Review: Acclaimed South African folk singer Vusi Mahlasela joined forces with singer songwriter Norman Zulu as well as the superb Swedish jazz and soul collective Jive Connection for this album back in 2002. It was thought to be a lost recording until it recently showed up and now gets fully revived by Strut. There are strong political links between these countries which no doubt adds weight to this musical link up. It is a great exchange of cultures from parables to laments on child abuse to tunes that fuse reggae, jazz and post-punk with township styles.
Review: This 1965 collaborative album brings together some of the international music world's finest talents. Featuring Nara Leao's soothing vocals, Edu Lobo's striking guitar and Tamba Trio's vibrant harmonies, 5 Na Bossa captures the essence of Brazilian bossa nova and jazz with a warm and sunny inflexion. With iconic tracks like 'Reza' and 'Zambi' bringing Latin jazz flair, and Edu Lobo's 'Estatuinha' offering more ruminative folk sounds, this is a brilliant album for those who like South American sounds in all their many guises. The album was recorded live at the Paramount Theater in Sao Paulo and is truly essential listening.
Review: Japanese maverick Kohei Matsunaga, aka NHK yx Koyxen explores far and wide on this new album Climb Downhill 2. It comes after many years of unusual but ultimately excellent sounds on the likes of Diagonal, DFA, Pan, L.I.E.S. and right back to Mille Plateaux and WordSound. Across 13 cuts he truly gets loose and abstract, mishmashing endless genres and sub-genres into lively cuts that are both dance yet cerebral. His sketch-pad style approach to building sonics makes each tune a live and restless collision of freaky frequencies and squealing synths, busted bass and broken beats.
Review: A phenomenal two-track album from 1970 that was - and still is - ground-breaking in its complexity. A full orchestra of drums, led by Klaus Weiss but also featuring the likes of Uno Lindenberg and Keith Forsey, the whole journey is a percussive odyssey peppered with a little post-studio magic. At points intense, at others deep and meditative, there's a reason why this was going for upwards of L200 before the repress.
Review: In a stroke of ingenuity Noori found a neck of a guitar whilst rummaging through a Port Sudan scrapyard along the Red Sea Coast in the 90s. Using their welding talents they fixed it onto a traditional four stringed tambour, creating what may be the only tambo-guitar hybrid in the world. Beja Power! Is a love letter to the Beja culture, inherently political and almost erased by the former Sudanese leader. This historically rich niche of Afro-Jazz is both nostalgic and mystical. Elements of surf rock, electric blues and psychedelia can be heard in these instrumental tracks, a 6-track capsule of a powerful identity nearly lost to the sands of time. Noori & His Dorpa Band's style is authentic and evocative and is a joyful proclamation and demonstration of the magic that is Beja sound and aesthetic.
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