We celebrate the closing of the awesome kongress over the weekend with 5 hours of tri-continental rhythms, and embody the anti-imperialist struggle with the sweetest and heaviest rhythms from the Global South.
Come early. Bring drinks and comrades.
Peace in West Asia
Music to die for, in celebration of life and a bright future for West Asia. These 3 mixes in the series were inspired by the rapproachement between Iran and Saudi Arabia, the movement towards rapproachement between Syria and Turkey, and the recent developments in West Asia towards peace and stability after 40 years of continuing foreign invasions and bombs which destroyed hundreds of cities, killed tens of millions of civilians, and created hundreds of millions refugees.
MICRORAVE SAT/10.06.23 – PEACE IN WEST ASIA
We Love Amapiano
Amapiano emerged out of either Durban or Joburg in the recent 5 years or so. Jury is still out on which city – I’ve met Durbanites who swear on the graves of their ancestors that the sound is Durban, as well as Joburgians who say it was developed in Soweto, and popularised in the legendary Poniaza club (bigup bigup!!).
Musically, it is a response to the previous sound to dominate the South African scene for some years, Gqom, which evolved out of the rougher side of South African House, defined by a relentless and repetitive dark energy that might be described as African Berghain hard techno (though I am very aware of the problems of describing African electronic music by Western terms, it is what Western audiences can understand and relate to).
Amapiano swings the vibes hammer in the other direction: toward more “accessible” musicality, more melody, and drops the BPM from 130 down to exactly 114 (I would love to interview the pioneers on why this exact bpm which all Amapiano tracks seem to strictly adhere to).
Stylistically it is a superb vision of African Futurism which is decidedly the opposite of the futurism of European electronic avant garde, which is all about a REJECTION of history: minimalist bleeps and bloops that try to divorce itself from past genres. In stark contrast, Amapiano EMBRACES all of the African and Afro-diasporic modern traditions: including recognisable influences from Jazz, Reggae, Dancehall, Hip Hop, R’n’B, and even chart Pop.
But make no mistake: this music is revolutionary, in a structural sense. Amapiano turns many conventions on its head, most importantly, changing the relationship between the lower and higher ends, and reversing the roles played by the hats and the bass.
In Western modern dance music, the bass kick provides a constant repeating pattern (nearly always a 4/4 lol) on top of which higher frequencies float, doing variations within the sameness. The central passages of Amapiano tracks turns this on its head: the constant repeating patterns are done with the highs, such as melodic refrains, and it is the BASS which does variations within the sameness. Like the Mama Ngoma drum of the Congo, largest and heaviest of the family of drums, always doing the SOLOS, I believe this is a reconnection with ancestral African musical heritage.
Some people in Europe who are accustomed to edgy hardcore menacing moods in their club music seem to think Amapiano is too soft and “pleasant”… But they just don’t get it 🙂
For some reason the soundcloud embed isn’t working at the moment, so here are ghetto ass links to the 3 parts series 😀
FUSION Festival 2022
Sorry for neglecting this site for some time. There is a lot of exciting things happening with my dj work but just have been a bit overwhelmed with other projects. Much more soon!
But for now, any lucky people attending Fusion this weekend should know that Dj Zhao’s set will be Sat. night / Sun. morning from 3am – 6am, on the Salon De Baile stage.
Expect next level and all inclusive African Futurism.
See you there!
Fête de la Musique – 2 dj sets
Dj Zhao with the rhythm science you just can’t fuck with
Monday 21 June
Dj Zhao: 16H – 17H
Untergeschoss der Pandora Art Gallery
Schleiermacherstraße 18, 10961 Berlin
Dj Zhao: 20H – 22H
Torstrasse 170, 10115 Berlin
Meta Apala
Ancestral Yoruba, Kejawèn, and Akamba rhythms meets Jungle, Juke, Bass, Hip Hop, and Spiritual Jazz.
Ndagga Rhythm Force / DJ Zhao – YAAM Thursday 08.08
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2ECz3xA
Youtube: https://bit.ly/2MduOyR
Dj support: dj zhao (ngoma)
VVK ab 15,- incl. Gebühren bei KOKA36 / EVENTBRITE & An allen bekannten VVK Stellen
In 2011 Mark Ernestus (of Basic Channel, Rhythm & Sound, and Hardwax fame) traveled to Senegal in search of original Sabar and Mbalax recordings but ended up inviting over 20 percussionists and other musicians – most of whom he had become interested in via local cassettes or Youtube clips – for a spontaneous recording session in Dakar. Mark arranged and mixed these recordings back in Berlin, which were released on the 2012 twin albums “800% Ndagga” and “Ndagga Versions” under the “Mark Ernestus presents Jeri-Jeri” moniker – simply using the Sabar drummers’ clan name.
Since then, the project has evolved into something new in its own: From the initial pool of artists involved, Mark has handpicked a smaller core group with whom he intensified collaboration, toured throughout Europe and recorded new tracks to arrange, edit, finish production, and mix with his own, more electronic aesthetic. The album “Yermande” was released to much critical acclaim late in 2016.
