Suche:the real

After the success of Soda Stereo’s three albums and their impressive Signos tour, the band released their first live album,
Ruido Blanco - En Vivo. This live album was recorded in Argentina, Chile, Peru, Venezuela and Mexico.

This shows how the band's already has a substantial fanbase across Latin America after just three studio albums.

The album features some of their biggest early hits, such as "Prófugos", "Persiana Americana", and "Signos",
and these live recordings give the songs really an extra kick.

Ruido Blanco - En Vivo is one of the most iconic live albums in Latin rock history, celebrating Soda Stereo’s status as pioneers of the Rock en Español movement and their enduring legacy.

We are super excited to have the legend that is DJ Seduction on Vinyl Fanatiks. We have managed to secure his Obscure Records releases for repress, so make sure you check for the other release if you are buying this one.

This listing is for DJ Seduction - Feel So Good / Solid Bass.

Do I need to say much about Seduction really... part of the scene since the start and still banging out the tunes. You all know how influential he was to the direction of the music we love.

We are super excited to have the legend that is DJ Seduction on Vinyl Fanatiks. We have managed to secure his Obscure Records releases for repress, so make sure you check for the other release if you are buying this one.

This listing is for DJ Seduction - Pure Delight / Tonight.

Do I need to say much about Seduction really... part of the scene since the start and still banging out the tunes. You all know how influential he was to the direction of the music we love.

Explosive Ukrainian metalcore force SPACE OF VARIATIONS returns with Poisoned Art, out on February 13, 2026 via Napalm Records. Blending furious brutality with heartfelt emotion, the four-piece band sheds their skin and continues to push the boundaries of modern metal, their new record showing a new facet of their ever-evolving sound—a new era. Twice crowned Ukraine’s best metal band, and former tour partners of genre giants Jinjer, SPACE OF VARIATIONS are raising the bar for metalcore with the twelve new tracks of Poisoned Art. Mercilessly honest, the opening track “TRIBE” sees the band battle existential fears in both English and their native Ukrainian. Driving in the urgency are diverse stylings, ranging from djent in “HALO” to fitting sirens in “MAYDAY”, showing that SPACE OF VARIATIONS doesn’t shy away from adding a certain edge to their catchy choruses. “PARALLEL REALITIES” cleverly combines soft melodies with brutality, staging captivating desperation and neck-snapping breakdowns as parallel realities. Explosive outburst “DOPPELGÄNGER” powerfully blends groovy distorted guitars and unrelenting intensity, contrasted by haunting melodic passages and subtle electronic textures, making this song especially hard-hitting. The mix of pummeling ferocity with emotional depth continues throughout “GODLIKE” and “GHOST TOWN”, before “COLDHEAVEN” stands out from Poisoned Art through its exploration of hip hop elements and cold industrial grain. “BACK TO DIRT” continues the djent vibe, while “SNAKE SKIN” delves into electronic territory.

"The Grotesque Within" is what we proudly call our first true self-produced album. Recorded in the winter of 2025 between Outside Inside Studio in Treviso and our own home studio, it marks a raw and uncompromising chapter in our sound. The record weaves a dense narrative inspired by the unsettling atmosphere found in the works of Thomas Ligotti - where reality constantly threatens to unravel, and horror seeps into the everyday. Much like Ligotti's existential tales, The Grotesque Within doesn't simply portray darkness - it observes how the absurd and the horrific have become indistinguishable from our modern reality. Each track is a confrontation - with the bizarre, the dissonant, and the disturbingly familiar.This is not just an album. It's a descent into the uncanny that already surrounds us.

Neon Green Vinyl. Limited to 350 copies. "The Grotesque Within" is what we proudly call our first true self-produced album. Recorded in the winter of 2025 between Outside Inside Studio in Treviso and our own home studio, it marks a raw and uncompromising chapter in our sound. The record weaves a dense narrative inspired by the unsettling atmosphere found in the works of Thomas Ligotti - where reality constantly threatens to unravel, and horror seeps into the everyday. Much like Ligotti's existential tales, The Grotesque Within doesn't simply portray darkness - it observes how the absurd and the horrific have become indistinguishable from our modern reality. Each track is a confrontation - with the bizarre, the dissonant, and the disturbingly familiar.This is not just an album. It's a descent into the uncanny that already surrounds us.

After decades deep in the game, few names carry the same weight as D.I.T.C. veteran O.C. and East New York’s own PF Cuttin, the DJ and producer behind countless underground classics. Long respected for their consistency and craftsmanship, the two finally joined forces for Opium — a nine-track masterclass that channels the essence of true-school hip-hop.

Originally released to remind heads of what the real sound of the streets was, Opium plays like a time capsule from the era of block parties, 40s, and cipher sessions on the corner — where bars mattered and the beats hit hard. PF Cuttin’s rugged, sample-driven production perfectly complements O.C.’s sharp lyricism and timeless flow, delivering a record that bridges nostalgia with enduring relevance.

Reissued in 2025 with the same iconic artwork by Scarful, this edition celebrates a collaboration that captures the raw soul of New York hip-hop — pure, uncut, and eternal.

High Roller Records, 2. Pressung, 425 g/m² schwerer Kartonumschlag, Beilage, Poster, 180 g schwarzes Vinyl, limitiert auf 500 Stück Original-Vinyl-Transfer von Marcus Mossmann (R.I.P.) bei PHONOGRAPHIC ARTIFACTS im März 2014. Audio-Reinigung und Mastering von Patrick W. Engel bei TEMPLE OF DISHARMONY im März 2022. Schnitt von SST Germany auf Neumann-Maschinen für optimale Qualität auf allen Ebenen... Die ultimative Neuauflage! Sacrilege wurden im Juli 1984 in Birmingham gegründet. Die ursprüngliche Besetzung bestand aus Sängerin Tam, Gitarrist Damian Thompson, Bassist Tony May sowie Schlagzeuger Liam Pickering. Im Sommer 1985 wurde Pickering durch Andy Baker ersetzt. Nach einigen lokalen Auftritten nahmen Sacrilege erste Demo-Tapes auf, die in der englischen Punk/Hardcore-Szene sowie auch in Metal-Kreisen durchaus auf offene Ohren stießen. Daraufhin zeigte das Kleinstlabel C.O.R. (Children Of The Revolution Records) Interesse an der Band. Sacrilege begaben sich ins Studio, um die sechs Songs “Lifeline”, “Shadow From Mordor”, “At Death’s Door”, “A Violation Of Something Sacred”, “The Closing Irony” und “Out Of Sight” für die Mini-LP »Behind The Realms Of Madness« einzuspielen. Musikalisch folgten sie damit dem Beispiel von englischen Gruppen wie Broken Bones, English Dogs sowie Discharge, indem sie die Energie von Punk/Hardcore mit der Finesse des Metal-Riffings fusionierten. Von der Originalpressung auf C.O.R. sollen zum Erscheinungszeitpunkt alleine in Europa 11.000 Exemplare abgesetzt worden sein, dazu kamen noch einmal 15.000 Kopien über Pusmort in Amerika.

