[ aquarius records — International ]

Showing results 1751 through 1785 of 1785.

WITCHMovin' On & Kuomboka(Now-Again)2cd$ 24.00

WITCHWe Intend To Cause Havoc!(Now Again)4cd$ 39.00

Glory be, talk about a reissue! So, we were pretty excited a couple years ago when Germany's Shadoks (or Normal, or Q.D.K. Media, or whatever they're called) did legit reissues of two amazing albums of '70s African garage psych action by Zambia's Witch (not to be confused with the present-day Witch that's got J. Mascis on drums, they're cool too, but couldn't ever be as cool as this), their 1973 debut Introduction, and 1975's Lazy Bones!! (yes, the two exclamation points are part of that record's title). But now, the Now-Again label has put those two albums together with a ton more stuff, everything ever recorded by this '70s "ZamRock" group, in one super deluxe package consisting of four cds, or six lps!! (The vinyl version being naturally more expensive, but just be glad you didn't buy the two limited lp editions Shadoks put out, which woulda cost more). Again, it's all officially licensed from the sole surviving band member. So, the first Shadoks cd reish we listed was Lazy Bones!!, which got an all-caps BADASS citation from us. Here's our review: It's got tons of rhythmic umph, and makin'-more-with-less third world charm. Again, it's the western garage psych template with African extras. Some tracks are heavy duty crunchers, such as the curiously named "Tooth Factory" (which sounds like Japan's Speed, Glue, and Shinki, we think), some more spaced and mellow, like "Strange Dream", and still others are loose limbed groovy jams, like the title track. And, you'd better believe there's plenty of fuzz throughout, you'll get your daily dose and then some. Wah wah guitars roam wild, The Witch managing to be wonderfully melodic, funky, and downright distorted across these ten tracks, providing everything we desire from the electric ZamRock phenomenon (similar too, to bands from Nigeria like Blo and Ofege). With English being the official language of Zambia, that's what the vocals are in, sorta nasal and accented and lovely in a gritty way. Kinda hard to know what else to say except, recommended! Then, not long after, when Introduction was also reissued, we said it to be such a damn delight, living up to the high hopes we had for it. "Zam Rock" at its best - not that we've ever heard any Zam Rock we didn't like, so far the reissues have been uniformly rad! As with Lazy Bones!!, the fuzzed out wah wah'd guitars run rampant, the rhythms are infectious, the organ playing unrestrained, the English language lyrics charming (song titles include "Feeling High", "Like A Chicken" and "See Your Mama"... how could this record NOT be good?). Need we go on? If Lazy Bones!! rocked your world, this should be enough of an introduction to Introduction! While '75's Lazy Bones!! is a bit heavier, any fan will dig this too. Ok, that's those two. But there's more, that's why you'll want this set, even if you've got those. Now-Again has added two discs (or 8 more lp sides) of material, to cover Witch's complete works from 1972-77. Not just those two albums we've already had, but FIVE albums: Introduction, In The Past, Lazy Bones!!, Lukombo Vibes, and Including Janet. Plus a whole bunch of rare 7" tracks too! All restored/remastered from the original master tapes. And while we thought maybe their later material, would get more "disco" or something, well, no, for the most part The Witch stayed heavy... and groovy too of course. On 1976's Lukombo Vibes, for instance, tracks like "Devil's Flight" and "Blood Donor" live up to anything on Lazy Bones!!. There's more traditional Zambian folk influence perhaps, more Zam going on in their Rock. In any case, it's for stuff any Witch fan will be happy to hear. And all this is beautifully packaged with a giant booklet of rare vintage photos and informative text, including an interview with bandleader "Jagari" Chanda, expanding upon the liner notes that Egon from Now-Again / Stones Throw had done for the previous Shadoks releases, which he'd been instrumental in making happen in the first place. Kudos to Now-Again for giving the Witch discography this deluxe treatment, we're thankful indeed.

WORMROTDirge(Earache)cd$ 15.98

Record number two from these Singaporean grinders, and it's just as fierce and furious as their first. In fact, in some ways it might be even MORE so. Twenty five songs crammed into eighteen minutes, most of the songs between 30 and 45 seconds (a couple 5 seconds or less!), which is plenty of time for these guys to blast out some tangled super frenzied riffing, and some INSANE lightning fast drumming, the vocals a maniacal shriek, and unlike lots of grind, much of the riffing here sounds VERY metal, not so much punk, but actual metal riffery, just sped WAY up, these micro metal epics that SLAY. No wacky covers like the on their first record where they did a Yeah Yeah Yeahs tune, instead, just a relentless blast of grinding metallic fury, with many of the tracks slowing down for some serious chuggery, before exploding in another head shearing blast of blurred brutality. AND unlike a lot of grind, these songs are surprisingly catchy, with some seriously killer riffs, which makes this way more listenable than lots of similar stuff, but somehow, no less heavy and brutal and badass.

