release # 12 in mr bongos africa 45 series.

optimos prolific dj/producer/label boss jd twitch aka keith mcivor has curated a compilation of early 80s synth, industrial and cold wave classics and undiscovered gems in collaboration with the vinyl factory, following the cease & desist diy! (cult classics from the post-punk era 1978-82) compilation on his own optimo music label, and youth stand up!, a collaborative recording project featuring young musicians from glasgow, ghana and belize on his autonomous africa imprint.

400, 10inch marbled pink, hand stamped, individually numbered records, single press only. the man behind the very first porn wax returns for the tenth in the collection.

theatre records essential vol.1 is the first vinyl of theatre records. for this first edition we are very pleased to give you 2 impressive original mixes from matteo gamba and earthlife and 2 amazing remixes form thomas muller and nick galemore.

soul masooka. the first international african hit, classic groove of summer ’73 gets instant jamaican treatments by ex-melodians brent dowe backed by the gaytones. years before manu dibango came to kingston for a sly & robby session, a tribute had been paid to the “negropolitan”. from coast to coast! from africa to jamaica! this is earth sound!
single sided pressing on translucent red 10 inch vinyl.

release #10 in mr bongos africa 45 series.

das pendant zu dem unveröffentlichten keith hudson album *tuff gong encounter* von 1984! mit musikern von bob marleys backing band the wailers, u.a. carlton barrett (drums), aston family man barrett (bass), junior marvin (gitarre) und earl wire lindo (keyboards), in den tuff gong studios eingespielt, sowie mit prince jammy als verantwortlichen für den mix, hatte der legendäre produzent, sänger und dub pionier monate vor seinem überraschenden tod am 14.11.1984 ein sehr starkes team zusammengestellt. alle aufnahmen wurden von kevin metcalfe gemastert.

the unreleased album from 1984 sees the day of light! the final album for keith hudson aka the dark prince of reggae was recorded at tuff gong studio and backed by the wailers! six extended masterpieces of rasta communications. a must have album for the keith hudson fanbase, for roots reggae & the wailers collectors in general, and all the dubheads outernationally!

release #8 in mr bongos africa 45 series.

super mama djombo orchestra, guinee-bissau, west africa. all songs recorded in lisbon, 1980 - re-mastered from the original reels. six archive recordings are now available on vinyl for the first time.. super mama djombo is one of west africas greatest roots orchestras and especially for the people of guiné-bissau. the band marked a new national identity and reinvented portuguese creole as a language of national unity.

strut follow up their hugely successful marshall allen-curated *in the orbit of ra* compilation with a newly curated set from the immense 125 lp back catalogue of jazz maverick, diy philosopher and self-professed member of an angel race, sun ra. to those of earth ... and other worlds is a hand- picked selection from bbc 6 music dj gilles peterson.

ltd warehouse found! markus fix definitely belongs to one of the best new artist this year. he impressed people like ricardo villalobos, onur Özer, radioslave, monika kruse, karotte and luciano with his first release on cécille. cannibals is not only a three tracker. its three records in one. every track has such a strong character and an awesome vibe. but make your own decision. hope you enjoy

with an overall length of 140cm, the marabou is one of the largest storks. the marabou’s head and neck have only a few downy feathers. the feathers on its back, wings, and tail are dark grey with a shimmering green gloss, and its underside is a radiant white. its red and entirely unresearched throat pouch is a distinctive feature. 3tone.triangle and singer madlaina balmer fly to africa together on the marabou and caress this wonderful summer with warm synthesiser clouds, airy field recordings and pleasant, raw percussion. “marabu” will be available for purchase from the bug wan record label this september 2015, both digitally and as a 7 inch vinyl record (including a download code). the art work to accompany this journey was conceived and designed by marcel huwiler. lets dance above the clouds!

buddahs sound will immediately transcend your subconscious to detroit while providing constant nods to its roots in the streets of south africa. the result is a celestial passage through waves of minor chords, raw lo-fi percussion and emotional callings. fred buddah will no doubt leave an impression on those yearning for meaningful, late-night deep house.

this september, acid arab celebrate their third birthday and the release of a first ep on versatile. from acid arab, you knew the ‘collections’ series: three eps and one album, featuring a lot of guests (omar souleyman vs crackboy, i:cube, legowelt, pilooski,gilb-r). it took the band that long to finally release a whole record of their songs. it’s called ‘djazirat el maghreb’ and it’s a tribute to north africa and its three countries, morocco, algeria and tunisia.

