Buscar:k joy

The fifth album from Oklahoma-bred singer/songwriter Parker Millsap, Be Here Instead emerged from a wild alchemy of instinct, ingenuity, and joyfully determined rule-breaking. In a departure from the guitar-and-notebook-based approach to songwriting that shaped his earlier work, the Nashville-based artist followed his curiosity to countless other modes of expression, experimenting with everything from piano to effects pedals to old-school drum machines (a fascination partly inspired by the early-’70s innovations of Sly Stone and J.J. Cale). As those explorations deepened and broadened his musical vision, Millsap soon arrived at a body of work touched with both unbridled imagination and lucid insight into the search for presence in a chaotic world. Produced by John Agnello (Kurt Vile, Sonic Youth, Waxahatchee) and mainly recorded live with Millsap’s full band, Be Here Instead marks a stylistic shift from the gritty and high-energy folk of his previous output, including 2018’s acclaimed Other Arrangements and 2016’s The Very Last Day (an Americana Music Association Awards nominee for Album of the Year). With its adventurous yet immaculately detailed sonic palette, the album warps genres to glorious effect, at one point offering up what Millsap aptly refers to as a “disco-Americana showtune.” In another creative breakthrough, Be Here Instead forgoes the character-driven storytelling of his past in favor of a more introspective and endlessly revelatory form of lyricism, an element he traces back to the charmed nature of his songwriting process. “Because the lyrics were appearing seemingly out of nowhere and with no prior intent, some of them started to feel like transmissions from my subconscious, rather than the preconceived linear stories or waking thoughts of my earlier songs,” says Millsap. “They feel like words I needed to hear from myself, and not just things I wanted to say to someone else.”

On July 4th Kase Avila is set to raise the bar even higher with his latest effort ‘Minerva’ via Low Key Source. The Filipino-Australian producer is set to delve deeper into his artistry and penchant for the experimental with 14 new tracks.

When Covid-19 turned the world upside down, Kase sent himself into self-isolation. Confined to the studio, the Sydney beatmaker faced this tumultuous time with his love for producing music. Kase explored his love of 90’s boom bap, neo-soul, and the Soulquarians, while playing with the crisp sounds of electronic music to strengthen his perseverance and resolve. Taking its name from the Roman goddess of music, poetry, medicine and wisdom, ‘Minerva’ is a celebration of the resilience found in creativity when faced with uncertainty. The record envisions a sonic landscape that is as intimate as it is expansive. Lush chords pervade Kase’s signature hard hitting drum lines and smooth melodies like an evergreen being traced with graceful footsteps. The result is a sound that is regal in its confidence and joyous in it’s expressiveness. The lead single ‘Magic Birds’ strikes a harmonious balance between the sample-driven beats that have made Kase a fan favourite amongst the lo-fi hip-hop community, and ethereal synth flourishes that give the track a seamless fluidity.

Kase has long been a cornerstone of the Sydney music scene; his brand of ebullient and soulful beats have been filling dancefloors and bedrooms of hip-hop heads for the better part of a decade. In 2019 he released his first ever LP ‘Soul Calibre’, a project that also marked his debut on renowned label Low Key Source. ‘Minerva’ signifies Kase’s continuing ambition to preserve the purism of hip-hop while simultaneously pushing its boundaries with one kick, snare, and key at a time.

‘The Bridge’ is Indubious’s debut album on Easy Star Records, but it is the culmination of nearly a decade of hard work and growth from the Oregon-based trio, led by the brothers Spencer and Evan Burton.
Their previous release, ‘Beleaf’, debuted at number one on Billboard’s Reggae Chart in 2019. ‘The Bridge’ combines their own contemporary take on reggae with more overt references to classic dancehall and new age spiritualism and features high profile guest appearances from Jamaican legends Sizzla, Capleton, and Anthony B, along with Mike Love, Jah9, Zion I, Skillinjah, Alcyon Massive, Ze-Ion, and the jam band Wookiefoot.
The album has extra poignancy with the song “I Can Breathe,” which was written following a double lung transplant for Evan; both of the Burton brothers were born with Cystic Fibrosis and were not expected to live past their teens, but have instead turned that around and established themselves as one of the new rising stars of the US reggae scene.

