the chisa years: 1965–1975 (rare and unreleased) is a compilation album by south african jazz trumpeter hugh masekela. the album consists of 14 rare or forgotten tracks recorded by stewart levine and hugh masekela from 1965 to 1975 when they ran their own chisa records label. thom jurek of allmusic wrote “in sum. there isn’t a weak moment on this entire collection. it’s appeal is wide and deep and one can only hope this is the first of many volumes of this material to appear. bbe records has done a stellar job in making this slab available.” dan nishimoto of the prefix magazine stated “the compilation focuses on masekela’s original idea of “african american music.” from the early experiments of the zulus (a group featuring m’bulu) in mixing doo-wop. rhythm & blues and south african gospel and the mbaqanga/”grazing in the grass”-style work of the generically named johannesburg street band to the clearly fela-influenced ojah (masekela’s band in the mid-’70s. consisting of players from ghana and nigeria) and the readyfor-primetime belting of m’bulu. each track reveals a multi-pronged effort to find and challenge the notion(s) of how african and american cultural forms could interact.”

following her 1959 appearance in the anti-apartheid film come back. africa south african native miriam makeba vaulted into the international spotlight. fell under the tutelage of harry belafonte. and moved to new york city in 1960 where she immediately became a massive recording sensation. this lp collects some of that brilliant early material that launched her career and made her one of the most beloved voices of the 20th century. all tracks recorded 1957 - 1962.

drum union is a new series documenting the different shades of leftfield house. london based tony nwachukwu (aka attica blues aka wah-chu-ku) provides a deep broken dub techno monster. manuel fischer presents a beat-driven disco-influenced track to make any dance-floor burn and mitsubishi galaxy. who are also known as jack pattern take us into a wavy trip to another dimension. look like rounds it up and is merging afro-cuban rhythms with modern electronica soundshapes. a journey wider and deeper than most of the average 4/4 business!

ayuune sule brings the soul into kologo power. in kumasi. the second city of ghana and capitol of the ashanti region. ayuune sule is the main kologo star. the most famous kologo player these days in the whole of ghana and abroad is king ayisoba. together with king ayisoba. guy one. atongo zimba and sambo. he represents the generation that broke kologo music outside of the north east region of ghana. in europe we know ayuune sule as a member of king ayisoba’s band and as a solo artist who often opens up for his shows.

named after the tenor saxophone. actually. jimi tenor is not just jimi tenor - he s as well jimi keys. jimi flute. jimi vox and jimi composer. yeah. he is. as a multi-instrumentalist and music master in general. all of this! but wait: active since the mid-80 s he s also jimi legend. and if you overlook his whole oeuvre then finally you will find out that on top of all of this he s jimi genius.

lumberjacks in hell welcomes deep house vet andy compton and shamrock for a trip into plush disco. laid back funk and more besides. bunny chow was reportedly recorded in south africa. and features the vocal talents of asli on a number of the tracks. you can certainly hear the afro influence creeping into the simmering groove of the title track. while aslis vocals shine through the clearest on the downtempo tones of everything is gravy. nifanyeje is another warm trip through afro disco replete with noodling guitar lines and a crisp drum machine beat. while roga mziki ends the record on a high note with a final blast of that infectious. sunkissed sound the pair have clearly mastered on their musical adventure

very nice compilation on this burkina faso artists work on the ever excellent born bad imprint! tip!

sterns edits returns after their well received and recently repressed amadou balake excursions. this time with ben gomori turning his hand to guinea for a third instalment in the series of re-works from the sterns music catalogue of african gems. balla et ses balladins were one of guinea s national orchestras formed as a result of the newly elected president. sekou toures authenticite policy of the early 1960s. which sought to promote guinea s cultural identity following independence from france in 1958. gomori takes the scalpel to two cuts recorded during their years on the state-run syliphone label. making good use of bandleader balla s lively trumpet playing. the gently haunting nyo is taken on a stomping slo-mo chug with a head-nodding bassline and stuttering fx creating a shimmering effect on the tropical guitars. while the rousing horns of wilikabo are laid over with rasping synth bass for a punchy juxtaposition. sterns edits is an official collaboration between african music stalwarts sterns music and london s ben gomori.

two tracks taken from rush hour surinam funk force compilation. indo-surinamese singer. cynthias jhoom le (1980) is wonderfully skewed synth disco gem! the track was previously only featured on the cd version of the comp. another fav. astarias jamasa roro (1979). a driving carribean style disco bomb. appears on the flip.

oddball space disco/fnk tracks. composed between 1970 and 1985. big tip! a master of the mixing board. from the late 60s until the 90s bernard estardy was the wizard of french musical recordings. as head of cbe studios. he shaped everything from gérard mansets concept albums to claude françois hit singles. françoise hardys delicate tear-jerkers and michel sardous soul-stirrers. this giant had his hand in the whole range of mainstream french music by making his studio a veritable playground for experimentation. his legendary album la formule du baron. released in 1969. and the eight lps of production music he made between 1974 and 1978 for tele music are vivid proof. in the cbe studio. which she runs today. his daughter julie estardy discussed his singular career.

