Exclusively for you today, we are pleased to premiere the Rebecca Vasmant Vibration Mix of “Anansi” by Bristol six-piece Dundundun, a sublime melting pot of celestial jazz, Afro Latin rhythms, electronic grooves and uplifting vocals.

Vasmant’s remix is taken from Dundundun’s debut self-titled EP, forthcoming on Worm Discs, the label-arm of lynchpin Bristol promoters & Glastonbury curators Worm Disco Club. An equal love of African and Latin rhythms, alongside jazz and electronic music is evident across the EP’s original tracks, “Anansi” and the synth-bass-meets-Afrobeat Sun Ra version, “Dun In Outer Space”, released earlier this year.

Dundundun’s members have played with the likes of The Heavy, Alice Russell, Pete Josef, DJ Die and Dele Sosimi, providing ample experience across genres, ancient to future, to create adventurous new shapes full of thunderous bass, crowd-calling beats, electric synths and dirty horn riffs.

Renowned Glaswegian selector and Worldwide FM resident Rebecca Vasmant puts a cosmic and soulful spin on “Anansi”, inviting award winning vocalist, kitti, AKU’s Harry Weir on bass clarinet and saxophone solo, and the harpist Amanda Whiting, member of Matthew Halsall’s Gondwana Orchestra, with her own eagerly awaited album imminent on Jazzman Records, to sprinkle ample amounts of their own magic to proceedings. 

Jackson Lapes, member of both Dundundun and Worm Discs, tells us “we’d been following Rebecca for ages but then finally met at We Out Here 2019 and struck up a really good friendship. We’ve been up to Glasgow a few times to hang out and she was the obvious choice for us to invite to record this remix. There’s a proper Bristol-Glasgow connection going on right now so it feels like a real family thing!”.

For Rebecca the love was mutual. “After meeting The Worm Disco guys at We Out Here last summer, and becoming friends, musical family is so valued especially in times like these, and the guys are absolutely one of the lights in life that have happened since last year. It made absolute sense to team up on this, with our small city Glasgow-Bristol connection keeping us tight. I look forward to many more collaborations to come, and am super excited for what is to come.”

Bristolian promoters Worm Disco Club have been championing South-Western talent since their inception in 2014. Having collaborated with Glastonbury Festival on their notorious ‘Wormhole’ stage and hosted the likes of The Comet Is Coming, The Heliocentrics and The Mauskovic Dance Band at their regular club night, their name has become synonymous with quality groove laden goodness, percussive madness, jazz, psych and beyond.

In one of the world’s sadly most aging-male dominated scenes, Rebecca Vasment has helped to rejuvenate the jazz world, from Glasgow to London and beyond and introduced countless fans to the freedom principles of jazz, whilst becoming the biggest champion of Glasgow’s homegrown jazz talent. You can catch Rebecca every month on Worldwide FM, and listen back to her shows online.

Also on the EP, you'll find Ishamel Ensemble's dark, fast paced and deeply textured reworking of ‘Dun In Outer Space’. All in all making this an essential and exciting EP. Released on March 19th on vinyl and digital.

DunDunDun 12" (Worm Discs)

Pre-Order

Dundundun "Anansi" (Rebecca Vasmant Vibration Mix) [Forthcoming on Worm Discs]

LATO A - Jessica Duncan (prod. PAd) - Do You Wanna Get Close

Buy / Stream it here: https://orcd.co/firewathm

Are you ready to be swept away by Alina Bzhezhinska & HipHarpCollective’s iconic rendition of Fire?

BBE Music presents the remixed version off the critically acclaimed Jazz album ‘Reflections’, crafted by the award-winning Harv-inder Singh also known as DJ Harv alongside his partner in studio Sub One of We Are The Horsemen fame.

Mastered with love by Grammy award nominated The Carvery Studios, this infectious house-themed version of Joe Henderson and Alice Coltrane's classic track will take you on a journey of musical discovery. Immerse yourself in Alina and We Are The Horsemen's reimagining of Fire today! Bzhezhinska's music is a unique blend of classical, jazz, and avant- garde influences, and she has been praised for her expressive and intricate playing. She has appeared at major festivals and venues across Europe, the US, and Japan, as well as an iconic performance at Maida Vale Studios for BBC Sounds. Her music is both ambitious and accessible, and she is a passionate advocate for the harp's potential as a modern instrument. This remix of Fire transforms this much loved Jazz classic into a dancefloor filler, worthy of a place in any worthwhile DJ’s pen drive. DJ Harv (We Are The Horsemen) is an award-winning London-based DJ and producer. He has been producing and DJing for over 20 years, and has established himself as one of the most respected and innovative DJs on the UK music scene. His blend of styles and sounds, from house to hip-hop, Jazz to Afro Latino, His Outernational Sounds & Record Label have made him one of the most sought after DJs. He has performed at some of the biggest festivals and clubs around the world and has released a number of successful records. His music has been featured on BBC Radio 1, 6 Music and has been supported by artists like Skream, Annie Mac, Gilles Peterson and many more. He is an active member of the underground music scene and continues to push boundaries with his unique and forward thinking approach to music.

