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High Focus Records regular and member of UK rap super group The Four Owls, Verb T has joined forces with production wizard Pitch 92 for the new album ‘Good Evening’. Pitch, who has spent the past few years as the musical mastermind behind the award winning
Mouse Outfit collective has excelled himself on this release bringing to the table a delectable selection of funk & soul infused bangers serving as the perfect backdrop for Verb T to unleash his smooth brand of thoughtful lyrics and hooks.
Having spent 3 years writing for ‘Good Evening’ Verb T has put forward some of his most personal rhymes to date, delivered with a new found passion that sees the veteran build on a body of work that stretches back to the days of Low Life Records and now sees him as a major part of the ever expanding High Focus Records movement. The album features guest vocals from UK giants Ocean Wisdom, Jehst, DRS, Fliptrix, BVA, King Kashmere of Strange U, Sparkz, Black Josh, Rye Shabby, Confucious MC and Moreone.
Individually, Verb T and Pitch 92 have accomplished a huge amount, however with ‘Good Evening’ both artists have put forward arguably the best work of their careers. Built from scratch with the live show element in mind, this album really feels like a party, Good Evening! Enjoy!

Unlike countless previous campaigns for his established labels Finders Keepers, Twisted Nerve and various other imprints, Andy Votel hasn’t come here today to try to persuade you to buy his latest record. From the quietest stall on a very niche market these late-to-the party U.K rap recordings simply Needed to be released, for sanity’s sake. And if it’s taken 30 years to do so, then so be it. Dirty laundry doesn’t air at the bottom of the basket. Demons don’t exorcise themselves. Even if you’re not a feline fan, this cat is now out of the bag. Emanating from a “prehistoric” existence, near the end of the last millennium, schoolies Votel and his slightly older college mates, were once best recognised in Mancunian clubs and bars as teenage vinyl nerds and bum-fluffed battle-rappers under the collective name “Violators Of The English Language” (which in acronymic form explains Andy’s own exotic pen-name). As steadfast supporters of the 80’s/90’s Brit-core rap scene coming out of London, the multicultural “Violators...” Mancunian accents were perhaps a bridge-too-far to secure dream-job contracts for humble labels like Kold Sweat and Music Of Life. An unlikely constructive meeting with Gang Starr’s DJ Premier (while Andy helped out at a radio station) and playing warm up DJ sets for countless US rap hero’s might have temporarily added inspirational fuel to the fire, but after an active period combining graffiti, rapping, scratching, obsessive record digging and beat making into their daily operations, adulthood eventually began to rear its unwelcome head. The tragic teenage death of one member was shortly followed by another’s young parental commitments, and then came the concept of “proper jobs”, an avenue that Andy would then partly evade by becoming a DJ and designer for labels like Fat City and Grand Central (who soon invested interest in the crews instrumentals) and the next chapter is now committed to a fertile Discogs database history. A decade later Andy Votel (with his reluctant moniker) and his digging skills would begin to provide direct sample material for the likes of Madlib, Mos Def, JayZ, Nas, Dr Dre, Ghostface Killa and Action Bronson amongst others, and the “Violators…” black book of break-beats and catalog numbers soon began to feed a same-but-different rap beast.

High Focus Records are excited to present 'Ever Since', the brand new album from prolific Brighton-based producer Mr Slipz and the newest member of the HF family, Australian rapper Nelson Dialect - A landmark release and signing for High Focus with Nelson being the first international signing on the label.

UK listeners might have first heard Nelson collaborating with Verbz & Mr Slipz on the song ‘Hope’ from their acclaimed LP ‘Radio Waves’ released on High Focus in 2020. Nelson has a cult following in his own right in Australia, and previously released music on the legendary U.S label Fat Beats to great acclaim.

Now teaming up with one of the most exciting and respected UK producers, Nelson & Mr Slipz deliver ‘Ever Since’. A statement piece by two artists with well over a decade spent on their craft which sounds as urgent and refreshing as if it were their first time releasing music. The album’s title is a reference to the endless quest for a timeless sound, reflecting the creative partnerships which spark from a seemingly forever existing thread of music.