Die Wurzeln von Cyclone aus Belgien, einer der populärsten Vertreter des europäischen Thrash Metal, gehen zurück bis 1981. In diesem Jahr wurde die Band in Aalst ursprünglich unter dem Namen Centurion aus der Taufe gehoben. Als ihre Musik immer härter wurde, entschloss man sich zur Umbenennung in Cyclone. Nach einer Serie von Demos unterschrieb man schließlich bei Roadrunner Records, wo 1986 das heute legendäre Debüt-Album »Brutal Destruction« erschien. 1990 folgte »Inferior To None« auf Justice Records, ehe man sich drei Jahre später auflöste. 2018 standen Cyclone von den Toten auf und waren seitdem live außerordentlich aktiv (mit eigenen Shows sowie bei prestigeträchtigen Festivals wie dem Headbangers Open Air). Die aktuelle Besetzung der Band besteht aus: Maxime Deschamps (Leadgitarre), Jesse Van Den Bossche (Rhythmusgitarre), Vincent Heyman (Bass), Gabriel Deschamps (Schlagzeug) und Guido Gevels (Gesang). Gevels sieht das neue Werk »Known Unto God« als die perfekte Kombination von »Brutal Destruction« und »Inferior To None« an: „Allerdings haben wir streng darauf geachtet, uns nicht selbst zu kopieren. Es gab kein Recycling. Entschieden haben wir uns für kürzere Songs, als es die meisten auf »Inferior To None« waren. Überflüssige Riffs wurden gestrichen. Wir wollten unseren old-school Sound einfangen, aber mit einem neuen Touch, ohne dabei an Eingängigkeit zu verlieren. Mein Lieblingssong auf der Platte nennt sich ‘Nothing Is Real‘. Er beleuchtet eine etwas ungewöhnlichere Seite von Cyclone. Hier zeigt sich deutlich die Inspiration der NWOBHM und des US Metal der frühen achtziger Jahre. NWOBHM-Bands wie Satan, Holocaust, Angel Witch, Sweet Savage, Diamond Head und Venom sind seit jeher ein großer Einfluss auf unsere Spielweise.“

In his own time, in his own tone and in his own company.

‘Win and lose without losing oneself’’ This line from French rapper Oxmo Puccino greatly accompanied David Walters while composing his fourth studio album. Over the eleven tracks on ‘Ti Love’, David took his time to find the right tone and in turn, tell his truth.

‘Ti Love’, is a French-Creole abbreviation for “petite love”, meaning ‘little love’, evoking that sweet fondness found in those small gestures and little acts of kindness.

Think of things like young kids' brotherly love or a stranger lending you a helping hand, while expecting nothing in return. It’s these motions that allow this album to feel full of real life, carried by beating drums that also pull at our heart strings.

Basing himself in a small village in Martinique, where David had not long since scattered the ashes of his late mother, the multi-instrumentalist decided to remain there and let the writing of Ti Love pour out from deep inside him. Taking influence from around the island, the energy from his makeshift studio set up in Fort de France, allowing a resilient yet grieving man to recount, let go and come to terms with his recent loss.

So embracing these new circumstances, on the rugged coastal Caribbean island of Martinique, David took up an artist’s residency in the island’s capital Fort de France, located near the town’s port is the ‘Manoir des Artistes’, a bustling recording studio space. A place where the walls shake as the latest sounds being created are blasted by locals and visitors alike. Most studio doors are wide open; as music here is a huge part of everyday life, feedback from encouraging neighbouring musicians is on hand and welcomed. A contrast to the isolation often assumed with working in more traditional music studios.

It was here in this stimulating environment that David recorded Ti Love’s initial demos.

With his first collaborator onboard, Neeweed, a 25-year-old producer and gospel expert who David met at the Martinique Jazz Festival.

Of the album’s initial versions of the record David recollects: ‘It took me three years to write it, then I rewrote it, reworked it. In the end I'm really glad I stepped back and listened to myself.’ I found a great ally in GUTS, who ended up being the artistic director of the record”

David surrounded himself with the right people who helped him express himself in the best possible way. He called on other friends and musical comrades; album opener and title track, ‘Ti Love’ features the incomparable Fatoumata Diawara (World Circuit Records / Africa Express) and further along additional production came in from; Izem, Art Of Tones, and GUTS himself, who all added just the right amount of ‘little love’ to this

project. Further helping hands came from Californian producer and DJ Captain Planet, who David was introduced to a few years ago. Closer to home, here in Europe, the German producer Bluestaeb appears on two tracks: the very catchy disco funk ‘Mr Maraboo’ and ‘Kite Koule’, the latter being the first single lifted from the album, where David invited Nigerian guitarist Keziah Jones.

Elsewhere on the album, fellow Heavenly Sweetness recording artist Blundetto contributed two tracks; the reggae ‘Voodoo Love’, which is David's tribute to Studio One, and the very sweet and resilient ‘Bon Voyage’, which closes the album... "It's gold, it doesn't need anything changing.” remarked David - ‘Bon Voyage’ is a goodbye to his mother, whose voice called him from the bottom of the sea one night while he was surfing during the full Moon.

Released almost 20 years after his debut album ‘AWA’ released on French imprint Ya Basta, home to Gotan Project and many others, David boasts a long list of radio supporters including; Gilles Peterson, Cerys Matthews and Don Letts at the BBC, while further field Cosmo Radio in Germany, and KCRW in Los Angeles.

On this new record, David has shown sincerity and vulnerability, while still honouring the infectious groove that he is known for the world over. Despite the upsets, a little love can indeed go a long way.

