Name: Los Kenya - Record En T.V. by Olindo Records in Oups!
Duration: 4 min 10 s
Description: Olindo Records sister label Música Infinita presents the raw and uncompromising Afro Latin sound of Ray Perez and Los Kenya, one of the most interesting groups to spring out of the Venezuelan salsa scene in the late sixties, with a brand new remaster of their debut album ‘Siempre Afro-Latino’ set for release on May 27.

Oups!

Olindo Records sister label Música Infinita presents the raw and uncompromising Afro Latin sound of Ray Perez and Los Kenya, one of the most interesting groups to spring out of the Venezuelan salsa scene in the late sixties, with a brand new remaster of their debut album ‘Siempre Afro-Latino’ set for release on May 27.

Siempre Afro-Latino

Los Kenya - Record En T.V.

Kalita are proud to unveil the first ever compilation focussing on the phenomenon of ‘Burger Highlife’, a crossover of West African melodies with synthesizers, disco and boogie that took over Ghanaian airwaves during the 1980’s and beyond. Highlighting key recordings from genre-defining artists including Thomas Frempong and George Darko, as well as more obscure sought-after tracks by elusive bands such as Aban and Uncle Joe’s Afri-Beat, Kalita come to the rescue of audiophiles, DJs and music-lovers alike with ‘Borga Revolution!’ Spread over a double-LP housed in a gatefold sleeve. Accompanied by a 16-page booklet featuring extensive interview-based liner notes on each artist and never-before-seen archival photos.

The 1970s had witnessed an increased Western airtime and physical presence in Ghana introducing funk, soul and disco sounds to the region. By the turn of the decade the country was also enduring economic turmoil, with rising poverty, military dictatorships and long periods of enforced curfews (amongst other factors) making it impossible for artists to survive.

As a result, many Ghanaian artists with a broader outlook began to pursue their careers in the West, moving to both Europe and America in search of stardom. It was here that Ghanaian musicians developed a digitised version of highlife music which fully embraced Western contemporary music styles and newly introduced technology such as the DX7 synthesizer and various drum machines.

It is in this context in which the evolution of Ghanaian dance music and the emergence of ‘burger highlife’ was born. With ‘Borga Revolution!’ Kalita endeavour to tell this story, with prominent and lesser-known musicians’ accounts and documentary evidence providing a comprehensive understanding of this shift to the digital age.

Borga Revolution! Ghanaian Dance Music In The Digital Age, 1983 - 1992 (Volume 1)

Mada Meho So

Buy Here!

A2. Thomas Frempong - Mada Meho So

New week, new premiere - we follow up last week's Henry Keen premiere with this sample-heavy 4/4 cut from Darran P, with elements of vibraphone peppering the mix to great effect... his "Into The Light" EP will be out July 21st!  Shout out to Minor Notes Recordings!

UK based DJ & Producer Darran P returns to Minor Notes with his first full artist offering. Into The Light EP kicks things off with a jazz drenched deep house vibe. This release contains 4 original tracks from Darran + 2 remixes from Russian producers SIL and Tsktch. 

Jazzmatazz is a low slung affair which veers off into darker territory mid-way through the rhythmic excursion. Next up is a track entitled ‘It Was All So Simple’ a sample-heavy 4/4 cut with elements of vibraphone peppering the mix to great effect. About A boy switches the tempo up slightly with a heavy beat-laden exotic sound which has a familiar vibe throughout. Finally, the EP finishes with Skyline Blvd, a track that has a hypnotic groove and a wandering baseline. The track was inspired by the drive along the pacific coast highway to San Francisco.

We are super happy to have this long awaited release on our board and push very different music which we are very inspired by.

Web / Social Media Links:
https://soundcloud.com/darranp
https://www.facebook.com/darranpownall
https://www.instagram.com/darranpownall/

https://soundcloud.com/minornotes
https://www.facebook.com/minornotesmusic
https://www.instagram.com/minornotesmusic/
https://minornotesrecordings.bandcamp.com/

[PREMIERE] Darran P - It Was All So Simple

Always a pleasure to get a new episode from our dear friend TAHIRA, the talented DJ / tastemaker from Sao Paolo never disappoints! Here is the summer edition of his radio residency with MIMS. 

Wishing you all a great summer. Make the moments count!

TUDO BEM #12 — Hosted by Tahira (Sao Paulo, Brasil)

Once again, today's premiere comes from the increasingly fervent musical shores of Australia.  Up to bat this time is David Versace, a keyboardist, producer and composer from Meanjin, Queensland, who you may have heard with First Beige, and his samba-soaked dancefloor jazz heater, "Saguaro".

