1CD, heavy high gloss cardboard, gatefold, obi tag japanese/english.

01.Tenzing Song, 02.Gentleman, 03.Hargeisa, 04. Papa Paradise, 05. City Of Aleppo
06. City Of dub, 07.Hekri Salari, 08.Observation Is No Crime, 09.Olele Moliba Makashi, 10. Dub Hekri

"It is a great album! It sounds like he had passed through my lessons." (Tony Allen)

"Although I did not think deeply about it but I felt that a certain time had come for me and I decided to produce my solo album. It was 20 years since I first started playing drums and since then, out of all the brilliant artists who live in Japan that I played with, I wanted to freely enlist players who I really wanted to create music with. The initial catalyst was my strong yearning, wanting to know, what sort of creativity would result, if I produced my own album."
This is what Keiichi Tanaka says about his intention in making this album.

In 2014, Japan's leading 8 piece Afrobeat band with a cast of characters, Kingdom Afrocks put a halt to their group activities. For the past 8 years, firmly maintaining their steady & indispensable rhythmic core to this band's energetic live performance and music, their drummer, Keiichi Tanaka became the first member of this group who will be releasing a solo album after their split. He started working on his solo album entitled, KETA IICNA HIKA on October, 2014 and finished it at the beginning of 2015.

Kingdom Afrocks were a band whose sound centered around Afrobeat and also implemented various musical styles such as Jazz, Brazilian Music, Latin, Rock, etc. and cooked up their own distinctive musical style and also managed to release 3 albums. Their frenzied live performance encompassed the overground to Japanese club scene's prestigious stages such as Fuji Rock Festival, Sunset Live, Gilles Peterson Presents Worldwide Showcase, Felabration Tokyo, Francois K.'s Deep Space which earned them a great reputation in Japan.

In addition to Kingdom Afrocks' ex-colleague, Nao Ito, OKI of Oki Dub Ainu Band and several other artists who Keiichi has recently performed with, he has also enlisted legendary Japanese Jazz piano master, renowned for the Japanese Jazz masterpiece, Watarase, Fumio Itabashi who he wanted to previously collaborate with. Furthermore, Keiichi has enlisted many African musicians living in Japan. So, along with conventional instruments, traditional African instruments such as a banjo-sounding traditional string instrument popular in countries such as Mali and Guinea, N'goni, traditional Karafuto/ Ainu instruments that OKI plays, Tonkori, and a bamboo mouth harp, Mukkur, are superbly intermingled in natural fashion. It is as if Keiichi is trying to create a compelling, new style of music by collaborating with an assorted variety of different musicians who play their unique instruments living in Japan. Furthermore, not just confined to Afrobeat, Keiichi also includes various African music and traditions such as Benga from Kenya, a lullaby from Congo, inspiration from Somaliland and Mali. Keiichi intermingles it with dub from OKI, traditional Japanese music such as his own roots music of Tenjinbayashi and traditional Ainu sounds. Also, Keiichi undertakes a Jazz- flavored cover of Afrobeat founder, Fela Kuti who he deeply reveres. As a result, Keiichi has created a deep and an unparalleled, melting pot like album that only he was able to produce. He stubbornly insisted on recording each song "live" and as such performed with his collaborators mostly in one take.

Keiichi completed this album in 2015. The record was ready to go but tragedy struck and Keiichi was taken from us by a fatal accident. KETA IICNA HIKA represents Keiichi`s musical vision, a culmination of all he had learned in this twenty years as a drummer and musician. In tribute, his family and friends have worked determinedly since Keiichi`s death to ensure that his music will reach audiences, not just in his native Japan but also across the globe.




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LP, 2024 Repress - half speed mastering

Amazing and legendary 1994 cult album on the equally amazing and legendary Irdial Disc label, remastered at Emil Berliner Studios in half speed mastering.

Tracklist:

A1 Untitled
A2 Untitled
B1 Untitled
B2 Untitled
B3 Untitled




About The Reviews >>>>


"The 50 best IDM albums of all time"
Pitchfork

"A liquidy headbox of aural shapes, whose forms hardly change yet seem to encompass infinite viscosity within them, like rainbow pools of oil on water"
Wire

"Before IDM became a nation of Aphex and Autechre cosplayers, the genre was less defined by aesthetics than by a shared ideology. Here was a loosely connected axis of post-rave kids, united by little more than a shared willingness to subvert the tools of their techno idols and create sounds that hadn't previously been imagined. No record of the era better embodies this find-a-machine-and-freak-it ethos than Islets in Pink Polypropylene, the otherworldly debut by British producer Anthony Manning."
Pitchfork

"It’s refreshing to hear an all-electronic album that sounds so organic yet so totally alien."
Fact

"One of the UK’s first post-rave ambient records proper; sharing much more in common with Autechre’s Amber or AFX’s Selected Ambient Works Vol. II - which were both released in that same year - than anything else before or around it."
Boomkat

For fans of avant everything innovative and experimental music.




About The Album>>>>

The whole album was composed and realized on the Roland R8 drum machine. It followed the same process as the Elastic Variations pieces, with the major addition of many, many hours of editing.

Each piece was composed as a series of patterns, of varying lengths ( 5,6,7 bars long ). The stock R8 sounds were embellished with one of several ROM sound library cards ( mostly the Dance card, number 10 ).

These patterns were created by tapping out a rhythm, then, in real time, using the Pitch slider as the pattern looped, to create improvised melodies for each of the pattern's voices.

The rough version of each piece was built by stitching the patterns together as a song, listening to each addition over and over, to make sure the melodies flowed into each other in a vaguely coherent manner.

Once this initial rough structure was in place I set about fine tuning every single note.

The R8 doesn't allow you to assign a pitch to a note in the conventional sense. It's not possible to assign a pitch of Middle C to the first note of the first bar. Instead, it assigns a numerical value to a note's pitch, between -4800 and +4800 ( I think those numbers are correct - that little screen is seared into my memory ).

If you restrict all notes within a piece to a multiple of, say, 400, you therefore create the possibility of a sort of scale. For multiples of 400, you have a total number of 24 permissable notes. However, most of the percussive sounds, when pitch shifted, only sounded 'good' over a reduced range.

The first editing step was to go through the entire piece, and change every note's pitch to its nearest multiple of 400.

The second step was to draw out the entire piece on graph paper, the Y axis being pitch, X being time. This drawing gave me a visual sense of a melody's flow. It was easy to see too many notes clustering around too tight a pitch range for instance, or a single note straying way down into the lower register while all others at that point in the melody were in the upper.

Once these first 'clearing-up' edits were complete I could set about re-writing elements that didn't sound right melodically. Often this meant stripping out whole chunks of superfluous notes, to reveal a cleaner melody line, then shifting its shape slightly. If the flow of the line of dots on the graph 'looked' balanced and sweetly sinuous, then often it sounded so.

This entire process took many weeks per piece. Weeks of doing almost nothing else. Listening. Re-drawing. Re-writing. Listening. Round and round and round. When I could hear the whole thing in my head, from beginning to end, and nothing seemed to jar ( too excessively ), I knew it was done, time to move on.

I imagine it's very similar to the process of stop animation. Your days are filled with painfully tiny incremental changes that seem to be getting nowhere. Then, slowly, a shape, narrative, starts to appear. Then, all of a sudden, somehow, it's done.

When all the pieces were complete the R8 was taken into Irdial's studio where some simple effects were added, each voice recorded individually for clarity onto 8-track tape and mastered onto an ex-BBC half-inch tape deck.

