ambitioniertestes album irgendwo zwischen post rock, warmen westcoast sounds und electronica

come take a journey down memory lane with us on back 2 the old skool garage classics, the greatest collection of garage anthems ever compiled!this essential album retrospectively maps out a journey through garage with over 60 vocal anthems across 3cds and provides a documentary of the seminal tracks which have shaped clubland and beyond. just some of the anthems on this epic anthology include shola ama imagine, monsta boy sorry and tina moore never gonna let you go alongside chart favourites like artful dodger movin too fast, dj luck & mc neat masterblaster, pied piper do you really like it and shanks & bigfoot sweet like chocolate. not forgetting the darker side of the bassline - those with a penchant for mcs can get their fix on early grime foundations from so solid crew 21 seconds,ms dynamite boo and oxide & neutrino bound 4 da reload.

mohn is likely producing the best music that vangelis never wrote, the lost soundtrack to a kšlsch version of blade runner, a space opera in slow motion conducted by a hypnotized caspar david friedrich in orbital transit. as music it gets extremely close, obscuring the sun, whispering loudly, slowly, and furiously, both a fascinating trip into the interior of an inverted electron- scanning microscope and the meticulous recreation of a mandelbrot fractal, all in album format. whether synthesizers dream of electric sheep, wolfgang voigt and jšrg burger may not be able to say for certain, but as mohn, they seem to have a fairly accurate idea how it might sound.

unter dem titel listen to the music caltone 1966-1969 erscheint eine wunderbare zusammenstellung mit 21 rocksteady-perlen aus den jahren 1966-1969. erhŠltlich als cd mit einem informativen booklet und extra pappschuber, sowie als doppel-vinyl (inklusive abdruck der liner notes auf der coverrźckseite) mit dem gźtesiegel pressure sounds!

its a great honour for us to be able to present conrad schnitzlers last work. endtime will be released as dlp, cd and download. only a few days before he passed away last august, he created this unique, almost 70 minutes long work. 36 parts mixed into each other create a walk through his entire work. this record is not only for fans of conrad schnitzler. its like a trip through 40 years of electronic music. conrad schnitzler once more shows how strong his influence has marked young artists like emeralds and oneohtrix point never. wihtout his solo works and his projects kluster, tangerine dream and eruption electronic music wouldnt be the same. the tracks on the vinyl edition are in the order sides a,c,b,d. this allows you to make your own mix of this big work.

nickel and penny are twin sides of the same eccentric coin, and that coin was chicagos no.1 dusties dj richard pegue. he was the writer,arranger and producer of some of the most beautiful chicago soul records in the 60s and 70s..

on his debut album the host works in a spacey interzone, using vintage gear to create dramatic panoramas for the headphoned mind. he creates a unique suite of modern impressionistic sonics that tumble and waft in and out of the mix, earthed with strong melodies that take inspiration from net-age genres while never recalling them directly. throughout, he masters all the potentials of vintage synths, drum machines and reverbs, along with guitar and bass to explore a sound that sets him apart from producers working on computers, creating something much more band-like but rich with lively micro-detail.

electro !!

whomadewho may lack a question mark after their name but their music will certainly have you asking after them. the copenhagen,denmark trio is difficult to pin down but their music sounds as effortless as it is stylistically and sonically adventurous. having formed in 2003, the genre-bending trio made up of jeppe kjellberg, tomas h¿ffding and tomas barfod honed their skills on stage and in the studio, releasing a series of bestselling records on munich based gomma and topped off by their kompakt released 2011 mini album knee deep.

from the word go, >its all true< has a spring in its step as opening track >itchy fingers< features lofty bpms in a range never explored on record by the group before and then, just as suddenly, the band shift gears to the sparse, brooding >playtime<. from the confident stomp of >you ll improve me< and the sophisticated pop of >a truly happy ending< to the epic album closer of >banana ripple<, >its all true< is by far the junior boys most accomplished album to date.

