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"The two Portuguese-speaking African islands of Sao Tomé & Principe, located in the Gulf of Guinea, created an unique music called Puxa : a refined mixture of various musical components from both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. A blend of Semba, Merengue, Kompas, Soukouss, Coladeira patterns, often pushing forward with a voodoo-like energy, solid bass lines, delicate melodies and backing harmonies of the rich Sao Tomean melodic traditions. Very first compilation focusing on the golden age of these island’s sounds, the 16 tracks selected will surely set fire on all dance floors !

Léve-Léve is the first ever compilation devoted to music from São Tome and Principe, two small islands situated off the coast of Gabon in central Africa. The album unravels a story of liberation where the music of Africa, Europe and the Americas unify with a carefree spirit personified by a phrase the islanders use all the time: “léve, léve” (“take it easy”). With echoes of Angolan semba and merengue, of Brazilian afoxê, of coladeira from Cape Verde and dance music from the Caribbean, it is a sound fiercely proud of its island heritage, sung in local dialects and using distinctive local rhythms.

On this record you can hear the cultural and social history of São Tome and Principe, and how live music represented its beating heart. Once known as the “Chocolate Islands” (remarkably, these two tiny islands were the largest cocoa producers in the world, though now this title acts as a reminder of its colonial past), through the years leading up to independence from Portugal, music would be a fundamental voice of liberation and conviviality. Os Úntués were one of the first groups to make an impression, releasing a couple of 7 inches in Angola – the litmus test of success for any of the islands’ groups. They united unique rhythms and dances like socopé, puita and dança-congo – borne from the islands’ largely slave-descendant population – with the sound of pop music beamed in on the radio from Europe, even adding in a little bit of soukous and Brazilian instrumentation. Their main rivals were Conjunto Mindelo, who fused São Toméan rhythms with rebita, an Angolan style, to create high energy puxa, a truly original island rhythm.

From the mid-1970s, coinciding with independence from Portugal in 1975, the islands’ groups featured an even stronger African influence and nowhere was that more apparent than with Africa Negra. They would listen to the latest records from Gabon, Zaire and Cameroon, taking inspiration and trying out phrasing from the greats of Central African guitar playing, developing a devoted fan base off the islands, as well as on. A score of other bands would follow a similar musical path, with a few getting their dues overseas in Angola, Cape Verde, Portugal and across Africa.

Os Leonenses (led by the iconic Pedro Lima), Conjunto Sangazuza, Sum Alvarinho and Conjunto Ecuador were just some of the other bands that formed a lively home-grown music scene that lit up the islands’ bars and open-air shows from the 1950s through to the mid-90s. Regardless of class or age, they were responsible for keeping the population entertained come the weekend, with Sunday matinee shows the highlight of the week, the music not stopping from midday until midnight.

As a Portuguese island colony that was for many years populated with slaves brought from Africa, São Tome and Principe has much in common with other Lusophone countries and boasts a richly complex and idiosyncratic musical DNA. Whilst the musical tapestries of Angola and Cape Verde are well known, São Tome and Principe’s secrets were assigned to the islanders themselves. Until now."

"21" is the well-crafted, sharp and original first album by the duo HILA, composed by American cellist Artyom Manukyan (who already worked with Kamasi Washington, Daedalus, Flying Lotus, Run DMC, Gretchen Parlato, Raphael Saadiq, Clive Lowe Mark...) and french producer Dawatile.

The combination of jazz, Los Angeles beat-scene and the vibrations of 80s and 90s Soviet Armenia make it a striking and unprecedented fusion. These kind of nostalgic and unconventional references forcefully shake the codes of mainstream culture to create a sincere, raw and intimate expression.

"HILA" was born from a spontaneous and intense creative impulse between Artyom Manukyan, a Los Angeles-based Armenian celloist and his partner in crime, David Kiledjian aka Dawatile, a French multi-instrumentist of Armenian descent. This project is proving to be a true master stroke given that it only took 21 days for the duo to make it a reality.

