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At the beginning of the 1960s, at the Berklee College of Music, Byard Lancaster met some feisty friends: Sonny Sharrock, Dave Burrell and Ted Daniel. It is easy to see why he rapidly became involved in free jazz. Once he was settled in New York, he appeared on Sunny Murray Quintet, recorded under the leadership of the drum crazy colleague of Albert Ayler.

In 1968, the saxophonist and flutist recorded his first album under his own name: It’s Not Up To Us. The following year he came to Paris in the wake of... Sunny Murray. He would come back to France in 1971 (again with Murray) and in 1973 (without Murray for a change). This is when he met Jef Gilson, the pianist and producer who encouraged him to record under his own name again.

On Palm Records (Gilson’s label), he would release four albums: Us, Mother Africa, Exactement and Funny Funky Rib Crib.

“Us”, the first of the four records was recorded on November 24th, 1973 with Sylvin Marc on electric bass (a Fender... Lancaster?) and the evergreen Steve McCall on drums.

On the album, the trio works from the John Coltrane model; free jazz shook up by the timely contributions of the bassist, followed by a mesmerizing atmospheric music. Then, Lancaster delivers a sinuous solo path, which is a reminder of his unique tone. On the album’s companion single, the trio launches into great black music of a different genre which would lead the clairvoyant François Tusques to claim that Byard Lancaster is an “authentic representative of soul/free jazz”, to sum up this is great Black music.

London-based keyboardist and composer Greg Foat is back with his new album, 'The Rituals of Infinity'. Greg's first memory with the piano goes all the way back to his Aunt's house at aged 3 - where he fell off the piano stool. Since then, his relationship with the piano has evolved into a fulfilling, and successful career. He began taking an interest in composing at the age of 11, and truly ignited his love for Jazz after attending a workshop with Jeff Clyne, Olaf Vas, Trevor Tomkins and Nick Weldon at the age of 15. He then studied jazz at Middlesex University, followed by 6 months in Sweden on an Erasmus grant which lead to his first professional studio session there at 21. Greg has worked as a professional musician ever since, and has moulded and wonderfully multifaceted career within the Jazz music genre. Greg is planning a debut performance of 'The Rituals of Infinity' at Worthy Earth Festival in late September, in Hampshire.

'The Rituals of Infinity' album is inspired by many of things. Some titles are named after some iconic science fiction books such as The Rituals Of Infinity, A Private Cosmos, The Dark Labyrinth and The World of the Red Sun. Minerva's Owl, on the other hand, is about the Ancient Greek Legend. "The owl of Minerva takes flight only at dusk." so wrote G. W. F. Hegel, the nineteenth century's major philosopher of history. By that he meant that any given phase of history can be understood only in retrospect — after it's over. A beautifully fitting closing of the album. The album features the legendary Art Themen on Soprano and Tenor Saxophones, Trevor Walker on Trumper and Flugel Horn in a fine supportive role harmonising with Katherine Farnden on Cor Anglais. Natcyet Wakili has such a fluid approach to the drums which really makes the album special, alongside Jasper Osbourne on Bass Guitar. Shawn Lee also stopped by the studio with his horror movie classic waterphone - adding some eery atmospheric finishing touches to the album.

Why you'll love it...
Phil Ranelin recently suffered a debilitating stroke. His family and friends have started a GoFundMe to support his recovery, which you can donate to here.

He's back, and he's here with a dazzling album that puts his talents right at the forefront. Phil Ranelin's Infinite Expressions is the first album he has released in 10 years. A trombonist and co-founder of Detroit's TRIBE Records, Ranelin is a cornerstone to the jazz community. Throughout his long career, he has worked with artists like Freddie Hubbard, Stevie Wonder, Ella Fitzgerald and more.

Phil Ranelin shared, "In the 1970's, I composed a album entitled 'The Time Is Now', so once again time is the theme, motivation & inspiration...

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He's back, and he's here with a dazzling album that puts his talents right at the forefront. Phil Ranelin's Infinite Expressions is the first album he has released in 10 years. A trombonist and co-founder of Detroit's TRIBE Records, Ranelin is a cornerstone to the jazz community. Throughout his long career, he has worked with artists like Freddie Hubbard, Stevie Wonder, Ella Fitzgerald and more.

Phil Ranelin shared, "In the 1970's, I composed a album entitled 'The Time Is Now', so once again time is the theme, motivation & inspiration..." data-full="

Phil Ranelin recently suffered a debilitating stroke. His family and friends have started a GoFundMe to support his recovery, which you can donate to here.

He's back, and he's here with a dazzling album that puts his talents right at the forefront. Phil Ranelin's Infinite Expressions is the first album he has released in 10 years. A trombonist and co-founder of Detroit's TRIBE Records, Ranelin is a cornerstone to the jazz community. Throughout his long career, he has worked with artists like Freddie Hubbard, Stevie Wonder, Ella Fitzgerald and more.

Phil Ranelin shared, "In the 1970's, I composed a album entitled 'The Time Is Now', so once again time is the theme, motivation & inspiration for a Phil Ranelin project All of the positive flow of energy and love that surrounded me, gave me the courage to precede with the idea of recording a album that would represent a 2020 version of myself; Infinite Expressions is in fact , a true labor of Love!"

" >

Scott Gilmore’s Volume 01, an Analog Synth Gem, Makes Its Vinyl Debut - Pressed at 45rpm for maximum fidelity.

Recorded on a vintage Tascam 388, the LP version of Gilmore’s alluring, easy-going instrumental electronic record arrives in the physical world via In Sheep’s Clothing Hi-Fi Records.

Los Angeles, CA — When the Los Angeles electronic musician and multi-instrumentalist Scott Gilmore recalls the creation of the songs on Volume 01, he describes specific moments of spontaneous inspiration. “I remember sitting at the tape deck, watching the leaves outside the window as they flittered in the sunlight—a moment of stillness that became intertwined with the melody I was recording,” Gilmore recalls, speaking of the track “Song For Cate.”

This sense of simplicity and presence is at the heart of Volume 01, which was recorded entirely on a Tascam 388 using a carefully curated selection of instruments.

Volume 01, an intimate, instinctual album that mixes lo-fi digital rhythms, strummed guitar, and melodic synth layers, is a collection of songs that captures Gilmore’s magnetic fluidity and the spontaneity of his process. Initially released digitally and as a limited edition cassette, Volume 01 is set to be issued on vinyl for the first time by In Sheep’s Clothing Hi-Fi.

The Tascam 388 is a classic mid-1980s analog machine that combines an 8-track reel-to-reel tape recorder with a built-in mixing console. Volume 01 exudes the kind of hazy, nostalgic warmth that only such recorders can provide. For the nine-song album, Gilmore harnessed analog synths including the Arp Odyssey, Yamaha Cs-01, Korg Dw-8000, Hohner Pianet T, Roland TR 606, and Roland SH 101, as well as bamboo alto saxophone, clarinet, electric guitar, and electric bass.

The album is awash in brief, propellant pieces. At just over four minutes, the relatively epic “Horizon Line” is driven by a three-note snare pattern, a two-note cymbal tap, with a humble bass-line serving as the rudder; Gilmore’s improvised keyboard runs move with an intuitive, conversational glee. The pensive "Shade" sounds like it could be a Penguin Cafe Orchestra demo. Closing track “D. Hareem” runs on a wobbly time signature but with an insistent, determined rhythm that belies genre descriptives. “I prefer to not know what I’m making as I compose,” Gilmore says. “It’s when I can’t clearly define what the music is that it’s then something that I want to put out into the world.”

In hindsight, Volume 01 was a portent. After its 2016 cassette release, Gilmore connected with International Feel, the Balearic imprint run by Marc Barrot, to release the sublime Subtle Vertigo. In 2019, Gilmore’s music caught the attention of Marc Hollander, the experimental composer and founding member of Aksak Maboul, which led to a signing with the Belgian label Crammed Discs. That deal enabled the creation of Gilmore’s solo album Two Roomed Motel and Doctor Fluorescent, a retro-futuristic, Vocoder-heavy 2020 collaboration with Eddie Ruscha V, a.k.a. Secret Circuit). Across these projects, Gilmore’s work has been mentioned in the same sentences as Stereolab, Arthur Russell, Woo, Air, R. Stevie Moore, and others, all of whom have combined synths and non-synths to memorable effect.

With the upcoming vinyl release, Volume 01 will set into wax an enduring set of works, offering listeners the chance to experience analog artistry in its most authentic, tangible form. In Sheep’s Clothing Records is honored to bring Gilmore’s work to vinyl.

A luminous soul with an indefatigable love for music, few artists have had careers as varied and successful as Izumi ‘Mimi’ Kobayashi. One of Japan’s leading jazz-funk pianists, she wrote and recorded cult albums with fusion legends at home and abroad. Obsessed with new electronic instruments, she penned some of the country’s most well-known TV themes and pioneered the use of drum machines in anime soundtracks.

A star in Japan, she moved to Europe to record global hits with Depeche Mode and Swing Out Sister, toured the world with the Reggae Philharmonic Orchestra and made beats with Attica Blues’ Tony Nwachukwu. Now based in London, Mimi currently fronts Tokyo Riddim Band - the intergenerational live Japanese Reggae outfit born from Time Capsule’s acclaimed 2023 compilation of the same name - playing live shows and releasing a trio of recordings made at Prince Fatty’s studio.

