Thomas Lea Clarke returns to the wider Optimo Music family with his third offering as MR TC for us and his first on Against Fascism Trax. This collection of five tracks (4 on the vinyl release + 1 digital exclusive) were recorded over the past couple of years in Clarke’s home studio and sees him diving deeper into the psychedelic dance explorations that you heard on ‘Soundtrack For Strangers’ and ‘Surf & Destroy’. AF Trax’s message is very simple. The far right ultimately wish for the destruction of our way of life and indeed the lives of many of the people we love. The message is love. The message is solidarity. The message is No Pasaran – They shall not pass. It is a call to stand together, it is a call to stand up, it is a call to ACT. Individually we may be powerless, but together we are strong. If you’re not outraged, you’re not paying attention! More

All proceeds go London based charity, Focus E15 which demands social housing, not social cleansing! More

Optimo Music presents a 5 track EP & also a debut release from Nashville’s Stranded, including a remix of title track “Celine’s Dilemma” by RSD, aka Rob Smith of Smith & Mighty fame. Despite hailing from Nashville, Stranded has a longing appreciation for the dance centric cities throughout the world whether it be Detroit, Manchester or Berlin, hence the moniker. Alienation, romantic rendezvous, 9 to 5 unease, and an apprehension of the future are just a few of the topics that surface on the debut EP, Celine's Dilemma, on Optimo Music. Sweeping and droning synths, jagged guitars, rolling bass, yearning and weary vocals, and disco beats propel the music and ideas showcased in the project. While using the backdrop of post punk, disco, and synth pop the music is a sonar call to places where people are gathering, working, and dancing. More

A new Optimo Music Disco Plate and the debut release from Feon. When these tracks first came my way I instantly knew they were ripe for a release on the label. Original, idiosyncratic, full of imagination and featuring a couple of dancefloor hits, how could I resist? ’Also, “The Sun is High” was surely destined to become a sun-blissed summer anthem…..
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It’s the return of the sexual vigilante Sex Judas and his trusted sidekick Ricky. This time in full album mode. Norwegian producer Tore Gjedrem of Ost & Kjex fame, channels his love of comix, bohemia and fascination with human vice, the unspoken, the Red Light districts, the alleys of the mind into his alter ego. Inspiration ranges from Africa to 80’s NYC, from Bohannon to Quasimoto, from Norwegian New Wave to Acid House. With contributions by friends in the Oslo scene as hometown legend Dj Pål Strangefruit Nyhus, composer Ole-Henrik Moe, jazzpianist Bugge Wesseltoft, Sidiki Camara from Mali playing that beautiful Ngoni, and multi instrumentalist Ivar Snuten Winther, the album touches anything from blues, funk, disco and post-punk to IDM, acid house and electronic explorer music. More

Another fierce and unique act from the depths of the Glasgow underground appear on Optimo Music with their debut Green Door studios recorded four track EP. Keyboard player Jim McKinven was previously in Altered Images, worked for many years in Martin Rushent's Genetic Studios, was in One Dove and previously appeared on Optimo Music as one half of Organs Of Love. He is however but one component of this transgenerational band. They describe their music far better than we could - "Seedy Electronica, consisting of 2 Basses, Electronic Drums, Synths and Dark Vocals. Inspired by the avant-garde that influenced the electronic music scene of the late '70's and early '80's.” More

Optimo Music is thrilled to release the new album from Jacob Yates. Not only is he one of our all-time favourite artists from Glasgow, but he is one of our favourite artists from anywhere. Criminally unknown except to a few who have been long transfixed by his recordings and performances, we hope this release will open a few more ears to his wondrous musical world. “The Hare, The Moon, The Drone” is the third album from Jacob Yates. This recording finds the band exploring dark hawthorn hedged lanes, moors and suburban, new build estates. There's something more earthy about the songs but the menace and darkness remains. Musically there is a big shift on this album, a field recording of a folk band from a dark, pine filled glen. More

After a year’s hiatus Optimo Music Disco Plates returns with the first of several planned releases. First up is long time friend Phil Kieran with an EP made specifically with Optimo in mind. It has been tried and tested over recent months and more than ticks all our boxes. We feel confident it will tick yours too. Phil says “The Ep was recorded in my house and made up of mostly live percussion performed live by Thomas Tettey Annang. Originally from Ghana, he moved to Belfast some years ago. It just so happens his wife is a close friend of my sisters and that was the first introduction. Thomas now runs "Releasing Rhythms” here in Belfast teaching drum classes. We used a wide selection of traditional African drums that all have their own name, each one has a style and a sound. The rhythms used in this record would stem back to South American rhythms but using African drums. This was a sound and rhythm that influenced early post punk records in New York and still has an influence on dance music today.” More