der new yorker saenger und multi-instrumentalist allen hoist machte seine ersten buehnenerfahrungen an der seite von soul-, latin- und jazz-legenden wie tito puente, dizzy gillespie, millie jackson, solomon burke, sam & dave, ron carter oder mongo santamaria. eine tour brachte ihn schlie§lich nach europa und es begann eine tiefe verbindung zu paris und der dort ansaessigen musikszene. gemeinsam mit einigen der besten world musik-& jazz-musiker der franzoesischen hauptstadt nahm er im jahr 2000 das klassische jazz-album -just before spring- auf. in den darauf folgenden jahren entwickelte sich eine enge zusammenarbeit zum soulab label. fuer sein neues album -soul renaissance- arbeitete allen hoist mit renommierten produzenten wie 4 hero, kaidi tatham (bugz in the attic), greg gauthier oder franck roger zusammen. so entstand eine brillante kombination aus akustischen und elektronischen sounds und einfluessen aus soul, house, jazz, broken beat, doo wop, nu soul, afro beat, latin und funk.

the legendary act terranova return with an explosive new album, bridging modern pop and classic house like never before !!

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.

listening through bigfield, its clear why many people consider harald one of the finest producers ofelectronic music today. every single sound is pure perfection, the colors are vivid, the arrangements tothe point yet never less than enigmatic. whats more important is that hes got soul, oceans of it. harald is a true romantic artist, constantly returning to the same themes of nostalgia, understated euphoria and sunshine over snowy landscapes. over the last few years, haraldÕs followers have heard him get closer and closer to the core of his art with every single release. finally, bigfield has arrived -his first true masterpiece, one of those rare albums that will make listeners dance, weep and smile inequal parts.

overview in the 1980s, as hip hop caught fire around new york, sparky d was coming up in the van dyke projects in brownsville brooklyn. she would go on to be one of the first recorded solo female rappers and rise to hip hop stardom. early in her career she was a pivotal player in what came to be known as the roxanne wars. it all kicked off with utfo s roxanne roxxane followed by roxanne shante s debut roxanne s revenge and then a salvo back at shante with utfo and a female mc known as the real roxanne. sparky d then started a trend that ran for what some say was over a hundred assorted answer records and nearly the rest of the decade by jumping into the roxanne trend with sparky s turn (roxanne, you re through). massive spins and sales throughout the city followed. the success of the cut lead to another handful of 12 releases, and this release, her proper full length debut this is sparky ds world,- produced by her boyfriend and old school legend spyder d. though the record didn t take off to the extent that her label mates boogie down productions found with criminal minded....well, what ever did take off like criminal minded. to this day the release serves as a testament to the power of one of hip hop s first female mcs, after all, this is sparky d s world. traffic entertainment group in partnership with b-boy records is proud to release this extended version of the album, out of print in any format for over 14 years. housed in a handsome 6 panel digipak featuring extended artwork and audio including all the 12-cuts, mixes and instrumentals from sparkys classic -throwdown- and -i can t stop- vinyl singles.

2 cds of classic & contemporary progressive rock masterpieces

40 massive r& b hits inside !!!

the late steve reid, veteran jazz drummer and percussionist, and kieran hebden (four tet), the british electronic musician/producer young enough to be his grandson, present the fifth and final installment of their momentous synergy. the music on this double cd was recorded in concert on 20 june 2009 in the foyer of the queen elizabeth hall at london s southbank centre, as part of the meltdown festival curated by free jazz legend ornette coleman. for this marathon workout, reid and hebden were joined by swedish power saxophonist mats gustafsson, whose fiery blowing style had inspired kieran to seek out a drummer like steve to work with in the first place. live at the south bank stands as a memorial to a thrilling and productive partnership sadly cut off in its prime.

deep, dramatic, abstracted d&b from exits most esoteric operator, consequence. test dream is an advanced follow-up to the burial-esque scapes of his 2009 debut, live for never, scanning sci-fi inspired minimal d&b topographies with a filigree attention to detail. ultimately, its not the kind of d&b thatll have you firing shots in the ceiling: its strengths lie in the vivid evocation of dystopian futures and plugged-in, cyber-surreal dream states, conducted with the ability to suspend disbelief and submerge the willing participant in a whole other headspace. that said, there are dancefloor-ready moments like the sinuous, sub-heavy soul sees spirit, but the best moments occur when the dancefloor seems to be receding beneath your feet / sofa, as with the whirring autechre-ian dynamics of magda trench and the majestic loveshell, or the flickering, skeletal remains of marlo.

