Leading a dynamic trio with virtuoso bass player Leroy Vinnegar and drummer Donald Bailey, piano player Hampton Hawes released one of his best efforts in 1970, focusing on an original blend of post-bop and rare groove. The record opens with a rendition of Bacharach "The Look Of Love" and offers a deep soulful voyage with the 11-minute title track.

"Paddan's Sigtryggur Baldursson and Birgir Mogensen are lifelong friends from Kópavogur, Iceland, who started as mates on the local football team, then graduated to making music together as teenagers, and even later as young men doing time in the experimental punk collective KUKL, from 1983-1986. KUKL was populated by survivors of the post-punk scene in Iceland in the early '80s, which is well documented in the film Rock in Reykjavik from 1982. The band was released by the Crass collective in London and featured members, apart from Birgir and Sigtryggur, like Guðlaugur Óttarsson, Einar Melax, Björk and Einar Örn, some of whom would become better known later in outfits like the Sugarcubes and their respective solo work and other collaborations. Sigtryggur has a long career in music, having worked with among others, Emiliana Torrini, Howie B, Les Negresses Vertes, Tomas R. Einarsson, Petur Ben, KK, Kaktus Einarsson, and many others. He also produces an award-winning documentary music show for RUV called Hljómskálinn. Birgir Mogensen is a classically trained classical guitarist and bass player who has worked through the years with artists ranging from KUKL to Killing Joke to Spilafifl and Inferno5. Birgir and Sigtryggur formed Paddan during the 2010s, and now present Fluid Time, which has been inspired by their perception of time and space. Birgir Mogensen says, 'As a duo, we trusted our musical intuition and were guided by allowing the first idea to remain unchanged during the recording process.' Recorded, produced, and arranged by the pair, Sigtryggur and Birgir play basses and drums along with various other instruments. All recordings are played on live instruments except a modular synth which is programmed in the background of two tracks The duo is joined by the great harmonica and lap steel player Gaukur Davidsson on 'Vaguely' and 'Bug,' and trumpet player Eirikur Orri Ólafsson on 'Splash,' not to mention the mixing expertise of Vaccines bassist Arni Hjörvar Árnason on 'Bug,' 'Splash,' and 'Kokka,' and sound-mixer Albert Finnbogason on 'Vaguely.'"

Reissued for the first time on vinyl, here's Jamaican reggae singer George Faith's second album, originally released on Hollywood Records in 1979. Amazing soulful reggae melodies backed by the likes of Sly & Robbie, Aston "Family Man" Barrett, Tommy McCook, Earl "Chinna" Smith, and more. Produced by the one and only Bunny Lee at Harry J Studios, and mixed by Scientist at King's Tubby's Studios!

Final is Justin Broadrick. While many might recognize him through his connections to legendary groups such as Godflesh and Techno Animal, or via his various solo guises (Jesu, JK Flesh, etc), Final charts an entirely different sonic terrain. Focused primarily on devolved landscapes of heavily treated guitar, Final sees Broadrick dwell in a foggy and subliminal zone where source materials are submerged, morphed and reborn as wholly different sound-beings. What We Don't See is a record that pierces into the realm of post-experience that exists beyond sense and sensation. It reaches towards the invisible, the inaudible and the intangible and imagines a soundtrack to this non-place. The record is cast in a hazy gauze of filtered noise within which seismic tremors of tone and harmony fold into each other. It is a record that breaths with a measure of deep dreams and an unfettered desire to dwell in sound. From Justin Broadrick: "The theme of this recording is the invisible world, and one's (my) need for it. It's necessary for me, this idea of the invisible world, if I am to function on a daily basis. I find comfort in knowing that this is all not just us here and now, that there's something else around us. That there's something within us, that isn't just this frail skin and bones and the immediate environments we drag ourselves around. I am sure since I was a child, that within me I am many, I am more than this. I surely can't be just this, so I am motivated by the fantasy and/or promise of more?" Created and produced by Justin K Broadrick. Mastered by Lawrence English at Negative Space.

From France Jobin: "Quantum mechanics unfolds an intricate realm of limitless possibilities and probabilities, eluding easy definition. It paints a picture of the universe vastly different from our perceptible reality. What captivates me is the lens through which I perceive sound, akin to the principles of quantum physics? I don't merely hear the audible, but rather, I extract elements to construct novel auditory experiences. My profound interest in science, particularly quantum mechanics, originates around 2008-2009 during a resurgence of enthusiasm for string theory, (10-33cm released on ROOM 40) hinting at the prospect of a comprehensive theory of everything. The notion of existing within 11 dimensions, as opposed to our familiar four, held a mesmerizing allure. Lacking a background in quantum mechanics intensified the challenge of my exploration, yet I stayed attuned to emerging theories, albeit at a surface level due to time constraints. The advent of the pandemic granted me the opportunity to immerse myself in the intricacies of quantum mechanics, with a particular focus on the bizarre phenomenon of quantum entanglement, which stands as one of the most enigmatic aspects of modern physics, alongside gravity. Embarking on this intellectual journey presented a steep learning curve, leaving me in a state of bewilderment for the initial six months. Yet, amid the confusion, I gleaned a profound insight: the intrinsic nature of probabilities within quantum mechanics means that feeling adrift and perplexed isn't a hindrance but rather an advantage. It becomes a preparation for the myriad possibilities and uncertainties that define this captivating and eccentric realm. Moving forward to 2021 brings me to the four sources of inspiration for the Entanglement project: the fluidity of time, the principle of entanglement, the Copenhagen interpretation and many worlds interpretation. Three iterations have been created so far with visual artist Markus Heckmann: Entanglement AV, Entanglement XR, Entanglement Dome, and finally, a fourth one, a series of four albums entitled Entangled Quantum States." All sounds recorded at various locations in Europe, Japan and South America, at MESS (Melbourne Electronic Sound Studio) and at EMS (Elektronmusikstudion, Stockholm). Cover image: Markus Heckmann.

