video premiere: affirm self-worth with this powerful video by global art collective dahna, “luna”
DAHNA is a London-based music and art collective pulling together artists from around the world “to create a powerful and impact full worldly message through art.” Led by South African and Jamaican singer Sizwe Mtwana, DAHNA’s artistry defies genre as much as it does any one static culture.
Their latest project, “Luna”, is exemplary of their diversity, but it is brought together by the universal themes of family politics, self identification, acceptance and self worth. Equal parts mantra and song, the black and white video for “Luna” follows DAHNA members in cultural face paint as they express themselves in whichever way seems to feel most natural in a world that often denies them the same.
“The visuals play with the duality of the character, finding herself in a journey of confusion, memories, feelings, and self empowerment,” Mtwana explains. “The first part of the video creates the tense and mysterious atmosphere for the story to be told, which then reaches the climax or liberation point at the end when the music explodes.”
Check out the powerful video below!
this all female-compilation of south african alternative and experimental music is what your ears need right now
Xannthe Cupido’s Subterranean Wavelength is quickly gaining a reputation as a home for underground music that seeks to actively break boundaries. Their latest project is a 10 track compilation that gathers together a collective of female artists from across South Africa. Tides offers a wave of talent ranging from dreamy indie pop to experimental hip-hop, folk-inflected soul to electronica, and it is so future looking the qualifiers to describe it haven’t been invented yet.
Like the best compilations, there’s a little something for everyone. Highlights like Umaah Screaming Sun’s “Wind Whistle,” Kajama’s “What We Came For,” Marley Bloo’s “Mimes,” and of course compilation curator Tribal Rebel Ludi’s own contribution “Luminance,” deftly balance the past and future. They pull inspiration equally from ancient traditions and the sharpest bleeding edge of the underground. The infinite possibilities of a laptop are anchored by the weight of history in a way that’s at once grounded and exhileratingly free. But if your interests range more towards the poppy with the experimentation kept as color, Floors’ “Leap” and “Family Tree” from Symphonica offer a lot to love.
Xanthe explained in a statement to OkayAfrica: “In a nutshell the project is a celebration of women who engage in the more left-field soundscapes in South Africa. The idea was also to highlight the presence of such women and that incredible things can be achieved with the absence of masculinity. The concept of “Tides” speaks directly to the notion of going through different motions of being a woman. It speaks of music (sound waves) , turbulence, consistency as well as the highs and lows of consciousness.”
premiere: addiction is no match for love in futuristic track by trans artist it boy, “habits”
iT Boy (AKA Theo Baer) is a 26-year-old queer and trans musician living in Brooklyn, NY. Experimenting with synths and electronic sound, he has honed a distinctive musical voice that has culminated in a forthcoming debut EP Euphoric Recall, out Saturday, November 11.
The first single from the album, “Habits” is a futuristic ode to the struggles of addiction. The only lyrics being “love is hard to kill,” the ethereal track is as much a celebration of triumph as it is a remembrance of tribulations.
“’Habits’ plays as an ode to the trials of impulse and addiction,” iT Boy says. “Drifting in and out of swirling synths and bright horns is the simple truth that ‘love is hard to kill.’”
Check out the experimental track below, and be sure to show up at his performance at the The Silent Barn in Brooklyn on Saturday, November 11th!:
MUSIC COMPOSED BY
THEO BAER
THEO BAER – TRUMPET, VOCALS, SYNTHESIZER, DRUM MACHINE, KEYTAR
ASHLEY BAIER – DRUM PAD
BEN BRODY – FRENCH HORN
CHANELL CRICHLOW – TUBA
CHRIS MCDERMOTT – GUITAR
T.J. ROBINSON – TROMBONE
PRODUCED, RECORDED AND MIXED BY
TODD SCHIED
AT HIS STUDIO IN PENNSYLVANIA
HORNS RECORDED BY
ROCKY GALLO
AT VIRTUE AND VICE STUDIOS
IN BROOKLYN, NY
MASTERED BY TOM VOLPICELLI
AT THE MASTERING HOUSE INC.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY
KYNA MARIE
ASSISTED BY
KRYSTA BRAYER
ARTISTIC DIRECTION
AND MAKEUP BY
GLOSSY BOHEMOND
Photo by Kyna Marie
willow smith proves her full-grown musicianship with new album on her 17th birthday
Something special is going on in the Smith home. Between acting, rapping, singing and philosophizing, there is more talent underneath this one roof than most other homes on the planet, and the youngest, Willow Smith, is no exception.
