The latest from artist Saadi is titled Snowyman. The music is a mix of Arabic with Electro Rock, Tropicalia, Dubstep and Dancehall influences. Saadi herself adds vocals to the tracks which shift from one genre to the other opening up the album’s range. The racks do have their own sound (Dubstep, Arabic, etc.) but she is able to bring a consistent sound through the album putting together an album that combines different music and different cultures seamlessly.
Tracks: 2,5,7
Randon Rab’s latest sonic foray is titled Visurreal. The music is a mix of World Downtempo/Lounge with elements of Arabic, Trip Hop, Dark Ambient and minor touches of Drum And Bass and Electro Rock. The resulting sound is diverse and dynamic. Random Rab has managed to combine these different musical genres into a cohesive sound that has enough familiarity to attract the listener but brings an original sound to the music which pushes it into a new direction. An excellent album which broadens the mind with it’s freshness.
RIYD: Thievery Corp, Tosca, Zero 7
Tracks: 2,3,4,5,8,15 FCC: 9
Fresh & energetic jazz-inflected arrangements of Balkan, Turkish & Gypsy tunes with many delightful ethnic surprises. A superb collaboration among top NYC musicians that include immigrants from Macedonia (the frontman, on clarinet), Greece (on bass), & Turkey (on Kanun -like a zither), a Turkish drummer, & a pianist from NJ. Every track is worthy.
Debut CD from a band led by drummer Sunny Jain that explores a lively fusion of North Indian bhangra with progressive rock & jazz stylings, with lots of Balkan-sounding brass & clarinet. Gives cause to recall that the Gypsies originated in India. Fresh & original! Performed at the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival in 2011.
The son of immigrants from the Punjab region of India that became Pakistan, Jain is a remarkable percussionist, composer, & pioneer in the captivating sub-genre of Indian-Jazz fusion. Jain was recognized as a rising star percussionist in the 2011 Downbeat magazine critics poll, has recorded with the Pakistani rock group Junoon (along with Peter Gabriel), and also has a Gypsy/Bhangra band called Red Baraat that played at the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival in 2011.
In this recording, which was commissioned by the Aaron Copland Fund, nine Indian ragas are realized with modern jazz stylings, and with lyrics inspired by Indian ghazals (love poems) that address social justice issues that currently are especially timely in the South Asian community. Gorgeous!!
Listen to the whole CD on Bandcamp here
Sunny Jain - drums, dhol (track 4)
Marc Cary - piano
Nir Felder - guitar
Gary Wang - acoustic bass
Achyut Joshi - vocals (tracks 1, 4)
Sheetal Karhade - vocals (tracks 2, 4)
Samita Sinha - vocals (track 6)
Shayna Steele - vocals (track 3)
Sachal Vasandani - vocals (track 5)
YaliniDream - spoken word (track 1)
New to the station, a 2006 release from the collective led by Sunny Jain, a pioneer of Indian-Jazz fusion, lauded percussionist, talented composer, & son of immigrants displaced by the partition of India that created Pakistan. This CD bridges a transition as the group began to build on their foundations in jazz by bringing their South Asian musical heritage into the forefront. Much talent! Every instrument shines.
Listen to the whole CD here on Bandcamp
Sunny Jain : Drumset/Dhol/Laptop sounds
Rez Abbasi : Guitar/Sitar-guitar
Steve Welsh : Tenor & Soprano Saxophones/Effects
Gary Wang : Acoustic Bass
Samita Sinha : Vocals (tracks 1, 2, 5, 7, 9)
Recorded primarily at Abdala Studios in Havana Cuba, this is an epic recording of choice works from the songbook of these legendary guitarists from Ixtapa, Mexico. The music was arranged by British jazz pianist Alex Wilson for accompaniment by a 13-piece Cuban orchestra, mixed by Latin music legend Rafa Sardina, and features contributions by amazing guest performers such as the beautiful and talented Anoushka Shankar on sitar, and drummers John Tempesta (The Cult) & Samuel Formell (los Van Van). Totally fresh & very energetic!
Video about the making of “Area 52″
New York Times article: Mexican Guitarists Come Home From the Cold
A new release from Vermont’s favorite Peruvian band! Afro-Peruvian roots music from Lima, Peru, with driving percussion, wonderful vocals, flourishes of trombone, and tasteful electronic enhancements. If you heard them at HigherGround or Parima, you know they’re fine. But the authenticity of Novalima’s sound is more readily apparent than ever on this recording. All tracks amazing.
More info, video interview, & photos here on the website of “Peru This Week”
Aptly named since this music comes from no single country, but emerged from the TriBeCa neighborhood in NYC. Features Latin, Indian, African, and other rhythms, instruments of all sorts from around the world, and a mix with flourishes of funk, jazz, dabs of blues, N’awlins banjo… Original, psychedelic, & consistently pleasing.
From Moldova, a somewhat eccentric, very energetic, Gypsy-folk-ska-punk band & repeat Euro-vision song contest finalist with an original sound that takes this sub-genre to a new level. A WRUV exclusive direct from Berlin, Germany.