Pleasure-seeking and pain-avoidance as a rave metaphor fits the music of Sam Barker. The Berghain resident and Leisure System co-founder has spent the last few years exploring the euphoric potential of altering key variables in dance music formulas. This was especially true on his 2018 Ostgut Ton debut EP Debiasing, which was flush with unconventional rhythmic chord stabs, melody and percussion but devoid of kickdrums. What seemed like an experimental exercise on paper was in reality equally geared towards the club: tracks that worked for the floor but resisted the genre categorizations that kick drums often provide. This has come to define Barker’s sound. Now, on his debut solo LP Utility, Barker turns his focus toward melding experimentation and dancefloor pragmatism with the psychology behind the musical decision making process. In his own words: “After ‘Debiasing’ it occurred to me that my musical decisions were often unintentionally utilitarian, following an instinct to maximize pleasure in one way or another. It’s sort of unfashionable to admit, but by removing elements that have strong genre associations, this became a natural consequence.” Accordingly, Utility is a playful but non-ironic musical approach to a whole spectrum of utilitarian and transhumanist ideas: from models for quantifying pleasure and “gradients of bliss” to abolishing suffering for sentient beings (not just people) through the ethical use of drugs and nanotechnology. Over nine tracks, Barker’s vision ebbs and flows through waves of deeply psychedelic musical vignettes; free-floating and futuristic melodies and rhythms as targeted brain stimulation. The sound draws heavily on modular synthesis, as well as self-built mechanical instruments and plate reverbs to create atmospheres that are at once alien and emotionally recognizable, functional and utopian. Utility is by no means a concept album. Instead, it is an honest take on music as both pleasuremaximizer and consciousness-expander.
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
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
More records from Barker
Label:Smalltown Supersound
Cat-No:STSLPC1425
Release-Date:04.04.2025
Genre:Electronic, Electronica
Configuration:LP
Label:Smalltown Supersound
Cat-No:STSLPC1425
Release-Date:04.04.2025
Genre:Electronic, Electronica
Configuration:LP
1
Barker - Force Of Habit
2
Barker - Reframing
3
Barker - Difference and Repetition
4
Barker - The Remembering Self
5
Barker - Positive Disintegration
6
Barker - Cosmic Microwave
7
Barker - Fluid Mechanics
8
Barker - Stochastic Drift
Preview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayBIGxfHCdo
Transparent Vinyl!
Thrilled to announce Barker's new album Stochastic Drift!
Following 2023’s Unfixed EP and his first full-length release since his 2019 debut album Utility, Stochastic Drift builds on Barker’s singular process to capture life’s chaos and reflect on just how much has changed. If his previous records showcased the artist “using ambient materials to remake techno” (Pitchfork), Stochastic Drift pushes Barker’s approach even further into harmonic chaos and dreamy freeform float.
Utility, the fullest expression of the beatless techno experimentation Barker excavated on his cult classic Debiasing EP, arrived to critical fanfare from The Quietus, DJ Mag, Resident Advisor, and Mixmag (who named it their Album Of The Year). The years since the release of Utility have been marked by intense unpredictability: Barker’s own shifting attitudes towards production, moments of professional transition and, not least, a global pandemic, necessitated somewhat of a reinvention.
Stochastic Drift sees Barker creating tracks with a fresh deftness and appreciation for the unexpected. “I’d been working with an approach that was quite deliberate and goal-oriented before, but I realised this wasn’t so helpful in the context of uncertainty. Being suddenly unemployed and stuck at home for an indefinite amount of time, with one disruption after another, it was like the target kept moving and I didn’t know what to aim at.” Barker reflects. “I noticed this unpredictability starting to creep into what I was making, and tracks were ending up a long way from the intentions they started with. So the challenge for this record was to try to embrace that process, to let go of expectations.” The serotonin-spiking lead single “Reframing,” titled after psychological technique for reinterpreting a situation in a positive way, unfolds like a brittle reimagining of Sasha’s eternal prog trance standard “Xpander” until it begins to drift through uncharted territory.
Throughout Stochastic Drift, Barker dives deeper into the world of mechanical instrumentation. Barker explains: “My interest in mechanical instruments is not to replace a human performer, but to explore the tool in a different way, maybe dehumanize it a little bit and look for the potential outside of what humans have already perfected.” Addressing anxiety about the influence of automation in music making head on, Barker emphasises that, regardless of the technology implemented and how this might enable the artist, machines of all sorts, be they robots, synths or instruments, are simply tools. It’s the creative act that remains resolutely human.
“I wanted to explore the link between my internal and external realities, between the chaos of the time and how that was manifesting in my music and ideas,” Barker says of Stochastic Drift. “It’s a transition between lots of shifting realities, describing a process in a window of time that was full of change.” As though finding comfort in unpredictability, the artist pieces together a new sound and in so doing finds a salve for uncertainty.
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
Transparent Vinyl!
Thrilled to announce Barker's new album Stochastic Drift!
Following 2023’s Unfixed EP and his first full-length release since his 2019 debut album Utility, Stochastic Drift builds on Barker’s singular process to capture life’s chaos and reflect on just how much has changed. If his previous records showcased the artist “using ambient materials to remake techno” (Pitchfork), Stochastic Drift pushes Barker’s approach even further into harmonic chaos and dreamy freeform float.
Utility, the fullest expression of the beatless techno experimentation Barker excavated on his cult classic Debiasing EP, arrived to critical fanfare from The Quietus, DJ Mag, Resident Advisor, and Mixmag (who named it their Album Of The Year). The years since the release of Utility have been marked by intense unpredictability: Barker’s own shifting attitudes towards production, moments of professional transition and, not least, a global pandemic, necessitated somewhat of a reinvention.
Stochastic Drift sees Barker creating tracks with a fresh deftness and appreciation for the unexpected. “I’d been working with an approach that was quite deliberate and goal-oriented before, but I realised this wasn’t so helpful in the context of uncertainty. Being suddenly unemployed and stuck at home for an indefinite amount of time, with one disruption after another, it was like the target kept moving and I didn’t know what to aim at.” Barker reflects. “I noticed this unpredictability starting to creep into what I was making, and tracks were ending up a long way from the intentions they started with. So the challenge for this record was to try to embrace that process, to let go of expectations.” The serotonin-spiking lead single “Reframing,” titled after psychological technique for reinterpreting a situation in a positive way, unfolds like a brittle reimagining of Sasha’s eternal prog trance standard “Xpander” until it begins to drift through uncharted territory.
Throughout Stochastic Drift, Barker dives deeper into the world of mechanical instrumentation. Barker explains: “My interest in mechanical instruments is not to replace a human performer, but to explore the tool in a different way, maybe dehumanize it a little bit and look for the potential outside of what humans have already perfected.” Addressing anxiety about the influence of automation in music making head on, Barker emphasises that, regardless of the technology implemented and how this might enable the artist, machines of all sorts, be they robots, synths or instruments, are simply tools. It’s the creative act that remains resolutely human.
“I wanted to explore the link between my internal and external realities, between the chaos of the time and how that was manifesting in my music and ideas,” Barker says of Stochastic Drift. “It’s a transition between lots of shifting realities, describing a process in a window of time that was full of change.” As though finding comfort in unpredictability, the artist pieces together a new sound and in so doing finds a salve for uncertainty.
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
Label:Smalltown Supersound
Cat-No:STSLP425
Release-Date:04.04.2025
Genre:Electronic, Electronica
Configuration:LP
Label:Smalltown Supersound
Cat-No:STSLP425
Release-Date:04.04.2025
Genre:Electronic, Electronica
Configuration:LP
1
Barker - Force Of Habit
2
Barker - Reframing
3
Barker - Difference And Repetition
4
Barker - The Remembering Self
5
Barker - Positive Disintegration
6
Barker - Cosmic Microwave
7
Barker - Fluid Mechanics
8
Barker - Stochastic Drift
Preview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayBIGxfHCdo
Thrilled to announce Barker's new album Stochastic Drift!
Following 2023’s Unfixed EP and his first full-length release since his 2019 debut album Utility, Stochastic Drift builds on Barker’s singular process to capture life’s chaos and reflect on just how much has changed. If his previous records showcased the artist “using ambient materials to remake techno” (Pitchfork), Stochastic Drift pushes Barker’s approach even further into harmonic chaos and dreamy freeform float.
Utility, the fullest expression of the beatless techno experimentation Barker excavated on his cult classic Debiasing EP, arrived to critical fanfare from The Quietus, DJ Mag, Resident Advisor, and Mixmag (who named it their Album Of The Year). The years since the release of Utility have been marked by intense unpredictability: Barker’s own shifting attitudes towards production, moments of professional transition and, not least, a global pandemic, necessitated somewhat of a reinvention.
Stochastic Drift sees Barker creating tracks with a fresh deftness and appreciation for the unexpected. “I’d been working with an approach that was quite deliberate and goal-oriented before, but I realised this wasn’t so helpful in the context of uncertainty. Being suddenly unemployed and stuck at home for an indefinite amount of time, with one disruption after another, it was like the target kept moving and I didn’t know what to aim at.” Barker reflects. “I noticed this unpredictability starting to creep into what I was making, and tracks were ending up a long way from the intentions they started with. So the challenge for this record was to try to embrace that process, to let go of expectations.” The serotonin-spiking lead single “Reframing,” titled after psychological technique for reinterpreting a situation in a positive way, unfolds like a brittle reimagining of Sasha’s eternal prog trance standard “Xpander” until it begins to drift through uncharted territory.
Throughout Stochastic Drift, Barker dives deeper into the world of mechanical instrumentation. Barker explains: “My interest in mechanical instruments is not to replace a human performer, but to explore the tool in a different way, maybe dehumanize it a little bit and look for the potential outside of what humans have already perfected.” Addressing anxiety about the influence of automation in music making head on, Barker emphasises that, regardless of the technology implemented and how this might enable the artist, machines of all sorts, be they robots, synths or instruments, are simply tools. It’s the creative act that remains resolutely human.
“I wanted to explore the link between my internal and external realities, between the chaos of the time and how that was manifesting in my music and ideas,” Barker says of Stochastic Drift. “It’s a transition between lots of shifting realities, describing a process in a window of time that was full of change.” As though finding comfort in unpredictability, the artist pieces together a new sound and in so doing finds a salve for uncertainty.
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
Thrilled to announce Barker's new album Stochastic Drift!
Following 2023’s Unfixed EP and his first full-length release since his 2019 debut album Utility, Stochastic Drift builds on Barker’s singular process to capture life’s chaos and reflect on just how much has changed. If his previous records showcased the artist “using ambient materials to remake techno” (Pitchfork), Stochastic Drift pushes Barker’s approach even further into harmonic chaos and dreamy freeform float.
Utility, the fullest expression of the beatless techno experimentation Barker excavated on his cult classic Debiasing EP, arrived to critical fanfare from The Quietus, DJ Mag, Resident Advisor, and Mixmag (who named it their Album Of The Year). The years since the release of Utility have been marked by intense unpredictability: Barker’s own shifting attitudes towards production, moments of professional transition and, not least, a global pandemic, necessitated somewhat of a reinvention.
Stochastic Drift sees Barker creating tracks with a fresh deftness and appreciation for the unexpected. “I’d been working with an approach that was quite deliberate and goal-oriented before, but I realised this wasn’t so helpful in the context of uncertainty. Being suddenly unemployed and stuck at home for an indefinite amount of time, with one disruption after another, it was like the target kept moving and I didn’t know what to aim at.” Barker reflects. “I noticed this unpredictability starting to creep into what I was making, and tracks were ending up a long way from the intentions they started with. So the challenge for this record was to try to embrace that process, to let go of expectations.” The serotonin-spiking lead single “Reframing,” titled after psychological technique for reinterpreting a situation in a positive way, unfolds like a brittle reimagining of Sasha’s eternal prog trance standard “Xpander” until it begins to drift through uncharted territory.
Throughout Stochastic Drift, Barker dives deeper into the world of mechanical instrumentation. Barker explains: “My interest in mechanical instruments is not to replace a human performer, but to explore the tool in a different way, maybe dehumanize it a little bit and look for the potential outside of what humans have already perfected.” Addressing anxiety about the influence of automation in music making head on, Barker emphasises that, regardless of the technology implemented and how this might enable the artist, machines of all sorts, be they robots, synths or instruments, are simply tools. It’s the creative act that remains resolutely human.
“I wanted to explore the link between my internal and external realities, between the chaos of the time and how that was manifesting in my music and ideas,” Barker says of Stochastic Drift. “It’s a transition between lots of shifting realities, describing a process in a window of time that was full of change.” As though finding comfort in unpredictability, the artist pieces together a new sound and in so doing finds a salve for uncertainty.
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
1
Barker - Cascade Effect
2
Barker - When Prophecy Fails
3
Barker - Look How Hard I've Tried
4
Barker - Filter Bubbles
Ltd. Turquoise Vinyl Repress.
Barker makes solo debut on Ostgut Ton with new experimental dancefloor EP Sam Barker has had a long ongoing relationship with Berghain and Ostgut Ton, having released two LPs and various EPs as one half of Barker & Baumecker and hosting regular nights at the club since September 2008 as co-founder of the label Leisure System. 2017 marked the beginning of his solo residency, 2018 sees his first solo release with Ostgut Ton. Both as a musician and label owner, Barker operates on the fringes of techno, balancing experimentation with functionality. On Debiasing, he takes a hard look at the musical elements often considered necessary to maintain dancefloor momentum, with four distinct tracks of morphing synth stabs and paired down metronomic rhythms in varying time signatures. While there is no kick, snare, or clap to be heard, the result is not experimental techno deconstructions but driving, hypnotic and unlikely dancefloor tools. Inspired by the psychology underpinning relationships between producer/DJ and audience, Debiasing is an exercise in creating alternative paths within a techno framework. In Barker’s own words: “If you have ever sat down with a drum machine and tried to elude the rules of dance music, you will find at whatever tempo, and however you arrange the rhythms of each sound, you inevitably end up somewhere. I’ve generally tried to get away from that, but you always hit against this problem of an all-encompassing taxonomy and the baggage that comes with it. For a long time, music only seemed to show me how deeply locked into our habits and patterns we are.”
