Forced Exposure New Releases for the Week of 3/18/2024

 

PRICE: $25.00

CAT #: ACRSLP 1639LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

"Johnny Burnette had two distinct phases in his career. Many will remember his Liberty years, the teen idol performing polished pop such as 'Dreamin',' 'You're Sixteen,' and 'Little Boy Sad.' Before this transformation though, he was Rockabilly through and through. With his visceral vocals and the driving rhythms of his brother Dorsey and his Rock 'n' Roll Trio, Johnny Burnette laid down some of the finest rockabilly tracks of all time. This collection concentrates on that era. It is not about conquering charts or sales successes, but highlights the pure power, energy and spirit of the music that helped form rock 'n' roll. We feature the best of Burnette's recorded singles up to his commercial breakthrough in 1960 including the immortal 'Tear It Up,' the distorted chugging's of 'The Train Kept A-Rollin',' and 'Honey Hush,' through to the distinctly mad 'Gumbo.'"

 

PRICE: $25.00

CAT #: ACRSLP 1640LP

FILE UNDER: JAZZ

"Despite having such a short recording career, the original guitar hero Charlie Christian single-handedly revolutionized the electric guitar. With having no direct influence on his guitar playing, he used the horn and reed lines he heard from the likes of Lester Young as inspiration to develop his unique single line phrasing -- and so was born the guitar solo. Christian tragically died at 25 of tuberculosis, just as he was jamming with cool cats Thelonious Monk and Charlie Parker on the East coast, developing the future sound of be-bop. Our collection features some of the best material he recorded with the legendary Benny Goodman small bands. Playing alongside such luminaries of the jazz world as Goodman himself, Count Basie, Fletcher Henderson, 'Papa' Jo Jones, Lester Young and Lionel Hampton, Christian shone above them all with his utterly unique and pioneering playing."

 

PRICE: $33.00

CAT #: AU 1016LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

2024 restock. "Remastered double LP with 12 page booklet including liner notes by Tim Lawrence, Ernie Brooks and Arthur Russell. All material previously released on the Audika CD compilation First Thought Best Thought (2006). Before disco, and before the transcendent echoes, Arthur wanted to be a composer. His journey began in 1972, leaving home in Oskaloosa, Iowa. Heading west to Northern California, Arthur studied Indian classical composition at the Ali Akbar Khan College of Music followed by western orchestral music at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, before ending two years later in New York at the Manhattan School of Music. Traversing the popular and the serious, Arthur composed Instrumentals in 1974, inspired by the photography of his Buddhist teacher, Yuko Nonomura, as Arthur described, 'I was awakened, or re-awakened to the bright-sound and magical qualities of the bubblegum and easy-listening currents in American popular music.' Initially intended to be performed in one 48 hour cycle, Instrumentals was in fact only performed in excerpts a handful of times as a work in progress. The legendary performances captured live in New York at The Kitchen (1975 and 1978) and Franklin St. Arts Center (1977) feature the cream of that eras downtown new music scene including Ernie Brooks, Rhys Chatham, Julius Eastman, Jon Gibson, Peter Gordon, Garrett List, Andy Paley, Bill Ruyle, Dave Van Tieghem, and Peter Zummo. Pitchfork lauded Instrumentals Vol. 1 as a masterpiece and one of Arthur's 'greatest achievements'. Americana touching on Copeland, Ives, and maybe even Brian Wilson. Instrumentals Vol. 2 is a moving, deeply pastoral work performed by the CETA Orchestra and conducted by Julius Eastman. Also included are two of Arthur's most elusive compositions, 'Reach One', and 'Sketch For Face Of Helen'. Recorded live in 1975 at Phill Niblock's Experimental Intermedia Foundation, 'Reach One' is a minimal, hypnotic ambient soundscape written and performed for two Fender Rhodes pianos. 'Sketch For Face Of Helen' was inspired by Arthur's work with friend and composer Arnold Dreyblatt, recorded with an electronic tone generator, keyboard and ambient recordings of a rumbling tugboat from the Hudson River. For this remastered vinyl edition, a key part of Arthur's musical life has been restored. The sparkling, multidimensional results take the listener closer to Arthur's coast-to-coast journey: his iconoclastic determination to combine pop and art music; and his desire to make music that would resonate in the present and, ultimately, across time."

 

PRICE: $42.00

CAT #: BEWITH 166LP

FILE UNDER: HIPHOP

Bahamadia's 1996 debut album Kollage is rightly regarded as one of the greatest rap albums of the 1990s. For the first time ever, Be With presents the definitive double LP version of this eternal hip-hop classic, including the legendary "Path To Rhythm" which never appeared on the original LP or on vinyl, anywhere. An indelible vibe from start-to-finish, Kollage presents Bahamadia's swirling rhymes delivered with an irresistibly butter flow and razor-sharp assuredness over a steady slew of smoothed-out, jazzed-up, blunted beats. Achingly cool and effortlessly funky throughout, it's an absolute must for true '90s hip-hop fanatics. The entire Kollage project was recorded at D&D Studios and the ties to Gang Starr are keenly felt, with DJ Premier producing five tracks in addition to the killer songs Guru had already produced with her. Working with the cream of the mid-'90s East Coast sound, Kollage is, accordingly, a record that demonstrates a varied musical taste with disparate influences. With intelligent, poetic lyricism and a laconic verbal style bursting with both warm texture and deceptive energy, Bahamadia's flow was as inspired by Aretha and Nancy Wilson as it was Q-Tip, Schoolly D and Lady B. Incredibly, only the European and Japanese CD versions of Kollage were released with the brilliantly breezy "Path To Rhythm," featuring Ursula Rucker. Whilst ostensibly a "bonus track," it's anything but. Very much in sonic conversation with KRS-One's stretched-out sleeper classic "Higher Level," it's absolutely essential. Somewhat predictably, whilst Kollage was released to significant critical acclaim, it suffered from disappointing sales. In the intervening years -- and for far too long -- it was a criminally underrated record, an increasingly hidden gem. This Be With double LP reissue has been mastered for vinyl by Simon Francis, cut by Cicely Balston, and pressed at Record Industry. It's too bold and beautiful to remain overlooked and underserved.

 

PRICE: $29.00

CAT #: ST 84221LP

FILE UNDER: JAZZ

Released in 2022. "Blue Note Records has announced the continuation of the Classic Vinyl Reissue Series which presents 180g vinyl LP reissues in standard packaging mastered by Kevin Gray and manufactured at Optimal. The pressings are all-analog whenever an analog source is available, with Gray mastering directly from the original master tapes. While the first 16 titles of the series focused on the best-known Blue Note classics from the 1950s and '60s, the new run of titles curated by Don Was and Cem Kurosman broadens its scope to span the many eras and styles of the legendary label's eight-decade history presented by themes: bebop, hard bop, soul jazz, post-bop, avant-garde, the '70s, the rebirth, and hidden gems. Until the emergence of Larry Young, Blue Note's Hammond B3 organ tradition was firmly rooted in soul jazz, having been established by B3 trailblazer Jimmy Smith and soulful players the likes of Big John Patton and Baby Face Willette. However, Young brought an entirely new perspective to the instrument by placing it in a more adventurous post-bop context, an innovative approach that recontextualized its possibilities. Young had introduced these inclinations on his excellent 1964 Blue Note debut Into Somethin', but with his 1965 album Unity he created a singular masterpiece with a cast of modernist jazz visionaries: trumpeter Woody Shaw, tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson, and drummer Elvin Jones. The apt album title expressed the undeniable synergy this unique quartet achieved. The program consisted of three distinctive originals by Shaw ('Zoltan,' 'The Moontrane,' and 'Beyond All Limits'), Henderson's bluesy, hard-swinging 'If,' and memorable versions of 'Monk's Dream' by Thelonious Monk and the standard 'Softly As In A Morning Sunrise.'"

 

PRICE: $26.50

CAT #: BORNBAD 039LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

2024 restock; Double LP version. Cameroonian musician Francis Bebey is truly one of a kind. He entered the music scene with his African compositions for classical guitar. He gave recitals while pursuing a career in journalism and then as an international civil servant. The same creative impulse also led him to write pop songs, some of which (based on novels he had written) became big hits in Africa and in the French-speaking world. But few people know that in the '70s, Francis Bebey delved into electronic music. The first electronic keyboards, organs and drum machines offered him new possibilities of totally controlling his compositions. He embraced the technique of "sound on sound" recording (recording several tracks, sequentially juxtaposed on the same tape). This new stage in his musical career included the production of several records (Savannah Georgia, New Track, Haiti), rarities both for their creative explorations as well as their manifestations on vinyl. This was a particularly rich period for him, as he tested the limitless possibilities of the medium, and made use of surprising and novel instruments. Incredible sounds -- in the literal sense of the word -- would soon appear on the planet Bebey. Full-color printed innersleeves with notes in English and French.

 

PRICE: $26.50

CAT #: BORNBAD 064LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

2024 restock. Double LP version with printed inner sleeve. Born Bad Records presents the music of Cameroonian musician Francis Bebey, circa 1982-1984. "The first time I saw a sanza (a type of African 'thumb piano'), it was just sitting there on a piece of furniture in my family's living room/dining room -- a space that our father also transformed into a recording studio every day. It seemed more like a box than a musical instrument: a mysterious instrument, which arrived at our house, like many things, in a somewhat miraculous way. The sounds it produced seemed particularly bizarre; to my young musician's ears, trained in Western classical music, it sounded out of tune. That's because, like my brothers and sisters, I had been trained on the piano. I had trouble understanding how anyone could endure these tones and, honestly, our father's passion for 'unusual sounds' did not interest me. I was in secondary school at the time (the very late 1970s) and was not at all oriented toward musical projects. I planned to graduate, and then become a chef. In the early 1980s, my interest in music picked up. I was still undecided about my career. I was content to pursue my 'serious' English studies while hanging out at jazz clubs at les Halles in Paris, where I sometimes joined jam sessions. Next, I put together my first band with professional musicians; I had hidden my age and lack of experience from them. France was just beginning to accept 'world music.' Musicians of every nationality were performing in Paris. It was a wonderful period. My father asked my brother Toups and me to accompany him for a few concerts. In particular, we toured Tunisia together at the time of the 1983 Carthage International Festival. Back then, my father was renowned across the French-speaking world. Everyone looked forward to hearing his humorous songs, like 'Agatha' and 'La condition masculine.' But, behind the scenes, he continued his research concerning electronic music, the sansa, pygmy polyphony, etc. One day he put a sansa in my hands, without saying a word. He was sending me a message: 'Let's see what you can do with it!' That's when I really discovered something. Exploring the instrument and playing, I transcended the 'imperfect' aspect of its sound and began to discover its fascinating potential. Playing the sansa, you enter a world that enraptures you in a very serene and mesmerizing way. I think its sounds evoke a rainbow, with rain falling while the sun shines. A very peaceful feeling. It allows you to make music that truly sounds like life. The sansa is also the instrument that my father and I shared the most because I am a pianist and he was a guitarist. I also share this eminently African instrument with my musician brother, Toups. Our father loved to tell us one of the legends of the sansa: how it even managed to dispel the boredom felt by... the Creator himself! This instrument gives life to the world, to beings and things. I did not participate in the production of the various records that my father devoted to the sansa. He did it himself, you might say, in his 'laboratory.' Yet today, I cannot imagine playing a concert without using a sansa. The piano remains present so that listeners don't become disoriented and wonder about the weird sounds invading their ears! However, I find the eccentric and disturbing side of sansa interesting. And the sansa always affects the audience: in reality, it excites them. The secrets of this instrument are surely its beneficial powers and... its magic!" --Patrick Bebey

 

PRICE: $26.00

CAT #: BB 097LP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

2024 repress. LP version. Pyrolator's Inland (originally released in 1979) provides musical commentary on the late '70s in West Germany, with its undercurrent of paranoia and violence. Inland is one of the most radical, modern and unconciliatory albums of its, or any other, time. The cover for Inland illustrates this atmosphere: tones of grey and brown instead of '70s bliss. The political situation in West Germany is at its most volatile. The war between the Rote Armee Fraktion (RAF) and the State escalated two years before. The spirit of departure which characterized the early years of government by Willy Brandt and the socialist-liberal coalition, dissolved in the so-called "years of lead." Taking part in a demonstration against occupational bans could lead to the very same, and the chances of falling into a terrorist manhunt or staring a gun in the face were not so slim, particularly for young people. Pyrolator's aim was to make a protest album, one detached from all convention. A total absence of common musical structure and an unfiltered rush of sound recordings create a nightmarish, claustrophobic atmosphere. Pyrolator used a Korg MS20, SQ10 sequencer, B20R home organ, a Davolisint synthesizer, a Logan string orchestra and a dual-channel tape machine. Inland is both a rejection of the new form of protest song, the throaty, despairing scream of punk rock, and a rejection of the traditional form of protest song as nurtured far into the 1980s by the bards of the green, alternative milieu. Furthermore, there is another side to Inland: a desire for something new, a passion for experimentation, seeking to extend one's own horizon and that of others. This desire runs through all of Pyrolator's work, from his Inland debut to his 2011 release Neuland (BB 084CD). Thus Inland remains, in spite of its protests and rejections, a positive album. For inherent in every "no" is a "yes" to something else. Maybe something better.

 

PRICE: $26.00

CAT #: BB 253LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

2024 repress; LP version. Inspired by punk and post punk, vibrant scenes dedicated to independent self-actualization by means of self-distributed cassettes - the cheapest and fastest medium - were developing on each side of the Cold War's confrontational line. Albeit, under quite different circumstances. While there was a DIY euphoria in the West, which would also have had ideological motives, subcultures in the East simply had no other means. Even the first act of replication meant moving into illegal territory, since every duplication had to be authorized by State authorities, just like anything else. The protagonists - musicians, painters, poets, filmmakers, performers - crossed genres and jumped back-and-forth between various styles. Disillusioned, and often ready to jump towards the West, these border crossers defined themselves rather somewhere between non- and anti-political, pursuing self-actualization strategies by means of an extended niche existence. They took refuge in the search for ways of creative self-assertion and communication, looking out in sensual despair, utilizing sounds of rage, linguistic wit and a passion for tinkering. Driven by ubiquitous boredom, equipped with plenty of time and free of economic restraints (or rather possibilities), labor was performed with no regard to the final product, hardly documented and almost never published. With the partial opening of State-controlled media and cultural sites accompanying the beginning agony of the State, conditions changed. Suddenly there was radio airplay of supposedly illegal cassettes and weird noise performed at Palast Der Republik. In the end, full albums by these "other bands" were released on the State-owned label AMIGA. The collapse following soon after relieved the activists remaining in the country who continually had to re-position themselves. Many took different roads, some leading to Rammstein, others to Raster-Noton or groups like To Rococo Rot and Tarwater. The artifacts from that era tell of a stance of refusal in practice. Between being excluded and self-exclusion, truly wayward sounds and means of expression were developed. Bert Papenfu?, Ronald Lippok, Bernd Jestram and Bo Kondren compiled two companion CDs accompanying the long sold-out Zonic special edition Spannung. Leistung. Widerstand. Magnetbanduntergrund DDR 1979-1990, released in 2006, of which the more experimental-electronic pieces are herewith available on the music market for the first time. Features: A. F. Moebius, Kriminelle Tanzkapelle, Heinz & Franz, Magdalene Keibel Combo, Choo Choo Flame, Stoffwechsel, Corp Cruid, Taymur Streng/Ornament & Verbrechen, Der Demokratische Konsum, Gesichter, Ihr Arschl?cher, Aponeuron, and Robert Linke.

