Myriad Forms
Wah Wah 45s are proud to present the first release from Afro-dub stalwarts and brand new signings, Soothsayers. Having been fans of this influential South London based outfit for the best part of two decades now, it’s come as a great thrill to finally, officially welcome them to the fold.
These four brand new recordings, issued rather beautifully on ten-inches of wax with bespoke sleeve artwork and featuring the imagery of Polish photographer Kazimierz Zagórski, draw from the kaleidoscope of influences that have forged the Soothsayers sound. For the new listener they provide a window into the world of a band that have explored myriad forms, developing the groove and philosophy that originally shepherded these musicians onto a common path. For the seasoned fan, these tracks provide a fresh take on some live favourites, including re-workings of Afro-jazz favourites, and expansive vocal versions of classic Soothsayer dubs.
Spiritual Jazz
Blinded Souls is a fresh recording of a bubbling Afrobeat tune, first released on Soothsayers sophomore album, Tangled Roots. Simple, direct, chanted harmonies deliver a lyrical message lamenting the “long works hours culture” and modern materialistic priorities. Gritty rhythmic horns, jazzy Rhodes and analogue synths combine perfectly with an Afro break-beat for the three part vocal blend to ride on – this version was mixed by legendary dub wizard Nick Manasseh.
Eagle Song provides some soaring spiritual jazz and is a new version of a piece that was recorded for Soothsayers’ debut LP, Lost City. It’s a deeply grooving instrumental that has been an energetic high point of the band’s live shows. Sax and trumpet improvisation and interplay, tight ensemble playing and a gritty mix by Rhys Adams at Yesking Studios make this a highlight.
Resilient Humans
Roll River Roll is a tough yet soulful dub cut that lays the perfect sonic bed for Soothsayers’ three part harmonies, paying respect to the great Jamaican vocals groups like Culture, The Gladiators and The Mighty Diamonds. The rhythm is a reworking of a version from an earlier recording, Red Earth Dub, with a vocal written in the midst of a chaotic world with a calling to get back to our roots and learn from the natural world.
Finally, Refugee, written in tribute to all resilient humans uprooted from their homeland and coping with the struggles of relocation, is a new version of the instrumental Salaam Shalom that featured Soothsayers horns, and was produced by Nick Manasseh for the Roots Garden label.
There but for the grace of God go we!
Previous radio support comes from Gilles Peterson, Jamie Cullum, David Rodigan, Don Letts, Robert Elms and many more worldwide.
Reactions
“Nice” Jazzie B, BBC, Solar, Worldwide
“Great!” Chris Read, BBE / So Much Soul / Classic Material / Breakin Bread / www.musicofsubstance.com / www.whosampled.com
“Afro jazz rhythms from Soothsayers – definitely reaching the right parts!” Steven, Solar Radio (United Kingdom)
“Brilliant!” David, Agogo Records // Mojo Club Hamburg / www.renegadesofjazz.com
“I’ve loved the music of Soothsayers for many years and this shows off all their strengths to full effect!” Jamie Renton, fRoots, Chilli Fried, Shout Collective
“I’ve been looking forward to hearing this one ever since the signing! Big fan of the band and with the freedom of such a great label behind them there uniqueness truly shines!” Leo, www.jaheire.com
“This is wicked. Like the first two afrobeaty ones specially. Big up!” Sean O’Daly, Balamii / BBC Radio 1/6
“SO pleased that Soothsayers are now in the Wah Wah 45 fold – have delighted in all they do from their first sample CD way back. And a very interesting selection of tracks showing their roots and their blazing trail … loving it and how they grow the sound beyond the word definition – of Afrobeat jazz, intuitive reggae…” Debbie G, Resonance 104.4FM / Wycombe Sound London/ www.outerglobe.co.uk www.resonancefm.com (United Kindgom)
“Sounding nice!” James Glendinning, DJ Create
“Great stuff!” John Shepperd, NICE UP
“Wicked release” Sammy, UK Vibe / The Other Side Radio Show on Rhubarb Radio
“Great stuff,” Robert Lochmann, Radio X,Frankfurt; soulsender.de
“Brilliant! Playlisted for my next Radioshow!” Olivier Cavaller, Perpignan / www.delabonnemusique.fr / www.rinse.fr
“Kickin.” Lorenzo, Jockey Club Ibiza, Tiburon Formentera, Royal Plastic Radio Show Ibiza, Lust & Leben Magazin;
“Great!!!” Markus Milz, “Further in Fusion” Radio Corax 95.9fm (halle, germany)
