Search "It\s A Musical" 236 Items

This is the regular LP version with 14 tracks. Please be aware of the limited double LP edition with 20 tracks that we offer.

An album title with not one, but two exclamation marks, meaning something akin to “what a palaver”as it primes the listener for songs like “Cinemascope”. Themes such as personal injuries (“Ich bin cool”), betrayal (“Mes copines”), personality deficiencies brought on by drug abuse (“Methedrine”), rage (“Hass-Satellit”), inflated opinions of oneself (“Brezel says”), suicide (“Le Spleen”), grief (“Dancing with a memory") and souls in torment ("Elektroschocktherapie") are presented in widescreen format in and often in the most entertaining fashion.

Françoise Cactus apparently once said of herself: "I am a linguistic artist who can live with the laughs". Which says it all really, although Stereo Total’s penchant for wordplay is not in evidence in all of the lyrics on this record. Many tracks here echo the rather more sombre, desperate songs she wrote for her first band "Les Lolitas". Nevertheless, the anarchic humour which we have come to associate with Stereo Total resurfaces on compositions like "Keine Musik" and "Einfach".

Musically, this Stereo Total disc, their twelfth, cannot be readily aligned with anything at all. If earlier albums resonated with influences from chanson, trash or disco to punk, rock’n’roll and NDW (German New Wave), Stereo Total have now arrived in their very own musical universe which pays no heed to stylistic devices, reminiscent of “rien de tout”. What we can say: Françoise Cactus excels in the art of 8-track cassette recording, thus creating an extraordinary sonic experience. Brezel Göring draws on his favoured array of instruments more likely to be found in the hands of children in households where a musical education is not on the agenda: plastic baby organ and dreadful mouse piano, accompanied by home-made guitars glued together by less than gifted artisans.

1. Stereo Total continue to make electronic music with flea market Casio sounds which fly in the face of what is generally accepted to be electronic music. Each musical instrument could probably be translated into social coordinates and in this sense, the tools of Stereo Total’s trade speak an unequivocal language.

2. Stereo Total continue to play LoFi garage rock music which makes a mockery of all the masculine clichés associated with guitars. When Françoise Cactus plays the drums, the rhythms of feminism, anti-professionalism and subversive dilettantism come to the fore.

Any attempts to pigeonhole Stereo Total are destined to fail. In the words of Flann O'Brien: "When shall we ever see their like again?"

A word to our younger readers: Stereo Total began making music before the internet existed, before the Euro, before Germany reunited and before there were even bands or music. They will probably still be playing when all that has been consigned to the dustbin of history. The group comprises Françoise Cactus, who spends her time as a radio presenter, author and artist between band sessions, and Brezel Göring, a man whose very choice of stage name was motivated by a desire not to be taken seriously by music and art scribes.

When they began making music together, they made it their mission to disrupt rules, to destabilize ideas. They may not have thrown European harmonic structure or 4/4 time out of the window, but they have certainly asked questions of every other aspect of musical and lyrical techniques. Lines like "you look good from the back", "love as a threesome", "I am naked", "I’m the young gigolo with a smoker’s lung " and "sex complex" are designed to repel serious music lovers whilst shocking them with sound engineering which falls well below the standards of mainstream listeners.

Dark Entries celebrates its 15th anniversary with legendary synth-punk deviants Crash Course in Science. Dale Feliciello, Mallory Yago, and Michael Zodorozny formed Ccis in 1979 after meeting at art school in Philadelphia. As a gesture born of equal parts punk irreverence and brute necessity, the band incorporated toy instruments and kitchen appliances into their aggressive, angular sound. Their anthems “Cardboard Lamb” and “Flying Turns” from 1981’s Signals From Pier Thirteen EP have been staples in adventurous DJ sets for over 40 years - yet some of their finest work is to be found on Near Marineland, a full-length LP recorded in 1981 but remained unreleased in its time. Near Marineland shows the band moving into more diverse and polished territory (although it’s still as abrasive as sandpaper). Tracks like “No More Hollow Doors” and “Jump Over Barrels” highlight Ccis’s singular knack for embedding infectiously monotone hooks in their stiff-yet-funky grooves. Elsewhere we see Ccis going fully unhinged, like on the searing “Someone Reads” or the demented “Pompeii Spared”, where a spray of honks is barely glued together by a frantic synthetic pulse. While this masterwork of malfunctioning analog electronics has surfaced on a few occasions - this first time stand alone remaster includes four never-before-released bonus tracks and includes a lyric sheet. Near Marineland is crucial listening for all devotees of synth-punk and minimal electronics.

