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Another foggy day in Yorkshire. A steel grey sky. Raindrops tracing one another down the windowpane. Kirk Barley sits in his studio and assembles compositions from scraps of found sound and live instrumentation. Melodies swell, withdraw and repeat like waves. Time slows. Accelerates. Slows again. The light bends, tweaked at the edges. Twisted by rhythms that never quite resolve.

Written, recorded and produced by Barley in Yorkshire in early 2024, Lux picks up where 2023 LP Marionette leaves off, conjuring a mystical, reflective space between formal minimalism and sonic imaginaries of northern landscapes.

And yet, where Marionette relied at times on more recognisable field recordings, Lux leans into Barley’s skill as an instrumentalist and sound designer, working from a palette of short samples and utilising a variety of alternate tuning systems to build, layer and coax his compositions into being. Most evident on tracks ‘Vita’, ‘Sprite’ and ‘Descendent’, these tunings create an otherworldly harmonic language that is easier to perceive than describe.

Alongside more familiar instruments of guitar, bass, drums, organ and clarinet, here Barley draws on plastic saxophones and bells, and recordings of glass, wood and metal sound objects to provide the organic matter. Rather than directly representative of the natural world, Lux enters into a dialogue with it which, like the grasses and flowers of the album’s cover, exists somewhere between reality and artifice.

On album opener ‘Cache’, Barley constructs his own sense of time from a recording of an umbrella crank, a sparse and spectral piece which hints at memories embedded in the track’s title. Introspection blossoms into new life on ‘Vita’, crumpling again into the percussive ambience of ‘Verre’. A track that takes its harmonic lead from the clinks of glass, it features Barley’s long-time collaborator Matt Davies on drums, whose nuanced, tonally sensitive playing gives ‘Verre’ a fizzing, ice-like quality.

There are several moments where Lux picks up on themes Barley explored under electronic moniker Church Andrews on recent works with Davies, stretching and distorting temporalities most explicitly on ‘Descendent’, whose ritualistic air unfurls around a pattern in exponential decline.

Embracing the surrealism Barley absorbed over years watching classic film noir and the works of David Lynch and Federico Fellini, Lux wends its way through the enchanted sound worlds of ‘Sprite’ and ‘Balanced’ before arriving at the album’s title track.

An expression of his recent experiments in live, prepared guitar, ‘Lux’ brings the album back to earth, returning us to the room where the rain has stopped, the clouds have parted, and the soft warmth of the spring sun is pouring in through the open window.

Chris Ryan Williams (trumpet & electronics) and Lester St. Louis (cello & electronics) work together as HxH (H by H). Their skills have seen them move smoothly across various situations, constantly carving out new terrain and working in new configurations of musicians at a rapid pace. While worth reading, their biographies capture only a part of their complex rhizome.

HxH started about three years ago. The project is a direct response to all their activity with others and more importantly all their future leaning sonic desires. Their debut album STARK PHENOMENA is both their first studio recording and their first physical release. The album is appropriately set to be released by KMRU on his growing label OFNOT. It’s an ideal introduction to their sound world and their approach.

HxH describe their music as “electroacoustic,” but until recently the presence of Black musicians in this field has been greatly overlooked and largely ignored, making this phrase only partially appropriate. What HxH do really is to always be unpredictable. Every gig is a new soundscape. Sometimes you might hear echoes of Autechre or Robert Hood but then the sound-field will open up into a new terrain all their own. Chris and Lester bring together techniques from across the sound spectrum of electronic music and also draw on their deep backgrounds in Jazz, Improvisation, Classical and Noise scenes to create a sound that is true to them. After all, these two have worked with the likes of Bennie Maupin and the music of Black Fluxus artist Ben Patterson. Their rhizome is deep.

One of the ways that their unique approach manifests is in their merging of both acoustic instruments and electronic instruments in real time. This is something few have managed to do – but their spontaneous leanings work in both complex and accessible ways because of their deep understanding of landscape crafting. You can hear this clearly on the track “Pyrex Vision.” Their approach makes it tempting to compare their music to Sun Ra jamming with Laurel Halo – a comparison that would be only partly accurate.

Chris and Lester note that the sounds on STARK PHENOMENA are “imbued with such hopeful, gracious care; one that is far flung from obsessive carefulness or fuck the world carelessness, but more a caring embrace without the fuzziness of nostalgia.”

They note that when they began working together, they would “always come back to speaking on our concepts of an architecture of the expanse,” noting that their live sets often take on the joyfully noisy task of “dreaming big.” For HxH it was essential that STARK PHENOMENA have a quality that is “almost sculptural.” They consider the album “an object to be viewed from all sides.” This kind of thinking has resulted in them directly engaging with numerous sculptors and artists including Torkwase Dyson. Shape wise HxH’s sound fields work in a parallel to Dyson’s black architectural works.

They also note that the opening cut “BEACH” (the opening and longest track from the album) was “written weeks after our first gig in a studio session donated to us by our dear friend jaimie branch.” And that Pyrex Vision “was continually being edited months after sending our ‘final mixes’ to KMRU.” Their sound sources and samples come from studio sessions, live gigs, durational installations, 3am improvised downloads and more.

KMRU notes: "I think there is an in-between layer on this record. I was first caught by the Pyrex Vision track which organically flows between monologue, subtle field recording, and instrumentation. It's such a beautiful track, evoking deep emotion through simplicity. STARK PHENOMENA effortlessly glides in between imaginative mosaics of sounds — free yet complex — unlocking memories within its layers."

DJ Support: Gilles Peterson (BBC Radio 6 Music), Tom Ravenscroft/Deb Grant – New Music Fix (BBC Radio 6 Music), Huey Morgan (BBC Radio 6 Music)

From Budapest, Mörk (pronounced Merk) play on the boundaries of jazz and soul music. After meeting as students, they created a band that not only toyed with sounds but the methods of delivering them too. They’ve played in kindergardens, climbing halls, tea rooms and living rooms, countering expectations of where and how you find music.

Following April's much loved ‘Astral Visions’ EP, played across Bandcamp Weekly, BBC 6 Music, FIP, Jazz FM and KCRW, their upcoming album ‘Still Dreamin’’ delivers even more soul and uplifting choruses, coupled with the synchronicity of a band that has been through so much together.

Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco team up to release their first project as a couple, "I Said I Love You First" set to be released on March 21st via SMG Music LLC & Friends Keep Secrets under exclusive license to Interscope Records. The album celebrates the pair's love story, giving fans a unique window into their relationship. This album came together organically as a direct result of the comfort that they both felt when working together creatively, allowing them to produce art that authentically reflects their experiences. It chronicles their entire story - before they met, falling in love, and looking to what the future holds.

Fausts Herangehensweise an Rockmusik (im weitesten Sinne) beinhaltet Elemente der elektronischen Musik und der Improvisation, Drones und Dissonanz und so wurden sie zu einer der wichtigsten Gruppen der Kosmische Musik bzw. des Krautrocks. Ihr Debütalbum war innovativ und wurde von der Kritik gelobt, verkaufte sich aber nicht sehr gut. Nach den schlechten Verkaufszahlen des Debüts präsentiert das nachfolgewerk "So Far" (1972) die kommerziellere und zugänglichere Seite von Faust, ohne ihren fortschrittlichen und experimentellen Charakter aufzugeben. Es ist ein perfektes Album, um die Diskografie der Band zu erkunden, denn es enthält einen ihrer bekanntesten Songs, It's a Rainy Day, Sunshine Girl,, und gilt als ein beeindruckendes Werk, das mit dem ersten Album von Neu! oder Cans Tago Mago" gleichzusetzen ist. Vor anderen Künstlern wie Throbbing Gristle und Nurse with Wound waren Faust, die 1971 in Hamburg/Deutschland gegründet wurden, Pioniere bei der Schaffung industrieller und futuristischer Atmosphären unter Verwendung bearbeiteter Rhythmen, wie in dem Stück Mamie is Blue". Seit geraumer Zeit nicht mehr auf Vinyl erhältlich, gibt es hier eine lang erwartete Wiederveröffentlichung dieses essentiellen Krautrock-Meisterwerks. Ein unverzichtbares Album des Kanon des Krautrocks. Zuletzt offiziell vor 15 Jahre auf Vinyl erhältlich, nun remastered von den Originalbändern. 180g Vinyl. Inklusive Booklet.

