Makaya McCraven - In The Moment (IA11 Edition)

Makaya McCraven’s International Anthem debut 'In The Moment' is the album that properly introduced the then-burgeoning drummer/producer to the world. In many ways, it also laid the groundwork for a working method that both McCraven and the label have returned to again and again over the years: nearly 48 hours of live improvised performance recorded by IARC house engineer Dave Vettraino at 1 venue over 12 months and 28 shows - culled, cut, rendered, and remixed into 19 potent pieces of organic beat music by McCraven.

This early exploration of the concept is based in the nightlife—in relaxed and unostentatious gatherings of prodigious Chicago musicians letting loose one moment at a time. That the individual stature of the musicians involved has risen dramatically in the years since is only proof positive that these sessions in a renovated bank vault were a casually high-level convention of some of the city’s best.

The IA11 Edition LP features our IARC 2025 obi strip, plus additional photos and new liner notes by engineer Dave Vettraino in a 4-page insert booklet.

Tracklist:
1. Exploration Intro
2. The Jaunt
3. Slightest Right
4. First Thing First
5. Lonely
6. Gnawa
7. On The Spot
8. Butterscotch
9. Tom Tom
10. Three Fifths a Man
11. In The Moment
12. Quartz
13. Just Stay Right There
14. Untitled
15. Requests
16. Time Travel
17. The Encore
18. The Drop
19. Finances
20. Sweet Tooth (digital-only bonus track)
21. Some More (digital-only bonus track)
22. The Quest (digital-only bonus track)
23. The People's Interlude (digital-only bonus track)

Furney - Every Word

Furney returns to Soul Deep with an impressive collection of dancefloor gems, which are now available in all major digital stores and streaming sites. The British producer has been active in the Drum & Bass scene for the last couple of decades, releasing many classic tracks that have withstood the test of time. Furney’s strength as a producer is his ability to mix and match samples, and when blended with his stellar drum and bassline grooves creates his signature masterpieces. The ‘Every Word LP’ is another example of his keen sampling ear and groove-making ability on full display. With releases on Soul Deep Exclusives, Smooth N Groove, Good Looking, Jazzsticks, C.I.A., Phuzion, V Recordings, Liquid Drum & Bass 4 Autism, and many others, Furney continues to impress with his high-quality productions. We hope you enjoy the LP!!

Tracklist:
1. Every Word
2. Absolute Control
3. Move On
4. Dream Seller
5. Swanko
6. Long Kiss Good Night
7. Drift Spree
8. Drive Through the Night
9. Touch Me
10. Los Buenos el Chiquitos
11. Optical
12. Columino

The Lewis Express - Doo-Ha!

ATA are proud to release their latest recording of The Lewis Express – Doo Ha!

Featuring flautist Chip Wickham and recorded live to 2-inch analogue tape at All Things Analogue Studios, Leeds, UK, this album is a living, breathing tribute to the golden age of soul-jazz — the electric alchemy of smoky clubs, Sunday afternoons at the record store, and the spiritual communion of groove and grit.

But this isn't nostalgia. It's revival. It's a reminder that music has always been about feel, not files. A testament to ATA’s belief that sound — real sound — should be lived in, worn-in, and passed down like a well-loved record from one hand to the next.

The Lewis Express began as a humble idea — a tribute to the great soul-jazz recordings of yesteryear. Drawing inspiration from luminaries like Ramsey Lewis, Les McCann, and Galt MacDermot, we sought to channel that unmistakable energy — the kind of jazz that hits your feet and hips first.

The core of the group is the rhythm section – ATA luminaries Sam Hobbs on drums and label owner Neil Innes on bass, augmented by Sam Bell on congas and John Ellis on piano and Wurlitzer. It would be invidious to pick out any one of these, when the group sound is so unified, so well-educated in every aspect, and so tight (in the best possible way – through an elastic, dynamic thread of sheer groove).

Chip Wickham’s flutes (in the usual concert pitch and the lower, huskier alto model) add the melodic phrasing and tone shapes we love to hear, from whispers to wails, coming mighty close at times to the soul tones of the beloved vocals that defined the era.

