All this is just the introduction to a record that, right from the start, promises to be innovative and groundbreaking; is the debut album by El Payo who, after the success of 'Enchanted Meditation', his first EP dating back about a year, which already anticipated the caliber of his musical talent, entered the studio to put together this stunning LP, composed of eleven tracks and called 'In Motion'. The title of a record is always something quite intriguing to me, it undoubtedly represents the artist's intentions, it is the declaration of intent that hits the eye even before the main part, the protagonist, music itself. It is a bridge made of words, or even of a single word, a clue, which the artist drops on the floor for the listeners to pick up. I won’t try to give an interpretation of the title, in this case, but I believe that these two words IN-MOTION perfectly epitomise the true sense of this LP: a multitude of musical influences, of details, a very deep sound research that returns us a work that moves, never static, that wants to make you dance but also to make you sit still, to carefully look into its folds. A beautiful record that fits into a context of musical research (led by Jazz, Broken-Beat, pure Electronic music), and, in a world where music is often and increasingly bent to the dynamics of the market, El Payo just makes us breathe some fresh air. The artist, hailing from South Africa, succeeds in the arduous task of not letting me skip even a single track, because each one is linked to the other in a musically indissoluble way, each one is a small tale masterly told, becoming an essential part of a variegated, bigger story which is never overly pretentious, on the contrary: it strikes for its straightforward simplicity. The feats that El Payo chooses to accompany him on this journey (Sio, Ziyon, EMAMKAY & Bokang Ramatlapeng) are proper, everyone with its peculiarities, and all succeeding in playing an important role, perfectly interpreting the songs on which they engage in. This is the outcome of a long process which -in this case- clearly leads to a well-done job, a detailed one, and it’s what happens when you work on a record with awareness and seriousness but also (and above all) with joy and happiness, making all the artists who participate in feel comfortable enough to make the most out of it. In a music industry where the ‘feats’ are too often exploited as marketing tools, this album tells us about the passion of who created it and the quality he put into it! ‘In Motion’ always keeps the pace high, letting us catch our breath every now and then but keeping the listener constantly engaged. Thus, from the instrumental tracks such as the opener 'All Blues' and' Night Crawler ', to the elegance of the broken rhythms of' Firefly ', up to the sang ones such as' Anatolia ft. Mmthi Junior ', Black Girl From Soweto ft. Sio (for me perhaps the true pearl of this record, for its class and its vibrant lightness), each song becomes fundamental and representative of the variety and versatility of El Payo’s musical talent. Buckle up as its about to drop soon, on the 28th October, and it’ll be the 143rd issue on Stay True Sounds catalogue. Knowing well how important it is the work of the label is such circumstances, it is appropriate to thank Stay True Sounds for having believed in this beautiful project and having put it up impeccably. You guys should listen to this record with attention but also with lightheartedness, as I did, and you will see that you’ll get the true meaning of it. As for us, see y’all soon!