(c) Alexis Maryon

Saxophonist, composer, actor, and tap dancer, Idris Ackamoor is the founder of The Pyramids in 1972, resurrected ten years ago. Since 2010 the band has toured throughout the world with original members and a line-up of new players. As for this brand new album, ‘An Angel Fell’ produced by Malcolm Catto and recorded during an intense week at Quatermass studios in London. Time to go back to the complete story of this under known master.

In Land of Ra we can see a tribute to Sun Ra. Did you know him? What was his influence?
The original name of the composition was “Land of Jah” as a tribute to the beautiful Island of Jamaica. I changed it when I updated the composition adding lyrics and a new reference to “Land of Ra” referencing a double meaning to the Egyptian Ra, god of the sun, as well as a tribute to Sun Ra. I did not know Sun Ra personally but I always was inspired by his music and theatrical stage performances. He is still one of my favorite composers and performers. Equally, I have always loved Marshall Allen’s and John Gilmore’s playing.

Cecil Taylor was also a mentor, who was looking for other ways. What was your relationship with him?
Cecil was one of my major influences musically and philosophically and one of my greatest teachers along with my principle mentor, historic clarinet and reed master Andrew Cyrille (who had played with Jelly Roll Morton and Freddie Keppard in the 1920s), and the late alto saxophonist Charles Tyler. I was a student at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio and studying in the music department. One of my music professors, named John Ronsheim, wrote a large grant to bring Cecil Taylor and his group including the late Jimmy Lyons on alto, Andrew Cyrille on drums, dancer Ken Miller, percussionist Cliff Sykes, and poet James Thompson. Professor Ronsheim decided to give me a work-study job to help prepare the way for Cecil and his ensemble to come to Antioch. During Cecil’s stay he taught classes and conducted the Cecil Taylor Black Music Ensemble. I took Cecil’s classes and was a member of the Ensemble playing alto saxophone in the alto section, along with Jemeel Moondoc and Bobby Zankle, both of who are major innovators in the jazz world now.

Sun Ra and Cecil Taylor have been classified in free jazz, yet their music is often different in their intentions. What do you think of this word, free jazz? A paradoxical jail or a radical opening?
I don’t and never have used the word «free jazz». If someone wants to use that word to describe a certain genre of jazz I don’t really have a problem with it. I am not much into slogans, or types. I understand the need for marketing purposes to have a name to attempt to identify a category of music. However, I must quote one of the masters of African American music, Duke Ellington, who said, «There are two kinds of music. Good music, and the other kind.»

You toured in Africa during the 70’s… What did you find, discovered?
I found my true self! Africa was a spiritual and revelational journey and adventure for me. I will never forget it and it will always be a part of one of my greatest experiences and influences beyond all others. I took a musical and spiritual journey to Northern Ghana traveling to Tamale and Bolgatanga, Ghana. It lasted about two weeks and during that time I played with the Dagomba people of Tamale who introduced me to playing with the King’s drummers. I also journeyed to Bolgatanga and participated in several magical musical rituals and ceremonies including performing at the Second Burial of a Fra Fra King, as well as, undertaking a healing ritual in the African bush with a Shaman who performed the «ritual of the washing of the legs». I collected many instruments and also became a percussionist playing a variety of instruments including talking drums, balafons, and a variety of flutes.

Lalibela


 

When you were going back, you had recorded three Afro-jazz albums, “c” in 1973, “King of Kings” in 1974 and “Birth / Speed / Merging” in 1976 on independent labels. Why this choice of independence ?
I wanted a way to get the music of The Pyramids out to a wider audience. In America it was the time of crossover music and rock and roll, and this was the type of music that was being played on the radio as well as recorded by record companies. They were not recording the music of Cecil Taylor or The Pyramids. Cecil was already beginning to self-produce and distribute his music while he was at Antioch College. Sun Ra was also continuing to self-produce and distribute his music. It was a natural development for me to be inspired by these innovative and independent musicians who also wanted to take control of their own musical destiny. The Pyramids were some of the first DIY musicians to take control of their music and fiercely independent!

The first Pyramids LP’s from the 70’s are now strong collector’s pieces. Haw many of each of them have been printed at the time
We printed 1000 copies of ‘Lalibela’ and ‘King of ’ and 5000 copies of ‘Birth/Speed/’. Many of the Birth/Speed/Merging LPs we’re unfortunately lost during a move.

You have a special link with France since this is where your band, The Pyramids, was born. Tell us more about this episode?
I wrote a proposal to the Antioch College Abroad Program to leave America with three Antioch students (my ex-wife flutist Margo Simmons, and electric bassist Kimathi Asante) and travel to Europe and form a band and work. The college agreed to send us with the condition that we had to at least spend some time at a university for several months. Once we did this we would be on our own to form a band and attempt to find work as professional musicians. We selected the University of Besançon and we took 6 weeks of Intensive French. We arrived in this idyllic small city in the French countryside and began our year abroad! While we were at the University we each stayed in three different dormitories that were shaped a lot like a pyramid. Hence the name! Following the six week language program we were speaking French pretty good, but when we left after the end of the intensive we went to Paris and then to Amsterdam. While in Paris we were introduced to musicians like tenor saxophonist Frank Wright and we also met a young drummer our age named Donald Robinson. He became the first drummer with The Pyramids and followed us to Amsterdam and months later to Yellow Springs, Ohio.

Ayler’s and Pharoah’s messages (‘Music Is The Healing Force Of The Universe’, ‘Love Is Everywhere,’ …), are spiritual jazz essence. Do people need now more than ever music with a message?
I have always believed that musicians are spiritual messengers! Just like the ancient griots of Africa musicians are the repository of the collective cultural memories of a people. Whether it is John Coltrane’s ‘Alabama’ as a homage to the four black schoolgirls killed in Birmingham, or Charlie Parker’s ‘Now’s The Time’, the powerful music of Bob Marley or Fela Kuti, or ‘Soliloquy For Michael Brown’ from my album. These are the compositions and the musicians I most admire and listen to. Musicians who are not afraid to compose and play music with a positive message. I also loved the freedom and uncompromising music of early Albert Ayler whose very style and intensity sends its own kind of spiritual and political message! I was fortunate enough to study and play with Albert’s cousin and alto player, Charles Tyler.

Nsorama from King of Kings

 

We are witnessing a revival of spiritual jazz, also known as cosmic jazz, whose values you carry. What could be your definition of this music?
I can only define my music. As I mentioned before I understand the need to use words to categorize and market music. However, I am an Artistic Being! The music I play is cosmic in that it is expansive and encompasses the past, present and future of the Omniverse! I also live in San Francisco! In the early 70’s the city was the epicenter for mind altering drugs, flower power, and freedom. I love the music of Jimi Hendrix, Sly and the Family Stone and Santana. But equally I grew up in Chicago. The home of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians. I loved Martha and the Vandellas. Smokey Robinson and the Miracles. And of course The Impressions. Then I was birthed into John Coltrane, nurtured by Cecil Taylor, destroyed and reinvented by Albert Ayler and the album “Bells”. Altoist Charles Tyler passed a message on to me I will never forget! Clifford King was truly «The King»! He taught me to play dogs and cats, lightning and rain, and invent my life. I mention all of the above because they are the aggregate of cosmic music…music of the Omniverse!

Your were a tap dancer, you had worked with Bill T. Jones, great choregrapher… What is your relationship to dance? Do you think music is a «body and soul» affair?
Yes, I am a tap dancer. Or more appropriately, a «hoofer». Legendary hoofer, the late Al Robinson, was my mentor and teacher. He taught me to tell stories with my feet. I am one of the repositories of amazingly complex and sublime «Al Robinson» steps. I also studied with the master Steve Condos. I also number Bill T. Jones as a friend and collaborator. His creativity and intellect is of the highest form. I danced a duet with Bill in the Cultural Odyssey production, “Perfect Courage”. Music is a «body and soul affair». I seek to be a very physical saxophonist with the stance of a basketball player at the free throw line. Breath to me is the most important aspect of my playing. I play like i’m swimming. Breathing deep, relaxed, but intense!

In your new album you talk about global apocalypse, climate change and the healing power of music. Why this title : An Angel Fell? A subliminal message?
Everyone who listens to the music and lyrics of “An Angel Fell” will have their own story to tell. It is my phantasmagoric journey just below the service of awareness. Something I dreamed or thought I dreamed but in fact it was a reality. A love story. A story of loss and recovery. A story of memory, minds, bodies, and spirits crossing time… falling through space. What’s your story?

When we see the coming to power of many nationalists, including Donald Trump in the USA, but also in India, Japan or Europe, are you pessimistic about the future of the planet?
I don’t have a pessimistic bone in my body! I embrace the positive and hope abounds. I’m from a people who were taken as slaves and who triumphed against all odds! My mother was one of those golden warriors. I saw my father (who is now 96 years old) stand up fearless looking into the barrel of a gun held by a white man. I was there as a teenager helping him as a janitor in the sixties. So, no I am not pessimistic about the future of the planet. I have seen real live angels in my life… they are everywhere… in the prisons, on the playgrounds, next door…

Tinoge

 

What are the main dangers for the next years ?
Indifference! Listen to the album.

