1
Illuvia - Auriel
2
Illuvia - Vale Of Shadows
3
Illuvia - Rays Of A Vanished Sun
4
Illuvia - Empire To Dust
5
Illuvia - Nereides
6
Illuvia - Tectonic Shift
7
Illuvia - Ängar Av Aska
8
Illuvia - A New Tomorrow
Ludvig Cimbrelius returns with his third full-length album on ASIP under his illustrious ambient jungle/drum'n bass alias, Illuvia. Shifting focus from the stratospheric highs of 2021's 'Iridescence Of Clouds', Ludvig now reflects on the meaning and spectrums of life on Earth.
"According to my lifelong research, Earth appears to be a modulation of light. It is said that what the eyes receive are rays emitted by a star, whose flow of photons is invisible to the human eye until they
are reflected and modulated by matter. Matter - the patterned dance of charged particles appearing out of nothing. Simultaneously, it is observable that light converts into matter. And matter converts
into light.
Logic tells me that they are one, appearing as two. And, as a consequence of their division and subsequent interaction, the spectrum of a world appears. Being a manifestation of something as ethereal
and ephemeral as light modulated by the dance of charged particles, the world feels surprisingly solid.
Less like a prism and more like a prison. That is what the surface tells us.
Those who seek freedom look deeper".
-Ludvig Cimbrelius (Illuvia)
Earth Prism will be available on A Strangely Isolated Place on transparent gatefold 2LP & digital formats from June 20th 2024. Mastered by Hollis Nolan, with Lacquer cut by Andreas LUPO Lubich, featuring artwork by Noah M / Keep Adding.
More
"According to my lifelong research, Earth appears to be a modulation of light. It is said that what the eyes receive are rays emitted by a star, whose flow of photons is invisible to the human eye until they
are reflected and modulated by matter. Matter - the patterned dance of charged particles appearing out of nothing. Simultaneously, it is observable that light converts into matter. And matter converts
into light.
Logic tells me that they are one, appearing as two. And, as a consequence of their division and subsequent interaction, the spectrum of a world appears. Being a manifestation of something as ethereal
and ephemeral as light modulated by the dance of charged particles, the world feels surprisingly solid.
Less like a prism and more like a prison. That is what the surface tells us.
Those who seek freedom look deeper".
-Ludvig Cimbrelius (Illuvia)
Earth Prism will be available on A Strangely Isolated Place on transparent gatefold 2LP & digital formats from June 20th 2024. Mastered by Hollis Nolan, with Lacquer cut by Andreas LUPO Lubich, featuring artwork by Noah M / Keep Adding.
More
More records from Illuvia
1
Illuvia - No Title
2
Illuvia - No Title
3
Illuvia - No Title
Hypnus are pleased to present the second edition of their Serum series which is intended as a hub of collaborations. Every record will be some sort of joint effort with one or more of the Hypnus artists and they're hoping to push a more eclectic bouquet of musical styles in tandem with the regular Hypnus series.
The first year they launched the series by inviting rising talents Primal Code to release two tracks with interpretations by Feral and Luigi Tozzi. For the second edition we are now introduced to the amazingly deep dubs of Illuvia (real name Ludvig Cimbrelius, aka. Purl), interpreted by the before-mentioned Primal Code as well as label head Ntogn under his paradisaical pseudonym Blomkraft. Released as a sampler vinyl as well as a full-length digital album.
The music of Ludvig Cimbrelius comes in many shapes and forms with a handful of monikers making up a vast sea of ethereal and mesmerizing electronic music. His works range from classical piano excursions and evolving ambient music to drum & bass and dub techno. With that said, we easily get a sensation of taking part of a state of mind rather than listening to a set of musical compositions. Now, please bathe yourselves in the lush vibes of Illuvia.
Early support from Cio D'Or, Claudio PRC, Ness, TM404 and Etapp Kyle to name a few. More
The first year they launched the series by inviting rising talents Primal Code to release two tracks with interpretations by Feral and Luigi Tozzi. For the second edition we are now introduced to the amazingly deep dubs of Illuvia (real name Ludvig Cimbrelius, aka. Purl), interpreted by the before-mentioned Primal Code as well as label head Ntogn under his paradisaical pseudonym Blomkraft. Released as a sampler vinyl as well as a full-length digital album.
The music of Ludvig Cimbrelius comes in many shapes and forms with a handful of monikers making up a vast sea of ethereal and mesmerizing electronic music. His works range from classical piano excursions and evolving ambient music to drum & bass and dub techno. With that said, we easily get a sensation of taking part of a state of mind rather than listening to a set of musical compositions. Now, please bathe yourselves in the lush vibes of Illuvia.
Early support from Cio D'Or, Claudio PRC, Ness, TM404 and Etapp Kyle to name a few. More
More records from A Strangely Isolated Place
1
Theef - Sky Textures
2
Theef - Greatest Escape
3
Theef - Odd Entity
4
Theef - Sun & Smoke
5
Theef - Strange Nights
6
Theef - Born In August
7
Theef - Primal Age
8
Theef - Ash & Dreams
9
Theef - Noxious Planet
10
Theef - Approaching Stars
11
Theef - Last Day On Earth
'Sun & Smoke' is originally a 2-hour self-produced mix uploaded to Youtube and Soundcloud in 2018 by Greek artist, Theef. Consisting of unreleased productions, the set was uploaded as a safe space, with zero expectations of it ever gaining attention or release.
After many late-night listening sessions, ASIP contacted Theef to discuss how a release might come to life. Originally consisting of 21 tracks in total -with two subsequently released on Morevi Records in 2022- ASIP had the honor of curating and sequencing an album from the remaining 19 unreleased productions, finally landing on those that best represented the intention of the original mix and the feelings it evoked upon those first moments of discovery.
The appeal of Sun & Smoke can be found in its purity. Built with no intention or audience in mind, the album traverses core elements of deep techno, trance and downtempo. Progressive atmosphere building, addictive underlying grooves, and expansive moments of euphoria; as a mixtape, Sun & Smoke is a zero-visibility haze of eyes-closed, body-moving, forward momentum. As an album, each track is now allowed the space to deliver on its own defining atmosphere.
From the ambient leaning beginnings of Sky Textures and the title track, Sun & Smoke, to the electro tinges of Primal Age, and the metallic swirls and glistening synths in Approaching Stars, the parts now have the chance to become greater than the sum of its original whole.
Mastered by Giuseppe Tillieci (Neel / Voices From The Lake) with artwork photography by Juan Fernandez (edited by ASIP), Sun & Smoke is available on Burnt Orange Smoke gatefold 2LP + digital.
More
After many late-night listening sessions, ASIP contacted Theef to discuss how a release might come to life. Originally consisting of 21 tracks in total -with two subsequently released on Morevi Records in 2022- ASIP had the honor of curating and sequencing an album from the remaining 19 unreleased productions, finally landing on those that best represented the intention of the original mix and the feelings it evoked upon those first moments of discovery.
The appeal of Sun & Smoke can be found in its purity. Built with no intention or audience in mind, the album traverses core elements of deep techno, trance and downtempo. Progressive atmosphere building, addictive underlying grooves, and expansive moments of euphoria; as a mixtape, Sun & Smoke is a zero-visibility haze of eyes-closed, body-moving, forward momentum. As an album, each track is now allowed the space to deliver on its own defining atmosphere.
From the ambient leaning beginnings of Sky Textures and the title track, Sun & Smoke, to the electro tinges of Primal Age, and the metallic swirls and glistening synths in Approaching Stars, the parts now have the chance to become greater than the sum of its original whole.
Mastered by Giuseppe Tillieci (Neel / Voices From The Lake) with artwork photography by Juan Fernandez (edited by ASIP), Sun & Smoke is available on Burnt Orange Smoke gatefold 2LP + digital.
More
Cat-No:ASIPV046
Release-Date:26.04.2024
Configuration:LP
Cat-No:ASIPV046
Release-Date:26.04.2024
Configuration:LP
1
Lapsed Pacifist - Branksome
2
Lapsed Pacifist - Open Heart
3
Lapsed Pacifist - Enough
4
Lapsed Pacifist - Almost Remembered
5
Lapsed Pacifist - Breaking Fingers
6
Lapsed Pacifist - Tragic
7
Lapsed Pacifist - Bloodless
8
Lapsed Pacifist - Garden
As a professional sound engineer by day, Colin Dunkerley aka Lapsed Pacifist, spends much of his time travelling and rarely gets to focus on producing his own music. Despite high praise from those who have become familiar with his work over the years, Colin’s previous productions have mainly consisted of shares with friends and DJs in smaller circles through his ‘Negative Neutron’ alias.
Colin envisaged a more pronounced and darker ambient style to emerge for many years but was struggling to dedicate the time. ‘Hypatia’ came to life over an extended and fragmented period, with field recordings and loops of audio created on the go, later processed through his modular setup. In the autumn of 2022, Colin spent time collating and listening to these many fragments and field recordings, making notes in a book as he wandered around cold, unfamiliar places with headphones on, trying to shape disparate starting points into something thematically connected.
The title of Lapsed Pacifist’s debut album, ‘Hypatia’ is a reference to one of the many fantastical descriptions of imaginary places by Marco Polo in the book, Invisible Cities. Written as a dialogue between Mongol emperor Kublai Khan and Marco Polo, the book became the inspiration and a clear parallel for how Hypatia came to be and what it means to Colin today.
Attaching music to a place and time can become a very powerful and long-lasting memory. Across its eight tracks, Hypatia depicts fragmented glimpses of color and textures –a scrapbook of senses– traversing the optimistic first steps; the first smell of cold air; cityscapes burnt into your head; and the many emotions from exploring new places that stick with you longer than any photograph ever could.
“The experience of moving between places so frequently can be fascinating but also dislocating and often quite lonely. I have so many small stories about places I’ve been, but I often think they aren’t necessarily real reflections of anywhere, no more real than anything Invisible Cities author Calvino dreamt up”. - Lapsed Pacifist. More
Colin envisaged a more pronounced and darker ambient style to emerge for many years but was struggling to dedicate the time. ‘Hypatia’ came to life over an extended and fragmented period, with field recordings and loops of audio created on the go, later processed through his modular setup. In the autumn of 2022, Colin spent time collating and listening to these many fragments and field recordings, making notes in a book as he wandered around cold, unfamiliar places with headphones on, trying to shape disparate starting points into something thematically connected.
The title of Lapsed Pacifist’s debut album, ‘Hypatia’ is a reference to one of the many fantastical descriptions of imaginary places by Marco Polo in the book, Invisible Cities. Written as a dialogue between Mongol emperor Kublai Khan and Marco Polo, the book became the inspiration and a clear parallel for how Hypatia came to be and what it means to Colin today.
Attaching music to a place and time can become a very powerful and long-lasting memory. Across its eight tracks, Hypatia depicts fragmented glimpses of color and textures –a scrapbook of senses– traversing the optimistic first steps; the first smell of cold air; cityscapes burnt into your head; and the many emotions from exploring new places that stick with you longer than any photograph ever could.
“The experience of moving between places so frequently can be fascinating but also dislocating and often quite lonely. I have so many small stories about places I’ve been, but I often think they aren’t necessarily real reflections of anywhere, no more real than anything Invisible Cities author Calvino dreamt up”. - Lapsed Pacifist. More
Cat-No:ASIPV047
Release-Date:08.03.2024
Configuration:LP
Cat-No:ASIPV047
Release-Date:08.03.2024
Configuration:LP
1
Lihla - Becoming Human
2
Lihla - Disperse
3
Lihla - Interval
4
Lihla - The Kingdom
5
Lihla - Orphne
6
Lihla - Khepri
7
Lihla - Did We Arrive Yet?
8
Lihla - Resonance
"Music gives us a place to be lost. Washing away thought, place, time and identity. It's in the falling into the river, the dream, that we find just who we could be".
Classically trained cellist, composer and storyteller Lihla (Lih Qun Wong) presents her debut album, 'Socha' for A Strangely Isolated Place. Combining a vast instrumental skillset of piano, cello, electronics and spoken word, she crafts intensely immersive aural-hallucinatory worlds of intricately shifting landscapes.
