Ninja Tune 161 Items

Limited edition of 500 copies on red/clear marbled vinyl, available exclusively from HHV for the German market.

The LP "Distance In Static HHV Exclusive Clear / Red Vinyl Edition," released on Ninja Tune, brings together the compositional work of an artist who has been one of the defining voices in electronic music for more than 25 years. It marks both a conclusion and the beginning of a new chapter in a body of work that includes two Top 10 albums, numerous gold and silver certifications for singles, nearly one million records sold worldwide, and billions of streams; collaborations with artists such as Erykah Badu and Damon Albarn, along with recurring BRIT and GRAMMY nominations, further underscore this range.

Musically, the record combines familiar elements of warm, organic textures with a clear inclination toward precise electronic production: dense percussion, layered string and horn arrangements, and subtle melodic motifs create an atmospheric space that accommodates both intimate moments and danceable passages in equal measure. Particularly striking is the visual realignment, developed together with designer Trevor Jackson and using microphotographs by John I. Koivula as its aesthetic starting point; the accompanying live show, created in collaboration with Pierre Claude, extends the concept into a performance with carefully considered spatial design.

A repress of the critically-acclaimed Black Sands - Bonobo aka Simon Green’s celebrated breakthrough record - on Eco Mix double vinyl.

Influenced by the divergent, bass-driven strands of the UK electronic music scene at that time, Green artfully fitted those evolving sounds into his own wider vision. The record’s lasting importance stems from the depth that he found in those combinations, rattling two-step rhythms and heavy pressure sub-bass twinned with carefully crafted songwriting and lush, brightly-realised instrumentation.

It’s a record that’s both timeless and wonderfully of its time. From ‘Kiara’, which weds cinematic, string-laden composition with chopped up vocals and luminous synth arpeggios, to ‘Eyesdown’, where subterranean swells of bass meet Andreya Triana’s warm, peerless vocals, the album is effortlessly multi-faceted. Listening back a decade later, it still sounds just as beguiling, emotive and transportive as it did the first time around.

“Using repurposed material offers sound parity with virgin vinyl, and yet it is currently habitually underutilised despite the efforts of sustainability focussed pressing plants. Ninja Tune is committed to utilising the surplus PVC from pressed vinyl records across its back catalogue - often referred to as ‘eco mix’ - in pursuit of more sustainable vinyl production. The marbled, random multi-coloured effect vinyl can easily support the demand for new and recycled black vinyl. With artists such as Bonobo, Ninja Tune is committed to making eco vinyl the industry standard,” says Sean Preston, Head of Production, Ninja Tune.

In an effort to set a new and more sustainable precedent for catalogues to be repressed on reclaimed vinyl rather than the standard black or other coloured variants, all records in the recycled vinyl campaign have also been manufactured at pressing plants that have shown commitments to sustainability, by participating in the Music Climate Pact and the Vinyl Alliance Sustainable Supplier Programme.

Launched in 2021, the Music Climate Pact united record labels to harness the power of the music industry towards inspiring transformational change on the climate crisis. Signatories to the pact commit to take individual and collective action to measure and reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. One of the priority workstreams has focussed upon quantifying opportunities to reduce the impact of vinyl records- launching a sustainable supplier programme with the Vinyl Alliance in 2025.

For fans of Jon Hopkins, Four Tet, Caribou, DJ Koze, Burial, Little Dragon.

With his highly accomplished third album If This Is It, DJ Seinfeld (Armand Jakobsson) evolves further into the artist he always set out to be, refining his emotional, club-leaning sound across nostalgic house, UKG, and 2000s-tinged trance.

The 12-track LP — featuring SG Lewis, Confidence Man, TS Graye, Dan Whitlam, ARY, “Norwegian pop witch” Moyka, and Barry Can’t Swim affiliate just lil — explores letting go in a world that can often feel overwhelming.

“A million ideas turned into a few, a few turned into no ideas at all, and no ideas eventually turned into one,” says Jakobsson of the album, which he began the week his acclaimed 2021 record Mirrors was released. “Through writing it, I’ve tried to turn long-held anxieties into acceptance, and I hope listeners can take their own meaning from it.”

