2025 Repress Edition

Tracklist:

A1 Deeper Fundamentals
A2 Time & Place
B1 Stolen Memories
B2 On Arrival

Short Info:

Part 1 of the Forthcoming Deeper Fundamentals series.




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This killer EP from Samuel Dan starts as it means to go on with the massive Sample Loops, and has been custom-made to keep those hands in the air.
An infectious, bouncing bassline ebbs and flows through the track, while the tight percussion will keep those feet pounding the floor.
Octad and Phiorio take the controls for the third track. Their remix of Wake Up Call is stripped down and funked up. Like a prime Larry Levan cut,
funk, disco and house collide but without the mix ever becoming cluttered. The elements are used sparingly and to devastating effect.
Last but not lease we get Samuel's original mix in which the brass instruments take centre stage, with trumpets heralding deep bass grooves.
They're going to be rocking this one down in the Treme. Bring on the summer! To finish off this EP in style, here's the floor-filling Back Home.
Its immense builds and eminently catchy hooks are guaranteed to spread smiles across the dancefloor like a disease.

A1: Sample Loops
A2: Wake Up Call
B1: Wake Up Call (Octad & Phiorio Forse Remix)
B2: Back Home





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Exclusive 5x12” luxurious 5x12" box set with a spectral-reflective foil finish

Tracklisting:
Vinyl 1
1. (A1) Jonathan Kaspar – Her (DE-Q20-25-00019)
2. (B1) Robag Wruhme – Ratibor Numida (DE-Q20-25-00020)
3. (B2) ja:cK - Neverland (DE-Q20-25-00021)
Vinyl 2
4. (A1) Butch – Straight Tripping (DE-Q20-25-00022)
5. (B1) Josh Wink – Self Acceptance (DE-Q20-25-00023)
6. (B2) Raxon – Believe In Mi (DE-Q20-25-00024)
Vinyl 3
7. (A1) Dino Lenny – Sayonara Chicago (DE-Q20-25-00026)
8. (B1) Extrawelt – Mindwear (DE-Q20-25-00027)
9. (B2) Frank Sonic & Dist_42 – Silberschwein (DE-Q20-25-00028)
Vinyl 4
10. (A1) Guy J – Alive Again (DE-Q20-25-00029)
11. (B1) Riccardo De Polo – Melancholia (DE-Q20-25-00031)
12. (B2) Johannes Volk – Vaporized Memories (DE-Q20-25-00032)
Vinyl 5
13. (A1) Harvey McKay – Tears In Rain (DE-Q20-25-00033)
14. (B1) Damiano Von Erckert - Mad Man (I told you what I know) (DE-Q20-25-00034)
14. (B2) Fedele - Zommerfest 25 (DE-Q20-25-00035)

25 Years Cocoon Recordings – Volume One

For its 25th anniversary, Cocoon Recordings returns to its roots with an elaborate vinyl LP box set, marking the first part of a two-volume anniversary project. 25 Years Cocoon Recordings – Volume
One brings together exclusive contributions from international artists who have defined the sound and diversity of the label over the past two decades, complemented by fresh talents who are helping to shape its future.
Over the span of 25 years, Cocoon Recordings has created a catalog that now comprises hundreds of releases, 12-inches, albums, mix CDs, and iconic compilation box sets, always bridging past, present, and future. While firmly rooted in techno and house, the label has also provided space for electronica,
ambient, and other evolving genres.
25 Years Cocoon Recordings – Volume One is more than just a compilation. It is both a homage to the label’s history and a glimpse into what lies ahead. With exclusive tracks that embody the Cocoon sound in all its depth and complexity, this release marks a milestone in the legacy of one of electronic
music’s most influential labels, arguably the strongest compilation in Cocoon’s history. To mark this special occasion, Sven Väth’s label presents the first of two carefully curated volumes, uniting 15 exclusive tracks from international artists in celebration of nearly three decades of Cocoon
Recordings. The luxurious 5x12" box set features a spectral-reflective foil finish and includes contributions from renowned names such as Butch, Robag Wruhme, Josh Wink, Guy J, and Dino Lenny, alongside longtime companions of the label including Extrawelt, Harvey McKay, Johannes
Volk, and Raxon. New discoveries of recent years, Jonathan Kaspar and Riccardo De Polo, enrich the release in their own distinctive ways. The compilation is completed by the unmistakable talents of Damiano von Erckert, Fedele, and ja:ck, who provide the perfect conclusion to the first of two parts.
This release sets the stage for what's next: a daring diptych where musical voices emerge, shining with originality and passion, carrying the spirit forward. The story is just beginning. Something special is on the horizon. One can only wonder which artists will shine on the second chapter.


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Tracklist:
A STILL LIQUID
B KUTSCHER


Foehn & Jerome. The duo that does what duo's do best. Born in Austria and based in Berlin, Fabian and Christopher not only produce together, but also perform as a DJ team and run their own label entitled "Perfumed Freedom".


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Artwork and Typography by Stefan Marx

We are very happy to welcome Lb Honne from Switzerland to the Smallville circle, bringing a superb 4-tracker for the special dancefloors. Including a full Cover Artwork by Stefan Marx.


Tracklist:

A1 Brücke
A2 Not Tonight
B1 Deeper
B2 Rue Du Belfort

All tracks written & produced by Lb Honne
Vinyl cut by Helmut Erler at Lathesville


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Format Notes:

2025 first time vinyl release, 140g vinyl


Track List:


A1 It Couldn't Be You
A2 You Can't Hide Always
A3 We'll Make It Again

B1 Walk Straight Ahead
B2 Painting My Life Blue
B3 Just Two Lovers

Release Notes:


Wally Badarou is a synth pioneer and musical polymath. But rarely does he sing over his sumptuous tracks. The 6 songs that comprise new record Simple Things finally realise Wally's vision for select backing tracks from his beloved Colors Of Silence.

