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Dark cloud approaching – Black Magic Six set to release their fifth album in September!

The title of Black Magic Six’s upcoming album Black Cloud Descending really sums up the mood and thoughts of its creators during the album making process. It tells stories of constant escaping, accepting defeat, destinies of outcasts, failures, and drunks. Tales of the wiser, exaggerated lies, vague rumours, fuzzy states of mind and suspicious circumstances – even the thought in the back of your head about the possibility of redemption while standing on the edge of the cliff right before falling in; it’s all there.

The album’s first single Blood of Babylon is a garage rocking song about Sam Berkowitz’s relationship with Sam Carr’s speaking dog. Lyrical themes of the upcoming album are moving between reality and the imaginary world; remembering the moments at Belo Horizonte, how to use the powder that protects you from the evil eye, how it felt to wonder in the same alleyways with the werewolf of Istanbul or diving to safety to the bottom of a pond in Northern Savo.

Musically the album is on a narrow path. All the sounds heard on Black Cloud Descending are produced by Taskinen and Motherfuckin’ Japa. Sure, there are two exceptions; the gong heard in the end of Werewolf of Istanbul was recorded by Sakke Koivula at his home and the church bells in the outro of Full House Blues are ringed by unknown. Previous albums of BM6 had lots of featured vocalists and other guests playing guitar, percussions, and harmonica. People that one could call actual musicians. These past albums have had a softer, more versatile, and maybe even a livelier touch to them. This time around there’s only the core; the percussionist and the singing guitar player. The result is more raw, rugged, and rougher than before.

Black Cloud Descending is out on September 1st on vinyl, CD and digital platforms. The album was produced, recorded, and mixed by Mitro Kylliäinen at Kung Fu Audio along with BM6 during 2022-2023. Original art used for the album cover was made by Greger Grönholm. The band will play selected live shows to celebrate the new album in Finland, Germany, Denmark, and Spain. Dates of these gigs will be announced closer to the release date of the album.

At long last we’re happy to bring you the release of Tulu & Wimpy Fly Like A Cucumber. This full-length record was recorded in 2014 at Electric Cave Studio in Portsmouth, NH by Scott Gildersleeve (aka Tulu) Jack Hayes (aka Wimpy), and Marc McElroy. Gildersleeve and Hayes, along with Joe King, were the original members of the infamous punk rock band The Queers who formed in the early 1980’s. Gildersleeve and Hayes also played together in the Boston-based band The Monsignors in the late 1980’s. Tulu and Wimpy Fly Like a Cucumber contains new songs written by Scott Gildersleeve, and recorded in 2014 by Gildersleeve, Hayes and McElroy, as well as some unreleased and remixed songs by the Monsignors. Tragically, in early 2015, within a few weeks of the completion of these recordings, Scott Gildersleeve aka Tulu... left us... hopefully to a better place than this world. “But finally, I am able to release this truly outstanding record, that I had the pleasure of being able to create with my best friend. I feel it is by far the best record I have ever been involved with in my 40 some years of recording. Tulu, may you stay...Forever Young.” -Wimpy Rutherford

When you hear of someone in the punk scene putting out solo material, you expect them to pull out the acoustic guitar and channel their softer side. With Tino Valpa it couldn’t be more the opposite. New Hampshire’s one-man powerhouse is here with his first full-length solo album Live Or Be Lived All Over. Tino tackles all duties: guitar, bass, drums and vocals. From the get-go this record is heavier, harder & better structured than its predecessors. Tino’s previous releases in 2010 & 11 were two 7” EPs of blazing old-school hardcore punk with few songs clocking in over the 30 second mark. Since then, Valpa has traveled the world touring in many bands with focuses on other things. In 2022 the solo project will finally to come to light as a live playing, touring band. This self-released album is available on LP, Digipak CD and Cassette).

Sault returns with a new album featuring Michael Ofo and Little Simz. NINE will be limited to a short press run of 16,000 units, never to be re-issued again!

Four-piece Philadelphia band Big Nothing, released their self-titled album through Asian Man Records in 2017. In continuation, the east coast indie-punks have now released their sophomore album, 'Chris' on Salinas Records. 'Chris' is unique in that each song has a different band member leading the vocals, and the record is composed of similar elements to mainstream indie bands like Superchunk and The Replacements." Featuring members of Spraynard (Pat), Casual (Liz), Crybaby (Matt) & Young Livers (Chris). Digi-pack CD!

Dead Broke Rekerds is absolutely stoked to announce definitive reissues by Berkeley, California-based punk band, Fifteen. From the ashes of east bay legends, Crimpshrine, came Fifteen. These records changed our lives (here at Dead Broke) and the socially conscious lyrics touched & taught us in ways music would seldom again throughout the years. Fifteen formed in 1988 during the tail end of a Crimpshrine tour. After Crimpshrine broke up, Fifteen started playing shows. Fifteen embarked on their first tour in the summer of 1989, and recorded their debut s/t EP in April 1990 for Lookout! Records. Fifteen went on their first US tour in the summer of 1990, playing shows with Filth & Fugazi. They released their first album ("Swain's First Bike Ride") in 1991 on Lookout!. In summer of 1992, the band toured the US & Canada, and recorded their second album, "The Choice of A New Generation". Originally released on Cd/lp in 1992 on Lookout! Records. The band saw a line-up change with this album, featuring Lucky Dog (rip) on bass guitar. We've meticulously kept these reissues as true to the original releases as we possibly could, while the songs have taken on a new life with a 2017 remastering. Gloriously restored & remastered from the original reel-to-reel master tapes by Carl Saff at Saff Mastering. Featuring cover art in full color for the very first time! Replicating exact original collage art, made by Lucky Dog!

