Somatic Rituals Co-founder Kombé Announces Debut EP 'Foreign Exchange'

Somatic Rituals co-founder Kombé embraces flux and uncertainty on his debut EP, ‘Foreign Exchange'. He tools up five tracks built for adventurous DJs, constructed from an assemblage of liquid polyrhythms - inspired by the constant movement of foreign exchange markets and the plurality of Kombe's own cultural and sonic references that give rise to his distinct sound.

‘Foreign Exchange' balances function and narrative across its 25-minute length, with each track existing as a strong individual outing and as a piece of a greater whole. The EP contrasts and finds common ground between disparate ideas and concepts, rooted in intelligent percussion, intentional sampling, and a synthesis of organic and machine-made sounds.

It explores the parallels of currency exchange and cultural exchange, perpetually fluctuating financial markets and the shifting sands of the audio marketplace, the fetishisation of money and fetishisation in electronic music - whilst juxtaposing East African and European vocal samples over hypnotic, angular grooves that evoke traditional and ritual-based musical contexts. Rhythms slowly unfurl and coalesce into a storm, periodically settling into moments of reprieve while encouraging dancers to find their own relief in the syncopated patterns.

EP opener ‘Batian' opens with skipping, filtered synth stabs over a stuttered kick that develops into a driving, serpentine rhythm underneath whirling atmospherics reminiscent of torn metal, sinew, and electricity. ‘Emerging Markets' disorients you with a woozy, seasick groove underpinning a clicktrack beat, all welded to a disjointed kick that steps in and out of the arrangement, taunting a response from dancers.

‘Third Pillar' functions as an elevated DJ tool with its galloping rhythm and bubbling hand drums that settle dancers into their hips, while vocals reminiscent of ASMR on a bad acid trip evoke the harmony and dissonance of man-machine collaboration. ‘Taarab Fragments' moves into moodier territory, welding DNA from Swahili coastal genre Taarab to subaquatic Detroit electro atmospherics - holding a delicate tension until a darbuka line bursts through and rewards your patience.

The textural, pensive, and beatless ‘Future Entropy Quest' closes the EP with spiralling synth swirls and a looming bassline that suggests the questions provoked by the record have no clear resolution, leaving listeners to sit with the enduring volatility of markets and cultural values.

Kombé delivers a clear statement of intent with ‘Foreign Exchange', offering a hybrid vision in the form of dance music for a freaky club or tripping forest rave that flows between worlds, cultures, and traditions with fluidity and grace.