2022, March 2022, Respect
RESPECT | Lil Obeah – From Transylvania
Mar
Lil Obeah
From Transylvania
Collage by: Cristiana Bucureci
*Andrei and Cristiana Bucureci with the Lil Obeah from Transylvania LP
The independent label The Sound of Art to Come launches Lil Obeah’s debut album called Lil Obeah from Transylvania. The album is made in collaboration with international producers Transglobal Underground, Dub Colossus, and Marius Costache. Additionally, a limited edition is available to order from Diggers Factory for dub music enthusiasts and vinyl collectors.
Transylvanian artist Lil Obeah launches his first electronic dub music album, a true sound collage with contributions by music professionals: producer Marius Costache from Bucharest; from Studio148 to international stars such as Nick Dubulah known as Dub Colossus; and Tim Whelan and Hamid Mantu, meaning Transglobal Underground.
On the album, Lil Obeah from Transylvania, artists, and musicians from Great Britain and Romania contributed: Horseman aka Winston Williams, Nick Page aka Count Dubulah, Hamid Mantu & Tim Whelan, the main duo from the Transglobal Underground collective, Marian Șerban Fieraru from the Corina Sîrghi Taraf, Adi Stoenescu and Laura Benedek from Jam Circle, Leon Lotoțchi, Michael Acker and Mihai Moldoveanu and last, but not least the artist Cristiana Bucureci.
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The album’s concept is developed around dub music, reggae influences from classic horror movies and Romanian folklore, and folk produced and promoted before ’89 by Electrecord. On the album, the foundation is represented by Horseman’s slow dub rhythms to which they added electric bass, keyboards, guitars, and sounds Nick Page (Dub Colossus), Tim Whelan, and Hamid Mantu (Transglobal Underground), responsible for the production of seven of the songs from the album. On the song Haos, produced by Marius Costache (Studio148), Laura Benedek performs electric bass and Adi Stoenescu keyboards. Maria Șerban Fieraru brought the Balkan sound with his santur solos, and Leon Lotoțchi performed at Theremin. The two bonus tracks contain electric bass by Michael Acker and Mihai Moldoveanu and the voice of the artist’s deceased grandmother Constanța Vlad.
Jamaican dub, reggae, and dancehall culture have given birth to innovative songs and albums inspired by horror movies, the aesthetics of the ugly, and a certain dark, scary art. It may sound strange coming from Eastern Europe, but Sound of Art to Come and Lil Obeah focus on the unique sound that bridges the gap between pop art, comics, and Caribbean culture.
“A history full of carnage and the need for blood. Transylvania was the place where one of the most frightening supernatural creatures, the vampire, was placed. Since the Middle Ages, this area has been a place of deep corruption and superstition, and evidence is Bram’s books. Stoker and Jules Verne, The thirst for blood, has turned into censorship and abuse in modern communist times, and Ceausescu’s brutal death and treatment of his family are obvious echoes of the same bloody past.
What is the need for future generations? Maybe a document of their past to be able to predict the future? The album Lil Obeah from Transylvania tries to do precisely that with dub music, global sounds, i.e., world music, and plunderphonic genres, all under one sound: duppy dub. Nothing would have been possible without the contribution of master Dub Colossus aka Nick Page (Rest in Powa), electronic dub wizards Transglobal Underground aka Tim Whelan & Hamid Mantu, and local sound magician Marius Costache.” Obeah
Cristiana Bucureci created the collages that illustrate the Lil Obeah from Transylvania LP. The artist debuted with collage art in 2013, through the Loud Blood Youth series, in collaboration with a local electro-fusion band. Her collages are the passport to a futuristic-decorative dimension, being made in mixed techniques, both digital and cut & paste. The artist has exhibited in Tel Aviv, Romanian Design Week, Bucharest, Timisoara, Cluj, and Iasi.
Lil Obeah from Transylvania LP is produced by Dub Colossus, Transglobal Underground, and Marius Costache. With the contribution of artists and musicians Horseman alias Winston Williams, Nick Page alias Count Dubulah, Hamid Mantu & Tim Whelan alias Transglobal Underground, Marian Șerban Fieraru, Adi Stoenescu, Laura Benedek, Leon Lotoțchi, Michael Acker, Mihai Moldoveanu, Alexandru Arcuș, and Cristiana Bucureci. Special guests: Octavian Soviany, Constața Vlad, Nicolae Ceaușescu. Mastered by Marius Costache at Studio148
Lil Obeah from Transylvania can be pre-ordered in a limited edition for collectors and dub music enthusiasts at Diggers Factory:
Diggers FactoryOfficial Website:
SoundofArttoCome.Bandcamp.com
Sound of Art to ComeIRIE Playlist:
STREAM IRIE on Spotify
IRIE on SpotifyIN THIS ISSUE
