New Arrivals
Minato
*2024 stock. 170 (hand-numbered) copies limited edition* "Minato" is a soundscape work based on field recordings around Yokohama Port. In 1630’s, Japan started the trade policy called "Sakoku (鎖国)" that cuts off diplomacy except for a few countries. The policy ended in 1853 and Japan opened 5 ports including Yokohama Port in 1859. Yokohama Port is now one of the biggest maritime terminals in Japan, and it has been working for the moving and the logistics between Japan and foreign countries for a…
Poleas
*2024 stock. 170 (hand-numbered) copies limited edition* "This work deals with an area that I have travelled daily for the last years. A continuum between a train and subway terminals linked and a third train station, located fifteen blocks away with which they connect through a semi-empty landscape of workshops, barracks and the remains of an old station, in the middle of the city. The main train station functions primarily as a commuter rail station with several hallways leading to other train…
Insects Are
*2024 stock. 170 (hand-numbered) copies limited edition* "The recording locations of this work are Nakanoshima Park, Tenjinbashi, Sakuranomiya Park in Osaka, Japan. There are rows of cherry trees, rivers, ponds, lotus flowers on swamps, boat dock, railroads, and small forests. I visit this place often. The expression is rich depending on the season. It was a very hot summer day in August 2020. I brought in a small recording set (digital recorder, tape recorder, etc.) and worked on the go. There …
Étang Donné
*2024 stock. 170 (hand-numbered) copies limited edition* Capture the unshaken density of water. The day. Birdsongs. The night. The clamour of the clouds. Summer. The breath of the trees. In spring. That of the fish, in the fall. Budding trees. Zenith sun. The blooming of flowers on a full moon night. The ripples blown by the wind across the scarlet surface of the pond. The furtive swing of the willow branches under a diurnal rain. Leaping insects in warm light. The hoarse cry of the rooster. In …
Raaswater
*2024 stock. 170 (hand-numbered) copies limited edition* "Raaswater is a seamless album of compositions using sound recordings made whilst participating on the 2018 Sonic Mmabolela residency for sound artists and composers in the Limpopo province of South Africa. With a small group of likeminded people led by Francisco López & Barbara Ellison, I spent countless hours exploring the dynamic environments of the Mmabolela reserve by walking, resting, listening, interacting, experiencing and recordin…
Dry
*2024 stock. 160 (hand-numbered) copies limited edition* "Two bodies of water, contained in man-made channels and held back by barriers. Such is our desire and need to control nature, that we have used this resource to aid our industrious endeavours, often at the expense of the local area and environment. Steel, wood and concrete stand tall, holding back huge volumes of water to be channelled to produce electricity, cooling processes or simply be stored for future use. Often these processes cont…
Teatro Amadeo Roldan Recital
For the third release in our Mr Bongo Cuban Classics series, we reissue the iconic 1974 debut album by the mighty Grupo Irakere. Led by Chucho Valdés, son of Cuban pianist and bandleader Bebo Valdés, the band would go on to become of the most influential and successful groups emanating from Cuba in this period. Their debut ‘Teatro Amadeo Roldan Recital’ is an in-demand and incredible Afro-Cuban, jazz-funk masterpiece originally landing on Cuba’s state-owned imprint, Areito. One of the jewels of …
Grupo Irakere
For the second instalment in our Cuban Classics series, we proudly present this sought-after slice of sublime Afro-Cuban jazz from 1976. It comes courtesy of one of Cuba’s most influential acts, Grupo Irakere. Founded in 1973 by Chucho Valdés (son of the Cuban pianist and bandleader Bebo Valdés) the group was home to many of Cuba’s finest musicians over the years. With an electrifying style and sound, they mixed traditional Cuban music with jazz, funk, and rock. This self-titled album includes t…
Yoyi
*2024 stock* To launch Mr Bongo’s new Cuban Classic Series, we are thrilled to present this sought-after, psychedelic-funk masterpiece. A fusion of traditional Latin and Afro-Cuban rhythms meets disco, jazz, and funk, with hints of 70s soundtrack productions, this much-loved cult album featuring nine predominantly instrumental tracks is a real treasure that deserves a much wider appreciation. One look at the trippy artwork and you know it is going to be special. Originally released in 1977 on Ar…
O Esquadrão Da Morte
Mr Bongo is proud to present an official reissue of Zé Rodrix E A Agência De Mágicos ‘O Esquadrão Da Morte’. Written, arranged and composed by the genius of Zé Rodrix and performed by his band 'Agência de Mágicos’, this Brazilian library funk beauty is the soundtrack to Carlos Imperial's 1975 film of the same title. Echoing European soundtrack maestros such as Roy Budd and Ennio Morricone, but with a Brazilian swagger, Zé Rodrix's score is a sublime gem that needs rediscovery. Rich in 70's sound…
Mário Castro Neves & Samba S.A.
