Japanese electronic producer Shigeru Ishihara (aka DJ Scotch Egg) returns under the moniker Scotch Rolex as he joins creative forces with a crew of vocalists from the Ugandan-based experimental club music label Hakuna Kulala. Invited by the Nyege Nyege collective in 2019, the Berlin-based Ishihara’s residency in Uganda introduced him to a slew of artist’s on the collective’s Hakuna Kulala label. The result is an 11-track effort entitled Tewari. Due out April 30th, it features collaborations with MC Yallah, DUMA’s Lord Spikeheart, Swordman Kitala, Chrisman, and Don Zilla.
Ishihara employs a wide lexicon of experimental genres on the album, including breakcore, gabber, chiptune, doom trap, grindcore, and metal, twisting them into a wicked palette perfectly suited to his vocal collaborators. Tewari‘s first single, “Success,” features Lord Spikeheart of the Kenyan-based duo DUMA. His guttural howls send shivers through Ishihara’s aphotic production and charge the track with the pair’s formidable presence.
Hiroo Tanaka directed the video for the cut, and it stars Lord Spikeheart himself. Set against a jungle backdrop and featuring surreal art design and visual effects from Utku Önal, Spikeheart seems to shapeshift just as his vocals slither and boom from the frightening doom-laden soundscape. The resulting fever-dream of imagery is sure to linger in the deep recesses of memory, already making it one of our favorites of 2021.
