the music on this lp was sourced from recordings made for two sk live performances in 2017. reproduced here in the same manner they were originally performed. everything by suzanne kraft.

so gerd and philipp were due to play xoyo one saturday night and the club is 6 minutes from my studio so i suggested we go there first to make tunes for a few hours. we made 2 songs that night and one of them is ‘reach out’. gerd did the drums on my 808, philipp wrote the beautiful lead part on my obxa and i did the bass in my cs80. i added the words a couple of weeks later, they are inspired by leonard cohen’s letter to his muse marianne ihlen on her deathbed. (joe goddard) including fantastic remixes by erol alkan and osborne.

jump trax is another essential piece of early chicago house music crafted by the legendary duane thamm jr back in 1984. fusing together a myriad of influences including early 80s euro pop, italo disco and hi nrg, thamm jr was responsible for helping create and influence the burgeoning house sound that would emanate from the city all throughout the second half of the 1980s. not only were these sounds new and fresh, they were experimental too, jump trax sees the bpm s gradually shift throughout the duration of the tracks seamlessly giving the more adventurous djs out there more ammunition and room to experiment with styles and bpms. a truly visionary approach to production and all recorded and mixed within chicago s city limits by thamm jr at his reel to reel studio located in villa park, illinois. jump trax continues to be as influential today as it was back in 84, with many top dj s still citing the record as a go to, powerful indeed. chicagos still music are proud to present this fully legit, remastered and repressed piece of chicago house history. a truly pivotal record now made available again for 2018. essential sound for those who love the real deal snoozing not advised, og copies of this monster are hard to come by!

dropping just three eps between 1982 and 1987, takenoko were a true enigma in the heady rush of french new wave. this group from bordeaux hit all the right notes, fusing choppy indie instrumentation with punchy synth lines and angular vocals - in a parallel universe they could have been huge. emotional rescue have done the right thing in bringing together their three eps for this definitive introduction to a rare and righteous slice of underground arcana. whether it s the breezy pop stylings of -elle a tokyo- or the slow, stomping funk of -trans amor express,- takenoko are a joy to listen to for any new wave devote

were back with the second jack cassettes series!

were back with the second jack cassettes series! following the success of the first jack series, weve decided to pull heavyweights out of the treasure trove of chicago reel to reels acquired by still music last year. this second series is another incredible glance into our beloved house music through some lost radio mixes salvaged from reel to reels by jerome derradji. we start with a superb one hour mix from frankie knuckles circa 1986 and dive straight to the hot mix 5 with edward get down crosby and his insane mixes, full of edits and original beat traxx. a small detour to miami is made with a killer electro mix by wgci guest joe magic. pull out the tape deck, move the furniture away and jack!

were back with the second jack cassettes series! following the success of the first jack series, weve decided to pull heavyweights out of the treasure trove of chicago reel to reels acquired by still music last year. this second series is another incredible glance into our beloved house music through some lost radio mixes salvaged from reel to reels by jerome derradji. we start with a superb one hour mix from frankie knuckles circa 1986 and dive straight to the hot mix 5 with edward get down crosby and his insane mixes, full of edits and original beat traxx. a small detour to miami is made with a killer electro mix by wgci guest joe magic. pull out the tape deck, move the furniture away and jack!

were back with the second jack cassettes series! following the success of the first jack series, w’ve decided to pull heavyweights out of the treasure trove of chicago reel to reels acquired by still music last year. this second series is another incredible glance into our beloved house music through some lost radio mixes salvaged from reel to reels by jerome derradji. we start with a superb one hour mix from frankie knuckles circa 1986 and dive straight to the hot mix 5 with edward get down crosby and his insane mixes, full of edits and original beat traxx. a small detour to miami is made with a killer electro mix by wgci guest joe magic. pull out the tape deck, move the furniture away and jack!

exzellente best-of-compilation von roy ayers uno melodic-label, das in den frühen 1980er jahren seine hochphase erlebte. sämtliche tracks sind von roy ayers produziert und komplett neu remastered. während sylvia striplin, eighties ladies und ethel beatty die soul/disco/2step/boogie-seite des labels repräsentieren, stehen bobbi humphrey, justo almario und roy selbst für den jazz/funk/fusion-sound. der sampler endet mit einem der besten momente des labels und den spoken words von rick holmes.