"I still remember back in the early 80's, one of the rst local bands I followed on a regular basis were The Stompers. Sal Baglio was a fantastic frontman who wrote great songs and he's still at it. His new band The Ampli er Heads have a release coming out called SaturnaliensS. I've heard some of it, Sal brings the same great sound he always has, this release is a must have !!" - Skybar Rising, Wmfo SaturnalienS is the third full length record from The Amplifier Heads. Their first for Rum Bar Records. A rock n’ roll rocket ride into space, madness, fantasy and the vinyl frontier. A graphic novel for the ears and head. 12 tracks full of distortion, feedback, groovy swinging beats and pure pop melodies. The first single “GlamOrama” is a glam-rocket memory ride that takes a three minute time warp back to the days of platform shoes, shag haircuts, and Circus magazine. Amplifiers lose their heads, young dolls get turned out to the street, rock n’ roll is the pain reliever used intravenously via a phonograph stylus while fueled up rocket boys go wild and earth girls wreak havoc. Sullivan, Shindig, Hullabaloo are back in black and white, peppermint Candi in GlamOramic gold lamé dances to The Satellite Stars and in some basement room a drummer counts to 4. The past is always present and no one down below can bother you when you are on the moon.

Within the one-year span of February 2019 to February 2020, Boston’s Nat Freedberg (Flies, Titanics, Upper Crust) released two solo records on the Rum Bar Record label, plus a third one, entitled “Freeloader: The Path of Least Resistance,” with Boston rock titans Jim Janota (drums), Jim Haggerty (bass) and Charles Hansen (guitar). Over the last pandemic year, while loafing around at home, Nat found himself idly accumulating another Freeloader album’s-worth of rockers. These guys redefine the meaning of the word "old," and belong to that class of ossified musical objects that can only be identified by radiocarbon dating. Nat, the oldest and probably most decrepit, has been a pallid, furtive habitué of the Boston music scene since the early '80s. His previous bands were the Flies, the Titanics, the Satanics, the Clamdiggers, and the Upper Crust. Janota is widely admired as the best rock drummer in Boston, a distinction which has done absolutely nothing for him in the way of tangible reward. Likewise, Haggerty is in great demand on the Boston circuit, holding down the bass in multiple bands while the front-people warble on earnestly about whatever they believe to be interesting and important. Hansen is a world-class guitarist, teaches at Berklee, and plays in several bands, but he too could only loosely be termed a billionaire.

The Right Here deliver heartfelt songs blending rootsy punk rock, alt-country, and rugged all-American rock n' roll. The Right Here (trh) is a twangy punk rock ‘n roll band from Minneapolis. Forming in 2010, they’ve put out two full lengths and an acoustic/ b-sides record on Rum Bar and Throwing Things records. TRH have toured across the United States and Canada, including playing several festivals such as, The Fest, Pouzza Fest, Big Turn Music Fest, Dude’s Weekend, and One Last Party. They’ve shared the stage with just about all of your favorite fellow twangy bands (Drag the River, Two Cow Garage, Arliss Nancy, Tim Barry, Cory Branan, Dave Hause, Brent Best), as well bands like Masked Intruder, Banner Pilot, Swingin’ Utters, Sincere Engineer, A Wilhelm Scream, Direct Hit!, Drivin’ N Cryin’, and Red City Radio. The Right Here turns a new page with their latest release, ‘Northern Town.’ Their fourth record is an anthem dedicated to the late nights we’ve all experienced. From reminiscing about the ones that got away (or for being better-off), feeling trapped, spending time with the best of souls at your favorite local haunt, and asking yourself, “what if?” ‘Northern Town’ explores a narrative to which we can all relate. The grit and wisdom gained since their previous release comes through in the melodies and lyrics from start to finish. Buy ‘em a round at their next tour stop, and they’ll return the favor.

"Magee is a classic studied songwriter with a voice as smooth as peanut butter." - Tom Baker, The Dirty Truckers "Some serious roots fell! Like if James McMurtry sang lead for the V-Roys!!! Diggin' it!!!" - William White, Austin TX Rebel Rousers line up for 12 shots that'll knock you out like a 6-pack of Bud Light in a raucous dive bar brawl. From the school of Del-Lords, Bottle Rockets, Jason & the Scorchers, Roscoes, Long Ryders, Lone Justice, Satellites of Georgia, Steve Earle, Townes Van Zandt, Southern Trespassers, Late Arrivals and Dirty Truckers, crank up the tuneage and hit the road from the heartland of Boston, with John Magee & Scrimshanders.

