Afrobeat Vinyl 473 Items

The meeting of Alieu and Randomized Coffee gives light to this new project, in which the Roman duo tackles a production that skillfully links Mediterranean influence to ancestral Africa in a patchwork woven of typical African ethnic elements to those of house and electronica in a "groovy" body that enhances the classical side of the African country in a modern musical mood and rhythm. The story tells about the day before an arranged marriage ceremony. Masanneh is a handsome and well-known man in his village of the Mandinka Tribe, born and raised in the village of Kudang, near the river that flows through the entire country; the Gambia. Many in the village believe him to be charismatic and generous, others believe him to be a venal materialist devoted to money. Masanneh decides to consult Cherno Jallow, a wise Marabout, to figure out how to deal with his future. He therefore moves westward to the village of Bondali, in Foni, where before practicing his work as a skilled trader he talks to Landing Sawo, the district chief, from there he hears the sound of a Kora played by Jali, while across the road he sees a beautiful woman Mariama Gomez passing by.

Not long after the release of Two Tribes Vol. 1, we realized that our journey had only just begun and lots of stories still had to be told. Motivated by lots of positive responses, we soon put to work researching and compiling music for what would become "Two Tribes Volume Two". We put our emphasis on expanding to other European regions as well as including different countries than on Vol. 1 and we also wanted to give it a bit of a different musical twist. The result are 14 tracks covering what we consider a broad and diverse spectrum but still clinging to our initial idea of building a musical bridge between the continents of Africa and Europe. The immense cultural diversity of both is represented by newcomers alongside more well known names, both of which have a strong connection to the rich musical traditions of Africa. On board are African artists living in diaspora on equal footing with Europeans that incorporate their high affinity to the African continent into their music. Exciting outernational collaborations round off the selection for Vol. 2! Includes tracks by Onipa (Strut Records), Guts, Wanubalé, David Nesselhauf (Kryptox Records) and many more

Discover the essential high tempo Singeli Sound that currently echoes throughout Dar es Salaam in Tanzania. This accompanying release to the mini-documentary on the scene from NTS, focuses on two of the central studios in the scene and their singular takes on Singeli; with Pamoja, helmed by Duke, and the inimitable DJ Sisso

Regular Edition WITHOUT the 7".

Rainbow Disco Club and Rush Hour, a long-standing friendship that transcends continents! House, disco, new wave, Caribbean, rare groove, leftfield.. Antal compiles the second release on "Beyond Space And Time", loaded with personal choice cuts.

Internationally recognised and much-loved festival from Japan, Rainbow Disco Club’s offshoot project "Beyond Space And Time" record label presents their sophomore release! Following the work by DJ Nobu, their second compilation has been compiled by none other than Antal. Also known as the festival's headliner and the man behind Amsterdam record shop/label Rush Hour, all 11 tracks are selected by Antal in a 2 x 12-inch + bonus 7-inch format. From local Dutch newcomers to '80s Japanese cult music, rare grooves to danceable house music, and rare Caribbean soul, this compilation is a portrait of music enthusiast Antal Heitlager’s enormous collection and 30-year DJ career, a work of art that can be enjoyed by all music fans!

An afro electronics track recommended by South African collector DJ Okapi, who co-produced the masterpiece compilation "Pantsula!: Rise Of Electronic Dance Music In South Africa: 1988-90" released in 2017, which brought Kwaito back onto the map. A-1

Improvisation Organic Deep House track by New Zealand’s newcomer. A-2

A rare breezin' boogie by Larry Heard’s alias Trio Zero from 1989. Highly sought after by all collectors as a cult Balearic track. Previously unreleased version. B-1

From the 2015 album by L.A. funk maker DAM-FUNK on the prestigious Stones Throw label. LO-FI beats and synthetic breakdowns that are reminiscent of early Rush Hour works and ‘90s house. B-2

The debut single of Japanese idol unit, Shohjo-Tai. Haruomi Hosono also produced some of their tracks later on in their career. Japanese new wave disco from 1984. C-1

The soundtrack from the Japanese manga "Touring Express". RDC fans will recognize this track from the final hours of the festival. A nostalgic oriental disco from 1985. C-2