"Saguaro" is taken from his forthcoming debut LP 'Okra', for La Sape Records, about which David tell us “I’ve wanted to write this album for a long time but didn’t really know how to go about it, the writing began in early 2020 however, I was feeling like my ideas weren’t really sounding like what I had imagined in my head. I wanted the album to sound live, bright and loose so I decided that the best way to tackle it was to get in a room with a really strong rhythm section and build the tracks from the ground up.

In November 2021 I had a recording session at my friend Sampology’s studio with Jasper Gundersen on Drums and Luis Manuel on Percussion, there were some pre written chords and grooves but most of it was just feeling it out and signalling to each other when we change up the rhythms. A bit later I re- tracked the piano and laid down some bass and synth parts. My good homie Julia Beiers tracked bass for the first track "Summer Party" and then I got in an extraordinary trumpet player Curtis Scibilia to take the lead lines and do some solos.

The combination of musicians on this record was really the catalyst for its unique sound, it’s sweet and sombre yet has moments of rage and intensity. Although a lot of the record was recorded over a month, my main goal was to make the listener really feel like you are there in the room. This is where I had to really think about the production and mixing side of things. It all joins and lows together as one continuous body of work and has a quite a roomy sound to it to stick that illusion of being there.”

Okra

Exclusive Premiere: David Versace "Saguaro" (Forthcoming on La Sape Records)

Ahead of their first London show since playing the main stage at We Out Here, this coming Friday at London’s Colour Factory, we are excited to share a special mix by TRC founder and NRO curator Lex Blondin celebrating the musical influences of London’s premier Latin jazz big band, New Regency Orchestra, featuring their brand new debut single,“Mambo Rama”.

Lex: “This mix is a bit of a tribute to Tito Puente , showcasing his compositions, intricate horn arrangements, and of course his amazing skills as a timbale player and soloist.  The lyrics in Eddie Palmieri's 'Bajo Con Tumbao' asks a very pertinent question whilst laying it all down:
 
I invite you to enjoy this tumbao bassline, rich and flavoursome
A rhythm flavored with cane, tobacco, honey and rum
I dedicate to the Caribbean soneros
This tumbao bass line
Who doesn't like this tumbao?
Who!?
But who doesn't like this tumbao?'
 
I'm also going all the way back to the originator of Mambo , the OG Arsenio Rodriguez with two of his deepest tracks. 'Chinito' and 'Esas No ' have such hip hop energy to me... These two are on the waiting list awaiting to get the NRO treatment. There's a few extravagant mambos with the don arranger Johnny Richards, all the way to 70's NYC salsa via Puerto Rico... That Orquesta Colon is so damn sophisticated and groovy that it might have to land in the NRO set too.. And a touch of mean cha cha's for good measure. In a nutshell the sound that I'm trying to pursue with the New Regency Orchestra.”
 
New Regency Orchestra play NE London’s Colour Factory on Friday 16 December, with support from DJs Desta, Bushbby, Alma de la Selva, Tim Garcia, Lex Blondin, and Cosmo Sofi.  Find the ticket link and full track list on the MIMS website, and more info below on NRO, direct from TRC / ¡COMO NO! 

Inspired by New York’s dynamic collision of jazz and Latin music from the 1950s to the 1970s, New Regency Orchestra grew from Lex Blondin’s “obsession” with record digging and the importance placed on creating community, two things at the heart of his work as founder of now studio/rehearsal space and former influential London live music venue, Total Refreshment Centre (TRC).

Having reconnected with percussionist Crispin Spry Robinson, at a session recorded at TRC in April 2021, Blondin and Robinson realised both shared the same dream of making an Afro-Cuban big band, fused with the sounds of contemporary London. They enrolled Cuban-Argentinian pianist/arranger Eliane Correa, and renowned arranger/composer & conductor Nathaniel Cross (SEED Ensemble, Zara McFarlane), to flesh out a high-energy, bustling setlist, brimming with Nuyorican basement club atmosphere. Seeking to pay homage to the sounds and Afro-Cuban musical saints of yesteryear but reinvent it through a 2021 London filter and present it to a new and engaged audience, New Regency Orchestra was born.

Featuring an eight-piece rhythm section and a storming twelve-piece horn section that includes trombonist Rosie Turton, saxophonist Tamar Osborn (Collocutor) & trumpeter Nick Walters (Ruby Rushton, Riot Jazz) alongside Latin music protagonists, Ernesto Marichales (timbales - Waaju, Yelfris Valdes, Ska Cubano), bongo player Flavio Correa, and bass player Frank Portuondo, New Regency Orchestra’s high-impact and dancefloor-inspired repertoire covers a uniquely fertile period between 1947-1979 for Afro-Caribbean big band experimentation.

