Downbeat | Electronica | Leftfield 366 Items

Music From Memory continue their 12” series with the release of an EP from St. Louis outfit Workdub, taking four tracks from across the groups elusive privately released albums; ‘Workdub I’ (1989) released on LP and ‘Workdub II’ (1992) which was a cassette only release.

Discrepant presents Tiago Sousa's brand new LP with collaborations from Tó Trips, Ricardo Ribeiro, Balthazar Molina and Rebecca Roth.
Expect a unique work by one of the most interesting and intriguing musicians to come out of the burgeoning Portuguese music scene.

Limited edition of 500 copies, exclusive to HHV!

"Drafts & Lost Tracks" is a compilation of previously unreleased tracks. This album includes selected works from the period between 2010 – 2014. Unfortunately, many of these were never finished because of an incident at the beginning of 2014. But for me every single one of these compositions is an important point on my musical way. That is why I want to share them with my listeners, just like I share my memories with good friends. Includes download code.

I was heavily inspired by Chris Marker’s film Sans Soleil (Sunless) just before I began recording the EP. He talks about remembering and memories; we preserve our recollections through photographs, films, literature and in my particular case, music. Each track on the EP is essentially a memory preserved.

The EP deals with ennui or just the overlying feeling of listlessness that usually props up when one thinks life is futile. Again, like my last release, this EP is quite melancholic in nature except the themes are more mature. I’ve focused on the artificial gratifications such as drugs, sex and what these temporary distractions can do to you and the relationships around you. I tend to take these dark subject matters and try and transform them into something beautiful, it’s incredibly cathartic. This is why I find it amusing and overwhelming when people call my music “ethereal” or “uplifting”.

I really love Dostoyevsky’s work or just any Russian author to be honest. His novels are incredibly detailed and meticulous, everything is palpable. I want any release I put out to feel this way. When people listen to my music I want them to be able to really feel the sounds, as if they can touch them: I work really hard to try and accomplish this. Lastly, I think what inspires me the most about being a musician: is the story telling. To be able to project your stories and memories through sound knowing that there’s at least somebody out there that will listen to what you have to say.

Featuring production by such renown producers as Go Yama, Insightful, Laplace and Galimatias, ‘Falstrati’ comes out worldwide on limited clear vinyl in December 2014.

Slow Waves is a collection of multi-layered memories, stacked like grainy polaroids in an old box in the closet or under the bed while the colours fade. A young Rob at the beach or on his first day of grammar school. Images of travels across Europe and Japan, moments slipping in trains or planes while landscapes pass by. Memories so unique to his life, yet so similar to the fading memories of youth and adolescence we all have...

After a series of well acclaimed EP’s, each of them created at very specific moments in the artists life, submerse took the time and sat down to reflect and convert all these memories into his first full length album on Project: Mooncircle.

'Slow Waves' comes out worldwide on limited double vinyl, limited handmade and handpainted cassette edition (both including download code) as well as a limited edition CD including a bonus track via flau records in Japan.

A bright and colourful scenery: Shrill blinding sights, piercing foreign sounds, a fusion of disparate scents blended into a cocktail of curiosity. Fleeting attempts embrace a thousand senses in one single second. Bustling around in the shadows of buildings as high as mountains, an almost eerily overwhelming sense of contentment is omnipresent - but something doesn't appear to be right...
Stranded on a lonely island in the midst of a chaotic metropolis, disconnected - a feeling of drowning in an ocean of overstimulus and importunities of disproportionately inflated personalities, without ever even being registered or taken notice of.
What's left is nothing more than the ghost of a young soul, wandering about and curiously studying the surrounding, forever looking for answers that would otherwise seem trivial.

After “Kidsuke” the critically acclaimed collaboration project with Daisuke Tanabe, “Tokyorkshire” based producer kidkanevil continues his fascination with Japan and readies his latest solo album My Little Ghost. Inspired by a summer spent in Tokyo collaborating, exploring and generally refusing to grow up, the double vinyl is due May 2nd on Project: Mooncircle and features a wide range of guests including PMC's own submerse and Tokyo vocalist Cuushe.