WOVEN HANDTen Stones(Sounds Familyre)cd$ 14.98

Oh, how we wish sometimes that we had more time to spend with some of the records we review. In some cases, it's an hour or two, maybe 2 or 3 times through an album, sometimes, unfortunately, it's even less than that. With so many records, it's not always possible to totally immerse yourself, and some music requires that sort of immersion, for it to be fully appreciated, for the sounds to open up, the layers to peel back, revealing the music's beating heart. Such is the case with the music of David Eugene Edwards, formerly of 16 Horsepower, now spreading his dark apocalyptic folk gospel via Woven Hand. The music of Woven Hand, as is evidenced by past aQ reviews (3 of the past 4 WH albums, well, now 4 out of 5, were aQ Records Of The Week, and when we try to figure out why the other one wasn't, for the life of us, we just can't), is the rare music that moves and inspires, sends shivers down our spines, gives us goosebumps, brings us to the edge of tears, a music powerful and personal, and so so intense. The sounds of Woven Hand, while gorgeous, are also ominous and haunting, the message even moreso. Edwards' lyrics deal almost exclusively with death and damnation, sin and salvation. He, more than any modern performer is the rock equivalent of a revivalist preacher, testifying like his life depended on it, and perhaps it does. The music backing up Edwards' passionate vocals, is a dark swirl of backwoods folk, of gothic rock (not to be confused with goth-rock), sweeping cinematic soundscapes, old time blues, lush and almost orchestrated, strings moan, sweet sad melodies are plucked out on old pianos, or unfurled from wheezing harmoniums. Woven Hand is the sound of some old dusty ghost town, or some strange traveling minstrel, set up on the back of a rickety old wagon, playing for coal miners, and forest folk, lit from below by flickering firelight, shadows dancing behind the band like some sort of mysterious back up band of spirits. Ten Stones remains true to the first few books in the Gospel of the Woven Hand, from the first few notes, this could be nothing else, Edwards' super dramatic rich velvety croon, the tone of the guitars, those melodies, minor key yet shot through with some sort of hopeful warmth, some ineffable otherworldly glow, the one thing that is different, is just how rocking some of this is, almost heavy at points, the guitars thick and growling, the drums pounding and frenzied, strings singing, but all kept in check by Edwards' vocals. This new found heaviness is not a new direction, just another arrow in Edwards' musical quiver, as many of the songs still slither and crawl through those lost backwoods of tarnished souls and wasted lives, the twang left to drift in wide open spaces as often as it's wrapped around the heft of crunch and bluster. The record does manage to move in unexpected directions, the accordion driven filthy blues jam that is "White Knuckle Grip", or the moody torch song shimmer of "Quite Nights Of Quiet Stars", the pounding bluegrass buzz of "Kicking Bird", but even those anomalous excursions, somehow fit perfectly into the long winding musical road of Ten Stones. The last three tracks finish off things about as perfectly as possible, "Kingdom Of Ice" is total apocalyptic drama, the twang of banjo beneath a buzzing drone, Edwards's spitting fire, "His Loyal Love", a swoonsome, murky drift of soft smeared guitar buzz, shuffled percussion, and haunting reverb drenched vocals, the entire song wreathed in a swirling gauzy fog, and finally the untitled closer, a deep whizzing, nearly static drone, long tones slowly shifting, thick distorted guitar rumble and sweet soft tones, shimmering and spread out into a kaleidoscopic soft focus blur. Another stirring apocalyptic missive, from one of the few, true remaining musical prophets, and even if your soul doesn't need saving, Ten Stones will have you wishing it did. Musical salvation is at hand!

WYATT, OLIVIAStaring Into The Sun(Sublime Frequencies)cd + dvd + book$ 30.00

The latest from Sublime Frequencies is a massive cd/dvd/book set, compiled by photographer/filmmaker Olivia Wyatt on a recent trip to Ethiopia, planned to coincide with a music festival - which the government abruptly cancelled for fear of the musicians being exploited. So instead, Wyatt travelled into the bush, to compile this sonic/visual travelogue of the music and musicians, the people and places of the various tribes of Ethiopia, and it's of course breathtaking. The music, heady and hypnotic, joyous and emotional, the sounds varying dramatically from tribe to tribe, but music being ubiquitous, weddings, ceremonies, rituals, drawing water from the well, on television, in living rooms, very rhythmic, mostly vocal drive, but with lots of hand clapping, wildly bowed stringed instruments, vocals chanted, shouted, call and response, super mesmerizing, many of the tribes utilize whistles and panpipes, and the music they make is incredible, otherworldly and impossibly lush, sounding like some modern 20th century classical composition in many cases, while actual bands to rock out, and get surprisingly soulful and funky. A compilation like this must have been so impossible to compile, how on earth to whittle down what must have ben days of recordings to just an hour, but the tracks chosen are amazing, and make us want to hear so much more. Both the cd and the dvd (more on the dvd in a second) are housed in a cd sized hard cover book, which includes extensive liner notes on Wyatt's trip to Ethiopia, but also 117 Polaroid photos Wyatt took on her trip, of people, places, musicians, villages, an incredible visual feast for the eyes. And then there's the dvd, which features a 60 minute film, which in its won way is structured like the video version of Wyatt's Polaroids, with many still shots, video portraits, as well as some incredible footage, some highlights include so many different lots of singing and dancing, sometimes in traditional tribal dress, often in western t-shirts and shorts, one of the most amazing sequences if of men and women working drawing water from a well, passing buckets from person to person, their worksongs so hypnotic and beautiful, then there's a super wild psychedelic guitar freakout with one woman doing some of the craziest, most ecstatic hair swirling / headbanging we've ever seen, there's footage of men feeding wild hyenas in the middle of the night, often right out of their own mouths, snippets from Ethiopian television with wild MTV style videos, fantastic tribal folks songs with synchronized dances and lots of whistles, dancing girls making music with just the clank and jangle of her jewelry, in fact lots of dances that involve the jangle of jewelry, men smoking in dark rooms watching television, intimate performances in living rooms and so much more. So incredible, sonically, visually, culturally, easily one of our favorite Sublime Frequencies releases for sure. LIMITED TO 1000 COPIES . The dvd is all region NTSC.

X PLASTAZMaasai Hip Hop(Out Here)cd$ 17.98

Included on the end of the Bongo Flava compilation (see AQL #216), X Plastaz are one of the biggest names in Tanzanian hip hop -- hence the release of this disc, a closer examination of their music. You'd never know to listen -- unless you can speak Swahili and Haya -- but the music of X Plastaz is steeped in social and political activism. Criticizing corrupt politicians, speaking out against violence, theft and unemployment. And while the Tanzanian hip hop scene in its infancy certainly owed much, if not imitated directly, the hip hop music coming out of the U.S., the Bongo Flava groups take just as many cues from dancehall, Indian film music and -- in X Plastaz case -- traditional Maasai chanting. The latter is what makes X Plastaz stand so far out from the Bongo Flava crowd: including in their crew a Maasai warrior on vocals. The Maasai are rural people, who still live in tight knit villages and follow age old traditions long since foresaken by the modernized urban Tanzanian population. Further, the Maasai are seen as backward by the urban Tanzanians. So along with being looked down upon by older, more conservative Tanzanians for partaking in this "degenerate" musical form, they stand apart from their young, urban counterparts. Pretty damn punk rock when you consider it. As a bonus, two videos of X Plastaz are included on the disc.

