Browse by Label: OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)

Artist:	ALIF
Title:	Dakamerap
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	OH 001CD

The trio Alif (Attack Liberate of the Infantry Feministe), who emerged in 1997, were the first all-female rap group in Senegal. The release of Alif's first cassette Viktim caused a big stir in a country where traditional values prevailed. Hip-hop has had its place in the Senegalese music scene for well over 10 years now and it has evolved into its own blend of infectious music. Just like most rappers from Dakar/Senegal, Alif see themselves as the voice of their generation. They are the Dakamerap: the camera that documents everything happening in Dakar 24 hours a day. They rap about overloaded minibusses without functioning breaks, about low servant wages and other forms of oppression. After the 2000 elections, in which president Abdou Diouf was finally voted out of office, hip-hop became even more of tool of influence with Senegalese youth. Musically, Dakamerap goes full circle, reconnecting hip-hop with its roots in Africa. Songs like "Dakamerap," "Taspe," "Joolaa" and "Bataxal" combine traditional sabar-rhythms and the music of the griots with a contemporary blend of African hip-hop.

Artist:	X PLASTAZ
Title:	Maasai Hip Hop
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	OH 002CD

Only a little music has found its way out of East Africa in the past years. Almost unnoticed from the rest of the world a new generation of musicians has created its own style. Their mix of hip hop with local melodies and Swahili lyrics, sometimes called Bongo Flava, has quickly become East Africa's number one selling pop music, rocking the airwaves through newly formed private radio stations in and around Tanzania. X Plastaz and their album Maasai Hip Hop set out to introduce their version of this new Tanzanian sound to the rest of the world. X Plastaz have taken the Bronx-invented hip-hop culture into their homes in Arusha ("A-Town"), a city in northern Tanzania. They have created a unique style that brings together local Maasai a cappella chants with rapping in Swahili and Haya languages. Although the Maasai people have become an internationally known symbol of rural lifestyle, in Tanzania they are often seen as backward and not fitting into modern urban society. X Plastaz proved that Tanzania's cultural heritage can be meaningful beyond the village level.

Artist:	VA
Title:	Bongo Flava: Swahili Rap From Tanzania
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	OH 003CD

Bongo Flava: Swahili Rap from Tanzania is a 70- minute ride through the streets of Dar es Salaam. It's a look at what youth in present urban East Africa think and dream about. Bongo Flava is the name of a certain type of hip-hop-influenced music which -- unnoticed by the rest of the world -- has become the best selling pop music in East Africa today. It's a music of the post-socialism era channeled by a wave of new private radio stations. The name "bongo flava" comes from the Kiswahili word for brains: ubongo. Bongo is the nickname of Dar es Salaam, and means that you need brains to survive there. Tanzanian youth started rapping in the 1980s fascinated by U.S. hip-hop. They soon developed their own way of doing it and today the music has become a style characterized by the use of local melodies, beats, topics and their own language, Kiswahili. This compilation presents the hits by some of the most important Bongo Flava artists.

Artist:	VA
Title:	African Rebel Music - Roots Reggae & Dancehall
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	OH 004CD

Internationally the African continent has so far only seen the success of two reggae artists: Alpha Blondy and Lucky Dube. A new generation has long followed! African Rebel Music - Roots Reggae & Dancehall gives an insight into this new African reggae and dancehall vibe. Ivory Coast has a strong reggae tradition dating back to the days of Alpha Blondy. The country is represented here by Tiken Jah Fakoly with a track from his new album Coup de Guele. Senegal is more of a hiphop country, only recently has there been a real reggae dancehall movement coming up with people like Baay Sooley (PBS) or Dread Maxim, Senegal's roots reggae artist No 1. Neighbouring Gambia is nicknamed Africa's 2nd Jamaica. Rebellion the Recaller is probably the biggest Reggae artist on the scene now. In Mauritania the country north of Senegal and Gambia a hiphop reggae youth scene has only just emerged recently. The scene is represented here by the 994 Crew a kind of allstar group from Nouakchott. Ethiopia is represented with the song 'Shashamane On My Mind'. A song from roots reggae singer Sydney Salmon who repatriated to Shashamane, an area in the south of Addis Ababa, given to the blacks from the Diaspora by the former Emperor Haile Selassie I. Post-apartheid South Africa has seen the rise of house-based kwaito from the townships of Johannesburg. Recently some reggae dancehall artists like Teba from the townships of Capetown are beginning to get some attention. Leo Muntu is a well known singer from Zambia, doing a mix of hiphop, reggae, r'n'b and the newest trend kwaito, which is now spreading throughout southern Africa. East Africa contributes 5 tracks: Dully Sykes from Tanzania is part of the bongo flava scene most popular at the moment in Tanzania. Uganda is crazy about ragga and dancehall. Just listen to superstar Peter Miles, Bebe Cool(EARBC) and newcomer Small Axe. Kenya is represented here by one of the countries most famous groups: Necessary Noize. Ghana is famous for it's urban music culture hiplife (a mix of highlife and hiphop). Batman is one of the top-selling artists of the country mixing in ragga the newest trend coming from Accra. From Nigeria comes one of Lagos' latest sensations: a duo called the Danfo Drivers with a track praising Sensimilla obviously sung on a reggae beat. So get down, check them out, link up with them, enjoy and get into the vibe.

