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Review: Elevated Senses is the new series from the prolific Berlin-based producer Todo Kunst aka Zug (aka Gruvaldo among many others), this time exploring such concepts with the third eye, premonitions, telepathy and other arcane subjects. On the A-side you've got the deep groove of 'Tercer Ojo' followed by the late night affair of 'Premonition' - both on a housey tip. Over on the flip is the subtle computer funk 'Telepatia' and finally 'Seres De Luz' is a contemplative IDM affair that's perfect for drifting beyond the afterhours.

Notes: The Zomo carbon fiber brush VBC-01 is the perfect way to clean your vinyl without electrostatic charge. A gentle brush with the microniser prior to record playing enables a million tiny filaments to discharge the harmful deposits from the grooves and bring a new dimension to record care.

Review: Winthorpe Electronics signs up Dublin musician and producer Daniel Jacobson aka ZOiD for his debut on the label. What a fine one it is too with a real creative freedom in the melodies and rich sense design bringing each of these curveball cuts to life. '2-Oh-Techno' is a loose mix of bumpy drums and smeared chords, zippy leads and pixelated melodies that shine bright. 'Winthrope Acrid 2C (2-5s On The 303)' is then a double-time and wonky workout with a collage of synth textures all intertwining. 'Sunrise Acid' is another unusual but effective techno cut with a happy heart and 'Megajazz Acidhops' is a final collision of synths and rhythms that leaves you wanting more.

Review: It's may seem that deviant disco champs par excellence Bahnsteig 23 are already toasting to their 50th release, but in truth their catalogue started at 23 so don't be fooled. Instead, just feast on another salvo of seedy body music from Ziggy, which leads in with the synth-soaked pump and thrust of "Trance Gigolo" before switching to the sassy 80s funk of "Yo Let Her". Things are just as cool and deadly on the flip as the slap bass electro meanderings of "Amfobia" brew up a post-punk disco delight with a schlocky horror twist, and "Freaky Leaches" leaves things on an ominous note via a swampy trip through the mangroves with only a steady ticking rhythm section for company.

Review: Zha brings together element of dubstep, grime and trap on his latest 12" for the Naan crew. It is his first outing of the year following solid slabs of wax for the likes of White Peach and this label dating back to 2015. This one kicks off with 'Spice,' which has bass tones pinging about the mix with big hits, snatched vocal yelps and dusty drums all keeping you on your toes. 'Grief' is darker and dirtier thanks to the filthy great oscillation that rips up the swaggering rhythm and 'Harm' gets deep on some pensive pads and intoxicating melodic sounds. 'Two Rumours' closes down with sub so warm and cuddly it's like being hugged by a new duvet.

Review: Some six years after the label's last outing, Moody Grass returns via a rock-solid outing from lesser-known producer Valentin Zad and - on the two A-side tracks at least -collaborator Klatt. EP opener '42' is wonderfully hard to pin down, with fuzzy coldwave synth sounds and glacial electronic melodies riding a beat that sits somewhere between relaxed electro and IDM, while 'Answer' adds icy synths and heady electronic string sounds to a locked-in tech-house beat. Elsewhere, 'What Have I Said' is another coldwave-influenced, post-electro nugget - this time with beefier sub-bass - and 'Artefacts' is a tough and ghostly chunk of electro/tech-house fusion.

Review: Sean Bowie's fifth full-length as Yves Tumor arrives with an epic title (the academically minded will be debating its meaning for years to come), a grandiose electro-rock/post-punk goes-electroclash sound, and a bagful of valedictory reviews. It's basically an extension of Bowie's previous work with a few twists, but that's no bad thing; after all, the artist's distinctive sound and strong songs have always been an impressive calling card. Highlights are plentiful, from the fizzing, 21st century punk-funk of 'Lovely Sewer', and the Prince-does-Nine Inch Nails-flex of 'Parody', to the alternately jangling and sleazy 'Operator', and the post-ESG dancefloor heaviness of 'Fear Evil Like Fire'.

Review: ***B-STOCK: Vinyl has light scratches on A-side, otherwise in perfect working order ***


The Well Street label welcomes Yushh for her debut EP. The Pressure Dome label-head (who has previously landed on Facta & K-LONE's Wisdom Teeth as well as Banoffee Pies) brings a mind-altering mix of sounds here. There is sparse and futuristic space techno on 'Kara Arriba' then deeply introspective downbeat on 'Siro Silo'. 'Dough' is a percolating rhythm piece with rubbery bass and dreamy pads while 'OXI Ambigan' floats through space next to fizzing synth details, distant nebulas and alien life forms.

