afrobeat

King Cruff: “Easy” (Live At Scholz Garten)

As we continue our week-long celebration of our week at Scholz Garten where we raised over $20k for the Central Texas Food Bank, we turn our ears north and south to King Cruff. Raised in Jamaica, based in Montreal, and being Bob Marley’s grandson, Solomon Markey-Spence AKA King Cruff, furthers the family legacy with his own style.

Blending everything from afrobeat to dancehall reggae, and contemporary pop, Cruff’s music and stage performance is an adrenaline rush straight to the soul. With all of that together, King Cruff calls himself in one word, “punky,” unable to be put in a box. It’s even in his name, as “cruff” is a Jamaican term for unambitious. The off-kilter dichotomy in the name represents the off-kilter dichotomy of his style. And it’s a damn party.

Cruff took the Scholz stage Wednesday morning at the tender hour of 10 AM, and this one-man show transported our audience to sleepy bopping to full-on boogieing. And now, we bring that boogie to you.

lluvii: “Up All Night”

As one of the southernmost states to neighbor Latin America, it’s no big surprise that Texas is home to loads of great Latin music. But what really catches us off guard is the abundance of infectious Afrobeat energy right here in Austin. And if we put Latin Psych on the same spectrum as Afrobeat, you start to realize how many local acts get down on each others’ grooves.

Like Austin quartet lluvii. Say it with us: “U-V”. As heard on their debut EP Pacifico from last December, lluvii’s sound breezes through coastal south-of-the-border psychedelia, primal rainforest-ready percussion, and incredibly intriguing indie art rock, all anchored by the idiosyncratic soft siren vocals of frontwoman Carol Gonzalez. For some, that may be enough range to call it a day there and stick to established formulas moving forward. But for lluvii, the journey of genres has only just begun.

lluvii’s got a new EP on the way, produced by Grupo Fantasma/Caramelo Haze visionary Beto Martinez and set for release on August 2nd. The record’s lead offering, “Up All Night”, finds lluvii embarking on an ultra-vibrant, effervescent exploration of Afrobeat that features percussionist Victor Cruz from chicha-cumbia conquistadors Nemegata and keyboardist Anthony Farrell of old school R&B artisans Greyhounds. Even if you’re planning on checking out the single release show 9PM tonight at Cheer Up Charlie’s alongside Sexpop and Rococo Disco, it’ll be a challenge to sit still if you’re stuck in office after pressing play on this one. Because with unbreakable horn lines, un-ending auxiliary percussion, bold beat breakdowns, furious rhythms, buoyant bass work, intoxicating guitar chords, and Gonzalez’s mystic vocal presence, “Up All Night” will keep you going til dawn.

Golden Dawn Arkestra: “I Deserve Success”

Even if you’re only barely familiar with Golden Dawn Arkestra, you likely know that Austin’s premiere cosmic-afrobeat/nu-disco outfit is all about pushing the envelope, be it with mystical, incense-laden live show rituals, exotic costumes, or intriguingly bizarre music videos.

Well, on that last front these three-time Studio 1A veterans have further fueled the fever dream that is late night self-help TV with their newest batch of visuals. Complete with a videotape aesthetic, this music video is the perfect counterpart to the retro-pop motivational mantras of “I Deserve Success” and an excellent way to prep for Golden Dawn Arkestra’s upcoming Halloween show.