Juno Recommends International
Juno Recommends International: Best of 2023
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Review: Barbatuques, a well known Brazilian group of body percussionists, originally recorded "Baiana" back in 2005 - which became a staple of their concerts. It is now issued on vinyl for the first time, marking the second volume of Brasingles: a new series on Selva Discos dedicated to releasing 'loud' 12" singles. On the first side, the original is a modern folk song from Bahia composed by Maria do Carmo Barbosa, and featuring a wild mouth harp sound with a stomping Barbatuques' arrangement that imprinted its trademark sound. German producer Jan Schulte (aka Wolf Mueller/Bufiman) heard the song and decided remix it to use in his DJ sets - adding more drums to brilliant effect.
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out of stock $15.34
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out of stock $17.81
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VARIOUS
Cat: AALP 080. Rel: 18 Sep 23
International
Review: Analog Africa belongs alongside the likes of Awesome Tapes From Africa and Light In The Attic in the annals of great modern day afro rock/beat reissue labels. The imprint has consistently delivered some monumental releases, all of them giving the listener a detailed insight into a particular scene or cultural corner of time. We're pretty sure that many people out there had no idea that there was a 'cosmic' sound in Cabo Verde in the 1977-1985 period, but there you go, you've learned something new. This is all dancefloor fire, and along with a gorgeous fanzine booklet, you have fifteen ridiculously forward-thinking and rare-as-hell electronic funk bombs from Africa. Fill your mind with the underrated genius of people like Antonio Sanches, Jose Casimiro, Bana, and the rest of this amazing crew or like-minded futurists. Release of the week!
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in stock $29.33
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Review: From the early 1970s, Tim Maia released a string of superb albums that cemented his reputation as Brazilian music's most soulful artist - a guitarist and singer who created thrilling new musical hybrids that owed as much to U.S funk and soul as samba, bossa-nova and MPB. 1975's "Racional Volume 2", a hard-to-find set that's finally been reissued, is one of the best of Maia's key early albums. Rhythmically, the majority of the tracks feature typically shuffling South American rhythms, but the instrumentation and vocals above are far closer in tone to the sunnier, more horn-heavy end of the soul and funk spectrum (with some sweeping orchestration thrown in to add a touch of MPB class). It's a brilliant blend that guarantees good times from start to finish.
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in stock $17.54
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out of stock $23.01
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Review: Madrid via Cuba musical gang El Combo Batanga have finally dropped this new double-sider 7". It was teased by the early reals sou the a-side which brings plenty of dance floor filing heat with 'El Que La Rompe La Paga'. It's packed with samba shuffle, expressive horn work and results, and relentless keys work designed to get the ass moving. On the flip is 'Toca La Campana' which is a little less dense but not less rhythmic in the way it sways to and fro with fiery Spanish vocals and funk riffs.
out of stock $11.51
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Review: The Mushroom Pillow label was established to revive and rejuvenate some lost Latin classics from days gone by, and it has so far excelled at its mission. This latest 7" is a cumbria gem that gets reworked by a contemporary master of the form in Quantic. His remix of La Pesda's 'Cumbia Y Tambo' goes big on the horns, with swaying rhythms and Latin vocals next to great keys to make you move your feet. It's as steamy as they come and a great blend of the modern and the traditional. The B-side is home to a Quantic instrumental remix that pairs things back to the core essentials.
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out of stock $13.99
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Cat: OMSD 006. Rel: 27 Mar 23
International
Review: For the first in a series of must-have reissues of obscure Brazilian treats, Optimo Music and Selva Discos have joined forces to offer up a new pressing of Fernando Falcao's superb 1981 debut, "Memoria Das Aguas". The eight-track set has long been considered something of a slept-on and hard-to-find classic, with Falcao conjuring up an octet of tracks that brilliantly join the dots between neo-classical movements, dreamy, percussion-led soundscapes (see the sublime "Amanhecer Tabajara (A Alceu Valenca)"), spiraling big band Afro-Brazilian jazz ("Ladeira Dos Inocentes"), intoxicating classical-jazz fusion ("Revoada") and experimental, beat-free sound collages ("Mercado"). In a word: exceptional.