New York ravers' family favorite Club Night Club announce their inaugural release as a record label. The first offering comes courtesy of Manchester heavyweight Herron. The meandyou founder and Soup Kitchen owner follows up last year's 'Box Of Swords' EP for Peder Mannerfelt with a gritty four tracker aimed squarely at the dance floor. On 'Lowflow' we see him develop similar sludgy Uk techno mutations to his 2016 CO/R collaboration with Joy Orbison, but this time with more explicit peak time intent. The Hi-Fi, sleazy chug core is ever present, but particularly on the A side, a freneticism of breaks pressure and pummeling sound design is let loose. In keeping with the name of A2's Velcro Spider, the record weaves a complex blend of the synthetic and heartfelt. Stumbling, low slung grooves mutate over the course of each track, quietly building and sustaining a tension the listener is unaware of until all hell breaks loose at the last minute in true drug chug fashion.

Die GRAMMY-nominierte Band CHA WA veröffentlicht mit ,My People" eine neue Song-Kollektion, die aus der reichen und lebendigen Straßenkultur von New Orleans schöpft. ,My People" vereint zeitgenössische Klänge mit der Musik von Straßenparaden und der Mardi Gras Indianer-Gemeinschaft - einer Gruppe schwarzer New Orleaner, die mit ihrer Kleidung, ihrer Musik und ihrem Dialekt den indianischen Stämmen Respekt zollen. Vollgepackt mit einer lebendigen Ansammlung von New Orleans-Klängen und -Geschichten, schöpft diese Sammlung neuer Originalsongs aus den Grooves von New Orleans-Funkbands der 70er Jahre wie The Meters (besonders bei Stücken wie ,Wildman" und ,Bow Down") und nimmt deutliche Einflüsse aus der Geschichte der Stadt mit Brass-Band-Musik, Jazz, R&B, Hip-Hop, Rock, Soul und afrikanisch inspirierten Arrangements (einschließlich einer relaxten Coverversion von Bob Dylans ,Masters Of War" in diesem Stil). Cha Wa wurde von Bandleader Joe Gelini kurz vor der Veröffentlichung des 2018 erschienenen Debütalbums ,Spyboy" gegründet, das 2020 bei den GRAMMYs mit einer Nominierung für das beste regionale Roots-Album ausgezeichnet wurde. ENG The next generation of New Orleans music shares a bold vision for the future with a reverence for the past. It builds upon tradition to bring something unique to the world. The future of New Orleans music is Cha Wa, a Mardi Gras Indian funk band that takes the music of the streets into the 21st century, with guests like Alvin Youngblood Hart and Anjelika Jelly Joseph. On "My People", the band tries to "take the influence of Monk and Bo and Willie Tee [from the original Wild Magnolias] back in the day, when they were interpreting the music of their time - the deep funk, disco, Afrobeat and tinges of reggae," says drummer & bandleader Joe Gelini. "And we're also trying to interpret and write new music that we're inspired to play that's relevant to our generation, and our current social environment." "My People" feels like pure joy, a distillation of generations of New Orleans expression, but it also never fails to remind us how hard-won that joy was and still is: not least in the tense, funky and explosive title track, with its declaration "My people, we're still here." "Mardi Gras Indian songs are inherently songs about freedom," Gelini says. "And that struggle is as relevant today as it's ever been."

Real Real World is the first collaborative effort from Nantes-based Australian drummer/percussionist Will Guthrie and Australian keyboardist/composer James Rushford. Primarily recorded in a fluid, spontaneous studio session in Nantes, with overdubs added later in Melbourne and Nantes, Real Real World presents five spacious, unhurried pieces that inhabit a unique sound world characterised by wheezing, half-voiced organ chords, chiming metal percussion, and eruptions of small sounds. Beginning with the eerily beautiful, shakuhachi-esque sound of Rushford performing on detuned portative organ, the opening title track is abruptly transformed by the entry of Guthrie’s sizzling cymbals, deep gong strikes, and rustling hand percussion. On the epic ‘Lumbering’, which occupies the majority of the record’s first side, organ chords define a space in which a kaleidoscopic succession of amplified thuds, chiming bells, rustled and dragged objects, and abruptly silenced clusters advance and recede in an oneiric blur, eventually making way for a passage of Guthrie’s virtuosic polyrhythms, itself unexpectedly overtaken by waves of melting fairground organ. The record reaches an energetic climax mid-way through the second side with the stunning ‘Slakes’, where lugubrious chords in the organ’s lowest register are joined by Guthrie’s skittering rhythms, which somehow manage to call to mind both the most chaotic moments of Balinese Gamelan and the stochastic breakbeats of late-90s Autechre. On this piece, Guthrie and Rushford are joined by Melbourne saxophone maverick Scott McConnachie, who contributes an alto sax solo of burning precision, working with a single-minded palette of piercing long tones and wild intervallic leaps. Though it makes extensive use of overdubbing, Real Real World retains a strong sense of having been performed, rather than constructed: while at times the fleeting succession of events can recall electroacoustic music, its primarily acoustic nature and unhurried pace is also reminiscent of the music of AACM affiliates or Marion Brown’s classic Afternoon of a Georgia Faun. Immediately engaging while also hiding countless details in the folds of its polychrome fabric, Real Real World is a relaxed and joyous document of collaborative musical invention.

