Folk 111 Items

Donald Fagen and Walter Becker are two of the most sophisticated minds in the American Pop idiom. Originally broadcast live on Kmet FM, the famous Record Plant Studio concert was part of the 1974 promotional tour for the band's third album "Pretzel Logic". In front of a small audience and backed by a stellar band featuring classy session players like drummer Jeff Porcaro and keyboardist Michael Mc Donald, Fagen and Becker deliver immaculate versions of classic songs including "Do it Again", "Rikki Don't Lose That Number", and "Reelin' In The Years'' and other gems like "Bodhisattva", and "The Boston Rag".

This is the first vinyl issue of Temple IV, arguably Roy Montgomery’s finest solo album, originally released in 1996 on CD. The original album has been enhanced with two newer tracks that constitute side four of the album. Montgomery states: “The two new tracks recorded in 2018 were about asking the question “Can you step into the same river twice?” Heraclitus said you cannot. I say you can…”

From the original press release:

Few recording artists have aligned the quantity and quality of their releases as well as New Zealand singer /guitarist Roy Montgomery has in 1995. Beginning with kranky’s release of the soundtrack for an imaginary film That That Is...Is(Not) by Montgomery’s duo Dissolve early in the year, a series of superb albums and singles have been issued by a variety of labels across the world. Each one of them is a must have. Most recently, the Drunken Fish label released a collection of pastoral drones entitled Scenes From The South Island, singles have appeared on the Roof Bolt and gyttja labels, and further singles are scheduled with Ajax, Siltbreeze and others.

Temple IV is the first solo recording by Roy Montgomery on kranky. The album was recorded by Montgomery on a four-track tape deck and then thickened up with monophonic moog. The tracks on the album are thick with interwoven guitar lines and moog drone, inspired by the Guatemalan rain forests and the mysterious ruins of the temple and ruins Montgomery visited there.

Roy Montgomery spent the past year in New York, Chicago and London before returning to New Zealand. While in the UK he played live with Flying Saucer Attack and collaborated with spoken word performer Kirk Lake. A brief tour across the United States in September saw him performing before enraptured audiences in New York, Boston, Chicago, Detroit and Los Angeles.

The long overdue recognition of Roy Montgomery as a crucial figure in New Zealand’s musical history as a member of The Pin Group, Shallows and Dadamah, is now augmented by his new recordings. Temple IV will serve to extend and deepen that appreciation.

Anime is the 8th studio album of Foivos Delivorias.

Songs that were born in the quicksand of the years 2018-2022, expressing an agitated soul, meek or in ecstasy and with the guitar becoming an extension of it.

Love and latest news, society and the self, violence and giving, war and the child, are some of its windows.

The sound – a happy coexistence of Fivos, his band and the poet-producer Vasilis Dokakis – was captured in the old studios of legendary Finos Film and in a small studio next to The First Cemetary of Athens, so it has several souls on its side.

The title is what it is – it is written in Greek and Latin with the same letters and touches animation in different ways.

Inner Ear releases the album tying it to an informal trilogy with “Aoratos Anthropos (Invisible Man)” and “Kallithea”.

Anime is the 8th studio album of Foivos Delivorias.

Songs that were born in the quicksand of the years 2018-2022, expressing an agitated soul, meek or in ecstasy and with the guitar becoming an extension of it.

Love and latest news, society and the self, violence and giving, war and the child, are some of its windows.

The sound – a happy coexistence of Fivos, his band and the poet-producer Vasilis Dokakis – was captured in the old studios of legendary Finos Film and in a small studio next to The First Cemetary of Athens, so it has several souls on its side.

The title is what it is – it is written in Greek and Latin with the same letters and touches animation in different ways.

Inner Ear releases the album tying it to an informal trilogy with “Aoratos Anthropos (Invisible Man)” and “Kallithea”.

Demeters Döttrar is the new trio of Ida Skibsted Cramer, Charlott Malmenholt and Astrid Øster Mortensen. Søndag I Spejlet was mainly recorded in Gamlestaden, Gothenburg between 2022 and 2023 and consists of 8 tracks that lies somewhere in between 90's lo-fi experimental bedroom music and brash text-sound compositions channeled through the ever-inspiring cassette underground.

Listening to Demeters Döttrar is like stepping into a parallel universe; a tiny unexplored corner with paper-thin walls or a very delicate bubble that is about to burst any moment. The instrumentation is sparse and mainly consists of guitar, vocals, prepared tapes and occasional harmonica. The recurrence of rain in different forms throughout the recording almost functions as a percussive backbone at times, the one thing except for the sound of the actual room that sort of keeps it all together.

With one foot in Sweden and one foot in Denmark, the group is utilizing both countries' language in an uncompromising and peculiarly alluring way. The almost brutal intimacy brings the more mellow Deux Filles moments to mind, though music wise this owes more to Un, early Charalambides and at times groups like Dadamah. A daring, major statement and one of the most beautiful, strange and other-worldly debut albums we heard in quite a while.

Mastered by Lasse Marhaug. Gloss laminated covers, comes with insert. Edition of 500 copies.

When Nathan Salsburg's daughter was a baby, he often sang her to sleep ina rocking chair. At one point, he remembered a song he had taught himselfas a teenager: "The Evidence" by Lungfish, the Maryland band who coined asingular brand of post-punk in the 90s and 00s. Salsburg realized he could playthe guitar part with one hand, singing while holding Talya in his other arm. Though theoriginal version of "The Evidence" is only five minutes long, it's essentiallya repetitive mantra, so Salsburg could extend it as long...

