AKKAN WITH SELF-TITLED DEBUT ALBUM

Born out of the collaboration between Barcelona producers BeGun and Ocellot, AKKAN are one of the most intriguing acts to come out of the current global electronic music scene that has been redefining dance music with the use of folkloristic grooves and organic sounds. The duo came together after a shamanic and hallucinogenic journey in Southern Africa, during which the two Catalan musicians started working on what will become their signature sound; club-oriented organic electronica characterized by jungle sounds, shimmering analog synths, tribal percussions, exotic vocals, trippy melodies and folk instruments that flow in a stimulating and highly contagious array of beats.

The album, composed as a journey, was produced between the duo’s studios in the Irish countryside and Barcelona embracing the different global musical influences they encountered during their adventures. From field recordings taken from the streets of Mexico while touring, collaborations with local producers to setting up sound-systems in the foreign places they stayed during their nomadic life. The final product is as eclectic as sincere, an album born in several places around the world, inspired by different sounds. “We love African music, also the new Latin sounds coming from South America, we even take from Arabic influences and Japanese psychedelia. It’s the fusion between folklore and electronica that allows us to take the best of both worlds and to create something completely new.

The album follows up on a string of stimulating singles including ‘Ananda’ ft. Chancha Vía Circuito – built around melodic patterns recorded in Colombia during a South American tour – the Resident Advisor-approved ‘ANIMA’ feat. Nicola Cruzcollaborator Huaira, while last summer ‘El Mutal’ EP, which has seen support from the likes of DMC World, Indie Shuffle and Kane FM, to name a few. Album opener and upcoming second single ‘Star Sitar’, was inspired by listening to a local Delhi radio in India and recorded thanks to an unexpected improvisation session with local sitar players.

The duo’s early EPs, the DJ Mag-supported debut EP ‘Bananat’ and ‘Kai’, were released on trailblazer Parisian label La Belle Records, while ‘Regaliu’, their second EP – released on cult Barcelona imprint Foehn Records – already garnered the attention of some of the most respected DJs in the world, including SONNS, Ivan Smagghe, Jennifer Cardini and Ewan Pearson, the duo are known for their organic live shows, which Nialler9 included in their Best of Iceland Airwaves Festival, “no laptop in sight, one of them on controllers and the other on digital percussion – the recorded versions of their fruity, balmy electronics are brought up to a fever pitch making everyone dance”. Whilst their releases have been praised in the pages of credible dance music publications including, DJ Mag, Faze, Tsugi and DMC World, while their tracks travelled the world thanks to spins on Rinse FM, Worldwide FM, RTE Pulse and Kane FM.