Don Leisure HHV Records 4 Items

The man of many practices; beatmaker, instrumentalist, one half of The DarkHouse family (first Word), and proud new father … Don Leisure is a familiar name in the world of beat driven, post hip hop, electronic based music that we now take for granted and is a championing force along with the likes of Samiyam, Eric Lau, Dibia$e and Flako of bringing it into the limelight.

Don is also a well-known procurer of weird and wonderful records from the far stretches of the globe and is no stranger to taking the listener on these journeys with him.

Evidence of this can be found on the highly notable Turkish psych influenced ‘halal cool J’ as well as ‘Shaboo’, a vibrant and textured beat tape inspired largely by Don’s Bollywood actor uncle, Nasser ‘Shaboo’ Bharwani. Both released via the mighty First Word Records.

Don made his Group BraCil debut this year with the lush sunkissed ‘Just Remember’ featured on the Label’s latest vinyl compilation ‘happiness we’re all in this together’.

Don Leisure has cemented his name as one of the most forward-thinking and experimental beatmakers & producers within the current musical ecosystem. As well as being 50% of Darkhouse Family (alongside Earl Jeffers) he has collaborated with the likes of Angel Bat Dawid, Gruff Rhys, DJ Spinna and First Word label-mates Amanda Whiting & Tyler Daley (Children of Zeus). Garnering serious support from Lauren Laverne, Tom Ravenscroft, Huw Stephens, Gilles Peterson, Huey Morgan, The Vinyl Factory, Clash, Uncut and many more. Following the release of ‘Cynnau Tân (feat. Carywyn Ellis)’ (which gained support across BBC Radio from Tom Ravenscroft, Zakia & Huw Stephens) Welsh beatmaker Don Leisure announces the release of a new album ‘Tyrchu Sain’) as he returns with a new single ‘Tyrchu’ due for release on 22nd January 2025. ‘Tyrchu’ features the soft-spoken vocal stylings of Gruff Rhys over a gently rolling, tape saturated and expertly chopped instrumental, creating (in Gruff’s own words) ‘Shiny new beat-treasures with ghostly reflections of Welsh pop’s past - skillfully dug from Sain Records’ deepest veins’.

A dedicated student of music, over the years, Don has amassed a vast encyclopaedic knowledge of music genres and subcultures, including a fascination with Welsh psychedelic folk music from the mid-20th century. This introduction was made by respected musician, producer & selector Andy Votel’s 2005 two-part compilation series ‘Welsh Rare Beat’ (in collaboration with Gruff Rhys and Don Thomas), comprising twenty-five tracks from Sain Records’ back catalogue. Now the oldest independent record label in Wales, Sain is a wildly influential bastion of home-grown Welsh talent, co-founded by Welsh-language folk singer Dafydd Iwan, whose music has seen a cultural resurgence in recent years with his 1983 song Yma o Hyd (We’re Still Here) becoming a huge anthem for Wales football fans. Set up in the Welsh capital, many of

Sain’s early releases were recorded at Rockfield Studios in Monmouthshire, but in the early 1970s the record company moved to the Caernarfon area and opened their first recording studio in 1974 near Llandwrog. Announcing a huge digitisation project throughout 2024, Sain Records took on the mammoth task of painstakingly digitising their entire back catalogue spanning 55 years, working in partnership with the National Library of Wales the resulting archive then be submitted for to the National Library of Wales in Aberystwyth, preserving them for future generations to enjoy. Taking this period of rediscovery as an opportunity to reimagine their impressive inventory, Sain invited Don Leisure to dig into their musical treasure chest, creating a sprawling sonic tapestry from the dusty gems within. On this exhilarating excursion, Sain Records founder Dafydd Iwan explains: ‘Imagine someone gave you access to over 50 years of Welsh popular music – almost all of it unknown to you before. It would be a strange experience of discovery, an unknown territory which could baffle and excite. This happened to Jamal (Don Leisure) – and he was captivated by a world of music he barely knew existed, and when he was asked to distill the experience into one album, he immediately warmed to the idea. And this is the result – a kaleidoscope of sounds to encapsulate a half century of Welsh music. To call it unique would be superfluous: no-one could ever recreate this album. Listen, and enjoy.’.

The man of many practices; beatmaker, instrumentalist, one half of The DarkHouse family (first Word), and proud new father … Don Leisure is a familiar name in the world of beat driven, post hip hop, electronic based music that we now take for granted and is a championing force along with the likes of Samiyam, Eric Lau, Dibia$e and Flako of bringing it into the limelight.

Don is also a well-known procurer of weird and wonderful records from the far stretches of the globe and is no stranger to taking the listener on these journeys with him.

Evidence of this can be found on the highly notable Turkish psych influenced ‘halal cool J’ as well as ‘Shaboo’, a vibrant and textured beat tape inspired largely by Don’s Bollywood actor uncle, Nasser ‘Shaboo’ Bharwani. Both released via the mighty First Word Records.

Don made his Group BraCil debut this year with the lush sunkissed ‘Just Remember’ featured on the Label’s latest vinyl compilation ‘happiness we’re all in this together’.