Resavoir & Matt Gold team up for collaborative album, Horizon

08 April 2025

Photo: Tim Nagle

Exciting news from two of the most exciting musicians out there: Will Miller, the trumpeter, composer, and producer behind Resavoir, who’s worked with SZA, Whitney, Chance The Rapper, and many more, joins forces with multi-instrumentalist and guitarist Matt Gold, known for his work with Makaya McCraven, Greg Ward, Marquis Hill, and Jamila Woods, amongst many others. The two longtime friends teamed up for Horizon, their debut collaborative album set for release on May 23rd through International Anthem. Sprouted from their shared love of ‘60s and ‘70s Brazilian music, particularly their appreciation for the works of guitarist Luis Bonfá and songwriter Milton Nascimento, the pair crafted a sprawling body of work, using nylon string guitar as the base of their collaborative sessions. “Musically, we’re always trying to capture a fleeting moment of infinite expanse, feeling the vastness of things while knowing they’ll always change,” says Gold. “This record keeps the light reflecting on the water just a little longer — our collaborative process running through the backbone of these songs and rippling out in so many beautiful directions.”

Alongside the album announcement, Resavoir and Gold have shared the album’s opener, ‘Canopy’, as the first single. Glowing with serene beauty, ‘Canopy’ is also the first track they composed together. Take a listen now.

Maurice Louca teases forthcoming new album, Barĩy (Fera) برٌِي, with first single ‘El Taalab الثعلب’

08 April 2025

We’re over the moon to know that endlessly talented and adventurous composer, multi-instrumentalist and producer Maurice Louca is back with a new album, Barĩy (Fera) برٌِي, set for release on May 30th through Simsara Records. The album’s title originates from the Latin root for “feral”, encapsulating the untamed essence that permeates the compositions. The album features hypnotic polyrhythms at its core, which serve as the foundation for a sound rich in acoustic tonality and vibrant energy. Louca’s use of custom-made microtonal guitars allows for nuanced phrasings that weave through violin, synthesizer, and other instruments to create moments of striking beauty.​ As always, his work is a blend of careful composition and spontaneous collaboration, and this album is no different.

The inception of Fera traces back to a solo performance Louca developed back in 2019. Over a four-year period, the compositions evolved, culminating in recording sessions at a Cairo studio in 2024. Louca reunited with longtime collaborators and invited guest artists, including violinist Ayman Asfour, percussionist and drummer Khaled Yassine, double bassist Rosa Brunello, and co-producer Adham Zidan. Multi-instrumentalist Nancy Mounir and oud virtuoso Hazem Shaheen also contribute to a couple of tracks.

The first taste of Fera comes in the form of the single ‘El Taalab الثعلب’, which features performances by Asfour, Yassine, Mounir, and Brunello. Louca composed, arranged, and produced the piece, with co-production and mixing by Adham Zidan. Utterly gorgeous, radiant and engrossing, ‘El Taalab الثعلب’ leaves us eagerly awaiting the release of Fera.

Azmari to release new EP, In Oculis, in May; listen to first single ‘Disassembling the Matrix’

04 April 2025

There’s exciting news from Azmari who have announced their upcoming EP, In Oculis, set for release on May 9 through Sdban Ultra. In In Oculis, Azmari meld “genres that range from powerful grooves to cinematic jazz, from floating melodies to entrancing soundscapes,” reflecting their desire to reinvent themselves with new influences and experimentation and a more minimalistic approach. The Belgian outfit enlisted the help of French multi-instrumentalist Guillaume Souffrice (Mosso Mosso), a longtime collaborator who had already been Azmari’s guitarist in their initial lineup.

Alongside the EP news, Azmari unveiled today the first single, ‘Disassembling the Matrix’. Groovy, menacing and hypnotic, the track originated from a jam session where an arpeggiator loop malfunctioned, leading the band to explore its potential. This experimentation resulted in a 9/4 melodic loop that serves as the song’s backbone. Of the track, the band says:

“’Disassembling the Matrix’ is about the confrontation between man and machine. The loop of the arpeggiator and daf instrument guide us through the track in a powerful and elusive march.”

Listen to ‘Disassembling the Matrix’ now.

