quête:the bad kind

Duke Ellington once said that there are 2 kinds of music: the good one and the bad one. With the compilation series “Shaolin Soul” we are always certain to be on the right side of the line since its 1st episode released in 1998 and which compiled two dozens of tracks sampled by RZA and the Wu-Tang Clan. Following a second episode in 2001 and a third one in 2014, the famous curator Uncle O is back to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Shaolin Soul series with a fourth episode compiling 22 tracks among the rarest and finest treats of soul music, because “everybody’s talking about the good ol’ days !”.

Dua releases the deluxe Future Nostalgia album ‘The Moonlight Edition’ on 11th Feb at 11pm GMT. The Moonlight Edition is a celebration of what can only be described as the album of a generation. Future Nostalgia was the most streamed album in a day by a British female artist globally, in the UK & UK. Dua spent more weeks at the top of the album and radio chart than any other artist last year. Future Nostalgia will go platinum in the UK at the end of Feb, just ahead of its first birthday at the end of March.

Future Nostalgia (The Moonlight Edition) features four previously unheard tracks ‘We’re Good’, ‘If It Ain’t Me’. ‘That Kind of Woman’ and ‘Not My Problem (feat. JID)’ and will include the top 10 smash hit single from Miley Cyrus Feat Dua Lipa ‘Prisoner’ which has reached 250m streams worldwide. Also on the album is ‘Fever’ with Angèle, which spent three weeks at #1 in France and 11 weeks at #1 in Belgium and J Balvin, & Bad Bunny ‘UN DIA (ONE DAY) (Feat. Tainy)

We’re Good is the incredible lead single from the deluxe album and both creatively and sonically pushes boundaries of what people expect from Dua. The official video, released on 12th Feb at 5am GMT with a huge global promotion confirmed, follows the story of a lobster in a tank on the Titanic, escaping when the ship sinks. We’re Good is the focus release.

Since the release of her first single in 2015, Dua Lipa has become one of the music world’s hottest young artists. Her eponymous debut album has eclipsed 6 million sales worldwide, with single sales reaching 80 million and the video for her break-out hit “New Rules” (“the song that changed my life,” she says), made her the youngest female solo artist to reach one billion views on YouTube. She made BRIT Award history in 2018 as the first female artist to pick up five nominations, with two wins for British Breakthrough Act and British Female Solo Artist. She then went on to receive two Grammy awards for Best New Artist and Best Dance Recording for “Electricity,” her collaboration with Silk City the following year. At the end of 2019, Dua performed her Number 1 global hit single ‘Don’t Start Now’ at the MTV EMAs, ARIAs and AMA’s in the lead up to the release of her latest album, Future Nostalgia. Her sophomore record was released in March 2020 and surpassed 294 million streams in its first week and has now exceeded 6 billion streams across all of its tracks. The platinum selling album Future Nostalgia has been nominated for 6 Grammy Awards including Album of the Year & Best Pop Vocal and also holds the record for the most streamed album in a single day by any British female artist. Dua has also had the longest run of 3 tracks in the top 10 by a female artist since 1955 and spend more weeks at #1 in the UK than any other artist in 2020.

2021 is shaping up to be another huge year for Dua Lipa, with a 12 date UK Tour, the Grammys and Brit awards in May. Get ready to hear the name Dua Lipa on everyone’s lips.

Legendary drummer, Mick Fleetwood enlisted an all-star cast for a one-of-a-kind concert honouring the early years of Fleetwood Mac and its founder, Peter Green which was held on 25th February 2020 at the London, Palladium. The bill included Billy Gibbons, David Gilmour, Pete Townshend, John Mayall, Christine McVie, Zak Starkey, Steven Tyler, Bill Wyman, Noel Gallagher, Pete Townshend, Neil Finn, Kirk Hammett and Jeremy Spencer. Legendary producer Glyn Johns joined as the executive sound producer and the house band featured Fleetwood himself along with Andy Fairweather Low, Dave Bronze, Rick Vito, Jonny Lang and Ricky Peterson.

Fleetwood, who curated the list of artists performing, said: “The concert is a celebration of those early blues days where we all began, and it’s important to recognize the profound impact Peter and the early Fleetwood Mac had on the world of music. Peter was my greatest mentor and it gives me such joy to pay tribute to his incredible talent. I am honoured to be sharing the stage with some of the many artists Peter has inspired over the years and who share my great respect for this remarkable musician. ‘Then Play On’...”

Legendary drummer, Mick Fleetwood enlisted an all-star cast for a one-of-a-kind concert honouring the early years of Fleetwood Mac and its founder, Peter Green which was held on 25th February 2020 at the London, Palladium. The bill included Billy Gibbons, David Gilmour, Pete Townshend, John Mayall, Christine McVie, Zak Starkey, Steven Tyler, Bill Wyman, Noel Gallagher, Pete Townshend, Neil Finn, Kirk Hammett and Jeremy Spencer. Legendary producer Glyn Johns joined as the executive sound producer and the house band featured Fleetwood himself along with Andy Fairweather Low, Dave Bronze, Rick Vito, Jonny Lang and Ricky Peterson.

Fleetwood, who curated the list of artists performing, said: “The concert is a celebration of those early blues days where we all began, and it’s important to recognize the profound impact Peter and the early Fleetwood Mac had on the world of music. Peter was my greatest mentor and it gives me such joy to pay tribute to his incredible talent. I am honoured to be sharing the stage with some of the many artists Peter has inspired over the years and who share my great respect for this remarkable musician. ‘Then Play On’...”

Zwerm is a Belgian-Dutch electric guitar quartet (with a backyard rehearsal shed located in Antwerp) that operates along the borders between styles and traverses traditions that are typically not convergent. Zwerm rhymes Larry Polansky with Nadah El Shazly and are galvanized by the likes of guitars pioneers like The Velvet Underground and Sonic Youth, the microtonal DYI-er Harry Partch, Middle Eastern sonorities and the prog-madness of Kind Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard. ‘Musical adventure’ is not just a hollow cliché for this quartet, but a genuine commitment. Zwerm calls itself a ‘guitar quartet’, but that can be interpreted broadly as well as with a pinch of salt: “If we want to do something on instruments we don’t really master, we’ll just figure out a way to make it work.”
Toon Callier, Johannes Westendorp, Kobe van Cauwenberghe and Bruno Nelissen all met in 2007 while working on a project with Glenn Branca. A new guitar quartet was born and it became clear rather quickly that staying in the strictly contemporary compositions lane was not for this quartet-with-five-to-six-members (an organizational chart is available upon request).
An appetite for new and lasting collaborations has been a constant theme throughout their artistic parcours. The group has shared stages with theatrical producers like Walpurgis and Post uit Hessdalen, dancers such as Ecce and with the musicians Fred Frith, Stephen O’Malley, Shiva Feshareki, Rudy Trouvé, Mauro Pawlowski, Larry Polansky, Eric Thielemans, Yannis Kyriakides, François Sarhan, Serge Verstockt and Stefan Prins. These projects have not always translated into records, but they have been decisive in creating a unique musical approach. In 2015, when Zwerm was asked by De Handelsbeurs to collaborate with Fred Frith, they proceeded to pen a few new musical sketches over which Firth sublimely improvised. In 2018 ‘Badminton in Tehran’ was released, their first record that was made up completely of only the group’s compositions.
“a basket full of buttons here
and if you push the wrong one: fear
and if you push the right one: love
or maybe none of the above”
The route that Zwerm has taken is often defined by the question “What if... ?” - like a dart thrown at a musical map, not quite blindly, but naive enough to lead to unexpected endings.
“What if we play Renaissance pieces written by John Dowland, but instead of playing lutes we play these tunes with a Telecaster – and then jam it through effect pedals and an amplifier?”
“What if we connect one hundred guitar pedals and just leave our guitars at home?”
“What if we record a record with ten different one-page-pieces that we found on the Internet?”
In 2020 our metaphorical dart landed on “What if we tried microtonality?”.
‘Microtonality’ sounds a bit creepy, but actually there is nothing to be afraid of: there are no out-of- tune notes, just alternate notes. On the continents where Western musical theory is less stringently applied, microtonality is the rule, and has become the subject of many deep and thoughtfully written theories. However for Zwerm, this phenomenon occurs in many, often surprisingly lighthearted forms. A dilapidated piano that has settled into a beautiful microtonal tuning of its own accord, enthusiastic choral singing, a guitar whose three strings are tuned a quarter-tone higher, a saz (Turkishquarter-tone lute), a maddening guitar pedal, ...
"the dreams they were convicted for telling only lies reality came after for claiming to be wise what you don’t see is what you get just never light a spark I’m a crow in the dark”
“And… what if we work with a drummer?” Enter Karen Willems - dummer, extraordinaire, and ardent player in groups, projects and collaborations galore. One chance meeting and the deal was done. It was obvious before the start that Willems was the versatile and creative percussionist-in-a-toy-store necessary for this project. And in the studio, to our delight, she demonstrated an easy dexterity when switching quickly from one idea to the next.
At the reins behind the scenes was producer Rudy Trouvé, who – during previous sessions for ‘Badminton in Terhran’, when the classically trained guitarists went completely off the rails, staring deeply and forlornly into their scores, looking for answers – was able to pinpoint the problem and get the wagons rolling in the right direction again. Completing the team were Mark Dedecker (recording)and Joris Calluwaerts (mixing).
The results are in and it’s called ‘ Great Expectations’ – a title that, in several ways, fits perfectly with these strange times.‘Great Expectations’ goes wide! Zwerm is at its best when it can run along the borders between style and across traditions that otherwise would not necessarily intersect. The most straightforward rockers have a proggy tinge while the dreamy psychedelic songs lean more toward Richard Youngs. And if a nice melody dared come to close to becoming a ‘Kit-Katjingle’, then barbs-a-la-Pere-Ubu were trailed, tracked, found and promptly embedded. ‘Heavy Machinery’ sits neatly somewhere between Captain Beefheart and Richard Wagner, and ‘On My Way To Aguno’, set to an Iranian folk song chord progression, grew into a hyper-personal lullaby. Zwerm used the saz (Turkish lute) and the sinter (Moroccan gnawa bass instrument) without falling into pastiche psychedelia, but you can still sense the orient.

t’s the most popular album by one of the greatest power pop bands of all time... and it’s never seen a widespread vinyl release. Welcome Interstate Managers was hailed a classic from the day it came out in 2003, and featured Fountains of Wayne’s biggest hit with “Stacy’s Mom.” The song craft and lyrical wit of Chris Collingwood and the late, great Adam Schlesinger have never been sharper; there’s not a bad song on this record and lot of them (e.g. “Bright Future in Sales;” “Hackensack”) rise to the same lofty perch as “Stacy’s Mom.” Real Gone Music presents this landmark album in a 2-LP set pressed in red vinyl at Gotta Groove Records, and housed inside a gatefold jacket with two printed inner sleeves featuring lyrics. Also included as a bonus track: the non-LP b-side to the “Stacy’s Mom” single, “Elevator Up!” One of the 21st century’s greatest rock albums.

