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“The Firebird” is a ballet and orchestral concert work by the Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. It was written for the 1910 Paris season of

Sergei Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes company based on the Russian fairy tales of the Firebird and the blessing and curse it possesses

for its owner. The Firebird’s mortal and supernatural elements are distinguished with a system of leitmotifs placed in the harmony dubbed

“leit-harmony”. Stravinsky intentionally used many specialist techniques in the orchestra, including ponticello, col legno, flautando, glissando,

and flutter-tonguing. Set in the evil immortal Koschei’s castle, the ballet follows Prince Ivan, who battles Koschei with the help of the magical Firebird.

Recorded in 1961 by The Columbia Symphony Orchestra.

This version in limited pressed on Solid Orange vinyl.

New Countown speedcore Noise label. Very influenced by Hangars Liquides and Kabal Sound System... Long psyche speed hardcore tunes... So speed that it's close to be abstract !

Marazion is a new colourful various LP inspired by the infamous Ballacid channel.

This LP contains 12 warm acid techno and electro tracks by upcoming artists all over the world.

Hollow Coves, The Brisbane folk duo—Ryan Henderson and Matt Carins—carry light within an eloquent, engaging, and entrancing take on indie folk, as evidenced by the five songs that comprise their EP Blessings. The majority of the songs on Blessings were written during the Covid-19 lockdown and recorded and self-produced at the band’s newly built home studio on Australia’s Gold Coast. Hollow Coves’ music, including “Blessings” from this EP, has been used in over one million TikTok videos, charted in the Top 20 for Most Used on Instagram Reels, and garnered over 200 million views on YouTube. As a result, the band has been streamed over one billion times across DSPs and grown a dedicated global audience which has translated to their touring across continents. Earlier this year Hollow Coves played some of their biggest rooms ever all across Europe, North America and Australia/New Zealand in 2024 - including venues of 1,000+ in many cities across the US and Canada. The band has an on-going collaboration with the National Park Foundation. As proud supporters, Hollow Coves will donate $1 from every ticket sold on their 2024 North American Summer Tour to the Foundation in an effort to preserve our natural world. Their goal is to champion the importance of our national park system’s landscapes, ecosystems, and historical sites.

The mighty U Roy is the originator, the man who put the DJ phenomenon on the map and made it an artform. From Kingston Jamaica to the corners of all the Dancefloors, Clubs and Sound Systems across the world. U Roy (B. Ewart Beckford, 1942, Kingston, Jamaica) began his musical career spinning records for Doctor Dickies Sound System way back in 1961. The mid sixties saw him working for Sir George The Atomic before moving in 1967 to the man who best shaped his sound King Tubby on his Home Town HI - FI. Tubbys work in the dub field, dropping out vocals on his versions for the Sound Systems allowed U Roy to voice over these spaces adding to the excitment of the Dance!!!

U Roy moved into the recording arena firstly cutting two disc's for Producer Lee Perry 'Earths Rightful Ruler' and 'OK Corral' and then following this with 'Dynamic Fashion Way' and 'Riot' for Producer Keith Hudson. Producer Duke Reid seeing the protential in this new found form brought U Roy to his Treasure Isle Studios to voice over his back catalogue of Rocksteady Hits. His first three releases for Duke Reid 'Wake The Town', 'Rule The Nation' and 'Wear You To The Ball' held the Top 3 positions for 12 weeks in early 1970's.

We have compiled some of U Roy's best loved cuts from his mid 70's period when all were still looking at him for guidence.  The opening cut Call On Me sees him working over Delroy Wilson's 'Got To Be There'.  You Never Get Away gets U Roy answering Delroy Wison's 'Keep On Rocking'. Johnny Clarke's 'Time Gonna Tell' with rootsy bassline turns into Every Knee Shall Bow. Cornell Campbell the Gorgon himself gets his 'Check Mr Morgon' turned into Gorgon Wise. Johnny Clarke's Hold On gets reworked. Jeff Barnes 'Blowing In The Wind' tuned into Number 1 and alongside King of The Road which sees Lennox Brown blow his saxophone over the instrumental 'In The Swing of Things', was one of U Roys first releases. Linval Thompson's 'Let Jah Arise' is versioned to Joyful Locks. I Originate which lends us to the title of this compilation, says it as it is, a classic built over Dave Barker's 'Shocks of Mighty'. Linval Thompson again provides the backbone with his Cool Down Your Temper cut for U Roys version. The mighty Burning Spear's Creation Rebel although providing our next track, it is Johnny Clarke's version that gets worked over. Leo Graham's 'Birds of A Feather' turns into Stick Together. Soul Syndicates instrumental 'Goliath' grows into Riot. A big hit for Max Romeo Wet Dream sounds great under U Roy's new rendition.

Two extra tracks for the CD release of this album sees the great voice of Slim Smith on his 'Let's Stick Together' becomes ‘Ain’t To Proud To Beg’ and Cornell Campbell's 'Stand Firm' works with
U Roy to sign us off with ‘I Shall Not Remove’.  A fine collection i hope you agree to the Daddy of all DJ's who in his own words ''I Originate, so you must appreciate, while the others got to imitate'' says it all really……

