Reissues

Long out of print, Diamanda Galás' incendiary 1984-released second album is available once more, remastered by Brooklyn's Heba Kadry

* Digipack CD edition * Ghédalia Tazartès left us in February 2021 when we had just finalized the editing and the cover art of his new album with him. Unfortunately he will never see the finished object. This record is therefore particularly important for us. He opened his archives to us so that we could select unpublished pieces with him and organize them in two long suites. This work took almost two years (finding the pieces among dozens of sometimes very old CD-Rs, checking that these pieces …

"With their first album, legendary French art-rock band Wapassou found a distinctive musical voice: well-developed melodies, rhythmic organ, prominent droning violin, and guitar doubling-up as a rhythm instrument. They often conjure up what it might have sounded like had John Cale and Stereolab formed a band in 1974, the year this album was released. The five tracks are highly original, varied and inventive, steeped in post-psychedelic rock. Although Wapassou are noted for playing without …

** Edition of 300 ** Born and raised in Paris, Ariel Kalma studied electronics, computer science, music and art in Paris, he performed with several bands, then toured the world and visited Europe, Japan, India, Eastern Canada, and parts of the USA. Apart from rhythm & blues, pop and jazz, he acquired assorted experiences in Middle Age French, electro-acoustic, and modal music. All the travels broadened Ariel's musical horizons tremendously; listening to and playing with different styles, people,…

Tip! If there is a single feature that makes the context of experimental music so exciting, it is arguably the willingness of artists to freely converse and collaborate. This is made all that much more thrilling when it transpires across the generations. The first LP in Black Sweat’s latest batch is one such case - two heavyweights, often occupying very different positions in the musical landscape, with births separated by decades, finding common ground and voice. Neither Sarah Davachi or Ariel …

**Limited edition of 500 numbered copies in a wooden box, including LP-sized 24-page booklet and t-shirt** :Zoviet*France: is an idiosyncratic group of anonymous music makers, gatherers of sound, and fabricators of unknown music. For nearly 40 years, they have explored and reported back from the liminal areas of music and composition, walking the margins where little is easily located and consensus reality melds with the hypnagogic and half-heard.  Having wilfully obscured themselves in Newcastl…

One of many Muslimgauzes to finally see the light of day on vinyl, his first meeting with The Rootsman is a fierce session of signature, sawn-off loops and soundsystem noise

300 copies. VOD presents the third chapter in the Collusion series that collects rare tracks previously released on various Zoviet France's compilations. First time on vinyl.Constructed from an array of samples and environmental recordings plus plenty of feedback, Collusion exudes a rare beauty for an album of such varied sounds (each track was originally released on a different compilation). Though the first includes a long passage from a religious-revival preacher (complete with the sample use…

Although you're more likely to find :zoviet*france: soundtracking art installations and performances, 2012 saw the release of the studio album 7.10.12 released as a boxset edition on alt.vinyl. On The Tables Are Turning the duo of Ben Ponton and Mark Warren present a studio version of their live soundtrack to Designer Body, a contemporary dance production by Ballet Lorent. Ballet Lorent's 2009 production featured dancers on revolving plinths. At first fully dressed with hats, scarves and full ma…

This, Zoviet France's first major release in over a decade, originally surfaced last fall as a characteristically cryptic and incredibly limited box set containing rubbings of neolithic Northumbrian stone and a vial of hawthorn berries.  Unfortunately, it completely sold-out world-wide on the day it was released, so most of us never got to hear it.  VOD has now issued a new version. 7.10.12 offers up roughly an hour of minimal/quasi-ambient loopscapes.  While they certainly offer many subtle nod…

VOD presents the first physical release of this 2011 recording by Zoviet France.

