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Listening to the ethereal sun-kissed soundscapes, slow-burn treats and shuffling grooves of Tambores En Benirras’ superb debut album, Orbe Dotado, you’d be forgiven for thinking that they were the work of a producer based on the White Isle of Ibiza.
In fact, Orbe Dotado is the latest full-length missive from Graham Newby AKA DJ Gripper, a long-serving DJ/producer based not on one of the Balearic Islands, but in Barrow-in-Furness, an industrial coastal town best-known for submarine building and the rugged sport of Rugby League.
Newby has been DJing and making music for decades. As a producer, he first rose to prominence in the 2000s via releases (as Gripper and Hugo Madrid) on ATIC, Fat City, Offworld Records and Grand Central Records. These days, he’s arguably better-known as a DJ thanks to regular appearances (some alongside his good friend DJ Dribbler) on the much-missed Red Light Radio, as well as a monthly residency at Amsterdam’s Kashmir Lounge – a venue he’s been associated with since 2015. Newby is also one of the key figures behind B.U.M.S (Barrow Underground Music Society), a club space inspired by David Mancuso’s legendary New York loft parties.
Orbe Dotado is Newby’s first album under the Tambores En Benirras alias, which translated means 'Drums of Benirras'. Beats naturally play a significant role across the nine tracks that make up the set, though the Cumbria-based producer’s shuffling hand percussion, crunchy drum machine hits and head-nodding grooves often play second fiddle to waves of attractive synthesizer sounds, glistening guitars, toasty bass and smile-inducing musical flourishes.
It’s a sun-soaked, musically expansive trademark sound that oozes vibrant aural colour and vivid melodic intent. Newby brilliantly sets the tone via the yearning, morning fresh wonder of ‘Camino A Cala Llonga’, where languid guitars, Pet Metheny-style vocalizations, and sparkling synth sounds cluster around a warming bassline, before serving up a sequence of spellbinding soundscapes that offer a relaxing deep bath for the ears.
Along the way, there are multiple musical highlights. These include the bass-heavy soft shoe shuffle of ‘Aguas Blancas Sunrise’, a Rhodes-heavy slice of toasty positivity first featured on NuNorthern Soul’s Summer Selections 3 compilation earlier this year; the relaxed, toe-tapping headiness of ‘No Lo Dejes Caer’, whose thickset bass, starry chords and head-nodding beats doff a cap to his instrumental hip-hop past; ‘Para El Maestro Jose’, Newby’s heartfelt tribute to sadly departed Balearic legend Jose Padilla; and ‘Lo Hizo’, a low-slung slab of reverb-heavy Balearic rock bliss that’s undeniably the weightiest cut on show.
But the fun doesn’t stop there. Further high points include the simply gorgeous title track, an emotive and atmospheric blend of sampled spoken word vocals, stirring synth-strings, enveloping chords, tumbling guitars and echo-laden percussion hits, and fittingly titled closing cut ‘Es Perfecto’, a bustling but laidback beat-scape that offers a memorable conclusion to a genuinely brilliant album.
Distributed by Strikeforce 360 Media
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http://www.facebook.com/Strikeforce360
http://twitter.com/STRIKEFORCE360
Listening to the ethereal sun-kissed soundscapes, slow-burn treats and shuffling grooves of Tambores En Benirras’ superb debut album, Orbe Dotado, you’d be forgiven for thinking that they were the work of a producer based on the White Isle of Ibiza.
In fact, Orbe Dotado is the latest full-length missive from Graham Newby AKA DJ Gripper, a long-serving DJ/producer based not on one of the Balearic Islands, but in Barrow-in-Furness, an industrial coastal town best-known for submarine building and the rugged sport of Rugby League.
Newby has been DJing and making music for decades. As a producer, he first rose to prominence in the 2000s via releases (as Gripper and Hugo Madrid) on ATIC, Fat City, Offworld Records and Grand Central Records. These days, he’s arguably better-known as a DJ thanks to regular appearances (some alongside his good friend DJ Dribbler) on the much-missed Red Light Radio, as well as a monthly residency at Amsterdam’s Kashmir Lounge – a venue he’s been associated with since 2015. Newby is also one of the key figures behind B.U.M.S (Barrow Underground Music Society), a club space inspired by David Mancuso’s legendary New York loft parties.
Orbe Dotado is Newby’s first album under the Tambores En Benirras alias, which translated means 'Drums of Benirras'. Beats naturally play a significant role across the nine tracks that make up the set, though the Cumbria-based producer’s shuffling hand percussion, crunchy drum machine hits and head-nodding grooves often play second fiddle to waves of attractive synthesizer sounds, glistening guitars, toasty bass and smile-inducing musical flourishes.
It’s a sun-soaked, musically expansive trademark sound that oozes vibrant aural colour and vivid melodic intent. Newby brilliantly sets the tone via the yearning, morning fresh wonder of ‘Camino A Cala Llonga’, where languid guitars, Pet Metheny-style vocalizations, and sparkling synth sounds cluster around a warming bassline, before serving up a sequence of spellbinding soundscapes that offer a relaxing deep bath for the ears.
Along the way, there are multiple musical highlights. These include the bass-heavy soft shoe shuffle of ‘Aguas Blancas Sunrise’, a Rhodes-heavy slice of toasty positivity first featured on NuNorthern Soul’s Summer Selections 3 compilation earlier this year; the relaxed, toe-tapping headiness of ‘No Lo Dejes Caer’, whose thickset bass, starry chords and head-nodding beats doff a cap to his instrumental hip-hop past; ‘Para El Maestro Jose’, Newby’s heartfelt tribute to sadly departed Balearic legend Jose Padilla; and ‘Lo Hizo’, a low-slung slab of reverb-heavy Balearic rock bliss that’s undeniably the weightiest cut on show.
But the fun doesn’t stop there. Further high points include the simply gorgeous title track, an emotive and atmospheric blend of sampled spoken word vocals, stirring synth-strings, enveloping chords, tumbling guitars and echo-laden percussion hits, and fittingly titled closing cut ‘Es Perfecto’, a bustling but laidback beat-scape that offers a memorable conclusion to a genuinely brilliant album.
Distributed by Strikeforce 360 Media
http://www.instagram.com/strikeforce360/
http://www.facebook.com/Strikeforce360
http://twitter.com/STRIKEFORCE360
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