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
Barker makes solo debut on Ostgut Ton with new experimental dancefloor EP Sam Barker has had a long ongoing relationship with Berghain and Ostgut Ton, having released two LPs and various EPs as one half of Barker & Baumecker and hosting regular nights at the club since September 2008 as co-founder of the label Leisure System. 2017 marked the beginning of his solo residency, 2018 sees his first solo release with Ostgut Ton. Both as a musician and label owner, Barker operates on the fringes of techno, balancing experimentation with functionality. On Debiasing, he takes a hard look at the musical elements often considered necessary to maintain dancefloor momentum, with four distinct tracks of morphing synth stabs and paired down metronomic rhythms in varying time signatures. While there is no kick, snare, or clap to be heard, the result is not experimental techno deconstructions but driving, hypnotic and unlikely dancefloor tools. Inspired by the psychology underpinning relationships between producer/DJ and audience, Debiasing is an exercise in creating alternative paths within a techno framework. In Barker’s own words: “If you have ever sat down with a drum machine and tried to elude the rules of dance music, you will find at whatever tempo, and however you arrange the rhythms of each sound, you inevitably end up somewhere. I’ve generally tried to get away from that, but you always hit against this problem of an all-encompassing taxonomy and the baggage that comes with it. For a long time, music only seemed to show me how deeply locked into our habits and patterns we are.”
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
Pleasure-seeking and pain-avoidance as a rave metaphor fits the music of Sam Barker. The Berghain resident and Leisure System co-founder has spent the last few years exploring the euphoric potential of altering key variables in dance music formulas. This was especially true on his 2018 Ostgut Ton debut EP Debiasing, which was flush with unconventional rhythmic chord stabs, melody and percussion but devoid of kickdrums. What seemed like an experimental exercise on paper was in reality equally geared towards the club: tracks that worked for the floor but resisted the genre categorizations that kick drums often provide. This has come to define Barker’s sound. Now, on his debut solo LP Utility, Barker turns his focus toward melding experimentation and dancefloor pragmatism with the psychology behind the musical decision making process. In his own words: “After ‘Debiasing’ it occurred to me that my musical decisions were often unintentionally utilitarian, following an instinct to maximize pleasure in one way or another. It’s sort of unfashionable to admit, but by removing elements that have strong genre associations, this became a natural consequence.” Accordingly, Utility is a playful but non-ironic musical approach to a whole spectrum of utilitarian and transhumanist ideas: from models for quantifying pleasure and “gradients of bliss” to abolishing suffering for sentient beings (not just people) through the ethical use of drugs and nanotechnology. Over nine tracks, Barker’s vision ebbs and flows through waves of deeply psychedelic musical vignettes; free-floating and futuristic melodies and rhythms as targeted brain stimulation. The sound draws heavily on modular synthesis, as well as self-built mechanical instruments and plate reverbs to create atmospheres that are at once alien and emotionally recognizable, functional and utopian. Utility is by no means a concept album. Instead, it is an honest take on music as both pleasuremaximizer and consciousness-expander.
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
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
More records from Ostgut Ton
1
Isabel Soto - Elemental Core
2
Isabel Soto - Foxglove
3
Isabel Soto - Breath Between
4
Isabel Soto - Morphosis
5
Isabel Soto - Unfolding Inward
STRICTLY LIMITED TO 300 COPIES!
For her debut on Ostgut Ton, Isabel Soto presents Morphosis, an EP defined by an elegant, hypnotic sound that has guided her vision from the very beginning. Morphosis represents an ongoing evolution, a transformative journey in both sound and feeling. As her first Berlin-produced EP, Morphosis draws inspiration from the new experiences that have shaped the artist both personally and creatively since her move to the city. The EP explores inner landscapes of emotion, memory, introspection and perception. Across six tracks, including a digital bonus, individual stories unfold and merge into a dreamy narrative. Minimalist in design, yet cohesive in every detail. Morphosis spans a wide spectrum of soundscapes — rich with abstract textures, deep rhythms, and trippy elements. It moves from dance-floor energy to ambient and downtempo spaces, creating a transportive atmosphere; hints of nature and the cosmos are ever-present. Awakening the senses to a new realm: the body unwinds, the mind opens, and the spirit shifts. A sophisticated release, storytelling on its own and emotionally crafted, Morphosis lets magic flow through, leaving a profound effect long after the music fades. The album cover, also created by Isabel Soto, features two flower photographs she took in Amsterdam (2018) and Berlin (2025), capturing the duality of past and present as they morph together — a visual reflection of the EP’s transformative journey and the connection between her music and visual art. Morphosis rises as a rebirth, fully embodying Isabel Soto’s creative essence and marking her most significant work to date.
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
For her debut on Ostgut Ton, Isabel Soto presents Morphosis, an EP defined by an elegant, hypnotic sound that has guided her vision from the very beginning. Morphosis represents an ongoing evolution, a transformative journey in both sound and feeling. As her first Berlin-produced EP, Morphosis draws inspiration from the new experiences that have shaped the artist both personally and creatively since her move to the city. The EP explores inner landscapes of emotion, memory, introspection and perception. Across six tracks, including a digital bonus, individual stories unfold and merge into a dreamy narrative. Minimalist in design, yet cohesive in every detail. Morphosis spans a wide spectrum of soundscapes — rich with abstract textures, deep rhythms, and trippy elements. It moves from dance-floor energy to ambient and downtempo spaces, creating a transportive atmosphere; hints of nature and the cosmos are ever-present. Awakening the senses to a new realm: the body unwinds, the mind opens, and the spirit shifts. A sophisticated release, storytelling on its own and emotionally crafted, Morphosis lets magic flow through, leaving a profound effect long after the music fades. The album cover, also created by Isabel Soto, features two flower photographs she took in Amsterdam (2018) and Berlin (2025), capturing the duality of past and present as they morph together — a visual reflection of the EP’s transformative journey and the connection between her music and visual art. Morphosis rises as a rebirth, fully embodying Isabel Soto’s creative essence and marking her most significant work to date.
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
Label:Ostgut Ton
Cat-No:OstgutLP38
Release-Date:07.11.2025
Genre:Electronic, Electronica
Configuration:2LP
Label:Ostgut Ton
Cat-No:OstgutLP38
Release-Date:07.11.2025
Genre:Electronic, Electronica
Configuration:2LP
1
Efdemin - Drift
2
Efdemin - Poly
3
Efdemin - Signal To Noise
4
Efdemin - Rauris
5
Efdemin - Trophic Cascade
6
Efdemin - Aachen
7
Efdemin - Microphase
8
Efdemin - Radical Hope
9
Efdemin - Irrlicht
10
Efdemin - Lost Somewhere In The Day
11
Efdemin - Below The Surface
First pressing sold out on presale - repress coming on the 7th of novemember!
After a six-year hiatus, Efdemin returns with POLY — his fifth studio album, released on the recently revived Berghain-affiliated label, Ostgut Ton.
As the title suggests, POLY explores multiplicity: of rhythm, texture, style, and emotion. Across eleven meticulously sculpted textures, the album weaves a multidimensional web of sonic references, nodding to the origins of techno while pushing resolutely into uncharted terrain. POLY feels like an afterglow—of decades on the dancefloor, of restless sonic exploration, and of a profound connection to the spaces and communities that have shaped Efdemin’s sound.
Over the course of 60 minutes we are taken through different territories and landscapes of sound. Mysterious and swirling, abstract and droning textures over at times fast and stoic rhythmic concepts. Sometimes the sunlight breaks into the opaque and mysterious soundscapes before the pulse is taken over and sucks us back straight into the club.
The overall tone of POLY is mild and playful, introvert and at times dreamy. The music is rich in sonic expression and breathes the spirit of musical concepts that have been refined over the course of decades. What Sollmann has condensed here feels like a culmination of his multilayered and polyphonic personality situated between Club, Museum, Studio and Academy.
The album cover features a striking photograph of a human ear by renowned German artist Isa Genzken. Known for her radical visual language, Genzken’s work here functions as a metaphor for deep listening. The ear symbolises the layered complexity and immersive quality of the music on POLY — an invitation to perceive sound in all its depth, fragility, and force and unlock it’s potential to unite different voices in a distorted reality.
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
After a six-year hiatus, Efdemin returns with POLY — his fifth studio album, released on the recently revived Berghain-affiliated label, Ostgut Ton.
As the title suggests, POLY explores multiplicity: of rhythm, texture, style, and emotion. Across eleven meticulously sculpted textures, the album weaves a multidimensional web of sonic references, nodding to the origins of techno while pushing resolutely into uncharted terrain. POLY feels like an afterglow—of decades on the dancefloor, of restless sonic exploration, and of a profound connection to the spaces and communities that have shaped Efdemin’s sound.
Over the course of 60 minutes we are taken through different territories and landscapes of sound. Mysterious and swirling, abstract and droning textures over at times fast and stoic rhythmic concepts. Sometimes the sunlight breaks into the opaque and mysterious soundscapes before the pulse is taken over and sucks us back straight into the club.
The overall tone of POLY is mild and playful, introvert and at times dreamy. The music is rich in sonic expression and breathes the spirit of musical concepts that have been refined over the course of decades. What Sollmann has condensed here feels like a culmination of his multilayered and polyphonic personality situated between Club, Museum, Studio and Academy.
The album cover features a striking photograph of a human ear by renowned German artist Isa Genzken. Known for her radical visual language, Genzken’s work here functions as a metaphor for deep listening. The ear symbolises the layered complexity and immersive quality of the music on POLY — an invitation to perceive sound in all its depth, fragility, and force and unlock it’s potential to unite different voices in a distorted reality.
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
1
Barker - Cascade Effect
2
Barker - When Prophecy Fails
3
Barker - Look How Hard I've Tried
4
Barker - Filter Bubbles
Ltd. Turquoise Vinyl Repress.
Barker makes solo debut on Ostgut Ton with new experimental dancefloor EP Sam Barker has had a long ongoing relationship with Berghain and Ostgut Ton, having released two LPs and various EPs as one half of Barker & Baumecker and hosting regular nights at the club since September 2008 as co-founder of the label Leisure System. 2017 marked the beginning of his solo residency, 2018 sees his first solo release with Ostgut Ton. Both as a musician and label owner, Barker operates on the fringes of techno, balancing experimentation with functionality. On Debiasing, he takes a hard look at the musical elements often considered necessary to maintain dancefloor momentum, with four distinct tracks of morphing synth stabs and paired down metronomic rhythms in varying time signatures. While there is no kick, snare, or clap to be heard, the result is not experimental techno deconstructions but driving, hypnotic and unlikely dancefloor tools. Inspired by the psychology underpinning relationships between producer/DJ and audience, Debiasing is an exercise in creating alternative paths within a techno framework. In Barker’s own words: “If you have ever sat down with a drum machine and tried to elude the rules of dance music, you will find at whatever tempo, and however you arrange the rhythms of each sound, you inevitably end up somewhere. I’ve generally tried to get away from that, but you always hit against this problem of an all-encompassing taxonomy and the baggage that comes with it. For a long time, music only seemed to show me how deeply locked into our habits and patterns we are.”
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
Barker makes solo debut on Ostgut Ton with new experimental dancefloor EP Sam Barker has had a long ongoing relationship with Berghain and Ostgut Ton, having released two LPs and various EPs as one half of Barker & Baumecker and hosting regular nights at the club since September 2008 as co-founder of the label Leisure System. 2017 marked the beginning of his solo residency, 2018 sees his first solo release with Ostgut Ton. Both as a musician and label owner, Barker operates on the fringes of techno, balancing experimentation with functionality. On Debiasing, he takes a hard look at the musical elements often considered necessary to maintain dancefloor momentum, with four distinct tracks of morphing synth stabs and paired down metronomic rhythms in varying time signatures. While there is no kick, snare, or clap to be heard, the result is not experimental techno deconstructions but driving, hypnotic and unlikely dancefloor tools. Inspired by the psychology underpinning relationships between producer/DJ and audience, Debiasing is an exercise in creating alternative paths within a techno framework. In Barker’s own words: “If you have ever sat down with a drum machine and tried to elude the rules of dance music, you will find at whatever tempo, and however you arrange the rhythms of each sound, you inevitably end up somewhere. I’ve generally tried to get away from that, but you always hit against this problem of an all-encompassing taxonomy and the baggage that comes with it. For a long time, music only seemed to show me how deeply locked into our habits and patterns we are.”
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
1
MMM - Rimba7
2
Avalon Emerson / Roi Perez - Champu Princess
3
Tama Sumo / Lakuti - An Ode To Audre
4
Substance / Soundstream - Session 2
5
Len Faki feat. Honey Dijon - Temple Of Love
6
Various Artists - No Title
7
Oren Ambarchi / Konrad Sprenger / Philip - Ever Given
8
Jessica Ekomane / Zoë McPherson - Iteration
English:
Fünfzehn + 1 is a commemorative compilation celebrating 16 years of Ostgut Ton – and the first glimpses of light at the end of a long dark tunnel for parent club Berghain. Originally planned for release in 2020, the music focuses on the interwoven nature of the label and the club in its multitude of different spaces and musical facets. Ostgut Ton artists and close affiliates worked together in pairs to make music dedicated to five different floors, each represented by a specific 12" vinyl. The result is a diverse selection of sometimes functional, other times more abstract sonic tributes; musical homages to spaces they have both influenced and been influenced by. With the pandemic having forced the club to close temporarily, the collaborative nature of the 5x12" boxset represents an attempt to transcend varying degrees of isolation and to wrestle with memories of music and space that had been inaccessible. But certainly not forgotten.
