31/12/2007

SIERRA LEONE'S REFUGEE ALL STARS documentary movie trailer

Just to remember that there are lots of persons and peoples in this world who are still fighting for their freedom and dignity, unfortunately with no happy endings guaranteed.
So, in wishing you all a happy new year, I do hope 2008 may be a year of reconciliation, peace and prosperity, especially for them. Peace and Love,

Radu


Here is a short trailer for the documentary film SIERRA LEONE'S REFUGEE ALL STARS. The film tells the remarkable story of Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars, a group of musicians who form a band while living in a West African refugee camp. They were forced from their homes by a brutal civil war that took the lives of many of their loved ones and left them with physical and emotional scars that may never heal. But it could never take away their music. Through music they find a place of refuge, a sense of purpose and a source of power. This film follows the band over the course of three years as they make the difficult decision to return to their war-torn country and realize their dream of recording an album of their original music. The story of Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars celebrates the best of the human spirit - the incredible ability of individuals to sustain hope and find forgiveness even in a climate of rage and loss.

Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars - Living Like A Refugee (2004)

«Made up of former displaced persons from the killing fields of Sierra Leone, members of the Refugee All Stars (a.k.a. R.A.S.) were forced to flee for their lives during the 1990s, fanning out into nearby West African nations. Through continued hard times, bandmates Reuben M. Koroma, Francis (Franco) Langba, and Abdul Rahim (Arahim) Kamara entertained and heartened their compatriots with truthful, gently satiric, liltingly infectious tunes. Filmmakers Banker White and Zach Niles made a prize-winning documentary about the band's courageous struggle, thereby bringing their story to an international audience. Backed by Keith Richards, Sir Paul McCartney, and other socially conscious celebrities, R.A.S. embarked on a rapturously received world tour and were at long last able to augment their earlier, but nonetheless invaluable, field recordings with professionally engineered studio tracks. The resulting seventeen songs travel through deceptively relaxed Sierra Leonean Palm Wine music, triple-rhythmed gbute vang and reggae-like sounds (complete with toasting), Nigerian Afro-Beat, and even echoes of Congolese soukous. Backed by sweet yet astringent vocal harmonies, sultry guitars, homemade percussion, and playfully retro-sounding organ riffs, each selection reveals still another facet of a bittersweet but ultimately triumphant saga of survival. At long last, Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars are poised to become the superstars they were always destined to be.» (Christina Roden, Amazon)

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30/12/2007

Postcards from Italy (46): Matera (Basilicata)

Ethiopiques 14: Gétatchèw Mèkurya - Negus of Ethiopian Sax (2002)

«L’avventura della musica etiopica moderna cominciò durante il regno dell’imperatore Menelik II (1889-1913). Quest’avventura, che da più di due decenni mi sforzo di studiare e di far conoscere, è strettamente legata all’influenza degli strumenti a fiato offerti al sovrano abissino dopo la vittoria di Adua. Nel 1897 lo zar di Russia, Nicola II, inviò in omaggio al vincitore e suo fratello nella fede ortodossa un kit completo per fanfara, ovvero una quarantina di ottoni. Fu così che nacque la prima banda imperiale. In occasione delle udienze diplomatiche o durante i gheber (banchetti offerti dall’imperatore a migliaia di convitati) la fanfara suonava con la stessa disinvoltura sia inni russi o francesi sia pezzi più leggeri come Frou-Frou o La casquette de père Bugeaud.

Nel 1924 Ras Tafari, principe reggente e futuro Hailé Selassié, decise di compiere un lungo giro diplomatico in Europa per celebrare l’ammissione dell’Abissinia nella Società delle nazioni. Allora, in piena epoca coloniale, era l’unico stato africano a far parte dell’organizzazione. Prima del suo viaggiò Ras Tafari andò in pellegrinaggio a Gerusalemme. La fanfara che l’accolse in Terra santa lo impressionò a tal punto che decise di assumerla affinché diventasse l’orchestra ufficiale dell’impero. Era una banda composta da quaranta armeni sfuggiti al genocidio turco del 1915. Gli Arba lijoch, i «quaranta ragazzi», sotto la guida del loro direttore reclutato al Cairo, l’armeno Kevork Nalbandian, diventarono così la prima orchestra ufficiale dell’impero. Nalbandian scrisse, su richiesta del reggente, l’inno nazionale etiopico e si sforzò di mettere insieme un repertorio fortemente “etiopizzato”, ispirandosi alle melodie tradizionali locali. Sotto il suo impulso, la musica etiopica “all’europea” s’impose nel paese. Alla vigilia dell’invasione italiana del 1935, i musicisti che facevano parte delle diverse bande ufficiali erano 250. Alla liberazione, nel 1941, Nerses Nalbandian, nipote di Kevork, contribuì enormemente allo sviluppo della musica etiopica moderna.

Sulla sua scia, altri direttori d’orchestra europei furono invitati nella capitale etiopica. […] Il viennese Franz Zelwecker, pianista e direttore d’orchestra, appassionato di jazz alla Glenn Miller, diede un contributo determinante a quello che negli anni sessanta sarebbe diventato il groove etiopico, caratterizzato dal ricco suono degli ottoni. Con i migliori elementi delle bande imperiali, creò la sezione “sinfonia jazz” dell’Orchestra della guardia d’onore, che comprendeva almeno dieci fiati. Lo swing mise radici in Etiopia con i suoi stereotipi, il suo profumo di modernità e la sua eleganza. Dal 1955 al 1974 – anno della caduta dell’imperatore – l’Etiopia visse due decenni musicali favolosi e singolari, la sua età dell’oro. Nel 1963 Addis Abeba, il cui nome significa “il fiore nuovo”, diventò la sede permanente dell’Organizzazione dell’unità africana (Oua). La città, creata nel 1880 da Menelik II, si trasformò in un centro cosmopolita grazie all’influenza esercitata da una nutrita comunità diplomatica.

