In memory of Mark Hollis. 4 January 1955 - 25 February 2019.

Talk Talk & Mark Hollis

Que No

Taken from Hundreds' new album "Aftermath" (Deluxe Edition).

Hundreds:
hundredsmusic.com
soundcloud.com/hundreds
facebook.com/hundredsmusic

DNKL:
dnkl.eu
soundcloud.com/dnkl
facebook.com/dnklofficial

Hundreds - Aftermath
sinnbus.de/sr051

LP – smarturl.it/aftermathlpa
CD – smarturl.it/aftermathcda
Deluxe CD – smarturl.it/aftermathdlxcda
Digital: smarturl.it/aftermathdigi

Hundreds - Rabbits On The Roof (DNKL Remix)

Wait Til I Get Over

Lord Have Mercy

Back to Black (Original Motion Picture Score)

Dublin Castle

Mr Bongo proudly presents the debut album from Tasmania-born, Melbourne-based, Finn Rees. Gliding across a swirling palette of saturated hues, Dawn Is A Melody feels vintage yet vibrant, new but familiar at the same time. A spiritual, deep and textured jazz record, tipping its hat to greats from the past, capturing memories and reformulating them into new ideas with the help of some of Melbourne’s finest talent.

Expert keys player for the likes of 30/70 and Elle Shimada, alongside one-half of Close Counters, this debut LP was Finn’s conscious departure from the realm of groove-based jazz. Instead, Dawn Is A Melody places the piano and arrangements centre stage, giving Finn and his fellow Melbourne crew freedom to explore the spaces in between, new emotions and alternate soundscapes.

In Finn’s own words: “My intention with Dawn Is A Melody was to create a world; a microcosm of colour. Something rich and beautiful that allowed the melodies and compositions to reach their full potential. It was driven by hope, curiosity and the search for beauty and reassurance in this ever-changing world. The emotion behind the music is really about the journey of life, growing up and changing, as well as my relationship with Tasmania’s natural landscapes where I grew up, a part of the world that is incredibly unique and beautiful.”

The album arcs between opening, middle and end. Beginning with the optimism of ‘Looking Up’ and ‘Lagoon’, the former a celestial, string and harp marbled slice of positivity, the latter a spiritual journey of exuberance and hope, Finn’s fingers dancing across the ‘70s Yamaha grand piano. From there the songs blossom outwards with the cinematic soulful journey of ‘It’s Behind Me Now’ and Brazilian-inspired ‘Expansion’, as the divine ‘Crossing’ signals a transition to a new realm. The energy is transformed from the rich cosmic textures to a more intimate and personal feeling with ‘Ablaze’, ‘Between Spaces’ and ‘As It Passes’ which blissfully fades down to simply piano and strings to close out the record.

Recorded at Rolling Stock in Collingwood, Melbourne, Henry Jenkins was drafted in as recording and mix engineer, his minimal vintage mic setups giving a live aesthetic and warmth to the arrangements. Lucky Pereira and Blakely McLean Davies form the rock-solid rhythm section, with a hand-picked line-up of other Melbourne talent on display, including Cheryl Durongpitikul on tenor sax, Siwei Wong on harp, Audrey Powne on trumpet and Allysha Joy on vocals to name only a few.

Plotting a course from Alice Coltrane, through Herbie Hancock, to Arthur Verocai, this is a debut nourished by the past but firmly made in the present. A record unable to be age-stamped, casting ambiguity as to when, what era and by whom it has been crafted. Like a vintage lens capturing a current scene, Dawn Is A Melody is warm and familiar yet focused on the here now.

Finn Rees - Horizons

Dimba Diangola - Fuma

Mark Hollis

The Daily Planet

The Party's Over

Today (1997 Remaster)

It's My Life

Dum Dum Girl (1997 Remaster)

Such a Shame (1997 Remaster)

The Colour of Spring

Life's What You Make It (1997 Remaster)

Give It Up (1997 Remaster)

Hot Shots

Swing 42 (2015 Remaster) [feat. Romane & Jon Larsen]

Download / Support the artists: https://shikashika.bandcamp.com/album/eco-v-a

We celebrate two years of Shika Shika with the release of our third compilation: Eco. 

Eco sums up what Shika Shika is about - the global reverberations of styles, genres, traditions and sounds moving around the world and fusing to create inspiring new music. We call it music without borders and on Eco we present 11 tracks that are exactly that. 

The tracks we hand-picked for Eco draw inspiration from traditional rhythms, stories and melodies and fuse them with individual inspirations, sounds from nature and electronic music. This is exemplified on Di Laif’s anthemic opener “Paso Por el Fuego” or Guazú’s incredible “Pava de Monte” featuring Wenceslada. Some artists like Jin Jerei and Oxhalá take us on a journey deep into their roots while others like Didacte and O.R. create atmospheric textural, electronic-organic soundscapes. Ibu Selva’s “Chega de Esperar” is a rework of a Brazilian agrarian reform anthem while Klik & Frik offer up a beautiful edit of Hassan Ben Jaafar, a master of Moroccan Gnawa music. 

It is hard to believe it has been two years since Shika Shika was started as a platform to showcase some of the music we truly loved from the thriving community from Sao Paulo to Seoul. Two years of connections, exchanges, ideas, new sounds and, most of all, incredible support and feedback from the people who listen & buy this music all over the world. We started Shika Shika as a way to give exposure and support to this community, sharing 70% of all the profits with the artists directly, and are inspired to continue pushing the music we love. 

Thank you to everyone who has supported us so far. We all appreciate it dearly. 

¡Here’s to labels without owners for music without borders! 
credits

Shika Shika Presents: Eco

Lokal Affair and Stanisha - Hamasat

The Daily Planet

Mark Hollis

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