The star of many hats, who turns seventeen today, puts most of them to use in her new album, The 1st. The mature sound the album boasts falls in line with the fact that the singer has always been wiser than most, but even still it is surprising. However, in a new interview with Refinery29, Smith discusses the album and its influences and explains why she refuses the term “wise beyond her years” in a way that demonstrates the hard to describe maturity palpable throughout the music:
“Throughout my entire life, everyone’s been telling me ‘You’re so ahead of your time, your parents should be so happy,’ […] But when people are telling you this all the time, you start to believe it, and then you start condemning yourself for making mistakes, because you already see yourself as someone who should already know everything. But I don’t know everything. I’m still growing up.”
Led by the single “Romance”, which delves into the unrealistic expectations for women around relationships, the 11-track offering is reminiscent of acts like Lorde, but it’s undeniable that Willow is carving out a lane of her own. Take a listen below!
premiere: neo-ragtime duo parlor social casts a spell with spooky rendition of ‘i put a spell on you’
Dessy Di Lauro and Ric’key Pageot- aka Parlor Social- are bursting back on the scene and staking their claim with the premiere of their take on an old classic.
Just in time for the holidays, the duo’s much-loved genre of speakeasy-soul is thrown for a loop in their latest cover of Screamin’ Jay Hawkin’s “I Put a Spell on You”. Made infamous by Queen Nina Simone, and tackled by greats like Annie Lennox and Buddy Guy, Parlor Social is adding themselves to the ranks as the infamous “bluesy-waltz” track meets a hip-hop fusion in this boundary-defying offering.
The track, complete with distorted vocals and dynamic progressions, features a 20-piece orchestra lead by Benjamin Wright- the man behind the arrangements of MJ’s “Don’t stop til you get enough” and Frank Ocean’s “Pink & White”, just to name a few- along with the spell-inducing vocals of Di Lauro, listeners are entranced and lost in the mood.
Ric’key Pageot tells AFROPUNK:
“The first time we played this song was for our Las Vegas production show residency called ‘Dessy Di Lauro’s Jamboree’ at The Cosmopolitan Resort and Casino back in 2014. It has been part of our set ever since as the bluesy/waltz groove of the original fits our neo-ragtime, speakeasy/soul style very well. But we made it our own by adding a thumping kick, a fat bass, and lush keyboard pads while still keeping it vintage with some accordion and banjo. It’s become a fan favorite at our shows to the point where they were pleading us to release it as a single. So I brought the band in studio to record it, and just when I thought we were close to releasing the song, I thought of asking my mentor, Benjamin Wright, if he would like to write a string arrangement to it, and he said yes. The next step was figuring out how we would pay for him and his orchestra and the only way we could, in very little time, was crowdfunding. Our family, friends, and fans have come through.”
As haunting as it is riveting, this cover was supported almost solely on crowdfunding, while simultaneously paying homage to its prior forms.
It is layered, and it is wild- not truly over until the last riff, audiences are granted a truly activated listening experience.
Re-introduce yourselves to Parlor Social, and listen to an old track made new in their premier of “I Put a Spell on You”!
* Facebook.com/parlorsocial
Twitter.com/parlorsocial
instagram.com/parlorsocial
youtube.com/lauropageot
* Crowdfunding campaign: https://www.gofundme.com/PutASpell
* Photo credit: Maria Parisella, artwork by FunkyB design
brisbane indie rockers tya find new emotional depths on ‘no money, more love’
I will forever be a sucker for the hook-laden indie pop that Australia’s TYA (formerly known as The Young Art) makes. Emotional and driving, the band mixes indie pop sensibilities with electronic flourishes on their latest EP, No Money, More Love.
There’s not a bad song in the bunch, from the massive Blood Orange-esque retro beats of “Midnight Drive-Through” to the driving, washed out “Space Man.” Singer Sony Sando spins out tales of heartbreak, longing, and regret over the band’s spacey grooves. Highlights “Hustle” and “Feel It Happen” crank up the atmosphere in service of Sando’s biggest hooks on the record. The band may have aged out of calling themselves The Young Art, but a little maturity sounds good on them.
2-tone ska legends the selecter look to the future on their latest album ‘daylight’
“Sometimes angry gets things done.”
Over the course of their almost 40 year career, The Selecter has never shied away from saying what needs to be said. Led by outspoke activist Pauline Black, the band has outlived almost every other band from the 2 Tone era. Their potent mix of political lyrics and infectious ska rhythms standing the test of time, when so many others have faded. On their 12th studio album, Daylight, The Selecter sound as focused and driven as ever.
