quête:van

"The blackest orange turns purple green,
says reddish brown to yellow blue.
My bright sparkling yet unseen
kaleidoscopic worldview."

Daan Mol

"De Oproeping Van Middeleeuwse Duisternis" vereint zwei frühe Veröffentlichungen der Ein-Frau-Black-Metal-Band Hulder. Die ersten fünf Tracks der Scheibe enthalten die "Rehearsal 8/13/18 Tape" Veröffentlichung, die ein Intro und gekürzte Rehearsal-Versionen der frühen Demotracks enthält, die in ihrer spontanen Härte und dem Tempo einer Live-Aufnahme ähneln. Ein Celtic Frost-Cover steht hier sinnbildlich für einen der Haupteinflüsse Hulders.

Bei den Tracks 6-8 handelt es sich um die Original-Demotracks von "Ascending The Raven Stone", der ersten Veröffentlichung von Hulder, die sofort den eisigen, traditionellen Black Metal-Stil ihrer Vorbilder aus der skandinavischen und französischen Szene der 1990er Jahre aufgreift. Ein bereits jetzt schon ausgeprägtes Gespür für Songwriting und Atmosphäre deutet auf eine im positiven Sinne düstere Zukunft des Projektes hin.

Dies sind die ersten Schritte eines Projekts, welches sich schon bald zu einer weiterentwickelten, aber nicht minder faszinierenden Form auf dem Hulder Debütalbum präsentieren sollte.

Albert van Abbe & Jochem Paap join forces for General Audio.

Recorded at Willem Twee studios in Den Bosch, General Audio explores a unique and esoteric approach to sound creation. Using test and measure equipment from the 1950’s, originally designed for the maintenance of various audio and radio transmitters, van Abbe and Paap create otherworldly walls of sound and dense rhythmic abstractions with an early form of synthesis. Rudimentary signals are combined and processed before being committed to tape via mic’s set up to capture the Willem Twee studio’s unique acoustics. The equipment itself predates the invention of the analog, modular synthesizers developed in the 70’s that are now commonplace in many studios.

The record opens with 220Lock-in, a gently undulating drone composition. Effervescent at the top end and fathoms deep at the bottom, it shifts ominously with ring modulated tones that build and then give way to thick washes of white noise. A single synth flourish provides a surprising final moment. The record continues with WZ-1Wobbel Zusatz, a low-sunk percussive piece with an off-kilter rhythm and wet spring reverb doing the bulk of the sonic heavy lifting. Deep in the mix, delicate shifts in pitch and tone deliver a kind of arcane musicality, and as the recording approaches its final moments the piece descends into an exhilarating chaos, with sonic components falling slowly by the wayside. Pegelmesser riffs on a similar reverb characteristic, but this time a driven, arp-like lead propels the work forward. Crisp shifts in colour and distortion arrive unexpectedly, providing a curious musical sensation once more – and harsher moments of feedback break up the recording in its later stages. On Rel 3L 212c LC-pi the pair strip things back, with more present percussive components and subtle distortion lines, before Wandel ups the ante with a corrosive dirge broken up by sporadic submerged synth hits. The penultimate recording SR 250 Boxcar Averager shows off impressive pitch modulation, resulting in a variety of intriguing sensations. Cinematic and remarkably visual, it charts a strange and affecting course, the synth lead underpinned by a repetitive percussive motif and all manner of sends delivering fascinating details. Nim Bin closes the record and once more van Abbe and Paap invite that subtle musicality into the recording. A tight VCO modulation drives the piece while various percussive synth strikes provide a kind of rhythmic component, though they remain untethered to any time signature – a neat conclusion to an intriguing and exploratory record.