Artist:	VA
Title:	Lagos Stori Plenti - Urban Sounds From Nigeria
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	OH 005CD

Lagos Stori Plenti is the first internationally-released compilation that presents the new sound from Nigeria. Straight from the largest country in Africa, this release taps into the lyrical and musical expressions of a young generation that grew up on hip-hop, reggae and dancehall in one of the craziest cities in the world. It is about guys like Eedris Abdulkareem from Kano coming to Lagos with nothing in his pocket but a dream to make it as a musician, who would later tour Nigeria with 50 Cent. There is Ruggedman who took hip-hop to a new level by dissing many of the fake American-sounding rap star wannabes. JJC from London experiments with fusing traditional instruments into his productions. Cologne-based Bantu mixes fuji and Afrobeat on his award-winning album Fuji Satisfaction and created a style that blends Lagos sensibilities with the European sound. Afrobeat is heartily represented by Dede Mabiaku, who used to open shows for Fela Kuti and releases his first track internationally here. The most vibrant music comes from Lagos' neglected ghetto, Ajegunle (AJ). "Nigeria's Kingston" as some call it, lives on reggae/dancehall with its own style of pidgin and hilarious dancing. AJ is represented here by Nutty & Wharfy and African China from neighboring Orile whose song "Mr President" is huge in Lagos at the moment. Then there are the guys who rap in English: Modenine with "419 State Of Mind Pt. 2" takes up the topic of 419, the legal term for "advance fee fraud," and Terry Tha Rapman, with his politically-charged spoof on Eminem, on "I Am A Nigerian." There are also songs about love and loss, for example, Six Foot +'s song "Anwuli," with the chorus: "Anwuli, she chop (eat) my money and go." Lagos Stori Plenti represents a fresh mix of hip-hop, reggae, salsa and dancehall that truly represents the sound of youth, as they struggle to preserve their completely unique Nigerian sound while still reflecting their diverse musical influences.

Artist:	VA
Title:	Urban Africa Club
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	OH 006CD

The last ten years have seen a new generation of young stars taking over Africa's music scene. New styles like bongo flava in East Africa, hiplife in Ghana and kwaito in South Africa rule the charts. The stars sell hundreds of CDs, and their music is on heavy rotation in the local radios, bars, clubs and minibusses. Although in high demand locally, the news of this exciting club music from the motherland of black music is only beginning to spread internationally. Urban Africa Club introduces some of Africa's greatest stars and scenes on the continent. West Africa is represented by V.I.P. from Accra, the unchallenged superstars of Ghana's hiplife scene. From Gabon, a distinctive melodic type of hip-hop is represented by Lord Ekomy Ndong with his track, "Exile." Senegal's hip-hop scene probably has the most in common with hip-hop throughout the rest of the world, and this compilation features a new track by one of the pioneers of hip-hop in Africa, Awadi, the founder of Senegalese supergroup Positive Black Soul, who released the first international African hip-hop album ever. The African diaspora with its often very conscious lyrics is represented here by K'naan, a hip-hop artist born in Mogadishu (Somalia) and now based in Canada. East Africa offers up the dancehall of Kampala (Uganda), and one of the stars is Peter Miles. Neighboring Dar es Salaam has developed its own hip-hop blend called bongo flava, featured here with a track by Professor Jay that dominated the airwaves in East Africa in 2005, and Mangwea with another all-time bongo flava hit. The two supergroups of Kenya are Necessary Noize, a duo made up of Wyre and East Africa's Nazizi and Gidigidi Majimaji, featured here with a kwaito-flavored club track. Finally, one of the most influential regions and styles in Africa at the moment, South Africa and kwaito, is represented by Zola and his rough lyrics from the townships of Jo'burg. His TV show Zola 7 is watched by 5 million people each week, and has since spread kwaito fever far into Southern and East Africa. Listen up and get into the vibe Africa is ready to represent.