founded in 2018 by dj and producer deni-shain the man behind acclaimed compilations space echo and pop makossa. atangana records is the logical follow-up to more than 20 years of travels. constantly on the lookout for new artists and music around the world. as a tropicalist globetrotter in this new project deni-shain. in partnership with thomas vicente. co-owner of the french restaurant le verre vole. aims to dig. reproduce & transmit cross-cultural music. usually unreachable and/or less known by the public. the goal is simple: share the love of music and to rediscover the pleasure of voicings. percussions and sadly forgotten harmonies. whether you find yourself in a jam packed club or the intimacy of your home. atangana’s first releases will be looking at the caribbeans islands. especially into haiti with the reissue highly expected by various diggers of the acclaimed single divizion by singer fedia laguerre. originally released in 1981. this first 12inch comes with a remix by voilaaa and an instrumental cut exclusively based on the additional work by the french afro-collective.

africa seven is taking its first trip to germany... well germany via cameroun. charlie kingue soppo is better known as charly kingson. cousin of manu dibango and a cameroonian emigrant in the 1970s. charly first headed to paris and then found his way to munich in 1978. he recorded two albums in his career. “born in africa” in munich in 1978 and “dance to the music” two years later in new york. for this outing we focus on his debut “born in africa”. it was recorded in union studios in munich with some of the city’s finest (and surprisingly funky) session musicians of the day.

big tunes by mac gregor... nan ye li kan is a sought after and well known bomb.. a welcome release that brings the two nicest tunes from the lp to 12 format for that loud dj play. . originally from martinique. clem marise voltine aka mac gregor moved to abidjan in 1979 searching for. what she called. her “negritude quest”. she sang about her love for her adoptive city until her death in april 2004 at chu of abidjan. trechville hospital.

great return of the classic and pioneer band of the french funk scene! after a long absence. malka family reformed. burned some scenes and composed a new album without changing anything to its magic formula. recomposed with almost all original musicians. they come back today with a new album. le retour du kif. at the heart of a still popular and multicultural marais area in paris. young musicians gather to jam. this is where malka family is formed. their first self-produced album. malka on the beach. was released in 1991. and gigs were immediately chaining up all over france and europe. famous for their eccentric costumed performance and after-parties. in 1992. warner france signs them for a second album tous des oufs. a real p-funk space opera with guests such as sidney. dee nasty. marco prince (fff). or juan rozoff. they will then traveled france. switzerland. italy. holland. denmark. namibia. japan ... and in 1994. the band becomes independent again and records an ep for big cheese records. titled fricassee de funk. after a final tour for the third album. fotoukonkass (bmg) recorded with renaud létang the band finally broke up. at a time when daft punk is using funk artists to support their performance. when bruno mars & mark ronsons uptown funk continues to make the crowds dance. it s time for the original funkateers families to come back and teach a lesson to new generations. after the band reformed and started touring again since 2015. they quickly decided to record a new album and to leave on the roads again

in recent times alex pletnev has been making his mark on the musical stratosphere with an array of works from from cold wave edits. through gorgeous adaptations of african and world music to tribal techno originals. he joins us as pletnev for aztec code / daywalker. a 12inch combining his abundant influences to take us to bizarre. far-off places.

the colorful world of arp frique is the exotic and super funky debut album of niels nieuborg. after his surprising. very well received debut release on rush hour. arp frique continues collaborating with orlando julius. ed motta. americo brito. ronald snijders and more! tip! . pulsating nyc style live disco vibes. interwoven with both caribbean and cape verdean sounds. are themes throughout the record with danceability always guaranteed and a healthy finishing touch of weirdness present across most tracks. first single ‘nos magia’ was shortlisted for track of the year 2017 at gilles peterson’s worldwide awards and has been given airplay by bbc radio 6 music. bbc radio 1 and nts whilst club djs antal and hunee have all supported the track in their sets.

“she is my woman” is murphy william’s loose. funky and spontaneous call to the dance floor. it’s an infectious collection of good-time tunes that the band seem to be enjoying as much as the listener.

the brilliant second album from the legendary cymande. 180 gram vinyl. mastered from original tapes. replica original artwork. official mr bongo reissue. licensed from john schroeder enterprises.

a limited reissue of cheikh lô’s classic debut album né la thiass. produced by youssou n’dour in dakar in 1995. cheikh ranks the album as his favourite release. available for the first time on vinyl. with new artwork and mastered from the original cassette mixes. includes 2 bonus fully artworked postcards. 180g heavyweight. 16 page colour booklet. download code included. cheikh will be touring internationally throughout 2018.

unique soul jazz records’ record store day seven-inch box set which brings together a stunning five-single/ ten track selection of mind-blowingly groovy selection of african. latin. jazz and funk music from the congo. absolutely killer and essential tracks (mostly unknown) from the masters of the vibrant congo scene in the 1960s – featuring the groups franco & ok jazz. rock-a-mambo. african jazz. african fiesta and more. roots african meets dizzy gillespie. james brown. ray barretto & more. the bomb! this unique box-set edition is only available as a one-off pressing especially for record store day 2018.

