{"title":"Pre-orders","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"4plus1equals5formay25","title":"Melvin Gibbs - 4 + 1 equals 5 for May 25","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=2718459143\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless=\"\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/music.melvin-gibbs.com\/album\/4-1-equals-5-for-may-25\"\u003e4 + 1 equals 5 for May 25 by Melvin Gibbs\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eComposer, musician, artist, and writer Melvin Gibbs today released\u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e 4 + 1 equals 5 for May 25,\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e an EP of incredibly affecting material reflecting on the murder of George Floyd from various points in time over the past year. Alongside the music, Melvin Gibbs issued the following personal statement:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eI've been to holy sites all over the world. I've been to Zen temples in Kyoto, Japan. I've been to mahasamadhis, places where Hindu holy men are buried, and dargahs, places where Sufi masters are buried, in India. I’ve been to the Church Of The Holy Sepulchre, the place where Jesus was crucified, and the Temple Mount, the holiest site of Judaism, in Israel. I’ve been to churches in Europe where holy relics are stored. I've been to African religious houses in Brazil and Voodoo ceremonies in Brooklyn. The vibe I felt in June of 2020 when I was standing in George Floyd Square, at the intersection of 38th and Chicago in Minneapolis, is something I’d only felt once before. That place was the grove outside of the A-Bomb Dome in Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima Japan. The A-Bomb Dome is a skeletal structure, a remnant, that marks Ground Zero, the place where Little Boy, the first atomic bomb, landed. So, when I say that the intersection of 38th and Chicago in Minneapolis is the American Ground Zero, I’m not using hyperbole or metaphor. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThe vibe I felt at Peace Memorial Park is the vibe that fits the name of the location. In fact, I felt more peace there than in most of the Zen temples I've been to in Japan. The vibe I felt at George Floyd Square was that same vibe, but amplified. Amplified enough to send a Wave of Peace equal to the cataclysm that had occurred at the Square across America and across the world. That peace doesn't erase the cataclysm, but it provides a path to balance it gives a possibility of tempering it.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThe vibration at the square was one vibrational cluster. The vibration of the physical and psychological aftermath of Mr. Floyd’s murder was another. My challenge became to create music that I felt captured both.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThe 38th and Chicago music needed to manifest Peace while facing up to cataclysm. It needed to be improvisatory. It needed to be built in a way that transcended cultural borders and breached mental boundaries. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThe aftermath music, on the other hand, had to be a reflection of what was going on in the streets. It needed to manifest through the rhythms that were ricocheting in the streets at that moment. But it also needed to relate the generations that have struggled and set the stage for the moment and the movement to have the effect that it did. It needed to reflect the emergent structure that was unveiling itself, the hatchling emerging from the cracking egg.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eAnother important consideration was my role as a trusted advisor, as Uncle. The music had to speak, and speak with the youth that put their bodies on the line, not to them. It also had to take the health of the community as a whole into account. That meant I couldn't just address the concerns of the moments and events that occurred in the immediate aftermath of Mr. Floyd’s murder. I and my music also had to be there for the murder’s trial and be capable of addressing the outcome of that trial, whichever way things fell.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThe forced return to The Essence at the age of 46 of a man from Houston, Tx. named George Floyd at the hands of an MPD officer is one event that has happened on May 25th. Another is a completed emergence from The Essence, an emergence which signifies the creation of a family. This date also marks the emergence out of the body of Olivia Gibbs nee Law of a newborn, a child who she and her husband Rufus decided to name Melvin. The fact that the celebration of one event and the memorialization of the other will be forevermore coincidental is why the EP “4 + 1 equals 5 for May 25” was made.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eWhen the day of May 25th, 2020 became the night of May 25th, 2020, my circle’s low key celebration of one human’s survival of another revolution of the Earth gave way to anger at yet another African - American’s demise at the hands of the police. Footage of the event captured on a witness’s cell phone was graphic and undeniably powerful. As this footage flowed from screen to screen across the internet it caused an exponential emotional cascade. The anger it created grew past the point of containment and caused a spontaneous eruption in cities across the globe.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eOne of the striking things to me about this turn of events was the total uselessness of celebrity as a concept and celebrities as people to the movement that took hold in the streets. The movement was a truly bottom-up one, and celebrities and the hierarchy they represented weren't needed, and in fact, they probably would have been a hindrance. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eAnother thing that was striking to me as a person who creates cultural objects was that there didn't seem to be any music out there that actually captured the moment. The music of past eras of protest and the movements they engendered just didn’t rise to the occasion. There was no music that captured the complexity of the current cultural moment. Here in New York, as well as in other major cities, the protesters in the streets ended up repurposing popular songs as a means of motivation and creation of group cohesion. In particular Pop Smoke, a Brooklyn drill artist whose music voiced the thoughts of a braggadocious trapper provided the main soundtrack of the protests. His “Dior”, with the name of the designer replaced with the name George Floyd, was the song chanted by the crowds. And his “Christopher Walking” was one of their major motivational materials.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eAs an artist, I saw the fact that there was no music that accurately captured the vibration of the moment as both a challenge and an opportunity. What did the music of the moment sound like? What sounds should this music encompass? What moods and motivations should it encapsulate? It was obvious to me that the only way to really solve this was to go to Ground Zero, to Minneapolis, to George Floyd Square, and spend time there so I could see and feel for myself exactly what the vibe needed to be. I needed to imbibe the cultural oscillation that was vibrating America while sending its wave across the planet at the source.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eIt so happened that the verdict that was eminently justified by the circumstances surrounding Mr. Floyd’s death was given, and some measure of closure was granted. But, the very day the verdict was read a teenager was murdered by the police in a suburb directly adjacent to Minneapolis. We were given an unneeded reminder that the cycle continues and there's more work to be done.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eI’d like to acknowledge the voice of the Uncle on this EP. It’s Washington D.C.’s own Kokayi, who is the Uncle of the DMV rap community. When I told him what I was setting out to accomplish he imbibed the concept, then embodied it. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e4:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e1) Holy Ground \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThis is the George Floyd Square vibe.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e2) Oh My\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThis is the aftermath vibe.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e3) 3’ 27”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThis is peace striving to balance cataclysm while (hopefully) bringing Compassion. This piece was inspired by jazz musician and healer Milford Graves’ (RIP) insight that the life situation of African - Americans requires us to be inherently Zen - whether we are consciously aware of the teachings or have been made aware of the teaching or not. The title is a riff on John Cage’s 4’ 33”. You can think of it as the BLM remix of that.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e4) Get Some\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eUncle reflects on the verdict.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e+1:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e5) Message from the Streets\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eEmergent synthesis - a structure that bridges the peace\/cataclysm duality. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667187265759,"sku":"","price":6.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667187232991,"sku":"","price":5.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/Floyd-FIST-cropped_1-e1646413963386.jpg?v=1703789870"},{"product_id":"saet-el-hazz-the-luck-hour","title":"Maurice Louca - Saet El Hazz (The Luck Hour)","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=1749431209\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/mauricelouca.bandcamp.com\/album\/saet-el-hazz-the-luck-hour\"\u003eSaet El Hazz (The Luck Hour) by Maurice Louca\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003eMaurice Louca, one of the most gifted musicians and composers on Egypt's thriving underground music scene, announces his new album \u003cem\u003eSaet El-Hazz (The Luck Hour)\u003c\/em\u003e, to be released September 24, 2021 via Northern Spy and Sub Rosa.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe forthcoming full-length album draws voraciously on Arabic music, psychedelic folk, and free improv and the lead single “Bidayat (Holocene)” mesmerises with a feral groove centered around percussion, guitar, and violin.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe title \"Saet el Hazz\" is a coded saying in Egypt to refer to a good time and usually implies a great deal of debauchery. “When you mention to someone that you’ve had a saet hazz, there are no questions asked. It is what it is.