The political commitment was very strong in the 70’s, and again there is a movement of more militant musicians. Do you believe that music is the weapon of the future, as Fela said?
A friend of mine said, «Musicians are the ambassadors of the soul». I believe this. For me weapons and music are diametrically opposed! Try to live one day without music in your life! Music is omnipresent! The eyes are the windows into the soul and the ears are the black hole into space. Music is change and change is music! See the clouds part with the sun. It’s a new start everyone!

“Tinoge” is co-written with Max Weissenfeldt and a few others. Are you surprised by this new generation, who often knows history better than many jazz specialists?
There are many of the new generation who respect what came before but are not anchored to it. I find it exciting when genres are broken down and barriers come tumbling down! Joshua fought the battle of Jericho and the walls came tumbling down! Musicians young and old have to speak with one voice, blow with one horn to tumble down walls of hatred, disrespect, and division.

How did you work with Malcolm Catto? What did he bring you?
Malcolm gave 100% to the recording! He has such large ears and the ability to help guide and produce a recording session in a respectful and mutually supportive manner. The more we worked together the better we understood each other. I found him to be very nurturing of my compositional needs and vision for the album which was worked out in my waking dreams for many years.

Are you going to perform on stage with Heliocentrics?
I am ready anytime!!!! And would love it!

Check the complete new record on Strut website

photo(c) Jean SaintJean

Greg de Villanova is a multi-talented french/brazilian character! Fellow digger, heavy collector, tropical DJ, music historian as well as music consultant! But he’s also a label owner at Oriki Music, where he (re)releases the music he loves! Let’s share this wise guy’s opinions on the LP market!

When did you start digging records?
Around 1987-88, digging for rap records when those were badly distributed in Paris.

What Lps did you buy at first? Do you still listen to them?
Jazz funk and funk classics, first record ever was Herbie Hancock’s ‘Manchild’. I still buy and listen to 70’s classics, those are the real deal, not the super obscure stuff I’ve been collecting for the past 20 years.

Do you have a particular style or favorite period?
60’s hard soul and early 70’s deep funk.

Are you still digging’, buying vinyl, visiting record shops?
I dig on a regular basis but not in stores, try to link up with private owners, collectors, buy cheap and in large quantities.

What was your first release on Oriki ?
Orchestre Baobab’s ‘A night at Club Baobab’.

Orchestra Baobab
Souleymane

What could be your editorial/esthetic line?
Afro ! Oriki has 6 African music releases and 2 Afro Brazilians.

What could be the label’s leitmotif?
Modernity and beauty are universal.

What is the Oriki LP you are prouder?
Baobab’s : it’s our biggest sales and media hit (about 15.000 copies sold) and it’s surely one of the most consistent African bands of the 70’s, ultimate work .

Did you have any references labels when you started ?
Not at all, I always do my stuff with the heart and don’t buy or listen to reissues. I also barely know what’s being done by other labels.

Do you think the adventures of diggers have changed over time? Do you keep going to the field?
I don’t really know what you mean with the first question, my work as a digger remains the same, go to the field, hunt intensely, discover new stuff, keep eyes and ears wide opened, never give up even if it’s the 10th mistaken lead I’m following.

Your first references were on the West African zone. Is it still easy today to find rare, unedited records?
There is more to do than done, always… Question is how relevant some reissues would be.

Moussa Doumbia
Femme d’aujourdhui

And how do you negotiate with the right owners?
Patiently!

You have released some Brazilian records, and you are known as a great connoisseur of this country. Why not more reissues?
Most of the relevant stuff is owned by majors which don’t allow licensing.

Could we dream to listen on LP the fantastic Obaluayê!?
All dreams are possible, but I won’t do it, worked on that on cd 15 years ago, changing the format is not really challenging, and I need the project to be so to get interested in doing it.

Can you introduce us to the new Ivorian selection? Its particularity, its difference compared to all the others that come out on the market?

I’d say it’s more interesting than most stuff out there for three reasons.
1-It’s super obscure, ultra hard to get and extremely expensive stuff which you can spend years looking for. Most collectors have a very vague notion of how rarer this or that African record is compared to another, the Société Ivoirienne du Disque funky catalogue is simply the ultimate when it comes to French speaking Africa.
2-It’s a coherent compilation focusing on a single label, and more particularly on what could be spotted as a collection within the label, even though it’s never been marketed as such by the producer. Most tracks have the same funk and fusionny, African American music influenced sound, a lot has the same sidemen and / or arrangers.
3-Finally, a lot of the music has that raw and deep funk vibe, completely unique in French speaking Africa, when it was much more common in English speaking Ghana and Nigeria. The compilation focuses, with a few exceptions, on what I consider to be the ultimate in terms of solid deep funk and jazz funk coming out of Ivory Coast.

De Frank Jr
Ayee Menko

Why such a long silence before this come-back ?
Well, the label is my own little dancer, I don’t make profits out of it, which means I need spare time to work on it. I lacked that spare time. Also, when the first releases came out years ago, most didn’t sell enough to cover expenses (I used to buy advertising space in magazines and pay for a press attaché). What customers wanted was the funky stuff and I didn’t specifically focus on that because I thought there was much more interesting stuff to be reissued. Even if this new compilation rocks, most artists included within it have quite anecdotical carriers. Our first reissues focused on heavy weights of modern African music, but I guess Western ears were not ready to leave their funkocentric approach and listen to modern African music for what it is and not for how much it’s been influenced by James Brown or Fela Kuti.

Nowadays, there are many LP labels who follow this model, I mean more quality even if it’s more expensive… but in same time, there are also another « new » LP market, with major companys come-back and other labels, who prefer to sell cheaper. Is it the (re)creation of two camps for the LP ?
Vinyl is trendy, and there are different ways of doing it. Some labels try to make money out of limited quantities, which is impossible, so all they can do is shitty pressings and bootlegs. That really sucks, they should try to get into another business to make profits. Majors have a different, but also opportunistic approach. They sell vinyl records to people who didn’t really give a shit about the format until recently, they just think it’s cool, today, don’t know how long this « coolness » will last. Then there is the passionate, hard working, accurate people doing amazing reissues, deep historical work with consistent liner notes and tracklistings. Those contribute to something bigger than us, universal knowledge and beauty.
But if you’re just into music, you don’t really give a shit about that, all you want is the sound, and from this point of view, anything is good. This discussion is mainly for the passionate professionals, most of the audience is not interested in such considerations.

Sewa Jacintho
Secret Populaire

There are more and more reissues of old LPs, and more and more record labels (major or indie) now release their new artists on LP, or EP. Do you think that the LP reissue market could ever reach saturation point?
No idea at all, but at some point I guess this will happen. Customers into vinyl have limited funds, but I don’t have numbers as to the extent of this market. But frankly, how many thousand copies maximum of a vinyl title are pressed ? Several tens of thousands ? How many people on the planet ? It’s just a drop in the middle of the sea which the music industry is. Mp3 rules.

What are your other next releases ?
No idea yet. Right now I’m in my hammock, recovering from the hassle the last one was with all the boring crap I had to do to put the record out, sending emails, phoning, dealing with pressing, graphic design or digital distribution. If you wanna listen to good obscure stuff, you should come join me in the hammock, we’ll be able to deal with much more music within much lesser time !

What is the LP you dream of issuing/reissuing?
None. Or maybe Nicole Croisille’s debut album. Or any other hard to get French stuff that’s not interesting to grooveaholics nor anyone else. And I’ll get someone deal with the boring part. Need to get rich first though, cause this won’t sell.

http://gregdevillanova.com/mixes

Milton Nascimento
Travessia

«First you got this minimalist guitar intro who hide a wonderful orchestral development and above all this, the young but ever mystical voice of Milton with his so elusive phrasing.»
 

Franz Schubert
Der Konig

«Composed in 1815, this lieder is adapted by an unusual chamber orchestra and an incredible cabaret berliner style performer who take us deeply into the haunted Goethe poem, see the amazing voice dynamics from the murmured piano section at the beginning to the forte at the end.»
 

Fela Kuti
Water No Get Enemy

«Of course we know the beat, rhythm and brass sections, backing vocals, voice and involvement of the legendary black leader. This tune, a real beautiful melodic song, is unique in his genre. The emotion is doubled.»
 

John Lee Hooker
Stomp Boogie

«Pure barbed transe from 1948, the proof he’s the real techno music inventor, remember his “Motor City Is Burning” lyrics. Ace.»
 

