Review: Brijean is the combination of percussionist and singer Brijean Murphy and multi-instrumentalist and producer Doug Stuart channelling their collective experiences into fresh rhythms. They debuted their first Ghostly album back in 2021 and since then have left the Bay Area. This new EP finds the pair at their most intimate, working through grief and exploring a new range of moods and styles across effervescent rhythms and colourful chords that bring rich and vibrant feelings to the fore. It's a captivating and creative record that might be their best yet.
Review: Brijean is the solo moniker and shortening of the name Brijean Murphy, the percussionist and singer-songwriter best known for his outings as an instrumental player at the heart of various live band instances of well-known alt-indie bands such as Toro Y Moi, Mitski and Poolside. Here, however, Brijean manifests as a collab project with multi-instrumentalist and producer Doug Stuart, adding another record to their own discog. Macro takes in the big picture, erring from the themes explored on 2021's Feelings and 2022's Angelo - which took in discrete topics - and instead providing the formal toolkit with which we may, simply, dance. Colourful, collaborative, sophisticated, and deeply fun, the album animates a macrocosm with characters, moods and points of view rooted in the notion that no feeling is final and the only way out is through.
Review: Bullion continues to perfect his endlessly charming strain of modernist synth pop with this new album for Ghostly International. The lead single from the album sets the tone beautifully, as the mighty Carly Rae Jepsen lends her voice to 'Rare' for a blissful, woozy ride through exquisite song craft that calls back to AOR and soft rock as much as synthwave. Further guest spots arrive from Panda Bear and Charlotte Adigery, but as ever Bullion's own charisma remains the driving force on this latest dose of honey-coated audio pleasure from a master of the art.
Review: Bullion (Nathan Jenkins) returns with a surprise full-length album, Affection. Breaking from his irreverent electro-shanties for a minute, Affection reminds us of Jenkins' far-reaching capacities as a producer and songwriter, with each song on this expansive new LP centring on the titular theme of affection and intimacy. Avowing the sound advice that is not to take others' advice, Bullion's M.O. going into the record was to follow his instincts and treat the studio as a site of adventure; this is reflected as much in the album's roomy, deep and detuned pop ditties, which veer away from banger science and more into the slow dreams of warm synths, subtle progressions and emergent horizons. Carly Rae Jepsen's feature is the bait highlight on 'Rare', though star cuts like 'World_train' and 'Cinch' also catch us off guard.
Review: While the appeal of Minecraft may be lost on some, there's no doubting the cultural significance of the immersive, user-built game. One of the title's most attractive features has always been its' music, which was composed, played and produced by a hitherto unknown German producer called Daniel Rosenfeld, under the C418 alias. Here, in the first of two volumes, Ghostly International showcases the best of Rosenfeld's work for the series. Sitting somewhere between the spacious ambience of Pete Namlook and Brian Eno, the heart-aching piano motifs of Eric Satie, and the sweeping orchestral pulse of a movie soundtrack, the 24 pieces here stand up with anything released by seasoned ambient producers in recent times.
Review: "Remembering is not the opposite of forgetting," Casey MQ sings at the start of Later that day, the day before, or the day before that, his new LP and Ghostly International debut. It's a phrase fittingly misremembered from something the LA-based, Canadian-born composer came upon, as he spiraled into unconscious and subconscious-led writing sessions at the piano. Musing on the joys of the selective-amnesiac tendency of the creative flow state, MQ makes riveting use of classical-synthetic composition - piano parts run through copious effects chains, vocal parts run through subtly humanised, formant-shifted and note-bent pitch correctors - to produce a sublime amnestic union. But to forget is also to forgive: hence the word 'amnesty' and its common root with amnesia. This is a profoundly forgiving record, with 'Grey Gardens' and 'Me, I Think I Found It' finding a profound space of acceptance for the days coming and going, for solitude and for new leaves uncovered in amnestic carvings-out and turnings-over.
