I have put these two tracks together based on one simple rule. They are the two most original, unclassifiable, genre-bending and categorisation-defying songs I came across in the last few weeks. Instant Club Bizarre essentials too!
First up, all the way from South Africa Okzharp featuring his Johannesburg based dancing muse Manthe Ribane and their fruitful collaboration sung in Tswana "Dear Ribane". Inspired by South Africa's thriving house music scene, "Dear Ribane" mesmerises with its exotic cocktail of tribal beats, unevenly pulsating rhythms and exotic rhymes. Hyperdub has always been unparalleled when it comes to discovering and supporting striking, up and coming artists (Burial, DVA, Ossie, Jessy Lanza to name just a few) but Okzharp's throbbing "Dumela 113" EP could be easily considered one of this prolific, London-based record label's best releases to date. "Dear Ribane" is a surprising, sublimely produced and irresistible invitation to dance.
Where do I even begin with Aïsha Devi's fascinating "Mazdâ"... The Swiss-Nepalese underground producer/conceptual artist has just released her debut LP "Of Matter And Spirit" via London’s Houndstooth label. The record is an uncompromising experiment of abstract electronica, industrial synths, witch house, dark ambient, noise, noir electro with some Oriental reminiscences ("Initiation to an Illusion") and echoes of The Knife's epic "Silent Shout" ("Kim and the Wheel of Life"). Does it sound avant-garde enough to you? Here's what we read about "Mazdâ" in Dazed which premiered this unquestionable contender for the video of the year, directed by Chinese artist Tianzhuo Chen, earlier on this week:
"High-pitched, candy-coated vocals, shimmering synth lines and heart-thumping bass are stitched over images of near-naked people wearing rubber masks, drooling at each other or munching on the carcass of a raw chicken in this completely off-the-wall music video for Aïsha Devi’s electro masterpiece “Mazdâ”."
