Moving on slightly from the authenticity discussion-
So I saw Malian band BKO Quintet last night in a small DC club. I liked the way the musician on the electrified ngoni uh rocked. Not flashy, but quick fingers that created rhythm and noisey notes. The drummer, percussionist, & kora player added funkiness. But I guess they’re considered roots/ traditional since they don’t rap, or use autotune, or programmed beats.
― curmudgeon, Tuesday, 18 September 2018 18:17 (five years ago) link
I am guessing that in Mali BKO’s audience is different a bit from Malian rappers, but I don’t know; and don’t know how folks of different ages and classes there view traditionalism and pop and authenticity.
― curmudgeon, Tuesday, 18 September 2018 18:31 (five years ago) link
BKO Quintet
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZNm3dZbGI4
― curmudgeon, Friday, 21 September 2018 06:03 (five years ago) link
this looks cool haven't heard it yet
https://f4.bcbits.com/img/a2440170954_16.jpg
― Mordy, Friday, 21 September 2018 17:42 (five years ago) link
That does look intriguing. Currently listening though to a more serious Arab world effort-- DC based Palestinian singer/oud player Huda Asfour whom I have touted here before. She's on Spotify and her latest album Kouni is very good.
― curmudgeon, Monday, 24 September 2018 04:07 (five years ago) link
La Lechera, how was the Chicago fest? Did you see Jupiter & Okwess? Did your students go to any of the events?
― curmudgeon, Wednesday, 26 September 2018 03:49 (five years ago) link
It was amazing, as usual! In fact, before I tell you any more I learned that the webcasts have been archived and you should be able to view them from the facebook page -- this should work? https://www.facebook.com/pg/WorldMusicFestivalChicago/videos/?ref=page_internal
I caught Juana Molina (awesome, inventive, super fun), Rio Mira & Orquesta Akokan (their only US appearance?! wut? two students came to this and both enjoyed it a lot, insanely packed venue), and Jupiter & Okwess (no students showed but the performance was great and I enjoyed Quantic's DJ set a LOT) I didn't get to all the events I wanted to see, but it was satisfying.
By the time last Saturday rolled around I was completely exhausted but that is what I want from WMF -- it helps a person save up good memories to last through the winter
― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Wednesday, 26 September 2018 03:56 (five years ago) link
i like this - it's on spotify:
https://thevinylfactory.com/news/african-acid-is-the-future-launches-new-label-ambiance-vinyl/
― Mordy, Wednesday, 26 September 2018 14:32 (five years ago) link
Oh will have to check that out, as it includes “the queen of mbira” Stella Chiweshe from Zimbabwe. I didn't recognize the Kenyan names on it.
Rio Mira, the Ecuador/Peru marimba music act, that was one of the groups La Lechera saw at the Chicago Fest, are gonna be in the month long October DC Global Music fest. The DC Fest has a mix of paid ticket and free shows, plus they're showing movies also like Zerzura: A Saharan Acid Western (made by Sahel Sounds )
― curmudgeon, Sunday, 30 September 2018 14:55 (five years ago) link
Oh, thanks for the Facebook video links for the Chicago fest performances. Just checked out a bit of Rio Mira and the retro-mambo Cuban and more group Orquesta Akokan
― curmudgeon, Sunday, 30 September 2018 15:02 (five years ago) link
I need to find time to check out more of those Chicago Fest videos
― curmudgeon, Monday, 1 October 2018 16:48 (five years ago) link
The DC Flash of the Spirit month-long global music fest is going on. A mix of ticketed and free gigs. Gonna probably see Ethiopia's Fendika tonight (who play music and dance) with the Brooklyn-based Anbessa Orchestra (made up mostly of some Israelis into Ethiopian music who moved to US) . Fendika played in NYC the other night with my Ethiopiques DC based fave guitarist Selam Selamino Woldermariam
― curmudgeon, Wednesday, 3 October 2018 13:39 (five years ago) link
Fendika were afro-folkloric and rhythmic with some good dancers; Anbessa have the old-school Ethiopiques sound down tight.
― curmudgeon, Thursday, 4 October 2018 15:13 (five years ago) link
I love Fendika! <3 Melaku <3
― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Thursday, 4 October 2018 15:26 (five years ago) link
just listening to Benin guitarist Lionel Loueke's The Journey album rn, like it!
