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_________________________________________________________________ recent performances: AT.Tension festival Incubate Festival

_________________________________________________________________ mini 10 minute mix of dj zhao party rocking sound:

_________________________________________________________________ ngoma soundsystem connects global futurism and ancestral lineage with a combination of dj, electronics, and live instrumentation. debut performance - Fusion Festival 2009:

_________________________________________________________________ dj zhao full length mixes and mix-albums, download links under each cover:

track listing _________________________________________________________________ direct listen and download single track _________________________________________________________________ download separate tracks: rapidshare or megaupload _________________________________________________________________ while staying in the same territory as NGOMA2, the journey is not the same, and many things make this one unique: the psychedelic motorik genius of Dj Clock's "Durban Guitar"; the monolithic, earth shaking visions of Black Coffee; DJ Sdoko's ominous Kraftwerkian phuture; Manya's soul stirring take on traditonal Angolan melodies; a surprisingly wicked banger from the Dutch DJ Bigga (UK is not the only place currently Afro minded), and ending with Sami vocal style from Mari Boine, reinterpreting the sound of indigenous Norway.

concerning the anti-apartheid and war samples used through out the mix: the struggle for freedom from colonialism is the context which gave rise to contemporary South African music: Kwaito was born amidst antagonism and bloodshed, and has led to the current house music scene. thus songs such as "100 Zulu Warriors" and the radio broadcast at the end should not be taken as an incitement of racial conflict (especially in light of last year's wave of horrible xenophobia) but as a reminder of the political realities of the Apartheid era from which this music comes.

track listing _________________________________________________________________ direct listen and download single track _________________________________________________________________ download separate tracks: rapidshare or megaupload _________________________________________________________________ it is said that the drum itself was invented in Africa. and as far as i'm concerned, all modern pop and especially dance music have deep roots in the musical traditions of that continent. should be no surprise that amazing techno is coming from there; after all, the 4 on the floor hypnotic groove can be found in African music from every era.

history was made in 2008 with Warp Records' release of DJ Mujava's Township Funk, which i believe is only the beginning of westerners coming to grips with the awesome power of African Techno. i have been playing Euro-centric dance music for years, but in recent times have increasingly sensed a solipsism, stagnation, and bankrupsy of ideas. today i feel the style loosely termed "UK Funky" is leading the way out of the rut; and it is no coincidence that the most exciting thing happening in European dance music is directly derivative of African and Afro-Caribbean rhythmic structures.

track listing

this mashup album contains the songs in the player above, and is a project which fuses global traditional music with urban bass and beats. if you have ever wondered what Digital Gamelan is like; what happens when Capetown Gospel singers move to London ghettos; or how Robots would play Ethiopian Jazz...
djs: if you are interested in a specific mashup, i can send you a finished and often extended version. just ask. _________________________________________________________________ direct listen and download single track _________________________________________________________________ download separate tracks: rapidshare or megaupload _________________________________________________________________ Mashups: a cheap one liner novelty trend collapsing all narratives into a heap of meaningless and garish post modern rubbish, or a new way of interacting with cultures, of bridging fictional divisions, of connectivity, of experiencing and creating music? of course they can be both, and i've always been excited, if not by most of what i have heard, by what i imagined was possible.

and what i imagined were sounds from far away and long ago fused with the here and now, in ways that are both surprising and intuitive. i wanted to make a particular kind of mashup, producing results that people would want to listen to over and over. is it possible to make the fusion, the bastard frankenstein assemblage, sound better than the original sources? a tall order for sure, especially when the original sources sometimes are master musicians... but it is a goal that i nonetheless hope to have achieved in parts of this album.

made with material originally prepared for Fusion Festival 2008. here are my photos.

track listing _________________________________________________________________ a traditional dj mix of global hiphop and dancehall from 4 continents, 19 countries. _________________________________________________________________ direct listen and download single track _________________________________________________________________ download separate tracks: rapidshare or megaupload _________________________________________________________________ The positive side of globalization -- irresistable 21st century urban music arise on every continent. Tanzania, India, Cuba, Egypt, South Africa, these are just a few places where wild hybrid styles are born: bass heavy and electronic, yet drawing from the wealth of local musical heritage. the NGOMA series bring the heat from musical hotspots across the known world -- the wickedest beats and sweetest flows. _________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________ the recordings are for free download, but feel free to donate in support of future projects. for physical CD of any of the above, send postal address.