Description
Label Review.
Fusion of Western and Indian cultures, pop, soul and funk arrangements, syncopated polyrhythms, saturated guitars, psychedelic organs and Creole vocals. Also available on Vinyl.
Our Overview.
Killer 13-track compilation of 70s music from Mauritius that evolved from the original sega genre - the music of the slaves as well as their descendants, sung to protest against injustices in Mauritian society.
Created at the crossroads of Afro-Malagasy, the 70s strain fused Western and Indian cultures, pop, soul and funk arrangements, syncopated polyrhythms, saturated guitars, psychedelic organs and Creole vocals.
Although the exact origins of sega remain unknown, it contains vocal and percussive practices that originated from Madagascar, Mozambique and East Africa. A social escape and a space for improvisation, satire and verbal jousting, it transcended everyday life and made room for the expression of conflicts and the transgression of taboos. The main instrument of sega is the ravanne, a large tambourine-like drum made of a large wooden frame and goat skin. It is accompanied by the maravanne, a rectangular rattle filled with seeds, and other homemade forms of percussion.
Eric Nelson a solo guitarist and arranger, set up the band Features Of Life which, in the mid 70’s, gave birth to a new sound. Fuzzy distorted guitars and funky beats invite each other to play over the unbridled beats created by fabulous drummer Raoul Lacariate. The band accompanied a new wave of singers, including the atypical Joseph Roland Fatime aka Ti L’Afrique, a hyperbolic and hyperactive character, a fan of blues and James Brown who launched an explosive raw, and funky style of sega.
Tracklisting: Harold Berty - Django / Ti L’afrique - Pop Soul Sega / Claudio Veeraragoo - Qui Fine Arriv / Paul Labonne - Ti Malgache Ti Madras / Georges Gabriel - Pop S ga / The Features Of Life - Soul Sabattah / Roland Fatime - S.I.L.V.I.E / Jean Claude Gaspard - Machin Sex / Jos Henri - Apolo Pop 76 / Coulouce - Beau-P re / John Kenneth Nelson - Change To Mani re/Missi Coutou No2 / Lelou Menwar - Capito / Daniel Delord - Maria