AFRI-KOKOA and STRUT Records presents the the Innovative and Pioneering Musician and Godfather of AFRO-FUNK

ORLANDO JULIUS and the mighty HELIOCENTRICS for a rare Live concert as part of the LONDON AFRICAN MUSIC FESTIVAL 2013

Plus DJs AJ Kwame and Baggy and Special guests spinning the funkiest afro-funk music and afro-mashups for the Dancefloor

Tickets in Advance from RichMix on 020 7613 7498

Born in 1943 in Ijebu-Ijesha in Osun State, Orlando Julius Aremu Olusanya Ekemode to crate-diggers worldwide has long been worth getting all dusty-fingered over. Julius began churning out breakbeat-laden singles in the early '60s with his 10-piece band, the Modern Aces, and when in 1966 they birthed their first long-player, Super Afro Soul, he demonstrated his uncanny skills at bridging the Atlantic by mashing Latin percussion, high-life guitars, R&B horns and a nascent funk attack—all particularly showcased on "Ijo Soul," a song strikingly similar to James Brown's mega-hit "I Got You (I Feel Good)." Which came first? Sorry, do your own homework.

Residing in Ibadan, Orlando used his orchestral prowess to attract musicians from all over, including one trumpet-wielding Fela Kuti. Fela, freshly returned from London and looking to get his own mojo working, frequently sat in, soaked up Julius' juice, soon traded trumpet for sax, "borrowed" a few Modern Aces and formed the Koola Lobitos, the band that would hammer out the sonic blueprint for Afrobeat before Fela's infamous Afrika 70 officially catapulted it.

The mighty 'Heliocentrics' are led by the drummer Malcolm Catto. As he is constantly in demand, this is one of the reasons the debut album took four years to finally complete. As The Heliocentrics, the collective's objectives in a Sun Ra inspired alternative galaxy, where the orbits of Hip-Hop, Funk, Jazz, Psychedelic, Electronic, Avante-Garde and Ethnic music all revolve around "The One".

Podcast: Radio Mukambo #521 – The Fifth Heaven

The fifth volume of the Global Riddims compilation on NYP Records is just delicious. Fresh tunes from Africa, the Caribbean, Latin America, the Arab world and everything in between, by one of the curators on Groovalizacion Radio. Radio Mukambo also pays tribute to the great Orlando Julius, Nigerian highlife and afrobeat…

Artists: Abayomy , Africa Negra , Alpacas Collective , Cie Tambor Y Canto , Congotronics International , Kind & Kinky Zoo , Lalalar , Ojibo Afrobeat , Orchestra Gold , Orlando Julius , The Heliocentrics , Total Hip Replacement , Tribu Baharu