House – 7th Level Music

Omni Sound to release “When There Is No Sun” – a reimaging of the music of Sun Ra.

(Ricardo Villalobos courtesy of Omni Sound)

Omni Sound is excited to announce When There Is No Sun, a global recording project uniting visionary electronic music producers to reimagine the universe of Sun Ra, out March 27th. Commissioned by Omni Sound and curated by Ricardo Villalobos, When There Is No Sun brings together Underground Resistance, Chez Damier & Ben Vedren, Calibre, A Guy Called Gerald, SHE Spells Doom, Barış K, and Ricardo Villalobos himself to draw from Omni Sound’s recordings of Living Sky by the Sun Ra Arkestra and My Words Are Music, a spoken-word album of Sun Ra’s poetry. The producers pull fragments of sound and text into their own creative orbits, passing through the portal that Sun Ra opened into a realm where the impossible is possible.

Invocations by Saul Williams, Anthony Joseph, Mahogany L. Browne, Abiodun Oyewole, Tunde Adebimpe, and Tara Middleton turn rhyme into rhythm and resistance into revelation. Rooted in deep reverence for Sun Ra’s legacy, yet reaching forward as a living, generative force, When There Is No Sun is not a tribute but a continuum. Each contributor balances the pulse of electronic music with the spirit of experimentation, embodying Sun Ra’s conviction that sound is a vessel for transformation.

In conjunction with today’s announcement, Omni Sound present “When Angels Speak” by Underground Resistance featuring Saul Williams. As one of Detroit’s most influential and uncompromising musical movements, Underground Resistance bring their anti-extractive, futurist vision of techno rooted in independence, resistance, and Black empowerment to the title track of Sun Ra’s rare 1966 album, released on their Saturn label. Williams, an internationally acclaimed poet, musician, actor, and filmmaker contributes a distinct blend of lyrical intensity and cultural insight.

Listen to “When Angels Speak” by Underground Resistance feat. Saul Williams

One of the most radical musical pioneers of the 20th century, Sun Ra used jazz, electronics, poetry, and performance to expand the possibilities of sound, identity, and imagination. A composer, bandleader, philosopher, and visionary, Ra didn’t just play music, he invented a universe. At the core of his philosophy is freedom through creation. He taught that the world’s dominant narratives—history, race, time, even gravity—are prisons of the mind, and that through music, myth, and performance, one could transcend these limits and reclaim control of destiny.

The artists featured in When There Is No Sun, in their own way, embody Sun Ra’s conviction that sound is a vessel for transformation. They are not united by genre but by purpose—artists who use rhythm, language, and imagination to rewire perception and open portals to new worlds.

Pre-order When There Is No Sun

When There Is No Sun Release Events:
Tue. March 17 – Cape Town, ZA @ Pan African Space Station (streaming event only)
Fri. March 20 – Wuppertal, DE @ Open Ground (feat: Ricardo Villalobos & Chez Damier)
Fri. April 10 – New York, NY @ Nublu (feat. Sun Ra Arkestra & Chez Damier)
Fri. July 31 – Amsterdam, NL @ Dekmantel Festival (feat. Saul Williams & Underground Resistance)

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Sam at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Review: Grandbrothers – Elsewhere

Grandbrothers, the duo of pianist Erol Sarp and engineer / software designer Lukas Vogel, create a lovely blend of classical, jazz, electronica, and ambient music together. Their newest album, Elsewhere, is designed to take you to such a place…wherever it may be.

The duo decided to add more vintage synths, drum loops, and other electronic oddities to their newest album. The simmering intro of “Famara Dust” swirls like a slow whirlpool into the trip hop-inspired “Fable.” The funky drums of “We Collide” sizzle and snap while Sarp’s piano keeps you buzzing. The way Sarp’s piano loops (which remind me a bit of some Ennio Morricone compositions) and curls with Vogel’s programmed beats on “Where Else” is slick.

