Review: Among that coterie of visionary artists who left their bands to fly solo on the cusp of abundant riches and fame, John Foxx flew from Ultravox in 1980 to pursue his own creative vision. He quickly cemented his own style with albums like Metamatic and The Garden, but arguably delivered the fullest iteration of his sound on this 1983 album. The Golden Section straddles synth-pop and pop rock with ease, and it stands shoulder to shoulder with the greatest of the era. From his former band to Duran Duran and even moire niche concerns like Freur, this is the sound of the new dawn for pop music in the UK as the vast possibilities of synthesis were finally being understood.
Review: John Foxx's Metamatic (45th Anniversary Edition) is a striking landmark in British electronic pop, a product of the late 70s sonic revolution. Recorded at Pathway Studios, the album emerged from a gritty eight-track cupboard in Islington. With Gareth Jones at the helm, Foxx distanced himself from conventional rock, diving deep into electronic sounds inspired by the dystopian visions of J.G. Ballard. The result is a minimalist yet provocative collection that paved the way for future genres. Metamatic remains an essential listen for any music aficionado.
Review: This is a historically significant album now gaining deserved recognition with this anniversary reissue. Born George Folurunsho Johnson in Nigeria in 1916, Ginger's Yoruba heritage shaped his music and by the late 1940s, he had moved to London and was busy collaborating with British jazz icons like Ronnie Scott, Phil Seaman and Kenny Graham's Afro-Cubists. A pioneering figure, Ginger recorded some of Britain's first African music releases and mentored a young Fela Kuti and became a cornerstone of the African and West Indian musical community. By the 1960s, Ginger's mastery of Afro-Cuban percussion cemented his legacy across genres and performances, including the Notting Hill Carnival, and this album shows why he was such a singular artist.
B-STOCK: Creasing to outer sleeve but product remains in it's original shrink wrap and is otherwise in excellent condition
Atomic City (4:28)
Heaven's Here (5:36)
Americanos (3:36)
Deep In Love (3:53)
SUCCESS (3:34)
Love Train (3:58)
Got It Made (3:44)
Love Will Come (4:25)
Perfume (3:35)
Feel Good (5:08)
Review: ***B-STOCK: Creasing to outer sleeve but product remains in it's original shrink wrap and is otherwise in excellent condition***
Blast was the critically acclaimed and commercially successful debut album from Holly Johnson back in 1989. Though best known for fronting Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Johnson's solo work established him n the world stage and now gets reissued as a 35th-anniversary edition on red vinyl. It has been out of print for a while after a CD reissue back in 2010 so is deserving of this new run, especially given that it hit number one on the UK album charts and spawned two top 10 hit singles in 'Love Train' and 'Americanos'. It's a big, funky, hook-laden mix of house sounds from the late 80s that is filled with nostalgia.
Review: Blast was the critically acclaimed and commercially successful debut album from Holly Johnson back in 1989. Though best known for fronting Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Johnson's solo work established him n the world stage and now gets reissued as a 35th-anniversary edition on red vinyl. It has been out of print for a while after a CD reissue back in 2010 so is deserving of this new run, especially given that it hit number one on the UK album charts and spawned two top 10 hit singles in 'Love Train' and 'Americanos'. It's a big, funky, hook-laden mix of house sounds from the late 80s that is filled with nostalgia.
Review: Building on a career's worth of 90s freeform punk, 00s underground techno and every minimalistic and healing sonic contour in between since then, Jo Johnson returns to the fore with her latest record Red, White & Yellow. "Waves" and "tidal forces" are the first verbal associations that spring to mind, as we're dunked into many a sequent swell and ruminant ripple of sound. In the hat-trick of tracks that is 'It Just Is The Love It Feels', 'Inside Eyes Sparks Fire Under Ice' and 'Unfolding & Folding', we hear a holy trinity of sorts, eschewing isolable tempi or affects for a deeply warming kind of minimalism.
Review: Jo Johnson is a rising name in the realm of modular ambience; here she presents her latest four track mini-album for Mysteries Of The Deep. 'The Wave Ahead' is an implicit homage to the likeness of sound waves and the moon-guided waves of the Earth's oceans, producing a nighttime calmdown for polyphonic synth in five tracks. For Johnson, both kinds of wave are nearly one and the same - 'diaphonous' - and the realisation is made manifest here in a stellarly arpeggio-heavy, sinewave-surfing LP, which recalls the work of Steve Hauschildt or Hannah Peel.