Ancora una volta, però, non furono le musiche africane a incontrare il favore del pubblico, ma quelle provenienti dall’Europa e dagli Stati Uniti. Addis Abeba vide spuntare grandi alberghi e locali notturni dove esplose la nuova musica urbana etiopica, in cui si mescolavano melodie tradizionali, rhythm’n’blues e soul. Da Asmara radio Kagnew, l’emittente delle forze armate statunitensi di stanza in Etiopia, trasmetteva tutti i successi degli anni Sessanta, che da lì arrivavano ad Addis Abeba. Quello fu il periodo di un’inimmaginabile “swinging Addis”, versione africana della celebre “swinging London”. Il 1974 fu un anno funesto, in cui cominciò la lunga notte della dittatura di Mengistu: coprifuoco ininterrotto per diciotto anni, orchestre smantellate e musicisti in esilio, estetica ispirata al realismo socialista e censura. L’età dell’oro era finita.

Quel che resta di quella straordinaria avventura è una musica che, malgrado le influenze occidentali, ha sempre mantenuto una forte ispirazione nazionale e un carattere davvero originale. Basta ascoltare Getachew Mekurya, l’inventore del “sassofono shellela”. Questo gigante fisico e musicale ha saputo trasporre sul suo strumento gli shellela, i canti e gli urli d’incoraggiamento e di guerra tradizionali. A metà degli anni cinquanta Mekurya, che suonava nella Police Orchestra, si esibiva in violenti assolo degni del free-jazz, che hanno fatto di lui una specie di Albert Ayer etiope. I suoi connazionali, così sciovinisti, hanno capito immediatamente da dove veniva quella musica e l’hanno adottata nonostante le sue dissonanze puramente free. Grazie, Adolphe Sax.» (Francis Falceto, curatore della collana Ethiopiques per l’etichetta francese Buda Musique. Articolo originariamente apparso su Le Nouvel Observateur, tradotto per Internazionale, n. 659, 15/21 settembre 2006).

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27/12/2007

Tende (France)

Paroplapi - La Finestra dell'Ultimo Piano (2005)

Tobi, again (thanx!), proposes us this interesting trio that offers us a vast selection of popular songs from Italy and France, all revived with classy arrangements and inspired readings. A small gem, well worth a listen!

«Questo gruppo, dal nome insolito, propone dall’inizio del XXI secolo l’incontro “musicale-linguistico” proveniente dalle rive del Mediterraneo. Paroplapi attinge le sue ispirazioni particolarmente in Francia e in Italia, che rappresentano le zone d’origine dei membri del gruppo. Voci e significati. La pratica e lo studio di questi repertori, mette in luce i legami profondi fra i popoli e i valori in comune: così, non sono più le sole tradizioni musicali di una regione che gli
artisti valorizzano, ma bensì una ricerca culturale, in continua evoluzione in nome dell’unione nella diversità. Individualmente portatori di questi repertori da molti anni, i membri del trio Paroplapi si sono riuniti con lo scopo di poter offrire un ampio spettro di canti popolari dell’arco latino, florilegio di ciò che la memoria collettiva ha raccolto sul filo del tempo.»

«Ce groupe au nom iconoclaste propose depuis le début du XXI siècle des croisements "linguisticomusicaux" de chants de l'arc latin. C'est au bord de la méditerrannée que Paroplapi puise son inspiration, et ce plus particulièrement en France et en Italie, d'où sont issus les deux chanteurs fondateurs du groupe, Samuela Gallinari et Gael Princivalle. La pratique et l'étude des répertoires de tradition mettent en exergue les liens profonds entre les peuples, ainsi que leurs valeurs comunes. Ainsi, ce n'est plus un répertoire ou une région que les artistes portent en étendard, mais la recherche d'un chemin culturel universel, en perpetuelle évolution. Porteurs de répertoires de tradition depuis de nombreuses années, les membres du projet Paroplapi proposent un ample panel de chants populaires de l'arc latin, florilège de ce que la mémoire collective a sélectionné au fil du temps.»

Official site: http://www.cant.org/paroplapi/default.htm

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25/12/2007

Denez Prigent - Irvi (2000)

Saxan K points us instead to this remarkable artist from Brittany (Bretagne). «Denez Prigent's strong voice and nuanced performance», says our kind reader – and I fully agree – «floats among beautiful and strange soundscapes. He blends Breton traditional songs and instruments with ambient, techno, and hip-hop elements. The overall sound is a refreshing diversion from the mainstays of the Celtic genre which it most closely resembles. This album is worth listening to just for “Melezourioù-glav – Miroirs de pluie” and 'Gortoz A Ran (J'attends)”. Enjoy!» Many thanx, Saxan!

«Lorsque vient la marée haute et que les vagues encerclent une île, jusqu'alors accessible à pieds, le point de rencontre de ces vagues constitue un chemin. Un chemin d'écumes. Irvi, chemin d'écume en breton, le nouvel album de Denez Prigent, tire son nom de cette métaphore : à la croisée de la musique traditionnelle bretonne et de l'avant-garde, Denez Prigent poursuit sa route ; hors des sentiers battus.

Enregistré en collaboration avec Bertrand Cantat (Noir Désir), Lisa Gerrard (Dead Can Dance), Davy Spillane, Valentin Clastrier, Elegia... Irvi présente une tradition celtique ancrée dans son époque : à l'abri des scléroses régionalistes, ouverte au monde extérieur, trouvant (retrouvant) sa force à l'écoute d'un patrimoine situé hors de ses frontières. Album remarquable, alternant titres incantatoires et énergie larvée, Irvi présente un artiste au sommet de son art, indéniablement breton mais avant tout citoyen du monde.» (Librairie Dialogues – read the interview)

Un portrait de Denez Prigent

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Etnika - Nafra (2000)

Hello, happy holidays to you all! Here’s the first of a series of beautiful «Christmas gifts» from my readers. Chris S. proposes us this gorgeous CD by Etnika, a Maltese group engaging in a compelling «fusion of Maltese ethnic instruments with the contemporary». Many thanx, Chris!

