With their explosive melting pot of Afrobeat, Reggae, Hip-Hop and Dancefloor jazz, 10-piece ensemble THE STRIDES has already won over a steadfast following in Australia. After a lengthy series of gigs that includes supporting afrobeat legend Tony Allen and becoming a headline act at both the Bellingen Global Carnival and Peats Ridge Festival, this dynamic outfit is ready to launch its new album “Reclamation” on Record Kicks. With a heavy rhythm section and a powerful 3-piece horn section, The Strides deliver a captivating blend of funky afrobeat, roots reggae, hip hop grooves, dubbed out beats, and hypnotic rhythms.

Featuring vocals by reggae master Ras Roni from Trinidad via London and rising hip hop star from Fiji MC Lil Gzeus (Little Jesus) over the super skanky, infectious, horn-heavy grooves of the band, “Reclamation” perfectly showcases the mighty force of The Strides’ innovative sound. From afrobeat-infused instrumental romps such as “Umbi Gumbi” and “Well Hung Parliament” to hip hop stormers such as first single “Reclamation”, to hints of roots reggae on "Storm Cloud" and "Fresh Lady", Australia's best kept secret The Strides impressively mix and combine a series of genres, and the result is something special, indeed!

”Boasting 10 fired-up members and wasting no time in following up their impressive self-titled debut, Sydney's The Strides return with frisk in their gait for eight new tunes straddling dub to Afrobeat, hip-hop to exotic jazz.” – The Sydney Morning Herald 

THE STRIDES - Reclamation

the strides

primeira

Morning Reggae

Ragga n roots to shake ya hip hop boots

party in the park

Ska reggae

Arnhem Land from The Strides album "The Youth The Rich & The Fake"
www.thestridesband.com

Arnhem Land

Pass it On

07 Digging For Fire

06 Your Welcome

From the album 'The Youth The Rich & The Fake' out March 2015 on Earshift Music/MGM
www.thestridesband.com

Murawina

from the new album "The Youth, The Rich & The Fake
released on Earshit Music/MGM March 2015 

No Drama

Aussie favourites at Glastonbury 2013 & 14, Boomtown & BOOM Festivals propagating the secret to growing abundance, improving life and reversing climate-change with energetic live mash-ups of vintage speakeasy-style electroswing wonk & ukulele quirk to Lettuce Turnip the Radish Beets & Rocket!

Formidable Vegetable Sound System - Yield

"History"
from The Strides album "The Youth The Rich & The Fake"
out March 2015 on Earshift/MGM

History

from the album "The Youth the Rich & The Fake"
out March 2015 on Earshift Music

Rasta Live Feat. Blacker & Ngaiire

A next-level experiment in ecological electroswing, Radish Beets is a creative collaboration of re-wonkified tracks from Formidable Vegetable Sound System's debut album, Permaculture: A Rhymer's Manual remixed by some of the world's finest electronic producers.

Radish Beets

Download Album

The Edge (Spoonbill Remix)

Possibly the first ever band to promote the joys of gardening, food and sustainability through dance music, West Australian ‘ecological edutainers’, Formidable Vegetable Sound System bring you their latest single, ‘You Are What You Eat’- an infectiously bouncy electroswing track all about... Dirt!

Featuring Michael Barker (ex John Butler Trio/Black Sorrows) on drums, Mal Webb on horns, Kylie Morrigan on strings, Charlie Mgee on ukulele & vocals and produced by award-winning Melbourne electronic producer, Spoonbill, 'You Are What You Eat' explores the never-ending connectedness of the food-chain in the band's unique style of 'biodynamic-organic ukulele-electroswing'.

Soon after the track was released, it was picked up and shared by none other than the UN, who used it to celebrate the closing of the 2015 International Year of Soils - the kind of thing that could only happen to this one-of-a-kind band that have toured the world for three years performing brass-soaked ukulele electroswing songs about plants, peak-oil and permaculture.

