New album out today. Raúl Llerena Vásquez (aka Ranil) is a Peruvian singer, bandleader, record-label entrepreneur. Ranil’s extraordinary output has remained one of the best kept secrets among collectors of cumbia and psychedelic Latin sounds — until now. The new ‘Ranil y su Conjunto Tropical’ album has been assembled by Analog Africa founder Samy Ben Redjeb, from original LPs sourced from Ranil himself.
Tags: #latin #lofi #world-music
Back in 2017, Brazilian duo Selvagem partnered up with Optimo Music to launch the label Selva Discos. The label is dedicated to unearthing and reissuing unique and exquisite Brazilian music, both from the past and the future. Their first release was the official reissue of the scarce and sought-after “Brasileira” LP by singer Maria Rita Stumpf (daughter of the legendary Elis Regina).
Tags: #non-english #world-music
Zenobia are the Palestinian duo Nasser Halahlih and Isam Elias. The band draws inspiration from pop & folk music from all over the region (Egypt, Palestine, Lebanon, Syria), resulting in a mix of powerful beats, Levantine dabke rhythms and Arabic pop melodies. Their new album ‘Halak Halak’ releases 27 March on Acid Arab Records, the special imprint created by Crammed Discs in partnership with Parisian collective Acid Arab.
Tags: #dance #electronic #world-music
Back in January, I posted the #SOTD Same Speed Edits – Urszula’s Samba. While recently searching for new music to share, I stumbled across the original edit. Thomass Jackson is the self-taught Argentinian, musician, producer, remixer and DJ who owns Calypso Records (based in Guadalajara, Mexico). This track comes from the ‘Correcciones Calypso II’ EP, released by Calypso Records.
Tags: #dance #electronic #world-music
This is the lead track from the new dancefloor-focused ‘Manta EP’, a collection of three club-ready productions. Alma Negra are a music collective based in Basel, Switzerland and are made up of Miajica (aka Mario Robles), Dario Rohrbach & Dersu Figueria. Released on the collective’s eponymous Alma Negra Records. Previous Alma Negra #SOTD here: ‘Haleto lale lalô (Saho)’.
Tags: #dance #percussion #world-music
New single out today. Blog favourite Mdou Moctar is a Tuareg songwriter and musician based in Agadez, Niger. According to Wikipedia, “The Tuareg people are a large Berber ethnic confederation. They principally inhabit the Sahara in a vast area stretching from far southwestern Libya to southern Algeria, Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso. Traditionally nomadic pastoralists, small groups of Tuareg are also found in northern Nigeria.” Previous #SOTDs here: ‘Wiwasharnine’ and here: ‘Anar’. The new single is released on Sahel Sounds.
Nicola Cruz is a producer from Quito, Ecuador. His ‘Hybridism EP’ is a modern exotica blend of North African rhythms, ethereal Persian melodies, and chants from distant and imagined cultures. According to Cruz’s Bandcamp, ‘Third Eye Dub’ explores “the fractal realm of concentration, a point where the Oud (played by Nasiri) acts on the pineal gland. This inward journey through the cavernous depths of the subconscious sails on a smooth modular groove that transports the listener across this psychic expanse, a filigree of Persian harmonies (in Shur, to be exact) tracing outlines in the dark”. Nasiri is a multi-instrumentalist, musician & producer most known for his style of playing the Middle Eastern & Persian Sufi music. With instruments like the oud, flute & clarinet, he brings out the mystic dreamy and sometimes dark vibe in his sound. This track out on the Montreal-based Multi Culti label. Previous Nicola Cruz #SOTD: Voz De Las Montañas (Con Minük)
Tags: #electronic #experimental #folk #instrumental #world-music
Founded in 2002 by English DJ and producer Miles Cleret, Soundway Records now presents two rare, Parang dancefloor cuts from early 1980s Trinidad & Tobago. Parang is a style of folk music that originated from Venezuelan and Colombian immigrants that came to the Caribbean, and evolved to include elements of Latin music, disco and soca – as is evident in this release. Although traditionally used to be played during the festive season in Trinidad & Tobago, parang music continues to heat up dancefloors all year round.
Tags: #caribbean #disco #parang #world-music
Uwalmassa provides an alternative study on Javanese gamelan compositions, experimenting with known and unknown structures. The new 12″ ‘Bumi Uthiri’ EP collects together tracks ‘Untitled 01’ and ‘Untitled 02’ (both first released as digital-only in September 2016) plus three new compositions. All tracks recorded live using a single condenser mic and then assembled using digital signal processing and audio manipulation. The EP is part of a sonic exploration project initiated by DIVISI62 – a sound and visual arts label based in Jakarta, Indonesia which examines the Indonesian identity issue within a global context.
Jon Hassell is an American trumpet player and composer, who has been active since the 1960s and who first collaborated with Burkina Faso group Farafina in 1987. From the reissued and remastered ‘Fourth World’ album from 1988, co-produced with the legendary studio team of Brian Eno & Daniel Lanois. Available via Tak:Til/Glitterbeat Records.
Sound of the Day 