Maazel's mid-Eighties Mahler cycle was a prestige project, the first time that the august Vienna Phil. had ever recorded all nine symphonies. It's generally acknowledged that they play gloriously and that Sony provided vivid digital sound. As for Maazel, his notions are never less than unusual, so it can be said that his Mahler is like no one else's.

With 6 Anissimov is back in peak form and certainly beats out the other Russian contenders for the title…Anissimov and his Moscow players give an excellent account of themselves, and the engineers have obliged with truly room-filling volume, taking care to bring out the deep bass and rich, dark coloring so important for a full appreciation of the score. There's nothing subtle about the playing — especially the trenchant low brass — but then save for the central sections there's not much that's subtle about the music either, and Anissimov's exuberant embrace of the outer movements is immensely satisfying.

She Who Dwells in the Secret Place of the Most High Shall Abide Under the Shadow of the Almighty (yeah, it's a mouthful, but at least it's not Fiona Apple's monolith), was reportedly Sinead O' Connor's final album – it wasn't – as she seeks another way of life as a spiritual pilgrim, O'Connor delved deep into her rare, B-side, unreleased, and compilation tracks and gives listeners a live album to boot over two discs. Released stateside on Vanguard, this is, despite its disparate nature, one of the most satisfying recordings she's ever delivered – the previous year's Sean-Nós Nua, her traditional album, was a knockout and perhaps her finest studio moment, but it went unnoticed here because Americans can't seem to forgive O'Connor for exercising her right to free speech (the audience at Bob Dylan's 30th anniversary concert should be especially ashamed).

BROADCAST FROM TOM WAITS MINI ORPHANS TOUR IN 2006 In the summer of 2006, Tom Waits embarked on a short jaunt of the southern and Midwest United States. Entitled, The Orphans Tour, Tom’s son Casey played with him in the band accompanying him. Consisting of eight shows in total, the group played in; Atlanta, GA, Asheville, NC, Memphis, TN, Nashville, TN, Louisville, KY, Chicago, IL, Detroit, MI and Akron, OH. The final date of the tour, in Akron, Ohio on 13th August 2006, was perhaps the most dynamic and best loved show, and was recorded for a simultaneous FM radio broadcast. This new release contains this broadcast in full for the first time on CD. In November ‘06, Waits issued Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards, a 54-song three-disc box set of rarities, unreleased tracks, and new compositions. Waits described its contents as "songs that fell behind the stove while making dinner". Orphans made the top ten in several European charts.

Keef Hartley came to prominence as a member of the British R&B group The Artwoods before joining John Mayall's Bluesbreakers in 1967. He contributed to the album "Crusade" before leaving in 1968 to form the first line-up of his own band. With Gary Thain (bass), Peter Dines (keyboards), Spit James (guitar) and horn section that was a whos who of British jazz (Henry Lowther, Chris Mercer, Lyn Dobson and Harry Beckett), Hartley recorded his first album for Decca's Deram label in March 1969. Now regarded as a classic of the genre, "Halfbreed" is a fine example of the fusion of rock, jazz and blues.

The second studio album from Marina Lambrini Diamandis finds the mercurial Welsh singer/songwriter assuming the role of diva in waiting, trading in the ballsy, quirky retro-pop of her 2010 debut, Family Jewels, for the glitzy (and still relatively ballsy) electro-thump pomp of Ke$ha and Lady Gaga. Produced by Dr. Luke (Katy Perry), Liam Howe (Sneaker Pimps), Greg Kurstin (Lily Allen), and Rick Nowels (Madonna), Electra Heart is a brooding, sexy, desperate, overwrought, and infectious record that's both aware and unashamed of its contrivance. In short, Diamandis is trying to expose the artifice of big-box pop music by using its own voice, and despite the obvious trappings of the concept, she does a fairly respectable job. Her resonant operatic voice is expressive enough to make a lyric like "Candy bear, sweetie pie, I wanna be adored/I'm the girl you'd die for," from the capricious opener "Bubblegum Bitch," feel less like a floozy come-on and more like a malicious schoolyard taunt.

Specialty Profiles album by John Lee Hooker was released Aug 29, 2006 on the Specialty label. John Lee Hooker recorded for many record labels during his long career. Specialty Profiles songs But this sampling of some of his Specialty sides finds him at his best, on tracks like his much-recorded "Boogie Chillen No.2," the simmering "I'm Mad," the brooding "Nothin' But Trouble," and the risque "Grinder Man." Featuring many solo cuts (the artist's idiosyncratic timing defeated most accompanists), these quality sides display Hooker in his prime.