native response returns with two cuts that were found just too good to gather dust for any time longer. unknown artists collaborate on this ep for a deep and emotional yet clubby package.

marshstepper are the most radical incarnation of ascetic house, the collective and publishing house based in the desert city of tempe, arizona. marshstepper’s dark electronic ritualism is performative, violent, unusual, shocking, unpredictable and raw. during their berlin atonal show in 2016, they were joined by drew mcdowall, jonas römnberg and juan mendez.

duke ellington once said that there are 2 kinds of music: the good one and the bad one. with the compilation series shaolin soul we are always certain to be on the right side of the line since its 1st episode released in 1998 and which compiled two dozens of tracks sampled by rza and the wu-tang clan. following a second episode in 2001 and a third one in 2014, the famous curator uncle o is back to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the shaolin soul series with a fourth episode compiling 22 tracks among the rarest and finest treats of soul music, because everybodys talking about the good ol days!

kim rapatti a.k.a mono junk presents the second volume of finnish electro all-star on his dum records imprint – active since 1992. the new release is the latest chapter of mono junk collaborating with friends, recently with mesak and freestyle man. the a-side of finnish electro all-star (dum-040) features collaborations with top finnish electro duo morphology, who recently released an outstanding album on firescope label. electro por favor is a pulsating driving electro track with a killer bassline and vocals by rapatti – electro at its best. raw, apocalyptic, solitary remix by mono junk follows the original. the b-side features collaborations between mono junk and a very special guest: goner a.k.a. martin maischen, who is known from many hot releases as the other half of german electro act sandbenders. they were at most active around the millennium and made releases for force inc. music works and science city. the two included tracks are deep electroid techno excursions made last year in berlin – very cool stuff.

commix completes his generation ep series with part 3, carrying on from where the 2nd instalment left off. again, the ep explores commixs influences from electronic music and beyond, culminating in an extremely polished final part that were excited to release.

considered by many as -the motown of salsa,- fania records is probably the most transcendental label in the history of latin music. by bringing together the eclectic vision of dominican bandleader johnny pacheco with the business savvy of impresario jerry masucci, fania created a sound: the apex of tropical music, combined with the swing of big band jazz and the gritty vibe of american r&b. the label provided an artistic heaven for a young generation of musicians who were inspired to experiment with new musical formats. the albums recorded by willie colón, héctor lavoe, rubén blades and eddie palmieri from the early 70s to the mid- 80s went beyond the parameters of so-called -salsa- - taking latin music to unsuspected levels of sophistication. when you think latin soul you relate to a mélange of r&b and mambo rhythms intermixed culturally by and for the youth of america. it was 1974, and a brash youngster by the name of ralfi pagan walked into the offices of fania records and demanded to be heard. fania president jerry masucci allowed ralfi that opportunity, and ralfi auditioned for jerry right there in his office. it took only a few moments for masucci to realize that he was in the company of his newest recording artist, he put ralfi in touch with recording director, johnny pacheco, who hurried him into the recording studio for ralfi’s first fania recording session.

this is a rare gem of a record from fantastic soul band the soul kids stemming from the democratic republic of congo, including covers of james brown & the mighty flames hit singles -lickin stick- (1968), -papa s got a brand new bag- (1965), wilson pickett’s -hey jude- and a french vocal version of otis redding’s soul hit -respect -. this amazing young band, which released only four 7inch singles and one album, is a great example of the influence of soul music and french pop bridging to the new afro soul scene that the musicians of kinshasa were involved in during the time of post-independence. ngoma was one of the first record labels intent on providing local artists recordings from both sides of the congo river to the people of the drc and west africa. created in 1948 by a greek man by the name of nicolas jeronimidis, the ngoma label was active through 1968, pressed in france until 1971, with a tremendous catalogue, including this historical and essential soul masterpiece!

part 4 of 5 to be released over the coming couple of months. originally released on the phono label in 1995/96 the parts series from matthew herbert are a much loved collection of house tracks that sound just as original and bold today as they did when they were first released. this series of 12-s were part of an early wave of exploratory dance music that paved the way for the deep house that still works its magic on dance-floors in 2018 some 25 years later. the mix of herbert s playfulness alongside expertly grooving production and unusual sounds makes this unique collection of work. the odd few tracks aside this is the first time that these releases have ever been repressed. all newly remastered for this reissue series, the releases include stone cold club classics such as deeper , take me back , resident , people that make the music and see you on monday .

