PIAS 黑胶唱片和CD

Review: Aside from Coldcut's incredible 'Journeys By DJ' mix, we can think of few mix albums that have been quite as celebrated as Soulwax's 2002 outing as 2ManyDJs, 'As Heard on Radio Soulwax Part 2'. While of its time in terms of some of the track selections - it was the era of fuzzy electro-house and electroclash - the album's genius lies in its' breathlessly brilliant eclecticism and the no-holds-barred, party-starting insanity that marked out the Belgian duo's DJ sets at the time. Out of print for many years but now back in stores in limited quantities to mark its 20th birthday, the mix remains a peerless advert for creative DJing, with the Dewaele brothers giddily mashing together acapellas, tracks, grooves and song snippets in a breathlessly brilliant, endlessly entertaining way. If you missed it first time around, you need this edition in your life.

Review: Although her roots lie in jazz, Melanie De Biasio has not made jazz - or at least purist jazz - for many years. Il Viaggio, a vast double album that marks her first studio set for nearly six years, continues this trend, blending field recordings, sound collage, choral music, ambient, the neo-classical darkness of Dead Can Dance, piano works reminiscent of Harold Budd's more contemplative works, and occasional nods towards trip-hop - all arranged as a kind of sonic journey to (and through) Italy by train as a way of rediscovering her distant Italian roots. With plenty of long, immersive tracks and bags of atmosphere, Il Viaggio is a hugely atmospheric and immersive affair that more than delivers on its conceptual premise.

Review: For their sixth full length album 'Violence', melancholic Birmingham alt-rockers Editors have adopted a grander synth-pop sound to frame their typically dark songwriting in. This change in direction comes from collaborating with the album's producer Leo Abraham and composer Blank Mass, who helped the band hone their electronic craft. The songwriting pairs grandiose stadium riffs with assertive synth-work; 'Hallelujah (So Low)' goes straight for the jugular with fat synth leads and lo-fi drums, and the chorus of lead single 'Magazine' balances sections of punchy electronic swagger with singalong melodic euphoria. On 'No Sound But The Wind', there's a glimpse of an earlier Editors sound, more atmospheric and spacious than the tracks that surround it - unsurprising as it's a song the band first debuted back at Glastonbury 2008 and have been re-working since. Following 2015's somewhat confused 'In Dream', Editors sound reinvigorated and confident in the direction 'Violence' is taking them in.

Review: BBC 6 Music favourite Guy Garvey and his Editors band are one of the most beloved indie acts of their generation. Their 2005 debut and Mercury Prize nominated album The Back Room is a real fan favourite that now gets a special remaster and reissue on limited gatefold clear vinyl. It features the band's Top 10 single 'Munich' as well as others like 'Bullets', 'Blood' and 'All Sparks', all of which helped it to reach reached No. 2 in the UK album chart and go on to pick up more than one million sales worldwide. All these years later, it still stands up whether or not you were a fan the first time around.

Review: Jurassic 5's Quality Control album from all the way back in 2000 is a sonic manifesto that embodies their signature blend of old-school hip-hop vibes with a fresh twist. The album showcases the group's tight-knit chemistry and impeccable flow, delivering razor-sharp rhymes over hypnotic beats that are now well-known as their signature. With its infectious groove and insightful lyrics, Quality Control is a testament to the group's mastery of the genre and their commitment to delivering high-calibre music that is also full of timeless tunes that not only celebrate the art of hip-hop but also serve as a reminder of the importance of staying true to one's craft.

Review: A number of the many great full lengths penned by alternative pop star Roisin Murphy are currently being reissued and here we have Take Her Up To Monto!, a bold and adventurous exploration of electronic pop from 2016. It is another one that showcases Murphy's fearless creativity and boundary-pushing approach to music where distinct vocals, coupled with innovative production, create a dynamic and immersive listen. There is an infectious energy to 'Mastermind' and dreamy allure to 'Ten Miles High,' amongst a wide mix of influences from other genres and experimental soundscapes that confirmed once more than Murphy' is a true visionary.