Color vinyl version. "Originally released in 1990, Same Place The Fly Got Smashed was Guided By Voices' fourth album in as many years. Roughly a concept album about an alcoholic named Joker Bob who goes on a bender, someone dies, and Bob gets the chair ('the electrifying conclusion'). From the moment the needle drops, the listener is served notice that this isn't going to be an easy listen, as an argument taped off of a TV cuts to a basement recording of a lone, blaring electric guitar with someone yelling over the top. But for those brave enough to pass the opening hazards, there are wonders within. This particular album has come to be held in higher and higher regard by fans, and they are correct to consider it a top-tier release. The story and sequence have a flow, and consideration for approachability is optional. Many of the crudest tracks reveal themselves as necessary stitches in the album's tapestry. Yet it also contains all-time greats like 'Drinker's Peace,' 'Mammoth Cave,' the epic 'Local Mix-Up/Murder Charge,' and of course 'Pendulum' with its immortal opening line: 'Come on over tonight, we'll put on some Cat Butt and do it up right!' -- a rare break in the clouds on one of the band's darkest albums. This reissue, like the previous ones in this series, is a mostly faithful reproduction of the original pressing of 500 on the band's own Rocket #9 label. And like the others, the virgin RTI vinyl is housed in a thick tip-on jacket, and includes Robert Pollard's original handwritten lyric insert."

"There is, and has been, a prevailing orthodoxy permeating the Egyptian musical hierarchy that would render this spectacular piece as scandalous. But let us remember that over the past 100 years, Said Darwish, Mohamed Abdel Wahab, Halim El Dabh, Ahmad Adaweya, and the modern Mahraganat movement have all experienced their fair share of scandal and opposition. Music must always be pushed forward -- it may not always succeed as revelatory, but in this particular case, it does. Much like the venerable magic carpet, The Handover slowly builds to escort you into its swirling, ascending expression of the psychedelic, eventually descending, step by step, back to earth, landing as a wonderous spaceship with wide open doors inviting us inside for repeat listening. Perhaps this should have been happening in Egyptian music 50 years ago but it's here right now, and that's what matters. We are often asked an impossible question to answer: 'What constitutes a Sublime Frequencies release?' For the moment, we can point to this record as the answer to that question." --Alan Bishop/Sublime Frequencies (March 2024)

In The Handover, Aly Eissa, Ayman Asfour, and Jonas Cambien explore the common and uncommon senses of Egypt's ritual music. It is clear that Aly Eissa's original composition is deeply rooted in Egyptian and Arabic traditions. At the same time, this band is one of the most progressive coming out of Egypt today. This is in big part thanks to Eissa, who has proven time and again to be not only an extremely skillful composer, but also a real visionary, combining tradition with modern experimentation. A performance by The Handover is typically one stretch without break: a long build-up that lasts for the duration of the concert. Towards the end of the performance, all the tension is released in an exuberant, joyful climax, when wild improvisations are driven forward on top of exciting dance-rhythms from rural Egypt. The Handover elegantly combines the delicacy of classical Arabic music, the raw expressiveness of Egypt's countryside music, and the spontaneity of free improvisation, carefully obliterating the artificial separation between acoustic and electronic instruments. Despite the remarkable absence of any percussion or drums, The Handover is an extremely groovy band, with an ability to slow down and accelerate the tempo in almost telepathic synchronization at exactly the right moments. Alongside the tight ensemble playing there is plenty of room for individual expression as the oud, synthesizer and violin take turns playing solos on top of repetitive riffs. Throughout the album, native Alexandrian Ayman Asfour plays the violin with breathtaking beauty, while not being afraid to make the violin buzz, squeak and rattle at times. Belgian/Norwegian keyboardist Jonas Cambien makes the synthesizer a melodic instrument in its own right, at times evoking almost classical Maqam, while in other moments it seems like he comes straight out of an Egyptian wedding. The oud forms the backbone in the composition's structure, as Aly Eissa's solos guide the listener from minimalist, meditative drones, to a compelling climax, and back to earth. There is much more to The Handover's sound then the obvious references to Arabic and Egyptian music. The opening drone section of the album is pushed towards abstraction and even noise, and the vintage Farfisa organ gives the music a touch of '70s psychedelic rock. The repetitive riffs can be reminiscent of Embryo's experiments combining krautrock with influences from the middle-east, but the use of repetition to induce trance dates way back in Egyptian music, and is present in many rituals like Sufi and moulid celebrations. The composed melodies on this album couldn't be possible without Eissa's deep love for this music. And what The Handover does with this composed material couldn't be possible without three strong individual voices, their love to play music together and their dedication to push the traditions forward. (Recorded in Alexandria Egypt in January of 2023, this Limited-Edition vinyl LP includes a two-sided insert with additional photos, liner notes and bios of the musicians).

LP version. "Originally released in 1974 on Shandar, Dream House 78'17" is the second full-length album by La Monte Young and Marian Zazeela. This first-time US edition reproduces the original gatefold sleeve with beautiful calligraphy by Zazeela and liner notes by Young and French musicologist Daniel Caux. Side one was recorded at a private concert (on the date and time indicated by the title) and features Young and Zazeela's voices against a sine wave drone with Jon Hassell on trumpet and Garrett List on trombone. This work is a section of the longer composition Map of 49's 'Dream the Two Systems of Eleven Sets of Galactic Intervals Ornamental Lightyears Tracery' (begun in 1966 as a sub-section of The Tortoise, His Dreams and Journeys, which was begun in 1964 with Young's group The Theatre of Eternal Music). The piece evolves with the oscillator changing pitch and dictating an ornate pattern over the course of the performance. Side two is an example of one of the sets of frequencies sustained in the Dream House, the composite sound environments conceived by Young and Zazeela. The composer suggests listening while seated -- to experience how the sound interacts with the room and other perceptions of its arrangement -- as well as while walking. As Young states, 'The frequency ratios are monitored continuously as lissajous patterns on the oscilloscopes and, in spite of the great stability of the oscillators, the phase relationships of the sine waves gradually drift which causes their amplitudes to add and subtract algebraically. Not only does the sound become a bit louder and softer, but at very loud levels, one actually begins to have a sensation that parts of the body are somehow locked in sync with the sine waves and slowly drifting with them in space and time.'"