Choice Cuts 1978-1983 collects eight recordings from four of Mimi’s first five albums – Sea Flight (1978) recorded with her group Flying Mimi Band, and Coconuts High (1981), Nuts Nuts Nuts (1982) and Tropicana (1983) under her own name.

The compilation opens with a syncopated electro-funk cover of Sergio Mendes’ iconic ‘Mas Que Nada’ (Tropicana) and the crisp and stripped back techno-pop of ‘Coffee Rumba’ (Nuts Nuts Nuts) with a keyboard bass line that would have made Stevie Wonder weep.

Alongside the off-beat synth jam ‘Quiet Explosion’ (Nuts Nuts Nuts) and piano samba of ‘Espresso’ (Tropicana), there’s space for two low slung soul-jazz numbers, ‘Naze’ and ‘Angel Sky’, from Sea Flight (1978) that recall the collaborations between Herbie Hancock and Kimiko Kasai. But it is around the two tracks from Mimi’s 1981 album Coconuts High that this compilation revolves (and from whose cover shoot it borrows).

Released on legendary guitarist Takanaka’s Kitty Records label, Coconuts High was recorded in LA with a backing band of jazz fusion icons, including Alex Acuña, Abraham Laborial, Harvey Mason and the Tower of Power horns. A riot of playful Latin-tinged jazz, funk and fusion with the off-beat spirit of Kid Creole & and the Coconuts, the album became a cult hit, attracting huge sums on the resale market. Here it’s the sultry, Minnie Riperton-esque ‘Crazy Love’, with its addictive groove and bittersweet melodies that makes the cut, alongside the steel drum-infused carnivalesque bounce of ‘Palm St’.

Capturing a highly creative and prolific moment in Mimi’s career, Choice Cuts 1978-1983 will introduce the idiosyncratic energy and playful verve of this under-the-radar pioneer to a wider audience for the first time. Welcome to the world of Izumi ‘Mimi’ Kobayashi. Once you enter, you won’t want to leave.

Father and son, Leonid (piano) and Nick (saxophone) Vintskevich have had a long-standing creative relationship with Steve Kershaw (bass). Just after the turn of the millennium Steve’s critically acclaimed Stekpanna trio found themselves jamming with the Vintskeviches at a Jazz Festival in Finland, and the deep mutual admiration of that night grew into an ensemble that is now very comfortable improvising in front of a packed concert hall or in an intimate jazz club, savouring Russia’s finest vodka after the show. Side 11. A Whole Charlotta Love 2. Hero's Heroes 3. Rite of Stillness Side 21. I'll Show You a Beautiful Country 2. The Parting of Sweet Return 3. A Knight on the Tiles with a Maid in England 4. Tomorrow's Weather Today

What would Louis Armstrong sound like if he were a contemporary artist? Probably Jumaane Smith... acclaimed Trumpeter, Vocalist, and long-time bandmember/featured guest artist with Michael Bublé. Comprised of original works and new arrangements by Jumaane Smith, this deeply emotional album seamlessly traverses jazz, blues, and contemporary soul, with nostalgic echoes of classic albums from those genres. Smith has performed on 5 GRAMMY Award-winning records (selling more than 60 million copies), 2 Emmy Award-nominated TV performances, the GRAMMY Awards with Stevie Wonder, in Steven Spielberg's West Side Story (trumpet solo actor), at The White House, on the Today Show, Tonight Show, Oprah, Good Morning America, and American Idol. He has worked with musical legends such as Quincy Jones, Herbie Hancock, ArethaFranklin, Christian McBride, Kamasi Washington, Alicia Keys, Jon Batiste, and many more.

Very dope.

With this EP an attempt is made at documenting the vibrant action happening during the late 1970s and early 1980s in the Pioneer Valley area of Western Massachusetts, US. The story is richer than the snapshot we present here, and a more detailed account is to be found in the accompanying book that can be purchased separately.

The Five Colleges in Hampshire County congregated a vast student population that inevitably interacted with the towns in the area. Bars, music and record stores, live music and a lot of experimentation and free thinking. Hampshire College, especially, promoted new approaches to teaching, subjects that might be considered radical by some even today, although a more favourable context would now surely exist for openly debating such topics as American Indians, Kayak Design, Black Oral Tradition, Food Management, etc. And the music? The immediate "punk effect" motivated the creation of numerous bands, many short lived, others evolving into New Wave / Power Pop territory, eventually crossing into Post-Punk experimentation. What is captured in "Noho EP" is a more electronic disposition, favoured by the existence of EMS gear and other equipment at Hampshire College and University of Massachusetts. We chose to focus on a group of musicians who, for a time, played together in different combinations under the loose umbrella of the Tekno Tunes label and the structure around it.

These musicians come from very different backgrounds and the nucleus portrayed here consisted of Christopher Vine, Elliott Sharp, James Whittemore and Nicholas Brown.

Of the several line-up changes The Scientific Americans went through, it was actually only the duo of Chris Vine and Jim Whittemore who recorded "Among Bodge Watt". Never before released, it is a companion piece to their track "El Salvador" available on the 1981 Roir tape-album "Load & Go!". The Sci Ams were founders of the Tekno Tunes label and also created the Tekno Tours "concert promotion agency", under which name they exposed local audiences to bands such as The Stranglers, The Slits, Pylon, Pere Ubu, The Psychedelic Furs, The Bush Tetras, Steel Pulse, etc. Their own sound kept progressing but at its best there's a solid dub undercurrent, pretty obvious in "Among Bodge Watt".

Human Error was born out of a collective jam by Chris Vine, Elliott Sharp, Jim Whittemore and Nick Brown. Elliott Sharp had moved to Northampton in August of 1978 and naturally became involved in the local music scene, hooking up first with Whittemore at a hi-fi audio store where he worked at the time. Basement jams followed stimulating conversations, and other musicians joined the sessions. "Clandestinator" sounds gorgeously loose, an effortless groove coming from a quasi-dub set-up. Nothing here seems calculated, the music just flows, contagious and irregular as the handclaps in the mix.

The Higher Primates later evolved into a "proper" band but started as Nick Brown's solo project. The Primates only ever released a (now sought-after) 7" single in 1980 (on the Tekno Tunes label, precisely). Both tracks on "Noho EP" were recorded the following year and never released until now. "Auto Music in the Disco Dub Style" is self-explanatory, with a steady, mid-tempo Tr808 beat running through, supporting synth squelches, echoes and reverbs, a fat bassline, dissonant melodic lines and odd vocal snippets. Kind of a DJ tool when the concept was barely in place. The more uptempo "Teresa Variations" adds a Fender Jazz bass and Selmer sax to the electronics. It actually sounds more "Disco", even with the robotic, unintelligible vocals. On top of this, the vibe is sealed by the overall Radiophonic Workshop analogue strangeness applied to a dance beat.

Elemental Music, IN Collaboration With Producer ZEV Feldman, Launches A Never Before Released MAL Waldron & Steve Lacy Live Concert Recorded IN Antwerp IN 1995 Transferred from the original tapes (preserved by Patrick Wilen, son of legendary saxophonist Barney Wilen), MAL Waldron & Steve Lacy: THE Mighty Warriors is presented as a 180-gram vinyl limited edition 2-lp SET. Package includes reflections by producer Zev Feldman and acclaimed jazz writer Adam Shatz, as well as the testimonies of the concert’s bassist Reggie Workman, and drummer Andrew Cyrille. The extensive booklet also contains interviews with Jane Bunnett, David Virelles, David Liebman, Vijay Iyer, Evan Parker, and Mal Waldron’s widow, Hiromi Waldron, as well as never before seen photos from the actual concert taken by Hugo Peeters.

All Black Everything, the debut EP by UK-based, Parisian bassist, vocalist and composer Amy Gadiaga, is an expansive, boundary-pushing 5-track collection showcasing prodigious bass playing and a voice brimming with power and emotion. It's a profound exploration of self-acceptance that presents both a celebration and acknowledgement of Gadiaga's deep-seated darkness.
Inspired by the 2020 Black Lives Matter movement All Black Everything confronts racial identity complexities and the challenges of being a societal 'black sheep' and sees Gadiaga courageously transform her insecurities into a narrative of self-empowerment.
Born to parents of Senegalese, Gambian, and Malian descent, and hailing from the outskirts of Paris, the multitalented Gadiaga has been making waves in the UK music industry since she moved to London aged 18. With a fresh and unique style that bridges the old school jazz tradition of musicians such as Betty Carter and Wayne Shorter with the raw, rootsy modern sound of artists such as D'Angelo, Stevie Wonder and Twinkie Clark, Gadiaga's breadth of ambition and revitalising approach have brought early critical acclaim and ardent fans.
Signalling the arrival of a significant new voice on the London music scene, All Black Everything communicates the liberating essence of embracing individuality and presents a journey through Gadiaga's personal struggles, standing as a testament to art's transformative power and encouraging listeners to find strength in their uniqueness. "All Black Everything is very much an exploration and embracing of one of my archetypes in life which is the black bird/black sheep" she explains. "That feeling of not thinking you belong anywhere, of being misunderstood and really tending to your own. No helping hand. But it's ok sometimes because you also feel like nobody can compete with you, you're one of a kind."

