Longtime friend of the blog Hector Javier Ayala collaborates with saxophonist Christophe Rieger to produce a slow, languid jazz album which has reference points in spaghetti western soundtracks and bossa nova, as well a touch of music from Mexico.
France
Christian Fiesel – Avant Que Nous Soyons Tous Partis Pour Toujours
Hail! to our friends at Kalamine Records in France for producing yet another fine dark ambient/drone/post-Industrial masterpiece. There’s a lot of drama and pathos in this recording by Christian Fiesel, sounding very much like it would be a fine updated soundtrack to any good expressionist film of the early 1920s Continue Reading
Plantec – Awen
It’s a bit of a tragedy that Breton music doesn’t get the same healthy push as, say, Scottish or Irish music does. Outside of the absolutely legendary Alan Stivell, it’s rare to hear of great music coming out of this most unique of French provinces. Thankfully, we have Plantec to Continue Reading
PoiL Ueda – PoiL Ueda
This is a heavy, near-monstrous release involving Japanese singer and bassis Junko Ueda and the French avant-prog group PoiL. From their Bandcamp site: “PoiL Ueda is the result of a collaboration between Junko Ueda, a vocalist and satsuma-biwa player from Japan, and PoiL, a French rock/contemporary music band. The creation Continue Reading
Skáld – Huldufólk
Your browser does not support iframes. The French collective Skáld come as a revelation to me. These are Frenchmen who expertly perform Nordic music and imbue it with everything from folk music to metal. From the band’s press release: “As the heirs of the ancient poets known as skalds, Continue Reading
Vaudou Game – Pas Contente
Though these tracks are from 2014, this scorcher by Vadou Game, one of Togo’s funkiest bands, features two tracks that will appeal to funk aficionados, especially the title track. Also, James Brown fans, take note. You’re going to love the grooves on this tune.
Wintermute – Summersnitch
The esteemed French label Lotophagus Records released an album by Wintermute on December 2, and it’s a rather deep, dark and dubby affair, mixing trip-hop, the aforementioned dub and experimental rock music into something which reminds me of Cabaret Voltaire’s more dub-infested moments, or even acts like Scorn.
Various Artists – 紫氣東來 Purple Haze From East Vol.1
French label WV Sorcerer Productions 巫唱片 offers a pretty amazing collection of Chinese psychedelic rock bands, some still active, some gone, but all make pretty powerful listening. From the label’s Bandcamp site: “集中國各地十個迷幻搖滾樂隊和實驗音樂人的優秀作品，曲目總時長超過兩小時，展現中國地下獨立音樂新風景，帶你徜徉於虛實之境間。 Featuring the selected works of ten psychedelic bands and experimental musicians from all over China, including veteran Continue Reading
Biensüre – Biensüre
We at MYNTH are elated that our friends at WeWantSounds have another spicy platter on offer from their label. This one comes to us from the Marseille-based band Biensüre. From the label’s press release: Biensüre’s influences are varied and transcend generations and borders. Ranging from the Anatolian pop scene of Continue Reading
Noël Akchoté – J.(B.)B. (For Jaimie)
The avant-garde music scene lost an incredible talent in the form of Jaimie Branch, who passed away on August 22nd at the age of 39. The blog’s friend, Noël Akchoté offers a lovely tribute album by transcribing the trumpeter’s work into works for solo acoustic guitar. It’s a raw album Continue Reading