Reconnection, Rhythm, and Renewal
London, UK – Almost Music, the debut album from Land of Echo, is a deeply personal celebration of return — to the city, to community, and to sound. Released via Wah Wah 45s, this record marks a heartfelt re-entry into a post-pandemic and politically confused world, with music shaped by reflection, hope, and the timeless pulse of the dancefloor. Blending altered disco, downtempo soul, and experimental electronics, Almost Music invites listeners into an emotive soundscape where every beat and bassline carries weight. It’s a sonic journey through shared struggles and future-facing optimism.
At the heart of Land of Echo is Rob Mac, producer and longtime figure in UK underground music. From running the legendary Scratch hip-hop nights in the ’90s to releasing under aliases like Speeka (on Wah Wah 45s), Gum Drop, An Explore, and Jumbonics, Rob returns here to the soulful edges of dance music — armed with vintage gear, fresh vision, and a deep connection to his collaborators.
Lucy Wilkins, violinist and synth explorer, brings cinematic sweep and subtle textures to the record. Known for her work with Massive Attack, Radiohead and Roxy Music, Lucy is Rob’s most consistent creative partner. Her contribution is both foundational and exploratory.
On vocals, two powerful voices lead the charge: Kathy Diamond, from Sheffield brings soul pedigree and bold, unmistakable songwriting. She’s collaborated with Maurice Fulton and been remixed by Morgan Geist, Hercules & The Love Affair, and many more.
Ayana Homma, from Tokyo, brings a global perspective — raised in Japan and Singapore, trained in jazz in California, and now embedded in London’s scene via the Jazzy Sport collective. She also lends her voice to the Tokyo Riddim Band and Sound Anthropology, delivering fearless and expressive performances in both Japanese and English.
Keeping it in the family, Angus Mac contributes bass parts to the record, and Ollie Macdonald-Oulds delivers the album’s striking artwork.
Beats. Basslines. Percussion. Strings. Voices. Electronics.
This is Almost Music.
Reactions And Radio Play
Radio play from Huey Morgan (BBC 6 Music), CKMS Radio Waterloo (Canada), Radio X (Germany), SG1 Radio (T-Bird), Dirty Disco Podcast, Simon Harrison (Basic Soul, UK), DJ Nelito (Sunny South Beats 101, Australia), Sven Thomschke (Radio Z, Germany), Fade To Pleasure (syndicated) 14/10, Broadcasted & mixed by Snooba on Panik (Brussels-Be) Canal B (Rennes-Fr) C’rock (Vienne-Fr) Louiz Radio (Belgique-Louvain la neuve) You FM (Mons-Be) Campus FM (Toulouse-FR) RQC (Mouscron) Nebulah (Brest)
“Whole LP is a banger – love this.” Tony Minvielle (Jazz FM, UK)
“Feelin’ this!” Crazy P
“This is lush.” Bill Brewster (DJ History, UK)
“Nice!” Jon Cutler (Distant Music, USA)
“LOVING THE SOUND OF THIS.” Hot Toddy (Crazy P, UK)
“Very niiiice album … super funkyyyy.” Laurent Garnier (PBB / Worldwide FM, France)
“Great stuff.” Rob Wood (DJ Mag, UK)
“Nice one! Fan of Kathy (we collaborated on the song Believe on Defected), great project on a great label!” Fred Everything (Lazy Days, Canada)
“Great feelgood vibes on this album, ‘Freedom In Our Rhythm Parts 1 + 2’ is an excellent groover!!” Michel De Hey (Rotterdam records, The Netherlands)
“Great tracks!” Peter Kruder (Kruder & Dorfmeister, Austria)
At first I mistakenly read the artist as ‘Lord Echo’ (the New Zealand artist/ producer). So I was very pleased to hear the first track, What We Want, was not that far off what I expected to hear. A flowing long grooved dancefloor boogie bliss-out with a suitable amount of atmospheric dubbings in the background. Freedom in Our Rhythm fulfills the same requirements before ‘I Want’ heads down a club rabbit hole – expect to hear mixes of this soon!” JStar (Worldwide)
“I’m a fan.” For Mankind (Pikes, Ibiza)
“Really good album.” EVL Magazine
“SIIIICK.” Cevin Fisher (Raven Records, USA)
“Real nice LP, love the whole thing.” Craig Smith (6th Borough Project, UK)
“A couple of interesting bits on this project!” Daz I Kue (Bugz In The Attic, UK)
“Some good bits in here.” Parrish James (House FM, UK)
“Will support.” Robert Luis (Tru Thoughts, UK)
“Beautiful Album.” Vinny Da Vinci (Expensive Music, South Africa)
“A beautiful album, can be played on the radio and the dance floors.” Ahu (Istanbul, Turkey)
“I like Freedom In Our Rhythms Part 1&2.” DJ Pope (574 Studios, Colombia)
“Keep the grooves alive with a dart throw to find your goody.” Mister G (Green Arrow Radio, USA)
“Very nice album!” Phil WJS (Wicked Jazz Sounds, The Netherlands)
“Refreshing LP. Digging the mood & grooves.” Hippie Torrales (Cyberjamz Radio, USA)
