Playing the Bills - Part III: Break Through in Grey Room

Inspired by the original Industrial Records release of William S. Burroughs's Nothing Here Now but the Recordings (a track from that release can be heard here on an Industrial Records sampler), Belgian record label Sub Rosa worked with Burroughs to release another album: Break Through In Grey Room. Compiled in 1986 by producer Bill Rich, the album features Burroughs's experimental recordings from 1961 to 1976, featuring field recordings by Burroughs of the Master Musicians of Jajouka, experimental collaborations with mathematician Ian Sommerville, & painter/cut-up originator Brion Gysin.

Break Through In Grey Room documents William S. Burroughs during his time in Europe & England, working with Ian Sommerville on recording with the 'cut-up' technique. Sommerville's technical background enabled him to contribute to the early development of sound-&-light shows in London, leading to work with gear provided by Paul McCartney in an apartment owned by Ringo Starr. Experimental in nature, the record is as much an exhibition of studio & composition technique as it is a document of underground culture at that time. 

 

William S. Burroughs - Break Through in Grey Room, Sub Rosa SUB33005-9, 1986.
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Side One -
K-9 Was in Combat with the Alien Mind-Screens - Ian Sommerville & WSB
Origin & Theory of the Tape Cut-Ups - WSB
Recalling All Active Agents - Brion Gysin 
Silver Smoke of Dreams - Ian Sommerville & WSB

Side Two -
Junky Relations - WSB
Joujouka - Master Musicians of Jajouka with Ornette Coleman    
Curse Go Back - WSB
Present Time Exercises - WSB
Joujouka - Master Musicians of Jajouka with Ornette Coleman
Working with the Popular Forces - WSB
Interview with Mr. Martin - WSB
Joujouka - Master Musicians of Jajouka with Ornette Coleman
Sound Piece - Ian Sommerville
Joujouka - Master Musicians of Jajouka with Ornette Coleman
Burroughs Called the Law - WSB

notes:
Track A1: Early cut-up tapes made by Ian Sommerville & WSB around 1965, probably in New York & London.
Track A2: From a lecture given by WSB at the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics at Naropa Institute, April 20, 1976.
Track A3: Excerpt from tape made in 1960 by Brion Gysin at BBC Studios in London, using BG's permutational technique.
Track A4: Tape made in early 1960s by Ian Sommerville & WSB, using the "drop-in" method.

Track B1: Excerpt from a radio talk by WSB in 1961 in London, "A Day in the Life of a Junky", tape courtesy of the University of Kansas Libraries.
Track B2: Excerpt from live tape made by WSB at the Joujouka Festival in the hills of Morocco with Ornette Coleman, January 18, 1973.
Track B3: From early 1960s tape, WSB chanting an anti-curse.
Track B4: Cassette work by WSB in London, ca. 1971, using radio, television, several tape recorders.
Track B6: WSB cut-ups with Dutch Schultz's last words & news texts, shortwave radio noise, mid-1960s, London.
Track B7: Excerpt, WSB performance at the ICA in London, February 28, 1963; tape courtesy of Gordon C.A. Craig.
Track B9: Produced by Ian Sommerville using the inching technique, 1960s?
Track B11: WSB routine recorded mid-1960s - dropping a dime on the Nova Mob; tape courtesy of the University of Kansas Libraries.

Archival reconstruction by Romana Recording Studios, Kansas, Summer 1986.

 

 

 

Dead City Radio is an album of Burroughs at his best. The CD is a collection of readings by Burroughs set to a broad range of musical compositions. It was produced by Hal Willner & Nelson Lyon, with musical accompaniment from John Cale, Donald Fagen, Lenny Pickett, Chris Stein, Sonic Youth, & the NBC Symphony Orchestra, among others. 

 

About Dead City Radio,Burroughs sez:
        "This album is dedicated to Keith Haring, at the Apocalypse."

 

 

William S. Burroughs - Dead City Radio, Island Records , 1990.

