One of the coolest collections of underground Thai rock we've seen – and it certainly is The Heavier Sound Of the Luk Thung Underground – including a uniquely Thai vision flavored with a Black Sabbath riff, psych makeovers of Thai folklore, and a bunch great tunes that meld Bangkok life with western garage and psychedelia masterfully! All of the tunes are heavy in their own way, but it's by no means heavy in a simple hard rock way – loads of impassioned vocals, astounding percussion, tripped out guitar and other strings and woozy organ keep the arrangements exciting, and the otherworldly aspects play nice with accessible melodies. Titles include "Kuen Kuen Lueng Leung" (the aforementioned heady take on Sabbath's "Iron Man"), "Ruk Kun Samong" by Plearn Promdan, "Pai Joi" by Rung Petchburi, "Nam Mun Pang" by Sroeng Santi, "Dub Fai Kui Gun" by Sroeng Santi and more. 14 massive slabs of heavy Thai psych in all! LP, Vinyl record album

A set from the late 90s, but one that's got a very timeless vibe – as it features spare duets on kora between these two legendary players – coming together in a way that's completely magical, and fresh enough to earn the "new ancient" in the title! There's a sense of warmth to the proceedings right from the start – an improvising sympathy that seems borrowed from jazz, although there's nothing jazz-like at all in this music – and the production uses just the right touch of echo to bring out the resonant qualities of the instruments, but never seeks to commercialize the proceedings at all. Titles include "Salaman", "Bi Lamban", "Kita Kaira", "Korobali", "Yamfa", "Cheikhna Demba", and "Bafoulabe". LP, Vinyl record album

Maybe the third great Philly studio group of the 70s – after MFSB and Salsoul Orchestra – a killer combo who provided backing grooves to plenty of great club tracks over the years – and who step out strongly here on their own debut album! Bunny Sigler helps give the album a sharp focus – with his own production and songwriting in play – in modes that are very much like his own best club tracks of the time – but the group is more than great enough on their own – with a funky edge that definitely lives up to their name, and a groove that's even sharper than the two aforementioned contemporary combos. Lead vocals are by James Carmichael, who's totally great – and titles include "Don't You Wanna Party", "Never Let It Go Away", "I Got My Mind Made Up", "Dark Vader", "Wide World Of Sports", and "You Say You Want Me To Stay". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

Anthrax's I'm The Man EP may be dumb fun, but it's high-minded dumb fun, and done with geniune love for classic rap. . .gutsy stuff from these true godfathers of thrash metal, from a time when their peers took themselves way too freaking seriously. Well, either gutsy, or maybe they just didn't give a s**t, which makes it all the more amusing. Punchy riffs, an obvious take on Billy Squier's "Big Beat" in the drums, and their knowingly goofy attempts at Beastie Boys-style comic rap. If rap metal began and ended right here we'd be better off, but we won't blame Anthrax for all the bad stuff to come! Includes "I'm The Man (Censored Radio Version)", "I'm The Man (DEF Uncensored Version)" – plus live versions Anthrax staples "Caught In A Mosh", "I Am The Law" and "I'm The Man". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the funkiest albums ever from Gilberto Gil – a set that beautifully mixes rootsy elements with tighter funk arrangements – in a style that's not unlike some of the 70s samba soul experiments from Jorge Ben! The record borrows heavily from American funk and soul of the time, and takes Gil's tight songwriting and infuses it with an even catchier edge than ever before – really creating a fantastic groove that seems to illuminate Gilberto's lyrics even more than before – with a sense of personality and joy that really comes through, even beyond the barriers of language! The whole thing's wonderful – tight, but never overproduced – and very individual, despite an influence from American soul music. Titles include "Rafavela", "Aqui E Agora", "Ile Aye", "Baba Alapala", "Era Nova", "Samba Do Aviao", and "Balafon". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

Double-length brilliance from the mighty Sahib Shihab – a set that collects a number of killer 60s sessions with members of the Clarke Boland Big Band – all of them great! The small combo work here is amazing – hard-hitting modal jazz that matches, if not tops the best MPS/Saba sounds of the time – all produced to perfection with a really sharp edge, and a cutting approach to jazz that's gone onto inspired countless others in the current scene – including artists on Schema and Ricky-Tick Records, as well as most Japanese club jazz combos! But long before any of those cats started copping his groove, Sahib Shihab had it all totally together – a great ear for his own amazing solos on baritone and flute, and a way of hooking up with players like Francy Boland on piano, Fats Sadi on vibes, Benny Bailey on trumpet, Jimmy Woode on bass, and Kenny Clarke on drums. All players here were Shihab's partners in the Clarke Boland Big Band, and they use these small combo sessions to explore some great new ideas – stripped-down groovers that are heavy on rhythm, and really allow full expression from all the players involved. Titles include "Companionship", "Om Mani Padme Hum", "Bohemia After Dark", "Serenata", "Yah Yah Blues", "Balafon", "Talk Some Yak-ee Dak", "The Turk's Bolero", "CT + CB", "Jay Jay", "Stoned Ghosts", "Just Give Me Time", and "Dijdar". LP, Vinyl record album