Old Skool Funk (feat Cory Wong & Jeff Lorber & Roki) (4:32)
In It To Win It (4:09)
Is It Too Late (4:11)
Fascination (4:06)
Personal Revolutions (4:31)
Earths Mysteries (4:13)
Flowers In Their Hair (feat Valerie Etinne) (5:05)
Between The Devil & The Deep Blue Sky (4:47)
Warrior Princess (4:37)
Dance Of The Summer Rain (3:02)
Review: British keyboardist, producer and songwriter Matt Johnsonibest known as a longtime core member of Jamiroquaiand no relation to the The The lynchpin isteps out once again under his own name with a second solo album that channels cosmic jazz, 70s funk and a renewed sense of purpose. Built around the symbolic narrative of Greta Thunberg's 2019 solo Atlantic crossing, the new record balances personal reflection with the energy of vintage groove music. With over 20 years' experience as Jamiroquai's co-writer and keyboardistihaving co-produced albums like AutomatoniJohnson now synthesises that foundation into something even more expansive. Aided by guests like Cory Wong, Will Lee and jazz fusion great Jeff Lorber, he crafts instrumentals that are warm, exploratory and fluid, rich with analogue synths and lyrical progressions. His YouTube community of 140,000 keyboard fans will find much to love here, but it's just as inviting for those new to his solo work. This is music that stares into the storm, yet sails through it with colour and clarity.
Review: The always excellent Be With turn their attention to Samuel Jonathon Johnson and his fantastic 1978 album "My Music", which was the only full length he put out. The smooth vibe you get from the cover art alone says a lot about the music the man recorded: steamy, downtempo soul, romantic disco and lots of strong laden gems to warm you and a loved one through. The well known "What The World Needs Now Is Love" is a slow motion soul soother, while "Sweet Love" is pure positivity and "You" brings gorgeous orchestral disco funk fusions that brim with vitality. His own libidinous spoken word vocals add loveable sleaze to "Just Us" and makes for one of many highlights.
Review: Whitney Johnson and Lia Kohl's debut album has evolved over several years. Its roots lay in their shared practice of free improvisation on viola and cello and flourished into a unique neophonic orchestral expression. That makes For Translucence both stimulating and soothing - a very alive form of musical meditation where layers of acoustic strings, wispy synths, evocative field recordings and radio and sine waves intertwine and grow while mesmerising you even more. Though always moving and shapeshifting the effect is cathartic as a fine balance is struck between experimentation and cohesion and the organic and the electronic.
Blow Monkeys - "Save Me" (Neville Watson dub) (8:04)
Cisco Cisco - "If You Want Me" (Jay Shepheard remix) (7:11)
Bongo Entp - "Drommen" (SIRS remix) (5:48)
Darlyn Vlys - "Wuzu" (Tyu Tribe remix) (7:18)
Kimo - "Whirl" (6:50)
Discoscuro - "Discoscuro" (6:10)
Popular Tyre - "Feel Like A Lazer Beam" (7:35)
Class B Band - "Repli-can" (edit) (6:04)
Bal5000 - "Bleu Infini" (7:52)
Phil Kieran - "Find Love" (Andrew Weatherall remix) (7:43)
Das Komplex - "89" (8:05)
Brioski - "Calling 626" (edit) (5:20)
Review: Sean Johnston's A Love From Outer Space is a masterclass in mood and restraint. Over two LPs, it captures the ethos of Johnston's club night, favouring steady, low-slung rhythms and cosmic textures over high-energy peaks. The tracks are sequenced with care, creating a meditative flow that rewards deep listening. This is dance music for introspection, where each layer reveals itself slowly, embodying a philosophy that values depth and subtlety.
Blow Monkeys - "Save Me" (Neville Watson dub) (8:04)
Cisco Cisco - "If You Want Me" (Jay Shepheard remix) (7:11)
Bongo Entp - "Drommen" (SIRS remix) (5:48)
Darlyn Vlys - "Wuzu" (Tyu Tribe remix) (7:18)
Kimo - "Whirl" (6:50)
Discoscuro - "Discoscuro" (6:10)
Popular Tyre - "Feel Like A Lazer Beam" (7:35)
Class B Band - "Repli-can" (edit) (6:04)
Bal5000 - "Bleu Infini" (7:52)
Phil Kieran - "Find Love" (Andrew Weatherall remix) (7:43)
Das Komplex - "89" (8:05)
Brioski - "Calling 626" (edit) (5:20)
Review: Sean Johnston curates a compilation that feels as much like a love letter to a bygone era of cosmic and chugging dance music as it does a blueprint for the future. Across this translucent red vinyl double LP, he assembles a narrative that stretches from the dub-tinged grooves of Weatherall-inspired rhythms to rich, enveloping basslines rooted in the darker corners of the dancefloor. These selections capture the ethos of A Love From Outer Spaceinot a style, but a sensibility, where tempo slows and subtlety reigns. Rather than overwhelm, the tracks reveal their power gradually, layering textures and grooves with a painterly touch.
