2LP Silk Screen Sleeve plus insert. Yellow Vinyl. Holidays Records is more than excited to join the celebrations of the 10th anniversary of Les Disques Bongo Joe with the first ever vinyl edition of Meridian Brothers' early projects: Meridian Brothers VI and Meridian Brothers VII! 2LP Silk Screen Sleeve plus insert. Before Guaracha UFO propelled Meridian Brothers onto the international stage, Eblis Álvarez was already shaping his singular sonic universe in the shadows. Released only on CD in between 2009 and 2012 via local label La Distritofónica, Meridian Brothers VI and VII never had wide distribution or media exposure. Yet, these albums represent a crucial phase in the band's evolution, capturing the energy of Bogotá's experimental cumbia scene at the time. On VI, Álvarez crafts a hallucinatory patchwork of cumbia and vallenato, using his guitar as the guiding thread before layering other instruments on top. These two albums laid the foundation for the radical fusion and irreverent spirit that would later define Meridian Brothers. Now reissued on vinyl for the first time, these historic recordings offer a raw and fascinating glimpse into the origins of one of Latin America's most forward-thinking musical projects.

2025 restock. Be With Records present a reissue of Willie Hutch's Soul Portrait, originally released in 1969. Soul Portrait is a slice of Southern-fried soul, a blend of beat ballads and dancers. Increasingly rare, this reissue is most welcome and showcases the early work of a soul legend. Officially licensed and remastered by Simon Francis, it's pressed on 180 gram vinyl for the first time and features the original artwork and liner notes. A monumental force firmly rooted in the soul canon, Willie Hutch is most notable for recording two of the best Blaxploitation soundtracks, The Mack (1973) and Foxy Brown (1984). Yet his legacy is much greater. Outside of Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, and Smokey Robinson, Hutch was arguably Motown's top male solo artist of the '70s. Prior to his association with Gordy et al, Hutch crafted his opening statements for RCA, two vital LPs. His debut, Soul Portrait (1969), is an incredible slice of gritty, Southern-fried soul. Think Stax with a touch of Detroit sparkle. As a whole, the album demonstrates the self-contained act Hutch was; he wrote every tune on the album while also arranging and conducting for it. The album's centerpiece is undoubtedly the iconic, brooding minor-key masterpiece "A Love That's Worth Having". The album's most recognizable track, it's a towering ballad drenched in stylish, sliding horns, and elevated by its stunning backing vocalists. It was famously sampled by Madlib to augment his soundtrack for Stones Throw's Our Vinyl Weighs A Ton (2013) as well as 9th Wonder for the Murs classic "Dreamchaser". Horn-heavy opener "Ain't Gonna Stop" is a funk-fueled monster, Hutch's fatback vocal aided by a vicious drum 'n' conga rhythm whilst the bumping uptown soul of "You Can't Miss Something That You Never Had" anticipates the Motown-vibe that Hutch went on to create. Supple guitar licks propel the loping, head-nod breaks of "Good To The Last Drop" whilst "That's What I Call Lovin' You" features gospel piano and plaintive, tender vocal turn. The blazing horns of "You Gotta Try" hints at the Blaxploitation that was to come. The thundering proto-70s-Motown rhythm of "Let Me Give You The Love You Need" segues neatly into the bouncing Northern soul favorite "Lucky To Be Loved By You" whilst Hutch's gutbucket guitar stylings are all over the smoldering "Keep On Doin' What You Do". "Your Love Keeps Liftin' Me Higher" is not a rendition of the Jackie Wilson classic; rather, it's a powerhouse original that indicates where Hutch would take his sound on The Mack. Closing the album, the anthemic "Do What You Wanna Do" name-checks contemporary dance fads before instructing the listener to just get up and dance. Brilliantly supported by a heavy roster of studio cats who combined to create a winning combination of horns, strings, and gorgeous female background vocalists, Soul Portrait is as complete a soul album as the decade's very best.

Reissue, originally released in 1973. Tonio Rubio's Rhythms is a stone-cold killer, a heavyweight library breaks LP and the inaugural release in Be With's new partnership with legendary French library label Tele Music. For this extremely special 50 year anniversary reissue, Be With Records reproduced the classic Tele Music sleeve with a full color insert featuring rare photographs, fresh liner notes, and personal memories of Tonio from the likes of Jean-Claude Vannier, Jean-Claude Petit, and Janko Nilovic. Sumptuous opener "Latin Leitmotiv" is all funky phasing effects and a killer montuno, with what sounds like piano and bass in tandem, stoking straight up Latin fire. The gritty hard funk of blaxploitation groove "Red Medium" is dripping in wah-wah attitude and head-nod oddness. The atmospheric, exotica-tinged "Dead Slow" emulates the languid, sensual Afro groove of Quincy Jones's wild masterpiece "Gula Matari" whilst the proggy, electric jazz fusion epic "Rock 73" is 9+ minutes of moody, rolling menace. But the real highlight of this cult classic -- and why it has long been so desirable -- is the devastating, deep, hypnotic minimalist groove of "Bass In Action N°1". Very much in conversation with Quincy's rendition of "Hummin'", the loping, rumbling bassline and sweet electric piano over clean, crisp drums making it one of those tracks that sounds like a hip-hop beat 20 years ahead of time. "Bass In Action N°2" features Tonio's own vocal scat performance. Antonio "Tonio" Rubio Garcia got his start playing the double bass in jazz clubs. In 1962, Tonio joined the Golden Stars, the first backing band of France's teenage idol Johnny Hallyday. A genius musician with a unique guitar sound, he played on standards of French chanson including Serge Gainsbourg and Brigitte Bardot's "Bonnie and Clyde", Françoise Hardy's "Tous les Garçons et les Filles", Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin's "Je T'aime, Moi Non Plus", and Serge and Charlotte Gainsbourg's infamous "Lemon Incest". Jean-Claude Vannier remembers Tonio as "a secretive, mysterious man, with an endearing personality, albeit difficult to reach out to. His virtuosity as a bass player allowed me to write very innovative basslines, because he was able to play any of my eccentricities!" Remastered by Simon Francis.

