Midweek Mixdown: Colombia at 78 RPM with Quantic

Check out Will "Quantic" Holland spinning a selection of Colombian 78 gems for My Analog Journal. 

Colombia at 78 RPM with Quantic 

Caribbean Rhythms From The Jukebox Era

"I spent years searching for records in Colombia, collecting LPs, 45s and especially fragile 78rpm shellac discs, often losing them to breakage along the way. What fascinated me was how Colombia’s jukebox culture kept 78s alive well beyond the 70s, preserving a rich, folkloric sound shaped by labels like Fuentes and Curro and artists such as Andrés Landero. Through digging, compiling The Original Sound of Cumbia, and later projects like Ondatropica, I’ve tried to share these recordings and honour the musicians behind them. Despite the technical challenges of playing and restoring these records, there’s something powerful about how music recorded over seventy years ago can still resonate so deeply today.

"I had a lot of fun compiling these records for My Analog Journal and I'm really proud with how the mix turned out. Live now on Youtube. 

"Hope you enjoy."

Peace,

Will

Cumbias En Moog vs. Leandro Torres y el Trío Serenata

Check out Cumbias En Moog & Quantic taking on Leandro Torres' classic version of Rafael Mejia's "Cumbias Sobre El Mar"

Quantic reconnects with Nidia Góngora for Almas Conectadas

Listen to "Macumba de Marea" and "Balada Borracha" off Quantic's forthcoming Nidia Góngora collaboration Almas Conectadas.

Here's the scoop...

Almas Conectadas (Connected Souls) is the sophomore album from renowned British producer Will “Quantic” Holland and Colombian singer/songwriter Nidia Góngora slated for release October 22. 

Bubbling with symphonic flourishes, the release explores the unique, rich, and mystical musical traditions of the Colombian Pacific Coast while being recorded at Quantic’s Brooklyn-based studio and creative powerhouse Selva. Delving into the concept of the album, Nidia explains: “Almas Conectadas refers to the interrelation of cosmic energies, the aura and the way they manifest from the abstract; we are more than body and flesh and there are countless elements that connect us as beings that interact in the universe, physical contact does not always exist to be connected.” 

Nidia sings of soul’s lost at sea found by fishermen on “Macumba de Marea,” while Quantic’s orchestral layered instrumentation crescendos and flows, weaving between Nidia’s storytelling. 

“This song speaks of the importance of the rituals to say goodbye to our dead, through actions, charged with mysticism, spirituality and beliefs that define our cultural identity,” she explains.

“Balada Borracha” (Drunken Ballad), a cumbia-rock fusion melding Quantic’s cyclical guitar rhythms with Nidia’s celebratory vocals. The song is an ode to “all the drinkers and drunkards” in Góngora’s remote river hometown and Afro-Colombian community of Timbiqui, “especially my cousin Jairo Hernández (R.I.P.) and my brother Harold Angulo,” she adds. 

Almas Conectadas explores the nostalgia of impossible love, celebrates eternal bachelors, mourns souls lost at sea, and tells stories of dwellers from Timbiqui (whose location and cultural contrasts provides endless inspiration). Protecting the essence of the region’s rich songbook, and treating the cultural traditions of the Pacific coast with the utmost reverence, ‘Almas Conectadas’ is the perfect marriage of musical diversity, collective creation and intercultural dialogue. Nidia Góngora’s magnetic voice and captivating songwriting is matched to the unparalleled musicianship and pioneering production of Quantic, across eleven flawless tracks. 

Listen to "Macumba de Marea" and "Balada Borracha" below. Pre-order a copy of Quantic & Nidia Góngora's forthcoming album Almas Conectadas via Bandcamp right here. 

Midweek Mixdown: Quantic

Here's some cumbia heat courtesy of the reliable Will "Quantic" Holland – check the tracklist below. 