Stories from another time and place – and music that's almost without comparison, either – as the set brings together material recorded by Angolan guitarist Mario Rui Silva, a musician whose range of expression stretches far past his West African roots! There's a heck of a lot going on here – definitely plenty of the acoustic guitar pictured on the cover, but often used with sensitivity that's more Brazilian than you'd expect – and interspersed with tracks that have other instrumentation in the lead, including balafon – sometimes spare instrumentals, sometimes vocal numbers – mostly acoustic, but with a few electric elements from time to time. The music has both a complexity and really organic mixing of modes – maybe a bit like some of the global experiments that you might have found on the Crammed label at the time, but also very unique to Mario himself too. Titles include "Ngisumba", "Mgeni", "Kazum Zum Zum", "Maniku", "Lembranca De Um Veho", "Depois De Uma Conversa", "Kabanza K'Etu", and "Dembita". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the coolest collections of underground Thai rock we've seen – and it certainly is The Heavier Sound Of the Luk Thung Underground – including a uniquely Thai vision flavored with a Black Sabbath riff, psych makeovers of Thai folklore, and a bunch great tunes that meld Bangkok life with western garage and psychedelia masterfully! All of the tunes are heavy in their own way, but it's by no means heavy in a simple hard rock way – loads of impassioned vocals, astounding percussion, tripped out guitar and other strings and woozy organ keep the arrangements exciting, and the otherworldly aspects play nice with accessible melodies. Titles include "Kuen Kuen Lueng Leung" (the aforementioned heady take on Sabbath's "Iron Man"), "Ruk Kun Samong" by Plearn Promdan, "Pai Joi" by Rung Petchburi, "Nam Mun Pang" by Sroeng Santi, "Dub Fai Kui Gun" by Sroeng Santi and more. 14 massive slabs of heavy Thai psych in all! LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

The beautiful full scale duets set from Peabo Bryson and Roberta Flack – a record that's no doubt defined by it's biggest hit – but the rest is just as great! Born To Love kicks off with "Tonight I Celebrate My Love For You" – a song that's doubtlessly one of the most inescapable slow dance classics ever – and if its ubiquity overshadows the rest of the record, that's not because it's any less excellent! Peabo's affectionate style is in top form here, and Roberta is such a perfect duet partner – with plenty of lead moments of her own. It definitely feels like a perfectly balanced partnership. The record's got some lovely slow jams on par with the aforementioned pop soul standard, plus some great ones that up the tempo a little bit. Other titles include "Blame It On Me", "Born To Love", "Heaven Above Me", "Comin' Alive", "Can We Find Love Again", "You're Looking Like Love To Me" and more. LP, Vinyl record album

Beautiful spare electronics, art rock, and even a little bit of avant funk from the Cluster team of Rodelius & Moebius! Grosses Wasser is an underrated effort from a combo that's been consistently underappreciated – one of the non-Eno collaborations, and showing that Cluster is a formidable artistic force with and without the aforementioned genius. Most tracks start out on the spare tip and slowly build in mood – utilizing electronics and ambient atmosphere. It has some dark touches, but is playful at times, too, and this is a vital piece of the Cluster puzzle. featuring the tracks "Avanti", "Prothese", "Isodea", "Manchmal", and "Grosses Wasser". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

A Shaolin hip hop essential! Heavy numerological rhymes, and the some of the best production on any Wu project ever. One of our absolute favorite albums in the classic Wu pantheon – indisputably one of the very best – one of the very few that plays with hard solidity from start to finish. The way GZA's lowkey, unfazable flow delivers this sharp, gritty storytelling over prime RZA production – seriously, it is real Genius! Includes "Labels", "Cold World", "Shadowboxin", "Liquid Swords", "Living In The World Today", "Killah Hills 10304", "Investigative Reports", "Gold", "Duel Of The Iron Mic", "4th Chamber", "Hell's Wind Staff", "Unexplained", "Swordsman" and "I Gotcha Back". LP, Vinyl record album

A completely wonderful album from Haruomi Hosono – a real watershed not just in his own career, but in the development of mainstream Japanese music too! The set's got the sophistication of the best of the singer/songwriter underground in the US – not just in the lyrical presentation, which you might not be able to understand – but also in terms of the overall production, arrangements, and instrumentation – which seem to echo some of the hippest currents of that LA underground that often found its greatest flowering in those under-sold albums on Warner Brothers during the late 60s. Hosono's vocals are wonderful – completely charming, even if you can't grasp the language – and the album's a much-treasured set from the Japanese 70s scene. LP, Vinyl record album

With Andreas Skar Winther on drums and Bjorn Marius Hegge on double bass. LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

