We were scheduled to have Tarun Balani a.k.a. Seasonal Affected Beats play a live set of 2º with us at the G5A Black Box as part of the March Indie Music Thursdays. However, these are uncertain times…
We hope to continue to connect over music through these times and beyond. Watch out for weekly recommendations with #MUSICMONDAYS on our Instagram, and a compilation here each month!
Amidst this pause on live shows across the world, we thought we would continue to play some of our favourites each week and share them with you all.
These recommendations are carefully ‘ear’-picked each month from a selection of bold, contemporary artists who are experimenting at the boundaries of genre and sound. Some of what we’ve been listening to, some that’s kept us moving, inspired. A few even offering a pertinent lens through which to view issues of identity & belonging within the geopolitics of our fragmenting world. With each complete album, there’s a story waiting to be told – offering a holistic peak into the artists ruminations.
This month we are taken on varying sonic journeys courtesy of Tarun Balani’s alter ego Seasonal Affected Beats (SAB), Tom Misch, Jacob Banks, and Riz Ahmed. SAB’s new project 2º is put together as a suite. One piece flows into the other and is best heard right from beginning until the end.
Beat Tape 2 is an early project of Tom Misch’s but one that demonstrates his impeccable control of the guitar as well as consideration for those collaborators who join him, such as Carmody, Loyle Carner, and Jordan Rakei. Village is a perfect example of an album that is simultaneously intimate and incredibly expansive. This is largely due to Jacob Banks‘ soulful voice that will leave you feeling emotions you weren’t even aware of. Finally, we close this journey with Riz Ahmed’s appropriately titled The Long Goodbye. If you have been fortunate to follow Riz’s journey, this will seem a complete body of work that drives its message and emotions right from the first word to the last. A ‘break-up’ album, it tackles the theme of identity and homelessness like no other –through the heart.
Enjoy the ride!
Seasonal Affected Beats – 2º
Seasonal Affected Beats is the alter ego of artist, beat maker and composer Tarun Balani. Better known for his critically acclaimed debut record Sacred World which has said to “Point to the future of jazz in India” (Time Out, Magazine), Tarun broadens his palette by a gripping new collaboration with Sunhouse Inc. as Seasonal Affected Beats. His latest single -Hypnagogia- confirms Balani’s idiosyncratic talents and his determination to deliver ground breaking art.
Tom Misch – Beat Tape 2
Thomas Abraham Misch is an English musician and producer. He began releasing music on SoundCloud in 2012 and released his debut studio album Geography in 2018.
Jacob Banks – Village
Jacob Banks is a Nigerian/British musician who started writing songs at the age of 20. Banks got his start at open mic nights and quickly garnered a following for his commanding vocal presence and daringly intimate songwriting. His music features richly textured beats, with its 808s and synth play, African inspired grooves and a soulful disposition that culminates in an unstoppable new sound.
Riz Ahmed – The Long Goodbye
Riz Ahmed is a British/Pakistani music artist, storyteller, actor and activist. As a musician, he came up in the London music scene as a rap battle champion. This new album is a bracingly emotional exploration of identity and belonging through the distinctive, culturally hybrid sound. The album places a personal lens on the divided times we live in, examining the rise of homeland alienation. It is accompanied by a striking short-film that is available on YouTube.
