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In 2004 Aphex Twin's Rephlex label released an album by Black Devil called Disco Club, a re-issue of a long lost supposedly "Italo disco" classic from 1978. Given its absurdly modern sound many doubted its authenticity, some even suggesting that it was a collaboration between Richard James and Luke Vibert.

The real story is stranger still. Although credited to Joachim Sherylee and Junior Claristidge and executive producery Jacky Giordano, the album is actually the work of obscure French producer Bernard Fevre, until now known soley for two incredibly rare tracks, the electronic masterpiece "The Strange World of Bernard Fevre" and the even rarer "Earthmessage" (as sampled by The Chemical Brothers on "Got Glint?" from the Surrender album).

Now comes a "new album," so similar in sound and structure to the original album that it's impossible to know if it was created near the time of its predecessor or in the last few years. Mr. Fevre's not divuging when or where it was recorded.

One thing's for sure, you won't hear a more unusual or beguiling electronic dance record this year. Who knows the secret of the Black Devil disco club?

In 2004 Aphex Twin's Rephlex label released an album by Black Devil called Disco Club, a re-issue of a long lost supposedly "Italo disco" classic from 1978. Given its absurdly modern sound many doubted its authenticity, some even suggesting that it was a collaboration between Richard James and Luke Vibert.

The real story is stranger still. Although credited to Joachim Sherylee and Junior Claristidge and executive producery Jacky Giordano, the album is actually the work of obscure French producer Bernard Fevre, until now known soley for two incredibly rare tracks, the electronic masterpiece "The Strange World of Bernard Fevre" and the even rarer "Earthmessage" (as sampled by The Chemical Brothers on "Got Glint?" from the Surrender album).

Now comes a "new album," so similar in sound and structure to the original album that it's impossible to know if it was created near the time of its predecessor or in the last few years. Mr. Fevre's not divuging when or where it was recorded.

One thing's for sure, you won't hear a more unusual or beguiling electronic dance record this year. Who knows the secret of the Black Devil disco club?

30-second MP3 excerpts:

The Devil In Us
On Just Foot
Coach Me
I Regret The Flower Power
Constantly No Respect
An Other Skin

The album pushes the sonic envelope far out into deepest realms of cosmic disco exploration. Elitechnique fresh from their remix for Alden Tyrell and 12" on the mighty Clone label, turn in an absolutely storming euro monster and what's this the vocals are now in French? Suitably bizarre!

> The mighty Prins Thomas stretches the original out into an elastic tripped out space monster.

Brooklyn's finest, the illustrious In Flagranti, turn in a chunky, deep and bumping mix that makes you want to wiggle and grin. NICE NICE NICE!

Quiet Village have been having it away all over the place recently, with incredible mixes for Allez Allez, The Gorillas and Cosmo Vitelli plus their always sold out, impossible to find releases on Whatever We Want. They produce a taut psychological thriller worthy of John Carpenter. This really has to be heard on a big system to be believed.

Black Mustang take you on a twisted Goblin like journey into the darkest recesses of the acid disco brain. Look out for their forthcoming 12" with Kerrier District and Sleeparchive.

And to cap it all Unit 4 aka Jupiter Black/Isolators turn in perhaps their deepest hit yet. A beautiful, brooding slice of 21st century electronics.

A few words about 28 After:

'phenomenal...like Cerrone remixed by Martin Hannett' Other Music

'full-on Euro-disco...genius...irresistible'. --Pitchfork

'Italo house archivists will chew their faces off for a copy of this astounding record' --Dazed & Confused

'six incredible 'new' tracks from Black Devil' --VICE

'beautiful... glitterball decadence' --BBC Collective

'truly strange disco magic' --Uncut

'like Lindstrom and Prins Thomas on very evil acid' --I-D

'sounding GOOD !!!!! --Lindstrom

'fantastic' Prins Thomas

'I love this project' Morgan Geist (Metro Area)

30-second MP3 excerpts:

The Devil In Us (Dub)
On Just Foot (Dub)
Coach Me (Dub)
I Regret The Flower Power (Dub)
Constantly No Respect (Dub)
An Other Skin (Dub)
The Devil In Us (En Francais) With Elitechnique
On Just Foot (Slide Inside) With Prins Thomas
Coach Me (Again And Again) With In Flagranti
I Regret The Flower Power (Fragments Of Fear) With Quiet Village
Constantly No Respect (The Phenomena Of) With Black Mustang
An Other Skin (Days Of Blackula) With Unit 4

The exact significance of the number eight is yet to be revealed, but perhaps one should ask the Chinese: In Chengdu, China, the telephone number 8888-8888 was sold for $270,723, and this year's Beijing Olympics will open on 08/08/08 at 08:08:08 p.m.

In the Jewish Cabbala, eight is the number representing abundance, authority, leadership, cosmic awareness, prosperity, and infinity.

"Seven is heaven, eight is a gate."

Like its predecessors Eight Oh Eight features six tracks, all with the trademark Black Devil sound-- but now even more haunting and bizarre. If the last album was like Giorgio Moroder meets Joy Division, then this one is like Salvador Dali meets Cerrone; surrealistic disco for space cadets. Totally unique, yet disturbingly familiar-- a sinister, psychedelic, analogue throb that moves you like no other.

"Phenomenal... like Cerrone remixed by Martin Hannett." --Other Music

"Full-on Euro-disco ... genius ... irresistible." --Pitchfork

"Italo house archivists will chew their faces off for a copy of this astounding record." --Dazed & Confused

"Six incredible 'new' tracks from Black Devil." --Vice

"Beautiful... glitterball decadence." --BBC Collective

"Truly strange disco magic." --Uncut

"... like Lindstrom and Prins Thomas on very evil acid." --ID

30-second MP3 excerpts:

With Honey Cream
Open the Night
Is Sorrow
Free for the Girls
Never No Dollars
For Hoped

Crafting choir-driven space rock anthems, The Chap embrace melancholic disco, destroy string instruments, and twist abstract electronics into pop songs with lyrics about courage, modesty, sex and asthma! Think Soft Pink Truth cutting up Talking Heads and Kylie on vibes.

Having gigged extensively with the likes of Tom Vek, Erase Errata, Numbers, and Laika, Ham sees the band moving in a more accessible direction; "It's more poppy and easy on the ear than The Horse. Fuck knows what happened!" Shrugs Johannes. "When Ham was finished, we had to admit to ourselves that we really liked it and that in fact we're just a bunch of sad teenyboppers."

From the blissful melancholia of "Auto Where To" to the blistering wall of guitars on "Now Woel" to "Clissold Park" which builds through glitch/guitar soundscapes into euphoric release, it's clear that The Chap are a band that explore sonic experimentation and melody in equal parts. You might think it too good to be true; a band that makes music not only original and highly intelligent, but also supremely accessible and party-incitable, influenced by the most ridiculous in popular culture.

The Chap started when Johannes persuaded Panos and Claire to play live gigs with him for his solo project. They soon developed into a full band, writing all the music together. Keith, the drummer, joined them shortly after. It wasn't long before they attracted the sharply tuned and eclectic ears of Lo Recordings (Cursor Miner, Red Snapper, et al) and this naturally gave birth to a series of releases, culminating in debut album The Horse.

Now, with Ham they present the latest and best installment of their startling musical odyssey. Welcome to an album that is even more catchy, more groovy, even more strange, and just more...

30-second MP3 excerpts:

Baby I'm Hurtin
Woop Woop
Now Woel
Long Distance Lovin'
Woop
Auto Where To
The Premier At Last
Arizona
Arts Centre
I Am Oozing Emotion
Younger People
Clissold Park
Emerson Lake And Palmer

His live shows have been getting serious dancefloor re-action around the globe (particularly in Prague for some reasonOe) and the electro classic 'Sport of Kings' was a hit with everyone from Felix Da Housecat to Mark Moore, Rennie Pilgrem and Andrew Weatherall. The album includes a 20 minute 'miniminermegamix' that gives an idea of his live show, a little like The Prodigy on steroidsOe.