William's Welcome ("What Are You Here For?")
A Thanksgiving Prayer
Naked Lunch Excerpts ("You Got Any Eggs for Fats?") / Dinner Conversation ("The Snakes")
Ah Pook the Destroyer / Brion Gysin's All-Purpose Bedtime Story
After-Dinner Conversation ("An Atrocious Conceit") / Where He Was Going
Kill the Badger!
A New Standard by Which to Measure Infamy
The Sermon on the Mount 1 ("WSB Reads the Good Book")
No More Stalins, No More Hitlers
The Sermon pn the Mount 2
Scandal at the Jungle Hiltons
The Sermon on the Mount 3
Love Your Enemies
Dr. Benway's House
Apocalypse
The Lord's Prayer
Ich Bin Von Kopf Bis Fuss Auf Liebe Eingestellt ("Falling in Love Again")

note:
Tracks 1,3b,4b,5a,+7: "William's Welcome", "Dinner Conversation (The Snakes)", "Brion Gysin's All-Purpose Bedtime Story", "After-Dinner Conversation (An Atrocious Conceit)", &  "A New Standard by Which to Measure Infamy" are new texts, unpublished.
Tracks 2+5b: "A Thanksgiving Prayer" & "Where He Was Going" are from 'Tornado Alley'.Track 3a: "Naked Lunch Excerpts" are from 'Naked Lunch'.
Track 4a: "Ah Pook the Destroyer" is from 'Ah Pook Is Here.'
Track 6: "Kill the Badger!" is from 'The Cat Inside'.
Tracks 8, 10, + 12: "The Sermon on the Mount 1, 2, & 3" is from the Bible.
Track 9:  "No More Stalins, No More Hitlers" is from 'Interzone'.
Track 11: "Scandal at the Jungle Hiltons" is from 'The Western Lands'.
Track 13: "Love Your Enemies" is from 'Ghost of Chance'.
Track 14: "Apocalypse" is from 'Apocalypse'.

Recorded at Hairball 3; Lawrence, Kansas.

 

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ

Bill L. & Bill B.

This is a cross-over. Playing two Bills at one time. Phenomenal. 

 

The Acid Lands, created by the Prague-based Opening Performance Orchestra, was first heard in public in 2014 at the Movement-Sound-Space festival in Ostrava, to mark the centenary of William S. Burroughs's birth. The piece was performed live by Opening Performance Orchestra & their guests, the theremin player Martina Potucková along with the poet, musician, & performer Pavel Z as the narrator. 

The studio version of The Acid Lands was made in late 2019/early 2020 in collaboration with Bill Laswell & Iggy Pop, who undertook the role of the narrator. The piece, which pays tribute to
William S. Burroughs, features fragments from the novels The Western Lands & Junky. In addition to the title composition, The Acid Lands, the record contains Bill Laswell's instrumental remix, as well as the collective piece "Naming Seven Souls", featuring samples of William S. Burroughs reading his own work. 

 

           Opening Performance Orchestra, Bill Laswell, Iggy Pop featuring William S. Burroughs                                                                                    The Acid Lands

Rosa SR500, 2020.
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The Acid Lands 
The Acid Lands (Ambient mix-translation)
Naming the Seven Souls (mix-translation)

 

 

note:
Track 1: Concept & electronics by Opening Performance Orchestra with Moog & tone generators by Alfred Sabeta, bass & additional Electronic by Bill Laswell, & spoken word by Iggy Pop & WSB.
Track 2: Created & performed by Bill Laswell.
Track 3: Created & performed by Bill Laswell with spoken word by WSB.

 

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ

It’s Playing the Bills Time Again

Well, many months have slipped by since I remembered to play the monthly Bills. Shylock has been hounding me of late, demanding his pound of flesh. Before I share anything else, I need to take care of this business.

On the top of the Bill pile this time around is ailing Bill Laswell. Since it's been a while playing all three Bills, I better cough up multiple payments just to give myself some breathing room.

 

Here's one from Laswell's first project, Material. The then 24-year-old bass player Bill Laswell teamed up with three young friends, 17-year old Michael Beinhorn - synthesizer, 17-year old Martin Bisi – programer, & 14-year old Fred Maher – drums. Their band was called Zu Band until 1078 when they hooked up with former Gong frontman Daevid Allen. They then took the name New York Gong. Guitarist Cliff Cultreri & a second drummer Bill Bacon joined in the spring of 1979. In the fall of that year the six parted company with Allen. The band then took the name Material from the Laswell/Cultreri instrumental track "Materialism" on the About Time album.

I have shared Material before here & here.

This is Material's second full-length with guest artists Nicky Skopelitis - guitar, Niles Rodgers - guitar, Fred Frith - guitar, Nona Hendryx -  vocals, Bernard Fowler - vocals, Whitney Houston - vocals, & many more..

