Latin | Brazil Vinyl 422 Items

Ese puerto existe' is the sophomore album by Venezuelan folk trio, Insólito UniVerso, a psychedelic dream towards sound and its powers of communication. On it, the band explore the diverse geography, rhythms and traditions of their home country of Venezuela, through their own distinctive sound. Featuring additional vocals by Stereolab co-founder and solo artist Lætitia Sadier, and mixed by Meridian Brothers mastermind, Elbis Álvarez and Heliocentrics co-founder and producer, Malcolm Catto. On their debut album, ‘La Candela del Río’ (to be reissued Very soon), the band created a magical Latin American sound of their very own, leading to critical acclaim from the likes of Songlines, Bandcamp, The Wire and many more; as well as a nomination for Best Group at the Songlines Awards in 2020

La Candela del Río is the debut album by Paris-based Venezuelan quartet Insólito UniVerso. In the space of 8 tracks, the band fuses traditional Venezuelan styles, such as joropo, merengue caraqueño, or tambores de San Millán with psych, chanson, and contemporary electronics. Co-produced by The Heliocentrics' Malcolm Catto, the record shows two distinct sides; on the one hand there's euphoric music that begs to be danced to, while on the other there's melancholy, mystery and devotion. Originally released back in 2018, the record's initial run of 500 copies has been long sold out and is presented here in a new edition of 300 including the original artwork and printed lyrics insert

Finally, and thanks to the hard work of the fine folks at Inamu (Instituto Nacional de la Música de Argentina) and the amazing selection job of Nekro (Fun People & Boom Boom Kid), we're proud to present "The Crazy World of Music Hall vol 3", the third of a 3 volume set of mind blowing lp's compiling the finest of the 60's and 70's cuts output from the legendary Argentinian label Music Hall. This final volume presents tracks from both decades with a great selection of hot sounds ranging from pure unaltered wild Rock'n[Roll to Psychedelia, Latin sounds, visceral Hard Rock, Soul or Funk. Can't miss this final installment, the cherry on top of an amazing set!

With his new album, Gecko Turner confirms that he is a standout artist in the global groove scene, a must for the outernational sounds aficionados.

Somebody From Badajoz is the fifth studio album in his much lauded discography and his first in seven years, eagerly anticipated by both his fans and himself: "this business of dedicating yourself to music and making songs... it's a long game."

With the release of his first two, remarkable, albums, Guapapasea! (2003) and Chandalismo Ilustrado (2006), Gecko started cultivating what one astute journalist defined as Afro-maduran soul—the "maduran" bit referencing Extremadura, a region in central-western Spain.

Badajoz, Gecko's birthplace, is the biggest city in the area, on the border with Portugal, by the Guadiana River. It is a place that oozes history, where there is constant movement at the border, and people's character is friendly and open-minded with foreign habits.

Gecko's Afro-maduran soul isbuilt on Afro-American music and drenched in Brazilian, African, Latin American and Jamaican sounds. There are also echoes of a youth marked in equal parts by our man's admiration for the Beatles and the flamenco that could be heard everywhere in Badajoz in the seventies. It makes for a singular sound and a musical language of its own—spicy, succulent, full of nuances, but with a very personal flavour.

The album opens with the Nigerian talking drums of Twenty-twenty Vision, (neo) soul in a magical falsetto, carried by a sumptuous orchestral arrangement with a cinematic flavour: "I'd been thinking about doing something called 'Twenty-twenty Vision' for some time, making a play on words with the vision we have of the world after the year 2020 and the medical expression, which, in ophthalmological terms, means 'normal or complete vision.' Beyond that particular song, I think that's the mood of the album: a look at society in the twenties of the 21st century and the feelings and demons it produces."

It's followed by De Balde, a very special song born from a posthumously discovered lyric by the great writer Carlos Lencero, a regular collaborator of Camarón, Pata Negra, and Remedios Amaya, and also from Badajoz. While conceived as a fandango, Gecko has moulded it into his sound in such a seamless way it now seems as if the words could only have been written to be embraced by the percussion, brass, and backing vocals heard on the album. It's the only lyric on Somebody From Badajoz not written by Turner, still it sits rather comfortably with the rest, sharing the same emotivity and sensitivity, as well as the trademark humour and irony.

Other tracks see more protagonism for the rhythm.The beat-driven Ain't No Fun Preachin' to the Choir features Gecko's vocals walking the thin line between singing and talking over a phenomenal afro-disco-funk-infused trailblazer. In Am I Sad? it's impossible to not bob your head to the queen of Papatosina's mongrel rhythm, as close to the banks of the Guadiana river as it is to the shores of the Mississippi. Qué Siesta Tan Buena, He Babeao Y To! is an ode to the snooze in true Afro-Maduran fashion. And in Come And Try, the Caribbean influence is evident—lovers' rock that invites you to dance in good company.

