NEW ARRIVALS

First reissue of these cult 1974 recordings of a Mayan brass band playing funeral dirges and popular songs in its distinctive extended harmonic and rhythmic style. The members of the San Lucas Band lived in the mountain village of San Lucas Tolimán, Guatemala, playing local events of both religious and social nature. The pride of its town since 1922, the band represented a fast-disappearing musical tradition when these recordings were originally released in 1975. Its unique sound derived from an unusual combination of instruments, a repertoire including pieces dating from more than fifty years before the recordings were made to more recent ones, and above all from the highland Maya style of its playing, which is characterized by a preference for freer rhythmic structures and a wider variety of pitches than Western scales allow. One of Jon Hassell and Charlie Haden's favorite records, it was nominated for a Grammy Award upon first release and has remained much beloved by a small community of enthusiasts for decades. A profound and rewarding musical experience for all adventurous listeners, notably fans of Albert Ayler, microtonal and raw cosmic music.

Les Disques Bongo Joe are happy to announce the release of Zonder Pardon, new album of our Amsterdam based superstar Don Melody Club in collaboration with Dutch label Exclesior Records. Crazy covers, amazing composition driven by his iconic drum machine groove, this album is a coooool project for our music lovers. Pulling the enchanted listener further into his psychedelic and retro tinged universe, Don Melody Club (AKA Donald “Donny” Madjid) readies the release of his new EP Zonder Pardon. Sung in his native Dutch (as are all his songs), Tederheid is a celebration of the beauty and power of mutual affection. With its uptempo drum machine rhythms, pulsating basslines, and funky melodies, the synths and vocals echo the work of Talking Heads and Bryan Ferry (Roxy Music), but the result is unmistakably Don Melody Club. The wonky Koud Kwartier evokes memories of the Nederwave sound of Doe Maar, a Dutch pop band that combined punk, ska, and reggae influences, first formed in 1978. Coming off the back of a busy 12 months and more of touring with The Mauskovic Dance Band, Madjid returns his focus to Don Melody Club, a project that first saw the light of day with the release of his debut LP Pure Donzin in 2021. Whilst many of his Dutch peers bypass Holland as a place for enlightenment, choosing to pivot and look far and wide for inspiration, Madjid felt drawn to the literary and musical tradition of the flatlands, following in the footsteps of both classic and lesser known Dutch troubadours such as Ramses Shaffy and Ronald Langestraat.

This is a soundtrack created by haruka nakamura for THE NORTH FACE Sphere in response to a request for "one album for each of spring, summer, fall, and winter.
This project, entitled "Light years," is a project to produce four albums over the course of one year.

All music by Egil Kalman except the traditional melodies on A3 and C4. All rights reserved (TONO/NCB). Performed and recorded live, without overdubs, on THE ELECTRIC MUSIC BOX, Series 200 designed by Don Buchla. Recorded 21 October - 7 November 2021 at Elektronmusikstudion (EMS) in Stockholm to two stereo track, one dry and one through an AKG BX20 spring reverb. Additional control voltage supplied by an Eurorack modular system. Pre-recorded drums on D4 by E.K.

Second Circle are excited to welcome another new artist to the label, ISOR29, with a six track mini-album titled ‘Moon Phase Gardening’. ISOR29 is a new project from Colombian musician Tomas Garcia Station and follows on from his highly regarded 2020 debut release under the ‘Irie Nation’ moniker. The title ‘Moon Phase Gardening’ (also referred to as Gardening by the Moon or Planting by the Moon) draws upon the idea that the lunar cycle affects plant growth. Just as the Moon’s gravitational pull creates the tides of the oceans, it also creates more moisture in the soil, which encourages growth. Evolving out of forced time off, individual confrontation and the love for someone close, ‘Moon Phase Gardening’ was recorded in the living room of an old flat in Lisbon during the first lockdown. Using only a microphone, computer, Korg MS20, hang drum and a field recorder, ISOR29 channels Tomas’ musical vocabulary via electronics to reflect an immersive and self-reflective story bound to a uniquely powerful time and space.