The group has become a killer live outfit and has played clubs and major festivals all across Europe – including Melt!, Roskilde, Dour, OFF! in Katowice or the Festival Ile d’France in Paris – and in the process long have outgrown initial limitations. We’re more than happy to have MARK ERNESTUS & NDAGGA RHYTHM FORCE at YAAM Berlin in August!
Fusion 2019
Wed night 26th of June 1 – 5am @ Haupttresen, main bar of the festival, open air stage Function One in the center area between Turmbühne and Triebwerke –– 4 hours of Afrocentric Electro-Bass on The hottest day of the year, my 10th of rocking Fusion
Sound System Culture Set
LISTEN
A set of Jungle/D’n’B, Juke/Footwork, Afro-Rave, Rap/HipHop, and Reggae/Dancehall that I had a lot of fun playing on the awesome A-Sound System. Turnup!
Sound System Culture – on the radical roots of rave
Sorry for the short notice.
Tomorrow Friday my talk at 18:00 will be on the Insurrectionary Politics of Dancing, and dj set from 21:30 – 23:30 of Afro-centric Breaks and Jungle.
“Understanding the sound system as a social space, we want participants of different genres and scenes (from roots, dub and contemporary bass music to techno/tekno) to gather and exchange.
In a colorful program of exhibitions, live-performances, workshops, talks, discussion and diverse music Berliners and international artists are entering into a dialogue and are actively shaping the event.
Exhibitions:
– Roots of sound system music & culture – including audio examples and open dialogue by David Riley (Supported by Mr. Glue)
– UK sound systems in the 90ies – photos and input by Ed Twist
Workshop:
– “Listen! Material and Loops – A hearing experience” by E.L.L.I.
Discussion Panel (FLTI):
– “Sound Systems, Rave Collectives and Gender” by Meetup Berlin & PRIZM:Berlin
Talks:
– The revolutionary essence of social dance by He Zhao
– Sound system culture, hardcore techno and the Berlin Fuckparade by Bianca Ludewig
– Sound System Cultures of the Black Atlantic: Angolan Kuduro by Stefanie Alisch (Humboldt Universität zu Berlin)
– Rave & psychoanalysis by Feli Concat
– Musique Concrète Jungle – spatial delivery research by Lukas Jakob Löcker
Performance:
A/V synth performance by SAOU TV & Kevin Koen
Music:
– Benjammin
– Chantal
– Dj.Pult (do not dance)
– dj zhao
– Feli Concat
– Gretchen Bazooka
– Hägen Daz
– Jahminta Zulu
– Jah Forcefield (Bademah & Zentash Gigawatt Dubz)
– Jukebox Utopia
– Mila Chiral – live
– One Woman Army in Dub
– Pmp Mzk alongside Tcp (Harlekinsound / Certain:Dubs)
– Smi
– Spiriel
– Aporia Barrage
– Token
Supported by:
– VJ Flimmerkiste
– A-Sound System
– Triple P Sound System
Digital Africa 4
Digital Africa 5
The Beat Continuum: The Socio-Political Evolution of Rhythm
100 Years of Beat
Honored to have participated in the curation of this festival, and looking forward to contributing to it, speaking alongside the likes of Kodwo Eshun and playing next to JLin.
Mark your calendars:  Thu, Apr 26,  —Sun, Apr 29
East of the River Nile
A short version of the set i did at SPACES Festival at Iwalewahaus in Bayreuth, Germany.
Image
Dance Dance Revolution: The Insurrectionary Politics of Shaking It
Anarcho-Communist mega-party-mix: end of article
“If I Can’t Dance, I Don’t Want to Be Part of Your Revolution�
–Attributed to Emma Goldman
“Music is a weapon, a real weapon, in a concrete sense.�
–Desmond Tutu (1)
“Dancing is the remedy of resistance, the art of the marginalized and dispossessed.�
–Marc de la Maison (2)
NGOMA Afro Tech / Cashmere Radio
Tonight is a big big night, with top beatsmiths and djs from Uganda, UK, and Berlin providing us with outlandishly excellent sonic services in this historical NYEGE NYEGE FESTIVAL gathering on the other side of the globe.
And tomorrow all 4 of us, David Tinning, Spooky-J, Moroto Hvy Indstr, and myself will be weaving ecstatic aural tapestries on the esteemed Cashmere Radio, where there is a dopetastische absinthe bar, from 8pm to midnight.
Get your dancing shoes ready for tonight, and smoking jacket for tomorrow!
Official Ngoma Avant Classical List
Last year on this day i made the following post on Facebook:
Deleting everything from Avant Classical collection which i don’t LOVE listening to. DON’T GIVE A FUCK how highly regarded it is. Sorry Luigi Nono; sorry Brian Ferneyhough, sorry Georg Friedrich Haas. Some to all of your material has got to GO.
And some people requested screenshots.