In these songs, and throughout the album, for that matter, the musicians accompanying Gecko, who himself plays many of the instruments as well, shine brightly. All hailing from Extremadura, Javi Mojave (percussion), Álvaro Fdez 'Dr. Robelto' (bass), and Rafa Prieto (guitar) have been carrying him with delicate forcefulness since he started out as a solo artist. At the same time, the wonderful and essential voices of Deborah Ayo, Astrid Jones, Fani Ela Nsue, and Miriam Solís give the album a sunny variety of colours. And there are many more—a sensational group of musicians contributes dazzling harmonic bursts to many of the songs. The palette of sounds is very diverse and rich in textures and nuances, including, for example, the ngoni, bells, and various repurposed kitchen utensils.

The groove is always around, moving between the magical border sound of Everybody Knows Somebody From Badajoz and Little Dose, the silky soul of The Sibariteo Appreciation Society, and the exultant celebration of End Of The World (which surprisingly sees Gecko turning to the occasional use of autotune), a piece that could be used for the final credits of a Monty Python film and, in fact, closes the album.

Gecko Turner has done it again with Somebody From Badajoz, looking to the future without losing sight of the roots. In times of upheaval all over the globe, when people are looking for purity, he delivers a formidable piece of work: risky, optimistic in spite of everything, and with a decidedly bastard sound. Let's rejoice.

Currently based in Berlin, Pedro Ricardo has been releasing music for the past eight years under different aliases via labels such as Wolf Music and his own imprint Hear, Sense and Feel. An eclectic DJ and selector, he hosts a radio show on South London’s radio Balamii, guested on Mafalda’s NTS show and can be found playing in clubs across all Europe. Stylistically, Ricardo became entranced with jazz from an early age, while also becoming enamoured with folk music – rooted in his Portugal childhood, now encompassing sounds from Cape Verde, Brazil, and Spain along the way. He intertwines these instrumental influences with field recordings, and electronics, on Soprem Bons Ventos. “The album translates to ‘Good Winds Blow’, shares Ricardo. “This idea of good winds blowing is intertwined with the feeling of missing something, and sadness. On a positive note, there is still an overarching sense that happiness also lies ahead. Soprem Bons Ventos represents an ode to the past, to those who came before me, connecting with my present and imagining the future.”

Limited special edition indies only orange vinyl + very special zine to celebrate the success of Luke Una’s first compilation and Kartel’s compilation of the year for 2022 !With some of the best DJs and selectors there is a certain mysterious sound or underlying feeling which unites the music they play, regardless of genre, year or tempo. Luke Una is a master of telling a story through music and this compilation is a perfect example of his musical alchemy in action. Featuring tracks from Yusef Lateef, Airto Moreira, Crooked Man, Henri Texier and many more, it is a collection of new, old, rare and under-discovered music from around the world, all united by Luke under the banner of “E-Soul Cultura”.

Beginning his career as an original Sheffield house young blood in the mid 1980s, Luke’s move to Manchester and partnership with Justin Crawford saw the birth of Electric Chair, a cornerstone cult night in the UK underground club scene, and later Electric Elephant, a Croatian festival paying homage to their wild eclecticism from Balearic to Brazilian to E soul, house, disco and techno. Luke’s much loved, long running Homoelectric night and more recently Homobloc sell out festival for 10,000 souls has been at the forefront of Manchester’s Lgbtq cultural landscape.

Luke’s Friday evening show on Worldwide FM has captured imaginations and has already become a cult four hour must-listen monthly journey with fans all over the world. Today Luke remains, as ever, at the forefront of a changing scene, pairing the momentous legacy of Manchester’s 80s and 90s scene with the delivery of what today’s club communities need to get down.

Ten years after our initial survey of Afro-Latin accented rhythm & blues from the mid-century, Jazzman proudly presents a fourth installment, packed with as many musical surprises as the first. With music plucked from an era spanning the late 1940s into the early 60s, Jukebox Mambo IV highlights yet again the unparalleled musical creativity of the post war era, and shows how the infusion of afro-latin rhythms was key to these revolutions.

Lovingly and painstakingly researched and curated, the album boasts 23 tracks, many previously uncompiled, touching on jazz, blues, doo wop, calypso, rock & roll, gospel and more. Featuring individual track notes for every song along with some never seen before photographs of the artists, Jukebox Mambo Vol IV maintains the same high production values of each previous volume, and indeed the wider Jazzman catalogue.

