Author: johnctripp@gmail.com

Music Interview: Kode9

Kode9 Speaks on the release of “Black Sun”

BY JOHN C. TRIPP

It’s been 5 years since South London based duo Kode9 & the Spaceape’s debut album. On this new disc, named after Kode9’s influential 2009 single Black Sun, the intensity and themes of their debut Memories of the future remain, but the delivery is clearer and more rapid, the beats more jagged and restless. Starting as a dense onslaught, Black Sun proceeds to expand and contract its galaxy, sucking you into its orbit, and daring you to come and bathe in the warmth of its toxic glow.

Kode9 and the Spaceape explore an accelerated sonic fiction with this album. Spaceape verbally conjures up world under a Black Sun; his lyrics intimate an unknown time, that resonates strongly with the present, after an unclassified radioactive event has transformed the planet, much of which is now on fire. Spaceape sends radio transmissions from this irradiated, scorched zone. His demeanor has changed. Kode9 has tuned into him on a different frequency.

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Music Interview: Nostalgia 77

Nostalgia 77: Vocalist Josa Peit with Benedic Lamdin

BY JOHN C. TRIPP

There’s a gentle, organic and soulful spirit to Nostalgia 77’s fourth studio album “The Sleepwalking Society”. With vocalist Josa Peit giving a wistful and heartfelt voice to the band leader Benedic Lamdin’s organic compositions it’s an album that exhibits tremendous song writing and musicianship.

Nostalgia 77 has masterfully crafted an album of introspective, personal and timeless music on “The Sleepwalking Society.” It’s a sound that delicately fits amongst various genres of jazz, folk, blues and soul, all the while being highly enjoyable and rewarding listening.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nn8L-rYw2sQ&feature=player_embedded]

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Urban Soundscaper: Velanche Stewart Broadcasts Deep Soulful Beats

Velanche_garden

Velanche is the host and producer of Urban Landscapes, the weekly radio broadcast showcasing jazzy and soulful club culture from around the world. The show dives into nu-jazz, broken beat, rare funk, soul, house, downtempo, and related variants thereof.

Launched in January 1998, the show has evolved from its humble beginnings of ambient, downtempo and trip-hop sounds, evolving into its current form.

Velanche has been with KCPR, the college radio station of California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, since September 1997. He was also the RPM Director for the station for four years, as well as the alumni director. He has hosted other shows, and is currently co-host of Club 91, a weekly live dance mix show.

Velanche’s work with Urban Landscapes has earned a respectable following. He has profiled and/or interviewed a number of artists and producers, including Jonathan Moore from Coldcut, Jason Swinscoe from the Cinematic Orchestra, Martin Iveson aka Atjazz, Gilb’r of Chateau Flight (and founder of Versatile Records), Chris Vogodo from Zero dB (and co-founder of Fluid Ounce Records), The Angel, members of Bugz in the Attic, members of the Gonkyburg crew (Swell Session, Ernesto, Mimi Terris, and others), and Magnus Zingmark from Koop among others.

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Mo Kolours’ ‘Sega’ Beats

[bandcamp album=1677389117  bgcol=FFFFFF linkcol=4285BB size=venti]

Half-Mauritian singer-percussionist Mo Kolours steps forward with his debut release, EP1: Drum Talking. This beguiling, otherworldly record sees him drawing heavily on the ‘sega’ music of his ancestral island homeland and uniting it with dub, soul and various electronic styles to create intriguing new combinations.

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Free Track: Prommer & Barck “Sleeping Beauty” from “Alex And The Grizzly”

Alex Barck (l) and Christian Prommer

Two legends of the Berlin dance & soul music scene — Christian Prommer & Alex Barck — have collaborated to release a full length record that reflects their many influences and long history as DJs and artists.  “Alex And The Grizzly” will be released mid-April on their newly formed label, Derwin Recordings. The label’s administration will be handled by their long-term partners and friends at Compost.

No need to explain too much, the songs on “Alex & The Grizzly” are  the lifelong and concentrated passion, their quest for finer music and the fantastic tiny details of deep tunes.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmjSgktPLR4]

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