Artwork by Patrizia Bach. Layout by Lasse Marhaug. Mixed and mastered by Joe Talia at Good Mixture, Berlin.

The Brussels based trio Don Kapot released their first EP on Mr. Nakayasi Records in 2018. They recently teamed up with the Belgian jazz / not jazz label W.E.R.F. records, with whom they released a limited edition cassette "Don Kaset" in October 2020. On March 26th they proudly present the release of a new full album: Hooligan. The album contains seven collectively written songs and takes the listener on an adventurous instrumental journey full of steaming grooves, unbridled joy in the game and humour. The album can be heard as a completely unhinged and idiosyncratic mix of punk, jazz, afrobeat and all this with a hint of spirituality.

After playing and touring together in Oghene Kologbo's band for a while, drummer Jacob Warmenbol and bassist Giotis Damianidis decided to join forces with baritone saxophonist Viktor Perdieus and Don Kapot was born in 2016. From joint improvisations, own compositions quickly emerged which blended the different musical backgrounds of each band member. It soon became clear that this musical cocktail would effortlessly break through all genre walls and that Don Kapot has as much in common with experimental rock bands like Deerhoof or King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard as with adventurous jazz trios like those of Ornette Coleman. Influences from afrobeat, punk and krautrock are some of the main ingredients of this adventurous trio.

A year characterised by a pandemic, lockdowns, political ineptitude and oh, so much staying the fuck at home is enough to make anyone want to blow off a little steam. One overused piece of glib idiocy at the start of the Trump era was 'at least punk will be good', as though punk can only be good when it flips the bird to right-wing, authritarian shit-headery rather than amplifying anything else. Sure, there've been plenty of great records over the last four years, but sometimes (across the whole of 2020, for instance) the levels of anger, fear and frustration can be overwhelming and you need a little space to goof around. For some of us, though, goofing around is serious business - and here's a record to illustrate that perfectly. Smirk is the solo project of Public Eye's Nick Vicario, and while you'll hear similarities to his main outfit across these 12 excellent tracks (from the off, you can imagine how PE might refine garage-carved nuggets like 'S Construction'), here there's less sang-froid and more_ well, fun. The reference points you might expect are still there (Killed By Death comps and Wire, especially their 80s period, to name a couple), but with added scuzz and something even approaching joy - the whirling synths of 'Eyes Conversing' feel ominous, but they also convey a sense of delirious excitement. And dammit, it's all fucking cool too. With a name like Smirk, your first instinct might well be to wonder whether Vicario is laughing at us. The first line of the album (a defiant 'it's not funny') should tell you that this isn't the case, but the album certainly finds him in playful mood. The tasteful acoustic instrumental 'Lude 2' descends deliberately into farce as it speeds up and slows down like a turntable alternating speeds, or a record warping in real time.

Following a series of records with Thrill Jockey (including
the sensational Seasonal Hire with Steve Gunn), the Black
Twig Pickers return to the VHF mothership to continue their
charming and original take on old time and Appalachianinspired
string band sounds. Together since 2001, and a
continuous presence in the music’s true home of Southwest
Virginia, the Twigs represent the actively working evolution
of the traditions—learning songs from other locals, playing
dances at the Floyd Country Store, etc—without retroartifice
or nostalgia. The ragged-but-right performances and
recording (and Sally Ann Morgan’s perfect cover design)
sit at the ideal intersection of DIY / “underground” and local
string-sound values. On Friend’s Peace, the band travels a
range of styles, from the lovely harmony on the trad-classic
“Moonshiner” to the racing fiddle / guitar / banjo on the
“Money Musk” medley. Mixed in with the traditional songs
are several perfectly-placed original tunes, including Mike
Gangloff’s keening “Cara’s Waltz” and Isak Howell’s solo
guitar spotlight on “Barnswallow.”

