2020s Preorder 356 Items

Swedish synth-pop phenomenon Kite's second 7 inch since signing with Dais in 2023 finds the duo of Nicklas Stenemo and Christian Hutchinson Berg swinging for new heights of romantic desolation and baroque grandeur. They describe the A Side, "Losing," as a "six-minute empty call for emotional response." Stately piano and anguished voice reverberate in a vaulted hall, before gradually building into a widescreen anthem of synths, drums, and soaring vocals decrying the steady deadening of life and love: "It's deadly quiet in your old heart / Are you there? / I see dark skies on the rise / And daylight shows no remorse / And I realize it is my life / But It's losing all meaning." Swedish dark music icons Anna von Hausswolff and Henric de la Cour join the chorus as the song cascades towards an ominous horizon. The B Side, "Glassy Eyes," showcases Kite's mastery of somber, sweeping balladry. Hushed church organ elevates and anchors Stenemo's devastated confessional, swaying between resilience and defeat. The band describes the song as a reckoning with "the privileged and existential anxiety of drifting through life dispassionately," contrasted with "the yearning to connect profoundly with others and a desire for experiences that stir the soul before facing one's final moments." Like a hymn, the emotion thickens as it deepens, approaching both darkness and divinity: "Deep as I go, nothing to find / Oh catatonia, I won't cry / Nothing can grow, everything dies / Behind my glassy eyes."

Swedish songwriter and multi-instrumentalist FredAtlast has announced his debut EP 'Banner Of A Lost Belief' to be released on Small Matter Records. Fred, currently better known for his day job as the bassist in Little Dragon, describes lead single 'One Day' as 'A meditation on impermanence and our way of dealing with loss. A plea to our nearest to be: nearer, dearer and more daring'. The EP was written in Fred's kitchen under the spiritual guidance of the late author Sven Lindqvist and has been his way of finding a direct voice, embracing a new sound and diving into the deep well. It was recorded in the Little Dragon studio in Gothenburg with help and support from the rest of the band who feature in different ways on the EP.

First Dabeull's proper album of his career after several key releases - Intimate Fonk, Fonk Delight or the sought-after compilation InDaStudio.

For Dabeull, analog production is his favorite playground as showing his upcoming 9-track album, "Analog Love" (out on April 12th 2024) was recorded using Michael Jackson's Thriller console - 100% analog.

Sunk in quicksand, doused in prosecco and soundwaves of glitches and Croatian choons, Bolka
is stuck in the raw state of desire. This love came into being under the sad ceilings, bearing traces of fantastically naive melodies shredded by claws of intruding noises of the artist's debut EP. And yet, radical sensitivity and optimism on the new EP do not remain just on the beach. Žiadzasamy (loosely translated as Yearningforus) include love songs about love read in cards, about overcoming insecurity, about scratching up the slippery walls of reality towards the dream source of warmth that only SHE possesses. Syrupy pop tunes in "nech sa ti páčim" ("i hope you like me") are led by a nursery rhyme about the complex embrace of infatuation, from the head down to the shoulders, knees and toes of the desired person. The sound wizard of peculiarities goes by the motto "let anything I wish for come true", whether it's his white buttocks shining in the dark sea or him sweeping past barefoot in search of seafood delicacies, and the same is heard in his music where euphoric and childish moods sink arbitrarily to the depths of corroded and distorted rhythms of anxiety. "A smutek utek" ("and the sadness is gone"), though, sets a new direction for the Bolka's musical piece; after a slow mo deflation of the balloon of hopes, after wallowing in oozy and sticky blend of delirious melodies, Bolka gets to spin the wheel of the real Balkan soap opera.

"More, mám ťa veľmi rád" ("sea/man, i like you very much") is the pinnacle of absolute infiltration and absorption with infatuation and suddenly, the amusing nods to stereotypical Croatian hits make it clear that all the joy and high spirits do not stem from holiday idleness. In žiadzasamy, Bolka indulges in the ideal notion of love that is closer to reality with each passing kilometer, impatiently speeding up the Latin tempo in the hyper-pop escalation in order to venture into the most radical decision – that all will end well. Žiadzasamy is hedonism injected right into one's vein, an ashtray always aglow with a lit cigarette and a musical burst of new-born love that sets the Bolka's sound world on a single course: from siesta to fiesta, and so on and on.

mmy-nominated Marie Davidson’s first release for Soulwax’s Deewee imprint, ‘Y.A.A.M.’, is produced by longtime collaborator Pierre Guerineau and is a cathartic response to power dynamics within the music industry. The rawness of the original is complemented by a new version by Soulwax, who previously reworked Davidson’s acclaimed ‘Work it’ anthem.

“I’ve read somewhere that to be an artist, you have to be willing to sometimes go where it is the most uncomfortable. About a year ago, after receiving a very condescending email related to the business side of music making, I took the opportunity to write down how I felt about the words and the overall tone of arrogance of what I had just been sent.

Quickly, I found myself having a bit too much fun, words flowing from my fingers to the screen, as I had never seen happen before. All sentences were brief and rhymed effortlessly. Soon enough, I realized that what I was writing was a song.