Artist:	KOUYATE & NGONI BA, BASSEKOU
Title:	Segu Blue
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$14.50
Catalog #:	OH 007CD

2007 release, restocked. Major U.S. tour in progress now. Segu Blue introduces the first solo album from Malinese ngoni player, Bassekou Kouyate. Ngoni is the Bambara name for an ancient traditional lute found throughout West Africa that is plucked with the thumb, much like a 5-stringed banjo. Bassekou was born in a village called Garana about 60 kilometers from Segu, in the remote countryside on the banks of the Niger River. He was raised in a traditional musical environment, his mother a praise singer and his father and brothers exceptional ngoni players. He moved to Bamako when he was 19 years old where he met the young Toumani Diabate. By the late 1980s, Bassekou was part of Toumani's trio and they recorded their first albums together, Songhai and Djelika. Bassekou has collaborated with many musicians in and outside of Mali. He played in the Symmetric trio with Toumani Diabate on kora and Keletigui Diabate on balafon. He was part of the Kulanjan project recorded with Taj Mahal. He is one of the key musicians on Ali Farka Toure's posthumous album Savane which was released July 2006. Now he has put together his own band: Ngoni Ba; the big ngoni: Mali's first ngoni quartet. The ngoni is one of Africa's still-undiscovered secrets: it is the key instrument for Griot culture. Unlike the kora, whose history goes back only a few hundred years, the ngoni has been the main instrument in Griot storytelling way back into the days of Sundiata Keita. The repertoire Bassekou plays is from the region of Segu, the heart of Bambara culture. Unlike mandenka griot music, Bambara music is pentatonic in nature -- music as close to the blues as you can get in Africa. Segu Blue features artists Kassemady Diabate, Lobi Traore, Lassana Diabate and singer Zoumana Tereta. By the way, there is no kora or djembe on the album. Taj Mahal describes Bassekou as "a genius, a living proof that the blues comes from the region of Segu."

Artist:	VA
Title:	Black Stars: Ghana's Hiplife Generation
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	OH 008CD

Black Stars: Ghana's Hiplife Generation, compiled by Out Here Records' Georg Milz (also of the Munich-based Daladala Soundz), presents some of the most popular Hiplife artists from Ghana to the rest of the world. The title of this compilation tips its hat to Jamaican black activist Marcus Garvey, who founded the Black Star Line, a shipping company that brought African-Americans back to Africa, and the black star on Ghana's national flag. However, in 2008, a new crop of stars rose when Ghana's youth stopped dancing to Highlife, and switched to Hiplife -- the local mix of hip-hop, highlife, reggae and dancehall. Hiplife gained prominence about 10 years ago with Reggie Rockstone, known as the "Godfather of Hiplife" and the first to rap in Twi, the most common language in Ghana. Hiplife is everywhere in Ghana now; it has developed into one of the most popular music styles in the country and has broadened into several sub-genres. Tic Tac is a true hiplife veteran and the success of "Kangaroo" (featuring Nigerian superstar D'banj and Batman Samini) also made him a pan-African popstar, with its mix of hiplife and ragga, known as Raglife (a style that was pioneered by Terry Bonchaka, who also appears on this compilation). One of the most well-known hiplife crews is V.I.P. who sings in Ga, a language spoken in the region around Accra. Their song has become one of the most popular hiplife tunes in West Africa. One of Ghana's biggest-selling artists is Ofori Amponsah, whose high-pitched voice can be heard coming out of every club in Ghana. His style is often described as modern highlife, since he rarely features rappers on his tracks. King Ayisoba has also won over Ghanaian audiences with his two-stringed kolgo (an ancestor of the guitar) and his hilarious broken English. Other artists include Sheriff Ghale, a roots reggae artist, Afroganic, an ambitious project by producer Kwame Acheampong who has created a 100% acoustic African club sound, Ghana's underground hip-hop heads QDL and Kwaku-T, and of course, founding father Reggie Rockstone. This collection showcases the unique Ghanaian sound, with detailed liner notes that place the music in social and historical context. International recognition of hiplife is long overdue. Also featuring Kontihene, Kwabena Kwabena, Amingo, Tony Harmony, Triple M, FBS Crew, Tinny, Barosky & Kofi Nti, Mailaika, Pidgen Allstars and Nkasei.

