Johannesburg Afro-Jazz Collective SPAZA Locks in Fully Improvised Album Debut

Photo: Rethabile Ts’eiso-Phakisi

Johannesburg collective SPAZA will release their self-titled debut album on June 21 via local label Mushroom Hour Half Hour. 

SPAZA is a band with no permanent personnel, with each lineup assembled for the purpose of recording one-off improvised or workshopped material. For this initial salvo, SPAZA was put together from a group of musicians with individual and collective links to Johannesburg’s jazz, afro-funk, and experimental electro scenes, namely Nosisi Ngakane (vocals, effects), Ariel Zamonsky (upright bass), Siya Makuzeni (vocals, effects, trombone), Gontse Makhene (percussion, vocals), João Orecchia (synthesizers, electronics), and Waldo Alexander (electric violin w/ effects pedal). 

The group recorded the album at the Spaza Gallery in Troyeville, Johannesburg, live in one take during the autumn of 2015. It’s said to evoke a spirit of independence, the propensity for spontaneity, and a coming together of like minds. 

The album’s title is named after South Africa’s thousands of informal neighborhood stores. “Spaza” has come to signify an entrepreneurial spirit, especially in the country’s black townships where economic barriers to business ownership mean that only a few can attain the status of formal business ownership. In the country’s socio-political context, spazas, usually operating out of converted garages, shacks, or repurposed shipping containers, are also contested territories, and sites of often fatal bloodshed where financially disenfranchised South Africans routinely mete out their frustrations. However, spazas are also colourful, often styled and designed by each owner. They become the nerve centres of social activity in the communities and are often stocked with an array of iconic South African brands and products, many of which are referenced in the album’s track names. 

SPAZA LP comes pressed on 180gram vinyl and also digitally. Ahead of its June 21 release, pre-order is available here, with the first two singles streaming below.

Tracklisting

01. Magwinya, Mangola neWhite Liver

02. Sunlight, Glycerine, 2 loose draws

03. Five Rand Airtime nama-eveready: 4000 degrees 

04. Tigerbalm Nobuhlebakho [interlude]

05. Ice Squinchies: Waiting for you 

06. Invocations [interlude]

07. Stametta Spuit: Invocations

DJ Legwarmer “Mar De Nuvens”

DJ Legwarmer will release his debut solo EP, Full On, next month via No She Doesn’t. The Portuguese producer previously contributed a solo cut to the Lisbon label’s opening EP, which we offered for free download. 

In a playful take on house, Legwarmer stretches out the multiple ways of making bodies move, taking cues from disco and RnB. Opening with “Quandary,” an untamed piece of rhythm activity steeped in lush disco fragments, the EP follows with title track “Full On.” On the flip side, we find a dreamy cut of exotica on “Emotion/Behaviour,” before “Mar De Nuvens,” the final piece where DJ Legwarmer demonstrates his instinctive feel for emotive and catchy samples. In support of the EP, out July 1, we’re offering up “Mar De Nuvens” as one of today’s free downloads, available now via the WeTransfer button below, or here for EU readers. Pre-order is available here. 

Tracklisitng

01. Quandary

02. Full On

03. Emotion/Behaviour

04. Mar De Nuvens

Move D Debuts on Aus Music with Collaboration-Focused New Album

David Moufang (a.k.a Move D) will debut on Aus Music with his latest album, Building Bridges. 

The eight-track outing features five previously unreleased Move D originals, one featuring D Man, plus a collaborative effort with Fred P. There’s also a track from Magic Mountain High, Mounfang’s live-centric project with Juju & Jordash, and another from Reagenz, his project with Jonah Sharp, which also features Thomas Fehlmann. It’s his first release for Will Saul’s Aus label. 

We’re told that club cuts make up the bulk of the album’s tracklisting. From little more than cresting drums, purring basslines, and woozy jazz chords, Moufang creates  tracks that both envelop you in a warm, tender glow and make you move. Expect deep house, disco, and dub techno. The one outlier is “Alles Ist Eins,” with its strange technoid ambience. 

Tracklisting

01. Move D “Cycles”

02. Move D “Innit” feat. D Man 

03. Move D “Dots”

04. Magic Mountain High “Tiny Fluffy Spacepods” 

05. Move D “Dusted Links”

06. Reagenz “One Small Step” feat. Thomas Fehlmann 

07. Move D & Fred P “Building Bridges” 

08. Move D “Perpetual State” (featuring the poem “Alles Ist Eins” by Thorn Hoedh) 

Building Bridges LP lands in July, with clips over at Bleep. 

