Alif Dakamerap (Out here records 2004) It’s a fact that hip-hop & rap has taken hold in a big way in West Africa. Notably…
Potent SeneRap with a feminist message
Category: Album reviews
Leave Your Grass Skirt at Home
Ooklah the Moc – Rearrange Your Positive (Ghetto Circus Records CG2, 2004) The Lambsbread – Sing Praise (Adin-nin Records ADOO3, 2003) Much as some people…
Tumbling oud, rumbling basslines
Azzddine Ouhnine with Bill Laswell – Massafat (Barraka Recordings/Barbarity 023, 2004) I can’t honestly claim to be totally enamored of some releases on the Barraka…
Bel, Bel…
M’Bilia Bel – Belissimo (Sterns AfricaTCD1098, 2004) M’Bilia first came to prominence in the 1970s as vocal sidekick and wife of the top Zairian [Congolese]…
Ecstatic Voices
Ladysmith Black Mambazo Rain, Rain, Beautiful Rain, The Very Best of (Wrasse Records WRASS 139, 2004) There can be no doubt that the collective voices…
A Different Kind of Blue
Various Artists Blues Lounge (Putumayo PUT 229-2, 2004) The art of mixing roots music from various sources with modern electronica has really taken off lately,…
Children of the Earth
The Juan L. Sánchez Ensemble Hijos de la Tierra (Música Cosmopolita, 2004) Juan Sánchez is a Spanish singer-songwriter based in California, who collaborates with musicians…
The Great Salsa Dominicana
Ricky González – Oasis (Rumba Jams Recordings RJ1017-2, 2004) The new album by Dominican producer, arranger and multi-instrumentalist Ricky González is a perfect example of…
The Gypsy Travels of Thierry Robin
Thierry “Titi” Robin Alezane (Naïve WN145049, 2004) For an artist looking back over twenty-five years worth of composing and performance, choosing your favorite pieces for…
Quimbombó, soneros de New York
Quimbombó Quimbombó (Testa Dura Records TDCD 001, 2004) Quimbombó is a creative New York-based band (there seems to be a band with the same name…