine Trials").

“The Long Meadows is the endless stream never getting to the sea, through the lens of a couple in love unable to buy a home. It's the Now and the Past both melding into one cry of confusion, unanswered and forever in pursuit, “locked out of the next life”.

Following both a global pandemic and an acclaimed, landmark debut album, inimitable Irish Alt-Folk act Junior Brother returns today with details of his new album The Great Irish Famine, and a new single titled “No Snitch”. The album follows his much lauded 2019 Pull The Right Rope and is out 2nd September via multidisciplinary Irish label Strange Brew.

The Great Irish Famine leaps boldly forward into an exciting new chapter, and into a shaken new world - staggeringly profound, brutally beautiful in its epic sweep.

Speaking about the themes across the album Kealy further explains, "I was very conscious to bring each element of the debut into this follow-up, but dramatically dig ten times deeper and stretch ten times further down into each avenue”. “No Snitch" soars amidst darkly comic self-reflection ("This Is My Body"), anxious reflexes on modern living ("No Country For Young Men"), and the painful role the past plays in a nation's present ("King Jessup's Nine Trials").

Both startlingly dynamic and profoundly accomplished, The Great Irish Famine reflects fall-out of trauma both personal and universal, national, and international, minor, and mountainous, historic, and contemporary - all uncompromisingly conveyed through the magnetic, emotionally potent vision of a one-of-a-kind artist at the top of his game.

Horse Lords return with Comradely Objects, an alloy of erudite influences and approaches given frenetic gravity in pursuit of a united musical and political vision. The band's fifth album doesn't document a new utopia, so much as limn a thrilling portrait of revolution underway. Comradely Objects adheres to the essential instrumental sound documented on the previous four albums and four mixtapes by the quartet of Andrew Bernstein (saxophone, percussion, electronics), Max Eilbacher (bass, electronics), Owen Gardner (guitar, electronics), and Sam Haberman (drums). But the album refocuses that sound, pulling the disparate strands of the band's restless musical purview tightly around propulsive, rhythmic grids. Comradely Objects ripples, drones, chugs, and soars with a new abandon and steely control. This transformation came, in part, due to circumstance. Sidelined from touring their early 2020 album The Common Task in a world turned upside down, Horse Lords promptly returned to their Baltimore practice space and began piecing together the music that became Comradely Objects (Bernstein, Eilbacher, and Gardner have since relocated to Germany). Removed from their tried and true method of refining new music on the road, the quartet invested less energy ensuring live playability and more rehearsing and recording. The deliberate writing and tracking process, a rarity since the band's earliest days, led to a collection of pieces that signal a new peak of creativity and musical heft without devolving into studio sprawl or frippery. Comradely Objects reflects familiar elements of Horse Lords' established palette_the mantra-like repetition of minimalism and global traditional musics, complex counterpoint, the subtleties of microtonality, a breadth of timbres and textures drawn from all across the avant-garde_with some standout stylistic innovations. At different moments, the album veers closer to free jazz than anything else in the band's catalog, channels spectral electroacoustic tones, and throbs with unexpected yet felicitous synth. While these new elements are evidence of additional studio time and care, Comradely Objects retains the dizzying obsessive rhythmic energy that galvanizes the best moments of the band. Music for people who like Mdou Moctar, This Heat!, Battles, Ndagga Rhythm Force, Can, Captain Beefheart, Art Ensemble of Chicago, LaMonte Young.

