Electronic / Experimental

The second album of 2012's masterpiece has been repressed! From the opening vocals to the bass-heavy beat of the preceding track Numb, which leads into a dark world, all of these songs have a solemn worldview where ashes fall. This album features a female vocalist who sounds like a liquefied version of Sade, and the leaden industrial beat and jet-black ambience that accompanies the aesthetic sound is breathtaking. The artwork that perfectly matches the music is also excellent. Masterpiece!

The renowned trio of Keiji Haino, Jim O’Rourke and Oren Ambarchi return to Black Truffle with their 11th release, “Caught in the dilemma of being made to choose” This makes the modesty which should never been closed off itself Continue to ask itself: “Ready or not?” Demonstrating once again their commitment to continual experimentation in instrumentation and approach, the record begins with a long-distance collaboration made in response to a commission from New York’s Issue Project Room in 2021 during widespread lockdowns and travel limitations. A unique piece in the trio’s extensive body of work, this side-long epic finds Haino performing on metal percussion, O’Rourke on electronics and Ambarchi on gongs and bells. Initially dominated by rapid patterns on resonant, high-pitched tuned percussion, the piece sets Haino’s dynamic and dramatic performance against a calm backdrop of cycling electronics, thrumming gong strikes and hanging bell tones. The performance develops a heightened, intensely concentrated atmosphere reminiscent of Haino’s classic Tenshi No Ginjinka or his Nijiumu project; when Haino moves to clashing hand cymbals in its second half, the piece’s ritualistic energy suggests aspects of the music of Tibetan Buddhism. The remainder of the double LP documents the trio live at Tokyo’s SuperDeluxe (the location of all but their very first recording) in a wide-ranging set recorded in December 2017. The concert opens, in another first for the trio, with Haino on drums, O’Rourke on Hammond organ and Ambarchi on his signature Leslie cabinet guitar tones. Haino’s explosively untutored approach to the drumkit will be familiar to some listeners from the radical duo iteration of Fushitsusha heard on Origin’s Hesitation. Setting flurries of rapid activity against moments of silence, his drumming here at times suggests Milford Graves in its tumbling toms and thudding kick-drum propulsion. Accompanied by O’Rourke’s organ and Ambarchi’s guitar, which in their shared use of long tones and shifting modulation speeds almost blend into a single voice, the opening sections of this performance are some of the most magical music the trio has committed to tape thus far. After an interlude of spoken vocals in both Japanese and English, Haino makes a dramatic entrance on guitar. Against O’Rourke and Ambarchi’s increasingly intense electronic backdrop, Haino unleashes a stunning passage of slowly moving chromatic melodies and sudden shrieking explosions bathed in distortion and reverb. By the time we reach the third side, the guitar/bass/drums power trio is established and lurches into a passage of massive, lumbering rock that threatens to fall apart at every beat, O’Rourke’s strummed chordal work on six string bass creating a harmonic density equivalent to a second guitar. An abrupt edit throws the listener in media res into a frantic locked groove grounded by fuzzed out bass patterns and caveman drums. As Haino moves through a variety of approaches, from massive edifices of stuttering fuzz to ominous swarms of feedback, the trio eventually stumble into a kind of Harmolodic military tattoo, Haino’s guitar weaving and slashing across the rhythm section’s irregular accents. Moving through an epic opening duet for O’Rourke on Hammond and Haino’s wailing guitar, the fourth side eventually ramps up into a frenetic finale of mad bass riffing, crackling snare hits and guitar squall.“Caught in the dilemma of being made to choose” This makes the modesty which should never been closed off itself Continue to ask itself: “Ready or not?” is a testament to the continuing power and invention of this trio, who continue to seek out new terrain after over a decade working together. 2LP set presented in a lavish gatefold sleeve on heavy stock along with inner sleeves containing live pics by Tsuyoshi Kamaike. Photography by Jim O’Rourke, design by Lasse Marhaug and translation by Alan Cummings.

Phew's 1992 legendary solo album "Our Likeness" will be reissued on clear vinyl, limited to 1,000 copies worldwide!

Jaki Liebezait (CAN), Alexander Hacke (Einstürzende Neubauten), Chrislo Haas (D.A.F.), Thomas Stern (Lime and the City Solution) participated! Recording by Kraftwerk , NEU!, Cluster & Eno, D.A.F.

