MUSIC

"People who are sort of more the outcasts of society tend to tell it like it is" – Scott Seskind, 2015. Sky Girl is a mysteriously unshakeable companion, a deeply melancholic and sentimental journey through folk-pop, new wave and art music micro presses that span 1961-1991. A seemingly disparate suite of selections of forgotten fables by more or less neverknowns, Sky Girl forms a beautifully coherent and utterly sublime whole deftly compiled by French collectors DJ Sundae and Julien Dechery. From Scott Seskind's adolescent musical road movie to Karen Marks' icy Oz-wave, the charming DIY storytelling of Italian-American go-getter Joe Tossini and the ethereal slow dance themes of Parisian artists Nini Raviolette and Hugo Weris, Sky Girl resonates on a wide spectrum historically, geographically and stylistically. It unites in a singular, longing, almost intangible ambience. If the names sound wholly unfamiliar that doesn't matter, the nature of the compositions swiftly nurtures an intimacy with these lonely, poignant, openhearted wanderers. Most were available in a very limited capacity at the time of their release, some were never really released at all - Gary Davenport declined to release Sarra after he split with the girl for whom the track is named - years later a friend convinced Davenport to allow him to put 100 copies online to sell and DJ Sundae was quick enough to snare one. Beyond their scarcity, these tracks are bound together by a certain raw beauty that's achievable when music is made and no one is listening. Sky Girl comprises of fifteen officially licensed songs, a two year international scavenger hunt through long-folded home label operations, the depths of internet forums and traceless acetates. Both compilers are well trained record sleuths - DJ Sundae's labels Hollie and Idle Press have reissued Arthur Russell affiliate Nirosta Steel and DIY relic Pitch, while Julien Dechery previously compiled 'Fire Star', a retrospective on Tamil film composer Ilaiyaraaja, for Bombay Connection. Released by Noise In My Head offshoot Efficient Space, Sky Girl is enriched with artwork from Perks and Mini mutant Misha Hollenbach and appropriately elegant sleeve notes courtesy of Ivan Smagghe.

Fittingly, Control Freak's first full length LP comes from the artist who launched our imprint near-on 4 years ago. Keplrr’s ‘Petra’ is a remarkable entry into the canon of contemporary ‘non-functional’ techno. After a string of acclaimed EPs and singles, the South London-based DJ/producer brings his unique ear for sound design to the forefront across his debut album, a continuous piece with many recurring musical themes and motifs. Drifting between dream states and the psychedelic, ‘Petra’ sees Keplrr set aside the rigid constraints of club music and delve deep into the wells of the subconscious. The album moves deftly through styles: meandering ambient/downtempo pieces, including a collaboration with classically trained Jazz singer Livi Graham, to the deep & techno-influenced ‘Two Prophets Lay Here’, reaching its crescendo in the IDM-inflected ‘Celestial Body’. For fans of: Call Super, Leif, Koreless, Perila, Lorraine James.

Coastlines is the self-titled long player from the new Japanese production unit of DJ and producer Masanori Ikeda and solo artist, session musician and Cro-Magnon keyboard player Takumi Kaneko.

Masanori and Takumi have been part of the Japanese dance music scene for years and Coastlines was born out of their working together on soundtracks for video projects. The pair wanted to make laid-back listening music for now, laying Takumi’s playful keys over Masanori’s widescreen balearic jazz-fusion to conjure beautiful and breathtaking “coastlines”.

A couple of two-track 7"s put out in late 2018 and early 2019 on Japanese house music label Flower Records soon sold out. Those four tracks were expanded to a full album of music, “a joyous, relaxing, summery soundtrack for everyone’s after hours wind down” that was released just in time for summer. It certainly soundtracked many a Be With BBQ in 2019.

The album opens in the horizontal with the sophisticated, cocktails-by-the-pool groove of “Sunset Reflection”. A lush, beatless wonder. Their re-imagining of Ralph MacDonald’s “East Dry River” removes all the original’s bells and whistles (quite literally) and re-gears it with a subtle balearic chug. The result is a percussive gem.