Then I slept. And vowed never to do it again.

*****

And the title ?

Soon after finishing the pieces I happened to read a magazine article about Christo's "Surrounded Islands" installation with the music playing in the background.

There was something about a particular cluster of words within a random sentence that seemed pleasing and somehow appropriate.

"Islets in Pink Polypropylene" seemed to make as much sense as anything else.

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LP, cut at 45rpm for deeper basses at Dubplates & Mastering in Berlin

A selection of 8 exclusive Dub cuts (+ 2 digital bonuses*) produced in the legendary Genevan squat “Goulet 25” between 2003 and 2013 and cut at 45rpm for deeper basses at Dubplates & Mastering in Berlin.

Recorded at Addis records studio/Goulet 25
Overdubbed in France, UK, Jamaica and New-York
Mixed at Disciples, Conscious Sound and Vibronics studios.
Mastered by Kassian at Dubplates & Mastering, Berlin
Produced and arranged by Gilles Geuggis aka Jil Addis for Addis records in collaboration with Olivier Ducret
Front cover by Stephane Lambercy aka Stuf Addis
Layout by Nicolas Eigenheer

Give thanks to the Creator JAH RASTAFARI to make everything possible

Tracklist:

1.
Restless Dub 05:37

2.
Dubolution 04:47
3.
The Riddim The Rebel 05:30
4.
Diamond And Dub 05:05
5.
I'n I A Dub (Dubplate Mix) 04:43
6.
Dub Haffi Shine 04:16
7.
Drums and Bass Have Taste 03:52
8.
Ghetto Dub 05:11

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LP, remaster - Includes 24"x24" poster

Dark Wave / Post Punk

Tracklisting
A1 Accident 3:15
A2 Dead End 3:14
A3 Station Balneaire 4:05
A4 Parano A La Campagne 2:29
A5 Acide Nuit 2:47
B1 Saint Raphael 2:26
B2 Matin Matin 4:15
B3 Blattes 2:24
B4 Courir Courir 3:49
B5 57ème Depression 1:56

File under
Remastered self-titled Swiss Romand sought after Dark Wave / Post Punk album from 1981.
Includes 24"x24" poster & original insert with lyrics.


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2LP, remaster - Imperial Tiger Orchestra's Mercato [12th years Anniversary Edition] includes the best of both albums Mercato & Addis Abeba remastered with bonuses live recordings in London, Paris, Addis, Tokyo & Cape Town.


Genre Ethiopian Jazz / Funky Groove
For fans of Les Ethiopiques, Mulatu Astatke, The Heliocentrics, Muluqen Melesse, Mahmoud Ahmed

SIDE A
DJEMEREGNE
[Muluqen Melesse]
ETU GELA
[Mahmoud Ahmed]
HARER DIRE DAWA
[Abonesh Adinew]
SELAM TEMAGWET
[Tekle Tesfa Ezghi]

SIDE B
AHA GEDAWO (LIVE CAPE TOWN)
[Getatchew Mehurya]
EMNETE (LIVE ADDIS ABBEBA)
[Mulatu Astatqe]
BATI (LIVE ADDIS ABBEBA)
[Traditional]
ZOMA (LIVE PARIS)
[Martha Ashagani / Zelalem Mekuria]

SIDE C
LALE LALE
[Abrar Abdo / Abrar Abdo]
ANCHI BALE GAME
[Tegenu Balkew / Tegenu Balkew]
YEDAO
[Rahel Yohannes / Yilma Gebereabe]
BEMGNOT ALNOREM
[Bahta Gebre-Metwet]

SIDE D
SHINET
[Tadesse Alemu / Traditional]
DEMAMAYE
[Ephrem Tamru / Akelilu Siyume]
YEFIKIR (LIVE LONDON)
[Tezera Haike-Michael / Tezera Haike-Michael]






Imperial Tiger Orchestra's Mercato [12th years Anniversary Edition] includes the best of both albums Mercato & Addis Abeba remastered with bonuses live recordings in London, Paris, Addis, Tokyo & Cape Town.

Imperial Tiger Orchestra, the finest connoisseurs and grooviest performers of Ethiopian music from the Golden Age.

Back in 2007 in underground Geneva, band leader Raphaël Anker decides to gather musicians for a one off live performance revisiting the golden age of Ethiopian music.
A memorable event that forced all the musicians to carry on.
As Imperial Tiger Orchestra.

Consisting of members with very diverse backgrounds (free jazz, noise experimentations, contemporary music, twisted pop…) the Orchestra soon travels to Addis-Abeba where they perform with local luminaries and deep learn about the large diversity of Ethiopian music.
A life-changing experience which brings them back to the studio and to a plethora of successful gigs around Europe, Eastern Europe, Japan and Africa.

The Tiger's unique sound is a mesmerizing re-interpretation of Ethiopian music's golden age mixed with the digitalized themes that appeared in the 80s and filtered through their eclectic influences, a sort of retro-futuristic and progressive Ethiopian rock. This Anniversary edition brings back thunderous rhythms and feverish hooks, down tempo moments and fast paced epiphanies, electronic sounds and ambient nirvanas.

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LP, silkscreened covers with stamped labels, LTD 100

Krautrock, Folk, Experimental

Tracklist:
A. Magical Stones And Shiny Mud 16:30
B. Spiegel Haus 18:28

Released december 2019 in coproduction with Standard In-Fi and Mental Groove.

In 2015 Tanz Mein Herz welcome a new arrival among its ever-evolving roster of musicians, the self-taught hurdy-gurdy wizard Alexis Degrenier.
With a tour already in the works, the musicians settle on a set consisting of old material (Magical Stones and Shiny Mud) as well as new themes such as Spiegel Haus, both built around the new instrumentation.
The selection presented on Dosses is taken from the very first rehearsals around these themes, as the musicians strive and wander about freely in search of new musical vistas and promising friendship. With Ernest Bergez, Pierre Bujeau, Alexis Degrenier, Pierre-Vincent Fortunier, Guilhem Lacroux, Jeremie Sauvage and Mathieu Tilly.
credits
released December 14, 2019

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LP

Special: plays both 33 and 45 rpm (vinyl and digital)
For fans of France (the band), Tanz Mein Herz, guitar improvisations, electroacoustiks
A Libellule
B Ebouli
New album by Guilhem Lacroux, LIbellule/Ebouli, recorded at the Librairie Pied-de-Biche Marque-Page (43), on 03/13/2020
Sound engineer: Yann Gourdon
Mixing: Guilhem Lacroux
Graphics: Mona Chancogne
Label: Standard-in-Fi, Mental Groove, La Novia


Two guitars heard, one played that listens to the second. Two superimposed timelines that are replayed through the disc.

Libellule: One side with use of drone.
Ébouli: a side where the guitar is detuned as the piece progresses.

Guilhem Lacroux designed this disc so that it could be listened to in 45 rpm and 33 rpm. The 45 rpm, as a version of real time - I live - and the 33 rpm version that of the state of suspension, the invitation to slow time.

French:

Disque de Guilhem Lacroux, LIbellule/Ebouli, enregistré à la Librairie Pied-de-Biche Marque-Page (43), le 13/03/2020
Prise de son : Yann Gourdon
Mixage : Guilhem Lacroux
Graphisme : Mona Chancogne
Label : Standard-in-Fi, Mental Groove, La Nòvia

Deux guitares entendues, une guitare jouée qui écoute la seconde. Deux temps qui furent, se superposent et qui par le disque se rejouent.

