aarbor 9/30/2020 12-inch, A Library
Infekto is Finland’s Riku Pentti a composer, actor and DJ who played with the hip hop outfit BOMfunk MCs. Left Hand Jazz is from 2002 Pentti’s “Take 2” and the Cuica remix are both worth a play. AArbor
aarbor 9/30/2020 12-inch, A Library
Incognito is a British Acid Jazz band the track Get Into My Groove is from their 1999 album No Time Like the Future. This is 2 lovely remixes of Get Into My Groove by Jazzanova – one instrumental and one with vocals. Here are the lyrics to the first stanza: (which seem apropos right now) Politicians knocking at my door Heads of nations rotten to the core Tell me how are you gonna change the world When you haven’t got the love… AArbor
aarbor 9/30/2020 12-inch, A Library
Buzz Bomb is Olivier Labarrere from France. He was active releasing records in 1996-1997 and was a part of the Paris music scene at that time. You’ll find drum ‘n bass, electro and jungle here. AArbor
aarbor 9/30/2020 12-inch, International
Saba Alizadeh is an Iranian composer of electronic and experimental sounds. He curates a website called Noise Works and a concert series called Aural events. On this record Saba plays kamancheh ( Persian bowed luted related to the rebab), kalimba (thumb piano) and laptop. This is not traditional Persian music – it almost reminiscent of Muslimgauze – Bryn Jones – definitely worth a spin!
AArbor
aarbor 9/23/2020 CD, International
[Cah-Yay Treh-seh] is a Puerto Rican band and this is their 2nd release from 2010. The band consists of 2 half brothers and their step sister. The lyric style is sarcastic and satiric. Poverty is a topic discussed in the lyrics here. The sounds include cumbia and Eastern European stylings. This was a very popular album and won a Latin Grammy. AArbor
aarbor 9/23/2020 CD, International
Siti Muharam is the granddaughter of Siti Binti Saad, an early 20th century singer who pioneered a new style of taarab featuring female singers. Taarab had been formal court music that combined Arabic and Swahili lyrics paving the way for a new generation of female taarab singers. In this her debut album, Muharam further reimagines the taarab tradition into a style very comfortable to modern Western ears. Zanzibar is an archipelago in the Indian Ocean just east of Tanzania and South of Kenya. Unguja is the large island just north of the Zanzibar archipelago. Historically these islands have been meetings place of cultures: the Indian spice trade/the African slave trade… Muharam’s music, which includes Western instruments along with traditional ones (oud and tablas), it reflects the Eastern Indian and African influences resulting in a smokey, delicious sound. AArbor
aarbor 9/23/2020 CD, International
This is Rachid Taha’s 3rd album from 2001. The first track Barra Barra appears in the trailer for Far Cry 2 a computer game, and 2 movie soundtracks: Black Hawk Down (2001) and The Hunting Party (2007). The musical sound combines his Algerian roots, techno, early rock and punk. Taha was influenced by the band Galactic and guitarist Steve Hillage at the time of this recording. He wanted to record in New Orleans because he saw parallels between African and American music and between the music of the African slaves who came to New Orleans and that of the Gnawas, the black desert tribes who became slaves of the Arabs in North Africa. New Orleans is like Algiers, both French colonies at one time. He thought that some of the local Louisiana Zydeco drum patterns are remarkably similar to Rai. His next album after this one is considered his bestseller, Diwan. Sadly Taha died of a heart attack in 2018. AArbor
aarbor 9/16/2020 CD, International
An outstanding 2019 release from Strut which showcases the popular music of Madagascar during a heyday of Malagasy popular music. Most recordings from Madagascar are traditional instruments and music, this one is not. Salegy is a fast tempo local dance based on 5/8 and 12/8 rhythms [tracks 1, 4]. Soukous is from the Congo, brought into Madagascar’s music in the ‘60’s via the radio, along with music from Kenya, South Africa and Mozambique. At that time the newer styles and instruments replaced many of the traditional ones. Be sure to check out the Behind the Scenes Alefa Madagascar! Video on Youtube. The liner notes give a very rich and well researched guide of music in Madagascar. AArbor
aarbor 9/16/2020 CD, Soundtrack
The soundtrack to a documentary movie directed by Miguel Kohan featuring interviews with musicians and singers from Argentina’s Golden Age of Tango ( 1940’s and ‘50’s – before Astor Piazzolla). Uruguay’s Lagrima Rios appears here on the 2nd track on both CDs. Two CDs worth of lovely antique tango music, the grandmother musically speaking of what you hear from Gotan Project, Bajofondo and others these days.
AArbor
aarbor 9/16/2020 CD, International
Mohamed (Mohd. for short) Rafi was one of the 4 top playback singers in Bollywood, the others being Asha Bhosle, her sister Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar. Playback singers do the actual singing in Bollywood movies while the screen actors lip sync. These are some of his best known (and loved) tracks.