Written and Produced by Albert Van Abbe & Jochem Paap

On new record For The Birds, Atlanta-based Neighbor Lady expand the
boundaries of their country-kissed indie rock sound to encompass an
elegant style of lush and textural guitar pop sprinkled with, as songwriter
and vocalist Emily Braden puts it, with "reverb and magic
" Full of gorgeous top- line melodies, spirited rock hooks, and Braden's richly
emotive vocals (and plenty of twang), For The Birds takes a kaleidoscopic
approach to genre. The record features everything from catchy alternative
("Penny Pick It Up") and starry- eyed country ("I'm With You") to straightforward
indie rock ("Scared") and ambient- indebted otherworldly pop ("Haunted").
Neighbor Lady began as Braden's solo project, but is now a four-piece consisting
of Braden, guitarist Jack Blauvelt, bassist Payton Collier, and drummer Andrew
McFarland. The band recorded For The Birds with Jason Kingsland (Kaiser Chiefs,
Band of Horses, Belle & Sebastian) at Diamond Street Studios in Atlanta and it
was mixed by Noah Georgeson (Andy Shauf, Cate Le Bon, Devendra Banhart,
Joanna Newsom.) Though For The Birds is hallmarked by big sonic flourishes
and brave moments of experimentation, the overall feeling is one of intimacy —
four people in a room, making music together; fitting for a group of musicians
who say they feel less like a band and more like a family. "This record came out of
a lot of love and hard work and us caring so much about the music and each
other," says Braden. "And that's pretty much what we're about."

On new record For The Birds, Atlanta-based Neighbor Lady expand the
boundaries of their country-kissed indie rock sound to encompass an
elegant style of lush and textural guitar pop sprinkled with, as songwriter
and vocalist Emily Braden puts it, with "reverb and magic
" Full of gorgeous top- line melodies, spirited rock hooks, and Braden's richly
emotive vocals (and plenty of twang), For The Birds takes a kaleidoscopic
approach to genre. The record features everything from catchy alternative
("Penny Pick It Up") and starry- eyed country ("I'm With You") to straightforward
indie rock ("Scared") and ambient- indebted otherworldly pop ("Haunted").
Neighbor Lady began as Braden's solo project, but is now a four-piece consisting
of Braden, guitarist Jack Blauvelt, bassist Payton Collier, and drummer Andrew
McFarland. The band recorded For The Birds with Jason Kingsland (Kaiser Chiefs,
Band of Horses, Belle & Sebastian) at Diamond Street Studios in Atlanta and it
was mixed by Noah Georgeson (Andy Shauf, Cate Le Bon, Devendra Banhart,
Joanna Newsom.) Though For The Birds is hallmarked by big sonic flourishes
and brave moments of experimentation, the overall feeling is one of intimacy —
four people in a room, making music together; fitting for a group of musicians
who say they feel less like a band and more like a family. "This record came out of
a lot of love and hard work and us caring so much about the music and each
other," says Braden. "And that's pretty much what we're about."

*** REISSUE OF AN UTRA-RARE MODERN-SOUL MONSTER BY (JAMES) VAN BUREN ***

Born in Arrow Rock, Missouri Van Buren started sharing his love of blues and jazz with the public in 1956. Originally a drummer, he spent many years on the road with such legends as T. Bone Walker and Lou Rawls. In the early 1980s Van Buren founded his own JVB record label on which he released a couple of records and later CDs.

These two tracks are definitely the most obscure of his discography. With its positive and uplifting vibes it will certainly put a smile on the face of all our listeners and Tramp fans too.

Side A contains the vocal version of "Bronco Queen" which has already been featured on the 3rd volume of our "Can You Feel It" compilation album. Side B contains the equally great Part 2 which justifies alone this re-release.

LIMITED TO 500 COPIES

Taking direction from both the cinematic song stylings of sardonic yet
unfettered troubadours like Randy Newman, Brian Wilson, and Harry
Nilsson and the "visual scoring" of indie pop song placement in 21stcentury films, Best Move's music suggests the sound of a decade of
winding, disparate avenues finally convening in a perfect center
The Sacramento-based trio is composed of Kris Anaya, Joseph Davancens, and
Fernando Olivia. Anaya, a talented songwriter with a penchant for wry, offbeat
guitar-based folk-pop songs, and Davancens, who holds higher education degrees
in avant- garde composition and jazz double bass, formed the electronic act
Doombird together in 2016, but in 2019 the pair gravitated back to what they
consider more natural inclinations: organic instruments, earnest songwriting, and
a more true-to-themselves direction. Adding Oliva, Best Move was born. Many of
Best Move's songs maintain an intentionally similar sonic feel. Guitars strum and
piano twinkles while a layer of manipulated or synthesized instruments spread a
hazy overtone on top of it all, and steady yet minimal drums keep things moving.
Lyrically, the standards prevail - love, loss, friendship, searching for purpose - but
the themes bubble under the surface of a sea of metaphor, leaving the listener to
decipher the message in their own way. Anaya calls the sound a "thank you to the
past," and while a warm, familiar tone echoes throughout the band's universe,
something unmistakably modern remains.