“Coastline” is a beach-jazz noodle. “Drifting Ice” is as chilled and glacial as its title would suggest, yet Masanori’s head-nod slo-mo house beats throb not far below the surface. “My Fire” is another soft killer, all swelling, swirling organ over muted kicks and snares. An elegant boom-bap.

A pair of insistent tunes of the deeply balearic variety raise the tempo, but not by too much of course. On “Woods And My Guitar” a half-heard vocal refrain breathes life into the synthetic xylophone and guitar. Deft piano-work turns “Half Moon Shadow” into lounge-house for the sophisticated beach bum. A classy duo.

The self-assured re-work of Azymuth’s “Last Summer In Rio” is arguably the album’s centrepiece. Ten minutes of casually propulsive slapped bass, steel pans and slick 80s soul beats. Cue the steel drum interlude of “Maracas Bay” before album closer “Down Town” transitions us on with a shuffling, string-hinted hit of ethereal, euphoric piano bliss. Gentle disco for the new decade.

As former Test Pressing scribe Dr. Rob observed on his ever-reliable Ban Ban Ton Ton blog, the Coastlines fusion is very much in conversation with their 80s counterparts, both at home and along the coastlines of different continents. So among the nods to revered Japanese artists like Hiroshi Sato, Sakamoto and Casiopea, there are also hints of Marcos Valle and Mtume, of the aforementioned Azymuth. “The production though is very much now, not then. Not retro, just proper”. We couldn’t put it better ourselves.

Coastlines was originally a CD release only available in Japan, with HMV putting out a super-limited vinyl version a few months later for Japanese Record Store Day. But this music is just too good, so when Be With was asked via Ken Hidaka to take care of a vinyl version for the whole world it wasn’t a tough decision.

Mastered by Simon Francis and cut by Pete Norman, this magnificent double LP has been pressed by the good people at Record Industry.

ALBUM "Anochi" under the name of GEZAN With Million Wish Collective made a spectacular debut at FUJI ROCK FESTIVAL 2021. A cutting-edge form of tribal punk, produced on the theme of the immutable human voice in an era of data and selection. A sound picture scroll that goes back and forth between fantasy and documentary, weaving multiple layers such as round singing and voice, and making a single life form "Anochi" emerge in the form of an album with a unique seamlessness. Sixth FULL ALBUM for the first time in three years.

Izumi Kato on the cover illustration that blinks between the indigenous and the universe. Following the previous work, the recording & mixing engineer is Naoyuki Uchida, a master of the dub world who is also currently operating GEZAN's live performances.

This is an official release presented as a five-LP Box-Set Record Store Day exclusive by Elemental Music Records in partnership with the Albert Ayler Estate & INA France. Deluxe limited-edition of 180g hand-numbered 5 LP-set mastered by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio, directly from the original ORTF (Office de Radiodiffusion-Télévision Française) stereo tape reels, including over 2 hours of previously unreleased music. Includes a 16-page insert for the 5-LP set and a massive 100-page booklet for the 4-CD edition with previously unpublished photos from the actual concerts; essays by jazz historian/radio host Ben Young, co-producers Zev Feldman and Jeffrey Lederer, and Pascal Rozat from Ina; plus words by Sonny Rollins, Archie Shepp, David Murray, Carlos Santana, Joe Lovano, Carla Bley, John Zorn, Bill Laswell, Reggie Workman, James Brandon Lewis, Patty Waters, Carla Bley, Annette Peacock, Marc Ribot, Thurston Moore and Zoh Amba.

 

His second album is similar in tone to his debut, featuring original compositions based on Nubian folk traditions, masterful oud playing, and soothing vocals. Serene and haunting, this was among the first world music recordings to make an international impact.

Hamza El Din (July 10, 1929 – May 22, 2006) was an Egyptian composer, oud player, tar player, and vocalist. Performing on the oud (the Arabian short-necked lute) and the tar (the ancient single-skinned frame drum of the upper Nile), along with his gentle voice and original compositions, Hamza combines the subtleties of Arabic music with the indigenous music of his native Nubia. He has single-handedly forged a new music, essentially a Nubian/ Arabic fusion but one in line with both traditions and informed by Western conservatory training. His music has captured the interest of listeners worldwide. Here’s the debut session from 1964 featuring eight songs

This is Marvin Gaye's legendary appearance at the Budokan theater in Tokyo in November 1979. A wonderful performance with the great singer backed by a fine, sensitive band and a concert tracklist featuring various gems such as "Save the Children" and "Inner City Blues" from his masterpiece "What's Going On" as well as other smash hits like "I Want You" and "Let's Get it On". A true Live-Soul experience!