After a 30-year interstellar silence, the enigmatic producer Alien Signal—pioneering alias of Italian electronic composer Alex Silvi—reemerges with Whispers from Distant Suns, a transcendent odyssey that bridges retro-futurism and modern electronica. Hailed as a magnum opus, this album transcends genre boundaries, captivating ambient purists, downtempo aficionados, and even experimental listeners with its hypnotic fusion of analog warmth and digital precision.

Cosmic Tapestry of Sound
Drawing comparisons to Vangelis’ Antarctica and Alpha—but reimagined through a 21stcentury lens—Whispers from Distant Suns marries nostalgic synth textures with cuttingedge production. Silvi’s mastery of melody shines through in tracks like “Stardust
Memories” and “Fragile Eden” where shimmering arpeggios and celestial pads drift over robotic, glitch-infused drum patterns and sparse, meditative percussion. The result is a paradox: a retro-futuristic soundscape that feels simultaneously ancient and alien, familiar yet unexplored.

Listener Testimonials
Fans and critics have flooded forums with praise:

“An auditory revelation! It’s like Vangelis met Jon Hopkins in a nebula—vintage soul with a futuristic heartbeat.”
“The textures are gorgeously cinematic. Closing your eyes, you’re adrift in a Tarkovsky film scored for the Andromeda galaxy.”

The Vinyl Experience
Pressed on heavyweight vinyl, the album’s physical release amplifies its immersive qualities. The gatefold sleeve, adorned with surrealist astrophotography and metallic
foiling, mirrors the music’s cosmic ethos. Side A leans into Balearic serenity, with sundappled grooves and aquatic synth ripples, while Side B delves into darker, more
experimental terrain—think Aphex Twin’s Selected Ambient Works colliding with the organic rhythms of Jon Hopkins.

Maturity in Motion
This album is a testament to Silvi’s evolution. Tracks like “Seeds Of Light” and “Message from Andromeda Galaxy” showcase his refined ear for dynamics, balancing silence and sound with surgical precision. Vintage drum machines spar with glitches, while field recordings of crashing waves and interstellar static blur the line between Earth and cosmos. The closing track, “The Star Charts We Shared” crescendos into a 6-minute ambient requiem, leaving listeners suspended in a state of weightless awe.

Final Transmission
Whispers from Distant Suns is more than an album—it’s a transcendent odyssey. Spanning time, space, and the artist’s own creative evolution, this immersive work invites listeners to lose themselves in its ebb and flow. Designed for moments both intimate and expansive, its balearic-tinged atmospheres resonate equally through dawnlit Mediterranean terraces or the solitary glow of headphones in darkness. These are compositions that pulse, morph, and haunt the air long after the final note fades. A living soundscape meant to accompany life’s quiet revelations and clandestine joys—a soundtrack to your most personal moments, crafted as what the artist calls ‘private dance music.’

Tailored for the Discerning Listener
Whispers from Distant Suns is designed with the true connoisseur in mind. This album is a must-have for:

Vinyl Collectors & Audiophiles: Those who value the warmth and tactile experience of heavyweight, limited edition pressings
Electronic Ambient and Downtempo Fans: Listeners who appreciate immersive soundscapes that merge retro analog charm with modern digital innovation.
Retro-Futurism Enthusiasts: Fans of pioneering artists like Vangelis, Boards of Canada, and early Warp Records who seek music that bridges nostalgic synth textures with futuristic experimentation.
Experimental Music Explorers: Individuals drawn to sonic narratives that invite deep, contemplative listening—perfect for both introspective moments and immersive listening sessions.
This release is not just an album; it’s a curated experience for those who desire music as a multidimensional art form, merging the vintage allure of analog sound with a contemporary, cosmic vision.

For fans of: Vangelis, Biosphere, Jon Hopkins, early Warp Records.

Bon Iver's debut full-length For Emma, Forever Ago has been making major waves in critics circles based on the strength of an early artist-pressed advance cd and a couple awe-inspiring sets at CMJ in October 2007. The New York Times called it "irresistible" and Pitchfork stamped its early review of the album with a Recommended tag. For those of you hiding away in a cabin of your own, it's time that you hear the story, and more importantly, the music. Bon Iver (pronounced: bohn eevair; French for "good winter" and spelled wrong on purpose) is a greeting, a celebration and a sentiment. It is a new statement of an artist moving on and establishing the groundwork for a lasting career. For Emma, Forever Ago is the debut of this lineage of songs. As a whole, the record is entirely cohesive throughout and remains centered around a particular aesthetic, prompted by the time and place for which it was recorded. Justin Vernon, the primary force behind Bon Iver, seems to have tested his boundaries to the maximum, and in doing so has managed to break free from any pre-cursing or finished forms. It wasn't planned. The goal was to hibernate. Vernon moved to a remote cabin in the woods of Northwestern Wisconsin at the onset of winter. He lived there alone for three months, filling his days with wood splitting and other chores around the land. This solitary time slowly began feeding a bold, uninhibited new musical focus. The days slowly evolved into nights filled with twelve-hour recording blocks, breaking only for trips on the tractor into the pines to saw and haul firewood, or for frozen sunrises high up a deer stand. All of his personal trouble, lack of perspective, heartache, longing, love, loss and guilt that had been stock piled over the course of the past six years, was suddenly purged into the form of song.

‘The Return of Pachyman’ is a supernatural force
from a brave new world that’s a little bit San Juan,
a little LA, and a whole lot of Channel One in
Kingston, Jamaica. Designed to be a resurrection
of sound systems from the past through which we
can celebrate a post-Trump future, the record
shows that blasting off into reggae’s deep space
has never gone out of style.
Pachy García (aka Pachyman) is perhaps best
known as the drummer / vocalist for the LA-based
band Prettiest Eyes, a unique pop-noise project
that reflects his other formative interest, synth
punk. He thinks of ‘The Return of Pachyman’ the
same way King Tubby might - an ‘X-ray’ of reggae
music, breaking it down to its bare bones.
Originally a guitarist, he moved to Los Angeles in
the early 2010s and developed his passion for
dub. From there, he started recording bass, drums
and piano and collecting recording equipment in
his basement studio, which he calls 333 House.
With ‘The Return of Pachyman’, García wants to
show how the Caribbean flow is transnational, a
vibe that resounds from Jamaica to San Juan to
Southern California. “With this project, I was
looking to make positive music and radiate good
energy; something to kinda disconnect from the
negative things that were happening at the
moment,” Garcia explains. “I am trying to make this
project a service for humanity in the sense that I
just wanted to shine a positive light.”

Mit AVEC präsentiert die österreichische Singer-Songwriterin AVEC ein selbstbetiteltes Album, das die bittersüßen und zärtlichen Momente des
Lebens nahtlos miteinander verbindet. Diese Sammlung verkörpert ihre charakteristische Mischung aus sanften Melodien, introspektiven Texten und
cinematischen Klanglandschaften. Roh und intim taucht das Album in die Komplexität menschlicher Beziehungen und persönlicher Introspektion ein
und lädt die Hörer:innen in eine Welt ein, in der Verletzlichkeit auf Widerstandsfähigkeit trifft und Herzschmerz mit Hoffnung tanzt.
Seit 2015 AVECs erste EP “Heartbeats” erschienen ist, rüttelt die junge österreichische Musikerin gekonnt und gut am Bild dessen, was man über
zutiefst ehrliche Popmusik zu wissen geglaubt hat. Die erste, sehr erfolgreiche Single “Granny” hat den Weg zum jugendlich-melancholischen
Debütalbum “What If We Never Forget” geebnet. Es wurde mit mehreren Nominierungen bei den Austrian Amadeus Music Awards (unter anderem
“Künstlerin des Jahres” und “Best Sound”) belohnt: ein erstes, starkes Folkpop-Statement, reduziert, kraft- und eindrucksvoll. So eindrucksvoll, dass
AVEC in weiterer Folge unter anderem Support-Slots für Zucchero, Sting oder The Tallest Man On Earth gespielt hat.