The album features seven shades of soul-jazz, from the downhome strut of Walk On, through the New Orleans, prayer-meeting influenced Run Tell That and the cooler, more detached soundtrack hipness of Cold Catch, to the joyous Sliced, Diced and Fried Twice – a reminder that music shares so much language and emotion with food, and the term soul applies to both. The Saint And The Stranger is yet another take on the more cinematic soul sound, with nods to the policier soundtracks of Cinevox, whilst Snick Snack gratifies our appetite for yet more hot, greasy blues. Finally, How Long Before You’re Gone rounds out the album with a groove that wouldn’t be out of place on a Nina Simone playlist, a reminder that there has always been more to soul-jazz than late nights and fried chicken.

Doo Ha! is a great soul-jazz record but, more than that, it’s a testament to the love of soul thriving in the North of England, and a chance for you to be part of this era of that history.

Tracklist:
1. Walk On
2. Run Tell That
3. Cold Catch
4. Slice, Diced and Fried Twice
5. The Saint And The Stranger
6. Snick Snack
7. How Long Before You're Gone?

Whatever The Weather - Whatever the Weather II

Across a remarkable run of releases in barely half a decade, London’s Loraine James has established her identity through a blend of refined composition, gritty experimentation, and unpredictable, intricate electronic programming. While titles released under her given name on the esteemed label Hyperdub tend toward IDM-influenced, vocal-heavy collaborations, James reserves her alias, Whatever The Weather, for a more impressionistic, inward gaze. On Whatever The Weather II, rich worlds of layered textures flow seamlessly from hypnotic ambience, to mottled rhythms, to cut-up collages of diaristic field recordings. The result is a uniquely fractured beauty, born from a compelling union of organic and human elements, processed through a variety of digital and analogue methods.

James titled Whatever The Weather pieces based on an innate sense of their “emotional temperature” at the time of recording, but she notes that often, upon revisiting them, they will feel somewhere else entirely on the thermometer; such are the whims of the environment. Compared to the album’s predecessor and its Antarctic imagery, though, Whatever The Weather II is a warmer outing, as signaled by the desert clime of its cover photo which is once again shot by Collin Hughes, and the package designed by Justin Hunt Sloane. Also common to both albums is the mastering work of friend and collaborator Josh Eustis (aka Telefon Tel Aviv), who lends his keen ear to James’ complexities, to craft a strikingly three-dimensional sonic experience.

“1°C” opens the album with James speaking through thick static, idly pining, “Bit chilly, innit… Can’t wait for it to be summer,” as a bed of granular tones and scattered vocal samples emerges. This ineffable mood carries through “3°C”, where high-frequency oscillations flutter across the stereo field, a vigorous, minimal kick rattles through a broken speaker cone, and spacious synth harmonies burst and fade into mist. “20°C”, the longest entry in the collection, daydreams through a din of conversation and minor-key chords, before blossoming into a series of glitchy, staccato percussion patterns. “8°C” rides a sole, wandering keyboard line adorned with minimal counterpoint. In these moments, James effortlessly draws order from a diffusion of ideas, and an air of playful spontaneity creates the common thread.

In discussing this project, James notes that the first Whatever The Weather LP (Ghostly, 2022) was created concurrently with Reflection (Hyperdub, 2021), and that there was some degree of stylistic cross-pollination between her two musical frames of mind. At the time, she shared her feelings on genre with Pitchfork’s Philip Sherburne, noting, “Yeah, I might look different from most people who make IDM, and I’m from a different time period, but I don’t really care about the term being negative or positive. I feel my music is IDM and I do my own spin on it, being inspired by other stuff and fusing it all together.” This go around, she dedicated several months of focused energy to the alias, and to the development of its distinctions: no collaborators, fewer beats, and a process based primarily on instinct and improvisation.

The album’s singular sound arises from James’ favoring of hardware over software, as her battery of synths is modulated, transformed, and reassembled through an array of pedals with few or no overdubs, effectively anchoring each arrangement to its precise moment of creation. The greatest effort in post-production was given to sequencing, on which the artist places the utmost importance; taken as a whole, the suite ebbs and flows with a fitting sense of seasonal flux and naturalistic grace.