Cognitiva and ANMA Records present ‘Outlines’, a snapshot of a new generation of exciting producers from across Europe, collaborating and mixing jazz, broken beat & house in exciting new ways. 10 tracks split into two parts on vinyl, featuring ones-to-watch artists Contours, Werkha, Footshooter, Allysha Joy, Karmasound, Domenico Sanna and more. ANMA and Cognitiva have not only curated the featured artists but also some of the collaborations featured.

This highly collectible LP from 1974 is a nonstop salsa dura party album from start to finish, comparable with any of New York's finest like Ray Barretto and Willie Colón from the same era, but with its own unique sound and joyful vibe. Includes the anthems 'Mi Nuevo Ritmo' and 'Alma y Sentimiento/ Soul and Feeling' recorded at different sessions in Colombia and Peru. Presented in its original artwork and pressed on 180g vinyl. The highly collectible LP Alfredo Linares Y Su Salsa Star "Mi Nuevo Ritmo" (1974) is a nonstop salsa dura party album from start to finish, comparable with any of New York's finest like Ray Barretto and Willie Colón from the same era, but with its own unique swinging sound and bright, crisp, joyful vibe. There are plenty of straight up Cuban-roots based salsa tunes, plus some Latin jazz and Latin soul and a bolero. Trumpets, hand claps, loud cowbell, and vigorous vocals all make for a great listen and an even better dance experience. As the track 'La Música Brava' proclaims, "Yo no quiero que pare la música brava!" (I don't want the badass music to stop!). The record is actually a patchwork of different recording sessions made in Peru and Colombia, featuring differing studio sound and musician lineups. Linares had just returned to his adopted home of Medellín from a period spent in Peru and was looking for a record deal. He had brought master tapes with four songs recorded in Lima and was shopping them around in the hopes of securing an album contract. Linares also cut some Colombian sessions which feature Roy "Tayrona" Betancourt as well as Henry Castro and Enrique Fabián. Unfortunately, neither Discos Fuentes nor Sonolux or Codiscos were interested. At that time, vinyl for making records was scarce and over-priced due to the petroleum crisis and hence the labels were reluctant to try out a new artist. "There was nothing to be done. The only company that had vinyl stock was INS. So I did the business with them even though they didn't have a known name in Colombia. The strength of that album made them rather famous." The song 'Mambo Rock' (with 'Estricto Guaguancó' on the B side) came out on a 45rpm record in 1974, and, as Linares recounts it, "two months later the sale was at a very high level. So, partly out of gratitude, I started producing for them. It is from there that my other records and the AfroINS albums came." Unfortunately the master tapes to the LP were lost or destroyed, as with all INS releases, so the best possible vinyl sources and audio restoration has been used for this deluxe reissue.

Who is Harvey Couture? Some say he’s a survivor of French pop music’s sun-soaked synth-pop era of the early 1980s, others that he’s a more suave and stylish Serge Gainsbourg for the nu-Balearic era. There were even rumours circulating that he’s a musical mobster from the Cote D’Azure: a shadowy member of the mafia who deals in synths, drum machines and fretless bass guitars rather than guns, money and drugs. In truth, not even Leng Records knows much about the man behind the moniker, though his vividly kaleidoscopic, retro-futurist debut album, Scellé En Cristal, does offer a number of crafty clues. Whether listeners will make the necessary deductions to solve the mystery remains to be seen; regardless, it’s the music that matters, and on that score Scellé En Cristal simply cannot be faulted.

Rich in humid, afternoon-bright musical delights, the set sees our publicity-shy hero mix and mangle a multitude of musical influences – think proto-Balearic European synth-pop, Prince style purple funk, immersive ambient, early INXS style synth-rock, the electronic end of zouk and much more besides – with constantly colourful and imaginative results. Couture is most at home adding his variously seductive, sexy and sleazy vocals to bubbly, upbeat and mid-tempo numbers that combine delay-laden drum machine beats with surging synths, fluid bass, stylish guitars, lashings of leftfield pop nouse and plenty of tongue-in-cheek Gallic flair.

For proof, check the throbbing, off-kilter alien-funk throb of ‘Les Portes De La Perception’, the bustling, percussion-laden cheeriness of ‘Crème Solaire’ and the loose-limbed, toe-tapping brilliance of ‘Je Nes Peux Pas’, where chiming, steel pan style melodies and pots-and-pans percussion hits jostle for position with sliding fretless bass notes and flash-fried guitars. Check to ‘Passion’, a swaggering slab of bustling electrofunk/synth-rock fusion rich in ‘Rockit’-style scratches and restless synth-bass. The influence of languid, sunset-ready European pop records of the 1980s – those cuts that would later become sought-after amongst dusty-fingered collectors of Mediterranean music – is another recurring feature of Couture’s cultured but joyous debut album. It can be heard amongst the drowsy guitars, yawning bass and tumbling lead lines of ‘Look Within’, the pleasingly laidback ‘Invincible Line’, the elastic bass, fluorescent synth sounds and stuttering machine drums of ‘Marche’.