The LP “Distance In Static Indie Exclusive Colored Vinyl Edition” by Bonobo, released on Ninja Tune, comes as pastel blue double 140 g vinyl in a 6 mm‑thick sleeve with printed inner sleeves, an art‑paper insert, and postcards of the artwork; the package also includes an MP3 download code. Design and art direction are by Trevor Jackson, making the physical edition function as a thoughtfully conceived special release both visually and in terms of its tactile presence.

Simon Green, aka Bonobo, looks back on more than 25 years as a recording artist and ranks among the defining voices in electronic music; his career includes several top 10 albums, strong sales, and numerous awards, as well as collaborations with artists such as Erykah Badu and Damon Albarn. This chapter of his work distills that experience and brings together stylistic elements like organic samples, intricate rhythms, and meticulous arrangements, without abandoning the warmth in melody and production that is so characteristic of his music.

Visually, “Distance In Static” marks a shift: instead of earlier landscape aesthetics, it features microscopic photography by John I. Koivula that reveals crystalline, almost otherworldly worlds. This visual language carries over into the new live show, created in collaboration with Pierre Claude, marking another stage in the evolution of Bonobo’s performance.

It's Gou's second Ninja Tune release, following 2016's Seek For Maktoop, which landed on their club-focused Technicolour sublabel. The Berlin-based artist also sings on the new EP, which includes three tracks that each cater to a specific context—open air, warm-up and "proper party," she says.

"I tried to draw on all my influences of the last few years," she explains, "from electro, African music, early '90s house music and also techno, especially Maurice Fulton and DMX Krew." She closed out her RA podcast this week with the EP cut "It Makes You Forget (Itgehane)."

Produced by Kenneth Blume (FKA Kenny Beats) – recorded last year in a whirlwind two-week studio session following an initial prospective meeting between the trio – the record has been mixed by multi-Grammy-winning engineer Tom Norris (Lady Gaga, Charli XCX, The Weeknd and many more), with additional production coming from Dylan Brady of 100 Gecs across four of the album’s tracks.

Named by BBC Radio 1 as their ‘Future Artist of the Month’, BBC 6 Music’s ‘New Music Fix Daily Next Up’, and Spotify in their ‘Artist to Watch’ programme; Ö’ finds Fcukers in full-throttle mode, encapsulating the unruly energy that has earned them status as New York’s go-to party starters. It contains recent breakout singles “Play Me”, and “I Like It Like That” – the latter already proving a firm live-favourite at their riotous headline shows – and guides the listener through all the highs and lows of a metaphorical night-out in Fcukers world. Sharp, muscular and oozing with the kind of peak-time party energy that the duo have honed throughout their short existence, ‘Ö’ demonstrates a band firmly in command of their sound, working at the top of their game, and ready to set the pace for 2026.

New music from Simon Green aka Bonobo is always an event, but when it heralds the arrival of a whole new album (his first since 2013’s “The North Borders”), it’s really something to get excited about. The masterful, magisterial “Migration” is Green’s sixth album and it’s a record which cements his place in the very highest echelons of electronic music and beyond.
It might be difficult to imagine it, but “Migration” will take his beautiful, emotive, intricate music to an even bigger audience. “My own personal idea of identity has played into this record and the theme of migration,” Green explains. “Is home where you are or where you are from, when you move around?” The personal, it seems, can also be universal.

With his highly accomplished third album If This Is It, DJ Seinfeld (Armand Jakobsson) evolves further into the artist he always set out to be, refining his emotional, club-leaning sound across nostalgic house, UKG, and 2000s-tinged trance.

The 12-track LP — featuring SG Lewis, Confidence Man, TS Graye, Dan Whitlam, ARY, “Norwegian pop witch” Moyka, and Barry Can’t Swim affiliate just lil — explores letting go in a world that can often feel overwhelming.

“A million ideas turned into a few, a few turned into no ideas at all, and no ideas eventually turned into one,” says Jakobsson of the album, which he began the week his acclaimed 2021 record Mirrors was released. “Through writing it, I’ve tried to turn long-held anxieties into acceptance, and I hope listeners can take their own meaning from it.”

