When Buraka Som Sistema showed to the world in 2006 what could be done with the rhythmic structure of Kuduro, a new sound was born. It wasn’t actually Kuduro neither any of the other genres you could listen in the BSS tracks. At that point there was a need for a new name, but the truth is that there is still no name. No one could classify precisely this new wave of electronic music so far.

Some connoisseurs and opinion makers decided to name it “Global Dance Music”. There’s also the term “Tropical Beats” due to the Caribbean influence in genres such as the UK Funk but for many, the rawness of Kuduro and the way Buraka shows it in their music, made us once again go back to the African continent in search of inspiration.

The HARD ASS SESSIONS project clarifies that reality, but instead of losing time naming that sound we decided to invite several musicians and producers to create original songs, showing us their interpretation of that so called rhythm that is Kuduro, adding or subtracting elements in order to make it work for their own live sets and their dance floor.
Until the day some expert finds a name that defines it, we’ll just call it HARD ASS!

HARD ASS SESSIONS VOLUME VI
BRENMAR/KRY WOLF/CARDOPUSHER/SCHLACHTHOFBRONX
Release date – 25th July 2011
Gathered on Enchufada’s new ‘Hard Ass Sessions’ compilation, the finished product is mighty impressive
ClashMusic.com
There’s high expectations from the Enchufada troupe but Hard Ass Sessions Vol. 6 EP– even on a purely aesthetic level – delivers. Datatransmission
Hotly tipped Brenmar‘s fun, forward thinking productions have been causing a stir for months, and early 2011 saw him take his self-proclaimed “hybrid club music” sound to London, SXSW and Miami WMC, to widespread acclaim. FACT Magazine put him in their ‘Producers to Watch for 2011’ list, Sinden put out his ‘Let Me Know (Tasting)’ EP on his own Grizzly label, and he counts Brodinski, Drop The Lime, Ikonika and J-Wow of Enchufada’s Buraka Som Sistema among his fans and supporters.
In making his track ‘Waiting On’, Brenmar reveals, “The 140 bpm was the first thing that I put down. Most Kuduro is that tempo, so that was a given.  A lot of Southern hip hop is also 140 bpm which is where the vocal hook is from. The arp synths are very house, which help balance the more aggressive elements, and I thought it would be fun to play with a cheekier timbre since most Kuduro is very atonal.” The perfect track to kick off HA6.
Since their debut single ‘Mucky’ was released, London’s Kry Wolf have been setting dancefloors alight with their production and DJ sets. The duo are also behind some of the biggest parties thrown on the UK South coast through uber brand Sumo, not to mention their label Sounds of Sumo. Their studio productions range from house, bass, electro to funky, as they continually refuse to be pigeon-holed. With support coming from Rob da Bank, Sub Focus, Zinc, Martin Brothers, Roska and other big players, they seem to be pushing all the right buttons.
When faced with the Hard Ass challenge, Kry Wolf were thrilled. “We’ve been following Buraka since there first show at Bestival and was blown away by their energy. So to be asked to do this project was a great honour. We just wanted to do it justice! We love the crazy percussion and how raw Kuduro is. We’ve taken those elements and ethos and given it a Kry Wolf twist.”
Born and raised in Caracas, now based in Barcelona, Luis Garbán aka Cardopusher blurs the lines between genres as easily as he crosses geographical borders. Inspired by labels like Tigerbeat6, Schematic, Planet Mu and the whole mashup scene that was happening around the year 2000 he decided to start his own project, and releases soon followed on labels including Peace Off, Shockout, True Tiger, Lo Dubs and Kode 9´s visionary Hyperdub. It’s little wonder FACT named him one of their producers to watch in 2009. His third LP for Tigerbeat6, ‘Yr Fifteen Minutes Are Up’, was released in May 2011.
Inspired by the percussive element and “tropical vibes” of the Kuduro sound, Cardopusher gives us ‘Tu Bizcochito’.
Straight out of Bavaria, Schlachthofbronx have been steadily on the rise, playing raves with the big names of the Global Bass scene. With a big blog buzz and great media feedback around the launch of their self-titled full length debut-album (on Disko B) they toured across Europe. A busy 2010, with 2 EPs on Berlin-based Man Recordings, saw them asked to support Grammy/Oscar-nominated pop princess M.I.A. on her European tour. The guys from Schlachthofbronx are set to go even bigger in 2011, with their first ever North American tour and a release on Diplo’s Mad Decent label.
“We’ve loved Kuduro since we first heard about it through the Buraka guys,” the duo recall, “So it was great to be a part of this. We have been influenced by that rhythm and aesthetic in earlier tracks, so it wasn’t completely new to us. With our track [‘Backup Run’] we wanted to have a really huge build up with lots of sirens etc, a bit as a contrast to the kuduro beat. it works perfectly in the club so far!” We agree!