inits music has the rare quality of transforming bleakness into a soothing experience. in the duos new ep, wildcard, this mechanism is more intense than ever. and that might be because of the particular circumstances that surrounded its inception. two years ago, nadia dalo and benedikt frey decided to move from darmstadt to berlin. adjusting to a rough area of a big city when coming from a quiet town necessarily brings a change of perspective. for nadia and benedikt, that meant experiencing the city life as outsiders while trying to figure out what they wanted from it.wildcard is the sonic result of this process, and proof that changes always bring growth. recorded in their new home studio during winter, the six tracks on the ep are as haunting as their previous lp for hivern, but with a rawer approach and enhanced power. take cover and solver, an approximation to the kind of moody psych-techno they display in their live-shows and two of the most dance floor oriented tracks init have recorded to date. but its the title track which best expresses the mindset of this work. with its skeletal rattle and undulating synths, wildcard feels as desolate as a berlin street in a winter night, but possesses the kind of focus that turns uncertainty into hope. in a similar way, cuts such as copycat or half baked perfectly capture the sort of estrangement -daunting yet hopeful- that comes when moving into a new place, with its slow tempos mirroring the cautious pace of a foreigner and the intoxicated atmospheres calmly distilling the essence of a new environment. nadia and benedikt describe this new habitat as small kids on big bikes, eating dry instant noodles, playing with whats to find on the streets, static aircraft traffic closely over our heads and constant running engines. listening to the music that arose from it, its obvious that, once again, they&# 39,ve been able to overturn apparently hostile elements into a place were youd want to stay forever

walter gibbons, a true master of the mix, a disco legend, a pioneer of dance music. theres literally very few who can lay claim to progressing the artform of studio mixing and technique than the late gibbons. his contribution to contemporary music cannot be understated, first as a dj where his drum laced experimentation captured the ears and minds of his peers and the dancers, then later as a mixer and studio genius where he continued on his quest. often fixated on the percussion and breaks within records his versions would often dive into spaced out, dubby and stripped back territory that very few of his peers were even contemplating at that time, fervently reconstructing the tracks themselves and often the time, space and dancefloor within which the record was being played. a true original, gibbons was behind many of the definitive versions of the classics, his unique style often catapulting records that were just fine in their original form into brand new colourful, cosmic interpretations that flourished sonically and rhythmically with brand new sounds that bristled with vision.

30th anniversary edition of 1.500 individually numbered copies on blue 180 gram vinyl.
bomb the bass is the alias from the english electronic music producer tim simenon. he released his debut album into the dragon in 1988. it s an intriguing trip through electro, acid-house and hip-hop music. on the album you ll find his breakthrough hit -beat dis-, which became popular in the underground and club circuit. it feels like you re listening to a radio broadcast show, including intro skits in a melting pot of styles. a true classic in the history of using samples in music. bomb the bass were one of the first acts to bring sample-based music and scratching to a mainstream audience.

music is feeling, music is meetings. in 2015, the s3a records 04 was released with collaborations of good friends of s3amet in the world by the music (tito wun, mannmademusic). this sampler continue the story with tracks from people s3a met during gigs and travels in the past year: sweely delivers here great speedy long jazz banger with a great voice sample as a theme. the columbian felipe gordon gives a great stompy funk bass track! on the b side, the french g2s drops a beautiful house sample based -graef like- song. for the last track need a little bit of story. in 2016 s3a released an ep called 3711 on soundofspeed records in japan. the track -bush- taken from this ep has been remixed during a contest in early 2018. 42 remixes were done and the winner has is remix edited here. pnom pen gives us here his 80 s electro version of the track adding great pads and a complete different rhythm and grooves!