30-second MP3 excerpts:

This Is Electro
Hair Of The Dog
Cursor Miner Feels Good
Exult
Danceflaw
Spassfaktor
Skunk Works
Open The Box
Ain't Talkin About Love
Errors In My Mind
Miniminermegamix (Bonus Track)

30-second MP3 excerpts:

Hair of the Dog
Spassfaktor

30-second MP3 excerpts:

Bert
Carlos
Raymond
Mr Manners

On Magic Waves James Holden continues his journey into the unknown with perhaps his most radical creation yet. "SunSpots" twists an old skool house vibe into a truly fresh take on 21st Century dance music. "Magic Waves" meanwhile explores the wonders of short wave radio and its unearthly emissions. Reminiscent of Isolee's recent redefining of '70s disco, the song is both futuristic and familiar at the same time. Secondo cuts the original into a stuttering collage of unbelievable funkiness that will have even the most dyslexic of disco people singing along to words they can't possibly understand.

30-second MP3 excerpts:

Sun Spots
Velvet Space
Mad As Hell
Secondo Moogs
Moon Milk
Cosmic Rider
Magic Waves
Lava Flow
Star Fungus
Greetings From EU
Fade Away (And Radiate)
Vortex

Compiled by legendary London crate-digger Steve Picton and released in conjunction with the Rich Mix exhibition on display at the Whitechapel Gallery in London from June through September, Back To Black features gems from seminal artists as well as lesser known musicians. Very few of the hand-picked tracks have been re-released since the time of their original production.

Track listing:

1. Andy Bey Celestial Blues
2. Lloyd Williams Is It Because I'm Black
3. Street Gangland Rhythms Band 4 Rhythm
4. Mary Lou Williams It Ain't Necessarily So
5. Cymande The Message
6. The 24-Carat Black Ghetto: Misfortunes Wealth
7. The Lost Generation This Is The Lost Generation
8. Doug Hammond Wake Up Brothers
9. David Lampel USA
10. Street Gangland Rhythms Band 1 Gang Fight
11. Nikki Giovanni Seduction / Kidnap Poem
12. Eugene McDaniels Supermarket Blues
13. Harry Mudie Meets King Tubby Heavy Duty Dub

• Essential collection of lesser-known R'n'B, dub, jazz and funk counter-culture anthems from the radical underground of the '60s and '70s
  
• Beautifully packaged in a striking gold slipcase with solid black CD case

  30-second MP3 excerpts:

  "Celestial Blues" - Andy Bey
  "Is It Because I'm Black" - Lloyd Williams
  "Rhythm" - Street Gangland Rhythms Band 4
  "It Ain't Necessarily So" - Mary Lou Williams
  "The Message" - Cymande
  "Ghetto: Misfortune's Wealth" - The 24-Carat Black
  "This Is The Lost Generation" - The Lost Generation
  "Wake Up Brothers" - Doug Hammond
  "USA (Union Of South Africa)" - David Lampel
  "Gang Fight" - Street Gangland Rhythms Band 1
  "Seduction/Kidnap Poem" - Nikki Giovanni
  "Supermarket Blues" - Eugene McDaniels
  "Heavy Duty Dub" - Harry Mudie meets King Tubby

These tracks have helped define this sound. They're all here-- Morgan Geist's spooky tribute to Black Devil as Jersey Devil Social Club; Black Devil themselves with a fantastic remix of In Flagranti's "Nonplusultra"; Swedish sensations Studio with the stoned immaculate krautrock-inspired "Life's a Beach"; Cornwall's answer to Metro Area; Kerrier District a.k.a. Luke Vibert in league with Black Mustang dealing out the deadly dub vibrations; San Francisco-based Sorcerer with his mystic cosmic sound; and Padded Cell's steaming punkfunk disco.

