BLOCKHEAD Vinyl & CDs

Review: Aesop Rock x Blockhead's Garbology album was a huge success and so it makes sense that the label now follows it up with a new issue of the instrumentals. It's a tidy package across four sides of coloured vinyl in a nice spot-varnished sleeve. Musically it is a brilliantly mixed bag that takes in myriad niche sounds and styles. The opener is a deep soul cut with pensive chords while 'Jazz Hands' (Instrumental) suspends you in swirling synths and spring-day optimism and 'Wolf Piss' (Instrumental) has heavier, darker beats and more menacing string sounds.

Review: Blockhead returns with a brilliant new album, weaving themes of death, afterlife and cyclical patterns through his signature sample-based sound. Known for his work with Aesop Rock and Ninja Tune, Blockhead has become a master at blending downtempo and upbeat styles across jazz, funk, blues and more. His ability to create expansive narratives without relying heavily on lyrics continues to thrill, using only a few vocal samples to guide the listener. The album explores life's natural endings with humor, irony and a touch of sarcasm, reflecting on the inevitable cycles that persist beyond individual experiences. Tracks like 'Earth's Farewell Tour' and 'They Got Therapy For That' offer introspection, while others, such as 'Dolphin Lundgren' and 'Burning Man in Tehran', provide joyful, quirky moments. Fans of Blockhead's work will appreciate the playful elements, with even a couple of tracks for the lovers. Not to be missed is the juxtaposition of Middle Eastern disco and festival vibes. The album is a perfect balance of humour and introspection as we reflect on cycles and endings.

Review: 20 years on from its initial release in 2004, Ninja Tune share the first ever reissue of Blockhead's Music By Cavelight. The New York-based alias of Tony Simon, this record is the quintessence of Ninja Tune's smoked-out trip-hop sound at the time, and for which Simon himself likewise came to be known. Recalling a time when instrumental beatsmiths were much likelier to consider their crafts artful enough to warrant calling their studios beat-smithies (as compared to the sadly throwaway feel of much instrumental hip-hop today), one can really hear the subtlety and care poured into each vignette here, our favourites among which are 'Bullfight In Ireland', 'Graveyard Hunt' and 'Bloop Bloop'; all play back like studies of a gritty, degage, sun-bathed vision of a bygone big smoke.

Review: Top class New York producer Tony Simon has been delving into his archives to serve up reissues of a load of his most crucial albums. From the turn of the millennium onwards, he was a pivotal beat maker, joining the dots between instrumental hip-hop, trip hop, jazz, broken beat and downtempo in his own unique way. Downtown Science manages to be both organic and earthy yet synthetic and futuristic all at once, with real instrumentation and great vocal samples next to killer drums.

Review: A decade after Blockhead dropped his seminal Interludes After Midnight album it gets a deserving reissue on Ninja Tune. Blockhead is of course an alias of the revered New York producer Tony Simon who is reissuing all his albums at the moment. This one set a blueprint for the broken beat and nu jazz scene, with elements of trip hop and downtempo also colouring the grooves. Some tunes like 'Never Forget Your Token' have a Latin feel thanks to the keys and breaks, others are more psyched out late night store jams like 'Hungover Like Woah.' All are great.

Review: Tony Simon is a hugely prolific producer from New York who serve up a dazzling array of album 20 odd years ago. He found a fine home forth on Ninja Tune who are all reissuing them now on some great looking and sounding vinyl. The Music Scene once again offers up a dazzling mix of sounds and influences from across the world. Hip hop, downtempo, broken beat, jazz and more all feature in his beguiling musical brews as you jump from hypnotic lead to bristle beats and back again.