340ml (pronounced: ''three forty mil'') is an African musical group who originate from

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

Maputo Maputo (), formerly named Lourenço Marques until 1976, is the Capital city, capital, and largest city of Mozambique. Located near the southern end of the country, it is within of the borders with Eswatini and South Africa. The city has a popul ...

, but are now based in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

, South Africa. They have therefore jokingly been described by some as being "Jozambican". The band incorporates many different elements into their music including dub,

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...

Afro-jazz African jazz may refer to: * Le Grand Kallé et l'African Jazz, a Congolese band often referred to as "African Jazz" * A style of music also known as Ethio-jazz, exemplified by Mulatu Astatke * South African jazz South African jazz is the jazz of S ...

and

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

. It is therefore very difficult to attach the band to any specific

music genre A music genre is a conventional category that identifies some pieces of music as belonging to a shared tradition or set of conventions. It is to be distinguished from ''musical form'' and musical style, although in practice these terms are some ...

, as their style is rather unusual. The music that 340ml produces is often described as having a very relaxed African-feel to it, and also strongly incorporates elements of

Latin music Latin music (Portuguese language, Portuguese and es, música latina) is a term used by the music industry as a catch-all category for various styles of music from Ibero-America (including Music of Spain, Spain and Portuguese music, Portugal) ...

, and to a lesser extent,

Marrabenta Marrabenta is a popular style of Mozambican dance music combining traditional Mozambican dance rhythms with Portuguese folk music. It was developed in Maputo, the capital city of Mozambique, during the 1930s and 1940s. Etymology The name may be ...

. Their music has also been described by Jean Barker (a music critic on ) as "sounding better than a cold beer opening on a hot day."

History

The four band members arrived in

in the mid-1990s in order to pursue academic careers. Paulo Jorge Chibanga had intentions on becoming an architect, Rui Soeiro studied a

Bachelor of Commerce A Bachelor of Commerce (abbreviated BComm or BCom; also, ''baccalaureates commercii'') is an undergraduate degree in business, usually awarded in Canada, Australia, India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Ireland, New Zealand, Ghana, South Africa, Myanmar, ...

, Pedro Pinto's career choices lay in

Industrial Psychology Industrial and organizational psychology (I-O psychology), an applied discipline within psychology, is the science of human behavior in the workplace. Depending on the country or region of the world, I-O psychology is also known as occupational ...

and Tiago Correia-Paulo pursued a career in Economics. Paulo branched out into a different area of design, with his Dubstars clothing label which is reportedly becoming very popular within Johannesburg. Rui started working on releasing music compilations called Dubvaults through the band's label 340ml Music. Pedro ventured into jewelry design and other crafts. Tiago worked as a designer and illustrator for many years and now is more involved in film and video directing and producing. Despite all these academic qualifications, the band has always focused on producing music, firstly in Maputo and then when Rui and Paulo joined a band which was led by their art teacher at St. Martin's School in Southern Johannesburg. The name of the band was ''Panic Orange''. In the late 1990s ''Panic Orange'' earned a semi-final spot in the annual Emerging Sounds competition, but the then

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band had begun to turn towards the genre of

Ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...

, and dropped its name, as well as its rock-playing member in the middle of the contest. All four band members had known each other while growing up in Maputo. Tiago and Pedro had played together in a

Rage Against the Machine Rage Against the Machine (often abbreviated as RATM or shortened to simply Rage) is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1991, the group consists of vocalist Zack de la Rocha, bassist and backing vocalist Tim Commerfor ...

-inspired

rap metal Rap metal is a subgenre of rap rock and alternative metal music which combines hip hop with heavy metal. It usually consists of heavy metal guitar riffs, funk metal elements, rapped vocals and sometimes turntables. History Origins and early ...

cover band as teenagers during the 1990s. 340ml, after many false starts, derived its final name from a measurement on a beverage can when it formalised in 2000. Their debut album, ''Moving'', was co-produced by the Jazzworx production team and incorporated parts of, amongst others, dub,

Brazilian music The music of Brazil encompasses various regional musical styles influenced by European, American, African and Amerindian forms. Brazilian music developed some unique and original styles such as forró, repente, coco de roda, axé, sertanejo, ...

and

''Sorry for the Delay''

Four years after releasing their debut album, ''Moving'', 340ml released a second album entitled ''Sorry for the Delay''. The name of their second album is a result of the many delays the band experienced while producing it, mainly due to the fact that they had been victims of Johannesburg crime four times, twice having their cars filled with equipment stolen, and twice having their studios broken into and stripped down.

Discography

*''Moving'' (2004) *''Sorry for the Delay'' (2008)

Notes

* * *

External links

* * * *

References

{{Authority control Dub musical groups South African reggae musical groups South African ska groups Mozambican reggae musical groups Mozambican ska groups Musical groups established in 2000 Culture of Johannesburg