Inspiration Information
Following an acclaimed collaboration between Mulatu Astatke and The Heliocentrics, Finnish maverick Jimi Tenor hit the studio for a mouth-watering head to head with Afrobeat drumming legend, Tony Allen.
Artist: Tony Allen, Jimi Tenor
Genre: Jazz
Label: Strut
Release date:
Tenor��had already built a reputation as a fascinating enigma in modern day music. Consistently one of the most inspired and unpredictable live artists around, his work since his breakthrough album ���Intervision�۪ (Warp, 1997) had involved open-minded projects ranging from live film soundtracks and orchestral pieces to a series of Afro-based albums with his band Kabu Kabu. Enjoying a burgeoning revival, Tony Allen had continued to attract new fans. Celebrated as the creator of the Afrobeat rhythm and a lynchpin of Fela Kuti�۪s Africa 70 band, his work at the time of this recording had included the first album as The Good, The Bad & The Queen with Damon Albarn and his debut recording for World Circuit Records, ���Secret Agent�۪.��
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Recorded at Lovelite Studios in Berlin during November 2008 with further sessions in Finland and Paris, the��Tenor��/ Allen��collaboration whipped up a raw, heavy analogue sound mixing the full range of Allen�۪s Afrobeat repertoire with��Tenor�۪s off-kilter brew of dark humour, tongue-in-cheek lyrics and tight, firing musicianship. The sessions involved key members of��Tenor�۪s Kabu Kabu band and Berlin-based guest MC Allonymous with tracks evolving naturally from jamming ideas together over five intense days of recording, fuelled by plenty of African food and whisky.��Tenor�۪s trademark range of home-made instruments rubbed shoulders with vintage keyboards and traditional African percussion.��
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The resulting set became one of the best recordings that both artists produced during this period. Tracks range from��Jimi�۪s S&M tableau, ���Darker Side of Night�۪ to the apocalyptic commentary on our times, ���Path To Wisdom�۪ and the hilarious lampooning of the UK immigration system, ���Mama England�۪, composed on the��Tenor��tour bus. The album also featured fusions based around more traditional low-slung Afrobeat structures (���Sinuhe�۪, ���Got My Egusi�۪) and ended with the epic freestyle juggernaut, ���Three Continents�۪, a life affirming, mesmeric groove built around another rough-as-nails Allenko rhythm base.����
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Recorded at Lovelite Studios in Berlin during November 2008 with further sessions in Finland and Paris, the��Tenor��/ Allen��collaboration whipped up a raw, heavy analogue sound mixing the full range of Allen�۪s Afrobeat repertoire with��Tenor�۪s off-kilter brew of dark humour, tongue-in-cheek lyrics and tight, firing musicianship. The sessions involved key members of��Tenor�۪s Kabu Kabu band and Berlin-based guest MC Allonymous with tracks evolving naturally from jamming ideas together over five intense days of recording, fuelled by plenty of African food and whisky.��Tenor�۪s trademark range of home-made instruments rubbed shoulders with vintage keyboards and traditional African percussion.��
��
The resulting set became one of the best recordings that both artists produced during this period. Tracks range from��Jimi�۪s S&M tableau, ���Darker Side of Night�۪ to the apocalyptic commentary on our times, ���Path To Wisdom�۪ and the hilarious lampooning of the UK immigration system, ���Mama England�۪, composed on the��Tenor��tour bus. The album also featured fusions based around more traditional low-slung Afrobeat structures (���Sinuhe�۪, ���Got My Egusi�۪) and ended with the epic freestyle juggernaut, ���Three Continents�۪, a life affirming, mesmeric groove built around another rough-as-nails Allenko rhythm base.����
Credit: Tony Allen's Bandcamp
About the artist
Irreversible Entanglements’ third full-length album OPEN THE GATES is ethereal shards of jagged onyx, a melancholic exploration of the post-colonial debris that surrounds us
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