With fresh arrangements on timeless classics written for each performance, and a lineup of London-based musicians raised on a steady diet of Coltrane, reggae/dub soundsystems & Pirate Radio, New Regency Orchestra breathe new life into decades-old music.

“We’re going to hit the refresh button every time. We’re going to come with new tunes, new edits, new soloists. Basically there are no limits. We want to surprise people and get creative. We might throw a grime MC right in the middle of it.” - Lex Blondin

MIMS Guest Mix: New Regency Orchestra (TRC + ¡COMO NO! / London, UK)

In celebration of Hip Hop's 50th year, we've teamed up with London based ‘Classic Material’ to present a chronologically themed series of mixtapes celebrating the history of recorded rap music, mixed by Chris Read. Edition #1 documents Hip Hop’s birth on wax and its formative years, 1979-1983, from the disco and boogie influenced sound of the late 70s through to the drum machine led tracks of the early 80s.

Tracklist:

1. Grandwizard Theodore & Chris Stein – Subway Theme
2. Chris Read – Theme #3 (Scratchapella)
3. Ronnie Gee – Raptivity
4. Xanadu & Sweet Lady – Rockers Choice
5. Master Rob – Live Convention ’82
6. Fearless Four – Rockin’ It
7. Double Trouble – Stoop Rap
8. Rickey G & Everlasting 5 – To The Max
9. Jimmy Spicer – Dollar Bill Y’all
10. Grandmaster Flash & Furious 5 – The Message
11. Grandmaster Flash & Furious 5 – New York, New York
12. Spoonie Gee – Spoonie is Back
13. Grandmaster Flash & Furious 5 – Flash to the Beat (Live)
14. Star Quality & Class – Betcha Got a Dude on the Side
15. Grandmaster Flash & Furious 5 – Super Rappin’
16. Afrika Bambaataa & Jazzy 5 – Jazzy Sensation
17. T-Ski Valley – Catch the Beat
18. The Sequence – Funk You Up
19. Grand Wizard Theodore – Can I Get a Soul Clap, Fresh Out the Pack
20. Nice & Nasty 3 – Ultimate Rap
21. Funky 4 Plus 1 – That’s The Joint (Instrumental)
22. Trouble Funk – Pump Me Up
23. Blondie – Rapture
24. Kurtis Blow – The Breaks
25. Wayne & Charlie the Rappin’ Dummy – Check It Out
26. Treacherous 3 – Put the Boogie In Your Body
27. Just Four – Jam to Remember
28. T-Ski Valley – Never Let Go
29. Master Rob – Live Convention ’82 (Excerpt)

#HIPHOP50: Classic Material Edition #1 Part 1 (1979-1983) mixed by Chris Read

Canela En Surco is celebrating our 200th show! An artist to whom we have been paying special attention to for more than two decades (buying his records and of course visiting and revisiting his sets in order to study them), Andrew Carthy aka Mr. Scruff has given us the best gift imaginable: letting us share with the world his incredible three-hour set from our sister label Escola Records' party at La Paloma with Pau Roca, Breixo, Ivy Barkakati and Oniria Sister this past Three Kings Day (January 6th). (Thanks Andy!!)

Known for his bold mixes, changing genres, times and latitudes, always with exquisite consistency and otherworldly skills, Mr. Scruff took the controls of Ecler's new WARM4 to give a three-hour DJing lesson that we can share with all of you today thanks to his generosity.

Thank you Andy, Louis, Ralph, Arnau, Fabio, Mario, Pau, Maxi, Ivy and everyone else involved in helping this mix come to light.

Canela En Surco 200 - Mr. Scruff Live at La Paloma (Barcelona) 06/01/2023

Check out Sufferer Sounds, a new compilation of rare dubs, roots, and lovers rock by Dennis Bovell, out now on Disciples: https://disciples.ffm.to/sufferersounds

This mix takes a deeper dive into some of Dennis' productions from a similar period to the compilation, also touching on his work with post-punk bands and reigning dub poet LKJ. Originally put together for General Echo Reggae Disco in 2018, revived for Disciples 2024. 