 

PRICE: $16.50

CAT #: BB 440CD

FILE UNDER: ROCK

"Martin Rev's eponymous debut solo record was released in 1980, not long after the second Suicide LP appeared. It is one of the most seminal albums to have emerged in the early years of electronic music... The tension between his hypnotic drum machine salvoes and Alan Vega's irrepressibly expressive voice on stage or in the studio created an electrifying mix, and yet these six supremely minimal compositions were no less impactful without Vega's voice. There is an enchanting simplicity to the beautiful bubblegum melodies of the opening pieces 'Mari' and 'Baby Oh Baby' (the only track with a Rev vocal, everything else is instrumental). Like a clandestine heart, embedded in dissonant textures and infinite rhythm loops, echoing the doo-wop and rock and roll songs at the tempestuous epicenter of New York, the place which had such a profound influence on the youthful Martin Rev, there is also an incongruousness to Rev's own music, etched into the DNA he shares with the city... Above all, there's a sense that Suicide's records and the solo works of Martin Rev could not be any more different to those of their European contemporaries such as Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream or Jean-Michel Jarre. If this is music as dystopian psychedelia, it glows nevertheless with substantial warmth. Sounds grab you instantaneously and, by virtue of endless repetition, never let you go. Rev's 1980 debut thus offers us something of great value: an insight into the beginnings of an impressive solo career which would play such an important role in the development of successive generations of artists. It is as enthralling today as it was when it first appeared." --Daniel Jahn, July 2023

 

PRICE: $26.00

CAT #: BB 440LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

LP version. "Martin Rev's eponymous debut solo record was released in 1980, not long after the second Suicide LP appeared. It is one of the most seminal albums to have emerged in the early years of electronic music?. The tension between his hypnotic drum machine salvoes and Alan Vega's irrepressibly expressive voice on stage or in the studio created an electrifying mix, and yet these six supremely minimal compositions were no less impactful without Vega's voice. There is an enchanting simplicity to the beautiful bubblegum melodies of the opening pieces 'Mari' and 'Baby Oh Baby' (the only track with a Rev vocal, everything else is instrumental). Like a clandestine heart, embedded in dissonant textures and infinite rhythm loops, echoing the doo-wop and rock and roll songs at the tempestuous epicenter of New York, the place which had such a profound influence on the youthful Martin Rev, there is also an incongruousness to Rev's own music, etched into the DNA he shares with the city?. Above all, there's a sense that Suicide's records and the solo works of Martin Rev could not be any more different to those of their European contemporaries such as Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream or Jean-Michel Jarre. If this is music as dystopian psychedelia, it glows nevertheless with substantial warmth. Sounds grab you instantaneously and, by virtue of endless repetition, never let you go. Rev's 1980 debut thus offers us something of great value: an insight into the beginnings of an impressive solo career which would play such an important role in the development of successive generations of artists. It is as enthralling today as it was when it first appeared." --Daniel Jahn, July 2023

 

PRICE: $24.00

CAT #: BSR 839LP

FILE UNDER: WORLD

"180-gram red vinyl. Includes insert with extensive sleeve notes. Dillinger's sparring partner on this album is Trinity aka Wade Brammer, who was active during the 1970s and 1980s. Trinity as Dillinger, is best known for deejaying over reggae and dancehall tracks. 'Clash' albums became very popular at the tail end of the 1970s and into the 1980s with both singers and deejays competing against each other track by track."

 

PRICE: $25.00

CAT #: CELL 012LP

FILE UNDER: EXPERIMENTAL

New recordings by Mouchoir ?tanche (Marc Richter) aka Black To Comm. Edition of 300 copies. Le jazz homme is the second album of Black To Comm related entity Mouchoir ?tanche. This time heavily influenced by French jazz as well as the usual suspects: Nurse With Wound, Luc Ferrari, JG Ballard, Surrealism. The human entity has finally been replaced. "Program music, instrumental music that carries some extramusical meaning, some 'program' of literary idea, legend, scenic description, or personal drama. It is contrasted with so-called absolute, or abstract, music, in which artistic interest is supposedly confined to abstract constructions in sound. It has been stated that the concept of program music does not represent a genre in itself but rather is present in varying degrees in different works of music." (Encyclopedia Britannica). Prompt 1: Pascal Comelade's toy piano falling down the stairs , Hector Zazou pushing from behind, laughing. Prompt 2: Cool jazz played on antique mellotron, low in fidelity, and sad, Glenn Miller's grandma crying silently. Prompt 3: A hippie commune version of jazz as played by a cheap computer fed by Chat GPT with medieval cuisine fanfare information and samples, trained on the entire Amon D??l II history, heavily looped yet unsynchronized. Prompt: 4: Same, but flutes and synths and trance and chants. Prompt 5: French female artist philosophizes about Shirley Temple, mysterious atmosphere, insensitive homme laughing nervously, heavily looped, hypnotic 18th century morgue de salon underneath. Prompt 6: Cool jazz, Echoplex, strange rhythm, Blue Note daydreaming. Prompt 7: Hammond jazz with fake Cyro Baptista loop, Madagascar indri indri lemurs chanting fake sax solos in Malagasy language, electronic bells. Prompt 8: German jazz and artificial prayers, and Shirley Temple returning, with defect Publison recorded at GRM, destroying the voice recording. Prompt 9: Andrei Tarkovsky's moustache meets Johann Sebastian Bach's wig, a well gently lapping in the background, fifths, car crashing into a poor violent onsen geisha. Marc Richter records as Black To Comm and under the Mouchoir ?tanche and Jemh Circs monikers (and solo) for his own Cellule 75 imprint. He collaborated with visual artists such as Ho Tzu Nyen, Jan van Hasselt, and Mike Kelley. He also produces soundtracks and acousmatic multichannel installations for institutions such as INA GRM Paris, ZKM Karlsruhe and Kunstverein Hamburg.

 

PRICE: $41.00

CAT #: QMECLEC 2858LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

"An original member of Soft Machine, Kevin Ayers embarked on a solo career following a US tour with the Jimi Hendrix Experience in 1968. He was one of the first signings to EMI's Progressive imprint Harvest and recorded his debut album in the summer of 1969 at Abbey Road studios. Joy Of A Toy is a classic of psychedelic and progressive rock, featuring contributions from his former Soft Machine band mates, David Bedford and such wonderful songs as 'The Lady Rachel,' 'Stop This Train (Again Doing It),' 'Girl on a Swing,' and 'All This Crazy Gift of Time.' This official gatefold LP vinyl edition fully restores the original LP artwork, has been remastered from the original Harvest master tapes and has been cut at Abbey Road."

 

PRICE: $34.00

CAT #: CSR 323LP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

2024 restock; double LP version. Black vinyl. 180 gram vinyl; gatefold. The sound of the classic period of Psychic TV -- featuring Peter Christopherson and Geff Rushton (John Balance) of Coil, this full show is interspersed with recordings of the Pagan marriage between Genesis and Paula P-Orridge conducted by Sveinbj?rn Beinteinsson Allsherjargodi. Psychic TV at their most esoteric, their most ritual, and often most extreme, a perfect accompaniment to the legendary Dreams Less Sweet album of the same year. These recordings of a live disconcert by Psychic TV in Reykjavik, Iceland that took place November 1983 organized by H?H and GRAMM Records. Out of print for 23 years, this is the ultimate edition for Psychick Youth. Meticulously remastered, with the track order finally arranged into what was the original show.

 

PRICE: $23.00

CAT #: DC 292LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

2024 repress. LP version, with poster insert. "A River Ain't Too Much To Love was recorded at Pedernales in Spicewood, Texas. That's Willie Nelson's place. There is a feeling these songs give you that you haven't had since the days when music was your impetus. A River Ain't Too Much To Love is as raw and direct as a Sun session and as warm and assured as the early seventies. Majestic, monolithic and agile at the same time, this is an album not of lost wandering but of determined migration. The natural urge that was buried in Humankind once the Pines were felled and the Rivers damned."

 

PRICE: $20.00

CAT #: DC 437LP

FILE UNDER: COMEDY

2024 repress. "Who says there are no second acts in show biz? The same person who claimed there's no crying in comedy, probably -- and Neil Hamburger has proven him wrong once again. Left for dead more than once in a career that has spanned literally decades, Neil is back on top and waiting for that next wave that will supposedly pull him under again. In 2007, Neil Hamburger experienced what some would call the high point of his career to date, playing Madison Square Garden and other big arenas of performance infamy all around the United States. This was no miracle; after all, people weren't coming to see Neil; he was opening for popular rock act Tenacious D. Once the crowds heard some of his classic routines, however, Neil gained a great deal of exposure -- exposed once again as America's Funnyman in front of roaring crowds of Americans. Naturally, there were a few bad apples in the barrel, and Neil did what any professional would do -- slaying the hecklers with their own sword of crass, unmannered profanity. Fortunately, his drink rider was above average, which helped considerably in getting through the days and nights that make up Hot February Night. Now it's your turn -- fire up the hi-fi and place this special phonograph LP on the platter. Then mix a couple drinks and listen to America's Funnyman, Neil Hamburger, as he lives and dies the comedy life that all the greats have lived too. Hot February Night is truly a brush with greatness. What will Neil do for an encore?"

 

PRICE: $28.00

CAT #: ET 938-01LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

Unbeknownst to the general public at the time and underappreciated until today, arguably the world's first punk record was recorded on September 28, 1966, in New York. On that day, The Godz got together to record their first album Contact High with The Godz in about 30 minutes, to be released on the avant-garde label ESP. It comprises eight rudimentary songs (plus one bizarre Hank Williams cover), played without prior rehearsals or repeats, sounding deliberately incompetent and completely lacking even the political undertones or avant-garde ambitions of other far-out music produced in New York at the same time. In 2008, Berlin-based musician and journalist Jacek Slaski met ESP owner Bernard Stollman in New York and learned the story behind the Godz' first album. He decided to trace and re-enact that historical moment and got together his band The Curators to perform a note-by-note replay of Contact High with The Godz. Again, without rehearsals or repeats. They set up (without audience) in the Festsaal Kreuzberg in Berlin on November 30, 2008, began by listening to the first Godz song, repeating it, then the next, then the next. The resulting first derivative of the original album was duly titled Contact High with The Curators and is finally released here after having laid around on external hard drives for 15 years. Edition of 200 with insert containing liner notes, and a beautiful sleeve design by Nathan D'Arcy. The Curators were formed in Berlin in 2007 by architect Anna Krenz and writer Jacek Slaski, who at the time ran the art space ZERO, and were joined by camera operator Patrick Classen. All three are non-educated and non-professional musicians. The Curators played in different venues in Berlin, Rotterdam, Vienna and Warsaw, and the band was dissolved around 2011. For this album, they were joined by songwriter and singer Doc Schoko.

 

PRICE: $28.00

CAT #: ET 938-02LP

FILE UNDER: EXPERIMENTAL

Christina Kubisch (b. 1948) belongs to the first generation of sound artists and is among the most prominent European artists working in sound installation and electroacoustic composition today. Many of her works involve ephemeral phenomena such as ultraviolet light, solar energy and electromagnetic induction. She transforms them to make them perceivable acoustically and visually, thereby reminding the spectator of their presence while also allowing their aesthetic qualities to crystallize. Among her most well-known works is a project called Electrical Walks which employs specially-built headphones that receive electromagnetic signals from the environment and convert them into sound. She uses these headphones for auditory d?rives through any given territory, guided by the sounds that are inaudible to passersby, and stopping wherever they seem interesting. Things like light systems, wireless communication systems, ATMs, anti-theft security devices, surveillance cameras, neon advertising, etc., have proven to emit particularly strong signals worth of being explored, often even sounding quite musical. Finally, Kubisch compiles her findings into a map and allows the public to use the headphones themselves to set off for own journeys. One sound source that has shown to be particularly worthwhile, and surprisingly varied throughout different countries, is public transportation. Zenger Station thus focuses on the electromagnetic sound qualities of trams, buses and related infrastructure. Side A is taken by the "Zenger Station" suite of three single pieces, composed from recordings Kubisch made in Prague in 2021 and 2022 and titled after the transformer station of the same name. Side B has a piece from 2021 called "A bus meets a tram meets a trolley" including tram, electric bus and trolley bus recordings from Rome, Bangkok and Bratislava, respectively. Edition of 300 with full-color sleeve and four-sided insert with photos, liner notes and an extensive interview with Christina Kubisch by Christoph Cox.

 

PRICE: $28.00

CAT #: ET 938-03LP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

Kunstkopf was formed in 1995 by Manfred Machlitt, Dirk Specht, and Taymur Streng, and joined by Patrick Laschet shortly after, all musicians coming from very different backgrounds. Streng and Machlitt had been part of the underground electronic music scene in East Berlin. Streng had played in the dark-wave group Neun Tage Alt and at the same time experimented with synthesizers and sound-making devices in his home in the outskirts of Berlin. Laschet and Specht, on the other hand, came from a West German post-industrial DIY cassette scene but had been living in West Berlin for some time. Specht lives in Cologne today and is a member of the Therapeutische H?rgruppe K?ln. Kunstkopf was formed from the members' shared interest in various manifestations of electronic and experimental music, and their curiosity for finding a mutual language and mode of exchange through or despite their disparate backgrounds. In live settings, the group always improvised, never developing a repertoire through rehearsing, but embracing the challenging and erratic performance situation, while still positioning themselves fundamentally as a fixed ensemble, not a loose collective like other improvisers did. After a hasty four-day recording session in 1996, the group decided to eschew their live approach in favor of recording an album over time in Manfred Machlitt's private studio in his apartment. The process extended over a period of almost two years and involved multitrack recording, sequencing, overdubbing, software programming and an extensive post-production phase. Sound sources used were a variety of digital and analog synthesizers, various instruments including a Bechstein grand piano and a heavily processed violin, and a number of household objects. The group was aiming to achieve a pluralism of sounds as rich in contrast and colors as possible, opposing the reductionism played elsewhere in the city but never falling into expressionist trappings. The pieces from Machlitt's home studio were finished in 1998 and have remained unreleased until now. Six of them are presented here, complemented by one live recording from the same year, thus making seven pieces. A unique artefact of their time and place, yet announcing and foreshadowing a profoundly different future. Edition of 300 in a beautiful black/white/silver sleeve with four-sided insert with photos and detailed liner notes.