Artist:	MADERA LIMPIA
Title:	La Corona
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	OH 009CD

Out Here Records presents the sound of post-globalized, post-Buena Vista Social Club Cuba in 2008: Madera Limpia. Guant�namo is a small town in the southeast of Cuba. Tourists are rarely seen there. There are no sights or attractions, no beautiful beaches -- the beaches, about 13 miles from the town, are under U.S. control and are the location of the military base of Guant�namo Bay. The old Spanish colonial style houses are decaying, and the mood is ancient. Time seems to stand still: hopes melt in the afternoon heat, the country's turbulent past is hidden underneath a long shadow. Communication with the outside world is difficult; those with aspirations for a better life try their fortunes in Havana -- or they go to Miami or Europe, never to return. This is the home of Yasel Gonzalez Rivera and Gerald Thomas Collymore, the driving forces of Madera Limpia. "My rap is an expression of what young people feel in Cuba," explains Yasel, "what they live, what happens everyday." "Tirando Con La Cara" is about guys from the countryside who go to Havana and end up as prostitutes. The dark "Boca Floja" addresses a very Cuban subject -- people spying in every neighborhood -- provoking dangerous conversations and reporting everything to the police for their own benefit. "En La Esquina" concerns the constant rush for status symbols in order to cover up poverty. In "Danza Mulata" they talk about their own experiences abroad and the emigrants they met in Europe and their longing for home. Above all though, La Corona with its globalized rhythms, celebrates life, and is about not losing one's dignity. The musical language Madera Limpia use transforms a love for Cuban music into a globalized youth culture. Heavy percussion meets the melancholic tres, an occasional tuba takes over the bass, and above all you have Yasel and Gerald flowing effortlessly between rap, reggae/dancehall and rootsy changui, the native style that originated in Guant�namo. Alina Teodorescu, a Romanian filmmaker now based in Munich, made the documentary Paraiso, a kind of road-movie on their life in Guant�namo and he also produced this record. La Corona is a blend of local acoustic traditions and urban Latino youth culture which shows that Cuba is alive and kicking and is ready to make you dance while being firmly rooted in the traditions of Cuban music.

Artist:	TRAORE, ROKIA
Title:	Tchamantch�
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	2LP
Price:	$25.50
Catalog #:	OH 011LP

This is the vinyl version of Rokia Traor�'s Tchamantch� album from 2009. Traor� is an internationally acclaimed singer/songwriter and guitarist from Mali. It all started with a sound inside Rokia Traor�'s head. The most adventurous singer-songwriter in Africa knew that she wanted to create a new musical style that was "more modern, but still African, something more blues and rock than my folk guitar." Then she heard an old Gretsch, the classic electric guitar so beloved by American rockabilly bands back in the '50s and '60s, and played by everyone from Chet Atkins to George Harrison. That was the sound she had been looking for, and it has helped to bring a fresh and startling new dimension to her exquisite and adventurous songs. This may be an African album, but it sounds nothing like most "world music" records, and has little in common with work of Rokia's great Malian compatriots like Salif Keita or Oumou Sangare "who are amazing -- but I'm not a Malian traditional singer." It will appeal to blues fans, though it's not just a blues album, and it will appeal to fans of sophisticated contemporary rock, though Rokia's always thoughtful and intriguing lyrics are mostly sung in Bambara, one of the Malian languages, with just two in French. The result is an album that constantly surprises. The only track not written by Rokia is a startling re-working of the Billie Holiday classic "The Man I Love," which starts as a slow, bluesy track in which Rokia demonstrates her delicately brooding, intimate vocals (in English), and then speeds up to develop into an extraordinary African scat work-out. The backing includes both Gretsch guitar and the n'goni, the tiny, harsh-edged West African lute that has always been an integral part of her sound. Elsewhere, many of the songs are built around laid-back, sturdy and slinky grooves, and Rokia sings with a new maturity, range and quiet confidence. The backing is often sparse, but always original, with sections where another classic guitar, the Silvertone, is matched against subtle percussion effects provided by human beat box and hip-hop star, Sly Johnson, or where the n'goni is played alongside the Western classical harp. Rokia has made dramatic changes to her music, for she no longer uses the African xylophone, the balafon, and has brought in a Western rhythm section, as well as a European production team (the recordings were mixed by Phill Brown, who has worked with Robert Plant, Robert Palmer and Bob Marley). But Rokia insists this is still an African album "because music depends on the person making it, and I am an African. But I'm from a new generation, with a new way of seeing Africa and our music." Always known for her outspoken lyrics, she tackles the problem of illegal immigration from Africa to Europe in the compelling "Tounka," and reminds Malians that they should be proud of the glories of their past, in the intimate but gloriously stirring, guitar-backed "Dounia." Then, in complete contrast, there's the personal and rhythmic "Zen," a song about having the courage to do nothing, and the dark-edged, mature and thoughtful "Dianfa." Now, at last, there's a new album that marks the latest stage in a career that has transformed Western conceptions of African music. Gatefold sleeve.