'My Little Ghost' comes out worldwide on limited gatefold, double, pink vinyl (including download code) as well as a limited edition CD including a bonus track via flau records - http://www.flau.jp/ in Japan.

Limited to 750 copies.

Taking inspiration from the 1969 French adventure book of the same name, Papillon explores the sonic interzones between dream and nightmare. Through the use of augmented field recordings, Papillon uses the ‘exotic’ jungle as the starting point to develop a dense and evocative sound where ethnic recordings, impromptu synth jams, modular synthesis and foley art effects come together to create a quasi-mystical crackpot mix of esoteric visions, near death experiences, shamanism, fever deliriums and lucid dreaming.

Robot Koch and director Lukas Feigelfeld have teamed up to create a special collaboration project. After Lukas directed the video “Autodreams“ (“The Other Side“, Project: Mooncircle) in 2011, they wanted to go a step further. The idea behind the release “Unpaved“ was to create a short film in which the music and the images are equally important.

Imagine the old mystic character “Pan”, which represents nature, animalism and freedom, in a contemporary and realistic setting; becoming a modern vagabond, a drifter, living in the woods and roaming the lands, always accompanied by his friend, the dog. As his path leads him into the city of modern society, he is quickly confronted with its harsh reality – The conflict between living in an urban space and wanting to be at piece in a remote place in nature. Can we consider ourselves animals or have we already evolved into something too distanced from its natural enviroment and essence?

“When I write music it’s always very visual. I have images in my mind that put me in certain moods while I produce – oftentimes I make music to a film that hasn’t been shot yet. This has been something I wanted to do for a long time: compose music for a film.“ – Koch
„As a film director, the great aim of this project was to create a symbiotic piece of work that allows the musician and the director to work on an equal level. By bouncing back and forth ideas, images, sounds and moods, we were finally able to combine these elements and establish a harmonious piece that reflects both his and my creative expression.“ – Feigelfeld

“Unpaved“ will be released on 12“ vinyl including a download code for the film.

Heavyweight soul providers Fat Freddy’s Drop are about to take flight once again with the worldwide release of new album Blackbird!

For her new album “Olvido”, although working with Robot Koch and Sneaky again, Graciela Maria kept much more control of the producing part. The result sounds even more organic and acoustic than her debut. The electronic elements are very subtly used and the arrangements sound like a minimal playing but orchestral sounding folk band.

This new album is calmer but more intense, like an intimate whisper in a church or cold water dripping in a cave. Only the song “Last Place” with its snarling bassline reminds of the earlier electronica and dubstep influences. More than the last album, ”Olvido” includes songs with Spanish lyrics, nearly half of the songs are sung in Graciela Maria’s native language, which once more increases the closeness of the songs. “Olvido” is life written in music, music that invites us to listen to the silent moments that pass unnoticed. The lyrics of this album embrace the empty spaces left by losses. It is a requiem to a past that cannot be grasped with words and that Graciela Maria holds with her voice to avoid looking into the abyss. This album is to be heard in solitude, to look inside one´s self and ask: What is it, that we see there? What do we listen to and who are we?

Graciela Maria writes free verses, not looking for exact metrics her voice is floating on piano lines, drifting through organic sounds and gliding on cello strings. She creates an atmosphere of a standstill in time, remembering what has been, listening to the hours gone by. The voice on Olvido should be followed… because it´s an echo of a lost century in which poetry was written to feel life with words and to be able to die every night.

Heidi Lord Wife of Rephlex/WeMe artist Jodey Kendrick 3 of Heidi's tracks are featured on the famous "EDM" Compilation Albums This is the Debut album from Heidi Using a unique pallet of sounds from MRI machines to modular synthersizers to conversations in a super market to her own processed voice Co produced by her Husband "I could describe what the album means to me, But i would much rather leave it to listener to experience and feel and to interpret how they see fit".