Review: Some seven years after his last full-length excursion, Fort Romeau has finally got around to delivering a new album. Beings of Light is every bit as gorgeous and picturesque affair, with the Chester-born producer adding waves of attractive synthesizer sounds, colourful electronics, cascading guitars, dusty samples and loved-up riffs to sturdy deep house beats. The album's multitude of highlights include bluesy, post jazz-house number 'The Truth', the tech-tinged late-night wonkiness of 'Power of Grace', the sturdy and druggy after-hours chug of 'Ramona' and the dreamy lusciousness of title track 'Beings of Light'.
Review: Galcher Lustwerk is one of those artists who has a completely diehard fan base. And for good reason, he is an idiosyncratic producer who collides myriad different sounds. Rap, funk, blues, beatboxing, techno, electro and bass are all fair game to him. His fist ever mixtape was a stream of sonic consciousness that has never before been released on vinyl. But now Ghostly International step up and press it to two 12"s, with both black and coloured green versions as well as a CD version available. It was a fine announcement of his arrival back then and still stands apart today.
Review: Step inside the world of Ginger Root with Shinbangdumi, Cameron Lew's third LP and Ghostly International debut. A multi-instrumentalist, producer, songwriter, and visual artist from Southern California, Lew has crafted his unique blend of handmade yet polished synth-pop, alt-disco, boogie and soul since 2017. Drawing inspiration from 1970s and '80s music, particularly Japanese City Pop and its Western counterparts, Lew creates a sound that is singular and modern. Shinbangumi translates to "a new season of a show" and reflects Lew's personal and artistic evolution. The album's track arrangement, influenced by feedback from his live band and collaborator David Gutel, is designed to take listeners on an exhilarating journey, starting with the infectious 'No Problems' and its catchy basslines and guitar riffs. 'Better Than Monday' transitions from lo-fi to hi-fi splendor, humorously addressing the universal dread of Mondays. The album balances referential and refreshing elements, with tracks like 'There Was A Time' and 'All Night' showcasing Lew's melodic strength. 'Only You' delivers a true City Pop anthem, while "Giddy Up" channels The B-52s and Devo. 'Kaze' evokes the Tin Pan Alley sound of Harry Hosono, recorded in a Tokyo karaoke bar. 'Show 10' stands as the album's spiritual heart, reminding Lew of his commitment to delivering his best to fans. With Shinbangdumi, Ginger Root presents a wealth of nostalgia and innovation with their version of synthpop.
Review: Shinbangumi is the third LP from multi-instrumentalist Lew, marks a significant evolution for the Southern California artist Ginger Root. Seamlessly blending 70s and 80s influences like Japanese City Pop, Philly Soul, and French Pop, Lew's sound is a sophisticated mix of synth-pop, alt-disco, boogie, and soul. Shinbangumi stands out not only for its musical strength but also for its conceptual narrative, continuing from the 2022 EP Nisemono. Tracks like 'No Problems' and 'Better Than Monday' exhibit Lew's knack for combining catchy melodies with clever production. 'There Was A Time' and 'All Night' highlight his ability to craft both introspective and dance-worthy tunes. 'Only You' delves into true City Pop, while 'Giddy Up' channels the quirky energy of The B-52s and Devo. 'Kaze,' recorded in Tokyo, adds a unique texture inspired by Yellow Magic Orchestra's Harry Hosono. Lew's dedication to his craft and his fans is more than evident here.
Review: A Pale Fire, Goldmund, Mint Julep and Helios are just a few of the pies that American composer and multi-instrumentalist Keith Kenniff has their fingers in. The latter, an ambient project started in 2004 with 'Unomia', has received critical acclaim, their formal music training and unique approach to the genre garnering quite the following in the late 2000s. Since then, Helios has been consistently putting out projects, all the while still working on Goldmund and more - 'Espera' feels like it's what Kenniff does to unwind from his busy schedule. It's a deep sigh, a breath of fresh air as a sunbeam bursts through the clouds. Single 'Intertwine' is heavily inspired by the lo-fi hip-hop boom of the 2010s, the gentle rolling percussion, swaying synths and muted snares are meditative and nostalgic. 'Lineoa' takes a more upright approach, a spacious composition and orchestral elements cradle a gentle guitar riff, as blown-up flutes and uplifting strings evoke Eric Barones work on 'Stardew Valley'.
