Dila V & The Odd Beats
Fronted by Dila Vardar’s bewitching vocals, The Odd Beats unfailingly deliver an exhilarating, exuberant and intercontinental sonic journey. Their Bosporus-straddling blend of Turkish folk, psychedelic flair and irresistible Balkan dance beats comes with sinuous hints of Greek Rebetiko amongst other tasty world music flavours…
Me and My Friends
The sound of English folk colliding head-on with the golden-era music of 1970s West Africa and the Caribbean…
Phil King
As a singer songwriter Phil King has the whole trinity: a beautiful, soulful voice; deft skills at playing the guitar and the capacity to write elegantly worded and powerful songs. His new album The Wreckage, released earlier this year, has already caught excellent media attention, with Radio 2’s Bob Harris describing him as ” Absolutely Brilliant” and a “Song Weaver”…
No Go Stop
The mighty 12-piece No Go Stop are much more than a tribute to past glories, they are a living, breathing evocation of the life-force that is Afrobeat….
“The Bristol band have a real feel for what Fela Kuti and Tony Allen created 40 years ago…No Go Stop sound like real contenders for the contemporary Afrobeat crown.” – Songlines
Kit Hawes and Aaron Catlow
A musical journey through Europe, America and beyond; combining dazzling playing with a fine sense of musicality and showmanship.
Dakhla Brass
Dakhla Brass have embarked on a magic exploration of the richness of brass music as celebrated around the world…
“Dakhla – here is one of the bands doing great things right now! ‘Gorilla Gorilla Gorilla’… is well worth picking up” – Jamie Cullum, BBC Radio 2
Dele Sosimi
Born in Hackney, East London, but soon to return to his parents’ native Nigeria at the age of four, Dele Sosimi was schooled and raised in Fela Anikulapo Kuti’s shadow at the height of early 70s afrobeat.
Feelgood Experiment
6-piece soul-hop collective Feelgood Experiment are one of Bristol’s most exciting new musical exports, creating genuinely innovative sounds inspired by the likes of Fela Kuti, John Coltrane, Hiatus Kaiyote, D’Angelo, Miles Davis and Takuya Kuroda…
Camo Clave
Camo Clave are an Electro Tropical band who combine traditional Latin American rhythms with synthesizers, effects and processors….
Count Bobo
Top notch Bristol Ska-meisters Count Bobo that classic sound in a cool laid back fashion. It’s impossible to resist a-shakin’ and a-skankin’ to their choice of vintage ska and rocksteady numbers from the likes of Prince Buster, The Skatallites, Rolande Alphonso and others – all rendered with proper harmony vocals, gorgeous organ and zealous horns….
Harare
Harare is one of the few groups to be playing Zimbabwean dance music in Europe. Formed by virtuoso marimbist Kuda Matimba (a member of the Zimbabwe’s legendary Bhundu Boys), 4-piece Harare combines different styles from Jit Jive to traditional hypnotic rhythms of the mbira (lamellaphone/thumb piano)….
Gnawa Blues All-Stars
Born in Africa’s Mahgreb desert, the compelling dance rhythms of Gnawa music have been driving traditional trance-dance rituals for centuries….
Don Kipper
Seven outrageously skilful musicians create high octane, award-winning Klezmer fusion, with fingers flying devilishly fast over the numerous strings, buttons, keys and skins that make up the component parts of Don Kipper’s joyful little orchestra. Dunja Botic’s sumptuous vocals soar around and above the instruments’ intricate polyrhythms…
The Schmoozenbergs
Conjuring up the mood of 1930’s Paris, fused with the energy of a campfire jam session, The Schmoozenbergs bring
Tezeta
Music inspired by the Ethiopian golden age of the 60’s and 70’s. Tezeta’ (Ethiopian for Nostalgia) play a combination of their own material and the compositions of Mulatu Astatke (and similar artists), combining Ethiopian harmony with Afro-beat, jazz and funk.
Cousin Kula
Cousin Kula’s kaleidoscopic sound is woven from a myriad of musical genres. Combining flavours of psychedelia, afrobeat and latin with nu jazz, indie-rock and trip-hop the band seamlessly craft a sound that is rooted in world music yet gleams with contemporary freshness…