Thanks to having to work on Saturday, I am unable to review anything today. In lieu of this, I give you a wonderful performance from the Malian treasures Tinariwen, the kings of Maghreb rock.
Month: October 2024
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mastroKristo – Passage
mastroKristo is a band out of Greece whom I was able to glean little information about, but considering they are being released by Lost Tribe Sound, I expected this to be good. I was not disappointed at all. The acoustic guitar is achingly sparse, with a hint of neofolk without the corny imagery. Rather, this sits in some corner where modern classical, ambient, drone, okay, maybe a bit of neofolk of higher quality and acoustic music melt together. It’s a warm, rather intense listen.
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Various Artists – Cardinals At The Window
Though there are no tracks to share with you from this release, I can say that there are 136 tracks of indie, alternative, folk and other genres coming together for Cardinals At The Window, a compilation whose purpose is to give funds to those who suffered from the horrible flooding which occurred in North Carolina. Pray for those in need, and give materially where possible.
Today was a long work day at the school I teach at, so I leave you with the legendary Wire playing a Tiny Desk Concert from a few years ago. See you tomorrow.
Respect to Sharla Records out of Skopje, Macedonia, who have produced over 100 records now of fine alternative music sung in the home language.
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Kočani Orkestar – L’Orient est Rouge
It’s nice to go backwards to find some long-forgotten gems like this one. From the Kočani Orkestar’s Bandcamp site:
“This explosive Gypsy brass band from the Balkans was led by trumpet player Naat Veliov till 2000, and comprises two trumpets, three tubas, saxophone, clarinet, zurla (traditional oboe) and percussion. Their music is a punchy mixture of powerful brass band sounds, Turkish/Bulgarian rhythms (including characteristic asymetrical time signatures such as 7/8, 9/8 etc., which are sometimes called ‘Aksak’ in traditional Turkish music), and Eastern-style solos which are at the same time very skilful, inspired and wild. The sound of Oriental brass bands (which was introduced to larger parts of the Western public by Emir Kusturica’s film ‘Underground’) draws from traditional dance music from Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, Turkey, elements of rumba and salsa, and even Indian film music. A live performance of the Kocani Orkestar is a formidable and exciting experience.”
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Pete Swinton – Notes From Underground
Composer Pete Swinton makes perfect music to match the cold, listless, slightly depressing Beijing dusk today. Eerie, engaging music.
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Housekeeping Note
I will take November off to focus on some minor issues, and I will decide how frequently I will post in 2025. More to come.
Ever since Right Tempo Records has relaunched, their catalog choices have proven to be outstanding. Can you imagine an 86-year-old musician who has a résumé working with artists like Chet Baker, Gerry Mulligan and Stan Getz, among others, release a soul-stirring, funky album of such high quality in 2024? Absolutely! Mario Rusca can still lead a band, compose music that sounds both modern and reminiscent of the 1960’s and 1970’s, when he was in peak form. A bit of a news flash here, folks – he never left his prime. His playing is as sharp today as it was a half-century ago. An awesome release, though, sadly, we have to wait until December for it.
On October 11, 2024, a masterpiece will be released by our friends by Wewantsounds. We never doubt the impeccable quality of their releases, but as I am now the owner of a Rega turntable, I have more and more reason to eschew CDs and build up the vinyl collection. From the label’s press release:
“Wewantsounds is delighted to announce the release of Ryuichi Sakamoto’s classic LP “Coda”, issued in Japan in 1983 as a solo piano version of the “Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence” soundtrack. The album, which was never been released outside of Japan until now, sees Sakamoto on acoustic piano reinterpreting fascinating versions of his famous soundtrack including the classic theme and “Germination,” which was later used in the “Call Me By Your Name” soundtrack. This reissue has been remastered by Seigen Ono’sSaidera Mastering studio in Tokyo and boasts the original artwork plus a 4-page insert with new liner notes by Andy Beta.”