About

An enigma, an anomaly, an exception to the rule, Yinka Oyewole exists as much in spite of the world as a part of it – and the same could be said of his band SABATTA. Born in Romford, Essex, UK of Nigerian parentage, educated in the North of Scotland and resident in South London, Yinka’s life has been nothing if not eventful!

Originally having dreamt of being a fine artist Yinka switched to music early because he felt he could reach more people than ‘putting work in a gallery’. Musically Yinka was exposed to so many forms of music: rock, hip-hop, hi-life, Afrobeat but the guitar is what possessed and moved him from the start and inspired him to form Sabatta. Sabatta might be described by some as an alternative rock band but it’s more a blend of grooves, beats, guitar and lyrics.

Formed around 2006 Sabatta has released two critically acclaimed albums – Princess Raw and Emperor’s New Clothes. Having played in the UK, France and the USA as well as England and having shared bills with artists including  Peter Doherty, Slaves to Gravity, Saul Williams, Zoe Kravitz, and Janelle Monae, Sabatta’s affair with the disparate and diverse has continued unabated. The cultural make up of the group has always been diverse – the line-up for the last two years being – English drummer, Brazilian bassist and British-Nigerian singer/guitarist  now joined by Hungarian virtuoso Zoltan Toth on bass – that tradition not only continues but is ready to  music SABATTA is seemingly on the verge!

With the new album Sex Power Death, Yinka moves his musical unit into new territory – not so much expanding the sound with extra instrumentation (on the first two albums there were already keys and strings and percussion) as much as emphatically bringing it to the fore but never losing that sharp Sabatta edge!

Yinka: ‘I’ve always had a lot of sounds in my head – getting them out of there seems to be the smartest thing to do! I’ve lived in a few different places, mixed with different types of people, and had many experiences – I want to share that. Where I live right now I see worlds collide – you go in Elephant & Castle shopping centre or the pub over the road and it’s like the bar scene from Star Wars literally! I think as a musician or an artist, to not reflect your environment in your work would be dishonest – for me at least, so with my new songs I really want to explore that.’

As a live band SABATTA has always been captivating but expect upcoming live shows to be tunred up a notch – Yinka: “Anyone who comes to see us play will get more than 120%. Everybody wants to perform these days but we feel it’s a privilege not a right. We want the audience to hear the music they’ve downloaded, live but BETTER and with a jaw-dropping performance to go with it. It’s hard work but what’s really great that isn’t?”

In 2011 expect jaws to drop!