Damien O’Kane – Areas of High Traffic (Pure Records, 2015) Often the first impressions that come to mind when handed a Celtic CD are of…
Lustrous and Fresh Areas of High Traffic
Author: TJ Nelson
TJ Nelson is a regular CD reviewer and editor at World Music Central. She is also a fiction writer. Check out her latest book, Chasing Athena's Shadow.
Set in Pineboro, North Carolina, Chasing Athena's Shadow follows the adventures of Grace, an adult literacy teacher, as she seeks to solve a long forgotten family mystery. Her charmingly dysfunctional family is of little help in her quest. Along with her best friends, an attractive Mexican teacher and an amiable gay chef, Grace must find the one fading memory that holds the key to why Grace’s great-grandmother, Athena, shot her husband on the courthouse steps in 1931.
Traversing the line between the Old South and New South, Grace will have to dig into the past to uncover Athena’s true crime.
The Fantastical Musical Journey of Ozan
Ozan Aksoy – Ozan (2018) The prodigious talents of Alevi Kurdish musician, singer and composer Ozan Aksoy is apparent from the opening strains of his…
Bixiga 70, Where Brazil and Africa Get Together
Bixiga 70 – Quebra Cabeça (Glitterbeat, 2018) The Sao Paulo instrumental group Bixiga 70 is where Brazil and Africa meet. Their layered sound is explosive…
Altogether Satisfying and Exotic Istikrarli Hayal Hakikattir
Gaye Su Akyol – Istikrarli Hayal Hakikattir (Glitterbeat, 2018) For the most part we humans like knowing what to expect. We prefer the predictable. We…
Elegant and Fascinating Kulku
SANS – Kulku (Cloud Valley Music, 2018) If I had to guess you didn’t wake up this morning thinking about how your life was lacking…
Artist Profiles: Kalakan
Kalakan is a band from the northern Basque country (France) featuring Thierry Biscary, Jamixel Bereau and Xan Errotabehere. Its style consists of minimalist arrangements (vocals,…
Captivating and Stylish Opium Moon
Opium Moon – Opium Moon (Be Why, 2018) Descriptors like enchanting, elegant and hypnotic just don’t seem to do justice to Be Why Music’s recent…
Artist Profiles: Kálmán Balogh & Gypsy Jazz
Kálmán Balogh is one of the leading Hungarian cimbalom players, descending from a famous dynasty of Hungarian Gypsy musicians. His virtuosity is matched only by…
Masterful and Electrifying Ne La Thiass
Cheikh Lo – Ne La Thiass (World Circuit, 2018), reissue In 1995, while Coolio’s “Gansta Paradise,” TLC’s “Waterfalls,” Seal’s “Kiss from a Rose” and Madonna’s…
The Varied Cutting Edge Musical Landscapes of Cachaito
Orlando ‘Cachaito’ López – Cachaito (World Circuit, 2018), reissue Do you have a copy of World Circuit Record’s 2001 release of Cachaito in your music…