International Cypher b/w Queen 16 Theme
Recorded live on 8-track tape at Queen 16 Festival, Berlin. Queen 16 Theme was written for the event and recorded during the finals. International Cypher was recorded during the cypher on the same festival day.
Voyage Spectral
Magic Source invites you to a journey to the obscure side of disco music. Led by producer & notorious tape operator Björn Wagner (of Mighty Mocambos, Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band and Mocambo Records), the group follows up on their rootsy cosmic debut LP Earthrising and last year’s EP Riviera Drive, whose stunning flute jazz cover of “Genius of Love” is also featured on this longplayer.
Further exploring the more unusual facets of disco in its otherworldly and international stylings, Voyage Spectral travels through a wide musical scope, ranging from “lost” tropical grooves, Mediterranean funk, outernational boogie, to cosmic sci-fi soundtracks. All 100% organic – created by real musicians with real vintage instruments, captured on 16-track analog tape.
An all-star cast of musicians invites you to a fantasy trip where angelic voices blend with spaced-out synths, ethnic string instruments interplay with sharp horn lines while the rhythm section is holding down a polyrhythmic puzzle of guitars, clavinets, B-3, drums and percussions.
Hotline Bling b/w Murkit Gem
Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band return with another set covers bound to get you out of your seat and on your feet. The mysterious German steel pan outfit is working on their fourth studio album now and treat us to another must have two-sider to hold us over while they finish it. This one is sure to become another favorite among DJs worldwide.
The A side finds BRSB taking on a huge hit with an eerie cover of Drake’s “Hotline Bling”. The intro melodica hints at the melody and when the beat drops and the top line plays on the pans all bets are off.
The B side is something of a Big Crown family affair as Bacao covers “Murkit Gem” from El Michels Affair’s Yeti Season album. The tune lends itself to the pans with its infectious melodies and the way BRSB plays it, it takes on a James Bond spy chase energy that works perfectly.
Represent b/w Juicy Fruit
Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band follow up their 2021 Expansions album with another solid 7” offering.
The A side, “Represent,” is one of the stand out tracks from Expansions. BRSB covers the DJ Premier-produced Nas classic, taking the original and expanding the arrangement with guitar and brass riffs. Tuba chugs along the drum break while the steel pans hammer out the famously infectious melody of the original sample making this an easy winner in hip hop circles and beyond.
The B side is a non-album cut available on this 45 for the first time ever. Bacao covers the Mtume classic “Juicy Fruit,” made popular again when The Notorious B.I.G. sampled it for his smash hit “Juicy.” A sure head-turner when people realize they’re dancing along to a new version of the classic melody.
Riviera Drive b/w Genius Of Love
Favorite Recordings proudly presents the new 12″ of Magic Source. The all-star group around producer Björn Wagner (known also for his cosmic and tropical-flavoured disco music as Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band and The Mighty Mocambos) creates here a hypnotic four-on-the-floor sound that is both earthy and spaced out and all their own.
Recorded on 16 track analogue tape with inexpensive vintage gear, the crew explores the more unusual facets of disco music off the beaten track in favour of more otherwordly and international stylings. In their music, one could hear echoes from lost tropical disco records, cinematic flavors from library soundtracks and a healthy dose of DIY garage funk rawness.
On A side, “Riviera Drive” is an extended Mediterranean disco groove based on hypnotic percussions and soulful horn themes that alternate with trippy keyboard excursions. The tune is equally at ease on the dancefloor as in a chill-out zone, but of course, prefers to be in its natural habitat in a classic car somewhere between Nice and Monaco.
On the flip, Tom Tom Club’s “Genius Of Love” is reimagined as a jazzy yacht soul instrumental with an echoed flute taking the lead. You’ll also find a shorter Radio Edit of “Riviera Drive”.
Raise It Up b/w Space
In the wake of their new album Expansions Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band drop another must have two-sider.
On the A side they take on the J DIlla produced Slum Village club banger “Raise It Up” and give it the BRSB treatment. SV fans will lose their shit when this comes on. Heads will be nodding from the first beat of the opening drum break and when they start playing the top line on the pans it’s a wrap. Now that they have your attention they take the tune and expand on it changing the arrangement and lacing it with brass and guitar parts that keep pushing the tune to higher and higher levels of energy.
The B finds BRSB taking on the infamous Galt MacDermot tune “Space”. Made famous in the hip hop world when it was sampled for Busta Rhyme’s classic “Woohah Got You All In Check” it is about to receive another boost from Bacao’s version. Both sides of this 7” are going to be mainstays in DJ sets for years to come.
