Over The Counter #4: Kristina Records

After Rush Hour's sterling trio of entries for our Over The Counter hall of fame, the most excellent Kristina Records from Dalston are now representing London in the OTC stakes…. Get ready for this month's top vinyl picks and much more from this fine record emporium. Brace yourself for the good stuff;

After a busy summer of music, it's back to business as usual at Kristina Records as we welcome the onslaught of new releases in one of the most active periods of the year for records. 

In-store we marked our 4th birthday in July, celebrating in style with New York's Frank & Tony, local house legend Rob Mello, Fold, and Australian-cum-Londoner Bell Towers ensuring the music was of the highest order all day.

As for a taste of what's in store for the remainder of the year, Scotland's Lord Of The Isles joins us for an in-store next week, as well as the announcement of the return of our Dream States series of parties at exciting new space The Pickle Factory. We couldn't be more pleased with the relaunch line up, showcasing Slow Life, a label very close to us here at Kristina, with label boss S.Moreira performing a live set for his London debut, bringing core members Laurine and Cecilio in tow. 

Recent second hand collections acquired has meant an influx of exciting pre-owned records, from obscure soca and reggae to classic krautrock and new wave, priced to clear and replenished regularly it pays to keep an eye on the bins. Regular customers Andrew Weatherall, Seth Troxler and a stop by Tim Sweeney have restocked their bags with the latest wax hand picked by our staff. 

On to some new records that are getting regular plays in-store. A Mood Hut release never hangs around long and their tenth vinyl release is by Slow Riffs; keeping it in the family with a group that first released with the label back in 2013. A far more experimental approach than the playful house of some recent Mood Hut releases, 'Gong Bath' is an excursion in field recordings, dubbed out jazz infused drums and meditative ambience. Mystic Jungle thoroughly impressed with their EP 'Terror From The Deep' on Early Sounds Recordings earlier in the year. Now in tribe form with the addition of label family The Normalmen, Like Someone and Nu Guinea, The Mystic Jungle Tribe's 'Solaria' LP is an incredibly accomplished 7-tracker covering everything from dreamy machine funk, psychedelic downtempo trips and cosmic balearica, with a unique warmth and a nod to the dance floor. 1080p return for their second vinyl outing with acid rave meets NYC funk from Max McFerren, hot-tip!

In a year that has seen the continued resurgence of reissues and represses done right, releases from labels such as Music From Memory and Into The Light are always welcome in the store. Most recently the Dutch based Music From Memory brought to light Joel Graham's incredible 'Geomancy', a stunning 12" featuring two full length analogue workouts, tweaking synthesizers, vocoders and drums in to a minimalist, kosmische-esque masterpiece. Originally recorded in 1982 on pre-midi equipment, this record still shines up against techno recorded today. A close relative to Music From Memory, Into The Lights first remix EP was met with great anticipation as three expertly chosen producers paying special homage to the king of Greek electronics Vangelis Katsoulis. Telephones, Young Marco and Max D all staying respectfully true to the originals, whilst giving them their unique lift to adapt to the modern floor. 

A big believer in supporting local talent, Charles Drakeford's F T D imprint's third release by Elzéard and Moana, who coincidentally stopped in the store on Friday, has been on high rotation in the shop, a versatile melting pot of techno grooves, organic drums, SFX and freaky vocals for a cool leftfield outing. A few big represses for the house heads, including the classic NY house of Jovonn with 'Satisfied' on a coloured 12 for Millions Of Moments, Thug Records' timeless 2013 release 'Cozmic House' from Ben 'Cozmo D' Cenac, as well as a more recent classic with the first Oscillat Music release from S.A.M. getting a welcome press. New releases from Session Victim, Smallville, Benjamin Brunn, Fauxpas Musik, Secretsundaze and a welcome return to Atavisme for label boss Pépé Bradock, who once again does not fail to impress. 

And finally, a re-stock of the beautifully handmade Airbag Craftworks line of record bags, the German company a favourite with DJs such as Ricardo Villalobos, Prosumer and Seth Troxler, has landed. With a unique shell casing that opens to equal halves, a godsend for the touring, vinyl packing DJ. 

Plenty more records and announcements in the coming weeks, see you in the store!

Kristina can be found at 44 Stoke Newington Road, N167XJand are open every day until 8pm (except Sundays when they close at 6). Keep up to date with what they've got coming up on their Facebook and Twitter.