Magaletti, Valentina: A Queer Anthology of Drums LP

Valentina Magaletti is an Italian-born, UK-based drummer, percussionist and composer. Her restless output over the last decade has pushed her CV to include a staggering whoʼs who of contemporary, rock, pop, jazz, electronic and experimental projects. Limited to 600 copies worldwide on black vinyl with three sleeve colour variants: 300 x red, 200x green and 100 x blue (Blue is not available for wholesale). No particular cover colour guaranteed. While the world stood still in 2020, Londonʼs Café OTO offered Valentina the chance to record a solo project for their digital-only Takuroku imprint, and A Queer Anthology of Drums was born. Sales went through the roof and in 2021 the Chinese bié label acquired vinyl rights for a limited pressing. Only a handful of that pressing left Asia and now theyʼre selling for silly prices. Now Permanent Draft, the all-female label run by Valentina with Fanny Chiarello, is making this monumental document available worldwide. -- A Queer Anthology of Drums sees Valentina stepping out alone for the fi rst time with a confi dence that only a CV like hers could afford an artist. Valentina ʼs bold and broad approach to composition is immediately apparent. Her use of fi eld recordings, samples, and piano augment the arsenal of drums and percussion resulting in a deftly crafted suite that transcends what most of us would expect from a solo-drummer. Carefully weighted, and free from macho bombast, A Queer Anthology of Drums weaves its story through a range of infl uences and styles yet remains concise and almost understated. Keen ears may alight on comparisons to Milford Graves, Harry Partch, or Stomu Yamashta, but this record really feels like itʼs the beginning of a new language weʼre hearing for the first time.