Review: Hip-hop heads love nothing more than classic Blue Note material getting a modern fix up. And that's what we have here as Kay Young and Venna and Marco Bernardis join forces to work their magic on Marlena Shaw's 'Feel Like Making Love' and Donald Byrd's 'Where Are We Going?' This limited 7" is a taster from the 16-track compilation Blue Note: Reimagined II. It's packed with the neo-soul, r&B and hip hop scenes finest contemporary talents adding new magic to the still standout original source material. Like volume one, it's an absolute must-have, as is this 45rpm.

Review: Given his innate ability to craft intensely atmospheric and often fundamentally unsettling music, it seems apt that Thom Yorke has finally got around to producing a film soundtrack. It's fitting, too, that said soundtrack is for Luca Guadagnino's weirdo remake of 1977 Italian horror flick "Suspiria". Yorke nails the brief, delivering a string of chilling, otherworldly instrumentals that not only draw on his well-established love of dark ambient and gruesome electronica, but also foreboding neo-classical movements and sparse, wide-eyed arrangements. There are a smattering of superb vocal moments, too, with recent single "Suspirio" - described by one broadsheet reviewer as "the saddest waltz you'll ever here" - standing out.

Review: We have absolutely no idea who's behind this hand-stamped 12" - all involved are keeping tight-lipped - but you should certainly give the clips a listen if celebratory disco-house is your thing. It's a brilliantly bumpin' affair that adds a plethora of classic disco vocal samples to a surging disco, bass-heavy disco-house groove rich in savagely edited orchestral sweeps borrowed from another Salsoul-era gem. It's the kind of in-your-face, arms-aloft affair that sounds like it could have been crafted in the halcyon days of disco-house (the 'French Touch' era) in the mid-to-late 1990s. It's available in radio edit and 'club cut' forms, with the latter offering just that little bit more celebratory goodness.

Review: This 7" from Yao Bobby & Simon Grab is as esoteric as it gets. If you don't like noise, you won't like this, it's that simple. The two tracks are taken from their recent album 'Wum' on LAVALAVA. It is some of their most abrasive and confrontational music to date. 'Nyagblodi' is an attack on corrupt African politicians with a loud, guttural voice and frazzled synth over heavily distorted drums. On the flip, 'Church' has a broken beat rhythm, hardcore industrial texture and more powerful vocal chants. These are two hard-as-nails tunes with a powerful message.

Review: Two years on from the release of her acclaimed mixtape-style full length debut, What We Draw, Kathy Yaeji Lee returns to XL Recordings with her debut studio album With a Hammer. Conceived (lyrically at least) as an examination of the singer-songwriter-producer's relationship with anger, the album sees Lee expand on her house/hyper-pop-influenced trademark sound via nods to trip-hop, rock, drum & bass and more, with the addition of - for the first time in her career - live instrumentation. Of course, amongst the musical tweaks and collaborations (Lorraine James, Nourished By Time, K Wata and Enganet all feature), there are still plenty of nods to her pop-leaning productions of old, not least bi-lingual vocals (she often sings in Korean as well as English) and a sense of sonic style that has always been one of the aural hallmarks of Lee's work.

Review: Born on the French Island of Martinique, Louis Xavier later settled in France where he discovered the freedom of jazz, and an idea to mix his influences into a global melting pot of sound. He formed his band (Synchro Rhythmic Eclectic Language) in Paris in the early '70s, making music that was both spiritual and eclectic for its time. Both tracks are jazz in essence but with instrumental funky rhythms infused with intricate percussion and electric keys.

Review: Straight off the back of Nicolo's deep, dubby broken beat escapade, Baroque Sunburst strike again with two beguiling breakbeat originals from rising Milan-based Brazilian talent Worli. 'Dynamo' is a purring, rolling tribal breaks piece with strong undertones of techno that you could imagine anyone playing from Villalobos to Meat Katie. 'Breathe - Dance' meanwhile takes a more glacial, up-tempo twist as a foggy, steppy slab of drum & bass that's reminiscent of a Metalheadz B-side or something you'd find on Samurai. Complete with a nutty junglistic remix from Etch and you're packing serious heat. .

Review: Witch singles are well known by collectors of worldly sounds, but they have never sounded as good as they do now on this reissue seres by Sharp-Flat. Each one has been remastered from the original analogue tapes for the first time ever. These two are taken from the Zambian band's seminal 'Movin' On' LP from 1980. At that time they had survived the Zamrock years and built up a fine catalogue of psych and prog sounds but then took inspiration from the newly emerging electronic sounds of the 80s and reaches new highest. These two brilliantly funk and soul-filled disco stompers prove that and cemented the band as African disco powerhouses.

