'Dragon Jenny' is Kalaha's first release since the award winning album 'Masala' was released in the end of 2016.
The band - consisting of two electronic musicians (Rumpistol & Spejderrobot) and the two live instrumentalists Niclas Knudsen (gtr) & Emil de Waal (dr) - won a Danish Music Award in 2017 and received the following words:

”The musicians of this release merge together in a drone landscape of sound and playfulness. At times you feel like being inside a clay cabin in Africa's roaring savannah - the next moment you are blown out into a distant galaxy on a trip into space surrounded by flashing lasers and bubbly sci-fi sounds.”

The statement also fits the new single perfectly. Here the band explores an atmospheric electronic sound which will undoubtedly perform well at dance floors throughout the summer.

Kalaha will be playing at several festivals this year, including Boomtown Fair in England, which has 60,000 sold out tickets this year and will be Kalaha's first major foreign festival.

'Dragon Jenny' is the first single from the band's forthcoming album 'Mandala' which will be out this fall.


Produced and mixed by Rumpistol. 
Mastered by Antony Ryan. 
Artwork by Zven Balslev. 

Kalaha is: 
Rumpistol: Synths, kalimbas & electronics 
Spejderrobot: Electronics 
Emil de Waal: Drums, percussion & electronics 
Niclas Knudsen: Guitar & talkbox.
 
Special guest on Dragon Jenny:
Fretless bass: Flemming Muus

Dragon Jenny

Bandcamp

Kalaha - Dragon Jenny

Artist: Kalaha
Title: Mama Ngoma
Label: Rump Recordings

https://rumprecordings.bandcamp.com/album/mama-ngoma

@therust feature on the track here: 
https://www.therustmusic.net/rust-blog/kalaha-mama-ngoma-premiere

The award winning and Gilles Peterson-approved Danish supergroup Kalaha - @Kalahamusic returns with their first release in almost two years: the EP 'Mama Ngoma'. 

The EP is first and foremost a tribute to West African traditions like Highlife and Afrobeat but mixed with the dance floor appeal of contemporary electronic music. 

The backbone of the band comes from the outrageous drumming of Emil de Waal, who's improvisational attitude is known to astound audiences around the world, alongside the finely balanced guitar of Niclas Knudsen, who has been studying and refining African techniques for more than a decade now. 

On top of this, the two highly regarded electronic producers and synth wizards, @Rumpistol & @Spejderrobot, take the band to new musical hemispheres by adding layers through extra-terrestrial synths, analogue effects and spaced out samples. 

The electronic aspect of the EP is further expanded with two remixes from NYC-based MALAKAI and Danish rising star Bwoy de Bhajan. 

The EP is accompanied by an animated video directed by the group's art director Zven Balslev, and in the spring of 2019 follows an entire album titled 'Mandala'.

The EP has had early support from The Rust Music (US), Jay Scarlett (DE/Puls), Mathieu Schreyer (US/KCRW), Descroix (DK/Iboga), P8 Jazz (DK), Dancefloor Mayhem (US), Synths of Eden (DE), Pouled'or (DE), Radio Prun (F), Mantra Radio at CITR FM (CAN), Dubmission (US), Heartbeats (DK), The Slow Music Movement (UK), O Dominio Dos Deuses (PT), Hakan Tamar (TU) & Mushpost Radio on WAXX.FM (US/James Cook).

Mama Ngoma

Kalaha - Mama Ngoma

The award winning and Gilles Peterson-approved Danish supergroup Kalaha returns with their first release in almost two years: the EP 'Mama Ngoma'. 

The EP is first and foremost a tribute to West African traditions like Highlife and Afrobeat but mixed with the dance floor appeal of contemporary electronic music. 

The backbone of the band comes from the outrageous drumming of Emil de Waal, who's improvisational attitude is known to astound audiences around the world, alongside the finely balanced guitar of Niclas Knudsen, who has been studying and refining African techniques for more than a decade now. 

On top of this, the two highly regarded electronic producers and synth wizards, Rumpistol & Spejderrobot, take the band to new musical hemispheres by adding layers through extra-terrestrial synths, analogue effects and spaced out samples. 

The electronic aspect of the EP is further expanded with two remixes from NYC-based MALAKAI and Danish rising star Bwoy de Bhajan. 

The EP is accompanied by an animated video directed by the group's art director Zven Balslev, and in the spring of 2019 follows an entire album titled 'Mandala'. 