"Casio City Rockers" is a deep dive into the infamous archives of Brother Lee, a.k.a. Lee Skelly. The 19 tracks here are compiled from 4-track cassette machines, Sony Walkmans, dictaphones and mobile phones, and were recorded in home studios, bedrooms, hotel rooms, holiday apartments... basically wherever, whenever and however Lee could record them before he had the chance to forget them.

His cassette archive alone runs to around 600, then there's the numerous carrier bags and boxes of mobile phones, USB keys and dictaphone tapes scattered around his remote French home, all full of either completed songs or scraps of melody or song sketches, and played on whatever instrument was nearest to hand. Not being particularly sentimental or nostalgic, it's rare for Lee to look over his shoulder for this kind of stuff.

So, imagine "Money Mark's Keyboard Repair" filtered though a Syd Barrett lens, or if Daniel Johnston had been fixated on Shuggie Otis and peak-70s Stevie Wonder instead of The Beatles. Everything here may be slightly broken but it works perfectly if you get what I mean. From the funky Clavinet workouts of "Baroque Neck Brace" and "Wah Wah" to the dead-on-'67 sitar-and-backwards-guitar psychedelia of "It's All Around" to the Afrobeat-inspired "Super Capri Beat" and the bonkers Casio-goes-Acid House title track, even the breezy lo-fi soul pop of "Turquoise" and "Bossa For Ingrid", this album is a wild ride. Don't miss it."

- Jenn Hepsworth, London, 2023.

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Lee Skelly: Hammond organ, Fender Rhodes, Minimoog, Wurlitzer piano, Casio Mt-65, Casio Sk-1, flute, sitar, tambura, tablas, electric sitar, Clavinet, Mellotron, guitar, bass, drums, melodica, percussion, vocals.

The album and single news follows closely on the heels of Daudi’s recent tracks “oMo” and “Fool Me As Many Times As You Like” which have received high praise from the likes of Gilles Peterson on Worldwide FM and BBC 6 Music as well as Lauren Laverne, and have been featured in several Spotify editorial playlists including The Most Beautiful Songs in the World, The Other list, The Listening Post, and Fresh Finds. Having released just two independent EPs – “A Brief Introduction to Failure” and “The Lingering Effects of Disconnection” – to date, Daudi has toured with GoGo Penguin, Keaton Henson, and Portico Quartet, whilst also being a participant of the Red Bull Music Academy in Montreal 2016. He also received a standing ovation at this years The Great Escape Festival, and plays as a member of Do Nothing’s live band, who he is currently on tour with. Through his unique brand of modern albeit reverent folk, Daudi continues to offer his listeners a space for understanding and introspection. Deft, melancholic picking reminiscent of Nick Drake is tempered by contemporary percussion and instrumentation. Matsiko’s vocals derive their strength from their seeming fragility. With every song, his confessional lyrics cut to the marrow.

Still shrink wrapped but opened.
Record is close to VG+.

Vinyl is close to NM.

On Fathom, we hear the sound of the world mirrored back to us. An improvisational collaboration from legendary British multi-instrumentalist John Butcher, Pat Thomas on piano, Dominic Lash on double bass, and Steve Noble on drums, the four artists play generously together. Fathom is an impressive work of avant-garde jazz that’s reminiscent of the non-musical world: squeaky wheels, growing tension, a babbling brook, all winding into lush harmonies. This marks Butcher’s debut for 577 Records.

Elton Dean - saxes
Steve Miller - piano
Pip Pyle - drums & percussion

Recorded in Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire, UK, December 1976. Private session. Previously unheard. Available in digital format and limited edition CD.
The amazing lost Dean, Miller, Pyle private tapes from 1976: featuring the very first recorded meeting of these three extraordinary pioneering talents of British Jazz/Rock, performing four magical co-composed pieces, none of which have ever been issued in any form.

This session was originally intended to be released on Mike King's highly regarded Reel Recordings label. Sadly, Mike passed away before the project was completed and consequently the session has instead sat on a shelf of the esteemed British jazz collector and historian Philippe Renaud for the past decade. Until NOW.

Album includes extensive notes by Philippe and renowned Canterbury music expert Aymeric Leroy.
Original mastering by Mike King. additional mastering by Matt Parker.

Very special thanks to: Marino Dean, Philippe Renaud, Aymeric Leroy, Ricardo Bergerone.

Produced by Matt Parker for British Progressive Jazz in association with Improjazz.

Dedicated to the memory of Mike King.

©British Progressive Jazz 2022

The long-awaited LP release of the third album by the Tokyo jazz scene's elite trio, "Banksia", a mysterious flower that pops its seeds when lit on fire. The Banksia Trio's third album is a studio recording of the culmination of their live tour in the valley of the pandemic. In addition to five original compositions by the members, songs by Masaaki Kikuchi, Nick Drake, and Paul Motian were recorded on analog master tapes. In addition to the richness of overtones from the analog recordings, the hybrid use of high-resolution digital recording technology has achieved an extremely natural and nuanced sound expression.

This is the one and only Rahsaan Roland Kirk caught Live in Paris in 1970 with one of his best lineups ever. A distinctive quintet featuring Ron Burton on piano, bassist Vernon Martin, drummer great Jerome Cooper, mostly known as member of the mythical Revolutionary Ensemble, and the colourful percussion work of Joe Habao Texidor. Rahsan displays a fine set list including original compositions like the anthemic "Voluntary Slavery" and a wide selection of standards, from Cole Porter to Stevie Wonder, as inspirational material for infectious, groovy improvisations in front of a very receptive Parisian audience, all this at the very dawn of the Seventies.

"Some albums act as tickets to travel through time and space, ones where you hear history and venture to worlds familiar, yet undeniably foreign and exciting. RBGxDD, the inaugural release for indie-label Uno Loop Records, is one of these albums. The LP is the beginning of a collaboration between two virtuosos you’ll want to keep an eye (and ear) on: producer Abderraouf B Grissa (Pink Siifu, Abstract Abder on Radio alHara) and drummer/producer Dan Drohan (Nick Hakim, Olden Yolk, Carrtoons, Andrew VanWyngarden of Mgmt).

Think CAN, Makaya McCraven, Sun Ra, or Madlib, and you’ll scratch the surface of what this LP has to offer, what it reminds you of, what it's inspired by. Grissa says of its creation, ""what began as a clear cut, beat-album featuring blistering acoustic drums evolved into a fluid, sonic journey that throws time- signature and structure to the wind."" RBGxDD is an album that expands the notion of how live instrumentation and sampling can continually innovate in unexpectedly catchy ways. The arrangements give space for both dancing and relaxing, with no shortage of finding the groove.

Joining them are artists who have perfected their craft upon arrival. Bobbie Johnston(Ear Yoga Ensemble,élan)delivers guitar riffs so smooth that they somehow blend into the music yet stand out in crispness and quality. Jarrett Gilgore (Heart of the Ghost; Jaimie Branch) takes a scorching approach to the saxophone that rejuvenates us, feeling as if we've been hit with a splash of cold water. Ahmad Kafari's (Sudan Archives, Pink Siifu, Jaw Gems, Chakram) piano playing is a gift, you hear expertise - years of influence by spiritual jazz and classical piano music emerge in a language first developed by Dorothy Ashby and honed by Dilla. Mastering was done by Kelly Hibbert (The Heliocentrics, Knxwledge, Flying Lotus, Karriem Riggins) who sends your ears to another sonic planet.

The LP is physically surrounded by something just as beautiful as the music it houses. We have artist Carol Summers and designer Daniel Rocha to thank for that. LP and artwork was licensed directly from Summers’ family. One of America's foremost printmakers with a career spanning over half a century, Summers has his works found in the Moma Lacma, NGA, and more. Rocha's LP designs are impeccably on cue with the music contained within, making the release look like it could’ve been released in 1973 or 2023. "

"Redefining Element 78" presents a new work by British pianist-composer Rebecca Nash - a distinct musical voice with a deep musical identity. The music emerged following Nash"s encounter with the writings of legendary New York alto saxophonist John O"Gallagher, who joins her on the album, alongside guitarist Jamie Leeming, trumpeter Nick Malcolm, bassist Paul Michael and drummer Matt Fisher. Electronics are provided by Nick Walters and Chris Mapp.

Incredible jazz / prog / folk score to groundbreaking tattoo film by maverick filmmaker. Unreleased until now, so don't go saying it's a reissue because it isn't, but I'm sure some people will because they always do.

John Samson (1946 - 2004) was a truly great documentary maker. He must be as I've been obsessed with his work for many years. Educated first at Glasgow School Of Art (circa 1963) and then finally in the art of film making at The National Film And Television School in Beaconsfield - he headed there in its opening year of 1971 having made a short film that got him a scholarship.

It was at the Nfts that Samson met Mike Wallington, who was to become his right hand man and eventual producer; together as a quite brilliant team they made a handful of inspiring, entertaining and hugely prescient films about important, overlooked, unseen and marginal fringes in society.

