Atlas Electronic
Festival
29.08 — 02.09.2019
Step into the unknown,
Where nothing you know is set in stone.

Following the release of her debut solo single, the internationally acclaimed 'Things We Do On The Weekend', Nonku Phiri has established herself as on one of the most distinctive and influential voices in South Africa’s electronic music landscape. Effortlessly moving between house, electronica, R'nB and kwaito. She was first brought to the music industry's attention at the age of 17 courtesy of a serendipitous collaboration. She proceeded to become a sought after collaborator, working with multiple artists, spanning continents and genre spectrums. In 2015, the undeniable trajectory of her burgeoning success led to Nonku embarking on her solo career journey. After years of travelling, performing and writing, 2018 will bare witness to the launch of her independent label 'Albino Black' along with the release of her highly anticipated EP. Nonku has reached a juncture in her career where her creative voice and perspective are both clearly defined, congruently carving a path for her most impactful musical journey to date.

Giyani Kulani, better known by his stage name Penny Penny is a South African musician and politician, known affectionately as the "Shangaan Disco King" for the musical style he helped popularise. He was the youngest of 68 children from a local doctor with 25 wives. His family was poor, meaning he received no education, but he soon became known for his dancing and was nicknamed Penny. Aged 19, he worked on a West Driefontein goldmine near Carletonville, and soon left to escape the region's poor working conditions, although he did win several breakdancing trophies before his departure. His breakthrough came with the recording and release of his 1994 debut album Shaka Bundu, which was recorded in a week using little gear but went on to sale 250,000 copies in the country. The music features Tsonga (or Shangaan) disco sound, which emerged in Penny's native Tsonga culture, fused with contemporary house music from the United States. Unusually, the songs on the album were recorded in the Tsonga or Xitsonga language, or more specifically its Limpopo-region dialect Xihlanganu, one of the least-heard languages in South Africa. This was a conscious choice on behalf of Penny, who wanted to introduce his language "to the world."

Luka Productions is Luka Guindo, rapper, producer, and multi-instrumentalist from Bamako, Mali. Working from a small bedroom sized studio alongside a busy street in the capital city, Luka has built a reputation as one of the most prodigious beatmakers. With a musical training in West African gospel music, Luka is known in the regional scenes of thumping electro Balani Show and lightning hi-energy Hip Hop. Luka’s tracks draw on the rich musical history of Mali, mixing Kora and Balafon with software percussion, flute, horns, and synthesizer, bringing the village life into the modern urban Bamako. In 2016, he released his first international debut, Mali Kady: high energy Hip Hop, with lighting fast rapping, driving percussion, and balafon dance tracks. His 2017 release Fasokan went in a different direction. Inspired by the minimal electronic compositions of Craig Leon, Fasokan is a guided meditation; spoken verse guides, set to the backdrop of sweeping electronics and hypnotic dreamscapes. The album earned critical acclaim, featured as Boomkat’s Top album of 2017, and Fact Mag’s Best Bandcamp albums of 2017. He played his first European tour in fall of 2017, debuting at Le Guess Who in Utrecht. His new album, Falaw, veers into another direction. In contrast to his usual PC-based sequencing, Falaw invites a number of traditional performers to join him in the studio. Griots recount sage stories over Luka’s sweeping synth pads while ngonis shred pentatonic solos to the crash of sequenced drum samples. Paying homage to the storyteller, combined with regional styles of lyrical Hip Hop, Falaw offers advice on modern living, with heartfelt songs about loss, love, and life. Tracks like BBNI offer Luka’s version of the melodic Bamako Hip Hop banger, while Forêt features lush acoustic ngoni with looping call and response. In addition to his work sequencing and producing, Luka plays a variety of instruments across the tracks, performing vocals, djembe, synthesizer, guitar, and bass. The effect is both space age and organic. Creating at the confluence of electronic and tradition, Falaw is destined to be a future classic, both at home in Mali and abroad. In a genre where all too often “modern” is used exclusively to indicate Western collaborators, Falaw is a groundbreaking entry into homemade fourth world music and a suggestion of the new Malian sound.