 

PRICE: $29.50

CAT #: EMEGO 312LP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

NPVR is the avant garde duo made up of the late Peter Rehberg and Nik Void. Editions Mego presents their second and final release. No, this is not some kind of Beatles synthetic AI that raises the dead reconstructed recordings but rather a new album made by the humans and their machines. The initial meeting of Rehberg and Void was in London in 2016 and despite or due to their mutual awkwardness found solace and compatibility in the fact that they both had a similar electronic modular set up, along with matching cases to transport all. The idea to collaborate was an obvious and organic process as a means to connect their individual gear together and observe the outcome. The fruits of these initial experiments, recorded in London, resulted in the playful experimentation of their acclaimed 2017 release 33 33 (EMEGO 251LP). Now, Editions Mego presents the logically titled follow up, 33 34. These sessions were recorded six months after the initial recordings at Peter's home in Vienna. This was planned out as a mirror city release to the original London recordings. The initial session of these recordings was edited by Rehberg and sent to Void to further develop. Over time the final versions were agreed on and then shelved as other outside projects took over. Following Rehberg's untimely passing, Void had difficulty listening back to the sessions but eventually thought it fit to complete and release this album, of which even the artwork (like 33 33, an image from Zurich photographer, Georg Gatsas) had been decided upon prior to Rehberg parting ways. There is an unmistakable joy to these recordings. One encounters an enthralling exploration of their chosen machines which conveys the excitement of what can be randomly conjured when people speak through such devices. There is no grand statement or argument here, just the sheer thrill of creation and the recorded results of random encounters.

 

PRICE: $15.50

CAT #: WG 770563CD

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

Kaleida are the transatlantic duo whose darkly mystic soundworld finds glimmers of hope in the disquiet. Spanning an ocean, the pair have nurtured a long-distance partnership that withstands the shifting patterns of life. They first formed in 2013 when a friend introduced them over email. Christina Wood was working in the Indonesian forest while recording demos in her bedroom each night, and Cicely Goulder had been composing for film productions in London. Despite the miles between them, they found an instant musical chemistry. Kaleida first came to international renown in 2014, when their single "Think" went viral overnight and was featured in the soundtrack for the cult Keanu Reeves film, John Wick. Their debut album Tear The Roots arrived in 2017 and crystallized the pair's moody pop aesthetic, which merges Wood's sylph-like, operatic vocals with Goulder's neo-Noir electronica. The record earned the duo their second spot in a film soundtrack, this time for Atomic Blonde with a tender take on Nena's 1980s anti-war classic "99 Luftballons". It was followed in 2020 by the pair's second album Odyssey dubbed "a consummate work of electronic artistry." Their new album In Arms is a record that leans into a near transcendent spiritualism, where their minimalist production conceals a raw, celestial power. With a departure from their previously insular way of working, they invited other musicians into the production process, most notably producer Johan Hugo (Self Esteem, M.I.A, Skepta).

 

PRICE: $35.50

CAT #: WG 770564LP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

Double LP version. Kaleida are the transatlantic duo whose darkly mystic soundworld finds glimmers of hope in the disquiet. Spanning an ocean, the pair have nurtured a long-distance partnership that withstands the shifting patterns of life. They first formed in 2013 when a friend introduced them over email. Christina Wood was working in the Indonesian forest while recording demos in her bedroom each night, and Cicely Goulder had been composing for film productions in London. Despite the miles between them, they found an instant musical chemistry. Kaleida first came to international renown in 2014, when their single "Think" went viral overnight and was featured in the soundtrack for the cult Keanu Reeves film, John Wick. Their debut album Tear The Roots arrived in 2017 and crystallized the pair's moody pop aesthetic, which merges Wood's sylph-like, operatic vocals with Goulder's neo-Noir electronica. The record earned the duo their second spot in a film soundtrack, this time for Atomic Blonde with a tender take on Nena's 1980s anti-war classic "99 Luftballons". It was followed in 2020 by the pair's second album Odyssey dubbed "a consummate work of electronic artistry." Their new album In Arms is a record that leans into a near transcendent spiritualism, where their minimalist production conceals a raw, celestial power. With a departure from their previously insular way of working, they invited other musicians into the production process, most notably producer Johan Hugo (Self Esteem, M.I.A, Skepta).

 

PRICE: $28.00

CAT #: FAITICHE 035LP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

First vinyl edition of the album Rhetorical Islands, originally released by Giuseppe Ielasi in 2012 as a limited-edition CD on his Senufo Editions label, with recordings made in 2011 as a commission for l'Audible Festival, Paris. The album's ten tracks have neither titles nor accompanying text, standing for themselves as what Ielasi himself has called "isolated sound worlds." They are nonetheless unparalleled in their plasticity, acoustic events with a rare degree of tangibility. Ielasi evokes physical objects, some of which seem to have been constructed out of paper and cardboard, others based on a mechanics of elastic materials. Of course, these objects are hallucinations, and precisely because Ielasi constructs them so masterfully there's no need for any further information. Here's to everyone creating their very own sculptures while listening to Rhetorical Islands. The front and back cover features 0.058, a work on paper by the artists Thomas & Ren?e Rapedius. They make sculptures whose form and artistic inspiration are defined by their materials. Like Ielasi's acoustic islands, their impact derives from self-referentiality, resulting in paradoxical objects that embody both a detailed material study and a potential for free association.

 

PRICE: $25.50

CAT #: FTR 756LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

Feeding Tube announces The Band Whose Name Is A Symbol LP. Verdun is the first studio LP this war-torn group have recorded in some time and boy oh boy what a magnificent freewheelin', incendiary and blissed out racket TBWNIS have conjured. Over the last 15 years there are few groups that have been more prolific or dedicated to pushing psychedelic rock and all things cosmic to its limits. With Verdun their sound has become even more expansive -- Scott Thompsons' outer zone zonk horn blowing... Jason Vaughan and Chris Laramee deep space swirling on synth/keys... Bill Guerrero's twelve-string is shimmering and Brydsian but this is the jangle of nails down your spinal chord? Dave Reford untamed and unleashed and going full tilt with Nathaniel Hurlow, and John Westhaver precise and driving. Verdun contains three monstrous compositions where shimmering tones unfold into sinister drone-territory which resemble German pioneers Neu! playing "This Heat!," where abrasive guitars and wild riffing, repetitive beats and raw primitivism are densely packed into a larger-than-life sound that never stops climbing skywards -- never have TBWNIS sounds so euphoric playing their brand of ecstatic rock 'n' roll. For anyone that likes to get lost in sound -- Verdun is a sonic amusement part -- close your eyes and climb aboard this rollercoaster, strap yourself in tight and let yourself get lost in the heaviest of vibrations as you go for a breathless physical/visceral ride. TBWNIS are one of the essential groups of the world's psychedelic underground and Verdun is a freaked-out trip.

 

PRICE: $24.00

CAT #: FS 4484LP

FILE UNDER: JAZZ

Reissue, originally recorded in September 1975 at A&R Recording Studios in New York and released in 1977 on Baystate Japan. Classic jazz album by Charles Greenlee who worked extensively throughout his career with Archie Shepp who also participated in the sessions for John Coltrane's A Love Supreme in late 1964. Late in the 1940s he converted to Islam, changing his name to Harneefan Majeed; he continued to use Charles Greenlee for professional purposes, though he is sometimes credited with his Muslim last name as a sort of nickname. Great spiritual jazz album includes the classic vocal "He's Gone" and the classic track "Steam". Blue vinyl.

 

PRICE: $36.00

CAT #: GET 51338C-LP

FILE UNDER: HIPHOP

"In the late '90s in hip hop, all eyes were on the South -- and the Down South sound reigned supreme. Few groups were as hot as Memphis' Three 6 Mafia. CrazyNDaLazDayz was a regional scorcher when it dropped in 1999, released under the group name Tear Da Club Up Thugs, but essentially a Three 6 Mafia full-length as core Three 6 members DJ Paul, Juicy J, and Lord Infamous all contribute to the project. The record went on to be certified Gold and Three 6 Mafia went on to win an Academy Award for their contribution to the film Hustle & Flow. CrazyNDaLazDayz continues to have an impact. A cut Juicy J first pulled together while still in high school, 'Slob On My Knob,' was utilized in A$AP Ferg's hit 'Plain Jane.' In addition, the cut is interpolated into G-Eazy's most successful cut to date, 'No Limit.' Get On Down brings you this often overlooked and definitely in need of being revisited portion of Three 6 Mafia's legacy."

 

PRICE: $36.00

CAT #: GET 51511LP

FILE UNDER: HIPHOP

"Pressed on blue swirl and orange swirl colored vinyl, packaged in a gatefold jacket with printed fold out lyrics sheet. Originally released in the fall of 1993, Return of the Boom Bap is KRS-One's first official solo album. The album is pure '90s hip-hop filled with KRS-One's trademark conscious raps and storytelling with boom bap beats from the man himself, DJ Premier, Showbiz, and Kid Capri. The album kicks off with a trademark intro leading into 'Outta Here,' a tale about coming up in the '80s with a message to emcees not staying true to their roots. Throughout the album KRS-One tackles corrupt police, fake emcees, religion and provides some comical relief on 'I Can't Wake Up' where he dreams about being a blunt passed around by a who's who of '90s emcees and Bill Clinton! The album was selected as one of The Source's 100 Best Rap Albums and received a four mics rating in The Source in 1993. Get On Down is presents a limited edition pressing of Return of The Boom Bap to commemorate the 30th Anniversary of the blast master's classic debut solo album. Includes the bonus freestyle track 'Hip-Hop vs Rap' that was on the original 'Sound of Da Police' 12"."

 

PRICE: $39.00

CAT #: GET 51516LP

FILE UNDER: HIPHOP

"Cappadonna is one of the original members of Wu-Tang Clan absent from their debut album Enter The Wu-Tang due to being locked up at the time of recording. Three years later he would get his chance to shine on Ghostface's debut Ironman. In 1997, Cappadonna was prominently featured on Wu-Tang's second album Wu-Tang Forever. The following year the spotlight was on Cappadonna for the release of his debut album The Pillage. With production overseen by the RZA and Wu producers True Mathematics, True Master, and Goldfinghaz, The Pillage dropped on March 24th, 1998 and was certified Gold one month later. From the classic opening track 'Slang Editorial' reporting on the streets to the closing track 'Black Boy' where Cappadonna spits lyrics about being a free man and rejoining the Wu, The Pillage is another classic Wu solo debut. To commemorate the 25th Anniversary of The Pillage, Get On Down presents, for the first time on vinyl since it was originally released in 1998, a limited edition pressing on double clear with black swirl colored vinyl in printed inner sleeves with a 25th Anniversary commemorative OBI limited to 2000 numbered copies."

 

PRICE: $28.00

CAT #: GODREC 043LP

FILE UNDER: EXPERIMENTAL

2024 repress. For his premiere recording on God Records, Phill Niblock confirms his minimalistic musical approach and composes two monumental pieces for flutes and additional voices, respectively. Commissioned by Erik Drescher and Natalia Pschenitschnikova, Niblock again delivers an almost stripped, uncompromising one-way sound monolith. Tremendous, straight, and to the point... Personnel: Phill Niblock - composition; Natalia Pschenitschnikova - bass flute, voice; Erik Drescher - glissando flute.

 

PRICE: $40.00

CAT #: GODREC 070LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

2024 restock. This new Laibach album, through a new/fresh interpretation, examines the conflict-ridden genesis of the band's formation in the industrial town of Trbovlje in 1980 and questions the band's aesthetic, sonic, and ideological roots from the distance of time. Includes 16-page booklet.

 

PRICE: $28.00

CAT #: GODUNK 096LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

DRIFT. is British-Italian producer Nathalia Bruno, releasing music under the guise since 2015. Her "techno-pop" EPs Black Devotion and Genderland released with Avant! records were the first explorations in finding the sound of DRIFT. But as the name suggests, she is in constant flux. In 2020 Symbiosis (TR 463CD), the debut record, was released on Hamburg's Tapete Records, an assemblage of lo-fi futurism reflecting on the breakdown of communication and interaction Nathalia felt was increasing around her. Channeling classic industrial electronica, haunting melodies, using samples, field recordings and curated sound as a "canvas to rewire the vision of the future as colorful and old, ceremonial and rust beaten." 11 Points In Time is DRIFT.'s second album released with God Unknown records, written for and based on disappeared artist Rosi Crucci, compiled of sounds/field recordings recorded onto cassettes found in the attic of the home she last lived at, interpreted into song using some of her poetry and journal entries of what was happening in the world around her, attempting to finally give Rosi a voice.

 

PRICE: $24.00

CAT #: HOS 853LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

Abfall and Prurient present Smokestacks. A smokestack theatre is an open, usually cyclical, pollution factory stereotypically used in dark skulls. Such skulls and the faces they support have flue gas stacks, hence the name "smoke flu" and produce a high volume of congestion and respiratory creative illness. The earliest era of electric power development, coal fired electric stations in urban opera houses were common prior to the use of alienating currents for lighting as direct current electricity could only travel a short distance -- through face make up for use under heavy spot stage lighting. For example -- the distance from the temple to the eye socket. Or the nasal cavity to the cheek bones. Smokestacks are dark skulls. Don't ever forget their loud and rising voices as you approach the smokestack curtains of the theatre. Black vinyl edition. Includes digital download code.

 

PRICE: $24.00

CAT #: HOS 854LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

Powdered Beatles is Richard Ramirez and Dwayne Cathey. Meat Locker is Dominick Fernow. In old ancient Egyptian tombs, the first incendiary devices were discovered and locked into jade encrusted cases. The cases were found clutched in the charred bodies of the fire army. The fire not as in the fire that burns inside, but the fire used to keep the frost around hanging meat. Black vinyl edition. Includes digital download code.

 

PRICE: $27.50

CAT #: HOS 899LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

Back in the Middle Ages, when people commuted to work something sinister and something primary colored was brewing. Satanic Hair Dye. True crime cosmopolitans were conjured through various doorways to hell. One of those is the entire city of present-day Los Angeles where The Germs and Rodney collect coupons and groupies. A place where the bright lights are seriously Luciferian and the dreams are the dreams of fallen angels. Acid children party freely in the underpasses and cement iron courtyards of the sigil known as the LA freeway. Yellow Gas Flames' first full-length album uses brutal sampling, speedy ultra crumbling trash static and garbage people laden manic panic recycling. Pages of the satanic bible are torn up and painstakingly reassembled daily in a bizarre commuter ritual. Some surprise industrial cuts may cause a severe question of faith. Yellow Gas Flames hold tightly to their middle fingers raised. A bold expression of necropolis hair caressing teasing and starching. Black vinyl. Digital download included.

