First Word Recordsis extremely proud to present you with ‘Music! Musik! Musique!’ -a 13-track compilation of all-new music of the beats, soul & jazz variety from artists based across Europe.Very recently, we put a call out to musicians across the continent. Regardless of what happens with Brexit, we at First Word consider boundaries to be artificial. This album is quite simply a tribute to our home; Europe. Our team, our artists & our friends consist of people from across the globe. In a time rife with division & uncertainty, we’d like to celebrate unity and diversity. The best way we know how... Music.

Originally, we’d planned to release this on the initial exit-day of March 29th. When that didn’t happen, we decided two can play that game, and took a little more time trying to make this collection of tracks as solid as it can be, and to truly represent genres we love here at First Word HQ. We, however, aren’t intending to procrastinate on this until June -we’d like to share this with you now.

So to the selection. We have a smattering of low-slung laid-back beats, beginning in Holland with Sleepin' Giant on ‘Hearts Are Fragile’, heading to Scotland with Daryl Donald for ‘Still Here’, to Belgium with Shungu for ‘Let The World Know’, to Ireland with Colm K’s ‘Small White’, to Denmark with Terry Tester for ‘Lupin’, and a 3-beat suite from Welsh producer and Darkhouse Family member, Don Leisure, hot off the heels of his ‘Halal Cool J’ album with a ’Suite fo eU’.Keeping on the jazzy-hip hop vein, we have two tracks that see artists of different geographical make-up providing that good good; the Anglo-Deutsche combo of Germany’s Twit One and Londoner’s Turt (Summers Son) & Tappin bring us ‘A Little Less’, whilst we head ‘Westerly’ with Austrian-born saxophonist Seb Zillner and Pitch 92, best known these days as a Manchester-based beatsmith, though was born in Dublin and grew up in Germany & Switzerland respectively.

Off to France with a little piece of sweet soul from Élodie Rama and a tale of ‘H O M E’ (produced by Creestal and Souleance collaborator Blanka), and to Estonia for a slinky slice of Kaytranada-esque club R&B from Joshua Stephenz and the vocals of Windy Beach on ‘All Night’.For the jazz purists, off to Finland for the Helsinki Headnod Convention with the powerful ‘Ban Suits’, to the epic piece ‘Closer To The Sun’ from Italian live ensemble Collettivo Immaginario, headed by Tommaso Cappellato and featuring the vocals of Chauncey Yearwood.

The set concludes with the beautiful but stark organic electronica of ‘Spektrum’, courtesy of one of Poland’s most acclaimed producers, NOON and violin player Tomasz Mreńca. We genuinely hope that this compilation gives you a taste of some of the talent in the jazz, soul, hip hop scenes across the continent, and that it brings with it a little joy and a little hope. Putting our money where our mouth is, we’re donating 50% of our label profits for this to Shelter and to The Refugee Council.