Since 2010, Theo aka Fakear ("fake ear") captivates us with his dark and poetic sound, using samples from around the world behind his MPCs.

New 2 track EP from Theo Parrish. Far Out Sounds from the boss! Nuff Said!

2020 repress.

Apichat Pakwan is a music collective put together by Olivier Schreuder, an Amsterdam-based musician, DJ & producer.

Together they produce “Isantronics” - a hybrid approach to blending Molam (folkmusic of the ethnic Lao, of whom the largest population is living in Isan, another name for Northeast-Thailand), electronic music, Dub & Hip Hop.

Apichat Pakwan consists of Olivier Schreuder (electronics, production, percussion), Pongsapon Upani (Kaen), Artit Krajangsree (Phin, bass), Robin Koek (drums), Angkanang Pimwankum (percussion) and is based in Amsterdam (the Netherlands) and Khon Kaen (Thailand). TIP!!!

The first-ever dedicated album release by pioneering female Italian film music composer/arranger/multi-instrumentalist Giulia De Muittis (aka Mrs. Alessandro Alessandroni). Rare undercover pseudo-ethnological studio sessions made under her experimental alter ego Kema (The Pawnshop/Abnormal Sensations) combining the ethos of Can’s Ethnological Forgery Series (EFS) with the studio trickery of Delia Derbyshire and unshakable credentials as one of the founding figures of Giallo film music and Italian psych soundtracks.

Perhaps best known amongst fans of Italian production music and Giallo movie soundtracks as the wife of the legendary Alessandro Alessandroni, composer, vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Giulia De Muittis was an equally formidable force who emerged from the formative years of the aforementioned anti-genres and rose to a monarchic status within the country’s vibrant, and seldom rivalled musical secret society. The cliché “behind every successful man, there is a strong woman” might not do Alessandro and Giulia’s long-running creative unison justice but one thing that rings true that in the shadows of Senor Alessandroni’s limelight (illuminated by his work with Ennio Morricone for the films of Sergio Leone and Dario Argento) remained a darker musical feminine force which in time has come to represent the duo’s finest and most sought after sonic artifacts. In a career that spanned four decades until her untimely death in 1984 Giulia’s collaborative work as a reliable creative all-rounder and pop polymath has stood the unshakable test of time like few other musicians resulting in projects like The Pawnshop, Femina Ridens, Revolver, Questo Sporco Mondo Meraviglioso, The Night Evelyn Came Out Of The Tomb, Angoscia, Inchiesta Giudiziaria and Witchcraft ‘70 (Angeli bianchi Angeli neri) earning increasing “Most Wanted” status on the collectors’ market. It is of no coincidence that Giulia’s nom de plumes, Kema and De Muittis, have in recent, more educated years, become trusted seals of approval which connect top choice composers such as Raskovich (aka Sorgini), Stelvio Cipriani, Morricone, Braen (aka Alessandroni) Amedeo Tomassi, Piero Umiliani and Bruno Nicolai amongst select others. It is, however, De Muittis’ seldom heard self-initiated solo work for small independent Italian library music imprints that reveal a unique multi-instrumentalist female composer working at her most intimate and uncompromised best.

Fatima's debut album is called ‘Asiatisch’, and as the track titles suggest, the record provides a simulated road trip through an imagined China. Musically, the album is an homage to that quietly influential sub-strain of grime, often loosely termed 'sinogrime' due to its preoccupation with Asian motifs and melodies, pioneered by the likes of Wiley and Jammer at the beginning of the 2000s in East London.

'Asiatisch' is a provocation which asks more questions than it answers. The title is the German word for Asian. Unlike its title, however, the music on 'Asiatisch' revolves around the fantasies of East Asia as refracted through pulpy Western pop culture, in particular Hollywood, literary fiction, music, cartoons and advertising. Fatima asks what is meant by the term 'Asian' in a digital age of viral interchange and the hi-speed trading of cultural bytes; the concept of 'shanzhai' proves pivotal, a term whose meaning stems from a wild, out of control zone of banditry, but which has come to be used to refer to the Chinese counterfeiting of Western brands and goods.

