Buy/stream: https://kompakt.fm/releases/agartha_lp_dl

‘Where is Agartha? What is the specific region in which it lies? Along what road, through what civilizations, must one walk in order to reach it?.’ Saint-Yves d’Alveydre in 1886

Agartha, the debut full-length album by Japanese producer Wata Igarashi, is a mysterious, divine thing. Named for the mythical secret kingdom, understood as a complex maze of underground tunnels, perhaps designed by Martians who colonised the Earth tens of thousands of years ago, it’s a similarly mystical, perhaps even cosmic trip – but this time, exploring an inner, deeply personal cosmos. Beautifully detailed and bustling with rich incident, it takes Igarashi’s music to new places, which still retaining his unique sonic imprimatur; in this respect, it’s perfectly at home with Kompakt, a label that’s always encouraged artists to make the visionary music they need to create, to take risks and make sideways steps into uncharted territory.

An eloquent producer and DJ, Igarashi has been releasing techno for eleven years now, appearing on such imprints as The Bunker NY, Delsin, Midgar, and Time To Express; he has also self-released his productions via his WIP net label. Throughout, Igarashi has consistently explored his unique approach to techno and electronic music, one that’s eloquent and poised, even when it shifts into more psychedelic terrain; he’s a master at balancing the sensual and the functional, and he has an unerring ear for the right texture, the right tone, at the right time. He brings all of this into Agartha, his most thorough-going expression of self to date.

For Agartha, Igarashi had a strong concept he wanted to explore. Visualising specific scenes from an imaginary film based on the titular secret kingdom, he created soundtracks for those scenes, spending time during the pandemic in his studio, working away carefully at the ten tracks here. Given his background in creating music for television and advertisements, Igarashi is well-placed to explore the marriage of the sonic and the visual in such intimate ways, but freed from commercial concerns, he let his imagination run riot. He also drew on a rich palette of musical influences – techno is in there, of course, but you can also hear the smoky, improvised jazz of the likes of Miles Davis (to whom the album’s title is an indirect nod), and the minimalism and systems music of Steve Reich.

The latter is particularly pronounced on the gorgeous, beatless drift of “Floating Against Time”, where an arpeggiated sequence lingers, lovingly, around your ears for nine blissful minutes, coasting across swooning drones and waves of ambient noise. “Ceremony Of The Dead”, originally composed as part of a Sony 360 Reality Audio spatial sound concert, is a deep pass into systems composition, with various patterns overlaid and interlocking, before a wordless vocal rises from the depths, a gorgeous counterpoint to the swarming textures that gather across the track. On the other hand, tracks like “Burning” and “Subterranean Life” nudge toward Fourth World territory, painting deluxe dreamscapes of uncertain provenance; the title cut is an abstract drift-world, Igarashi painting an alien tableau dotted by shape-shifting creatures.

Agartha’s conceptual framework means that everything on the album sits perfectly together; listening to it in one sitting is a dizzying, lush experience. Its imaginings of inner landscapes recall, in some respects, the nautical, aqueous mythologies of the Drexciyan universe, though from different perspectives. But the result is Igarashi’s own creation, a deluxe, enchanting trip through the visionary Agartha of this unique producer’s cinematic mind’s-eye.

Agartha

Wata Igarashi - Floating Against Time

Pub - Summer

Embracing Midgar's story-tale approach, 'Da Nao Tian Gong' (also known as 'Havoc in Heaven') stands as Polygonia's latest four-track EP. Lindsey Wang draws direct influence from a beloved childhood cartoon, itself inspired by the ancient Chinese legend 'Journey to the West' and the iconic character Sun Wukong. In a retro-modern twist, the tracks vividly depict Sun Wukong's essence: 'Jindou Yun' embodies the swiftness of his cloud, 'Shen Wai Shenfa' invokes his magical hair with tribal rhythms, 'Ruyi Jingu Bang' mirrors his legendary staff's power, and 'Disha Shu' portrays his 72 Transformations through vibrant harmonics.

Polygonia - Da Nao Tian Gong EP
Release Date : End of January 2024
Mastering by Neel at Enisslab
Pressing by AFG Manufacturing
Artwork by Severja - J.Severitano

Da Nao Tian Gong

Buy 12"

Polygonia - Jin Dou Yun

A1 from i'd love to fly
releases may 30

pre-order
https://nthng.bandcamp.com/album/id-love-to-fly

music by nthng
picture by Karina Rovira
mastered by Isabel @ OLO Mastering
pressed at RAND MUZIK
distributed by Inchbyinch

I'd Love To Fly

And On

Uplifting bells intertwine with a warm groove in Tangerine’s inspiring closer. Unfolding over a blissful 7 minutes her world building textures awaken the senses connecting the mind, body and soul. Radiating comfort and a subtle sense of euphoria, The Shape of Leaves is one for after hours bliss.

BUY: https://kinesisrecordings.bandcamp.com/track/the-shape-of-leaves-2

Written and Produced by Clementine Girard-Foley @tangerine_tangerine
Mixed by Eugene Pascale
Artwork & Design by Siri Farup (Aarhus, Denmark)
Mastered by Corey Kikos (Naarm (Melbourne), Australia)

Tangerine - The Shape of Leaves [KINES01]

Immerse yourself in the pristine atmosphere of a clean space station with this meditative lofi track. Gentle hums of artificial gravity and crystal-clear communication signals blend seamlessly, creating a comfortable and technologically advanced soundscape perfect for focused work or deep relaxation. Experience the calm of orbital living and technological consciousness.

Phobos Transit

ATA-003

light

My track on 'Patina Echoes', the new compilation on Timedance.

Big thanks to Batu for putting this all together, and to all the other artists - such a great collection of music!

Horus

Vanity Press 014 B2

juno:
https://www.juno.co.uk/products/davis-galvin-ep/715900-01/
redeye:
https://www.redeyerecords.co.uk/vinyl/104938-

available in some US shops now

Waterbody

Sepehr - Hallucination Express

Konduku - Şeker Ep

A1 - Şekersin    4:59
A2 - Şeker 5     5:49
A3 - Şekerli     5:28
B1 - Şeker 7     5:33
B2 - Şeker       5:39

2-sided 12” dark black stereo vinyl wrapped in paintings by Sophie Schmidt! 
Also very nice music by Konduku!!

DISK20
Released: 10/10/2020

distributed by Honest Jon's
https://disk.bandcamp.com/album/konduku-eker-ep

Konduku - Şeker Ep

DISK20: Konduku - Sekersin

Label, booking agency & online record shop

Demo submission: 
We receive a lot of demos every day. Please understand that we are unable to listen to everything. Send your private soundcloud link to: label@kompakt.fm.