London-based artist Sabatta release their new album How To Get Even via Blackfriars Entertainment) this week. Today, we are debuting the entire record below, a psych scorched rock album rattling with a whirlwind of searing gritty riffs, frenetic funk-inspired grooves and the incisive empowerment and super charged wake up calls of guitarist and songwriter Yinka Oyewole.
Arriving after the trail blazed by two memorable funkadelic groove-laden singles – ‘Get Over Yourself’, an ode to the obliviously self-important, and ‘Get Your Shit Together’, a wakeup call to the masses. Here, listeners can experience multiple shades of a very particular hue.
From the opening drum rolls of the album’s first track ‘Something’ to the lilting final notes of album closer ‘Small VIctories’, ‘How To Get Even’ is a bit like sitting in a South London dive bar with singer/guitarist , setting the world to rights until the sun comes up. The chorus of the opener defiantly announces ‘I can’t be something you want that I know I’m not!’, a sentiment that runs throughout the album.
Revolving around guitarist and songwriter Yinka Oyewole, who was raised in Essex and is of Nigerian lineage, Sabatta crafts a raw and individual sound with spiky guitar and an inimitable voice, like a mix of Hendrix, QOTSA and early Red Hot Chili Peppers, strained through the sieve of South London. It’s no wonder with musical influences ranging from Curtis Mayfield, Prince, Tupac and Hendrix to Bad Brains, Thin Lizzy, Parliament / Funkadelic and Black Sabbath.
Produced and mixed by Oyewole, this album was recorded by Alex Franklinos at Shrunken Heads Studio (King Krule, Ghostpoet, Songdog, Domino Records) and mastered at London’s EC Mastering (Sony, Universal, BBC).
“‘My voice I was born with, but when it comes to guitar I wanted my own tone. I can’t expose the recipe BUT when I play you definitely know it’s me,” says Yinka Oyewole.
Yinka Oyewole began making noise with Sabatta’s debut album ‘Middle Of the Night’ in 2015, their sound compared to Hendrix and QOTSA, but with an edge like Bad Brains and The Clash, the album’s lead single ‘Politician’ garnered national play on BBC 6 Music, setting the band off touring nationally.
As of November 17, the ‘How To Get Even’ album is available from all fine digital music platforms, including Spotify, Apple Music and Bandcamp, with a CD release anticipated later this winter.
CREDITS
Music & lyrics by Yinka Oyewole
Recorded by Alex Franklinos at Shrunken Heads Studio, London
Produced & mixed by Yinka Oyewole for Blackfriars Entertainment
Mastered by Aaron McIntosh at EC Mastering, London
Yinka Oyewole – guitar, vocals, bass
Adam Frederick Jacques – drums
Cover artwork by Tilt Designs
Artist photography by Marisa Knight
‘Get Over Yourself’ video shot & directed by Rodney Victor Williams
Co-directed by Yinka Oyewole
Edited by Alan Schaaf for Otter Studios
Filmed on location in Borough, South-East London
Aaron Scars – bass (video)
Sebastian Fernandez – drums (video)
Location manager – Art Terry
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Photo Credit: Marisa Knight