.

Material - One Down, Celluloid 60206, 1982.

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Side One -
Take a Chance
I'm the One
Time Out
Let Me Have it All

Side Two -
Come Down
Holding On
Memories
Don't Lose Control

bonus track - Busting Out (from the 1992 reissue)

 

This next one is a bass clash-up of Bill & Jah Wobble, two of my favorite bassists & one of the absolute best albums from either man....

 

Jah Wobble & Bill Laswell - Radioaxiom: a Dub Transmission, 

Palm Pictures PALMCD2073-2, 2001.

Subcode
Alsema Dub
Virus B
Orion
6th Chamber
Alam Dub
Second Sight

 

Enjoy,
NØ

Thaw Out Part 3

This is a relatively new one that I purchased not too long ago. I have listened to it extensively but have not digested it entirely yet.  It is kind of a paean to the early clubbing days of Faithless' career, layered with heavily nostalgic sounds while still maintaining a modern edge.

 

I shared some Faithless here. Go over there for more of their music if you like it & read about the band itself. On this release the first track features the voice of co-founder Maxi Jazz (R.I.P.).

 

On this recording Faithless is joined by Amelia Fox & Nathan Ball on vocals, both who are part of the Faithless live band. Guest vocalists include L.S.K. (Leigh Stephen Kenny), Suli Breaks, Bebe Rexha, Emmanuel Jal, & Antony Szmierek.

 

Faithless - Champion Sound, Faithless self-released, 2025.

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Forever Free
In Your Own Groove
Fugitive
Peace & Noise
Meeting
Driving
Thinking
Book of Hours (complete LP side 3)
Find a Way
Dollars & Dimes
Champion Sound
Emmanuel
Yes I Want it Too

 

Enjoy,
NØ

Thawin’ Out Part 2

Well, I've got wet running down my legs. It's not sweat yet, it's my boys defrosting. This dancing about is just what I needed. My brain is even startin' to work (kinda) again. Gotta keep up the beats here. No time to stop, gotta hop my socks. 

 

CSS is a Brazilian band from São Paulo. The band formed in September 2003, taking their name from Beyoncé quip repoting she was "tired of being sexy" (Portuguese - "cansei de ser sexy"). Here the band is: Lovefoxxx - vocals; Ana Rezende & Luiza Sá - guitar; Carolina Parra - guitar, keyboards, drums; Iracema Trevisan - bass: & Adriano Cintra - drums, guitar, keyboards. They were active in the emerging Brazilian new rave music scene.

 

CSS - Cansei De Ser Sexy, Sub Pop SPCD717, 2006.
decryptions in comments

CSS Suxxx
Patins
Alala
Let's Make Love A& Listen to Death from Above
Art Bitch
Fuckoff is Not the Only Thing You Have to Show
Meeting Paris Hilton
Off the Hook
Alcohol
Music is My Hot Hot Sex
This Month, Day 10

 

 

 

 

Heloise & the Savoir Faire is an Electropop / Dancepunk band from Brooklyn, New York made up of: Heloise Williams - vocals & keyboards; James Bellizia - guitar; Jason Diamond - bass; & Luke Hughett - drums.

 

 

Heloise & The Savoir Faire - Trash, Rats, & Microphones, Yep Roc Records YEP2189, 2008.

Illusions    
Members Only
Pick 'N' Choose    
Datsun 280z    
Po' T    
Disco Heaven    
Downtown (Deborah Harry - vocals)
On Fuego (Elijah Wood - tape echo)
Memorial Day    
Canadian Changs (Deborah Harry - vocals)
Givin' U the Bizness    
Odyle

 

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ

Chill?...I'm Fuckin' Frozen!

This whole month I've been kicking it on the lounger with some iced mixed drinks, chillin', listenin' to this Downtempo, but I'm so chill I think my 'nads froze. I've gotta kick this hazy habit, pick up the tempo, hop onta the dancefloor & thaw out. Start out with a short blast of hi-NRG disco, then see how well I'm hoppin' & boppin'. 

 

 

Tantra was an innovative Italian disco-rock studio project created in the late 1970s by renowned Bologna-born producer, arranger, & keyboardist Celso Valli. Merging progressive rock, Euro disco, & the driving synth-basslines of Giorgio Moroder, Tantra laid the foundational groundwork for the Italo-disco movement. This is an early example of hi-NRG music. 

