The band, founded and led by Oliver Belz, started in 2005 under the mantle of The Juju Orchestra, blending soul, jazz, funk, bossa nova, afro, and Caribbean into their sound. Their first album under the current name was called “Rhythm Is What Makes Jazz Jazz” and saw collaboration with guests such as Nouvelle Vague’s Isabelle Antena and Mrs. Pat Appleton of DePhazz, with whom they formed a 9-piece group. Since then, they’ve released four more albums, and are soon releasing their fifth. In 2017, Belz moved the band to the Western Algarve, between Lagos and Sagres.

Oliver Belz spoke about his move to The Portugal News, explaining “I came here for the first time in 1976! With an old Mercedes 200dD and my first driver’s license. Then I came back from time to time and the paradise never lost any of its fascination. I decided to make a living here, and I haven’t regretted a second!”

Oliver has been working in the music industry for almost 55 years. “In the 90’s I discovered my love for composition, sound engineering and music production and wrote ballet scores for several theatres,” he said. “I also produced for major record companies and created sound designs for great show events at Volkswagen. Finally, I decided to bring all these experiences together and work only on my own kind of music. To complete my musical cosmos, I started my own record company called Buyú-Records and a publishing agency.”


SUNDUB SOCIETY


The idea for their newest album, ‘SUNDUB SOCIETY’, came after they worked with a few Portuguese friends from the Algarve in their previous album, ‘Bohemia After Dawn’.

“Increasingly during the last production, I became aware of the amazing complexity of local artists, talented individuals to be found performing all day and night in the bars and near the beaches,” Belz explained how he found the collaborators for these albums. “These artists from the local neighbourhood, quite literally across the lane. What a discovery! So, I found my studio blessed with some serious vibes. The SUNDUB SOCIETY, my lovely family at the End of The World.”

The album was made with backing vocals from Maisha, Ale Rista playing slide guitar and Rui Correia on the Cana Rachada, a traditional Portuguese instrument from the Tagus basin region. Josephine Nightingale, Tiago Saga, Ally Garrido, Naomi Falcon, Cutty Wren, Hedvig Larsson and The Chicks On Beer came on the project as guests, all locals to the area.


Combining styles


“It was a longer, interesting process,” Belz spoke on his time working on the album. “I learned much about combining different styles and grooves. It’s an album recorded mainly with the local legends. To me personally, it’s the most different album to all other productions before. Sure, it’s based on Bahama Soul’s renowned rhythm and sound with all the love to hidden details in arrangement and production, but this time I shuffled more bits of Reggae, woven threads of 70s roots, lush arrangements, and captivating hangout vibes.

“To be honest, to develop Reggae music as an own art form was the most challenging task. The combination of Reggae with Afrolicious Bossa-Jazz and Sul was finally pure satisfaction. That’s definitely my personal sound of the Southwestern Algarve.”

The first song to be formed in the album was ‘HangOut’, dedicated to a small surfer’s bar close to Sagres called ‘The HangOut’. “We were hanging out as usual, chatting about all the good things when ‘HangOut’ started as a musical studio jam, with no intention of a commercial release! But it grew slowly, with a lot of fun, and while Hedvig was getting comfortable with the idea of becoming part of the Bahama family, another gentleman walked in,” Belz explained the origins of the track. “British chef de cuisine, restaurant owner and electic DJ Mr. Cutty Wren. A colourful jack of all trades who offered a few raps that perfectly rendered the beautiful scenery in The Hangout.” The two artists featured happened to live door-to-door in the village of Raposeira. “Very interesting that neither are singers, not professionally, but to all of us it was a magical session anyway and just a sign to go further.”

Oliver Belz contemplated his thoughts on the album, both as in his own latest work, and the concept as a whole: “I’m that age where I was lucky enough to have grown up with the art form of the album. Unfortunately, this art form is disappearing more and more, especially in times of Spotify. But not for me, really! A new album is a statement by an artist for a certain period, and it consists of several songs in a certain order. Each song is pretty important! Sometimes it took me months to be fully satisfied with a single track, but luckily, I knew that the special day would come. Then, you sit in the studio, listen to a track, get goosebumps, listen again, goosebumps again and there is absolutely nothing left to change – a feeling of supreme satisfaction. Believe me, it’s hard to describe, but for me, it’s what I live for. That is true happiness. I don’t care how much work it took to reach this state, every track is a pearl! Shaped to the max, a wonderful jewel, like a baby. You can’t ask a mother which child she is most proud of.”

SUNDUB SOCIETY releases on the 7th of July on vinyl, CD, and digital. The Bahama Soul Club will be playing 2 exclusive shows on the 7th and 8th June 2023 in the Dromedário bistro bar in Sagres. Oliver, in the meantime, has joined a craft brewery, the Bossa Brew House, also in Sagres. “Really, crafting my own beer, a childhood dream, has now come true in my brewery. So, when I’m not available in the studio, not on some stage around, I’m brewing beer. Come by, try it!”

Author

Star in the 2015 music video for the hit single “Headlights” by German musician, DJ and record producer Robin Schulz featuring American singer-songwriter Ilsey. Also a journalist.

Jay Bodsworth