Tracklist:

Linton Kwesi Johnson - Reggae Sounds
Blackbeard - Strictly Dub
Dennis Bovell - Aqua Dub
Dennis Matumbi - Eye Water Dub
Dennis Bovell - Jughead Dubplate Mix
The Slits - Newtown
Garland Jeffreys - Escape Goat Dub
Errol Dunkley ft. Dreadful Julio - Differentah
Matumbi - Bluebeat & Ska (Version)
Bagga - Wishing On A Star
Marie Pierre - Can't Go Through (With Life)
Dennis Bovell - Dennis Bovells Speaks To Castro Brown
Matumbi - Pretender
Dennis Curtis - Come With Me
Winston Edwards - Kensington Palace Shakedown
The Pop Group - We Are Time

DISCMIX30 Dennis Dubs

From the self-titled album 'Pat Thomas & Kwashibu Area Band,' out June 15th on Strut. 

iTunes: http://geni.us/PatThomasKwashibu
Strut Store: http://bit.ly/PatThomasStrut

From the album liner notes:
‘Gyae Su’ is a rearrangement of an older song, with a guitar concept typical of the classic Kwa or Kumasi bands and an overall tropical style. Ebo Taylor’s horn arrangements evoke the classic Afro-funk vibe that he originally made famous. The lyrics are as catchy as they are plaintive, with Thomas comforting the listener, “Don’t cry! Life has its ups and downs. Just take it easy and don’t shed any tears.”

More from Strut:
https://www.facebook.com/StrutRecords
http://www.strut-records.com

Pat Thomas & Kwashibu Area Band

Gyae Su

Pat Thomas & Kwashibu Area Band - Gyae Su

New update of Ebo Taylor & Pat Thomas classic! Out on Strut July 10th (digital) and September 4th (12").

http://www.strut-records.com
http://www.facebook.com/StrutRecords

Ene Nyame (Henrik Schwarz Blend)

Ebo Taylor / Pat Thomas / Henrik Schwarz - Ene Nyame 'A' Mensuro (Henrik Schwarz Blend)

https://analogafrica.bandcamp.com/album/legend-of-funana-the-forbidden-music-of-the-cape-verde-islands

It is 1997. A quiet, unassuming man of 59 years old named Victor Tavares - better know as Bitori - walks into a recording studio for the first time. The result is a musical masterpiece - a recording which many consider to be the best Funaná album ever made.

Bitori´s musical adventure had begun long before this point. It was 1954 when he embarked on a journey across the seas to the island of Sao Tomé & Principe. The young man´s hope was to return to Cabo Verde with an accordion. 

Following two years of hard labour Bitori had succeeded in saving enough money to acquire what was to become his most valued possession, his cherished instrument. The two month journey back to Santiago, his island of birth, proved time enough to master it.

Self taught, Bitori developed his own style, an infectious blaze, that quickly caught the attention of the older generation. Before long Bitori was being asked to share his musical talents, igniting the local festivities around Praia with his music.

But not everybody welcomed the rural accordion-based sound. Perceived as a symbol of the struggle for Cape Verdean independence and frowned upon as music of uneducated peasants, Funaná was prohibited by the Portuguese colonial rulers. Performing it in public or in urban centres had serious consequences - often jail time and torture awaited musicians that were “caught in the act”. In light of such persecution the genre of Funaná began to slowly disappear.

In 1975 Cabo Verde achieved independence from Portuguese colonial rule. Along with Cabo Verde’s independence came a lifting of the ban placed on Funaná. The musical repercussions in Cabo Verde were plenty - many upcoming artists embraced Funaná, translating and adapting its musical form in new ways. It was not to be until the mid-1990’s, however, that Funaná in its traditional form was actually recorded.

It was a young singer from Tarafal, Chando Graciosa, who was to play a key role in this event. Upon hearing Bitori, Graciosa immediately felt drawn to Bitori's unique playing style - a raw and passionate sound accompanied by honest lyrics that reflected the harsh reality of the Cabo Verdean working class. He eagerly approached Bitori suggesting they join forces and travel overseas with the objective of taking Funaná beyond its rural roots.

The two of them, with others in tow, achieved their goal and travelled to Europe, introducing a receptive European audience to the vibrant energy of Funaná. Eventually Bitori returned to his beloved Cabo Verde. Graciosa opted to settle in Rotterdam in order to pursue his career - he vowed, however, to bring Bitori across to Holland at a later date to record an album.

In 1997 the time was ripe to immortalise the sound Bitori had shaped over a time span of four decades. Built around a formidable rhythm section, formed of drummer Grace Evora and bass player Danilo Tavares, "Bitori Nha Bibinha" was recorded. The recording catapulted Chando Graciosa to stardom, making him Cabo Verde´s No.1 interpreter of Funaná. The success in Cabo Verde was phenomenal and Funaná rapidly gained the recognition it deserved, especially in urban dance clubs. Bitori´s songs quickly became standards - classics known and loved throughout the country. The musical success, however, was solely limited to the Cabo Verdean islands - until now!

