Rachid Taha Rock el Casbah: The Best Of (Wrasse Records WRASS 215, 2007) While there’s not a release by Algerian/French vocalist Rachid Taha that isn’t…
More Than One Way To Rock
Category: Album reviews
Dazzling Sounds of Aboriginal America
Several recent releases show the rich traditions of Native Americans. Father and daughter duo Jay & Tiinesha Begaye. Showing the increasing influence of intertribal music,…
Variations on a Cuban Theme
Yusa Haiku (Tumi Music TUMI 143, 2008) I had to do a bit of memory jogging and digging through my collection when I received this…
In Gods We Trust
The Ipanemas Call of the Gods (Far Out Recordings FARO 127 CD, 2008) Like it or not, a band called the Ipanemas is bound to…
Going Goema
Barry Van Zyl & The Bo Kaap Collective Goema Music From Cape Town, South Africa (ARC Music EUCD 2133, 2008) Woefully uneducated as I am,…
Folk Rock Reborn
Boiled in Lead Silver (Omnium, 2008) With Silver, folk rock group Boiled in Lead marks its 25th anniversary. By now, the Minneapolis-based band has become…
Call It What You Will
Arvel Bird/Will Clipman/Mary Redhouse/William Eaton Ananeah (Singing Wolf Records SWF 90304-2, 2006) I’ve long been keen on Native American-based music that breaks the mold of…
Swinging Brazil
Clube do Balanço Swing & Samba Rock (MCD, 2005) Brazilian ensemble Clube do Balanço describes their music as Swing & Samba Rock and swing it…
Cool and Breezy Cuba
Various Artists Cafe Cubano ( Putumayo World Music, 2008) Deliciously flirty and seductively fresh sum up Putumayo’s Cafe Cubano, the latest offering in their Cafe…
I Love A Parade
Cedric “Im” Brooks and the Divine Light – From Mento to Reggae to Third World Music (17 North Parade VP 4118, 2008) Cocoa Tea –…