* 300 copies * As Glasgow's Tramway building evolved from train station into arts space, Zoviet France were present recording the ambient sounds for use in their commissioned themes for the Scottish Arts Council.  Though you'd hardly believe it from the mostly non industrial nature of these very comfortable soundscapes.  Five tracks range between five and twelve minutes apiece and the remaining four serve as in-between filler.  In "Something Spooked the Horses" a constant warm drone and panning …

** 300 copies ** Quite possibly one of the better live showings from digital era Zoviet France, and in my opinion this matches the dark spiritual energy of Vienna 1990 as well, which is a testament considering that that album is a leviathan of dark ambient. Heavy on the pulsating, bubbly effects, Feedback feels like you are exploring the dark corridors and caverns of an alien moon, where lava flows are the only source of light and the tremors of your own footsteps and the cracking of rock are th…

**300 copies** Digilogue is a set of extremely dark and somewhat convoluted minimalism from :zoviet*france:. The combinations of experimental and conventional sounds create massive clouds of sinister atmospheres. The layered textures increase the tensions of exotic darkness. This music is definitely exotic and definitely erotic -- not pleasantly but disturbingly. The sinister timbres are seductive and jarring. It is a shocking sample of an alternate reality. This CD will appeal to fans of Darkro…

* White vinyl. Ltd 2022 repress * Joanna Brouk’s golden new age / modern classical Moog & electric piano masterpiece is reissued on vinyl for the first time, following a resoundingly-praised 2016 compilation that revolved around its titular, 21 minute highlight.Now replete with the original 1980 tape edition’s three B-side works for synth, saron (gamelan) and bells, The Space Between is a sublimely reclined and contemplative record for troubled minds and times that beautifully resonates with a c…

Tip! ** Edition of 300 ** After the exploit of Osmose in 1978, Kalma returns into the studio in 1980 with Interfrequence, an ambient space library record. Interfrequence is a continuation of his personal research based on the combination of electronic machines with natural sounds and acoustic instrumentation. The french musician fully wears the robe of master of ceremonies of the synths. However, the path taken is not that symphonic of the minimalist and galactic suites composed by other standar…

A silken, minimalistic stream of electrified soul, Magnetic Eyes is Jeff Phelps’ peerless contribution to the tapestry of analog drum machine music that graffiti’d the mid-‘80s. Tracked in his Missouri City, Texas, bedroom studio in 1985, Phelps effortlessly steeps together the electro stylings of Afrika Bambaataa with the matured caress of Anita Baker’s soulful R&B. This 2021 edition presents fresh remasters of the album’s second mix, completed after discovering flaws in the initial 1985 pressi…

"L'Ultimo Treno della Notte" (Last Stop on the Night Train) is a 1975 thriller film directed by Aldo Lado, one of the most violent movies ever produced in Italy in the '70s (and beyond) that actually shows, even in the crudest scenes, for same admission of the director, a harsh attack against the bourgeois society and its powerful rich people. Despite the limited budget, the friendship between Aldo Lado and composer Ennio Morricone made this collaboration possible; nonetheless, only a 45rpm 7" w…

"One of the last Goblin-related releases to arrive on CD thanks to the Cinevox label, the notorious `Volo' from 1982 is now reissued. The Eighties was not a banner year for much of anything prog-related, and with bass player Fabio Pignatelli the sole founding member here, he's joined by a mix of related ex-Goblin members and session players, and together they delivered a sleek set of pop/rock/funk pieces very much in the manner of the popular commercial styles of the time. While it's mostly a wo…

Reissue of Ennio Morricone's soundtrack to director Luigi Comencini's 1977 film with two previously unreleased bonus tracks added, alternate versions of 'Mariangela E La Seduzione' & 'Il Gatto'. 15 tracks total, with all delicately balanced between being refined classical arias and erotic themes. This is yet another extraordinary soundtrack by the genius master of Ennio Morricone. This is wonderful music that takes you back to the wonderful seventies.

