A judicious compilation of cornerstone, pioneering UK Lovers: One Blood, Simplicity, Karen Dixon…

Island disco sung by a Rasta in the Bronx, over an 808 & chopper bass, with a gospel chorus, and fuzz guitar which sounds like P-Funk! Originally released in 1982 on the Sunshine label.
Plus Wilie Lindo leading a mellow instrumental version of Barry White’s Midnight & You, with Lloyd Charmers at the controls, for all the lovers in the dance. Original released in 1975 on Wild Flower.

‘The sacred music of peasants in Chile’s remote Central Valley: a communal form of worship and reflection, played in packed rooms throughout the night when work is done. The Canto has persisted for centuries in the voices of hundreds of men and women who conjure vivid visions of apocalypse, the divine, and angelitos (very young children who have died). But the verses are also rooted in the daily life in the valley — labour and drought, family, animals, and the life cycles of plants. To hypnotic accompaniment by guitar and the celestial, 25-string guitarron, countless entonaciones or melodies range across the 10-line rhyming decimas, in an ancient song form originating in Spain and found from South America to the Mississippi Delta. The combination is entrancing and transporting, cosmic and earthly at once.

‘The handsome gatefold jacket presents the visionary, apocalyptic art of Frederico Lohse, a baker from the village of Los Vilos, who painted on old flour sacks; with an eight-page booklet containing lyrics, photos, and extensive notes about the Canto tradition.’

‘Back to the core formation of Lisa Alvarado on harmonium, Mikel Patrick Avery on drums, Jason Stein on bass clarinet, and composer/multi-instrumentalist Joshua Abrams on guimbri, for one continuous 37 minute composition across a single LP.
‘This time around, Abrams has pushed post production techniques found only sporadically on earlier NIS records deep into the heart of the music, distorting and reshaping instruments to mutate timbre and texture, color and time.
‘Refracting the band’s signature mesmerizing chains of overlapping rhythmic patterns through the sonic funhouse of dub makes Perseverance Flow the most formally experimental NIS album to date.’

“I imagine Perseverance Flow like a live extended realization of a Jaylib lost instrumental as remixed by Kevin Shields,” says Abrams. “Or vice versa. I also think it has sympathies with some of the more rhythmically intricate dance musics out of Chicago and Lisbon… Perseverance Flow is skipping rope in slo-mo. A dance of co-operation to rally guts and humors and keep marching through pouring tears.”

‘The eleventh and final concert recorded by Tom Albach at Immanuel United Church of Christ, here is one of the greatest Arkestra live recordings
‘Brimming with intense energy throughout, it culminates in the 1-2 punch of a blazing Leland’s Song followed by a fragile rendition of Tapscott’s As A Child, featuring Adele Sebastian performing her favorite Tapscott composition.
‘This one is not to be missed.’

‘At the Immanuel United Church of Christ on November 25, 1979. This is the eighth in a series of eleven concerts recorded at the church. This month saw the Arkestra stretching out at blissful heights — the half hour of Carnival is worth the price of admission alone, but the same could be said for the monumental Nation Rising, and the deep take on Roberto Miranda’s Faith. The groove kicks off with Horacio and doesn’t let up the whole concert.’

A historian by training, Akira Umeda became a ceramicist, a photographer, a visual artist, a draftsman, a graphic designer, a DJ, a musician, an audio technician, a writer, a researcher… Here are forty-two recordings, ranging over three decades, alluding to the incredible range of his creative work: from songs, to ambient music; from field recordings to prank calls. Drawn from cassette tapes stored in Umeda’s house in São José dos Campos, in São Paulo, Brazil.

‘A hard-grooving, vividly evocative EP, deeply rooted in nineties drum & bass, by this Milan-based, Brazilian producer.
‘The original mix of Dynamo rotates its vast spinning coil through a landscape of cavernous basslines and spectral vocals; then Etch fires up a full jungle do-over.
‘Breath - Dance enacts and probes a psycho-physical push-and-pull, alternating caustic breaks with ambient introspection.’

Featuring James Massiah from Babyfather.
The flip is pure terror, with John T. Gast in the mix; heavier than lead, dreader than dread.

‘Classic Vinyl series.’

Fresh homage to Pharoah, Alice, Ra, and co, from an all-star Kiwi line-up.
‘Each instrument seems to be in orbit around the concept of symbiotic synergy, and everyone is given equal space to shine: from a psychedelic Korg, to a delirious saxophone or the gentle ripples of a harp. There’s a huge array of keyboards, with a standout acoustic piano solo by Guy Harrison on Plume. The wind section delivers ecstatic saxophone riffs, futtering flutes and solid horn choruses throughout. Percussion, vibraphone and acoustic bass lay the foundations. A full choir performs arrangements by Matt Hunter.’