Libellule : Une face avec utilisation du bourdon.
Ébouli : une face où la guitare est désaccordée au fur et à mesure de la pièce.

Guilhem Lacroux a pensé ce disque pour qu’il puisse être écouté en 45 tours et 33 tours.
Le 45 tours, comme version du temps réel - je vis - et la version 33 tours celle de l’état de suspension, l’invitation au temps lent.

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LP

Special: sleeve is printed with silver pantone, includes note from composer (insert)
For fans of Generative Music, Neo Classic, Jazz, Experimental
A1 Ero Ayo
A2 Mo Bulu
A3 Irubo
A4 Ninu Meta
B1 Ibaramu
B2 Yipo
B3 Fun IFe
B4 Roro


Info:

Chris Korda is an internationally renowned multimedia artist, whose work spans thirty years and includes electronic music, digital and video art, performance and conceptual art, and culture jamming. Chris pioneered the use of complex polymeter in electronic dance music, and invented a unique MIDI sequencer in order to explore polymeter composition techniques. Chris composes and performs music in a variety of genres, and has released many albums on labels such as Perlon, Mental Groove, and Gigolo Records. Chris also worked as a computer programmer for thirty-five years.

Her new album "Passion For Numbers" is one of the very few album in the world entirely composed in complex polymeter, meaning that each pieces of music uses several prime meters simultaneously. A unique way to compose music with a new generation of musical algorithmic, inside which Korda injects the DNA of neo classical, ambient and jazz music.

This refreshing album will please you whether you are into complex musical composition, experimental music or just seeking for a beautiful, emotional and accessible musical moment. This is a "In your hearts not the charts" album, as Irdial Discs once said.

Pleases read an extract of Chris Korda's letter about Passion For Numbers, included as insert in its entirety in this vinyl release:

This is an album of piano music, but I wrote it without a piano. Not having a piano turned out to be constructive, because I had to rely on my brain instead of my fingers, and particularly on my imagination and inner hearing. The album belongs to a category called phase music, and it’s also algorithmic, or more precisely rules-based generative music.

I don’t write music in the usual sense of the word “write.” I build kinetic sculptures, and the sculptures generate my music. My sculptures are virtual, meaning they’re invisible machines that exist only as data within my home-grown software.
My process is related to the work of a relatively obscure early 20th century artist named Thomas Wilfred. Like me, Wilfred was an engineer-artist, and built machines that generated art from phase shift.

My music is in complex polymeter, meaning it’s not just in odd time, but in multiple odd time signatures, and not one odd time signature after another sequentially, but all of them running concurrently. Most music isn’t constructed this way, which is why I needed to develop custom software in order to compose my music. My software is called The Polymeter MIDI Sequencer, and you can easily find it on the Internet. I also use music set theory, change-ringing and gray code, explanations of which can be found in Wikipedia.

Chris Korda
(extract from "Passion By Numbers" liner notes)


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LP, half speed mastering

350GSM SLEEVE, INSIDE OUT CARDBOARD, LIMITED TO 500, HALF SPEED MASTERING


GENRE/S: CLASSICAL, AMBIENT

TRACKLISTS:
A1 SAKU
A2 TOBIUME
A3 HAGOROMO
B1 GENSHI
B2 KODOMOTACHI
B3 SHINSEN


SHORT INFO:

This is a love-filled tribute to the late japanese techno and ambient pioneer SUSUMU YOKOTA. In 2021, talented classical guitarist AYANE SHINO discovered his impressive works and recorded cover version of tracks from his acclaimed SAKURA album. Those new contemporary musical pieces will please his ever growing fanbase as well as listeners beyond the electronic music scene.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BQlmpNBW9o

VITAL SALES POINTS:

First in a serie (The Timbre Of Guitars) of classical cover versions by japanese guitarist Ayane Shino
For fans of ambient, new classical, electronica japan and Susumu Yokota



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Territory: World (Excluding France)

"Essential techno, essentially militant. A collection of pioneering electronic club hits and classic tech funk cuts with highly eco-political lyrics, produced by Michelle Grinser, DJ Naughty and featuring by Chicks On Speed. Chris Korda, is a transgender artist and tireless environmental activist who denounced 21 years ago the excess of capitalism and consumerism ("Buy", "Buy More"), exposed social inequalities and warned of the dangers of climate change".

Track listing:
FACE A

1.A1 - Buy

Chris Korda & The Church Of Euthanasia

04:10



2.A2 - Six Billion Humans Can't Be Wrong

Chris Korda & The Church Of Euthanasia

06:33



3.A3 - Sex Is Good (With Marilyn)

Chris Korda & The Church Of Euthanasia

04:06



FACE B

1.B1 - Save The Planet Kill Yourself

Chris Korda & The Church Of Euthanasia

06:12



2.B2 - Buy More

Chris Korda & The Church Of Euthanasia

03:41



3.B3 - Sex Is Good

Chris Korda & The Church Of Euthanasia

05:23



2. FACE A



1.C1 - Victim Of Leisure

Chris Korda & The Church Of Euthanasia

07:43



2.C2 - Stencil

Chris Korda & The Church Of Euthanasia

06:51



FACE B

1.D1 - Fleshdance

Chris Korda & The Church Of Euthanasia

06:11



2.D2 - Steel Peas

Chris Korda & The Church Of Euthanasia

07:02


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- Limited old school edition w / stamped white label + 12" Sleeve.
LP & Digital

Neon Pantone printed 350gsm sleeve
4 pages insert
Sticker

Genre: neo classical, ambient, jazz

Tracklist

1 Itumo 4.18
2 Ona Life 4.22
3 Algo Rag 2.18
4 Ominira 4.14
5 Ilopo Ferese 4.09
6 Omioto 4.46
7 Ohi Inu 5.16
8 Sipeli 3.14
9 Atunwi 5.35


Short Info
Chris Korda's new album "Polymeter" is unique as entirely composed in complex polymeter sequences, a unique way to compose music with a new generation of algorithm, inside which Chris injects DNA of neo classical, ambient and jazz music.

This refreshing album will please both those who are into complex musical composition, conceptual music and who are just seeking for a beautiful, emotional and accessible, unique, musical moment.

This is a "In your hearts not the charts" album, as Irdial Discs once said.

Chris Korda is a transgender, vegan and relentless critic of consumerism, leader of The Church of Euthanasia (willing to halt the overpopulation through suicide, sodomy, abortion and cannibalism) and composer/performer of electronic dance music. She has previously released albums on Kevorkian, International Deejay Gigolo Records and Perlon.


Please read below Chris Korda's introduction to his new album "Polymeter":

[Polymeter] is an album of virtual solo instrumental performances. They're mostly piano pieces, along with a couple of guitar pieces. They sound uncannily similar to human performances, but they aren't. On the contrary, they are algorithmic music, pure applied mathematics.


The compositions are generated by elaborate networks of polymeter modulation. This sounds complicated and will need some explaining. But the most important point is that these are compositions I didn't write in any usual sense of the word. I created systems of rules, and the compositions emerged from those rules. The rules that generated these pieces can be conceptualized as kinetic sculptures that produce intricate non-random patterns of musical interference. The resulting patterns repeat themselves over long periods, measured in hours, days, or in some cases years.