The album features a slew of impressive guest verses including label mates Vitamin G & Verbz on the emphatic ‘Oxford Scholars’. Two legends Jehst & Confucius MC combine on ‘Smooth Ride’. Bronx pioneer & D.I.T.C legend A.G delivers a show stopping verse on ‘Trembling the Marrow’. There are hypnotic singing performances by Indira May on ‘First Date’ & ‘Open Book’ as well as Hiatus Kaiyote back up vocalist Jace XL on the soul stirring anthem “Figure Out What’s Right”. U.S rappers SickInTheHead & Cazeaux O.S.L.O round out the impressive guest list on the album with their inspired verses.

The first AE Productions release of 2022 comes in the form of a 7” by J & Mo – otherwise known as J Man (of Cut Beetlez) and DJ Mo Money. Finnish DJ/producer duo who are in the midst of creating an album. To pre-empt the album release this lead off 7” serves as a taster of what is to come - a mix of well-crafted vocal and instrumental Hip Hop tracks with some great guest MC’s.

The main cut here ‘Rhymes Be Bomb’ features Emcee G Roc Gayle (of The Vibe Drops/Piece Of Mind), and is a perfect example of a track that works on 45 for DJ’s with a nice bouncing groove, excellent turntable work and good vocals that are clean so great for radio play.

The flipside ‘Pelottaa’ (Finnish for frightened) is exclusive to this 7” but is an indication of the flavour of the instrumental tracks that appear on the album and features J Man’s fellow Cut Beetle HP Lovescratch on the vanishingly rare vinyl appearance of human beatbox.

Sleeve design and direction by Mr Krum references a vintage board game with superb results by replacing the bombs with microphones which takes the theme of musical bombs and applies the same metaphor to the artwork.

You know Krash Slaughta right? The man behind the recent wildly successful Doom/Sugacubes mash-up LP Sugar-Coated Doom, not to mention his unofficial remixes of the Wu’s K.R.E.A.M. and P.L.O. Style and collab. 45 with Phill Most Chill, Rebel Base? ‘Is he at it again?’ the monkey hears you ask. Yes, he is at it again, though the closest of the the three aforementioned releases to what he’s about to drop is the Wu remix 45. And what he’s about to drop is Diggin Deeper, not a single this time but a whole remix album of one of his (and the monkey’s!) all-time favourite hip-hop LPs – to wit, Niggamortis – more usually known as Six Feet Deep (especially in the U.S., though minus the best track under that name) by hip-hop supergroup Gravediggaz.

As many will know, this LP with its horror-movie fixated lyrics gave birth to a whole hip-hop sub-genre – that of ‘horrorcore.’ However, none of those who came after seemed to manage the lyrical humour of The RZArector, The Grym Reaper and The Gatekeeper (a.k.a. RZA, Poetic and Frukwan) and the only bit of production by The Undertaker (a.k.a. Prince Paul) that they seemed interested in was the sub-metal rap sludge of the shouty Bang Your Head – i.e. the LP’s one weak spot. But don’t worry, Krash isn’t interested in that sort of thing. Not only does he avoid rap-metal beats for Bang Your Head, he doesn’t use any on the LP at all – hurrah! What he does do is employ, arguably, as eclectic an array of sample sources as Prince Paul on the original – though with an entirely different end result. Bang Your Head with its apparently sixties garage band-derived beat for example is one of the standouts. The skeletal piano skank of 6 Feet Deep is another, while a beat featuring spaced-out eighties synths forms the new musical backdrop to Constant Elevation. Two more of the monkey’s favourites on this one are Here Comes The Gravediggaz, now underpinned by double-bass-led funk and the glorious inappropriately joyous bounce of Blood Brothers. The result? Your favourite cuts on this one might not be the same as your favourite cuts on the original. Two different versions of a much-loved LP, then; it’s why people remix hip-hop. All the vocal stems were created by Krash and the ultimate intention is to do a limited vinyl release. Cover art is by the Dead Residents’ Junior Disprol.