“Liminal” thumps and bumps in all the right places. “Velvet Roads” starts off as smooth as the fabric in its title and then drops a gorgeous house beat on you. “Cypress” might be your new favorite chill house track. “Rex Machina” does indeed sound like it uses samples, loops, bleeps, and bloops from various machines to accent the piano and alter field recordings (Thunder? Breaking ocean waves? Wind through trees?) and loosen that stress headache you’re enduring.

I can’t help but think Grandbrothers got the title for “run.run.run.run.run” – a snappy electro track that sounds like it’s mixing in steel drums at some points – from seeing it on some vintage synthesizer or computer they used to process the sounds of it. Ending with “NOWHERE,” the album has taken us to a place that’s nowhere yet everywhere, here and now, then and when.

The album is a journey for Grandbrothers, who were exploring new ways to make new music with Elsewhere, and for us. We all come through it with a fresh look on the world.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to George at Terrorbird Media.]

Rewind Review: Klangphonics – Songs to Try (2021)

The cover of Klangphonics‘ 2021 album Songs to Try takes an image of a forest and the sky above it, flips it, blurs it, and makes it something intriguing. The album does much the same with our perception.

In case you didn’t know, “deep house” is a thing, and Klangphonics might be the best proponents of it. The German trio eschew traditional DJ methods (How weird is it to write that?) and opt to create live electronic music from a blend of acoustic and electronic instruments (or sometimes household objects, tools, and even a riding lawn mower).

“Great Plains” starts off the record with dance grooves and drums that feel right at home in a night club or the Grand Canyon. The switch halfway through to the meditative song become a straight-up house banger is stunning. “Holocene” brings in Anna Metko on guest vocals that give the track a brightness that’s difficult to describe but lovely to experience.

“Dendrometry” (the study of the sizes and shapes of trees) is perfect for your morning run through the woods with its bumping beats, “wind through the leaves” synths, echoed birdsong, and encouraging bass line. “White Flower” takes off like a race car and doesn’t look back. “Heliosphere” uses Carl Sagan’s speech about all of us living on a speck of dust in a sunbeam to excellent effect and sends us out on an uplifting note.

The whole record is uplifting and intriguing…and danceable. These three are high on my must-see list now.

Keep your mind open.

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Top 25 concerts of 2025: #’s 5 – 1

I saw over 50 bands last year, so these five had to bring it to make the top of the list.

#5: Osees – Old National Center – October 22, 2025 – Indianapolis, IN

I’m not sure it would be proper for me to not see Osees at least once a year by this point (or The Black Angels, for that matter). This show was in a small ballroom in the basement of the Old National Center that didn’t have much airflow but did have rock-sold pillars at the four corners of the dance floor / mosh pit. It was a sweaty, loud affair, which is just what you want for an Osees show. They hadn’t played in Indianapolis in a few years, so the crowd was eager to see them — and many hadn’t seen them until that night. They were either shocked or delighted by the end.

#4: King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra – August 09, 2025 – Ravinia – Highland Park, IL

I almost didn’t include this show by King Gizzard (another band I seem to catch every year) because our seats were too far back to see the actual stage. However, this show teaming KGATLW up with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra was too neat of a show to pass up and, what put it into the top five, they sounded great. No joke, this is probably the best sound engineering I’ve experienced at a KGATLW show, and I’ve seen many (and all of them are recorded and released by their highly skilled sound crew). I’d never heard them so clear in a live setting.

#3: TV on the Radio – September 27, 2025 – Levitation Austin – Austin, TX

I wasn’t sure I’d ever get to see TVOTR live, so I was bouncing when my suspicions were confirmed and they were booked for Levitation Austin. The show was everything I’d hoped for — high energy, great sound, and powerful messages. It felt like a blessing to see them after so many years without a tour.

