Digital Bled – Caravana (Tinder Records)
Digital Bled, led by Portugal’s DJ Joao Pedro Velosos mixes dub, funk, and hip hop tempos with musical styles from southern Europe and north Africa.
When Pedro was 11 years old and living in the suburbs of Paris, he began to experiment with different instruments and styles of music. As he grew older, he discovered Pink Floyd, David Bowie and funk (compliments of the theme from the American TV show, Shaft).
As the years flew by, Pedro built a home studio where he mixed soundtracks for movies and fashion shows. Now, along with other international musicians and DJ’s, Pedro brings us his “electro-transhumance” peppered with Arabic influences with his latest release, Caravana.
While electronica, hip hop and house music is not my thing, Digital Bled will appeal to individuals that enjoy the rave culture. I prefer acoustic drums and instruments. Still, I try to be open minded when reviewing CD’s realizing that we all have different taste in musical styles. However, as far as genre goes, Digital Bled offers some transcendental moments and the Arabic ingredients add an originality to the mix.
(Originally appeared on Cranky Crow World Music summer reviews 2002)
Author: Patricia Herlevi