X RAY POPPirate!(Finders Keepers)lp$ 25.00

A few weeks back we listed an amazing French synth-pop rarity on the Dark Entries label called The Dream Machine by duo X Ray Pop, a compilation of early singles and demos that was equal parts Les Rita Mitsouko, Mo-dettes and Stereo Total. Now Finders Keepers follows that up with a reissue of the band's first full length, Pirate!, from 1985. Pirate! was originally released on cassette in a small edition of 100 copies, so it went down the rabbithole of obscurities pretty quickly. So it's awesome that it's getting reissued! We did notice that 5 of the tracks on both releases were the same, but then a glance at the subtitle on this release, The Dark Side Of The X, clued us into the fact that while the songs are the same, they are VERY different versions. The Dream Machine demos were more stripped down and gave a lighter touch to the French pop created by vocalist Zouka Dzaza and instrumentalist Doc Pilot. On Pirate! however, the songs have more overdriven synthesizers creating a much darker Suicide-ish feel heightened by the rapid-fire drum machines. Still catchy and cool, but closer to the cold wave of Deux and Gina X on this go round than the way they were to Pizzacato 5 and Stereolab was on the last one.

X RAY POPPirate!: The Dark Side of The X(Finders Keepers)cd$ 16.98

A few weeks back we listed an amazing French synth-pop rarity on the Dark Entries label called The Dream Machine by duo X Ray Pop, a compilation of early singles and demos that was equal parts Les Rita Mitsouko, Mo-dettes and Stereo Total. Now Finders Keepers follows that up with a reissue of the band's first full length, Pirate!, from 1985. Pirate! was originally released on cassette in a small edition of 100 copies, so it went down the rabbithole of obscurities pretty quickly. So it's awesome that it's getting reissued! We did notice that 5 of the tracks on both releases were the same, but then a glance at the subtitle on this release, The Dark Side Of The X, clued us into the fact that while the songs are the same, they are VERY different versions. The Dream Machine demos were more stripped down and gave a lighter touch to the French pop created by vocalist Zouka Dzaza and instrumentalist Doc Pilot. On Pirate! however, the songs have more overdriven synthesizers creating a much darker Suicide-ish feel heightened by the rapid-fire drum machines. Still catchy and cool, but closer to the cold wave of Deux and Gina X on this go round than the way they were to Pizzacato 5 and Stereolab was on the last one.

XIAO HESilly's Ballad(Modern Sky)artbook / MP3 player$ 75.00

Of all the Chinese releases we've reviewed lately, and it's been a LOT, this might be the most over the top, with some of the most fantastic packaging we've ever seen. Xiao He was a new name to us, but apparently he's of the most respected avant garde musicians in China, and the genesis of this record was via an especially wild performance, during which Xiao leapt from the stage and broke both his feet. While stuck at home recuperating, under doctor's orders, Xiao wrote these songs, apparently in the style of many of his records, a lush classic folk, fused to more modern indie balladry, his vocals a warm, emotive croon, simple strummed acoustic guitar, piano, minimal drumming, multi-tracked vocals, lilting and wistful, with some lovely harmonies, the vibe actually sounds almost like African music in places, and we're also reminded of folks like Sufjan Stevens, albeit a bit more mellow and minimal. Really nice stuff for sure, but it's the packaging that really pushes this over the edge. Presented in a massive, full color, hard cover art book, each page adorned with a gorgeous colored pencil drawing of a leaf, leafs that Xiao found on his walks in the countryside during his recovery, the colors warm and autumnal, each page folding out gatefold style revealing lyrics to each song, the whole thing housed in a slipcover, also adorned with a leaf drawing. But there's no cd, or lp, instead, the music is contained on a flash drive, built into the book! Complete with volume controls, on/off switch, buttons to skip tracks, the little player lighting up, glowing white, just plug in headphones (which are also included), find a nice place to sit, open the book, push play and let yourself get lost. So cool! LIMITED TO 1000 COPIES!! We only got a handful! Note re: the player - FYI, once the battery charge runs out, to recharge the player requires an old school cellphone charger (as in, not the new fangled iPhone style chargers!). ----* ----* Selected New Arrivals : ----*

XIAO HEThe Performance of Identity(Maybe Mars)2cd$ 14.98

Xiao He, aka He Guoheng, is a legendary musician in the Chinese music scene. Not just a musician, he also works in movies, does scoring, performs plays, is an actor, he also runs his own record label that helps support innovative folk and ethnic musicians in China. Xiao He performs a style of music he calls 'free folk' which involves just him and an acoustic guitar, but unlike the usual strum and croon of most folkies, Guoheng's music is much more far out and abstract. Mostly improvised, the guitar playing is impressionistic and flits from blues to folk to totally freeform abstraction and pretty much every stop in between, his vocals are even more far out, a lush, hushed croon one second, a weird Muppet like mewl the next, sometimes his voice is a rumbling Tuvan style throat singing, and suddenly without warning, he'll swoop into a wild dramatic falsetto, and the will begin yodeling wildly, before slipping back into something more traditional. Wild and unpredictable, imagine Bill Orcutt if he was a vocalist and not a guitarist, mix in a little Dan Higgs, some serious cabaret, and somehow make it even more loose and abstract and free and unfettered by any sort of normal musical restrictions. It's super intense and strange, but also liberating and inspiring. Some folks will definitely find it quite difficult listening, but adventurous musical lovers will dig this outsider free folk weirdness, and will marvel that something so strange could be so popular in the mainstream. We find ourselves confused certainly by the sound, but it's also strangely addictive, and utterly wild and weird and fascinating. Totally inspired, ultra personal sonic expression like nothing you've likely ever heard before. The second disc here is even weirder and cooler, more avant experimentation, this time Guoheng's vocals a bit more restrained, but accompanied by what sounds like lo-fi synth squelch, and short wave transmissions, strange FX and whirring industrial soundscapes, burbling electronics, with some of the tracks sounding like Bruce Haack mashed up with the Taj Mahal Travellers, meditative, noisy, textural, freaky and far out! The packaging is incredible - a full color box, featuring a strange looking Xiao He on the front, wearing a hard hat, with a cat on his shoulder, the other side of the box covered with liner notes / stickers, inside, the cds are housed in super fancy printed diecut sleeves, there's also a big sticker of the cover image, as well as a huge fold out full color, multi panel insert!

