Germany

Strut present a brand new compilation documenting the groundbreaking maloya scene on Réunion Island from the mid-‘70s, as Western instrumentation joined traditional Malagasy, African and Indian acoustic instruments to spark a whole era of new fusions and creativity. Compiled by Réunionese DJ duo La Basse Tropicale, ‘Oté Maloya’ follows up last year’s acclaimed ‘Soul Sok Séga’ release on Strut.Traditional maloya, originally called “séga”, described the songs, music and dances of slaves on the sugar plantations of Réunion Island in the 17th Century – maloya ceremonies paid tribute to ancestors and mediated between the living and the dead. The music and culture began to be more widely accepted by Réunionese society from the 1930s as folklorist Georges Fourcade began to play maloya songs. By the ‘50s, maloya tracks were appearing on 78rpm releases and, in the ‘60s, it was used as a form of cultural protest music.In the mid-‘70s, a new generation began exploring new directions in the music, using Créole language, many were self-taught and learned their craft in 1960s dance band “orchestres”. André Chan-Kam-Shu’s Studio Royal in the south of the island became the main hub for experimentation and collaboration. Most notably, the band Caméléon honed their sound here – with maloya legends Alain Peters and vocalist Hervé Imare involved, Caméléon became the leading collective on the scene, using poetic lyrics and creating their own potent fusion of maloya, jazz and psychedelia. ‘Oté Maloya’ tells the story of this fertile period in Réunion Island music for the first time and features the full spectrum of maloya styles. From Caméléon’s genius to the teenage Michou’s classic ‘Maloya Ton Tisane’, Daniel Sandié’s breakbeat sleeper ‘Défoule 3e Age’ and more traditional styles from Maxime Lahope and Pierrot Vidot, this is an essential trip through a lost era of Indian Ocean blues and soul. ‘Oté Maloya’ is released with an extensive booklet on CD and LP featuring a history of maloya by Nathalie Valentine Legros of 7 Lames Lamer. All tracks are fully remastered by The Carvery.- 12” INSERT BOOKLET 12pp - First ever international compilation of 1970s maloya scene on Réunion Island- Includes extensive sleeve notes tracing the history of the culture across four centuries- DJ support from Gilles Peterson, Lauren Laverne, Mr Scruff and more- Essential follow up to Strut compilation ‘Soul Sok Séga’

Sambaiana the rare 1976 Bossa Nova classic from Candeias finally gets a proper reissue ! LP (180g vinyl + Old School Tip On Gatefold Cover + Download Card + Printed Inner Sleeve) .Curiously enough the story of this record begins with a song, which isn't even featured on it. A song named 'Guayabas'. One of Guillermo Reuter's very first free-spirited compositions is one of his two contributions to the fourth album 'Ese Dia Va A Llegar' by friend and musician Agustin Pereyra Lucena, in 1975. 'Guayabas' was the unintended starting signal for Reuter's career and was coincidentally the initial spark for this reissue that you, dear reader and listener, are holding in your hands right now.But perhaps we'd better take one thing at a time and not jump ahead of ourselves. 'Guayabas' was the Guillermo Reuter song that first caught the attention of the Notes On A Journey founders Jürgen von Knoblauch and Stefan Leisering. It led them to discover his album 'Candeias' shortly thereafter, and a love affair was born. It was a similar story for Jacques Subileau, the producer for the recordings of 'Ese Dia Va A Llegar' (and therefore 'Guayabas'), who was so enamored by this single composition that he proposed Reuter to cut a whole album, made up exclusively of his songs and compositional stylings. The Frenchman with an Argentinian girlfriend, had connections to European record labels like Disco Mediterraneo in Madrid and Disques Espérance in Paris which specialised in World and African music. 'Candeias' would be released on both labels, on the Spanish imprint under the name of 'Sambaiana', in France as the original title 'Candeias', but for inexplicable reasons, with terrible sound quality. For the 24-year-old musician, it came as a total surprise, the once-in-a-lifetime chance to record an entire album of his own works. Raised by parents, both of who were musicians and teachers with their own school (Instituto Reuter in Buenos Aires), Guillermo Reuter was destined to wander down one road for life - to follow in his father's footsteps, professionally and musically. Josef Reuter, born in Germany, balanced his work life where he was a dedicated occupation Headmaster with music, not only was he a passionate organist, he was the maestro of his own choir, the 'Singakademie Buenos Aires' and a well-known director at Buenos Aires’ world famous “Teatro Colón”. Furthermore, he was a strict and conservative father who massively disapproved when his son embraced modern music like Brazilian Bossa Nova, which back then, was just starting to take the world by storm. Despite, or as a direct result of this, 'Samba Da Minha Terra' by João Gilberto was a revelation for the juvenile Guillermo Reuter and shaped his freethinking approach towards music permanently.

The 3rd part in the Humans Drums & Machines Trilogy by house master Ron Trent!

