Jakko Eino Kalevi’s 2011 CD-only-album finally released on LP. From start til end, this highlights the song aspect of jazz with well written melodies, a traditional, softly executed & crafted musical approach. Produced & composed by Jaakko Eino Kalevi it features a solid stack of musicians as well as a variety of atmospheres, twist and turns.
These days, Hanad Kalkaba is a retired Army colonel and track and field athletics administrator in his native Cameroon. Yet back in the mid 1970s, he was a musician with dreams of potential super-stardom, trying to update traditional Cameroonian “Gandjal” music for the funk generation. To that end, he recorded a small number of singles and EPs alongside his backing band, the Golden Sounds. It’s those thoroughly obscure and overlooked releases that make up Hanad Kalkaba & The Golden Sounds, a retrospective of his pioneering work. Sitting somewhere between Afro-beat, Afro-funk and Afro-jazz, with a distinctively Cameroonian rhythmic swing, the music showcased on the album is undeniably special.
This 2XLP album, Europa, is dedicated to and inspired by events in 2015 & 2016, which saw the spectre of global crisis come knocking at Europe’s doorstep. During this time, more than a million migrants and refugees fled their homes in the Middle East, Northern Africa, sub-Saharan Africa and other conflict ravaged areas in search of a better life. For many, hopes of a future for themselves and their families lay in continental Europe. One of the most well- trodden paths on this journey was the Balkan route, a trail leading through Turkey, Greece, and the former Yugoslavia. This route was not without its dangers, and the dreams of thousands upon thousands were dashed by impassible security fences and discordant EU politics, as one by one they were turned away at borders, or worse, forcibly returned to their countries of origin. Europa was recorded during long jam sessions in Belgrade as the media spotlight started to dim. The city became the purgatorial destination for a large number of migrants, whose journeys had been cut short. This double LP reflects the atmosphere of disillusionment and uncertainty about the future, which descended on the Serbian capital. Dark and melancholic saxophone playing on top of heavy kicks and Mediterranean percussions dominate the epic 17 minutes title track. The collaboration with Jerusalem in My heart continues the melancholic atmosphere, adding to it JIMH signature delayed baglama sounds, to create a 12 minute emotional journey, tearing away abstract concepts of ‘longing’ and ‘home’ with ever growing tension and magnitude. Genre-less, illusive and not easy to categorize, Tapan’s debut album on Malka Tuti is an original soundtrack of a fragment in time and space, capturing a moment and transcending it musically for the rest of the world to experience.
First Word Records present you with ‘The Offering’ – the debut album by Darkhouse Family, a Cardiff-based duo consisting of Earl Jeffers & Don Leisure. Previously releasing music under their respective monikers, Metabeats and Jamal, they’ve produced an assortment of sounds over the years, from Hip Hop to House to D’n’B. Connecting as a duo almost a decade ago, this merger logically saw the birth of their own unique style, comprised of a bonafide fusion of genres. Recruiting friends Daf Davies on drums, Jonathan Williams on strings and cameos from Henry Wu; a keen eye on the soulful jazzy details is maintained throughout as swooning, sunny side keys, dusty samples and gorgeous vocals from the likes of Vanity Jay, Jessy Allen and Esther wrap themselves around their hybrid of chopped beats and Daf’s lavish, highly swung drums. Highlights include the Soul II Soul style “Journey To Love”, the twinkling slo-mo bruk of “GAEA”, the slinky slap bass and Rhodes tickle of “Modaji Suite” and the spiritual climax of the finale “The Accession”.
A stalwart of the Leeds music scene for the best part of 3 decades, Tony Burkill has so far maintained a low profile nationally, choosing to favour continued study and development of the instrument over the attainment of success or recognition within the music industry. Working as a sideman for hire on the local circuit, he has impressed audiences with his powerful and gutsy approach to improvisation and has been a well-kept secret amongst both musicians and audiences in the north of England since the 1980s.Recently featuring as a guest soloist on the debut album by The Sorcerers, Tony has been on the radar of ATA Records since the inception of the label. Impressed by his exuberant and earthy performance style they decided to embark on the writing and production of what was to become ”Work Money Death”, choosing to frame his playing in the context of the performers that have helped to shape his sound, most notably the spiritual jazz of the 60s and 70s.
First Word close out 2017 with the return of Kaidi Tatham, following up his ‘Changing Times’ EP for us, with another killer 4-tracker – this one entitled ‘Hard Times’.