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XTATIKATongue Bath(Tzadik)cd$ 16.98

From the obi strip: "New Tzadik Oracles series is proud to begin with the unique visions of singer/songwriter Haena Kim. Featuring hypnotic, trippy vocals, nasty electric bass and two driving Korean percussionists, this is a band that opens up an exciting new world of sound. You've never heard anything like Xtatika--a magical blend of alternative rock with Korean traditional music.

YAGHMAEI, KOUROSHBack From The Brink(Now Again)2cd$ 21.00

We'd been hearing about this for a while, the first collection from legendary Iranian psychedelic rocker Kourosh Yaghmaei, who spent much of his career literally forbidden from performing or recording. We initially thought we had never heard anything from Yaghmaei, until we realized that he was responsible for one of our favorite tracks, on one of THEE best compilations ever, Forge Your Own Chains, his "Hajme El Khali", a sultry, brooding ballad, all spidery melody, whirring organ, chiming guitar, and powerful emotional vocals, the song moving and intense and so darkly passionate. He also showed up on the great B-Music Pomegranates compilation, that track open the proceedings here, a gorgeous chunk of piano driven melancholy, dusted with psychedelic effects, but it's all about the vocals, gorgeous and intense, and the cool little guitar filagree, wild little tangles, or slowly unwinding melodies, and a little Ventures-y surfy twang (The Ventures were apparently Yaghmaei's favorite group), and so it goes, this is quickly becoming a new favorite, which is saying something, since there is really no shortage of killer lost psychedelic classics. But there's something about these songs. The vocals obviously, but Yaghmaei's guitar playing is so distinctive, his love of the Ventures and that era of American rock evident, but the classic folk music of his Middle Eastern upbringing finding their way into his sound, the recordings raw and intimate, surprisingly lush, with some of the tracks reminding us of classic Bee Gees, all warm whirling orchestral pop, while others, are fuzz drenched rockers, all wah wah guitars and sultry sinister swagger, while still others are dreamy ballads, heartfelt and sweetly melancholy, but no matter the sound, every once in a while, Yaghmaei cranks it up and unfurls some FIERCE psychedelic guitar leads, Hendrixy and distorted and awesome, and similarly, the organ will emit gouts of crunchy buzz, often offsetting what is otherwise some dreamy jangle. There are definitely hints of Bollywood, and other Middle Eastern musics you've perhaps heard before, but Yaghmaei's sound is definitely all his own, and should for sure appeal to fans of Ethiopiques, Sublime Frequencies, Finders Keepers and the like. Pretty much all the songs here are incredible, and then there's the story of Yaghmaei's life which is equally incredible, told in the liner notes in his own words, which according to the compilers is a symbolic gesture to the many years of silence he suffered, unable to speak out, perform or record. So great. The double cd version comes in a cool hardcover book style packaging.

YAMASUKI SINGERS, THELe Monde Fabuleux Des(Finders Keepers)cd$ 14.98

Everytime we've played this delicious reissue in the store, people have eagerly inquired, "Oooh, what's this?!" If you dig music that gleefully jumps boundaries and melts together genres with whimsical abandon (but NOT in the current irony-sodden, just-fuckin'-around fashion) -- in this case, a cross-cultural funneling in on the sounds of French Ye Ye Girl pop, far-out Japanese psych and prog influences, some almost-Carpenters level sing-song-y glorious pop, and assorted other vintage Euro-funkiness -- well then, Le Monde Fabuleux Des Yamasuki is for YOU! Lovingly mastered from the original tapes by one of the original producers Monsieur Jean Kluger, this is the first time these recordings have been released on cd. Apparently there was originally one album and two singles released under the name The Yamsuki Singers on the French label Biram back in 1971. Needless to say, they've been next to impossible to find for years. If you're eager to get the skinny on Yamasuki, the project's lively history is printed in English in the liner notes, but there's also an added bonus on the back page of the booklet. If your French comprehension is any good, you can find out how to do the dance moves -- le salut, la joie, la peur, la grace, le combat, attaque (translation of this move's description: one assumes karate positions while shouting "caa ooh") and hara kiri! By today's standards, you might find some of the 'oriental' (ahem, Asian) elements downright corny (the first song begins with a gong, and songs are introduced by a black-belt judo master!), but the sheer exuberance of the performances sweeps away any possibility of scowling criticisms. The sticker on the front proclaims "A fuzzed-out-educational-multi-cultural psych-rock-opera from 1971. Proto-psychedelic hip-hop with overweight drum beats and basslines!" Who's gonna argue with that?! Not us, we particularly appreciate the record label's use of the word "overweight". Yeah, we can hear what they're gettin' at -- the rhythm section is pretty thumpin' and hefty -- but it still made us giggle. Anyways, not to be super nit-picky but although this is indeed a conceptual album, after reading the liner notes we deduced that it's not so much a 'rock opera' per se, but more like a dance performance with lots of choral accompaniments. So who was behind all of this wonderful madness? Two French producer/composers, the aforementioned Kluger and Daniel Vangarde... and various children's choirs singing in Japanese. Ultra bizarre, campy, freaky and outrageous (again, even by today's standards!), we've got a sneaking suspicion that Ron and Russell Mael of Sparks probably saw/heard Yamasuki 'cause there sure are some striking resemblances with their own deliriously fantastic Kimono My House album that came out a few years later in 1974. You might find it sorta Zappa-ish too. Heck, it even spawned a dance move, "The Yamasuki"! Oh yeah, and if the fifth song "AIEAOA" sounds oddly familiar, you might recognize it as a song covered by Bananarama. Apparently the gals heard a version recorded by a band from Zaire (!), and loved it so much that they covered the cover "Aie A Mwana" and made it their first single! Cup sez "Yaaaaaaaaaaaay!" Who's gonna argue with that, either?! Recommended, along with the other amazing reissue on the Finders Keepers label we reviewed last week, Jean-Claude Vannier's L'Enfant Assassin Des Mouches.