2 cds with 36 tracks...

this collection documents the two-decades-plus recording career of r&b icon luther vandross. even before he started putting out records under his own name, he was a first-call session singer (hes the one who created and sang the chorus hook on david bowies -young americans,- for just one example). throughout the 80s and the 90s, he was (both commercially and aesthetically) one of the most consistently successful r&b singer/songwriter/producers. this healthy two-disc selection of highlights from the impressive vandross catalogue moves deftly from heartfelt ballads (-a house is not a home-) to percolating, poppy numbers (-never too much-), spotlighting the mans mellifluous voice and tasteful phrasing at each turn. this is quite clearly the definitive career summary for this deeply influential r&b titan.

this is the first part (of four) of the much anticipated reissue series of drexciya s early catalogue, marking 20 years since the release of their first ep deep sea dweller , and 10 years since their final album grava 4 . one of the most influential techno acts ever, and part of the heritage of detroits underground resistance, drexciya explored techno like no-one else before: raw and uncompromising music that reflected the harsh environment of the city where drexciya was conceived, with a mythical approach that only added to their cult appeal. drexciya arguably stands for the darker side of techno and electro, made not only for the club scene, but a further development of the music as an expression and extension of the mind. journey of the deep sea dweller is a near-complete collection of their early works, released in four parts, with all audio remastered from the original master tapes. since the original releases have such a strong character and stand on their own, these reissue can never recreate the magic of those originals. instead, clone have stirred up the catalogue, taking tracks out of their original context, giving the committed fan a fresh experience and the new listener a document that is the best possible introduction to the aquatic world of drexciya.

21 upfron dubstep tracks, mixed by d1

2011 holiday collection. the project started in 2010 when jan illustrated the diversity of more than 50 christmas tunes in the field of jazz, funk and soul to tobias kirmayer of tramp records, germany. although some of the titles had already been compiled, there were exceptional songs that grabbed their attention. major record companies owned a handful of the initially pre-selected songs. despite the fact that these terrific songs never topped the charts the quality of this compilation easily shakes hands with famous christmas records of major artists like james brown or lou rawls. ladies and gentlemen, sing along, shake your hips and dance because: santas funk & soul christmas party is goin on.

its been a long time comin.the inevitable paul white rap album! 4 years of carving out his own psychedelic (mainly instrumental) niche on the uks one handed music imprint, a lot of people have been asking when this was going to happen. loaded with shining appearances from the cream of current underground mcs: guilty simpson, marv won, danny brown, tranqill (ruling on one of paul whiteÕs rudest beats to date), homeboy sandman, moe pope and the crown prince of uk hip hop, jehst, folk talent, nancy elizabeth also makes an appearance. there are also plenty of whacked out instrumentals and skits to keep the beat-heds heady. tip!uk producer leads transatlantic talent on a freewheeling hip-hop adventure.

gem club is an exclusive society: two people, a piano, and a cello. vocalist christopher barnes sings in a quivering whisper, and these minimal accompaniments assure that their sound never becomes louder than a hush. but the massachusetts duo s debut ep, acid and everything, showed just how much emotional intensity you could pack into compositions so spare, and how much could be suggested with so little. everything on breakers, their first full-length, sounds frozen over: icy, quiet, austere. you know that eerie feeling when you find yourself alone in a huge public place that s usually crowded-- maybe a shopping mall or a playing field- but at that moment is totally empty? this record sounds like a sustained version of that feeling. -i heard the party- juxtaposes echoing piano chords and a general sense of unease (-no one could have told you / your body would fail you-) with the refrain -i heard the partys here- floating across the track like the sound of dried up laughter. the word -party- feels so out of place in a song so pensive and lonely that there s something jarring about the experience. the feeling crops up repeatedly on breakers: a sense of slow-motion detachment, a suggestion that there were signs of life here once, but you ve arrived a couple of hours- or maybe a couple of weeks- too late.

one of the most referenced producers of the last year and one of the most influential producers on the scene: mk aka marc kinchen presents a sublime collection of his work, much of which has been previously unavailable digitally, on this latest volume in the house masters series. during the halcyon period of house music in the early 90s, marc kinchen became one of the genres most respected producers and in-demand remixers. starting out at an incredibly young age in detroit as a protŽgŽ of techno god kevin saunderson before later moving to new york, he fast became a prolific figure in the dance music community. here twenty of his most influential of recordings are collected and made available completely unedited, unmixed and dj friendly for the very first time. this package includes 9 tracks that have never been made available digitally.