 

Tantra - Hills of Katmandu, Philips 6323087, 1979.
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Side 1 -
Hills of Katmandu
Side 2 -
Wishbone

 

 

 

 

Man, that was a good work-out. My leg is screamin' but what a start. Really got my blood pumping. How about some Kraut dancepunk next..

.

April 2006 four musicians from Leipzig, Germany: Frank "FMLyn" Raabe- vocals; Steffen Grafe - keyboards; Jörg "Joey Vaising" Adler - bass; & Hendrick "Flammy" Pietsch - drums met in the studio for the very first time as The Sonic Boom Foundation, playing a unigue blend of techno & dance punk...urbanrave electrorock discopunk, they called it. 

 

 

The Sonic Boom Foundation - Create Yourself, Urbanravesound 01, 2006.

Sound of the City
Revolution in the Head
All My People
Solar Kid
High Kites at 4am
Create Yourself
Rock 'n' Roll Raver
T.R.I.T.
The Zappa
China
Sound of the City (The Booga TBGB remix)

 

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ

Heading to the Bizarre Bazaar

 

Tratosphere is a Swiss trio consisting of keyboardist Peter Stierli, bassist Thomas Tavano, & drummer Julian Dillier (Dub Spencer & Trance Hill). Tratosphere create highly psychedelic Downbeat rhythms & Dubby moods sprinkled with funky elements mixing synthesizer stylings jazz-style drums, & heavy bass lines. 

 

Tratosphere - Bazar Bizar, Rubbish Records rubrec007, 2005.
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Polarluft    
Traveller    
Paprika Market    
Obsidian    
Oslolulu    
Budragar
Banana Boat    
Dr. Specht    
Neptun's World    
Tratomic

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ

Taking the Elevator Up

 

Morrison Bennett is Globular, a psychedelic Downtempo Dub musician from Bristol, UK. He has been producing great music since 2012. Got this one through crowdfunding on Kickstarter many years ago. 

 

Globular - Magnitudes of Order, Globular self-released, 2013.
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Synchronicity City 3.0    
Monkey Fluster    
Fire & Stars    
Up the Xylem Elevator    
Gateways    
Planck!    
Concinnity & Chaos    
Dance of the Logarithm

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ

Let’s Do Some DMT

Digital Mystery Tour (DMT) is mainly Stephane Holweck with help from Florian Seriot, Michio Baba, & Loïc Van Poucke (Total Eclipse). Based in France, DMT create Downtempo  Ambient & Dub. 

 

Stephane Holwek has had a long & varied career in music. His first musical step was in 1976 when he joined Hungarian Peter Ogi (O.G.I.) as bass player. O.G.I. signed a deal with Malcolm McLaren & moved to London. By the early 80s Holwek was playing in several South London rock bands. He started working with Youth who had just left Killing Joke. The two formed their own group called Brilliant. They both played bass so they added drummer Big Paul. They were joined by Jimmy Cauty (The Orb / KLF), who lived in the same house as Stephane. Ben Watkins joined in 1983 to play keyboards.

In 1984, Stephane created another band called Fresh, with Brandon Beal & Muff O'Donnell. By 1989 Stephane had a new band with Ben Watkins (from Brilliant) called Electrotete. In 1992 Ben & Stef formed Juno Reactor & released the album Transmissions. 

While still working as Juno Reactor Stef linked up with Serge Souque in Paris & recorded two tracks under the name Total Eclipse. Soon after, Loic Vanpoucke joined the band, This project was highly successful. Stephane has continued Total Eclipse as a solo effort since around 2005.

Around 2003, Stephane, together with Michio Baba who had collaborated on the Total Eclipse album Update Files started recording as the chill-out collective Digital Mystery Tour. 

 

 

Digital Mystery Tour - Digital Mystery Tour, Twisted Records TWSCD17, 2001.
decryption code in comments

010 Seti 101
Chilam Balam
Smokemon (Chiluemon mix)
The Blooming (Change mix)
Nadeshiko's Dream
Run Time
Mass
"Saute Mouton" Syndrome

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ

Into the Eye of the Storm

 

Kaya Project is the Downtempo music created by Seb Taylor from Brighton, UK. He mixes Dub, Ambient, tribal, Dubstep, Drum n Bass into his Downtempo stylings. 