2025 repress. Death In Vegas returns with new album Death Mask, where disintegration, overload and total sonic immersion tell a personal tale. With dirty circuitry and rough-hewn textures at the fore, this is gritty, unpolished techno; an audio outlier that's full of personality, and a bold artistic statement. It's closer in DNA to the grainy growl of sunn O))), or the searing intensity of Underground Resistance at their fiercest, and as far from generic influencer business as you could possibly get. "I've been soaking in Ramleh's 'Hole In the Heart', the machine funk of Terrence Dixon's Population One, Jamal Moss' psychedelic techno jams, the stunning minimalism of Mika Vanio's Ø and Panasonic, the layered drones of LOOP, and drowning in the acid of TM 404." Broader inspirations are weaved into the album's fabric too; from his Thameside Metal Box studio and evocations of nautical ghosts, to lamentations for a broken world, to memories of a youthful Detroit pilgrimage, and the innocent fraternity of rave euphoria, there's a lot going on, acting as a chronicle of moments, and locations.

It all started in 1958, when Hugh Steinmetz played trumpet in the school band and got in contact with Christian Mouritzen, a 19-year-old blacksmith who played alto saxophone and would soon change his name into Franz Beckerlee. They were soon joined by young bass player Steffen Andersen. By January 1962 they entered the scene at the Vingaarden club in central Copenhagen where, together with John Tchicai, they had the groundbreaking experience of hearing Cecil Taylor, Sunny Murray, and Albert Ayler. The next step was to enter the scene in the more international Montmartre Jazzhouse. Monday night was "avantgarde night" and The Beckerlee Quartet (still in their late teens) accepted the offer to play for an hour and therefore got the chance to further develop their music. It was there that they came into contact with The New York Contemporary Five -- Don Cherry, Archie Shepp, John Tchicai, Don Moore, and J.C. Moses. Before The New York Contemporary Five left Scandinavia in November 1963, they collaborated with The Beckerlee Quartet for a broadcast on Danish Radio. The gifted drummer Sunny Murray, an inspiring force for the Beckerlee group, was hired in 1964 to play on Action, their first LP, issued the following year by the legendary Debut Records. It was at that time that they changed their name to The Contemporary Jazz Quartet. Action has come to be regarded by many as one of the most important early accomplishments in European free improvisation. It was at this time that members of The Contemporary Jazz Quartet were invited to perform with David Tudor and Michael von Biehl in Charlottenborg, a very important place for the avantgarde in music and visual arts. The group would eventually shift again in membership and become The Contemporary Jazz Quintet, featuring Bo Thrige Andersen, Franz Beckerlee, Hugh Steinmetz, Niels Harrit, and Steffen Andersen, and enter the studio in 1967 to record what would have been the follow up to Action, intended to be also issued by Debut. As a fascinating illumination of the moment, particularly because it predates Miles Davis' revolutionary innovation of electric jazz by roughly a year, new innovations in amplification during that moment that the band began to observe in rock music, provoked them to abandon that album and begin again, eventually producing the LP T.C.J.Q. in 1969, which featured two electrified saxophones, as well as amplified trumpet and double-bass, relinquishing their previous recordings, unreleased, to the vaults. It is those incredible, lost 1967 recordings made by The Contemporary Jazz Quintet, unearthed for the first time in nearly 60 years, that comprise Action A B C E, FormalIbera's new LP dedicated to the group. Includes an insert with liner notes by Mats Gustaffson and Anna-Lise Malmros.

Double LP version. Transparent vinyl. New York-based artist James K returns with Friend. This album is full of electric pop anthems that blends ear-worming melodies with peak-time breaks, buzzing powerpunk guitars and a classic rave pulse, with K's signature enchanting vocals playfully spitting emotion. It's a hallucinatory pleasure, tearing through your body and mind. "Play" rushes with a rebellion of friends -- an electro fever daydream waking up everywhere you go. Hot off extensive tours worldwide, playing the likes of Pitchfork Festival, Dekmantel, iii Points, and Mutek, following in the footsteps of her last two critically acclaimed singles Friend comes on AD 93. RIYL: Cocteau Twins, Yves Tumor, Prodigy, Oklou, Grimes.

2025 repress. Deluxe gatefold vinyl edition. "With a book of lyrics and artwork, updated by Vashti herself. This vinyl reissue of Vashti Bunyan's lone 1970 solo release features contributions from British folk royalty including members of Fairport Convention and preeminent producer Joe Boyd." "Vashti Bunyan's lone 1970 solo release features contributions from British folk royalty including members of Fairport Convention and preeminent producer Joe Boyd. Vashti was recently heard singing alongside Devendra Banhart on the title track of Rejoicing In The Hands. The songs were written over two summers and one winter of travelling. After a chance meeting that winter with Derroll Adams (noted Woody Guthrie era folksinger and banjo player) who told her not to 'hide her light under a bushel,' Vashti took the songs of her journey to Joe Boyd. A year later he recorded Just Another Diamond Day, inviting Robin Williamson of the Incredible String Band, and Dave Swarbrick and Simon Nicol (who also played on Nick Drake's records) from Fairport Convention to accompany Vashti on some tracks. The album was released late in 1970 to little attention. The music was abandoned by the singer in favor of further horse journeys and complete obscurity. However, over the years all the recordings have succeeded in finding their own way to the notice of music collectors. The master tape of the album lay in a London warehouse for thirty years before being unwisely taken across the city in an underground train and getting wet in a raging thunderstorm, but has survived almost intact. The four additional on this edition are from well traveled old vinyl, acetate demos, and home recorded tape." -- Paul Lambden.

2025 restock, last copies, reduced price. First time vinyl reissue. 1985 was one of the most important years in Brazil's recent history, when the country was freed from more than 20 years of military dictatorship. The youth took the lead and finally Brazil entered the world show business circuit with Rock In Rio festival. But the real revolution was happening in the underground and this record is a proof of that. One of the people in charge was the musician, composer, poet, writer, scriptwriter and speaker from Rio de Janeiro Ronaldo Tapajós, who was always involved with experimental and avant-garde music. His trajectory begins in the mythical 1968, when, as part of the the duo Rô and Carlinhos, he released an emblematic single containing the song "O Gigante" -- perhaps the first Brazilian bad trip recorded on vinyl and a shrewd criticism of the society's "square" habits. According to Cinema's LP press release: "in the era of visual music, Cinema is sound". In terms of sound, listening to this album feels like diving into an intriguing anguish of trying to understand how the relationship between technology available at that time (1983-1984) and the more organic instruments happened, this duality between synthesizers/effects with percussion, woodwind instruments, piano and clarinet. In other words: how was the coexistence between the synthetic and the acoustic? This paradox seems to seduce collectors, DJs and enthusiasts of Brazilian music from the '80s around the world. This fictional soundtrack has a dark mood, as if a fog of dark and ambient music insisted on staying on top of cheerful patterns of Afro-Brazilian percussion, or conceptual synth pop. The track "Sem Teto" was included in Outro Tempo (Electronic and Contemporary Music from Brazil 1978-1992) (Music From Memory, 2017). Includes two extra and unreleased tracks found after decades. Remastered from the original tapes. Includes eight-page color booklet full of photos, images, and new testimonials from the four members of the project.

