MidnightRoba is the solo project of vocalist, songwriter and producer Roba El-Essawy. The voice of Attica Blues (Mo Wax 1997, Sony 2000), Roba is due to release her second solo album later this year on her independent label Sonder Records. Her first album, Golden Seams, received support, airplay and features from DJs such as Gilles Peterson (BBC Radio 6), Tony Minvielle and China Moses (Jazz FM), Robert Elms (BBC London Live) and Kevin Le Gendre on J to Z (BBC Radio 3). Axis, feauturing Saul Williams, the first release from MidnightRoba's second album, received early pre-release play from Gilles Peterson on BBC6Music, Kate Hutchinson on Soho Radio and Midnight Marauders on NTS Live.
Whilst the first album was very much rooted in jazz and was a personal expression, this album is an electronic offering and marks this challenging time, globally, for us all. Wishful Thinking, featuring Michael King, is a song about overlooking the value of what we have, perhaps with greed, whilst running the risk of losing it all. It can be applied to personal relationships and beyond, to global affairs.