Blurt are perhaps the act who have played live at Optimo more than any other. Active for close to 40 years they are one of the UK’s all time great acts, phenomenal live and on record and supremely underrated. Blurt mainman Ted Milton is a living legend. Now in his 70s but more vibrant on stage than most artists 50 years his junior, he is a man of many talents; artist, poet, musician, performer…. In 1984 he released a solo 12”; “Love Is Like A Violence”, a no doubt accidental dancefloor gem completely out of kilter with any other music of the era that now makes total sense in 2017. Dubbed-out stabs, programmed rhythm, trademark sax squeals and a more subdued than normal vocal that is strangely reminiscent of Vincent Price. Thee definition of a cult classic and much in demand, side A of this 12” presents the A and B side (the equally outre “It’s Only Recently That Stalins Have Begun To Roost”) of this mighty 12” on one side of vinyl. “The Ruminant Plinth” is but one of multiple classic tracks in the Blurt catalogue and is a long, long time personal favourite that takes pride of place of the other side. Tribal hypno rhythms, chicken wire guitar, sax and Milton’s voice on fire, this was a genuine party starter on the Optimo dance floor on Sunday nights Glasgow. So louche it should probably be banned. 12” vinyl release in full picture sleeve designed by Glasgow artist Andrew Beltran. More

The whole EP is about being with the one(s) you love when everything else around you breaks down. Looking inward, with pure love, in the hope to radiate outward, rather than pushing for a fight, or running away. Recorded, written, and produced in isolation by Stephen and Penelope on our own in East London Studio space. The EP starts with the song "End Of Times" which is a dramatic, Shangri-Las influenced take on feeling powerless in a chaotic world, but still high on love. Happiness can be found in analog reverb. This is followed by "Serenity", a hard and tranquil meditation of past + future. Side 2 leads with "Heart Control", with a slight nod to Pink Floyd. A nine minute plea to ourselves to keep it all focused and under control… The EP closes with "Darkness Falls". The lyrics for this came from an apocalyptic dream that Penelope had, and wrote down in the morning. the music is 100% purely modular, er, except for the tiny bits of guitar at the end. More

Optimo Music is delighted to release a first album by Fantastic Twins (formerly known as The Twins). We’ll let them tell you the story behind this inspired and beguiling record - Obakodomo (Au Balcon Du Monde) is a soundtrack I created for a piece of contemporary dance, performed by two dancers for a young audience from the age of 4. It is the story of an imaginary journey in Antartica where two explorers go on an adventure. They encounter a colony of penguins and will progressively learn to understand their habits and respect their environment. Essentially, Au Balcon Du Monde is a metaphor of how to exist next to each other, how to share a territory, how to learn to live together and share resources. The scenography and stage accessories were designed in a minimalistic and non-obvious form to leave all the space for imagination. The penguins were made of translucent material to provide light effects and were programmed to move in a swaying motion, allowing interaction with the dancers and the music. LED system could be wireless piloted. More

Optimo Music is delighted to present the debut EP from Glasgow-based Lo Kindre. Lo Kindre is Luxembourg-born and raised Irishman Daniel Magee's personal dub interpretation, the result of a year of On U indulgence and Tuff Dub encounters, and time spent honing a live show across venues in Glasgow. Debut EP 'Plant Up' presents a cosmic blend of swirling synth and low-slung bass offering Magee's own version of dub to the public for the very first time. More