vox populi field works vol.ii is the second part of a broader project entitled ‘field works’, in which the label travels to different locations in the world in order to collect sounds, eventually creating an archive of some of the finest and humblest musical traditions. inspired by academic methods proper to ethnomusicology and ethnography, this project’s aim is to showcase the diversity of our human cultural heritage, which is threatened by accelerated globalization and homogenization of the worldwide musical spectrum.
this record is the result of a twenty-day trip to japan. led by anthropologist and label founder fred scharf and his vox populi records crew, this is the second instalment on the ‘field works’ series. this 12’’ vinyl release is a collection of field recordings, jam sessions, studio recordings, street soundscapes, religious rituals, fighting championships and wedding ceremonies, all of which were remixed and reinterpreted by japan blues, tim karbon, hiroaki oba & shizka (aka inoue shirabe), delivering tracks whose core represents a wide array of traditional japanese sounds.

the music contained in this album invokes the vibes and spirit that were so crucial to much of the music recorded during the 1960s & 70s in jamaica. if you talk to the musicians and singers of this era, they will tell you that the driving force behind the songs they created was the sheer love of music. this is one of the reasons these recordings are so powerful and move listeners to this day. music like this can only be made by those who were schooled in the studios and yards around kingston and is not something that can be easily reproduced outside jamaica. the kingston all stars represent some of the most legendary musicians to ever grace the little island & it is thanks to their passion and dedication that we have a lifetime of music to enjoy.

the music contained in this album invokes the vibes and spirit that were so crucial to much of the music recorded during the 1960s & 70s in jamaica. if you talk to the musicians and singers of this era, they will tell you that the driving force behind the songs they created was the sheer love of music. this is one of the reasons these recordings are so powerful and move listeners to this day. music like this can only be made by those who were schooled in the studios and yards around kingston and is not something that can be easily reproduced outside jamaica. the kingston all stars represent some of the most legendary musicians to ever grace the little island & it is thanks to their passion and dedication that we have a lifetime of music to enjoy

amsterdam, nl: 12 months ago we concluded a series of experiments with a test subject named ben penn. a year on, we decided to repeat this experiment at his tilburg base. once again, the results were startling.

brand new release on mondo groove with a remix double pack of selected tracks from daniele baldelli classic cosmic temple six chapters that were out on the italian label from 2015 to 2017. you can find everything for everyone in these new versions. dj tennis and in flagranti tributing pure cosmic sound with their interpretations of gandharva and afelio, dj ralf transforming kosmaro into a house stomper, tiger & woods adding their subtle boogie touch and edit science to vhanessa, clap!clap! going deep and percussive on isotropo funk, alkalino tripping italo-disco with „inner light, club paradiso in an afro-balearic clash on joka joka, eric duncan working a deep-techy groove on diffrazione, and dionigi, often production partner of baldelli, finishing in glory with a brilliant funky take on taxon. you cant sleep on this.

jaffa surfa also known as zoltan pal is hailing from hungary and has released a few records already on other labels like tape hiss for example that already caught our attention a bit earlier. therefor we were quite happy to receive a demo from him and we signed almost all the tracks that he sent us. three tracks aiming straight at the dance floor and we hope that you enjoy and play them as much as we do.

ultimate block party breaks volume 6 continues the tradition that began in the bronx in the 1970’s, where “break djs” would take that one part of the record that dancers would go absolutely crazy for. that part where all the music breaks down to nothing but the essence: drums and percussion. these are all truly timeless beats that sound as fresh today as they did when the founding fathers like kool herc, bam, flash and hollywood were catching them for the frst time in community centers throughout the city. we’ve edited and extended these breaks for maximum effect on the dancefloor - so you don’t have to. enjoy!

medical records presents the eleventh release in our transfusions 12- singles series. guilt, the collaborative project of new york city based artists, oliver chapoy and nathaniel young, is the result of 2 recording sessions during the spring of 2017.

part 3 of 5 to be released over the coming couple of months. originally released on the phono label in 1995/96 the ‘parts’ series from matthew herbert are a much loved collection of house tracks that sound just as original and bold today as they did when they were first released. this series of 12”s were part of an early wave of exploratory dance music that paved the way for the deep house that still works its magic on dance-floors in 2018 some 25 years later. the mix of herbert’s playfulness alongside expertly grooving production and unusual sounds makes this unique collection of work. the odd few tracks aside this is the first time that these releases have ever been repressed. all newly remastered for this reissue series, the releases include stone cold club classics such as ‘deeper’, ‘take me back’, ‘resident’, ‘people that make the music’ and ‘see you on monday’.