Review: A Pale Fire, Goldmund, Mint Julep and Helios are just a few of the pies that American composer and multi-instrumentalist Keith Kenniff has their fingers in. The latter, an ambient project started in 2004 with 'Unomia', has received critical acclaim, their formal music training and unique approach to the genre garnering quite the following in the late 2000s. Since then, Helios has been consistently putting out projects, all the while still working on Goldmund and more - 'Espera' feels like it's what Kenniff does to unwind from his busy schedule. It's a deep sigh, a breath of fresh air as a sunbeam bursts through the clouds. Single 'Intertwine' is heavily inspired by the lo-fi hip-hop boom of the 2010s, the gentle rolling percussion, swaying synths and muted snares are meditative and nostalgic. 'Lineoa' takes a more upright approach, a spacious composition and orchestral elements cradle a gentle guitar riff, as blown-up flutes and uplifting strings evoke Eric Barones work on 'Stardew Valley'. This version is pressed on a beige and blue gradient vinyl, a picturesque disc that imitates the dusk on the album cover.
A Pale Fire, Goldmund, Mint Julep and Helios are just a few of the pies that American composer and multi-instrumentalist Keith Kenniff has their fingers in. The latter, an ambient project started in 2004 with 'Unomia', has received critical acclaim, their formal music training and unique approach to the genre garnering quite the following in the late 2000s. Since then, Helios has been consistently putting out projects, all the while still working on Goldmund and more - 'Espera' feels like it's what Kenniff does to unwind from his busy schedule. It's a deep sigh, a breath of fresh air as a sunbeam bursts through the clouds. Single 'Intertwine' is heavily inspired by the lo-fi hip-hop boom of the 2010s, the gentle rolling percussion, swaying synths and muted snares are meditative and nostalgic. 'Lineoa' takes a more upright approach, a spacious composition and orchestral elements cradle a gentle guitar riff, as blown-up flutes and uplifting strings evoke Eric Barones work on 'Stardew Valley'. This version is pressed on a beige and blue gradient vinyl, a picturesque disc that imitates the dusk on the album cover.
Review: The exalted dream-pop-and-more duo of Nigel Yang and Jonnine Standish (HTRK) were originally a trio, with bassist Sean Stewart making up a third part of the Australian team's membership. Marry Me Tonight (2009) was as such the only album HTRK recorded from start to finish as a trio, as well as, coincidentally, being the only HTRK record to bear the co-productive stamp of Rowland S Howard (The Birthday Party). With the band racked by the devastation of both Stewart and Howard's deaths in the years after this album's release, HTRK's second LP is the last in an era: unlike their romantic recencies, early 'Hate Rock' was marked by enveloping blankets of industrial grunge-verb, with the instrumental shadow of post-rock looming larger, and with comparatively reticent and sparsely included vocal performances by Standish. Ghostly now reissue the record in what now functions as a compelling look back on HTRK's relatively steelier start.
Review: As they mark over two decades of collaboration, HTRK continue to thread past and present with a new, upcoming reissue of Rhinestones. First self-released in 2021, the album marked a stylistic turn for Standish and Yang, embracing a sparse and haunted approach to songwriting inspired by gothic country and Western folk minimalism, contrasting their earlier dub-punk dramatics. More emotionally forthright as their records go, it drifts over echoic acoustic textures, hushed vocals, and a characteristic metronomic pulse, conjuring a shadowy, intimate atmosphere. A landmark release epitomising their noted progression out from minimal-wave origins to "gentler, more inviting" territory, Rhinestones motivated a quiet resurgence for the band. This reissue follows the 2024 repress of their debut Marry Me Tonight and the collaborative 'String Of Hearts' EP, with reinterpretations from peers like Loraine James and Liars, reaffirming HTRK's strong creative orbit.