YAT-KHAAldyn Dashka(Yat-Kha)cd$ 14.98

The press release for this described Yat-Kha as "Tuvan music -- with a punk rock twist", which doesn't quite get it right so, in an effort to clarify this remark they say elsewhere: "OK it's not the Sex Pistols kind of punk -- think Joy Division", which is

YAT-KHATuva.rock(Yat-Kha)cd$ 28.00

YAT-KHAYenisei-Punk(Global Music Centre)cd$ 15.98

YELLEPop Up(Source / Caroline)cd$ 13.98

As we sit in the middle of an atypical heatwave here in San Francisco it's made us think hard about what our summer jams are going to be, and luckily the debut album from Yelle has just hit stateside and we can officially proclaim that this will be one of our party records of summer '08! Hailing from France, Yelle evokes that special infectious magic of French pop in all its incarnations with a healthy dose of electro and a fun hip-hop disposition. It's sort of how we would imagine a collaboration between Stereo Total and M.I.A. would sound. Yelle is fun and full of color but sharp and strong enough sounding so it doesn't just become disposable fluff. This is exactly what we hoped would be playing everytime we ever walked into a dance club. Suave and and so damn sassy!

YORO SIDIBEs/t(Yaala Yaala)cd$ 14.98

Picture yourself in Mali, watching a ceremony unfold in front of you wherein a group of mysterious men dressed in mudcloth robes and jodhpurs gather behind a central figure playing a ngoni (a traditional African stringed instrument that looks and sounds like some stinging, buzzing, droning cross between a banjo, a lute and an oud), while another grinds out a rhythm on a nkerenye (a ridged metal cylinder that is scraped with a small metal rod). The men all carry huge, ancient, crude muskets which they fill with gunpowder by the goathorn-full as they snake through the crowd, firing balls of flaming powder and wadding into the air. The central figure begins to sing and the rest of the men fall in behind him - sometimes repeating lines, sometimes responding with a repeated chorus, sometimes simply adding a shout of praise or acknowledgment. The men are donsos, and they are the traditional hunters of Mali, living on the edge of society, shrouded in mystery, hunting animals and humans alike; the songs they sing are epic tales passed from generation to generation and are meant to inspire and energize the donsos before a hunt. This is the scene into which the latest release on the Yaala Yaala label drops us, with this record from Yoro Sidibe, a donso who has released around 20 albums over the last 32 years. Like other Yaala Yaala releases, this is a raw and captivating aural snapshot of a world very unlike our own. The music is rough, droning and cyclical; the vocals are fevered, intense and powerful; and the combination of the two is thoroughly mesmerizing. This is a record full of dark and mysterious sounds that are unlikely to appear on a Putamayo compilation, recorded with every pop and distorted moment left untouched. This very likely one of the most hypnotic, evocative, and absolutely breathtaking records you'll find on this week's list. Essential.

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YOUNG, OSCARDamp Circuits: The Golden Era Of Synthesizers In East Asia - Volume 1(Sham Palace)7"$ 9.98

It was tough to not be won over by this one before we even heard it. It's called Damp Circuits, it features a twisted cover with bright Chinese characters over a murky landscape of clouds and lightning, over which an image of a man fiddling with a huge bank of electronics is superimposed, and it's subtitled The Golden Era Of Synthesizers In East Asia, and yeah, it's just as good as all of that had us hoping it would be. Young was a Hong Kong musician and producer who modernized Chinese folk melodies by performing them on (at the time) state of the art synths, adding fuzzed out wah guitar, groovy basslines and whirring organs, the vibe slips from groovy funkiness to woozy exotica, to fuzzy sixties garage to what sounds like a revved up synthesized traditional folk (replete with weird crowd sounds). Fans of Perry & Kingsley, Dick Hyman, and other synth pioneers will FLIP. Listen to the samples and you'll be smitten, here's hoping there's lots more where this came from! On the Sublime Frequencies offshoot sub-label Sham Palace!

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ZA FRUMIChapter 2: Tach(Waerloga)cd$ 12.98

The return of the orcs!!! Chapter two in the musical tale of Uglach and his band of orcs. Here's a little of what we said about chapter one (which we also have in stock): "Much like a radio play, the whole drama is played out via dialogue, ambient sounds and incidental music....a musical story, utilising dark ambience, cinematic soundscapes, the sounds of life in the forest (sticks crackling, wind blowing, water splashing, swords clashing) and a litany of grunts and growls, which is the dialogue spoken entirely in orcish." Chapter two is heavier on the music (not heavier mind you, but containing more music), with less emphasis on battles and dialogue, sounding much more medieval and almost renaissance faire-ish at times (although fear not, there is still plenty of orcish being grunted, as well as the occasional unsheathing of swords). Flutes, hand drums, jaw harp, and didgeridoos are woven into fantastical soundscapes, evoking forests, caves and times of yore. In fact, according to the liner notes, much of the record actually -was- recorded in forests and caves (as well as lakes, rivers and a castle). Those of you who need another Lord Of The Rings fix before film number two might find what you're looking for with Za Frumi. If you don't have the first one, you might want to start there, but if you're anything like us, you'll have to get both!!

ZA FRUMIZa Shum Ushatar Uglakh(Tarki)cd$ 12.98

Let me preface this review by mentioning that Allan has never read The Lord Of The Rings (even with his extensive D&D experience...hmmm). Za Frumi is a group of Swedish musicians, disenchanted with the black metal scene, and the music scene in general, who were compelled to look elsewhere for the magic and mystery they felt was lacking in modern music. The result is 'Za Shum Ushatar Uglakh', a musical tale of a clan of orcs and their battle against a mighty vampire lord! That's right, orcs. The story goes like this (from the liner notes): "Join the epic voyage of the orc leader Uglakh and his compatriots. Their adventure begins in the deep lustrous forest filled with the sounds of the wild and the roar of a great fire. Around it sit the Uruki Uglach, awaiting the mysterious primal dance of their shaman. The morning after, the uruks, compelled by their mystic shamans advice to Uglach, attack an old castle. After the raid, the subservient Golug Fachtal and his more adventurous kinsmen Yagui forage the forest, and set out to build a watch tower. After a frustrated argument about a toadstool, the wet Yagul and the other orcs begin building a tower, while the dagalush Knish and his kapuli friend go further afield, and find a deep sea beach, where the melodious elves are making sweet music. Later, we join the clans march during a night filled with wonder. They press constantly on, sometimes marching, sometimes sneaking. After a short stroll in the forest, Uglakh and his clansmen happen upon the dark, brooding castle of the dreaded vampire Ismael. The journey through his dark castle has two parts, with mysterious subterranean chanting and majestic orchestral sounds. They face many perils there, and end in the final battle with Ismael in his greatest chamber." Much like a radio play, the whole drama is played out via dialogue (more on that later), ambient sounds and incidental music. So simply as a musical story, utilising dark ambience, cinematic soundscapes, the sounds of life in the forest (sticks crackling, wind blowing, water splashing, swords clashing) and a litany of grunts and growls, which is the dialogue spoken entirely in orcish (for real! -- a handy translation is included in the booklet for those not fluent in the tongue). It's really interesting and quite entertaining. But the music, taken on its own, is quite an epic dronescape (albiet littered with very un-drone like segments). 'Za Shum...' is a strange mix of dark rumbles and throbbing pulses, simple clattery rhythms and tribal workouts, grunting and growling and roaring (that could be electronic rumbles or misplaced death metal vocalists if you didn't already know it was orcs) and the occasional folky flute interlude. Imagine the No Neck Blues Band jamming with Jonathan Coleclough or Andrew Chalk, with Chris Barnes (Cannibal Corpse) or Glenn Benton (Deicide) grunting the dialogue with the Thai Elephant Orchestra as their rhythm section. It's that weird. It's that cool.