In order to create this album, I had to write my own MIDI sequencer from scratch, because commercial MIDI sequencers lack the necessary degrees of freedom. My sequencer is also called Polymeter, and I started writing it in 1994. I used a relatively primitive version of it to create my earlier techno and electro releases, but the rapid evolution of computer technology made my original so ware hopelessly obsolete by the 21st century. Like its immediate predecessor "Akoko Ajeji" (Perlon) this album was created using a much more sophisticated version of my sequencer. It took me many years to learn the programming skills I needed to modernize my sequencer, which is one reason why such a long hiatus occurred between my older and newer releases.


Chris Korda

(extract from "Polymeter" liner notes)


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Single-sided LP limited to 300 copies
Offset printed 350gsm sleeve
Holographic sticker

Genre: drone, rural trance, stoner, psychedelic

Tracklist

A1 Far Out Far West (Live 06.02.2008) 35min37sec


Short Info

The sickest French band, a trio called France, drums, bass and amplified hurdy-gurdy. They only performs live, in the middle of the audience - turned in to face each other - full on smoke machines and strobes. And they play only one ‘song’ for the duration of their hour-long set. And it’s the most transfixing live experience of intense physical and mental focus, and there is something of early rave too, the togetherness, the energy, the euphory. The distorted hurdy gurdy plugs France’s sound into the country’s history of folk music and popular festivities, of communal trance and immersive pleasure. The rhythmic basis is pretty much the same throughout the whole live. One doesn’t need to actually be tripping balls for the auditory illusions to start coming thick and fast.

Those who’ve stayed for the whole duration of their performances know they’ve shared something. However disparate the phantom forms each might have discerned in the midst of the howls and groans. Gigs like this you leave feeling you’re not quite the same person who went in, even though you’d be hard-pressed to pinpoint precisely what has changed.

Far Out Far West was the band's first gig outside of their usual comfortable friendly circle and thus was perceived as a somewhat hostile environment.
This was where they met the fellows of Les Potagers Nature who will later release France's debut untitled album.

One certainty remains at least, that there is still a France we can believe in.
David McKenna (The Quietus).


Sales Points:

- New album from trio France

- All previous releases now sold out and sought after

- For fans of drone, rural trance, stoner, psychedelic

- 131st release on Mental Groove Music, home of WRWTFWW

(extract from "Polymeter" liner notes)


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- For fans of labels like Ocora, Smithsonian Folkways Records, Buda Music, Nonesuch and traditional forms of music, ambient, (ethno)musicology, and children !
New collaboration from Mental Groove Records x Musée d'ethnographie de Genève (Sinner DC, Julien Perez, La Planète Bleue vol. 9) curated by Madeleine Leclair, head of the MEG's department of Ethnomusicology and Olivier Ducret (Mental Groove x WRWTFWW labels, Midori Takada, Donato Dozzy, Kenji Imperial Tiger Orchestra…)

- Opportunity to listen to the original version of the famous Lullaby of the Solomon Islands recorded by Hugo Zemp, sampled and remixed in 1992 by a group of French electro-pop and adapted in 1996 by a Norwegian saxophonist.



Tracklisting

01 Ukraine - Lullaby
02 Taiwan - Lullaby
03 Armenia - Lullaby
04 Lithuania - A-a a-a maz?ulyte ("Ah, ah! My little girl")
05 Portugal - Song To Rock
06 Ireland - An Irish Lullaby
07 Spain - Songs For Cradle
08 Solomon Islands - Lullaby
09 Algeria - Lullabies
10 Haiti - Lullaby
11 Canada - Loving Song Composed For A Child
12 Greece - Come Now An Sleep My Child
13 Canada - Ho Ho Watanay
14 Rwanda - Kamananga
15 United States - Go To Sleep
16 France - Nelli Monti Di Cuscione
17 Georgia - Lullaby
18 Balkans - A La Nana Y A La Buba
19 Romania - Cradle Song


Info

An inspiring collection of carefully chosen lullabies from all over the world, that will please both young parents and their children, as well as (world) music enthusiastics looking for a peaceful and captivating listening.

Lullabies exist in almost every culture in the world. While they relate to the world of childhood, they also evoke the privileged relationship established through music between an adult and an infant. The lullabies presented here were recorded at different times and come from eighteen countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, Oceania, and America. They share certain musical characteristics that can be identified from one piece to another: simple melodies, a sequence of short patterns repeated several times in succession, an overall melodic contour following a descending line.
All the lullabies presented here come from records published with a copy kept in the Archives internationales de musique populaire (AIMP) of the MEG.
Co-edition MEG et Mental Groove Records
Editor: Madeleine Leclair (MEG)
Supervision: Olivier Ducret (Mental Groove / WRWTFWW)



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1LP - An inspiring collection of carefully chosen lullabies from all over the world, that will please both young parents and their children, as well as (world) music enthusiastics looking for a peaceful and captivating listening.
- For fans of labels like Ocora, Smithsonian Folkways Records, Buda Music, Nonesuch and traditional forms of music, ambient, (ethno)musicology, and children !
New collaboration from Mental Groove Records x Musée d'ethnographie de Genève (Sinner DC, Julien Perez, La Planète Bleue vol. 9) curated by Madeleine Leclair, head of the MEG's department of Ethnomusicology and Olivier Ducret (Mental Groove x WRWTFWW labels, Midori Takada, Donato Dozzy, Kenji Imperial Tiger Orchestra…)

- Opportunity to listen to the original version of the famous Lullaby of the Solomon Islands recorded by Hugo Zemp, sampled and remixed in 1992 by a group of French electro-pop and adapted in 1996 by a Norwegian saxophonist.



Tracklisting

Side A

01 Ukraine - Lullaby
02 Taiwan - Lullaby
03 Armenia - Lullaby
04 Lithuania - A-a a-a maz?ulyte ("Ah, ah! My little girl")
05 Portugal - Song To Rock
06 Ireland - An Irish Lullaby
07 Spain - Songs For Cradle
08 Solomon Islands - Lullaby
09 Algeria - Lullabies
10 Haiti - Lullaby

Side B

01 Canada - Loving Song Composed For A Child
02 Greece - Come Now An Sleep My Child
03 Canada - Ho Ho Watanay
04 Rwanda - Kamananga
05 United States - Go To Sleep
06 France - Nelli Monti Di Cuscione
07 Georgia - Lullaby
08 Balkans - A La Nana Y A La Buba
09 Romania - Cradle Song


Info

An inspiring collection of carefully chosen lullabies from all over the world, that will please both young parents and their children, as well as (world) music enthusiastics looking for a peaceful and captivating listening.

Lullabies exist in almost every culture in the world. While they relate to the world of childhood, they also evoke the privileged relationship established through music between an adult and an infant. The lullabies presented here were recorded at different times and come from eighteen countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, Oceania, and America. They share certain musical characteristics that can be identified from one piece to another: simple melodies, a sequence of short patterns repeated several times in succession, an overall melodic contour following a descending line.
All the lullabies presented here come from records published with a copy kept in the Archives internationales de musique populaire (AIMP) of the MEG.
Co-edition MEG et Mental Groove Records
Editor: Madeleine Leclair (MEG)
Supervision: Olivier Ducret (Mental Groove / WRWTFWW)



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Format: 7inch White vinyl,Inner, Ltd to 100, Genre: Electronic HipHop Dub

Tracklisting:
Side A: Balian Break Side
B: Uch Daikaiju No Ballad
Infos:

The Single >
Side A “BAILAN BREAK” is T.D.O.S. third single featuring Japanese turntablalist DJ TO-RU (Dujada-Goja) is Side B is “UCHU
DAIKAIJU NO BALLAD” (The Ballad Of The Space Monster) featured samples of Gozilla dialogues with a scary soundtrack
mood.on a progressive and experimental beat.