Desert Phase is the fourth Kaya Project album, a voyage into global electronica inspired by windswept journeys through the Sonoran Desert, the Thar Desert, & the Northern Sahara. It includes many recordings captured by Seb & Natasha Chamberlain in Arizona, Rajasthan, & Morocco, from the desert dwelling musicians of Jaisalmer to Moroccan bazaars to atmospheric desert winds recorded amongst the sand dunes in North America. Some of the tracks are bolstered by the addition of additional musicians back in London like the vocals of Shahin Badar & the upright bass playing of Riad Abji. In the studio Seb also added musical contributions from vocalists Irina Mikhailova, Sabiha Khan, & Deeyah, as well as Deepak Pandit on violin & Omar Faruk Teklibek on ney / zourna. 

 

Kaya Project - Desert Phase, Interchill Records ichillcd038, 2010.
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The Stranger Rolls In
Desert Phase
Ummah Oum (featuring Shahin Badar)
The Fortress
Desert Child
When Only Sand Remains
Dust Devil
Eye of the Storm
Vijaya
Calico Stomp
23 Towers
The Fourth Age of Sand 
Dobro
Arizona Morning Cocoon
Sundown

 

 

 

While Desert Phase drew its inspiration from the time Seb Taylor & Natasha Chamberlain spent in some of the world's largest deserts. the distinctive Kaya Project sounds were turned over to the talents of a group of accomplished producers across the globe to see what sort of re-interpretations would emerge.

Scattered across 3 continents, the select remixers represent a diverse range of musical inclinations from modern Downtempo to Dubstep, breaks, glitch hop, techno, & drum'n'bass sensibilities. 

 

Kaya Project - Desert Phase Remixes, Interchill Records ichillcd041, 2010.

When Only Sand Remains (Tripswitch Rremix)    
Ummah Oum featuring Shahin Badar (100th Monkey remix) 
Desert Phase (Hibernation remix)
23 Towers (Eat Static remix)
Dust Devil (Liquid Stranger's Cortex Vortex remix)
23 Towers (Biotone remix)
Desert Child (Oblique Industries Inner Child remix) 
Sundown (EarthRise SoundSystem remix) 
Calico Stomp (Gaudi remix)
Eye of the Storm (Chaos by Design remix)    
Dobro (The Opiuo Bro-Cuzz remix) 
Vijaya (Bluetech remix)     
23 Towers (Interpulse remix)

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ

Don’t Be Jealous

 

Downtempo project originally from Rostov-on-Don now working out of Moscow, Russian Federation made up of Aleksander Soloviev with the help of Aleksander Kalinichenko, & Anna Karmakova. 

Siba.Pro creates a sound experience that is both entrancing yet contemplative by skillfully fusing complex melodies, throbbing rhythms, & atmospheric textures. 

SibaPro creates dreamy chillout music that slows down time & immerses the listener into atmospheric musical landscapes. The true definition of Downtempo. 

 

Siba.Pro - Listen, Siba.pro self released, 2012.
decryption code in comments

Citizens    
A Day    
Inhale    
Castle    
Jealous
Exit    
July    
Pushkin    
Nightingale    
Finale    
Hope (bonus)

 

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ

Now for Something Smooth

 

Portuguese Downtempo unit D-Echo Project was formed by Valter Silva &  Rogério Coelho from Peniche. Their Downtempo style fuses Dub, jazz, soul, & funk to electronica / dance music. Valter began playing percussion around 1995. He provided percussion for numerous local musicians. Rogério started working as a producer in the late Aughts, working mainly with Digital Audio Workstation. He teamed up with his friend Valter in 2010 to form D-Echo Project, concentrating on deep slow sultry sounds with heavy Dub bass & an intense Latin vibe. 

 

D-Echo Project - A New Path, D-Echo self-released, 2021.
decryption code in comments

Cha Cha Cha
Mango Salad    
Something Smooth    
Gourmet    
Exotic Strings    
Dunia    
Pace D    
Tropical Flavour    
Space Trail    
String & Dub

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ

Is This Where it Ends?

 

Daniel Vadestid & Johannes Hedberg are Carbon Based Lifeforms (obviously), a Downtempo / Ambient / acid electronic project based in Göteborg, Sweden, formed in 1996;
 
Daniel Vadestrid (born Daniel Ringström) is a Swedish Downtempo / Ambient producer & musician. He met Johannes Hedberg in 1991 when Hedberg transferred to the same high school. They founded the Downtempo / Ambient duo Carbon Based Lifeforms in 1996. Daniel is also the founder & owner of Leftfield Records. They were heavily influenced by the music of electronic bands like The Future Sound of London & Boards of Canada. The duo are responsible for some of the finest Swedish electronica.