Nothing But Net presents “Perceptions”, the debut LP from Los Angeles producer/beat maker Jamma-Dee aka Dyami O’Brien. Jamma-Dee has been a figure in the west coast modern funk and boogie scene, both as an accomplished DJ and music producer, having released records under his own name and producing for the likes of Joyce Wrice, Mndsgn and others. From a musical upbringing in Los Angeles, Dyami’s adolescent obsession with record digging and beatmaking eventually led him to Dam-Funk’s renown Funkmosphere parties where he built friendships with key players in the LA funk scene and began to make a name for himself as a DJ and producer. In the second half of the 2010’s he released a series of EPs on Arcane and hosted the legendary Soul In Paradise show on NTS radio. His first full-length, “Perceptions” is a long time in the making. Beginning with studio experiments nearly a decade ago, a version of the album found its way to producer and Nothing But Net label boss Onra, who helped guide the project to completion. The album artwork was created by outsider soul music conceptualist and painter, Mingering Mike, whom O’Brien felt compelled to reach out to after discovering his work years earlier. Thematically, the artwork, record, and its title touch on very modern themes: the alienation of life in a world of instant-gratification, an overly-connected society of masks, distorted realities and shifting identities. Musically, “Perceptions” is the culmination of a life lived under the groove. Featuring a long list of collaborators, including Benedek, Mndsgn, Koreatown Oddity, the legendary Craig T. Cooper and fellow NBN labelmate, Devin Morrison, the double album touches on all of O’Brien’s musical influences. Album opener “Up N Down” sets the scene with it’s syrupy g-funk impressionism, before “Jamma’s Jam” bounces out of the speakers through an auburn-colored sunset haze of lush Rhodes chords and sparkling vibraphones. “It Takes A Freak” and “Datafile Groove” shuffle westward, re-imagining New Jack Swing grooves through a distinctly Californian lens. Elsewhere, the album touches on classic deep house rhythms (“Tic Toc” and “Silly”) and crystalline, downtempo R&B and UK street soul (“Joy”, “Saturday”).“U.R.” features legendary L.A. guitarist Craig T. Cooper laying down a network of stunning, silken guitar lines with absolute class. Over the course of these 15 tracks, Jamma Dee consolidates, renovates and perpetuates the sound of his influences. “Perceptions” is a masterclass in modern funk and soul production.

Spring /Autumn
THE NORTH FACE Sphere, an ambitious new store building to be opened in Harajuku, Tokyo in 2022.

In response to a request for "one album for each of the four seasons, spring, summer, fall, and winter," haruka nakamura created "Light years" as the soundtrack for the new building, which became a project to produce four albums over one year.
The LP is divided into "Spring and Autumn" and "Winter and Summer" based on the world view of the production timeline, and is the best of the four original albums.

The "Winter/Summer" album is the best of the first album "Light years" and the third album "from dusk to the sun".
（The "Spring and Autumn" version will be released at the same time.)

Japanese jazz and rare groove masterpiece re-released on clear lime yellow colored vinyl!
A single stroke of the drum will numb your whole body. Japan's super funky drummer, Akira Ishikawa, runs through the wonderland of grooves!

Akira Ishikawa is a superb funky drummer born in Japan. He is highly regarded in many fields for his ability to travel freely through jazz, rock, and African music, fuse them together, and create his own unique musical style. His career is lined with masterpieces of jazz-rock and rare groove, but this album is especially favored for its outstanding selection of songs and poignant musicality. The album includes "Let's Start," a tight cover of Fela Kuti's Afro-funk, "Bongo Rock," a dynamic song with drum breaks, and "Pick Up The Pieces," a jazz-funk version of the Avebury White Band's classic. Pieces," a jazz-funk version of the Avebury White Band classic, and many other monster tunes that are hard to believe were recorded in 1975. Supported by such virtuosos as Kiyoshi Sugimoto, Hiromasa Suzuki, and Ken Muraoka, the album also shines.
text by Yusuke Ogawa (universounds/Deep Jazz Reality)

A jazz-rock masterpiece by master musician Jiro Inagaki! Beyond Jazz Rock. Soul Media, led by Jiro Inagaki, has arrived at the ultimate tight and cool groove. As Inagaki himself says, "I did black funk." By combining the burst of jazz rock he had cultivated up to that point with the tenacity and elasticity of black music, his musicality took a leap to another dimension. The groove is polished, shiny, and bewitching, coupled with the masterful arrangements of virtuoso Hiromasa Suzuki. The lively and fast "Painted Paradise," the funkiness and mellowness of "Breeze," the low center of gravity and sharpness of "Kool & the Gang," "Funky Stuff," and "Painted Paradise," the melodic "Breeze," and "Funky Stuff," the melodic "Funky Stuff," are all well-known. The entire album is worth listening to, including a cover of "Funky Stuff" by Kool & the Gang. This is a definitive masterpiece that continues to be a worldwide favorite.

