It’s with pleasure that our reticle refocuses on Poland again. For us it remains a fascinating zone, populated by untapped talent and movements which deserve to be spotlit. Previous ventures have seen us skip between map coordinates, firstly in Warsaw towards the tailend of May 2014 and followed by trips to Wroclaw, Krakow and Białystok – each time with high energy results.
King Of Kong is the next collective in the BR headlights – not merely a record label but a well-oiled publishing, management and event-curating machine fronted by Artur8. As head honcho, he has heralded umpteen parties and festivals in his time. His curation of Astigmatic Festival was the first boutique festival in Poland, placing emphasis on a unique concept which had Holger Czukay rubbing shoulders with the likes of Carl Craig, Egyptian Lover and Joakim Tigersushi. Their steps have always kept ‘international’ in the back of their thoughts – an ethos forged out of love, yes but also down to a faltering record distribution landscape in the country.
This love spills into their approach to collaborations – open-minded, border-crossing. King Of Kong have worked hand-in-hand with a number of similar-reaching labels: Prins Thomas’ Internasjonal, Under The Shade and Gomma to name a few. The latest Internasjonal hook up sees Maximilain Skiba‘s “Shanghouse” take flight, a piano-laden house ode to a recently deceased friend by the name of Kosakaot.
Next Wednesday, the head honcho takes to the Boiler Room wheel for a fittingly inter-border affair. He’ll be joined by Polish electro and funk house purveyor, Maximilian Skiba, as well as a live performance from KDMS (UK/Poland) and Berlin’s Noema. The setting is a particularly special one to boot. 6 Cocktails is a watering hole tucked inside one of the oldest and most beautiful surviving relics from World War II Warsaw. Ready your ears.