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe initial spark for \u003cem\u003eSaet El-Hazz (The Luck Hour)\u003c\/em\u003e was Louca’s desire to collaborate with “A” Trio, the Lebanese improvisational group featuring Mazen Kerbaj on prepared trumpet, Sharif Sehnaoui on prepared guitar, and Raed Yassin on prepared double bass. “When the three of them come together they create a sonic cosmos entirely their own. I started by composing music that I wanted to have exist within this sonic world— at times in harmony, or clashing with it, and all the emotional ranges in between.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJust as “A” Trio served as the spark, a commission from Mophradat, an arts organization based out of Brussels, was the tinder. The commission was for a new composition to be performed using instruments that Louca would modify to play microtonally. This led him to Turkey and Indonesia. In Istanbul, he worked with a Lutheran to custom-make a guitar. In Surakarta, he ended up with an instrument maker tuning a Serang—referred to as the Indonesian xylophone, part of the family of Gamelan tuned percussion instruments.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThese new modified instruments opened up the compositions to new tonal possibilities which drove Louca to expand his line up to include Khaled Yassine, a longtime collaborator and versatile percussionist and drummer, Christine Kazaryan, a dynamic harpist whom he met via Praed Orchestra, and Anthea Caddy, a cellist who came highly recommended from the Berlin free improv scene.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“There is something about linking luck to decadence that resonates with me, and even if I can't fully articulate it in words, the drive behind the music of this album and how it came to be, and the energy between us at the studio rehearsing and recording it, was in a lot of ways for me a saet hazz.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eSaet El Hazz (The Luck Hour)\u003c\/em\u003e is a long form composition of six movements, recorded over the course of a week in August 2019 at A\/B studios in Brussels.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"CD + Digital","offer_id":44667187462367,"sku":"CD-NS-143","price":13.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667187495135,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667187527903,"sku":"","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/NS143_cover-1-scaled-e1646413878562.jpg?v=1703789888"},{"product_id":"raw-demoon-alchemy-a-lone-operation","title":"Darius Jone - Raw Demoon Alchemy (A Lone Operation)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eRaw Demoon Alchemy (A Lone Operation) \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eharnesses the gamut of raw, unadulterated emotions — suppressed feelings that we’ve all been allowed to “feel” again in the wake of a global pandemic. Born out of a live performance in fall 2019, during the last stop of his tour in Portland, OR, saxophonist Darius Jones renders a solo effort that evokes sadness, rage, and confusion, all the while still holding for glimmers of hope for the future.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eWith four of its five tracks on \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eAlchemy\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e, Jones selects compositions from artists who are not just unapologetically Black but also notably ones that he regards as “world builders.” From Sun Ra, Ornette Coleman, and Roscoe Mitchell right up through the present with Georgia Anne Muldrow, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eAlchemy\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e draws immeasurable strength from each of these artists who dared to envision and create an entire universe unto themselves, on their terms.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e“I want to capture a moment in time, to crystallize the beginning of something at the end of something else,” says Jones. Separated and now divorced from his partner of 10 years, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eAlchemy\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e balances the emotional heft of closure with the simple act of standing alone. Each track unearths a deep and profound vulnerability in every solo performance that isn’t just personal but also delves into the macro-level divisiveness of our current political climate.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eWith “Figure No. 2,” Jones offers us a modern-day version of the blues. Courtesy of Muldrow, her refrain encapsulates the vast breadth of the Black experience in America, transforming our deep-seated pain into our beauty and armor of resilience. Jones also proudly rests on the shoulders of Coleman and Mitchell, two of this music’s known improvisers who often stood alone in this music’s ever-changing landscape. He pays homage to Mitchell with “Nonaah,” which in the late 1970s was initially met with jeers from an audience, that is, until his 21+ minute long version overtook them.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eAlchemy \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003euncovers a duality of what it means to be alone, especially resonant in today’s climate of social distancing. In one turn, we were all forced to put life as we knew it on hold — to simply be still and deal with our emotional realities unencumbered by the distractions of life. But at another turn, Jones taps into an unknown power of his lone voice, finding a newfound strength and enthusiasm that will carry him — and its listeners — beyond the uncertainty and doubt of not knowing.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"LP + Digital","offer_id":44667188543711,"sku":"LP-NS-141","price":21.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD + Digital","offer_id":44667188576479,"sku":"CD-NS-141","price":13.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667188609247,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667188642015,"sku":"","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/ns141-cover-small-e1646413794315.jpg?v=1703789899"},{"product_id":"bootlickers-of-the-patriarchy","title":"Shilpa Ray - Bootlickers of the Patriarchy","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=1275045839\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/shilparay.bandcamp.com\/album\/bootlickers-of-the-patriarchy\"\u003eBootlickers of the Patriarchy by Shilpa Ray\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"'Bootlickers of the Patriarchy' was written about Senator Susan Collins and her infamous press conference after the Kavanaugh\/Blasey Ford hearings. It’s about women who succeed from undermining the success of other women or choose to gain success from exploiting the oppression of other women. This is a character who has taken many forms throughout history, the kind of woman who seems perfectly content playing Gamma to the Alpha male. \"Bootlicker\" is my direct challenge to the notion of “women supporting other women,” and the falsehoods and unrealistic expectations that comes with a statement like that.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"I wrote the song to be played in two different arrangement styles, the first half being slow and haunting and the second going balls-to-the-wall rage. I was re exploring a lot industrial\/proto industrial music I had listened to as a teenager in the 90s and used some elements of synth\/drum machine sounds to convey all that anger, panic and darkness.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\/\/\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"Well, why not do a cover of your influences as a B-side? I was obsessed w\/ the Ministry album 'With Sympathy' when writing tracks for my upcoming album. It is the record Al Jourgenson has stated multiple times that he’s ashamed of most, which is saying a lot considering this man’s autobiography. I teamed up with my friend Heather Elle of Flossing, formerly of post punk bands Bodega and The Wants for this collaboration. It’s my first official recorded track where I’m playing guitar, so as the saying goes, it’s never too late to pick up a new instrument and get totally lost in it.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-- Shilpa Ray\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"7\" Vinyl","offer_id":44667189100767,"sku":"SI-NS-145","price":13.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667189133535,"sku":"","price":1.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667189166303,"sku":"","price":1.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/bootlickers-cream-cover-FINAL-1-scaled-e1646413520892.jpg?v=1703789937"},{"product_id":"precious-thing","title":"Allegra Krieger - Precious Thing","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=868399209\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/allegrakrieger.bandcamp.com\/album\/precious-thing\"\u003ePrecious Thing by Allegra Krieger\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eOn Allegra Krieger’s \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003ePrecious Thing\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e, the singer-songwriter tries to capture fleeting moments in a world that is sick from itself. With a voice that rings like a windchime signaling a storm coming, Allegra masterfully weaves together ephemeral moments as life barrels by her unforgivingly. From singing about sharing a gaze with a man on the train to Coney Island as the clock strikes 12 on New Years, to taking a loved one off life support, to processing the religious trauma of wine, Krieger portrays the particular pang of being a woman alive in a modern world.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eIn October 2020, Allegra drove across the country to record \u003cem\u003ePrecious Thing\u003c\/em\u003e in Marin, CA with producer Luke Temple(Here We Go Magic, Art Feynman) and musicians Jeremy Harris, Kalia Vandever, Rob Taylor and Jacob Matheus who contributed organs, synths, bass and lap steel. Delightfully mellow but never bleak, \u003cem\u003ePrecious Thing\u003c\/em\u003e is a soundtrack for the daily motions of our lives.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e“Precious Thing,” the album’s title track, reminds us how gorgeous it is that we can get up everyday and do the same thing. “It's watching something leave you,” Allegra says about this song, “wanting to fast forward to the end of the leaving, to move on, become lighter somehow.” In the song “The Circumstance,\" Krieger sings about trying to revel in the consistency that two people have built together, knowing that it can and probably will end. But for now, here is the light from the morning on her lover’s face, a book on a sofa in the apartment they share together, the milk in a coffee “rising like a plume.” The song brings to mind questions of fate and coincidence: loving somebody is a beautiful circumstance, an almost-perfect thing brought together by the chaos of surviving under the capitalist sun. But what if it had been different? What if being alone is better than the loneliness of trying to make something to work?