luaka bop presents this album from contemporary brazilian legend kassin. one of the leading producers and instrumentalists in brazilian music, alexandre kassin has produced roughly 100 records for singers, including marisa monte and bebel gilberto, recorded with sean oÕhagan (stereolab, high llamas) and made a full album based on nintendo game boy sounds. he has played bass for caetano velosoÕs live shows and conceptualized the orchestra imperial band. his new album, relax, is rooted in dreams and surrealism, yet grounded enough to reach listeners where they are. across 11 tracks, kassin flirts with latin rhythms, brazilian pop, and straight-ahead soul, using this varied stylistic array to tell imagined tales of death, drug usage, politics and fate. theres a dichotomy to relax, with kassins arrangements often feeling bright and danceable, yet with incredibly sullen themes. its a record that speaks directly to the yin and yang of everyday life, and the uncertainty that comes with simply existing.

there is a long-standing love affair between dj harvey and pikes, ibiza. as well as coming back for his third consecutive Ômercury risingÕ residency, the legendary ÔdjsÕ dj has been appointed Ôcultural attach�Õ for pikes, meaning his magic touch and feel-good presence will create even more special moments at pikes this summer, including the launch of new label, pikes records.
in 2015 dj harvey made his hugely anticipated return to ibiza and made pikes his home for his mercury rising debut, a concept inspired by the beauty of the real ibiza, the incredible history of pikes and a genuine love for music. the love, the dancing, the music and the balearic spirit perfectly and poetically encapsulated by dj harvey has seen mercury rising widely recognised as the most special night to embrace the island in over a decade.
the next step in the harvey and pikes story sees him launch pikes records Ð the first record label founded by pikes owners and ibiza rocks co-founders andy mckay and dawn hindle. on the label, harvey explains: i see so many avenues to work together to release music, everything from live recordings from ibiza rocks and pikes, mix tapes, original productions, showcasing new artists, theres all sorts of avenues to open up. with the finer details still under wraps, its safe to say fans can look forward to the first release being harveys very own mercury rising compilation. but what can we expect from the third instalment of mercury rising? putting it quite simply, just a serious good time really says harvey.

claude debussy (+1918) was one of the most popular and forward thinking composer associated with impressionist music. his innovative and at this time new way to compose music with non traditional scales and chromaticism inspired countless artists from the likes of steve reich, philip glass, miles davis and herbie hancock. remarkable attributes of his music were i.e. the usage of parallel chords, bitonality and many compositions of whole-tone and pentatonic scales and all this surely reminds us on contemporary electronic music where you hardly find limits or boundaries when it comes to traditional, harmonic sounding scale tone music. after studying countless composers of the last centuries marc romboy decided to accept the challenge to edit, remix and reconstruct several works of his favorite french composer, ranging from ãla merÒ to -pr�lude � l apr�s-midi d un fauneÒ. romboy: ãone sentence of debussy impressed me a lot when he said that he simply intents to write new sounding music. this is and has been exactly my goal, to create kind of unheard soundsÒ. on the album romboy performs together with the dortmund philharmonic orchestra, the renowned conductor ingo-martin stadtm�ller, the well respected d�sseldorf based concert master miki kekenj and sound programmer ali khalaj. the recordings was directed december 12th 2016. its the first live recording ever released on an album where electronic sounds and classical components were merged in such manner.

cd format cocoon recordings presents q - the new edition of one of the longest running techno compilation series worldwide! we do not want to start again by mentioning how unbelievable it is that we have reached letter q already and we do not even want to imagine how fast we will probably arrive at xyz, if time continues to fly like this. the actual thrilling part of this compilation series is simply the fact that techno seems to not grow any older in this form - isnt this amazing? here, in the truest sense of the word, we have a compilation of timeless material before us. with a broad bandwidth ranging from futuristic-deconstructive compositions such as da dang by alex & digby and fragile by carlos nilmmns or the many contributions to q that fancy almost anachronistic acid and trance influences: everything sounds fresh and forward thinking!