The final act of Whatever The Weather II offers some of its most affecting moments, beginning with “9°C”, where the haunting echoes of children on a Tokyo playground break through intermittent bursts of static, steeped in a bath of off-kilter, bubbling tones. Here, James displays one of her many strengths: a fearless approach to sonic collage, elevated by ambitious experimentation and pacing that manages plenty of surprises. Never content to remain in the same sonic space for too long, “15°C” follows with soft pads and glistening countermelodies, abruptly joined by a jarring, cyclical rhythm that mimics a loose part inside a whirring machine. Like much of James’ work, it bears an internal logic that only makes sense in her hands.

Closing track, “12°C”, drifts from bustling human spaces into a concrete groove, weaving melody and texture into a truly unusual, soul-stirring fullness. In its final moments we hear, for the first time, a languid acoustic guitar and gentle, finger-tapped beat over her pitch-shifted voice, a callback that ends the album with wry ambiguity, and a hint of more to be found beyond the horizon. Whatever The Weather II is full of such passages, where formal composition appears like a film in negative, and conventions are upturned with wit, intelligence, and skill. 
 
Tracklist:
1. 1°C
2. 3°C
3. 18°C
4. 20°C
5. 23°C (Intermittent Sunshine)
6. 5°C
7. 8°C
8. 26°C
9. 11°C (Intermittent Rain)
10. 9°C
11. 15°C
12. 12°C

The Invaders - Spacing Out

Spacing Out is an instrumental masterpiece only ever issued in Bermuda at the turn of 1970. A mix of the band's out-there original compositions and extravagant covers of The Meters, The Temptations, Aretha Franklin and The Isley Brothers, it established this band as one of the greatest instrumental bands of any genre, and helped kickstart the retro-soul/funk scenes that birthed the likes of Daptone and Big Crown Records. It's certainly a lodestar for Now-Again Records.

This reissue was done with the license and participation of the entire Invaders band, with their story told in great detail in an oversized booklet penned by Jefferson "Chairman" Mao, complete with rare photos of this rarely seen ensemble.

From the proverbial stank face-inducing opening bars of reverb-drenched drums and congas that announce Spacing Out, you're thrust into something visceral and fleeting: a pocket universe in which technical excess, chemistry between players, and the uninhibited energy of youth align in a kind of glorious imperfection. Spacing Out is one of the greatest instrumental albums of its or any period in that unmistakably raw - as in honest - way only a crew of largely self-taught young uns could catch a groove.

Mysteriously dub-like in its audio and visual presentation, it's exemplary of what George Clinton cited when he explained funk as, "Anything it needs to be to save your life at that time." James Brown had already aged well into adulthood when he alchemized the essential elements of funk. But the Godfather's late '60s rhythm revolution inspired countless kids barely out of their teens to pick up instruments, form bands and attack the R&B songbook with a ferocity that prioritized proper allegiance to the One. Funk's youth movement reverberated across the globe. And in the curious case of The Invaders, ascended across an imagined echo-imbued cosmos from a tropical island blast-off in Bermuda, where those sounds ricocheted off and reanimated every lick as an otherworldly transmission, infusing a vibe both earthy and interstellar. 

Tracklist:
1. It's Your Thing
2. Lost Times
3. Can't Get Next To You
4. The House That Jack Built
5. Look A Py Py
6. Bossa Blue
7. Spacing Out
8. Where Are We
9. Latin Lips
10. It's Your Thing Part 2

Kutmah - Sacred Conversations

A beat tape for the brotha from anotha planet, the most high Ras G & the Afrikan Space Program.

Tracklist:
1. The Almighty
2. Holy G / We Movin'
3. Ruff Church Break
4. A Love Supreme Space Program
5. Smell the Blunts
6. Kemetic Alchemy
7. Times Is Hard
8. Rise / Travel On
9. Blukka Blukka
10. Rag Tag Beat
11. It's a Sin to Go Away
12. If they Push that Button
13. East Los
14. Be Free
15. Khali
16. Smoke With a G
17. Staring At G's Mural
18. Spaced Out G
19. Carry You Away feat. Alia
20. Raw Data
21. Poo-bah Crate Talk
22. Late Night Drive
23. Aida
24. Sacred Teachings
25. To the Sun
26. Amen Ra feat. Low Leaf

VA - Praise Poems, Vol. 10

Watch out! You are holding the 125th (one-hundred-and-twenty fifth!) album on Tramp Records in your hands! We are honored to celebrate this impressive anniversary with the tenth volume in the Praise Poems series. This time, too, we go on a journey to discover previously unheard regions of jazz, folk and AOR from the 1970s and 80s.