"HILA" was made in less a moon cycle but captivates and electrifies audiences upon its first outings. "H.I.L.A" colors the warmth of the Californian "High" with Armenian vibes. The artists chose this name for their creation since both have a close and valuable connection to these locales. This journey began in 2007, on the day Dawatile went to Yerevan, the capital of this small country in the Caucasus mountain to realize a first fusion project centered around local folkloric music genres.

There he was introduced to local musicians including the Armenian Navy Band, one of the country's foremost groups in which Artyom played the bass and cello. In this context, he also met many musicians such as Tigran Hamasyan and Norayr Kartashyan. This will be the beginning of connections between Lyon, Yerevan and Los Angeles. The following year, the two artists will be be seen performing next to Taylor Mc Ferrin at the Jazz à Vienne festival. More recently, they partnered up again when the cellist, who had freshly relocated in California, invited Dawatile to produce his album. As soon as the studio’s threshold was crossed, they decided to postpone this record and create a joint project: Hay (as the Armenians call themselves) / High In Los Angeles. HILA was born at the end of these 21 days of intense creation. The association of Artyom Manukyan and Dawatile is the combination of two visions, two versions of Armenia, two personalities, the reunion of the Eastern and Western blocs.

One grew up nurtured by the sounds of hip-hop and jazz in Europe and the other by art music and Russian-influenced 1980s Armenian folkloric music before moving to L. A., Ca. The cornerstone of it all, the glue that unites everything : Armenia and music. They generate a new identity synthesizing two perceptions, their complicity transcending these cultural discrepencies. To achieve this, they will scour through images of Artyom’s childhood, within the popular culture of Soviet Armenia. Together, they revisit this decidedly retro vibe, based on the work of Caucasian groups inspired by African American music. This background is rehashed and fused with ancestral Armenian sounds. The DNA of the album "21" is molded by these dear influences.

We can also hear the ancestral sounds of Armenia, a country at the edges of both Europe and Asia. The presence on two tracks of Armenian music Master Norayr Kartashyan, infuses the languor of past melodies and traditions. These purposeful anachronistic sounds offer a fantastic depth to this powerful opus. Listening to the album, one can appreciate the successful fusion of styles and influences. Those combinations, however, manage to preserve individual identities only to enhance the art through an adamant musical dialogue.

Being driven by the urge to transpose Armenian musical traditions into a unique universe, the daring artists, offer an innovative combination by blending, for the first time, these ancestral sounds with the world of Los Angeles beat-scene and jazz. An invention largely fueled by the magic strings of Artyom and maestro Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, a pillar of the genre in Los Angeles combined. These associations resonate with a triumphant equilibrium. HILA is musical uncharted territory in which Artyom's cello strings intertwine to ignite the harmonies of keyboards, the machines, the vocals and electronic layers Dawatile pieced together. HILA plays the soundtrack of an adventure set between Armenia around the end of the Soviet era and a mysterious near future.

Artyom Manukyan grew up in Armenia in the 90s. At the time, he studied Russian classical music while learning jazz with assistance by his father, a music journalist. Being an unconditional music lover, he went on to sharpen his skills at the prestigious Berkelee College of Music. Subsequently, he’s been lucky enough to travel the world touring with numerous acts and mainly with the Armenian Navy Band. The group has fostered alacritous success honored by a BBC Award as a crowning achievement. He moved on 10 years ago and made his way to L.A. with his cello on his back. In the City of Angels, he quickly became a popular figure of the jazz and hip-hop scenes thanks to his first album "Citizen". He’s accompanied prestigious musicians such as Kamasi Washington, Melody Gardot, Daedalus, Flying Lotus, Run DMC, Gretchen Parlato, Raphael Saadiq, Clive Lowe Mark, or Vulfpeck. He released his solo album on the cello, "Alone" in October 2019.