A deeply personal work, Socha explores the 'diaspora of time and space, and why we all feel so displaced.' Piano chapters capture the meeting place between memory and longing, while explorational vocal and cello textures invoke and echo the ancient, the feminine, and the otherworldly.
Lihla's voice guides us, weaving through electronics and field recordings of the 'real-world' to set the path for a poetic and deeply haunting journey through the internal psyche that is truly transportive.
'Socha' will be available on transparent smoke 12" and digital.
Written and produced by Lih Qun Wong
Mixed by Sebastian Lee Philipp
Mastered by Rafael Anton Irisarri @ Black Knoll Studio
Artwork by LIHLA and Visions of Akira
More
Classically trained cellist, composer and storyteller Lihla (Lih Qun Wong) presents her debut album, 'Socha' for A Strangely Isolated Place. Combining a vast instrumental skillset of piano, cello, electronics and spoken word, she crafts intensely immersive aural-hallucinatory worlds of intricately shifting landscapes.
A deeply personal work, Socha explores the 'diaspora of time and space, and why we all feel so displaced.' Piano chapters capture the meeting place between memory and longing, while explorational vocal and cello textures invoke and echo the ancient, the feminine, and the otherworldly.
Lihla's voice guides us, weaving through electronics and field recordings of the 'real-world' to set the path for a poetic and deeply haunting journey through the internal psyche that is truly transportive.
'Socha' will be available on transparent smoke 12" and digital.
Written and produced by Lih Qun Wong
Mixed by Sebastian Lee Philipp
Mastered by Rafael Anton Irisarri @ Black Knoll Studio
Artwork by LIHLA and Visions of Akira
More
1
Salvatore Mercatante - OPEN, OPEN
2
Salvatore Mercatante - Old Peels
3
Salvatore Mercatante - Love Of Lies
4
Salvatore Mercatante - A Mask Of Water
5
Salvatore Mercatante - MOON
6
Salvatore Mercatante - Atac
7
Salvatore Mercatante - Narcotics
8
Salvatore Mercatante - How Many Hands
9
Salvatore Mercatante - Coil
10
Salvatore Mercatante - Alt B
The concept of naught (Ø) has challenged Salvatore Mercatante throughout his musical career, specifically, trying to understand how the idea of ‘nothing’ fits into the realm of sound, and at the same time, exist in a world of influence at every turn. In the absence of everything, are we able to create something truly free?
As a lifelong New York-based musician, Mercatante’s influences and productions run a wide spectrum. Just as happy producing 80s-inspired horror soundtracks as he is refining acute drum patterns over and over again, Salvatore is the first to ask himself, where next? When a musician’s output can be influenced today by so much, and there is no self-defined or perceived artistic goal in mind, how do you start from a place of nothingness, again and again?
This approach has born many minimal and experimental albums of note in the past, but with Ø, Salvatore ended up with an almost controlled maximalist approach. Beginning with open spaces and allowing sonic textures to live and evolve past where you may expect, Ø allows the space between notes to become equally as important as the notes themselves. Walls of noise, soaring soundtracks, dense techno, glittering IDM, and minimal glitch, sit side-by-side to present an all-encompassing palette of sonic possibility.
Often, even without any intent, what can be born from nothing will somehow transpire back to something more recognizable. It’s human nature after all. A subtle fingerprint, as a sequence, melody, pattern or drum kick. Whether Salvatore intended for this record to represent his defining sound or not, only time will tell. More
As a lifelong New York-based musician, Mercatante’s influences and productions run a wide spectrum. Just as happy producing 80s-inspired horror soundtracks as he is refining acute drum patterns over and over again, Salvatore is the first to ask himself, where next? When a musician’s output can be influenced today by so much, and there is no self-defined or perceived artistic goal in mind, how do you start from a place of nothingness, again and again?
This approach has born many minimal and experimental albums of note in the past, but with Ø, Salvatore ended up with an almost controlled maximalist approach. Beginning with open spaces and allowing sonic textures to live and evolve past where you may expect, Ø allows the space between notes to become equally as important as the notes themselves. Walls of noise, soaring soundtracks, dense techno, glittering IDM, and minimal glitch, sit side-by-side to present an all-encompassing palette of sonic possibility.
Often, even without any intent, what can be born from nothing will somehow transpire back to something more recognizable. It’s human nature after all. A subtle fingerprint, as a sequence, melody, pattern or drum kick. Whether Salvatore intended for this record to represent his defining sound or not, only time will tell. More
1
One Million Eyes - Tangeri
2
One Million Eyes - Kettlesoul
3
One Million Eyes - Look Up
4
One Million Eyes - Deserto
5
One Million Eyes - Sarakiniko
6
One Million Eyes - Cante Jondo
7
One Million Eyes - Maori
8
One Million Eyes - Samovar
9
One Million Eyes - Cambiasso
10
One Million Eyes - Sine Fine
Following their 2021 debut album, ‘Brama’, One Million Eyes return with their highly anticipated second album, ‘Iris’, set to captivate us once more through a kaleidoscope of rich analog and instrumental fragments.
The inspiration behind the album was born from a powerful symbol—the iris of the eye. Controlling the inflow of light, the iris mirrors the duo's mission for the album, “letting light in, even in the darkest of times”. Representing an attempt to shed new insight on their sometimes indescribable approach, Paolo and Luciano compare the ambition (and consequent imperfections) throughout their music to that of the imperfect, yet unique array of color found within an iris, in the hope it can completely entrance and mesmerize. With much of the album recorded live, ‘Iris’ marks a refined evolution in the One Million Eyes sound born under their Tempelhof guise many years ago. Infusing organic sound elements such as voice fragments, acoustic guitar lines, and drum beats at the forefront of their compositions, their vast array of analog synthesizers once again provide added depth and warmth, resulting in majestic, hypnotic circular motifs that Paolo and Luciano describe as "Mantras, rising and falling in volume and intensity." More
The inspiration behind the album was born from a powerful symbol—the iris of the eye. Controlling the inflow of light, the iris mirrors the duo's mission for the album, “letting light in, even in the darkest of times”. Representing an attempt to shed new insight on their sometimes indescribable approach, Paolo and Luciano compare the ambition (and consequent imperfections) throughout their music to that of the imperfect, yet unique array of color found within an iris, in the hope it can completely entrance and mesmerize. With much of the album recorded live, ‘Iris’ marks a refined evolution in the One Million Eyes sound born under their Tempelhof guise many years ago. Infusing organic sound elements such as voice fragments, acoustic guitar lines, and drum beats at the forefront of their compositions, their vast array of analog synthesizers once again provide added depth and warmth, resulting in majestic, hypnotic circular motifs that Paolo and Luciano describe as "Mantras, rising and falling in volume and intensity." More
1
Alex Albrecht - Understory
2
Alex Albrecht - Rituals
3
Alex Albrecht - Patience
4
Alex Albrecht - Forest Dance
5
Alex Albrecht - Violet Visionary
6
Alex Albrecht - June
12" vinyl 140gm, Orange Smoke, featuring artwork by Evie Cahir. Includes Liner notes and Bandcamp Download Card.
Australian artist Alex Albrecht debuts on A Strangely Isolated Place with Violet Visionary, a perfectly honed evolution of pictureesque downtempo and hazy, percussive Deep House.
Alex Albrecht has refined his unique triangulation of ambient, house and instrumental influences over the years, either as one half of Albrecht La'Brooy (Apollo) or under his Melquíades alias (Analogue Attic). Combining rich field recordings and hypnotic instrumentation, Alex's productions are often recognizable thanks to this instantly warm and welcoming combination. Percussive elements and powerful drum patterns sit amongst perfectly executed melodies and dusky atmospheres; Alex's music is just as suited for the orange hues of dawn as the purple tints of sundown.
A notably shorter album than we may hope, but sequenced as one complete experience, Alex is purposeful and precise in his approach, with every element completely additive to the last. Violet Visionary echoes a moment of organic evolution that disappears as quickly as it came into existence; peaking to a glowing embrace that will undoubtedly leave an impression.
Featuring original artwork by Evie Cahir and mastered by Corey Kikos, Violet Visionary is available on Transparent Orange Smoke 12" and digital
More
Australian artist Alex Albrecht debuts on A Strangely Isolated Place with Violet Visionary, a perfectly honed evolution of pictureesque downtempo and hazy, percussive Deep House.
Alex Albrecht has refined his unique triangulation of ambient, house and instrumental influences over the years, either as one half of Albrecht La'Brooy (Apollo) or under his Melquíades alias (Analogue Attic). Combining rich field recordings and hypnotic instrumentation, Alex's productions are often recognizable thanks to this instantly warm and welcoming combination. Percussive elements and powerful drum patterns sit amongst perfectly executed melodies and dusky atmospheres; Alex's music is just as suited for the orange hues of dawn as the purple tints of sundown.
A notably shorter album than we may hope, but sequenced as one complete experience, Alex is purposeful and precise in his approach, with every element completely additive to the last. Violet Visionary echoes a moment of organic evolution that disappears as quickly as it came into existence; peaking to a glowing embrace that will undoubtedly leave an impression.
Featuring original artwork by Evie Cahir and mastered by Corey Kikos, Violet Visionary is available on Transparent Orange Smoke 12" and digital
More
Cat-No:ASIPV042
Release-Date:01.09.2023
Configuration:LP
Cat-No:ASIPV042
Release-Date:01.09.2023
Configuration:LP
1
Mary Yalex - Air
2
Mary Yalex - Bridge Over Troubled Water
3
Mary Yalex - Leaving The Stars Behind
4
Mary Yalex - After Rain Comes Sun
5
Mary Yalex - Half Light Of Dawn
6
Mary Yalex - Building A Better Future
7
Mary Yalex - Echoes
8
Mary Yalex - Fantasy Zone
9
Mary Yalex - Endless Possibilities
German musician Mary Yalex debuts on A Strangely Isolated Place depicting a storied transition from our recognizable surroundings, into a vision of the future.
With releases and music styles across a variety of labels over the years, it has been Yalex's more experimental ambient work that has stood out amongst her catalog, and in Fantasy Zone, we find Mary fine-tuning this sound to reflect the work of a true architect of storytelling, mood and atmosphere.
Drawing influences from her day-to-day surroundings, Fantasy Zone begins with more vivid pieces; softer melodies and clearer instrumentation, represented as much in song titles such as Air, After Rain Comes Sun, and Half Light of Dawn. The second half of the album transitions into a future state, as Yalex draws on darker manifestations - perhaps intrinsically influenced by the state of the world, and in particular her love of nature, we play witness to more storied, haunting atmospheres, distant voices and slowly shifting gravitational chord movements. Dystopian-bound or pure fantasy, Yalex depicts a future that mirrors some of the more poignant, thought-provoking work of great synthesizer soundtracks of the past.
Mastered by Rafael Anton Irisarri, and featuring artwork by Noah M / Keep Adding, Fantasy Zone will be available on Purple Smoke 12" and digital.
More
With releases and music styles across a variety of labels over the years, it has been Yalex's more experimental ambient work that has stood out amongst her catalog, and in Fantasy Zone, we find Mary fine-tuning this sound to reflect the work of a true architect of storytelling, mood and atmosphere.
Drawing influences from her day-to-day surroundings, Fantasy Zone begins with more vivid pieces; softer melodies and clearer instrumentation, represented as much in song titles such as Air, After Rain Comes Sun, and Half Light of Dawn. The second half of the album transitions into a future state, as Yalex draws on darker manifestations - perhaps intrinsically influenced by the state of the world, and in particular her love of nature, we play witness to more storied, haunting atmospheres, distant voices and slowly shifting gravitational chord movements. Dystopian-bound or pure fantasy, Yalex depicts a future that mirrors some of the more poignant, thought-provoking work of great synthesizer soundtracks of the past.
Mastered by Rafael Anton Irisarri, and featuring artwork by Noah M / Keep Adding, Fantasy Zone will be available on Purple Smoke 12" and digital.
