Clear vinyl.

‘It opens with hypnotic, dubwise low-end pressure; then Guess What pushes into Bristol techno territory. Next up the syncopated bass mutations of You’d Never Know; before Swollows Sunshine drifts into electro, ambient melancholy.’

‘A new album of category-scrambling song-craft by the elusive and shape-shifting Thomas Bush; the latest stage in a wayward path between everything from murky dirges to head-nodding laments to crystalline synths that hang precariously in the air over your new-favourite bass line.
‘Critical responses along the way have focussed on a predilection for the folkey-dokey, but judging from releases like 2026’s guld, Bush’s definition of ‘folk’ has as much to do with A Guy Called Gerald as it does with Shirley Collins or John Martyn.
‘For all its diversity, what unites Bush’s ever-expanding body of work is its dual commitment to experimentation and a job well done.’

“Random Constraint Satisfaction Problems was recorded at Vista Studio 1, Malmö, between 2022 and 2025. After creating an account at academia.edu for the purpose of reading a text now forgotten, I began to get emails asking me questions such as ‘Thomas Bush, did you write Brucellosis and Sacroiliitis: A Common Presentation of an Uncommon Pathogen?’, and ‘Are you the Thomas Bush who wrote ATR-dependent Phosphorylation of FANCA on Serine 1449 after DNA Damage is Important for FA Pathway Function?’, which began to make me wonder if I was, or if I wasn’t, perhaps I should be.
“The resulting work is an attempt to find meaning in this, and other chaotic and ambiguous situations through analysis using materials and equipment to hand. Being sensitive to signs and following them up with enthusiasm. Both source material and evaluation are presented.”

Ace, classic UK garage.
With the raw, vital, white-label mix.
Ruff.

His heady sophomore Blue Note, from 1969. Elvin Jones and Jimmy Lyons pick up where Ghetto Music left off. Funky grooves injected with a gospel street choir and late-sixties free-form freakery.
‘Classic Vinyl.’

Freddie in his heyday like this was one of the greatest singers in reggae history.
He’s in soaring, inspirational form here, riding a hard-as-nails Niney rhythm.
The organ-led dub is dazzling. Mark Ernestus from Rhythm & Sound recently opened a set with one of its incarnations, at the already-legendary Open Ground club in Wuppertal.
Both sides, classics.

A tough, funky, full-throated cross between raw boogie and Modern Soul, out of Jackson, Mississippi.
Ticking high hats school of Earl Young; bonkers bass.
Originally released by Joe Shamwell on his Shakin’ label, this was the Chymes’ first release, just prior to their deal with RCA.

Lash them, Tubby, lash them.

Cool and deadly DC, over a giddily deep re-cut of the same rhythm as Wayne Jarrett’s monumental Brimstone And Fire.

Jakob Bro, Brian Blade, Craig Taborn, Chris Cheek, Jesper Zeuthen, Anders Christensen, Larry Grenadier & Marcus Gilmore, playing compositions by Paul Motian and Jakob Bro.
The album was recorded in a single session at New York’s Power Station with engineer James Farber, following a week-long residency at the Village Vanguard.

‘Danish guitarist and composer Jakob Bro is celebrated for his pure reflective expression and penchant for celestial textures, effortlessly distilling and refining quiet sonics. At the Village Vanguard, he leads an impressive group – featuring two bassists and two drummers – for a nearly week-long residency.
‘The perfectly poised, ambient-leaning soundworld that characterizes Bro’s compositions was discomposed and distended by this octet, probing thrilling sounds and providing ample opportunity to create spontaneously. It was an exhilarating jazz night with some of the most esteemed players out there.’ (Jazztrail.net)

With the all-time, game-changing Hi-Tech Jazz. Crucial.

Superb late-eighties digi, with all the trimmings.
Al Campbell in top form at the mic; classy horns and backing vocals; rollicking rhythm; masterful, frolicsome Niney production.

Spiritualised, easy-grooving and spacious late-seventies roots. Upsetters-style woodblocks, stumpy bass, ace backing harmonies. AT himself is strikingly sincere, determined, hymnal. Jackie Mittoo had a hand in it.