The physical form of dragonchild's debut is a vinyl 4-LP set, titled BLACK, containing a single 20-minute piece of music revealed when the four albums are played simultaneously. This physical release imagines a vinyl record as an art piece, with photography by Ethiopian photographer Michael Tsegaye, depicting a lava lake in the Afar region of eastern Ethiopia. Each vinyl record is translucent, with music on one side and an engraved topographic map of the lava fields on the reverse.
You can’t really listen to “BLACK,” but you can perform it. First, of course, you will need four turntables, and a space to set them up. (The album includes a diagram showing optimum placement.) You will also need three accomplices, so that all four tonearms can be dropped at once. “Debo,” the name of DA Mekonnen’s previous band, is an Amharic word meaning “communal labor”; to truly experience “BLACK,” you need a community, too.
This is a beautiful and audacious project: an artistic landmark, and an important addition to the long history of African-American cultural exchange.
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"The Source", a collaboration with Philadelphia-based percussionist and producer Sunken Cages, is about our Power coming from the Ancestors––both living and transitioned. The track includes a sample of Hailu Mergia's debut solo cassette played in reverse on a US Library of Congress Tape Deck. We were influenced by South African gqom music (at least in regards to the sonic reference) and went for a banger EDM dance floor vibe.
credits
from dragonchild,
track released February 16, 2023
Produced by Sunken Cages
Co-produced by DA Mekonnen
Recorded & mixed by Sunken Cages
Saxophone by DA Mekonnen
Synths & drum programming by Sunken Cages
Contains sample by Hailu Mergia's "Hari Meru Meru"
The earliest recordings from celebrated trumpeter, composer, producer and DJ Matthew Halsall get remixed and remastered for vinyl. Bandcamp New & Notable Nov 21, 2019
Energy time maddafakkas! This is hard hitting free jazz for the revolution. Listening to this you could believe it might actually happen!
Anyone who thinks Jazz is for old folks should give this a spin. It couldn’t be more contemporary to my ears. Crinklechips