Marcos Valle -"Samba '68 (Verve Vault Series)" [180g Heavy Vinyl LP] Samba '68, released on Verve, introduced Brazilian singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Marcos Valle to a wider international audience. Already established in Brazil through songs such as "Samba de Verao" ("Summer Samba"), Valle worked here with producer Creed Taylor on a recording that pairs Brazilian rhythmic forms with contemporary American studio orchestration. The sessions include vocals by Anamaria Valle and arrangements by Eumir Deodato. The repertoire features English-language versions of compositions co-written by Valle, including "So Nice (Summer Samba)," "Chup Chup, I Got Away," and "Safely In Your Arms," alongside additional material that reflects his economical writing and feather-light rhythmic approach. The album documents a meeting point between Brazilian popular music and international pop-jazz studio practice at the end of the 1960s. The Verve Vault series is always mastered from analog tapes and pressed on 180g vinyl at Optimal. Towa Bird returns with her sophomore album Gentleman - 11 songs that navigate the tension between masculine and feminine archetypes, delivered with undeniable confidence and swagger from one of music's most promising voices. Featuring the singles "Dirty Habit" and "Dog," with contributions from Bikini Kill's Kathleen Hanna, Gentleman sharpens Towa's guitar-driven rush into a world of queer romance and self-assured style - equal parts charm, humor, vulnerability, and bite. Produced by Patrick Wimberly (MGMT, Blood Orange, Solange. ) Pressed on red vinyl.