Jazz /
From Fargo Live 1940
"It was, all things considered, just an unexceptional whistle stop on a wearying circuit of dance halls and theaters – the night before they had played in Winnipeg, Manitoba and, conveyed by train the 200 miles to this evening’s North Dakota gig, would immediately afterwards find themselves en route to Duluth, Minnesota for their next show. There was certainly no expectation that the on-site recording, made by two South Dakota fans, Jack H. Towers and Dick Burris, on a single acetate disc recor…
Somewhere Over The Rainbow
Strut Records proudly presents the first definitive expanded reissue of Somewhere Over The Rainbow, Sun Ra’s 1977 session recorded at the Bluebird in Bloomington, Indiana, presented across three Vinyl LPs or as a two-CD set. Please note the differing tracklist between the CD & LP.
Onjo
*2005 release. 2026 stock* Kahimi Karie and Mariko Hamada guest as two vocalists on this orchestral work, which marks a dramatic advance from ONJQ. Its many scenes—sometimes hushed, sometimes intense—integrate (and disperse) every sonic possibility—jazz, ambient, rock, voice, noise, etc.—bringing new discoveries to every listener’s ear. Delicate sounds that can be heard if you listen closely. Even accidental onstage noises are intentionally included (you can hear them if you listen carefully), p…
Sky And Future
*2026 stock* This is the Big Band version by Otomo Yoshihide Special Big Band (OSBB) of the 48-minute suite "Sora to Mirai to," written entirely for this performance. "Sora to Mirai to" was originally composed at the request of conductor Yutaka Sado and premiered by the Hyogo Performing Arts Center Orchestra on January 17, 2025, the 30th anniversary of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake. Although it is an orchestral work, it includes elements of improvisation; soon after its premiere, Otomo imme…
Live At Cafe OTO 2024
*2026 stock* A precious documentary capturing Otomo Yoshihide Special Big Band’s (OSBB) first European tour. It’s their first live release in ten years.
Formed in 2013, OSBB has performed concerts and live shows, contributed scores for productions including Ama-chan and Idaten, and taken part in many unique and demanding projects—most notably the Bon Odori that began in Fukushima. For this tour they undertook 12 performances across seven European countries. Prior to the tour, the band changed th…
Gallery
*2026 stock* Toshiyuki Miyama led The New Herd for decades, one of the most important and most adventurous Japanese big bands of the post-war period, and the working ensemble through which a remarkable number of Japanese composers and arrangers found a sympathetic home. Gallery shows the band in mature form, working through a programme that uses the full resources of the ensemble: brass-heavy passages giving way to chamber-sized features, dense ensemble writing setting up patches of open improvi…
Sunday Thing
*2026 stock* Another date from Toshiyuki Miyama's New Herd for Three Blind Mice, and a strong candidate for the band's most accessible single record. Sunday Thing leans into the warmer, more groove-conscious end of the New Herd's repertoire: there are still the harmonic ambitions and ensemble dynamics that made the band more than a swing-era throwback, but the rhythmic feel runs closer to the soul-jazz and groove-oriented big-band writing that was current at the time.
Long-form arrangements give…
Now's The Time
*2026 stock* A live document from the legendary “5 Days In Jazz” festival in Tokyo in March 1974, and one of the most ambitious multi-band albums in the Three Blind Mice catalogue. The record gathers some of the most important working units of the moment: bassist Isao Suzuki and guitarist Sunao Wada sharing the front of the stage, the Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio holding things together from the rhythm section, and the George Otsuka Quintet stepping in with the alto-led horn front-line that defined th…
Montreux Cyclone
*2026 stock* A double-set capturing Bingo Miki's Inner Galaxy Orchestra in live performance at Montreux, and one of the more ambitious large-ensemble documents in the entire Three Blind Mice catalogue. Miki spent his career writing for big bands at the edge of mainstream Japanese jazz, blending orchestral architecture with modal, spiritual and free-leaning impulses, and the Inner Galaxy Orchestra was his most expansive vehicle. The Montreux performance shows the ensemble at full stretch: long-fo…
Our Thing
From the halls of Kashmere High School to the discographies of funk aficionados worldwide, the Kashmere Stage Band’s debut album Our Thing, self-released in 1969, stands as a defining artifact of American funk. Born from a Texas student ensemble under the exacting direction of musical director Conrad O. Johnson, the band forged a sound steeped in raw, unfiltered groove and high-velocity horn work that would resonate for decades.
Our Thing captures the Kashmere Stage Band at a pivotal moment: a r…
Free Music (1975-1988)
Cortizona proudly unveils Cortizona Heritage, a new sublabel created in partnership with the Study Centre for Flemish Music (SVM) to revive and showcase hidden chapters of Flemish music history.The debut release sets the tone: blending the exuberance of a marching band with the unpredictability of free improvisation, WIM Fanfare brought raw, joyful musical anarchy to city squares, parades, and unsuspecting audiences.
Tell them it´s the sound of freedom
Almost two decades have passed since Martin Kuchen, one of the brightest figures in European improvised music, founded the band Angles. Over the years, the band has evolved in terms of its membership and personnel. The Portuguese label Clean Feed has released the vast majority of the group's albums. Now it is time for the latest incarnation of Angles, this time Angles 11, featuring musicians from the core line-up and the oldest companions of musical journeys, as well as ‘fresh blood’. Those we a…
Who Is Who? (LP)
The first 1979 LP on FMP with gatefold sleeve original innersleeve by the Orchestra featuring John Tchicai and a host of German musicians, never re-issued on either CD or LP.
In Holland (2LP)
Original 1981 double LP edition with gatefold sleeve on BVHaast of the Kollektief's finest album full of superb orchestrations.
Live In Wuppertal (LP)
Original edition on FMP of the first album from 1973 by 'the' free jazz big band, featuring Peter Brotzmann, Peter Kowald, Paul Lovens, Evan Parker, Alex Schlippenbach, Paul Rutherford, Kenny Wheeler and a host of others.
Jahrmarkt / Local Fair (LP)
Original 1977 album on Po Torch with gatefold sleeve by 'the' free jazz big band, featuring Peter Brotzmann, Albert Mangelsdorff, Anthony Braxton, Peter Kowald, Paul Lovens, Evan Parker, Enrico Rava, Alex Schlippenbach and a host of others.
Improvisations (LP)
Original German edition on Japo of the 1978 album by 'the' free jazz big band, featuring Peter Brotzmann, Derek Bailey, Albert Mangelsdorff, Peter Kowald, Paul Lovens, Evan Parker, Tristan Honsinger, Alexander von Schlippenbach and a host of others.
Compositions (LP)
Original German edition on Japo of the 1980 album by 'the' free jazz big band, featuring Steve Lacy, Albert Mangelsdorff, Paul Lovens, Evan Parker, Alexander von Schlippenbach, Kenny Wheeler, Manfred Schoof, Enrico Rava and a host of others.
Jazzbühne Berlin '82
1990 release (RARE) ** Recorded live at Volksbühne East Berlin on June 13, 1982.
Saturnian Queen Of The Sun Ra Arkestra
Undoubtedly the most sublime constellation in the Sun Ra cosmos, June Tyson’s voice is the perfect guide through one of the most challenging and varied musical legacies ever created. Capable of fierce and sassy declamations as well as intricate melodic weavings, June's voice transcends genre. This first-ever collection affirms June Tyson’s unassailable gravity in Sun Ra’s realm, and features some of June's most popular numbers along with previously unissued tracks. The LP and CD versions include…