The 12 track collection features previously unreleased tracks, alternate versions of existing classics as well as a couple of brand new Amy compositions, and has been compiled by long-time musical partners Salaam Remi and Mark Ronson in close association with Amy’s family, management and record label Island Records.

The sound of Spirit was born out of falling in love with playing the piano again. About a year and a half ago, my girlfriend surprised me with a borrowed piano. It wasn’t in the best shape, but it made itself at home in my apartment and I started playing it every morning… just messing around at first, but it slowly became a morning ritual I couldn’t shake.

As our Secular Sabbath events developed and moved around the world, we were fortunate to be able to meet and experiment with some inspiring musicians. Out of these experiments, new ideas were born and turned into songs with artists like Thomas Bartlett and Ólafur Arnalds, whose musical genius now grace this record. When I worked with each of them, both happened to play 80’s era Yamaha pianos. At a certain point, I knew I needed to get one for myself:

the tone was speaking to me, through me. The first piano shop I wandered into in Koreatown, Los Angeles, and the first piano I see is an ’84 Yamaha U3 (a special edition hybrid!) It was the very piano I was looking for. It was fate.

My morning piano ritual met my new piano in my favorite studio. I made a rule for myself that I would start something brand new every day, work on that for 2 hours without judgement and just see what I came up with. Out of the many sketches, Spirit started to take shape: a collection of songs that I did alone in the studio with just a piano, intertwined
with collaborations with some of my favourite piano-based musicians. These are songs about love in my life, but also about the love for piano brought back into my life.

Celebrating 10 years of global superstar Ed Sheeran’s second album “Multiply”, styled as “x”. The album was an international commercial success, peaking at number 1 in 15 countries, topping the UK Albums Chart and US Billboard Top 200, and the top 5 in seven other countries.The album achieved multi-platinum status worldwide, and was the best selling album in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and the UK. The album achieved the status of the most streamed album in the world in 2014 on Spotify, and became the third biggest selling album in the UK in the 2010s. “Multiply” is a testament to Ed’s songwriting and artistry, demonstrating his ability to blend heartfelt lyrics with infectious melodies across a range of musical styles. Five singles were released from the album; Sing, Don’t, Thinking Out Loud, Bloodstream (a Rudimental collaboration) and Photograph. Thinking Out Loud and Photograph have both become timeless classics that resonate with all ages, and continue to soundtrack countless weddings, proms and other heartfelt moments between loved ones. To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the album, we are releasing a CD, black 2LP vinyl and green EcoRecord vinyl and a CD zine with 9 bonus tracks, with inverted artwork. The bonus tracks have never been released on vinyl before, however Make It Rain was released on the Sons of Anarchy, Vol. 4 soundtrack, and the All Of The Stars was released on The Fault In Our Stars soundtrack, but have never been part of an Ed Sheeran release.

Over the last year, Vienna-based producer SOHN has collaborated with the likes of Disclosure, Angel Haze, Rhye, and Banks.

Now it's time for his debut Tremors on UK's 4AD.

80g vinyl including download code.

'A New Place 2 Drown' is a soundtrack by Archy Marshall (aka King Krule). It scores a book of the same name that Archy made with his brother Jack. Previously released as a digital-only album, 'A New Place 2 Drown' is now available on vinyl. The original digital release was number 33 in Pitchfork's Top 50 Of 2015. The album's restrained, nuanced intelligence is a testament to Marshall's pure talent and compelling persona.

New popular underground music by the main man Chaz Bundwick!

Released in 1988, Blue Bell Knoll is the Cocteau Twins’ fifth studio album. Delivered after a slightly longer period between records than fans had been used to, this was the first they recorded in their own studio. Freed to now make music how they wanted and with no clock to beat, they rose to the challenge of producing it themselves with real aplomb, introducing a new pop sensibility to their sound, expressed through shorter, 'hookier' songs with occasionally intelligible lyrics. Sound On Sound magazine praised them for showing “an uncanny feel for contemporary sound possibilities without making even the slightest concessions towards the mainstream.” A beautiful record that showed the band’s continued maturity, it also included one of their most enduring songs, ‘Carolyn’s Fingers’, which was reflected on the album’s cover - a close-up of their friend Carolyn’s hand as shot by Juergen Teller.

