Michael Knodt

Nowadays it seems that any music with the slightest hint of a synthesizer is labelled ‘electronic’. It is often a misnomer and cause for consternation amongst disciples of ‘full-fat’ electronic music. There is no doubt, however, that the work of Michael Shipway deserves this moniker. Mister Shipway composes bona fide electronic music and is one half of the much-admired duo, ‘VoLt’. Michael's trio of solo albums - ‘Into Battle’, followed by ‘Beneath Folly’ and then ‘Spirit Of Adventure’ - were released in the nineties to critical acclaim. They conjured-up melodies, rhythms and atmospheric sounds that helped define the zeitgeist of late-twentieth-century electronic music. All three thoroughly deserved their plaudits from the cognoscenti. They were going to be a hard act to follow, even a decade and a half on.

29-track, 2-CD remastered career spanning set from MICHAEL MONROE. Icon, song-writer and one of rock's most celebrated front-men since 1979 when he played a central role in Hanoi Rocks - legendary Finnish glam-punk heroes. Previously unreleased songs include It's A Lie', with Stiv Bators (Dead Boys) `Fist Fulla Dynamite', `Simpletown', the new single `One Foot Outta The Grave' & a never-before-released 2nd version of the Steppenwolf cover 'Magic Carpet Ride' feat. Slash.

Up until around 1900 the clarinet repertoire was dominated by music from the German-speaking lands, largely due to the influence of three outstanding clarinetists. Inspired by Anton Stadler, Heinrich Bärmann and Richard Mühlfeld respectively, Mozart, Weber and Brahms composed some of the finest clarinet works ever written.

On this essential new release, sacred and secular choral works by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor – many of them never recorded before – are performed by the London Choral Sinfonia directed by Michael Waldron, with James Orford at the organ. The music of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor has for too long been neglected despite being of exceptional quality. When Michael Waldron began to explore Coleridge-Taylor’s choral music, he was struck by the sheer variety and depth of skill he found – and that this music is not more widely known. This release brings together a representative selection of both sacred and secular works by this great British composer, from the simple, understated tones of Whispers of Summer, to the quasi-cantata grandeur of Now late on the Sabbath Day.

Solo includes Michael’s first four solo projects, Flammende Herzen, Sterntaler, Katzenmusik and Fernwärme, a Soundtracks and a Remixes & Live album (only with the vinyl boxset). Speaking about the release, Michael said: ‘I’m incredibly excited to announce my new boxset ‘Solo’. The opportunity to release my first four solo albums, as well as some new music in one package is amazing. This is a body of work that I’m very proud of.’

Michael Stearns is an electronic wizard, sound designer and master of analog synth space music. To a certain extent, Michael Stearns can be considered as the founding father of the Californian sacred space music scene next to Steve Roach and Robert Rich. Sacred Site marks the return of Michael Stearns as a solo artist after five busy years creating spectacular soundtrack music. Stearns saw the dawn of the 90's while traveling to Indonesia, Thailand, Egypt, Costa Rica, Brazil and the Galapagos Islands to record indigenous music and sound effects for film assignments. Arriving with an open mind and a finely tuned ear for ambience, he left stimulated - not only by the exotic soundscapes and unfamiliar instruments he heard, but also by the powerful, elemental music of these ancient worlds…

This five-disc set from legendary UFO and Scorpions guitarist Michael Schenker collects all six albums that he made for Chrysalis between 1980 and 1984 under the Michael Schenker Group moniker. Bolstered by a handful of live cuts, B-sides, and alternate edits, The Chrysalis Years: 1980-1984 includes the group's eponymous 1980 debut MSG 2 (1981), the Japanese double-live album One Night at Budokan (1981), Assault Attack (1982), Built to Destroy (1983), and the band's second live album, Rock Will Never Die (1984).