Blogging is a curious thing…especially when there are major labels/sponsors involved. They make crazy money, invest in something dope, give us a whiff of it & we do the rest…..for free. That’s only one reason why I feel slightly strange blogging about Baloji. The other is that seeing as I don’t speak French, I have only a feint idea of what he’s saying. What I do know though is that the way he says what he says is on point. Don’t hate me but that’s my main criteria for judging MCs & singers anyway….unless they’re really talking shit….

Baloji is a Congolese MC via Belgium. He’s been around for a minute and his flows stick to anything from high speed 70s funk to raw roots traditional drums. He’s been working on the follow up to the acclaimed ‘Hotel Impala‘ LP and sources tell us the fresh ‘Kinshasa Succursale’ project is ripe to drop. As a taster, the Konono No 1 sampling ‘Karibu Ye Bintou’ is currently doing the rounds. Not only is the track tight, but the video is excellent too….thoughts?

BALOJI feat. KONONO n1 – KARIBU YA BINTOU from BALOJI on Vimeo.

I’m going to keep this one short and sweet.

United Vibrations are one of the hottest, most energetic bands to walk the UKs stages in a while. I’ve had the pleasure of sharing many a gig with them and their music never fails to engage. On a personal tip, having broken bread with them at length, I’m as impressed with their ideology and aspirations as I am with the heat scorching up the microphones.

One of their set’s highlights is RA! a fast paced afro-jazz cut with a boom-bap breakdown and energy for days. Funnily enough, the cut is actually in part a celebration of solar energy, the other part being reserved as a homage to the visionary Sun Ra. The single is out now (it was officially launched on the winter solstice) and you can pick it up on ITunes. Vinyl lovers you’re not forgotten. Cop the plastic here.

Here is the video, recorded at the launch party….enjoy

Ok, I know it’s not that long ago that I mentioned Karreim but I found this video of his ensemble performing ‘Tergiversation” over at OkayPlayer and couldn’t help myself. Heads High is all about artists who represent the merging of styles and the ease with which Mr Riggins moves between that Hip Hop Boom Bap and subtle Jazz accents is enviable to say the least…enjoy…

Update: The player doesn’t do what it’s supposed to and i’m far from an HTML pro so click the V-Tech underneath the player’s ghost to take you where you need to go…that corporate thing feels dirty doesn’t it……