Following in the
tradition ofDr. No'sOxperiment, Oh No delves headfirst into an album
inspired by and sampled from rare 60's and 70's Ethiopian funk, jazz, folk,
soul and psychedelic rock.
He calls itEthiopium. Previous
descriptions used to describe Oh No's adventures into
"never-sampled-before" territory apply - adventurous, exotic, smart, fun, andthrilling.
Even if you've never heard an instrument tuned to the qenet
scale before, even if you're more into ballads than you are tezeta's, Oh No's
transformative effect on his source material will blow you away in its
otherworldy funkiness.
One of the most beautiful things about music is its influence on both the past and present. The music of today owes an incalculable debt to the musical forefathers and foremothers of yesteryear.
Most recently, DJ Sirak - representing both NYC and Ethiopia - dropped a mix invoking the music of Ethiopia's Golden Era...reminding us how these musical masterpieces have influenced music of today - with artists such as Common and K'naan sampling what are undisputedly some of the hottest break beats of all time.
Sirak describes his lastest mix - Addis Soul Vol. 1 as "Ethiopian Music in it's Funkish, Afrobeatish days with some modern mixes and blends as how it is used today... this is Vol. 1 out of 4 parts.. stayed tuned and we will keep you dancing like your uncle from the 60's and 70's..."
Africology by DJ Sirak
01. Intro - Dj-Sirak 02. Mary Jane - Burns 03. Tizita - Seyfu Yohannes 04. CommonBuy - The Game 05. Shellela - Getachew Mukurya 06. I Come Prepared - By K'Naan 07. Eruq Yaleshee - Alèmayéhu Eshèté 08. Dr. No - Ethio-Soul 09. Hagerwa Gonder - Alèmayéhu Eshèté 10. Ené Nègn Bay Manèsh - Girma Bèyènè 11. Astawisalew - Lemma Demissew 12. Mulatu Astatke - Interlude 13. Tchero Adari Negn - Alèmayéhu Eshèté 14. Almokerkum NeberBuy By Hirut Beqele 15. Fiqer Fiqer New - Alèmayéhu Eshèté 16. Aykedashim Libe - Tilahun Gessesse 17. Hasabe - Ayalew Misfin 18. Lèzèlalèm Nuri - Lemma Demissew 19. Gizie Degu NegerBuy - Mahmoud Ahmed 20. Freestyle At The Africology Studio's - M.Anifest
Marc Teissier du Cros, one half of the brains behind Paris label The Record Makers, home to some of Paris’ strongest music acts the likes of Sébastien Tellier lent his talents this past July to summer festival Les Siestes Electroniques.
Mining the music archive of the Left Bank’s Musée du Quai Branly, Teissier du Cros complies Ethiopia! an Ethio Jazz & modern music mixtape featuring some of the genres biggest names Mahmoud Ahmed, Bahta Gebre-Heywet, Tilahoun Gessesse, Mulatu Astatke, Mohammed Jimmy Mohammed and more.
Without a doubt the inclusion of tracks like ‘Tezeta’ by Mahmoud Ahmed makes this mixtape tug hard on nostalgic strings for any listener familiar with the Addis Ababa music scene of the 50′s, 60′s and 70′s.
Marc tells that he delved into the genre when music label Buda Musique began releasing the ‘Ethiopiques‘ series curated by Francis Falceto in the late 90′s. A fan of Pharaoh Sanders in his student days, he mentions that "listening to Ethiopian music was like discovering where Pharoah Sanders found some of his inspiration from. Ethiopia was the heartbeat of the American free jazz scene of the late 60′s, Coltrane, Pharoah! A bit the same way seeing Fela Kuti live in Lagos gave James Brown enough guts to move from soul to funk music.”
When the Ibex Band disbanded in 1979, three of its members – Selam Seyoum, Giovanni Rico and Fekadu Amdemeskel – joined with Dawit Yifru, keyboard player for the also recently disbanded Dahlak Band, to form the now-legendary Roha Band.
Specializing in modern Ethiopian music with a traditional blend, the band’s first contract was with the Addis Ababa Hilton, where they performed together six days a week, perfecting their signature sound. The Roha Band traveled extensively, in Ethiopia and abroad, and performed on Ethiopian television. They made over 250 recordings with a multitude of celebrated Ethiopian singers, including Aster Aweke, Tilahun Gessesse, Mahmoud Ahmed, Muluken Mellesse, Theodros Tadesse, Hamelmal Abate and Neway Debebe. Although the band broke up in 1994, with the members pursuing individual interests, no other Ethiopian group has matched the number or quality of their recordings.
The Ibex band-of Ere Mela Mela fame-was renamed Roha band and along with Ethio Stars and Wallias Band,they became the leading bands of the time.