Tattoo (1975) Exploring the rather clandestine world of tattooing in the UK. Dressing For Pleasure (1977) Exploring the rather clandestine world of festish in the UK. Brittania (1979) A film about railway enthusiasts and a steam train restoration. Arrows (1979) The life of dart player Eric Bristow. Drag Ball (1981) An unreleased film about the annual Porchester Hall Drag Ball. The Skin Horse (1983) Bafta winning film about The Outsiders Club, a dating agency for disabled people.

The subject matter in all films was always unusual for the time, and Samson managed to navigate his way with compassion, interest and subtlety, immersing himself in the chosen scene and producing moving, fascinating and sometimes darkly amusing situations. His documentaries also do not rely on traditional voiceovers, with stories, facts and narrative threads being dictated by the subjects.

I've tried for a long time to find the music for a couple of his early films (there was actually an original 7” for Arrows) - so far this is the only unreleased soundtrack I have found. This one was written by Steve

Jolliffe, who met Samson at the Nfts. Joliffe was the resident composer and had a room at the college complex where he could work on scores for the fledgling film makers. Jolliffe was and still is a multi-instrumentalist and prolific composer who had met Edgar Froese at the Berlin Konservatorium in the late 1960s and played in an early incarnation of Tangerine Dream. He toured with blues rock outfit Steamhammer, before hanging out at the Nfts, making this recording (and many others) and eventually rejoining Tangerine Dream in the late 1970s. Jolliffe still writes, records and releases today and once i had made contact with him we traced the original Tattoo master tape to a box at his brother's house. Musically it's charming, slightly folky, a touch baroque, there's a whiff of prog too, and it perfectly suited this early documentary about the art and desire of tattoos. I only wish it was longer. But the film is only 16 minutes long. Seek it out if you can. Try and find all the Samson films, they really are a joy.

As well as featuring intimate footage of tattooed people, the film also includes a rare and very early interview with Alan Oversby (better known as Mr Sebastian), a seminal character in the development of tattoos and body modifications worldwide - it was he who eventually was to tattoo and pierce Genesis P-Orridge.

The images for this vinyl release were all found in Mike Wallington's Tattoo documentary research folder from 1974, and were photos sent in to Mike and John by people who wanted to feature in the film. Most answered an advert in Time Out, and others included people from my home town of Aldershot where tattooist Bill Skuse and his wife, Rusty (the most tattooed woman in Britain at the time, and featured in the film) were based. His parlour was situated at the back of the arcade where we all used to lose all our pocket money in the slot machines.

The final two LPs in the latest Ictus batch, “The Ictus Archives Vol. 1” and “The Ictus Archives Vol. 2”, both draw on the same period that the veteran saxophonist produced “Clangs” and “Trio Live”, both recorded in 1976 during of two weeks that he was touring Italy with Andrea Centazzo, released in 1976 and 1977 respectively, and reissued in 2021’s batch. Gathering four sides of material, issued as two individual LPs, we are offered an incredible insight into that moment’s striking collaborations with Centazzo and the bassist Kent Carter, forming in duo and trio configurations.

“The Ictus Archives Vol. 1” and “The Ictus Archives Vol. 2” encounter Lacy - one of the giants of American free jazz - already 2 decades into a career defined by brilliant collaborations with Cecil Taylor, Don Cherry, and Thelonious Monk, among others, as well as a sprawling body of visionary work as a leader. Like so much of his work leading into this period, it draws upon the saxophonist’s belief that an artist should play what you feel’, a position that Centazzo - roughly 15 years Lacy’s junior - recalls as having torn down the curtain that separated his technique from his creativity.

The first volume of Steve Lacy pieces from the Ictus Archives features five pieces: “Figment”, “Coastline”, “Swab”, “Hooky”, and “The Duck”, encountering the saxophonist playing solo live renditions of some of his classic pieces from the period (“Coastline” appeared on his seminal FMP LP “Stabs / Solo In Berlin”) and in two duos with Andrea Centazzo, one of which, “The Duck” was previously issued as a solo piece (also on “Stabs / Solo In Berlin”) and now emerges in this new form. The recordings featured across the album’s two sides were captured on February 18th 1976 in a concert in Udine Italy and have never before been issued in such a focus form. Across both LPs - “The Ictus Archives Vol. 1” and “The Ictus Archives Vol. 2” - the lyrically of Lacy’s playing sets them apart from the more brittle and textural temperance featured throughout much of the label’s output. While this is especially noteworthy within the three solo gestures encountered on the first volume and the three on the second - “Name”, “The Way", and “Bone”, recorded on December 5th, 1976, in Udine Italy - the two duos with Centazzo on the first, and the trio (“Feline”) on the second, similar stand distinct, with each player issuing rapid fire interventions within an airy sense of space.

Viewed collectively or as individual gestures, Steve Lacy’s “The Ictus Archives Vol. 1” and “The Ictus Archives Vol. 2” represents crucial artefacts of the seminal saxophonist at the height of his career, never before encountered in these full concert formations, and thus pushing the historical importance of the Ictus reissue series to the next level.

Cover pictures of both volumes by Roberto Masotti / courtesy of Lelli e Masotti archive.

Simultaneous double release of the percussionist / composer Steve Shehan's legendary albums!! The world's first LP reissue of his 1990 CD album "Arrows" from First on Vinyl, and his 1995 CD album "Indigo Dreams" from Silent River Runs Deep.

Simultaneous double release of the percussionist / composer Steve Shehan's legendary albums!! The world's first LP reissue of his 1990 CD album "Arrows" from First on Vinyl, and his 1995 CD album "Indigo Dreams" from Silent River Runs Deep.

“Why would I sing in French? I have Breton culture, I speak Breton, I live in Brittany, and the Breton language is the language of this country...” So explained Kristen Noguès, of whom this is the first of the (rare) albums that she recorded Marc’h Gouez, is a fabulous voyage in space on each listening.

Noguès learned the Breton language as a child, at the same time as the Celtic harp, – taking lessons with Denise Mégevand, who would go on to teach others, notably Alan Stivell. At the beginning of the 1970s, she discovered the Breton song tradition (soniou and gwerziou) through Yann Poëns and became involved in Névénoé, a cooperative of traditional expression founded by Gérard Delahaye and Patrick Ewen. It was under this label that her first album Marc’h Gouez, was released in 1976.

With a dozen friends playing guitar, piano, violins, flutes..., Noguès composed not Breton music, but music from Brittany: a type of shared folklore in which imagination is married to the reality of the moment, that of social demands and companionship. At the very beginning of the record, we can hear her drawing up a chair, before the plucked notes of the harp become a cascade: “Enez Rouz”, is an invitation to listen up close.

We are reminded here of the Meredith Monk of “Greensleeves”, there of the early albums of Brigitte Fontaine / Areski, elsewhere of Emmanuelle Parrenin, Pascal Comelade... Noguès rhyming pattern is ever changing: airy (“Hunvre”), cosmopolitain (“Pinvidik Eo Va C'hemener”), enigmatic (“Ar Bugel Koar”), profound (“Ar Gemenerez”) or enchanting (“Hirness An Devezhiou”). And then there is the track from which the album takes its’ name: Marc’h Gouez which, between nursery rhyme and chamber music, weaves a fabulous web in which the auditor is obliged to be caught. “Brittany equals poetry”: so said André... Breton; and Kristen Noguès proves it to be true.'

Carefully remastered from the master tapes by Gilles Laujol. Graphic design by Stefan Thanneur. 8 page booklet. Heavyweight 180 gr. LP. 425 gsm brownboard outer sleeve. Licensed from Katell Branellec.

Deep, contemplating jazz BY this versatile group of jazz musicians, young and old, including Ben Lamar Gay (International Anthem) , Ari Brown (aacm) amongst others!

The next chapter of the Natural Information Society is here. Since Time Is Gravity, credited to Natural Information Society Community Ensemble with Ari Brown, presents a newly expanded manifestation of acclaimed composer & multi-instrumentalist Joshua Abrams nearly 15 year, 7 albums &-counting flagship ensemble. Joining the core NIS of Abrams (guimbri & bass), Lisa Alvarado (harmonium) Mikel Patrick Avery (drums) & Jason Stein (bass clarinet) are Hamid Drake (percussion), Josh Berman & Ben Lamar Gay (cornets), Nick Mazzarella & Mai Sugimoto (alto saxophones & flute), Kara Bershad (harp) & Chicago living legend of the tenor saxophone Ari Brown. Recorded live to tape at Electrical Audio & The Graham Foundation, cover painting Vibratory Cartography: Nepantla, by Lisa Alvarado.

Since first developing Natural Information Society in 2010, Joshua Abrams has been gradually expanding the group’s conceptual underpinnings, its musical references & the sheer number of the group’s members. Its music is, in a sense, an expansive form of minimalism, based in repeated & overlaid rhythmic patterns, ostinatos & modality. Its roots, its scale & its meaning become clearer in time. If time is gravity, it also allows us to carry more. Having begun as fundamentally a rhythm section with Abrams’ guimbri at its core, the version here can stretch to a tentet, including six horns.