ZAHIR, AHMADHip 70's Afghan Beats!(Guerssen)cd$ 17.98

If you've been diggin' the vintage Turkish psych/pop of the Erkin Koray and Cem Karaca discs we've highlighted recently, here's something else for you, quite similar though it's from a bit further to the East... The title they've chosen for this collection would do as a review of it, in a nutshell: "Hip '70s Afghan Beats!" Indeed. Amhad Zahir was a popular Afghan singer, and these tracks, culled from his prodigious discography, are rife with emotive deep voiced crooning, exotic folk flourishes, and East-meets-West stylings (electric wah wah guitar, and tabla too!). The liner notes (which could have done with an extra round of copy-editing, we're afraid) provide a brief biography of Zahir, who tragically was assassinated in 1979, at the age of 33, by Afghanistan's communist regime, on account of his political beliefs. Before his death, though, he had become hugely popular, and nowadays is apparently still considered a legend, one of Afghanistan's biggest recording stars. Of course, to us ignorant Westerners, he's quite obscure. We can only trust that the unnamed compiler has indeed chosen the "best of" Zahir's output; these tracks sound good to us, anyway! Infectious, hypnotic, moody, with groovy horns, traditional melodies, and reverb-heavy rhythms, it's all quite enjoyable.

ZALATNAY, SAROLTAs/t(B-Music / Finders Keepers)cd$ 16.98

You know this is gonna be good -- from the same dedicated diggers at B-music/Finders Keepers that brought us the Anatolian Invasion of Selda and Mustafa Ozkent, the freak-folk of Susan Christie, the dreamscape soundtrack for Valerie And Her Week Of Wonders, etc., comes this "best of" collection from beautiful Hungarian singer Sarolta "Cini" Zalatnay, from the late '60s, early '70s. An obscure cult figure elsewhere, in her native country Zalatnay remains famous, a liberated Socialist-era sex symbol known for her scandalous personal life. DJ Andy Votel's extensive liner notes allude to all the shocking details. Fascinating as her story is (at age 54 she posed for Hungarian Playboy, has appeared on a Hungarian hidden-camera "reality TV" show, and was given a three-year prison sentence for fraud!) it's her breaks-friendly music that gets the B-music crowd all turned on. And while the 19 tracks here include some lovely pastoral pop and torchy ballads, it's her specialty of groovy, psychedelic hard rock wherein the best breaks are to be found. And there's plenty of that here. Yep, cow-bell rockin', acid guitar fueled hard rock, the ideal setting for her to let loose with her powerful voice, which draws comparisons to Janis Joplin (an impression reinforced here by one of the English-language bonus tracks, a cover of Joplin's "Move Over"). Plus the funky drumming and wah wah fuzz guitar licks are enough to make DJ-types drool. We're reminded a bit of Funkadelic vocalist Ruth Copeland's solo material, and the more kick-ass Shocking Blue cuts...good stuff! This anthology brings together tracks from impossible to find LPs and singles, released by Cini as a solo artist as well as when she fronted such bands as Locomotiv GT and Skorpio. As usual the cd booklet is heavily illustrated with full color repros of the cover art from some of these treasures.

ZANGENEH, PARIThe Series Of Music For Young Adults: Iranian Folk Songs(Tehran / KS)cd$ 25.00

Folk-psych masterpiece out of Teheran, Iran circa 1976. With incredibly rich instrumentation and orchestration as a backdrop, Pari Zangeneh's voice soars with such soft strength. We're reminded a lot of some of the amazing psych gems from Turkey that we've dug so much like Mogollar and Selda but with less funk in the mix and much more lush folk running through the sound. In fact, Zangeneh sounds quite a bit like a Persian version of Vashti Bunyan at times, albeit with a bit more bravado and color in her delivery. She is still performing all these years later, and while this record is now over three decades old it still sounds so timeless and compelling. We imagine modern day psych-folksters like White Magic, Espers, and Dungen would find tons of inspiration in these mystical and delightful sounds, we sure do!

ZAP MAMAAncestry In Progress(V2)cd$ 16.98

Zap Mama's new album, Ancestry In Progress, moves further into full-on cohesion of Afro and Euro pop sensibilities brought about by the group's leader, Marie Daulne. This album symbolizes a coping with personal trauma she endured as a young girl in strife-ridden Congo (then Zaire). Daulne notes that the songs on this album are crafted from common approaches to music-making shared by both African and African-American musicians. Starting out with loops, building on them, shaving away elements unnecessary, building, and so on, like sculptors of Euro-Afro-hip-pop. Zap Mama is the modern, urban Sade of our time.