Driving anywhere in Texas can cost you half a day, easy. For example, it’ll take you over four hours just to get from R&B singer Leon Bridges’ hometown of Fort Worth down to Houston, where the psychedelic wanderers in Khruangbin hail from. The state is vast, crisscrossed with rugged expanses of road flanked by limestone cliffs and granite mountains, forests of pine and mesquite, miles of desert or acres of sprawling grassland, all depending on what part you’re in. And it’s all baking under the Texas Sun that lends its name to Bridges and Khruangbin’s new collaborative release. “Big sky country, that’s what they call Texas,” Khruangbin bassist Laura Lee says. “The horizon line goes all the way from one side to another without interruption. There’s something really comforting about that.” On ‘Texas Sun’, these two members of the state’s musical vanguard meet up somewhere in the middle of that scene, in the mythical nexus of Texas’ past, present, and future - a dreamy badlands where genres blur as seamlessly as the terrain. It calls equally to the cowboys bootscooting at Billy Bob’s in Fort Worth, the chopped-andscrewed hip hop fans rattling slabs on the southside of Houston, the art-school kids dropping acid in Austin, the cross-cultural progeny who grew up on listening to both mariachi and post-hardcore out on the Mexican borders of El Paso. All of these things, overlapping in a multi-coloured melange, purple hues as vivid and unpredictable as one of the state’s rightfully celebrated sunsets. A journey through homesick reminiscences, backseat romances and late night contemplations, the kind of record made for listening with the windows down and the road humming softly beneath you. Like the highways that inspired it, ‘Texas Sun’ is guaranteed to get you where you’re going - especially if you’re in no particular hurry to get there. Khruangbin and Leon Bridges are critically acclaimed artists with extensive coverage in print and online, including the New York Times, NPR, FADER, four Grammy nominations (Leon Bridges), The New Yorker, Washington Post and Pitchfork, among many others.

Following the extraordinary response to the online streaming event in July, audiences will have another chance to experience Idiot Prayer: Nick Cave Alone at Alexandra Palace as it screens in cinemas globally via Trafalgar Releasing from 5 November. The cinematic release of this remarkable and compelling film will be followed by an album on 20 November, available on vinyl, CD and streaming services worldwide.

Idiot Prayer: Nick Cave Alone at Alexandra Palace was recorded in June 2020 as the UK slowly emerged from lockdown, and was conceived as a reaction to the confinement and isolation of the preceding months. Initially imagined as an online only event, fans will now be able to see the film in cinemas as an extended cut featuring four unseen performances.
Two weeks later on 20 November, the music will be released as a double album of the same name featuring all 22 songs from the original film on vinyl, CD and streaming.
In Idiot Prayer, Cave plays his songs alone at the piano in a rarely seen stripped back form, from early Bad Seeds and Grinderman, right through to the most recent Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds album, Ghosteen.

The performance was filmed by award winning Cinematographer Robbie Ryan (The Favourite, Marriage Story, American Honey) in Alexandra Palace’s stunning West Hall. It was edited by Nick Emerson (Lady Macbeth, Emma, Greta). The music was recorded by Dom Monks.
Idiot Prayer is the fourth film that Nick Cave has released in collaboration with Trafalgar Releasing, following 2018's Distant Sky - Live in Copenhagen directed by David Barnard, 2016's One More Time With Feeling directed by Andrew Dominik and 2014's award winning 20,000 Days on Earth directed by Iain Forsyth & Jane Pollard.

Live at Alexandra Palace, 2020

Black Truffle is proud to announce the first vinyl reissue of Rafael Toral’s Aeriola Frequency, originally released by Perdition Plastics in 1998. Toral made his name in the world of mid-90’s experimental electronics with two releases, Sound Mind Sound Body (1994) and Wave Field (1995), both now recognised as classics and reissued on vinyl by Drag City, which saw him exploring the potential of electric guitar and pedals to immerse the listener in seemingly endless waves of sustained tones. On Wave Field, inspired by the striking resonance effects he experienced during a Buzzcocks gig with bad acoustics, he achieved a synthesis—often imitated but never bettered—of rock guitar, Ambient, and the acoustic exploration of Alvin Lucier, a kind of "liquid, abstract flux of rock sound".

On Aeriola Frequency, Toral continued the explorations of Wave Field but dropped the guitar, creating a series of extended pieces using only a simple feedback loop designed to work with pure electronic resonance. The result is far more delicate than Wave Field, a steady but unstable flow of filtered tones that continually reorder themselves into new forms. On both the LP’s sides, the tones, like growing plants, imperceptibly shift from drifting freely in ambient space to weaving strangely natural melodic patterns, as the loops unfold and the resonance gently outlines recurring rhythmic shapes.

The overall effect is strikingly organic, as David Toop noted in the liner notes included in the original release (and reprinted in this reissue): “A crystal garden, the sound grows in reeds and streams, blown like spider web strands, glittering and invisible, pulsing with translucent colour, bubbling and imploding, fraying and powdering.”
A classic of the non-academic approach to electronics that flourished in the 1990s— and a big influence at the time on Black Truffle head honcho Oren Ambarchi—Aeriola Frequency ushers listeners into an endlessly fascinating world of gliding tones and shifting details that they might never want to leave.

- Recorded at Noise Precision, Portugal, December 1997 and April 1998. Remastered by Rafael Toral in 2020.
- Liner notes by David Toop and Rafael Toral.

Rare musical magic from the Bruton library catalogue – ambient, spacey, pastoral and electronic. Music by John Cameron, Alan Hawkshaw, Fran-cis Monkman, Brian Bennett and more – all total masters of the scene. All very cool. All very now. All will sell very fast.

Over the last three decades Jonny Trunk has collected and written about library music. But he’s never had a great deal of luck with the Bruton catalogue. By this he means that he’s never stumbled across a massive stash, or lucked-out buying a huge run for practically nothing –that’s the kind of thing that used to happen in the 1990s and the early noughties if you were out there looking hard for library music. But he did manage to get about 25 in one hit about 20 years ago when the BBC shut down their “TV Training Department” near Lime Grove and also when a box of Brutons ended up being dumped at a hospital radio, and they didn’t want the records, so Jonny got a call.

There are lots of Bruton albums in existence – over 330 LPs in the vinyl catalogue, issued between 1978 and 1985. That’s a lot of music to wade through if you are looking for sublime modern day sounds. For many years now the “trophies” from the Bruton catalogue have been the beat or action driven LPs – the two Drama Montage albums (BRJ2 and BRJ8) have always been the big hitters, and others such as High Adventure (BRK2) too.

But Jonny has always found himself drawn to the lime green LPs, the pastoral, peaceful albums (The BRDs), which were full of the kind of gentle, lovely music that would turn up in Take Hart as Tony was paint-ing a woodpecker or a badger or an Autumn tree. The other Brutons he likes are the orange ones (The BRIs) simply because they are full of ex-perimental futuristic electronics and would remind him of 1980s ITV backgrounds. This LP series includes Brian Bennett’s cosmic classic Fantasia (BRI 10). Jonny has been knows to refer to this style of library music as “Krypton Factor library”, because it’s exactly what that strange but successful 1980s TV quiz show sounded like.

In recent years as interest in library music has expanded, we’ve watched
the price of a handful of Brutons really going through the roof - not the just the action and drama ones, but the more esoteric and experimental LPs too – like the BRDs and the BRIs. Jonny gets the vibe that people fi-nally want to hear this other more interesting and experimental side of the Bruton catalogue. So what better time than now to put together a compilation of such sublime period sounds.

Not only does this album bring together a set of fabulous cues that would cost the average man in the street a month’s wages (if the origi-nals were all wanted and if you could even track them all down), but it also chops out the need to listen to other tracks on library albums that are nowhere near as good.

The cues here all date from between 1978 and 1984. They come from the BRD, BRI, BRH, BRJ, BRM, BRR and BRs catalogues.

The composers are all legends within the genre, and here, were doing what great library composers do best – fulfilling a brief and utilising modern studio equipment to both commercial and beguiling effect.

Bing & Ruth, the ever-evolving project helmed by New York composer David Moore, has announced details of a new album, scheduled for release this summer. Entitled Species, the 7-track, 49-min record will be released via 4AD.

While on a surface level, Species is an exploration of the sonic possibilities of the Farfisa organ, aided only
by a clarinet and double bass (played respectively by
founding members Jeremy Viner and Jeff Ratner), the
title Species is a nod to both humanity and humility –
a devotion to the godly intuition with which we are all
endowed, and the humbleness required of us to
perceive it. It’s also about suspended time and trance;
not just a steady movement from A to B, but as
something that flows, meanders and eddies, like
water.

Species, and the transcendental state it embodies,
was inspired by two recent loves of Moore’s: the
desert and long-distance running. Briefly relocating
from his New York base to Point Dume, between the
Pacific Ocean and the desert, Moore was able to
indulge in both passions, which in turn provided
stimulus for new work. He says, “I’d found myself in
places unfamiliar enough that I could easily lose all
sense of direction, size and, more than anything, all
sense of time. The music I was making became a kind
of reflection of these intentional detachments - and a
place to mirror that feeling of trance that had pushed
them out in the first place.”

Young gun and badman producer Retina returns to Foundation Audio for his debut vinyl release and quite frankly it slaps!!!!

‘Dusted’ kicks things off with a hyper 4x4 beat and an eratic bassline – this one comes flying straight out of the gates! ‘Nameless and Nothing’ a meaner, beast with its eerie atmospheres and plodding bassline takes the A2 spot. Flip the record and we have ‘No Fear I’ a subby monster best described by the word SUB. ‘If Not The Orb’ closes proceedings with a 07-08 old skool antisocial kinda vibe wrapping up the ep perfectly. Dubstep goodness from front to back and solid proof that Americans can also do the dubstep.

Be As One presents the new "Expert" Series, focusing on the labels leading figures, providing 2 tracker EP's, bringing back the attention to a full sided 12" with their singular out of the box approach.

On EXP01 it's label head Shlomi Aber with a fast forward driving peak-time techno rumble.

LIMITED EDITION 300 ONLY WHITE VINYL

There was a terrible egregious shift in vibration the day the transmission arrived. It came to me in a dream, as was natural for these particular occurrences, and left no time for preparation. The sound was unmistakable, a low baritone that echoed wildly and reeked of ancient fumes. A deeply monumental and monolithic apparition stood before what appeared to be a crowd of hexagonal beings. The vibrations worked through them in an apparent communicatory way, though would be impossible to translate in any logical linguistic fashion. I don’t know how but I knew they were aware of me, though their disposition was imminent of their consciousness as being collective, rather than individual; and were largely unbothered by my presence.
 
Once the transmission had finished it was clear that there had been a tamper. The kind of which Id seen  before, and had resulted in definite yet undefinable change in the fabric of reality.
 
I initially stumbled upon the odd and highly dangerous musical practices of Perhaps while on an assignment in Bermuda. There had been rumors of a local tribesman partaking in occult practices, of which I knew was native strictly to the Goat Bleeding Bad Men of the Congolese jungle. These rumors intrigued my journalistic nature, so I took the afternoon off in the hopes to possibly glean something that would be an easy pitch to a tabloid back home.
 
Upon arrival it was clear there was a strange foreign intervention within the community of the tribe, which was largely uninhabited upon first glance. Much of the surrounding foliage had been strung with the entrails of various animals and there were several disturbing fixtures composed of bones and various organs lining the commune. I managed to track down the tribesman, who appeared to be in some deep trance and was entirely unable to communicate, though seemed to be fixated on a single task: the drawing of a peculiar symbol. My researching the symbol resulted in only one hit, a piece of musical literature by a band Perhaps, who I later found to be recording in the area just weeks before.
 
It didn’t take long for me to become fully fixated on Perhaps, who were anything but coy about their whereabouts and metaphysical practices. Wherever they went a small commune followed, which was typically composed of deranged acid freaks, occultists, and Norweigian dairy farmers who had sold all their assets to follow the band after “hearing their music speak from the mountains”. After managing to crack into one of their camps that was stationed in an abandoned motel, I spoke with Jim Haney of Perhaps regarding their cultish practices, who gave little in way of detail but claimed to be working towards a deconstruction of reality through a linguistic utilization of vibration.
 