panorama bar resident nick ho&#776,,,,,ppner gets to work on his second solo album on ostgut ton, connecting the territories of house music with the ease of alt-pop. work as in labor. an axiom that fuels the capitalist system just as the techno/house scene economy says that one needs to keep oneself busy to make a living. as a musician, things are complicated of course. itÕs a long way from the romantic idea of creating music simply for the sake of art to becoming a full time musician. those who have accomplished this feat often find themselves in a professional loop of writing the music, producing it, promoting it (with an info text like this), releasing it and then hopefully selling it. after leaving his full time job as ostgut tonÕs label manager in 2012, nick ho&#776,,,,,ppner went fully freelance, focusing on his musically diverse, deep and dynamic djing in and outside berghainÕs panorama bar, but more importantly spending more time in the studio. the result was his critically acclaimed debut album folk (ostgut ton, 2015), various 12Ò releases and remixes, and now his sophomore lp, work, which, more than ever, lays out his refined production skills and his talent to work the machines until they reveal their inner ghosts: nine new songs that now dodge the dance floor, then fully embrace it.

working together for 16 years and counting, craig smith & graeme clark aka 6th borough project possess unrivalled experience. theyve djd at pivotal clubs next to the biggest names, released music on seminal labels, and cultivated a solid knowledge of everything from jazz, funk and soul to chicago house and detroit techno. something of a rarity to find in the artists of today. following up two solid lps on revered label delusions of grandeur, 2011Õs one night in the borough and 2014Õs borough 2 borough, find your rhythm marks the duoÕs third album and is released on graemeÕs own roar groove imprint. it will feature long time collaborator vocalist paul joseph and ties into a new edinburgh based residency of the same name. spanning everything from disco, house, techno and hip-hop, find your rhythm is an impactful return and testifies the duoÕs ever-present innovation and mastery that simply does not falter with time.

roman fl�gel: i think the first 5 tracks of the album are simply fantastic

edm & trance meet classical! der kanadische produzent bt ver�ffentlicht seine gr�§ten hits in nagelneuen versionen, aufgenommen mit einem prager sinfonieorchester. das projekt electronic opus wurde dank der unterst�tzung von 2.177 fans aus aller welt in einer kickstarter-kampagne erst m�glich. parallel zur cd erscheint das werk auch als blu-ray audio mit insgesamt drei soundformaten, darunter das brandneue und atemberaubende 9.1 auro-3d-format, sowie das bislang g�ngige 5.1 dts-hd-format. die abmischung erfolgte durch den bekannten videospiel-komponisten tommy tallarico.

sebastian inwood has long been regarded as one of drum & bass s most promising producers, with a string of impressive singles on ingredients and hospital testament to his talents. strange system is the bournemouth-based break freaks debut album, and simply sparkles with futurist intent. comprised mainly of tracks that blend sturdy, bass-heavy d&b rhythms with the kind of melodious flourishes that have become hospital s trademark, its an album full to bursting with highlights. these include, but are not limited to, the punishing sub and sweaty, late night vocal samples of xylo, the slick, rolling liquid d&b of powder coated (produced in collaboration with london elektricity, and the d&b rap rinse-out of illaman hook-up weirdos & creepers.

ibiza beach-club auf der maierl alm! compiled und gemixt von paul lomax (ibiza) und hp.hoeger. incl. andre crom, mark lower, chopstick & johnjon

cocoon recordings very own best of series presents the next issue which is again simply called by the number of the release-order. so its number nine this time (neun).yep, you heard right, number nine it is and another proof how fast time is passing while we listen to house and techno

a multitasker, a one-man army, a chameleon: simply put, markus wormstorm is a phenomenon.

if you find yourself taking for granted all the natural beauty that surrounds you, caught up in trivial occurrences that interfere with your daily happiness, letting social constructs shape your mood, then please do buy this cd, sit down, focus on what is right there in your hands, turn to your loved one, breathe deeply, enjoy the light in the room, savor your food perhaps, and simply appreciate all that is happening in this particular moment levitate in awe as you enter the land of light, a new work by jonny nash and kyle martin

