July: 6 bass & club releases you need to hear this month

Chino Amobi 'Paradiso' (NON Worldwide / UNO NYC)

On his debut album, producer and NON co-founder Chino Amobi has created an epic, 20-track account of the “post-American wasteland”. The LP is a collaborative effort as well, with Amobi working with a number of fellow club innovators including Elysia Crampton, Nkisi, Rabit and Embaci. Like his album ‘Airport Music For Black Folk’, which was released last year, ‘Paradiso’ finds Amobi working within the realm of blown-out and noisy textures. Combining spoken word with a plethora of foreboding sounds, from techno to metal to musique concrete, the outcome is immersive and visceral.

Described as a “utopian land via LP”, Amobi and his NON collaborators seek to highlight sounds of artists in the African diaspora, with the album moving comprehensively from moment to moment and underscoring a myriad of themes. ‘Blackout’ features a jagged synth line, horns and spoken word over a pumping house beat, while ‘Nkisi’ echoes icy, bell-like tones against deep strings. ‘Polizei’ is a barrage of distorted noise, twisting around the listener like a tornado, while spoken word intones ominously during ‘Kollaps’ until the song gives way to a disorienting hip hop beat and yelled vocals. The scope of this project is massive, and Amobi fully demonstrates his ability to make a cohesive narrative out of many sonic structures.

9/10