My stint with the cosmic beings through the telekinetic transmission had lead to one conclusion; that Perhaps have been in the works on something new. It seems as if they may have landed on the result which Haney had mentioned years ago. Through my continued interest I’ve procured the names of other members of this current project, which include: Sean Mcdermott, Tom Weeks, Ricky Petraglia, David Khoshtinat, Ben Talmi, Makoto Kawabata, Lucas Brode, Isiah Mitchell, Olivia Kieffer, Tyler Skoglund, Chang Chang. Though I can’t say exactly what is to come, it seems as if the ideas that were proposed during my initial meet may have been surpassed. Perhaps’ plans have begun to surface, and we are all at risk, for whatever that means. The great column and the vibrational prismic beings have shifted their attention to earthly matters, it would be foolhardy to not heed their warning. Though, self-preservation may be an impossibility.
 
Sam Hailstone Dec 24/ 2019

A record to be enjoyed to its very last second AM Jazz is set to place this songwriter where he just might, finally, receive the recognition he deserves; from unsung hero to a truly worthy candidate for being called up to join the City of Manchester’s ranks of great musical icons. Whether you prefer to know him as Mr. Roberts or simply call him Al, it’s time to become acquainted with the real Jim Noir.

Tossing his bowler onto the hat stand and sliding on his slippers, AM Jazz sees ‘Jim’ putting his feet up whilst Alan Roberts takes the lead. A creative masterpiece for the record player and the mantlepiece, it’s a multi-layered album that features close friends including those dearly departed, and is his truest record to date, by a songwriter painting his own hypnotic Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.

“I haven’t 'felt' like Jim Noir for a long time. I’m not sure I ever did; it was a construct of other people’s imaginations,” reveals Al. “AM Jazz is definitely the kind of music I make generally. It harks back to when I started making music years ago and didn’t worry about capturing a particular style. It will be nice to show people more of that.

It's the best album I've written; real hypnotic minimalism, the good stuff!” 15 years since he recorded the first ever 'Jim Noir' EP, AM
Jazz is the record all Noirheads won’t be surprised Al had inside him.

Letting the Beatlesesque stylings of his most recent album Finnish Line be (5 years ago no less), AM Jazz suits the Noir repertoire of his catalogue so far and is another homegrown offering which sees the Daveyhulme composer tinkering in his suburban Manchester studio once more, with the magic of his computer work sorcery, analog and tape recordings.

“For this I went back to the slightly more haphazard way I wrote my first album, Tower Of Love, wherein I’d use things in front of me, or a bit wrong like headphones for a microphone, to make the most Hi-Fi Lo-fi album ever.”

Whilst a brief disappearance of Jim’s online persona may have provoked bleak theories as to his whereabouts, Al had little time for digital distraction. Whilst writing and creating with friends, he has worked on electronic pet project, FAX with former Alfie guitarist, Ian Smith, and the vintage analogue house meets electro sound of his own solo EP Granada Personnel Recovery, as well as producing local band, Shaking Chainsor, and helping long-time musical colleague, Aidan Smith with his long-awaited 'The Planets' project; “I’ve been writing in dribs and drabs when I feel like it,” Al says. “I used to write all day everyday but it’s a lot harder now I’m (feeling) over 100 years old.” Never not sonically exploring or being inspired by the sounds around him, there was even a red-carpet moment when he appeared as a film premier guest after a couple of his songs were selected for the OST of director Jason Wingard’s film Eaten By Lions.

Performing all AM Jazz’s instrumental parts himself but also, at the right moment, bringing in present and past pals along the way, sexy lounge song, ‘Hexagons’ features 'Phil Anderson' and Mark Williamson singing and playing “legendary OTT guitar solo” respectively. Meanwhile the orchestration of ‘Peppergone’ waltzes like a beautifully romantic ode to Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata – a tribute to dearly departed best friend 'Batfinks' who originally wrote the chords in his song 'Peppercorn.' “I hope he doesn’t think it’s shit,” Al jests. Listen closely and you may even find a few unsuspecting celebrity guest appearances as, perhaps, it could be the very first album to feature soundbites of podcasts sneaking onto the recordings. “I will have a podcast on if I’m recording; Adam Buxton, Athletico Mince, Frank Skinner or Richard Herring… I’m sure some mics will have picked them up, like in the old Tower of Love days,” he says referring to his breakout debut.

Culled from around 50 tunes AM Jazz moves like the time of the day, from dawn to night, stirring from the pop of ‘Good Mood’ and ‘Upside Down’s Beta Band groove. “As the album was playing, I imagined this smoky backstreet with all those neon signs outside clubs at about 4am,” Al says. Mellow ‘TOL Circle’ is like Percy Faith’s Theme From A Summer Place synthesized, capturing the style of TV library music or movie soundtrack obscurity that has always stirred Al’s curiosity, and the album plunges into a vast chasm of instrumental exploration with ‘Mystermoods,’ visiting Japan’s funky synth whiz duo Testpattern and Hakabashi Sakamoto. Darkening and deepening in intensity, ‘Eggshell’ is like an undiscovered gem from Angelo Badalamenti’s cutting room floor, the Panda Bear shimmer of ‘Lander’ is where blissful positivity and sadness meet, about another of his friends who left the world too young. “By the album’s close, its nearly time to let go and enter the ether,” he says of the album’s story. “Like one would do when they take their final sigh on this earth.”

Fleeing her Soviet ruled home of Tbisili at a young age with her parents, Saze grew up as a nomad living in Russia, France, Canada and the USA before finally settling down and pursuing a career in NYC. A classically trained musician and dancer, before long the Georgian turned her back on corporate life to pour her heart and soul into the arts. Becoming a diligent and versatile electronic music producer, DJ and live act, Sophia Saze is as comfortable sculpting intricate and atmospheric productions in the studio as she is decimating dancefloors with robust Techno and frenetic Breaks. Reflecting on her turbulent life and how it’s formed her own identity, Saze composed her aptly titled debut album, ‘Self’. Released on cassette in two instalments, ‘Part I’ dropped in June and was critically acclaimed with support from the likes of BBC 6MUSIC’s Tom Ravenscroft, Mixmag, DJ Mag, XLR8R, Resident Advisor, Future Music, Attack Magazine, TRAX, Tsugi, Ransom Note and Groove Magazine, with the latter drawing a parallel between hers and Burial’s music. Completing the journey, ‘Part II’ meanders through genres like Ambient, Hip Hop and Breaks, and features very personal insights including handpicked samples from Soviet television shows and VHS cassette recordings from her childhood. Hidden allusions of her classical music education bring up distant memories and melt together the organic but thoroughly electronic ambience. Crackles, hushes and hisses are elaborated so well that the record virtually gushes over the ears like mountain torrents. It appears peaceful and quiet, then rousing and it is sparked with bewildering sounds. It lets scattered beats arise from the thicket and drown again in streams of noise. But

Producers at the heart of the broken beat revival, EVM128 and James Rudie met through the CDR project, and soon after started to mess about collaborating with Gonzi. After coining the concept of INPUT, they found a home via Tony Thorpe at Studio Rockers and the seed was sewn. The concept is simple, make a beat, pass it on, and let someone else add to it. Its about letting go of self and letting the music go somewhere it wouldn't have gone otherwise. It was a labour of love until each track felt right. Talented musicians, producers, singers and rappers came on board to fulfill the brief, and the end product is a modern day broken masterpiece. It's about collaboration, whether in the mixing and arrangement, performance, keys, percussion, synth, bass, - everything was a joint effort.

INPUT is released on Studio Rockers on 19th July 2019 as a double vinyl release.

A LITTLE ON THE ARTISTS INVOLVED :

Written by curator EVM128, James Rudie and Gonzi are both killer producers who met me at CDR and also became part of Co-Op presents Selectors Assemble with IG Culture and Alex Phountzi. You can hear them both on Naughty Groove and Gonzi on Gut Level.

ISHFAQ is an elusive producer that has been making beats for time but is still under the radar. He's a force to be reckoned with. Watch him cos he's dangerous! Hear him all over Naughty Groove on Keys and on Complete Me ft Natalie May. He just knows where to fit into a tune... He has an acute ear!

TurboJazz met me after Djing together in Milan and working together on remix jobs, where I remixed Turbo's 'Please You' ft David Blank on Local talk Records. In return Turbojazz remixed the EVM Beyond ft Uk Soul legend, OMAR. It was only natural to get them involved with this project.

iLL Smith aka MR K is a heavyweight producer making serious waves in the new Dubstep 140 low end scene. He gave me a couple tracks that were broken beat he had been sitting on and said "You should do something with these". One of which is GOLD which I only really added a Clap to and worked the arrangement and first mix down. I called on Daz I Kue for a rapper I'd heard on one of his tracks which had the right energy. Daz hooked me up with Nesha Nycee, a fierce rapper from Atlanta Georgia. She smashed it straight away and the tune just worked. This was probably the easiest out of all of them!

Nesha Nycee is a REAL rapper.

Shy One is a friend of mine and has worked with me on music a few times in the past. I always love when she sends me a beat, she has that lo fi dirty grime kind of approach, then I add my style to it and it just seemed to bode well. We worked together on Mother Nature on the Nova LP and this track for INPUT (One Design) which we were sitting on for a while. Tony got Steve Edwards (All Seeing I, Sheffield) on the vocals. This was an unexpected turn on this track that we couldn't have imagined, but it worked! This track is the epitome of INPUT in that, it went somewhere completely different!

Steve Edwards is a singer songwriter from Sheffield who works on projects with All seeing I. He has a great energy and the lyrics made me cry! Really amazing heartfelt lyrics that speak of now and has a positive uplifting vibe to it that we can all relate to. It will stick in your head for ages believe me.

Natalie May met me through soundcloud. She's been releasing UK Funky tracks for a while and worked with Rudimental. She reached out to me after hearing the Nova LP and the stuff on CoOp presents. She went to the studio with me after already writing to some instrumentals. Very professional and on point in the studio. Her voice is sweet and the perfect juxtaposition to the rough bass and drums on 'Complete Me' and when ISHFAQ got his hands on it, well... Nuf said really !

Daiva from the Lithuanian band KeyMono has worked with me for a good few years. We met in Lithuania when I was teaching music production to young people through MTV, I met their manager Istvan. She was on my Naked Truth EP and the Nova LP. I Love working with Daiva she's great! Her voice is amazing as is her professionalism. She sounds somewhere between Erykah Badu, Little Dragon and Fatima. She's always my go to for any collaboration! Hear her on 'The Edge'. The lyrics were written by Kermit (Black Grape / Ruthless Rap Assassins).

Renato Paris.. wow ! I mean what!!? We sent the backing track and two days later he sent back the vocal and we fell over! He has a voice that echo's Stevie Wonder and Omar! Really professional work ethic too. Still cant get over how good he is. This guy can REALLY sing and play keys. Watch out for more from me and Renato... Bruk meets RnB / Jazz.

We have created something special and unique where you can hear each persons input in the

tracks. We love it and hope you will too.

Like a homage to smoke-filled vaults, aging billiard rooms and crumby packets of pork scratchings in the Working Men's Clubs of days gone by, Todmorden-by-way of-Europe trio Syd, Jake and Giulia are about to fling open the doors of their own millennial social hub with the fresh post-punk of infectious debut single, 'Bad Blood' / 'Suburban Heights.'

'We grew up in northern towns trying to get in to pubs in social clubs because that's all we had. The name is an ode to that,' explains Working Men's Club's 17-year-old singer and guitarist, Sydney Minsky-Sargeant. 'Our surroundings and their differences has influenced us a lot on these tracks.'

Joined by guitarist-vocalist Giulia Bonometti, 23 and drummer Jake Bogacki, 18, the trio have always had a clear sense of their whereabouts; quite simply, they wouldn't even exist without multi-nationalism. Meeting at college in Manchester, Syd and Jake are from Todmorden and Hebden Bridge, but their families hail from Poland whilst Giulia moved to the UK from Lake Garda, Italy. 'The songs are based on the culture of walking round Manchester every day then going back to the countryside each night and how the contrast of going back into the hills made us sane,' Syd tells.

