NEW ARRIVALS
627 products
Originally compiled & released in 2015 by Leaving Records & Laraaji, we proudly present (again), with humble gratitude, three re-issues of seminal works by new age musician, composer, and laughter meditation workshop leader Laraaji - recorded between 1978 and 1983. Although some excerpts of the material have been featured on various compilations, this was the first time in over 30 years that one can experience the uninterrupted duration of these cosmic etudes in their complete form. The added length creates an immersive environment of fresh, exploratory, experimental and healing sounds in which to dwell– these are the proper, entire experiences as intended by their creator.
1978’s Lotus Collage was recorded live in a Park Slope, Brooklyn living room during Laraaji’s busker years. The sounds consist of freestyle electric open tuned zither/harp, Ecstatic Rhythmic hammer percussion, and free flow open hand ethereal moods. This recording crucially predates Laraaji’s now mythological “discovery” by Brian Eno, and is significant as one of Laraaji’s first electric zither recordings. This early recording captures a youthful Laraaji at the outset of his musical journey, still ripe for discovery, exploration, and transcendence. 1981’s Unicorns in Paradise was performed on electric keyboard Casiotone MT-70, and once again features Laraaji’s iconic zither in a flowing atmospheric improvisation. Laraaji describes its sonic environs as “an ideal habitat in another dimension of timelessness.” Many years later, this description holds true as its vibrant sounds inspire sensual reflections of the excited imagination. The final re-issue consists of two parts. Its first side, “Trance Celestial,” is a glowing, amorphous survey of muted and malleable electric sounds. Its uncharacteristically dark atmospheres nevertheless still paint a surreal atmosphere for self-reflection. Much beauty and inner-wisdom can be found in the depths of its inward trajectory. In contrast, the title track is a guided meditation full of light and optimism. Its spoken word segments and patient arrangements illustrate a constructive framework for enjoying the whole of Laraaji’s extensive catalog.
Originally, these releases were hand-made and dubbed to cassette by Laraaji himself. Of the process, he says “I felt like I was distributing artwork. As a matter of fact, for some of the cassettes I actually did some extra handwork on the label, doing a screen print or magic marker to add some color. So there was a sense of how to be an industry homemade artist direct-to-consumer feeling in the early years. People would ask for cassette tapes of an issue that I had not mass produced. So, now and then I’ll run into somebody who has a cassette tape… I’ll look at it and say, ‘Oh Wow, hand-made label, J-card and HEART.'”
Available on both cassette and digital, these re-issues offer Laraaji’s early music in both its original form and a form that did not exist at the time of its recording. Regarding this parallel, Laraaji reflects, “Having the music move in dimensions I didn’t predict… It feels like an extended blessing.”
The extraordinary debut album from percussionist, drummer and producer Sarathy Korwar – “Day To Day” – fuses traditional folk music of the Sidi community in India (combining East African, Sufi and Indian influences) with jazz and electronics. It’s a collaborative release by Ninja Tune with The Steve Reid Foundation – a charitable trust established by Brownswood / Gilles Peterson with the dual objective of helping musicians in crisis and also supporting emerging talent. Sarathy is an alumnus of the Foundation’s development program, mentored by Four Tet, Emanative, Floating Points, Koreless and Gilles Peterson – all trustees of the foundation.
“Sarathy instantly caught my attention when he said he wanted to make an album that embraced both Indian folk music and jazz - two worlds that have had a big influence on me. His album succeeds in bringing these things together in an elegant way, but it’s his own style and ideas that come through the most in the music. Refreshingly different, this is a deep and powerful listening experience.” Four Tet
The Steve Reid Foundation commemorates the life and legacy of legendary percussionist/drummer Steve Reid. It is fitting that Sarathy’s album follows the lineage and spirit of Reid who himself left New York and took on a spiritual pilgrimage through Africa in the mid-1960s. For three years he journeyed through West Africa, playing with people along the way, including Fela Kuti, Guy Warren and Randy Weston. The musical roots and routes of the Black Atlantic have been discussed and documented extensively, but Sarathy is highlighting a different dispersal of people in the other direction, from East Africa to India. The Sidis travelled to India from Africa as merchants, sailors, indentured servants and mercenaries from as far back as 628 AD and have settled in India ever since.
Conceived on an extended trip to rural Gujarat, followed by sessions at Dawn Studios in Pune, Sarathy made field recordings of The Sidi Troupe of Ratanpur whose vocals and percussion form the backbone of “Day To Day”. The troupe features five drummers – their polyrhythms reflect their African heritage, in contrast to traditional Indian drummers who play in unison. Likewise, the Malunga bows (there are only 4 or 5 players in India) bear a striking resemblance to those found in Africa.