George Lewis has described music as “a space for reflection on the human condition”. This suggests that, rather than a “distraction”, at least some music might serve as a distraction from distraction. It’s a focus, a clarity, a awareness, an external invitation to interiority, as if music itself is a model for form & contemplation, an organism contemplating for us or as us. If that is a possibility, & I am sure I have heard such musics, than this music is among them. How many of our rhythms, melodies & harmonies might such music carry, translate & transform in the particulate ecstasy of our own murmuration?

Super groups are always risky—the potential for disappointing fans or warring musical styles is high—but when longtime friends and masterful improvisers come together, they usually work. Evident in their first collaboration, simply titled Volume 1, John Dikeman (saxophone) joined musicians PAT Thomas (piano), John Edwards (bass) and Steve Noble (drums) for a dynamic collaboration. Volume 2 echoes the wide dynamic range of their first project, combining fast-paced, complex jazz in-the-moment arrangements with elegant solo gems from each musician, highlighting their best work, together and independently.

Steve Gunn and David Moore's Let the Moon be a Planet is a volume of improvisatory exchanges between classical guitar and piano, and a meeting place where two artists become acquainted through instrumental dialogue without a single expectation distracting them from the joy and open field possibility of collaboration.A project enveloped by an aura of reciprocity, Let the Moon Be a Planet unfolded from an invitation to connect between two New York-based musicians who admired each other's work but had never intersected: guitarist and songwriter Steve Gunn, whose solo, duo, and ensemble recordings represent milestones of contemporary guitar-guided material, and pianist and composer David Moore, acclaimed for his minimalist ensemble music as the leader of Bing & Ruth.The exchange began remotely as Gunn and Moore responded to one another's solo improvisations, embarking on a synergistic progression of deep listening and connection through musical conversation. "We were both fans of each other's music and this was a chance to try a different process which was much more open," says Moore. "It felt like something I needed personally as an artist, to not be so controlling over the final output, and to truly collaborate with somebody else."Similarly for Gunn, who was exploring new pastures and passages in classical guitar when the dialogue began, the project was an invitation for pure conversation and exchange, creating space for him to revisit foundational forms with his playing: "I was trying to break out of what I was doing, to have something that just pulled away all the elements of usual structured things."Let the Moon Be a Planet intertwines the trajectories of two musicians acclaimed for pushing the boundaries of their instruments, unified by a shift away from what they recall as more "detail-oriented" approaches to composition. Fueled by the magnetism of their call and response exercise, Gunn and Moore set out on a nomadic songwriting venture without an intended destination."We didn't know it was going...

Trumpeter, composer, bandleader & producer, Nick Walters delivers his 2nd studio album within the last year for his D.O.T. Records imprint. Padmāsana is an exquisite mix of jazz fusion and traditional Indian sounds, inspired and constructed from experiences and samples he encountered whilst travelling around the Indian subcontinent. The album was pieced together at his studio in East London, featuring live contributions from Tenderlonious on flute, Kieran McLeod on trombone, Tim Carnegie on drums, and Walters himself on trumpet and synthesisers. Padmāsana was mixed by Sam Interface at More Time Studios.

A rather obscure and fantastical 45 byAmerican jazz clarinetistand tenor saxophonistWendell Harrison. A moody dusty fingers style downtempo cover of Stevie Wonder's sleeper Rocket Love from the LP 'Hotter Than July'. This one seems to have passed by many collectors, including myself, I was only turned onto it recently despite loving Wendell's catalog. credits releases January 27, 2023

"Redefining Element 78" presents a new work by British pianist-composer Rebecca Nash - a distinct musical voice with a deep musical identity. The music emerged following Nash"s encounter with the writings of legendary New York alto saxophonist John O"Gallagher, who joins her on the album, alongside guitarist Jamie Leeming, trumpeter Nick Malcolm, bassist Paul Michael and drummer Matt Fisher. Electronics are provided by Nick Walters and Chris Mapp.

Super groups are not a riskless endeavor—but when they’re made up of longtime friends and master improvisers, they tend to work. On their collaboration, simply titled Volume 1, American saxophonist John Dikeman is accompanied by a group of UK-based musicians: pianist Pat Thomas, bassist John Edwards, and drummer Steve Noble. The album’s two tracks are dynamic and surprising, opening with a bombastic 10-minute piece, followed by a minimalist, quieting 30-minute performance.

* First-time on vinyl * 180g HQ vinyl with faithfully restored original artwork * Heavy tip-on gatefold sleeve * Remastered & cut from the 1st generation Nippon Columbia master tape * Lacquer cut by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio

This historic record happened when sax player Steve Marcus, upon visiting Japan alongside Herbie Mann and Woody Herman, accepted an invitation from Inagaki Jiro. It’s an important historical marker not only for Japanese jazz but also for recording in general, since it was the first work recorded on PCM digital audio. Joining in on this monumental session were Inagaki and his jazz rock unit, Soul Media – with a lineup including Masahiko Sato (p, elec. p), Ryo Kawasaki (g), Yasuo Arakawa (b), Hajime Ishimatsu (ds), and Seiji Tanaka (ds). ‘Fairy Rings’, an original track by Sato, boasts a tight interpretation that makes it a highlight of the album. Included as a bonus track is a sprawling, 13-minute long alternate take jazz rock / free jazz rendition of ‘Something’, which was discovered at the time of the 2013 CD reissue.

Genki Desu Ka (How Have You Been)

Lily’s early life runs parallel to an untold story of post-war Japan, that of the marginalised hafu - children of half Japanese / half foreign parents. Likely to be a target, a vessel for the bitterness, from the humiliation of the American Occupation, to the buried guilt of Japan’s own atrocities, enacted on their Asian neighbours. Her troubled formative years - an absent father, and losing her mother in her teens - possibly contributed to the development of the bluesy edge of her vocal style, or maybe it was the smoke from the jazz bar her mother ran.

As with many outsiders of the 60s and early 70s, she turned up in Tokyo’s Shinjuku, a famed spot for many a writer, actor, artist and musician. It was here her songs first aired, and she was swiftly booked to record her music.

With a groove set in stone with her Bye-Bye Session Band - later including Ryuichi Sakamoto and jazz keyboardist Hiroshi Sato - this selection covers her 70s period, with strong seams of soul, funk, touches of folk- and space-rock, and her signature (in Japan) heartbreaking ballads.

Vibrations from the other side of the globe, in the same period as classic Curtis Mayfield, Stevie Wonder, Cymande, Sly & The Family Stone, and the rest, all with Lily's voice make this music utterly unique.

Compiled by Howard Williams, whose Japanese music show Japan Blues has been a mainstay on NTS Radio since 2014. He has released several retrospectives of Japanese music for various record labels, covering traditional folk (Nippon Folk, Japan Blues for The Trilogy Tapes); kayoukyoku & Nihon Indigo (also Ttt); 70s female gangster soundtracks (Killing Melody, Ethbo); 50s rockabilly (Nippon Rock’n’Roll, Big Beat); surf guitar and funk rock (Nippon Guitars, Big Beat); soul, funk and disco (Lovin’ Mighty Fire, Bgp); and the jazz singer Maki Asakawa for Honest Jons, after co-compiling their Moondog retrospective, Viking of Sixth Avenue.

With liner notes written by Lily’s original producer, Yukiji Teramoto translated by Alan Cummings, and the photography of Jin Tamura

A native of Los Angeles, Henry Franklin came of age while the city was producing a crop of exciting jazz talent. Frankin"s lasting impact on jazz can be evidenced by the long list of legends who sought him out for tours and recording sessions, Stevie Wonder, Bobby Humphrey, Freddy Hubbard, & Pharaoh Sanders to name a few. Franklin"s solo output is best remembered for his two solo outings with the Black Jazz label- "The Skipper" & "The Skipper At Home". Together, they form one of the most compelling diptychs in the entire post-bop canon. Recognised by his peers and contemporaries, Franklin"s entry for Jazz Is Dead gives the living legend his flowers and recognises the contributions The Skipper has made as one of jazz"s most influential heartbeats.

Sunda Arc are brothers Nick Smart and Jordan Smart, best known as two-thirds of jazz-influenced minimalists Mammal Hands, and on the 18thNovember, they are set to release their sophomore album 'Night Lands' via Gondwana Records, home to such artists as GoGo Penguin, Portico Quartet, Hania Rani and Forgiveness.

Releasing their debut EP 'Flicker' in 2018, Sunda Arc have performed live at AB Brussels, Blue Dot Festival, The Roundhouse, Jazz Café, Reworks Festival, the Royal Albert Hall and Albert Hall, Manchester with GoGo Penguin. Their debut album 'Tides', released in 2020, received high praise from numerous tastemaker media including DJ magazine who described their music as "sounding like John Hopkins' long-lost sibling".