Review: The debut full-length from George Kusunoki Miller, once better known as the YouTube characters Filthy Frank and Pink Guy, came after a poised transition to move his internet celebrity status and legions of avid followers over to a rebranded, sincere musical project under the moniker of Joji. Following on from 2017's promising In Tongues EP, the Ballads 1 LP would drop in 2018 and take the entire cloudrap scene by storm with its nuanced use of vaporwave-inflected trap production, drugged out R&B and melancholic penmanship. Serving as the launching pad for the stratospheric heights the project has reached since, this five year anniversary edition arrives with new artwork in a gatefold sleeve, and boasts some of the most essential cuts from both Miller's catalogue and internet hip-hop as a mass entity, including 'Slow Dancing In The Dark', 'Test Drive' and 'Yeah Right', while also featuring production credits from Clams Casino and a guest-verse from Trippie Redd.
Review: Ephemera is the debut album from Fergus Jones, formerly known as Perko, an Edinburgh-born, Copenhagen-based producer, DJ and founder of the FELT label. The nine-track album was created through collaborative efforts with musicians like Huerco S, James K and Koreless and explores Jones' personal and sonic journey while blending instinctive production with emotional depth. Tracks like 'Heima,' co-produced with Huerco S and James K, and 'Tight Knit' featuring Birthmark and ELDON, are perfect examples of the album's blend of raw emotion, intricate sound design and evocative vocals, all of which head into bold new territory stylistically.
Review: Grace Jones' fifth studio album, released on 11 May 1981, this album highlighted a legendary reinvention for the artist, moving her nearer towards the global fame that she's enjoyed for subsequent decades since. A sonic melting pot that blurred the lines between genres while retaining an air of effortless cool, it fuses of reggae's rolling basslines, the tight precision of new wave, the slick production of synth-pop and the ghost of disco's past. What made Nightclubbing particularly special was the way Jones fully embodied the musicinot merely performing songs but inhabiting them with an almost cinematic presence. Her deadpan delivery on 'Walking in the Rain' oozes detached swagger, while on 'Use Me', she turns Bill Withers' plea into an anthem of raw, unfiltered sensuality. The icy menace of 'Demolition Man' feels tailor-made for her, making The Police's later rendition seem comparatively tame. The reimagining of Piazzolla's 'Libertango' as 'I've Seen That Face Before' further demonstrated her ability to transform existing material into something wholly unique, haunting and hypnotic in equal measure. Sly & Robbie's rhythm section, along with Wally Badarou's textural synths, gave Nightclubbing an unmistakable grooveione that would be endlessly referenced by artists in the coming decades. From Massive Attack's trip-hop atmospherics to the sleek funk of LCD Soundsystem, the album's DNA is all over contemporary music.
Review: Female vocalist Sharon Jones continues to fly the flag for raw femme funk with her fifth album for US label Daptone, ably assisted by the labels in-house band - The Dap Kings. The new record is a collection of rare tracks and B-Sides going back as far as 2002. The only new track appears to be the Motown-esque "New Shoes", which, like the rest of the album, could be mistaken as a lost soul classic.
Review: Guillaume Lespinasse should be a familiar name to fans of the Brothers From Different Mothers label and the alternative French electronic/dance music scene that has been in rude health for ages now. As one half of celebrated live duo The Pilotwings, regulars on said label, we can safely consider him a master of the immersive slo mo sound, veering towards a more cosmic, almost tropical end as oppose to the heavier, progressive tones many opt for at that tempo.
Here he's stepping out alone to offer this richly detailed collection of ambience and obscurity, packed with the kind of noises that really make you want to stay in a moment forever. In many ways, the arrangements opt for a maximalist approach to serenity. And tracks don't stand still - they evolve, and develop, switch and change things up, at times sounding like opiate drone, in other moments 1980s movie accidentals.