While a number of producers have made takes on 'sinogrime' over the last few years, 'Asiatisch' is really the first record that attempts to articulate this weird complex of sonic interchanges between the West and China.

For Samuel Evans, or Rain Dog, creating this album was a vast experiment to combine different attempts of blending more traditional elements of song writing and composition with the more contemporary influences of modern electronic dance and bass music, all within the confines of his computer and chair…

Being compelled by melody and variation, Rain Dog, by his own admission, never had much talent for songwriting in terms of lyrics. To circumvent this, however, he focuses on creating a narrative within the music through the combination of synth work and samples. He starts with anything that sparks an interest or emotion in him – Tom Waits, Joni Mitchel, Ella Fitzgerald, Portico Quartet and moments from movies, samples like these usually work as a foundation for the tracks. He then adds layers of unique and organic synth sounds (a notion he finds quite interesting when working entirely from a digital platform) before eventually completing the production with the beat. He likes his music like a nice pie – warm, hearty, and crusty.

Artwork by Felicia Simion. Guests: Robot Koch, BigsonTomika & Sam Rogers.

This January we will be releasing the sophomore album by Polish producer Blossom, entitled „The Longest Journey“ on vinyl. As a bonus we added his debut album „Blue Balloons“ to the package, which will be pressed on vinyl for the first time.

“The Longest Journey“ (2013) represents the musical journey of Łukasz Czajewski, depicting a one year cycle in his life, rich in thoughts, important life-events and experiences. He processed influences like nature, mind-created images and innervisions to create an album about one’s journey into the understanding of the world, soul, consciousness and creation. While seasons came and went, he reflected on these events and gained valuable experiences. Every single track has its unique meaning and is a part of this inner expedition. Ultimately, it all comes down to one question: Where are YOU heading in Your journey?

Several months of hard work between January 2010 and October 2011 resulted in “Blue Balloons“, an album filled with delicately arranged downtempo guitar motifs, distinctive complex rhythms and complementing rich basslines, all encased in the unique aura that sorrounds Blossom’s debut album and gives it a deeply atmospheric feel.

All tracks Written & produced by Łukasz Czajewski in Leszczyny, Poland. Saxophone on “Don’t Grow Up”, “Signs of a New Day”, “We Go” by Aleksander Papierz. Vocals on “Dusk” by JEHST.

Donky Pitch are very proud to announce that in October 2013 they will release the first album from their stable of artists, Providence RI’s The Range.

Following two EP’s on the label over the last 18 months, ‘Nonfiction‘ is an 11 track full length that further defines his uniquely crafted musical outlook; a sound that takes in ethereal classical instruments, tough intricate percussion, thick bass and packs them with melody and emotion. With nods to Jungle, Footwork, Grime and RnB, The Range manages to skilfully balance all his compositions into something that truly has no peers, proper song writing from a real talent.

The Range released ‘The Big Dip’ on Astro Nautico in 2011, followed by the two Donky Pitch EPs ‘disk’ and ‘Seneca’. He has received regular support on BBC Radio 1 from Benji B, frequently playing shows across the US, and completed remixes for artists like Howse (Tri Angle), Kuhn (Civil Music) & Alphabets Heaven (King Deluxe). In September he plays The Boiler Room US, followed by a string of UK and European dates in October (his first overseas shows) to co-incide with the album release.

‘Nonfiction’ will be released digitally and on limited vinyl in collaboration with Berlin label Project: Mooncircle.

