Maajo - Better Days(feat. Gilbert K & Waina)

tunes played this week on my weekly Ujima98fm Cruising show  21/06/22

June 21 Cruising Show

Wonderwheel Rec

Funk & Disco

The Nextmen Vs Eva Lazarus

Rudegyal

Afro-Finnish band Maajo makes their debut on Wonderwheel Recordings with “Better Days,” an old school, upbeat disco cut with nods to reggae and funk. Featuring the soulful voices of two new band members, Mauritian drummer-vocalist Gilbert K and Zambian singer Waina, “Better Days” pays homage to 70s African and Caribbean Disco. Fusing a dance-floor-ready beat with live horn arrangements and yearning vocals, the track is ready for the club or Sunday morning listening. The lyrics, sung in English, Creole, and Nyanja, are a global testament to hope and positivity: The “Kumba” chant pleads for the strength to get through the bad times. 

Hailing from Finland, Maajo is a tropical breeze from the cold north; their musical explorations lead from equatorial soundscapes to the woods and moods of their native Scandinavia. African influences, electronic beats and organic rhythms, ethereality and the sounds of nature all make up the patchwork sound of Maajo. Not only is Maajo’s music a way of traveling to faraway places, the songs themselves have traveled all over the globe. 

Maajo has evolved from a sample-based electronic music project to a full-sized band, including African vocalists and musicians. The group has put out two full-length albums and three EP’s on Queen Nanny records, in addition to releases on German label Permanent Vacation. Maajo has also written a soundtrack for the 1920’s silent film Lost World, received the remix treatment from artists such as Luke Vibert and Call Super, and toured festivals and clubs around the world. 

“Better Days” is out on Brooklyn’s Wonderwheel Recordings May 20th, with an album due Fall, 2022.

Better Days

Maajo - Better Days (feat. Gilbert K & Waina)

Buy Here

Maajo - Better Days (Radio Edit)

Times so Hard

Times so Hard (feat. Sailor Smile)

Italian producer and DJ Populous returns to Wonderwheel with the second volume of his 'Moonbaton' series - dark reggaeton and moonbahton style dance floor tracks influenced by the magic & mystery of the zodiac. Things start off with "Glass Dubplate", a percussive track with emotive pads, a melody reminiscent of finger piano and synth bleeps, while "Berlinese Dubplate" goes into tougher, late night territory with deep bass, roiling percussion and dubby electronics.

Populous - Berlinese Dubplate

Populous - Glass Dubplate

Brazilian Tropical Psych artist Felipie Puperi aka Tagua Tagua returns to Wonderwheel with the 2nd single from his upcoming album. "Colors", one of the last songs written before completion of the album, is injected with R'n'B and a hint of pop, as the filtered guitar and the synths on the track take the music into a space very much of its own. Lyrically, "Colors'' is nostalgic and talks about a single encounter and the power it has to transform a person's life.

Tagua Tagua's full length LP, 'Tanto' is due out on March 3rd.

Pre - Order LP Here

Tagua Tagua - Colors

Ecuadorian singer Huaira has created a buzz and a tuned in fanbase across Latin America through just a small number of releases and unforgettable features with the likes of Nicola Cruz's ("Prender Del Alma"), Los Espiritus, Rodrigo Gallardo, Fernando Milagros and more. Now, she is coming together with the talented Berlin based producer Captures for a series of special singles on Wonderwheel. The first, "Sonámbula", a “realismo mágico” song, sonically creates a mystical vibe through it's dark bassline, unearthly synths & sound effects that swirl in the darkness of the track, while Huaira's vocals range from interspersed words to near-chantlike verses and lilting phrases. Lyrically, the track talks about the space of the waking dream. It speaks of our choice to be present in this illusion or dormant while we walk through each passing day...the storytelling of the dream, the eternal lover within ourselves and the many mirrors we encounter in our relationship to others.

Huaira & Captures - Sonámbula

"Pra Trás" is the third and final single from Brazilian Psych / Tropicalia artist Felipe Puperi aka Tagua Tagua. Sounding like a cross between Shuggie Otis and a Brazilian Mac Demarco, the soulful single opens the forthcoming 'Tanto' album with fuzzed out guitars, a driving beat, Bill Withers-esque strings, and Felipe's unmistakable voice, tipping into falsetto on the catchy chorus. Lyrically the song is about leaving things behind - referencing the feeling of moving past his previous release and making space for something new to flow through. "Tanto" releases March 3rd on Wonderwheel Recordings.

Tagua Tagua - Pra Trás

Available now on Mr Bongo www.mrbongo.com/products/hollie-cook-twice

Hollie Cook - Twice

A very rare lickle 7" vinyl that came out on Nice Nice Records a few years back. 
Artwork from Jeff Jank of Stonesthrow fame

Drilla (aka Skitz)& Boxclever ft gizz - Mama Says

Originally released as a limited Disco 12" on Philadelphia International in 1978; this is a another tease and stretch number which extends the groove into a 7 minutes disco jam. Haven't messed with it too much, just beefed up the rhythm track and extended the groove.

Teddy Pendergrass - Get Down, Get Funky (Leftside Wobble Edit)-320K

NATURAL ENERGY

Lisa Stanfield

DJ ACE & Ren le Fox - Summer Nights Reloaded

A little remix of a killer tune by Linda Lyndell.

This one has been working on the 1 & 2's for me for a while now.  Hope it does the same for you.

Free DL!!!!!!!!

http://www.mediafire.com/?qaw0m8qoj4o0urk

What a Man (fdel mix) !!Free Download!!

Mungo’s Hi Fi cement their long-standing connection with Italian-born, Paris-based singer Marina P, by releasing eagerly awaited concept album Soul Radio. Over six years in the making, Soul Radio is an ambitious representation of the artistic fullness of Marina P, expanding into multiple genres while keeping its roots in rocksteady, reggae and ska.
Born in Italy to jazz loving parents, Marina P travelled to Paris to get involved in its music scene. Word reached Mungo’s HiFi of this rising singer with a cool yet emotive tone, and the Scottish sound system and label reached across the Channel to voice her on their industrial strength Belly Ska riddim. The result was 2007’s massive and enduring Divorce à l'Italienne, which was included on Mungo’s 2009 Sound System Champions LP.
That track is present on Soul Radio, alongside an inspired rocksteady cover of Smashing Pumpkins’ Soma, plus ska smash, And The Beat Goes SKA!, an adaptation of Sonny and Cher’s And The Beat Goes On. Having worked up a sweat on the ska and rocksteady dancefloor, the album relaxes into a more chilled space, with the haunting Nice To Meet You and the serene Great Wave. These calming, secluded sonic spaces combine Mungo’s forward-thinking production with a retro 90s-meets-50s, trip- hop-in-a-jazz club nostalgia. Taken as a whole, Soul Radio celebrates Marina P’s depth and versatility as an artist. It’s also the perfect soundtrack to both the night before - and the morning after.

Soul Radio

Wouldn't It Be Something

10 Mungo's Hi Fi X Marina P - Wouldn't It Be Something

This is our little label out of Brooklyn NYC. Homegrown music with lots of diversity for speakers EVERYWHERE! www.wonderwheelrecordings.com Alsarah and the Nubatones, Chancha Via Circuito, Nickodemus, El Búho, Thornato, Novalima, The Spy from Cairo, Gitkin, Populous & more...

Maajo - Better Days (Radio Edit)

WONDERWHEEL Recordings