‘pat thomas introduces marijata’ is a seminal ghanian album that fuses highlife. reggae. folk. funk and soul. from legendary vocalist pat thomas. originally released in 1976 on gapophone records. ‘marijata’ was a group made up of three members – kofi ‘electric’ addison on drums. bob fischlan on organ and nat osmanu on guitar. hailing from ghana. pat thomas career began in 1969 with the ‘broadway dance band’. leaving a year later to join the ‘uhuru dance band’. he then played with ebo taylor’s ‘blue monks’ and finally formed the ‘sweet beans’ in 1973 where he really made his name. the group released ‘false lover’ in 1974. split and then reformed as marijata. releasing ‘marijata’ (also available on mr bongo) and this album. ‘pat thomas introduces marijata’. thomas career spans more than 50 years and he still tours regularly across the world. replica original artwork. official mr bongo reissue. licensed from gapophone records courtesy of george prah.

ghanaian legend ebo taylor returns with perhaps his finest album to date. but don’t take our word for it. that’s coming straight from the man himself. and he should know after more than 60 years in the business.

louie vega joins forces with the martinez brothers and revered salsa singer hector lavoe this february for shut the door. the martinez brothers have rapidly become two of the most in demand djs and producer across the globe and here we see them make a welcome return to their cuttin headz imprint for one of their most accomplished projects to date. collaborating with the infamous house aficionado and one half of masters at work. louie vega whilst the vocal additions come courtesy of puerto ricos hector lavoe. one of the most revered salsa singers in the history of the genre. the tmblv main mix of shut the door opens. offering a refined house feel fuelled by smooth chord swells and organic percussion as hector lavoe’s vocal contributions ebb and flow through the rolling groove. a tmblv main instrumental follows. stripping away the vocal contributions to the heady groove alone. the martinez brothers up-tempo energy fuelled production then shines through on the tmblv beats mix offering their dynamic and intricate drum arrangement style whilst the processing the latin vocals from hector lavoe showcases louie vegas finessed additions to the composition. lastly a tmblv beats instrumental closes. again tipping the focus solely over to the swinging drums and snaking subs

gqom oh! records presents “the originators”. a five track ep respresenting the past. the present and the future of gqom - the thunderous club sound from durban. south africa. the vinyl ep includes a download code with 4 additional tracks.

kwaito 12 inch featuring two forgotten bass-heavy cuts from south africa in the early 90s. vanonyana lava by volcano is a sought after tune right now (so difficult to get an original copy!) while the beat gangsters are a new introduction (to us) from okapis vaults. tip! hot on the heels the labels debut release burnin beat. johannesburg-based afrosynth records second release is a 12inch of two bass-heavy cuts of obscure 90s kwaito from south africa.

a total of four killer dancefloor curveballs from kampala. uganda. performed and composed by the traditional mataali drum and vocal troupe mubashira mataali group (pron: moo-ba-shee-ra). esoteric and unusual although fantastically joyous to listen and dance to. the unbelievably tight multitude of percussionists provide the perfect backdrop for musician-come-filmstar sulaiman sulait to deliver his entrancing vocal performance with a strong islamic message at the heart.

it was may 2017 when earthboogie’s debut release dropped on leng. the soundsystem-loving east london duo rightly won praise for a fine ep that brilliantly joined the dots between all things intergalactic. terrestrial and tribal. having spent the last ten months recording their adventures. izaak gray and nicola robinson return with “silken moon”. the first single from their forthcoming debut album. human call.

2lp gatefold. incl dl card . there are some records that manage to sound both of a time and utterly timeless and bon voyage organisation s jungle? quelle jungle? (a nod to supertramp s crisis? what crisis?) is one of those albums. its silken-smooth production. irresistible grooves. funk-tinged guitars. lush soundscapes and general glowing presence could easily lead one to believe that have dug up a lost disco gem from the 1970s. however. behind the disco-pop gleam lies eerie dystopian sci-fi ruminations of a futuristic bent and tones that can often feel as french as they do asian or african. this sort of cross-continental exploration is an expansion on bvo s previous two eps. the man behind the organisation. adrien durand. says. -i tried to continue the musical expedition between dystopian science-fiction haunted africa - plus haitian vaudou on -soleil dieu- - and futuristic asia. addressing. in a double entendre manner. some of the political issues that i am sensitive to.- in fact the jungle in question in the album s title is a metaphorical one and one that creates a vast series of environments for durand to explore such subjects as world trade. utopian ideals and themes of idols. as well as of time and communication. however. one will need to speak french to decipher such explorations. as well as shake off the natural impulse to move with every glorious beat on its 13 tracks. of which are moved along by maud nadal and agathe bonitzer s golden vocals.

ghana s dj katapila is back with more minimalist dance music productions. this time inspired in part by his travels overseas. following the success of the re-release of his trotro recording a couple years ago. katapila has been playing in europe and the uk. bringing his style of breakneck-paced. everything-but-the-kitchen-sink west african club music into a very different conte. giving katapila (real name ishmael abbey) inspiration in the kind of music he has heard in places like london. so he made some new music. here we go!

ganze zehn jahre mussten die fans des im kongo geborenen und in belgien lebenden musikers warten. dass ein nachfolger zum 2008er debütalbum hotel impala erscheint. 14 tracks präsentiert baloji auf seinem neuen album und perfektioniert dabei den musikalischen brückenschlag zwischen traditionell-afrikanischen klängen und afroamerikanischen sounds aus dem kosmos des hip-hops. souls. funks und jazz. wie lhiver indien. ein track der teil des aktuellen fifa 18-soundtracks ist. verfolgen alle songs das gleiche ziel: sie sollen den hörer auf die beine und zum schwitzen bringen. schwarzes doppelvinyl im gatefold sleeve. inklusive booklet und downloadcode.