German:
Die Compilation Fünfzehn + 1 feiert 16 Jahre Ostgut Ton – und das Licht am Ende eines langen, dunklen Tunnels für sein Stammhaus Berghain. Ursprünglich zur Veröffentlichung im Jahr 2020 geplant, reflektiert die vorliegende Musik die Verflechtung von Inhouse-Label und Klub bzw. dessen unterschiedlicher musikalischer Facetten. Ostgut-Ton-Künstler*innen und -Freund*innen arbeiteten gemeinsam an Stücken, die fünf Floors gewidmet sind – und im Vinyl-Boxset fünf 12"es zugeordnet werden. Die 20 Stücke sind musikalische Hommage an Räume, die die beteiligten Personen sowohl beeinflusst haben, als auch von ihnen beeinflusst wurden. Das Ergebnis sind mal funktionale, mal eher abstrakte klangliche Näherungen. Nachdem die Pandemie den Klub vorübergehend zur Schließung zwang, stellt der gemeinschaftliche Charakter dieser Compilation einen Versuch dar, unterschiedliche Maße der Isolation zu überwinden und mit Erinnerungen an Musik und Räume zu ringen, die lange Zeit unzugänglich waren. Doch sicherlich nicht vergessen.
English:
Fünfzehn + 1 is a commemorative compilation celebrating 16 years of Ostgut Ton – and the first glimpses of light at the end of a long dark tunnel for parent club Berghain. Originally planned for release in 2020, the music focuses on the interwoven nature of the label and the club in its multitude of different spaces and musical facets. Ostgut Ton artists and close affiliates worked together in pairs to make music dedicated to five different floors, each represented by a specific 12" vinyl. The result is a diverse selection of sometimes functional, other times more abstract sonic tributes; musical homages to spaces they have both influenced and been influenced by. With the pandemic having forced the club to close temporarily, the collaborative nature of the 5x12" boxset represents an attempt to transcend varying degrees of isolation and to wrestle with memories of music and space that had been inaccessible. But certainly not forgotten.
German:
Die Compilation Fünfzehn + 1 feiert 16 Jahre Ostgut Ton – und das Licht am Ende eines langen, dunklen Tunnels für sein Stammhaus Berghain. Ursprünglich zur Veröffentlichung im Jahr 2020 geplant, reflektiert die vorliegende Musik die Verflechtung von Inhouse-Label und Klub bzw. dessen unterschiedlicher musikalischer Facetten. Ostgut-Ton-Künstler*innen und -Freund*innen arbeiteten gemeinsam an Stücken, die fünf Floors gewidmet sind – und im Vinyl-Boxset fünf 12"es zugeordnet werden. Die 20 Stücke sind musikalische Hommage an Räume, die die beteiligten Personen sowohl beeinflusst haben, als auch von ihnen beeinflusst wurden. Das Ergebnis sind mal funktionale, mal eher abstrakte klangliche Näherungen. Nachdem die Pandemie den Klub vorübergehend zur Schließung zwang, stellt der gemeinschaftliche Charakter dieser Compilation einen Versuch dar, unterschiedliche Maße der Isolation zu überwinden und mit Erinnerungen an Musik und Räume zu ringen, die lange Zeit unzugänglich waren. Doch sicherlich nicht vergessen.
1.Rimba7 by MMM 05:25
2.Champu Princess by Avalon Emerson / Roi Perez 06:36
3.An Ode To Audre by Tama Sumo / Lakuti 06:05
4.Session 2 by Substance / Soundstream 07:35
5.Temple Of Love by Len Faki feat. Honey Dijon 09:52
6.Años Perros by JASSS / Silent Servant 07:28
7.9/8 Gumbo by Luke Slater / Barker 06:45
8.A Friend Of A Friend by Ben Klock / Etapp Kyle 06:09
9.The Call by Marcel Dettmann / Norman Nodge 05:36
10.Untitled 15+1 by Pom Pom 07:20
11.Ever Given by Oren Ambarchi / Konrad Sprenger / Phillip Sollmann 10:14
12. Reset Walking by Martyn / Duval Timothy 04:50
13.Iteration by Jessica Ekomane / Zoë Mc Pherson 05:35
14.One Final Thing (Not Zero) by Atom TM / Tobias. 05:00
15.B-Section by Answer Code Request / Gerd Janson 06:31
16.Fontane by Ryan Elliott / André Galluzzi 06:41
17.Ride Out The Wave by Paramida / Massimiliano Pagliara 06:42
18.Labskaus by nd_baumecker / Nick Höppner 06:08
19.Cigarette Glow by Terence Fixmer / Phase Fatale 06:23
20.Remember The Future by Comets 06:32
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
Fünfzehn + 1 is a commemorative compilation celebrating 16 years of Ostgut Ton – and the first glimpses of light at the end of a long dark tunnel for parent club Berghain. Originally planned for release in 2020, the music focuses on the interwoven nature of the label and the club in its multitude of different spaces and musical facets. Ostgut Ton artists and close affiliates worked together in pairs to make music dedicated to five different floors, each represented by a specific 12" vinyl. The result is a diverse selection of sometimes functional, other times more abstract sonic tributes; musical homages to spaces they have both influenced and been influenced by. With the pandemic having forced the club to close temporarily, the collaborative nature of the 5x12" boxset represents an attempt to transcend varying degrees of isolation and to wrestle with memories of music and space that had been inaccessible. But certainly not forgotten.
German:
Die Compilation Fünfzehn + 1 feiert 16 Jahre Ostgut Ton – und das Licht am Ende eines langen, dunklen Tunnels für sein Stammhaus Berghain. Ursprünglich zur Veröffentlichung im Jahr 2020 geplant, reflektiert die vorliegende Musik die Verflechtung von Inhouse-Label und Klub bzw. dessen unterschiedlicher musikalischer Facetten. Ostgut-Ton-Künstler*innen und -Freund*innen arbeiteten gemeinsam an Stücken, die fünf Floors gewidmet sind – und im Vinyl-Boxset fünf 12"es zugeordnet werden. Die 20 Stücke sind musikalische Hommage an Räume, die die beteiligten Personen sowohl beeinflusst haben, als auch von ihnen beeinflusst wurden. Das Ergebnis sind mal funktionale, mal eher abstrakte klangliche Näherungen. Nachdem die Pandemie den Klub vorübergehend zur Schließung zwang, stellt der gemeinschaftliche Charakter dieser Compilation einen Versuch dar, unterschiedliche Maße der Isolation zu überwinden und mit Erinnerungen an Musik und Räume zu ringen, die lange Zeit unzugänglich waren. Doch sicherlich nicht vergessen.
English:
Fünfzehn + 1 is a commemorative compilation celebrating 16 years of Ostgut Ton – and the first glimpses of light at the end of a long dark tunnel for parent club Berghain. Originally planned for release in 2020, the music focuses on the interwoven nature of the label and the club in its multitude of different spaces and musical facets. Ostgut Ton artists and close affiliates worked together in pairs to make music dedicated to five different floors, each represented by a specific 12" vinyl. The result is a diverse selection of sometimes functional, other times more abstract sonic tributes; musical homages to spaces they have both influenced and been influenced by. With the pandemic having forced the club to close temporarily, the collaborative nature of the 5x12" boxset represents an attempt to transcend varying degrees of isolation and to wrestle with memories of music and space that had been inaccessible. But certainly not forgotten.
German:
Die Compilation Fünfzehn + 1 feiert 16 Jahre Ostgut Ton – und das Licht am Ende eines langen, dunklen Tunnels für sein Stammhaus Berghain. Ursprünglich zur Veröffentlichung im Jahr 2020 geplant, reflektiert die vorliegende Musik die Verflechtung von Inhouse-Label und Klub bzw. dessen unterschiedlicher musikalischer Facetten. Ostgut-Ton-Künstler*innen und -Freund*innen arbeiteten gemeinsam an Stücken, die fünf Floors gewidmet sind – und im Vinyl-Boxset fünf 12"es zugeordnet werden. Die 20 Stücke sind musikalische Hommage an Räume, die die beteiligten Personen sowohl beeinflusst haben, als auch von ihnen beeinflusst wurden. Das Ergebnis sind mal funktionale, mal eher abstrakte klangliche Näherungen. Nachdem die Pandemie den Klub vorübergehend zur Schließung zwang, stellt der gemeinschaftliche Charakter dieser Compilation einen Versuch dar, unterschiedliche Maße der Isolation zu überwinden und mit Erinnerungen an Musik und Räume zu ringen, die lange Zeit unzugänglich waren. Doch sicherlich nicht vergessen.
1.Rimba7 by MMM 05:25
2.Champu Princess by Avalon Emerson / Roi Perez 06:36
3.An Ode To Audre by Tama Sumo / Lakuti 06:05
4.Session 2 by Substance / Soundstream 07:35
5.Temple Of Love by Len Faki feat. Honey Dijon 09:52
6.Años Perros by JASSS / Silent Servant 07:28
7.9/8 Gumbo by Luke Slater / Barker 06:45
8.A Friend Of A Friend by Ben Klock / Etapp Kyle 06:09
9.The Call by Marcel Dettmann / Norman Nodge 05:36
10.Untitled 15+1 by Pom Pom 07:20
11.Ever Given by Oren Ambarchi / Konrad Sprenger / Phillip Sollmann 10:14
12. Reset Walking by Martyn / Duval Timothy 04:50
13.Iteration by Jessica Ekomane / Zoë Mc Pherson 05:35
14.One Final Thing (Not Zero) by Atom TM / Tobias. 05:00
15.B-Section by Answer Code Request / Gerd Janson 06:31
16.Fontane by Ryan Elliott / André Galluzzi 06:41
17.Ride Out The Wave by Paramida / Massimiliano Pagliara 06:42
18.Labskaus by nd_baumecker / Nick Höppner 06:08
19.Cigarette Glow by Terence Fixmer / Phase Fatale 06:23
20.Remember The Future by Comets 06:32
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
1
Oren Ambarchi / Konrad Sprenger / Philip - Ever Given
2
Jessica Ekomane / Zoë McPherson - Iteration
English:
Fünfzehn + 1 is a commemorative compilation celebrating 16 years of Ostgut Ton – and the first glimpses of light at the end of a long dark tunnel for parent club Berghain. Originally planned for release in 2020, the music focuses on the interwoven nature of the label and the club in its multitude of different spaces and musical facets. Ostgut Ton artists and close affiliates worked together in pairs to make music dedicated to five different floors, each represented by a specific 12" vinyl. The result is a diverse selection of sometimes functional, other times more abstract sonic tributes; musical homages to spaces they have both influenced and been influenced by. With the pandemic having forced the club to close temporarily, the collaborative nature of the 5x12" boxset represents an attempt to transcend varying degrees of isolation and to wrestle with memories of music and space that had been inaccessible. But certainly not forgotten.
German:
Die Compilation Fünfzehn + 1 feiert 16 Jahre Ostgut Ton – und das Licht am Ende eines langen, dunklen Tunnels für sein Stammhaus Berghain. Ursprünglich zur Veröffentlichung im Jahr 2020 geplant, reflektiert die vorliegende Musik die Verflechtung von Inhouse-Label und Klub bzw. dessen unterschiedlicher musikalischer Facetten. Ostgut-Ton-Künstler*innen und -Freund*innen arbeiteten gemeinsam an Stücken, die fünf Floors gewidmet sind – und im Vinyl-Boxset fünf 12"es zugeordnet werden. Die 20 Stücke sind musikalische Hommage an Räume, die die beteiligten Personen sowohl beeinflusst haben, als auch von ihnen beeinflusst wurden. Das Ergebnis sind mal funktionale, mal eher abstrakte klangliche Näherungen. Nachdem die Pandemie den Klub vorübergehend zur Schließung zwang, stellt der gemeinschaftliche Charakter dieser Compilation einen Versuch dar, unterschiedliche Maße der Isolation zu überwinden und mit Erinnerungen an Musik und Räume zu ringen, die lange Zeit unzugänglich waren. Doch sicherlich nicht vergessen.
1.Rimba7 by MMM 05:25
2.Champu Princess by Avalon Emerson / Roi Perez 06:36
3.An Ode To Audre by Tama Sumo / Lakuti 06:05
4.Session 2 by Substance / Soundstream 07:35
5.Temple Of Love by Len Faki feat. Honey Dijon 09:52
6.Años Perros by JASSS / Silent Servant 07:28
7.9/8 Gumbo by Luke Slater / Barker 06:45
8.A Friend Of A Friend by Ben Klock / Etapp Kyle 06:09
9.The Call by Marcel Dettmann / Norman Nodge 05:36
10.Untitled 15+1 by Pom Pom 07:20
11.Ever Given by Oren Ambarchi / Konrad Sprenger / Phillip Sollmann 10:14
12. Reset Walking by Martyn / Duval Timothy 04:50
13.Iteration by Jessica Ekomane / Zoë Mc Pherson 05:35
14.One Final Thing (Not Zero) by Atom TM / Tobias. 05:00
15.B-Section by Answer Code Request / Gerd Janson 06:31
16.Fontane by Ryan Elliott / André Galluzzi 06:41
17.Ride Out The Wave by Paramida / Massimiliano Pagliara 06:42
18.Labskaus by nd_baumecker / Nick Höppner 06:08
19.Cigarette Glow by Terence Fixmer / Phase Fatale 06:23
20.Remember The Future by Comets 06.32
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
Fünfzehn + 1 is a commemorative compilation celebrating 16 years of Ostgut Ton – and the first glimpses of light at the end of a long dark tunnel for parent club Berghain. Originally planned for release in 2020, the music focuses on the interwoven nature of the label and the club in its multitude of different spaces and musical facets. Ostgut Ton artists and close affiliates worked together in pairs to make music dedicated to five different floors, each represented by a specific 12" vinyl. The result is a diverse selection of sometimes functional, other times more abstract sonic tributes; musical homages to spaces they have both influenced and been influenced by. With the pandemic having forced the club to close temporarily, the collaborative nature of the 5x12" boxset represents an attempt to transcend varying degrees of isolation and to wrestle with memories of music and space that had been inaccessible. But certainly not forgotten.