Sunda Arc channels Nick and Jordan's love of electronic and dance music, without losing any of their deep musicality. Drawing on techno, electronica, neo-classical and post-rock influences, Sunda Arc compose and perform using both electronic and acoustic instruments, including analogue synthesisers, home-made software patches, piano, saxophones and bass clarinet – all finessed and channelled through their own unique creative strategies. Integrating electronic elements and experimentation with the expressiveness and energy of acoustic instruments and live performance, Sunda Arc's music is expansive and compelling. "We wanted 'Night Lands' to be an exciting listen, deliberately keeping some elements under control and having other elements of the tracks feeling like they were on the edge of tipping over into being pretty chaotic. There was also the idea of generally keeping the drums and bass pretty heavy sounding when they kick in, imaging how they would sound over a big system and then holding back and focusing on melody and texture when they weren't needed."

From the warm, melodic textures of 'Distant Siren' and 'Beacons' to the ethereal rumblings of 'Endless Fields' and 'Night Lands', Sunda Arc immerse and engulf the listener, expanding simple melodies into bold rhythmic patterns, allowing the acoustic sounds to submerge with the electronic for maximum emotional and dramatic effect. A common theme for 'Night Lands', the duo's enthusiasm to incorporate digital and analogue sounds seamlessly and blur the line between the two, results in a sound world that has both the warmth of analogue sounds and the cold, crispness of digital. "We wanted to manipulate acoustic instruments to make them sound more like samples or older recordings at points, like with the Turkish Ney flute on 'Neon Forest' that we pitch shifted and saturated to sound more like we'd sampled an old 70s recording."

Elsewhere, 'Static Waves' and 'Forgotten Dream' use familiar and foreign sounds with an emphasis on tone and atmosphere to create a soundscape that feels like home and alien at the same time. ""We were trying to make sure the ambient moments felt really alive on this record, like a living, breathing sound world, trying to avoid things sounding too placid. We wanted them to feel just as engaging as the tracks with heavy beats so were always looking at ways to inject as much life and character into them as we could, often recording things to tape and using real tape delays to add a bit of character and fuzzy warmth to things and combining that with more cold, clinical elements."

At times, Sunda Arc create a harsh, brutal world allowing the sound to manipulate the listener's emotional response to each track. "We were talking about dystopian themes a fair bit when we were writing the tunes and I think being in London during the lockdown definitely had an impact on our mindset at the time. The two radio samples on 'Neon Forest' and 'Static Waves' are both just random stations we found on fm radio and recorded some short sections but I both were talking about Covid related stuff. We definitely didn't feel like making a celebratory or joyful record at that point, it was much more of an introspective and moody set of tracks we were focusing on and I guess the feeling of missing being able to go out or see friends and family played a part in this."

Tribute album by allies who continue their musical journey with the "spirit OF Chick Corea". Produced by Steve Gadd and an international marimba player Mika Stoltzman. The masterpiece of the soul spun by musicians associated with Chick Corea is now available in analog format!

Xaybu: The Unseen is the sophomore release from Sélébéyone, the international avant-rap collective led by saxophonist and composer Steve Lehman, who has been hailed by The New York Times for his "sure-footed futurism" in the realms of modern jazz and contemporary classical music. Comprised of MCs HPrizm and Gaston Bandimic, saxophonists Lehman and Maciek Lasserre, and drummer Damion Reid, their eponymous 2016 debut was hailed as a game-changing synthesis of underground hip-hop, modern jazz and live electronic music that was described by Pitchfork as "legitimately new" and a "revelation." On Xaybu, Sélébéyone - which means "intersection" in Wolof - continues to build on it's groundbreaking work with shifting rhythms and state-of-the art sound design, now with a newfound sense of effortless fluidity. The word "xaybu" in Wolof refers to the concept in Islamic mysticism of al-Ghaib - that which is unknowable and unseeable. HPrizm (a.k.a. High Priest, legend of New York's underground hip-hop

Bassist and composer Milo Fitzpatrick (Portico Quartet) launches new collaborative project with saxophonist Jordan Smart (Mammal Hands)

Vega Trails is a new project from double-bassist and composer Milo Fitzpatrick, a founder member of Portico Quartet, who has also performed with the likes of Nick Mulvey and Jono McCleary and features saxophonist Jordan Smart (Mammal Hands, Sunda Arc) in a richly powerful duo bringing together two powerfully charismatic musicians. The project which takes its name from Carl Sagan's science fiction novel 'Contact' (a book about signals of new life detected from the Vega system) andwas born out of a desire to bring the elements of bass and melody to the foreground in their rawest form and Fitzpatrick explains that he deliberatelychose the stripped back approach.

The Badge Époque Ensemble return to Telephone Explosion Records with a new LP, Clouds of Joy. Featuring three vocal-led compositions, three instrumentals and three choral arrangements, this new album presents the Ensemble’s most ambitious, mature and engaging material to date. Clouds represents a shift from the group’s previous sonic excursions into the worlds of vintage soundtrack grooves and early electric jazz towards a more era-ambiguous, complex and all-encompassing approach to arrangement & production.

Undergoing a major shift of consciousness upon learning that he was expecting twins, BÉE leader Maximilian ‘Twig’ Turnbull found the spark to initiate the album within his reflections upon the nature of human joy. This shift in mindset also helped shape the record from an operational standpoint: Turnbull stepped away from his fixture on keys, leaving all of the musical performance on this record to his cast of collaborators. With Max assuming a more “directorial” approach to production and arrangement à la Barry White, David Axelrod, or Fagen & Becker, this album finds the Badge Époque Ensemble in its most collaborative mode to date. Vocalists Dorothea Paas, James Bailey and guitarist Chris Bezant all have co-writing credits here with Bezant contributing significantly to three compositions, including the album’s title track. The album was mixed collaboratively as well, as another joint effort between Turnbull, Steve Chahley and Tony Price, a trio who have teamed up behind the mixing desk for all previous BÉE albums, as well as U.S. Girls’ Heavy Light LP.

For the most part, the Ensemble on this record is made up of names familiar to anyone following the Badge cosmology: drummer Jay Anderson, bassist Gio Rosati, flautist Alia O’Brien, saxophonist Karen Ng, percussionist Ed Squires and guitarist Chris Bezant, with the new addition of young jazz pianist Edwin De Goeij, a perfect surrogate for Turnbull’s ideas on keys. (This in-demand collection of musicians represent a scattering of key cogs from a clutch of other premium Canadian exports; The Weather Station, Andy Shauf, U.S. Girls & Marker Starling). Clouds’ emphasis on the sound of the human voice finds its perfect outlet in vocal arrangements by labelmate Dorothea Paas and a return from lead vocalist James Baley. Their contributions find compliment by a choir composed of session vocalists, (including singers from Bernice and Bonjay) who come together to provide a series of show-stopping harmonic acrobatics.

Familiar Badge motifs are present through this album’s nine tracks: extended sections of dusty drum & conga breaks, swirling saxophone and flute flourishes, fleet-fingered guitar excursions, hazy Rhodes chords and lashing Clavinet stabs, but where Clouds excels is in its ability to weave tremendous vocal performances and choral arrangements into its dense tapestry of sound. The lilting melodies and multidimensional harmonies on tracks “Conspiring With Nature” and “All Same 2 Each, Each Same 2 All” bear the hallmarks of late sixties baroque AM-radio pop, while James Baley’s ecstatic, Stevie-esque lead vocal performance on “Zodiac” could light up the midnight sky, turning a nearly eight minute jazz-funk instrumental odyssey into a sure-shot dancefloor hit. Lyrically, Turnbull’s interest in an aphoristic spiritual mysticism condenses reflections on the complexity of human emotion into bold, succinct phrases, a quality most clearly communicated on the album’s three choral pieces, “The Greatest Joy”, “Let Breath Be The Sum”, and “Joy Flows” (upon first hearing these works Turnbull’s partner Meg Remy remarked that they sounded like “radio hits on the planet Dune”).

Clouds of Joy comes serendipitously as catalog number Ter0100 - the hundredth release for Telephone Explosion, the rapidly burgeoning Toronto label. It is the group’s third proper full length of five total releases for the imprint in only 4 years. It represents the Ensemble’s most fully realized presentation of a founding vision to create music as human, organic and alive as it is synthesized, produced and designed; music that transcends the notion of linear time, pulling in influences and ideas from the past and taking them far into the future.

merch community Spiritual Progressions by Nat Birchall Unity Ensemble

Share / Embed Wishlist supported by Stephen Shade thumbnail Stephen Shade Nat's music always oozes feeling, but with this band it's gone up a notch, if that's possible. Tristan thumbnail Franklin Lewis thumbnail stevethehat thumbnail spiritnitro thumbnail Sonar loves Vinyl thumbnail mrjohn23 thumbnail maarten okkersen thumbnail Michael Schumann thumbnail Withnail thumbnail Peter Tush thumbnail vincerocker thumbnail kroket58 thumbnail nick0137 thumbnail Rich Moth thumbnail DrBob Jones thumbnail twelvestones thumbnail mikeyrhymes thumbnail Neil Hobkirk thumbnail Simon Stacey thumbnail imagitam thumbnail Vikrant Kumar Thomas Junk thumbnail F Guimaraes thumbnail notesmatter thumbnail cmac2 thumbnail Anders Bengtsson thumbnail sisterraysaid thumbnail I S thumbnail Christian Stachel thumbnail andyo57 thumbnail Tee Harris thumbnail roan thumbnail ukvibe thumbnail francka thumbnail drcharvey thumbnail marcusooo thumbnail Tenroh thumbnail John Angus thumbnail ibr thumbnail bryndaff thumbnail Gentlearwig thumbnail Simon Rinaldi thumbnail itesitesites thumbnail David Willemsen thumbnail Karl thumbnail bornunderabadsign thumbnail j_Laav thumbnail stewart kendrick thumbnail aguycalledsimon thumbnail Jason Boucher thumbnail jazzy111s thumbnail James Agar thumbnail Daniel Karrer thumbnail felegy98 thumbnail Adrian Jennings thumbnail more... Unity 00:00 / 08:47 12" black vinyl LP Record/Vinyl + Digital Album package image package image 12" black vinyl LP