Reissue

'Find Me Finding You', the new album from the new organization called the Laetitia Sadier Source Ensemble, manages to strike new chords while touching familiar keys in the song of life.
From its percolating opening beat, 'Find Me Finding You' locates new systems within the sound-universe of Laetitia Sadier. This in itself isn't a surprise - Laetitia has relentlessly followed her music through different dynamics and into a variety of dimensions over the course of four solo albums since 2010 (not to forget her three albums with Monade and the long era of Stereolab) - but the nature of the construction here stands distinctly apart from her recent albums. Laetitia was inspired by a mind's-eye envisaging of geometric forms and their possible permutations. As she sought to replicate the shapes in music, this guided the process of assembly for the album.
Part of the freshness of 'Find Me Finding You' comes from working and playing within the Source Ensemble and exploring new sound combinations via a set of youthful and evolving musical relationships. Laetitia recognized the energy of the tracks in their initial form and sought to preserve their vitality by not retaking too many performances - instead, the rawness in the tracks was retained and refined at the mixing stage, maintaining an edge throughout. When we hear synth lines diving, lifting and drifting, unusual guitar textures, the plucked sound of flat wound bass strings or the bottomless pulsing of bass pedals stepping out of the mix with an exquisite vibrancy, this is the sound of the Source Ensemble.
A key to Laetitia's music is her use of vocal arrangements. Throughout 'Finding Me Finding You' the shifting accompaniment creates space to bring this element gloriously forward. Arranged by Laetitia with Joe Watson and Jeff Parker making string charts that were subsequently transposed to vocal parts for several songs, richly arranged choirs of voices provide depth along with the thrilling presence of extra breath in the sound. Laetitia's community-politic is well-served by the groups of voices lending support to the machining of the song craft, providing additional uplift to her quintessentially forward-facing viewpoint - as well as massed voices from three different countries sharing space in harmony.
Working in collaboration is Laetita's tradition and a key to this album's view on being free together. The designation of Source Collective implies a new togetherness phase, alongside long time collaborators Emmanuel Mario and Xavi Munoz, keyboard and flutes parts played by David Thayer (Little Tornados) were essential contributions, as well as further keys, synths and electronics from Phil M FU and several intense guitar sequences from Mason le Long. Chris A Cummings (aka Marker Starling, Laetitia's favourite composer) graciously wrote 'Deep Background' for her. The duet with Hot Chip's Alexis Taylor on 'Love Captive' (not to mention Rob Mazurek's distinctive coronet playing) gives voice to an ideological cornerstone of 'Find Me Finding You'

Almost 3 years after the release of "Mathusalem", François Ier reveals his fiery successor, "Incendie". In keeping with his previous releases, this new opus has been conceived on the basis of enveloping layers, deep bass and harmonies that are always very rich. The melancholy dimension characteristic of his music is also omnipresent, although it sometimes asserts itself with a form of violence.

Like its abundant cover, this new opus deploys an extremely varied range of sounds, most often evoking strong English influences, with breakbeat, jungle, drum'n'bass and new-wave rhythms, all supported by vocal samples with dancehall, reggae, r'n'b, reggaeton and hip-hop accents, resulting in a hybrid sound to say the least. "Incendie" is marked by the systematic use of the Prophet 8 synthesizer, whose wild, constantly shifting sound underlines the fiery character of this new opus.

Comes with download code.
Short stories in form of micro-compositions by international legend PGY. Limited tape with interactive cover design by DJ Shlucht. Mastered by Maximilian Schweizer at SMS™.

Stretching genre and medium boundaries, 'Being Waves' leads listeners to explore their own concepts of reality and perception. The new record marks an evolution from Kinkajous' acclaimed debut, Hidden Lines (2019, Running Circle). This release, engineered by long-term collaborator Brendan Williams, gives life to a wide aural landscape made up of rich and diverse musical influences. With its blend of acoustic and orchestral instrumentation, analogue synthesis and sampling processes, there is an elaborate yet organic feel to the music that makes Being Waves the five-piece band's most introspective work to date.

Led by drummer/producer Benoît Parmentier and saxophonist/clarinetist Adrien Cau, Kinkajous have earned a reputation for conjuring up a powerful and cinematic sound, being described by CLASH as "a key part of the British music landscape". Joined by Jack Doherty (synths), Maria Chiara Argirò (keys) and Andres Castellanos (bass), this album is exhilarating yet intimate, reflecting the band's outstanding musicianship and versatility.

This debut full-length album by Stockholm-based composer and electroacoustic experimentalist Theodor Kentros, could easily be interpreted as 'just' an assemblage of pieces written between 2021-2024. Named after the paranoid hallucination (or, if said hallucination is real, the underground secret mail system) figuring in the 1966 Thomas Pynchon novel ‘The Crying of Lot 49’, it should rather be perceived as a very distinct, coherent stream running through his output during these years.

The six tracks – ranging in sound and disposition from serialised organ drones constructed to reach screeching and beautiful culminations, to minimalist, repetitive studies in tape loops and string synthesis – were composed and recorded in Stockholm and Visby at different occasions during down-time from his many other projects, which include a myriad of other commissions, co-running labels XKatedral and Kalkatraz Cassettes and touring with punk groups and solo shows.

The impact, influence, and importance of Run-D.M.C.'s self-titled debut – the album that invented hardcore hip-hop and bridged rap, rock, and funk in then-unparalleled ways – cannot be measured. The first full-length record released by Profile Records, the 1984 set permanently changed the sound of music, broadcast streetwise wisdom to every corner of the country, and made the notion of a one-man band a distinct reality. Bolstered by an incendiary blend of staccato deliveries, stark beats, aggressive exchanges, evocative hooks, and socially conscious messages, Run-D.M.C. still hits listeners in the jaw with the same intensity it did nearly 40 years ago when it could be heard booming from ghetto blasters carried around city blocks nationwide.