Limited Colored Vinyl. "Mulatu Astatqé (also sometimes spelled Mulatu Astatke, as he is on the liner notes to this release) might be most known to international audiences through his tracks on the excellent Ethiopiques CD anthology series of Ethiopian music. Long before those tracks were compiled for that series, however, he had an American release with this 1972 instrumental album, on which he's billed as 'Mulatu of Ethiopia.' Like much of the best of the circa-early-'70s contemporary Ethiopian music on Ethiopiques, it's a fine, at times captivating blend of late-'60s American soul and jazz with Ethiopian music, resulting in something not quite comparable to anything else." -- Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide.

Arthur Petronio's one and only LP, now reissued by Metaphon, was originally published by the Belgian Igloo label in 1979. An extravagant DIY montage of musique concrète and sound poetry. In addition to Petronio's voice several female readers/performers contribute to this theatre of voices as guest vocalists. An album as unusual as his lifecycle. Born Switzerland 1897, Petronio was a French-Italian musician, poet and painter. He was a young violin virtuoso studying with Belgian master violinist Eugène Ysaÿe, and played solo violin for Belgian King Leopold II at the age of 9. He was attracted to the avant-garde and visionary ideas of Gesamtkunstwerk and developed and presented his "Verbophonie" in 1919, integrating sound poetry into regular music scores. He was a friend to Kandinsky, Mondrian, Cocteau and Picasso, and published several avant-garde journals and poetry books with participation of like-minded artists. He wrote many scores for solo instruments, small ensembles, orchestral works, and operas and extended his musical ideas with new possibilities of tape composition.

TAIKOKISSIE & DUB PASSENGERS, Tokyo-based musician TAIKOKISSIE, whose previous album "SLOW DANCE IN SUBURBIA" was well received, presents their 2ND 10"! Hard jazz and improvisation are played with skillful technique and dubwise with deep effects that seem to dive close and deep.

Very pleased and grateful to announce this ‘Home Comfort’ reissue by Mark Glynne and Bart Zwier, originally self-released in 1980. Maybe a bit of an unexpected title to appear in the LSD catalog but my love for this album goes back to my late teenage years and has had an addictive effect since, like a spleen infused magnet. With this album Glynne and Zwier, based in the Netherlands and connected to the Ultra scene, drew an insular blend of intimate post-punk and chamber (bedroom) songs with surreal scenic reflections. Probably its naked singularity defying categorization has left it so unnoticed, even 43 years after the making. It also features a reciting Marlène Dumas still quite unknown at the time. With biggest gratitude to Mark Glynne who instantly felt confident with my proposal to reissue this silent witness of lasting beauty. My long time Japanese friend You Ishihara (White Heaven, The Stars) who bought the LP when it came out in 1980 still considers it as one of his all-time favourites. This is what he writes about ‘Home Comfort’:“Resignation and fear in a desolate mental landscape. This album, which exists like a shelter for those who have quietly escaped through the backdoor of the world, vividly reflects the inner depths of the devastated Amsterdam of the early 80’s. A beautiful and sad, unmistakable masterpiece.”

Very pleased and grateful to announce this ‘Home Comfort’ reissue by Mark Glynne and Bart Zwier, originally self-released in 1980. Maybe a bit of an unexpected title to appear in the LSD catalog but my love for this album goes back to my late teenage years and has had an addictive effect since, like a spleen infused magnet. With this album Glynne and Zwier, based in the Netherlands and connected to the Ultra scene, drew an insular blend of intimate post-punk and chamber (bedroom) songs with surreal scenic reflections. Probably its naked singularity defying categorization has left it so unnoticed, even 43 years after the making. It also features a reciting Marlène Dumas still quite unknown at the time. With biggest gratitude to Mark Glynne who instantly felt confident with my proposal to reissue this silent witness of lasting beauty. My long time Japanese friend You Ishihara (White Heaven, The Stars) who bought the LP when it came out in 1980 still considers it as one of his all-time favourites. This is what he writes about ‘Home Comfort’:“Resignation and fear in a desolate mental landscape. This album, which exists like a shelter for those who have quietly escaped through the backdoor of the world, vividly reflects the inner depths of the devastated Amsterdam of the early 80’s. A beautiful and sad, unmistakable masterpiece.”