Microdosing is a Manchester-based cult underground experimental events collective that explores ambient, electronic, avant-garde and ethnographic music around the fringes of traditional dance-focused parties. Intentionally set up to shift attention away from the DJ and focus on the specific listening environment of the room, Microdosing has become a key destination for mind-expanding sounds and deep listening sessions. The Microdosing residency on NTS Radio offers a monthly taste of the associated sounds. Founded and overseen by All Night Flight Records boss Tom Houghton, regular guests and members include Seb Mariner (NTS), Space Afrika, Will Boyd (Sferic) and more.

At weddings in Northern Uganda, special Acholi songs are played known as ‘Larakaraka’. Over a decade ago, Otim Alpha began collaborating with fellow wedding musician and producer Leo Palayeng to mix up Acholi music into a newer hyper-frenetic electronic version known as Acholitronix. They toured the style across East Africa, and became known to Nyege Nyege Tapes who showcased them at their festival, and released Otim’s hit collection ‘Gulu City Anthems’. The tape sold out within days, and later in 2017 Otim performed at Unsound Festival, earning him a live reputation that warranted festival director Mat Schultz’s Instagram post “Every European festival MUST book Otim Alpha!”

Mar & Sol Soundsystem is a special live DJ set on vinyl that reveals all the sonorous archive of these Luso African ex. countries. Since the first tribal sounds until the last released records using the mark of the Mar & Sol label.

Based in Rabat, SARAAIT is a Moroccan DJ that puts storytelling at the heart of her MO. Her teenage years saw her grow fond of post-punk & hardcore punk, which was an early sign of her inclination to the powerful and punchy side of music. It was only a matter of time before she crossed paths with techno and fell in love. What others may perceive as dark, she finds warm and welcoming. Her sets oscillate between modular deep techno cuts, raw industrial tracks and a touch of EBM.

Lost Pattern is an experimental electronic music producer and DJ based in Casablanca with a limitless vision that breaks the barrier of genres and music styles.

Good,MostlyBad (GMB) is Gurmehar Bedi's music selection as a DJ providing bass-heavy, dance floor stomping sounds from an array of genres like hip-hop, trap, afrobeat, grime and UK bass. Her sets are influenced by human emotion, taking you through a journey of energy.

She has carved a niche for herself in her city by constantly pushing new sounds amongst the local crowd. Right now she's on a self-fulfilling journey to finding her sound as she takes on music production. Her first single, ""REELIN"" was featured by RollingStone India on their May Playlist. Her productions are bass-heavy, riddled with numerous percussive elements and overlayed with her signature warped spoken word/rapping and the unexpected cohesiveness to the layers of her choice of sounds. "

Raskas is an independent post-rock/experimental electronica music group formed in Casablanca in 2013, and consisting now of only two members. According to their bio: “the name [Raskas] comes from a rare kind of “fish” that stays alive around 72 hours after being taken out of the water. That’s how we feel and behave. And that’s how we conceive music”. This last statement was somehow honoured during their latest live performance on the Tremplin Boulevard Festival in their hometown. By their last song, they had turned an audience consisting of a dozen people into a packed house.

Emmy Bacharach is a DJ, architect, audio-visual artist and researcher. She has made a name for herself DJing in underground parties around London, from her residency at the Pink Elephant all-vinyl allotment parties to regular slots at warehouse venues Grow Tottenham and Unit 18. She is a co-founder of Co-Select, a DJ collective promoting gender equality in dance music culture and organising inclusive and eclectic parties in London since 2017, this year appearing at UK festivals Waywood and Brainchild. Her sets bring together diverse influences from Detroit electro to 90s breakbeat to global bass, always full of energy. Her ongoing research project Sonic Urbanism explores the origins of dance music and the spatial politics of club culture focused on Detroit techno and its relationship to the post-industrial urban condition.

Djoyce is a Moroccan DJ with an ear for experimental sounds. Born and raised in Rabat, he made his way into the electronic music scene running festivals and parties around Morocco. Since moving to Istanbul, Turkey, he has established himself in the underground bass scene and built his sound playing in clubs Pixie and Temple. Putting together unexpected elements, he creates an energy that is hardcore and playful: bass, grime and footwork meet with industrial beats and choppy breaks.

KALBOCA explores steaming sounds through selections carefully cut for the occasion, mixing Reggaeton, Dancehall Baile Funk, RnB, Grime and more.