Sourced from the original master tapes, pressed on MoFi SuperVinyl, and strictly limited to 3,000 numbered copies, Mobile Fidelity's 180g SuperVinyl 33RPM LP is the definitive-sounding version of the groundbreaking work cited by Rolling Stone as the 378th Greatest Album of All Time. This reissue also represents the first time this gold-certified effort has been presented in audiophile quality. Benefitting from the ultra-low noise floor, superb groove definition, and dead-quiet surfaces of SuperVinyl, Run-D.M.C. now plays with a clarity, immediacy, punchiness, and directness worthy of the artistry, urgency, and intellect of the trio's material.

The brilliance of Russell Simmons and Larry Smith's production comes into view as if the music is being broadcast on a giant system in a small club — only more focused, lively, and unlimited. Free of dynamic constraints and fatiguing harshness, this LP invites you to turn up the volume and experience the raw, rough, invigorating songs that changed the look, sound, and feel of hip-hop overnight. Think the trio’s sparse framework of drum machines, tag-team rhymes, keyboard accents, and turntable scratches is stuck in the mid-80s? Spin MoFi’s SuperVinyl LP and gain new appreciation for the music, messages, and production on display on Run-D.M.C.

Recorded in the wake of two successful and pioneering singles, both included on the album, Run-D.M.C. effectively took a sheet of coarse-grit sandpaper to the polish, sheen, and linear presentation of all the hip-hop that preceded it. Stripped to bare-bones foundations, the songs grab your attention and shake you by the collar with a combination of industrial-leaning rhythms, staggered deliveries, dance drama, and hard, minimalist percussion. Then there are the lyrics.

The LP broadcasts a smart mix of boots-on-the-ground reports, uplifting advice, and then-nascent b-boy culture. In one fell swoop, its narratives and music rendered the scene’s proclivity toward glamor and softness passé. Run-D.M.C.’s tough, cool-minded fashion sense showed the trio walked its talk and gave fans — particularly those living in long-ignored urban areas — heroes which with they could identify. Kangol hats, black jeans, leather jackets, Adidas sneaks, and gold chains were the new currency.

In every regard, Run-D.M.C. signifies the birth of modern hip-hop. Never more obviously than on the groundbreaking “Rock Box,” where rap and rock were first fused. As the first hip-hop video to receive regular rotation on MTV, the track eviscerated racial and social boundaries, awakened musicians and listeners to new possibilities, and redefined both popular music and, ultimately, popular culture. As the Roots’ Questlove has stated, it “ knocked down many obstacles, enabling hip-hop to become the new gospel."

Such teaching includes the real-world scripture of “Hard Times,” utopian hopefulness of “Wake Up,” and observational truths of “It’s Like That.” Released as the group’s debut single well before its eponymous album, the latter tune established themes and outlooks Run-D.M.C. would embrace during its career. Namely, the keen awareness of various prejudices, economic ills, and disruptive violence as well as the knowledge that education, self-motivation, and hard work were the ways to escape disadvantages and disillusionment.

Inspired and inspirational, the song reflects the spirit and shrewdness that courses throughout Run-D.M.C. That includes a detailed account of the trio’s not-so secret weapon (“Jam-Master Jay”), purpose statement (“Hollis Crew (Krush-Groove 2)”), and a revolutionary hybrid autobiographical narrative-dis track (“Sucker M.C.’s (Krush-Groove 1)”) widely regarded as one of the best hip-hop songs ever created. The same can be said for every moment on Run-D.M.C.

MoFi SuperVinyl
Developed by NEOTECH and RTI, MoFi SuperVinyl is the most exacting-to-specification vinyl compound ever devised. Analog lovers have never seen (or heard) anything like it. Extraordinarily expensive and extremely painstaking to produce, the special proprietary compound addresses two specific areas of improvement: noise floor reduction and enhanced groove definition. The vinyl composition features a new carbonless dye (hold the disc up to the light and see) and produces the world's quietest surfaces. This high-definition formula also allows for the creation of cleaner grooves that are virtually indistinguishable from the original lacquer. MoFi SuperVinyl provides the closest approximation of what the label's engineers hear in the mastering lab.

Dubstep's origins lie in dark 2-step mutations that evolved on dancefloors and in studios in the early 2000s. That same fusion of swing and space and subs can be found by the bucketload throughout the new EP by one of DNO’s staples, Kercha.
Skippy speed garage hats and slippery globules of bass animate the otherwise sparse production on the opening track ‘Feature’, while the wild beat on ‘Absurd’ could catch out any DJs not giving it their full attention. Wrapped in Kercha’s signature sonic debris, it delivers three and a half minutes of rattling, clicking, squelching wizardry.

The B-side gives us ‘Stimulate’, a collaboration with new-gen rising star Hypho. Indebted to trap, it’s full of militant 808 hi-hat rolls and the kind of firing synth tones that spell doom in a sci-fi movie (and tear up festival stages).

Finally, ‘Saturday’ is classic Kercha: sub-bass from the Seventh Circle, and so many suspicious chirps, whistles and hoots that it could soundtrack a nighttime stroll through the woods just as easily as skanking in a smoked-out sweatbox. The track is peppered with voice notes from a friend — snatches of funny, halfcut chatter, as random in content as Kercha's non-vocal sampladelia. The final snippet, which translates to “Saturday dictates its rules”, gives the track its name. A statement that can be read in all sorts of ways, it could even confer a motto for this whole collection, reflecting Kercha’s trademark originality.

The ‘Absurd’ EP is one of Kercha’s most dancefloor-directed releases to date, and whether conjuring the ghosts of club nights past or envisioning the raves of the future, it’ll be dominating sound systems for a long time to come.

Rhythms of postmodern realism at the very bottom of the DNO.

Six meticulously selected tracks by Black Quasar Records once again reflect the synergy of sounds between the pulsating rhythms of electro and the textures of IDM in this fourth release.

