叶尔波利 Yerboli – 哈萨克精神Kazakh Spirit

China has 55 legally recognized minorities, each contributing to the mosaic of the country.  This particular project, Yerboli, comes from the Kazakh community, but it is not ethnic music per sé.  This is folk music, but with a slightly more mystical element to it.  Shenzhen-based Old Heaven Books released this Continue Reading

Biliana Voutchkova – Seeds Of Songs

This release is a double introduction of sorts for me; first, for the chance to finally delve into a full recording of the work of Biliana Voutchkova, an interdisciplinary artist, violinist, performer, composer, improviser and curator from one of the countries I most enjoy visiting, Bulgaria (though she is based Continue Reading

Star Band de Dakar – Psicodelia Afro-Cubana de Senegal

Cuba has a long, storied history of sharing a strong bond with many countries in Africa.  From the horrifying slave trade to the Cuban Communist “revolution,” culture and music have flowed back and forth between the island nation and most of the richly cultured continent.  This release from the now-legendary Continue Reading

Ferran Fages – Llum Moll

I’ve had the pleasure of reading about Farren Fages‘ work for at least 20 years now, but I never had a chance to fully explore his work.  I’m happy to say that I regret not diving into his catalogue earlier.  It’s impressive, to say the least. This particular album, Llum Continue Reading

Yat-Kha – We Will Never Die

Albert Kuvezin (Альберт Кувезин) is a legend in the ethno-rock and World Music community.  He was one of the founders of the band Huun-Huur-Tu, which brought throat singing into prominence.  He went on to form his own band, Yat-Kha, who I came across in 1993.  He was managed to meld Continue Reading

The Utopia Strong – The Utopia Strong

The Utopia Strong are a band out of the United Kingdom which blew me away.  Praise to Chris Morley for alerting me to the band’s existence.  It sounds something like Krautrock or psychedelic rock which goes funky.  It’s almost as if you can dance to some of this material.  The Continue Reading

Gadi Sassoon – Multiverse

Gadi Sassoon is an Italian sound designer and composer whose latest release comes from the venerable Los Angeles-based record label A Strangely Isolated Place.  I had only heard one track of his work before, this coming from ASIP’s 2020 Compilation.  Though impressive, it didn’t prepare me for one of the Continue Reading

Zacharivna Pisnya Ensemble – Petropavlovka: Songs of Ukrainians from Kyrgyzstan

The Zacharivna Pisnya Ensemble are made up of ethnic Ukrainians who reside in the republic of Kyrgyzstan, and have existed as a group since 1902.  Though some of their names have been Russified, they maintain their cultural ties to Ukraine via song. Antonovka Records have done astounding work documenting such Continue Reading

稷廬 / jì lú – 山與客聽 / Mountain, Traveler, Listener

The Sichuan, China-based Jì Lú (稷廬) are a new project that has connections with one of China’s most innovated bands, Raflum.  The instrumentation on this album is sparse, but it makes for good listening, as bamboo flute and guitar seem to blend pleasantly. Some notes regarding the release: When talking about landscapes in the traditional context, it’s mostly about reclusion.  Although true recluses are rare, the mountains and rivers are always there.  Ironically,  the real landscapes are actually “horrible nature” instead of some leisure place.  The traditional landscape paintings are a kind of “tame nature,” which were described as “To observe with meditation, and lie down to experience” and “Sitting in the forest and spring instead of go to banquet” by ancient Chinese poets.  It emerge at North and South Dynasty, then become a game of finding the essence during the Five Dynasties and the Song Dynasty, and finally stuck in the static self-development after the Ming and Qing Dynasties.  The development of landscape paintings are just like how people detach with the nature and entering urban life.  This album is the continuation of this thesis.  In a time when the virtual reality are replacing urban life, we attempt to reinterpret this cliche with improvisation that based on the topic of “landscape.”  We also naming the songs by minutes and seconds instead of the traditional way of titling the songs, which is based on its imagery.  That creates interactive between the “teller” and listener, and reflects the beauties for individuals due to their own aesthetic experiences.  At this time, the distant, outmoded, cumbersome and vague image of landscape might leave a huge space for “starting again.” Instrumental Continue Reading