German:
Die Compilation Fünfzehn + 1 feiert 16 Jahre Ostgut Ton – und das Licht am Ende eines langen, dunklen Tunnels für sein Stammhaus Berghain. Ursprünglich zur Veröffentlichung im Jahr 2020 geplant, reflektiert die vorliegende Musik die Verflechtung von Inhouse-Label und Klub bzw. dessen unterschiedlicher musikalischer Facetten. Ostgut-Ton-Künstler*innen und -Freund*innen arbeiteten gemeinsam an Stücken, die fünf Floors gewidmet sind – und im Vinyl-Boxset fünf 12"es zugeordnet werden. Die 20 Stücke sind musikalische Hommage an Räume, die die beteiligten Personen sowohl beeinflusst haben, als auch von ihnen beeinflusst wurden. Das Ergebnis sind mal funktionale, mal eher abstrakte klangliche Näherungen. Nachdem die Pandemie den Klub vorübergehend zur Schließung zwang, stellt der gemeinschaftliche Charakter dieser Compilation einen Versuch dar, unterschiedliche Maße der Isolation zu überwinden und mit Erinnerungen an Musik und Räume zu ringen, die lange Zeit unzugänglich waren. Doch sicherlich nicht vergessen.
1.Rimba7 by MMM 05:25
2.Champu Princess by Avalon Emerson / Roi Perez 06:36
3.An Ode To Audre by Tama Sumo / Lakuti 06:05
4.Session 2 by Substance / Soundstream 07:35
5.Temple Of Love by Len Faki feat. Honey Dijon 09:52
6.Años Perros by JASSS / Silent Servant 07:28
7.9/8 Gumbo by Luke Slater / Barker 06:45
8.A Friend Of A Friend by Ben Klock / Etapp Kyle 06:09
9.The Call by Marcel Dettmann / Norman Nodge 05:36
10.Untitled 15+1 by Pom Pom 07:20
11.Ever Given by Oren Ambarchi / Konrad Sprenger / Phillip Sollmann 10:14
12. Reset Walking by Martyn / Duval Timothy 04:50
13.Iteration by Jessica Ekomane / Zoë Mc Pherson 05:35
14.One Final Thing (Not Zero) by Atom TM / Tobias. 05:00
15.B-Section by Answer Code Request / Gerd Janson 06:31
16.Fontane by Ryan Elliott / André Galluzzi 06:41
17.Ride Out The Wave by Paramida / Massimiliano Pagliara 06:42
18.Labskaus by nd_baumecker / Nick Höppner 06:08
19.Cigarette Glow by Terence Fixmer / Phase Fatale 06:23
20.Remember The Future by Comets 06.32
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
Label:Ostgut Ton
Cat-No:OSTGUTLP35
Release-Date:26.11.2021
Genre:Alternative/Electronic
Configuration:LP
Label:Ostgut Ton
Cat-No:OSTGUTLP35
Release-Date:26.11.2021
Genre:Alternative/Electronic
Configuration:LP
Giving form to a broad personal project of continuous inquiry and existential expression, A World Of Servicemarks the Ostgut Ton debut of Spanish producer, DJ and artist JASSS aka Silvia Jiménez Alvarez.
The evolution of A World Of Servicehas curved around genre collapsing and unexpected metamorphoses. Formerly the name of the monthly radio show JASSS hosted in Berlin, and soon to be the title of her expansive multi-sensory touring concept in collaboration with Ben Kreukniet, here A World Of Serviceis powerfully concentrated in sonic form. Throughout the album JASSS muses on the especially current human and technological barriers to interconnectivity; both lyrically and musically she deconstructs the self, unmasks anxieties and interrogates the insufficiencies of language as applied to gender, identity and interpersonal relationships. Forming her own fluid, nuanced lexicon in response, JASSS seeks a deeper understanding of her multiple selves, emerging through unbridled adolescent rage and the wisdom of maturation, traversing liminality with abstract electronics and baroque industrial pop. Visually this is underscored by Matt Lambert’s uncanny floral cover portraiture, as well as the record’s distinct scent of wet earth, flower and woods developed for the album by Meri Bonastre and applied to the vinyl innersleeve.
Following the imaginative nostalgia of Weightless, her 2017 debut album for iDEAL Recordings, as well as her series of blistering dancefloor 12”s for Whities/AD 93, A World Of Servicefolds personal and societal concepts in on themselves, not seeking answers but rather luxuriating in the unique friction that questions create. JASSS is intensely focused yet musically unbridled; this is reflected in tonal shifts of A World Of Service. Through the computerised yearning and bruising of a heartbreak on “Luis”, to the jagged and wordless tundra of “Vapor Dentro”; the intriguing juxtaposition of warm, alluring Spanish vocals against rigid pillars of industrial heft and bass grind (“Camelo”), and the soaring maximalist industrial popof the album’s closer, “Wish.”
As intensity rises through the pandemic-era trip hop of the album’s title track “A World Of Service”, JASSS sings: “Pleasure / Is nowhere to be found inside this world of service / I call to be my life.” Pleasure may remain elusive to her, but in the determination to make peace with her various identities in this technological age, JASSS offers a compelling glimpse into an essential type of artistic voice.
Tracklisting
1. JASSS Birds You Can Name 00:02:54
2. JASSS Camelo 00:03:21
3. JASSS Luis 00:03:36
4. JASSS Busto 00:03:46
5. JASSS A World Of Service 00:04:40
6. JASSS In Your Mouth 00:03:35
7. JASSS Vapor Dentro 00:04:09
8. JASSS Wish 00:03:56
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
The evolution of A World Of Servicehas curved around genre collapsing and unexpected metamorphoses. Formerly the name of the monthly radio show JASSS hosted in Berlin, and soon to be the title of her expansive multi-sensory touring concept in collaboration with Ben Kreukniet, here A World Of Serviceis powerfully concentrated in sonic form. Throughout the album JASSS muses on the especially current human and technological barriers to interconnectivity; both lyrically and musically she deconstructs the self, unmasks anxieties and interrogates the insufficiencies of language as applied to gender, identity and interpersonal relationships. Forming her own fluid, nuanced lexicon in response, JASSS seeks a deeper understanding of her multiple selves, emerging through unbridled adolescent rage and the wisdom of maturation, traversing liminality with abstract electronics and baroque industrial pop. Visually this is underscored by Matt Lambert’s uncanny floral cover portraiture, as well as the record’s distinct scent of wet earth, flower and woods developed for the album by Meri Bonastre and applied to the vinyl innersleeve.
Following the imaginative nostalgia of Weightless, her 2017 debut album for iDEAL Recordings, as well as her series of blistering dancefloor 12”s for Whities/AD 93, A World Of Servicefolds personal and societal concepts in on themselves, not seeking answers but rather luxuriating in the unique friction that questions create. JASSS is intensely focused yet musically unbridled; this is reflected in tonal shifts of A World Of Service. Through the computerised yearning and bruising of a heartbreak on “Luis”, to the jagged and wordless tundra of “Vapor Dentro”; the intriguing juxtaposition of warm, alluring Spanish vocals against rigid pillars of industrial heft and bass grind (“Camelo”), and the soaring maximalist industrial popof the album’s closer, “Wish.”
As intensity rises through the pandemic-era trip hop of the album’s title track “A World Of Service”, JASSS sings: “Pleasure / Is nowhere to be found inside this world of service / I call to be my life.” Pleasure may remain elusive to her, but in the determination to make peace with her various identities in this technological age, JASSS offers a compelling glimpse into an essential type of artistic voice.
Tracklisting
1. JASSS Birds You Can Name 00:02:54
2. JASSS Camelo 00:03:21
3. JASSS Luis 00:03:36
4. JASSS Busto 00:03:46
5. JASSS A World Of Service 00:04:40
6. JASSS In Your Mouth 00:03:35
7. JASSS Vapor Dentro 00:04:09
8. JASSS Wish 00:03:56
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
1
Tobias. - 1972
2
Tobias. - Schism
3
Tobias. - The Wisdom Of No Escape
4
Tobias. - Electric Storm
On 1972, veteran producer and live musician Tobias Freund offers up four tracks of layered and meticulously-crafted techno using his extensive archives of tape recordings collected since childhood. Referencing a mix of profound political events in German history and esoteric meditation guides, the Berghain resident's warm, detailed sound edges beyond the floor toward brain-tingling home listening and wanderlust autobahn escapism. The EP begins with the titles track’s buzzing synths panning rhythmically across the stereo field like a hypnotist’s pocket watch, while a somber, sampled string melody pushes further into cosmic territory before concluding with a bi-lingual eulogy. “Schism” soars with a never-ending snare roll and sparse kicks – an entire track floating on a break that never lands. On “The Wisdom Of No Escape”, Freund combines soft, polyrhythmic bleeps with esoteric vocal samples on an inward path of hallucinogenic internal discovery. EP closer “Electric Storm” makes a turn for the ultrastoned, with hats and writhing vocals disintegrating and reforming over a soft, round steady pulse. Overall, 1972 features a sound that Tobias. has honed for over 30 years, having initially made a name for himself mixing various pop hits in the 80s and 90s while simultaneously producing experimental electronics under various pseudonyms including Metazone, Phobia, Pink Elln, and Zoon. On his own Non Standard Productions imprint he has regularly collaborated with the likes of Max Loderbauer and Ricardo Villalobos and most recently with visual artist Valentina Berthelon as Recent Arts. His releases and lengthy live techno sets with AtomTM continue to set the bar high for improvised electronics.
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
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
"What binds you to places? To remembering them. Places you can feel, when you feel at home. Places that affirm your very existence. This place for me is the Oderbruch. This album is dedicated to it.” – R.P. The fifth studio album by Shed aka Rene Pawlowitz centers thematically on the Oderbruch region in former East Germany where the producer and DJ grew up and continues to split his time (when not in Berlin.) Both the album and track titles as well as the artwork by Arnim To¨lke [Ectoplasma (Oderbruch)] reflect Pawlowitz’s deeply personal associations with the borderland’s marshy landscape, as well as enormous political and historical changes the region underwent as the last Eastern front during World War II – and, later, following the dissolution of the GDR. Nevertheless, Oderbruch is not a concept album. Instead, it’s an ambivalent ode to the area in which Pawlowitz’s family has lived for generations. It’s a musical reflection on place and personal history: meeting up at the local gas station, a view to the water, techno rattling the closed windows of cars peeling out toward Berlin or the next local party, cruising along rural parkways flanked by trees with fruit ripe for picking, past weeping willows and abandoned factories where industry once thrived. Outside buzzes with the sounds of nature inextricably linked with childhood memories, but also a landscape defined by the bloody defeat of the Nazis at the Battle of Seelow, ushering in the fall of Berlin and with it, the entire fascist regime. The album’s nine tracks are inspired by the intertwined nature of the subjective and historical, which ring through Shed’s idiosyncratic take on breaks, bass, techno, symphonic ventures, ambient and hardcore. But unlike Shed’s previous records, Oderbruch incorporates broad pastoral landscapes – left behind and returned to. Both fit Shed, who under various aliases (Head High, Hoover, Wax, The Higher, WK7, Equalized, The Traveller) has long influenced a number of dance music scenes in Berlin and beyond.
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
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
1
Gonno & Nick Höppner - Bangalore
2
Gonno & Nick Höppner - Love Lost
3
Gonno & Nick Höppner - Start Trying
For their second Ostgut Ton EP, Sunao Gonno and Nick Höppner worked together on three tracks over the course of two years between their respective studios in Tokyo and Berlin – editing, altering and tweaking each other’s musical additions with a penchant toward melodic, multilayered house and techno that floats easily beyond the functional. Accordingly, Lost is defined by the interactive playfulness and unpredictability of their collaborative process, elements often missing from dance music. Höppner initially met Gonno on various trips to Tokyo. But it wasn’t until Gonno came play to Panorama Bar in 2015 that the two first entered the studio together: “I think we spoke three words in eight hours,” explains Sunao of their previous studio jams that eventually led to Fantastic Planet EP [O-TON 95, 2016], describing a flowing musical process in which music succeeded where words failed. On Lost, the duo continue further out into inner space. On “Bangalore”, the duo showcase their mastery of creating expansive long, psychedelic ecosystems of melodic phrasing and rhythmic development; drawn-out techno exploration. “Love Lost” slows things down to a post-disco boogie chug of breaks, bass, dubby synth stabs and sadness. EP closer “Start Trying” is a sweaty, post-peaktime trip of strings and dilated pupils. Swirling melodies braindancing long after the after party.
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
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WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
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1
Steffi x Virginia - Be True To Me
2
Steffi x Virginia - Sight From Above
3
Steffi x Virginia - Help Me Understand
4
Steffi x Virginia - Help Me Understand (Instrumental)
5
Steffi x Virginia - Until You're Begging
6
Steffi x Virginia - Internal Bleeding
7
Steffi x Virginia - Work A Change
8
Steffi x Virginia - Work A Change (Instrumental)
Steffi and Virginia return with an eight-track double EP on Ostgut Ton, inviting us into new dimensions of the sonic world they have crafted together over a number of years. Work A Change is out September 20, 2019 on 2x12” vinyl and in digital formats. Since their iconic 2011 collaboration “Yours” – which became an instant classic – the duo have experimented with new ways to express their unique strand of dancefloor melancholy. Unlike the grand maximalism often associated with vocals in dance music, Steffi and Virginia’s creations use the voice less as a centerpiece and more an integral part of the groove itself, subtle in temperament and equal to its counterparts. Impassioned vocals spiral around melodic leads and warm harmonies, offering a gentle kind of catharsis that deepens with each listen. Work A Change immediately transports us to a parallel aural universe, refusing to settle into one style and merging multiple references into peculiar new formats. Opening track “Be True To Me” is subdued but inviting, working its way into the conscious with harmonic glitches and a deep, grooving bass lead. “Sight From Above” then slows things down for an angular cut of low-slung machine funk. The B-side, “Help Me Understand” lands us on another planet entirely, complete with extraterrestrial synths and animated robotics. Opening up the C-side, “Until You’re Begging” is a molecular construction of fragmented motifs, both precise and hazy at the same time. Similarly, “Internal Bleeding” takes segments of percussive grooves and rearranges them into complex polyrhythms whilst retaining a careful sense of balance. Closing off the release is title track “Work A Change”; one last high-speed voyage into spiralling drums and hammerdrill bass. Work A Change expands on Steffi and Virginia’s aesthetic, merging elements from a number of genres into a cerebral, highly personal release. It also signals a change of direction for the duo's work, voyaging through new terrain while retaining a sound that is undoubtedly their own.