Giovanni Tommaso is the greatest Italian Jazz bassist and founder and member of the most important ever Italian Jazz Rock ensembles, the Perigeo band. He composed "INDEFINITIVE ATMOSPHERE" at the end of 1969, released a few months after in 1970 on Sermi label, and recorded it at Rca studios in Rome. "INDEFINITIVE ATMOSPHERE" represents a special album for him and for us as well, since it was his first album released as a sole composer/artist. The Maestro dug in personal archive for us and finally found a copy of the original master tape containing part of the recordings. Besides the misspelled title "Indefinitive" instead of "Indefinite", that became part of the legend here, this album was incredibly ahead of his time, with the young Maestro Tommaso playing electric bass and contrabass a in studio ensemble composed of 3/4 elements plus the strings section, with plenty of stunning Jazz-Funk, Jazz-Rock and Free Jazz tracks. The session is also known for including the legendary American Jazz soprano sax Steve Lacy on the track called "Steve", where he plays a sax solo. We entirely restored the full session from the original tapes found, and digitally remastered the sound for a greater sound experience, chasing the original analog source.

Hiroshi Tanaka and Yoichi Fuwa are two mysterious creatures who in 1974 made an album that contains 19 tracks without names. Their music is like a fairy tale. It’s leisurely and relaxed yet bursting at the seams with melodies and youthful ambition, exactly what you would expect from the self-proclaimed heirs of the Beatles. A holy grail of Japanese psychedelic pop, the Untitled White Album was self-released in only 100 copies. Reissued here for the first time with an additional bonus LP, an Untitled White Album II featuring 16 previously unreleased songs from the original sessions.

FELT summon the hand of two of the most uncannily suited producers around to remix cuts from Civilistjävel!’s "Järnnätter" album one year on from its initial release. As a regular collaborator with SVN and Dynamo Dreesen as well as having a slew of experimental techno 12”s to his name, A Made Up Sound immediately got the memo. The Dutch producer takes the foggier, subdued angle of his own craft into wildly captivating effect when tasked to build upon the stems from “Järnnätter”. Whilst A Made Up Sound's remix constantly builds in intensity, Ossia’s “Disoriented Dub” explores a much more radiophonic, lost-at-sea headspace with echoes of early concrete compositions and a spectral approach to dub; an olive branch of muggy hauntological weirdness extending from Bristol up to Scandinavia and back via the lowlands.

LP reissue from this 1970 album, originally out on Phillips. Totally brilliant. A unique blend of samba and soul, that apparently transformed Brazilian music from the release of this record onwards. Trio Mocoto joins Jorge Ben on this album, and it's their percussive sound, Jorge's voice and the light string arrangements that create pure magic... Highly recommended!

180 gr. ltd edition 500 copies, fully licensed ! Little we know about this long lost gem coming from the outskirts of the Commonwealth. But as far as we know, magic lies inside. That is the case of the sole album of mysterious australian band Extradition. Released in a small run on local independent label Sweet Peach in 1971, the self titled album stands as one of the most accurate acid folk rendition outside the UK realm. Formerly a three piece Extradition struggle on their personal behavior forging a rural set up that pursue the ‘think green’ revolution. It could be the English folk revival or the West Coast flower power, but the album introduce a different state of mind, far away from the chaotic suburbs of the counter culture. Lost on the isle, the acoustic set up of the band brings joy and happiness, a new age that reflects the multiple essence of the four elements. While the opener ‘ A Water Song’ brings to mind the course of a small river ‘A Love Song’ sets the mood for a long lost medieval folk tale. Acoustic guitar, small percussion, natural found sound and the celestial voice of Shayna Carlin (also member of cult band Tully, a weirdo surf-psychedelic affair) all of the elements above literally conjure for an ambient album before the definition was fully embraced by a massive audience.