‘My intention with this music was to create an alchemy of the studio, to bring together impossible sounds, global voices and stories, obscure ethnographic narratives, new and ancient technologies, human and non-human species...’ - David Toop We are proud to launch our new library series with an incredible 12-track selection of music from David Toop. By compiling our favourite pieces from the albums originally released on Virgin, Pink Noir (1996) and Spirit World (1997), we have distilled the essence of this fruitful period into a new form: Pink Spirit, Noir World. Following the release of his debut solo album Screen Ceremonies (1995), David turned to a more expansive palate to record his next two LPs. Enlisting the help of a whole host of friends and collaborators who joined him in the Mark Angelo Studios, including the likes of Max Eastley, Toshinori Kondo, Musa Kalamula and Jon Hassell, the two albums share an unabashed openness to new sonic possibilities. Few recordings convey such a spirit of optimism; from a time when creation could be as free, unconstrained and ambitious. These albums are remarkable in both their harnessing of new recording technologies, and their weaving together a melting-pot of genres and influences that traverse the globe across centuries of musical tradition into something distinctly novel. They also document an almost visual memory, conjuring images both vivid and dream-like. Phantoms flit in and out of focus throughout their musical dialogues - perhaps the very same ones which were haunting Toop throughout the ‘wildly contradictory mixture of emotional harshness and ecstatic inspiration’ he found his life to be at the time. It’s the first time this music has been available on vinyl and to it’s new lease of life, all the tracks on this compilation have been remastered by sound designer/engineer Dave Hunt. This stunning compilation is housed in a gatefold sleeve and contains an exclusive piece written by David, reflecting on how he came to record these incredible songs.

Canadian composer Bruce Haack one of the true pioneers in the field of electronic and children's music. Originally released in 1962 "Dance, Sing & Listen" was Haack's debut album. Following instructions from children dance teacher Esther Nelson the album comes as a hyper-eclectic work based on a great variety of sound material. A hybrid soup of medieval, country, classical, and pop styles including tons of electronic effects, guitars, banjos and other acoustic string instruments and bongos!!! This is open minded music for children at its best.

Carlos Niño & Friends, who are familiar with our store as a signboard act of , which is a major sacred place of the LA underground presided over by Matthewdavid. A compilation of sound sources from previously analog-released works, compiled into a cassette, to create a best-of cassette-like work. The title "Assortment for Susan's" is dedicated to their dear friend and collaborator Justin Hansin. A total of 4 tracks of ultra-high-quality new age and contemporary jazz, including sound sources with the participation of gorgeous people such as Laraaji and Ariel Karma! Limited to 200 copies.

Outsider released Early Live In Germany on Fri Dec 23 2022. The 4 track Leftfield release features Kraftwerk.

Debut album by Ani Zinc, member of the Spanish experimental duo Diseño Corbusier and co-founder of the iconic record label Auxilio de Cientos. Originally released in 1986, this record is a showcase of her radical blueprint, comprising sound collages and voice experiments, and also welcomes the use of conventional instruments such as drum machines and keyboards, resulting a richer and more diverse outcome. First time reissue of this much sought-after record on the highly collectable Spanish experimental label Auxilio de Cientos.

