Surf's Up

One could call this a timely meeting of Istanbul's avant-garde: "Prolific crate digger, sampling whiz and producer extraordinaire" Grup Ses joins forces with Cologne-based electric saz phenom Elektro Hafız for a mind-bending potpourri of styles. Recently released on Debora Ipekel's Zel Zele Records, "Varyete" is the title to their collaborative new full-length and a dazzling display of variety is just what the two deliver, "from deep Anatolian psychedelic [...]

Sitting in Istanbul on a sweltering Tuesday morning, we can't help wishing we were on a tropical island, lying in a hammock, sipping something cold, anything cold, before walking over to the clear blue ocean and simply diving in. This is pretty much the daydream we just had, when listening to the latest 12" release on Swiss imprint Rocafort Records. 

Presenting two sun-drenched tracks by Barcelona trio Kokoro Disco-San (aka Lalo López, Miguelito Superstar and [...]

Like many others out there, we are constantly on the lookout for extraordinary music from around the globe. And so, when we heard that "Istanbul's don of the clarinet" Cüneyt Sepetçi was returning to Berlin to play another show and read that he will be supported by "legendary Turkish crate digger" Çerikunda, we couldn't help but wonder: Who is this Çerikunda?

Hailing from Istanbul, Emir Özer graduated from the Mimar Sinan University of Fine Arts as a [...]

After more than a decade in the business, Paris/Berlin-based imprint InFiné rightfully describes itself as "a harbour for adventurous, resolutely independent" and dancefloor-oriented music of all styles. Just recently it released "Digital Kabar", an essential compilation of electronic maloya, the  genre native to the French island of La Réunion. 

"At once sacred and secular; sometimes calculated but often improvised; formerly clandestine but now manifest: the [...]

While the Women's World Cup in France has meanwhile entered the quarter-final round, this year's Africa Cup of Nations kicked off last Friday in Egypt. Among the 24 teams competing for the cup and making its first-ever bid is Northwest Africa's Islamic Republic of Mauritania. This in itself deserves mention, but what really got us going was a newly released video by Mauritanian rapper Taleb Latimore to support his country's national team, aka "les [...]

"The future of music happened decades ago," reads the catchy claim of Samy Ben Redjeb's Frankfurt-based imprint Analog Africa, specialising in unusual African music from the '70s, basically stuff you never even knew existed, but has nonetheless had a strong impact in certain regions of the world. As such, many of the Analog Africa releases are not just about the music, but also come with detailed liner notes and equally unusual stories. 

Last Friday, the label [...]

On Thursday, just in time for Shabbat, our phenomenal Victoria Hanna delivered a spectacular new music video to her debut album track "Orayta" that features an absolutely unique display of Aramaic rap or spoken word. On "Orayta" the Israeli vocalist brilliantly pairs the raw and mystical sounds of ancient Hebrew with Tamir Muskat's (APE Records, Balkan Beat Box) sleek and expansive hiphop-styled production. 

"The lyrics are taken from the main book of Kabbalah, [...]

We're happy to finally announce a special collaboration album released a few weeks ago on "genre-defying" London-based record label Wah Wah 45s and featuring Ghanaian xylophone master Isaac Birituro alongside the Leeds-based producer/singer/songwriter Sonny Johns, also know as The Rail Abandon. That's not to say they hadn't given us a fair warning with their first two singles "Yesu Yan Yan" and "Für Svenja” – the latter instantly sparking our germanophone [...]

This Friday marks release day for part three of the Venezuelan trilogy of 45s on Olindo Records. The series started back in 2017 with the release of "Abeja b/w Black & Decker" by Monsalve Y Los Forajidos, was followed by Insólito UniVerso's "Vuelve b/w Décima" in 2018 and now concludes with Isaac Sasson's "Cantos Campesinos".

The EP features two original, folkloric compositions by Caracas-based multi-instrumentalist and composer Isaac Sasson, which previously [...]

Hailing from the city of Wrocław, Polish seven-piece EABS (Electro Acoustic Beat Sessions) just released a new full-length of original material. Two years after their well-received debut album "Repetitions (Letters to Krzysztof Komeda)", paying homage to Polish Jazz legend Krzysztof Komeda, the group continues their free and spirited approach to "blending traditional Polish Jazz with sounds from other genres, thus creating a new and personal interpretation of [...]

Say what?! We were instantly captivated by the sounds of this new compilation on Bangkok's Zudrangma Records, once again expertly put together by Chris Menist and Nattapon Siangsukon, aka Maft Sai, of Paradise Bangkok fame. "DIY Disco Molam" presents an exceptional collection of catchy experimental molam tunes by Thai producer Soonthorn Chairatanachot, "previously only released  as a short run of 45s on his private label Khaen Sang and featuring only members of [...]

Building on the success of their 2016 collaborative short documentary "Woza Taxi" (on the South African club music genre Gqom) Rome's Crudo Volta collective set out on another trip in August 2017 to visit Ghana and produce the follow-up "Yenkyi Taxi", covering the contemporary Ghanaian music scene alongside music producer Hagan.

In the film, Hagan recalls growing up in a Ghanaian home in London, being raised in two cultures, listening to the radio, including [...]