Label Biography

Two years since the release of their critically acclaimed debut LP, ‘The Soft Bounce’ on Phantasy, the sonic brotherhood known as Beyond The Wizards Sleeve delve into the archives to present a very special, expanded edition of the record, including original demos, alternate versions and instrumental edits.

Each featured demo take listeners back nearly a decade, revisiting 2009 or 2010, a period in which the Beyond The Wizards Sleeve project was evolving into a more full-bodied and original experience.

The alias of DJ/producer duo Erol Alkan and Richard Norris’ initially established with a mysterious, instantly celebrated series of edits, those that often subtly re-imagined obscure and beloved psych classics, tipping them towards the dancefloor and then far beyond. Soon, they had applied their touch to some of the world’s most celebrated alternative artists, turning in timeless ‘reanimations’ for the likes of The Chemical Brothers, Franz Ferdinand and Midlake, as well as the entirety of the Temples' debut 'Sun Structures', renamed as 'Sun Restructured'.

Demos of ‘Delicious Light’, ‘Diagram Girl’ and ‘Iron Age’ further unravel the influences of the sonic brotherhood of Beyond The Wizards Sleeve, finding an additional dimension of intrigue in playful experimentation, a homemade attitude rendered charming here, and then glorious when awash in the full-scale psychedelia explored years later on 'The Soft Bounce'.

Opening the expanded edition of the record, ‘Black Crow (Midnight Version)’, places Holly Miranda’s haunting vocal front-and-centre in the mix, expanding on it’s unnerving strain of almost pagan melancholy. A similar effect occurs on a previously unheard ‘Sunrise Version’ of ‘Door to Tomorrow’, featuring Euros Childs in more enchanting and intimate form than before, while ‘Delicious Light’ is both reduced and expanded to a breathtaking ambient projection.

Finally, instrumental versions of the album’s singles provide further focus on the diverse, timeless sonic styles throughout. The expanded version of 'The Soft Bounce' goes deeper, stranger, darker and lovelier than once before. You throw the sticks up in the air and they come down in a different pattern.

The album’s announcement is heralded by the sharing today of a 2009 demo of ‘Creation’. It was later to be led vocally by singer-songwriter Jane Weaver, but appears here in it's original instrumental demo form. Even when stripped of it’s enchanting lyrics, this rough draft from 2009 (originally titled 'Apocalypso') is a memorable slice of summery psych-pop, blending acutely-tuned acoustic guitars and elasticated synths with radiophonic-like sonics, imbued with further charm by virtue of its unpretentious garage rock qualities.