Optimo Music are delighted to present the second full-length from The Golden Filter, "STILL // ALONE". After relocating to London and playing shows around Europe for a year and a half, self-imposed pariahs Penelope Trappes and Stephen Hindman delved into creating a two-sided existential opus by renting out old studio spaces around the UK and using mostly analog 80's instruments, machines and effects. An album about being in love with pure solitude, when STILL // ALONE is separated into two distinct sides, record one, STILL, is a hypnotic meditation for the nightclub. Wavy patterns of sound and light bounce off of Penelope’s literary vocal bursts, layered over the ominous deep synths and arpeggiators, held together only by a strict 4/4 beat. The rhythm, ironically forcing the body to move, however internally focused and mindful, still.
Record two, ALONE, takes the club offline and into the fringes of raw, odd pop.
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Peter Zummo (born 1948) is an American composer and musician. He plays the trombone, valve trombone, euphonium, synthesizer, other electronic instruments, and also sings. He is associated with the postminimalist and Downtown aesthetics, and he describes his music as "minimalism plus a whole lot more." He’s well-known for his work with Arthur Russell. “In this project for Optimo, the listener can hear that my musical food pyramid has musicians at top, or maybe they are at the bottom. In any case, they are important. That is why, from track to track, I selected segments in which one player or another is featured in the take. Some may think that we musicians do multiple takes to get the perfect performance, but I like to find the special interactions lurking in each excursion. Different players came forward in each of the takes, which were recorded in the studios Seaside Lounge and Headroom, in Brooklyn, and live in performances at Cube Cinema, in Bristol, U.K., as well as in Long Island City and on Staten Island, New York. In order to escape the tyranny of the lyric, I am exploring in this release the possibilities of nonsensical and non-emotional lyrics. These kinds of lyrics bring the singing voices into the mix without an overweening message. The tracks include open-form compositions in which the duration was not specified.” More

London’s Alex Warren, AKA Kiwi presents “ThrowDown”, a cover version of Carmen’s cult and in demand 1986 Electro Funk hit. It comes in two versions, a 4/4 club mix and at the suggestion of JD Twitch, an updated take on a Latin Freestyle mix. Both versions feature full vocals from Ciara Haidar and have “summer hit” written all over them. More

Glasgow's Junto Club return with their second EP. In their own words... This is the second in our planned trilogy of Junto Club EPs. If the first was the birth of the Junto Club, this is the middle-aged existential crisis. We've followed the same ethos as the first EP, allowing the music to develop organically rather than being restricted by considerations of genre. Naturally, this was shaped by our experiences of the first EP. While the first EP developed through our experimentation with new sounds behind closed doors, this EP was the result of our attempts to retrospectively understand those creations and the interpretations of others. These reflections were mixed with our reimagining of those discoveries and our experiences of their live performance. Warm Me Up is not the same as the Junto Club EP because those virgin sessions can never be recreated. Nor should they be. This is the middle aged existential crisis of the Junto Club. And we hope you enjoy dancing to it. OM say: it’s electronic pop speaking oot the side of its mooth. More

Next up on Optimo Music is the next wave of unique talent to emerge from Glasgow, once again recorded in the near-legendary Green Door studio. Four tracks of highly original, impossible to pigeonhole, dancefloor-not-dancefloor music. Junto Club are four men from Glasgow who have remained friends since they were teenagers through creating music they love. Whilst learning new instruments during a long winter, their sound was fashioned unexpectedly with sporadic melodies overlaid on taut drum machines, synthesizers and bass guitar. Many humble dance moves followed as the band began to carouse behind closed doors with their newly-found rhythm. More

Noo are Daze Dasen (aka Plastique De Reve) and Sami Liuski (aka Bangkok Impact / Putsch '79. They return with their second 12" (Noo 2) and the third in the Optimo Music Disco Plate series. Their first 12" was a summer of 2014 smash hit. This second double A side 12" single is built out of imaginative sampling combined with analogue machines. Phenomenally produced, modern disco epics that fully work their magic in a club setting. Two ten-minute tracks. "Must Be The Music" : Absolutely guaranteed not to appeal to moody techno fucks. Epic disco-ness abounds. Features breakdance potential breakdown at around 6 minutes. Already huge with Pete Waterman. "Heaven's Gate" : a soundtrack for evacuating the planet. Road tested on our last star trip to Sirius. More

Following on from the summer hit that was Noo's Optimo Disco Plate one, we are delighted to present the second plate, this one an archival release from London's Reel Houze. Reel Houze are/were Dominic Dawson and Rob Mello, and these two tracks were originally released in 1996. Big with Twitch at the time, he dug out "No Difference" again last year and started playing it once more and then did the same with "The Chance". They felt and sounded timeless so it seemed a good idea to make these Dub Disco wonders available again to a new generation. 'The Chance" is based on a sample form Dinosaur L's "Go Bang". It is nearly 11 minutes of dubbed out disco madness featuring one of thee all time greatest Moog solos, played live by Rob Mello. DJ Harvey gets frenetic on the percussion (he's playing a toilet seat!). It's loose, it's a little debauched and is further proof that disco music can be out there, wild, modern and any tempo it goddamn wants to be. "No Difference" is the closest thing we can imagine to Basic Channel doing disco. Loose, long, extremely dubbed out and mesmeric, in the right hands it is swinging, sexy club hypnotiser. More