"On the cover: Shellac, Arnold Dreyblatt, Robyn's Rocket, Zoh Amba, Normil Hawaiians, Kalia Vandever, Antti Vauhkonen, Marion Cousin. Invisible Jukebox: Iceboy Violet. The Inner Sleeve: Kai Fagaschinski on The Jimmy Giuffre 3. Global Ear: Berlin choir A Song For You. Unlimited Editions: Ipecac. Unofficial Channels: Music Republic & Moroccan Tape Stash. Epiphanies: Tashi Wada on tuning systems, plus 40 pages of reviews including Tony Conrad & Jennifer Walshe. FUNK.BR: São Paulo, Christer Bothén featuring Bolon Bata, Somerset House Studios' Assembly, and much more,"

"Continuing Digikiller's Park Heights series, here's another all killer no filler compilation LP in DKR style. Ten great tracks from Park Height's productive late '80s period, where Mr. Francis produced a lot of great early digital reggae both in Jamaica and right here in NYC. Here are eight great never before reissued tracks from the catalog, plus two previously unreleased gems. As always, housed in a fresh jacket with the vibes of the time."

"This is the first vinyl issue of Temple IV, arguably Roy Montgomery's finest solo album, originally released in 1996 on CD. The original album has been enhanced with two newer tracks that constitute side four of the album. Montgomery states: 'The two new tracks recorded in 2018 were about asking the question 'Can you step into the same river twice?' Heraclitus said you cannot. I say you can.' From the original press release: Few recording artists have aligned the quantity and quality of their releases as well as New Zealand singer/guitarist Roy Montgomery has in 1995. Beginning with Kranky's release of the soundtrack for an imaginary film That That Is... Is(Not) by Montgomery's duo Dissolve early in the year, a series of superb albums and singles have been issued by a variety of labels across the world. Each one of them is a must have. Most recently, the Drunken Fish label released a collection of pastoral drones entitled Scenes From The South Island, singles have appeared on the Roof Bolt and gyttja labels, and further singles are scheduled with Ajax, Siltbreeze, and others. Temple IV is the first solo recording by Roy Montgomery on Kranky. The album was recorded by Montgomery on a four-track tape deck and then thickened up with monophonic moog. The tracks on the album are thick with interwoven guitar lines and moog drone, inspired by the Guatemalan rain forests and the mysterious ruins of the temple and ruins Montgomery visited there."

Contemporary classical composer Sophia Jani and violinist Teresa Allgaier announce their new collaborative work Six Pieces for Solo Violin on Squama Recordings. Characterized by its calmness and poise, each movement focuses on a particular technical aspect, bending the boundaries of the instrument while maintaining the illusion of simplicity.

Limited black vinyl. Full color sleeve with unseen pics of Ron Geesin in his studio doing math stuff on the back. Ron Geesin made this kooky electro groovy score to a really progressive math educational program on Central TV in 1980, and it's musically anarchic and amazing, and it's never been issued before. Until now.

"Basic Maths was the second educational TV Series for the Midlands-based ITV station for which I composed, played and recorded all music and noises. The first series, also for budding mathematicians in the 7-10 age group, was Leapfrog in 1978 produced by ATV (Associated Television): Basic Maths was for the newly-formed Central Television, the work spanning 1980-1981; both series were of twenty-eight parts. The most-worthy idea for both of these series was to project mathematics into life by means mainly of non-verbal sound and vision, with both animated and live action films, linked by two presenters, Fred Harris and Mary Waterhouse. In my role as media composer, I had had quite enough of voice overs, therefore music well under, so this fairly radical educational approach at the time encouraged my creative juices to run unhindered. Of course, the sound had to do something with the picture and not just use it as a carrier for peacock display. It had to duet, play with and explain the visual content using novel and engaging techniques, so this involved the usual and sometimes intricate mathematical calculations which constantly exercised my already reasonable school maths." --Ron Geesin

We Release Jazz announces an exciting new body of work by Joseph Deenmamode aka Mo Kolours. A catalog of critically acclaimed records, including his self-titled debut (2014), Texture Like Like Sun (2015), 2018 album Inner Symbols and three companion EPs, established Deenmamode as a prodigious musician and vocalist. The tracks on Original Flow have been constructed from sessions, improvisations and soundbites captured around the world; collecting contributions from musicians including Deenamode's brothers Reginald Omas Mamode and Jeen Bassa plus Andrew Ashong, Charles Bullen, Dwaye Kilvington, Eddie Hick, Stefan Asanovic, Myele Manzanza, Ross Hughes, and Tom Dreissler. Original Flow is an album of UK street-soul nouveau, future indigenous jazz fusion, Rasta Segga, Nyahbinghi jazz, Malagasy Hebrew hip hop. While retaining a spirit of exploration and improvisation, it sees Deenmamode grow and flex beyond beat tape brevity, expanding composition and stretching his musical muscle to play live with other musicians. Themes of empowerment, overcoming adversity, and mental liberation coexist with notes from ancient history, futurism, and science, as well as musings on family and togetherness.

