• Music

    Balkan Taksim – Disko Telegraf

    This gem, released by Buda Musique, came out on May of 2021, and it’s simmering! From the label’s Bandcamp site: Balkan Taksim is the corduroy-clad brainchild of Bucharest-based multi-instrumentalist/artist Sașa-Liviu Stoianovici who, along with his electronica producer companion Alin Zăbrăuțeanu, is on a quest to inform, educate and entertain audiences around the globe about Balkan psych, roots and grooves. The project started by searching for something to link the sense of what has been with what will be. Sașa’s exploration of traditional music of the Balkans, ancient Romanian music and Slavic cultures led him to travel a lot through the…

  • Music - Youtube

    Dorota Barová – Dotyk

    Czech vocalist and cellist Dorota Barová is a new name for me, but her rather glorious voice brings up memories of Portuguese singers like Teresa Salgueiro, who you might remember as the lead singer of Madredeus.  Barovà has had an impressive career, as her first album, the award-winning debut “Iluzja” (Anděl Award), propelled her to fame in the Czech indie music scene.  Her sophomore release, Dotyk (Touch), brings a collection of new songs and lyrics authored by Barová, which she recorded in trio with guitarist Miroslav Chyška (member of Illustratosphere, J.A.R. and Sexy Dancers) and bass guitarist Miloš Klápště (known…

  • Music

    Ernesto Diaz-Infante – Saca Los Cuernos al Sol

    My fellow Californian Ernesto Diaz-Infante provides us with a warm, shimmering work of nine instrumental pieces composed solely for guitar.  Each track is warm, not only by experimental music standards, but in terms of pure music listening.  My particular favorite was IV, which reminded me of a hybrid between John Fahey and Roy Montgomery playing while immersed in a silvery pool of water well outside this realm.  It made for a very pleasant listening experience. For a hard copy of this release, go to Headlights Recordings.

  • Music

    Various Artists – Remain Alone (A Disciples Compilation)

    Many years ago, I was enthralled with the music of 4AD artist His Name Is Alive, but lost track of what they were doing.  That’s a shame, as Warren Defever has continued to be involved in great music, and this one has to be one of the most interesting I’ve seen in a while, as it’s a paean to Roky Erickson and The Thirteenth Floor Elevators. Defever isn’t the only star on this compilation, however.  Also featured are Phew (best known for her work with Can in the West) and Model Home, a band out of Washington, D.C., who left…

  • Music

    Autumn Tears / Zeresh – Widowing / Possessing

    What a strikingly good album this is.  Autumn Tears is a collective of musicians from Billerica, Massachusetts who make an ethereal sound that blends the best of bands who would have fit well on 4AD Records during their 1980s heyday and progressive rock, especially for those who are fans of the Russian symphonic group iamthemorning.  Zeresh are beloved friends whose work has been reviewed on this blog in the past, and Tamar Singer’s vocals sound utterly sublime here.  This crosses neofolk with a restrained but foreboding metal vibe.  Dark, but magically so. Of special note, the mastering on this album…

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    Samo Salamon – Dolphyology: Complete Eric Dolphy for Solo Guitar

    Our friend from Maribor, Slovenia, the fine guitarist Samo Salamon, graces our blog with a new release.  This one is just him alone playing the works of Eric Dolphy accompanied by his guitar and, apparently, his cat adding in a meow or two. From Samo’s Bandcamp site: The idea of the project began by practicing at home alone during the many Covid lockdowns, rediscovering Dolphy’s music again. Furthermore, I was inspired to do this album by Miles Okazaki’s great solo guitar Monk project. We had a long talk this year via Skype and it was so great to hear how…

  • Music

    Various Artists – Discember: Hear Xmas, See Xmas, Say Xmas

    As we observe Christmas Eve and the Nativity today and tomorrow based on the Julian Calendar, we share an avant-garde take on “Christmas” music. The French experimental record label Camembert Électrique have released a 94-track comp of some rather interesting takes of some Yuletide classics, as well as a fair number of originals.  Some of the artists included include Anastasia Vronski, Sean Derek Cooper Marquart, James Hoehl, and our dear friends, Lezet.  It’s not a conventional compilation for the season, but it holds its own rather well.

  • Music

    Various Artists: Zanzibara: First Modern Taarab Vibes From Mombasa & Tanga, 1970​-​1990

    It’s so good to see the inestimable Buda Musique take the modern route and make some of the treasures of their back catalog accessible, not only digitally, but on fine vinyl and CD editions. This compilation brings together a collection of artists from the towns of Mombasa and Tanga, in Kenya and Tanzania respectively, highlighting the genre of taarab.  The genre is influenced by Taarab is influenced by the musical traditions of the African Great Lakes, North Africa, the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent. Over at the label’s Bandcamp site, there is a brief history of the genre and…