slow clinic

Out Now! Harry Towell & Friends – Petrologist’s Lens

Here’s our first release of 2023 which is called ‘Petrologist’s Lens‘ by our label owner Harry Towell as Harry Towell & Friends. It was made in collaboration with 12 artists who have had 2 or more releases on Whitelabrecs over the years. This album is out today in two runs of 100 CDrs; a standard gold edition, and a special marble-effect version. Both packaging versions include a 16 page booklet in our gatefold vinyl-effect. If you follow us on Bandcamp (Click HERE) we’ll keep you updated when we have new releases.

press release
“Whitelabrecs label owner Harry Towell is perhaps best renowned for his long-standing Spheruleus project, with a discography listing releases on Lost Tribe Sound, Home Normal, Time Released Sound, Hibernate and Eilean, as well as his collaborations alongside Sven Laux, Guy Gelem, Ekca Liena and more. Harry returns to his own label, following 2021’s ‘Canvas Homes + Supplémentaires’ and EPs ‘Absent Frames’ and ‘Inaugurate’, in this special collaborative album called ‘Petrologist’s Lens’.

January is a month we usually reserve for a compilation album, such as our Sleeplaboratory series. This year Harry decided to invite 12 artists who had contributed more than 2 releases on Whitelabrecs to submit a short sketch or sample, and then he developed these into the tracks that make up this album. As with some of his more recent work, this album is created under his own name, but with ‘& friends’ added to credit the label artists and good friends which he has worked alongside.

The title ‘Petrologist’s Lens’ nods to the concept of this body of work, which is rooted in the ancient geological history of the earth. Harry studied the land history of the areas where his collaborators reside, to help form a title for each piece. Tracks are named after particular fragments of rock or sediments, land regions or fossils for example, and the compositions were developed in a way which mimics the layering of these. The layers tell a story, giving clues of how they came to be. Sonically, filigree details and eroded tape textures ride waves of modern classical orchestration, ambient drones and electronics.

The packaging for this release features cover artwork by Soraya Kornblum, an art student in Adrian Lane’s class, submitted to Whitelabrecs as part of a school project. Each of the 200 editions include a 16 page booklet with words provided by Neil McRoberts, who transcribed his thoughts after listening to the music and reflecting on the concept. Physical copies are split into two runs; a standard gold disc version and a special marble print deluxe edition.“

credits

Written and produced by Harry Towell
Additional production and inspiration provided by Adrian Lane, Andrew Heath, Blochemy, Edu Comelles, Glåsbird, Guy Gelem, James Edward Armstrong, Paweł Pruski, Phil Tomsett, Polaroid Notes, Simon McCorry, Sven Laux

Mastered by James Edward Armstrong
Cover Art by Soraya Kornblum
Booklet Notes by Neil McRoberts
Art and Design by Andrew Heath

Coming soon… Harry Towell & Friends – Petrologist’s Lens

Our first release of 2023 is ‘Petrologist’s Lens‘ by our label owner Harry Towell as Harry Towell & Friends, in collaboration with 12 artists who have had 2 or more releases on Whitelabrecs over the years. This album will be available officially in two runs of 100 CDrs; a standard gold edition, and a special marble-effect version. Both packaging versions include a 16 page booklet in our gatefold vinyl-effect sleeves and will be out officially on Saturday the 14th of January after a pre-order on the 7th of January. If you follow us on Bandcamp (Click HERE) we’ll make sure you’re the first to hear.

credits

Mastered by James Edward Armstrong
Cover Art by Soraya Kornblum
Booklet Notes by Neil McRoberts
Art and Design by Andrew Heath

out now! matt atkins & slow clinic – earthtides I

Here’s the first of our two new releases for April. For this one, we welcome British label owners Matt Atkins (MRM) and James Edward Armstrong as Slow Clinic (Rusted Tone). They collaborated here in the album ‘Earthtides I‘, in which Matt provided his studio-recorded piano compositions for James’ additional processing, in which electric guitar and field recordings were added.