CREDITS:
Produced by Bluestaeb / Blundetto / Captain Planet / Izem / Art of Tones
A&R : Guts
Mixed by Mr Gib @ Onetwopassit
Except "Bon Voyage” and "Voodoo Love" mixed by Jerome “Blackjoy” Carron
Mastered by Benjamin Joubert @ Biduloscope
Art by Elliott Walters

For over a decade, Hyunhye Seo a core member of Xiu Xiu, in her solo work navigates the precarious edges where composition dissolves into pure gesture. Through ecstatic piano improvisations, restless percussive attacks and an expansive use of acoustic space, she constructs layered sonic environments that move across the boundaries of noise, avant-garde jazz, ambient and contemporary classical music. Her performances reveal an unfiltered process of listening and creation - a practice in which thinking becomes the enemy, and surrender the only viable strategy.

Continuation captures one such surrender. Recorded live at MAO - Museo d'Arte Orientale in Turin during the exhibition Rabbit Inhabits the Moon – The Art of Nam June Paik in the Mirror of Time, this cascading piano improvisation unfolds as a dialogue between performer, space and the particular acoustics of a museum built to house contemplative objects. Jamie Stewart processes the sound in real time; Giuseppe Ielasi shapes the final mix. What emerges is a work of charged immediacy - restless gestures giving way to passages of unexpected tenderness, noise and silence trading places in continuous exchange. The title is precise: this is music that refuses conclusion, that exists in a state of perpetual becoming. On Side B, Continuous Extension offers an unprecedented response. Phew - the pioneering figure of Japanese avant-garde music since the late 1970s - was invited by curators Chiara Lee and Freddie Murphy to reinterpret Seo's performance. Working with synthesizer and subtle processing, Phew distills the resonances of Continuation into a new electronic landscape - waves of abstraction that echo like reflections in sound, tracing the harmonic tensions of Seo's playing into territories she herself did not visit.

The accompanying booklet includes an essay by Bruno Lo Turco exploring the deep connections between improvisation and Buddhist thought, and a written reflection by Seo on her own practice of surrender and listening.

Continuation is released on Ubi Kū, the record label of the Unione Buddhista Italiana. The cover reproduces Avalokitesvara "Water and Moon" from the Museo d'Arte Orientale "E. Chiossone" in Genoa - the bodhisattva of compassion gazing at the reflection of the moon in water. Like that reflection, this music exists fully in the present, complete and unrepeatable.

Mess Esque are a duo featuring music and instruments by Mick Turner
and words and voice by Helen Franzmann. Their self-titled album is a
beguiling travelogue of restless, somnambulant wanderings.
Perhaps best known as one of the Dirty Three, Mick’s been playing
guitar and making music with many collaborators for forty years. He’s
loved his paintings too but revered especially for his solo music - since
1997, Drag City have released four of his albums, plus an EP and an
album of the Tren Brothers (Mick with percussionist and fellow Dirty
Three-ite, Jim White) and two EPs featuring Mick as the Marquis de Tren
with Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy.
Mick’s last record was 2013’s ‘Don’t Tell the Driver’, a work that found
him departing from his traditional hermetic instrumental template by
employing a rhythm section and brass charts and even collaborating with
a vocalist. After all the purely instrumental music he’s made with Dirty
Three and solo, a singer is now part of the sound he’s hearing in his
head these days; while demoing new material, he realized that he was
again writing music that needed lyrics - and for that matter, someone
other than himself to sing them. But who? In 2019, he was introduced to
Helen through a mutual friend who’d produced her last album. Under the
name Mckisko, Helen has released three albums over the past 12 years,
working and touring with a range of Australian musicians along the way.
Her music has been described as numinous and transformative. Her
most recent album, ‘Southerly’, saw her moving into a more expansive
sound which led to an openness and excitement around further
collaboration.
Helen’s words are carefully observed, her phrasing responding intuitively
to Mick’s looping guitar figures with vocal repetitions of her own. Starting
with a feeling or a voicing, there are often no words - both players are
searching on their own paths. Then suddenly they have arrived and are
passing the emerging meaning back and forth, the rising intensity
forming a kind of undertow that pulls the listener deeper into their world.
Often, Helen would record her vocals in the middle of the night, seeking
that 2am flow, a moment of greatest isolation through which to trace her
melodie with fragility and strength. This crystallizes Mess Esque’s
intention: riding the sleepy drift through the blurred edges of the day…
time-traveling to that moment beyond stasis where sense and no sense
coincide and share space and time and energy. Viewing from afar the
immense peace of this planet when its ghost world of spirits below - the
madness of crowds, people sliding past each other faraway in the night -
are quieted at last.

Ushering in a new era, Berlin based, New Zealand heavy psych duo Earth Tongue lower the castle gates on their third album Dungeon Vision, a trove of fuzz-drenched anthems produced by garage rock luminary Ty Segall in Los Angeles. Guitarist Gussie Larkin and drummer Ezra Simons spent the Berlin winter of 2025 refining the album’s twelve tracks in their self-described “windowless cave” rehearsal space, crafting a record that channels both isolation and the duo’s live intensity. With the songs finally taking shape and a studio deadline looming, they flew to Los Angeles to turn their hard-won ideas into the real thing. Once there, the band and Ty captured lightning in a bottle, recording and mixing Dungeon Vision in just ten days at Altamira Sound. Tracked live to tape, Dungeon Vision pulses with human energy, fuzz guitars, bone-battering drums, and hauntingly tuneful vocals. Ty Segall’s influence is all over the record with Ty choosing the best takes based on feel rather than technical perfection. The “king of fuzzy guitar tones” pushed the duo to find new sonic textures while championing their raw chemistry. “Ty’s been a big driving force,” says Ezra. “We supported him in New Zealand back in 2023, and he’s backed us ever since even bringing us on tour through Europe and the UK in 2024.” Since their emergence in 2016, Earth Tongue’s world-building, visuals, and relentless touring have earned them global attention and a cult-like following. Their 2024 album Great Haunting, also released on In The Red Records, received a Taite Music Prize nomination and saw them win Best Group at the 2025 Aotearoa Music Awards. They’ve toured extensively, sharing stages with the likes of Queens of the Stone Age, IDLES, Acid King, Brant Bjork and Kikagaku Moyo. With Dungeon Vision, Earth Tongue deliver their most immersive work yet, a richly human, fuzz-soaked journey that bottles the magic of their live show and cements their reputation as one of the most exciting psych rock acts on the planet.