Yet Couture is no one-trick pony. Horizontal and loved-up moments of a more downtempo hue can be found scattered across the album, with the enveloping ambient awe of ‘Les Portes’ – all swelling chords, gentle melodies and atmospheric field recordings – and slowly unfurling ‘Whale Song’ both lingering long in the memory. Harvey Couture may not be ready to step out of the shadows just yet, but his music most certainly is. We have a feeling that Scellé En Cristal is just the start of the mystery monsieur’s musical journey.

HIGHLIGHTS "A Buenaventura" is surely one of Julian y su Combo's best albums, a sought-after collector's record that is also popular with tropical DJs. We have added two bonus tracks from 1976, 'Salsa y bembé' and 'Colorin colorao' that were originally a 45 single, resulting a winning combination of familiar and obscure tunes of rich sonic variety. Presented in its original artwork and pressed on 180g vinyl. Recommended by DJ Bongohead of Peace & Rhythm DESCRIPTION During a 20-year period Julián Y Su Combo released 8 LPs on almost as many different companies and "A Buenaventura" was their only record with Medellín-based label Indústria Fonográfica Metrópoli (later reissued by INS on their Fabuloso imprint as "Descarga Salsa Y Boogaloo"). Julián Angulo described the combo's sound as afroantillano, combining Cuban, New Y ork Latin, and Puerto Rican elements with Colombia's own tropical costeño traditions. The group's swinging, jazzy arrangements were distinguished by Angulo's prominent rhythm guitar, a hot rhythm section, and the potent brass lineup of two saxophones and a trumpet (much like Cortijo Y Su Combo) but with the occasional addition of a clarinet or flute (for extra Cuban flavor). Singer José Arboleda lends an earthy, joyful Afro-Colombian sound to the vocals and the entire unit is held together by a combination of his fantastic voice and super-tight, swinging ensemble playing with the occasional expert instrumental solo at just the right interval. "A Buenaventura" is a sought-after collector's record that is popular with DJs not only for the power ('salsa brava' all the way) and diversity of its sound (with hot dance genres that range from guaracha, son montuno and guaguancó to boogaloo and descarga, as well as cumbia and currulao) but also for how well it was arranged, engineered and recorded, making it both a pleasurable listening experience and a dance floor killer. Though the credits do not list a year, most likely it was released in the late 1960s or early 1970s and then pick up again with INS in 1975. In addition to several tasty originals by Julián and other Colombian composers, there are also covers of Cuban classics as well as the funky boogaloo anthem 'Palo de mango' by New York's Eddie Palmieri (with lyrics by the Puerto Rican sonero Cheo Feliciano).

Exploring machine funk, the true hedoni$t returns.
Absolution, one's senses rational is to find happiness.
Intrinsically seeking doctrine, a philosophy for pleasure.
Through liberty and triumph, vice weeps before joy.
This primitive. Our delinquent hero. Who will never cease.
Libertine. Utilitary. Wildness. Embrace the Mystery.

“The Obvious I would sound unutterably pretty even as an instrumental album. But once you factor in a voice whose purity has elicited comparisons to Robert Wyatt, Mark Hollis and Dean Wareham, the effect is something akin to hearing a ghost transmitting from a machine of its own making” - Pete Paphides ‘The Obvious I’ is the second album from Ed Dowie and is the second new master release from Needle Mythology. In 2017, Ed released his feted debut album ‘The Uncle Sold’, leading The Quietus to hail him as a “bold and starry-eyed visionary”, The Skinny to praise his “beautiful… stolen snapshots of glimpsed futures and lost pasts.” and BBC Radio 3’s Late Junction made the record one of their albums of the year. Now, four years on, Ed is to return with an album that will surely find him new followers alongside longtime fans such as Lauren Laverne, who described its predecessor as an “absolutely extraordinary” achievement. Adhering to Kraftwerk’s maxim about achieving the maximum emotional impact by the most minimal means 'The Obvious I' marks a pronounced evolution from Dowie’s earlier music. Co-produced by pioneering British experimental musician and sometime member of Polar Bear “Leafcutter John” Burton what ultimately emerged from these efforts – and what reveals itself with successive plays – is a beguiling process of alchemy. Each song from The Obvious I is the culmination of a beautiful process of distillation. A crystal extracted from chaos. Tumult distilled into lullaby. “My biggest battle,” says Ed Dowie, “was to ask myself how I can make something that reflects the turbulence of this period without adding to it.” By that metric, and several more, The Obvious I is no small triumph.