super rare afro from the man who played with fela kuti, myiles davis & bob marley. imagine esg colliding with the clash & fela. includes the afro dancefloor smash *unity in africa*.

stamp s back with jascha hagen paying homage to west africa s afrobeat pioneer & a certain female jazz instrumentalist from the famed blue note catalogue. the leipzig based producer first came to the attention of the label after he dropped the outstanding pan that shit out ep on manna all night. here the open minded producer showcases a different side to his production style with two surefire edits that will work wonders wherever they re played. pitched down and spaced out, soldier on the a side is an edit of a politically charged nigerian anthem. this slow burner keeps you locked in with instantly recognisable keys, subtle guitar licks and a rolling bass line that will even make the stiffest necks nod in solidarity. harlem takes you back to a sun-soaked day with this classic 1970s nyc soul anthem dedicated to the road that loops around the north tip of manhattan. jascha takes the jazz-funk anthem and adds extra instrumentation to create a subtle 2015 update...

jose rico launches the le disque record stores project: ambiwa records, a label dedicated to abstract house music. * declaration of intent ep* is a collection of songs with a history, 4 pieces of his life talking about hypocrisy referred to poverty, the trivialisation of music as money source, the days in the studio with ron trent, and the night music-workers. beyond any related stories, here you can find all the jose ricos music standards: impossible mpc percussion patterns, black keys, vocal textures, distorted kicks and tons of suspence and tension. this just means… music for the most demanding dancefloors and open minds. as it could not be otherwise, masterd by jose rico.

release # 6 in mr bongos africa 45 series.

release # 5 in mr bongos africa 45 series.

a slamming balearic / cosmic journey

the 3rd release in mr bongos africa 45 series is a mulatu astatke double a-side.

esa returns with the final instalment for this highlife world series which included previous releases cuba and kenya. having been invited to attend the east africa music conference doadoa in jinja, uganda back in 2014 and again in 2015, esa shares the sounds of a new breed of talent and ideas emerging from east africa and beyond, showcases music not only from uganda but artist from burundi, rwanda, kenya and south africa who all attended the conference.

first release in mr bongos new africa 45 series.

having dropped some of our favourites from the last year on labels like mr saturday night and autonomous africa, we are very happy to welcome these guys to the ten thousand yen family. weird, trippy rhythms, space echoes and chaos held together with hard percussive sound. so sick.

the second release from the hlanganani label lives up to its mo to provide a platform for talented producers from south africa to shine, focusing here on deep sixty, aka young and fast-rising producer johannesburg producer thabiso mamogwa. back in 2010, the producer made it to london to take part in the red bull music academy, which is when the hlang team first heard the tracks that make up the mme hayo ep whilst some studio time on the same trip with todd soundmurderer osborn resulted in the thursday nights track which mamogwa previously self-released. in addition to deep sixty s own deep terror mix of mme hayo, the label have coaxed some fine remixes out of esa and william kouam djoko.

overdue re-issue of the longplayer from 1982 of this great uk reggae band. lp-vinyl has the original album track order and also for the first time on cd with seven additional tracks including john peel session tracks. the capital letters have reformed in 2013 and perform live again.

focusing on deep and raw vibes, strictly wax and classic beats, the - montee louis ep- has been directly imported from bellevue ii, libreville gabon, africa & it has been produced by the great bernard da smoove. mpc-filtered deep house with some darker & menacing rhythms, a1 - hudson budd- kicks off the a1 with a meaty 4/4 kick drum which slowly finds itself surrounded by ghostly pads and even more haunting synths. a2 - thrawbock- mutates into a more light hearted house jam for the heads, with its vocal infectious sample. b1 - strctly move - goes back into familiar, smooth deep house territories but still retains his magic touch, able to transform even the deepest of basslines into something both unusual and musical at the same time. b2 & b3 thrawbock 88 & strctly move 88 are the 90s hip-hop (!!!) versions of the same tracks above : insane !! first time we heard it we thought, hell yeah, the production is just terrific & indeed there s a timeless quality to the intricately programmed drum machine rhythms, the drifting chords, warm

now living in warsaw, donnell knox was well known, along with black nation s jay denham for forging a tough, distinct kalamazoo techno sound in the 90s. his label, sonic mind, put out some very coveted, underground wax that still sounds unique, extra rugged, and fresh. well d-knox is now on a bit of a comeback mission it seems, with some really inspiring new material, and “africa calling”. the first version, created to donnell’s much loved “spirit man” alias, is a soulful trek through layers of pads and emotive synth work. the simple, but uplifting, vocal snippet really gives it an organic and spiritual feel, the tempo is driving and quick, but the overall vibe is laid back and deep. remixes come from the likes of brooklyn based titonton duvante, who maximizes a synth pattern to a form a beautiful, reaching, version, while canada’a rennie foster channels his futago traxx style to present a full on tribal, drum based mix with added vocal pieces. also, detroit transplant, now living in canada as well, j garrett goes in with a very emotional, warm, string laden take. the ep is capped off with another version from donnell that could stand as it’s own track really, a totally different, but equally as strong, version featuring a driving baseline and detroit style string vamps. a really nice release, worthy of your support, from a well loved veteran of the techno underground.