Charging from the stables, Royal Athlete is back with another collection of atomic dancefloor weapons. Taking tracks from somewhere between Europe and as far as Japan, we present five brand new stormers to celebrate our 5th release. Berlin'sPrivate Agenda, bring us their Hi-Fi-NRG productions, dripping with melancholy and sweat, swiftly followed by the one man bassmachine Sven Atterton, who's slap n' Linndrum workout is serious funk for the heads. Heading up the B-side, Liquid Pegasus serves up a piano n bass led boogie banger for peak time wish fulfilment joined by the return of Rick Wreck, who's Heartache 2 Heartbreak brews a quiet storm for the lovers. Finishing up is Berlin's I Am The Other Guy, more piano, a solid bass groove and a certified disco winner. All tracks mastered by Tim Xavier at Man Made Mastering Berlin

Ill Camille, LA hip hop's female perspective. Ill Camille has been a vital member of the LA music scene for some years. Kendrick Lamar used her vocals prominently for the "good kid, m.A.A.d city" track "Sing about me", she has been working with other TDE artists occasionally and spend a lot of time writing for different projects Terrance Martin was involved with.At the same time Camille was developing her own material with her fellow peers such as MNDSGN, Iman Omari, DJ Battlecat, Like (Pac Div) Georgia Anne Muldrow & SIR who are all featured on her album “Heirloom” just like TDE co-president Punch. “Heirloom” productions range from smooth, g-funk esque west coast beats to live & organic soulful beats, working as the perfect backdrop for Camille's powerful, intelligent and thought thru lyrics.The album is deeply personal revolving around the issues that mater in her life from friends and family, her role as a woman and the heirloom of her and her surrounding: “I feel like everyone are heirlooms of our mothers and fathers. An heirloom is just something that’s passed down through a family. We get heirlooms in the form of game, encouragement or wise words. I know everyone has an aunt or uncle that’s given them some bars about life in general. I have a village around me that have given me heirlooms in the form of conversations”.

It took the former high school mates several years of pursuing their interests in different cities and moving to Berlin to reconnect and decide to collaborate on a record together. The result is quite different to the output both are usually connected with. "Even" is a multi layered cake exploring accidental jams and tape machine workouts. The main focus was spontaneity first and think about the concept later.

Illa J takes us on a trip to his hometown Detroit with his third solo album HOME. following his self titled LP, Illa J sometimes known as "John Regal" (born October 13,1986 in Detroit, Michigan) is a singer, songwriter, rapper, producer, multi instrumentalist. He takes us on a trip to his hometown Detroit with his third solo album HOME. His last LP successfully took Illa J out of his brother and hiphop legend J Dilla‘s shadow to show he is in his own lane. Yet, Yancey still felt as though he was in a box labeled rapper. Teaming up with producer Calvin Valentine, who entirely produced the album, HOME is Illa J‘s first album to properly showcase the full extent of his vocal range to put him in the singer-songwriter conversation. The listener can feel the soulfulness of this LP through Illa J‘s singing and Valentines‘ smooth production.On „Sam Cook“ which is an ode to Illa J‘s father who ghostwrote for Motown, Yancey dives into his falsetto that is reminiscent of D‘Angelo, Bilal and Al Green. While keeping his focus on singing. Illa J sprinkles the album with rap verses. On „7Mile“ his vocals smoothly float over the more raw/alternative cut laid by Valentine. The album title track „Home“ completes his album and solidifies Illa J‘s artistry as a well rounded singer who can rap.Illa J is a solo artists, former member of legendary group Slum Village. Active in the music industry since 2006 in L.A and Detroit, Illa J has released two solo albums, 2008’s Yancey Boys via Delicious Vinyl and 2015’s self titled LP Illa J via Bastard Jazz Records. In 2014, while refocusing on his solo career and stepping out of Slum Village, Illa J relocated to Montreal for a fresh new start. He has since entrenched himself in the Canadian music scene by collaborating with some of Canada’s finest emcees and producers including Moka Only, Potatohead People and Kaytranada.His recent collaborations have been with jazz legend, Robert Glasper in concert and on record for his Miles Davis tribute project Everything’s Beautiful. Illa J also had the privilege to collaborate with hip hop legend Phife Dawg from ATCQ on his double LP nutshell. Other features include Slum Village’s critically acclaimed album YES & famed UK producer Tom Misch Beat Tape 2.

"Year Of The Funky" is the second album from Bei Bei (荷蓓蓓) & Shawn Lee. After their debut collaborative album "Into The Wind" (Ubiquity Records, 2010), the Chinese guzheng virtuoso / composer and the prolific multi-instrumentalist / producer join forces again on 12 new tracks. "Year Of The Funky" marries a unique blend of ancient tradition with studio trickery. Eschewing all notions of superficial "Asian/Fusion", this uplifting, genre-bending, and sophisticated sound brings together both East & West with musical aplomb. The new album continues as a logical progression from "Into The Wind". It ventures into both new tempos & moods while deftly connecting the past, the future and what lies beyond.