More
Cat-No:ASIPV041
Release-Date:07.07.2023
Configuration:LP
Cat-No:ASIPV041
Release-Date:07.07.2023
Configuration:LP
1
Gunnar Jónsson Collider - Environment 1
2
Gunnar Jónsson Collider - Environment 2
3
Gunnar Jónsson Collider - Environment 3 (Vinyl Edit)
4
Gunnar Jónsson Collider - Environment 4
5
Gunnar Jónsson Collider - Environment 5
6
Gunnar Jónsson Collider - Environment 6 (Vinyl Edit)
Icelandic musician Gunnar Jónsson Collider debuts on A Strangely Isolated Place with an expansive trip through six fictional environments, brought further to life through an accompanying video by artist Arna Beth.
Inviting escapism through detailed, glacial textures, S.W.I.M. elevates a traditional beatless spectrum into a first-person narrative, moving across burning wastelands, miles-high sundown, a dizzying night sky, subterranean exploration, and more beautiful, natural phenomena. Subtle changes in tone and texture across each of the six environments provide a signal of the destination’s energy and the intended perception of the traveler. At times, elated and dwarfed by nature’s surrounding grandeur. Other times, bestowing a sense of apprehension and unknowing.
Best absorbed through the accompanying visual album by fellow Icelandic digital artist Arna Beth, S.W.I.M. is an immersive jump into a majestic sci-fi world, placing you front and center in both sound and visual.
After appearing on numerous well-respected electronic labels in recent years such as Móatún, Moller and Vertex, S.W.I.M represents Gunnar’s most horizontal output to date. More
Inviting escapism through detailed, glacial textures, S.W.I.M. elevates a traditional beatless spectrum into a first-person narrative, moving across burning wastelands, miles-high sundown, a dizzying night sky, subterranean exploration, and more beautiful, natural phenomena. Subtle changes in tone and texture across each of the six environments provide a signal of the destination’s energy and the intended perception of the traveler. At times, elated and dwarfed by nature’s surrounding grandeur. Other times, bestowing a sense of apprehension and unknowing.
Best absorbed through the accompanying visual album by fellow Icelandic digital artist Arna Beth, S.W.I.M. is an immersive jump into a majestic sci-fi world, placing you front and center in both sound and visual.
After appearing on numerous well-respected electronic labels in recent years such as Móatún, Moller and Vertex, S.W.I.M represents Gunnar’s most horizontal output to date. More
1
Quiet Places - Side A
2
Quiet Places - Side B
3
Quiet Places - Side C
4
Quiet Places - Side D
2LP vinyl 140gm, Marbled, featuring artwork by Noah M. Includes Liner notes and Bandcamp Download Card.
Dennis White, Charlie May, and Dave Gardner return with their second outing as Quiet Places on A Strangely Isolated Place, expanding upon their deep and suitably hypnotic long-form compositions across four continuous sides of wax.
Minimal in context and retaining the untitled track approach, the trio of producers, well versed in a variety of music styles between them, leave the music and the subliminal messages contained within as the descriptor.
Finding moments of melody amongst the wide landscape of abstract sounds and samples, is the only glimpse of reality you'll find down here.
Quiet Places Volume 2 is available on limited edition gatefold 2LP pressed on marbled vinyl, mastered and lacquer cut by Andreas Lupo Lubich and featuring artwork by Noah M / Keep Adding
More
Dennis White, Charlie May, and Dave Gardner return with their second outing as Quiet Places on A Strangely Isolated Place, expanding upon their deep and suitably hypnotic long-form compositions across four continuous sides of wax.
Minimal in context and retaining the untitled track approach, the trio of producers, well versed in a variety of music styles between them, leave the music and the subliminal messages contained within as the descriptor.
Finding moments of melody amongst the wide landscape of abstract sounds and samples, is the only glimpse of reality you'll find down here.
Quiet Places Volume 2 is available on limited edition gatefold 2LP pressed on marbled vinyl, mastered and lacquer cut by Andreas Lupo Lubich and featuring artwork by Noah M / Keep Adding
More
1
Max Würden - Prospect
2
Max Würden - Reprise
3
Max Würden - Summiteer
4
Max Würden - Roche Zone
5
Max Würden - Momentweise
6
Max Würden - Stereo A
7
Max Würden - Stereo B
8
Max Würden - Convergence
9
Max Würden - Range
10
Max Würden - Shelter
Landmark sees Max Würden combine and integrate various external forces into his usual studio production process. Inspired by many paintings of powerful landscapes found in thrift stores throughout his hometown of Cologne, Max set out to bring various elements together as one whole over time - allowing an organic process of experimentation and collage.
Short phrases of music and field recordings that weren’t originally meant for each other were realized in isolation, such as sounds from his Klangkiste (sound box) built by Max himself, guitars, an old out-of-tune Schimmel piano, and samples of early jazz and classical music. These separate elements eventually, over time, connected and came together as Landmark - a recognizable moment and formation.
The collage of elements found throughout ‘Landmark’, expresses a number of different vantage points from which to gaze and focus your attention. From the more storied and instrumental-based ‘Reprise’ and ‘Range’, to the wide-scape visions of ‘Summiteer’, or the off-world portrayals in ‘Stereo A’ and ‘Stereo B’. Max can be found depicting a montage of intricately detailed moments that invite you to stand and ponder their storied creation, be it emerging from found sound, synthesizers, guitars, samples, or simply his own production sorcery.
Landmark will be available on Gatefold 2LP Gold vinyl and digital, mastered by Rafael Anton Iirsarri and featuring original photography by Max Würden, artwork edited by Noah M / Keep Adding. There will also be special limited edition framed paintings (10 unique versions), created by Max, available on release day. More
Short phrases of music and field recordings that weren’t originally meant for each other were realized in isolation, such as sounds from his Klangkiste (sound box) built by Max himself, guitars, an old out-of-tune Schimmel piano, and samples of early jazz and classical music. These separate elements eventually, over time, connected and came together as Landmark - a recognizable moment and formation.
The collage of elements found throughout ‘Landmark’, expresses a number of different vantage points from which to gaze and focus your attention. From the more storied and instrumental-based ‘Reprise’ and ‘Range’, to the wide-scape visions of ‘Summiteer’, or the off-world portrayals in ‘Stereo A’ and ‘Stereo B’. Max can be found depicting a montage of intricately detailed moments that invite you to stand and ponder their storied creation, be it emerging from found sound, synthesizers, guitars, samples, or simply his own production sorcery.
Landmark will be available on Gatefold 2LP Gold vinyl and digital, mastered by Rafael Anton Iirsarri and featuring original photography by Max Würden, artwork edited by Noah M / Keep Adding. There will also be special limited edition framed paintings (10 unique versions), created by Max, available on release day. More
Cat-No:ASIPV035
Release-Date:09.09.2022
Configuration:2LP
Cat-No:ASIPV035
Release-Date:09.09.2022
Configuration:2LP
1
Viul & Benoît Pioulard - Tress
2
Viul & Benoît Pioulard - Returning Clear Voice
3
Viul & Benoît Pioulard - Stair
4
Viul & Benoît Pioulard - A Real Place
5
Viul & Benoît Pioulard - Construction Worker Smoke Cycle
6
Viul & Benoît Pioulard - French Funeral
7
Viul & Benoît Pioulard - Dearth Of Raveling
8
Viul & Benoît Pioulard - Catalune
9
Viul & Benoît Pioulard - Flaxen
10
Viul & Benoît Pioulard - Canon
11
Viul & Benoît Pioulard - Performance
12
Viul & Benoît Pioulard - A Real Place [Coda]
Longtime friends and frequent collaborators Luke Entelis (Viul) and Thomas Meluch (Benoît Pioulard) combine their enchanting textures reflecting on a time spent in lockdown, for A Strangely Isolated Place.
"Konec" is Czech for "end," and a nod to the uncertainty of Luke and Thomas’ home city of New York amidst the pandemic. Birthed from Luke’s short synth sketches, the two friends further collaborated in isolation to create a series of strangely beautiful interludes - a sense of vitality breaking through the immediate surrounding dread.
Whilst many of the tracks expand far beyond what a short interlude may dictate, Konec builds on this concept through some of the most thought-provoking loops the pair have created over their many combined years producing.
With an immediate arresting aesthetic, grounded in saturation, decay, and distortion, tracks such as ‘Returning Clear Voice’ or ‘Flaxen’ reflect some of the duo’s more textured work - a hazy mist of life unknown in a city’s uncharted times. Konec’s storyful and engrossing moments come with a confident posture, such as the unforgettable bellowing of ‘Catalune’ or ‘Construction Worker Smoke Cycle’ or the swirling, haunting, ‘Canon’.
The variation in minutia, samples and instrumentation throughout the album cannot be understated amongst its hazy aesthetic and ominous poignancy. It’s one thing to notice the details, but another to unstick the melodies from the closing credits of a dystopian city’s downfall, from the forefront of your mind.
Mastered by Rafael Anton Irisarri and featuring original artwork by Liz Harris, Konec is available on limited gatefold transparent 2LP + digital. More
"Konec" is Czech for "end," and a nod to the uncertainty of Luke and Thomas’ home city of New York amidst the pandemic. Birthed from Luke’s short synth sketches, the two friends further collaborated in isolation to create a series of strangely beautiful interludes - a sense of vitality breaking through the immediate surrounding dread.
Whilst many of the tracks expand far beyond what a short interlude may dictate, Konec builds on this concept through some of the most thought-provoking loops the pair have created over their many combined years producing.
With an immediate arresting aesthetic, grounded in saturation, decay, and distortion, tracks such as ‘Returning Clear Voice’ or ‘Flaxen’ reflect some of the duo’s more textured work - a hazy mist of life unknown in a city’s uncharted times. Konec’s storyful and engrossing moments come with a confident posture, such as the unforgettable bellowing of ‘Catalune’ or ‘Construction Worker Smoke Cycle’ or the swirling, haunting, ‘Canon’.
The variation in minutia, samples and instrumentation throughout the album cannot be understated amongst its hazy aesthetic and ominous poignancy. It’s one thing to notice the details, but another to unstick the melodies from the closing credits of a dystopian city’s downfall, from the forefront of your mind.
Mastered by Rafael Anton Irisarri and featuring original artwork by Liz Harris, Konec is available on limited gatefold transparent 2LP + digital. More
1
Christian Kleine - Return Of The Underground
2
Christian Kleine - Helios Flood
3
Christian Kleine - Touch & Fuse
4
Christian Kleine - Velvet Impulse
5
Christian Kleine - Serious Moonlight
6
Christian Kleine - Reverse Angle
7
Christian Kleine - Number 6
8
Christian Kleine - Serene Salt Mine
9
Christian Kleine - Val 2
10
Christian Kleine - Seaweed
11
Christian Kleine - Mountain Drain
12
Christian Kleine - Nearfield To Nowhere
13
Christian Kleine - Bury Oceans With Sand
14
Christian Kleine - Room In The Mirror
Arguably Christian Kleine’s most comprehensive and colorful release to capture his enigmatic IDM style, originally released on CD in 2020 is now available on Neon Orange 2LP.
“You’re heavily inspired by what you love and will do anything to be a part of it when growing up”, says Christian. “The more you create, the more familiar you become as the years move on, and your ambition to perfect it becomes even stronger”.
This natural evolution is something Christian Kleine is well versed in and since his first releases in the early 00’s, Christian has been synonymous with perfecting a particular sound that draws from early IDM, breaks and influences as far-reaching as Punk music.
Touch & Fuse continues the melodic, beat-driven finesse he has become known for, but instead of trying to perfect anything new, different or conceptual two decades later, we’re treated to an album unconsciously inspired simply, by the wide variety of music he likes. More
“You’re heavily inspired by what you love and will do anything to be a part of it when growing up”, says Christian. “The more you create, the more familiar you become as the years move on, and your ambition to perfect it becomes even stronger”.
This natural evolution is something Christian Kleine is well versed in and since his first releases in the early 00’s, Christian has been synonymous with perfecting a particular sound that draws from early IDM, breaks and influences as far-reaching as Punk music.