In 2018 experimental festival Organ Reframed commissioned Éliane Radigue to write her first work for organ, 'Occam Ocean XXV'. Radigue worked closely with organist Frédéric Blondy at the Église Saint Merry in Paris before transferring the piece to Union Chapel for its premiere at Organ Reframed on 13 October 2018. The recording on this compact disc was made at a private session at Union Chapel on 8 January 2020. 'Occam XXV' inaugurates the very special record series of works exclusively commissioned by Organ Reframed, the organ-only, one of a kind experimental music festival, carefully curated by Scottish composer/performer and London's Union Chapel organ music director Claire M Singer. Paris-born Éliane Radigue is one of the most innovative and influential living composers of all time. After working under Pierre Schaeffer and Pierre Henry in the late 1950's/early 60's she mainly worked with tape before developing a deep relationship with modular synthesis in the early 1970's. Over the next three decades she pushed her own conceptions of musicality forward developing a deep relationship with her ARP 2500. Through endless exploration and drawing on her personal journey as a practicing Buddhist she created an entirely new landscape of experimental sound. In the early 2000's she made an extraordinary shift into writing predominantly for acoustic instruments. 'Occam XXV' is the latest chapter of Radigue's broader series of works Occam Ocean which she has been composing in the last decade. Carefully selected by Radigue she has closely collaborated with various extremely experienced yet sensitive instrumentalists. For Occam XXV Radigue collaborated with pianist, organist, composer, improviser, artistic director of the Orchestra of New Musical Creation, Experimentation and Improvisation (ONCEIM) Frédéric Blondy, which is their second collaboration in the Occam Ocean series. 'Occam XXV' premiered in 2018, and was later recorded privately in 2020 at London's Organ Reframed headquarters Union Chapel. "We live in a universe filled with waves. Not only between the Earth and the Sun but all the way down to the tiniest microwaves and inside it is the minuscule band that lies between the 60 Hz and the 12,000 to 15,000 Hz that our ears turn into sound. There are many wavelengths in the ocean too and we also come into contact with it physically, mentally and spiritually. That explains the title of this body of work which is called Occam Ocean.The main aim of this work is to focus on how the partials are dealt with. Whether they come in the form of micro beats, pulsations, harmonics, subharmonics – which are extremely rare but have a transcendent beauty – bass pulsations – the highly intangible aspect of sound. That's what makes it so rich. When Luciano Pavarotti gave free rein to the full force of his voice the conductor stopped beating time and you could hear the richness in its entirety. Music in written form, or however it is relayed, ultimately remains abstract. It's the performer, the person playing it who brings it to life. So the person playing the instrument must come first. I've always thought of performers and their instruments as one. They form a dual personality. No two performers, playing the same instrument, have the same relationship with that instrument – the same intimate relationship. This is where the process of making the work personal begins. The purely personal task of deciding on the theme or image that we're going to work from. Obviously, because this is Occam Ocean, the theme is always related to water. It could be a little stream, a fountain, the distant ocean, rivers. Out of the fifty or so musicians I've worked with no two themes have been the same. Each musician's theme is completely unique and completely personal. The music does the talking. This is one of those art forms that manages to express the many things that words aren't able to. Even at an early stage, all those ideas need to have been brought together." - Éliane Radigue

Genji Sawai’s classic LP “Sowaka”, featuring Midori Takada and Bill Laswell, reissued for the very first time. Sowaka will be re-released on February 10th with remastered audio. Sowaka, recorded in 1984, displayed an innovative sound that went beyond genre – mixing dub, world, jazz, electro, hip-hop and avant-garde. A perfect match of some of the most experimental artists of that time resulting in an extremely sought after and singular piece of music of the golden Japanese era. A talented crossover. In 1984, working with Bill Laswell, Michael Beinhorn and Midori Takada would be unlike working with anyone else Genji Sawai had before, pulling him out of the J-jazz experimental scene he was based on. Rather than work off written music, they’d build songs like cooks. Genji might supply the ingredients, perhaps the tonal choices – sax, FM synths, drum machines, and Bill would task himself to do the “cooking”, creating the overall image of the song. It’s the use of imagery to have a conversation with each other, musically, that just felt so different to Genji. Unlike the other musicians who contributed to Sowaka, musicians of impressive, rarefied technique like Midori Takada, Shuichi “Ponta” Murakami, and Kazuhiko Shibayama, notation or sheet music wasn’t a part of Genji’s vocabulary with Bill. With him, drawings were how songs were built from the ether. Whatever image a demo conjured up – that’s where the song had to go. You hear it on songs like “Hikobae” that predicted the chopped and screwed sound that would revolutionize hip-hop years later. On this track what started with a mental picture, of some kind of tree shoot, metastasizes a vision full of no-wave sax skronk dosed with pointillistic dub affectations. Although, Sowaka wasn’t tied inherently to it’s original meaning – the final utterance from the Buddhist Heart Sūtra – it’s philosophical meaning wasn’t too divorced from the true meaning (or at least, his truest meaning) Genji placed on it here: getting things done. Simply put, all his high-minded ideas wouldn’t have come to fruition unless all involved put some serious work into getting the project over the finish line. In five cracking days the album was put on tape and was then jettisoned off to NYC for Bill to put its final touches. What’s fascinating about Sowaka, or at least what will make it so, is just how it perfectly captures a certain atmosphere, somewhat alien to overground Japanese music at the time. Forget about a starry-eyed, futuristic, technopolis. The Japan heard in songs like “1969 (The Real)” is found in its iconic back alleys and constantly changing cityscape. It would use hip-hop, jazz, folk, and world music, to drop its sonic graffiti. That pull of “tradition” trying to co-exist with increasingly hypermodern ideas is palpably heard in music defined by its mix of organic and synthetic instruments paired with hard-nosed melodies. Genji’s Japan, as heard in Sowaka, pulls no punches, it wants you right in the middle of that public maelstrom. It wants you to sonically be there. Behind the mysterious chopped-and-screwed-with jazz of songs like “Hikobae” or the no-wave, nu wave-fried jazz of the titular track, there was a new kind of fusion being presented. Moving beyond world music, there was territory to be uncovered that was even more unplaceable. Somewhere, between the mind, body, and spirit, closer to one’s neck and booty, was this music urging you to simply move elsewhere, further, until you’re closer to where Genji’s music would land. Somewhere between history and his story, there’s still room to rewrite our story by absorbing this spectacular music that remains completely, forever, out of time.

