Back in June, our Ex-Friendly dropped a salsa-fied DJ set on the Freetown Stage at the always brilliant Africa Oyé Festival in Liverpool and it went off with a huge dancing crowd led by the dude in the white hat who we subsequently found out is called Damien! A bunch of his backup dancers from Winsford Salsa joined in alongside our friends and tons of Oyé attendees and it was immense! We forgot that it was recorded and it is only now being shared on the latest edition of Africa Oyé Radio. Hoping it brings you some joy!
Read MoreOur favourite Venezuelan polymath Alex Figueira is back with another full length album of burning hot ‘tropical’ psychedelic dancers. For once, he doesn’t do everything himself, inviting the members of the live incarnation of his Conjunto Papa Upa band to bring their instrumental magic to his ever-improving songwriting and vocal chops. With over two dozen genres mashed into this Latin music charged feast, ‘Fruta Madura’, has fire, wit and groove in its belly. Read / Listen.
Read MoreWe are pleased to premiere an exclusive single version of ‘Luna Modular’ from the Vancouver based psychedelic cumbia and salsa outfit - the hilariously named Empanades Ilegales. On the eve of the release of their second album, ‘Creepy Mambo’, it has that infectious psyche-surf-cumbia abandonment of acts like Meridian Brothers and is sure to shake those hips hard! Read / Listen / Buy here..
Read MoreA ridiculously fresh sounding Venezuelan salsa LP reissued for the first time since 1968 from one of the most prolific bandleaders of the time, Ray Perez. Hip, sexy, full of swagger and serious playing, Música Infinita/Olindo Records have done this reissue the right way, with beautiful new artwork and a fat remaster from The Carvery. Read / Listen here
Read MoreA holy shit compilation of tracks from Detroit’s short-lived but essential Strata label compiled by 180 Proof founder and Strata catalogue curator DJ Amir…….jazz for people who like it soulful, grimy and real..this is the good stuff! Read / Listen here
Read MoreA top shelf compilation of impossible to find music from Venezuela’s boom years (1966 - 78) touching on cumbia, salsa, folkloric and even localised versions of Fela Kuti and Desmond Dekker to get you moving and smiling… Read / Listen here
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