“The record is about how we individually and collectively live from day to day. The everyday rituals and tasks that bind us together, it’s a celebration of the trivial and mundane,” explains Sarathy. The colourful handmade rag quilts that the Sidis make using everyday fabrics serve as a perfect metaphor for the record: “The Sidi women make these amazing collages of colour using everyday rags,” he says. “That’s how I see this album”.
Born in the US, Sarathy Korwar grew up in Ahmedabad and Chennai in India. He began playing tabla aged 10 but was also drawn to the American music that he heard on the radio and that leaked through the doorway of his local jazz music shop, Ahmad Jamal and John Coltrane were early discoveries. At 17, Sarathy moved to Pune to study for a degree in Environmental Science, but instead dedicated his time to music: practicing tabla under the tutelage of Rajeev Devasthali, translating his skills to the Western drumkit and playing as a session musician. Finishing his studies, Sarathy began to think about pursuing a career in music and moved to London, where he trained as a classical tabla player under the guidance of Sanju Sahai and graduated with a MMus in Performance from SOAS (School of Oriental and African Studies) focusing on the adaptation of Indian classical rhythmic material to non-Indian percussion instruments.
Working the angles in London’s jazz scene, Sarathy connected with Shabaka Hutchings (Sons of Kemet, The Comet is Coming), Cara Stacey (Kit Records) and played with clarinettist Arun Ghosh. He was, however, itching to create under his own name and he started researching and formulating the concept for “Day To Day” and planning a trip to India to record the Sidis. It was late in 2014 when Sarathy heard about the Steve Reid Foundation. He applied with a three-minute video explaining his vision for the record and was accepted onto the project to be mentored by the foundation’s patrons: Four Tet, Floating Points, Gilles Peterson, Koreless and Emanative (aka Nick Woodmansey who mixed the album).
Legendary Jamaican MC Prince Far I's compilation reissued as a 2LP set for Record Store Day!
The compilation "Cry Tuff Chants On U", a collection of tracks by the late legendary Jamaican MC Prince Far I with his On-U Sound house bands Creation Rebel and Singers And Players in the early 1980s, is being reissued on Record Store Day! The limited RSD edition 2LP set includes the cassette released in 2021, as well as another version and two deep cuts that are a must have for true dub/reggae heads!
Prince Far I was a legend of roots reggae both as a producer and in his highly individualistic DJ style while holding the microphone. The album, "Psalms For I," featured his rugged voice singing bible verses over heavy rhythms. Tragically, Prince Far I was killed by gunfire in Jamaica in 1983, but his influence lives on to this day in the recordings of Adrian Sherwood's On-U Sound label.
Available for the first time on vinyl, Brainfeeder releases a wonderful new deluxe edition of Austin’s 2011 album on February 9th, 2024. “Endless Planets” was, and remains, a landmark album in the Brainfeeder catalog, marking the label’s first foray into jazz. It pre-dated his friend Thundercat’s debut album “The Golden Age of Apocalypse” by a few months and Kamasi Washington’s “The Epic” by four years. A truly prodigious talent on the piano, Austin effortlessly combined inquisitive futurism with incredible musicianship and a healthy respect for the heritage of jazz, and in this way it is an exemplary Brainfeeder record.
“I don't think art can or should be classified into earthly conventions. True art defies categorization and transcends boundaries and shouldn't be looked at through a lens of ‘earthly’ or ‘not earthly.’ If you let it wash over you and carry you away, that experience may not feel like anything you've ever experienced here on Earth. It can be the doorway into an infinitude of worlds.”
– Austin Peralta
The new edition features four previously unreleased tracks including a live version of ‘DMT Song’ from FlyLo’s 2012 album “Until the Quiet Comes” that Austin co-wrote. Recorded at the legendary BBC Maida Vale Studios in London in July 2011, Austin led an all-star British band comprising Richard Spaven (drums), Tom Mason (bass), Jason Yarde (alto sax), Heidi Vogel (vocals), and Jason Swinscoe of The Cinematic Orchestra (electronics).
On “Endless Planets” Austin recorded with the late Zane Musa (alto sax), Ben Wendel (tenor and soprano), Hamilton Price (bass) and Zach Harmon (drums). He also relied on longtime friend and associate Strangeloop for electronic manipulation throughout the set and ends the album with a scintillating collaboration with The Cinematic Orchestra and singer Heidi Vogel, “Epilogue: Renaissance Bubbles.”
The “Endless Planets” artwork is by Strangeloop, reworked for this new deluxe vinyl edition by Adam Stover and Sean Preston. Creative direction by JC Caldwell. The black vinyl gatefold 2LP features spot gloss detailing, printed inner sleeves and will be released on February 9th, 2024 via Brainfeeder Records.