Notes: Inside this brand new issue:

Releases of the Year: Wire asked their contributors to vote for their top ten records, CDs, streams and more, then added up the votes

Critics' Reflections: Wire's writers discuss their memorable cultural experiences of the year

Columnists' Charts: Wire's specialist critics delve deep into their musical niches from noise to modern composition

Archive Releases of the Year: Wire asked their contributors to vote for their top ten archive records, CDs, streams and more, then added up the votes.

Engineered Phantoms: AI for the masses. By Abi Bliss

Back to the Land: Strange as folk. By Louis Pattison

Rival Camps: Crossing the streams. By Britt Brown

Weapons of Mass Distraction: Artists and Gaza. By GAIKA

Invisible Jukebox: Linton Kwesi Johnson: The veteran reggae poet faces down The Wire's mystery record selection. Tested by Gabriel Bristow

Laetitia Sadier: The Stereolab founder promotes community and healing with her new solo work. By Claire Biddles

Fred Frith: The Henry Cow co-founder returns to his groundbreaking 1974 album Guitar Solos with a reissue and a new album. By Clive Bell

Unlimited Editions: Bead Records

Unofficial Channels: Lanner Chronicle

Phil Geraldi: Road head music. By Emily Bick

HUUUM: Viennese whirl. By Ilia Rogatchevski

Lisa Ullen: Piano magic. By Peter Margasak

Thomas Ignatius: Medieval synthpop. By Leah Kardos

Global Ear: Chicago Democracy and improv in the Midwest. By Levi Dayan

The Inner Sleeve: Vince Clarke on The Human League's Travelogue

Epiphanies: Mariam Rezaei on Persian pitch-shifting

Print Run: Dancehall: The Rise Of Jamaican Dance Culture by Beth Lesser; Lost In Room: Mark Perry, Alternative TV And Related, 1977-1981 by Richard Johnson; Deep Blues 1960-1988 by Val Wilmer; Ukrainian Field Notes edited by Gianmarco Del Re; At The Vanguard Of Vinyl by Darren Mueller; Too Much Too Young: Rude Boys, Racism And The Soundtrack Of A Generation - The 2 Tone Records Story by Daniel Rachel; NOTHING IS POSSIBLE NERVOUSNESS, OR IMMORALITY DON'T WAIT TO BE HUNTED TO HIDE/ SPOILT HEALTH by TRS: The Fucking Terrible Receding Shapes, Trading As TRIPLE NEGATIVE

On Screen: Midori Takada: Japan On Film; Robert Fantinatto Subotnick Portrait Of An Electronic Music Pioneer

On Location: Recombinant Festival, San Francisco, US; Sir Richard Bishop, Edinburgh, UK; Week-End Fest, Cologne, Germany; Black Industrial | Noise Event 4: Ain Bailey, London, UK; Out.Fest, Barreiro, Portugal; Gonerfest 20, Memphis, US; Sonica Surge, Glasgow, UK; People Like Us, London, UK; Loraine James, San Francisco, US; Usurper: That's That Then, Edinburgh, UK; Easter Margins Road 2 Redline Tour with OverMyBody Taipei, Taiwan; Donaueschinger Musiktage 2023, Donaueschingen, Germany

On Site: Val Wilmer Blue Moments, Black Sounds, London, UK; Meredith Monk: Calling, Munich, Germany; Barbara Ess Archives, New York, US

Soundcheck: Aesop Rock, Agitation Free, All Men Unto Me, Alternative TV, Chino Amobi, Andre 3000, Erlend Apneseth Trio & Maja SK Ratkje, Anenon, Daniel Bachman, BEAM SPLITTER + Eivind Lonning & Espen Reinertsen, Beans, Lea Bertucci, Better Corners, Galya Bisengalieva, Black To Comm, Andy Blade & Buddies, Danny Brown, Conflux Coldwell, Amelia Cuni/Werner Durand/Uli Hohmann, CZN, Angharad Davies & Phil Julian, Eartheater, Max Eastley/Terry Day/John Butcher, Carlos Ferreira, Peter Gabriel, Gruzja, Holy Tongue, Robert Hood & Femi Kuti, Idea Fire Company, Ed Jones/Dominic Lash/Mark Wastell, KAVARI, Kid Acne, Klein, Anysia Kym & Jadasea, Dominic Lash/Rachel Musson/Phil Durrant/Steve Noble, Joelle Leandre & Rodolphe Loubatiere, George Lewis/ICE, DJ Manny, Trevor Mathison, Myra Melford's Fire & Water Quintet, MHYSA, Moin, Maggie Nicols/Matilda Rolfsson/Mark Wastell, Steve Noble, Aki Onda, Ordeal, Aruan Ortiz, Tony Oxley, Eddie Prevost/NO Moore/James O'Sullivan/Ross Lambert, Janneke van der Putten, Lucy Railton, Maja SK Ratkje & Nordic Affect, Mike Reed, Marc Richter, Raphael Rogi?ski, Patrick Shiroishi, Timelash, David Toop & Tania Caroline Chen, Universal Harmonies & Frequencies, V/Z, Alex Ward Items 6 & 7, Teresa Winter, Various C-01 Compilation, Various Flux Gourmet: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