Review: Canada may not shout as loud as the US, UK or Germany when it comes to electronic music, with the exception of Richie Hawtin perhaps, albeit frequently assumed he's American, and is actually part-British. Nevertheless, the larger North American state has a truly remarkable legacy in house, techno, ambient, and synth-y odds and sods.
It's proof the apple never falls far from the tree, given proximity to some of the bonafide birthplaces of those sounds - Chicago and Detroit. Edmonton's Khotin is indicative of the difficult to define tones that emanate from the Maple Leaf and its people. So much texture, pouring with emotion, and fundamentally born of new ideas, or at least different ways of thinking. Release Spirit, his third album on Michigan's Ghostly International, is thoughtful, intelligent, downtempo electronic stuff, crafted with love and attention to detail.
Review: This is what happens when acclaimed Los Angeline harpist Mary Lattimore enlists Slowdive's Neil Halstead fo production duties. A lush, and liquid listening experience that is as graceful as it is confident, blurring the lines between classical and ambient in a way that seems to echo centuries of traditional, almost Medieval tones and contemporary electronic adventures alike.
Lattimore's work has previously been described in terms of 'dreamscapes', and few have been painted more vividly than Silver Ladders. These are deep dive arrangements that expand and contract like breathing, allowing the artist's signature instrument to shine while submerging it in swells of refrain. Movement is constant, and yet the record feels mill pond still. Hardly par for the course, even in the fertile sonic ground she works in. Step inside and prepare to be captivated.
Review: Mary Lattimore's standing as one of the foremost harpists in active service is without doubt at this stage, but even by her considerable reputation this record is a standout moment in a glittering career. Over the course of two years, the dedicated improviser committed herself to focused sessions and collaborated with an impressive cast of characters from The Cure's Lol Tolhurst to Slowdive's Rachel Goswell. The over-arching theme is one of the inescapable nature of change, as crystallised in the crumbling Croatian hotel Lattimore references in the album title. It goes without saying the musical results are achingly beautiful, nuanced and fathoms deep.
Review: Galcher Lustwerk, the Cleveland-raised, NYC-based producer, has carved a unique lane in deep, low-key post-hip-house since his 2013 debut 100% Galcher. Through smoky, stream-of-consciousness vocals evincing an ability to both produce and locute, his work blends funk, rap and r&b into hypnotic club and after-hours four-scapes. On Information, his Ghostly International debut, Lustwerk refined his tech-noir house corner. Live drums and jazz sax added fresh texture, while Lust's trademark narrative cryptologes evoked dimly lit dives, fleeting encounters, and an all-round shadowiness. 'Cig Angel' and 'Another Story' pulse with the sonic linguals of mumble-core film and salivatory softened production, while 'I See A Dime' races forward with syncopated lyrics and daring bongos. True to an enciphered ethos, Lustwerk plays with perception: "Information doesn't equal knowledge."
Review: Portland, Oregon's Graham Jonson urges our hurries once more with Heard That Noise, an anemological study in ascendant post-rock and psych. Jonson crafts intimate, zigzagging and west windy songs, ploughing the grey, sludgy boundaries of folk, pop, and noise. Following a subtle tangent from SoundCloud renown to 2021's The Long and Short Of It, he now follows that record up through a desultory reflection on breakups, memory, and creative rediscovery; Phil Elverum, Dijon and Nick Drake glance through the sonic cloud cover as ancestral muses, while the record blends warmth and discordance, where sweet ballads unravel into distortion; serene moments jolted by sonic "jump scares."