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Pleasure-seeking and pain-avoidance as a rave metaphor fits the music of Sam Barker. The Berghain resident and Leisure System co-founder has spent the last few years exploring the euphoric potential of altering key variables in dance music formulas. This was especially true on his 2018 Ostgut Ton debut EP Debiasing, which was flush with unconventional rhythmic chord stabs, melody and percussion but devoid of kickdrums. What seemed like an experimental exercise on paper was in reality equally geared towards the club: tracks that worked for the floor but resisted the genre categorizations that kick drums often provide. This has come to define Barker’s sound. Now, on his debut solo LP Utility, Barker turns his focus toward melding experimentation and dancefloor pragmatism with the psychology behind the musical decision making process. In his own words: “After ‘Debiasing’ it occurred to me that my musical decisions were often unintentionally utilitarian, following an instinct to maximize pleasure in one way or another. It’s sort of unfashionable to admit, but by removing elements that have strong genre associations, this became a natural consequence.” Accordingly, Utility is a playful but non-ironic musical approach to a whole spectrum of utilitarian and transhumanist ideas: from models for quantifying pleasure and “gradients of bliss” to abolishing suffering for sentient beings (not just people) through the ethical use of drugs and nanotechnology. Over nine tracks, Barker’s vision ebbs and flows through waves of deeply psychedelic musical vignettes; free-floating and futuristic melodies and rhythms as targeted brain stimulation. The sound draws heavily on modular synthesis, as well as self-built mechanical instruments and plate reverbs to create atmospheres that are at once alien and emotionally recognizable, functional and utopian. Utility is by no means a concept album. Instead, it is an honest take on music as both pleasuremaximizer and consciousness-expander.
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1
ryan elliott - Paul's Horizon
2
ryan elliott - Martinsville Morning
3
ryan elliott - Grafton Road
Detroit native Ryan Elliott has made a handful of weighty contributions to both Berghain and Ostgut Ton, including his Rocksteady and Stepmode EPs as well as his Ostgut Ton 5-year anniversary mixtape and the label’s inaugural digital mix compilation, Panorama Bar 06. A resident DJ at Berghain / Panorama Bar since 2010, Elliott’s mixing is technical, confident and fast, stubbornly riding the border hard between house and techno, melody and rhythm, stayed and future classics. It’s also this DJ’s perspective that has informed Elliott’s own analogue productions, with Paul’s Horizon turning its focus toward deep and slick percussion. This is apparent from the get-go, with the title track’s triangle/clap interplay, funky 5-6 kicks per bar, and bleary-eyed atmosphere. From there “Martinsville Morning” slows down into an understated sunrise groover, led by bassline, strings and pads. EP closer “Grafton Road” turns up the pace again with gasps for hats, aggressive punctuating snares, and a modulating synth bubbling-up throughout. Paul’s Horizon – Ryan Elliott’s first EP in six years – falls musically between Berlin and Detroit, between house and techno and between hypnotic repetition and unpredictability, revealing a subtle ear for groove and composition.
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Since becoming a Berghain resident in 2017, Dominick Fernow’s risk-taking hybrid live/DJ sets as Vatican Shadow have become conduits for infusing techno with contrasting musical ideas – from noise, industrial and ambient to distorted melodies and rhythms that push the club’s borders in unexpected ways. It’s an idiosyncratic approach to techno rooted not only in Fernow’s 25-plus years as an experimental and noise musician under more than a dozen aliases (e.g. Prurient, Rainforest Spiritual Enslavement) but also in his role as founder of the vital New York-based Hospital Productions, whose discography exceeds some 500 releases. The label – which in 2017 celebrated its 20-year anniversary – is also home to the majority of Vatican Shadow output to date.featuring exclusive tracks by Genesis P-Orridge, Virile Games, Los Angeles Death Cult, Ron Morelli, Volvox, JK Flesh, Alberich, Ugandan Methods | Prurient and Merzbow –
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1
substance - Rise And Shine
2
substance - Countdown
3
substance - Bird Cave
4
substance - Distance
5
substance - Cruising
Peter Kuschnereit, also known as Substance or DJ Pete, has long been known to heads as an essential figure in Berlin dance music, though he has comfortably flown under the international radar. Born and raised in the central district of Kreuzberg (where he still lives in the same high-rise he grew up in), this year marks the 30th anniversary of his DJ career – and a fitting moment to announce his first solo EP on Ostgut Ton following contributions to previous compilations Fu¨nf and Zehn and his longstanding relationship to Berghain. Locally, his influence has been multifaceted: an employee at the famed Hard Wax record store for some 27 years, Kuschnereit is also one of the core DJs in the legendary Wax Treament party series, helping to unite diverse strains of global dance music – from dubstep, grime, house and techno to Senegalese polyrhythms – all pumping through the KILLASAN sound system. Indeed, eclecticism has become a kind of trademark for Kuschnereit as evidenced on various mid- 90s and 2000s deep techno classics with Vainqueur on Chain Reaction and Scion Versions, a funky Latin techno 12” as DJ Pete on Surgeon’s Counterbalance, recent live collaborations with Sleeparchive as TR-101 and dozens of his online Wax Treatment podcasts. Rise And Shine sees Kuschnereit fusing his deep, industrial aesthetic as Substance with the resonant bass-heavy leanings of DJ Pete, as evidenced on the title track’s off-kilter metallic riddims and multiple, interlaced SH-101 and Prophet 5 melodies. From there, potential set-closer “Countdown” blasts off with relentlessly rattling, scraping breaks, hissing German vox and big chords. The compact explorations of “Bird Cave” and “Distance” offer a more atmospheric take on bass and rhythm, while EP closer “Cruising” re-explores the uncanny, Berlin deep techno cosmos Kuschnereit has helped define, this time in denser form.
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1
norman nodge - Tacit Knowing
2
norman nodge - Discipline
3
norman nodge - Gathering
4
norman nodge - Embodiment
After a seven-year hiatus, the longtime Berghain resident Norman Nodge is back with four new tracks of deep, narcotic techno. Hailing from Brandenburg, Nodge spent the 90s as a DJ, promoter and mentor to the likes of Marcel Dettmann and Marcel Fengler before becoming a Berghain resident in 2005. Since then he has occupied a special place in Berlin techno with a sound that is at once forceful, dubby and hypnotic, evident not only on his Berghain 06 mix and various 12”s and compilation contributions for Ostgut Ton, but also on EPs for Dettmann’s MDR imprint. A lawyer by trade, on Embodiment EP Nodge reflects on decades of observing how dancers develop an intuitive relationship to music and process new sounds. “Tacit Knowing” (A1) is a nod to the feedback loop between the instincts of dancer and producer, combining bassline, breakbeats and Detroit-like strings, which subtly develop into a cavernous techno roller. In contrast, “Discipline” (A2) is aggressive, updated peaktime acid packed with the sounds of metal and overdriven snares. On the flipside, “Gathering” (B1) is a bongo-heavy tribal groover, while “Embodiment” references a more halcyon Ostgut Ton aesthetic – one that resonates not only in the space of the club but also within the bodies of those occupying it.
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The Panorama Bar mix series strikes back for its 7th installment with club veteran and psych- house maestro Andreas Baumecker aka nd_baumecker. A Berlin and Panorama Bar resident since 2004, Baumecker’s sets have long been known to heads as a foundational part of the club’s identity: deep, unpredictable, funky, bassline-heavy, melodic, and seamless flowing between different rhythms and key-changes. As a producer, Baumecker’s studio focus (with Sam Barker in Barker & Baumecker) sits comfortably between pop, dancefloor and spiraling left field electronics; on top of two LPs and numerous EPs on Ostgut Ton, the duo have also remixed the likes of Vessels and shoegazers Ride. But Baumecker honed his musical sensibility not only through DJing and studio work, but also as a buyer for famed Frankfurt record store Delirium (founded by Ata and the late Heiko M/S/O), as well as an in-house booking agent for Berghain / Panorama Bar. This composite identity as a selector, collector, club curator and musician feeds heavily into the diversity of Baumecker’s 120-minute vinyl-only mix – including the six exclusive tracks over two 12”s. FaltyDL kicks off Panorama Bar 07 | Part I with the appropriately titled “Paradox Garage Part 1 (With Your Love)”, blending US garage, breakbeats and chopped vocals. The alternative rhythms continue with Jinje´ (of Vessels fame) slowly building machine-funk anthem “Big Skies”, while the B-side is reserved for Gen Ludd’s dreamy, shutter-opener “Bloods Avalanche”. As the exclusive tracks imply: nd_baumecker’s Panorama Bar 07 mix hedges no bets with bold melodies or rhythms, focusing more on groove and depth than genre. Full tracklisting to be announced.
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The Panorama Bar mix series strikes back for its 7th installment with club veteran and psych- house maestro Andreas Baumecker aka nd_baumecker. A Berlin and Panorama Bar resident since 2004, Baumecker’s sets have long been known to heads as a foundational part of the club’s identity: deep, unpredictable, funky, bassline-heavy, melodic, and seamless flowing between different rhythms and key-changes. As a producer, Baumecker’s studio focus (with Sam Barker in Barker & Baumecker) sits comfortably between pop, dancefloor and spiraling left field electronics; on top of two LPs and numerous EPs on Ostgut Ton, the duo have also remixed the likes of Vessels and shoegazers Ride. But Baumecker honed his musical sensibility not only through DJing and studio work, but also as a buyer for famed Frankfurt record store Delirium (founded by Ata and the late Heiko M/S/O), as well as an in-house booking agent for Berghain / Panorama Bar. This composite identity as a selector, collector, club curator and musician feeds heavily into the diversity of Baumecker’s 120-minute vinyl-only mix – including the six exclusive tracks over two 12”s. On Panorama Bar 07 | Part II, Ross From Friends’ “High Energy” delivers from the get-go via driving saturated drums and heady, lo-fi atmospherics, followed by Dave Aju’s lush electronic tropicalia “Wayahed”. The final track belongs to Dutch duo Duplex, who deliver big with “Isolator”, propelled forward by unpredictable claps, snares, open hats and multiple melody lines in a deceptively complex arrangement – made to sound easy. As the exclusive tracks imply: nd_baumecker’s Panorama Bar 07 mix hedges no bets with bold melodies or rhythms, focusing more on groove and depth than genre. Full tracklisting to be announced.
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Customers who bought this also bought this
Label:Lo Recordings
Cat-No:Lo253
Release-Date:09.01.2026
Genre:Electronic, Electronica
Configuration:2LP
Label:Lo Recordings
Cat-No:Lo253
Release-Date:09.01.2026
Genre:Electronic, Electronica
Configuration:2LP
1
Susumu Yokota - Saku
2
Susumu Yokota - Uchu Tanjyo
3
Susumu Yokota - Hagoromo
4
Susumu Yokota - Genshi
5
Susumu Yokota - Gekkoh
6
Susumu Yokota - Kirakiraboshi
7
Susumu Yokota - Kodomotachi
8
Susumu Yokota - Hisen
9
Susumu Yokota - Tobiume
10
Susumu Yokota - Naminote
11
Susumu Yokota - Shinsen
12
Susumu Yokota - Azukiiro No Kaori
Repress coming on the 19th of December!
Format:
- Limited edition petrol blue 2x12” vinyl LP.
- Housed in PMS printed inner sleeve, featuring custom fonts by No Format and spot gloss abstraction of the original album artwork.
- Accompanied with a double sided 2-panel insert and double sided 4 panel poster.
- All sleeved in a custom PMS reverse board outer sleeve with die cut square centre panel and belly band.
Sakura is without doubt the most loved and lauded entry in Susumu Yokota’s catalogue.
The music unravels like cascades of petals falling from the eponymous cherry blossom trees. Yokota intended to ‘express ki-do-ai-raku (the four emotions; joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness) through music’, and throughout Sakura, the effect fluctuates between profound tranquillity, hesitation, melancholy and joy with ease, addressing the fickle nature of human emotion, while transcending the inclination to label moods entirely.
Sakura became Yokota’s best selling album. It was greeted with universal acclaim, lauded by Philip Glass and Brian Eno and launched Yokota internationally.
‘A bittersweet beauty, heightened by the sadness that all things must one day end.’ - Martyn Pepperell
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Format:
- Limited edition petrol blue 2x12” vinyl LP.
- Housed in PMS printed inner sleeve, featuring custom fonts by No Format and spot gloss abstraction of the original album artwork.
- Accompanied with a double sided 2-panel insert and double sided 4 panel poster.
- All sleeved in a custom PMS reverse board outer sleeve with die cut square centre panel and belly band.
Sakura is without doubt the most loved and lauded entry in Susumu Yokota’s catalogue.
The music unravels like cascades of petals falling from the eponymous cherry blossom trees. Yokota intended to ‘express ki-do-ai-raku (the four emotions; joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness) through music’, and throughout Sakura, the effect fluctuates between profound tranquillity, hesitation, melancholy and joy with ease, addressing the fickle nature of human emotion, while transcending the inclination to label moods entirely.
Sakura became Yokota’s best selling album. It was greeted with universal acclaim, lauded by Philip Glass and Brian Eno and launched Yokota internationally.
‘A bittersweet beauty, heightened by the sadness that all things must one day end.’ - Martyn Pepperell
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1
Robert Leiner - Out Of Control
2
Robert Leiner - Visions Of The Past
3
Robert Leiner - Interval
4
Robert Leiner - To Places You've Never Been
5
Robert Leiner - Aqua Viva
6
Robert Leiner - Full Moon Ritual
7
Robert Leiner - Zenit
8
Robert Leiner - Dream Of Reality
9
Robert Leiner - From Beyond And Back
10
Robert Leiner - Northern Dark
Swedish producer Robert Leiner’s landmark 1994 album ‘Visions Of The Past’ finally gets a vinyl LP reissue on Apollo, the ‘ambient division’ of R&S Records. Long regarded as one of the pivotal ambient/electronic long players, the album has stood the test of time and serves as a reminder on how potent the early ambient techno releases were.
