Wow! We were blown away when we first heard Nigerian organist Mammane Sani Abdullaye's La Musique Electronique Du Niger record reissued last year on Sahel Sounds (and now sadly out of print, it seems). Reissued from a rare cassette that originally came out in 1978, we thought that was Sani's only recording, but now Sahel Sounds has unearthed this doozy of a release, which takes Sani's minimal organ pop to a whole new Afro-futuristic level. Taken from unreleased studio sessions made in the mid-to-late eighties, when Sani began programming his own rhythms, the music here, derived from Saharan folk-ballads re-imagined for a cosmic future, is more spacious and exploratory, laid back and atmospheric, yet still loping, circular and groovy, perfect for astral-cruising across planetary deserts. For fans of the Ethiopiques series or that Personal Space electronic outsider RnB compilation we always raved about, and library music heads and minimal synth-lovers will find lots to love here too.
The Sahel Sounds label (responsible for Music From Saharan Cel Phones, Harafin So, and many more great lps of music from the Sahel region of Africa) strikes again with this amazing reissue of an uber-rare vintage cassette, the lone album circa 1978 by Nigerian "electronic music pioneer" Mammane Sani Abdullaye. We're told that if you live in West Africa, you'd likely be familiar with Mammane's instrumental music to some extent, as his tunes have apparently been used frequently in the background on radio and TV broadcasts over the past three decades. For us though, his sounds are an exciting discovery! Mammane plays the electric organ, in a fairly minimalistic and repetitive style, his music full of charming, simple melodies; it sounds very live and intimate, recorded with hardly any overdubs (it was done on a 2 track machine) and pleasingly lo-fi, with a little bit of tape hiss (just like we like it).
Some of the songs are woozy, sweetly dreamy sound paintings, others are more uptempo and percussive, with tick-tocking rhythm backing tracks, and Mammane joyously tickling the keys over top. Chiptune/skweee fans might enjoy the more video-game-y blip blip bleep of the calm yet jaunty "Bodo", while the laidback grooviness of the likes of "Tunan" should appeal to fans of the Ethiopiques series, even though this is from a completely different region of Africa.
Many of the melodies are based on traditional Nigerian folk music - as the label's notes say, "Mammane electrifies the nomadic drum of the tende, the polyphonic ballads of the Woddaabe, and the pastoral hymns of the Sahelian herders". Others are entirely original. And all are quite lovely indeed. Such a find.
Highly recommended in particular to fans of Francis Bebey and his African Electronic Music 1975-1982 collection that we also made a Record Of The Week a while back. An absolutely delightful record!
It's a limited vinyl-only edition of 500 (for now, but we can hope that they'll do a cd too).
A while ago we reviewed an incredible, and incredibly far out collection of strange electronic music from South Africa, the comp was called Shangaan Electro: New Wave Dance Music from South Africa, and boy did the music live up to the promise of that title. We described the sound as being part Congotronics, part Nintendo, part Omar Souleyman, part karaoke, sounds pretty weird and amazing, and it was, a huge favorite around here. Some of the coolest, weirdest most damaged and deliriously fucked up 'dance' music we had maybe ever heard.
So now comes another missive from that same scene, this one a gospel record, Shangaan electro-gospel to be precise, which already sounds amazing. Plaintive, moody emotional heartfelt vocals draped over simple skeletal Casio keyboard rhythms, looped whirring accordion like textures, goofy lo-fi 8 bit video game music and a weird wheezy whistle (which is a hallmark of Shangaan, and tweets throughout all the tracks here), and a much more traditional sounding chorus of female vocalists, providing gorgeous harmonies to accompany the main vocal, and the strange tweeting, wheezing, skittering music underneath.
It sounds really strange, and definitely a little goofy, but the music is hauntingly beautiful and quite mesmerizing, and the more you listen, the more you become utterly mesmerized, the sounds lulling and soothing and transporting, transcending the limitations of the instrumentation (if those are truly limitations, we're not so sure!), and creating something moving, emotional and truly spiritual.
Wow. How many electronic albums have you heard that feature track titles like "Mambuti Pigmy Flutes", "The Ceremonial Drums Of Chief Kokonyang", or "Elephant Feast"? How about "Circumcision Dance"?? Probably none, until this one. The basic concept here, in a fast phrase, would be "Switched-On Pigmy Music". Conceived by electronic artist Peder Mannerfelt, who is one half of Roll The Dice, that aQ fave duo of Swedish cinematic soundscapers, it's an all-synthesizer recreation (no sampling) of a 78rpm record, originally released in 1950, that documented ethnographic field recordings of traditional African music made in the rainforest of the Belgian Congo. "Stirring rhythms and unusual melodic tunes as played and sung by the people of the great Equatorial forest", according to that old record's liner notes. Made all the more unusual now. In transforming those vintage "Belgian Congo Recordings" into these new "Swedish Congo Recordings", Mannerfelt has managed something unique and magical. Such field recordings already conjure a world apart from one's own; this does so in an entirely illusory way, and that world is even more far off and far out. Musically, Mannerfelt's reinterpretations are surely different, but not completely different, retaining the spirit and intricacy of the original tracks while translating them into another realm, these tribal folk rhythms computerized and synthesized into something both primitive and technological, living and mechanical, real and artificial. It's not only an interesting, clever concept, and a very impressive undertaking (quite a bit of careful work went into this we're sure), but even more crucially it ended up as a compelling listen - dynamic, complex, and often delightfully melodic. A lot of this comes of like Cut Hands meets Cluster, or an Africanized Aphex Twin!
Sometimes it's easy to imagine how the sounds from the original field recordings that Mannerfeld based this on must map to these electronic sounds, while at others times it's a lot harder to imagine - but even then, the rhythms come through, and certainly in many places some of the timbres & textures of his synths clearly suggest log drums and hand percussion, or even passages of vocal chant, but on other tracks you'd have to dig deeper to discover the shared DNA, as they display much more of an abstract & overtly electronic sound - examples being the droning feedback of the aforementioned "Elephant Feast" or the sci-fi spaciness heard on "Pygmies Of Kigali", or the clicks and cuts of "Flagellation".
