For RocketNumberNine, capturing the spirit of the music is paramount and with their debut album, MeYouWeYou, the London-based Page brothers — Tom (drums) and Ben (synths) — invite you into their tribal Chingford roots, taking music forwards to reach where it came from. This is hard hitting, modern dance music played live without a single click track in sight. With a name taken from a song by space jazz crusader Sun Ra and musical influences from Detroit to London to Africa and beyond, RocketNumberNine, have spent the last eight years shaping, breaking and squeezing their sound into what it is today.

Before we get to today, let’s revisit the musical journey that got them here. While working with legendary drummer Steve Reid, Tom met Kieran Hebden (aka Four Tet) resulting in the band going on a short tour with Four Tet. By the end of this run, Kieran decided he must produce and release the bands 14 minute “Matthew & Toby” via his TEXT label. It was recorded and mixed in a day without so much as a sniff of a computer — a refreshing approach from the producer renowned for his electronic productions! This kick started a new era for RocketNumberNine as it saw them moving away from improvisation and condensing their electronic dance punk jazz mash up into bite sized chunks. Soon after, an early live collaboration with Four Tet and RocketNumberNine caught the attention of Thom Yorke who invited them to open for Radiohead at The Roseland Ballroom in New York in late 2011. At those shows, material started to take shape for what would later become the first collaborative release from RocketNumberNine and Four Tet, the “Roseland”/”Metropolis” 12″ (TEXT023).

This brings us to the present. The TEXT release has just hit, rumors are floating of a new collaboration with the enigmatic Miss Neneh Cherry, and, a long time coming, on May 21, 2013, their debut full-length, MeYouWeYou, is finally going to be released by Smalltown Supersound. 2013 appears to be the year RocketNumberNine crosses out of the shadows surrounding the darkest of live dance music over into the light that is the infamy of wider adulation. Thom Yorke, Four Tet, Gilles Peterson and Caribou can’t all be wrong!

LISTEN TO/SHARE ROCKETNUMBERNINE’S “ROTUNDA”

“‘Rotunda,’ from their forthcoming debut album, is raw and organic, with tribal rhythms and modern electronics combining for a track that feels both timeless and futuristic.” – Pigeons and Planes

MeYouWeYou Tracklisting:
01. Lope
02. Rotunda
03. Slide
04. Steel Drummer
05. Symposium
06. Deadly Buzz
07. Black and Blue
08. Lone Raver
09. Matthew and Toby

Hear JD Twitch of Optimo’s great remix of Carmen Villain “How Much”

Finally back in stock! “Actions For Free Jazz” Tees in 3 different colors. The design is printed on American Apparel unisex t-shirts. Girls may prefer to order one size smaller, or the Jersey model. Design: Kim Hiorthøy.

You can order them from our Superstore mailorder here

You may have seen Todd Terjes video for “Inspector Norse”, and this is the full 15-minute film.

WHATEVEREST is a documentary about the unlikely inspiration behind a dance tune produced by Todd Terje called “Inspector Norse”. “Inspector Norse” is the internet alias of Marius Solem Johansen, a failed musician living in a small town, producing dance videos and drug recipes for YouTube.

The film has screened at CPH:DOX, AFI FEST, GOTHENBURG INTERNATIONAL, OSLO INTERNATIONAL and won at AFI FEST (Special Jury Award)

Congratulations to Lindstrom and Neneh Cherry & The Thing!
Here´s the jury´s reason for the nominationz:

Lindstrøm – “Smalhans”
An instrumental space disco concept album about traditional norwegian food? Why not, with the fingerspitzgefuhl of Hans-Peter Lindström, we are always in safe, groovy hands. Synthesizer-led tunes soulfully building a bridge from Miami to Milan for us to dance across, in six long stretches. He has already released another amazing album this year, the more experimental and totally rocking “Six cups of rebel”. But “Smalhans” shows a disco producer at his very prime.

Neneh Cherry & The Thing – “The Cherry Thing”
The shape of Nordic jazz and punk to come. The Thing is a Nordic power trio with Swedish saxophonist Mats Gustafsson and Norwegian doule bass player Ingerbrit Håker Flater and drummer Paal Nilssen-Love. Neneh Marianne Karlsson Cherry, born in Skåne, is a force of nature.

The winner is announced at by:Larm, Oslo, Norway, 13-16 February 2013. Get more info at ByLarm here.

Watch this short film between Lindstrom and filmmaker Kristoffer Borgli on Nowness here.

Finally our new Superstore mailorder shop is up an running, thanks to our friends Robotstore in Bergen who handles the orders and maintains the shop. We have some new cool things in there, among others the coffee mugs designed by Kim Hiorthøy on the photo above. Anyway, check it all out here.