Two years after he first appeared on Balmat with 1977, Mike Paradinas returns with 1979. The sense of continuity between the two records is clear, and not just from their titles. Both capture the Planet Mu head venturing into the wilderness, seeking something—half-formed memories, thoughts caught in midair—in some of the most abstract, searching music he has released.

Just like 1977, 1979 surveys a synth-heavy array of ethereal soundscapes, ominous crevasses, and strange, psychedelic fugues. Like its predecessor, the new album’s atmospheric cast sets it apart from much of the work Paradinas has released as µ-Ziq on Planet Mu. It’s not strictly an ambient record, but it’s close, as close as this famously mutable artist ever comes to inhabiting a particular genre.

Paradinas’ inspiration for the record began on visits to the Spanish cities of Ávila and Majadahona, where his family hails from. That might account for the sense that there are spirits flitting through this music, presences you can intuit if not quite grasp. But 1979 is also a record to meet on your own terms, and to find your own meanings in.

It’s a stunning record, every track a world unto itself: the mysterious contours of “Majadahonda at Dawn”; the playful melodic fillips of “Clari”; the airy melancholy of “Galletas”; the full-scale breakbeat abandon (yes, you read that right) of “Houzz 14,” the rarest of dancefloor detours for Balmat. There are echoes of classic braindance and isolationist ambient and golden-age IDM; there are easter eggs and recurring themes and hidden symmetries. Every time we listen, we discover something new. Despite what the title might suggest, it’s less a trip back in time than a portal to another universe, a destination for(to?) which only Mike Paradinas knows the exact coordinates. – Philip Sherburne, Balmat

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Landmark vaporwave album that defined the genre’s visual and sonic identity.
• Includes the iconic track “420” — the most recognized song in vaporwave history.
• High-quality vinyl pressing
• A must-have for collectors of internet-era electronica, ambient, and conceptual art releases.

The cult around Vektroid's genre-defining album as Macintosh Plus prevails as the 2011 release Floral Shoppe gets a fresh repress from Austrian label Everland. Vaporwave was but a twinkle in Ramona Andra Xavier's eye when she laid down the blueprint in a strange, seductive segue of nostalgic licks from 80s synth-pop, boogie, easy listening and a thousand nights lost in fuzzy VHS and cassette culture. Many have developed their own approaches off the back of Floral Shoppe's wondrous world building, but in these situations you can't beat the original idea. A vital document of online culture in the early 21st Century, and a dreamy listen to boot.

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13 years in the making, Mr Bongo proudly presents a new compilation of beloved Brazilian disco and boogie finds from the legendary London disco connoisseurs, Horse Meat Disco. A labour of love, it showcases a tantalising cross-section of disco, funk, boogie, samba and MPB, from past to present. Unearthing tracks from the seemingly endless gold mine of Brazilian gems, the compilation features legends such as Jorge Ben, Gretchen, Marcos Valle and Robson Jorge & Lincoln Olivetti, alongside unsung heroes including Zé Carlos and Carlos Bivar.

Over 20 years ago, the Horse Meat Disco crew (James Hillard, Severino Panzetta, Jim Stanton and Luke Howard) began their weekly residency at Eagle London back in 2003. That same year, Luke made his first visit to Brazil, beginning a musical love affair that is still going strong.

“I had always wanted to go to Brazil since I was a kid, and when I finally had the opportunity to go with Princess Julia, I was just blown away. I’ve visited Rio every year since 2003, and in that time, I’ve learned Portuguese and tried to discover as much as I can about Brazilian music and popular culture. I learned to dance samba with the Paraiso School of Samba in London and paraded three times at Rio Carnival. Brazilian music was a brand-new world for me to explore and get excited about—a whole universe of genius musicians, singers, and styles.”

9 years later, Mr Bongo invited Luke down to their Brighton HQ for a listening session of some of his favourite Brazilian boogie and disco 7" finds. A compilation was green-lit, but multiple licensing delays and the release of other HMD compilations meant that it lay dormant for years.

Fast forward to 2024, and with the help of esteemed, Rio-based record collector Tee Cardaci, along with suggestions from HMD’s James Hillard, the dream of an HMD Brazilian compilation finally materialised. It’s a carefully curated collection that includes the electronic-boogie/italo-disco-esque 1984 groover 'Venha (Remix)' by the singer Ze Carlos, two cuts by Luiza Maura taken from her sought-after Deixa Girar 7", and Gretchen's sultry 'Ela Tem Raça, Charme, Talento E Gostosura' written by Jorge Ben.

At its core, this compilation captures the excitement and sense of discovery that won over Horse Meat Disco’s heart more than 20 years ago. A vibrant mix of feel-good flavours, it homes in on a sun-soaked strand of disco and boogie that has been enriched with the spirit of a nation where music serves as a central pillar of life.

