Zahed Sultan (Kuwait Artist) performing at Red Bull Music Academy Lebanon session @redbullkuwait
Red Bull Music Academy Presents: 2-Nights Underground in collaboration with Audio Kultur Sound System. Friday and Saturday March 27th & 28th at the Bus Station Beirut
Always shaping and being at the forefront of the latest music coming from the global music scene, The Red Bull Music Academy has hand selected some of the leading artists in the Middle East and Africa region and ties them into a two-day celebration of musical styles that features acts from the worlds two biggest exporters of music: The UK and the US. This tied in with Audio Kultur’s credo of being “The Voice of the Underground” makes for a truly memorable partnership.
Lebanon, known as being a regional playground/stage for emerging talents, will host Red Bull Music Academy’s “Middle East Meets West” amalgam of sounds. It is this understanding of the musical landscape as well as the ability to program and curate such a line up that makes this two-day event taking place in Mar Mikhael, Beirut, the heart of the local Lebanese indie music scene, so special.
Friday the 27th features a diverse live music selection from the Middle East and Africa covering sounds from Lebanon, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait & the UAE. The night is set to feature The Wanton Bishops (LEB), Postcards (LEB), ETYEN (LEB), Za’ed Na’es (JOR), Zahed Sultan (KWT), Maryam Saleh // Zeid Hamdan (EGY//LEB), & Parallel Sound System (UAE)
Saturday the 28th features an international & regional DJ line-up of Daddy G – Massive Attack (UK), Nickodemus – Turntables on the Hudson (NYC), Captain Planet – Bastard Jazz (NYC), JC Pinto (UAE), & Rami O – Beirut’s Bright Side (LEB).
For more information contact:
International: [email protected]
Lebanon: [email protected]
CONFIRMED LINE UP
The Wanton Bishops (LEB
One of the fastest growing and biggest English speaking bands in the region, Lebanese Blues Rock Revival band, The Wanton Bishops, made up of Nader Mansour and Eddy Ghossein bring their foot-stomping, harmonica wailing signature sound to the line up. With a 3-year publishing deal with Red Bull Music Publishing under their belt, and an upcoming feature length documentary of their musical pilgrimage to the home of the blues in the US in the pipes, this will be their last show in Lebanon before embarking on their next Euro tour.
Check out the newly re-mastered version of their debut album Sleep With The Lights On on Suburban Records which features two brand new tracks: ‘Sun Rising’ and ‘Come To Me’. The album is available on iTunes, Amazon and Spotify worldwide.
thewantonbishops.com/ facebook.com/thewantonbishops twitter.com/wantonbishops instagram.com/wantonbishops youtube.com/thewantonbishopstv
Daddy G – Massive Attack (UK) You may consider Grant Marshall, a.k.a. Daddy G as spiritus rector of what has historically become known as the “Bristol Sound”. It´s that laid back sound that breathes dub, reggae, funk, disco and hip hop, represented by protagonists like Massive Attack, Smith & Mighty, Tricky and Portishead. And Daddy G is its spiritus rector because he was one of the founders of the Wild Bunch Sound System, out of which later Massive Attack emerged. Besides Mushroom and 3-D, Daddy G was both one of the core members of the group as well as one of the group´s main voices. Way before being part of a band though, Daddy G was known as a DJ. As a ten year old he already recorded mix tapes, inspired by the DJ boyfriend of his older sister. 1980 he was one of the youngest Bristol DJs, quickly establishing his name as a synonym for an eclectic music style. At the parties at which G played, one could always hear the newest in disco, fresh punk funk from NY, the first rap imports as well as soul and dub reggae. When the Wild Bunch Sound System was founded, Daddy G already was a local celebrity. His DJ sets were not only legendary because of their selection and his mixing skills, but because he rocked the microphone as versatile as the wheels of steel.
Postcards (LEB)
Created by cousins Marwan Tohme and Pascal Semerdjian in 2012, the Beirut based quartet Postcards has been making quite a bit of noise as of late. Apparently they got their name from the Beirut song “Postcards From Italy” (That’s pretty meta right?) and take their cues from artists such as Mumford and Sons, Angus & Julia Stone and Fleet Foxes. Lead singer Julia Sabra has got the quintessential indie-folk voice and the rest of the band is pretty awesome to say the least.