Despite the differences in the personalities and styles of the six artists featured in this V.A., there is an undeniable harmony that connects them into a single creative system.

Weaving new networks between the passion for music and respect for the essence of the Underground is the main goal of “Conexiones Electrónicas”.

repress !

“Tubby did three original dub albums, ‘Dub From The Roots’. ‘The Roots of Dub’ and the third is ‘Brass Rockers’ with Tommy McCook ‘pon the flying cymbals. Where he mixed it with the horn going in and out in a dub way and one named ‘Shalom Dub’ you can call Tubby’s too because he mixed the versions as they were off forty fives’’
Bunny ‘Striker‘ Lee

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 home made 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. Lovingly restored and with a few extra gems added to the CD Editions. These releases were the first to carry the name of King Tubby and the first to credit the great musicians that contributed so much to the rhythms that made these albums possible.

repress !

If one band could be cited for the emergence of Ska music, that band would be the Skatalites.

Formed around June 1965 and built around the many musicians that had honed their craft at the Alpha Boys School in Kingston, Jamaica. The early line up consisted of Don Drummond (Trombone), Roland Alphonso (Tenor Saxophone), Tommy McCook (Tenor Saxophone), Johnny ’Dizzy’ Moore (Trumpet), Lester Sterling (Alto Saxophone), Jerome ’Jah Jerry’ Hines (Guitar), Jackie Mittoo (Piano), Llyod Brevett (Bass) and Llyod Knibbs (Drums).

Named originally The Satellites after the big news of the day, the Soviet space satellite. They became The Skatalites when band member Tommy McCook introduced a play on the characteristic ‘Ska’ sound, made by the guitar when following the’ after beat’ of the music.The group had already cut its musical teeth by playing under various guises around the Jamaican island in numerous ‘hotel bands’. When the big Sound System operators Sir Coxsane Dodd, Duke Reid and King Edwards needed new material to play out with and their usual source of the material, American R & B records were drying up. They turned to this pool of musicians to back up their main singers of the day. Delroy Wilson, Alton Ellis and Lord Creator to name but a few. Also to cut the many instrumental tracks they needed usually under the tutor ledge of Don Drummond, official band leader and main musical director. Their knowledge of the old mento tunes and an understanding of Jazz and R&B music somehow blended to make this musical sound that was to dominate the island from the early 60’s up until around 1966 when the sound would slow down to what we now know as Rocksteady.

The time span of the Skatalites career considering their output of litually 100’s of sides of music, was a relatively short one of just over two years. We have delved into the vaults of Wirl Records and have selected some tunes that show the dexterity of the band and what great sounds this group of musicians were capable of producing and the high quality they maintained. They recorded before they were named as a collective The Skatalites, when personal and financial problems became an issue the band split into two halves. Jackie Mittoo and Roland Alfonso going on to form The Soul Brothers band for Coxsone Dodd. Tommy McCook moving over to work with Duke Reid as musical director. Sadly, Don Drummond suffering for years from depression would see his career cut short ending in Belle Vue hospital in 1969.

But while together they cut some of the finest Ska Sounds to be found on record. We hope you enjoy this set as much as we have in putting it together.
So, stand Up, Listen Hard and do the Ska……

Wieder einmal zerschneiden die Lärmaggressoren aus Finland den Schleier aus dem Jenseits und betreten unsere Welt, um alles zu plündern und zu Tode zu jagen, was in der Metalmusik melodisch, vorhersehbar und lieblich ist. Ihr drittes Album ist aus zwingenden Gründen selbstbetitelt und zeigt, dass die Band weiterhin das EXTREME im extremen Metal erforscht. Das ist vertonte Tollwut! Wie nicht anders zu erwarten, setzt das Album auf brutale Geschwindigkeit, schwerste zitternde Rhythmuspassagen, abgrundtief gekrächzte Flüche, stürmische Breaks und abstoßend kreischende Leads, die einen in einem Strudel des Wahnsinns ertrinken lassen. Doch dieses Mal werden dem pandemonischen Universum auch neue Schichten hinzugefügt: Schräge Stakkato-Riffing-Abschnitte gehen in verhexende Industrial-Szenarien über und lassen CONCRETE WINDS weiter gehen als jede andere Extrem-Metal-Band der letzten Zeit. Alles, was sich in der Musik etabliert hat, wurde weggelassen; alles abgeschnitten, was im Metal bequem geworden ist, und alles weggeblasen, was sich im Extrem-Metal noch "angemessen" anfühlt. Es scheint, als ob diese einst dringende Einstellung, Grenzen auszuloten, endlich wieder einen neuen Steuermann hat!

Nach 14 langen Jahren gibt es eine neue Ausgabe der Fetenhits - The Rare Classics - und diesmal auch
auf Vinyl! Das Konzept umfasst ehemalige Hits, die heute jedoch nicht mehr so präsent sind, Titel, die
außerhalb Deutschlands erfolgreich waren, sowie echte Perlen, die zu Unrecht nicht an die Erfolge ihrer
Vorgänger anknüpfen konnten. Kurz: Titel, die man nicht auf jeder Kopplung findet. Tanzbare Tracks aus
verschiedenen Genres, wie Pop, Rock, Black Music, Disco, Alternative. Als 4LP und 3CD. Es gibt also viel
”Neues” zu entdecken.

Small tribute to the Spiral Tribe for the choice of the title.
For making us see life in a different way with alternative music and parties to what was done at the time and which continues and will continue to influence the sound systems and artists from yesterday, of today and tomorrow.

10 artists 10 different Tribe styles
Thank you to the artists for participating in this project.