The Artist >
The Dude Of Stratosphear aka T.D.O.S. is Jerome Doudet (Swiss/French artist and bass player based in Bangkok). DJ, vinyl
collector, musician, graphic designer and East Asian music connoisseur, The Dude of Stratosphear was groomed in the vibrant
alternative scene of the very international city of Geneva Switzerland. Growing up in a musical household (His father was a disco
DJ), Growing up in a musical household (His father was a disco
DJ), Jerome was exposed to a wide range of music at very early age, and started playing the 4 strings at the age of 10.
Bass player in the swiss math-core bands Knut for a decade, he toured intensely all around Europe’s biggest venues and
festivals. He also joined the very underground american band Half Japanese for a couple of european tour and recorded the
album Bone Head in 1997. And on top of the list was opening for the mighty KISS with the canadian band Bionic (CA) at Molson
center in Monteal. Also member of various bands such as Imericani (SP/IT/CH), Intercostal (CH), Troll Patrol (CH), Bliscappen Van
Maria (CH-IT), Edison (CH), Polar (CH-FR), Prejudice (CH-FR), Buz (CH), Void (CH), Ultra DB (CH), to name a few.
Aside from the rock scene, he was also part of the multimedia team Ultra Pepita , developer of the today’s world famous VJ
software Modul8.
As a real vinyl junkie since very young age, Jerome has been collecting records and DJing for over 20 years, spinning an eclectic
mixture of underground sounds from around the world, left- field electronic and experimental music. He has also taken his
showcases further afield, to Japan, Indonesia, Vietnam, India, Cambodia, Thailand, as well as dropping his dj set in festival such
as Paleo Festival, Cully Jazz, NIFF Film Festival, Afro Banana Republic Festival and many more.

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Format: 7inch Clear/Black Marble vinyl,Inner, Ltd to 100, Genre: Electronic HipHop Dub

Tracklisting:
Side A: Phrakhanong Disorder
Side B: Namba Vibrations

Infos:

The Single >
Side A “PHRAKHANONG DISORDER” is T.D.O.S. second single featuring Japanese turntablalist DJ TO-RU (Dujada-Goja) is a bass battle on
a downtempo hard drum beat, hypnotic and chaotic like Bangkok’s streets. Phra Khanong is a neighbourhood of this megapolis where
hip hop culture meets local traditions. Side B is “NAMBA VIBRATIONS” with DJ TO-RU fine cuts on a dirty digital mish-mash of bass and
dub beats,. Just in tune to get lost in electric downtown Osaka before heading to the dance floor facing a massive sound system.

The Artist >
The Dude Of Stratosphear aka T.D.O.S. is Jerome Doudet (Swiss/French artist and bass player based in Bangkok). DJ, vinyl
collector, musician, graphic designer and East Asian music connoisseur, The Dude of Stratosphear was groomed in the vibrant
alternative scene of the very international city of Geneva Switzerland. Growing up in a musical household (His father was a disco
DJ), Growing up in a musical household (His father was a disco
DJ), Jerome was exposed to a wide range of music at very early age, and started playing the 4 strings at the age of 10.
Bass player in the swiss math-core bands Knut for a decade, he toured intensely all around Europe’s biggest venues and
festivals. He also joined the very underground american band Half Japanese for a couple of european tour and recorded the
album Bone Head in 1997. And on top of the list was opening for the mighty KISS with the canadian band Bionic (CA) at Molson
center in Monteal. Also member of various bands such as Imericani (SP/IT/CH), Intercostal (CH), Troll Patrol (CH), Bliscappen Van
Maria (CH-IT), Edison (CH), Polar (CH-FR), Prejudice (CH-FR), Buz (CH), Void (CH), Ultra DB (CH), to name a few.
Aside from the rock scene, he was also part of the multimedia team Ultra Pepita , developer of the today’s world famous VJ
software Modul8.
As a real vinyl junkie since very young age, Jerome has been collecting records and DJing for over 20 years, spinning an eclectic
mixture of underground sounds from around the world, left- field electronic and experimental music. He has also taken his
showcases further afield, to Japan, Indonesia, Vietnam, India, Cambodia, Thailand, as well as dropping his dj set in festival such
as Paleo Festival, Cully Jazz, NIFF Film Festival, Afro Banana Republic Festival and many more.

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Format: 7inch Blue vinyl,Inner, Ltd to 100, Genre: Electronic HipHop Dub

Tracklisting:
A: Parallel Universe Side
B: Wat That Tong

Infos:
The Single >
Side A “PARALLEL UNIVERSE” is T.D.O.S. debut single featuring Thai rapper MC Sinnamon (Dujada-Dubway), is an cosmic trip
between the heat of Chennai’s bazars and Bangkok chaotic streets. Based on a rare indian library sample, Side B is “WAT THAT
TONG” featured samples of Thailand molam queen Yenjit Porntavi with modern dub beat and indian percussions.

The Artist >
The Dude Of Stratosphear aka T.D.O.S. is Jerome Doudet (Swiss/French artist and bass player based in Bangkok). DJ, vinyl
collector, musician, graphic designer and East Asian music connoisseur, The Dude of Stratosphear was groomed in the vibrant
alternative scene of the very international city of Geneva Switzerland. Growing up in a musical household (His father was a disco
DJ), Growing up in a musical household (His father was a disco
DJ), Jerome was exposed to a wide range of music at very early age, and started playing the 4 strings at the age of 10.
Bass player in the swiss math-core bands Knut for a decade, he toured intensely all around Europe’s biggest venues and
festivals. He also joined the very underground american band Half Japanese for a couple of european tour and recorded the
album Bone Head in 1997. And on top of the list was opening for the mighty KISS with the canadian band Bionic (CA) at Molson
center in Monteal. Also member of various bands such as Imericani (SP/IT/CH), Intercostal (CH), Troll Patrol (CH), Bliscappen Van
Maria (CH-IT), Edison (CH), Polar (CH-FR), Prejudice (CH-FR), Buz (CH), Void (CH), Ultra DB (CH), to name a few.
Aside from the rock scene, he was also part of the multimedia team Ultra Pepita , developer of the today’s world famous VJ
software Modul8.
As a real vinyl junkie since very young age, Jerome has been collecting records and DJing for over 20 years, spinning an eclectic
mixture of underground sounds from around the world, left- field electronic and experimental music. He has also taken his
showcases further afield, to Japan, Indonesia, Vietnam, India, Cambodia, Thailand, as well as dropping his dj set in festival such
as Paleo Festival, Cully Jazz, NIFF Film Festival, Afro Banana Republic Festival and many more.

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- Limited old school edition w / stamped white label + 12" Sleeve.
Mental Groove Records is ecstatic to announce the release of a collaborative musical effort between spanish producer extraordinaire ORBE (Hivern Discs / Analog Solutions) and swiss adventurous [Mental Groove] label head OLIVER
for a retro / phuturistic 4-for-the-floor E.P. mixing the science of hypnotic analog grooves with the wickedest sounds technique of the warehouse rave days.