twitter.com/Postcardsmusic
instagram.com/postcardsmusic/
soundcloud.com/postcardsmusic
Nickodemus (NYC) Nickodemus’ sound is like a traveling circus that gets everyone’s hips & feet moving! It will stop off in the Middle East & Africa, over to Brazil, Colombia & the Caribbean, up to New Orleans & landing in his hometown, Brooklyn NYC! Nickodemus been touring as a DJ & collaborating with musicians all over the World since 1996! He has two albums & remix albums called “Engangered Species” and “Sun People” as well as seven Turntables on the Hudson compilations to date. His songs can also be found on 100′s of compilations as well as several movies & TV shows including: Battle in Seattle, Sex in the City, Dancing With the Stars, True Blood & commercials such as iTUNES, Revlon, Heineken & Michelobe. In his remix machine, Nickodemus has done mixes for a wide range of artists including: Billy Holiday, Nina Simone, Bebel Gilberto, Sultan Khan, Omar Farul Tekbilek, Thievery Corporation, Astor Piazzolla, The Pimps of Joytime & many more. His latest project on self-owned WONDERWHEEL Recordings, comes after a successful launch of Next Aid in South Africa during the World Cup. It includes recordings & mixes of songs from children in the The Earthchild Project in Capetown.
facebook.com/Nickodemusnyc
Captain Planet (NYC)
Fueled by an early love of Hip-Hop music, Charlie B. Wilder (The masked man behind Captain Planet) began DJ-ing and making beats on a Tascam 4-Track in his teens. He soon developed an obsession with vinyl records and digging for samples which led to an expanded appreciation of Reggae, Latin, and African music as well as a curiosity for other styles from around the world After being offered a primetime slot playing strictly international music on WNYU’s “Passport” radio show, Wilder began making frequent trips to the “world” music section of Lincoln Center’s Republic Library = eventually acquiring their entire collection flipping these same world records the way hip-hop producers traditionally sample, these international sounds became the ingredients he used in concocting his trademark “Gumbo Funk” style.
The Captain’s upcoming sophomore full length “Espernanto Slang” is the culmination of his many years constantly producing music & searching for new sounds, blending a wide range of styles (from NY hip hop, to Nola Funk, to Turkish psychedelic, to Nigerian Afrobeat and beyond), Captain Planet’s trademark sound has matured into a truly unique form of electronic music. Bridging gaps between worldwide music diasporas as well as contemporary dance music sub-genres (House, Hip Hop, Dubstep, & Breaks). Throughout every Captain Planet song, it’s clear to hear his inspired appreciation for breaking the boundaries between genres * bridging continents through rhythm.
facebook.com/DJCaptainPlanet
soundcloud.com/dj-captain-planet
Zahed Sultan (KWT)
Meet Zahed Sultan, Kuwait’s one man music industry. We first met Zahed at Red Bull Music Academy Radio’s Quarter Tone Frequency stage at Fete De La Musique (Beirut) in 2014, he was wearing sweat pants with a midi controller & a synthesizer. We had no idea we’d be watching Zahed from the side-lines that night with the cops that refused to shut the stage down because he was just too good. Fast forward a year later, him hosting Red Bull Music Academy’s Kuwait rising, & a mini documentary building up to his upcoming album “EyeAmSound”, Zahed comes back to Beirut with new sounds, & the same sweat pants.
Parallel Sound System (UAE)
These guys just dropped a video for Saved Dreams from their self titled EP. The video features lead singer Christianne Alvarez dancing around in a cat mask. They basically won at life.
The 3-piece dream pop outfit based from Dubai sound like that one good dream you once had, think lo-fi meet Synth & happiness. You’ve just been introduced to Parallel Sound System.
facebook.com/ParallelSoundSystem
soundcloud.com/parallelsoundsystem(SoundCloud)
instagram.com/parallelsoundsystem
Maryam Saleh // Zeid Hamdan (EGY//LEB)
Sometime in 2014, Maryam made an appearance on Beirut Open Stage’s arabic edition. Maryam was accompanied to the stage with Red Bull Music Academy Alumni Zeid Hamdan (Local Legend/Producer) & Marc Codsi (Lumi), that little scene was followed by total silence. It was a legendary performance in the making.
Maryam’s preconceived notion will follow her everywhere; When Maryam sings, you listen.
facebook.com/MaryamSaleh.Official
soundcloud.com/maryamsaleh/sets/maryam-zeid
youtube.com/user/Maryamband
Za’ed Na’es (JOR)
Hailing from Amman, Zaed Naes sounds like that one song you thought you’d find on Porcupine Tree’s Light Bulb Sun, but you didn’t.
Think of a band that does not concern itself with musical trends; a three piece that sits down & makes magic ready for your listening pleasure. A quick scan through their song “Nouh” will make you feel both incompetent and smart. These guys have it figured out and their 2015 seven track EP clearly sounds like it.
facebook.com/ZaedNaes
soundcloud.com/zaed-naes
ETYEN (LEB)
Samer Chami has been making noise in Beirut since 2007. That one kid who would jump on stage at a university show and wow the crowd graduated with a degree in Civil Engineering in 2012, at which point he decided to follow up with a year at Point Blank (UK) studying Audio Engineering. In 2013 Chami moved back to Beirut as ETYEN; Blending elements of Glitch, IDM, Dub and even some Trap oddities, releasing his EP “Happy New Year” in 2014.