Music was made as a pure act of catharsis, an exercise in telling things as they are in the most concise way. Y.A.A.M. is a testimony of living with passion and authenticity in a world that thrives on branding and transactional relationships. I found great pleasure in writing this track. Now that it’s time to share the work, I simply hope that it can inspire others to be who they are irreverently. Don’t mind the bad words, it comes straight from the heart. Love, Marie” - Marie Davidson

A.R. Kane were formed in 1986 by Rudy Tambala and Alex Ayuli, two second-generation immigrants who grew up together in Stratford, East London. From the off the pair were outsiders in the culturally mixed (cockney/Irish/West Indian/Asian) milieu of the East End, with Alex and Rudy’s folks first generation immigrants from Nigeria and Malawi, respectively. The two of them quickly developed and fostered an innate and near-telepathic mutual understanding forged in musical, literary and

artistic exploration. Like a lot of second-generation immigrants, they were ferocious autodidacts in all kinds of areas, especially around music and literature. Diving deep into the music of afro-futurist luminaries such as Sun Ra, Miles Davis, Lee Perry and Hendrix, as well as devouring the explorations of lysergic noise and feedback from contemporaries like Sonic Youth and Butthole Surfers, they also thoroughly immersed themselves in the alternate literary realities of sci-fi and ancient history (the

fascination with the arcane that gave the band their name), all to feed their voracious cultural thirsts and intellectual curiosity.

It was seeing the Cocteau Twins performing on Channel 4 show the Tube that spurred A.R. Kane into being - “They had no drummer. They used tapes and technology and Liz Fraser looked completely otherworldly with those big eyes. And the noise coming out of Robin’s guitar! That was the ‘Fuck! We could do that!

The duo debuted with the astonishing ‘When You’re Sad’ single for One Little Indian in

1986. Immediately dubbed a ‘black Jesus & Mary Chain’ by a press unsure of Where to put a black band clearly immersed in feedback and noise, what was immediately apparent for listeners was just how much more was going on here – a tapping of dub’s stealth and guile, a resonant umbilicus back to fusion and jazz, the music less a conjuration of past highs than a re-summoning of lost spirits.

The run of singles and EPs that followed picked up increasingly rapt reviews in the press, but it was the ‘Up Home EP’ released in 1988 on their new home, Rough Trade that really suggested something immense was about to break. SimonReynolds noted the EP was: Their most concentrated slab of iridescent awesomeness and a true pinnacle of an era that abounded with astounding

landmarks of guitar-reinvention, A.R. Kane at their most elixir-like.

If anything, the remastered ‘Up Home’ is even more dazzling, even more startling than it was when it first emerged, and listening now you again wonder not just about how many bands christened ‘shoegaze’ tried to emulate it, but how all of them fell so far short of its lambent, pellucid wonder. This

remains intrinsically experimental music but with none of the frowning orthodoxy those words imply. A.R. Kane, thanks to that second generation auto-didacticism were always supremely aware about the interstices of music and magic, but at the same time gloriously free in the way they explored that connection within their own sound, fascinated always with the creation of ‘perfect mistakes’ and the possibilities inherent in informed play.

Celebrating 10 years of global superstar Ed Sheeran’s second album “Multiply”, styled as “x”. The album was an international commercial success, peaking at number 1 in 15 countries, topping the UK Albums Chart and US Billboard Top 200, and the top 5 in seven other countries.The album achieved multi-platinum status worldwide, and was the best selling album in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and the UK. The album achieved the status of the most streamed album in the world in 2014 on Spotify, and became the third biggest selling album in the UK in the 2010s. “Multiply” is a testament to Ed’s songwriting and artistry, demonstrating his ability to blend heartfelt lyrics with infectious melodies across a range of musical styles. Five singles were released from the album; Sing, Don’t, Thinking Out Loud, Bloodstream (a Rudimental collaboration) and Photograph. Thinking Out Loud and Photograph have both become timeless classics that resonate with all ages, and continue to soundtrack countless weddings, proms and other heartfelt moments between loved ones. To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the album, we are releasing a CD, black 2LP vinyl and green EcoRecord vinyl and a CD zine with 9 bonus tracks, with inverted artwork. The bonus tracks have never been released on vinyl before, however Make It Rain was released on the Sons of Anarchy, Vol. 4 soundtrack, and the All Of The Stars was released on The Fault In Our Stars soundtrack, but have never been part of an Ed Sheeran release.

An analog single of Tatsuro Yamashita's classic cover, which was previously only available for digital release! It includes "Koukiatsu Girl" newly mixed for this analog release, and the lead song "That Must Be September" from the latest original album "dreamin'" on the B-side. The song was written, composed, and arranged by Junk Fujiyama's sound creator, Tatsuki Kamiya, who has worked on all of Junk Fujiyama's recent works, creating an ongoing city-pop sound.

The Beach Boys and Tatsuro Yamashita's superb cover full of overwhelming euphoria is now available on 7"!

The Pen Friend Club has evolved with a new vocalist, Niina, and is now available on analog!

The Pen Friend Club, popular for their wall-of-sound based on mid-60's West Coast Rock around The Beach Boys and Phil Spector, has released their first recording as a new group and their first cover of a key song that characterized the band on Side A. In addition to The Beach Boys' 1967 classic "Darlin'," Side AA features a cover of Tatsuro Yamashita's 1985 classic "Saturday's Lover," a popular track that also evokes the band's city pop side. Side AA features a cover of Tatsuro Yamashita's 1985 classic "Saturday's Lover," a popular track that also evokes the band's city-pop side.

Chinese-born singer "Rushika (る鹿)," active as a fashion model in Japan, made her debut by releasing a cover of Yura Yura Teikoku's "Kudou Desu" (Hollow). Her 3rd single, "Karada ga Shibareru Atama ga Yorokobu," released in October 2023, features an original composition by Shintaro Sakamoto and Seiichi Yamamoto, influential figures in Japan's alternative music scene. The song, a blend of catchy, danceable, and psychedelic elements, intertwines with a memorable poetic world carrying an unsettling atmosphere, bringing out Ruka's newfound charm. This 7-inch single includes versions sung in Japanese on the A-side, and B-side is a remix that features remixes by Meitei.