We heard about Heart & Lung because they’re deeply involved in their community and are the go-to band for punk shows in Cleveland. And with three singers, this band has as much harmony as they do good karma. Real sweethearts—but they can party too! Imagine the smooth melodies of the Smoking Popes blended with rowdy Midwest punk like Dillinger Four. Look, they have three singers, so they can kinda do what they want, ya know? And with LeBron outta the way, Cleveland is long overdue for a punk champion! “Twistin’ The Knife Away” may be their Red Scare debut, but this band is no stranger to live shows. They’ll be hitting the road and reppin’ the North Coast all over the globe in support of this fantastic LP. And have we mentioned they got three singers?!?

Joe Jitsu were a band from roughly 1997 to 2010. Hailing from Beaumont, TX their unique style of traditional pop punk leaned more toward the Green Day camp than the Weasel but pulled influence from so much more. Within the decade JJ existed the band released four official albums on Top Five, Insubordination, and Brucemonkey Records, played tons of shows, and even toured the USA! This is a Newly Remastered “Greatest Hits” album is that contains 3 previously unreleased songs! You Got Me Alone • Back To Me • Catastrophe Metronome • Joke’s On You • Katrina Malone Upside Down* • Steady Decline • One And Only Back To 83’ • Battle Hymn* • Rebound Girl Don’t Tell Me • Over The Edge • Never Gonna Stop Dark Rooms* • Harmful • Nameless • Making You Mine Now Or Never • Synchronized Hearts • Fairytale Lane * - Previously Unreleased

Fear Inoculum is the long awaited new album from TOOL, and the band’s first new album in 13 years. The album will be available digitally, and in a special Limited Edition physical package that includes a CD in a tri-fold Soft Pack Video Brochure featuring a 4” HD rechargeable screen with exclusive video footage, a USB charging cable, a 2 watt speaker and a 36 page insert book and MP3 download card.

Tool members include drummer Danny Carey, guitarist Adam Jones, bassist Justin Chancellor and vocalist Maynard James Keenan.

Multi-Platinum rock band Candlebox releases Live at the Neptune, a The LP has hit songs from Candlebox’s self-titled release, as well as their sophomore release Lucy. Live at the Neptune was mixed and mastered by Candlebox’s very own Peter Klett and is available through Pavement Entertainment. Founding guitarist Klett says, “Not only was it a special night for all of us to get back together, it was also an opportunity to indulge in my new passion of music production by mixing the record. Mixing this record was a challenge, but it’s what I love to do now.” Candlebox formed back in 1990 in Seattle, WA. The band garnered plenty of praise during the grunge era and continues to be a dynamic driving force in today’s rock scene.

Tropicalia infused fifth album by Vinyl Williams After collaging hundreds of paintings together in a string of new artwork, Williams combined over 25 paintings to create the album art for Azure; attempting to equally represent the complexly organic & decadent music apparent on the record. The first single “LA Egypt” is a wild harmonious odyssey, that will impact international radio & streaming services in April & May. Azure marks a point of higher equilibrium for songwriter Lionel Williams, employing far more restraint & rapidity than his earlier releases, as well as a concentration of unifying paradoxical qualities. The last record, Opal (2018) received critical acclaim by Pitchfork (7.6) and was listed on NME’s best of 2018 list (93/200) - Larry Fitzmaurice hailed that “…there’s never been any doubt that Williams is an adept musician, but his newfound skills as a songwriter and arranger push this album into the realm of pure pleasure.” Vinyl Williams’ earlier releases are cult favorites for their incessant bliss & driving rhythms, such as Brunei (2016) & Trance Zen Dental Spa (2015 - collaboration with Chaz Bear of Toro Y Moi) Williams is equally known for his interactive video worlds, 360º videos, web art, and downloadable environments, inhabited by hyper dimensional palaces you might find in an ultimate future. He’s created virtual music videos for Tears For Fears, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Spaceface, Morgan Delt, & several other artists. Vinyl Williams’ live show is a spectacle of pearlescent sights & sounds, with all of Williams’ work combined & sync’d together in rapturous hyper-dimensional moments

Multiple is the sixth full length record by the prolific maximalists known as LITE. Over the past 16 years, the Japanese quartet has established itself as one of the most influential groups across a host of subgenres. Though usually referred to by touchstones such as "math-rock" or "post-rock," LITE has developed an uncanny ability to fuse their influences into their own unmistakable dialect that defies generic genre classification.At times, Multiple's compositions find themselves at unlikely stylistic intersections. Conversating funk riffs will interweave with challenging rhythmic phrasing, blurring the lines between lead sections, obscuring where passages begin and end. LITE's distinct voice is emphasized in tracks such as "Double" and "4mg Warmth,"where melodies meander incessantly, constantly taking the listener to new territory.While many LITE songs unfold at breakneck pace, others entertain entirely different worlds altogether. In songs "Ring" and "Blizzard," the band tests the limits of their abilities with slowed-down, genre-bending forays into hip-hop and dub. On "Ring," LITE collaborated with rapper Maco Marets and singer Utena Kobayashi, where the latter's talents were also tapped for the song's ethereal steelpan section. As LITE has shown over nearly two decades, there exists no style that they cannot master or otherwise weave into their designs.

