Back catalogue: Rock (All)

Review: Junior Dell & The D-Lites are one of reggae's most accomplished outfits and they have a vast arsenal of tunes to back that up. This one is one of many delightful dubs - and it now makes its way to us via Original Gravity. 'East Of Hurghada' has a noodling melodic lead and nice dusty drums with a more textured horn eventually taking the main stage. On the flip, Woodfield Rd Allstars step up with 'Lickle Fat Mattress' which is another blend of ska, reggae and dub with some natty keys.

Review: Continuing the label's special 7"s releases that capture the nascent 80s post punk, dub, funk and pop - as examined on releases by The Jellies, Woo, Phantom Band, 4AM and more - here a discovery of unheard demos from Dislocation Dance's Midnight Shift album.
As part of the eighties Manchester scene, the band's pop and jazz sensibilities have continued to garner attention, offering a rightful place in the city's rich music history.
With the closure of Richard Boon's New Hormones label in 1982, they came to the attention of Geoff Travis' Rough Trade. Creating a home studio in the basement of an old rambling farmhouse in Withington, Ian Runacres (guitar, vocals), with lyricist Paul Emmerson (bass), set to work creating demos to garner a deal.
Inspired by the funk-disco of Dr Buzzards Original Savannah Band debut album, Here Comes Love was written using Roland TR-606 drum machine, guitars, bass and (cheap) keyboard, its magical and lo-fi charmed quality melts hearts.
On Mr Zak, the fun Runacres had is evident. Written as an "indie" song, but with Aztec Camera and Burt Bacharrach on his mind, with Andy Diagram (trumpet) and Kathryn Way (vocals), hides a structure matching the album version, but which in its rudimentary instrumentation and production is unique and outshines the later version, to encase a specific period and innocence, of time.

Review: Make A Dance brings their official remix of Django Django's 'Don't Touch That Dial' to vinyl and in the process create a dancefloor bomb. Already a club-ready original, the remix transforms the original into an electrifying body-shaking anthem with Yuuko's vocals taking centre stage but nicely complemented by glitchy synths and acid elements. This version is a full-throttle, infectious banger and on the B-side you will find a vinyl-only dub mix that amplifies the electro grooves allowing Yuuko's vocals to subtly loop in the background. This is one of those records that Das of all genres will be reaching for to get things going to the next level.

Review: The 7" from Third Man Records features two previously-unreleased takes of the song 'Blind Willie McTell' with the a-side being totally exclusive to this Record Store Day Special. The b-side will also, in time, be included on Springtime In New York: The Bootleg Series, Vol. 16 (1980-1985). Session musicians Mark Knopfler, Mick Taylor, Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare all play on the tune which was the first one worked on during the Infidels album sessions. Bob Dylan's voice is at its whiny and idiosyncratic best here as his harmonica rings out, rolling drums set a slightly country-sousing groove and electric guitars flesh out the track.

Review: Carrying the torch for bittersweet post-punk introspection like few others of her generation, Carla dal Forno has always captivated through the strength of her songwriting. That she also successfully channels the sound of the DIY 1980s is a bonus. On her third album, dal Forno has settled in rural Australia and the album reflects a drastic shift in her circumstances since being in the cut and thrust of Berlin and London. There's space for more open, light-touch songs to match the brooding, low-register tracks she made her name on. But in essence, dal Forno remains true to her muse, meaning returning fans will be more than satisfied with the latest step on for one of the finest singer-songwriters in contemporary post-punk.

Review: Back in 2011, Nicolas Jaar joined forces with fellow Clown & Sunset contributor Dave Harrington for the Darkside EP, an impressive trio of untitled tracks that pitted the formers scratchy, near-paranoid production style against the latter's penchant for lo-fi indie-rock inspired fuzziness. Here, the duo dusts down the Darkside alias once more for a first collaborative album. Predictably, it's an impressive set, offering a collection of downtempo tracks that shuffle between crackly, out-there atmospherics ("Sitra", reminiscent of much of Jaar's Space is Only Noise album), echo-laden alt-rock experimentalism ("Heart") and heart-aching fragility (the James Blake-ish "Greek Light").