Dead Kennedy’s
Ill In My Head

«The sound is really punk (it’s from 1980!), but this modern high level music score is worthy of Kurt Weill for me. Thanks them for their desobedience…»

photos (c)Jeanne Abrahams

Following their first releases, a tribute to the Zimbabwean songstress Chiwoniso (“Zvichapera”), some reissues of obscure South African library music from the early 80’s and a collaboration between the Mbira master Jacob Mafuleni & the French producer Gary Gritness, the French record label Nyami Nyami has just issued the first LP of the South African band BCUC (Bantu Continua Uhuru Consciousness). A kind of afropsychededic mix of deep afro free jazz with energetic electro funk rock, whom sounds more or less like nothing else! That’s why we decided to make a long stop with this band strongly rooted in their community and naturally open to the world.

How did you create this band? What did you do before?
Before the band existed most of us were students at tertiary except one us who was already a theatre practitioner and a session rapper in the hood. By luck, coincidence, rebellious mindedness and a similar fashion sense, the indigenous music gods made us to meet each other. We used to meet at Thokoza Park for spoken word and musical jam sessions. Somebody spotted us and booked for our first gig as a collective, from that day the band was born.

Why did you choose this name: Bantu Continua Uhuru Consciousness? And why do you mix onto different languages?
Besides that the name is long, unpretentious and a mantra to the path that we choose it became clear and notable that words like Bantu (humans) Consciousness, Aluta Continua, Not Yet Uhuru, kept on appearing a lot on our freestyles. When the day came for us to choose a name in most of the suggested names all these four words kept on appearing. So we decided to partner these words and make them the name of our band.
The mixing of languages is not conscious choice, when you live in the townships of South Africa you are exposed to all eleven official languages and numerous slangs from all over Africa (sometimes the world) depending on how near you are to the major cities.

And did you change of formula since the starting?
The formula has never changed because there was never a formula. We always created music that is directed to the subconscious and the souls of the people that we are, the people we are talking to and the people that we can become (music for the people, by the people with the people). We are still talking about the same subject matter, what has changed is we have gained more patience, we are not looking for anyone to rescue us or open the doors for us anymore. We know that our content is extremely heavy and extremely secular at times, i.e. we are capable of understanding and not arguing with notions that can come from the far right or far left. All in all we have made ourselves to be basic, random, spontaneous and most importantly accepting. What we have become is a template for a soul of a world travelled, spiritually versed human being, who is not going to sit on the side lines and complain abut the problems of the world because we are the change that we would love to see. Sonically the soundscape does not really matter to us because even if you give us instruments from the Far East or ancient Europe or anywhere in the world for that matter, the music that we will make will sound like our state of mind. We sound like amazing people from Soweto making amazing music for amazing people of the world. So much has changed in terms of personnel, musical instruments and the fusion of genres if we can start talking about that it will be an anthropology workshop of modern African music.

What were your mentors, references, and influences?
Our mentors have either passed on or they were never appreciated whilst they were still practicing their art, their spiritual journey, and their academic endeavors or just before they lost their minds. We are big fans of tribal war songs; traditional ceremonial songs, old church music (very old!), fantasy movies and book characters also inspire us. Fela Kuti is a big deal for us, Mystical Revelations of Rastafari is a big for us, Oumou Sangare, Bueno Vista Social Club, Mahalia Jackson, Nina Simone, Otis Redding, Howlin Wolf, Mahlathini and The Mahotela Queens, Thandiswa Mazwai her whole life from Jacknife to Bongo Muffin. We are not big fans of political figures or religious figures although we find some very interesting and we can learn from them, we just never give mention because politics and religion have caused more wars and are a sensitive subject and we respect that (now of late).

The short introduction of this record insists about the fact you are strongly connected to community… What sense to give to this word, community? Something obviously based on social reality? Something connected to a common spiritual vision?
From day one our band was built either from the shoulders, the feet or the hands of people who did it before us it, being indigenous music, indigenous ways of life. All through our history there were people who dealt with the transformation from the old to the new world using the present world as a medium of communication. With this project we made sure that we reach the source of our entire belief system as a band, we tackled our fears by producing the sound that we forever wished we can make, we just went into the studio and performed instead of recording. This resulted in the whole recording becoming an introduction to the energy that is driving us. In our eyes we see the world as professionals that are in the matrix of exchanging services from one professional to another, that is our community. A broad based worldview from our micro locations. Yes we are Africans going through our African lives but through this EP our African lives become part of the world musical ecosystem in that ecosystem we wish to become part of the team that deals with healing the world. Obviously our truth will not sit easy with everyone at the same time but our truth carries everybody’s truth with ease at the same time.

What are your links With the Joburg scene? Do you work with some artists from that scene? Where do you play on stage?
In Johannesburg if you consider yourself a person who knows what is going on and supports the live music scene, it is almost impossible not to know who BCUC is. We are mostly popular amongst artists, fashionistas, photographers and we are respected by other bands. The love that we get from our peers in the industry is so special to us because if you are appreciated by people who do what you do it means you are on a good path. We have worked with Jet Black Camaro on an amazing song called Ayikh’ into Esingayenza (https://youtu.be/eI3v6HO8cm8), and now recently we are about with collaborate with The Black Cat Bones on a set for A Place in The Sun Festival and that is very huge for us because they have been doing this for so long. About where we play we think the good question is “where haven’t we played in Johannesburg?”

You give à name to your aesthetic view: Africangungungu… What this word cover? À kind of original mixture of rap and roots music, electronic and organic, free jazz and punk rock?
It is exactly that and when you hear it goes “Ngungungu” with all its African mighty sound.

Those record sessions sound as long improvisation… Was it that? And by improvising, do you want to catch the intensity, the necessity, the urgency, of the instant, live and direct?
As we have explained we decided to go into the studio and perform. In all our shows we prepare a skeleton that means, we pre-arrange the song structure then we put meat on the skeleton. The meat in these sessions is the state of mind that we find ourselves in. Each and every performance carries with it the burden of solving a problem or dealing with the challenge that presently we are undergoing in our daily lives from our base camp (Soweto). We are spoken word practitioners, we are roots musicians, with that comes spontaneity that automatically means a lot of improv. That right there is what makes us who we are as a music band. We are the original spirit of Jazz, we are the foundation of Rock and Roll. Every time when we do music we showcase our ability to anticipate every contribution that each member of the band brings to the table at that moment in time. BCUC is an experience that uses music as a vehicle to maneuver and negotiate the storms of human relations for the purpose of better understanding across colors, social classes and locations. So every time that you hear us we are playing a song that has an ability to become what is needed at that moment in time. We are the descendants of a people that belong to tribes that use music as therapy.

How and where did you record it?
“Yinde” was recorded in Gauteng, Springs at Markon Recording Studios. www.markonstudio.com. How it came about was they were opening a new recording studio and they wanted a variety of bands that differ in genres, to come and record in their studios so that they use these recordings to market their studio capabilities. Fortunately we were one of the bands that were chosen.
“Asazani” and “In My Blues” were recorded in Cape Town at Popsicle Studios www.popsiclestudios.com. Pospsicle Studios usually record sessions where they invite artists to use their studios then use that material for their online TV channel. That channel helps artists by providing with high tech studios and video.

The title of the LP is ‘Our Truth’… Could you tell us more about it? What is your vision, version, of the truth?
Our truth is we all want the same thing. To wake up, start your day in good way and be successful then go to sleep happy and satisfied that you have done something.

Many people talked about rainbow nation… In reality, it Sounds different, less mixed than we could Hope in nineties. Do you believe music could help to create that open mind society?
Yes music can create an open minded, united, hard working society because the music industry is open minded and full of successful people doing what they love with the intention of changing peoples lives. So if music is curated well, if musicians care and fill their music with love, the people that are listening to their music will in turn fill their lives with love. Love is not a fantasy or a dream; love is working everyday for the affection of the people you care about. Love is not perfect, love includes conflicts but because you care about each other you come out of the conflict united because you are not fighting to win or to destroy, you are fighting for mutual understanding. In love there are long-term goals, in love there is no life without one another, in love there is a foundation for the future of what lovers create. About the “rainbow nation”, the thing that made the rainbow nation idea not to be successful is (not was) the inability of what was written to be translated in real life. Whenever anyone says “rainbow nation” you get the sense of political compromise whilst in real life we need to be straightforward and stop beating around the bush. South African history is not pretty, a lot of bad things were done to the people by the people, there is no way we can behave like nothing happened, Apartheid is our common ghost, it does not matter if your heritage is as a doer or your heritage is as a “done to”, without the conversation between common people across professions our future is bleak. What we usually say is be a good employer, be a good employee, be a good friend, be a good neighbor, be a good parent, be good company. If you combine all of that as the people of this country then there will be a bright future for all of us. If we are all good (we know its hard, we know we put ourselves first) but if we can remember to be good then no rainbow will be needed. Good people do not need heroes because good people they already are heroes. This question is another one of the many about South Africa that needs their own anthropology workshop. It is a global socialization conundrum that needs a different solution because South Africa works in a different dynamic as far as history, race and numbers are concerned.

