Premiere: Damian Lazarus & The Ancient Moons – Lovers’ Eyes (Mehmet Aslan Remix)
A darkened techno beat over Urdu chanting.
world
Omar Souleyman to headline Koko for Convergence Festival
One of the few positive references to Syria at the moment.
Premiere: Tala A.M. – Hot Koki (Ben Hauke remix)
Cameroonian funk legend gets the South London treatment.
Orlando Julius and the Heliocentrics – Buje Buje
Nigerian legend collaborates with UK’s psychedelic-jazz group for this hypnotic afrobeat number.
Danielle Eog Makedah – Tobassi
The Erykah badu of Cameroon’s flourishing soul scene
Mikael Seifu – Tuff Ruff
A mesmerising combination of Ethiopian folk and UK garage, fresh out of Addis Ababa
Boddhi Satva – Ngnari Konon (Feat. Oumou Sangaré)
Boddhi Satva’s Invocation has been ten years in the making and it certainly shows. It is a varied collection of accomplished songs, all, impressively, produced from the confines of Satva’s home. There’s a bit of Reggae (Enemies and Jah Sanctuary), House (Who Am I) and RnB (Because I Know) on there, but if pressed to choose, we enjoyed the African sounds the most. Grammy-winning Oumou Sangare makes a show-stopping appearance on Ngari Konon and on Nankomandjan, Mangala Camara’s sporadic vocals alternates between the wobbling base almost as if the two are playing off each other
Artist Spotlight: The Busy Twist
At just 21, Gabriel Benn (a.k.a Tuesday Born) and Ollie Williams (a.k.a Ollie Twist) are making some impressive African/Electronic fusion and self-releasing it off their own label, The People’s Ear. Although they’re based in London, much of the creative work goes on in Ghana where the inspiration for their music first came about.