El Michels Affair

Murkit Gem b/w Cham Cham

El Michels Affair is back with another two-sider picture sleeve 7”.

The A side, “Murkit Gem,” taken from the upcoming album, Yeti Season, is another pairing of El Michels Affair’s unpredictable brand of soul and the lilting vocals of Piya Malik. From the crack of the first snare this one sinks its teeth in you. The backing music simultaneously has the swag of the darker side of Wu Tang as well as the light-hearted bounce of a cartoon theme song. Piya Malik’s vocals dance all over the tune, cementing “Murkit Gem” as an unlikely but undeniable “get to the dancefloor now” record.

The B side “Cham Cham” is a non-album cut exclusive to this 45. Again EMA invites Piya Malik to the microphone and she shares her styled storytelling vocals. It is the vocal version of “Perfect Harmony,” which appears on Yeti Season sans vocals.

Picture sleeve art by the legendary Ghanaian artist, Mr Brew. Courtesy of Deadly Prey Gallery, Chicago, IL.