80s Silky Mellow Soul by Connecticut jazz vocalist Dianne Mower who also contributed to the re-press of the prestigious Numero Group. D-1

The original version is a masterpiece from 1983 by Zouk singer Jocelyn Mocka of French Guadeloupe. This edit still very much emphasizes an emotional mid-tempo Caribbean soul, nicely reconstructed by Rush Hour's Bonnefooi. D-2

The first 500 copies will include a limited 7-inch bonus disc featuring a Dutch artist.
Modal jazz track from the Han Litz Group led by Han Litz, a jazz flute player representing the local Amsterdam scene. A-1

A freestyle percussion jam track inspired by Brazilian and Klaus Weiss music. Los Calxunxos Tuyos, derived from the band Zuco 103 formed by students of the Rotterdam Conservatory. B-1

A mysterious electronic pop floating, between the dance floor and easy listening by Rush Hour's Kamma. B-2

A total of 11 tracks from all types of genres and generations, a true masterpiece and representation of Rainbow Disco Club’s vision “Beyond Space And Time”. Bringing you the love from Amsterdam to the world!

The Bees are a textbook case of the chew and spit cycle that was the late 80’s South African music industry. Although their unknown story is likely unique, it is just as likely that it is no different to that of many other young artists who dreamed of getting their music heard at the time. By 1988, the independent record label was no longer as uncommon as it had been at the beginning of the decade. As the 80s went on, more seasoned A&R reps and Producers that had gained experience and connections from their work under major labels would be trying to cash in on a market they helped create. Without the need of big rooms or expensive recording equipment, the digital advancements allowed many Producers to open or work in smaller studios and promote unknown artists under their own imprints. They would then have their catalogs marketed and distributed by the same major labels they had been working for just years prior. This would open up the possibility of a new era of stars as potential talent no longer had to be pitched to major labels in hopes of them taking a chance on a new signee over their already established artists. With the market growing and a struggle to keep up with the demand for new sounds this agreement would allow the major labels to put new emerging artists or groups on their catalog with little investment and high reward if it happened to be a hit. ON Records was just one of the independent players at the time. Ronnie Robot had just signed the unlikely trio The Bees in hopes of adding a hit group to his label roster that consisted of solo acts. Despite the debut’s fresh house inspired sound, it failed to catch on was outsold by the bubblegum disco the label was known for. Over the years unsold back stock and promos would build up with the distributor. Luckily this allowed sealed copies from the label’s catalog to survive into the 90s when the distributor’s stock was unloaded and picked up by legendary Johannesburg jazz shop Kohinoor. Here sealed copies of the Bees first attempt sat under appreciated for over 20 years before becoming a hot title after they started circulating online and became club staples. This is how the first album of an unknown group with no success was able to become a collectors item and earn a reissue over 25 years later. With their first record behind them The Bees were ready move forward and get back into the studio. A suggestion from producers had the trio change camps and go work with the newly formed Creative Sound Recordings, the label that promised “Music for the Future” and ended up being an essential studio in the early years of Kwaito. They would work with producer Chris Ghelakis and guitarist George Vardas, while a young Marvin Moses sat behind the desk. Musically the sophomore album was as good as a follow up as you could get. Building on the first album, Mashonisa delivers catchy melodies backed by heavy drum programming that would score points with any Pantsula. The Black Box inspired “ Never Give Up” was one of two tracks chosen to be pressed as the promo for the album, hoping to trick listeners with their catchy version of the hit( A year later the label would release their first volume of Black Box covers sang by neo soul diva BB, it would be a great seller). The label printed up an unknown amount of these in a last attempt to push the release in Shabeens and on Radio. The cheaper route of flooding the market with promo copies would only pay off 25 years later when unplayed copies started being rediscovered and had survived the years in a quantity that original run of the full album could not. Once again it was clear that with no mainstream appeal, the quality of the music on its own was not enough to garner any success at the time. The album flopped worse than their first and failed to make it past it’s initial run, making it one of the harder titles to get from the CSR catalog. Mashonisa would be the last attempt from the Bees. They would disappear from the scene as quickly as they appeared. Of the three members it is only known that lead Singer Solomon Phiri continued in music fronting a wave dance group before he mysteriously vanished in 1993, never to be heard from again. Through a combination of luck and circumstance the group, which is unknown in South Africa to even the most plugged in musicians, producers and radio hosts of the time, managed to finally get some of the recognition they deserved 30 years later. Unfortunately this small blip of fame would happen with none of the band members present to give their side of the story, or even aware of how their two albums became popular enough to be printed on different continents in a new millennia. The Bees suffered the same fate as countless other artists of the time, who thanks to emerging independent labels and willing producers were given an opportunity to have a short career, only to be replaced by the meat grinder of the music industry when they failed to produce a hit.