Based in musically fertile Leeds, the 14-member jazz ensemble Ancient Infinity Orchestra have made an album (their debut for Gondwana Records) that marries influences like John and Alice Coltrane with an emphatically Northern style, alongside a communal aspect of recording that fits both the aforementioned artists and the thriving jazz scene of their hometown. River of Light was recorded in just 3 days, the massive cast of players – key member and saxophonist Matthew Halsall is part of a rotating lineup of violinists, harpists, flautists and more – working with a similarly sized choir of Brighton friends. Over this time, the collective made food together and jammed in the heat between tracks, inducing a wholesome, exuberant warmth that percolates throughout the album.

Finnish drummer/Producer Teppo "Teddy Rok" Mäkynen returns with his alias The Stance Brothers. Lauded by the likes of Kenny Dope and Gilles Peterson, Mäkynen's studio creation has been visible on the 7" format during the recent years. Now, Mäkynen is back with a full LP, the project's first in more than 10 years. Duktus is a treasure-trove for everyone into crunchy jazz funk à la Bob James & CTI, but this is no retro exercise. Teddy Rok moves forward in all directions, constantly bringing new elements into his sound, which is more layered and deep than ever before. At the same time, the crunch & the breaks are there when you need them. The basic core of The Stance Brothers is to be solo studio vehicle for Teppo Mäkynen to experiment across a varied instrumentation and musical ideas. After the project's celebrated first album (Ricky-Tick Records, 2007), The Stance Brothers took to the stage as well, creating one of the most beloved live outfits of recent history in the Helsinki scene. Now, after more than 10+ years of time spent in releasing one hard-hitting 7" after the other, The Stance Brothers are back, both on the record and live on stage. Whereas the Stance 7" sides are often dominated by crunchy drums and crystal clear vibraphone melodies, the new album sounds broadens up into a more synth-heavy, "postmodern" realm, taking its space in a form resembling a mixtape. The funk is there, but Mäkynen is sensitive to the fact that an LP is not a 7", and the ideas take their shape accordingly. Guest voices float in and out of the mix, blending in anonymously, true to the low-key spirit of the studio operation. Inspiration: Roy Ayers, Mizell Brothers, Bobby Hutcherson, Cesar Mariano, Patrice Rushen, George Duke, Madlib's Mind Fusion Mixtapes.

Strut present the first international reissues of two classics of South African jazz by Malombo Jazz Makers, ‘Malompo Jazz’ (1966) and ‘Malombo Jazz Makers Vol. 2’ (1967). Formed in Mamelodi township near Pretoria, the group started out as Malombo Jazz Men with Julian Bahula on malombo drums, Abbey Cindi on flute and Philip Tabane on guitar. Fusing traditional and improvised rhythms with jazz, Malombo became renowned as one of the first South African bands to fully connect jazz with the African traditions. Despite his undoubted genius, Tabane became erratic on tour and Bahula brought in another Mamelodi-based talent, guitarist Lucas “Lucky” Ranku, renaming the band Malombo Jazz Makers. The group played stadiums and festivals and were soon signed to Gallo. Recording at a studio in Pretoria, the trio debuted with the album ‘Malompo Jazz’ in 1966, showcasing the simple, spacious beauty of the Malombo sound and Abbey Cindi’s compositions, with Mahotella Queens’ Hilda Tloubatla on guest vocals. The partner follow-up album ‘Malombo Jazz Makers Vol. 2’ was recorded a year later, continuing the earthy flow of Malombo’s music. The two albums have since been recognised as unique landmarks of South African jazz through popular tracks like ‘Sibathathu’, ‘Jikeleza’ and ‘Emakhaya’. Alongside full original artwork, the albums feature a new interview with Julian Bahula.