You can still spot ETYEN at every happening party in Beirut, but rest assured that this time around everyone knows who he is & what he sounds like.
etyen.bandcamp.com
soundcloud.com/etyenmusic
Rami O (Leb)
Pushing the groove, the disco, and the hip-hop onto local dance floors since ’02. Hi love for the rich music heritage that made up the current fare of R&B and generic rap & jazz varieties resulted in the Beirut Groove Collective (BGC); Organizing “house-party” events with a premium on utilizing alternative, community-oriented spaces as a means of drawing parallels to the underground funk & soul parties that used to occur in the major urban centers of America & Africa in the 1970s.
Rami recently put forth an initiative dubbed Beirut’s Bright Side, in efforts to emphasize all the neat initiatives revolving around the independent local scene, & their cultural counterparts.
facebook.com/beirutsbrightside
JC Pinto (UAE)
Having lived out most of his life in the city of Dubai, JC made Dj’ing a career after years of never imagining it could be more than just a hobby of just collecting records. His stompin’ style which is crossover between various sub genres of house music and his ability to read a crowd gave him quick recognition amongst local DJs and clubbers. 2011 has been one of his busiest years yet with his weekly residency at Calabar, The Address Downtown which has seen him play with acts like Christian Prommer, Sasse, Eddy Meets Yannah, Hot Toddy, Boca45, Seiji, Rainer Truby, Michael Rütten, Darshan (Metro Area), Michael Reinboth and many more. Music being the air that he breathes, his charisma behind the decks has set him firmly as one for the prominent players in the local scene.
facebook.com/JcPintoOfficial
About Audio Kultur
AUDIO KULTUR _ Launched in December 2013, Audio Kultur is an independently published magazine centered on music and culture of those who call the club home. Covering a vast array of topics and exercising an array of different journalistic techniques, AK looks to become the go-to resource for Youth Culture the Middle East. Published monthly in Beirut, Lebanon, AK frequently features interviews with the some of the biggest names in underground music, as well as a provocative and timely feature articles.
www.audiokultur.com www.facebook.com/AudioKultur
#AudioKultur
About Red Bull Music Academy
The 17th edition of the Red Bull Music Academy will take place in Paris in autumn 2015, bringing together 60 carefully selected producers, vocalists, beat-makers, instrumentalists and DJs. They will be invited to attend intimate lecture sessions and collaborate on music in an expansive, custom-fitted complex of creative and studio spaces.
More than 1,500 musical luminaries have participated in past incarnations of the Red Bull Music Academy. Former lecturers include Giorgio Moroder, Chuck D, Steve Reich, Ryoji Ikeda, Sly & Robbie, Bernie Worrell, Mark Ronson, M.I.A., Q-Tip, Hot Chip, MF Doom, Ryuichi Sakamoto, RZA, Stephen O’Malley, Gilberto Gil, and pioneering synth inventors Bob Moog, Tom Oberheim, Don Buchla, Roger Linn, and Dave Smith, amongst many others. Plenty of Academy alumni have gone on to become true figureheads of their scenes, like electronic music innovator Flying Lotus; Hudson Mohawke, the Scottish producer behind the beats of Drake and Kanye West; Russian DJ, producer and label head Nina Kraviz; LA soul singer Aloe Blacc; grime innovator Mumdance; Mexico’s Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Natalia Lafourcade; and Katy B, who introduced the mainstream to the sounds of UK funky.
The Red Bull Music Academy has been pairing music legends and emerging beatsmiths since 1998 in cities such as Berlin, Cape Town, Melbourne, Barcelona, São Paulo, London, New York City and Tokyo. This unique combination of old school knowledge and new school sounds is unrivalled for its creative exploration and achievement. Each yearly Academy edition leaves behind structures to encourage musical collaboration and creative exchange for years to come. Currently there are eleven fully equipped Red Bull Studios around the world.
For more information on the Red Bull Music Academy and to access thousands of lecture videos, mixes, and exclusive tracks visit redbullmusicacademy.com or follow @RBMA. To access hi-res art and video of Academy events for media use, visit the Red Bull Content Pool at
redbullcontentpool.com/musicacademy
facebook.com/redbullmusicacademy
instagram.com/redbullmusicacademy
@RBMA
#2NIGHTSUNDERGROUND
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nice work man