Al Hirt's infamous Soul In The Horn is inextricably tangled up in crate-digger lore. Originally released in 1967, the album has been in heavy, heavy demand for over 30 years, entirely down to the majestic soul-jazz fire of "Harlem Hendoo." And it's a song so good, so vital, so timeless, that it will always tower above everything else in its proximity. However, it would be an error to dismiss this record as merely a one tracker, loaded as it is with dope samples for adventurous beat makers. Certainly the funkiest Al Hirt record, it definitely lives up to the "soul" in the title. Thanks to composer Paul Griffin and arranger Teacho Wiltshire, Hirt got uncharacteristically free and groovy throughout. Soul In The Horn represented an expressive detour into authentic soul-jazz for Al Hirt. Throughout is a fiery energy that's otherwise absent from his typically easy listening work. Without question, the slinky, magical "Harlem Hendoo" is the standout, here. It's also the reason why the record is so scarce and commands awe among crate diggers, sounding like something from an obscure and deeply revered spiritual jazz record. As is often the case, the true genius of the song is tricky to do justice to; it's like a minor miracle of songwriting and performance that simply swooned down from the heavens on the back of horns, bells and harpsichord. It's one of the sweetest musical compositions ever recorded inside a studio. Sampled brilliantly by De La Soul, it has also been used by The Roots for "Stay Cool" and Nightmares On Wax for "Damn." An album deserving of a place in every serious record collection. The audio for Soul In The Horn has been carefully remastered by Be With regular Simon Francis, ensuring it sounds better than ever. Cicely Balston's expert skills have made sure nothing is lost in the cut whilst the records have been pressed to the highest possible standard at Record Industry in Holland. The original sleeve has been restored at Be With HQ as the finishing touch to this long overdue re-issue. This is after-hours music. Let it speak for itself. Listen. Listen to the soul in Al Hirt's horn.

2024 repress; LP version. First vinyl edition; 180 gram vinyl; printed inner-sleeve; Includes CD. Because Music present a reissue of JJ Cale's Guitar Man, originally released in 1996. Guitar Man is the 12th studio album by JJ Cale. Personnel: JJ Cale - vocals, guitar; Christine Lakeland - guitar, vocals on "Death In The Wilderness"; James Cruce - drums on "Death In The Wilderness".

"25 years after his first album, Naturally (1971), JJ Cale created Guitar Man, an album made up of hypnotic grooves forged out of elegantly simple components. The album is largely a solo affair, with only scattered additional accompaniment, such as on the incredible opening tune, 'Death in the Wilderness.' Otherwise, Cale plays every instrument, adding particularly strong guitar work to the mix." --All Music

2024 restock; LP version. Includes six-page booklet. One, two, three... hold your breath for 40 minutes for a peregrination through a special kind of pop music "made in France" between 1967 and 1970, a mix of ribaldry, flashes of brilliance, and adventurous twists on familiar sounds. We will plunge into French-style pop, unapologetic and defiant; blue-white-and-red pop that does not take itself seriously, not out of line with its "yé-yé" contemporaries, who were themselves uninspired by the boring, commercial teenage music that dominated in France at that time. It is pop music fueled by creativity -- though not always well-focused -- with peculiar arrangements, inspired compositions, and precarious production... but oh so tasty! WIZZZ 3 spotlights French artists who dared to try, to experiment... Includes tracks by Dansez avec Moa, Bernard Chabert, Joanna, Pierre Paul Jacques, Evariste, Jean-Bernard de Libreville, Crischa, Long Chris, Nato, Papy, Fatty Nautty, Balthazar, Jane et Julie, Bruno Leys, and Marcel Artero.

2024 repress; LP version. Printed inner sleeve. In 1966, a new pulse spread like wildfire on the sidewalks of Spanish Harlem and local radio waves. Like no music genre ever before, boogaloo brought together African Americans and Latinos. As the ultimate musical syncretism of popular genres in the Barrio, boogaloo is often described as "the first Nuyorican music". A revolutionary hurricane was then blowing on Amerika: in the trail of the Black Panthers and the Young Lords Organization, minorities were gathering in the streets to reclaim their rights from the establishment. Boogaloo was the soundtrack of a social revolution overtaking the country, before it got overshadowed by salsa. Boogaloo's energy seduced young people from different backgrounds, well beyond the borders of the USA, and especially in the Caribbean cradle land. From Fort-de-France to Pointe-à-Pitre, old biguines and mazurkas from West Indian orchestras strong of a bloodline of virtuosos, from father-to-son, became outdated by those modern beats. On Fred Aucagos's "Ti Man'zelle", there's a subtle mix of imports from the mainland, the USA, and the neighboring islands. Musicians dabbled with boogaloo, coming up with rather unorthodox interpretations. This is precisely what gives this compilation its singularity. It incorporates influences from the African continent thanks to the Rico Jazz (an adaptation of "Si Tu Bois Beaucoup" of the Congolese rumba orchestra O.K. Jazz). It rubs elbows with the "Jerk Vidé" of a David Martial before he turned in a doudouiste cliché. With the cheeky humor of the Guyanese Dany Play ("Mais Tu Sais"), the perkiness of Joby Valente ("Disk La Rayé" with Camille Soprann on sax), the listener (re)discovers classics published on two historic Guadeloupean labels: Aux Ondes of producer Raymond Célini, and Disque Debs, whose boss Henri Debs can be heard on "Ou Pas Z'ami En Moins". "Ou Qué Di Moin" from Monsieur X is a Creole funk pamphlet, neither Latin, nor festive, and not strictly boogaloo for that matter. The Nuyorican rhythm is a tiny fraction of what the West Indies orchestras were playing, as they often incorporated biguine and Haitian kopi elements. Assisted by Jean-Baptiste Guillot, Julien Achard spent over three years compiling this best of the Creole boogaloo. Also features: Maurice Alcindor, Gabby Siarras, Les Bois Sirop, Le Ry-Co Jazz, and Les Vickings. LP version comes with a printed inner sleeve with liner notes in English and French.