Highly acclaimed guitarist Philipp van Endert played and produced on
"Moon Balloon" the largest and most complex music project that he has been able to record with in his music career so far

Combined with the renowned Filmorchester Babelsberg he recorded an outstanding and unique album featuring his original tunes that combine Jazz, Classic and Film music. Philipps compositions were arranged by Peter Hinderthür and the live performance at Filmstudios Babelsberg was conducted by Jörg Achim Keller (BBC Concert Orchestra, Metropole Orkest, HR BigBand, WDR BigBand a.o.)

Neuauflage des dritten und bislang reifsten Studioalbum der Band VAN HOLZEN auf schwarzem 180g Vinyl! Darauf setzt sich das Dreiergespann mit einem reflektierten und kritischen Blick „Aus der Ferne“ ihrer Heimatstadt Ulm mit den Geschehnissen und Verhältnissen der Welt und Gesellschaft auseinander. Zusammen mit kidney paradise im eigenen Studio VALACHAI produziert und aufgenommen sind insgesamt 12 Tracks entstanden, die das ganze Facettenreichtum der Band zeigen und doch ein waschechtes Rock-Album geworden ist.

You might know Bert Dockx from the inimitable alternative jazz-rock-trio Dans Dans; or from his moody, psychedelic rock formation Flying Horseman; or from his more intimate but equally special solo records. In 2019, the ever productive guitarist released an album with Ottla, a jazzy sextet blending different genres, textures and moods in wholly original ways, resulting in long, evocative pieces, brooding with tension and atmosphere. Recently, the band has transformed into a quartet, a tighter unit with a sparser and slightly more electric sound. This new Ottla is playing a mixture of reimagined tracks from the aforementioned album, and several brand new pieces. Ottla's music - like all music for which Dockx is responsible - is imaginative, intense and deeply felt.

In the spring of 2021, actor and writer Josse De Pauw contacted Bert with a question. He wanted to perform work of the Uruguayan writer Eduardo Galeano on stage, texts about the madness of colonialism and slavery, and about the beauty and mystery of the jungle, and asked Dockx to come up with a live soundtrack. Dockx invited two friends from his jazz band Ottla (Thomas Jillings and Louis Evrard) and a fourth musician (bass player Axel Gilain). He composed new material, adapted some existing Ottla pieces and could count on the improvisational talent of his fellow musicians for the rest of the soundtrack. In a handful of rehearsals, an impressive concert was put together that captivated the audience during a short run in August. This live EP contains two pieces recorded on one of these blistering evenings. Side A opens with the authoritarian voice of De Pauw, who recites the Song of the Fire, before making way for a scorching, almost apocalyptic version of 'Stofwolk'. On side B we hear Thomas Jillings perform an impressionist clarinet improvisation while De Pauw conjures up images of the unlimited sea and the winds, ships and slaves, heaven and hell.

After a 20 year wait, Detroit rock band The High Strung finally share their long lost album 'HannaH' on vinyl! Originally recorded in 2002, the album is finally seeing the light via Park The Van

In case you're not familiar with the group, they're fronted by Josh Malerman, author of New York Times best seller 'Bird Box'. The band is renowned for their rigorous touring, having played 250 shows a year for 7 years, touring with the likes of Guided By Voices, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Son Volt, etc."These guys make instantly memorable music." - Pitchfork "Upbeat melodies, ever- shifting tempos, catchy choruses, and standout bass lines." - NPR
"Forget all that you know about the other hardest working bands in show business." - Paste

Night Palace is a shocking alchemy: achingly intense nostalgia meets
frothy anticipation of what's beyond the garden wall - It's hard to believe Night Palace's first album Diving Rings is not a soundtrack to a different world - You find yourself picturing it: a moonlit-gilded diorama of frontwoman Avery Draut's dreams and memories

The album was recorded by engineer-producer Drew Vandenberg (Faye Webster, of Montreal), with additional engineering from Andy LeMaster (Better Oblivion Community Center, Azure Ray). The result is a unique brand of atmospheric pop, evoking artists like Broadcast, Alvvays, Vashti Bunyan & Mort Garson.

