Social Limbo is the new album by OPEZ.

A collection of eleven dreamy, rough, abundant instrumental songs which have the guts to subsist and survive the fluidity of our times. With his melodies Massi Amadori tells the nostalgia and melancholy of a lived, loved and consumed Italy.

In the Limbo of a rebirth. With the desire to imagine himself female, sensitive, sexy. With a swinging mood.
The dreamlike suggestion in “Male Nostrum”, the mysterious love in “Venice”, the social raids in “Social Roll”, the dust and the silence in “Limbo” are just some of the tracks that represent the meeting in a place between dark and light, between east and west, with the heart in the south. And as always in that Limbo between life and death.
The eleven tracks represent a shared work with musicians and producers of the caliber of Andrea Benini (Mop Mop), Francesco Giampaoli (Sacri Cuori, Hugo Race) and Manuel Volpe (Rhabdomantic Orchestra).

Recorded between Turin and Ravenna in the hot summer months from 2020 to 2023.
Once again the images and graphics are curated by the Umbrian artist Aimone Marziali.
Mastered by Kelly Hibbert at Almachrome. produced by Andrea Benini.
℗ & © 2023 Agogo Records

Featuring a cast of guest singers, including Ghanaian legend Gyedu-Blay Ambolley, Mango, is a fiery and sample-heavy blend of future-funk, balearic, highlife, Brazilian drum ‘n bass and lo-fi hip hop, set to be released on their long-standing label Agogo Records on 20 October.

Familiar and warming sounds pervade Mango; the call of the Brazilian cuica, the snapping snares, rolling breakbeats, swooning sax licks, and dreamy beach vibrations. Yet there are brand new tricks; on Havanna B-Boys Arthur Lee’s gravelly voice is sampled whilst a frenetic funk-ridden groove pulses, and the mesmeric vocal samples from Anglo-Portuguese singer Guida de Palma feature on opener Anotha Bossa. Both shine as the album’s singles. Outside Ambolley’s contribution, further collabs sees Mo’ Horizons reconnect with Venezuelan percussionist Nené Vásquez, Colombian singer Ivan Camelo, Hannover based, Israeli singer Noam Bar Azulay and Spanish singer Laura Insausti.

Please feel free to enjoy this ‘free download’ (or ‘name your price’) compilation which features some songs from our releases in 2022.

01. Jembaa Groove “Adesane”
02. Black Jesus eXperience “Dark Matters”
03. Gyedu-Blay Ambolley “Round Midnite”
04. Onom Agemo & Ahmed Ag Kaedy “Medin”
05. Bareto “Perdido” feat. Chongo
06. Mo’ Horizons “Huele Que Huele”
07. Rhabdomantic Orchestra “Suffer! Suffer!”
08. krajenski. “HDRX”

“Gyedu-Blay Ambolley has been an interpreter of Hi-Life music in different forms. He has been able to it traditionally, contemporary and now this is introduction into the Jazz realms of music by playing Hi-Life into Jazz music.

Hi-Life is the mother of all free forms of dance music around the world. You can find Hi-Life connotations in West African music, South American music, American Music and even in Indian music. This album demonstrates that Jazz is not only for listening but also for dancing at the same time.

Since Africa is the craddle of mankind this album also demonstrates the ingenuity of Hi-Life music and its ingredients to the world and makes this a new sound in town”

words by Gyedu-Blay Ambolley

✯ Lauren Garnier “BEAUTIFUL ! Straight on PBB Radio playlist”

✯ Radio Canada “This is superb energy”

✯ Radio Helsinki “This is just great. nice goove, musical finesse & great vocals”

✯ Jazz FM UK “Killing. love it !”

✯ DJ Tahira “love it”

✯ Radio Helsinki “this will be one of this years highlights”

✯ bamalovesoul “so good”

✯ WDR 5 Planeten “great album”

“Good Evening Black Buddha” is Black Jesus eXperience’s seventh studio album. Inspired by the land we live on and the connection to all that have gone before and will follow, inspired by the multicultural power of our community, inspired by the paradox of the story of the Black Buddha. From the perversity of the pandemic and its imposition of separation comes “Good Evening Black Buddha”, celebrating togetherness. Darkness is light.

At the heart of Black Jesus eXperience’s inspiration is Ethiopian/Australian singer Enushu Taye. Enushu’s openness and poetic insight, delivered with unique beauty in her own Amharic tongue, lie at the core of “Good Evening Black Buddha” and all that Black Jesus eXperience (BJX) do. MC Mista Monk (Liam Monkhouse) compliments and contrasts with rhymes and flow born of Africa and outback Australia. BJX are joined by their great friends powerhouse singer Vida-Sunshyne, and crystalline new voice Gracie Sinclair.

The songs on “Good Evening Black Buddha” rove from the lightness of touch of a trio to BJX’s full fourteen piece polyrhythmic, polymetric, polytonal Ethiofunk juggernaut with six-piece horn arrangements. Soloists include living national treasure Bob Sedergreen on keyboards, Peter Harper on saxophone, Ian Dixon on trumpet, Zac Lister guitar, Larry Crestani guitar and his own invention ‘kraartar’, over the deep grooves of Richard Rose bass, James Davies kit, and Kahan Harper percussion.

Black Jesus eXperience is also proud to be joined by our friends conga player Louis Poblete, kraar and masinko virtuoso Endalkachew Yenehun, proud Kuku Nyunkal man and master yiki yiki (dijeridu) player Sean Ryan.

Recorded by Jimi Wyatt at Sing Sing and Zac Lister at BJX Mobile Studio.

Mixed by Jono Podmore.

Mastered by Streaky.

Original artwork by John Ryrie, design by Richard De Angelis.

Produced and arranged by Peter Harper and Ian Dixon.

This project has been assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body.

An organist, a saxophonist and a drummer – the classic organ trio has been arousing special expectations to Jazz listeners since the glory days of Jimmy Smith, Groove Holmes and the McDuffs and McGriffs. The organist can spread out, the saxophonist can follow him and the drummer swings and provides the groove “in the pocket”.
With their album “B-3 Vol.1” the Hanoverian Lutz “Hammond” Krajenski aka krajenski. on the B-3 organ, Ben Kraef from Berlin on the saxophone and Peter Gall from southern Germany on the drums break new ground even if the old path of the Hammond-infected Blue Note refinement always remains in view.

Kraef-Krajenski-Gall do their thing and that very consistently. They play with the different readings of the format with reflections from Jimmy Smith to Larry Young. They play with expectations and play around clichés with sophisticated twists and tongue-clicking rhythmic and harmonic treasures.

We owe this resurrection of the classic format “Hammondtrio” to three musicians who are gliding to revitalize jazz history. Lutz “Hammond” Krajenski – It is no coincidence that it has been nicknamed “Hammond” since the first career steps. His organ collection now includes 15 instruments; ascending trend. Not only is he a brilliant instrumentalist, he also made a name for himself as an arranger for his own big band as well as for other ensembles and artists. Clients included musicians such as Tom Jones, Randy Crwaford, Mousse T., Ulrich Tukur, Sarah Connor and Inga Rumpf. Krajenski became known to a wide audience primarily as an arranger, pianist and musical director for Roger Cicero.
His two fellow musicians on “B-3 Vol. 1” both studied in New York and belong to the crème de la crème of the German Jazz scene. The award-winning Berlin saxophonist Ben Kraef has played with greats such as Lalo Schiffrin, Archie Shepp, Phil Woods and John Abercrombie. His debut album “Berlin-New York” was released in 2010 by Act (with sidemen John Patitucci, Marcus Gilmore and Rainer Boehm). Drummer Peter Gall, on the other hand, has already shone alongside luminaries such as the Kurt Rosenwinkel Trio, the NDR Big Band, The New York Voices, Take 6, Web Web, Thomas Quasthoff, Nils Landgren, Max Herre, Joy Denalane and the Dieter Ilg Trio.

“la beauté sera convulsive ou ne sera pas” (Breton)

After 6 years from the acclaimed album “albore”, Rhabdomantic Orchestra is back with a new full length born from the meeting with the Colombian singer Maria Mallol Moya.

“Almagre” is a sort of novel in music inspired by surrealism aesthetics and south american magical realism. Set in an imaginary mediterranean, crossroads of encounters and clashes between cultures, red as the blood that keeps staining its waters, almagre is a visceral, reactionary, spiritual yet political album that marks a change of direction from the sense of purification of the previous work towards a continuous tension to the sublime.
After the allusion to the white of albore, now is the time for “almagre” an arabic-hispanic word used to name the red color obtained from iron oxide.
The album was composed and arranged by Manuel Volpe with the intention to create a musical Babel made up of continuous contrasts of languages and suggestions with a strong narrative approach to orchestration. Each episode develops itself in linearity through the superimposition of cyclical figures where the instruments act as characters in continuous exchange with Maria’s eclectic vocal shades.
“What I would like to explore with the Rhabdomantic Orchestra is the evocative and narrative power of the arrangements to achieve a sort of magical realism where the imaginative power of music can speak for it self.” (MV)

Afrobeat, Spiritual Jazz, Mediterranean melodies, Salsa, Kraut Rock drifts and Library Music are just some of the ingredients used in this record, condensed and blended with the aim of giving back a fluid vision of what we call World Music.

‘Jazzy Afro-Soul Music – Ghana’s Highlife going by the heartbeat of 70s Soul Music’

Jembaa Groove is a Berlin based Afro-Soul group founded in late 2020 by Yannick Nolting (Bass, Composer, Producer) and Eric Owusu (vocals, percussion, songwriter). They first met fortuitously at a playground in Berlin early 2020 whilst collecting their young sons from kindergarden and soon after realised they were onto something special. Speaking the same musical language, the two musical nomads quickly realized the fruitful outcome of their musical encounter. Digging deep into both their backgrounds and musical identities, they came up with a new and yet authentic vibe ready to be spread across the world. After seeking for the right companions for the upcoming journey and stumbling on a few of Berlin’s finest musicians, they finally formed Jembaa Groove, a 7-piece band that combines jazzy sounds from Berlin’s uprising underground music scene with traditional West-African sounds from Ghana and Mali, such as Highlife, Adowa and Wassoulou.

The music of Jembaa Groove is as much influenced by the soulful rhythms and baritone chords of 70’s black America and contemporary artists like Lee Fields and Ikebe Shakedown, as it is by highlife artists such as Ebo Taylor and Pat Thomas, with whom Eric has been touring and recording for many years.
Garnering a smattering of support from the media world like KEXP, KCRW, Worldwide FM, Rinse FM,WDR Cosmo and enough stations round the world off the back of their “Bassa Bassa” track, Jembaa Groove are causing a storm with their hybrid West African meets US soul & jazz sound.

Line-up:

Eric Owusu (Ghana) – Vocals/Percussion
Yannick Nolting (Germany) – Bass/Bandleader
Moses Yoofee Vester (Germany/Ghana) – Keys
Babatunde Agonglo (Benin) – Guitar
Nir Sabag (Israel) – Drums
Merav Goldman Isreal) – Horn
Goncalo Mortagua (Portugal) – Sax

RSN, producer, DJ and musician from Athens – Greece, delivers his 5rth album named “Motion” which is his 2nd one on Agogo Records.

“… and if you close your eyes,
a river fills you from within,
flows forward, darkens you:
night brings its wetness to beaches in your soul.”

From ‘Water Night’ by Octavio Paz

“For me, these special moments when we close our eyes and look inwards are intense experiences. Between sleep and wakefulness, such impressions inspired me to translate images from daydreams into music. Jazz and Funk, Arabic and Central Asian sounds and grooves, and above all, improvisation – these are my musical language.
Thank you to the wonderful musicians who have brought these compositions to life!”

Rolf Zielke, February 2021

“‘Beaches in Your Soul’ is an album that is both great fun and full of depth as it conveys an incredible, life-affirming energy. Rolf Zielke describes his music as “daydreams and visions of the future that become sounds.” There is no doubt that this album is an impressive demonstration of his outstanding abilities as a composer, arranger and pianist, as well as his important role in European jazz.”

Matthias Wegner, music journalist, November 2020

credits

All titles composed, arranged and produced by Rolf Zielke. except „Enta Omri – You Are My Life“ – traditional arabic song, arranged by Rolf Zielke

Rolf Zielke – piano, clavichord, rhodes, keys, whistle
Benny Brown – trumpet, flugelhorn
Stephan Abel – saxophone, clarinet, alto flute
Stephan Braun – 5-string cello
Mohannad Nasser – oud
Mustafa Boztüy – darbuka, bendir, udu
Rainer Winch – drums
Friedhelm May – timpani

recorded, mixed & edited by Volker Greve at Greve Studios and Rolf Zielke
additional clavichord recordings at tonus arcus, Dietrich Petzold
mastered by Hans-Jörg Mauksch at Pauler Acoustics

special thanks to all the musicians involved and to Irène Zandel, to Volker Greve & studio team, to Mia Eger, to Doris & Markus Hedemann and to Kathrin, Ida, Greta, Felipa !

Please feel free to enjoy this ‘free download’ compilation which features some songs from our releases in 2020. thank you all for your support this year !

Tracklist:

01. HOODNA ORCHESTRA “Sof Layla (Ba Hoodna)”
02. MULATU ASTATKE & BLACK JESUS EXPERIENCE “Ambassa Lemdi”
03. WANUBALÉ “Nadra”
04. COLADERA “Mantafro” (Jazzanova Remix)
05. NATALIE GREFFEL “Toquei”
06. COLADERA “A Luz De Yayá”
07. KING MOST “Jazzy As Fug”

‘To Know Without Knowing’, Mulatu Astatke and Black Jesus Experience’s 2020 album is their second together. A grooving transcontinental gem, recorded in Melbourne, Australia and Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Filled with the warmth of the mentorship and friendship of their creative partnership honed over a decade of performing together in Africa, Australia and UK/Europe.

Mulatu Astatke is the Father of Ethio-Jazz and one of Africa’s most influential and enduring musical figures.
Black Jesus Experience is a community of artists, centred around a twelve piece global-funk-machine born of Australia’s vibrant multiculturalism.
Mulatu and Black Jesus Experience met in Addis Ababa in 2009, embarking on both a musical relationship and a friendship that has led Mulatu Astake to describe Black Jesus Experience as, “My favourite backing band” and, “…they’re family.”
Mulatu’s great contribution to music has been to to combine Jazz and funk grooves with Ethiopia’s distinctive pentatonic scales. His musical genius is the sensuality and sophistication with which Mulatu contrasts these minimalist scales with richly chromatic harmony.
But Mulatu’s equally great contribution has been to share both his enduringly unique modernity and Ethiopia’s timelessly spiritual music with the world. Black Jesus Experience treasure the special relationship of generosity, mentorship and collaboration they have been privileged to share with this master musician.

‘To Know Without Knowing’ is the product of this gift.

The act of discovering one’s own musical heritage has never sounded more inviting, more transportative, than through the skilled hands and mellifluous voice of prize-winning recording artist, instrumentalist, composer and arranger Natalie Greffel.

Through her close interrogation of identity, this rising Berlin-based talent succeeds in investigating the edges, re-sketching new borders and embracing the many facets of herself, both personally and musically. The disrupted histories of the African diaspora, the ravages of imperialism and the expressionism of a common tongue are all etched into the narrative of Natalie’s stunning debut solo album “Para Todos”. The album evokes warmth and unexpected intimacy, newness and familiarity, as it gently deconstructs the paradigm of Brazlian music, reforming it not as a commodity to be sold, but as a recollection of dream-state memories.

Natalie was born in post-colonial Mozambique and raised in Denmark from infancy. After moving to Berlin in 2010 to attend a music conservatory, and while engaged in various projects that exercised her stylistic flexibility, Natalie felt an increasing disillusionment with European Jazz; she instead felt drawn to the Afro-Brazlian music her mother played during childhood, which in turn began to reveal a cultural connectivity between Mozambique and Brazil.

A successful application to an Erasmus programme allowed Natalie to investigate her growing interest further, and she traveled to Brazil in 2016. Over a period of six months she immersed herself in music – accepting invitations to Samba recording sessions, connecting with carnival troupes in Rio de Janeiro, exploring the spiritual songs of the Candomblé religion from less trafficked corners of the country – with the intention to learn and listen. “Para Todos” emerged in the wake of this life-changing experience, which encompassed witnessing the fervour of political impeachment, Anti-Olympics protests and the suppression of womens’ political voices; she also learned of neglected institutions like Museu do Negro (The Black Museum) and the country’s sole archive of the Atlantic Slave Trade, Instituto de Pesquisa e Memoria Pretos Novos (Institute for the Memorial and Research of the New Blacks). “Para Todos” is in essence a journal of learning and growing, a tribute to forgotten stories and untold tales, an act of remembering, and an exercise in connecting fragmented personal histories.

Following her winning performance in a Creole music competition in Berlin, Natalie was introduced to the pianist of Brazilian star Ed Motta; he encouraged her to record a demo. Inspired a new by the harmonic structures of Antonio Carlos Jobim, Hermeto Pascoal, Noel Rosa, Nelson Cavaquinho, Milton Nascimento, Elza Soares, Elis Regina, Gilberto Gil and Chico Buarque – architects of Brazilian music – Natalie began to interpret these blueprints in her own unique lexicon.

“Não Sabia Nem Começar” is infused with the signature accents of Samba and bustling Ambient rhythms of a Rio de Janeiro streetscape, and contrasts against the sparse bass, hi-hats and piano arrangement of “Toquei,” all elements which eventually fall away to leave the gentle everyday sounds of an introspective life. Elsewhere Natalie details interpersonal frustration with an irresistible fusion groove on “Blame,” and turns her attention to the Chico Buarque standard “A Ostra E O Vento,” a beloved tale a girl who falls in love with the wind.

Gyedu-Blay Ambolley was born on the 11th Street in Sekondi, Ghana 72 years ago. on the cover photo you can see on the right side the house of his birth which was also his parental home.

The Ghanian legend’s latest release shows off a pride of heritage, and his honed talent for mixing highlife with other genres like rap, Afro-funk and Disco
Ghanaian highlife star and renowned saxophonist, singer and guitarist Gyedu-Blay Ambolley returns with 11th Street, Sekondi, his 31th album since his debut in 1973. The charismatic stage personality, no stranger to mixing humour into his music and who has performed alongside Afrobeat legend Fela Kuti and highlife bandleader Ebo Taylor, has been a record collector’s staple since his appearance on the seminal Ghana Soundz compilation on Soundway in 2002, which re-introduced the world to his trademark ‘Simigwa’ style.
Highlife, which started in Sierra Leone and Liberia, took hold in Ghana in the 1940s as a coming together of the musicians fed up with the foxtrot and quickstep parties originally hosted by English colonists. It began with big band horns and happy lyrics, popularised by artists such as E.T Mensah, before opening up in the ‘50s and ‘60s with a wave of guitar-driven, socially conscious and more danceable Afro-funk hits — a product of the easy movement of people between Nigeria and Ghana.

It was then that Ambolley’s trademark baritone vocals burst onto the scene, under the tutelage of close personal friend Ebo Taylor. Already an accomplished flautist, drummer, guitarist and singer, Ambolley joined Tricky Johnson’s Sextet — a band led by ET Mensah’s former guitarist — as a 15-year-old vocalist in 1963. This was followed by spells with highlife legend Sammey Lartey’s Railways band, then with Taylor in the Stargazers and the Uhuru Dance Band. Ambolley’s musical development was also informed by a love of popular ‘60s US radio show ‘Voice of America Jazz Hour’, a programme packed with artists including Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Ella Fitzgerald.

These influences, and a fearless ability to mix highlife with funk, blues, soul and disco were drawn together for Ambolley’s 1973 solo album Simigwa, later re-released on Essiebons. The musician says his spoken style not only created a new genre — inspired by the melodic ravings of a man in his hometown — but was the first ever example of commercially-recorded rap, six years before the Sugar Hill Gang’s Rapper’s Delight. Ambolley’s English and Fanti language tracks then appeared in records and tours throughout the US and the UK, most recently with his band The Sekondi Band International, but it was not until Soundway Records produced the Ghana Soundz compilation in 2002 — the result of painstaking research by DJ Miles Cleret — that the highlife artist’s other albums, including ‘Party Time’ and ‘The Sekondi Man’, were rediscovered and re-released. This recent resurgence in his career has led to performances at prestigious festivals, such as Montreaux and sees a forthcoming performance at Le Guess Who? In Holland.

Ambolley’s latest album, 11th Street, Sekondi, named after the area of West Ghana in which he grew up, is a look back at the area and musical styles that shaped the musician’s life. Black Woman is a funky number that opens the album with Ambolley on a tenor sax solo, while tracks like Little Small Girl showcase his renowned James Brown-influenced vocal flourishes. Soul, jazz, blues and comedy are present — in keeping with his fervent belief that music must always be entertaining for the listener.

The album is the second of his to be released on German label Agogo records, after acclaimed 2017 hit, Ketan. It also stays true to highlife’s social ambitions, with reflections on the misguided pursuit of European ideals ahead of African values. Ambolley’s career has been filled with accolades, including a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Charles R Drew University in Los Angeles, and formal recognition from the Ghana Embassy in Washington DC for producing the first ever commercially recorded rap album.

DJ Oonops presents Volume 2 of his extensive compilation covering genres from Dub, Jazz, Funk, Soul to Beats and Hip Hop featuring pretty well known artists as well as zooming newcomers.

He spent more than one year to select artists from around the globe who reflect the sounds of his “Oonops Drops” broadcast on Brooklyn Radio (NYC). be that jazzy beats or virtuoso live jazz drums, keys and guitars from Japan by Kazumi Kaneda, RF and 45 a.k.a. Swing-O, a first-time-on-vinyl dub remix by Great Britain’s Coldcut or a brass cover version of Rihanna’s “Stay” by Sly5thAve out of the US. Most of the tracks are exclusives or first time available on vinyl for this compilation, like the song “Measly Peace” by Magic In Trees out of Nashville, German beatmaker Twit One with an ill jazz instrumental or London based rapper and singer Amy Tru featuring Nubya Garcia. Also you gonna hear an unique and rump-shaking cover version of Blackstreet’s “No Diggity” by T Bird & The Breaks, John Turell’s powervoice over some heavy beats by Soopasoul, Kinny with a catchy tune, Igor Zhukovsky from The Soul Surfers & MRR Drumetrics with an exclusive, pumping psychedelic drum track and Schemes from Montreal who take all the credits at the moment from the web by Vice, Okayplayer, Music Is My Sanctuary and many more.