The Boomerang:

Barry Bermange/Delia Derbyshire/The BBC Radiophonic Workshop, Earth, Khanate, Meat Puppets, Meshuggah, Het Pandorra Ensemble, Penny Rimbaud/Mikado Koko, Rudimentary Peni, Archie Shepp, Masayuki Takayanagi New Direction Unit, War, Frank Zappa, Various The Complete Obscure Records Collection, Various One Mile From Heaven, Various Spectra Ex Machina: A Sound Anthology Of Occult Phenomena 1920-2017 Vol 2

Notes: Stylus Duo Clean Lab-21 is a complete and effective solution for delicate turntable needles.

Eliminates dust and adhered dirt particles, extending the useful life of the needle. Its non-abrasive formula improves sound by reducing noise and distortion caused by dirt accumulated on the needle while preventing damage to the vinyl record.

Set consisting of 2 bottles, designed to preserve the purity of the cleaner thanks to the second bottle with rinsing solution for the brush where the dirt will be deposited, keeping the cleaning liquid intact.

Lab21 is completely safe for all types of needles as it does not contain aggressive solvents, lubricants or abrasive agents.

Non-toxic formula.

Box contents:

1 bottle of 15 ml. of cleaner with built-in soft brush.
1 bottle of 15 ml. of rinse solution for the brush.
Instruction manual in 4 languages, including Spanish.

Review: ***B-STOCK: Sleeve damaged, but otherwise in excellent condition***


Following on from Robert James' Revenge Of The Wasp 12" and a classy VA release, Body Movement is back with a new drop from Harry Wills. Wills has been building up a name for himself across a slew of releases on labels like Holding Hands, 2X, Lemak and Subsequent, and his sound is accomplished and engaging on this fresh batch of tracks. 'Waiting For Rob' is a warm and shimmering track that splits the difference between sharp tech house and fluttering melodic electro, which Tim Schlockermann then remixes into a low slung, broken beat mood that leans on the bass. 'Vimto Paradox' takes things into moodier territory with a broad sweep of keys spelling out an eerie mood around a minimal beat. 'Cap Snatching' finishes the EP off with a more overtly electro construction marked out with snappy acid flecks and a crisp 808-esque beat.

Review: Soul Clap have always dealt in their own brand of funk no matter whether they are serving up house or disco. They of course call it e-funk - a nod to their heroes George Clinton's p-funk - and it also provides their label with its name. This second volume of Detroit leaning e-funk is a faultless four tracker. Rick Wilhite's signature lo-fi sounds define 'Cheetah', the vital Ladymonix then brings the party, Soul Clap themselves join up with funk master Amp Fiddler and Jon Dixon completes the quartet with '4ever Searchin.'

Review: .There's plenty to talk about with The Who's historic show at Fete De L'Humanite, a huge open-air event hosted by L'Humanite, the main newspaper of the French Communist Party. For starters, on the day - Saturday 9th September, 1972 - an estimated 400,000 people were in attendance, a crowd size that dwarves pretty much anything we can think of today, and remains the band's largest ever gig. Taking to the stage as evening set in, they set to with a typically ferocious set, and four of the most standout pieces for the show are immortalised here on record. Unsurprisingly, that timeless anthem of misspent youth, love, rebellion, and hope for change, 'Baba O'Riley', is a dominant factor, although epic finale 'Relay' is perhaps where the might of their rock 'n' roll juggernaut is most felt here.

Review: The mysterious Who is a Berlin based artist who releases brilliant music but only sporadically so. They launched their own Who Is Paula label in December last year. That was an original EP which now gets revisited and remixed for the label's second release. Electro don Cignol gets first with a plenty of rueful pad work and leggy drums. Vertical67 's take on 'Bang Tang' is hurried, with bleeping melodies and closely stacked kicks bringing the cyborg-funk. The Sound Synthesis remix is a punchy one that goes deep and Train Station (36 Night Train remix) is lo-fi and thoughtful, with end-of-the-night melodies sending you home in a blissful state.