\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eSomething else that’s central to this album is routine: Allegra’s lyrics celebrate the ebbs and flows of our daily lives, the people who come in and out of them, the hope that one of these days, somebody will stick around. In “Let Go” she sings, “When you woke up did you think of it?\/ Your body\/leaving behind the routine?” This comes up again in the phenomenal closing track, “Walking,” when she sings, “I don’t expect wonder or magic or rain\/Maybe a smile at a stranger passing\/ and maybe one day\/ I’ll see that stranger again.” There is a specific fertile sadness to this song, as she describes days of serving eggs and pouring beers and “the faces and bodies” of lovers fleeting, that is guaranteed to make listeners burst into tears because it will make them think about being alive in one body and wanting something so badly, even if they can’t name what it is.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eAt the heart of this album is a young, working woman asking “Do you see this right now? I can’t be the only one.” This is an album about looking, and Krieger fills up each lonely space she enters with her gaze. Krieger asks you to look, to really, really look, so that you can remember something, however small it is, when it’s all gone.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e– Melissa Lozada-Oliva\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"CD + Digital","offer_id":44667189395679,"sku":"CD-NS-150","price":13.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Cassette + Digital","offer_id":44667189428447,"sku":"CS-NS-150","price":10.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667189461215,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667189493983,"sku":"","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/AllegraKrieger_PreciousThing_COVER-FINAL-e1646413422454.jpg?v=1703789958"},{"product_id":"picnic-in-the-dark","title":"Renata Zeiguer - Picnic in the Dark","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=3188689337\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/renatazeiguer.bandcamp.com\/album\/picnic-in-the-dark\"\u003ePicnic in the Dark by Renata Zeiguer\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e'Picnic in the Dark' is the enchanting new album from Renata Zeiguer, her second full length release for Northern Spy. The album follows Zeiguer through a dreamworld of magical realism as she navigates her memories and seeks to confront inherited dysfunctional patterns head-on. As Zeiguer reconciles her childhood and her adult lives with careful compassion, 'Picnic in the Dark' reveals itself as an album not only of transformation, but of healing and self-actualization.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eZeiguer takes us by the hand and leads us into her surreal storybook realm by way of lead single “Sunset Boulevard”. We are guided through the metamorphosis of a caterpillar, a kaleidoscopic metaphor for the process of letting go of the seemingly safe and familiar in pursuit of a healthier and freer life. Throughout the album, Zeiguer’s free-associative approach transports the listener from sylvan reverie in “Evergreen” into disturbing fever dreams in “Burning Castle”. Her intuitive gift for storytelling, through both her words and music, is rare: narrative journeys seem to unfold spontaneously over the length of her songs. For instance, “Whack-a-mole”, a restless hunt for her innermost grief, slowly blossoms from a menacing nocturnal spy chase into a celestial wash of shimmering guitars and synths that shine like fireflies in an evening mist.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eIn collaboration with co-producer and old friend Sam Griffin Owens (Sam Evian), Zeiguer sonically invokes the meeting point of memories and dreams, calling to mind Broadcast, Cindy Lee, or David Lynch’s multidisciplinary ventures. With generous splashes of spring reverb, ghostly vocal harmonies, antique drum machines, cinematic strings, and the comforting warbles of synthesized organ, all bolstered by a tight indie rock sensibility, the sonic palette of 'Picnic in the Dark' is magically anachronistic.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eFittingly, Zeiguer incorporates the sounds of her childhood—from jazz standards to classical music—but most notably the bossa nova greats such as João Gilberto, who married musical playfulness with lyrical poignancy. She shares Gilberto’s subtlety and intention of approach in every aspect of her music-making, from her hushed, deliberate vocals to her gorgeously understated arrangements and fine-tuned vintage guitar sounds. Most remarkably of all, Zeiguer has a masterful command of the harmonic and rhythmic language of bossa nova, fully capturing its romantic spirit. This is showcased in the impishly shifting ditty “Mark the Date”, a delirious dance through memory and time, and the yearning chromaticism of “Carmen”, an achingly beautiful plea for honesty. The album’s tranquil epilogue, “Primavera”, a direct homage to Gilberto’s heartfelt intimacy, brings Zeiguer’s journey full circle, passing through seasons of life and death and returning to the rebirth of spring at last.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eIn 'Picnic in the Dark', Zeiguer has lovingly crafted a volume of fairy tales, torchlight glowing through its golden leaves. The image conjured by that very title reveals its essence and purpose: to allow the artist, like a child lost in the pages of a story, to safely venture into the shadowy, painful corners of her psyche with a lightness of spirit and fantastical whimsy.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"LP + Limited Edition Postcard Pack [of 12]","offer_id":44667189559519,"sku":"LP-NS-152-PC","price":21.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP + Digital","offer_id":44667189526751,"sku":"LP-NS-152","price":21.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD + Digital","offer_id":44667189592287,"sku":"CD-NS-152","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667189625055,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667189657823,"sku":"","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/RZ-PITD-FINALCOVER-copy-e1646412032989.jpg?v=1703789970"},{"product_id":"charismatic-mutations","title":"Psymon Spine - Charismatic Mutations","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=239720237\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/psymonspine.bandcamp.com\/album\/charismatic-mutations\"\u003eCharismatic Mutations by PSYMON SPINE\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003ePsymon Spine’s latest album \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eCharismatic Megafauna\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e explored complicated feelings and catharsis through a singular approach to left-of-center indie, electronic and dance sounds. The release earned praise from publications such as Paste, FLOOD, Brooklyn Vegan, Under The Radar, and NME, and saw playlist support from NPR Music (New Music Friday), Spotify (All New Indie, undercurrents, Fresh Finds), Apple Music (Midnight City, Today’s Indie Rock), and TIDAL (Rising: Indie\/Rock), as well as notable airplay from KEXP, KCRW and the BBC.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThe core members of the band—Noah Prebish, Peter Spears, and Brother Michael—grew up in the ‘00s and ‘10s with a deep appreciation for the art of \"the remix,\" and after the release of \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eCharismatic Megafauna\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e, the group found themselves craving longer and more dance-floor friendly versions of their songs to play at their recurring party Secret Friend. Introducing \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eCharismatic Mutations\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e: a remixed cornucopia of tasty new sounds, running the gambit from slow-burner headphone journeys, to mid-tempo sunset-and-white-suit head nodders, to 3am deranged apocalyptic club heaters—out April 1 on Northern Spy, featuring selections by Joe Goddard (of Hot Chip, HARD FEELINGS, and the 2 Bears), Love Injection (mixed by Nick Millhiser of LCD Soundsystem and Holy Ghost), Dar Disku, Each Other (Justin Strauss and Max Pask), Safer (of the Rapture and Poolside), Bucky Boudreau, and Psymon Spine’s own Brother Michael.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003ePsymon Spine’s origins date back to Prebish and Spears meeting in college and finding common ground in their artistic aims: “We wanted to make something that was experimental, but also accessible and satisfying,” Prebish states while discussing the thrust of the band’s origins, citing influences like Talking Heads and Os Mutantes along with the rush of the NYC dance scene. Eventually, Brother Michael joined Psymon Spine, as the trio hashed out the demos for what would become their debut, 2017’s \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eYou Are Coming to My Birthday\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e. “We’ve always wanted to make people feel good with our music, but challenge them too,” Spears explains.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eAnd Psymon Spine continued on that aesthetic mission by becoming figures in the Brooklyn dance scene through throwing the immersive art and dance parties of the Secret Friend series. Meanwhile, Prebish’s work in dream-pop band Barrie—who broke out in 2019 with the excellent debut \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eHappy to Be Here\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e following a string of buzz-making singles—led him to meet singer and multi-instrumentalist Sabine Holler, who eventually joined Psymon Spine’s ranks after they both parted ways with the rest of Barrie.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThat band’s eponymous lead singer also guests on \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eCharismatic Megafauna\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e’s first single “Milk,” which later captured the attention of Joe Goddard and led to the debut single for the remix album \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eCharismatic Mutations.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e “Milk”’s glimmering melodies bear resemblance to the pop smarts of Prebish and Holler’s previous outfit—but \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eCharismatic Megafauna\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e is proof that Psymon Spine are on a whole different journey too, embracing and exploring left-field electronic sounds ranging from disco’s high-energy rhythmic breakdowns to the upward build of early techno and motorik’s indelibly incessant pulse. Psymon Spine put their own loopy and addictive stamp on the sounds of the past throughout, with surprises at every turn and the type of lush synth work that could only come from such brilliant students of dance music.