Touch & Fuse continues the melodic, beat-driven finesse he has become known for, but instead of trying to perfect anything new, different or conceptual two decades later, we’re treated to an album unconsciously inspired simply, by the wide variety of music he likes. More
Cat-No:ASIPV034
Release-Date:31.01.2022
Configuration:2LP
Cat-No:ASIPV034
Release-Date:31.01.2022
Configuration:2LP
1
Strië & Scanner - Proun
2
Strië & Scanner - Man And The Cosmos Around
3
Strië & Scanner - Untitled 1956
4
Strië & Scanner - The Steamer Odin
5
Strië & Scanner - Chance And Order
6
Strië & Scanner - Foxes
7
Strië & Scanner - Aeroplane Flying
8
Strië & Scanner - Vogel Wolke
9
Strië & Scanner - Enigma Of The Day
10
Strië & Scanner - Reconsider Chance
11
Strië & Scanner - Nuorp
12
Strië & Scanner - The Earthbound Fox
13
Strië & Scanner - Odin Ready
14
Strië & Scanner - Enigma Typher
15
Strië & Scanner - Untilt
16
Strië & Scanner - Woman And The Cosmos
Polish composer Olga Wojciechowska and veteran electronic producer Robin Rimbaud aka Scanner, combine on A Strangely Isolated Place to revisit a beloved Strië album - Olga’s more electronic and experimental alias.
With previous releases on Serein and Time Released Sound as Strië, Olga Wojciechowska’s ‘Struktura’ was released in 2015 to a limited audience due to its physical-only format. As Olga’s work becomes increasingly more coveted, through her more recent releases on A Strangely Isolated Place (Unseen Traces & Infinite Distances), and with Struktura praised as one of her finest albums to date, the discussion to breathe new life into the album resulted in a unique pairing with Scanner, an electronic music producer and multimedia artist responsible for some of the most defining works of the genre since the early 1990s.
Blurring the line between harmony and dissonance, Struktura’soriginal recordings paint an eerie, haunting and beautiful picture, conceptualized around abstract art, with intricacies and mystery abound. Here, Strië’s original recordings remain untouched, albeit lovingly remastered by Rafael Anton Irisarri, and it is left toScanner to provide further interpretations of Olga’s original recordings.
Scanner productions can typically traverse a myriad of styles, but here, Robin took a primarily live-hardware approach to the remixes, allowing the rawness of his recordings to add story and depth. Recorded in one take, with no overdubs, the reinterpretations strip the melodies and textures to their original essence, bringing an entirely analog element to Olga’sintrinsically detailed originals. More
With previous releases on Serein and Time Released Sound as Strië, Olga Wojciechowska’s ‘Struktura’ was released in 2015 to a limited audience due to its physical-only format. As Olga’s work becomes increasingly more coveted, through her more recent releases on A Strangely Isolated Place (Unseen Traces & Infinite Distances), and with Struktura praised as one of her finest albums to date, the discussion to breathe new life into the album resulted in a unique pairing with Scanner, an electronic music producer and multimedia artist responsible for some of the most defining works of the genre since the early 1990s.
Blurring the line between harmony and dissonance, Struktura’soriginal recordings paint an eerie, haunting and beautiful picture, conceptualized around abstract art, with intricacies and mystery abound. Here, Strië’s original recordings remain untouched, albeit lovingly remastered by Rafael Anton Irisarri, and it is left toScanner to provide further interpretations of Olga’s original recordings.
Scanner productions can typically traverse a myriad of styles, but here, Robin took a primarily live-hardware approach to the remixes, allowing the rawness of his recordings to add story and depth. Recorded in one take, with no overdubs, the reinterpretations strip the melodies and textures to their original essence, bringing an entirely analog element to Olga’sintrinsically detailed originals. More
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2
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Aphex Twin - #3
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Aphex Twin - #4
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Aphex Twin - #12
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Aphex Twin - Blue Calx
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Aphex Twin - #14
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Aphex Twin - #15
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Aphex Twin - #17
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Aphex Twin - #18
19
Aphex Twin - #19
20
Aphex Twin - #20
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Aphex Twin - #21
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Aphex Twin - #22
23
Aphex Twin - #23
24
Aphex Twin - #24
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Aphex Twin - #25
26
Aphex Twin - th1 [evnslower]
27
Aphex Twin - Rhubarb Orc. 19.53 Rev
An essential piece of electronic history is restored to its full glory for the 30th anniversary, with all 25 tracks of Selected Ambient Works II reunited in this Expanded Edition alongside two extras. Constantly referenced and revered decades after its release, SAWII has seen accolades such as the Pitchfork perfect 10 and #2 best ambient album of all time.
Written in his early 20s, it follows the glacial synths and deft percussion of Selected Ambient Works 85-92 and preceding the contorted, intricate, abstract visions of electronic music on ...I Care Because You Do. Aphex Twin crafted this mammoth set of mostly beatless vistas, textured compositions that are by turns beautiful, nightmarish, emotive, and thrilling.
From swooning beauty to careening dread, even in just the first two tracks, SAWII is a stunning and faultless piece of work. Each soundscape brings with it the sense of standing in some vast space, with dripping rusted pipes and dilapidated walls, or endless canyons of low bitrate whooshing winds. Tracks like ‘Blue Calx’ emanate a strange kind of peace, with synths that sound like wobbling laminated paper or underwater radar blips while a constant knocking keeps pace. Elsewhere, curious microtonal keys flutter and subtly morph, low frequencies throb and purr, and oscillating hums induce hypnagogia.
The gossamer soft chords of ‘#3’ (AKA ‘Rhubarb’) move slow as clouds, airy wisps that are translated into orchestral grandeur on the exclusive ‘Rhubarb Orc. 19.53 Rev’ with quivering strings, ethereal choir, and reversed molten bass, while ‘th1 [evnslower]’ is a sonorous blur floating from hopeful lifts to anxious dissonance. Finally included on all formats after 30 years, ‘#19’ (AKA ‘Stone In Focus’) seems to smooth over all the wrinkles of life with its blissfully monolithic chords and faint ripples of melody, its ticking like skipping stones marking the passage of time till it slows to a gentle halt.
- Polylined inner sleeves
- Foil blocked wide spine outer sleeve
- Fold out poster
- Sticker insert
- Expanded edition includes all songs on all formats for the first time, including previously vinyl-exclusive track #19 alongside two additional tracks (officially released and on physical formats for the first time)
- Artwork by Paul Nicholson, original album designer + Aphex logo designer More
Written in his early 20s, it follows the glacial synths and deft percussion of Selected Ambient Works 85-92 and preceding the contorted, intricate, abstract visions of electronic music on ...I Care Because You Do. Aphex Twin crafted this mammoth set of mostly beatless vistas, textured compositions that are by turns beautiful, nightmarish, emotive, and thrilling.
From swooning beauty to careening dread, even in just the first two tracks, SAWII is a stunning and faultless piece of work. Each soundscape brings with it the sense of standing in some vast space, with dripping rusted pipes and dilapidated walls, or endless canyons of low bitrate whooshing winds. Tracks like ‘Blue Calx’ emanate a strange kind of peace, with synths that sound like wobbling laminated paper or underwater radar blips while a constant knocking keeps pace. Elsewhere, curious microtonal keys flutter and subtly morph, low frequencies throb and purr, and oscillating hums induce hypnagogia.
The gossamer soft chords of ‘#3’ (AKA ‘Rhubarb’) move slow as clouds, airy wisps that are translated into orchestral grandeur on the exclusive ‘Rhubarb Orc. 19.53 Rev’ with quivering strings, ethereal choir, and reversed molten bass, while ‘th1 [evnslower]’ is a sonorous blur floating from hopeful lifts to anxious dissonance. Finally included on all formats after 30 years, ‘#19’ (AKA ‘Stone In Focus’) seems to smooth over all the wrinkles of life with its blissfully monolithic chords and faint ripples of melody, its ticking like skipping stones marking the passage of time till it slows to a gentle halt.
- Polylined inner sleeves
- Foil blocked wide spine outer sleeve
- Fold out poster
- Sticker insert
- Expanded edition includes all songs on all formats for the first time, including previously vinyl-exclusive track #19 alongside two additional tracks (officially released and on physical formats for the first time)
- Artwork by Paul Nicholson, original album designer + Aphex logo designer More
1
Monolake - 01 The Elders Disagree
2
Monolake - 02 Thru Stalactites
3
Monolake - 03 Signals
4
Monolake - 04 Cute Little Aliens
5
Monolake - 05 Intermezzo
6
Monolake - 06 Global Transport
7
Monolake - 07 Stasis Field
8
Monolake - 08 Prime Lundy
9
Monolake - 09 Red Alphonso
10
Monolake - 10 Eclipse
2 x 12”, black vinyl, 4C gatefold
My studio is my shelter, I feel comfortable there, surrounded by wonderful inspiring machines. A small cosy room where ideas emerge, mature, morph, and solidify into their final shape. 'Studio' is the result of spending time in that space. The album's intention is simple: Presenting a beautiful personal musical journey. The creative process in itself matters to me, the interaction with my instruments, the accidental discoveries, the successful execution of a vision and anything in between.
Most of the tracks on this album got revised countless times, and then even more, once I knew in which context and order I wanted to arrange them. I have been living with my music for months now, listening, thinking, changing, diving deeper and deeper into each piece.
I love albums, they are a beautiful long-form format where each part has its place, a journey from the start till the end. Each piece has its own story, its own flavour and history.
Some of them have been with me since a while already. There is material which I created years ago for installations and music derived from previous audiovisual works, all completely ripped apart and rearranged multiple times. During their creation my pieces often turn into something completely different, they repeatedly shift from one state to another until they become solid. What I consider a core element at the beginning might be later discarded completely, and a little detail in the background might become the essence.
Many explorations ended in the trash bin before the results had a chance to be part of 'Studio'. Things did not fall into place, did not feel right.
Other compositions had to fill the void instead, some created quickly in a rush of inspiration, some slowly, shy, questioning their significance. This album did not come into existence in a hurry, it took as long as it needed. I used the time to walk around my creations, to listen to them from the distance, physically, mentally, with friends, in all kinds of different contexts. I tried to understand what I just did. I started to see patterns, hidden motifs, things that were buried in between too many layers of sound. What is essential? What is ornament? I reduced, rearranged, added again.
The closer I got to the final state of 'Studio' the more clarity I found. The inherent doubts and the nagging voices from the inside got more quiet, and a sense of achievement started to manifest itself. More and more details just fell into place. And now it is done. After making electronic music since almost thirty years I don't care anymore about genres, about how to label things. It is music, my own personal music, and that's it. Call it electronica if you wish.
Process Notes
The music on this album has been constructed in Ableton Live. Most of the sounds have been created with my collection of beloved hardware synthesisers and effects, often further processed until something completely different did emerge. Sometimes I spend days in the studio just recording sounds or creating new presets, without already having a composition in mind. A few selected musical instruments contributed significantly to the palette of this album; a New England Digital Synclavier II, which also served as inspiration for the artwork, a Sequential Prophet VS, which is present on all Monolake albums since 1996, a Yamaha SY77, Linn Drum, and the Oberheim Xpander. And then there is Operator in Ableton Live, which I developed in 2004 and still love to use, and a lot of the other effects and instruments in the software. And of course my Granulator III instrument, and the PitchLoop89 audio effect. The final sonic world is often the result of radical processing of these elements, via filtering, pitch shifting, time stretching and other types of processing, both in Live and with my hardware. The good old Alesis Quadraverb deserves an honorary mention here, so does the AMS RMX 16.
Artwork
The cover combines a few complex elements. A composition of various lichen photographs, and a computational noise field that cuts rivers into the structure, where the inner artwork of the album shines through: The inside of the CD package and the gatefold vinyl cover shows a non-existing musical instrument, based on the user interface of the Synclavier II. I've always been fond of its futuristic button matrix with red LEDs, which conjures a sense of nostalgia for early computer systems. But I wanted more than just a photograph of it. Instead, I created a collage that not only consists of its existing controls but also integrated additional features it never possessed, though it might have in a subsequent iteration. In essence, I crafted a vision of a future that never materialized.
