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 Continue Reading
Balkan Music
The River Voices – Çorovodë, Albania | May 2017
From Remix-Culture‘s Bandcamp site: “Recorded live in May of 2017 by Hatim Belyamani and Bajram “Kafu” Kinolli in Çorovodë, Albania. We are a non-profit organization celebrating musical traditions in harmony with digital remix art. Our mission is to inspire people to reconfigure their relationships with other cultures, communities, and individuals, Continue Reading
Baklava – From Skopje With Love
Our friends over at the indomitable CPL-Music have released a charming disc of traditional music from my second homeland of Skopje, Macedonia! Baklava, the subject of today’s listening, work with folk music and does sterling work reinterpreting it for a more modern, updated sound. Speaking of that sound, the band Continue Reading
Petar Vujačić – Made in Ovtočić: Songs from Montenegro
Amazing. The ever excellent Antonovka Records are now producing music outside of the former USSR. We have a description of the recordings below, courtesy of the label’s Bandcamp site: “Gusle (not to be confused with Russian gusli) is a Balkan (mainly Montenegrin and Serbian) bowed instrument. There is only one Continue Reading
Various Artists – Nordic Notes – CPL-Music 2022
Our friends at CPL Music and Nordic Notes had another banner years for releases in the genre of World Music. The sampler includes tracks from the Balkans, Scandinavia and Asia among other locales, and it’s a great way to taste what the label has to offer.
Vartra – Basma
Our beloved friends at CPL-Music have submitted a bizarre and completely engrossing album of ethereal tribal music from Serbia in the form of Vartra. The band was founded in 2017 by Siniša Gavrić and sisters Ivana and Aleksandra Stošić. What makes the music so interesting is that it not only Continue Reading
MAiKA – Balkannibalism
In a land of amazing bands and ensembles, MAiKA have managed to forcefully grab my attention. While they call themselves an alternative dance-punk band, there’s so much more to the music. The energy is amazing, the voices cut right through you in a way that most indie music can’t, and the Continue Reading
Divanhana – Zavrzlama
In January, we had the pleasure of reviewing a track called Ćilim from Bosnian ethno-folk band Divanhana, and now, it’s our pleasure to bring you the rest of the album! Zavrzlama is a collection of sevdah tracks which have a darker, more minor-key quality than what I’m used to from Continue Reading
Divanhana – Ćilim
Our dear friends and CPL-Musik stun us again with a popping single! Some info from the band’s Bandcamp site: Divanhana is a Bosnian sevdah band which performs traditional music in new arrangements created under the influence of jazz, pop and the 20th century classical music. Divanhana’s intention is to cherish and Continue Reading
Razam / Iva Marešová – Harpyje U Pramene
On Friday night, my beloved friends, Helenka and Tomáš, suggested I go out to a club called Stará Pekárna, a club where Tomáš works. The owner of this fine establishment is a heavy blues aficionado who happens to book very impressive bands. Imagine my surprise when I walk into the Continue Reading