previously existing as progressive/melodic house entity solarity, dusky are london based musicians alfie granger-howell and nick harriman. as comfortable writing elegant orchestral pieces or stirring piano motifs as they are jackin house and epic techno grooves, their diverse sounds are united by the duos singular aim--to compose electronic music with depth, soul and originality. stick by this is the duos debut album.

otdxi is the newest installment in the classic r&s compilation series. previous installments have been responsible for rounding up the labels roster at the time and presenting their finest tracks to a wider audience, and have gone onto become classics in their own rights. with r&s again re-positioned as one of the most forward thinking electronic labels and with an enviable roster of cutting edge young talent it makes perfect sense to relaunch the series. disc one contains highlights from the last 18 months and includes contributions from blawan, lone and untold whose classic r&s influences are worn on their sleeves. tracks from james blake, pariah and the chain take cues from a distinctly uk sound, which the label has been keenly following from its new london base, and in cmyk have the biggest single from 2010.

seit ihrem debuet lungs, das 2009 rund um den globus die charts stuermte und millionenfach verkauft wurde, zaehlt die charismatische florence + the machine zu den begehrtesten newcomern. eine nominierung fuer einen grammy award, der darauf folgende, hoch gelobte auftritt bei der verleihung des wichtigsten internationalen musikpreises gemeinsam mit christina aguilera und jennifer hudson: ihr auftritt bei den oscars 2011: ein mehrseitiges feature in der vogue deutschland - interviewt wurde florence hierfuer von elton john, fotos machte karl lagerfeld. florence welch fasziniert die ganze welt und gilt bereits als neue britische ikone. ihre pop-elektro-mischung gepaart mit smarten texten und viel atmosphaere ueberzeugt, ihr glamouroeser stil fasziniert die groe§ten designhaeuser, wie u.a. yves saint laurent oder gucci, die die letzte tournee mit eigens fuer florence kreierten buehnenkostuemen ausgestattet haben. florence ist in aller munde. deluxe edition erscheint als doppel cd. die 2. cd beinhaltet zusaetzlich acht bonus songs darunter brandneue aufnahmen, unveroeffentlichte demos und akustik-versionen von -heartlines-, -shake it out- und -breaking down-.

its probably safe to say that youve never heard anything like brothers of brazil before. for the past three years the brotherly duo of supla and joao have been combining elements of traditional brazilian music such as bossa nova and samba with rock and funk to create a unique sound thats won over countless fans in brazil, and now theyre ready to expand worldwide with the release of their self-titled album. the duo was started when the brothers landed their own national variety show in brazil called brothers on rede tv. supla and joao realized then that when they collaborated the results were beyond what they had ever imagined.

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.

its a love story: stil vor talent have long been mad about niconŽ and sascha braemer so that the recent past has seen some very memorable releases by the two producers. now its about time they join forces to release a whole album together. while sascha braemer only recently caused waves with his źber-track people, nicone is a long-established pillar of top-class electronic music.

raise the curtain once more on a very special orchestral performance. how could highgrade records better celebrate its 100th release than with twelve tracks from the highgrade disharmonic orchestra? the creative combo featuring both label bosses tom clark and todd bodine, alongside philip bader, daniel dreier and dale, began over a year ago with the intention of celebrating the tenth birthday of the berlin label. and the resulting gift: a musical experiment. the five artists have bundled their creativity together into a symphony unparalleled in the techno scene. every performance is like a jam session: all five laptops are interconnected, so each of the artists has the opportunity to react to the others and modify each track as desired. thus, new arrangements are created and constantly re-interpreted. drum machines and synthesizers are also in play, to further stretch the improvisational possibilities. no wonder then, that the 100th release follows in this creative vein. the highgrade disharmonic orchestra, with multilayer, kiddnaps us away into vastly different musical worlds: from deep influences and custom recorded vocals to an array of technoid sounds and effects. then back to groovy, swinging beats reminiscent of a balmy summer evening on the beach. therefore the record is something of a rollercoaster ride, where we never know what might be waiting behind the next curve. typically highgrade

vier jahre nach ihrem gefeierten hit-album the reminder meldet sich feist mit ihrem neuen werk zurueck: metals , das vierte studioealbum der kanadierin, erscheint am 30. september. bei den aufnahmen an der kalifoernischen kueste wurde die 35-jaehrige soewoehl voen langjaehrigen weggefaehrten chilly goenzales und moecky als auch voen neuen verbuendeten wie valgeir sigurdssoen (boenne, prince, billy, bjork) unterstuetzt. die stuecke, die auf metals versammelt sind, rangieren voen sachte poelternden, stimmungsvoellen klangteppichen bis hin zu extrem intensiven tracks, die wie ein musikalisches pendant den aufziehenden nebel und das darauf foelgende gewitter widerspiegeln. feist ist zurueck - und besser denn je. deluxe editioen koemmt in einer schonen digipack ausstattung.