For the artwork Oonops collaborated once again with San Francisco based artist Lindsey Kustusch who mirrored the atmosphere of New York City on point with her oil painted artwork. Be sure to get your hands on this limited peace of work before it’s gone like Volume 1.

About Oonops: beside his vinyl only show on Brooklyn Radio he is spinning banging club sets to relaxed mixtures for vernissages, museums or theaters. And furthermore he works as a product designer and he’s listed in the top 50 of Germany’s best table tennis players and focuses all his skills in an event which will bring all this together. Keep in touch and follow Oonops with all his plans on Facebook: www.facebook.com/djoonops / www.oonops.de / bookings:

Wanubalé – nine guys from Berlin, inspired by the city’s fresh Jazz scene and distinct club culture. This band sets out to define their own, highly danceable version of Jazz, Neo Soul and Funk.

Wanubalé met at school. Five of the nine in the band went to the same musical high school in Berlin. There, in a dark basement jam-packed with equipment, Philip Schilz and Heinrich Eiszmann met for whole afternoons to built unique sound castles made up of bass drums, snares and everything else they were able to get their hands on. Thus, the two drummers built the foundation for the ultra-danceable grooves that define Wanubalé.
Heavy influences from Jazz, Neo Soul and Funk shape their compositions. However, electronic sounds are just as important to Wanubalé. All of the nine are in their early twenties. All of them grew up around the vibrant club culture of Germany’s capital. All of them are into Dub, Bass Music and Broken Beats.

The Wanubalés are first rate musicians. They tend to take their time writing arrangements, yet they are careful not to overly emphasize their jazz skills. Songwriting is a collaborative affair, everything is developed organically. Just like the band name, which dates back to the days of fooling around in the schoolyard, playing with syllables (“nuba” came first). Sound was crucial. Some say “Wanubalé” means “brother” in Swahili.

Wanubalé’s instrumental debut album was recorded by Axel Reinemer in Berlin’s Jazzanova Studio in 2018. The musicians don’t hide their influences: Snarky Puppy, Fat Freddy’s Drop, plus younger acts like Hiatus Kaiyote and Nubiyan Twist. But Wanubalé do their own thing, having produced and arranged the album. Wanubalé: four horns, two drummers, guitar, bass, keyboards. Nine musicians with a knack for funky breaks, might brass sounds and great melodies.

some quotes: Radio Krimi “perfect for our jazz show” Laurent Garnier “superb!” bamalovesoul “we like this” Dom Servini “really strong. perfect balance of styles. love it!” Jazz London Radio “two tracks on our playlist” Opolopo “very nice” Global Riddims “wonderful release” Radio Helsinki “praise that !” Tim Love Lee “love this” Toshio Matsuura “excellent” DJ Maestro “nice !” Ketch A Vibe Radioshow “simply stunning. Both are a perfect crossover of jazzy beats including afro & fusion” DJ Oonops “pure fire”

“One of the finest albums I’ve heard in a while. Tight, Fela-esque horns, big clubby drums with chunky guitars holding it all together, this record is constantly engaging and is at times reminiscent of Quantic at his best. Can’t say fairer than that!”

Adam Gibbons/Lack Of Afro

Were David Hanke to pass on from this mortal coil tomorrow, Nevertheless might prove his perfect epitaph. It’s a refreshingly honest and somewhat autobiographical long-player that harks back to his early twenty first century musical influences but actually has its route much earlier in this self-styled Renegade Of Jazz’s life.
The album’s appellation refers back to Hanke’s first live concert experience when in 1984, at the age of six, he went to see a Blues-rock band called Nevertheless whose guitarist was none other than his own father. With music clearly already running through Hanke’s D.N.A. this was the moment that, perhaps subconsciously, triggered his life long love affair with soulful sonic creativity.
Nevertheless sparks into action with the irresistibly uplifting Lemon Squeezers, a suitably life affirming opener complete with exhilarating guitars and as the man tells us, “(the) basic characteristic, the beat!” and it’s a rock solid beat at that. With some Renegades Of Jazz trademark horns added for extra spice, and of course everything programmed by Mr Hanke himself, this is the perfect introduction to this man’s scintillating style.
Nautical nugget, Big Fish, continues the brass obsession. It has a more sonorous, almost big band feel, even though we all know this is being delivered solely by one pair of hands and that singular, special musical brain. Hanke adds some nifty piano work for extra cheekiness, which is a theme that’s continued on Another Day (Going In Too Deep) where Hammond style keys and perfectly chosen vocal samples do battle with more foot friendly beats, before we go in deep with Afro flavoured licks and horn riffs.
The title track starts life as something of a moment of calm with a more introspective feel, but not for long as we make way for more trademark beats and vocal loops, and more of those irresistible horns! It’s the prelude for a watershed moment on the album as Hanke then introduces his first guest in the shape of Bristolian rapper Donnie Numeric (one half of Delegates of Rhyme) on the scorching Hot Wired. It’s the perfect illustration of our producer’s love for the Hip-Hop art form, and Donnie’s smooth lyrical flow combines with those Renegades Of Jazz brass and guitar riffs to make more demands on you to move your feet.
And while barely taking a breath, the heat continues with infectious, super hot funk jam Light Me Up, featuring Clair Fallows of The Impellers fame. It’s a modern take on a classic sound and having already stamped his Hip-Hop card, Hanke is keen to point to the Funk and Soul influences that have shaped his musical journey.
It’s not long before we return to the Hip-Hop again though, and a track that not only harks back to some of the more relaxed, smooth sounds that were prevalent in French rap in the late 90s, but one that also showcases Hanke’s A&R skills. En Route features the vocal talents of French MC Urda, a voice that we are sure to hear more of in the coming years.
The biographical feel of Nevertheless continues to be indulged on the very summery and confident, but somehow wistful, Then And Now, before things get serious with album highlight Don’t Break My Love, featuring the vocal prowess of Afrika Fuentes and lyrical writing talents of UK producer Diesler. It’s a fractured, disco flavoured club burner that’s sure to cause some dance floor havoc in 2019.
Hands And Hands combines a more relaxed latin feel with some choice spoken word and chanting from Manchester based rapper, and regular member of The Mouse Outfit, Bedos Mavanubu; and Set Me Free continues to chill things out with its laid back, blues flavour enhanced by the husky vocals of folky singer- songwriter, also from Manchester, Jon Kenzie.
David Hanke’s life story comes to its natural conclusion with the appropriately entitled This Journey, which could have very easily been an alternative moniker for this very personal LP. Once again David raids the current crop of exciting UK talent with up-and-coming London based vocalist Kemi Ade providing lush tones accompanied by muted horns, sparse percussion and spine-tingling, spacey keys.

Text: Dom Servini

In times of deep uncertainty and radical changes it feels even more appropriate to focus on the essential things. “I have these three symbols which I always sign our records with after live shows,” Ralf Droesemyer, who is Mo’ Horizons together with Mark “Foh’ Wetzler, explains: “it is a musical note, the image of the sun and the shape of a heart” – in other words: “music sun love”. Now, in the twentieth year of their existence, there cannot be a better title for the new album by Mo’ Horizons.

2019 is all about diversity, unity and sustainability. “Our world is very much divided. Climate change, environmental issues and human rights are on top of the agenda and it seems to be common sense that they are the most important issues in the years to come, but still nationalism and backwards thinking seems to be as trendy as never before. It is very paradox,” Droesemyer says. “Mo’ Horizons are not a political band at all. But on ‘music sun love’ we incorporated so many musical styles and worked with so many musicians from all around world. It is quite amazing,” he laughs. “It all came naturally, that is how it should be: People should embrace the culture of their neighbours, rather than building walls and re-install borders.”

Let it be Latin, Soul Reggae, Cumbia, Samba or music from the Balkans, Mo’ Horizons are cultural travellers and feel at home where music is alive. Over the years the duo toured the world. For “music sun love” they re-reconnected with a lot of the musicians they met on their ongoing journey. The albums kicks off with „Wagabunga Dance“, a collaboration with Stoyan Royanov from Bulgaria. The multi instrumental talent is a member of the Mo’ Horizons Soundsystem. “Rhythm Is A Dancer“ was recorded in Columbia with local musicians and you may have guessed it by now, it is Mo’ Horizons’ interpretation of the Eurodance classic by Snap, adding even more rhythm, fire and emotion to turn it into a Cumbia burner.

Mo’ Horizons move on with „Mo Space“ and „Hang Loose“, recorded together with hangdrum virtuoso Patrik from the Czech Republic, who the Horizons gang met after one of their shows in Andalusia and he joined the travel party. The first single „You Gotta Know It“ is one these Mo’ Horizons sure shots, an irresistably driving rhythm with a catchy chorus sung by Noam Bar from Israel, a worldwide traveller in the spirit of music who landed in Hannover after living in Tel Aviv and Madrid. Which brings in Mr. Morski from Bulgaria, another global mover. „Little Mouse“ is his kind of theme tune, recorded with a lot of charme and even more fun. „La Vida Es Solo Hoy“ adds Ivan Camelo from Columbia to the impressive line-up. He played with Mo’ Horizons for the first time in 2017 rocking the Gran Baba, the Horizons’ favourite Chiringuito hang-out in Spain, with his unique vocal stylings. „Ella Dice“ takes “music sun love” back home, re-uniting the team with Nené Vasquez from Venezuela who adds a vibrant live feeling to the track.

The list of international guests is endless. „Gypsy Ghetto Feel“ gets a groovy boost by percussionist Elvis Aljus aka Gypsy Brown who is an integral member of Australian funk favourites The Bamboos’ rhythm section and often joins Mo’ Horizons when they tour down under. Noam Bar returns for the vocal part, adding a cross cultural soul feeling to this Israeli-Australian groove venture. „Inner Melody“ closes “music sun love” in style. It is an unreleased Mo’ Horizons remix of the Reggae original by Greek DJ colleague Palov turned into a very Sixties sounding club track.

“When we listened to ‘music sun love’ as a whole for the first time, we were quite surprised,” Droesemeyer recalls. “We’ve been around for such a long time and did not know if the fire is still burning.” It is indeed! “Actually, with ‘music sun love’ we feel totally re-freshed.” Indeed: Mo’ Horizons are back in the game.

The “Hoodna Orchestra” is an 11-piece orchestra established in 2012 in South Tel Aviv by a group of young musicians who became a central force in the Tel Aviv Groove scene.
At the beginning of their journey the Orchestra focused on learning and playing Afrobeat, and over time, following the experience of playing diverse musical genres and collaborations with different musicians (Esther Rada, Kutiman, Karolina, Abate Berihun, Gili Yalo and others), the Orchestra developed a unique musical line and sound, characterized by the fusion of different musical styles.
During the years 2013-2015, the Orchestra played every major festival in Israel, as well as all the main venues around the country. In June 2015 the Orchestra launched its debut album titled “Let Go”. The album includes original compositions in the spirit of Afrobeat. The album was launched at the Barby Club in Tel Aviv and was very well received by the public.
At the end of 2015 the Orchestra launched a new show titled “The Ethiobeat Orchestra.” It featured members of “Adyabo” ensemble (a trio specializing in traditional Ethiopian music), singer Tesfaye Negatu and dancer\choreographer Aviv Abebe Yosef. The show premiered at the InDNegev Festival and was a success, both in the Indie scene and within the Ethiopian community. The “Ethiobeat Orchestra” marked the next stage in the evolution of the Orchestra. Their deep study of East African music and the rich culture of Ethiopian music in particular, generated fertile ground and inspiration for new, striking, original creations, compositions with breadth and expression, as well as new and exciting collaborations.
In February 2017, the Orchestra released a new single titled “YELBEN,” the first in a series of collaborations with Ethiopian singers and musicians. YELBEN (“my heart” in Amharic), a collaboration with singer Tesfaye Negatu was released in 7″ Vinyl format and won great interest among collectors and fans of music from all over the world. The second release in the series was “ALEM” (“a world” in Amharic), which was written and sung by the singer and poet Demisu Belete. “ALEM” was launched at the 2017 Red Sea Jazz Festival, in which the Orchestra hosted Belete, who arrived especially from Ethiopia for the occasion.
In the summer of 2018, the Orchestra was invited to perform in the “African Tage” festival in Vienna. The show featured the singers Tesfaye Negatu and Yaakov Lilay, and marked the end of an era in the orchestra’s life cycle

In April 2019, the Orchestra’s second album “OFEL” will be released under the German label Agogo Records. “OFEL” ​(darkness in hebrew) ​is a concept album that includes nine instrumental pieces written and arranged by Ilan Smilan. The various compositions in the album demonstrate the assimilation of the various musical languages played by the Orchestra in recent years (African music, Afrobeat, Ethiopian music and Ethio-jazz), and in combination with the vocabularies of rock, funk and Israeli/Mediterranean music, brings to life a new and original masterpiece.
The themes in the album’s pieces are dark and ominous in tone; they come to “illuminate” the harsh aspect of everyday reality that prevails in Israel, and in many parts of the world. Feelings of alienation and disconnection, the rupture of the social fabric, intergenerational and socio-economic gaps, the clash of nations and religions, and the strengthening of various political forces that undermine global stability. These complex themes are addressed by the Orchestra through the use of various tools.
One of the main tools chosen by the Orchestra is the use of Ethiopian musical scales, especially Anchihoye and Tezeta minor. Anchihoye, in the Ethiopian tradition, is associated with religious singing, both in Sigd (Ethiopian Jewish holiday) and in the Ethiopian Coptic Church. In addition, songs of war are played on this scale. Tezeta minor is used to express wishes, dreams, and feelings of nostalgia and sentimentality.
The new and different interpretation of the Orchestra when playing these scales, together with the horn section in combination with the percussion section’s tight sound create dark and intense melodies and rhythms.
Another technique used by the Orchestra to convey to the listener the ominous and dark atmosphere of the album is the use of analog and old recording equipment. This equipment enables the manipulation of sound waves and creation of distortion. The use of these recording techniques creates a compressed and rough sound that suits the general atmosphere of the album.
The album was recorded live in the Hoodna Orchestra’s studio in Tel Aviv. The members of the Orchestra built the studio themselves, to give them the creative freedom to achieve their finest work. The entire album production (recording, mixing and mastering) was done by Ilan Smilan.

We are mattimatti.

two Mattis living in different countries – Sweden (Malmö) and Germany (Berlin). We travel around the world playing music while asking ourselves, ”who are we?”. the answer seems to change just as our surroundings do. But the music stays with us and so does the friendship.

it is cliché that it’s hard to put a label on music. and to say it has almost become a cliche itself. But whole meaning of music is to listen to it and create your own world by it. to create one’s own world one needs space. space that is not interrupted by either style or defining categories. mattimatti is an attempt to step into that space creating music that is solely built on improvisation. our music is an invitation to places not yet known, where rhythmic, suggestive and meditative soundscapes meet the present moment.

music represents many things for us. first of all, it is in-sync with our friendship, when the relationship is stuck so is our music. our music is therapy. We need to be authentic with the music in order to have a real friendship and the other way around.
as friends and musicians we welcome the unexpected. this has lead us to places where we never would have ended up in if it weren’t for the music.
in that way, music and life walk hand in hand. if we dare to be real about it.

We are living in a world full of confusion when it comes to identity. it’s easy to loose yourself. all of a sudden you are standing there playing music but missing the music at the same time, or hanging out with your best friend while missing the friendship. We are trying to stay connected. it is a constant task. We lose it but then we find it again, just like everybody else. sometimes it ends up in music for the moment. sometimes it ends up in the shape of a record.

we met on the streets of Berlin in spring 2013 while one of us was playing on the streets. after we played the first time together, there was no question that we would travel a musical journey together from that day. mattimatti was initiated.

on our quest we began playing improvised tunes on sitar and hang on the street while travelling through Sweden and Germany. this lead us to be invited to numerous festivals all over Europe while constantly developing our music and sound. since then our set has added new instruments such as a drum kit with hang, African harps, sitar, guitar, harmonica, clarinet, hank drum and vocals on top of it extending the sound with a space echo. the long, intimate tunes that we are creating have an original structure and sound. there is a certain present resting in the music which is hard to describe but easy to experience if you listen to it.

our live concerts have been dubbed mythical, hypnotic, magic and epic.
traveling is our biggest influence on music.  mattimatti are now both based in Berlin & Malmoe and work together with the contemporary circus, dance and music group „kollektiv knaster“.

La Dôtu Lado swings as much as it seduces. It maps new musical routes linking the Cape Verdean island sounds of batuque and funaná, with deep candomblé inspired rhythms and the heart tugging sway of fado. And in doing so, it has opened up a fascinating narrative on the slave trade, spirituality and love.

Coladera are two musicians from Brazil & Portugal, who have invited various musicians from other Portuguese-speaking countries like Cape Verde and Angola to participate on this album.

Their first official international release have crafted an exquisite and exploratory sound, adding new layers upon their individual and rich traditions. Singer-guitarist Vitor Santana from Belo Horizonte, Portuguese singer-guitarist Joao Pires are named after one of Cape Verde’s musical traditions, Coladeira – a form that borrows melodies from fado and rhythms from Brazil and Angola.

Sung mainly in the Portuguese language but with a couple of songs in Cape Verdean creole, La Dôtu Lado features guest percussionist Marcos Suzano, a Brazilian pandeiro master, and seamlessly pulses between the traditions of each country and also percusssionist Miroca Paris, who has been playing for many years for the Queen of Morna, Cesária Évora, with poignant lyrics about the spirits of the Orishas, deities worshipped by slaves who were shipped across the Atlantic to Brazil from West Africa often via Cape Verde. Indeed, Cape Verde was an empty island until the Portuguese empire found it in 1456 and it wasn’t long after when Cape Verde was central to the Portuguese’s triangular trade system strategy.

Coladera have released a previous long player back in 2013 but with little fanfare. Despite the modest release, they played at New York’s Summerfest and Joe’s Pub amongst other festival dates around Europe. Whilst both albums have flirted with Cuban rumba with striking Andalusian guitar flourishes, the project has always been Lusophone and inspired by close friendships and travel. For Vitor, a guitarist with grounding in classic bossa nova, the music of Coladera at times felt like a nostalgic trip exploring the dulcet and minimal groove of the guitar and voice.

All musicians have, at different points, lived or been at the coalface of their respective musical cultures within the Lusophone Atlantic triangle. Joao grew up listening to and learning fado, studied flamenco in Andalusia and has lived in Cape Verde, and Vitor lived with Joao for two years in Brazil and has lived and performed throughout Europe.

As Vitor explains, “In Brazil there is a lot of DNA from Cape Verde and West-Africa. You can find this DNA in many rhythms. One of them is coladeira. It’s a little bit samba, a little bit Bahia. Cape Verde is in the middle”. Vitor is particularly vital to the positive vibe that pervades the record. He practises the Afro Brazilian tradition and meditation of candomblé, originally brought over to Brazil by slaves from West Africa. The track ‘Luz de Yayá’ perfectly encapsulates the spirit of the Coladera collaboration, named after the candomblé god of the sea, Iemanjá.

– an intercontinental journey in rhythm –

European music culture has never been closed, on the contrary – it has always integrated influences from all other parts of the world. Two Tribes makes an effort to give insight in how musicians living in Europe today incorporate and transfer muscial traditions particularly from the African continent into their own oeuvre.

Featured on Two Tribes are a broad range of constellations, ranging from musicians with roots in African countries who reside in Europe to collaborations between European and African artists. Musically our compilation tries to capture at least a part of the enormous diversity that contemporary music from Europe of this kind has to offer. The spectrum ranges from classical „songs“ using traditional instruments from both continents to electronic productions that combine musical heritage with current club culture.
Our selection can only be a musical snapshot since there is so much movement in this genre at the moment.

A quick rundown on the tracks and artists:

The opener of the CD-version of Two Tribes comes from Andrea Benini, better known under the name of his successful band project Mop Mop. The musician and DJ from Italy just released his Africa-oriented solo album Drumphilia Vol. 1 on the Agogo Records- sublabel Cristalline.

French multi-instrumentalist and producer Gary Gritness has teamed up with well-respected musician Jacob Mafuleni from Zimbabwe to release a great common album called Batanidzo on which the Mbira music of Mafuleni is enhanced electronically and taken to another level.

Elias Agogo is a studied musician who grew up in rural Bavaria and started from there to quench his enormous thirst for all kinds of good music worldwide. After a few stops in German metropolises he has set up a new home in Montreal, Canada last year to soak up the creative vibe of the city. His psychedelic beat band Sea Moya has played SXSW this spring and will release their debut album in autumn. Under his Elias Agogo-moniker which he uses as a DJ and for solo productions he lives his passion for drums and percussions. His contribution Some Music convinced us from the start, but even turns out as a grower the more often you play it.

Antonio Marini aka Healing Force Project is our second representative from Italy. He caught our attention with several exceptional 12inches on different labels with experimental tracks between seventies fusion jazz and techno with a distinctive handwriting that proves his wide range of musical knowledge and influences. When we explained him our concept and asked for a track he came up with Nyctophobia which blew us away immediately with its density and tension.

Blay Ambolley is a veteran Highlife musician from Ghana who has played in several groups like the Uhuru Dance Band but has also released great solo records from 1975 until now. After an almost 20year long hiatus he returned to the studio to record his album Ketan for Agogo Records in 2017 on which the track Walk For Ground is included in its original. For Two Tribes we asked Berlin-based Dub producer Aldubb to come up with his own interpretation of Walk For Ground. As a result he transfers the original vibe into a dubby 8-minute ride in his typical manner.

Berlin-based band Tiliboo Afrobeat with bandleader Omar Diop from Senegal is another perfect example for an internationally oriented band concept. The members of the band have a wide range of ethnical background and show this in their music which also features a little flavour of south american music styles.

The Sorcerers from Leeds, UK come up with an extraordinary musical combination – the band combines influences from Ethiopian Jazz with the atmosphere of European horror movies to create an explosive mixture. We cannot wait to see them play live!

Trio Toffa hail from Finland and were pointed out to us by a local DJ. Singer and percussionist Noel Saizonou stems from Cotonou in Benin. The track Titon To is coined by his energetic vocals and percussion work as well as a driving synth line and a great guitar solo.