Kindness returns with their third full length album titled "Something Like A War" set for release on 6 September, 2019. The album is a culmination of years spent collaborating with the likes of Robyn, Jazmine Sullivan, Seinabo Sey and Cosima among many others. Produced entirely by Bainbridge, the record is a collection of works representing a period of reflection and transformation over the course of 4 years following their second record "Otherness." Now based in London, the album was recorded in several locations, while Kindness was primarily based in New York during the writing and recording of the album. Following a series of select shows in June, Kindness will embark on a world tour in late 2019 with a new live band. Guest vocal features include Robyn, Jazmine Sullivan, Seinabo Sey, Bahamadia, Cosima, Nadia Nair and Alexandria among others.

It is actually unbelievable what the 27-year-old producer from Cologne has achieved in the last two years. His debut album "Roosevelt" released on August 19, 2016, immediately made it into the top 100 of the German album charts and is considered to be one of the most important new pop albums in the German music scene and one of the few albums that also caused a sensation internationally. "He has the potential to go around the world," the Spiegel magazine attested, and he did.
With his debut album Roosevelt also managed to break into the US market, as well as the UK, France, Holland and Italy - even Mexico. Festivals around the world compete for him: Primavera Sound, The Governors Ball Music Festival (New York), Sónar Festival, Montreux Jazz Festival, Sziget Festival, Lollapalooza Festival and many others. Radio stations at home and abroad still play "Fever" and "Moving On" up and down. His listeners drive him to almost 80 million streams at Spotify. Everyone wants him to remix their songs (Chvrches, Glass Animals, RHYE, Who Made Who, Blossoms and Sinkane) And what does he do? He records a cover version of "Teardrops" and becomes subsequently a honorary member of the Womack & Womack family.

Sarah Benabdallah and Alexis Lebon are a very 21st century musical coupling, absorbing their metropolitan surroundings while tapping into a rich cultural heritage, not unlike fellow countrymen PNL or the Dutch band Altin Gün. A Paris-based duo set for greatness they might be, but it’s fair to say Mauvais Oeil are operating under a misnomer: while their name means “evil eye” in French, you’ll only experience enlightenment when you lay eyes (and ears) upon them.
Mauvais Oeil are set to release their debut EP Nuits de velours, a magical melting pot of musical shibboleths and contemporary grooves. On opener “Mes nuits de velours”, we’re transported in the land of 1001 Arabian Nights, with the music every bit as smooth and alluring as the subject matter. “Afrita” is a trance-inflected musical acclamation evoking all the madness and gayety of a midsummer souk. Sung entirely in Arabic with delightful blasts of strings, it’s a North African-influenced banger with a delicate wistfulness.
“Asha” meanwhile is in a reference to Asha Vahishta, the middle-eastern concept of truth according to the ancient religion of Zoroastrianism. Sung again in Arabic, it features catchy Phrygian guitar manoeuvres played over ambient analogue keyboard strokes. The E.P. is completed by “Constantine”, a song of longing, dedicated to the home of Sarah’s forebears.
Having met in the arty northern faubourgs of Paris, Sarah and Alexis soon developed a musical telepathy and a shared sonic agenda, mining their own histories for the profound cultural roots that underscore Mauvais Oeil, while absorbing the ubiquitous sounds of the suburbs, where Turkish, Armenian and Ethiopian music ring out. The band’s moving and melancholic chansons are delivered with a delightful French pop sensibility, making Mauvais Oeil one of the most exciting and musically diverse prospects in 2019.

“It’s taken a long time for me to feel good about myself,” says Andreya Triana of the journey
to her third album. “As a musician, as a woman, it’s difficult getting to that space. It’s really
wonderful where you reach that time of having more good days than bad.”
That sense of celebration is what drives ‘Life In Colour’, Andreya’s most confident, instinctive
and heartfelt work to date; a record that celebrates love, freedom, independence and
womanhood.
“‘Life In Colour’ is about stepping into my womanhood and being like ‘OK, I know this space.
Let me try some s**t. I know it’s going to be hard but I know it’s going to be OK’. I just
wanted to put some good energy out there.”
The first taster of that sweet release was teased with lead single ‘Woman’ - a soulful pop
anthem of self-love, tracking Andreya’s life from awkward teen to mighty queen, from
memories of heartache and trauma to triumph.
“You know when you’re feeling so uncomfortable in yourself and you just want to be
swallowed up into a hole in the ground?,” Andreya recalls of her youth. “This is about moving
on from being a victim to a place of strength, to feeling like a superhero.
“Anyone who has gone through difficult times like I have, should know that it’s absolutely
possible to get to a good place. It doesn’t define who you are or your future. You have to
fight like hell every day to move forward but anything is possible. We’re all full of so much
goodness. Don’t lose sight of that.”
The lyric video is a tribute to Andreya’s mother, grandmother, the strong females of her life
and the many sacrifices that women make day-to-day, generation after generation.