grime originators macabre unit return to the nomine sound imprint with 2 absolute grime belters. the originals were released on nomine sound in 2017 and if you are familiar with them then these vips will not disappoint.

recorded in denmark in 1986 by the then up and coming afro pop singer kojo antwi from ghana, the tunes were issued in limited numbers as he was leaving denmark, sparking his international solo career after he left the classique vibes. though a popular favourite on cassette in ghana his debut album was only released in small numbers in europe and never achieved the same attention. the tracks selected here showcases kojos transition from the highlife sound of the classique vibes to the more drum machine driven highlife disco on ‘hini mi as well as the deep, computerized reggae

when looking for music to be released on magazine, our guideline has always been energy. the key question remains the same: does the artist have something important to say? does it have a sense of urgency? alex played us these tracks while visiting the magazine studio in cologne earlier this year and we were consumed by unadulterated rage. this is anything but a conceptual release, alex has not released this kind of music before. a side of alex manifests itself through these techno tracks, that most might not have known before. brutal yet beautiful, furious yet fragile. a berlin native who shaped his sense for techno by striving through his hometown and its infamous raves, alex is now one of the prominent protagonists of that scene – not only when regularly playing at berghain. the ep harnesses this experience perfectly, fully preserving the energy of the creation process by recording directly to tape. most productions may have suffered from this primitive method of locking sound into position, but not these tracks from a techno master.

one of our most mysterious and intriguing states of consciousness is the dream. we lose consciousness when we enter the deep waters of sleep, only to regain it as we emerge into a series of uncanny private realities. through the fog of the mind we can get a glimpse of a world beyond our day to day realities that sometimes is able to show us deeper truths than those we face in awake states. roger is one of those lucid pioneers that is able to translate these experiences into sound. let him guide you through these wondrous clouds. were very happy to welcome dutch-born german-raised roger van lunteren on sohaso for the first time. his rosa dos ventos ep is a four-track story that oozes retro vibes and nostalgia for a past that never seems to have existed. utilizing raw 80’s analog synths and humanoid acid lines he sets atmospheres that remind of lynchian dreamscapes. vanish starts out with an emotional chord sequence, as you enter the fluid world of the subconscious. a gnarly bassline welcomes your arrival and lets you know things here aren’t exactly what they seem. journeying on through seemingly dark areas, it ends with a hopeful melody and the bass softens as you start feeling weightless. uncontacted uses choral pads and two intertwining 303 sequences as a way of communicating between the different dimensions. aroy dee remixing vanish is like taking a psychotropic liquid, adding more drive to the original while retaining the emotive synth patterns. sleepless is rogers hardest cut on the record, again providing directly plugged in 303 goodness and stomping beats. it rounds off a balanced ep with plenty of introspective dance material.

blunted on reality is the 1994 debut album by wyclef jean, lauryn hill and pras michel, collectively known as the fugees. the album contains less political lyrics than their second album the score, but there definitively were political intentions.

afro was our first international release, and our first attempt to bring afro-peruvian music up to date in the same way as nicomedes santa cruz and others did decades ago when the fragile existence of this music was fading. we were very satisfied with the result, which is raw and acoustic but at the same time electronic. dark but soulful. deep and haunting at times. we are joined on this album by some of the finest afro-peruvian musicians on cajon, guitar and vocals giving every song a live feel and the album includes additional production on all tracks by nitin sawhney s and da lata s studio wizard toni economides.

davey woodward has been a prolific songwriter with his bands the brilliant corners and the experimental pop band. an indie pop legend to some, obscure outsider to most. he approaches his fourth decade making alternative music with the same enthusiasm and single mindedness as he did in the first. having recently finished recording with karen, davey had an idea that he wanted to record an album of songs quickly with people he had never worked with before. davey knew the songs had to sound effortless, in many ways go back to a time when artists like bowie would go into the studio without finished songs or someone like dylan would work the song out while the tape was rolling. he did not want the songs to sound laboured. the winter orphans were born.