Working Men's Club are wise beyond their years as they seemingly offer words of wisdom, to be repeated like some kind of break-up mantra, until everything's ok; 'Be happy when the sun shines / Be happy when the sun rains / You know you should do the same.'

If 'Bad Blood' is the day, 'Suburban Heights' is the night. Recorded with Alex Greave at The Nave in Leeds, steady riffs from Syd's fingers tap-dance on the strings alongside Jake's skill in working a jagged snare. Meanwhile Giulia's heavenly disco 'ooohs' recall Donna Summer feeling the love whilst cutting right to the contentious subject of gentrification. 'Suburban Heights refers to how apparent it is that cities are expanding to hold more people and buildings are rising, they're morphing into these dystopian party towns,' tells Syd.

Already with shows supporting The Wedding Present and Brian Jonestown Massacre behind them, Syd says it's only the beginning; 'Those shows were great experiences and ones we'll have for life. We love making music and we're so grateful for what we've achieved so far; hopefully there'll be plenty more to come.'

180g
In order to celebrate 5 thrilling and inspiring years, we gathered well-known artists, Goldmin regulars and emerging talents. It was really important for us to express the elusive nature of the Goldmin sound, in the form of a compilation tracklisting. Over the past 5 years, we had the chance to meet most of these guys in person, follow their very own creative path, share ideas, thoughts and there’s no doubt that they all had their part to play in crafting our sound. This intimate and stimulating kind of collaboration had to be expressed and there couldn’t be a better way to capture what we’ve been busily working for, than a serie of Various Artists 12″. What it comes down to is a quintessential, hard-to-follow Goldmin selection devoid of any specific standard or norm. And this whole compilation seems to reflect that non-septate artistic direction, this little something, which has grown throughout our whole catalogue, since the label’s birth.That’s why, picking these select few tracks, that could illustrate Goldmin Music’s essential freedom was probably our toughest work yet. It was also important to pick only the most original and iconic tracks from each artist. In the end each track had to be their most Goldmin one and they all have been tried in all types of situations, in club at 1 and 5 AM, on the highway at night or even staring at the ceiling during a sleepless insomnia session. They all fullfilled their duty.

The material featured on this EP was recorded in Berlin over the course of a legendary week-long exploit, the kind you read about at the movies. The music is a marriage of dark synth hooks and atmospheric sound design resulting from extensive Berghain-monitored brain damage. It is very fortunate that both artists were wearing their Twin Turbo friendship bracelets at the time or they may have never even gotten past the door. In terms of raw intelligence, the top one percent of those reading of this will have picked up on the cues that these tracks are techno. The rest have nothing to feel bad about. Our hope is that both communities can work out their cognitive differences on the dance floor every night for the rest of their lives. Our business model depends on it.

The story of Seattle's rise to global rock supremacy in the late 80s and early 90s begins with Green River. Made up of Jeff Ament (bass), Mark Arm (guitar/vocals), Bruce Fairweather (guitar), Stone Gossard (guitar) and Alex Shumway (drums), the
quintet put out three 12's and a 7' single during its brief existence.
Green River's influence on Seattle's music scene spread far and wide thanks to the members' dispersion into bands including Pearl Jam, Mudhoney and Love Battery, as well as the punk glam sludge rock songs they left behind. 'By '83, '84, there was
definitely a movement that was happening within hardcore, like Black Flag slowing down for My War,' says Arm. 'The Replacements and Butthole Surfers were rearing
their heads, and they're very different bands, but they're not hardcore - the Replacements are pretty much straight-up rock, and Butthole Surfers were God knows what. Sonic Youth's Bad Moon Rising was around, and a lot of really
interesting post-hardcore things were happening.'
Green River, formed in 1984, were part of that evolution, with a sound that straddled a lot of different genres - blues, punk, bloozy straight-ahead rock. The mini-LP 'Dry As A Bone' - which came out in 1987 - and the band's lone full-length
'Rehab Doll' - which came out in 1988 - were released as a single CD with a few bonus cuts, including their sneering cover of David Bowie's 'Queen Bitch' and their marauding version of Dead Boys' 'Ain't Nothin' to Do', in 1990 - but they've been
unavailable on vinyl for years.
Now, these slices of Seattle music history are not only back in print, they're accompanied by items from the vaults that had been forgotten about for decades.
'Dry As A Bone' was recorded at Jack Endino's Reciprocal Recording in 1986 and it shows the band in furious form, with Arm's yowl battling Fairweather and Gossard's
ferocious guitar playing on 'This Town' and 'Unwind' opening as a slow bluesy grind then jump-starting itself into a hyperactive chase. The deluxe edition includes Green
River's cuts from the crucial Seattle-scene compilation 'Deep Six', as well as long-lost songs that were recorded to the now-archaic format Betamax.
'Rehab Doll', recorded largely at Seattle's Steve Lawson Studios., bridges the gap between the taut, punky energy of 'Dry As A Bone' and the bigger drums and thicker
riffs that were coming to dominate rock in the late 80s. This new edition of 'Rehab Doll' includes a version of 'Swallow My Pride' recorded to 8-track at Endino's Reciprocal Recording, which features a more accurate depiction of how the band
sounded when they played live. 'When I listen to these mixes, I think, 'This is how we actually sounded - this is the kind of energy we had,'' says Shumway.
Green River's place in American music history is without question but these recordings paint a more complete picture of the band - and of rock in the mid to late 80s, when punk's faster-and-louder ideals had begun shape-shifting into other ideas.
CDs in digipack with 12-page booklet. 2LP formats in gatefold jacket with custom dust sleeve and digital download code.

Brainwaltzera returns to FILM. The shrouded producer continues to demonstrate a breadth of skill as both a musician and engineer, with another collection of deep and textured recordings for the FILM label, intended as an Epi-Log' to the artist's debut album Poly-Ana. Continuing the exploration of crystalline IDM, proto-Electro, Ambient and other curious strains of left-field music, Brainwaltzera looks out across a colourful and varied sonic landscape, drawing on a wealth of classic influences all the while maintaining that unique and instantly recognisable finish. Low slung 4/4 opener Triangulate Dither (fairytall Version) hinges on fathoms deep synth work, moving about a playful hook that operates in stark contrast to the track's heavy, tape distorted finish. Laif Of Smit touches on new territory - a nod to contemporary Beats production, complete with pitch shifted vocal and heady, warping bassline - before beatless recording (take 2) brings the listener back into a more familiar space: a beautiful ambient segue reminiscent of the producer's earlier productions on the label. Countdempops showcases Brainwaltzera's simple yet effective drum work - a perfectly executed, emotive cut centred around a dusty break. Bad Endgar focuses more on the high frequencies - a crisp, clean Electro production, featuring those signature sliding synths now a characteristic of the producer's music. Uptempo closer Dropp on Gminor rounds off the EP with a kind of Folk meets Footwork piece that lifts the record's final notes into a tentatively more euphoric state. Heavy on atmosphere, rich in inherent musicality and beautifully executed - the Brainwaltzera journey continues with another solid offering on the FILM label.

Produced by Jenn Wasner of Wye Oak. LP is on coloured coke bottle green vinyl + inclues download code and 12x12' lyric sheet/ liner note insert.

Madeline will be on tour throughout the UK and Europe this Autumn.

'Building from understated beauty to dense guitar theatrics. It reminds me of Chicago circa '93 as remembered in a dream — a little bit of Liz Phair 'Exile In Guyville' - rendered in soft-focus with the graceful confidence of a young master. ' STEREOGUM

In January of 2018, five months after the release of her debut album Night Night at the First Landing, Madeline Kenney traveled from Oakland, California to the woods outside of Durham, North Carolina to record her sophomore album with a new collaborator, Wye Oak's Jenn Wasner.

The choice was a conscious decision to explore new methodology in writing, recording, production and even genre. Perfect Shapes sees Kenney leaping headfirst into fresh and adventurous territory, largely eschewing conventional rock structures in favor of theme and melody. Its ten songs are full of surprises big and small - from vibrant synth lines to taut bass figures and subtly modulated vocals - that instead of feeling fussed over, reveal Kenney's penchant for elegant and abstract composition.

Kenney's 2017 debut, Night Night at the First Landing, was a guitar-centric rock album, produced by friend and collaborator Chaz Bear of Toro Y Moi, Perfect Shapes leans on the foundational pieces of Night Night - fuzzed-out guitar tones, coy wordplay and Kenney's notably strong voice - but with an unconventional approach that allows them to bloom, reincarnated. Perfect Shapes marks Wasner's first foray into producing another artist's work and is permeated by the pair's collaborative spirit. Both Wasner and Kenney play multiple instruments on the record, and engineered the session alongside Kenney's touring percussionist, Camille Lewis.

An eagerness to explore and experiment is apparent from start to finish, as Kenney and Wasner weave endless sonic curve balls into the arrangements. From the delightfully warped percussion on opening track 'Overhead' to the burbling synths on the R&B-tinted 'The Flavor of the Fruit Tree' and the left-field trumpet solo in 'Your Art,' these rich and inventive ideas echo Yo La Tengo's everything-but-the-kitchen-sink mentality, as well as the surging soundscapes of Tame Impala and Wye Oak at their most impressionistic. Lead single "Cut Me Off" is a surprise of its own - the most pop-forward song Kenney has written yet. 'Bad Idea,' finds her balancing fragility as foil; later, 'I Went Home' manages to evoke both frustration and affection in a single breath.

The complex and open-ended questions that lay at the core of Perfect Shapes mark Kenney's arrival into a hard-hitting reflective space: How do you love another when it hurts to do so What is the physical limit to which one can carry the emotions of others How does a modern female artist reckon with the expectations demanded of her femininity Yet for all the notes of doubt and fear that Kenney raises, she delivers each song with confidence and poise, grounded by the pointedly laid and surging soundscape.

Kenney has always had a penchant for curiosity and experimentation. Raised in the Pacific Northwest, she began studying classical piano and dance in kindergarten, and grew to believe her future lay in modern dance choreography. Not one to be tied to a singular pursuit, however, Kenney took a hard left in college, studying Interpersonal Neurobiology and supporting herself with a career in baking. Music remained a constant however, and after moving to the Bay Area in 2013, Kenney quickly found footing in the supportive arts community in Oakland. There, she met and began collaborating with Chaz Bear (Toro Y Moi), which led to the production of her Signals EP and later her debut album, Night Night at the First Landing. Both releases were received with great critical acclaim, and saw Kenney exploring the sounds within her self-proclaimed twang-haze genre, defined by cathartic fuzz breakdowns and lyrical sensitivity.

By track two we've already blitzed Cutty Ranks samples via Dawn Of The Dead chatter through Street Fighter vamps and Pulse X resurrection subs. All you can do with Mars89's mesh of gutter sonics is pick out the landmarks you recognise: 'oh yeah that's kinda drill, mmmm gqom, oooo Night Slugs' but like the best hallucinations you just shut your eyes and ride it.End of The Deathsounds like it comes from no place in particular.

Slotting way outside of the current batch of hard-to-describe club music that we're all struggling with, End of The Deathis the Tokyo native's third release, his 2nd for Bokeh (after 2017's Lucid DreamEP) and his first official appearance on wax (after a run of 30 'Biological Tides'/'Poltergeist' dubplates). Bokeh pays full respect to Mars89's futuristic intent with a bad acid Akira sleeve airbrushed by Patrick Savile and a limited VR headset edition - accompanied by a 360° video environment by Seth de Silva.