On Hungry Animal, Luke Temple continues to trace the invisible lines between the personal and the cosmic _ between what we feel, what we observe, and what we inherit simply by being alive. The album reunites Temple with Doug Stuart (bass) and Kosta Galanopoulos (drums), the core of his Cascading Moms ensemble, whose instinctive chemistry anchors the record's balance of rhythmic precision and melodic drift. Together they shape a sound that feels handmade and fluid, delivering sharp observations in soft focus. The album opens with "Clean Living," a tenderly libidinous groove, unraveling purity myths and self-discipline _ less a confession than a celebration of the futility of striving for perfection in a flawed world. From there, "Echo Park Donut" shifts into the memory of an unsettling vignette drawn from a violent incident outside Temple's Los Angeles home. The band moves with a quiet pulse beneath the story, suggesting both detachment and the surreal intimacy of fear. The title track, "Hungry Animal," grounds the album's broader questions: how well can we really know one another, or ourselves? Temple's lyrics circle around the idea that we are animals among animals, driven by instinct and affection alike. It's both playful and philosophical, one of the record's emotional centers. Temple's bandmates bring an understated mastery to these pieces. Stuart's melodic, infectious grooves converse fluidly with Galanopoulos's drumming, which breathes life into each song even as it gently propels them forward. The trio's interplay feels both weightless and deeply rooted _ commanding the listener's attention and empathy without ever forcing it. With Hungry Animal, Luke Temple and the Cascading Moms create a world where reflection becomes rhythm and consciousness gains texture _ a record of quiet revelations and deliberate grace.

From the heart of Tamanrasset in South Algeria, Imarhan transcend Tuareg tradition, weaving hypnotic synths into desert blues. The result is a timeless work—deeply respectful of their roots, yet alive with a stirring sense of modernity.

ESSAM is the band’s fourth album, recorded with the same core lineup, but marks a significant shift in their sound and approach. Musically, it marks a departure from the rocky, bluesy, psychedelic Tuareg guitar-driven sound influenced by Tinariwen’s heritage — moving toward something more open, modern, and exploratory.
For the first time, their long-time sound engineer Maxime Kosinetz stepped in as producer. He travelled to Tamanrasset with Emile Papandreou (of the French duo UTO), a multi-instrumentalist who introduced electronic elements by sampling live instruments and reprocessing them in real time with a modular synthesizer — subtly reshaping the band's sonic identity.
The album was recorded mostly live, in one big room at Aboogi Studio — the band’s own rehearsal and recording space in Tamanrasset. The studio, a converted concert hall, has become a kind of cultural hub for the local youth. Friends dropped by during the sessions to contribute handclaps, vocals, and just be part of the energy. It’s a space where people gather, hang out, play dominoes, smoke chicha — a rare communal spot in a city that doesn’t offer many for young people, somewhat like a youth and community center.
This context — the creative shift, the live recording process, the atmosphere around Aboogi — might be interesting threads to explore in the conversation.

Santa Somnia is an imaginary saint, shaped like a medieval folktale figure, who steals the sleep and childhood creativity of his victims to feed a kingdom of oblivion and torment. The album's lyrics follow the journey of a protagonist stripped of rest and innocence, wandering through a decaying dreamworld reminiscent of Dark Souls, Bloodborne, and Elden Ring. Santa Somnia becomes an allegory of lost hope and the crushing weight of adulthood, drawing further thematic influence from the bleak darkness of Kentaro Miura's Berserk. Santa Somnia is a sonic trip through a crumbling psyche-- drenched in despair and shadows-- ruled by the struggle against madness brought on by sleeplessness, the inner torment of depression, and the inevitable, sometimes merciful, pull of death.

The influence of FromSoftware and Berserk emerges through the album's cryptic, oppressive storytelling, where the line between nightmare and reality barely exists. While rooted in the band's earlier works, the sound of Santa Somnia blends the crushing weight of doom metal with classic and thrash metal elements and injections of punk- rock melody, mirroring the emotional instability and mental agony woven throughout the lyrics.

Santa Somnia is an imaginary saint, shaped like a medieval folktale figure, who steals the sleep and childhood creativity of his victims to feed a kingdom of oblivion and torment. The album's lyrics follow the journey of a protagonist stripped of rest and innocence, wandering through a decaying dreamworld reminiscent of Dark Souls, Bloodborne, and Elden Ring. Santa Somnia becomes an allegory of lost hope and the crushing weight of adulthood, drawing further thematic influence from the bleak darkness of Kentaro Miura's Berserk. Santa Somnia is a sonic trip through a crumbling psyche-- drenched in despair and shadows-- ruled by the struggle against madness brought on by sleeplessness, the inner torment of depression, and the inevitable, sometimes merciful, pull of death.

The influence of FromSoftware and Berserk emerges through the album's cryptic, oppressive storytelling, where the line between nightmare and reality barely exists. While rooted in the band's earlier works, the sound of Santa Somnia blends the crushing weight of doom metal with classic and thrash metal elements and injections of punk- rock melody, mirroring the emotional instability and mental agony woven throughout the lyrics.

MOVIE MOVIE is based out of NYC and features members of the bands TWIN GUNS, THE ELECTRIC MESS, and THE ABOVE. The band combine elements of power pop, '60s, '70s and '80s garage, classic, alternative and glam rock, but they have a sound all their own, with a focus on strong hooks and melodic vocals. "After Hours" is a 1980s New Wave comedy about a party girl on the downtown scene whose claim to fame is a bit part in a popular movie, where she uttered the immortal line, "Won't you look at the time," but she wouldn't give you the time. "Wasting Time" is an existential road picture in the mind of the protagonist, set across heartland America and a sunny beach in the Caribbean, but in reality he never leaves the girl, or town, and in the end ponders his wasted years. "First Love (Never Dies)" is a romantic drama that spans decades, about an aging rocker who reflects on his first teenage love, a girl he has never stopped thinking about. He tries to track her down and reconnect after all these years, only to find she is now married to his old childhood rival.

"Photograph" is a future arthouse hit, shot in stark black white, about the disintegration of a relationship seen from two different perspectives, captured in an old photograph, in which the truth is revealed in the looks on their faces. "Coming Attractions" is MOVIE MOVIE's second EP, after their debut six track EP, "Now Playing" (2022), on Ghost Highway/ KOTJ Records, and they have two full LPs, "Storyboards" (2023), and "In 4-D!" (2024), both Topsy-Turvy Records.

