New Arrivals / Last 2 weeks
Sacred and secular songs
Klaus Lang's compositional approach has always been deeply rooted in the music of old Renaissance masters. Never shy of the that fact, he constantly explores the connections between old and new (old to new).This unique release presents Klaus' fascination with the music of Johannes Ockeghem and it contains harmonium (Klaus' trademark instrument) transcriptions of his sacred and secular songs.
Stars from Another Sky Pt. 2: Film Songs from the Subcontinent Before the World Was Torn Asunder, 1940-1947
Death Is Not The End release a second part collecting pre-partition film music, compiled by Gary Sullivan of Bodega Pop.
Rootless & Starbirthed
"This album has been a long time coming. We were lucky enough to do a tape in 2022 with Jeremy Hurewitz (aka Rootless) called what the truth leaves out. But this is the first time we’ve been able to work with long-time fave, Matt Lajoie, who appears with Ash Brooks as half of the no-longer-active duo, Starbirthed. The idea for this pairing was presented to us by Jeremy, who recorded the album at his cabin in southern Vermont in 2019. Jeremy’s Rootless project generally features at least a soupço…
I Was Thinking
*300 copies limited edition* "What a pleasure it is to hear this new album from France’s Jean-Baptiste Favory, long-distance associate of Los Lichis, presenter of France’s longest running avant garde radio show (Epsilonia), and a goddamn great musician. I Was Thinking is the solo third album we’ve done with J-B (preceded by Things Under and Ciels), and we think it’s the most varied and fascinating one yet. Using guitars, keyboards and electronics, Favory explores the edges between avant-rock, ex…
The Suzanne Langille Songbook
Thirty-two artists honor the extraordinary legacy of Suzanne Langille through interpretations of her vast songbook. Langille is best known as an acclaimed avant garde singer-songwriter and collaborator of guitarist Loren Connors. They ventured into electrified blues and abstracted artsongs across more than a dozen albums since the mid-1980s. Langille’s songs, with Connors, solo, or other collaborators, are marked by distinct and captivating depth. Her evocative lyrics, layered with themes of los…
Greatest Heads
*300 copies limited edition* Al Karpenter expands on their Post-Genre Punk approach reaching a new level of maturity. In fact, we can say that “Greatest Heads” is Al Karpenter’s “Remain in Light” from Talking Heads in the sense that it is also their fourth record, heavily based on production and is influenced by Afrobeat in distorted ways. This record contains elaborated liner notes by Eoin Anderson and features very special guests: “ “ [sic] Goldie, Lisa Rosendahl, and Mikel Xedh — a deeply imp…
A White Horse Is Not a Horse
"There was a school of philosophy in ancient China whose core theory stems from a debate entitled “A White Horse Is Not a Horse.” In a book by Gongsun Long (公孫龍 320-250BC, about 200 years after Confucius) in the Warring States Period, two persons argue if a white horse is a horse: the protagonist argues it is not, because ‘white’ is the color of a (particular) horse while a ‘horse’ is a shape and a generic term. It’s a linguistic/logical paradox, or sophistry. Ridiculed by his contemporary philo…
Every Day → All The Way
This is the first to be released of a series of albums ESP started recording in 2023 combining artists who hadn't worked together before. In this case, we team saxophonist Larry Ochs with the Flow Trio rhythm section of drummer Charles Downs and bassist Joe Morris. They meshed magnificently on their first encounter! Larry Ochs, co-founder in 1977 of ROVA Saxophone Quartet, was born in New York City but has long been based on the West Coast, specifically the Bay Area. He has also been a member of…
Realism
Joe Morris's recording career began in 1983 and has made him one of the most revered avant-garde jazz guitarists. Down Beat magazine dubbed him "the preeminent free music guitarist of his generation," while The Wire magazine called him "one of the most profound improvisers at work in the U.S." His revelatory 2012 book Perpetual Frontier/The Properties of Free Music (Riti Publishing) is a detailed and rewarding accounting of his approach to improvisation. He has been on the faculty in the Jazz an…
Morning Bells Whistle Bright
When Michael Bisio heard Korean pianist Eunhye Jeong's ESP-Disk 2021 album NOLDA, he expressed interest in working with her. After a successful and riveting duo concert in Kingston, NY showed what a good match they were, ESP was eager to document their musical affinity. One of the concert attendees was avant-jazz sax icon Joe McPhee, who guested with the duo at their subsequent studio session along with one of ESP's favorite drummers, Jay Rosen. Magical moments abounded, as you can hear on this …
Kompakt 500
Over the decades, the image of Kompakt as a pirate ship has taken root in our minds, braving the dangers of the seven seas of the music market. Sometimes it glides with a tailwind through calm waters, sometimes it has to survive violent storms. When we set sail in 1993, we never would have dreamt that our journey would still be going on after more than three decades and with 500 releases to date.
