I wrote this after reading The Incredible Human Journey by Alice Roberts. We've come a long way over the last 100,000 years!

Evaporation

The Next Ones

The second EP from Soma’s 20th Birthday series is a landmark release. Soma’s 300th, comes from Silicone Soul, with an almighty set of remixes of their ‘Right On, Right On’ classic, including Nick Curly, Ramon Tapia, Fergie, Darren Emerson and M.A.N.D.Y.’s 2002 remix. Hatikvah have also submitted a beautifully deep rework of the Silicone Soul original, which will be an exclusive on the Soma 20 Anniversary box set, released in September.

Released by: soma 
Release/catalogue number: Soma300D 
Release date: Apr 4, 2011 

Right On, Right On

Silicone Soul - Right On, Right On

A collection of songs about the vastness of space, smallness of rabbits, and the difficulty of being a human…
Written after many walks in Verulam park, home to a lot of rabbits

Mouseworks

Easter Bunny

'Four Loom Weaver' is a traditional English song about skilled Lancashire cotton weavers who each operated four power-looms in a mill. But in the 1860s there was a crisis in the industry caused, in part, by the American Civil War and its disruption of American cotton exports (the cotton was produced by enslaved people in the South). So while the song focuses on the situation of workers in north-west Britain, it also touches on the plight of others across the Atlantic.

Four Loom Weaver

Buy/Stream ‘Enter’: anjunadeep.co/enter.pbt
Listen to Anjunadeep New Releases: anjunadeep.co/newreleases.pbt
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Release Date: 5th April 2024

Following the release of singles ‘LMK’, ‘Holding On’ and ‘Hot Night’, LA-based DJ and producer Durante releases his debut album ‘Enter’ on Anjunadeep. 

Hailing from a small Italian village outside of Florence, Durante (aka Kevin Durante) began his musical journey in 2006. Drawn to the sweet spots where house and techno genres intersect, Durante’s versatile sound has seen him release with Anjunadeep, Armada, W&O Street Records, and Amtrac’s imprint Openers. Esteemed artists including Bonobo, RÜFÜS DU SOL, and Joris Voorn have praised Durante’s work, and he has collaborated with the likes of Diplo & Aluna on ‘Forget About Me’ and Amtrac on ‘Gather’, as well as remixing Cassian, Booka Shade, TWO LANES and more. 

Now, 18 years after his musical journey started, Durante finally shares his debut album ‘Enter’ on Anjunadeep. Inspired by the concept of portals and multiple dimensions, ‘Enter’ showcases his eclectic sound that has developed from Kevin’s diverse pool of musical influences, featuring Duke Ellington, classic Italo-disco, and early Cocoon records. 

“I’ve spent the past three years working on this album; it marks the beginning of many great endeavours in my life. It’s a coming-of-age story, but it’s also a reflection of the world around us. I’m happy to be able to share my emotions through music because the words escape me. Hopefully, you can find solace in the sound. Open your eyes, enter the portal to the sixth dimension.” - Durante 

Across 13 compelling tracks, Durante explores themes of self-discovery, acceptance, and love. The album features collaborations with Montréal-based producer and live act CRi, American vocalist Nathan Nicholson, Australian singer-songwriter Running Touch, Californian songstress and producer HANA, and London-based vocalist SOHN. 

With singles including ‘LMK’ and ‘Remedy’ released in the lead up to the album release, Durante has gained support on BBC Radio 1, SiriusXM Chill and SiriusXM BPM, as well as from key tastemakers including Pete Tong, MEDUZA, Joris Voorn and John Digweed. The album has amassed over 2.5m streams to date and gained praise from DJ Mag Italy and Forbes Magazine. 

Durante kicked off his album tour in January in the USA, playing in cities including New York, Los Angeles, and Seattle and at the Anjunadeep label showcase event at the esteemed London venue, the Roundhouse. 

‘Enter' is out now on Anjunadeep.