Nile Marr is the son of former Smiths guitarist and current solo artist
Johnny Marr and his wife Angela
He was named for one of his father's musical heroes, Chic's Nile Rodgers. Marr
started out as a solo artist, then as a duo with American singer- songwriter
Meredith Sheldon, and then in the trio Man Made, alongside drummer Scott
Griffiths and bassist Callum Rogers, with future tour manager for Blossoms, Dan
Woolfie, as their sound engineer. They released their debut album TV Broke My
Brain in 2016, although its constituent songs were written over a period of eight
years. Marr released a debut solo album in 2020, titled Are You Happy Now? 'Part
Time Girl' was released as its first single in 2019. 'Are You Happy Now?' followed
in June 2020. An EP, Still Hearts, was released on 24 April, 2020. 'Still Hearts' was
its first single. Aside from the title track, there are two other tracks: 'Hush' and
'The Pusher'. Marr added acoustic guitar and backing vocals on 7 Worlds Collide's
2009 album The Sun Came Out. He has also appeared on two of his father's
albums: on 2013"s The Messenger he plays as a soloist, while on 2014"s Playland
he adds backing vocals. Marr has toured extensively with German film score
composer and record producer Hans Zimmer. His influences include John
Martyn, Fugazi and Elliott Smith.

"Span Of Aeons" bietet ultrabrutalen Old School Death Metal mit anonymen, aber nicht unbekannten Mitgliedern der Österreichisch/Deutschen Black Metal Szene! Mit Martin Schirenc (PUNGENT STENCH) als Gast

Melodisch, aber aggressiver Vampirischer Black Metal mit den Gästen Zingultus (ENDSTILLE u.a.) und Vlad (THE CRIMSON GHOST)

"The stakes are high; if I mess up the last bar, the whole recording is ruined." As Dutch pianist Nicolas van Poucke acknowledges, there is an electricity in the room whenever the lathe is on. Direct-to-disc recording generates tension and release unlike other methods, not least in the final moments of a 20-minute solo piano recital. Described as "the young freethinker" of his generation, van Poucke relished the challenge. Having spent day one setting up to record works by Frédéric Chopin, van Poucke changed tack on day two to perform two Beethoven piano sonatas - Sonata No. 12 Opus 26 in A flat major, and Sonata No. 23 Opus 57 in f minor, also known as the "Appassionata".



For fans of great jazz soloists like Keith Jarrett and Bill Evans asmuch as for classical aficionados, van Poucke’s recordings make thebest of the process in capturing a sense of timelessness in the music.

Embrace is the sixth studio album by Dutch trance DJ and producer Armin van Buuren. The album features hits like “Another You (ft. Mr. Probz)”, “Off The Hook (ft. Hardwell)”, “Looking For Your Name (ft. Gavin DeGraw)” & “Heading Up High (ft. Kensington)”. Other notable collaborators include Angel Taylor, Cosmic Gate, Eric Vloeimans and many others. The album was originally released in 2015 through Van Buuren’s own label Armada Music. Critics noted how the record has a poppy, commercial appeal, but still allows the emotional essence of trance music to shine through.

Embrace is released as a limited edition of 2500 individually numbered copies on black & white marbled vinyl. It comes with a
4-page insert with pictures, lyrics and credits, and the run-out groove contains secret inscriptions.

6 seiter Digipack mit eingeklebtem Booklet und im Schuber mit Die-cut. Handnummeriert und limitiert auf 999 Stück.

Das zweite Kapitel der (DOLCH) Trilogie "Feuer", "Nacht" & "Tod" - jetz bei VAN Records!

WOUND bieten eindringlichen Death Metal aus Deutschland! 2CD Digipak im Schuber mit handnummerierte Auflage von 500 Stück

Das dritte Album der Belgischen Doom/Black Metaller HEMELBESTORMER beschwört auf "Collide & Merge" die unumgängliche, erdrückende Schwere von Myriaden schwarzer Löcher!