Federica Grappasonni aka Mistura Pura is an Italian DJ, composer, singer, vinyl collector and music producer. She started to play and produce music at the age of 19 in Bologna, Italy. Before becoming a DJ she wrote and performed her songs live, either as a duo or with a complete band. In the ‘Acid Jazz’ era she was totally immersed in Bossanova, Jazz-funk and Jazzy Hip Hop music. At the time she wrote poetry and songs, singing melodies that burned in her mind. ‘Ed è…’ is one of the first songs she wrote. While ‘Vamo Vive’ is the result of the mix of more songs connected as part of her repertoire, made as a later piece of her musical puzzle.

At the end of the ‘90s and for the following decade Federica became known in the so called ‘lounge scene’ as a selector with Mistura Pura DJ sets in great demand, she gained residencies in the most beautiful and cool places in Milan, the isle of Panarea, Eolian Islands, and Sicily. Coming into the present day she decided to edit and rework some of her repertoire with both songs being revisited while keeping the original voice she recorded at the time and with the support of the pianist and co-arranger Alberto Napolioni and the flautist Carlo Nicita whom worked very well to define the harmonies of the musical works. After 25 years from that period and during the pandemic, Federica repeatedly told herself as a loop ‘go to live Fede’. It was during a walk on the beach that she remembered capturing a frame of a couple of children building a castle in the sand on the Adriatic sea with all the meaning and poetry that this image portrays; a sense of freedom, innocence and truth. In this sense ‘Vamo Vive’ and ‘Ed è…’ is a gentle scream of hope in a time when humanity was closed and living like prisoners in their own houses.

Acting and singing prodigy child Marisol is one of the greatest stars in Spain ever. She was incredibly big in her country, and her popularity soon reached other lands, some as far away as Japan where she issued some records and even recorded one of her hits in Japanese. Germany was another country that saw a market for a German-sung 45, as was Italy with a couple of rare Italian-sung tunes released. Marisol also sang in English, and even Chinese-as you willhear on the songs compiled on this LP, which features some of her non-Spanish sung sides alonside with very rare performances from TV appearances on vinyl for the first time ever! The selection is completed by tunes based on rhythms from the world and a couple of other favourites from her more classic repertoire.

Jungle Fire: “Our thing is incorporating rhythms from a wide variety of African Diaspora sources. This album in particular is darker than the previous two.”

Neno Exporta Som’s super-rare compacto 'Deixa A Tristeza’ from 1971, has been high on the want-lists of Brazilian record collectors and DJs for years. This was intensified, along with a wider cult-following, following Floating Points dropping the gem on his amazing 'BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix’ back in 2015. Mr Bongo included 'Deixa A Tristeza’ on our Record Club Vol 1 compilation. Following that came many requests to release it back on its original ‘compacto’ 7” format. So finally, here it is for all to enjoy.
By sheer coincidence, also released in 1971 on Copacabana Records is Agnaldo Rayol's ‘Sumaúma’. A fairly un-known record which has the potential to become an underground classic. This epic track has a psyche break-beat drum and bass groove intro - just asking to be sampled! Along with lush string and horn arrangements and a soaring female/male vocal duet. This beauty has been a firm favourite in the Bongo office since we came across it and hopefully you dig it as much as we do.

Brazilian composer, producer and multi-instrumentalist, Rafael Arosa produces a pop dance sound without giving up sophistication in harmonies, arrangements and melodies.
Admitting to have one foot in the present and one foot in the past, Arosa has a strong influence on the synth disco and AOR / westcoast styles that were striking in the early 1980s.
In his debut album, Arosa features the participation of experienced musicians from Rio de Janeiro. A prominent partnership was the participation of Donatinho, who in 2017 released the album "Sintetizamor" with his father, João Donato (one of the big names in Brazilian music). Donatinho co-produces 3 tracks with Arosa and has built layers of synthesizers on various tracks.
Another prominent partnership was with Pedro Guinu, a talented keyboardist who co-produced 2 tracks and sings on the "Vertigem" track.
Among the experienced musicians who participated in the recording are also André Vasconcellos (Ed Motta, Djavan), Alberto Continentino (Ed Motta, Gilberto Gil), Pedro Mamede (Natiruts), Adam Nitti (Kenny Loggins) and Leo Mucuri (Anitta, Jorge Vercilo).
The album was mixed by Latin Grammy winner Fabricio Matos and mastered at Metropolis Studio London by Stuart Hawkes. Mastering of the track Stellar Smile was performed at Sterling Sound Studio by Chris Gehringer.
Besides musician, Rafael Arosa is a geography teacher and this activity is somehow reflected in some lyrics.