The strange thing about the music of Anima is that it's often considered as strange, while it's actually very natural. It has a free spirit, analog to nature. For this release the natural spirit is strengthened by the participation of indigenous American flute player and composer R. Carlos Nakai who did a series of concerts in the US and Europe with Paul and Limpe Fuchs in the 1980s. As with almost all Anima work, the natural feel manifests itself not only by the musical approach and sounds generated by metal, wood, stone and air, but also by the absence of electronic devices. This LP is a reissue of a rare privately released cassette from 1988 and was recorded by the Bayerischer Rundfunk.

New Jackson marks his long-awaited follow-up to 2017's From Night To Night with its successor Oops!...Pop for long-time collaborators Permanent Vacation. A concise triumph in techno pop, its nine tracks elevate his signature electronic sounds into anthemic new heights. David Kitt is a prolific sonic polymath who's enjoyed a colorful career making whatever he likes. While releasing music under a vast array of aliases and collaborations for close to two and a half decades, New Jackson has remained his irregular home since 2011 for when "at one with the machines." It offers a kaleidoscopic window into his love of dance music, and on his debut album under the alias From Night To Night he unfurled his singular vision; a dilated suite of nocturnal soul coaxed from his beloved electronic equipment with songwriter's nous, sonically etched as blunted whispers coalesced from the dusky billows of Dublin bay. In the time since his New Jackson debut, he's slowly distilled his studio methodology to help mine the true core of his musical self. Within this experimentation, he has stumbled upon the bounty that is OOPS!... POP, his most direct and euphoric body of work to date. Recorded across the span of five years and three different countries, Kitt has managed to transform his beloved alias into a leaner beast, tightening the screws around arrangements and songwriting to inspire an album sonically effortless in demeanor and spontaneously playful in structure and form. Aided by a stacked cast of collaborators including Rita Lynn, Donnacha Costello, Riche "Jape" Egan, Yenkee, Kean Kavanagh, Margie Jean Lewis, Meg Cronin, and Fehdah, it bears the hallmarks of the studio albums of yesteryear in its dynamism and gratification while drawing on his rich bouquet of influences across a century of recorded music. New Jackson's oeuvre, indeed David Kitt's musical world, is vast; OOPS!... POP then might just be his opus across it all, a towering achievement of soaring catharsis in melody and song that soundtracks the most direct transmissions from his heart to yours.

LP version. Står op med solen ("Rising with the sun") is the second album by Amalie Dahl's Dafnie. With this album, the band continues the exploration of their collective sound. There are influences from both old school free jazz, and contemporary Scandinavian jazz like Fire! Orchestra and Christian Wallumrød Ensemble, as well as clear connection to the Trondheim milieu, where the group was founded in 2020. The energetic and expressive band explores their more subtle side with this record. Står op med solen is an album longing for humans to be one with nature. The music comments on the world's ultra-capitalistic power structures of today. The band navigates like one organism through parts of organic free jazz, strict structures and composed cells. They start out where their first record ended, in the familiar free jazz sound with riffs and melodies, and go safely on their onward journey. Amalie Dahl's Dafnie brings together five well-known names from the Norwegian jazz scene, also known from other projects like Kongle Trio, Bliss Quintet, I like to sleep, Veslemøy Narvesen, Galumphing Duo, Treen, and Trondheim Jazz Orchestra, among others.

Several years of mutual appreciation and encounters on and off-stage have been the root of this chance meeting, resulting in an unplanned mysterious collaboration album where the aura of each individual is augmented by the magic osmosis of united forces. The 12-tracks display a collage of dreamy musique concrète with desolate instrumental and vocal interventions, masterfully balanced out by Vincent Epplay.

For more than 40 years, Anne Gillis has discreetly unfolded her proper singular universe without any compromise. She playfully moves with determined restrictions, excavating contrasting forces; sensual and visceral, mechanical and organical, black and white. She extends this personal expression in her visuals using self-portrait photos, handwritten text and her theatrical performances are equally aligned. Her music can be considered as musique concrète using the tape machine as compositional tool, manipulating her recorded sources, mainly consisting of extended voice and different (instrumental) sounds with addition of electronics and treatments. In both her photography and her music, Anne Gillis works fully analog.