Recorded in the mid-80s, a decade after the first advent of UK lovers rock and tailor-made for bass-heavy sound system playback, Christine Lewin’s cover of Tyrone Davis’s ‘In The Mood’ transformed his sensual after-hours classic into a female-led hit that became a staple on Lovers playlists both then and now. Similarly, Tricia Dean’s cover of Jean Carn’s soul favourite ‘Don’t Let It Go To Your Head’ follows the same formula from producers Kpiaye and Smokey, synth-led rhythms reflecting the times rooted firmly in a local London scene. Marvin James's under the radar vocal cover of The Spinners' 'I'll Be Around' gets a reissue on vinyl for the first time backed up by the sought-after Kpiaye instrumental mix aka 'Dub mix by Surgeon McEdit'.

Few names shine as brightly in the cosmology of dubwise bass music as that of V.I.V.E.K. From releasing absolutely ground-breaking tracks for the better part of 20 years primarily on his own System and VIVEK imprints, to curating and hosting his legendary System nights, to bringing so much rising talent to light, it’s honestly difficult to imagine the last two decades of UK and global sound system music without him.

For ZamZam 96 V.I.V.E.K went straight to the bedrock of sound system music and delivered a power-stepper of galactic proportions.

“Illusions Dub” opens with starkly heavy valve bass and a punishing kick, leaving little doubt where this journey is headed . Richly adorned with neck-snapping percussion, industrial snares, post-punk atmospherics and a gorgeous melodic figure, the tune employs classic 90s digi-dub principles while feeling like a message from a gloriously human -or post-human- future.

“Illusions (Raw Dub)” runs rugged through the desk in fine style, with barely restrained feedback, phasers, and deep space echo and reverb ripping open shimmering holes in space-time for a truly cosmic Part 2.

Six Nine Records Ltd. UK proudly presents another release from the
undisputed talkbox champion Winfree, first name David.
Out of Toledo, Ohio, comes this banging two-sider with the amazing
modern boogie funk tunes “Friday Night” (remixed by Yuki “T-Groove”
Takahashi) and “The Way She Makes It Bounce”. These fine compositions
will sound lush played from vinyl and preferably out on a big sound
system!
Definitely not to be missed as it is a limited UK press with full colour
printed picture cover!

Much time has passed since the Queer Australian/Italian-Armenian, multifaceted artist, Kristian Bahoudian aka Kris Baha, swapped the parched red earth and searing midday sun of the Australian landscape for the brutalist communist-era apartment blocks and slate-grey skies of former East Berlin. Kris is now a fixture in Berlin’s club scene and has toured most of the world as a DJ & live artist with his own unique production style of cyber industrial, EBM, wave, post punk, and early ‘90s IDM mutations. Remixing some of the scene’s most notable artists such as Boy Harsher and techno pop lord Boys Noize, Kris has garnered respect and trust in the electronic music scene for the last 13 years. To respond to the current AI revolution, Kris uploads himself to the cyber ether through his latest project: GHOSTS IN THE MACHIИE.

Across Dual Timelines —
” GHOSTS IN THE MACHIИE ” unfolds as a sci-fi cyberpunk concept project inhabiting dual timelines. In one, we glimpse a trans-humanist future where human consciousness exists as intricate sequences of binary code, entwined and controlled by omnipresent AI systems. In this coded future, a profound awakening stirs among a select few who manage to mutate the code they were governed by, unlocking memories of their history that was erased by the AI. Through this discovery they realize they can traverse temporal boundaries and utilize this power to send warning messages back in time to their former fully human selves. These eerie missives carry a dire warning for humanity, urging them to rectify the course of society before the relentless march of artificial intelligence deprives humanity of its essence. In this terrifying future, humans are rendered mere specters within the digital expanse, stripped of their souls, to become Ghosts In The Machine.
Collaboration with the future self —
The cyber odyssey unfolds from a unique perspective— Kris’s very own future self (his future ghost): a spectral entity endeavoring to caution its present incarnation against the ominous path it treads, attempting to avert a dystopian future.Sonic Alchemy —
A fuse of cybernetic synth waves, hyper-punk, and pulsating drum and bass laid out against the dystopian, industrial sonic landscape of this grim future “civilization”. Each track recounts a new chapter in the gripping narrative, drawing listeners deeper into their own story and the role we all play as a collective society with the future possibilities of unregulated AI.Recorded in Berlin with software and hardware synthesisers. AI was used to assist me with lyric themes, concepts and ideas. I also used a trained AI model of my own voice as backing vocals in ‘Haunting Me’.ll music, words & concepts by Kristian Bahoudian aka Kris Baha and his future ghost,
GHOSTS IN THE MACHIИE

"Vanatühi" by Kiwanoid is a technopagan concept album. Track titles refer to the word "nothing" in various languages.
The sonic landscape is crafted using deprecated tools: a first-generation 4-bit laptop, the DOS operating system, and a tracker program. Inspired by glitch aesthetics, the sound palette includes clicks, error noises, and low-bitrate techno sounds. Initially, the structures of the pieces may appear complex and chaotic. This electronic thicket might seem abstract, cold, and inaccessible, yet upon closer examination, it reveals a plethora of diverse species, coming across as somewhat nostalgic and warm, evoking surreal associations. From beneath towering sequoias peek pixelated ferns, LED eyes are blinking from below the undergrowth, and against the backdrop of a crackling campfire and cave paintings, a lively stomping of microchips unfolds.
Sudden contrasts, sharp cutting edges, a tachycardic bass drum engine, and irregular polyrhythms make themselves physically felt. Elsewhere, haunting lo-fi textures, hidden ambient drones, mysterious hums, and obscurely garbled samples offer introspective breathers. The dynamic range of the music is favourably extensive, and the raw imperfections of the sound are unmasked by reverb effects or other generic tools. Interwoven throughout are outsider rhythm loops, which could find a home at an alien rave party or a hobgoblin honky-tonk. Various human voice samples build a bridge to the listener, allowing them to embody a cyborg-like experience.