Expansions
Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band, the mysterious steel pan outfit hailing from Hamburg, Germany have amassed a cult following around the globe. With a slew of classic 7”s and two critically acclaimed full length albums, they set a high bar for themselves, one they clearly intend on pushing even higher with this new offering. On their third album, aptly titled “Expansions”, BRSB are back with more of the same, but more of the same with them is inherently different. Covering songs that span genres and range from mega hits to album cuts, they make them their own with their unique approach to the traditional steel pans of Trinidad and Tobago.
Part of the allure of a new record from Bacao is finding out what covers they chose. However, die hard fans are also waiting to hear the original numbers like the stellar album opener “Tough Victory”. Its airtight rhythm section, brass arrangements, and layers of steel pan melodies make the term “cover band” a shoe that could never fit Bacao. Within the next three songs they go from Jazz (Galt MacDermot), to Hip Hop (Slum Village / J Dilla), to a dance floor classic (Grace Jones) taking them all on with their signature style, expanding on the originals. An easy crowd favorite is their gritty, gully, and neck snapping cover of the Timbaland produced Jay-Z club hit “Dirt Off Your Shoulder”. The infamous crushing Bacao drums start the show and the moment they start playing the top line on the pans, all bets are off. Sure to become a dance floor filler is their bottom heavy, four on the floor version of Sylvester’s classic “I Need Somebody To Love Tonight”. They venture into some gutbucket funk with Ike Turner’s “Getting Nasty” and bring the steel pans to Minnie Riperton’s Jazz classic “Les Fleurs”. Digging deeper in the modern canon and paying tribute to a tribute, they cover Erykah Badu’s homage to the late great J Dilla, “The Healer”. This is the type of thing to make Spice Adams jump on his kitchen counter and scream. From the second the beat drops they give the original Madlib production a run for its money, shaking subwoofers with the eerie tremolo bass while the pans play E. Badu’s vocal melodies.
By the time the album is through Bacao has taken the listener on a journey that spans a myriad of energies, tempos, and moods while somehow managing to keep it all under one umbrella. For all that, these songs are alive, and they will be taken out of the context of this album and sewn into the fabric of DJ sets around the globe for many years to come. Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band is breathing renewed life into the originals and continuing to push the boundaries of steel pan music, or, as the title suggests, expanding on it.
Dirt Off Your Shoulder b/w I Need Somebody To Love Tonight
Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band, the kings of “wait, what is this!!!” are back with another two-sider that has a little something for everyone. Both of these songs are pulled from their forthcoming full length album Expansions.
The A side is a gritty, gully, and neck snapping cover of the Timbaland produced Jay-Z club hit “Dirt Off Your Shoulder”. The signature crushing Bacao drums start the show and the moment they start playing the top line on the steel pans all bets are off. They push the tune to new heights and places adding brass arrangements and working around the original riff never losing the groove. The way they walk the line between the original and making it their own will woo Hip Hop heads and Funk enthusiasts alike.
The B side finds BRSB taking it straight to the discoteque and ushering everyone to the floor as they cover Sylvester’s underground classic “I Need Somebody To Love Tonight”. While Bacao have laid down a few four on the floor numbers on previous albums this is the first one making its way to a 7” and we are sure it will get their music into a new sector of DJs playboxes.
My Jamaican Dub b/w The Healer
Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band is back with another crushing two-sider that is guaranteed to set dancefloors on fire and get heads nodding around the globe. The mysterious steel pan outfit hailing from Hamburg, Germany has become a staple in DJ sets from Europe to Japan, from the US to Brazil, and anywhere else these tunes have found their way to speakers. They have released a slew of classic 7”s and two critically acclaimed full length albums. With that they have set a high bar for themselves, one clearly they intend on pushing higher with this new offering.
Side A is BRSB’s take on Grace Jones’ nightclub classic “My Jamaican Guy”. They take the tune to a new height from the first beat, laying down an infectious groove that will get people out of their seats immediately. Heavy duty drums and bass shake the speakers through the intro then the pans reveal what they are covering as they play the instantly recognizable top line of the original. Rhythm guitar, heavily echoed percussion hits, and the different pan sets all combine to make this yet another instant classic from Bacao.
Golden Shadow b/w Preaching To The Choir
In 2019, The Mighty Mocambos returned in fine form with their new album “2066”, played a storming European tour and celebrated a colourful year delivering their own true style of funk, Afro, hip hop with cinematic compositions and storytelling.The mean streets groove and furious drums versus car chase workout of “Golden Shadow” and the joyous instrumental stomper “Preaching To The Choir” were soon identified as DJ favourites. So here they are on glorious golden 7inch vinyl to jumpstart in 2020 with.