The only example of a working sixth-tone harmonium in the world belongs to the collections of the National Museum and is permanently exhibited in the Czech Museum of Music in Prague. Sub Rosa presents these new compositions that were written by Phill Niblock, Klaus Lang, Bernhard Lang, Milan Gustar, Judith Berkson, Idin Samimi Mofakham, and Ian Mikyska. The premiere of these compositions took place in August 2023 as part of the Ostrava Days contemporary music festival. Performed by pianist Miroslav Beinhauer, who is currently the only musician in the world to be able to play this unique instrument. The first model of the sixth-tone harmonium was created in the 1920s on the basis of a commission from the pioneer of microtonal music, Alois Hába, whose visions for its construction convinced the company August Förster. The improved model of the harmonium dates from 1936 by the same company. The first Czechoslovak president Masaryk supported the purchase of the new instrument by contributing ten thousand crowns, and the same amount was added by the Ministry of Education and National Enlightenment at the time. In 2018, Miroslav Beinhauer participated in the premiere of Hába's sixth-tone opera Come Thy Kingdom, followed by the staging and recording of Alois Hába's opus Six Compositions For Sixth-Tone Harmonium, op. 37, which was the only solo composition for this instrument for more than ninety years. In the last three years, new repertoire for sixth-tone harmonium has been written by renowned Czech and foreign composers.

For the very first time on vinyl, Jah Wobble's 1997 extraordinary descent into downtempo and world beat science. Released on his now-defunct 30 Hertz label, The Light Programme showcased an excellent cast of musicians. On board are historical Can drummer Jaki Liebezeit, with more of his African-induced rhythms; multi-instrumentalist and The Wire contributor Clive Bell, conga player Neville Murray, guitar and synth player Mark Ferda, and the exceptional harpist Zi-Lan Liao. If you enjoyed My Life In the Bush Of Ghosts you'll fall in love with The Light Programme.

Sonor Music Editions presents this revived issue of Open Air Parade, one of the most sought-after artifacts from the golden era of Italian library music. This holy grail was originally released in 1972 on the legendary Sermi Records label (often referred to as SR Records). It features ten tracks composed by Ennio Morricone's whistler, Alessandro Alessandroni, revealing his great talent and unrivaled sense of melody, accompanied by the brilliant Italian jazz bassist Giovanni Tommaso, also founder and member of the legendary prog-jazz-rock ensemble Perigeo. Open Air Parade is a masterpiece and rightfully sits among the top five in its genre. It has a beautiful cohesiveness throughout and can only be described as sincere. The music ranges from superb psychedelic lounge funk, compelling groovy jazz beat tunes, and far-ranging mood music with lush arrangements. It's an essential album, officially reissued by Sonor Music Editions. This 2024 repress has been carefully remastered, and packed in a thick cardboard sleeve with fully restored artwork using the original painting by Ernst Wilhelm Nay in full fidelity.

After achieving some decent notoriety, and not only in Italy, as an electro-pop duo (thanks mainly to the single "Short Wave," a small "classic" in the early years of that decade), between January 1982 and March 1983 Ruins morphed into a new five members line-up. With this fresh option, Ruins restructured the previous repertoire and produced entirely new material. The original four-track recording had remained largely unpublished at the time and seemed irretrievably lost. However, thanks to persistent research and with the aid of modern technology, they have been brilliantly recovered from the archives and are now available in this collection aptly titled Brain Flakes (The Lost Combo Tapes), bringing to light the "explosive" blend of prog, funk, new wave, and electro-pop, that Ruins' short-lived lineup managed to create in just over a year of activity.

The third chapter of the Milano Undiscovered series, curated by Fred Ventura takes listeners on a journey through the vibrant Milanese techno and house scene of 1988-1992. This latest installment unveils a treasure of unreleased demos, showcasing the productions that emerged from the city's flourishing underground during this era. Inspired by the pioneering sounds emanating from Chicago, Detroit, London and Sheffield, a wave of Milanese producers embarked on a creative odyssey, crafting their own unique sonic interpretations of the electronic dance music landscape. Featuring Sigma Tibet, B-Logic, Grey Area, Mont Blanc, Straight Beat, Love Nation, Soul City Crew, Visions Factory, Periferico, and Beat 4 Life.

Starting out as a typical U.K. club soul band, and then turning toward psychedelia and prog rock in the latter half of the '60s, Pesky Gee! changed their name in 1970 to Black Widow and reached the public eye with their occult masterpiece Sacrifice. Their 1969 debut on Pye is considered a turning point in the British jazz-blues scene. With a cool Hammond organ vibe and some truly fascinating acid-folk harmonies -- both intoned by male and female singers -- Exclamation Mark is more than a mythological album! Licensed from Sanctuary/BMG.