On Interloper, CBL create somber, emotionally intense yet hopeful sonic luminous streams of extraordinary acid Ambient & space electronica. This album contains layers of swirling lush arpeggios, penetrating melodies, gleaming motifs, deep basslines, & dynamic beat patterns.This one has additional vocals by Karin My Andersson. 

 

Carbon Based Lifeforms - Interloper, Ultimae Records inre041, 2010.
decryption code in comments

Interloper
Right Where it Ends
Central Plain
Supersede    
Init
Euphotic
Frog
M
20 Minutes    
Polyrytmi

 

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ

Now for Something Better

 

Kick Bong is the French psychedelic Downtempo project of multi-instrumentalist / composer Franck Jousselin from Paris. As early as age 12 he has a passion for drums & percussion.

In 1990 he formed his first band as a drummer. 

In 1995 he discovered electronic music & began an extensive career writing & creating music. 

In 2005 he rekeased his first full-length A Cup of Tea? as Kick Bong. He also DJs at many venues around Paris: Batofar; Triptych; Divan du Monde; Gibus; Glaz'art; Dame de Canton; Cabaret Sauvage; Machine du Moulin Rouge & more.

 
On his third full studio album Kind of Imagination, Franck composed & produced, as well as playing keyboards, synthesizers, bass, drums, assorted percussion, providing vocals, & programming. 

 

Kick Bong - Kind of Imagination, Cosmicleaf Records CLCD26DG, 2010.
decryption code in comments

Strange Feeling    
Kind of Imagination    
Just You & Me    
My Little Girl    
This Way    
Let Me Dream    
Je Suis La    
No More Love    
Le Bonheur    
Sensation    
Something Better (Cydelix remix)

 

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ

I See a Halo Around You

 

Halou is the long-running project of Ryan & Rebecca Coseboom (with Mikael Eldridge) who quietly over the years have built a deeply devoted audience by writing music that feels like a personal internal conversation.

Their sound blends Downtempo dream-pop, electronic atmospheres, & intimate songwriting that has resonated with their audiences. Without a backing label, professional PR, or major industry push, Halou has accumulated a global fan-base that has quietly built over the last nearly three decades.

Halou - Wiser, Nettwerk America, 2001.
decryption codes in comments

Milkdrunk    
Wiser    
Him to Me to You    
Political    
I'll Carry You    
Before There was Color    
Oceanwide    
I Would Love to Give Up    
Feeling This is Like to Fall Awake    
We Only Love You    
Arrhythmia

 

 

 

After years of making records, breaking up, rebuilding, raising a family, & rediscovering why they make music in the first place, Halou has returned with their most focused & emotionally direct work of their career.

 

 

Halou - Death Disco, Varna 1905, 2019.

The End, Amen    
Mouth on Mouth    
Revenge Dub    
Belong Dub
You Already Know What You Are Dub    
Intermission    
Hymn I (I Know Something)    
Hymn II (Even the Worst of Us)    
Hymn III (Lullaby)

 

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ

All One

I know absolutely nothing about this band or release other than Wisp.Records (Bahrain) was founded by WiSP, a conceptual futuristic sound artist known for creating Downtempo psyDub as a label featuring WiSP's productions skills alongside releases from diverse artists that blend modern digital soundscapes with ancient philosophy & cultural sonic elements driven by deep sub-bass, intricate rhythms, & meaningful thematic exploration. 

I recently bought this on bandcamp but when I went back to get some more information now it is not even there? I just liked the sound & wanted to share it here. If anyone can help with facts about this release, I'm looking forward to knowing more. For now though, just give it a listen... 

 

PeaceMaker - we are ONE, WISP.Records, 2026.
decryption code in comments

We are ONE 
One Family 
One Earth 
One Blood 
One Hope 
One Sky 
One Heart 
One Frequency 
One Breath 
One Voice

 

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ

Sitting at the End of the Bar, Driking a Lemon Crush

Slow Dancing Society is a Downtempo & Ambient project of Drew Sullivan from Richland, Washington.  If one were to compare the music of Slow Dancing Society to anything, it would be our memories & our past. Which is probably why you will experience such a sense of nostalgia & an overall coloring of sentimental values when you listen to the music.