Dawatile is a bold producer and multi-instrumentist as well as a passionate and resolute musician molded by jazz. As a versatile artist, he handles and juggles the saxophone, the keys, the bass and composition. Simultaneously, Dawatile produces cross-over projects and soundtracks for the movie industry. He, as well, has had the opportunity to be a part of many tours, including with his electro hip-hop band, Fowatile and more recently with the "Future Kreyol" trio, Dowdelin. Being the ever workaholic, he has under his belt a string of prestigious collaborations with the likes of Talib Kweli, Foreign Beggars, Roy Ayers, Tigran Hamasyan, Mathieu Boogaerts, Voodoo Game and Piers Faccini. His taste for developing new musical recipes and his know-how in production make him a much sought-after album producer. In concert, the HILA duo offers a sober, precise and rhythmic performance. "21" is an aerial and lively album taking the audience on an at times joyous and sometimes melancholic dreamlike journey. The magic of "HILA" operates at the speed of light and positions it already as an avoidable group.

Matasuna Records starts the new year 2020 with a brilliant release, featuring two contemporary tracks by Paris based Afrobeat band Batunga & The Subprimes, available for the first time on vinyl.

Batunga & The Subprimes was founded in Paris in 2009 by musicians from different backgrounds, united by the will to mix traditional African music with other elements (Latin, Jazz, Second Line and even Rock) and to bring this explosive mix on the streets & on stage. After many shows all over Europe and beyond, their first official album Man in the Field was published in 2017, followed by their EP Let dem In in late 2019. Matasuna has chosen two extraordinary cuts of these self-released albums to release them on vinyl for the first time.

Gates Of Ouantou from their EP is a great tune that sets the bar for contemporary Afrobeat and has all the ingredients for a timeless classic: the arrangement, the instrumentation and the interplay of the seven musicians in the song are excellent and will immediately draw you into its spell. A real gem and great tune!

Man in the Field on flipside is a cut of their first official album. Unusual is the use of a banjo in an Afrobeat song but not surprising that this fits in very well and also shows that classical structures can be broken up and developed in a new approach/context. Another great piece of this extraordinary band that has been operating under the radar - until now!

Sauce Combo is a powerful and dynamic jazz trio lead by Marcjean, saxophonist from Bestown (Besançon), sided by the mercenary drummer Tom Moretti and the melodious
Victor Pierrel on bass. The trio's music takes place in the modern jazz renewing coming especially from England and the USA. France has now a champion. Inspirated by vintage african and west indies jazz, 70's jazz funk and fusion but also 90's drum & bass, broken beat and hip hop, the repertoire is a rich jazz bomb exploding to the
ears. Each second brings its his new colorful burst to admire. The band's brilliant game makes it a living listening experience. The music is rich and versatile but cohesive and united. Why?
Crash Test came to light in one day during a single 7 hours recording session at the Honey For Bear laboratories. Arnaud Bataillard, the sound's engineer, wanted to try several new
tubes and audio gears added in his studio set up. The trio went to test it in a crash test session. All the recordings could have been compromise somewhere but... What was before planned as a try ended into a fantastic album. The mental disposition, while playing
when you know that all can be lost in a minute, gave the musicians the proper dimension to express their feelings in a total freedom. They were playing for pleasure and without any pressure. It was for all, but it could have been also for nothing. And we can literally feel that. This unique record had to be release as soon as possible to transmit the freshness of this beautiful impact to the listeners. Above all, Clément Laurentin's "Equilibre Précaire VI" achieves this album, offering a painting with four figures at the edge of the fall, in a constant imbalance, playing with time and gravity. It's the perfect allegory for the three band's members plus the engineer while making this record.