acclaimed malian musician sidi touré returns with his fourth album. toubalbero. named after the large traditional drum used to gather people in the malian region of gao. toubalbero is a danceable. dynamic. and despite the region’s signifcant political challenges. joyous album. the double 12 inch comes in a gatefold sleeve with download code included.

as the lead singer of george darko s legendary burger-highlife hit-band. lee dodou became the number one voice of 80 s highlife. born in kumasi. the epicenter of ghanaian highlife. he came to berlin in the late 70 s - by then the uprising epicenter of burger-highlife - to work as a back-up-singer for pat thomas. after joining and leaving georg darko and running his own band -kantata-. he stopped releasing music in the early 90 s. now. philophon is proud to present new recordings of his soulful genius to the world of 2018. basa basa is a song in the classic -concert party- style. as it was played in the glorious 60 s. after a firey horn introduction lee takes over in that funny and entertaining manner typical for -concert party- music. buzz duncker joins lee s phrases with some gentle clarinet. highlife at its best! sahara akwantuo is anything but a classic: it s the start of a kind of philophonic highlife. labeled as kraut-life. ghanaian love of life meets german romantic melancholy. happy rhythms meet mysterious synth landscapes. eternal summertime and mangos are meeting a wet winter world and roast apples. kraut-life at its best!

lp. first re issue ever. cut from original masters. original packaging strictly reproduced. incl. rinted gatefold sleeve and printed inner-sleeve with cd included. original year of release: 1991. features the tracks out of time man. king of bongo. madame oscar. etc. mano negra the legendary first band of french singer manu chao featuring songs in spanish. french. english and arabic. we are celebrating this year the 30th anniversary of its foundation. the album has been unavailable on vinyl since its first original pressing.

one of the most mysterious and outsider soca 45s out there by h.m. these eyes timothy. the a-side let me love sounds like doo wop recorded with oluko imo s gear. and the b-side soca hustle sounds like the residents jamming a marvin whoremonger song with augustus pablo. the original 45 is so obscure that even his siblings didnt know that he made music. and rumour has it that. frustrated by its lack of success. michael threw most of the copies of the 45 in the valley beside his family s house in the hills just outside port of spain. one-time pressing of 500 copies

as part of the ten-year anniversary dekmantel presents the final record in a ten-part-ep series. split into two parts due to its immensity. the final instalment is a re-issue of tony allens asiko (in a silent mix) originally released in 1999 and remixes by motor city drum ensemble and ricardo villalobos. the first part features a grandiose 29-minute ricardo villalobos version of the afrobeat masters cut. a true collaboration of giants.having been a regular at the festival for several years now. villalobos delivers a remix. one of his longest to date. that only he can produce. allowing the percussion to breathe into a monumental rhythm. villalobos warps the vocals. restructuring the bass and drums into a rolling dub-fusion of techno that is characteristic of his remixes to date. yet still breathtaking in its execution. afrobeat-minimalism. with dub-infused fire. and near psychedelic ambience that perfectly synchs the worlds of tony allen. and ricardo villalobos. two legends who’ve helped re-shape the face of music. highlighting the diversity of sounds that have come to represent the dutch label and festival series. the eps to date have encompassed a range of artists and genres. featuring label favourites. as well as whole bunch of debuting artists. the ep series kicked off in march 2018. and over the course of a year featured the likes of gigi masin. lena willikens. burnt friedman. donato dozzy. the egyptian lover. palms trax. and more.

mindblowing afro soul music from ivory coast served up by an obscure artist who only recorded four albums in between 1979 and the beginning of the 80’s. he created an original funky fusion with bété langage. a selection of four amazing tracks recorded in abidjan on two different records label called war records and as records. the music here is a mixture of funk with heavy basslines. traditional percussions. funky guitar riffs. nice horns section and lyrics in beté. the song «demonde» is inspired by harmonies of the famous «dance to the drummer beat» by herman kelly. those two rare records were found by afrobrazilero aka djamel hammadi and never appeared on the vinyl market. it’s almost impossible to have infos about this singer and composer neither the musicians involved in the recording sessions. most of the trace of the recording session were lost by the labels we licensed the tracks with. unique. pressed on a deluxe vinyl. remastered by the carvery. this very funky album is a must have for all the afro funk lovers!

mar & sol first release is aleluia lp from the cabo verde singer pedrinho. at the time. late 70 s. this lp was one of the biggest successes from cabo verde music. singer pedrinho moved to lisbon when he was 18 years old. and recorded this album. the first one of his career. aleluia was produced in the same street where mar & sol is based nowadays. in rua de s.bento. lisbon. portugal. this street was also where pedrinho come to live when he arrived in portugal. like the majority of the musicians and emigrants from the old african portuguese colonies move at that time. to try a new luck. a big community grew here and these artists got the opportunity to record their own traditional music by the hands of local labels. now is the time for mar & sol to give a new life to all this music. this is the first of many reissues that are coming to start the series of the label.