“Nice tracks!” Jason Deckstatic, No.8, XL, Space Ibiza NYC, 1 Oak Southampton, (Boujis (London)
“4 excellent tracks from the dymanic Soothsayers with a deep underlying message on each track !!!” Aja Allsop, WSJR (USA)The Jazz UK,BluesJazz Radio (TX USA) Electric Lion Radio (London) Impact Radio(Italy)
“Wicked Mr Servini Wicked!” Funtza , www.itsjustmusic.se
“Amazing Afro beat vibes. Thanks for this quality release. Peace, Xav” Xavier JEAN
“GREAT EP FULL OF GOODIES TO PLAY AND LISTEN” Alex Attias, Radio Couleur 3 (Switzerland)
“Blinded Souls is so cool, cheers for sending” Friendly PR (Denmark)
“Excellent all the way through!” Jada, “Funk Shui” on Radio Popolare & Controradio (Italy)
“Awesome afrobeat EP. Funky!!!” Tony Heynen https://www.facebook.com/GlobalRiddims/ (Brussels, Belgium)
“Blinded Souls playing on my show tomorrow, for sure. Cheers.” Derek, KMHD Jazz Radio / Portland, OR
“Excellent!” Chris Exarchopoulos, Black Radio Berlin – Up’n’Loud Radio
“A rich and thick afrobeat sliding on the jazz side. Fludity of brass Eagle song is my favorite” Veronique, Radio Krim (France)
“Hi Dom & Adam, this is super-timed as the wife’s decided we’re [me and her that is] are going to Wilkswood Reggae Festival this year [Mad Professor, Prince Fatty etc] Could you get the Soothsayers added to the line up? And the Resonators?. Can’t believe One More Reason came out in 2009 and I saw them about this time as they did a Lost City anniversary gig thing a Poole Lighthouse. Afro-jazzy Soothsayers [the cover is stunning] are on it here, thing every track is a winner as this is showcasing the best of the Soothsayers and will attempt a Hectic Extension. for your consideration for the compilation/remix/bandcamp/bonus. Eagle Song is particularly hot.
Trust Leystostone is in the process of recoverying from a WahWah45s invasion and it looks like Battersea is the place to me on 17th May. Jah love Gerry” Gerry Hectic, 60 Million Postcards / Bournemouth / Futuristica Music / Jazz Chronicles
“Blinded Souls is one of my favourite tracks from the early days (gosh over 10 yrs ago!) and the new version swings in a lighter fashion. The afrobeat guitar and brass sections are more polished and confident, with the keyboard(instead of the sax) providing the solo spot here. No spoken afro vocals in the driving seat but tight delivery none the less.” John, Juice FM 107.2 / www.totallyradio.com
“Love the lively vibes on this.” Nicole Finnerty, Kane FM 103.7 FM – Flex FM www.flexfm.co.uk – Festival Radio (Various) / dubtasticmusic.com
“soul, afro-jazz, et esprit assez relax et mélodique.. big up from “republik kalakuta”” Jean Marc, radio television suisse romande couleur3 / www.couleur3.ch, www.rts.ch
“Top production, deep sounds and what a groove across all 4 tracks. Definitely going into my playlists and upcoming mixtapes.” Robert Steer, mixcloud.com/mrlob Melbourne
“Almost five stars, dope.” Olly
“Cool vibe, will support” Josef, Radio 1 Prague
“Nice one ! Wld love to remix that Blinded Souls one :-)” Simbad, Various/Rinse/RadarRadio/London/Worldwide
“DOPE!” Michael Stukes, WHCR 90.3 FM / Harlem, USA
“Pure gold. Every track here is killer. You guys just made my day!!” Jeff Fellows, Australia / Bali based dj / Music Director (Old Mans) Director at Dusk Music
“Fantastic.” Josh Dowler, ‘Global Beats Breakfast’ 1 Brighton FM
“Very nice mix of dub and propulsive afrobeat” Martin, mr tum radio show hailsham fm
“Beautiful record, so timeless powerful, it takes you on a trip.” Måns Strömberg, Radio Helsinki Radio YLE 1
“Very nice afro-reggae-jazz tunes. Blinded Should for the box and Roll River Roll for my private stereo pleasure. Thanks.” Jan Hagenkoett, INFRACom! (Germany)
“Nice” Hector Pizarro, www.valleefm.fr (France)
“Wonderful EP” Simon Harrison, Basic Soul Radio Show, Nu-World Mix (samurai.fm) (United Kingdom)
“Wonderful music; enjoyed the listen.” Velanche Stewart, Urban Landscapes (California, United States)
“SUPA FAN !!!” Seb , Chamonix / http://www.radiokrimi.com/
“Coup De Coeur!!!” Cesare Cera, Nu Lounge / Gru Radio / radio Fujiko / Ex-Forno / radio Bologna Uno
“Sunshine!” Dobromir Marzo, The ’45 RPM’ radio show on Radio Varna (part of the Bulgarian National Radio)
“Africa, Center of the World for some reason! Great new stuff from the always perfect Wah Wah lab.” Tilos Radio
“Very sophisticated and confident grooves.” Derek, KPFK, Los Angeles