Die verbitterte Tochter eines toten Predigers, die in einem Exodus gefangen ist, schlängelt sich durch einen schwindelerregenden Ausbruchsversuch
aus ihrer erstickenden Erziehung, nur um am Ende in deren Fängen zerquetscht zu werden.
Hayden Anhedönia, die Frau hinter dem Vorhang, ist die Architektin der viszeralen und eindringlichen Welt von Ethel Cain. Nach über vier Jahren
akribischer Arbeit an ihrem Debütalbum und der dazugehörigen visuellen Welt wurde Preacher's Daughter im Mai 2022 veröffentlicht und von den
Kritikern hoch gelobt. Das Album fand großen Anklang bei der Fangemeinde ihrer Töchter und wurde von der New York Times, Vogue, NPR, Billboard,
Vice, TheFADER, NYLON, Paper Magazine, Pitchfork, W Magazine, V Magazine und vielen mehr bewundert.

Die verbitterte Tochter eines toten Predigers, die in einem Exodus gefangen ist, schlängelt sich durch einen schwindelerregenden Ausbruchsversuch
aus ihrer erstickenden Erziehung, nur um am Ende in deren Fängen zerquetscht zu werden.
Hayden Anhedönia, die Frau hinter dem Vorhang, ist die Architektin der viszeralen und eindringlichen Welt von Ethel Cain. Nach über vier Jahren
akribischer Arbeit an ihrem Debütalbum und der dazugehörigen visuellen Welt wurde Preacher's Daughter im Mai 2022 veröffentlicht und von den
Kritikern hoch gelobt. Das Album fand großen Anklang bei der Fangemeinde ihrer Töchter und wurde von der New York Times, Vogue, NPR, Billboard,
Vice, TheFADER, NYLON, Paper Magazine, Pitchfork, W Magazine, V Magazine und vielen mehr bewundert.

Toulouse appears to be a proper soundsystem town, a real Dub and Bass music hot spot. We were happy to get in touch with with Stefan Dubs from the former Folklore crew, running a handmade soundsystem with up to 6 full super scoops. He released several records under Folklore and later Maquis Son SistÈm, started a liveact which meanwhile runs under SÚn Du MaquÌs, organises soundsystem gatherings and raves around town with the ComitÈ Des FÍtes collective.

Luckily we were able to invite Jan Loup and him to Leipzig in 2023 to shake Bassmaessage with their soundsystem, including the amazing multi-track tape into vintage FX & mixing desk performance. If you ever have the chance to catch them live, you'll hear a special vividly rooted analogue sound, incorporating modern influences, covering various BPM from 120 to 170, but definitely bass heavy all along!

Irie skanks keep you floating along "Mogale Stepper", which shows SÚn's warm but forward bass abilities and the knowledge to keep it steppy without any militant aggressive kicks. "Puur Dub" has a the same instant reminiscence of digital reggae skanking, but adding a brilliant layer of Think break incarnations on top - killing advanced sub connoisseur meetings with ease. On the first check this plate may appear a bit different from the label's cutalogue, but if you settle in these lush textures and twisted dubs you'll see: this is a definitive 45seven sound!

Madronas’ debut LP Erogenous Biome is an amorphous, murky, cathartic offering. A duet of modular synthesizer and winds that’s equal parts doom and ecstasy, it’s the sound of a majestic butterfly emerging from it’s slimy chrysalis just in time to catch the sun setting on the end of days, a bewitching, heavy ceremony, a power-wash of both mind and spirit.

Tracked in one continuous take at Brooklyn’s Heavy Meadow studio, individual tracks were gleaned from the purge and eschew predictable structures, making for a dense, fluid suite of improvisation, like dancing smoke ribbons in the dark. The duo's chosen sound sources are seemingly opposite - Ry Fyan’s modular’s coming from electronic oscillators, Isaiah Barr’s saxophone and various flutes originating with the breath - but the visceral, imprecise, alive quality to the sound of both lends the record a thrilling combination of rapturous harmony and gritty, intense friction.

Opening the session in ritualistic, foreboding fashion, Voluntary lurches to life with rattles and wandering, bassy arpeggios before a suona’s cry signals the seance has officially begun. Ostraca Loam spits explosive modular rhythms and eerie shrieks for the flute to float above, while Detritus Harp smudges mechanical whirring, pensive horn and wind chimes for an untethered drift. Petrified Microdot swells with menacing sci-fi sequences and breathtaking sax runs until they both run out of breath, and Negative Lingam starts out in a panic of breathy riffing before exhaling into one of the most sublime passages on the record. Rhythmic pounding and undulating flutes punctuate Lenticular Shroud, before The Preparation Of The Novel sets the winds aside for a synthesized dual fit for electric dreams. The title track dominates the B-side, it's shimmering levity slowly unfurling to reveal itself as a kind of post-apocalyptic devotional music, deep space drifting grounded by earthly flutes, and Vale Of Cashmere offers an ascetic, contemplative closure, sparse flute and chiming rhythms organic or electronic - by this time it’s hard to know, it doesn’t matter either way.

Erogenous Biome is a world of it’s own, and one Impatience is honored to offer a window into.

RIYL - Senyawa, witchcraft, Colin Stetson , Civilistjavel, Mars (the planet), Finis Africae, raga, Stephen O’Malley, modular synthesizer, Anthony Braxton, Shabaka.

Madronas is Ry Fyan and Isaiah Barr. Fyan is a painter and tattoo artist, this is his first release. Barr is a prolific instigator of the downtown New York scene, producing and playing saxophone in jazz circles with his group Onyx Collective, as a player and/or producer on records by Nick Hakim, David Byrne and Wiki, performing live with William Parker and as part of his projects Universal Space Jam and Cafe Dewanee.

Erogenous Biome was recorded and mastered by Griffin Jennings at Heavy Meadow, Brooklyn.

Vinyl was cut by Beau Thomas at Ten Eight Seven Mastering, Berlin.

Artwork is by Ry Fyan, typography and layout by Nicolas Turek.

Communique Records U.S.A. re-issues the sublabel Country Western!
Starting with Brian Douglas - Singularity from 1996.
Recorded from original DAT and re-mastered.

If every significant artist has an underrated gem in its catalog, then Mirage is that album for Fleetwood Mac. An obvious return to relative simplicity after the dramatic tension of Rumours and experimental ambitions of Tusk, the 1982 album finds the band re-grouping after a brief hiatus and again climbing to the top of the charts. Extremely well-crafted, well-produced, and well-performed, the double-platinum effort distills the group’s hallmark strengths into a filler-free set that never runs short of addictive pop hooks or daft accents.

Sourced from the original analog master tapes, pressed at Fidelity Record Pressing in California, and housed in a Stoughton jacket, Mobile Fidelity’s numbered-edition 180g 45RPM 2LP set presents Mirage in reference sound for the first time. The efforts co-producers/engineers Ken Caillat and Richard Dashut went to capture the splintered albeit formidable band can be heard with stunning accuracy, range, depth, and detail.

Though Rumours understandably gets a permanent spot in the audiophile hall of fame, the smooth, clear, and dynamic sonics on Mirage confirm that the record that stood as Fleetwood Mac’s last effort for five years deserves a place in the same vaunted arena. The presence and imaging of Mick Fleetwood’s percussion alone on this reissue might have you wondering how this slice of soft-rock bliss has gone under-noticed for decades. Other prized aural aspects — separation, definition, impact, tonal balance — are also here in spades.

Like much surrounding Fleetwood Mac in the 1980s, arriving at Mirage was not easy. Caillat searched for studios located outside of Los Angeles on a mission to change up the vibe of the band’s prior recording sessions. Everyone settled on Le Chateau in France, where relations between some members remained icy — and cooperation with the producers strained. Battles with exhaustion, bitterness, and addiction further informed the proceedings at the 18th century complex in the French countryside, where even communal meals were allegedly eaten in silence.

Inevitably, the feelings that co-producer Lindsey Buckingham, Stevie Nicks, Christine McVie, and company harbored — as well as the situations in which they found themselves — drifted into the songwriting. In its rapid ascent to rock-star royalty status, Fleetwood Mac drifted apart, embarked on solo pursuits, and found it was lonely at the top. Emptiness, the illusion of dreams, the longing for love, the want to escape to bygone times of innocence and happiness: Such themes inform a majority of the narratives. Even if the lyrics regularly take a back seat to easygoing arrangements that allow Mirage to come on like a refreshing breeze on a sunny summer afternoon.

Home to three Top 25 singles in the U.S. and having occupied the pole position of the Top 200 album charts for five weeks, Mirage rightfully resonated with the mainstream and attracted listeners on both sides of the pond. And how, via a smart blend of sugary melodies, warm harmonies, interlaced notes, nimble rhythms, taut structures, and passionate vocals. Not to mention the presence of what arguably remains Nicks’ signature song, the biographical “Gypsy,” a meditation on the loss of her close friend Robin Anderson that teems with majesty, mystery, and mysticism — and which gets an assist from Buckingham’s shaded tack piano and richly strummed guitar chords.