Emily Nenni has written a follow-up to 2022’s critically acclaimed record, On The Ranch. Her debut album garnered her much success and introduced her to a devoted audience of music fans who celebrate the traditional side of country music while embracing the modern indie aesthetic that comes with that nod to the past. While writing her latest record, Drive & Cry, Nenni looked in the rearview mirror for inspiration but kept focus on the sound that she has become known for. “This is the first record I have completely written on my own. I spent a good bit of solitary time ruminating on things that had happened over the last year or two. Rethinking what I’m doing, how I’m doing it, who with, even in just the everyday. Change is hard but also such a gift.”

Nenni worked with producer John James Tourville (The Deslondes, Sunny War) to broaden her sound and bring in nuance to the recording. The record was engineered by Jake Davis and mixed by Matt Ross-Spang in Memphis, TN. The resulting recording is a matured country sound that focuses on the fun and the tears that come with all changes in life.

Massimo Silverio is a songwriter and musician born in 1992 in Cercivento (Udine) in the heart of the historical-geographical region of Carnia. He writes and sings in his native language, a minority language called “carnic” spoken in the Carnic Alps of Friuli Venezia Giulia. <> (Massimo Silverio) Between the charm of the borderland and the tradition of an ancient language, Silverio has created his very personal aesthetic made of poetry and sounds, mixing classic and contemporary, folk and experimental, acoustic, electroacoustic and electronic. A research began at a very young age which led him to the creation of an imaginary made of places, mountains and rivers, faces and ancient rites translated into music through the use of classical instruments such as the cello, double bass, prepared percussion, piano or folk ones such as the guzla - instrument of the Dinaric Alps - but also synthesizers, guitars, organs and above all the voice which becomes the guide with its light and intimate timbre, mixing Carnic and English to tell a minority yet universal story. After 2 self-produced EP and a collaboration with the welsh band Adwaith, he arrives in 2023 at the release of his first album entitled "hrudja" as the result of the meeting with the eclectic producer Manuel Volpe (Rhabdomantic Orchestra) and the decisive contribution of the italian musician and performer Nicholas Remondino (Lamie, Stefano Battaglia, Vieri Cervelli Montel ). Together they created a work of contrasts, of silences full of sound that go beyond the boundaries of a musical genre. “Hrudja” is the Langobard ancestor of the word “Grusa” which in Friulian indicates the crust of a wound, a metaphor of rebirth and healing but also of a coat of arms, a memory of something that is disappearing.

Six years after their debut album, Thee Holy Strangers return with their sophomore LP “Diary Of The Shadow”. With a new line-up and a new sound design, they present seven testimonies of an uncertain era and trace its imprints. Drawing on the inexhaustible pool of rock’n’roll, soul and folk, they set up songs for today that speak of resignation and resilience, darkness and light, sadness and hope.

New members of the band are Andreas Lagios (Nightstalker) on bass and Kleon Antoniou (Mode Plagal) on guitar.

“Diary Of The Shadow” includes seven original compositions and was produced by Costas Chrysogelos (Digital Alkemist), Alexis Kalofolias and Dimitris Papanagiotou (Jim Spliff). It was recorded by Costas Chrysogelos and Philip Marinelis at DNA Lab studio in the spring-summer of 2021. The mastering was done by Giannis Christodoulatos at Sweetspot Studio.

The album also features Nikos Fysakis (electric guitar) and Giannis Houstoulakis (pedal steel guitar), members of the group’s previous line-up, Nikos Yousef (musical saw) and Kostis Zouliatis (piano, keyboards, synth).

Thee Holy Strangers are: Flora Ioannidi: Vocals, Alexis Kalofolias (Alex K): Vocals, guitar, Kleon Antoniou: Electric and acoustic guitar, Andreas Lagios: Bass, Costas Chrysogelos: Drums, percussion.

Death Is Not The End presents a limited LP pressing of their collection of haunted, brooding flamenco recordings taken from the early 1900s through to the late 1930s. Focussing in on the cante jondo (or "deep song") style, seen as the original manifestation of flamenco singing - from which other elements emerged, such as dancing and playing - this survey captures and documents tracks from the form's earliest recorded stars.

This album sound like a top of then line country music record for one reason only: The Countyry Side Of Harmonica Sam play their music that way. Harlan Howard famously stated that "all you need write a country song is three chords and the truth". Although he said that right, I believe that delivering the song also takes personality, musicanship, style, and other traits of that nature. In the case of these five Swedish honky-tonk heroes, they have it all. This band is bringing quality back in style, and I don't know about you, but I sure have missed it. Their work is characterized by the high standarts that used to be the very essence of recordings made for Decca Records in Nashville, or Capitol in California, but that somehow got more and more scarce as country music's path went on. I'm sure you will agree that these guys really have a way with a sad song. Their music rings with the sound of heartache, loneliness, and love. It is the kind of love that, whether it is faded, unrequited, or burning with desire, can make one lose his mind and stay out late wandering the streets after closing time. After listening to this record, you might catch youself thinking that being blue might be the most beautiful feeling in the world. Or at least it is when you have such a fine soundtrack to cry along to. Harmonica Sam and his team might be on the "Country Side", but they can't seem to shake off that lonesome feeling called the blues. Theo Lawrence

With this album Idrissa Soumaoro pays tribute to Diré, the town where he met his wife and where his first daughter, who is no longer with us, was born. In 1971, after his studies at the INA in Bamako, Idrissa was transferred to Diré to teach music at the lPEG (Pedagogical Institute of General Education). He was 22 years old when he arrived in Diré. Idrissa has always been nostalgic for this beautiful place in the region of the 333 Saints of Timbuktu. In the difficult situation Mali is living today, the town of Diré has become a symbol of hope for peace.Indeed, with this work, Idrissa Soumaoro reflects deeply on peace, brotherhood and reconciliation in Mali. Idrissa sings in French, Bambara and English and sends messages of love and living together. The album was initiated by Marc-Antoine ‘Marko’ Moreau, who revealed to the world the talent of Amadou and Mariam who were introduced by Idrissa Soumaoro in the group 'Eclipse de l’I.J.A'.