Tracklisting:

Y1 VIRtuaL [loop]
Y2 VIRtuaL [trax]
Y3 ORIENT [loop]
Y4 ORIENT [trax]

X1 POWER [loop 1]
X2 POWER [loop 2]
X3 POWER [trax]
X3 SPICE [loop 1]
X4 SPICE [loop 2]
X5 SPICE [trax]
X6 SAMPLES

Info
4 pumped up jams for djs to take control - don't hold back, just let go and feel the n·r·gee.
Early support by Eduardo De La Calle, Jennifer Cardini, Andrew Claristidge, Gilb'r, Daniel Kyo, Photonz, Angel Molina…
Points of interests
- Only for the headstrong tripping on strictly undeground massive hits.
- For fans of techno, warehouse, [old school] breaks and bleeps.
- Pure reel-2-real analog recording and extra loud mastering by F.Stader at MMM.
- Features 6 eternal loops and bonus samples for extended dj pleasure.
- 121th release from renowned Swiss Mental Groove Records est. 1989 (Dj Rush, Eduardo De La Calle, Sun Araw, Miss Kittin, Luciano, Brodinski, Donato Dozzy,...), also home of Musique Pour La Danse (Olivier Abbeloos, Frankie Bones, Orlando Voorn, Nate Krafft, Dirk De Saever, Todd Sines…) and We Release Whatever The Fuck We Want (Midori Takada, Michel Legrand, Kenji Kawai, John Carpenter…).


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Runden is a collaboration by Martin Brugger (bass) and Simon Popp (drums), both of contemporary Jazz quintet Fazer, and neo-classical pianist Carlos Cipa. Their debut LP is a conceptual record reflecting on Minimal Music, Afrobeat, and Dub Techno of the late 90s/early 2000s.

Genre: Organic Grooves / Minimal

Tracklist LP:

A1 + 04:58 min
A2 Am Rande 06:43 min
A3 Mikado 04:58 min

B1 Horch 02:16 min
B2 Samt 06:38 min
B3 Parallelen 04:59 min
B4 Lasso 05:12 min

Runden is a collaboration by Martin Brugger (bass) and Simon Popp (drums), both of contemporary Jazz quintet Fazer, and neo-classical pianist Carlos Cipa. Their debut LP is a conceptual record reflecting on Minimal Music, Afrobeat, and Dub Techno of the late 90s/early 2000s.
While Cipa's solo works build on clear harmonies, for the recordings of Runden he prepared the piano to make it sound like a faintly tonal percussion instrument and his mechanical patterns contrast the syncopated drum grooves of Popp and the deep and sparse basslines of Brugger.
The musicians explore, over the course of seven tracks, the concept of circular music. Each piece is based on a four-bar-motif played in a loop and varied subtly but steadily over time, creating a sense of eternal recurrence and timelessness.
This makes Runden a meditative but demanding record, that only grows with every listen.



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LP

Special remarks:
180g

Tracklist:

A1) 7:23 (03:17 min)
A2) Alles Neu (03:28 min)
A3) heyheyhey (06:56 min)
A4) Bolzano (03:39 min)
B1) Where To Go (04:52 min)
B2) 8:45 (04:41 min)
B3) Plastic Air (02:54 min)
B4) SO (03:47 min)

Info:

Happy Floating is the debut LP of Italian composer, producer and reed player Damian Dalla Torre. Over the course of two years, the Leipzig-based artist recorded 19 musicians in all kinds of places to bring to life his unique blend of Avant Folk and Electronic. With reeds, brass, guitars, bass, drums, mallets, synthesizers, organ and electronics, the album feels like a mindful walk through a flowering meadow, tickling and caressing all at once.
Born in Northern Italy to a family of non-musicians, his knack for woodwind instruments was uncovered by the sight of a big shiny baritone saxophone in a red velvet case that belonged to his grandma’s neighbour. It was and still is an odd instrument for anyone to play in the Val di Vizze, which may have added to young Damian’s excitement. He opted for the slightly smaller tenor saxophone, took up lessons and eventually studied music in Vienna and Leipzig, where he’s currently living and working within a spirited network of musicians, of which many are featured on this record.



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LP
Special remarks:
Vinyl includes three photo prints and riso-printed inlay.

Tracklist:

A1) Flat On The Water's Surface 04:10 min
A2) E 79th 03:31 min
A3) Reykjavik Syndrome 03:37 min
A4) Suburban Home From A Hill 03:55 min
A5) A Presence Of Light 03:39 min
B1) Good Intentions 05:42 min
B2) Back Around 5 PM 05:03 min
B3) Scanner 04:40 min
B3) From Where Our Signals Return 05:48 min

Info:

On his debut album producer and Squama co-founder Martin Brugger hovers through Ambient, (upbeat) Downbeat and unfulfilled build-ups.
Conceptualized as a blank soundtrack, the music was sent to fellow artists who shared their visual and verbal associations which became the source for the artwork and tracktitles, effectively making the album a collective effort.
Evident in all of his recent projects is Brugger's passion for working and thriving within closely set limits.
The only audio sources in the process of making the album were his record player and a Dave Smith Prophet 08 synthesizer. In an antithesis to most sample-based music, Brugger takes the more ephemeral moments of recorded music and uses pitching tools as a magnifying glass to dive deeper into the sound and bare layers that normally remain unheard.


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LP

Tracklist:

A1) Blue 02:42 min
A2) Zaraska 01:50 min
A3) Cuentro 01:42 min
A4) Newrak 02:06 min
A5) Eva 01:30 min
A6) 7.11.19 02:11 min
A7) Anouar 01:40 min
A8) Interlude I 01:15 min
B1) Interlude II 01:12 min
B2) Januar 02:15 min
B3) Rocinante 01:58 min
B4) Nuuk 02:59 min
B5) Arpeggio 02:29 min
B6) Interlude III 01:12 min
B7) Medeo 01:39 min
B8) Westzone 02:00 min

Info:

Following his trio debut ‘Triptych’ last year, trumpeter Matthias Lindermayr presents his duo record ‘Sequence’ with long-time companion and ECM Recording Artist Matthieu Bordenave on tenor saxophone.
In contrast to its technical title, ‘Sequence’ is a very lyrical record, sacral at times. Like two figure skaters, the voices gracefully glide along and whirl around in perfect synch, always sensing where the other one is going. A fitting comparison also, as the recording session was equally exhausting, due to the level of concentration required to perform this music.
The minimalist line-up and the hyper-focused playing gives the album both a breath-like purity and solemn depth.



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LP Vinyl

Tracklist:

A1) Zavkhan 03:28 min
A2) Diary of June 9th 02:30 min
A3) Gandii Mod 03:45 min
A4) I'm Glad There Is You 03:46 min
A5) Khorom 05:03 min
B1) Sevkhet Bor 04:40 min
B2) Ursgal 05:56 min
B3) Aya 03:13 min
B4) An Untitled Hil 04:54 min

Info:

On her second album Ursgal Mongolian singer Enji creates a unique blend of Jazz and Folk with the thousand-year-old traditions of Mongolian music. Currently based in Munich, her lyrics tell personal stories about unbearable distances, the oddness of being on earth and the simple truths in life.
She's accompanied by Paul Brändle on guitar and Munguntovch Tsolmonbayar on double bass.
Born in Ulaanbaatar, Enji grew up in a yurt to a working-class family. Having always been drawn to music, dance and literature, she initially wanted to become a music teacher with little ambitions to compose or be on stage. A program by the local Goethe Institute sparked her passion for Jazz and eventually led her to become a performing artist. Inspired by the music of Carmen McRae, Ella Fitzgerald and Nancy Wilson, Enji started writing songs of her own, cherishing this newfound means of expression. Ursgal is the first record featuring her original compositions.