From the deep atmospherics of Quiet Village to the Balearic vibes of the Idjut Boys' epic rework of The Emperor Machine's "Front Man," the New York strut of Daniel Wang, or the easy listening, almost post-rock sound of Lindstrom, ample is the evidence why this is the most happening sound around.

Milky Disco features exclusive tracks from Lindstrom (under his Six Cups Of Rebel alias), Sally Shapiro, Quiet Village, Kerrier District, and Black Mustang, along with rare tracks previously released on vinyl only, making this the quintessential cosmic disco compendium.

30-second MP3 excerpts:

"All Flowers Must Fade" - Daniel Wang
"Konkorde Lafayette" - Padded Cell
"Electric Bird" - Georges Vert
"Spacer Woman From Mars (Featuring Sally Shapiro)" - Johan Agebj^rn
"Nonplusultra (Black Devil Remix)" - In Flagranti
"Child 13" - Jersey Devil Social Club
"Front Man (Idjut Boys Girthius Maximus Mix)" - The Emperor Machine
"Mad As Hell (Dub)" - Black Mustang/Kerrier District
"Desperate Hours" - Quite Village
"Life's A Beach" - A Studio
"Surfing At Midnight" - Sorcerer
"Dubbe Ditten" - Lindstr'm & Prins Thomas

30-second MP3 excerpts:

Intro
Schwing
Analog Generique
Dream 106
FrEere Jacques
Jjplvdnb
Ye Olde Beatbox
Vision For The Future
Messy Hop
White Knight (Black In The Day)
You Moog Me
Outro

30-second MP3 excerpts:

Intro
Schwing
Analog Generique
Dream 106
FrEere Jacques
Jjplvdnb
Ye Olde Beatbox
Vision For The Future
Messy Hop
White Knight (Black In The Day)
You Moog Me
Outro

The album's deceptively simple title conceals a devilishly complex and ambitious feat: an absolutely unique trawl through the Lo back catalogue which spans its dizzying breadth to create a delightfully intriguing aural collage.

The first CD features mostly vocal tracks beginning with The Chap's beguiling "Auto Where To," Toob's "Here Enuff" and Yokota's own "Your Shining Darkness." The disc also features tracks from Europa 51, Cursor Miner, Alexandroid, Luke Vibert, King Of Woolworths, Red Snapper, Theodore, Motohiro Nakashima and Rothko.

The second CD focuses on Lo's more uptempo, electronic output starting with a previously unreleased mix of "Lock Don" by Georges Vert. We also get tracks from Four Tet, Jackson, Jean-Jacques Perrey, Mr G, Pier Bucci, and Milky Globe, plus several unreleased tracks from Yokota himself.

The long Zen-like titles seem to indicate that whatever the musical terrain, at the core of Yokota's music lies a deep and profound sense of purpose and focus.

"Yet another work of deep, phantasmagoric magic... Yokota proceeds to provoke and astound in equal measure... from sublime ambient textures to polyrhythmic, poly-ethnic hybrids. Refined, delicate and endlessly intriguing, this one of Yokota's most engaging projects for a long while." --Clash Magazine

30-second MP3 excerpts:

For The Other Self Who Is Far Away That I Can Not Reach
A Slowly Fainting Memory Of Love And Respect And Hatred
The Lonelines Of Anarchic Beauty Achieved By My Ego
A Heart-Warming And Beautiful Flower Will Eventually Wither Away Become Dirt
The Sin Of Almighty God, Respected And Believed By The Masses
That Persons Hearsay Protects My Free Spirit
The Things That I Need To Do For Just One's Love
The Scream Of A Sage Who Lost Freedom And Love Taken For Granted Before
A Song Produced While Floating Alone On Christmas Day
The Now Forgotten Gods Of Rocky Mountain Residing In The Back Of The North Woods
The Sacred Ceremony Conceived By Chance Frim An Evil Lie
The Destiny If The Little Bird Trapped Inside A Small Cage For Life

Yokota's fanbase is broad; his admirers include Thom Yorke, Philip Glass, Brian Eno, and Bjork. His music was recently featured in the Denzel Washington film Deja Vu. Career highlights include a live appearance with Philip Glass in Sydney. Also well known in Europe for his house music releases on Harthouse, Sublime, and Exceptional, Yokota is highly regarded in Japan as a visual artist.