We may be cursed to be in the midst a global pandemic, buffeted by all of its stresses and pain. But everyone knows that art provides succour, that music is the most reliable balm. And for many there is further significant comfort to be drawn from the knowledge that Paul Weller is in the midst of an unbelievably prolific purple patch. Paul Weller will not let us down when we need him most.

On May 14th, Paul Weller releases his 16th solo album since his self-titled debut in 1992, his fourth in as many years and his second in just under twelve months following June 2020’s magnificent, chart-topping On Sunset. It’s not hyperbole to state that this new album, titled Fat Pop (Volume 1), is among his most compelling collections, bar none, including all of his era-defining work in the 1970s and ‘80s with The Jam and The Style Council. It’s an absolute scorcher.

When lockdown was declared in March 2020, Paul Weller decided immediately that he wanted something to focus on, since it seemed unlikely he’d be able to tour On Sunset as planned that summer.

“I had lots of ideas stored up on my phone,” he explains down that same handset, speaking from outside his London home, “and at least this gave me an opportunity to develop them.” So he started to record songs on his own, doing just vocals, piano and guitar, then sending those sound files to his core band members such as drummer Ben Gordelier, Steve Cradock on guitar and various other instruments, and bassist Andy Crofts for them to add their parts. “It was a bit weird not being together, but at least it kept the wheels rolling. I’d have gone potty otherwise.”

The band reconvened at Weller’s Black Barn studio in Surrey during the summer when restrictions were lifted to finish the work, with several of the songs being cut live. By this stage, the shape of the album was clear to all. Weller wanted to deliver an album of singles, twelve short, distinct blasts, each strong enough that they could stand alone if so desired.

“That was a conscious decision,” he confirms. “I even thought about putting every song out as a single first then gathering them all on an album, but that wasn’t practical at the moment. They all have that strength and immediacy, I think, and they’re all short, three minutes or so maximum.”

Producer Jan ‘Stan’ Kybert was so taken with the concept that he half-jokingly suggested that the album be called Greatest Hits. “I quite liked the idea and every song does stand up as a single, I think,” chuckles Weller, “but no, we couldn’t do that really.”

Instead, he plumped for Fat Pop (Volume 1). “I thought we’d add Volume 1 to it just to keep my options open in the future for a second volume!” The title track, a tight, heavy blast of ultra-modern funk, is itself the conceptual key to the whole album. “It’s a celebration of music and what it’s given us all. No matter what situation you are in, and we’re in one now, music doesn’t let you down, does it?”

As ever, Weller’s sonic masterplan was to avoid whatever had recently preceded it. “After [2018’s] True Meanings I thought I wouldn’t have any acoustic guitars for a little while, so I’ve largely avoided those with On Sunset and with Fat Pop,” he says. “But more than anything I wanted something vibey, something we could play live.” He laughs ruefully at the irony of that. “God knows when that will be, bearing in mind where we are with the virus. But in the imaginary gig in my mind I can see us playing all of the songs on Fat Pop live, along with the songs from On Sunset, blending them with some of the old favourites too. What a great set that would be.”

Live is where he imagines On Sunset and Fat Pop (Volume 1) working in tandem, because they don’t act as companion piece albums otherwise. “On Sunset was quite lavish in places, whereas with this one I wanted to limit it in some ways, make the production less expansive.”

Beyond that desire to keep it frill-free and tight, sonically Fat Pop (Volume 1) is a diverse selection of sounds. No one style dominates. There’s the synth-heavy, future-wave strut of Cosmic Fringes, the stately balladeering of Still Glides The Stream, Testify’s moving-on-up soul, and the kind of dramatic three minute pop symphonies on Failed, True and Shades of Blue with which Paul Weller has hooked in generation after generation of devotee.

More than sonic plans, though, Weller set himself the same task as he does before any recording. “Whenever I make an album I’m always just trying to at least match what’s gone before because each time I think the bar’s been raised. If all goes to plan, sometimes I manage to go over that bar too.”

Sometimes he does, sometimes he really does.

Fat Pop (Volume 1), the story behind each song:

Cosmic Fringes

A dramatic entrance to Fat Pop (Volume 1). Cosmic Fringes pairs a minimal, pumping electro swing with a deadpan vocal that detonates an unspecified poseur and blowhard. “I’m a sleeping giant, waiting to awake/I stumble to the fridge/then back to bed”.

“It’s not about anyone in particular,” suggests Weller, “but I suppose it could be about a keyboard warrior, someone who is constantly brainstorming ideas but never gets around to doing them. Someone talking the talk, but never doing anything.”

“When I first did the demo it was quite punky, a bit like The Stooges. It doesn’t sound anything like that now because then I had the idea of stripping it all back to just the drums and bass, putting those synths on it. It’s got a bit of motoric feel to it and a little bit glam rock too, I think.”

True

A song with all the attributes of the greatest Paul Weller numbers: fire in its belly, questing lyrics, boss horns, flashes of guitar fury and a yearning melody you awake humming daily. It’s also a tremendous vocal, shared between Paul and Lia Metcalfe, the young Liverpudlian singer with The Mysterines.

