Album reviews | World Music Central

The cover for Zef by Jérémy Rollando presents an illustration of a sailboat gliding across deep blue waves. A beige sail tilts to the right. The artist’s name appears in black type, and the album title sits above in handwritten style.

Album reviews

Jérémy Rollando Sets Sail With New Album Zef In 2026

Jérémy Rollando – Zef (Label Montgolfière / Sphère France, 2026) French guitarist and composer Jérémy Rollando will release his second album, Zef, on January 9,…

The album cover for Wallace Avenue by Brian Conway features an illustration of an older man and woman standing together in front of a brick house. The house has a white gabled porch roof and a visible address number “1862.” The title and artist’s name appear in modern typography — “BRIAN” in large uppercase letters across the top and “CONWAY” vertically along the right side. Below, the album title wallace avenue is written in a smaller, cursive script. T

Album reviews

Back to the Bronx: Brian Conway Honors His Roots on Wallace Avenue

Ryan Emmert December 31, 2025 No Comments Brian Conway Celtic music world music

Brian Conway – Wallace Avenue (self-release, 2025) Irish-American fiddler Brian Conway released his grand third solo album, Wallace Avenue, last summer. Named for the Bronx…

A black-and-white scene unfolds beneath a blazing moon, where swirling lines form a night sky over dancing, ghostlike figures around a fire. Shadowy animals frame the edges.

Album reviews

Malutempu Pushes Calabrian Roots Into New Currents

Angel Romero December 30, 2025 No Comments Antonio Olivo Antonio Petitto Calabrian music Domenico Ierardi Francesco Denaro Giovanni Squillacioti Italian music Malutempu Marzia Ruggieri Sasà Megna world music

Malutempu – Farchinoria (Skené Cultura, 2025) Calabrian multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger, and producer Antonio Olivo launched Malutempu, a fantastic project that reconnects more than twenty years…

La Cumbia Chicharra - Quinto Mundo © Clémentine Candela -Guillaume Parent. A neon-bright figure with a stylized human form sits against a dark, swirling backdrop, its hair exploding upward in electric blue flames.

Album reviews

Cumbia Chicharra Blasts Off With Quinto Mundo

Iliana Cabrera December 29, 2025 No Comments Colombian music cumbia La Cumbia Chicharra world fusion world music

La Cumbia Chicharra – Quinto Mundo (Music Box Publishing / L’Autre Distribution, 2025 La Cumbia Chicharra, a France-based band deeply influenced by Colombian cumbia, recently…

A star-filled black backdrop surrounds a collage of radiant shapes, miniature figures, planets, and dreamlike landscapes. A rainbow-framed portrait of the artist sits near the center, amid swirling cosmic motifs, a lone piano, and vibrant bursts of color.

Album reviews

Sessa Leans Into “Crooked Funk” On New Album Pequena Vertigem De Amor

Angel Romero December 28, 2025 No Comments Brazilian music Sessa world music

Sessa – Pequena Vertigem de Amor (Mexican Summer, 2025) Brazilian songwriter and guitarist Sessa recently released Pequena Vertigem De Amor (A Little Vertigo of Love).…

Raphaël Pannier - Live In Saint Louis, Senegal cover artwork. A color saturated photo of Pannier playing drums in red and orange.

Album reviews

Drums Across Senegal: Raphaël Pannier’s Jazz Meets Sabar On Live In Saint Louis, Senegal

Tyler Bennet December 27, 2025 No Comments Jazz Raphaël Pannier world fusion world jazz

Raphaël Pannier – Live In Saint Louis, Senegal (Miel Music, 2025) French drummer-composer Raphaël Pannier released Live In Saint Louis, Senegal on November 7, 2025…

The cover uses vintage collage graphics. A bright red triangle frames a pair of watchful eyes with a central emergency phone. A mirrored disco-sphere topped with an insect hovers above, surrounded by cut-out portraits, skeleton fragments, a tooth, a coiled creature, and a tape deck with a plant sprouting from it. Blue background.

Album reviews

Yalla Miku Bend Borders On 2

Sonia Keller December 26, 2025 No Comments world fusion Yalla Miku

Yalla Miku – 2 (Bongo Joe Records, 2025) Geneva-based collective Yalla Miku released their second album, aptly titled 2 on Bongo Joe Records. They continue…

Rebekka Bakken - Nord cover artwork. a photo o Rebekka, a blond woman with long hair, with her arm across her had.

Album reviews

Rebekka Bakken Makes the Ancient Thrilling Again On New Album ‘Nord’

Angel Romero December 25, 2025 No Comments Eivind Aarset Hildegunn Øiseth Rebekka Bakken Rune Arnesen Saleh Mahfoud Simon Issat Marainen Stein Austrud Svein Schultz Swedish folk music world music

Rebekka Bakken – Nord (Supreme Music Group, 2025) Norwegian singer and songwriter Rebekka Bakken has released a mesmerizing new album titled Nord. The breathtaking record…

A dark, nearly black background holds a few blurred streaks of orange and white light that ripple like reflections on water. The group name “Cuerdas Trio” appears in a light serif font at the upper left, while the album title Gentile rests in the lower right in the same tone.

Album reviews

Strings In Flight As Cuerdas Trio Debuts Gentile

Madison Quinn December 24, 2025 No Comments Cuerdas Trio world music

Cuerdas Trio – Gentile (Visage Music, 2025) Cuerdas Trio introduces Gentile, a 2025 release that reflects the group’s cross-cultural identity and its commitment to dialogue…

The cover presents a folkloric design built around a central oval frame. A golden deer stands inside a dark oval field dotted with bright circles, small plants, and a red sun crowned by a blue star-shaped emblem. Soft cream tones form the background, while Svitanok and Murmurosi appear in English and Ukrainian along the sides. A red circle in the corner highlights the phrase “Ukrainian Folk Reinvented.”

Album reviews

Dawn Beats Darkness: Murmurosi Reimagines Ukrainian Folk On Svitanok

JGurski December 22, 2025 No Comments Murmurosi Ukrainian music world music

Murmurosi – Svitanok (Ukrainian Folk Reinvented) (Self-released, 2025) Murmurosi released the passionate Svitanok (Ukrainian Folk Reinvented) independently. The title means “dawn” in Ukrainian and draws…