2011 release. their first new album in more than three years, hysterical marks a major milestone in the continuing evolution of clap your hands say yeah. born out of an intensely collaborative process in which songs were constructed, dismantled, and then rebuilt anew, the album finds the band their most confident and creative, expertly expanding upon its already distinctive sound. from the chrome-plated licks of maniac and the title track to the sheets of eddying synths and emotive motorik pulsebeats of into your alien arms and ketamine and ecstasy, the band delivers up sonically provocative pop music that is simultaneously jubilant, mesmeric, and altogether infectious. hysterical reveals clap your hands say yeah to be a wholly developed band in full command of their unique artistic gifts. this long play version pressed on 180 gram vinyl also includes a download card.

sander van doorns new artist album 2011. if theres one thing we can say about the evolution of the worldwide dance scene this year, is that its genres are being mashed up like never before. on his new artist album eleve11, sander van doorn once again does what he does best, mixing up styles, genres and artist-cooperations. along side his smash hits koko and love is darkness, eleve11 is packed with artist-cooperations such as believe with singer/songwriter tom helsen, eagles with adrian lux and sanders latest purle haze installment timezone. an emotional dancefloor-killer that brings shivers down your spine each time you hear us singer fredericks voice. more uplifting is sanders collab with fellow-dutchman laidback luke. whos wearing the cap is an idea born when their resemblance on a photo was so anstonishing that the songtitle was placed underneath it, making fans wonder if they might be brothers. those who have heard nadia ali on iios classic rapture have probably wondered when her voice was due for a svd treatment. well, that time has finally come and the result is called: rolling the dice together with sidney samson all in all, eleve11, with its neatly corresponding 11 tracks all recorded in 2011, shows the world exactly what sander van doorn has evolved into.. a worldwide dancemusic phenomena.

being a product of the age it was written, slow clubs 2009 debut, yeah so, dealt with the all too familiar space between adolescence and the oncoming storm of adulthood. a boy-girl duo who played a flower-adorned chair live, they were the polar opposite of what was coming out of post-arctic monkeys sheffield. slow club were fun, cute, whimsical and all manner of other words just shy of twee - and they hate being called twee. paradise, however, is where the duo grows up. two years on, it stumbles out of a trivial, self-indulgent teenage malaise (where sexual adventure was priority for most) and carries itself with a sense of perspective that only adulthood can give - a darker, more thoughtful view of the world. for instance, on the poignant you, earth or ash, a song about rebecca taylor s granddad, her melancholic vocals (beautiful, as always) evoke an awareness of mortality for those around her: singing -and i know, soon you ll go,- her voice seemingly breaks under the weight of premature grief. whereas even love-wise (an inspiration every band draws from) slow club s lyrical output is glossed with a more mature and detached sense of sauce, with taylor crooning on where i m waking: -i can see you looking at me / you got the brains i ve got the body-.

rounding out the 12-part madlib medicine show series, madlib flips the format with raw medicine: madlib remixes - part mixtape, part beat tape, featuring a host of un-suspecting collaborators that run the gamut from thugs, street poets, star emcees and underdogs. we ain t naming names. the show runs 60 minute with 30+ tracks.

2011 release, the third album from the british electronic artist (real name: elliot john gleave) who combines beat-driven musical journeys with bits of hip hop, rock, pop, dubstep and house. following on from his breakthrough album, won t go quietly (2010), playing in the shadows offers up exactly what his fans want... and more. a grand time is guaranteed for all.

excellent discofied electro / rock , electropop album

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.