Horse Lords return with Comradely Objects, an alloy of erudite influences and approaches given frenetic gravity in pursuit of a united musical and political vision. The band's fifth album doesn't document a new utopia, so much as limn a thrilling portrait of revolution underway. Comradely Objects adheres to the essential instrumental sound documented on the previous four albums and four mixtapes by the quartet of Andrew Bernstein (saxophone, percussion, electronics), Max Eilbacher (bass, electronics), Owen Gardner (guitar, electronics), and Sam Haberman (drums). But the album refocuses that sound, pulling the disparate strands of the band's restless musical purview tightly around propulsive, rhythmic grids. Comradely Objects ripples, drones, chugs, and soars with a new abandon and steely control. This transformation came, in part, due to circumstance. Sidelined from touring their early 2020 album The Common Task in a world turned upside down, Horse Lords promptly returned to their Baltimore practice space and began piecing together the music that became Comradely Objects (Bernstein, Eilbacher, and Gardner have since relocated to Germany). Removed from their tried and true method of refining new music on the road, the quartet invested less energy ensuring live playability and more rehearsing and recording. The deliberate writing and tracking process, a rarity since the band's earliest days, led to a collection of pieces that signal a new peak of creativity and musical heft without devolving into studio sprawl or frippery. Comradely Objects reflects familiar elements of Horse Lords' established palette_the mantra-like repetition of minimalism and global traditional musics, complex counterpoint, the subtleties of microtonality, a breadth of timbres and textures drawn from all across the avant-garde_with some standout stylistic innovations. At different moments, the album veers closer to free jazz than anything else in the band's catalog, channels spectral electroacoustic tones, and throbs with unexpected yet felicitous synth. While these new elements are evidence of additional studio time and care, Comradely Objects retains the dizzying obsessive rhythmic energy that galvanizes the best moments of the band. Music for people who like Mdou Moctar, This Heat!, Battles, Ndagga Rhythm Force, Can, Captain Beefheart, Art Ensemble of Chicago, LaMonte Young.

Emmet Cohen's time has come, since his debut Mack Avenue release,
'Future Stride', Cohen has toured the world consistently " bringing the joy
of music to people in need during a global pandemic" all while hosting
weekly livestream concerts from his home in Harlem, NY
These livestreams provided a sense of community and a home to the displaced
musicians of New York, reminiscent of the 1920s rent parties. On 'Uptown in
Orbit', his sophomore release for Mack Avenue, Cohen brings the tradition of jazz
to the forefront while providing the modern twist needed for the current times.
Featured on this release is trumpeter/educator Sean Jones, saxophonist Patrick
Bartley, bassist Russell Hall and drummer Kyle Poole.

Moiré's rain-streaked and masterful Circuits album dropped this past September. RA's Andrew Ryce stated the eight-track album cast the shadowy producer into "a rarefied air occupied by the only the finest and most influential of ambient techno artists."

Now, in short order, the label returns with a remix EP charting out multiple hubs of oblique dance floor innovation. If there's a sonic motif on the A-side, it's vastly reactive interpretations of the "factory floor" element that inspired techno's pioneers. Matthew Herbert, a pioneering force in his own right, mixes steam engine percussion with the dreamy atmospherics of "Circuit 15" and comes up with eight minutes of cerebral machine funk. Tolouse Low Trax, meanwhile, continues his masterclass in modern motorik on his remix of "Circuit 7," integrating a chiming piano into a fascinating, perfectly-timed 110 BPM rhythm.

The B-side, meanwhile, doubles down on the oneiric nature of the original material. Workshop head and Avenue 66 alumnus Lowtec builds allows "Circuit 04"'s synths to billow into Gas-like immersive layering, sheets of melody are anchored by a restrained beat for an ambient techno track that doesn't tip the scales too far in one direction or the other. Rather, it achieves a perfect balance. Hamburg/Dial mainstay Lawrence closes things out with his version of "Circuit 18," which also concludes the original album. While the original has a wistful, Deckard's dream quality, Lawrence's version is deeply-rooted in the late-night German style; a low-slung bassline will keep dancers deeply rooted while those wistful chords sweep in like the violet before dawn.

Pure Wicked Tune is a mixtape-style collection of extracts & cut-ups, taken from DIY cassette recordings featuring rare groove and "soul blues" soundsystems playing at early morning house parties and blues dances - mostly in South & East London - between the mid 1980s & early 90s.

Sounds like Funkadelic, Touch of Class, Latest Edition, JB Crew, Manhattan, 5th Avenue (and the many more featured on this tape) originally began to form in the mid-1980s. With lovers rock dwindling, and the reggae scene becoming dominated by harder digital-style dancehall, these sounds provided a tight but loyal crowd with a potent alternative - playing a mixture of killer rare soul, funk and boogie records in an inimitably reggae soundsystem style, complete with toasting, sirens and effects aplenty.

They were most well-known for playing at house parties and blues dances, typically in small flats or warehouses, with timing of such events generally running from the early morning hours until late the next afternoon. Though the popularity of the sounds faded following the dance music explosion of the early 1990s, there has been continued demand for revival sessions ever since. Whilst the influence of key British reggae & dancehall soundsystems on subsequent UK sounds like hardcore & jungle is relatively well documented, a similar line can just as easily be drawn from these sounds and the aforementioned styles' tendency toward sampling popular rare groove cuts, particularly well evidenced in the work of Tom & Jerry, 4hero, Reinforced & LTJ Bukem among others.