La Festa delle Rane (literally "the frog's party") are one of the most singular outputs from the vibrant Italian underground community. Innocent, at times flawed, full of candor and tenderness and just enough spice to make things take a grandiose detour into the eerie and unsettling. Il lago è il cielo del bosco e tutte le rane cantano in coro, originally released on tape for Ruego in 2022 and now remastered for vinyl by Matt Bordin, was conceived by main songwriter Lucia Sole between 2020 and 2022. Her knack for off-kilter church melodies and yelping renditions of what apparently could be categorized as "feel-good" tunes often wanders into obscurity sparked by flashes of lo-fi Spectorian pomp, campfire folk and Smile era Wilson-isms. Recorded between Bologna, Napoli, Brussels, Benevento, and Colleverde di Leonessa, La Festa delle Rane's sun-tinged psychedelia comes with an incredible bag of tricks: dream flashes of absurdity, pillowy melodies and kaleidoscopic lollipops that are bound to melt and stick as soon as you get close. Joined by a collective of musicians that include Gianlorenzo Nardi (Lac Observation, Il Gran Diavolato, Rawarr), Simone del Deo, and Francesco Esposito, Lucia Sole 's songs are laced with mystique and a raw organic sound that depends, for this chapter, on a rotating trunk of instruments (glockenspiel, flute, organ, clarinet, musical saw, melodica) where subtlety and spontaneity are often combined resulting in a bizarre and oddly functional marriage. You often get the impression that just the wind and the swaying of trees would be enough soundscape for them to create timeless melodies and woven patterns. The lyrics not only paint a bucolic setting or a nostalgic elegy but they wedge simple nuggets into the psyche, seeds of a forgotten world that still ring true in any outsider cosmos. Tempos flutter and pitch comes and goes carrying a melancholy pin-pointed across the recordings, a bewildering atmosphere permeating the 14-track collection. Medieval folklore for the dawn of AM Radio or simply a zonked out semi-pagan collective that treads the fine line between the surreal and the pastoral. Innocence and mischief flow into a beautiful collection of celestial free-form children's folk hymns.

2025 repress. Originally released on Lovely Music in 1998. Double CD of all five of Elaine Radigue's songs in tribute to the Tibetan saint and poet from the 11th century. Two of the tracks dates from Radigue's first release in 1983, two are previously unreleased and the final 62-minute track was previously issued as a sole CD in 1987. The material is performed by Radigue (synthesizer and recording), Robert Ashley (English voice), and Lama Kunga Rinpoche (Tibetan voice). Radigue was born in France and has studied under Pierre Shaeffer and Pierre Henry; her music has an extremely organic and mystical electronics vibe, and has been previously documented on Phill Niblock's XI label, as well as Metamkine and Lovely. Milarepa is a great saint and poet of Tibet who lived in the 11th century. Through years dedicated to meditation and related practices in the solitude of the mountains, Milarepa achieved the highest attainable illumination and the mental power that enabled him to guide innumerable disciples. His ability to present complex teachings in a simple, lucid style is astonishing. He had a fine voice and loved to sing. When his patrons and disciples made a request or asked him a question, he answered in spontaneously composed free-flowing poems or lyric songs. It is said that he composed 100,000 songs to communicate his ideas in his teachings and conversations.

2025 restock; transparent red and opaque yellow vinyl. "Devo, captured live in Oakland, performing early experimental tracks written between 1974 and 1977, prior to any label deal or public success. No matter how messy, beginnings are exciting. Especially when what happens next endures the test of time. For Devo, the beginning happened in the basements and garages of Akron, Ohio. The songs they wrote were raw and unfiltered with no commercial intent. They called it Hardcore Devo. Performing 21 oddities, this is a tribute to departed, original Devo bandmate, Robert 'Bob 2' Casale. Recorded live on June 28, 2014 at the Fox Theater in Oakland, California. This repress is on red (disc 1) and yellow (disc 2) and is limited to 500 copies."

2025 restock; LP version. "Wire's first three albums need no introduction. They are the three classic albums on which Wire's reputation is based. Moreover, they are the recordings that minted the post-punk form. This was adopted by other bands, but Wire were there first. It has been a number of years since these albums were readily available. The aim with these new vinyl and CD releases is to approximate the original statements as closely as possible, but with remastered audio. The vinyl releases have the same covers and inners as the originals (minus the Harvest logo). The digipack CDs have identical track listings to their vinyl counterparts. These versions should be considered Wire's classic 1970s albums, pure and undiluted. Usually contextualized against a backdrop of two years of the growing cultural importance of punk rock--Wire's debut Pink Flag, released in December 1977 on EMI's progressive label Harvest was in fact was something 'other.' To the keen cultural commentator, the timing and label of its release will register two essential facts about it. Firstly, too late (a year after the Pistol's debut release) to be part of UK punk's first flush and secondly that the band were signaling something beyond punk by their choice of label. Further investigation would reveal twenty-one tracks, some of them clocking in at well under a minute and covering a range of tempi well beyond the buzzsaw rockabilly that had become, even by the second half of 1977, punk's staple."

