Hilary Kole | ja

Once upon a time (2003) in a far away land called Bosnia and Herzegovina, a group of friends decided to form a band. But this was no ordinary band, and they did not form under ordinary circumstances. True, along with local Balkan flavors, musical influences came from all over the world: ska, punk, reggae, electronic, hip-hop. Yet, there was no music industry, few concerts, no space for cultural or political expression among the new crop of plugged in youth. In fact, the entire region was reeling from deep moral and economic stagnation. It was from this environment that Dubioza Kolektiv...

Afro Kolektyw is a polish hip-hop/jazz/funk band that plays using live instruments. Conscious, ironic observations of polish reality are here combined with loads of humour. The band was established circa 1996 in Warsaw. The team are: Afrojax; Miłosz Wośko; Mariusz Chibowski; Michał Szturomski; Łukasz Poprawski; Artur Chaber. As guests appeared Lilu and Duże Pe. Their albums are: - Negatywne wibracje (1999) - Płyta pilśniowa (2001) - Czarno widzę (2006) - Połącz kropki (2008) - Piosenki po polsku (2012) .

Bulgaria. Breeding ground for music talent. News to you? Well that's because Ruth Koleva is a different breed of artist. Born into a volatile world of corruption and hardship in post-Communist Eastern Europe, she endured a difficult childhood largely spent without her mother, found salvation in the classics (Marvin Gaye, Ella Fitzgerald, Nat King Cole) and became 'tour-hardened' by jaunts to far-flung destinations such as India and Thailand in the company of her Olympian father (a weightlifting trainer). From there, Koleva quickly developed into a rounded musician, spending an eye-opening year at the Hollywood Pop Academy and embarking on free-spirited...

Polish duo Mikrokolektyw explore regions of warped impressionist Don Cherryesque melodies like cartographers from some distant future. Their style is an outline of unexplored electronic hieroglyphs, an almost forgotten language shaped by moog, drums and trumpet. With this language they illustrate a map of vast sonic territories. Drummer Kuba Suchar and trumpeter Artur Majewski have collaborated with dozens of Chicago jazz greats as touring members of Rob Mazurek's Exploding Star Orchestra and Sao Paolo Underground groups. Their electronic driven jazz stands out for its downtown sound, a new freedom of innovation burning with an idiosyncratic sense of expression. .