Trans-Global Underground Spring 08: Winners of The Club Global Category in the BBC World Music Awards

TransGlobal Underground’s award in the Club Global Category of the BBC World Music Awards comes during one of their busiest periods ever. At the time of the awards ceremony itself they were in the middle of a tour of France finishing up in Paris with a date with Mediterranean band Watchaclan (whose acclaimed new album, ‘Diaspora HiFi’ features Tim Whelan from TransGlobal Underground  on additional production and the premiere of the film ‘Whatever Lola Wants’ a movie set in Egypt for which TransGlobal Underground collaborated with Natacha Atlas on much of the music.

The tour marked the release of the current album, Moonshout in France, together with the simultaneous release of a live DVD recorded in Brittany last year, accompanied by a documentary exploring the London roots of the collective. TransGlobal Underground are now embarking on dates in the UK throughout the summer, still promoting Moonshout, along with a a forthcoming single from the album ‘Dancehall Operator’ which features mixes by Radio 1 DJ Tayo and drum and bass maestro RCola.

As if all that wasn’t enough, they’ve also rolled out a new release on their own Mule Satellite label: ‘Beach Bellydance Babylon,’ a psychedelic surf bellydance burlesque extravaganza featuring members of Trans-Global Underground and Natacha Atlas’ band. Meanwhile sitarist Sheema Mukherjee will have her own album released later this year, besides appearing live later in the year with the 21st century English folk project The Imagined Village, winners of a BBC Folk Award folk award for a track produced by Trans-Global Underground.

There’s more on the live front: vocalist Krupa is busy putting together her own solo dates, working with TransGlobal Underground’s Hamid ManTu. Both are also appearing regularly in West London at Club Dunes, a monthly night based round the psychedelic Krautrock influenced 3 piece Lunar Dunes….one of the 3 being Hamid ManTu on drums.