For Francie Medosch, leader of rag tag Philly country-rock outfit Florry, the 11 songs on their Dear Life Records debut “The Holey Bible” urgently radiate a place of hard-won optimism, and pull no punches in laying out the patient road it sometimes takes to get there. “The Holey Bible” aspires to the special feeling of raucous intimacy achieved by the best records in the outlaw country canon, and strikes that rare balance between a display of careful honesty, and an invitation to a party.

Melody As Truth founder Jonny Nash returns to action with his first solo album in four years.

Over the course of eleven mesmerising tracks, Nash points the compass gently inwards, casting aside any conceptual frameworks in favour of exploring an imaginative and idealised “personal folk music” that combines elements of traditional acoustic music with the producer’s richly immersive interpretation of ambient, a sound he has been developing for well over a decade.

From the smudged acid-folk bliss of ‘Theories’ and ‘Eternal Life’, to the layered acoustic guitars of ‘All I Ever Needed’ and the delay-soaked, Durutti Column-esque ‘Light From Three Sides’, a wide variety of musical textures weave their way throughout the album.

Point of Entry is much more than a mere ‘guitar album’ – it draws on a rich and diverse palette to achieve its purpose. The delicate saxophone work of ambient-jazz contemporary Joseph Shabason swells on ‘Ditto’ and ‘Light From Three Sides’. Cascading piano lines ripple through the crystal clear sonic waters of ‘Face of Another’, whilst echoes of Nash’s work with Gigi Masin and Young Marco as Gaussian Curve appear in the dancing synth sequences of ‘Ditto’ and ‘Golden Hour’. Nash’s reverb-laden voice also appears for the first time since 2016’s critically acclaimed Exit Strategies, used delicately throughout the album to conjure up a world of dusk and golden light.

Combining the delicate human touch and naivety of earlier Melody As Truth releases with widened scope and vision, Point Of Entry is arguably Nash’s most complete work to date – an album that’s as much a statement of his “personal folk” vision as a future ambient classic.

Bob Martin began what would become his final studio album in a beach front condominium in Seabrook, New Hampshire in May 2008. The recordings sat dormant for the next 13 years. This album began when James Endeacott of 1965 Records sent Jerry David DeCicca to Charlottesville, Virginia to meet Martin, hoping to reissue Martin’s 1972 debut on RCA Records, Midwest Farm Disaster. DeCicca, who had co-produced the final recordings of folk-funk, Heartworn Highways’ songwriter, Larry Jon Wilson, for 1965 Records (and later reissued by Drag City Records) had played the LP for Endeacott several months earlier. Midwest Farm Disaster is that rare album that feels joyful and yet full of sorrow; Martin’s Lowell, Massachusetts voice yearning with a backbeat from Nashville session musicians, Norman Putnam and Kenny Buttrey, the later fresh from his “Heart of Gold” session. The reissue never happened, as Martin was already in the process of rescuing his forgotten masterpiece for his own self-release. But Bob and Jerry’s breakfast led to Martin’s daughter, Tami, hiring DeCicca and engineer, Jake Housh, who also worked on the Wilson album, to capture her father in a similar manner. After Midwest Farm Disaster, a second album for RCA was under contract, but when a record executive there wanted Martin to put his girlfriend’s poetry to music, Bob bailed on the deal. Martin continued to tour around with a pickup band until advice from his father resonated, and he left the road to raise a family. Bob worked as an educator, teaching math and computers, and even founded a school in West Virginia that taught traditional art forms in Appalachia like fiddle playing and weaving. Bob returned to the studio in 1982 to record Last Chance Rider for the June Appal, a label that focused on music from Appalachia and had released albums by Nimrod Workman, Si Kahn, and Betty Smith. In the late-90’s, Bob returned with two self-released CDs, The River Turns The Wheel and Next to Nothin’ that continued capturing stories of people and places that exhale their own mythologies. He wrote novels, cared for his family, and taught, and played only the occasional gig. But it’s this album, Seabrook, that finds Bob at his most wise and wistful; the histories of Lowell and his own life hanging longest in his voice. New songs about the West Virginia coal mines (“Three Miles Beneath This Mountain”) and living in an extended stay motel (“Midway Motel”) sit beside new and more urgent interpretations of late period classics, like “My Father Painted Houses,” and, for the first time, one of his oldest songs he didn’t record for Midwest Farm Disaster called “Give Me Light”, along with “Stay Awhile Sunshine,” which he had been singing to his family for decades and features Gary Mallaber (“Tupelo Honey”) on vibraphone. After DeCicca and Housh returned from the beach with Bob, they all agreed to flesh out the songs with other instrumentation to present as a draft for what the new record could be with a little more money and time. This was the time when the epilogue of musicians’ work was still of interest to labels. Everyone with a guitar over 65 was still in the shadow of Rubin’s Cash, and recent records by Loretta Lynn, Charlie Louvin, Soloman Burke, and Candi Staton were both fashionable and profitable. But Martin wasn’t as well known and his classic debut was only licensed for a limited physical release, proving him a difficult sell. Labels passed or made unreasonable requests, and Bob eventually lost interest; instead, choosing to record a solo acoustic live album, Live at the Bull Run, and tour Europe for the first time. There were hiccups of hope, like a feature in No Depression and a song in the TV show, Justified, but the new recordings quickly began collecting dusk. In the meantime, DeCicca continued producing records for other older artists, like Ed Askew’s For the World (Tin Angel), two Chris Gantry releases (Drag City), Will Beeley’s Highways and Heart Attacks (Tompkins Square), and reissue projects for the Numero Group (Elyse Weinberg, Rob Galbraith). Then, in 2021, DeCicca received a call from Bob’s daughter, Tami, giving him permission to finish the album as Bob’s health was failing. Upon revisiting the tracks with Housh, the album needed very little tidying up and the songs were completed with DeCicca’s former bandmates, The Black Swans, who had previously played on the original mock up back in 2008. With new technology and a new perspective, the album was completed, but not before Martin’s health had deteriorated more. Bob Martin passed away September 21, 2022 at 80 years of age. Sadly, he never heard his final album.