Track by Track 

The EP kicks off with the catchy and highly danceable 'Mama Ngoma', which combines African mud huts with epic science fiction. We then reach the hypnotic horn attack of 'Cape Star', featuring wonderful guitar work from Knudsen, before the West Coast inspired 'Malaika' leads into an outro that’s like Talking Heads, if David Byrne was replaced by a Speak&Spell computer! 

Fourth track and first single 'Dragon Jenny' shows the band in more mellow and reflective territories without losing their groove. The track has already received airplay around the world. 

To finish things off we're proud to have the NYC-based producer MALAKAI present his dubsteppy anagram remix of 'Malaika', before rising star Bwoy de Bhajan spoils us with his minimalistic take on 'Cape Star', reminiscent of some of Shackletons earlier percussion-driven work. 

The EP has had early support from The Rust Music (US), Jay Scarlett (DE/Sound Supreme/Puls), Mathieu Schreyer (US/KCRW), Descroix (DK/Iboga), P8 Jazz (DK), The Slow Music Movement (UK), Dancefloor Mayhem (US), Synths of Eden (DE), Pouled'or (DE), Radio Prun (F), Mantra Radio at CITR FM (CAN), Dubmission (US), Heartbeats (DK), O Dominio Dos Deuses (PT), Hakan Tamar (TU) & Mushpost Radio on WAXX.FM (US/James Cook). 

QUOTES ABOUT KALAHA: 

"Truly enlightening and inviting" - Mike Stukes / Mystic Vybes / WHCR 90.3 FM (US) 

"What a great EP. Nice work" - The Slow Music Movement Radio Show (UK) 

“Brilliant Album! Very tropical again!” – Gilles Peterson / BBC 6 / Worldwide FM (UK) 
“Kalaha transport fans into another world” – Earmilk.com (US) 

“A dance hall in outer space” – Jazz Special (DK) 

“A wide tapestry of colours that will fill the palette of choice sound selectors. Big on cultural essence & bass rhythms.” – Jay Scarlett / Sound Supreme, PULS Radio (DE) 

“Truly a genre bending performance in the best way possible, music from the future, a flashing stage, and an absolutely mental drummer” – Pouledor (DE)  

“Kalaha never chose the easy solutions. With humor and understanding the four inventive musicians put their tracks on fire.” – Jazznyt.com (DK) 
credits

Malaika

The seventh mix in our LostinSound.Live Sunday.Salutations mix submission series features the rusty sounds of MALAKAI.

Listen to more of MALAKAI here: @malakaimusic therust

MALAKAI - LiS Sunday.Salutations Mix EP07

Recorded the 25th July 2018
Follow Boom Festival Radio Podcast on feeds.feedburner.com/boomfestival/radio
https://www.boomfestival.org

Descroix:
https://soundcloud.com/descroix

Chill Out Gardens - EP 08 - Boom Festival 2018

Descroix - Chill Out Gardens 08 - Boom Festival 2018

♬ Click for more ☞ http://trndmusik.de/2019/04/i-was-totally-amazed-with-the-sound-of-the-band-sidirum-and-his-remix-of-kalahas-dragon-jenny/

⚡ Follow us on YouTube ☞ https://www.youtube.com/c/TrndmusikDe
🌃 Follow us on Spotify ☞ https://spoti.fi/2jzGmv2

Get SidiRum's remix on @rump Recordings here: 
➟ Bandcamp: https://bit.ly/2IxCZTN

The album „Mandala“ gives you the sound of @kalahamusic as we’ve previously heard it on their two preceding albums – the live album “Hahaha” and the Danish Music Award-winning “Masala” – and from the many concerts the band has played all over the world since their debut at the Strøm Festival in 2013, but with the added dimension that Kalaha have invited the whole world in during the recording of “Mandala”. (...) @sidirum and Bluetech created two remixes. We talked with SidiRum about his version of „Dragon Jenny“. (...)

🎧 More Music in our Playlists on Spotify ⤵
💃 Dance: https://spoti.fi/2FjcR9k
⚡ Deep House: https://spoti.fi/2JVCgJH
🌃 Disco: https://spoti.fi/2qMavuY
🍍 Downtempo: https://spoti.fi/2K0w7vN
 👯‍♀️ Electronica: https://spoti.fi/2qJt0A9
💥 Tech House: https://spoti.fi/2vrVN0W
🌌 Techno: https://spoti.fi/2qMRUOy

🐧 trndmsk's weekly Spotify charts: https://spoti.fi/2sgrlms

Click for more ♬

Kalaha - Dragon Jenny (SidiRum Remix)

My remix for the amazing Danish vocal group @ikivocal is up on soundcloud :-)
The original track was produced by @mikesheridan and can be found on IKI's last album "Oracle" which is highly recommended.
The remix will be released on all digital platforms tonight at midnight (CET).
https://orcd.co/iki_rumpistol-reflex_remixed

IKI - Reflex (Rumpistol Remix) - OUT MARCH 27th 2020

https://lnk.to/QSempcpe

“(There is no) There There” is the first single from Rumpistol's upcoming sixth album “After the Flood”, out later this year on ØEN REC.

