Que Mngwa Llegó // Mngwa has Arrived

Mngwa's new single shifts gears between Son Cubano, Hip hop, salsa, and psych.
B-side is a dub-fuelled re-imagining of Joe Arroyo's Colombian classic, Rebelión.

Rebelión

Pre-order (World)
LP/CD/Digital: bit.ly/2qoP6Xo
www.wonderwheelrecordings.com

Pre-order (Italy)
LP/CD: latempesta.bigcartel.com
Digital: apple.co/2qYKWsj
www.latempesta.org/international

Populous is Andrea Mangia, a producer hailing from Lecce, a small city on the heel of Italy's boot. In 2003, he made his first jaunt into the music world with the album Quipo (via Morr Music). In 2005 he released Queue For Love, influenced by his reggae/hip-hop-infused surroundings (Lecce is known as Italy's Jamaica, as reggae and dancehall are extremely popular there) and in 2008 he released Drawn in Basic. Both albums were widely received by international critics, earning him a spot on the global music map. He became known for the way he seamlessly blends digital sounds with the analog warmth of soul/hip-hop/whatever else he's influenced by at the time.

Azulejos, his forthcoming release, has a South American tinge to it (and is even partly in Spanish). He moved to Lisbon, Portugal to start work on the album bringing with him only a laptop, a small MIDI keyboard, and a microphone. "Lisbon became both my studio and my muse," he says. He wandered the city collecting field recordings— from trams to people singing on street corners. He sifted through flea markets for records to use for sampling (exclusively Portuguese and South American). Populous describes Lisbon as a city 'halfway between South American soul and European modernity, African in some aspects, and dramatically melancholic." He channeled these poignant fusions into Azulejos, named for the typical tiled facades in Portugal— simultaneously bright and decaying. The album features collaborations with Nina Miranda of Smoke City and Ela Minus, among others. It's a love letter to Lisbon, and a dreamy quilt of sounds he both grew up with and heard for the first time during his influential stay in Portugal.

Azulejos

Buy Digital/CD/LP

Populous - Batismo (feat. Riva)

2nd single taken from Msafiri Zawose's upcoming album "Uhamiaji", due for release on 1 September 2017.
https://Soundway.lnk.to/Uhamiaji

Uhamiaji

Stream & Buy

Msafiri Zawose - 'Pole Pole'

Welcome to the world of NIHILOXICA. A darker take on traditional Bugandan drumming. Comprised of seven percussionists, one kit drummer combined with an analog synth player. Recorded live in single takes at Boutiq Studios in Kampala, Uganda between the 26th and 29th of August 2017.

All tracks written by Jacob Maskell-Key and Peter Jones alongside Nilotica Cultural Ensemble
All tracks mastered at Declared Sound
Engineered by Ben Beheshty and Pete Jones at Boutiq Studios
Mixed by Peter Jones 
Graphics by Aleczandah

Mwanje Jamiru - Djembe
Kasooma Henry - Namunjoloba (Small Tom Drums)
Aineomugisha Alimansi - Shakers
Isabirye Henry - Bakisimba Drums (Bass Drums)
Kalanda Peter - Binghi
Galabuzi Edward - Engalabi (Long Drum)
Kayondo Herbert - Engalabi
Peter Jones - Synthesizers, Shaker, Cowbell
Jacob Maskell-Key - Drum Kit

Nihiloxica

Nihiloxica - 03 - Endongo

Originally from Yunnan, a Chinese province located almost on the same latitude as Jamaica, but on the other side of the globe, Kawa (another name given to the Wa ethnic group) was formed in 2015. Its music oscillates between reggae rhythmic or playful rhythm, the power of dub and rock, and it's fully inspired by their ethnic music.

Red Fur Tree - 红毛树

https://sitimuharam.bandcamp.com/album/sitis-of-unguja-romance-revolution-on-zanzibar

Muharam's golden timbre has been allowed to soar for the world to hear. On her song is carried the legacy, lyricism and odyssey of the 'Mother of Taarab', her Great Grand-mother, Siti Binti Saad.

The production of this album was able to reference Siti Binti Saad’s times and bring in the percussive Kidumbak: style and strip away Taarab’s formal layering to give a feel of the eclecticism of Zanzibar’s swahili street culture that influenced Siti Binti Saad.

Sam Jones’ production, and studio overdubs have let Siti Muharam’s golden voice ensure the legacy of swahili romance and music of her Great Grandmother live on.

'Siti' is an arabic prefix meaning 'lady' and this record reignites the passions of the trailblazing Siti Binti Saad and the golden timbre of Muharam, her descendant and heir apparent to a singular, artistic legacy.

This 'Siti's of Unguja' story begins with Siti Binti Saad's birth in 1890 in the small fishing village of Fumba (on Unguja, the main island of the Zanzibar archipelago) to parents who had been freed from slavery.

Siti's of Unguja

Ltd Vinyl on Bandcamp

Alaminadura

Minyo Crusaders rework historic Japanese folk songs (min'yō) with Latin, African, Caribbean and Asian rhythms and Kushimoto Bushi is a cumbia with a difference and the first single from their debut album “Echoes of Japan”, released 26 April on Mais Um.

With fans as diverse as Ry Cooder, Frente Cumbiero and Clap! Clap!, “Echoes of Japan” marks the arrival of a powerhouse ten-piece to rival any funk big band where the distinctive min'yō vocalisation of singer Freddie Tsukamoto glide over grooves that join the dots between cumbia, Ethiopian jazz, Thai pop, Afro funk and reggae.

“For Japanese people, min'yō is both the closest, and most distant, folk music” explains band-leader Katsumi Tanaka: “We may not feel it in our daily, urban lives, yet the melodies, the style of singing and the rhythm of the taiko drums are engrained in our DNA”.

Initially indifferent to min'yō, a tragic event in recent Japanese history set Tanaka on his current path: “Following the Tohoku earthquake of 2011, like many Japanese, I reflected on my life, work and identity. A fan of world music, I began searching for Japanese roots music I could identify with. Discovering mid-late 20th century acts Hibari Misora, Chiemi Eri and the Tokyo Cuban Boys, I was captivated by their eccentric arrangements and how they mixed min'yō with Latin and jazz.” Freddie fell for min'yō after hearing a song from his hometown on a TV competition whilst in a restaurant. It was a revelation - up till then he had been an aspiring jazz singer yet was uncomfortable singing in a foreign language. The restaurateur told him a min'yō teacher was his neighbour, and the rest is history.

2LP / CD: https://maisumdiscos.bandcamp.com/album/echoes-of-japan

Buy Album

Minyo Crusaders - Kushimoto Bushi

Macaroni

Ahomale

Brillo Más Que El Oro (La Bala Apuntándome)

Elevate

Trapezoid Dub

Olà

OLÀ

Psychedelia-infused Latin music for the strange new world •• MNGWA blends cumbia, salsa, psych rock, reggae, hip hop and more - creating something new and nebulous.

Rebelión

MNGWA

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