Biography
Kit Sebastian, the London-based duo devoted to psychedelic revival, assembles sonic textures and visual motifs drawn from scattered collections of rare 1960s and 1970s vinyl. They reconstruct a worldwide palette through deliberately limited-fidelity methods and an assortment of instruments rarely encountered in Western psych, among them the balalaika and oud. Their opening statement, the album Mantra Moderne, mapped an expansive and welcoming blueprint; Melodi followed in 2021 with a measured jazz inflection, and New Internationale arrived in 2024 carrying heightened, saturated color.
French multi-instrumentalist Kit Martin relocated to London after completing several songs and sought a vocalist fluent in Turkish through social-media channels. Istanbul-born Merve Erdem replied, and the pair shaped lyrics in French, Turkish, and English before forwarding a demo to Mr Bongo Records. Although they initially approached the label—renowned for reissuing the very obscure discs that shaped the project—Mr Bongo elected to issue the recording outright. The duo retreated to rural France to track their debut, 2019’s Mantra Moderne, capturing every performance live to eight-track while mixing on the spot; the sessions featured tablas, darbukas, balalaikas, ouds, MS20 synths, and Farfisa organs. For the next set of sessions Martin broadened the instrumental array to include zither, harpsichord, and congas while deepening the jazz component. Released in late 2021, Melodi once more displayed the duo’s command of composition and arrangement and foregrounded Erdem’s commanding voice.
Extensive road work supplied the material for their third album, which was tracked in London with bassist David Richardson, drummer Theo Guttenplan, and an ensemble of string and horn players. Martin and Erdem later returned to the French countryside to record vocals before the album was mixed. The finished 2024 release, New Internationale, embodied the duo’s cross-cultural, cross-genre outlook, most clearly revealing the imprint of soundtrack music and Turkish psych. It marked their first appearance on Brainfeeder and prompted a brief European tour that October.
French multi-instrumentalist Kit Martin relocated to London after completing several songs and sought a vocalist fluent in Turkish through social-media channels. Istanbul-born Merve Erdem replied, and the pair shaped lyrics in French, Turkish, and English before forwarding a demo to Mr Bongo Records. Although they initially approached the label—renowned for reissuing the very obscure discs that shaped the project—Mr Bongo elected to issue the recording outright. The duo retreated to rural France to track their debut, 2019’s Mantra Moderne, capturing every performance live to eight-track while mixing on the spot; the sessions featured tablas, darbukas, balalaikas, ouds, MS20 synths, and Farfisa organs. For the next set of sessions Martin broadened the instrumental array to include zither, harpsichord, and congas while deepening the jazz component. Released in late 2021, Melodi once more displayed the duo’s command of composition and arrangement and foregrounded Erdem’s commanding voice.
Extensive road work supplied the material for their third album, which was tracked in London with bassist David Richardson, drummer Theo Guttenplan, and an ensemble of string and horn players. Martin and Erdem later returned to the French countryside to record vocals before the album was mixed. The finished 2024 release, New Internationale, embodied the duo’s cross-cultural, cross-genre outlook, most clearly revealing the imprint of soundtrack music and Turkish psych. It marked their first appearance on Brainfeeder and prompted a brief European tour that October.
Albums
Singles