Mit Download code für Bandcamp sowie 2-seitigem Din A2 Poster

Midlake are a relatively small indie band, so the
level of ambition they display on ‘The Trials of Van
Occupanther’ is to be commended. From the
opening track, ‘Roscoe’, with its laconic lyrics and
slowly building chorus, they manage to recreate
perfectly the sound of 1980s Fleetwood Mac, a band
not known for thinking small.
 And though the rest of the album doesn’t quite reach
the heady heights of this opener, it’s not for a lack of
trying (particularly on ‘Head Home’). The remainder
of ‘The Trials of Van Occupanther’ is considerably
more downbeat, with distant flutes complementing
the vocal harmonies of songs like ‘Bandits’ and
‘Branches’.
 Where Midlake particularly excel, though, is when,
like Grandaddy before them, they draw their
inspiration from the classic rock that they seem to
love so much, adapting and modernising it. So in
addition to the anthemic ‘Roscoe’, they evoke the
Gram Parsons-era Byrds or even The Band on ‘Van
Occupanther’ and the road-ready ‘It Covers the
Hillsides’.
 ‘The Trials of Van Occupanther’ is an album that's
steeped in musical history yet possessing an identity
all its own.
 Released on 180g gold vinyl to celebrate a new
Midlake album for 2022 and also the 15th
anniversary of ‘The Trials of Van Occupanther’ last
year.
 Digital download code included.

Originally released in 2010, Mirage is the fourth studio album by renowned Dutch trance DJ and producer Armin van Buuren. The album was preceded by the single “Full Focus”, which peaked at #24 on the Dutch Single Charts. Mirage features many great collaborations with furthermore Sophie Ellis-Bextor on “Not Giving Up On Love”, Christian Burns on “This Light Between Us”, Nadia Ali on “Feels So Good”, BT on “These Silent Hearts”, Adam Young (Owl City) on “Youtopia”, and Ferry Corsten on “Minack”.

The album Mirage debuted at #3 on the Dutch Album Top 100, as well as reaching the top 5 of the US Top Dance/Electronic Albums and debuting at #148 on the Billboard 200. The album was certified gold in several countries.

Violent Records new Sub-label. Long life!

Mondo, and Jagjaguwar are proud to present a limited edition vinyl pressing of Sharon Van Etten's incredible song 'Let Go,' recorded for the 2020 documentary Feels Good Man, chronicling the emotional journey of comic artist Matt Furie and the discovery that his lovable creation Pepe The Frog had become symbol of the alt-right. A super powerful film about reclamation, artistic expression, and above all else Letting Go.

Featuring the aforementioned original song 'Let Go,' as well as a cover of 'Some Things Last A Long Time' by Texas legend Daniel Johnston as B-Side.

“After watching the documentary, I just followed the feeling of coming to terms with something and tried to evoke peace through my melody and words," says Sharon. "The song and film’s producer, Giorgio Angelini was a great collaborator and communicator and I was given a lot of freedom. That says a lot about the film and the people who made it."

Music by Sharon Van Etten

A 150/160 BPM mental prog' acid tribe/tekno. Tripy at the trance frontier... or at least very musical : for instance the ambiance of "Biolumiescence" definitely fits perfectly with the Jellyfish design.... And the flip keeps on offering the same dark sweetness pleasure.
Spacial !

PS : fits perfectly with CC ATOM 04 Pain-Beurre tune and the Acid Night 07 Sevenum Six A side ... The Truth :)

Alex Van Pelt writes songs for ghosts and broken hearts.

French multi-instrumentalist Alex started making music fifteen years ago when he was still a teenager, in bands such as Coming Soon, Mont Analogue, or as a guitarist for Sierra Manhattan, Norma, François Virot and Adam Green. But today he grows up and shows what he’s made of as a solo artist.

After his debut album Tum Tum (2019), in which he stated the basis of a rich and sensitive musical vocabulary made of DIY synth and post-romantic songs, he cultivates and confirms his originality with his new opus, Global Crush (out in November 2021). Words reverberates with sounds, and structures assumes ever shifting shapes : passed Global Crush’s melodic immediacy, one soon perceives a will to disrupt the conventional ground rules of pop music.

Like in a Kitano or Wong Kar Wai movie scene, Alex’s songs mix melancholy and humor. He has put together the intimate patchwork of Global Crush in a landscape painter fashion, and the result somehow works as a map to the artist's interests and influences (to name a few : the Everly Brothers’ breakup songs, Supertramp’s melodies, Daniel Clowes comics and video games ost such as Final Fantasy and the Sims).

