Back catalogue: Classical

Review: The seventh in this series of 7" singles is by Bristol and Avon's Kinlaw and Franco Franco and it is a rare mix of sounds with R&B, Italian rap and twisted basslines all defining the tracks. 'Crocs On The Plough' is industrial and experimental in its production - earth-shattering bass, police sirens, and soot-black synths, but background chords bring light as the vocals are delivered with guttural rawness. On the flip, the OSVMVSM version slows things right down to a crawl and the distorted synths and crunchy textures take on even more otherworld character.

Review: Originally conceived to accompany an installation at the 2022 Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop, Selkie Reflections is very much a thing of beauty, and a work in two parts. On the A-side, you have Alliyah Enyo re-working the original tape loops used at the show into a strange, enchanting, and immersive series of hypnotic and occasionally haunting vocal calls. Flip to side B, and Florian T M Zeisig, under the alias Angel R, takes all that and turns it inside out, onto its head, and down into the depths of the selkie's world - a mythical creature capable of shapeshifting between seal and human form which features heavily in Scottish folklore. Beguiling and enchanting, prepare to be submerged in a place of beauty, bliss and mystery.

Review: Holuzam reissues Toze Ferreira's groundbreaking 1988 sound art LP Musica de Baixa Fidelidade long after it has been heralded as a pivotal release in Portugal's experimental music scene. It was created during Ferreira's time at the Institute of Sonology and plays with musique concrete, noise and abstract sound across masterful compositions like 'More Adult Music' and 'This Is Music, As It Was Expected.' With elements of piano, bells, and processed voices, it creates a tactile, immersive experience that challenges conventional music structures. This first-ever vinyl reissue includes the original artwork and a new insert with remastering done by Taylor Deupree. Ferreira's blend of technical skill and emotional depth is mesmerising here.

Review: Renowned composer Simon Fisher Turner's new album Instability of the Signal comes on limited edition black vinyl with extensive sleeve notes. It was produced with Francine Perry and across 13 tracks it delves into sound exploration inspired by Breda Beban, Hrvoje Horvatic, and poet Harold Pinter, whose works appear on the record. The artist integrates four elements: slivers, sounds, strings, and Singing where 'slivers" are brief audio snippets from Salford Electronics reimagined into track foundations. The album also features string arrangements by the Elysian Collective and overall the record reflects Fisher Turner's rich career as it blends experience with introspective soundscapes and personal expression.

Review: It's not always easy to keep up with the output of the relentlessly prolific Flaty, a core tenet of Moscow's Gost Zvuk as well as pursuing his own endeavours. From hard-edged experimentalism and dub-scuffed glitch to oddball ambient and wayward techno, he's a truly original spirit, and his new album continues that trend with yet another dimension to his sound. Intuitive Word is imbued with a strong pop and RnB slant which bleeds into the sample sources and the strong sense of melody, but still this remains a leftfield, compelling release for those with an experimental appetite. Quite how Flaty has squared off these contrasting forces is hard to express, but take a listen to 'Intension' with its tripped out beat and synth arrays shot through with vocal licks and you begin to get the picture. It's dope as hell and oh so sweet on top, like nothing else out there right now.

Review: Back in 2005 we might not have predicted what a phenomenon Ghost Box would become. In the years since, the label has become a beacon for the hauntological exploration of Britain's inherent oddness creeping just below the surface. Julian House's graphic design is a huge part of the label's artistic merit, and it figures his music as The Focus Group follows a similarly aesthetically rigorous direction. There's a pastoral collage quality to Hey Let Loose Your Love which takes you right back to the 70s, with beautiful musical passages offset by surrealist samples and unexpected diversions into the recent history of these wyrd isles.

Review: Produced at EMS Stockholm on Buchla 200 synthesisers before being mastered down the road in Malmo, Quasai is Francesco Fonassi's first LP based around the Quasi project, and goes well beyond what you might call Traditional Album Territory. Hence the live show this is based around being far more than a gig, inviting audiences into increasingly entangled arrangements that seem to grow and develop, set down roots and respawn like some evolutionary modular array. On record, the complexity of what's here isn't really lost, albeit we'd have a hard job arguing that home listening compares to in person performance. Nevertheless, you'll quickly find yourself immersed in this strange, cerebral place where the music itself seems to take inspiration from blinking control panels, glittering data, plucked strings, and drip-drop percussion.