ZE, TOMBrazil Classics 4: The Best Of Tom Ze(Luaka Bop)lp$ 21.00

ZECHARIA, ZADIKKurdish Melodies On Zorna(Bo'Weavil)cd$ 17.98

This was originally released as a super limited cd-r, and people dug it so much we could barely keep it in stock. Now the fine folks at Bo'Weavil have reissued it as a proper cd, packaged in a gorgeous fold out thick paper sleeves with extensive liner notes and an insert printed with a brief history of Zecharia's life, the whole thing housed in a thick plastic sleeve. Still limited, to 500 copies this time, so not sure how long these will be around. Also included on the reissue are two bonus remix tracks! Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be in the Middle East, on a hot sweltering day, with the dust, the scorching sun, and all of that history surrounding you on all sides, letting that intensity overwhelm you and opening your ears to a wondrous world of beautiful and mysterious sounds? Well here it is! Recorded in Jerusalem in 1980 and previously only available as a homemade cassette and later as a cd-r until now, this is a whole disc of Zadik Zecharia furiously rocking the zorna, an instrument most of us had never even heard of until now!! Born in a small village in Kurdistan before moving to Israel in 1950, Zecharia has dedicated his life to playing the zorna (a traditional Kurdish instrument somewhat similar to a longer more narrow trumpet or Scottish bagpipe). This record doesn't let up for a single second. The moment it starts Zecharia is taken over by the power of his instrument and the fugue state he must descend into to elicit such amazing passionate sounds. You get the feeling that there is no time to pause, no time to think, no time to even take a breath. When I (Irwin) had the amazing opportunity to be in the Middle East in 2000, I remember walking through street markets, standing on the border of Syria and Israel, feeling years of charged history, pain, and passion, right there beneath my feet, and all around me. Taking off my headphones I was immediately overtaken by the myriad of sounds baking in the desert heat. Those moments were magic, and it all seemed to come together perfectly, and for just a moment it felt possible to forget about hate, war, religion and politics. This record takes me back to that place more then anything I've ever heard. Like the best snake charmer records, the kind of music that grabs you by the ankles and sweeps you off your feet, this has the same hard hitting intensity, with an underlying energy that feels boundless and endless. If you've been to the store recently you've probably noticed the nonstop construction going on outside. So for hours at a time we've been hearing drilling and pounding and the sounds of asphalt being torn apart. When the Zecharia has been playing in the store, the combination of all that commotion and the wailing zorna has made for one of the most amazing high voltage drone drenched pounding creations we've ever heard. But even on its own, this record has the ability to take your body hostage, every listen literally forcing various parts of your body to break out in uncontrollable movement. The dola drum which accompanies the zorna helps create a simple backbeat that balances Zecharia's fiery melodic frenzies. A musical fire that you never want to see extinguished. Recommended with more exclamation points than we have room to print!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! etc...

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ZECHARIA, ZADIKKurdish Melodies On Zorna - REMIXES(Something On The Road)cd-r$ 11.98

About a year ago we were completely floored by the cd release of a cassette recording made in Jerusalem circa 1980 of the intense and trance inducing zorna playing of Zadik Zecharia. His Kurdish Melodies On Zorna had the kind of fire and intensity that appealed not only to Middle Eastern music aficionados, but also noise freaks, drone lovers and experimental music-heads of all stripes. So when we heard that the Israeli label Something On The Road had compiled a remix cd of Zacharia's masterful record we were both intrigued and a little skeptical. We'll be the first to admit that most remix records tend to miss the mark, adding generic beats and kind of killing the original spirit of a work that we love. And the first couple tracks on this collection while ok weren't totally doing it for us but then...oh my god!!! after a few tracks things started to heat up FAST! While most records, especially compilations and remix albums, tend to be top heavy, this is in many ways quite the opposite. Things start off with a nice smoky Planet Mu almost dubstep kind of vibe and then as the record goes on the beats start to diminish in favor of drone and noise and buzz. We love how Something On The Road have such a good sense of continuity, mood and pacing, something most remix records completely ignore. We weren't familiar with most of the Israeli bands and DJ's involved in this record but now we will for sure try to seek out more music by the likes of Nemoi, Gal Tushia and David Ovadia. The one artist we were familiar with was Poochlatz an amazingly bleak and primitive noise project out of Israel who always whip up beautiful and chaotic doom & gloom! We love the tidal wave that erupts as this remix record unfolds. Like the best moments of Muslimgauze, this is Middle Eastern experimental electronica that resonates so strongly and does it's source material proud!

ZECHARIA, ZADIKKurdish Melodies Played On Zorna(Something On The Road)cd-r$ 10.98

Ever thought of what it would be like to be in the middle east on a hot sweltering day with the dust, scorching sun, and history all around you while the intensity of the surroundings blasted in your ears? Well here it is! Recorded in Jerusalem in 1980 and only released as an independent cassette until now, the sounds of the zorna are rocked so furiously by Zadik Zecharia on this cd filled to overflowing with the relentless sounds of the zorna. Born in a small village in Kurdistan before moving to Israel in 1950, Zecharia has dedicated his life to playing the zorna (a traditional Kurdish instrument somewhat similar to a longer more narrow trumpet or Scottish bagpipe). This record doesn't let up for a single second. The moment it starts Zecharia is taken over by the power of the zorna and the demands that it puts on the player. You get the feeling that there is no time to pause, no time to think, no time to even take a breath. When I (Irwin) had the amazing opportunity to be in the Middle East at the turn of the millennium I remember walking through street markets, standing on the border of Syria and Israel, feeling my feet walk on so much high charged history, pain, and passion. Taking off my headphones to get overtaken by the myriad of sounds baking in the desert heat. Those moments where it all would come together and for just a moment you could be in that place and forget about hate, war, religion and politics. This record takes me back to the place more then anything I've ever heard. Like the best of snake charmer records that have grabbed you by the ankles and swept you off your feet this has that same hard hitting intensity with an undying energy that sounds as if it will never ever let up. If you have been to the store recently you have noticed that right outside there has been some nonstop construction going on in the streets and on the sidewalks. So for hours at a time we are hearing drilling and pounding and the sounds of asphalt being torn apart. When this has been playing in the store the combination of all that commotion has made for one of the most amazing high voltage drone pounding creations we have ever heard. And even on its own, this record has the ability to take you body hostage, as there is no way to listen without various parts of your body breaking out in uncontrollable movement. The dola drum which accompanies the zorna helps give a backbeat which keeps the frenzy of a fire that you never want to be extinguished. Recommended with thousands of exclamation points!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!etc.