“Great combo of effortless afrobeat, jazz & UK reggae… will play a track on Mi Soul this weekend for sure …thanks.” Chris, Stop Making Sense / Bedroom Bar / Soas Radio / Mi-Soul Radio
“Soulful afro business.” Kris, Reform Radio
“Exceptional!” Lamp Coalition, The Hub, Radio Reverb, Coastway Radio (Brighton, United States)
“All tracks are great the funky tracks for busy lunchtime playlists and the reggae tunes for morning/daytime playlists” Oli C BURN, C-Burn Office, Farringdon
“Blown away by this forthcoming material from ‘Soothsayers’ , all tracks are killer, especially ‘Blinded Souls’ , looking forward to smashing these on the radio!!” Alan, Multi Storey Soul Radio Show, RTE Pulse (Dublin, Ireland)
“Outstanding fresh breaths of Afro jazz sound!” Rob, Various/ KRTU 91.7FM (San Antonio, TX, USA)
“Gentle afro-reggae sounds summer soundtracj raedy” Phil, Starpoint Radio / Likwid / www.eclecticjazz.com / Soulm8
“Loving the melting pot of influences in Eagle Song. Banger!” Kengo Oshima, Soho Radio / Cuban Brothers
“Really nice blend of Afrobeat, jazz, and dub. Great instrumentation. I think this one will grow on people! Thanks.” Jay Paul, WRUV-FM (Burlington VT, USA)
“Nice, remind me a bit of Dele Sosimi. Looking forward to playing some of this out.” Phil Gray, KPSU Radio (Portland USA)
“Good for the summer!” Toshio Matsuura, Inter FM897 (Tokyo, Japan)
“Well DAMN!!!” Junior, Eavesdrop Radio WKDU 91.7FM / www.recordbreakin.com (United States)
“Another quality Wah Wah release! Can’t wait to get my hands on the wax.” Tom Mannix (Canada)
“What a great new release from SOOTHSAYERS!! I’m really impressed, love all tunes here!” Sven Thomschke, Radio Z 95.8 (Nuernberg, Germany)
“Love the vibe in Eagle Song. Will support also Blinded Souls” Steve Hobbs, Solar Radio
“Whoopee” Adam, The ASBO Disco / Passion (Bristol, United Kingdom)
“Love” Amrisha, Radar Radio (United Kingdom)
“Very nice Afro and Reggae vibes!” Tom, Ancient Astronauts / Switchstance Recordings / www.ancientastronauts.de
“Pretty nice afro reggae funk, LOVE IT” Matthias Desch, Bogaloo Radio show
“Beautiful EP. Refugee is a killer cut. Blinded souls is the killer cut for me” What’s Hot Radio
“Love that Eagle Song!” Jamal Ahmad, Jazz 91.9fm WCLK (Atlanta,GA, United States)
“Heavyweight afro vibes !” Anthony, Eastside Radio / Mondo Stereo
“Slick Production – Very tasty .” Andrew Haig, The Shizzle 99.9 Bay FM
“Oh, what a lovely riddim!” Iván Mera, Higher Street / higherclub1997.blogaliza.org
“Cool. Gonna play on both my reggae and jazz radio shows aswell” Tiago Santos (Brazil)
“Just beautiful music. Afro funk of Blinded Souls the highlight for me.” Richard, London, Point Blank FM
“Wicked selection of nu funk & roots reggae” Oli C BURN, C-Burn Office, Farringdon
“Outstanding!” Victor, Madrid / bassculture.wordpress.com
“Very fresh – just in time for the summer! Tracks 1 and 2 are my favourite” Avi, Radar Radio
“Big love Wah Wah crew!” Michael Jukes, Mile Wide Smile Club (Brighton, United Kingdom)
“Great showcase of the qualities of Soothsayers, love it!” Tom Headfunk, Vectis Radio / Headfunk.info
“Great !” Julien Donaz, Radio RTU Le Grand Mix ( France)
“Soothing-say-says been looking forwards to this one. thrills, chills and refugees” Pete (Paris, France)
“I’m in love with this all 4 tracks have wet my whistle” Andrew Sharp, Stomp Radio / Soul Survivors
“Feeling this one, summertime brassy vibes just in time !! Think Eagle Song is the stand out track for me, will be playing on the show this week. Big Up !!” Michael Shea, Kanefm 103.7fm (Surrey, United Kingdom)
“Like all of them, but Eagle Song is the bomb.” David Bassin, KUSF / FreeFall / www.freefallradio.com
“Very good. Can hear why you signed them! Quality. Will support.” David Cullen, Oban FM, Oban, Argyll
“Nice little mix of cultures which will perfectly fit into my radio program. A well done approach to african music without just doing a copy of the originals.” Oliver Korthals, Mojo Club + Out Of Spectrum @www.byte.fm (Germany)
“Love, love love. Soothsyares are so fun of soul. What a great release” Russ, www.soasradio.org / www.hackneygt.com
“Love the afro-vibe!” Weird Pigs / Compost Records
“OHH S***! Wah Wah always come through with goodness!” Chris, The Airwaves Of Portsea Island / www.hermapuma.com
David Rodigan, BBC 1Xtra
Huey Morgan, BBC Radio 6Music
Expedition Radio, Dash Radio (United States)
Sven Thomschke / ‘Dr.Best’, Radio Z (Germany)
Further in Fusion, Radio Corax (Germany)
David Bassin, Freefall Radio (United States)
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.