28 Mar 2024
Featuring collaborations - Malian singer Mamani Keita
& Ethiopian inspired crew Arat Kilo, electronic music
producer Robert Hood and afrobeat sax player Femi
Kuti, Cuban pianist Roberto Fonseca with Malian singer
Fatoumata Diawara, and Congolese guitarist Mulele
Matondo with electronic programmer Ben Eyes.
Heading back in time to the M.B.Ts with Aboumba
Masikini, a makossa classic from the late Manu Dibango,
a cover from Dibango’s movie soundtrack Countdown to
Kusini by guitarist Frank Biyong, and a new release from
the incredible Zawose Queens from Tanzania (from Ilimba
master Hukwe Zawose’s family)
Tracklist
1 Madala - Arat Kilo
2 Variations 1 - Robert Hood & Femi Kuti
3 Waves - Electroni-Kongo
4 M.B.T's Sound - M.B.T's
5 Bush - Franck Biyong
6 Wéya Mouna, JPS - Manu Dibango
7 Anoda Sistem - Oluko Imo
8 Maisha - The Zawose Queens
9 Sowa - Roberto Fonseca & Fatoumata Diawara
10 Legnila nde Obele - Mikouagna de Mounana
Long time African and Latin record collectors and music
enthusiasts, John Warr and Guy Morley formed AfroBase
as a monthly club back in 2002. In the early days John
had been involved in grass roots radio, DJing with Martin
Sinnock as ‘Ashanti Sound System’ and working closely
with promoters to bring live African and Latin music to
Brighton in the 80s and 90s. A regular disc spinner at the
Zap Club, Brighton’s original Concorde, and guesting at
the Mambo Inn and others, he launched Brighton’s
popular Salsa Party with friends Alex and Jaime in 1992.
Robert Hood's best-known mix CD is tight, energetic, and brimming with personality, as he tweaks the filters, spins back records, and nimbly switches from one idea to the next. Far from the simplistic anonymity one might expect from minimal techno, this is vibrant, dynamic, and funky, paying homage to techno's roots in disco -- a key moment is Hood's own Sister Sledge-sampling "The Greatest Dancer."
- Paul Simpson