Lysergic weather front top-loaded via betamax’s hippocampus trapdoor melding Catto’s studio into a rainbow of textures, formless places, and emotional sonics awash with resonant poy-rhythms. Champagne Dub is a mission in space-dub whose ‘crew’ took a few too many wrong turns. “We are here to bring raw metamorphic rock-rituals that escaped our minds.” Mr Noodles, the Peruvian Performance artist cuts an uncomfortable figure in the recording studio. Kinetic energy flowing from a spring of mysteriously paranoid fits of spontaneous movement, Noodles is vulnerable and dangerous. Cryptic words are spunked from the subconscious and lie scattered across the band’s rhythmic engine-room. Ruth Goller’s bass tones geometrically tumble over the cluttered floor of Betamax’s dirty drums and percussion. Turn to Ed Briggs, the medieval sound scientist, convulsing in the corner as his unreliable, self-assembled electronics drain the remaining energy from what seems to be a living but barely-live power source, spewing their sonic debris at the spinning wheels of tape delay.

Multi-instrumentalist and composer Isaiah Collier connects with the divine ancestors on a transcendent Direct-To-Disc session, Parallel Universe Chicago-based innovator and educator Isaiah Collier is opening up new dimensions in the jazzwise continuum. A saxophonist by trade whose multi-instrumental talents and compositional prowess have stretched the limits of the form, Parallel Universe represents a new chapter in Collier’s musical journey. Having already performed with a diverse range of musicians such as Chance The Rapper, Waddada Leo Smith, Chicago jazz royalty Angel Bat Dawid and his own band The Chosen Few, Collier’s latest work as a bandleader explores the shared musical heritage of the African diaspora with a sense of grace and assurance that belies his years. Embracing the risk and vulnerability that comes with the live process, Collier and his band tapped into the frequencies of improvisation that fired up so many of the most timeless jazz recordings. “Recording direct-to-disc gave me a really fortunate opportunity to experience what our musical predecessors almost a hundred years ago were dealing with,” he explains. Name-checking Sun Ra, Ras G, J Dilla, Fela Kuti, Miles Davis, Gil Scott-Heron, Whitney Huston, Aaliyah and Frankie Knuckles, the opening of track of Parallel Universe imagines a genreless musical lineage that resonates with the polyphony of stories his band bring to the table, from Chicago and beyond. Featuring gospel soul singer Jimetta Rose, AACM and former Art Ensemble of Chicago trumpet player Corey Wilkes, blues-rooted guitarist Michael Damani, regular collaborators Julian Davis Reid, James Russell Sims and Micah Collier, the 8-track album bristles with a sense of love and understanding between players at the top of their game. Nowhere is this more evident than on the album’s 13-minute centrepiece, ‘Village Song’, in which Collier evokes the spiritual, psychological and emotional home of the African diaspora in song. “I want to speak to everybody of the African diaspora, truly in its entirety,” he explains, “from all the way of being back in the motherland, to the new lands we’ve come to.” Rooted in the percussion of Sonny Daze and the kalimba of Radius, ‘Village Song’ is a joyous and affirmative celebration of that unity. Picking up the flute, Collier explains, was also a part of that narrative: “The saxophone was not made in Africa so the concept of going back into the village we have to go back to our village instruments and dialect.” With vocals sung in Yoruba - inspired by a gift from legendary saxophonist Kenny Garrett - ‘Village Song’ soars between rhythms and references, from Afro-Cuban syncopation to the deep triplet swing of mid-‘60s Coltrane. Laying the foundations for the album as a whole, the result is truly exhilarating, “Give me that feeling that makes me feel like I’m alive,” Collier enthuses. “People can tell when you’re taking chances. I know that’s what everybody is looking for.”

New Future City Radio is the first duo collaboration of longtime creative partners Damon Locks & Rob Mazurek. In a hyperactive 40-minute, 18-track suite that runs like a boombox mixtape, the two prolific multi-media artists contemplate community, transformation, and the future through the programmatic format of a pirate radio station for the people. These two artists have worked together from the peak days of the late 90s / early 00s Chicago music scene up through the present day, which has seen Locks featured as lead vocalist of multiple critically-acclaimed Exploding Star Orchestra (ESO) albums composed/produced by Mazurek and released by International Anthem (IARC) in 2020 (Dimensional Stardust) and 2023 (Lightning Dreamers). In recent years, Locks has also earned great renown from his revolutionary, expansive latter-day gospel/jazz project Black Monument Ensemble (BME), with which he’s released two albums on IARC (2019’s Where Future Unfolds and 2021’s NOW). New Future City Radio finds the artists creating a natural but innovatively-assembled blend of the sounds of those two projects, with Locks’s BME-style sample-based sound collage creating compositional beds underneath the signature Orson Welles-like vocal delivery he’s developed through his work with ESO, alongside Roland SP flourishes and arresting brass improvisations by Mazurek. Themes both sonic and text based were predetermined but improvisation leads the journey. The music these two have devised may sound hyper-charged one moment and gently transportive the next, and often somewhere in between. When asked about New Future City Radio the duo exclaim in one voice: "I'm talking post, post, post, future. I'm talking resilience and levitation. I'm talking beauty and structural integrity for my people. I'm talking light beams that tell stories and educate. Let's talk about that if you wanna talk new future!"

