Norma Panduro, Andrés Córdoba, Josii Yakecan, Othon - Othon AYA Remixes Vol 1

Othon has been on a beautiful personal journey since we last covered him around the time of his Pineal album. Pineal was split into two parts. The first part continued the wonderful piano based tracks and ongoing collaboration with the flamboyant cabaret artist Ernesto Tomasini, mixing his classical and experimental tendencies with dance rhythms that reflected nights spent in hot sweaty London's clubs. It was on the second part where Othon broke new ground, producing spirited rhythmic tribal sounds directly inspired by his travels in the Brazilian rainforest where he took part in life-transforming ayahuasca ceremonies and discovered the medicine and healing songs that would come to play such a central role in his life. Pineal even featured the voices of the shamans Javier Arevalo Shahuano and Jessica Ramirez Seopa, as well as his other long term collaborator Marc Almond, who featured, alongside Othon's self assembled Ayahuasca choir on the evocative tribal dance of 'Cobra Coral'. Pineal documented the spiritual and musical transformation of Othon.

Othon has kept those positive vibrations flowing through his club nights known as Papa Loko, which first aired nascent versions of some of these tracks now released digitally on his own Conscious Expansion label. For this inaugural release, in tribute to those transformative experiences in the Brazilian rainforest which continue to inform his life he returns to ceremonial songs providing DJ remixes of some of his favourite "medicine" songs by the Peruvian curandera Norma Panduro, Andrés Córdoba from Colombia and Josii Yakecan from Brazil.

Othon AYA Remixes Vol 1 I is quite an inspiring release pushing Othon's music further into clubland and a million miles musically from what we usually cover on these pages but mixing hallucinogens and music isn't really something new to us, is it? The digital EP starts off from a scattering of indigenous voices and electronics, with Othon's remix of 'Icaro Sagrado' giving way to the melodic chanting of the late Norma Panduro, the "Queen of Ayahuasca". Pulsing with beats, shakers and percussion to embellish the Peruvian medicine song it's an entrancing, dreamy and evocative track, at times, overlapped by flurries of synth squelch and experimental textures. Norma Panduro dedicated her life to ayahuasca and its healing properties and this track perfectly balanced between haunting chants and beats radiates only positivity.

'Cura Sana' sets off from a flickering haze of electronics, sound claps and beats, sweeping up and then cutting back to the spirited voice and guitar picking of Andrés Córdoba, a Colombian musician and healer. From underneath rhythms build adorning the traditional folk song with dance and tribal rhythms, swelling and tumbling back to the authentic strains of the traditional folk song, before it is whipped up via waves of electronics into an ecstatic mix of club beats, tribal rhythms and flutes and onwards into a joyous and delirious rhythmic climax.

A lovely interplay of hand drums and percussion, shrouds the evocative female chants of 'Mamae Oxum' as pounding electronics slip from underneath. Rolling rhythms rise from deep earthy synths, with electronic beats as Josii Yakecan weaves her sensual melodic magic. Flourishes of enchanting forest flutes only add to the Amazonian allure. In any language 'Mamae Oxum' clearly vibrates with love, healing and the force of nature.

Othon's remixes are so natural and organic they seamlessly merge these medicine songs with electronics and beats. He is such an accomplished musician that his arrangements although club based still retain an air of authenticity around the traditional songs. Give them a listen and let the life affirming vibrations of these medicine and healing songs given a dancefloor makeover seep into your being. All proceeds from this release are going to Amazon Watch and the Tama Cona Foundation run by Andrés Córdoba which brings healing and spiritual transformation through yage ceremonies to young drug addicts and vulnerable members of their community in Colombia. Othon AYA Remixes Vol 1 is the first release on his Conscious Expansion label which intends to focus on the cosmic, transcendent and soul-expanding expressions of electronic and ambient music. Othon AYA Remixes Vol 1 is available at Beatport