Since the early 2000s, Wellington seven-piece Fat Freddy's Drop have been one of Aotearoa's most notable and highest-played acts. Their latest album Slo Mo is the first strictly-studio creation from the band in six years, currently available on vinyl only, before its streaming and CD release on 8 November. Founding member and beatmaker Mu, (also known as DJ Fitchie, real name Chris Faiumu), says the two week gap is "a cheeky way of promoting vinyl".
It's a medium he has a long history with. "I've been buying records for 40-odd years", he says. "I'm the youngest of five kids, I inherited my sister's great little soul collection.
My brothers were more into Santana and Neil Young. "When I hit intermediate I started on a cassette collection, which by the time I finished high school in the late '80s, turned into vinyl. I think the very first record I ever bought was Stevie Wonder's Songs in the Key of Life .
That's where it all kicked off." He describes Slo Mo in its liner notes as "Afro rhythmic soul music, an exploration of Black music from Polynesia". Fat Freddy's Drop are famous for finding moments to sit in - bars of music that can withstand repetition over lengthy song durations - and the album starts with a perfect example, 'Avengers', which establishes its groove straight away.
How does the band find these moments? "We do a lot of jamming, and we have the luxury of having our own studio", says Mu. "We are often looking for that bassline that we can sit on for ages. We're s.