Onom Agemo & The Disco Jumpers, who are based in Germany, are strongly influenced by Moroccan and Ethiopian music. With I Don´t Like It I Don´t Hate It they are contributing another exclusive for Two Tribes. Bandleader Johannes Schleiermacher plays in several groups such as the Woima Collective, Andromeda Mega Express Orchestra or Gunter Hampel Quartet.

Selma Uamusse is a singer from Mozambique who has been living in Lisbon, Portugal for many years now. She combines the rhythms and musical heritage of her motherland with European musical traditions. Her Tune „Mozambique“ is as catchy as it is driving. It’s being released on vinyl for the first time.

David Hanke, who is known to many as Renegades Of Jazz, has spent a good part of his childhood in Kenya. With Moyo Wangu, his successful album on Agogo records, he reminded himself about this time. On Impala Roundabout he dedicates himself to his passion for deep house.

Last but not least we are very happy to have Raoul K on board to round off our compilation with a true hypnotic banger: Just In A Moment To Find A Way to Sun Day takes you on a 15-minute percussive ride that shows you how ecstatic African music can make you on the dancefloor! Raoul, who was born in Agboville, Ivory Coast, has been living in Northern Germany for a long time now and has delivered great tunes on labels such as Still Music, Innervisions, Compost Records and on his own imprint Baobab Music.

As you can hopefully see and hear, the leitmotif while compiling Two Tribes was to keep an eye on the ease of handling different cultural influences amongst the featured artists. It was important to us that the included music doesn´t just copy African music styles one to one but has an own handwriting and builds a bridge between the musical legacy of both continents. With all the track included, we have found a number of great examples and decided to showcase twelve of them on this first volume. The music included refers to the musical traditions of Senegal, Kenya, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Morocco, Zimbabwe and South Africa amongst others. The involved musicians are spread all over Europe, from Finland to Great Britain, Italy, England, France and Portugal to Germany.
Be it organic or electronic music, we think that all of the tracks really deserve your ear!

Tobi Kirsch & Ubbo Gronewold, June 2018

Juno Records – Review

“German combo Onom Agemo & The Disco Jumpers may be tricky to pin down musically, but their releases are rarely anything less than inspired. Certainly, new album “Magic Polaroid” is rather special, with the Berlin-based outfit giddily hammering elements of Afrobeat, jazz, spoken word, Latin beats, highlife, and punk-funk into ear-pleasing new shapes. Highlights are plentiful, and include – but are not limited to – the Rip, Pig and Panic style madness of “Welcome Eko”, the Moog-laden Afro-Jazz sunshine of “Magic Polaroid”, the dancing sax riffs and chiming melodies of super-sweet closing cut “Super Cranes”, and the heady intoxication that is album opener “Trumpets of Denmark”.”

Info

Ever since Onom Agemo & The Disco Jumpers broke the dreaded curse of the difficult second album by releasing “Liquid Love”, a cocktail so spicy and delectable that it could warm the cockles of the grumpiest man alive’s heart, even in the most Arctic conditions, everybody wondered how the Onom crew could top that one. But now you have an opportunity to whip out your “Magic Polaroid” as proof that this wasn’t an impossible Project. Never before has the band so successfully captured their full-on live sound as they do here, thanks to three days of recording frenzy at Daniel Nentwig and Sebastian Maschat’s Butterama studio, a haven of analog hardware hidden in a remote part of Berlin’s Neukölln district. The exploding kaleidoscope of styles that make up this album, perfectly reflected by the stunning cover artwork from Nick Henderson and photography by Christoph Rothmeier, means that they can no longer be confined to their early description as an “Afro-Funk Quintet” or merely described as a lively tribute to the artists which have influenced them: their sound is 100 per cent pure uncut Onom Agemo, even though every track feels like a new beginning. The presence of a charismatic in-house vocalist who brought her own lyrics along has also boosted their confidence considerably and provided a further knock-out punch to their onstage performances.
And no one will be disappointed as soon as the first bars of “The Trumpets Of Denmark” stomp on stage like a boisterous fanfare, with Johannes Schleiermacher’s impressive wall of sound production making the musicians sound like a much bigger band than what their line-up suggests (with Maria Schneider from Andromeda Mega Express Orchestra adding some extra percussive clout) and just the right amount of dizzying cross-rhythms to steer it away from potential bombast. When Onom Agemo’s powerhouse vocalist Natalie Greffel starts chanting what at first sounds like a string of Onomatopoeia, it soon becomes clear that she’s laying down her manifesto for a nostalgic Space-Age yet to come, with a few key words serving as Mantra (Focus, patience, tears and creation): an invitation to drive off the Information Superhighway and its endless litany of polite noises, to redirect our gaze inside ourselves and learn to understand and sometimes question how others perceive us.
Conceived by bassist Kalle Enkelmann in Morocco on a diet of mandarins and bananas, “Bonne Trance” enthralls with its lush keyboard arrangement and flute interjections, enhanced by the insistent punctuation of qarqabas, those indispensable accessories of Gnawa folklore that recall the sound of castanets, transporting the listener into a virtual hinterland halfway between Essaouira and Andalusia. Not recommended for trance- phobics, but possibly the ideal panacea for dancing away your fears.
Whenever the word „fusion“ crops up in conversation regarding music, perhaps because of its culinary connotations, one tends to be immediately reminded of lukewarm leftovers and excessively fussy presentation. But this notion is quickly dispelled by copping an ear to “Welcome Eko” (which wasn’t named, as one might think, as a tribute to the ancient name of the city of Lagos, but in honour of the Italian manufacturers of middle-range electric instruments that flourished in the mid 60’s and have acquired a cult aura ever since). On this sterling example of trance-fusion in excelsis, our five crack instrumentalists have distilled a particularly potent brand of Ethio-Gamelan laced with guitarist Kalle Zeier’s razor-sharp riffs.
In this age of immediate gratification and digital wizardry, there is something almost quaint but quite moving about the antiquated magic of an instant camera, where the Moment is captured for posterity, with unpredictable fluctuations of picture quality and no possibility of further embellishment (no face-saving Photoshop action allowed here). “Magic Polaroid”, the song, celebrates the recollection of such ephemeral pleasures made possible by this simple, compact device. Johannes Schleiermacher’s unbelievably complex, almost Steve Reich-like arrangement echoes the mysterious chemical reactions that take place during the transfer of that fleeting image on film while Bernd Oezsevim’s driving rhythms propel the song like the pair of rollers that will eventually eject that magic snapshot out of the camera.
Changing pace and shooting back into space, we meet the “Broken Satellites”, the closest the band comes to jazz of a somewhat spiritual nature, albeit with a strongly psychedelic-flavoured intro. Modern society encourages us to fill our bodies and minds with way too much junk, but we tend to forget all the junk that humankind has left behind in space. Natalie Greffel’s inspired performance, ably supported by exuberant sax lines and cascading keyboard runs, hints that as the decommissioned satellites were heading down to crash back on earth, they probably crossed paths with the Voyager Spacecraft, which had been hijacked by extra- terrestrial music fans who, after poring over every detail of that famous Golden Record that came as a surprise package with its contents, had stumbled on a couple of hidden bonus tracks by Abbey Lincoln and Jeanne Lee which fired their imagination.
Finally we arrive at the final stretch of our grand tour, a short stopover on a virtual Côte d’Azur going by the name of “Super Cannes”. The garden party at the Villa has already started, the guests are lounging around the heart-shaped pool but someone has spiked the punch bowl and some torrid activities are about to commence. The soundtrack is provided by that master of improbable juxtapositions, Jörg Hochapfel, who expertly segues the jaunty opening melody with a waltz-tempo groove before bursting into a funkalicious synth solo full of suggestive grunts and squeals. Or maybe that was just the sound of a few unfortunate earthlings being abducted from their jacuzzi by aliens who’d jumped onboard a falling satellite. C’est chaud!

After the release of their playful debut album “Worldstyle” the Budapest duo returns now with their 2nd album “Brotherhood”. The songs often summons blues elements but they are also influenced by dub, funk and un petit de hip-hop. the lyrics are mainly about the social and personal problems of our times, interpreted by talented guest vocalists from all over the world.

The guest performance of KRSA puts the point on the letter “i” in “Brotherhood” and in the other reggae-inspired song “Pass It On”. Being one of the dominant figures of the Hungarian ska movement he is an important guest on the album.
As the main driving force behind the 90’s very popular and recently revived British band Freak Power Ashely Slater needs no introduction. He has worked with Dub Pistols, Dublex Inc., or Fort Knox Five and his talents and professional performances are turbocharges three completely different songs. “Revolution!“ has previously released in 2016 as a 7” single and features dazzling electro blues and Ashley’s food for thought lyrics. In “Life Is Love” he proves that his talent has no barriers whether he sings lonely doo-woptempo or the dub-ska of “People Kill People” which is a unique cover of Éric Serra’s seminal 80’s cult classic “Guns & People”.
Denise M’Baye known as the MC/singer of Mo’Horizons is featured in two downtempo tracks. “Wings” is a laidback song about love while and “All My Life Is In This Bag” smuggles back a little bit of the mood of “Worldstyle”.
Fedora is the best-known female MC/singer of the Hungarian bass music life. She made her own solo album in 2017. With “Come Away With Me” she proves that she’s not only an bass music MC, but a great singer with deep emotions.
Another guest from Hungary is the lead singer of the downtempo-funk band Mystical Plants. Bryant Goodman contributes to the album in two different tracks with his gravelly voice. “Bad Man’s Ballad is bittersweet song about the average politician of our age while “Keep Going On” on the other hand is full of playfulness and delivers a short but positive message.
At last but not least we have the Ghanaian M3NSA on the board from Fokn Bois and RedRed. His lyrics in “It Works” is very motivating for everyone and spreads the message of not giving up even if the world is seemingly against you.

Savages Y Suefo’s new album “Brotherhood” is a lot different from their previous one in many ways but it remained just as eclectic as its predecessor “Worldstyle” and still proves Savages Y Suefo’s wide interest and openness in music that is needed today… and not just in music.

“a journey inspired by early African electronic music and modern beats”

Drumphilia volume 1 is a rhythmic experiment that sits on the fault line between traditional instrumentation and analogue electronics.
The project is a response to many years spent working with, learning about and listening to African and Caribbean percussion. Traditional rhythmic influences are combined with analogue drum machines and drum synths to create a hybrid sound that continues in the tradition of artists like Frances Bebey.
There are no traditional harmonic instruments on the recordings – the aim was to create melody and texture using only carefully tuned percussion instruments, whether organic or electronic. Basslines were created by blending drum synth tones with the acoustic marimbula, a traditional Caribbean instrument that was often used in place of a bass guitar.
Melodies were created with everything from log drums and thumb pianos to early Soviet drum modules and the trailblazing Pearl Syncussion SY-1.
Various time signatures and textures are used across the album to produce melody out of rhythm – hypnotic, evolving tracks that celebrate and highlight the importance of rhythm in modern music.

Liner notes by Hugo Mendez

All the sessions were recorded at the Mop Mop studio in Berlin between September and December, 2016. Instruments featured including log drum, marimbula, kalimba, sansula, krabebs. Pearl Syncussion SY-1, Vermona DRM1, MFB Tanzbär, MFB Tanzmaus RMIF Elsita, assorted drum machines and talkboxes.

Written, performed, arranged and produced by Andrea Benini
Mixed by Andrea Benini and Andrea Scardovi at Duna Studio (RA) Italy
Andrea Benini plays electronic drums, analog drum machines, drum synthesizers, bass synthesizers, syncussion, percussions, log drum, marimbula, kalimba, sansula.

*Danilo Mineo plays Jew’s harp on marranzanu
*Max Castlunger plays balafon, kalimba, percussions on jawa

Artwork by Gianni Rossi.
Mastered by Kelly Hibbert.

This Album is dedicated to all the *Rhythm Diggers* around the Globe.
A big *Grazie” to my lovely Family (Patrizia, Gualtiero, Giulia).

Andrea Benini

RSN, producer, DJ and musician from Athens – Greece, delivers his 4rth album named “Strange Eyes” which is his debut on Agogo Records.
The album includes 13 songs influenced by electronica and trip hop sounds. Hip hop beats with fat bass-lines in addition to effected melodic guitar, Hammond and atmospheric analog synths create an ideal soundtrack for the album “Strange Eyes”. RSN collaborated with exceptional vocalists and musicians under his executive production.
From 2009 until now, he participates as a DJ in the well-known British band Belleruche, a world-class band in the turntable soul scene with many concerts in Greece and abroad (Serbia, Turkey, Russia, Switzerland, France, England, Ukraine etc.). All these years he has appeared in major festivals all over the world next to great names, such as The Wailers, Charles Bradley, Kid Loco, Zaz, Waldeck a.o, while he has opened the live shows of top artists, including Alpha Blondy, Wax Tailor, Dj Krush, Parov Stellar and others.

The new album by the Finnish multi-instrumentalist Linear John presents popular music in a new light. With “Double Parade”, Markus Holkko aka Linear John seamlessly ties in on his first album. The Pop-Jazz potpourri is mysteriously undefinable; a characterization of all relaxed moody situations one can only imagine. Is this still Pop?

Yes, because the album is absolutely suitable for the masses – or maybe not, because it can’t be put in a specific box. Sometimes it sounds just like John Coltrane, sometimes just like Kraftwerk. While one is still feeling the Latin- vibes à la Antônio Carlos Jobim, the next track surprises with a horn solo in the style of Richard Wagner. But despite this diversity, it is not an arbitrary sequence of tributes: The Finn understands how to create his songs harmoniously and melodically so forcefully that you inevitably start to feel the groove. Whenever the listener threatens to lean back into a state of in- attention, he is reactivated by new, surprising harmonic or rhythmic changes. The clever arrangements, all written by Linear John himself, offer a coherent listening experience and yet are unpredictable and somehow refreshingly different.
“Double Parade” can’t be squeezed into a corset. Clear stylistic classification, proven musical means and established structures are skillfully expanded here, while the music is equally fascinating to experts and laymen. This is precisely why the record, a refreshing road trip through the colorful landscape of existing Jazz and Pop flows, is a welcome contrast to the always equal format music.

As our label Agogo Records celebrated its ten years anniversary in 2017 we thought it’s about time for an appraisal. It’s about time for a special album release that’s way more than just a best of- / remix-compilation sampler.
Our anniversary release is, similar to our back catalogue, multi-faceted and iridescent. It’s a body of work created by an exceptionally gifted Jazz arranger and talented keyboarder, an analogue compendium of digitally crafted Agogo classics and a new and oftentimes radical re-interpretation of groovy, electronic club music that has been released via our imprint throughout the past decade.
we commissioned arranger and piano player Lutz Krajenski, who has worked with artists like Roger Cicero, Tom Jones and Manfred Krug in the past, to re-interpret and revisit ten classic tunes from the labels back catalogue for this album. Not knowing to which places this journey would lead to Krajenski started to work on tunes originally written by Mo’ Horizons, Mop Mop or The Juju Orchestra and re-arranged them in a way that they obtained a new feel, a new meaning as well as a radically new sound when they were recorded with the help of various guest musicians stemming from Krajenski’s inner circle of friends in the music scene as well as the singer Alana Alexander who played an important role in shaping the sound of the album.
Hailing from New York City Alana Alexander was raised on a very distinct diet of music from an early age onwards and especially inspired by the sound of Gospel choirs as her father used to be one of the most renowned preachers in the Bronx area. Coming from this perspective and background she went on to study Vocal Jazz at the Manhatten School Of Music and fully focus on her musical talent which, amongst others, led to stage appearances at the famous Apollo Theatre in Harlem alongside greats like Eric Benet, Faith Evans, Keiko Lee and Angie Stone as well as working as a songwriter for the eight times Grammy winner Jay Newland.
From our perspective Krajenski left a very distinct mark on the albums sound and therefore the final outcome is way more than just an anniversary album. That’s why it’s called „Lutz Krajenski plays Hits Agogo“. For Krajenski it seems like the original tunes sound more like remixes of his own reworks although the albums approach is a contrary one.

For the second time now Agogo Records presents a compilation of brandnew songs and remixes – Hits Agogo Two. 15 songs, 13 of them are exclusives which has not been released yet.

From pretty well-known artists such as the Hidden Jazz Quartett, NuJazz pioneers Mo’Horizons, Ghanaian Hi-Life dinosaur Blay Ambolley, the Afrofunk Quintet Onom Agemo & The Disco Jumpers, which combines African music with psychedelic synthie soundes and Freejazz elements, or Dancefloor Jazz expert Renegades of Jazz you will also find songs from great new talents like Tim Granbacka, Colonel Faat or Stone Scissors Paper.

Please also check Nautilus’ cover version of “Tom’s Diner”, the Re- twist version of Linear John’s “Plates” as well as the moody electronic remix from Casimir von Oettingen for the Miramode Orchestra.
Hannover based genius Lutz Krajenski affiliates with Alana Alexander and brings the record with a cover of the The Police classic “Every Breath You Take” to an terrific end.

It doesn’t matter if Jazz, Soul or Funk, traditional or experimental, classic or a touch of electronic, these 15 songs combine all the strings and showcase all the styles which Agogo Records is known for.

‘Oonops Drops’ is the eponymous name of DJ Oonops’ monthly broadcast on Brooklyn Radio (NYC). It’s your not average radio show without talk and comments for which he invites renowned guests with their exclusive mixes from around the globe to create timeless and thematic episodes. In the last sixty shows he got visited by artists like Morcheeba, Guts, Nickodemus, The Herbaliser, Nostalgia 77, Boca 45, Blundetto, Chinese Man and many more.

Born in 1977 he got in contact with music at an early stage and soon discovered his medium of choice: vinyl. Oonops is a dj, selector, digger and is known for his smooth mixing skills to rock parties in his unmistakable wildstyle of jazz, soul, funk, hip hop, beats, edits, reggae, dub and afro. He shared the stages with acts like Nightmares on Wax, The Beatnuts, Jeru The Damaja, Ebo Taylor, Myron & E, Akua Naru and The Artifacts to name just a few.

As a longtime friend of the label and as a resident of its own club night he now gets his own compilation series to showcase his manifold taste in digging, selecting and mixing. His matter was to create a compilation of manifold genres of undiscovered, previously unreleased and for the first time on vinyl delicacies for any avid and discernable listener and dj. Especially for the vinyl lovers he dug many tracks which are treats for every set from warm-up until peak time. This compilation will stay for a long time in the bags.

For the cover he joined forces with San Francisco based oil paintress Lindsey Kustusch who cherishes the mood of this work and its spirit. Enjoy this musical trip from dub, soul, funk, instrumentals, hip hop and jazz!

“Really nice vibe.”
(Freddie Cruger)

“This record is awesome, super chilled, super westcoast, proper production!”
(TM Juke)

“A voyage into the cinematic jazz grooves from the man who brought us the Renegades Of Jazz.”
(Kid Loco)

Having released music under various aliases over the last decade – most famously as Renegades Of Jazz, as well as recent incarnation Dem Juju Poets and his Latin outfit Mankoora – celebrated producer and DJ, David Hanke, has gone back to his blissful electronic roots with his latest project, Keno.

Hanke’s love for the early 21st Century downtempo music, as is apparent when you listen to this, his debut under the Keno moniker, entitled Around The Corner. It’s far from simply early ‘noughties’ nostalgia though, as his keen contemporary ear adds a modern touch to the proceedings.

Shuffling beats combine with lush guitars on the opening title track to life affirming effect. Elsewhere, Merrythought continues the theme of the album opener, this time indulging in sweeping string arrangements and sprightly keys. Other highlights include the beautiful What Remains with its soulful vocal snippets and building, jazz influenced piano refrain.

All Else By Far is another standout moment, where the drums take centre stage, giving the cut more of an instrumental hip-hop aesthetic; whereas Kingsley has a more mysterious charm, interweaving spoken word samples and keyboard stabs whilst still keeping the sound of the drum to the fore.

The haunting Elwood sets the scene with ominous strings before eerie guitars make way for some bold brass stabs and once again we return to those spooky strings that are the centrepiece of this atmospheric cut. Spines And Rays, in contrast, has something of a more urgent, driving feel as lumbering basslines battle with vigorous percussion and driving drums. Album closer, Shadowlights, though is simply a thing of beauty and serenity – the perfect climax to an album that might just be your soundtrack to many summers to come. You just never know what’s lurking around the corner…

Text by Dom Servini

After releasing his ‘Moyo Wangu’ album in late 2016 where David Hanke connected to the time he spent in his early childhood in Arusha/Tanzania, it’s now time for ‘Moyo Zaidi’, the remixed version of the original album. While ‘Moyo Wangu’ was translated as ‘My Heart’, ‘Moyo Zaidi’ can be translated as ‘Heart Returned’.

The original songs have been reworked by twelve producers and DJs from all across the scene and continents. From America over Europe to Australia and from Funk over Cumbia and Dub to Deep House and Downbeat this remix album is a bounty stack of styles and directions.
Funk versions from Moscow, Lisboa and London, some Cumbia from Brisbane, a Dub treatment from Los Angeles, Afrodisco comes from Bogotá, soulful Downbeat from the Black Forest and London, a slow mover from Hamburg and twisted Deep House from Amsterdam, Belgrad and London.

Info Deutsch:

Die vierköpfige Band aus Hannover – für Festivals auch in großer Besetzung mit Bläsern und Backgroundsängerinnen zu haben – verbindet in ihren selbstgeschriebenen Songs urbane Funk- und Soulgrooves mit deutschen Texten.

Rau und analog im Studio Nord in Bremen produziert, liefert ihr Debut – Album authentische und leidenschaftliche Botschaften gegen Rassismus, Gier und Engstirnigkeit – stilsicher verpackt in einen fetten, funky, extrem tanzbaren Sound. Ganz in der großen Stax-Tradition, die SUPERSOUL genauso geprägt hat wie der lässig-discoide Phillysound. Das Album erscheint am 28.Oktober 2017 und wird mit einer großen Promotour begleitet. Vorab wird die Single „Mein Name ist Mensch“, eine geniale Souladaption des großartigen Songs von Ton, Steine, Scherben veröffentlicht.

Info English:

SUPERSOUL are a real band. A band in love with analogue instruments and mastering their craft. A rat pack of five groove fanatics accumulating enough years, wisdom and experience to tell truly authentic stories within their songs – songs which are taking the bands audience on a journey into the 60s and 70s sound of Black America. SUPERSOUL are playing Funk ‘n’ Soul on a hot, steamy, energetic and passionate tip, performing self-written songs with stories told in the bands mothertongue – German.