This collaboration is definitely one to savor for all occasions, a wonderful reimagination of Alice Coltrane and Joe Henderson’s iconic track.

Alina Bzhezhinska - Fire (We Are The Horsemen Remix)

Over the course of a 19-year career, Marshall Watson has released all manner of musical treats for a similarly wide array of labels, yet it’s the effortless beauty of his downtempo works – and particularly his ambient and Balearic excursions – that have often left a lasting impression.

It certainly caught the attention of NuNorthern Soul founder Phil Cooper, who brought the West Coast producer to the label in the summer of 2021. That EP, Sunsets on Larkin Parts 1 & 2, was undeniably special. The same can be said about his belated return to the label, Foothills, an EP packed to the rafters with slow-burn melodies, sustained chords, becalmed textures and gently unwinding grooves.

Watson’s distinctive take on Balearic naturally comes to the fore on EP opener ‘High Desert’, a soft-focus delight where languid electric guitars, starry electric piano lines, echoing chords and gently pulsing electronics stretch out across a shuffling groove. While tailor-made for watching the sun set off his beloved Pacific Coast – and over the Mediterranean Sea – ‘High Desert’ offers a dose of hazy sonic sunshine that can brighten up even the greyest of days.

Fittingly, the accompanying remix comes from long-time friends of the label Seahawks, whose textured, layered and atmospheric productions similarly blur boundaries between Balearic, ambient, pitched-down dancefloor grooves and glassy-eyed psychedelia. Employing opaque, shape-shifting pads, effects-laden guitars, subtle spoken word snippets and yearning, almost melancholic chords – all atop a crunchy, head-nodding beat and toasty bassline – the duo deliver a remix that’s as emotive and sonically stunning as Watson’s original mix.

The EP’s three other tracks amply demonstrate the subtle variety within Watson’s downtempo output. Vocalist Julie Childe makes her mark on ‘Sweet Sounds’, a brilliant blend of warming deep house and laidback Balearic nu-disco that sports subtle hints to his work as one half of synthwave duo Causeway, while ‘Open Sky’ brilliantly wraps undulating TB-303 acid lines and echoing Spanish guitars around a hypnotic, locked-in dancefloor groove. 

Then there’s ‘The Landscape’, a deliciously saucer-eyed slab of breakbeat-powered, TB-303-sporting genius that evokes the immersive, early morning waviness of the ambient house era, the beach party psychedelia of San Francisco’s free party movement, and the bleeping wonder of turn-of-the-90s UK dance music. Like the rest of the EP, it’s an enveloping, head-soothing and mind-expanding treat.

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The Landscape SAMPLER

Buy/Stream the album here: https://orcd.co/onceagainchildren

Gather together beneath the sun as we journey through the rhythmic sands of time, Paul Hillery, an esteemed collector and vinyl hunter, presents his follow-up to the highly acclaimed ‘We Are The Children Of The Sun‘. Andrew Male of MOJO Magazine calls the album “One of the most emotionally uplifting and hazily beautiful compilations of recent years.”

“Once Again We Are The Children Of The Sun” is a shimmering collection of rare finds, reminding us that we have more to connect us than to divide us. The music encompasses a broad range of sounds, starting in Cajun country with Will & James Ragar, their handmade acoustic guitars allowing for soaring vocals. Along with many of the tracks featured on this compilation, “As the Day Grows Tired” is reissued on vinyl for the first time.

Experience the previously unreleased cover of “Milk and Honey” featuring Kat Barnard and Greg Foat, a versatile mainstay of the UK jazz scene. Discover the first-ever vinyl release of “Kayenta Crossing” by William Eaton Ensemble, capturing the austere presence of Monument Valley. Immerse yourself in Wendy Grace’s jazz-folk masterpiece “More Than Hope” and the acoustic ambience of “Golden Hour” by Aria Rostami.

Paul Hillery and BBE present a compilation of styles and genres, fusing together to make private press wants accessible as a springboard for further listening pleasures. “Once Again We Are the Children of the Sun” is an eclectic selection mixing styles, year and tempo, painstakingly gathered and presented with a great deal of love.