Geeky detail: When a Synclavier II is turned on, and the connected mainframe computer did not boot yet, the LEDs in the buttons light up in random patterns. The imaginary version of it does the same.
Track Listing:
01 The Elders Disagree
02 Thru Stalactites
03 Signals
04 Cute Little Aliens
05 Intermezzo
06 Global Transport
07 Stasis Field
08 Prime Lundy
09 Red Alphonso
10 Eclipse
Composed, mixed and produced by Robert Henke 2024.. More
My studio is my shelter, I feel comfortable there, surrounded by wonderful inspiring machines. A small cosy room where ideas emerge, mature, morph, and solidify into their final shape. 'Studio' is the result of spending time in that space. The album's intention is simple: Presenting a beautiful personal musical journey. The creative process in itself matters to me, the interaction with my instruments, the accidental discoveries, the successful execution of a vision and anything in between.
Most of the tracks on this album got revised countless times, and then even more, once I knew in which context and order I wanted to arrange them. I have been living with my music for months now, listening, thinking, changing, diving deeper and deeper into each piece.
I love albums, they are a beautiful long-form format where each part has its place, a journey from the start till the end. Each piece has its own story, its own flavour and history.
Some of them have been with me since a while already. There is material which I created years ago for installations and music derived from previous audiovisual works, all completely ripped apart and rearranged multiple times. During their creation my pieces often turn into something completely different, they repeatedly shift from one state to another until they become solid. What I consider a core element at the beginning might be later discarded completely, and a little detail in the background might become the essence.
Many explorations ended in the trash bin before the results had a chance to be part of 'Studio'. Things did not fall into place, did not feel right.
Other compositions had to fill the void instead, some created quickly in a rush of inspiration, some slowly, shy, questioning their significance. This album did not come into existence in a hurry, it took as long as it needed. I used the time to walk around my creations, to listen to them from the distance, physically, mentally, with friends, in all kinds of different contexts. I tried to understand what I just did. I started to see patterns, hidden motifs, things that were buried in between too many layers of sound. What is essential? What is ornament? I reduced, rearranged, added again.
The closer I got to the final state of 'Studio' the more clarity I found. The inherent doubts and the nagging voices from the inside got more quiet, and a sense of achievement started to manifest itself. More and more details just fell into place. And now it is done. After making electronic music since almost thirty years I don't care anymore about genres, about how to label things. It is music, my own personal music, and that's it. Call it electronica if you wish.
Process Notes
The music on this album has been constructed in Ableton Live. Most of the sounds have been created with my collection of beloved hardware synthesisers and effects, often further processed until something completely different did emerge. Sometimes I spend days in the studio just recording sounds or creating new presets, without already having a composition in mind. A few selected musical instruments contributed significantly to the palette of this album; a New England Digital Synclavier II, which also served as inspiration for the artwork, a Sequential Prophet VS, which is present on all Monolake albums since 1996, a Yamaha SY77, Linn Drum, and the Oberheim Xpander. And then there is Operator in Ableton Live, which I developed in 2004 and still love to use, and a lot of the other effects and instruments in the software. And of course my Granulator III instrument, and the PitchLoop89 audio effect. The final sonic world is often the result of radical processing of these elements, via filtering, pitch shifting, time stretching and other types of processing, both in Live and with my hardware. The good old Alesis Quadraverb deserves an honorary mention here, so does the AMS RMX 16.
Artwork
The cover combines a few complex elements. A composition of various lichen photographs, and a computational noise field that cuts rivers into the structure, where the inner artwork of the album shines through: The inside of the CD package and the gatefold vinyl cover shows a non-existing musical instrument, based on the user interface of the Synclavier II. I've always been fond of its futuristic button matrix with red LEDs, which conjures a sense of nostalgia for early computer systems. But I wanted more than just a photograph of it. Instead, I created a collage that not only consists of its existing controls but also integrated additional features it never possessed, though it might have in a subsequent iteration. In essence, I crafted a vision of a future that never materialized.
Geeky detail: When a Synclavier II is turned on, and the connected mainframe computer did not boot yet, the LEDs in the buttons light up in random patterns. The imaginary version of it does the same.
Track Listing:
01 The Elders Disagree
02 Thru Stalactites
03 Signals
04 Cute Little Aliens
05 Intermezzo
06 Global Transport
07 Stasis Field
08 Prime Lundy
09 Red Alphonso
10 Eclipse
Composed, mixed and produced by Robert Henke 2024.. More
non-exclusive
2LP R&S and Apollo Records present an official vinyl repress of this most classicand timeless album The vinyl uses the 2013 re-masters made from original DAT tapes cut by Matt Colton and presented in original artwork.
All time favourite Aphex Twin Album. Nice and accesible experimental techno. Originally released in 1992. What else could be said here, we finally are stocking copies on arguably the most important and influential electronic album of album time, Aphex Twin's Selected Ambient Works 85–92. You will always need this!!!
Tracks: A1 Xtal
A2 Tha
A3 Pulsewidth
B1 Ageispolis
B2 i
B3 Green Calx
B4 Heliosphan
C1 We Are The Music Makers
C2 Schottkey 7th Path
C3 Ptolemy
D1 Hedphelym
D2 Delphium
D3 Actium
More
2LP R&S and Apollo Records present an official vinyl repress of this most classicand timeless album The vinyl uses the 2013 re-masters made from original DAT tapes cut by Matt Colton and presented in original artwork.
All time favourite Aphex Twin Album. Nice and accesible experimental techno. Originally released in 1992. What else could be said here, we finally are stocking copies on arguably the most important and influential electronic album of album time, Aphex Twin's Selected Ambient Works 85–92. You will always need this!!!
Tracks: A1 Xtal
A2 Tha
A3 Pulsewidth
B1 Ageispolis
B2 i
B3 Green Calx
B4 Heliosphan
C1 We Are The Music Makers
C2 Schottkey 7th Path
C3 Ptolemy
D1 Hedphelym
D2 Delphium
D3 Actium
More
Label:The Very Polish Cut Outs
Cat-No:TVPCLP009
Release-Date:01.12.2023
Genre:Electronic
Configuration:LP Excl
Label:The Very Polish Cut Outs
Cat-No:TVPCLP009
Release-Date:01.12.2023
Genre:Electronic
Configuration:LP Excl
1
Pejzaz - List II
2
Pejzaz - Duchy Lasu
3
Pejzaz - Imperium Znaków
4
Pejzaz - Blues Trzeci
5
Pejzaz - Bez Grawitacji
6
Pejzaz - Ogród
7
Pejzaz - Serce
8
Pejzaz - Po Godzinach
9
Pejzaz - Wizje
10
Pejzaz - Dziennik Pisany Noca
11
Pejzaz - Linia Piekna
Pejzaz (aka Bartosz Kruczyski) returns with two captivating new collage albums. Divided into two records LIST I (which was released end of September this year) & LIST II - which premieres end of movember - delves into the realm of 90s/Y2K Eastern European CD releases. Employing hundreds of samples, Pejzaz sculpts a mesmerizing and distinctive body of work.
LIST II guides the listener into the night, combining trip hop and dub influences, dusty samples, wailing blues guitars, and cold-wave synthesizers. Its haunting soundscapes provide an apt soundtrack for winter in Eastern Europe.
Notably, this marks Pejzaz first foray into a fully instrumental album. Although devoid of lyrics, the bittersweet blend of samples infuses the music with a profoundly Polish essence, further enhancing its distinctive allure.
Tracklist:
A1 List II
A2 Duchy Lasu
A3 Imperium Znaków
A4 Blues Trzeci
A5 Bez Grawitacji
A6 Ogród
B1 Serce
B2 Po Godzinach
B3 Wizje
B4 Dziennik Pisany Noc?
B5 Linia Pi?kna
More
LIST II guides the listener into the night, combining trip hop and dub influences, dusty samples, wailing blues guitars, and cold-wave synthesizers. Its haunting soundscapes provide an apt soundtrack for winter in Eastern Europe.
Notably, this marks Pejzaz first foray into a fully instrumental album. Although devoid of lyrics, the bittersweet blend of samples infuses the music with a profoundly Polish essence, further enhancing its distinctive allure.
Tracklist:
A1 List II
A2 Duchy Lasu
A3 Imperium Znaków
A4 Blues Trzeci
A5 Bez Grawitacji
A6 Ogród
B1 Serce
B2 Po Godzinach
B3 Wizje
B4 Dziennik Pisany Noc?
B5 Linia Pi?kna
More
Finally: the long awaited Trentemøller debut album - maybe one of the most anticipated independent albums of the year - is ready to be released in October!The danish producer Anders Trentemøller is one of the hottest artists on the electronic circuit - the man of the moment!His 12“es broke many sales-records and he‘s been voted as the shooting star in 2005 by many reader polls.So the time is right to release his debut album The Last Resort“ - a beautifully crafted, astonishing masterpiece, that will leave you breathless. The 13 instrumental tracks together form a wordless musical story, almost like the soundtrack of a movie. It manages to capture a whole range of emotions in subtle melodic miniatures, dreamy ambiences, dusty beats, deep dub-tracks and driving groove-excursions. An ever-changing kaleidoscope of colours and moods, „The Last Resort“ without a doubt contains Trentemøller’s best work to date. Although it’s an electronic album, it also incorporates live-drums, guitars, bass and other acoustic instruments like celesta, glockenspiel, melodica and even DJ scratching to create a more organic feel. „Something I couldn’t manage with just electronica“, according to the producer.
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1
Kenji Kawai - 01 - Making of Cyborg
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Kenji Kawai - 02 - Ghost Hacker
3
Kenji Kawai - 03 - Puppet Master
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Kenji Kawai - 04 - Virtual Crime
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Kenji Kawai - 05 - Ghost City
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Kenji Kawai - 06 - Access
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Kenji Kawai - 07 - Night Stalker
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Kenji Kawai - 08 - Floating Museum
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Kenji Kawai - 09 - Ghost Dive
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Kenji Kawai - 10 - Reincarnation
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Kenji Kawai - 11 - Bonus Track
2024 Repress
- NO SALES TO JAPAN -
Regular Offcial Authorised Vinyl Version, Original Soundtrack, 350g Sleeve, Black Inner, Sticker, 12" 140g Vinyl
- The first ever OFFICIAL vinyl release of the soundtrack for Mamoru Oshii's legendary science fiction anime film GHOST IN THE SHELL (1995).
- LP cut from the original master reels at Emil Berliner Studios, official Ghost in the Shell artwork
Tracklisting LP :
A1 ?I - Making Of Cyborg
A2 Ghosthack
A3 Puppetmaster
A4 Virtual Crime
A5 ?II - Ghost City
B1 Access
B2 Nightstalker
B3 Floating Museum
B4 Ghostdive
B5 ?III - Reincarnation
We Release Whatever The Fuck We Want Records is thrilled and honored to announce the first ever official vinyl pressing of the soundtrack for Mamoru Oshii's critically acclaimed and all around legendary science fiction anime film GHOST IN THE SHELL (1995), adapted from Masamune Shirow's groundbreaking manga series of the same name.
Cut from the original master reels at Emil Berliner Studios (formerly the in-house recording department of renowned classical record label Deutsche Grammophon), the album comes as a LP accompanied by a bonus one-sided 7" housed in official Ghost in the Shell artwork sleeve with silver gilt printing and a Japanese obi, and contains extensive 24-page liner notes.
The haunting score is composed by Kenji Kawai, one of Japan's most celebrated soundtrack composers, alongside Joe Hisaishi and Ry?ichi Sakamoto, whose work includes Hideo Nakata's Ring (1998) and Ring 2 (1999), Death Note (2006), Hong Kong films Seven Swords by Tsui Hark (2005) and Ip Man by Wilson Yip (2008), and countless others. Kawai's compositions see ancient harmonies and percussions uncannily mesh with synthesized sounds of the modern world to convey a sumptuous balance between folklore tradition and futuristic outlook. For its iconic main theme "Making of Cyborg", Kawai had a choir chant a wedding song in ancient Japanese following Bulgarian folk harmonies, setting the standard for a timeless and unparalleled soundtrack that admirably echoes the film's musings on the nature of humanity in a technologically advanced world.