Classics Today 10/10. The Danish composer Anders Koppel (b. 1947) has one foot firmly planted in the European classical music tradition, and the other in world music, rock and jazz. On this album the two worlds meet when the Sjælland String Quartet are joined by Koppel’s son, the jazz icon Benjamin Koppel to perform the quintet for mezzo-saxophone and strings, which can be heard for the first time on this CD.

The Dreaming Gate is the heart of Inlakesh. Inspired by an encounter with the Nazca spider and the transformational power of masks, in rituals and daily life. The Gate is a time and space where the veil of personalty is left behind, as one embarks on a journey to the transpersonal wisdom of intention and timelessness. Two years in the making, The Dreaming Gate is a voyage of consciousness, a sonic offering to the great spirit of mystery. Featuring outstanding musicians playing a variety of acoustic instruments meticulously blended with location recordings and artifacts harvested in the jungles of Irian Jaya in the late 1980's. The Dreaming Gate is a beautiful and highly original body of sound.

When pianist Martha Argerich and violinist Renaud Capuçon gave a recital at the 2022 Aix-en-Provence Easter Festival, their extraordinary rapport was evident to all present. Captured live, their programme included three major works for violin and piano, all in the key of A: Schumann’s Sonata No. 1 Op. 105, Beethoven’s Sonata No. 9 Op. 47, “Kreutzer”, and Franck’s Sonata.

"Dance" is an extraordinary epic composition from one of the most revolutionary composers of the late 20th century to the present, Philip Glass. From the mid 1960's onwards, Glass has revolutionized a form of composition that has become known as 'minimalism' (although Glass himself denies being a composer of minimal music). Several of Glass's works have gone on to be standards of modern Classical music.

Replete with an excellent Eliran Kantor (Fleshgod Apocalypse, Ex Deo) cover art - commissioned by Stainthorpe, "The Ghost of Orion" posits My Dying Bride back on the proverbial doom-death throne. In fact, they’ve never sounded better. From the doleful lay in 'Your Broken Shore' to the grim 10-minute epic 'The Old Earth,' "The Ghost of Orion" is the product of a vibrantly creative band unwilling to rest on their laurels or past glories.
My Dying Bride‘s three decades of misery almost came to an end several years ago. Following 2015’s universally lauded "Feel the Misery" album, vocalist Aaron Stainthorpe’s daughter, just five years old at the time, was diagnosed with cancer. Shocked and heartbroken, Stainthorpe put all band activities on hold while he, his immediate family, and My Dying Bride put their collective energies into eradicating what Stainthorpe called, "the cruellest of God's bitter and loveless creations"…

Molde author Endre Ruset has had great success with his poetry book, Noriaki, which was published by Flamme Forlag in 2017. It has been called jump poetry, as the poems throughout use the name Noriaki, after the legendary Japanese ski jumper Noriaki Kasai. Since 2014, Noriaki has also been a tea ceremony and an evolving art project with musician Stian Omenås. In 2022, Endre and Stian decided to make a recording of the Noriaki book.

Gaye Adegbalola is widely known as the founding member of Saffire - The Uppity Blues Women (1984 - 2009) - An outspoken Feminist, she has also been a successful solo artist for decades. SATISFIED, her anthology, includes selections from nine of her solo projects. Of the 20 selections, 15 are Gaye originals, all delivering messages of freedom and empowerment, all wrapped in her trademark wit and wisdom. SATISFIED is a composite of Gaye's life's work and is dedicated to those classic blues women who birthed her.

Four CD set featuring mono and stereo mixes of the three albums The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band recorded for Reprise Records, marking the first time the mono mixes have been available on CD. In addition to the mono and stereo mixes of the albums and some edited 45 releases, this set also features an abundance of previously unissued recordings, including out-takes from 'Volume 2' and an entire alternate version of 'A Child's Guide To Good And Evil' that offers a fascinating insight into the production of that album, as well as a rare radio promo spot. The set has been lovingly remastered by Alec Palao and also includes a 40-page booklet featuring an extensive history of the WCPAEB by Gray Newell packed with rare photos and other memorabilia. The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band, an unlikely musical collaboration between a trio of well-heeled teenage musicians from the Hollywood Hills and a wealthy wannabe- hipster playboy in his mid- 30s, are regarded by those in the know as one of the most idiosyncratic groups to emerge during the psychedelic era, attracting a devoted cult following thanks to their unique sound. The WCPAEB recorded three albums for Reprise between 1966 and 1968, and this collection captures the group at their creative peak.