Bonobo will release his new album ‘Fragments' via Ninja Tune on January 14th, 2022. Fragments is the most emotionally intense record that he - aka Simon Green - has ever had to make. It’s no surprise that it’s also his masterpiece. The album features Jamila Woods, Joji, Kadhja Bonet, Jordan Rakei, O’Flynn and Miguel Atwood-Ferguson. Born first out of fragments of ideas and experimentation, the album ultimately was fused together in a burst of creativity fuelled by both collaboration and Green’s escape into the wild. The artwork for ‘Fragments" is by Neil Krug who returns after creating the art for 2017’s 'Migration’. Krug has also made a visualiser for ’Rosewood”.

One of the biggest names in dance music, Green’s career includes 3 Grammy nominations and playing to over 2 million people for the tour supporting his 2017 album Migration. Migration was a top ten album in multiple countries, top five at home in the UK and a Billboard dance album number one in the US. He’s also a favourite mainstage performer at the world’s greatest music festivals. As part of the tour announced today Bonobo will play three dates at the legendary Royal Albert Hall in London in addition to dates in Brighton, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds and Nottingham.

Fragments is a series of 12 sonic affirmations, featuring some of the hardest and most hip-shaking grooves that Green has ever created. The ballads are perfectly placed throughout; they capture a world in flux and glow with hope. Coaxing the ideas out initially took some hard work. The constantly-touring Green creates best while on the move; the global shutdown forced him to stand still.

Bonobo will release his new album ‘Fragments' via Ninja Tune on January 14th, 2022. Fragments is the most emotionally intense record that he - aka Simon Green - has ever had to make. It’s no surprise that it’s also his masterpiece. The album features Jamila Woods, Joji, Kadhja Bonet, Jordan Rakei, O’Flynn and Miguel Atwood-Ferguson. Born first out of fragments of ideas and experimentation, the album ultimately was fused together in a burst of creativity fuelled by both collaboration and Green’s escape into the wild. The artwork for ‘Fragments" is by Neil Krug who returns after creating the art for 2017’s 'Migration’. Krug has also made a visualiser for ’Rosewood”.

One of the biggest names in dance music, Green’s career includes 3 Grammy nominations and playing to over 2 million people for the tour supporting his 2017 album Migration. Migration was a top ten album in multiple countries, top five at home in the UK and a Billboard dance album number one in the US. He’s also a favourite mainstage performer at the world’s greatest music festivals. As part of the tour announced today Bonobo will play three dates at the legendary Royal Albert Hall in London in addition to dates in Brighton, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds and Nottingham.

Fragments is a series of 12 sonic affirmations, featuring some of the hardest and most hip-shaking grooves that Green has ever created. The ballads are perfectly placed throughout; they capture a world in flux and glow with hope. Coaxing the ideas out initially took some hard work. The constantly-touring Green creates best while on the move; the global shutdown forced him to stand still.

Sound Mirrors, the 2006 studio album from acclaimed duo Coldcut, was quoted as being “one of the most vital and imaginative records Jon Moore and Matt Black have ever made”, and saw the duo "continue, impressively, to find new ways to present political statements through a gamut of pristine electronics and breakbeats" (CITATION: Future Music, 2007). The fascinating array of guest vocalists included Soweto Kinch, Annette Peacock, Ameri Baraka, and Saul Williams. The 20th Anniversary reissue edition comes for Record Store Day 2026 and will feature eco-mix marbled 2LP with a mirror board printed sleeve.

Produced by Kenneth Blume (FKA Kenny Beats) – recorded last year in a whirlwind two-week studio session following an initial prospective meeting between the trio – the record has been mixed by multi-Grammy-winning engineer Tom Norris (Lady Gaga, Charli XCX, The Weeknd and many more), with additional production coming from Dylan Brady of 100 Gecs across four of the album’s tracks.

Named by BBC Radio 1 as their ‘Future Artist of the Month’, BBC 6 Music’s ‘New Music Fix Daily Next Up’, and Spotify in their ‘Artist to Watch’ programme; Ö’ finds Fcukers in full-throttle mode, encapsulating the unruly energy that has earned them status as New York’s go-to party starters. It contains recent breakout singles “Play Me”, and “I Like It Like That” – the latter already proving a firm live-favourite at their riotous headline shows – and guides the listener through all the highs and lows of a metaphorical night-out in Fcukers world. Sharp, muscular and oozing with the kind of peak-time party energy that the duo have honed throughout their short existence, ‘Ö’ demonstrates a band firmly in command of their sound, working at the top of their game, and ready to set the pace for 2026.

