Various Artists
Tools 2.0

BLACK VINYL VERSION We’re at our fifth episode on The Secret Sun series and we’re thrilled to have another legendary producer taking care of it.Miki “The Dolphin” is somebody who needs no introduction as he is, together with Francesco Farfa and Roby J, one of the pioneers of the Italian progressive scene that formed in the early 90’s in Tuscany and spread across Italy and beyond. Recognized worldwide for his productions on Interactive Test and his own Major Hypnotic Key Institute, Miki forged a solid vinyl discography that is still today very much in-demand in the second hand market, with collectors paying high prices to get their hands on the few copies around.His intense dj set activity over the past 30 years has brought the attention of many also towards his experimental analogical works: initially realized in Florence with the connection with Franco Falsini and his Interactive Test, and later, up until the first half of the 2000’s, in Ferrara, in the recording rooms of the Adrogimus Recordings Mulino where the concepts of the Major Hypnotic Key Institute were further developed thanks to long studio sessions, both alone and with renowed trained musicians.As it is now our modus operandi here at the OCD/SS HQ, we gained access to Miki’s personal DAT archives to scour for the goods; we are now bringing under the light of our sun two previously unreleased gem “Anse Takamaka”, created together with the late jazz bass player Bruno Corticelli, and “Shamballa”. To close the EP, we’re reissuing “Art Of Libido” a highly sought after track previously released on Interactive Test.

Six years, fifty releases, countless artists and multiple subsidiaries; the Oyster Cult’s reach extends far beyond what sceptics once thought possible. It’s only fitting, then, that we gather some of our finest under the Kalahari banner in celebration.The anniversary release is upon us. Six whole years since Jacy helped inaugurate the label with a spin on Midwestern house, OYSTER40 signals a landmark occasion. 18 tracks, quadruple vinyl boxset action, and in true Oyster Cult tradition, it comes bearing pearls.Dancefloor squarely in focus, the Cult assembles on a compilation spanning alumni and new inductees alike. It’s an assemblage of the fractal, explorative and ritual-ready; at once a focused distillation of the Kalahari sound and celebration of its many acolytes. Big on atmosphere, heavy on groove, we delve deeply into the musical DNA shared by all who grace the label.Tough, direct cuts (Sansibar, Roza Terenzi, Big Zen, Maara & Priori) to the pristine and widescreen (S.O.N.S., Volodymyr Gnatenko, Adam Pits), this is all quintessentially Kalahari. Elsewhere though, the likes of D. Tiffany and SW. journey further into realms of abstraction: the former opting for hi-tech, dreamstate IDM, while the SUED co-founder dissolves a house template into dubby introspection.Calling upon contemporary talents for the most part, there are also exceptions. Raymond Castoldi - the one-time house producer best known as Madison Square Garden’s music director - returns with an unreleased nugget from ’91, while an ‘Aliens’-sampling track from Detroit-indebted techno outfit Syzygy gets the reissue treatment.