This EP is the first international issue… What do you expect? What does that change?
We would be lying if we said we don’t expect bigger things but luckily for us we always expect bigger things from ourselves. Whatever happens will happens because it is time for it to happen. We never chase success that is why we never fail. As we usually say “what it is, is what it is”.

Did you go, play before outside South Africa?
Yes we have toured the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Tenerife, The Canary Islands and recently the Reunion Island.

“Yinde”, which opens “Our Truth”, means “the road”: a symbol of the distance left to cover towards a fairer South African society. Is it long way? And how could it be possible to reduce this distance?
Unfortunately there is no short cut but fortunately there is no set destination that means there is no need to calculate the duration. All we know is that there are quite a number of problems in South Africa and some people are anxious and panicked and they have a right to feel that way, we just happen to be the voice of calm in the storm. Because of our make-up, and the type of families that we come from, we have the ability and the trust in ourselves as a band and as a country that we have seen this before or we have been told about these times in a form of prophecy and folk tales. We have to weather the storm, take what karma has in store for us gracefully. We need to be a solution based society because the blame game is very easy but the danger of this easy blame game is that it leads us to division.

Is it harder to live in South Africa today than ten years ago, when dreams were still available?
Ten years ago we were ten years younger, we didn’t have this financial burden that we find ourselves having now. At home they still had no problem providing for us, so if we didn’t age for ten years we would have been in a perfect position to answer this question right. All that we know is that South Africa is beautiful, the people want to make this work, and the politics are still the game. Luckily for us now we do not have time for games, life inside our homes is real it needs solutions that no government can give, no funding can give, no aid can give. We need a simple, introspective solution, whether we like it or not we are part of the global community, by virtue of he who has the money makes all the rules. Start by understanding that and learn the harsh realities of life, stay healthy, be remembered with a smile then you will fix your life ten years from now.

What is the best way in order to change the audience’s minds. By creating an original, creative, mix? By writing protest songs?
We wish we knew. What we know is who we are, where are we coming from and where are we going to. With that as a framework we look at who can potentially be offended and we devise a preventative measure so that we do not repeat the same mistakes. That way every time that we are on stage we are always on point, we do not compromise ourselves, we do not go around subjects we don’t choose names, we are always firm, fair, kind and straight to the point. We make amazing traditional musical ceremonies of very special proportions.

Nyami Nyami Records

Samy Redjeb in Khartoum by Souheil Ben Redjeb

Ten years after its launch, the Frankfurt-based record label is one of the top references for vinyl miners and african music lovers : well-selected compilations and extended liner notes are two of its trademarks. It is now time to go through the complete story with Samy Ben Redjeb, the mind behind Analog Africa… Have a good musical trip.

 
 

When did you start digging records?
Around 1995.

What Lps did you buy at first? Do you still listen to them?
Mainly Zimbabwean and South African records, some I still listen to today.

Do you have a particular style or favorite period and why?
I believe there is good music in every genre. There are phases in which I have to concentrate on a particular country and I listen to all the styles from that place hoping to find the “special tracks” without having to stick to a genre or another. Music I disliked a few years ago I tend to like now, the ear, like the rest of the body, grows and matures, and taste changes with time also. Each person have their own signature when it comes to selecting music and that’s what makes the difference between record labels.
For me personally in sub sahara african, the best period starts after the independence in the mid-60s and last until circa 1982. With independence comes self-confidence, pride, a special energy and that’s something one can clearly feel in the music that was recorded during those years. Relatively good structures where also still in place and generally the governments that had come to power at the time were people that had fought for independence. It seems, although I might have a romantic view about that period, that these people had a real interest in preserving and promoting their cultural heritage and I am thinking of Leopold Sedar Senghor in Senegal, Sekou Toure in Guinea, Kwame Nkrumah in Ghana, Jomo Kenyatta in Tanzania. Tunisia my country of birth, is another example.
In many West African countries, orchestras would be employed by the state, musicians would obtain a civil servant status with a monthly wage, proper musical equipment at disposal, good rehearsal facilities – in other words respect and dignity. That period would see the birth of phenomenal orchestras such as Bembeya Jazz of Conakry, Rail band and Les Ambassadeurs from Bamako, Orchestre Poly-Rythmo from Cotonou in Benin. Most African countries had such bands called « Orchestre National », which says it all. In Ethiopia, musical directors of Armenian origins were sent from Turkey to teach musicians who would later be employed by the army and the police forces. Recordings done by these guys are having tremendous impact 40 years later. the northern hemisphere has bumped into that stuff and it felt like music from out of space. At least that how it sounded to me. Such an incredibly hypnotic music. Sun Ra would have moved to Addis Ababa had he known.
During the 60s and 70s many things were favorable for developing skills and talents that just needed a little push to flourish. Is there anything that equals what had been created in Africa during the 70s in terms of originality and diversity of sound? I very much doubt it.

Orchestre Poly-Rythmo circa 1977… Idavi!

With the 80s comes political instability in various african countries; military coup, dictatorship in some places, mind-blowing corruption. All this has a direct influence and serious consequences on the musical scene. Two countries that I know well, Benin and Ghana, are prime examples of such a scenario. The Curfews that were implemented had paralized nightlife, often the only way for musicians to earn a living. Adding to that a shortage of prime material to manufacture vinyl and the whole music industry took a huge hit. Musicians had a hard time making hands meet and in the case of Ghana, many musicians left the country. With the lack of means to keep an orchestra afloat come Keyboards who make their big entry and start replacing drums, percussion and horns. The keyboards invasion was a planeterian phenomenon but while it might have worked well with the new wave sound coming out of the UK and Germany, it certainly didn’t work well with highlife. Some places like Cabo Verde though managed to make the best music during the 80s, where Keyboards were used in an intelligent way, not as a tool to replace other instruments but just to be what it is, a keyboard.

Are you still digging’, buying vinyl, visiting record shops?
I still arrange two to three “record safaris” per year just to look for music. Shops, very occasionally.

Why did you choose this name : Analog Africa? A kind of vision of Africa in seventies ?
The name for the label came to me while in Jo´burg working on my first compilation by a band called The Green Arrows from Zimbabwe. For that project I had Gallo, one of South Africa´s major labels, as a partner. Their archive manager at that time was Rob Allingham, an american who had arrived in South Africa in the 70s to work for the railways and who fell in love with south african music. He became such a connoisseur that Gallo hired him to structure their immense archive. I first contacted him to see if he could help me find the master tapes for the Green Arrows songs to which he replied that he needed the ABC numbers which is the reference of the matrices. «You will find that number on the vinyl record» he continued. I must have been under a lucky star because shortly after that email I manage to find a warehouse that contained most of the records released in Zimbabwe. With that «discovery» I suddenly had found all of the bands input and could send all the references numbers to Rob, who a week later send me a message to tell me that all the master tapes had been found. The word Analog was constantly popping up, and since I was dealing with african music mainly, the name Analog Africa surfaced naturally. At the time I was staying at the house of legendary South Africa musician Pops Mohamed who recommended I called the label “Africa Analog” but I thought the other way around had a nicer flow.

Could you describe the Green Arrows compilation?
The initial idea was to release Oliver Mutukudzi´s first LP called “Ndipeiwo Zano”, an album that is in fact a compilation of singles released between 1977 and 1978, a common practice at that time, especially under producer Zacks Nkosi. Oliver who I met for the first time in 1996 seems to be open to the idea, but then in 1998 under a new management Oliver recorded an album which catapulted him to stardom – “Tuku Music” probably the best sold album in Zimbabwe´music history. In 1999 I was ready to start working on my label and when I tried to license the album they made me understand that they might be waiting for a bigger fish.
At that time I was staying in a hotel in Avondale, two miles from downtown Harare. I was in my room and had thrown into my deck a tape of the album “Chipo Chiroorwa” by the mythical Green Arrows band. That album – considered the first Zimbabwean Long play – was release on the 2nd of february of 1974 – my birthday. Some things are no coincidence.
Fast forwarding I finally met Zexie Manatsa the band leader and the bass player of the Green Arrows a his home on February 6th 2002. We sat down, I explained what my plans and after a discussion that lasted about an hour, Zexie stood up and said «Ok Samy, go for it!» I met the legendary musicians half dozen of times in a time span of a year or two and together we created that first compilation. Zexie felt I had that project at heart and every time we met he would give me additional informations, and more pictures, so I ended up with a 24 pages liner notes. All that process did flow naturally, I did not plan to write a «book» it just happened. But I also strongly believe that you can like music, but to love it you´ll need that extra something and thats context. Music is not only sound, it has also an organic process, made my people who have struggled to arrive where they are. If you don’t understand what they have gone thru you have only half of the story.