Recorded live in Austria in 1972 this outstanding document marks an important event such as the meeting between Don Cherry and Dollar Brand. Here, the modern jazz trumpet master and the great South-African pianist along with percussionist Nana Vasconcelos and bassist Johnny Dyani are caught in the middle of a sound ritual where jazz elements and world music echoes appear as fully integrated in some sort of visionary, organic music form. A deep sensorial experience based on human and artistic values and freedom principles. Personnel: Don Cherry (trumpet, vocals); Dollar Brand (piano, flute, vocals); Johnny Dyani (double bass, percussion, vocals); Nana Vasconcelos (berimbau, percussion, vocals).

A classic Balearic masterpiece from 1986 that still attracts many audiences, and was featured on the famous blog that led the New Age revival! "Rise Of The Heart", one of the gems left by Italian singer Linda Di Franco, produced by president Don Was, reissued on analog from in 2022. Balearic mellow soul that silences crying children, Chee Shimizu also covered "TV Scene" in Discossession, Balearic bossa "My Boss", etc. A masterpiece!

The Afro-Tropical disco style is just one of the many funny sides of the entire Disco Music phenomena that raged throughout Europe in the magical 70s. This compilation collects 12 obscure tracks, originally released on single meant to climb the charts and become hits of the day. None of these reached that peak, but luckily they reached us eventually. Each track is a mix of Latin and tribal rhythms, wild congas, and jungle, savannah-like atmospheres, all filtered by the best Afro / Funk / Disco productions of the time. "Wild Safari" is the perfect compilation for a wild and hot party, impossible to stand still! Approved by the Cosmic Discotheque Team!!!

2023 repress. Directly from the Cosmic Discotheque galaxy, here is a brand-new satellite called Arabian Disco. This fine disc will get you through a bizarre sub-world of '70s disco. This was mostly a European-disco sub-genre clearly inspired by Arabian atmospheres. Now after the so-called classic disco, Afro disco, and space disco you should be ready for this new strand. A unique blend of exotic nuances and typical belly dance rhythms. Thanks to these 12 tracks you will discover a whole new landscape based on the mix of apparently different genres and distant cultures. Only for disco junkies and belly dancers on acid. Features Ismaïl, Slim, The Bumpers, The Sand Flowers, Leila, The Abdul Hassan Orchestra, Pop Concerto Orchestra, Sands, Nowy, Antares, Babylone, and Voyage.

This album celebrates the Beatles as a live act, at the peak of their fame. Presenting material drawn from several thrilling appearances broadcast in Japan.

“Blue” Gene Tyranny’s debut album Out of the Blue — newly remastered with original cover art — which was among the first to releases on Lovely Music in 1978 alongside Robert Ashley Private Parts, David Behrman On the Other Ocean, Jon Hassell Vernal Equinox, Meredith Monk Key, and Peter Gordon Star Jaws. Disarmingly direct, funky, and profound, Out of the Blue is an equanimous, wide-open exploration of Tyranny’s musical world: equal parts song cycle, tone poem, keyboard fantasia, and avant-garde pop record. Recorded and mixed by Tyranny at Mills College, this album emerged following the legendary 1976 Trust in Rock concerts, where Tyranny and collaborator Peter Gordon presented New Music for rock band. “Next Time Might Be Your Time” and “For David K.” were co-produced by Gordon, and also feature Mills’s Maggi Payne on flute as well as Oingo Boingo’s Steve Bartek on guitar; “Leading a Double Life” is sung by Lynne Morrow and Jane Sharp, accompanied by Tyranny on piano and polyMoog synthesizer; “A Letter from Home” is a half-hour electro-acoustic narrative meditation on “the Doppler effect as a metaphor for the development of consciousness.” Out of the Blue lives up to its name: it is both surprising and familiar, revealing for the first time something that was always already there.

Detroit house DJ/producer Theo Parrish along with Moodyman, The 6-track LP "CORNBREAD & COWRIE SHELLS FOR BERTHA", which was released digitally only in 2022, will be released as a long-awaited 2-disc vinyl set!! !