 

PRICE: $27.00

CAT #: SONG 016LP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

"War entails suffering and sadness of loss due to unexplainable brutality and relentless meaningless onslaught. War entails bonding with brothers and sisters to fend off atrocious aggression. War entails the act of putting violence against violence, tracking down the violators, and stopping them with death as a means of last resort. These songs are there to support Ukrainians in all aspects of the war, hoping that the will mend wounds, grant courage and determination to take lives." --Mads Lindgren/Monolog.Music written and produced by Monolog. Field recordings in track "Forgotten Circle 10" by Andrii Nidzelskyi. Mastering and lacquer cut by Noel Summerville. Design by Zavoloka. Cover artwork and release production by Dmytro Fedorenko.

 

PRICE: $13.50

CAT #: SONG 018CD

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

Music by Dmytro Fedorenko and Masami Akita . Mixed by Masami Akita. Mastering by C-drik. Artwork by Dmytro Fedorenko. Design by Zavoloka.

 

PRICE: $31.50

CAT #: SONG 018LP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

LP version. Music by Dmytro Fedorenko and Masami Akita . Mixed by Masami Akita. Mastering by C-drik. Artwork by Dmytro Fedorenko. Design by Zavoloka. Limited vinyl edition of 300 copies.

 

PRICE: $13.50

CAT #: SONG 020CD

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

In the realm of sonic exploration and artistic activism, the collaborative project between Danish artist Monolog (Mads Lindgren) and Ukrainian creative entity Vari?t (Dmytro Fedorenko) transcends conventional music boundaries. Drawing inspiration from a diverse musical palette and various art forms, the duo embarks on a sonic journey that fuses elements of experimental electronic music, heavy metal, and drum and bass. The name The Well For The Thirsty comes as an artistic reference to an old metaphoric Ukrainian movie filmed in 1965. Back then the movie was immediately censored and forbidden to be shown right after it was made, and it came out to the public only in 1987. The film's director Yurii Illenko was one of the creators of the Ukrainian Poetic Cinema movement that provoked a massive wave of repressions against Ukrainian cinema and its authors, and this movement became one of the strongest statements of artistic resistance in Ukraine. Surrealist and psychedelic ethnographic Ukrainian art films would be considered as a major threat to the nationality policies of the soviets.

 

PRICE: $30.50

CAT #: IF 1085LP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

LP version. L(oo)ping is a story that began with great trepidation and an initial polite refusal and may have never have been told. Even for Rone, who's used to making bold moves, the orchestra had always seemed a step too far. Motion laid the groundwork for L(oo)ping, a journey in which Romain Allender (who worked The Grand Budapest Hotel by Wes Anderson and The Shape of Water by Guillermo del Toro amongst others) acted as a creative translator for Rone. Leafing through Rone's repertoire he selected the tracks that would better lend themselves for symphonic reinterpretations. The eleven pieces chosen each mark a different stage in Rone's trajectory, from one of his first-ever productions, "Bora," born in a studio flat in Paris in 2008 when he was still a student, all the way to the soundtrack composed for the 2022 short-film, Ghosts, written by Spike Jonze, directed and performed by (LA)HORDE. L(oo)ping isn't just an orchestral retelling of Rone's work, however. New life has been breathed into the music through Allender's arrangements as well as Rone's own interaction with the Orchestre National de Lyon and conductor Dirk Bross?. There's a rich dramaturgy to the music, but not once does the acoustic trample on the electronic nor vice-versa. Rather, L(oo)ping manages to achieve an elegant and playful tightrope balance between both voices that keeps listeners hooked on suspense and surprise.

 

PRICE: $14.00

CAT #: JRCD 001CD

FILE UNDER: WORLD

2024 restock. Lost Treasures is an essential selection of rare and previously-unreleased dubs from the legendary King Tubby. Taken directly from master tapes, these heavyweight versions of Bunny Lee-produced Aggrovators rhythms have only previously seen the light of day as sound system dub plates or rare Jamaican 7" B-sides in the mid-'70s and none have ever appeared on CD. Available on 12-track 180 gram virgin vinyl and 14-track CD with extensive sleeve notes, this is the first in a series that includes similar releases from Augustus Pablo, Lee Perry, Studio One, Channel One, Sly & Robbie, and the Wailers.

 

PRICE: $27.00

CAT #: KK 132LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

Violist, violinist and singer-songwriter Marla Hansen returns to Karaoke Kalk with Salt, her second full-length album to date. Building upon the sonic palette the Berlin-based musician established with her debut Dust (KK 116CD) in 2020, Salt takes the delicate mixture of acoustic instruments such as viola, violin, piano and guitar combined with subtle electronics to the next level. The new album is both a remarkable departure and at the same time sheds a new yet reassuring light on Hansen's work and creativity. Salt features numerous collaborations with like-minded musicians and friends, e. g. producer and composer Simon Goff, The Notwist's drummer Andi Haberl, and the renowned artist DM Stith. Salt is a big album. The opener "Chains" is driven by a gliding bass line, bobbing 808 snares, deep chords and a mesmerizing chorus doubled by luscious strings, marking the beginning of a new chapter in her creative journey. A stark statement, both musically and lyrically. Meanwhile, the title track of the album is an almost abstract sounding ambient miniature, sketch-like, dark and haunting, showcasing Hansen's voice in a shy, brittle and fragile state. In this range of styles and approaches, Hansen's vision is more present than ever. For refining and finishing the songs, Hansen turned to Simon Goff, who produced the album and engineered much of the recording, merging Hansen's newly-found songwriting approach with the artistic delicacy which made her debut album an exceptional piece of work. Features include among others: Alice Dixon (Oriel Quartett) on cello, Kyle Resnick (The National, Beirut) on trumpet, Benjamin Lanz (The National, Beirut) on trombone and tuba, and Miles Perkin on bass. And then there is The Notwist's Andi Haberl, who "crafted perfect drum and percussion parts to move the songs wherever they needed to go, either into their driving grooves, slow-build explosions or gentle swells of feeling." Salt is a bold artistic achievement, with songs as big as the biggest waves imaginable. With melodies as alluring as the most comfortable breezes. Perfect from start to finish.

 

PRICE: $15.00

CAT #: LEWIS 092DLX-CD

FILE UNDER: HIPHOP

"Remastered version of Home Cooking, the album that cemented DJ Yoda as a versatile producer and not just a deejay. It now serves as a snapshot of the jazz and soul scene at the time with artists like Nubya Garcia, Eva Lazarus, and Theon Cross going on to break out. Recorded between his own studio and the world-famous Abbey Road, Home Cooking keeps one foot in the Hip-Hop old school with collaborations and the return from Jungle Brothers and Boston bastion Edo. G. Two key singles have been remixed for a bonus 7". 'Roxbury' featuring Nubya Garcia and Edo. G has been given the golden treatment by the legendary Double Dee & Steinski while 'London Fields' featuring Joel Culpepper is reworked by label mates The Still Brothers."

 

PRICE: $25.00

CAT #: LEWIS 092DLX-LP

FILE UNDER: HIPHOP

LP version. "Remastered version of Home Cooking, the album that cemented DJ Yoda as a versatile producer and not just a deejay. It now serves as a snapshot of the jazz and soul scene at the time with artists like Nubya Garcia, Eva Lazarus, and Theon Cross going on to break out. Recorded between his own studio and the world-famous Abbey Road, Home Cooking keeps one foot in the Hip-Hop old school with collaborations and the return from Jungle Brothers and Boston bastion Edo. G. Two key singles have been remixed for a bonus 7". 'Roxbury' featuring Nubya Garcia and Edo. G has been given the golden treatment by the legendary Double Dee & Steinski while 'London Fields' featuring Joel Culpepper is reworked by label mates The Still Brothers."

 

PRICE: $13.00

CAT #: LEWIS 1152CD

FILE UNDER: ROCK

"Brooklyn duo The Still Brothers is a musical project of childhood friends Evan Heinze (The Shacks/Big Crown) and Andrew LeCoche (Ula Ruth). Heinze has toured with the likes of Khraungbin, Lee Fields, and Cut Chemist, while LeCoche's old band once opened for Paul Simon and Edie Brickell. A former student of Madlib's uncle Jon Faddis, LeCoche has scored music for Netflix and Patagonia and sound design for Twitter, Patron, and Marvel. Signing to Lewis Recordings in 2020 the band's first single 'The Deep' was instantly picked up by Steve Lamacq on BBC 6 Music who regularly plays it to this day. 'Wake Up' featuring the vocals of Marina B. spent six weeks on the BBC 6 Music playlist gaining support from Lauren Laverne, Gilles Peterson, Mary Anne Hobbs, Craig Charles, Huey Morgan, Cerys Matthews, Don Letts, Tom Ravenscroft, and Guy Garvey. Lockdown didn't slow down the band's creativity with many tracks on their self-titled debut EP recorded remotely. Two such tracks were the collaborations with London based singer/songwriter Shauna Kelly aka Shoshy. 'It's Not Over' and 'Crazy' were released on 7" and both received BBC radio support. Marina B stepped back on the mic with the upbeat hit 'I Wanna Be With You', a dancefloor filler mixed by St. Frances Hotel (producer for Michael Kiwanuka). The B-side 'Sungalz' is a hazy dream pop number that started life as an instrumental jam."

 

PRICE: $23.00

CAT #: LEWIS 1152LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

LP version. "Brooklyn duo The Still Brothers is a musical project of childhood friends Evan Heinze (The Shacks/Big Crown) and Andrew LeCoche (Ula Ruth). Heinze has toured with the likes of Khraungbin, Lee Fields, and Cut Chemist, while LeCoche's old band once opened for Paul Simon and Edie Brickell. A former student of Madlib's uncle Jon Faddis, LeCoche has scored music for Netflix and Patagonia and sound design for Twitter, Patron, and Marvel. Signing to Lewis Recordings in 2020 the band's first single 'The Deep' was instantly picked up by Steve Lamacq on BBC 6 Music who regularly plays it to this day. 'Wake Up' featuring the vocals of Marina B. spent six weeks on the BBC 6 Music playlist gaining support from Lauren Laverne, Gilles Peterson, Mary Anne Hobbs, Craig Charles, Huey Morgan, Cerys Matthews, Don Letts, Tom Ravenscroft, and Guy Garvey. Lockdown didn't slow down the band's creativity with many tracks on their self-titled debut EP recorded remotely. Two such tracks were the collaborations with London based singer/songwriter Shauna Kelly aka Shoshy. 'It's Not Over' and 'Crazy' were released on 7" and both received BBC radio support. Marina B stepped back on the mic with the upbeat hit 'I Wanna Be With You', a dancefloor filler mixed by St. Frances Hotel (producer for Michael Kiwanuka). The B-side 'Sungalz' is a hazy dream pop number that started life as an instrumental jam."

 

PRICE: $15.00

CAT #: LEWIS 1162CD

FILE UNDER: ROCK

"For fans of Khruangbin, El Michels Affair, Madlib, and Bonobo. Will Dorey aka Skinshape has proven himself time and again a connoisseur for the cosmopolitan, across a prolific career expertly exploring understated sounds and theatrical textures. Taking his place alongside the likes of Khruangbin, Tame Impala, Bonobo and Madlib, Skinshape's global kaleidoscopes are loaded with warmth and wisdom created on vintage analogue equipment applying a perfectionist's touch. As a former member of indie band Palace, he has played everywhere from Glastonbury and BBC Maida Vale to headlining Shepherd's Bush Empire. Speaking on his latest record Craterellus Tubaeformis, Dorey remarks, 'As I continue to make albums, I always try to capture some elements of the original Skinshape style. Here I ran through albums 1-3. This record is really an echo of the Life & Love era of Skinshape, playful psychedelia, with punchy beats, fun surprises, and an attempt at meaningful lyrics.' Named after a very specific genus of edible mushroom, Craterellus Tubaeformis shares all the attributes of its nutritious counterpart due to how difficult both are to cultivate. Skinshape's music is the product of a highly devoted and meticulous composer who uses some of the rarest analogue equipment out there. The product is such a definitive sound heard nowhere else but so easily identified as Skinshape."

 

PRICE: $28.00

CAT #: LEWIS 1162LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

LP version. "For fans of Khruangbin, El Michels Affair, Madlib, and Bonobo. Will Dorey aka Skinshape has proven himself time and again a connoisseur for the cosmopolitan, across a prolific career expertly exploring understated sounds and theatrical textures. Taking his place alongside the likes of Khruangbin, Tame Impala, Bonobo and Madlib, Skinshape's global kaleidoscopes are loaded with warmth and wisdom created on vintage analogue equipment applying a perfectionist's touch. As a former member of indie band Palace, he has played everywhere from Glastonbury and BBC Maida Vale to headlining Shepherd's Bush Empire. Speaking on his latest record Craterellus Tubaeformis, Dorey remarks, 'As I continue to make albums, I always try to capture some elements of the original Skinshape style. Here I ran through albums 1-3. This record is really an echo of the Life & Love era of Skinshape, playful psychedelia, with punchy beats, fun surprises, and an attempt at meaningful lyrics.' Named after a very specific genus of edible mushroom, Craterellus Tubaeformis shares all the attributes of its nutritious counterpart due to how difficult both are to cultivate. Skinshape's music is the product of a highly devoted and meticulous composer who uses some of the rarest analogue equipment out there. The product is such a definitive sound heard nowhere else but so easily identified as Skinshape."

 

PRICE: $15.00

CAT #: LEWIS 11667CD

FILE UNDER: HIPHOP

"Unlike all DJ Yoda's artist albums, Breakfast Of Champions features the same collaborators on every track effectively putting together a band. The genesis of the project was in Manchester, where the legendary Band On The Wall venue asked him to host an artistic residency. He put a call out for local musicians, did auditions, and selected three rappers. Two were local to Manchester -- Truthos Mufasa and Sparkz. They were local legends making up parts of The Mouse Outfit and LVLZ. And the third was Rex Domino from down south, who was a British MC who Yoda thought would gel well with the other guys. They wrote, rehearsed and recorded intensively in Manchester -- performed a memorable series of live shows (including an epic Glastonbury show), and Yoda put the finishing touches to the album back in London after the fact. 'It was such an enjoyable experience' says Yoda. 'Lifelong friendships were made, and most excitingly two of the band members got together (James Breen, drummer, and Claire Northey, violinist) and had two kids! So there are Breakfast of Champions humans out there too!'"

