Dance-house Beats and Celtic Mysticism Meets Africa
Afro Celt Sound System Volume 3: Further In Time (Real World/Narada Records) The international super group Afro Celt Sound System offer us a feast of…
Sheila Chandra’s Indipop Retrospective
Sheila Chandra The Indipop Retrospective (Narada) At age sixteen, East Indian-Irish actress and pop singer, Sheila Chandra embarked on what would turn out to be…
Pop Sensibility Married to Tropicalia Sex Appeal
Cibelle Cibelle (Six Degrees Records) Sao Paulista Cibelle’s debut release, Cibelle (pronounced see-BELL-ee) although worlds apart, some how reflects a Kate Bush pop sensibility married…
Sauti za Busara Music Festival 2007 in Zanzibar
Zanzibar, Tanzania – The fourth edition of the Sauti za Busara music festival will take place in Zanzibar, February 9 -14th 2007; admission is free…
World Music Central’s 2006 Holiday Gift Giving Guide
For the past year all of us here at World Music Central have pounded the pavement, scrounged through stacks of CDs and even occasionally rummaged…
An Interview with Mbira Master Stella Rambisai Chiweshe
World Music Central interviewed in October 2006 Stella Rambisai Chiweshe, one of the first African women to play the male dominated mbira (thumb piano).…
Cold Storage Reggae
Instigators – Living Gift (I-Sight Records ISR-101, 2005) Urban Tribe – Who is the Enemy? (Adam Atterby Musikproduktion, 2006) I continually marvel at the far-reaching…
African Stars Habib Koité, Vusi Mahlasela, and Dobet Gnahoré Inducted Into the Afropop Hall of Fame
New York (NY), USA – On Tuesday November 14th in New York, Public Radio International’s Afropop Worldwide inducted Habib Koité from Mali, Vusi Mahlasela from…
Salsas and Salaams
The Rough Guide to Latin Arabia (World Music Network RGNET 1175CD, 2006) The connections between Latin and Arabic music should come as no surprise. The…
Seu Jorge and AfroReggae at Royal and Derngate, Northampton, UK
The Northampton (UK) music scene can sometimes feel like cultural black hole with an apparently insatiable appetite for tribute bands. Saturday night brought a breath…