Singer, author and composer specializing in percussion, Amram El Maleh aka Jauk or Arman Lemal became the undisputed father of Dakka jazz and Dakka rock with his group, the Jaguars. First composer of a Franco-Moroccan fusion in the Mediterranean with titles like "Dakka", "The three prophets" and "Gnaoua blues", he will be later quoted in the history of jazz as "Nowaday's Swing". Enriched by three Mediterranean cultures and a storehouse of anthropo-rhythmic discoveries, he moved to Paris in 1967 where the Sorbonne opened its doors. He co-founded the first dance course in university and taught there for nearly fifteen years, broadcasting the tale of Amazigh and Gnaoua music in France and Europe. Ranked among the 100 best drummers and world drummers of the 80s by "PAISTE", he is also honoured by a distinction of the Academy Art Sciences and letters in 1980. Living between Marseille and Casablanca, he brings his diversified and rich know-how to the young music scene. Today, at the height of his 71 years, Jauk, choreo-musician still turbulent and hectic is always full of projects to follow.

Ani Phoebe is from NYC and has mostly resided in Rio de Janeiro for the past years. Always on the move, she's interested in cultural exchanges coming from a place of humility and a decolonial perspective. A polyglot, she focuses on music from around the world, especially in different languages, and particularly from women and female-identifying persons. She founded minasö, a feminist group of female-identifying and non-binary women in dance music in Rio de Janeiro.

Philou’s coming of age is defined by the forces of musical and cultural diversity, living in worlds seemingly estranged from one another. As an adopted black kid, Philou grew up with the loving care of his adoptive Dutch grandparents. His grandfather taught him how to listen to jazz and classical music from a very young age, provoking a surge of curiosity about his own African heritage. He found Nigerian and Congolese tapes from his African birth parents that were in his families possession and started digging into the traditional sounds of Africa. Through music, Louzolo developed an early sensitivity towards cultural expressions in general. Not merely for the continent that carries his roots, but also for sci-fi and Japanese anime. He began experimenting with producing electronic music as a way to unite the various realms of his omnifarious inner word. Composing his identity as a performing artist began years later, guided by the nightlife scenes of Rotterdam and Amsterdam. With an extensive pan-African sound, he began reaching the hearts of large crowds, ultimately pushing his popularity across national and international borders where he made appearances in the Panorama Bar, Nuits de Sonores, DGTL, Le Sucre, DJOON, North Sea Jazz, De School, Dekmantel Selectors. A highlight of his early success is the release of the EP Alkbulan Republic which was a tribute to Nigerian pioneers such as Fela Kuti and William Onyeabor. This EP was recorded in collaboration with musicians from Ghana and Nigeria and mixed and produced by Philou in the city where he currently resides, Rotterdam. This vinyl gem is repressed at least four times and hit the Juno bestseller charts. His influence even grew into the embodiment of a larger message, containing an awareness about socio-political issues within the industry concerning representation, (musical) ownership and race.

100% BOOTY 200% GETO 2HOES ON THE DECK RIDE IT SMELLS LIKE HASH AND CRUNK VIBES 2RIMS ON THE SPINN THEY MAKE THE WHEELIE LOOK FIT 2 RATS IN THE CLUB THEY GON MAKE THEM BOOTYS TWERLE

Lux-Frágil’s music director and resident since day 1, Rui keeps a lifelong love affair with the art of sharing music – the right record, at the right time. A radio host and DJ since 1988 – having played alongside an all-star who’s who of House and Techno -, his eagerness for freshness and quality is translated into being one of the country’s most in-demand DJs. A unique trendsetter, he showcases this ability not only with his bi-weekly show on the national public radio but also behind the decks (his six-hour-long sets being a Saturday night staple with a cult following) and, ultimately, working for the melting pot that is Lux’s musical programming.