This represents the first outing in a series of collections exploring the sounds of UK soundsystem culture, via extracts from archival DIY cassette recordings of blues parties, dances & clashes made between the late 70s and early 90s. Often duplicated and shared widely, these ruff and ready "sound tapes" provided keen ears with music that wasn't otherwise readily available on the airwaves or in the record shops, and would go on to leave a deeply-rooted but too often overlooked influence on the UK's musical landscape.

After the release of their highly successful self-titled album in summer 2021 (#1 in Germany and Spain etc.), HELLOWEEN -- one of the most respectable German metal exports and pioneers of German melodic speed metal -- are finally bringing their new anthems to the packed arenas, leading them all around the globe with their »United Forces« tour. The creators of the albums »Keeper Of The Seven Keys, Pt. I & II« (87‘/88‘), which are considered to be among the most successful German metal records of all time and are reckoned internationally as absolute milestones of power metal, haven’t only cemented but even expanded their status as giants of the scene. Caused by the pumpkinheads‘ aforementioned triumphant wave of success, the group’s back catalogue albums are also more in demand than ever which is why Atomic Fire are now set to release a series of brand new vinyl editions including the following hot HELLOWEEN records: »The Dark Ride« (2000), »Rabbit Don’t Come Easy« (2003), »Keeper Of The Seven Keys - The Legacy« (2005), »Gambling With The Devil« (2007), »Straight Out Of Hell« (2013), »My God-Given Right« (2015), and last but not least their latest offering »Helloween« (2021).

Rising star pianist/composer Connie Han brings the ancient Sumerian
culture to the present day by channeling Inanna - the ancient Sumerian
goddess of love, beauty and war - on her third release for Mack Avenue
Records
Featuring Katisse Buckingham (alto flute and piccolo), John Patitucci (bass), Rich
Perry (tenor saxophonist) and drummer Bill Wysaske, Secrets of Inanna creates a
new world open to interpretation, harkening back to the ethereal soundscapes of
1970s spiritual jazz with the modern composition Han has received praise for
since her 2018 debut Crime Zone, creating a truly unique soundscape of great
depth.

With Out Here, premier bassist Christian McBride's fifth recording on
Mack Avenue Records, McBride introduces his latest working group: a
trio, fully embracing at age 41 his role as standard-bearer and mentor
Pianist Christian Sands and drummer Ulysses Owens, Jr. - both younger,
emerging artists - have been performing with McBride's smallest group for about
three years, honing their trio conception to a fine point of expressive depth and
nuance with select performances around the world.

The iconic first album of the finest instrumental soul group from Stax Records including the " Green Onions " Anthem ! Originals Versions Remastered

The 16-track album opens with “War & Wonders'' as Smoke begins his journey foreshadowing an upcoming battle featuring impassioned flows and rhymes describing the violent challenges of urban living. The track opens with a storyline of Smoke getting knocked down from his ongoing battles and a woman calling his name to wake up. The narrative then progresses with latest singles “Shame On You” and “Common Sense” featuring SiR commenting on humanity’s unique simplicity and embracing our differences. At the core of the album, “Stay True” featuring John Legend accentuates the meaning of living your best life by staying true to your authentic self regardless of what life throws your way and the hardships you may face. Then “Good Thing” featuring Ty Dolla $ign offers an upbeat, positive track bringing light to companionship and finding joy in life through many avenues. Smoke wraps the project with rhythmic, jazz infused “Free Write” reflecting on the crusade of each track leading to the end of his battles, and bringing awareness to the grieving of his city from politics to systemic racism and his influence on making the situation better for future generations. War & Wonders spotlights poignant themes, necessary social commentary, and the hurdles we overcome in order to appreciate what we have in this life. For Smoke, he showcases Inglewood’s war on losing love, being in love, and battling himself as he is always being led in different directions. It is a continuous journey of learning, growing, self-discovery, and reinventing a better version of himself.

Born October 1966. Break Dancer in 1984, under the moniker Mad Max, started a crew named the Back Street Warriors, Busking all over the UK at places such as Covent Garden/Leicester Square Performing on stage & in clubs. They once jammed with the Rock Steady Crew in Camden Palace in front of an audience.