«Etnika focuses on the resurrection of Maltese traditional instruments and music. The idea is to use the ancient instruments together with that of other classical and modern instruments in order to create a new Maltese repertoire. The music portrays a unique synthesis between ethnic timbre and contemporary composition. Among the instruments used are zaqq (bagpipe), zummara (reed pipe), flejguta (whistle flute), zafzafa (friction drum), and tanbur (a drum). These are combined with flute, clarinet, violin, guitar, piano, accordion, tuba and percussion to create a totally new way of making Maltese music. Original compositions are by Ruben Zahra, using traditional melodies as a starting point, but expanding them in the tradition of Piazzolla, Copeland, Ives and Bregovic.» (CDRoots)

More info here

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23/12/2007

Postcards from Italy (45) - Trentino

Hubert Von Goisern - Fön (2000)

Many thanx to Tobi from Austria for this true discovery!

«Activist, composer, and actor Hubert Achleitner (better known as Hubert Von Goisern) was best known for his stint as lead singer of Die Alpinkatzen. Von Goisern was born and raised in Austria, where he learned to play the guitar, trumpet, and accordion at a young age. He lived in South Africa and Toronto for many years before returning to his homeland in his late twenties in order to pursue a music career, forming Die Alpinkatzen with Wolfgang Staribacher in 1986. Honing a blend of synthy Europop with traditional Austrian folk music elements (yodeling chief among them), the group became immensely popular in Germany and Austria. The group called it quits in late 1994. Von Goisern busied himself with various projects, musical and otherwise, over the course of the following decade. […] He also became deeply involved with activism. […] In addition to his interest in Tibet, Von Goisern was also known for speaking out against the Austrian music industry. In the midst of all this, Von Goisern continued to record and release albums. His first solo effort, Fön, came out in 2000.» (AMG)

«Shrill yodelling and dissonant yodelling in defiance: the worn path of alpine folklore is terrible for him. Away from petit-bourgeois conformism and traditionalism, Hubert von Goisern has experimented with sound and style directions since the release of his first album, Alpine Lawine in 1988 – always endeavoured to elicit new sounds from the diatonic accordion, flugelhorn or the Styrian harmonica. The search for inspiration led to finally to Tibet, Africa and India – there he searched for distance from the Alpinkatzen project, left Hiatamadl behind him, "Goisern", who sang the praises of his homeland, said a quiet farewell. But now the "alpine rocker" is back. Energetic, effervescent with delight in playing and linguistic jokes, he pulls out all the stops on the CD Fön (Blanko Musik), mixed folksy elements with rocky rhythms in his unmistakable manner. In the number, “Kålt”, he expresses syllables in striking dialect imaginative, loaded with meaning, behind which coded quotations from the right wing populist, Jörg Haider, are hidden: "Mir ist kålt, und mir wird kålter, und des liegt, des liegt nit am Wetter. (“I am cold, and I am getting colder, and it's not down to the weather”). He attacks the double moral standards of the church as well, like he beats against power and war. While in “Die Stråss'n” he draws – not without melancholy – a final line under the past: "Wås vorbei is', is' vorbei..." (What's past, is past...")». (Christof Völlinger, Magazin am Wochende)

Official site: http://www.hubertvongoisern.com/

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22/12/2007

Värttinä - Vihma (1998)

«One of the most internationally successful acts to emerge from the contemporary Finland music scene, Värttinä revitalized the nation's folk traditions with an aggressive and ultra-modern style that eschewed not only the costumes of their ancestors but also the long-accepted cultural notion that women should sing unaccompanied. […] After Kokko, their trip into the barren land of neo-pop, it seemed as if Värttinä had shot their creative wad. That makes this all the more welcome, since Vihma, if not a return to the way things were, is at least a definite way out of the cul-de-sac. They lay their manifesto on the line with the opening title track, which crams in samples, programmed beats, a strong studio feel around an in- your-face attitude, as if to say, "We're back." And they certainly are, expanding the boundaries from the traditional music of their past to draw far more heavily on original compositions and a couple of tracks which utilize the Tuvan throat-singing tradition of Yat-Kha members Albert Kuvezin and Aldyn-ool Sevek (one of which even draws in the string section of fellow Nordic band JPP). "Kylän Kävjiä" revolves around the drone of a jew's-harp, mingling with the Yat-Kha overtones, while "Maa Ei Kerro" rests on a bed of keyboards provided by producer Richard Horowitz, who also contributes "Vihmax (Viha Remix)" to close out the album – a revamp job that's surprisingly not as radical as the original track. As always, the singing is powerful, with high, keening harmonies. But on Vihma, the instrumentalists feature more; instead of backup for the vocalists, they're now an integral part of the sound, with cunning, complex arrangements that add weight to the songs. It might not be a classic, but Vihma shows that Värttinä remains a force to be reckoned with.» (AMG)

Lyrics (with English translation) here

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20/12/2007

Pictures of Greece: Mesohori Karpathos, Dodecanese Islands

Courtesy of JTC

The Rough Guide to the Music of Greece (2001)

«This welcome addition to the Rough Guide catalog shines a light on a country whose music has largely been ignored internationally, and proves that, within the borders of Greece, the musical traditions are complex and marvellously rewarding. Thankfully it's not solely focused on modern-day artists, but frames them in the context of the past, with tracks by the legendary Kostas Nouros, "The Nightingale of Smyrna," and George Koros, the man responsible for really introducing the fiddle into Greek music (his "Ballos" is an aural treat). Inevitably, there's plenty of rembetika and laiko, those particularly indigenous Greek forms, but this stretches beyond that, to encompass the jazz-funk of Mode Pagal, whose "Pikrodafni" is rather insipid and uninspired, as well as several of the superb female Greek singers who've broken through in recent decades, like Eleftheria Arvanitaki, Glykeria, and Savina Yannatou, perhaps the most adventurous of them all. And no overview of Greek music would be complete without Mikis Theodorakis, best known for his theme to Zorba the Greek. Memorable as that was, his real writing has extended in so many directions, and "To Trizoni" (sung by Soula Birbili) offers just a small glimpse of one of his facets. With excellent liner notes, this CD leaves you fully prepared to delve more deeply into music that deserves wider discovery.» (AMG)