Alga marghen very proudly presents the last chapter from the Feedback Works documentation series, a brand new LP including “In Memoriam-Ostinato” and “Danse des Dakinis”, two previous unreleased tracks by Eliane Radigue.
 
    Among the works of fixed duration from the feedback period, “In Memoriam-Ostinato” is the link between “Jouet Electronique” (alga marghen LP, cat. Alga029) and “Opus 17” (alga marghen 2LP, cat. Alga045), and allows us to understand the evolution of her approach. It is a measured gesture, slow, it is music without any major event, an extending state, contemplation. “In Memoriam-Ostinato” is a game of mirroring symbols which glide into a non-measured, bent and elastic, temporality. The ear ventures into it, lets itself go and gets lost.
As Eliane Radigue recalls: “This piece was commissioned for a Happening, Mémorial. It was a sort of secular procession to the castle of Verderonne, a beautiful place. The pools bordering the edifice were lit, and everyone was dressed or draped in mauve. It terminated in one of the grand salons of the castle where I played “In Memoriam-Ostinato”.”
Eliane Radigue’s working method and her aesthetic direction are evident in this work from 1969: her very own unique temporal space of sonic experiences.
 
    Even though it bears the same name as the third part of “Adnos III”, “Danse des Dakinis” is a peculiar work in Eliane’s oeuvre.
Conceived in a short time, with all kind of tapes from the composer's past work, it fluently shows a kaleidoscopic vision of Radigue's sensibility for sound. In 1998 she put together a curious self-portrait in sound. The piece seems to resonate between two mountains. An echo folds time untiringly. We are in the memoir echo-chamber of Eliane Radigue’s spirit, a hall of mirrors that reflects and multiplies her, diffracting her as through a prism. Or, more precisely, reflecting her sensibility at different stages of her life.
There is a feedback ostinato conceived around 1969 and which refers to “In Memoriam-Ostinato” and “Opus 17”. All through “Danse des Dakinis” we plonge into the sound of a creek recorded at Mills College campus that brings us back to the field-recordings from the beginning of the 1960s, made on the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea. Such elements construct “Elemental1” (alga marghen LP, cat. Alga029) as well. There are also some discreet interventions on the ARP 2500 synthesizer. It is indeed a peculiar work, which doesn't have the same features of her other compositions, especially at that time of her compositional path.
There is an explanation for the composer producing this kind of sound material in 1998, and not limited to the sound waves of the ARP synthesizer. Invited to a workshop at Mills College in 1998, Eliane Radigue could not load herself down with her bulky instrument on such a trip. So she left with just a few tapes taken from her own collection, drawn from different periods, and composed “Danse des Dakinis” with those old elements.
There is tension in this composition, a certain wildness, an unpredictability of elements, those which are recognized as fundamental elements, which give structure to the universe. Such versatility will surprise those who know the music of Eliane Radigue, it is a unique but powerful example of her way of dealing with sound, of exposing herself with it, integrating with it.
In this Elaine Radigue is faithful to the theme suggested by the title: A dakini is a female deity in Vajrayana Buddhism or a female demon in Hinduism. Spirits of nature, they are witches, or female demons in India and the Himalayas. In Tibetan Buddhism they can be subjugated earthly deities, wrathful female forms of bodhisattvas or buddhas, or simply historic or legendary figures. The dakinis symbolize a wild and natural state and, according to a buddhistic interpretation, absence of ego or mental obstacles, nature itself revealed.
“Dance des Dakinis” is an intimate and wild symphony, alive and unpredictable, which is to be the next-to-last gesture of the composer before completely stopping her work with electronics.