Soul Jazz Records’ Nigeria Soul Power 70 album showcases the influence of funk, rock and disco on Nigerian music during the 1970s. Originally released as a now-long-out-of-print collectors’ 7” RSD box, this fully expanded album release now also includes extra tracks from Sonny Okosuns, Wings, Chief Kollington Ayinla and more. While for many people the fusion of funk and jazz music with Nigerian rhythms and aesthetics began with Fela Kuti and his afro-beat sound, in fact this can be traced further back to the phenomena of the 1960s Nigerian artists and house bands in nightclubs and hotels who interpreted US soul and pop music with a local flavour and none more so than Geraldo Pino, the ‘African James Brown’ who features heavily in this collection. Other similarly inspired Nigerian funk and soul artists featured here included Tony Grey and his Ozimba Messengers and Don Bruce and The Angels. Nigeria Soul Power 70 includes a number of tracks from the group Wings originally known as BAF (Biafran
Air Force) Wings, an army band formed during the Biafran civil war in Nigeria. The groups’ heavy mixture of funk, rock and African styles was popular among many Nigerian groups at the time.
Beneath the shadow of the few Nigerian artists who signed international recording deals in the 1970s – Fela Kuti, King Sunny Ade, Chief Ebenezer Obey – lies of vast wealth of largely undiscovered musical transmutation and cultural cross-pollination, and included here are heavy afro-funk/rock and disco tracks
from artists such as the legendary Sonny Okosuns as well as rare cuts from little-known outside of Nigeria - groups such as Colomach and MFB. Most of these obscure artists signed to major labels in Nigeria in the commercial slipstream that opened up as Philips, Decca and EMI tried to emulate the international
success of the big three international Nigerian artists. Finally featured here is Kollington Ayinla, one of the co-founders of Nigerian Fuji music, who gives us perhaps the heaviest of all tracks on this album. Ayinla is the great moderniser of the Fuji sound and in the late 1970s began adding Bata drums and synthesizers to his authentic music to create a powerful and heavy new fusion of traditional and modernist aesthetics, embracing both new technology and experimentation while rooted firmly in Nigerian historical lineage. Nigeria Soul Power 70 is released as a heavyweight gatefold double vinyl LP (+ free download code),
deluxe slipcase CD and digital album.

Esa's compilation Amandla: Music To The People holds diverse dancefloor tracks from over the world. The first compilation in 2019 for Soundway and a comprehensive picture that connects the dots of Esa’s musical journey.

Growing up in Cape Town, South Africa, during the last days of Apartheid, Esa recalls the immense power that music had in resisting oppression and division. “Amandla, Awethu”, which literally means “the power is ours”, was an ubiquitous chant echoing throughout the politically charged atmosphere of the time – a call to unite, and a call from which this release derives not only its title, but its intention as well.

“Music was a crucial way of bringing people and communities together”, reflects Esa, “and it’s what I hope to achieve with this compilation, too”. For Esa Williams is not only a musical polymath but also passionate about connecting people through music – be it as a skilled DJ, an educator in production, a band leader reigniting the legendary Ata Kak band from Ghana, or a collaborator with the likes of Tanzanian artist Mim Suleiman. A firm favourite on the DJ circuit, he held a monthly residency at Phonox London for over 6 months - bringing guests such as Nu Guinea to Brixton audiences - as well as delivering memorable sets at Dekmantel, Atlas Festival, Boiler Room and more.

The last few years have seen a recent surge in interest in South African music from the 80s and 90s, including bubblegum, which was recently showcased on Soundway’s critically acclaimed 2018 compilation Gumba Fire: Bubblegum Soul & Synth Boogie in 1980s South Africa, put together by DJ Okapi. It was only natural that the label looked to delve deeper into the country’s rich musical legacy and tap another of its esteemed ambassadors for the role of compiler.

The result is a rainbow of complementary electronic styles hailing from not only South Africa but further afield, including zouk from Brazil and the French Antilles, as well as Afro-futurism. Together, they form a comprehensive picture that connects the dots of Esa’s musical journey – from growing up in South Africa, to artists he has encountered in his worldwide travels who have helped develop his identity as a musician.

Masks is New York duo comprised of Max Ravitz aka Patricia (L.I.E.S, Opal Tapes, Ghostly) and Alexis Georgopoulos aka Arp (RVNG Intl, Mexican Summer, DFA, Smalltown Supersound). The aptly titled EP2 is (yes, you guessed it!) their second release, preceded by their Opal Tapes debut Food Plus Drug (II) — which gained support from Legowelt, Mount Kimbie and Boomkat — and a compilation appearance on esteemed Beats In Space 15 year anniversary 3xLP.

On paper, it might strike one as a strange duo. Ravitz’s work leans heavily on house and techno, but his recent work has been focused towards emotive melodies of IDM. And Georgopoulos has been busy creating minimalistic classical music for RVNG and most recently made waves with his critically-acclaimed album Zebra, which combined elements of 4th World and cosmic jazz.

