London-based duo Kit Sebastian recently released ‘Melodi’, a joyous expression of vibrant grooves and sophisticated lyricism that transcends boundaries, borders and social-cultural preconceptions.

Those familiar with the band’s cult classic 2019 debut record ‘Mantra Moderne’ will instantly recognise their unique take on world music, jazz and psychedelia. With this next album the duo have expanded their language and concepts and transposed them into something larger and more contemplative.

“Doubts towards oneself, one’s relations with other people, and one’s relations with society”

What’s the story behind the formation of the duo?

Kit Martin: I was looking to create music with a Turkish singer, as I’ve always admired the sonic quality of the Turkish language within music, and many of my favourite records are Turkish. I contacted a ‘Turkish People in London’ Facebook group, and Merve, who had moved to London two weeks before, replied. From then on we started writing and recording.

You have a brand new album out. What can you say about the songs appearing on ‘Melodi’?

Merve Erdem: Thematically the album is more introspective, and feels nocturnal, the pandemic certainly caused a lot of insomnia. It asks the questions that we tend to think about at night on our own, or tells stories of the night time. Doubts towards oneself, one’s relations with other people, and one’s relations with society.

<a href="https://kitsebastian.bandcamp.com/album/melodi">Melodi by Kit Sebastian</a>

A while ago we premiered ‘Agitate’, which is a wake-up call from the ambiguous political position many find themselves in today. Would you share your insight on the albums’ tracks?

Merve Erdem: The album visits the experiences and stories of different characters from hesitant lovers to soulful insomniacs or naive romantics to the nihilists, the reckless, et cetera. So, it revolves around different spheres of life and human emotions. ‘Yeter’ talks about a young, ambitious girl from a poor neighborhood and her struggle to be recognized and to become someone while ‘Yalvarma’ is about a failed relationship and the double nature of our desires and the ambiguity of love. ‘Ahenk’ is more like an abstract poem that questions our place within history and the burden of the dark side of humanity that’s carried from one generation to the other. ‘Elegy for Love’ narrates a late night meeting of a couple as a last futile attempt to save their romance in a small gloomy bedroom. ‘Melodi’ is about a melody that’s haunting and the singer can’t escape from it as her reality dissolves into her world of dreams and memories.

How would you compare it to your debut album?

Kit Martin: I think it is a lot more considered, we thought about arrangements a lot more, it’s both more refined yet instrumentally more diverse. The lockdown gave us a chance to listen to a wider selection of music, and on the album you can hear influences from Cha Cha, Yugoslav funk, J.S Bach, approximations of Ancient Greek scores, Yemenite Jewish music et cetera.

“The notion of time seemed to change for everyone”

How’s this last year under lockdown been for you? Have you found the isolation creatively challenging or freeing?

Merve Erdem & Kit Martin: The first part of lockdown was liberating. The notion of time seemed to change for everyone, meaning a more relaxed and laid back climate to create, explore new horizons and learn new skills. However eventually the isolation did become tedious, and we think many people have realised that music is a shared experience; we’re glad we’re out of it now.

Can you give us maybe 5 albums from last year you’ve been digging?

Kit Martin: Mikael Tariverdiev – ‘Irony of Fate’
I’ve been obsessed with everything by Mikael Tariverdiev since last November, notably his soundtrack to Irony of Fate so I recommend this to everyone, especially as we enter the darker part of the year.

Paulinho Nogueira – ‘O Fino Do Violão Vol. 2’
This perhaps may not be a standout album from within the genre of Brazilian guitar music, besides firebrand players like Baden Powell, but this album has a comforting warm sound with beautiful use of functional dissonance.

Folk Jazz Band Plovdiv – ‘Plovdiv Folk Jazz Band’
I wish I discovered their self-titled 1988 album. It’s familiar to me as it comes from jazz, yet something new to me with it’s Bulgarian folk scales.

Shostakovich – ‘Jazz Suite No 1’
When I first heard the ‘Jazz Suite No 1’ suite as a teenager I was immediately disappointed by its lack of obvious similarity to jazz. I was expecting a Russian Gershwin. It was only this year I realised the genius of this album and where so many of my favourite albums are actually derived from.

Adriano Celentano – ‘Geppo Il Folle’
After coming out of lockdown and finally being able to leave the UK for the summer, this disco soundtrack album provided a comic relief to a difficult year had by all. This album by the Italian great is perhaps overlooked. Whilst it can feel a carbon copy of Anglophonic disco at times it does have imaginative orchestration, and the Italian language is always beautiful to hear.

Merve Erdem: Jef Gilson Septet Avec Lloyd Miller – ‘Jef Gilson Septet Avec Lloyd Miller’
I’ve been obsessed with this 10” featuring beautiful spiritual jazz by Jef Gilson, Lloyd Miller, Alain Melet and Henri Texier. An ecstatic melange of African rhythms and Occidental Jazz.

Corviria ‎– ‘Descriptive’
Released in 1980 from Italy’s Titian Records, this album is the most haunting, dark and strange library project I’ve ever listened to. The artist behind it ‘Vittoria Corona’ is untraceable which adds to the mystery. The way the tracks unfold and the minimalistic electronic sound mixed with soft prog rock hypnotize you. It’s mostly unsettling even though there are brief moments of lightness and childish joy which make it even spookier. It is like a poetic curse or a charming nightmare.

Hōzan Yamamoto With Sharps & Flats – ‘Beautiful Bamboo Flute’
It blends funky jazz and cinematic grooves with Japanese bamboo flute very successfully and manages to produce a sound that is melancholic and energising at the same time. Listening to this album feels like a contemplative exhilarating journey that you wish never ends.

‘Habibi Funk 015: An eclectic selection from the Arab world, part 2’
A charming compilation that brings hidden gems from North Africa and the Middle East together. Douaa’s Haditouni has been one of my favourite discoveries of the year.

When and how did you start playing music?

Kit Martin: I started around 11 messing around with a cassette recorder, guitar with an FX pedal and a harmonica making kind of textural sound collages, I then moved to blues and then classical before discovering jazz and pop.

Merve Erdem: When I was 10, learning the keyboard and trying to write very cheesy pop “songs”. Then moving to singing in high school and some choir work during the university.

What’s the next project that you’ll be working on, or are working on right now?

Kit Martin & Merve Erdem: The next project will be album 3! But between then we may be working on video and we’ve done some covers that we look forward to releasing soon.

Any plans regarding gigs?

Kit Martin & Merve Erdem: We have a couple of gigs lined up in France and elsewhere, we can’t say too much just yet. We’ve only just started getting back to playing since the pandemic and we love it.