MJN RECORDS Trondheim Jazz Orchestra & The MaXx / Live ‘Live’ with
Trondheim Jazz Orchestra & The MaXx is really a story of three young
Swedes, Oscar Gr nberg, Petter Kraft and Tomas J rmyr meeting in college
before starting their formal jazz education in Trondheim.
When The MaXx won the prestigious Jazz talent award (JazZtipendiatet) at
Molde International Jazz Festival in 2017, they decided to use the opportunity
to invite some of their best friends and amazing musicians from their college
years, both guitarist Anton Toorell and trombone player Petter H ngsel met the
guys from The MaXx at Fridheim Folkh gskola in 2006. A few years later Oscar,
Petter and Tomas reunited in Trondheim, and The MaXx was born.
The MaXx developed the music on ‘Live’ through hours of jamming in their
studio in an old German bunker in Trondheim. Simultaneously with the music
slowly taking shape, a theme dealing with the youth’s fascination for dystopian
sci-fi, involuntary heroes and time travels evolved. Combined with their love
for rhythmical riffs and extreme musical shifts a new piece of music appeared.
Some people have called it an abstract rock opera. The MaXx tells us that what
this project is really about is to amplify the undisguised energy and joy that
always has been the core of band.
Advice: Live is grasping the steaming atmosphere in the theatre a hot summer
night in Molde, and should be played on a high volume!
TJO & The MaXx:
Oscar Gr nberg - keyboards; Petter Kraft - guitar, tenor saxophone and vocals;
Tomas J rmyr - drums; Mia Marlen Berg - vocals; Thomas Johansson - trumpet;
Petter H ngsel - trombone and recorder; Mette Rasmussen - alto saxophone;
Kjetil M ster - tenor saxophone; Anton Toorell - electric guitar; Anja Lauvdal -
keyboards; Mattis Kleppen - electric bass; Recorded by Tor Breivik Mixed by H
vard Soknes.

The Muskrats first formed in 1993. There’s been a few line-up changes on
bass and drums over the years, always fronted by Steve N meth on vocals
and guitar and recorded the debut album for Nervous records in 1998.
As their main influences the band recognizes Eddie Cochran, Benny Joy, John
Lee Hooker... judge yourself!

Florence Adooni shares a long history with Philophon. Being part of Guy One's group she is the voice on his radio hit "Estre". Furthermore, she is a member of Alogte Oho's Sounds of Joy and can be heard on his smasher "Mam Yinne Wa". Last but not least, Jimi Tenor chose her to sing on his instant club classic "Vocalize My Luv". In addition to all these cooperations, Florence has locally released a series of albums under her own name and with no doubt she can called the queen of Frafra-Gospel.

"Mam Pe'ela Su'ure" is a typical Frafra-Gospel Hymn, sung during Sunday services accompanied only with shakers and hand clapping. Our version here is backed up by Kumasi's finest High Life players, who transform the song into a massive wave of groove. "Naba Aferda" is a homage to the Chief of Zuarungu, Florence's home village, which was also the home village of the legendary Christy Azuma, who became the first international Frafra-Star in the 70s. Christy was always a big inspiration for Florence and makes her proud to be from a small village called Zuarungu.

After a 7-year hiatus, funk legend Steve Arrington returns with his uplifting and soulful new album ‘Down To The Lowest Terms: The Soul Sessions’, with artists including Mndsgn, Knxwledge and Jerry Paper on production. The album portrays his diversity of influences, which sees Arrington drawing on funk, soul, jazz, electronic and R&B.
Steve Arrington is known for his innovative vocals on classics including ‘Watching You’ and ‘Just A Touch of Love’, with Slave, as well as his solo work with tracks including ‘Dancin’ in the Key of Life’, ‘Weak at the Knees’ and ‘Nobody Can Be You’. His music has greatly influenced the hip hop generation, having been sampled by Jay-Z, A
Tribe Called Quest, Pharrell, 50 Cent, 2Pac, De La Soul, Snoop Dogg and many more. ‘Down To The Lowest Terms: The Soul Sessions’ is Steve Arrington’s first solo album since 2009’s ‘Pure Thang’.