100 hei§e sommerhits auf 5cds, aktuelle smasher und sommerliche klassiker z.b.: simply red - the right thing, sak noel - loca people, righeira vamos a la playa, kate ryan desenchantee, avicii - fade into darkness, tony esposito - kalimba de luna, afrojack & shermanology - can t stop me, hallux ft. marcus - ai se eu te pego...

with summer around the corner, hundreds of thousands of music lovers have begun preparing themselves for the start of the festival season. the continuously increasing presence of dance music in the charts means that this year, djs are filling more headline slots than ever and appealing to a more commercial, mainstream audience, festivals such as creamfields, global gathering, sw4, coachella, ultra music fesitval and tomorrowland are still going strong and are increasingly being seen as essential summer festivals.clubbers guide is one of ministry of sounds most iconic brands and clubbers guide to festivals 2012!

digitalism has lovingly created a mix for !k7s legendary dj-kicks series. for these two young germans, jens moelle and ismail t�fekci, joining the ranks of contributors to the series was nothing short of a dream come true. twelve years ago, the duo met as two record store workers in hamburg, admiringly selling the dj-kicks series to their customers, and appreciating the dexterity of the mixes and range of artists who assembled each mix. their favourite contributions include tigas mix (his mix was the essence of edgy and cold electro-techno.), the playgroup mix (more really playful stuff.) and erlend oyes mix (cause he sung over a lot of stuff and had some favorites like j�rgen paape and the collaboration with morgan geist.

born from a common will to showcase the maturity and versatility of his producer skills, im:ltd has taken the ambitious challenge to give to the extremely talented arp xp the opportunity to release his first ever solo album effort closer. gathering influences from over ten years spent in the electronic music scene, what were presenting is an accomplished twelve-track album with the finesse youd come to expect from the sardinian sun and bass resident and some more intriguing touches you might not. from the eerie dystopia of title track closer featuring the mournful vocals of estel luz, its clear that none of this release is concerned with brightening wintery nights. each track has a vein of inky blackness running through it, and whether its the clicking, mechanical metronome of standout single something wrong, the serpentine bass of sickness of time or the somewhat middle-eastern-infused bassy stomp of maybe tomorrow with that juddering electro clap, the first half of closer is deeper and darker than the baltic. even with tracks as forcefully dank and derelict as papercuts there are washes of tunes like uneasy, stunnas re-work of closer and the particularly exquisite. upon waves to counterpoint the gloom, showing some break in the clouds. you cant stamp the sunshine out of a mediterranean heart. trademark rolling reeses and distant euphoric pads belie,closers cynical sound gives away arp xps true intention,to simply make the best bass music album he can.

feat. tracks by omar s, joris voorn, lco dice, jay haze, guti, iron curtis.. balance music presents balance 021 mixed by nic fanciulli. the saved records boss delivers a stunningly intricate mix that highlights his ethos as dj and label owner. cd1, entitled simply balance is a subtle and expertly crafted mix that balances a plethora of diverse tracks, often three at a time, to create an expansive but well focused journey. on cd2, nic showcases the sound and ethos of his own saved records with a collection of records exclusive to the imprint. whilst keeping the focus on quality house music, the mix highlights the diversity within the label with a discernable collection of tracks that straddle various styles, atmospheres and tempos Ð many of which will be available exclusively through balance 021.

do you love elegant, sophisticated music with a feeling, as much as raw, gutsy, hard-hitting music? guessing that you do penniman records takes great pride in introducing you to the excitements, because their music fits into both categories. they are an all natural free-of-additives-and-preservatives r&b / soul band. a band with both feet solidly planted on memphis and detroit, and with a heartbeat which is pure chicago. to put it simply, the excitements are what the doctor ordered: six dynamite musicians intent on bringing out the very best from koko jean davis extraordinary voice, a voice which will either break your heart or astonish your ears, whatever koko fancies the most. the excitements career is truly awesome. their first gig took place in july 2010, and a month after that the band embarked on the first of their three recording sessions, their first spanish tour and a series of concerts all across europe. very few groups can boast of enjoying such a critical success, selling so many 45s and capturing such a loyal following in so short a time. their splendid first album, -the excitements- available on vinyl and cd - has been produced by the great mike mariconda - the only living man with a direct connection between his ears and his crotch. hearing is believing, and koko and her partners are bound to mesmerize with numbers such as nathaniel mayer s -from now on-, barbara stephens s -wait a minute- and little richard s -never let you go-, a track which will go straight to your heart. you may call them old-fashioned. a classic sound, if you wish. one thing is clear: the good stuff is here to stay. stop reading, listen to the excitements and hear for yourself.

