DJ Spoko is a South African DJ/producer who came up under the tutelage of Shangaan Electro mastermind Nozinja, and, consequently, mentored DJ Mujava, eventually helping produce the massive “Township Funk” song. Lately, he’s been working on a new style of dance music he’s calling bacardi house, and this track is one of his latest experiments. “Mzansi,” which is a local slang term used to refer to South Africa, is a sharp, bouncing kwaito mover produced with a distinct ear for old-school synth and drum machine sounds. Whether the effect is inadvertent or not, DJ Spoko’s track invokes the spirit of another time when simple production techniques paired with a strong groove were all you needed for a good tune. He forgoes the plug-in-obsessed production tactics of most contemporary electronic music, aiming for a stripped down, straightforward, hardware-based house aesthetic, which effectively bolsters the soul of “Mzansi” more than any glossed-over computerized sound ever could. (via Altered Zones)

Mzansi

Mzansi