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Buy/Stream

Durante - Ancora

HIT ME HARD AND SOFT

SKINNY

Buy / Stream Album: https://lnk.to/wsmsettlers

Follow WSM on Bandcamp: http://westernskiesmotel.bandcamp.com
 
'Settlers' is the new album from Western Skies Motel in a limited edition of 170 gatefold 180gram vinyl, CD and digital formats.  'Settlers' was mastered for vinyl and digital by Taylor Deupree, with master lacquers cut by Roger Siebel at SAE.  The first 50 Vinyl & CD's ordered come with a bonus EP, 'Generations' mastered by Kirk Marrison of Kiln.

In the dry desert of Arizona that Lost Tribe Sound calls home, a letter is received from guitarist René Gonzàlez Schelbeck who’s eager to share a collection of intimately composed songs, titled 'Settlers'. Upon listening, we are immediately enthralled. There’s a timeworn, arid, and almost badlands quality to Schelbeck’s hypnotic, cyclical guitar style. It seems to perfectly capture the lonely, barren landscape of the American West. 

Yet, there are curious dynamics at play here as Schelbeck, who makes music under the alias Western Skies Motel, is from Denmark and far removed from any upbringing in the rough-hewn Americana style of folk guitar. Conceivably, his music has more in common with the lonesome, calculated tone of Berlin's modern classical scene or the rainy day folk of the UK. Those are intriguing parallels, since the collective mood of Western Skies Motel's music would adapt so well to either environment. 

Words hardly do justice to the rich, immersive experience of 'Settlers'; yet a few may help to set the stage. Schelbeck is a remarkably well rounded instrumentalist, who spent his early days losing his hearing in local punk rock bands. This youthful love for walls of sound and discordant guitar squalls survives in his modern sound palette. However, a more mature approach to these techniques brings moments of palpable tension, adding in uneasy waves of guitar feedback and droning harmonium. 

But ultimately, the truth of what Schelbeck hopes to convey through his music may rest rmly in his subconscious. In hindsight, 'Settlers' is about moving between worlds: not in the dimensional sense, but more as a constant change in form. Each influence and sound Schelbeck incorporates into his music feels native to the delicate ecosystem of these songs and each turn feels as organic and nuanced as that of the natural world. Just as a tree’s leaves wither and fall; a fire sparks and expands only to expend its last bit of fuel, extinguished and left for ash. So true are the parallels we find in our own existence, the complex ritual of growing old and returning to dirt. Decay is inevitable for all life, yet through this it becomes the rich soil for all things proceeding. Western Skies Motel's weighty instrumental mantras may root in this and other meanings yet to be culled. One thing is clear, this music contains signicant power, and, regardless of our conceived themes or geographic locations, it tells a story that is lasting and instantly familiar. 

'Settlers' sees a 180-gram heavy weight gatefold release very similar to the recent Mute Forest debut, 'Deforestation'. The acetate and test pressings were scrutinized for anomalies on world-class vinyl setups at Arizona’s esteemed audio dealer, Arizona Hi-Fi.

Western Skies Motel is building upon a busy year in 2015, having released two very different full-length albums 'Prism' (Preserved Sound) and 'Buried and Resurrected' (Twice Removed).

Settlers

Whirl

Buy Album

Western Skies Motel - Whirl (from Settlers)

www.lisa-morgenstern.com
produced by Sebstian Plano
mastered by Martyn Heyne
photo by Miguel Murrieta Vásquez

published for Crowdfunding on Startnext 2016
for the upcoming album 'Chameleon'

Levitation [feat. Sebastian Plano]

Jóhann Jóhannsson - Odi Et Amo featuring Iskra String Quartet (Brussels, April 2009)

Track taken from Christoph Berg's upcoming album 'Paraphrases'... 

Christoph Berg - Interlude

Southern Sun / Ready Steady Go

Southern Sun (DJ Tiësto Remix)

I love the process of making music, whether with a band (many years ago) or just on my own today with modern technology. All comments welcome.

Easter Bunny

Charlie Large

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