Alga Marghen very proudly presents a remastered version of Vice-Versa, Etc..., an LP originally included in the first 400 copies of Eliane Radigue's Feedback Works 2LP. Vice-Versa, Etc... was originally a small handmade box, signed and numbered and released on the occasion of a show at Lara Vincy's gallery in 1970. The box contained a reel of magnetic tape and the instructions for use. It indicates that all playback speeds are possible, forward or backward, as well as any combination of two channels, on several recorders, ad libitum. This LP presents two versions done by Emmanuel Hoelterbach following the indications of Eliane Radigue to the letter, respecting her composition methods. There is no doubt that Eliane Radigue's vocabulary is based on observing and entering into dialog with the fundamental behavior of sounds: pulsing, beating, sustained, very light, a subtle and delicate evolution. When she moved from feedback sounds to the ARP synthesizer, she naturally continued the same music -- a continuity where the original use of feedback sounds stands out for its cruder and more savage inner character. One could say that somehow it's the very texture of the sounds, which leads the form of her compositions. At the same time, this approach favors an intense sensuality in the listening.

Alga Marghen very proudly presents a remastered version of the complete documentation of Eliane Radigue sound installations from 1969-1970, including the broad tectonic vibrations of "Omnht," the celestial voices of "Usral," the massive chant of "Stress Osaka," and more -- the works of this artist's feedback period finally revealed. It is amazing that Radigue could build such formidably organic sonic edifices in her home studio with the primitive machines given to her by Pierre Henry: three tape recorders, a mixing board, an amplifier, two loudspeakers and a microphone. Eliane previously worked for Henry at the Studio d'Essai of the R.T.F. from 1955 to 1957, after having met Pierre Schaeffer almost by chance, who invited her to learn the techniques of musique concrète. Created 10 years after her Studio d'Essai experience, the feedback works of Eliane Radigue immediately take a new direction from the explorations of musique concrète. Her adventure intuitively goes towards flux, towards contemplative stasis -- a music of continuous sounds, of apparently simple structures, which permits the revelations and expansion of rich acoustic phenomena. It is as if her musical work was in some way a martial art -- as if she meditated for 10 years before striking the first blow, with impressive precision. This is the context in which Eliane composed "Omnht" in 1970 for the architectonic spaces of the visual artist Tania Mouraud titled "One More Night," presented at the Gallery of the Rive Gauche in Paris; "Usral" (the title comes from a phonetic compression of ultrasounds slowed-down, in French "ultra-sons ralentis") is one of the first works by Eliane Radigue to be given in public as a sound environment for a sculpture by Marc Halpern in the Salon des Artistes Décorateurs at the Grand Palais of Paris in 1969; "Stress-Osaka" was conceived when the artist was invited to create a sonic environment for the International Fair in Osaka in 1970. There is no doubt that Eliane Radigue's vocabulary is based on observing and entering into dialog with the fundamental behavior of sounds: pulsing, beating, sustained, very light -- a subtle and delicate evolution. When she moved from feedback sounds to the ARP synthesizer, she naturally continued the same music, a continuity where the original use of feedback sounds stands out for its cruder and more savage inner character. One could say that somehow it's the very texture of the sounds, which leads the form of her compositions. Includes a 16-page LP-size booklet with original photos, scores and liner notes.