In our fast-paced business, the 500 mark is rarely reached, so we want to celebrate it with a lavish…
Sotto Il Vestito Niente
For the first time on CD and vinyl, the soundtrack of the cult Italian Giallo film Nothing Underneath composed by Pino Donaggio. This soundtrack perfectly represents Pino Donaggio's style, capable of transitioning from terrifying and sharp symphonies to sweet and sensual electronic pieces. The atmospheres are reminiscent of films such as 'Body Double' and 'Dressed to Kill.' A limited edition not to be missed, for all lovers of Italian thrilling giallo and for all fans of Brian De Palma's films.
Schining
*2025 stock* "Music and musical releases can be controversial for many reasons. Lyrical content, shocking covers, too loud, too quiet: David Jackman’s music is controversial for none of these reasons. His music isn’t noisy or silent, with no lyrical content or a shocking cover. I am not on any discussion group online and never was, but I can imagine a discussion with the topic: “Is David Jackman doing the same thing over and over again?”. I don’t know the answer, but I can guess. We can say the …
Hard Sell
"Sloping like a jello tower block - open the bellows!! His laconic oration cuts through gauzy pigment canopy over dissolute scenes, precisely shipwrecked. For a unit so put together, Giulio Erasmus and his End of the Worm band do the do exquisitely dismantled. Standing lean and lugubrious in what is no less than the direct continuation of the hallowed Factory-Benelux-connection lineage, here the instantly recognisable sinister-yet-seductive basslines and suavely disaffected voice of Erasmus hims…
When Your Way Gets Dark
Recorded on September 13-14, 2023 at Ting ShuoHear Say in Tainan, Taiwan.
Recording, mixing, mastering and cover designby Jason Kahn.
Much gratitude to Alice Hui-Sheng Chang and Nigel Brown for all their help and warm hospitality during my stay in Tainan as resident artist at Ting Shuo Hear Say. Also many thanks for the generous financial support from Stadt Zürich Kultur, Pro Helvetia, and Fondation SUISA which made my trip to Tainan possible.
A mirror where the image and the mirror wholly coincided
When does new hope arise from the ruins of yesterday, and when does hope for the future fall apart into ruins? When does that moment come? Can we catch it, tune into it, hear it? Adam Badí Donoval is no stranger to these stark and abandoned landscapes. Some of them were already captured on his debut album Sometimes Life Is Hard And So We Should Help Each Other (2022, The Trilogy Tapes). His approach hasn’t changed — he remains a master of sculpting frozen time, of capturing those moments when th…
Underground Wave Volume 4
Limited reprint of the sold-out Volume 4 from the Underground Wave series, featuring Belgian and Dutch wave, synth, and minimal artists. Most tracks were previously only on cassette. Walhalla Records is dedicated to reviving the 80s/90s cassette scene by releasing rare material, often for the first time
Underground Wave Volume 3
Limited reprint of the sold-out Volume 3 from the Underground Wave series, featuring Belgian and Dutch wave, synth, and minimal artists. Most tracks were previously only on cassette. Walhalla Records is dedicated to reviving the 80s/90s cassette scene by releasing rare material, often for the first time
Memory Lane
Soul Media, led by Jiro Inagaki, played a part in the development of jazz rock in Japan. This work, "Memory Lane" recorded in 1980, was the final work under the same name. Inagaki said about this work, "We tried to create this work while predicting the fate of fusion music" and it is true that the sound is completely different from ordinary fusion. The mellow and emotional "Memory Lane" the stormy and refreshing "I Will Give You Samba" and the groovy and edgy "Take My Hand". The sound that was c…
Funky Stuff
*2025 much needed repress!!* Fresh reissued magic of Funky Stuff, formerly a rare exquisite by jazzmaster Jiro Inagaki, originally released in 1975. An enduring, pioneering fusion of jazz, funk, soul and rock - the album features some of the best and most acclaimed Japanese musicians of the time, enlisting the talent-wares of Hiromasa Suzuki on keyboards, Akira Ishikawa on drums and Takeru Muraoka on sax.