Wah Wah 45s 黑胶唱片和CD

Review: Ghanaian/UK outfit Isaac Birituro & The Rail Abandon won plenty of fans with the first two albums Kalba and Small Small now return with this seven track opus. It explores the traditional West African roots of their sound but also adds some freshness in the form of Birituro's xylophone as well as Sonny Johns' folky touches and the powerful vocals of Ghanaian songstress Wiyaala. You might well have already heard some of this on 6Music and will likely hear much more because it is hugely appealing and accessible music with devastating soul.

Review: Eparapo is a Yoruba word for joining forces, as well as the name of a Tony Allen track, and now it's been adopted as the banner for this project which serves as a kind of Afrobeat supergroup. The band came together in lockdown, driven by bassist and composer Suman Joshi, a member of Dele Sosimi's Afrobeat Orchestra. Given he's performed with the likes of Allen too, he's got the experience and vision to take Afrobeat's legacy forwards, which he does so with vivid force and urgent intent as he confronts the inequalities and societal ills thrown into sharp relief by the pandemic. It's music with a purpose played by some of the best in their field, with Sosimi and Afla Sackey also appearing - if you value Afrobeat as a continued, evolving vehicle of expression, this is essential listening.

Review: During the first COVID-19 lockdown of 20210, London-based afrobeat collective Eparapo, an - all-stars - outfit helmed by Afrobeat Orchestra member Suman Joshi and featuring his good friend Dele Sosimi, remotely recorded a handful of killer cuts. Two of these previously digital-only gems have finally made it to vinyl, accompanied by brand-new remixes. 'From London To Lagos' is an admirable commentary on corruption set to a fuzzy, infectious, Fela Kuti style afrobeat workout, while 'Black Lives Matter' is a slowed-down, stretched out and musically detailed affair that proudly takes aim on international racism. The 'Wheelup Remix' of 'From London To Lagos' cannily re-imagines the track as a tactile, spacey and bass-heavy chunk of shuffling deep house warmth, while Sam Redmore's revision of 'Black Lives Matter' gives the track a more dancefloor focused afrobeat twist.

Review: Dele Sosimi, UK Afrobeat maestro and former member of Fela Kuti's band Egypt 80, keeps the stylistic flame well alive with his new LP, The Confluence, made in collaboration with The Estuary 21 aka. Sam Duckworth. Sosimi is usually heard focusing on the more eventidal moods of Afrobeat, asking the listener to imagine the genre in a more serene state of flow, in contrast to Kuti's original hip-swaying histrionics; his hedonic rancour. Following 2023's 'The Confluence' EP, the eponymous LP follows and hears the Hackney-born hero and the prolific pop producer team up for a multi-alias exploration, with Duckworth donning his alternate Get Cape Wear Cape Fly moniker many times throughout and flaunting the absolute best of his production chops.