"After testing the waters with the solid but unexceptional Lounge at Cinevox: Beat, Vol. 1, Cinevox upped the ante with this more interesting second volume. Lounge at Cinevox: Beat, Vol. 2 has the edge on its predecessor because it boasts a more adventurous set of selections. This combination of factors is apparent from the first cut, a wild slab of psychedelic funk entitled "4 Mosche Di Velluto Grigio (Titoli)": After leaping out the speakers with a jazzy drum intro, this cut then launches into…

This CD is the first complete soundtrack of the "Spaghetti" western "Roy Colt Winchester Jack" directed in 1970 by the Master of Horror Mario Bava who only rarely abandons his favorite genre to experiment with new ones. Piero Umiliani has composed the soundtrack ranging from the classic western genre to the beat style in fashion at the time of composition, emphasizing the arrangements by organ, drums, electric guitar, brass and bass in lounge style.

In Adua e le Compagne, a desperate drama with no way out, Piero Piccioni's jazz is the master, a constant counterpoint to the story even in its most excruciating moments (Adua's revolt in the pre-final, dressed as a prostitute in front of the clients of the trattoria to discredit the scoundrel who would like to continue exploiting her). A precise relationship of collision between image and music that would characterize much of Pietrangeli's later cinema (La visita, and of course the incredibly l…

Recorded at the Studio Jazz Unité in Paris, France, on June 19, 1981, Filet de Sole / Philly of Soul was the only recording made by brilliant drummer Philly Joe Jones with this exact octet formation.The group plays a variety of tunes, including well-known pieces by Tadd Dameron, Benny Golson, Randy Weston, and the tandem of John Lewis & Dizzy Gillespie, plus an homage to Tadd Dameron composed by the group's tenor saxophonist Charles Davis (a regular with Archie Shepp and Sun Ra), and a compositi…

"The main point of interest of this album is its session date. Recorded in 1982, this is one of the very few documents of the late Sonny Sharrock's playing between his classic work with Pharoah Sanders and Don Cherry as well as on his own and his re-emergence with Last Exit in 1985. Bill Laswell had already utilized his talents on Material's Memory Serves release from the prior year, but here is Sharrock in a simple trio, playing several of the pieces that would become part of his stock repertoi…

George Crumb's Makrokosmos, Books I and II (1972-73), both complete on one disc, in composer-supervised recordings by pianist Margaret Leng Tan, a leading exponent of extended piano techniques.

Released way back in 1974, the lone, self-titled effort from Spirale is an album notable for its lack of electronic instruments. It also has some of those loveable low-budget production flaws that are so often heard in obscure 1970s Italian progressive music, and the bass quite often seems charmingly out-of-tune. But this was an earnest and quite energetic jazz-rock ensemble excursion, with excellent brass arrangements and improvisation. Other instruments used include violin, drums, piano and va…

A Monastic Trio is the first solo album by Alice Coltrane. Recorded in 1968, she intended it to be a tribute to her husband, John Coltrane, who had died the year before. It originally featured the message: "This music is dedicated to the mystic, Ohnedaruth, known as John Coltrane during the period from September 23, 1926 to July 17, 1967Alice Coltrane - harp, pianoPharoah Sanders - flute, bass clarinet, tenor saxophoneJimmy Garrison - bassRashied Ali - drumsBen Riley – drumsWhile John's spirit c…

"Archie Shepp's 1979 quartet of American and European musicians (Clifford Jarvis, drums; Seifried Kessler, piano; Bob Cunningham, bass) put more fire under him as an improviser than anybody since Coltrane. These cats came to play, and they were playing for keeps. It's all Shepp can do to lead the band. Opening with a furiously paced "Donna Lee," with Shepp's solo winding all around the intervals and changing them in mid-phrase, Jarvis double times even his legato. For 16 minutes the band changes…

Marge Records presents Live at Dreher by Roy Burrowes Sextet featuring Mal Waldron Roy Burrowes (trompette & bugle), Richard Raux (saxophones ténor et soprano), Mal Waldron (piano), Patrice Caratini (contrebasse) & George Brown (batterie) - On two tracks : Roger Raspail (percussions)  Recorded live on 10th march 1980 at Dreher, Paris.