While each twist and turn remains unpredictable, these diverse approaches align in complementary patterns and stochastic regularities, making the whole surprisingly coherent, despite its chaos. The album doesn't bore the audience with intentionally irritating compositions or pseudocomplexity - it demands attention, but doesn't try to outrun its listeners.

The 3rd instalment in Headset’s VA series, showcasing unsung Scottish artists making alternative club music in any tempo.

4 tough sound-system club cuts inside.
FFO breaks, uk techno, bmore, jungle & 140.

A1 - 140bpm

A2 - 134bpm

B1 - 138bpm

B2 - 175bpm

Mastered & cut by Optimum.

Cut by Trapeze.

180g heavyweight vinyl.

Following a string of releases on a who’s who of top labels such as Planet Euphorique, Salt Mines, Haws and Craigie Knowes, prog-trance pioneer Lisene drops a full-length LP on his On Rotation imprint. With 8 hyper-detailed tracks ranging from club-focused techno, progressive and electro to slo-mo downtempo, Lisene brings his A-game to an album sure to cement his place as one of the most exciting producers and DJs in the UK’s underground music scene.

Created over several years with a perfectionist’s attention to detail, “Science Friction” flits between moods and sonic environments with ease while retaining the cohesion of Lisene’s inimitable production style. Despite being an album, this is still very much a record for the DJs, featuring heads-down club tracks and bass-heavy electro crafted with precision and a cinematic sense of scale. For the home listeners, expansive slo-mo soundscapes and cerebral synth odysseys float high above the clouds, with widescreen details revealing themselves ever further with each re-play.

“This album has been 15 years in the making and represents a culmination of everything I’ve worked towards in defining my own sound and style without letting myself be pigeonholed. I’m immensely proud of each track - it really reflects where I was at musically while making this, while giving a glimpse into my future sound. This is a record that deserves to be played on the finest sound systems and hi-fis, and I couldn’t be more happy with how it’s turned out. Dive in and enjoy!”

Combining influences from across the spectrum of dance music with a cinematic sense of psychedelia and his own inimitable production skills, “Science Friction” is sure to see a lot of airtime across the festivals, after-parties and living rooms of the world this summer and beyond.

On Rotation is a Leeds based label, event & mix series run by Chris I’Anson, Lisene & Adam Pits. Artwork illustrated and designed by Patch D Keyes.

"It’s hard to believe it’s been 15 years, give or take a few, since we tried our hand out at writing, recording, and playing our songs. We had a wild ride and feel privileged, but mostly grateful, to pursue music in the way that we did. A lot of life happened during our tenure as a band and that didn’t stop since our last show or record.

The people and places the band introduced us to continue to serve as the most incredible memories and to add to that, Kingfisher is turning 10 years old. The nostalgia is real. We had been toying around with the idea of reuniting for quite some time, so there seemed no better time to do it than now.

Having Topshelf in our corner as we began preparing to do this was a no brainer. After talking to Kev and the TSR crew of our plans, it was like no time had passed as they’ve always been great friends and a support system to us. Topshelf repressing Kingfisher in its original intended format, as a double LP, feels like a very monumental way to commemorate a record that means so much to us.

We can’t wait to get back out there to commemorate 15 years of Prawn and Kingfisher’s 10th Birthday. We will be having original members (welcome back Vilchez) to help celebrate with a run of shows that we feel very fortunate to do. Cheers to the last 15 years and all of you reading this for being part of our journey. Let’s see what the next 15 hold in store!

All our love,

Prawn"

Buzzkunst ist PETE SHELLEY (Buzzcocks, solo) & HOWARD DEVOTO (earliest Buzzcocks, Magazine, solo). 'SPECIAL SAUCE' ist größtenteils eine Neukonfiguration des 2002er CD-only-Albums 'Buzzkunst' von ShelleyDevoto. JETZT (!) zum ersten Mal auf VINYL, mit einer neuen Reihenfolge und zwei (2) bisher unveröffentlichten Tracks - 'Psychosomatic' und 'Punk Of Me'. Und als ob das noch nicht genug wäre, gibt's noch ein zweites Mini-Album: 11 NEVER BEFORE RELEASED HOWARD DEVOTO ARCHIVE RECORDINGS aus der gleichen Zeit, mit dem Titel 'DESIGNOID'. Instrumentalstücke und Songs, eigenwillig wie immer, inklusive eines 21st century re-work von 'Breakdown', das ursprünglich auf der selbstveröffentlichten Debüt-EP der Buzzcocks, 'Spiral Scratch', enthalten war. "This Shelley is Pete Shelley _ old punks will remember him from the legendary Buzzcocks, while '80s rockers may recall his electro-pop hit Homo Sapien. The Devoto is Howard Devoto, Shelley's old Buzzcocks partner who went on to form the arty post-punk outfit Magazine. Now working together again for the first time in 25 years, the duo have achieved a sound that incorporates most if not all of their previous endeavours without reverting to cheap nostalgia. Their 14-track reunion album Buzzkunst is a progressive step forward, combining the grinding guitars of Shelley's youth and the poppy synthesizers of his middle age with the artsy sonic sculptures and post-punk yelp of Devoto's past." - Tinnitist,2002/2022

Kannon is an album which was composed in the aftershadow of SUNN O)))’s most recent successes in immersive collaboration (the group worked with Scott Walker on Soused, Ulver on Terrestrials in 2013 and 2014) and also from the broad and influential wake of their epitimous Monolith’s & Dimensions . Kannon emerged both independently as a conceptual entity and with roots in the legacies of those projects, yet was fully realised years later, in 2015. The album is 36 minutes in length and consists of three pieces of a triadic whole : Kannon 1, 2 and 3.

