MALA IN CUBA: LIVE
Brixton Electric | November 17th
Brixton Electric, formerly The Fridge, proved the perfect choice of venue for the live realisation of Londoner Mala’s latest project: a hybrid of Cuban beats, Jamaican sound system music and dark dubstep atmospherics. The culture-clash party rumbled on well into Sunday morning.
Some 1,500 revellers turned out, bursting the Electric to almost power-cut capacity as the dubstep luminary and co-founder of Digital Mystikz and Deep Medi Musik showcased his Mala In Cuba album live for the first time in Britain.
For many devotees of the innovator, who began his Cuban adventure over 18 months ago with Brownswood Recordings honcho Gilles Peterson, this was the hottest ticket in the capital. Those conversing over pre-gig pints in nearby watering holes – mingling with tattooed, pierced metallers fuelling up on stronger stuff ahead of Motörhead’s performance at Brixton Academy – found that some might have had a different opinion; but each to their own.
Along with the likes of Skream, Benga, Coki and Loefah, Mala pioneered the dubstep sound almost a decade ago. The first waves leaked out from Croydon’s Big Apple Records, and soon after he established the DMZ club night which became legendary. His production skills were admired by many in the scene and Peterson, whose eye for talent and trailblazing is notorious, figured Mala would be the ideal candidate to take his Havana Cultura project to the next level.
In May 2011 Mala and Peterson tripped to the Cuban capital to collaborate with local musicians. The fruits of that visit can be found on his superb album, released in mid-September. “This is the record that reevaluates and realigns the dubstep movement within sound system culture,” Peterson said. And the live version, with a full band and also Havana Cultura diva Danay Suarez, for the beautiful album-closer Noches Sueños, is more impressive still.
As always his sound was deep, bass-heavy, textured and emotive – and the crowd had already been nicely stirred. Playing in the claustrophobic and dark Electric created a special atmosphere for those lucky enough to be head nodding, at the front and back.
The room began to fill at about 11.30pm, warmed up by Thristian ‘bPm’ Richards of Boiler Room fame, and venerated Berlin techno producer Moritz Von Oswald (as well as Tikiman on the mic), ice cool in his roll-neck jumper and three-quarter length coat.
Peterson bookended Mala’s hour-long session delightfully, and showed that he was in the mood for it by having the confidence to play Yusef Lateef’s Like It Is before man of the moment, Mala, entered the fray. It all felt right, all night, and later Quest and Silkie kept the party going until dawn. Here was a room packed full of friends, ready to get sweaty and appreciate this potential game-changer of an album.
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Read our full interview on the making of Mala in Cuba here
Words: Oliver Pickup (twitter.com/CulturedClown)
Photo: Teddy Fitzhugh
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