“I really like her band and I really like her singing,” he says. “It makes a massive difference that we sang it live, in the same room. She’s got a really powerful voice and I wanted to write something for us to sing together, so I did. Then I just sent the phone demo to Lia and two weeks later we cut it. That was one of the last things we did for the album, in around September”.

Fat Pop

That brilliant, heavy bassline? “I did that. When we recorded it I was actually thinking about Cypress Hill, doing something that sounds like a DJ Muggs production. It’s got a bit of that. It’s my favourite song on the album, I think, about all the times music’s been there for me.”

Shades of Blue

A classic three-minute English pop kitchen sink drama, written by Paul Weller and his daughter Leah, who joins him on vocals. “Leah wrote the chorus for it and helped me finish it up. I wrote the verses. Reminds me of a suburban drama, a play.”

Glad Times

Sweeping, wistful, sparkling in shades of blue, Glad Times’ winning melancholia has been in the back of Weller’s mind for a while. “I wrote this with Tom (Doyle) and Ant (Brown). They usually send me a backing track and we work on it from there. It’s been around for a while, nearly made it onto On Sunset but didn’t quite fit. I really liked it, though, so I’m really glad it made it on to this album instead.”

Cobweb / Connections

Pastoral introspections, featuring a lovely acoustic solo by PW and a string score by Hannah Peel. “I think the song is saying that the more you can be yourself and be happy with yourself, the more you change into something better. It’s not just good for you, it’s good for everyone else as well. ‘Save yourself and save everyone around you too.’ It’s from observation but I suppose it’s about me too.”

Testify

Superfly strutting, cut live in the studio with Andy Fairweather Low adding distinctive vocals and Jacko Peake on fine flute and saxophone. When allowed out of the house, it’ll be a future live favourite.

“We had actually done it live two or three years ago,” says Weller, “but while I loved the groove I never really got a grip on the song. Then I did this charity gig in Guildford, one of the last things I’ve done probably, some Stax songs with Andy Fairweather Low. Our voices sound so good together and he’s such a lovely fellow, so I sent him the backing track. As soon as lockdown was lifted he came down to the studio for the afternoon. We cut it live and that was it.”

That Pleasure

In amongst those soulful strings there is some barely contained rage in Weller’s voice as he sings ‘Lose your hypocrisy.’ “I suppose it’s my reaction to the whole Black Lives Matter movement,” he explains. “You’re always on tender ground writing about that, but, regardless of my colour, any human being should be disturbed. You should be appalled and disgusted and shocked by those images of George Floyd being killed in the street. It has to stop. It’s a question for everyone.”

Failed

‘All the things I never get/and all the things I never meant/and all the things that make no fucking sense…I’ve failed.’

“Yes, I’m asking myself the question,” admits Weller, a man who has never been afraid of self-reflection in his songwriting. “It’s an angry song because I wrote it right after a massive row with my wife. But I like it. It’s honest. It’s not how I feel all the time, but it is how I feel some of the time. I’m just talking about me as a man. We all measure success in different ways.”

It’s also one of his favourite songs on the album, a stand-out.

Moving Canvas

A chunky, percussive groove, with the feel of Traffic but updated for the here-and-now.

“It’s going to be great live that one. I wrote it about Iggy Pop. I hope he likes it if he ever gets to hear it. It’s my tribute to him, even though it doesn’t sound anything like him. Aside from all the great records he’s made, as a performer he’s high art. It’s all about the Igster.”

In Better Times

A plaintive plea with some beautiful sax and guitar breaks. “Cold in your eyes, don’t you know you break my heart in two”.

“It’s me talking to a young person who is going through something, addiction or mental health pressure, or whatever, and just saying it’ll be alright. Just get through this bit and there’ll be better times to come, you’ll look back and you’ll see it differently.”

Still Glides The Stream

A stately collaboration between Weller and long-time guitar foil Steve Cradock.

“I had the chords and possibly the melody, which I sent to Cradock. And he sent me back a poem and I edited that, then we sent it back and forth by phone. Lockdown songwriting. I just liked the poem. In my mind, I was thinking about our road sweeper who’s a lovely fellow. I started thinking that there’s so many people in this country who form the infrastructure of it and without whom we’d be fucked. But they’re looked down upon, not really noticed. So I was imagining their story. I did find out that there’s a book of the same name (by Flora Thompson) and Cradock said he had seen it in a shop, so that’s where the title comes from. I just liked the poetry of it. Steve’s a very soulful fella.”

In 2020, in Tokyo, a city that continues to loop between demolition and reconstruction, this is the rebel music that should be also called the 2020 version of Pink Fl oyd’s tribal insanity, all created at 100 BPM, under the theme of people who keep taking dance steps forever.

"One of America's finest rock and roll bands." - Faster And Louder "Done With Rock N Roll”? Yeah right!" - Maximum Volume Music "They are stone-cold professionals when it comes to writing hook-heavy, guns-blazing, shirts-off, hard-core rock’n’roll songs." - Sleazegrinder, Classic Rock Magazine Hard As Hell, Loud As Sin... Boston. Home to legendary household rock ’n’ roll names like J. Geils Band, Aerosmith, the Neighborhoods, the Real Kids, the Cars; and the city’s own namesake, Boston. Now, the legend gets even bigger when cocksure rockers/movers/shakers Watts return with their fifth full-length album. We’re sliding 10 brand new shots down the Rum Bar and into your ears. Shady Rock & Rollers is pouring up a heavy dose of Cheap Trick, Stones, Mott, Ac/dc, infused classic rock n' roll, struttin' with swagger, hooks galore, infectious lead geetar riffs, and a whole lotta Watts for your stereo cranked up listening pleasure.

