"Whisky, please" !!! Finest stuff here ... ^^

3. Distraction

Timing's End

Rebecca Vasmant - Timing's End

This release is a special one; a moment where the two halves of the Mr Bongo record label unite, our heritage re-issues and our contemporary artists roster. 

Minoru Muraoka’s 'The Positive and the Negative’ is a firm favourite at Mr Bongo. It sees a master of the shakuhachi, a traditional bamboo Japanese flute, flex his prodigious skill resulting in a unique mix of breakbeat jazz and Japanese folkloric music. 'The Positive and the Negative’ featured on the 1970 'Bamboo’ album, which Mr Bongo reissued in 2019. Heralded by DJ Shadow, Cut Chemist, Egon, and many others. The record’s cult status had us thinking how could we pay further homage to a sublime track such as this. The opportunity came to us in an email from Melbourne’s Surprise Chef with a link to the fabulous reinterpretation of the track which they had just recorded. 

"Minoru Muraoka’s ‘Bamboo’ LP has long been a fixture in our record bags, mostly for the killer shakuhachi funk cut The Positive and The Negative. The record is possibly our favourite from Mr Bongo’s extensive catalogue of reissues, and certainly the most influential to Surprise Chef; The Positive and the Negative’s cinematic atmosphere paired with the wonky drum feels and dramatic performance makes it a near-perfect amalgamation of what we try to capture on Surprise Chef records. We’ve borrowed an element or two from the tune over the last few albums (such as the percussion on ‘The Limp’), so it felt right to go head first into reinterpreting the entire track for ourselves. We recorded the tune in Karate Boogaloo’s attic studio with our man Henry Jenkins at the controls and Hudson Whitlock on percussion. We spent an entire day trying to get the take; we felt such a deep responsibility to capture the intensity of the original, we must have done 20 or 30 takes before we were finally happy. We stuck a fork in it late into the night, satisfied that we’d had our best crack at paying homage to a masterpiece by the great Minoru Muraoka.” - Surprise Chef

Forged in their signature sound, "The Chef" have made 'The Positive and the Negative' their own whilst simultaneously treating the original with utmost respect. The shakuhachi and koto have been replaced by synths and guitars, but the breakbeat psychedelic vein flows richly through both instruments  

The 7" vinyl format was the right fit for this release, so the original Minoru Muraoka recording which clocks in over nine minutes has been edited into a 7” version to accompany Surprise Chef’s new take.

A. Surprise Chef - The Positive And The Negative

'The Children of Scorpio’ is the first single and title track from Project Gemini’s forthcoming album. Project Gemini, aka Paul Osborne, has created a cinematic musical journey that plays out like a long-lost soundtrack (think cult B-movies of the 60s and 70s); 'The Children of Scorpio’ was formed from Paul's love of a myriad of genres; from European library music, acid folk, psych-funk, vintage soundtracks and the contemporary breaks scene. 

The single ’The Children of Scorpio' started life as a demo 12 years ago, when Paul's time playing in various bands had come to an end and he started recording music at his home studio. Paul took inspiration from many sources including his obsession with Lalo Schifrin’s soundtrack to the Clint Eastwood film, 'Dirty Harry’, and artists like David Axelrod and his work on The Electric Prunes 'Release of an Oath’ LP. Paul channelled these influences into his creation, titled it in a nod to the villain in 'Dirty Harry', shelved it and moved on. 

After the release of his first single as Project Gemini in 2019 Paul decided to start work on an album project and revisited the original demo. He described the process, “I stripped it right back to its bare bones and started reconstructing it from scratch (although the vocals and middle guitar break survived from that original 2010 demo), and once I’d nailed the bass sound it all came together. Haifa-based multi-instrumentalist Shuzin brought some serious heat on the drums, and Barrie Cadogan, aka Little Barrie, put the icing on the cake by adding the solo you hear at the tail end of the track. It turned out to be the creative trigger for the whole album, and for that reason, it’s a really important track for me personally.”

Download

Project Gemini - The Children Of Scorpio

A bright, vibrant feel with a mix of brass and pop elements.

Radiant Rhythms

On The Expansions - Murmuration: 
"A stunning astral journey into soulful sonics from the South London quartet." Stamp The Wax

"This quartet rides high on a rich jazz-funk tradition that’s making inroads into contemporary dance music left, right and centre." The Vinyl Factory

"The time and craftsmanship on Murmuration is evident from the off... This is a group of music heads doing what they love. We love it too." The Lonely Table

Huey Morgan, Record Of The Week, BBC Radio 6 Music

=========

 
Mosaic is a heavy new three-track EP from a band whose reputation exploded this spring with the release of debut album Murmuration. 

Lead track Mosaic is full of the warmth of this heatwave-summer, syncopation and groove in abundance. Driving melodic lines and keyboard atmospherics suddenly give way to one of James O’Keefe’s most powerful guitar solos to date, wild and psychedelic. 

Transcoso brings you the down-tempo magic that they have become so much loved for. Heavily inspired by Azimuth, an hypnotic beat from drummer Jonny Drop eventually builds to a euphoric, almost slow disco climax for the final section. 

And finally, Mariposa is a timely tribute. Debuted at their London album launch this take on the Freeez classic (although the live version in particular) explores a little more of the South London, Brit Funk influences that really drive the band.

B1. The Expansions - Mariposa (Mosaic EP)

Karl Hector And The Malcouns - Mother Seletta (Single Edit)

'Cracks', the sixth track off ‘Weightless’, the second LP from London-based soul/jazz ensemble Teotima, is an example of their fresh and captivating sound which spans the Atlantic from the African continent to Brazil, the Caribbean, the USA and London. 

"The work of being happy — like learning an instrument or a language — feels like something you need to maintain and do regularly", explains musical director and guitarist Greg Sanders.  

 "In the music there’s a lot of times where people are following the written music, but I also try and make sure that there’s plenty of space for improvisation and solos and interaction. So you’re creating the space and conditions for spontaneity and joy by using structure."

Weightless

Premiere: Teotima - Cracks

Atlantic Oscillations

Tierra Mama (feat. Nidia Góngora)

Record Label.
Platform for musical discovery.
Amane's - Moments Of Solace out now!
 Bandcamp ⬇️ 

Get in touch: Musica_macondo@hotmail.com

Premiere: Teotima - Cracks

Música Macondo

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Premiere: Teotima - Cracks

Música Macondo

Recent comments

Alma Negra

~~ AntizénitH ~~

Bahla (UK)

nerstylist

Related tracks

AntizénitH