Part of the Optic Sevens 3.0 Reissue Series.
“Take the Skinheads Bowling” The signature song of Camper Van Beethoven. Taken from their 1985 album Telephone Free Landslide Victory.
Their classic debut single became an indie top 10 hit and featured in John Peel's festive 50. On it’s release it picked up substantial airplay and is still played frequently on radio shows across the globe.
Later covered by Teenage Fanclub & Manic Street Preachers and featured in the Michael Moore film ‘Bowling For Columbine’

South African born, London based producer Kai van Dongen follows up two killer releases on 1Ø PILLS MATE and Ei8ht Records with a massive four tracker on CYBERDOME spanning lo-fi electro, gabber-influenced techno and Detroit acid.

‘Command’ gets started with the typical Cyber-aesthetic; a bruising, otherworldly electro cut that sounds like it was sampled from an intergalactic star-ship battle on a galaxy not so distant. Spooky, raw and uncompromising - classic horror synth lines creating a haunting atmosphere before its pulsating rhythm brings the listener back down to earth. ‘Losing Power’ again makes use of Kai’s knack for crafting emotionally captivating synth patterns, but this time under a lo-fi identity with hefty influence from the synthwave golden era; neon shapes and patterns blooming in the night as we continue our journey into darkness.

What sounds like an angry swarm of bees approaches on ‘Body Moving’ - a track title fit for purpose. Face-melting, brain-spinning techno creates a dark, psychedelic environment where sweat drips from the ceiling and faces react with a blend of euphoria and disgust, before we head to the Motor City on ‘Breathe’ - a cut of acid techno-electro that borrows from the icons of the past for a typically punchy and raw experience.

76 is the debut studio album by Dutch trance DJ Armin van Buuren. Named after the DJ’s year of birth, the album was released shortly after he also celebrated the 100th episode of his radio show A State of Trance. Van Buuren was voted the No. 3 DJ in the world by DJ Mag that same year; a chart that he would eventually top five times. 76 contains collaborations with the likes of Scottish singer Ray Wilson, Dutch pop band Krezip, fellow trance DJ Ferry Corsten and others. Two singles were released: “Yet Another Day” and “Burned With Desire”.

This 2-LP package comes in a gatefold with a spot varnish. It contains an insert and features secret inscriptions in the run-out groove. It is released as a limited edition of 2500 individually numbered copies on transparent blue vinyl.

"Best Western" ist Rudi Maiers aka Burkini Beach Nachfolger zum umjubelten 2017er-Album "Supersadness Intl.". Produziert ist das Album von Simon Frontzek aka Sir Simon, mit dem Rudi Maier in den letzten Jahren ein Produzenten-Duo bildete und am gleichen Tag sein Album "Repeat Until Funny" veröffentlichen wird. So ergibt das die völlig unerwartete und umso mehr willkommen geheißene Wiederkehr gitarrenbasierter Songs, die mit vielen befreundeten Musiker*innen wie Thees Uhlmann, Marlene Weber (Little Big Sea) Sven Regener, uvm. im gemeinsamen Kreuzberger Hinterhofstudio entstanden sind. Es klingt wie Bright Eyes mit einem zünftigen Schalk im Nacken oder Arcade Fire in ihrer Discophase, nur ohne das lästige Sendungsbewusstsein.

"Repeat Until Funny" stellt Simon Frontzeks Rückkehr als Sir Simon nach zehn Fanherzen strapazierenden Jahren dar. Produziert ist das Album von Rudi Maier aka Burkini Beach, mit dem Simon Frontzek in den letzten Jahren ein Produzenten-Duo bildete und am gleichen Tag sein Album "Best Western" veröffentlichen wird. So ergibt das die völlig unerwartete und umso mehr willkommen geheißene Wiederkehr gitarrenbasierter Songs, die mit vielen befreundeten Musiker*innen wie Maria Taylor, Sven Regener, uvm. im gemeinsamen Kreuzberger Hinterhofstudio entstanden sind. Es klingt wie Bright Eyes mit einem zünftigen Schalk im Nacken oder Arcade Fire in ihrer Discophase, nur ohne das lästige Sendungsbewusstsein.