2025 restock. "This whole project grew out of a song called 'Cycles Of You', which I had written around 2000-2001 with the guitarist and bassist of my band at the time, Easy. The chord progression and vocal melody really reminded me of Joe Bataan, and it occurred to me that it wouldn't be impossible to get him into the studio to do a guest vocal if we ever recorded it. I had met Bataan a few years before at Nuyorican Poets Cafe in my neighborhood. Around this time Bataan was playing out again, so I went to the show to see him and find out if he'd be interested in doing some vocals with us. He was agreeable, so we decided to turn it into a Joe Bataan session and do 'Cycles Of You'. When I got the opportunity from Vampisoul to do a full album, I was hoping Bataan and I could write some songs together, but our schedules proved tough to coordinate. I figured the best way to go about it was to do most of the work and just have him come sing on it. The rhythm section was a band called TransLove Airways that I formed in 2002. To this core group I added pieces from a few other local bands: The Middle Initials, who are a great Temptations/Main Ingredient-style vocal group, and members of an incredible Latin band called Grupo Latin Vibe, who were responsible for almost all the percussion and the vibraphone solo on 'I'm The Fool Pt. 2'. There was also some fine trombone playing by Aaron Johnson of Antibalas and great flute work by Neal Sugarman and my cousin Sonny. Preparing for Call My Name, I listened to a lot of different records from the mid to late '70s. It has now been over ten years since the completion of this record, and so much has changed. The Call My Name sessions took place when Daptone had just moved to Bushwick, its now-famous current location. Gabe Roth was my first call whenever I had any recording to do. He was yet to become the legendary figure at the center of the Daptone/Truth & Soul universe. He was just a humble guy with an incredible talent and an impeccable ear who made authentic sounding records with inexpensive analog gear." -- Daniel Collás, producer of Call My Name

New 2025 restock. Reissued here for the first time, Cartão Postal is one of the best and most sought-after Brazilian funk-soul albums from the early '70s. It includes some outstanding up-tempo gems like Marcos and Paulo Sergio Valle's "Que bandeira," and the stellar "Esperar Prá Ver," co-written by Evinha's brother Renato Corrêa who also happened to be a member of the Golden Boys. This is a classic Brazilian soul-funk title, right up there with all the greatest albums of the genre. Remastered from the original tapes and pressed on 180g vinyl. This release is part of a new reissue series that will include many other outstanding Brazilian classics. Cartão Postal was originally released on Odeon Brazil in 1971, a few years after Evinha started her solo career. From 1961 to 1968 she was a member of Trio Esperança, alongside her brothers Mário and Regina. In 1969 Evinha won first prize at the Festival Internacional da Cançao Popular and her discography for Odeon took off. Cartão Postal, her third solo album, comprises some outstanding gems. "Só Quero" emanates samba soul sounds while songs like "Por Mera Coincidência" or "Rico Sem Dinheiro" resemble what Trio Esperança was doing at the time: vocal-driven groovy jams spiced with celestial strings arrangements and heavy-duty drums and basslines, which is not surprising since they both worked with the same producers and arrangers, as they were all Odeon artists. Ridiculously rare and expensive now, and at the top of many collectors' wants lists for decades, it's finally reissued here after years unavailable.

2025 repress; transparent vinyl version. First-ever official reissue on vinyl since 1975. Ash Ra Tempel is the eponymous debut studio album by the Krautrock band Ash Ra Tempel. It features guitarist Manuel Göttsching with drummer Klaus Schulze and bassist Hartmut Enke. Engineered by Conny Plank, it was recorded in March and June 1971 on Ohr Records. This 50th Anniversary Album will be released in memoriam of all the musical contributors to this release and on Manuel Göttsching´s MG.ART label.

"On our album, the track 'Amboss' represents the first layer. Conventional instruments communicate familiar music which is in part expanded through electronic means. In the second track of the album -- 'Traummaschine' -- the actual basic sound approach is dissolved into an electronic Nirvana which no longer allows the concrete identification of actual instruments. Innocent, virgin listening, free from any and every association, can finally begin -- and the music can be absorbed and processed free from the limitations of categorization. That is the purpose of our music: To convey freedom without any predetermined criteria or traditions. Thank you for your attention." --Manuel Göttsching (Taken from the original A-R-T Bio 1970)

140gram Limited Transparent Vinyl. Sticker, 50th Anniversary RE-Edition, Re-Cut carefully overseen by Manuel Göttsching. 350 gram Quadro Fold Out Sleeve that exactly replicates complex/original OHR die-cut jacket, A2 Poster, 2x (German and English) A4 Inlay with Original Bio Sheet written by Manuel Göttsching (1970). Pressed at Optimal, Germany.

2025 repress. 40th anniversary, triple-CD edition of The Congos' legendary Heart Of The Congos.

2025 restock on LP. Born Herman Poole Blount in Alabama during 1914, Sun Ra first emerged on the Chicago jazz scene during the late 1940s. One of the great avant-garde composers of his generation -- leading the way on piano, organ, and (eventually) synthesizer -- beginning in the mid-1950s and lasting until his death in 1993, led the Arkestra, a band through which a near countless number of important artists passed and collaborated with, and many remained for the duration of their careers, notably Marshall Allen, John Gilmore, and June Tyson. Known for their wild costumes and theatrics, Ra's eccentric image and claims that he was from Saturn was deeply political, imagining an alternate social order, history, and future for African Americans that rests as a pioneering force in the Afro-Futurist movement. Recorded live at Teatro Giulio Cesare on March 28, 1980, comprising an astounding 27 compositions, including the highly celebrated "Astro Black," "Mr. Mystery," "Romance of Two Planets," "Space Is the Place," "We Travel the Spaceways," and "Calling Planet Earth," over six vinyl sides. High among the greatest live gigs by the Arkestra captured on tape, carefully mastered by Matt Bordin at Outside Inside Studio, Live in Rome 1980 is a near perfect snapshot of the band's versatility and range, including many of their most notably and famous songs, as well as striking renditions of the Horace Henderson penned Benny Goodman number "Big John's Special," Fletcher Henderson's "Yeah Man!," and "Limehouse Blues," displaying Ra's willingness to address and rework the entire, diverse history of jazz in a single go. Heard in its totality, perhaps what makes Live in Rome 1980 most striking is the way in which the concert plays out. Roughly the first half encounters the band locked in some of the most out-there, free jazz fire that can be imagined, weaving a startling sense of interplay and furious energy into a brilliant tapestry of writhing sonority, the likes of which were only really achieved by this band. The second half, with only moments of exception that return to the furious energy of the first, is a very different affair, easy toward the vocal standards, led by June Tyson's vocals and the joyous collective chanting of the band, for which they have become so widely celebrated, threading the sounds of off-kilter big band swing with heavy grooves and imagines of outer space.

