It Is Written by Di-Meh
Entitled “Mektoub”, rapper Di-Meh’s new album was released on 14 May 2021, thus completing a full decade of publishing a new project once a year, always on or around 10 May. Mektoub is an Arabic word meaning “it is written”, roughly in the sense of “Inshallah”. Di-Meh grew up both in Morocco and Switzerland, at […]
Lord Kesseli Boiled Down to a Grand Piano
When Lord Kesseli was invited by a radio station in Winterthur to perform a live concert with only a Rhodes piano for company, he readily agreed – especially if the station would provide a grand piano instead of the Rhodes. The show was played and broadcast in the middle of the second Covid-19 lockdown on […]
Awori x Twani Are Rapping about History
Awori, the Swiss-Ugandan rapper, has teamed up with French beatmaker Twani to record their first duo album, “Ranavalona”. It was released on 5 March 2021 by Galant Records and is distributed by Irascible. “Ranavalona” is a project borne out of the enforced isolation that came with lockdown. Feeling somewhat lost without the powerful support of […]
Rio Wolta – The Wonder Days of Skiing…
The expression “Belle Epoque” isn’t usually applied to Switzerland. And it certainly isn’t applied to the 1970s. However, that is exactly what Rio Wolta has done with his new album, his third. “Belle Epoque” is an album dedicated to the rosy days of the 1970s when not a single dark cloud seemed to spoil the […]
Boodaman in Overdrive for Subsequent
It took Genevan synth maestro Boodaman – aka Stéphane Caviglioli – ten years to come up with a follow-up album to his debut from 2008. Helped by a Covid-enforced exile at home, “Subsequent”, his third, was completed in a super-fast two years. It is released on 5 February via Threeeknobs Records/Irascible. Boodaman describes himself as […]
Nadja Zela Recovers Her Voice
Four years ago, in her grief after the sudden death of her husband, Nadja Zela was no longer able to sing. Struggling to recover some sort of equilibrium, she sought solace in music, more specifically, music of all kinds that dealt with death and grieving. After two difficult years, the urge and ability to sing […]
Eclecta Bowing Out on a High
After nine years together, Marena Whitcher and Andrina Bollinger, aka Eclecta, have decided to go their separate ways. Far from bowing out quietly, however, they are saying goodbye with a peach of an album. Entitled “Open Other Doors”, it hits the shops on 6 November via TOURBOmusic and is distributed by Kontor New Media and […]
Panda Lux Are Having “Fun, Fun, Fun”
No, it’s not another compilation of the Beach Boys’ greatest hits – it’s the new album from the ever more fabulous Panda Lux, their second. “Fun, Fun, Fun” was released via Irascible on 25 September. Panda Lux are two brothers, Silvan and Samuel Kuntz, and two friends, Moritz Widrig and Janos Mijnssen, from way back […]
La Gale in an Acrimonious Mood
Lausanne-based rapper and actress La Gale’s new album, “Acrimonium”, was released on 31 July on Vitesse Records. With a Swiss father and a Lebanese mother, La Gale, aka Karine Guignard, has always had a sharp eye for the border areas between cultures. A punk fan in her teenage years, she discovered rap in her twenties, […]
Verveine Creates Hotdrama
After a long series of singles, EPs and live videos, the multi-instrumentalist and electronica experimenter from Vevey, Verveine aka Joell Nicolas, has at last got round to compiling a proper album. “Hotdrama” was released on 28 August by VRVN Records, Fav Art Publishing and is distributed by Believe Digital and Irascible. Influenced by artists as […]
