Ozi Batla gets ready to drop his debut solo album Wild Colonial on May 14th. He’s taken part in plenty of other musical projects over his time as an Elefant Traks artist, but never once done a solo album. Personally i’m really looking forward to this album, this years shaping up with some great releases. You can check out a limited stream of the entire album at the bottom of this post. Update: now available on iTunes.
Ozi Batla - Put It On wax
OZI BATLA – WILD COLONIAL (MAY 14) Elefant TraksAt long last, the debut solo record from Ozi Batla – Wild Colonial.The most personal record of Ozi’s career sees him pick apart the pieces and put them back together over the course of 12 songs. Padded with humour and honesty, Wild Colonial reveals the passions of love, life and hip hop culture; as well as loneliness, contradictions and a sense of purpose. Rich in imagery and reflection, songs like ‘Distant Shore’ where the “morning sun might save his life” achieve that great rarity of genuinely moving the listener.Sandro has a crate-digger’s aesthetic, previously having worked with the likes of Good Buddha and Def Wish Cast among others. His funk is back to the future; beautiful golden era hip hop with a psychedelic demeanour: the perfect setting for Ozi’s lyrics.DJ Bonez needs no intro, with his trademark impeccable cuts holding shit down, starring on the first single Put it on Wax. A video for which is being created by Artifacts (nominated for a J Award for Australian Music Video of the Year – 2009).Beautifully packaged, Wild Colonial may be Ozi Batla’s best record in a career dotted with highlights.
Signed pre-orders are available now from JB-Hifi and there will be 2 versions available on iTunes, a deluxe and normal edition; the deluxe edition containing instrumentals of each track.