“What a bull’s eye record.” Mans Stromberg (Radio Helsinki, Finland)
“Killerrrrr.” Gino Grasso (Disco Don, Italy)
“Very cool tracks!” DJ Angola (Wonderwheel Recordings, USA)
“This album has excited my musical taste buds! Lovely arrangement of disco-edged beats & sounds.” Steve Johns (Solar Radio, UK)
“Fantastic LP! Plenty of great cuts.” Jason Palma (Footprints, Canada)
“Some killers here.” Jeremy Newell (4 To The Floor Records, UK)
“Yessss thank you, loving this!” Alex Ruder (KEXP 90.3FM, USA)
“Beautiful release!” DJ Harv (Point Blank FM, UK)
“Great tracks!” Mirko Paoloni (Alpignano, Italy)
“Lots to like here, will play and support.” DJ Harri (Sub Club, Scotland)
“Nice!” JM (Mi-Soul, UK)
“Incredible album!!!” Markus Milz (Radio Corax 95.9FM, Germany)
“ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE!!!” DJ Kobayashi (Batov Records / Soho Radio, UK)
“Varied and inspired, yay!” Jerry Bouthier (Kitsuné, Continental Records)
“Nice album.” Makossa (Radio FM4, Austria)
“Nice!” Jazzcat (Totally Wired Radio, UK)
“Hard to chose a single! Very consistent production throughout, clean and lush.” Breakplus (Couleur 3, Switzerland)
“Best release on your label for a looong time! Absolutely wicked covering all those bases in one LP.” Raj Selli (Solar Radio, UK)
“Stunning release, timeless vibes with great vocals and vocalists.” DJ Mr Lob (Melbourne, Australia)
Brilliant Album. Very difficult to pick a favourite track as they are all good but never to never, what we want and dream with me are just about my favourites.” Damian D (Solar Radio, UK)
“I think I go for Nothing But Time as the favo track ❤️” Xander Roozen (Royal Groove, The Netherlands)
“Wonderful!” Olivier Cavaller (De La Bonne Musique, France)
“Super cool.. modern soul music!!!” Jaye Ward (Netil Radio, UK)
“So good!” Veronique Prebolin (Radio Krimi, France)
“Very very sexy recording, Love the vibe of these tracks especially Never to Never.” Chris Rock (ASMR Radio, UK)
“This was a really enjoyable listen, loved the flow of the album. Tons of variety in the tracks but nice soulfulness to them, reminds me a little of Crazy P. Lots of lovely tracks and I’ll support a few across a few shows. Thanks for the release!” DJ Nelito (Power FM, UK)
“A brilliant album – full of soulful warmth and captivating grooves. GREAT!” Sven Thomschke (Radio Z 95.8FM, Germany)
“Loving this.” Jon Brent (Dusk Dubs, UK)
“All killer CUTZ – dig em..” DJ Somatik (Melbourne, Australia)
“Quality!” Cal Gibson (Secret Soul Society, UK)
“Some very nice bits on this.” Chris Read (Who Sampled, UK)
“What a nice Album…” DJ Hoody (Clubstar, USA)
“Solid piece of work.” Ket Shah (Mucho Soul, Totally Wired Radio, UK)
“Wonderful record!” Olivier Cavaller (De La Bonne Musique, France)
“Delicate and well crafted songs, album sounds as a summer breeze!” DJ6 (Various, USA)
“This is magic!” Steve KIW (1BTN, UK)
“Like The Album!” Rino Spadavecchia (hear Dis, Germany)
“Great chill pack.” DJ Nodus (Paris, France)
“Great to hear Kathy’s voice again! Cool to hear Ayana Homma, too!” Jon Freer (Various, UK)
“Amazing.” Tobi Kirsch (De:Bug, Germany)
“What we want is a stone cold future classic . Perfect for the beach vibe but also dark basement business. Yet again Wah Wah 45s does the business putting out gems!” DJ Expression (What’s Hot Radio, UK)
“Will playlist on the Slow Life Sound System radio show asap.” Mark Ward (Slow Life Soundsystem, UK)
“Oof, starts strong, remains strong, ends strong, so good, good good good good good (that’s some more echo). Being in the south west, I’d describe this as London music, and a fine example of that it is too! It has all the necessary space, grit and oomf to elevate it over others less accomplished. A lovely album that I shall enjoy putting on repeat to really soak it in.” Pete Isaac (Jelly Jazz, UK)
“WOW. What an LP.” Mr Shivver (Various, UK)
A lovely selection of mid tempo chubby goodness. Hard to pick a favourite. Loving these dub disco tinged tracks, Nice down beat and broken selection to. Silky Vocals to boot. yummy, essential summer playback bizzle.” Simon Kurrage (Point Blank Radio, UK)
“Well done.” Lorenzo Aldino (Jockey Club Ibiza, Spain)
“Disco is really having its day again isn’t it? I’m of the impression that this group are the most competent, authentic and progressive in the genre which I’ve so far heard. Played Lean Into Your Own Breath out, went down well, segued beautifully. Plenty of variation in pace, awesome backing vox and some fab analogue sounds popping out. Fav: Dream With Me – dreamy synth, dreamy sub-Amy vocal, dreamy.” Drummie Dave (York, UK)