The “Distance In Static Black Vinyl Edition” by Bonobo is released on Ninja Tune as a black double 140 g vinyl set housed in a 6 mm spine sleeve with printed inners and an art paper insert. Design and art direction were handled by Trevor Jackson; the package includes an MP3 download code, combining tactile analog feel with digital accessibility.

The album marks the culmination of more than 25 years in the studio and encapsulates the career of one of the most prominent names in electronic music. Bonobo has two top-10 albums to his name — “Migration” (2017) and “Fragments” (2022), both of which reached number five in the UK charts — as well as numerous gold and silver certifications, sales of over 900,000 units, and billions of streams. Collaborations with artists such as Erykah Badu and Damon Albarn, along with BRIT and multiple GRAMMY nominations, underscore his standing in the field.

Visually, “Distance In Static” breaks new ground: together with Trevor Jackson, the project draws on microphotography by photomicrographer John I. Koivula to create crystalline, otherworldly micro-worlds that feel both natural and unfamiliar. This visual language also carries over into the new live show, developed in collaboration with Pierre Claude, which further evolves Bonobo’s performance practice.

Musically, the work presents itself as a focused distillation of experience and taste: Bonobo remains rooted in the electronic realm, relying on carefully sculpted soundscapes and a finely tuned balance of organic and synthetic elements, allowing the album cycle to document both the breadth of his output and his artistic evolution.

Swedish musician and producer Armand Jakobsson aka DJ Seinfeld has always stood out from his peers. With a special place in the so-called ‘lo-fi house’ scene now developing into something beyond the no-nonsense dance music he pioneered. 2017’s Time Spent Away From U popped with the complex emotive quality of a true club shaker, and Jakobsson’s long-awaited second LP Mirrors shows that he’s an individual carrying that sensitivity in spades.

There’s no doubt that Mirrors is another straight-up belter of a dance record loaded with state-of-the-art 2-step and garage upgrades, but a glance at this track-listing suggests that Seinfeld’s been feeling a particular kind of rave melancholia recently. Far from being the jubilant declaration of its title, ice-cold synths and rainy urban stroll drum programming shake ‘She Loves Me’ into a Burial-esque revery of love lost despite the good times. The gentle hardcore stabs of ‘Walking With Ur Smile’ and the vapour trail textures of ‘These Things Will Come’ have their sights on better days to come, even as their snipped, Four Tet-like diva vocals offer cadences of joy in the now.

Mirrors is precisely the kind of self-reflexive dance record we need to hear in 2021; a striking reminder that brighter days are on the horizon.

Ever since Actress hinted at a new album back in May 2019, we have been waiting with open ears and arms, for Karma & Desire to arrive. With a single 49-minute track '88' uploaded on Bandcamp earlier this year, it was a palette cleanser for what is to come. For this new record, we see Darren Cunningham returning in true Actress form, alongside the now revealed list of mystery collaborators - Mercury Prize winner Sampha, singer and songwriter Zsela, Aura T-09, pianist and conductor Vanessa Benelli Mosell and vocalist Rebekah Christel.

Several of the tracks on Karma & Desire find Darren Cunningham leaning into the sort of hazy, slightly hypnagogic synthscapes which have cropped up repeatedly throughout his output as Actress. Cuts such as ‘Gliding Squares’ have a quality about them which is pitched between dreamy reverie and something more unsettling. It is a sound which means that Karma & Desire can count both Dean Blunt and David Lynch as points of reference. When house and techno beats enter the fray they almost emerge out of these synthetic fogs - even the more lively joints still crackle and hiss with an alluring softness. In this manner, Karma & Desire harks back to previous Actress LPs such as AZD, though there is often a wintry quality to the more beat-driven tracks here which mark them out as unique to this LP.

