James Lavonz
Uncut Gems EP

Jacobus Derwort started exploring sonic soundscapes listening to his short-wave world receiver at the age of 12. There he would hear music from Africa, China, Japan, Indonesia, South America and beyond. He started playing guitar, piano, percussion and saxophone.He met Hanyo van Oosterom in 1978 and they started the legendary cult rock band, 'The Jones'. Derwort was playing the sax, van Oosterom the drums. They started conducting sound experiments in Hanyo’s small cellar in the Dutch village of Krimpen aan den IJssel.In the early eighties they made their first cassette, 'The Kallikatsou'. Hanyo started the ambient collective CHI in 1983. Jacobus was the first musician to join CHI. Together, they went to the magic rock “The Kallikatsou” on the island of Patmos, Greece. Here, Hanyo had stayed for months in a cave for some deep soul-searching. He heard the sound of CHI in the silence of the night like a message from out of space. Being together at the Kallikatsou they shaped the foundation of CHI, making handmade flutes from local bamboo and conducting field recordings ofwater, crickets, owls, goats, wind, etc...Back home they asked Willem Cramer to join CHI, and later Michel Banabila. They released a legendary ambient cassette, 'The Original Recordings', in 1983 which soon became a collectors item. CHI stopped in 1987 (and still now nobody knows exactly why). Willem Cramer and Michel Banabila started the world music collective 'East Meets West' in 1989. Hanyo and Jacobus kept recording ambient soundscapes.Jacobus was working on his 'Bamboo' recordings. Hanyo recorded the first tracks for 'The Kallikatsou Experience'. Neither album was ever released. They returned a few times together to The Kallikatsou, but there the history seems to end...…until decades later when Astral Industries located them after a long search, inspired by Rod Modell (Deepchord). The result was the vinyl release of CHI – The Original Recordings in February 2016. The album received great reviews and sold out in a few weeks.This inspired Hanyo and Jacobus to work on an old plan: remixing the old bamboo recordings. Most tracks were made in the eighties before and after CHI. Original tape recordings using mainly analogue sounds, percussion, samples and (of course)bamboo flutes and manipulated clarinets. Hanyo added some new recordings and remixed the old tapes in his Numoonlab Studio in Rotterdam. The result was 'The Bamboo Recordings', a timeless collection of ambient soundscapes.THE CHI FACTORY is the next step of CHI into the future. It will involve many future ambient collaborations. The next release will be 'The Kallikatsou Recordings'(Astral Industries 2016 TBA). Also bringing back the original line-up of CHI for new recordings is part of the plan. Who knows what may happen next.The Bamboo Recordings have been produced and remixed by Hanyo vanOosterom. Original recordings by Jacobus Derwort.Jacobus Derwort: bamboo flutes, clarinet, guitar, samples, loops, saxophone,percussion, field recordings.Hanyo van Oosterom: piano, bass, guitar, percussion, flute, samples and drones.The Bamboo Recordings contain voice samples from around the world,including Tibetan monks, Sufi chanting, a Hopi elder, a Hopi woman, Fulani storytellers, a Japanese girl singing, Spanish and Greek children, excerpts from Gratitude For The Gaze by Nikos Eliou and much more...

Super dope 6 tracker by Maspyke's Tableek on this japanese label - comes with Mitsu the Beats remixes also !

Looking back to a great year, we find David K from the Freak'n'Chic posse being one of the most successful newcomers in 2006. Freak'n'Chic stands for a kicking mix of techno and acid sounds, which are blended with some house. DJ friendly, very danceable but still demanding, with elements of deep house and minimal house. This is also the direction of David's current tracks "Tender and Sugar" and "Mayann". Whereas "Tender and Sugar" seems straighter, darker and more minimal, and the fat but simple beat is the driving element, "Mayann" comes along with strong reerences to "Âme" and its synth sounds remind of "Rej" or productions of "Pasta Boys" from Italy, without denying David K's "Freak’n’Chic" handwriting. The spheric layers and weird percussion sounds make "Mayann" a real tech house monster. Is this a late highlight in 2006 or the first hit of the next year? Besides his releases, David K will give his live debut at the CocoonClub at the end of december.

Sweetest Taboo (Soca)ReblesSoundway Records re-issue the massively in-demand Soca cover-version of Sade's classic cut "Sweetest Taboo" by Caribbean band Rebles from 1986.In the late 80s, as electronic music permeated popular culture, Rebles helped define the soca genre outside of the Caribbean. Also known as D’ Rebel’s Band and led by St Vincentian band-leader and trombonist Denniston Young, the group were the 1980s house band for probably the largest Caribbean label, Strakers Records, based in Brooklyn, New York. Strakers released hundreds of Calypso and Soca releases over a thirty year period from 1970 to 2000.

2021. A strong compilation of grooves by two of Belgium’s most iconic selectors, filled with new productions. San Kofa Rhythm Records kicks off 2021 with a killer compilation by AliA & DTM Funk. After three stellar releases, DTM Funk’s San Kofa Rhythm Records is proud to present its first compilation, filled with new productions of ten different talented outsiders.'Black Gravity' refers to the Herbie Hancock and A Guy Called Gerald collaboration from 2001. According to DTM Funk, this track is "the perfect example of two different grooves coming together in perfect harmony". The result shows that groovy soul and alternative electronica go hand in hand. This powerful fusion of influences gave rise to a monthly show on Brussels' online station Kiosk Radio. A few months later, Black Gravity Rhythms now becomes a compilation series around an ever-evolving sound that winks to the past while firmly looking towards the future.In each new volume of the series, DTM Funk will collaborate with another befriended DJ, assembling a varied collection of productions representing the sound of the guest selector. For the first edition, we look to ​AliA​, probably Belgium's most skilled sound digger of her generation. Still only 21-year-old, she is known for her eclectic style, impeccable skills and versatile selection that ranges from broken beats to bossa nova and from alternative techno to off-beat belters. She's a regular at Gilles Peterson's Worldwide Festival, Listen Festival and frequently plays together with Belgium's most renowned DJ, Lefto. Settling on ten definitive tunes together with DTM Funk proved to be as easy as a B2B DJ-set (of which they have done plenty of).The final selection on the compilation delivers for any music fan. From broken beat (Faraji Heritage Experiment, Kuna Maze and Pippin), dub-infused Afro house (SofaTalk and Àbáse), laidback grooves (Chery Moya and Duke Hugh) or soulful house (Forbidden Fruit and Windows & Daidu). Whether you need something to shuffle to in your living room or reminisce the long-gone days of clubbing, these are the kind of vibes that suit any occasion.As will be the standard from here on out, the compilation's producers originate from a wide array of places and backgrounds. Forbidden Fruit (who keen observers might know from his Title and Soft Focus aliases), Kuna Maza, Cherry Maze and Pippin represent Belgium's versatile and fruitful beatmaker scene, while Farija Heritage (Morocco), SofaTalk (Italy), Àbáse (Hungary), Windows & Vertigo (The Netherlands), Kodäma (UK) and Duke Hugh (The Netherlands) bring in a decent dose of worldly flavours. In fact, the latter is a favourite of NTS Radio resident Bradley Zero, who released Duke Hugh’s debut Canvas EP on his renowned Rhythm Section record label.The compilation perfectly fits the philosophy of the record label. "The meaning of San Kofa implies that all music comes from somewhere", explains DTM Funk. "If you acknowledge the music's origins and its essence, it becomes so much more valuable, and you become better prepared for the future". The first episode of this collaborative compilation series does just that. With plenty more releases on the agenda in 2021, Black Gravity Rhythms Vol. 1 is a strong start of a bountiful year filled with forward-facing music.