Analog Africa is proud to contribute to the worldwide promotion of Funaná - the once forbidden sound of the Cabo Verde archipelago - by releasing a worldwide re-issue of Bitori and Chando Graciosa´s legendary recording. 

The release will herald Bitori´s first European Tour taking place during the summer of 2016. Watch this space! And listen!

Legend of Funaná

Bitori - Bitori Nha Bibinha (Leave a comment for Victor Tavares aka "Bitori"....we will forward)

We present our first release of 2019 and the third in our initial Venezuelan trilogy of 45s. Featuring 2 original compositions by Caracas based multi-instrumentalist and composer Isaac Sasson with a remix on the flipside by London producer & drummer Hector Plimmer (Albert's Favourites).

Side A kicks off with "Paseo en un sueño", a short composition that reflects a dream that begins in the village of El Hatillo and ends at dawn in the hills of Caicaguana, its main theme is a beautiful flute melody played by Tomasito Garcia. As the instruments and vocals fade away, "Canción para mi familia, Venezuela" begins, with Isaac singing "esta melodia es especial para mi mamá, dedicada a mis abuelos, a mis hermanos y a mi papá". This song is a sort of mantra or prayer dedicated to Venezuela and Isaac's family and friends; its spiraling guitar riff and various percussion instruments quickly descending towards a chaotic state of bliss.

Hector Plimmer's remix on the B side reassembles elements from another Sasson original,  "Cantos Campesinos", focusing on a particular vocal motif. Hector retunes the rhythm to his purposes, building tension and borrowing a bell sound to raise it even further, before releasing a skittering drum pattern with plenty of swing and a heavy dose of low end. Before the song ends, Hector goes deeper, adding sensual synth chords and finally a flute-like synth solo to complete this musical trip that is surely destined to soundtrack a few hazy evenings this summer.

The music on this EP has been previously self-released by Isaac on his album "Memorias del canto campesino", but appears here for the first time on vinyl, limited to 300 copies.

Recorded at Estudios El Gran Misterio & Garabato Estudio. Caracas, Venezuela

Re-mastered for vinyl by Frank Merritt at The Carvery, London

Isaac Sasson - Paseo en un sueño / Canción para mi familia, Venezuela

 Noel Taylor- clarinet
 Ana Kaluza- alto sax
 Raul Monsalve- bass
 Pharoah Russell- drums

Splatter - Merciful end

TRACKLIST:

Betwixt The Humps – Sunchild

Love Song – Back East

Chow Chuns Theme – Lamont Johnson Quintet

I Like It Cool – Georges Arvanitas Jazz Quartet

Consciencism 1 Of 3 (Pt. 2) – Third World Trio

Dear John Coltrane – Michael S. Harper & Abdul Wadud

Young – Eugene Darrow

Jungle Drums – Xavier Cugat

Mozambique – The Luna Brothers Trio

Bimoko Magnin – Super Djata Band De Bamako

Since You Left – Sounds Of Time

Endless Love Affair – The Wickham Brothers

We’re Dreaming Oh Heaven – The Glory Bound Singers Of Doddsville, Mississippi

Let Us Pray – G.C.’S (Gospel Clouds)

I Think They Call It Love – Leon Davis

Paradise – Nimbiss

JELLY'S GROOVE - EPISODE #1

TRACK LIST:

Wake Up Brothers – Doug Hammond

Don’t Be Afraid – Sky’s The Limit

We Did It Baby (Pt. 1) – General Lee And The Space Army Band

Spaceslide – Michael White’s Magic Music Company

Freeway – Maurice Moore

Call Me Up – Al Diamond

One Monkey Don’t Stop No Show – Jessie Rogers

Bet You Wanna Dance – Mellaa

Track #4 – Le Allucinazioni

Diabolic Love – Fabio Fabor

Tropicola – Stringtronics (Nino Nardini)

Kryptoblues – Augusto Martelli

Opanigê – Eduardo Araújo E Silvinha

Onda – Cassiano

Unknown Jam – Azymuth

Yemanjá – Thelma Soares

Alias Buster Henry – Clifford Jordan

Little Bee’s Poem – Greg Adams

Requiem For Julian Cannonball Aderley – Fitz Gore & The Talismen

Assunta – Freddie Hubbard

JELLY'S GROOVE - EPISODE #7

Olindo Records is born in London from the music obsessives behind Colectivo Futuro, a cultural node where art forms and people converge. The collective is formed by a group of DJs, graphic designers, and artists who are committed to showcasing and collaborating with individuals and collectives that carry a passionate approach and a common aesthetic.

Los Kenya - Record En T.V.

Olindo Records

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