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Territories: Worldwide no restrictions

Format Notes:
2024 first time double vinyl reissue with exclusive bonus track, 140g double vinyl, remastered audio with restored artwork


Track List:

A1 Intro 0:50
A2 WordPlay 3:17
A3 Spontaneity 4:08
A4 Rugged Ruff 3:08
A5 Interlude 0:29

B1 I Confess 4:06
B2 UKNOWHOWWEDU 3:35
B3 Interlude 1:09
B4 Total Wreck 3:26
B5 Innovation 3:23

C1 Da Jawn 5:19
C2 Interlude 1:05
C3 True Honey Buns (Dat Freak Sh*t) 3:41

D1 3 Tha Hard Way 4:12
D2 Biggest Part Of Me 4:51
D3 Path To Rhythm 3:24

Release Notes:

Bahamadia’s 1996 debut album Kollage is rightly regarded as one of the greatest rap albums of the 1990s. For the first time ever, Be With present the definitive double LP version of this eternal hip-hop classic, including the legendary "Path To Rhythm" which never appeared on the original LP or on vinyl, anywhere. An indelible VIBE from start-to-finish, Kollage presents Bahamadia's swirling rhymes delivered with an irresistibly butter flow and razor-sharp assuredness over a steady slew of smoothed-out, jazzed-up, blunted beats. Achingly cool and effortlessly funky throughout, it's an absolute must for true 90s hip-hop fanatics.

The entire Kollage project was recorded at D&D Studios and the ties to Gang Starr are keenly felt, with DJ Premier producing five tracks in addition to the killer songs Guru had already produced with her. Working with the cream of the mid-90s East Coast sound, Kollage is, accordingly, a record that demonstrates a varied musical taste with disparate influences, as Bahamadia has previously stated: “The title Kollage was a reflection of my state of mind. I first got interested in music from playing my parents’ and grandparents’ records, as well what I heard on the radio. I wanted Kollage to reflect that diversity both lyrically and sonically."

With intelligent, poetic lyricism and a laconic verbal style bursting with both warm texture and deceptive energy, Bahamadia’s flow was as inspired by Aretha and Nancy Wilson as it was Q-Tip, Schoolly D and Lady B. Swaggering out the gate, "WordPlay" finds Bahamadia confidently showcasing her considerable old-school battle-rhyme skills over a Guru beat that utilises an infectiously bouncy bassline with splashes of sultry jazz horns and a Jeru vocal snatch for the hook. Up next, the quietly shimmering and ruggedly beautiful "Spontaneity" is one of the most alluring on the record, Da Beatminerz crafting a brilliantly soulful and jazzy soundscape for Bahamadia's effortless vocals to float across. It's followed by "Rugged Ruff", where the rapper carefully constructs a swift off-beat flow over Premier's raw jazzy fire.

With smooth spacey synth vibes overseen by former Geto Boys producer N.O. Joe, "I Confess" is, without question, a fly love song and soothing (p)-funk groove. "UKNOWHOWWEDU" is an airy, chilled tribute to her hometown. Produced by Ski Beatz & DJ Redhanded, it rides a gloriously mellow break. It's a true Philly anthem, shouting out a who’s who of the entire city’s scene. Early banger "Total Wreck" follows, presenting a murky Guru instrumental elevated by jazzy horns. Bahamadia invokes the title's suggestion, firing her brilliant bars more aggressively than we’re accustomed to. More Beatminerz-brilliance comes in the way of "Innovation", an opportunity for the MC to invoke Freestyle Fellowship in her forward-thinking and literary verses. "Da Jawn" features hometown buddies The Roots, with Black Thought gliding into a back-and-forth with Bahamadia over ?uestlove’s warm, snapping percussion. With the strut club banger "True Honey Buns (Dat Freak Sh*t)", DJ Premier provides some laidback vibrant boom bap for Bahamadia to share a wild, cautionary tale about a night out with her girl, Kia.

Fan favourite "3 Tha Hard Way" is a hypnotically sinister cut, with Bahamadia, K-Swift and Mecca Star taking star turns to coast over DJ Premier’s raw beat whilst the tender "Biggest Part Of Me" is a heartfelt stunner dedicated to her son. Incredibly, only the European and Japanese CD versions of Kollage was released with the brilliantly breezy “Path To Rhythm”, featuring Ursula Rucker. Whilst ostensibly a "bonus track", it's anything but, to our ears. Very much in sonic conversation with KRS-One's stretched-out sleeper classic "Higher Level", it's absolutely essential so we had to include it, appearing on wax for the first time here, exclusively. Quite a coup.

Somewhat predictably, whilst Kollage was released to significant critical acclaim, it suffered from disappointing sales. In the intervening years - and for far too long - it was a criminally underrated record, an increasingly hidden gem. We hope this double LP reissue - which looks and sounds amazing - will go some way to correct this. This 2024 Be With double LP re-issue has been mastered for vinyl by Simon Francis, cut by Cicely Balston and pressed at Record Industry. It's too bold and beautiful to remain overlooked and underserved.


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No sales to Japan!

LP: 180g vinyl, half speed mastered, heavy sleeve, obi, gold ink
Genre: Jazz, Fusion, Funk

Tracklisting LP
A1. Shrimp Dance
A2. Kuro To Shiro
B1. Walk Tall
B2. Cat
B3. Romance


Info

We Release Jazz is ecstatic (purrrr!) to announce the official reissue of Hiroshi Suzuki's glorious jazz-fusion-funk Holy Grail Cat (originally released in 1976), sourced from the original masters and available on limited edition 180 gram vinyl mastered at half speed for full audiophile sound, as well as on digipack CD. Both versions come with liner notes by Teruo Isono.
Cat was recorded in October 1975 at at Nippon Columbia Studio, while Hiroshi Suzuki was visiting his home country of Japan after moving to Las Vegas in 1971 to play with Buddy Rich and perfect his craft. Back on his old stomping grounds, the man known as Neko (Cat) immediately reunited with his dear friends for an epic two day session of groove magic. The chemistry was still intact. The skills and style had grown.
The result, Cat, is a smooth masterpiece, a deep and soulful affair where stunning trombone solos by Hiroshi Suzuki flirt with Takeru Muraoka's heavenly saxophone and the sensual rhythm section of Hiromasa Suzuki (keyboards), Kunimitsu Inaba (bass), and Akira Ishikawa (drums).
Celebrated in jazz collectors circles, in the lofi beat scene, and among music diggers around the world, Cat has become one of the most sought-after Japanese jazz albums of all time and, much like Ryo Fukui's Scenery, has fascinated old and young generations alike.

Points of interests

- For fans of jazz, fusion, funk, trombone, Japanese jazz, smooth rides, cats, allure.

- Official reissue of the glorious jazz-fusion album by Japanese trombonist extraordinaire Hiroshi "Neko" Suzuki.