The Byrds' Greatest Hits is the first greatest hits album by American rock band The Byrds and was released in August 1967. It is the top-selling album in The Byrds' catalogue as it provides a summary of The Byrds' history during Gene Clark and David Crosby's tenure with the band and also functions as a survey of the group's hit singles from 1965 to 1967, a period when the band had its greatest amount of success on the singles chart. From classics such as “Mr. Tambourine Man”, “Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is A Season)” and “Eight Miles High” these are chiming timeless songs that will fill your heart with warmth.
The Byrd's Greatest Hits is part of the Groove Classics collection and now available against a fair, budget-friendly price.

Born at the turning point between apartheid and democratic South Africa, the Xitsonga bubblegum-disco duo Chibuku embodies the energy of a time of change,as Nelson Mandela was released from prison and kwaito began to emerge. Althoughthey did not achieve the fame of figures such as Paul Ndlovu or Penny Penny, their only album Maxambe (1992) is now considered a precious time capsule, a raw disco treasure rediscovered by lovers of forgotten music. Behind the project is Dr Joe Shirimani, a guitarist, singer, composer and producer of genius from Tzaneen and Soshanguve, recognised as one of the major architects of South African disco and bubblegum. Long overlooked, Maxambe nevertheless bears witnessto an era and a social perspective: migration ("Lekomfere"), debt and economics ("Xikweleti"), and family relationships ("Mhamazala"). The music is festive in appearance, but deeply rooted in the reality of its time. Released on Tusk/Diamond Music, an iconic label of the 1980s and 1990s bought out by Gallo Record Company, Chibuku is now emerging as a diamond rediscovered from the archives of South African disco. Its name, borrowed from a millet beer popular in several southern African countries, sums up the spirit of the group: popular, sincere and deeply rooted in local culture.

Today Cork's acclaimed Cardinals announce their much-anticipated debut album 'Masquerade'. Set to land February 13th on tastemaker label So Young Records, the ten song album was recorded with producer Shrink at RAK Studios, London across the summer. It's a record that is at once grand and intimate, awash with romance and flickers of holy imagery, and most of all, it's an undeniable fulfilment of the innate promise the band have shown since their earliest beginnings. These are emotionally expansive songs, some simmering with an undercurrent of violence, cynicism or fervent discontent (Anhedonia, The Burning of Cork, Barbed Wire) and others gleaming with a bright-eyed vulnerability. A vivid first half contrasts a darker second and crafts a record with a clear A-side and B-side. A nod to the band’s collective love of vinyl, that tonal shift takes its cue from a variety of expected and unexpected influences - from the brittle honesty of folk to the theatrical melodrama of goth-rock. Formats and Quantities

Pablo Bozzi returns to Jennifer Cardini's Dischi Autunno with a follow up record to the 'Last Moscow Mule' EP from 2020. The six track EP 'Ghost Of Chance' marks a deepening from the previous forays into the Italo Disco & Synthwave influenced sound Bozzi has previously explored. With a heavy hand in the realm of nostalgia Bozzi expertly weaves melody through drum machine loops, the track comes to a climax with longing vocals reminiscent of 80s new wave and goth dance clubs. Although steeped in the nostalgia of time gone he manages to lend a modern production, a cleanness of sound that never stays too long in the past.

Threewave is the complete synth trilogy from 36 and it unites three releases into a single, evolving statement shaped over five years. Spanning the Wave Variations, Symmetry Systems and Reality Engine releases, the project is rooted in self-imposed limitations and a carefully refined melodic palette that gave rise to a suite of interconnected transmissions. Minimalist sketches give way to warm, AI-era-inspired nostalgia, but always grounded by a distinctly human sensibility. Melancholic keys and glowing atmospheres balance precision with emotion before expanding into themes of perception, artificial intelligence and imagined realities. Together, these works make for a defining chapter in 36's partnership with the legendary Past Inside the Present.

This debut 12" is a real statement of intent from The Aries Project, aka the ongoing creative collaboration of Collin Suttles and moe.BPM. The sound is rooted in house music's classical values of inviting groove, heartfelt warmth and a sense of patience, but all shot through with a modern and cosmically minded confidence. The Jules.NYC dub of 'You Need A Rock' is pure peak-time persuasion, all forward momentum and locked-in swing, while 'Someone Who Dances' keeps things closer to the body, riding a supple rhythm with soulful ease. Flip it over and 'Keep Me' (Lucky.Moe dub) strips the palette back to let deep chords and spacious keys stretch out hypnotically. 'When I See You' with Toni's Son closes on a celebratory note and Latin disco energy in a deep house framework.

Refracting beatifically through realities and mirages flickering along his aural parade route, Animal Collective"s Geologist rides the high country on a hurdy gurdy of many colours. Via the mystery science of musical engagement, we take his sonic kaleidoscope of encounters into our own experience as we listen. That"s the beauty of Can I Get a Pack of Camel Lights?, the debut solo transmission of the heart and soul and life and times of Geologist.

Belgian electronic duo schntzl, known for their fearless live improvisation and playful fusion of jazz, Dada, and ’90s trance kitsch, invite listeners to hear sound anew with their latest album.



On their new album Fata Morgana, an illusory trip of emotion and confrontation, Belgian duo schntzl conjure mirages of fleeting realities while diving headfirst into a trance-driven, confrontational digital sound.



Fata Morgana unfolds like a hyper-visual journey, constructing enveloping dreamworlds through trance-infused live electronica. Yet trance here is present not in form but in essence—an intensity, a state of being. It may stir the same emotions as club music, but schntzl express them in a language entirely their own. Kitsch loops, improvisation, and distortion bend their music into illusions that dissolve and reappear, creating sonic worlds that never settle into habitual patterns.

2026 Repress

We trying hard to keep things real here with a new vinyl drop pulling out a a limited series for the crate diggers.

ULURU is a large sandstone rock formation in Australia. It's sacred to the Anangu, the local Indigenous of the area. For many years it had been deprived of its spiritual significance, due to mass tourism, capitalism, as well as greedy and selfishness of people who just want to make money out of it. However, as a result of the Anangu’s resilience, care and staunchness, huge changes took place in the national park around Uluru as well as in the broader public's consciousness, giving again to the Uluru the sacred identity that had been lost.

You might be reading and thinking now: so what's the point? Actually, there's no real point. I would rather say, there’s hope. The hope of seeing humans all around the world following the example of the Anangu. The hope of seeing humans finally stopping to treat the earth and all what’s part of it, what’s on and what’s in it, as a slave without soul. The hope of changing today, and if not today at latest by tomorrow. This system is failing. It's no longer sustainable, and there's no much time left.