Praise Poems Vol.10 presents sixteen (almost) forgotten rare groove gems, all released between the years 1970 and 1984. One of the many highlights is the opening track: “Fields of Laughter” by Color Me Blu - originally released on an acetate only of which two copies exist worldwide. But there is much, much more to discover. This brandnew volume features a wide range of genres, from AOR (Whiz Kids, Ross Miller, and another previously unreleased track by Harve & Charee) to Latin-Rock a’la Santana (Color Me Blue, Tribal Sinfonia, and Apple) to Soul-Jazz (Ernie Lewis Trio, Joe Bozzi Quintet or Dutch saxophonist Frits Kaatee). Right at the end, one track in particular stands out: the wonderful “It's Good Not To Forget” by George Melvin and his quintet - a fabulously dreamy, thoughtful instrumental piece in the style of Ramsey Lewis with catchy tune potential.

Not many compilation series make it to a tenth edition. And if they do, then you often notice that the quality of the songs goes in the opposite direction to the increasing number of series: namely decreasing. Not so with Praise Poems Vol. 10, which the creators prove in an impressive new way. They have found tracks that were originally either a) pressed by the musicians themselves in very small editions or b) released by small, regional labels. It is understandable that neither the musicians nor these small labels had the necessary knowledge or budget to market their albums or singles professionally. The majority of the bands therefore did not manage to reach a large audience - although they certainly had the potential for the big stage.

“Praise Poems 10 - A journey into soulful jazz and funk from the 1970s” makes these almost 50-year-old treasures accessible to a new audience. We hope that you enjoy discovering your personal favorite song(s) and we are already looking forward to many more releases! 

Tracklist:
1. Color Me Blu - Fields of Laughter
2. apple - Love Melody in E Minor
3. Tribal Sinfonia - Do You Want Me
4. Harve and Charee - New Me
5. Kwartet Frits Kaatee - Easy Evil
6. Ernie Scott Trio - Souled Out
7. Bunker Hill - Dionysis
8. SAN DIEGO - Sands of Malibu, Pt.1
9. SAN DIEGO - Sands of Malibu, Pt.2
10. Synod - Sheryl Song Is Gonna Do My Dancing
11. WHIZ KIDS - Long Time Gone
12. Ross Miller - I Can Love Her Anyway
13. Thunderbolt the Wondercolt - Ragged Edge
14. Eyrle Oliver - Lovely Lady
15. Lisa Richards - A Day in the Life of a Fool
16. Joe Bozzi Quintet - Masquerade
17. George Melvin Quintet - It's Good Not to Forget

Medline - The Edge

Welcome into the world of scarce music for the ultimate connoisseurs, fine taste beatmakers and holy grails collectors. You made a step close to The Edge.

From cult Italian soundtrack or 80's iconic anime, English and French library music, to tunes that made Hip Hop cult tracks, Medline picked 11 compositions to cover, among his favorite crate diggers treasures.

Experienced by a 30 years Dj activity, he unites on vinyl a collection of underground to well known classics. When many musicians sample, as former beatmaker, Medline founds today his fulfillment by playing the entire compositions, as homage to their originators.

In 2018 Solstice has set the corner stone of this unique project in the world of rare groove producer at the cross road of Jazz, Funk, Soul and Hip Hop music culture.

With The Edge, the out of boundaries French Chilean producer, placed the level even more higher. The whole work is incredible, for a man alone, without music theory knowledge but playing flutes, horns, keyboard, guitar and many other instruments... creating in his little home studio in Messac, France, the sound of a 70's orchestra.