"Big Hotel, the sophomore effort of Winged Wheel, is an evolutionary document. Core members Cory Plump (Spray Paint, Rider/Horse, Expensive Shit), Fred Thomas (Tyvek, Idle Ray), Whitney Johnson (Matchess, Damiana), and Matthew J Rolin (Powers/Rolin Duo, solo) expand their lineup to include Lonnie Slack (Water Damage) and Steve Shelley (Sonic Youth), and instead of the entirely remote method utilized to create their 2022 debut No Island, the far-flung party convened in person in Kingston, NY for a long weekend of live studio recording. The results are undeniably compelling. The band's signature cyclonic energy is simultaneously augmented and refined with the approach of real-time collaboration. After tracking three days' worth of group improvisations, weirdly-born songs, and other spontaneous creations, the hours of material were edited with a similar intensity. Half-hour jams became three-minute ragers and fragments were looped into infinity, calling on the same spliced aesthetic as some of the most adventurous material by Can, Faust, or more recently the experimental production of the International Anthem camp. The stereo field has been torn apart and sewn together again, rerouted with strange and mesmerizing left turns. Vignettes of ambiguous construction, both tightly coiled and exploding, revolve around themselves, gathering intensity and mass, coalescing into something greater than the sum of its parts. Where No Island was born out of distance and murk, these songs breathe and erupt in close quarters. Though the band isn't necessarily concerned with finding new levels of clarity, there's a newfound power in the steady drive of Shelley's unmistakable rhythmic style, and the unexpected interplay that builds on this foundation. Big Hotel is the sound of what happens in the rare and intriguing moments when Winged Wheel are all in the same room." --Jen Powers

Cara Beth Satalino built her adulthood in feral, eccentric Baltimore, Maryland, waiting tables and playing in a band, keeping her schedule flexible just in case an opportunity arose. Though spontaneity seemed inevitable as an artist, she was stuck. Paralyzed by her own assumptions of what a musician's life needed to be, time passed undetectably -- more songs written, more gigs played, tips in pocket on which to survive, undying hopes of "making it" in the music industry. In a moment of frustration, Cara Beth left Baltimore to pursue further schooling. Along with her partner Chester Gwazda -- fellow member of indie band Outer Spaces -- the couple moved to New Jersey only to be met with a chronic illness diagnosis for Cara Beth, a global pandemic, a surprise pregnancy, looming mental-health issues, and the inevitable obligation to quit school. So much upheaval after fifteen years of a predictable lifestyle led to the creation of Little Green, a bold, stripped-back, ten-song distillation of identity out on UK label Worried Songs. Born in upstate New York, the breeding ground for America's rich history of folk and settler traditions, Cara Beth was steeped in acoustic sounds from a young age. Her father, an accomplished instrumentalist, colored her childhood with the vibrations of fiddle, banjo, guitars, and mandolin. Though she had spent much of her indie rock career rarely allowing these influences to show, the unravelling of her life seemed like a perfect time to be honest about her musical framework. As "Warmth of A Golden Sun" opens Little Green with what feels like a folk-rock dirge over Casio drum machine beats -- Cara Beth offers a sonic analogy about her move from weird city life into warm analog intimacy. "Dandelion Weed" plants the listener firmly into her ecosystem of pedal steel and close-microphoned acoustic guitar, but with succinct rock drumming that gives the song's spaciousness a sturdy foundation. Though the influences of Fairport Convention, James Taylor, and Sandy Denny are all opaquely present throughout the record, surprising twists like the Velvet Underground electricity of "Little Green" and the classic '70s country shuffle on "Time", broaden the scope out of upstate New York into the eclectic artist she has become. Sitting above this spacious sonic palette is the obvious allure of Little Green: Cara Beth's voice. Her vocal tones span centuries, from traditional mountain singing to hints of young Dolly Parton and the delivery of Gillian Welch.

A humanity-reminding suite of miracle moments, Someone Like Me unites a geographically unbound cast of real people in pursuit of a meaningful connection. Taping their lived experience in economic studios in quiet English counties, Pacific Northwest woodland retreats and the big city bustle of Sydney and Los Angeles, these kindred spirits rendered sheer beauty in the process. Custom pressed folk songs of love, loss and the lord savior. Illuminating minor works from seasoned players such as former Syndicate Of Sound chart-topper Sharkey and late-era Canned Heat lynchpin James Thornbury, the collection simultaneously honors the fleeting amateurism of hobby musicians. With their one shot at tangible vinyl, freshman Lynne Ann Kingan realized her loose bubblegum rocker on campus time, while U.S. Navy recruit Fred Potts cut his unconditionally serene ballad remotely stationed on a Spanish naval base. Spartan production continues to reign with Jon Betmead's hair-raising gospel, howling into infinite space, and Goldrust's stripped back garden hymn. Throughout the hour-long reflection, faith has an intermittent yet revelatory presence, most overtly with the divine choral soul of Seventh-day Adventist quartet Remnant. More subtly, Gary Ramey and Jim Kennedy both turned to song in their spiritual quests, offering their all to a universal power. An irrefutable compilation cornerstone, the National Office For Black Catholics showcased Charles Murphy's lionhearted account of the Black experience at a 1971 concert. Five years earlier, high school seniors The Superwomen would use their hauntingly angelic harmonies to address racial inequity with a breathless take on "Lowlands." Reaching the furthest corners, Someone Like Me secures the inaugural license of three homespun masterpieces. Discovered by fluke in the digital haystacks of Youtube and Soundcloud, Jim Huxley's bedroom pop earworm melds peacefully into Charlie Webster's synthesized reverie. Meanwhile, Hollywood's John Agostino introduces us to the bizarre world of tax scam records, with the artist only now learning that his tender psych-folk demos were leaked via a 1977 bootleg. Compiled and lovingly restored by armchair digger Mikey Young (Eddy Current Suppression Ring/The Green Child), Someone Like Me pays due service to seventeen rarefied journals of truth and devotion. Adorned with visual artist Chris Fallon's figure and flora dream extractions, the uniting songbook is further detailed by expansive track-by-track liner notes and a forward from San Franciscan poet Rod Roland. Also featuring The Bob Hughes Band, Jon Betmead, Robison Kaplan Ltd., and Ritchie Tierney. Original recordings range from 1966 to 1990.