Perhaps, possibly someone, somewhere is going to cry "appropriation!", but we'll leave that issue for others to concern themselves with; we consider this a respectful reimagining / recontextualization of these ancient rituals and dances from another culture (again, with no sampling) that will utterly fascinate and enrich both world music fans and electronic heads.
From Zimbabwe.
Known as the Lion of Zimbabwe, Thomas Mapfuno is one of the most popular African musicians and next to Fela Kuti, one of the most politically outspoken. Leading a string of bands from the sixties to the eighties, Mapfumo is probably best known for creating and popularizing a form of African music called "Chimurenga" (meaning "struggle") that took its roots from the traditional rural Shona music of his upbringing but fusing it to Western rock instrumentation and styles. This mainly involved transcribing the sounds of the mbira to the electric guitar and singing in the Shona language instead of English. This also helped to disguise the inflammatory anti-government sentiments of his songs, but not for long. Wrongly imprisoned and his music banned from state controlled radio, the government couldn't stop his music being played in the discos and there was enough protest to warrant his eventual release. Having helped oust the government with the installation of free elections, Mapfumo helped Mugabe come to power only to later sing out against him and be forced to flee to America where he currently lives.
Hokoyo! (Watch Out!) from 1979, recorded with the Acid Band for this one time release, was Mapfumo's first outing musically and introduced the Chimurenga style after recording music for years influenced by Western pop music. It's also what made the government censor his music and throw him into the prison camps without charge. The Chimurenga vibe is definitely laid back, having more in common with Jamaican reggae than Kuti's Afro-funk extrapolations. Not as forceful as much political music can be, but like Brazil's Tropicalia movement, the power is in its popularity and giving the people their own voice!
Known as the Lion of Zimbabwe, Thomas Mapfuno is one of the most popular African musicians and next to Fela Kuti, one of the most politically outspoken. Leading a string of bands from the sixties to the eighties, Mapfumo is probably best known for creating and popularizing a form of African music called "Chimurenga" (meaning "struggle") that took its roots from the traditional rural Shona music of his upbringing but fusing it to Western rock instrumentation and styles. This mainly involved transcribing the sounds of the mbira to the electric guitar and singing in the Shona language instead of English. This also helped to disguise the inflammatory anti-government sentiments of his songs, but not for long. Wrongly imprisoned and his music banned from state controlled radio, the government couldn't stop his music being played in the discos and there was enough protest to warrant his eventual release. Having helped oust the government with the installation of free elections, Mapfumo helped Mugabe come to power only to later sing out against him and be forced to flee to America where he currently lives.
Gwindingwi Rine Shumba ("Lion In The Bush") from 1980 was released the same year that Free Elections took place and it's with the band that Mapfumo has remained with the longest. The first song "Shumba" is the stunner with a melancholy amplified mbira sound. The Chimurenga feel is definitely laid back, having more in common with Jamaican reggae than Kuti's Afro-funk extrapolations. Not as forceful as much political music can be, but like Brazil's Tropicalia movement, the power is in its popularity and giving the people their own voice!
Super groovy, raw Afro-funk-fuzz album reissued! The label has applied a lot of hyperbole to this release ("toughest and most sought-after African funk record of them all") but since that label is Academy/Voodoo Funk, responsible for such killer reissues as Ofege and The Psychedelic Aliens, we're inclined to believe 'em... and our ears, which tell us that this IS pretty darn awesome and gritty. Recorded in 1976, and originally released on Ghana's Gapophone Records, This Is Marijata features 4 tracks recorded live in the studio, which must have been a sweaty, sweaty place. The core trio of Kofi "Electric" Addison (drums), Bob Fischian (organ), and Nat Osmanu (guitar), plus additional "hand picked" musicians, play a sort of totally tweaked and frantic take on your basic James Brown/JB's style jams, with horny horns and hoarse, crazed screams. That's three of the tracks, anyway, with one other ("I Walk Alone") being more of a soulful ballad, but a badass one.
Vinyl already sold out at the label. Compact disc issue forthcoming, as is a reissue of Marijata's other album, Pat Thomas Introduces Marijata.
Bachir Attar and the Master Musicians of Jajouka are teamed up with producer Talvin Singh for this traditional Morrocan trance-music meets modern club beats experiment. If you've seen the movie "The Cell" you've heard some music from this album, used as the soundtrack to the "desert" sequences, all layered, massive, and wailing.
The Master Musicians of Joujouka have had held a mystique on Western ears ever since they were first documented by Bryon Gysin in the 50's and popularized by Brian Jones when he released some of the first recordings on the fledgling (at the time) Rolling Stone imprint. This is the third in a series on the Sub Rosa label documenting the ritual of Boujeloud which celebrates the myth of a Pan-like deity-half man, half goat-who introduced music into their culture. The music on this disc was recorded between 1994 and 1996 in Northern Morocco from four generations of Joujouka Masters. The musicians start out with soft bamboo flutes or lliras and as more people gather, the musicians switch to the oboe-like rhaita. Backed by some seriously primal drumming, the playing intensifies into trance-inducing trills and whirls as village dancers act out the ancient story. It's little wonder that Gysin and Jones, mad explorers of altered consciousness, were deeply entranced by this ancient pagan-like music.
