Leonardo Suarez Paz’s Cuartetango String Quartet Masters of Bandoneon (Azica Records, 2012) Tango junkies should take notice that Azica Records has a new tango recording…
Soulful Passion of Masters of Bandoneon
Category: Album reviews
Though the Mountains May Fall
Francois and the Atlas Mountains E Volo Love (Domino WIGCD28OP, 2012) There’s making music, and then there’s making music that makes an impression. To achieve…
Clandestine Romanticism
David Alvarez Clandestino (Tumi Music, 2012) As soon as you hear David Alvarez’s voice, you know that you’ve stumbled upon a singer with an exceptional…
Fred Jorge Gets Funky
Fred Jorge e os Mairorais (Afro Baile Records, 2012) Brazilian singer-songwriter has assembled a large cast of musicians to celebrate African-rooted music. His album Fred…
Sheer Mastery and Expansive Grace
Anoushka Shankar Traveller (Deutsche Grammophon, USA release: 2012) Anoushka Shankar’s debut recording, Traveller, on the Deutsche Grammophon is a fantastical journey of going forward and…
Music Has No Borders
The Touré-Raichel Collective The Tel Aviv Session (Cumbancha, 2012) The rising star of world music, Vieux Farka Touré collaborates with Israeli pop star Idan Raichel…
Keeping the Emotion
Otis Taylor Contraband (Telarc, 2012) American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Otis Taylor continues his musical explorations on his latest recording. Although his music is deeply rooted…
African Americans Indeed
Zieti Zemelewa (Grigri Discs GRIGRI004, 2011) Back at the end of the last century, guitarist Michael Shereikis and drummer Alex Owre, both Americans, happened to…
Timeless Taaleem: A Tribute to Ustad Allarakha
Fazal Qureshi Timeless Taaleem: A Tribute to Ustad Allarakha (Ninaad Music) This album is a beautiful tribute to the late great tabla maestro Ustad Allarakha…
Hottest Grooves of Gambia
Karantamba Ndigal (Teranga Beat , 2012) One of the most exciting African albums of the year is Ndigal by Karantamba. This sizzling group is led…