The Artless Cuckoo Germany Schallplatten & CDs

Review: Artless Cuckoo has coaxed a second release out of Ghia here and it's another stunning following the highlight collectable and sold out first offering. This one delves into Ghia's past and presents a super limited 7" with two unreleased recordings from 1985: At The Hilton. The group was made up of Lutz Boberg and Frank Simon and they later joined with singer Lisa Ohm and these tunes are taken from an old archive of tapes. They are brilliantly delicate and unassuming, with lo-fi drum machines, wispy chords and deep celestial pads all taking you on a gentle cosmic jazz trip.

Review: Some superb musical archaeology here, as The Artless Cuckoo presents an album of rediscovered 1980s recordings from obscure German outfit Ghia, including a smattering that the trio made whilst living in Spain between 1986 and '88. Some of the tracks were reportedly recorded using a porta-studio style four-track, but you'd never be able to tell thanks to the fine mastering job. Musically, it's an undeniable sun-soaked affair that brilliantly blurs the boundaries between horizontal electrofunk, instrumental Balearic synthpop, Mediterranean jazz-funk, Afro-cosmic and more energetic, dancefloor-focused flavours. It's the sort of thing that Nu Genea would rightfully be praised for releasing, except it was recorded 'back in the day' rather than earlier this year. Terrific stuff!

Review: Not to be confused with the UK electrofunk act of the same name, Imagination was an obscure German jazz-rock band from Dusseldorf who recorded a series of rather good records in the late 1970s. Arguably their most celebrated release was debut album Shake It, a set that has now been given the 40th anniversary reissue treatment courtesy of the dusty-fingered diggers at The Artless Cuckoo. It's a fine collection of cuts all told, with highlights including the Steely Dan style AOR funk of 'Strawberry Whine', the similarly sunny, subtly disco-influenced 'California', the cosmic, flute-laden goodness of 'Can't Stand Without You' and the blue-eyed soul bliss of 'Clouds Free Before The Wind'. Throw in a trio of unheard demo recordings and you have an essential reissue of a long-overlooked album.