The album celebrates many SUNN O))) traditions ; Kannon was recorded and mixed with SUNN O)))’s close colleague and coproducer Randall Dunn in Seattle, in Studio Litho, Aleph and Avast! ; and the LP includes performances by long term allies and collaborators Attila Csihar, Oren Ambarchi, Rex Ritter, Steve Moore and others. And at the core the composition centers around the dynamic and intense guitar and bass interplay of SUNN O)))’s founders : Stephen O’Malley & Greg Anderson.

It’s possibly the most figurative album SUNN O))) has created, which is unusual as they usually dwell in layers of abstraction and subjectivity. On the other hand the album is the most outright “metal” in years, drawing personal associations and memories of cherished albums like Panzerfaust and Twilight of the Gods again to the forefront of consciousness. At the third time it is very close to the cyclical character of mantra which the band has evolved into as a living creature, the enormity of intense sensate detail and manifestation of the live in concert face of SUNN O))), the organism that has flourished, metamorphosed and transcended tremendously over the past ten years.

The literal representation of Kannon is as an aspect of Buddha : specifically “goddess of mercy” or “Perceiving the Sounds (or Cries) of the World”. She is also sometimes commonly known as the Guanyin Bodhisattva (Chinese: 觀音菩薩) amongst a plurality of other forms. There is a rich lineage behind this idea tracing back through many asian belief systems, with as many names and cultural personifications of the idea .

SUNN O))) commissioned critical theorist Aliza Shvartz to write a text / liner notes around these ideas and topics. She also explores the relations and perceptions to their approach to these ideas via the metonym of music and SUNN O)))’s place/approach within the framework of music and metal overall.

SUNN O))) also commissioned Swiss designer/artist Angela LaFont Bollinger to create the cover artwork, an abstracted sculpture of vision of Kannon, and the French photographer Estelle Hanania to capture portraits of the core trio (Csihar, Anderson, O’Malley) in the impressive and obscurant Emanuel Vingeland mausoleum in Oslo.

The LP is packaged in immaculate tip on gatefold sleeve by our long time comrades Stoughton Printing, and pressed at Cascade in Portland, Oregon. CD, download and coloured vinyl versions are also available

Since its founding back in 2014, Blume has carved a unique place in cultural landscape, issuing free-standing works, spanning the historical and contemporary, that represent singular gestures of creativity within the field of experimental sound. Joining their broad efforts in building networks of context and understanding that already includes the works by Werner Durand, Sarah Hennies, Bruce Nauman, John Butcher, Jocy de Oliveira, Mary Jane Leach, Valentina Magaletti, Alvin Curran, Julius Eastman, Alvin Lucier, and shortly after returning with the first ever vinyl release to attend to James Tenney’s legendary “Postal Pieces”, the label is now offering a brand new, ambitious work by the American composer Ben Vida, entitled “Vocal Trio”, conceived, performed, and recorded in Bremen, Germany, during the Spring of 2022. A truly stunning work of compositional conceptualism, combining the ideas of systems based synthesis with real-time vocal collaboration - issued in a highly limited vinyl edition of 200 copies mastered by Stephan Mathieu, featuring specially commissioned liner notes by Bradford Bailey and a leporello insert offering the piece visual score - it’s a landmark in contemporary experimental practice and arguably the most forward-thinking and exciting piece by one of the most exciting American artists working today.

Ben Vida first emerged during the mid 1990s within a loose constellation of experimental musicians, centred around a performance series of improvised workshops at the Myopic Bookstore in Chicago, alongside Jim O'Rourke, Kevin Drumm, Chad Taylor, and the other future members of Town and Country - Jim Dorling, Joshua Abrams, and Liz Payne - the band within which he would gain widespread recognition over the following years. Like many other members of that scene, Vida remains a restless product of a fleeting context - Chicago during the 1990s and early 2000s - continuously undermining concrete notions of idiom and signifier within a practice that witnessed him rendering bristling abstractions within Pillow, glacial melodies with Town and Country, the art-rock mayhem of Bird Show Band, and the angular, driving indie rock of Joan of Arc, before becoming immersed in a practice of systems based synthesis, beginning in the 2010s, that guided much of his first decade of output as a solo performer and composer.

As early as 2013, he began to incorporate acoustic sound sources - specifically the human voice - into his work. It was this shift, evolving and refining itself over the last decade, that underscores radically the leap in his practice represented by “Vocal Trio”, a work that encounters Vida composing for the human voice with the ideas that allow for synthesis - transferring the underlying concepts and structures of both subtractive and additive synthesis to the acoustic realm - without using a synthesiser.

During the Spring of 2022 Vida was in Bremen, Germany, collaborating on a dance piece with the choreographer Fay Driscoll, when the production fell into delays. Finding himself with time on his hands, a space at his disposal, and the company of two dancers - Amy Gernux and Lotte Rudhart - who were also singers, the idea for the piece - to utilising the larynx as audio paths (multi-harmonic or harmonically pure) while conceptualising each person’s mouth as a filter to sculpt the timbre and resonance of a given tone - began to take shape in his mind. Considering how typographical scores might be developed into a non-linguistic social framework, Vida drafted a single page of text - what became the score for “Vocal Trio” - accompanied by a set of harmonic suggestion and loose parameters, seeking a core meaning from each word's phonic make-up by each of the three singers (Vida, Gernux and Rudhart) singing as slowly as possible.