2024 restock; LP version. Yīn Yīn's dazzling second album dives even deeper into dancefloor propulsion and space travel atmospherics than their lauded debut The Rabbit that Hunts Tigers (2019). The beautiful, old and somewhat staid city of Maastricht, where the band is based, isn't really conducive to setting up a bustling music scene: and it's a place where the outsiders quickly recognize each other. Yīn Yīn are all "nightlife people", which meant their friendship initially came about through co-organizing and deejaying DIY parties. Things started to move for real when Yves Lennertz and Kees Berkers decided to make a cassette tape that drew on references to Southern and South East Asian music. Once the idea was formed, Lennertz and Berkers wasted no time in taking "a lot" of instruments to a rented rehearsal room in a small village near Maastricht. They asked friends to help out, and they became a full band: with Remy Scheren on bass, Robbert Verwijlen on keys and Jerome Cardynaals, and Gino Bombrini on percussion. A "united against the world" stance is also heard at the end of "Declined by Universe". It's a funny, maybe surreptitious statement of belief in what they do. Yīn Yīn also wanted to create an illusion of strength in other ways: "Declined By Universe" sounds as if there is a large group of people playing, not just the core band. Nods to brilliant, invigorating dance music abound, some of the thumping beats in numbers like "Chong Wang" the title track and "Nautilus" drop some thumping 1990s-style electric boogie and Italo disco chops along the way. Then there is "Shēnzou V.", which plots a stately course between eastern-inflected pop music, Italo, and Harmonia-style electronic meditations. The expansive richness in sound and feel may be down to the fact that more samples, drum computers, and synthesizers are used on The Age of Aquarius than in their previous records, a process that intertwines with real-time playing in the studio. "Faiyadansu", for example, started with a sample found on an old traditional Japanese koto record. Cosmic appropriations of time also crop up in the titles, which may give the lie to some of the band members' preoccupations with the state of the world. An old trope musically the Age is most famously referenced in the hippie musical, Hair. Other direct references to cosmic times are in the track names "Kali Yuga" and "Satya Yuga": the Kali Yuga, in Hinduism, is the fourth and worst of the four yugas (world ages) in a Yuga Cycle, preceded by Dvapara Yuga and followed by the next cycle's Krita (Satya) Yuga.

LP version. Mirror Mirror is the new album by the Finnish jazz legend, pianist/composer Olli Ahvenlahti. Championed by the likes of Gilles Peterson and Kenny Dope, Ahvenlahti is a master of hard-grooving jazz funk. Here, he continues the evolution of his style, much-beloved since the legendary 1970s albums such as The Poet and Countenance. Ahvenlahti's new group highlights some of the best talent on the Finnish scene, including trumpeter Jukka Eskola, saxophonist Joonatan Rautio, bassist Ville Herrala and drummer Jaska Lukkarinen. "I'm always striving to make one more great record," Ahvenlahti says. "I'm 75 years old this year and as the years pass, this goal seems all the more concrete. Thus, Mirror Mirror feels a bit like 'now or never', an album that reflects all of my career and searches for something new at the same time." For fans of the classic Fender Rhodes-driven Ahvenlahti jazz funk sound, Mirror Mirror is manna from heaven. Earlier performances of the current group were billed as "The Poet II," which speaks of Ahvenlahti's desire to continue on the lineage of his classic '70s period, while adding new layers and hues into his signature sound. The present album is a further continuation of the idea, the next step for the band tried and tested on such sought-after performance spots as Helsinki's Flow Festival, Odysseus Festival, and Pori Jazz. Mirror Mirror is a well-balanced affair for Ahvenlahti and group, showcasing both their hard-driving funky edge and Ahvenlahti's knack at composing effortless and melodic "slow music," which strolls along at its own pace. The singles "Paint It Blue" and "Rhythm and Rhymes" drive the groove hard, with each band member bringing their soul into it, while especially on the album's last two selections, an honest form of serenity reigns supreme. Perhaps "honesty" is the key here. At 75, there is no extra effort to gain recognition or short-term goals with Olli Ahvenlahti. This is "simply" beautiful new work from a seasoned artist and a scene legend, whose wisdom extends beyond mere composition and performance into the social workings of a jazz quintet. He knows how to make music where everyone can bring in their core musicianship and also be challenged to top what they knew before getting in. RIYL: Olli Ahvenlahti, The Poet and Bandstand, classic jazz funk à la Bob James, Herbie Hancock, Patrice Rushen, and Mizell Brothers productions.

At its heart the Rendell/Carr Quintet had one of the leading British jazz musicians of the post-war era -- saxophonist Rendell -- whose CV included work with American big hitters such as Woody Herman and Stan Kenton. Around him he had gathered four younger, more adventurous jazzmen, all wishing to push the envelope of the music. This session captures a moment that, without any hint of sleeve note hyperbole, can rightly be called historic. That moment is the April 19th 1965 debut within the Rendell/Carr ranks of pianist Michael Garrick, a musician who was -- again with no little sense of overstatement -- to quite literally change the course of the group's direction, and it can be argued with some conviction, that of the wider sound of British jazz. The overall fidelity on this recording is excellent and pressed on 180gram vinyl.

The Generous Law, a new album by organist Jack Langdon and guitarist Anthony Vine, presents a glimpse of the inner voices and acoustical splendor of the Fisk Organ at Wellesley College, enlivened by the intuition of two improvisers. At the keyboards, Langdon crafts geometries of patiently braided lines and incisions, configuring the hues and shades of organ stops with an ear to the materiality of sound. Vine seizes on this, tuning his guitar to the organ and bringing his strings into alignment with the harmonics of the reeds and pipes, becoming an extension of the instrument, an organ stop of sorts. The guitar flows in and around Langdon's angular counterpoint, like the shimmer between the divots of a jigsaw puzzle, illuminating its matrix. The tonal design of the Fisk Organ brings these interactions into vibrant relief through its quarter-comma meantone tuning and 17th-century Danish and German stops -- giving organists access to sonorities only found in historic North European churches. Resurrecting a distant sonorous past echoes the design of Wellesley College's Houghton Chapel itself, a braiding of ecclesiastical motifs with no historical center, designed to impart a sense of old-world sacredness. Fisk's ahistorical mélange yielded something extraordinary, not a cheap replica or period imitation, but an instrument of sui generis chroma and expressivity. The musical idioverse of Langdon and Vine is defined less by interior imaginations, established style, and compositional formality, and more by the inexplicable pull of the organ, its guiding and grounding voice. In a letter to Ross Feld, Philip Guston speaks to this abstract, yet ubiquitous dynamic in artmaking with his notion of the "generous law," the namesake for this collection: "I think you are writing about the generous law that exists in art. A law which can never be given but only found anew each time in the making of the work. It is a law, too, which allows your forms (characters) to spin away, take off, as if they have their own lives to lead -- unexpected too -- as if you cannot completely control it all. I wonder why we seek this generous law as I call it. For we do not know how it governs -- and under what special conditions it comes into being. I don't think we are permitted to know other than temporarily. A disappearance act. The only problem is how to keep away from the minds that close in and itch (God knows why) to define it." This music is not driven by concept, process, or system, but by the wanderlust of sound, time, and listening.