Artist:	VA
Title:	Comfus�es 1: From Angola To Brasil
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	OH 012CD

Out Here Records presents the first volume in a project that explores intersections and fusions between two cultures that have more in common than just the language. Comfus�es 1 presents Angolan pop music from the golden '60s and '70s as heard through the ears of modern Brazil. Songs by legendary singers such as Teta Lando, Artur Nunes and Bonga were passed into the hands of the most exciting Brazilian producers of today. For a long time, Angola was cut off from the rest of the world due to a civil war that has been raging in the country since 2002. Times have changed. Today, the economy is booming and the country's amazing music is starting to move beyond the borders of the African continent, with kuduro being the latest craze to spread into international club culture. Long before that, in the '60s and '70s, some of the most soulful tunes ever to come out of Africa had been recorded in Angola. Melancholy Portuguese fado is infused with African rhythms (not unlike Cape Verdean music) and it is a bewitching albeit confusing mixing and mingling of two cultures with a shared language and a somewhat related history. The story of exchange started in the 1600s when Africans were forcibly brought to Brazil via the African Slave Trade, and the tumultuous partnership continued right up until Angola declared its independence in 1975. The mastermind behind this project, Maur�cio Pacheco has been active in the Brazilian music scene as a producer since 1994, and he has travelled frequently to Angola since early 2000. For Comfus�es, he went digging for the roots of Angolan pop at the RNA (Angolan National Radio) archives and listened to piles of master tapes and CDs, mainly from artists that were at the height of their careers in the '60s and '70s. After selecting the tracks, Maur�cio passed the music on to some of his friends back home: Mario Caldato Jr. (producer of the Beastie Boys, Jack Johnson, Beck), DJ Dolores, Moreno Veloso, Kassin & Berna Ceppas, and many others, producing quite a natural synthesis of slow African grooves backed by irresistible modern electronic/lounge, hip-hop and dance music with a Brazilian accent.

Artist:	KOUYATE & NGONI BA, BASSEKOU
Title:	I Speak Fula
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	2LP
Price:	$27.50
Catalog #:	OH 013LP

Double vinyl version. After his award-winning album Segu Blue (OH 007CD), Bassekou Kouyate, the ngoni wizard from Mali is back with a new offering, I Speak Fula. The album captures the incredible live energy of Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni ba and is the next step in the career of one of Mali's most exciting and innovative musicians. For Bassekou Kouyate it has been a long journey that started out in Garana, a small village on the Niger river where he grew up, then took him to the town of Segu, capital of his region, and on to Mali's capital, Bamako. And now it is taking him and his music around the world. In the mid-'80s, young Bassekou Kouyate played a concert in Bamako together with members of the famous Rail Band. During the show, Bassekou suddenly stood up and walked up to the front of the stage. For the first time, a ngoni player strapped his instrument over his shoulder like an electric guitar and was playing a solo standing up. What was new then has long become common practice in Mali today. From his early days in Bamako when he was playing in a trio together with Toumani Diabate and Keletigui Diabate until today, where he is pursuing his own career, Bassekou has transformed the traditional music of the ngoni into the modern world. With his band Ngoni ba, he has created a new line-up as a quartet with a rock band's style of playing. The ngonis they play are still acoustic as in the old days, but Bassekou invented a bass ngoni, even lower in pitch than the ngoni ba (low ngoni), added extra strings to make their instruments harmonically more flexible, or plugs in an occasional wah-wah pedal. In the process, Bassekou opened up the magic of an age-old music to people all over the world. Bassekou Kouyate has become the ambassador of the ngoni. He has brought this ancient instrument back to where it used to be: to the center of Malian music. Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni ba are now rocking the stages from Bamako to London. I Speak Fula expresses the spirit of openness and tolerance. The music of the griots has always been about building bridges between people. Mali itself is a very multi-ethnic country. "I Speak Fula" is a playful song about the relationship between the Bamana and the Fula. Bassekou Kouyate is Bamana but it is normal for him to play Fula music. The song is played in a local style called Koreduga. If Malians hear a Koreduga song, that means it is time to let their hair down, dance and enjoy. It is a song for everyone and you do not have to speak Fula to join the party. Produced by Lucy Duran and Jerry Boys and containing contributions by Toumani Diabate, Vieux Farka Toure, Kasse Mady Diabate, Harouna Samake, and others. Housed in a beautiful gatefold sleeve with full color inner sleeves.