Ghost in the Shell is widely considered one of the best anime films of all time and its influence has been felt in the work of numerous movie directors, including James Cameron (Avatar), the Wachowskis (The Matrix), and Steven Spielberg (AI: Artificial Intelligence).
More
- NO SALES TO JAPAN -
Regular Offcial Authorised Vinyl Version, Original Soundtrack, 350g Sleeve, Black Inner, Sticker, 12" 140g Vinyl
- The first ever OFFICIAL vinyl release of the soundtrack for Mamoru Oshii's legendary science fiction anime film GHOST IN THE SHELL (1995).
- LP cut from the original master reels at Emil Berliner Studios, official Ghost in the Shell artwork
Tracklisting LP :
A1 ?I - Making Of Cyborg
A2 Ghosthack
A3 Puppetmaster
A4 Virtual Crime
A5 ?II - Ghost City
B1 Access
B2 Nightstalker
B3 Floating Museum
B4 Ghostdive
B5 ?III - Reincarnation
We Release Whatever The Fuck We Want Records is thrilled and honored to announce the first ever official vinyl pressing of the soundtrack for Mamoru Oshii's critically acclaimed and all around legendary science fiction anime film GHOST IN THE SHELL (1995), adapted from Masamune Shirow's groundbreaking manga series of the same name.
Cut from the original master reels at Emil Berliner Studios (formerly the in-house recording department of renowned classical record label Deutsche Grammophon), the album comes as a LP accompanied by a bonus one-sided 7" housed in official Ghost in the Shell artwork sleeve with silver gilt printing and a Japanese obi, and contains extensive 24-page liner notes.
The haunting score is composed by Kenji Kawai, one of Japan's most celebrated soundtrack composers, alongside Joe Hisaishi and Ry?ichi Sakamoto, whose work includes Hideo Nakata's Ring (1998) and Ring 2 (1999), Death Note (2006), Hong Kong films Seven Swords by Tsui Hark (2005) and Ip Man by Wilson Yip (2008), and countless others. Kawai's compositions see ancient harmonies and percussions uncannily mesh with synthesized sounds of the modern world to convey a sumptuous balance between folklore tradition and futuristic outlook. For its iconic main theme "Making of Cyborg", Kawai had a choir chant a wedding song in ancient Japanese following Bulgarian folk harmonies, setting the standard for a timeless and unparalleled soundtrack that admirably echoes the film's musings on the nature of humanity in a technologically advanced world.
Ghost in the Shell is widely considered one of the best anime films of all time and its influence has been felt in the work of numerous movie directors, including James Cameron (Avatar), the Wachowskis (The Matrix), and Steven Spielberg (AI: Artificial Intelligence).
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2xLP, Gatefold Jacket, Black Vinyl
The Great Escape is the debut collaborative album from San Francisco Legend, Larry June & prolific super producer, The Alchemist. Through a process that felt very organic, the two churned out an extra healthy amount of music that resulted in what may be their magnum opus. At 15 tracks, the album includes tasteful features from some of Hip-Hop's most celebrated figures; Action Bronson, Big Sean, Ty Dolla $ign, Slum Village, Boldy James, Evidence, Wiz Khalifa, Jay Worthy, Curren$y & Joey Bada$$. Like a fine wine, sit back, let it breathe, and enjoy the neat yet exquisitely rich complexities of two of Hip-Hop's smoothest figures.
Key Marketing/Selling:
- Larry June & The Alchemist are each extremely respected and notable individual artists in the Hip-Hop community
- Album activations in LA, SF, CDMX and NY during release week, with multiple exclusive merch drops planned alongside each release
- The Alchemist routinely sells out of physical product on each drop - CD/CS/LP
- Larry June's previous releases, Orange Print & Spaceships On The Blade, have done exceptionally well at retail
- The Alchemist has put together some of the most sought after physical releases over the last 3+ years
- All production is handled by The Alchemist, with additional production on Track 6 by frequent Griselda collaborator, Beat Butcha
- Features include notable rap luminaries Action Bronson, Big Sean, Slum Village, Ty Dolla $ign, Boldly James, Evidence, Wiz Khalifa, Jay Worthy, Joey Bada$$, & Curren$y
- Extensive press write ups published throughout album rollout such as Rolling Stone, HipHopDX, Billboard, Okayplayer, The Source, BrooklynVegan, Yahoo, Vibe
- Extensive outdoor campaign with multiple billboards secured from all major DSPs
- Each single has been featured and placed on numerous playlists and obtained multiple playlist covers across all DSPs
- Multiple videos released with more on the way
- "Making of" Documentary released in support of album rollout
- 89 Earthquake has over 2.3M streams on Spotify alone since release on 3/1/23 (3/29/23)
- 47 date nationwide tour planned in support of the album, with multiple dates already sold out and additional shows already added. European dates are expected to follow shortly
- Larry June has over 3.3M monthly listeners on Spotify
- The Alchemist has over 6.8M monthly listeners on Spotify
Tracklist:
A1/1. Turkish Cotton
A2/2. 89 Earthquake
A3/3. Solid Plan (feat. Action Bronson)
A4/4. Palisades, CA (feat.Big Sean)
B1/5. Summer Reign (feat. Ty Dolla $ign)
B2/6. Orange Village (feat. Slum Village)
B3/7. Porsches in Spanish
B4/8. Art Talk (feat. Boldy James)
C1/9. Ocean Sounds
C2/10. Left No Evidence (feat. Evidence)
C3/11. What Happened To The World? (feat. Wiz Khalifa)
C4/12. Éxito (feat. Jay Worthy)
D1/13. 60 Days
D2/14. Barragán Lighting (feat. Joey Bada$$ & Curren$y)
D3/15. Margie's Candy House
More
The Great Escape is the debut collaborative album from San Francisco Legend, Larry June & prolific super producer, The Alchemist. Through a process that felt very organic, the two churned out an extra healthy amount of music that resulted in what may be their magnum opus. At 15 tracks, the album includes tasteful features from some of Hip-Hop's most celebrated figures; Action Bronson, Big Sean, Ty Dolla $ign, Slum Village, Boldy James, Evidence, Wiz Khalifa, Jay Worthy, Curren$y & Joey Bada$$. Like a fine wine, sit back, let it breathe, and enjoy the neat yet exquisitely rich complexities of two of Hip-Hop's smoothest figures.
Key Marketing/Selling:
- Larry June & The Alchemist are each extremely respected and notable individual artists in the Hip-Hop community
- Album activations in LA, SF, CDMX and NY during release week, with multiple exclusive merch drops planned alongside each release
- The Alchemist routinely sells out of physical product on each drop - CD/CS/LP
- Larry June's previous releases, Orange Print & Spaceships On The Blade, have done exceptionally well at retail
- The Alchemist has put together some of the most sought after physical releases over the last 3+ years
- All production is handled by The Alchemist, with additional production on Track 6 by frequent Griselda collaborator, Beat Butcha
- Features include notable rap luminaries Action Bronson, Big Sean, Slum Village, Ty Dolla $ign, Boldly James, Evidence, Wiz Khalifa, Jay Worthy, Joey Bada$$, & Curren$y
- Extensive press write ups published throughout album rollout such as Rolling Stone, HipHopDX, Billboard, Okayplayer, The Source, BrooklynVegan, Yahoo, Vibe
- Extensive outdoor campaign with multiple billboards secured from all major DSPs
- Each single has been featured and placed on numerous playlists and obtained multiple playlist covers across all DSPs
- Multiple videos released with more on the way
- "Making of" Documentary released in support of album rollout
- 89 Earthquake has over 2.3M streams on Spotify alone since release on 3/1/23 (3/29/23)
- 47 date nationwide tour planned in support of the album, with multiple dates already sold out and additional shows already added. European dates are expected to follow shortly
- Larry June has over 3.3M monthly listeners on Spotify
- The Alchemist has over 6.8M monthly listeners on Spotify
Tracklist:
A1/1. Turkish Cotton
A2/2. 89 Earthquake
A3/3. Solid Plan (feat. Action Bronson)
A4/4. Palisades, CA (feat.Big Sean)
B1/5. Summer Reign (feat. Ty Dolla $ign)
B2/6. Orange Village (feat. Slum Village)
B3/7. Porsches in Spanish
B4/8. Art Talk (feat. Boldy James)
C1/9. Ocean Sounds
C2/10. Left No Evidence (feat. Evidence)
C3/11. What Happened To The World? (feat. Wiz Khalifa)
C4/12. Éxito (feat. Jay Worthy)
D1/13. 60 Days
D2/14. Barragán Lighting (feat. Joey Bada$$ & Curren$y)
D3/15. Margie's Candy House
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1
Jan Jelinek - Moiré (Piano & Organ)
2
Jan Jelinek - Rock In The Video Age
3
Jan Jelinek - They, Them
4
Jan Jelinek - Them, Their
5
Jan Jelinek - Tendency
6
Jan Jelinek - Moiré (Strings)
7
Jan Jelinek - Do Dekor
8
Jan Jelinek - Drift
9
Jan Jelinek - Moiré (Guitar & Horns)
10
Jan Jelinek - Poren
Repress!
In February 2021, Jan Jelinek's seminal album "Loop-Finding-Jazz-Records" turned 20. The anniversary repress, a double LP with two bonus tracks (B-sides from the Tendency EP, 2000), is a little late to the party.
What the press said about Loop-Finding-Jazz-Records:
“Don’t be misled by the title, though for there isn’t a finger-snapping rhythm c bebop lead anywhere on the album. Instead, Jelinek chooses to explore the visual effect moiré - two shifting patterns creating an implied third dimension - in the audio realm.” (Alternative Press)
“The title acts as explanation for the studio technique that provided the basis for this album, snippets of other people’s arrangements deconstructed through a sampler into loops and then splashed onto an audio canvas.” (ATM)
“Jelinek’s sound evolved out of his dislike for (and inability to play) keyboards.” (RPM)
“Jelinek has abstracted his sources beyond recognition, looping his millisecond samples into flickering patterns of sonic moiré laid atop a dub Techno framework. (...) Jelinek might as well have sampled a horn player’s hissing intake of breath – it would have been ‘jazz’ enough for his purposes.“ (The Wire)
“It’s a perfect inversion of conventional music, a sonic negative. Everything that would typically be foreground is moved back or pushed off the screen altogether, and the flecks of sonic debris that would normally be covered by other sounds are left to carry the melody and rhythm.” (Pitchfork)
“All you need to know is that these onomatopoeic non-specific songs (...) are warm, paradisical creations”. (NME)
“Listen carefully and you’ll hear textures slowly unfolding and mutating. Presuming you’ve not fallen asleep of course.” (iDJ)
“At times, it’s all a bit dripping tap Japanese water torture; so sedentary it drowns in its own motionlessness” (DJ)
“Loop Finding Jazz Records' is a genuine modern classic whose re-release is anything but a cynical mortgage repayment exercise. Consider this a second chance, then pretend you had it all along.” (Boomkat)
PS:
“I’ve been fortunate enough to see Jan Jelinek live once, at Tonic NYC (...). Wearing a black and white striped shirt, he looked like a nihilistic Charlie Brown.” (beachsloth) More
In February 2021, Jan Jelinek's seminal album "Loop-Finding-Jazz-Records" turned 20. The anniversary repress, a double LP with two bonus tracks (B-sides from the Tendency EP, 2000), is a little late to the party.
