New single from the album “Megaphone-Ghazzie” by German-Namibian artist EES alongside the Kwaito legend Mandoza from South Africa.

EES website

South African house producer DJ Sbu released his new album “Sound Revival Vol. 1″ this week.
It includes the hit single Lengoma with singer Zahara. Beside his numerous albums he produced Sbusio Leope is also a radio and tv host, actor and director of a movie.

As too often with releases from South Africa it seems that there is no international digital distribution – which is a shame! If you have family in ZA, try to get hold of this album.

01) Intro Pro & Lungelo
02) Sbuda Ore Jela Bana feat. HHP
03) Lengoma feat. Zahara
04) Mama Afrika feat. MXO
05) Ndenzeni feat Nhlanhla Nciza
06) Reading Your Mind feat.Wanda Baloyi
07) Love feat.Lungi Naidoo
08) Touch The Sky feat Ntaoleng
09) Way Of Life feat.Mr_O
10) Music feat. Lungelo & BlackCoffee
11) Tolofela feat. Bongani Nciza
12) Ghubuluzing Rmx feat. Oskido/DJTira/BigNuz&Fisherman
13) Ng’thandimali

Lately I was musing about the question if there might be a common fashion style in the Tropical Bass scene, a question that brought me to no end. But if there is a common taste, Gold Coast Trading Company is definitely one of the suppliers you should have on your map.

Brainchild of designer Emeka Alams, GCTC not only features witty designs with a message, awesome prints alluding to “traditional” African patterns like Kente, and organic fabrics, it also heavily draws on musical inspiration. Collaborations with Dutty Artz (called “Tropical Systems”) and recently The Very Best can be found in it’s beautiful look-book, and there is more to come for sure. As Emeka told the Italian Vogue: “Music really drives me and helps all my designs come together. When I listen to artists from back home artist like Spoek Mathambo, BLK JKS or Salif Keita their music draws out these different feelings build up and it’s through the design process that I open up and release them”.
To complete this vision for every collection an accompanying mini mixtape will be put together by a like minded musician, each 14:44 minutes long. 1444 is the reference point the whole philosophy of Gold Coast Trading is centered around, it’s the year European colonists started to deport the first Africans. This strong political stance can be felt in every collection, for example the “Soweto Youth 1976″ designs, dedicated to the 25th centenary of the student-led Soweto Uprising where almost 200 kids lost their lives.

For the recent collection, named the “The Very Best/Julia”, collaboration partner Johan Hugo (of The Very Best / Secousse / Radioclit) combined 14:44 minutes of finest South African House productions to a driving “Ode to South Africa”.
Vol.2 | JOHAN HUGO of The Very Best – ‘An Ode To South Africa’ by POPULAR BASS

Totally worth checking out as well: The first installment of the series, “Vintage African” by New York-based Sweater Beats. It’s tagged as “hip-hop funk inspired vintage African folk”, and, uhm, that’s what it is.
Vol.1 | SWEATER BEATS – ‘Vintage African’ by POPULAR BASS

Do you already guess what a Muti Murder is? Well, yes, you are right…
Muti is a term for traditional medicine in South Africa, and a Muti Murder is a murder involving the excise of body parts for incorporation as ingredients into medicine and concoctions used in witchcraft.

This Muti Murder is an electrified dancefloor-banger by Skip & Die. They started as collaboration between South African vocalist and visual artist Catarine Aimee Dahms ( also known as Cata.Pirata) and Dutch producer Jori Collignon and are now a fully fledged 4-piece live band with percussion, effects, keys and everything. Check their Facebook page for dates, they are touring the Netherlands right now.

MUTI MURDER – Official Music Video from Skip & Die on Vimeo.

The Muti Murder EP, including the B-Side “Get Your Braai On”, will be released on Boemklatsch Records on January 20th 2011. Remixes come from Aniki, Mike Mago, Starski, Ebokai & Distraktt.

Skip & Die – Muti Murder (Aniki Remix) (BMKLTSCH RCRDS) by aniki

Skanking Spoek, daning devil and feeding dominatrixes – this is the video for “Don’t Mean To Be Rude” in short summary. It’s the third single of the “Mshini Wam” album and was released as EP yesterday. Continue Reading

Wow, Jack Parow, south africa’s star rapper, changed his “characteristic” in his new video for a normal sized cap… “Tussen Stasies” is another combination with famous afrikaans indie-rock group “Die Heuwels Fantasties” after their big suceess with “Die Vraagstuk” and it was featured on Jack Parow’s self-titled debut-album, which was released earlier this year.

Facebook: Jack Parow

Banging Bass Rap from (literally) crazy Rapper Sedge Warbler. I guess this Video pretty much represents the next Generation of South African Rap and HipHop. Daem, this grimey wobble beat is sick!
The Tune was released on british label “Skanky Panky Records”

if you like this tune you should visit his soundcloud page for manny more tunes in this style!

Facebook: Sedge Warbler

Updated November 12th: free download from his Album “Welcome To The Universe”
SEDGE WARBLER – OCTOPUS LOVER – FREE DL – 320Kbps by Skanky Panky Records

Another visually overwhelming video by one of my favorite artists at the moment: Spoek Mathambo, whose album just dropped yesterday, with “War on Words”.
The tune is a quite dark and disturbing Dubstep track talking about lovesickness. The video imagines “the story of a heartbroken widow performing pagan ceremonies to bring her dead husbands back to life…if only for a night. Her lovers are maggot ridden corpses, struggling through the dark passages of purgatory.”

SPOEK MATHAMBO – WAR ON WORDS from spoek mathambo on Vimeo.

DIE ANTWOORD outta South Africa, maybe the biggest internet hype this year, is touring Germany right now and will rock Munich on Thursday, August 19th. Continue Reading

The new Spoek Mathambo album on BBE is almost there and the first video for it was just released

Make sure you also check our interview with Spoek Mathambo.

Spoek Mathambo myspace.

SPOEK MATHAMBO – MSHINI WAM from spoek mathambo on Vimeo.