Dimanche à Bamako
Bounaly
You’ve probably heard of Sundays in Bamako without ever having been there. The expression, which has given title to several songs and albums (including Amadou and Mariame’s classic), is now part of folklore, and refers to the festivities that take place every weekend in the Malian capital. On Dimanche à Bamako (Sunday in Bamako), recorded during a wedding that took place… on a Sunday in Bamako, Bounaly easily captures this warm and exciting atmosphere. The Malian guitarist, accompanied here by a drummer and singer, ventures through the tracks in an irresistible desert blues, punctuated by exciting guitar riffs. A rather pleasant live event, we can hear the cries of the audience, as well as a few microphone and synthesizer bugs. A trip is guaranteed.
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HOLD ON TO DEER LIFE, THERE’S A BLCAK BOY BEHIND YOU!
Kabeaushé
A few years ago, Kabeaushé described their music as “completely the opposite” of the hardcore electronic music of their colleagues on the Nyege Nyege Tapes label. On HODLTABBY, their new project, this distinction seems to be a little more blurred. Having been exposed to all kinds of radical music on several electronic festival tours, his music now seems to be imbued with much more weirdness, rawness and rave energy. “Kabeaushé could become anything,” the artist told us in 2022. “Kabeaushé could be a unicorn, Kabeaushé could be a rainbow, Kabeaushé could be an owl, Kabeaushé could be a vampire!“. Message received.
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I’m back
Ko-Jo Cue
The title of Ko-Jo Cue’s new project is enough to describe the energy that emanates from it. The Ghanaian rapper makes his big comeback three years after the intimate For My Brothers, which took a touching look at the society in which the artist lives and his feelings about it. On I’m Back the message is much lighter and almost playful: whether accompanied by Kumasi drill stalwarts Kweku Smoke and Kwaku DMC, or featuring his cheeky compatriot Joey B, there’s a clear desire to rap for rap’s sake, and to have the best possible flow, placement and egotrip. As the artist himself says on his social media, “I wanted my comeback to be a bit of fun before diving back into the hard stuff. This project is for all rap fans who react when a measure is well done. This project is for the genre that gave me life in the 50th year of its existence.“
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Midas Touch EP Vol 2 : Return of the Mask
Midas the Jagaban
In 2020, Midas the Jagaban and her skimask burst onto the music scene with “Party with a Jagaban”, an international hit in the now global Afrobeats sphere. The Nigerian-British rapper/singer continued to raise the bar in the four years that followed, churning out singles and mini-EPs often in good company (Stefflon Don, Ruger, Mura Masa, Rexxie…). On Midas Touch EP Vol 2: Return of the Mask, the artist delivers a concentration of her talents: her voice, though soft, lands with electrifying energy and cadence on every production, whether dancehall, amapiano, afrobeats or r&b. French crooner Tayc is featured on the hit “Louis Vitty”.
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N E T A R I H I L A S
Slikback
Based in Kampala, Uganda, Slikback is behind the creation of Hakuna Kulala, a sub-label of the Nyege Nyege collective in collaboration with artists Don Zilla and Rey Sapienz. Borrowing as much from East African rhythms as from the codes of bass music, the young producer has fascinated us for several years with his eclectic, avant-garde sound palette. With N E T A R I H I L A S, the artist unveils his fourth project of the year, and digs even deeper into his down-to-earth proposal. The nine tracks are like a blast, borrowing all the most powerful elements of gqom, techno and bass music to create a terrifying compendium. Fans of hardcore electronic music will love it!
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Rainbow Revisited
Thandi Ntuli with Carlos Niño
“Rainbow” is first and foremost a track that singer Thandi Ntuli unveiled in 2018 on her solo album Exiled. The track caught the ear of American producer and instrumentalist Carlos Niño who ended up meeting her a year later in Los Angeles. The result: Rainbow Revisited, a minimalist and extremely beautiful jazz, carried by Niño’s usual sensitivity and delicacy, and Ntuli’s remarkable voice. “Having heard some of his work – particularly his collaborative projects under the name Carlos Niño & Friends – I knew that with Carlos as producer, the album’s artistic direction would probably take me to a place I’d never considered going,” says the singer. “If ‘Rainbow’, at its core, expressed dissatisfaction with what we’ve accepted as freedom in South Africa, […] I’m now reclaiming its meaning by going back, going inward, healing and rebuilding with the hope of a less heartbreaking and more fulfilling tomorrow.“
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São Dicas
Tia Maria Produções
Tia Maria Produções is a collective made up of Puto Márcio, Bboy, Lycox and Danifox, all based in Lisbon and spearheading the local batida movement. The collective had already wowed us with the projects Lei Da Tia Maria and Angústia Nos Corações Da Tia, two bubbling batida EPs. On Sao Dicas, the process is the same: the group’s producers and DJs outdo themselves, trying to create the catchiest sounds possible. With their kuduro and baile funk rhythms propelled through a dark, urban soundscape that the team of producers share remotely on WhatsApp files, the DJs extend the tradition of exchanging records burned outside mainstream circuits and embody the early batida spirit.
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Siba Sawt-System #1
Aziz Konkrite
A Franco-Moroccan DJ with many years experience behind the turntables, Aziz Konkrite’s work focuses on the fusion of traditional instruments, analog keyboards and contemporary electronic music. On Siba Sawt-System #1, the producer returns to inspirations from his native region, immersing himself in chaâbi, aïta, raggada, amarg and gnawa music to offer a dynamite, futuristic interpretation cut out for the dancefloor. The original tracks, drawn from popular culture and Moroccan folklore as well as historical struggles and protests, take on a new dimension here, supported by the project’s title: “Siba” meaning “anarchy”, “Sawt” for sound and “system” in obvious reference to the artist’s club leanings. A must for today’s top DJs!
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Sweet Justice
Tkay Maidza
Throughout her career, Zimbabwean-Australian rapper Tkay Maidza has been a regular source of surprises, constantly juggling hardcore SoundCloud rap, cheesy pop, experimental r&b and avant-garde EDM. Sweet Justice, her new album, marks yet another turning point for the artist, both psychologically and musically: we are invited into hypnotic productions by deep house and r&b alchemist Kaytranada. But Tkay never strays far from her essence. “WUACV” (“Woke up and chose violence”), “Silent Assassin” (produced by Flume) and “Ring-a-Ling” all hark back to the rage that drove Tkay to “imagine [herself] as a superhero” in her childhood bedroom. “I’ve always been a bit sad, and I find it fun to immerse myself in rage,” she told PAM in an interview. “And when I’m at home, I mosh to songs all by myself!“
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TEARS OF THE SUN
Teni
It was a different Teni we discovered when the first singles from TEARS OF THE SUN were released. Indeed, the Nigerian singer had swapped her fun-loving girly look, which had made her a success on tracks like “Case”, for a much more stylish look, largely inspired by the local “alté” culture, and an artist much more confident and to the point in her identity. The success of “No Days Off” bears witness to this, as does the new energy the singer brings to “Ino” with Made Kuti and “Devil Dance” featuring ODUMODUBLVCK. TEARS OF THE SUN is indeed a revival for the woman who was still called “The Entertainer” not so long ago, and who now seems to be concentrating more on her music and proud display of her identity, than on entertainment.
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