What the press said about Loop-Finding-Jazz-Records:
“Don’t be misled by the title, though for there isn’t a finger-snapping rhythm c bebop lead anywhere on the album. Instead, Jelinek chooses to explore the visual effect moiré - two shifting patterns creating an implied third dimension - in the audio realm.” (Alternative Press)
“The title acts as explanation for the studio technique that provided the basis for this album, snippets of other people’s arrangements deconstructed through a sampler into loops and then splashed onto an audio canvas.” (ATM)
“Jelinek’s sound evolved out of his dislike for (and inability to play) keyboards.” (RPM)
“Jelinek has abstracted his sources beyond recognition, looping his millisecond samples into flickering patterns of sonic moiré laid atop a dub Techno framework. (...) Jelinek might as well have sampled a horn player’s hissing intake of breath – it would have been ‘jazz’ enough for his purposes.“ (The Wire)
“It’s a perfect inversion of conventional music, a sonic negative. Everything that would typically be foreground is moved back or pushed off the screen altogether, and the flecks of sonic debris that would normally be covered by other sounds are left to carry the melody and rhythm.” (Pitchfork)
“All you need to know is that these onomatopoeic non-specific songs (...) are warm, paradisical creations”. (NME)
“Listen carefully and you’ll hear textures slowly unfolding and mutating. Presuming you’ve not fallen asleep of course.” (iDJ)
“At times, it’s all a bit dripping tap Japanese water torture; so sedentary it drowns in its own motionlessness” (DJ)
“Loop Finding Jazz Records' is a genuine modern classic whose re-release is anything but a cynical mortgage repayment exercise. Consider this a second chance, then pretend you had it all along.” (Boomkat)
PS:
“I’ve been fortunate enough to see Jan Jelinek live once, at Tonic NYC (...). Wearing a black and white striped shirt, he looked like a nihilistic Charlie Brown.” (beachsloth) More
1
Tommy Guerrero - And The Folklore Continues
2
Tommy Guerrero - La Califas Perdido
3
Tommy Guerrero - I Would Go With You
4
Tommy Guerrero - No Time For Time
5
Tommy Guerrero - Calling For Ya!
6
Tommy Guerrero - Bloodinthemud
7
Tommy Guerrero - Zapata's Boots
8
Tommy Guerrero - Mosaic Man
9
Tommy Guerrero - What Have I Been Doing Since I Was Gone?
10
Tommy Guerrero - Paper Switchblade
11
Tommy Guerrero - Never Forget To Remember
12
Tommy Guerrero - Run With The Hunted
13
Tommy Guerrero - New Terrain
14
Tommy Guerrero - 40 Summers
15
Tommy Guerrero - The Simple Man
Format Notes:
Part of Be With x Tommy Guerrero Reissue Campaign, 2024 first time vinyl reissue, 140g vinyl
Track List:
A1 And The Folklore Continues
A2 La Califas Perdido
A3 I Would Go With You
A4 No Time For Time
A5 Calling For Ya!
A6 Bloodinthemud
A7 Zapata's Boots
A8 Mosaic Man
B1 What Have I Been Doing Since I Was Gone?
B2 Paper Switchblade
B3 Never Forget To Remember
B4 Run With The Hunted
B5 New Terrain
B6 40 Summers
B7 The Simple Man
Release Notes:
Yes! Tommy Guerrero’s revered Return Of The Bastard gets its first ever vinyl reissue. Endearingly simple but beautifully beguiling, it's lo-fi dusty break business with the most elegant guitars this side of Vini Reilly and Gabor Szabo. Tommy's breezy drum-machine guitar-soul should be prescribed to soothe an aching world. By rights, he should also be a Balearic god. Here's 14 tracks of drop-dead laconic beauty, all of them combining to create this unheralded masterpiece. Working with Tommy directly, the LP has been fully remastered and sounds as dazzlingly, heartbreakingly beautiful as it did back in 2007.
Coolly opening the album, "And The Folklore Continues" can be said to be both a titular and actual nod to his past work. As ever, there's heavenly Latin guitar stylings that make you swoon and the melancholic vibe is accentuated by the addition of some melodic wordless vocals from Tommy. Just divine. The sparkling "La Califas Perdido" follows, all dreamy melodic guitars and twinkling vibes over dusty drums and a fine bassline. The shuffling, conga-assisted "I Would Go With You" is a gentle, romantic gem whilst the brief but beautiful "No Time For Time" feels in a hurry to let us know that Tommy can work with more propulsive rhythms. In this case, they underpin Tommy's gorgeous, shimmering guitars wonderfully well.
The head-nod funk of "Calling For Ya!" (get it?) features Curumin delivering the clever title as a hypnotic vocal refrain peppered throughout, all hung around some buried spoken word vocals and gorgeous cello work from Lenny Gonzalez. "Bloodinthemud" is a low-down gritty funk workout whilst "Zapata's Boots" is a total low-key groover, all Latin percussion and Morricone muscle aided by a whistled Spaghetti Western melody. The startling instrumental "Mosaic Man" closes out the side with a lean slice of mellifluous, virtuoso guitar bliss.
The reflective "What Have I Been Doing Since I Was Gone?" opens the B-side in glorious fashion, the type of melancholic melodic head music that should soundtrack a bright walk on a cold winter's day. The hypnotic groover "Paper Switchblade" is a razor-sharp fuzz-funk whilst the beautifully downbeat "Never Forget To Remember" is a kaleidoscopic kalimba-koolout. Galloping cop-funk breaks workout "Run With The Hunted" is a rollicking ride and it's followed by the fresh chiming guitar funk of "New Terrain".
The upbeat and bright "40 Summers", featuring congas from Alfredo Ortiz, is as clean and poppy as Tommy gets and it really is a look he wears incredibly well. Just straight up guitar pop. "The Simple Man" a gorgeous, melancholic ballad, closes out the record with deeply yearning vocals from Tommy, a rarity and a treasured one at that.
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. The original and iconic sleeve, designed by Natas Kaupas, has been restored here at Be With HQ as the finishing touch to this long overdue re-issue. More
Part of Be With x Tommy Guerrero Reissue Campaign, 2024 first time vinyl reissue, 140g vinyl
Track List:
A1 And The Folklore Continues
A2 La Califas Perdido
A3 I Would Go With You
A4 No Time For Time
A5 Calling For Ya!
A6 Bloodinthemud
A7 Zapata's Boots
A8 Mosaic Man
B1 What Have I Been Doing Since I Was Gone?
B2 Paper Switchblade
B3 Never Forget To Remember
B4 Run With The Hunted
B5 New Terrain
B6 40 Summers
B7 The Simple Man
Release Notes:
Yes! Tommy Guerrero’s revered Return Of The Bastard gets its first ever vinyl reissue. Endearingly simple but beautifully beguiling, it's lo-fi dusty break business with the most elegant guitars this side of Vini Reilly and Gabor Szabo. Tommy's breezy drum-machine guitar-soul should be prescribed to soothe an aching world. By rights, he should also be a Balearic god. Here's 14 tracks of drop-dead laconic beauty, all of them combining to create this unheralded masterpiece. Working with Tommy directly, the LP has been fully remastered and sounds as dazzlingly, heartbreakingly beautiful as it did back in 2007.
Coolly opening the album, "And The Folklore Continues" can be said to be both a titular and actual nod to his past work. As ever, there's heavenly Latin guitar stylings that make you swoon and the melancholic vibe is accentuated by the addition of some melodic wordless vocals from Tommy. Just divine. The sparkling "La Califas Perdido" follows, all dreamy melodic guitars and twinkling vibes over dusty drums and a fine bassline. The shuffling, conga-assisted "I Would Go With You" is a gentle, romantic gem whilst the brief but beautiful "No Time For Time" feels in a hurry to let us know that Tommy can work with more propulsive rhythms. In this case, they underpin Tommy's gorgeous, shimmering guitars wonderfully well.
The head-nod funk of "Calling For Ya!" (get it?) features Curumin delivering the clever title as a hypnotic vocal refrain peppered throughout, all hung around some buried spoken word vocals and gorgeous cello work from Lenny Gonzalez. "Bloodinthemud" is a low-down gritty funk workout whilst "Zapata's Boots" is a total low-key groover, all Latin percussion and Morricone muscle aided by a whistled Spaghetti Western melody. The startling instrumental "Mosaic Man" closes out the side with a lean slice of mellifluous, virtuoso guitar bliss.
The reflective "What Have I Been Doing Since I Was Gone?" opens the B-side in glorious fashion, the type of melancholic melodic head music that should soundtrack a bright walk on a cold winter's day. The hypnotic groover "Paper Switchblade" is a razor-sharp fuzz-funk whilst the beautifully downbeat "Never Forget To Remember" is a kaleidoscopic kalimba-koolout. Galloping cop-funk breaks workout "Run With The Hunted" is a rollicking ride and it's followed by the fresh chiming guitar funk of "New Terrain".
The upbeat and bright "40 Summers", featuring congas from Alfredo Ortiz, is as clean and poppy as Tommy gets and it really is a look he wears incredibly well. Just straight up guitar pop. "The Simple Man" a gorgeous, melancholic ballad, closes out the record with deeply yearning vocals from Tommy, a rarity and a treasured one at that.
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. The original and iconic sleeve, designed by Natas Kaupas, has been restored here at Be With HQ as the finishing touch to this long overdue re-issue. More
1
Various - Infinite Legs
2
Various - Axis
3
Various - Illusion
4
Various - Le Rève
5
Various - Probus Quadrat
6
Various - Timeless ...
7
Various - Boggle This
8
Various - Emotions
Chicago? Absolutely! Detroit? Definitely! For many, however, a significant chapter in the coming-of-age story of House music was also written in The Netherlands.
This 8-track compilation is the result of a nationwide search for lost Digital Audio Tapes (DAT’s), dusty home-studio recordings, and other relics from those early days. The distinctive "House" sound eventually evolved into a rainbow of local styles and grooves. Back then, DJ’s played their heart out and didn’t limit themselves to any particular musical genre. Following that spirit, this compilation contains everything that makes the Dutch sound so special, from energetic Breaks to atmospheric Deep House.
These are not your usual suspects, not even the most revered diggers have this collection at their fingertips. It's raw, pure material from the time when house parties were fresh and dirty at the same time. Back when the only dress code was a wide smile from ear to ear. Four sides with two tracks each, ensuring maximum DJ enjoyment. Now get out there and spread the Dutch 90's House vibes! More
This 8-track compilation is the result of a nationwide search for lost Digital Audio Tapes (DAT’s), dusty home-studio recordings, and other relics from those early days. The distinctive "House" sound eventually evolved into a rainbow of local styles and grooves. Back then, DJ’s played their heart out and didn’t limit themselves to any particular musical genre. Following that spirit, this compilation contains everything that makes the Dutch sound so special, from energetic Breaks to atmospheric Deep House.
These are not your usual suspects, not even the most revered diggers have this collection at their fingertips. It's raw, pure material from the time when house parties were fresh and dirty at the same time. Back when the only dress code was a wide smile from ear to ear. Four sides with two tracks each, ensuring maximum DJ enjoyment. Now get out there and spread the Dutch 90's House vibes! More
Label:Be With Records
Cat-No:bewith157lp
Release-Date:07.06.2024
Genre:HipHop/Rap/Urban
Configuration:2LP Excl
Label:Be With Records
Cat-No:bewith157lp
Release-Date:07.06.2024
Genre:HipHop/Rap/Urban
Configuration:2LP Excl
1
Superstar Quamallah - Mr. Righteous (Intro) (0:35)
2
Superstar Quamallah - You Need Knowledge (3:45)
3
Superstar Quamallah - 88 Soul (3:12)
4
Superstar Quamallah - Black Shakespeare (3:02)
5
Superstar Quamallah - For My People...It's Spiritual (2:55)
6
Superstar Quamallah - Lonely At The Top (3:56)
7
Superstar Quamallah - Just Listen (4:05)
8
Superstar Quamallah - California Dreamin' (4:33)
9
Superstar Quamallah - Purity (3:59)
10
Superstar Quamallah - Kunta Kente (4:20)
11
Superstar Quamallah - 1993 Shit (3:49)
12
Superstar Quamallah - We Got Plots (3:38)
13
Superstar Quamallah - Do Win-Dis (4:11)
14
Superstar Quamallah - Hope She Remembers Me (3:15)
Format Notes: 2024 first time vinyl release, 140g double vinyl, remastered audio with restored artwork
Track List:
A1 Mr. Righteous (Intro) 0:35
A2 You Need Knowledge 3:45
A3 88 Soul 3:12
A4 Black Shakespeare 3:02
B1 For My People...It's Spiritual 2:55
B2 Lonely At The Top 3:56
B3 Just Listen 4:05
B4 California Dreamin' 4:33
C1 Purity 3:59
C2 Kunta Kente 4:20
C3 1993 Shit 3:49
D1 We Got Plots 3:38
D2 Do Win-Dis 4:11
D3 Hope She Remembers Me 3:15
Release Notes:
Holy grail hip-hop alert! Superstar Quamallah's Invisible Man was never released on wax so, to celebrate the 15th anniversary of this astounding record, we present the first ever vinyl edition. A stunning record which gained accolades upon its initial release, such as a prominent feature on Gilles Peterson's renowned Best Of 2009 show, it's one of the most essential jazz rap albums of all time. Cut across double vinyl, it’s exceedingly limited, with just 500 pressed for the world.