Over the past few years, concert patrons have stopped the musician Carlos Niño after gigs to ask two simple questions: “Are you a shaman?” “I hear the medicine in your music, can I come to your next ceremony?” The queries are fair enough: Looking at Niño, a tall man with a wild beard and kind eyes, one would think he’s from some faraway time and could maybe cast spells. Once you get to know him, you find that he’s just an incredibly sweet guy with a laid-back demeanor, and that he isn’t some guru claiming to have an all-access pass to the otherworld. So what does he say to those wondering if he’s a spiritual teacher? “I’m just chillin’, on fire,” he declares. “I'm not rolling with or out any kind of religious or traditional focus, rules or doctrine. I'm just presenting something that has a lot of energy, and is intended to be an opening for those of us who are journeying, creating musically, and for those who gather with us.” Indeed, there’s a communal essence to Niño’s self-described Energetic Space Music. As leader of Carlos Niño & Friends, he encourages his collaborators to improvise without preconceived ideas of what the sound is supposed to entail. His new album, (I’m just) Chillin’, on Fire, features more than a dozen musicians and includes a who’s who of sonic experimentation — everyone from guitarist Nate Mercereau and saxophonist Kamasi Washington, to New Age cornerstone Laraaji and hip-hop legend André 3000 playing his now trademark flute. On purpose, Niño lets the music drift and the unity ensue, making (I’m just) Chillin’, on Fire another highlight in a recent run of sublime work. But where albums like 2020’s Chicago Waves (with multi-instrumentalist Miguel Atwood-Ferguson) and last year’s Extra Presence hovered in the speakers, (I’m just) Chillin’ forges ahead in certain spots through energetic drums equally indebted to jazz and electronic funk. It eschews genre, but the tenets of ‘70s underground jazz are present. Fifty years ago, acts like Brother Ah, the Ensemble Al-Salaam and Mtume Umoja Ensemble crafted music that scanned as Spiritual Jazz yet flared in many different directions. They leaned into the transcendence of the music overall, not artificial terms used to market it. (I’m just) Chillin’ emits the same emotion: On “Mighty Stillness,” when the experimental violinist V.C.R proclaims her “ancestral right” to rest, she evokes Black women like Jeanne Lee, Jayne Cortez and Beatrice Parker, innovative vocalists from indie scenes who embodied the same freedom. Then on “Love Dedication (for Annelise),” Niño uses subtle bass (from Michael Alvidrez) and a serene piano loop (from Surya Botofasina) to speak of endearment in broad terms. “Love is unconditional — everywhere, everything, flowing always,” he observes. “Totally alive, no upper limit.” Though he hesitates to embrace comparisons to the spacious arrangements heard on indie labels of the ‘70s like Strata, Strata-East and Tribe (only because of how much he respects their legacies, not wanting to claim any space in their fields), there’s no denying his stature as an anchor in the jazz, hip-hop and beat scenes in Los Angeles over the last nearly 30 years, and how his influences are alive in what he makes. “All of those labels to me are hugely influential,” Niño says. “When I think about Strata-East, I immediately think of Pharaoh Sanders, and I think of one of my favorite albums of all-time, Live at the East (on Impulse!), and how The East and that movement is a huge influence. I'm not from that community. I don't claim any direct connection to it, but my awareness of it and my appreciation of it is gigantic.” The vocals for (I’m just) Chillin’ were compiled unconventionally. “I was like, ‘I'm going to turn on the mic, and you're going to listen all the way through the album and record anything you're feeling at any moment,’” Niño says of the creative process. “It was completely open to their interpretation.” He found that the vocalists Cavana Lee, Maia, Mia Doi Todd, and V.C.R interpreted the music in similar ways: “People who are not even in the same room, who did not hear what the other person did, they all created these really cool weavings — and it was so fun.” While the album compiles live and studio arrangements recorded in places like Venice, Leimert Park and Woodstock over the past three years, it feels harmonious, as if captured in one space with all musicians present. This highlights Niño’s ability as a conductor and producer. That he could winnow such vast experimentation into a seamless set is a worthy feat on its own. Much like Niño’s other LPs, (I’m just) Chillin’ is an immersive listen that requires attentive ears to fully absorb. In a world dominated by social media and the 24-hour news cycle, it seems we’re all in a hurry for no reason in particular. By creating music with tender messages and leisurely pacing, Niño nudges listeners to slow down and appreciate life’s natural wonders, to savor the journey and not rush

