Tag: music

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(via Joe King Kologbo & The High Grace)

Originally released in 1980, Joe King Kologbo‘s underrated ‘Sugar Daddy’ LP will be reissued next month. The rerelease of the Nigerian musician’s rare LP will kick off a string of new reissues of other excellent gems from across Africa and the Caribbean.

Some more info via the Bandcamp credits:

“Strut present the first in a series of essential original LP reissues exploring rare and under-rated African, Latin and Caribbean music classics, curated by Duncan Brooker. In January 2017, the series kicks off with ‘Sugar Daddy’, an experimental highlife / disco outing by Nigerian highlife guitarist Joe King Kologbo. Building his career as a composer and player with Eastern Star Dance Band at their residency at the Atlantic Hotel in Aba, Eastern Nigeria, Joe King Kologbo was forced to flee to Ghana when the Biafran War broke out in 1967. As his son Oghene recalls, ‘when war came, everything just scatter. He lost his house, everything.’

Joe King played with a variety of bands in Ghana including Real Ruby’s, a jazz highlife big band, before returning to Lagos in 1971. By the time he recorded the ‘Sugar Daddy’ LP for the tiny Electromat label in 1980, he was one of the older musicians on the circuit. Oghene Kologbo remembers, ‘My Mum used to say, ‘I hope you don’t go and play guitar everywhere and play around, don’t go and be Sugar Daddy!’ All my father’s friends nicknamed him ‘Sugar Daddy’ so he did the song in a fun way. He was a nice man. He never did ‘playboy’.’

‘Since he was based in the East during his early days, he was not as well known nationally as some of the other highlife players of the time,’ continues Oghene,’so it’s nice that this album is coming out again. It brings back good memories.’

Joe King Kologbo’s ‘Sugar Daddy’ is released in its original artwork and features new interviews with Oghene Kologbo and Sonny Akpan of The Funkees. The album comes remastered by The Carvery, with vinyl pressed at Pallas.‘”

The entire LP will be available next month. In the meantime, enjoy “Sugar Daddy.”

Joe King Kologbo:

Bandcamp

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(via Piri Reis)

While screamo was born in North America and later developed in Europe, in the past ten years it has reached almost every corner of the planet. South East Asia is one of the liveliest areas for screamo, with several respectable bands reaching out from the Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia. Piri Reis come from the latter, from the middle-sized city of Shah Alam, and they’re one of the most interesting young acts in Asia.

Piri Reis’ name originates from the Ottoman admiral who drew what is known to be the oldest world map in 1513. To get all the information necessary to its creation, the admiral Pīrī Reʾīs used ten Arab sources, four Portuguese maps and one that belonged to Columbus that was stolen from a Spanish caravel. Similarly, the Malaysian band seems to have learned the lesson of several screamo scenes from all over the world but is not content with plain imitation.

The band’s main influences include classic groups such as Orchid or Pg.99 mixed with European emoviolence while making their music personal. Violence is the most important component of their sound, but it somehow feels justified and never messy or confusing. Every guitar riff is relevant to the song’s structure as it explodes in its uproarious melody before burning out into softer nervous parts. These riffs end up being the most tense thanks to the powerful and heartbreaking vocals of singer Mira.

Piri Reis have recorded a demo and a split with Coma Regalia from Michigan, both in 2015. The latter has been released by three labels in three different continents, emphasizing the band’s international mindset. After a lot of shows in Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia, they managed to embark on a tour in Japan this year. Sooner or later the band will certainly manage to take their intense live sets even outside of Asia, and it would be more than deserved.

Piri Reis:

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(via Elza Soares)

Part of me feels silly writing about Elza Soares on a blog that tries to support younger, up-and-coming international acts. However, Soares releasing a new album in 2016 didn’t get as much attention among my peers as it should have (or maybe I live under a rock). So in honor of the end-of-year “Best of 2016” recap season, I figured it was time to give some more love to one of Brazil’s greatest vocalists. For more on Soares’ background, check out this “Best New Music” Pitchfork review.

Elza Soares:

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(via Gravity Project)

Gravity Project is a Tbilisi trip-hop quintet featuring Tato Rusia of MokuMoku. From its sound, a “project” is a good description; each musician, an experienced player in his and her own right, brings something different to the table. There isn’t much on record yet, so I’m excited to see where this project goes and hopefully catch them live in the states one day.

Gravity Project:

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(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)

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(via Tumi Molekane)

Tumi Molekane (now known as Stogie T.) released “Too Long” back in January, and in the following months, one of South Africa’s most popular rappers released his self-titled debut album under his new name. Tumi is a gem and an exception in rap; he’s an acclaimed and popular rapper who’s maintained a strong 10+ year long career, which is praiseworthy for any rapper in the world. If you like what you hear, check out his work with Tumi and the Volume.

Tumi Molekane:

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(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)

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(via Ghali)

Seeing how Milan has become a melting-pot of different cultures, it’s not strange to find that the most notable rapper in the city right now is of Tunisian origin. Reaching out from Baggio, a suburb in the western part of the city, Ghali Amdouni – simply known as Ghali – is quickly being recognized and respected in the whole peninsula.

Born in 1993, Ghali started getting into hip-hop at an early age, and by 2011 he had already formed his first hip hop group, Troupe D’Elite. However, it wasn’t until 2015 that he got the chance to grow out of the Milanese hip-hop niche by starting a collaboration with young producer Charlie Charles and establishing himself as one of the most interesting and experimental artists of the country. Dreamy trap beats, a wide use of autotune, and a certain overwhelming musicality are the defining features of his music.

While sometimes these traits seem to overshadow the lyrical work of the rapper, and old school flows are replaced by melodic tones that blend perfectly with the beats, Ghali still manages to bring his experiences to the listener in an endearing way. Occasionally mixing Italian and Arabic, he recounts tales of marginalization and prejudice while spitting rhymes about his life in the most sincere way possible, without hiding any detail or keeping any secrets.

Ghali hasn’t recorded a full album yet, choosing instead to issue a series of poignant singles. Tactically released with gaps of two-four months within each other, they’re all matched with impressive music videos. The imaginary he evokes is rarely a troubled one, in a ghetto-inspired manner. Instead, his videos are trippy, filled with childhood references and surreal settings, from the snowy landscape of Dende to the ethnically connoted desert of “Wily Wily,” one of his best tracks.

Ghali:

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(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)

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(via Berkay Özideş)

There’s a lot going on in “FSU” – a dark smokey room, a cryptic piano, tight Nine Inch Nails-like percussion, ’80s New Wave sound bits, a dancer, and a dude (Istanbul’s Berkay Özideş) in a robe singing while trying out for the next Assassin’s Creed movie. This is one of those cases where you need to watch while also listening.

Berkay Özideş:

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(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)

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(via Number Girl)

Number Girl was an acclaimed and influential Japanese emo band active in the late ’90s and early Aughts. The band’s second album and major label debut, School Girl Distortional Addict, came out in 1999, but it sounds perfect for 2016. Funny how certain albums come back into the spotlight with all these “revivals.” Read more on the band’s history via Pitchfork.

(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)