Eleanor Ntombikayise Ndaba was born on 28 February 1958 in Vryheid (Afrikaans for ‘Freedom’), in the Zululand region north of Durban. In the early 1960s, her family was forced to relocate to the newly built township of eMondlo a few kilometres away, along with millions of other South Africans living under the notorious system of enforced segregation known as apartheid. Ntombikayise (isiZulu for ‘Daddy’s girl) grew up in a close-knit family. Her father worked as a driver for a local furniture company, her mother as a domestic worker for a family in town. As a young girl, Ntombi would sit glued to her radio, taking it all in. The first record she bought was ‘Ngiyabuza’ by Letta Mbulu, one of her biggest influences. As a teenager, she started singing for a local band in eMondlo called Shame. Hooked, she decided to follow her dream and make the journey, like so many others, to the City of Gold: Johannesburg. “I’ve always known I’d be a singer,” she remembers. “I was singing in church and school. I wasn’t shy at all. I’m not shy, I’m an outspoken person. I don’t get nervous when I sing, I just feel free, and happy.” In Joburg, young Ntombi auditioned successfully to join the cast of Gibson Kente, the famous “father of township theatre”, in a production titled Hungry Spoon. In the same cast were two other young singers who were soon to become major stars of the ‘bubblegum’ era: Phumi Maduna (of Cheek To Cheek) and Brenda Fassie.

Founder & Artistic Director of festival Deggi Daaj International, adoptive son & final collaborator of UNESCO "Living Human Treasure" Doudou Ndiaye Rose.

"An MC who hails from Nottingham, England, Mez (know to his friends as Uncle) began his career back in 2013. After releasing several free EPs, in 2015 Mez began to set up his second home in London. Making appearances on radio stations including Rinse, Radar and NTS where he’s now a regular, Mez has also enjoyed support from BBC 1Xtra, winning their #NextInGrime competition. In the same year, he starred on Lord Of The Mics VII, the legendary battle series that sees MC’s go head-to-head in a lyrical war of words. Mez also took on jazz improvisation with the Kamaal Williams ensemble at the Redbull Studios, resulting in an epic 10-minute long one-take freestyle (and performances at Jazz Café and Electric Brixton).

Mez has already supported Stormzy and Kano on their respective tours; Mez was also invited by Skepta as one of the acts to open his sold-out Alexandra Palace Show at the end of 2016. A similar request from D Double E followed with Mez appearing at his 02 Academy Islington headline show and subsequent 2019 tour. Festival appearances include Born N Bred, Bread & Butter & NASS while he’s already frequented Kosovo, Berlin and Amsterdam to spread his grime sound.

An i-D Magazine one to watch for 2018, Mez’s subsequent debut EP ‘Tyrone’ pushed the sonic warfare further, allowing him to push his performance, demonstrating that he’s an ultimate stage show don with his DJ Grandmixxer.

Having built up his arsenal over the last 12 months, summer 2019 kicked off with the highly anticipated ‘Tyrone 2’ EP, offering up 11 tracks of futuristic mic skills and weird wonky twisted beats. With two full capacity high-octane Keep Hush parties under his durag, Mez is set on taking grime back to the club where it belongs. "

Mo Jakob is a DJ shaped by the sounds of boom-bap and jazz; through the sampling culture, he explored beyond these genres and taught himself to intertwine different schools in his sets. Mo Jakob organizes his own event 'Concentric Circles' in which storytelling plays a central role.

Lead singer/artist Generation Taragalte

Guedra is a trance ritual rather than dance. Usually done on the knees, it starts with the head and faces covered. Flicky movements of the hand. Ribcage vertical pulses. Swaying head. The ritual is performed by a solo woman but may include another woman or man.

Digging up rare vinyl grooves in the city of gold, DJ Okapi brings a forgotten era of South African pop music back to life... specifically the synth-fuelled 80s disco-funk known as bubblegum and the unique house-inspired kwaito grooves of the early 90s, connecting them to their contemporaries in other parts of Africa and its diaspora. Since 2009, through his Afrosynth blog (www.afrosynth.blogspot.com), DJ Okapi has been instrumental in turning a new generation of music fans all over the world on to South African music of the 80s and 90s, most of which was never heard outside the country at the time. Afrosynth has more recently grown into a physical store in downtown Johannesburg and a re-issue label, Afrosynth Records.

