Friday
This
talented Kurdish singer whose name is pronounced Cheedem is trying to
review the musical genre Rebetiko, once considered socially degenerative
and as a result banned in Turkey and Greece.
For
those of you not in the know this genre was the bitter-sweet songs of
an exiled underclass, performed in dubious Greek and Turkish
establishments with strong roots in Izmir. More than a genre it was a
culture that united these two nations. It wasn't long till both
countries outlawed it due to its underworld connections and as too
oriental.
Çiğdem's album Mortissa (meaning a
strong independent woman) features Smyrneika (Smyrna = Izmir) and
Rebetiko songs in Greek and Turkish but also with musical roots in
Anatolia.
Rebetiko, sometimes called the 'Blues
of the Aegean' came into existence during the turbulent 1920s. It is
the music of the alternative, the underground scene, the music of
freedom-loving people and is therefore appropriate for the current
situation in Istanbul. 2013 is not the first time that the beautiful
city of Istanbul has been in turmoil.As singer Çiğdem Aslan, who was
born to Kurdish Alevi parents not far from Taksim Square, the focus for
the pro-democracy protests, has felt concerned and deeply involved, even
from a distance.
Although there have been many recordings of Rebetiko over the years, Çiğdem Aslan presents a fresh take, an immigrant herself from her homeland, a person from a minority ethnic group, a female singer in a usually male genre. But above all she brings personality and a voice that communicates deeply, the kind of voice that can help unlock the riches and relevance of this “Blues of the Aegean” to new audiences.
Having made her mark singing as front singer of award-winning She’Koyokh Klezmer Ensemble in which she has won plaudits for the “clear, natural ease” with which she sings (Songlines Magazine) and her “no-nonsense from the heart passion" (fRoots Magazine), and also having graced the stage at the Royal Albert Hall as opening act for Turkish diva Sezen Aksu and for Yasmin Levy at London’s Cadogan Hall, with this debut album Çiğdem is ready to take the stage as a star in her own right.
Çiğdem has a sweet and delightful tone to her voice, which is effortlessly complemented by the fellow artists that feature on Mortissa. The fusion of Turkish and Greek music that is Rebetiko/Smyrneika can be felt especially the joyful instrumental melodies.
I loved the way in which the violin and woodwind instruments fit seamlessly into the somber tone of track 3 - To Dervisaki. Track 8 - Nenni also deserves a special mention as Cigdem's vocals are in a class of their own, as the track features minimal backing but instead relies solely on raw lyrics.
Track 9 - Cakici sounds like it is backed by a full sized orchestra.
Generally all the songs featured on Mortissa were an absolute delight to my ears, so much so that I was hard pushed to choose a favourite track as they all appealed to me in their own special way.
Mortissa is on official release from Monday, September the 30th but can be pre-ordered from
Amazon by clicking here - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mortissa-Cigdem-Aslan/dp/B00D1QBRTI/ref=zg_bs_382530011_18
Çiğdem is also set to perform at Vortex on Friday the 11th, Saturday the 12th and Sunday the 13th of October, tickets for these gigs can be purchased through the events section of her Facebook page.
Twitter - https://twitter.com/cigdem_aslan
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/CigdemAslanOfficial?fref=ts
Post By - Boulent Mustafa
Although there have been many recordings of Rebetiko over the years, Çiğdem Aslan presents a fresh take, an immigrant herself from her homeland, a person from a minority ethnic group, a female singer in a usually male genre. But above all she brings personality and a voice that communicates deeply, the kind of voice that can help unlock the riches and relevance of this “Blues of the Aegean” to new audiences.
Having made her mark singing as front singer of award-winning She’Koyokh Klezmer Ensemble in which she has won plaudits for the “clear, natural ease” with which she sings (Songlines Magazine) and her “no-nonsense from the heart passion" (fRoots Magazine), and also having graced the stage at the Royal Albert Hall as opening act for Turkish diva Sezen Aksu and for Yasmin Levy at London’s Cadogan Hall, with this debut album Çiğdem is ready to take the stage as a star in her own right.
Çiğdem has a sweet and delightful tone to her voice, which is effortlessly complemented by the fellow artists that feature on Mortissa. The fusion of Turkish and Greek music that is Rebetiko/Smyrneika can be felt especially the joyful instrumental melodies.
I loved the way in which the violin and woodwind instruments fit seamlessly into the somber tone of track 3 - To Dervisaki. Track 8 - Nenni also deserves a special mention as Cigdem's vocals are in a class of their own, as the track features minimal backing but instead relies solely on raw lyrics.
Track 9 - Cakici sounds like it is backed by a full sized orchestra.
Generally all the songs featured on Mortissa were an absolute delight to my ears, so much so that I was hard pushed to choose a favourite track as they all appealed to me in their own special way.
Mortissa is on official release from Monday, September the 30th but can be pre-ordered from
Amazon by clicking here - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mortissa-Cigdem-Aslan/dp/B00D1QBRTI/ref=zg_bs_382530011_18
Çiğdem is also set to perform at Vortex on Friday the 11th, Saturday the 12th and Sunday the 13th of October, tickets for these gigs can be purchased through the events section of her Facebook page.
Twitter - https://twitter.com/cigdem_aslan
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/CigdemAslanOfficial?fref=ts
Post By - Boulent Mustafa
Twitter - https://twitter.com/OBsMusicUk
Presenting Kurdish Singer Çiğdem Aslan, a rising star in the revival of Rebetiko.