*2024 stock* The Brazilian composer, pianist and producer, Mário Castro Neves and his group, Samba S. A.'s self-titled album from 1967 is oozing with class. It possesses that archetypal 60's bossa nova, jazz, samba sound. We’d place it up there with Sergio Mendes at his finest, Tambo Trio or Milton Banana. It’s a breezy ride that touches on easy listening at times, but it holds it together with a cool swagger. Biba and Thaís Do Amaral's vocals are on point, with a relaxed delivery that complimen…
Anima POP – Music From Estonian Animations 1965-1986
Prima traduzione integrale dell’originale tedesco, questo libro dal valore documentario e storico altissimo è uno dei testi più decisivi per comprendere le avanguardie artistiche del Secondo Novecento e in particolare la cosiddetta “Nuova musica”.Raccoglie i fondamentali testi scritti da Stockhausen sui suoi brani per strumenti tradizionali e per suoni elettronici tra il 1952 e il 1962. Sono gli articoli relativi al periodo di sua massima esplorazione musicale, legata in particolare a uno dei mo…
Noise and Cries
As part of Subtext's 20th anniversary, Subtext presents the debut album from bela as a co-release with Unsound.
Horror of the Hexham Heads
The Night Monitor deftly constructs an auditory labyrinth, intertwining layers of analog synthesis and spectral ambience. Drawing inspiration from the obscure landscapes of 1970s electronic experimentation and the spectral echoes of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop to create an immersive experience that resonates with the unknown. From the dissonant whispers to the pulsating rhythms, "Horror of the Hexham Heads" invites listeners to navigate the murky waters of the unexplained, delving deep into the…
It Would Be Giving Up
Originally recorded and released in digital format only in 2020, It Would Be Giving Up is a set of ensemble pieces made with tape loops and analog instruments. Following a similar trajectory as that of Memory Repetitions and Future Predictions, this set pushes further beyond, continuing to utilize a wall-of-sound approach to mood construction, and reflections on complicated grief. Simultaneously, it is a further statement to intensify blurring of the lines between genres, with sound palettes def…
Nio & Pigeon
"New Hard, led by Toshiyuki Miyama, is one of Japan's leading big bands. Since the release of their seminal work Perspective in 1969, they've opened up new horizons in big band jazz with their cutting-edge sound. This work, Niou to Hato, is one such representative work of the new hard movement, which reached its zenith in 1972. Bandleader Kozaburo Yamaki was then in charge of the entire composition and arrangement, and deeply pursued one of his long-standing themes: Japan, the nation in and of i…
In The Groove
*2024 repress* Since it's formation in 1969, Soul Media had been advocating a fusion of jazz and rock. The next step along that line was this album, In the Groove, recorded in 1973. The sharpness of jazz is brought to the forefront, with rock melting in to give it an edge, and funk injected to imbue it with power and resilience. The result was a strong, sophisticated, and simply "cool music" that could not be categorized within existing genres such as jazz rock, jazz funk, or fusion. This work i…
That's Understanding
Having listened to this disk 20 or so times over the past week, I have been struck time and again by the gently naif quality of Dan Beckman-Moon's songwriting. I keep thinking of Neil Young's earliest solo tunes, particularly 'Sugar Mountain,' as a sort of spiritual touchstone, although truthfully the music doesn't really sound anything like that. Still, the emotional core of the material has a similar sweetness and simplicity, while managing to steer clear of mawkishness with a nimble delicacy …
Ashwin & Above
Ashwin & Above is a collection of pieces composed and recorded between 2018 – 2022. For the most part it is a celebration of making music alone. Some of the pieces ended up celebrating friendship and took on new life in the context of group performances. I wouldn’t point to any unifying quality except to say I very much hope you enjoy the space, it is a lung full of turbulence and joy.’ - Adam Coney
‘I’ve been excited to get my hands on this LP and it hasn’t disappointed. I’ve played several tra…
Soft Octaves
** 180g opaque blue/pink vinyl record. Edition of 200. ** That liminal moment, when the phosphorescence behind the window shade first disrupts your eyelids, is a difficult one to pinpoint. Sometimes the earliest thought in your mind is a long-tail partial memory of those last few moments of a thousand-yard dream, sometimes it’s an irrepressible descending sigh as you anticipate what’s to follow, whether with apprehension or ardor. Centuries have passed in your unconscious absence; every frequenc…