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Split album from The Bug and Ghost Dubs, released on The Bug’s PRESSURE label.
Defines a new form of spectral dub: brutally minimal, hypnotic, and sub-quake heavy.
Features the original lead tracks from their recent "Imploded Versions" white-label single.
Mastered by Stefan Betke (POLE) at Scape Mastering for ultimate low-end clarity.
Fusing dub, techno, and doom into a sacred, narcotic whole.
CD version features 4 bonus tracks.
Description:
When Chuck D proclaimed "Bass, how low can you go?" on Public Enemy's anthemic 'Bring the Noise,' maybe he was pre-empting or inciting the 10,000 fathoms-deep, spine-bending basslines and sub-quake tremors of 'Implosion.'
Implosion is a crushing split album, appropriately released on The Bug's own PRESSURE label. Mapping out a new form of spectral dub, the sound is deliberately immersive, introverted, and yes, definitely implosive. In pursuit of heavy lids, blurred vision, and merciless bass bin punishment, it’s one part meditation, two parts low-end theory, and essentially a confession of devoted sound system addiction.
As expected from a tag team featuring British soundlab explorer and 'London Zoo' composer Kevin Martin, aka The Bug, and Michael Fiedler, aka Jah Schulz—a long-time graduate of Germany's new school of sound system reggae culture—the duo approaches their target differently yet share the goal of keeping their sound "raw" (Fiedler) and "brutally minimal" (Martin). This proves that opposites can attract, even if their tools are different and their methods sometimes diverge.
From such a disparate combo, hailing from different geographical and aesthetic backgrounds, contrasts are certainly on display, even within each artist's own contributions. From the melancholia and transcendence of 'Alien Virus (West Indian Centre, Leeds),' to the duality of ascension and descension on 'Hope,' or the Sunn 0))) in dub, visceral drone of 'Dread (The End, London),' to the tripped-out repetitions of 'Midnight,' which reinvents Chain Reaction for post-millennials, the result is both sacred and narcotic. Each track illuminates the emotional impact and atmospheric pressure being explored across this deceptively sparse album—a mastery of tone and texture.
This collection might be as reduced, minimal, and deep as The Bug has ever gone, perhaps echoing the solemnity of his recent Kevin Richard Martin Black release and invoking the futurist steppas self-pioneered on his previous Pressure album. Alternatively, Fiedler‘s Ghost Dubs project ventures into his most heavyweight direction yet, which is no mean feat considering his previous, the critically acclaimed album Damaged, was a monstrously massive triumph of analogue weight and enviable sound design.
Implosion is ice-cool, a stark contrast to the warmth and sociability of traditional Jamaican roots and the current trends in digi-dub. Instead, the mood is soaked in tension and intense dread, finding an unexpected melting point where classic dub's stark rhythm attack, isolationist ambience's eerie drift, dub techno's floatation strategies, and even the relentless riffs of doom metal collide. As the bass-obsessed pair drop what is arguably the heaviest ambient dub album to emerge from any electronic sector—a moody counterpoint to The Orb's fluffy clouds, etc, Martin has cited The Roots Radics, Black Jade, and On U Sound's Pounding System as heavily influencing his approach to the album, while Fiedler has expressed his admiration for Adrian Sherwood's productions and Rhythm & Sound's enchanting soundscape. Yet, the super heavyweight pulsations, emotive resonances, and bone-rattling vibrations detonated here effortlessly go far beyond these influences.
Shadowy and elusive, there’s a mysteriousness at this record's core. A haunting moodiness oscillating between nostalgia and future shock. Despite the deadly fixation with SLOW and HEAVY, the album maintains a totally hypnotic swing throughout. Implosion and its lead single 'Imploded Versions' are testaments to being enveloped in bass, seduced by bass, submerged in bass, and utterly crushed by bass, as The Bug and Ghost Dubs seek to craft a new form of dub for zonal headz and Babylon seekers.


Mastered by Stefan Betke (a.k.a. POLE) at Scape Mastering studio, this record is heavy as f-ck without resorting to continuous distortion. It’s low-end worship taken to an absolute extreme, yet remains highly listenable and definitely danceable, albeit at the slowest of paces. Sacred and narcotic, this is low-end worship amplified to the max. Dive in if you dare.

Tracklisting:

01. THE BUG – Hooked (Hyams Gym, Leytonstone)
02. GHOST DUBS – In The Zone
03. THE BUG – Believers (Imperial Gardens, Camberwell)
04. GHOST DUBS – Hope
05. THE BUG – Burial Skank (Arches, Vauxhall)
06. GHOST DUBS – Dub Remote
07. THE BUG – Alien Virus (West Indian Centre, Leeds)
08. GHOST DUBS – Down
09. THE BUG – Militants (The Rocket, Holloway)
10. GHOST DUBS – Into The Mystic
11. THE BUG – Dread (Mass Brixton)
12. GHOST DUBS – Midnight

https://soundcloud.com/the-bug-vs-ghost-dubs/sets/the-bug-vs-ghost-dubs/s-ZAkhMCyRUFs?mc_cid=92ab01d063&mc_eid=38fffc39d4

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5 cuts of gospel-funk, modern soul, and disco-influenced spiritual music edits beamed down from on high. Primed & stretched for dancefloor acceptance, and sunshine bright Sunday jams alike by renowned crate-digger, deejay and producer TONE B. NIMBLE

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Robin Storey’s immersive ambient-industrial masterpiece, expanded and revisited for the first time since its original mid-’90s appearance.

• Pioneering Post-Industrial Masterpiece – From Robin Storey (Zoviet*France), Cidar represents his visionary exploration of ambient, industrial, and world music.
• Remastered & Expanded – Now available as a standalone release for the first time, with three previously unreleased tracks from the original 1994 recording sessions.
• Hypnotic Sonic Exploration – A seamless blend of Zoviet*France-inspired drones, African percussion, and Asian string instruments, creating an immersive, trance-like atmosphere.
• Timeless & Groundbreaking – A true testament to Robin Storey’s ability to craft genre-defying music that remains iconic and deeply influential.
• Essential for Fans of Zoviet*France & Rapoon – A must-have for collectors and new listeners alike, offering an unforgettable listening experience.

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RAWAX proudly presents Ricardo Villalobos' Salvador "Trilogy"!
The three Masterpiece records which came out between 1998 - 2000 on Frisbee Tracks,
are part of Ricardo's own series on RAWAX including new tracklistings!

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United Lions Conquer Studmission

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