Review: Ten year anniversary? Has it really already been ten years since Recondite's sophomore album 'Hinterland' came out?! Recondite almost single-handedly was responsible in many peoples eyes for the resurgence in techno during the early 2010s. After beating down the doors of Ghostly International for many years, the fans finally get their wish in the shape a new, shiny reissue. Coming on smokey black vinyl this time, nobody has a reason to not have this record in their collection. Included are legendary tracks like 'Stems', 'Clouded' and 'Leafs'. Many think that not only is this the best Recondite album but one of the best techno albums of the year 2013.
Review: Cherry Blossom Baby marks Shigeto's first full-length since 2017, emerging from a period of introspection and renewal. The Detroit-based artist, renowned for his blend of electronic, jazz, r&b and hip-hop, delivers a vibrant, collaborative album that reflects his cultural heritage and personal evolution. Drawing inspiration from the cherry blossoms of Hiroshima, Shigeto infuses each track with a sense of resilience and transformation. The album shows Shigeto's artistry and his commitment to collaboration. From the high-energy 'Ready. Set. Flex' featuring drummer Ian Maciak and rapper Zelooperz, to the soulful 'The Punch' with KESSWA, Shigeto embraces a range of sounds and styles. Tracks like 'BookaMagick' and 'Runnup On'm' showcase his ability to blend genres and create immersive experiences. Cherry Blossom Baby celebrates Shigeto's return to his craft, honoring both his roots and his growth. The record's rich, expansive production, influenced by 70s and 80s psych and jazz, reflects a collaborative spirit and a deep connection to Detroit's musical landscape.
Review: Shigeto started playing drums at a young age and spent his childhood immersed in the Detroit and Ann Arbor music scene. After nearly failing high school, except for his music studies, he pursued jazz at New York's New School and later in London, where he delved into electronic production. Since moving to Brooklyn in the early 2010s, he has not looked back and is now a mainstay of the underground and a key artist in the Ghostly family. His new album Cherry Blossom Baby marks his first full-length release since 2017 and is is another succulent and sublime blend of electronic, jazz, r&b, and hip-hop with a collaborative Detroit-rooted sound that celebrates personal growth and resilience.
Review: Swedish duo Studio's debut album, released in 2006, is a masterful blend of genres that defies easy categorisation. Drawing from Balearic beat, disco, and krautrock, the album offers a refreshing take on contemporary music. Opening the LP, "Out There" sets the tone with its expansive, atmospheric soundscapes, inviting listeners into a world of lush melodies and intricate rhythms. As the album progresses, tracks like 'West Side' and 'Self Service' showcase the duo's ability to craft infectious grooves, seamlessly merging organic instrumentation with electronic elements. The closing piece, 'Indo', serves as a contemplative finale, leaving a lasting impression with its hypnotic progression. This album stands as a testament to Studio's innovative approach, offering a timeless listening experience that continues to resonate.
Review: It is still rather cold here at Juno HQ, but the days are starting to feel little longer and brighter, which means we're ever more open to Balearic reveries. Few are better than this one from Studio, the Swedish duo of Dan Lissvik and Rasmus Hagg who created a sound bridging indie, electronic and psychedelic music. Their 2006 debut blended Balearic romanticism with Krautrock, disco, dub, afrobeat and pop lyricism influenced by new wave and has been hard to find in physical and even streaming formats over the years. Inspired by DJ Screw, J Dilla and European live DJ sets, Studio embraced an "anything-goes" ethos, unbound by musical borders, and the results have stood the test of time.
Review: Swedish duo Studio's debut album, a groundbreaking fusion of Balearic textures, Krautrock grooves and post-punk aesthetics gets a reissue here, nearly two decades on from its initial release in 2006. The hazy, expansive production feels perfectly at home on this format, with the "fog" vinyl subtly matching the hazy warmth and depth of the pair's intricate arrangements. From the shimmering guitar lines that drift through the opener to the hypnotic rhythms that define the album's centrepieces, every element is given space to resonate by Dan Lissvik and Rasmus Hagg. Choice.
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