Very limited DVD-R on Alchemy, part of their new pirate DVD run, that documents a scorching live set from their 25th year of existence, recorded at Yokohama’s Club 24 on 28th November 2004.

Brand new tribute set of cover versions and punk extrapolations based around the phenomenal body of work birthed by Mr Jojo Hiroshige aka Alchemy label boss and Hijokaidan mainman. Features a totally disobedient Beefheart-style rave-up from the Oshiri PenPenz, microphone-gobbling action from Masonna (first new recording in years), great psych/pop stylings from Doodles, monstrously deformed guitar/noise from Solmania, GaramonKakinoki +AOL and a whole bunch of other punk Kansai Industrialists. Think of it as a particularly focussed Night Gallery instalment. Highly recommended.

Excellent new Incapacitants live disc on Lasse Marhaug’s new label. Recorded at the All Ears Festival in Norway in 2007, this one features two hysterical tracks. The first is the classic duo of T. Mikawa and Fumio Kosakai, working out of control circuitry and convulsive vocal blurt into some beautifully adrenalised shapes, from huge standing waves of all-devouring technicolour through gurgling, strangulated bombs and doofs. Second track adds collaborator Tommi Keranen of Testicle Hazard for a more pugilistic evisceration of everyday electronics. Another monster from Pica. Recommended.

Handsomely-packaged hand-numbered edition of 620 copies album from the legendary Japanese noise duo of T.Mikawa and F.Kosakai. Tight presents two sides of the group, with the A side featuring three hi-fi, exactingly structured studio recordings that perfectly encapsulate Incapacitants' goofy though deeply psychedelic approach to overloaded machine noise. This side has as much in common with the early electro-acoustic experiments of The New Blockaders and Organum as it does with contemporary Japanoise. The flip presents a quintessential live show, recorded live at the Showboat venue in Japan in 2007. This is a lot more ragged, privileging energy over form, and it has a beautiful punk vibe. The whole deal comes with a gold-embossed sleeve and a booklet with lengthy, excellent sleeve notes from Takuya Sakaguchi.

Rarity: original edition of one of the key Japanese noise LPs, Hijokiadan's 1983 Viva Angel LP, their second official album. Viva Angel is a classic primitive noise/rock rite from an early trio line-up featuring Jojo Hiroshige, T.Mikawa and Naoto Hayashi. Hysterical vocals ala Sun City Girls/Oshiri Pen Penz, totally squelchy levels of feedback destruction, formless rock gush at its most ecstatically overdriven, heavy psychedelic rock and moments of almost Lynchian body-horror sonics. Comes with the elusive insert. Vinyl: EX+/Sleeve EX +.

Irresistible new compilation CD from the reactivated Alchemy Records, an all-female psych set curated by Jojo Hiroshige of Hijokaidan. Features fragile, breathless song stylings from a bunch of upcoming femmes including Akiko Hodaka (formerly of Maher Shalal Hash Baz), Mai Mishio of Uzumibi, Hirachin of Oninko! and Totsuzen Danboru, Shiho of Ten-No.5 and Yuka Fujita of the excellent Chozu. “Produced by Jojo Hiroshige of Hijokaidan (The King Of Noise), the godfather of Japanese noise music and the owner of Alchemy Records. He realized the strength, fragileness, delicateness and other elements that only women could have are the keyword for this decade. This album contains 11 tunes from emerging female musicians that Hiroshige picked out from the Japanese underground music scene.” – Alchemy. 

“Combining CD player demonstration test signals, 24 bit digitally recorded improvised freeform analog pedal/electronic nO!se, direct to HD computer generated and recorded nO!se, flashbacks from the 1980s of 303 and 909 nO!se assaults including free-style repeat and reverse editing, a frog call editing experiment, finishing off the second disc is a unedited long-form radio de-tuning session! VALUE + BONUS is the sixth solo album release by Russell Haswell. It comes in deluxe no fun gatefold jacket and is limited to 1000.” – No Fun.