China

马木尔 Mamer – 沙漠 Desert：为开盘带录音而演奏的电吉他曲 Guitar Solo For Reel-to-reel Tape Recording

Posted on by Rudy Carrera

The near-legendary Old Heaven Books presents another fabulously bizarre album (also available as a CD and reel-to-reel tape) of Chinese guitarist (of Kazakh extraction) Mamer.  From the release’s Bandcamp site: “Mamer first became known as a dombra virtuoso and a modern master of Kazakh folk music. Over the years, he Continue Reading

巴亚宛 Bayawan – 麦盖提刀郎木卡姆乐队 Mekit Dolan Muqam Group

Posted on by Rudy Carrera

巴亚宛 Bayawan are heavy psychedelic muqam music from Xinjiang.  From Old Heaven Books’ Bandcamp site: “”Bayawan” is the common name for Muqam music used by the Dolan people. Bayawan, or Dolan Muqam, is a unique form of folk music and one of the most important cultural heritages of the Uyghurs Continue Reading

Li Yilei – Nonage

Posted on by Rudy Carrera

Sometimes experimental music can produce either dour listening or tie itself to miserable cover art showing the worst of humanity in some sort of fetishistic way.  Not so with this release!  London-based Chinese composer Li Yilei’s album concentrates more of a happy, carefree childhood, where, as she puts it, “…learn[ed] Continue Reading

Senyawa – Istana (Live)

Posted on by Rudy Carrera

Today is a workday for us in Beijing, so there is no review today, but I did want to point you to an Indonesian band called Senyawa, who is featured on Rafaelle Pezzella’s incredible Unexplained Sounds Group‘s digipak retrospective called the Far East Music Collection.  It is a reissue of Continue Reading