WRWTFWW Records is flying high as it announces the reissue of the 1997 ambient masterpiece Quiet Logic by electronic music visionaries Mixmaster Morris (The Irresistible Force), Jonah Sharp (Spacetime Continuum), and Haruomi Hosono (Yellow Magic Orchestra). Quiet Logic invites listeners to embark on a captivating sonic odyssey, blending intricate rhythms and celestial environments that push the boundaries of electronic music. Co-crafted at Haruomi Hosono's Tokyo studio in 1997, this album represents a time of rapid transformation in the genre, with these three artists at the forefront of redefining soundscapes. With its unique blend of influences from Hosono's immense contribution to electronic, pop, and experimental music to Morris' worldwide chill out DJ performances and Sharp's pioneering label, Reflective, Quiet Logic remains a timeless piece of ethereal electronica. It was originally only released in Japan in CD format on the Harry Hosono-curated Daisyworld Discs label. Remastered for 2024, this reissue is a must-have for fans of Haruomi Hosono/YMO, The Irresistible Force, Spacetime Continuum, Dreamfish, Tetsu Inoue, FFWD, H.I.A., Fax +49-69/450464, and mind-expanding musics. Immerse yourself now.

2024 repress. Be With Records presents a reissue of Vaughan Mason and Butch Dayo's Feel My Love, originally released on Salsoul in 1983. If ever an album could transport one to the hazy sunshine and imagined halcyon paradise of Southern California in the mid-1980s, or could capture the early evening warmth of hanging at an inclusive boogie jam as it approaches "magic hour" in Santa Ana or Anaheim, then it's Feel My Love. A brilliantly produced deep slung, low rider funk classic, it's a masterpiece of "funk love music." A perfectly formed five track mini LP of unparalleled heat, there's one song here that, above the rest, represents Orange County boogie-funk. A straight killer beloved by all that have had the pleasure of moving to it. A track that can fill up a dance floor within seconds of its starting. That song is the eternal title track, "Feel My Love". This is a work of art that made people fall in love with the funk -- it transcends the limitations of genre. "Feel My Love"'s deceptive simplicity makes it perfect to drop during a house set, a classic funk party or at a west coast rap jam. It's sexy, deeply emotional, melancholic, hopeful, passionate and just radiates so much raw energy -- this is music. The rest of the record is hardly filler though. Opener "Oh, Love" is a dizzying, emotional slow jam. With heaven-sent vocals riding gorgeous, sweeping keys that alternate between sweet twinkling lines and funk-fuelled stabbing -- it's sensational. A rollerskating jam named "Rollalong Songs" is an ultra-swish piece of dance floor dynamite; its slick drums, staccato piano, and neck-snapping claps underscore Dayo's buoyant vocals. It's essentially "Bounce, Rock, Skate, Roll Part II". The flip begins with "Party On The Corner" with smoother-than-silk vocals, day-glo synths, a bubbling bassline, and guitar licks that would surely receive the Prince seal of approval. It's another example of how Mason and Dayo flirt with perfection so routinely. The majestic closer, the kaleidoscopic, cow-bell-assisted synth-funk heater "You Can Do It" is a proto-rap groover that truly smokes. This LP is a stone-cold jam and finding original copies on vinyl at affordable prices has been tough for years. Mastered by Simon Francis, cut by Pete Norman, with lovingly reproduced artwork, this Be With reissue ensures this legendary LP now sounds, looks and feels as sensational as it should. 180 gram pressing.

LP version. Wolfgang Tillmans' latest album, Build from Here, is driven by a desire to explore and to expose. It navigates joy and heartbreak amid ruin and rebuilding, embodying hopeful defiance in uncertain futures. The songs vary in style, from propulsive and catchy to contemplative, featuring lush instrumentals transitioning into danceable beats. Tillmans' voice, whether growling and confrontational or tender and stripped down, maintains its prominence throughout, serving as the album's core. Also featuring FRAGILE.