Then in 1987 he became a DJ, playing all genres of music, he first played on
RJR Radio, playing Electro, Hip Hop, Soul, R&B & Reggae. Moving forward he started playing Acid House & Four to the Floor Music styles, by the early 90s he played on Weekend Rush and then went onto Defection, Touchdown, Don & Passion FM, playing Acid & Hardcore Jungle.

In the early days MixMaster Max was one of the Innovators of Jungle music by mixing Hardcore, Reggae & Hip Hop together, helping others to produce, fuse & gain ideas in the music industry. He was by Far the most Original, Innovative, DJ anybody had ever heard.

In 1991 he played alongside John Saunderson at the Camden Palace on a Friday night, he also played at the famous Hacienda club in Manchester.
He was the First DJ to create the Topsy Turvey, which is one turntable on top of the other, he came runner up in the DMC world championships in the early 90s.

He played at some of the Biggest Raves back in the day, Pirate club 93, Fantazia 92, Dungeons 91/92, Turnmills 92, to mention a few. He also played on Avenues FM & People's Choice, which were legal Radio Stations, not forgetting Kool fm & Centreforce.

He performed on stage with the We Papa Girl Rappers in 1990 at the Notting Hill Carnival. This Legendary Cult figure is a Master of the Nunchuckers & TurnTables!
His innovative Mixes were ‘legendary’ he was a pioneer precursor to the Art form known as Jungle Music, not to mention his Scratching abilities, which was ‘extraordinary’!

For those that listened to pirate radio back in the day, he was the legendary cult
figure that inspired us all, giving us the freshest musical styles that had never been heard before!

Over the past decade, the mysterious, London-based artist Moiré has perfected a syrupy, addictive brand of dance music via labels like Actress's Werk Discs and illustrious imprints like Ghostly and Rush Hour. For most of this period, Moiré seemed pramarily concerned in creating alternative universe club tracks. The beats were hypnotic, if wonky. The pads were deep before they were refracted through an oblique filter. In a discography bearing a surfeit of leftfield high points, Circuits, Moiré's latest album for the Berlin-based Avenue 66 (Lowtec, John Frusciante, Joey Anderson) is a massive creative leap that fully breaks with the strictures of a "conventional" dance music.

While there are still nods to the low-slung, slow house style Moiré's perfected in the past ("Circuit 1"), as well as the looming shadow of hardcore ("Circuit 8), Moiré's style now billows into a liminal, cinematic zone that recalls the canonical SAW albums, BOC or even Seefeel's enduring, genre-free experiments. Rhythms come and go at all tempos, from Hauntological four-on-the-floor to flickering downtempo and ambient house approximations. But the emphasis lies with the melodies. From the queasy orchestral style of "Circuits 1" to the glacial, "end credits"-style synths that close out the album, these motifs bear an uncanny familiarity, as though they always existed. You recognize them, not from a previous listen, but rather, some half-remembered dream, or, perhaps, a previous lifetime.

Truly one of the great trumpeters of the bop era, Howard McGhee suffered with drug addiction his whole career which meant his band-leading recorded output was minimal. Although the 1950s had largely been a waste for McGhee, Dusty Blue, recorded in 1960, marked a strong return-to-form and is credited amongst fans as some of his best recordings. Featuring an all-star band of Bennie Green, Pepper Adams, Tommy Flanagan, Roland Alexander as well as the ever-touring Ron Carter, this is a collective of musicians at their very best. Mastered from the original tape transfers by Kevin Gray, this is a sublime recording from start to finish.

Features:

180g Vinyl
Remastered from the Original Analog Tape Transfers by Kevin Gray
Printed & Pressed at Pallas
12" Insert Featuring a Photographic Print
Deluxe Reverse-Board Jacket
Officially Licensed from Bethlehem/BMG

Musicians:
Pepper Adams baritone saxophone
Ronald Carter bass
Walter Bolden drums
Tommy Flanagan piano
Roland Alexander tenor saxophone
Bennie Green trombone
Howard McGhee trumpet

One of the first previously-unreleased funk and soul albums issued by Now-Again, way back in 2003, and it still sounds amazing today. Well, it would have to: it's the brainchild of bandleader/drummer/singer/ songwriter Lester Abrams who crafted hit singles like Minute by Minute' by the Doobie Brothers. Yeah, really. Back in early 70s Omaha, however, he brought a multiracial band into the Pacific Avenue studio to cut an album's worth of material. Only one single - Color' b/w Blink Man' - was ever issued, and this album sat on master tapes in Abrams' closet until Egon dug them out in 2001.