Tommaso Cappellato Explores Lo-Fi Hip-Hop and Free Jazz on New Album for Verona’s Mother Tongue

Tommaso Cappellato has released a new album via Mother Tongue, a new label, pressing plant, distributor, and online shop based in Verona, Italy. 

Butterflying, the latest offering from Cappellato, the Italian multi-instrumentalist and producer, is inspired by a recent trip to New York, where he spent most of his formative years, and is a beat tape by definition. The eight tracks saunter between lo-fi hip-hop and free jazz, from downtempo electronica to ambient bliss. It’s the result of time spent unearthing, rearranging, and merging old and new material.

The album serves as the first release on DJ-producer Patrick Gibin’s new venture, Mother Tongue. Started in 2019, it houses an independent record label, vinyl pressing plant, distribution, and shop under one roof, prioritising “quality relationships with quality artists.” 

Cappellato has nurtured an extensive catalog of material that spans from free‐form hip-hop, techno, ambient, and jazz. Highlights include Aforemention, his visionary album exposing his own concept of jazz-informed experimental electronic soundscapes, and Astral Travel, his spiritual jazz ensemble. 

Tracklisting

01. Splinters Of A Rainbow Heart (feat. Matteo Alfonso & Andrea Lombardini)

02. Humming Beings (feat. Yu Lin Humm) 

03. Butterflying 

04. Take-Off Land 

05. Canvas In The Dark 

06. Catch Me If You Can (feat. Alberto Lincetto) 

07. No Flies For A Closed Mouth (feat. Piero Bittolo Bon) 

08. Abstract Travels 

Butterflying LP is out now, with clips below. 

Brendon Moeller Debuts on Fluxion’s Vibrant Music with Indie- and Shoegaze-Influenced Album

Brendon Moeller will debut on Fluxion’s Vibrant Music with an indie- and shoegaze-influenced album, Materialize.  

Moeller spent his early days in South Africa in various bands exploring indie, shoegaze, ambient, moody, and cinematic sounds. The album sees him come “full circle,” the label explains, reaching out to his early influences but with the knowledge and experience of many years of exploration of modular synths. “It explores time and space through a minimalist, stoic approach,” the label adds. 

Over the course of his career, Moeller has constantly challenged himself with new concepts and ideas, incorporating techno, dub, jazz, ambient, and sound design to his works. He has collaborated with labels like Echocord, Third Ear, Electric Deluxe, Prologue, and Mord to name a few. 

The album is Vibrant Music’s first release of 2019. 

Tracklisting

01. Materialize 

02. Ghost Strand 

03. There Can Be No True Beauty Without Decay 

04. Circles Guaranteed 

05. Summon 

06. Staying In 

07. Dusk 

08. Dunes 

09. Colorful Donation 

10. Sweet Berry Wine 

Materialize LP lands July 5 on vinyl and digital, with “Summon” streaming here.

 

Ahnnu Returns as Cakedog for New Footwork LP on Leaving Records

Leland Jackson, the Los Angeles producer better known as Ahnnu, is set to revive his Cakedog alias, focusing on footwork and juke tracks, in a massive new 20-track album entitled Doggystyle, dropping July 3 on Leaving Records. 

All 20 tracks have been collected from the Cakedog Laboratories circa 2017-2018, and are described as a manifestation of Jackson’s vision after being mentored by R.P. Boo. The record is devoted to dancer, DJ, and producer culture.

Cakedog’s last album surfaced in 2015 on Leaving, titled Menace In The Phantom.

Lead single “Thrones” (Clout Version) melds haunting and medieval eight-bit melodies, overlaid on top of a skittering footwork beat for a whiplash effect. 

Artwork for the release is by Jackson himself.

Tracklisting

01. Witness

02. Breached

03. Know My Name

04. Kill em All

05. Hawt Shit

06. Move It

07. High Ryde

08. 9-1-1

09. CYa

10. Get Up

11. Whip Kidz

12. History

13. Guts

14. What U Got

15. Final Chance

16. Its You

17. SMD

18. Rocked

19. Go In

20. Thrones (Clout Version)

Doggystyle LP drops July 3 on Leaving Records.

Tom Trago Has Curated the Latest Edition of XLR8R+

XLR8R+012 is curated by Tom Trago and features tracks by Deniro, Tracey, and Darling, and a sample pack and track from the man himself.

