Gqom Oh! releasing EP from 19-year-old musician Dominowe

Gqom Oh! releasing EP from 19-year-old musician Dominowe
dominowe

Although gqom as a culture is fiercely loyal to its home in the townships and taxis of Durban, South Africa, its introduction to European audiences has been swift and ravenously received. Very little is lost in translation — for a pronunciation primer and guide to the scene’s rising exports, watch Woza Taxi — and it would seem that gqom speaks the international dance language: a solid, all-encompassing kick, sure-footed syncopation, and some ghostly vocal stabs to add humanity to those ghost-in-the-shell bangers.

The London-based label Gqom Oh! has been collaborating with Durban’s best “darkside house” boys since early on, releasing compilations of heady, frantic tunes from Mafia Boyz, Cruel Boyz, DJ Lag, Forgotten Souls, and Dominowe, as well as a showcase world tour that took the power of the gqom (the sound of a rock dropped on a tile) to clubs across multiple continents. Dancing to Dominowe’s gqom is instinctual: the legs involuntarily throb and the feet beg to jump out from underneath the desk to stomp out a rhythm. Dominowe is a 19-year-old with an innovative ear for layering house motifs over witchcraft breaks, and with SiyaThakatha, he receives an individual focus over four cerebral tracks.

Pre-order Dominowe’s SiyaThakatha EP from Gqom Oh!, and cop a few apocalyptic bonus tracks while you’re at it. It’s out Friday, January 27.

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