What could be your editorial/esthetic line?
Just good music, no matter the quality of recording.Many of the african musicians showcased in our compilation are self taught and so they do come up with ways that can’t be learned at music school. This african « treasure trove » is impacting a whole new generation of western musicians and now many bands are playing in ways that I can only describe as «Poly-Rythmic».
So even if the quality of recording is not 100% due to the reality on the ground, it doesn’t take anything away from the quality of the musicianship and the creativity – everything is there to influence and give ideas to new generations of musicians. I tend to say that the music we and other labels have released in the last few years is «music from the past that will influence the future». Our compilation The Bariba Sound – Le Super Borgou de Parakou is without doubt some of the craziest stuff we’ve released and yet it is one of the releases that had a lesser impact, probably due to the sound quality. Thats really a shame because it is a goldmine or twisted rhythms, riffs, breaks, grooves.. you name it – stuff that will only be revealed to those who are just a little bit more patient.

At the beginning of the label, you were much devoted to the music of the Gold Coast … what attracted you?
The most appealing aspect of releasing music from Benin was that it was practically unknown in the northern hemisphere. The « surprise effect » is very important and I think showcasing music from a region people know little or nothing about is exciting. You are opening a new horizon, a new window thru which people can travel, its food for thoughts and imagination.

You worked on both sides of the black Atlantic: what are the aesthetic links between the two continents of music? what are the differences?
This is a difficult one. The intermingling of rhythms and beats that has occurred between these two continent is difficult to pin down and even specialist are still puzzled by its complexity. Brazil and Colombia are the two South American countries I´ve travelled to and I can give you my two cents. In the case of Brazil I can see strong parallels with Benin, they share common ground musically. It had developed not only due to the slave trades, but also thru the Agoudas, which are slaves that had bought their freedom and had returned to Benin bringing with them new musical flavours and spices. Thats the reason why you have family names such as De Souza and Rodrigues.
Some traditional Brazilian rhythms such as Tambor do Mina or Tambor Criolo are very close if not identical to the music you hear in Benin. There is also a strong connection between Brazil and Angola and some believe that the roots of Samba, the one sound that unifies all of Brazil, lays in the Angolan Semba, but I am not a historian. Due to its proximity to the Caribbean, the northern part of Brazil is heavily influenced by music of Cuba, Haiti, Suriname, Guyana, martinique, countries that in turn are heavily influenced by African music.
In Colombia the obvious example would be the palenque direct descendants of Bantous who are people originated from the central african region – very probably from the congos. Palenques still speak african tongues and play african rhythms rooted in bantou traditions. What is surprising with Colombia is the impact of «vintage» african music on the musical scene of the Caribbean coast. While in the african cities young people have no or very little interest in music from the past, young Colombian are just going crazy for that stuff.
In a region where Prince Nico Mbarga is a godlike figure, vintage african music is something you hear everywhere and all the time in the cities along the caribbean coast.

Vincent Ahehehinnou circa 1981… Best Woman!

There were francophone artists (Benin, Togo) and English (Ghana, Nigeria). Do you hear a difference between these two post-colonial parts of Africa?
In terms of traditional music I see more resemblance between Nigeria and Benin and Togo and Ghana, since they share borders where common people live. When it comes to the influence of their former colonies I want to say that the Francophone african countries have been more influenced by Cuban music, probably due to the similarity between spanish and french and its common latin root. But thinking about it I think that Nigeria and Ghana had also been influenced by cha cha cha, Mambo and Pachanga although, and that might the main difference, it was very rarely or never sang in spanish. There is a stronger similarity between cuban son and highlife then one would expect at first. In countries like Senegal and Benin cuban son was less diluted with traditional music although a senegalese band playing cuban music will very much add their own touch and in so doing reinventing the style. Who wants to hear a copy of what exists already? Not me! The same can be said about the «congolisation» of Cuban music or the Beninese take on Cuban music.
The reason why Cuban music was so influential back then, I was told, is because it was the first genre of music that had strong resemblance with their own traditional music and which bands we allowed to perform at ball rooms and festivities during colonial times. It spread like wild fire.

Can you tell us how you found and selected the brilliant Amara Touré LP you had released this year ?
Amara Touré has been a favourite of mine for a long time. He is one of these rare musicians that is loved by all the people collecting african music. I can say without doubt that I never heard someone saying that he didn’t like Amara Touré, which says a lot. Speaking about the influence of Cuban music in Africa, his version of ‘Lamento Cubano’ is one of these songs that I have been listening for many years and it still enjoy it immensely each time. I´m convinced that Its music created to last an eternity.
Amara had immortalised 4 records under his name – three 7inch singles and one Long Play. The three singles were recorded between 1973 and 1976 with his band Black and white in Cameroon. He then moved to Gabon in 1980 and recorded his only LP with Orchestre Massako which contained 4 songs. 10 songs in total and those are the tracks I compiled. I can’t recall where exactly I first bumped into Amara´s music since his record had travelled well, especially in Francophone countries, but my guess is that I might have found them in Cotonou.

What was the importance of the Poly Rythmo in the development of your label?
Hugely influential, as far as I am concerned the grooviest band to ever scrapped the surface of the earth. Who could have competed with these guys? Its is still unreal that less then 10 years ago that band was still totally obscure.

Ignace de Souza circa 1968… Asaw Fofor!

You’ve just released a selection dedicated to Cape Verde, funaná years, and you will drive out the Bitori, a legend for that music. How do you explain the current success of this music, when ten years ago nobody cared about it in Europe?
I think we have reached a point where people understand the diversity of rhythm and beat that come from the different corners of Africa.
Maybe due to the internet people have access to so much more information so you can’t just bait them with a term like “world music”. For them to “swallow the hook” you will need to be a little more creative than that. People are curious and hungry to learn about the various sounds and genres that exist and so every year or so there is a new trend; few years ago it was Cumbia, then Compa, now its Funaná, next year its gonna be Forró… and so on.
In the case of Funaná some people such as Paulo Goncalves, Alex Figueira, Alma Negra and Celeste/Mariposa have started promoting that style heavily by recording mixes that had a strong impact on listeners, me being one of them, or by organizing funaná parties or doing remixes. The internet, as much as it has erased the music industry as we knew it, has created other ways to promote and market music. These are wired but also exciting times.

You have published some records on the South American scene (Siria from Brazilian NotherEast, Ritmo del Diablo from Colombia…). Were these one shots, «coups de coeur», or do you expect to develop this further in the future?
In both cases it was a « coup de coeur » as you rightly said. Colombia is a country that gave me so much that I felt the strong urge to give something back and its the same in the case of Brazil. The music from the north and the north east of Brazil, heavily influenced by african music, has been marginalised by the music industry based in the south of the country. Brazilians themselves know very little if nothing about the music from that part of the country so imagine the rest of the world. This is something I am looking into at the moment. So coup de coeur at first yes but love at first sight can sometimes lead to a wedding!

Is it more difficult to work with Latin American producers/publishers?
In the case of Brazilian music it is more difficult if you want to do things the official way because a lot of the material is owned by majors record companies who in most cases do not license their music. My guess is that they just do not have the time to deal and negotiate with independent label like ours, its not financially interesting. I have tried to convince some of them that this music is culturally significant and I must admit that I could picture whoever was ready my message, smiling at my naive view.

Voz de Sao Nicolau circa 1971… Nha Antonia Engracia!

On the other hand these majors often don’t really know what they have in their catalog and certainly no clue about the music we are interested in, so you might think « why awaken sleeping dogs »? And logically if they don’t have time to deal with you when you are offering to pay money for the music why would they´ll go after you for release a song by Messiah Hollanda which for them mean nothing in terms of financial might. So I have licensed a few Brazilian songs directly from the artist and I believe it is the fairest way but you are putting yourself in a delicate situation. In Colombia its easier since the few mighty labels are keen to work with us. They’ve also realised that the independent label have done an mammoth job in promoting Colombian music which has been very beneficial for their own business. The very rarely give exclusive licenses thought.

Is deejaying an important part of your business? And does it affect your research as a digger?
I like DJing because it allows me to travel and to discover places I wouldn’t have the chance to visit otherwise. It also a good way to test songs I am thinking of releasing.

You spend a lot of time searching for information on the ground. Is it the editorial quality that makes the difference between reissue labels? Is this the price to pay to keep existing in a crowded market ?
In the long run, the labels that will be remembered, the ones that will leave a legacy are probably the labels that make extended research about the material they release, maybe that just wishful thinking but I believe in that. It is a very time consuming process to release a proper compilation but on the other hand it is rewarding and an honor to have the chance to meet the musicians who created the music you love. And a sign of respect.

What could be the label’s leitmotif?
I don’t think I have one.