So everybody, don't sleep, be critical.

Hania Rani is a pianist, composer and musician who splits her life between Warsaw, where she makes her home, and Berlin where she studied and often works. She has written for strings, piano, voice and electronics and has collaborated with the likes of Christian Löffler, Dobrawa Czocher and Hior Chronik, and released an album with her Polish group teskno last year. She has performed at some of the most prestigious venues in Europe - from the National Philharmony in Warsaw, to Funkhaus in Berlin, to The Roundhouse in London (where she made her debut at the Gondwana 10thanniversary festival last October) and at festivals such as Open'er, Scope Festival and Eurosonic. Her compositions for solo piano were born out of a fascination with the piano as an instrument, and her desire to interpret its sound and harmonic possibilities in their entirety and in her own way.

LP comes with heavy weight reverse board sleeve including a double sided printed insert plus digital download code.

Esja is her debut solo album and for Rani it is her first, real, personal statement as an artist. "No hiding behind the "collaborations" or "projects" anymore. For the very first time, finally - just me, as I am".

Recorded at Rani's apartment in Warsaw (the piano room has a beautiful reverb and the space has become part art studio and part sound laboratory for Rani) and at her friend Bergur Þórisson'sstudio in Reykjavik, Esja is a series of beautiful melodic vignettes. Sensual, sensitive, rhythmic, atmospheric, free but harmonious, beguiling and hypnotic, collectively they project a sense of unlimited space and time.

Expect support from accross the media spectrum from Mojo to Uncut and Gilles Peterson and Mary Ann Hobbs on 6 Music to Radio 3 and beyond. Full servicing to the Gondwana Records datebase.

Rosa is a new project from two long established Berlin-based artists, Roman Lindau and Sascha Rydell, and ColorCode is the new label they have minted together. Building on the success of their first three EPs is this fourth collaborative offering that is essential once more. As close friends with more than 20 years of experience DJing and producing, this pair know a lot about crafting weighty grooves that make floors move. They have done so many times over on labels like Berlin's well regarded
Fachwerk and this new project is rooted in the belief that you should "not take yourself too seriously, and have fun doing what you love." First up is 'Just Wanna' with its galloping, rubbery kick drums and incendiary hi hats. Whirring vocal loops and heavy hits builds the pressure and lock you in this most chunky and funky of techno grooves. The excellent 'Flash' then traps you deep in the dance floor amidst the smoke and the lasers, with well sequenced chords panning about the mix and brooding bass sucking you in from below. It's is suspensory techno with a real emotional quality.

Monsieur Van Pratt is one of the leaders of the edit game and his Illegal Disco is all the proof you need. This latest drop finds him tap into vintage Japanese rare grooves and flip them with his signature style. 'Space Scrapper' is up first and is the sort of comic cut that will have you wide-eyed as it reworks a celebrated Japanese musician and vocalist. 'Time Machine' is a big, stomping disco cut with rubbery bass riffs and Japanese city pop vocals riding next to cursing synths. It's a bright but steamy sound for when things really heat up. Last but not least is another showstopper with 'Feel So Fine' layering wispy cosmic melodies with cool-as-you-like disco drums and carefree vocals. Lovely stuff.

As the man who basically brought the conga into the modern age with his innovative multipercussion set-ups and tunable congas, and as a former member of Dizzy Gillespie and Stan Kenton’s bands, Cándido Camero Guerra a.k.a. Candido already had a long and storied career when he cut Dancin’ and Prancin’ for the Salsoul label in 1979 at the age of 58. So, you might have been excused at the time for assuming this was just another case of an old-timer trying to cash in on the disco craze, right? But you would have been very, very wrong…the record was pure brilliance, as the infusion of Candido’s Latin conga beats into the disco-fied 4 x 4 syncopated rhythm proved irresistible, revolutionizing the sound of underground disco while pointing the way to the house music to come. Indeed, both “Jingo” (an unstoppable version of the Olatunji classic) and “Thousand Finger Man” are still DJ favorites. Speaking of DJs, we’re putting this one out on black vinyl, perfect for queueing up and spinning. for A must for any dance music library!

i am so thrilled to share the film for my concert cornucopia with you . this has been a long journey with hundreds of people helping out . i am so beyond enormously grateful to every single one of them .

i feel the modern concert film is a matriarchially friendly construct , welcomed in the current climate . where female musicians can share their worlds uncorrupted . in cornucopia , i was joined by musical director and multi instrumentalist bergur þórisson , percussionist manu delago , flute septet Viibra , harpist katie buckley and the hamrahlid choir .

i spent last decade working with 360-degree sound and visual software in virtual reality and animation, creating Biophilia and later Vulnicura as a VR album . i was deeply inspired by the idea of a fully-immersive experience spreading Utopia and Fossora into fully surround speakers . my intention was to bring what we had created for 21st-century VR into a 19th-century theatre - taking it from the headset to the stage .

this vision was realised with 27 moving curtains that captured projections on different textures and LED screens , creating a digitally animated show : a "modern lanterna magica" for live music . i also wanted to feature bespoke instruments: a magnetic harp , an aluphone , a circular flute , and a reverb chamber , specially built with an audio architect to enhance the most intimate version of a performance—in a personal chapel .

throughout this tale, there is a subplot woven in : a second story of an avatar—a modern marionette who alchemically mutates , from puppet to puppet , from the injury of a heart wound to a fully healed state . i hope you enjoy it . warmness , björk

All Nice Records returns with NICE005, the second release from label co-founder Bobby Dreams--a five-track excursion through deep, functional, and emotionally rich house music. Opening with The Signal, a peak-time piano workout laced with congas and classic Chicago house energy, the record sets an infectious tone right away. Let It Be Real follows with smooth, warm textures perfect for early or late hours. On the A3, Stranger Than Fiction delivers a pure 303 exercise--acid lines twisting and mutating over a tight, hypnotic groove. Flip the record for New Horizon, a hopeful, driving cut built for forward momentum, and Enter The Simulation, a deep, late-night closer with a touch of mystery and tension. Crafted for selectors, designed for the floor--NICE005 is house music for any hour of the night. All nice, all night!

Repress!