Double LP version. Hot Casa Records present Togo Soul 2, selected rare Togolese recordings from 1974 to 1989. A treasure-trove of rare and unusual recordings mostly recorded in Lomé during the '70s and '80s. A fusion of traditional voodoo chants, raw soul and even electro funk. Finding these tracks and their rights holders hasn't become any easier even after few trips all over this west African country bordered by Ghana, Benin, and Burkina Faso. After eight years, Hot Casa Records, with the kind help of Roger Damawuzan, decided to select thirteen tracks, a snapshot of some hundreds of rare and often forgotten tapes from the most prolific, professional and exciting phase of the country's recording history included international stars like Akofa Akoussah, Gregoire Lawani, and Roger Damawuzan. Many of the tracks featured here are peppered with innovation and experimentation highlighting how diverse, the music scene in Togo was at the time even if the political context influenced their creation. Many of the original albums these tracks are taken from high prices online due to their rarity and so with great pleasure Hot Casa present a selection here that evokes a golden boomtime in Togolese music history. Includes biographies and rare photos. Remastered by Frank Merritt. Includes 32-page booklet. Also featuring Ali Bawa, Napo De Mi Amor, Alognon Degbevi & Les Vétérans Jazz, Mamo Lagbema, Koffi Ottytana Bebli, Deg Dos, Tomede Ehue, Mawuli Decker, Palete Wawa, and Agboti.

A.R. & Machines is the solo project of one Achim Reichel. Released in 1971, this album still retains a magical touch. Ranked between the most original kraut albums of all the time, Die Grune Reise (aka The Green Journey) really is a trip. Turning his back to the original beat movement, Reichel embraced the infinity of a multi-layered sound, experiencing the most prolific path of prog rock while joining the obscure meanders of the lysergic renaissance.

Merzbow (aka Masami Akita), animal rights activist, writer, and musician, an iconic figure in international noise scene. Renowned for his pioneering contributions to the noise music genre, Merzbow has solidified his position as one of its most significant and recognizable figures. From his groundbreaking utilization of tape loops to craft expansive industrial landscapes in the late 1970s, to his transition to laptop-generated static noise at the turn of the century, Merzbow has consistently pushed the boundaries of sonic experimentation. Modern Obscure Music now unveils Merzbow's debut release on the label, Tsubute Mosaic.

Icelandic musician and visual artist Sunna Margrét presents her debut full-length album, Finger on Tongue, via No Salad Records. Citing influences from krautrock legends CAN and Neu!, outsider synth pop artist The Space Lady and electronic music pioneers Suzanne Ciani and Eliane Radigue, Finger on Tongue is a masterclass in experimental pop, capturing an authentic Icelandic essence through its electronic and spellbinding sounds. Some tracks offer softness and peace while others invite you to dance, and the album homogeneity is precisely ensured by the rigorous approach to writing.

Double LP version. Einstürzende Neubauten present their new album Rampen (apm: alien pop music). Since the band was founded on April 1, 1980, Einstürzende Neubauten have been shifting the parameters of mainstream and subculture to make the inaudible audible -- perhaps the unheard as well. This experimental field research, spanning more than four decades, is now entering the next stage. In its 44th year of existence, the band is going back to its roots while redefining itself. It's a change in self-image, for which the Berlin quintet plus one has created its own genre -- alien pop music.

"Jackson C. Frank has become a folk legend. As an American folk musician and songwriter known for his brief but influential career in the 1960s, his debut album, Jackson C. Frank, is considered a folk classic. It featured songs like 'Blues Run the Game' and 'Milk and Honey,' which have been covered by numerous artists over the years, including Simon and Garfunkel, Nick Drake, and Bert Jansch."

Saginaw Racket, the new double album by Sir Richard Bishop, features the first new recordings from the former Sun City Girls guitarist in over five years. It is a singular work for electric guitar in four parts with each part being a full side. Each of the four parts were recorded in one take and they are presented in the order they were originally recorded. But this is also a circular work with no fixed beginning or end. One can start the record with any of the four sides, with the remaining sides then played in order. Known for his interpretations of Spanish, North African, Middle and Far Eastern guitar and string compositions, Richard Bishop never remains long in any one musical territory. There are no Eastern or exotic touches here. It is more reminiscent of early '70s underground rock (unrock). The entire work is improvised, with recurring motifs and melodies. It is similar in approach to Neil Young's Dead Man Soundtrack, but Saginaw Racket is louder, more energetic and more complex, while retaining its cinematic quality. The tone of the guitar is the voice of the record. It is noisy at times but it is not "noise." It definitely is a racket, though, and it unleashes all the pent-up energy of the last few years, during much of which, SRB never even picked up a guitar. So in a sense Richard Bishop is returning to his roots in the form of a spontaneous soundtrack to old Saginaw where he grew up and first learned to play the guitar -- a Saginaw that certainly doesn't exist anymore. Saginaw Racket is limited to 400 copies pressed on 140g black vinyl.