With Arne Busch as vocalist and band leader SUPERSOUL is built around a true force. His vision and expression of Soul is phrased like the emphasis of a preacherman’s gospel whilst fat and funky grooves are masterly crafted and carefully layered by Margot Gontarski and drummer Lars Heindorf a.k.a. Soulsurfer, glazed with wah-wah-heavy licks played by guitar wizard Toni Campioni. Their experienced interplay on the latest SUPERSOUL album is polished with loads of analogue engineering magic at Studio Nord Bremen and perfectly complemented by solos and arrangements of Lutz ‘Hammond’ Krajenski and seven other guest musicians.

SUPERSOUL Band:

Arne Busch: Vocals
Toni Campioni: Gitarre
Martin “Margot ” Gontarski: Bass
Lars “Soulsurfer” Heindorf: Drums

Plus :

Lutz Krajenski: keys
Tino Vetter: percussion
Mica & Carina: backing voclas
York Ostermayer: saxophone, flute, bass clarinet

Horn Section:

Andreas Barkhoff: trombone
Gary Winters: trumpet
Felix Petry: tenor sax

Horn Arrangements “Mein Name Ist Mensch” and “Feuer” by Lutz Krajenski

mixed by Gregor Hennig and Supersoul. produced by Supersoul. Mastered by Kelly Hibbert.

Love makes the world go around. “two”, the second album by The Soul Session, is full of love. Ralph Kiefer, multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger and producer from South Germany embarks on a stylistically diverse journey into Soul, Jazz, Funk and World Music.

Being a highly respected session musician in the jazz as well as the crossover scene, Kiefer made a serious impact in 2011 with “one”, the first Soul Session album. “one” was built on a solid backbeat of Soul, Hip Hop and Funk, while “two” now takes a step further into a spiritual and eclectic dimension. “Quantraversa” featuring the voice of L.A. neo-soul queen Georgia Anne Muldrow is the mind-blowing opener of this album, a truly deep and intense rhythmic statement. Quantraversa is a word which you will not find in any dictionary, but that is not the point, says Ralph Kiefer. “This album is a journey to the inner self. The recording process was like meditation. I often started with a loop, or an idea for a melody. It evolved from there and I simply let it happen. When I involved the lyricists and vocalists, my drafts sometimes took a completely different paths and ended in something unexpected and beautifully new.”

“The Passage” is a prime example of Ralph Kiefer’s visionary working style. “I mainly work with my mobile studio. Nowadays you can virtually record every instrument in any place you like, you just need a good microphone. Some of my guest vocalists also recorded their part in their own studio.” This way Tokunbo Akinro, the voice of Tok Tok Tok, turned “The Passage” into a futuristic, haunting soul tune. “Live Your Life”, introducing Anaj, works nicely as a kind of theme tune for “two”. Here you have a lose groove which is tight at the same time, keeps in control and simultaneously lets it loose. And then there’s “Wish The Beat To Never Stop”. Ralph Kiefer is especially happy about this track. “I am a fan of Omar since his first album on Talkin’ Loud, I am very proud that he contributed to my album.” With his unique UK Soul stylings Omar fits perfectly to the brilliantly understated and well-informed Soul Session sound.

It’s the two suites which are central to “two”. “Kalimba Suite” kicks off with a stripped down piano, percussion and Kalimba session. Then “Steely Dan” gives it away in its title, sounds like it will move straight into “Do It Again”, but then it does not and turns into a funky Soul Session style instrumental jam. “Transformation” is the perfect ending for “Kalimba Suite”, sticking with the Rhodes, bringing in more synthesizers and getting quite cosmic. “Liberation Suite” has Anaj coming in again. “Got To Go Where To Go” is pure bliss and funky fun. “Samba De Alfana” is a spiritual and deep Brazilian, irresistible jazz-house dance floor mover. With a motto like “Liberation for the nation” and a vocoder meeting a Caribbean style “Funky Nassau” groove you will agree: “Open up your mind!”

“You Are Everything” uses a Horace Silver style piano motif, then adding the sampled voice of philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti: “His philosophy is very central to my creative process. In the troubled times we live in I think his message is more relevant than ever. Without self-knowledge there is no basis for peaceful thought and action.” Fatma Tazegül closes the album in taking “Never Let Me Go” to another level with her soulful gospel voice. Think of the open mindedness and global funk and fusion rhythm in the Seventies, but also of the Acid Jazz movement during the Nineties and you get the picture of what “two” is about love, peace, being true to yourself and getting involved.

Cover Photo: © janaondrej.de

NAUTILUS is a trio centered around drummer Toshiyuki Sasaki, formed in 2014 along with its Bassist Shigeki Umezawa and Keyboardist Daisuke Takeuchi. Their distinctive style, which can be summarized as the modern rare groove, embodies a mixture of jazz, funk, disco, soul and even hip hop.

The conception of NAUTILUS is drawn not only from the composition “Nautilus” written by Bob James, but also from an American submarine that actually existed, thus resembling their contemporary style that carries on the rare groove music of the 70s in an abyssal imagery.

Sasaki’s versatile, yet solid drumming combined with Umezawa’s full-bodied, powerful bass and Takeuchi’s classically-trained prowess produces an exceptional sound unique all on its own.

This 2LP, compiled by Brooklyn Radios‘ own DJ Oonops,
is a comprehensive selection of their two full-length studio recordings, previously only available in Japan alongside several 45-only tracks and unreleased new material.

Blay Ambolley and his Sekondi Highlife Band
(The Creator of Highlife/Afro/ Jazz Dance Music)

The Legendary Gyedu Blay Ambolley from Ghana, West Africa and his Sekondi Band has 29 music albums to his credit. “Ketan” is his number 30.

Ambolley was born in the city of Sekondi-Takoradi (an area called Ketan), in the Western Region of Ghana, in West Africa. The multi-talented, International, Ghanaian Musician celebrated his “Silver Jubilee” in music in 1998.

Ambolley taught himself to play the flute as a first instrument in his early years of musical interest dating back to the age of eight, when he began playing with his father’s flute. The young music enthusiast continued to learn the rudiments of music from the late’ Sammy Lartey and Ebo Taylor. During the sixties, the young aspiring musician was impressed with the music he heard on the popular radio show, “Voice of America Jazz Hour.” That sixties show featured such jazz giants as Jimmy Smith, Max Roach, Wes Montgomery, Charlie Parker, Clifford Brown, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Eckstie… all of whom became part of Ambolley’s early musical experience.

This versatile, irrepressible singer, songwriter, producer and “musical- life-force” exploded on the music scene in 1973 with a jazzy highlife sound called ‘SIMIGWA-DO’.

He has toured throughout West Africa, Europe, Canada, and the United States and has performed on the same stage with some of the world’s most celebrated artistes such as; Miriam Makeba of South Afrika, the late Fela Anikulapo-Kuti of Nigeria, the late George Howard, Angela Bofill, Norman Connors, Manu Dibango, Lakeside, Chikuzan Takahashi of Japan, Ricardo Estrada of Cuba, Mayuto Correa of Brazil and toured Ghana with Oscar Brashear and Michael Session.

The celebrated musician has received numerous prestigious awards, for example a lifetime achievement award and Inducted into the music hall of fame by Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in California and an award from the Board of Supervisors and the City Council of the State of California for bridging the gap between Africa and African American music. He also received a lifetime achievement award at the Ghana Music Awards in 2013.

Gyedu-Blay Ambolley has crafted the ability to combine a unique sound and melody with funny lyrics and dancing to his music as is well documented that “the genre of his music is entertainingly elevating and spiritually inescapable”, such that its uniqueness transcends all musical categories.

„One of Berlin’s most agile jazz projects“ – TAZ

„What an enjoyable music, just perfect for a Saturday evening.“ – Berliner Zeitung

A good concert is like a journey. When it starts you might not know what episodes await you, but in your heart you can feel which direction it will take you in. The Miramode Orchestra offers just this type of enriching, exhilarating experience. Although they meander between coordinates including jazz, electronica and groove, the seven musicians can never be tied down to a single musical location. The sound created by a four-man rhythm section and three horn players is always flavoured by a certain ambition, but never fails to let souls fly and get bodies sweating.

Their debut album “Restless City” announced the band as fans of both exploration and experimentation. Why break down barriers when you can simply soar over them – after all, they only exist in the mind. It is therefore no surprise that collaborations have already included not only a range of artists more at home in genres such as hip hop, soul and modern club culture, but also a string ensemble. The latter returned to the studio for the band’s forthcoming album “Tumbler”, which is set for release in early 2017 on Agogo Records. There is a noticeable shift towards more song-like structures: The vocals of Inèz Schäfer, Dan Freeman, Mara von Ferne and the band’s keyboard player Eren Solak are taking Tumbler to another level.
At times it is difficult not to hear a touch of Bon Iver, 4hero or Cinematic Orchestra. Yet just as listeners are ready to slot a song into a pigeonhole, the Miramode Orchestra whisks them away to a new, unexpected stop on their journey.

AR083CD / AR083VL
ONOM AGEMO & THE DISCO JUMPERS “Liquid Love”
release date: 24. February 2017
LP | CD | digital

Onom Agemo and The Disco Jumpers are finally back on track with their sophomore album „Liquid Love“, a well psychedelic longplay effort jam-packed with captivating grooves of a bubbling, pumping, floating and defo frolicking and playful nature.
„Liquid Love“ is the name of the title track which can be described as a proper fancy ass, lime green glow-in-the dark cocktail served on dinghies throughout harbour boat trips to punters in full-on scuba gear.
Coming from ancient days and weighing in some Malian heritage is „Kurifuna“, a tune sporting quite tipsy bamboo flutes, long lost rhythm signatures and secret messages from Saturn.
„Opus“ reflects the bands ardent enthusiasm and fascination for trance-inducing rituals performed by the Moroccan Gnawa people and is recommended to come to peace with one’s innermost demons. Just pump up the jam and bop your head back and forth furiously. But hey kids, don’t try this at home and without assistance as cataleptic conditions might occur.
With „The Disco Jumpers“ we’re having a dance to the hymn of the most dedicated amongst all Onom Agemo-worshippers. And btw – if the bands name seems a little too off to get stuck in your head how about some backward reading? If you’re like #wtf now be assured that there’s no deeper meaning
intended. It just sounds fancy, outlandish and peregrine.
Also we see our time travelling guitar player contributing to this album with „Weird Panda King“, a song he might – or might not – have picked up throughout one of his trips to the 70s.
And talking the 70s in general, the whole album incorporates bits and bops from the past, present and future, drawing influences from both very familiar and also faraway places. Just to name a few there’s Krautrock, AfroFunk, traditional Moroccan Trance, Future Jazz and much more to be found. The Beatles excluded, though.
Finally „Somebody“ is the icing on the cake – a quadripartite suite that was premiered at the occasion of the second Kosmos-days event in Berlin. For this special musical piece the band was able to work with three local female pygmies which provided additional layers of most beauteous folkloristic rack- wheel chants to round off things nicely a.k.a. somebody is counting on universal help to get in touch with somebody. Well, things like that do actually happen. For sure.

Onom Agemo & The Disco Jumpers:

Johannes Schleiermacher – woodwinds and modular synth
Jörg Hochapfel – old organs and analog synths
Kalle Zeier – guitar and vocoder vocals
Kalle Enkelmann – bass and microphones
Bernd Oezsevim – drums and cymbals

special guests:

Maria Schneider – small and big percussions (Kuriuna & Somebody), vocals (Liquid Love & Somebody)
Natalie Grefel – vocals on Somebody
Olga Xavier – vocals on Somebody

All compositions by Johannes Schleiermacher except „Weird Panda King“ by Kalle Zeier. Produced and Mixed by Johannes Schleiermacher. Recorded by Kalle Enkelmann. mastered by Kelly Hibbert

Seraleez’s debut album, “Good Life” is a soulful collection of poetic revelations and personal experiences set in an eclectic soundscape of hypnotic Hip Hop grooves and iridescent Jazz harmonies. Their songs reveal and confess the essences of inner and outer revolutions as one strives towards the “Good Life”.

With sophisticated harmonies, soulful vocals, heavy hip hop beats and electronic nuances, Seraleez defines a new and unique flavor for the genres of Jazz and Soul. Through the fusion of classic and contemporary influences, Seraleez creates it’s own sound for the future.

In the spring of 2010, four young German Jazz musicians in Dresden were brought together by their untypical love for hip-hop beats. Finding inspiration in bands and artists like Robert Glasper, The Roots, RH Factor, J. Dilla, Erykah Badu and Lauryn Hill these four musicians began experimenting with Jazz and Hip Hop fusion. With the addition of electronic sounds and a powerful vocalist from NYC, Seraleez evolved into the style of future soul.

Christine Seraphin (also known as Sera Kalo) is a Caribbean-American singer and songwriter born to St. Lucian and Dominican parents and raised on the east coast of the United States. After studying classical piano for nearly 12 years, she began singing and later went to college in New York to begin her musical studies in piano and voice. Parallel to her studies that introduced her to jazz and classical vocal styles, at home, Christine grew up listening to calypso, reggae, soul, rock and pop music. After graduating and moving to Germany in 2009, she founded and performed with musically diverse ensembles and has made solo performances on international television programs, in stadiums and arenas across the country. Her most current band, Seraleez was founded in 2010 celebrating Future Soul (a fusion of Soul, Hip Hop and Jazz).

In this jungle of hustlers and cop-outs it’s the time to take over. Linear John’s debut album ‘Hits with a Twist’ is out now. It’s provocative and compelling. It’s eclectic without crashing down one musical barrier. Respect the tradition.
This is an invitation to the world of peculiar sounds, odd time signatures and the forms you’ve never encountered before. Just when you thought that you’ve heard it all, Linear John comes out with his debut album, Hits with a Twist. In less than 45 minutes of playing time he manages to be tough in the night, quite romantic and more than eccentric while not forgetting his protective nature. These and many his other moods are found in ‘Hits with a Twist’, an album released by Agogo-records. ‘Hits with a twist’ ,a stunning debut album contains eleven brand new songs created solely by Linear John©. He’s from anywhere you like and he sings and plays; Saxophones, analog synthesizers and everything in sight letting his band, The Raising Eyebrows, to take care of the rest.
A man with many tasks to complete. He’s been surrounded by mysteries and now, for the first time, he’s ready to take you along into his inner musical worlds. This is the showing where it should be at.
Linear John likes to do things his way. It’s the way of going forward, towards the complete synthesis of all influences he’s received. And of course, always leaving chance a chance. This is a new must. Linear John debut album is coming to your smart phones and if you’ve been smart enough, it’s also coming to your record players.
Watch out and you’ll get Hits with a Twist© and they have never felt so good.

AR073CD | AR073VL
RENEGADES OF JAZZ “Moyo Wangu”
EAN 4260130540739 CD / EAN 4260130541736 DLP
release date: 02. September 2016
Agogo Records
LC 15656

It’s the year 2016 and David Hanke, widely recognized under his moniker Renegades Of Jazz, is back with his third full-on longplay effort entitled ‘Moyo Wangu’.

After his conceptual and darker approach to his last album ‘Paradise Lost’ released in 2015, we see Renegades Of Jazz explore the world of Afrofunk here, a world David Hanke is deeply linked to since

Due to being exposed to the sound of this East African metropolis throughout his early childhood days the love for any kind of African rhythm signatures and vibes has stuck to this day and is now reflected in the twelve tracks on the album ‘Moyo Wangu’ – a Swahili expression that translates as ‘My heart’ and perfectly describes where his heart is at.

Already having introduced the audience to his love of all things Afro with the exclusive non-album track ‘Tempo Tempo’ that was featured on the ‘Hits Agogo One’ compilation earlier this year as well as with the first single release of the album ‘Afro Cookie’, a modern Afrofunk anthem with a distinctive twist that does not only refer to David Hanke’s personal linkage to Africa but also can be seen as the origin and starting point of the musical journey we’re about to experience here.

‘Moto Moto’ musically depicts the hot, vibrant feel of a jam-packed dancefloor throughout an amazing night out, ‘Beneath This African Blue’ brings on sweet midtempo grooves and the captivating ‘Harambee’ (Let’s work together) reflects the rhythm and reiterativeness of working together featuring the brass section of the Los Angeles-based Jungle Fire outfit who add their special heat.

The albums title track ‘Moyo Wangu’ caters uplifting Afrofunk at its best and sees Marseille-based producer and multi-instrumentalist Hugo Kant delivering some thrilling flute action with a Jazz-infused twist whilst ‘Them Who Walk Slow’ is on a more laid back and tropical tip.

With ‘Karibu Tena’ – Swahili for ‘Welcome Back (Again)’ – David Hanke returns to his spiritual home in a joyful, polyrhythmic way, ‘Zebra Talk’ is another collaborational effort featuring producer and multi-instrumentalist Kabanjak, also known for his works on other projects like Deela and as part of the Ancient Astronauts duo. The touching vibe of ‘Jamboree’ resembles the overwhelming joy and heartfelt spirit of gatherings and festivities.

‘Majirani Yako Kelele’ works bubbling dancefloors with a complex swing, ‘Jazz Makossa’ amalgamates influences taken from highly Jazz-infused Makossa music and their traditional call & response techniques to a thrilling effect and finally ‘Prison Island’ concludes the album with a sweet yearning and laid back melancholia referring to the legend and history of a small island, also known as Changuu or Kibandiko, located only a few miles off shore of the beautiful Zanzibar Archipelago.

2LP 180gr. gatefold incl. download card & poster | CD 6-sider digipak
___________________________

„Love On A Far Away Planet“ (Sun Ra)
„Space Will Be My Home?“ (Mop Mop)

MOP MOP continue their journey through musically wide open spaces and places. Refining their sound even more, creating an unique and deep atmosphere based on the idea of traditional Gnawa rhythms mixed with a heavy Dub-Jazz-Funk pulse. They left the „isle Of Magic“ – but the magical experience of their music and vibe gets even more exciting . . .

… as ANDREA BENINI and MOP MOP once again take a wonderful imaginary trip to a place which echoes and results in another deep musical trip. From the „Isle Of Magic“ to „Lunar Love“ – „There are other places out there“ – Sun Ra knew about these places outta space, MOP MOP now take a journey from a mystical bright shining star called „Adhara“ to Mother Earth, being aliens from a kind of similar but yet different planet which they had to leave as they have destroyed and abused their ground, now in search of a new land. Looking at our blue planet from a different point of view. „Show me this place they call Earth and let me land this ship“, says ANTHONY JOSEPH in one of the key tracks „Spaceship:Earth“.

Starting the trip with the soothing sounds of a Hang Drum, „Alfa“ leads into the four movements of „Lunar Love“ – The Journey, The Awakening, The Experience and Close Encounters. „Adhara“ then sounds like the Sultans Of Swing found their Karmacoma finally, melodies of leaving and inquiring discoveries at the same time. Unquestionably, Adhara must have been a wonderful place, but now it’s time to find a new life somewhere in space, all under the sign of the magical „Lunar Love“ in the end. Hardly anyone can elude the irresistibly rhythms of intrumental tracks like „Habibi“ or „Plato“ as parts of the journey through space and time. „Supreme“, a beautiful and soulful love ballad and the dreamy „Foreign Correspondent“, which is about the amalgamation of aliens and humans, the destiny for a new way of living and caring, are the soundtrack to the release in a quite peaceful setting after a long journey.

„Lunar Love“ once again features over ten brilliant musicians, each one contributing their art homogeneously to ANDREA BENINI’s musical visions. ALEX TREBO on piano, PASQUALE MIRRA on vibraphone, balafon and marimba, SALVATORE LAURIOLA on electric and double bass, DANILO MINEO playing all kinds of primary percussions like surdo, udu drums, tumbadora and the morrocan krakebs, which BENINI also uses on most of the tracks like a traditional drum set. Additional hang, ARP synthesizers, Moog, guitars and many other instruments create this unique atmosphere of the album. Poet and musician ANTHONY JOSEPH on the vocals adding his outstanding poetry as an essential ingredient, telling the story and matching perfectly with the overall vibe of the tribal Dub Jazz Funk pulse. WAYNE SNOW’s sweet voice making „Supreme“ this beautiful love song and Ninja Tune artist ANNABEL ELLIS dreamy chant inspired by Satie and Debussy feels just right in place in „Foreign Correspondent“.

The whole album has been recorded in five excellent studios located in Berlin and Ravenna using vintage analog equipment for he bliss of a warm sound, which can only be achieved by using analogue tape in the
end. „Lunar Love“ is MOP MOP’s fifth studio album and it turns out to be BENINI’s best work to date, deep and sometimes dark, but uplifting, very soulful and very original at the same time. Combining his afro american jazz background with a tribal offbeat approach and a wonderful story on top. Reaching out to a state of trance which feels very good once you let yourself go. Please take your seats and join MOP MOP on this journey to these „Other places out there“ you haven’t seen and heard yet.

„So take the dark away, leave me the day“ ANTHONY JOSEPH

Feedback:

THE FINANCIAL TIMES „ Lunar Love harks back to the heydays of AfroFuturism. 4**** „

LE MONDE „Tropical et futuriste, aquatique et funky, africain, sans doute, mais aussi soul et assoupli de jazz ou d’élasticité jamaïcaine“

FIP RADIO „Trois ans après “Isle Of Magic”, le combo afro-jazz funk d’Andrea Benini revient avec un superbe cinquième album studio le 6 mai.“

FAZE MAGAZIN „10/10 Fantastisches Resultat. Album des Monats.“

THE EAR „It is possible to sum up this album in two words: simply mesmerizing.“

LAURENT GARNIER „Looooove Mop Mop. Will present this album on my radioshow“

OSUNLADE „beautiful art“

JEREMY SOLE „ That intersection between classy and nasty“

TIM LOVE LEE „Frickin wonderful“

WICKED JAZZ SOUNDS „a wonderful album“

URGENT FM „grooo-vy. Pure instant bliss“

DJ NOVA – NOVA PLANET RADIOSHOW „Don’t sleep, this is one of the best jazz and beyond album of the year.“

CIUT 89.5 FM CANADA „Polyrhythmic perfection!“

RADIO HELSINKI „ I have a feeling this will be five stars for everyone who gives it a chance“

STOMPRADIO LONDON „ my ears have now had there maintenance and are reborn. This is fantastic“

IRMA RECORDS „ Surely the most creative album from Mop Mop so far. There some amazing cuts such as Adhara, Supreme, Lunar Love or Habibi“

DR. BEST „ …to come straight to the point: a fantastic new album! An exciting journey through sound, space and time.“

RADIO FM BRATISLAVA „ Deep and soulful. Fantastic album“

RADIO EUROSTAR 101.7 FM „ i am amased about the bueauty of this new MOP MOP release. To be honest i did not expect that he will rich again the hights of isle of magic…but hear he delivers another gem of modern spiritual jazz funk for the dancefloor.“

45RPM RADIOSHOW „ Every new Mop Mop album becomes more and more awaited. And it never disappoints. I just love “Lunar Love”!