fantasma, the latest project of south african innovator and creative pioneer spoek mathambo, is a five-man collective which weaves together electronica, hip-hop, traditional zulu maskandi music, shangaan electro, south african house, psych-rock and punk to form a unique, original and fresh hybrid. the godfather of bacardi house, producer dj spoko joins with former machineri guitarist andré geld- enhuys, drummer michael buchanan and maskandi multi-instrumentist bhekisenzo cele to complete the line up. fused by spoek mathambos futurist vision, fantasma pulls inspiration from all corners of south africa: the sounds and spirits of townships and cities as well as the rural countryside. it is diverse not only in its membership but also in its forward-looking music. the 2x12 inch vinyl includes 2 bonus tracks and download code.

get wet is a new label formed by a group of friends based between milan and berlin and dedicated to release 12inch mixes intended for club playing. we are interested in pushing new languages of expression, reminiscent of the best traits from old-school influences and on the lookout for a contemporary meaning of the dancefloor, exploring further motives in club music.

since the last record, the band have embraced creative opportunities, dave (drummer and producer) travelled to mali with damon albarns africa express, and dave and tommy (synthesizer operator) worked on the score for the royal shakespeare companys production of john websters bloodthirsty jacobean tragedy the white devil. dave established his own label, kick and clap, named after the club night he launched when he first moved to dalston and vinnie (singer and guitarist) and jim (bassist) collaborated with award-winning artist haroon mirza at stromboli arts festival last summer, at the foot of the islands volcano.

love song 28, the song that established its writer jullian gomes. this incredibly talented young man hailing from pretoria tshwane in south africa is now one of the most revered producer/djs in the entire country.

heavyweight 180 gram double vinyl lp, including cd-copy of the full album.

hello sailor is a party and record label based in brooklyn, ny founded by brazilian-born, new york based renata do valle. since 2012, the label has been staging events with an array of local and international artists. hello sailor recordings debuts with the focus on releasing only 7inch records and building its collection of significant disco, funk, afro, and balearic music.the energy of the tropics, sunset, and the beach informs the feel of this music. hello sailor recordings first 7inch release is a remastered african jam called muko wapi and an edit by french musician joakim. brazil meets africa via france!

from the tropics comes whiskey disco, a sneaky re-edit label bent on dredging the decanter for diffident dancefloor genius from latent disco perpetrators. it is loosely connected to sleazy mcqueen and his assorted cohorts.
kloof street diggin sees wd label honcho sleazy mcqueen team up with longtime dj cohort, romano arcaini for three super-sized re- edits of the highest order. each of these three songs are based around samples sourced during smq s recent tour stops in south africa. peace, love + harmony, the perfect track to segue between house and disco! flute and synthesizer call and response building to an unexpected vocal explosion.
on the flip, disco de moda, named after the johannesburg party with a decidedly digital disco bent, arps and chugs to robotic climax. finally, tidings are closed with the organic and synthetic, tied together in private life, a blend of flute and synth undulating to a psychedelic crescendo.

third instalment in the stargazer series of unearthed classics from italys 80s afro funky scene. neatly packaged on two loud-pressed vinyl 12 inchess, this compilation includes a raft of in-demand and hard-to-find cuts which found cult status in legendary clubs such as cosmic and typhoon. great package of essential afro funky classics!

angefangen mit seinen legendären veröffentlichungen der band spacek, seiner solo-arbeit auf dem kult-label sound in color und seinen kooperationen mit dem verstorbenen j.dilla, bis hin zu seinem unter dem radar gehaltenen black pocket projekt mit seinem bruder dbridge und seiner jüngsten arbeit mit mark pritchard als eine hälfte von africa hitech - seine furchtlosen ansätze etwas zu kreieren, waren immer progressiv und stets originell. mit beat spacek nimmt er wieder die zügel als solo-künstler in die hand und hat ein album erschaffen, das zum einen wie ein liebesbrief an die zukunft, zum anderen wie eine ode an die vergangenheit klingt. erstellt wurde das album weitestgehend mit diversen iphone- und ipad-apps, was zeigt, wie befreit und angeregt durch technologien und perspektiven des neuen beat spacek gedanken aus der vergangenheit ausdrückt. es ist eine reise durch die entwicklungen des modernen großbritanniens aus einer futuristischen perspektive.
die doppel-lp erscheint auf 180 gramm vinyl inklusive downloadc1ode.