Over the past few years, concert patrons have stopped the musician Carlos Niño after gigs to ask two simple questions: “Are you a shaman?” “I hear the medicine in your music, can I come to your next ceremony?” The queries are fair enough: Looking at Niño, a tall man with a wild beard and kind eyes, one would think he’s from some faraway time and could maybe cast spells. Once you get to know him, you find that he’s just an incredibly sweet guy with a laid-back demeanor, and that he isn’t some guru claiming to have an all-access pass to the otherworld. So what does he say to those wondering if he’s a spiritual teacher? “I’m just chillin’, on fire,” he declares. “I'm not rolling with or out any kind of religious or traditional focus, rules or doctrine. I'm just presenting something that has a lot of energy, and is intended to be an opening for those of us who are journeying, creating musically, and for those who gather with us.” Indeed, there’s a communal essence to Niño’s self-described Energetic Space Music. As leader of Carlos Niño & Friends, he encourages his collaborators to improvise without preconceived ideas of what the sound is supposed to entail. His new album, (I’m just) Chillin’, on Fire, features more than a dozen musicians and includes a who’s who of sonic experimentation — everyone from guitarist Nate Mercereau and saxophonist Kamasi Washington, to New Age cornerstone Laraaji and hip-hop legend André 3000 playing his now trademark flute. On purpose, Niño lets the music drift and the unity ensue, making (I’m just) Chillin’, on Fire another highlight in a recent run of sublime work. But where albums like 2020’s Chicago Waves (with multi-instrumentalist Miguel Atwood-Ferguson) and last year’s Extra Presence hovered in the speakers, (I’m just) Chillin’ forges ahead in certain spots through energetic drums equally indebted to jazz and electronic funk. It eschews genre, but the tenets of ‘70s underground jazz are present. Fifty years ago, acts like Brother Ah, the Ensemble Al-Salaam and Mtume Umoja Ensemble crafted music that scanned as Spiritual Jazz yet flared in many different directions. They leaned into the transcendence of the music overall, not artificial terms used to market it. (I’m just) Chillin’ emits the same emotion: On “Mighty Stillness,” when the experimental violinist V.C.R proclaims her “ancestral right” to rest, she evokes Black women like Jeanne Lee, Jayne Cortez and Beatrice Parker, innovative vocalists from indie scenes who embodied the same freedom. Then on “Love Dedication (for Annelise),” Niño uses subtle bass (from Michael Alvidrez) and a serene piano loop (from Surya Botofasina) to speak of endearment in broad terms. “Love is unconditional — everywhere, everything, flowing always,” he observes. “Totally alive, no upper limit.” Though he hesitates to embrace comparisons to the spacious arrangements heard on indie labels of the ‘70s like Strata, Strata-East and Tribe (only because of how much he respects their legacies, not wanting to claim any space in their fields), there’s no denying his stature as an anchor in the jazz, hip-hop and beat scenes in Los Angeles over the last nearly 30 years, and how his influences are alive in what he makes. “All of those labels to me are hugely influential,” Niño says. “When I think about Strata-East, I immediately think of Pharaoh Sanders, and I think of one of my favorite albums of all-time, Live at the East (on Impulse!), and how The East and that movement is a huge influence. I'm not from that community. I don't claim any direct connection to it, but my awareness of it and my appreciation of it is gigantic.” The vocals for (I’m just) Chillin’ were compiled unconventionally. “I was like, ‘I'm going to turn on the mic, and you're going to listen all the way through the album and record anything you're feeling at any moment,’” Niño says of the creative process. “It was completely open to their interpretation.” He found that the vocalists Cavana Lee, Maia, Mia Doi Todd, and V.C.R interpreted the music in similar ways: “People who are not even in the same room, who did not hear what the other person did, they all created these really cool weavings — and it was so fun.” While the album compiles live and studio arrangements recorded in places like Venice, Leimert Park and Woodstock over the past three years, it feels harmonious, as if captured in one space with all musicians present. This highlights Niño’s ability as a conductor and producer. That he could winnow such vast experimentation into a seamless set is a worthy feat on its own. Much like Niño’s other LPs, (I’m just) Chillin’ is an immersive listen that requires attentive ears to fully absorb. In a world dominated by social media and the 24-hour news cycle, it seems we’re all in a hurry for no reason in particular. By creating music with tender messages and leisurely pacing, Niño nudges listeners to slow down and appreciate life’s natural wonders, to savor the journey and not rush