#2: Nine Inch Nails – August 20, 2025 – United Center – Chicago, IL

Here’s a show I almost didn’t attend because the first night at Chicago’s United Center sold out so fast that I couldn’t get tickets. Luckily, Trent Reznor and his pals decided to book another show the following night and I scored tickets for that. The set included three different stages, great new versions of classic tracks, new tunes, and NIN looking and sounding like they’d never taken a break to make Oscar-winning film music.

#1: Underworld – May 17, 2025 – Radius – Chicago, IL

Here’s the other band I wasn’t sure I’d ever get to see live. They don’t make many trips to the U.S., and the closest they’d come in recent years was Detroit (four hours from where I live). Seeing them in a relatively small venue half the distance away was an immediate priority, and then I learned they were playing two sets with no opening act. It was a stunning performance that had everyone jumping for hours with only a short intermission and left everyone floating by the end.

Who do you want to see this year? I’m already looking forward to catching The Hives, Dry Cleaning, LCD Soundsystem, Gary Numan, Failure, Shame, Alison Krauss, and (of course) Osees, not to mention a return to Levitation Austin. Levitation France is taking a hiatus this year, so perhaps Austin Psych Fest will take its place?

Keep your mind open.

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Top 25 albums of 2025: #’s 10 – 6

Here we are at the top ten albums I reviewed last year. The choices get tougher as the numbers get lower. Let’s get to it.

#10: The Limiñanas – Faded

A salute to forgotten models, actresses, singers, and to lost friends, Faded is another solid album from the French psych-rock duo. It has all the elements you want from The Limiñanas – wild guitars, heartbeat drums, smoky vocals, and a sense that they’re re-creating something you’ve forgotten.

#9: Blackwater Holylight – If You Only Knew

It was great to get a new recording from Blackwater Holylight last year (and a new full-length album is already on the way), and If You Only Knew marked a turn toward shoegaze for them. I’m all for it. The heavy guitars and deep, often sad lyrics are still there. Perhaps doom-gaze is a better description of it. Then again, why bother describing it? Just let overwhelm you.

#8: Frankie and The Witch Fingers – Live at KEXP

I’ve been waiting for a live Frankie and The Witch Fingers album for a little while, and this recording of a raw, raucous show for KEXP didn’t disappoint. It’s difficult to capture their live show energy, but they did it. The fact that they open the show with “Brain Telephone” (an oldie) makes it even better.

#7: Roi Turbo – Bazooka EP

This, simply put, is the best house music record I heard all last year. It makes you crave a longer record. These guys are having a lot of fun and thankfully they invited us to the party.

#6: Joe Alterman & Mocean Worker – Keep the Line Open

This jazz-funk-trip-hop record is a delight from start to finish as pianist Joe Alterman and producer / DJ Mocean Worker pay tribute to funky legend Les McCann. Every song is highly danceable and will brighten any time of day.

Up next, the top five, which includes two welcome returns, another legend, electro upstarts, and brash post-punks!

Keep your mind open.

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Rewind Review: DJ Zinc – Crackhouse Vol. 3 (2023)

Are you looking for another full album of house and techno bangers? Well, DJ Zinc has you covered with Crackhouse Vol. 3.

The opening moments of “Conditioning” (with Chris Lorenzo) are designed to get you jumping. “That Sound” is a stand-out, building to a thumping floor-filler. “Close My Eyes” is classic house music, mixing fun beats with lovely vocals. “Amergency” dives back into straight-up jungle madness.

“Everywhere” blends the two into jungle-house with looped gospel-like vocals and popping boba bass to keep you caffeinated and on a sugar rush. Kamakaze joins Zinc for “What I’m On” – a head-swirling jungle track that makes the room feel like it’s spinning. “When I” brings us back to soulful house music. “Dollars” practically turns on the strobe lights for you with its bright synth riffs.

“Goldin” adds vocals from President T to the party, bringing in a rough edge to Zinc’s booming beats. Ever helps Zinc close out the mix with the sweaty breakbeat cut, “For My People” that leaves you out of breath by the end. It feels over too soon, as most good raves do.

