“The minute your expectations harden or crystallize, you jinx it… nothing was ever abandoned”

The third 12” on Laen Disc from Farren Laen. hand stamped & numbered in NYC. 150 copies.


Early support from: Kornel Kovacs, Mr. Beatnick, Move D, Gene Tellem, Frits Wentink, Nathan Micay, Massimiliano Pagliara, Johannes Albert, & more

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

“To Will One Thing”… determine what it means in your life.

the second Laen Disc 12” following last year’s ‘Attention Renders Our Reality’. hand stamped & numbered in NYC. 150 copies.

blessed to finally get a club test this autumn, play ‘em loud when you have the chance. see you out there.

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

“The minute your expectations harden or crystallize, you jinx it… nothing was ever abandoned”

The third 12” on Laen Disc from Farren Laen. hand stamped & numbered in NYC. 150 copies.


Early support from: Kornel Kovacs, Mr. Beatnick, Move D, Gene Tellem, Frits Wentink, Nathan Micay, Massimiliano Pagliara, Johannes Albert, & more

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

“To Will One Thing”… determine what it means in your life.

the second Laen Disc 12” following last year’s ‘Attention Renders Our Reality’. hand stamped & numbered in NYC. 150 copies.

blessed to finally get a club test this autumn, play ‘em loud when you have the chance. see you out there.

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

Next up in Mr Bongo's Groove Merchant Records reissue series, we present the only solo album saxophonist Ramon Morris recorded as a bandleader. Having cut his teeth playing with the iconic band Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers and working with other jazz greats, including Reuben Wilson, Shirley Scott, Rashied Ali Quintet, and Woody Shaw, 1973 saw Ramon take the step into solo territory. The resulting album Sweet Sister Funk became a certified classic and a landmark showcase of the cherished ‘70s jazz-funk sound, later sampled by the likes of DJ Premier, The Alchemist and DJ Shadow.

Originally released on Sonny Lester's iconic Groove Merchant record label and produced by Lester himself, Sweet Sister Funk is a jazz-funk masterclass. It features a slick line-up including Cecil Bridgewater on trumpet, Mickey Roker on drums, and Albert Dailey on electric piano. Rich and beautiful, the seven songs ebb and flow in energy, fusing jazz funk and soul jazz with style and swagger. There are bags of groove with Ramon and Cecil trading off on sax and trumpet in an effortless conversation throughout the LP, supplemented by brilliant solos from the rest of the players.

A gold mine of sampling material, the album includes a sublime cover version of The Stylistics' much-loved 'People Make The World Go Round', which was sampled by DJ Shadow on Blackalicious's 'Swan Lake' in 1994. Elsewhere, the percussion and bass intro of the opening track 'First Come, First Serve' is a sampler's delight - a deep, heavy groove with a fine saxophone workout by Ramon. Head to 'Don't Ask Me' and you’ll find the swinging horn intro that formed the basis of 'You Came Up' by Big Pun featuring Noreaga from 1998, whilst 'Wijinia' has echoes of ‘70s indie jazz by labels such as Strata East & Black Jazz.

Here at Mr Bongo, we are proud to be delving into the vaults of Groove Merchant Records once again, reissuing this iconic LP from Ramon Morris.

Housed in a tip-on sleeve.

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

pincycle are back on Coin-Op Records. To celebrate 25 years since writing it, they’re repressing their much sought after first release on Geek Records: Coin-Op/Cold Sweet Beer. Originally released as Geek#001, now repressed for the first time on Coin-Op#003. It’s Coin-Op on Coin-Op!!

Coin-Op:
“Alright alright let me take ya to the scene”. The original Coin-Op track inspired the new label name and is a techy dancefloor groover with addictive funky bass.

Cold Sweet Beer:
“I’d give my god damn soul for just a glass of beer!” CSB hits a bit deeper with repetitive stabs and organs over a relentless groove.

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

Evelyne/Masao bring TESTPATTERN to Dark Entries for the label’s first foray into vintage Japanese electronics. Masao Hiruma and Fumio Ichimura’s project Testpattern is known for their release Apres-Midi, a cult slab of synthpop perfection released by Yukihiro Takahashi and Haruomi Hosono’s legendary Yen Records in 1982. While Hiruma and Ichimura parted ways following Apres-Midi, Hiruma’s musical endeavors would continue after meeting French/American model and vocalist Evelyne Bennu in 1984 at a café bar where she would sit and write poetry. Their collaborative efforts as Evelyne/Masao were fruitful, and the duo first performed together in June 1984 on a television program called TOKYO ROCK TV. The album TESTPATTERN comprises seventeen songs recorded in Hiruma’s home studio, which have never been released previously. The Evelyne/Masao duo continues building on the soundworld of Apres-Midi: lush, sophisticated electronics with intricate yet minimalist production. Tracks like “Sakuramochi” and “Bird Island” bear influence from Hosono most clearly, their soaring melodies revealing a subtly ironic redeployment of East Asian musical tropes. But TESTPATTERN is more than homage to Yellow Magic Orchestra. “Tabac” and “Le Soleil Se Leve” display oddball sensibilities closer to Sky Records icons Asmus Tietchens or Cluster. Elsewhere, the project shows affinity for the punkier ethos of continental DIY electronics, like on the quirky “Alien Go Home” and a positively skewed cover of “Singin’ in the Rain.” Bennu’s vocals provide a common thread through these explorations, as she alternates deftly between New Wave deadpan and unhinged chanson singer—check her waxing maximally Francophone on “Au Clair de Lune,” based on an 18th century French song. TESTPATTERN will be available on both double LP as well as CD, and includes a fold-out poster with liner notes with lyrics. This album is dedicated to Masao Hiruma, who passed away in 2011.

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