Tracklist:
Mariachi Nuevo Tecalitlan - Cumbia Arabe Quantic & Nidia Góngora - Maria No Me Llevo (RELEASE Pedro Miguel y los Maracaibos - Sorongo Ondatropica - Linda Mañana La Pesada - Cumbia y Tambo Quantic - Sol Clap Ondatropica - Lazalypso ID - ID Tito Cortes - Yolanda The Paradise Bangkok Molam International Band - Mor Rhythm Mor Khaen Faustino Oramas - Mujeres de Bayamo Nicola Cruz - Tzantza Los Reales De Cajamarca - Si Te Vas De Mi ID - Mi panecillo querido Quantic Y Su Conjunto Los Miticos Del Ritmo - Nothin But A G Thang (Vocal Dr Dree & Snoop Dogg) Quantic & Nidia Góngora - Amor En Francia DJ Rashad & DJ Spinn - Meet Tshetsha Boys Quantic & Flowering Inferno - Cumbia Sobre el Mar La Lupe - Fever Calixto Ochoa - Corazon enamorado Papa Brandao y su Conjunto Aires Tableños - La Murga de Panama Ondatropica - Hummingbird Quantic and his Combo Barbaro - Un Canto A Mi Tierra Nicola Cruz - Mantis

One For The Weekend: Nidia Góngora & Quantic

 "Que Me Duele?" is off the new Nidia Góngora & Quantic album Curao out May 12 on Tru Thoughts. 

Quantic (w/ band), Footprints DJs @ Adelaide Hall, Sunday

Here's "Chambacu" feat. Nidia Gongora off 1000 Watts by Quantic's Flowering Inferno.

Quantic's Tropical Elevation Tour 2016

Expect a career-spanning Quantic selection including new tracks Curuba & Creation (below).

Quantic Mixes 
Caja y Guacharacha: Cumbia, Puya & Porro link
Cali Cartel: Smokin' Colombian tipica joints link
Lost and Longing: Cape Verdian Mornas & Coladeras link
Vacilon: Boogaloo vs Guajira link

Get down tropical dancefloor style w/ Quantic @ The Garrison, tonight

Here's a 76-minute trip through Will "Quantic" Holland's 7" single box in advance of his Turning Point set.

Colombia's Ondatrópica w/ Michi Sarmiento @ Nathan Phillips Square, Monday

Don't miss Colombia's amazing Ondatrópica featuring saxophone great Michi Sarmiento tonight at 9:45 pm.

Quantic issues Western Transient recording in a fancy package

Quantic presents The Western Transient: A New Constellation is out July 31. Ondatrópica hits T.O. July 13. 

Quantic Presents The Western Transient is the latest project from Will “Quantic” Holland, bringing together a handpicked band of some of his favourite musicians – namely Todd Simon (trumpet, flugelhorn), Wilson Viveros (drums), Sylvester Onyejiaka (flute, tenor saxophone),  Brandon Coleman (piano, Moog), Gabe Boel (bass), Alan Lightner (steel pans, percussion) – to record a set of new compositions in Los Angeles paying homage to the rich, lively and intimate quality of the classic soul and jazz recordings. The resulting album, A New Constellation finds Holland following up his disappointingly over-egged solo album, Magnetica, with a suite of traditionally recorded pieces that capture the spontaneous beauty in making music with serious musicians playing real instruments.

“A transient is a burst of energy that hits and falls off, leaving nothing behind. It is temporary, momentary in its action, like an ink drop on a page that fades almost as soon as it’s dry,” offers Holland in a philosophical moment. “Music is a muddle of transients or rather, a meeting place for them, where the short lived can become eternal.”

The vinyl version of A New Constellation comes housed in a deluxe handmade hardback gatefold sleeve designed by Steven Serrato with photographs taken by B+ (see video clip below).

In other Will Holland news, his Colombian's cumbia crew Ondatrópica will be performing as part of Toronto's Panamania festival at Nathan Phillips Square on July 13. If you'd like to contribute to the recording of Ondatrópica Vol. 2, check out their crowd funding campaign right here.