A true hot stepper and one of the best of its kind, this 1984 masterpiece from Ini Kamoze is heavy, real and authentic. It was actually Jamaican born artist Cecil Campbell's debut album and features spacious, slow motion dubs that invite you deep within their cavernous drums. The chattery percussion, echoing hits and loose percussion all make a real mark. "World-A-Music" has a beat fans of Damien Marley will recognise, and "General" features some of Campbells more vulnerable vocal work. For fans old and new, this is a perfect roots album with a unique perspective.

Koma Saxo, the explosive quintet led by Berlin-based Swedish bassist/producer Petter Eldh, returns on We Jazz Records with their new album, cut live at We Jazz Festival in Helsinki, December 2019. Whereas their lauded debut was a triumph of remapping the goal posts for an acoustic jazz combo for the 2020's, "LIVE" takes you right to the heart of the actual ensemble sound, with 5 musicians tearing the place down, no post production. From the fiery opening sequence kicking off with "Euro Koma", on to the much calmer beauty of "Waltz Me, Waltz Me Baby, All Night Long" and the first single "Fiskeskärsmelodin", the 8-song set is pure fire, never failing to convey the extraordinary intensity of the group: Eldh on bass, Otis Sandsjö (Y-OTIS), Jonas Kullhammar and Mikko Innanen on saxes, and Christian Lillinger on drums.

An excerpt of liner notes by Peter Margasak:

"When I first saw Petter Eldh's quintet Koma Saxo in Berlin in September of 2019 I was floored. The raw, sprinting energy of the band was both infectious and astonishing, but what I most remember was a sense of cognitive dissonance. Was this the same combo that recorded a fantastic eponymous 2019 studio album that represented one of the most convincing, pleasurable, and driving hybrid's of searing post-bop and the production ethos of hip-hop? There have been endless stabs by producers trying to remap the machinations of an organic, all-acoustic jazz band with electronic post-production, but Eldh, channeling a sonic language heavily informed by J Dilla, nailed it in a way I'd never experienced before. Having the trust of his three imaginative, high-octane saxophonists—Jonas Kullhammar, Otis Sandsjö, and Mikko Innanen—he used their grainy sound as raw material, smudging and smearing it like a painter creating new hues on a palette, and then extending, editing, and powering it up within the imperturbable grooves meted out by he and drummer Christian Lillinger. He didn't really alter the essential core of the band's performances. There's no question that a seriously burning quintet had laid the tracks down, even if the performances reflected the kind of concision many jazz groups adapt for a studio endeavor. But the way his jacked-up bass lines and Lillinger's impossibly peripatetic, stuttering rhythms buffeted the massed saxophones elevated Koma Saxo to plane all its own, and I repeatedly returned to that place—half the time trying to figure out what the hell Eldh had done, and the other half lost in giddy ecstasy.

The live show, on the other hand, featured the band without any production tricks. Its soaring, pithy repertoire came alive in a different way, and this excellent live recording from the 2019 We Jazz Festival, has reminded me of how fun and visceral that experience was."

Koma Saxo "LIVE" is released by We Jazz Records on 30 April 2021 on two vinyl editions (silver + black), as a bundle with an unreleased 7" (+ silver vinyl edition), on CD and digitally. The vinyl versions plus the CD come complete with silver embossed lettering. The vinyl is delivered on heavy-duty tip-on sleeve, complete with an insert featuring liner notes by Peter Margasak, Andreas Müller, Matti Nives and Petter Eldh.

a 01: Euro Koma (Live) feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger
b 02: Puls Koma (Live) feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger
c 03: Fanfarum for Komarum III (Live) feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger
[d] 04: Waltz Me Baby, Waltz Me All Night Long (Live) [feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger]
[e] 05: Otis and Christian (Live) [feat. Otis Sandsjö & Christian Lillinger]
[f] 06: Blumer (Live) [feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger]
[g] 07: Fiskeskärsmelodin (Live) [feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger]
[feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger]

Silver Vinyl

Koma Saxo, the explosive quintet led by Berlin-based Swedish bassist/producer Petter Eldh, returns on We Jazz Records with their new album, cut live at We Jazz Festival in Helsinki, December 2019. Whereas their lauded debut was a triumph of remapping the goal posts for an acoustic jazz combo for the 2020's, "LIVE" takes you right to the heart of the actual ensemble sound, with 5 musicians tearing the place down, no post production. From the fiery opening sequence kicking off with "Euro Koma", on to the much calmer beauty of "Waltz Me, Waltz Me Baby, All Night Long" and the first single "Fiskeskärsmelodin", the 8-song set is pure fire, never failing to convey the extraordinary intensity of the group: Eldh on bass, Otis Sandsjö (Y-OTIS), Jonas Kullhammar and Mikko Innanen on saxes, and Christian Lillinger on drums.

An excerpt of liner notes by Peter Margasak:

"When I first saw Petter Eldh's quintet Koma Saxo in Berlin in September of 2019 I was floored. The raw, sprinting energy of the band was both infectious and astonishing, but what I most remember was a sense of cognitive dissonance. Was this the same combo that recorded a fantastic eponymous 2019 studio album that represented one of the most convincing, pleasurable, and driving hybrid's of searing post-bop and the production ethos of hip-hop? There have been endless stabs by producers trying to remap the machinations of an organic, all-acoustic jazz band with electronic post-production, but Eldh, channeling a sonic language heavily informed by J Dilla, nailed it in a way I'd never experienced before. Having the trust of his three imaginative, high-octane saxophonists—Jonas Kullhammar, Otis Sandsjö, and Mikko Innanen—he used their grainy sound as raw material, smudging and smearing it like a painter creating new hues on a palette, and then extending, editing, and powering it up within the imperturbable grooves meted out by he and drummer Christian Lillinger. He didn't really alter the essential core of the band's performances. There's no question that a seriously burning quintet had laid the tracks down, even if the performances reflected the kind of concision many jazz groups adapt for a studio endeavor. But the way his jacked-up bass lines and Lillinger's impossibly peripatetic, stuttering rhythms buffeted the massed saxophones elevated Koma Saxo to plane all its own, and I repeatedly returned to that place—half the time trying to figure out what the hell Eldh had done, and the other half lost in giddy ecstasy.

The live show, on the other hand, featured the band without any production tricks. Its soaring, pithy repertoire came alive in a different way, and this excellent live recording from the 2019 We Jazz Festival, has reminded me of how fun and visceral that experience was."