More info at: www.formidablevegetable.com.au

Grow Do It

You Are What You Eat - Single

Formidable Vegetable Sound System - You Are What You Eat (Radio Edit)

From the new full-length by THE STRIDES:

RKX042 THE STRIDES - "Reclamation" out on CD/LP/Digital here.
http://recordkicks.com/site/releases/Reclamation

”Sydney's The Strides return with frisk in their gait for eight new tunes straddling dub to Afrobeat, hip-hop to exotic jazz.” – The Sydney Morning Herald 

THE STRIDES - Fresh Lady Dub

THE STRIDES - Well Hung Parliament

From the new full-length by THE STRIDES:

RKX042 THE STRIDES - "Reclamation" out on CD/LP/Digital here.
http://recordkicks.com/site/releases/Reclamation

”Sydney's The Strides return with frisk in their gait for eight new tunes straddling dub to Afrobeat, hip-hop to exotic jazz.” – The Sydney Morning Herald 

THE STRIDES - Fresh Lady feat Ras Roni & LTL Gzeus

THE STRIDES - Umbi Gumbi

THE STRIDES - F.K.D.

THE STRIDES - Some O' Dem feat LTL Gzeus

THE STRIDES - Storm Clouds feat Ras Roni

Interpretado e arranjado por AXIAL
(Kiko Dinucci)

Beijo da Iara

08. Cumadre Fulozinha - Grande Poder

Tá Amarrado 
(Rans . Freeza . Jef . Dimak)

Roupa aprova de agulhas pra boneco vodu, gaiamum pro Santo cevando na farofa de dendê, caruru de terreiro pros nativos e pros forasteiros comer, vela acesa pra poder ver os caboclos descer. Meu rap, a ladainha, minha preza, minha prenda, vatapá transgênico a entidade rejeita na oferenda, baiana malandra, rodando com saia de renda, se for pra me impedir de tocar tambor, me prenda. Meu corpo fechado não quer dizer que eu sou tapado, bola de cristal líquido não vai mostrar o meu passado, erva solta natural é coisa de Deus, amônia em bagulho industrializado é arte do diabo. Do lado de fora da igreja pregada no portão, uma placa me alertando cuidado com o cão, nenhum curso de alfabetização vai te ensinar a ler mão, minha evolução eu busco agora não vou esperar outra encarnação.

Tá amarrado em nome do quadro, 
rimas mandingas cantigas pra espantar o seu mal olhado. 
Tá amarrado em nome do quadro, 
pé de coelho, carranca, raggamuffin, patuá, dente de alho.

Pé de pato, mangalô, na fé e no flow. A resistência do pai de santo contra o discurso do pastor. Mandinga na rima. Mc entidade espírita, quebrando mau-olhado, tá amarrado. Na mão um microfone, uma cruz e dente de alho. Preto velho sentado, sossegado, fumaça pro alto. Minha corrente é e sempre vai ser do bem. Positive vibration pra você também.

Deus é o justo, o resto é vodoo. Quem não for fiel... Vai de reto homem, que eu vou a torto e à direita. O nó cego tá dado no laço, jogado no espaço. A minha seita é o hip hop. Oferenda na encruzilhada, scratch e batucada aplicando eletrochoques. Os loucos estão soltos, moldados a ferro e fogo. Calça big e dreadlocks. Pai Rans, Pai Jef, Pai Freeza e Pai Dimak, invocando novos toques. Universidade mística contra suástica, pela alma, nem clone nem plástica.

Tá amarrado....

Em beats de atabaque a minha rima flutua, ideias que fazem ataque os seres de alma obscura, que estão em toda parte e na multidão se mistura, e não entende a arte das entidades da rua. Meu nome em boca da sapo não vai encontrar, carrego arruda na orelha pra me guardar, folhas sagradas faço uso pra me libertar, de paciência e disciplina que vou me guiar.

Ficha Técnica: 
Rans – Voz; 
Jef – Voz; 
Freeza – Voz; 
Dimak – Voz; 
Victor Santana – Bateria; 
Ricô – Baixo / Arranjo; 
Rodrigo Dalua – Guitarras / Synth; 
Jahgga – Percussão

Tá Amarrado

Permaculture principle 6: Produce no Waste - In nature, there is no such thing as waste, only stuff in the wrong place! Heed this mantra and become a master of nutrient cycling!

