Review: Just three months after its predecessor was released, the second and final part of Joe Armon-Jones' epic All The Quiet album series lands in stores. Entirely written, produced and mixed by the man himself - with a few friends and high-profile guests popping up to add instruments or take to the mic - the set offers atmospheric, immersive and perfectly-pitched musical fusions rooted in his various sonic influences (think jazz, funk, soul, hip-hop and dub). Highlights are plentiful, from the deep and dreamy jazz-soul shuffle of 'Another Place' (featuring significant contributions from vocalists Greentea Peng and Wu-Lu), to the warming, dubbed-out soul of top-tier Yazmin Lacey collaboration 'One Way Traffic'.
Review: William Bevan has now been operating long enough under the Burial alias to be awarded a celebratory "best of" compilation by Hyperdub, the imprint he's been releasing on since 2005. This is no ordinary retrospective, though. It deliberately ignores the celebrated early portion of his career, with the artist choosing to focus not only on tracks made and released in the last eight years, but also those tucked away on B-sides and the darker corners of his EPs. It offers a fine snapshot of the subtle evolution of his sound, quietly creeping between the hushed field recordings and glacial synthesizer lines of "Nightmarket", the intensely up-beat breakbeat madness of "Rival Dealer", the haunting, near 14-minute melancholy of "Rough Sleeper" and the future garage rush of recent single "Claustro".
Review: While not the band's final album, there's a solid argument to be made that 1995's Worry Bomb was Carter USM's last hurrah - a top-ten set that marked the beginning of the end for the distinctive South London duo. This expanded 30th anniversary edition pairs a remastered version of the original album -which boasts typically gritty, soaring and powerful classics such as 'Young Offenders Mum', the punky 'Airplane Food/Airplane Fast Food' medley, the riotous 'Me & Mr Jones' and the introspective 'My Defeatist Attitude' - with a disc of B-sides and rarities and, most excitingly, a previously unreleased live album of their performance at the 1994 Pheonix Festival. Throw in a DVD featuring videos, Top of the Pops appearances and freshly recorded interviews, and you have an essential item for Carter fans.
Culture & Prince Mohammed - "Zion Gate/Zion Gate DJ (Forty Leg Dread)"
Culture & I Roy - "I'm Not Ashamed/Under Tight Wraps"
Culture - "Two Sevens Clash"
Culture & Ranking Joe - "Bald Head Bridge"
Joseph Hill - "Informer Man"
Culture & Nicodeemus - "Disco Train"
Culture & Clint Eastwood - "Send Some Rain"
Culture & I Roy - "Natty Dread Taking Over/Invasion"
Culture & U Brown - "Innocent Blood/Rock It Up"
Review: This first-ever CD anthology of Culture's earliest singles captures the trio in their purest, most incendiary form. Formed in 1976 by lead singer Joseph Hill, with Albert Walker and Roy Dayes, the Jamaican group emerged under the name The African Disciples before becoming Culture and signing with Joe Gibbsione of Kingston's most revered producers. What followed was a run of revolutionary 7"s and 12"s, including the seismic 'Two Sevens Clash', whose apocalyptic prophecy shook the reggae landscape. These recordingsinow collected in full, dub sides and allichart the group's 1977 to 1981 run with Gibbs, a period widely regarded as their peak. Tracks like 'Zion Gate' and 'See Dem a Come' show their power not just as writers of militant roots reggae, but as spiritual messengers, blending dread prophecy with hypnotic riddims. Even in dub form, these versions retain urgency and weight, anchored by Hill's unshakeable vocal tone and Gibbs's rich, bass-forward production. Later work with Sonia Pottinger would push their sound further afield, but what's here is raw, righteous and definitive. Eight tracks make their CD debut, finally doing justice to an era of singles that shaped both Culture's legacy and the wider trajectory of roots reggae itself.
Review: Cindy Lee's Diamond Jubilee invites listeners to experience an exquisite journey through sound and emotion. Hailed as a major contender for the 2024 Polaris Music Prize, this album offers a fascinating tapestry of ethereal melodies and haunting reflections. Crafted over countless hours in studios stretching from Toronto to Montreal, Patrick Flegel channels a unique blend of nostalgia and longing. With infectious hooks wrapped around evocative arrangements, Diamond Jubilee is a striking embodiment of innovation in experimental pop, solidifying Cindy Lee's position as an important figure in contemporary music.
Review: Coinciding with the "post-psych, pre-shoegaze" ingenues Loop's retrospective album, Twelves, on triple LP, this new CD version from Reactor offers a digital alternative for those proto-gaze indie heads seeking a clearer and cleaner sonic experience. Spanning the band's output in chronological order, this comprehensive set captures the evolution of Loop's hypnotic, fuzz-drenched sound, from the early '16 Dreams' demo and debut single, through 'Spinning', 'Collision', 'Black Sun' and 'Arclite', to rare contributions to Nick Drake and Neil Young tribute albums, and even a Godflesh cover from their Clawfist split. As it is with the vinyl version, The World In Your Eyes is a completist deep dive into Loop's essential non-album material.
Trip To The Fair (CD 2: Scheherazade & Other Stories)
The Vultures Fly High
Ocean Gypsy
Song Of Scheherazade: Fanfare/The Betrayal/The Sultan/Love Theme/The Young Prince & Princess As Told By Scheherazade/Festival Preparations/Fugue For The Sultan/The Festival/Finale (CD 3: live At Carnegie Hall 1)
Prologue
Ocean Gypsy
Kiev (previously unreleased)
Can You Understand
Carpet Of The Sun
Running Hard
Mother Russia
Song Of Scheherazade: Fanfare/The Betrayal/The Sultan/Love Theme/The Young Pince& Princess As Told By Scheherazade/Festival Preparations/Fugue For The Sultan/The Festival/Finale (CD 4: live At Carnegie Hall 4)
Review: With so much at stake when seminal outfits decide to get back together it's understandable people usually greet the news of reunification with a degree of skepticism. But if RIDE's first epilogue didn't confirm it, their second post-comeback album should; sometimes a return is exactly what we needed. Tracks like "Future Love", "Jump Jet" and "Fifteen Minutes" stand up as excellent in their own right. At its most adventurous and confident, "This Is Not A Safe Place" is a startling work of extraordinary daring. RIDE sound as powerful and room-filling as it does hypnotic. "Repetition" vacuum packs a party in sharp, staccato goodness, "Kill Switch" takes us into dark, edgy territories, high pitched chord refrains and crashing cymbals creating an air of menace. So, if we didn't say it already, welcome back.
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