The tracks were originally developed back in 2001 for the release of the original CD; here, Wally has “simply" added overdubs and vocals to their mastered mixes with some discerning edits. Simply put, Simple Things is another slice of simply stunning Wally Badarou genius.

Simple Things has been decades in the making. Indeed, Wally struggled not only with the idea of singing these wonderful songs himself but singing them in English and writing his own lyrics, while wrestling with the sensational backing tracks, which themselves seemed to have taken on a life of their own.

As Wally explained to us: "In addition to the instrumental artist I have been known as, so far, there has always been a singer who simply was not sure he was, up until now. Even though “Back To Scales Tonight”, my very first album, was, indeed, a song album."

Opener "It Couldn't Be You" embellishes the uptempo groove of soca-funk gem "The Lights Of Kinshasa". As Wally explained to us, it's about “a simple love story somewhere, one rainy night, under the lights of Kinshasa. A woman, a man, online dating, quite usual in our times. Then they meet, almost missing each other." The guide vocal Wally had laid for Colors Of Silence - with an organ sound - seemed striving for words in Linguala, a Congolese language he could not speak. Therefore the decision to do it himself was not an easy one, for it had to be in English to fit his singing. We think it turned out pretty good!

"You Can't Hide Always" vocalises Wally's deep concerns set to the propulsive "Smiles By The Millions": "Populism, ostracism, radicalism, ethics and values all turned upside down worldwide, are they all inevitably exacerbated by our social networks? It could all melt down one day, like a house of cards in the ocean of fake news and false prophecies”. Wally wanted to keep the track as bare as possible but, inevitably, the backing vocals and the synth-brass arrive ultimately to present a welcome 70s flavour, with no snare-drum added.

The bright and breezy "We'll Make It Again" adds vocals to "Where Were We", a tropical, reggae-tinged bounce through the islands. Here's Waly: "Where were we when we last said: "I love you"? Simple words to express something quite common, but never quite simple to deal with. A simple song about the resilience of the broken hearts.” The reggae came from it being conceived when Wally was scoring for “Third World Cop”, a 1999 Jamaican action movie.

"Walk Straight Ahead" provides Wally's gorgeous, contemplative and idiosyncratic vocals to the deep serenity of Colors Of Silence highlight, "Amber Whispers". It's a gliding, divine, mini melodic masterpiece. It'll make you swoon in its extreme beauty. As Wally describes, "it started as just whispers, sweet amber whispers. Then the colour turned darker, as darker skies seemed to fall upon us while the whole world keeps on walking ahead, straight ahead, regardless of the blatant warnings, feeling much too comfortable in conformity. Initially, the verses were to be spoken only. I realised they could be sung all the while, without overshadowing the ethereal atmosphere." Amen.

The serene, celestial "Painting My Life Blue" presents the vocal version of "Days To Wonder". Says Wally, "how does it feel when your second half is gone after decades of riding life together? Past the temporary loss of your bearings, you come to realise you've been blind to the essential, and suddenly you can see...For this most intimate song of mine, I had tried to come up with a melody on top of the existing backing track, long before realising the melody was in the keyboard part already. It just needed to be properly mixed with it."

The profoundly emotional "Just Two Lovers" works up the formerly-too-brief and glorious "Crystal Falls" into a much fuller masterpiece and features acoustic guitar sparkle before fully glistening with some gentle head-nod percussion. Waly explains further: "Dear little green men, please tell me, what is it about us that makes you want to come and visit us so often (contrary to Fermi's assertion)? And here is the reply I believe I heard them sing: "You've got the key you've been searching for: Love”. I reverted to the initial backing track I had made around 1985, which already bore the melody, and which I added acoustic guitars to, before singing it." An astounding closer.

A synth specialist, there can be few artists more under-appreciated given their vast influence than Wally Badarou. His solo work practically defined the sound of the Balearic DJs of the 1980s, and thus the more sophisticated sound of dance culture thereafter. He was one of the Compass Point All Stars (with Sly and Robbie, Barry Reynolds, Mikey Chung and Uziah "Sticky" Thompson), the in-house recording team of Compass Point Studios responsible for a series of albums in the 1980s recorded by Grace Jones, Tom Tom Club, Mick Jagger, Black Uhuru, Gwen Guthrie, Jimmy Cliff and Gregory Isaacs. Badarou's keyboard playing could also be heard on albums by Robert Palmer, Marianne Faithfull, Herbie Hancock, M (Pop Muzik), Talking Heads, Manu Dibango and Miriam Makeba. He also produced Fela Kuti. Phew!

When we asked Wally about the significance of this collection's title, he explained: "These are "Simple things” that everyday’s life seems to build upon. The simplest are the harder to describe, but when satisfactorily described i.e. with simple words, they are the more genuine and authentic to express and share. I’ve immersed myself in other classic song lyrics, something I hardly did before, just to appreciate the genius behind the simple words they were made of, and had a great time studying how powerful they were in expressing complex ideas such as love."

Recording was twofold: first, most of the backing tracks were recorded in 2001, in Wally's studio in Normandy, mostly using hardware synths and Yamaha digital consoles. Then, he fine-tuned the melodies and wrote the lyrics in late 2023, then added some overdubs and sang them all during summer 2024. States Wally, "Digital Performer was and remains the DAW I’ve been using throughout, ever since the 80s."

Wally's sophisticated synth textures and expressive keyboard runs are so full of character, so full of life, that this work of art transcends any easy genre categorisation. Meticulously remastered and cut by both Simon Francis and Cicely Balston respectively, it has been pressed to the highest possibly quality at Record Industry in Holland. Sometimes, the simple things are the most extraordinary.

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