All the tracks making up EP2 were made as live performances. No overdubs. Nothing "in the box". Just classic hardware and a strong vibe.

Opener "In This Room" is the sound of a NY summer sunset, pivoting on a hypnotic rotation of orange-hued chords. "Emotional Response" displays a different side of the group. Combining a 909 with a piano tug, it could provide that perfect soundtrack to a cathartic cry on the dancefloor.

On the flip side, "In Another Room" is dreamy techno par excellence, before sliding into an acid chugg for the ages. Bookworms smears the sun of "In This Room" into a 4am whirl, all purple lights and mountains of fog.

The cover artwork features the artwork of Sanou Oumar, a recent emigrant from Burkina Faso, West Africa. He graduated from the University of Ouagadougou in 2007 and moved to the United States to seek asylum in 2015. He currently lives in the Bronx and works in Harlem, New York. In 2018, Oumar had his first two-person exhibition (with Matt Paweski) at Gordon Robichaux in New York, and in 2019 (with Elisabeth Kley) at South Willard in Los Angeles, curated by Matt Connors.

Since 2008 Düsseldorf based producer and live wizard Stefan Schwander deeply concentrates on his always evolving electronic venture named Harmonious Thelonious. It besprinkles the world with fractional musical structures in the spirits of American minimal music, in order to immingle them with African rhythm patterns. Exceptional hypnotic opiates, enlarged with twisted harmonies and tricky rhythm archetypes. All heavy danceable!

After five magnetic albums for labels like Emotional Response and his old home base Italic as well as a highly acclaimed string of EPs for in-demand platforms like Asafa, Diskant, Disk, Kontra-Muzik, Meakusma, The Trilogy Tapes or Versatile Records, he now produced a heavy arresting 'Petrolia' LP for Marmo Music - a label that is not new to Harmonious Thelonious. Already on the label's second release Tru West: 'The DOWC part 2' his 'Sunset Liturgy' fingerprints are audible with a moving remix. Now he delivers six epic tunes that only partly dance the familiar Harmonious Thelonious dance. There are deeply traces from Africa and Arabia. There is the polyrhythmic witchery that makes his music special. But in contrast his new tunes are more mental then his former ones. They have a menacing industrial feel but yet continue to be enlarged with the enchanting spirits of the land of the Sahara. Furthermore, there is a slight manic touch arising from nervous electronic and foremost organic melodies. The live played jittery is coming from the Berlin based experimental musician Ghazi Barakat, also known under monikers like Pharoah Chromium or Crème de Hassan for mind shredding ambient, drone, experimental, noise, industrial, free jazz and free improvisation music from beyond. For Harmonious Thelonious Barakat, who also produced together with Marmo Music artist Günther Schickert the collaboration album 'OXTLR' in 2014, tuned his wind instruments Rauschpfeife and Kangling elflock-stricken the Master Musicians of Jajouka way. And instead of giving them a prominent lead position, Schwander deeply implements his tones into his propulsive creations to evoke a modern rhythmic meltdown of Occident versus Orient spheres that exhale a deeply absorbing soul.

A record, who's psychedelic energy fits perfect into the Marmo Music cosmos - a world where the progressiveness of the 70ties continues to live in the current to disband all white bread musical norms for the energy of music without classes. Dancers of the world, unite!

The Caribbean House Is A New Billy Bogus Project. It's The Perfect Meld Of Creepy Atmospheres, Sunset Grooves, Analog Sensibilities And Incessant Rhythms. Bogus Leads This Collective Formed By Federico Bologna (ohmega Tribe, Technogod) And Cristiano Santini (disciplinatha, Dish-is-nein,). This Triumvirate Of 90's Underground Italian Masterminds Come From The World Of Electronica, Noise Rock And Psychedelia. Here They All Combine To Rise Again Rise And Unite To Create Something Entirely New.

