V/A – Luke Una Presents Soul Cultura Vol.2

Description

Mr Bongo presents a much anticipated second volume of Soul Cultura, curated by the charismatic Manchester based DJ Luke Una. In May 2022, Soul Cultura Vol.1 seemed to land at exactly the right moment. Post-lockdown, optimism was back on the rise and the dance floors swelled again. For many listeners, Luke Unas intriguingly woven pattern of new, old, rare and under-discovered music from around the world became the soundtrack to rejuvenated positivity. Piccadilly Records made the release their top compilation of the year, with Rough Trade placing it as their number two. The enthusiasm from the industry was mirrored by record buyers and demonstrated that in the right hands, moving through genres, tempos and decades can make perfect musical sense.

It was clear from the get-go that the concept warranted a series, there are many sides to Soul Cultura and many musical stories to tell. This second volume gives another opportunity for Luke to share his journey of the past four decades of staying up late and getting transcendental whilst listening to holy grail music as the city slept. It follows on from where Vol.1 left off, at times venturing into the deeper, spiritual, soulful, downtempo, experimental aspects of his tastes. From the conscious, street soul fusion gospel ofVeronica Mickie’s ‘Lost Children’, to an excursion into Swiss, psych, progressive rock in the form of Pyranha, then onto the classic Indian music-inspired electronic workout of Andi Otto’s ‘Bangalore Whispers’. Luke hints at his softer side in Avis; a sweet, obscure cover version of Minnie Ripertons Baby, This Love I Have, as well as championing local heroes in the shape of Manchesters Yargo and their driving, obscure, proto-house belter, Marimba. Theres also Japanese, electronic, slo-mo heaviness from 1979, courtesy of Bach Revolution. House music is integral to the Soul sound and is represented by Nav Aktahs deep remix of Mr Scruff, and then theres Isis In Essense; a track of such majestic brilliance that it has never left Lukes record bag.

The selection is eclectic, global, and plucked from different times and spaces. In theory, perhaps they shouldn’t work together, but there is a mysterious link that makes them gel as a whole. Thats what Luke does best. He creates a sort of musical alchemy, unifying the diverse. This isnt a compilation focussed purely on the rare, even though many tracks featured do fall into that camp. It is best described by Luke himself, Its not about showing off, collector rarity, or ego-strutting, its all about telling stories, sharing the music, and making lifes journey mean something. In the end, of course, its just a compilation of other peoples music, but hopefully its more than that, adding something back to the pot.

Beginning his career as an original Sheffield house young blood in the mid 1980s, Lukes move to Manchester and partnership with Justin Crawford saw the birth of Electric Chair, a cornerstone cult night in the UK underground club scene. Then later Electric Elephant, a Croatian festival paying homage to their wild eclecticism from Balearic to Brazilian to Soul, house, disco and techno. Lukes much loved, long-running Homoelectric night and more recently Homobloc sell out festival for 10,000 souls has been at the forefront of Manchesters LGBTQ+ cultural landscape.

Lukes Friday evening show on Worldwide FM captured imaginations and became a cult four-hour must-listen monthly journey for fans all over the world. Today, Luke remains, as ever, at the forefront of a changing milieu, pairing the momentous legacy of Manchesters 80s and 90s scene with the delivery of what todays club communities need to get down.