Its ranking as an all-time classic aside, that No. 12 hit has plenty of company when it comes to brilliant pop turns on Mirage. On the subject of Nicks, the raspy singer gets a little bit country on “That’s Alright.” Its clip-clopping pace and two-stepping progression complement subtle vocal swells that emerge during the final verse of a tune that is ostensibly about leaving but still conveys forgiveness and grace. And what would a Fleetwood Mac record be without Nicks drawing on the tools of the supernatural — cards, dreams, wolves, and the like — on the twirling “Straight Back.”

Despite the potency of Nicks’ primary contributions, Mirage seemingly unfolds as a tight competition between Buckingham and McVie — and one that ultimately ends in a draw. Buckingham’s salvos include the contagious “Can’t Go Back,” a yearning to time-travel back to the past that’s complete with hall-of-mirrors backing vocals; “Oh Diane,” out-of- left-field ear candy sweetened with hiccupped vocals and salt-and-pepper-shaken grooves; the chiming “Eyes of the World”; and “Empire State,” a delightfully fluttering track whose high-range vocals, lap harp notes, and ringing xylophones hint at the galaxies of sound that would erupt on Tango in the Night.

Then there’s McVie. As elegant, understated, and coolheaded as she’s ever been on record, she pours her heart out on cuts that revolve around her inevitable split with Beach Boy Dennis Wilson. In the process, she punctuates Mirage with a characteristic not always associated with catchy pop music: emotional weight, and the sense of dreaded acceptance in the face of dreams deferred.

“I wish you were here/Holding me tight,” McVie sings over a delicate melody on the album-closing piano ballad “Wish You Were Here.” Though they hoped otherwise, for the members Fleetwood Mac, distance and separation were always close at hand. Believing otherwise, inviting nostalgia, and pretending everything was fine only amounts to a mirage.

Limited Edition 12"

Left Ear are delivering two previous unreleased Australian ‘experimental’ electronic tracks from the 80’s and honoring them with a split 12” release.

Side A: Features an unreleased full-length version of Tim Gruchy’s Jungles, a solo electro-percussive piece recorded in Tim’s Lab D’Avoid studio in Brisbane. The track is emblematic of his style during an era when he worked extensively in music, both as a percussionist and primarily with electronics, including early analog synths.

A shorter version was originally released on the Meanjin (Brisbane) art collective ZIP’s Eye Ear EP book package in 1986 and, more recently, on Left Ear’s Antipodean Anomalies 2 compilation.

This original version of Jungles was initially part of the soundtrack for the ZIP Performing Group’s infamous Ironing Board Dances. Footage of the performance was treated through a Fairlight synthesizer, mixed with hand-painted slides, and transferred to VHS for various film festivals.

Side B: Michael Krillich’s Arnhem Land began its journey in 1982 in a shared house in North Bondi. Inspired by Brian Eno and David Byrne’s My Life in the Bush of Ghosts, he experimented with tape loops, cut-ups, and samples, incorporating synthesizers, effects pedals, a drum machine, and an unknown sample from an Australian Aboriginal record. This creation became part of his cassette release, Thematic Variations.

In 2010, Krillich uploaded an unreleased extended version of Arnhem Land from Thematic Variations to YouTube, which was shared by record dealer Matt Bowden with Left Ear Records, who pursued to release it on vinyl. Their search to uncover the sample’s origins led them to Arnhem Land Vol. 1 (1957), recorded by Peter Elkin in the Daly River region.

After years of research and through the guidance of Professor Allan Marrett and local custodians, the sample was verified as a “Wangga” ceremonial song sung by George Morkai, an Emmiyangarl man. Rights to the song had passed through generations to Tobias Worumbu, who granted us permission for its use, bringing Arnhem Land full circle.

Each of the ten tracks on "mixtape suite" is likely to evoke such absurd associations in music lovers. The album authentically and unpredictably creates a feeling of total boundlessness with a global approach. Effortlessly uniting an entire record shop within itself. One time you think of Madlib or the Bee Gees, then of Joan Baez or Amon Düül, other times of Beck or Gorillaz. Between boom bap and Krautrock, disco styles, folk references and trip-hop vibes spread out organically. Analogue percussion blurs with 90s sampling sound aesthetics.
TIKHET sounds unplanned and anarchic, with a raw core and some well rounded patina on the outside.
1883 Magazin: "Keep an eye on this emerging act"

Mesmerized: "the project has all the elements needed for a powerful musical output..., an impressive debut for the visionary pair"
Indieshake: "Fucking love this"

The iconic DJ Sotofett comes with a real treat--a 12-track album on Clone West Coast Series that showcases a playful take on electronic music. Immerse yourself in the vibrant world of DJ Sotofett & The Colours of Computer Generated Instruments. With 12 electrifying electro tracks that blend a wide spectrum of rhythms with 80's Nintendo console vibes and holy grail analog vs digital synthesis, this album is a jubilant celebration of that sound. Prepare for an exhilarating journey filled with surprises, seamlessly transitioning from acid infected vibes and catchy electronic pop to groundbreaking avant-garde electro cuts. Each track intricately weaves together influences from over 40 years of electronic dance music, inviting listeners to explore the rich tapestry of genres that have shaped the landscape. As you delve deeper, you'll uncover the intricate layers and innovative production techniques that define Sotofett's distinctive style, transforming this album into more than just a collection of tracks -- it's a true sonic adventure that beckons you to listen, dance and dream.

Earthly Measures are very excited to bring to you 'Doroja', an album by Santiago Córdoba & The Bauls of Bengal. Different to past releases, EM explores another part of the world, introducing you to the traditional sounds of Bengal & its talented musicians.

Doroja, is the third album by Argentinian musician Santiago Córdoba, this time in collaboration with The Bauls of Bengal. Recorded at the Hansadhwani Studio in Calcutta, India, where Santiago arrived with only a synthesiser, some effects, and a Legüero Bass Drum (an Argentine percussive instrument used mostly in local folklore) - this album was first conceived in December 2017 during a residency in this mythical city, together with The Bauls of Bengal.

The Bauls believe the body and mind are the sources of all truths and that the expression of freedom cannot be restrained by the labelling of genres or religions, something which is evidently expressed in their music. This provides the perfect foundations for this album to develop without limitations and too effortlessly flow to whichever realms both Santiago and the Bauls of Bengal wish to take us too.

The album combines traditional songs of the Bauls, rhythmic Jhumar instrumental improvisations with the Argentinian legüero bass drum, and other compositions created together in the studio. The result is a melodic mixture/dialogue of cultures, folklore and ancestral sounds with modern influences that help create an experimental and addictive sound full of electronic textures.

Participating in these first recordings: Arpita Chakraborty (vocals), Chandan Ray (dotara), Pijush Baul (Vocals, Dubki) and Tanmoy Pan (percussion), who later, are joined by other artists from different latitudes to achieve a captivating fusion: Matías Romero on strings (Formosa, Argentina), Guilherme Peluci from Mineiro on winds and Daniel Guedes on percussion (Belo Horizonte, Brazil), Porteños Walter Broide on tabla and Cobra Rod on bass (both members of Poseidotica), and the Spanish Ángel Calvo on trumpet.

The album was mixed by Rodrigo Cursach at Delta Uno Estudio, mastered by Daniel Ovie, and the fascinating cover art is by Alejandro Sordi. It will be released on vinyl by the UK based label Earthly Measures, in addition to being available on all digital platforms.

‘Doroja’ means portal, and this album is indeed a magical portal to music, song and dance. Santiago's only means of communication with Bengali colleagues functioned as an astral portal to build the sounds of this journey through strange and unfathomable landscapes that captivate and surprise by building bridges between different cultures of our planet.

Santiago Córdoba is a multi-instrumentalist musician born in the city of Buenos Aires who has been developing his unique sound both with his solo project and with prominent bands from the Argentinian independent music scene. He has been developing his solo career through deep musical and spiritual searching, with the infinite journey as a primary objective.

In recent years, he has lived in places such as Madrid, Beirut and Berlin and has released two albums: ‘Corso’ (2015) and ‘En Other Places’ (2019).