Plenty has been written about, and a handful of recordings exist of the Master Musicians of Joujouka, due in no small part to the attention lavished on them by Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones who along with other musical wisdom seekers travelled to Marrakesh to record, play with and learn from the Master Musicians. And it's easy to see why from their intricate tribal drumming, soaring chanting vocals, trilling woodwinds, all very primal and inspiring. The three tracks from the Master Musicians are gorgeous, free and totally moving. But it's the Gnoua Brotherhood Of Marrakesh who knocked our socks off when we first threw this disc on. The Gnoua have an amazing sound, stringed instruments that sound like downtuned guitars, strangely heavy, warm and rich, buzzing and droning, lots of low overtones, riffing repetitively and hypnotically, with simple hand drums and rhythmic clapping, and then eventually joined by the raspy tribal chants of a main vocalist, and echoed by a chorus of complimentary voices. Sounds like some ultra pure, unadulterated early form of the blues. Which it basically is. Hard to describe (listen to the first sound sample) but that low droning strum is just so totally mesmerizing. As hypnotic and heavy as Earth or SUNN0))) or any of those modern guitar drone outfits, but accomplished without the aid of thousand watt amps and pick ups, just fingers and strings. Amazing.
Awfully hard to find any information about this unique afro-funk pioneer. The first track on the album "Bananaticoco" we had heard before when we got the popular "Club Africa 2" compilation in a year ago, but a search on google under Max B's (Max Boulois) name
The latest in the ever expanding Sublime Frequencies collection of audio and video sonic treasures from around the world. This most recent dvd focuses on "ancient mystical brotherhoods' in Morocco, small groups of stringed instruments and drums, players managing to create intense and intensely emotional sounds and songs, that range from dark and simple, sweetly contemplative, to fierce and fiery and jubilant, explosive and over the top.
As always, the scenery and setting is as breathtaking as the music., lots of amazing shots of Morocco, crumbling buildings, bustling harbors, cobblestone streets, vast deserts, winding highways, cozy apartments and most importantly, bustling street markets, lit by fires and lamplight, a huge after dark celebration, story telling, eating, socializing but most importantly making music...
Small lantern lit clusters of people gather around old record players, home made amplifiers, rusty old speakers, strange (to our eyes) stringed instruments, all manner of drums and percussion, the crowd eager to bask in this amazing music, and just as often to participate, whether it be as another drummer, a singer, a dancer or even just as an onlooker.
The music, is a stripped down blues, the buzzing strings, the gorgeous hypnotic melodies, looped and cyclical, so hypnotic and catchy, the vocals soulful and impassioned, from solo crooning to strange harmonies, to chanting, and lots of festive sing alongs. The focus is the buzzing strings and the pounding drums, and there are plenty of both, but there are also buzzing snake charmer style horns, wild dancing, costumes, and of course the usual outdoor crowd sounds, folks talking and laughing, cars driving past. It's so much like wandering through Morocco, it's amazing. And sonically, WOW. The rhythms and the melodies, a constant barrage of groove and drone, simple percussive thumps and shuffles, haunting melodies, huge tribal drum jams and of course some incredible riffing.
Our favorite segments feature what appears to be a traditional banjo, but electrified and plugged into a rusty old handmade amplifier, turning the banjo into an awesome buzzing sitar like beast, emitting intense almost metallic chunks of incendiary riffing, raw and emotional, super distorted and intense, underpinning the wailing vocals and dense drumming.
As awesome as this is to watch, the sounds themselves are plenty, so even after a few viewings, you'll end up listening to this dvd over and over. Fans of the sadly out of print Group Inerane lp, also on Sublime Frequencies, as much of the music here has that same feral blues buzz and dark looped riffing.
**MISSISSIPPI RECORDS ALERT** **MISSISSIPPI RECORDS ALERT** **MISSISSIPPI RECORDS ALERT**
A gorgeous unearthed gem from Mississippi records, two tracks from Mauritanian singer and guitarist Hadrami Ould Medeh, a member of L'Orchestre Nationale de Mauritanie, the first modern Mauritanian musical group, this single originally pressed up in Lebanon and released in 1970, or more accurately, given away free to friends and family, this new version is an exact reproduction of that original single, right down to the label, and the fact that there's almost no English text on the sleeve or the label. But throw it on and you'll be blown away. If like us you didn't know where Mauritania is, it borders Mali, which makes sense sonically when you hear this. You've likely heard similar sounds on some Sublime Frequencies comp, and in fact, anyone into SF stuff will want to nab this quick, fluttering flutes, muted wah wah guitars, shuffling drums, and the vocals, emotional and oh so lovely, another comparison would be the Ethiopiques series, as this definitely sounds similar. No sound sample, but check out this video, and you'll be sold:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTbQfcY7N1A&NR=1
And while you're at it, check out this one too:
http://youtu.be/ud8fm-Pjbd0
I'm sure that, by now, we're way passed that point that divides the completists with those that are content with two or three volumes of this series. And yet, though speaking partially from a completist's viewpoint, volume 14 might be one that anyone who's enjoyed previous Ethiopiques releases to take note of. Volume 14 is a re-release of a 1970 Philips Ethiopia recording of G�tatch�w M�kurya. M�kurya, a saxophonist, is apparently considered the Albert Ayler of Ethiopia. But before y'all non-free jazz aficionados get scared off by thoughts of atonal scree, you can rest assured that there's not a lick of that here. Probably what was most likely intended by such a comparison was either Ayler's propensity for using folk melodies in his works, or maybe even... marches. The cornerstone of M�kurya's style is derived from a strictly vocal style associated with war known as "shellela". Apparently M�kurya got the idea of transcribing this singing style to saxophone. Brash and insistent as it is, it's really nothing like even the tamest "sheets of sound" from Coltrane's pre-free jazz days. Entirely instrumental, the music of G�tatch�w M�kurya is, while familiar in the scope of Ethiopian music we've come to know and love, also much different than all that's preceded it. It probably most resembles Ethiopiques Volume Four in respect to their both lacking in vocals, but there the similarities stop. The band is stripped down to organ, guitar, bass and drums and accompaniment usually consists of a steady, uptempo ostinato over which M�kurya then plays his rapid and rococo melodic improvisations (often alternating with the squealing farfisa-like organ). Also included as a bonus track for this CD issue is a late fifties rarity from M�kurya. Yet again, we highly recommend this newest Ethiopiques release for both sometimes fans and -- it goes without saying I suppose -- completists as well.
