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Month: February 2023
Various Artists – Fly, Fly, You Hardened Arrow: Round Dance Songs of “Polish” Old Believers from Altai
The now-legendary Antonovka Records have done astounding work documenting music from Russia’s myriad of ethnic communities. This one is from the so-called “Polish” Old Believers in the Altai region. From the label’s Bandcamp site: “The ancestors of the Altai “Polish” Old Believers were peasants of the Vetka-Starodub territory of the priestly Old Believers, who fled…
Bana Haffar – Genera – Live at AB Salon, Brussels
Touch Records has introduced so many experimental recording composers to the world in its 40 years of existence that it’s hard to keep up with them. This latest release by Saudi-American composer Bana Haffar immediately spins a web for you to get tied into her shimmering compositions. Found sounds and acoustic instruments feel and sound…
Audirvāna
No post today thanks to being under the weather, but I did want to recommend an app for those of you who like streaming your digital music files with a bit-perfect player. I started using Audirvāna a month ago, and it’s made a huge difference in terms of listening quality. It’s a bit pricey, and…
Kimi Djabaté – Dindin
Cumbancha Records usually put out world-class music, but this one stood out rather brightly. From Kimi Djabaté’s Bandcamp site: “Hailing from the country of Guinea-Bissau, gifted guitarist, percussionist and balafón (African xylophone) player Kimi Djabaté is one of Africa’s most exceptional talents. Now based in Lisbon, Djabaté has collaborated with Mory Kanté, Waldemar Bastos and…
Antti Lötjönen – Circus/Citadel
Antti Lötjönen is a new name for me. A bassist from Finland, his band absolutely swings and bops. Perhaps it’s best to let him describe his latest album, Circus/Citadel, here on his Bandcamp site: “Antti Lötjönen says: “These compositions vary in terms of form and density, with each player having enough room to re-invent and…
Various Artists – Les Disques Bongo Joe: Solidarity With February 2023 Earthquake Victims
The earthquake which has ravaged Turkey and Syria should not be forgotten about despite the blindingly fast news barrage we’re living through. The Swiss label Bongo Joe have offered this pay-what-you-like compilation featuring Derya Yıldırım & Grup Şimşek, Oldu O Zaman and Altın Gün, who have graciously given tracks to help this noble cause. Personally,…
Yury Markin – On a Large Scale
I have to give full credit to legendary multi-instrumentalist Arkady Shilkloper for making mention of Yury Markin’s album on his Facebook feed on which he appears. I’m familiar with how solid the Russian jazz/experimental record label Fancy Music is, and this latest release does not disappoint. From the label’s Bandcamp site: “Yury Markin is one…
Extremophiles – First Batch
Extremophiles are a duo made up of Jeff Gburek on synthesizer, percussion, effects, devices and John Palumbo on electro-acoustic drums, percussion, and more electronics. I have to say this release blew me away, as it reminded be of a cross between the crunchy post-punk/Rock-In-Opposition vibe of This Heat’s early work and the more Industrial, less…
Okolo Poludnya – Gulyat EP
Okolo Poludnya are a band out of Russia who have mastered the art of nostalgic synth-pop. Well done, and considering how old synth-pop is, it’s nice to hear bands keeping the genre sounding fresh.
Juchify.com
A friend passed this site along, and as North Korea is supposedly a die-hard Juche state, it surprised me that they actually have a streaming service for local music. Because Bandcamp, Spotify and others may or may not be under pressure from Western governments to not allow this sort of thing on their platform (though…