There are several moments on Karma & Desire where Actress follows his nose to end up in electronic terrain that is difficult to name. The rhythms on ‘Loose’, for instance, draw from juke and ‘Pulse X’-era Eskibeat, but the way in which strange clouds of sound are created from keyboards and Rebekah Cristel’s faraway vocals means that the track is only really comparable to the experiments of Inga Copeland. Furthermore, the points where the piano is played, frequently deliver some of the most beautiful moments here, be they the sparse ‘Public Life (feat. Vanessa Benelli Mosell)’ or the soulful lilt of ‘Walking Flames (feat. Sampha)’.

Karma & Desire brings a surreal beauty to Actress’ typically innovative brand of electronic composition.

Amazing album by Poland's Skalpel, finally available again and not to be missed in any record collection!

Simon Green aka Bonobo returns with his fourth, most eagerly-anticipated and most accomplished album to date, the magnificent Black Sands on Ninjaaa Tune!

Following the acclaim of her 2024 album My Method Actor, Nilüfer Yanya returns with an intimate, one-take Live-to-Vinyl session at Metropolis Studios. The performance captures a raw snapshot of Yanya’s artistry, reworking standout moments from My Method Actor alongside fan favourites. The 12" includes “Method Actor,” “Call It Love,” “Binding,” and “The Dealer.” My Method Actor earned praise from The Guardian, Pitchfork, The New York Times, Crack Magazine, and The Face. The Live-to-Vinyl release follows major touring, including a North American run with Alex G, UK dates supporting Lorde, and festival appearances at Glastonbury, Primavera, All Points East, Green Man, and Way Out West. Nilüfer Yanya: “My band & I cherry picked 4 songs from the live show that we have been touring since the release of ‘My Method Actor’ that take on a life of their own on stage. Having the opportunity to record these at Metropolis archives the live show at a moment in time and hopefully makes for an enjoyable listening experience."

Limited to 100 pieces.

Fcukers are set to release their debut album ‘Ö’ on March 27th on Ninja Tune. Produced by Kenneth Blume (FKA Kenny Beats) – recorded last year in a whirlwind two-week studio session following an initial prospective meeting between the trio – the record has been mixed by multi-Grammy-winning engineer Tom Norris (Lady Gaga, Charli XCX, The Weeknd and many more), with additional production coming from Dylan Brady of 100 Gecs across four of the album’s tracks.

Named by BBC Radio 1 as their ‘Future Artist of the Month’, BBC 6 Music’s ‘New Music Fix Daily Next Up’, and Spotify in their ‘Artist to Watch’ programme; Ö’ finds Fcukers in full-throttle mode, encapsulating the unruly energy that has earned them status as New York’s go-to party starters. It contains recent breakout singles “Play Me”, and “I Like It Like That” – the latter already proving a firm live-favourite at their riotous headline shows – and guides the listener through all the highs and lows of a metaphorical night-out in Fcukers world. Sharp, muscular and oozing with the kind of peak-time party energy that the duo have honed throughout their short existence, ‘Ö’ demonstrates a band firmly in command of their sound, working at the top of their game, and ready to set the pace for 2026.

Barry Can’t Swim - one of the most exciting electronic artists in the world - announces his highly anticipated new album ‘Loner’, out 11th July on Ninja Tune. Alongside the announcement Barry shares a taste of what's to come on ‘Loner’ with club-ready single “Different” - a heady slice of electronic euphoria which has become a staple fan-favourite in the Edinburgh born producer’s enigmatic performances.

Throughout ‘Loner’ we see Barry Can’t Swim navigate and explore the world he’s found himself in, a highly personal album that asks profound questions of its creator and his audience. Informed by the staggering success of Barry’s live shows around the world, 'Loner' remains anchored to his roots both as a grounded human being and a progressive, ever-evolving artist.

“"If my first album was a collage of all the music I loved and was inspired by growing up, then this album is the most authentic expression I could offer of myself and my life over the past year” Barry comments.

Barry Can’t Swim - one of the most exciting electronic artists in the world - announces his highly anticipated new album ‘Loner’, out 11th July on Ninja Tune. Alongside the announcement Barry shares a taste of what's to come on ‘Loner’ with club-ready single “Different” - a heady slice of electronic euphoria which has become a staple fan-favourite in the Edinburgh born producer’s enigmatic performances.