Black Truffle presents the first ever solo Donso n'goni recording from octogenarian Swedish multi-instrumentalist Christer Bothén. Active in the Swedish jazz and improvisation scene since the 1970s, often heard on bass clarinet, Bothén travelled to Mali in 1971, eventually making his way to the Wassoulou region in the country's south where he encountered the Donso n'goni, the sacred harp of the hunter caste of Wassoulou society. Though playing the instrument has traditionally been restricted to those who belong to the hunters' brotherhood, Bothén found an enthusiastic teacher in Brouema Dobia, who, after many months of intensive one-on-one lessons, gave Bothén his blessing to play the instrument both traditionally and in his own style. Returning to Sweden, he would go on to pass on what he had learned to Don Cherry and play the Donso n'goni in a wide variety of inventive settings, including the driving Afro-jazz-fusion of his Trancedance (BT 118LP, 2024). The seven pieces of Christer Bothén Donso n'goni offer up a stunning showcase of Bothén's work on this remarkable instrument, heard entirely unaccompanied, except for the final piece where he is joined on a second Donso n'goni by his student and collaborator, the virtuoso bassist Kansan/Torbjorn Zetterberg, and Marianne N'Lemvo Linden on the metal Karanjang scraper. Recorded in three sessions in Stockholm between 2019 and 2023 in richly detailed high fidelity, the instrument's buzzing, sonorous bass strings make an immediate, overwhelming sonic impression. Hyper-focused on hypnotically repeating pentatonic patterns, the seven pieces are at once relentlessly single-minded and endlessly rich in subtle variations. The concentrated listening environment turns small details, such as the deployment of the instrument's segesege rattle on two of the pieces, into major events. Six of the seven pieces are traditional, with Bothén contributing the remaining "La Baraka," but the line between tradition and the individual talent is imaginary here. While the traditional Wassoulou pieces provide the rhythmic and harmonic elements, Bothén's individuality as a performer is alive in every moment, felt acutely in boundless variations of attack, improvisational flourishes, and unexpected accelerations and decelerations. Captured entirely live and bristling with spontaneity, this music is undeniably the product of almost half a decade of Bothén's devotion to the Donso n'goni and its traditional music. Accompanied by detailed new liner notes by Bothén and color photos from his time in Mali, Christer Bothén Donso n'goni is a stunning document of a remarkable instrument.

LP version. In the shadow of the nuclear accident in Fukushima in 2011, Japanese musician Phew, artist Erika Kobayashi, and German electronic music pioneer Dieter Moebius (Cluster, Harmonia) came together for an extraordinary project. Together, they developed the concept album Radium Girls 2011, which they released in 2012 under the project name Project UNDARK -- 114 years after the discovery of radium by Marie and Pierre Curie. The album is dedicated to the so-called Radium Girls, female factory workers in the United States during the 1920s who painted watch dials with radioactive luminous paint and suffered severe health consequences from radium poisoning. On the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the label Bureau B is reissuing Radium Girls -- for the first time also on vinyl. The Radium Girls were female factory workers who unknowingly suffered radiation poisoning while painting watch dials with glow-in-the-dark paint at the United States Radium Factory in Orange, New Jersey, around 1917. A group of five affected women later took their employer to court, setting a legal precedent that granted workers the right to sue companies for illnesses caused by hazardous working conditions. Between 1917 and 1926, the U.S. Radium Corporation -- previously named the Radium Luminous Material Corporation -- specialized in extracting and refining radium from carnotite ore to manufacture glow-in-the-dark paint, marketed as "Undark." As a supplier for the military, the company produced radioluminescent watches and other instruments. The New Jersey factory employed over a hundred workers, primarily women, to apply the radium-based paint, unaware of the serious health dangers associated with it. In total, around 4,000 workers across the United States and Canada were hired to paint watch dials with radium. Many later suffered from severe health problems due to radiation exposure, though the exact number of fatalities remains uncertain.

"Eiko Ishibashi and Jim O'Rourke toured Europe for two weeks in 2023, a wonderful passage through France, Switzerland, Italy and Ireland; Pareidolia, the duo's fifth collaborative release, is a remix made up of resonances from those shows. The movement of sound in each performance and the relationships of sound between them; a dynamic medley of color and shape to pulse through earbuds, speaker cones and the air immediately surrounding you. Improvisation is the preferred collaborative mode for Eiko and Jim. They both prepare separately, without discussing anything beforehand. The dialogue in the moment determines the performance; anything that takes place is a possible point of departure, allowing for a unique experience each time they play. These 2023 shows marked the first time Jim and Eiko had played together outside Japan. Perhaps the flow of parts unpacked from their respective computers was inspired by the experiences of the tour: the nature of the assembled audience, the quality of the meal on the day at hand. Additionally, Eiko played flute and they both played a bit of harmonica intermittently throughout the performances. These live acoustic signals were routed back to the hard drives, to provide further material to play with -- and as they traveled, recordings of the previous nights' shows were among the materials for the next performance. With all this to play with, there was much fun to be had every night. Pareidolia's final mix is one further rearrangement of the elements -- comping -- say, a bit of Jim from Paris against Eiko in Dublin for a minute, before bringing them both back into the same room for a spell before another set of interactions comes into play. The choices and edits represented here make yet another unique dialogue, as well as a kind of "best" version of what they were doing on the tour. The sense of inevitability in the parts as they flow together might suggest structure; happily, this occurs without Eiko and Jim really committing to anything of the sort. Their available sound sources could present as a hot-wired noise onslaught, with all faders up full. Endless possible interpretations to be had on either side of the experience! This is one of several ways that the LP title and sequence of song titles come into play. Listeners hearing something more should have a good look in the mirror and perhaps consider the old saying: 'Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they aren't out to get you.' It could only help."

New/permanent black vinyl edition; double 140gr vinyl. Originally released in 1993, The Brown Album marked a significant evolution in Orbital's sound -- and was met with widespread critical acclaim. NME awarded it 9/10 in their review, and it was chosen as one of Mixmag's best albums of all time. Standout track "Halcyon + On + On" became an instant classic, known for its ethereal atmosphere and haunting vocal sample from Opus III's It's a Fine Day. The track's dreamy progression and uplifting yet melancholic tone made it a staple in film soundtracks and DJ sets, embodying the emotional depth electronic music could achieve. "Impact (The Earth Is Burning)" is another defining moment, an evolving journey of layered breakbeats and dynamic synth arrangements, reflecting the duo's ability to create both club-ready and introspective music. Meanwhile, "Lush 3-1" and "Lush 3-2" demonstrate Orbital's knack for crafting intricate, evolving grooves, balancing pulsating rhythms with melodic flourishes that keep the listener engaged. This Brown Album 2LP reissue has been cut at half speed, to ensure maximum audio fidelity for this landmark release.