it might sound like an empty phrase, but when oliver koletzki founded stil vor talent in 2005, he certainly didnt anticipate where his label would be today. now - six years and over sixty releases later - stil vor talent can look back at many magnificent moments in the labels history. originally started to give other musicians the chance to showcase their music, stil vor talent has preserved this very down-to-earth attitude until today and has helped foster the careers of producers such as channel x, niko schwind, juli holz or david august to name just a few. while there have never been any musical or stylistic limitations, an open philosophy dominated by quality and individualism prevails at olivers label, from delicately designed record sleeves to their own fashion line and to music that varies from house to pop to jacking dancefloor cuts. now it is time to congratulate everyone involved and the fans of stil vor talent with a special birthday present: a six-year anniversary compilation that celebrates past, present and future of the label on two cds

tunisia has never been a referent place in the electronic music world. it was better known for its beaches and sunny weather, hardly for its political regime but the events of 2011 brought quite some changes about that. these changes have been nurturing in the underground of the country until exploding to the face of the world, with fantastic momentums of rebellion, courage and union. shinigami sans album is a signal that emanates from the underground of tunisia: a hybrid of dubstep, techno and noise, very dark, but most importantly, very true. this is neither the sound of london or berlin, and if a couple of ingredients from here and there are recognizable in -toys-, it is most definitely the electronic sound of tunisia we bring to you here. from the dusty, 8-bit dubstep of -lofi- and -toys- to the dark techno rollers -post trauma- and -migra-, you will go by tribal beats, eerie atmospheres and heavily distorted sound textures. shinigami san draws a panorama that shows both impressive skills and style. -toys- is not only about excellent and true music, but also about original product design and diy manufacturing. this 450 digipack limited edition was hand-printed and crafted using silk screen printing, rulers and cutters. the graphic design is based on drawings from sabrina ben hadj ali, and each cd comes with 3 original prints on the theme of the album. today, we are up to put tunisia under the radar of electronic beat diggers, today, we bring you the first album of tunisian-born shinigami san: nothing cheesy here, just a raw, brutally honest vibe.

the international rudeboy is back! since leaving home at the age of 15 to become a sound engineer, wayne -lotek- bennett has been on a quest to hone his interpretation of the sounds that he grew up with ? a journey that has taken him to all corners of the globe. from festivals in czech republic to clubs in japan and all points in between lotek has forged his own path as a ska revivalist, culminating in his debut album on first word, international rudeboy.

cocker kicks off a collectable series of bargain-priced finders keepers compilations made to support the label in light of the recent warehouse fire at pias north london depot. a long time fan of the label and their doings, he was granted full access to rifle their catalogue and hes picked some absolute treats for ya, including, if were not mistaken, some which have never appeared on cd before. to start theres the perspicacious poetics of carol battens beeing, besides the legendary pseudo j-pop of yamasuki (made by none other than thomas -daft punk- bangalters dad!), besides a first cd appearance for jacky chalards super man, super cool from the cache cache 12-. youll also find a nugget from the stone soundtrack, one of the labels finest moments from amrals trinidad cavaliers steel drum orchestra, the glam prog of gongs rational anthem, balearic prog from fusioon, tender folk from jane weaver with wendy flower, and a bonus moment in jean claude vanniers au desepoir des singles. top picks, well recommended!

wretch 32, real name jermaine scott, is one of the uks most loved mcs - from the underground up. from his early years in londons flourishing grime scene back in the early 00s, the tottenham-raised lyricist has always stood out from the crowd. his conscious and reflective bars, along with an extremely relaxed flow, made him a firm favourite on the uk hip hop circuit. much like tinie tempah, wretch 32 has proved that british mcs can reach the mainstream without selling their soul to pop. the first fruits of this crossover success were tasted in january 2011, when his single traktor broke into the domestic top five following an appearance on the bbc sound ofÉ list. and his second official single, unorthodox, fared even better, peaking at number two in april. so its clear that much has changed since his debut lp of 2008, wretchrospective - but has public recognition come at the expense of what marked wretch 32 out as such a talent in the first place? not at all - on the opening title-track, the rapper lets the listener know that its the same old wretch at work. over a drum-heavy hip hop beat he sets up the rest of the album well, advising everyone to fasten their seatbelts as he prepares to take them on a ride that they wont forget in a hurry. never be me finds wretch delving into his past, opening up about making certain decisions in life that got him to where he is today. featuring rnb newcomer angel on the hook, the track has an inspirational feel to it - all over another impressive, but this time more grime-influenced, beat. a true standout is anniversary, with alex mills on singing duties - its a love song, minus any cheese. then the album lurches into the electro-infused sanes the new mad - a glimpse into wretchs party lifestyle, with ladies and alcohol at the forefront of his attentions. and closer dont go just might be one of the tracks of the year.