Review: Wherever You Are is the sonic result, expressed through solo piano, of a bright burst of introspection experienced at home by John Foxx of Ultravox fame. Made up of compositions he created in the quiet hours following a rare performance at Kings Place, London, during the BBC Radio 3 Night Tracks event in October 2023, the majority of Wherever You Are was recorded at home, with Foxx noting that the matutinal hours are the best for minimising self-criticism, and letting creative freedom flow. Morning, on Foxx's watch, is the ideal time to play: and in stark contrast to his oblique solo LP Metamatic, Foxx's latest is a mono-instrumental monument to personal tranquility and contentment. It reiterates the importance of quietude and temperance as crucial start-points for navigating the complex world we face today.

Review: Unheard Of Hope - one prominent tine of the holy trinity / label supergroup known as TAR/MM/UOH - specialises is that all-too-rare subsection of music, the avant-garde. Theirs is a seedier aesthetic, preferring the more traditional, yet grimmer and demurer ends of this hotly contestable musical "approach", and perhaps emblematic of this is the latest record by Guatemalan cellist and vocalist, Mabe Fratti. Out on every format - tape, CD, vinyl - Sentir que no sabes ("feel like you don't know") hears Fratti's crystalline vocals glint like life-giving liquids, and sound too to effuse from the same fruitful source as its watershed cello lows and occasional blossomy arp-pop structures (ballad 'Pantalla azul' is by far the poppiest moment). The evident confidence brought to the record lends it an element of surprise, too, when we discover that it is entirely thematically rooted in doubt. In the words of the artist, this is a record born of the "moment when you feel you don't know anything and you are soft like jello and any fork can go through you." When one finds strength in permeability, one embraces what is normally registered as a pure antagonism, and all seemingly rigid particulars are changed for ever.

Review: Bill Frisell's Orchestras, a collaboration with composer-arranger Michael Gibbs, showcases the transformative power of jazz when paired with symphonic ensembles. The album combines Frisell's trio with the Brussels Philharmonic and the Umbria Jazz Orchestra, resulting in a dynamic interplay between jazz intimacy and orchestral grandeur. Gibbs' masterful orchestrations, inspired by Gil Evans and cinematic scores, seamlessly enhance the trio's telepathic rapport. Frisell's signature shimmering sound blends effortlessly with strings and brass, creating a rich and expressive tapestry. Notably, the collaboration highlights the deep connection between Frisell and Gibbs, a legendary innovator in jazz arranging. Gibbs' intuitive writing draws out the trio's spontaneity and pushes them into uncharted territory. Frisell and Gibbs' mutual admiration and influence create a palpable energy throughout the album, showcasing the transformative power of collaboration.

Review: Limpe Fuchs is most known for being something of a percussive genius. Here though she surprises in all the right ways with a trip into her classical roots and a pair of tracks played on the piano. Though her musical journey has been vast, recorded piano performances have been rare. Yet, on this 45rpm, she defies both time and anticipation, delving deep into the piano's soul. With rhythmic finesse honed as a percussionist, each keystroke bears her unmistakable imprint. Join Fuchs on this captivating late exploration of the piano world and you will be savouring every note of a distinct and unfiltered artistic encounter.

Review: Legend has it that around 1997, The Future Sound of London decided to make an album that combined the electronic and broken trance-inducing acid the outfit were already renowned for, and progressive rock. As work continued, a decision was made to go full psyche rock, and the result was The Isness by The Amorphous Androgynous. Had the original idea come to fruition, the hybrid sounds therein might be similar to Life In Moments. Originally released in 2015, this record is one of those very special instances in which you're presented with something that genuinely sounds new. Of course, there's plenty owed, too, with moments definitely nodding to the likes of Sabres of Paradise, slow mo dark room chug and other leftfield dance. On the whole, though, the combination of late night jazz, otherworldly electronica, tripped-out space rock, ambient and movie-esque scores is pretty incomparable.