'It begins with a shoebox of mysterious provenance, full of recordings from the Vendée department on France’s western seaboard: songs of love and war, life and death, played out on land and sea. Songs passed down and sung by ordinary men and women, gracefully delivered with the poetic economy which unites the folk song of all peoples.

Next it takes a group of contemporary musicians to make selections from this treasure trove and sing these old songs anew; to sing them for their beauty, of course, and to reclaim the people’s tradition from those who would seek to exploit it for nefarious political ends. Who better for this task than Tartine de Clous, a singing trio from Vendée’s neighbouring department of Charente-Maritime, who burst into national and international consciousness with their debut album "Sans Folklore" in 2015? The result of their shoebox rummagings, the new album "Compter les dents", recorded in 2019 and finally seeing the light of day, is bound to delight old fans and win them many new ones.

Time makes many’s the alteration, and "Compter les dents" finds 'les garçons' - Geoffroy Dudouit, Thomas Georget and Guillaume Maupin - in a different state of being from their debut release. The trio, friends since youth, have certainly matured between albums, as one would expect; consequently the newer performances are more considered and poised, unfolding with a patient confidence. A relaxed domesticity prevails, something to do with the fact that the album was entirely recorded chez les amis, in contrast to the first album, which was mostly recorded at live performances in bars and night-spots across France.

Lending gravitas to the grain of their voices we mark a deepened richness, doubtless born of the various vicissitudes of daily existence which these gentlemen - and we too as citizens of this turmoiled globe - have weathered in the intervening years. Not too dissimilar, in fact,
from some of the vicissitudes detailed in those old Vendée songs. Plus 'ça change', right?

There’s a greater complexity and subtlety to their unique three-part harmonising, too. Their voices mesh in even stronger - almost telepathic - 'fraternité' than ever before: now commanding and mighty as a full-rigged counter-vessel, now gentle and lulling as a mother’s
cradle-croon, or as the whisper in a lover’s ear.

Three legendary figures of French traditional music, now sadly departed, preside as tutelary spirits over Compter les dents. They are: the late Claude Flagel, musician and ethnomusicologist; and the late Jean-Loup Baly of the well-known 1970s band Mélusine. Most of the album was recorded by Claude in the Brussels home he shared with his late wife Lou Flagel. The album is dedicated to the memory of Jean-Loup, Claude and Lou.

For the first time there are several guest instrumentalists working their magic to expand the Tartine de Clous sound. Jean-Loup plays a characterful accordéon on the song ‘La Veuve'. The other guests are: Maurice Artus (voice), Robert Thébaut (violin), Quentin Manfroy (piccolo, contrabassoon), Marceau Portron (cigar box guitar). Their contributions add even more conviviality to that which the trio of singers already share, a sensation which will doubtless be shared by those who happen to find a place in their lives for "Compter les dents".'

Liner notes by Alasdair Roberts.

Die zweifache Grammy-Gewinnerin und mehrfach mit Platin ausgezeichnete Ariana Grande veröffentlicht ihr siebtes Studio-Album ”eternal sunshine”, welches das erste musikalische Werk der Künstlerin seit drei Jahren markiert. Ihre letzten fünf Studio-Alben platzierte die talentierte Künstlerin in den Top 10 der deutsche Charts. Die vorab veröffentlichte Leadsingle ”yes, and?” debütierte auf Platz 1 der Spotify Global Charts und verzeichnete damit ihr bisher größtes Spotify-Streaming-Debüt. Das Musikvideo zu ”yes, and?” erreichte Platz 1 der YouTube Music Trend-Charts

Sunset edition - 300 copies

Driving is Sam Wilkes’ Indie Rock record. Iit is the first release on Wilkes Records, an imprint borne of the artist’s emergent need to self-release. The songs presented here exist comfortably within the ever-expanding Wilkesian cosmos, characterized as they are by virtuosity, torqued experimentalism, and collaboration with a range of talented musicians. But Driving’s influences, its sincerity, and its allegiance to a certain pop sensibility reflects a departure for an artist who has primarily staked his claim within the experimental jazz idiom.

Take the first track, “Folk Home,” which inaugurates the album’s fecundity—a bright, green, humid, summer feel. A swirling, freakout coda of reversed vocals gives way, in no short order, to a caterwaul of flute work that conjures Van Morrison’s (in)famous Astral Weeks sessions. Standing beside Morrison, the usual suspects are all present, if somewhat abstractedly. Dylan, The Dead, Joni, the Fab Four. Wilkes has developed a reputation as an experimental jazz luminary, but his deep affinity for the pop/rock/folk idiom of the latter twentieth century rings clear throughout Driving. More so than any Wilkes release to date, Driving is a collection guided by and dedicated to the man’s attention to songcraft.

Written and recorded during a period of rain-damage induced renter’s itinerance (and the attendant desire to produce a kind of therapeutic, self-soothing, home-feeling music), Driving loosely charts the trajectory/experience of “a protagonist,” both Wilkes and not, “who has figured out how to live an enlightened and fulfilled life, but is unable to do so because he thinks about it too much.” This friction is surely relatable — a symptom of our compulsively self-aware present. But Wilkes avoids the obvious pitfalls of public hand-wringing. Rather, Driving’s nine tracks evince a genuine, and mature searching-ness, both sonically and lyrically. The ending refrain of “Own” serves like something close to a thesis— “Letting go // isn’t a concept // it’s an action.” In an attempt to beat back ego, hyper-cogitation, language itself, Wilkes arrives at an axiom that feels so true and familiar, you’d swear you’d heard it one hundred times before.

Driving’s final third is, fittingly, its most emotive and cathartic. Tracks seven and eight, “Again, Again” and “And Again,” form a diptych, joined most obviously by the jangling, recursive grooves of guitarist Daryl Johns. Wilkes is said to have encouraged Johns to go “full Lindsey Buckingham” (clearly a welcome and resonant prompt), but one also catches stray Knopfler vibes, some intermittent Fripp, and (perhaps more-so in tone than technique) the spirit of DIY prophet and jangling man himself, Martin Newell (the Cleaners from Venus). Wilkes has stated that he finds joy in creating musical environments suitable to the contribution and flourishing of his favorite musicians. Throughout Driving, and in these two tracks especially, he has more than succeeded.

The record closes with the titular track: a story-song that, according to Wilkes, poured out of him (melody, composition, and lyrics) in a single sitting. The tale is told plainly, bravely, starkly; a mistake was made, regrets have been had, and all is wrapped up in the recollection of a deeply felt adolescent heartsickness—a time when the narrator was first afire with music and automotive freedom. The song captures the moment when meaning inexplicably falls into place, when a long-nagging memory suddenly assumes narrative form, and the subsequent sense of lightness and unburdening. It is fitting that Driving, a record conceived as a form of self-therapy, should culminate with a sense of humble revelation. That Wilkes is plainly eager to share the vulnerable fruits of this labor constitutes Driving’s joyful offering.

Words by Emmett Shoemaker

Brand new studio album from rising British metal hopefuls Seven Sisters! Slowly but surely cultivating a reputation for captivating, progressive heavy metal topped with finesse and intelligence, Seven Sisters have positioned themselves as one of the most intriguing young bands in the metal scene, combining an ethereal edge with genuinely catchy hooks and melodies. Comprising of just four tracks, but with a running time of 40 minutes, 'Shadow of A Fallen Star Pt.2' is at once ambitious and accessible, whether utilizing classic heavy metal tropes on lead single 'Heart Of The Sun' or experimenting with emotive atmospheres and ambitious sound collages on the sprawling 20 minute centerpiece 'Andromeda Ascending (A Fallen Star Rises)'.

Bis ins Jahr 1973 reicht die Historie von Mass zurück, als Günther V. Radny (das V. steht für Viktor) mit Sänger Josef Hartl, Gitarrist Walter Speck und dem Schweizer Drummer Charles Frey (heute als Akron bekannter Autor) die Formation Black Mass startete. Nachdem Speck wegen psychischer Probleme mit tödlichen Folgen ausfiel, ersetzte ihn der Saarbrücker Gitarrist Gerd Schneider, der zuvor mit ScorpionsSchlagzeuger Hermann Erbel alias Herman Rarebell bei RS Rindfleisch gespielt hatte. Schneider musste allerdings nach einem Jahr wegen massiver Drogenproblemen wieder gehen und wurde durch den englischen Gitarristen Mick Thackeray (The Merseys), der in der Schweiz mit den Slaves und Countdowns, und in München mit Abi Ofarim spielte, ersetzt. Zur gleichen Zeit ersetzte Johannes Eder, von der englischen Band I Drive kommend, Drummer Frey, der sich laut Radny auf den Büchertripp begeben hatte. Zudem wurde der Bandname auf Mass verkürzt.