 

PRICE: $25.00

CAT #: LEWIS 11667LP

FILE UNDER: HIPHOP

LP version. "Unlike all DJ Yoda's artist albums, Breakfast Of Champions features the same collaborators on every track effectively putting together a band. The genesis of the project was in Manchester, where the legendary Band On The Wall venue asked him to host an artistic residency. He put a call out for local musicians, did auditions, and selected three rappers. Two were local to Manchester -- Truthos Mufasa and Sparkz. They were local legends making up parts of The Mouse Outfit and LVLZ. And the third was Rex Domino from down south, who was a British MC who Yoda thought would gel well with the other guys. They wrote, rehearsed and recorded intensively in Manchester -- performed a memorable series of live shows (including an epic Glastonbury show), and Yoda put the finishing touches to the album back in London after the fact. 'It was such an enjoyable experience' says Yoda. 'Lifelong friendships were made, and most excitingly two of the band members got together (James Breen, drummer, and Claire Northey, violinist) and had two kids! So there are Breakfast of Champions humans out there too!'"

 

PRICE: $21.50

CAT #: LMS 1725063

FILE UNDER: ROCK

Bananarama celebrate over 40 years at the top with the release of Glorious - The Ultimate Collection. With 40 tracks selected by Sara and Keren themselves, the double CD album revisits every decade of the band's career, with hits including "Cruel Summer," "Venus," "Love in the First Degree," "Only Your Love," "Preacher Man," "Move in My Direction," and more, along with two new singles, "Feel The Love" and "Supernova." The LP edition features 16 tracks: singles and new remixes of classic hits, and "Feel the Love" and "Supernova" for the first time on vinyl. Bananarama are the original girl group. They're featured in Guinness World of Records for the most internationally charted hits by an all-female band, with in excess of 30+ million sales worldwide.

 

PRICE: $25.00

CAT #: MILS 009LP

FILE UNDER: WORLD

"The Madlib Invazion Music Library Series entry #8: Karriem Riggins' To The Jungle. Riggins is the type of drummer whose power shakes even Malcolm Catto. If you know what that means, this is the album for you. The Madlib Invazion Music Library Series was created by Madlib and Egon to give their creative friends a chance to stretch out and indulge in whatever type of music they wanted. This music was created for easy, one-stop clearance in film and television synchronization usage and for sampling. You can also enjoy these albums in the way that many do with the best of the best vintage library catalogs -- listen, ponder, repeat."

 

PRICE: $20.50

CAT #: MIND 864LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

The Whole Coffeehouse set is nothing but the man and his guitar. The focus here is acute and sharp, the Whole Coffeehouse in 1973 is an essential addition to the late great Townes Van Zandt discography. Van Zandt's lyrics and melodies were filled with the kind of haunting truth and succulent beauty that were instinctive.

 

PRICE: $20.50

CAT #: MIND 865LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

The show at Tavastia, in Helsinki, Finland, recorded on June 18th 1993, Townes Van Zandt's first visit to the country. Stripped back, it features just the voice and guitar of TVZ, a voice that whilst still full of conviction, appears somewhat more fragile than on the previous recordings. Described by Billboard magazine as "largely-obscure-if-legendary," Townes Van Zandt was a remarkable singer/songwriter, and this release is worthy of consideration, shining, as it does, more bright rays of light on a much-missed songsmith.

 

PRICE: $24.00

CAT #: MNTREC 001LP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

This record contains four tracks taken from a live performance which took place on December 3rd 2021 at the Vinyl Harvest record store in Esch-sur-Alzette Luxembourg. The concert was curated by non-profit organisation I Am Esch Twenty Too and the label mint.conception.recordings. I Am Esch Twenty Too was founded in 2020 as an alternative suggestion to the city of Esch-sur-Alzette being European Capital of Culture 2022 and its role and program. The budget for this concert was generated by the entrance fee to the concert only. Jan Jelinek has for more than 20 years been one of the most essential voices in contemporary electronic music. Arthur Clees is a young percussionist from Luxembourg and a bright talent intent on finding his own way into jazz, improv and electronic music. Both performers had never met each other before. Recorded by Karl Humbug at Vinyl Harvest for mint.conception.recordings. Mixed by Jan Jelinek. Mastered by Giuseppe Ielasi. Design by Erik Mathias.

 

PRICE: $37.00

CAT #: BT 5034R-LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

180-gram red vinyl version. "The much sought after 1970 Red Dirt album. A psych blues classic, plus bonus tracks. Red Dirt were a blues band formed in East Yorkshire around 1968 comprised of Dave Richardson (vocals), Steve Howden (guitar), Kenny Giles (bass), and Steve Jackson (drums) who built up an impressive live reputation in clubs and venues in the North of England. When released in 1970, on the Fontana label, their self-titled debut album sunk without trace and legend -- or rumor -- having only sold around 100 copies."

 

PRICE: $26.00

CAT #: MORR 202EP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

In 1998, Carsten Nicolai, also known as Alva Noto, visited a sound installation created by Robert Lippok for a group exhibition in Weimar, Germany. Soon after, he invited Lippok to release music on his label Raster-Noton. Open Close Open was released in 2001 and marked the beginning of Lippok's solo career. Before, Lippok had already played in Ornament und Verbrechen (with his brother Ronald Lippok) and To Rococo Rot (with Ronald Lippok and Stefan Schneider). The title of the EP is a linguistic reference to the instructions found on everyday objects. In fact, the sound of birds or a closing door can be heard. Besides field recordings, cultural fragments were used -- including the sample of the famous "Adagietto" from Gustav Mahler's Symphony. No. 5. -- and integrated into three loop-based pieces, that have been praised by Fact Magazine as "a masterclass in collage, looping and tactile processing." The source material for Open Close Open initially served as a soundtrack for a video by Takehito Koganezawa, a visual artist from Japan. For this remastered vinyl reissue, Lippok revisited the original sound material and produced a new track called "Licht."

 

PRICE: $17.50

CAT #: MORR 203CD

FILE UNDER: ROCK

toechter is an all-female trio operating from Berlin. toechter's second full-length album Epic Wonder sees its classically trained members blend elaborate string arrangements with ethereal indie pop and delicate rhythms. Katrine Grarup Elbo, Lisa Marie Vogel, and Marie-Claire Schlameus exclusively use analogue sound sources (such as violin, viola, cello, and their voices), which were then electronically processed. Epic Wonder was created in the spring and summer of 2023. Playing with forms and contours, the music sounds like the awakening of something new. One seems to be listening to an ongoing conversation, an exchange about what music could be, where it wants to go and how it contributes to our view of life. It all rests on a simple premise: "Every sound you hear in our universe comes from us. The string trio is the core of toechter, the starting point of all our work." Those looking for new worlds of sound can find them in the work of this classically- trained musicians. Whether they add voices or percussive instruments, sample the sounds, or manipulate them electronically; ultimately, they are exploring the string trio's place in a world shaped by the digital. Sometimes dwelling on subtle, yet marveling phenomena like the evening fog covering a valley on Midsummer, sometimes on grandiose splendors like the genesis of mountains or the birth of a child -- letting interactions and encounters with other beings float through the musical universe as drips of emotional perceptivity. For the visual manifestation of Epic Wonder, toechter has engaged with Finish up-and-coming lens-based artist Aino Kontinen.

 

PRICE: $30.50

CAT #: MORR 203LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

LP version. toechter is an all-female trio operating from Berlin. toechter's second full-length album Epic Wonder sees its classically trained members blend elaborate string arrangements with ethereal indie pop and delicate rhythms. Katrine Grarup Elbo, Lisa Marie Vogel, and Marie-Claire Schlameus exclusively use analogue sound sources (such as violin, viola, cello, and their voices), which were then electronically processed. Epic Wonder was created in the spring and summer of 2023. Playing with forms and contours, the music sounds like the awakening of something new. One seems to be listening to an ongoing conversation, an exchange about what music could be, where it wants to go and how it contributes to our view of life. It all rests on a simple premise: "Every sound you hear in our universe comes from us. The string trio is the core of toechter, the starting point of all our work." Those looking for new worlds of sound can find them in the work of this classically- trained musicians. Whether they add voices or percussive instruments, sample the sounds, or manipulate them electronically; ultimately, they are exploring the string trio's place in a world shaped by the digital. Sometimes dwelling on subtle, yet marveling phenomena like the evening fog covering a valley on Midsummer, sometimes on grandiose splendors like the genesis of mountains or the birth of a child -- letting interactions and encounters with other beings float through the musical universe as drips of emotional perceptivity. For the visual manifestation of Epic Wonder, toechter has engaged with Finish up-and-coming lens-based artist Aino Kontinen.

 

PRICE: $28.00

CAT #: NA 5229LP

FILE UNDER: WORLD

"Now-Again Records presents catalog-wide reissues of Latin music propellant Joe Bataan's legendary Ghetto Records. First up in the series -- heavy salsa and Latin soul from Puerto Rico-born pianist Eddie Lebron and Orquesta Suave, the album that kickstarted Ghetto Records. Ghetto Records was Joe Bataan's way to get over on 'The Man' and out of the 'hood, a bold move by an artist looking for independence and creative control in an industry that had exploited his talents and treated him like chattel. As Bataan puts it today, 'Ghetto Records was part of my journey, a stepping stone to everything else that I've done. I learned enough that it enabled me to get out of the box with my thinking, it showed me how to deal with adversity.' Like many dreams and schemes born of the street, this one was audacious, perhaps even reckless to a fault. Hatched from desperation yet full of hope Ghetto Records came crashing down shortly after its inception. The seven albums in its discography languished out of print -- until now. These are the definitive reissues of these albums, licensed from Joe Bataan, with his oversight and input into a 16-page oversize book by Pablo Yglesias that details Bataan's larger-than-imagination life and his little Latin label that could."

 

PRICE: $28.00

CAT #: NA 5234LP

FILE UNDER: WORLD

"Now-Again Records presents catalog-wide reissues of Latin music propellant Joe Bataan's legendary Ghetto Records. Next up in the series: La Fantastica. This brash, big band Latin orchestra from Brooklyn debuted on Ghetto Records with an underground Salsa album which also contains the beguiling, English-language psychedelic soul of 'Latin Blues.' Ghetto Records was Joe Bataan's way to get over on 'The Man' and out of the 'hood, a bold move by an artist looking for independence and creative control in an industry that had exploited his talents and treated him like chattel. As Bataan puts it today, 'Ghetto Records was part of my journey, a stepping stone to everything else that I've done. I learned enough that it enabled me to get out of the box with my thinking, it showed me how to deal with adversity.' Like many dreams and schemes born of the street, this one was audacious, perhaps even reckless to a fault. Hatched from desperation yet full of hope Ghetto Records came crashing down shortly after its inception. The seven albums in its discography languished out of print -- until now. These are the definitive reissues of these albums, licensed from Joe Bataan, with his oversight and input into a 16-page oversize book by Pablo Yglesias that details Bataan's larger-than-imagination life and his little Latin label that could."

 

PRICE: $28.00

CAT #: NA 5235LP

FILE UNDER: WORLD

"Now-Again Records presents catalog-wide reissues of Latin music propellant Joe Bataan's legendary Ghetto Records. The series concludes with Drug Story -- rare and unreleased material from Joe Bataan and his Ghetto Records vaults, including an entire side of Bataan's never-before- issued 'Latin Funk' that spans the gamut from salsa to soul. Drug Story was inspired by true events and ranks highest among Bataan's finest achievements as the poet laureate of El Barrio. Ghetto Records was Joe Bataan's way to get over on 'The Man' and out of the 'hood, a bold move by an artist looking for independence and creative control in an industry that had exploited his talents and treated him like chattel. As Bataan puts it today, 'Ghetto Records was part of my journey, a stepping stone to everything else that I've done. I learned enough that it enabled me to get out of the box with my thinking, it showed me how to deal with adversity.' Like many dreams and schemes born of the street, this one was audacious, perhaps even reckless to a fault. Hatched from desperation yet full of hope Ghetto Records came crashing down shortly after its inception. The seven albums in its discography languished out of print -- until now. These are the definitive reissues of these albums, licensed from Joe Bataan, with his oversight and input into a 16-page oversize book by Pablo Yglesias that details Bataan's larger-than-imagination life and his little Latin label that could."

 

PRICE: $28.00

CAT #: NA 5270LP

FILE UNDER: SOUNDTRACK

"Before releasing their lone self-titled debut album, one of the most-rare rock records to be released in Europe in the 1970s, Paternoster provided the soundtrack for a film that could only have been made while the psychedelic movement was still in its first wave. The group's first recordings presented here are the soundtrack for Herbert Holba?s 1971 hippie sci-fi film Die Ersten Tage ('The First Days'), screened at the Berlin International Film Festival, and interestingly played on Austrian TV in August of that year. The material issued here is the genesis of Paternoster and set the stage for the release of one of the world's great rock albums with their self-titled debut the following year. The music has been painstakingly transferred directly from master tapes."

 

PRICE: $28.00

CAT #: NA 5271LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

"Drum-machine soul, funk, disco and boogie from Buffalo, NY. Rare 7" singles and previously unreleased tracks presented as a complete album. In the early '70s, Jessie Key and Sylvester Cleary -- two passionate idealists living in Buffalo, New York -- formed a close friendship based on a mutual mission to better their city. The Attica State Prison Riot of 1971 was a burning memory, and the Arthur vs. Nyquist lawsuit -- brought against the City of Buffalo for creating and maintaining a racially segregated school system -- was on the docket. Key was once a cotton-laborer in Mississippi, who journeyed north for school where he met his kindred spirit, Cleary. The two struck up an intense friendship, bought a drum machine and recorded their first 45, A Man, a paean to self-actualization and Black American empowerment, which they custom pressed and issued privately. Dozens of recordings followed over a decade long span, issued on local labels and warehoused on cassette tapes. Perennial optimists, Key & Cleary tried any -- perhaps every! -- path they could demarcate in hopes of forwarding their agenda of self-effected, positive change. They formed Buffalo's first minority-owned construction company, opened a health food restaurant in a building previously occupied by a fast-food chain, and even concocted a candy bar called 'The Buffalo Treat,' which they manufactured and sold locally. Eventually they started their own label, Buffalo's Reflection. On it they released their masterpiece, 'What It Takes To Live,' a sought-after disco and Northern soul classic, which previously appeared on Now-Again's Soul Cal anthology. This album collates the breadth of Key & Cleary's recordings from 1970 until the mid-1980s, both with songs issued on rare 7" singles and previously unreleased. It presents a conjoined musical vision and tells the story of a duo years ahead of their time, both musically and culturally. Love Is The Way was their ethos -- their goal was to enlighten humanity and to bend history in a more loving direction through communion."