KLASSIK RADIO „ love the vibe & the sound of the album“

MIGRATIONS RADIO „ Spiritual thing. Excellent album.“

FUNKHAUS EUROPA „Love it“ / „atmospheric, eclectic, elastik… love it!“

AFROBASE / TOTALLY RADIO „love this album“

QUINCY JOINTZ „wonderful. Absolutely a must-have-album“

THE HOT BOX RADIOSHOW „interesting venture into new territories which is going to be a real grower“

BOOM SHAKA LAKA RADIO SHOW „Nice musical trip. Love it !“

RADIO X „ Nice Record & full support“

FULGEANCE „nice mood ! great discover for me“

DJ SIMBAD „love Mop Mop“

RADIO CARDIFF „ Mop mop are proving to become a musical force in their own right.Borrowing without stealing and making music that I listen to rather than play in the background“

KETCH A VIBE RADIOSHOW „ i love the spiritual feel throughout and i love my mate Annabel Lee’s contribution outstanding tunes.“

SOLA ROSA „ I love the progression of Mop Mop’s sound. Organic and unique. Cant wait to really get my head in to this album“

A few minutes before the dawn, there is an instant where a soft dim light rends the horizon eastwards and the night prepares to share the heavens with the coming morning. In Italian this feeble glow is called “albore” and it also means the beginning of something.

“Albore” is a record about an initiation, a spiritual journey that drives the listener into an hypnotic and evocative world made of Yoruba polyrhythms, Middle Eastern impressions, spiritual Jazz drifts, Ethiopian groove vibes and Afrobeat-like brass sections. It is a mix of different sonic landscapes where the instruments of Volpe’s Orchestra weave a texture of voices into a sort of magical realism. These 10 compositions pay tribute to John Lurie’s late work, the spiritual Jazz of Pharoah Sanders and the ethnomusical studies of Lloyd Miller.

Written and arranged by Manuel Volpe, the album is ably supported by an excellent production team made up of Massimiliano Moccia, Andrea Scardovi, Kelly Hibbert and Volpe himself under the fine supervision of Afro-Jazz-Fusion expert Andrea Benini from Mop Mop.

credits:

Produced by Manuel Volpe
Composed, arranged and directed by Manuel Volpe
Recorded by Massimiliano Moccia and Manuel Volpe at Superbudda, Turin (Italy, Nov 2014) and MAM Recordings, Cuneo (Italy, Mar 2015)
Mixed by Andrea Scardovi at Duna Studio, Russi, Ravenna (Italy, June 2015). Mastered by Kelly Hibbert at Almachrome (USA, Sept 2015)
Production supervision by Andrea Benini

Info deutsch:

Ein paar Minuten vor der Morgendämmerung, da gibt es einen kurzen Augenblick, an dem das dämmrige Lichte den Horizont spaltet und die Nacht darauf vorbereitet, den Himmel mit dem kommenden Morgen zu teilen. In Italien nennt man dieses schwache Leuchten “Albore”, was gleichermaßen auch “der Beginn von etwas neuem” bedeutet. “Albore” ist eine Platte über den Anfang, eine spirituelle Reise, die den Hörer in eine hypnotische und bewegende Welt aus den Polyrhythmen der Yoruba, den Eindrücken des Mittleren Osten, spirituellen Jazzeinlagen, äthiopischen Groove Vibes und Afrobeat-ähnlichen Bass-Sektionen mit nimmt. Sie ist ein Mix der verschiedenen akustischen Landschaften, in denen die Instrumente von Volpe’s Orchester eine Struktur von Stimmen in eine Art von magischem Realismus weben. Diese zehn Kompositionen zollen John Luries späten Arbeiten, dem spirituellen Jazz von Pharoah Sanders und dem ethnomusikalischen Studien von Lloyd Miller Tribut. Geschrieben und arrangiert von Manuel Volpe wurde das Album unterstützt von einem exzellentem Produktionsteam, das aus Massimiliano Moccia, Andrea Scardovi, Kelly Hibbert und Volpe selbst unter der Führung von Afro-Jazz-Fusion-Experten Andrea Benini (Mop Mop) besteht. Kelly Hibbert ist der Mastering Engineer des Albums und hat bereits mit der Londoner Band „The Heliocentrics“ (Strut) und Flying Lotus (Brainfeeder) gearbeitet.

Manuel Volpe (Jahrgang 1988) ist Komponist, Produzent und Musiker aus Jesi, Italien. Seine Musikstudien startete er schon im zarten Alter von 11 Jahren. Schon früh war er fasziniert von Jazz und Weltmusik und begann ihre Sprachen mit den verschiedensten Bands und Projekten zu studieren. 2013 veröffentlichte er sein erstes Album mit dem Titel “Gloom Lies Beside Me As I Turn My Face Towards The Light” (Goatman Records / A Buzz Supreme). Das Album bekam großen Zuspruch in der italienischen Presse, besonders durch seine Inspiration von Folk und süditalienischer Musik, vor allem seine Fähigkeiten als Schreiber und Arrangeur überzeugten schon beim Debüt. 2014 entdeckte Volpe das Rhabdomantic Orchestra, ein offenes Kollektiv von Musikern aus Turin. Der Name geht auf eine alte Kunstform zurück, in der versteckte Dinge durch einfache Objekte wieder aufgefunden werden.

The debut album by the Hidden Jazz Quartett is bringing on something special. „Coming with a strong flow, and continue to grow,“ Gang Starr said in „Jazz Thing“, and that’s exactly what „Raw and Cooked“ is about. Here we have it: A group of fantastic players, a strong idea of what the music should sound like and a sense of togetherness. „Raw and Cooked“ is past, present and future combined.

„The idea of the Hidden Jazz Quartett came naturally,“ Ralf Zitzmann, mastermind of production behind the eclectic sounds of the Hidden Jazz Quartett as well as head of Agogo Records plus one of the most respected elder statesmen of the German club scene says. „One night, while our Calamari Moon club in Hannover was cooking and the DJs were spinning spicy jazz sounds I thought: It sounds so fresh and vibrant like there’s a jazz quartet hidden somewhere behind the curtain.“ Said and done, Zitzmann took the phone and rang Stephan Abel (Saxophones), Lutz “Hammond” Krajenski (Hammond, Keys), Matthias “Maze” Meusel (drums) and Olaf Casimir (bass), all well travelled as well as well known jazz musicians around the country and the Hidden Jazz Quartett was born. In comes producer Christian Decker (Fury In The Slaughterhouse), a man with the necessary skills and ears to create a boombastic jazz style.

„Raw and Cooked“ kicks off with the seductive „Luvlite“, a smooth modern R&B-meets-soul tune enlightened by the voice of Bajka (Radio Citizen, Bonobo, Dalindeo). UK modern soul legend Omar then digs deep with the ultra-cool „High Heels“, which has been out as a HJQ vinyl 7inch release in 2012 and is sold out long since. After that it is time for the quartet to swing. „The Footlocker“ is pure Camden Dingwalls Acid Jazz joy, like 1988 never happened.

„Tap On The Backdoor“ sees Greg Blackman (Featurecast, Renegades Of Jazz) get on the good foot with a straightforward soul mover before Bajka takes it back to nitty gritty with „Soulsophy“. Enter Anthony Joseph, born in Trinidad and one of the major Afro-meets-Poetry voices of our time. „Kimberley Hotel“ is a kind of Last Poets vs. Hustler’s Convention excursion translated for our times. HJQ offer a well crafted, late Sixties, early Seventies Blaxploitation sound before they go ‘Masterblaster’ jammin’ in “Nardis” and very European in the mystical instrumental „Wälzer“, which actually was their first release in 2010 on a limited edition 10“ vinyl.

Rounding up „Raw and Cooked“ is Tim Hollingsworth with an almost spoken word late night jazz standard called „Lush Life“. This could well be the theme tune for the Hidden Jazz Quartett, exemplified by the bonus versions of „Luvlite“ („Instrumental“ and the Jon Kennedy Remix). Lets not forget the Lack Of Afro version of „High Heels“, who delivers electric Boogaloo fun galore. “This album is a like a dream come true,” Ralf Zitzmann smiles. “With ‘Raw & Cooked’ nothing has been rushed. It is like with a good meal and a great wine. You have to let things loose and have them find their own way.”

There is all you need in “Raw & Cooked”: expert musicianship, an honest message of peace & love and a great spirit. Get on down with the Hidden Jazz Quartett.

This compilation features some of the great music which has been released on Agogo Records the last two years. but please also find some brandnew and exclusive songs and remixes from The Hi-Fly Orchestra, Mop Mop, Mo’Horizons, Renegades Of Jazz, Funk Busters, Hidden Jazz Quartett and Onom Agemo & The Disco Jumpers.

hope you enjoy this one !

some feedback

QUINCY JOINTZ “What a great compilation. That´s what I call jazzy and funky freestyle at its best.”
DJ JONDAL “Great selection of tracks”
FUTURERADIO UK “First Class!!!”
FREEFALL RADIO “Loving the exclusives here”
THE BOOGIE WONDERLAND SHOW “Superb album. loving it”
BAMALOVESOUL “Super groovy”
DJ SHANTISAN “After expecting another “best of” compilation I enventually ended up at this pearl with so many unreleased tracks. All time favs like Spiritual South and Christian Prommer bring in fresh sounds. I can say “Agogo Hits One” one brings the sunshine into your living rooms and clubs.”
MAKALA “Such a great compilation”
BUDAPEST FM90.3 “Keep it coming strong! Agogo is one of the strongest jazz-influenced label around, look forward to hear your new stuff. ”
DJ FERRY “very nice compilation”
RADIO X “full support”
STARPOINT RADIO “suberb compilation”
FUNKHAUS EUROPA “floating & groovy”
RADIO SUISSE “great new jazz generation with groove, soul & brazil!”

Even based on a book by John Milton “Paradise Regain’d” is the remixed version of Paradise Lost.
Starting with it’s mellifluous title track, Paradise Regain’d shows the remixing skills of some great producers around. Titeknots turns “Neverday” into a House-ish Club anthem while Jim Dunloop is
taking “Death Grip” into the Funk corner. Hot Border Special are giving the “Cannibal Royal” a special Afrofunk treatment and Cinema City / Copycat from Australia have worked out a great cinematic version of “Neverday”.
All remixes by Skeewiff, Smoove and Cadien of the Fire EP with Aspects are also included as well as some special versions of Renegades Of Jazz a.k.a. David Hanke himself; don’t miss his Blues/Gospel version of “Imperial Breed” with Greg Blackman and the Spike The Punch Mix of Hellesens with Dylan Kennaway.

Tracklisting:

01. Paradise Regain’d
02. Cannibal Royal feat. Greg Blackman (Hot Border Special
03. Death Grip feat. Chima Anya (Jim Dunloop Remix)
04. Fire feat. Aspects (Skeewiff Remix)
05. Hellesens feat. Dylan Kennaway (Ride Of The Renegades Mix)
06. Imperial Breed feat. Greg Blackman (Got The Blues Version)
07. Cannibal Royal feat. Greg Blackman (Spike The Punch Remix)
08. Fire feat. Aspects (Smoove Remix)
09. Neverday feat. Jane Kennaway (Titeknots Remix)
10. Tamerlane feat. Greg Blackman (Sonic Boogie Remix)
11. Fire feat. Aspects (Cadien Remix)
12. Death Grip feat. Anya Chima (Little Trooper Remix)
13. Neverday feat. Jane Kennaway (Cinema City Copycat’s „Westbound“ Remix)
14. Tamerlane feat. Greg Blackman (Dropshop Mirrorball Mix)
15. Tamerlane (Flute Version)
16. Tamerlane (Sonic Boogie Dub)

„Remixes Y Reworks“ is a deep scoop of Savages Y Suefo’s remix catalogue selected and handled with care by the guys themselves. The collection of 15 tracks contains only their favourites from the past years including remixes for some famous Hungarian bands/productions like Marcel, Anima Sound System, The Qualitons, or Kerekes Band. Marcel and Anima Sound System need no introduction for sure. They started their careers in the 90’s and that time they were the main underground music acts in Hungary next to Yonderboi. Both the Marcel and Anima Sound System remix are never released before in any formats just like the Savages Y Suefo version of The Qualiton’s Margit. Kerekes Band is also a well known name in the international world music scene. They won the Best World Music Album of Hungary in 2014 on the Fonogram Awards. You will find a remix of their hit “Waiting For The Sunshine” with the popular jazz singer Fábián Juli.

Beside the Hungarians there are reworks for other great international artists too. Exclusives ones for Mr. Bird and for the WDR Big Band, or already released successful versions for Kid Loco, [re:jazz], Smokey Bandits, Mo Fire, [dunkelbunt], or Watcha Clan.

There is an exclusive remix too from Danilo Venturi’s Toi Et Moi what came out on limited edition CDs only in Hungary and never ever before released as digital download. This was the duo’s first remix ever and basically the born of Savages Y Suefo.

Describing their style as „Latin Desert & Funeral Party“ music, Opez clearly go their own special way. But listen to the debut album „Dead Dance“ and you will find that this path is quite an exciting one. Set in a haunting environment of acoustic instruments and an expertly stylish production, the twelve songs recorded by duo Massi Amadori und Francesco Tappi are a journey into a twilight world of emotion and imagination.
If you take an off-road trip to the region north of Perugia and south of Firenze, west of Livorno and east of San Marino you will find a number of little recording studios. This is Italy’s heartland you pass through when you travel down from Milano towards Rome. It is exactly here where multi-instrumentalists Massi Amadori (guitars, slide guitar, percussions, ukulele, freeze sound & harmonium) and Francesco Tappi (double bass, bows, whistle) recorded „Dead Dance“. Les Paul or Django Reinhardt immediately come into mind during a first listen, even the Mississippi Delta blues sound or Billy Vaughn’s happy orchestral sound being turned completely upside down. But “Dead Dance” has its own individual melancholy, a lonely sound supervised by Italian afro-jazz-fusion expert Andrea Benini of Mop Mop, not too far away from Angelo Badalamenti’s mysterious soundscapes for David Lynch’s „Twin Peaks“ series, especially on the dark and entangling “Sanfisa”.
With additional musicians like the two percussionists and drummers Fabio Paglierani, an expert in dub who brings a echoing twist to the sultry groove of “Adriatica” and the first single and video “Carlos Primero” or Fabio “Mocambo” Tozzi who puts “Estelita”, “Diavolanza”, “Malinco” and “Libre” into an authentic Fifties environment “Dead Dance”
is a band affair. The vocals of Annalisa Bartolini (“Carlos Primero” and “Sangoda”) as well as Dimitri “Didi” Mazzs (“Malinco”) add to the complete picture. As Opez have been very strict about their acoustic appearance, the more they are happy now about the result, „Tristu“ with its folk textures followed by the near tex-mex balladry of „Corolla” are two of the many highlights on “Dead Dance”. They were cut directly to tape, no overdubs or long mixing sessions involved. This is why “Dead Dance” sounds very spiritual, almost out of the real world: „To be honest, we would love to play our music in churches. We are not your normal type of rock band, you know“, says Massi Amadori, who is the main songwriter in the duo and responsible for all compositions on the album. Although “Dead Dance” sometimes feels reminiscent of the Cowboy Junkies’ romantic Americana or Los Lobos’ truthful adaption of traditional cumbia or bolero, “we see ourselves as very Italian, very local.”
The stunning artwork and the accompanying video were created by Aimone Marziali who is also one of the producers responsible for the sonically enhanced “Balera Del Mar”, the closing tune on the album. Creating a mixture of the classic pre-Raphaelite drawings by 19th century painter Dante Gabriel Rossetti and what George Yepes did for Los Lobos on their „La Pistola Y El Corazón.“ album, Marziali is an integral part of the Opez cosmos. „Of course, the artwork is a crucial to what we want to achieve,” adds Amadori. “Our music is very visual, very sensual and emotional. It is not only about an acoustic experience but it appeals to all senses.”

Video: https://youtu.be/bsDz2lHjiDg

To shorten the wait until the release of the new Mo’Horizons album and right in time for the upcoming sunny days we bring you a big package of great new remixes of Mo’Horizons tracks and some of their own best reworks over the last years.
On CD 1 you will find exclusive and unreleased remixes of Mo’Horizons’ latest album „The Banana Soundsystem“, while on CD 2 we collected treatments by Mo’Horizons for some artists of the international club scene.
Once again the Nujazz pioneers from Hannover/Germany prove their versatility to produce high quality music for the advanced dance floor and eclectic radio stations around the world.
After selling more than 200.000 albums since they started in 1999 Ralf Droesemeyer and Mark „Foh“ Wetzlar are still one of the top production teams for modern world music. This is timeless music with a positive vibe to keep you in a good mood – not so easy these days. „But as long as we are alive we will try!“ Mo’Horizons say.

Sola Rosa’s Magnetics was chosen for “iTunes Best of 2014” R&B album and entered the album charts on #10 !
Sola Rosa’s sixth album Magnetics sees the band introduce a glorious assortment of fresh new vocalists from all over the globe. Noah Slee (NZ) released his ‘Mix Tape’ EP in 2013 to critical acclaim and has toured with many artists including renowned neo-soul artist Jill Scott; young up-and- coming singer/songwriter and Soundcloud phenomenon Jordan Rakei (AUS); BRIT School graduate Tawiah (UK) was first introduced to Spraggon via the attention of Gilles Peterson, who championed her song ‘Watch Out’ in 2007 and also named her the winner of his Worldwide Award for Best Newcomer the following year; Kevin Mark Trail (UK) features on three tracks after being recommended in the aftermath of an exceptional performance in the UK; Stones Throw Records’ singer and beatmaker Georgia Anne Muldrow (US) has been on Spraggon’s wish list ever since he heard collaborations with the likes of Eric Lau, Madlib and Sa-R, PPP and Erykah Badu; and long time best friend of both Trail and Mathieson Sharlene Hector (UK) has worked with too many artists to mention and currently sings with Basement Jaxx.
“Sola Rosa’s Magnetics is solid – a great album to have on repeat at the backyard this summer.” – Rachel Bache, NZ Herald
Sola Rosa continue to experiment and evolve, which is a true testament to their success over the years.

some nice feedback:
DJ Dusty (Jazzandmilk) “Wonderful LP”
Phil Horneman (Wicked Jazz Sounds) “Great New Album”
Ohmega Watts “The records sound, progressive tracks and solid featured vocalists on each track really hold it all together cohesively well. Not many LP’s do this in this new digital era!”
Danny Masure “Love ‘Til The Sun!'”
bamalovesoul “Yes!”
Stickybuds “Sola Rosa always quality”
Junior (Record Breakin’) “These guys have not failed me yet!”

After last year’s release of the fantastic, but a little bit underrated album „Invocation“ by Gabriele Poso we now follow up with „Electric Invocation“. 15 remix treatments by the likes of Opolopo, Mark de Clive-Lowe, Gerardo Frisina and many more !

album artwork by Elvira Girardi.

some feedback:

“Wonderful and Beautiful. This Atjazz Astro Mix really takes it there” by Bamalovesoul.com
“What a selection of remixes! Amazing amazing amazing.” by Dom Servini from Wah Wah 45s
“Such variety! Wonderful remixes!” by Junior from Record Breakin’ Music
“The Opolopo remix is great!” by Renegades Of Jazz
“Ow yes! Remixes of this gem…MdCL, Yoruba Opolop, Atjazz and Oveous are fav.” by Phil Horneman from Wicked Jazz Sounds
“Incredibly good remix album! Definitely deserves 5 out of 5 stars!” by DJ Shantisan
“wow – what a remix packages. Most of the remixes are awesome. So hard to choose the best. Right now it is the one from Opolopo.” by Quincy Jointz

Heavyweight Jazz from some of the best – and well known German Jazz artists. these 11 songs have been recorded during a three days session in April 2014.