In dieser Besetzung nahm MASS im April 1975 im Studio 7o in München mit Dave Siddle am Mischpult, der unter anderen mit den Beatles, Jimy Hendrix, Jeff Beck, Animals und Deep Purple arbeitete ein Album auf. Aufgrund der Drogenprobleme von Sänger Josef Hartl wurde dieses Album nie veröffentlicht. Leider sind diese Bänder bis heute verschollen. Doch damit nicht genug der unruhigen Zeiten: Ein Jahr später mussten Hartl (Drogenprobleme, verstorben 1998) und Thackeray (Übermäßiger Alkoholkonsum), gehen.

Mit dem aus Berlin gekommenen Detlef „Dave“ Schreiber als neuem Gitarristen war die Formation als Trio 1976 erst einmal stabilisiert. 1977 entstand das Album Back To The Musicâl, welches bei United Artists Records (Hawkwind, ELO, Don McLean) erschien. In Folge wurden Mass als teils boogieorientierte Hardrockgruppe, anschließend als Heavy Metal Band bekannt und genießen heute ähnlich wie Accept, Scorpions, Trance oder Fargo Pionierstatus. Nach einer zeitweisen Umbenennung in Monsters kehrte Bandboss Günther V Radny kürzlich mit Mass zurück und lieferte eine gefeierte Reunion-CD. Die Band wurde auch kürzlich von Golden Core/ZYX geehrt, da je ein Track von Mass und Monsters auf der Compilation Sound & ActionGerman Hardrock & Heavy Metal Rarities Vol. 1 zu finden ist. Im Zuge dieses Kontaktes kam es zu der längst überfälligen Idee, das Debütalbum von Mass erstmals auf CD (und erneut auf Vinyl) zu bieten. Dieses Gesamtpaket gibt es jetzt als Bundle und ist somit ein absolutes Sammlerstück.

Bei Stepptanz denkt der Musikfreund natürlich zunächst an Gene Kelly und Fred Astaire. Auch wenn nicht mehr so populär wie in der ersten Hälfte des 20. Jahrhunderts, findet der Tapdance nach wie vor in den Shows am Broadway statt. Die perkussive Ausdrucksform mit den schnellen rhythmischen Beinbewegungen ist die Spezialität des Wiener Musiker Thomas Marek, der zu den gefragten Tapdancern in Europa zählt. Der 52jährige Choreograf und Schlagzeuger hat diese Tradition schon vor einigen Jahren aufgegriffen und zeigt seine expressive Tanzkunst in vielen Theatershows. Gemeinsam mit dem Pianisten Patrick Bebelaar und dem Bassisten Jan Roder hat Marek jetzt Tapdance, Perkussion und Schlagzeug im Rahmen einer LP-Aufnahme integriert, die sowohl ausgewählte Jazzstandards, als auch ausdrucksstarke Improvisationen beinhaltet. "Footprints" heißt die im Frühjahr 2024 in Wien aufgenommene Musik, die wir nun im Rahmen unserer Vinyl-Edition als LP präsentieren. Altbekannte Standards wie "Tea For Two" und "Softly As In The Morning Sunrise" sind ebenso zu hören, wie emotional geprägte Balladen von Bebelaar und rhythmisch vielschichtige Improvisationen von Thomas Marek. Entstanden ist mit "Footprints" ein musikalisches Kaleidoskop mit Elementen von Swing bis Free, das von drei erstklassigen Musikern eingespielte wurde. Pianist Bebelaar, hat viele Jahre mit dem Trompeter Herbert Joos und dem französischen Tubisten Michel Godard zusammengearbeitet und ist zudem ein ausdrucksstarker Komponist. Bassist Jan Roder ist fester Bestandteil der Jazzszene Berlin und Bandleader Thomas Marek ist sowohl als Drummer, wie als Tapdancer auf dieser LP zu hören.

Description : In response to the (very) high demand of our dear omakasers, Traumer’s sunset mix of “Ju” finally gets a vinyl release & of course, we are including the original as well – sorry discogs sharks.

That’s the Price of Loving Me marks Dean Wareham’s (Galaxie 500, Luna, Dean & Britta, ) evocative return, rekindling his partnership with producer Kramer for the first time since Galaxie 500's This Is Our Music in 1990.

Recorded in six days in Los Angeles, the album is steeped in lush, haunting soundscapes, driven by Wareham's signature reverb-soaked guitars and melancholic, dreamlike vocals. Britta Phillips joins on bass and harmonies, while Gabe Noel’s cello adds depth and tension. “Two takes yield more treasure than twenty,” notes longtime friend Matt Fishbeck, as Kramer's insistence on spontaneity infuses the project with raw immediacy.

Thematically, Wareham delves into the poetry of memory, set against a backdrop of wistful nostalgia and existential reflection. "Songs are in dialogue with other songs" Fishbeck writes. The lead single, “We’re Not Finished Yet,” is a playful, introspective meditation where Wareham drops his own name while relishing the tactile joy of the guitar. “You Were the Ones I Had to Betray” unfolds like a somber narrative, underpinned by Noel’s cello and crowned with a haunting bass harmonica by Kramer, encapsulating the emotional ambivalence of friendship and loyalty.

“That’s the Price of Loving Me” pulses with conga rhythms and Kramer’s vintage Moog, capturing Wareham’s musings on the life of a performer and the sacrifices it demands. Fishbeck describes “The Mystery Guest” as "an acrostic poem" and concludes by saying "We're not finished yet." 'Loving Me' also includes two covers, Mayo Thompson's 'Dear Betty Baby' and Nico's 'Reich der Träume.' The latter highlights his love for blending history and homage, sung entirely in German for a chillingly authentic touch.

Dean returns with his fourth solo album and his first album for Carpark Records. Inspired by the past yet resonant in its present-day relevance, the album’s sonic palette is reminiscent of Galaxie 500’s dream-pop roots, tempered with the matured introspection of Wareham’s later works. “Dean traffics in memory,” writes Fishbeck, reflecting on the record’s seamless blend of intimate recollections and catchy hooks. The result is a cohesive work encapsulating the duality of Wareham’s career: haunted by the past, yet steadfastly pushing forward. As Fishbeck poignantly puts it, “Imagination is nothing but the working over of what is remembered.”

That’s the Price of Loving Me marks Dean Wareham’s (Galaxie 500, Luna, Dean & Britta, ) evocative return, rekindling his partnership with producer Kramer for the first time since Galaxie 500's This Is Our Music in 1990.

Recorded in six days in Los Angeles, the album is steeped in lush, haunting soundscapes, driven by Wareham's signature reverb-soaked guitars and melancholic, dreamlike vocals. Britta Phillips joins on bass and harmonies, while Gabe Noel’s cello adds depth and tension. “Two takes yield more treasure than twenty,” notes longtime friend Matt Fishbeck, as Kramer's insistence on spontaneity infuses the project with raw immediacy.

Thematically, Wareham delves into the poetry of memory, set against a backdrop of wistful nostalgia and existential reflection. "Songs are in dialogue with other songs" Fishbeck writes. The lead single, “We’re Not Finished Yet,” is a playful, introspective meditation where Wareham drops his own name while relishing the tactile joy of the guitar. “You Were the Ones I Had to Betray” unfolds like a somber narrative, underpinned by Noel’s cello and crowned with a haunting bass harmonica by Kramer, encapsulating the emotional ambivalence of friendship and loyalty.

“That’s the Price of Loving Me” pulses with conga rhythms and Kramer’s vintage Moog, capturing Wareham’s musings on the life of a performer and the sacrifices it demands. Fishbeck describes “The Mystery Guest” as "an acrostic poem" and concludes by saying "We're not finished yet." 'Loving Me' also includes two covers, Mayo Thompson's 'Dear Betty Baby' and Nico's 'Reich der Träume.' The latter highlights his love for blending history and homage, sung entirely in German for a chillingly authentic touch.