A Note from Aki Onda: "This album was recorded as a soundtrack for Ken Jacobs' Nervous Magic Lantern at Spiral Hall, organized by Sound Live Tokyo, on November 3, 2015. It was probably one of our best performances. Before the performance, Ken explained to me the selected slides he uses and the ordering he employs, so that I would better understand the flow. Some slides are black-and-white and some color. For a given performance, Ken selects ten slides or so. However, he might play with just one slide for the entire show or change the order -- there was plenty of room to improvise. On my side, I also had a structure and the order of tapes, quite independent from Ken's visual. But I made the system easy to extend or shorten, duration-wise, in order to respond to Ken's ordering and mood. I dedicate this album to Flo Jacobs who passed away just recently. Flo was deeply involved in Ken's creative process; as he says: 'This is a mom-and-pop business.' From the first day of working together, she was always there with us and took care of all practical matters. Ken is a dreamer and thinks and works intuitively. But Flo -- an exceptionally beautiful woman in and out -- is rooted in the real world. Not just a pragmatist, however, Flo advises Ken on artistic decisions. Ken always asks to hear her thoughts, as I did as well. As film critic and their decades-long friend Amy Taubin once described it, 'Florence Jacobs is nothing less than a producer of Ken Jacobs' cinema.' What a perfect couple, and it was an extremely joyous journey with them!"

Paul and Limpe Fuchs at the peak of their creativity and power, tense and radically pursuing freedom with every texture, tone and beat. This LP issued in an edition of 300 copies finds Anima-Sound at the crossroad between sound art/sculpture, radical free jazz and the German sonic avant-garde. Anima-Sound has been defined as "finding authentic sound combinations together" -- and you can hardly describe it tighter. The music of Paul and Limpe lives on such dialectical tensions in many ways, as these 1987 recordings in the municipal gallery in Rosenheim demonstrate. Tension in the musical dialogue between the two, tension between traditional music and the spontaneous sound formation that arises from the moment, tension between conventional instruments and Paul Fuchs' "sound sculptures," tension between the sound of instruments and voice, between metals and woods, between strings and membranes. In order to create as much freedom as possible, Paul and Limpe developed most of the instruments themselves. Sound sculptures like the "pendulum strings," heavy metal rods that hang from piano wires under resonating drums. When struck, bowed or plucked, bell effects, flooding or rough rubbing surfaces of sound are created. Sometimes the vibrations and beats become more concentrated, as if there was a constant cloud of sound over the room. Or the "fox horns," boldly looped wind instruments that again resemble the shape of prehistoric animal horns, or the "tube drums" and other idiosyncratic percussion instruments, such as the circular saw blade used as a cymbal or a simple, flexible bronze plate with a sliding tone scale when brought to swinging with the drumsticks from Limpe, held by Paul. As Limpe recalls: "In the Anima duo with Paul Fuchs beside the drum set I used iron tools and metal sheets from the workshop. Instead of the hi hat cymbals I had a metal ring with five strings and plucked them by foot with a plectrum. Paul had built the Fuchsharp with two pickups and glided up and down the scale." Paul and Limpe Füchs in Baummusik managed to maintain the creative tension, a deeply resonant space and sound, throughout the whole performance: a rise and fall of dynamics and rhythmic intensity, the change of the respective "leading sonority," the choice of timbres were so obvious, as if this music were the reflex of organic life, like breathing. And both the moments of complete silence as well as the outbursts of uncontrolled chaos fit logically into the flow of the music.

This third Gil J Wolman record released by Alga Marghen, bringing together mégapneumes from the '60s, sheds new light into the poetic revolution of the time, or a kind of organic infra-language. It's the physical poetry of a serial killer that is recorded in the two "Mégapneumesm" as well as in the extract from the (last?) "Mégapneumes" (excerpt), the tape that was found still wound on Wolman's tape recorder after his death. "Les Callas," an astonishing piece possibly based on several super-imposed recordings of Wolman's voice at Radio Télévision Française (ca 1961), features a Lettrist choir recycling Rimbaudian vowels, while high-pitched screams emerge, culminating in a polyphony worthy of some tribe resistant to domestication. "Un coup pour rien", "Un coup pour deux" and "Tu vas la taire ta gueule", recorded at Radio Canada in 1965, are presented here for the first time on record, completing the program of this historical and radical anthology. In a conversation with Ilse Garnier, she told Frederic Aquaviva (the curator of this edition for Alga Marghen) that Henri Chopin had precipitated the end of his attempts at sound poetry with this definitive formula: "Le souffle, c'est moi!". On the other hand, in Gil J Wolman's record library appears this eloquent dedication by Chopin on his record Audiopoems, released by the English label Tangent in 1971: "For Gil J Wolman, evident in 1 (because the first), evident in 1971, evident in 2071, evident in 3071, in short to the sup-herbal Gil." But unlike Isidore Isou, Wolman was not the sort of person to send out a leaflet in order to make clear what he had achieved with this new poetry, and besides, he himself had consigned Isou to the old world, with the new beginning represented by his mégapneumes, which in fact date from 1950, when he first joined the Lettrist movement. He was undoubtedly one of the first poets to use the resources of the tape recorder and its varispeed, for example in L'Anticoncept, in 1951, also used a decade later by Brion Gysin with "I Am that I Am" and Henri Chopin. Also, in 1973, François Dufrêne produced a manuscript on a torn silkscreen poster where one can read "Gil J Wolman is one of the most important phonetic poets." Wolman is an essential innovator and artist: a poet, writer, visual artist, film-maker and video-maker who, like Gherasim Luca, did not need to give numerous public recitals or recordings to make his mark. To be Duchamp or Arman: Wolman chose his side!