This album precedes the new Yokota album, Love Or Die, which contains even more moments of ambient melody.

"Sublime." --The Times

"Evocative and beguiling." --Alternative Press

"Spine-tinglingly beautiful." --Wax

"Beauty incarnate." --7

"Superlative." --Mojo

30-second MP3 excerpts:

Kodomotachi (Sakura)
Amanogawa (Images 1983-1988)
Card Nation (Grinning Cat)
Illusion River (Will)
Live Echo (The Boy And The Tree)
Purple Rose Minuet (Symbol)
Sentiero (Distant Sounds Of Summer)
Saku (Sakura)
Kawano Hotorino Kinoshitade (Images 1983-1998)
King Dragonfly (Grinning Cat)
Iconic Air (Laputa)
Holy Ground (Wonder Waltz)
A Heart Warming And Beautiful Flower Will Eventually Wither Away And Become Dirt (Love Or Die)
Hagoromo (Sakura)

Featuring the incredible voice of avant garde composer/vocalist Meredith Monk, Symbol includes pieces by Debussy, Mahler, Ravel, Tchaikovsky and even Beethoven, interwoven with synth washes and electronic filigree, reimagined in the fecund imagination of Yokota. No one else would have even attempted such a daring task and only Yokota could have succeeded. This is a truly stunning work.

• New album from Japan's leading electronic composer
  
• Features legendary vocalist, composer and filmaker Meredith Monk
  
• For fans of Ruichi Sakamoto, Robert Wyatt and Nobukazu Takemura
  
• "This is the sort of music you put on while you're doing the washing up only to find it has taken control of your very soul." -- Ben Thompson, Mojo

  30-second MP3 excerpts:

  Long Long Silk Bridge
  Purple Rose Minuet
  Traveler In The Wonderland
  Song Of The Sleeping Forest
  The Plateau Which The Zephyr Of Flora Occupies
  Fairy Dance Of Twinkle And Shadow
  Flaming Love And Destiny
  The Dying Black Swan
  Blue Sky And Yellow Sunflower
  Capriccio And The Innovative Composer
  Capriccio And The Innovative Composer
  Capriccio And The Innovative Composer
  Capriccio And The Innovative Composer

If this were a film it would be directed by Ingmar Bergman or Ang Lee-- The Seventh Seal meets Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon-- a phantasmagoria of unusual sounds, textures, spectral voices and deep beats. From these disparate elements Yokota creates a deep web of sound that encompasses everything from dub, folk, techno, gamelan, guitar raga, classical and avant garde.

• Elegant and experimental --BBC Collective
  
• Evocative and beguiling --Alternative Press
  
• On a different spiritual plane --NME
  
• Fantastic sounds to immerse yourself in --DJ
  
• A masterpiece --Phosphor
  
• Sublime --The Times

  30-second MP3 excerpts:

  1000 Wing Beats Per Second
  My Energy
  Capital Of Daisy
  Siva Dance
  Pegasus 150
  Don't Go Sleep
  Merrygoround
  Robed Heart
  Strma A Uzka
  Eternity Is The Beginning Of The End
  L'etranger
  Rainbow Dust
  Your Shining Darkness
  Holy Ground

The resonant echoes of twanging tones resemble a deep-sea Ry Cooder soundtrack, while Rossis pure and fragile vocal tones add a classic English folk touch. At times, the broken beats and world music ambience fuse to form a supernatural kind of funk like Mad Libis most space-bound moments. Yokotais masterful production guides the music into a tangible whole that is wholly enveloping, a startling and wonderful new world of sound.

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