Review: The deep archives of disco legend and synth wizard Patrick Cowley continue to prove inspirational for Dark Entries. Cowley, who passed away from AIDS-related illness in 1982, was the multi-faceted producer behind numerous disco anthems such as Sylvester's "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)". Since 2009, Dark Entries has been working with Cowley's friends and family to shed light on the lesser known facets of this singular artist's output. This has resulted in a string of celebrated archival albums, including Catholic (featuring Jorge Socarras), School Daze, Muscle Up, Afternooners, Mechanical Fantasy Box, and Some Funkettes.For the latest addition to this saga, White Trash Boom-Boom, Dark Entries has teamed up with The Stud to release four tracks culled from some of Cowley's earliest rehearsal tapes. In 1972 Patrick was living in the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood with Theresa McGinley and Janice Sukaitis, friends of his from New York. In 1973, Theresa and Janice formed White Trash Boom-Boom, an all-female avant-garde performance troupe. Reacting to the Angels of Light and the Cockettes, they captured the spirit of the times: camp, confrontational, and delirious.

Review: Given that Isle of White twosome Wet Leg (AKA late twenty-somethings Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers) broke through with an insanely infectious chunk of monosyllabic rap-sporting post-punk pop, the stupidly catchy 'Chaise Longue', it seems fitting that the song lands early on their self-titled debut album - track two, to be precise. While the set features little else quite as upbeat, energetic and unashamedly joyous, it's still a boisterous and at times brilliant debut full of tongue-in-cheek lyrics, low-slung post-punk intent, raucous references to vintage '80s and '90s indie, weighty guitar riffs and ear-catching melodic motifs. It's the kind of set capable of pushing them towards super-stardom and will undoubtedly be warmly received by critics.

Review: It may have been released digitally six months ago, but Kanye West's "Jesus Is King" album - his 12th solo set in total - has finally made it on to vinyl. By now, most will have already heard it, but for the uninitiated "Jesus Is King" sees West meditating on Christianity, offering up a tight 27-minute set of tracks that draw influence from (or explicitly sample) gospel music in all its forms. It's still a hip-hop album of course, it's just that the beats, musical choices (gospel choirs, loops from killer records by gospel soul act The Whole Truth etc) and lyrics are closer to the black American gospel tradition than anything West has released before.

Review: Six Minute Mile has rightly got plenty of attention for its first few outings and their early good work connotes with this eight 7". It's from Ohio's Wesley Bright who has joined forces with The Means of Production and New York's Ben Pirani, and is a lovely mid-tempo roller that reminds of balmy summer nights. The tune comes in two parts and opens with lovely Rhodes chords that are a great foundation for the tenor vocals of Wesley. Then come plenty of irresistible hooks and the rousing vocals sing of love and devotion like all good soul sounds should.

Review: Fresh from an appearance on the excellent Rush Hour Amsterdam All Stars compilation, Simon Weiss breaks free with a debut solo release on the Hometaping imprint. A label that has provided a boost to many a producer's profile, Weiss is likely to countenance a few remix and booking requests off the back of the sumptuous sounds here, not least the title track "Yesterday Is Around". Very much influenced by the likes of Parrish and Dixon Jnr, there is an undeniable warmth to the expertly looped strings and delicate vocal sample that will turn many an ear, whilst the rhythms and textures are delightfully fuzzy. Alongside it Weiss flexes his percussive muscle on the expertly poised beatdown of "Bird Movement" which is notable for some excellent pitch shifted melodics, whilst "Body Signature" is delightfully sloppy. Best Hometaping release in ages!

Review: Devoted fans of Abel Tesfaye were left in a spin when the latest The Weeknd album dropped out of the blue, offering up lead singles 'Sacrifice' and 'Gasoline'. The expansive reach of Tesfaye's musical world knows no bounds, straddling pop, rap, electro and much more besides on a quest for life-affirming, show-stopping songs that burrow straight into your heart. The cast of collaborators on this record is staggering, from Tyler, the Creator, Lil Wayne, Quincy Jones, and Oneohtrix Point Never to Jim Carrey and Swedish House Mafia, would you believe. Through it all, Tesfaye's dazzling persona shines through, making for another classic from one of the most unique artists in the premier league of contemporary RnB.

Review: Charles Webster's 2020 album Decision Time - the veteran East Midlander's first full-lengthi 19 years - was predictably good, but more downtempo and immersive than dancefloor-ready. This EP of remixes from the album is therefore long overdue. The EP-opening Dazzle Drums remix of 'This Is Real' is a luscious slab of jazz and bossa-tinged deep house soul perfection, while Jazuelle's 'Retro Rhapsody' version of 'Music' effortlessly joins the dots between laidback breakbeat, street soul and warming deep house sonics. Over on the flip, Mark E reimagines 'The Spell' as an analogue-rich chunk of gently dreamy deep house hypnotism, while 'Luciano' channels the spirit of Matthew Herbert's greatest micro-house productions on an undulating, soul-enriching full vocal take on 'Music'. Grown-up fare that sounds as good at home as it does in the club.