Dean returns with his fourth solo album and his first album for Carpark Records. Inspired by the past yet resonant in its present-day relevance, the album’s sonic palette is reminiscent of Galaxie 500’s dream-pop roots, tempered with the matured introspection of Wareham’s later works. “Dean traffics in memory,” writes Fishbeck, reflecting on the record’s seamless blend of intimate recollections and catchy hooks. The result is a cohesive work encapsulating the duality of Wareham’s career: haunted by the past, yet steadfastly pushing forward. As Fishbeck poignantly puts it, “Imagination is nothing but the working over of what is remembered.”

They are in their thirties, meaning they are "too much too young" to have felt the vibrations of the ska revival of the late 1970s and early 1980s live, when The Specials, The Selecter, Madness and the likes of The Beat were electrifying England at a time when social tensions were running high and were getting brass missiles into the charts, hitting all of Europe. Far too young, it goes without saying, to have experienced the initial shakes of the music that would fuel all that was to come: 1960s Jamaican ska and its later evolutions, bluebeat or rocksteady, from which reggae drew its essence and fever.

A once shocking 1962 LP of love songs…by men, for men. A long lost treasure featuring the cool & sophisticated vocals of Gene Howard and a cast of prime studio jazz musicians, performing a set of standards sung to a male suitor. Ahead of its time in every way. Decades ago, JD Doyle, renowned LGBT music historian and archivist, happened upon a copy of Love Is A Drag. Doyle would often play cuts from it on his radio show, Queer Music Heritage. He remained intrigued by the lack of either artist or producer credited on the album. A vague line of jacket text ambiguously announced, “For Adult Listeners Only - Sultry Stylings by a Most Unusual Vocalist.” And, the facts behind the album would have most likely remained unclear if it were not for one Murray Garrett Out of the blue, Murray Garrett contacted JD Doyle and wanted to talk about the album. According to Garrett, through his photography career, he had forged a friendship and partnership with prolific big band vocalist, Gene Howard. The two worked together on projects, eventually teaming with Jack Ames, founder of Edison International Records. When queried for ideas for a potential Edison International release, Garrett recalled a performance he had once seen in Greenwich Village - a performance of a man singing love songs to another man, in serious fashion, i.e., not at all campy or overly-dramatic. Gene Howard (straight and happily married!) agreed to sing on the record, accompanied by a who’s-who of Los Angeles A-list session men. Upon release, the record sold well in Hollywood, with Frank Sinatra, Liberace, and Bob Hope among its biggest advocates.

Bristol-based singer, songwriter and bandleader, who has powered her way to the-forefront of the British blues and roots scene in recent years, releases 'Shining In The Half Light on "Tidal Wave Splatter" colored vinyl. Crammed with vibrant originals brought to life with her A-list touring band, 'Shining in the Half Light' is Bailey's first full length album recorded in the UK & feature's Joe Wilkins on Guitar, Jonny Henderson on Ivories, Matthew Waer on Bass duties and Matthew Jones on drums. It was recorded in deepest Devon in December 2020 at Middle Farm Studios and produced by Dan Weller. An exciting team of co-writers feature with three credits for Ashton Tucker & Will Edmunds, who both wrote with Elles for 'Road I Call Home', plus she teamed up with longtime guitarist Joe Wilkins to write the slow-flowing, philosophical 'Riding Out The Storm'. Other kindred spirits include guitar maestro Martin Harley, for the gentle and romantic 'Different Kind Of Love' and Matt Owens, co-founder of the hugely successful indie-folk outfit Noah and the Whale, on the aforementioned 'Sunshine City'. The album comes to a striking conclusion with its title track, co-written with Nashville's Craig Lackey, written over Zoom in May 2020.

Im Jahr 2023 veröffentlichte James Elkington "Me Neither", ein Doppelalbum mit Solo-Gitarrenimprovisationen und -Experimenten. Am Ende betrachtete er es als eine wortlose Sammlung von Library Music, eine Fundgrube anonym produzierter Klänge, die für jede Art von Verwendung geplündert werden können, und Elkington, der in Chicago lebende britische Gitarrist, findet in dieser Musik eine Freiheit, die aus dem Nichts zu kommen scheint. Er lässt "Me Neither" mit "Pastel De Nada" ein neues 2xLP-Set folgen, dessen 27 Tracks eher einem Werkzeugkasten als einer Bibliothek gleichen. Helle, optimistische Strums wie 'The Lyre Concordia', vielschichtige Meditationen wie 'Morny in the Earling' und 'The Caves at Aurangabad' und Stücke wie 'The Equal Spacing', die wie kleine Maschinen ticken und surren, um Freude zu erzeugen. Elkington stellt seinen Gitarren Texturen, Atmosphären und flüsternde Perkussionsinstrumente gegenüber.

Imagine a road trip aboard a beautiful American convertible, the landscape passes by and you can hear this warm Sixties soundtrack of Santa Maria Death Trip somewhere between the surf rock of La Luz, the sunny pop of Allah-Las and the psychedelic garage sound of their Perpignan fellows The Liminanas. After two EPs, critically acclaimed by the French specialized press like Rock & Folk and Rolling Stone, here is their first full-length album "Lili"s Garden", released on Staubgold/Cougouyou Music.

The album was conceived as a response to his EP Winter Sunshine. The record, recorded at his home in Istanbul, finds Evgeny in a highly intimate setting. His piano and atmospherics are complemented by his long- time collaborators Iana Chekina (cello) and Pavel Mackevitch (viola, violin). The first notes of "Glare of Us" greet the listener warmly and invite her to relax into a tour through the seasons and different moments of the day.

Was ist ein "Boogie"? In der Umgangssprache ist es ein Tanz oder eine Gelegenheit zum Tanzen. Da es sich hier um ein Destroyer-Album handelt und nicht um den allgemeinen Sprachgebrauch, sind die Implikationen eines Titels wie "Dan's Boogie" verführerischer und gefährlicher zugleich. "Ein Boogie ist ein Täuschungsmanöver, ein Betrug, der nicht ganz funktioniert, die Bewegungen, die wir machen, wenn wir damit konfrontiert werden", erklärt Dan Bejar. "Ich denke an Spionage, Doppelagenten, die mit einem offenen Auge schlafen und die Ausgänge im Auge behalten. Aber ich denke auch an kleine Siege und Niederlagen auf der Straße und an Improvisation". Um "Dan's Boogie" aufzunehmen, musste Bejar eine Reihe von gewollten und ungewollten Hindernissen überwinden, um die Songs zu schreiben. Die Monate nach der Fertigstellung von "LABYRINTHITIS" wurden zu einem Jahr und dann zu zwei Jahren, in denen Bejar sich selbst den Neujahrsvorsatz gab, jeden Tag eine Stunde lang Klavier zu spielen. Das hat ungefähr vier Tage gedauert, aber die Songs, die Bejar als Ergebnis dieses Vorsatzes bezeichnet - darunter "Cataract Time", "Hydroplaning Off the Edge of the World", "Bologna" und "Dan's Boogie" - sind allesamt Destroyer-Songs aus dem breiten Spektrum, das Bejar und seine Mitstreiter für sich selbst geschaffen haben: Spektakuläre Pop-Epen, persönliche Piano-Balladen und schwelende Stimmungsbilder, die die Grenzen zwischen Song, Roman und Kino verschwimmen lassen, jedes voll von der Dringlichkeit eines Staatsgeheimnisses im Kopf eines gequälten Spions. Die Leadsingle "Bologna" ist der radikalste Rahmen für diese Energie, denn es ist das erste Mal, dass Bejar einen Song schreibt, in dem er sich selbst als Nebenfigur vorstellt. In der Hauptrolle ist Simone Schmidt von Fiver zu hören, deren Stimme - hart und ausdrucksstark, durchdringend durch die Düsternis der Szene - ein Sirenengesang ist, der das ganze Album durchdringt. Die Schwere ihrer Stimme ordnet "Dan's Boogie" um ein Gefühl des drohenden Untergangs herum, so wie das Versprechen einer Fatale auf das Ungewöhnliche und Ekstatische die Hauptfigur eines erotischen Thrillers zum Verhängnis wird. "Hydroplaning Off the Edge of the World" ist ein köstlicher Widerspruch, ein schwungvoller Song, der aus der Verwüstung entstand, die Bejar absichtlich mit sich selbst anrichtete. "We are now entering a new phase", intoniert Bejar und führt Schichten von Gitarren und Synthesizern ein, die die Palette erheblich verdunkeln, während er zwischen Gesang und Sprache wechselt. Der Nebel, der Bejar umgibt, wird durch die Reibung zwischen konkurrierenden Wahrheiten und Geschmäckern erhellt, etwa wenn sein Interesse an jazzigen Balladen auf das Interesse des Produzenten und Bassisten John Collins an Bands wie Led Zeppelin und Scritti Politti trifft. Als Bejar Collins erzählte, dass er an Sammy Davis Jr. dachte, entstand der Titeltrack, in dem Bejar mit fast wahnhafter Freude einen Rat Pack-Swagger vor einer verträumten Klangkulisse aus schwebenden Gitarren, üppigen Bläsern, Jazz-Drumming, spacigen Synthesizern und - vielleicht am ehesten dem Selbstverständnis Bejars entsprechend - einem klimpernden Lounge-Piano annahm. Das Herzstück von "Dan's Boogie" ist vielleicht "Cataract Time", ein achtminütiges Epos, das zu den schwersten Texten gehört, die Bejar je geschrieben hat, und eine der musikalisch komplexesten Kompositionen von Destroyer ist. Getragen von einem lässigen Groove, sind Bejars Texte verklärt, ihre Melancholie schmeckt fast widersinnig nach Hoffnung. Es ist ein intimer Song, der Destroyers übliches urbanes Fabel-Milieu gegen eine erfrischende Innerlichkeit eintauscht, aber sein beschwingter Groove lässt eine Zukunft erahnen, der Bejar und seine Band entgegenfiebern. Wo frühere Destroyer-Alben mit der Welt kämpften, tanzt "Dan's Boogie" mit ihr, und seine neun Träumereien verschmelzen zu einem einzigen langen Treiben. Dan Bejar mag die Ausgänge im Auge haben, aber er wird nicht so bald abreisen.