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThematically, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eCharismatic Megafauna\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e—which takes its title from a biological term passed down from Prebish’s biology professor father—reflects on the changes the members of Psymon Spine have experienced in their lives over the past several years. “There’s a lot of recovery on this album,” Prebish explains. “It’s music about catharsis and being together. We’ve all had a crazy few years, and for all of us this band is a safe haven—a community, and a way to create something about what we were experiencing.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eHe describes the squishy synths of “Modmed” as “a breakup song for our previous band,” an elegy to his and Holler’s parting ways with their old band that features contributions from Andrew VanWyngarden of MGMT, while Holler defines the message underneath “Channels”’ shouty dance-punk vibes as “Channeling whatever’s in you to something constructive in a healthy way.” “It’s a therapy song about channeling inner turmoil,” Prebish adds, “and connecting the things that define us to create a system where you can relate to the different parts of yourself.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eReflecting optimism and emotional catharsis, both \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eCharismatic Megafauna\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eCharismatic Mutations \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eare heady trips through left-field pop, packing an emotional wallop.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667190477023,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667190509791,"sku":"","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/DigitalArt-1-scaled-e1646411895269.jpg?v=1703789980"},{"product_id":"portrait-of-a-lady","title":"Shilpa Ray - Portrait of a Lady","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=157144298\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/shilparay.bandcamp.com\/album\/portrait-of-a-lady\"\u003ePortrait of a Lady by Shilpa Ray\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003eWith her raging new album Portrait of a Lady, New York punk rock\/art pop songwriter Shilpa Ray has created her most searing and personal album to date. Written in the wake of the #metoo movement and the weathering years of the Trump Administration, the record finds Ray processing her own experiences with abuse, layering autobiographical detail with ferocious bon mots and surrealistic rock \u0026amp; roll gloss. Featuring singles like the Stooges-styled “Manic Pixie Dream Cunt,” the reverb soaked dream pop of “Heteronormative Horseshit Blues,” and the hard-charging “Bootlickers of the Patriarchy,” the album draws from a stylistic palette of synths, electronic beats, and hard rock guitars, inspired by artists like Ministry, Billy Idol, Pat Benetar, and the glittery, jagged but still pop guitars of Los Angeles hair metal. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe idea for  Portrait of a Lady Ray stretches back Ray’s experience with photos from Nan Goldin’s The Ballad of Sexual Dependency, a personal expose of the photographer’s time in the No Wave scene of New York in the late ‘70s. “It shook me to my core and made me reflect on my own experiences with sexual assault and abuse,” Ray says. She couldn’t shake the idea of a concept album—a full-throated rock album about being a survivor—but found herself hesitating until 2019, when she began to approach the concept in earnest. “I kept asking, ‘How do you do this?’ But Goldin’s work—as well as the writings of music journalist and musician Jes Skolnik—inspired Ray to throw herself into the difficult work. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTo match her personal and fearless lyrics, which range from darkly funny to harrowing, Ray and her co-producer\/collaborator Jeff Berner gather a wide batch of sounds, from unhinged garage rock to soul ballads. The songs shimmer with neon gloss, from the electronic piano and harmony-packed excoriation of privilege “Straight Man’s Dream” to the heartbreaking showstopper “Cry For the Camera,” and from the noise interlude of “No” to the leather clad strut of “Lawsuits \u0026amp; Suicide,” a tale of manipulation set to ‘80s hard rock-inspired new wave, drawn from Ray’s childhood memories of MTV. “In the ‘80s, everything looked like candy, but it was sharp—there’s an anger to it,” she says. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThat anger is present on the record, but it shares space with acceptance, gallows humor, and strength. “No survivor has a set way of dealing with what they had to survive. There’s no homogenized experience or interpretation of it,” Ray says. Portrait Of A Lady isn't a political record so much as a personal one, dedicated to “showing the good, the bad, and the ugly as well as the power one can ultimately hold being a survivor. \u003cem\u003e- Jason Woodbury\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"LP + Digital","offer_id":44667190575327,"sku":"LP-NS-146","price":21.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD + Digital","offer_id":44667190608095,"sku":"CD-NS-146","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667190640863,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667190673631,"sku":"","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/portrait-of-a-lady-cover-FINAL-1-scaled-e1646411828390.jpg?v=1703789990"},{"product_id":"ding-dong-delicious","title":"Jon Daly - Ding Dong Delicious","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=3768410369\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/jondalyjondaly.bandcamp.com\/album\/ding-dong-delicious\"\u003eDing Dong Delicious by Jon Daly\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003e“I’m just trying to write hits,” Jon Daly confesses of Ding Dong Delicious, his debut album. Known for his roles on Kroll Show, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Bob’s Burgers, and Big Mouth, the actor gone musician casts the net wide, cycling through a new genre with nearly every song, incorporating new wave, country, electro, Irish folk, lo-fi guitar pop, ska, and classic rock. The effect is like that of scanning the radio dial, only it appears all of the DJs on every station have lost their minds. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJoined by multi-instrumentalist Cyrus Ghahremani (Man Man) Daly provides vocals and saxophone and is backed up by a cast of players including Devendra Banhart, Joe Wong (The Midnight Gospel), Mary Timony of Helium and Ex Hex, and his brothers Matt and Austin Daly. The album picks up where Daly’s previous singles, including the internet-breaking Red Hot Chili Peppers spoof “Abracadabralifornia” and Lil Xan diss track “I’m Your Dad” left off, landing somewhere between pure silliness and pop sublimity. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDrawing from Daly’s wealth of musical influence, which includes Roxy Music, the Johnny Cash\/Kris Kristofferson\/Willie Nelson\/Waylon Jennings supergroup The Highwaymen, Devo, Islands, Man Man, King Tubby, the Chieftains, Rancid, and Jlin. The songs came together quickly, with Daly often suggesting little more than a title and a genre before Ghahremani was busy generating any number of styles, from the Celtic folk of “Whistle Stop Johnny” to the vintage electronics sampling “Addicted to Computers,” which is built on recordings of sounds made by outdated tech. Elsewhere, Daly explores (relatively) straightforward historical narratives (“Helen Keller”) and pens an ode to the 2017 psychological thriller The Snowman. Daly evokes the classic mode of Weird “Al” Yankovic on the Stones parody “Cheer Me Up” and provides a solemn country ballad response to DJ Khaled’s 2018 comments about cunnilingus on “Eatin’ Pussy With DJ Khaled.” And he’s right on time for the ska revival with the anthemic “Bring Back Ska” (“I thought it was a very colorful era,” Daly says of the genre’s ‘90s resurgence, highlighting household names like Buck-O-Nine in the lyrics). And lest you think Daly is only about jokes, there’s the Jesus and Mary Chain evoking “Profile Picture” and the charming “Love Is So Simple,” both of which feature sincere lyricism and direct performances by Daly. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“It’s dumb,” Daly says of the album, “but also the most personal thing I’ve ever done.” Both ridiculous and genuinely fun, Ding Dong Delicious is pure Jon Daly—an exuberant and hilarious ode to pop forms past and present.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"Sky Blue LP + Digital","offer_id":44667191099615,"sku":"LP-NS-140","price":24.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD + Digital","offer_id":44667191132383,"sku":"CD-NS-140","price":13.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667191165151,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667191197919,"sku":"","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/Jon-Daly-Digital-Art-2-scaled-e1651581997476.jpg?v=1703790012"},{"product_id":"big-time-things","title":"Office Culture - Big Time Things","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=4141175327\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/officeculture.bandcamp.com\/album\/big-time-things\"\u003eBig Time Things by Office Culture\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003eBig Time Things is a story of crossed wires and missed connections, sleepless nights and scrapped plans. On the third album from Office Culture, the Brooklyn-based band led by pianist-songwriter Winston Cook-Wilson, the magic is in how every element of their texturally rich, emotionally complex music conjures these same visions. The choruses offer humble pledges (“I only want you to be happy”) and uneasy interruptions (“Stop, I feel nervous”); the band swells and sprawls; the arrangements incorporate strings, horns, and backing vocals, suggesting how each moment casts its own shadow.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOffice Culture’s most ambitious project is also their most intimate and thematically focused. Where previous albums introduced a vast cityscape of scenery and characters, Big Time Things zooms into each lonely window, so close that it can be difficult to know what exactly we’re looking at. In Cook-WIlson’s hands, it’s not always easy to differentiate love songs from breakup songs, moments of connection from total isolation, forward momentum or a quickening spiral.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe music behind his words suggests the full story lies in the blur. Comprising Cook-Wilson alongside drummer Pat Kelly, bassist Charlie Kaplan, and guitarist Ian Wayne, Office Culture have never sounded so dynamic or alive, their music so full of intricate detail and open air. While you can still hear traces of their longtime staples—Joni Mitchell, the Blue Nile, the ECM catalog—Big Time Things expands into new and adventurous territory. Occasionally, it recalls Herbie Hancock’s Headhunters band backing Scott Walker in the 1980s; other times, it feels like D’Angelo’s Voodoo recast as an opera.