Alga Marghen presents the new edition of Eliane Radigue's "Jouet Electronique" (1967) for feedback on magnetic tape and "Elemental I" (1968) for feedback of natural sounds on magnetic tape. This LP was first issued in 2010, and it's now presented for the first time with its own specific artwork and layout. Both works were recorded at Pierre Henry's Studio Apsome in Paris. Between 1967 and 1968, Radigue was Henry's assistant, mainly for the editing of L'Apocalypse de Jean (1969). Henry also put her in charge of organizing his sound archive; Radigue enjoyed doing this work, even if it took a long time. She decided to set the machines of the studio to do some work of her own. "Jouet Electronique" and "Elemental I" were born this way during her time as an assistant; working with feedback is something that Radigue learned through Henry. Do you remember Henry's Voyage (1969)? There's that fluid part which is made of feedback constructed with a microphone. Everything had to be set at a precise distance from the loudspeakers because that is the specific problem with feedback; one has to be at the right distance. Afterwards, these high tone recordings were slowed down in order to discover the deeper character of their color. This work with feedback was in the end quite limited and the composer preferred working with two reel tape machines to produce sounds. The first was set on the recording mode while the other was playing and it was the accidents happening in this phase that made the feedback richer. Fine-tuning could yield beautiful results: low pulsations, high-pitched sounds (sometimes both at the same time), or long sounds. All of these could be slowed down or accelerated, which gave beautiful source material. With "Jouet Electronique", Radigue had a lot of fun, hence the title. As far as "Elemental I" is concerned, it was the first attempt at something which was important to her based on the theme of the basic elements: water, fire, air and earth. Eliane had the chance to record in open air thanks to a small Stella Vox that Arman gave her in the beginning of the 1960s. Using it, Radigue built a minimal sound library, consisting of not more than ten reel tapes. This was the starting point; in 1968 she used these recordings for her work with two reel tape machines. New edition of 200, with liners by Radigue and portrait photos by Arman.

After a long break, we're happy to present another masterpiece in The Fact Of Being collection. A long-awaited reissue of the legendary ambient/new-age album "Reflections" by Laura Allan with Paul Horn. The album was recorded in 1980 and marked by the participation of twice Grammy Awarded jazz legend flutist Paul Horn. The meeting of Laura and Paul was a true miracle that brought amazing fruit. Since 80th "Reflections" captivate the minds of spiritual ambient music fans all over the world. Magical sounds of flute, endless melodies of zither, Laura's heavenly voice lighted by meditative bells and synthesizers. A simple recipe but with great talents and unique results. Laura's reflections lead a listener to deep meditation, harmony, and to the eternal palace of inner peace. We hope you'll share with us the pleasure of listening to the record and the world become a bit more peaceful place for everyone. This is the first reissue on the vinyl since 1984 when the album was repressed the last time. After 38 years the record became collectors' dream and now it's available again as it should be. Moreover, as always, we love CDs and it's available as a limited DigiCD version. The record was mastered by Grammy-nominated Jessica Thompson which guarantees extra ordinal sound experience. Yes, a lot of Grammy here... Laura passed away on May 19, 2008, after a half-year battle with cancer. She was just 56. Enjoy Laura's art that makes her alive. Below you'll find memories by Steven Halpern: LAURA ALLAN ( 1952 -2008) was a gifted singer and songwriter who was a legend in the San Francisco Bay area in the early 1970s. REFLECTIONS is her beloved album, and features her original songs, one of which includes a collaboration with Paul Horn on “Passages”. Her voice and zither take center stage on “As I Am”, “ Waterfall” and “Nicasio”. Other artists, including Dallas Smith on Lyricon wind synthesizer, add to the mix. It is my honor and privilege to bring her music back into the world. I met Laura after her performance at a new age conference in 1975 held on campus at Sonoma State College. Her magical aura of angelic voice, luminous blonde hair, and energetic strumming or meditative Celtic harp-inspired zither, captured your attention instantly. My first LP had just been pressed, and this was my first public presentation. Nevertheless, my instincts were right on. Even though I had only one album and no track record yet, I invited Laura to record her album on my label. It was too early for both of us. Several years later, she signed with another local label, Unity Records. After Laura regained the rights to REFLECTIONS, she contacted me in the mid-1980s to see if I were still interested. Of course I was! She licensed the album to my indie label. I then re-released the LP and cassette on the Hear & Now imprint, (a division of Halpern Sounds) which was my main label name at the time. Our deal was actually a two album deal, and I would record and produce the album combining her voice and zither and my arrangements. Alas, that album was never completed." "In an unlikely collaboration between folk singer Laura Allan and New Age pioneer Paul Horn, Reflections capture two artists in perfect harmony of their talents. Allan, in addition to being an incredibly gifted songwriter, was something of a string instrument prodigy and made instruments for other Laurel Canyon heroes including Joni Mitchell and David Crosby. Her zither playing and vocals here match perfectly with the New Age aesthetic set by Horn and the sounds are beautiful and organic, characteristic of the early more experimental days of the New Age genre before it would later be marred by “easy listening.” Highly recommended for fans of Lauraaji, Alice Coltrane, David Casper, and Light In The Attic’s “I Am the Center” compilation." – Phil Cho

Don Cherry (1936-1995), one of the true giants in the history of spiritual jazz, released his masterpiece on the hallowed Blue Note label in 1969. This is the last of the three albums he released from Blue Note. This is the last of the three albums released from Blue Note. From the very beginning, the band rushed forward with tremendous energy and tremendous toughness. Recorded on November 11, 1966, with sleeve notes by Ornette Coleman. Limited to 300 copies on clear vinyl.

