This week, Tiger’s Milk, the ace record label started by Martin Morales, the author and chef who founded the Ceviche Peruvian restaurant in London, and Duncan Ballantyne, previously of Soundway and Far Out Records, released a new compilation, Peru Bravo. It’s a collection of 15 tracks from the explosion of Peruvian funk, soul and psych bands that thrived in Lima between 1968 and 1974, in spite of the repressive military dictatorship run by General Juan Velasco Alvarado (hence the name, with bravo alluding to "something that is edgy or dangerous but can also be celebratory, as in English", as the label explain). To mark the compilation’s release, Ballantyne has kindly put together an excellent mix to round off the week especially for the Quietus, drawing partly on tracks from Peru Bravo – Los Belking’s’ ‘Sabata’ and ‘Onsta La Yerbita’ by Los Destellos – as well as material previously put out on Tiger’s Milk.
Says the label of the mix: "This Peruvian blend was conceived in Glasgow by Tiger’s Milk’s Dunk Ballantyne who co-runs the label with author, chef and producer Martin Morales who runs Ceviche and Andina restaurants in London. It showcases Peru past and present from strange and glitchy cumbia jams to the fuzz and funk of 70s Lima with a beeline to Ethiopia and Sudan." Get your ears round that above, while it’s also available to download in exchange for an e-mail address here. Once you’ve done that, Sounds Of The Universe is the place to get hold of Peru Bravo: Funk, Soul & Psych From Peru’s Radical Decade, available on double vinyl, CD and download.