Bokeh Edwards and Mars89 met at the Bokeh Versions x Diskotopia night in Tangram hairdressers, Tokyo (sponsored by Pioneer) in October 2016. He's a crucial member of the Tokyo's Chopstick Killahz, a self-described "Post Tribal DJ Unit" lurking on the fringes of the city's grime scene. Mars89's self released his debut EP East End Chaos in 2016 on a limited run of zines. He's also recently composed music for Amazon Fashion Week Tokyo 2017A/W and started a residency at Bristol's Noods Radio to highlight DJ and production talent elsewhere in Asia.

Very nice compilation on this artists work - on the ever excellent Born Bad imprint!
.
For many decades until quite recently, little was known about music from Burkina Faso (which was formerly known as the Upper Volta). It is still one of the lesser known forms of popular music from West Africa. A few years before the country changed its name to Burkina Faso, thanks to Thomas Sankara's dream of a new society, Voltaic music emerged as some kind of true cultural revolution in the wake of the country's independence in 1960. Remote, poor and isolated, Upper Volta musicians coveted the orchestras and artists from abroad while creating a music of their own, based on rich cultural traditions

Popular music that sprung up from Burkina Faso owed much to the music from neighboring countries like Mali, Ghana, Ivory Coast or Benin, and to the longing for cultural authenticity' conveyed through Guinean music. In capital city Ouagadougou, as well as in Bobo-Dioulasso (Burkina's cultural capital until the 1980s), the first two decades of independence saw the upcoming of such orchestras and artists as Amadou Balaké, Georges Ouedraogo, Volta Jazz, l'Harmonie Voltaïque, Les Imbattables Léopards, Abdoulaye Cissé, Tidiane Coulibaly or Pierre Sandwidi.

Nicknamed the troubadour from the bush', Pierre Sandwidi stands as one of the finest Voltaic artists from the 1970s. He belonged to an unsung elite of Francophone artists such as Francis Bebey, G.G. Vickey, Amédée Pierre, André-Marie Tala, Pierre Tchana or Mamo Lagbema. His entire released output consists of less than ten 7 inches, two LPs and a bunch of cassettes. A man from the provinces, he always favored social engagement and carefully crafted lyrics over instant fame. His words and music challenged General Lamizana's dreary presidency, which ruled the country from 1966 to 1980.

For his third album for Far Out Recordings, London based multi-instrumentalist and one of Europe's finest saxophonists Sean Khan ventures to Rio de Janeiro to collaborate with iconic Brazilian polymath Hermeto Pascoal. Taking its title from the escaped slave settlement 'Palmares' in the Northeast of Brazil during the 1600s, Palmares Fantasy is Khan's utopian jazz message for the world, and features Azymuth drummer Ivan 'Mamao' Conti, bassist Paulo Russo, guitarist Jim Mullen, and guest vocals from Brazilian chanteuse Sabrina Malheiros, and Cinematic Orchestra frontwoman Heidi Vogel.

Like Hermeto Pascoal, Sean Khan is a self-taught musician. Never able to afford his original dream of studying at Berklee, and having been turned away from Guildhall School of Music for being 'too raw', he became disillusioned with what he saw as the exclusivity, elitism and dangerous institutionalisation of the jazz world. Yet Sean's love for music and the drive to create never faltered.

Hermeto Pascoal, the man Miles Davis once dubbed the most impressive musician in the world', is a similarly independent artist. A true maverick whose ingenuity and freedom from conventional restraints is so great that he has essentially conceived his own musical language, made him the dream collaboration for Sean.

Aspiring to inclusivity and equality also informs the message in Khan's music. Inspired by the 17th Century settlement of Palmares in Brazil's Alagoas region, which was free from the Portuguese crown's murderous exploitation of South America for a century, Khan notes his fascination with the fact that while majoritively made up of escaped African slaves, many deserter conquistadors also joined the settlement.

Hearing the deep-grooving title track with this history in mind, the listener is transported to a futuristic musical eden, with Mamao's insatiable 10/8 rhythm back-boning Hermeto's wild improvised vocals, rhodes and whistles, while Sean's harmonically brilliant sax and flute add more layers of moody, characterful expression. 'Moment of Collapse' is Sean's poetic study on the uncertainties of modern day western civilisation, delicately presented by the gorgeous vocals of Heidi Vogel and drenched in lugubrious strings and Alice Coltrane-esque harp. The two covers on the album are of Hermeto's own 'Montreux' (on which Hermeto plays solos on a teapot and a pint of water), and an uplifting soulful jazz-funk take on Milton Nascimento & Lo Borges MPB classic 'Tudo Que Voce Podia Ser' featuring the vocals of pioneering nu-bossa voice Sabrina Malheiros.

The recording sessions for the album were part of an intensive and hugely productive eight-week excursion to South America for Far Out boss Joe Davis in the summer of 2016, which also saw the sessions for Azymuth's Fênix and a forthcoming album from Uruguayan fusion legend Hugo Fattoruso.

Fantastic' Gilles Peterson

Loving this!' Opolopo

Thank you!' Sassy J

Proper! Great track.' Colin Dale

this is great!' Yannick Elverfeld (RBMA / Needs Records)

I've enjoyed Sean Khan's earlier releases, but this really seems like he's grown into his fairly considerable talent.' Mark Sampson (Songlines)

His last album was his best so far, but I think this one may be even better.' Laurence Pragnell (Soul Brother Records)

dope!!!' Kyri (R2 Records)

this is great - really cool vibe!' Sam Redmore

wonderful track - can't wait to hear the lp.' Simon Harrison (Basic Soul Radio)

This is very tasty indeed.' Gavin Boyd (Soul Has No Tempo)

Stunning!!!' Mark Milz (Further In Fusion)

Oi Oi' Samuel Lloyd (Balamii Radio)

PRESS / ONLINE

VINYL FACTORY (UK) News (Anton Spice) 09/03/18 online

SOUNDS & COLOURS (UK) News (Gabriel Gahan) 09/03/18 online

THE WIRE (UK) Review confirmed (Joseph Stanard) print

EVENING STANDARD (UK) Review confirmed (Jane Cornwell) print + online

ECHOES MAGAZINE (UK) Review confirmed (Laurence Pragnell) print

LIBERATION (FR) Feature confirmed (Jacques Denis) print + online

MUSIC IS MY SANCTUARY (CA) Premiere confirmed (Mike Jones) online

JAZZ MAGAZINE (FR) Review confirmed (Frederic Goaty) print

SHINDIG! (UK) Review confirmed (Grahame Bent) print

MUSICA MACONDO (UK) Premiere confirmed (Tim Garcia) online

RAWCKUS MAGAZINE (USA) News (Randy Radic) online

KIND OF JAZZ (UK) Review confirmed (Fernando Rose) online

TONART MAGAZINE (DE) Review confirmed (Michael Moehring) print

WORLD MUSIC NETWORK (USA) Review confirmed (Raul Da Gama) online

BADD PRESS BLOG (USA) Review confirmed (Kevin Press) online

ORKESTER JOURNALEN (DK) Review confirmed (Patrik Sandberg) print

LIVE

WORLDWIDE FM (UK) Sean Khan live session confirmed (Gilles Peterson)

RADIO

BBC RADIO 6 (UK) Gilles Peterson - Palmares Fantasy (24/02/18) link

OTHER

BRITISH AIRWAYS On board BA flights (June 2018)

Rumored to be one of the most intriguing collaborations of 2018, Rocketgirl presents Pieter Nooten's 4th solo album 'STEM' as Nooten teams up with legendary producer/ mixer/sound-artist Stephen W Tayler (Kate Bush, Underworld) at Peter Gabriel's Real World Studios. 'STEM' is probably Nooten's finest work since collaborating with Michael Brook 30 years ago, producing the timeless cult classic 'Sleeps With The Fishes'.Setting the tone in his 2012 double cd 'HAVEN', Nooten further explores the boundaries between the neoclassical and ambient genre, delivering an album of  heartwrenching, profound melodic compositions that invites you to listen to 'STEM' over and over again.

Stem is 60 minutes long (The CD includes a bonus track)
The vinyl has been specially edited by Stephen and Pieter and comes with a postcard and a download code of the full version.

Press:'Moments in life so often slip by with only the rusted acquaintance of memory to recall them but with a masterpiece like Haven in your collection you won't ever walk alone. No matter the slips and pitfalls you encounter or the loves you recriminate yourself for squandering, Pieter Nooten's newest will allow you to dwell with your thoughts in private with dignity...''Haven is the kind of record that gives modern composition a good name. It will also give countless budding musicians the belief that they can create a valid piece of work with nothing but a laptop. This may not be a bad thing, but it will be a while before anything in the genre matches the maturity, warmth and technical ability displayed by Nooten...'

Nooten's musical career began in the late 1970s. Starting out as the drummer in a local symphonic rock band,2 he quickly changed to bass guitar and later keyboards, playing in different bands. At the height of house squatting culture and new wave, Nooten met Anka Wolbert and Ronny Moorings who had just formed Clan of Xymox together. During the mid-eighties Clan of Xymox recorded two highly acclaimed albums on 4AD.

Welsh producer Odeko first appeared on Mr. Mitch's forward-looking Gobstopper imprint with the A.I. influenced EP "A History With Samus" in 2016 immediately snagging a "producer to watch" tag from Fact magazine and a premiere at SPIN. In early 2017, his second EP "Digital Botanics / Construct Conduct" arrived confirming his sound and setting the stage for him to start working on this - his debut album "Rose Tinted Vision Implant" that is set in a post-Ballard, post-Gibson, post-Miéville, alternate reality. "Rose Tinted Vision Implant" sees the Bath-based producer creating a cutting edge sonic world inspired by "speculative fiction, time/reality shifting stories and dystopian shit." The entire record is structured around, and expands upon his passion for the "future," underpinning the music via a underlining narrative. "Rose Tinted Vision Implant" starts with "The User" (aka the listener/ protagonist depending on your perspective) of the 'Optic.Rose' going through the process of getting an implant is made by a mega corporation, (think "whatever Elon Musk's legacy will be 200 years from now" says Odeko "not necessarily evil or good, just a world owning superpower."). And then we follow "The User" who has unfortunately received a bad egg through stages of that devices degradation. Sonically we're there to observe. We open ("Anomaly Detection") with a precursory scan and move onto installation ("OpticRose_0_1_Installation")
through to a battery change and a recalibration. From this point, the 'presence' begins to take over the implant and the tracks verge into a more cerebral range. Odeko notes "its a bit of a satire on corporate brands pushing these great products that everyone is obsessed but that are detrimental to both the world, and how we perceive reality. Our relationship with social media and tech could go down a dangerous path if we loose sight of things. I'm going quite far here for the sake of the concept, but things like VR, AR, the want for body tech, mixed with our desire to be connected, emotionally, digitally, physically, wirelessly could lead us to a world where everyone has implants, or some kind of tech built into them." Sonically its a record that explores a post-IDM, post-Grime, post-Ambient, post-Glitch, post-Retro-House, post-Instrumental Grime, take on electronic music, like Gobstopper's Mr. Mitch himself and his label mates Orlando, Lloyd SB, Tarquin, Clu, rAHHH and Loom, Odeko is making a kind of post-genre music. Yes it's a cerebral concept under the music but as popular shows like Black Mirror have shown - critiquing our new future can be fun, unusual and highly rewarding. Welcome to the world of Odeko.