Double-length brilliance from the mighty Sahib Shihab – a set that collects a number of killer 60s sessions with members of the Clarke Boland Big Band – all of them great! The small combo work here is amazing – hard-hitting modal jazz that matches, if not tops the best MPS/Saba sounds of the time – all produced to perfection with a really sharp edge, and a cutting approach to jazz that's gone onto inspired countless others in the current scene – including artists on Schema and Ricky-Tick Records, as well as most Japanese club jazz combos! But long before any of those cats started copping his groove, Sahib Shihab had it all totally together – a great ear for his own amazing solos on baritone and flute, and a way of hooking up with players like Francy Boland on piano, Fats Sadi on vibes, Benny Bailey on trumpet, Jimmy Woode on bass, and Kenny Clarke on drums. All players here were Shihab's partners in the Clarke Boland Big Band, and they use these small combo sessions to explore some great new ideas – stripped-down groovers that are heavy on rhythm, and really allow full expression from all the players involved. Titles include "Companionship", "Om Mani Padme Hum", "Bohemia After Dark", "Serenata", "Yah Yah Blues", "Balafon", "Talk Some Yak-ee Dak", "The Turk's Bolero", "CT + CB", "Jay Jay", "Stoned Ghosts", "Just Give Me Time", and "Dijdar". LP, Vinyl record album

An organ trio, nice and spare – with the sort of style that always seems to make the Hammond sound great in funk! The group have a lean approach – funky drums, guitar, and organ – and there's no vocals or other elements in the mix – yet the rhythms also change up nicely from standard soul jazz modes too – so that there might be some grooves that are slightly different than you might hear in a Meters-inspired group, mixed with some of the chunkier funk cuts that still hold the whole thing tightly in place! The production is great too – never too clean, but with a few spacious moments that keep things fresh – on titles that include "Outro Lugar", "More Space", "Dr Kiffi", "Not Yet", "Let's Talk", "One Way", "Sector 3", and "Lost Avenue". LP, Vinyl record album

A nice update of older Ghanian modes – as Isaac Birituro mixes his beautiful work on the balafon with some more contemporary rhythms and vocals – all at a level that's nicely different from other recent work in an Afro Funk mode! The woody sounds of the core instrument make for a nice balance with the shifting array of male and female vocals – and even when rhythms are more driving, they're never too forced or beat-heavy – which also keeps the record away from some of the overproduced work of the Afro-remix scene. Titles include "Senye", "Ta Soo Maa Yele", "Dondomo", "Doniyan", "Bawa", "Sivukile", "Kontomo", and "Told You So". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

Funky genius from the mighty K Frimpong – an album recorded in Germany in the mid 80s – but a set that cooks like some of the best West African funk from the decade before! The sound is lean and mean, and there's plenty of grit in the grooves – a lot more bass and funky drums than some of the softer highlife of the period – with percussion that kicks in fantastically right at the start, and never lets up! The vocals are great too – and it's almost like Frimpong is working like some James Brown-styled leader – really coming up with the goods right from the start, and urging his ensemble onto non-stop grooving on the album's four long tracks. Titles include "Abrabo", "Abusuafo", "Enaa", and "Susu Dwa W'Ananum". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the greatest heavy metal albums of all time – a pioneering blast of mid 80s thrash from Metallica at an early peak! Say what you will about Metallica's later career triumphs and failures, there's no overstating how huge their impact was on metal and hard rock early on, and their best few records are incredible to this day. This may well be they're very best album – the culmination of a couple years of slow-building word-of-mouth reputation-building for genre work that can't be praised highly enough. One metal classic after another: "Fight Fire With Fire", "Ride The Lightning", "For Whom The Bell Tolls", "Fade To Black", "Trapped Under Ice", "Escape", "Creeping Death" and "The Call Of Ktulu". LP, Vinyl record album

A classic set of batucada material – 6 long tracks, all played with a good raw percussive vibe – selections that include "Rtimo Da Pesada", "Ole De Tamborim", "Deixa Como Esta", "Sarro No Cafofo", "Ouricando A Mocada" and "So No Apito". LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

One of the most unusual albums in this legendary series – a solo set by Steve Shehan, but one that has him playing dozens of different instruments, in a way that brings a whole globe's worth of music into play at once! Shehan had played on countless records for others in the years before this set – including percussion contributions for big major label artists – but there's a very personal, almost poetic approach to the work here – as Steve handles sounds from afuche, cymbals, glasses, ikembe, sanza, Malaysian gongs, djembe, angklung, balafon, koto, gender, kendang, terompong, bells, Armenian tar, surdo, keyboards, congas, steel drums, vibes, sticks, cuica, sitar, kodo, and many other instruments! Titles include "Sticks & Spaces", "Rainy Forest", "Shogun", "Istanblue", "Unknown Lights", and "Afrocubana". LP, Vinyl record album

Very joyous sounds from Konkolo Orchestra – an Afro Funk group, but one with a really uplifting vibe – a really special approach to the music that definitely sets them apart from the rest! Part of the music's charm lies in the vocals – often sung by lead singer Nongoma Ndlovu, a vocalist with a quality that's instantly endearing, and often echoed by other members of the group in a very joyous way! Vocals are by a few others at points, and the album also has a few instrumentals – with a small tight mix of one sax and one trumpet, keyboards, bass, drums, and some great percussion as well. Titles include "Cover Up The Bruises", "How We Got Here", "Blue G", "Count Your Blessings", "Future Pasts", "That Good Thing", and "Yese Yese". LP, Vinyl record album