Matthew Shipp was born December 7, 1960 in Wilmington, Delaware. He started piano at 5 years old with the regular piano lessons most kids have experienced. He fell in love with jazz at 12 years old. While Matthew Shipp was attracted to jazz, he also played in rock groups while he was in high school. Shipp attended the University of Delaware for one year, then the New England Conservatory of Music, where he studied with saxophonist/composer Joe Maneri. He has cited private lessons with Dennis Sandole (who also taught saxophonist John Coltrane) as being crucial to his development.
After moving to New York in 1984 he quickly became one of the leading lights in the New York jazz scene. He was a sideman in the David S. Ware quartet and also for Roscoe Mitchell’s Note Factory before making the decision to concentrate on his own music.
Shipp has been very active since the Read more Matthew Shipp – Piano Sutras (2013) ›

Founded by teen brothers Max and Igor Cavalera in 1984, Sepultura (the Portuguese word for “grave”) is the most successful metal band from Brazil, they sold over 3 million units in the USA and almost 20 million worldwide. Neither of the Cavalera brothers are still part of the band now. Max left the band in 1996, after the release of their most successful album “Roots”, while Igor left in 2006, after the release of the album “Dante XXI”. Jean Dolabella, drummer of Diesel (later changed to Udora) and drummer for Andreas Kisser 2009’s solo album, join Sepultura for the following two albums “A-Lex” (2009) and “Kairos” (2011). Jean was a drumming teacher at the Pro-Music School in Belo Horizonte, he left Sepultura in 2011. Jean was replaced by 20 year old Eloy Casagrande who previously played in Andre Matos – the solo band of ex-Viper, Angra and Shaaman singer. Former Slayer drummer Dave Lombardo also made a guest appearance on the album on the song called “Obsessed” and guitarist Andreas Kisser has taking over the microphone on the Chico Science & Nação Zumbi cover “Da Lama ao Caos”. The album was produced by Ross Robinson, who also produced Sepultura’s fabulous and most appreciated “Roots” album.
The upcoming thirteenth studio album it’s scheduled for release on October 25 and will be released by Nuclear Blast, the same label which released on September 30 “Savages”, the ninth album by Max’s Soulfly. Being on the same label already created tensions between the two bands. Referring to Sepultura Max declared “that the band shouldn’t even be called SEPULTURA” and regarding to the new collaboration with Ross Robinson, Max said “Ross hadn’t done anything good in a long”. I’m not so convinced about this, but I’m damn sure that “The Mediator Between Head And Hands Must Be The Heart” it’s definitively one of the Sepultura’s finest album. Read more Sepultura – The Mediator Between Head And Hands Must Be The Heart (2013) ›

Happening it’s a quite colorful and interesting trio from France. Reminding me of Therapy?, Helmet, Clutch and several other alternative metal bands, but with roots back to Motorhead, they deliver some truly memorable songs – which is more and more rare nowadays when everybody try to sound the same.
“Birth” it’s a pounding, loud, electric EP with 5 strong rock tracks, while “Wild Vision” it’s a more melancholic, acoustic EP consist of 5 tracks, 2 of them being remakes from 2 songs of the “Birth” EP, “Lacks”, respectively “Empty Bottle”. Although I like the idea of “unplugged” and their effort sound pretty good, I prefer them full-force, with their electric sound. I like the energy of their music, the grinding riffs and the hardcore attitude they emit. Read more Happening – Birth & Wild Vision EPs (2013) ›

Released on 15 October 2013 and available only as hard copy on vinyl and CD, the French band called Anorak released their third album “Go Up In Smoke”, a deadly mixture of powerful, classic thrash rooted metal riffs and modern, chaotic hardcore with extreme, grindcore flavor.
Anorak was formed in Amiens (France) in 2005, as a combo of drums, guitar, bass and a screamer. Merging hardcore and metal, they mixed these genres with various influences, combining technical build-ups and and extreme brutality in their sound.
The debut 4-song demo was released in early 2006 followed by their 2007 debut EP called “Faces of Cruel Kids on Rotten Walls”. Read more Anorak – Go up in smoke (2013) ›

“The most successful songwriter” – according to Guinness -, the ex-Beatles member seems to came back to life lately. After last year’s “Kisses on the Bottom” – consisting primarily of covers -, Sir James Paul McCartney is back with a brand new album entitled simply “New”. It is his sixteenth studio album, but his first since 2007’s “Memory Almost Full” to consist entirely of new compositions. And surprisingly – or not really – McCartney sound fresh while he’s bringing to the surface more Beatles resonances then ever before.
McCartney intended to work with one of his favorite producers, chose one of them, but ended up recording with all four: Mark Ronson, Ethan Johns, Paul Epworth and Giles Martin, although Martin produced the majority of the tracks and he was also the executive producer of the album. Recording took place at Henson Recording Studios in Los Angeles; Avatar Studios in New York; Abbey Road Studios, Air Studios and Wolf Tone Studios in London; and The Mill in East Sussex. The album sound colorful, but still have character, integrity, it’s a vivid puzzle, but at the bottom line all the pieces are fit together. Read more Paul McCartney – New (2013) ›