 

PRICE: $28.00

CAT #: NA 5272LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

"The elusive gemstone of 1970s Harlem soul and funk from the Ray Alexander Technique, officially reissued with bonus tracks. Renowned for its enviable combination of musical muscle and malleability, guitarist/songwriter Raymond Alexander Jenkins' tight four-piece unit was so revered on the uptown club circuit that it was offered the opportunity to serve as the Apollo Theater house band. Jenkins demurred, hopeful and confident in his group's chances at making it on its own, and Let's Talk is the sublime result of their hard work. Independently released and recorded with a distinctly lo-fi charm, it is a collection of unabashedly sincere songs that perfectly encapsulates the era's heady milieu of Black pride and cultural awareness, and the plaintive emotion of struggling to realize dreams whilst navigating a city and neighborhood in decline. Personal tragedy coupled with Jenkins' inability to gain traction as a musician, would haunt him for years. But Let's Talk's reputation would eventually spread via word-of-mouth praise amongst soul and funk connoisseurs and record collectors. Now elevated to exalted status, it may finally be more widely appreciated as a testament to Jenkins' gifts. The main album is augmented by two songs by Ray Alexander Technique with Chris Bartley, not available on the original album."

 

PRICE: $24.00

CAT #: ORDER 001LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

First volume of the Order Of the Kite compilation series. Any fans of Japanese hardcore out there? Here is something for you. This two-part double LP compilation is a who's who of the underground scene, covering any key market from Tokyo to Sendai. Mostly released in the second half of the eighties -- with just a bunch of 1984 seven inches -- these tracks are a pretty rare example of suburban violence. Often influenced by English d-beat and Italy's early fast and furious hardcore agenda, those bands were more than a menace to the system. Here, for the first time on vinyl, two mandatory compilations (along with ORDER 002LP) depicting the decline of the Eastern civilization. Featuring Anti-Septic, Crime, Z, Disarray, The Sexual, and M78.

 

PRICE: $24.00

CAT #: ORDER 002LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

Second volume of the Order Of the Kite compilation series. Any fans of Japanese hardcore out there? Here is something for you. This two-part double LP compilation is a who's who of the underground scene, covering any key market from Tokyo to Sendai. Mostly released in the second half of the eighties -- with just a bunch of 1984 seven inches -- these tracks are a pretty rare example of suburban violence. Often influenced by English d-beat and Italy's early fast and furious hardcore agenda, those bands were more than a menace to the system. Here, for the first time on vinyl, two mandatory compilations (along with ORDER 001LP) depicting the decline of the Eastern civilization. Featuring The Clay, Bitousha, LSD, and The Execute.

 

PRICE: $26.00

CAT #: PP 1001LP

FILE UNDER: JAZZ

"This is the first stop on Sven Wunder's musical journey. Wunder takes the listener somewhere around the easternmost part of the Mediterranean Sea, around the Levantine Sea, where he paints a colorful portrait and illustrates the region's flora through sound. The fruitage is a vivid bouquet where Wunder fuses colors and pigments by using traditional and modern instruments merged with arrangements and melodies that stretch from popular to folk music by portraying tulips, red roses, hibiscus, hyacinths, chamomile, magnolia, daisies etcetera. With both fine and thick brushes these flowers are pictured in both modern and classic idiom. The outcome is prismatic. It stands between Anatolian rock and European jazz-funk with ponderous drum patterns, groovy organs, far-out synthesizers, enchanting sax, and impetuous bass lines. Eastern Flowers sweeps through time and space and points towards the future. It could appeal to both psych and prog listeners, folk or jazz aficionados, and as well the gourmet hip hop connoisseurs."

 

PRICE: $26.00

CAT #: PP 1004LP

FILE UNDER: JAZZ

"When the sun hovers near the horizon, the rays of white sunlight are scattered out of the beam by small particles and molecules in the atmosphere that sprinkle the sky with brilliant hues indicating that the day starts to fade. As night begins to fall, tree-tops redden and begin to glow. Darkness closes in and falls like a blanket covering the sky. It is late again and all is in shadow below. It is when stars align and dreams come true. Sven Wunder thrives at nightfall and welcomes the horizon of beginnings on Late Again, a collection of nocturnal jazz pieces that depict shooting stars and scattered beams from the setting sun, with an emphasis on gentle compositions for piano and orchestral pop-jazz arrangements for flute, brass, and strings."

 

PRICE: $29.00

CAT #: PF 013LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

2024 restock; LP version. "1979's 154 represented the final tableau in Wire's Harvest released '70s triptych and was the first Wire album to be released to a universal set of five star reviews from the British rock weeklies, thus it represented the point when the British 'pop culture establishment' publicly recognized Wire's primacy. '154 makes 95 percent of the competition look feeble' wrote Nick Kent in the NME, 'Wire are achieving a lot of things other--and more recognized--names have been striving for' wrote Chris Westwood in Record Mirror (a paper that had slagged off Pink Flag). 'The album is a musical tour de force' wrote Jon Savage in Melody Maker. Many said it was the album that Bowie and Eno had failed to make with Lodger (as hinted in the RM review), it was on John Lennon's playlist. Without a doubt, even if record sales did not bear it out, Wire had 'arrived.'"

 

PRICE: $22.50

CAT #: PROSTIR 003LP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

Music (guitar, bass, synthesizers and drums) by Dmytro Fedorenko. Artwork (aquarelle paintings) by Dmytro Fedorenko. Design by Zavoloka. Mastering and lacquer cut by Noel Summerville.

 

PRICE: $24.00

CAT #: PSR 026LP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

"This duo of Eva Titania Soledad Van Deuren (Orphan Fairytale) and Tristan Vloeberghs create wondrous, shapeshifting soundworlds. Glyphs & Gods bounds through the airy on muted sparkles and amorphous melodies tinged with psychedelia. Van Deuren and Vloeberghs spiral skeletal rhythms into darkened corners like they're being chased by water ghosts from another dimension. The music flits from formless whimsy to blurred terror the deeper it goes. Moments in the glaciated ether step downward and spit out sonic shards of guitar rinse and resonant vocal spells. Going further into the core of Glyphs & Gods only gets stranger, and more enticing. Textural globules are cut into tiny bubbles by sharpened timbres, opening a space for haunted houses to make themselves at home. It's all a setup to punch through into some kind of celestial paradise where we levitate on synthetic winds and the stillness of never. Highly recommended." --Foxy Digitalis

 

PRICE: $24.00

CAT #: RRS 001CV-LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

Released 20 years ago yet still retaining much of its Oi! impact intact, the debut album and last before a split that would last a number of years by No Future luminaries, Sunderland's Red Alert is a lesser-known classic in punk history. The locomotive chug and chant of unification in "We've Got The Power," the metallic burn of "Crisis," the acoustic-driven, kitchen-sink bristle of "Industrial Slide" or the caustic, hypnotic stomp of "Rebels in Society" exploding with fierce, powder keg intensity. With that in mind, and now pressed on color vinyl, as a prescient feature of not just English culture, but a culture that cuts deep, that stretches far, the art of brutality still lingers loud and clear. Double-sided lyrics insert included.

 

PRICE: $24.00

CAT #: RRS 018CV-LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

Color Vinyl LP. e-editor and label-manager whose role in the skinhead scene over the past 25 years has been somewhat crucial. Influenced by early reggae and '82-era UK Oi! and punk, but following in the tracks of Italian skinhead pioneers NABAT and Rough (90% of their songs are typically sung in Italian), Klasse Kriminale's career has been long and scattered with success. Originally released on the New Rose sublabel "Division Nada" (run by Berurier Noir's singer Francois), and long out of print, it was about time that their classic Faccia A Faccia from 1991 was available on vinyl again, with its original and extremely distinctive Alteau artwork and 3 bonus tracks! Printed inner sleeve. Poster included.

 

PRICE: $24.00

CAT #: RRS 138LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

Reissue, originally released in 1989. Full "UK-82"-styled live action from The Exploited. Recorded at the peak of their power between 1981 and 1985 in Leeds, Glasgow, Hamburg, Liubliana, and New York City. New, revised artwork featuring an exclusive photo by Alison Braun. Original liner notes by Gary Fielding.

 

PRICE: $26.00

CAT #: RRS 219CV-LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

White color vinyl. Anarcho-punks and animal rights activists Exit-Stance emerged from the anonymous new town of Milton Keynes, coming together in 1982 from the ashes of hardcore act Fuck Authority. Early gigs which featured disturbing anti-religious images displayed behind the group saw them banned from many a venue, but once Colin Jerwood of Conflict got in touch, they decamped to the studio to cut the blistering EP While Backs Are Turned..., speaking out against animal testing and the perils of meat market slaughterhouses, as well as negative aspects of Christian domination. A unique slice of early '80s UK punk anarchy -- get it now!

 

PRICE: $22.50

CAT #: RRS 219LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

Anarcho-punks and animal rights activists Exit-Stance emerged from the anonymous new town of Milton Keynes, coming together in 1982 from the ashes of hardcore act Fuck Authority. Early gigs which featured disturbing anti-religious images displayed behind the group saw them banned from many a venue, but once Colin Jerwood of Conflict got in touch, they decamped to the studio to cut the blistering EP While Backs Are Turned..., speaking out against animal testing and the perils of meat market slaughterhouses, as well as negative aspects of Christian domination. A unique slice of early '80s UK punk anarchy -- get it now!

 

PRICE: $26.00

CAT #: EZRDR 085LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

2024 restock; LP version. "The hits just keep coming -- for this fifth lysergic journey, Riding Easy assembles ten heavy slabs of obscure rock the likes of which have never been seen before... not in this form, anyhow. And as usual, the tracks from these impossibly rare records have all been fully cleared through the artists themselves. Great lengths were gone to in order to get the best possible master sources, the worst case scenario being an original 45. The legendary Captain Foam kicks off this trip like an anvil to your skull with a rollicking stomper sounding like The Who with Matt Pike's thunderous guitar tone. 'No Reason' wasn't easy to find, but lo and behold, the super sleuths located him and got his blessing to include the A-side of his sole single. Good luck finding an original copy of the record. It's rarer than raw beef -- and that's just the tip of the iceberg. The other nine tracks continue the onslaught in typical Brown Acid form: George Brigman's charmingly disjointed bedroom-fi production of 'Blowin' Smoke,' Finch's way out of time and place grungeadelic anthem 'Nothing In The Sun,' Cybernaut's heavy prog, Fargo's hallucinogenic BBQ-sauce soaked 'Abaddon,' Mammoth's fittingly beefy eponymous riff-monger, Flasher's 'Icky Bicky' boogie, Ohio-based screamers Lance, Zebra's gritty rendition of 'Helter Skelter' and finally, the mysterious and previously unheard Thor appears here exclusively and for the first time ever with their unknown 45 track 'Lick It.'"

 

PRICE: $47.00

CAT #: ROC 3467LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

"The Brat was a Chicano punk rock ensemble originating from the barrios of the East Los Angeles, California. Its three core members consisted of lead singer Teresa Covarrubias, lead guitarist Rudy Medina, and alternate lead and rhythm guitar player Sid Medina. From their conception in 1979 to their eventual break-up in 1985, The Brat contributed to the customization and intermeshing of multiple musical and cultural models that culminated in the distinct East Los Angeles, Chicano punk sound. The Brat, a hardworking and politically-conscious band, nurtured the DIY punk scene of East L.A., which was defined by unofficial venues and backyard shows because the wealthier West L.A. circuit controlled the popular market. By the time the famous Club Vex was founded in 1980 -- by Los Illegals frontman Willie Herron, who desired an official venue to host East L.A.'s numerous underrated bands, who were mostly Chicano -- The Brat had become one of the biggest acts in the area. In late 1980 The Brat was signed to the upstart label of another local punk group, The Plugz' Fatima Records. This collaboration resulted in The Brat's only recorded album, the EP Attitudes, a five-song collection of some of their popular originals featuring Covarrubias' aggressive, yet melodic, punk vocals critiquing social inequality and Rudy Medina's -- who was called Rudy Brat -- urgent guitar hooks over drums with a reggae feel. The Brat never found breakthrough success and remained an underground East L.A. Chicano act until breaking up in the late '80s. Contains all five tracks from the Attitudes EP. The other songs were performed and recorded but never released. In the past decade, the Brat have enjoyed a resurgence in attention. The 21-track compilation was released on CD and vinyl in 2017. Due to demand, it is now being repressed on limited edition red and blue-swirled vinyl. The band were featured prominently in the documentary film, Chinatown Punk Wars, which debuted on PBS in October 2023."

 

PRICE: $28.00

CAT #: RKNG 015LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

A few years back someone released a 10? boxset comprising of a box, badge, poster and a 10? lathe cut EP with just six tracks taken from the set played at Pukkelpop Festival in Belgium (Aug 26th 1990). It was claimed that there were only ten sets made. Here is basically the full gig with a great sound pressed on 200grm colored vinyl and housed in a high quality, heavy gauge sleeve with a beautiful glossy finish. No hand numbering, you can put your own number in up to 100 although it seems 200 have been pressed and what's more it comes with a fab poster, identical to the poster in the original box set.

 

PRICE: $22.00

CAT #: RIYH 007LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

"Fake Fruit distill Pink Flag-era Wire, Pylon, and Mazzy Star to expound on the absurdity of modern life. Front woman Hannah D'Amato leads the group through three-minute clap backs of minimal, moody post-punk."

 

PRICE: $11.00

CAT #: RS 072LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

Warehouse find, last copies. "Now expanded to a four piece, Common Eider, King Eider have crafted yet another blast of high-end wind chill that whips through the empty spaces in your skull. More stories of flora and fauna that hang beautifully in dynamic rooms of piano, strings, voices; and stargazing guitar explosions born of layer after layer of feedback. This ghost world is all gray and black, with a high condensation of loss penetrating throughout. Moonlight occasionally lights the path, but for the most part, prepare to be lost in the woods. Liz Harris (Grouper) and Tom Carter (Charalambides) on the tracks 'Ennui' and 'Earth Liver' add to the overall sense of dread." Includes poster.