A further exercise in musical curation, Child Of Nature is our latest sonic confluence of self-released tracks from the loners, hippies and outsiders of the 70s and early 80s. A collection of privately pressed music, able to breathe and be created free from the constraints of heavy handed commercialism, yielding a pure vision of artistic expression. Child Of Nature features ten songs of brooding soft rock and psychedelic folk steeped in melancholia. Some ache for better times or past lovers, while others seek spiritual fulfillment or social progress.

A compilation to evoke the raw and unobstructed, to summon the occult, to fundamentally conjure a vivid portrait of our untamed natural environment. Recorded on the north coast of California, Luellen Reese’s ethereal “Silvery Waterfalls” drifts and swirls with electric guitar as her unearthly vocals transcend across a seven minute opus, fit for the golden age of labels like 4AD or Dedicated. “The flowers are dancing just for you …”, Reggie Russell croons over glistening Key Of Creek’s title track “Child Of Nature”, evoking a utopian world of natural harmony free from the present day realities of industrial decay.

Tap into your inner primal being, to embrace wholeheartedly, with frivolity and without reserve, your own child of nature.

Just three months after the release of the EP “Βεντάλιες Και Σιδερογροθιές (Fans And Iron Fists)”, relentless Mazoha, strikes again with his new album “Τώρα Χορός (Now Dance)”, catching the thread musically, lyrically and emotionally from where he left it on his previous album, “prtthlts”.

As stated by the title and confirmed by the homonymous track and the tracks “Τσιχλόφουσκα (Chewing gum)” and “Ψυχολογικά Τραύματα Social Club (Psychological Traumas Social Club)”, there is an even greater dancing mood, which stems from the thirst for relaxation. Those who have experienced the live gigs of Mazoha know this feeling well. At the same time, in the songs “Ήρωες Πολλοί Αγάλματα Λίγα (Many Heroes Few Statues)”, “Σαν Σκιάχτρο (Like A Scarecrow)” and “New York” the beats, the synths and the vocal lines are typical examples of the dark pop that characterizes his album “Bastardo”. The tracklist is completed with two special tracks: “Ονειρεύομαι Μωρό Μου (Ι Dream Baby)” with the noise-shoegaze intro and the rap stormy vocals, a confessional and denouncing loop that could last forever, and finally “Το Πουτανάκι Σου (Your Little Whore)”, the love song of the album with a chewing gum refrain, flirting dangerously with trash, written to be heard late at night in all bars.

An album of contrasts that dives from despair to redemption and from joy to sorrow, marrying darkness with light. The most Mazoha album so far.

The world is falling apart but Bazooka are here with their fourth album. They take us by the hand on a journey to a world above the earth, a world somewhere else.

With 10 songs and their stories captured via the album artwork designed by Australian artist Montero, they transport us to the dreams and nightmares of modern life.

”Kapou Allou (Somewhere Elsewhere)” is clearly the band’s most entertaining and versatile album, their own truth. Bazooka’s craziness and instinctive energy of Bazooka are still there, but accompanied by a great appetite for experimentation and situations that lead the band to an absolute letting go without any restrictions. The final result is the closest that a studio album can get to the band’s live performing sound and that’s what makes this arguably their best album to date.

Recorded and mixed at Arkadikon Studios by Theodoros and Aggelos Bournas.

Tango with Lions releases her fourth album entitled “you.me.”.

“you.me.” was created in Berlin and recorded in Athens, Greece, between September 2021-January 2022, at Lotus studios with producer Vasilis Dokakis. The nine songs of the album build a tale of reflection on heartbreak and significant life changes, written shortly after the artist’s permanent relocation in Berlin, amid the pandemic.

The lyrics express the need of introspection and of processing the impact of various interactions with different people, time passing and global events. The songs observe, address questions or come to realisations about a different “you”, from the perspective of a different “me” in each tale.

The arrangements are rich in synthesisers, nostalgic bass lines and distinct piano sounds. Some of the songs are built on outgoing beats and instrumentations, other songs are earthly, low-key and acoustic.

Lolek’s fourth album, entitled “Agria (Wild)”, was written in Athens at intervals from 2019 to 2021. Lolek has written the music in nine tracks and has covered the track “Aftos O Anthropos (This Man)” by songwriters Likourgos Markeas and Maro Bizani. He has done all the recordings and mixing, except for the cello and percussion recordings made by Nikos Veliotis, who is co-producer and co-arranger of the album. The mastering was done by Giannis Christodoulatos (Sweetspot Productions).

“Agria” is the sound of turmoil that gives birth to the truth. 10 tracks where lyricism coexists with noise and romance with violent honesty. A confession about the daily life of disappointment, the despair of love, the prison of the family, the game of social acceptance, the self-destructive human nature.