The roots of African music are always open to new possibilities. This is revealed in the music of this unprecedented quartet. Alongside the Malian singer Rokia Traore', Mamah Diabate, Malian riot and djeli ngoni player, has been playing for several years with Stefano Pilia (Afterhours, Massimo Volume). Now, their path intertwines with the artistic and human partnership between Jabel Kanuteh, Gambian griot and kora virtuoso, and percussionist Marco Zanotti (Classical Afrobeat Orchestra, Cucoma Combo). The union of these two pairs develops unusual geographies and architectures, where dual African and Italian identities merge into one universal sensibility. The predominant Malian and Gambian modes chase each other, but all is fused into a broader rhythm factory or embellished by more abstract and liquid experimental digressions. The curiosity and pliability of the individual musicians search for a language that is both current and contemporary, always poised between ancient and modern, landscape and narrative, with jazz, rock and folk influences.

The Vestige is the first fruit of a new intergenerational collaboration between Giuseppe Ielasi, a quietly prolific key contributor to the European experimental music scene for over twenty years, and Jack Sheen, a young composer-conductor-sound artist from Manchester whose recent projects have seen him moving seamlessly from enigmatic chamber music composition and installations to conducting the London Symphony Orchestra. Their materials and working methods differ significantly, with Ielasi having focused for many years on electro-acoustic techniques alongside his ongoing commitment to the guitar, and Sheen primarily composing for traditional instruments. More important, though, is what they share: a fascination with what Sheen calls "mysterious, liminal musical material," using irregular repetition and cyclical forms to create structures at once alive with activity and almost static, as well as a rigorous exploration of spatial diffusion and the interaction of sound event and environment. Working individually with a library of acoustic instrument sounds from Sheen's recent projects and Ielasi's guitar, the pair eventually met for several days at Ielasi's home studio in Monza, sculpting the fourteen pieces that make up The Vestige. Like Ielasi and Sheen's solo works, the record shows an exquisite attention to details of sequencing and pacing, the sound palette and compositional approach consistent throughout while each piece asserts its own identity. Ielasi and Sheen sketch dimensions of the ambiguous space, where distinctions between pitch and noise, repetition and irregularity, electronic and acoustic remain pointedly unclear. The Vestige shows an unusual degree of attention to frequency range as a compositional tool, something it shares with the hyper-subtle variations of Ielasi's electroacoustic works and the deliberately "unbalanced" midrange-heavy ensemble of Sheen's Sub. Here, movement between episodes is as much about adding or removing a frequency band as it is about changes in density, harmonic content, or instrumental texture. Tracks are marked by the sudden appearance of subbass or exaggeration of high frequencies in otherwise similar material, contributing to the sense that these fourteen pieces are like different views on a scene that listeners can never quite see clearly. While calling up a range of past music, from the early works of Rolf Julius to Simha Arom's recordings of layered polyrhythms embedded in the background sounds of central African villages to the temporal distortions and layered hiss of DJ Screw, the alluring and disconcerting world of The Vestige is entirely its own.

LP version. Al Bilali Soudan sparked by passion, and experience generate an improvisational tour de force melding tradition, rhythm and scale. From Tombouctou, Mali, these bravura players have performed together for generations. Pairing blazing strings with insistent percussion, Al Bilali Soudan's cultural roots represent the source of trance desert blues. Al Bilali Soudan delivers Takamba in its rawest form -- the original desert sound. These masters command the tehardent, a three-stringed lute buzzing with hypnotic power, propelled by deep calabash rhythms. Their music is tradition unleashed: unrefined, immediate, and pulsing with the spirit of Saharan gatherings. Recorded during informal rehearsals, this session captures Al Bilali Soudan's essence. Two extended tracks stretch beyond 13 minutes, locking into relentless trance inducing grooves. Abellow Yattara leads with tehardent work that's both virtuosic and deeply rooted, proving why he's revered as a keeper of Mali's musical legacy. This is desert music at its most primal. No studio effects, no concessions -- just real, raw resonance of strings, skin and voice. For those who think they know African blues, here's the deeper truth.

"Feeding Tube Records is excited to present the first North American release by this amazing Japanese sound artist. Yosuke Fujita goes by the name FUJI|||||||||||TA, perhaps so he won't be mistaken for the guitarist of the same name who plays with Better Days, or perhaps because he just likes to hear people try to figure out how to say, 'FUJI|||||||||||TA,' properly. Either way, FUJI|||||||||||TA is a wonderful avant-garde project that has been active for almost two decades. In its current iteration, performances involve spontaneous compositions on a mutant pipe organ which is operated by air pumps rather than keys. Using a variety of gestural means to create the long tones that are the basis of his work, FUJI|||||||||||TA's performances (such as this one at an old church in Brattleboro VT) have a choreographic element to match the sonics. As an element for this live session (the first he has released), the artist was also able to weave in sounds from Epsilon Spire's own 1906 3' manual Estey pipe organ. The sonic mix is both organic and ghostly. The process by which FUJI|||||||||||TA works has a deeply spiritual quality that blends seamlessly with instrumental sounds sometimes recalling Charlemagne Palestine at his most oceanic. When FUJI|||||||||||TA adds vocals, things get even better. Sometimes using a technique where he pushes himself to a place where he utters sounds that are beyond his actual range, at others singing long wordless passages with prayer-like qualities, the music is beyond easy description. There are three tracks on the LP, each with a slightly different instrumental approach, but all of a piece. The first has both FUJI|||||||||||TA's mutant organ as well as the church's. The second features the church organ and voice. The third is church organ and a Japanese free reed instrument called a shõ. Some parts have a single drone line, others commingle multiple sources for extra pleasure. But the entire album is something like waking up in the middle of a very strange and beautiful dream, not exactly certain where you are or even who you are, just drifting on clouds of serendipitous sounds. All we can say is, 'dream on.'" --Byron Coley, 2025