 

PRICE: $35.00

CAT #: SAT 064LP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

More about the world has changed than not in the decade since dance production dyad Frank & Tony released their last full-length record, 2014's You Go Girl. Despite, or perhaps in spite of, this shifting landscape, house music has managed to stay fundamentally reliable (either a bug or its greatest feature, depending on who you ask). Where previously, Frank & Tony have been celebrated for their contemplative, studious approach to the genre, with 2024's Ethos, the Brooklyn/Biarritz-based duo return amidst metastatic cultural upheaval to prove out those scholarly credentials -- with an album that serves to remind listeners why dancefloors and liberatory politics consistently share the language of movements and revolutions. Undoubtedly, Ethos is tremendously influenced by the multitude of projects originating from, and supported by, the duo and their label in the decade since You Go Girl -- releasing records from a vast diversity of artists (including Nadia Khan, Gry, Villete, Darand Land, Alex Albrecht, DJ Sprinkles, and CCL), and Harris becoming curatorial voice of Brooklyn's premiere venue for audiophiles, Public Records, where he continues to amplify work across a global diaspora (and where the duo maintain a residency of wide praise). It is this bright energy and focus on the necessity of community and relationships that animates the aptly-titled Ethos. If past Frank & Tony releases have been lauded as "a coloring book in which someone has exclusively drawn inside the lines -- with extreme precision," Ethos deviates by inviting friends in for a game of exquisite corpse. From singer and pianist Eliana Glass, whose androgynous, double-reeded voice freestyles across album opener "Olympia," to distinct track features from fellow house masterminds DaRand Land, DJ Aakmael, and Lawrence over half of the album's nine tracks highlight artists in the larger Scissor & Thread circle.

 

PRICE: $25.00

CAT #: RFC 001LP

FILE UNDER: HIPHOP

"Flying Objects is the new collaborative project from indie heavyweights Smoke DZA and Flying Lotus -- featuring Black Thought (The Roots/Jimmy Fallon), Estelle, Conway The Machine, and more. Smoke DZA is a popular independent rapper from New York City who has worked with Big K.R.I.T., Wiz Khalifa, Action Bronson, and ASAP Rocky among others, and is a founding member of the Smokers Club. His album, Rolling Stoned was awarded the High Times Doobie Award for Hip Hop album of the year for 2011. Other popular album releases include Rugby Thompson (produced by Harry Fraud), Dream.Zone.Achieve (features from Cam'ron, Joey Bada$$, Ab-Soul, Wiz Khalifa, Curren$y), and Don't Smoke Rock (produced by Pete Rock). Flying Lotus is a producer, DJ, filmmaker and rapper from Los Angeles who has worked with Kendrick Lamar, Danny Brown, Mac Miller, Chance The Rapper, Blu, and more. He is also the founder of the record label Brainfeeder. He has released seven studio albums. His debut project 1983 dropped in 2006 on Stones Throw Records and his next six projects all came out on Warp Records -- to critical acclaim."

 

PRICE: $14.50

CAT #: SOMM 013LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

2024 restock. Stunning debut album from 1976 by legendary/cult UK folk musician Nigel Mazlyn Jones. Originally issued as a private pressing, Ship to Shore combines 6 and 12-string acoustic guitars with electric textures, effects and unusual soundscapes, culminating in the haunting progressive-folk 11-minute title-track. A folk-rock/acid-folk masterpiece highly recommended to anyone into John Martyn, Nick Drake, Michael Chapman, Bob Theil, or Pink Floyd. Mastertape sound, including an insert with photos and extensive liner-notes by Richard Allen. "... A pure, simple, thought-provoking, frightening and uplifting collection, it evoked timeless themes of environmental concern, spiritual surrender, natural wonderment, doubt and love all woven into a sparse yet entirely original acoustic folk sound." --Richard Allen (Freak Emporium)

 

PRICE: $14.50

CAT #: SCR 280CD

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

Not Me But Us are a new duo from Naples, Italy formed by acclaimed pianist and composer Bruno Bavota (who records for Temporary Residence) and electronic producer Fabrizio Somma (aka K-Conjog). Together they have made Two, a beautiful album that blends both of their influences with added echoes of ambient, techno, 2000s club culture, post-classical and post-rock. It's a stunning record and proof that when two very different musicians meet it's always possible for magic to happen. The eight tracks are a testament to their ability to translate raw emotion into a musical journey, forging a connection that goes beyond sound.

 

PRICE: $28.00

CAT #: SCR 280LP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

LP version. Not Me But Us are a new duo from Naples, Italy formed by acclaimed pianist and composer Bruno Bavota (who records for Temporary Residence) and electronic producer Fabrizio Somma (aka K-Conjog). Together they have made Two, a beautiful album that blends both of their influences with added echoes of ambient, techno, 2000s club culture, post-classical and post-rock. It's a stunning record and proof that when two very different musicians meet it's always possible for magic to happen. The eight tracks are a testament to their ability to translate raw emotion into a musical journey, forging a connection that goes beyond sound.

 

PRICE: $28.00

CAT #: FFL 085LP

FILE UNDER: JAZZ

LP version. To abandon animals for music -- and avant-garde jazz at that -- could seeming shocking to some people. However, it is exactly what Manuel Villarroel did, as he was a vet for three years before leaving his native Chili for Europe and a career in music. And though the animals may have suffered, the world of music can be grateful. Born in 1944, Manuel Villarroel lent an ear to the best pianists from North America: Oscar Peterson and Erroll Garner, then Herbie Hancock, McCoy Tyner, and Cecil Taylor. Manuel left Santiago in September 1970 to participate in the Contemporary Music Workshop in Berlin. To pursue his musical career, he rapidly decided to remain in Europe. The following year in Paris, Manuel began a quartet with saxophonist Jef Sicard (who would also play with his brother Patricio, in the Dharma Quintet). But the group would rapidly expand: Villarroel and Sicard added G?rard Copp?r? (saxophone), William Treve (trombone), Fran?ois M?chali (bass) and Jean-Louis M?chali (drums). And with the arrival of Sonny Grey, a Jamaican trumpeter heard ten years earlier with Daniel Humair, the Matchi-Oul Septet was complete. Complete and ready: on May 8th, 1971, Matchi-Oul was in the studio for G?rard Terron?s' Futura label. The septet recorded seven of the pianist's compositions. A succession of tracks which flow magically from one to the next: from the first drum strokes to the last deep notes of the bass, the successive waves roll over the piano and whistle through the wind instruments. And when they all come together it gives even greater force to Villarroel's beautiful songs. Terremoto is a masterpiece of collective expression.

 

PRICE: $28.50

CAT #: ARCHIVE 060LP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

Kashmiri Queens presents a more accessible side of Muslimgauze, featuring a faster tempo and fewer sonic overtones than his previous endeavors. The music's core is rooted in drone and raga samples complemented by a rich array of ethnic percussions. This 12" stands out for its authenticity, allowing the sounds of tablas, sitars, and various ethnic wind instruments to flourish openly without being interrupted. There's a notable departure from the usual style in one track, adopting a floating, ambient-like approach. While the music maintains a strong percussive quality, vocals make only occasional appearances throughout the tracks. It marks a departure from the artist's previous abrupt transitions, favoring a more concentrated and steady approach to the music. Sounds are allowed to linger for extended durations, providing a deeper listening experience. The beats take a backseat this time, although they remain a significant part of the musical tapestry. Notably, track nine is completely beatless, showcasing the artist's ability to create dramatic and twisted sonic landscapes with looped and distorted vocal excerpts. The tracks featured on Kashmiri Queens maintain a clean and polished sound, allowing the instrumentation and composition to shine. The third track weaves together drums, bells, a female singer, and enigmatic extended tones to create a compelling sonic journey. Track four introduces a drum-loop with a sussurus element and a backwards orchestral loop, culminating in an unexpected rhythm shift. Track ten employs a metallic tapping loop as its foundation, creating a distinctive rhythm in collaboration with the tabla. It also incorporates elements of strings, offering a dynamic soundscape reminiscent of early Muslimgauze work. The penultimate track is a moody and minimal masterpiece that plays with layers of metal loops, tabla, and zither, demonstrating the artist's innovative approach. In summary, Kashmiri Queens is an impressive addition to the Muslimgauze discography, staying true to their signature sound while introducing distinct elements that make it a must-have for fans of their work.

 

PRICE: $19.00

CAT #: SR 461CD

FILE UNDER: EXPERIMENTAL

The anthology Spectra Ex Machina brings together rare documents pertaining to so-called occult phenomena, most of them taken from little-known archives. In the course of three volumes, this series traces an audio history of parapsychology through the exploration of spiritualism and haunted houses (Vol. 1); musician mediums (Vol. 2); experiences of extrasensory perceptions (clairvoyance, psychokinesis, etc.) and electronic voice phenomena (Vol. 3). The documents gathered here are, by their extravagance and far-fetched aspects, more than the mere objects of belief one would be tempted to reduce them to. They are vestiges of aberrant phenomena, fossils of an unknown civilization buried in the depths of the unconscious that are revived, in a way, when audiences listen to them. They can be understood as "works," in the full artistic sense of the word, and constitute a kind of "cabinet of sound curiosities" that is worthy of aesthetic interest. Sometimes imbued with a disconcerting dramatic intensity, these documents bear the features of an authentic time machine, placing the listener in the position of a witness of the time immersed in the dim darkness of the experimental hall. And it is at that precise moment that the aesthetic power of these archives takes precedence over their probative value. Their somewhat old-fashioned charm, maintained by the surface noise of magnetic tapes and old wax disks, gets stronger with each listen. Comes with 32-page booklet.

 

PRICE: $19.00

CAT #: SR 462CD

FILE UNDER: EXPERIMENTAL

The anthology Spectra Ex Machina brings together rare documents pertaining to so-called occult phenomena, most of them taken from little-known archives. In the course of three volumes, this series traces an audio history of parapsychology through the exploration of spiritualism and haunted houses (Vol. 1); musician mediums (Vol. 2); experiences of extrasensory perceptions (clairvoyance, psychokinesis, etc.) and electronic voice phenomena (Vol. 3). The link between music, sound and the paranormal is manifested in many different ways. Gerard van der Leeuw, the Dutch historian and philosopher, wrote "Music represents the great struggle of reaching the wholly other, which it can never express." Furthermore, "The effect of music on the emotions is so mysterious as to seem magical. There is no logical explanation why a particular combination of musical notes, whether in the form of a tune or of a simple chord, can affect the heart. Nothing in nature has perhaps so persistently resisted explanation," as said Derek Parker, the British journalist. Since music is arguably the most intangible of the arts and since the paranormal, in all its manifestations, continues to intrigue people, the placing of these two subjects together seems obvious. This second volume of musical and audio anomalies continues and expands upon the works initially reproduced in the latter. Rosemary Brown makes a welcome re-appearance, especially with a performance of Gr?belei via Liszt, as well as the Caruso-inspired tenor Leo May making a repeat performance. Few people realize that both Anton LaVey and Aleister Crowley were quite fine musicians and Alex Sanders was also interested in music. The background music of Wagner's Tannh?user used by the latter combines both pagan and Christian elements. So close your eyes and let the magic of sound take over! Also featuring David Behr, Jack Webber, Robert, Rita Goold, Leslie Flint, Leo, Carmen Rogers, Uri Geller, Jean-Louis Victor, Joe Meek, Howard Menger, Barbara The Gray Witch, and Rev. Patrick J. Berkery, Ph. D.

 

PRICE: $15.50

CAT #: SR 538CD

FILE UNDER: ROCK

With "Folksong Distortions," Tom Pauwels and Liesa Van der Aa create a journey of lament through the soul of times gone by. Their radical renditions of works by Larry Polansky and Christopher Trapanido do not distort the more upbeat rhythm and tradition of folk songs, but rather reveal and highlight the essence of hard lives, imposed choices -- choices that were illusions in the first place -- and the difficult times and conditions they have always depicted. Christopher Trapani arranged two classics from the U.S. South, reimagining folk songs with microtones, improvisation, and electronic effects. The work, developed in collaboration with Tom Pauwels and Liesa Van der Aa, was originally made and featured on ICTUS' American Lament program. The duo was given considerable room for improvisation and interpretation in the process. The first song, "Wayfaring Stranger," is a well-known folk/gospel melody in A minor. The lyrics contrast an aimless journey through a harsh, hostile world, with the Christian promise of heaven as a "home" and reunion with lost loved ones. The second song, "Freight Train," was written by Elizabeth Cotten, a left-handed guitarist who held her guitar upside down, resulting in a very recognizable strumming style. "Sweet Betsy from Pike" and "Eskimo Lullaby" are taken from Larry Polansky's 2005 Songs and Toads, a five-section piece that consists of three settings of American folk songs and two computer-composed pieces. The work was originally written for guitar, more specifically for the national steel guitar, refretted in a specific intonation designed by Lou Harrison. Each piece explores a different guitar tuning. A significant intervention to the original work is made to accommodate Liesa Van der Aa's violin with effect pedals, opening to an epic re-reading of the work as conceived by the American composer Larry Polansky. What this set-up enables is a melancholy, slow-paced approach that quite radically opposes the more upbeat and joyful nature of the folk songs.

 

PRICE: $22.50

CAT #: SR 538LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

LP version. With "Folksong Distortions," Tom Pauwels and Liesa Van der Aa create a journey of lament through the soul of times gone by. Their radical renditions of works by Larry Polansky and Christopher Trapanido do not distort the more upbeat rhythm and tradition of folk songs, but rather reveal and highlight the essence of hard lives, imposed choices -- choices that were illusions in the first place -- and the difficult times and conditions they have always depicted. Christopher Trapani arranged two classics from the U.S. South, reimagining folk songs with microtones, improvisation, and electronic effects. The work, developed in collaboration with Tom Pauwels and Liesa Van der Aa, was originally made and featured on ICTUS' American Lament program. The duo was given considerable room for improvisation and interpretation in the process. The first song, "Wayfaring Stranger," is a well-known folk/gospel melody in A minor. The lyrics contrast an aimless journey through a harsh, hostile world, with the Christian promise of heaven as a "home" and reunion with lost loved ones. The second song, "Freight Train," was written by Elizabeth Cotten, a left-handed guitarist who held her guitar upside down, resulting in a very recognizable strumming style. "Sweet Betsy from Pike" and "Eskimo Lullaby" are taken from Larry Polansky's 2005 Songs and Toads, a five-section piece that consists of three settings of American folk songs and two computer-composed pieces. The work was originally written for guitar, more specifically for the national steel guitar, refretted in a specific intonation designed by Lou Harrison. Each piece explores a different guitar tuning. A significant intervention to the original work is made to accommodate Liesa Van der Aa's violin with effect pedals, opening to an epic re-reading of the work as conceived by the American composer Larry Polansky. What this set-up enables is a melancholy, slow-paced approach that quite radically opposes the more upbeat and joyful nature of the folk songs.

 

PRICE: $23.50

CAT #: SR 545LP

FILE UNDER: WORLD

Those recordings of gongs orchestras were produced in 2003 and 2004 during funeral ceremonies in two Kung villages and one Jara? village in Ratanakiri province, Cambodia by Laurent Jeanneau (Kink Gong), during a time when the jungle had not been replaced by rubber plantations. Focusing on funeral ceremonies, these hypnotics pieces are intense and haunting sonic experiments.