Review: Since the glorious synth pop years of Japan, David Sylvian has journeyed into many other realms as a musician. The experimental nature of his formative band set the tone for a career of genuine intrigue, demonstrated wonderfully on this compelling album from 2009, reissued as a double vinyl release to foil some astronomical second hand prices. Manafon centres around pieces of free improvisation, experimental rock and chamber music, with Sylvian's eloquent voice guiding your ear through all manner of fascinating soundscapes and story scenes. With contributors including Christian Fennesz, Evan Parker, Keith Rowe and Toshimaru Nakamura, this is a widely hailed piece of leftfield art that ranks as one of the brightest jewels in Sylvian's glittering career.

Review: German-Brazilian artist Gloria de Olivera and David Lynch associate Dean Hugely come together for an album that cerebrates the joy and escapism of dream pop. It is an album on Sacred Bones awash with eerie synth strings that are offset by De Olivera's German vocals. Drums echo the sounds of the early Cocteau Twins and the shimmering synths take you higher. It is a low key work with plenty of lo-fi aesthetics but one that makes a grand emotional impact. 'Hanging Gardens' is a real favourite with its moody backdrop of wooly synths.

Review: Dead Sound is collaborative project featuring Marco Sterk (aka Young Marco) and Berlin-based pop-auteur John Moods, two artists with existing links to the Music From Memory label, Sterk being part of the trio Gaussian Curve and Moods released the 2022 album Hidden Gem with The Zenmenn. The eight tracks here are delicate and atmosphere-laden, drawing on everything from reverb-soaked, harmonic folk - 'Eye In Disguise' - to the Geiger counter rhythm and low-in-the-mix mutters of 'Force of Nature', like an understated Throbbing Gristle if such a thing could be imagined. If you enjoyed Trentemoller's recent reinvention of shoegaze, Scandi synthpop and post-punk on Dreamweaver, then this will be well up your street.

Review: Jean Pierre Decerf's records have been sampled by top talent in the game (Wu-Tang Clan's RZA) and have also been massively inspirational to the likes of indie talent such as Air. However, the Parisian has always been something of a recluse and it's only now that his best moments have been collected into a definitive compilation by Born Bad Records. As both the cover and title suggest, this stuff is pure psychedelia from start to finish and tracks like "Like Flight" are simply stunning, where freaky guitar riffs meet with twisted synth patterns, funky percussion swings and seductive vocals. Not to exaggerate or anything but this LP might well be the best thing that's landed here at Juno HQ this week and you'd be silly not to pick it up. Essential electronic and discofied innovations.

Review: Emotional Rescue go hunting in the reeds for forgotten projects, and come up trumps once again. Delay Tactics formed at the beginning of the 80s as a tape looping project from Carl Weingarten and Reed Nesbit before expanding their palette with Walter Whitney's synth vamping. They didn't last past their second album, 1984's Any Questions?, but now the finest of the band's catalogue has been documented here. The sound is prime inquisitive 80s, teetering between the traditional band dynamic and the experimental pastures of technology-powered music. At times infectiously playful ('Oyster') and at others compellingly beautiful ('Kites'), Delay Tactics are exactly the kind of band that deserve another moment in the sunshine.

Review: Depeche Mode's 1983 performance at London's Hammersmith Odeon comes here on a special limited edition picture disc. It marked a pivotal moment in their career and listening back now is still an iconic live recording. Their burgeoning synth-pop sound with its pulsating rhythms and introspective lyrics shines through classics like 'Just Can't Get Enough.' Dave Gahan's charismatic vocals and Martin Gore's evocative melodies remain unparalleled. This concert tracks their evolution into electronic music pioneers, delivering an emotionally-charged performance that resonates with fans to this day, making it a timeless experience worth revisiting.

Review: 32 years on from the release of their debut album Speak and Spell, Basildon's finest drop their 14th full length. While there are echoes of their eyeliner-wearing, synth-bothering futurist past (see the glitchy "My Little Universe" and early New Order-ish "Broken", where Dave Gahan sings about 'dreaming of the future'), for the most part Delta Machine finds them in grinchy synth-rock mode, presumably shaking their fists at passing youngsters like a gang of grumpy old men. Thankfully, they're still capable of great things - "Soothe My Soul" has echoes of "Personal Jesus" - and there's enough to suggest there's some life in the old dogs yet.

