Gregarius » Afrobeat Trainspotter

Afrobeat Trainspotter (10 unread)

Dj Mujava : the one to take the South African house sound global??

Posted: August 25th, 2008, 11:21am MDT by Raymond Jenkin

We keep hearing about THAT South African artist who is going to take the local Kwaito/Pretoria/SA house sound global and it just falls short each time. Is Dj Mujava's "Township Funk" track the one to do this? It certainly has ticks all the boxes and seems more relevant than ever in light of all attention on the bmore sound, baile funk and african electronica is getting.

Dj Mujava has recently been signed to Warp and this is what they have to say about it:

"‘Township Funk’ is tough, dark, African dance music from the industrial city of Pretoria, South Africa.
It’s perhaps the most infectious dance record you’ll hear this year, echoing the early Warp sound of LFO or the Forgemasters in an uncanny way, almost 20 years on, across continents.

Is South Africa the new hip place for electronic music ?
Maybe….but we certainly hope that South African house will go worldwide with this track.

‘Township Funk’ will be released on Warp Records on 12″ on september 15th worldwide (excl UK) and available on all good digital outlets early, from august 11th.
In the UK, it will be released by the good people of This Is Music LTD."

This is already getting some coverage in the blogosphere and more recently in the Guardian newspaper in the United Kingdom. With a mid-September release lets see what happens...
DJ Mbuso features on Secret Weapons EP

Posted: May 23rd, 2008, 5:26am MDT by Raymond Jenkin

South Africa's favorite house producer, DJ Mbuso features on German label Innervision's Secret Weapons EP. The EP which features tracks from Alix Alvarez and Francois K finishes off with Ukukholwa Kuwe (I Believe In You)" (feat Shembe)by Mbuso which was orignally released on Phezulu Records last year. Secret Weapons EP was released in April 08 and can be bought at your local store or on Juno

DJ Mbuso - "Ukukholwa Kuwe (I Believe In You)" (feat Shembe)
Artist Check: Suzana Rozkosny

Posted: May 23rd, 2008, 5:01am MDT by Raymond Jenkin

Suzana Rozkosny ties up a great relationship between Jazz and Electronic music. Her broad musical upbringing reflects in her productions and collaborations. From nu-soul Erica Badhu-type tracks through to collabo's with German house master Jackmate she covers a broad spectrum of music and with consistency in quality.

For some listening check out:

Apelle Moi (Label: Philpot)

Used Label: Philpot)

Also , for those in Berlin check her out tonight (23.05.08) at the Watergate.
Soulphiction new album for 2008 out now

Posted: May 16th, 2008, 1:12pm MDT by Raymond Jenkin

Germans make some of the best house out there right now. Soulful and deep without the cliche sounds of so much house that gets stuck on "now-thats-jazzy-house-44" type compilations. Its fresh and interesting and packs a punch. Soulphiction encapsulates whats great about German house music with his new offering "Do you overstand?!" (Sonar Kollektiv) which came out last month.

The way he puts his material together has got some people saying he is stripping house down to something else. Well yes he stripping house down to what it should be a feeling, not a formula. This album pulls me back to Ron Trent / Chez Damier tracks on Prescription in its simplicity and intensity. And yes...also to Detroit...so many parralels to Moodymann and Theo Parrish.

Check some of this album out...

[www.myspace.com]
Gilles Peterson's World Wide Youtube Channel

Posted: May 10th, 2008, 12:08pm MDT by Raymond Jenkin

For those of you who love a bit of the GP man's legendary Radio 1 sets and all things Gilles-like, check out his YouTube Channel page. Its filled with video footage from the World Wide Festival, World Wide Awards, Brownswood Recordings and other favorites from Gilles Peterson. I will add it to my link list as a permanent link as its quite a cool site to keep visiting.

[youtube.com]
Pepe Bradock - Intriguing Feathered Creature

Posted: May 3rd, 2008, 9:28am MDT by Raymond Jenkin

The French deep house maestro can always be turned to for fresh sounding and exciting deep house. The artist who brought us rocking tracks like "Deep Burnt" has put out some more great music in 2008. "Intriguing Feathered Creature" released mid Feb 08 is the kind of house that plays well on a dance floor or chilling at home. Nice complex chords and a rather strange bird call sample throughout the track.

Intriguing Feathered Creature

Intriguing Feathered Creature (dub)
Gilles Peterson Worldwide Festival 2008 line up

Posted: April 30th, 2008, 12:17pm MDT by Raymond Jenkin

The Worldwide Festival is back in style for its third French edition in the idyllic small fishing town of Sete (South of France). The Festival is taking place on the 3rd, 4th and 5th of July 2008 in some truly spectacular outdoor venues.

Look at the line up of confirmed dj's/acts:

Cinematic Orchestra, Laurent Garnier, Madlib, Sebastien Tellier, Pascal Comelade, Breakestra, Henrik Schwarz, Benga, Gilles Peterson, zero dB, Pilooski, Little Dragon, Dynamax, Marathon Men, Toshio Matsuura, DJ Lefto, James Stewart, L'Aroye and Ky… to name a few!

For more info and to book your ticket (tickets are currently 59 pounds / 81 euros) : http://www.worldwidefestival.com/
Artist Check: Five Men Three Missing

Posted: April 26th, 2008, 2:12am MDT by Raymond Jenkin

With a name chosen from a competition at their first gig, these guys have definitely got a unique approach to their music and performances. Five Men Three Missing is a Johannesburg based band consisting of two guys (clever name huh?) Emile Hoogenhout and João Orecchia. Their sound is a mix of genres from dub influence to electronica with a beautiful fusion of live instrumentation and sample based work. They also have a rather unique live performance:

"For this band, performing a track is unlike any other. The song begins with the live performance of a short instrumental piece. This segment is recorded live, and looped in real time, so that it is continues to be heard by the audience in recorded format. As more parts are recorded live, they are laid over one another in sequence. This creates ‘layers' of loops which are synchronized in a time pattern. " Five Men Three Missing Myspace

Lets hope these guys get to do some touring outside of South Africa as their gigs have an amazing interactive vibe (see video and pictures on their profile ) and I'm sure their sound would go down really well in Europe.
Win a one off Charles Webster canvas from Defected

Posted: April 21st, 2008, 2:49pm MDT by Raymond Jenkin

Defected are giving a way a one-off canvas of the new Charles Webster compilation's art work in the run up to the release of "Defected presents Charles Webster". Check out the competition here:

[www.defected.com]#
Video: A short interview with Theo Parrish

Posted: April 19th, 2008, 3:57am MDT by Raymond Jenkin

Recently added on youtube, this video follows Theo Parrish as he records sounds in and around Detroit and explains a little bit about how Detroit and the city influences his music.