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Music

Mikael Seifu Announces His First Release on RVNG Intl., Hear a Track Now

'Zelalem' will be a five-track EP in a style the artist calls “Ethiopiyawi Electronic.”

Ethiopian producer, Mikael Seifu, announced his debut release on Brooklyn-based electronic label RVNG Intl today. Zelalem, which translates to "eternity," is a five track EP that promises an "ode to – and a fearless break from – the storied lineage of Ethiopian music," according to the press release.

The artist works in a style he calls "Ethiopiyawi Electronic," which combines regional folk music and traditional instruments with electronic sounds from all over the globe. The result is something Seifu conceives of as simultaneously rooted directly in the present moment and "eternally Ethiopian."

Concomitantly with the announcement, RVNG has shared a full stream of EP cut "How To Save a Life (Vector of Eternity)." After setting the scene with a fractured, reverberating intro, the track builds into a rollicking, spirited jam, built around a dramatic organ figure and scaffolded with entwining patterns of analog percussion. The star of the show, though, is a tireless bowed-instrument solo that keeps up its pace for almost the entirety of the track's duration—it may take a couple of listens for you to follow of all its movements.

Stream the track below, and when you preorder your copy of Zelalem, be sure to get the package that includes a 50 minute cassette mix Seifu made to contextualize the record, made up of a range of Ethiopian and African folk music.

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