Koma Saxo "LIVE" is released by We Jazz Records on 30 April 2021 on two vinyl editions (silver + black), as a bundle with an unreleased 7" (+ silver vinyl edition), on CD and digitally. The vinyl versions plus the CD come complete with silver embossed lettering. The vinyl is delivered on heavy-duty tip-on sleeve, complete with an insert featuring liner notes by Peter Margasak, Andreas Müller, Matti Nives and Petter Eldh.

a 01: Euro Koma (Live) feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger
b 02: Puls Koma (Live) feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger
c 03: Fanfarum for Komarum III (Live) feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger
d 04: Waltz Me Baby, Waltz Me All Night Long (Live) [feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger]
[e] 05: Otis and Christian (Live) [feat. Otis Sandsjö & Christian Lillinger]
[f] 06: Blumer (Live) [feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger]
[g] 07: Fiskeskärsmelodin (Live) [feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger]
[feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger]

[a] 01: Euro Koma (Live) [feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger]
[b] 02: Puls Koma (Live) [feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger]
[c] 03: Fanfarum for Komarum III (Live) [feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger]
[d] 04: Waltz Me Baby, Waltz Me All Night Long (Live) [feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger]
[e] 05: Otis and Christian (Live) [feat. Otis Sandsjö & Christian Lillinger]
[f] 06: Blumer (Live) [feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger]
[g] 07: Fiskeskärsmelodin (Live) [feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger]
[feat. Otis Sandsjö, Jonas Kullhammar, Mikko Innanen & Christian Lillinger]

Gothenburg trio Dark Horse present their new album "Listen", released by We Jazz Records on 13 November. The band, comprising of John Holmström (piano), Alfred Lorinius (bass) and Mårten Magnefors (drums) recorded their second album in a remote cabin by the ocean in Norway, owned by Holmström's family. The natural sound of the album owes a lot to the relaxed surroundings and the result is some high degree of improvised music turning into collective composition as the music unfolds.

The album recording took place at a very active spot in the trio's calendar, following extensive touring in Europe, Japan and their native country Sweden. The two days of improvising were edited down to highlights that easily fill an album's worth of quality listening and reveal what playing live brought to the three musicians: A natural ability to react to ideas, build on them and form coherent, compositional tracks on the spot. A task much easier said than done.

"We're a non-conceptual basement band all the way", laughs pianist Holmström. "We have been moving from free form music into collective composition and this is our pinnacle recording with that idea thus far. We just set out to play as honestly as possible and this is what followed."

A testament to the power of a fixed band unit developing over time, "Listen" comes across as a work by a group constantly keeping its nose to the wind when it comes to developing their music. The long-form opener "Allas Favorit" is a monumental piece building and releasing tension along its 12+ minute length. First single "Brutet Groove" assumes a fascinating, almost mechanic-sounding swing while assembling and reassembling the pieces of the puzzle, and the closing track "Fjäll-låten" gives us something of an ever-shifting sonic landscape in glorious colors, much akin to its name ("Mountain Song" in Swedish).

"That one Fjäll-låten includes some of the best musical moments of my life so far" confirms bassist Alfred Lorinius. "It's actually an edit of a 20-minute improvised sequence, and it has the real feeling of the band coming together and doing something new and fresh in the moment. I feel it's something you can revisit as many times as you like and there's always something to find in there."

Dark Horse formed in 2012 after Lorinius joined Holmström and drummer Mårten Magnefors to complete the group. Things quickly started taking shape musically from there on, but the group took their time in honing their craft with a method they now refer to as "tryout development". Their self-titled debut album appeared in 2015 and the current We Jazz album "Listen" marks the first internationally distributed release for the trio.The roots of Dark Horse lay firmly in the buzzing creative music scene of Gothenburg, Sweden, where the members have close ties with local establishments such as the legendary venue BrÖtz, and the city's vast scene of highly-regarded musicians.

In brief, "Listen" presents Dark Horse gloriously putting into use their musical philosophy what they describe "improvising as composing together".

"Listen" by Dark Horse is released by Helsinki's We Jazz Records on 13 November 2020 on vinyl and digitally. The vinyl comes in a heavy duty tip-on sleeve and the album design features the painting "Overwhelming Structure" by the Helsinki-based visual artist Maija Lassila.

If art is to be exhibited, then Ulrika Spacek will ensure that their art is collective; that even as the world becomes inhospitable to community, their intentions are an act of resistance.

Whether it is Oysterland, the self-curated night the band have been Hosting for over ten years to platform artists of other disciplines in live music spaces, or Total Refreshment Centre, the East London studio Syd runs which connects the dots between the jazz scene and like-minded experimental artists of the capital and beyond, or their creative bleed as musicians and producers over the years with the likes of Crack Cloud, caroline, DIIV, Holy Wave and Slowdive, the band’s existence is inseparable from their community.

In a hyper-individual world, the band’s fourth album, ‘EXPO’, offers an antidote. It’s there, in the shared dream logic of the music, the off-kilter melodies, jagged guitars and cirrus cloud atmospherics. It’s there, in all the things that are said and unsaid between them; there in the writing, producing and mixing processes they share in. And even as each of their parts Moves toward a unified vision, it’s never more keenly felt than in the bigger Picture to which Ulrika Spacek belong.

Though their well-established foundations are in the art-rock world - and though they are inspired by electronic elements more than ever - Ulrika Spacek are interested in the glitch that exists between the two. Their Music reckons with human warmth and digital isolation, equal parts welcoming and altogether alienating. “Our music has always been a collage - a bit patchwork, sonically - but what makes this album a landmark for us is that we went one step further and made our own sample bank,” explains singer / guitarist Rhys. They create their own doppelgängers in a world of almostreal, where the band appear as if in a hall of mirrors. Digital drums are sampled layered upon real drums, and the effect is almost like birth in reverse - pulled from the ether and returned back to the tangible world.

“There’s a lot that can be said about writing when there is no aim, there is a freedom and a purity in it which opens a door to more music, and in this case, it set a mood for a new album, one that would be colder, darker and one that would embrace electronics and new instrumentation in a new terrain,” the band share. “The album’s greater theme is isolation and alienation in an online world where it seems everybody around you is constantly exhibiting themselves, living in public wanting to be seen and heard. The age of ‘individuality’ is lonely, it’s a room of concave mirrors, and with this in mind, we set upon making our most collective effort; ‘It’s back to strength in numbers, count in fives.”

For fans of Radiohead, Moin, DIIV, Astrel K, Slowdive.

LP presented on Crystal Clear vinyl.