Agua Larga offers an immersion into the Afro-Ecuadorian culture of the province of Esmeraldas. The authors have captured how music is part of the daily life of the inhabitants, and how it interacts with the other sound elements that surround it. The musical material is thus accompanied by stories, poems and scenes of everyday life captured on the spot, far from aseptic studios, in public spaces, on river banks or by the sea. The guiding theme is water ("agua" in Spanish), in all its forms. It was the sea that brought the slaves to this new continent, but it is the sea that supplies the fishermen of today with fish. The rivers and streams used by boats and pirogues connect the villages of this rainforest. Water has also become a rare commodity in the city, where access is still difficult for some of the population. Scenes taken on the spot will mark this omnipresence of water, as a place to live and a necessary daily resource. This documentary project is intended as a sound testimony to an oral culture that is still too little known.

Boîte Boîte is the latest collection from French trumpeter Jac Berrocal. Composed of rare and previously unreleased tracks, it plunges the listener into the fascinating world of this unclassifiable and timeless avant-garde artist. Recorded between Paris, New York, Berlin and Riga, the works are received like postcards from an unknown sender and enjoyed without moderation. The selection, devised by Jac Berrocal himself, oscillates between experimental tracks such as the eponymous "Boîte Boîte" and electronic pop delusions such as "Amarena." Impeccably mixed by Vincent Epplay. Limited edition.

Yuval Havkin, also known as Rejoicer, is one of the foremost exponents of downtempo music, inspired by the fusion of jazz and hip-hop. This Is Reasonable draws on his early influences while exploring the world of calm, melodic electronic music that borders on ambient. This Is Reasonable has a chill-out feel to it, a record filled with melodies and atmospheres that, throughout its eleven tracks, conveys a sense of calm and floating, akin to ambient music. Stripped of the clichés of the genre, the album is built around subtle melodies and rich harmonies from keyboards and synths, which borrow as much from the spirit of jazz as from the inventions of electronica, whilst being supported by a gentle groove. This equilibrium is perfectly captured by Rejoicer's moniker, a term that evokes both the idleness of artificial paradises and a soft, caring form of spirituality. This new Rejoicer album, which follows three earlier jazz-tinged records, marks a new and more personal musical direction for an artist who previously favored group work and collaborations. Following his meeting with Mathias Duchemin, founder of the Circus Company record label and a keen enthusiast of the new Israeli jazz scene, Yuval chose to delve into a more electronic and sequenced style of music, playing Prophet 6 and 8 synths, a Juno 60, a Minimoog and his Fender Rhodes keyboard, in contrast with the more organic sounds of his previous albums. While a few tracks on this new album may sound like a laid-back version of some of the Warp label's early electronic classics by Aphex Twin or Boards of Canada, Yuval Havkin claims to have also been inspired by the great Fela Kuti, particularly in his search for harmonies between bass, keyboards and percussion, and by his elder trumpet-playing friend Avishai Cohen, a musician he particularly admires. Beyond these various influences, This Is Reasonable is an album of compelling and bewitching melodies. The moods, peacefulness and sheer beauty of This Is Reasonable is, indeed, quite paradoxical, in stark contrast to the country's tragedies (the title explicitly refers to recent political disputes in Israel) and the war currently raging less than a hundred miles from his studio. A paradox fully embraced by the artist, who views his music as a response to the violence of our times. Features Yonatan Albalak.

LP version. "With Time is Glass, Six Organs of Admittance is captured once again in the intricate tangle of the fretboards, soaring in open skies above. Like lens flare cutting through the speakers; spiderwebs cracking the windshield that holds back all the onrushing reality. Blowing the dust away, cutting a new path for cognition. After 20 years of living on the road in different places, Six Organs of Admittance had returned home to Humboldt County -- a far country, to some, but still part of the world through which creatures of all kinds are moving through and contributing to. And some of them are human. Alone together -- forming connection and exchange out of thought and expression -- no different from the people on the other side of the Redwood Curtain. It was there, where Six Organs had long ago emerged, in the name of everything cycling, of circles that spiral concentrically and remain unbroken, the new music was conceived. In moments, it was as if the future had somehow wrapped around 360 degrees; elsewhere, the systems and patterns inside the writing and recording only became evident later -- like a recognition that cumulus and nimbus clouds which passed through the sky the day before contained familiar shapes. Informing the songs accordingly as he went, Ben picked up on modes both musical and lyrical, threading backward through the time of Six Organs of Admittance. Working on the music and the vocals, then spending some time with them while stepping away from them. Walking the dog and coming back to them. Time is Glass is made of that kind of time. Alone time. Recorded in the visceral environs of home, Time is Glass is sharply focused, even as misty impressionist mountains float through the background. The intuit, passing through wormholes and time, sounding deep then dissolving into the universal. The acoustic sounds ringing, layered suddenly, then clear again. Explosions of a new kind of distortion. Ecstatic melodies. Communing. The space of a day. The space of a season. Time is Glass, and Six Organs of Admittance is here and will be here, again."

