Album reviews | World Music Central

The album cover for Sefarad en el Corazón de Bulgaria by Mara Aranda features a classical-style painting of a young woman reclining on a richly decorated couch, dressed in traditional garments. She holds a darbuka (goblet drum) in her lap. The title and artist’s name are elegantly overlaid in white serif and cursive fonts.

Album reviews

Balkan Beats and Sephardic Streets: Mara Aranda Maps a Forgotten Musical Legacy

Mara Aranda – Geografías de la Diáspora Vol. IV: Sefarad en el Corazón de Bulgaria (self-release, 2025) In the fourth installment of her five-part series…

The album cover features a folkloric design with a central tribal mask flanked by two trumpets. Above, the artist name “Haris Pilton” and band “Balkan Voodoo Orchestra” appear in distressed white lettering on a dark red and black floral border. The bottom reads “Soon In Your Village” in the same vintage font. The artwork mixes Balkan textile motifs with voodoo iconography in a red, black, and cream palette.

Album reviews

Brassed Off the Map: Balkan Voodoo Orchestra Rewrites the Rules

JGurski June 25, 2025 No Comments Balkan music Gypsy music Haris Pilton & The Balkan Voodoo Orchestra world fusion world music

Haris Pilton & The Balkan Voodoo Orchestra – Soon in Your Village (Asphalt Tango Records, 2025) The Balkan Voodoo Orchestra is a genre-defying ensemble led…

The album cover for Remon Nakanishi's Hinanoiezuto features a soft, watercolor-style illustration of three traditionally dressed Japanese figures engaged in cheerful conversation. The art evokes a classical Edo-period aesthetic, with warm, earthy tones and expressive faces. The title is written vertically in playful blue hiragana, with the artist's name in smaller kanji beside it.

Album reviews

Remon Nakanishi’s Hinano Iezuto Rewrites the Japanese Folk Canon

Madison Quinn June 24, 2025 No Comments Japanese music Remon Nakanishi world music

Remon Nakanishi 中西レモン – Hinano Iezuto ひなのいえづと (DOYASA! Records, 2022) Remon Nakanishi ‘s Hinano Iezuto album’s title, drawn from an archaic Japanese phrase meaning “a…

Derya Türkan & Sokratis Sinopoulos - Soundplaces cover artwork. a photo of the two artists side by side, looking to the right, holding their musical instrument.

Album reviews

Soundplaces Weaves a Bowed Dialogue Across the Aegean

Tyler Bennet June 23, 2025 No Comments Greek music kamancha lyra Turkish music world fusion world music

Derya Türkan & Sokratis Sinopoulos – Soundplaces (Seyir Muzik, 2020) Soundplaces, the 2020 release by Derya Türkan and Sokratis Sinopoulos, offers a contemplative, transcultural conversation…

The album cover for Music from Macbeth by Gaelynn Lea features a central illustration of a lantern with a burning fire inside, set against a radiant red and pink background. The title is stylized in hand-drawn white lettering, with a Celtic-inspired border of thistles, skulls, and knotwork.

Album reviews

Gaelynn Lea’s Haunting Macbeth-Inspired Album Takes the Stage

Angel Romero June 21, 2025 No Comments Celtic music Gaelynn Lea world music

Gaelynn Lea – Music From Macbeth (self-released, 2025) Gaelynn Lea, the American violinist, composer, and disability rights advocate, rose to prominence after winning NPR Music’s…

The album cover for Contrasts by Marcos Valle features a close-up of the artist's face, partially obscured by concentric ripple-like lines in warm orange and cool blue tones. Wearing sunglasses and a white shirt, Valle appears on the left side, while the album title is positioned to the right in geometric fonts.

Album reviews

Marcos Valle’s Contrasts Returns Modern Bossa Nova in Style

Angel Romero June 20, 2025 No Comments Brazilian music Marcos Valle samba world music

Marcos Valle – Contrasts (Far Out Recordings, 2025 reissue) Originally released in 2003, Contrasts marked a pivotal moment in Marcos Valle’s late-career resurgence. It combined…

The album cover for Aventuremos La Vida by José de los Camarones features the artist mid-gesture, comb in hand, dressed in a dark three-piece suit with a pocket watch chain. Set against a black background, with golden serif text.

Album reviews

José de los Camarones Mixes Flamenco, Psychedelia, and Mysticism in Aventuremos la Vida

Iliana Cabrera June 19, 2025 No Comments Flamenco José de los Camarones world fusion world music

José de los Camarones – Aventuremos la vida (LB Discos, 2025) Following the release of the single of the same name, Aventuremos la Vida marks…

The album cover for Lamenta by Xanthoula Dakovanou features a solemn face, pale, expressionless, and framed by dark shadows. The title Lamenta is handwritten in flowing white script across the center. At the top, bold orange and black text credits Dakovanou alongside featured artists Magic Malik and Nikos Filippidis.

Album reviews

Lament of the Times: Xanthoula Dakovanou Weaves Mourning and Modernity in Lamenta

Madison Quinn June 18, 2025 No Comments Greek music world music Xanthoula Dakovanou

Xanthoula Dakovanou – Lamenta (Quart de Lune, 2021) Lamenta, the 2021 release from Greek vocalist and composer Xanthoula Dakovanou, is anchored in the miroloï tradition…

The album cover for Cushla's Tech-Duinn features a figure draped in a voluminous, golden-yellow, embroidered cloak adorned with floral patterns. The figure wears an ornate, medieval-style helmet topped with an extravagant black sculptural plume, while a black mask conceals the face. Set against a muted gray background.

Album reviews

Celtic Crossfade: Cushla Fuses Myth and Machine on Tech Duinn

Angel Romero June 17, 2025 No Comments Celtic music Cushla folktronica global electronica world fusion world music

Cushla – Tech Duinn (Foehn Records, 2025) Cushla’s debut album Tech Duinn expands on the groundbreaking sound introduced in their singles “Ar Casa” and “The…

Eliza Marshall - New Birth cover artwork. Eliza holding a flute above her head.

Album reviews

Flute Awakening: Eliza Marshall’s Solo Debut Breathes New Life Into Global Minimalism

Angel Romero June 14, 2025 No Comments Eliza Marshall flute minimalim world fusion world music

Eliza Marshall – New Birth (Real World X, 2025) Eliza Marshall unveils New Birth, her first solo EP. Best known for her work as a…