CD comes with limited edition mini poster featuring original album cover art by Wayne Braino Bjerke! A little mini story of the challenges of putting a record together during this pandemic. Balancing Our ambition vs safety precautions. The feel of the growth of the band as a big step forward from the first release. The hunkering down and really honing the new material to present an even tighter musical unit, especially given the departure of one member. The amount of songs that were surprisingly in a more powerpop direction yet even more rockers to come! Stay tuned for more Rock n Roll. With influences brought up on the bedrock of garage, power pop & punk from Generation X, Stiv Bators-Disconnected, Hanoi Rocks, The Wildhearts, 999, The Boys, Paul Revere's Raiders & The Stooges. Concretins, the sophomore release from NYC's The Idolizers is filled with big hooks, choruses, a thundering rhythm section and wall of guitars that pulls you in right to that time and place where you heard one of those influences for the very first time. Featuring the lead single "Riot Radio" hitting indie radio airwaves all over, get ready for some serious cranking up!!

Garage Pop from the Desert! CD includes limited edition poster! "Punky-pop with hints of Glam and Garage. Think of a cross between The Epoxies, New Bomb Turks and The Muffs and you may get close to what these guys’n’gals are doing." - Fear And Loathing Zine "In garage punk terms, the 'French Girls' EP is a must-have." - Real Gone First full length from Phoenix, Arizona’s French Girls. Led by Che Beret, formerly of Les Hell on Heels (Bomp!/Dionysus) and The Peeps (Sympathy for the Record Industry), the 2 girls and 2 guys have a garage rock sound routed through classic 60’s underground and the punk rock of the 70’s. Prior to the last years shut down the band has spent years perfecting a sound and playing a blistering live set along with bands such as King Tuff, The Love Me Nots, Screaming Females, Mark Sultan, Kepi Ghoulie, Kid Congo, Holly Golightly, Death Valley Girls, LA Witch, Hinds and more.

Alto Fuero are a duo from France currently residing in Brussels, cartoonesque sounds and spasmodic rhythms intertwined with traditional folk-inspired spellbinding chants, their trance-inducing music could be read as post-folk; their energetic and mind-melting live performances are experienced as the soundtrack to near-future gatherings in the ruins of our modern world. "Live Rec" is a compilation of lives excerpts between 2022 and 2023.

Smelters from Alberta, Canada are here with their debut full length Burnin’ Dirt. These dudes play straight up 4 chord punk rock that is heavily influenced by the Ramones! 12 fast and catchy punk rock songs that’ll surely have you up and moving!

True Sounds of Liberty date back to 1978 and the birth of punk rock/hardcore in Los Angeles. Playing with the fury of their hardcore contemporaries but with a goth/death rock image and poppier melodies, T.S.O.L. quickly set themselves apart from the pack and made it a mission to continually explore new sounds and styles. On this, their 12th long-player, the band has combined a handful of recent singles alongside all-new recordings helmed by Paul Roessler at Kitten Robot Studio. Fronted by singer Jack Grisham alongside guitarist Ron Emory and bassist Mike Roche (all from the band’s first line-up), they are joined by longtime keyboardist Greg Kuehn and Antonio Hernandez on drums. New punk anthems such as “Low-Low-Low,” “Never Go Home” and “The Way You Groove” are paired with covers of “The Rhythm of Cruelty” (Magazine), “1 Thing” (Amerie), “Sweet Transvestite” (yes, that one, featuring Circle Jerk Keith Morris as Brad) and a reasonably straight-forward reading of “What a Wonderful World.” Punk Rock means giving the high sign to the rules, and this is most definitely punk rock.

Solar Project don´t try to impress with technical craftsmanship, fast licks or complex passages, but concentrate with a Pink Floyd-like overall sound. This overall picture is filled with excellent keyboard and guitar parts, various singing voices, mysterious sound effects and nice solos. The fact that Solar Project are heavily influenced by Pink Floyd only contributes to the overall idea. On Here I am, you hear that Solar Project do have a sound of their own. The core of the band is formed by keyboardist Robert Valet and guitarist Peter Terhoeven, two German musicians with a progressive heart of gold. They are assisted by several guest musicians, who are the backing band for Solar Project. Complex art rock, sometimes heavy, sometimes floydian-style filigrane, sometimes psychedelic, this perfectly describes the musical spectrum.