Saturday
Following the success of her previous EP, this talented Scottish Singer/Songwriter has recently released her In The Dark EP, which features 6 tracks.
Available for purchase at http://hollydrummond.bandcamp.com/
These Four Walls is a catchy little melody, even with its sad lyrics.
Cold Outside has a nice smooth instrumental backing track, which is complemented by Holly's gentle vocals.
In The Dark featuring Danny Shah, the combined vocals of Danny and Holly are a delight to the ears and the instrumental arrangement makes this a symphonic masterpiece.
Starting to believe is a lovely and upbeat tune and just as fun to listen to as In The Dark.
Stars is a Semi-haunting melody, this is thanks to Holly's trademark use of the Cello, which is used to positive effect on this EP.
The remixed version of These Four Walls showcases Holly's impressive EDM talents once again, as long term fans may know from her previous releases.
Twitter - https://twitter.com/Holly_Drummond
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/HollyDrummondMusic?fref=ts
Post By - Boulent Mustafa
Twitter - https://twitter.com/OBsMusicUk
Blog - http://oceanicblueuk.blogspot.co.uk
Blog - http://oceanicblueuk.blogspot.co.uk
Scottish singing sensation Holly Drummond is back with her latest EP
Thursday
Genre: Soul/Folk/Acoustic
Influences: Sam Cooke, Asa, Mumford & Sons,
Bill Withers, John Legend, Eric Clappton.
Nia Ekanem can be described as a 21-year old soul singer who was raised Birmingham, UK. Although it can be said that his influences can be heard in his style of music, it is evident that he is also his own entity. At the age of 13, he began learning keyboard before expanding on his musical knowledge by learning other instruments such as the guitar and the drums as the years went by. Despite evidently having the gift of singing, in his teenage years he also had an interest in rap which led to him having memorable performances at renowned venues such as the Indig02 in London and Symphony Hall in Birmingham, amongst many others while in an urban rap ground called L4C. While in L4C, he capitalised on his gift of singing by switching from a rapper/singer into solely being a singer, and when the group disbanded in 2011 he was able to see music as something he was passionate about. As a result, he worked on perfecting his craft, finding his sound and after a year of doing covers and performing, he is ready to having his soulful sound connect with an audience.
Nia Ekanem is currently working on a project which is sure to blow listeners away, but for the meantime he has recorded a soulful cover which is a medley of Wyclef Jean's version of the Bob Dylan classic “Knockin' On Heaven's Door” and Sizzla's “Thank You Mama”. The music obviously speaks for itself!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
Twitter: @NiaEkanem
Soundcloud: NiaEkanem
Facebook: NiaEkanem
YouTube: NiaEkanem
Bandcamp: NiaEkanem
Promoshin Presents 'Nia Ekanem'
Wednesday
Full Mixtape Available to download on www.soundcloud.com/
Born Olowu Bardia
Adebola,
Illrymz is one of
Nigeria’s
most popular urban
entertainers
and leads the new
urban
cool of Nigerian
entertainment.
Born December 3,
he is
the host of
Nigeria’s biggest
music reality
show, Nigerian
Idol. Ill is also
a popular radio
personality,
writer and producer.
A Hip-Hop and
R&B
artiste as well,
he will be releasing
his highly
anticipated
album this year.
Twitter: @illrymz
Soundcloud: www.soundcloud.com/
Presents 'ILL RYMZ'
Sunday
Steve Cali. A producer, songwriter, rapper, sound engineer, from Houston. He has worked with artist that have featured on various platforms; Datpiff, Music Connection Magazine, Hot New Hip Hop.The track is titled Pimp. It is part of what I call a New 3rd Coast Sound
STEVE CALIFollow @_CALIBER on Twitter
STEVE CALI - PIMP (Produced by STEVE CALI) @_CALIBER
Friday
DJ YRS Jerzy and Chox-Mak have been tearing up the
internet and streets together for a while now this time they also bring
along North Villah. North Villah is a well known producer out of Toronto,
Canada he has teamed up with DJ YRS Jerzy and Chox-Mak for a fresh new
single called "Reality Bites". Reality Bites is just a song talking about
what everyone is going through right now basically saying everyone has
there ups and downs and this is just a perfect song to just vibe to and
forget your problems for a while.
Dj Yrs Jerzy @Chox_Mak910
http://facebook.com/djyrsjerzypage
www.twitter.com/iamdjyrsjerzy
www.soundcloud.com/djyrsjerzy
www.youtube.com/yrsjerzy
DJ YRS Jerzy Ft. Chox-Mak - Reality
Monday
After the recent release of her latest single, "Feeling Good", rising songstress Ezi Emela teamed up with 19-year old super producer, Pheelz, to record an acoustic blend of Beyonce's "Party" and Burna Boy's "Like to Party".
While sharing her personal and free-spirited side, Ezi Emela gives us a raw sample of her melodic voice. Mr. Producer aka Pheelz completes the piece by matching her sound on the keys.
Video Link: http://youtu.be/sEG4l2K0XjA
To see more, visit http://youtube.com/
Stay in tune with Ezi Emela (@MsEziEmela) and Pheelz Mr. Producer (@PheelzontheBeat).
EZI EMELA & PHEELZ 'PARTY' (ACOUSTIC COVER VIDEO)
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