We joked in some past reviews that Dutch experimental world music label Terp must be paying our salaries considering how much love we give their releases, but c'mon, you've heard them! You've bought them! LOTS of them! And like us you've played them all to death. Every single one is amazing, so exciting musically, so emotionally resonant, some of the most unique and moving music we've EVER heard. And as if to drive the point home, we have not one, but TWO new releases from Terp on this week's list, one, a gorgeous final live recording from blind Ethiopian vocalist Mohammed 'Jimmy' Mohammed who passed away recently, and this, a wild live blowout from legendary Ethiopian saxophonist Getatchew Mekuria, jamming with Dutch avant rockers The Ex and other like minded friends...
We've been trying to list this forever, but we kept selling out of them in the store before we could get it reviewed and up on the site. Finally though, we have enough, so it's time to once again get your Ethiopian groove on...
But with a twist. The twist being The Ex, everyone's favorite Dutch avant rockers who have always had a thing for world music, so much so that members of the Ex are directly involved in the running of Terp. So it makes sense that given the opportunity, they would jump at the chance to jam with the legendary�Getatchew Mekuria. So here we have it, what sounds like one of the wildest musical parties ever! Oh how we would have killed to be there. Must have been a stone cold blast, but at least we have this here recording to ease our pain...
The record seems to be split right down the middle, half the songs are Ethiopian classics, given a bit of an angular post punk vibe, due in no small part to the fact that the band playing them is in fact the Ex, and the other half, the ones with vocals, sound like Ethiopian flavored Ex songs... We lean more toward the former, but both are pretty great.�
Imagine your favorite Ethiopiques record, but�way more bass heavy, a fuzzy distorted throb, along with jangly angular guitars, all underneath that oh so recognizable sax, wailing and soaring, practically singing, emotional and gorgeous. A few tracks are�groovy and smokey and sultry, sounding like they could have come straight off of Ethiopiques 4, and�even the all time Ethiopian groove classic "Musicawi Silt" here gets a sort of funkgroove makeover, with percussive guitar clang, blooping bass, the song was already funky, but in a different way, the new version is a little more tightly wound, but in a good way, you could maybe call it Ethiopian postpunkgroove or something. And there's also an�amazing solo jam "Tezeta", with Mekuria just making the sax sing, an extension of his being, going from full on skronk, to melancholy drift, oozing emotion and passion. The crowd reaction afterwards says it all. The rest of the record is packed with the above mentioned Ethiopian Ex style jams, which are awesome and wild and are definitely kinetic and ebullient, but the vocals are definitely an acquired taste...�
As with all Terp stuff, tons of photos and extensive liner notes...
Among Ethiopian Jazz aficionados, Hailu Mergia may not have as big of a name as Mulutu Astatke or Mahmoud Ahmed, but this 1985 recording of traditional Ethiopian jazz pieces played on analog synth, piano and accordion could of easily (and SHOULD OF, in our minds) been part of the great Ethiopiques series. That we come late to the pleasures of being wowed by Mergia's dexterous multi-instrumental talents, only tells us that there are many more riches of African jazz are out there waiting to be discovered.
Mergia cut his teeth with The Walliaa Band, the legendary group founded by Mulatu Astake, and has backed many of Ethiopia's greatest bandleaders (the band still performs to this day at the Addis Ababa Hilton). But it's this solo excursion, played in true one-man-band style that takes the sensual loping rhythms of ethiojazz into realms so warm and personal and utterly unique. Recommended!
We joked in some past reviews that Dutch experimental world music label Terp must be paying our salaries considering how much love we give their releases, but c'mon, you've heard them! You've bought them! LOTS of them! And like us you've played them all to death. Every single one is amazing, so exciting musically, so emotionally resonant, some of the most unique and moving music we've EVER heard. And as if to drive the point home, we have not one, but TWO new releases from Terp on this week's list, one, a live disc from legendary Ethiopian saxophonist Getatchew Mekuria, jamming with The Ex and friends, and this, a sadly posthumous live release from blind�Ethiopian vocalist Mohammed 'Jimmy' Mohammed.�
We raved about Mohammed's other release on Terp, the completely mind blowing�Takkabel! And as we mentioned before, his life story is just as dramatic and intense and emotional as his music. He became blind as a child, an apparent curse after his parents had him baptized against the warnings of a local fortune teller (God wanted him to be Muslim), spent years homeless on the streets, eventually rescued and cared for, enrolled in a school for the blind, where money was raised to help restore his sight, but the money was stolen, and his eyesight never restored, eventually becoming a nightclub singer renowned for his interpretations of songs by legendary vocalist�Tlahoun Gessesse (who you probably remember from several volumes of the Ethiopiques series).
But whereas much of�Takkabel! was tangled and angular and complex, recalling Aavikko weirdly enough, with guest drumming from improv legend Han Bennink, this live disc is much more laid back and dark, a very personal sounding and intimate recording, the band spreading out a lush tapestry of sound over which Mohammed weaves his magical moods. His voice is divine and as powerful as it is subtle,�distincitive and expressive, soaring and dancing nimbly across impossible melodies, the interplay between the vocals and the instruments is divine. The guitar like krar unfurling simple melodic fragments, the percussion simple and propulsive, a simple spare framework for Mohammed to explore as he sees fit, his vocals wild and acrobatic, intense and passionate, so mysterious sounding, but also utterly warm and inviting.�
The last two lengthy tracks are the most reminiscent of�Takkabel!, with the addition of sax, the rhythms a bit more off kilter and danceable, the whole sound a bit more funky and groovy, VERY Ethiopiques sounding. Hard to imagine the crowd in attendance not dancing wildly in the aisles...