For those unfamiliar, XLR8R+ is a monthly subscription service supporting XLR8R and independent music and culture. A subscription gets you three exclusive tracks every month, plus a zine, wallpaper artwork, and other goodies such as sample packs, free event and festival tickets, vinyl giveaways, and more.

With Trago at its helm, this month’s edition looks to The Netherlands and producers that, as Trago explains, are “on a high production level but not on a high fame level.”

Kicking things off is Deniro, one of the country’s most promising techno talents, with “Accelerated,” a nimble slice of melodic techno. He’s joined by Tracey, the first new signing to Lawrence’s Dial imprint in a decade, who delivers “Moonchild,” a delicate and beat-driven live studio jam of dream-like qualities. Amsterdam’s unsung hero Darling closes out the package with driving late-night jam “Enibas.” As a bonus, Trago has also included a track of his own in “Cockayne,” a bass-heavy groover birthed during the recording for his The Light Fantastic album.

Alongside the tracks, Trago has offered up a sample pack featuring sounds from his back catalog and live show that many of you will recognize—bass, percussion, keys, vocals, and strings all feature.

We’ve also included a podcast from Tracey ahead of its publication on the XLR8R site, as well as a Studio Essentials feature with Darling and a Get Familiar feature with Deniro.

You can subscribe to XLR8R+ here, and subscribers can download the package here. You can stream snippets of XLR8R+012 below, where you can also find information on the entire package contents and a preview of the zine.

This month’s package features:

* Four exclusive, previously unreleased tracks from Tom Trago, Deniro, Darling, and Tracey.

* Tracey’s XLR8R podcast week’s ahead of its publication on XLR8R.com.

* 14-page PDF zine with information on the artists, tracks, and sample pack, a Studio Essentials feature with Darling, and a Get Familiar with Deniro.

* Wallpaper artwork for both desktop and phone by Kalle Mattsson.

* Private 50-track streaming playlist.

Subscribe to XLR8R+ for a Free Ticket to Berg Audio Off Barcelona

XLR8R is offering XLR8R+ subscribers free passes to the upcoming Berg Audio Off Barcelona event, taking place June 14 during Off Week in Barcelona.

The event, which will go down at an open-air terrace in partnership with Watermelon and Trommel, will feature some of the best in underground house and techno, including Berg Audio regulars Andrey Pushkarev, Steve O’Sullivan, and iO (Mulen), as well as Girada Unlimited head Julian Perez, Romania’s Ada Kaleh, Malin Genie, and more.

This year, we’ve partnered with Berg Audio to offer subscribers to XLR8R+ a limited amount of free guestlist passes to the event.

For those who haven’t yet, SUBSCRIBE HERE and email your full name, subscription confirmation page, and “Berg Audio” to [email protected] to claim your free event pass. For current subscribers, simply email your full name and “Berg Audio” as the subject.

Details of the 12th edition of XLR8R+ can be found here, a Dutch special curated by Tom Trago and featuring tracks by Deniro, Darling, Tracey, and Trago himself, who has also offered up an exclusive sample pack. Subscription details here plus snippets of the tracks below.

Novation Offers Free Beatmaker Plugin to Sound Collective Members

Novation is offering its Sound Collective community a free copy of UJAM’s Beatmaker EDEN plugin.

Beatmaker EDEN features five drum kits, which themselves feature 25 MIDI-triggered styles of 24 song parts each, a powerful mixing console, and 16 MIDI-triggered one-shot instruments per kit. Along with the plugin, community members can also get a 30% discount off UJAM’s Hip-hop-Bundle (Beatmaker Hustle and Beatmaker Dope) from 6 June to 1 August.

You can find out more about Novation’s Sound Collective here.

Broken Social Scene to Play Los Angeles Show Tonight at The Fonda

Broken Social Scene will play their third and final Los Angeles show tonight at The Fonda.

Presented by Golden Voice and KCRW, the show will see the Canadian collective partner with PLUS1, with $1 from every ticket going to Youth Speaks, an initiative providing life-changing arts programs for vulnerable and disadvantaged youth across the US. The tour, which also has stops in Seattle, Brooklyn, Copenhagen, and London, among others, follows a triumphant 2017 return to the album format (Hug of Thunder) and tour circuit, which itself followed a long hiatus after the release of 2010’s Forgiveness Rock Record. The tour will also find the collective presenting their 2019 EP Let’s Try The After – Vol 2 for the first time.

You can find more information and tickets here.

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