If, in the recent months, London has become a “jazzcat forge” with new artists emerging, earning exposure and enriching the city’s jazz scene almost on a daily basis, the credit has to go to up-and-coming projects like Blue Lab Beats. We don’t exaggerate in saying that the duo, formed by...
Articles & Reviews
Articles
The forthcoming Sunday (21st October) will see the opening of the doors to the newest London Jukebox music venue in Highbury. The official opening launch sets the penultimate date of the national tour UpClose! of the widely acclaimed ensemble Rafiki Jazz. Their last album Har Dam Sahara, released by Riverboat...
To be called “the Young Lioness of Africa” is a pretty demanding title, but Wiyaala entirely deserves it. As much as her feline counterpart, the Ghanaian artist is bold, tenacious and uncompromising. At little more than 30, she has already become a personality in Ghanaian culture as a singer/songwriter, actress,...
For four nights, the Pizza Express Live programme will put aside its usual jazzy and bluesy aplomb to wear funky and upbeat music clothes. Between the 24th and 27th October, the Holborn venue will go wild hosting Global Beats, a music series organised in association with Shades of Soul and presenting...
DakhaBrakha means ‘give/take’ in the old Ukrainian language. And it’s true, we see a real ‘give and take’ with the band’s influences – taking Ukrainian folk music and putting their own unique and theatrical spin on it. Often accompanied by Indian, Arabic, African, Russian and Australian traditional instrumentation, their music...
This is a show you wouldn’t want to miss! After five albums and eight years on the worldbeat scene, Bixiga 70 are still one of the most original bands around, and Quebra Cabeça, their latest fresh-off-the-press album released on Glitterbeat, is clear proof. The band from São Paulo hasn’t changed its...
BCUC are an almighty, powerful band from Soweto, South Africa, a town rich in history and musical legacy. Their name reflects their musical composition: ‘Bantu Continua Uhuru Consciousness’. Perhaps their most characteristic musical feature, as their name suggests, is their dedication to continuing unheard indigenous music from the Bantu and...
For the 16th year running, Joyful Noise will breathe African music deep into London. We don’t usually like to generalize or put different music in the same basket, but one of the best traits of the London African Music Festival is its all-embracing character, highlighting the richness and diversity of...
Although the London music scene might have to wait just over a month for the Jazz Festival, , there’s something just as jazzy and exciting coming up in the capital in the next few days. We are talking about the sixth edition of the London Latin Jazz Festival, an event...
A special show by London-based Bahla awaits us as part of Royal Albert Hall’s Late Night Jazz Sessions in their smaller venue, The Elgar Room. The Royal Albert Hall has been putting on these evenings for a long time, and recently have seen many of London’s up-and-coming jazz artists grace...
