Fred Simon
Now Here

2023 first time reissue.Guy Pedersen's magical Maxi Music, originally released on cult Parisian library label tele Music in 1972, is psyche-rock and jazz-funk gold. It's a vital Pederson outing, oscillating between the rough and the smooth, but always with those hypnotic grooves. It's a start-to-finish winner, yet the final 13-minute-long opus will blow minds. Trust!

It’s one of the best kept secrets of the Indonesian archipelago. Hidden away on a pop album inspired by The Police, lies ‘Licik’, a deep vocoder funk workout lasting over nine minutes. It’s the first recorded Indonesian song to use the vocoder in such a way.‘Licik’ is a hauntingly unique track and a testament to the quality of some of the best music the archipelago has to offer. Friends 82, consisting of Delly Rollies, Norman Rachman and the vocoder wizard Harry Sabar, wrote and recorded the track on the spot back in 1981. The B-side pays tribute to the original song, with a re-contextualisation of the original by Jakarta-born, Bali-based multi-instrumentalist Dea Barandana.Fully licensed from the songwriter and living legend Harry Sabar, Jiwa Jiwa seeks to offer a platform and hub to build bridges and connect natives of the archipelago and its diaspora around the world, across different generations. Focusing on the music and creating contemporary projects through a variety of disciplines.

Avid Habibi Funk listeners may be familiar with Libyan composer / producer Najib Alhoush, who’s “Ya Aen Daly” - Bee Gee’s “Stayin Alive” cover - was included in our 2nd compilation.Najib’s group, “The Free Music” produced an astonishing 10 albums, all impressively strong and equally infused by soul, funk, disco and reggae. Groovy synths, thumping bass and drums and Najib’s distinct flavor collide for something special. Self-financed, all their albums are fully dedicated to their unique musical blend, a distinctly infectious groove that unfortunately didn’t make an impact outside of Libya due to the complex political situation at the time.When we made the selection for this album, we could have chosen a completely different number of tracks and the album would be been equally strong. There is a reason why it says “Part 1” in the title.

Electrify/Breeze by Shiro Schwarz