Keep your mind open.

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Annie-Claude Deschênes teams up with Shit Robot for a killer remix of “Main de Fer.”

Annie-Claude Deschênes presents the first in a series of remixes of “Main de Fer“, her latest single released in April. Produced by Shit Robot (DFA Records), it is available now on all platforms. The track is out now via Italians Do It Better (US) and Bonsound (ROW).

“I chose Shit Robot because his unique sound and creative vision felt like the perfect match to reimagine Main de Fer in a bold, new way”, explains Annie-Claude. The Irish producer and DJ, known for his affiliation with the DFA Records label, brings an analog touch to the track by using a variety of synthesizers and sequencers straight out of the 90s. “This was one of those great projects where you fire up the machines and everything falls into place really quickly. I was very excited to get started on this as the original vocals are great and the energy of the track is infectious”, adds Shit Robot, who also mixed the final result alongside LCD Soundsystem member and Grammy Award winner Korey Richey.

Listen to “Main de Fer (Shit Robot Remix)”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VDzgEPGcnHA
Listen on other streaming services: https://bonsound.co/maindeferrobotRP

Annie-Claude Deschênes will perform at the Reeperbahn Festival in Hamburg on September 18th and at Rialto Hall at POP Montreal on September 25th before embarking on a European tour in October. This series of dates will take her to Brussels, Strasbourg, Lyon, Luxembourg, and Paris, among other cities, after which she will return to Canada for dates in Toronto and the province of Quebec. She will also be part of M for Montreal’s official selection in November. See the list below for all tour dates.

Multidisciplinarity is an integral part of the creative process of Annie-Claude Deschênes, who continues her perpetual personal quest of uniting music and performance art by bending the pre-established conventions of stage presence. A key figure on the Montreal independent music scene for almost twenty years, she made her mark as a singer, musician, songwriter, performer and visual artist with Duchess Says and PyPy, two bands that are renowned as much for their electrifying performances as for their artistic sensibility. Over the course of her career, she shared the stage with a number of internationally renowned bands, including The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Teenage Jesus and the Jerks, The Black Lips, The Hives, The Hot Snakes and Buzzcocks. Duchess Says and PyPy’s extensive touring has taken her all over North America and Europe, playing venues and festivals (Primavera Fest, Eurockéennes de Belfort, OSHEAGA, Sled Island, etc.) as well as unconventional locations such as golf courses, factories and churches. Her exploratory approach to staging and sound design takes a new direction with this solo project: the urgency that characterizes her work remains, but frustration and aggression give way to introspection and vulnerability. Annie-Claude Deschênes explores and reinvents herself under her own name, driven by a constant need to create outside of her comfort zone.

Inspired by minimal pop and the pioneers of electronic music, LES MANIÈRES DE TABLE, her first solo album released in spring of 2024, is as danceable and melodic as it is disquieting and dystopian, proposing to set the table differently by deconstructing the social codes of politeness imposed on us. LES MANIÈRES DE TABLE earned a spot on the Polaris Prize long list and garnered attention from international media outlets such as KEXP, BrooklynVegan, CLASH, The Guardian, Les Inrockuptibles and Radio Nova, as well as landing on several year-end lists.

Tour dates:
09/16/2025 – Berlin, DE – Berlin Experience (Reeperbahn Festival)
09/18/2025 – Hamburg, DE – UWE (Reeperbahn Festival)
09/19/2025 – Hamburg, DE – MOPO Stage (Reeperbahn Festival)
09/25/2025 – Montreal, QC – Rialto Hall (POP Montreal) *
10/03/2025 – Brussels, BE – Botanique (Festival FrancoFaune)
10/04/2025 – Mulhouse, BE – Motoco (Festival Microsiphon)
10/07/2025 – Reims, FR – La Cartonnerie
10/09/2025 – Longwy, FR – The Long Way
10/10/2025 – Strasbourg, FR – La Grenze ***
10/11/2025 – Lyon, FR – Le Sonic
10/14/2025 – Luxembourg, LU – Les Rotondes
10/16/2025 – Tours, FR – Le Super 9
10/17/2025 – Metz, FR – Les Trinitaires
10/18/2025 – Troyes, FR – Midi O Halles (Festival Off Off Off)
10/22/2025 – Dunkirk, FR – Le LAAC ***
10/23/2025 – Paris, FR – Le Hasard Ludique ***
10/31/2025 – Toronto, ON – Wavelength @ St. Anne’s
11/07/2025 – Alma, QC – Café du Clocher +
11/08/2025 – Jonquière, QC – Côté-Cour +
11/15/2025 – Rimouski, QC – Salle Desjardins-TELUS +