AArbor
Trio Linguae (lin-gwee) is trumpeter Kevin Woods, Guitarist John Stowell and pianist Miles Black. This is their debut release. It’s a collection of original works by Woods and Black and some others from the likes of Jobim, Wayne Shorter, Bill Evans and Harold Arlen.
AArbor
aarbor 9/9/2020 CD, International
Trans-Global Underground (or TGU) are from England. They are (by their own admission) “notorious from mixing musical styles and rhythms with a total disregard for musical genres, technological barriers and common sense. They create a unique space where cross-cultural musical diversity thrives.” Here the sounds are electronics with Asian and African music styles. This release is from 2001 and features Zulu vocalist Thobekile Doreen Webster [2,4]. Two British-born Asian musicians: sitarist Sheema Mukherjee and percussionist Gurjit Sihra are a part of the band’s lineup on this release. Natacha Atlas was off doing her own thing at the time of this recording.
AArbor
Born in England and raised in NY (Long Island), Karsh Kale (pronounced Kursh Kah-lay) became a drummer and tabla player, known for his “electric tabla”. He first came to my attention as a part of Bill Laswell’s Tabla Beat Science project (founded in 2000). He was the 1st ‘Indo-American” to be signed to a solo recording contract by a U.S. label. This is his 3rd full length album from 2003. The best known track is ‘Milan’ (Meeting of 2 Rivers) [4] which includes both Laswell and Zakir Hussain.
AArbor
aarbor 9/2/2020 12-inch, Reggae
From 1975 or was it 1981? [Forced Exposure says 1975 and Discogs says 1981] this is Augustus Pablo with an all-star backing band: Sly and Robbie, Bingy Bunny et. al. beautiful classic dub!
AArbor
aarbor 8/19/2020 12-inch, A Library
3 very nice remixes of the Tuby Trio’s tracks A Gogo and Carajillo. The Truby Trio is Rainer Truby plus Roland Appel and Christian Prommer. Jazzanova remixes Carajillo. Jazzanova is a DJ collective from Berlin who’ve produced, mixed, curated and remixed music from many styles and places. A Gogo is remixed by Dj Muro and Boozoo Bajou. DJ Muro is Murota Takayoshi from Japan, a hip hop producer, DJ, remixer, and crate digger. Boozoo Bajou are (surpringly) from Nuremberg, Germany. Their style is downtempo and dubtronica with a Latin sensibility. I like them all!
AArbor
aarbor 8/19/2020 CD, International
4 glorious CDs of Arabic music: Grooves, Lounge, Chill and Café. It’s kind of an auditory encyclopedia of contemporary Arabic music. It’s not traditional Middle Eastern music. It’s more DJ and dance-oriented. AArbor
aarbor 8/19/2020 CD, International
This is music primarily from Tanzanian artists recorded in Dar es Salaam. Tanzania is in East Africa, south of Kenya. Mt. Kilimanjaro is in Tanzania. The music has elements of both East and West Africa. 5 artists are showcased here: Ndala Kasheba [2,6,9,12], the Achigo Band [4,7], Garikayi Tirikoti [3, 10], the Yekete Beat Band [1,5,8], and Delphin Mununga [11]. These outstanding musicians are “composers” although they are primarily working musicians. Tirikoti is a mbira carver – an artisan, who has created new tunings for his instrument. The label, Limitless Sky Records is about releasing and promoting music recorded in Tanzania. Check out the variety of sounds and enjoy! AArbor
aarbor 8/12/2020 A Library
Machito and his Orchestra with various guests: Mario Bauza, Flip Phillips and Charlie Parker are center stage here, along with Dizzy Gillespie and his Orchestra, Andre’s All Stars and Howard McGhee and His Afro-Cuboppers. Other jazz heavy hitters also play here creating a star-studded lineup. Some well-known tunes like Caravan, and mostly ones you haven’t heard in a variety of styles; makes this a very versatile recording. Don’t overlook this one!
AArbor
aarbor 8/12/2020 A Library
Master Flamenco guitarist Carlos Montoya shows his brilliance here. The playing is spectacular. Whether or not you like Flamenco, his guy is the real deal. Apparently each selection was recorded in 1 take! This recording is from 1963 when he was doing a lot of recording and concerts. He is credited with having transformed flamenco guitar into a separate musical style, not just the accompaniment to dance. His style is considered controversial and non-traditional, but you can’t argue with his playing and musicianship. AArbor
aarbor 8/12/2020 CD, International
Dr. Pete Larson is an epidemiologist who now resides in Ann Arbor, MI. He went to Nairobi,Kenya from 2014-2017 to work on public health issues and immersed himself in the music scene there. He also was enchanted by the Nyatiti -an 8 string lute/lyre played by the Luo people in West Kenya and learned to play it. Before going to Kenya, Larson was a guitarist who played in various rock and noise bands. The heart of this music is Larson’s Nyatiti which offers circular melodies for the other musicians to play with, around and in. “There is no beginning and end in traditional Kenyan music,” says Larson, so the performances are improvised pentatonic jams, not practiced sets. “You set the tempo and the rhythm pattern, and other musicians join in.” AArbor
KFJC 89.7FM