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs Cook-Wilson sings about feelings that transcend language (“A Word”) and moods that shift too quietly to be registered (“Suddenly”), he seeks to break from any songwriting tradition, following his thoughts to their open-ended conclusions. This approach leads the band to uncharacteristic moments of dissonance, as in the skronking tightrope of “Line,” and breakthroughs that glide with newfound grace. In “Elegance,” the band rides a tender, catchy groove, stopping and starting on a dime. As they reach a steady climax, Cook-Wilson looks us in the eyes and offers this wisdom:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEverybody’s got a list to check off but\u003cbr\u003eNobody knows what they wrote it for\u003cbr\u003eWell, you don’t have to be like that with me baby\u003cbr\u003eLists never did me any good before\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnd so, he tears up his lists, looks inward, and follows his heart.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"LP + Digital","offer_id":44667191656671,"sku":"LP-NS-157","price":22.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD + Digital","offer_id":44667191623903,"sku":"CD-NS-157","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667191689439,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667191722207,"sku":"","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/NS157-digital-art.jpg?v=1703790044"},{"product_id":"suss","title":"SUSS - SUSS","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=1315738105\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/suss.bandcamp.com\/album\/suss\"\u003eSUSS by SUSS\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003eNorthern Spy Records is proud to announce the new eponymous release from SUSS, a four-sided album that represents the culmination of a sound that the NYC trio of Bob Holmes, Pat Irwin, and Jonathan Gregg calls “ambient country.” The album includes their three critically acclaimed EPs Night Suite, Heat Haze, and Winter Was Hard, as well as a fourth side of new material.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA lot has happened to SUSS since their last vinyl release, 2020’s Promise on Northern Spy Records. That album ended up on many best-of lists that year, and was cited by PopMatters as an “incredible country\/ambient hybrid that is nothing short of peerless.” As the album’s title indicated, the music spoke to a future of promise, with the band looking toward new musical horizons.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHowever, that promise was cut short with the onset of the pandemic and the loss of founding member Gary Leib, who passed away in 2021 soon after the completion of the Night Suite EP, a dark, late-night trip through the heart of loss set against the backdrop of Americana soundscapes. After the difficult decision to move ahead as a trio, SUSS began planning a series of connected EPs that would culminate in a double-album release representing the natural evolution of the band as it struck out in a new direction.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe next EP release, Heat Haze, was a feverish search for fractured dreams in a hot, shimmering landscape, followed by Winter Was Hard, which found SUSS moving away from the arid atmospherics of the American Southwest and entering chillier dimensions exploring the challenge of surviving uncertain times.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTo complete their four-part odyssey, SUSS is now releasing these three EPs, together with the last leg of the trip, Across the Horizon, as a double vinyl set simply titled SUSS. Taken as a whole, this work represents how wide the scope of ambient country music can be while also showing the journey of personal change that the band has undertaken over the last couple of years — the loss, the searching, the challenge, and, finally, the new hope on the horizon. \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"Double LP + Digital","offer_id":44667191918815,"sku":"LP-NS-156","price":34.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Double CD + Digital","offer_id":44667191951583,"sku":"CD-NS-156","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667191984351,"sku":"","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667192017119,"sku":"","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/suss_st_lpCvr_final-1-scaled.jpg?v=1703790065"},{"product_id":"travel","title":"The Necks - Travel","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=3267812022\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/thenecksau.bandcamp.com\/album\/travel\"\u003eTravel by The Necks\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003eTravel, the 19th studio album by Australian improvisational trio The Necks, documents their recent practice of starting each day in the studio with a 20-minute trio improvisation. The recordings offer some of their most ecstatic and captivating music cut to tape.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs bassist Lloyd Swanton puts it: “It’s a really nice communal activity to bring us together in focus each day, and some lovely music has resulted from it.” Although a straight “live” improvisation has never been recorded in the studio by the band, these tracks (save for some light overdubs and post-production) feel closest to their 30 years of celebrated live performances.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn 2017 Stephen O’Malley’s Ideologic Organ label released the band’s lauded Unfold, which first offered up this uncharacteristic studio work: four sub-20-minute pieces - instead of the typical 60+ minute arc for which the band is known - along with an obfuscated track list which leaves play order to the listener’s hand. The album quickly sold out, and persists as a treasure in collections or as a high-priced ‘Want’ on Discogs.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTravel marks a return to this double-LP format, offered in a beautiful gatefold package that features photography by Traianos Pakioufakis and impeccable mastering by Doug Henderson. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eProduced by The Necks\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRecorded by Tim Whitten, Studios 301, Alexandria, Australia\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMixed by Tim Whitten, Forbes Street Studios, Woolloomooloo, Australia\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMastered by Douglas Henderson, micro-moose-berlin, Germany\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePhotographs and design by Traianos Pakioufakis\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThanks to Jordan Verzar, Regina Greene, Lee Paterson\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"Double LP + Digital","offer_id":44667192082655,"sku":"LP-NS-158","price":34.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD + Digital","offer_id":44667192115423,"sku":"CD-NS-158","price":15.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667192148191,"sku":"","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667192180959,"sku":"","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/a1007617714_10.jpg?v=1703790077"},{"product_id":"again-and-again","title":"Gregory Uhlmann - Again and Again","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=1454855991\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/gregoryuhlmann.bandcamp.com\/album\/again-and-again\"\u003eAgain and Again by Gregory Uhlmann\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003eGregory Uhlmann’s 'Again and Again' gingerly uncoils across nine beautifully polished LA pop guitar tracks. Gentle synth bloops and tape loop stutters, glittering vibraphone chords, baritone sax echoing Pet Sounds, soft mallets on toms, a voice mic'd closely and dryly, just above a whisper, as if not to wake a slumberer. This is a confessional, reverential, blossoming space - truths uttered and foggy memories outlined as if a hand on paper, the kinds of things you can only say near dawn in someone else's bed.\u003cbr\u003ecredits\u003cbr\u003ereleases April 28, 2023\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGregory Uhlmann - guitar, keyboard, vocals\u003cbr\u003eAnna Butterss - bass, vocals\u003cbr\u003eTim Carr - drums, percussion, vocals\u003cbr\u003eJosh Johnson - keyboard, woodwinds\u003cbr\u003eAndrew Maguire - percussion, vibraphone\u003cbr\u003eLauren Baba - violin, viola (3, 4, 8, 9)\u003cbr\u003eAlex Fischel - keyboard (1, 6, 7)\u003cbr\u003eMiya Folick - vocals (5, 9)\u003cbr\u003eOlivia Kaplan - vocals (2, 5, 9)\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eProduced by Gabe Wax and Gregory Uhlmann\u003cbr\u003eEngineered by Greg Hartunian and Gabe Wax\u003cbr\u003eMixed by Gabe Wax\u003cbr\u003eMastered by Ruairi O’Flaherty\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"LP + Digital","offer_id":44667192312031,"sku":"LP-NS-160","price":24.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667192344799,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667192377567,"sku":"","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/a2413476508_16.jpg?v=1703790087"},{"product_id":"in-time","title":"Peter Manheim - In Time","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=1128762641\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/petermanheim.bandcamp.com\/album\/in-time\"\u003eIn Time by Peter Manheim\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003ePeter Manheim thrives on collaboration. The New York-based drummer has spent most of his career as a sideman, backing up many jazz artists like Tony Glausi as well as being a member of the acclaimed International Anthem-signed experimental group Resavoir led by trumpeter Will Miller. But on his solo debut, an EP called 'In Time', Manheim steps out on his own as a songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist all while bringing his most trusted collaborators into the fold to flesh out his deep, lush, and mesmerizing vision. Across six instrumental tracks, he traverses disparate moods, as well as harsh and welcoming textures, combining solo-centric jazz playing with glitchy and enveloping electronic arrangements.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e'In Time' began in 2020 as an experiment for Manheim to attempt to write music that would make him want to dance. One of the earliest ideas that came from this personal goal is the opener “Peace Groove.” Inspired by playing artist Elliot Bergman’s “peace bells,” melted-down guns and bullets turned into instruments, Manheim started out with a percussion groove, adding synth, and live drums. While he loved creating loops and putting in new layers in isolation, he realized this music would benefit from bringing in other people. “I wanted to showcase my friends’ playing,” Manheim says. “I’ve gotten to work with and know so many incredible people who happen to be some of my favorite musicians. I wanted to show the world what makes them so great on this record. ” The resulting track is a hypnotizing, breezy, and rhythmically dense jam featuring saxophonist Tim Bennett, flute player Alex Cummings, and bassist Dan Stein.