Debuting under his given name for Maddjazz Recordings’ second offering, is DJ, producer and synth enthusiast Henry Keen. Henry’s music was discovered after a long night of online digging, and after several exchanges, it was apparent that Henry was making music that defined exactly what Maddjazz is striving to achieve; honest music that’s free of form and not constrained by any genre or tempo. 70’s Baby is a raw and honest record. A collection of uptempo grooves written in various locations around hectic inner London. It’s spirit is born out of the freedom of the CDR sessions at the now defunct club Plastic People, where many of Henry’s productions were first shared, and where tempo and genre were irrelevant. It references Henry’s love for the instrumentation, recording techniques and sounds of the 1970s, the decade of his birth. Featuring a tasteful blend of worldly and otherworldly sounds, It owes itself to modern and ancient dance themes alike.
30/70 are the latest collective to emerge from Melbourne’s buzzing scene. ‘Elevate’ is a sublime statement; at once a cry for help and a call to arms, it balances delicate poetry and potent aggression with ease – all of this done with a beguiling pop sensibility. This collection of songs, their second studio effort after their debut LP, ‘Cold Radish Coma’, is set to elevate them to the international stage.
Guitar legend Oghene Kologbo was born in Warri, Nigeria in 1957. His father was the well known highlife musician Joe King Kologbo. When Kologbo was a teenager, he began performing with the revolutionary Afrobeat master Fela Kuti. He played the hypnotic tenor guitar lines, but often recorded bass and rhythm guitar too. Kologbo was Fela’s personal assistant and “tape recorder”. That is, it was his job to remember the melodies Fela would sing to him late at night, then teach them to the band at rehearsal the next day. In 1978, after a show at the Berlin Jazz Festival, Kologbo left the band (along with Tony Allen and a few others) and stayed in Berlin. “Africa Is The Future” is a true collective effort, with many guests gathering forces on the project: Tony Allen, playing drums on 5 tracks out of 8 (Nigeria/France), singer Pat Thomas (Ghana), deejay Joseph Cotton (Jamaica), singer Ayo (Nigeria/Germany), horn players from the Afrobeat Academy (Germany) or from Les Frères Smith (France), members of Antibalas (USA), Newen Afrobeat (Chile), etc. This is afrobeat from the 21st century at its purest, blending the originators and the descendants together.
Matsuli Music is releasing another forgotten gem of the South African jazz diaspora – the 1976 Istanbul session featuring Johnny Dyani and Okay Temiz fusing deep roots and new routes, integrating folklore and rhythm within an experimental, avant-garde vision of love and life. Available for the first time since Yonca Records originally released only 1000 copies in Turkey, this album has remained an elusive and sought after landmark in South African exile Johnny Dyani’s discography. The recording captures a complex, funky and musically together exploration of folk themes, jazz messages and popular directions. After many years together discovering both South African and Turkish sources, Temiz and Dyani were intimately versed in each other’s traditions. Side one features material arranged by Temiz, and the second has material arranged and composed by Dyani – including a stunning arrangement of Don Cherry’s Elhamdulilhah Marimba with Dyani on piano and voice.
Continue reading “Okay Temiz / Johnny Dyani- Witchdoctor’s Son [MM110]”
Fortuna Records deliver a stellar compilation of real-life magic created by immigrants from Yemen, in Tel Aviv, from the mid seventies to the early eighties. Ranging from extremely rare to previously unreleased, these tracks are a result of a unique scene which blended funk, soul, jazz & disco with traditional Yemenite rhythms & sounds. It cannot get more obscure than this.
Prolific and always inventive live pair and studio wizards Juju & Jordash are back with another fantastic album on their home label, Dekmantel. Called “Sis-boom-bah!” it features nine tracks that once again showcase their musical maturity and free thinking. The pair say it is an album “steeped in traditionalism” and to us it sounds spiritual, musical and beautifully thought provoking.
Africa Seven is on fire recently, and this new compilation of rare and untapped material from Cameroon’s Joseph Ekambi Tongo Mpondo has to be the pick of the lot. The talented multi-instrumentalist was famously studying medicine in Paris throughout he 60s, but it’s clear that down the music path was the only sensible option for this man. African Funk Experimentals brings together some of his most obscure material from the years 1968-1982…and some new gear from 2017! Aside from the absolutely killer artwork featuring on the sleeve, this is a ten-track masterpiece, reaching all corners of the afrobeat heritage, while still retaining something very personal and symbolic of Cameroon’s often underrated influence on African funk and boogie.