― calzino, Monday, 8 October 2018 08:15 (five years ago) link
Been loving the Kamal Keila reissue on Habibi Funk - amazing that they managed to get such sound quality out of tapes of radio sessions that, as per the liner notes, got wet and damaged in the meantime. It's "Sudanese Jazz", which feels to me more like Funk crossed with local influences. Very much worth hearing.
― Daniel_Rf, Monday, 8 October 2018 10:36 (five years ago) link
x-post--just listening to Benin guitarist Lionel Loueke's The Journey album rn, like it!
― calzino, Monday, October 8, 2018
In the past Loueke's playing has always been more jazz than Benin-sounding, which is ok but didn't dazzle me. Fans of his insist even his jazz is unique because of what he brings to it, but perhaps I haven't listened close enough to hear it.
― curmudgeon, Sunday, 14 October 2018 20:40 (five years ago) link
Saw at Richmond, VA Folk festival yesterday a Baltimore-based Caribbean carnival troupe, Tribu Baharu (Afro-Colombian champeta band), and Orchesta El Macabeo (Puerto Rican punks gone salsa) plus Mavis Staples, Sherman Holmes Project, and more
― curmudgeon, Sunday, 14 October 2018 20:49 (five years ago) link
not gone back to that Loueke album much since tbh, it seems to go a bit off the boil after the first few tracks.
― calzino, Sunday, 14 October 2018 20:52 (five years ago) link
Oh well, re Loueke.
Unrelated:
I still have so many Afropop.org episodes to catch up with.
― curmudgeon, Monday, 15 October 2018 13:55 (five years ago) link
I see that someone else likes the Louke album on the jazz thread. Still too many other things I want to listen to before that (as I like stuff on this thread more than instrumental jazz).
― curmudgeon, Monday, 15 October 2018 17:21 (five years ago) link
I didn't see Rio Mira and their call & response vocals over marimba at either the DC festival or the chicago one, but am liking the video of one of their Chicago gigs better than i expected I would. more rhythmic and uptempo than I thought it would be.
https://www.facebook.com/WorldMusicFestivalChicago/videos/266948357485706/
― curmudgeon, Saturday, 20 October 2018 20:07 (five years ago) link
When I saw South African guitarist/singer Vusi Mahlasela a long time ago he seemed a little too folky for me. It might have been a solo gig. My wife had never seen him and she wanted to go see him this past weekend and we did. I liked him better. Joined by a band, and talking a lot between songs about his new upcoming live album recorded where he grew up, and about politics and hate (this was a Saturday night gig in a DC synagogue hours after the Pittsburgh synagogue killing), his voice seemed more powerful over the township jive throwback rhythms from his band. He noted he had been struggling with his health but was now doing better. His inspirational performance reminded me a bit of seeing longtime American civil rights activists now; people who have endured so much and are still enduring and are still pushing forward for justice.
― curmudgeon, Monday, 29 October 2018 15:25 (five years ago) link
Glanced at Pitchfork Best albums page link and I see a couple of folk and country releases and some metal among the rap, rock,experimental, and electro, but I don't see anyone from any genre from the continent of Africa, plus no Caribbean acts and no Central or South American. Hven't looked closely for Asian or other parts of the world. Some so-called niche genres just don't count I guess. I haven't looked at the Pitchfork best tracks list to see if things look better there-- maybe a reggaeton or Afrobeats track... Hopefully.
― curmudgeon, Tuesday, 6 November 2018 18:42 (five years ago) link
Pitchfork tracks list has a jazz track, folk/ country ones, electronic and experimental but none that are afropop, afrobeats, reggaeton, dancehall, or soca
― curmudgeon, Wednesday, 7 November 2018 14:21 (five years ago) link
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ObS-u4XXYb0
I saw footage circulating of new Minnesota congressperson Ilhan Omar, a Somali-American celebrating with family to this great Somali dance song
― curmudgeon, Thursday, 8 November 2018 03:32 (five years ago) link
I was about to witness a three day ceremony with five gong players, each man holding one gong, drunk on new rice alcohol fermented for three weeks. All I knew when I left Banlung (a Khmer town) was wanting to check Kavet territory and luckily winter is the time of celebration when people of the villages congregate. Some have not seen each other for months or weeks and reunite on the territory of the village after rice harvest has been finished.