Review: A contemporary jazz collaboration featuring the unique vocals of Deborah Jordan against the drum breakbeats and electronic nu-jazz fusion of fellow London native Kieron Ifill (aka K15). The collision of genres spans from the layered traditional R&B production on the smooth 'Heartbroken' to the 808 laden nu-jazz cut of 'Human' and the broken beats of 'Running'. Fans of Solange's 'When I Get Home', H.E.R's EPs and Liv.e's 'Couldn't Wait to Tell You' will have a long list of reasons to check this smooth mix of crystal clean production, jazzy soundscapes and hushed vocals. Jazz, Soul, Funk, and Blues fans cannot pass up the opportunity to give this LP a listen - R&B is far from dead.
Review: Selva Discos continues its committed exploration of rare and exquisite Brazilian gems with this true labour of love from two of the funkiest dudes to emerge from Latin America in the 80s. Robson Jorge and Lincoln Olivetti originally only released one album of fusion funk together in 1982, but now the Selva team and the artists have worked together to unearth more material from the pair spanning 82 through to 87. These five tracks have never been released, making them essential listening for the legions of Brazilian music devotees, not to mention those on an eternal quest for the slickest boogie joints.
Review: Insane boogie fire from Rio circa 82; both Robson Jorge and Lincoln Olivetti were already decorated before they joined forces, but this one took both of their reputations and amplified them beyond expectation. Their one and only album, it's loaded with soul and funk from every corner of Brazil's sexy city and brought together with beautiful attention to detail; the gradual vocal breakdowns, rude synths and lavish instrumental sections, key cuts such as the Wonder-level "Aleluia", the jazz slides and glides of "Pret-A-Porter" and the sexy 80s electro boogie "Squash" will still completely flip any party 35 years later. Stunning.
Review: Poet, novelist and musician Anthony Joseph shares his latest Afrofuturist opus; a seven-track album of defiant, zooming, return-to-source music, comprising arched spoken word, broken/Afrobeat and soul jazz. Built mainly around the core triad that is 'Tony', 'A Tuba For Janet' and 'Churches Of Sound', this LP has the pull and gravitas of a classic album about it; it channels the fluvial, downstream consequences of historic exploitation and erasure, mixed in with a revolutionary lyrical spirit, charged with the hard-treaded grace of dub and Pan-African funk. Described as an Afrofuturist poem by Joseph, there is talk of genealogy, secret languages and wizardry: our fave has to be 'A Juba For Janet', a dub narrative constructed around the titular Miss Janet.
Review: Secretly Canadian comes through agin with a superb new album of emotive hip-hop from Wesley Joseph. This is a record of love, loss, joy, anxiety and coming-of-age struggles that arrive on lovely and lively translucent green vinyl. Joseph shows off his wordplay, lyrical intricacy and songwriting skills as he sings in his unique falsetto about a time of change. It follows his well-recorded latest single 'Sugar Dive' and is paired with plenty of low-slung bass, snappy rhythms and percussive drums. As he moves from rapping to singing with real raw honesty and some fine character studies along the way, Joseph really announces himself here.
Review: Though they've trodden remarkably different paths through music so far, the coming-together of UK singer-producers Allysha Joy, Hidden Spheres and Finn Rees makes for a latent talent condensation of the "of course!" kind. Solina hears them freshwater rock pool their shared ear for groove and space, weaving motifs of Balearic house, jazz, broken beat and 90s street soul through a vivid whole; long after each artist's works across in veins of future beats, chillwave, deep house and UK bass. From the tremulous Rhodes overwash of 'Promised Me Love' to the sophomoric sunstroke 'Trust The Feeling', Joy's vocals usually only appear lately, like a vocal forest spirit peeking its head out on the ecotone between wood and sea. Not a showcase of chops, but a case of layered restraint, unfurling unhurriedly.
Review: Known for her solo work and as the frontwoman of 30/70, Allysha Joy's husky, soulful voice and exceptional Fender Rhodes skills make her a standout in the jazz-soul scene. She hails from Melbourne and is a singer, songwriter, producer, and keys player who has had big props by key figures like Gilles Peterson, Jamz Supernova and Jamie Cullum and performed alongside acts such as Kokoroko and Children of Zeus. The Making of Silk is her new album and it is packed with her captivating vocals over jazz instrumentals, organic hip-hop grooves, with hints of new-soul, r&b and spiritual jazz greats like Alice Coltrane all appearing throughout the majestic, richly realised and luxurious sounds. This is a black vinyl version, though it also comes on grey-marbled wax.