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18/12/2007

Untouchable Outcaste Beats, Volume 1 (1998)

«London’s Outcaste Records continues to sate those in the know with some of the most intriguing fusionary sounds on either side of the Atlantic. Untouchable Outcaste Beats, Volume 1 will serve as the label’s American calling card – an amalgam of tracks from its roster as well as from other seminal works in the genre. Dance Music Federation’s essential “Cybersitar” stands out as a pioneering work, lacing a furious breakbeat with confused sitars and repetitive chant. Artists like Shri, with his serene “Meditations”; Nitin Sawnhey, who takes it to the lounge with “Bengali Song”; and Badmarsh, who abuses the hardsteppers on the dance floor with “Jungle Sitars” all take the music on divergent paths yet still find roots both in traditional Indian sounds and more frenetic U.K. club rhythms. The Outcaste sound fails to be monolithic, and precisely because of that, it paves the roads toward tomorrow.

The great thing about this disc is how it mixes older funk/psychedelic rock tunes with sitars (“Mathar” and “Streets of Calcutta”) with newer techno sounding ones (“Cybersitar”) and songs that could be considered acid jazz (“The Hand of Contraband”). It also captures more traditional sitar playing in its own rite. Listening to this disc is like taking a trip to different countries and worlds to hear many artists interpretations and styles of sitar playing melting with many different music genres.» (Amazon)

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17/12/2007

Las Criollísimas (1988)

«La cultura musical criolla y afroperuana se inicia con la llegada de los españoles y los esclavos africanos que fueron traídos por ellos. La cultura musical criolla en Lima construye de manera permanente una identidad propia, transformando los géneros musicales y patrones estéticos importados. Desde la presencia de valses de origen vienés, mazurcas, jotas españolas, continuando con la influencia de la música francesa e italiana, la cultura popular limeña se fue perfilando a través de la transformación y decantación de géneros, de tal manera que, aún asumiendo las modas correspondientes a cada época, se gestaron y desarrollaron algunas formas musicales que llegan hasta fines del siglo XX y que identifican lo limeño.

Cada momento histórico, desde la época colonial hasta ahora, fue plasmándose de diferentes la cultura musical a través de los instrumentos musicales utilizados, las formas y contenidos del canto, los bailes. Entre los géneros más importantes, cultivados en el siglo XX se encuentran: el vals peruano, la marinera limeña o canto de jarana y el festejo…»

(Más informaciones: Wikipedia; Criollos peruanos en el mundo)

«Musica criolla is a Peruvian genre of music, which combines mainly African, Spanish and Andean influences. The most popular style of musica criolla in Perú is the marinera, said to be the national dance of Perú. Other main genres are Peruvian vals and Tondero, festejo, polka, zamacueca, coplas de amor fino, landó. Musica criolla is a type of Mestizo music. Currently, some of the most famous musica criolla musicians are Carlos Hayre, songwriter Manuel Acosta Ojeda, performers like Lucy Aviles, Eva Ayllon, Alicia Maguiña and Peru Negro. The national "Day of Criolla Song" (Día de la Canción Criolla) is October 31 in Perú. This date coincides with the death of Musica Criolla icon Lucha Reyes, who died on that date in 1973.

Landó is a form of blues music popular in Perú. Musically the Lando is slower than the Festejo. Victoria Santa Cruz (who directed the National School of Folklore in Peru), worked to developed this genre around 40 or 50 years ago.It is related to South American dances of courtship because of its sensual movements on the dance and the soft tempo to sing. Since it is based lightly in a 3/4 time, it has become a popular choice for new Peruvian songwriters. It has origins in the Angolan londu, and is related to the Brazilian lundu.

Festejo (from Spanish 'fiesta') is a festive form of music. It can be seen as a celebration of Perú's independence and the emancipation of slaves, or as an attempt to reinvent diaspora African music without reference to slavery. Composers of all races have contributed to the development of festejo repertoire. Its origins are in a competitive circle dance performed by men playing cajónes. Nowadays, people of all ages and races participate in a witty dance accompanying the festejo.

The vals criollo is a unique musical form characterized by 3/4 time, originating in the coast of Peru. The vals criollo is a variation of the European Waltz brought by Spaniards to Peru, played with Spanish instruments by criollos or mestizos all races since the Peruvian Colonial Period.It was around the 30' when city neigborhoods or barrios starting developing their own styles. It was not much promoted by the media until the 50's when Chabuca Granda the most important composer of the Musica criolla started touring heavily. Other singers, songwriters and ethnomusicologists were compilating old interpretations and began recording songs that were never recorded before. The Musica criolla includes elaborate Spanish guitar work accompanied in recent years by cajon and castanuelas whith lyrics that talk about love, social dilemmas and nostalgia. This form is known outside of Peru as vals peruano (Peruvian waltz). (For more info: Wikipedia)

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16/12/2007

Sunset in Nevada, USA

The Flaming Lips - Oh My Gawd!!! (1987)