Extra Noir is a coldwave, minimal synth and post-punk soundtrack based in South Korea. This is the first of a series of compilations, featuring artists from the hosts' three most recent homes - Scotland, Korea and Texas. Available on digital and limited release vinyl. About the artists:
Aadm Our Hatley is a Texas-based multi-instrumentalist who has played in a long list of underground Austin acts, such as Red X Red M, Attack Formation, Those Peabodys and Bangaar. He currently plays guitar in Chamberlain Greene and drums in Boss Eye. Straddling the dank border between industrial and no wave, Glasgow duo Total Leatherette also brings pervy disco fetish to their sleazy brand of mutant music.
Kübler-Ross is one of the many aliases of Glasgow electronic producer / remixer Dave Clark. A versatile and prolific producer, Clark has worked with JD Twitch of Optimo as one half of the Optimo (Espacio) remix team, played guitar in Badalamentian blues band Big Ned, and has been recently recording synth-based solo tracks as Kübler-Ross.
Comprised of techno producer Seonggu de Kim and minimal ambient artist Eajik, Airy Textile is a synth duo originally based in Seoul, South Korea. Their contribution to Extra Noir Vol. 1 marks their first release on vinyl. Tengger are an electronic psychedelic duo from Seoul, South Korea, comprised of Itta (harmonium and vocals) and Marqido (modular synth).
Texan synth wizard Xander Harris is one of the most influential artists in the 'horror disco' genre, and has consistently delivered tense, garish and unflinching journeys into the darkest domains of dance music. This track, 'The Velvet Hand', is exclusive to Extra Noir Vol. 1. Pecht is the nom de plume of a Manchester-based solo artist who retreated to the wilds of northern Scotland after years in the London entertainment industry. His self-titled debut album was recorded during his exile on the north coast. 'unlock' is Pecht's first release on vinyl. Cucina Povera is the musical identity of Maria Rossi, a Glasgow musician and vocalist originally from Finland. She is a collaborator in Luxos with Daniel Magee of Lo Kindre, and a former DJ on Glasgow's Subcity Radio. Her debut LP, Hilja, was released in January 2018.

Having grown up with and on the internet, Martin Steer (1986) has transformed its pull into a concept album that is just as immediate and intangible as the digital world. Bad Stream is guitars and machines vanishing in the spaces between Radiohead and Nine Inch Nails only to reemerge amidst Ambient, Noise, and Drone. Bad Stream, then, is his modus operandi - a hybrid soundtrack to the feelings of resignation, isolation, and cynicism within neoliberal cyberspace and to that strangely numbing comfort of bodies transmuting into zeros and ones in real time.
'I look at my phone even when I play guitar,' says Martin Steer, 'and that isn't even entirely voluntary. The 2010s really changed my perception of how digital technologies and social media affect me as a musician. Through Bad Stream I want to make sense of this particular kind of anxiety, and to use sensory overstimulation as a way to develop an independent and progressive musical language.'
The past seven years took Martin and his laptop and guitar from Berlin to Mexico and Nepal and, as a founding member of Frittenbude, into the German charts and to various festival stages. And yet, Bad Stream is a true 'Berlin album,' out of Friedrichshain, Neukölln, and Kreuzberg and will be released on Martin Steers own label ANTIME. It was recorded with real drums and programmed beats, with shoegaze guitars, acid baselines, piano, smartphone synths, violins, field recordings from the darknet and his voice, whose hopeless timbre conveys reflections on systems, the future, drugs, people, and his own place. In his ever expanding A/V live shows and in the music videos, this is supplemented by complex visuals.

Limited Edition Clear Vinyl

Includes 12' Vinyl and Deluxe CD album, 30 page hard back book

Now that I've been to Nashville,' Kylie Minogue says with audible affection, I understand. It's like some sort of musical ley-line...'

Golden, Kylie's fourteenth studio album, is the result of an intensive working trip to the home of Country music, a city whose influence lingered on long after the pop legend and her team returned to London to finish the record: We definitely brought a bit of Nashville back with us,' she states. The album is a vibrant hybrid, blending Kylie's familiar pop-dance sound with an unmistakeable Tennessee twang. It was Jamie Nelson, Kylie's long-serving A&R man, who first came up with the concept of incorporating a Country element' into Kylie's tried-and-trusted style. That idea sat there for a little while, with Minogue and her team initially unsure about how to bring it to life. Then, when Grammy-winning songwriter Amy Wadge's publisher suggested Kylie should come over to collaborate in Nashville, a city Kylie had previously never visited, something clicked. You know when you're so excited about something,' she recalls, that you repeat it an octave higher and double the decibels I was like that. 'Nashville! Yes! Of course I would!'. I hoped it would help the album to reveal itself. I thought 'If I don't get it in Nashville, I'm not going to get it anywhere.''

Kylie's Nashville trip involved working alongside two key writers, both with homes in the city. One was British-born songwriter Steve McEwan (whose credits include huge Country hits for Keith Urban, Kenny Chesney and Carrie Underwood), and the other was the aforementioned Amy Wadge, another Brit (best known for her mega-selling work with Ed Sheeran). It was then a truly international project: Golden was mainly created with African-German producer Sky Adams and a list of contributors including Jesse Frasure, Eg White, Jon Green, Biff Stannard, Samuel Dixon, Danny Shah and Lindsay Rimes, and there's a duet with English singer Jack Savoretti.

However, the album's agenda-setting lead single Dancing was, significantly, first demoed with Nathan Chapman, the man who guided Taylor Swift's transition from Country starlet to Pop megastar. If anyone knows how to mix those two genres, Chapman does. Nathan was the only actual Nashvillean I worked with. He's got a huge studio in his house, which is probably due to his success with Taylor... there's plenty of platinum discs of her, and others on his walls.' There's something of the spirit of Peggy Lee's Is That All There Is, of Dylan Thomas' Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night, even of Liza Minnelli's Cabaret about Dancing, a song which not only opens the album but sets out its stall, providing a microcosm of what is to come. You've got the lyrical edge, that Country feel, mixed with some sampling of the voice and electronic elements, so it does what it says on the label. And I love that it's called 'Dancing', it's immediately accessible and seemingly so obvious, but there's depth within the song.'

The experience of simply being in Nashville was an overwhelming one, before Kylie had even arrived. Once I knew I was going to Nashville, people talked about the place with such enthusiasm. They said without doubt I would love it and, I would come back with songs. They were sending lists of restaurants, coffee shops and bars. It really was a beautiful and genuine response and it felt like I was about to have a life changing experience and in a way, I did.' The reality came as something of a surprise, when she found a far more modern metropolis than the vintage one she'd envisaged. I thought it would be like New Orleans: little houses and bars, with music spilling out onto the street. It reminded me more of Melbourne: apartment blocks going up everywhere! The main strip, Broadway, where the honky tonk bars are, that's where the street was filled with music and it was just amazing.' Mainly, Minogue remembers the heat and humidity. It was 100 degrees. It was like it was raining with no rain.' She also relished the chance to wander around unrecognised, visit a few venerable music bars and soak in the atmosphere. I didn't get to the Grand Ole Opry or the music museums but I managed to go to a couple of the institutions there like The Bluebird Cafe and The Listening Room, and just by being there, through some kind of osmosis, you get this rejuvenated respect for The Song, and the writing of The Song. There's no hoo-hah around it. There's a singer-songwriter there, talking about the song and singing the song, to an audience who are there to listen. Although, I have to confess I was guilty of starting to clap too soon during a long pause at the end of one of the songs. The guy made a bit of a joke out of it and got a laugh from it, but I thought 'Of all people in the audience, no...''

It's probably no coincidence, therefore, that every track on Golden is a Kylie co-write, making it arguably her most personal album to date. The end of 2016 was not a good time for me,' she says, referring to well-documented personal upheavals, so when I started working on the album in 2017, it was, in many ways, a great escape. Making this album was a kind of saviour. I'd been through some turmoil and was quite fragile when I started work on it, but being able to express myself in the studio made quick work of regaining my sense of self. Writing about various aspects of my life, the highs and lows, with a real sense of knowing and of truth. And irony. And joy!'

The songwriting process allowed Kylie to get a few things out of her system. Initially, she admits, it was cathartic, but it also wasn't very good. I think I was writing too literally. But I reached a point where I was writing about the bigger-picture, and that was a breakthrough. It made way for songs like Stop Me From Falling and One Last Kiss. It also meant I had enough distance to write an autobiographical song, like A Lifetime To Repair, with a certain amount of humour. The countdown in that song: 'Six-five-four-three, too many times...'. I don't know if that will be a single, but I can just imagine a girl with framed pictures of past boyfriends, and kind of going 'Oh god, when am I going to get this right'' When she listens back to Golden, Kylie can vividly hear the Nashville in it. It is, she'll agree, probably the first time that a Kylie album has sounded like the place it was made. You wouldn't normally relate my songs to the cities. Can't Get You Out Of My Head sounds more like Outer Space than London. But Shelby '68, for example, was written in London but it was done with Nashville in mind. It's about my Dad's car, and my brother recorded Dad driving it! I don't think I'd have written a number of the songs, including Shelby '68 and Radio On without having had that Nashville experience.'

The latter, she says, is about music being the one to save you.' Throwing herself into the making of the record, she says, crystallised that idea. If there's one love that will always be there for you, it's music. Well, it is for me, anyway.' That song, in particular, carries nostalgic echoes of the golden age of Country, as heard through Medium Wave transistors and tinny home stereos in the distant past. Like any child of the Seventies, Kylie had a basic grounding in Country music, mainly absorbed from older family members. My Step-Grandfather was born in Kentucky and though he lived most of his adult life in Australia, he never stopped listening to his beloved Country artists.' If there's any classic Country singer whose imprint can be heard on Golden, it's Dolly Parton.

Kylie saw Dolly live for the first time at the end of 2016, at the Hollywood Bowl. It was like seeing the light,' she beams. It was incredible. Everyone, whether they know it or not, is a Dolly Parton fan. When I was in Nashville, I did pick up a T-shirt that said 'What Would Dolly Do' Maybe that should be my mantra.' And, whether consciously or otherwise, there's a timbre and trill to Kylie's vocals on Radio On that is distinctly Parton-esque. My delivery is quite different on this album,' she says. A lot of things are 'sung' less. The first time I did that was with Where The Wild Roses Grow. On the day I met Nick Cave, when I recorded my vocals, he said 'Just sing it less. Talk it through, tell the story.' This album wasn't quite to that extreme, but a lot of the songs were done in fewer takes, to just capture the moment and keep imperfections that add to the song. I remember on my last album, a lot of producers were trying to take out literally every vibrato they heard. And that's not natural to my voice. I mean, I can make myself sound like a robot, but it's nice to sound like a human!' Working within the Country genre also gave Kylie permission to write in the Nashville vernacular. Because we were going there, I wasn't afraid to have lines like 'When he's fallen off the wagon we'd still dance to our favourite slow song', 'Ten sheets to the wind, I was all confused', 'I'll take the ride if it's your rodeo'. The challenge of bringing a Country element to the album made the process feel very fresh to me, kind of like starting over. I started to look at writing a different way, singing a different way.'

If ever Kylie lost confidence in the Country-Pop concept, and found herself pondering This is great, but back in the real world - my real world - how will this work', Jamie Nelson was there to badger her into sticking to the path. We found a way to make it a hybrid with what we'll call my 'usual' sound. It had to stay 'pop' enough to stay authentic to me, but country enough to be a new sound for this album. The closer we zoomed in, and the more we honed it, I knew Jamie was right. We sacrificed good songs that weren't right for this album, because we wanted it to be as cohesive as possible. The songs that were hitting the mark were these ones, so we decided to be strong, and that's how we wrapped up the album. What he said, that stuck with me, was that 'I'd hate to get to the end of this and really wish we'd gone for it.'' Having worked with Kylie for so long, Nelson was able to put this latest shift of direction into perspective. He said 'You've traditionally done it throughout your career. You had your PWL time, then you did a complete turn when you went to deConstruction, then another complete turn with Spinning Around, and R&B dance-pop, and then another turn with Can't Get You Out Of My Head, icy synth-pop, and this is another one.' He was right. It felt like the right time to have a change sonically. New label, new stories to tell, and a new decade almost upon me.'