Roha has produced over the years 250 recordings with all the stellar Ethiopian singers: Aster Aweke,Tilahun Gesesse, Mahmoud Ahmed and Alemayehu Eshete.
Recorded during their first North American tour,this album introduced singers Neway Debebe,Hamelmal Abate,and Berhane Haile to the States and the large Ethiopian community there.
All hits compilation of late 1960s to early 1970s Ethiopian soul and R 'n' B. Very intensely groove oriented material by some of Ethiopia's top musicians. Includes songs by Mulatu Astatke, Seyfou Yohannes, Ayelew Mesfin, Getatchew Kassa, and the mighty Abbebe Tessemma. Nonstop party. Old school 'tip on' sleeve.
Class side of Ethio R&B hits dating to late ’60s and early ’70s. It comes out of the blocks hard with Astatke’s Assiyo Bellema and Tessemma’s Ashasha Beyew both boasting irresistible polyrhythmic grooves, the former bouncing along with queasy steel drum details, while the latter is driven by organ chords and lovely bright brass.
While other highlights come courtesy of Yohannes’ lounge jazz-inflected Yekermo Sew with smooth sax, bubbling guitar work and a fascinating cyclic piano line, Mesfin’s bouncy funk-soaked Lene Antchi Bitcha Nesh and the irresistible polyrhythmic call-and-response simplicity of Damtew Ayele’s ‘Wefe Yelala’, the whole LP is a delight, although with these warm exotic shuffle grooves it feels like more of a soiree than a party.
01. Mulatu Astatque - Assiyo Bellema (2:54)
02. Abbebe Tessemma - Ashasha Beyew (3:36)
03. Getatchew Kassa & Soul Ekos Band - Bey Lesnabetesh (4:03)
Live at " Fiest'A Sete" (Théätre de la Mer, Sete, France), on the 5th of August 2008.
Despite a 1948 Imperial edict banning the distribution of Ethiopian pop music, Amha Eshete launched a record label,Amha Records, and released 103 singles and a dozen albums by Ethiopian artists between 1969 and 1975. In addition to making Ethiopian music known throughout the world, Eshete helped to spark a modern period of creativity in his homeland. During an interview in the early-1990s, Eshete said, "I had a gut feeling that it was the right thing to do. I took the risk.". The governmental resistance against Eshete's efforts proved ultimately insurmountable. By the mid-1990s, Eshete had emigrated to the United States.
Quantic is an umbrella name for UK-born, Will Holland : acclaimed producer, musician, and DJ for over 15 years, who’s projects incorporate various influences, from funk & jazz to electronic & folk music, to Latin, reggae, dub and cumbia.
He recently put together this mix of rare 45s he found in Ethiopia, calling it ”a mix of folkloric and outer-regional music of Ethiopia, all 45s and some records that I think need to be heard. Less of breaks & wah wah and this time more of krar, claps, howling sounds and organ melodies. For fans of previous mixes Axum to Addis and Addis Sheckla Explosion.”
Listen to and download the whole mix by clicking on the link below, and let’s he hope he continues the crate digging!
This live recording documents the brief period around our second trip to East Africa in Winter 2010, a journey that took our Ethio-groove collective across the world to share our interpretations of 1970s-era brass band-style Ethiopian funk. During this time we played a five-part hometown residency, a cosmopolitan Addis Ababa nightclub, and one of the largest music festivals in Africa. Along the way, we once again collaborated with dear friends and outstanding traditional artists: Melaku Belay and his group Fendika.
The flamingo is a majestic bird that thrives in the volcanic lake regions of East Africa's Great Rift Valley. Like many African animals, mystery and myths surround the origins of this long-necked pink bird. Our "flamingoh" is no exception: Flaming feathers (re)birthed from a breaking dawn. A dawn that rips open the sky.
The four tracks offered here are just the beginning: we have a documentary, featuring our escapades with Fendika, and a full-length live album on the way. This is our dawn: goh qeddede.
released 04 September 2010 Bruck Tesfaye - vocals Stacey Cordeiro - accordion Kaethe Hostetter- five-string violin Jonah Rapino - electric violin Danny Mekonnen - tenor and baritone saxophones Abye Osman - alto saxophone David Harris- trombone Brendon Wood - guitar Arik Grier - sousaphone PJ Goodwin - electric bass Keith Waters - drums guests Selamnesh Zemene - vocals Asrat Ayalew- kebero (traditional drums)
1. Debo Band - Musicawi Silt [Girma Beyene] (6:02)
2. Debo Band - Belomi Benna [Abrar Abde/Mahmoud Ahmed] (4:40)
3. Debo Band - Mignoten Man Yawkal [Seyfu H. Mariam/Tezera H. Miuchael] (4:06)
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