LP version. UTO presents When all you want to do is be the fire part of fire. Anyone familiar with UTO's lauded 2022 debut Touch The Lock (IF 1067CD), which Pitchfork praised for its "prismatic synth pop," will be aware of the variegated nature of what they do. This album is just as colorful, with Neysa's vocal work sparking similarities to Kim Gordon's off-kilter vocals, which they both ceremoniously jet through a post-electronica blender mixing stylized indie sleaze productions with '90s breakbeats. While they might appear as a singular entity to others, UTO wrote large sections of this album apart, converging by the fireside to discuss the day's work before coming together to hone and finish the songs. 2023 was, by their own admission, a difficult year, and that's reflected in the Dantean themes expressed in songs such as the lead single "Zombie," which arrived at the end of November as a taster for the new record; the latter's dark heart is belied by the skittering beats, glitchy electronics and pummeling sequencers that elevate it from the void. From fire, early man's discovery, to AI, humanity's next great adventure -- with all of the wonders and complexities of human relationships in between -- When all you want to do is be the fire part of fire really is about life, the universe and everything. Just remember, be the flame, not the moth. Featuring HSRS.

Molto Morbidi's debut album String Cheese Theory is filled with an organic warmth and has the feeling of quiet classics or cult records rediscovered years after their release. A certain sense of closeness, even intimacy, comes through the listening experience of String Cheese Theory, that lays claim to unbridled creativity, halfway between pop music and the avant-garde. Featuring Ed Dowie and Quentin Rollet.

Master Plan was the Chicago based dance music project of Pepper Gomez and Tom O'Callahan. Spanning from 1984 to 1986, the groups development is in sync with the dance music scene of Chicago during that era. While their first record "Pushin' Too Hard" is a Windy City version of the NYC club music of the time and its European cross-pollination, "Electric Baile" from two years later down the line is almost a quantum jump into house music. With the engineering help of Matt Warren, it bears the marks of Ron Hardy, Chip E, Farley Jackmaster Funk, or the WBMX dance party craze, if you will. Here you have remastered and updated versions by Enzo Elia and Gerd Janson. The first ones's edit attempt of "Electric Baile" ignited this edition. A custom-tailored main mix is completed by a dub and useful bonus beat version to do, what DJs used to do. Concluded by two edits of "Pushin' Too Hard" by GJ, you get two great slices of yesterday that are still major dance music blue prints today.

French chanson, noise, echoes of music from faraway and long ago, modified radio transistors and other old electronic gear, French song, noisemakers, rumors of ancient and distant music, handmade instruments, modified transistor radios and other old electronic objects, Bégayer is looking for a gesture for those without folklore, for the offspring of this culture of lack, born as much from the twilight of popular habitus as from noisemakers' howling, from village squares as from the swarming of digital streams, for an unprecedented kind of rapsod-aliens. The culture of lack can be seen as a cruel joy, an opportunity for communion between the staggering interpretation of ancient gestures and present-day attempts to construct unique variations and overflows. In this way, each stuttering chant seeks to be a restless and joyful object, whose obstinacy and cruel simplicity offer themselves as manifest objects of agitation, as distances to be encountered, as studies that look towards us. Évohé Bègue moves towards an open, highly improvised composition, somewhere between the patterns of Morton Feldman, the Nigerian Ogene orchestral bands, the post-punk pleas of New York no-wave, the laughing insolence of northern Italian folk music, the ritual yodelling of the monks of Java, contemporary poetry, and improvised music.

Double LP version. WRWTFWW Records is flying high as it announces the reissue of the 1997 ambient masterpiece Quiet Logic by electronic music visionaries Mixmaster Morris (The Irresistible Force), Jonah Sharp (Spacetime Continuum), and Haruomi Hosono (Yellow Magic Orchestra). Quiet Logic invites listeners to embark on a captivating sonic odyssey, blending intricate rhythms and celestial environments that push the boundaries of electronic music. Co-crafted at Haruomi Hosono's Tokyo studio in 1997, this album represents a time of rapid transformation in the genre, with these three artists at the forefront of redefining soundscapes. With its unique blend of influences from Hosono's immense contribution to electronic, pop, and experimental music to Morris' worldwide chill out DJ performances and Sharp's pioneering label, Reflective, Quiet Logic remains a timeless piece of ethereal electronica. It was originally only released in Japan in CD format on the Harry Hosono-curated Daisyworld Discs label. Remastered for 2024, this reissue is a must-have for fans of Haruomi Hosono/YMO, The Irresistible Force, Spacetime Continuum, Dreamfish, Tetsu Inoue, FFWD, H.I.A., Fax +49-69/450464, and mind-expanding musics. Immerse yourself now.