An art form of SOUND SIGNATURE that embodies a unique theory of acoustic engineering and knits together the threads of dissonance and Chicago house.
"CORNBREAD & COWRIE SHELLS" with Afro rhythm and free jazz, "REAL DEAL" featuring Duminie DePorres on guitar from "DJ-KICKS", which became a hot topic for its almost album-level finish, THEO PARRISH, which continues to be loved as a Balearic classic From a different perspective to Tullio De Piscopo's "Stop Bajon", which was also covered by Pianists, "STOP LITE", a slow house with piano, and "DANCE ALONE", an epic over 18 minutes with a mechanical outfit, are rich THEO PARRISH style deep house!!!

The early days of the man affectionately known to his peers as Tubbs' are chronicled in some detail in the notes to this LP's predecessor and companion volume, not unreasonably titled "King Tubby's Classics Chapter 1". It's unlikely that anyone who buys Volume 2 will not already have Volume 1, but for the few who don't it's only fair that we start the note with a short précis of the early life and career of the boy born to be 'King ...

Laurel Aitken, a true pioneer of Jamaican music and legendary rude boy, co-starred with Skatalites in the compilation "Original Cool Jamaican Ska" released by in 1964 (the title of the board is A re-edited work centered on Laurel Aitken's songs recorded in "After Sunset") has been released from ! Here is a wonderful combination that is the basis for being passed down from generation to generation. In particular, "Freedom Train," "Zion City Wall," "Let My People Go," and "One More River to Cross" have hints on the declaration of independence and spirituality that will influence later reggae music. be! Come and enjoy the pinnacle of pure Jamaican sound of the time, recorded intermittently at Kingston's Federal Studios in 1963!

The trio of Keiji Haino, Jim O’Rourke, and Oren Ambarchi return to Black Truffle with their 10th release, recorded live in Tokyo in February, 2017. While many of the trio’s recent works have seen them focussing primarily on their core guitar/bass/drums power trio format, on Each side has a depth of 5 seconds A polka dot pattern in horizontal array A flickering that moves vertically these three multi-instrumentalists strike into new territory, utilising an almost entirely electronic set-up, with Haino on electronics, drum machine and suona (a Chinese double-reed horn), O’Rourke on synth, and Ambarchi on pedal steel and electronics. 

Dedicated to the memory of legendary Tokyo underground figure Hideo Ikeezumi, founder of PSF Records and the Modern Music shop and a long-term collaborator with Haino, the LP, (recorded the night Ikeezumi passed away), begins in a sombre, meditative space of rippling, burbling electronics and distant jets of white noise. Though much of the ‘Introduction’ that occupies the record’s first side is spacious and at times almost hushed, the performance is full of unexpected twists and turns, momentary events, and fleeting impressions. The trio conjures up a free-flowing surge of sound in which individual contributions are often difficult to distinguish, calling up echoes of vintage live-electronic sizzle like It’s Viaje or the cavernous expanse of David Behrman’s Wave Train. 

The LP’s second side opens in a similarly reflective realm, before Haino’s suona enters, taking the music in a more austere, hieratic direction, as the reed’s piercing tones are accompanied by O’Rourke’s uneasy, sliding synth figures and Ambarchi’s shimmering Leslie cabinet tones. On the side’s second piece, Haino’s signature hand-played drum machine takes centre-stage, at first sounding out massive, isolated strikes, before eventually building to a tumbling, Milford Graves-esque wall of thunder. As O’Rourke’s synth squelches and stutters and Ambarchi’s heavily effected pedal steel somehow begins to sound like a kind of hellish blues harmonica, this passage offers up one of the most electrifying and bizarre moments in the trio’s catalogue to date. 

Containing some of the most abstract music the trio have waxed since their very first collaboration over a decade ago (Tima Formosa, BT04), this new missive from underground experimental music’s preeminent power trio shows them restless and risk-taking, clearly enjoying their remarkable improvisational chemistry while also continuing to push themselves into new directions. 

Presented in a deluxe gatefold sleeve with artwork and design by Lasse Marhaug and an inner sleeve with live pics by Ujin Matsuo. 

An American soul vocal group that would go on to shape the sound of pop music much farther beyond their imaginations, Numero is proud to present the first official American 45 repressing of the Ponderosa Twins + 1 original 1971 release of Bound b/w I Remember You.