Earthtides I is out now in a run of 100 copies! The best way to keep informed about our low-run releases, is to join our mailing list, and we’ll make sure you’re the first to hear!

press release
“Matt Atkins is a London based sound and visual artist who uses various sources create sound collages. He runs the Minimal Resource Manipulation label and his music has appeared on labels such as Rusted Tone Recordings, Tone Burst and Anticipating Nowhere.

Slow Clinic is the solo performance and recording project of James Edward Armstrong. James has released music on labels including Archives, Assembly Field and Champion Version, as well as his own label Rusted Tone. In 2018 we released ‘Discarded Things Once Loved’ in a limited edition run of 50 CDrs, followed by 2019’s ‘Green Echo’, a collaboration with Jazzdefector.

Both of these artists are regular collaborators and ‘Earthtides I’ is the second album to come from a collaboration between Matt and James, following the release of ‘Enfolding’ via Rusted Tone Recordings in November 2020. Recorded between March and May 2021, this album began with a selection of piano loops recorded by Matt at OneCat Studio in Brixton, London. The piano loops were sent to James to layer heavily processed guitar, textural sounds, and field recordings gathered around the UK.“

credits

Music by Matt Atkins & James Edward Armstrong

Piano recorded by John Clayton at OneCat Studio
Layout and design by Andrew Heath
Cover art by Harry Towell
Mastered by James Edward Armstrong

Coming soon… Matt Atkins & Slow Clinic – Earthtides I

Here’s the first of our two new releases lined-up for the 9th of April. We’re pleased to welcome the return of Slow Clinic who had released Discarded Things Once Loved and Green Echo with us. Slow Clinic (James) is joined by Minimal Resource Manipulation label owner Matt Atkins in this collaboration.
‘Earthtides I‘ will be out for pre-order this coming Bandcamp Friday, the 1st of April and it’s a record that combines Matt’s piano recordings with James’ guitar and field recordings.

‘Earthtides I‘ will be available in one of our typically low runs of 100 gatefold vinyl-effect CDrs, complete with art and design by Andrew Heath.

It will be released officially on Saturday the 9th of April. If you join our mailing list using the link below, we’ll make sure you’re the first to hear.

credits
Music by Matt Atkins & James Edward Armstrong

Piano recorded by John Clayton at OneCat Studio
Layout and design by Andrew Heath
Cover art by Harry Towell
Mastered by James Edward Armstrong

Out Now! Various Artists – Sleeplaboratory2.0

2019 was a truly landmark year for us, with our new gatefold-LP packaging style being so well received, not to mention all of the support and great feedback we received from fans and the press alike. We started the year with a special compilation album themed on sleep; Sleeplaboratory1.0. We’re delighted to launch a new decade and exciting times ahead with the follow-up to this series, Sleeplaboratory2.0. We’ve been working behind the scenes on this one since last summer and we’re proud of the results in an album which features established artists within the scene, alongside label familiar favourites.

Sleeplaboratory2.0 was released to subscribers of our mailing list last weekend and unfortunately these have now sold out already! You can still stream the album on Bandcamp and of course, grab a digital version by clicking the link below or image above. To avoid missing out on future releases, you can join our mailing list HERE

https://whitelabrecs.bandcamp.com/album/sleeplaboratory20

press release
“Sleeplaboratory is a compilation series that we launched in 2019 and the success of this effectively launched our printed gatefold-LP style CDrs which featured all of last year. The Sleeplaboratory1/.0 compilation was created as a special celebration for our fiftieth release and we enjoyed the concept so much, that we decided to run another one. Sleeplaboratory2.0 continues the themes of sleep, rest and personal reflection, not necessarily aiming to meet the current trend of mindfulness and well-being but instead, it intends to rest the listener in a way that is appropriate to them.

The idea was originally came about after our label owner Harry and his wife had a baby daughter, Isla. Harry curated a full-length compilation to help soothe his daughter to sleep and whilst Isla hasn’t needed much of a helping hand where sleep is concerned, he was keen to continue this project as a series. Throughout much of last year, we have been working on a follow-up, inviting artists to meet this sleepy brief of minimalist Ambient tones. We’ve invited familiar label artists back as well as established names and perhaps you’ll see that the odd one or two go on to have releases with us later this year.