Review: Tamara Lindeman was at a real transition point in life when What Am I Going to do With Everything I Know was first unveiled. A six track strong EP, here the moodiness and tangible sense of isolation, loneliness, and hopelessness that had once emanated from her voice dissipates into equally tender and gentile thoughts on an impending marriage and all that may come with it. For some, an equally troubling time in their lives, for others something to truly work towards and - when it finally arrives - celebrate, either way it's a subject ripe for emotional songwriting.

But in actual fact, Lindeman, her fiance and troupe treat the concept of matrimony with something close to apathy, or at least lackadaisical 'might as well'-ness. The culmination of this record, 'Almost Careless', sees her ask the question 'what if', but in a way that's neither excited nor nervous, but simply filled with inquisitiveness and a matter of fact consideration.

Review: Miles Away Records are proud to introduce their latest single to land on the label: the cosmic soul gem 'Super Star' by Ruth Waters and the State Of Mind Show Band. Ruth 'Silky' Waters was best known for her two disco-infused albums Never Gonna Be The Same and Out In The Open, produced by the late, great John Davis. 'Super Star', however, was released on the tiny independent KMBA Recordings label in the late 1970s, and draws on the twin wells of modern soul and gospel, lending both a touch of cosmic goodness. On the flip, there's 'Super Star Pt.2', which plunges deeper into the cosmic essence of the track by way of both extended guitar and synth solos; both tracks are stupendios in their own rights, making this a hotly versatile release for a far-and-wide DJ demographic.

Review: The small but well-formed Snaretrade label squeezes out the third release just before the end of the year. It is some super stylish minimal from the Walrus with 'EchoEva' opens up with a dark web of twisted synths and whispered vocals. 'Your Heart Is Your Passport' is a deft tapestry of icy snares, chopped vocals and fizzing synths that get you into a late-night dream state. Last is 'Weekend', a punchy acid house cut with elastic bass and knack-snapping drums all fizzing and spitting with real sleaze and attitude.

Review: "Huxley's Howl" by Bay-area keyboard savant Howard Wales was originally released as a 7in single in the early '70s on his own Costal Records imprint. Luv N'Haight is proud to present the first official reissue of this classic slice of mid-tempo, instrumental funk, loaded with stabbing horns, explosive Hammond organ and heavy drums with a nice dose of psychedelic vibes to round out it out. The B-side "My Blues" chugs along at a slower pace, with a "bluesier" sound as the title suggests while keeping the same killer psych flavor as the A-side.

Known primarily for his work alongside Grateful Dead frontman Jerry Garcia on their collaborative album "Hooteroll" while also appearing on the Dead's seminal "American Beauty" LP, Howard Wales had already established himself as a talented player during the mid-1960's working and touring with the likes of Ronnie Hawkins, the Four Tops and the Godfather of Soul himself James Brown. A true original and progenitor of the oft-used but mostly maligned "Acid Jazz" genre, Howard Wales paved the way for the psychotropically enhanced excursions of 70s' Jazz, Funk, Soul and fusion.

Review: The mysterious Waffles series, rumoured to be the work of Belgian legends Soulwax, has been one of the success stories of 2016. It has succeeded, in part, due to the eccentricity of much of the source material. There's plenty more madness on this fifth volume in the series, with A-side "Aqua Dolphin", offering a skewed fusion of razor-sharp, acid-style electronics, mind-altering new beat rhythms, and plenty of weird, chopped-up vocal samples. Flipside "Computer" boasts similarly psychedelic acid lines, alongside gravelly, end-of-days vocals, synth riffs seemingly inspired by the original 1988 version of The KLF's "What Time Is Love", and a head nodding, toe-tapping breakbeat rhythm. We have no idea what the original source material is, but it's a deliciously weird and wonderful re-edit.

Review: On the latest Lumberjacks missive Marcel Vogel invites one of the strongest house vocalists of modern times, Khalil Anthony, to lend his distinctive croon to a loose-limbed slice of low-riding funk. "Dance The Blues Away" is a gutsy, full-bodied production that shows off Vogel's instrumental skills at their strongest, and Anthony's vocal rolls on in the many-layered mix perfectly. BB Boogie injects a little disco stomp to the track for the first remix on the 12", while Julien Dyne gets to turn out a remix and a dub. Both Dyne's efforts tap into a Detroit house feeling, all dusty sample loops and a laid back, smoky mood. It's a record made up of killer soul-soaked house music from start to finish.

Review: As well as serving up a mighty fine new 2 x 12" on Radio Slave's Rekid this summer, UK techno titan Mark Broom has also assumed his Visitor alias (along with Dave Hill) for this remastered reissue of their Basement Life EP on D1 Recordings out of Ireland. 'Model Two' opens up with a deeper than usual sound that is peppered with nice heady melodic phrase and smeared chords and on the flip 'The Last Time' cuts loose on a broken beat with crispy hits and lunching bass that draws you in time and time again.

