1990s 10 Items

Until recently, it was thought that we had heard all there was to hear from Saâda Bonaire. The German studio project's 1980s recordings had been compiled on the now cult-classic double LP Saâda Bonaire, released by Captured Tracks in 2013. Though the group had continued working until 1994, founder Ralph "von" Richtoven had firmly stated that all of their post-1986 work was lost. Released now for the first time ever, 1992 compiles the band's long-lost early nineties material. Produced between Bremen and New York City, the 12 songs presented here capture the group's attempts at steering their trademark fusion sound (reggae, afro-funk, Eastern music, and sultry German female vocals) into uncharted nu jazz, trip-hop, and house territories. It's no surprise, given both the time lapse and the fluid nature of the project, that these recordings differ sonically from the 1980s material. 1992 finds Saâda Bonaire folding new influences from the time (house, hip-hop, rap) into their eclectic sonic universe. Vocalist Andrea Ebert's soulful voice -the result of a church choir background and an early love of American soul and jazz music- offset Stephanie Lange's laid-back, more German-sounding vocals. This unique interplay bolstered the band's new direction - evident in their inspired takes on James Brown's "Woman" and Syreeta Wright and Stevie Wonder's "To Know You Is To Love You". The American influence was also made literal via contributions by renowned DJ Matthias Heillbronn and rapper Jimmy Lee Patterson, both of whom lent some stardust to the tracks at François Kevorkian's Axis Studios in NYC. Unfortunately, the demo recordings were considered too bizarre for 1990s record label standards, and as a result were never published. As with all things Saâda Bonaire, the discovery of these discarded recordings feels like a sort of magical impossibility. It's been nearly ten years since the release of the last compilation, and thirty since the recordings were originally captured. That they still manage to sound fresh and avant garde is a testament to Saâda Bonaire's flair for creating pop music for past, present, and future outsiders.

To celebrate the 30 year anniversary of Shakespears Sister’s seminal album ‘Hormonally Yours’,London Records have announced special edition releases across multiple formats. A double platinum and top 3 UK album ‘Hormonally Yours’ secured Siobhan Fahey and Marcella Detroit a place in British pop history, spawning the single Stay - which spent a staggering eight consecutive weeks at the top of the UK charts - and winning the duo an Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contemporary Song Collection. ‘Hormonally Yours’ also features singles ‘Goodbye Cruel World’ and ‘I Don’t Care’, tackles friendships gone wrong on ‘My Sixteenth Apology’, powerful, dangerous attraction on ‘Emotional Thing’ and documents a friend’s coming out on ‘Are We In Love Yet?’ Fan favourite ‘The Trouble With Andre’, the full-throttle glam-blues of ‘Cat Woman and glorious finale ‘Hello (Turn Your Radio On) is the album’s glorious finale: an exhalation; a glorious, earth-shuddering moment that recalls the epic melancholy of David Bowie’s ‘Five Years’ and The Beatles’ ‘A Day In The Life’. Shakespears Sisters second LP, Hormonally Yours, provided the perfect encapsulation of Shakespears Sister’s musical ying and yang; a deftly delivered balance of pop melody with a spikey alternative darkness

UK National Album Day Limited Release. Performance and Cocktails, released in 1999, includes “T Shirt Sun Tan,” the acoustic “She Takes Her Clothes Off,” and “Pick a Part That’s New.”. The name of the band’s second studio album comes from lyrics in the first featured song ‘Roll Up and Shine’, and is being released as a limited edition 140-gram Orange vinyl.