Ambitious, complex and hooky breakthru opus by NW english rapper/producer/songwriter Rainy Miller, issued by The White Hotel’s Head II label and featuring contributions from Space Afrika, Blackhaine, Maxwell Sterling, Jam City, Georgia Ellery, Henzo and more. Highly emotive and bruised gear, it’s essential listening if yr into Future, Chief Keef, Drake, more eaze, Rabit, Wayne Phoenix, Iceboy Violet, Kanye, Burial…

No doubt it’s the most cinematic depiction of what makes Rainy tick, with a choral prologue that sounds like a Burial vignette, precipitating a downpour of emotions that veer from tender to seething bass-boosted drill blowouts. The slippery combo of self-skewering and tearful Autotuned vocals and brittle, barely-present electronics immediately and inarguably recall Kanye’s 808s & Heartbreak, but here refracted into greyscale tales of Northern introspection, confidently torched 'n bleary-eyed industrial experiments.

Miller's best known at this point for his work with his college compatriot Tom Heyes (aka Blackhaine), whose ragged drill/power electronic subversions loom large over "Desquamation". But where Heyes zeroes in on viscera, isolation and substance-fueled rage, Miller's compositions are more pensive, melancholy and emotionally fluid, finding hopefulness in supposedly grim terrain on tracks like 'There's A Fiesta MkII On Fire'. "A Fiesta burns bright," he sings, accenting the last word as it collapses into chattering electronics and snatched Rhodes piano loops. It's a glorious amalgamation of influences, folding grime and ambient signals into something altogether new. From here, Miller pushes even further into the abyss, enlisting Space Afrika and Maxwell Sterling to assist on 'Breath, Sigh', a powerful symphony of sheet noise, ice-cold pads and soulful electric piano weaving around Miller's vulnerable voice.

On 'July Iii', the beats are reduced to pinpricks, heaving listlessly between stolen breaths and punctuated kick blasts, ‘while Misery is as Misery Does' revels in negative space, allowing overdriven pads to evoke an anxious tenor for Rainy’s melancholia. 'is 2 Die' grazes the same mood before erupting into a wrecking-ball roll of distorted kick drums and elegiac synths, and Blackhaine shows up on 'Way Out', the pair following 2020's breakout "Armour" with a corrosive back-and-forth, playing to each others' strengths.

Benefiting massively from repeat listens, ‘Desquamation' is an absorbing, deliriously atmospheric re-definition of drill, ambient and rap modes with bare north west soul; an arresting portrait of an ascendant artist attempting to find comfort in their artistic skin, and effectively broadcasting the malaise, uncertainty and future shock of the British working class thru this f*cking grim time of ours.

High Focus Records are excited to present 'Ever Since', the brand new album from prolific Brighton-based producer Mr Slipz and the newest member of the HF family, Australian rapper Nelson Dialect - A landmark release and signing for High Focus with Nelson being the first international signing on the label.

UK listeners might have first heard Nelson collaborating with Verbz & Mr Slipz on the song ‘Hope’ from their acclaimed LP ‘Radio Waves’ released on High Focus in 2020. Nelson has a cult following in his own right in Australia, and previously released music on the legendary U.S label Fat Beats to great acclaim.

Now teaming up with one of the most exciting and respected UK producers, Nelson & Mr Slipz deliver ‘Ever Since’. A statement piece by two artists with well over a decade spent on their craft which sounds as urgent and refreshing as if it were their first time releasing music. The album’s title is a reference to the endless quest for a timeless sound, reflecting the creative partnerships which spark from a seemingly forever existing thread of music.

The album features a slew of impressive guest verses including label mates Vitamin G & Verbz on the emphatic ‘Oxford Scholars’. Two legends Jehst & Confucius MC combine on ‘Smooth Ride’. Bronx pioneer & D.I.T.C legend A.G delivers a show stopping verse on ‘Trembling the Marrow’. There are hypnotic singing performances by Indira May on ‘First Date’ & ‘Open Book’ as well as Hiatus Kaiyote back up vocalist Jace XL on the soul stirring anthem “Figure Out What’s Right”. U.S rappers SickInTheHead & Cazeaux O.S.L.O round out the impressive guest list on the album with their inspired verses.

High Focus Records are excited to present 'Ever Since', the brand new album from prolific Brighton-based producer Mr Slipz and the newest member of the HF family, Australian rapper Nelson Dialect - A landmark release and signing for High Focus with Nelson being the first international signing on the label.

