New Arrivals
La bête noire/Paris n'existe pas
From deep in the vaults of the Parisian composer who arguably created the stylistic blueprint for decades of orchestral French funk and symphonic psychedelia, "the arranger's arranger" Jean-Claude Vannier (Histoire de Melody Nelson/L'enfant assassin des mouches) finally liberates two previously unreleased and fabled film soundtracks that mark significant milestones in the career of this legendary composer and his close connection to the French free jazz scene. Comprised on this one vinyl disc yo…
King Of The World
*2022 stock. In process of stocking.* Formerly a musician, cinematographer and lighting designer with The Residents and a student of "Blue" Gene Tyranny, Philip Perkins issued this astounding release on his own Fun Music label in 1983.
Perkins often worked in topographical realms, crafting environment-enriching soundscapes, albeit on a micro level. Taking cues from minimalism, environmental field recordings and home-baked ceremonial mantras, King Of The World is a meditation on the lives of thre…
Erotidijos
*In process of stocking.* The latest reissue from chOOn!! is Giedrius Kuprevičius' Erotidijos, the sixth release from the label that specialises in obscure, archival and forgotten releases.
Erotidijos translates from the Lithuanian to "Erotidies" - these were festivals held in honour of Eros, God of Love in Ancient Greece. They were organised every five years and were famous for their celebrations, decorations and luxury. Ritual games were played during the festivals, musicians and poets compet…
Incan High Priestess
The so called 'Nightingale Of The Andes', a necessary introduction to the life and music of the one and only Yma Sumac. The Peruvian singer who startled audiences in the United States and Europe with her remarkable voice, beauty, and mysterious "Inca" princess/priestess persona. Literally bridging the gap from folklore to exotica, Yma Sumac was the forerunner of a new philosophy.
La edad de oro de la cumbia colombiana
Cumbia is a folkloric genre and dance from Colombia. Hereby a compilation showcasing the early developments of a large crosspollination. Since the 1940s, commercial or modern Colombian cumbia expanded in fact to the rest of Latin America, after which it became popular throughout the continent, including Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, El Salvador, United States, Uruguay, and Venezuela.
Stochastic Regions
*In process of stocking. Limited edition of 60 copies.* A New Wave Of Jazz is entering the realm of cassette albums again. Consider it a side series for the more abstract, electric and noisy in free improvisation and avant-garde. That label curator and guitarst Dirk Serries has a knack for the abstract and wilful isn't a secret and it was only a matter of time when he would hook up with French soundartist Anton Mobin (France) either. So here he's teaming up with Anton, using his impressive prep…
Good To Be Back In Reality
*In process of stocking. Limited edition of 60 copies.* A New Wave Of Jazz is entering the realm of cassette albums again. Consider it a side series for the more abstract, electric and noisy in free improvisation and avant-garde. Saxophonist Colin Webster (London) and electric guitarist Matthew Grigg (Bristol) hooked up for a relentless session that is equally abstract, full-on in your face and interactive. Their duo is the other side of the coin, both artists with their four feet in free impro …
The Sage Flower
Limited edition of 100 copies.* Cellist Guilherme Rodrigues (Portugal, residing in Berlin) and guitarist Dirk Serries teamed up for a chamber music-esque session at the Sunny Side Inc. Studio (Anderlecht, Belgium). The Sage Flower is that collection of detailed interaction, acoustic outbursts and linear minimalisme.
Prosperity
*In process of stocking.* Next Festival Records is thrilled to announce that the new album 'Prosperity' from Mats Gustafsson & Christof Kurzmann, has been added to the catalogue.