The proceeds from sales of this cd will go toward a just-founded Jimmy Fund, created to care for his wife and his children, one of whom was born right after his death.
It must seem like we're on the Terp payroll or something by now, this being the second record they've put out that's received record of the week honors here at aQ. And the fourth or fifth that we've raved about. And to be totally honest, the Terp releases that ended up -not- being records of the week, could very well have under different circumstances, as they are equally as amazing. What can we say, everything Terp has put out so far has totally and completely blown us away! The live Konono record, the gorgeous Lanaya record and this newest release from blind Ethiopian vocalist Mohammed 'Jimmy' Mohammed. His story is just as amazing as his voice and the music he makes. After becoming blind as a child, supposedly as a curse for his parents' decision to ignore the warnings of a fortune teller and baptize him, as God had willed him to be a Muslim, Mohammed ran away and spent several years on the streets, homeless, begging for food, finding solace in the songs of legendary vocalist Tlahoun Gessesse (immortalized in several volumes of the amazing Ethiopiques series) who not only sang beautifully, but whose songs addressed the plight of the poor and suffering. Mohammed was eventually discovered and cared for, enrolled in a school for the blind and raised by a kind hearted surrogate father. After money was raised to help restore his sight, he was heartbroken to discover the funds were stolen and his eyesight was never to be restored. Mohammed spent a brief stint in the national theater before becoming a nightclub singer, where he became more and more popular. Mohammed mostly sings Tlahoun Gessesse's pop songs from the '60s / '70s, being as those are the songs that most affected him throughout his life, but it's his voice and the unique arrangements that make him so special.
He appeared briefly on Ethiopiques 2 but this is his first proper full length. The first track here is a mindblower. The music is so squiggly and complex, so dense and tangled, angular but so lovely, our first thought was that it sort of sounded sort of like the maniacal casio exotica of Aavikko. Part of it might be the fact that Mohammed's band is augmented on that track by legendary European free jazz drummer Han Bennink, and Massimo Pupillo from Italian drone jazz combo Zu. SO amazing. There are plenty of immediately recognizable melodies and distinctly Ethiopian elements, but the way it is played is so strange and lovely. But it's Jimmy's vocals, high and clear, swooping into an impossible falsetto and back again, warm and rich and so gorgeous, that makes this so magical. Bennink drums on a handful of the other tracks as well (he apparently told Jimmy that the reason they clicked so perfectly was because, he said "I'm blind as well when I play with them") but even when it's just Jimmy and his band, the sound is still totally unique and so very special. Little delicate curlicues of electric krar (5 string harp), shuffling skittery drumming, smooth slithery riffs, warm smooth sax from Ethiopian legend Getatchew Mekurya, all weaving a rich intricate tangle of classic Ethiopian melody and irresistibly groovy rhythms, above which Jimmy just soars, so totally emotional and intense, so passionate and absolutely breathtaking.
An amazing release in this new series from the always kick ass Honest Jon's label. An offshoot of the equally amazing London Is The Place For Me series (which we've yet to review, but we're working on it!), Gwigwi Mrwebi is a sax player from Johannesburg, who moved to London in 1960 to appear in the musical King Kong (!) and who back in South Africa had recorded with Hugh Masekela among other jazz luminaries. We've been listening to this for months and months and are only now finally getting it reviewed and listed!
Mbaqabga Songs is a reissue of an impossible to find lp, and is totally delightful, groovy, jazzy, danceable, playful, rambunctious, a bit boppy, super happy and most certainly sets the toes a tapping. While this definitely has some African elements and will appeal to fans of all things Ethiopiques and Zanzibara, it's much more of a straight jazz record, performed in the Kwela style popular in Africa at the time, a happy, lilting, jazzy bounce with a definite fifties big band vibe (we even hear some rocksteady in there too), the melodies exuberant, the playing smooth and crisp, just so fun with a totally carefree vibe. It's easy to imagine a warm summer evening, the sun setting on an outdoor dancefloor, strung with multi colored lights, Mrwebi and his band playing on late into the night, everyone dancing and drinking and celebrating life. So great!
Beautifully packaged in a 8 panel digipak, packed super extensive liner notes from Steve Beresford.
One evening earlier this week, for a couple hours, we hosted an instore DJ performance by this nice fellow Brian Shimkovitz who runs the celebrated Awesome Tape From Africa blog. He brought in several cases full of rare cassettes from his collection, and they were indeed awesome! Groovy stuff from all over the continent.
His blogging and DJing activities have also now spawned a reissue label, and when he was here we grabbed a few copies of his debut release, on cassette of course - though it's also out on cd and vinyl, and we should get some of those eventually too. But the limited edition cassettes are what he had with him. It is Awesome TAPES From Africa after all!!
For this first Awesome Tape From Africa, he's selected an obscure recording from the Ivory Coast, circa 1982, by female Malinese singer Na Hawa Doumbia. It says Vol. 3 in the title, presumably it was Brian's favorite of Na Hawa Doumbia's La Grande Cantatrice Malienne tapes. If you were here for his DJing, or have ever checked out the stuff on his blog, you know it's gonna be good! Full of tumbling drum-heavy rhythms, pierced by Doumbia's higher register vocals, sometimes impressively soaring, singing these "diadai" dances. Joyful in sound, but also full of cautionary warnings about betrayal and other misfortune.
Comes with download code!