And So To The Music. Their Debut Lp Opens Up With The Dark And Haunting "night Drive". Recent Single "gong Bong" Is Next. It Is One Part Slo-mo Disco, One Part Psychedelic Moondance And One Part Sci-fi Horror Movie. If The First Two Thirds Of The Track Is A Caterpillar Then The Last Third Is A Butterfly As Uplifting Riffs And Swirls Of Layered Keys Bring Things To A Crescendo. "lonely Man" Is A Quirky Detuned Monster Tour-de-force Which Leads Nicely Into "love By Proxy". Layered Keys And Intertwined Arpeggios Mingle To Create The Closest Thing To A Love Song Possible From This Trio.

Flip The Vinyl Over For A Hippy Drive With "jesus Freaks" And Its Groovy Guitar Licks And White Noise Synth Blasts. "nature Nature" Is All About The Pulsing Bass Guitar And Sample Like Guitar Stabs Before Heading Completely Off-piste For A Synth-bass Ending. "africa Addio" Presents Us With Meandering Synth Lines Before Layering On A Waft Of Sound Effects And Spooky Keys. Movie Territory. We Close Off The Lp With The "streets Like Noodles". New Wave Nyc Chic Meets Underground Italy Psych.

South African Mbaqanga And Bubblegum Instrumentals For The Dance-floor. First Time Available Outside South Africa. Cult Favorite Among Collectors. Follows The Successful Reissue Of bafana Bafana' Last Year. Professor Rhythm's 1991 Recording Professor 3 Is A Vivid Reflection Of Urban South Africa As Apartheid Was Ending. Thami Mdluli's Production Project Had Young And Old Dancing To A Sound That Sought To Unite Blacks Within Southern Africa. our Music Gave Hope To The Hopeless,' He Says. Mdluli's Third Instrumental Album (which Contains Some Background Vocals, To Be Exact), Portrays The Moment When The Dominant Mbaqanga And American R&b-based Bubblegum Sounds Being Produced In Johannesburg And Other Urban Centers Were Transforming Into House And Hip-hop-inspired Kwaito. The Pop Of The 80's And All That Went With It—from The Models Of Synths And Drum Machines To The Lyrical Style—gave Way To A Changing Melodic Emphasis And New, Much Slower Tempi Using A Completely Different Rhythmic Skeleton. Upbeat, Chipper Bubblegum, Often With Double-time Breakdowns And Upstroke Syncopations, Faded And The Sounds Began To More Closely Resemble Those Of Contemporary Black America—where Hip-hop Was Slowing Down And The Bass-lines And Melodies Were Getting Moodier, Darker In General. At The Same Time House Music Had Briefly Reached Mainstream Acceptance In The States And That Popularity Continued To Feed Into Awareness Overseas. These Two Influences Blended With The Burgeoning House Music Scenes In Johannesburg And Pretoria As Professor Rhythm 3 Was Being Produced In March 1991 (the Same Year Apartheid Ended). Mdluli Explains, we Were Influenced By Foreign Bands And So People Updated Their Sound.' According To Mdluli, The Evolving Sound Was Bolstered By Widening Availability Of House And Rap Records From Abroad While, Most Importantly, An Increasing Sense That Apartheid Might Soon Be Finished Was Met With A New Positivity Vibe Society. 1991, '92, '93... Mandela Was Released. People Were Upbeat, They Were Happy, The Music Was Good.' Professor 3 Came Out On Vinyl As The Lp Business Was Dying In South Africa And Sold Around 20,000 Copies. It Was Mainly Distributed On Tape, Which Sold Closer To 100,000. With The Help Of Engineer Fab Rosso, The Recording Features Backing Vocalists From Mango Groove. After Making A Half-dozen Records As Professor Rhythm, Mdluli Once Again Shifted His Focus Musically. By The Mid-90's He Had Veered Off Gospel Music— And Left Playing In Bands And Started Making His Own Solo Recordings. His Enormous Success In The Gospel Realm In The Years Since Is A Remarkable Story In Its Own Right, But For Now We Are Only Dancing.

