Hypergiant by Original Swimming Party

Hypergiant is the debut album by Cape Town Afrotronica band Original Swimming Party.

Musically the album is influenced by experimental electronica, shoegaze, ambient and drone, South African music genres including gqom and kwaito, and music from the wider African continent.

The album discusses themes of politics and war (‘Weeping Song II’); privilege, colonialism and the band’s own complicity in the divided state of their country (‘Life In The Colony’, ‘Camissa’). Soaring chord patterns meander through tales of the joys and sorrows of human existence, getting older and the power of letting go (Chords); loneliness and celibacy (‘Skin Upon Skin’) and having a good time amidst existential doubt (‘Darkest Hour’). An overarching theme of life in a time of impending apocalypse - both ecologically and sociologically - is tempered by themes of celebration, healing and redemption.

The album features South African guest artists Greg Abrahams (guitar), Keenan Ahrends (guitar), Gene Kierman (French horn) & Ryan McArthur (bass guitar).

Woven in and out of the music are field recordings from the band’s everyday lives around the City Of Cape Town, including unique binaural recordings of the hidden water tunnels underneath the Cape Town CBD (featured in the track ‘Camissa’, ‘Camissa’ being an ancient Khoi word meaning ‘place of sweet water’ and the original Khoisan pre-colonial name for Cape Town).

The album features artwork by Boston-based visual artist K evin Townsend, who has created a series of drawings based on the the themes of Hypergiant.

Tracklist

1.	Chords	7:38

2.	Skin Upon Skin	3:50

3.	Darkest Hour	5:28

4.	Life In The Colony	5:54

5.	Weeping Song ii	5:49

6.	Undrum	7:35

7.	Talk To Us	2:10

8.	Satisfied	6:35

9.	Camissa	3:09

10.	One With Life	6:02

11.	Thank U	9:14

Credits

released February 24, 2017

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