2011 album from the australian deep funk quartet. look out watch out builds upon the diamond hard and gritty funk and soul template they established with their self titled 2009 debut long player. not content to return with simply more of the same, look out, watch out expands the groups sound and repertoire, featuring as it does, incredible new vocalist may johnston, guest contributions from renowned randa khamis and roxie ray, a choice cover version plus original tracks augmented with some raucous and heavy brass.

a brand new compilation featuring the a- and b-sides of all the bands chiswick singles. includes four tracks new to cd. when we recently came to re-press our long-standing the best of the damned, the pressing plant told us that, unfortunately, the films had been lost. rather than simply make a new set of films, we decided to make a completely new cd and so present you with the damned: the chiswick singles - and another thing... overseen by the producer of the bands chiswick releases, roger armstrong, the package comes with brand new high-end transfers from the original master tapes - the damned have never sounded better. an extensive trawl through box after box of saved material from that era means that the booklet features a lavishly illustrated package including rare photographs and tons of memorabilia.

2011 debut from penguin prison aka chris glover. this effort is quite simply the most smoothed-out, hook-heavy, unabashed lovers disco around. from the miraculous slices of shiny, infectious contemporary pop of multi-millionaire and -golden train-, to the single -fair warning-, shimmering with spectral synths and breathless, honey vocals, to the mellow and mysterious album closer -someone got everything-, penguin prisons debut effort rolls you through a sleek, melodic world where all you need to worry about is whether youve got your sunglasses on and the right moves to keep up.

qwazaar & batsauce follow up their masterful style be the king ep (2011, fifth element/galapagos4) with a 14-track juggernaut entitled bat meets blaine. the record is an absolute rarity a series of inspired sessions from a world-class mc & producer team at the height of their respective powers. batsauce provides ambidextrous backdrops that are as multilayered as they are strident, while qwazaar simply astonishes, baring his soul while performing near-impossible lyrical feats. its a record all true heads should cop and that all lab scientists can envy.

whats the point of a concept album when no one hears the concept in it? maybe that it sets a boundary, forcing mr artist to go even deeper into the fewer possibilities left. creativity by limitation and all thatÉ well spare you further theorizing. >fever<, the third longplayer by dutch low end scientist 2562, then, is his disco album: a thorough reinterpretation of underground disco music from the mid seventies to the early eighties, with his own birthyear 1979 as the gravitational point. all based on one simple rule: every single sound, from the smallest background shiver to the most obese sub bass, originates from a disco record Ð no additional synthesizers, drumcomputers or other samplesources involved. disco-edits, italo homages or filtered loops then? hardly. this is genuinely new and retro-free music that respectfully flips its sources so hard even the biggest paradise garage connaisseurs wont recognize what just hit them. or in the words of musical allies martyn and pinch, who independently drew the same conclusion: >sorry, but i dont hear that whole disco story in there. this simply sounds like you.< completely failed as a concept album, then Ð and all the better for it.

5 cd compilation of all 80s hits! incl. depeche mode, goldie, madhouse, the waterboys, a-ha, simply red..

portmanteau with a mixture between electronics, headz, rock and breaks, flavoured with some melancholy

the sender-owner christopher bleckmann and hannes werner are still rockin with their new album >nd4<. the tracks are simply named by different places in their hometown, cologne. but everything but simply is the contents: very special minimalistic sound paired with rocking beats and basslines! masterpiece!