Wendy Grace - More Than Hope

Cunningham Corner - Free And Easy

The popularity of Brazilian music from the 60s, 70s and 80s has experienced quite the renaissance; artists such as Gal Costa, Gilberto Gil, Arthur Verocai, Joyce et al, have become household names to an international audience passionate about global sounds. However, even for die-hard fans and collectors of Brazilian music of the past, discovering contemporary Brazilian artists is not always easy, nor accessible. But, if you know where to look, you will see that there is a resurgence well underway that can be epitomised by an exciting new wave of Brazilian artists beginning to break through and gather momentum overseas. It’s with thanks to Sound and Colours, a website devoted to promoting Latin American music and culture, that we can help shine a light on one particular collective, bursting with creativity and camaraderie.

‘Hidden Waters: Strange and Sublime Sounds of Rio de Janeiro’ is compiled by Joe Osborne (founder of specialist Brazilian music platform Brazilian Wax) and Russ Slater (editor at large of Sounds and Colours). Focusing solely on the 'Rio Scene', rather than taking on the mammoth task of tackling Brazil as a whole, this collection presents 20-plus ground-breaking artists selected from Rio’s resurgent music scene. By presenting a snapshot into the pulse of the city and the vibrant musicians that live in it, ‘Hidden Waters’ collates tracks from a wide spectrum of musical genres from the avant-garde edge to bossa nova, samba, Candomblé, lo-fi rock, jazz and funk.

‘Hidden Waters’ showcases musicians such as iconic Rio mainstays Negro Leo & Ava Rocha, Brazilian jazz upstart Antônio Neves, critically lauded Avant-pop trailblazer Thiago Nassif, breakthrough artists Ana Frango Elétrico and Letrux, lo-fi psych rocker Lê Almeida, plus the Latin Grammy-winning Bala Desejo who are set to explode onto the world stage. 

The music featured on ‘Hidden Waters’ is unequivocally Brazilian, swelling with samba, bossa nova, funk, and jazz. But it’s within the album's blend; from sunny psychedelia to dusky synth-pop via experimental electronics, that marks the compilation as the sound of modern, multicultural Rio. Fans of Brazil’s fertile 60s and 70s will spot the antecedents in Tropicália. Not only in the experimentation but also through the similar political context: back in the late 60s there was Brazil’s military dictatorship, and up until the end of 2022 it was Bolsonaro’s censorious premiership. Here are a group of musicians writing and reflecting on another colourful chapter within Brazil’s musical history.

This comprehensive compilation comes with album artwork designed by Rio music’s leading album artwork designer, Caio Paiva. It features essays by professor and music critic Bernardo Oliveira and music journalist Leonardo Lichote, plus extensive notes on each track by the artists themselves.

Pedro Fonte – Clichê

formentera cave session
https://jupitertuningcenter.bandcamp.com/album/keywax-crush

done it again

Buy / Save it here: https://orcd.co/animabreathe

Anima, the opening number from harpist Alina Bzhezhinska and saxophonist Tony Kofi's collaborative musical journey, Altera Vita, is a captivating ode to life’s very essence, breath. Intrinsically entwined with our existence, ‘Anima’ – Latin for soul – finds its symbiotic relationship with breath, deeply rooted in mythic lore. Ancient civilizations believed it to be the gods who 'breathe', or bestow the Ka - a life force or soul - onto an individual, marking the beginning of their existence.

Anima serves as a perfect entry point into the expansive universe of ‘Altera Vita’. The composition begins with a harp intro that guides the listener into a serene ‘other world’ where Kofi’s saxophone and Bzhezhinska’s harp engage in an intimate dance echoing stories of existence, questioning and responding to each other’s musical cues. The interspersing cadences achieve a resounding echo of life's rhythm, adding layers of atmospheric depth and a hint of percussive texture, creating a rich tapestry of sound.

The spotlight, quite deservedly, falls on the razor-sharp precision and controlled mastery of Kofi’s saxophone performance. It inhabits a central space in this ethereal ensemble as it intricately weaves through the narrative of the track. The saxophone's voice, both poignant and assertive, offers a compelling focus that harmoniously fuses with the exotic and beguiling strands of Bzhezhinska’s harp.

Together, they envelop the listener in an aural spectacle spanning five minutes, designed to cleanse senses and uplift spirits. It captures the transient quality of breath – the raw, unadulterated phenomena that fuels the existence of every living entity. Anima, in essence, transcends the ordinary and celebrates the profound connection between breath and Anima (soul).

Alina Bzhezhinska & Tony Kofi - Anima - Breathe

An unreleased remix/response by Eugene Tambourine, engineered by Darshan Jersani. August/September 2019.