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in stock $23.01
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Cat: ECR 002. Rel: 13 Nov 23
International
Review: Si Cheeba tops up his nascent Cheeba's Latin Bros edits venture with a new addition to the Echo Chamber label. Following up 'What You Gotta Say - Hey Hey!' released earlier this year, now appears two tutorials for you, on how exactly to handle any forthcoming electric boogaloo, before you blow a fuse... as ever continuing his mission to join the dots between funky and soulful sounds past and present, Cheeba delivers two fresh, impossible-to-source samply instrumental edits straight to the dome - the first a handclapping, big-breaksy dance pedagogy (it's urgent upstarts like you learn), and the B laying down a more seductive medley ("try it...") replete with a djembe solo.
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out of stock $17.00
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Cat: MP 606SG. Rel: 13 Feb 23
International
Un Dos Tres Y Fuera Vs Gaudi & Don Letts - "Relafica Negra En Tiempo De Siembra" (Gaudi & Don Letts aka The Rebel Dread) (3:49)
Review: Cultural icon Don Letts joins forces here with the masterful musician Greg Foat and producer James Thorpe to make a new entry into the Relatin project series. It is one where artists engaged with Latin musical roots from another era and update them for the here and now. Here they bring plenty of heavy dub vibes and great special awareness to a tune by Venezuelans Un Dos Tres. Greg Foat & James Thorpe also step up with a remix that is just as heavy and summery.
in stock $12.05
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VARIOUS
Cat: MRBLP 271. Rel: 15 May 23
International
Review: Mr Bongo's latest must-check compilation doesn't mine Brazil's musical heritage, but rather shines a light on what's happening in Rio de Janeiro right now. Hidden Waters was compiled and curated by two Brazilian music specialists - Joe Osborne (founder of the Brazilian Wax website) and Russ Slater (Editor at Large of Sounds and Colors) - and offers up a blend of scene stalwarts and exciting starlets. Musically it's varied, but largely rooted in samba, MPB and other classic Brazilian styles. So, while sun-soaked sounds (sorry) are the order of the day, Osborne and Slater also find room for the fuzzy psychedelia of Ava Rocha, the Stereolab-goes-samba flex of Exercito de Bebes, the low-slung, synth-sporting mutant funk of Thiago Nassif, the spiritual, pastoral-sounding afternoon warmth of Mari Romano and the lilting vocal jazz of Troa. An impeccable, eye-opening collection of quality cuts.'
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out of stock $24.67
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in stock $23.01
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Cat: KFR 20278. Rel: 16 Jan 23
International
Review: Originally released in 1972, Shakara is a shining example of Fela Kuti & The Africa 70 in full flight. Made up of two 13-minute long pieces, the definitive Afrobeat sound is laid out in undulating, impossibly funky form. Tony Allen holds it down on the drums and the brass section from Tony Njoku, Igo Chico, Lekan Animashaun and Kuti himself punches out with urgency. This 50th anniversary release does things a little differently by inviting the excellent Ezra Collective to deliver their own versions of each track, each getting their side to lay down expansive reflections on the trailblazing groundwork laid by Kuti and his bandmates half a century ago.
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in stock $27.14
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Review: We're not short of compilations and reissues celebrating Jorge Ben's recordings, but what about the many times the Brazilian icon's work has been covered over the years? That's the mission Mr Bongo went on for this compilation, looking to fellow Brazilian legends like Elza Soares, Claudette Soares and Wilson Simonal alongside artists such as Marijo, Os Brazoes, and Doris Monteiro. From MPB and batacuda to samba and bossa nova, there's a whole heap of styles covered here, and after initially being released as a CD-only comp more than 10 years ago, now it's getting a vinyl pressing with shiny new artwork.