(Psychagogia): 1. the recall of souls (from Hades) by magical means 2. the attraction of souls, the fun, the indulgence.

After 3 english-speaking albums, “Psychagogia (Entertainment)” is Kristof’s first album in his native language.

Associative writing, verses full of images from mythology, movements and sounds direct the listener to relaxation and emotional outburst. The ten pieces transport us to other worlds, interrupting contact with everyday and petty reality.

In combination with eerie vocals and prose, teased pianos and synthesizers, a pure fantasy of the dream is built, creating the impression that within us there is another part of existence, different from the body.

Most of the songs were written during the first quarantine period of 2020 and were completed at the end of it. The album was recorded in 2021 at Lotus studio with producer Vassilis Dokakis. The album’s artwork was art directed by Petros Aronis.

The latest release from nine-piece folk group Shovel Dance Collective, orbiting around the concept of water. Combining on-site documentation of traditional songs, folk tunes and field recordings in long-form sound-collages. The results lie somewhere between folk music, music concrete and acoustic ecology. Released collaboratively by Memorials of Distinction and Double Dare.

Completely unknown album by Salah Ragab's Cairo Jazz Band vocalist Maha, recorded in Cairo in 1979. Features productions by Hany Shenoda of Al Massrieen. Maha’s “Orkos,” originally released on cassette, is one of these standout musical diamonds that combines Jazz and Egyptian vocal traditions with Funk, Latin and Soul.

Maha’s “Orkos” immediately catches your ear as a unique album. A strong and energetic voice, equally grounded in jazz as well as Egyptian vocal traditions, Maha sings over instrumentals that offer a wide palette of influences, sonically emblematic of the cultural changes that were occurring in the country. The album features rich compositions and productions by renown Egyptian musician Hany Shenoda, who’s group, Al Massrieen, Habibi Funk worked with in 2017 (the release led to sync placements in Hulu’s “Ramy” TV Series).

At the time of its release, however, the “Orkos” cassette quickly faded away among the growing number of releases populating the Egyptian musical soundscape. For more than 40 years, it sat in near obscurity before being given new life in the form of a properly licensed vinyl release. Habibi Funk and Disco Arabesquo are honored to play a part in sharing Maha’s story. Below is a bit more context around the release as well as the campaign schedule.

The arrival of the cassette brought a seismic shift in how music was produced and consumed around the world. Smaller bands and labels were able to release music without the logistical and financial barrier present in vinyl manufacturing. At the same time, in Egypt, a new crop of musicians and composers made their way into the scene, seeking to bring something fresh to what was perceived as the widely monophonic musical traditions of Egypt. Hany Shenoda, Mohamed Mounir, Magdy El Hossainy, Omar Korshid, Salah Ragab and Hamid El Shaeri are some names that come to mind. Many built their sounds combining their own musical upbringing with influences coming from the outside. The success of these projects varied widely, but for each there were numerous lesser-known bands and singers. Many of these often-short-lived projects would release their music on cassettes on tiny labels only to fade into the musical ether.

Maha’s “Orkos” album fits this category. Put out in a small run of cassettes, it’s fair to say that the singer’s sole recording outing was not a financial success when it was originally released by Egyptian label Sout El Hob in 1979. While it may not have found an engaged and open-eared audience upon its release, the first few bars of the album indicate this is a special, timeless album that transcends the musical boundaries that many artists were seeking to break through at the time.

From the funk sounds of “Law Laffeina El Ard” (Single 1, out September 1 with Pre-Order announcement); the moody, mellow sounds of “Kabl Ma Nessallem We Nemshy” (Single 2, out September 23) or “We Mesheet;” to excursions into Latin sounds in the title track “Orkos,” and disco with “Ana Gaya” (Album Focus Track, out October 10) the album is an amalgamation of genres that stands out from the immense creativity present in Egypt at the time.

We connected Maha in late 2021 and she was clearly surprised to have someone call about music she recorded more than 40 years ago. She also seemed interested in the idea in bringing her music back to people’s attention. A few weeks later we were speaking with our friend Moataz, who runs the Disco Arabesquo project and showed him this great new album we found and to our surprise he knew the album, having found a copy of it a year or two before, in Cairo. It was then obvious to team up for a collaboration for this project. You can find Moataz’s story about Maha and her music, as well as extensive interviews with Maha herself, in the booklet accompanying the release.

“Blues in Mono” is a timeless tribute to traditional, acoustic country blues recorded with a microphone from the 1940s, with Seasick Steve performing the songs solo, direct to an old tape machine. This was then cut direct to lacquers with no computer involved at all during the process. The old skool way of making a record. This is an album that fans have been crying out for, for years. “Blues in Mono” finds Seasick Steve giving some of his finest performances to deliver a fresh, stripped down blues album that offers the perfect antidote for the troubled times in which we live.

“It’s just me and an acoustic guitar, playing old country blues. I always wanted to do it but never felt worthy, but then I realised that I better hurry up and do it ‘cos I ain’t never gonna feel worthy!” says Steve. “I tried to make it so that if you was listening you’d think I was sitting with you in your house.”