Notes: Display your favourite vinyl records in style with our Now Playing Wooden Stand. This compact stand showcases your current record with a touch of elegance. With the words "NOW PLAYING" prominently displayed on the front, it adds a charming and nostalgic vibe to your vinyl listening experience.

Box contents: x1 Now Playing Wooden Display

Review: The ever wonderful Politics Of Dancing come with four remixes of label stalwart Tommy Vicari Jnr jumping, pumping house stormer 'Look I Your Eyes', each carefully crafted to cover slightly different areas of the dancefloor. The Silverlining Night dub remix takes pride of placer on the A-side, a mix of two halves for sure - it starts of all full pelt, adds a subtle layer of disco-style strings and then drops to a dramatic breakdown before re-building brick by brick. Josh Baker's version has a slightly 80s feel with its mechanised handclaps and swooping synths wrapped in echoey vocals, the Lowris mix is arguably the most no nonsense, straight ahead thumper and then we're left to luxuriate in the sumptuous ooze of Cosenza's dub house re-reub, taking us all the way back to the days of Guerrilla at their height. Capital!

Review: Achingly Responsive is the label run by UK-based Vertical Cat. Amazingly, it started in 2002, but put out only two EPs in the next two years. After one in 2020, now it is back once again with some stunning new material from label head Dan Arthure which again has us swimming in deep house, acid, downtempo, dub and techno waters. His silky sounds take in the high speed techno catharsis of 'Parole', crunchier bumps of 'Luna' and warm, progressive styles of 'Papaver' while 'Moss (Electro Origins mix)' closes in dreamy deep space electro fashion.

Review: Since its inception, Shifted's Avian imprint has gone from being a murderous, straight-laced techno imprint to what has now become a source for some of the best and most multi-faceted industrial music from the European quarters. We're not sure of Verge's true identity; it could either be one of the label's existing artists, the mysterious Shifted himself, or even an artist like Blawan riding incognito (don't quote us on that, though!) Solitary and crest-fallen, this magnetic collection of tunes feed off one another with utter ease and simplicity. They're not merely a selection of sound experiments but rather a unitary cloud of sonics which leave the listener with a powerful mental image. The feeling of dusk, the water dropping off the leaves, the cold breeze of Autumn. This is a blinding foray into the darkest corners of contemporary industrial experimentation.

Review: Bergen-based producer Velferd doesn't release many records; in fact, this is his first EP of all-new material since the release of "The Aspen's Turning Gold" back in 2010, a track that's now considered by many experts to be something of a Scandolearic disco classic. It's perhaps fitting, then, that his return to action is being championed by Prins Thomas's Full Pupp label. Happily, opener "The City That Drowned" is something of a stunner - a warm, evocative and breathlessly melodious fusion of tactile bottom-end, spiraling synths and sun-bright electronics seemingly tailor-made for summer dancefloors. Elsewhere, "Never" is a piano-heavy Scandolearic house roller, while the wonderfully positive "Through The Valley" sounds like Talamanca System jamming with Hans-Peter Lindstrom.

Review: Pomelo is one of the longest serving pillars of the ever inventive Austrian techno/electronica community and the fact It's never had the profile of a Cheap or Mego doesn't mean it's not responsible for some of the country's most exciting and most maverick material. Austria's trademarks are a general and laudable ignorance of current fads, an irresistible groove-ability and an indefinable flair in executing their ideas and the four cuts have all three of those properties in heaps. The newest addition to the Pomelo roster is Spanish talent Vedelius, who delivers the late night burner 'The Crypt' here before turning it over for a rolling breakbeat version by Phosphene, jacking techno by Lodig/Dibek and a dubbed out electro-techno stepper by Lok44.

Review: In 1988, on the eve of the civil war that began to tear apart Somalia in the early 1990s, an intrepid band of broadcasters and journalists secretly salvaged some 10,000 cassettes of homegrown music from the archives of Radio Hargeissa in Somaliland. Almost 30 years on, those tapes have finally been mined for Sweet As Broken Dates, a brilliant compilation that finally showcases some of the multitude of gems that were recorded and released in the country between the late '60s and early '90s. It's a brilliant collection, all told, full of exotic music that combines Western styles - soul, funk, disco, pop, reggae, boogie, psychedelic rock and even early hip-hop- with musical influences from the wider region (most notably Arabic and tropical music from islands in the Indian Ocean). In other words, it should be an essential purchase.