Mats Gustafsson is a Swedish saxophone player, composer, and improviser. Gustafsson works on the boundaries of noise, electronica, contemporary rock, and free jazz, as well as contemporary dance and theatre production. He performs solo and in various all-star impro projects. He has gone on international tours with artis…
Am Frankfurter Tor
*In process of stocking* Anna and Jan first met in 2004 when they started playing together in different combinations as the Kaluza Quartet (with trombonist Christof Thewes and drummer Kay Lübke), trios with pianst Niko Meinhold or with drummer Michael Griener and various others. In 2020 they played their first duo concert on a boat in Berlin (Hosek Contemporary) and decided to continue with their work as duo. The same year they went to Christian Betz’ studio in Friedrichshain to record their mus…
When No One Around You is There but Nowhere to be Found
*In process of stocking* As both an instrumentalist and composer, Jessica Pavone explores the tactile and sensorial experience of music as a vibration-based medium. Since 2012, she has established an individual body of material for solo viola, concentrating on these elements of performance. The structured yet indeterminate pieces stem from intensive long tone practice and an interest in repetition, song form, and sympathetic vibration. "When No One Around You is There but Nowhere to be Found," i…
Correspondence
Aaron Burnett is “a standout new voice on the saxophone. In a very short time, the young musician has already lent his personal and unhindered approach to a breadth of bandleaders including Esperanza Spalding, Wynton Marsalis, Anti-Pop Consortium‘s HPRIZM, and Weasel Walter. He also toured with three time Grammy winner, Esperanza Spalding in her 2012 world tour with Radio Music Society. Aaron has the also retained the true nature of jazz in his music and his playing, constantly searching for new…
The Embalmer
Matthew Bourne is a renowned pianist with a reputation as a fearlessly unpredictable improviser. Emil Karlsen is an independently minded drummer who plays with power and delicacy. The Embalmer documents one of Karlsen and Bourne’s first meetings. Recorded in a single session in 2020, The Embalmer sees a wide-ranging musical discourse between the two musicians unfold in its most lean form across the six improvised tracks.
Conduits
*In process of stocking* Freely improvised music for baritone saxophone and double bass. Cath Roberts and Olie Brice found an escape from the musical isolation of lockdown with the amazing discovery that it was possible to play (and record) online in almost real time - these are the results.
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*In process of stocking* Vocals, bass, drums, Masked Pickle is three singular "voices" who express their ideas in a unique way, follow their flow but also like to break it, deconstruct the easy path of the sound by yelling, whispering, blowing, bawling, roaring, scraping, declaiming, knocking.
Swagger
Limited LP edition. In their new composition, Swagger, Oslo-based vocal duo Propan augment their customary sound palate with the aid of an eight-strong ensemble of strings, winds, percussion, voices, and electronics - an ensemble by the name Propanions. Combining pre-scored and improvised content, Swagger moves between the soft sound of tuning forks, odd beats, curious text, playful melodies and textural noise, resulting in an eccentric piece of definite character - an eclectic manifestation of …
Second Room
Limted LP edition. Second Room is Martin Taxt’s second album in a series of works investigating possible relations between music and architecture. In this work written for alto saxophone, two microtonal tubas, double bass, church organ, hand bells and modular synthesizers he is inspired by the Japanese architect Sou Fujimoto, and his ideas on different concepts of living. In a lecture at the Harvard University in 2011, Fujimoto sets up a comparison between the nest and the cave, as two fundament…
Sonic Drift
Sofa Music continues to release Microtub’s unique research into the microtonal tuba. The music on Sonic Drift achieves an even greater depth and leaves the listener sucked in to the trio’s extraordinary complex band sound. Sonic Drift is Microtub’s fifth album since their debut in 2011. Whereas the first four albums were recorded shortly after the music was composed, the music for Sonic Drift evolved considerably through the process of playing live concerts throughout Europe. Initially developed…
Geometry Of Trees
This foursome is resolute in its acceptance of communal responsibility and creation. Vocalist Kyoko Kitamura sings and speaks in wordless flurries matching Taylor Ho Bynum’s brassy exhortations on cornet. Cellist Tomeka Reid and guitarist Joe Morris worry and pluck their respective strings, applying speed and torque in the loosing of spidery cascades of crinkled and crenelated tones. Pitch and timbre differentials are a big part of the interplay with instruments juxtaposed in bursts of activity.
Fukiya
*In process of stocking* The sublime first solo saxophone release of Masayo Koketsu is deeply steeped in the free jazz tradition of Japan. From Coltrane's visit to Japan in 1966 to the free jazz exploits of Kaoru Abe, Masayo Koketsu's astonishing solo session marks her as a force to be reckoned with. A single 46 minute piece of achingly beautiful wails and declarations punctuate the bedrock of silence then retreat back. A singular effort.