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in stock $24.67
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Review: Much like his countryman Tim Maia, Brazilian samba king Jorge Ben loved to put out plenty of albums, and loved to name them all pretty much the same thing. This one though has its own unique name and a sound that is just as singular. It finds him bring his acid sounds to swaying and shuffling pervasive grooves with lush vocal harmonies, his own real braking ad libs and elements of Western sound from rock to soul. Originally released in 1978, it features onset about footballers, a girl's social climbing, love songs with flutes and plenty more.
in stock $17.54
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Review: Sangre Joven was originally a side project that was set up to release covers of international disco and funk hits for Discos MAG. The collective was started in Peru in 1974 by sax player Nilo Espinosa who also assembled the Nil's Jazz Ensemble after spending years playing in a jazz quintet in Berlin. 'Zamba Zamba' is a tsingle from 1974 that is a true-to-the-original cover of 'Samba Samba' by Colombian brothers Elkin & Nelson. It brings plenty of exotic sounds with uptempo Latin vibes, elements of descarga and boogaloo and more all served up with a funky rock twist.
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out of stock $13.14
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Review: Mr Bongo's launch their new Cuban Classic Series with this reissue of a sought-after, psychedelic funk masterpiece: Yoyi. A fusion of traditional Latin and Afro-Cuban rhythms meets disco, jazz, and funk, with hints of 70s soundtrack productions, this much-loved cult album by Grupo Los Yoyi hears nine predominantly instrumental tracks. Together, they were originally released in 1977 on Areito Records, a sublabel of the state-owned label Egrem, it has become one of the rarest (even in Cuba) yet in-demand albums to be procured by the label. It is the sole album from Grupo Los Yoyi and was composed, orchestrated, and produced by the mysterious, Jorge Soler Leo.
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in stock $24.67
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Review: Sababa 5 have only just dropped their well-received debut album but now they are back with a quick follow-up in the form of this one. It's a pair of funk gems on a red hot 45rpm that again mix sup their own signature sounds of psych, surf, and funk with a subtle Middle Eastern twist. 'Funk #1' kicks off with snappy drums and electric bass and lush synths that take you to the Med, all finished with some fine solo guitar work. 'Funk 2' on the reverse then gets busier with a more frenetic rhythm that is doused in funky guitar licks and wild synths as well as a killer bassline and psychedelic organ chords.
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in stock $13.71
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Review: More heat here from Original Gravity with 'The Harlem Bugalu' from Luchito and Joaquin Marquez. This is a 7" that soon transports you to boogaloo paradise with its feverish Latin grocers and non-stop drum funk. The A-side is laden with spoken words, zippy percussive sounds and mad bongo bubbles with lashing of horn-led exuberance. Flip it over and you will find the slightly darker and more menacing energy of Joaquin Marque's 'Mala Mania'. Get your shake on and drop this one this summer for swift dancefloor explosions.
in stock $12.34
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Review: A year and a half on from Ykytu, Brazilian guitarist Fabiano Do Nascimento returns to Now-Again for his fifth LP, once again presenting the most tender of fingerpicking magic embellished here by swooning string arrangements to well and truly melt your heart. The orchestral swells come courtesy of Vittor Santos, who worked closely with Do Nascimento on developing the exquisite sound you can hear on this wonderful record. If you're hungry for some beauteous instrumentals that invoke sunshine, whatever the weather, then Lendas has got you covered. Just check the romantic lilt of lead track 'Fonte' and prepare to be swept away.
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in stock $26.04
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out of stock $22.75
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Review: Pigeon only debuted back in 2022 with their well recorded Yagana EP and it soon won the five-piece band plenty of fans. They now serve up something equally as fresh and that develops their sound further. It is still rooted in Afro-disco but with elements of rock, new wave, synth pop, no wave, jazz and electro. Synths and drum machines define the sounds but with plenty of DIY spirit, all of which has won them continued support from tastemakers as diverse and influential as Gilles Peterson, Elton John and Iggy Pop. These are cultured and authentic summer sounds perfect for days dancing in the rays.
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in stock $17.00
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in stock $19.72
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Review: Brazilian DJ, producer and firebrand, DJ Tahira, unveils a new vinyl EP of exclusive edits and remixes here on Poeria Music. Establishing a fierce repertoire as a sample-oriented musical researcher and remixer, Tahira is renowned not only for the kind of work heard here, but also for two prior compilations in the international dance realm; Levanta Poeira and Brasil Novo. Described by its label as a "glimpse into the future soundtrack of global dancefloors", Tahira lays down a six-track slaying of remixed secret weapons, journeying through many Latin and Afro-Brazilian classic rhythms, from the Maculele basis of Baile Funk to the rhizomatic quirk that is New Zealand samba.