Artist:	VA
Title:	Ayobaness! The Sound Of South African House
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	OH 015CD

Ayobaness! The Sound of South African House is an introduction to the vibrant urban club culture that rules the dancefloors from Johannesburg to Durban, giving you the full experience of South Africa's house craze. "Ayoba" is a catch phrase born in the townships of Johannesburg which is used to express excitement. Right now South Africa is excited: in June and July millions of football fans worldwide will be turning their eyes on the rainbow nation for the 2010 World Cup. This could also be the time for probably the most crazy house culture in the world to shine. Recent years have seen a growing interest in local music styles from around the world such as favela funk, cumbia or kuduro. DJ Mujava from Pretoria came up with one of the major global club anthems called "Township Funk," and the DJ and producer is a part of a huge rebirth of black culture that has been taking part in South Africa since the end of apartheid. When apartheid finally came to an end in 1994, the South African township youths had created their own club music called kwaito. At the beginning, kwaito was not much more than slowed-down house beats over which raps in Zulu, Xhosa and broken township English were laid. The heartbeat of urban SA music has always been house. From copying international house beats and mixing them with Shangan, Zulu or Xhosa township raps with early kwaito, it has now gone full circle. The compilation starts off with Durban heavyweight L'Vovo Derrango, who shows that kwaito is still alive and kicking. The title track "Ayobaness" comes from South African President of Youth Culture, Pastor Mbhobho, a crazy priest sporting a huge Afro, next comes DJ Cleo, who has shaped the South African urban music scene like nobody else, soon followed by Afro house vocal crew Shana. DJ Clock and Big Nuz, Tzozo & Sox give a taste of the Durban house breeze with their hit single, and straight from the townships of Jo'burg is Mgo. His track was mixed by Hamburg-based production team Bongo Disco. Other hidden gems include "Mexican Girl" by Aero Manyelo, a heavy bass track from Midrand Johannesburg, or DJ Steavy from Nelspruit whose offering is a mix of ghetto and disco sounds. Each artist here is a superstar in their community, and you're about to hear why. Includes a detailed 20-page booklet featuring info on each artist. Other artists include: Bleksem, DJ Sumthyn, Ntsiki Mazwai, Survivor, DJ Bongz, Mampinsha, DJ Fresca & Kudoskelem and Lelethu.

Artist:	ASMARA ALL STARS
Title:	Eritrea's Got Soul
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	OH 016CD

Eritrea is back. After 30 years of war with Ethiopia and a decade of seclusion, the Asmara All Stars now introduce some of the best musicians and vocalists from Eritrea on Eritrea's Got Soul. Eritrea has been almost cut-off from most outside influences since the early '70s. Recording an album is not an easy task in a country where many aspects of life are dominated by political concerns, and where every working musician gets a salary from the state. The Asmara All Star project is all about leaving politics behind and focusing on making exciting music. At first, French producer Bruno Blum had a hard time getting the ball rolling, but eventually more and more musicians got excited by his unusual approach and talent began flocking to the studio. In the end, ideas were flowing freely in Asmara, with albeit a few obstacles along the way. The fruits of this long but ultimately rewarding process are now released on this very special album. In a way, Eritrea has vanished from the world's radar. Music lovers around the world have been showing a huge interest in Ethiopian reissues from the '70s. A closer look reveals that many of the musicians on "vintage Ethiopian" recordings were really Eritrean. Today, the Asmara All Stars continue to play in a style reminiscent of the golden age of the big band sound, charged with Eri-jazz, soul and roots reggae. The decades of isolation have somehow kept this music alive. The album was recorded in Asmara, Eritrea's capital city, in 2008 with a heavy, analog live band sound featuring electric krar, a full horn section, a funky organ and haunting vocals by some of the country's most famous singers. Young singer Temasgen Yared came up with the soulful "Ykre Belni," seemingly straight out of the heyday of Abyssinian soul jazz. Another highlight is Faytinga's "Amajo," which fuses Kunama rhythms with a roots reggae beat, and Mahmoud Ahmed Omer delivering the uptempo dancefloor smash "Adunia," featuring a rare sample of local hip-hop. Eritrea's Got Soul explores the vast variety of this country's genuine music: Tigr� legends Ibrahim Goret and Brkti Weldeslassie stand alongside the raw "blues" "Inedir" by Adam Hamid and the beautiful talent of young Sara Teklesenbet. The album brings together different musical styles and rarely heard languages by eight ethnic groups, including Kunama, Nara, Bilen, Afar, Saho, Hedaareb, Tigr� and Tigrigna. A rebirth of urban Eritrean music from the depths of the country's rich history.

Artist:	ASMARA ALL STARS
Title:	Eritrea's Got Soul
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$20.00
Catalog #:	OH 016LP

LP version. Available on heavy 180 gram vinyl. Includes free digital download code plus bonus tracks. Limited to 500 copies. Eritrea is back. After 30 years of war with Ethiopia and a decade of seclusion, the Asmara All Stars now introduce some of the best musicians and vocalists from Eritrea on Eritrea's Got Soul. The Asmara All Stars continue to play in a style reminiscent of the golden age of the big band sound, charged with Eri-jazz, soul and roots reggae. The album was recorded in Asmara, Eritrea's capital city in 2008 with a heavy, analog live band sound featuring electric krar, a full horn section, a funky organ and haunting vocals by some of the country's most famous singers. A rebirth of urban Eritrean music from the depths of the country's rich history.

