Solo Moderna – Daïsm

Hailing from Tilburg in the Netherlands, Solo Moderna is one of the instigators of the “Global Bass” movement of the 2000s, and a pioneer of Jazzdance music and Balkan Beats. With three albums and numerous remixes to his credit, signed to labels such as Tru Thoughts or Agogo, the particularity of this talented multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer is to be equally at ease on the guitar, ukulele and bass, than on the flute, vintage “Eurorack” type synthesizers and numerous Latin and Oriental percussions. Recently acclaimed by BBC6 Music among others, his offbeat remixes and covers of digital reggae, electrofunk and 80s classics have earned him to be featured in numerous radio playlists.

For several years now, the artist has been teaming up with French-Colombian label Galletas Calientes Records to produce resolutely Afro-Latin American pieces, and his fourth album, “Daïsm”, composed largely with Dutch singer Krage, brings together all these influences.

Joyful, danceable, humorous, offbeat, psychedelic and experimental, the music of Solo Moderna fits perfectly with the lyrics of Krage, who in a post-punk spirit, sings effortlessly in a language of her own invention: a tasty idiomatic mix of English , French, Spanish, Jamaican Patois, or Quechua.

Difficult indeed to put a label on the artist’s music, or to enclose it in a particular genre, but it is undoubtedly inspired by South American musical styles such as cumbia or reggaeton, by Caribbean traditions such as mento or reggae, modern African rhythms, a certain European swing, and an electronic and post-punk environment; undoubtedly unclassifiable, but immediately recognizable due to its unique universe and its peculiar fusion of genres and production techniques.