ARP FRIQUE Schallplatten & CDs

Review: Niels Nieuborg has long been a player on Holland's live music scene, largely working with ex-pat musicians from Carpe Verde and Surinam. This superb three-track EP marks his first recorded output and includes collaborations with vocalists Americo Brito and Orlando Julius. The latter stars on two up-tempo chunks of boogie-era Afrobeat that sit somewhere between the Moog-driven brilliance of William Onyeabor and the up-tempo urgency of vintage Afro-disco. It's arguably A-side "Nos Magia", featuring Brito's distinctive vocals, that really stands out, though. Spacey and incessantly funky with fizzing electronics, urgent Clavinet lines and crispy Afro-funk guitars, it's not only a killer club cut but also a thing of rare beauty.