You have a stronger collection of Ethiopian music… How come you have not released anything yet?
I started working on an Ethiopian compilation around 2004. One of the first artists I met was Alemayehu Eshete who I went to see in Addis Ababa to showed him the list of the songs I was interested in. He was very positive and enthusiastic and even encouraging me to «take» more songs. Anyway, I ended up licensing and paying for 4 tracks only to see them being released, a month later, by Buda music on Ethiopiques No.28, if I recall properly. That was a setback since these 4 songs were the base for the compilation. What I like doing most is showcasing music from countries that didn’t have so much exposure and I think after more then 30 Ethiopiques there is no really a need for one more compilation… although I do have a few things up my sleeve but I´ll wait a bit, maybe for Analog Africa No.40!

Bitori circa 1997… Nha Bibina!

Ten years after you started running this label, do you feel an evolution in the music market, in what they called world music?
What I have noticed in recent years is the way new african/tropical recordings are sounding, especially those produced by european labels. I have little doubts that they have been very much influenced by the kind of sound the independent reissues labels have been releasing in the last few years. Listening to recordings by bands like Jupiter, Vaudou Game, Bixiga 70, Soul Jazz Orchestra, Jungle by Night just to name a few, you sense that these guys have listened to a lot of Poly-rythmo and Mulatu stuff. Many of these projects have also being recorded in conditions similar to the way bands used to record decades ago with a lots of hypnosis going on, psyched up guitars, twisted keyboard sounds a la Poly-Rythmo, things that were not common 10 or 15 years ago. That the impact reissues labels have had I think. Artist like Ebo Taylor, Poly-Rythmo, Bitori, Mulatu Astatke, Pat Thomas, Anibal Velasquez, forgotten legends who have now started a new careers after being released by independent labels. These are the few things that have evolved since we have started 10 years ago.

Is it more complicated to put out compilations today?
No.

Nowadays, there are many reissue labels which follow this model, I mean more quality even if it means being more expensive…but at the same time, there is also another market for LP reissues, with majors and other labels coming back, preferring to sell cheaper. Is it the (re)creation of two opposite sides for releasing LPs ?
I don’t know. I don’t really have a response to this since I don’t have enough insight of what is going on in the market. I also have little time to check what others labels are doing but I do come across and buy music by labels like Sahel Sound, Sublimes Frequencies, Finders Keepers, Light in the Attics… I like what they are doing.

There are more and more reissues of old LPs, and more and more record labels (major or indie) now release their new artists on LP, or EP. Do you think that the LP reissue market could ever reach saturation point?
Time will tell. I am not sure. In the case of afrobeat for example that’s a style of music I rarely listen to these days. Once you´ve digested Fela´s catalog do you really need more afrobeat LPs from bands using Fela´s formula? So when it comes to Afrobeat, for me personally we have reached saturation. But what about someone that has just discovered that style? I think saturation can occur within a generation but once there is a new one the reset button is activated.

Have you received many negative answers on some of the LPs, artists, unreleased tapes, you were trying to reissue?
A few. Generally the response is positive. The music has been created to travel thru time and space and in most cases artist understand that his music will have a second chance, even if it is 30 or 40 years later – its never too late for good music. So generally I meet proud artists that welcome the idea with open arms. That also one of the reason why I would encourage everyone do avoid buying bootlegs, despite the strong temptation.

What is your next release ?
After the compilation “Space Echo” I´m releasing the music of Bitori a 78 years old accordionist and the last standing legend of a music style called Funaná. Funaná is the most african of all styles from Cabo Verde. It was a symbol of independence and african identity – it was also very hot and sensual, so the portuguese colonial rulers banned it. If they catched you performing Funaná you would be arrested, jailed and tortured. It was also never played on radio, they made sure that style was buried – it was slowly but surely disappearing, until independence in 1975.
The first musician to record a funaná song was Norberto Tavares in the late 70s but the band that really put that music on the map was Bulimundo. The accordion was replaced by keyboards and the ferrinho, a metal bar scrapped with a knife, was replace by the drum. The modern form of Funaná took the whole country by storm and people from Cabo Verde themselves were amazed of that style they had never heard about, that how well that genre was oppressed. The traditional form of Funaná though, as it is meant to be was only recorded much later. One of these recording was by Bitori who in 1997 set foot in the studio for the very first time and has recorded what many consider to be the best Funaná album of all times. So that’s the album we will be reissuing in July 22nd.

What is the LP you dream of reissuing?
Can’t tell….I am working on it!
 
 
 

TO GO FURTHER
 

Each month, we are focusing on a record label founded by an active digger. This month, Julien Lebrun from Hot Casa, the french label created in 2002 with Djamel Hammadi. This hot label is behind many releases by forgotten artists with a speciality for uncovering rare vinyl gems but also new talents. Julien talks about his passion : music, from west African road trips to French backstages.

When did you start digging records?
Djamel and I come from a Funk family culture. My brother introduced me really young to Soul and Funk but I can say that I was introduced to “digging” through Hip Hop culture: we had to find the unknown loop, the rare record that nobody could find or had already used. It was the perfect link between all the soul culture from the past and the turmoil of this present culture. At the beginning of the 90’s in Paris, labels like Pure or Big Cheese were also organizing great underground soul parties, they played amazing rare soul records and, as a teenager, you tried to be part of it. So we were a small crew of collectors who ran all over record fairs, started travelling to London or NYC to dig, trying to professionalize ourselves, organizing parties in locals clubs such Café de la plage back in 1995. We also travelled to Japan to sell French jazz, would wake up early to go to flea markets in the outskirts of Paris or in the East Village in NYC. DJs like Gilles Peterson or parties like Giant Step in NYC during the 90’s had a big influence on our generation. The principle of playing rare grooves was also part of the digging process or mentality: finding the perfect and unknown LP.

What Lps did you buy at first? Do you still listen to them?
My brother introduced me really young to Funk, so it was mostly mainstream artists like George Clinton or Roy Ayers. But the first records I bought were all the James Brown productions: Lyn Collins, Marva Withney… then we went further and further with soul 7 inches, traveling to the Camden Town market in London to buy rare jazz and soul or waking up early to attend the Paris (Porte de Champeret) record fair.

Did you have a particular style or favorite period?
Latin, Brazil, jazz, soul, funk, and all the funky breaks from the world that is the beauty of music, Soul is everywhere from Peru to the Philippines.

Are you still digging, buying vinyl, visiting record shops?
The word digging can represent many things: a guy going to a record shop or an antiques market can say he is digging, but he is just buying records! The quintessence of “digging” is to find rare unknown records that have a good sound, melody or break.
Yes we are still digging, we can consider that as a drug addiction or a psychological addiction. Djamel and I traveled a lot in Africa these last years but we also went to Brazil or India in the past. Even though it has become harder to find good quality records, we still continue to look for rarities. Ebay and Discogs have changed the rules these past ten years, it’s funny to see all those new reissues done by “Youtube diggers“. It’s a lot, easier to discover new stuff nowadays. I remember the English soul compilation bootlegs in the 90s, it was the only way to discover some new stuff at that time, now everything is easier and that’s cool because it opens this “culture “ to a bigger crowd. The thing the new generation needs to learn is just to be curious.

Djamel Hammadi in action !

What was your first release on Hot Casa?
Our first release was a 7 inch by Franck Biyong, an artist that we met a few years ago at the Cithéa, a soul jazz club piloted by Superfly’s Manu Boubli where we used to DJ. He was also performing there and we understood that he was the man behind a first release in NYC, on Lenar records. The idea was to produce him in France, so we organized a home made recording session that had a limited release of 500 copies. It was sold out in a few months and was the beginning of a long work with this artist until the beginning of 2010.

How did you meet Djamel? And what did you have in common? And what were your differences (background, vision…)?
We met each other in 1997 during a radio show hosted by DJ Bronco for the Generations 88.2 radio station when the radio was still really independent and played real soul and Hip Hop. We found the same affinity and approach about music, we became friends and became resident DJ’s in Paris, we organized funk and soul parties and became resident DJs in various trendy places making a loving out of it. I think we played 150 gigs a year between 1999 to 2005. Nineteen years later, we still have the same passion for rare grooves, rarities, and music altogether.

Why did you choose this name: Hot Casa?
We didn’t want a name with groove or soul, everybody used it in the 90’s, we wanted something unique that had never been used. The idea of the label was to do it ‘home made’, with our connections, faith in soul, we don’t have big studios or money but we wanted to become producers. “Hot” was a common name in the jazz history, the radio Hot 97 in NYC was really popular also in the 90’s with Hip Hop and soul shows, the word “Casa” because it had a universal dimension to it. Our good friend Louis Davis with whom we started producing and collecting was also half nicaraguan and it was a joke between us.

What could be your editorial/esthetic line?
The label DNA could be Afro Soul from past to present. Djamel and I are both from a jazz and soul background and from a Hip Hop generation, these are our roots and both of us were in love with Afro Soul. We have this common goal of spreading underground soul culture, trying to share our passion of unknown and beautiful music with others. Without being pretentious, it was about going further, avoiding the easy way, make obvious choices just because they would sell better.