Sam Hall’s new album as ghost orchard, ‘rainbow music’, is a collage of patience and meditation. The record was written in two halves, between the summer of 2020 and the spring of 2021, and is filled with nuances as quietly imperceptible as the seasons, or the profound movement of time, where one day looking back you realize your whole spirit has shifted. Where 2019’s critically revered ‘bunny’ was a love letter to a romantic relationship, ‘rainbow music’ documents the culmination of Hall’s first personal experience with loss in several forms. At the end of 2020, his longterm childhood pet passed away, and with it the last continuing threads of familiarity between being a kid and adulthood. Still based in the Grand Rapids, Michigan town he’d grown up in, the static ease of familiar living seemed to be coming apart at the seams, as friends moved on to bigger cities, relationships shapeshifted and in a short period of time, another kitten he’d adopted passed away prematurely, leaving Hall to question the trajectory in which he himself was headed. Recorded in the house that Hall currently lives in, ‘rainbow music’ is a timestamp of this environment. A myriad of shows used to take place at the residence, and the space still reverberates with the residual echoes of people as they pass though. Hall remains fascinated with the remnants of things left behind, and his home is replete with furniture and miscellaneous objects that reflect the core of his compositions: sonic maximalism paired with attention to detail. His music feels steeped in this place he has painstakingly decorated, where, much like the songs of ‘rainbow music,’ each individual object provides its own history and underlying connectedness to part of a greater collection. Bristling with the familiarity of being a stranger in someone else’s living quarters, amidst all their belongings and hoarded treasures, the album’s linear qualities remain rough around the edges, like gradually filling in the color of someone you’re just getting to know. “I love creating rooms,” Hall emphasizes, and this record “feels more inside of me than anything.” The oldest (and only proper love song), “soot,” was the first song to come after a period of static creativity, and effectively opened a floodgate that inspired him to finish half of ‘rainbow music’ in the forthcoming two months. Each track weighs with its own impact, as Hall grapples with endings and beginnings side by side, a rebirth that Hall equates to be as cathartic as crying. Many came about in a sudden stream of consciousness: the bare-boned structures of “rest” were recorded entirely in a day, and was an immediate reaction to his pet’s death and a way to process those feelings. More upbeat “maisy” and glitch-filled “cut” also came together tangentially to one another. “I feel more secure in my relationship to music,” Hall muses. With his previous work, “I was trying different things on, but ‘rainbow music’ feels more certain: this is me for better for worse at this period of time.” There’s a push and pull across the eleven songs, a sort of immediacy that’s made even more effective by Hall’s retrospective reflection. “comfort (rainbow)” was written in half prior to most of the grief that would alter Hall’s life, and was completed months later by the tuner who fixed the upright piano in his house. Produced almost entirely by Hall, the only further collaborator was Bennett Littlejohn (who has also contributed to Hovvdy and Katy Kirby’s projects), and these specific touches are integral to the cohesive footprint of ‘rainbow music’s miniature universes. Hall has previously described his work as “memory storage”, and in a way ‘rainbow music’ functions as an hourglass measuring out spoonfuls of both the past and future. An oscillating palette of instruments flit between acoustic guitar, piano and even fluttering drum and bass, where synths patter like barely discernible heartbeats and vocals feel more like an instrument than decipherable words. Hall has never released the lyrics to his music, but throughout the album’s insular quality sometimes you can hear smidges of the outside world from far away; a call and return echoed by repetition where meaning is sketched out in a dreamscape and a subtle darkness always surrounds the fringes. Like “songs in the key of life,” the title ‘rainbow music’ refers to the myriad of colors and qualities within Hall that are refracted throughout. It’s a symbolization of hope and the aftermath, the flickering light at the end of the tunnel (or “when a rainbow shows up after a big storm”). “Wish I could have fun anymore,” Hall ruminates on “dancing”, as well as confessing he “wish he made more upbeat bangers.” But reality packs more of a punch, and this collection of songs sees him finally be at peace with the current state of affairs. Relatable to anyone who has contemplated what it means to settle down, or even just catch your breath in an era where anguish is commonplace, the release of ‘rainbow music’ is a happy ending in its own right, a marker of survival that remains close to the bone.