Over the 16 tracks, a serene and enveloping environment is established. The physical product is as usual presented across four printed panels and this time, artwork is provided by Harry’s wife Beth in an image taken on a family day out. As usual, we will not make any recommendation on how our listeners might best enjoy this record and so it’s down to you to choose the best environment to listen, whether this be late at night with headphones, on a loud system or perhaps played through Bluetooth speakers in and around your home.”

credits
Curated by Harry Towell
Mastered by James Edward Armstrong
Cover Photography by Bethany Towell
Packaging design by Harry Towell

Coming soon…Various Artists – Sleeplaboratory2.0

Whitelabrecs low-run releases will be made available suddenly without official release dates, meaning they’re likely to sell out fast. The best way to keep informed is to join our mailing list which can be located through our website menu or you can click HERE

credits
Curated by Harry Towell
Mastered by James Edward Armstrong
Cover Photography by Bethany Towell
Packaging design by Harry Towell

End of 2019 Winter Sale – 15% Off

2019 is just about finished, with just a few weeks left to run. We have decided not to run any releases in December and draw a bit of breath ahead of what will surely be another exciting year in 2020.

We decided that a good way to close out this landmark year for us, in which we increased our run count of 100 copies of every release, each in a premium gatefold-LP style vinyl-effect CDr packaging, was to run a winter sale!
So until midnight on the 31st of December 2019, you can enjoy an extra 15% off all of our catalog, both physical and digital.

Simply enter the following code into the discount box provided when you check out to enjoy a 15% reduction on all items:

CODE: anextra15
LINK: https://whitelabrecs.bandcamp.com/merch

If you’re in a rush or new to the label and not sure where to start, please see below for a run down of all our releases!

Various Artists “Sleeplaboratory1.0”
January | Sold Out

We kicked off both 2019 and our new Sleeplaboratory compilation series. The album is themed around sleep as we strive to make this series a snoozy, lulling listen. It begins with a piece from Janek Schaefer and includes work by other renowned artists such as Darkroom, Maps and Diagrams, M. Grig and Tropic of Coldness as well as Whitelabrecs favourites such as Sven Laux, Valotihkuu, Anthéne and Ben Rath. It sold out in no time so there are no CDrs left however, you can check it out digitally here:

Glåsbird “Grønland”
February | Sold Out

Our new-look gatefold LP style packaging did so well for our compilation release, that we decided that all of our albums would run in this way for 2019. The first artist in this year’s discography was a debut for Glåsbird and things went a bit nuts! All CDrs were gobbled up in no time and you can’t even locate these on Discogs; you can check it out a digital copy here:

Jens Pauly “Vihne”
March | Sold Out

In March we welcomed aboard Cologne, Germany based artist Jens Pauly with Vihne. The packaging was designed entirely by the artist and the music is a tapestry of electro-acoustics. When we first heard Jens’ sound we knew it was going to be something special and sure enough, it’s sold out at source now. You can listen or purchase a digital copy here:

anthéne “asymmetry”
April | Sold Out

In April Canadian artist Brad Deschamps as anthéne joined aboard with asymmetry, an album which features the photography of Peter Nejedly. The record is a collection of beautiful drones, from an industrious artist who has worked on other labels such as Archives and Home Normal this year. With so much great output this year, it’s easy to see why this one’s sold out. You can stream or purchase a digital copy here:

Ben Rath “Any Given Moment”
April | Available

For the first time in April we decided to run with two albums in a calendar month. We welcomed back British artist Ben Rath who had previously released with us as Slow Heart Music. ‘Any Given Moment’ covers warm, acoustic ground via the use of a guitar and drones. A few copies are still available as well as a digital copy which you can check out here:

Hipnotic Earth “Suspended In Silence”
May | 12 Copies Remaining

In May we moved towards the warmer months with a delicate and beautiful album by Hipnotic Earth, a project by Cosmos Rennert. Suspended In Silence is presented as an electro-acoustic record centred around what appears to be prepared piano sounds, bird song and light synth decorations. The last few copies are available at the time of writing and a digital version too, which you can check out here:

Samsuo “The Other Gold Side”
May | Available

Towards the end of May we released the debut album by Cambridge artist Samsuo. Entitled ‘The Other Gold Side’, this Ambient/Drone record saw us welcome back Peter Nejedly on photography duty and the rotating ceramic dish which features across the four panels suitably reflects the looping, spherical drones created by this artist. There are some copies left at the time of writing as well as a digital version too, which you can check out here:

Sven Laux “ODD”
June | 16 Copies Remaining

After the success of Sven Laux’s ‘Schachmatt’ which we released in 2018, we were delighted to welcome Sven back with his follow-up album, ‘ODD’. Whilst Schachmatt was an album steeped in modern composition, ODD adapted this with a slightly more contemporary electronic feel in places. We’re down to the last 16 copies at the time of writing and you can also stream or download a digital version, which you can check out here:

Old Amica “Taiga”
June | Available

We were excited to welcome aboard Swedish duo Old Amica, who split their discography between folk-tinged post rock and cinematic Ambient. For us, they turned in a beautiful instrumental album featuring piano, guitar and synth and stunning artwork, arranged by the artists’ friend J. M Almqvist. We’ve still got some copies left as it stands and you can also check out their video and a digital version here:

Logic Moon “I See Planets”
July | 12 Copies Remaining

We returned to deep drone with this one by Logic Moon in some of the sleepiest music we’ve released to date. Tobias Lorsbach, the man behind the project created an album with a retro-futuristic theme and we decided to splash out on talented collage artist Thom Easton to provide the artwork. Just a few copies remind and you can check them out, as well as the usual stream/digital versions here:

Spring Quintet “Raven, Raven, Raven”
July | Available

We chopped back to modern classical with this one, with a live performance by Montreal’s Stefan Christoff and several other musicians being handed to Italian sound artist Matteo Uggeri to assist with post production. The result is a playful electro-acoustic piece with several movements across half an hour, complete with artwork by painter Chris Day. Some copies are still around in our shop, which you can buy or stream a digital version here:

Glåsbird “Svalbarð”
August | Sold Out

Somehow after a debut album, Glåsbird manages to follow it up with a second album in a year. The first album was a sonic expedition to Greenland and in August, the trip continued to the Arctic isles of Svalbard. Just like the last one, this album was gobbled up quickly by our listeners and is unavailable physically. You can stream or buy a digital version here, however:

Emanuele Errante “This World”
August | Available

We were really excited to release ‘This World’ by Naples, Italy based artist Emanuele Errante, whose work we’d admired for years. Emanuele teamed up with Peppe Trotta of So What magazine for the cover artwork and also invited guest musicians Bruno Sanfilippo and Max Fuschetto to feature in this magical electro-acoustic recording. Copies are available still at the time of writing or you can stream/buy a digital version here:

xu “embodying formlessness”
September | Available

In a hat-trick of releases by Italian artists for 2019, we welcomed back Nicola Fornasari who had collaborated for the La Petite Vague release which we put out in 2016. This one’s a lovely minimal album of toy ukulele and careful sound design that rewards repeated listening. You can still grab a copy at the moment or stream/buy a digital version here:

Gray Acres “Material Forces”
October | Sold Out

Not due to the talent of the Tasselmyer brothers and a helping hand from Bandcamp’s ‘Best of Ambient’ feature, this album by Gray Acres sold out in a flash. It’s a wonderful collection of tactile drones with far-flung field recordings, mastered by Ian Hawgood. There are no physical versions left but you can stream it or own a digital version here:

Jazzdefector and Slow Clinic “Green Echo”
October | Available

We’re always really pleased to see our artists return with another demo but when two came along at once and as a collaboration, we were particularly excited! ‘Green Echo’ combines moody guitar Ambience by Jazzdefector with the sound design expertise of Slow Clinic across 6 tracks. There are some CDrs left or you may prefer to stream or own a digital version:

Luis Miehlich “Timecuts”
November | Available

Silences by Luis Miehlich was simply one of our favourite records from 2018. So we were delighted when his demo ‘Timecuts’ came in and over time, Luis arranged remixes by the likes of Gallery Six, Erder, SineRider and our very own Glåsbird to complete the package. The album flits between Ambient/Drone, Electro Acoustic and Modern Classical and the remixes carefully compliment the originals as every bit a part of the album experience. Some physical copies are available or if you prefer, you can stream or own a digital version by clicking here:

Jack Hyde “Lowlands”
November | Available

Last but not least, we closed out this busy year with our 18th release, courtesy of Jack Hyde. Lowlands is a debut album from this Edinburgh, UK based artist and it covers Ambient, Dub and Field Recording territory in a careful, fascinating record. We have physical copies available as well as the option to stream or download here:

Out Now! Jazzdefector and Slow Clinic – Green Echo

This new release is a collaboration between two artists who have released solo albums with us; Sebastian Buccheri as Jazzdefector and James Armstrong’s Slow Clinic. The duo met after James admitted on social media that he was suffering from writer’s block and their work together produced something that flowed freely. ‘Green Echo‘ is an album of varying drones, full of peaks and troughs which ebb and flow through moments of solitude and more epic bursts. Sebastian’s signature guitar sound is interspersed careful soundscaping. This will be available in 2019’s signature gatefold-LP style CD, in a run of 100 copies and we’ll release this officially on or around the 19th of October 2019. This one might appeal to artists such as Robin Guthrie, Darkroom or Thom Brennan.

Green Echo was released to subscribers of our mailing list last weekend, who had the first opportunity to grab a copy and these have been selling fast! You can stream the album on Bandcamp and of course, grab one of the remaining physical copies or a download if you prefer by clicking the link below or image above. To avoid missing out on future releases, you can join our mailing list HERE

https://whitelabrecs.bandcamp.com/album/green-echo

press release
“Our next release sees the return of both Jazzdefector and Slow Clinic, who contributed albums to our catalog in 2016 and 2018 respectively. The pair have been connected via social media for quite some time but when James Armstrong (Slow Clinic) had posted about a stint of writer’s block, Sebastian Buccheri (Jazzdefector) messaged to suggest a collaboration.
James agreed and set about creating the sort of paired-back material which started this journey, with his debut for Somehow Recordings; a guitar, a volume pedal, octaver and an endless feedback delay. This was passed over to Sebastian who added his signature guitar sound to add new layers of improvised melody to James’ drones.

The collaboration that became ‘Green Echo’ drew out a combined strength between two artists who had reached a plateau in their creativity at that point. In their mutual brick walls they found that the blocks were removed through the creation of Green Echo. The bouncing back and sharing of ideas, or echoes if you prefer, translated into something greener, as hope and optimism took hold. The album itself has also become a collection of memories which reflect this positive experience created in winter and for Sebastian in particular, he recalls the fading green landscapes of the midlands, UK countryside in which he lives.”

credits
Written and produced by Sebastian Buccheri and James Edward Armstrong
Mastered by James Edward Armstrong
Packaging design by Harry Towell

Coming soon…Jazzdefector and Slow Clinic – Green Echo

We’ve been busy shipping parcels of the recent Gray Acres album and also, preparing our next limited edition CDr. This one features a collaboration between two artists who have released solo albums with us; Sebastian Buccheri as Jazzdefector and James Armstrong’s Slow Clinic. The duo met after James admitted on social media that he was suffering from writer’s block and their work together produced something that flowed freely. ‘Green Echo ‘is an album of varying drones, full of peaks and troughs which ebb and flow through moments of solitude and more epic bursts. Sebastian’s signature guitar sound is interspersed careful soundscaping. This will be available in 2019’s signature gatefold-LP style CD, in a run of 100 copies and we’ll release this officially on or around the 19th of October 2019. This one might appeal to artists such as Robin Guthrie, Darkroom or Thom Brennan.