double record set / 180g axis audiophile series / color gatefold jacket. most tracks on this release were recorded in one-take recordings to capture the moment, which is a vital element to what makes spiral deluxe so unique. let it go was composed by spiral deluxe and features even more masterful artistry of the likes of veteran vocalist tanya michelle, with the mix production of the one and only detroit native producer and dj terrence parker

salsoul records present a crate digging anthology of the more electronic, early 80s leaning side of their catalogue an essential collection of early 80 s post disco electronic grooves from the salsoul vaults. primarily a salsa label on it s inception, salsoul delved into numerous styles throughout its existence but this killer selection focuses on the period of time where music entered the 1980 s and studio technology changed. a plethora of funked out, dubbed out electronic funk across 2 discs is what salsoul boogie offers - choice cuts from the likes of skyy, aurra, leroy burgess, civil attack and many more! featured are the full 12inch dance mixes for unlimited dance-floor pleasure. mixes by larry levan, shep pettibone and francois k feature. one cannot underestimate the importance of these tracks on contemporary dance music, but the funk is the most important thing here, important tracks yes but also amazing records to dance to that capture a time in nyc when clubs were place to be, sanctuaries of escapism, hedonism and expression. essential listening right here boogies gonna get ya! curated with the full input and backing of salsoul records and carefully selected to reflect the truly timeless nature of the music contained within. for listening, for dancing, for turning on a party! remastered by optimum mastering. artwork & design by million dollar disco.

after shining a light on the garage’n’breaks of persian and the bump’n’house of brian bristol, the mysticisms’ crew return with another reissue, to a source of love and inspiration, the epicenter of the 90s nyc club music’s explosion and development, with an ep from the music production partnership of lee rodriguez and steven john craden.
better known as the team behind must-have the african dream double-header on eightball records, they were a feature, under numerous pseudonyms, on the early 90s nyc scene with appearances on a who’s who of labels including movin’, strictly rhythm, tribal and with elements of life, on oxygen music works.

limited coloured double vinyl in gatefold sleeve, includes a bonus track. vinyl 1 is solid red, vinyl 2 translucent blue.

after the roaring success of last years route zero ep, headlined by the 2017 anthem low blow, were delighted to be welcoming benny l back to metalheadz for his debut main label release. one of the biggest names to emerge from drum and bass in the last few years, benny l has conjured up a scintillating ep crammed full of his own unique sounds, well and truly carrying on from where his last metalheadz appearance left off.

strut continue their essential work with the godfather of ethio jazz, mulatu astatke, with the first official reissues of his early classics afro latin soul volumes 1 and 2 from 1966, recorded as the ethiopian quintet. arriving after astatkes life-changing years studying at berklee college in boston, the albums were the first experiments in his pioneering sound, fusing ethiopian cultural music with afro latin and jazz forms

crazy 12 track library music style album on this ace italian label. all based around bumping live rhythms triggering an obscure japanese drum synth module recorded in 2018. it was november 2017 when i received a call from an old friend, hi fabrizio, i found a rare japanese drum machine, you should come and see it before i put this on ebay. i went to check it out and immediately realized it had more potential than just drum sounds generation, it was able to produce quirky and creepy sounds if triggered by any sound source. so i bought it and brought in the studio, where me and alex were laying down new beats and ideas. it took just three days of jams to get the skeleton of this record done: i programmed the module to receive alex s drum hits and the device started creating synth lines, almost as it was speaking its own language.i ve found a soul in this machine, and i wanted to bring it to life in these tracks, a mix of arranged compositions and improvised jams. no root keys, no grids, no clicks, everything came out in an instinctive and natural way as far as we know it s the first time this synthesizer/drum machine is been used in this improper and new way.

when i first stumbled across mix tapes out of hamburgs seminal front club (with klaus stockhausen and boris dlugosch at the helm) during the glorious and carefree early days of the popularized internet, there were certain tracks on them that struck a chord. in fact there was one specifically, i couldnt stop listening to. the mixture of an infectious bass line, a super sharp snare, music and harmony vocal snippets, happy claps and synths lines that evoked pictures of a convertible going down a coastline, and - to top it all off - a tribal chant, was irresistible. after some intensive track-id-hunting pre-shazam, i found out that the heaven-sent hymn was music by an act called syncbeat. originally released in 1984 during the craze that was called uk electro via street sounds resp. streetwave and later licensed to german omnivore zyx records. a joint venture between the electro-funk mastermind,dj pioneer and edit maestro greg wilson as well as manchester musicians martin jackson & andy connell, it is exactly that type of dance track that eludes any classification - as you can see from my description above. or to cite greg wilson himself from one of his essays on the subject of uk electro: the track that received the best response was music by syncbeat, which was full of good vibes and could have easily been re-vamped down the line as a house track.