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhile Manheim is primarily known for his work as a jazz drummer, this EP showcases his globe-trotting tastes: everything from J-Dilla-inspired beat-making, all types of Brazilian music, and Chicago footwork is translated into something wholly original and immersive. The searching and smooth “A Lonely Road” is anchored by Whitney and Resavoir trumpeter Will Miller, “Faded” ventures out in rock territory with a blistering solo from guitarist Conrad Reeves, and “Lost Dayz” features solely Manheim’s tasteful drum programming and synth playing. In Time was mixed by Manheim and Dan Pierson and its six tracks feature a wealth of collaborators. Even with the freewheeling and collaborative arrangements, everything here feels intentional and tasteful.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLike the EP itself, the title 'In Time' reveals new meaning the more you dive in. It’s a sly nod to the patience required for an accomplished player to finally make their own music under their name as well as the spark that always eventually comes from working with friends. 'In Time' is a document of a virtuosic drummer taking a leap and reinventing himself as an absorbing and adventurous songwriter.\u003cbr\u003e\ncredits\u003cbr\u003e\nreleased April 7, 2023\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eProduced by Peter Manheim\u003cbr\u003e\nMixed by Dan Pierson and Peter Manheim\u003cbr\u003e\nMastered by Dave Cooley\u003cbr\u003e\nArtwork by Rich Stein\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e1. 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His compositions are so intensely honed and performed they seem to talk, moan, and cry about intimate experience in ways we might expect to find in novels, not instrumental records.” – Daniel Felsenthal, Pitchfork\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCommissioned by Western Front, an artist-run centre in Vancouver, Canada, with a legacy of continuing support for multidisciplinary exchange, experimentation, and the avant-garde. This project was developed by Darius Jones across a succession of residencies at Western Front in 2019 and 2022.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRecorded in June 2022 at Western Front’s Grand Luxe Hall in Vancouver, Canada, fLuXkit Vancouver (i̶t̶s̶ suite but sacred) is the first collaborative release with Brooklyn-based Northern Spy and Helsinki-based We Jazz Records.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs Harmony Holiday writes in her liner notes, included with this release: “The playing here is gorgeous, but what stands out most is the rigor of the compositions, which feel like tributes to Sun Ra’s call that ‘only the impossible happens.’ Their mood is expansive, gleeful, wistful, sometimes frantic, but so coherent and poised at every turn that all you can do while listening is marvel at this fluency in the language of will and won’t that lives here alone.”\u003cbr\u003ecredits\u003cbr\u003ereleases September 29, 2023\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEnsemble Personnel:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDarius Jones (alto saxophone, composer)\u003cbr\u003eGerald Cleaver (drums)\u003cbr\u003eJesse Zubot (violin)\u003cbr\u003eJosh Zubot (violin)\u003cbr\u003ePeggy Lee (cello)\u003cbr\u003eJames Meger (bass)\u003cbr\u003eDesign by Matti Nives.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLiner Notes by Harmony Holiday.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCover art: Occ6 (2016) by Stan Douglas\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eProduced by Darius Jones.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRecorded in the Grand Luxe Hall, Western Front on June 25, 2022.\u003cbr\u003eRecording engineer: Sheldon Zaharko, Zed Productions.\u003cbr\u003eMixing engineers: Jesse Zubot and Sheldon Zaharko at The Deep Bay Bunker and Zed Productions.\u003cbr\u003eMastering engineer: Matt Mehlan at The Stuudio.\u003cbr\u003efLuXkit Vancouver (i̶t̶s̶ suite but sacred) was commissioned by Western Front.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAdditional development support was provided by Coastal Jazz and Blues Society, and Prof. Kevin McNeilly of the University of British Columbia and the International Institute for Critical Studies in Improvisation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAdditional support from Robert D. Bielecki Foundation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA special thank you to Aram Bajakian, Ben Wilson, and Susan Gibb for all your hard work and belief in my art. Your support on so many levels helped and inspired me greatly throughout this entire process. To the whole Vancouver community, my heart is full from the love and support you have shown me over so many years. This one is for all of you!\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"Limited Edition Splatter Vinyl + Digital","offer_id":44667195228383,"sku":"LP-NS-163-COLOR","price":29.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP + Digital","offer_id":44667195261151,"sku":"LP-NS-163","price":27.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD+Digital","offer_id":46159561457887,"sku":"CD-NS-163","price":15.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667195293919,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667195326687,"sku":"","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/a3463292076_10.jpg?v=1720899590"},{"product_id":"head-body-connector","title":"Psymon Spine - Head Body Connector","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=557223872\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/psymonspine.bandcamp.com\/album\/head-body-connector\"\u003eHead Body Connector by PSYMON SPINE\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003eHead Body Connector is the third offering from Noah Prebish, Peter Spears, and Brother Michael Rudinski’s Psymon Spine project. It is a record that relishes in the heady, the psychedelic, the abstraction of temporality as we know it. Head Body Connector is a studio record from a band obsessed with production. It’s also a record that more so than any other Psymon release is interested in explicitly sounding live. It’s a guitar-forward album. Something that is ready-made to be performed. It features Liquid Liquid’s Dennis Young’s percussion and Angel Deradoorian (Dirty Projectors, FLYLO, The Roots) on backing vocals as well as long time collaborator Sabine Holler. Head Body Connector also saw the induction of two longtime friends of the band, drummer Zeb Stern and singer\/guitarist Sarah Aument, both on tour and in the studio.\u003cbr\u003e\ncredits\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eReleases February 23, 2024.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBrother Michael Rudinski - Engineer, Mixer, Producer\u003cbr\u003e\nMike Bloom - Mixer\u003cbr\u003e\nJosh Bonati - Mastering Engineer\u003cbr\u003e\nNoah Prebish - Producer\u003cbr\u003e\nPeter Spears - Producer\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"Limited Edition \"Cracked Egg\" Vinyl + Digital","offer_id":46117670551775,"sku":"MLP-NS-165","price":24.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP + Digital","offer_id":46117670584543,"sku":"LP-NS-165","price":24.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":46117670617311,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":46117670650079,"sku":"","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/Psymon-Spine-Head-Body-Connector-album-artwork.jpg?v=1720899611"},{"product_id":"unusual-object","title":"Josh Johnson - Unusual Object","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=2882715058\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/joshjohnsonmusic.bandcamp.com\/album\/unusual-object\"\u003eUnusual Object by Josh Johnson\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003eReleases April 5, 2024\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJosh Johnson’s latest solo record, Unusual Object is a world of sound. Johnson’s fantastically processed saxophone and subtle samples and grooves give this work a sort of cyberpunk ambient jazz feel that occasionally crosses into realms akin to classic Warp Records and Jon Hassell’s dreamworld tonalities. But however fantastical and dreamlike Unusual Object may be, these qualities only serve to bring the listener closer to Johnson, to his breath, his sense of song. What, after all, could be more intimate than sitting inside someone’s fantasies and dreams?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJohnson executes this all with an indelible elegance, establishing him as a worthy contemporary of fellow modern avant-garde composers like Lea Bertucci, Ian William Craig, and Kelly Moran. Like the latter’s carefully considered prepared piano compositions, Unusual Object is stately, personal, and patently modern.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJohnson is a highly in-demand collaborator, working often with Makaya McCraven, Marquis Hill and The Chicago Underground Quartet. He produced and played on Meshell Ndegeocello’s Grammy-nominated The Omnichord Real Book and worked for many years as musical director for Leon Bridges. He’s appeared on recordings by Broken Bells, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Harry Styles and his playing shines brilliantly on the Jeff Parker ETA Quartet’s Mondays at the Enfield Tennis Academy. Johnson indeed is an indelible part of the Los Angeles scene that gave shape to André 3000’s audaciously transcendent New Blue Sun. But Johnson is no mere supporting character.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLast year, he made a change. Pulling away from some of his more rigid gigs, Johnson chose to venture further into the realms of his own playing and to further sharpen his own compositional voice. Unusual Object, Johnson says, “is a development and documentation of a more personal world of sound.” This development has been ongoing, for sure, but often in the context of other people’s music. With Unusual Object Johnson asks: “What’s it like for me to create the context for my sound, to frame it myself?”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe answer is the spare but endlessly engaging Unusual Object, a work of futuristic jazz and modern composition that will appeal to fans of everything from Oneohtrix Point Never to Shabaka Hutchings, from Plaid to Ornette Coleman. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAll sounds by Josh Johnson; except “Quince” which contains drum samples by Aaron Steele\u003cbr\u003e\nAll compositions and arrangements by Josh Johnson (Sky and City Music, BMI); except “All Alone” by Mal Waldron\u003cbr\u003e\nProduced by Josh Johnson \u0026amp; Paul Bryan\u003cbr\u003e\nRecorded by Paul Bryan in Pacific Palisades \u0026amp; Josh Johnson in Glassell Park\u003cbr\u003e\nMixed by Paul Bryan\u003cbr\u003e\nMastered by Dave Cooley at Elysian Masters\u003cbr\u003e\nLacquer cut by Phil Rodriguez at Elysian Masters\u003cbr\u003e\nSequenced by Josh Johnson, Paul Bryan, \u0026amp; Anna Butterss\u003cbr\u003e\nDesign and Layout by Bucky Boudreau\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"LP + Digital","offer_id":46117671534815,"sku":"LP-NS-166","price":24.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD + Digital","offer_id":46117671567583,"sku":"CD-NS-166","price":15.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":46117671600351,"sku":null,"price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"WAV Download","offer_id":46117671502047,"sku":"NS-166","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/Josh-Johnson-Unusual-Object-web-cover-4-scaled.jpg?v=1720899622"},{"product_id":"birds-beasts","title":"SUSS - Birds \u0026 Beasts","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=2149533143\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/suss.bandcamp.com\/album\/birds-beasts\"\u003eBirds \u0026amp; Beasts by SUSS\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003eSUSS’ fifth release, Birds \u0026amp; Beasts, on Northern Spy Records, finds the New York-based ambient trio digging deeper, populating its stark, ethereal soundscapes with primal currents of sound inspired by the cycles and rhythms of the world around us. But while conveying the power of natural forces, it also embraces occasional warm rays of hope and humanity.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“For once, it looked like the stark, vast landscapes that we had been painting before were starting to be populated with a bit of creature warmth,” says Bob Holmes (mandolin, guitar, harmonica, violin). But, he adds, “this is not Garden of Eden kind of stuff.” Pat Irwin (electric guitar, resonator guitar, keyboards) adds, “I think of the fragility of the world around us. I think of the humanity, and the lack of it. The world seems out of balance. There are birds and there are beasts.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBirds \u0026amp; Beasts follows on the heels of SUSS’ acclaimed 2022 self- titled double album, cited by Pitchfork as “music that dilates the world to a high-lonesome point, a pastoral quintessence that doesn’t change so much as it gradually opens and closes, telescopes and recedes.” As in the past, the band combines ambient synths, loops and found sounds with more traditional Americana instrumentation to create what Aquarium Drunkard describes as “country music, mutated and stretched along a vast horizon — open music for open souls.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut if the horizons here are deeper — more Gulf Stream than Grand Canyon — in the primordial pull of tracks like “Birds” and “Prey,” which imply both natural and societal disquiet, Birds \u0026amp; Beasts offers the freedom of celestial and terrestrial peregrinations in “Flight,” “Overstory” and “Migration.” Taking a cue from the 30-minute collaboration Rising that SUSS recently released with Australian banjoist Andrew Tuttle, the tracks on Birds \u0026amp; Beasts are generally longer, with fewer elements and a greater sense of space.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs always, the band’s discovery of new horizons evolved organically. When it comes to defining the next step in their journey, “the music is the articulation,” says pedal steel guitarist Jonathan Gregg. “We’re not sure where we’re going, but we know when we’ve arrived, and it’s never the same place twice.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIndeed, some tracks simply take longer to find their way than others. “Migration,” for example, dates from the early days of the band and is the album’s sole track to feature the late Gary Leib, who passed away suddenly in 2021. “We always loved the track but we never found the right fit for it,” says Holmes. \"However, as we were making what was to become Birds \u0026amp; Beasts, it became obvious that the track was just waiting for us to come around to its way of thinking. You just need to listen to the music closely to hear what it’s always been trying to tell you.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJoin SUSS on their journey as they keep their ear to the ground on Birds \u0026amp; Beasts, on Northern Spy Records.\u003cbr\u003e\nReleases June 28, 2024.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"LP + Digital","offer_id":46117672124639,"sku":"LP-NS-167","price":24.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD + Digital","offer_id":46117672157407,"sku":"CD-NS-167","price":15.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":46117672222943,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":46117672190175,"sku":"","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/suss_birdsBeasts_frCvr-scaled.jpg?v=1720899643"},{"product_id":"the-necks-bleed","title":"The Necks - Bleed","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAustralian minimalist-jazz trio The Necks' new studio album, Bleed explores a sublime language of stillness. With a single, 42-minute composition, The Necks masterfully express the unspeakable beauty of decay and space in yet another totally distinct entry in a vast and stunning body of work.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"Green LP + Digital Download","offer_id":46355044303071,"sku":"LP-NS-168IE","price":27.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"Black LP + Digital Download","offer_id":46355044270303,"sku":"LP-NS-168","price":27.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD + Digital Download","offer_id":46355044237535,"sku":"CD-NS-168","price":15.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":46355044335839,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":46355044368607,"sku":"","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/NS168_COVER-4000px.jpg?v=1727881253"},{"product_id":"the-necks-disquiet","title":"The Necks - Disquiet","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=3420339674\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/thenecksau.bandcamp.com\/album\/disquiet\"\u003eDisquiet by The Necks\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"tralbumData tralbum-about\"\u003eOn Disquiet, The Necks stretch their immersive, shape-shifting sound across three discs and more than three hours of labyrinthine, patient intensity. This is their twentieth studio recording and it marks the 39th year of the band’s existence.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMeticulously recorded and sculpted, the four extended pieces on Disquiet see Tony Buck, Chris Abrahams, and Lloyd Swanton pushing at the outer edges of their collective intuition, building and unraveling hypnotic structures with microscopic focus. Present is the usual arsenal of piano, double bass, and drums, and all the in-between of sounds undefined and sources obscured.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe music of The Necks has always carried a profound sense of shared responsibility –– between the players, of course, in their utter commitment to the improvisational –– but also between the work and its audience. With music so open, there are profound opportunities to choose: what to focus on, whether to focus at all, etc. Disquiet takes this further: there is no particular listening order prescribed. There is no “Disc 1, Disc 2, Disc 3.” The music itself seems to stretch time, and this presentation challenges ideas of sequencing. The Necks, one may argue, are a mode of discovery as much as they are a band.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRegarding the sound itself, The Necks’ signature restraint and textural depth remain, with subtle tonal shifts, evolving motifs, and roiling phases of keen and propulsive clatter, strains of subdued surprise and unmatched intentionality –– as ever, expansive and absorbing.\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"3 CD Set + Digital","offer_id":47495459012831,"sku":"CD-NS-174","price":30.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":47495459045599,"sku":null,"price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":47495459078367,"sku":null,"price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/disquiet1.jpg?v=1761244699"},{"product_id":"kalia-vandever-another-view-cd","title":"Kalia Vandever - Another View","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"tralbumData tralbum-about\"\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e \u003cspan\u003eOn her Northern Spy debut album, Another View, Kalia Vandever’s quartet leans into a taut, clear-eyed study of cycles and grooves with elegiac melodies that effloresce into something dynamic, nearly bursting with life. Vandever’s trombone leads, meeting Mary Halvorson’s elastic guitar lines in shifting light. Kanoa Mendenhall (bass) and Kayvon Gordon (drums) give the music its frame, letting repetition breathe in a mutable structure. Underneath is a narrative about idealization curdling into dread, the way the drafts and shadows of a “dream house” reveal themselves once you move inside. Vandever has drawn, in part, from Carmen Maria Machado’s inventive memoir In the Dream House (Graywolf Press, 2019).\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAnother View carries forward the patient, long-tone lyricism and quiet insistence that made Regrowth (New Amsterdam, 2022) special. Vandever reveals explorations of space, vulnerability, and dream-logic on We Fell In Turn (AKP, 2023). Here, those qualities mature into a dialogue with her band, inviting discussion of past ideas of intimacy and imagination.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“Staring At The Cracked Window” opens with an improvised prelude from Halvorson before the quartet locks into a groove. A prologue of resilience: someone trapped in a web of suffering beginning\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"bcTruncateMore\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003eto notice the fissures beneath the surface. “Cycle In Mourning” charts the nonlinearity of grief with dense harmony and collective improvisation.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn the context of her solo work and the songcraft she’s honed in collaborative projects like tilt (Vandever’s trio with Isabel Crespo Pardo and Carmen Quill), Vandever’s Another View feels like a multilayered dream. The repetition and shifting motifs are songlike, melancholic, hopeful, volatile. Each listen is another angle, another room, another view.