Akae Beka's inimitable style of rich, deep, multi-layered songwriting, uncompromising devotion to RasTafari and soulful healing melodies developed over decades performing with St. Croix based band Midnite and countless recordings. At the point of his untimely passing in 2019, he had released over 70LP's. He is without a doubt one of the most prolific reggae artists ever known.

The stellar production trinity that is Zion I Kings have been involved collectively and individually in creating some of the most highly regarded contributions to the vast Akae Beka catalogue. Ride Tru, originally released digitally and on CD in 2014, stood every chance disappearing into the all eclipsing shadow of the LP released by them earlier that year, Beauty for Ashes, which had been named by iTunes as the reggae album of the year. A monumental achievement for undiluted, uncompromising RasTafari roots reggae music this side of the millennium. So needless to say, the bar was high and Vaughn Benjamin and Zion I Kings must have known that, as they managed to raise it higher again.

Ride Tru continues in the same form, rootsy, soulful, refreshingly polished and authentically raw, the threads of anciency that any devout reggae lover will be looking for and the threads of modernity that keep it alive and appealing in the modern day. A uniquely regal tapestry that has become synonymous with music created from the unity of Zion I Kings and Vaughn Benjamin

Following 8 years of anxious anticipation, for the countless Akae Beka fans that are also vinyl connoisseurs, this LP is now being released on as a 12" vinyl LP courtesy of Before Zero Records. This offers the listener not only the chance to enjoy this LP in an analogue form, but also the chance to hold the artwork as a 12" square masterpiece, created by the hands of Ras Marcus, the artist who gave the powerful visual presence that became synonymous to much of the I Grade / Akae Beka works over the years.

“How does an artist follow an album considered by many to be the best reggae album of 2014?..... you get right back in the studio with the same brilliant production team and follow that album a few short months later with one that nearly eclipses it entirely.”
Midnight Raver — Worldareggae

“...remarkable for the clarity of Tippy’s mix and the contrast between the hardness of Lloyd Richards’ drums and the softness of the guitars, keyboards and brass. The woozy analogue warmth of an old Augustus Pablo production – Son of Jah Dub - for Worry Free demonstrates how well Vaughn sits on the sounds of the original masters (an avenue that should be pursued further). Another veteran guest is the late Style Scott - who beats out one of his final patterns on How I & I Carry On.”
Angus Taylor — United Reggae

Gunai/Kunai & Yorta Yorta artist dj pgz makes his Butter Sessions debut with a killer 2-track EPThe Dance / Hypnotic Suburbs.

dj pgz makes his affinity for the sounds of the underground known in A-side track "The Dance", where he masterfully commands a dark miasma of rolling bass and percussion. As per the title, "The Dance" is made for raging dancefloors and the relationships you make along the way, following in trajectory from his last release "Unknown at Night" (Pure space compilation - PROXIMITY ||). As the track blossoms into a frenzy of syncopated kick drum programming, rolling trap hi-hats and trusty claps, it's cognizant how dj pgz's experience drumming from the age of 13 has lent itself to his already developed idiosyncratic sound in electronic music production.

In "Hypnotic Suburbs" dj pgz explores new avenues, starting with an evocative use of space that transforms into beloved drum and bass. The sonic mold is pieced together with high-pitch synth melodies and rubbery bass lines, aided by local rapperTeether's vocals, which add an unbeatable live dimension you simply can't beat.

King Tubby and Producer Bunny ‘Striker’ Lee are intertwined in the birth of Dub Music. After discovering a mistake that made a ‘serious joke’ (more of which later...) they went on to release the first pressings of this new musical genre namely ‘Dub Music’. Tubby’s vast knowledge of electronics and Bunny’s vast catalogue of rhythms would lay the foundations of what today is taken as a standard... the Remix / Version cuts to an existing vocal tune.

Osbourne ‘King Tubby’ Ruddock was born in Kingston, Jamaica on 28th January 1941 and grew up in the High Holborn Street area of downtown Kingston. He studied electronics at Kingston’s National Technical College and also on two correspondence courses from the U.S.A... When he had qualified Tubby began repairing radios and other electrical appliances in a shack in the back yard of his mother’s home. His work in the early days included winding transformers and building amplifiers for Kingston’s Sound Systems. Tubby built his first Sound System in 1957 playing jazz and Rhythm & Blues at local weddings and birthday parties. His reputation as a man who knew and understood both electronics and music grew steadily and as the sixties drew to a close. Tubby purchased his own basic two track equipment. He installed this alongside his dub cutting machine, a homemade mixing console and his impressive collection of Jazz albums in the back bedroom of his home at 18 Dromilly Avenue which he christened his music room.

