Panter, the debut single by electronic duo Montparnasse Musique, is announced as the first release on a new imprint of Real World Records. The imprint, named Real World X, will explore different ways of collaborating and partnering with music creators and innovators across genres, and will be a vehicle for the label to react nimbly to exciting new musical discoveries — beginning with cross-continental act Montparnasse Musique.
Real World x Montparnasse Musique
Montparnasse Musique, who have partnered with Real World for a series of singles and an EP, are a production duo comprising Algerian-French producer Nadjib Ben Bella and rising star of the South African dance circuit, DJ Aero Manyelo.
On their debut single, they have collaborated with Kinshasa-based collective Kasai Allstars to create an audacious dance track combining the acoustic grit of traditional Africa with the pulse of modern Johannesburg — gqom, kwaito, techno, afrohouse. The result is an inevitable evolution of Congotronics into a sharp-edged, club-ready sound.
The single is accompanied by a video shot by renowned filmmaker Renaud Barret (Benda Bilili!, Système K) which exhibits the fierce, independent spirit of Kinshasa’s urban youths or ‘Les Shégués’ as they roam the Congolese capital — their playground — embodying the same wild energy and spontaneity that lies at the heart of Montparnasse Musique.
‘Panter’ features the powerful voice of Kasai Allstars’ Muambuyi (from the Congolese rainforest region), whose lyrics call upon a tribal leader to reveal his mystic powers in front of his followers. The track was recorded and mixed by Kwezydoctor at Khaima Studio in Lille, France.
More about Montparnasse Musique
Nadjib Ben Bella is a DJ and producer who draws influences from the gnawa music of his North African roots and a diverse range of Sub-Saharan sounds from musicians he has worked with over the years. Most recently he has been touring Europe with West African band Les Amazones d’Afrique.
Aero Manyelo, a name now synonymous with the burgeoning South African house scene, has honed a distinctive electronic sound that translates across the international club circuit and has attracted a broad range of collaborators — including Idris Elba and The Mahotella Queens on the opening track of an album inspired by the Nelson Mandela biopic Long Walk to Freedom.
article posted by:Amanda Jones, Real World Records / WOMAD