Review: The latest in Heavenly's colossal milking of the late Andrew Weatherall's extensive remix career comes in the form of a CD bundle of the first two collectible vinyl compilations, the Weatherall Remixes Volumes 1 and 2. The man occasionally known as Lord Sabre provided plenty of reworks for the London-based imprint over a 30-year period, and you'll find most of his greatest here, including the legendary two-part dub of St Etienne's 'Only Love Can Break Your Heart', his peerless, 15-minute peak-time 1992 take on Flowered Up's 'Weekender', a delightfully dubbed-out, Asphodells-style rework of Gwenno from 2015, and a stunningly spaced-out dancefloor dub of Mark Lanegan's Band.

Review: ***B-STOCK: Slight surface marks ***


If you're a fan of dub techno and densely layered, spaced-out ambient soundscapes, you should already be familiar with Mr Cloudy (real name Sergey Barkalov) and his Space of Variants label. Whether you are or not, we'd recommend checking out this fine label sampler, which was compiled by Barkalov and offers a neat introduction to the imprint's distinctively hazy and hypnotic sound. Highlights include the decidedly intergalactic dub techno shuffle of Flying Cobra's "In Harmony With The Whole", the early morning club hypnotism of "Mira" by Ozim Lee, the fluid ambient dub/dub techno fusion of Heavenchord's "Echo 2", the tough but intoxicating antics of Mr Gradient (the pumping but dubbed-out "Isolated Space") and the bass guitar sporting ambient dub niceness of 'Dub raw Sky" by Tuman Sound.

Review: Some sonic communities grow even in isolation, in the lonely obsessive moments in the studio as time melts away. Deep inside the Detroit Underground nests a Berlin underground, chasing those resonant shared sounds. DU Berlin draws together some of that love felt through music in the German capital. It's not the wild city of reunification or *Berlin Calling* or tourist-style movies or the easyJet set. This is the side of the city that endlessly romances machines for the sheer joy of it, as The Allegorist titles her track, "until dawn." And with some big names and emerging, ranging from mainstays to veteran agitators, the Berlin DU crew have telegraphed each other through productions and mutual inspiration. The results vibrate and rumble with sympathetic frequencies, but never limited to grayscale or dithered palettes.

Review: Volume One of For the Love Of You was an instant hit and so it makes sense the irrepressible Athens of the North label has come back with a second volume. Once again this is a collection of soul covers featuring interpretations of Grover Washington Jr., Midnight Star, Meli'sa Morgan and Simply Red and loads more. The music is golden, the soul vibes rich, and the new styles brought to these classics is instantly appealing in a whole new way. As alwayss, this is another superb release from Athens of the North.

Review: Given that the concept of the 12" version was born during the mid-to-late 1970s, it seems fitting that this four-disc trawl through extended mixes of the era leans heavily on classic disco cuts. Of course, there are some genuine must-haves among the DJ-friendly disco extensions on offer, not least Elton John's Philly Soul anthem 'Are You Ready For Love', Cerrone's 'Supernature', Dan Hartman's 'Relight My Fire' and Diana Ross's epic 'Love Hangover'. Throw in a smattering of post-punk and new wave gems, plus arguably the greatest end-of-night anthem of all, Wings' 'Goodnight Tonight' (the extended version of which gets brilliantly dubbed-out in the middle and is far superior to the seven-inch mix) and you have a rock-solid collection of club-ready '70s sing-alongs.

Review: And the award for most apt compilation title of the year goes to... While on face value it may seem like the USA's Pacific North West and UK's English North West have very little in common, this collection of tracks confirm there are similarities. And they go further than the damp conditions both regions often have to endure. Cheshire-born Burgess and West Coast native Stanley have been friends for 30 years, and their respective homelands collide here. Tim Peaks Diner, established by the former as a festival pop up, apparently owes much of its stylings to "Twin Peaks", and that series-cum-movie-cum-legend has inspired much of the soundtrack to said eatery. New Wave (The Chills), opiate folk (Gwenno), psychedelic country (Blue Orchids) and plenty more help capture the mood of a fantastical waypoint on some fictional road trip.

Review: Having previously celebrated dance and pop hits of the 1980s, the long-running Now That's What I Call Music series - itself established that decade - has turned its attention to "alternative". It's a catch-all term that basically includes anything with indie roots, meaning a mix of goth, post-punk, indie, new wave, indie-dance and skewed synth-pop that emerged from the underground rather than the A&R departments of major labels. There's plenty of big hits and iconic cuts stretched across the four discs (think The Smiths, Simple Minds, Joy Division, REM, The Jam, New Order, Pixies, Sisters of Mercy etc), alongside lesser-celebrated favourites from the likes of Pop Will Eat Itself, Tom Robinson (the decidedly Balearic 'Atmospherics', which was co-written by Peter Gabriel), Sugacubes, Kissing The Pink and Big Audio Dynamite.