For the first time in more than a decade, Paul St. Hilaire (AKA Tikiman) presents a solo album – 100% Tiki. 

Over his 30-plus year career, St. Hilaire has become one of dance music’s quietly legendary figures. Born and raised in the Caribbean island Dominica, he moved to Berlin in 1994 and has lent both his voice and his musicianship to some of the most iconic electronic music from the German capital – and beyond. Renowned for his collaborations with Moritz von Oswald and Mark Ernestus (AKA Rhythm & Sound), he has also appeared on records with Deadbeat, Rhauder, Larry Heard aka Mr. Fingers and Stereotyp (G-Stone Recordings), amongst others. 

However, few know the extent of St. Hilaire’s compositional and technical mastery. From his home studio in Kreuzberg, which includes an extensive collection of vintage hardware, self-built instruments and notebooks scribbled with endless lyrics, he has created a vast archive of material spanning ambient dub, avant-jazz, lush techno and lovers rock. 

Tikiman Vol. 1 is a heady, downtempo tour de force of patois metaphors on education, displacement and personal vs. global histories, as is evident on slippy album opener “Bedroom in My Bag”: Mister, mister / Where are you going? / I’m heading for a faraway land / What are you having in the bag in your hand? / Help us to understand / He said, I’ve got my bedroom in my bag. 

Overall, the album’s lyrics reflect on life between Berlin and Dominica, specifically St. Hilaire’s hometown of Grand Bay, where he has worked with various musicians famous for the island’s different genres of carnival music. St. Hilaire himself always favoured the island’s more “discrete” music, developing a sonic synergy between two different geographical strains of groove and minimalism, and combining them with foundational Caribbean mixing techniques, which provide the basis for his songwriting and distinct baritone. 

Tikiman Vol.1 offers a rare insight into St. Hilaire’s complex artistry, from the eyes-down grooves of “Little Way” and the guitar-heavy digi dancehall experiment “Keep Safe,” to the subtle hypnosis of “Ten to One” and the softly crashing synth waves of closer “Three and a Half”, evoking not only beaches but also coasts and borders. It’s a fitting expression of both the breadth of St. Hilaire’s work, as well as his history as one of the few black, Berlin-based artists who, despite remaining largely overlooked, has influenced the city’s electronic music culture since its beginnings. 

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Kynant Records was founded in 2015 by Richard Akingbehin, a British-Nigerian radio programmer (Refuge Worldwide), music writer and DJ. Originally specialising in deep techno and featuring artists such as Cio D’Or, Terrence Dixon and Donato Dozzy, Kynant has since launched a sub-label Kynant EX which focuses on ambient, dub and experimental electronics. 

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Distributed by N.E.W.S 
Mastered by Stefan Betke 
Artwork by Grant Gibson 

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Supported by Initiative Musik gGmbH with project funds from the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and Media.

D1 Paul St. Hilaire - In Door

@secondcousins
@mood-hut

BC: https://secondcousin.bandcamp.com/album/homesoon

On New Year's morning, Cousin took a weary-eyed walk... ‘HomeSoon’ he thought, whilst cutting to the path by the Angophora Forest. As he made it down to the overgrown sidewalk, he caught a sudden sense of warmth from the surrounding flora. On closer focus, it was as if the plants and flowers had come alive...pulsing forward down the path as they bounced, smiled, and sneered all around him. Against logic, he was struck by an almost Garsonian desire to communicate with them.

This feeling lingered, persisting through several studio sessions. The music written over this period makes up this EP. How directly this experience informed the music is hard to say. What effect it had on the surrounding plant life is even harder to tell… we do hope, however, through listening to it, you’re a little more tuned in to them.
credits

HomeSoon

pi pi pi premiere: Cousin - Citta (Mood Hut)

Donato Dozzy - Magda - Spazio Disponibile - Spazio028

buy vinyl: https://www.spaziodisponibile.net/release/8583/
buy digital: https://donatodozzy.bandcamp.com/album/magda

a1. Velluto
a2. Magda
b1. Le Chaser
c1. Franca
c2. Santa Cunegonda
d1. Lucrezia

@Donato-Dozzy presents his next studio album entitled ‘Magda’. An emotional hommage to family and the Adriatic Sea. Over the course of six tracks he explores colorful emotions and sounds connecting to his deepest inner feelings. Speaking through music and showing gratitude to his auntie, one of the strongest women in Donato’s life and a real life teacher.

Spazio028 - Donato Dozzy - Magda/Le Chaser/Lucrezia snippets

Twenty years after its original release, Paul St. Hilaire (AKA Tikiman) & René Löwe’s eternal classic Faith is being reissued for the first time, giving new life and the first digital release to one of the most beloved dub techno 12”s of all time.

Available on 12” vinyl and digital from May 10, 2024.

A Faith (Vox Mix) 8:56
B Faith (No Vox Mix) 8:35

Written & produced by Paul St. Hilaire & René Löwe.
Mastered by Moritz von Oswald. Distributed by N.E.W.S.
Artwork by Grant Gibson.
Originally released by False Tuned (2003).

Smile

Rhythm & Sound