favorite recordings proudly presents combattant. first ep by pat kalla produced by bruno patchworks hovart. pat kalla is a musician. singer and storyteller. patrice of his birth name. in tribute to the great lumumba! lover of words. french language. and music of course. born in lyon. from a cameroonian father. musician and political activist. and a french and literary mother. he explores from his childhood the soul. the slam. the funk and the art of telling stories. life being a great one. after years of touring alongside many bands (conte & soul. legend of eboa king. mento cloub. voilaaa sound system). and several acclaimed titles on the two albums by voilaaa. he comes back with this project to put a bit of primordial lightness in a rainy world: a tribute to the african culture in honor of a father with sawa origins. the tribe from the people of makossa. jojo ngallé. moni bilé. pain. manu dibango. franco. rochereau. kabasele. fela. françois nkotti & the black style. all these legends vinyls have turned on the family turntable and the collection has whetted the child s appetite. through this new trip. he revisits styles that are sometimes little known to western audiences. such as high-life. makossa. angolan music. afrobeat. afro-disco and others. we could talk about franc cfa. we could talk about jacques foccart. but we will rather dance. because -the dancer seems naive. but his feet must be connected with earth to understand history backed by the super mojo disco. a hyperactive band from lyon with deep groove and positive energy. pat kalla offers us an anti-crisis project. where swaying and feel-good humor is mandatory! an album soon in the crates. beware cest medicament

following the success of the retro-zouk mixtapes series (4 volumes / 15k plays on soundcloud). secousse radio proudly presents its first official vinyl reissue of a long lost zouk banger. originally released in 1993-1994. those two tracks have been road-tested in various clubs and parties for months and the feedback is clear: its dancefloor devastation business. their author is jules henri malaki. an established and self-produced artist from guadeloupe. as the popularity of zouk music keeps growing every day in europe. america and asia. just whisper the name makiyaj to any of the best djs from the current tropical diggers scene and watch their eyes scintillate. this secret weapon shall not remain secret very long.

gnawa is a uniquely moroccan sound with roots in islam and links to a healing ritual called lila (arabic for night). from this heritage comes innov gnawa. the only new york-based gnawa group made from moroccan natives. led by the mâalem (master) hassan ben jaafer. in 2016. pique-nique recordings presented their debut ep together and. since then. the band have also featured on bambro koyo ganda from bonobo s latest album. aicha is their much anticipated follow-up. alongside the joyous call and response between the maalem and the group that s common in gnawa. there are also hints of electronic programming interspersed between the traditional live instrumentation no doubt an influence of nicolas jaar collaborator dave harrington who produced the ep.

after the success of the first full album ‘dagxnacht. the group formed by gilles helsen (keys) and freek vreys (guitar) expands with jazz-percussionist cas kinnaer. the musical recipe of seizoensklanken remains the same: instrumental compositions balancing between colourful afrobeat and intimate electronica.

following cottams critically acclaimed i cant carry on ep. which marked the inaugural release on fatcat records new electronic sub label fcr. the highly-rated dj/producers new 12inch drops also via fcr. locked in the groove is a groovy. boogie chugger. which powerfully ebbs and flows over nearly 11 captivating minutes. and sample heavy dub is all dark n heady eastern atmospherics. whilst dreaming of another place is a fathoms deep. epic journey into mystical and majestic dub-house. an avid participant in preston s early rave scene. paul cottam inevitably pursued djing. progressing to warm up slots for his techno heroes surgeon and regis. tentative steps into production using ableton were met with such encouragement that cottams debut releases began to appear. a set of four untitled. un-marketed and unpromoted vinyl self-releases created a huge organic stir with record collectors. attentive journalists and djs including moodyman. gerd janson and soul clap. this buzz was helped in part by speculation on his identity. but was primarily due to his simple yet effective. flavour-filled and groovesome tracks that blurred the boundaries between re-edits. reworks and originals. moving between slow-mo chug and more straight-up house. whilst encompassing elements of disco. hip hop. nu soul and afrobeat.

soundway presents the debut ep from the mauskovic dance band - a potent. modern blend of afro-caribbean rhythms and space-disco. afro-colombian styles such as champeta and cumbia are integrated with 80s no-wave drum machines and synths: shaking and pulsing direct from amsterdam.

new music by hailu mergia. featuring tony buck (drums) and mike majkowski (upright bass). the culmination of mergias remarkable worldwide tours over the past few years. these new recordings celebrate an evolving. youthful soul. lala belu completes a realistic portrait of hailu mergia

very often included among the 50 must-have albums of modern african music. the two albums “angola 72” (with the inevitable “mona ki ngi xica”) and “angola 74” (with the first ever recorded version of “sodade”) are finally re-edited in vinyl lps. with their original sleeves as published in 1972 and in 1974. in the netherlands. on the label morabeza records.

very often included among the 50 must-have albums of modern african music. the two albums “angola 72” (with the inevitable “mona ki ngi xica”) and “angola 74” (with the first ever recorded version of “sodade”) are finally re-edited in vinyl lps. with their original sleeves as published in 1972 and in 1974. in the netherlands. on the label morabeza records.