* Opening for Bolis Pupul
*** Opening for Camilla Sparksss
+ Opening for Choses Sauvages

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Frankie at Stereo Sanctity.]

Ela Minus releases new remix EP and tour dates.

Earlier this year, Colombian artist Ela Minus released her new album, DÍA, via Domino. The album has garnered widespread praise, landing on several mid-year best of lists, including Billboard, Rolling Stone, Stereogum, and SPaste, with the latter raving, “the state of electronica as we know it is fuller because Ela Minus is making music within it. DÍA is unforgettable.”

Today, she releases QQQQ (Remixes) and announces a fall North American Tour. Tickets go on sale this Friday and will be available here. The five track QQQQ (Remixes) EP reworks the “haunted techno stomper,” (PAPER) “QQQQ,” into “Apocalypto” and extended club mixes by South Florida electronic producer Nick León, who recently released his debut album, A Tropical Entropy, of which Ela featured on the lead single, “Ghost Orchid.” The EP also includes club and live edits by Ela alongside the song’s original mix. Of the EP, Ela says: “Nick’s remixes feel like a collaboration. It’s the first time I’ve had so much input on a remix of my music. We were sending versions back and forth. Two came out of the process: A straight-on extended club mix (which the original was always calling for) and then a beat-less version which we called ‘Apocalypto remix‘. I’ve also recorded a live version of the song. After playing it live, the shows ignited something new in it, or in me when I play it, so I recorded a new live version included in this EP.”

Purchase/Stream QQQQ (Remixes)

Watch the Visualizer for “QQQQ” (Nick León Apocalypto Mix)

Beginning this week, Ela will play a run of UK/EU festival dates, with today’s newly announced tour kicking off in October and wrapping in Colombia in November. A full list of dates is below. As previously announced, Synth History is launching an ongoing and in depth docu-series on Ela’s story and music. Preview the first episode here, second here, and third episode here. A short film presented by Synth History will be released digitally this year.

Ela recently launched www.forthebirds.xyz, a platform where fans can write to Ela, and she writes back, covering personal and technical topics or whatever approach grabs her interest. Purchase/Stream DÍA

QQQQ (Remixes) Tracklist
1. QQQQ (Nick León Apocalypto Mix)
2. QQQQ (Nick León Extended Club Mix)
3. QQQQ – Club Edit
4. QQQQ – Live Edit
5. QQQQ

Ela Minus Tour Dates
(New Dates in Bold)
Wed. Aug. 6 – Buenos Aires, AR @ Deseo Club
Sat. Aug. 9 – Barcelona, ES @ Brunch Electronik Festival
Sun. Aug. 10 – Budapest, HU @ Sziget Festival
Fri. Aug. 15 – Paredes de Coura, PT @ Paredes de Coura Festival
Fri. Aug. 22 – Lincoln, UK @ Lost Village
Fri. Aug. 29 – Salisbury, UK @ End of the Road Festival
Sat. Aug. 30 – Terni, IT @ Letz Festival
Sat. Oct. 11 – Bologna, IT @ Robot Festival
Sat. Oct. 18 – Miami, FL @ III Points Festival
Thu. Oct. 23 – Brooklyn, NY @ Elsewhere (Hall)
Fri. Oct. 24 – Chicago, IL @ Outset
Tue. Oct. 28 – San Francisco, CA @ The Independent
Wed. Oct. 29 – Los Angeles, CA @ Echoplex
Thu. Nov. 6 – Caracas, VE @ TBA
Fri. Nov. 7 – Medellín, CO @ TBA
Sat. Nov. 8 – Cali, CO @ TBA
Sun. Nov. 9 – Bogotá, CO @ TBA

