Between innocence and anger, a record of witness.

Pharoah Chromium is the project of German-Palestinian musician and sonic performer Ghazi Barakat. With Chronicles from the Arab Cold War Pharoah Chromium continues his long-standing engagement with the Palestinian cause, following Gaza (LP, self-released 2015) and Jean Genet à Chatila (7”, self-released 2018).

In the summer of 2023, new material began to take shape from a session with flutes, EWI (an analogue synth played like a wind instrument), and belly dancing beats. At first these were instrumentals, waiting for their context. That frame appeared unexpectedly, through the discovery of Chants Révolutionnaires d’Oman on the French label Expression Spontanée — a record that connected seamlessly with the material at hand.

As you listen, Side A reveals its dedication to the children of Gaza. Without exploiting recordings from an ongoing genocide, the music instead channels hope through the voices of Omani children, offering a vision of resilience and possibility in the Middle East.

Side B grows darker, more funerary, reflecting the escalation of the conflict after October 7. Trumpeter Philipp Selalmazidis, a recent collaborator, appears throughout these sessions, adding weight and urgency. Over time, the adolescent voices of the A side give way to adult voices, filling the space with anger and ideological rhetoric — a stark progression from innocence to confrontation.

This is a record that refuses detachment: a work of mourning, resistance, and improbable connections that insists on listening as an act of witness.

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Essential Item Limited Edition No Re-Press...



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Grammy award-winning titan of dance music Purple Disco Machine joins the illustrious list of Defected House Masters with a celebratory compilation. The German producer, DJ and global household name Tino Pointek, AKA Purple Disco Machine, is the blueprint for what makes a successful dance music artist in the modern age; respected on the underground scene while achieving major crossover success with remixes for the likes of Sir Elton John, Dua Lipa and Mark Ronson. The crate digging kingpin of house and disco first landed on Defected over a decade ago, and has since delivered remixes of iconic tracks like Fatboy Slim’s ‘Praise You’ and the London label’s top tracks including Shakedown’s ‘At Night’ and ‘Coma Cat’ by Tensnake – as well as striking originals like ‘Beat Fantasy’. From edits of the classics to remixes of the modern, as well as uplifting originals, Purple Disco Machine has birthed a distinct sound that is instantly recognisable, one that is not afraid to reference or not reference and is always bursting with joy. Across Defected presents House Masters: Purple Disco Machine, the full breadth of the iconic German selector’s sound is felt from the 2019 smash hit ‘Dished (Male Stripper)’ to deep cuts like his re-work of Fallout’s ‘The Morning After’ as well as remixes of legendary tracks like ‘Lola’s Theme’ by The Shapeshifters and Spiller’s ‘Groovejet’ featuring Sophie Ellis-Bextor. Defected presents House Masters: Purple Disco Machine is here to showcase the sound of a bona fide electronic maverick in full.

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With two deeply cherished compilations already in the bag, Luke Una steps up for the third volume in his É Soul Cultura series on Mr Bongo. A love letter to the dancefloor and its power to unite people from all corners of society amid growing division and extremist politics. Genre-spanning in nature, the 15 tracks travel between cosmic soul, boogie, proto-house, slo-mo technoid grooves, drum machine afro, astral bass-bugging futurism, jazz funk, dance, and disco. Each having the ability to move the body as much as the heart.

From his formative years in Sheffield to co-founding Manchester’s much-fabled Electric Chair with Justin Crawford, through to helming the iconic LGBTQ institutions of Homoelectric / Homobloc, Luke has spent 40 years immersed in dance music. His latest outlet, É Soul Cultura, has grown from a label to a globe-spanning events series with Luke holding residencies and embarking on tours across the world from Japan and Australia to America and Europe.

“For me, the dancefloor was never about a one-dimensional, thudding, 130 BPM beat only. It's a much more dynamic, broader vision than that. I cut my teeth in an era where a 100 BPM record had as much impact, excitement, and energy as a 134 BPM dancefloor jazz funk or techno record”, Luke mentions. É Soul Cultura Volume 3 is the perfect embodiment of that notion: “It’s about four decades in the trenches playing dance music, the late-night afters, the shebeens, the basements, warehouse parties, the eight-hour journeys in East London, through to festival sets at Houghton and We Out Here. It’s music unconstrained by genre or tempo and more about making your body move”.

But this isn’t simply a collection of disparate dance tracks; they carry meaning and soul. “It’s less about escapism, more about reconnection. My experience of post-covid has been the coming together of all the clans in various clubs and gatherings. A reaction to a very toxic world out there, where the aggro rhythms of division have sought to divide us, and people don't meet as often. The coming back together face-to-face in clubs has encouraged a real love in the air, there's a real togetherness and collective spirit”.

Opening up the compilation is a track that channels that very message, the transcendental, soul-rousing Harris & Orr ‘Spread Love’. Joining the dots from there, to the low-slung deep house closer of Fatdog ‘Remember’, you’ll find electronic drum machine Nigerian funk, sitting side by side with dancefloor Cape Verdean brilliance, a post-punk cover of Fela Kuti, rubbing shoulders with cosmic electro, and an Una-championed, 8-minute, kickless DJ Harvey remix. There’s jazz funk in various guises moving from boogie synth to astral travelling, slo-mo acidic raw techno, and a ‘79 soul stepper, alongside swirling percussive Italo disco and tribal-charged house. All infused with an innate ability to bring people together.

As society becomes increasingly fractured, É Soul Cultura Volume 3’s message is more than movement. It’s about dance music’s power to unify people from all walks of life and break down the barriers that divide us.

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Originally released in the height of the underground disco revival, The Sounds Of Revolution EP has since become a sought-after modern classic. After years out of circulation — and with original copies now trading hands for €80-100 on the second-hand market — this long-requested EP finally returns to vinyl.

Italian producer Giovanni Damico (aka G-Machine / Ron Juan) delivers four timeless boogie cuts that perfectly bridge vintage Italo, cosmic disco and modern club energy. From the euphoric synth hooks of the title track to the robotic funk of “Italians In A Line”, this EP captures everything that made Damico a staple in DJ bags across Europe.

Carefully reissued for a new generation of selectors, this release is equal parts heritage and dancefloor weapon — essential for fans of Italo, nu-disco, boogie and anyone building a serious disco collection. Expected shipping: End of May/begin of June 26.

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Apollo Records proudly present the vinyl reissue of ‘Morning Light’, the acclaimed 1997 album from Mark Van Hoen’s Locust project; a work that blurred the boundaries between ambient electronics, trip-hop, and dream-pop with an emotional precision few have matched since.


Tracklist
1.1Your Selfish Wayss
1.2Morning Light
1.3Just Like You
1.4One Way Or Another
1.5Folie
1.6No-one In The World
1.7Clouds At My Feet
1.8Summer Rain
1.9Ancient Hometown
1.10The Girl With The Fairytale Dream
2.1All Your Own Way
2.2Juke Box Heart
2.3The Daydream Girl From Sealand
2.4I Am The Murderer
2.5Some Love Will Remain Unsaid
2.6Shadow Play
2.7On The Horizon
2.8Just After Sunset

Listen: https://open.spotify.com/intl-de/album/3BcDdBU8cdW1iaBuWBQ9lk?si=jHNnNLVOSSq7x53kD9BSyw&nd=1&dlsi=c304fa95f0f54b9c#login

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