new artist on black market, a thousand years (real name zeke africa) grew up in devon. as son of a jazz pianist... he started producing with dance ejay though as soon as he entered his teens and kept evolving in the decade since. the name a thousand years is inspired by sci-fi and reflects his own futuristic take on house music.

jumping straight in on the no.1 spot on itunes south africa on day of release and already one of the most celebrated albums of 2014 in the motherland, house veteran dj/producer ralf gum unleashes his third album, *in my city*, unto the rest of the world on his acclaimed gogo music label. featuring huge-hitters hugh masekela, monique bingham, omar, dele sosimi, kafele, portia monique, lee bling, jocelyn mathieu and kb this is a long-player not to be missed. this is the first 12 inch sampler from ralf gums album *in my city*!

after the first amc release which gained full support from a cast of music collectors and djs including dom servini, diesler, paris djs, moonboots, craig charles plus many more africa music corporation is back with another single ahead of the cd compilation release in october. twelve mabone conjures up images of dusty outdoor dancing, 100 s of pairs of feet kicking up the dusty red soil of africa in a manic outing of unbridled joy, check the rhythm and imagine a young malcolm mclaren hearing this type of music and the inspirations that it led to. the flip is a lowdown groove fuelled walk through the sleazy sound of funk. more quality sounds from the 70s and 80s south africa and re-released for todays audio pleasure

hlanganani music is a new label with its roots in south africa and london, focused on bringing international attention to south african artists. hlanganani music, which translates from zulu as come/get together has its first release from zulu artist butiza. entitled baphuma ezulwini (they came from heaven) the track features vocals from butiza in the style of maskanda (or maskandi-a kind of zulu folk and scathamiya as well as remixes from european mainstays, xdb and christian prommer. the project itself best illuminated by hlanganani label heads and south african expats shy & linda aka sahin meyer with the label the goal is to really help all the artists involved and open new doors on both ends. support by: mr g, jimpster, mano le tough, steve o sullivan, dam swindle, auntie flo, ooft, severino, cottam, lo shea, a sagittariun, drums of death, trickski & more.

echonomist is back on rotary cocktail records this time with vocal support of the amazing black soda from south africa. petros delivers two original mixes which sound like classic inspired detroit tracks with deep basslines, melancholy synths, groovy chords and driving analogue drum machines to provide the perfect soundbed for black sodas distinctive hypnotic vocals. additionally youandme and and.id deliver just the kind of emotional interpretations that touch our souls in the right moments with their beautiful remixes.

king champion sounds deliver a blistering 10 inch album with free cd (incl. 2 bonus tracks) inside that combines a hypnotic krautedelic / dub / minimalist / electronica tunes with a sugarshit sharp wordsmith in his element. g.w.sok (former lyricist / singer for the ex) has never been in better form. the band, led by ajay saggar, close ranks hard to deliver the tightest and most exciting palette of music you will hear all year. they combine the grit and grind of the best of post rock underground with the swinging horns of africa in an astonishing whole.

special compilation from parisian re-issue kings, born bad, of the late cameroonian master musician, francis bebey. this is the material we were hoping would follow the excellent comp from last year. amazing universal music currently only available on expensive originals. double album with printed innersleeve. big tip!

black rox is back with 2 more sneaky soft rocks specials that have somehow been liberated from locked cd wallets and released into the wild for general consumption. the a side sabu dance combines horns, flutes & percussion on this killer slice of midtempo funk from africa via berlin. this has been thoroughly road tested by soft rocks at their kinfolk night & never fails to get a great response from the dancefloor. side b. don t worry it s not the tantric one s ode to voyeurism but a rare as hens teeth slice of uk. reggae at is s finest. adjustments have been made sensitively and sounds have been chosen to carefully match those from the appropriate era. a perfect track for blissful summer evenings (yeah whatever!).

this new ep is no exception as this time he draws out immersive pads and understated melody over the top of percussive grit, in parts channeling some of that irresistible autonomous africa flavour. the release has already garnered support djs and radio alike with jamie xx playing out reflex on both his recent boiler room and bbc radio 1 guest mix, while another early unveiling of pitch drift dropped recently on benji bs show.