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ZECHARIA, ZADIKKurdish Melodies Played On Zorna - Live At Mondial Hall - 14.12.1987(Something On The Road)dvd-r$ 10.98

For anyone who bought the Zadik Zecharia cd (and that's a WHOLE lot of you), an amazing disc of wild and energetic performances on a small traditional Kurdish horn called a zorna, a disc that is STILL played constantly in the store, this dvd-r is absolutely essential. The sound of the zorna is a buzzing high end hypnotic buzz, very much like snake charmer music, and is completely and relentlessly mesmerizing. A sound that is wild and festive and joyous, and that definitely has a primal power, a timeless intensity that transcends mere music, it's a sound that does in fact force your body to bounce and shimmy, dance and shake along. As is evidenced by this dvd-r, a home video recording of a wedding in 1987 that is just a nonstop dance party / zorna jam. It's a little strange to see, it's a little like watching some stranger's home videos, which it basically is. But wow!! If only weddings were this wild and festive in the US. Then again, if only weddings featured a kick ass zorna jam courtesy of Zadik Zecharia (maybe Andee and Heather would have actually gotten married by now). From the moment the bride and groom enter the building, Zecharia is playing a continuous stream of flowing buzzing melody, never stopping, accompanied by a huge thumped drum, and of course the clapping and shouting of the crowd. And that's basically it, a huge crowd of friends and family, dancing wildly, together, separately, in big groups, holding hands, forming huge chains, hands raised in the air, while Zecharia and the drummer, wander from the stage, strolling amongst the crowd and back to the stage again never letting up. In fact there are even some parts where Zecharia plays with one hand so he can use his other to communicate with some of the guests. A few folks whisper in his ear, to which he responds with a nod or a smile, still never letting the music stop. It's 1987 so there are some amazing fashions, wild pantsuits and big hair, which are fun to see, but it's all about Zecharia and his inspiring performance. Shot on a camcorder 20 years ago, which means the picture quality is not the best, but the sound is fantastic (minus a few drop outs) and if you're anything like us you can't get enough of Zadik Zecharia and his zorna!! So recommended!

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ZOUMBAS, ALEXISA Lament For Epirus 1926-1928(Angry Mom)cd$ 14.98

One of our favorite Record Store Day offerings has been repressed, and is now also available on cd as well. A Lament for Epirus compiles 78 rpm recordings of Greek violinist Alexis Zoumbas, and it's a stunningly melancholy collection of solo recordings (though some tracks are accompanied by cymbalon and bowed bass) that showcase the joys and grief of life in the mountainous region of Northwestern Greece where Zoumbas hails from. Reminding us of those funerary violin cd-rs we had awhile back ago, Zoumbas of course is the real deal, and you can feel every beautiful ache in each note he conjures. Fantastic stuff!

ZOYRES EASTERN EUROPEAN WILD FERMENTBiserka!(self-released)cd$ 11.98

ZUIgneo & Remixes(Frenetic)cd$ 14.98

Italian hardcore jazz attack! We're big fans of these guys, and were happy to get to see 'em play in San Francisco earlier this summer. A super intense performance indeed, with the saxophone practically used as a percussion instrument alongside the thrashing drum battery, and the electric bass being utterly brutal, this nimble instrumental "jazz trio" was almost metallically heavy, and definitely were mindblowingly tight and technical. It's no wonder that the Steve Albini-recorded Igneo bears a dedication to The Ex. This new Zu is actually a 2001 album, at last brought out in the States by our pals at the Frenetic label, who have added on four bonus tracks, all of 'em creative remixes from a surprising quartet of remixers, from backgrounds as diverse as underground hip hop to experimental drone: DJ Olive, DJ Andy Moor, Dalek (who adds a rap vocal, that works in context), and Giuseppe Ielasi. Pretty neat. The album itself also boasts some heavy guests, well-known Chicago indie jazz cats Ken Vandermark, Fred Lomberg-holm, and Jeb Bishop. So if blitzkrieging (but beauteous too) free jazz / math rock is your thing (if you're a fan of the likes of John Zorn, Alboth!, and the Flying Luttenbachers) and you haven't heard Zu, this is the disc to get! And by the way, there's a song here entitled "Solar Anus" -- not a Skullflower cover, nor anything to do with the Japanese band of that name. Just another Bataille reference we must suppose.

ZUThe Way of the Animal Powers(Public Guilt)lp$ 15.98

Props to Brian Turner at WFMU for re-introducing us to this band. We always sort of dug Zu, a pretty cool weird sort-of jazz outfit from Italy. But hearing Zu's "Tom Araya Is Our Elvis" on the radio knocked our blocks off. Woah! What kind of jazz group could come up with a track like that. A skronking sludgy punch to the guts. Hypnotically repetitive and all right, we'll say it, HEAVY! Since when was it okay for a jazz group to channel Slayer and just CRUSH? Who cares! Zu is our 'heavy jazz' drug of choice now. And the title of the track that got us hooked? Perfect! Because Tom Araya IS our Elvis. This whole record is a dense tangled blast of downtuned artmetal deathjazz. Imagine Morphine, on, er, well, morphine. Dark and druggy, stumbling, convoluted and complex, a stuttering staggering drums, bass and horns battle royale. But this is not about skree as much as it is about the slithery lowslung skronk, liberally peppered with subtle scrabbly scattery percussive shuffle and moaning droning cello. So fucking great!

ZUWay of the Animal Powers(Xeng)cd$ 15.98

Props to Brian Turner at WFMU for re-introducing us to this band. We always sort of dug Zu, a pretty cool weird sort-of jazz outfit from Italy. But hearing Zu's "Tom Araya Is Our Elvis" on the radio knocked our blocks off. Woah! What kind of jazz group could come up with a track like that. A skronking sludgy punch to the guts. Hypnotically repetitive and alright, we'll say it, HEAVY! Since when was it okay for a jazz group to channel Slayer and just CRUSH? Who cares! Zu is our 'heavy jazz' drug of choice now. And the title of the track that got us hooked? Perfect! Because Tom Araya IS our Elvis. This whole record is a dense tangled blast of downtuned artmetal deathjazz. Imagine Morphine, on, er, well, morphine. Dark and druggy, stumbling, convoluted and complex, a stuttering staggering drums, bass and horns battle royale. But this is not about skree as much as it is about the slithery lowslung skronk, liberally peppered with subtle scrabbly scattery percussive shuffle and moaning droning cello. So fucking great!