Leiner was a central figure in the early European techno and ambient landscape, carving out a distinctive sound that bridged atmospheric depth and rhythmic intensity. Known for his releases as The Source Experience and contributions to the R&S/Apollo catalogue, as a producer and engineer, Leiner’s work resonated across the underground, earning him a reputation for visionary, emotionally charged productions that stood apart from his contemporaries.
'Visions Of The Past’ captures this duality perfectly with expansive ambient passages that drift into hypnotic techno, while layers of intricate sound design and pulsating low end create a timeless and immersive listening experience. Tracks unfold with patience and precision, like the 12-minute-long marine epic ‘Aqua Viva’, balancing introspection with kinetic dance energy, and the new age ambience of ‘Dream Or Reality’ and ‘Northern Dark’ embodying the forward-thinking ethos that defined Apollo’s golden era.
Three decades on, this long out of print album finally returns on vinyl format, freshly remastered and restored, reaffirming its status as an essential document of electronic music’s evolution and Robert Leiner’s enduring influence.
‘Visions Of The Past’ by Robert Leiner is available on Apollo Records from 7th November 2025.
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Leiner was a central figure in the early European techno and ambient landscape, carving out a distinctive sound that bridged atmospheric depth and rhythmic intensity. Known for his releases as The Source Experience and contributions to the R&S/Apollo catalogue, as a producer and engineer, Leiner’s work resonated across the underground, earning him a reputation for visionary, emotionally charged productions that stood apart from his contemporaries.
'Visions Of The Past’ captures this duality perfectly with expansive ambient passages that drift into hypnotic techno, while layers of intricate sound design and pulsating low end create a timeless and immersive listening experience. Tracks unfold with patience and precision, like the 12-minute-long marine epic ‘Aqua Viva’, balancing introspection with kinetic dance energy, and the new age ambience of ‘Dream Or Reality’ and ‘Northern Dark’ embodying the forward-thinking ethos that defined Apollo’s golden era.
Three decades on, this long out of print album finally returns on vinyl format, freshly remastered and restored, reaffirming its status as an essential document of electronic music’s evolution and Robert Leiner’s enduring influence.
‘Visions Of The Past’ by Robert Leiner is available on Apollo Records from 7th November 2025.
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2025 sees the release of the fourth volume of their regular soundtrack series, the Library Archives, out on ATA Records on October 24th. An honest and forthright homage to the golden age of library recording, this new release is no exception – with nods to David Shire, Roger Webb, 60s/70s Hollywood, early anime and golden era video games.
Listen: https://listen.k7.com/32199cc1-ab4c-4734-9b53-5c6f4c45fb3a
Track list
A1 The Galata Extraction
A2 Walter In Gabardine
A3 Roundtree
A4 Travers Popping
A5 Kien With The Iron Claw
A6 Dunaway’s Eyes
B1 A Dilemma For Holbrook
B2 Redford In Sheepskin
B3 Tatsuya, The Sword
B4 Greer’s Long Weekend
B5 Sutherland
B6 The Two Akiras
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Listen: https://listen.k7.com/32199cc1-ab4c-4734-9b53-5c6f4c45fb3a
Track list
A1 The Galata Extraction
A2 Walter In Gabardine
A3 Roundtree
A4 Travers Popping
A5 Kien With The Iron Claw
A6 Dunaway’s Eyes
B1 A Dilemma For Holbrook
B2 Redford In Sheepskin
B3 Tatsuya, The Sword
B4 Greer’s Long Weekend
B5 Sutherland
B6 The Two Akiras
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1
Thought Leadership - XI
2
Thought Leadership - XII
3
Thought Leadership - XIII
4
Thought Leadership - XIV
5
Thought Leadership - XV
6
Thought Leadership - XVI
7
Thought Leadership - XVII
8
Thought Leadership - XVIII
9
Thought Leadership - XIX
10
Thought Leadership - XX
Territories: Worldwide no restrictions
Format Notes: Hyper-limited (300 only!) ethereal ambient-guitar-soul, originally released on cassette only. 2025 first time ever vinyl release, 140g vinyl.
Track List:
A1 XI
A2 XII
A3 XIII
A4 XIV
A5 XV
A6 XVI
A7 XVII
B1 XVIII
B2 XIX
B3 XX
Release Notes:
On a "Balearic-Jazz trip", the phenomenally hyped Thought Leadership returns with another X ideas: the deck this time chooses the Ace of Swords. In the acclaim garnered by III of Pentacles, there were many whispers of “Balearic” from those in the know. As soon as you drop the needle on XI you will be basking in turbo Balearica.
Originally out on cassette only, we present the first ever vinyl issue. It's a hideously limited pressing of 300 for the world, so don't sleep on this.
The sonic palate has been augmented by the addition of synth and bass; there are more guitar layers, more pedals and more organic drums this time – a much fuller production. Still DIY, and still recorded straight to multitrack, just ever so slightly grander in scale; think a rough-hewn, long-lost Claremont 56 cut and you’ll have some idea of how XI opens this future classic LP.
The touchstones so key to the vision of Pentacles (Cocteau Twins, Dif Juz, Durutti Column) are all still present and correct; XII could be a piece from Extractions, XIII is pure Garlands-era Guthrie and, now with the shuffling jazz drums, XV makes TL even more LC – but more disparate influences are found this time out too. ECM guitar legends John Abercrombie and Pat Metheny in the more considered melodic phrasing and harmonic structure of the ideas and a nod to the cosmic Balearic spirit in the overall vibe, means more is offered to the listener across Swords.
XVI and XVII are the biggest indicators to Thought Leaderships’ new found love of The Real Book and their grasp of jazz chords. The former sounds like if Mike Hedges had produced on a heavily sedated ECM date in the early 80s, whilst the latter is Bright Size Life condensed into a most post-punk shard of Strat conversation. The syrupy Phase 90 on the lead parts lends much weight to the guitar melodies, a beautiful tonal counterpoint to the Vox-ish chimes of the plangent chords we’ve all come to love.
The flip again treats us to three extended, improvised jams. XVIII owes as much to Canterbury as it does to Krautrock, another modal voyage through the stars. Light the incense and drift away, guided by delayed cymbals and weaving ribbons of guitar. XIX has almost a New-Wave/Sophisti-Pop energy to it in tone, if not in structure and execution. Something almost Tears for Fears-esque in the chiming chorus guitars. An interesting outlier that has already received a lot of love from those that have heard it. XX is the starkest idea, and the only piece this time with no drums. What we do get, however, is a free exploration over a two chord-vamp. It’s Harvest Time meets Planet Caravan and a fitting end to this Balearic jazz trip.
Be With is honoured to present the first ever vinyl release of Ace Of Swords, carefully remastered by Be With's engineer Simon Francis to ensure it sounds better than ever after its initial tape release. Cicely Balston's expert skills have made sure nothing is lost in the cut at Abbey Road Studios whilst the records have been pressed to the highest possible standard at Record Industry, in Holland. The original tape cover artwork, so crucial to Thought Leadership's striking visual aesthetic, has been rejigged for vinyl issue here at Be With.
The last one flew. You have been warned.
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Format Notes: Hyper-limited (300 only!) ethereal ambient-guitar-soul, originally released on cassette only. 2025 first time ever vinyl release, 140g vinyl.
Track List:
A1 XI
A2 XII
A3 XIII
A4 XIV
A5 XV
A6 XVI
A7 XVII
B1 XVIII
B2 XIX
B3 XX
Release Notes:
On a "Balearic-Jazz trip", the phenomenally hyped Thought Leadership returns with another X ideas: the deck this time chooses the Ace of Swords. In the acclaim garnered by III of Pentacles, there were many whispers of “Balearic” from those in the know. As soon as you drop the needle on XI you will be basking in turbo Balearica.
Originally out on cassette only, we present the first ever vinyl issue. It's a hideously limited pressing of 300 for the world, so don't sleep on this.
The sonic palate has been augmented by the addition of synth and bass; there are more guitar layers, more pedals and more organic drums this time – a much fuller production. Still DIY, and still recorded straight to multitrack, just ever so slightly grander in scale; think a rough-hewn, long-lost Claremont 56 cut and you’ll have some idea of how XI opens this future classic LP.
The touchstones so key to the vision of Pentacles (Cocteau Twins, Dif Juz, Durutti Column) are all still present and correct; XII could be a piece from Extractions, XIII is pure Garlands-era Guthrie and, now with the shuffling jazz drums, XV makes TL even more LC – but more disparate influences are found this time out too. ECM guitar legends John Abercrombie and Pat Metheny in the more considered melodic phrasing and harmonic structure of the ideas and a nod to the cosmic Balearic spirit in the overall vibe, means more is offered to the listener across Swords.
XVI and XVII are the biggest indicators to Thought Leaderships’ new found love of The Real Book and their grasp of jazz chords. The former sounds like if Mike Hedges had produced on a heavily sedated ECM date in the early 80s, whilst the latter is Bright Size Life condensed into a most post-punk shard of Strat conversation. The syrupy Phase 90 on the lead parts lends much weight to the guitar melodies, a beautiful tonal counterpoint to the Vox-ish chimes of the plangent chords we’ve all come to love.
The flip again treats us to three extended, improvised jams. XVIII owes as much to Canterbury as it does to Krautrock, another modal voyage through the stars. Light the incense and drift away, guided by delayed cymbals and weaving ribbons of guitar. XIX has almost a New-Wave/Sophisti-Pop energy to it in tone, if not in structure and execution. Something almost Tears for Fears-esque in the chiming chorus guitars. An interesting outlier that has already received a lot of love from those that have heard it. XX is the starkest idea, and the only piece this time with no drums. What we do get, however, is a free exploration over a two chord-vamp. It’s Harvest Time meets Planet Caravan and a fitting end to this Balearic jazz trip.
Be With is honoured to present the first ever vinyl release of Ace Of Swords, carefully remastered by Be With's engineer Simon Francis to ensure it sounds better than ever after its initial tape release. Cicely Balston's expert skills have made sure nothing is lost in the cut at Abbey Road Studios whilst the records have been pressed to the highest possible standard at Record Industry, in Holland. The original tape cover artwork, so crucial to Thought Leadership's striking visual aesthetic, has been rejigged for vinyl issue here at Be With.
The last one flew. You have been warned.
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Contact: [email protected]More
1
Deep Joy - Fall (Andrew Weatherall Let There Be Drums Mix)
2
Thrashing Doves - Je$u$ on the Payroll (Unreleased Instrumental Version)
3
Kc Flightt - Let’s Get Jazzy (Dope Dub Mix)
4
The Metaluna Mutant - Blinky Blue Eyed Sunrise (Original Mix)
Following on from the super-fast stock sell-outs of the 2LP of joyous Alfredo selections, Rebirth follow up with the first of the sample EPs of rare, cherished and formerly unreleased gems. Deep Joy of Brainiak (and Mo Wax) fame had their stunning “Fall” track remixed by lord Sabre, Andrew Weatherall himself; an often-missed indie-chug delight from the early 90’s. The Thrashing Doves and their scene stamping classic Je$u$ on the Payroll, needs very little introduction, but this Unreleased Instrumental Version, like it states, has never been on vinyl before. Flip over for another hip hop/club hybrid of a track with KC Flightt’s “Lets get Jazzy”, and its iconic sound which was remixed by the legendary Blaze; then finishing up with sunrise/sunset jamm, “Blinky Blue Eyed Sunrise”, by The Metaluna Mutant. A must for any lover of the white isle and it’s heritage.
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DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
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WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
Liebigstrasse 2-20
DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
Contact: [email protected]More
1
Franz Scala - New Look (feat. Furotica)
2
Franz Scala - Echoes Of Love
3
Franz Scala - Telephone Boy
4
Franz Scala - Light Year Run
5
Franz Scala - Saxon Rebel (feat. Local Suicide)
6
Franz Scala - Crush Test (feat. Charlie)
7
Franz Scala - BIT99
8
Franz Scala - Fantasy Bazar
9
Franz Scala - Fase Lunare (feat. Acid Gymnastics)
Format: 2LP (LP1+LP2)
Tracklist:
A1 / Franz Scala - New Look (feat. Furotica)
A2 / Franz Scala - Echoes Of Love
B1 / Franz Scala - Telephone Boy
B2 / Franz Scala - Light Year Run
C1 / Franz Scala - Saxon Rebel (feat. Local Suicide)
C2 / Franz Scala - Crush Test (feat. Charlie)
D1 / Franz Scala - BIT99
D2 / Franz Scala - Fantasy Bazar
D3 / Franz Scala - Fase Lunare (feat. Acid Gymnastics)
Key Selling Points
Slow Motion Records founder Franz Scala announces the infectious, ground-moving LP 'Cafe Futuro', a follow-up to his highly acclaimed debut ‘Mondo Della Notte’. Homage to the influential Neukolln bar and meeting point for Italo and Cosmic disco heads, 'Cafe Futuro' builds upon a bold and innovative sound, showcasing fellow creators and genre-defining artists, solidifying the Italo Aficionados sound, synonymous with the pioneering greats.
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WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
Liebigstrasse 2-20
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Germany
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Tracklist:
A1 / Franz Scala - New Look (feat. Furotica)
A2 / Franz Scala - Echoes Of Love
B1 / Franz Scala - Telephone Boy
B2 / Franz Scala - Light Year Run
C1 / Franz Scala - Saxon Rebel (feat. Local Suicide)
C2 / Franz Scala - Crush Test (feat. Charlie)
D1 / Franz Scala - BIT99
D2 / Franz Scala - Fantasy Bazar
D3 / Franz Scala - Fase Lunare (feat. Acid Gymnastics)
Key Selling Points
Slow Motion Records founder Franz Scala announces the infectious, ground-moving LP 'Cafe Futuro', a follow-up to his highly acclaimed debut ‘Mondo Della Notte’. Homage to the influential Neukolln bar and meeting point for Italo and Cosmic disco heads, 'Cafe Futuro' builds upon a bold and innovative sound, showcasing fellow creators and genre-defining artists, solidifying the Italo Aficionados sound, synonymous with the pioneering greats.