Soundtrack to Cornel Wilde's 1966 film. Shot on location in Africa (Rhodesia, South Africa, Bechuanaland & Mozambique) -- often hundreds of miles from the nearest village -- with a cast composed almost entirely of non-professional actors (most had never acted before in their lives), a minimal budget and a whole lot of blood, sweat & tears (literally), The Naked Prey brought method acting to new levels. The music chosen to be the score for the film is every bit as authentic as the shooting locations, for it is all composed and played by the N'guni clans amongst whom the crew worked and filmed. While Wilde of course selected the tracks from what the N'guni played for him during the filming, the music is just as they performed it. The entire score is merely recordings of drums, chants, strange animal imitations, and the natural ambience of the bush, ie: field recordings. Thank god this preceeded the medling interference of the world beat puveyors Peter Gabriel et. al. And actually, the score in and of itself was a bit of cutting edge concept. As is pointed out in the liner notes, this was released the same year as Nonesuch began their Explorer series and long before any kind of major world music industry. Another fine release from Latitude.
Man, have we been waiting for this! Why? Well, does Chrissy Zebby Tembo mean anything to you? The group that backed him up on his wonderful My Ancestors album from 1974 have a rare record of their own that's just been reissued, the electrifying indeed 45,000 Volts, and it's another killer document of Zambian heavy fuzz rock ("Zamrock"!) from the '70s! Founded by Paul Dobson Nyirongo, otherwise known as Paul Ngozi, a Hendrix-styled guitarist (he even did the trick of playing with his teeth), the Ngozi Family band released this winning album in 1977, and now that we've heard it, it goes right to the top of the selection of awesome garage fuzz rock from Africa in our collections, a small but ever growing category thanks to ruling reissues like this (we're also looking forward to Shadoks' impending cd edition of The Witch album, also from Zambia, next month, you should be too). And it's not so lo-fi as that Tembo disc, much better sound, though the production still sounds very "live", we think it's perfect, capturing both the thud and grace of the Ngozi Family's music.
There's ten tracks (including one bonus from a 7"), containing so much raw FUZZ! Burbling, sizzling, wah wah action. Along with wicked beats, soulful sincere vocals (some songs in English, others in a Zambian language, Nyanja perhaps), and groove that just won't quit. Most of the tracks are in a Western psych-rock style with distinct African influences, though a couple tracks near the end of the disc are much more like traditional Afrobeat, with hand percussion and mass chanting vocals. As far as the rock stuff goes, even when they kick back on the mellower, more sunshiney numbers there's still lotsa fuzz and snappy beats. And Ngozi actually translates to Danger in English, so you know that they don't neglect the harder and heavier fare on this album. Particularly proto-metal-ish is "Night Of Fear", with immensely fat riffing and echoed lyrics about graveyards and nightmares! Here and elsewhere we're reminded of Los Dug Dugs. Heck even a little Blue Cheer. And of course Ofege and Chrissy Zebby Tembo and others from Africa.
Timeless stuff, highly recommended. Tembo's My Ancestors, reissued on the same label, is already out of print on cd, and this reish is equally limited too, 500 copies only, so get it while you can. FYI there's also a vinyl version but our supplier is already out of those, at the moment anyway, if we're able to get more we'll list it then.
African garage fuzz fans listen up, we've got another nice "Zam-Rock" reissue here! Guitarist/vocalist Paul Ngozi (1949-1989), according to the adulatory liner notes in the cd booklet, was one of the Zambian music industry's biggest stars, at the forefront of the "Zam-Rock" phenomenon in the '70s. Those same notes explain he took the name 'Ngozi', which means danger, "because each time he took to the stage, people went crazy and it was all disaster"! Apparently he did the whole Hendrix routine of playing the guitar with his teeth, etc. We had heard of Ngozi before 'cause of previous reissues of his band the Ngozi Family's albums 45,000 Volts (1977) and My Ancestors (1974, with Chrissy Zebby Tembo). Both were KILLER, and so is this, a record originally released by a Kenyan label in 1976.
The Ghetto's nine tracks feature both hard-hitting riff rockers and more gently loping, lazy grooves. The singing is lovely & lilting some of the time, urgent & impassioned at others. The relatively lo-fi recording renders Ngozi's amped-up guitar fuzz kind of pleasantly 'soft' but still hella distorted. Lyrically, he tackles some heavy subjects here, like "Suicide", and starving children "In The Ghetto". It's spiritual too, with the song "Jesus Christ" being a most fuzzed out headbanger about Our Savior. Most of the songs are in English, but a few are in Ngozi's native tongue. If you've heard 45,000 Volts, or other Zam-Rock like The Witch and Rikki Ililonga, you pretty much know how rad this is already; it's got the fuzz, the funk, the African vibe� great stuff! Those liner notes also mention the titles of several other albums that Ngozi recorded, among them one called Heavy Metal (!) that we really hope gets reissued sometime too!
A highly obscure Afro-beat document from the seventies, this is a little heard recording by Fela Kuti sideman, Nicholas Addo Nettey. Recorded in Lagos at the same Ginger Baker-run studio that Kuti cut many of his famous albums, this feels like a rawer more stripped down Fela Kuti album just without Fela Kuti, with more chicken scratch organ than funk horns. Four songs, 2 long-form politically charged call and response hypnotic jams with 2 shorter soul grooving instrumentals. Daptone does quite a service uncovering this beast! No Afro-beat collection should be without it!
