Electronic Musician From April 2016

Jean-Michel Blais is a 31 year-old pianist from Montreal, Canada. His enchanting instrumental compositions pair the melodic pop sensibilities of Amélie-era Yann Tiersen and Arts & Crafts alumni Chilly Gonzales with the breathtaking technical skill of classical minimalists like Philip Glass and Erik Satie.

A lost new wave classic given the definitive reissue treatment. The (Hypothetical) Prophets were a collaboration between French electronic pioneer Bernard Szajner and British musician Karel Beer, recording something of a Soviet-themed concept album under the pseudonyms Joseph Weil and Norman D.Landing.

Between When Planets Explode and Joined Ends, Oliver Johnson's first and second Dorian Concept albums, the Viennese musician and producer released a few singles and EPs. Among them were the brilliantly nutty "Trilingual Dance Sexperience" and relatively restrained four-track EP Her Tears Taste Like Pears, his first work for Ninja Tune. Johnson also performed around the world, including a stretch as a keyboardist for Flying Lotus' live show. He retreated from the stage, swapped out the microKORG with which he'd been closely associated, and eventually developed new material with use of other analog synthesizers and an electric Wurlitzer piano. Less jumbled and jagged than his debut, Joined Ends is filled with spiraling melodies and softer beats that place him a lot closer to Lone than to Hudson Mohawke…

What a nice surprise to get a new album from this Finnish band, already five years since their second album Behind the Curtains. But as the extended title suggests, this is a special project. Some background information first: in April 2015 the core members of Paidarion (drummer Kimmo Pörsti and bassist Jan-Olof Strandberg) invited several friends from various countries to join them on a small tour in southern Finland. These friends were the US vocalist Jenny Darren, British hard-rock bassist Kev Moore, Hungarian guitarist Ákos Bogáti-Bokor (leader of the bands Yesterdays and Tabula Smaragdina), Finnish electronic music -oriented musician Otso Pakarinen, and Robert Webb (best known as the frontman of the 70's band ENGLAND)…

This album features a complete rendition of concert in the 2013 edition of the Prog-Résiste Convention in Belgium.

5 Classic albums in mini LP-style card sleeves; Magnetic Fields (1981), Zoolook (1984), Rendez-Vous (1986), Revolutions (1988) & Waiting for Cousteau (1990).

Flock is the record that Jane Weaver always wanted to make, the most genuine version of herself, complete with unpretentious Day-Glo pop sensibilities, wit, kindness, humour and glamour. A consciously positive vision for negative times, a brooding and ethereal creation.