LP version. Cold Spring Records present a unique collaboration between industrial breakbeat pioneers Meat Best Manifesto (Jack Dangers) and the undisputed king of Japanese noise, Merzbow (Masami Akita). "We may not speak the same language, but in the vortex of sound, there's a raw, primal understanding that transcends words. Noise can be art, a visual representation could maybe be Jackson Pollock's No 5, a plexus of chaos redefining what music can and could be. Pushing boundaries with Masami wasn't just a musical adventure, it was a masterclass in sonic anarchy" --Jack Dangers, January 2024. Extinct sees the duo take listeners on a transcendental journey, focusing on the dismantling of beat and structure and recycling the result through layers of beautifully crafted noise and feedback loops, giving birth to new rhythms buried deep in the dirt. The 20-minute opener "!FLAKKA¡" takes constantly evolving breakbeats which are gradually broken down over time, driven through a filter of harsh noise, destroying the old to give birth to the new. Raw and unforgiving, the track is a behemoth that blends mutant forms of broken beats and hints of dub, creating rhythmic noise of the highest caliber in the process. "Burner" takes the record to its ultimate conclusion, the initial drum beat broken down so that it is barely recognizable. Pulsating distortion and high-end audio fragments bleed into each other as the track lumbers forth and destroys everything in its path before slowly unravelling, degrading and falling apart. A harrowing yet somewhat cathartic trip through walls of harsh industrial noise and audio degradation, Extinct is a masterful pairing of artists who have delivered something truly unique yet totally relevant. Composed, recorded, and produced November 2023-January 2024 by Jack Dangers and Masami Akita. Art by Abby Helasdottir (Gydja).

Digitmovies presents the soundtracks composed by Bruno Nicolai for four of Jess Franco's movies: A Virgin Among The Living Dead, 99 Women, Nightmares Come At Night, and Eugenie De Sade'70. A Virgin Among The Living Dead's score features several atonal music themes for strings with additional distorted electric guitar. Nicolai has written a wonderful love theme for the main character of Christine, a sweet and melancholic theme performed by the crystal voice of Edda Dell'Orso. For Nightmares Come At Night, Bruno Nicolai has written an OST of experimental kind, perfect as background for the protagonist's recurrent nightmares. He alternates experimental atmospheres with piano and percussions, with suspended motifs for guitar, organ and light percussions and with a magic love theme. The soundtrack for Eugenie De Sade'70 was originally released in 1969 on the Gemelli label. On the 99 Women soundtrack, Nicolai has written and conducted a symphonic score that alternates mysterious, dramatic and action themes to other romantic and sensual ones given by the sax and the orchestra that reprise instrumental variations of the main theme song. For this publication, Digitmovies used every take found in the original master tapes.

"Falling somewhere between Soulside, Ignition, and The Chocolate Watchband, Vile Cherubs were a short-lived and puzzling band that for a brief window in 1986-88 managed to captivate, confuse, and annoy the D.C. punk scene. Consisting of high school classmates Tim Green, Jesse Quitlsund, and Ben Wides -- along with Green's childhood friend Seth Lorinczi -- the Vile Cherubs were more focused on the then-forgotten sounds of '60s garage rock and psychedelia than on Minor Threat. Being minors themselves, they likely would've remained trapped in the school-dance circuit were it not for Geoff Turner (Gray Matter/3), who took an interest in the band and recorded their two demos. That first tape caught the ear of D.C. space booker Cynthia Connolly, who despite her initial skepticism paired them with Didjits, Cynics, and other noteworthy bands. Rumors of a potential Dischord album built all through 1987, ending with mysterious suddenness after label co-owner Jeff Nelson dropped in on a rehearsal to find a miasma of LSD, alcohol, feedback, and vomit. Though the band released a posthumous LP in 1988, the original Geoff Turner demos explain why the D.C. scene briefly lost its shit over these teen ne'er-do-wells. Lovingly and exhaustively resuscitated by audio maestro Tim Green from the original multitrack tapes, Lysergic Lamentations is the Vile Cherubs at the height of their brief existence."

"City Gates was released by the George Adams-Don Pullen Quartet in 1983. The quartet consisted of George Adams on tenor sax and flute, Don Pullen on piano, Dannie Richmond on drums, Cameron Brown on bass, and together they recorded five jazz-bop tracks. All tracks were either written by George Adams or Don Pullen, except for the traditional African American spiritual song 'Nobody Knows The Trouble I've Seen' which was arranged by Adams and Pullen. City Gates is available as a limited edition of 500 copies on white colored vinyl and contains liner notes on the back sleeve by music journalist Frits Lagerwerff."