Sublime Frequencies videographer Hisham Mayet strikes again! This time Hisham takes to the Sahel region of Niger to witness for ourselves a culture in resistance to environmental hazards (severe droughts) and extreme poverty, and a country that's at the cultural crossroads of Subsaharan Africa and the Middle East. Like all of Mayet's films there is no authoritative narrator to disrupt the flow, or otherwise direct our interests. Which isn't to say Mayet leaves us completely in the dark as concerns his motivations and whereabouts in shooting this footage. For that we are given ample liner notes detailing the film's unfolding in chronological order of events. The video begins in rural Dogondoutchi where Hisham documents the music of the Mawri people. Several performances are caught here of musicians playing a banjo like instrument which is simultaneously struck across the drum as it is strummed and plucked, turning the performer into a veritable one-man-band. Also taped are some amazing fiddle players using an array of instruments, each seemingly unique to its possessor. Across the river Niger, Mayet takes us to the village of Boubon to a cowry shell divination, a spirit posession ceremony, and a truly strange performance of sexual coming of age by the young girls of the village in which they taunt the boys with... Ahem! Rather "randy" dance moves. As the film progresses it moves further from acoustic / rural / animist Niger to urban / Christian / electric Niger. We're witnesses to a gospel revival meeting at a Pentacostal church combining both traditional instruments and percussion with electric bass and keyboards. Almost directly from there Mayet takes us to a dive bar to hear a beautiful pick-up band of electric guitar, bass, drums and percussion. The sound is almost like that of a punk rock Ali Farka Toure, if you can imagine that. And in the end we are taken to the compound of Bibi Ahmed to hear some very Nubian sounding trance rock, like a dronier version of Ali Hassan Kuban. Excellent!
Here's some more of that funky stuff, that funky African stuff to be precise. Secret Stash, who previously unearthed such gems as, well, the band Afro Funk among others, bring us a reissue of the first album from this Nigerian outfit, originally released in 1973. Kind of hard to argue with a record like this: super groovy, JB's meet Afrobeat / high life stylings, and it's called Destruction, yeah! With lots of jubilant singing, hand percussion, rhythmic wah-wah guitar, joyful jazzy horns, and awesome breaks, it's guaranteed to make you dance or at least -consider- dancing, if you're not the type to actually dance. Many of the songs are in a Nigerian dialect, but there's some English lyrics too, not always easy to make out - on the song "Jungle Beat" we could swear he's singing "Ride that rhino", perhaps he is.
Secret Stash has produced this first-time-ever reissue in cooperation with bandleader Chief Vincent Okorego and original London-based record label Orbitone. Vinyl version comes with download, both formats include plenty of liner notes and vintage photos. It's a good one.
Sweet soul is right. This music on this disc was originally released on vinyl in the 1950s by Smithsonian Folkways, and now Latitude (the new, 'world music' sub-label of the prolific and generally amazing Locust label) has done us a treat by reissuing it. Melodious East African traditional music, with gentle male-female vocal harmonies sung in the Kikamba tongue, accompanied by guitar chiming like a thumb-piano. An enchanting disc... however we feel that despite doing the good work of reissuing this music, Latitude/Locust is deserving of some constructively-intended criticism regarding the packaging. First off, the cd 'booklet' isn't, it's a single square of paper (fairly stiff, but still qualifying as a violation of my personal cd packaging pet peeve number 493), and more importantly, there's no liner notes. Nothin'. Doesn't even say what year this was recorded, or who, besides David Nzomo presumably, was in the Trio! We are directed to the Smithsonian Folkways website, where apparently the record's original liner notes can be purchased. Huh? C'mon, if you're gonna license the music to reissue on cd, can't you license the liner notes too? Or write your own at least. I just don't understand. What with all the downloading worries so many labels have, you'd think one good idea would be to make the physical cd package as desireable and complete as possible. If I've gotta download the liner notes, that's not too far removed from just downloading the audio tracks too...
Madlib's super talented younger brother Oh No has been doing a great job as the ambassador of '60s & '70s international psychedelia to the hip-hop world, liberally sampling all sorts of aQ faves, Turkish psych, Mediterranean pop, whatever struck his fancy, so Dr. No's Ethiopium should really come as no surprise, a whole record sampled and inspired by rare '60s and '70s Ethiopian soul, jazz, funk, folk and psychedelic rock, all chopped up and recontextualized into brief little snippets of bad ass Ethiopian groove, wreathed in record crackle, peppered with pops and clicks, adding a warm timeless texture to these jams, some are just straight ahead sampled, others are rearranged into lurching, stuttering rhythms, the basslines woozy and funky, horns wailing, the vocals often left intact, but just as often all mixed up, flipped backwards, woven together to create strange hiccupping vocal layers, the sound ranges from soulful ballads, to pounding jazz funk, to cinematic string laden drama, to swirling Ethiopian folk transformed into something way more buzzy and bouncy, some jams synth swaddled, others warped and warbly, the bass cranked up all over the place, you can almost imagine the Wu-Tang swooping in for a verse or too, these brief jams are just so groovy and heady and funky and kick ass.
Hands down THEE mix of the year!!!
Soundtrack to the fabulous documentary movie, which hopefully you were lucky enough to see. Blind blues musician Paul Pena travels to Tuva (Central Asia) to compete in their national throat-singing competition, a skill in which he is entirely self-taught. A funny, touching movie, and of course blessed with some great music! So, here's the hard-to-find soundtrack album.
Spanning the years 1970 to 1982, this is a wonderful double-disc collection of cuts taken from Plunky Branch's career as the bandleader of such acts as Oneness of Juju and Juju & the Space Rangers, also as a principal behind such personalities as Roach Om
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
SORRY.
The fifth release in David Byrne's World Psychedelic Classic series for Luaka Bop (the previous ones being from Os Mutantes, Tim Maia, Shuggie Otis, and the West African funk comp, Love's A Real Thing) is a killer survey of Nigerian Afro-electro-funk by the elusive William Onyeabor who self-released records between 1978 and 1985, before apparently converting to Christianity and refusing to discuss himself and his music ever since. Long in the making after years of trying to negotiate licensing with the difficult Onyeabor, this compilation is a revelation of outsider analog synth and politically-tinged Afrobeat caught right in between Parliament/Funkadelic and Fela Kuti.