Review: Depeche Mode's performance at Hammersmith Odeon in London, 1983, captured the band at a pivotal moment in their career. This iconic live recording showcases their burgeoning synth-pop sound which blends pulsating rhythms with dark, introspective lyrics. Songs like the ever-green classic 'Just Can't Get Enough' resonate with irresistible signature sounds while Dave Gahan's charismatic vocals and Martin Gore's evocative melodies still sound like nothing else. The concert tracks Depeche Mode's evolution into global pioneers of electronic music and is an emotionally charged performance that is well worth reliving.

Review: Matthew Doty cut his teeth as a member of early 00s post rockers Saxon Shore, but these days you'll find him flying solo as Deserta with a sound which carries through some of his roots while adding a dreamy, shoegaze-pop twist. In 2020 he released the first Deserta album, Black Aura My Sun, and now he's back with the follow-up. Leading with the tracks 'Lost In The Weight' and 'I'm So Tired', Doty wields a mammoth sound with towering guitars and vocals that swirl in an ocean of reverb. It's genuinely huge, marking a new progression for the artist and his project which should be a must for fans of My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive and plenty more besides.

Review: This is a special ivory white vinyl version of Zani Diabate's Super Djata Band is another essential release from Numero Group. The band was a leading force in Mali's music scene during the 1980s when they blended Wasulu hunter music, griot praises, Senufo dances, Fula and Mandingo tunes with Western psychedelia, blues, and Afrobeat. Their 1982 album captures Diabate's virtuosity and is a showcase of his mastery of the guitar through eight compelling tracks. The resulting album is a gold standard in world music that confirms Diabate's place among the legendary West African guitarists and illustrates his unique ability to fuse diverse musical traditions.

Review: Zani Diabate's Super Djata Band was a leading Malian orchestra in the 1980s. They were known for blending Wasulu hunter music, griot praises, Senufo dances and Fula and Mandingo repertoire with Western psychedelia, blues, and Afrobeat into their own unique forms. In 1982 their album cemented Diabate's place among legendary West African guitarists as he mesmerised listeners with eight vibrant compositions featuring plenty of his hypnotic guitar work. Now it gets reissued on Numero Group and the record solidifies his status as a mythic figure in West African music so for anyone with an appreciation of house styles it is a must.

Review: Some 36 years after making an instant impact with their fuzzy debut album, alt rock originals Dinosaur Jr. are still going strong. Sweep It Into Space, the band's first studio album since 2016, is testament to their continued mastery of an art form that they helped to define and refine. All the usual staples of their sound are present and correct - think punchy, tom-heavy drums, alternately scuzzy and attractive guitars and J Masics' instantly identifiable vocals - alongside a seemingly new-found love of indie-pop melancholy and wistful musical arrangements (the latter almost certainly influenced by producer Kurt Vile). In other words, it's a grown-up Dinosaur Jr. album that ticks all of the right boxes.

Review: Dogo du Togo & The Alagaa Beat Band bring a unique sound to West African music that blends psychedelic rock, traditional Togolese rhythms, voodoo-inspired melodies and infectious dance grooves. Led by Dogo, who dubs their style 'Alagaa Trance,' the band's music weaves hypnotic layers and vibrant beats that are both captivating and energising. Their much-anticipated album, Avoude, captures this powerful fusion and is set for release in November on the We Are Busy Bodies label and promises to transport you into a new world with its mix of cultural depth and rhythmic intensity.

Review: RECOMMENDED
It's safe to say that more than a few people have been waiting more than a few months for this one to finally arrive. Dry Cleaning already made a pretty significant impact with efforts like that ode to Meghan Markle, 'Magic of Meghan', a track that not everyone will agree with in terms of sentiment but most seemed united in musical love for, and 'Goodnight', which firmly positioned them in the most exciting end of British punk.

New Long Leg continues on that fine form, and in many ways elevates the game significantly. Offering ten songs that set the band's proverbial stall out clearly, the record is a demand not to be taken too seriously, even if the music itself feels like the end result of more than a decade of serious fine-tuning and boundary-pushing on the part of the band members, who lay claim to past endeavours with hardcore and indie bands, and in the visual arts.