«Starting with either a sample or a cool replication of a legendary one-off line in the Beatles' "Revolution No. 9" – "Take this, brother, may it serve you well!" – the Lips dive head-on into rock dreams on Oh My Gawd!!! Coyne's sudden resemblance vocally to Paul Westerberg is its own curiosity, but the Replacements never quite got so fried – drunk, yes, but not fried. The cover, one weird-ass collage of skullmonsters, random photographs of landscapes, dogs and things, and, on the back, somebody literally burning up serves to set the mood just as much as the rampaging fun of "Everything's Exploding." The same combination of this and that which made Hear It Is a fun listen takes precedence here – Coyne and company can strum along softly or crank everything up to ten and back as they please, and they do. Coyne's knack for utterly brilliant song titles also takes full life here — how else to explain such hilarities as "Maximum Dream for Evil Knievel" or the flatly phrased "Prescription: Love," a groovy mindbender and arty rave-up all at once. While the Lips here are still a rock band par excellence, evidence of the band's increasing ambition kicks in with the simultaneously mocking and celebratory Pink Floyd vibes of "One Million Billionth of a Millisecond on a Sunday Morning." All ten minutes of it should really be on Ummagumma — Richard English's drums are pure Nick Mason from the get-go — but darn if it doesn't sound equally great here, as Coyne idly wonders what to do with himself in the time allotted. Other songs throw in everything from Led Zeppelin drum stomps to Mountain/Deep Purple raspy rock bellowing and more besides – theoretically everything mid-'80s American indie rock wasn't, making the Lips that much more of a fun, unique trip.» (AMG)

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15/12/2007

Isnebo & Faadah Kawtal - Divine (2002)

«Deliciously different music from Cameroon which takes simultaneously sure aim at head, heart and feet! Only Manu Dibango (with his slinky makossa) & Les Têtes Brulées (with their much more aggressive Bikutsi rock'n roll) have enjoyed a high international profile, but Africa's most ethnically diverse nation has other musical treasures. Our featured CD is "Divine" by title and nigh-irresistible in fact. Isnebo – its bandleader & songster – is "huge" at home. He's surely about to conquer the rest of the world.

Reportedly, no other Cameroonian musician has earned so much in one year from royalties. Isnebo comes from Cameroon's dry & dusty north & is of the same ethnic-cultural group (the Foulbé/ Fulani/ Peul) as Senegal's Baaba Maal. Isnebo's voice quality is similar. Like Baaba's, his songs always have a message, but Isnebo's music is mostly more "party time". It involves a happy marriage of guitars, basses & drumkit with Peul flute & lute (garaya) and "talking" drum (kalangou). Isnebo himself is a wonderful singer, who gets some great vocal as well as instrumental support from other members of his band Faadah Kawtal. The name means "the union's messengers", & notions of fraternity, fair play & fellowship are central: as one of their songs spells out, both genders should qualify.» (The Planet)

«Baba Maal n’est plus seul dans le créneau de la musique peuhl. Faadah Kawtal, l’Union en fulfuldé (dialecte peuhl du Nord-Cameroun), est dans son sillage. Avec Divine, leur premier CD, ce groupe musical vulgarise une musique injustement rangée dans le registre des folklores : le Goumba Galewa. Une musique avant tout d’expression peuhl, plongeant ses racines à la lisière du Sahel et des savanes de l’Afrique centrale. Etonnant mélange d’instruments traditionnels, de guitare et de synthés, le goumba galewa est une musique qui, sous sa forme rurale, a fait l’objet d’innombrables mutations, un peu à l’image de la vie et de la culture peuhl. […]

Divine est une quête d’authenticité autant dans sa partie instrumentale et vocale, que dans les textes. A l’exception de la 6ème chanson, Alioum, composée par Tom Yoms et dont l’instrumentalisation est très contemporaine, les autres titres de l’album sont une visite du Sahel musical. On y retrouve pêle-mêle, le luth, le garaya et le tchidal, une flûte sur laquelle on peut souffler éperdument tout en chantant sur une autre gamme. Le must de la dernière livraison des Faadah Kawtal est incontestablement l’introduction pour la première fois du kalagou. Petit tambour d’aisselle, le kalagou est un véritable tambour parlant entre les mains d’Isnebo.» (Afrik)

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14/12/2007

Istanbul

Picture: Cri & Chris

Selim Sesler - Oğlan Bizim Kız Bizim (2006)

The Coltrane of the clarinet

«It was a Wednesday night down the alley in Badehane's, one of Istanbul's hidden soup kitchens for the soul, where a generation of artists and musicians have found refuge from the harsh political and crueller economic realities of Turkey. Istanbul does conspiratorial like London does damp. And the dark, smoky corners of Badehane's that night held a street acrobat, a writer who had spent time in jail for his beliefs, a couple of skint film-makers, and a moderately famous bellydancer slumming it with a man who wasn't her husband.

Just after 9pm, three men who looked like the last survivors of Al Capone's gang walked in with instrument cases, followed a few minutes later by a small smiling man in a bobble hat. This was Selim Sesler, one of the greatest clarinettists in the world, and he was playing for his supper.

This was the first time I met Selim, and his wife looked desperately worried. She was attempting to draw back on one of the eyebrows he had lost to leukaemia with a makeup pencil but he was gently resisting. His teenage son Bulent, who was even then being talked of as a musical prodigy, looked lost and Selim himself seemed already halfway to being a ghost. Only his music had its former strength. First the bobble cap came off, then he threw his head back and produced a sound from his clarinet that was nothing like I'd ever heard before, somewhere between a saxophone and a zurna – the wailing eastern pipe that announces weddings and wrestling matches from the Balkans to the Himalayas and beyond. He played through a kaleidoscope of styles that embraced Turkish, Greek, Jewish, Bulgarian, Armenian and Arabian music, and went off on a few jazz riffs just for fun. This man was the Coltrane of the clarinet, and he was dying of cancer unrecognised at 45. I left that night cursing every god in heaven.