Double LP version. A humanity-reminding suite of miracle moments, Someone Like Me unites a geographically unbound cast of real people in pursuit of a meaningful connection. Taping their lived experience in economic studios in quiet English counties, Pacific Northwest woodland retreats and the big city bustle of Sydney and Los Angeles, these kindred spirits rendered sheer beauty in the process. Custom pressed folk songs of love, loss and the lord savior. Illuminating minor works from seasoned players such as former Syndicate Of Sound chart-topper Sharkey and late-era Canned Heat lynchpin James Thornbury, the collection simultaneously honors the fleeting amateurism of hobby musicians. With their one shot at tangible vinyl, freshman Lynne Ann Kingan realized her loose bubblegum rocker on campus time, while U.S. Navy recruit Fred Potts cut his unconditionally serene ballad remotely stationed on a Spanish naval base. Spartan production continues to reign with Jon Betmead's hair-raising gospel, howling into infinite space, and Goldrust's stripped back garden hymn. Throughout the hour-long reflection, faith has an intermittent yet revelatory presence, most overtly with the divine choral soul of Seventh-day Adventist quartet Remnant. More subtly, Gary Ramey and Jim Kennedy both turned to song in their spiritual quests, offering their all to a universal power. An irrefutable compilation cornerstone, the National Office For Black Catholics showcased Charles Murphy's lionhearted account of the Black experience at a 1971 concert. Five years earlier, high school seniors The Superwomen would use their hauntingly angelic harmonies to address racial inequity with a breathless take on "Lowlands." Reaching the furthest corners, Someone Like Me secures the inaugural license of three homespun masterpieces. Discovered by fluke in the digital haystacks of Youtube and Soundcloud, Jim Huxley's bedroom pop earworm melds peacefully into Charlie Webster's synthesized reverie. Meanwhile, Hollywood's John Agostino introduces us to the bizarre world of tax scam records, with the artist only now learning that his tender psych-folk demos were leaked via a 1977 bootleg. Compiled and lovingly restored by armchair digger Mikey Young (Eddy Current Suppression Ring/The Green Child), Someone Like Me pays due service to seventeen rarefied journals of truth and devotion. Adorned with visual artist Chris Fallon's figure and flora dream extractions, the uniting songbook is further detailed by expansive track-by-track liner notes and a forward from San Franciscan poet Rod Roland. Also featuring The Bob Hughes Band, Jon Betmead, Robison Kaplan Ltd., and Ritchie Tierney. Original recordings range from 1966 to 1990.

"The general theme of the composition is the idea of sounds which travel. During a tram ride from the city up to the hills with an old tram I discovered not only stunning views of the surrounding landscape but as well a special soundscape. Wearing a custom-made induction headphones, I could hear the normally hidden electromagnetic fields of the tram, which were so impressive and musical to me that I immediately decided to base my piece for Trondheim Voices on this discovery. As a start, a series of pure vocal recordings were produced by Trondheim Voices while listening to a choice of electromagnetic tram sounds and following score instructions. This material was mixed in my Berlin studio and afterward was played back through a multi-loudspeaker setup into the room of the Elisabeth Church in Berlin and was instantaneously recorded. The emerged recording was played back and recorded again. The process of playing back the previous recording was repeated numerous times, generating numerous 're-recordings,' until the voices sounded aethereal and abstract. The last one of these recordings became the very beginning of the "Stromsänger" piece. Part A is based on the electromagnetic sounds of the waiting tram and previously recorded voices. The singers come on stage and start to sing together with their recorded part which slowly fades out while the live singing takes over: a kind of choral for electrical tram waves and voices. Part B is based on the actual tram ride with strong and intense electromagnetic sounds. The single recordings were treated electronically and were divided into six channels. Each singer has chosen one of these files and improvises with the magnetic sounds as a soloist or in duos or trios. Part C is based on the itinerary of the tram ride to Lian, where a pilgrim's path starts. The names of the single stops, which have very beautiful and poetic names, are performed together as a kind of "sound poetry." The singers walk around on stage and/or can choose special positions for their performance. The recording of the word "Lian," the final stop, was recorded beforehand and played back and re-recorded several times in the open Norwegian landscape near the final tram stop. The voices slowly disappear and fade out." --Christina Kubisch, 2024