New York-born drummer Stu Martin made a name for himself at the age of sixteen by playing with many of the great bands - those of Billy May, Jimmy Dorsey, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Maynard Ferguson and Quincy Jones, among others. In the 1960s he moved to Europe where he played with the greatest musicians of the time such as Jean-Luc Ponty, the Kühn brothers, Martial Solal or John McLaughlin. A very complete drummer adapting to all forms of jazz, he was part of the John Surman and Barre Philli…

Sunny Murray's Aigu-Grave, a nominal quintet date with percussionist Pablo Sauvage appearing on two of the five tracks; the rest of the group features French tenor saxophonist Richard Raux, Bobby Few and Alan Silva. Its two leading tracks, “Happiness Tears” and “Tree Tops,” are memorable Murray compositions which are given free and satisfying treatments. The theme of “Happiness Tears” searches through some minor intervals before resolving in a cheerful major chord. “Tree Tops” is a haunting ball…

Tip! This 1979 date by tenor saxophonist Billy Harper is one of his most transcendent. Rife with his deep study of Coltrane's modalism, and his own deep knowledge of the blues and Eastern music, Harper and his quintet take on three extended pieces: "Soran Bushi-B.H." comes in at over 12 minutes, while "Cry Of Hunger," is over 20; both work out of extended harmonic architectures to place improvisation as a new element (remember, this was 1979), as an extension of the jazz "song." Trumpeter Everet…

This official soundtrack album for the Italian horror movie La Chiesa ("The Church") features four pieces performed by Keith Emerson. These are The Church (Main Theme); Prelude 24 (From Well Tempered Clavier); The Possession, and The Church Revisited, all four of which have also been included on the Keith Emerson "At the Movies" 3CD set. Emerson's contributions add up to about 13 minutes of music all in all.The rest of the music on this soundtrack is by other artists, including several tracks by…

"Released in 1972 on the Cinevox record label, Morricone’s score is in a word classic. It contains every musical trademark that we associate with the Maestro, quirky and jaunty backgrounds, romantic and poignant melodies, infectious and haunting musical interludes and emotive and heartrending passages that just melt the listener.  The CD re-issue was also on Cinevox, and the company released it in the November of 2003, it contains a little more music than the LP recording in fact there are four …

"Touted as being the definitive edition of Ennio Morricone's darkly seductive score for the first motion picture directed by Italian master of the macabre, Dario Argento, this release of L'uccello Dalle Piume Di Cristallo, or The Bird With The Crystal Plumage, coincides with the film's debut on Blu-ray (see separate review). The entire original soundtrack-album is presented here in stereo for the first time and, not only that, but a very generous helping of bonus and alternate tracks have been i…

"Non ho sonno isn’t exactly a return to the glory days of Suspiria and Roller, but it’s very good, and is worthy of purchase before most of the 1980’s soundtracks. Though Goblin managed to hold on to the 1970’s sound even on most of their 1980’s work, this album sounds much more like the 1980’s than the 1970’s or 1990’s, especially the guitar. As far as opening themes go, “Non Ho Sonno” is good. That basically goes for the rest of the music too. It’s all very good, but not as unique and special …

Back in '76 or so, Mario Bava wanted in on some of Argento's azione in the film music department. For his movies, Dario had enlisted some homegrown twentysomethings fresh from sessions in England as an outfit alternately called Oliver and Cherry Five. The quartet, rechristened Goblin, had cranked up their amplifiers to score Dario's two very popular films, the bloody Profondo Rosso and the supernaturally-inclined Suspiria. Bava wanted the same kind of sonorous edge for his next foray into cellul…

Futura Records presents Autumn Leaves: Ben Webster (saxophone ténor), Georges Arvanitas (piano), Jacky Samson (contrebasse) & Charles Saudrais (drums)  Recorded 5th june 1972 at studio Europasonor, Paris

This recording of a 1971 date pairs legendary hard bop pianist Freddie Redd with an obscure French rhythm section. Didier Levallet and Didier Carlier on bass and drums, respectively, are certainly good musicians; they comp and center very well around the changes Redd sets out in his original tunes such as "Diane I Love You," "Bleeker Street Blues," "To Bud With Love," "This Heart of Mine," "You," and "My God Is Love." Their backing is tight and organized, and that's the problem. Redd is well-kno…