Review: Mulukèn Mellèssè - Mulukèn Mellèssè with The Dahlak Band (Heavenly Sweetness)

Bandcamp Friday and out today! Mulukèn Mellèssè with The Dahlak Band is a big surprise!

I love how label's like Heavenly Sweetness can swing from he brilliant Ludivine Issambourg (check her album, 'Above The Laws' - see review HERE) to a 12" from the Djingo Typical Band 'Vini Ouais (see reviw HERE) to this gem of a LP by Mulukèn Mellèssè. 

Mulukèn Mellèssè! Who? Indeed, you could say that as this is the "lost masterpiece of the Swinging Addis era".   Originally released in 1976, it's said to be one of the final Ethiopian LPs before the Derg regime halted independent musical life and reshaped the country’s cultural landscape.

So it's a bit of a surprise that it sounds in the Mulatu Astatke ball park as it showcases the extraordinary voice of Mulukèn Mellèssè, a prodigy whose emotional depth, lyrical sensitivity, and early recordings made him one of the most singular figures in modern Ethiopian music

Backed by the visionary Dahlak Band, featuring major arrangers and instrumentalists of the time; the album reflects a rare level of musical refinement, blending ethio-groove, soul, jazz-inflected horns, and hypnotic rhythms

A vital historical restoration, revealing the creative peak of Ethiopia’s modern music scene just before its abrupt suppression - now reissued to reclaim its place as a cornerstone of the Ethiopian groove canon

Bound to sell-out fast so get your pre-orders in now.

BUY LINK / PRE-ORDER: Muluken Mellesse With The Dahlak Band | Muluken Mellesse | ETHIOPIQUES SERIES

Artist: Mulukèn Mellèssè  

Title:  Mulukèn Mellèssè with The Dahlak Band

Release Date : 5th December

Catalog Number : TBC-

Label : Heavenly Sweetness

Format:  Vinyl / CD / Digital / Bandcamp