Kelela, a new generation R&B singer who straddles R&B and dance music, has released her latest album "RAVEN" on Warp, her first album in five years since her acclaimed debut album "Take Me Apart". The album was co-executive produced by Kerera and LA producer Asmara, with Kerera composing and arranging all of the songs. Other producers on the album include Yo van Lenz and Florian T M Zeisig, who also work as the ambient unit OCA, and LSDXOXO, who produced the entire album, and Canadian Bambii ( Bambii) also participated in the additional production. Kerera's new chapter, "RAVEN," is an extremely beautiful and lustrous musical experience. Through the fifteen songs on this album, including the already acclaimed predecessors "Washed Away" and "Happy Ending," Kerera explores autonomy, belonging, and self-renewal.

Bladder Flask’s debut (in fact only) LP, originally issued by Orgel Fesper Music in 1981, is one of the most eclectic albums of the post-Industrial era. It is both challenging and perplexing… So, put down your puny instruments of normality and breathe in the frenzied fungal spores of Bladder Flask! The fact that Steven Stapleton of Nurse With Wound is a big fan of this album is testament to its greatness: ‘I love Bladder Flask’s One Day I Was So Sad That The Corners Of My Mouth Met & Everybody Thought I Was Whistling and what a great title, perhaps my favourite ever. I must have listened to the album so much in the ’80s. I listened to it again recently and it was like welcoming an old friend.’ Personnel: Richard Rupenus, Philip Rupenus + Sean Breadin, John Mylotte, Nigel Jacklin Recorded at Wrongrong Studio and Spectro Arts Workshop 1980 – 1981 Audio Restoration & Mastering: Colin Potter @ IC Studio

Nurse With WoundのSteven Stapletonもその大ファンであることを公言しているアヴァンギャルド音楽史上に刻む大傑作にして、TNBことThe New BlockadersのPhilip Rupenus & Richard Rupenus、John Mylotte (Metgumbnerbone)、Nigel Jacklin、Sean Breadinらにより結成されたカルト・グループが残した幻の名作。1981年に〈Orgel Fesper Music〉から限定500部でリリースされたBladder Flaskのデビュー作が〈Sonoris〉からCD&LPリイシュー。ポスト・インダストリアル時代における最も多彩なアルバムの一つであり、挑戦的であると同時に当惑させられるインダストリアル/サウンド・コラージュの傑作。Colin Potterの手により〈IC Studio〉でリマスタリング。

The Wire's critically acclaimed 1999 album is now available on LP and CD for the 21st year. His 1999 work, praised by The Wire, has been reissued on LP and CD for the 21st year. It is an ink painting-like sound work created with his own voice and found sound loops, weaving dry sounds. New mastering by Giuseppe Ielasi.

The Wire's critically acclaimed 1999 album is now available on LP and CD for the 21st year. His 1999 work, praised by The Wire, has been reissued on LP and CD for the 21st year. It is an ink painting-like sound work created with his own voice and found sound loops, weaving dry sounds. New mastering by Giuseppe Ielasi.

"While experimenting with microtonal electronics for a piece I was writing for Zinc & Copper, which would eventually be titled Pons, I came across a process-based technique that I was quite keen on. Although I wouldn't use this technique on the Zinc & Copper piece, I would later implement said process to make up some of the electronics on Omniscient Voices. During this time I carried out dozens and dozens of instances of this process and recorded them all. Varolii Patterns is composed of a small collection of these recorded takes, ones I felt were stand-alone pieces on their own and that worked well together as a whole."

No Date Tapes 2 is the second official cassette release from Harry Bertoia's tape archive and, like the first cassette, these recordings were chosen from a small collection of tapes in Bertoia's archive missing recording dates. This cassette is packaged in a metallic shell and produced on super-ferro tape for incredible analog sound. First printing of 100 copies.