What started as a DIY modular synthesizer project by Bamanya Brian called AFRORACK has grown to be an audio arts organization to help the community develop and thrive through technology resources. The name is a play on the widely used Eurorack modular synthesizer. By committing to providing accessibility to modular synthesizers and sound design tools, they serve children and young adults of colour. At AFRORACK, everyone's focused on diverse community access via a collection of workshops, seminars, and ambitious programming centred around modular education.

Spinning an eclectic mix of electronic club and booty bounce sets, influenced by dark dancehall, Arab bass and UK bass influenced reggaeton.

Kandiafa plays the ngoni. With his brilliant technique, he brings out the finest melodies from his ngoni and is a knockout wherever they play!

Since 2012, Hatim Belyamani – aka HAT – unites artists in an ever-evolving audio-visual dance between traditional music and digital remix art. In his one-of-a-kind live show, HAT is as an orchestra conductor from the future, beaming traditional musicians from the four corners of the world onto a big screen, and shaping them harmoniously into new electro beats. Growing up in Morocco, surrounded by sounds of the country’s Arabic, Amazigh, and Sub-Saharan African origins, Hatim was an award-winning classical pianist and guitarist before finding his voice in electronic music. In 2012, inspired to celebrate his roots, Hatim founded Remix ←→ Culture, a non-profit organization that bridges cultural divides through the transformative power of music, film, and remix. Hatim and his team traverse the globe, capturing the sights and sounds of underrepresented musical traditions, which they share for free online under a Creative Commons license. HAT’s performances are a live remixing of these videos, seamlessly blending the traditional with the experimental – acoustic trance with electronic dance – connecting his audiences to distant cultures in a unique audio-visual journey.

Mr Wix' all-round style, digging deep in the crates and spinning everything from hip hop to broken beats made him a well-known DJ in the Dutch scene. Perfecting his skills on the decks since the mid-nineties, his career takes off in 1999 when he lands a monthly residency at Paradiso's Bassline - when Amsterdam's main Hip Hop/R&B; night. 2000 sees the launch of his monthly nights, 'Chocolate' in Off Corso (Rotterdam) and 'Knockout' in Paradiso (Amsterdam). These nights prove to be a platform for Wix's creative mind, adding his flavour to the whole package, from artwork to programming. His parties attract a fresh and funky crowd and are always packed. Major moves are made in the creative arena. Wix continues to set up 'Bling', a partnership with Jimmy Woo. He starts as DJ and co-host for VPRO's national radio show ' 3voor12XL' where his sounds infect the airwaves and the internet every week for years now. In 2005 Mr Wix decided to introduce two new genres in the Netherlands. Baile Funk and Baltimore Booty. Adding those two, the overall sound of Mr Wix got richer and more complete, taking one step further in the alternative dance scene. With his filthy Booty sound, Wix is a force to be reckoned with in the future! In September 2007 Wix was asked to play at the art show after party of the critically acclaimed artist and graphic designer Piet Parra at the Paris Paris club. The infamous Baguette Frappant evening was born. Wix and Parra formed Parra Soundsystem and with the help of the Pan O Chokolate crew from Paris, The Baguette Frappant evening is now a monthly resident at the famous Paris Paris. At this night Mr Wix plays a mix of Rock, Rave, Baile Funk, Bmore Booty and Hip Hop.

Sound of Mint is a new and exciting collaboration between DJ/producer Fadel (Get Physical Music, Toolroom Records, Griffintown Records) and master percussionist and film composer, Joel Pelligrini, who has recorded more than 22 albums in his 35-year music career. Their new concept – a marriage between electronic music and atypical acoustic and analogic instruments – can be described as a colorfully orchestrated ethnic-electro performance with both surprising and enchanting improvisations. Inspired by North and Sub-Saharan African musical traditions, Sound of Mint produces the same euphoria procured by sipping a warm and perfectly spiced Moroccan mint tea. The music invites audience members to dance to unique improvisational moments filled with emotion, often leaving them in a state of trance. The upcoming live performances of Sound of Mint transmit the warmth of humanity by simultaneously touring the urban centers of the globe and echoing ancestral African traditions in the middle of deserts and other uncommon, mystical places. Their debut album is currently being recorded, and includes collaborations with acoustic masters in Africa, Asia, and Europe. In the mean time, you can watch their most recent live performance, set on a breathtaking rooftop in Casablanca. https://bit.ly/2Km3qwt