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out of stock $17.54
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Cat: AALP 097. Rel: 10 Apr 23
International
Review: Analog Africa is back with another of its eye-opening and mind-altering trips into musical wonderment here as the 20+ year-old label digs deep into the Andean city of Quito. It's the Ecuadorian capital and home to the music which makes up this vital collection and which owes so much to Polibio Mayorga. He spent much of his musical career trying to - and succeeding in - modernise the ancient rhythms of his region, namely Huaynito, Sanjuanito and Albazo. He did so with cutting-edge - at the time - electronic equipment and a trusty Moog and the result of his effort was that he is now regarded as a pioneer of tropical psychedelia. Dig in deep to hear how that happened across these superb 16 sounds.
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out of stock $29.33
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Review: Hot Casa France reissue a sultry drum workout from master Turkish darbouka player Yasar Akpence's 2004 album 'Passion Percussion'. 'Desert wind' layers unbelievably tight darbouka trills and phrases over a pulsing, almost dembow-esque core, making for a perfect Balearic DJ tool for any occasion. We can imagine this one bookending hypnotic techno wormholes in a small hours Donato Dozzy set, with its wide stereo drum intrusions and tight production longing to be aired off a suitably weighty soundsystem. Truly chameleonic and compelling music!
in stock $17.81
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Cat: KFR 20098. Rel: 26 Jun 23
International
Review: This reissue of Gentleman is the seventh album in the series of celebratory 50th Anniversary reissues of legendary Nigerian musician Fela Kuti's work. The 1973 album is noted as the last of Kuti's early 1970s albums recorded with the first iteration of his live-in band, Africa 70, before they were much later replaced by the creatively, nominally-updated band Egypt 80. As ever for Kuti, the album is packed with metaphor and ironic satire as a subtext, glueing the Afrobeats and funk together with a heavy dose of anti-colonialism. Our highlight is the track 'Igbe', on which we hear Kuti at his least abashed, singing the word 'shit' in several Nigerian languages.
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out of stock $24.67
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VARIOUS
Cat: KALITALP 010. Rel: 13 Mar 23
International
Review: Kalita's Borga Revolution compilations are pure joy, tapping into the boom in electronic music in Ghana in the 80s and 90s. The first volume came out last year and carried work from the likes of Thomas Frempong and George Darko. On this second instalment we get a whole host of new names to bring us more of that West African heat, and the hits just keep spilling out. Check the urgent stomp of 'Soca For Your Pleasure' by Alan Cosmos & His Bam-Baara Soundz, or the rugged soul and deadly grooves bursting out of Pope Flyne Ackah's 'I Think You Are Right (Jepense Que Tu A Raison)'. If you were into the first edition, this is only going to bring you more delights from an overlooked corner of Africa's musical history.
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in stock $19.72
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Cat: 405053 8883718. Rel: 12 Jun 23
International
Review: When members of mega-bands work with relatively obscurer artists, we're always intrigued. But a potential trapping factor is in thinking Jarak Qaribak, for example, is more of a Jonny Greenwood album than a Dudu Tassa one, when in fact the exact opposite is the case. Tassa, an Israeli singer-guitarist who fuses Middle Eastern stylings with contemporary rock, lends a challenging structural terrain to the Radiohead member's electric guitar licks, with the former's Arabic and Hebrew lyrics moving atmospherically against them. A star cast of fellow Israeli artists accompany the pair, as serene vocal beat-driven movements plod and swell away in an appealingly nu-proggy fashion.
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in stock $25.76
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Cat: MRBLP 282. Rel: 10 Jul 23
International
Review: Gal Costa is rightly considered one of the leading lights of Brazil's tropicalia scene, not least from her golden period in the late 60s, and the legacy of the late singer lives on with this reissue of one of her finest albums by Mr Bongo. India was Costa's fourth album, originally released in 1973 and instantly courting controversy after the Brazilian military censored the cover due to the shot of Costa's bikini and little else. Of course such imagery is comparatively tame these days, and instead we can focus on the music which is some of the finest MPB and tropicalia you could ever wish to hear, all led by Costa's mesmerising voice and backed by true Brazilian greats including Gilberto Gil.