Review: If there's a list of bands to get - or be - excited about to hand, then add Dummy to it. The Los Angeles crew formed in late-2018, and had a solid run of things through to the great pandemic pause, and between then and now have evolved pretty quickly to get to where they are. All the trappings of a group deserving of cut status, although sadly perhaps not huge commercial success (then again, who is these days?), attempting to define their sound isn't easy.

As this vinyl-only outing proves. Comprising two EPs - logically entitled 'EP1' and 'EP2', both released in 2020 - this is very dense stuff indeed. Veering from the blissful, earthy ambience of 'Second Contact', to sci-fi synth refrains on 'Touch the Chimes', and Pixies-style garage rock chaos with 'Slacker Mask', we implore you not to pass these over.

Review: The Durutti Column prove just how fertile the North West England music scene was during the mid-late-1970s and through the 1980s. Taking their name from an anarchist military movement active during the Spanish Civil War, the band was formed by Vini Reilly, who brought together a bunch of players from the nascent punk and post punk scene, and managed to turn heads in the process. One of which was Tony Wilson. One of the first acts to sign to his now-legendary Factory Records, they would remain on the imprint until its demise, by which time the project had become a solo thing for Reilly, whose name was already shorthand for risk taking with bold ideas. Take this record, for example, veering from Southern Mediterranean folk to experimental indie, sample-based rock-opera and more, it still defies expectations.

Review: Baxter Dury has been making superbly loose and laidback sounds for more than 20 years now. Here, Mr Maserati collects some of his famously idiosyncratic sounds from across that long career with plenty of comedown disco sounds and deep, rumbling basslines. There is plenty of wry humour and musical sweetness within the material which is taken from Baxter's six long players. Says the artist, "It's a kind of provincial nod to the music I got into during lockdown because my son was playing it - Frank Ocean, Tyler the Creator and Kendrick Lamar."

Review: Former Soup Dragons man Hifi Sean (real name Sean Dickson) seems to have found a musical soulmate in David McAlmont. The pair have already impressed via a pair of well-regarded albums and here drop a third collaborative full-length - barely six months after its predecessor, Daylight, appeared in stores. Designed as a kind of flip side to that set - a loosely conceptual musical night drive from dusk 'til dawn - Twilight cannily combines slow, soft-touch grooves, dreamy textures, bubbly electronics, strobe-lit synths and McAlmont's honeyed vocals to great effect. The plentiful highlights include Blessed Madonna collaboration 'The Comedown', the tactile bliss of 'Goodbye Drama Queen', the huggable wooziness of 'High With You' and the heartfelt sweep of 'Star'.

Review: Six months after dropping their second collaborative full-length excursion, Daylight, HiFi Sean and David McAlmont deliver the yang to that set's ying - the loosely conceptual dusk-til-dawn night drive that is Twilight. More synth-heavy and strobe-lit than its predecessor, the album sees the effortlessly soulful McAlmont add his honeyed vocals to backing tracks rich in soft-touch grooves, dreamy textures, bubbly electronics and strobe-lit melodic motifs. This limited, deluxe edition is the one to grab if you can; aside from being pressed to colourful purple vinyl, it also comes bundled with a single-track seven-inch flexi-disc (containing a fine alternate dub mix of 'Driftaway') and an autographed art print.

Review: Arriving almost exactly three months after its predecessor, HiFi Sean and David McAlmont's third collaborative full-length is lightly a conceptual flip side to 2024's Daylight - a "dusk till dawn" night drive sequel, as they put it. To provide a distinctly different sonic sheen to the album that preceded it, the duo has reached for slow, soft-touch grooves, dreamy textures, bubbly electronics, strobe-lit synths and musical motifs forged in darker, if still colourful, tones. Add in McAlmont's honeyed, effortlessly soulful vocals, and you have another genuine gem from the 1990s survivors. Highlights include Blessed Madonna collaboration 'The Comedown', the tactile bliss of 'Goodbye Drama Queen', the huggable wooziness of 'High With You' and the heartfelt sweep of 'Star'.