The debut album from Brooklyn's The Depreciation Guild sees its first repress since
2009. The 10th anniversary blue vinyl repress is a limited edition RECORD STORE DAY
release out on April 13, 2019 available at participating record stores.
Mixing a collage of guitars, drums, fuzzy electronics and heartfelt lyrics, In Her Gentle
Jaws has always been a surprisingly seemless mix of laptop pop and shoegaze. The
fuzzed-out, reverb-drenched melodies draw influences from shoegaze guitar walls, dreampop highs, and the rigidity of electronic rhythms with the use of an 8-bit Nintendo soundcard. The modified entertainment system is used to compose a crushing backdrop of
rhythmic, synthetic elements.
The Depreciation Guild was founded by Kurt Feldman, who has been active in the
Brooklyn music scene since 2007. As drummer and member of The Pains of Being Pure at
Heart, Feldman often pulled double duty while keeping up with and touring in two bands
simultaneously. When the heavy tour schedule subsided, Feldman turned his focus to
production having a hand in the mixing and engineering on several high profile indie
releases (DIIV, Chairlift, No Joy and Kristin Kontrol).

15 tracks, produced by Switch, Hit-Boy, The Weeknd & others!

Texas returns after 8 years of abscence and offers us the rock of its beginnings, dominated by guitars with always the sensual voice of Sharleen on one of their favorite themes: romantic relationships.

Hailing from Manchester, U.K., The 1975 managed to combine the dark and youthful themes of sex, love, and fear with ethereal alt-rock music.

“This record is a response to how disposable culture has become and how it affects creativity,” Bear said in a press release. “While listening, you might pay attention or ignore—either way that's ok, this is music for a creative mind.”

Features include Abra, Wet. and Instupendo.

Arguably one of the most acclaimed and loved bands of the past 20 years, by both fans and their musical peers alike, The Beta Band formed in St. Andrews, Scotland, in 1996. Innovative and singular, their unique musical and aesthetic approach to everything they did set them far apart from their musical contemporaries.

Created with assistance from Beyoncé ­collaborator Boots, the music is spacious, paranoid and sultry; the lyrics are ­suggestive and knotted. The songs lack centers, or even hooks, and aren't easily assimilated, but unmistakable themes emerge: Through a feverish haze of sounds and sights, M3LL155X asks big questions about femininity, sex and power.

When Alex Stephens (A.K.A. Strawberry Guy) self-released his debut single last year, he was merely doing it out of a love for songwriting. What he wasn't expecting was a million Youtube streams and an avid fanbase. Now, the South-Wales born, Liverpool-based songwriter is ready to release a full EP of his compelling, lushly produced dream-pop.Born outside Cardiff, Strawberry Guy moved to Liverpool to study music and grow as a writer. 'I knew that it was a very artistic city with all it's creative history, it seemed like the perfect place to move to.' he says. Whether it's playing keyboards in The Orielles or just being part of the city's growing musical scene, Alex plays music for the love of music, something that heavily translates into his adept songwriting.

“After 7 years of touring & recording, I found myself becoming self conscious about my position in life as a “famous” person, or at least my version of whatever that is. My dreams had become my reality, yet I was somehow unable to accept this new environment. I couldn’t help but fall into what might be described as an identity crisis. During this time of personal turmoil, I turned to music as a form of therapy. I’d listen to the same ambient song over & over again, trying to insulate myself from reality. I fell in love with space again."

2023 pressing. Hailing from Manchester, U.K., The 1975 managed to combine the dark and youthful themes of sex, love, and fear with ethereal alt-rock music.

A download code is included. Trentemøller returns with his fifth studio album 'Obverse' in September 2019! Anders Trentemøller is a well-known multi-instrumentalist, but perhaps the one he’s most adept at is the studio itself. 'Obverse' is the result of him expanding that skill even further. 'Obverse' often feels like an instrumental album because it started life as one, the driving philosophy being “what if the pressure of having to perform these songs live is removed entirely?” Granting yourself the freedom to chase down every idea a studio offers comes with privileges. What happens when you reverse a synth part mid-verse? Why not send an entire track through a faulty distortion pedal? Inspiration reveals itself in a variety of forms and, before long, a simple chord progression contorts into something entirely new. It’s a work method that yielded great results for the legendary German Kosmiche/Motorik experimentalists of the 1970’s. Intentional or not, 'Obverse' embodies more than a little of that spirit without even a hint of pastiche.