Counter Vinyl & CDs

Review: Since the release of his acclaimed 2016 album Animal, Fakear has rocketed towards the higher echelons of underground electronic music. It's a sign of his rapid rise that All Glows feels like one of the most hotly anticipated albums of the year. Happily, we can report that it's another lucid and melodious gem, with the French producer once again prioritizing attractive synthesizer melodies, manipulated samples, imaginative beat programming and atmospheric chord sequences. As with previous excursions, he's opted for a balance of attractive, radio-friendly songs (think quirky, off-kilter synth-pop and drowsy electronic/acoustic fusion, featuring a range of guest vocalists), hazy interludes and inspired instrumentals.

Review: The Heavy specialise in making everything wrong sound right. So successful are they, so good does it feel, so natural, that voodoo filth will be pouring through you before you know what's going on. "Great Vengeance & Furious Fire" is an explosive Counter Records release.

Review: The key to Howling's success - musically, at least - most certainly lies in the disparate musical backgrounds of its two members: folk-loving, soft-voiced singer-songwriter RY X and producer, label owner and Ame founder member Frank Wiedemann. It's this unlikely blend of the acoustic and electronic - the worlds of soft-focus, heart-aching folk-pop and tech-tinged, underground club culture in surprise unison - that makes the duo's work so intriguing. These hybrid sounds are all over second album "Colure", a heady and evocative set that smartly combines hypnotic tech-house rhythms, minor key electronics and rugged TB-303 acid motifs - with swelling chords and RY X's tactile, emotive and often harmoniously layered vocals. Like its predecessor, it's well worth a listen.

Review: British duo Maribou State are back with their first full-length since 2015's breakthrough debut album Portraits, and was a result of a two year long journey to find their sound. Story has it that upon returning to the UK to begin work on new material, they relocated their studio at the back of their home in Hertfordshire to London - only to struggle in finding their creative flow. They began to look outward, making regular excursions out of the city, setting up temporary studio spaces throughout Asia, Oceania, the Middle East to North America and beyond - the result of which is this tremendous LP. Highlights include "Turnmills" their tribute to the now defunct but legendary clubbing institution, the dreamy lo-slung pop of "Nervous Tics" which continues their long standing collaboration with vocalist Holly Walker, and another fabulous hook-up with Houston based purveyors of exotica Khruangbin - on the sublime "Feel Good".

Review: Ninja Tune offshoot Counter Records recently described singer-songwriter Jono McCleery - a regular support act for label stalwart Fink during his live tours - as "one of British music's best-kept secrets". If this sublime new album (his first since 2015) is anything to go by, McCleery's talents won't be hidden for much longer. Stripped back and atmospheric, Seeds of Dandelion sees McCleery and his trusty guitar accompanied by little more than an occasional string quartet. Combined with McCleery's superb lyrics and impassioned, quietly soulful vocal delivery, the result is a folksy set packed to the rafters with gently arresting highlights. While his own compositions are rarely less than superb, it's his closing cover version of Sebastien Tellier's downtempo classic "La Ritournelle" - McCleery somehow making a beautiful track even more poignant - that hits home hardest.

Review: The Midnight's latest Heroes is a stark display of the musical evolution of the New York duo. A band that started as a synth heavy proposition, extensive touring across the globe (including a headline at London's Brixton Academy) and the desire not to repeat themselves in creative terms has led to the bigger vision and wider appeal of what their label calls "fully-realised, arena-worthy songs".
Heroes is the final part in a trilogy of albums that started with 2018's Kids, followed in 2020 by Monsters. "For me, Kids is self-knowledge, Monsters is self-love, and then Heroes is empathy," said singer Tyler Lyle. "I got into depth psychology and this idea of aetiology, the way a human forms. The world doesn't get better but we do. We grow into ourselves. We grow into our voice."
Still, Heroes remains definitely more a case of evolution than revolution - there's still more than a hint of the gorgeous synth sounds in evidence, but with a lyrical maturity and smartness that gives even its most pop moments an unexpected twist.

Review: Pop Levi has led what one might describe as a "melodic" life. From childhood his life has been steeped in music. He took up piano at age 3, joined a gospel choir at 7, and started record collecting at 9 just prior to writing his first song. It was a precocious start for an artist who has proved to be a prodigious talent. This English born, LA based multi-instrumentalist was a founder member of avant-garde rock collective Super Numeri before embarking on a global roller coaster ride as bassist with electro pioneers Ladytron. All the while he's been perfecting his modern spin on rock and soul, releasing two singles on the Trons Invicta Hi-Fi label, and carefully crafting his debut solo album. September 2006 sees the release of his first EP on Counter Records. Drawing inspiration from such luminaries as Van Dyke Parks, Jimi Hendrix, Marvin Gaye and Syd Barrett, Levi creates his own brand of gloriously funky alt-rock, meticulously piecing together his kaleidoscopic sound from recordings he's compiled over a ten-year period. The roar of a motorcycle and the Bolan-esque swagger of title track "Blue Honey", kicks off this five track EP. Track 2 "A Style Called Crying Chic" sees Levi pay tribute to the sun drenched sounds of 60s west coast America before he struts his stuff on the Zeppelin-heavy guitar riffs of "Mournin' Light". Penultimate song "Baby Again" (Midnight Version) has a looser, more experimental feel, prior to more close-vocal harmonising and finger clicking beats from Levi on an alternate recording of album track "Skip Ghetto" (Echo Park version).