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WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
Liebigstrasse 2-20
DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
Contact: [email protected]More
1
Maker - Baila Conmigo (Edit)
2
Maker - City Girl (Edit)
The seasoned DJ & producer (GALAPOGOS4, QWEL, GLUE, ALTERED TAPES) shines a light on his love for obscure Latin disco on this scorching hot 7". In constant rotation at our office since it arrived. Def don't miss this sun drenched, surefire dance floor filler!
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WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
Liebigstrasse 2-20
DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
Contact: [email protected]More
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DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
Contact: [email protected]More
1
Pete Blaker - A. DON’T STOP
2
Pete Blaker - B. ICE COLD (Feat. DIONISOS)
DISCO REMIXES!
A. DON’T STOP
B. ICE COLD (Feat. DIONISOS)
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A. DON’T STOP
B. ICE COLD (Feat. DIONISOS)
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Label:Lo Recordings
Cat-No:Lo254
Release-Date:07.11.2025
Genre:Electronic, Electronica
Configuration:2LP
Label:Lo Recordings
Cat-No:Lo254
Release-Date:07.11.2025
Genre:Electronic, Electronica
Configuration:2LP
1
Susumu Yokota - I Imagine
2
Susumu Yokota - King Dragonfly
3
Susumu Yokota - Card Nation
4
Susumu Yokota - Sleepy Eye
5
Susumu Yokota - Lapis Lazuli
6
Susumu Yokota - Balloon In The Cage
7
Susumu Yokota - Cherry Blossom
8
Susumu Yokota - Love Bird
9
Susumu Yokota - Fearful Dream
10
Susumu Yokota - Tears Of A Poet
11
Susumu Yokota - So Red
12
Susumu Yokota - Flying Cat
13
Susumu Yokota - Lost Child
Format:
- Limited edition solid 2x12” vinyl LP.
- Housed in PMS printed inner sleeve, featuring custom fonts by No Format and spot gloss abstraction of the original album artwork.
- Accompanied with a double sided 2-panel insert and double sided 4 panel poster.
- All sleeved in a custom PMS reverse board outer sleeve with die cut square centre panel and belly band.
Grinning Cat confounded devotees of Sakura with a far more complex set of tracks. A landscape of ambiguous emotional resonance within an album of measured extremes. Sentimental without being schmaltzy, joyful without being saccharine, Grinning Cat sees Yokota at his most playful and experimental, channelling moments of transitory wonder and jubilation, and opening up a sonic environment in which we can romp and play.
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WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
Liebigstrasse 2-20
DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
Contact: [email protected]More
- Limited edition solid 2x12” vinyl LP.
- Housed in PMS printed inner sleeve, featuring custom fonts by No Format and spot gloss abstraction of the original album artwork.
- Accompanied with a double sided 2-panel insert and double sided 4 panel poster.
- All sleeved in a custom PMS reverse board outer sleeve with die cut square centre panel and belly band.
Grinning Cat confounded devotees of Sakura with a far more complex set of tracks. A landscape of ambiguous emotional resonance within an album of measured extremes. Sentimental without being schmaltzy, joyful without being saccharine, Grinning Cat sees Yokota at his most playful and experimental, channelling moments of transitory wonder and jubilation, and opening up a sonic environment in which we can romp and play.
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
1
Molly Nilsson - 1. Die Cry Lie
2
Molly Nilsson - 2. Valhalla
3
Molly Nilsson - 3. Swedish Nightmare
4
Molly Nilsson - 4. Classified
5
Molly Nilsson - 5. Long Time No See
6
Molly Nilsson - 6. Fatal Distraction
7
Molly Nilsson - 7. Get A Life
8
Molly Nilsson - 8. Joe Hill’s Last Will
9
Molly Nilsson - 9. How Much Is The World
10
Molly Nilsson - 10. Creeping Beauty
11
Molly Nilsson - 11. All The Way
12
Molly Nilsson - 12. Big Life
13
Molly Nilsson - 13. The Bitter End
LP - territory: WW- UK/USA/CA/Benelux/AU/NZ/JP
Lp - BLACK VINYL ONLY IN GLOSS LAMINATED SLEEVE
Tracklist:
1. Die Cry Lie
2. Valhalla
3. Swedish Nightmare
4. Classified
5. Long Time No See
6. Fatal Distraction
7. Get A Life
8. Joe Hill’s Last Will
9. How Much Is The World
10. Creeping Beauty
11. All The Way
12. Big Life
13. The Bitter End
The word "amateur" originates from the Latin word "amator," meaning "lover" or "admirer". This Latin term is derived from "amare," which means "to
love". The French adopted "amateur" from Latin, and the English then borrowed it from French, initially retaining the sense of someone who loves or
is devoted to something. Over time, the English usage of "amateur" also developed a meaning related to a lack of professional skill or experience.
How did a word derived from love become a slur? Is love really so defenseless? They say love conquers all, but in reality isn’t love quite ridiculous?
It has no intention, no motive, no agenda. How could it possibly prevail? It can’t be bought or sold, or so they say.Its mere existence can't be proven or
even measured. What an impossible thing. Trying and failing, time and time again, no wonder cynicism always seems to win. I see “amateurism” as a
delighted, even foolish, protest. Protest against everything. Of what’s expected of someone, or expected of someone to desire or strive for. To be elite,
to be expert, to be professional, to be a master, to excel and succeed. Where’s the joy in that? I just want to have fun. I want to want. I want to love.
And keep doing it, forever. I want to have fun, even when it’s tiring and sometimes even heaven is boring as hell. I want to be bad. I want to do my
own thing. “I vant to be alone”. I want to be someone so dedicated to their passion that it starts to seem like there’s something wrong with them. All
the way. We can take it all the way, and never get it back.
” - Molly Nilsson
Amateur is the 12th studio album by Molly Nilsson. Deep in the teeth of a career that threatens to tip into something resembling a “legacy,” Molly
Nilsson celebrates with an album recorded instinctively, quickly and bursting with so many moments of emotional brilliance and clarity it may be her
greatest yet. Hers has been a career spent reaching out, perennially powerful in her earnestness, a warrior ridiculously defenceless and armed with a
glittering sincerity. Shearing herself of the machinations of the music industry, recording at home, writing direct to the heart.
Amateur is a jubilee for losers. A treatise in 13 songs, Amateur states clearly that we should live our life with eternal curiosity, offers us an open hand
of comradeship out of the rat race. The songs on the album are both some of the most personal of Nilsson’s career and the most anthemic. First
single How Much Is The World asks us to re-evaluate value in the face of a Neo-liberal system squeezing the life out of our loves. Pulsing opener Die
Cry Lie satirises the commercialisation of emotion in the form of a shout-along diss-track. With a pounding rhythm track held down by gorgeous chord
changes, heartbreaker Valhalla carries the torch for the main themes of the album: never growing up, making mistakes with kindness, moving on.
When the drums crash in on the line “It’s going to get better now, you’ll see, going to be much better off without me” there is a world of feeling swirling
about in the vocal delivery. One reading of the track might be that it’s a break up song but the subtext is classic Molly Nilsson: by living truthfully,
making mistakes, we’re active agents against the myriad oppressions of the world.
All The Way takes the theme for a run into the eternal sunset. It’s a manifesto for living fully. “Take it all the way, and never get it back” - it’s the
process that’s the important point. The journey not the destination. Big Life, follows on like a part 2: An ode not only to Molly Nilsson’s career of
endless gigs, endless connections with people, it’s a massive ode for following your dreams, doing it yourself. Closer The Bitter End is a powerful
anthem for friendship, another definition of love infused in Nilsson’s work, A beautifully poignant ode to comradeship til the end, it seems to be the
songwriter approaching aging, approaching life’s inevitability with the same vigour and earnestness, the same love of life she enjoyed at the onset of
her career.
There are moments on Amateur shrouded in reverb, slightly out of focus, forcing the listener to step deeper into the Mollyverse.. Nilsson’s open-armed
beseeching to the world permeates every beat, every chord. These are songs exploding with life: the chunky, aggressive bassline on the punker Get A
Life can’t hide its massive, catchy chorus. The sweeping Swedish Nightmare might be a tongue-in-cheek self-reference, but at its heart it’s a song
about the duality of living life large, what is a dream, what is a nightmare? Molly Nilsson says you can’t have one without the other, and why would you
want to?
Here’s to making mistakes.
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
Lp - BLACK VINYL ONLY IN GLOSS LAMINATED SLEEVE
Tracklist:
1. Die Cry Lie
2. Valhalla
3. Swedish Nightmare
4. Classified
5. Long Time No See
6. Fatal Distraction
7. Get A Life
8. Joe Hill’s Last Will
9. How Much Is The World
10. Creeping Beauty
11. All The Way
12. Big Life
13. The Bitter End
The word "amateur" originates from the Latin word "amator," meaning "lover" or "admirer". This Latin term is derived from "amare," which means "to
love". The French adopted "amateur" from Latin, and the English then borrowed it from French, initially retaining the sense of someone who loves or
is devoted to something. Over time, the English usage of "amateur" also developed a meaning related to a lack of professional skill or experience.
How did a word derived from love become a slur? Is love really so defenseless? They say love conquers all, but in reality isn’t love quite ridiculous?
It has no intention, no motive, no agenda. How could it possibly prevail? It can’t be bought or sold, or so they say.Its mere existence can't be proven or
even measured. What an impossible thing. Trying and failing, time and time again, no wonder cynicism always seems to win. I see “amateurism” as a
delighted, even foolish, protest. Protest against everything. Of what’s expected of someone, or expected of someone to desire or strive for. To be elite,
to be expert, to be professional, to be a master, to excel and succeed. Where’s the joy in that? I just want to have fun. I want to want. I want to love.
And keep doing it, forever. I want to have fun, even when it’s tiring and sometimes even heaven is boring as hell. I want to be bad. I want to do my
own thing. “I vant to be alone”. I want to be someone so dedicated to their passion that it starts to seem like there’s something wrong with them. All
the way. We can take it all the way, and never get it back.
” - Molly Nilsson
Amateur is the 12th studio album by Molly Nilsson. Deep in the teeth of a career that threatens to tip into something resembling a “legacy,” Molly
Nilsson celebrates with an album recorded instinctively, quickly and bursting with so many moments of emotional brilliance and clarity it may be her
greatest yet. Hers has been a career spent reaching out, perennially powerful in her earnestness, a warrior ridiculously defenceless and armed with a
glittering sincerity. Shearing herself of the machinations of the music industry, recording at home, writing direct to the heart.
Amateur is a jubilee for losers. A treatise in 13 songs, Amateur states clearly that we should live our life with eternal curiosity, offers us an open hand
of comradeship out of the rat race. The songs on the album are both some of the most personal of Nilsson’s career and the most anthemic. First
single How Much Is The World asks us to re-evaluate value in the face of a Neo-liberal system squeezing the life out of our loves. Pulsing opener Die
Cry Lie satirises the commercialisation of emotion in the form of a shout-along diss-track. With a pounding rhythm track held down by gorgeous chord
changes, heartbreaker Valhalla carries the torch for the main themes of the album: never growing up, making mistakes with kindness, moving on.
When the drums crash in on the line “It’s going to get better now, you’ll see, going to be much better off without me” there is a world of feeling swirling
about in the vocal delivery. One reading of the track might be that it’s a break up song but the subtext is classic Molly Nilsson: by living truthfully,
making mistakes, we’re active agents against the myriad oppressions of the world.
All The Way takes the theme for a run into the eternal sunset. It’s a manifesto for living fully. “Take it all the way, and never get it back” - it’s the
process that’s the important point. The journey not the destination. Big Life, follows on like a part 2: An ode not only to Molly Nilsson’s career of
endless gigs, endless connections with people, it’s a massive ode for following your dreams, doing it yourself. Closer The Bitter End is a powerful
anthem for friendship, another definition of love infused in Nilsson’s work, A beautifully poignant ode to comradeship til the end, it seems to be the
songwriter approaching aging, approaching life’s inevitability with the same vigour and earnestness, the same love of life she enjoyed at the onset of
her career.
There are moments on Amateur shrouded in reverb, slightly out of focus, forcing the listener to step deeper into the Mollyverse.. Nilsson’s open-armed
beseeching to the world permeates every beat, every chord. These are songs exploding with life: the chunky, aggressive bassline on the punker Get A
Life can’t hide its massive, catchy chorus. The sweeping Swedish Nightmare might be a tongue-in-cheek self-reference, but at its heart it’s a song
about the duality of living life large, what is a dream, what is a nightmare? Molly Nilsson says you can’t have one without the other, and why would you
want to?
Here’s to making mistakes.
Sicherheits- und Herstellerinformationen / safety and manufacturer info (GPSR)
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Liebigstrasse 2-20
DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
Contact: [email protected]More
1
Arp - Touch
2
Arp - Echo's refrain w/Takuma Watanabe
3
Arp - Dissolve
4
Arp - Future Nature
5
Arp - Orpheus & E w/Patrick Belaga
6
Arp - Haze of
7
Arp - Shifted
8
Arp - Thread
9
Arp - After The Storm
10
Arp - Seaweed
11
Arp - Eye of Eurycide
12
Arp - Sketch For Zoe
A collection of transfixing, storm-like compositions, "Drifts" draws you into its heightened sense of quiet, reveling in iridescent, tranquilized vapors - one part ambient Classical, one part Club-adjacent ambience.
Pitched, reduced, sampled and re-sampled, the album's glowing, elliptical abstractions - using piano, harp, strings & modular synthesizer - explore the emotional terrain between aftermath and renewal, blending the unstructured immediacy of improvisation with the elegant sculpture of composition.
"Drifts" represents for its maker a newfound interest in shadow and mystery, each track a shifting terrain, a collection of clues, a scene set in a larger story, the effect cumulative.
Featuring collaborations with Patrick Belaga, Marilu Donovan (LEYA), and Takuma Watanabe, the album's cinematic suite of impressionistic, ambient works invites the listener into a vast, mapless space of dreamlike non-linearity where interior and exterior landscapes bristle with intimacy and electricity.
Abba Funn by John Chamberlain, 1979. Permanent collection, the Chinati Foundation, Marfa, Texas.
