20 township tech tracks from 2014
Has anyone been wondering whether or not Die Antwoord is still cool? Well, that may come down to taste, but South African music in general is definitely still producing some of the most innovative and multi-generic sounds in the world of analog and digital beatmaking. Coined township tech in 2011 by superstar DJ, Spoek Mathamba, the current body of electronic, hip hop, and house music coming from the very poor and very urban townships of post-Apartheid South Africa is truly shaking things up in the international music industry. For, despite its relatively small listenership outside of the country, electronic and house music in South Africa is being produced and consumed at a higher rate than anywhere else in the world; artists, dance clubs, and performers are hyper-producing music that only begin to cleanse the pallet of a fan base and culture hungry for new sounds and a progressive, national sonic identity. The result is a fusion of Cape Town/Johannesburg house, Kwaito, electronic music, grime, dub, dubstep, and UK garage with older and more traditional forms of South African music.
Take a listen to the 20 best township tech tracks of 2014 and let nostalgia for Die Antwoord transform into a new obsession with the "future sound of Msanzi:"
| 0:00 | "Inkwenkwezi" - Moonchild & Maramza - (jan '14 release) |
| 3:11 | "Fafi" - FANTASMA - Eyes of the Sun EP |
| 6:21 | "Sekwa Sithi (feat. Ruffest)" - Maramza - (nov '14 release) |
| 10:23 | "Clicks & Ticks" - MrAppleSawc - (april '14 release) |
| 12:26 | "Bang Hard" - Maloon The Boom - (dec '14 release) |
| 15:08 | "Red Stem Flowerz" - Jumping Back Slash - I Know My Shapes EP |
| 19:10 | "Hawkword" - More Than Love - Red Bull Studios CPT |
| 22:03 | "I Remember (feat. G-Dog)" - DJ Spoko - Ghost Town EP |
| 27:49 | "Time" - Hlasko - (march '14 release) |
| 31:32 | "Tearz" - Maramza - (oct '14 release) |
| 35:58 | "Plateaux" - Jumping Back Slash - JBS004 |
| 39:58 | "Rome (feat. Okmalumkoolkat, Nonku Phiri & Bra Sol)" - Ox++ - (june '14 release) |
| 44:13 | "Shangrila (feat. Moonchild)" - FANTASMA - Eyes of the Sun EP |
| 47:53 | "Ripping On Some" - Cutting Gems - Cutting Gems EP |
| 50:47 | "Lerato (feat. Noe-Li) [prod. DJ Spoko, DJ Mujava & Panyaza]" - Tribal Warriors - When we ruled EP |
| 55:19 | "Refugio" - Anthony Naples - (dec '14 release) |
| 58:52 | "Always Unfinished But Never Outgunned" - Jumping Back Slash - JBS004 |
| 1:02:36 | "Bump the Cheese Up (Remix) (feat. Toll A$$ Mo, AKA & OkMalumKoolKat)" - Reason - (march '14 release) |
| 1:07:14 | "Kumoshakele (feat. Okmalumkoolkat)" - Jumping Back Slash - NAMHLANJE EP |
| 1:14:04 | "Raga Melomo e [prod. Blaq Ghozt III]" - Bizz Makhi - (may '14 release) |