Sila Ptahi makes abstract beat tapes which, save for two released with Nekubi Tapes and Haju Tapes, are shared anonymously on SoundCloud. For Episode 59, Ptahi assembled an hour-long block of dust-covered soul and hip-hop, heavily optimized for headnods. Selections traverse syrupy sampledelia, jazzy instrumentals, and time-warped balladry, with careful attention paid to texture and tempo.
The episode’s second block catches up with 2018. A pastiche of new modes, the set kicks off with Jon Bap‘s frenetic new jack swing, Akiko Kiyama‘s scattered percussion, and Meitei / 冥丁‘s mood tribute to 19th-century painter Kawanabe Kyosai. Onto Anenon‘s latest fusion (of soprano sax, piano, synth and field recordings) on Friends of Friends, spacious dream-folk from Montreal songwriter Alexia Avina (courtesy of Cuddle Formation’s label Never Content), followed by woodwind drone via Eve Essex‘s tape out today on Soap Library. Next is a Séance Centre-reissued 1987 cut by Mexican guitarist/synthesist Eblen Macari, a Balearic night drive from Sydney’s Angophor, buzzing free jazz from Japan (that’s woodblue on MPC, Yudai Suzuki aka Multi purpose studio on trumpet, and Hiroko Arima on stone), and, finally, a tender bedroom-pop outro from New York-based artist Grub (hat tip, Tyler).
Hour One: Mix by Sila Ptahi
Hour Two: Freeform
Jon Bap – Voice Memo from 2013 / _Stuck_
Aalko – Body & Soul
Meitei / 冥丁 – Kawanabe Kyosai / 河鍋暁斎
Anenon – Open
Alexia Avina – Bird
Eve Essex – Here Appear
Eblen Macari – Supernova en Macuspana
Angophora – Uncarved
Hiroko Arima, Multi purpose studio, Woodblue – re-flectionB
Grub – Baby in the Sea
S&S Radio broadcasts every now and then on Newtown Radio.