Notes by Stephan Abel:

Ballads are always the highlight in every show for me, regardless if I am one of the musicians or one of the magnetized people in the audience. In these slow, fragile pieces where every note, every shade and each quiet moment has a meaning, an artist can tell and share a real story. It is in the ballad, where the musician communicates intuitively with his audience.
I always thought of recording an album of ballads, but believed that you need a certain amount of maturity and should not do it under the age of 50. Now the time has come. Never before there was somebody looking forward to his 50th birthday with such an excitement. To cut a long story short: It is a special thing with being mature. During the Easter holidays in April 2014 we met in Buggy Braune and Inga Rumpf’s rehearsal studios in Hamburg situated one floor above a garage, to record some of our favourite songs.
We deliberately decided against the aseptic atmosphere of a professional recording studio knowing that we would only be successful in an intimate, intensive mood rather than having a 100% separation of sound signals behind a glass wall. „We“, that means Buggy Braune, Olaf Casimir, Heinz Lichius and the wonderful Ken Norris, our special guest. Except for my long time companion Olaf these were all musicians who I knew and appreciated, but rarely had a chance to work with.
The key event with this rhythm section was a gig at the Jazzclub Hannover when we were playing an exclusive set of Miles Davis tunes. The sound of this band and their relaxed, but still highly focussed conception kept spinning in my head. I prepared myself in a very special way during the weeks before the recording, concentrating almost solely on my own sound and all its facets as well as the compositions and their interpretation. In this period there was not one technical exercise, quirky bebop phrasing or loud sound escaping my rehearsal room.
I had a clear vision installed in my head how the album should sound like. It only took a few attempts in our „studio“ and we knew: This is it! It seemed like the musicians all pulled together and knew exactly how to play this music without any need to talk about it. And, when the evening set in, we had the first „magic moment“ in which everything seemed to feel totally natural and flowing. This is when „Olhos de Gato“ and „The Peacocks“ were put to tape. For me „jazz“ and „the night“ are just one thing and I would love to publicly dispute the guy who first started a „jazz brunch“. I am so happy and really glad that we could keep up the focus and intimacy over the following two recording days!
The album opens with „Chelsea Bridge“, a composition by Billy Strayhorn which I already recorded a couple of years ago with bass player Jimmy Woode. He died shortly before the release, still tragically despite his high age. I cherish the photo of him playing his last note and smiling into the camera: „Was it any good?“ That was a big shock for me at the time and I would love to remind us of this great and warm-hearted musician with my version. Then there is the first song with Ken Norris, who picked three wonderful tunes. „Estate“ was one of my choices as well, serving as homage to the great Shirley Horn, whose version I virtually listen to every day and will continue to do so in the future! I love this kind of extremely slow bossa nova, and Heinz Lichius lays down an expert rhythm to it. „Never Let Me Go“ is a ballad I haven’t touched for years but always loved. I am very happy that Ken Norris put it back into my memory. Buggy Braune adds one of his ingenious piano intros to this tune and sets
the mood straight away. „Everything Happens To Me“ is the only occasionally uptempo track on the album, we had a lot of fun recording it. Dear Ken, I will never listen to this tune like I did before, and you know why…
Carla Bley’s composition „Olhos de Gato“ has been with me my whole lifetime. This tune already was a highlight in the set of my very first band. Olaf Casimir played bass (at the tender age of 17) even then. He now adds a wonderful solo, which hopefully lifts his spirits as his instrument was stolen a few weeks after the sessions during a concert tour. „Spring Is Here“ is a composition I first learned to love being on stage with Dr. Lonnie Smith. He had a tremendous time while I struggled through this work, quite unprepared for its complex chords. Now, at last, I wanted to play it properly!
I am really happy that this collection has been titled after a song I did not intend to include in the first place and which I did not play instrumentally before. „The Windmills Of Your Mind“ was added to our set spontaneously, because we really wanted to have a „chanson“ in our repertoire. After the first few bars from Buggy and Olaf it was obvious that this was going to be a fascinating take, and another one of those „magic moments.” The album closes with a not too serious ballad. For „The Party Is Over“ I thought of one of those numerous Frank Sinatra copyists who, with a loosely knot tie, a good dose of self-pity and a glass of whiskey in one hand singing about their own aging…!
The album ended up exactly how I wanted it to be. We had four wonderful days in Hamburg, which I will definitely never forget. I want to thank all the musicians and our sound engineer Ingo Schmidt that they all participated in the project with such inspiration and intensity. A very special thanks goes out to Ken Norris with his distinctive, soulful voice refining the album in a very special way.
I am very fortunate that the photographer Irène Zandel was present in the studio during the whole production and captured the mood of the sessions in her impressively sensitive photos. Many thanks, Irène. I would publish a whole book with your pictures, if I only could.
A similarly big thanks goes out to Andreas Barkhoff, who put a lot of love and patience in a video shot over the four days, which I am looking so much forward to. Plus – last but not least – a massive thank you to Ralf Zitzmann from Agogo Records, without whom this album never would have happened!

Notes for “The Windmills Of Your Mind” by Mike Hennessey

This double album by the well-integrated Stephan Abel Quintet is a stimulating example of the true art of jazz improvisation. It is not just a question of playing phrases that fit the chord sequence. You can create lines which are true to the chord sequence, but which have no connection with the mood of the original.
The true art of jazz improvisation is a matter of playing improvised lines which are compatible with the spirit and mood of the original melody.
With an impressive combination of standards written by Billy Strayhorn, Rodgers & Hart, Michel Legrand, Jule Styne and Bruno Martino and inspired originals by Carla Bley, Mal Waldron and Jimmy Rowles – Stephan impressively demonstrates his mastery of the true art.

Berlin-based quintet Onom Agemo & the Disco Jumpers follow up their 7″ single „2 Feet / Kibili „ with an album of poly-rhythmic afro grooves, sax and psyched-out synths.
The group has developed a unique groove and style of playing, constructing a collection of eight songs, that throws together tight and funky influences from Morocco and Ethiopia with crunchy analogue synths, spacey organs and effects, and fluid sax and flute lines for a sound that’s all their own.

This LP is a collection of compositions by travelling sax man Johannes Schleiermacher, inspired by his journeys through the world. The band even travelled to Morocco for playing and recording with a quartet of percussionists/ singers in the Issawa tradition, a Sufi Trance Brotherhood in central Morocco.

Onom Agemo and the Disco Jumpers have been playing together for years, and it shows. Taking Schleiermacher’s compositions, the group rehearse the songs and play them live to finalize the arrangement before recording the tracks to different 4-track tape machines, mostly at drummer Bernd Oezsevim’s rehearsal space. Take the track „Cool Runnings“ for example: locked in the groove, the intertwined sax and synth melody moves up and down the Anichihoye scale. Not to be confused with the comedy of the same title, the track is named after a bar in Berlin-Friedrichshain, where friends of the band put on their night Tropical Timewarp.

This interlocking of groove and melody is a signature element, and also inspired the title of the album. Cranes and Carpets alludes to changing patterns, and how the parts of a wider whole can work together in synchronicity. Combine an almost telepathic group intuition with the fact that Schleiermacher also engineered and produced the record, and the pieces start to add up to why the Disco Jumpers sound like they do.

It’s an authentic mix of North African rhythms and modes, live jazz musicianship and analogue synths that’s reminiscent of electronic African pioneers like William Onyeabor and Manu Dibango as much as modern ensembles like The Heliocentrics. While the album sounds like it could have been discovered on a dusty old tape down a Marrakesh marketplace, it has a modern twist in the neat craftsmanship and tight arrangements that ensures a blend of styles that couldn’t be anyone else.

The Band:

Johannes Schleiermacher – woodwinds, synth, perc
Bernd Oezsevim – drums
Kalle Zeier – guitar
Jörg Hochapfel – synth
Kalle Enkelmann – bass

With his second album „Paradise Lost“, Renegades Of Jazz opens the doors to a new personal und musical perspective. „I’ve been to paradise and then lost it,“ says David Hanke, head of ROJ, about his new collection of songs. „I guess I can speak for many others who have been thrown out of their personal paradise.“

The inspiration for the twelve tracks on „Paradise Lost“ goes way back into literary history. „I bought a 19th century edition of John Milton’s epic poem and was thrilled by the story of fallen angels, death, the evil and the devil. They have Gustave Doré’s illustrations, and I was totally entangled by their sheer presence. That’s how I wanted the album to sound like: Dark, mysterious and unpredictable.“ For David Hanke „Paradise Lost” is also a kind of coming home. He spent his childhood growing up in Tanzania/Africa surrounded by native African music. When his family returned to Germany, he pursued this interest by listening to his parents’ record collection. In the 1990s Hanke got infected by the Northwest-Rock explosion, which ruled his teenage years. Then he discovered the world of sampling and fell in love with Funk & Soul. After teaming up with Deli-Kutt as Mash & Munkee he started Renegades Of Jazz in late 2009, finding inspiration in his grandmother’s vintage jazz records. His debut album “Hip To The Jive”, along with several singles and EPs, was released in 2011 on Smoove’s Wass label in the UK. In 2013 ROJ took over the DJ residency in Hamburg’s legendary Mojo Club. The music of “Paradise Lost” has been there all the time, somewhere, “but now, at last, I had the chance to record and release it.”

„Paradise Lost“ kicks off with „Haunting The North“ a sinister instrumental trip full of disturbing and haunting sounds. „The album was mostly recorded during dark winter nights. The process was actually a lot of fun, even if it may not sound like this. When you get the creeps during your own recordings, there is something special going on for sure,“ Hanke remembers. When “Paradise Lost” is melting into the futuristic, orchestral title track it is obvious that we are on an intense and captivating journey, joined by an impressive list of guest vocalists going through a whirlwind of emotions. „Flemish Cap“, for a start, features the voice of Karin Ploog. „Karin is amazing,“ Hanke explains. „She is a respected vocal teacher, won several awards for her work in opera and theatre, travelled the world and is truly inspiring.“ Having Jane Kennaway as the second guest vocalist on „Paradise Lost” is a little bit of a dream come true. „She has this fantastic raw voice and incredible dynamics. Jane was on the rise to being a UK pop star in the 80s, but was stuck in frustrating major company politics. I am so happy to have her here.“ The lyrics of „Neverday“ were written by Hanke himself and pay homage to the long DJ nights ROJ play around Europe „which you sometimes wish should never end.“ The appearance of Jane Kennaway’s son Dylan on „Hellesnes“ proves that “Paradise Lost” is actually a family affair.

„Aspects are rappers in the true sense of the word and they also are perfectionists.“ To have the Bristol gang in his family of collaborators for „Paradise Lost“ makes ROJ extremely pleased, „Fire“ is also the first single from the album. Nigerian born Chima Anya, aka The Doctor, is a fresh face on the British rap scene. „It is great to have these powerful HipHop voices on the album, they bring in a kind of immediacy and urban roughness,“ Hanke smiles. Then there’s Greg Blackman, a multi-skilled talent who worked with DJ Vadim and Mr. Bird. „He is dark and full of soul at the same time, which is a pretty hard thing to achieve. I love the facets in his voice and I never got boring while putting his words to music during the long and often tiring procedure of production.“

So here we go. Being far more than a coming of age, a mature set of work and simply a smart production, “Paradise Of Lost” is a rare treat on the German electronic music scene. The album travels way beyond the genre’s limits. It is as much club music as it is made for the cinema, as much suitable for a private listening experience as for a large audience on a theatre stage. “Paradise Lost” is a gift to the listener, offering space for new emotions with every listen.

Da Lata reinvent with ‘Refab’, their new album and launch at London Jazz Festival with Celtic Connections show just added. More than twenty years recording, performing and DJing and Da Lata’s international fraternity continues to expand as they get set to release ‘Refab’ on November 24 through Agogo Records

The 13 track album features a combination of re-imagined versions of tracks from their studio album ‘Fabiola’ from the likes of Drumagick & Prophets of the South, new material with contributions from Knytro, Jason Yarde and Vanessa Freeman plus a specially commissioned Da Lata remix of Angolan singer Wyza.
Led by DJ Patrick Forge and Chris Franck (Smoke City/Zeep), Da Lata have consistently questioned the conventional map of Brazilian, Latin & African music, remoulding traditional styles with a pioneering aesthetic and energy guided by club culture and their unique take on ‘world’ music.
Since the late 90s and the unprecedented success of Chris Franck’s Brazil tinged trip hop outfit Smoke City (Underwater Love), the production duo have always been running parallels with the underground exchanging remixes and production work with some top producers including Sly and Robbie, Seiji, Femi Kuti, Charles Webster, Shuya Okino, Baaba Maal, Bebel Gilberto and Ernest Ranglin.
Chris Franck enthuses over the concept of reinvention and remixing “This album extends our vision, our concept. We’ve handpicked these remixers, they’re all connected to the ethos. Da Lata is a global project, in its organic and electronic forms’.
Special guests, musicians and remixers invited to partake include South London rapper Knytro, Indian Bollywood flautist Naveen Kumar, Croatian production duo Eddy & Dus, Brazil D & B producers Drumagick & Tranquilo Soundz, South African/Scottish house unit Prophets of the South and Dutch beatmeister Pushin Wood.
Many of the original Da Lata family feature including vocalists Jandira Silva & Vanessa Freeman, Senegalese kora player Diabel Cissokho, former Smoke City co-collaborator Marc Brown, engineer and house music supremo Toni Economides and of course the Da Lata house band featuring Mike Patto, Ernie McKone, Finn Peters, Jason Yarde, Tristan Banks, Davide Giovannini and Carl Smith.

Organic and live
Da Lata’s studio album ‘Fabiola’ was released in October 2013 after a 10 year hiatus. The band, led by Brazilian songstress Jandira Silva, is back on blistering live form and have re-established their reputation for blowing audiences away – last year the Lukas Awards awarded them best Brazilian act. New shows have been announced as part of London Jazz Festival and Celtic Connections in Glasgow. Fabiola features a slew of guests including Mayra Andrade, Luisa Maita, Graveola, Diabel Cissokho and Finn Peters.

Two paths are meant to cross when the time is right !

Myra Maud, a parisian singer with roots in the Caribbean & Madagascar and Lutz “Hammond” Krajenski, keyboardist and composer/arranger from Hanover (not quite the Caribbean) have met a bit more than a year ago. The story of SALT begins…

The band combines a unique blend of jazz, afro-caribbean music and elements originating from the indian ocean music sung in french, creole and english. What sets this group apart is their charming appeal, which can range all the way from the casual listener to the jazz lover.

SALT- A music between shores and jazz club atmospheres, between metropolises and lonely islands.

MyraMaud – voc, keys
Lutz Krajenski – keys, bv

the band:

Philipp Kacza – tp, flgh
Stephan Abel – sax, fl
Olaf Casimir – b
Nene Vasquez – perc
Simon Gattringer – dr

Info English:

Munich’s JALLA CLUB has been going on for ten consecutive years now.

World music is what connected DJs Rupen Gehrke and Dimitri Voulgarakis when they thought about putting on a smart party in an extraordinary location at Bavaria’s capital – the National Museum of Ethnology. Both of them need music as a daily diet and after the first two parties their enthusiastic audience couldn’t wait for the next one to happen. Munich was getting into their thing: Crossing cultural boundaries and bridging generations while having a lot of fun along the way was a new thing in a town used to segregated club life and stylistic boredom.

JALLA WORLDMUSIC CLUB provides a special brew of world music and clubbing far beyond mainstream party life. The audience is colourful in every respect, people get down to clubby Ethno sounds, kicking Balkan beats, Greek grooves, cool Arabian pop, Afro house and original Latin, with some up to date club sounds, HipHop and Cumbia thrown in for good measure. The musical taste and immediacy of JALLA’s DJs is a sure-shot concept aiming straight for the dance floor.

Wladimir Kaminer, author and DJ of the renowned “Russendisko” is a regular guest: „I am a party guy since way back when, it’s an essential part of my life. Most nights are dark, loud and soon to be forgotten. It’s the highlights which count. I remember most JALLAClub nights, though – and there quite a few! They are innovative, intelligent and sparkle with an understanding of global culture. They could be the perfect road for mankind, not leading from war to war but from party to party, while staying in the collective consciousness.”

Info German:

Seit 10 Jahren gibt es den JallaClub in Bayerns Hauptstadt.
Weltmusik war der gemeinsame Nenner der beiden DJs Rupen Gehrke und Dimitri Voulgarakis, als sie die Idee entwickelten, eine Party in einer besonderen Location, nämlich dem Staatlichen Museum für Völkerkunde München, zu veranstalten. Die beiden, für die Musik und Tanzen „Lebensmittel” sind, konnten sich nach den ersten beiden Veranstaltungen vor dem begeisterten Publikum kaum retten. München hatte entdeckt, dass es auch anders geht: kultur- und generationsübergreifend Spaß miteinander zu haben und sich kennenzulernen, statt sich – wie nicht nur für München üblich – voneinander abzugrenzen und die Mauern hoch zu ziehen.
Fernab aller konventionellen Party-Konzepte bietet der JALLA WORLDMUSIC CLUB seitdem die besondere Mischung von Weltmusik und Clubkultur: Die in jeder Beziehung bunten Gäste tanzen zu Ethnoklängen mit Clubcharakter: treibende Balkan-Beats, griechische Pop-Perlen, ausgewählter Arabic-Pop, Afrohouse und grooviger Latin, gepaart mit zeitgenössischem Clubsound, HipHop und Cumbia. Die Musikauswahl und die Präsenz der der Jalla-DJs bringt regelmäßig die Dancefloors zum Kochen.
Wladimir Kaminer, Schriftsteller und DJ der Russendisko und gerngesehener Gast beim JallaClub, schreibt:
„Seit ich denken kann, wenn nicht sogar noch länger, wird mein Lebensweg von Partys begleitet.Die meisten Tanzabende sind nur laut und dunkel, sie werden schnell vergessen. Nur die Höhepunkte bleiben. An alle Partys vom JallaClub (und ich war bei etlichen dabei) kann ich mich gut erinnern. Sie sind einfallsreich, intelligent und völkerverständigend. Sie zeigen den wahren Weg für die Entwicklung der Menschheit, nicht von Krieg zu Krieg sondern von Party zu Party, an die man sich später gut erinnern kann.”

Tracklisting :

01. Nomad Soundsystem „Mima“ (Don Krutscho Remix Featuring Don Cali)
02. Ahilea „Spiritus Tango“
03. Shazalakazoo „Baklava Lover“ featuring Killo Killo
04. Rotfront „B-Style“
05. Django 3000 „Heidi“ (Jalla Club Remix)
06. Kottarashky & The Rain Dogs „Demoni“
07. Florian Zack „Si Tu Te Alejas“
08. La Caravane Passe „Tás la Touche Manouche feat. Sanseverino & Stochelo“
09. Amsterdam Klezmer Band „Chassid In Amsterdam“
10. Polkaholix „Anna Lassmichrein Lassmichraus“
11. Kaligola Disco Bazar „Porn Corn“
12. DJ Click „Tziganie“
13. Savages y Suefo „Our World Our Style“
14. Superpendejos „Ya Sta Qi“
15. Rainer von Vielen „Niedermauern“

“Invocation is an artistic need, is a fresh new chapter in the evolution of my music. In this album I tried to abandoned fears and expectations because, even if we don’t realise it, they can badly affect our creativity and the purity of our compositions. Free from these limitations, the music can flow without filters, barriers or preconceptions and, most importantly, is not limited by market diktats. It’s music just for the music.

Invocation is my third solo album, entirely produced, composed, performed, arranged, and sung by myself. For the first time I decided to play and record all instruments, without the support from the band that has accompanied me on my journey so far, to expresses completely and deeply my musical vision.

Every and each instrument was played like a mantra, a willful sound that allows to connect with our innermost soul, a secret door to discover our hidden self.
The whole album has been recording between my home town Lecce in the south of Italy during august and september 2012 and in Berlin during october and december of the same year. Of course the German capital has deeply influenced my writing and appoaching to the new project. In Berlin the people are much more free to express themselves, this energy was exactly what my record needed.

Personal words from Gabriele Poso about „Invocation“:

During the recording session of this album I was reading a book , “The Daily Practice Of Painting” by Gerhard Richter, a personal present from a special friend. In that particular moment of my life, this book gave me a real explanation of my musical vision, deeply inspired my creativity and helped me to focus on going into myself. In this book I found a phrase, or should I say, a phrase found me, that really represents the essence of this album with all my feelings, emotions and fears in my ongoing journey:

“To believe, one must have lost God; to paint, one must have lost art.”
Gerhard Richter

And I have lost music.”

Gabriele Poso.

Do you remember when sometimes only a few vinyl white labels existed of a monster tune? You couldn’t get hold of them in your record shop and there was no world wide net to download it. Then the digital age took over and it became easy to exchange cool sounds. Everybody could edit everything, it got very boring and the days of the remix seemed to be over. Now Fab Samperi comes along with “Power Bossa Remixed”, the remix version of his debut album “Power Bossa”. Sicily’s most prolific producer presents a breathless mixture Rhythm & Blues, Latin, Drum’n’Bass, HipHop and Soul rarely heard since the glory days of the rare vinyl white label and brings the fun back into the remix culture.

For Fab Samperi it was a natural choice not stick to just one style. „I grew up surrounded by music. While my father was a jazz lover, my older brother Rob was the one who introduced me to a wide array of genres since i was little. Funk, Rock’n’Roll, Acid Jazz, HipHop, this is what you would find in his record collection. When I was about eight he was one of the first and most respected DJs in southern Italy. Rob was also a drummer and he taught me how to play when I was 10.“ Musical education didn’t stop here for Fab Samperi. „At music school I learned how to read and write music. I studied the flute for five years before I was getting more and more into Rock music. So I bought an electric guitar and started my own band, later I taught myself to play piano.“ “Power Bossa Remixed” starts with “Listen Up”, speeded up by forward thinking and globe travelling Canadian DJ Stickybuds. “I’ve been working with him for some time now,” says Samperi. “We were checking edits for our live sets. They are definitely a big part of the fun. When you’re DJing you definitely want to have fun. You gotta get into it, you know, to connect to the crowd. But at the same time you’re the DJ and your job is to bring the good music to the party, and most importantly, the hype! So I am really happy that Stickybuds and me have an official release and it perfectly kicks off this album.” Mo’ Horizons add some Brazilian Drum’n’Bass beats to “Stand Back”, transforming the tune in something new. The result is astounding. “We actually met a few times in Hannover, Catania and shared the same stage in Groningen. We also share the same feelings about music and are friends since their debut came out.” Skeewiff, a pioneer in his field, keeps the ball rolling with a dancefloor jazz version of “Stand Back”: “I love his remixes, he has an unmistakable style. And they are always bestsellers!” Bringing in Northern English funk & soul institution Smoove (from Smoove & Turrell) with musicians Andy Champion and Mike Porter felt naturally for Fab Samperi and came really easy: “We played at the jazz festival in Groningen and spent the next day together, but I’ve been knowing him through the internet for many years now. These guys are so real, funny and down to earth. Besides, I’m a big fan we just had to exchange mixes.”
“With CMC & Silenta I share the same love for Big Beat and Soul music. I still remember we had a nice chat about music and philosophy when they were in Catania. They are top blokes! Sly Players is Slim of the Good Groove label himself, he was one first people who released my tunes. Ursula 1000 is always one of my favourite choices when it comes down to remixes,” Fab Samperi recalls about the other contributors. Jean-Marc Preisler aka JFB, meanwhile, is a DMC champion and celebrated remix artist. Adding spices to „Everyman“ featuring the mighty John Turrell is beat expert Timewarp Inc from Greece, as is Basement Freaks who recently moved to Hamburg/Germany, another sure-shot candidate for „Power Bossa Remixed“. „We played the Ghetto Funk stage at the Sunrise Festival in the UK. George is such a great and honest guy, we simply had to arrange mixes for each other.“ DJ Love from Dallas/USA makes a welcome appearance and describes the essence of a perfect remix scenario in his own words. „I am a true-school hip-hop head and DJ who absolutely loves breaks, electronic and just good music. Plain and simple.“ A Fab Samperi remix album would never be a complete without The Captain. „Oh yes, The Captain! A friend of mine and me, we have this special slang. When a person is really cool and stylish in what he does, this guy is a Captain for us. So when I started doing remixes, my friend liked them so much, suddenly I was The Captain,“ Fab Samperi explains. “Some people say that I invented a new style called ‘Power Bossa’, a blend of Latin, HipHop, Funk and Swing. Of course it is nice to get that kind of credit, but I obviously don’t take it too seriously. As you know, there’s no such thing as a single person making a new musical genre. Every style, old or new, builds on the past.” With “Power Bossa Remixed”, Fab Samperi shows his respect for this past and its musical innovators – and, being The Captain, he does it in style!”

