Daniel Haaksman is a man straight championing global electronic sounds. The Berlin-based Man Recordings boss can be found digging deep into rhythms coming out of various corners of Africa, such as Angola and Cameroon, which he blends with tropes from modern electronica and heavy bass.
His second album, ‘African Fabrics’, comes highly recommended, throwing down some Kalimba rhythms and high-powered 2-step over eleven tracks. It showcases Haaksman’s unique approach to culture clash and his reverence for these styles of music and their respective scenes, rather than simply appropriating.
He says: “Across various African countries, especially in Southern African countries such as Angola, Moçambique or South Africa there’s currently a lot of exciting new dance genres emerging. For my new album ‘African Fabrics’ I got inspired by Kuduro, Afro House, Bandoro and various native local music styles which I mixed up with bass music elements from the northern hemisphere.”
“You can also hear this approach in my mix where I blend various tracks from my album plus some remixes and edits I recently did with current DJ faves, from Rampa’s minimalist house approach to legendary Cameroonian guitarist Francis Bebey or Capo Verde’s Muangolé to various current African club tracks and remixes.”
Featuring some Roman Flügel, Branko, and Melé, Daniel's even thrown in a ‘Watch Me Whip’ edit.
Serious vibes coming your way:
Tracklist:
Rampa – ‘Mascha’
Broken Heart Project – ‘Ndalame Ndi Satanaa (Daniel Haaksman Edit)’
Batuk – ‘Daniel (Daniel Haaksman Remix)’
Daniel Haaksman – ‘Lemba ft. Coréon Dú’
Daniel Haaksman – ‘Akabongi ft. Spoek Mathambo’
Franics Bebey – ‘The Coffee Cola Song’
Muangolé – ‘Liberdade’
Os Kings – ‘Minino Na Tchora (Dersu + Chi Coração Edit)’
Buruntuma – ‘Homenagem Ao Heroi’
Daniel Haaksman – ‘Rename The Streets’
Daniel Haaksman – ‘Sabado ft. Bulldozer (Aero Manyelo Remix)’
Francis Boy – ‘Itocota’
Grizzy – ‘Look Like You (Afro Bootleg)’
Branko – ‘2 Nice’ Leftfield – ‘Afro Left (Melé Edit)’
Roman Flügel – ‘Sliced Africa’
Silentó – ‘Watch Me (2 Pekes Remix)’
Kaba Blon – 'Moriba Yasa' (Daniel Haaksman Edit)
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Words: Felicity Martin
Photo Credit: Stefan Korte Kopie