Shackleton's most expansive, ecstatic and hallucinatory music to date. Four long form pieces developing the free-flowing compositional aesthetic of his recent Deliverance series and Powerplant performances: fiery rhythmic-melodic turbulence channeling Congotronics way to the east - with an aura of restrained mania reminiscent of the feral pomp and gallows humour of Coil's Moon-Musick phase - all earthed by dub wise bass. The pairing with Tomasini - the cult singer, performer and artist whose history spans experimental theatre, cabaret and collaborations with (among many others) Othon, Marc Almond, Sleazy, Julia Kent and David Tibet - is a match made in heaven. With his four-octave voice swooping from deep growl to piercing falsetto, Tomasini's presence both heightens the taste for the theatrical that’s always been integral to Shackleton’s music, and makes explicit the latter’s kinship to the occult energies of the UK’s post-industrial underground. As the record's title suggests, these are shadowy songs rich with allusions to bodily ritual and psychic exploration, with Tomasini’s lyrics framed by luminous whirls of hand-struck drums and synthetic gamelan, bells and tumbling organ melodies. You Are The One escalates from delicate choral chant to full-bore psychedelic organ freak out; Rinse Out All Contaminants is a slow incantation, to purge all negative thoughts; the melodies of Father You Have Left Me are smudged like early Steve Reich, then burned out by snarling subs; and the magnificent Twelve Shared Addictions balances elliptical melodies like spinning plates, gradually unfurling into a breakneck storm of voice and hammered keys. A remarkable collaboration that also, crucially, hints towards new emerging futures in the work of one of this decade’s pioneers in electronic sound and rhythm.

Originally released in 2013, this full length collaboration from Duane Pitre and Eleh is now available on cassette. Pitreleh use high resolution analog and digital tools to create music utilizing natural vibrations and harmonics as rhythm and melody. Inspiration is drawn directly from vibrational waves (sound, gravity, water). The electronics, of which both pieces are constructed, are tuned using pure intonation which utilizes the prime numbers: 1-3-5-7. The debut live performance of Pitreleh was recently presented at the Issue Project Room in Brooklyn as well as the Museum Of Contemporary Art in Cleveland.

Emotional Rescue looks back again with a 2022 repress, digging deep in to the early 80s Bristol post punk scene of Pig Pag, the Wild Bunch and the Dug Out club. A short lived project of just 3 releases, Mouth trail-blazed leftfield percussive jams in the rich vain of Liquid Liquid and ESG but in their own jazz-infused way. Centered round the cultural melting post of the St Paul's district, it's pubs, clubs and blues parties threw together young and old to the sounds of dub, funk, jazz and soul and took the spark lit by punk rock and new wave and spawned music that still resonates today. Consisting of a floating line up based around main members Andy Guy and Rob Merrill, alumina included a young Nellie Hooper before he would go on to be a founding member of the Wild Bunch and on to produce the likes of Bjork, U2 and Madonna. Based around a hard tribal drumming, mixing guitar, trumpet, shouted vocals and effects, the thrown in the mix nature was inspired as much by avant-jazz than punk's do it yourself attitude. Here then, on one EP are their complete recordings, including as the title cut, their best and deepest, Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea. Featured on a compilation LP from the legendary Y Records, its bottom heavy dub sound is augmented by female and toasted vocals riding a top a heavy stepper style riddim. This is followed by an increasingly dizzy array of percussion jams. Acab Part 2) is all skips and trumpets, while the versions of Take Your Coat Off perfect skat vocal / tom interplay, before the finale busts out the rockabilly influences in full effect with jagged guitar, skipping hats meets double bass punk style.

The crossover between electronic music and classical composition has never been in more vibrant and dynamic health. Multifarious musician Emika explores this fertile ground on her ambitious new opus 'Melanfonie': her first orchestral composition, some four years in the making.
Funded by a hugely successful Kickstarter campaign that exceeded its target by an impressive €25,000.
While many rebel from their classical training never to return to it explicitly, Emika has always been attracted to the potential and freedoms offered by the symphony form. As well as taking inspiration from her electronic music background in composing the music itself, Emika also applied some of production and playback principles from that realm to create a piece whose every element has been carefully considered.
Emika is on a quest to try and change what we mean when we talk about ‘classical music’. For her, the magic of the ‘genre’ is about the instruments themselves and more importantly the people who play them; not the restricting traditions and conventions of the classical world itself. I want to change the face of classical music and give it a more honest and real image. It is time we had something other than pomp and circumstance and avant-garde squeaks and pops.”