Double sider 12" including the bubblegum club track ''Let's Make a Deal'' by Linda "Babe” Majika, which was originally released on the rare 'Don’t Treat Me So Bad' lp in South-Africa, 1988. On the flip, you’ll find the deep late-night saxophone driven tune ''Step Out Of My Life'' which includes Don Laka on the keyboard and is produced by Ray Phiri, who also founded the popular South African group 'Stimela'. The song was originally released in 1989 and finally sees a reissue, pressed as a loud DJ-friendly 12-inch.

For his eighth album, Lucas Santtana returns to guitar-voice simplicity, in the spirit of his tropicalist peers (Gilberto Gil, Tom Zé or Caetano Veloso). At a time when everyone shouts very loudly, when no one wants to listen to the other, he decides to whisper in people's ears. He looks for the points of intersection between the intimate and the political and social situation, very degraded in Brazil since the election of the populist president of the extreme right Jair Bolsonaro. Surrounded by a young creative guard(Jaloo, Linn da Quebrada, DUDA BEAT)and Juçara Marçal (Meta Meta), he offers a peaceful album in the face of the profound disruptions of retrograde societies and ideas. He thus delivers a free, airy, poetic record, because "even if the times are obscure, they will pass, because everything is cyclical. Hence the name of the disc: "the sky has been old for a long time".

It's been a long, winding road to Hailu Mergia's sixth decade of musical activity. From a young musician in the 60's starting out in Addis Ababa to the 70's golden age of dance bands to the new hope as an emigre in America to the drier period of the 90s and 2000s when he mainly played keyboard in his taxi while waiting in the airport queue or at home with friends. More recently, with reissue of his classic works and a re-assessment of his role in Ethiopian music history, Mergia has played to audiences big and small in some of the most cherished venues around the world. With 2018's critical breakthrough "Lala Belu" Mergia championed himself and consolidated his legacy, producing the album on his own and connecting with listeners through the sheer creative power of his version of modern Ethiopian music. His subsequent performances revealed an artist who is in no way stuck in the nostalgia for the "golden age" sound. The press agreed, including the New York Times, BBC and Pitchfork, calling his music "triumphantly in the present" in its Best 200 Albums of the 2010's list. Mergia's new album "Yene Mircha" ("My Choice" in Amharic) encapsulates many of the things that make the keyboardist, accordionist and composer-arranger remarkable_elements that have persisted to maintain his vitality all these years, through the ebb and flow of his career. The rock solid trio with whom he has toured the world most recently, DC-based Alemseged Kebede (bass) and Ken Joseph (drums), forms the nucleus around which an expanded band makes a potent response to the contemporary jazz future "Lala Belu" promised. "Yene Mircha" calcifies Mergia's prolific stream of creativity and his philosophy that there is a multitude of Ethiopian musical approaches, not just one sound. Enlisting the help of master mesenqo (traditional stringed instrument) player Setegn Atenaw, celebrated vocalist Tsehay Kassa and legendary saxophone player Moges Habte from his 70's outfit Walias Band, Mergia enhances his bright, electric band on this recording with an expanded line up on some songs. Mergia produced the album which features several of his original compositions along with songs by Asnakesh Worku and Teddy Afro. An artist still reinventing his sound every night on stage during his marathon live sets, this 74-year-old icon refuses to make the same album twice. The album feels as urgent and risky as his concerts can be, pushing the band to the outer limits of group improvisation and back with chord extensions during his exploratory solos. "Yene Mircha" captures this live experience and fosters an expansive view of what else could be in store for this tireless practitioner of Ethiopian music.