Artist:	VA
Title:	Yes We Can: Songs About Leaving Africa
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	OH 017CD

Out Here presents a compilation of 15 artists from modern Africa and the Diaspora who share their perspective on migration. The CD starts with "(Still On A) Money Talk" by Nigerian rapper Rapturous from Berlin who intones "Gimme the glitz, the glamour, the fame, the fortune, that euro, that dollar, that Dolce & Gabbana" dreaming of what it could be like "if I follow my dreams." Senegalese hip-hop stars Daara J Family are present with the exclusive track "Unit� 75," named after the 75 Cfa that a phone call to Europe costs in Senegal. It addresses a problem many immigrants face: the pressure to send money back home, money they often do not have. Another well-known Senegalese rapper, Matador, talks about the growing alienation the youth feel towards their home country Senegal: "The youth protest, kids organize a petition. The police catch them and beat them till they're silent -- if they don't smoke ganja or drink wine, I don't know what they'll do to forget the pain." The freestyle rappers of CAPSI Revolution, also from Dakar, are even more cynical: "Illegal immigration -- I know that you're destroying my continent, you empty us of the best people, to feed the depths of the Atlantic." In "Green Card" Wanlov from Ghana talks about getting to the USA by marrying an older white woman from Texas. Martin Pecheur from Cameroon sheds light on another perspective behind migration: he is infected by the "virus des sapeurs," a movement originally from the Congo that worships western designer clothes. Celebrating one's riches is also in the heart of the Coupe Decal� movement from the Ivory Coast that has brought Africa a dance craze which consists of displaying the designer clothes acquired in Europe. Coupe Decal� is represented here by one of the stars of the movement: Kedjevara. Iz� from Cape Verde sings about going home for a different reason: he feels homesick in Paris and wants to go back to his home country to party with a funan� dance. These 15 songs (containing 12 previously-unreleased tracks) reflect some of the many different perspectives on migration. Each one tells a different story that is confusing and complex, but one that is ultimately shared by many Africans all over the world. Includes a 24-page booklet with full-color photos and extensive notes about each artist.

Artist:	VA
Title:	BLNRB: Welcome To The Madhouse
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	OH 019CD

In early 2009, three bands from the world-renowned Berlin electronic music scene set out on a journey, their destination: Nairobi, Kenya, in East Africa. The idea "Berlin meets Nairobi," the brainchild of Goethe-Institut Nairobi and electronic music duo Gebr�der Teichmann, was as simple as it was complex at the same time. Berlin musicians would come to this vibrant East African metropolis and meet, mix and mingle with artists from the local music scene. The name of the project became BLNRB-NRBLN, a fusion of the colloquial abbreviations of the two cities involved. From Berlin, there were Modeselektor, the hyperactive breakbeat duo, curious electronic producers Gebr�der Teichmann and Jahcoozi, the multicultural star trio composed of dubstep, grime rave and hyper-sonic electronica. From Kenya, rappers like Mister Abbas, Kimya and Lon'Jon or the first lady of Kenyan rap, Nazizi, became part of the joint collaboration. The electro-pop band Just A Band and blind singer/guitarist Michel Ongaru also contributed their flavors. In addition, six members of the hip-hop collective Ukoo Flani from the coastal city of Mombasa were a key part of the body of MCs who would turn up every day and night. Two studios were established in a townhouse in Nairobi, where everyone in the project worked, performed and lived together. The above-mentioned bands were invited but word spread like fire within Nairobi's music scene. Quickly, there was a frenzy of artists coming and going, the now-infamous Madhouse was born. After a first concert in Nairobi in 2009, the Berliners went back to Kenya in spring 2010 for a few weeks, and it was during this period, that the first recordings of the presented tracks were made. In December 2010, the musicians from Nairobi came to Berlin for a concert night that celebrated the collaboration. The release concert for a BLNRB EP was held during Worldtronics Festival in Berlin with great success. BLNRB - Welcome To The Madhouse features 18 original recordings -- as diverse as the more than 20 artists involved. The international electro club music scene has become all about the latest styles and sounds treated with the newest digital technology, ingredients that are still hard to find in Africa. This album bridges this gap and opens a path into a new global club sound. BLNRB is about digging deep into the local Berlin and Nairobi music scenes and building a new urban sound together with some amazing talents from the next generation of African musicians.