-----

"Charlie is spearheading a new and exciting form of musical activism. He is becoming one of the most important voices in a global cultural movement 
that began right here in Australia." 
- Harry Angus, The Cat Empire 

Permaculture: A Rhymer’s Manual from Western Australia's Formidable Vegetable is the first of its kind. An album of ethical, ecological edu-tainment designed to spread the word of sustainability without making you want to tie-dye your shirt or go out and buy a djembe.
Permaculture is basically a way to get ourselves out of habits of self-destruction and into one of abundance and prosperity.
After recognising a desperate need for people to stop talking about sustainability and start getting off their asses, WA permaculture troubadour Charlie Mgee grabbed his ukulele and came up with 12 songs covering each of the principles of permaculture from David Holmgren’s book, Permaculture: Principles and Pathways Beyond Sustainability. 

With an all-star cast of Australian musicians including Mal Webb, Alex Burkoy (Tinpan Orange/Juila Stone), Michael Boase (Nicky Bomba’s Bustamento), Loren, Freya Hanly, prodigious 19-year old Harry Jakamarra from Broome on banjo and WA’s own 10 piece live electro-swing band Ensemble Formidable, the album is filled to the brim with tracks of truly grooveworthy proportions with styles ranging from ‘energy-descent electro-swing’ and ‘climate-change reggae’ to ‘peak-oil polka’.

In just three short months, Charlie Mgee has already busted out live shows of permaculture songs at internationally acclaimed festivals including Woodford Folk Festival (QLD), Eclipse 2012 (Cairns), Folk, Rhythm & Life and Rainbow Serpent (VIC) and has shared the stage with class-acts such as Nicky Bomba’s Butamento, Spoonbill and Fat Freddy’s Drop.

After a massive turnout to a follow-up permaculture workshop resulting from an especially cranking gig at Eclipse 2012 Festival, Charlie reflects on his ultimate goal for the project: 

“Right now, music is one of the most effective tools we have to communicate ideas on a mass scale and I think I’m really just starting to recognize the power that that can have with regards to introducing people to ideas on how to live more sustainably. I’ve had people that I wouldn’t have thought would be into sustainability in a million years come up to me going: “Man, this sounds awesome! I’m gonna check out this permaculture stuff!” It’s really reaffirming for what I’ve set out to do.”

With included info on the permaculture principles covered as well as chord charts and lyrics to learn the songs on ukulele, the album has been designed to achieve everything from permaculture teaching resource to ukulele lesson to general morning dance routine.

In a world gone hectic, now really is the time to start growing abundance everywhere, starting at the front door. While we’re at it, you might as well Lettuce Turnip the Beet!  (...that would be Rad-ish.)

Permaculture: A Rhymer's Manual

Download from Bandcamp

No Such Thing as Waste

Hailing from Sydney, THE STRIDES have become a new force for urban roots music. Fronted by Reggae Master Ras Roni from Barbados via London, and Fijian MC LTL G-Zeus, The Strides have delivered their classic sound to crowds across the country, delivering a musical experience that is as powerfully explosive as it is authentic.

With two acclaimed albums already under their belt, a European label signing, festival appearances across the country and having graced the stage with the likes of Julian Marley, Tony Allen and Groundation, The Strides' music faithfully builds on the foundations of classic roots reggae with a hip-hop edge, forging a sound that brings together modern dance hall, world beats and reggae-pop. The Strides have forged a truly global sound melding a diversity of cultures and instrumentation under the one universal consciousness.

With a calling card of powerfully melodic horns, infectious bass lines, easy musings and a magnetic stage presence between its two lead vocalists, the Strides are an 8-piece collective of multi talented songwriters and musicians. Having bunkered down for an intensive week long hothouse of jamming and songwriting, the tracks for their forthcoming long player were laid down at U-Live Studios outside of Byron Bay, and later mixed at Tanuki Lounge in Brisbane's West End by producer / engineer Paulie B.

'One for One' is the new single by the band and the first taste of the aforementioned forthcoming third album, set for early 2014 release. 'One for One' showcases the talents and rhymes of LTL Gzeus alongside the incredible vocals of future-soul rising star Ngaiire, in a song about self realisation, self-discovery, and coming to terms with a new world that is not what you expected. It’s a mark of that time in your life when everything is still new and curiosity has its first real go at you. The life you learn is not the life you know. One for the money, one for the lovin' - One for One. 

THE STRIDES - F.K.D.

TheStrides