Svaneborg Kardyb's Tiny Desk (Home) concert was recorded in the countryside of Djursland, Denmark. "You have to drive for a while on a gravel road, and then you come to a lovely old house surrounded by hills and a stream on one side and a very flat landscape on the other, where you can see 10 miles away,". It's this place that inspired Svaneborg Kardyb's second album, Haven (or "garden" in English). "Haven celebrates places we like to be," the duo said. Svaneborg Kardyb is composed of Nikolaj Svaneborg on the Wurlitzer, synthesizer and piano, and Jonas Kardyb on drums and percussion. Their instrumentation set-up is untraditional, with the drums and keys facing each other, a position that they play in on stage just as they do in Kardyb's kitchen and living room on this session. They open up their set with the title track from Haven, which begins with a quiet melody over an effervescent loop. The sound mimics the shimmy of leaves in the breeze.

Batov Records is thrilled to announce the release of ‘Middle Eastern Grooves’, a double gatefold LP compilation of standout tracks from the label’s highly successful series of 7” singles released under the same name, hand selected by label co-founder DJ Kobayashi. Spanning from 2015 to the present day, the compilation features a mix of classic favourites, new releases, and never-before-heard gems from some of the most talented emerging artists. Batov Records “Middle Eastern Grooves’ 7” series have become staples in the sets of DJs looking to broaden their sets to incorporate psychedelic and Middle Eastern sounds alongside the familiar funk, jazz, and soul catalogue. In the process, the series has enjoyed support across BBC 6 Radio Music, from Gilles Peterson to Gideon Coe, and made waves around the world, from Radio Nova and FIP in France, across the Atlantic to KEXP and Music Is My Sanctuary, and laid the seeds for debut albums from series staples, Sababa 5 and Şatellites. The compilation opens with the desert funk sound of "Badawee" by the iconic producer and multi-instrumentalist, Kutiman, followed by the instrumental edit of "Ya Raiyat" by Tel Aviv digging pioneers Radio Trip. Other highlights include the deranged & spooky synths of “The Egyptian” by Baharat, a prime example of the label's core sound, the psychedelic Middle Eastern groove bomb "Deli Deli" by Şatellites, and “Nasnusa”, Sababa 5’s acclaimed collaboration with Japanese vocalist Yurika Hanashima. The compilation also includes some exclusive tracks, released here for the first time. Following their recent collaborative EP, Sababa 5 back the newly discovered vocalist Shiran Tzfira with a simple but effective combo of synths and percussion on the haunting “Manginat Mahepeha”. Şatellites band leader Itamar Kluger contributes “Saved From The Jazz” from his new psychedelic funk project Eje Eje - watch out for the drums on this! And finally, underground belly dancing princess turned Mediterranean psych chanteuse, Cherry Bandora, contributes the hypnotic “Esý”. This first volume of highlights from the Middle Eastern Grooves 7" series offers a comprehensive look at the evolution of the label's sound and its place in the wider musical context. From surf rock to Mediterranean psych, this collection showcases the diverse and captivating sounds of the Middle East and its influence on modern music. The compilation will be available on double gatefold vinyl and for digital download and streaming from 19th May, 2023. When he isn’t managing Batov Records, DJ Kobayashi can be found digging for grooves and melodies that stand out from the norm, and sharing them at the likes of Brilliant Corners, Spiritland, and his biweekly show on Soho Radio. His vast collection spans funk and beats from across the globe, and reflects, of course, a particular predilection for Middle Eastern grooves. His refined tastes have created a great demand for his selections, leading to him playing alongside the likes of Islandman, Balkan Beat Box, The Apples, and Baba Zula.