UK listeners might have first heard Nelson collaborating with Verbz & Mr Slipz on the song ‘Hope’ from their acclaimed LP ‘Radio Waves’ released on High Focus in 2020. Nelson has a cult following in his own right in Australia, and previously released music on the legendary U.S label Fat Beats to great acclaim.

Now teaming up with one of the most exciting and respected UK producers, Nelson & Mr Slipz deliver ‘Ever Since’. A statement piece by two artists with well over a decade spent on their craft which sounds as urgent and refreshing as if it were their first time releasing music. The album’s title is a reference to the endless quest for a timeless sound, reflecting the creative partnerships which spark from a seemingly forever existing thread of music.

The album features a slew of impressive guest verses including label mates Vitamin G & Verbz on the emphatic ‘Oxford Scholars’. Two legends Jehst & Confucius MC combine on ‘Smooth Ride’. Bronx pioneer & D.I.T.C legend A.G delivers a show stopping verse on ‘Trembling the Marrow’. There are hypnotic singing performances by Indira May on ‘First Date’ & ‘Open Book’ as well as Hiatus Kaiyote back up vocalist Jace XL on the soul stirring anthem “Figure Out What’s Right”. U.S rappers SickInTheHead & Cazeaux O.S.L.O round out the impressive guest list on the album with their inspired verses.

Debut LP by Manchester hiphop crew Voodoo Black (Sparkz, Dubbul O, Ellis Meade & Cutterz)

Following the release of Truck’s ‘3,665’ single featuring Phill Most Chill back in 2018 we are pleased to announce the release of the ‘Food For Thought’ album. It includes the aforementioned single although the 7” has the radio version backed with a special skeleton version of ‘Right Or Wrong?’ with the album containing the main versions of each.
Truck has supplied his unique vocal abilities (often about food – hence the title) on a host of releases by Beat Route 38, S.O.E, The Journeymen and a large portion of the vocals on Mr Fantastic’s ‘Harvey’s Bristol Cream’ album but has rarely featured as a solo artist, until now his only solo vinyl releases are his ‘Able To Stable’ and ‘3,665’ singles - both also released by AE Productions of which he is co-founder.
The album features guest verses from Rola, Phill Most Chill, Gee Swift, Paten Locke, Coherent, Whirlwind D, Tha Cheese and Taka Highsnow who all bring additional flavours from the USA to Japan to the (dinner) table. The beats have been cooked up by Truck, Mr Fantastic, Sir Beans OBE with a few courses each plus one dish supplied by the legendary Kutmasta Kurt, who appears courtesy of Threshold Recordings – the first time he’s worked with a British MC!
The incredible artwork concept by one of AE’s favourite designers Mr Krum is a stroke of genius! Taking the album title ‘Food For Thought’ quite literally the sleeve is made up from alphabet spaghetti which is actually a word search including Artist, Title and Label on the front and then guest features on the reverse panel. All track information is supplied on an insert to keep the sleeve design clean.

The mighty Oxygen returns to AE Productions with a highly anticipated full-length album produced entirely by the multi-talented Tea Sea Records owner and producer/MC Tom Caruana.
Anyone familiar with AE Productions releases will know that Oxygen has been rolling with us for many years so we’re hyped to be able to release his debut solo long player. His first AE appearance was on the now classic Phill Most Chill & Paul Nice Fabreeze Brothers album on the track Golden Crown back in 2015, then in 2017 alongside his Soundsci cohorts Audessey (Jack Jones) and U-George featuring on the debut Cut Beetlez 12” single Droppin’ Needles and most recently in 2018 AE dropped his Body Language 7” produced by Paul Nice, which does not appear on the LP.
The aptly titled Age Appropriate was released on download and on physical pre-order on Oxygen’s 50th birthday and the long wait was worth it! This is Hip Hop through the lens of an MC that has a vast experience in the world of Hip Hop and life in general and covers an array of topics, some personal and some of the verbal word play dexterity that we have come to expect from one of the finest and underrated MC’s around today.
Some track titles may be familiar such as ‘Guillotine 16’s’, ‘The Process’ and ‘33.3’ that have previously appeared as single releases but presented here are all brand new versions that had a better fit with the overall soundscape co-ordinated by Tom Caruana so every track on the album is new material.
We’re also treated to some help from Emskee, Dr Becket, Jesus Mason, BusCrates, Apani B, Jack Jones and U-George plus some turntable duties covered by DJ Presyce and Jazz Spastiks. The timeless design by artwork supremo Mr Krum perfectly encapsulates the contents of the album.