- 10th release from We Release Jazz, following Ryo Fukui's Scenery, Mellow Dream, A Letter from Slowboat, and Ryo Fukui in New York, the soundtrack of Le Cercle Rouge by Eric Demarsan, Stuff Combe 5 + Percussion, Marc Moulin's Placebo Live 1971 and Boillat Thérace Quintet albums. We Release Jazz is the sister-label of Geneva-based WRWTFWW Records (Midori Takada's Through The Looking Glass and Lunar Cruise with Masahiko Sato, Pierre Barouh's Le Pollen, Jun Fuka-machi's Nicole, Grauzone's discography, …)


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LP
Special remarks:
180g, Front Inlay, printed innersleeve

Tracklist:

A1) Sanctuary 05:44 min
A2) Triptych 05:32 min
A3) Lola 05:56 min
A4) Simmering 04:39 min
B1) February 19th 06:35 min
B2) First Steps 04:03 min
B3) A Long Day Out 05:54 min
B4) Farewell 05:31 min

Info:

Known for his soothing trumpet work in German jazz group Fazer, Matthias Lindermayr is back on Squama with an all-new trio and his third album 'Triptych'.
With Philipp Schiepek on acoustic guitar and Simon Popp on percussion, the Munich-based musician created a forward-thinking record between jazz and contemporary classical, conceptually bold and utterly beautiful.
'Triptych' is a thrillingly quiet record. While the album's predecessor 'Newborn' (2018) featured a quintet, the rather unusual trio line-up on 'Triptych' gave Matthias more room to share the nuances of his playing.
His compositions, most written especially for this group, are of a noble simplicity allowing the musicians to focus more on interaction and sound.


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WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
Liebigstrasse 2-20
DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
Contact: [email protected]More

Format LP Vinyl - For fans Of: - Stone Throw records - Analog experimental sample based music - Psychedelic rock - Afro Ancestral

“I may have no possessions, but here lies everything one needs”
This is Alexandre Francisco Diaphra’s motto as governor of his own life. A multifaceted artist from Guinea-Bissau, based in Lisbon: rapper, poet, edutainer & beatmaker, creating music based on improvisation in which he blends his psychedelic, black music, afro ancestral influences and love for the non-quantized beats in the same way as with experimental jazz, mixed contemporary and urban styles. Last year Diaphra wons the 3rd place at the 1st International Poetry Slam in Rio de Janeiro (Flupp).
In 2012 Diaphra featured & toured Europe as MC/performer for Angolan/Portuguese project Batida’s eponymous debut album (Soundway),“a record that could change the african electronic music on the 21st century" (Songlines) - their live show was also "one of the best 10 acts from Womex" (NPR Radio). Diaphra’s Blackbook Of The Beats is following the idea of building instrumental bases on the outside environment wherever Diaphra feels inspired. A backpack, some vinyl records, a portable turntable and a sampler for self deconstruction / recreation from which resulted this (mainly) instrumental album and which is documented in form of musical videos in the dvd.
The particulary of this project resides in the non-quantized beats over which the enlightening poetry is spoken, rapped and chanted in portuguese, where trial and error take part of the compositions which are enhanced with the use of instruments played by invited musicians and sometimes by Diaphra himself.
Add to this various carefully handcrafted editions – including a silkscreened reproduction of the real Diaphra’s Black Book Of The Beats – and you get the kind of artifact we love to bump into. Available as CD also.

TRACKLISTING
1. O Prefácio ,2. Nota de Autor, 3. O Rosto, – Maskharah, 4. A Epígrafe – Cria, Criador, Criaçao e Criatura, 5. Menino No Rio, 6. Todo o Fado é Vadio , 7. Transfer, 8.Über , 9. O Bode Cuspia – The Escape Of King Goat, 10. Primeira Pedra

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WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
Liebigstrasse 2-20
DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
Contact: [email protected]More

Territories: Worldwide no restrictions

Format Notes: Part of Bobby Caldwell Reissue Campaign, 2023 first time reissue, 140g vinyl

Track List:

A1 Coming Down From Love 4:01
A2 Wrong Or Right 4:56
A3 To Know What You've Got 3:08
A4 You Promised Me 4:01

B1 It's Over 2:56
B2 Open Your Eyes 3:43
B3 Mother Of Creation 5:05
B4 I Don't Want To Lose Your Love 4:35


Release Notes:

Bobby Caldwell's second album, Cat In The Hat, from 1980, is one of his greatest moments and another masterwork of soulful sophistication. Featuring the eternal "Open Your Eyes", brilliantly sampled by J Dilla for Common's "The Light", it's about as essential as records get. Like its eponymous predecessor, it's been out of print for far too long. To finally release the hugely-anticipated reissue is one of our sincerely proudest moments.

Whilst Ned Doheny is known in Japan as "Mr California", native New Yorker Bobby Caldwell has always been "Mr AOR" to his Far-Eastern friends. His distinct charm is an irresistible blend of soul, jazz, and pop influences. He possessed phenomenal songwriting prowess, smooth vocal performances, was both a great soul guitarist and dextrous keyboard player and known for genius chord progressions. It all added up to a multi-layered brilliance entering the studio, and the singular sound he landed on was laced with soulful, sweeping strings and funky horns, touching lightly on disco, while allowing his supple voice to carry the stunning tracks he'd crafted.

Right from the off, it's easy to tell that Cat In The Hat is a deeply special record. It's fantastically produced and incredibly well-rounded, carving its own lane with deep soul, warm jazz and a stunning vocal delivery that really helped Bobby reach out to some big new audiences at the time. Goosebumps at the ready for the rolling power-piano funk of "Coming Down From Love", opening up the album with a track as good as anything Steely Dan or The Doobies ever crafted, with a vocal performance from the heavens. Pumping AOR wonder "Wrong Or Right" is up there with the slick, classy rhythms of prime Ned Doheny whilst the cool, skipping soul of guitar-drenched "To Know What You've Got" is a funky ballad par excellence, with elemental traces of "What A Fool Believes". No bad thing. Closing out Side A, the folk-funk of "You Promised Me" is a bright, soulful strut with a wonderful vocal coda that just builds. Sensational.

The delicate bounce and falsetto self-harmonising of "It's Over" offers a truly delightful introduction to Side B, and serves as a great precursor to what follows. Bobby's dynamite "Open Your Eyes" is likely the reason you're all here. As if he needed it, the eternal J Dilla further immortalised Caldwell in the hip-hop canon with his production of Common’s epochal “The Light,” which heavily samples the magical “Open Your Eyes.” On a post paying tribute to Bobby in March 2023, Questlove claimed that he "got word Brother Bobby loved it". Bobby's original has seen new life even more recently from the likes of Dwele and Kendrick Lamar and deservingly so, as its insistent drums and staccato piano created a modern-soul classic. You'd think that would be hard to follow, wouldn't you? Not so, when you're Bobby Caldwell. Indeed, the horn-drenched stepper "Mother Of Creation" is absolutely ace, and, whisper it, possibly the album's finest track, all funky piano and guitars with horn lines to die for. Exquisite ballad "I Don't Want To Lose Your Love" rounds out the album beautifully.

Bobby sadly passed away on 23rd March 2023, after a long struggle with mitochondrial damage and oxidative stress, due to an adverse effect from a fluoroquinolone antibiotic. The reissue of Cat In The Hat will be available on vinyl across the globe, ensuring that fans of his incomparable talent - and soul music enthusiasts worldwide - can radiate in the deep beauty of this seminal album. Meticulously remastered and cut by both Simon Francis and Cicely Balston respectively, it has been pressed to the highest possibly quality at Record Industry in Holland.



Sicherheits- und Herstellerinformationen / safety and manufacturer info (GPSR)
WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
Liebigstrasse 2-20
DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
Contact: [email protected]More