The track and the album as a whole represents a significant creative shift towards a more classical and analogue sound partly due to Rumpistol suffering a stress-related burnout, which forced him to work in a completely new, minimalistic manner away from computer screens.

The new compositions all stem from composing on the piano. Therapeutically, as well as artistically, this turned out to be rewarding, which is evident when listening to “(There is no) There There”, which has an uplifting, ethereal quality to it, yet remains tangible, almost tactile, in its use of organic, non-electronic instruments and textures.

Rumpistol also invited other artists and musical instruments to join in: Mike Sheridan plays an old french glass organ called 'Cristal Baschet' in addition to Line Felding on cello, Maria Jagd on violin and Emil de Waal on drums.

During his burnout Jens went on walks around his city and if you listen closely you can hear how Jens' own field recordings of Copenhagen's many construction sites blend with the other instruments of the track.

Jens says about the track:

"The track deals with the feeling of being an alien in your own city - and in your own mind. Not to be able to recognize your own backyard, due to the constant development and gentrification going on. The title is inspired by the book "There There" by Tommy Orange who got his title from American novelist Gertrude Stein."

Piano, würlitzer, synths & guitar: Jens B. Christiansen
Violin: Maria Jagd
Cello: Line Felding
Drums: Emil de Waal
Mike Sheridan: Cristal Baschet
Artwork : Thomas Lyngfeldt Skov

The release was supported by KODA KULTUR.

(There is no) There There

(There is no) There There - OUT JUNE 04th, 2020

Danish supergroup collides electronic sounds with African and Turkish vibes to explore new musical hemispheres.

"Brilliant Album! Very tropical" - Gilles Peterson / BBC Radio 6 Music.

What kind of music would emerge if you combined a pair of renowned Danish electronic producers with two of the most exciting jazz musicians around?
This was the question in the minds of the Copenhagen Strøm Festival curators. The answer? It arrived in the form of Scandinavian electro pioneers Rumpistol and Spejderrobot—two prominent characters with a reputation well beyond their home countries—along with guitarist Niclas Knudsen and drummer/percussionist Emil de Waal. These four talented strangers, introduced with minimal rehearsal time, were brought together and launched onstage, and KALAHA was born. A daring experiment to say the least.

From the spontaneous and infectious magic of their first show came their critically acclaimed debut album “Hahaha”, the sound taking its inspiration in equal parts from West-African funk, electro rave and jazz improvisation, standing up as best possible blending of musical worlds—highly energetic and expressive, triggering the listener to dance with the head just as much as the heart.

Online Music Magazine Earmilk.com says it best with its statement: 
“KALAHA transport fans into another world”

Their four releases to date have proved to be captivating experiences, epitomized by their distinctive sound design as well as the outstanding instrumental contributions of the protagonists. It comes as no surprise that their albums not only gather constant acclaim in among vinyl connoisseurs, but have also brought KALAHA a Danish Music Award in 2017 as well as a place on the playlists of numerous European radio stations. 

The renowned DJ and BBC host Gilles Peterson has said the following about the album ”Masala”: 

"Very tropical again! You can hear that African lo-fi influence on the whole album" 

However many records they put out, though, they were born on stage, and it’s in a live setting that their music rises to another level. In over 100 shows KALAHA have created a state of euphoria among audiences who might never have otherwise thought they could ever dance so hard to music with a jazz influence!

Previous shows:
Boomtown Fair (UK), Psy-Fi Festival (NL), SPOT Festival (DK), Peter-Weiss-Haus, Rostock (DE), Tampere Jazz Festival (SF), Copenhagen Jazz Festival (DK), Jarasum Jazz Festival (KO), OCT-LOFT Jazz Festival (CH), Nordischer Klang Festival, Greifswald (DE), STUK Leuven (BE), Beursschouwburg, Bruxelles (BE), Kukuun, Hamburg (DE), DADA Bar Beijing (CH), Pizza Express Jazz Club, Soho, London (UK), Kristianstad/Åhus Jazzfestival (SE), Det Turkise Telt, Aarhus (DK), Hotel Cecil, Copenhagen (DK), Alice, CPH (DK)

Malaika

Kalaha

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