67 year old Lemmy is the same old bastard as he ever was. “Aftershock” is the same dirty rock’n’roll as twenty studio albums back and 36 years ago.
While Mikkey Dee debuted as drummer for Motörhead on the song “Hellraiser” from the “March ör Die” album released in 1992, Phil “Wizzö” Campbell debuted on a Motörhead album in 1986 – “Orgasmatron”. This is a solid and classic line-up, although still my favorite album remains “Ace Of Spades”. But we all have to admit that there are some bands such as AC/DC or Motörhead which never change and this is probably the best thing about them. Nobody want to hear electronic inserts, drops or bass wobbling from Lemmy and his rock’n’roll commando. Read more Motörhead – Aftershock (2013) ›

XLR8R has teamed up with shapeshifting UK producer/vocalist Ghostpoet to launch a remix contest, in which three carefully selected winners will have their reworks of the soulful artist’s new tunes cut onto one-off dubplates.
Three tracks from Ghostpoet’s Some Say I So I Say Light LP, his sophomore album for [PIAS] Recordings, have been offered up for budding tunesmiths to reimagine. The acapellas from “Meltdown,” “Cold Win,” and “Dial Tones” are now available to download, and producers are invited to rework one, two, or all three cuts—submitting their versions to the appropriate SoundCloud groups (more on that below) by November 7 to be eligible to win. After that date, Ghostpoet, XLR8R, and [PIAS] Recordings will deliberate and Read more XLR8R Teams with Ghostpoet for Remix Competition for 3 tracks ›

The follow up of last year’s “Monsters Vol. 3” it’s finally here and Josh Gard, better known as Figure, will not let his fans down. “Monsters Vol. 4” it’s a little bit more atmospheric and dark, but maybe a little bit less aggressive and contorted as the previous release. Still, this is another classic “horror epics”, and eventually will grind you down before you even notice.
The atmosphere is fabulous throughout! The “Deaths Gospel” intro is suggestive and scary like a graveyard at midnight while the following “The Crypt feat. Khadfi Dub” explode in your speakers. It’s a perfect mix of post-industrial heaviness and contorted dub/EDM. “Center of Hell” continues in the same direction, contortions and drops are mixed up with solid synth riffs and powerful dance beats. “Nightmares” slow down only to be even more heavy and menacing. Love the psycho piano in it. “The Giant Eyeball” start with a kind of 8-bit/pinball feel, but turns into a real monster. Noisy and contorted it’s like an extreme space trip merged with a horror story. “The Blob” is a classy dubstep/drumstep butchery, the intense beat throughout it’s colored by noisy and contorted layers and synths. Read more Figure – Monsters Vol. 4 (2013) ›

Zardonic is one of the real bad-asses of the actual dubstep scene. If you’re looking for heavy basses and contorted, noisy synths, killer beats and total intensity, Zardonic is definitively one artist to consider. Ready to st Europe on fire, Zardonic release a new EP and gives away 3 tracks.
Those who have followed any previous releases should be aware by now that Zardonic settles for nothing short of greatness. On the verge of celebrating 10 years of creating bass explosions in 2014 with his unique blend of Metal, Industrial, Bass Music, and EDM, he’s prepared, yet again, to return to the old continent in an 18 stop crusade he calls Europa Beyond Bass: Tour 2013*”. And if his previously released “Far Beyond Bass” 2013 remix album wasn’t enough to tear down European expectations, he’s built an entire arsenal of dancefloor weaponry around the once free track, ‘Restless Slumber’. Read more Zardonic Tours Europe, releases new EP and gives away 3 tracks! ›

Grammy award winning super producer Rob Fusari is back. After an impressive showing by the Indaba community in the last producer challenge, Rob is back to source more material for his up and coming artist Cary Nokey. Cary’s music is described as “high intensity electronic dance music intersecting with emotionally charged rock, a hybrid of grit and glam.”
Take the a cappellas to “Super Glam” and “Sweet Disaster” to produce something amazing. Your production should be true to the content of the songs. We’re looking for upbeat and energetic.
Take the a cappella to Read more Rob Fusari is back to Indaba with producer challange ›