Pianist Ketil Bjørnstad's quartet set with cellist David Darling, guitarist Terje Rypdal, and drummer Jon Christensen is almost a stereotype of an ECM release. His ten originals all set an introspective and mostly somber mood, their themes are less important than the atmosphere that they form, and the individual solos of the musicians are less significant than the ensemble sound. The general mood is a bit sleepy and the development from song to song is quite slow, although there are a few fiery and rockish solos from guitarist Rypdal.

15 years into a career that has seen them become one of metal’s most ruthlessly individual and uplifting bands, selling out venues and tours across Europe and the US, Amaranthe are about to make their most definitive and revealing move. Three years on from the widely acclaimed Manifest which hit top 20 charts internationally and has amassed over 130 million streams, Sweden’s masters of thunderous, melodic futurism are about to unveil The Catalyst. 12 songs deep and almost overburdened with lethal hooks and genre-blending ingenuity, The Catalyst is a snapshot of a band hitting a new level of collective power.
From the electronic pulse and irresistible forward momentum of Re-Vision onwards, Amaranthe have given their sound a fearless upgrade…

Over the past couple of years, the Alternative Singles vinyl issues have become highly popular amongst fans with different recordings of each single and sometimes tracks that weren't actually singles at the time being issued as such. Most of the recordings are taken from overseas broadcast, rehearsal sessions, discarded mixes and unused demos versions but all of them fascinating. Here we have gathered together all the A & B sides plus some extra bonus tracks.

Fresh from the incredible success of Rick Wakeman’s early concept LPs (he drummed with Wakeman’s band) Barney and his ex-bandmates Warhorse made this sensational lost heavy prog LP as a promo acetate to get an official release. Barney wrote all the songs and sings. Musically complex, it begins with a spoken intro and tells the tale of Koneg Son Of Odin, as he quests to find meaning and death in battle. Keyboards and guitar interweave, with further spoken interludes, and culminating in an epic prog workout featuring fluid soloing electric leads as Koneg dies on the battlefield and is taken by Valkyries to Valhalla.

Kitaro is one of the most popular and influential new age artists of all time, having sold millions of records and toured across the world numerous times, in addition to winning Grammy and Golden Globe awards. His style fuses contemplative, highly melodic synthesizer work with acoustic instrumentation, drawing from Eastern musical traditions as well as folk, classical, and rock influences. Interestingly enough, the famous Japanese composer taught himself to play electric guitar in high school – inspired by the R&B music of Otis Redding. In the early '70s, Kitaro formed the Far East Family Band, which released two albums of progressive rock. In 1972, however, he met the innovative German synthesist Klaus Schulze during a trip to Europe. Kitaro was hooked. He built his first synthesizer and began experimenting with all kinds of unusual sounds…

One of the founders of the Swiss synth-pop band Yello, Boris Blank empties his solo vaults on Electrified, an archival set that came into being with some help from online crowd-funding. The 40 tracks here are mostly instrumental, some of them simple sketches, while others sound complete. Blank's trademarks - gurgling synths, deep bass, Latin rhythms - are all present, and while this quirky, infectious set will likely please all as cheeky audio wallpaper, Yello fans will get the most out of all these peeks behind the curtain.

A seminal session as a leader by the young Art Farmer - recorded for United Artists, and a great set of tight lyrical tunes, played by Farmer in his sparkling style - in a group along with Benny Golson on tenor and Bill Evans on piano. Evans is a special treat here, as the 1958 session was recorded at a time when he was making a fair bit of appearances in various rhythm sections for horn players (like Miles Davis) - and although this role in Evans' career was a short one, it yielded some amazingly beautiful moments, as you'll hear on this album. Art's brother Addison plays bass, and Dave Bailey rounds out the group on drums.