Record with just a few paper scuffs.
Includes booklet.

Something a little special for the landmark AE Productions catalogue number Ae050. Recorded circa 2012 and intended for release on High Noon Music, Mr Fantastic and J. Todd’s follow up to their superb ‘All The Critics’ has sat in the vaults ever since. With AE’s 50th release coming up we arranged with the kind help of High Noon Music to release ‘Don’t Worry’ on AE as originally intended on 7” with the instrumental on the flip, albeit around 11 years later.

The beat starts with a nice slice of Funk guitar which leads into Mr Fantastic’s customary big crunchy drums and a booming 808 sub kick. The intro sample then doesn’t reappear as is but is chopped to pieces and replayed with all guitar and bass parts taking on an entirely new groove which sits on the drums perfectly and is augmented with additional sounds.

Milwaukee’s finest J. Todd graces the track with a nice aggressive pacey flow which works as a nice counter balance to the vocal on ‘All The Critics’ and giving the track a more hardcore underground feel. J. Todd’s freestyle and tongue in cheek braggadocios battle rhymes ride the beat with ease which provides an easy listen considering the tough feel of the track.

We dug out an image taken around the time of recording to keep it in keeping with the image that may have been selected at the time had it been released. The audio is the original master from 2012 so as to retain the original flavour of the track but was done by our mastering engineer of choice Rola @ Khameleon Sounds. We hope you agree that the wait was worthwhile.

You know Krash Slaughta right? The man behind the recent wildly successful Doom/Sugacubes mash-up LP Sugar-Coated Doom, not to mention his unofficial remixes of the Wu’s K.R.E.A.M. and P.L.O. Style and collab. 45 with Phill Most Chill, Rebel Base? ‘Is he at it again?’ the monkey hears you ask. Yes, he is at it again, though the closest of the the three aforementioned releases to what he’s about to drop is the Wu remix 45. And what he’s about to drop is Diggin Deeper, not a single this time but a whole remix album of one of his (and the monkey’s!) all-time favourite hip-hop LPs – to wit, Niggamortis – more usually known as Six Feet Deep (especially in the U.S., though minus the best track under that name) by hip-hop supergroup Gravediggaz.

As many will know, this LP with its horror-movie fixated lyrics gave birth to a whole hip-hop sub-genre – that of ‘horrorcore.’ However, none of those who came after seemed to manage the lyrical humour of The RZArector, The Grym Reaper and The Gatekeeper (a.k.a. RZA, Poetic and Frukwan) and the only bit of production by The Undertaker (a.k.a. Prince Paul) that they seemed interested in was the sub-metal rap sludge of the shouty Bang Your Head – i.e. the LP’s one weak spot. But don’t worry, Krash isn’t interested in that sort of thing. Not only does he avoid rap-metal beats for Bang Your Head, he doesn’t use any on the LP at all – hurrah! What he does do is employ, arguably, as eclectic an array of sample sources as Prince Paul on the original – though with an entirely different end result. Bang Your Head with its apparently sixties garage band-derived beat for example is one of the standouts. The skeletal piano skank of 6 Feet Deep is another, while a beat featuring spaced-out eighties synths forms the new musical backdrop to Constant Elevation. Two more of the monkey’s favourites on this one are Here Comes The Gravediggaz, now underpinned by double-bass-led funk and the glorious inappropriately joyous bounce of Blood Brothers. The result? Your favourite cuts on this one might not be the same as your favourite cuts on the original. Two different versions of a much-loved LP, then; it’s why people remix hip-hop. All the vocal stems were created by Krash and the ultimate intention is to do a limited vinyl release. Cover art is by the Dead Residents’ Junior Disprol.