poolside began as a recording project in a converted los angeles backyard pool house in early 2011, producing sunny tracks of subaquatic indie dance music in this makeshift recording studio. surfacing first in the form of a youtube video for the catchy track do you believe? poolside were soon gaining local and national attention, with djs like james murphy of lcd soundsystem, techno legend derrick may, and disco don todd terje spinning these tracks at events and a growing online following. throughout 2011 poolside continued making waves with a sound called daytime disco through tracks like their cover of neil youngs harvest moon and original tunes. in 2012 poolside worked on a remix for longtime disco punks the rapture and held fans over with a new single and video for a song called slow down as they prepared to release their debut album. that album, pacific standard time, was self-released in july of 2012. after the albums release, remixes for artists like matthew dear, little dragon and fools gold soon followed, as well as rehearsing and touring with a live band and doing dj sets around the world. as thoughts turned to a second album, poolside went on ice for a year to regroup, beginning to work in earnest on another album in the fall of 2016. while still revolving around the sunny, laid-back disco sound of pst, these sessions yielded the additions of up-tempo dance songs and more guitars, and generally more fleshed-out arrangements. poolside surprise released their second album heat in 2017. poolside have over 1.5 million monthly listeners on spotify and have fans all over the world. they are currently on tour as a live band.

...comes with an inlay
umeko ando (1932-2004) was a folk singer from japan. she was a representative of the ainu culture on the hokkaido island in the north of japan. “ihunke” is her first album which was recorded with the ainu musician and dub producer oki kano in 2000. it was released on cd in japan only and is finally available on vinyl (2lp + linernotes, dl included). “ihunke” is following last year’s single “iuta upopo” pingipung 58, incl. m.rux remix which had been received with overwhelming enthusiasm and was quickly sold out. the 16 ainu songs on “ihunke” are delicate, natural gems. they are built on oki kano’s tonkori patterns (a 5-string harp), over which umeko ando develops her repetitive, mantric vocals, often in a call-response manner. oki kano is one of very few professional tonkori players who performs worldwide with his oki dub ainu band. the songs possess a mystical energy – when crows call accurately with ando’s brittle voice in the first song, it seems like natural powers join in with her music. her voice sounds like animals of the sky and the forest. oki kano: “it was a lot of fun to record with umeko ando. many ainu hesitate to break from tradition - if umeko hadn’t been so flexible to work with the younger generation and recording technology, this album would never have happened. our sessions were intense, and we were proud and happy about making such beautiful music.” upcoming in autumn: remixes of “ihunke” by tolouse lowtrax, m.rux, dj ground, el buho mark peters, gama, andi otto, and dreems. historical background: only recently (in 2008) have the ainu officially been acknowledged as indigenous people who are culturally independent from japan. this record is an example of how their music has been passed on through generations in the underground ainu communities while it was oppressed by the japanese hegemony. it deserves a huge audience. follow kompakt

a new project from two anonymous aussie veterans. melbournes smouldering underground turns up two untitled cuts from bad channel, named for the faulty mixing console they were produced on, with a cheeky nod to mark and moritz. organic late night tracks, soulful and dub wise. they passed bradley zeros litmus test, so now they come to you cut deep on rhythm sections twilight sister imprint international black. the a-side keeps it spacious, a relentless stepper for the early hours. side b is music for autobahns, starlight soul for the post-club cruisers.

next up on nang it is time for a slice of spot-on male vocal house and disco. liverpool based thomas lang made some fine albums in the 80s and 90s with john murphy (who went on to carve a highly successful career in movie tracks) and david hughes. somewhere in between that and a string of recent albums (“torch songs” and “the german alphabet”) he also managed to buy one of the finest recording studios in north west england, parr street studios (the “abbey road of the north”). we are pleased here at nang to see a new avenue turned in tom’s life, his first foray into the dance world. “scared” was written with late liverpool songwriter john uriel quite some time ago. it first emerged as a b-side to tom’s comeback single “august day” in 2011. here at nang we always loved the smooth and sophisticated vocal and melody. when tom suggested some remixes we were on board.