yoruba records is proud to welcome back toto chiavetta with our latest release. nagnu jubo (remixes). this follow up to the debut album. impermanence. includes remixes by osunlade as well as new and unreleased work from toto himself. kicking off proceedings is the yoruba soul mix of nagnu jubo. a deep and smooth groove rich in personality. the warm chords reel you in as the underlying rhythm engages and inspires. the yoruba soul dub retains the warmth of the original without the track’s signature chant. this is followed by a new. previously unreleased. version of minds. originally appearing on impermanence. this version is decidedly more floor focused. a 303-style bassline keeps this moving right along as percussive elements add texture and drive to this forward thinking dance tune. finally. closing out this release is hunters. a track which showcases totos dark and techy side. this expressive tune is ripe with emotion and will have discerning listeners locked in introspection while their feet do work on the floors below them.

limited vinyl release with cd-copy of the album included.

für diesen africa seven trip machen wir eine reise nach 1979. funky disco music war ekos dritte lp. es ist mit dem sound. den die bei africa seven haben. verbunden. und nach so vielen jahren haben sie eko endlich in kamerun gefunden und ihn davon überzeugt. dass eine neuauflage definitiv notwendig ist. die lp eröffnet mit dem hellen und erhebenden disco-swing-juwel und titeltrack funky disco music-. punchy hörner. afro-rhythmen und vicky edimo s funky bass treiben diesen groover an. bevor sich das album in die jazz-funk-disco-hymne ndolo embe mulemadolo vertieft. in anlehnung an das zeitalter paris 1979 une chanson sans paroles ist ein französischer power-pop-tune der auf afro swing trifft.

adrix (p stands for produtor) is one of those contemporary puzzles: born and raised in lisbon. of angolan descent. he moved to manchester at 19. three years ago. we can say the nervous interplay between bass and beat stems from just that. fierce. techy. twitchy grooves run through the whole of -Álbum desconhecido-. it’s in the blood. not surprisingly. adrix has a soft spot for drum ’n’ bass but that’s because it clicked with the adrenalin rush leaping out of kuduro. his true long-standing obsession.

strut presents the new album from the modern day leader of afrobeat. seun kuti. the youngest son of afrobeat legend fela kuti is as incensed by injustice as his father ever was and. with his mighty new album black times including a feature from carlos santana. he honours the revolutionaries who have gone before and rallies the torch-bearers to come.

xoa continues to lay out a formidable interpretation of african-infused dance music for the modern age. following on from lauded appearances on shake. one house and soundway. alongside contours. he comes to banana hill with some next level transcendental head-quaking business that reaches from the roots of afrobeat right through to contemporary fx dubbing business. -too much talking- is a proper eyes-closed roller for the hazy moment in the dance. and -express- ramps things up to a strident tempo layered with a barrage of congas and djembes. the hectic pace is offset by swooning melodies. all wistful synth splashes and plucky guitar chops. stirring the soul as much as the feet.

drums of passion was the first album released by babatunde olatunji (1927-2003) in 1960. olatunji was a drummer. social activist and musician. born in ajindo. nigeria. in this album he has recaptured some of his early impressions in his drum beats and giving them new zest. the african drum rhythms are not only musical melodies and songs but also ways of communication. for instance. the first track -akiwowo- was the name of a train conductor who shouted his humorous cry against the fading rhythm of the freight train. -baba jinde- is a dance play and the title track -gin-go-lo-ba- was sampled by many contemporary artists (santana and fatboy slim amongst others) and covered in 1979 by latin jazz/percussionist candido for his disco chart smash -jingo-. drums of passion is mainly a danceable album and often cited as one of the first african albums recorded in (then called) stereophonic sound in the united states in 1960. pressing on 180 gram audiophile vinyl.

french edition girlie cover edition.

mix righteous fuzz guitar. bad-ass keyboards and ecstatic african rhythms and what have you got? celebration by aktion - a slab of of heavy afro-funk-pysch-rock from the hardest working band in 70s nigeria.

baad john cross’s new revolution is a afro-electro-funk-boogie-disco banger that could only come from 1980s nigeria. bright. optimistic. with an unrelenting eye on the dance floor. it is regarded by many as a prototype of the electro rhythms that would become the signature sound of nigerian boogie.

this time y-bayani has support from the great voice of baby naa. baby naa was just hanging out at the studio in accra/ghana when the recordings of rehwe mie enyim took place. the crew was waiting desperately for a singer to back up y-bayani. after an hour of waiting the producer. knowing that she sings at church every sunday. asked baby naa to do the missing part. then something occurred that nobody was expecting and finally everybody was happy that the original singer hadn t made it. rehwe mie enyim is a unique example of how roots-reggae can sound today. maybe it will be the very last recorded real roots-reggae song in human history? on mi sumolo the band of enlightment. reason and love gives us a light and cheerful instrumental every dj must have for his late night wedding set or any other high-class party.

nyege nyege tapes proudly announces the first international release of electro acholi pioneer otim alpha s incredible body of work recorded over a period of 11 years. otim alpha together with his early producer leo palayeng began in 2001 taking traditional acholi larakaraka wedding songs and reinterpreting them with music software on computers. the results are a fast paced poly-rhythmic music ready for dance floor madness.