\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"tralbumData tralbum-about\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"tralbumData tralbum-credits\"\u003ereleased November 14, 2025\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eKayvon Gordon - drums\u003cbr\u003eMary Halvorson - guitar, appears courtesy of Nonesuch Records\u003cbr\u003eKanoa Mendenhall - bass\u003cbr\u003eKalia Vandever - trombone\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eJason Rostkowski - engineer\u003cbr\u003eNolan Thies - assistant engineer\u003cbr\u003eJason Rostkowski at Cycle Studios - mixing and mastering\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGerald Cleaver, drumset (tracks 1-5)\u003cbr\u003eMax Jaffee, sensory electronics (tracks 1-5), drumset (track 6)\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRecorded by Andrew Munsey at Bunker Studios, Brooklyn, NY\u003cbr\u003eCo-produced by Stephanie Richards and Andrew Munsey\u003cbr\u003eMixed and Mastered by Andrew Munsey\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"CD + Digital","offer_id":47495529365727,"sku":"CD-NS-176","price":16.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":47495529398495,"sku":null,"price":12.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":47495529431263,"sku":null,"price":11.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/anotherview.jpg?v=1761151766"},{"product_id":"jamie-lidell-luke-schneider","title":"Jamie Lidell \u0026 Luke Schneider - A Companion For The Spaces Between Dreams","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"tralbumData tralbum-about\"\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e \u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"tralbumData tralbum-about\"\u003eJamie Lidell and Luke Schneider have created a kind of sonic tool to navigate a liminal state of mind. Their new collaborative LP, A Companion For The Spaces Between Dreams, is out this fall on Brooklyn experimental imprint Northern Spy Records, designed as a reverent companion for psychedelic journeys born from Lidell’s own ketamine therapy sessions, which deepened his belief in art’s healing power.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A mind is often found more exposed during psychedelic experiences,” Lidell explains. “Specifically in a therapeutic setting, where trust is key to approach issues and work through events in the way of growth. This is music to support and guide the listening with or without psychedelic sensory heightening.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNeither Lidell nor Schneider is a stranger to brain-bending timbres. UK-born Lidell cut his teeth as a member of the microhouse duo Super_Collider and later released genre-bending solo albums on Warp Records, spanning abstract techno to neo-soul. His prior 2025 album, Places of Unknowing, was Lidell’s first in nine years, exploring symphonic arrangements indebted to David Bowie and David Sylvian. As a pedal steel guitarist, Schneider has worked with artists including Margo Price, William Tyler, and Orville Peck. He\u003cspan class=\"bcTruncateMore\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003ehas issued cosmic solo LPs on Third Man Records and Leaving Records, which meld instrumental shoegaze, outlaw country, and new age.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTheir partnership emerged unexpectedly while working on a promotional video for Moog. Two days of freewheeling collaboration in the studio sparked A Companion For The Spaces Between Dreams, a collection of five long-form pieces that are almost suite-like. Lidell uses modular synths, Fender Rhodes, tape effects, and percussion to weave a fathomless tapestry from Schneider’s improvised pedal steel swells.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLidell later returned to the sessions in a window of heightened neuroplasticity, refining the material through layers of sonic micro‑detail. The result is tactile and transportive. Prickly textures and sinewy drones call to mind dewy flowers at dawn. Whispers of krautrock flicker, echoing Lidell’s preference for jagged sonics during treatments. A Companion For The Spaces Between Dreams evades the pitfalls of clinical sterility, inducing a vulnerable inner voyage.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003ca\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"tralbumData tralbum-credits\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"tralbumData tralbum-credits\"\u003ereleased October 31, 2025\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"LP + Digital","offer_id":47513005785311,"sku":"LP-NS-173","price":25.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"Cassette + Digital","offer_id":47513006506207,"sku":"CS-NS-173","price":8.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":47513005818079,"sku":null,"price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":47513005850847,"sku":null,"price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/a2800765707_16.jpg?v=1761174443"},{"product_id":"the-necks-the-boys","title":"The Necks - The Boys","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"tralbumData tralbum-about\"\u003eThe Boys is the sixth album and first soundtrack album by Australian improvised music trio The Necks originally released on the Wild Sound\/MDS label in 1998 and later reissued in 2004 on Fish of Milk. Nominated Best Soundtrack Album, ARIA Awards and Australian Guild of Screen Composers Awards.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Haunting stuff...Highly recommended (4 stars)\"\u003cbr\u003e–Rolling Stone (Australia)\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"tralbumData tralbum-about\"\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"tralbumData tralbum-credits\"\u003ereleased January 1, 1998\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"CD + Digital","offer_id":47580508684511,"sku":"CD-FM-0010","price":16.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":47580508717279,"sku":null,"price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":47580508750047,"sku":null,"price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/theboys.jpg?v=1762972567"},{"product_id":"toth-and-the-voice-said","title":"Tōth - And The Voice Said","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"tralbumData tralbum-about\"\u003eBrooklyn songwriter and trumpet player Tōth (Alex Toth of Rubblebucket) is on a spiritual journey that saved his life. He returns with And The Voice Said, a radiant and self-questioning record about surviving yourself, co-produced by Caroline Rose and featuring Kimbra via Northern Spy and Egghunt Records.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAfter years of recovery, co-founding the joyful collective Rubblebucket, and maintaining that creative partnership through a very public breakup, Toth is ready to focus his full energy on his solo work: music that's equal parts prayer and punchline, for anyone choosing to stay.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"tralbumData tralbum-about\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"tralbumData tralbum-about\"\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e \u003cspan\u003ereleases February 27, 2026\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Egghunt Records","offers":[{"title":"Cream LP + Digital","offer_id":47580607512799,"sku":"LP-EHR-064C","price":26.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":47580607545567,"sku":null,"price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":47580607578335,"sku":null,"price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/andthevoicesaid.jpg?v=1762973976"},{"product_id":"asher-gamedze-a-semblance-of-return","title":"Asher Gamedze - A Semblance of Return","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWith A Semblance: Of Return, South African drummer, composer, and bandleader Asher Gamedze gathers a close ensemble of longtime collaborators to explore what he calls “practices of assembly” - ways of coming together, making sound, and imagining new and old modes of freedom. Based in the independent music scenes of Cape Town and rooted in Pan-Africanism and Black Consciousness, Of Return extends the political and musical commitments that have defined Gamedze’s work since Dialectic Soul (On The Corner, 2020), while opening a newly collective chapter in his practice, this time on Northern Spy Records.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOf Return is an album about a grounding in local context, in collective work, in the sonic and social memory of South Africa and about reaching outward, imagining solidarities that extend beyond geographic and political borders. Musically, the record carries forward the lineages that shape Gamedze’s work and opens new spaces for communing. If Dialectic Soul, Turbulence and Pulse (International Anthem, 2022) and Constitution (International Anthem, 2024) were statements of direction, Of Return is a gathering place: a living room, a rehearsal, a shady club, a study group\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"bcTruncateMore\"\u003e, a home.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe band on the album - Ru Slayen (percussion), Nobuhle Ashanti (keys \u0026amp; synth), Zwide Ndwandwe (bass), and Keegan Steenkamp (trumpet), with Gamedze on drums - formed as a social unit: a group for whom music is part of a broader shared life, full of playing, thinking, laughing, and struggling. That ethos animates the music. Across the album’s two sides, Of Return moves with a grounded, searching energy, shifting between group vocals, groove-heavy ensemble passages, and moments of stark melodic clarity. The grooves are earthy and lived-in; the improvisations feel like conversations; the lyric fragments echo the project’s probing around notions of return as integral to any forward, future-oriented motion.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe album’s title connects to the political vision articulated in Gamedze’s “From Cape to Cairo \/ Outwith” essay, written while preparing his guest curation for Le Guess Who? 2025. There, Gamedze traces the dual histories of the phrase “From Cape to Cairo”: first as a colonial fantasy of extraction and expansion, and then as a struggle slogan of Pan-African liberation, a phrase that “gestures toward the dream of liberating the continent from imperialist plunder, colonial and neo-colonial oppression.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOf Return enacts both return and departure, or more precisely, extension\/elaboration. This it does through a rootedness in the traditions and politics of the Cape underground, and opening a sonic invitation to dream, to struggle together, and, fundamentally, to assemble.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan class=\"bcTruncateMore\"\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\n\u003cspan\u003eAlbum and all songs composed, arranged and produced by Asher Gamedze.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eRecorded by Ben Jamieson at Concept Records in Cape Town. 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