Review: Alongside fellow Belgians Front 242, The Neon Judgement are widely regarded as pioneers of electronic body music (EBM), a synthesised slice of underground noise that incorporates elements of electro and industrial to often disorienting and intense effects. Led by Dirk Timmermans and Frank Vloeberghs, the pair combined synth pop and post punk with more abrasive tones, unusually, for EBM, bringing guitar work to the fore. Marking 40th years of the Play It Again Sam (PIAS) imprint, a veritable institution in its own right that has itself influenced many bands and scenes, some of TNJ's most triumphant efforts and attempts at pushing the boundaries of genre and style forward are collected here. A selection of tracks that showcases exactly what they were about very well indeed, and why their legacy is so significant, albeit subtle.

Review: Denmark's Agnes Obel is no ordinary folk singer-songwriter. Her music always carries something beautifully strange along with it, and this latest album, which has the strangely fitting name of Citizen Of Glass, might well be her most daring work to date. What is particularly special about this album is its production process; Obel has told the press that this extended piece of music consists of layers upon layers of different tracks, blended together to create something new, fresh and compelling. But, that's not all. The duets that you can hear throughout it aren't even human. She's brought to the foray a new technique that involves recording her own voice as a male cyborg, essentially creating the idea that she's singing along to a non-human version of herself. If you're thinking it's all hype, you're wrong; this album is a magnificently executed piece of melancholic pop music that pushes the boundaries of what has become a largely predictable genre as a whole. It's different, captivating and recommended...

Review: Will Holland is Quantic and with this project he has explored myriad different musical worlds, has traversed many different areas, most notably immersing himself in many aspects of Latin American music culture, often through collaboration. He's switched it up for this new record after first starting out with some experiments that soon turned into a love letter to disco which has long been a powerful emotional tool. He brings his own sense of percussive energy to the genre and has again worked with an array of talented mates including Connie Constance and Rationale plus vocalist Andreya Triana.

Review: The Slow Show are probably the least-Manchester Manchester band we know. Rolling back the years to our first encounter, the mesmerising White Water, we recall stopping dead in tracks as the powerful, somber, and utterly inimitable voice of Rob Goodwin sung out in mournful verse. Love at first sight, anyone who has ever experienced anything even close to loss would have found it impossible to ignore. That was then and this is now. With four albums already under their belt, Subtle Love lands as perhaps the groups poppiest and lightest effort to date, although it is still very much their sound. Minimalist yet epic, summoning elements of northern brass bands, opera, and journeyman blues-rock, tracks here manage to be soft yet commanding, spellbinding and deep enough to dive into and never come back out.

Review: Soulwax are nothing short of Belgian enigmas. In the dance music world, people still consider As Heard on Radio Soulwax as a landmark mix album, utilising upwards of 110 elements of tunes to piece together a wild soundtrack to a house party in 2003 - packing electroclash, hip hop, e-funk, synth, house, and more. But then a lot of those listeners haven't explored the core project these music makers are involved with, Soulwax, an alternative rock outfit in the truest sense.

Much Against Everyones Advice was the record that first got them properly noticed, even if it didn't necessarily resonate with the electronic crew back in 1998, when it originally hit shelves. How useful, then, to find it being reissued so we can make amends there, and dive into its resolutely funky but tough, intelligent but direct tones, spanning lackadaisical numbers like 'Proverbial Pants' to rowdier affairs like the riff-heavy 'Scream'.

Review: Australian alt rockers The Triffids were destined for greater things than their homeland realised at the time. While enjoying some success Down Under between the late-1970s and late-80s, it was in the UK and Scandinavia that they really seemed to resonate. A decade-long love affair defined by some very 1980s singles (in the best possible way - 'Wide Open Road', 'Bury Me Deep In Love'), long before all that they put out Treeless Plain, a record that nodded to their future but was a far more DIY sounding thing. Suffice to say, when it arrived in 1983 the record made an impact, critically if not necessarily in mainstream consciousness. Blending folk with an altogether edgier and artier guitar sound, the songwriting and structure are still commendable. Listening back now, 40 years on, the evidence is clear - here's a band we should always list among the best of Antipodean weird-pop.
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