Roger Damawuzan and Les As du Benin
Wait For Me

Djamel and you were both DJs before creating Hot Casa. Does that give your label a special color?
Everybody knows that the dancefloor has its own rules and they can be different from the records that you like to appreciate on your sofa. Because we are still DJs, we unconsciously try to link those two worlds with a series of edits that brings nu beats on old rare grooves and can open a younger audience to this kind of music. This was the idea behind the Afro Soul edits and remixes when we asked DJ Vas, Umoja or Alma Negra to share their vision of 70’s sounds. We are also friends with Nickodemus, Rich Medina or Osunlade and really appreciate this movement, where you can mix Fela with new afro or electronic breaks. On the Melllotron radio show or on 22 tracks, we try to playlist tropical news to remain connected to the new scene. The label is not only about reissues, it is also dedicated to production and remixes.

Is that the reason why you chose to release 7 or 12 inch singles?
Yes 7 and 12 inches are more dedicated to the DJ audience, the format is really important. It’s a way of paying tribute to the past and perpetuate the tradition. In this era of dematerialization and streaming, we keep fighting even though it was hard in the beginning of 2000 to release vinyl. Even if we are living with our time, we put our music in digital, Spotify or Deezer and we also DJ USB. On the dancefloor the most important is music, skills and sound quality.

How do you decide on the choice of reissues?
First of all, the fact that it can be licensed. We don’t bootleg even though it can take years like for Francis The Great in Cameroon the Ivory Coast Soul compilations. Obviously other criteria are the music itself, the rarity, the history and the cover artwork.

Which Hot Casa reissue are you the most proud of?
Pierre Antoine, because it is physically and musically rare. Afrobeat had its own music standard with Farfisa and Rhodes synths, but Pierre Antoine backed by the Vis à Vis used a piano which gave a perfect fusion of jazz, soul, funk, and traditional Ivorian and Ghanaian horns, kind of a quintessence of the best musical elements.

Orlando Julius
Disco Hi-Life

One of your specialties is to produce forgotten artists, rare records… Is it something still possible in 2015?
Finding unknown and rare will be more and more difficult due to the fact that the generation of producers have started to become old or the dust on the record itself. Reissues are long sellers, we’re not as worried as for new albums. For a new artist if it has not worked after 5 months, you know it will be hard. For reissues, they can sell forever.

Recently, you were in Togo. What did you find there? Could you tell us more about that trip…
We are working hard on a Togo Soul compilation with an aim to release it around spring. I went there twice, first to find records even if Djamel had already a lot of the selection, and a second time to finalize the licensing process (agreement, money, interviews, photos). Our dream is to make a movie or a short documentary about all this process because Togo is so beautiful, its people, history… and the musicians and producers that I met are so powerful and beautiful that the “world” has to see them. It will be a 13 track compilation about the Soul and Funk scene in Togo from 1971 to 1981 with amazing music from deep soul jazz to crazy psyche funk synths at the end. We had the chance to work with Roger Damawuzan that we also reissued and featured on the Vaudou Game album. He helped us find a lot of the musicians and producers for contract purposes.

After supporting the Setenta band for a long time, you produced other new bands among which Vaudou Game in 2014. They became really famous. Were you surprised by this success? And does that give you other ideas for the future?
We didn’t work with Setenta on their third album, they decided to do it by themselves, but it was a beautiful adventure. We traveled to Lituania, Ireland, etc., and went on stage with Erykah Badu in Amsterdam. The Vaudou Game story has been amazing since the very beginning and we are very happy to work on a second record due for release in September 2016. They toured all over France and Europe, they did more than 120 concerts last year and were one of the bands that toured the most last year. They deserve it and it helped us a lot, because living of the only sale of records is very hard nowadays. They also had a smash hit which crossed all the regular borders, they had a “pop” destiny with a really underground Afro Funk style all recorded analog with a pure philosophy : Togolese speaking. And the day the speaker on the big national radio sang it live, we understood the song, the sound of the band had worked and marked their time.
Working as an independent structure is way cooler because you bring the artist in the project, we almost co-produced sometimes to be fair with them and shared the profit. We want it to remain a family adventure. Most of them understand that the music industry has crashed and that we need to find a solution, new ways of producing records.

How do you find brand new talents? On the internet? On stage? Through friends?
We have been booked the Reservoir club in Paris for the last 17 years we stay connected with new talents. We also check bandcamp or Juno frequently as well as cool radio stations like Le Mellotron.

And who is the next?
The next will be Shola Adisa-Farrar, a female jazz singer from NYC who lives in Paris now. We had the idea to connect her with our good friend and talented pianist Florian Pellissier with a view to explore an original fusion of instrumental Hard Bop and her beautiful voice. A really beautiful ten songs album called “Lost Myself”. It will be released in April.

What could be the label’s leitmotif?
Afro Soul & Tropical quality funk, good melodies, good philosophy, easy to manage, vinyl quality, no bootleg, interview the artist as much as possible.

What is the best deal/business: to make reissues or to produce new records?
The reissue market is a growing business especially with the good sales of vinyl these last few years but I think that with artists you can have a bigger audience in terms of promo, visibility, radio, licensing, media interview. Reissue is a niche market, dedicated to people who want a collectible, with new records it’s more dangerous but you can have a bigger audience, Vaudou Game made more than 110 concerts this year, in every city you have a radio, newspaper that spreads the info.

There are more and more reissues of old LPs, and more and more record labels (major or indie) now release their new artists on LP, or EP. Do you think that the LP reissue market could ever reach saturation point?
Like every music, quality will make the difference, sadly some labels still do bootlegs or shitty covers without any info and multiply unnecessarily the numbers of reissues on the market.

Vaudou Game
Lazy Train

Have you received many negative answers on some of the LPs, artists, unreleased tapes, you were trying to reissue?
It had never happened over around 50 licensing requests that we did since 2006, until last month with Ofege, the famous Nigerian band.

What are your next releases? And could you give us your feeling about each…
We are very excited, because we have almost 8 albums scheduled for release this year including a “Togo Soul 70” compilation with Afro Soul & Voodoo Soul from 1971 to 1981 including 13 tracks that we finished to license, finalized the interview, the translations, photos… It was a beautiful and long work but we’re very proud of it and we start to work on a documentary about it with a Kiss Kiss Bank Bank campaign to organize a release party in Lomé with some artists included in the compilation who still perform and play.
Francis The Great: After the success and the so incredible story of this kid from 7 years old who recorded an album, his parents decided in 1978 to produce a second volume. So we reissue his second album that we will called “Maboya”, and due to the success of the first volume and the timing of the original version we’re going to add an instrumental unreleased version, a radio edit and an edit for the DJs.
Keni Okulolo: A super rare record and brilliant one from The nigerian Bassist, who played with everybody from Fela, to Orlando Julius, to Joni Haastrup, to Tee Mac… and we had an unreleased one a bonus track. The original was sold 800 dollars last month. It’s good to share this one!
Tee Mac: a brilliant Nigerian flutist, we are going to make a best of his brilliant afro funk and good disco tracks. It will be taken from his 1978, 1979, 1980 discography. A beautiful trip between rare afro soul to Afro Funk.
Shola Adisa-Farrar: a jazz singer from Us who lived in Paris since few years now and that we produce with Florian Pellissier Quintet, who’s one of my best friend too and it’s easy to work with, focus on good music, hard bop and few soul references
Reissue of a French Afro Pop band called “DjeuhDjoah & Lieutenant Nicholson” that we produced last year and we want to deliver on vinyl format as well included three new tracks. As I said, we are going to work on a Vaudou Game second album, during this spring for a release party in September! We are very excited on that on too.

What is the LP you dream of reissuing?
We have few dreams. But we are looking for a rare album Of Orlando Julius called “Love Peace And Happiness” produced on obscure label Jungle. Baba Orlando doesn’t have any copies ! The last one was sold around 1000 dollars… If you have any tips we are open. But it will be a beautiful story that we started ten years ago with Orlando and his wife that I consider as a true members of my family.

http://hotcasarecords.com

 

Check Julien Lebrun Top5
 

Each month, we are focusing on a record label founded by an active digger. This month, Frederic Thiphagne, the soul ((with Matthieu Hébrard) behind the Sao Paulo based Goma Gringa label which recently reissued the infamous Tribo Masahi LP but is also well-known for spreading the works of highly-acclaimed new acts such as Meta Meta and Thiago Franca.

When did you start digging records?
I first started buying cassettes and CDs as a kid/teenager around 1995. I was looking for French Hip Hop like IAM, NTM, Oxmo Puccino, etc… I now regret I did not buy those on vinyl from the start! Then I spent some time listening to UK Big Beat. I remember very well of those Future Sound of UK compilations, Freestylers, Lo-Fidelity All Stars, Propellerheads, Chemical Brothers, etc… I quickly got back to Hip Hop and started buying vinyl records. I guess it was in he early 2000s.