Epic and Challenging:
Epic for covers like A Day In The Life, Beatles cover by Les Demerle, took by Buck Wild for O.C. Time's Up and of course the eponym David Axelrod's The Edge on David McCallum album.

Challenging for library anthems like Hot Dog, Ghetto or Keep Quiet by Jacky Giordano, sharp and definitely audacious. Despite the variety of the eleven themes, the man's touch is present to the core each time, into the textures, sound taste and balance.

As archetypal records Mybags loves to release, "The Edge" is built as a crate digger paradise, a timeless record linking past and present into a highly concentrate of high quality grooves.

The final touch couldn't have been better for this Lp dressed by the talented Painter member of the 9th Concept, Theo Lopez. "Tropic Thunder" the orignal paint is an amazing energetic and vibrant picture. In the style of enigmatic abstract library covers, with an explosion of sharp swords like figures with cutting edge. As usual, we offer a A2 size poster of this amazing artwork, so that it can live from its own bringing beautifulness to your home.

El disco es cultura!

Tracklist:
1. Smoke Gets In Your Head
2. A Day In The Life
3. Keep Quiet
4. The Blue Boat
5. Le Vieux Vaisseau
6. The Edge
7. The Fence
8. Hot Dogs
9. Ghetto
10. Coffee Cold

Kuna Maze - Layers

“Kuna Maze is cooking something special!” – Clash
“Loving everything Kuna Maze is making right now” – Rohan Rakhit
“A Brussels-based producer who's changing the game up!” – Tarzsa
“I’m loving Kuna Maze right now!” – Jamz Supernova (BBC 6Music)

Kuna Maze bottles the improvisational spirit of live performance on his new album ‘Layers’

‘Layers’ is the sophomore album by Brussels-based producer, multi-instrumentalist and DJ Kuna Maze, aka Edouard Gilbert. The live-driven, 11-track LP features the singles “Stab” “Bristol Changes” and "Blast". The band are celebrating the album at their release party on Friday 7th March, at AB Concerts in Brussels.

Following the success of Kuna Maze's debut album ‘Night Shift’—a concept record exploring the journey into the night, ‘Layers’ offers a dynamic fusion of textures and tones, creating a listening experience that reveals new depths with each spin.

‘Layers’ is a project deeply influenced by Kuna Maze's experience of touring with his live band. “My aim was to capture the energy and improvisational spirit of live performances, while diving deeper into the jazz influences of my music, all while maintaining the electronic vibe that has always defined my sound”. Kuna Maze worked directly with the band in the studio to record his compositions, channelling the energy, emotion and spontaneity that are present in his live shows.

This album can be seen as a jazz record that invites deep listening at home and offers a glimpse into Kuna Maze's vibrant live energy. Drawing from the dynamic UK jazz scene, Kuna Maze’s music takes jazz as a foundation and expands into various genres—from house to dub—pushing boundaries without sacrificing coherence or his own unique sound signature.

The title ‘Layers’ reflects Kuna Maze’s approach to music and art as a whole. “I love the idea of multiple levels of listening, where each time you hear a song, you notice something new. My composition process often involves layering instruments and tracks, gradually building a rich, textured sound.” We see this in the focus track “Backlash”, which captures a unique blend of nostalgia and energy, driven by a heavy, pulsating synth that sets the tone from the very beginning. Though the concept of layering extends beyond music for Kuna Maze,it’s also present in how he approaches art and even clothing, where fabrics and textures come together to create something greater. It’s all about creating depth and complexity, both sonically and visually.

Holding down previous residencies on Brussels’ essential radio platform, Kiosk Radio and community music space Volta, Kuna Maze has firmly made Brussels his home, a metropolis with a flourishing and emulating jazz-electronic scene (home to Alia, Echt!, Le Motel, Lefto, Mika Oki). Constantly evolving and adapting his sounds, Kuna Maze has played alongside accomplished producers, such as Nosaj Thing, Flako, Lapalu and Machinedrum, while boasting releases on Cascade and Galant Records.

Tracklist:
1. Backlash
2. Jolt
3. Maina
4. Layered Memories
5. Blast
6. Bristol Changes
7. Tangle
8. Hazy Day
9. Stab
10. Scraps & Pieces
11. Kuna's Dub