North of Copenhagen, in the suburb of Holte, there was a cinema called the Reprise Theatre, which promoted the arts in the area by holding art exhibitions and other events and, in the Autumn of 1967, opened the theatre for a series of jazz concerts with no restrictions on musical content or style. Many young musicians presented their music here, from bebop and blues to more experimental music. The musicians in Tordenskjolds Soldater were among the core of musicians who played there regularly. The group was formed in October 1969 by musicians who could be heard in many different jazz groups playing at Reprisen. The members of Tordenskjolds Soldater were the fine saxophonist Jesper Nehammer, later a member of the Danish Radio Jazz Group and orchestras led by trumpeter Palle Mikkelborg. Henrik Hove and Jon Finsen were regulars on the Reprise scene for a long time and played with Ole Matthiessen in many orchestras. In April 1970 the activities at Reprisen came to an end, but at the same time the Montmartre Jazzhouse changed its programming, relying more on local Danish jazz groups playing for longer periods. Tordenskjolds Soldater played at Montmartre every Monday from May to October 1970, and it was during this period that these recordings were made, the same time of heightened activity when the band recorded its lone commercial release, Peace, for the legendary imprint Spectator Records. Love, Tordenskjolds Soldater's first new LP in more than 50 years, includes previously unreleased recordings filled with deep grooves and driving rhythms like the previous Peace album. The LP starts with "Native Land," a joyous explosion built around the visionary piano playing of Ole Mathiessen and hypnotic cycles by Henrik Hove and Jon Finsen, with soulful lines by Jesper Nehammer on sax. "Memoires of Isadora Duncan" is the only track which was featured on Peace, but the alternate version presented here includes Ole Matthiessen winding through the intoxicating melodies of Nehammer on Fender Rhodes. From here on, every track was previously unpublished. Love, a truly striking statement that reminds you how much fun jazz can be, includes an insert with original photos as well as liner notes by Ole Matthiessen.

"Eastwood Rides Again follows the theme of Lee 'Scratch' Perry & The Upsetters previous classic, Return Of Django -- and like that one, the groove isn't just the rocksteady rhythms you'd expect -- but also maybe this more spacious version of the style. They got their funk on with the inspiration of Spaghetti Westerns and soul music. The record is largely instrumental and it's a representation of Perry's significant production skills. Lee 'Scratch' Perry was a pioneer in the 1970s development of dub music and worked together with artists such as Bob Marley and the Wailers, The Clash and The Beastie Boys. Nowadays he's still performing and recording music. Eastwood Rides Again is available as a limited edition of 1000 individually numbered copies on turquoise vinyl."

"Released in 1970, Earwax marked the debut album of Dutch Free Jazz ensemble Association P.C., recorded in Wageningen, The Netherlands, and produced by Dutch Jazz pioneer Wim Wigt. The album fuses Free Jazz with Jazz-rock, showcasing an adventurous sound led by drummer Pierre Courbois. The line-up includes guitarist Toto Blanke, bassists Siggi Busch and Peter Krijnen, and Jasper van 't Hof on electric piano. Members Courbois, Blanke and van 't Hof are considered as the early inspirators of the Jazz-rock and German Krautrock sound. Now, 55 years later, Earwax by Association P.C., finally sees its first-ever reissue since its original release. This long-awaited edition consists of six tracks and is presented in a gatefold sleeve, featuring details about the musicians involved."

"The album C.Q. was originally released in 1968 by the Dutch Nederbeat band The Outsiders, featuring Wally Tax (vocals), Ronnie Splinter (guitar), Leendert 'Buzz' Busch (drums), and Frank Beek (bass guitar). The Outsiders, hailing from Amsterdam, were a key figure in the Dutch Nederbeat movement-a local interpretation of beat music inspired by the British Invasion. Though the album C.Q. initially struggled commercially, it has since gained recognition as a psychedelic and garage rock masterpiece. C.Q. is available as a limited edition on yellow colored vinyl and packed in a gloss laminated gatefold sleeve."

Losoul is back on Slices Of Life with two minimal house gems! Frankfurt-based DJ and producer legend Losoul is renowned for his unique sonic language and deep, captivating grooves. On his latest release for the Berlin imprint, the tracks take listeners on a journey back to the roots of minimal house. "Post Service Pop" on the A-side flows deep and funky, spreading pads like hot oil, topped with subtly modulated vocal snippets. "Modesty Bump" on the B-side dives into rawer territory with high-energy sounds and edgy sonic sparkles.

"This is the inaugural boxset in a series inspired by our work on the My Brutal Life project and the Sleep Deprivation 24/7 broadcast channel. During our studio sessions, we occasionally get sidetracked, either by following creative impulses or simply having fun. While working on these mixes for our streaming channel, it was clear something else was happening. Something unexpected. It unfolded on its own. Before we realized it, we had over three hours of completely new recordings, all centered around My Brutal Life. This box set contains three CDs with over three hours of brand-new music and exclusive remixes. It's an exploration of long-form works, leading with emotion rather than structure, so come with us through the inner cityscapes, where grey over green wins every time." --The Black Dog

2025 restock."Pleased as punch are we to be reissuing Michael Hurley's long-lost 1984 album, Blue Navigator. Admittedly, Secret Seven and Mississippi collaborated on a dandy 8-track version a decade ago, but the record has mostly been available as an obscure import CD -- if at all -- for many a year. The reason for this is that the Rooster Records HQ burned down in 1987, taking master tapes, extra covers and whatever else there was with it. This was a general bummer, but especially so for us Hurley fans, since his final LP with Rounder was Snockgrass in 1980, and he didn't hook up with Fundamental to do Watertower until 1987. The disappearance of Blue Navigator from this earth left a sizable hole. Which we'd now like to think has been plugged. Recorded with a cast of Northern Vermont hepcats including guitarist Jon Weber (of Dan Hicks' original Hot Licks), head Rooster William Wright on guitar and mandolin, Nancy Beavan on vocals, Gordon Stone on pedal steel and various other goners, all playing some sweet rural swing displaying exactly how Hurley became the toast of the snowmobile club circuit during his days in the North Country. A mix of old favorites -- 'Werewolf,' 'Open Up (Eternal Lips)' -- new favorites -- 'Code of the Mountains,' 'Ghost Woman Blues' -- and even a re-write -- 'Blue Navigator' -- it's a great, very casual sounding session, revealing more layers the more you listen. The instrumentation varies a lot between tunes, but the music always flows with Snocky grace and assurance. For this reissue, Michael has written a set of illustrated liner notes that scoot around just the way his conversation does on a long car ride. Which makes me miss the open road as much as anything else today. Just close your eyes, sink back into the music on Blue Navigator and pretend you're drifting through the hills and valleys of the Green Mountain State on your way to a cold growler of beer. You'll soon feel like a million bucks. Promise!" --Byron Coley, 2020