Vinícius Mendes is a saxophonist, flautist, composer, improviser and researcher from the inland state of Minas Gerais in Brasil, known not only for its wealth of minerals and mining activities, but for its deep musical traditions founded by such pioneers as Milton Nascimento and Lô Borges. Having graduated from the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, one of the most important centers of excellence in Brasil, with a BA in Popular Music and an MA in Music, Mendes continued to research improvisation in free jazz and in Brasilian popular instrumental music at the university. In 2014, Vinícius released his first instrumental work at the Savassi Jazz Festival, and one year later he recorded the album NAU -- a heady mix of free jazz and traditional Brasilian music, and something of a prelude to Macunaísmo Tardio, the album he recorded Volume One of in 2021 with Volume Two following in 2022 and one that is finally available in full. Macunaísmo Tardio is a perfect release for the label, masterminded by Jazzanova's Jürgen von Knoblauch, which concerns itself with shedding light on criminally overlooked masterpieces. This album is, without a doubt, one of these. The LP features original compositions by Mendes himself, as well as fresh arrangements of Brasilian classics from Lucca Noacco, Toninho Horta, and a stunning version of the evergreen dance floor classic "Aldeia de Ogum" by Joyce Moreno.

Limited 2024 restock. Gatefold double LP version. On Audience Of One, Oren Ambarchi presents a four-part suite which moves from throbbing minimalism to expansive song-craft to ecstatic free-rock. His previous solo albums for Touch exhibited a clear progression towards augmenting and embellishing his signature bass-heavy guitar tones with fragile acoustic instrumentation. Audience Of One, while also existing in clear continuity with these recordings, opens the next chapter. Remarkable in its confidence and breadth, but also in the sensuous immediacy of its details, this is the first time a single record has come close to encapsulating Ambarchi's musical personality in its full range and singularity. The techniques and strategies developed in his refined improvisational work with Keith Rowe and his explorations of the outer limits of rock with Sunn O))) and Keiji Haino are both in evidence, alongside the meticulous attention to detail and composition of his solo works. And on the cover of Ace Frehley's "Fractured Mirror" which closes the record, Ambarchi even points to his roots as a classic rock fanatic, in an epic yet faithful version which extends the shimmering guitar patters of the original into a rich field of phase patters reminiscent of the classic American minimalism of Reich and Riley. The album features a multitude of collaborators, who, far from appearing in incidental roles, are integral to the pieces on which they perform: on "Salt," Ambarchi paints a hypnotic, chiming backdrop for Paul Duncan's (Warm Ghost) vocals, and Joe Talia's virtuoso drumming and driving cymbals are at the core of the epic "Knots," in which Ambarchi, alongside a chamber arrangement by Eyvind Kang, weaves a net of frequencies and textures with the organic push and pull of a '70s psych jam, the bass response of a doom metal ritual and the psycho-acoustic precision of an Alvin Lucier composition. On his previous records, Ambarchi's signature guitar tone was the ever-present bedrock over which other elements sounded. At moments on Audience Of One, this disappears entirely, as on the beautiful "Passage," which, recalling the '70s Italian non-academic minimalism of Roberto Cacciapaglia and Giusto Pio, is composed of overlapping tones from Hammond organ and wine glasses, Jessika Kenney's voice, various acoustic instruments, and the delicate amplified textures of Canadian sound-artist Crys Cole. Rather than being provided by any particular sound, the unified feel of Audience Of One stems simply from the unique, patient sensibility Ambarchi has developed over the last 20 years; abstracting musical forms into their barest forms, while somehow always managing to leave their emotive power intact.

Duo in the mirror that, in a continuous game of doubling and multiplication, ventures into another world, dense with unexpectedness and vital thrills. Sun Ra and post-rock, as well as Chicago experimentation and echoes of the world of Suzanne Ciani and minimal music, are the hints one can sense while listening to Medea, a journey to the edge and beyond. Star Splitter's new album comes five years after the debut album, a period in which Gabriele Mitelli and Rob Mazurek experimented with the infinite possibilities of this lineup, the length and breadth of Europe, at some of the most important festivals. In complete freedom, a three-day session in the recording studio in Reggio Calabria gave birth to Medea, a dedication, in retrospect, to the film work of Pier Paolo Pasolini.

The magical encounter of three skillful players, right before their self-titled debut on ECM. On September 1, 1978, the musical trio Codona performed live in Willisau, Switzerland. This Swiss FM broadcast captured Codona in full flight, with Collin Walcott on sitar, Don Cherry on trumpet, and Nana Vasconcelos on percussion. Their performance weaved a magical web of sound. The opening track, "New Light," is a 16-minute journey of pure joy.

Limited edition LP in a beautiful metallic-printed sleeve. 12 beautiful instrumentals from the Shovel Dance Collective banjo player and instrument maker, conjuring new worlds from the traditional and the cosmic. Jacken Elswyth is a London-based folk musician, banjo player, and instrument builder. At Fargrounds is her third solo album, her first for the Wrong Speed label and the latest in a rich catalogue that repositions the spectral, vulnerable sound of the banjo away from its familiar role as signifier of the past and onto lands brave, new and unexplored.

"...she knows how to knit atmospheres, and does so to especially powerful effect during 'Scene 4b''s three minutes of stunning bowed banjo, yearning with longing and dread, while showing off her talent, curiosity and range"--Jude Rogers

"[Jacken is] an emotive player with high technical ability. Further, she builds banjos and other instruments, and that intimate knowledge of the bones and fibres holding everything together means that her playing has very few cracks"- Foxy Digitalis