Throughout ‘Loner’ we see Barry Can’t Swim navigate and explore the world he’s found himself in, a highly personal album that asks profound questions of its creator and his audience. Informed by the staggering success of Barry’s live shows around the world, 'Loner' remains anchored to his roots both as a grounded human being and a progressive, ever-evolving artist.

“"If my first album was a collage of all the music I loved and was inspired by growing up, then this album is the most authentic expression I could offer of myself and my life over the past year” Barry comments.

The CD “Distance In Static” comes as a tri-fold card wallet with insert. Design and art direction are by Trevor Jackson, whose visual direction embeds the accompanying materials precisely within the album’s conceptual visual world.

As a work, “Distance In Static” marks the high point of more than 25 years of Bonobo’s creative output and encapsulates the career of one of the most influential voices in electronic music. Over the course of his career, he has landed two Top 10 albums — “Migration” (2017) and “Fragments” (2022), both of which reached number five on the UK charts — earned multiple gold and silver certifications, sold more than 900,000 records, amassed billions of streams, and collaborated with artists such as Erykah Badu and Damon Albarn. Bonobo has been nominated both at the BRIT Awards and the Grammy Awards; seven Grammy nominations, five of them in the Dance/Electronic categories, place him alongside names such as The Chemical Brothers, Skrillex, and Madonna.

Musically, the album is built on Bonobo’s characteristic fusion of organic sounds, intricate rhythmic structures, and atmospheric arrangements that oscillate between intimacy and vast spatial expanses. Visually, the design draws for the first time on micro-photographs by photomicrographer John I. Koivula, creating crystalline image worlds that appear both natural and otherworldly. This visual language also flows into the new live show, which Bonobo has developed in collaboration with Pierre Claude and which carries the project forward on stage.

Released on Ninja Tune, the album presents itself as a reflective, carefully crafted CD edition that underscores Bonobo’s ongoing artistic ambition.

Tsha returns to Ninja Tune with her long-awaited debut album ‘Capricorn Sun’, set for release on Friday 7th October 2022. Recorded over the past two years, the record delivers on the promise of her previous EP’s and Singles with 12 tracks that perfectly encapsulate the emotive blend of underground electronic and hook-laden pop sensibilities that have led to her being one of the most talked about new artists of the past few years. From gracing the front cover of high-profile magazines, appearing on numerous billboards, being included in flagship playlists and programmes by multiple streaming services and being placed on countless ‘best of’ & ‘one to watch’ lists, alongside high-praise from across the music press and radio – Tsha shows no sign of slowing down in 2022.

The album follows her recent compilation for the revered ‘fabric presents’ series and an immense touring schedule that has seen her booked for over 100 shows across 2021/22, including opening for Disclosure at their two Alexandra Palace shows, performing to 40,000 fans across the West Coast of America with Bob Moses, a run of North American shows with Flume — including a stop at Colorado’s iconic Red Rocks Amphitheatre — a festival run that includes a set at this year’s Glastonbury and an ongoing residency at Ibiza’s Dc-10 for Circoloco to name just a few.

‘What We Call Life’ is Jordan Rakei’s most vulnerable and intimate album to date. Its lyrics concern the lessons that the New Zealand-born, Australia-raised, and London-based artist learned about himself during therapy, a journey that began two years ago when he started reading about the ‘positive psychology’ movement. These themes manifest on songs like lead single “Family”, which Rakei says is “the most personal” he’s ever been with his lyrics. “I wanted to hit my vulnerability barrier and be really honest. It’s about my parents’ divorce in my mid-teens but still having love for them no matter what,” he explains.

With so many artists being influenced by his style, it would be very easy for Jordan to stay in the same musical lane; but, as in life, he is determined to move his music forward. Such introspective subjects are a departure from Rakei’s last album, 2019’s ‘Origin’. Raising big questions about the way that technology and social media interferes with our sense of humanity, ‘Origin’ received praise from The Observer, Mixmag, Complex, and GQ, earned an unexpected shout-out from Elton John, led to a collaboration with rap legend Common, and saw Rakei give a show-stopping performance for NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert series.