What Lps did you buy at first? Do you still listen to them?
I was buying almost exclusively Hip Hop or Hip Hop related stuff. Classic 90’s Hip Hop and Turntabilist/Electro like Quantum Projects, Ninja Tune releases, etc… I cannot really remember what was the very first LP I bought but I can remember very well of that trip I made to Amsterdam with my good friend Remy. I was doing BMX Flatland and there was a very important competition happening in Amsterdam. So we went there by bus and checked the record stores! I can still feel how exited I was when I first entered the Fat Beats shop! They had everything I was looking for! But the 2 LPs I still have and still listen to from time to time were ‘O.S.T.’ by People Under The Stairs and ‘Bombay The Hard Way’ by Dan the Automator and DJ Shadow.

Do you have a particular style or favourite period?
I try not to have any boundaries since I believe that every single musical style/period has great stuff to be listened to. Yet, I am currently very much into 50s and early 60s recordings, especially from the French West Indies and Brazil. I am digging a lot into 78rpm! I love them! I deeply love the way those recordings sound, the voices, the horns. It is the only music that really relaxes me at night, with a glass of wine or a fresh beer after a good day of work. Actually, It also works with Jazz and African music‚ but right now I am really into those 50’s sound!

Since you made a move to Sao Paulo, are you still digging, buying vinyl, visiting record shops?
Yes of course! I mean, when work gives me enough time to do so!

Why did you create Goma Gringa Discos? What was your first release?
Well, the point is that when I arrived in Sao Paulo, contemporary record labels like Jazzman, Soundway, Analog Africa were absolutely not represented here. You couldn’t find any releases from those labels. So I started importing them and created Goma Gringa. I quickly met Matthieu who told me of his wish to eventually enter the business. We became partners and created the label together. Then we realized that instead of racking our brains with import red tape (It is really complicate to import goods to Brazil), we should build a record label and press records here instead of importing them. Everything stemmed from that idea! Then we quickly wanted to make our own record instead of simple replicas of what was being released in Europe. Six months later we released our first LP, the extended version of Fela Kuti’s ‘Sorrow, Tears and Blood’!

Why did you choose this name : Goma Gringa Discos?
That name appeared while I was importing records. Goma laca is the name given to the material used for 78rpm records. So the word “Goma” refers to records. And “Gringo” is the “popular” word for foreigner. The combination of both words represented not only my character but also the records I was dealing with since they were being imported. The funny thing is that “Goma” in Brazilian Portuguese can also mean “Home” : “Vem pra goma!” means “Come home”! And I was selling my records mainly from home so it was still matching! When it turned into a label, we decided to keep that name.

What could be your editorial/aesthetic line?
We opened the label with 2 editorial lines. We now have 3 which are the African music from the 60’s/70’s, the Brazilian contemporary music and reissues of Brazilian music from the 60’s and 70’s.

How do you decide on the choice of reissues/issues? For instance The Fela and Poly-Rytmo LPs?
Well, we wanted to have as a first release an African LP. Since Fela is very-well considered here it was the best starting point we could have dreamt of! Then we made the Poly-Rythmo record which is actually a compilation of Analog Africa compilations. This project is the perfect illustration of what we intended to do in Brazil; Brazilian versions of European label releases.

Could you tell us more about the story behind Tribo Massahi : how did you discover it? Who are they? Are they still alive?
From what we have found until now, only one musician is still alive, the guitarist Ruy Barbosa. Embaixador has unfortunately passed away on the 27th of December 1996. They were a band like any other I would say. I mean, they have that very specific sound to them but apart from that, they were like any other band, playing and looking for more gigs! There was a lot of urban legends around this record, like for example that they were a band of Nigerian musicians that Embaixador would have met some night and that they would had gone to a studio and spent the night there, getting high and finally recording a one take record. None of those stories are true. If you want to know the truth, the easiest way is to grab a copy!

Where do you place them within your catalogue? In the middle, between your Afro Tropism and your Brazilian moods?
Yes, It’s an Afro-Brazilian record. It links both continents. So It was a perfect start to open that Brazilian reissue series!

What is the best deal/business: to make reissues or to produce/coproduce new records?
I think that there is no best deal when you talk about an independent record label. What moves us in the very first place is the love of music and some kind of necessity to make things happen! For us at Goma Gringa, every single penny won is reinvested in the label and in new projects. Mathieu is working as a teacher and myself as a Designer/Art Director.

How do you find brand new talents? On the internet? On stage? Through friends?
I guess like everyone, by being curious. But we have the chance to be surrounded by the amazing Sao Paulo music scene. The musicians are all friends and work with each other. Every single project is great and interesting! I am talking about Meta Meta (Kiko Dinucci, Juara Marcal and Thiago Franca), Rodrigo Campos, Romulo Fres, Marcelo Cabral, Gui Amabis, etc… They are all amazing musicians and singers! We sincerely feel blessed to evolve with them and release their records!

You have released records by Meta Meta and their saxophonist Thiago Franca. What do they represent within the Brazilian scene? How would you explain their success in Europe?
Well everyone calls them the new Sao Paulo Avant Garde scene. It is a bit pretentious, and I don’t think that they really like to be named like this. But that is what they actually are! I mean, a new scene, a new generation of musicians, connected to one another and producing their very own music, without copying what is happening here and there. And since they are all excellent musicians, singers, composers, etc, the result is a very unique sound, very genuine music. Their music! I mean, you cannot find the Meta Meta sound anywhere else. It is just them! And it is incredibly good, deep, beautiful and honest. They deeply are what they play. I guess that is why they are now finding success both in Brazil and in Europe.

Meta Meta trio: Kiko Dinucci, Juçara Marcal and Thiago Franca

What is the most exciting part when being given an artwork job? How do you go about it? What is your most accomplished project in that aspect?
To think of it along with the graphic production. Printing process, paper, finishing, etc… That is what excites me the most nowadays! And that is a space where I getting lot of satisfaction. I am a former photographer. I have always had one foot in music and the other in image, trying to make both meet. So all this graphic production part is a real pleasure to me! I am happy with all our projects, except maybe for Fela. It was nice but could have been better. It was our first project, no problem!
There are two things I am particularly proud of. First is to have been able to produce hard-cardboard paste-one covers here in Brazil. The first we did was Thiago Franca’s ‘Malagueta, Perus e Bacana’ LP. He really looks gorgeous and it is the first cover of that type to be produced in Brazil in 50 years! Now we even have several versions of that hard-cardboard cover!The other project is the Poly-Rythmo cover! That one was mad! 100% typographic print! Which means mounting letter by letter each word, each element of the cover using the exact same technics that were used in the 60s and 70s. We decided to do this for 2 reasons, first because I had just discovered those LetterPress techniques so I was eager to work with that and because I had as a graphic reference a Poly Rythmo 7 inch printed using that same technique. We did everything! Mounting the types, we made what we called a ‘cliché’ to print the picture and we even input the text on the back cover with Linotype! Probably the last machine still having a commercial activity in Sao Paulo… That was so great! This machine is like the very first Twitter. It produces lines of text. So, in the early 20th century, when it first appeared, it was a revolution within the newspaper world! From “line per hour” the speed moved to “line per minute”. So everything got way faster! It then allowed newspapers to have morning and evening editions. Back in those days, the New York Times had 400 of those machines! So, yes, this project was so great and so cool and the result is really quite unique!

What could be the label’s leitmotif?
Well, our logo is Goma Gringa Discos “musica com sotaque” which means “Music with accent”. So I guess this is quite our leitmotif since we are looking for good music with a special foreign touch, that special accent that make it unique.

Have you received many negative answers on some of the LPs you were trying to reissue?
Actually, we have the chance of living in Brazil, where none of those contemporary labels are available. So we do not represent any kind of competitive threat to anyone. This helped us a lot! That is basically why we were able to release the Fela or Poly-Rythmo LPs. Actually, the only negative answer we have received so far was for a record controlled by Universal who don’t license to anybody. A pity since they barely one third of the titles they control.

There are more and more reissues of old LPs, and more and more record labels (major or indie) now release their new artists on LP, or EP. Do you think that the LP reissue market could ever reach saturation point?
No, I don’t think so. There are more and more reissue and record labels also because there are more and more buyers. I think that there are several niches inside the niche market of vinyl records. I think It’s good and important that the music is being made available on vinyl again. And that goes from super classics to rare obscure and special records.

What are your next releases?
Many contemporary Brazilian records planned. The new Thiago Franca has just been released. Then we have Juçara Marçal’s ‘Encarnado’ and the new Rodrigo Campos planned! For the rest, you will have to stay tuned!

What is the LP you dream of reissuing?
Ahaha! I will let you know when I will have signed and ready to be re-issued! I don’t know, maybe a French West Indies compilation of the early recordings done there (late 50’s/60’s). That would be really cool…

gomagringa.com