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out of stock $28.79
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Review: As Galathea, Sicilian producer Massimo Napoli has been cooking up some outstanding cuts for the Italian Space Echo label over the past couple of years. Afro-Latin rhythms, soul jazz, dub and more besides all feed into his sound, which manifests perfectly on this new single fronted by vocalist Giulia La Rosa. 'Sacred Love' has a stripped-back, minimalist approach which makes it all the more potent, as Napoli exercises a restraint which creates drama and tension in the negative space around the groove. La Rosa's smouldering vocal is the icing on the cake for this deep, funky cut which will turn heads each and every time it gets dropped.
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in stock $10.70
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out of stock $13.71
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Review: Minas' 'Num Dia Azul' is a sublime slice of private-press bossa nova meets jazzy MPB perfection. Warm and bubbling with youthful spirit, the music is simultaneously loose in swagger, yet slick and tight. The album was originally released in 1983 and reflects the great music coming out of Rio at the time, yet 'Num Dia Azul' wasn't recorded in Rio, but actually in the USA. Adding to its later obscurity, hundreds of copies were also destroyed in a house fire. They say cream always rises to the top; later in the 2010s, the word amongst collectors and DJs was spreading about this mythical under-the-radar recording.
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in stock $23.01
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Review: Batov Records label co-founder DJ Kobayashi has dug deep in his back catalogue of Middle Eastern grooves for this superb double album. The tracks span 2015 to now and are taken from the label's well received series of 7" singles released under the same name. There are new tunes, edits of classic, never before heard gems and plenty in between, all of which have made their way into the bags of adventurous DJs from Gilles Peterson to Gideon Coe. There is desert funk, cosmic star gazing, shamanistic funk, spooky synth sounds and plenty more here that will improve your record collection by a guaranteed 76%.
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in stock $28.79
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Cat: RLV 4504. Rel: 12 Jun 23
International
Review: Library musician Giuliano Sorgini originally wrote music for films, TV and documentaries, and between 1974 and 1976 he laid the foundations for this jungly rhythmic opus. Then in 1975, meandering through a series of animal calls and wild forested textures, a series of entrancing rhythmic pieces emerged from the dark. The collectors' favourite Africa Oscura is now reissued via Four Flies, and is the impeccable album from which these two choice, mix-worthy cuts come.
in stock $17.28
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Review: If the Balearic Islands are a physical place, then Balearic music is certainly the foremost concept in its adjacent ideaspace - it seems as long as Balearic music exists, there can be no further cultural exports from the Archipelago. Have A Nice Day are a mysterious collective of DJs and producers inspired by said sonic throughline, and they're determined to tap into it for as long as it exists. They describe their music as 'Baleariche', a fusion of Balearic and Italo disco with a touch of kosmische and psychedelia. The first in their Baleariche Grammophon series exemplifies this, with two polar tracks coming as blends of heatstricken Latin guitar, jubilant handclaps and and flowingly happy pair of mixes overall.
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out of stock $20.56
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Review: This is a new record of unearthed delights by Leon Keita, a longtime singer and multi-instrumentalist from Mali. On the eponymous 'Leon Keita', we hear Malian music fused with sensibilities from Sudan-Guinea and Burkina Faso, with modern pop and electronic influences, impeccably played in a smattering of crisp guitars, love-sung lyrics and laboured rhythms. All laid to a fresh pressing, the A-side hears three rather relaxed beauties, while the B moves into more idealistic and hedonic directions, not least the conclusive 'Dakan Sate, Korotoumi'. Brought back to our attention by Analog Africa, 'Leon Keita' serves yet another top serving and reminder of Mandingue culture, the influence of which stretches across the world; 'Dalaka' was a recent hit, making it as far as the Colombian coast.
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out of stock $29.05
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out of stock $23.85
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Review: Charif Megarbane is a prolific producer and instrumentalist from Beirut and he is back once again with Marzipan, a first contemporary full length on Habibi Funk. It is a deep trip into his musical universe which mixes up influences from Lebanon and the Mediterranean and artists such as Ziad Rahbani, Ahmed Malek and Issam Hajali. All 17 tracks show off his mastery of composition as much as antigen else - freewheeling grooves from gypsy jazz to ethno-funk that draw on the energies of a bustling market, the lush atmospheres of a sun beach resort and various other of his surrounding soundscapes. It is hugely transportative and excellent escapism.