It's no exaggeration to say that Geraldo Pino and his band the Heartbeats kickstarted the whole soul/funk/afrobeat scene in West Africa. Mixing highlife, funk and jazz, and using the latest equipment, they laid waste to all before them. In 1966 Fela Kuti was a jobbing musician, eeking out a living with highlife bands. When Gerlado Pino came to town, it changed his life. Pino tore up the scene,' he recalls in an interview with Carlos Moore. I knew I had to get my shit together. And fast!'. Produced by Odion Iruoje and engineered by Emmanual Odenusi, Let's Have A Party is Geraldo Pino's masterpiece. It's slick and heavy, tough and uncompromising, with musicianship that will blow your mind. It's all killer, no filler, with 'Heavy Heavy Heavy' and 'Let Them Talk' bonafide, nailed on funk classics. The Heartbeats are exactly that, a tight and efficient engine that keeps the groove moving. This is US-style funk, with an emphasis on extended percussion workouts and organ wigouts. You can't listen to 'Power To The People' without being impressed - or compelled to dance. The extended call out to each Heartbeat in 'Let's Have a Party' is well deserved. If my house caught on fire, this is the one album I'd rescue. After one listen, I reckon you'd do the same. - Peter Moore

The wait is finally over. The greatest living female voice in African music, Oumou Sangare releases a new album "Mogoya" (meaning "people today") on a new record label with an all-new production team and a wonderful new set of songs.

The power of Oumou's voice and the potency of her message remain as strong as ever and, while her sound is rooted deep in the continuity of Malian tradition, Mogoya has a strong new sound. Co-produced by Andreas Unge in Stockholm and by the French production collective A.l.b.e.r.t. (who have worked with among others Air, Tony Allen, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Beck, Franz Ferdinand) in Paris, it draws on a rich musical heritage whilst also looking to the future.

"We wanted to emphasise the raw power of Oumou's voice and songs. We wanted to find a new modernity" says co-producer Ludovic Bruni, one of the three members of A.l.b.e.r.t. with Vincent Taurelle and Vincent Taeger.

On the album, traditional African instruments - the kamele n'goni (harp), karignan (metal scraper) and calabash percussion - are augmented by electric guitar, bass, keyboards and synths with Tony Allen on drums. As Oumou puts it, "This time round I wanted to go for more of a modern sound, to satisfy young people in Mali but being careful, all the while, to respect my culture and tradition".

The songs describe what Oumou knows best human relationships. She addresses difficult topics with incredible frankness - jealousy, ingratitude and betrayal never afraid to sing about the day-to-day problems faced by African society, particularly women.

Oumou has a high international profile, touring all over the world, collaborating with artists such as Alicia Keys, Tracy Chapman, Bela Fleck and Dee Dee Bridgewater and featuring on the soundtrack of Toni Morrison's Beloved. She is a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation and has three businesses in Mali a range of SUVs called 'Oum-Sang', a hotel in Bamako and 'Oumou Sangare 769, Rice', grown in her own fields.

She has released six albums on the World Circuit label: Moussolou, meaning "women"(1990), Ko Sira (1993), Worotan (1996), Oumou (2003), Seya (2009) and Kounadi (2012).

Music is at the absolute centre of Oumou's life: "without it I'm nothing and nothing can take it from me" and Mogoya represents an exciting new chapter in her career, something which she approaches with a mixture of boldness, humility and confidence."It was new for me because my music has never had this kind of arrangement and sound before. I've been totally in the tradition for years now so to get out of that and have a look around elsewhere was a total pleasure," Oumou Sangare.

Underground Jazz, Street Funk & The Roots Of Rap 1968-79. Soul Jazz Records' new release 'Soul of a Nation: Afro-Centric Visions in the Age of Black Power' is released in conjunction with a major worldwide art exhibition, Soul of A Nation: Art in the The Age of Black Power which takes place at the Tate Modern, London, UK (July-Oct 2017) and The Brooklyn Museum, New York, USA.

The album shows how the ideals of the civil rights movement, black power and black nationalism influenced the evolvement of radical African-American music in the United States of America in the intensely political and revolutionary period at the end of the 1960s following the assassinations of Malcolm X, Martin Luther King and the rise of the Black Panther party.