Having previously only heard the tracks featured on the Love is A Real Thing and Nigeria 70: The Definitive Story of 1970s Funky Lagos comps, it's amazing to hear a whole collection of Onyeabor's music, with songs that sprawl well over the ten minute mark, and like Fela Kuti's music, filled with call and response female backing vocals and pointed lyrics over an infectious funk groove. "Something You Will Never Forget" repeats that line between Onyeabor and the female backing group before revealing, "One day you'll be lying dead". Other songs denounce war and the atomic bomb. But what separates Onyeabor from Kuti is his astonishing analog synth skills that propel the music into much stranger psychedelic territory. Like that Francis Bebey collection we raved about a while back ago, this release is bumping and of course comes highly recommended.
Only here on cd at the moment, but we'll get the triple vinyl version back in hopefully real soon!
This collection of sure-shot classics from this veritable Senegalese institution has been making us seriously crave hammocks and sunshine. All you're gonna want to do when you hear these songs is rock back and forth ever so gently as the wind blows and the sun shines and you forget all your worries at least for just a little while. The way Orchestra Baobab mix their Senegalese musical roots with elements of Latin, Caribbean and Cuban musical styles meshes so perfectly. Soulful vocals, call and response delivery, and a masterful use of horns. So good! All too often horns are brash and upfront and nothing but a shiny annoyance, but Orchestra Baobab know how to use horns, subtly and seductively, making them ring in our ears with such delight. The perfect lazy Sunday afternoon record for sure. Highly recommended!
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
SORRY.
Seeing as how Orchestra Baobab had just released a brand new album, we thought we'd pick up their first album (recorded between 1970 & 1971) for kicks and it's so damn good we've decided we ought to just list it. Orchestra Baobab's namesake is derived from the club (its interior decorated like the trunk of a gigantic baobab tree) where the group backed up a fluid collection of vocalists who would sing for drink and cash. Unlike the group's later recordings, the tracks on N'Wolof have a much more subtle Latin influence with the exception of a few numbers (the vocal chorus for "Cheri Takama" sounding a great deal like "La Bamba".) At times, during the longer, contemplative numbers, they sound strikingly like Mali's Rail Band (itself the house band at a Bamako hotel) during this same period. Which should probably not come as much of a surprize considering Mali shares Senegal's Eastern border. It's these longer tracks -- some 7 and 8 minutes -- where Orchestra Baobab really shines; the vocals dropping out, leaving rhythm guitar, bass & drums to play unbelievably sensuous back up for laid back sax and guitar solos. And it's the guitar solos (by the amazing Barthelemy Attiso, who still plays with the group) that are truly *gorgeous*. It's that unmistakable African pop electric guitar sound: hollow body electric guitar with lots of reverb & tremolo. But then, on top of that, there's these insane psychedelic, fuzzed out solos with heaps of echo that fairly raises the hairs on your skin. It's almost painful when these tracks end, and you're awoken from your opiate like reverie. And it was all recorded live (sans audience I'm pretty sure) at the Club Baobab. The surviving tapes and albums -- originally released on the club's own Bao label -- are in varying states of decay -- you can distinctly hear some tape drop out more than once (but I personally love that such analog anomolies will forever survive in the digital realm.) But fidelity schmidelity, this album is absolutely fucking essential!
Orchestra Baobab was formed in 1970 in Dakar, Senegal to inaugurate the opening of The Baobab Club. The band was made up of musicians from Dakar's Star Band (formed in 1960) and numerous other big players in Senegal's fertile music scene played parts in
Brand new recordings from Senegal's legendary Orchastra Baobab. The group, which got its start over 30 years ago, had a huge comeback with the reissue of their 1982 release "Pirate's Choice". It seems that the global attention the band received via this trip to the vaults inspired the band to reform, tour, and finally, to cut a new album of songs. Those fearing a watered down, world beat shadow of the band's legacy should sigh a heavy sigh of relief. "Specialist" could well have been recorded 20 years ago as much as it was several months ago. It's nice to know that the grubby little paws of Peter Gabriel and other homogenizers of music still can't destroy everything. Orchestra Baobab still stick to the same instrumental arrangements: airy & echoey electric guitars, deep & warm bass, saxophones, drums (along with congas, maracas & timbales) and vocals. The Latin influence in their rhythms and melodies is still ever present and, thankfully, they still opt for a live sound in their recordings, as they have since their earliest recordings. A fine return from a great band.
Formed in 1963 in Addis Ababa, Orchestre Ethiopia took on the task of bringing traditional Ethiopian folk sounds back into the limelight at a time when modern music ensembles were at the height of their popularity. However, rather than simply performing traditional songs for a wider (and eventually international) audience, the Orchestre's sound was unique as it took elements of a number of different folk traditions and mixed them up into a joyous, celebratory blend of Ethiopian cultures. The group itself was as diverse as its musical inclinations: it was initially assembled and led by a series of Americans including an ethnomusicologist and a Peace Corps worker (although it found a native leader in 1966 when Tesfaye Lemma took over leadership) and its membership included singers, dancers and musicians from a diverse array of ethnic and cultural backgrounds. The result is a sound that falls squarely between the two styles that the Ethiopiques series has done such a remarkable job of documenting: Orchestre Ethiopia weren't a traditional folk group, nor were they a modern groove ensemble. Instead, they played an inspired pastiche of traditional sounds in a very modern way, never committing to one particular sound or groove.
Although Orchestre Ethiopia released two LPs between 1969 and the group's disintegration in 1975, the majority of the tracks included on this disc are previously unreleased archival material - a fact which is reflected in the less than stellar fidelity of the recordings. However, the lack of polish adds a wooly, mysterious air to the music, and further emphasizes the group's outsider status. For all of the reasons above, this latest installment of the mighty Ethiopiques series has quickly become a favorite of the aQ staff, and it includes the extensive liner notes, personal essays, and archival photographs that one would come to expect from the fine folks at Buda Musique. Whether this is the first Ethiopiques cd you pick up or the 23rd, the fact of the matter remains: this is a brilliant, gorgeous and haunting collection of music from the golden age of one of the world's most culturally rich regions. Essential!
