Source, Nubya Garcia

Spearhead of the UK’s buzzing jazz scene, the British jazz musician, saxophonist, composer Nubya Garcia has just released her debut album, Source. From Moses Boyd, to Sons of Kemet’s Theon Cross and the collective band Nérija, we’ve been hearing Garcia’s unique style in the works of numerous stars of the UK contemporary jazz landscape. With Source, she finally takes the centre stage bringing the listener on a journey crossing R&B, reggae, Colombian cumbia and calypso. Listen here.

Máquina de Vênus, Blacksea Não Maya

Following their 2018 EP Calor No Frioo, kuduro collective Blacksea Não Maya have recently made their come back on Lisbon’s Principe Discos with an heavy 8-track LP entitled Máquina de Vênus. The two siblings DJ Noronha and DJ Kolt and their friend DJ Perigoso explore new dimensions within the Principe sonic spectrum with a dark, experimental take on the diasporic sounds from the Angolan electronic avant-garde. Listen here.

Shabrang, Sevdaliza

Named after a mythical Persian horse, Shabrang Behzād, the “night-colored purebred” of the hero Siyâvash, Sevdaliza’s new existential album explores good and evil, love and hate, emotional extremes and the experience of pain through droney melodic parables and abstract metaphors. Deepening the inner research within her subconscious, the Iranian-Dutch avant-pop artist says “Shabrang is a depiction of functioning in my soul, like watching life happening in front of you and not for you.” Listen here.

Limerencia, Lila Tirando a Violeta

Limerencia is the new project by Uruguayan artist Lila Tirando a Violeta on Mexico City-based imprint, NAAFI. The album, which was produced during the lockdown period while the artist was recovering from neurological medical treatment, fuses electronic futurism with the folk rhythms of traditional Latin music in an engaging experimental industrial club style and features collabs with Lighght, PRJCTN, EL PLVYBXY and Nick León. Listen to Limerencia here.

Phelimuncasi: 2013-2019, Phelimuncasi

The Durban gqom trio formed in 2012 by twins Makan Nana and Khera and Malathon has partnered with pioneering producers DJ MP3, DJ Scoturn and Menzi for a compelling, infectious genre-pushing new album on Nyege Nyege Tapes. The project is a retrospective consisting of nine tracks filled with mantra-like chanting and  vibrant Isizulu spoken word. Composed over a period of six years, Phelimuncasi: 2013-2019 celebrates and pushes forward the most acclaimed underground club music genre of the decade. Listen here and watch Phelimuncasi’s performance at Nyege Nyege festival below.