Artist:	VA
Title:	BLNRB: Welcome To The Madhouse
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$17.50
Catalog #:	OH 019LP

LP version, featuring 9 tracks from the CD version and a free download code for the entire 18 track album. In early 2009, three bands from the world-renowned Berlin electronic music scene set out on a journey, their destination: Nairobi, Kenya, in East Africa. The idea "Berlin meets Nairobi," the brainchild of Goethe-Institut Nairobi and electronic music duo Gebr�der Teichmann, was as simple as it was complex at the same time. Berlin musicians would come to this vibrant East African metropolis and meet, mix and mingle with artists from the local music scene. The name of the project became BLNRB-NRBLN, a fusion of the colloquial abbreviations of the two cities involved. From Berlin, there were Modeselektor, the hyperactive breakbeat duo, curious electronic producers Gebr�der Teichmann and Jahcoozi, the multicultural star trio composed of dubstep, grime rave and hyper-sonic electronica. From Kenya, rappers like Mister Abbas, Kimya and Lon'Jon or the first lady of Kenyan rap, Nazizi, became part of the joint collaboration. The electro-pop band Just A Band and blind singer/guitarist Michel Ongaru also contributed their flavors. In addition, six members of the hip-hop collective Ukoo Flani from the coastal city of Mombasa were a key part of the body of MCs who would turn up every day and night. Two studios were established in a townhouse in Nairobi, where everyone in the project worked, performed and lived together. The above-mentioned bands were invited but word spread like fire within Nairobi's music scene. Quickly, there was a frenzy of artists coming and going, the now-infamous Madhouse was born. After a first concert in Nairobi in 2009, the Berliners went back to Kenya in spring 2010 for a few weeks, and it was during this period, that the first recordings of the presented tracks were made. In December 2010, the musicians from Nairobi came to Berlin for a concert night that celebrated the collaboration. The release concert for a BLNRB EP was held during Worldtronics Festival in Berlin with great success. BLNRB - Welcome To The Madhouse is as diverse as the artists involved. The international electro club music scene has become all about the latest styles and sounds treated with the newest digital technology, ingredients that are still hard to find in Africa. This album bridges this gap and opens a path into a new global club sound. BLNRB is about digging deep into the local Berlin and Nairobi music scenes and building a new urban sound together with some amazing talents from the next generation of African musicians.

Artist:	VA
Title:	Golden Beirut: New Sounds From Lebanon
Label:	OUT HERE RECORDS (GERMANY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$15.50
Catalog #:	OH 020CD

The 12 songs on this compilation look at the Arab world through a new pair of glasses: Beirut's underground. The CD focuses on a young generation that is tired of war, fed up with politics, sick of religious madness and angry about Euro-American exoticism. It is keeping itself alive with electro beats, raw aggressive hip-hop or in-your-face indie rock. Together these musicians show a new picture of this war-shaken city and region and show a different Beirut. "The Israelis just bombed our city," one musician joked in 2006, "because Beirut was suddenly cooler and hipper than Tel Aviv." With lots of irony and black humor, Beirut's alternative music scene often tries to neglect the fact that the city and the region is still full of problems, conflicts and contradictions. The scene does not get the same media attention the commercial pan-Arabic satellite-TV pop industry does, but is closely linked to the civil society networks that are of great importance in the ongoing revolutions in the Arab world in 2011. These artists show a new, open-minded city reminiscent in a way of the Golden Beirut of the '60s and '70s -- only updated. In those "golden" years before the Lebanese civil war (1975-1990), Beirut used to be the hub towards the Western world. Lebanese psychedelic rock bands entertained an international crowd in hip Beiruti clubs. In only a few years, the city's liberal reputation was shot to pieces during the civil war. Golden Beirut brings together some of the most important voices in the alternative music scenes of Beirut whose music has nothing to do with propaganda, traditionalism and commercialism: Zeid Hamdan and his projects Shift Z and Soap Kills mix minimalist electronic sounds with soft Arab singing. The indie-rock, post-punk and electro-pop bands Scrambled Eggs, The New Government and Lumi still know how to sweat on stage and create catchy songs. Hip-hop MC Lix aka Malikah, one of the best Lebanese female MCs, attacks stereotypes with full force. Katibe 5 rap about the Palestinian refugee camp they grew up in, and rapper Rayess Bek discusses life between Lebanon and France. Oud player und charismatic singer Ziad Sahhab opposes the strong connections between musicians, music and politics in Lebanon, while Praed and The Incompetents experiment with wedding music and lullabies. Last but not least, this CD features the upcoming satirical folk rock band Mashrou' Leila. They are the first to slowly rise from underground hype to reaching wider audiences. Golden Beirut was compiled by ethnomusicologist and journalist Thomas Burkhalter, founder of the music network www.norient.com. The photos in the booklet were shot by Tanya Traboulsi, an Austrian-Lebanese photographer living in Beirut.

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