VA - Place: Nairobi (2021)

“Having a place means that you know what a place means...what it means in a storied sense of myth, character and presence but also in an ecological sense... integrating native consciousness with mythic consciousness” - Gary Snyder

“Nairobi’s electronic music scene is quite eclectic, featuring diverse styles of music creating personal narratives by the artists, musicians and producers. This curation features a glimpse of the different styles of music coming out of Nairobi's electronic music scene.

From the sampled based productions of MR.LU* who has been reintroducing old Kenyan traditional folklore and narratives in his electronic production; Barno, who blends ambient with elegant piano sounds; Coco Em’s experimental improvised work; Nabalayo’s ‘Changanya’ style - a modernized folk music form that is built on the aesthetics of local folk music in Kenya; to Charles Nyiha’s film-like compositions and M³ live jazz synth improvisations.

The scene is quite diverse in styles and ‘Place: Nairobi’ only scratches the surface of what’s happening here. The curation focuses on burgeoning artists exploring different sonic auralities in music production” - KMRU