Limited 2024 restock. Following on from the acclaimed Tiger Balm / Amazonia Dreaming / Immersion LP (BT 028LP, 2017), Black Truffle present two major new instrumental works from legendary sound artist and experimental composer Annea Lockwood. Demonstrating the ever evolving and radically open nature of Lockwood's practice, these two recent works were developed in close collaboration with their performers. "Becoming Air" (2018), developed with and performed by trumpeter Nate Wooley, uses extended technique and electronics to interfere with Wooley's virtuosic control over his instrument, pushing him into areas of fluctuating pitch and timbral instability. Motivated by a desire for "the letting go of sound to be itself", "Becoming Air" unfolds as a series of texturally distinct moments separated by pauses, each fixing on a particular approach to the instrument (long tones, upper-register whistles, breathy wooshes) and maintaining it in an essentially static fashion, focusing our attention on subtle changes and variations. Dipping into near-inaudibility in the fragile high tones of its opening section, the piece dramatically increases in volume and intensity in its final third, climaxing with a passage of roaring distortion, where the interaction between feedback and trumpet pitches calls up the shuddering interference effects of Robert Ashley's Wolfman. "Into the Vanishing Point" (2019) is a collaborative work developed with New York piano and percussion quartet Yarn/Wire, who have performed work by major contemporary composers such as Olivia Block, Catherine Lamb, and Klaus Lang. Carrying on the ecological and environmental concerns of some of Lockwood's previous works, "Into the Vanishing Point" was inspired by a devastating news article on the global collapse of insect populations. Discovering that the four members of Yarn/Wire had also read this text, Lockwood mapped out a loose structure for the piece that would allow the composer and four performers to explore their "feelings about what is happening ecologically". Working with a huge variety of instruments, objects and techniques of sound production, the resulting work is an alluringly lush, organically unfolding tissue of unorthodox textures and haunting tones. Though not intended to sonically represent ecological issues in any direct way, its unique sound world of rubbed piano strings, gently handled objects and chiming pitches often calls up natural images: of insects and frogs, wind rushing through trees, a bird's wings in flight. Presented in a stunning gatefold cover with liner notes by Lockwood, Wooley and Yarn/Wire, Becoming Air / Into the Vanishing Point is a testament to the generosity and experimentation that continue to characterize the work of this extraordinary artist, active for over fifty years.

Limited repress; LP version. First reissue of these cult 1974 recordings of a Mayan brass band playing funeral dirges and popular songs in its distinctive extended harmonic and rhythmic style. The members of the San Lucas Band lived in the mountain village of San Lucas Tolimán, Guatemala, playing local events of both religious and social nature. The pride of their town since 1922, the band represented a fast-disappearing musical tradition when these recordings were originally released in 1975. Their unique sound derived from an unusual combination of instruments, a repertoire including pieces dating from more than fifty years before the recordings were made to more recent ones, and above all from the highland Maya style of their playing, which is characterized by a preference for freer rhythmic structures and a wider variety of pitches than Western scales allow. One of Jon Hassell and Charlie Haden's favorite records, it was nominated for a Grammy Award upon first release and has remained much beloved by a small community of enthusiasts for decades. A profound and rewarding musical experience for all adventurous listeners, notably fans of Albert Ayler, microtonal and raw cosmic music.

2024 restock. During the maiden voyage into an expansive vat of unreleased music by Polish composer Andrzej Korzynski, Finders Keepers Records originally presented his previously unreleased electro/ orchestral/experimental score for Andrzej Zulawski's surrealist '80s horror classic Possession in 2012. These 25 cues were written and recorded exclusively for the 1981 award-winning film starring Isabelle Adjani and Sam Neil, but due to the progressive, stark and modernist nature of the finished film less than half of them made it on to the actual director's cut -- leaving many of the tracks on this spackage totally unheard outside of Korzynski's studio. The intended Possession score in its entirety marks an important axis in Korzynski's career where his various musical disciplines overlap. In one respect it marks his first forays into to synth driven electronics and disco drum machines, while other tracks epitomize the well-honed techniques used in previous Zulawski scores, such as Third Part Of The Night and The Devil, which rely on his inimitable orchestral arrangements and combination of clavinet, Rhodes, piano and electric guitar. Available once again on black 12" vinyl for the first time since its original release some 11 years ago, Finders Keepers' ongoing commitment to the important restoration of Korzynski's music aims to shed new light on the seldom manufactured productions of the composer whose vast cinematic catalogue warrants overdue global status alongside other golden era Eastern European composers such as Kryzstof Komeda, Jan Hammer, and Zdenek Liska -- not to mention the best of the French and Italian soundtrackers, such as Roubaix, Vannier, and Nicolai. Duplicated and carefully remastered directly from Korzynski's original master tapes this album boasts the uninhibited studio experiments and retains the pre-cut ambience.

Long-awaited vinyl release for this critically acclaimed album from October 2023. "Black is a musical eulogy to Amy Winehouse, a heartfelt memorial to a sorrowful demise. It's an album of predominantly beatless ambience possessed by the ghost of 'Back to Black.' Fragmented moods and hypnotic drones melt together as its circular beauty is set adrift, floating away into an endless void, where the original only remains in spirit alone. It doesn't make particular sense why I was drawn to this idea and compelled to immerse myself in the original song, and her life in general, but sometimes you just have to roll with your muse. Having barely registered her whilst she was alive and not cared for Mark Ronson's poptastic productions, it was only when I heard of her tragic death that it struck an unexpected chord, recalling the same surreal emotional impact as when I had heard of Kurt Cobain's premature passing previously. Both figures were unarguably gifted, but both left this planet largely without essential support, whilst they were at the peak of their powers and on top of the musical world. Gone too soon and departed too young, a world-weary voice carried on a downward spiral, Amy Winehouse seemed trapped in her self-destructive descent. It was only years later, whilst randomly watching Asif Kapadia's moving bio doc Amy on a long-distance flight, that I realized the scale of her greatness and the tragedy of the circumstances that led to her untimely death. This album is simultaneously a treatise on lovelessness, tragedy and loss, echoing the absence of a support network when it matters most during such a freefall. And just as myself and others I know shed tears watching that Amy documentary, this album is as much a reaction to the universal emotional themes conveyed within that touching documentary as to the tragic life of Amy herself. I have been working on the idea of this sonic album for over a year, and the slo-mo dream rotations remain as blurred and impressionistic as they are repetitive and haunting. An eerie cocktail of spectral jazz, shoegaze drone and dubbed out ambient music, it continues the solo path I have been developing as KRM. I hope it strikes a chord." --Kevin Richard Martin