The sound of ‘2020’ is new jazz and old funk with an electronic city pace, brought to you by duo The Colours That Rise. Made up of multi-instrumentalists and producers Simeon Jones and Nathanael Williams, their ‘2020’ EP is a confident guide through future sounds and past histories from a time yet to come. Created using analogue synths and acoustic instruments, the 4 track EP works as the score to a yet to be created animation. Nathanael’s background is creating soundtracks for films, while Simeon plays with UK jazz prophets Yussef Kamaal and featured on Henry Wu’s ‘Negotiate’ 12′. Providing groove for the dancer and hidden meanings for the listener, ‘2020’ is plugged in to the pulse of UK dancefloors and the resurgence of funk audiences. With their fusion sound, The Colours That Rise are another welcome addition to the new ‘UK Jazz invasion’ alongside their friends and colleagues Yussef Kamaal and The Comet is Coming. ‘2020’ is an experimental electronic voyage that emerges from the ambient and arrives on the dance floor.
On the fifth release on the Grotto Editions X We Jazz 10” EP series, sax man Pauli Lyytinen steps up with a strong 4-tracker featuring Verneri Pohjola on trumpet, Eero Tikkanen on bass, and Mika Kallio on drums. ”Artist of the Year” at the 2017 Pori Jazz Festival, Finland’s premiere jazz event, Lyytinen displays his ability of writing melodic fire music with ever-evolving momentum. The quartet pools together their creative resources, presenting four original compositions by Lyytinen. They rely on their individial soloistic strengths and get a lot of mileage out of the group’s strong interplay.
Byron The Aquarius makes his Eglo Records debut. The Alabama producer once again delivers something truly special, journeying through disco, jazz, acid, house and crashing 808’s. ‘Leaving This Planet’ is an EP of two halves. The A-Side bumps, with two bubbling house jams. whilst the B-Side sees Byron get loose over two freestyle jazz odysseys. Music for the mind, body and soul.
Same Speed Sambas are back to celebrate the sound of the summer in 2017 in their very own unique way.S earching out for more obscure uses of Brasilian rhythms and coming up with two dance floor delights – one from Denmark and another from right here in the UK – giving them once again, that unique Same Speed re-touch. Samba Operator takes a rare live recording of one of the UK’s finest soul acts of the 80s’ biggest hits and re-works it into a mostrous tropical club anthem; while Numero Dois goes down the Samba-Not-Samba route taking a Danish 70s girl band and giving them some very warm disco treatment. The result is something very contemporary sounding that’ll fire up the dance every time.
“Dilla” by Abstract Orchestra has been generating a buzz since it’s inception in 2016 and subsequent UK tour, during which the album was presented to the public in its live form. Led by Saxophonist Rob Mitchell, Abstract Orchestra seeks to reflect the diversity of music sampled by Hip-Hop producers by presenting music that has the complexity of jazz, framed within the simpler structures of Hip-Hop. Complex harmonies are framed within simple loops and complex bar structures and time signatures can pass by unnoticed. “I selected the tracks on the album with very much the live performance in mind” says band-leader and arranger Rob Mitchell “So the album is a reflection of the tour and the music we performed”. Inspired by the legendary live performances of The Roots with Jay-Z and the 40 piece orchestral arrangements by Miguel-Atwood Ferguson of the work of J Dilla, classic arranging techniques underpin modern loop-based structures.The band itself is based on the classic jazz big band instrumentation of saxes, trumpets and trombones and features the cream of the north of England’s jazz scene who collectively have played with Jamiroquai, Corinne Bailey Rae, Mark Ronson, Martha Reeves, John Legend & the Roots, Roots Manuva and Amy Winehouse. “Dilla” by Abstract Orchestra is a tribute to the work of the highly acclaimed and influential producer.
Ian Finkelstein is a jazz pianist and producer. He has been an active member of the Detroit jazz community since the age of 14. A student of Geri Allen, he performed with Marcus Belgrave from 2010 until Belgrave’s death in 2015. He currently performs with the Robert Hurst Quintet, and is a founding member of Detroit music collective Video7. Ian self-released his first album of house music It’s Time in 2016. His keyboard work can be heard on tracks by Scott Grooves, Omar-S and Shigeto among others. He is a regular member of Scott Grooves’ Overdubs. Middle Birth EP highlights Ian’s dual talents as a producer and instrumentalist. Side A features two electronic cuts, Middle Birth’ and Mort Crim’ with Ian playing live drums and bass on the latter. SIDE B showcases Ian’s jazz quartet, he is joined by several of Detroit’s most talented young musicians: Marcus Elliot on sax, Ben Rolston on bass and Alex White on drums.