Includes digital pre-order of Spiritual Progressions. You get 1 track now (streaming via the free Bandcamp app and also available as a high-quality download in MP3, Flac and more), plus the complete album the moment it’s released. shipping out on or around August 26, 2022 edition of 250 45 remaining Pre-order Record/Vinyl £20 GBP or more Send as Gift Digital Album Streaming + Download Pre-order of Spiritual Progressions. You get 1 track now (streaming via the free Bandcamp app and also available as a high-quality download in MP3, Flac and more), plus the complete album the moment it’s released. releases August 26, 2022 Pre-order Digital Album £6 GBP or more Send as Gift Full Digital Discography 16 releases Get all 16 nat birchall releases available on Bandcamp and save 30%.

Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Spiritual Progressions, Afro Trane, Ancient Africa, Exaltation - Live In Athens Vol. 1, Upright Living - Nat Birchall meets Al Breadwinner, Mysticism Of Sound, Tradition Disc In Dub - Nat Birchall Meets Al Breadwinner, Live In Larissa double album, and 8 more. Buy Digital Discography £69.13 GBP or more (30% Off) Send as Gift 1. Unity 08:47 2. Lokumbe 3. Nile Valley 4. Sun In the East about Following on from his recent string of exceptional all-solo albums, Mysticism of Sound, Ancient Africa and Afro Trane, Nat Birchall releases his first new studio recording, Spiritual Progressions, with his current working group, Unity Ensemble. This group consists of long time musical partner Adam Fairhall on piano, plus the bassist in Nat’s group for several years and albums, Michael Bardon, and a welcome return on drums by Paul Hession who recorded on the legendary Live In Larissa double album. Rounding out the five-piece ensemble is percussionist Lascelle Gordon, a mainstay of the London music scene for many years. Nat says he chose the name for the group because “This particular group of musicians has a very unified sound, each player has a very individual sound and concept but they all come together in this group and blend incredibly well. Making music with this band is pure joy.” The album features four tracks, all composed by Nat, which beautifully illustrate Nat’s comments. The first track, Unity, speaks for itself and the cohesion of the group sound, each instrument adding to the overall vibe with no hint of grandstanding or musical one-upmanship. Lokumbe is named for the legendary trumpeter and composer/bandleader, Hannibal Lokumbe, formerly known as Marvin Peterson, who is one of Nat’s musical heroes, keeping the flame of soulful, spiritual and far-reaching music alive for many decades and still going strong. Nile Valley is so titled because, as Nat explains “This song made me think of an ancient Egyptian Royal barge moving along the river Nile, in a slow and stately fashion.” The unhurried pace of the song and genuinely colourful sounds from all the instruments really bring this image to life in the mind of the listener.

The final track, Sun in the East, is about “new beginnings, figuratively speaking, like the sunrise in the East every morning, each day bringing a fresh opportunity to renew our resolve to progress in different ways, or even to start again from scratch. It’s never too late to make a change or to begin a journey.”

The album was recorded live in the studio in Manchester, then Nat overdubbed some percussion and other instruments, mbira, balaphon, wood flutes etc, to add some extra textures to the musical canvas. As Nat says “Music and painting have many things in common, and I tend to think in terms of musical colours and textures when composing or arranging songs. As with a painting, balance is very important when making music, and this group is the most beautifully balanced group I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with.”

Nat Birchall Unity Ensemble – Spiritual Progressions (Ancient Archive of Sound Aaos 221) 140g black vinyl LP pressed in the UK at Vinyl Factory

Evan Cartwright: drums, vibraphone and guitar / Josh Cole: bass / Nick Fraser Fraser : drums / Tania Gill: piano / Brodie West: alto saxophone. Recorded by Jeremy Darby and Julian Decorte at Canterbury Music Company on February 29, March 1 and March 2, 2020. Mixed by Matt Smith. Mastered by Jeff Mcmurrich. Produced by the Brodie West Quintet. Co-Produced by Matt Smith.

Moves is their sixth release, and somewhat of a milestone. In addition to it being the octet's most psychedelic and arrestingly soulful release thus far, it's also their longest—their first, in fact, to cross into bonafide full-length territory. They're marking the occasion by joining the roster of Toronto favourite Telephone Explosion Records.

Touted as “innately personal” by DownBeat Magazine, Brodie West's unique vision has been nourished by a bafflingly diverse array of sources. Meeting the legendary Dutch drummer Han Bennink in 2000 at age 24 not only sparked an ongoing creative partnership (including two records), but also led him in a number of other fruitful directions. Bennink was the connection to exploratory punks The Ex, who brought West aboard for their collaboration with Ethiopian saxophonist Getatchew Mekurya, which produced recordings and tours worldwide.

Where the Brodie West Quintet (Astral Spirits, Ansible Editions) trades in clever jazz asymmetry and his duo Ways is a stark and focussed exploration of rhythm, Eucalyptus is where this eclecticism is most audible. The band simmers with polyrhythmic percussion, laid-back jazz sweetness, various strains of psychedelic wonk, and subtle tropical aromas from dub on “Rose Manor,” named after the retirement home of his musical grandmother Lorna (ever a source of inspiration for West) to Bossa Nova, as heard on “It's In A Move.” Its streaks of free-form bedlam and pure sonic texture keep listeners poised for perplexity and cheerful volatility.

Moves manages to approximate the playful, intoxicating warmth the band conjures in their beloved local live appearances. Eucalyptus has made a tradition out of mounting month-long residencies at Hirut, a cozy east-end eatery that serves delicious Ethiopian cuisine. Hirut even gets a nod in the credits. Perhaps it's because this record's subtle whimsy and inviting disarray draws so much from the spirit of those evenings.

A large part of this odd concoction's success comes down to West's co-conspirators, a veritable who's who of Toronto's underground music community. Trumpet player Nicole Rampersaud, who has since relocated to Fredericton, New Brunswick, has sculpted her unique tone as composer-in-residence at Halifax's Everyseeker Festival and in collaborations with the likes of Rakalam Bob Moses, Anthony Braxton, Joe Morris and Telephone Explosion's own Joseph Shabason. Ryan Driver (clavinet) has cut a series of gorgeous song records for Tin Angel Records, and collaborated with Eric Chenaux (Constellation) in various projects, while leading a number of his own imaginative outfits. Michael Smith (bass) plays with Toronto psychonauts the Cosmic Range and has toured and recorded with Mv+ee, Sandro Perri plus countless others. Fellow Perri collaborator, percussionist Blake Howard brings the palpable joy of his playing to collaborations with Marker Starling, Little Annie, and the surrealist mischief of GUH. 2021 saw Nick Fraser (drums) leading a disc on Hat-Hut's Ezzthetics imprint. It follows a string of other celebrated recordings with international out-jazz heavyweights like Tony Malaby and Kris Davis for Clean Feed, Astral Spirits and more. In addition to pursuing his delicate solo song work, drummer Evan Cartwright plays in both of West's other projects, and has performed and recorded with Tasseomancy, The Weather Station, US Girls, Badge Époque and Andy Shauf.

Another exciting development unveiled on Moves is the presence of guitarist Kurt Newman, who replaces longtime member Alex Lukashevsky. Newman's whirling treatments and colorful array of tones figure prominently into the ensemble's new and disorienting sound. Newman was the co-founder of premiere Austin improv festival No Idea alongside Chris Cogburn. A ceaseless collaborator who's worked with the likes of Sarah Hennies, Tetuzi Akiyama, Mats Gustafsson, he also leads his own projects such as Country Phasers and the Nashville Minimalism Unit.

In 2020, Taku signed to Ropeadope under the Modern Icon Recordings imprint to showcase his return to jazz. 2021 will see the release of Taku’s live album “Blu York". Taku Hirano is one of the most in-demand percussionists of his generation — a musical chameleon onstage and in-studio, whether behind iconic artists or fronting his own projects. He has worked with everyone from Stevie Nicks to Stevie Wonder, Dr. Dre to Dr. John, and referred to by rock legend Mick Fleetwood - founder and drummer for Fleetwood Mac - as his “Secret Weapon” and “not only a master percussionist, but an incredible musician.” Tracklisting: Sho¯myo¯ Hang Up Your Hang Ups Prelude Come And Get It Crawling King Snake Butterfly Bruce's Jawn Blu York

Renowned trombonist and co-founder of Detroit's famed Tribe Records, Phil Ranelin, is back with his first album in a decade. A master trombonist of the J.J. Johnson tradition, Ranelin's career has spanned over five decades with ten records as a solo artist, four as a Freddie Hubbard sideman, session recordings for Motown, and work with artists ranging from Stevie Wonder and Ella Fitzgerald to Red Hot Chili Peppers and Telefon Tel Aviv. At 82 years old, Ranelin proves that he still has much to offer with "Infinite Expressions", a work that showcases his unique style both as a player and composer.

