Bruno Verner with Tetine’s vinyl Music for Breathing
iniva is pleased to announce it is launching an exciting new vinyl collection at the Stuart Hall Library that explores experimental sound, cultural narratives, and artistic innovation through sonic art expressions. This collection is a testament to the power of sound as both an artistic medium and a historical record.
The idea to begin a vinyl collection at Stuart Hall Library came to Library and Archive Manager Tavian Hunter through the introduction and subsequent donation from composer, artist, and musician Bruno Verner. Best known for his work with the tropical mutant punk-funk duo Tetine, Verner gifted four 12” vinyl records, each carrying the sonic DNA of São Paulo’s avant-garde music scene.
The Tetine Collection: A Sonic Revolution
Slum Dunk Presents Funk Carioca Mixed By Tetine
This groundbreaking compilation was Tetine’s first European vinyl dedicated entirely to Funk Carioca, also known as Baile Funk. Featuring 18 tracks from classic funk MCs and producers from the early 2000s such as Tati Quebra Barraco and Bonde do Tigrão, this album serves as a vibrant snapshot of Brazilian street sounds and club culture. Many of the tracks we played on Slum Dunk, a weekly radio programme that aired in London covered all aspects of Brazilian music.
Cover of Here We Come vinyl by Shepherd Manyika and ETAT
L.I.C.K MY FAVELA
Released in 2005, this record is a visceral, performative “grito de guerra” (battle cry). Fusing funk carioca, hip-hop, and post-punk, it is both a dance track and an improvisatory, physical performance piece where voice and movement merge with sound.
Tropical Mutant Punk Funk
A return to Tetine’s experimental roots, this 2010 release combines punk-funk, disco-pop, and percussive feminist disco in an electrifying sonic journey. The album captures the duo’s raw, rebellious energy and their fearless exploration of musical hybridity.
Music for Breathing
Released in 2023, this work expands Tetine’s sonic universe with the addition of cellist Yoko Afi. A meditative, post-classical, and electronic album comprised of 5 tracks, Music for Breathing responds to themes of environmental pollution, political mutation, and human fragility through experimental composition and improvisation.
iniva’s First Vinyl
Though Tetine’s donation was the starting point of the collection, in 2019, iniva produced its first vinyl, marking a significant milestone in its sonic explorations.
Cover of Forces for Victory vinyl by Linton Kwesi Johnson
Here We Come – Shepherd Manyika & ETAT
Created in collaboration with Encouragement Through the Arts and Talking (ETAT), Here We Come is the result of a two-day hip-hop workshop. Combining spoken word, rap, and drill, this eight-track vinyl showcases the voices of Westminster-based community members reflecting on their personal and cultural identities. The project was launched with an exhibition at Stuart Hall Library, where participants performed their tracks and discussed the impact of hip-hop on their creative expression.
The vinyl archive collection resonates with other key figures in the Stuart Hall Library, including Barby Asante and Linton Kwesi Johnson, whose works explore history, activism, and diasporic identity.
Legacy Tunes – Barby Asante
Produced for the South London Black Music Archive (SLBMA) exhibition at Peckham Space in 2012, Legacy Tunes is an ode to the everyday sounds that shape collective histories. With sleeve notes from Adelaide Bannerman and graphic design from the collective Åbäke, this limited-edition soundscape captures the voices and memories of young Black South Londoners. This work was also part of a broader exhibition that displayed memorabilia, records, and oral histories, allowing visitors to engage with the archival process through listening stations and interactive workshops.
Shamica Ruddock with vinyl Deciphering a Broken Syntax
Forces of Victory – Linton Kwesi Johnson
Originally released in 1979, this seminal album was remastered and reissued in 2023 as a limited edition 2LP set in celebration of Black History Month for the Black Story Campaign 2023. Johnson’s dub poetry, set to the grooves of Dennis Bovell’s Dub Band, remains a powerful statement against racism and social injustice. Songs such as Sonny’s Lettah and Fite Dem Back continue to resonate with listeners today. Now expanded, this vinyl features a second disc of dub versions and extended mixes, enhanced artwork, gatefold sleeve and printed inner bags.
Experimental Soundscapes
The Stuart Hall Library’s vinyl collection extends beyond music, engaging with experimental sound art and conceptual installations.
Ashley Holmes with Skylarking vinyl
Deciphering a Broken Syntax – Shamica Ruddock
A research-based artist working at the intersection of sound, text, and moving image, Ruddock explores Black Technopoetics—examining the relationship between race, technology, and sound. Designed and edited by Shamica Ruddock and Rachael Harlow, sixty copies of vinyl records was distributed as part of the 2022 exhibition at South London Gallery. This vinyl includes sounds from the installation of a calabash-shaped listening dome and inserts that hold contextual cues to the ongoing investigation into sound and its spatial dimensions. The accompanying exhibition included interactive sound installations and a reading room featuring texts on Afro-diasporic sound traditions.
Far From the Start – Jay Bernard
Recorded within the Clapham South Deep Level Shelter, this 12” vinyl reflects on the experiences of Caribbean migrants housed there upon their arrival on the HMT Empire Windrush in 1948. Combining spoken word, historical recordings, and atmospheric soundscapes, Far From the Start evokes the echoes of history within the underground tunnels of London. The work was exhibited at Studio Voltaire in 2024, where visitors could listen to the recordings in a specially designed sound chamber and explore archival materials related to Windrush migration.
Skylarking – Ashley Holmes
Taking inspiration from dub pioneers King Tubby and Lee Scratch Perry, as well as grime’s ‘Devil Mix’ production techniques, Skylarking is a sonic exploration of urban and geological landscapes. Released as a limited-edition vinyl, it weaves together subterranean echoes, field recordings, and experimental beats. The record was part of an immersive exhibition at Art Catalyst, where sound installations and visual artworks expanded on Holmes’ exploration of Black music’s influence on space and memory.
A Growing Legacy
The Stuart Hall Library’s vinyl collection is an evolving archive that celebrates the intersections of sound, culture, and artistic expression. With a focus on multidisciplinary artists of African and Asian descent, the collection continues to expand, fostering new sonic dialogues and preserving underrepresented narratives. Future acquisitions will prioritise works that intersect with exhibitions, installations, and performance-based sound practices.
To experience these vinyls firsthand, visit the Stuart Hall Library and immerse yourself in a world of sonic art expressions. Explore the accompanying exhibitions, join in listening sessions, and engage with the rich tapestry of sound that tells the stories of communities, histories, and creative revolutions.