for the past 15 years the tanzanian megalopolis of dar es salaam has had one of the most exciting underground electronic music scenes in east africa. a constellation of micro-scenes from mchiriku. sebene and segere all the way to its latest mutation of singeli that finally after years of lurking in the underground has exploded into the mainstream and taken over bongo flava as the music of choice amongst tanzania s youth. born in the sprawling working class neighborhoods of tandale and manzese. singeli s signature sound consists of fast paced frantic loops interlocking with each other. with influences from zanzibars tarab music all the way to south african afro-house coupled with mc s who often spit satirical lyrics about the challenges facing tanzania s youth. from police corruption to the complications of dating girls when you are broke. if there is one studio that stands out amongst the hundreds that dot dar es salaam s musical landscape it is sisso records. centered around producers. bwax. sisso. bampa pana and yung keyz morento and mc s dogo niga and makavelli. they were early pioneers of the singeli sound. whilst some singeli artists have begun fusing their music with more traditional tanzanian hip hop. sisso have remained uncompromising in their sound. always raw. fast with a punk diy aesthetic that can at times verge on noise and gabber. to produce a spell binding music that is like no other sound system culture in the region.

hailing from newcastle upon tyne. uk. steve bird aka mr. bird is the latest artist to land at matasuna records nest. hatching an exotic and fiery ep. starting on a mid flight ambience. before charging to catch its funky prey. dance away. the opening track. is a scorching collaboration with chief commander yaaba. one of the lead singers of london based combo yaaba funk. undeniably catchy bass line. afro horns blended with a string of unexpected beat variations. dance away is a call to the dancefloor. a celebratory ground to let loose. where mothers and sisters alike are beckoned to shine to the positive tune.

releasing an album into the world is a special moment for any artist but when you re an artist who grew up in remote northern ghana with no schooling. spending a life herding cows and goats. building your own instruments and teaching yourself to sing. then there s a particular sense of occasion and celebration in finding recognition and an audience for that music. this is the case for guy one. an utterly unique artist who is writing and performing frafra music. a style that originates from a small area in the north of ghana. whilst guy one is already loved and adored locally by now - building up a fervent following in local villages in which no funeral or wedding would take place without his soaring voice and deeply rhythmic playing. before then transforming into an award-winning. tv appearing artist in ghana - his music is now to find a much wider audience through max weissenfeldt s philophon label (jimi tenor. hailu mergia. alemayehu eshete) on this berlin meets bolgatanga release.

french politic hi nrg and weird zouk by the mysterous duo barnes & wobble

growing bin burst into 2018 with a bang. crash and symbol splash. uniting a premier pair of per-cussion obsessives for a supernatural mission into the heart of the rhythm. dressed in the pitch black of du&#776.sseldorf stands wolf mu&#776.ller. master of the tropical drums and seven time salon des amateur breakdance champion. repping cologne and berlin is niklas wandt. germany’s funkiest drummer and a mixed musical artist as adept in experimental jazz as demen- ted euro dance. standing toe to toe in a no holds barred. no drum unstruck groove contest. these two titans will make you swing your pants like a crash bandicoot victory dance... so stretch out and step in to ‚instrumentalmusik von der mitte der world

just in time for the season. seaside maestro jean claude gavri returns with this long awaited 3rd instalment of the seaside edits series. both tracks on side a are top notch 117 afro disco floor fillers by disco tech & lillo carillo. on the flip. the man himself label owner jcg is giving us a sneak peek inside his vinyl vault with off broadway. a balearic afro synth heaven. for these very lucky few that earned their ticket to the deeper zones of your collection.

last years on the corner underground smash release. the 12inch ep santuris embaire umeme. introduced uganda’s mugwisa international xylophone group (m.i.x.g) to the world. the recordings center on the embaire. a giant xylophone native to ugandan folk music. which is dug into a pit for a natural. earthy bass resonance as gargantuous as the instrument itself. the instrument performs a key role in village life. with ceremonial playing sessions lasting for hours on end. these recordings may be esoteric in nature but they add important context to the santuri’s embaire umeme 12inch and are a vital documentation of the iganga village’s culture. as well as that of uganda. jones has artfully chopped the epic session into a series of short evocative chapters to create a pioneering masterpiece. remix duties are led by griot house innovators. the diabolcal liberties. who have raved-up some sun ra frequencies for the cosmic junglist crew. last but never least. victoria topping has created beautiful artwork using the session photography taken by jones during the recordings

2018 repress of this album by the drummer of fela kuti. produced by doctor l. incl asiko as sampled by jaydee for commons hot shit! featuring remastered versions and ariya (psyche juju mix) as bonus track. which was not part of the original release. tony allen completely rewrote the books on what was possible within the afrobeat genre with his stunning 1999 album. black voices. when one considers exactly what is going on throughout black voices. it is quite mind boggling. as it is almost impossible to associate a minimalist. electronic feel with the massive walls of sound which allen was known to create.

following on from the critically acclaimed penya investigations cassettes and the 12inch acelere ep. afro-latin-electronic collective penya conclude an intensely creative period with a long player collection of tracks super liminal. liminal an in-between state references the transitional process the four piece band entered during a series of self-produced recording sessions held at penyas multi-instrumentalist magnus pis home studio between march 2016 and may 2017. penyas percussive and futuristic afro-latin sound also owes its genesis to the concept of liminality: the threshold of disorientation occurring during ritual practices. penya s hypnotic groovescapes. led by jim lem s bata drumming.ancient chants. sung by lilli elina. dubbed-out improvisations on trombone by viva msimangand lo-fi electronic production by magnus p.i create a sound that has garnered significant support on bbc 6 music via tom ravenscroft. worldwide fm via gilles peterson. on bbc radio 3s late junction. as well as being praised by a host of producers including dj khalab. will lv. dj jose marquez and dengue dengue dengue. penya s energised and engaging live show has also toured across uk festivals this summer. including brainchild. wilderness. farmfest and big love.