Review: Passarinho Urbano (Urban Bird) is the album-length result of a chance encounter between singer and musician Joyce Moreno and producer Sergio Bardotti in Rome, Italy. Thoroughly relaxed and recharged after a long break in the city, Moreno's rejuvenated state of mind lent immediately to a spur-of-the-moment reimagining of some of her favourite classical Brazilian MPB and bossa nova standards, some of whose original composers were leading lights of the underground cultural resistance during the country's military dictatorship by the Brazilian Army during the 1960s. With a soft-spoken, intimate vocal intonation by Moreno, and a composition centring on slow-building, rhythmically deft call-and-response cantos, this album deserves its longstanding status as a secret masterpiece, a status which'll surely be renewed once more by this first-time-worldwide reissue by Week-End Records.
Review: JPEGMAFIA's Veteran is a confrontational and glitchy masterpiece, both musically and politically charged. Drawing inspiration from Ol' Dirty Bastard's experimentalism, the album delves into themes of racism, gentrification, and internet culture with unapologetic fervor. Entirely self-produced, the album showcases JPEGMAFIA's adept ability to use of sound and texture, weaving together frayed elements into a cohesive and atmospheric whole. Tracks like 'Baby I'm Bleeding' and 'Panic Emoji' exemplify the album's sonic chaos, with distortion and fragmentation used percussively and melodically. JPEGMAFIA's delivery is equally dynamic, seamlessly transitioning between singing and rapping, often on the same track. His lyrical prowess shines on 'Williamsburg,' where he paints a vivid portrait of gentrification's cold and industrial reality. JPEGMAFIA's music remains firmly rooted in his unique perspective, making Veteran a breathless and essential addition to the hip-hop landscape.
Review: LP! marked the fourth studio album by esteemed Baltimore rapper JPEGMAFIA. Dropping back in October 2021 and coinciding with his 32nd birthday, the record boasts collaborations with DatPiMaa, Kimbra, and Tkay Maidza and picked up plenty of acclaim from Pitchfork, NME, and others. Lyrically, it delves into JPEG's struggles within the music industry while maintaining his own sense of authenticity. Fully self-produced, it epitomizes his artistic ethos and comes after he has amassed over 1.5 million monthly Spotify listeners and a 500K+ strong Instagram following. As such with this album, JPEGMAFIA has solidified his status as a leading figure in contemporary and experimental hip hop.
Review: Easily two of the most unique, eccentric and absurd artists in modern hip-hop; the much whispered about collaborative album from Danny Brown and JPEGMAFIA finally lands on wax, and does its utmost to live up to the apt, meme-reflective title of Scaring The Hoes. Fully produced in house by JPEGMAFIA, the beats are stark, minimal, caustic and often impenetrable, whilst the two frenetic MCs go toe to toe, back and forth, and constantly attempt to one-up the other with bizarre bars, unhinged delivery and a hazy, drugged out audible aesthetic designed to clear out any party and scare away all proverbial hoes. Alternative hip-hop rarely gets as outsider or purposefully obtuse as this warped meeting of minds.
Jpye & Renato - "Va La-Bas" (feat Michael T) (5:43)
Jpye & Renato - "Tutto OK" (4:17)
Jpye & Leonidas - "Lazyjack" (5:48)
Jpye & Renato - "Take Off" (4:48)
Jpye & Da Roc - "Spinnaker" (4:44)
Jpye & Iamrobd - "Fingers Crossed" (4:52)
Jpye - "Freedom Ain't Free" (instrumental) (3:55)
Jpye & Da Roc - "Spinnaker" (instrumental) (4:53)
Review: Jean-Paul Altier's debut album as Jpye, 2021's Samba With You, was something of a slept-on gem - a joyously sunny and sonically colourful trip into Balearic pop territory that utilised the vocal and musical talents of a pool of trusted collaborators. The French producer and sometime Twonk member takes a similar approach on this follow up, with even stronger results. Laidback, summery and sunset-ready, Altier's entertaining and accessible tracks variously draw influence from jazz-funk, deep nu-disco, dub disco, downtempo and Latin soul, while also existing in their own sonic space. Highlights include the sumptuous opener 'Freedom Ain't Free', the delightfully sleazy 'Shiver' (a cover of an Italian disco obscurity), the Balearic dub shuffle of 'Tutto OK' and the yearning, emotion-packed brilliance of sunrise soundscape 'Fingers Crossed'.
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