e 5 BOLOGNA [FEAT. FIVER]

Containing a ltd 12" 300gsm artwork print! Inspired by the foothills of the Sierra de Guadarrama mountains north-west of Madrid, his home since August 2022, Milo Fitzpatrick presents "Sierra Tracks" the new album from his expansive, cinematic, chamber-jazz project Vega Trails. Having cut 2022"s beautifully resonant debut album "Tremors in the Static" as a duo, alongside saxophonist Jordan Smart (Mammal Hands and Sunda Arc), Milo now substantially expands upon that blueprint with his follow-up, "Sierra Tracks", which, as the title suggests, was conceived at his new home in central Spain and adds piano, vibraphone and strings to the mix. The beautiful Spanish countryside offered inspiration too.

Was ist ein "Boogie"? In der Umgangssprache ist es ein Tanz oder eine Gelegenheit zum Tanzen. Da es sich hier um ein Destroyer-Album handelt und nicht um den allgemeinen Sprachgebrauch, sind die Implikationen eines Titels wie "Dan's Boogie" verführerischer und gefährlicher zugleich. "Ein Boogie ist ein Täuschungsmanöver, ein Betrug, der nicht ganz funktioniert, die Bewegungen, die wir machen, wenn wir damit konfrontiert werden", erklärt Dan Bejar. "Ich denke an Spionage, Doppelagenten, die mit einem offenen Auge schlafen und die Ausgänge im Auge behalten. Aber ich denke auch an kleine Siege und Niederlagen auf der Straße und an Improvisation". Um "Dan's Boogie" aufzunehmen, musste Bejar eine Reihe von gewollten und ungewollten Hindernissen überwinden, um die Songs zu schreiben. Die Monate nach der Fertigstellung von "LABYRINTHITIS" wurden zu einem Jahr und dann zu zwei Jahren, in denen Bejar sich selbst den Neujahrsvorsatz gab, jeden Tag eine Stunde lang Klavier zu spielen. Das hat ungefähr vier Tage gedauert, aber die Songs, die Bejar als Ergebnis dieses Vorsatzes bezeichnet - darunter "Cataract Time", "Hydroplaning Off the Edge of the World", "Bologna" und "Dan's Boogie" - sind allesamt Destroyer-Songs aus dem breiten Spektrum, das Bejar und seine Mitstreiter für sich selbst geschaffen haben: Spektakuläre Pop-Epen, persönliche Piano-Balladen und schwelende Stimmungsbilder, die die Grenzen zwischen Song, Roman und Kino verschwimmen lassen, jedes voll von der Dringlichkeit eines Staatsgeheimnisses im Kopf eines gequälten Spions. Die Leadsingle "Bologna" ist der radikalste Rahmen für diese Energie, denn es ist das erste Mal, dass Bejar einen Song schreibt, in dem er sich selbst als Nebenfigur vorstellt. In der Hauptrolle ist Simone Schmidt von Fiver zu hören, deren Stimme - hart und ausdrucksstark, durchdringend durch die Düsternis der Szene - ein Sirenengesang ist, der das ganze Album durchdringt. Die Schwere ihrer Stimme ordnet "Dan's Boogie" um ein Gefühl des drohenden Untergangs herum, so wie das Versprechen einer Fatale auf das Ungewöhnliche und Ekstatische die Hauptfigur eines erotischen Thrillers zum Verhängnis wird. "Hydroplaning Off the Edge of the World" ist ein köstlicher Widerspruch, ein schwungvoller Song, der aus der Verwüstung entstand, die Bejar absichtlich mit sich selbst anrichtete. "We are now entering a new phase", intoniert Bejar und führt Schichten von Gitarren und Synthesizern ein, die die Palette erheblich verdunkeln, während er zwischen Gesang und Sprache wechselt. Der Nebel, der Bejar umgibt, wird durch die Reibung zwischen konkurrierenden Wahrheiten und Geschmäckern erhellt, etwa wenn sein Interesse an jazzigen Balladen auf das Interesse des Produzenten und Bassisten John Collins an Bands wie Led Zeppelin und Scritti Politti trifft. Als Bejar Collins erzählte, dass er an Sammy Davis Jr. dachte, entstand der Titeltrack, in dem Bejar mit fast wahnhafter Freude einen Rat Pack-Swagger vor einer verträumten Klangkulisse aus schwebenden Gitarren, üppigen Bläsern, Jazz-Drumming, spacigen Synthesizern und - vielleicht am ehesten dem Selbstverständnis Bejars entsprechend - einem klimpernden Lounge-Piano annahm. Das Herzstück von "Dan's Boogie" ist vielleicht "Cataract Time", ein achtminütiges Epos, das zu den schwersten Texten gehört, die Bejar je geschrieben hat, und eine der musikalisch komplexesten Kompositionen von Destroyer ist. Getragen von einem lässigen Groove, sind Bejars Texte verklärt, ihre Melancholie schmeckt fast widersinnig nach Hoffnung. Es ist ein intimer Song, der Destroyers übliches urbanes Fabel-Milieu gegen eine erfrischende Innerlichkeit eintauscht, aber sein beschwingter Groove lässt eine Zukunft erahnen, der Bejar und seine Band entgegenfiebern. Wo frühere Destroyer-Alben mit der Welt kämpften, tanzt "Dan's Boogie" mit ihr, und seine neun Träumereien verschmelzen zu einem einzigen langen Treiben. Dan Bejar mag die Ausgänge im Auge haben, aber er wird nicht so bald abreisen.

For the past couple of years, Sam Akpro has been rising as one of the brightest talents coming from the thriving UK alternative scene. Hailing from Peckham, South London, he incorporates elements of post-punk, wave, dub, jazz and trip-hop, fueled by a fascinating range of influences (from Joy Division to SAULT, through Miles Davis, Talking Heads, Cocteau Twins, Dean Blunt, Fela Kuti, Frank Ocean). Fuzzy, moody and dreamy at times, "Evenfall" paints a refreshing picture of life in the London suburbs in your twenties. It"s the light, the darkness and the slow passing of time in an accomplished, genre-defying art form. With this beautiful debut, Sam Akpro is destined to break through in 2025.

Grimm Grimm's new release, Untitled II (2025), is a distinctive sound collage/mixtape that blends grainy cassette recordings with demo tracks from a 4-channel recorder. The original release, limited to only 30 copies, included a cassette tape, a pillow cover, and a bundle of sleeping pills. Sold exclusively at the London record shop Atlantis Records, it sold out instantly and has become a rare, sought-after collector's item. The album features guest contributions from contemporary artist Naima Karlsson and Colorado-based singer-songwriter Josephine Foster.