Featuring groundbreaking artists such as Gil Scott-Heron, Roy Ayers, Don Cherry, Oneness of Juju, Sarah Webster Fabio, Horace Tapscott, Phil Ranelin and many others, Soul of A Nation shows how political themes led to the rise of 'conscious' black music as new afro-centric styles combined the musical radicalism and spirituality of John Coltrane and radical avant-garde jazz music alongside the intense funk and soul of James Brown and Aretha Franklin and the urban poetry and proto-rap of the streets.

The Soul of a Nation exhibition draws on the links between Black art forms - art, music, poetry - and how they came together during the civil rights and black power era as part of the wider black arts movement across the United States.

Iconic African-Amercian revolutionary figures such as Martin Luther King, Malcolm X and Angela Davis, John Coltrane, Muhammad Ali all appear in the radical artworks of Barkley L. Hendricks, Romare Bearden, Norman Lewis, Lorraine O'Grady and Betye Saar.
A selection of original radical jazz record sleeves artworks which appear in Soul Jazz Records' earlier groundbreaking Freedom, Rhythm and Sound - Revolutionary Jazz Original Cover Art book will also be on show at the Tate, London throughout the exhibition. The Freedom, Rhythm and Sound book is also newly back-in-print in conjunction with this major exhibition and the release of the Soul of a Nation album.

Stuart Baker (founder of Soul Jazz Records) will appear on the panel of Jazz for Soul of a Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power discussion at the gallery as part of the show. Soul of a Nation comes with extensive sleeve-notes and exclusive photography in a large 36-page outsize booklet and slipcase. Double gatefold vinyl album edition comes with full colour inners + bonus download code and includes full sleeve-notes/photography.

Breakbeat Paradise Recordings has teamed up with The Chosen Few Records to proudly presents the latest escapade of TURNTILL & MERLIN: "BREAK A DAY". This tune is dedicated to all the b-boys and other funkateers worldwide that love the drumsound and the funk. The MCs on the song are DOPPIA ERRE from Apulia, Italy and SKY 189 from Capetown, South Africa.

Both are true Hip Hop heads that love the art of breaking! In the hook you hear the sweet, catchy voices of Stella Baraldo and Dominique Bouvier. A real powerful b-boy anthem and club joint alike, which is interpreted in five additional versions on a six track 12" vinyl release.

Guests on the A-Side are DJ KID STRETCH (Greece), FUNKY BOOGIE BROTHERS (Belarus) who is giving the tune a new flow in the oldskool b-boy direction. On the flip side we have invited some of the very best from the Ghetto-Funk scene to give the tunes an injection of electro vibes and big basslines. For this job we called upon the dream team DUBRA X ARTEO (Latvia) and ghetto funk superstar B-SIDE (United Kingdom) who are always armed to the teeth with big beats and electro basslines. Last but not least we sent for a true veteran and pioneer in the Nu Funk scene QUINCY JOINTZ (Germany) to do his thing on the electro side of this vinyl release.

The funky beats and breaks has once again brought people together from all over the world to collaborate on this big release that not only tips the hat to the b-boy community but also pushes the limit to the new eras of funk music. Something we share the vision for and feel strongly about on both Breakbeat Paradise Recordings and at The Chosen Few Records.

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Capital Bass continues to gather Russian names under one roof and expand stylistic variations. Next big thing is a three-track EP from Ponty Mython (Alex).
This is the second EP by sir Ponty Mython on Capital Bass. It has been two years since his bulletproof Jesus EP in 2013.
During these two years Ponty Mython has been working with such iconic house imprints as Arma, Quintessential, Dirt Crew and others. His new Adverbs EP is a quite eclectic thing.
Side A is a filtered house banger Gracefully - a result of sampling games with Moscow house star Lay-Far (Local Talk, In-beat-ween). Side B - Afterwards tune is a real one-loop thriller, dirty and raw, with African samples and invisible sub bass line.
On B side you can also find a psychedelic version of Afterwards by Saint Petersburg techno artist Nocow (Roots United, Fauxpas Musik). (Roots United, Fauxpas Musik)