Kylie Minogue will, it's scarcely believable, turn 50 this year. This looming milestone is partly behind the album's title, and title track. I had this line that I wanted to use: 'We're not young, we're not old, we're golden' because I'm asked so often about being my age in this industry. This year, I'll be 50. And I get it, I get the interest, but I don't know how to answer it. And that line, for my personal satisfaction, says it as succinctly as possible. We can't be anyone else, we can't be younger or older than we are, we can only be ourselves. We're golden. And the album title, Golden, reflects all of this. I liked the idea of everyone being golden, shining in their own way. The sun shines in daylight, the moon shines in darkness. Wherever we are in life, we are still golden.' One of the album's shiniest moments is Raining Glitter, an exuberant banger which ventures closest to Kylie's traditional dance-pop comfort zone. Eg White, who is one of the producers and writers and a great character, was talking about disco one day. I said 'I love disco, but you know the brief.' We needed to be going down the Country lane, so to speak. But we managed to bring them both together. When I wrote it, I was thinking about the Jacksons video for Can You Feel It where they're sprinkling glitter over everyone. And I think there's a Donna Summer record that's got that feel to it. I think that's my job: I basically leave a trail of glitter after every show I do anyway.'

Kylie is looking forward to the challenge of incorporating the Golden material into her live shows. Mixing these songs in with my existing catalogue is going to be fun. And it could be fun to do some of those songs with just a guitar. It'll make my acoustic set interesting...'Her incredibly loyal fans - to whom one Golden song, Sincerely Yours, is intended as a love letter' - will, she believes, have no problem with her latest stylistic shift. My audience have been with me on the journey, so I shouldn't be afraid that they won't come with me on this part. I've had fun with it, and I'm sure they will too.'

The time spent making Golden has, Kylie says, been a time of creative and personal renewal. I've met some amazing people, truly inspiring writers and musicians. My passion for music has never gone away, but it's got bigger and stronger.' And if there's an overriding theme to the record, it is one of acceptance. We're all human and it's OK to make mistakes, get it wrong, to want to run, to want to belong, to love, to dream. To be ourselves.'

I was able to both lose and find myself whilst making this album.'

Die zweite Runde von Remixen zu dem selbst betitelten Album von Urbs ist eine fesselnde Zusammenstellung von zeitlosen HipHop sowie Downtempo Nummern.

Marc Mac: Gibt es zu dieser Person etwa noch was zu sagen Als Teil des UK Duos 4Hero hat er Musikgeschichte geschrieben und sein Visioneers Projekt setzte neue Standards in Sachen organischem HipHop. Sein Remix zu - Get Wid It featuring Tyna aus Neuseeland, besitzt alles, was man sich von diesem Musikgenie erwartet. Ein souliges, harmonisches Meisterwerk, welches auch auf einem seiner legendären Visioneers Alben hätte veröffentlicht werden können.

Peter Kruder hat als Teil von Kruder & Dorfmeister sowie mit seinem Projekt Peace Orchestra Musikgeschichte geschrieben. Sein Remix zu - Happy Days feat. Bagi und Sarah Ann ist eine Reise zurück zu seinen musikalischen Wurzeln, welche ihn berühmt gemacht haben - eine relaxte Downtempo-Nummer. Der Remix weckt Erinnerungen an die Zeit, als seine Musik Millionen von Menschen berührte.

Patrick Pulsinger ist der dritte im Bunde aus der Riege der Helden der 90s. Gemeinsam mit Sam Irl, seinem derzeitigen Komplizen, zeigen die beiden was herauskommen kann, wenn ein Studio-Zauberer mit Techno Wurzeln auf ein Musikgenie mit HipHop Wurzeln trifft. Ihr Remix zu - Code Of The Snake feat. Blabbwona ist eine trippige HipHop-Tech-Dub Nummer mit viel Bass und als solches absolut einzigartig.

Jstar aus London hat sich bereits einen Namen gemacht als Produzent von unzähligen Remixen und Edits auf seinem eigenem Label Jstar. Seine Spezialität sind Dub und Reggae Remixe von HipHop Classics. Er ist ein Großmeister des Digital Dancehall und transformierte den Golden Era Sound von - Why We feat Ward 21 (aus Kingston Jamaica) in etwas absolut Futuristisches.

Flip: Rapveteran von Texta aus Linz, der zuletzt durch sein Soloalbum auf dem New Yorker Raplabel Ill Adrenaline Records aufgefallen ist, bringt einen Remix zu - Holdin' Back feat Wordsworth. Mit einem genialem Chuck D Sample und einem funky Beat setzt dieser Remix Tanzflächen von Alaska bis Auckland in brannt.

Trishes: Last but not least: Moderator der legendären HipHop Radioshow Tribe Vibes auf FM4 und integraler Bestandteil der Wiener HipHop Szene. Für seinen Remix zu - Concussion feat BluRum13 von Oneself, setzte er auf einen heftigen Groove mit lauten Becken um einen Underwater-Funk-Beat zu kreieren und somit einen neuen Hintergrund für diese echt verrückte Geschichte zu gestalten.

Über das Album 'Urbs':
Ganze elf Jahre sind seit - Toujours Le Meme Film', dem letzten Album von Urbs vergangen. Auf Kruder & Dorfmeisters G-Stone Label lieferte der Wiener Musiker, DJ und Producer damals den Soundtrack zu einem fiktiven Film Noir, zog sich aber nach einer Europa-Tournee fast gänzlich aus der Öffentlichkeit zurück. Er sieht sein Schaffen nicht als Karriere, sondern als Teil seines Lebens, welches in den seltensten Fällen einer konkreten Planung unterliegt, und deshalb hat Urbs sich auch bewusst viel Zeit gelassen für sein aktuelles -unbetiteltes - Album.

Urbs: - Der Vorgänger "Toujours Le Meme Film" kam bei sehr vielen Leuten extrem gut an, und über die Jahre habe ich mitbekommen, daß es manchen Leuten richtig viel bedeutet. Das war eine gewisse Belastung, weil man diese Leute natürlich nicht enttäuschen will. Mittlerweile denke ich, daß genug Wasser die Donau runtergeflossen ist, um vielleicht den einen oder anderen mit etwas ganz Neuem zu überraschen. Die Leute, die mich kennen, wissen ja, daß ich im Grunde immer dopen HipHop produziert habe.'

Konsequenterweise handelt es sich diesmal nicht um ein Instrumental-Album sondern um eine Sammlung von 12 souligen HipHop Nummern, die mit handverlesenen Vokalisten der internationalen Rap-, Dancehall- und Soul-Szene aufwarten. Neben den New Yorkern Wordsworth von EMC sowie R.A. The Rugged Man, finden sich unter anderem Ward 21 aus Kingston, Jamaica, Voice Monet aus New Orleans, Blu Rum 13 von One Self aus Washington DC, als auch alte Weggefährten wie dem Wiener Skero oder dem Wahl-Münchner Blabbwona von Abstract Art auf dem Album.
Auf die Frage, wie es sich anfühlt, nach mehreren Instrumental-LPs erstmals ein Album mit Vokalisten aufzunehmen, erwidert Urbs mit einem Augenzwingern: - Generell war es für mich schwierig die Songs loszulassen und mich den MCs auszuliefern. Man verbringt viel Zeit mit einem Stück und baut eine gewisse Beziehung auf. Die Musik erzeugt Bilder im Kopf und hat oft eine schwer fassbare Bedeutung für den Producer. Dann geht ein MC drüber und es ist ein bisschen als würden die brutalen Freunde deines älteren Bruders dein Kinderzimmer verwüsten- in deiner Anwesenheit.'

Wieso das Album keinen Titel trägt, ist auch schnell beantwortet: - Dieses Album ist nun sozusagen meine Leistungsschau auf diesem Gebiet und durch den unendlich langen Reifeprozess, ist es auch schön intensiv eingekocht und auf dem Punkt. Deshalb auch keine Intros, keine Interludes, kein Titel, no Gimmicks, einfach 12 gute Songs - Punkt.'

Neben dem Album werden auch zwei EPs mit Remixes von Retrogott, Brenk Sinatra, Visoneers (Marc Mac von 4 Hero), Peter Kruder, Cookin' Soul, J*Star, Flip (Texta) und anderen veröffentlicht. Für das Artwork zeichnet DJ DSL verantwortlich.

The album is the fourth LP from FM Belfast. Broadcasting from their home on a remote island you can sense that the tracks are personal. The album has 11 tracks, 11 intimate stories to dance to. It's like you've been invited to a Cabin Fever Dance Party in their living room. The lyrics are about bliss, euphoria, trying to be a human in this strange world, friendship, of loss and growing up.
ALL MY POWER The first song of the album deals with guilt. When you're surrounded with people who wake up early and do everything they are supposed to do but you can't get out of your own bed. This will make you feel guilty. The others don't need to rub it in since you already have bad feelings about yourself. There are two characters in the song. One is a blamer while the other one is being blamed. FOLLOW ME I'm not longer blind, you can follow me". The song is about a person who is no longer blind to the world around her. It's about taking responsibility for your choices. We are not just a group of individuals, we are citizens of this planet and we can't stand idly by when powerful people are destroying it in front of our own eyes. We have ways to connect and we can band together against the hatred and violence. The rich and the greedy are taking everything and ruining it for the rest of us. Being kind is not the same as being naive, it's a choice everyone can make.

ENJOY
Enjoy life while it last. Don't watch the world go by without having a good time. "Here's to feeling alive, everywhere, all of the time".

UP ALL NIGHT
Sometimes you just postpone everything you're supposed to be doing and run away from your problems. The night is the best time for procrastination, you can hide in the dark and nobody can see you waste your life.

AGENT
Like many songs on the album, this one is about holding your head above water in this strange world we live in. It's easy to get blindsided and lost but who's going to speak up for the weak if you don't do it.

YOU'RE SO PRETTY
The lyrics for You're so Pretty originally come from a short story written by Lóa. They are about getting old without maturing. The song is about being restless and broke. Sometimes you feel like there is nothing left to do but shout.

STREAMERS
Streamers is a quiet love-story about having found the person you want to sit next to for the rest of your life and watch crappy TV together. Lyrics are by Árni and Lóa.

LEAVE A MARK
Even if things are not great today, there is always tomorrow. Leave a Mark is a personal reminder to do something about the life you are given and not waste time. It doesn't have to be important, it could just be writing your name on a wall. I little bit of "I was here" for the people who come after you.

FEARLESS YOUTH
It's a nostalgic song about being a fearless adolescent and the friends you used to have. The lyrics are written by Örvar who's also a founding member of MúM.

STROBE
The Strobe is an atmospheric track. It's made for people who want to dance in a euphoric bliss. The lyrics are like a mantra: It's getting dark so turn on the strobe. Don't think, just get lost in the dance.

THE GAME
The Game tells you to resist the power of bad people and bad governments. There's a big game being played and you don't need to participate, you can resist. The power hungry people of this world will never be satisfied but you don't have to support them.

You could be forgiven for thinking Basso's been hitting the plant food of late. Last time out we took a trip with Trance, and now our esoteric expert nods his head, rolls his shoulders and drops a h-h-h-house record on our unexpecting asses. That's right folks, roll up the rug, push the sofa back and enjoy some ‚Personal Growth' from James Booth.
.
Operating a million miles away from the kick and hiss of the trendy lo-fi folks, the Berlin based producer favours subtle rhythms, delicate textures and tender melodies - turning out a string of sophisticated dance floor winners for 100% Silk, Church and No Bad Days. Now he brings his organic house stylings to the Growing Bin with a fresh five-tracker packed with all the warmth of a Tempelhof picnic on a balmy July afternoon.