‘Fabiola’ started taking shape in 2010 after Patrick Forge returned to London from living in Japan. He met up with Chris Franck and they took the first tentative steps towards making a new record. Drawing together a worldwide family of collaborators both old and new, they embarked upon a new era of Da Lata. ‘Fabiola’ their first tentative steps towards writing new material. Drawing together a worldwide family of collaborators both old and new, they embarked upon a “new era” of Da Lata. ‘Fabiola’ their first album in ten years, features a host of talent including singer and guitarist Luiz Gabriel Lopes from tropicalia band Graveola (Brazil), Mayra Andrade (Cape Verde), Miguel Atwood Ferguson (USA), spoken word and rap from Philly’s finest – Rich Medina (USA) Marcelo Janeci (Brazil) Luisa Maita (Brazil), Fabricio FBC (Brazil), Sacha Gabriel (Canada), Jason Yarde (UK), Finn Peters (UK) and Diabel Cissokho (Mali) who have all helped craft a record with a raw and live approach fusing Afro-Brazilian influences with a dance-floor sensibility.

The big question is, can their album be categorised as solely ‘World Music?’ Or has the world become too small a place for such divisions? Ultimately, it’s the melting pot of London that really lies at the heart of ‘Fabiola’, a city where cultures and taste continually collide. ‘Fabiola’ is not bound by any set of rules, for all its authenticity in the musicianship and grooves, the tunes themselves seek out new territory beyond glib categorisation. The new album is characterised by Da Lata’s new “organic edge”, dispensing with programming and electronic production, ‘Fabiola’s’ emphasis is definitely on the “real” in every sense. Written exclusively by Chris Franck and the various collaborators; Franck, Forge and super engineer Toni Econimides are the team that have crafted ‘Fabiola’ into Da Lata’s most mature and accomplished album yet.

In essence it’s been 20 years since Franck and Forge first came together and began experimenting and redefining Brazilian music. The duo have had major international success both in bands (Smoke City, Zeep and Da Lata) and for Patrick as a respected DJ who was a pioneer for Brazilian music with UK station Kiss FM in the early 90s.

Famed for melding elements of Brazilian and African styles with everything from folk, rock and psychedelia to spoken word, soul and dub, they’ve made a permanent mark in their respective scenes, bringing down the divide between ‘world’ and ‘electronic’ music – both can be charged with popularizing Brazilian music on an international stage.

Over the course of their 20 year careers they have worked alongside and collaborated with Palm Pictures label mates Femi Kuti, Sly and Robbie, Ernest Ranglin, Baaba Maal, and Bebel Gilberto. They’ve played some of the biggest stages around the world including Roskillde, Coachella, Glastonbury, North Sea Jazz, Womad and Summer Stage New York. Additionally during the 2012 Olympics, while the album was still in progress, Da Lata came together with a new line-up to perform at Gilles Peterson’s and Patrick’s Another Sunday Afternoon At Dingwalls and the Casa Brasil sessions at Somerset House to high praise.

With a mighty cast of remixers set to re-interpret ‘Fabiola’ and their first single ‘Um Amor A Mais’, a rugged organic afro-electro number set for a late summer release, Da Lata are about to start a new chapter in their memorable story. 20 years of Afro-Brazilian adventure and its definitely not over yet…

After the success of Get It Together and its accompanying remix album, Sola Rosa are ready to release their fifth studio album – another record jammed full of thick bass lines, deft musicianship and tight production.
Written over the past three New Zealand summers and drawing together a host of familiar names, plus fresh faces to boot, Sola Rosa’s new album Low and Behold, High and Beyond is a sonic tonic for anyone interested in where hip hop beats, nu-soul and funk converge.

Moving away from some of the Latin and reggae influences which have been a trademark of earlier albums, Andrew Spraggon has navigated his all-star cast in a slightly new direction; producing an album underpinned by his appreciation of classic hip hop and indulging his interest in nu-soul.

Low and Behold, High and Beyond features a wealth of vocal talent, including long-time UK collaborator Spikey Tee, who has worked with the likes of Roots Manuva, Jah Wobble and Morcheeba to name a few; US/UK singer Olivier Daysoul, who is a frequent collaborator with Hudson Mohawke, Oddisee and Onra; L.A. Mitchell, regular vocalist for Isaac Aesili and Fly My Pretties; and fellow New Zealander and Harbour City Electric singer, Ned Worboys.
The album was mixed by Yaron Fuchs, whose expertise behind the boards has seen him work with artists such as Talib Kweili, Public Enemy and Kings of Leon, while mastering was done by Ricardo Gutierrez (Justin Timberlake, Just Blaze).

Songs from the album have already been receiving support from the likes of Jeremy Sole and Anthony Valadez on influential L.A. radio station KCRW, and new material  played out during Sola Rosa’s North American tour in July has been met with a rapturous reception from crowds.

Low and Behold, High and Beyond is another brilliant musical exploration from Spraggon. It proves that despite over a decade producing music, Sola Rosa is still making tunes as fresh and compelling as ever.

Review from HHV:

»Groove« ist eigentlich eine Vokabel, die man mittlerweile nur noch aus den Mündern provinzieller Musiklehrer und biederer Werbeagentur-Fuzzis hört, bzw. im Zusammenhang mit urbaner Musik mindestens als leicht verstörend empfindet. Doch was die neuseeländische Formation Sola Rosa auf »Low And Behold, High And Beyond« an Klangfiguren fabrizieren, schmeißt einem diesen leidlichen Begriff von der Startsekunde an im Viervierteltakt ins Gesicht. Groove, Groove, Groove – es gibt kein Entrinnen! Andrew Spraggon, Mastermind dieses famosen Projekts, fröhnt auf den elf Songs seiner Liebe für glockenhelle Stimmen und schnörkelose HipHop-Beats. War das 2011er »Get It Together« noch stark von Nuyorican Music und Reggae durchzogen, nimmt das fünfte Album die P-Funk- und Disco-Aspekte von Sola Rosas Einflüssen verstärkt in die Makroskope. »Promise«, ein rhythmisierter Fuzz-Synth-Organismus, eröffnet hier nur eine ohrwurmende Genre-Hopping-Sause, die sich dem Hörfluss überlässt wie Papierschiffchen dem Waschbeckenstrudel. »Spinning Top« acid-jazzt, »Rise (The Maschine)« dancehalllt, »Real Life« J.Dilla’t wie sau und »Wiggle« ist vermutlich das beste Prince-Stück aus 2013, das nicht von Prince stammt. Zahlreiche Gastsänger wie die Rucksackrapper-Gesangs-Spezialisten Oliver Daysoul und Miles Bonny oder die gleich dreimal vertretene L.A. Mitchell geben dieser kohärent-flüssigen Funk-Hommage ausreichend Variation, ohne Beliebigkeit zu provozieren. »Low And Behold, High And Beyond« ist eine eklektische Choreografie, die alles zusammentrommelt und synthetisiert, was zwischen 1973 und 2013 mal etwas von Beats gehört hat – und damit ganz nebenbei das Wort »Groove« wieder salonfähig macht.

„Although this is already our third album, recording it felt like something really fresh.“ The Hi-Fly Orchestra are excited when they talk about their new long-player „Get Ready“. They have all rights to do so, with 12 original tracks covering a wide range from funk, brazil, soul and jazz, always in view of the groove: „We are no scientists, we are not on a mission. We are here to make you dance.“

Florian Riedl, one of the two main songwriters in the Hi-Fly Orchestra, has a story to tell about „Get Ready“: „We have always been a real band, right from the start in 2005. We love vintage recording techniques, all our gear crammed in one room and getting the music on tape in a jam session situation.“ The opening chords of „Uncle Green“ already prove the point.

“Get Ready” is a journey in style. Think of Lonnie Smith’s immediacy and rhythmic urgency circa „Move Your Hands“, the casual spirituality of Horace Silver with a hint of Lee Dorsey’s style of turning rhythm & blues into soul, even Vince Guaraldi’s versatile, comforting jazz sound is somewhere in “Get Ready”.

„’Get Ready’ is all about the music we love. Take the title track, for example“, Jerker Kluge, second half in Hi-Fly’s songwriting team, says. „It has that certain New Orleans feeling. The band is going loose on the rhythm, while Karl Frierson’s lyrics have a conscious, social dimension to them.“ Speaking of lyrics and Frierson’s appearance (widely known from his success with De-Phazz), Florian Riedl is particularly proud of their guest vocalists. Paula Morelenbaum, wife of Brazilian producer and musician legend Jaques Morelenbaum appears on „Sambinha“: „The little samba, as we call it, is our homage to Brazilian music. It is made for dancing. So it is kind of our motto.” Same with „Jequibau“, a showcase for the competent brass supplied by Florian Riedl’s altosax and Johannes Herrlich’s trombone. „I Got Hope“, on the other hand, is a down-to-earth affair of a groove, featuring Julia Fehenberger, a well-known face in the lively jazz scene of Hi-Fly Orchestra’s hometown Munich, moving in the right direction with the help of Chris Gall’s piano. „Brother Sun Sister Moon“ and the cool flute excursion „Sweet And Busy“ takes us into classic dancefloor jazz territory. It’s all about smooth moves here, Alexander Krampe’s soothing voice will make you get down to the beat.

First and foremost, though, The Hi-Fly Orchestra is a tried and tested, tight live unit. Following the release of two acclaimed albums – „Samboogaloo“ (2007) and „Mambo Atomico“ (2008) released on Tramp Records and a number of 7inch vinyls on renowned labels like Record Kicks or Ajabu! – the band toured extensively around Europe visiting Italy, Hungary, Belgium, Sweden und even Estonia along the way. While being serious about what they do, the fun factor is never far away: “’Nerd’s Dancefloor’ looks at club culture with a smile. It’s about us really, especially Jerker and me, doing weird moves on the floor. Not really what you could call a lesson in cool,“ Florian Riedl admits. „But it has this tricky 5/4 bar which makes it a special treat.“ Right on: The expert rhythm section of Jerker Kluge on double-bass and Hajo von Hadeln on drums knows about a smart groove. Having experienced sound experts like Jan “Mastermix” Krause (Beanfield, Poets Of Rhythm) on the controls and Willy Löster (LaBrassBanda, Trikont) in the mix makes “Get Ready” authentic, enjoyable and very international.

With “Get Ready” the Hi-Fly Orchestra is coming home. They know what they do, where they come from and where they want to go. “So please don’t think of us a pseudo-hip, young newcomer jazz band,” Florian Riedl asks, “we are here to stay.” Don’t worry guys, with “Get Ready” the Hi-Fly Orchestra will not be misunderstood. Please meet a bunch of real musicians from the real world, spreading a real message …

Anyone familiar with Mop Mop will already know that their refined style has already lend them a unique place somewhere between the worlds of jazz, funk, latin and the Italian Postmodern style allowed the band to achieve the International film business as part of Woody Allen’s ‘To Rome With Love’ movie soundtrack. But with this latest LP ‘Isle Of Magic’, Mop Mop digs even deeper to bring us one of their most engaging and organic records yet. Mop Mop’s fourth studio album has come together over the course of a couple of years where producer Andrea Benini has been searching for new directions with the band.

Collaborations in the album include Funk legend Fred Wesley, Trinidad-born poet/singer Anthony Joseph and Finnish-Egyptian vocalist Sara Sayed. Over fifteen musicians were involved during the production of the album including Andrea Benini’s co-arranger Alex Trebo on piano, Pasquale Mirra on vibraphone and marimba, Guglielmo Pagnozzi on clarinette and flute, Johannes Schleiermacher (Bajka, Radio Citizen, Woima Collective) on baritone sax, Lorenzo Ternelli and Salvatore Lauriola on bass and Danilo Mineo on percussions – just to name a few.

‘Isle Of Magic’ contains 13 tracks of pure Voodoo Jazz, Caribbean flavours, Afro-Funk, Exotic rhythms and Soul music. The album has been recorded between Germany and Italy with the use of vintage analog equipment to achieve a sound with all the “warm” qualities of vintage analog tape recordings; sessions have been recorded during the period March/August 2011. Isle Of Magic is an imaginary land populated by musicians who spend their time fishing, cooking, playing and practicing Voodoo rites at night. The whole album represents the soundtrack of this imaginary life.

album of the week at Funkhaus Europa, süpertünes, Mixtape Show, Free FM & hot rotation on Radio Eins, FM 4 and many more…

After two succesful EPs and a big dose of remixes it’s time to release the debut album of Savages y Suefo ! The two members of Savages Y Suefo came from the same eclectic music scene of Budapest. They play downtempo, breaks, jazz, funk, hip-hop, dub, electro swing and all kinds of multikulti-folk in their dj sets and they incorporate the same variety in their own music as well.

Savages released his solo debut album (Five Finger Discount) in 2008 via Chameleon Records. In the same year he met Suefo (also a member of Vono Box) and they started working together on tracks and remixes. Since then they did remixes for !DelaDap, [dunkelbunt], Max Pashm, Rube, Kid Loco, [re:jazz], or Danilo Venturi to name a few. Their first EP came out in 2010 at UrbanWorld Records. In the meantime many of their tunes came out on compilations like Global Bass (UrbanWorld), Electro Swing Fever (Wagram), The Spirit Of Electro Swing (Wagram), Electro Swing Revolution (Lola’s World), or Sun Dub vol.2 (Poets Club).

The new single of the duo came out at Agogo Records in September 2012 and now their debut album is also here. This album is a colourful, emotional trip inspired by bands like United Future Organization, Up, Bustle & Out, Karminsky Experience, or Thievery Corporation. The two dj / producer get some help from their musician and singer fellaz like the bouncing, always happy MC Guacho in the songs “Our World Our Style” and “En La Orilla Del Danuvio”. He came to Hungary from Urugay and become one of the most active figures of the Budapest nightlife as vocalist of bands like Rojo Vivo and Anselmo Crew. Judy Jay who sings in “Ballroom Breakers” released her debut album in last year. She’s also well known as a guest-vocalist and already worked together with bands like Realistic Crew, Casio Samples, or Zagar. Polnauer Flóra who sings in “Or Ve Hoshech” was a member of the bands Planet 55, Beat Dis, Zuboly, or her main band the klezmer-jazz-hiphop group called Hagesher. She moved to Berlin from Budapest in the last year and she works with different jazz bands there. Maszkura who plays on accordion in “Tequila Man” and “An-Nil Al-Azraq” came from Transylvania. He started to play on accordion when he was 9, ten years later he released two hip-hop albums, and in 2007, he founded his band Maszkura and the Tücsökraj, which become an underground star. Gábos Barna who sings and plays on kaval and talking-drum in “Tequila Man” and “Barna” is the leader of the world music band called Peca.

In these days Savages y Suefo are working hardly on new remixes and organising clubnights to promote the eclectic and electro-swing phenomena in Hungary. We hope you will enjoy this multi-faceted and extraordinary album!

Bukky Leo, one of the most profilic UK jazz innovators, returns with a strong musical and intellectual statement. His new album “Anarchy” is not only a convincing, fresh translation of afro-beat for the 21st century, but these thirteen new songs also close a very personal circle for Bukky Leo, spanning nearly 30 years.Imagine yourself in London in the late Eighties. When you walked up Camden High Street, it wasn’t the smell of fast food but the sound of jazz in the air. Enter Dingwalls and you were in a different world. Pulsating rhythms, inspiring dancers, a truly fascinating, global spirit, it felt something like a revolution at that time. Bukky Leo was at the heart of this creative explosion, which DJs like Gilles Peterson or Russ Dewbury created a soundtrack for. Remember: There was no internet at the time, it was by word of mouth to be in the right place and the right time.

As much as the jazz dance community was about showing off and being cool, essentially it was about the freedom of expression. This was a rare era when hiphop met bebop, Northern Soul got into jazz and funk rediscovered its African roots. It seemed like music could actually be the catalyst for diversity and democracy, peacefully proactive in nature. Yes, it seemed to be possible at last to overcome the stigma of the Thatcher era, the re-active dilemma and creative implosion of the Cool Britannia aftermath was not yet in sight.

To see Bukky Leo enter the stage at that time was a revelation. Growing up in Lagos Nigeria, he was the saxophonist in Tony Allen’s band and went on to play with the great Fela Kuti. Coming to London In 1982 he found himself in the midst of post-punk experimenting with world music. His debut „Rejoice in Righteousness“ (released on Eddie Piller’s Acid Jazz label in 1988) was the first encounter with afro-beat for many young, aspiring DJs and music lovers. The follow up „River Nile“, nominated for the US African Music Awards in 1990, put Leo firmly on the jazz map. When acid jazz decided to take a break, Bukky Leo embarked on the definitive pilgrimage to Egypt where he laid down the intellectual foundation for Black Egypt. The trip to Nile was an eye opener for him. After some years of developing their sound, Black Egypt emerged as one of the most acclaimed afro-beat groups outside Nigeria, releasing the album “Afrobeat Visions” on Mr. Bongo in 2005, preceded by Leo’s guest appearance on Ben Mitchell & Russ Dewbury’s album “Rapping With The Gods” in 2003.

Both releases arrived in a time shortly before the digital age took over the music business, the DJ was the tastemaker and clubs were the places to discover exciting new music. Still, in the outside world, the social consensus seemed to disappear and made way for entrepreneurship and the emergence of the finance sector: „But people are not content with the outcome of privatisation, the new enterprises are not for their benefit. This may sound like a political discussion, to me it has more of a spiritual dimension though,“ he explains. “In times where things are not in the place where you think they actually should be it is essential to identify what really matters. Africa is the focal point for me.“

Musically „Anarchy“ digs deep in afro-beat’s foundations, expertly laid down by Dennis Bovell at the controls: „When I toured with Fela and then with Roy Ayers I met Dennis. I am very honoured to have him as a producer.“ Apart from being one of the originators in modern British reggae with Matumbi, Bovell worked with everybody from The Slits to Bananarama, from Sade to Edwyn Collins. With Gilles Peterson and DJ Simbad on remix duties for the first single „Skeleton“, “Anarchy” features two other protagonists of highly innovative music. „It was a long process though. I recorded the first demos with my keyboard player Kishon Khan (a key figure in the British Bangla-Afro-Cuban-Jazz circle), we tried various studios and ended up in this great place in Battersea.“ The result is a refreshingly flowing, instantly accessible but still tight and edgy album with a nononsense, highly musical approach. The topics Bukky Leo touches on “Anarchy” are universal. While “Fella Fella” is an observation of everyday street life in Britain with a parodique twist, ”Man’s Dilemma” touches a common theme in gender relationships. Bukky explains with a big smile on his face: “Sometimes you have to be a mind reader to know what your partner is up to. Funnily, I think women play this game more often than men.” “Rhythemic” and “Don’t Gag Me” drop as powerful pleas for the freedom of body and mind. ‚Jahfrobeat’ (recorded with London DJ Koichi Sakai, known for his unique style between jazz, reggae, house and afro) actually is about African and Japanese cuisine, a plea for a more life sustaining, nourishing diet. “We tend to forget the importance of these things,” Bukky puts the message of “Anarchy” in a nutshell and adds a simple truth impossible to ignore: “The power of music can’t be ignored!“

The singer/composer Yanez Servadei and Giorgio Cencetti (DJ Farrapo) met up in 1997. They immediately started a solid friendship and a musical collaboration which led them to create the “Dj Farrapo & Yanez” project in 2005. In April 2006 they recorded and produced the song “Baiano Vem Baina Vai”, released as a single from AfroArt Records leaded by Paul Murphy in London. Two years later, in 2008, second single was released by the Italian label Tam Tam Studio. It contained two outstanding electro-brazilian cuts, one of them “Frango Assado”, specially composed by Yanez for the short film “Domingo, frango assado” directed by Federico Mutti, whose videoclip was on high  rotation on the Sky Channel of National Geographic (NatGeoMusic). Their work goes on as they release, in 2011, another two singles, Mojito com Cachaça/Avisado Remix (Agogo Records) and Samborigeno/Oliveto with (Urban Records). Along the years they participated to many Radio and Tv shows and starred in several world-known compilations, like Hotel Costes 11, Brazilectro 10, Weekend Nu Jazz 2, Sambass4, Wicked Jazz Sound 2, Beginner’s Guide to Brazilian Lounge, Filati Pregiati Vol.2, Cinedelic Sound  among others. And now what? Well… after a long work, Dj Farrapo & Yanez are now ready with their debut LP, “Alien Na Favela”.

“What is soul ?” Ralph Kiefer knows that this is a question which may prove to be too complex for just one simple answer. The composer, multi-faceted instrumentalist and producer from the South of Germany has been around as a solo piano artist, bandleader and session musician in recent years, enjoying a highly respected profile in the jazz as well as the crossover scene between funk and electronic music. he worked together with artists like POETS OF RHYTHM and HIPNOSIS. With THE SOUL SESSION though, Kiefer now sets out to explore the many facets of the possible answers to the question.
Time knows no boundaries in THE SOUL SESSION, nor do genres. It is the backbeat which counts on their debut album “ONE”. “Struggles And Blessings” is the apt opener. Bajka, who has been busy with Bonobo, Dalindeo and Radio Citizen features her unmistakable vocal style and we discover that THE SOUL SESION is all about diversity.

This is where “Root Down” comes in. A heavy heavy monster of a groove with a hypnotic brass section, “Root Down” is irresistible. De-Phazz vocalist Karl Frierson then dives soul deep into a modern fusion track. “Soul Desire” builds a bridge from the spirituality of the Seventies to the urgency of the present.

A few bars only into the mysterious opening of “The S.O.S. Suite”, mighty 17 minutes long, we know that this will be one serious trip into space. Think of the golden era of HipHop circa A Tribe Called Quest or Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth connected to the London pioneers of genre bending grooves originated in Camden Dingwalls or That’s How It Is. Dudley Perkins aka Declaime, who already worked with Lootpack, Tha Alkaholiks and Madlib, drops his rhymes to the main theme and boards the funky mothership, before Kiefer catapults it into an enthralling Drum’n Bass excursion.