There’s a big clue to the pacific wisdom of The Orchestra in the Sky in the artist name – Hochzeitskapelle + Japanese Friends. For this is, indeed, music based in, and resonating with, friendship, camaraderie, collaboration, and creative exchange. Across two albums – one documenting recordings from Tokyo, the other an expansive double album of sessions from Kobe – Hochzeitskapelle gather around them some of the finest voices in Japanese independent and underground pop music, like Tenniscoats, Eddie Marcon, Yuko Ikema, and Kama Aina, and explore an open field of music, full of creative encounters. You may already know Hochzeitskapelle as the German instrumental quintet formed by members of The Notwist, Alien Ensemble, and friends from the jazz scene. Across three albums, one a collaboration with Kama Aina (2018’s Wayfaring Suite), they’ve developed a way of playing together that’s intimate and playful, rich and human; it’s a music that’s deliberately rough around the edges, and that nestles cosily into the everyday. Their relationship with Japanese indie has developed over the years, doubtless encouraged by Saya´s „Minna Miteru“, compilations series of Japanese indie pop for Morr Music. A peripatetic gang, Hochzeitskapelle also recently backed Japanese singer-songwriter Makoto Kawamoto on her new album, Hikari. In many ways, The Orchestra in the Sky feels like the culmination of a set of ongoing cross-cultural exchanges: the Minna Miteru compilations; tours of Japan by Hochzeitskapelle and The Notwist; and indeed, Markus Acher’s Spirit Fest group with Saya and Ueno of Tenniscoats. The latter are present throughout much of The Orchestra in the Sky, and Saya’s voice is particularly winning on songs like “Tsuki no oto”, where the two outfits are joined by brass ensemble Zayaendo. There are several lovely turns from singer-songwriter Yuko Ikema, and Eddie Marcon appear twice; their songs are still beautiful, spectral acid folk, but with Hochzeitskapelle filling the details with lush, sad brass and strings. But it’s also the potentially lesser-known names that shine through The Orchestra in the Sky, like the frail folk of Gratin Carnival; the delightful, gentle pop songs by sekifu and Zayaendo member, Kanako Numata; a trio of beautiful, stumble-drunk melodies played in swaying consort with popo. That group, along with the presence of Zayaendo, Fuigo, and Mitamurakandadan?, make strong connections with the Japanese underground’s love of brass bands, partly informed by the tradition of chindon’ya, marching bands that walk the streets of Japanese cities. They also all appeared on the recent Alien Parade Japan compilation of such groups, assembled by Acher and Saya. All things converge, then, on The Orchestra in the Sky, a smart, spirited collection of heavenly pop songs, intimate folk melodies, lungfuls of joyous brass, deep weeping strings, and swooning sighs. The last words go to Acher himself: “Many things we did in the last years come together here and it feels like something special was captured.” We hope you like what you hear.

Reverse board tip on with silver pantone print. The first ever reissue of Dorothy Carter's 1978 folk/psych/drone masterpiece. A truly unique album in Dorothy's catalog of otherwise traditional psaltery folk music, Waillee Waillee's essence sits in the confluence of Dorothy's mastery of the dulcimer; its shimmering notes fully enmeshed with the tremulous, cavernous drones of Bob Rutman's bowed steel cello. The core of this album, Dorothy's only with a full band, lies in the contradiction of traditional psych-folk idioms and the minimal avant-garde, referencing Henry Flynt and Laraaji as much as Karen Dalton. This LP version includes 12 page booklet with unpublished manuscripts, drawings, photographs, and songbooks of the songs from the album, as well as extended liner notes from friends and family of Dorothy Carter, including notable musicians such as Laraaji, Bob Rutman, and Alexander Hacke (of Einstürzende Neubauten). Drops soon - a joint release between Palto Flats & Putojefe Records.

Dorothy Carter was many things - a virtuoso player, storyteller, historian of Celtic and Appalachian folk music, avid lifelong busker, avant-garde musician, and itinerant troubadour, laying a framework for music that existed both within and outside of standard folk idioms - never better represented than on her 1978 masterwork, Waillee Waillee. Underscored by Bob Rutman’s cavernous bowing of the steel cello, the richness of Waillee Waillee’s sound produces an album unlike any other in her discography. In particular, its two side-ending pieces, “Summer Rhapsody” and “Tree of Life,’’ glide with the shimmering filigree of hammered dulcimer and Dorothy Carter’s ephemeral voice floating over Rutman’s droning buzz of the steel cello. The elements of these two tracks suggest something akin to a transcendental Appalachian raga or whirling cosmic folk music, an effortless combination that serves to add additional substance to the remaining tracks on the album.

The title track is one of her most enduring compositions, often performed in stripped down versions throughout her career, and one of her sole recordings featuring a full band, with the contrapuntal interplay of tremulous flute, vibrating steel cello, bass and drums. Lyrically and tonally, her voice would never sound as stirring and refi ned as on this, her most outwardly accessible song.

She counted musical colleagues as diverse as Constance Demby, Einstürzende Neubauten and Laraaji, as well as her lifelong artistic partner and friend Bob Rutman, whose imprint is felt throughout the grooves of this record. The master tapes for this recording were fortuitously discovered in Rutman’s Berlin studio, many, many years later. As recounted in Laraaji’s contribution to the liner notes, Dorothy was “someone who really influenced my early zither exploration and vocabulary and inspired my shift toward hammered zither performance and recording,” after encountering him busking on the sidewalk one day in the 1970s. Later, when living in Berlin in the early 1990s, Dorothy would begin work on manuscripts detailing the history of the dulcimer family and providing extensive sheet music, selected material of which is reproduced in the twelve page booklet included with this release. Dorothy would find later success touring and performing in the late 90s with the ensemble Mediæval Bæbes, which she led with British musician Katherine Blake, playing a prominent role on their first four albums.