But sometimes life does happy endings just to keep us on our toes. The last time I saw Selim he was 10kg to the good, his eyebrows had grown back along with a natty beard, and he was on his way to becoming the next Ibrahim Ferrer. A fairy godmother had appeared in the unlikely form of punk cherub Fatih Akin, the enfant terrible of Turkish cinema, and his rollicking breakthrough film Head-On. German-born Akin used Selim and his ensemble at the end of every frenetic act of the film, sitting in long shot in their dinner jackets on the edge of the Golden Horn playing a song introducing the next sequence. The music tore through audiences who had never heard a note of Turkish music before, and left Akin wondering if he should have been making a film about the incredibly rich but little-known music of Europe's biggest city.

Crossing the Bridge is that film, a Buena Vista Social Club of the Bosphorus, a typically passionate Akin tribute to the great crossing of cultures and continents that come together in Istanbul, and the amazing musical mix it has produced.

It was the strange chemistry developing between the understated Sesler and the madly flamboyant German alternative rock star Alexander Hacke (of Einstürzende Neubauten) while laying down the soundtrack for Head-On that convinced Akin that he should send the Berliner on a musical odyssey. The huge, blond and hairy Hacke tears through the narrow streets of Beyoglu finding pavement musicians, jamming with punks, hanging with local rave and rap stars, chilling with reggae masters Baba Zula and interviewing legends of the Turkish arabesque and classical salon scenes, before he dips down into the subcultures of arabesque, Kurdish, Laz and street protest music that are the real beat of this megalopolis of 12 million people.

After a few sessions in Mrs Sesler's front room, they board the bus to Kesan, Selim's home town near the Greek border, where the Sesler clan and the town's army of other Roma musicians are the keepers of a huge store of musical styles that mirror the old Ottoman empire at its widest extent, from the Adriatic to Arabia. […]

Head-On and Crossing the Bridge may have made Sesler a star but he is still doing weddings, circumcisions and bar mitzvahs. The Roma in him still worries where the next meal will come from.

The last time I saw Selim was a night in November. It was a big party in a warehouse in Thessaloniki, right in the docks from which his family were deported along with 600,000 other Greek Muslims in the disastrous exchange of populations between the two countries in 1922. At first the Greek crowd ignored him. Then they began to dance and cheer, demanding he return again and again after every encore. They didn't want him to go. History was turning a circle again. And this time it was at the end of a clarinet.» (Fiachra Gibbons, The Guardian)

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12/12/2007

Made in Japan II

Kimonogirls in Hamamatsu

Picture: Noel G.-S.

Besh o droM - Macsó Hímzés (2000)

«It has been said that Hungary has two languages: its ancient spoken language and its ancient folk music. Probably due to the fact that Bela Bartók and Zoltán Kodály vigorously promoted Hungarian folk music during the inter-war period, it is intricately woven through the country’s national identity. So when an electro-acoustic, urban wedding collective like Besh o droM rises to the forefront of Hungarian music, it is bound to be a sensation. The band’s way of fusing deep ethnic folk roots with wild jazz improvisation and Albanian, Greek, Serbian, Macedonian, and Turkish music (not to mention an interlude with the most popular DJ in the country) has placed it far at odds with traditional folk purists, while creating immense popularity among young, loyal followers.

The band’s twelve musicians seem virtually incapable of doing anything but interpreting and recreating traditional music in their own, unique style. The line-up centers around two self-taught musicians, Gergõ Barcza and Ádám Pettik. In an interview for the Pepsi Sziget Festival, Pettik describes how the spirit is the most important thing in the music. He says, “I watch how Gypsy musicians learn. For example, I give Robi a cassette, he listens, he tries to play it. He wants to play it the same but he cannot because here in his heart is the musician. The musician in him will not allow him to copy. This is the way we try to play music.”

The inability to photocopy traditional music reflects itself in the band’s name. Although its literal meaning is ‘to ride the road,’ Besh o droM (that's right – small d, capital M) also means to follow your own path and not be held back. The Gypsy idiom connotes controlling something stronger than you. Like a person riding a horse. When that person takes charge, he or she can go anywhere they desire.» (Rockpaperscissors)

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11/12/2007

Majid Bekkas - African Gnaoua Blues (2001)

«American continent is not the only place where descendants of black slaves make wonderful music. The Moroccan Gnawas are well known for their trance music and healing rituals. Their history spans more that 4 centuries. When the Moroccan army captured Timbuktu in 1591, several thousand men and women were brought north as slaves. Caravans were transporting unfortunate black Africans to the slave market of Marrakech. This lasted until 1912. "Tied in sacks they brought us, in the camel bags. And they sold us in the wool market. May God pardon them." Other Moroccans look at Gnawas with mixed curiosity and supremacy. Their music is linked to the sub-Saharan spiritual world. Their mournful singing, shattering rhythm of the metal castanets and bass-guitar like sound of guimbri make base for the all night lila rituals, which culminate in the exorcist session early in the morning.

Majid Bekkas was raised in a Gnawa family in Salé, on the Atlantic coast of Morocco. where he began playing the guimbri in healing ceremonies. Inspired by the traditional-pop fusion of the group Nass El Ghiwane in the '70s, he began to branch out, and never stopped. Playing guitar and guimbri and singing in a variety of styles, he has worked with popular, jazz and experimental musicians. Fours years ago he emerged as a talent in his own right.
His albums African Gnaoua Blues (Igloo, 2001) and Mogador (Igloo, 2004) show links both to the American bluesman John Lee Hooker and the Malian guitarist Ali Farka Touré. Bekkas is fascinated by the similarities between Gnawa and blues, both musical genres created by African slaves in a foreign cultural context. When an African musician hears black music from America, he notices kinship. He can play the same tune, but with a different feeling. A transcultural discharge occurs, soft blue notes cascading like summer lightning.
Resembling American blues, also Bekkas's songs have the power of personal statement. On stage, he switches guitar with the traditional Gnawa guimbri. A wooden flute and percussion complete very intimate soundscape. If you are looking for Taj Mahal with African charm, meet Majid Bekkas.» (Respectmusic.cz)

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10/12/2007

Made in Japan

Neonland

On the Shinkansen

Pictures: Noel G.-S.

Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra - World Famous (1991)

«“I'd make time for Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra anytime,” said no less an authority than the band's one-time producer, veteran reggae guitarist Dennis Bovell. Starting out in the late '80s as a ska revival group playing the streets and clubs of their hometown, the sharply suited Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra quickly became the flag-bearers for the Japanese ska scene. This movement gained popularity in the 1990s and included the arguably more “authentic” ska sounds of the Ska Flames and the Determinations from Osaka. Like those two acts, Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra's sound is largely instrumental, with powerful, punchy arrangements that re-create the jump-up energy of Jamaican ska originals such as the Skatalites. It's a sound as vibrant as any modern-day ska – anywhere. Over the course of more than 1,000 live shows, the band has forged a live reputation that has seen it invited to perform at England's Glastonbury Festival and France's Eurockeennes. Redefining their sound over the course of more than ten albums (including the occasional European release), the deaths of two bandmembers, and the departure of their bandleader, Asa-Chang, the ten-man-strong Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra have also recorded with some of the biggest names in Japanese music.» (AMG)

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09/12/2007

The Souljazz Orchestra - Uprooted (2005)

«Since 2002, the Ottawa-based band has been keeping the classic sounds of raw, gritty groove alive and well in Canada. Their style combines jazz, funk, African and Latin music with messages touching on politics and spirituality. The blaring horns, retro keyboards and polyrhythmic beats show the influence of James Brown, Herbie Hancock, Fela Kuti and Tito Puente, but the sound remains nonetheless refreshingly original. Their stylistic variety is in part due to the diverse musical backgrounds of the band’s individual members: jazz, funk, blues, reggae, classical, and traditional Cuban, Brazilian and West African percussion. The Souljazz Orchestra has had the chance to collaborate with notable artists such as Beautiful Nubia and Mighty Popo, and has opened up for Etta James, Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, John Lee Hooker Jr., The Sadies, and more. The Souljazz Orchestra's all-original debut album, Uprooted, was released in April of 2005 to critical acclaim, receiving nation-wide airplay through public and campus radio. The band recently released their second album, Freedom No Go Die. This high-energy project focuses mainly on afrobeat music, and features the vocal stylings of Mighty Popo, Alanna Stuart and Marielle Rivard.» (radio3.cbc.ca)

«Si Shaft devait renaître, il choisirait le Soul Jazz Orchestra pour illustrer ses aventures. Une bande son télescopant toutes les musiques afro-américaines du 20e siècle, orchestrant l’ambiance faite de débrouille et de misère banale des ghettos urbains, mais aussi exigence de l’existence dans ce qu’elle peut avoir de plus léger, urgence d’être tout simplement. Le discret martèlement des percussions sonne le rappel de racines ancestrales et nous délivre des forêts d’immeubles. Un son furieusement funky à la pulsion de vie salutaire, à l’image des poings levés ornant la pochette de l’album Freedom No Go Die (DoRight ! Music). Une énergie en diable qui anime les corps dans une transe assoiffée de liberté et de délice.» (let’s motiv)

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07/12/2007

Babe(b)logue Hat?

Martín La Spina, Selfportrait

Kindly offered by Alonsii. Check his "Arbre de les 1000 Musiques"

B'net Houariyat - Poèmes d'Amour des femmes du Sud Marocain (1994)

«B'net Houariyat is formed by five women from the region of Marrakech, singing and dancing to the rhythm of their drums, performing traditional music of the Houara (the region between Taroudant and Tiznit), of the Hammada (plain of the Dra'a), together with Berber dances and urban styles like the Aitci (female seductive appeal) and the Chaabi, popular style that originated Rai music. The image of women as represented by the music of B'net Houariyat reflects the multiple facets of Islam on a daily life and the female condition, above and beyond the stereotypes, with emotion, humor and energy. Among the themes of their songs: the exaltation of love and beauty, the cry of the young woman that refuses the combined marriage with a rich old man, the derision of the man that has more wives and that works to maintain them, the ritual dance of the woman possessed by her spirits, the incitement to the Moroccan football team in occasion of the World Cup 1998, the criticism of Bob Marley and pop's fanaticism. The group played for the first time out of their traditional context in July 1995, in Milan, at the Festival Notti di San Lorenzo. Since then, B'net Houariyat has numerous international festivals and concert halls.» (WorldMusicCentral)

Thanx to Giuliano for this post

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05/12/2007

Postcards from Italy (44): Alcamo Marina, Sicily

The Feelies - The Good Earth (1986)

«After the various side projects and explorations the band got up to for most of the early '80s, not to mention switching some members around (with bassist Sauter and drummer Demeski now forming the rhythm section), the Feelies made a fine return with The Good Earth. With co-production from noted fan Peter Buck, the group exchanged some of the understated tense frazzle of Crazy Rhythms for a gentler propulsion without losing its trancy edge. Compared to the wispy jangle rock that passed for much of college radio at the time, the Feelies proposed a different path with the songs' steady pace and murkier feeling. Demeski's a more than fine replacement for Fier (his martial playing on "Tomorrow Today" is one of his many entertaining touches), Sauter's playing emphasizes controlled understatement, and the Million/Mercer guitar duo still nails it. The brisker jauntiness of songs like "The Last Roundup," which wears just enough of a country & western edge without seeming like a parody or half-assed, varies the calmer moods elsewhere very well. At the album's considerable best, such as the brief but really lovely acoustic/electric blend of "When Company Comes" or the title track, with an almost epic ending, Million and Mercer sound like they inhabit the same body playing two guitars, everything's that much in lovely sync. Their vocals ride low in the mix this time out, but thankfully the sometimes all-too-obvious hints of Lou Reed in Mercer's style have been replaced with a more unique, stronger edge — not that the connection still isn't there on a track like the building groove of "Slipping (Into Something)." Reed would also love its concluding guitar solo! Perhaps the only criticism is a slight sameness between a few songs, but there's more sly variety on display to offset this gentle treasure.» (AMG)

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03/12/2007

The Ripple Effect - Hybrids (2005)

«Hybrids is a jazz album in name only – specifically the names of multi instrumentalist John Surman and drummer Jack DeJohnette, who leads this collaborative ensemble.