Deep jazz rap on that mellow-melodic tip, Invisible Man is an unforgettable album with nothing but dope beats and dope bars. There's a strong chance this album has passed you by but we truly believe it to be a lost hip-hop masterpiece. It supremely captures the essence of a golden age classic without being slavish to the past. No, this ain't some facile throwback rap. It's a fresh and deeply soulful, original album shot through straight from the heart. Perfect to chill to, Invisible Man is profoundly jazz-oriented and captures with simplicity and sincerity the essence of hip-hop circa 1983-1994. It sounds like vibing with your nearest, dearest and oldest friends on a long hot summer night as the tantalising thought that anything is possible fills the air. You know what, we can just call this "magic hour rap" and we think you'll know what we mean. It's just beautiful. Just Listen.
Brooklyn-born, California-based emcee, DJ, and producer Superstar Quamallah was active in the West Coast underground scene throughout the 90s and recorded extensively with such revered names as Defari and Tajai. His parents were some serious artistic heavyweights, too; his father was soul organist Big John Patton, a giant in the jazz world known for his releases on Blue Note whilst his mother was an active designer. However, he remains relatively unknown. Invisible Man, named ostensibly after the classic Ralph Ellison novel, could also refer to how he is viewed by the public at large. With close affiliations to the Hieroglyphics, Dilated Peoples and Likwit crew, his debut EP "Don't Call Me John" arrived in 1999 on ABB Records, after which he took a sabbatical from recording which included graduate school, travelling, teaching at Inglewood High and eventually a professorship of African Studies at Berkeley.
With a laidback flow and deep, relaxing presence on the mic, Superstar Quamallah is equal parts Big Daddy Kane, Rakim and Guru. Invisible Man is refined, soulful, feel-good hip-hop of the old school. Its wise, spiritual and literate sound, combined with the summertime vibes projected by the smooth beats and the nostalgia-inducing samples and vocal scratches, created jazzy boom-bap rap reminiscent of prime De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest and Gang Starr.
Irresistibly bouncing opener "You Need Knowledge" loops sparkling pianos, horns and a nagging whistle refrain with scratched vocal refrains from Slick Rick, Mobb Deep and Guru. The super-smooth head-nod classic "88 Soul" also utilises a beautifully swelling piano line and dusty breaks whilst Quamé reminisces about his childhood in NYC. Deeply moving, the silky, sultry "Black Shakespeare" is built around an elegant piano loop and goes hard on the superman lover tip whilst "For My People...It's Spiritual" is transcendental rap in conversation with Rakim and older gods. The "Moment Of Truth"-sampling "Lonely At The Top" is striking for its undiluted boom-bap stylings and the staccato flute-hop of "Just Listen" is riddled with soulful refinement. The deeply-affecting, wistful-yet-triumphant bells and horn-drenched single "California Dreamin'" is top-tier rap of unimpeachable quality. What a flow!
Another highlight is the rich melodic piano-rap of "Purity", a beautiful ode to the foundations of rap and those keeping the culture authentically alive. Beautifully played instruments and spiritual jazz samples elevate the deep thinking present on "Kunta Kente" whilst the darker jazz-tinged battle-rap of "93 Shit" goes super hard both in a lyrical sense and with its no-holds drum punches. The breezy Rhodes and string loops that serve as the sonic backdrop to the slinky jazz rap of "We Got Plots" are just gorgeous as our hero evokes Common's "I Used To Love H.E.R." with a head-spinning tale of crime, deception and double crossing. And some twist! "Do Win-Dis" has a tense crime-funk backing and rolling beats which complement Quamé's flow perfectly before the record is rounded out by the tough yet jazzy brilliance of rap confessional "Hope She Remembers Me". Just sensational.
Upon its original release, Quamallah himself declared: "My favorite time period for Hip Hop music was definitely between 1983 and 1994 with 1988 and 1993 being two years that standout as extremely impressive years musically and culturally. The fashion, slang, movies, TV shows and vibe during those years was incredible. While totally submerged in the feelings and music of that entire time period, I went to work on Invisible Man and I am excited for people to hear the result! It is an album that I would want to hear from some of my favorite artists of the past and present today. This is not a RETRO trip for me; this is me at my best lyrically and spiritually using the accessories of the 80s and 90s to fuel me. I am a 88 soul as the song states!"
This album goes deep. It goes all in. When Invisible Man first came out it had a real hold on us here at Be With HQ. We couldn't stop listening to it. We'd venture to say it's one of the top 25 rap records of the 2000s. In the years since its release, it has remained a criminally underrated record, an increasingly hidden gem. We sincerely hope this first time double LP release will go some way to correct this. It's been mastered for vinyl by Simon Francis, cut by Cicely Balston and pressed at Record Industry. Finally available on the format it should always have been on, it must never be rendered invisible again.
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Track List:
A1 Mr. Righteous (Intro) 0:35
A2 You Need Knowledge 3:45
A3 88 Soul 3:12
A4 Black Shakespeare 3:02
B1 For My People...It's Spiritual 2:55
B2 Lonely At The Top 3:56
B3 Just Listen 4:05
B4 California Dreamin' 4:33
C1 Purity 3:59
C2 Kunta Kente 4:20
C3 1993 Shit 3:49
D1 We Got Plots 3:38
D2 Do Win-Dis 4:11
D3 Hope She Remembers Me 3:15
Release Notes:
Holy grail hip-hop alert! Superstar Quamallah's Invisible Man was never released on wax so, to celebrate the 15th anniversary of this astounding record, we present the first ever vinyl edition. A stunning record which gained accolades upon its initial release, such as a prominent feature on Gilles Peterson's renowned Best Of 2009 show, it's one of the most essential jazz rap albums of all time. Cut across double vinyl, it’s exceedingly limited, with just 500 pressed for the world.
Deep jazz rap on that mellow-melodic tip, Invisible Man is an unforgettable album with nothing but dope beats and dope bars. There's a strong chance this album has passed you by but we truly believe it to be a lost hip-hop masterpiece. It supremely captures the essence of a golden age classic without being slavish to the past. No, this ain't some facile throwback rap. It's a fresh and deeply soulful, original album shot through straight from the heart. Perfect to chill to, Invisible Man is profoundly jazz-oriented and captures with simplicity and sincerity the essence of hip-hop circa 1983-1994. It sounds like vibing with your nearest, dearest and oldest friends on a long hot summer night as the tantalising thought that anything is possible fills the air. You know what, we can just call this "magic hour rap" and we think you'll know what we mean. It's just beautiful. Just Listen.
Brooklyn-born, California-based emcee, DJ, and producer Superstar Quamallah was active in the West Coast underground scene throughout the 90s and recorded extensively with such revered names as Defari and Tajai. His parents were some serious artistic heavyweights, too; his father was soul organist Big John Patton, a giant in the jazz world known for his releases on Blue Note whilst his mother was an active designer. However, he remains relatively unknown. Invisible Man, named ostensibly after the classic Ralph Ellison novel, could also refer to how he is viewed by the public at large. With close affiliations to the Hieroglyphics, Dilated Peoples and Likwit crew, his debut EP "Don't Call Me John" arrived in 1999 on ABB Records, after which he took a sabbatical from recording which included graduate school, travelling, teaching at Inglewood High and eventually a professorship of African Studies at Berkeley.
With a laidback flow and deep, relaxing presence on the mic, Superstar Quamallah is equal parts Big Daddy Kane, Rakim and Guru. Invisible Man is refined, soulful, feel-good hip-hop of the old school. Its wise, spiritual and literate sound, combined with the summertime vibes projected by the smooth beats and the nostalgia-inducing samples and vocal scratches, created jazzy boom-bap rap reminiscent of prime De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest and Gang Starr.
Irresistibly bouncing opener "You Need Knowledge" loops sparkling pianos, horns and a nagging whistle refrain with scratched vocal refrains from Slick Rick, Mobb Deep and Guru. The super-smooth head-nod classic "88 Soul" also utilises a beautifully swelling piano line and dusty breaks whilst Quamé reminisces about his childhood in NYC. Deeply moving, the silky, sultry "Black Shakespeare" is built around an elegant piano loop and goes hard on the superman lover tip whilst "For My People...It's Spiritual" is transcendental rap in conversation with Rakim and older gods. The "Moment Of Truth"-sampling "Lonely At The Top" is striking for its undiluted boom-bap stylings and the staccato flute-hop of "Just Listen" is riddled with soulful refinement. The deeply-affecting, wistful-yet-triumphant bells and horn-drenched single "California Dreamin'" is top-tier rap of unimpeachable quality. What a flow!
Another highlight is the rich melodic piano-rap of "Purity", a beautiful ode to the foundations of rap and those keeping the culture authentically alive. Beautifully played instruments and spiritual jazz samples elevate the deep thinking present on "Kunta Kente" whilst the darker jazz-tinged battle-rap of "93 Shit" goes super hard both in a lyrical sense and with its no-holds drum punches. The breezy Rhodes and string loops that serve as the sonic backdrop to the slinky jazz rap of "We Got Plots" are just gorgeous as our hero evokes Common's "I Used To Love H.E.R." with a head-spinning tale of crime, deception and double crossing. And some twist! "Do Win-Dis" has a tense crime-funk backing and rolling beats which complement Quamé's flow perfectly before the record is rounded out by the tough yet jazzy brilliance of rap confessional "Hope She Remembers Me". Just sensational.
Upon its original release, Quamallah himself declared: "My favorite time period for Hip Hop music was definitely between 1983 and 1994 with 1988 and 1993 being two years that standout as extremely impressive years musically and culturally. The fashion, slang, movies, TV shows and vibe during those years was incredible. While totally submerged in the feelings and music of that entire time period, I went to work on Invisible Man and I am excited for people to hear the result! It is an album that I would want to hear from some of my favorite artists of the past and present today. This is not a RETRO trip for me; this is me at my best lyrically and spiritually using the accessories of the 80s and 90s to fuel me. I am a 88 soul as the song states!"
This album goes deep. It goes all in. When Invisible Man first came out it had a real hold on us here at Be With HQ. We couldn't stop listening to it. We'd venture to say it's one of the top 25 rap records of the 2000s. In the years since its release, it has remained a criminally underrated record, an increasingly hidden gem. We sincerely hope this first time double LP release will go some way to correct this. It's been mastered for vinyl by Simon Francis, cut by Cicely Balston and pressed at Record Industry. Finally available on the format it should always have been on, it must never be rendered invisible again.
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1
Model 500 - Sonic Sunset (Calm Mix)
2
Model 500 - Sonic Sunset (Cave Mix)
3
Model 500 - Neptune
4
Model 500 - I Wanna Be There
5
Model 500 - Sonic Sunset (Third Wave Mix)
Legendary and genre-defining Detroit label Metroplex Records is keeping on with its run of carefully selected releases from its classic-studded catalogue. The remastering and recut was done with uttermost care, using the newest mastering and audio-restoration technologies. These Techno and Electro benchmarks, taken from original sources, have never sounded better. Originally released in 1994 'Sonic Sunset' runs at over 50 minutes over five tracks that explore ambient electronica, techno and even trance. It includes the long versions of 'Neptune' and 'I Wanna Be There' two bonafide Model 500 classics. Recorded in Berlin and engineered by Maurice Von Oswald.
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