Norwegian alternative folk band Gåte concludes an acoustic era with their new full-length album Nord. “While working on Nord we had to figure out how to find strength in the small things,” vocalist Gunnhild Sundli comments. “It was a challenging task as Gåte is usually about how to make things big.” Gåte has always been about making everything big! The full live production, the exuberant live performances, an exaggeration of almost everything. As such you could say that Nord is a Gåte backwards. Focusing on the simple details with an acoustic take, meant for smaller crowds and acoustic performances. “We learned a lot writing and performing the songs on Nord. About how we work with and towards music, but also about ourselves as a band” Gunnhild says. “Nord has mapped out the very essence of Gåte´s DNA, and it has opened up new paths and made us stronger and braver.” On Nord the band has really taken a step back to fully explore their musical potential and expression through a more traditional and acoustic perspective. And though there definitely is something simple and clean about Nord, the power in the courageously heartfelt, raw, and epic soundscape Gåte manages to create seems even more present and complex than ever before.

Record Store Day 2021 Release. The Waterboys 1990 single has been remixed for 2021, featuring new vocals by Mike Scott. This new version is bring released as new single ahead of an upcoming multi disc box set of the album ‘Room To Roam’. The track was

With their new EP "Til Nord" (Eng.: "Northward") legendary Norwegian folk rockers Gåte achieve a stunning transformation. The band from Trøndelag, the area surrounding the ancient harbour city of Trondheim, is delivering an emotive, epic collection of tracks revisiting some of their own classics and adding a new track as a taste of great things to come. What Gåte have done to their songs is both breathtakingly bold and amazing to hear. The first single and opening track 'Kjærleik' is the perfect example of how they have reimagined their sound. Taking away keyboards, electric guitar, and rock drumming, Gåte have added an archaic percussion style and used acoustic instrumentation. Gunnhild Sundli, has stripped some of the technical complexity from her singing style and placed emphasis upon folk attitude and expression. In stylistic terms, we see a shift from their energetic folk rock to a darker, more down to earth, Norse-atmospheric folk expression. Gåte were founded in 1999 by violin player and keyboardist Sveinung Sundli, recruiting his sister Gunnhild as singer. Sveinung's violin and Gunnhild’s folk song technique “kveding” brought to the sound a firm base in traditional music, which was complemented and contrasted by modern bass, drums, and electric guitars. The resulting folk rock blows both minds and ears!

Includes 12 page booklet. This ancient psychedelic folk with jazzy improvisations from the North West of Greece is unique and will touch your soul so deeply that epirotika aficionados always remember the place and the moment when they got to know this hypnotic and mes-merising music. In a similar way to the music of Alice Coltrane or Mulatu Astatke, it can take you out of the here and now - the pure beauty of the magical epirotika sound can make your mind drift off to otherworldly places.

Pharaway Sounds proudly presents a compilation dedicated to Erkin Koray, the father of Anatolian Rock / Turkish Psych. "Halimem" includes rare single & cassette only tracks (mostly from 1970-72 plus three killer ones from 1987!!).

We're super happy to announce our 13th release by Sharhabil Ahmed, the actual King of Sudanese Jazz (he actually won that title in a competition in the early 1970s). Sonically it sounds very different from what Jazz is understood to sound like outside of Sudan. It’s an incredible unique mix of rock’n’roll, funk, surf, traditional sudanese music and influences from Congolese sounds. Original copies of Sharhabil recordings are often hard to find, so we’re happy they will now be widely available. “Argos Farfish” which was featured on our last comp amassed close to 400.000 plays already.

Türküola proudly presents a brand new Cem Karaca album where most of the songs made their premieres inside this release. From the original masters of Türküola, we will be hearing Apaşlar, Ferdy Klein and even Dervişan era of Cem Karaca with English lyrics. As the opening track, we hear “Mutlaka Yavrum” which he recorded with Dervişan in 1975 which is really a political piece also with English lyrics. Karaca tells the stories of the children in refugee camps because of the Palestine and Israel conflict. The English versions of “Kendim Ettim Kendim Buldum”, “Emmioğlu”, “Muhtar” and “Baba” have the same playback with their Turkish versions but this time directly and faithfully transferred from their original masters. These tracks were recorded with Ferdy Klein Orchestra in 1970. The Turkish versions of these songs were previously released but the English ones were in the treasure box till now. “Tears”(Resimdeki Gözyaşları), “No No No” (Emrah 1970), “Why” (Oy Babo) and “Istanbul” (Istanbul’u Dinliyorum) are the recordings of Apaşlar with the support of Ferdy Klein Orchestra dated 1968 and the English versions were also released in the same era as two separate singles. In this album, we also hear instrumental tracks played by Apaşlar with the support of Ferdy Klein Orchestra namely “Memories of Marmara” (Emrah 1970) where vocal parts are replaced with strings, “Laila’s Dream” (Resimdeki Gözyaşalrı-Tears) where vocal parts are given with brass and solo sax, “Oy Bana Bana” where vocal parts are replaced with electric guitar and sax. These three songs were previously released in the LP of The Bosporus Sound Orchestra named “Laila’s Dream” which had been released by United Artists, Liberty, and Türkofon before. The Bosporus Sound Orchestra was, of course, Ferdy Klein’s pseudonym for his orchestra. Thanks to Türküola for making these legendary recordings meet its collectors and Anatolian Pop fans via faithfully transferred master recordings.