following the release of baba commandants debut album juguya in 2014 on the mighty sublime frequencies label. mawimbi is proud to present wasso. one of the best cut from the album in brand new mixing shape alongsides killer electronic remixes from the likes of mawimbi signee loya and mr. boom.

alan abrahams aka portable aka bodycode is an artist very much defined by his past and his journey from south africa to paris via berlin and lisbon has seen him develop into a critically acclaimed producer. singer and video artist working with some of the biggest players in house and techno. part of his constant drive to evolve and challenge himself. this autumn abrahams launches new project ranger. teaming up with london label waella s choice for the debut release. the five tracks on portable presents ranger are a delicate mélange of jazz . soul and electronic and one of abraham s most explicit nods to his south african roots. on the a-side. the ep makes a steady start with bazokonwaba accompanied by a lullaby from south african a capella group korus. hailing from the small township of mbekweni in the western cape. they also feature heavily on the ep s most exuberant moment in nomaliso - already a favourite in esa s recent boiler room - and the more languid b-side opener indaba with a choir of cowbells all harmonizing in unison. reset and vessel provide a self-reflective conclusion to the ep. holding their own as instrumentals with cameroonian bass player stan on bass and parisian saxophonist chisneg lending a hand on the latter. early support from tama sumo. lakuti. gilles peterson. rinse fm. esa. stamp the wax. dimensions recordings

awesome cameroonian afro disco album from pasteur lappé. officially re-issued by africa seven.

rarities from the archives of audio productions. nairobi. kenya. the vinyl release includes a cd. featuring this release (nws3) plus tiger blossom - zindagi (nws4).

three dance floor hitters by the dutch arp frique. nos magia holds collaborations with nigerian funkster orlando julius and cape-verdean legend americo brito. surprising new cuts that could easily have been made in the 70ties! big tip! arp frique is niels nieuborg from the city of rotterdam. who has been actively involved in the dutch live music scene for years. working with cape verdean & surinamese musicians especially. after all these years. he finally presents his own true musical output. nos magia is a classic sounding. but unheard cape verdean funana song featuring the old skool americo brito on vocals. the b-side holds two collaborations with afro-beat protagonist orlando julius. njoy!

hamad kalkaba and his golden sounds 1974 - 1975- i remember the day clearly. i was searching for treasures in a record shop in yaoundé. the capital city of cameroon. when suddenly i came across a 7-inch record with a picture of a young man wearing a traditional hat and bearing the marks of several imposing vertical scars on the side of his face. carved when he was just a boy as a reminder of his heritage in the musgum tribe of the northern part of the country.

isle of jura go back to 1976 to resurrect anambra. the jewel in the crown of dub. soul & funk outfit ozo. anambra is something of a classic. a unique song thats slow. ritualistic and spiritual. mixing african & nyabinghi drumming with a buddhist sanskrit mantra om mani padme hum. an alternate version anambra river appears for the first time on the same 12 inch.

on the corner’s dj tool and eclectic favourite. versus is back for a second instalment. there are some familiar faces occupying this tasty wax and some new comers pushing the needle further-out on the corner. as 2015’s versus sold-out we d already acquired some fresh production talents and sent stems over to new and old friends alike. get your atlases out as we criss-cross the globe introducing you to artists from afar-afield as nairobi. manchester. pune. iringa. detroit. and south london.

first official reissue of nigerian boogie disco grail lp produced by grotto for emi nigeria and originally released in 1978. contains dance classic bad city girl. liner notes by nigerian music expert uchenna ikkone. include previously unpublished photos and extensive interviews by temitope kogbe

search the name ‘burnis moleme and the returns are sparse. you’ll discover that his track ‘where is the answer’ appeared on soundway’s excellent nigerian disco compilation. doin’ it in lagos. and there are a few entries about this pmg re-issue of light my fire. but other than that. he seems to have disappeared off the face of the earth. he’s not even a minister of religion. the career path most nigerian stars from the 80s chose to follow. thankfully. we still have light my fire. produced by former funkee jake sollo and backed by a hot team of session musos including friday pozo. nkono teles and joseph ‘jojo’ kuo. burnis delivered a slab of slick afro disco boogie for the ages.

heaven sent from nigeria’s tumultuous east. the apostles have been preaching a particular blend of funky psychedelic soul/rock fusion for over forty years. on banko woman they threw a little afrobeat into the mix. creating an afro-funk disco bomb that has been energising dance floors ever since.

nigeria’s kingsley bucknor’s ‘just u and me’ lp gets the long-awaited reissue treatment from melbourne’s left ear records. after cutting his teeth playing with fela in the 70’s and releasing two afrobeat lp’s kingsley travelled the globe before finding himself in london. it’s here that he laid down 6 distinctive electro-funk tunes inspired by african rhythms and music he’d heard through his travels in the states and in europe. originally issued on kinglsley’s own kab records in ’85 and according to kingsley the release was well received at the time. but due to constraints of international marketing the record remained mostly unknown outside of his homeland. fast-forward to 2017 and the stage is set for a new global audience to appreciate the distinct sound of kb.