Belgian beat posse Up High Collective line up their second album ‘Koinonia‘ on DTM Funk’s imprint San-kofa Rhythm Records, rounded off with the audiovisual experience ‘Galiyon‘, filmed in 2021 at STUK Arts Center in Leuven.
‘Koinonia‘ packs 10 kaleidoscopic instrumentals blending South Asian spiritual strains with Brainfeeder-esque beats and orchestral ambient. This release marks the bands return after a 4-year hiatus. Koen De Petter and Renaldo Maria, known as Up High Collective, invited several musicians to participate in their new album, including legendary Belgian drummer Lander Gyselinck and sitar musician Bert Cornelis. ‘Koinonia‘ refers to mutual reciprocity between the collective and guest musicians.
As a way to help visualise the album, Lars Bauwens fuses atomic swamp textures with live performance snippets on the third track, ‘Galiyon‘. For a better understanding of the creative process, the collective shared with us some precious words:
“This video for single ‘Galiyon’ combines visuals and live footage from the world premiere of the track during their AV performance at STUK (Leuven) in 2021. The video is shot by director and photographer Lars Bauwens, a long-standing collective member. The visuals were self-conceived by Up High Collective for the occasion and are based on liquid light show techniques from the 60’s. The crowd that night witnessed the visuals as well on a transparent screen in front of the band, adding an extra layer to the live experience.”
‘Koinonia’ is scheduled for release 11th October via San-kofa Rhythm Records. Order a copy from Bandcamp.
