Various

𝙄𝙨𝙡𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙅𝙪𝙧𝙖 𝙩𝙚𝙖𝙢𝙨 𝙪𝙥 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙁𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙝 𝙙𝙞𝙜𝙜𝙚𝙧 𝙎𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙘𝙝 𝙂𝙧𝙤𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙭𝙩 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙞𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙞𝙩𝙡𝙚𝙙 ‘𝘼𝙧𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙥𝙚𝙡𝙖𝙜𝙤 – 𝘾𝙤𝙨𝙢𝙞𝙘 𝙁𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙂𝙚𝙢𝙨 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙁𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 (𝟭𝟵𝟳𝟴-𝟭𝟵𝟴𝟴)’.

Switch Groove explains the concept “When I seriously began to search for and collect records, I was mostly interested in sounds from african-american, afro-latin and UK contemporary scenes. Sounds from distant territories, faraway from my native Massif Central, a highland region in the middle of France. The grass is always greener, I guess however, as I was digging in fleamarkets in the early sunday morning light, as well as spending regular sessions in second hands record shops, I began to discover hidden treasures, underground gems and side-projects of an unknown French musical repertoire.

French music is often reduced to its most famous musical forms, characters and signatures : French songwriting and voices, 60s yéyé, prog rock concept albums and soundtrack explorations, 80’s indie rock scene or more recently electronic French touch. All these sounds have a common feature : a geographical link, forged on mainland French territory, following the contour of the so-called Hexagone, the border that shapes the grounds for an homogeneous cultural expression. But beyond this showcase lie more complex, hybrid and global French productions. From French Caribbean Antilles to Parisian suburbs - especially during the ‘Sono Mondiale’ era -, in French areas outside urban cultural centers, musicians have created fusion and cosmic musical expressions. As the mid-seventies meant a greater freedom to make and record music, a wider use of electronic instruments like synthesizers and drum machines helped to deliver some magical projects you could only find lost in the middle of cheap records during a sunny record digging session. I selected these tracks, in an attempt to shape an ARCHIPELAGO that highlights significative contributions of African diasporas and ultramarine territories into French musical borders. It is the map of a land I have gradually drawn, thanks to deep listening of amazing cosmic and fusion tunes. I hope you enjoy the journey.”