Ethnically and Culturally Inspired Music
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At the iconic Restaurant Afrika in the Slaughterhouse district, Stockholm’s new hot club scene, Gil Felix invited colleagues and friends to a packed release party on September 28th to present his 7th album, Ubalafon. The tricontinental, seven-piece Gil Felix Band lined up the new afropop hits like Sambuê, Maire, and Ubalafon a...
Hailing from Salvador de Bahía, Felix takes elements of bossa nova, samba, reggae, Afrobeat and more to mould them smartly into a polyrhythmic distillation of the Afro-Brazilian experience. Recorded in Stockholm and Bahía with an international cast of musicians drawn from three continents, his relaxed, warm v...
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Gil Felix from Salvador de Bahía, Mandingo and Brasilero, embodies the Afro-Brazilian experience, with family roots in both West Africa and South America. Gil Felix has created a unique pan-ethnic sound inspired by Gilberto Gil, Bob Marley, Jimmy Cliff, Olodum, and Salif Keita. In Gil Felix's music, the regional Bahian Reconcavo culture meets Caribbean and African musicality: Bossa Nova, Samba Reggae, Rocksteady, Soukous, and Afropop in a unique musical universe. The result is an irresistible polyrhythmic swing, where storytelling about mankind's history and our African roots is combined with poetic paintings of everyday life.
In September 2024, Gil Felix released his latest album, Ubalafon, where he blends his very own Bahian sunny groove with Nigerian Afrobeat. The result: new Cross-Atlantic vibes for dancing in the streets.
Ubalafon is an international production with a tri-continental band from Stockholm/Salvador de Bahía, recorded in Stockholm and Salvador de Bahía at the legendary Studio WR, with the master of Bahía sound, Nestor Madrid, at the helm. It is released by Mills Records in Rio de Janeiro with support from the Swedish Arts Council and SELAM Academy.
Ubalafon carries a warm pan-African message and tributes the African heritage of the Bahian Reconcavo culture and even all human cultures. The title track reminds us of Balafon, the forerunner of the piano that was developed in Mali in Western Africa. Orally, the word Ubalafon is widely in use, and Gil Felix hails the African roots of all music but also expresses hope that African descendants will form our future artistically and politically.
The album cover, made by wood burner Djibril N'Doye, Balafon Beats, reflects this story in an astonishing piece of art.
In September 2024, Gil Felix released his latest album, Ubalafon, where he blends his very own Bahian sunny groove with Nigerian Afrobeat. The result: new Cross-Atlantic vibes for dancing in the streets.
Ubalafon is an international production with a tri-continental band from Stockholm/Salvador de Bahía, recorded in Stockholm and Salvador de Bahía at the legendary Studio WR, with the master of Bahía sound, Nestor Madrid, at the helm. It is released by Mills Records in Rio de Janeiro with support from the Swedish Arts Council and SELAM Academy.
Ubalafon carries a warm pan-African message and tributes the African heritage of the Bahian Reconcavo culture and even all human cultures. The title track reminds us of Balafon, the forerunner of the piano that was developed in Mali in Western Africa. Orally, the word Ubalafon is widely in use, and Gil Felix hails the African roots of all music but also expresses hope that African descendants will form our future artistically and politically.
The album cover, made by wood burner Djibril N'Doye, Balafon Beats, reflects this story in an astonishing piece of art.
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