Hear Quantic & Beto's swingin' tropical Discoteca mix

Check out Quantic and Beto's dope new' 78-minute mix of vintage Latin 45s below.

¡Discoteca! at the 303: Quantic & Beto
 

Keep your Adele, I'll take Alice Russell

Tru Thoughts labelmates Alice Russell and Will "Quantic" Holland have teamed up for a new album entitled Look Around The Corner which is set for release on April 3. The lead off single is the beautifully uplifting title track which recalls Minnie Ripperton's classic Rotary Connection recordings produced and arranged by the late great Charles Stepney. But knowing Quantic, he'd  likely say that he was actually thinking more along the lines of Ripperton's 1971 solo debut Come To My Garden instead.  

If the rest of the album is anything like the stellar live version of Look Around The Corner recorded for the video (below) – filmed by videograper, photographer and noted vinyl hound Brian "B+" Cross – this new collabo with Combo Bárbaro could be exactly what Russell (and Quantic) needs to break beyond the deep funk cult and start ringing up some Adele-level sales. Here's hoping.

Get the limited-run 10" vinyl single on Fat Beats here or just grab a digital download of the track here.

Look Around The Corner (live) by Alice Russell w/Quantic's Combo Bárbaro

Sofrito DJs and Quantic bring the tropical heat

If you're reading this posting, chances are you're not among the lucky few to escape the February blahs with a timely island getaway. Well, deep digging UK DJs Hugo Mendez (compiler of Soundway's sizzling Tumbélé set), Frankie Francis and some dude known as the Mighty Crime Minister – who formed the Sofrito party collective in East London back in 2005 – are bringing the heat to beat the winter doldrums with Tropical Discotheque (Strut).

It's a brilliantly bangin' 15-track double vinyl set of Colombian cumbia, salsa and porro joints alongside some heavy-hitting West African soukous, highlife and Afrobeat grooves with a touch of Trindadian soca-disco, topped off with a bit of gwo ka moderne and cadence-lypso from the French Antilles – essentially a sweaty Sofrito party on plastic. Check out the Tropical Discotheque link below to hear a mini-mix preview.
In addition to the vintage floor-fillers from Nigerian ekassa ace Victor Uwaifo, Lisandro Meza's Banda Los Hijos De La Nina Luz, Benin's Gnonnas Pedro, the Roaring Lion, Ghanian guitar great Safohene Djeni, Mighty Shadow and Adolfo Echeverria, Tropical Discotheque also presents an otherwise unreleased costeño-style cumbia cooker from Quantic y su Conjunto Los Miticos del Ritmo that fits so seamlessly in the mix you'd never know it was a recently recorded composition from Will Holland.

The bandleader/composer/producer extraordinaire of Flowering Inferno notoriety, who has been living in Colombia since 2007 and helped assemble the forthcoming Soundway comp Cartagena! Curro Fuentes & The Big Band Cumbia and Descarga Sound of Colombia 1962-1972 (due February 28 – see links below), will be reverting to his DJ Quantic guise to spin his latest tropical funk finds at A Man Called Warwick's Turning Point party on Saturday (February 26) at The Garrison (1197 Dundas West) which has been paralleling in Toronto what Mendez and pals have been doing with their Sofrito nights in London. Evidently, that Quantic hombre is looking forward to Saturday's Turning Point throwdown as much as anyone in the GTA.
“Turning Point is one of my favourite club nights of all time," wrote Holland on his site. "It prides itself on using a big sound system to present some of the best recorded music on vinyl only –  CDs are forbidden. It is held on a monthly basis in Toronto, Canada and it's truly unique with a focus on playing warm, vibrant and all-resonating tropical rhythms. If you’re ever in town, I heartily recommend it. The combination of these three things is irresistible: dark room, bass heavy sound & soulful analogue recorded music. The session resident and host is A Man called Warwick and past selectors include DJ Paulo Superfly, Miles Cleret and myself among others.”  