 

PRICE: $24.00

CAT #: SR 548LP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

This LP reveals the extraordinary diversity of research -- almost all hidden -- by Spanish musicians in the '50s and '60s. Those pieces were composed while the country was under the tyranny of Francisco Franco. It is truly the ultimate grail, developed by musicologist Miguel ?lvarez-Fern?ndez: he is its curator, editor and commentator. This undoubtedly marks a major step in the approach and understanding of this music which had to fight to exist before the death of Franco in 1975. Miguel ?lvarez-Fern?ndez (Madrid, 1979) is a writer. He hosts the weekly radio broadcast Ars Sonora -- dedicated to sound art and experimental music, and offering hundreds of freely available podcasts on Radio Cl?sica (Spanish National Radio). Five Spanish Pionniers of Eletronic and Experimental Music aims to present five composers who most often work outside the rules and without the possibility of help from their own country. Jose Val del Omar (1904-1982) is essentially a creator, a filmmaker developing a dreamlike art -- not without links with Federico Garcia Lorca or Luis Bu?uel. Eduardo Polonio (b. 1941) has published, in forty years, more than a hundred works. Josep Maria Mestres Quadreny (1929-2011) joined the Manuel de Falla Circle in 1952 and in 1974 he founded the Laboratori de M?sica Electroac?stica Phonos. During his life he collaborated with Joan Mir? and Antoni T?pies. Juan Hidalgo (1927-2018) participated in the music festival XII Internationale Ferienkurse Fur Neue Musik in Darmstadt in 1957. The following year he met the American composers John Cage and David Tudor. A member of Fluxus, in 1966 he participated with Gustav Metzger, Otto Muehl, Wolf Vostell, and Hermann Nitsch in the Destruction in Art Symposium in London. Crist?bal Halffter (1930-2021) was soon considered one of the most important composers of his generation. As a lecturer at the Internationale Ferienkurse f?r Neue Musik in Darmstadt, he worked with Pierre Boulez, Karlheinz Stockhausen, and Luciano Berio.

 

PRICE: $18.00

CAT #: SR 554CD

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

The album, featuring Milan Knizak, Petr Ferenc (aka Phaerentz) and Opening Performance Orchestra, includes Knizak's 1973 private recording Broken Music, released as a multiple of forty copies by Armin Hundertmark in 1983 on Edition Hundertmark, and a live version of Broken Rebroken, performed in January 2020 at the Museum of Czech Music in Prague. The album comes with a comprehensive 24-page booklet that includes an interview with Milan Knizak on the topic of Broken Music, an extended essay by Petr Ferenc that originally appeared in Czech Music Quarterly, visual documentation from the archives of Maria Knizakova and Opening Performance Orchestra, as well as Anna Bastyrova photographic documentation from the 2020 performance of Broken Rebroken. The cover of the album consists of photographs of Milan Knizak's now-defunct 1963 assemblage. Mastering was done by Stephan Mathieu and Gabriel S?verin, who also made the audio restoration of the archival recording Broken Music.

 

PRICE: $45.00

CAT #: SR 501LP

FILE UNDER: JAZZ

2024 limited restock "Duo Exchange was the flagship release of Survival Records. Percussionist Rashied Ali and saxophonist Frank Lowe were both in a hurry to ignite their careers as leaders, and this record lit the match. Survival Records was a joint venture between the duo, and the recording sessions done at Marzette Watts's studio were the maiden voyage of their partnership. They went in to capture the vehemence bursting forth nightly in the downtown lofts, and the results were furious, brutal, and poignant. With the release of this album in 1973, Ali and his family and Frank Lowe and his family all became executives and clerks helping to get the word out. And getting the records out -- at loft shows and Village record haunts. The message of untamed tenor saxophone and Ali's drums should sound familiar: That's the combination that made jazz history in Ali's 1967 duets with his then-employer, John Coltrane. What eventually came out as Interstellar Space is its own pinnacle of the genre, but its release was still a year off when Duo Exchange was issued to the public. Mixed and mastered from the original tapes, this expanded 2020 edition restores sections of the original record inexplicably excised from the CD release in the nineties, and expands on it with more than double the playing time of the original LP with fascinating outtake versions that rephrase the familiar tracks. 2xLP gatefold tip-on jacket, pressed on RTI Vinyl."

 

PRICE: $20.50

CAT #: SVVRCH 086LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

London-based psychedelic folk quartet Kaleidoscope formed as the Sidekicks in 1964, changing their name to the Key the following year. By the time they signed Fontana for the 1967 debut album Tangerine Dream, their choral pop harmonies were stronger and the musicianship more accomplished, the distinctly English folk undercurrents more pronounced. A favorite of Spaceman 3 and other connoisseurs of neglected psych, originals of this rare gem now change hands at extortionate prices and the work has aged like a vintage wine, the unjustly overlooked classic now rightly feted.

 

PRICE: $27.00

CAT #: THRILL 593X-LP

FILE UNDER: WORLD

Grey color vinyl. "Saicobab channels the vital energy of living music traditions through ecstatic performance. NRTYA, Sanskrit for 'dance,' explores the shared roots of Japanese and Indian spiritual practices in a tangible, intoxicating form. YoshimiO's experiments in this field are well documented and legendary from her work in OOIOO to her work in the Boredoms. Multi-instrumentalist Yoshida Daikiti reveals the human hand that shapes living traditions, as much through his fluid playing as his own collection of handmade instruments, while percussionist and multi-instrumentalist Motoyuki 'Hama' Hamamoto embodies the metaphysical power of rhythm. YoshimiO's wild vocal acrobatics and inimitable range shift from hypnotic chants to ethereal atmospherics and darting melodies, ducking and weaving around Daikiti's serpentine sitar figures and basslines. Hama's solid rhythmic architectures and deft polyrhythms are here enhanced by additional drums from Taketawa Yo2ro, slipping from subtle pulses to thundering grooves that drive the music. Saicobab's music exudes a true reverence for living musical traditions while remaining unbound by orthodoxy. The electrifying energy of the quartet's performance is palpable in every track, eliminating established hierarchies with performer and listener alike entwined in the same cosmic dance."

 

PRICE: $25.00

CAT #: THRILL 613LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

"Much like the North Carolina wilds it reflects, Needlefall waxes and wanes from mysterious and unsettling to ecstatic and awe-inspiring, capturing the sacred dimensions of the natural world. Magic Tuber Stringband draw on a host of fellow travelers to realize Needlefall's intricate arrangements, exemplifying the diversity of contemporary folk movements, placing their work in the tradition of modern innovators like Moondog, Harry Partch, Pauline Oliveros, and labelmate Sally Anne Morgan. The vast forests and mountains that inspire the band as a metaphor for living music traditions -- ever-changing and yet still standing, shaped over time by human hands while equally shaping the human experience. Magic Tuber Stringband, from North Carolina, are Courtney Werner and Evan Morgan, accompanied by their regular bassist Mike DeVito. Morgan is an organizer within the local music community, and Werner is a dedicated naturalist involved in local land stewardship. Needlefall answers the question 'what does a modern string band sound like?' with powerful new arrangements of traditional songs and transcendent originals. The album is teeming with life, translating abundant ecosystems into arcing melodies and shimmering, mystic drones. The band explains: 'If you spend enough time out in the woods you inevitably see or hear things that are hard to explain. I've been in caves where it's total darkness and you're enveloped by the disorienting sound of dripping water. The natural sights and sounds in these places are often repetitive, percussive, expressive, sometimes unsettling -- the way that water carves patterns into rock or tree trunks appear in endless rows.'"

 

PRICE: $27.00

CAT #: THRILL 613X-LP

FILE UNDER: ROCK

Purple color vinyl version. "Much like the North Carolina wilds it reflects, Needlefall waxes and wanes from mysterious and unsettling to ecstatic and awe-inspiring, capturing the sacred dimensions of the natural world. Magic Tuber Stringband draw on a host of fellow travelers to realize Needlefall's intricate arrangements, exemplifying the diversity of contemporary folk movements, placing their work in the tradition of modern innovators like Moondog, Harry Partch, Pauline Oliveros, and labelmate Sally Anne Morgan. The vast forests and mountains that inspire the band as a metaphor for living music traditions -- ever-changing and yet still standing, shaped over time by human hands while equally shaping the human experience. Magic Tuber Stringband, from North Carolina, are Courtney Werner and Evan Morgan, accompanied by their regular bassist Mike DeVito. Morgan is an organizer within the local music community, and Werner is a dedicated naturalist involved in local land stewardship. Needlefall answers the question 'what does a modern string band sound like?' with powerful new arrangements of traditional songs and transcendent originals. The album is teeming with life, translating abundant ecosystems into arcing melodies and shimmering, mystic drones. The band explains: 'If you spend enough time out in the woods you inevitably see or hear things that are hard to explain. I've been in caves where it's total darkness and you're enveloped by the disorienting sound of dripping water. The natural sights and sounds in these places are often repetitive, percussive, expressive, sometimes unsettling -- the way that water carves patterns into rock or tree trunks appear in endless rows.'"

 

PRICE: $28.50

CAT #: TOYT 142LP

FILE UNDER: ELECTRONIC

12 tracks originally released on the indie dance label Gomma Records between 2001 and 2010. Along with DFA and Output records, Gomma released a wild mix of electronic dance music, indie rock, underground disco, post punk and new wave funk that was big in the 2000s. Gomma released music by artists like Peaches, Whomadewho, The Rammellzee, James Murphy, LCD Soundsystem, and artists like Nick McCarthy of Franz Ferdinand. Here comes a second compilation part of Gomma tracks: Nancy Whang, the singer of LCD Soundsystem, WhoMadeWho (the band started their career on Gomma), Italian disco producer Bottin, UK Indie Disco hero The Deadstock 33s (aka Justin Robertson), NY Disco hipsters In Flagranti, German producer Munk, and many more. Gomma not only was a record label, but was also a home for cutting edge design, wild T-shirt styles, underground exhibitions with new artists from the Berlin scene and crazy poster and fanzine design. Many graphic design trends of the last years were preceded by what the artists on Gomma were doing. Also featuring Leroy Hanghofer, Headman, Mercury, Golden Bug, Cecile, Hiltmeyer Inc, and Bonar Bradberry.

 

PRICE: $28.00

CAT #: UR 150LP

FILE UNDER: EXPERIMENTAL

Solo debut album by Camila de Laborde aka Opuntia, who is part of the project Camila Fuchs. Pink color vinyl, edition of 300 copies. Includes download code. Mercurio is the debut album by Opuntia, the solo project of Mexico City producer Camila de Laborde. After three albums with her duo/band, Camila Fuchs (ATP/Felte, etc.), Camila decides to embark on a new path of musical and interpersonal exploration with Opuntia as her new alias, and with the album Mercurio as a statement of metamorphosis and creative process. Broadly speaking, Mercurio is a direct impact of beautiful melodies, rhythms, and voices that traverse a leftfield electronic pop axis, sprinkled with elegant nods to experimental transitions. In Mercurio, you can sense the spaces, textures, and echoes, akin to a sort of retro sci-fi analogy. Bass hits or percussions carry a weight that bursts forth yet delicately dissolves instantly -- perhaps another analogy, akin to liquid metal. From softness to fury across the ten songs, Opuntia proposes an artistic reinvention in constant movement. Speeds and spaces change, but the narrative remains consistent from beginning to end -- finding a place, a resolved utopia. Mercurio is darkly joyful, with substantial doses of sophisticated pop.

 

PRICE: $53.50

CAT #: VAMPI 183LP

FILE UNDER: WORLD

2024 restock. It's been a few years, but Vampisoul is back with the next installment of Colombian tropical bangers from the deep vaults of Discos Fuentes. The term Afrosound denotes an always exciting, sometimes surprising soundtrack chronicling the embrace, development, dissemination, and commercialization of the country's rich Afro-Coastal musical heritage over more than four decades. It is the proud sound of African-rooted culture translated, transformed, and transmitted through the commercial enterprise of Discos Fuentes, and this third collection offers an even more diverse and chronologically wide-ranging array of tracks than the previous two volumes, with an even stronger focus on the music's folkloric origins. The unifying factor this time is the same: African roots or influences and the period of experimentation, self-expression, upheaval, rebellion, and rebirth in the industry, nurtured by the label and its stable of musicians, song-writers, producers, and engineers. Although this volume does not list Fruko Y Sus Tesos in the track-by-track credits, the presence of Julio Ernesto Estrada Rinc?n can be felt throughout, with the first half setting the stage for his artistic birth, schooling and eventual emergence at the label, and the second half featuring bands that he was an integral part of or had a hand in creating, producing, and composing for. And with that said, Vampisoul dedicate this collection to Fruko: long may he reign as "The King of Afrosound". This incredible stream of black gold adorned and enriched the public airways of Cali, Buenaventura, Cartagena, Baranquilla, to become a symbol of pride and part of Colombia's collective identity. Afrosound Vol. 3 comprises an outstanding selection of 26 hard-to find-tracks, many reissued for the first time, covering a wide array of Afro-rooted genres, with a stronger focus on the music's folkloric origins than in previous volumes, featuring recordings by the likes of Michi Sarmiento, Wganda Kenya, The Latin Brothers, Los Corraleros De Majagual, Peregoyo... Includes an extended booklet with notes by compiler Pablo Yglesias aka DJ Bongohead. Also features Pepe Vel?squez y Su Arpa Paraguaya, Pedro Salcedo Y Su Orquesta, Pedro Laza Y Sus Pelayeros, Los Alegres Diablos, Juan Pi?a Y Sus Muchachos, Pello Torres Y Sus Diablos Del Ritmo, Los Sat?lites, Julio Erazo Y Su Conjunto, Ariza y Su Combo, Pedro Jairo Garc?s Y Su Guitarra Estereofonica, Los Claves, Los Super Star De Colombia, Peregoyo Y Su Combo Vacan?, La Carnaval Swing, El Sexteto Miramar, To?o Y Su Combo, Juancho Vargas Al ?rgano, El Super Combo Los Diamantes, C?sar Pompeyo Y Su Sonora, La Integraci?n, Dimensi?n Caribe De Pedro Conde, Michi Y Sus Bravos, and Afrosound.

 

PRICE: $32.00

CAT #: B 3360201LP

FILE UNDER: JAZZ

Released in 2021. "Long-considered Charles Mingus' masterpiece, The Black Saint And The Sinner Lady represents high-water marks in both jazz composition and orchestration. An essential work in the history of jazz, this extended work has been performed as a ballet and features original liner notes by Mingus' psychotherapist. Verve's Acoustic Sounds Series features transfers from analog tapes and remastered 180-gram vinyl in deluxe gatefold packaging. Pressed at QRP, gatefold sleeves printed by Stoughton."