One of the few musicians to have recorded or performed with Ornette Coleman, Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane, and Miles Davis, DeJohnette’s jazz credentials are obvious. But Hybrids tosses his cap into the modern electronica realm. With producers Ben Surman (John’s son) and Big Al (the mastermind behind the Sonic Kitchen, one of UK’s biggest and brightest electronic music studios), DeJohnette reinterprets seven of his own pieces in modern electronica. Four come from his recent collaboration with Mandingo griot Foday Musa Suso (Music From the Hearts of the Masters).

Hybrids does feature jazz and world music, but only as raw source materials for Surman to manipulate in the creation of a new electronic music hybrid. “I wanted to extract some of the grooves and melodies that I was drawn to and use them in a different context, retaining the groove and feel but placing it in a different musical setting,” Surman says. “I wanted to move outside of the more traditional acoustic approach and add elements you wouldn’t normally find in jazz.” In this respect, these Hybrids might be more Surman’s than DeJohnette’s.

The opening track, “Ancient Techno,” says a great deal about this set. DeJohnette’s fluid drums bubble up from underneath their accompaniment, constantly changing patterns. […] “Na Na Nai” opens with Surman on either bass clarinet or saxophone, which then washes away in electronic ripples; next, vocals by Marlui Miranda, one of the world’s leading researchers and performers of Brazilian Indian music, are shredded then laid in between the instruments. As Surman ghostwalks from the background into the foreground, the multiple layers (drum, voice, sax/clarinet, and electronic) coalesce to create a very new musical sound. DeJohnette again sets shifting tides of rhythm and sound, like a painter sampling from his palette, to create a new sound for futuristic “Worldwide Funk.” “The Just-Us Department,” the final track (and the only new song), crunches out DeJohnette’s most pronounced drumming on the entire set, pounding thick African drumming hewn in a modern, brittle icy metallic sound. (Allaboutjazz)

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01/12/2007

Winter

Zebda - Essence Ordinaire (2001)

«"We who live by rock and rai and accordion/On the periphery of commercial hits" is a line from Zebda's hometown portrait Toulouse and that's a pretty accurate capsule description of where the French band fronted by three second-generation North African immigrants fits among the Euro-mix crew. Rough-and-ready ragamuffin reggae and rapid-fire rapped vocals, Arabic flourishes, touches of French café accordion, a savvy command of dynamics, and well-constructed arrangements smoothly blending those elements into a distinctive whole complete the musical picture. Zebda never lost touch with the Toulouse neighbourhood roots that nourished its biting social commentaries and street-life portrayals, using its popularity and influence to stage cultural and political initiatives back in the 'hood.

The opening "Y’a Pas de Arrangement" works a bit of James Brown funk into Zebda's rock/rai/raggamuffin mix, and that's a tell-tale signal that Essence Ordinaire is a mellower, more melodic disc. Only "Je Suis" really favours a heavier, rock guitar attack over the funkier, R&B rhythm guitar groove that dominates here; the arrangements are sparer all around, but that doesn't stop the Toulouse, France, septet from delivering another solid effort. Lyricist Magyd Cherfi seems to have been in a reflective mood. "Je Crois Que Ca Va Pas Etre Posible" recounts examples of everyday dreams – looking for an apartment, going clubbing without being hassled – running up against the discriminatory reality of being judged by one's appearance. The spiralling instrumental melodies of "Tout Semble Si" also spotlight the mournful Arabic side of Zebda's mix, but strings are featured more heavily and "Tombes des Nues" goes the acoustic-guitar-with-accordion route. So does "Qualalardime," reviving the French-Arab café flavour in the verses before breaking out in an exuberant string-driven chorus powered by Vincent Sauvage's drums. Essence Ordinaire boasts fewer potent dance tracks, more singing than rapping, and a stronger French flavor – a quieter record that shows a different side to Zebda.» (AMG)

«Zebda ne manque ni d’idées ni de talent. C’est donc avec fébrilité que nous attendions Essence ordinaire, heureux que le groupe reprenne l’initiative après avoir encouragé les autres à le faire. Tout le monde a sûrement déjà entendu Je crois que ça va pas être possible, le titre phare de l’album. Il résume bien une démarche où l’élaboration des textes semble prendre le pas sur l’imagination musicale. Attention, j’ai pas dit que les mélodie et le rythme rappelaient le Macumba de la star languedocienne des eighties! Simplement, la folie instrumentale qui marquait les premiers albums semblent légèrement apaisée, comme si Zebda souhaitait employer un ton plus grave et plus sobre pour faire porter son discours.

Il est vrai que les temps changent. En 95, Zebda raillait un Chirac démago qui glosait pendant 2 plombes sur le "bruit et l’odeur" des immigrés. En 98, Chirac est président fantoche d’un pays gouverné par un Parti socialiste dont on peut rêver qu’il structure la recomposition de la droite républicaine afin de laisser la place libre à gauche. On peut rêver. Les réalités sociales chantées par Zebda rappellent quand même que l’essence ordinaire qui fait avancer cette fin de siècle est trop chargée en plomb pour nous emmener bien loin. Le seul motif de satisfaction est sans doute la capacité de Zebda à recycler la double-peine, le racisme ordinaire, la crise urbaine et autres pollutions existentielles en moments de plaisir. Toujours trop bref, bien sûr, comme ce phrasé suave sur Tombé des nues: "Je suis venu mais je suis pas venu tu penses … M’entendre dire ‘sois le bienvenu’"…» (Fluctuat).

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