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Matt at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Review: Lorenzo Dada & Leo Benassi – Island EP

Don’t let the cartoonish cover fool you, Lorenzo Dada and Leo Benassi‘s Island EP is a solid house record with plenty of bounce and bump in it.

The opening bass of “Midnight Piano” alone will make your head turn and your hips shake. The tapping beats of “Slow Ride” mix with subtle horns and softer bass for a smooth make-out groove.

Apparently, there are “No Flamingos in Salinas,” but there are plenty of smooth, lush beats and grooves on this track. It’s bright and bouncy and something you’ll probably slide into a dozen mixes this summer. The EP ends with the dreamy “Dream On,” bringing in bubbly beats and looping synths to create a groove that I’m sure a lot of hip hop DJs will slow down and sample.

I’m sure you’ll dig this and drop it into many sets of your own, too.

Keep your mind open.

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Rewind Review: Various artists – Disco Italia: Essential Italo Disco Classics 1977-1985 (2008)

The importance and sound of Italo disco from the mid-1970s through the mid-1980s cannot be underestimated. The disco scene in Italy at this time was something unlike anyone had seen on either side of the Atlantic and it influenced DJs, club owners, club goers, and bands across the world.

Disco Italia: Essential Disco Classics 1977-1985 from Strut Records is an excellent compilation of such music. It begins with Five Letters‘ “Tha Kee Tha Tha” from 1980, in which you can still hear disco and also hear just a touch of the New Wave of music to come. The bass plucks and pops alone are worth a listen. Kasso‘s “Brazilian Dancer” from 1982 is a great disco house track with fun, goofy lyrics about a man so handsome he might be an alien because no one on Earth could be such a stud.

Number One Ensemble‘s “Flor de Coca” is such a slick disco track from 1980 that you might fall on the dance floor when you hear it. “Now Baby Now” by Kano somehow adds early Devo and krautrock sounds to 1983 disco…and it works. Jumping back to 1979, we get the fabulously named Freddy the Flying Dutchman & The Sistina Band with their bass-popping, post-punk saxophone honking “Wotjyla Disco Dance (Part 1).” Firefly barely attempts to hide their stealing of Chic‘s “Good Times” on 1983’s “Live (Is Gonna Be on Your Side),” and it’s thus a lot of fun.

The cowbell-forward “Burning Love” by D.D. Sound is over nine minutes of funk from 1977. It’s amazing – full of hot bass licks, low-end male vocals, breathy female backing vocals, some sort of falsetto vocals, and more grooves you’ll find on an interstate roadway. When Revanche tells you it’s “1979 It’s Dancing Time,” you believe them. The percussion-heavy “Let Me Be Your Radio (Part 1)” by Red Dragon Band from 1980 would make Bow Wow Wow‘s jaws drop.

Rainbow Team‘s 1983 groover, “Dreaming,” follows a path laid down by Diana Ross with its lovely female vocals and tight drumming. 1978’s “Do It Again” by Easy Going is “What if Steely Dan made disco records?” It’s great. The bass on the “Maxessa Edit” of Tullio De Piscopo‘s “‘E Fatto ‘e Sorde! E? (Money Money)” from 1985 is so thick it feels like the song it going to tip over at any moment. Valentine asks “Tina Are you ready?” at the beginning of this weird 1983 track that is more new wave than disco, which is fine by me.

Don’t skip out on this collection if you love disco or odd European stuff from the 70s and 80s.

Keep your mind open.

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