Sunday in Bamako
Bounaly
It is likely that you have heard of Sundays in Bamako without ever having been there. The expression, which gave the title to several songs and albums (including the classic by Amadou and Mariame), is now part of folklore, and refers to the festivities which take place every weekend in the Malian capital. On Sunday in Bamako, recorded during a wedding that took place… on a Sunday in Bamako, Bounaly easily transcribes this warm and exciting atmosphere. The Malian guitarist, accompanied here by a drummer and a singer, ventures through the songs in irresistible desert blues, punctuated by exciting guitar riffs. Quite pleasant live hazards, when you listen closely you can hear the screams of the audience, as well as some microphone and synthesizer glitches. The trip is assured.
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HOLD ON TO DEER LIFE, THERE’S A BLCAK BOY BEHIND YOU!
It’s dirty
Kabeaushé described their music a few years ago as being “the complete opposite” of the hardcore electronic music of their Nyege Nyege Tapes label colleagues. On HODLTABBBY, their new project, this distinction seems to be a little more confusing. Having been exposed to all kinds of radical music in several electronic festival tours, his music now seems to be imbued with a lot more weirdness, rawness and rave energy. “Kabeaushé can 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 well 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 comeback through the front door three years after the intimate For my brothers, which provided a touching overview of the society in which the artist operates and his feelings in relation to it. On I’m Back, however, the subject is much lighter and almost playful: whether accompanied by the pillars of Kumasi drill Kweku Smoke and Kwaku DMC, or featuring his insolent compatriot Joey B, we sense a desire to rap for rap’s sake, and a desire to have the best flow, the best placements and the best egotrips possible. As the artist himself says on his networks, “I wanted my return to be a pleasure before diving back into the hard part. This project is aimed at 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 Jagan
In 2020, Midas the Jagaban and his hood made a notable burst into the musical world with “Party with a Jagaban”, an international hit in the now global afrobeats sphere. The Nigerian-British rapper/singer continued to raise the level in the four years that followed, releasing 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 gives us a concentrate of his talents: his voice, although soft, arises with energy and an electrifying cadence on each production, whether dancehall, amapiano, afrobeats or r&b. French crooner Tayc can be found on the hit “Louis Vitty”.
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N E T A R I H I L A S
Slickback
Based in Kampala, Uganda, Slikback is behind the creation of Hakuna Kulala, under the label of the Nyege Nyege collective in collaboration with artists Don Zilla and Rey Sapienz. Borrowing from both East African rhythms and the codes of bass music, the young producer has fascinated us for several years with his eclectic and 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 proposal to the end. The nine tracks have the effect of an explosion, borrowing everything that is most powerful in gqom, techno and even bass music, to make a terrifying summary. Fans of hardcore electronic music will find it there!
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Rainbow Revisited
Thandi Ntuli with Carlos Child
“Rainbow” is above all a piece that singer Thandi Ntuli revealed in 2018 on her solo album Exiled. The title 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, minimalist and extremely beautiful jazz, carried by Niño’s usual sensitivity and delicacy, and Ntuli’s remarkable voice. “Having been aware of some of his work – particularly his collaborative projects under the name Carlos Niño & Friends – I knew that with Carlos as producer, the artistic direction of the album would likely take me to a place where I never considered going”, says the singer. “If ‘Rainbow’, at its core, expressed dissatisfaction with what we have accepted as freedom in South Africa, […] I now reclaim 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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These are tips
Tia Maria Productions
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 amazed us with the projects Tia Maria’s Law et Anguish in Aunt’s Hearts, two EPs of boiling batida. On Are Tips, the process is the same: the group’s producers and DJs surpass themselves and try to create the catchiest sounds possible. With their kuduro and baile funk rhythms propelled into a dark and urban soundscape that the team of producers share remotely on WhatsApp files, the DJs extend the tradition of exchanging records recorded outside the mainstream circuits and embody the early batida spirit.
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Seba South – System #1
Aziz Konkrite
A Franco-Moroccan DJ with several years of experience behind the decks, Aziz Konkrite’s work focuses on the fusion between traditional instruments, analog keyboards and contemporary electronic music. On Siba South-System #1, the producer returns to inspirations from his native region, delving into Chaâbi, Aïta, Raggada, Amarg and Gnaoua music to offer a dynamite, futuristic interpretation made for the dancefloor. The original pieces, from popular culture, Moroccan folklore but also from historical protests and struggles, take on a new dimension here, carried by the title of the project: “Siba” meaning “anarchy”, “Sawt” for sound and “ system” in obvious reference to the artist’s club leanings. To be distributed urgently among the best DJs of the moment!
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Sweet Justice
Thank you
Throughout her career, Zimbabwean-Australian rapper Tkay Maidza has accustomed us to surprises, constantly juggling between hardcore soundcloud rap, cheesy pop, experimental r&b and avant-garde EDM. Sweet Justice, his new album marks another turning point for the artist, both psychologically and musically: we are invited into hypnotic productions by Kaytranada, alchemist of deep house and r&b. But Tkay still does not stray from its essence. “WUACV” (“Woke up and chose violence”), “Silent Assassin” (produced by Flume) and “Ring-a-Ling” all refer to the rage that drove Tkay to “s “imagine as a superhero” in your childhood bedroom. “I’ve always been a little sad and I find it fun to immerse myself in rage”, she told PAM in an interview. “And when I’m at home, I do pogos to songs by myself!”
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TEARS OF THE SUN
to hold
It’s a different Teni that we discovered when the first singles of TEARS OF THE SUN. Indeed, the Nigerian singer had swapped her look of a funny girl, which had made her successful on songs like “Case”, for a much more stylized look, largely inspired by the local “alté” culture, and a much more confident artist. and to the end in his proposal. The success of the song “No Days Off” testifies to this, as well as the new energy that the singer brings on “Ino” with Made Kuti or “Devil Dance” featuring ODUMODUBLVCK. TEARS OF THE SUN is indeed a revival for the one who was still called “The Entertainer” not so long ago, and who now seems to focus more on her music than on entertainment.
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