The Dusk Recital are instrumentals recorded during the sessions for Slow Dancing Society's album The Cogent Sea. You'll find cavernous drums, minimal guitar licks, & smooth saxophone lines. This is Drew Sullivan at his most playful, offering us a glimpse into some of the guilty pleasures he acknowledges as influences, while also delivering a deliciously smooth listening experience. 

 

Slow Dancing Society - The Dusk Recital, Hidden Shoal Recordings HSR, 2014.
decryption code in comments

Lemon Crush    
Stone
Wake
Beneath the Din 
At the End of the Bar 
Shadows & Blinds

 

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ

Not a Yankee Doodle Dandy

 

Charles Webster is a British songwriter/producer/DJ has been concoting beats & rhythms for the dancefloor since the mid 80s under names like Presence, Furry Phreaks, Sine, & Love from San Francisco. But for Born on the 24th of July he has created sterling Downtempo music for the post-club experience. Here he recruits the vocal abilities of Del St Joseph, Terra Diva, & Massive Attack vocalist Sara Jay to put lyrics to his dense moody songs,

"Cubic 4", the UK-based design / art direction agency handled the overall art direction / sleeve design. Jon Burgerman, well known for his whimsical, vibrant doodles & pop-art murals was brought on board to create the playful, signature character artwork & paintings on the album packaging.

Charles Webster - Born on the 24th of July, Strata Recordings STA2-32014, 2001.
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Sweet Butterfly featuring Del St Joseph - vocals
Ready featuring Terra Deva - vocals
Be No-One featuring Mark Sheridan - vocals
The Gift of Freedom featuring Lisa Lindley-Jones - vocals
Fox Soup featuring Xan - vocals
Your Life featuring Mark Sheridan & Sarra Jay - vocals
Forget the Past featuring Sara Jay - vocals
I Understand You featuring Del St Joseph - vocals
I'm Falling featuring Del St Joseph - vocals
Put Your Hurt Aside featuring Steve Edwards-vocals

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ

A Message

 

Rafael Arturo Hernandez-García is Tor.ma. I've shared several of his releases as Tor.ma in Dub, his Dub project. This is his more Downtempo stylings under the name Tor.ma.  

When Rafael started producing, he was very influenced by Mexican culture. He adopted the name "Factor Mazorca" (Cob Factor). The Popol Vuh (sacred Mayan book) teaches that the gods made humans from corn, so the factor between Raphael's machines & the music itself was the human factor… the Cob Factor. He soon shotened his moniker to Tor.ma.

Note: Track 6 is a Tor.ma in Dub remix of "One Way" by Loud. Loud is a psychedelic trance producer duo & live act from Haifa, Israel made up of Eitan Reiter & Kobi Toledano who have been producing original Psytrance music since 2006. 

 

Tor.Ma - Inside Universe, Beats & Pieces BNP009, 2012.
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Message of Joy    
These are Not My Ears    
Dreaming Machine    
Changes    
Where are You?    
One Way (Tor.Ma in Dub remix)
Fungi Inside    
Silver String    
Close Your Eyes    
Contemplation    
Because of You

 

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ

Does Gods Play Banana Leaves

Gods of Luxury or G.O.L. was a 1995 music project consisting of vocalist Antonia Reiner, guitarist Justin Jones (And Also the Trees), & mixing / electronic devices Mark Tibenham. 
Sensations of Time was their only full-length until a post-humous compilation, 2026s Bonus Recordings 1995-1996.

The album Sensations of Tone features steady Downtempo groove tracks with a dark, dramatic, but ambient feel, layered upon progressive chillout beats. Synthesizers were used extensively to create a complex, yet airy sound.

The spoken words for "Angelica in Delirium" were taken from the Old Testament's "The Song of Solomon" while the lyrics for "Soma Holiday" were taken from the 1932 Aldous Huxley novel, Brave New World. The version of Art of Noise's "Moments in Love" is simply divine. Recorded at Old Castle Farm, Herefordshire & mixed at King's End Cottage, Powick, Worcestershire. 

 

G.O.L. - Sensations of Tone, China Records WOLCD1065, 1995.
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Soma Holiday
Float
Saline Solution
Moon Chroming
No Bounds
Man Playing Banana Leaf
Moments in Love (Art of Noise cover)
Empirical Measures
Angelica in Delirium

 

 

Enjoy,
NØ