Reggae music can sometimes be self-referential to the point of parody, but when it’s as potent as “Jah Jah Riddims” by PJ Far-West Selecta, it…
Riddim Yuh Nuh Refuse
Author: Tom Orr
Tom Orr is a California-based writer whose talent and mental stability are of an equally questionable nature. His hobbies include ignoring trends, striking dramatic poses in front of his ever-tolerant wife and watching helplessly as his kids surpass him in all desirable traits.
Bast and Future
Swiss reggae artist Jah Bast gives us all hope for how things to come should and shouldn’t be. His “Shadow of the Future,” composed in…
Unfettered Persian Excursion
Never mind that classically trained Iranian singer Bahar Movahed is also an orthodontist whose practice is (perhaps handily) located in my current stomping ground of…
Second Line Levantine
Care to hear New Orleans style brass and Palestinian tradition combined to electrifying heights? Believe me, you do. And “Shmaali / Ya Tal’aeen” by Hanoun…
Purple With Purpose
I’m the first to admit that I have no clear definition for the term “world music.” I do, however, know that longstanding band Ancient Future…
Forward Ever
From Peru but easing forth with an acoustic sound that nods to the wider Latin music world, a band called Donguille.pe (a mashup of the…
Don’t Let it Ebb
American reggae artist Kingly T infuses “Let Love Flow” with a feel that makes the music flow as easily as the timely message. It’s the…
An Overdue Appreciation of Herb Alpert
Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass & Other Delights at the Hollywood Bowl, July 5th, 2026 I was not very long out of my mother’s…
The Right Flavor
French multi-instrumentalist Arnito brings the right kind of vibrancy and bounce to “Saveur vanille” a layered Latin jazz piece of the highest order.
Lotta Love
Born in Colombia and based in Los Angeles, guitarist Juan Carlos Quintero applies a personal touch to the old Cuban standard Yours (Quiéreme Mucho).” And…