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out of stock $26.87
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Review: Almost entirely ignored at the time of its original release, Nigerian drumming maestro Remi Kabaka's legendary original LP Son Of Africa has gone down in legend as the defining solo statement of an incendiary drummer, whose contributions to music across the jazz and rock spectrums is credited and felt strongly to this day. A founding member of Afro-jazz band Osibisa, Kabaka is credited for his work with many a Rolling Stone and Beatle, but it's his solo work on this Afro-funk rare gem that really gets the least easy to please among us going. An Afrofuturist statement to the core, its jubilant vocal chants and defiant trumpet lines are but mere pepperings over the boxy, banging body that is Kabaka's live Afrobeat quads.
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out of stock $34.54
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Cat: VAMPI 45098. Rel: 21 Aug 23
International
Review: Here's a real curio from the annals of Mexican music culture and the sprawling sound of Cumbia. In the 70s, Jose Maria Fuentes formed Afrosound as a hybrid super group and brought influences from funk, disco, tropical and salsa into the mix for a prolific run of hugely popular cambia party albums. That maybe doesn't exactly account for this rare curio from 1983 though, near the end of Afrosound's main tenure, when they reacted the global cinematic phenomenon of E.T. The Extra Terrestrial by creating a truly whacked out, synth laden freakout strapped to a smoking hot groove. It's surreal and psychedelic, but absolutely tuned up for maximum dancefloor impact.
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out of stock $13.14
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Review: Sababa 5 are a funk band from Tel Aviv who tap into their position in the Middle East to create a dynamic, outernational sound, and they're continuing a hot streak on Batov with this crucial collaboration with Turkish singer Candy Dogan. Dogan is currently a member of the jazz department at Istanbul University, and she sought out the band after hearing their music and noting its similarities to Turkish music. Already an alternative pop sensation on her own terms, Dogan slots into the Sababa 5 sound beautifully, resulting in a must-check 7" single that hopefully signals the start of an enduring partnership.
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out of stock $20.01
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Review: The popular Spanish ensemble Pyramid Blue come back, and do so in brilliantly fantastic fashion with this red-hot new 7" featuring a captivating mix of Afrofunk and Ethio Jazz. Oscar Martos is the composer and producer who heads up this group and is fresh off big collabs with Tito Ramirez. He manages to draw from modern sounds as well as classic genre tropes here and push both into all new ground with 'Lince Rojo' opening up with an enchanting lead and raw rhythms. On the B-side, 'Doctor One' brings a hint of hip hop edge to psyched-out guitars and cosmic synths.
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in stock $10.70
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Review: American DJ and producer Nickodemus commands an eclectic and global sound, mixing EDM with organic instrumentation and vocals through a cross-cultural musical lens. Coming to his very own Wonderwheel Recordings, Soul & Science is a befitting name thanks to the seeming fusion of electronically-programmed dance beats and regional organics, but this is also one of those albums that could also potentially shatter the hard border between the two connotations. Vocal contributors and instrumentalists from Sudan (Alsarah), Cameroon (Pat Kalla), the Caribbean (Hector "Tempo" Alomar) and Cuba (Quantic) make for a floor-shakingly diverse and humanist appreciation of the collective dance-spirit.
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in stock $21.92
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Review: You always know what you are going to get from Mr Bongo's Brazil 45 series and that is pure fire in musical form. This 100th release suggests the label has no intention of slowing down nor is it running low on top source material. This one from As Meninas on the A-side has beautiful female vocal-group arrangements with flutes that soar up top and plenty of ass-shaking samba shuffles down low. It's a tune that oozes soul and charm and was first released back in 1967. It's a super sweet but short song that is backed with 'Brasileiro' on the flip. It's taken from Jorginho Telles' self-titled 1971 album on Copacabana Records and mixes up raw guitar sounds with r&b vibes into something unusual and alluring.
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in stock $9.59
