Our favourite vinyl releases of the week

Essential weekend listening.

This week’s rundown is by Kelly Doherty and VF contributors Emily Hill and James Hammond.

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James Massiah

Holland Park/ Hot Winter (Dreaming About Being Closer)

(life is beautiful records)

Buy

A special limited edition 7 inch featuring two tracks by London poet and producer James Massiah. A product of collaboration, the two tracks feature Shimz343 on the A side and aloisius on the B side. Both tracks offer slightly different takes on the production style, allowing Massiah to wield the power of his timeless flow across wide orchestral planes and slightly more jazz-centred percussive energies. A sensational record and a hot tip for those 45 heads. – EH

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Bon Iver

SABLE, fABLE

(Jagjaguwar)

Buy

Following last year’s SABLE EP, Bon Iver’s latest release via Jajaguwar is the singer-songwriter’s lightest record so far. SABLE, fABLE puts forth a more easy-going turn for the artist that built a name on quiet intensity. Filled with summer-tinged soul and soft-rock motifs, SABLE fABLE showcases Bon Iver at his most direct. –  KD

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Penelope Trappes

A Requiem

(One Little Independent Records)

Buy

Ritualistic and deeply personal in its excavation of intergenerational trauma, A Requiem presents a new branching for Penelope Trappes’ work. An unflinching exploration of darkness that was created in rural isolation- death, nightmares and demons are summoned in this visceral reckoning. Despite themes that might lend themselves to bombast and more heavy-handed approaches, these pieces are all the more affecting for Trappes’ attentiveness to the silence that measures her cello phrases and vocal contortions. – JH

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Various Artists

Disk Musik: A DD. Records Compilation

(Phantom Limb)

Buy

Phantom Limb have pulled off the first ever reissue of the final release from the iconic DD Records _ one of the most influential DIY imprints to ever exist, which operated out of Japan and released a staggering 222 cassettes throughout the early 80s. Despite its short life span and existing almost solely in Japan, the label’s dynamic approach to music and packaging has had a long-lasting impact on the musical landscape. An exciting and beautiful body of work with 12 sensational tracks on the wave spectrum, offering just a small glimpse into this impressive back catalogue. – EH

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Ben Bertrand

Relic Radiation

(Stroom)

Buy

Ben Bertrand’s second long-player for Stroom furthers the Belgian composer’s experimental journey into the bass clarinet. Contrasted against the instrument’s conventions, these works are of a smooth-edged ambience that take the clarinet as a vehicle for spectral forms and subtle melancholia. One for a deeper listen, Relic Radiation’s delicate layers and cyclical frequencies unassumingly work up an enveloping haze of sound. – JH