Review: What is great pop music? Something that when you hear it sounds utterly alien and yet utterly familiar, something which lodges in your head in such a way that it feels like it's been there all along, a false memory syndrome of rhythm and harmony, a perfect recollection of the best sex you never had. Ladies and gents, please welcome Pop Levi. If you're not familiar with him yet you soon will be. A Prince-sized pixie, channelling Bolan and Hendrix, a wide-eyed John Lennon with an interest in magic and androgyny, the man could have few better calling cards than "Sugar Assault Me Now," a surreal and utterly heartfelt plea for some sweet, sweet loving. Opening up with rolling drums and hand claps before a filthy fuzz-bass riff is joined by Blueberry Hill-rhythmed guitar, Pop Levi takes this as a jump off point for him to yelp, bark and falsetto his plea for some seriously sticky skin-on-skin action. Check the extended version for a tune that promises to be a smash on indie rock dancefloors, where we fully expect emo-boys to be found humping the furniture and each other's legs and turning up the following week in a nice sparkly blouse they just picked up at Top Shop. When you've cleaned up your bodily fluids, check out b-side, "Cyan Moan" is a track where Levi delineates the links between bluegrass and psychedelic whimsy on this utterly beautiful, wide-eyed nursery rhyme. Throw in alternate versions of "Sugar Assault Me Now" and previous EP lead track, "Blue Honey" and "From The Day That You Were Born" and you have a larder full of finest quality high-calorie snacks.

Review: It's not every day you get to use the word 'cat' about a fellow human being. But then it's not every day you come across someone like Pop Levi, and he is one strange cat. Born in London, with musical roots in Liverpool, a stint playing with Ladytron and a home in Los Angeles, Pop Levi likes to describe what's good about pop music as "astral". His debut album, "The Return To Form Black Magick Party", is worthy of the term. Although the most obvious precursor of his sound might be Mark Bolan, listen carefully and you'll hear touches of everyone from Jack White, Prince and Hendrix to Dylan, Lennon and Beefheart in there. But rather than being any kind of eyebrow-raised pastiche, this is what Pop describes as "channelling" - an album of such complete conviction, flair and energy (plus a lorry load of hooks) that it is utterly irresistible.

Review: On his first album since signing with Ninja Tune offshoot Counter Records (his fourth in total), Roosevelt has tweaked both his working methods and the specifics of his songs and music. Embrace was recorded "on the road", with the Cologne-raised artist setting up his portable studio in a variety of cities, while the music itself combines a greater reliance on "80s disco basslines" (Gwen Guthrie's work with Sly and Robbie being an obvious touch point) and surprisingly honest lyrics that detail his feelings of alienation. In truth, it's not a huge departure - his glossy, wide-eyed take on electronic pop has always included nods to electrofunk, vintage synth-pop, nu-disco and contemporary dance-pop - but given the alluring nature of his sound, that's no bad thing.

Review: Ninja Tune offshoot Counter has described Alium, Submotion Orchestra's third full-length, as "bigger, bolder and brighter" than previous offerings. It's true that the Leeds-based seven-piece are in fine form, with the string-drenched, early-evening-at-a-festival feel of their more downtempo offerings (highlighted by the fragile, folksy vocals of Ruby Turner) off-set by a selection of tracks that draw more deeply on dubstep, dancefloor jazz, soul and surging electronica influences. As a result, Alium bobs and weaves attractively, mixing lighters-aloft torch songs with more immersive, grandiose efforts guaranteed to get feet moving and lips quivering out on the dancefloor.

Review: Amazingly, No Fantasy Required is Tiga's first album for seven years, and sees him switch from long-time home Different to Ninja Tune offshoot Counter Records. Those who've followed his career to date will immediately feel at home, as he delivers a set of stylish, attractive songs that variously tip a wink to Gary Numan, Kraftwerk, Junior Boys, Chicago acid, Visionquest, Visage and, of course, his electroclash past. While the references are obvious, Tiga is smart enough to put his own spin on them, resulting in an album that expertly tiptoes the fine line between radio-friendly accessibility and his broad palette of underground club influences.

Review: It's been some five years since British soul singer Andreya Triana delivered her Ninja Tune released debut album, Lost Where I Belong. Since then, her reputation has grown significantly, making Giants one of the most anticipated soul sets of 2015. Predictably, it's a fine set, with Triana's strong, emotion-rich vocals riding tracks that successfully blend modern production techniques with classic soul, neo-soul and nu-jazz influences. It's a successful formula that provides a perfect showcase for Triana's immense talents. This CD version also comes backed with a second disc of remixes, with the likes of Max Graef, Shigeto, Logistics, Medlar and Hackman giving Triana's intricate songs tasteful dancefloor makeovers.