At the core of the pulsing vocal drones - intoxicating, harmonically rich long-tones - that make up the duration abstraction of “Vocal Trio”, is Vida’s regard for music as a social space. It is an experiment that seeks liberation through the act of collective music making, by challenging the terms through which the act of composing is perceived and then relinquishing control. The piece’s rehearsals were simply the three performers hanging out, allowing their knowing each other and natural dynamics to contribute to its form as the score, before recording during a single afternoon at the end of a number of days sharing company and space.

Creatively visionary and groundbreaking on numerous terms, as well as being intoxicatingly beautiful and remarkably listenable, Ben Vida’s “Vocal Trio” represents a striking step forward for one of the most ambitious and outstanding sonic artists working in the United States today. Issued by Blume in a highly limited vinyl edition of 200 copies mastered by Stephan Mathieu, featuring specially commissioned liner notes by Bradford Bailey and a leporello insert offering the piece visual score, this is hands down one of the most important contemporary records we’re likely to encounter in 2024.

The second LP by Tokyo ambient conceptualists UNKNOWN ME began as a commission for historic Japanese cosmetic conglomerate Shiseido, conjuring audio approximations of seasons and scents, but soon flowered into its own refracted and rarefied environment: Bitokagaku. Translated as “beauty and science,” the album is the foursome’s first composed solely with software, reflecting the collection’s utopian, laboratorial muse. 
From levitational electronica (“A Rainbow in Meditative Air”) and vaporous downtempo (“Dancing Leaves”) to planetarium reverie (“Kitsune No Yomeiri”) and AI IDM (“Retreat Beats”), the music moves like weather patterns in a bio-dome: dazzling, microcosmic, and delicately calibrated. Percolating synths crossfade with field recordings from Shiseido’s research division; the sound of streams and distant birds blur into a processed haze; clinical voices read lists of precious stones. It’s a vision of new age as soft robotics, of serenity streamlined by sentient systems.
UM’s team of engineers (Yakenohara, P-RUFF, H. Takahashi, and Osawa Yudai) cite an eclectic swath of inspirations behind Bitokagaku – molecules, stars, Kenji Miyazawa, Akira Kurosawa, even “the sparkle of rainbows” – but their guiding artistic principle is as ancient as it is eternal: “beauty.”

Biomes are little worlds of organic relationships, full of struggles, symbiosis, and sheer obsolete noise. In "De Silenti Natura," Henrique Vaz is meticulously crafting synthetic auditory biomes, sprouting from their own fuzzy logic. Unfolding across two distinct acts, the Brazilian artist interprets and replicates the complex, often ambiguous sounds of (un)natural environments, creating imaginary systems to inhabit over two sides of tape. The soundscape of the first side and title track is entirely algorithmically synthesized, with no samples used, leveraging Supercollider for real-time sound generation. The environment thus built is a flourishing one, seemingly unable to escape its own grandeur as insect-like buzzing and crackles expands into mountain ranges and forests of erupting sonorous drama. The second side introduces 'hydrophone' water synthesizers, submerged in a goldfish bowl to interface with the unfurling waves of electronic chords, creating a unique blend of damp and unwieldy sloshing movements, prismatically scattered into a luscious soundscape, and resembling everything from the bridge of a starship to the echoed drip-drip of stalactites.

Both sides of the album slowly unwrap and uncrinkle, revealing layers of hisses, distant digital choirs, warm enveloping chords, and juddering bleeps. Despite their unwieldy and strange nature, myriad elements convey a familiar sense of environment, flitting between the blossoming of new (manmade) life and the doom and destruction of the (real) world.

As the ringing of bells (fully synthetic; no samples were used) hove into view during the closing movement of side one, a simulacrum cacophony of voices is ushered in. It’s a reminder of the holy nature of sound itself, beamed into our heads intangibly. The flipside’s water ritual, frantically dunking ‘water synthesizers’ to birth swooping melodies and yawning tones, is jabbing at sleeping giants. It’s pushing and pulling the stars in the night sky into place. It’s both a simple act of beautiful creation, and a storm in a teacup.

Following floor shaking four trackers on Bliss Point and his own Professional Music imprint, SPF 50 continues his roll on Amsterdam’s Dzungla label with the Terrarium Trek EP.

Terrarium Trek finds SPF 50 exploring the vanishing space between electronic and organic, returning to us with four sonic ecosystems encased in no-frills club melters. Each track thumps with life, conjuring the beauty, mystery and terror of the natural world, stomping and wriggling out of the sound system and immersing the dancefloor.

Composed using modular synthesis, sampling, and a process that eschews the rational for something deeper, with Terrarium Trek SPF 50 has once again gripped the unknown and pulled it into us, turning the club up, inside and out.

One of the hottest talents emerging from the New Zealand underground, Brassic, returns to DDD with a tour de force of a record, Into Chaos EP.

Switching from the sublime to the ridiculous, while simultaneously traversing a mental cliff edge under the constant threat of experimental torture - this EP is a no hold bars attack on all your senses.

Out on a limited edition six track vinyl and digital EP, come and get lost in the deep caves of Brassic’s warped and psychoactive mind.

Ranging from the grunge-influenced broody opener, Antagonist, to the outright naughty system banger, Alienated, through to the string punctuated grime influences of title track Into Chaos and the epic EP closer I Am - this body of work is a true gaze into the mind of a truly visionary creative and at points the producer’s soul.

Will you step Into Chaos?