No stranger to collaboration, Rakei is closely associated with friends and collaborators like Loyle Carner (with whom he co-wrote, produced and performed on “Ottolenghi” and the Jorja Smith-featuring “Loose Ends”), Tom Misch and Alfa Mist. He has also joined Chic’s Nile Rodgers for a writing session and recorded with Terrace Martin, producer for Kendrick and Snoop Dogg, and Herbie Hancock. There’s also his tight relationship with the South London dance music scene orbiting Bradley Zero’s Rhythm Section clubnight and label, with Rakei adopting the alias Dan Kye, most recently to offer up an exclusive track for Bonobo’s ‘Fabric presents’ mix and to release his full-length, ‘Small Moments’ album in November 2020. He also recently covered Donald Byrd’s “Wind Parade” for the Blue Note Re:imagined compilation, and earlier this year showcased work from his creative community alongside some of his favourite tracks (including his own covers of Radiohead’s “Codex”, and Jeff Buckley’s “Lover, You Should've Come Over”) in his mix for the esteemed LateNightTales series. He continues to offer up production tutorials and behind-the-scenes insights into his creative process with his fan community on Patreon.

With previously sold-out US and Australian headline tours, as well as performances at iconic venues and festivals – including Glastonbury, Pitchfork Avant-Garde Block Party, Sxsw, Montreux Jazz Festival, two sold out nights at Ronnie Scott’s, and a DJ set at Fabric (under his Dan Kye alias) – Jordan played a triumphant sold-out stop at London’s Roundhouse in 2019. In April 2022 he will embark on his biggest UK and EU tour yet, ending with a massive headline show at London’s 5000-capacity O2 Academy Brixton.

On ‘What We Call Life’ Rakei dives deeper into his sound world, merging electronic with acoustic, and rugged grooves with ambient atmospheres, to create something richer, more detailed, and more textural than before. Rakei, already a practitioner of meditation and mindfulness, was curious about the potential of using therapy for further self-discovery. During the process, he began to learn more about his behaviour patterns and anxieties, and addressed his long-standing irrational phobia of birds – a fear often associated with the unpredictable and the unknown, and something explored in the album’s creative direction and visuals. “As we worked through it, it made me realise I would love to talk about the different lessons I learned from therapy in my music: about my early childhood, my relationship with my parents and siblings, becoming independent in London, being in a new marriage, understanding how my marriage compares to the relationship my parents had”, Rakei says.

Artwork was created by Canadian-born, Los Angeles-based visual artist Justin Tyler Close (who has worked previously with the likes of Laura Marling), who resonated with the themes on Rakei’s album. The image was created in a remote photo shoot, with Rakei sending images over the internet that were projected onto a sheet and photographed by Close. The melancholic images reflect the title of the record, a question that Rakei would sometimes ask himself during a period of his childhood in which he suffered a great deal of anxiety: Is this what we call life? Rather than accepting defeat, the title is today a commentary on the more happy, confident, and assured person and artist that Jordan Rakei is today.

Julianna Barwick very much has her own lane in modern music. While the ethereally beautiful loops Barwick has delivered since emerging in the mid-2000s can be compared to the likes of Active Child, Clams Casino, Grouper and Mary Lattimore, none of those artists quite capture a sense of hazed ecstasy as well as Barwick.

Barwick’s new full-length Healing Is A Miracle, which follows the Circumstance Synthesis EP she released at the end of 2019, dives back into the pool. The likes of ‘Inspirit’ and ‘Wishing Well’ are both dense and weightless all at once, Barwick’s looped and layered vocals slathered in reverb until they achieve a state of rare grace. Indeed, bar the somewhat ominous ‘Flowers’, all of the tracks on Healing Is A Miracle deliver on the redemptive promise of the album’s title.

A trio of guests all assimilate superbly into the flow of Healing Is A Miracle, at once folding seamlessly into Barwick’s sonics and imbuing them with their own unique twists. The blend of Barwick’s reveries and harp from the aforementioned Lattimore was always going to be a winning combination, and ‘Oh, Memory’ does not disappoint on this front. The other two contributors both bring gentle rhythmic thrust - Jónsi helps to turn ‘In Light’ into a thousand-yard ballad while gently knocking drums from Nosaj Thing underpin closer ‘Nod’.

Healing Is A Miracle is another heavenly offering from Julianna Barwick.