Tropos share new single from upcoming album, Switches

03 April 2025

Photo: Tarishi Gupta

Brooklyn-based composer-improviser collective Tropos have announced the release of a new full-length album titled Switches. A nine-track anthology, Switches saw Phillip Golub (piano), Ledah Finck (violin), Yuma Uesaka (clarinets), and Aaron Edgcomb (drums/percussion), who make up the collective, embrace a true collaborative approach to composition, with all members bringing in ideas. Tropos crafted the album over the course of more than a year, with mentoring from Darius Jones, before hitting the road to test ideas on a DIY tour across the East Coast, Canada, and the Midwest. As the press release describes, the album “captures the sparks that fly when four distinct voices toggle between individual visions and shared intuition”.

Switches will see the light of day on June 27th through Endectomorph Music and the band shared today ‘The Best Donuts in Pennsylvania’, a playful and wild track composed by violinist Ledah Finck. Speaking about it, the band says:

“Everyone’s trying to tell you what’s best. Sometimes, you choose to believe them. You find the best donut shop, and you go back day after day until you’ve tried each kind. Your palate is bursting with different flavors, a saturated explosion of sweetness. The sugar high is intense in “The Best Donuts in Pennsylvania.” Its obsessive opening figures give way to a revelation that the ensemble is not just a many-limbed single-brained creature but in fact several children playing a game of chance or chicken and sometimes throwing tantrums.”

Listen to ‘The Best Donuts in Pennsylvania’ below.

Listen to Stubbleman’s new single ‘In the Company of Oaks’

01 April 2025

After three decades shaping the pop music landscape, British composer and producer Pascal Gabriel birthed his Stubbleman project in 2019, turning his attention back to his electronic and experimental roots. Following the release of Mountains and Plains, Stubbleman is gearing up to release a new album. Entitled 1:46:43 – The Ventoux Trilogy, the album is an exploration of the legendary Mont Ventoux cycling ascent, which he has transformed into a unique auditory experience. To bring the album to life, Stubbleman used real-time ride data – heart rate, speed, power, and cadence – to guide modular synth sequences, weaving together field recordings, rhythms, and melodies. Spanning 18 tracks across three movements, The Ventoux Trilogy reflects the changing landscapes of the mountain, with each piece evolving in response to the physical and emotional challenges of the climb. More than just a cycling journey, the upcoming album is a reflection on the human experience itself.

Ahead of the album’s release in June through Crammed Discs, Stubbleman has shared ‘In the Company of Oaks’, which opens the second movement, and as the press release describes, “marks the transition into a dense, towering forest, where the unyielding grey tarmac pitches sharply upward, winding through a cathedral of ancient oaks whose vaulted canopy casts dappled shadows across the road”. Mirroring the strain of the ascent, “each breath grows heavier, each movement more deliberate, as the solitude of the climb sets in”. Listen to ‘In the Company of Oaks’ below.


Bella Wakame announce self-titled debut album and share lead single ‘Shades of Nambei’

29 March 2025

Photo: Andreas Staebler

After debuting their single ‘Toutpartout PT2’ two years ago, Bella Wakame are gearing up to release their first proper studio album. Andi Haberl and Florian Zimmer, the pair behind the project, have distilled the energy and improvisational spirit of a 2024 live recording (captured in Berlin at Donau115 and Silent Green) into their debut self-titled debut album. The record explores the unpredictable and exhilarating interplay between Haberl’s sensory percussion and Zimmer’s modular synthesizer. Reveling in their musical freedom, the pair have created a sound that is both frenzied and freeing, fresh and untamed, setting it apart from their work with other projects like The Notwist, SUN, Saroos, and Driftmachine. Drawing inspiration from acts like Bitchin Bajas, Jeremiah Chiu, and Groupshow (Jelinek, Leichtmann, Pekler), the ten tracks on Bella Wakame’s upcoming album move “restlessly between motorik club, electro-acoustic jazz experiments, ambient excursions, and fast-paced instrumental anthems that seem to explode at the seams”, as the press release describes.

Ahead of the album’s release on May 30th through Umor Rex, Bella Wakame are giving us a taste of what’s to come with their first single, ‘Shades of Nambei’. The single is offered with an accompanying video made by Daniel Castrejón and Florian Zimmer and you can watch it below.