It doesn’t hurt (by which I mean, ugh fuck everything) that the political situation in the UK looks more like 1979 than ever. Hard right conservatism is all the rage, while a revitalized radical left battles austerity and racist policies. Tackling the racist motivations behind Brexit (“Frontline”), and austerity (“Paved With Cold”), Pauline Black’s lyrics remain rooted in her activism, while the band holds down the kind of classic ska and reggae they’ve been spitting out for as long as many of their fans have been alive.
Daylight saves some room for hope though. The two records’ biggest highlights are also the two that find hope for the future. The title track is a spectacular joyful anthem, as Black explains “I’m with Billie Holiday. There’s happy blues and there’s sad blues, and this one’s a happy blues.” The closing track “Pass The Power” finds hope in the new generation of activists and radicals fighting to change the world.
The Selecter just wrapped a US tour with Rancid and The Dropkick Murphys, and will be on tour through Europe all fall with The English Beat.
October 13 @ o2 Ritz in Manchester, UK
October 14 @ Assembly Hall Theatre in Tunbridge Wells, UK
October 19 @ The Apex in Bury St Edmunds, UK
October 20 @ Pavilion Theatre in Worthing, UK
October 21 @ The Engine Shed in Lincoln, UK
October 26 @ Depot in Leuven, Belgium
October 27 @ Melkweg in Amsterdam, Holland
October 28 @ De Casino in St Niklaas Belgium
October 29 @ 013 in Tilburg, Holland
October 30 @ Musikbunker in Aachen, Germany
November 1 @ Faust in Hannover, Germany
November 2 @ Z-Bau in Nuremburg, Germany
November 3 @ Das Bett in Frankfurt, Germany
November 4 @ Dynamite Ska Festival in Leipzip, Germany
November 10 @ De Montfort Hall in Leicester, UK
November 11 @ Great Hall in Exeter, UK
November 16 @ The Ironworks in Inverness, UK
November 17 @ o2 ABC in Glasgow, UK
November 18 @ o2 Academy in Newcastle, UK
November 24 @ 02 Academy in Bournemouth, UK
November 25 @ William Aston Hall in Wrexham, UK
December 22 @ G Live in Guilford, UK
December 23 @ Olympia in Liverpool, UK
premiere: tropical heartbreak anthem “freefalling” by hollie cook details being too free-spirited to settle for one love
West London singer/songwriter Hollie Cook’s show at the Borderline was sold out, and the documentary by punk band The Slits (whom she started her career touring with) launching at BFI London Film Festival this month featuring Cook isn’t yet out (although a new trailer has just been released!), but you don’t have to wait to experience the magic of her music.
Cook’s latest single, “Freefalling,” features her melodic vocals atop alluring synths and a rocksteady beat that sounds like tropical paradise. But the feel-good song isn’t all sunshine and sprinkles. The track is actually a complex narrative describing the intricacies of heartbreak.
“‘Freefalling’ is a song about feeling/being too free to love one person individually and have someone else’s love hold my attention,” Cook explains. “It’s actually a sad song, but also represents what was a liberating turning point in my life, being able to move forward with all my own self love and self worth.”
Take a listen to the summery track below!
mesmerizing track tackles struggles with anxiety: “you can’t put out this fire” by nigerian-londoner steven bamidele
Steven Bamidele is a 23-year-old singer/songwriter and producer from London. As a person of Nigerian ancestry, Bamidele’s experience with identity in his hometown has played a major part in his struggles with mental health and anxiety, which he explores in the beautiful new track, “You Can’t Put Out This Fire.”
With lyrics like “think about it for days after / but the rest is out of my hands,” the stripped down production and soul-stirring falsetto takes you on a haunting journey anyone who has struggled with anxiety will understand.
“It’s about my struggle with anxiety, which stems from being a non-white person in a largely white part of the world,” Bamidele explained.
Take a listen to the track below!:
london soul artist byron fuses baganda music with modern production on captivating track, “so naive”
On his debut single, the lush “So Naive,” London artist Byron digs into his Ugandan roots for a song that mixes electronic soul with Baganda music. Vintage synths collide with East African guitar, all beneath his effortless voice. Reportedly, Byron returned to Uganda to study with Albert Ssempeke, one of the last royal Ugandan musicians to survive Idi Amin. There’s a mix of retro cool, future production and timeless guitar work that make the song something unique. A full album can’t come soon enough!