Türküola releases maybe the most outstanding piece of Cem Karaca & Apaşlar in their adventure in Germany. Cem Karaca was a new born Anatolian Pop star from rock’n’roll roots and Apaşlar was a surf band when they united in 1967. In the end of 1967 they toured Germany and began to record with Ferdy Klein Orchestra (which was a version of Werner Müller Orchestra) between 1968-1969. “Gılgamış-Ayrılık Günümüz” is one of the singles recorded as a cooperation between the band and the “big band” . Therefore the A side of the single “Ayrılık Günümüz” (Our Day of Departi reflect this cooperation between Werner Müller Orchestra and CK & Apaşlar with a feeling of mod scene, a rock ballad with polyphonic arrangements. On the other hand the flip side of the single gives out the band’s own groove and performance with the instrumental psychedelic rock peace “Gılgamış” (Gilgamesh). Gılgamış is inspired by the Epic of Gılgamesh and the band plays a powerful groove with a Mesopotamian mood and riffs. The Apaşlar line-up playing in this piece was Mehmet Soyarslan (electric guitar), Seyhan Karabay (bass), and Leon Habib (drums). Beginning with Seyhan Karabay’s solid bass riffs which is followed by drums of Leon Habib serving an energetic groove; Soyarslan plays his Epiphone guitar with psychedelic effects which sometimes take the main theme to a micro tonal scale. Today we have the opportunity to hold this unique piece in compliance with the authentic cover coated with gelatine and its vinyl produced from the master tapes. Thanks to Türküola for this generous reissue for the collectors of Turkish psychedelia.

Altin Gün’s breakthrough debut album ‘On’ is being released on vinyl for the first time in the U.S.! This release will have a custom Stoughton vintage style tip-on jacket. It is being pressed on turquoise/white swirl vinyl.

On their debut album, Altin Gun showed what happens when you open the doors between Turkish folk songs and a dirty blend of funk rhythms, wah-wah guitars and analogue organs. Featuring their hit version of “Goca Dünya”!

Türküola gratefully presents an other Barış Manço compilation which gives a full retrospective of the best years of the Turkish psychedelic rock legend. The compilation focuses on the 1967-1971 era of Manço, which is mainly considered as the psychedelic years when the typical Anatolian Pop sound was evolving and Manço was more a rocker than a semi conservative pop folk singer of a neo-Ottoman aura. In the compilation we hear his works with his bands Les Mistigris (Seher Vakti), Kaygısızlar (near in all songs including Bebek, Boğaziçi etc.), Etc (in Dağlar Dağlar 1 &2 , Küçük Bir Gece Müziği (which is a psyche- adaptation Mozart’s “Eine Kleine Nacht Musik” and Derule), Moğollar (Binboğanın Kızı, İşte Hendek İşte Deve). “Binboğanın Kızı” explodes a prog- rock bomb with the legendary Moğollar with Hammond solos of Murat Ses, “Ağlama Değmez Hayat” pushes the limits of Turkish traditional music instruments with its raw but powerful groove, “Küçük Bir Gece Müziği” covers Mozart with its powerful guitars with screaming wah wah pedals, “Boğaziçi” (Bosphorus) gives a mystical and psychedelic mood which would later be a signature of Manço in his electronic prog years . “İşte Barış İşte Manço” will be a good start for the absolute beginners, thanks to traditional Türküola quality...

Mπλουμ (Bloom) is the third album in Nalyssa Green’s short but impressive discography. It comes six years after her sophomore “The Seed” and is her first record in her mother tongue.

The ten songs were written in 2015, while most of the album was recorded in 2016 in Lagia, which is her hometown in East Mani. The recordings of the vocals plus additional recordings followed in Athens and the album was completed in the beginning of 2018. Through her intense need to express herself with Greek lyrics, the singer-songwriter not only wins the bet, but manages to strengthen her musical identity.

The songs of Μπλουμ have a double meaning value just like the felicitous album title (Μπλουμ has the same pronunciation as Bloom but in greek slang means plunge. Blooming eerie vocals and dream melodies meet diving-baptisms in the dark bottom of the soul. Personal but at the same time everyday stories that strongly bear the feminine energy of their creator.

The tracks met the most suited sound with the production of Vasilis Dokakis (No Clear Mind). The euphoric artwork was created by Kakia Konstantinaki.

Famous for their matching, colourful suits and always-happy smiles, Beyaz Kelebekler (White Butterflies) were a mixed-gender Turkish band very popular during the ‘70s. They released one album plus numerous 45s in Turkey and other countries like Holland and Italy. In 1976 during the last day of their European Tour, just after one gig in Cologne, Beyaz Kelebekler visited a studio of a friend which was still in construction. They decided to record a few songs, just for fun and for testing the new studio equipment. It was a very basic, one take recording, using an 8-channel mixer, a few mics and a reel-to reel tape machine.
The result was an amazing example of Anatolian psych-funk, featuring wah-fuzz guitar, flute, heavy drums, joyous male / female vocals…
Unreleased until now, we present the first ever release of these surprising recordings, rescued from the only surviving cassette tape.
Colour insert with photos.

Uzelli Psychedelic Anadolu is a brand new product from Uzelli label, based in Turkey. Uzelli was established as a cassette label in Frankfurt in 1974 and since its beginnings was bringing Turkish music to Turkish people in their homeland and Germany. Produced more than thousand of albums of various artists from genres as arabesque, tavern, arabic music, psychedelic pop and rock, bellydance, Turkish classical music and folk.
Following a big international demand for original and obscure Turkish music from 70s and 80s, Uzelli selected tracks from their archive and brought them together as a compilation of psychedelic sounds of famous and unknown artists of Turkey. Compilation consists of highly popular names such as Erkin Koray or Ünol Büyükgönenç from legendary KardaÅ?lar band as well as undiscovered talents of vintage Turkish pop, rock and folk - Akbaba Akilisi, Zor Beyler, Kerem Güney, AÅ?ık Emrah, Elvan Sevil, NeÅ?e Alkan and Ali Ayhan. All tracks were recorded and produced by Uzelli between 1975 and 1984. Most of the tracks were never released on any other source than cassette. Uzelli brings them on vinyl, CD and digital. Compilation consists of 10 tracks plus 1 hidden track - all remastered by Emil Berliner Studio in Berlin. The design of the release was created to follow the original style of Uzelli's cassette covers' style from 70s and 80s.
Uzelli Psychedelic Anadolu is a first production that initiates a new project of Uzelli - creation of series of compilations and albums from its vast archive. Bringing original, undiscovered sounds from Turkey to worldwide music amatours is a main goal of the production. The project is created by international crew - curated by Polish music explorer and digger, esthetically redesigned by Polish artist, backed by Turkish researcher, American ethnomusicologist, Israeli and German DJs and producers. All production and management of the project takes place in Istanbul, in the headquaters of Uzelli company. All this make the production awaited by many music and culture networks all around the world.