Emerging from the watery depths of the Drexciyan ocean, opener ‚Mood' strides calmly through the morning dew, stretching those loose limbs and seeking out Hardcastle's rainforest. Drifting freely
through immersive, aquatic pads and soft focus melodies, the track takes in a little R&R before snapping electro percussion, cascading synthlines and a rolling rhythm up the intensity. The deepness continues on the A2 as ‚Dream Precipitation' offers a medicated vision of Debussy doing P-Bar while Lynch rolls the cameras. Syncopated hi-hats, jazzy keys and star-gazing sine waves wrap themselves around your cerebellum, expanding your mind as a steady kick moves your body into the pleasure zone. Booth takes a Derren Brown tip on the flip, imbuing ‚You' with the kind of mesmeric rhythm that can make the staunchest wallflower pull a Pink Panther on a packed dance floor. The exotic tumble of woody percussion and hissing castanets keep up a fascinating rhythm, driving the titular mantra and snaking synth melody through bursts of slapped bass and subtle 4/4. ‚Dhoop Stick' stays on board with the boogie hypnotism, weaving its way through celestial melodies, squelching bass and toasty Rhodes before ‚The Chorus' brings down the curtain with wailing FM vox, military snares and the dreamy synth pop charm of a lost Sheffield classic. Warm, woody and entirely organic, this is the birth of Green House...you heard it here first!
(words by Patrick Ryder)

"Feeling numb from all the electronic dancemusic coming out, moaning about how its become a bit samey, or are you just tired of your shitster friends saying its not like in the 90's anymore. This record will shut everyone in the room up. A1 is a deeply psychotic acid death march into confusion, so minimal and primitive (kick, snare, acidsquelch) it will challenge every beard and armpit and might even hypnotize the dj to the point he cannot mix in the next one. A2 is a straight up Commodore 64 SID track with mongoloid data elephants tooting over a wobbly and tarded electroish beat. B1 is a dystopic dreamy rave stomper, starting out kinda datacuddly but gets more and more serious, with choirs of fable mooers taking you into that virtual bad trip you need. b2 continues as expected with more c64 SID madness, so snary I cant even determine if its in 115 or 230bpm. But it leaves you with the feeling your ears and mind just been wrestled, smacked and poked at, and thats the point. This is no record for the safing chickenshit DJ." - /DJ Joakim Cosmo, Sweden.

To begin the year with, Antinote summoned Panoptique and JC Satan's Paula to release a badass two-tracker, paying a pared-down tribute to a very overlooked period in recent musical history: the accursed electroclash-era.
.
At a time when 'Balearic' has become the new musical gospel, the holiest adjective one can use to describe one's music (and therefore, electroclash has become the musical antichrist - to keep going with the biblical comparison)... while everyone seems to glorify stuff like Ibiza's 'endless sunsets', the duo happily kicks over the anthill with a song, a record and a band soberly called Succhiamo (first person plural of 'to suck' in Italian). The title-track straightforwardly announces what the main elements of Succhiamo's music are: over-saturated simple patterns of drum machines and EBM-infused lines of synths backing overtly sexual vocals in Italian. Nothing more, nothing less.

On the flip side, Succhiamo deals with the same formula in depth, engaging this time in detailing a meaningless list of products available in the 'supermercato'. The song conveys a nihilist - but fun - attitude, and it just sounds as if the band was crashing a car in a commercial zone in high spirits... As a kind of inheritor to Ich Bin, Succhiamo offers to bring some stupidity in the club and gives serious dance music producers the finger, like some irreverent Franco-Italian Beavis & Butthead.

From the whip-like crack of Yako's signature staccato vocals and impossible-to-memorize lyrics to the relentless overdrive tempo of their oneof-a-kind prog-core, Melt-Banana have long resided in a cybertopia of their own devising where the limits of technology and human capability are old-world concerns as quaint and cumbersome as bartering with a blacksmith. The demos for Fetch, their first studio album since the severely fried pop-punk of 1997's Bambi's Dilemma, were completed in March 2011, but the Fukushima earthquake changed everything, including
their ability to concentrate on recording. Which stopped completely.

Once they felt ready to return to their music, they decided to approach the songs on a sound-by-sound basis, choosing each tone with meticulous attention to detail, affirming their personal connections, being themselves naturally and openly.


Fetch scrapes glam shimmers off punk's outermost fringes and forges them into a rather intensely technical Deanscape packed with fantastical hybrids. Agata's guitar riffs, seemingly composed in tandem with skipping CD players, are more bad-ass than ever, bright and fractured like the soundtrack for a CC-Hennix-scored biker flick. The album is juiced with electronics and post-rock production, tempering what could easily be a
tiresome and predictable frenzy, yielding unexpected associations: Kate Bush climaxing on Walter White's blue meth; demos of late-period Wire playing metal run through Wasp synthesizers and Autotune; unripe wild
lychees keeping time on an Ankgor Wat tin roof during a monsoon.

They've been performing live as a duo since summer 2012, and will do the same for their '2 do what 2 fetch' tour in support of the album. After nearly 20 years of playing with a live rhythm section, their use of a PC, while opening possibilities for a variety of drum and synth voicings, does not signal a move away from the traditional live band sound, as heard, for example, via the future transmissions from downtown Noiseapolis on
2009's Lite Live: Ver. 0.0. Yako and Agata say they need to feel real band sounds onstage as much as someone in the audience. This is a group that routinely excels at several kinds of impossible simultaneously, so of course any new challenge they come up with for themselves is sure to blow the doors off your Mini Cooper. - First record as a duo expands the M-B sound
into multiple dimensions - LP includes digital download card; first
pressing on clear vinyl

After a first EP released in 2013 at Because Music, Andrea has gained ground and comes back 26th February with Idealist", a first album that gathers the electronic aspect of Todd Terje, as well as the disco of West-African inspiration of William Onyeabor, or even Liquid Liquid's kind of rythms. He already has his media supporters. Idealist was in part inspired by a chance discovery of some music on a hard drive given to Andrea by Salvatore Principato, singer with seminal New York post-punks Liquid Liquid, after their paths had crossed in 2011 when Principato produced an EP for Andrea's previous band did. I was looking for something to inspire me,' he remembers. So I plugged it in and suddenly there were all these amazing sounds.

This is France in the Mitterrand years: fashions fleet as fast as governments. In the early eighties, the happy-go-lucky gather the nectar of each and every new release.
Believing in a bright future for videotex, and loosened up by the sexy talks broadcasted on the budding pirate radios, the new generation dreams of dance floors and holiday clubs. French Boogie, which preserves the spirit of these years of boodle and bunkum, is the ideal soundtrack to their dreams.

What the web now refers to as French Boogie is some synthetic funk reflecting the spirit of those days when nothing was impossible, or so it seemed. Its syncopated flow heralded the dawning of French rap. Often considered as some kind of post-disco, inspired as much by black music as by new wave, this carefree pop music with bawdy lyrics indulged in simple pleasures: holidays, swank and sun were recurrent themes. Totally in tune with its time, it incidentally glorified luxury, success, and a certain consumerism embodied, for instance, in Bernard Tapie.

In popular clubs such as La Main Bleue in Montreuil, or L'Echappatoire in Clichy-sous-Bois - where Micky Milan could be seen behind the decks - an enthusiastic audience discovered this new sonic wave, influenced as much by French pop as by Sugar Hill Gang or Kurtis Blow. The artists who first launched the movement engaged in it wholeheartedly, but as often the case with new music trends in France, humour and casualness quickly became a decoy to impose a new style. This explosive mixture, in which startling and typically Frenchy French lyrics go along New-York-style tunes, is sometimes reminiscent of the kinky comedies directed by Max Pécas or Claude Zidi. On this prolific scene, partly originating from the Jewish community, everybody was looking for success, trying to hit the jackpot with what was to hand. Famous media personalities, one-hit wonders or John Does in quest of fame, all had a go at French Boogie - more or less successfully. Apart from « Vacances j'oublie tout » by Elégance, « Un fait divers et rien de plus » by Le Club, or « Chacun fait ce qui lui plaît » by Chagrin d'amour (produced by Patrick Bruel), very few songs became hits: the story of funk in France is that of a half-baked robbery.

In this myriad of new musicians, the very young François Feldman and Phil Barney pioneered a fresh and hybrid style. Other well-known artists like Gérard Blanc from Martin Circus (Attaché Case), Richard de Bordeaux (Ich), or Jean-Pierre Massiera (Anisette, Pirate Scratch Band, Mandrake, Scratch Man...) added an eccentric touch to this sound-wave, making it often entertaining, and sometimes showy.

Capture d'écran 2015-10-26 à 12.55.43Singers like Agathe (the author of 'La Fourmi' and of the hit song 'Je ne veux pas rentrer chez moi seule') were far more than just window dressing. They even tried to give an ironic and subversive twist to this rather harmless genre. The very vindictive rebel Gérard Vincent shared in this spirit, but as a whole, French Boogie became associated with nonchalance and sauciness. Thus, Stéphane Collaro, Gérard Jugnot, Alain Gillot Pétré and other TV clowns would clumsily contribute to this French variation on funky sounds. In a few but intense years, French Boogie gave all the tips to party with style.

If some hits made it possible for the happy few to get a real house under truly exotic palm trees, the wave actually ebbed away very quickly, leaving quite a few musicians stranded on the shore. Whether they were sincerely motivated, or simply opportunistic, they had failed. In 1984, French Boogie was already breathless, and got merged with other genres: on the one hand, rap and breakdance adapted its flow to a more urban world, especially with Sydney's show, H.I.P.H.O.P, and Dee Nasty's broadcasts on Radio Nova; on the other, italo, new beat and house began to rule over dance floors, even more strongly asserting the will to develop music for clubs.

Squeezed in between the age of disco and that of modern electronic music, French Boogie was a transitional phase, but it remains an amazingly refreshing testimony to the intermingling of pop and underground cultures. The genre was hastily categorized as anecdotal in spite of its pioneering synthetic groove and matchless bass lines. An attentive ear will discover the poetry of the ephemeral beyond the eccentricities of the genre, as well as a certain unexpected avant-gardism. At the origin of major music trends, always cheerful and catchy, French Boogie is what you need to party.

Manchester based producer Sameed delivers us a very nice EP for the Skylax n°141. After his first weapon "Spend EP" on the swedish label Local Talk, he confirms here his taste for house music with "Ma'Thang". This new release is perfect to bring a dark and sensual amosphere to a warm up set.The first side begins with "Bad You", a perfect mix between a deep bassline, a mysterious background and soulfull vocals. The only element that kept you stuck on the floor is the raw clap. "No one else" is more focused on the beat and the repetition of the funky voice sample through the patterns. By using flanger effects, Sameed gives even more energy to this track, moving away from the keyboard softness. The third one, "Blue", could be the expression of what you hear while dreaming. We find again a mystic musical background but it is added to a very light melody, the sound of the sea and what seems to be whoops of joy."Hustle", the first track of the second side, is definitely darker and more nostalgic. Remebering us some Rick Wade sounds, the melody seems to confuse itself but keeps a clever coherence. The hi-hats manage to provide the sensation of speed and continuity all along the musical trip. "Watching U", is really about rythm and bass : the raw beat and heavy bassline deliver to this title all its identity. The jazzy notes and asexual vocals fit very well with this body oriented track. "Grg-Jam" is certainly the most particular element of this EP. Even if we can find the same kind of melodies as in the other titles, the beat is really different, remembering drum'n bass but in a very soft way. During this imaginative jam session, Sameed alternates the textures of the hats, bringing a frenetic rhythm to the conclusion of Ma'Thang.Sameed proves us that he is definitely a safe bet of the "Madchester" house scene. To be continued.