Rock Your Baby by Emerson Kitamura (Unreleased 2019 North Satellite Response)

Aerials live, dials tuned, Transmission Towers broadcasting. On either side of the river Mersey, transcendental communications are traded back and forth. Two late-night revellers, one firing messages filled with music, the other returning them laced with lyrics. The result, a dopamine hit of oddball machine soul, melded with a highlife, Afrofuturist touch. Wonky and murky yet deeply emotional, Transmission One, is a debut album that also marks the first release on Luke Una’s É Soul Cultura label, encompassing expertly the off-kilter atmosphere the label sets to orbit. 

A synthesised landscape with a Northern charm, Transmission Towers marry the musical worlds of two artists that last collaborated over a decade ago. 10 years have passed, lives have been led, but a gravitational pull has placed Mark Kyriacou and Eleanor Mante back in each other’s spheres on opposite sides of the city of Liverpool. Energised with a newfound desire to strip it all back to the sounds that influenced their formative years in the late ‘80s and ‘90s - astral travelling, intoxicated on Motor City techno, Black Dog IDM and mystical Sun Ra. 
 
Mark half Irish, half Greek Cypriot, Eleanor half Nigerian, half Ghanian, the music contained within is an alchemy of those roots and the pivotal acts that buried deep into their minds. A cosmic contrast, part machine-made, part distinctly human. Take the opener ‘UP’, an ESG-channelling, sci-fi punk beatdown or the polychromatic hyperspace anthem ‘Roller Skater 23’. 
 
Transportive throughout, you ride the solar waves, pace and emotion ebbing and flowing. Tracks like ‘Go Slow Heart’ and ‘Cosmic Trigger’ step to a slower beat but hit with a punch. The former, a slo-mo blast of celestial tenderness, the latter an otherworldly, chugged-out lunar excursion, micro-dosing on whacked-out Wah Wah and Eleanor’s ethereal vocals. Beaming love letters to space and back, ‘Sparse’ marries the organic with the artificial, pianos and percussion circling around synth pads and broadcasting bleeps.
 
Elsewhere, vibrations move faster. ‘Mega’ strikes, fusing sonic tribalism with psychedelic swirls, as ‘Everything’ sweeps you up in its extra-terrestrial new wave grip. Synth stabs and basslines fizzing from every angle.  
 
Demos of Transmission Towers music surfaced on Luke Una’s radar, making him stop in his tracks. Something magical was emerging, perfectly aligned with the E Soul guardian’s tastes. Guidance followed, quickly turning into conversations about Transmission One becoming the first release on Luke’s own label. 
 
Escapist and futurist yet grounded and relatable. Transmission One is synthesis meets sentiment with a deep, spine-tingling soul at its core.

Transmission Towers - Everything

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Founded in 1996 by Peter Adarkwah, Barely Breaking Even (BBE Music) started life as a London club night, taking its name from the eponymous Disco record by the Universal Robot Band.

The label grew from the vibrant early 90's club scene with its first release, Stop & Listen compiled by Dr Bob Jones in 1996, opening the door to iconic series' such as All Back To Mine & Late Nite Tales.

A tonne of releases followed, ranging from Disco to Funk, Jazz to House. In the year 2000, the label celebrated Masters at Work's 10th Anniversary with a mighty box set that featured near 80 tracks.

A year later BBE Music spawned the Beat Generation Series of artist albums, notably introducing J Dilla (Welcome 2 Detroit) & a young Will.I.Am's first solo outing, alongside DJ Jazzy Jeff, Madlib & DJ Spinna, all of whom contributed to this seminal set of long players.

A quarter of a century and well over 500 titles later, having worked with Mark Ronson, Roy Ayers, Questlove, Hugh Masekela, DJ Premier, Dimitri from Paris, Joey Negro, Kon, RZA, Laurent Garnier, Black Coffee, DJ Shadow, David Rodigan and John Morales among many others, BBE Music looks to the future, celebrating its rich heritage while continuing to release a bounty of fresh titles.

The label’s most recent projects include an expansive reissue series from pioneering Nigerian label Tabansi, new imprint ‘Batakari’ in association with Boddhi Satva and the critically acclaimed ‘J Jazz’ Japanese Jazz multi-album project, not to mention the recent landmark 500th label release: a brand new version of 'Barely Breaking Even', featuring Leroy Burgess, Patrick Adams and Louie Vega.

In 2021 BBE Music is celebrating its 25th anniversary. To mark this milestone, the label is offering up some special projects, from the 20th Anniversary edition of J Dilla’s ‘Welcome 2 Detroit’, through David Bowie tribute album ‘Modern Love’, to a special new ‘Worldwide’ compilation from old friend Gilles Peterson. BBE Music will also be looking to the future with more exciting original artist projects, plus merch collaborations events and more...

Wendy Grace - More Than Hope

BBE Music

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