Na Zala Zala, by Rey Sapienz & The Congo Techno Ensemble

Na Zala Zala

by Rey Sapienz & The Congo Techno Ensemble

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Rebel Up SebCat this is a deep dark sweaty album with haunting afro bass tones, congolese raps and spoken word into a contemporary rough electronic sound. Nice to set the tone for your day Favorite track: Eza Makambo.

petalslip Energetic rhythms, quality vocal performances, and passion behind the music. It’s easy to see this trio continuing to push in exciting directions. Favorite track: Eza Makambo.

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Includes unlimited streaming of Na Zala Zala via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

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1.	Dancehall Pigme 03:21	buy track
2.	Esala Rien 04:08	buy track
3.	Eza Makambo 03:39
4.	Posa Na Bika 03:56	buy track
5.	Zuwa Ba Risk 04:00	buy track
6.	96 03:58	buy track
7.	Na Zala Zala 03:28	buy track
8.	Santonge 03:40	buy track
9.	Minzoto 03:47	buy track

about

When Rey Sapienz was eight years old, the Democratic Republic of Congo was plunged into the Second Congo War. The conflict lasted five years and was the bloodiest since World War II, leaving an indelible mark on East Africa and creating mass displacement and loss of life. But Sapienz endured, cutting his teeth as a young rapper at twelve, first performing to celebrate Congo's independence day. When he finished school, he headed to nearby Kampala to hone his craft and collaborate with local producers. But civil war broke out back home and he was forced to extend his stay in Uganda. Since then, Sapienz has established himself as a force to be reckoned with, co-founding the Hakuna Kulala label, teaching his Ableton Live skills to Kampala's young producers and releasing two acclaimed EPs.

For his debut album, Sapienz embarks on an ambitious project that travels beyond the avant beatscapes of his early material. Alongside traditional percussionist, vocalist and dancer Papalas Palata and rapper Fresh Dougis, he has formed The Congo Techno Ensemble, utilizing their skills and experience to offer a statement that speaks to the past, present and future of the DRC. On "Na Zala Zala", the trio channel rich musical traditions and historic tension, evolving electronic and traditional forms into boundless sci-fi mutations.

These tracks break open the stories all three artists accumulated in the DRC, augmenting radioactive techno-dancehall beats with radical, open-hearted words and rhymes. "I'm sick, I want to heal," Fresh Doughis raps on "Posa Na Bika" over a sparse, minimal syncopated beat. The track sits in a dream space, with haunting vocal loops dancing around Doughis' powerful Lingalan words. "I have become stupid, I have become useless, listening to everyone's advice."

Elsewhere on the clattering 'Dancehall Pigme', Sapienz's metallic beats burn underneath Papalas' rousing chants. "I'm here trying to survive," he mourns. "What do I do to get what I deserve." The songs paint a tragic picture, yet reveal the hope and passion of three creative minds recounting difficult truths.

"Na Zala Zala" is a heady cocktail of stylistic futurism and harsh reality that could be compared with Zazou Bikaye's seminal "Noir et Blanc or Denis Mpunga & Paul K.'s genre-breaking electronic experiments. But marked by the DRC's recent scars, it's a critical work that stands painfully alone.

credits

released July 16, 2021

Mixed by Lithium
Mastered at Declared Sound
Artwork by Mariano Chavez/ Teeth Agency

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Nyege Nyege Tapes Kampala, Uganda

Nyege Nyege Tapes is a Kampala based label exploring, producing and releasing outsider music from around the region and beyond.

We fulfill orders twice weekly, so most items will be shipped out within 3-5 days of your order being placed, with tracking provided automatically. We ship all records in whiplash mailers with extra cardboard protection.

For bookings email tapes@nyegenyege.com ... more

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