Another Thought was the first collection of Arthur Russell’s music to be released after his death in 1992. Released on CD by Point Music in 1993 it marked the beginning of nearly 30 years of work to let the world hear the enormous archive of unreleased recordings Arthur left behind. Be With revisits this first compilation for a new gatefold double vinyl version and a triple-fold digipak CD re-issue. This is the only place where you can hear some of Arthur’s most recognisable music, like the title track Another Thought, A Little Lost, This Is How We Walk On The Moon, Keeping Up and the woozy disco of In The Light Of The Miracle and My Tiger, My Timing. Though technically a compilation, the whole of Another Thought comes together as a consistent, coherent, wonderful album. Thanks to Janette Beckman for helping reproduce her iconic photograph of Arthur in his newspaper boat hat for the new vinyl sleeve. And thanks also to Tom Lee for giving permission to include his liner notes from the original CD booklet, together with Arthur’s lyrics. Another Thought is absolutely essential for even the most casual Arthur Russell collection. In fact it’s essential for any fan of non-obvious pop music.

From the ballad Talk No More to the lightness of Smile, an invitation to smile through a declaration of love, the tracks in the album are wonderful snapshots that strike a chord. The title track talks about the desire of a father for his children to explore the opportunities that life offers with enthusiasm, The Hole crystalizes an inner moment of crisis and in Back To The Sun, written during the worst moment of the Pandemic, the loss of loved ones is the central theme. Coexisting with sounds from the previous decades, the 90’s pop scene strongly influences the album. From the new wave in Telematic Love to Me, Myselfie & I which ironizes on one of our most frequent daily habits, to the punk theme in Syd & Nancy and Drum Machine, which is “an encounter between the traditional British scene and Rancid”

The fourth album by Sault scored 97/100 at Metacritic and is the most beloved album at HHVs Supreme 100 of 2020 list, chosen by 150 journalists, musicians, label makers and record collectors. Currently repressed and soon back in stock.

Available for the first time and on CD only, the live sessions of Baba Stiltz second LP „Paid Testimony“ recorded earlier this year at the legendary „Atlantis Studios“ in Stockholm. Full Music info below: When he‘s not writing or recording, Baba Stiltz immerses in fearless fiction by the likes of Denis
Johnson and Dodie Bellamy; prose where pedestrian details become transcendent in aggregate and the inner lives of marginal characters are examined as though they were kings. A similar thesis runs through „Paid Testimony“, the essential second tape of minimalist guitar music from the Filipino-American-Swedish artist.
In recent years, Stiltz has made like Lee Hazelwood‘s Cowboy In Sweden in reverse, making annual pilgrimages from Stockholm to California and reconnecting with his roots via a guitar and a Fostex 4- track. He‘s drawn to the less glamorous corners of the golden state, an observant habitué of unkempt
streets and dive bars stretching from LA to Vacaville. It‘s a long stretch from the jetset techno clubs where Baba originally plied his musical trade, but it‘s where he finds characters and ideas worth writing about.
The characters on „Paid Testimony“ are on the edge and on the run. Surrounded by flawed men with big schemes since childhood, he extrapolates characters who plot bank heists and order milk and vodka in AM hours, the type of confrontation- prone characters who „say some shit, make everyone
uncomfortable and then just split.“ To focus on the rawness of this document would discount the humor and sympathy with which he treats his characters, not to mention the subtly- psychedelic songwriting recalling David Berman, early Smog, the original indie rock minimalist poets.
On the final song, Stiltz looks back on the city that raised him, „Stockholm,“ referencing „young professionals carelessly living“ before adding „I can‘t say I‘m not jealous even though I live my life just like they do.“ There‘s an honesty in the small details revealed on „Paid Testimony“, and a defined
sense of place, be it Stockholm, Sacramento or some dim barroom across from the Bank Of America. Baba doesn‘t quite fit in anywhere. This outsider quality has often been used as a marketing tool, yet here, it lends a writerly aspect to the proceedings, an unreality to the everyday.

The CD Edition includes the remastered 13 tracks and reproduces the original Wax Trax! booklet utilizing new photographs of the Steven Stapleton painting.

This year marks 25 years since Oasis’ two iconic record breaking live concerts at Knebworth Park in Hertfordshire on the 10th and 11th August 1996. The shows were both the pinnacle of the band’s success and a landmark gathering for a generation of young people.

Released alongside the cinema debut of the feature length documentary film of the event, ‘Oasis Knebworth 1996’ is the definitive live recording featuring a setlist packed with stone cold classics album taken from across both nights of the concert, from the opening salvoes of ‘Columbia’ and ‘Acquiesce’, to ‘Champagne Supernova’, ‘Don’t Look Back In Anger’, ‘Live Forever’, an orchestra backed ‘I Am The Walrus’, and ‘Wonderwall’ the first song from the 1990’s to reach over one billion streams on Spotify and universally loved anthem.