© 2025 Fairweather & Fairweather LTD / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Image Consultant: Claudia Poulter. Design by Graphic Services.
1. Touch 02:20
2. Echo's refrain w/Takuma Watanabe 04:21
3. Dissolve 05:59
4. Future Nature 05:58
5. Orpheus & E w/Patrick Belaga 03:56
6. Haze of 02:45
7. Shifted 03:42
8. Thread 01:53
9. After The Storm 03:17
10. Seaweed 04:55
11. Eye of Eurycide 01:50
12. Sketch For Zoe 03:04
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Pitched, reduced, sampled and re-sampled, the album's glowing, elliptical abstractions - using piano, harp, strings & modular synthesizer - explore the emotional terrain between aftermath and renewal, blending the unstructured immediacy of improvisation with the elegant sculpture of composition.
"Drifts" represents for its maker a newfound interest in shadow and mystery, each track a shifting terrain, a collection of clues, a scene set in a larger story, the effect cumulative.
Featuring collaborations with Patrick Belaga, Marilu Donovan (LEYA), and Takuma Watanabe, the album's cinematic suite of impressionistic, ambient works invites the listener into a vast, mapless space of dreamlike non-linearity where interior and exterior landscapes bristle with intimacy and electricity.
Abba Funn by John Chamberlain, 1979. Permanent collection, the Chinati Foundation, Marfa, Texas.
© 2025 Fairweather & Fairweather LTD / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Image Consultant: Claudia Poulter. Design by Graphic Services.
1. Touch 02:20
2. Echo's refrain w/Takuma Watanabe 04:21
3. Dissolve 05:59
4. Future Nature 05:58
5. Orpheus & E w/Patrick Belaga 03:56
6. Haze of 02:45
7. Shifted 03:42
8. Thread 01:53
9. After The Storm 03:17
10. Seaweed 04:55
11. Eye of Eurycide 01:50
12. Sketch For Zoe 03:04
Sicherheits- und Herstellerinformationen / safety and manufacturer info (GPSR)
WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
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DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
Contact: [email protected]More
1
Wally Badarou - It Couldn't Be You
2
Wally Badarou - You Can't Hide Always
3
Wally Badarou - We'll Make It Again
4
Wally Badarou - Walk Straight Ahead
5
Wally Badarou - Painting My Life Blue
6
Wally Badarou - Just Two Lovers
Format Notes:
2025 first time vinyl release, 140g vinyl
Track List:
A1 It Couldn't Be You
A2 You Can't Hide Always
A3 We'll Make It Again
B1 Walk Straight Ahead
B2 Painting My Life Blue
B3 Just Two Lovers
Release Notes:
Wally Badarou is a synth pioneer and musical polymath. But rarely does he sing over his sumptuous tracks. The 6 songs that comprise new record Simple Things finally realise Wally's vision for select backing tracks from his beloved Colors Of Silence.
The tracks were originally developed back in 2001 for the release of the original CD; here, Wally has “simply" added overdubs and vocals to their mastered mixes with some discerning edits. Simply put, Simple Things is another slice of simply stunning Wally Badarou genius.
Simple Things has been decades in the making. Indeed, Wally struggled not only with the idea of singing these wonderful songs himself but singing them in English and writing his own lyrics, while wrestling with the sensational backing tracks, which themselves seemed to have taken on a life of their own.
As Wally explained to us: "In addition to the instrumental artist I have been known as, so far, there has always been a singer who simply was not sure he was, up until now. Even though “Back To Scales Tonight”, my very first album, was, indeed, a song album."
Opener "It Couldn't Be You" embellishes the uptempo groove of soca-funk gem "The Lights Of Kinshasa". As Wally explained to us, it's about “a simple love story somewhere, one rainy night, under the lights of Kinshasa. A woman, a man, online dating, quite usual in our times. Then they meet, almost missing each other." The guide vocal Wally had laid for Colors Of Silence - with an organ sound - seemed striving for words in Linguala, a Congolese language he could not speak. Therefore the decision to do it himself was not an easy one, for it had to be in English to fit his singing. We think it turned out pretty good!
"You Can't Hide Always" vocalises Wally's deep concerns set to the propulsive "Smiles By The Millions": "Populism, ostracism, radicalism, ethics and values all turned upside down worldwide, are they all inevitably exacerbated by our social networks? It could all melt down one day, like a house of cards in the ocean of fake news and false prophecies”. Wally wanted to keep the track as bare as possible but, inevitably, the backing vocals and the synth-brass arrive ultimately to present a welcome 70s flavour, with no snare-drum added.
The bright and breezy "We'll Make It Again" adds vocals to "Where Were We", a tropical, reggae-tinged bounce through the islands. Here's Waly: "Where were we when we last said: "I love you"? Simple words to express something quite common, but never quite simple to deal with. A simple song about the resilience of the broken hearts.” The reggae came from it being conceived when Wally was scoring for “Third World Cop”, a 1999 Jamaican action movie.
"Walk Straight Ahead" provides Wally's gorgeous, contemplative and idiosyncratic vocals to the deep serenity of Colors Of Silence highlight, "Amber Whispers". It's a gliding, divine, mini melodic masterpiece. It'll make you swoon in its extreme beauty. As Wally describes, "it started as just whispers, sweet amber whispers. Then the colour turned darker, as darker skies seemed to fall upon us while the whole world keeps on walking ahead, straight ahead, regardless of the blatant warnings, feeling much too comfortable in conformity. Initially, the verses were to be spoken only. I realised they could be sung all the while, without overshadowing the ethereal atmosphere." Amen.
The serene, celestial "Painting My Life Blue" presents the vocal version of "Days To Wonder". Says Wally, "how does it feel when your second half is gone after decades of riding life together? Past the temporary loss of your bearings, you come to realise you've been blind to the essential, and suddenly you can see...For this most intimate song of mine, I had tried to come up with a melody on top of the existing backing track, long before realising the melody was in the keyboard part already. It just needed to be properly mixed with it."
The profoundly emotional "Just Two Lovers" works up the formerly-too-brief and glorious "Crystal Falls" into a much fuller masterpiece and features acoustic guitar sparkle before fully glistening with some gentle head-nod percussion. Waly explains further: "Dear little green men, please tell me, what is it about us that makes you want to come and visit us so often (contrary to Fermi's assertion)? And here is the reply I believe I heard them sing: "You've got the key you've been searching for: Love”. I reverted to the initial backing track I had made around 1985, which already bore the melody, and which I added acoustic guitars to, before singing it." An astounding closer.
A synth specialist, there can be few artists more under-appreciated given their vast influence than Wally Badarou. His solo work practically defined the sound of the Balearic DJs of the 1980s, and thus the more sophisticated sound of dance culture thereafter. He was one of the Compass Point All Stars (with Sly and Robbie, Barry Reynolds, Mikey Chung and Uziah "Sticky" Thompson), the in-house recording team of Compass Point Studios responsible for a series of albums in the 1980s recorded by Grace Jones, Tom Tom Club, Mick Jagger, Black Uhuru, Gwen Guthrie, Jimmy Cliff and Gregory Isaacs. Badarou's keyboard playing could also be heard on albums by Robert Palmer, Marianne Faithfull, Herbie Hancock, M (Pop Muzik), Talking Heads, Manu Dibango and Miriam Makeba. He also produced Fela Kuti. Phew!
When we asked Wally about the significance of this collection's title, he explained: "These are "Simple things” that everyday’s life seems to build upon. The simplest are the harder to describe, but when satisfactorily described i.e. with simple words, they are the more genuine and authentic to express and share. I’ve immersed myself in other classic song lyrics, something I hardly did before, just to appreciate the genius behind the simple words they were made of, and had a great time studying how powerful they were in expressing complex ideas such as love."
Recording was twofold: first, most of the backing tracks were recorded in 2001, in Wally's studio in Normandy, mostly using hardware synths and Yamaha digital consoles. Then, he fine-tuned the melodies and wrote the lyrics in late 2023, then added some overdubs and sang them all during summer 2024. States Wally, "Digital Performer was and remains the DAW I’ve been using throughout, ever since the 80s."
Wally's sophisticated synth textures and expressive keyboard runs are so full of character, so full of life, that this work of art transcends any easy genre categorisation. 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. Sometimes, the simple things are the most extraordinary.
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
2025 first time vinyl release, 140g vinyl
Track List:
A1 It Couldn't Be You
A2 You Can't Hide Always
A3 We'll Make It Again
B1 Walk Straight Ahead
B2 Painting My Life Blue
B3 Just Two Lovers
Release Notes:
Wally Badarou is a synth pioneer and musical polymath. But rarely does he sing over his sumptuous tracks. The 6 songs that comprise new record Simple Things finally realise Wally's vision for select backing tracks from his beloved Colors Of Silence.
The tracks were originally developed back in 2001 for the release of the original CD; here, Wally has “simply" added overdubs and vocals to their mastered mixes with some discerning edits. Simply put, Simple Things is another slice of simply stunning Wally Badarou genius.
Simple Things has been decades in the making. Indeed, Wally struggled not only with the idea of singing these wonderful songs himself but singing them in English and writing his own lyrics, while wrestling with the sensational backing tracks, which themselves seemed to have taken on a life of their own.
As Wally explained to us: "In addition to the instrumental artist I have been known as, so far, there has always been a singer who simply was not sure he was, up until now. Even though “Back To Scales Tonight”, my very first album, was, indeed, a song album."
Opener "It Couldn't Be You" embellishes the uptempo groove of soca-funk gem "The Lights Of Kinshasa". As Wally explained to us, it's about “a simple love story somewhere, one rainy night, under the lights of Kinshasa. A woman, a man, online dating, quite usual in our times. Then they meet, almost missing each other." The guide vocal Wally had laid for Colors Of Silence - with an organ sound - seemed striving for words in Linguala, a Congolese language he could not speak. Therefore the decision to do it himself was not an easy one, for it had to be in English to fit his singing. We think it turned out pretty good!
"You Can't Hide Always" vocalises Wally's deep concerns set to the propulsive "Smiles By The Millions": "Populism, ostracism, radicalism, ethics and values all turned upside down worldwide, are they all inevitably exacerbated by our social networks? It could all melt down one day, like a house of cards in the ocean of fake news and false prophecies”. Wally wanted to keep the track as bare as possible but, inevitably, the backing vocals and the synth-brass arrive ultimately to present a welcome 70s flavour, with no snare-drum added.
The bright and breezy "We'll Make It Again" adds vocals to "Where Were We", a tropical, reggae-tinged bounce through the islands. Here's Waly: "Where were we when we last said: "I love you"? Simple words to express something quite common, but never quite simple to deal with. A simple song about the resilience of the broken hearts.” The reggae came from it being conceived when Wally was scoring for “Third World Cop”, a 1999 Jamaican action movie.
"Walk Straight Ahead" provides Wally's gorgeous, contemplative and idiosyncratic vocals to the deep serenity of Colors Of Silence highlight, "Amber Whispers". It's a gliding, divine, mini melodic masterpiece. It'll make you swoon in its extreme beauty. As Wally describes, "it started as just whispers, sweet amber whispers. Then the colour turned darker, as darker skies seemed to fall upon us while the whole world keeps on walking ahead, straight ahead, regardless of the blatant warnings, feeling much too comfortable in conformity. Initially, the verses were to be spoken only. I realised they could be sung all the while, without overshadowing the ethereal atmosphere." Amen.
The serene, celestial "Painting My Life Blue" presents the vocal version of "Days To Wonder". Says Wally, "how does it feel when your second half is gone after decades of riding life together? Past the temporary loss of your bearings, you come to realise you've been blind to the essential, and suddenly you can see...For this most intimate song of mine, I had tried to come up with a melody on top of the existing backing track, long before realising the melody was in the keyboard part already. It just needed to be properly mixed with it."
The profoundly emotional "Just Two Lovers" works up the formerly-too-brief and glorious "Crystal Falls" into a much fuller masterpiece and features acoustic guitar sparkle before fully glistening with some gentle head-nod percussion. Waly explains further: "Dear little green men, please tell me, what is it about us that makes you want to come and visit us so often (contrary to Fermi's assertion)? And here is the reply I believe I heard them sing: "You've got the key you've been searching for: Love”. I reverted to the initial backing track I had made around 1985, which already bore the melody, and which I added acoustic guitars to, before singing it." An astounding closer.
A synth specialist, there can be few artists more under-appreciated given their vast influence than Wally Badarou. His solo work practically defined the sound of the Balearic DJs of the 1980s, and thus the more sophisticated sound of dance culture thereafter. He was one of the Compass Point All Stars (with Sly and Robbie, Barry Reynolds, Mikey Chung and Uziah "Sticky" Thompson), the in-house recording team of Compass Point Studios responsible for a series of albums in the 1980s recorded by Grace Jones, Tom Tom Club, Mick Jagger, Black Uhuru, Gwen Guthrie, Jimmy Cliff and Gregory Isaacs. Badarou's keyboard playing could also be heard on albums by Robert Palmer, Marianne Faithfull, Herbie Hancock, M (Pop Muzik), Talking Heads, Manu Dibango and Miriam Makeba. He also produced Fela Kuti. Phew!
When we asked Wally about the significance of this collection's title, he explained: "These are "Simple things” that everyday’s life seems to build upon. The simplest are the harder to describe, but when satisfactorily described i.e. with simple words, they are the more genuine and authentic to express and share. I’ve immersed myself in other classic song lyrics, something I hardly did before, just to appreciate the genius behind the simple words they were made of, and had a great time studying how powerful they were in expressing complex ideas such as love."
Recording was twofold: first, most of the backing tracks were recorded in 2001, in Wally's studio in Normandy, mostly using hardware synths and Yamaha digital consoles. Then, he fine-tuned the melodies and wrote the lyrics in late 2023, then added some overdubs and sang them all during summer 2024. States Wally, "Digital Performer was and remains the DAW I’ve been using throughout, ever since the 80s."
Wally's sophisticated synth textures and expressive keyboard runs are so full of character, so full of life, that this work of art transcends any easy genre categorisation. 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. Sometimes, the simple things are the most extraordinary.
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