Extra Soul Perception, a new collaboration among artists from the UK, Kenya and Uganda, will release an audiovisual album, New Tangents In Kampala, London & Nairobi Vol. 1, in May.
The project, which aims to create new tangents in soul music, was inspired by the fusion experiments of saxophonist Monk Higgins and named after his 1968 album. Funded by the British Council’s New Art New Audiences initiative, the program brought eight artists (Faizal Mostrixx, Hibotep, K15, Karun, Labdi, Lex Amor, Lynda Dawn and Maxwell Owen) together for a week-long writing camp at Nairobi’s Supersonic Africa studio late last year.
The writing camp culminated in a performance at historic Nairobi venue The Alchemist, and later this month, all eight artists will reunite in London for a week-long studio residency to finish the album and prepare for a UK tour with stops in London, Manchester and Liverpool.
During the London residency, the artists will take part in a music workshop led by Nataal, a panel discussion on the art of multinational collaborations and a special live show on Worldwide FM.
The double-vinyl LP New Tangents In Kampala, London & Nairobi Vol. 1 will be released in May on Extra Soul Perception’s own label, along with a premiere of the project film, directed by Angela Steps.
Check out Kampire Bahana’s list of 15 East African Artists You Need To Hear, which features Faizal Mostrixx, as well as our feature on Nyege Nyege: East Africa’s new wave, which features Hibotep.
Listen to “Probably Never” by Maxwell Owin and Xenia Manasseh, featuring Joe Armon-Jones.
Tracklist
A1 Lex Amor, Hibotep & Faizal Mostrixx – Ancestry
A2 Maxwell Owin & Xenia Manasseh – Probably Never feat. Joe Armon-Jones
A3 Lynda Dawn & Bes Kept – Roses
B1 Faizal Mostrixx & Karun – In My Soul
B2 K15 & Labdi – Utokapo
Extra Soul Perception will release New Tangents In Kampala, London & Nairobi Vol. 1 in May 2020.
Photo credit: Dan Medhurst & Maganga Mwagogo