{"title":"Kalaha","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"nord-havn","title":"Nord Havn","description":"\u003cp\u003eSince 2013, Danish quartet Kalaha's multi-award-winning sound has been  characterised by a melting pot of worldwide musical cultures including Brazilian Samba, Anatolian rock, African highlife, desert blues and contemporary western electronic music, resulting in acclaim from critics and vinyl connoisseurs alike. 'Nord Havn' is their sixth album. The record follows on from their 2022 release 'Tutku', a collaboration with the Aarhus Jazz Orchestra and vocalist Hilal Kaya celebrating the sound of Turkish music in the 70's. The band's new album marks a conscious return to their early sound of an instrumental quartet. Recorded over two snowy weeks in December in the outer banks of Nordhavn  Copenhagen's old industrial harbour - through their collection of nine original compositions Kalaha pays tribute to their hometown, and to the memory of a rapidly gentrifying area of their city. Using the harbour as a metaphor for a portal to the rest of the world, the ensemble's trademark wide array of influences remains at the foundation of their sound; psychedelic rock, acid techno, surf rock, the Indian classical drone of a tanpura, dub, 70's fusion and more come together in surprisingly effortless harmony. Squelching synthesisers, pulsing delays, field recordings and immersive production amplify the already energetic sound of the live quartet into something larger than life and undeniably modern. While the record fluidly  ushers the listener through Kalaha's wealth of danceable grooves and catchy worldly melodies, a more careful listen will reveal the skilled jazz musicianship, adept improvisations, experienced songwriting and rich harmonic palette residing subtly underneath.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"April","offers":[{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":50407336968523,"sku":"2189613","price":22.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50407336345931,"sku":"2189605","price":13.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/XESdmUrk_c0ef0751_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726596880"},{"product_id":"masala","title":"Masala","description":"\u003cp\u003eApril Records re-release Kalaha's 2016 album 'Masala'. Danish supergroup collides electro sounds with afro-jazz to explore new musical hemispheres. \"Brilliant Album! Very tropical\" - Gilles Peterson \/ BBC Radio 6 Music. What kind of music would emerge if you combined a pair of renowned Danish electronic producers with two of the most exciting jazz musicians around? This was the question in the minds of the Copenhagen Str?m Festival curators. The answer? It arrived in the form of Scandinavian electro pioneers Rumpistol and Spejderrobot-two prominent characters with a reputation well beyond their home countries-along with guitarist Niclas Knudsen and drummer\/percussionist Emil de Waal. These four talented strangers, introduced with minimal rehearsal time, were brought together and launched onstage, and KALAHA was born. From the spontaneous and infectious magic of their first show came their critically acclaimed debut album \"Hahaha\", the sound taking its inspiration in equal parts from West-African funk, electro rave and jazz improvisation. Their four releases to date have proved to be captivating experiences, and earned them a Danish Music Award in 2017.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"April","offers":[{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":50531534897483,"sku":"2016724","price":22.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/test_e0fc0605_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1728109585"},{"product_id":"guirca-mf","title":"Guirca","description":"\u003cp\u003eSince forming in 2013, Danish quartet Kalaha have carved out a distinctive, genre-defying sound, blending global influences like Brazilian samba, Anatolian rock, African highlife, desert blues and modern electronic music. With multiple awards under their belt and a dedicated following among critics and vinyl collectors, the band now unveil their seventh studio album, Guirca, set for release on October 24th via Denmark's leading outfit for forward-thinking jazz, April Records. The release follows their 2024 album Nord Havn, a  tribute to the memory of a rapidly gentrifying harbour area of their hometown, conveyed through slick modern production, their trademark global influences, and the energy of a live quartet. Fresh from the inspiration of an electrifying cumbia concert - a lively and rhythmic music and dance style originating from Colombia that blends Indigenous, African, and Spanish influences - Kalaha locked themselves in the studio for two intense weeks. Armed with a collection of new percussion and electronic instruments, along with a talkbox, the band delved deep into their creative impulses. This immersive process fuelled the vibrant, eclectic energy that pulses throughout their new album, as they fuse cumbia's infectious grooves with their distinctive collage-esque creative identity. The title Guirca cleverly fuses two Latin-American percussion instruments - the güiro and the cuíca - symbolizing the album's ethos: uniting traditions. Here, Kalaha channels rhythms from cumbia and samba, Gaelic roots music, spaghetti-western motifs and '70s jazz-rock fusion, all seamlessly blended with their signature electronics. \"Guirca is a true Kalaha album,\" the band explains, pointing to their core mission of crossing cultural borders through co-creative exploration. With Guirca, they continue their geographically expansive sound, bringing \"bastardo inspirations from all parts of the world\" into a fresh collective voice. The album reaffirms Kalaha's signature - danceable, mysterious, boundary-blurring music that moves the feet, the body, and the mind.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"April","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":53318039863627,"sku":"R3894-5828","price":13.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":53318039896395,"sku":"R3894-5794","price":22.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/p_155c2fc5-fc5b-4967-bb39-37675be5b4a5.jpg?v=1757054963"}],"url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/collections\/kalaha.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}