South Africa is in fact the only country in the whole African continent that has developed a strong Jazz tradition. Initially influenced by the great American stylists, (Ellington, Gillespie...) South Africa gradually developed its own soulful style based on a distinctive taste for melody and a deep sense of groove. Masterfully selected from the so-called Golden Age of the genre, (late Fifties / early Sixties), this compilation represents the best introduction to the work of a large and varied body of musicians and composers who inevitably developed their music as part of the historical Anti-Apartheid struggle, and as means of self expression in the dark times of exile. Kippie Moeketsi, Hugh Masekela, Dollar Brand, Chris McGregor, Dudu Pukwana, Mongesi Feza, Barney Rabachan, Nick Moyake and of course the queen Miriam Makeba are just some of the main voices represented here. A bunch of true warriors. in one word: A must!

Although associated with Wigan Casino, “Breakaway” was originally spun by DJ Colin Curtis at Blackpool Mecca under the imaginative title “Black Ship To Hell” (The Wigan Casino Years by Tim Brown). Today, over 50 years on, it has lost none of its energy and appeal and remains a favourite oldie and guaranteed floor-filler.

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"In the Understage area of the Alexandra Trianti Hall, the musical saw in the hands of Nikos Giousef, and accompanied by piano, samplers and analog synthesizers, is transformed into a voice. ‘An otherworldly child’s voice’, ‘a Siren’s voice’ or ‘a castrato voice’, as it has been described, it easily climbs to tonic heights that the human voice can only reach with great effort." The pieces chosen for the program reflect this criterion, with works such as the aria “Erbarme Dich, Mein Gott” from the oratorio of J. S. Bach's “St Matthew Passion”, “Ave Maria” from Franz Schubert's “Ellens Gesang Iii”, H. Purcell's “Music for a while” as well as choral works like “Lacrimosa” from W. A. Mozart's Requiem and the First part (Grave) from G. B. Pergolesi's “Stabat Mater”. S. Rachmaninov's “Vocalise” is also a very interesting choice for musical saw, a song without lyrics as it is. The program also includes two works by greek composers, Ioannis Planiteros's “Ina ti”, written in the 17th century and still performed nowadays by local choirs in Zakynthos, and “ The Trawler” from Nikos Skalkotas's popular ballet “The Sea”, as a tribute to the great composer on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of his death. George Katsanos, in three ambient tracks of the album, is really traveling us in the mysterious amazing music world of "Adagios from the Underground". Nikos Giousef soprano and baritone musical saw Irene Tiniakou piano George Katsanos Moog synthesizer, music box, kalimba, effects

In March of 2020 bassist Dezron Douglas & harpist Brandee Younger were nestled in their apartment in Harlem, New York, not long after every live concert in the world was cancelled and most folks in the United States were forced to shelter in place for the covid lockdown. With all their gigs cancelled and their incomes strapped.. the two came up with an idea. They would host a live-stream performance from their living room, where they would perform classic tunes for friends and family to watch online, and folks could send them donations. They called it “Force Majeure: Brunch in the Crib with Brandee & Dezron,” the first part in homage to the ubiquitous contract clause that never seems to have any use (except all of sudden, c/o a covid-induced live music industry collapse). The immense popularity of their first performance roped them into doing it again, and again, until it eventually became a weekly ritual for Douglas, Younger, and their many friends and family who tuned in every Friday morning (ourselves included). Knowing the beautiful, natural sound they made in their living room would be as enjoyable (or more) as a record as it was through a social media stream… we mailed them a microphone to record themselves. What’s heard on this album, Force Majeure, is a collection of highlights from Douglas & Younger’s legendary lockdown livestream brunch sessions. It includes gorgeous interpretations of songs by Alice & John Coltrane, The Stylistics, The Jackson 5, Pharoah Sanders, Kate Bush, Sting, and The Carpenters… plus some solid gold nuggets of their banter between tunes. It’s an uplifting suite of real, soulful comfort music – a spiritual salve, emanating warmth from the hearth of a Harlem sanctuary.

Dezron Douglas & Brandee Younger are long time companions in life and in music. The two East Coast natives met early in life and have accompanied each other, personally and professionally, through their equally prolific careers. Douglas, a bassist who has established himself as a musician’s musician, is known to many for his work with Pharoah Sanders, Ravi Coltrane, David Murray, and Keyon Harold. Younger, a harpist who has distinguished herself as one of the premiere voices in her field, is known for her work with Jack DeJohnette, Charlie Haden, Stevie Wonder, The Roots, Lauryn Hill, and Moses Sumney. To the day Douglas and Younger often accompany each other in many of the ensembles they lead, respectively.

"The semi-classical drums/sax/piano trio Mammal Hands mutate into a high-volume rave act" The Guardian

Mammal Hands are pleased to announce the release of their highly anticipated fourth album 'Captured Spirits', released 11thSeptember via Manchester tastemaker record label, Gondwana Records.

Consisting of saxophonist Jordan Smart, pianist Nick Smart and drummer and tabla player Jesse Barrett, the trio have forged a growing reputation for their hypnotic fusion of jazz and electronica and have recieved glowing recommendations from the likes of The Guardian and Gilles Peterson. Drawing on their love of electronic, contemporary classical, world, folk and jazz music, Mammal Hands take in influences including Pharoah Sanders,Gétachèw Mekurya, Terry Riley, Steve Reich and Sirishkumar Manji.

Forming in Norwich in 2012, brothers Nick and Jordan along with Jesse, developed their distinctive and polished sound with their meteoric live shows and release of three critically acclaimed albums: 'Animalia' (2014), 'Floa' (2016) and 'Shadow Work (2017). Landmark live performances have included shows at The Roundhouse London, the main stage at Field Day Festival, La Cigale Paris, Montreal Jazz Festival, Hamburg Elb Jazz, Athens Technopolis and Unit Tokyo.

Teaming up once again with trusted producer George Atkins (Wiley, The Courteeners) at 80 Hertz Studios in Manchester, 'Captured Spirits' explores themes including existence and displacement. "The name has multiple readings but was first inspired by something Jordan was reading about past experiences of ancestors being caught and coded into our DNA and having an effect on who you are today. This ties in with themes that we have touched on before relative to identity and the collective unconscious ('Shadow Work'). It also toys with the idea of feeling contained/trapped and the need to break out of something and also the idea of people being spirits that are "captured" in a body",says Nick.

Opening with the melodic rhythmic patterns of 'Ithaca', the tempo picks up with the mesmerising 'Chaser', as heavy percussion and Nick's frenetic keys draw the listener deep into Mammal Hand's distinctive soundsphere. North Indian influences dictate the meditative 'Versus Shapes' with Jesse's transcendental tabla playing taking centre stage while the dark and moody 'Spiral Stair' relies on a multitude of colliding and intersecting shapes and sounds.

All three members of the band contribute equally to the writing process: one that favours the creation of a powerful group dynamic over individual solos. "I think with this record, there was a strong and renewed sense of collective enjoyment and appreciation for the process and each other's contributions. After a long period of touring and a slow build up to the actual recording sessions we were able to mull over ideas for long periods, build on lessons from the past and pull our playing connection to an even deeper place. Realising each other's visions for the whole and clearly understanding how they intersect", says Jesse.

That vision is also realised by longtime collaborator and artist Daniel Halsall who designed the artwork for 'Captured Spirits'. His strong instinctive feel for the band's visual world is a key component to understanding the music. "Our work with Dan over such a long period of time now has become integral to the bands aesthetic and he always seems to grasp the themes and ideas that we send for each album and distills them into something striking and engaging that really complements the music. This is really important with instrumental music, as we need to be able to convey our ideas without being too literal or definitive and give the listeners space for imagination and to take their own journey when they listen to the music and look at the artwork", says Jordan.

Elsewhere across 'Captured Spirits', 'Riddle' and 'Rhizome' are rich in texture and heavy on groove and both compositions showcase a complex, emotional range and demonstrate three like-minded musicians with a dazzling understanding of jazz, electronica and cinematic rhythms. "Music has the capacity to fill so many spaces in our lives, as I think fundamentally it is a more direct form of communication than even language. In this way it can be refuge, it can be social, it can be revelatory, it can be memory, it can be what we need at a given point in time", says Jordan.

The high intensity of the trio's live shows is recreated with the spiritual jazz-influenced 'Into Sparks' as Jordan's sax exhibits an unrestrained energy and freedom but it's left to 'Little One' to bring down the curtain on arguably their most accomplished album to date, a soothing, breezy gift to Jesse's new daughter.

Gondwana Records is an independent record label founded by Matthew Halsall in 2008. The label has gone on to release music by, Allysha Joy, GoGo Penguin, Hania Rani, Matthew Halsall, Phil France, Portico Quartet and Sunda Arc.