Sofrito - Tropical Discotheque (Strut)

01. Banda Los Hijos De La Nina Luz – Quiero Amanecer
02. Les Ya Toupas Du Zaire – Je Ne Bois Pas Beaucoup
03. Frente Cumbiero – Pitchito
04. Fair Nick Stars – Arrete Mal Parle
05. Kyerematen Stars – Maye Obi Den
06. Víctor Uwaifo – Ohue (Frankie Francis & Simbad Edit)
07. Adolfo Echeverria – Sabroso Bacalao
08. El Timba – Descarga Bontempi
09. Mighty Shadow – Dat Soca Boat
10. Dany Play – Fa’waka
11. Safohene Djeni – Mahu Wo Asie
12. Ti Celeste – Popilation Basse-Terrienne Du Abois
13. Quantic Y Su Conjunto Los Míticos Del Ritmo – Cumbia De Mochilla
14. Roaring Lion – Carnival Long Ago
15. Gnonnas Pedro – Yiri Yiri Boum




Sofrito: The Tropical Discotheque Story


To get you properly primed for Quantic's highly anticipated Turning Point return, here's a dope mix which DJ Philippe Noël (who co-runs Montreal's Canicule Tropicale monthly) put together from the vinyl treasures he uncovered on a recent digging trip from Bogota to Barranquilla. With killer tracks from Afrosound, Enrique Lynch, Peregoyo y su Combo Vacana, Los Corraleros, Afredo Guitierrez, Banda 19 de Marzo, and Mr. Trombone among others, it's a tasty selection of salsa and cumbia swingers.
Too much goodness? There's a Hugo Mendez mix in the links below which should help your digestion boasting choice cuts from Catalina y su Gran Combo, the Cyril Diaz Orchestra, Beddoe’s Limbo Orchestra, La Sonora Cordobesa, Ibo Combo, Eskill & Vicky avec Orchestre Poly Rythmo, Super Combo, Black Truth Rhythm Band, Etoile Number One and Toronto's own calypso king Elsworth James!



LINKS
Sofrito site http://sofrito.co.uk/
Tropical Discotheque Mini-mix
Cartagena! stream
Quantic site http://www.quantic.org/
Turning Point http://www.ducktape.ca/
Soundway http://www.soundwayrecords.com
Hugo Mendez's Musique Pour Aider La Digestion Mix

Keeping up with Quantic

Trying to follow the many Quantic-related recording projects of tirelessly searching producer/bandleader and jet-setting DJ Will Holland can be a difficult task, not to mention all the other ones he drops on the down low.

So when the UK-based Tru Thoughts label released the enjoyable Dog With A Rope album by his Colombia-based collaborative project Flowering Inferno, someone at the label came up with the boffo idea of having KCRW radio host Jeremy Sole (who apparently has been a DJ and record collector for 15 years!) survey the Tru Thoughts back catalog to assemble a mixtape of his favourite moments in Quantic history. While Lo Mejor y Sabor de Quantic: A Retrospective of Will Holland is far from a definitive collection, the 44-minute guided beat tour serves quite nicely as an introduction to what our boy Will has been messing with for those new to the Quantic sound experience. You can download it for free right here.

So much for past history. Those interested in finding out where Holland is at currently and perhaps get a better idea of the route through cumbia, reggae and funk DJ Quantic might take during his guest set with the Turning Point crew tonight (Saturday, September 18) at The Garrison (1197 Dundas West) should check out the Tropicalismo #1 mix which you can get gratis here.
Sorry, diggers, no track listing but I can tell you that it was recorded on a hot night at Mikasabar in Cali, Colombia with Quantic spinning first followed by his Mochilla DJs Eric Coleman, Sabo and Brian "B+" Cross.


Quantic on the road