{"id":13263,"date":"2020-11-23T09:00:05","date_gmt":"2020-11-23T08:00:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.auxsons.com\/?post_type=focus&p=13263"},"modified":"2020-11-24T11:15:11","modified_gmt":"2020-11-24T10:15:11","slug":"diggers-adventurers-into-almost-lost-sounds","status":"publish","type":"focus","link":"https:\/\/www.auxsons.com\/en\/focus\/diggers-adventurers-into-almost-lost-sounds\/","title":{"rendered":"Diggers, adventurers into almost lost sounds"},"content":{"rendered":"

As their name suggests, \u201cdiggers\u201d are like miners. Plunging deep into the bowels of music, they unearth nuggets to share with the world. <\/strong>We meet some of those who pan for gold in the music of yesteryear for a better understanding of how they work and to get to the bottom of most recent developments. <\/strong><\/p>\n

For a long time \u201cdigging\u201d was the preserve of collectors who tried to preserve musical heritage buried deep on antediluvian disks of black wax. At the dawn of club culture, \u201cdigger\u201d became a sort of badge of honour, self-proclaimed by DJs who knew how to exhume and re-cut gems of sound for the dancefloor. But the rights of artists and producers were not always respected; passion for a particular title sometimes took precedence over the rights of their creators and producers. Today, with the world just a click away, \u201cdiggers\u201d have become like archaeologists 3.0, needing to combine their love of a groove with expertise in ethnomusicology and music law.<\/p>\n

Ear and flair<\/strong><\/p>\n

Deni Shain, whose name has been attached to the compilations Space Echo<\/em> and Bitori<\/em> (Cape Verde), Pop Makossa<\/em> (Cameroon) and, since 2018, to his label Atangana Records, has been digging for a decade. \u201cI started in Portugal<\/em>,\u201d he says. \u201cI had a residency at Musicbox, a club in Lisbon. When I came out at 6 am, I\u2019d rush over to the Feira da Ladra, the local flea market, where Cape Verdeans and Haitians were selling their family 45s<\/em>\u201d he remembers. \u201cThat\u2019s how you build your collection, your sound fingerprint<\/em>\u201d. <\/em>His love of music and meeting new people did the rest. \u201cIt\u2019s a real job,<\/em>\u201d he continues: \u201cYou have to have an ear and flair because you need to find good titles then track down the rightsholders. If you want to turn them into a compilation to sell, you have to find the producers as well as the artists<\/em>\u201d. In the age of the internet, this treasure hunt might seem simpler, but, as far as he\u2019s concerned, nothing beats \u201cbeing out there on the ground, word of mouth or even luck<\/em>\u201d.<\/p>\n

Sometimes the rightsholders themselves call upon the expertise of these archivists. Based in Pointe-\u00e0-Pitre (Guadeloupe) since 2019, Deni Shain is digitising the catalogue of the legendary Guadeloupean producer, singer and songwriter Henri Debs, who died seven years ago. \u201cHis son Ryko restored his studio and wanted to archive his father\u2019s recordings (400 albums and 300 45s),<\/em>\u201d the DJ<\/span> tells us. \u201cThe notion of heritage is important here. Being surrounded by all these records is a real treat for a digger<\/em>\u201d. As a good activist, this DJ<\/span> \u2013 who now works as a duo alongside DJ<\/span> After as part of the KalBass Sound-System \u2013 is planning an audio-visual counterpart, a series of documentaries and audio-books to expand his restoration work, and the next release from his label, Mizik La Ka Dans\u00e9<\/em>, is a compilation of biguine-latin rhythms from the Debs catalogue.<\/p>\n

Mizik La Ka Dans\u00e9<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

https:\/\/\u200bwww\u200b.youtube\u200b.com\/\u200bw\u200ba\u200bt\u200bc\u200bh\u200b?\u200bv\u200b=\u200bZ\u200bS\u200b2\u200bw\u200bo\u200bk\u200bh\u200bV\u200buNQ<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Indiana Jones of music<\/strong><\/p>\n

But how many titles are sitting on a shelf, just waiting for someone to trace back their rights genealogy so they can be \u201ccleared\u201d for use? There\u2019s no shortage of stories on the subject. Page after page could be written about respectful diggers, artists and producers cheated by unscrupulous \u201cfans\u201d, and funny anecdotes, \u201ceven if the sums at stake are rarely huge,<\/em>\u201d as \u00c9tienne Tron points out. The DJ<\/span>, producer and manager of the Secousse label makes it clear that the rights of creators and producers are better taken into account now than in the past: \u201cAs the internet globalises even the smallest release in an instant, you can\u2019t do whatever you like any more. Everyone knows about everything now. Labels like Soundway and Honest Jon\u2019s have also helped raise the bar in terms of content and respecting people\u2019s rights, as well as sound quality, which has had a positive impact on the small digger community<\/em>\u201d.<\/p>\n

Neba Solo. Hymne de la CAN<\/span> 2002<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n