We take a deep breath while “YeahYeahYeah” puts us back into deep relaxation. Anaj, a highly respected Berlin artist in many disciplines from design to sculpture, is introduced as vocalist on “Woman & Man”, while Karl Frierson returns for “Underneath” respectively. Here we see THE SOUL SESSION at their best: Beautifully crafted compositions, a tight rhythm section and cleverly worked out arrangements. “Hamjam” proves this point in full effect: Ralph Kiefer’s grooves are deeply rooted in the best of hang loose Seventies fusion, the precise machinery of Eighties funk and the crossover vibes of the Nineties.
Not a bad thing to achieve in 2011. Then, of course, there is “Light My Fire”. Yes, it is the Doors tune and you may be tempted to think that there is no chance to put some fresh perspective to a classic like this. But wait until you have checked out this version with RALPH KIEFER himself on vocal duties. Sticking to the era and still breathing the freewheeling spirit of the late Sixties and early Seventies L.A. sound, “ONE” closes with the “Horse With No Name Suite”. Clocking in at around 11 minutes the America classic, a bona fide three minute Seventies pop tune in its original incarnation, turns into an up-to-date Jazz suite on “ONE”. “Out Of The Rain” is the title of the suite’s closing part and that’s exactly the feeling you get after listening to this album.

THE SOUL SESSION steps into the arena with a longplayer full of pleasant surprises: A profound sense of history, respect and deep understanding of jazz, soul, funk and electronic music, connected with a high-profile musicianship and amazing songwriting skills. This is definitely “one” rare treat these days – and it’s all about Soul!

‘If you want to throw a successful block party, you need to get the sound, the system and the beats just right!’ Mo’ Horizons have done exactly that with their new album. ‘Mo’ Horizons and the Banana Soundsystem’ is about putting the groove in place, as entertaining and profound as possible: ‘We were touring to such an extent that we were nearly going bananas,’ Mo’ Horizons creative mastermind Ralf Droesemeyer recollects the last few years. ‘It was as much fun as it was a colourful trip exploring the music of the world.’ Mo’ Horizons, of course, are no newcomers to the soundsystem culture. With four successful albums recorded plus two compilations containing their own as well as their remix work, this band is a firmly established entity.

Take ‘Come Touch The Sun’ from 1999 and ‘Remember Tomorrow’ from 2001: Here was a band defining the sound of the Lounge era, focussing on sustainability with an open road ahead of them. Musical paths were explored further on ‘Mo’ Horizons and the New Bohemian Freedom’ in 2003 and ‘Sunshine Today’ in 2007, both distinct voyages into the orbit of organic beats crossing Latin, electro, funk and soul. Playing their music live to the people has always been a key factor in Mo’ Horizons, with the soundsystem idea of the DJ playing with various musicians and vocalists being an integral part of the concept.

Their distinctive brand is now expanded on “Mo Horizons and the Banana Soundsystem”. Kicking off the party with ‘Banana No Mas’ introducing their long-term percussionist and Latin Grammy winner Nené Vasquez, Australian funkateer Elvis Aljus aka Gypsy Brown (yes, there is real gypsy blood running through his veins) then takes no prisoners with his tight percussion style. ‘Back To Melbourne’ leads perfectly into ‘So On’ featuring portuguese vocalist Marga Munguambe, Droesemyer’s friend from way back in 1997 when he produced the album “Missao groove” of Lisboas legendary band “Cool Hipnoise”. Check out the 7inch version of ‘So On’, with Rude HiFi giving out a special toast to Mo’ Horizons. ‘Around Ya’, recorded with Lanzarote and Cordoba based duo Fuel Fandango, keeps the Banana Soundsystem burning with some irresistable melodic Hispanic power. ‘Chiquita Bonita’ keeps the tropical fruit theme fresh, as does ‘Banana Boogie’ with Coneccion Santiago aka Nelson Arriagada from Chile, former Mo’ Horizons live bass player, giving it that authentic South- American feel. Nicely squeezed in-between these sureshot party tunes is ‘Jungle Affair’, a delicate instrumental piece which sounds like being taken directly out of an imaginary Latino spy movie. Marga Munguambe returns for ‘Kiss’ and you are guessing quite correctly. This is a Wurlitzer heavy cover version of the mighty Prince tune. It works wonders in Mo Horizons’ acoustic Baile Funk arrangement. So does ‘Koito Pie Bira’, a blistering Balkan monster if there ever was one, in coop with Borin Beltchev, club-owner and mastermind of the Varna Boogaloo Crew from the North of Bulgaria. Back to serious business with ‘Make It Real’ and Lea on vocal duties, already featured on the ‘Brandnew EP’ from 2010 – this is classic Mo’ Horizons trademark style, driven by funk and fuelled by Latin.

Yanez from Bologna/Italy knows that Brazilian music is universal. His ‘Cowboy Bossa’ arrives like the soundtrack to a Sergio Leone meeting with Antonio Carlos Jobim on the Mexican border and features Yanez’ amazing recording technique of adding a high and low voice together to create his unique vocal sound. Denise M’Baye, who has equal roots in Senegal, the Netherlands and Indonesia, takes the idea even a step further with ‘In Love With An Old Man’. She crosses the Rio Grande and dives deeply into Mariachi culture with a big smile on her face. The track came into life during a jam in an Andalusian beach bar: ‘Denise was inspired by a man with a brown hat,’ Droesemeyer remembers. If you were still wondering how globality could be translated into music, here you have the answer. ‘Free And Easy’, a rolling drum’n’bass burner, spiced up with a Copacabana twist and some East European flavour, could work well as the theme tune for the very own Mo’ Horizons trail. Look out for the 3-7 piece live (banana)soundsystem travelling the world in 2011, probably not from only Istanbul to India like it used to be more than thirty years ago, but also en route from Hannover via Lisboa over to Rio.

“Power Bossa” is the introduction to Fab Samperi’s definition of a boombastic jazz style. Fearlessly and creatively picking up inspiration from the golden decades of classic rhythm & blues, latin, hip-hop and soul Sicily’s most prolific producer releases his first full album.

Growing up in Catania during the late Seventies and Eighties Fab Samperi was born into a household full of funky grooves. While his father was a serious collector of jazz records, Fab got to know his brother’s soul collection inside out when he was treated to all night vinyl sessions. Over the years Fab started to travel the world, living in Japan as well as Australia and learned his trade by playing a genre-bending mix of funk versus afro meets hip-hop on stage with the Outbound collective.

Returning to his home country by the turn of the millennium Fab Samperi released his first solo tunes on Record Kicks and Afro Art. Using the The Samp Brothers as his alter ego the “Alcoholic Drinks” 12inch vinyl still enjoys something like a cult status among the more eclectic DJs around the world.
This was a fresh sound transferring the best of Acid Jazz into the new decade while keeping a true soul spirit alive. Think of Dream Warriors and Gang Starr with Young-Holt Unlimited as the backing band. And we do not disclose well-kept secrets in revealing that Fab Samperi is the mastermind behind The Captain’s highly productive output of vinyl singles.

Now we have “Power Bossa” and what a powerful statement it really is. Fab Samperi recorded the album in as many as six countries. While kicking off with “In The River”, playlisted on the BBC and sealed by Craig Charles featuring the man Samperi himself on flute (yes, he is a well-studied multi instrumentalist playing keyboards, drums, guitars and brass!) the mighty John Turrell from Newcastle England puts his distinctive northern soul voice on “Everyman”. Samperi’s close connection to Smoove & Turrell is no coincidence. With their organic approach to the music they love this is a natural connection. Bella Wagner from Vienna, vocalist on “Stand Back”, already recorded with Patrick Pulsinger and Bahama Soul Club. Jonnathan Molina on the other hand is a new face on the block. His voice for “Listen Up” keeps the fire burning with an authentic soul twist.

“Red Bossa” is a liaison with Mattew Rasbash aka Spasmo, an English producer with an incredible knowledge of cinematic jazz, dramatic bossa and obscure jazz-rock. Holding the pace but adding a breathless rap flavour to “Brand New Day” Joelistics aka Joel Ma of the Australian TZU crew takes us back to the age when hip-hop was what it all was about: lyrical vitality, an open mind and pure energy. The instrumental version of “Alcoholic Drinks” is a trip way back into Fab Samperi’s history, but it still sounds fresh today. It blends nicely into “Jazz Di Mezzaluna”, an authentic piece of Mediterranean Jazz featuring a solo by Andrea Beneventano, one of the national top players on the piano. Rounding up this jazz intermezzo on “Power Bossa” is “Spaghetti Samba”, Samperi’s early single on Record Kicks featuring the vocals of Igor Gazatti aka Zion from Recife in Brazil. Soul brother John Turrell makes his return on “Heaven Sent”, again this was recorded with Smoove at his Ashbrooke Castle studios in downtown Newcastle.

“BB Funk” kicks in with a haunting bass line courtesy of the man Fab Samperi himself: “People think there is a lot of sampling in my music, but it is not. This bassline, for example, was played and written completely by myself.” And while Samperi is not only an expert musician himself, he is also busy remixing tunes for other artists. The French freakbeat of “Papillonne Sur Moi” is an example of his recent output, commissioned by fellow Italians Montefiori Cocktail & In-Grid.

Closing the album Samperi reunites with Andrew Donikian aka Diamond Poet and revives the Outbound era with “When I Wake Up.” The music may have evolved since then, but the message in Fab Samperi’s music has not: “The message behind it is that I believe in a multicultural world, where people can live their lives in peace, with no racism, and no war.” This statement is as simple as it is true: Peace, love, unity and having bossa!

Ralf ‘Sono Rhizmo’ Droesemeyer travels with the spirit of the beat generation and the heart of the bohemian jazzmen. Hipness is not a state of mind but a fact of life, he says. Call him a modern beatnik, this man is trout fishing all around the globe.On the first compilation for his own Agogo record label Sono Rhizmo collected fifteen tracksfrom as many countries he has travelled during the past few months. What we hear is a mix of conscious global beats, social soul and true rhythms, never overtly political but alwaysaware of local matters and global changes. „Agogo Makes The World Go Round” is astatement of independence, a plea to dig deeper beyond the surface.

Sono Rhizmo’s first stop is Spain. Here his own Mo’ Horizons outfit met Ale Acosta and Nita, better known as Fuel Fandango. Their organic funk and flamenco touches perfectly open this album. Crossing over to Poland, we have Michal Paradowski (Bontone), Michal Sosnowski (En2ak) aka Przasnik out of Wroclaw, who offer us their distinctive style of percussive grooves and clubby electronica. Peruvian combo Novalima merge the old school with the new school. Their Afro-Peruvian sound is as futuristic as it is exciting. After crossing the ocean to Australia, the Percussion Junction collective of drummers, percussionists and DJs welcomes us with their seductive urban tribal electronica. Bina Ehud on the other hand is a global project by nature. Brazilian guitarist Vinicio “Bina” Coquet and New York organist Ehud Asherie live their love for the Brazilian musicand 60s American jazz. Ladi 6 from Auckland New Zeland is one of the newvoices to watch in hiphop-soul. “Walk Right Up” has as much urban roots as it has a Jamaican heart. Meanwhile, French DJ Cléon hits the spot with his blend of of seventies funk, classic New York disco, French hiphop and Paris latino. This is the perfect music for the travelling hipster.

Mo Horizons themselves put their hands on Néné Vasquez’ „Salsa Del Alma”. This combination works wonders, and that is no surprise. Néné Vasquez is not only the band’s long time percussionist but has been crowned „Percussionist of the year” in his home country Venezuela for several years and won a Grammy with his group Aterciopelados in 1999. Quantic takes the tropical funk experience a step further. Together with His Combo Bárbaro he presents a snapshot from the native musical landscape of the Americas. Calmeira’s „Swallow” seems to be some damn hot stuff out of the Nu Yorican quarters of Latin-American music but, as a matter of fact, it was recorded in Japan: Globalism is not a state of mind, but a matter of fact. Very much so looking into the future of their own native sounds, Oquestrada play the Tasca beat, the new popular music of the Portuguese streets and bars, made by the people for the people. DJ Alihea then takes us to the other side of Europe. The producer from Macedonia is one of the masterminds of the Balkan music scene and is well know for his aptly titled „SchliwoBeatz” club nights. Back home in North Germany Sono Rhizmo and his Mo Horizons have mixed their label mates Una Mas Trio hit „Clear As Water” ready to conquer the global airwaves. Grupo La Planta from Columbia add some serious funk-rock to „Agogo Makes the World Go Round”. Their lively approach to the sounds of their home country give the term Electrolatinofunk a good name. To round up the album International Velvet, the band featuring sitar player Rob Myers, hit the right chords with the programmatic „Sitargazer”. The artist from Washington DC could well be the global hipster Sono Rhizmo was looking for on his travels. He adds Indian magic to the urban realities of Thievery Corporation or Fort Knox Five.

“Agogo Makes The World Go Round” arrives in an environmental-friendly, ecologically produced packaging. The content is the message, the message is the music: Agogo is not a state of mind, it is a matter of fact.

Una Mas Trio have a vision. Based on a blend of traditional south American styles meeting contemporary club music they construct their very own, crystal-clear „Ritmo Del Futura“ and release it as their debut full length album.

Una Mas Trio are Christian Schilgen, multi-faceted intrumentalist on guitar and keyboards, composer and engineer as well as producer in his own studio, and Fab DJ Sammy, musical mastermind, discjockey and record collector extraordinaire. Sammy founded The Juju Orchestra and when they broke up it was time to find a new home for his ideas. In Christian he found the partner he was looking for: „We started working on the album towards the end of 2006 and the spirits were flowing smoothly. We soon had to think of a name, but wouldn’t want to call us a duo as that sounds pretty uncool. There are much cooler trios around in jazz and latin, so we decided there must be space for one more trio.“ Hence, the Una Mas Trio was born.

The first single „Son Montuno“ was released in late 2007 as a 7“ vinyl and proved to be a sure shot. Remixes for Mo Horizons and the Dining Rooms followed and  established the Una Mas Trio among global followers of the electro latino scene. „Son Montuno“ now re-appears on „Ritmo Del Futura“ alongside 10 other true latin, boogaloo and brasil funk tracks. The variety is stunning: „Latin Brother“ hits the right spot. Sitting perfectly somewhere between Mongo Santamaria and Ramsey Lewis’ latin soul workouts, this is the perfect opener. „Nova Do Brasil“ takes us to a world where brazilian music and electro live in close harmony. „Que Pasara“ featuring the vocals of Eduardo Flores is a showcase for the trio’s authentic talents. „You won’t believe it, Eduardo actually is a bus driver from our hometown Braunschweig. He was recommended to us by a friend, so we got on this local bus and while buying a ticket from him we asked if he would like to sing a tune on our album,“ Christian Schilgen recollects. „He is the real thing rooted deep in the sonero tradition, so we took the chance and cut a second track with him called „Margarita“.“

Toni Lorenzo is the second male vocal guest on „Ritmo Del Futura“. „Sammy heard this amazing voice by accident on a tape and we started researching who it could be. We found out that he is called Toni Lorenzo, bass singer in the legendary Golden Gate Quartet and – believe it or not – lives in Mainz in the southwest of Germany. When he came down to our studio he recited a part from Mozart’s „Zauberflöte“ to warm-up. We were stunned by his originality.“ His track called „Back To Sand“ sees the Una Mas Trio moving around comfortably in a blaxploitation and poetry surrounding.

With „Mas Y Mas“, „Ritmo Del Futura“ and „Balkumbia“ the Una Mas boys return to the roots of south American music. „We never get tired of these rhythms,“ Christian Schilgen explains. „They give us so much space and freedom to explore new muscial grounds.“ The album is full of examples for these explorations. „Move My Feet“ sung by Malaika, a long-time friend of the band, is a definite floorfiller while „Clear As Water“, featuring the unmistakable voice Bajka, is the perfect closing track for the album as well as the new single, coming in remixes by Mo Horizons and the Hidden Jazz Quartet.

With „Ritmo Del Futura“ Una Mas Trio release a treasure trove of hitting rhythms that are fresh and modern, keeping the spirit of original Latin and Brazilian music alive while placing it on firm grounds in the present and, of course, for the future.

Bosshannover… Hannover, capital of Lower Saxony- no sea nor palmtrees as far as the eye can see. Nevertheless, this is the place, where the primordial soup of Nu- Bossa with Funky Breaks was started. By 1998 the music-maniacs Ralf Droesemeyer and Mark „Foh“ Wetzler were fed up by the local club scene’s Four-To-The-Floor-mainstream. Instead of waiting for help, they recollected their affinity for club music and bossa, jazz, soul and boogaloo:  the Mo’ Horizons were born. Backed up by the hipster label Stereo Deluxe they saddled the Latin dance scene from the back.

After “Come, Touch The Sun” had been published in 1999, nothing remained how it was. This transgression of musical styles was excactly what so many were drooling over. Nobody could elude songs like “Foto Viva“ or “Come, Touch The Sun”; nobody wanted to elude these songs. The everyday bleakness and work related stress were forgotten and all of a sudden one was, with both feet standing in the mellow sand at the sea, the water slightly slopping at the shore, and sun smiling- Mo’ Horizons’ music is a getaway.

By now there is no place on earth where the Mo Hos are not known, to be for sure and there is no doubt, they made more for international understanding with their music than some politician. Unfatigued, they are on tour as DJ-team or with a soundsystem and even in Australia and the USA, people enjoy the Bosshannover by now.

Ten years – lots of musical styles came and went, footnotes of music history. Ten years Mo’ Horizons – that’s four studio albums and lots of hits that can now be found on this compilation. Both (Ralf and Mark) took care that their personal favourits are accounted for. The bonus CD reflects Mo’ Horizons’ work ethic: they had tracks of their latest album remixed by other artists: Remember your roots, utilize your present knowledge and accomplish something for the future-Remember tomorrow!!

Since eight years Mo’Horizons are releasing constantly albums on highest level. Now its time for the fourth longplayer, first time on their own new imprint Agogo Records.

`Sunshine Today`- the positive energy of the sun was always inspiration for the music of Ralf Droesemeyer and Mark ‘Foh’ Wetzler. touring around the world – Australia, Brasil, Puerto Rico, South Africa and nearly complete Europe – and collecting music from all over, this new album contains a package full of clever used quotes from the last 50 years of music history.

Soul Sugar, Latin Fruits, Jazzy Juice and Shakin’ Clubbeats are the ingredients of this self-titled ‘Groove Cocktail’. A brillant mixture of songs with jazzy attitude – think of Ramsey Lewis or Jimmy Smith -, kind of percussive spiritual dance, straight latin, big downbeats or clubby dancefloor like Maceo meets Tito Puente.

12 compositions by Mo’Horizons and one latin coverversion of Bill Withers classic ‘Lovely Day’ ( ‘Dia Encantador’ ). 5 singer, 10 musicians from 7 different nations ( Italy, Belgium, Venezuela, Brazil, Chile, Senegal, Germany ) are part of this soulful piece of music. Some of them are part of the Mo’Horizons Soundsystem, like Afrosoulsinger Denise M’Baye, Grammy winning percussionist Néné Vasquez or Camille de Bruyne from Belgium.

With their third album Mo`Horizons break further new ground in the way of artistic freedom. As already evident from „Come Touch The Sun” and „Remember Tomorrow” they allow for no musical corsett constraints. Not only a huge enlargement of a wide and variable record collection, but also worldwide DJ sets and their on the road experiences from their European live tour has allowed their musical Horizons and consequently their production skills to further develop & grow.

„…And The New Bohemian Freedom” which is not just material that has Downtown Hannover origins, Mo`Horizons travelled the world not only with Record Box & Toothbrush but also their laptops which they kept constantly at hand. Not allowing any chance or opportunity to pass in order to capture and eternalise authentic and original material on their Harddrive on the spot, not only capturing the material but also the mood. Therefore you could say this album was produced in Australia, Mexico, Italy, Greece, Portugal and also on the wonderful Canary Island La Palma.

This all paired with the the freedom to release an album the way they want and the support of Stereo Deluxe has given Mo`Horizons the feeling that they find themselves in a „new bohemian freedom” nights.

Within a short time after releasing their first album ‘Come Touch The Sun’ Mo`Horizons had shot into the modern dance & listening music scene. Every 12″ went straight into the DCC- Charts. Their diverse repertoire of sounds would be used from background music in TV documentaries to innovative Radio stations who played just about every track from the album…

The second album from Mo`Horizons “Remember Tomorrow” sticks itself seamlessly on the first but beware of being too complacent this baby will make you want to shake your bootie on any dancefloor.

Ralf Droesemeyer and Mark “Foh” Wetzler have been working on the 12 tracks that make up this album since the beginning of 2001, using such an array of styles from brazil, latin, jazz and soul, afro, funk, dub to name but a few. and for the first time enriched with a little boogaloo just for good measure.

Mo`Horizons integrate effortlessly all the elements from the 50`s to the 90`s in what has become their distinguishable sound all with live musicians and vocals emerging to form a wide ranging multicultural sound that can only be classed as Mo`Horizons so diversive and refreshing that producers such as Nicola Conte, SWAG and Skeewiff.

had already started to put their own unique touches to remixes before general release with “Remember Tomorrow”. Ralf & Foh didn´t want to remove themselves from the electro-bossa-brazil sound they so endear to, they merely expand the borders of their musical preferences and

This first album of Mo’Horizons was such an extraordinary success, nobody ever expected. It became a classical gem in this musical genre Mo’Horizons consists of producers, musicians and DJ’s Ralf Droesemeyer and Mark ‘Foh’ Wetzler. Ralf is reknown for his work with, amongst many others, Cunnie Williams or Randy Crawford.

The first two 12″s ‘Yes Baby Yes’ and ‘Foto Viva’ went straight to the top ten of the DCC (official german club charts) and ‘Foto Viva’ even became a radio hit. On this first album ‘Come touch the sun’ (the record is dedicated to the sun giving warmth & light to all people) the two masterminds melt influences ranging from the soulful fifties, sixties & funky seventies straight to the nineties. Integrating modern production techniques and a handful of talented live-musicians and vocalists they create a sound that varies in mood and style but is still homogenous and therefore can easily be identified as Mo’ Horizons. Nujazz, Soul, Afro, Latin, Funk, Downbeat, Dub, Triphop or Bigbeat: Mo’ Horizons break all boundaries and tear down all musical barricades.