Tubby and Striker were at Treasure Isle Studio’s one day while Ruddy from Spanish Town was working with the engineer Byron Smith....

“Tubby and myself was talking when Ruddy was cutting some dub but Smithy (engineer) made a mistake through we were talking and forgot to put in the voice. It was two track recording in those days. Ruddy said ‘No Man! Make it stay! and so they cut the rhythm. When I went over to Ruddy’s that Saturday night a dance was in progress and when they played the vocal to the tune... then he said we’re going to play ‘Part Two’. They never called it ‘Version’..and then he played the rhythm track. The song was a catchy song and everybody started to sing along and the deejay started to toast so everything went down well. On Monday morning I went up and I said ‘Tubbs the mistake we made was a serious joke. It mash up Spanish Town! The people went wild. So you have to start to do that now ‘cause when the man put on the ‘Part Two’ everyone start singing this song. It played about twenty times. I said you try Tubbs!’...Well the next Saturday night now when Tubby strung up down the farm U Roy said he’s going to play ‘Part Two’ but Tubby did it different now. He started with the voice then dropped it out and let the rhythm run and then he brought in the voice in the middle and from there Tubby started to get really popular.’’
Bunny ‘Striker’ Lee

Dynamic Sounds upgraded to sixteen track recording in 1972 and Tubby purchased, again with the help of a deal brokered by Bunny Lee. The old four track equipment and the MCI console from their Studio B. The four tracks now gave him far wider scope to work with and he began to create a new musical form where the bass and drum parts were brought up while the faders allowed Tubby to ease the vocal and rhythm in and out of the mix. It was only a matter of time before Tubby’s dub plate experiments began to make it on to vinyl and the first ever long-playing King Tubby releases would feature a collection of his mixes to a selection of Strikers rhythms. So please sit back and enjoy this historic set of sounds, mixed by King Tubby and Mr Prince Phillip Smart and another set of scorcher Bunny Lee rhythms.

REPRESS

Niney the Observer’s first dub album ‘Dubbing With The Observer’ was cut at King Tubby’s Studio with Tubby
himself reworking Niney’s rhythms and adding his magic as only he could do.

Niney The Observer (b. Winston Holness, 1951 Montego Bay, Jamaica) by the early 70’s had forged a successful working partnership with singer Dennis Brown cutting some of his best songs adding a more rootsy element to the singers sound. Songs like ‘Westbound Train’, ‘No More Will I Roam’, ‘I Am the Conqueror’ to name but a few. Also
cutting a hit for Ken Boothe ‘Silver Words’ and two other singers that Niney had grown up with, Max Romeo ‘That Was Love’ and Delroy Wilson ‘Halfway Up The Stairs’. It was these tracks and a few other Dennis Brown worked rhythms, that Niney took to King Tubby’s studio at 18 Drumilly Avenue, Kingston 11, with the intention to let Tubby remix and enhance the rhythms Tubby Style.

The result was to be Niney’s first Dub album the mighty ‘Dubbing with the Observer’. On completion it was sent to London and it was then released on Trojan records and named Dub album of the Year. We are proud to put that album back out there for all to hear, what has now become a dub classic.

Hope you enjoy the experience………….

Repressed , please note price increase! Would Like To Pose A Question is one of the first previously-unreleased funk and soul albums issued by Now-Again, and it still sounds amazing today. Well, it would have to: it's the brainchild of bandleader/drummer/singer/songwriter Lester Abrams (the L.A. in L.A. Carnival). Abrams helped create hit singles like "Minute by Minute" and “What A Fool Believes” for the Doobie Brothers and played with artists such as B.B. King, Stevie Wonder, Peabo Bryson, Manfred Mann, Quincy Jones and many more. Before all that - in early 70s while still in Omaha - he brought a multi-racial band into the Pacific Avenue studio to cut an album's worth of material. Only one single - "Color" b/w "Blink Man" - was ever issued, and this album sat on master tapes in Abrams' closet. That is until Now-Again’s Eothen Alapatt intervened in the early 2000s and Would You Like To Pose A Question was at last given a proper full length release.