Back catalogue: Experimental/Electronic

Review: Swiss imprint WRWTFWW continues to do deep dives into the forgotten corners of electronic music history, returning with shining sonic pearls of genuine historic significance. Here they deliver a first ever vinyl pressing of early Japanese electronic music producer (and bona fide experimental hero) Yashio Ojima's 1983 album Club, a set that was originally only released on an exceptionally limited cassette. Given its vintage, the album has held up incredibly well, in part because its unique, unearthly blend of minimalist electro, music concrete-inspired loop experiments, off-kilter ambient soundscapes and picturesque, post new-age soundscapes remains as far-sighted and unusual in 2024 as it did 41 years ago.

Review: OKRAA's La Gran Corriente represents a significant creative turning point for Colombian-born Juan Carlos Torres Alonso. Released via A Strangely Isolated Place, the album follows a transformative experience Juan had in Bogota in May 2023. It was there that he encountered what he describes as "an infinite current behind or inside of everything," a revelation that completely changed his approach to music. Scrapping earlier demos, Juan embraced a more fluid and organic style, abandoning fixed grids and BPMs, and tapping into the spontaneous energy that characterised his other production alias, Laudrup. The result is a hypnotic journey through time and space, as the album's non-linear structures give way to unexpected yet cohesive sonic moments. 'La Gran Corriente' features "happy accidents" throughout, subtle production quirks that contribute to its distinct sound. Central to the project is a poem written by Juan, weaving reflections on time and reality into the fabric of the music. Lines like "the land of oblivion is not real" and "time is an illusion" form the backbone of the album's philosophical undercurrent. The album's release is paired with artwork by Peter Skwiot Smith, with the 2xLP available on limited edition coloured vinyl, fully mastered by Taylor Deupree.

Review: For the first time on vinyl, through Karl Records, comes a limited edition and furtive Yoko Ono retrospective, in conjunction with the over-100-strong, Sweden-headquartered ensemble and community network The Great Learning Orchestra. These unlikely recordings were made at the time of the musician and performance artist Ono's 1964 multimedia collection Grapefruit, a cornerstone of what would later become known as "conceptual art". Grapefruit itself is a large artist's book, with a large vellum spine and browned parchment paper; it contains a series of "event scores" that outline, rather than permit the performances of, many different performance art pieces. The effect is apocryphal and ominous, as though the real performance of these instructive works may have accursed or deleterious effects. "Like a musical score, Event Scores can be realized by artists other than the original creator and are open to variation and interpretation"; and yet, Ono's book is a one of one, having never been reproduced or thus made collectable. Pre-dating John Cage by about a decade, the "event scores" described therein have now been performed by The Great Learning Orchestra, where hardly any of the performances / pieces have ever been captured sonically or laid to disc. This record changes all that, realising Ono's bewildering text instructions as tremulous suites, made up of clattering material hits and harrowing string instrumental assaults.

Review: Orboretum: The Orb Collection is a comprehensive 2xCD set curated by Dr Alex Paterson, showcasing the evolution of The Orb's sound across three decades. This collection not only revisits classic tracks from their pioneering days but also highlights recent gems from Abolition Of The Royal Familia (2020) and Prism (2023), acclaimed as some of their finest work. This "director's cut" reimagines The Orb's extensive catalog, juxtaposing tracks from different eras to reveal a continuous thread in their music. Known for their ambient house and psychedelic influences, The Orb's work has consistently pushed boundaries, from their groundbreaking 1991 debut album to their latest releases. This collection serves as both a tribute to their past and a celebration of their ongoing innovation in electronic music.