Tara Jane O'Neil describes her latest album "Self Titled" as a "singer songwriter" endeavor.

At the invitation and by the design of Mark Greenberg (The Coctails), half of this record was recorded mostly live at Wilco’s Loft Studio in Chicago with a band that included James Elkington, Gerald Dowd, Nick Macri, and Greenberg himself. Another half was made in TJO’s home studio in California with Devin Hoff, Wilder Zoby, Walt McClements and string supervisor Jim James. This album also features the voices of Chris Cohen, Carolyn Pennypacker-Riggs and Joan Shelley. Tara Jane ONeil plays guitar, bass, keyboards and percussion.

As a solo artist she has released eight full-length albums internationally. O’Neil was a founding member of Rodan, the Sonora Pine , amongst other ensembles. She has collaborated on recordings and stages with Papa M, Michael Hurley, Little Wings, Marisa Anderson, Catherine Irwin, Mirah, Mount Eerie, and many many others. She has also performed at clubs, galleries, and DIY spaces around the world and venues such as the Centre de Pompdou, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and All Tomorrow’s Parties. She starred in the cult classic film Half-Cocked. Her visual art work has been shown in cities including London, Tokyo and Portland and has been published in three monographs.

A variety of Voodoo Rhythm artists pay tribute to The
Monsters! Featured acts include Urban Junior, King Automatic,
The Devils, Roy And The Devils Motorcycle, Delaney Davidson,
The Seniles, Rolando Bruno, Sudden Infant and others.

Guitarist and singer-songwriter Nils Lofgren in 1997 released a small treasure for longtime fans. "Acoustic Live" captures Lofgren alone in front of an appreciative audience, knocking out such favorites as "You", "No Mercy" and "Keith Don't Go", plus six new songs. Even with the new songs, there are no real revelations, only a selection of little gems that will put a smile on your face as you listen.
Along with his work as a solo artist, Lofgren has marked more than 25 years as a member of Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band as well as a former member of Crazy Horse and Grin. Lofgren joined Neil Young's band in 1968 at age 17, playing piano on the album "After The Gold Rush". Lofgren would maintain a close musical relationship with Young, appearing on his "Tonight's The Night" album and tour among others. He was also briefly a member of Crazy Horse, appearing on their 1971 LP and contributing songs to their catalogue. From '71 to '74 Lofgren was active in Grin, the band he founded in '69. Solo albums and tours followed every year through the 1970s as Lofgren established himself as a top guitarist and live performer earning the respect and acclaim of his peers. Bruce Springsteen made the call in 1984 and Lofgren joined the E-Street Band for the "Born In The USA" tour. Lofgren was an instant hit with Springsteens fans through his playing and vibrant on stage persona. Lofgren remains a stalwart of the E-Street Band to the present day.
»"Acoustic Live" is an interesting and charming album from Nils Lofgren in 1997 as he follow on in the Unplugged tradition that became popular in the 1990s. It was actually recorded at The Barns Of Wolftrap, Vienna in Virginia on January 18th, 1997.« — bestlivealbums.com

Reissue of German cassette release as vinyl after nearly 40 years. The songs are from the various singles and the debut LP. The title song 'Yuh Yuh' is from Selda's 1977 'Dostum Dostum'/'Yuh Yuh' single. Most of the songs are performed with the Anatolian Rock super group Dadaslar who are known for their works with Ersen. The group consists of Fehiman Ugurdemir (guitars and synthesizer, former Cem Karaca & Kardaslar guitarist), Ozkan Ugur ((bass, former Baris Manço guitarist) and Mehmet Gözüpek (former drummer of Bunalim) and creates a powerful groove with their psychedelic arrangements.

Released in 1976 Hejira is the 8th studio album from legendary Canadian singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell. The title word hejira is a transliteration of the Arabic word ‘hijra’ meaning journey which was a big inspiration for the album, as Mitchell said “the whole 'Hejira' album was really inspired... I wrote the album while traveling cross-country by myself and there is this restless feeling throughout it... The sweet loneliness of solitary travel."
Although the album was not as commercially successful as its predecessors it has been widely critically acclaimed and recognized as one of the high water marks of Mitchell’s illustrious career, with special mention to the support of Jaco Pastorious’s distinctive fretless bass.

The recordings that the sisters Elia and Elizabeth Fleta made, hand in hand with music arranger Jimmy Salcedo in the early seventies in their native Colombia, remained hidden like lost pearls in the undervalued musical pop history of Latin America until today. Their concise and natural mix of styles sways between soft-pop with a touch of tropical-pastoral funk, singer-songwriter sweetened by the subtle perfume of Caribbean music and the psychedelia of a world in the midst of discovering all the possibilities offered by the recording studio. These elements blended graciously and fortuitously, brimming with freshness, in a perfect partnership of sharp melodies with lyrics inspired by a genuine juvenile curiosity about life's mysteries, love and nature in their simplest forms.