Excerpt from article about Laurent Jeanneau, aka Kink Gong, who traveled around Southeast Asia between 1996 and 2014 recording traditional musicians
https://www.popmatters.com/sounds-of-zomia-kink-gong-2608153653.html
― curmudgeon, Friday, 9 November 2018 00:53 (five years ago) link
thanks for posting -- saving for laterfive gong players!
― weird woman in a bar (La Lechera), Friday, 9 November 2018 14:50 (five years ago) link
Angelique Kidjo sounded powerful and emotional in singing in front of world’s politicians in Paris at Armistice Day WWI event
― curmudgeon, Tuesday, 13 November 2018 20:30 (five years ago) link
Here's the video of Kidjo. She celebrated peace and sung tribute to fallen World War One African soldiers with a moving rendition of a song popularized by a Togo singer, Bella Bellow.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpABEO2Embs
― curmudgeon, Wednesday, 14 November 2018 01:33 (five years ago) link
Seeing Tal National & Fatoumata Diawara on best of lists, whom else do you like (yea I know it’s only November)!
― curmudgeon, Friday, 16 November 2018 13:57 (five years ago) link
Imarhan, Hailu Mergia, Ebo Taylor, Bombino
― Mordy, Friday, 16 November 2018 15:18 (five years ago) link
I generated this at work at Spotify using listening data from the first day of streaming in the 13 Middle-East/North-African countries we launched in this week:
https://open.spotify.com/user/glennpmcdonald/playlist/43PAWHK47Nl6B9BW59EDxI?si=-Sywg3ZeRPqKDCpuOtlbgg
Also, if you don't already know about these, a few other ways to see what people around the world are programming or playing on Spotify:
http://everynoise.com/worldbrowser.cgi (Spotify editorial playlists)http://everynoise.com/countrysounds.html (countries)http://everynoise.com/everyplace.cgi (cities)http://everynoise.com/hyperspace_house_concerts.cgi (cities, part 2)
― glenn mcdonald, Friday, 16 November 2018 20:36 (five years ago) link
How are the editorial playlists generated?
― Mordy, Friday, 16 November 2018 20:42 (five years ago) link
Oh, sorry, the editorial playlists are made by humans, that's what "editorial" means in this context.
― glenn mcdonald, Friday, 16 November 2018 21:00 (five years ago) link
you hire ppl in all these different countries to make these playlists? how often do they update them?
― Mordy, Friday, 16 November 2018 21:04 (five years ago) link
Yes, although sometimes a small team handles multiple countries. Update frequencies vary, but most of the Featured ones get new stuff daily or weekly.
― glenn mcdonald, Friday, 16 November 2018 21:16 (five years ago) link
and who are the ppl who make them? music journalists in those places, radio ppl, fans?
― Mordy, Friday, 16 November 2018 21:23 (five years ago) link
They're Spotify employees, and come from various backgrounds. You can see openings on our Jobs site, including two of these positions right now (one for Classical, one for Indonesia):
https://www.spotifyjobs.com/search-jobs/#search=senior+editor&category=shows-editorial
― glenn mcdonald, Friday, 16 November 2018 21:49 (five years ago) link
New Music Friday Maghreb is largely US rap and indie. Uh, thanks Spotify editorial
― curmudgeon, Saturday, 17 November 2018 01:19 (five years ago) link
Welcome to Mena is more interesting
― curmudgeon, Saturday, 17 November 2018 01:38 (five years ago) link
Well, my rogue efforts at globalist data-liberation notwithstanding, NMF Maghreb exists for the local audience, not for musical tourism. In North Africa by default you see that instead of the other versions, not in addition, so of course it has a lot of global artists...
― glenn mcdonald, Saturday, 17 November 2018 02:38 (five years ago) link
Spotify Colonialism Maghreb
― curmudgeon, Saturday, 17 November 2018 04:34 (five years ago) link
But I like many of the other ones
― curmudgeon, Saturday, 17 November 2018 04:45 (five years ago) link
The city thing there is interesting. Had used it before but forgotten about it.
Back to Mordy's post -- yes to Ebo Taylor and the others...Thanks for reminding me
― curmudgeon, Monday, 19 November 2018 12:44 (five years ago) link
Bandcamp and Pitchfork contributor Marc M*st#rs got folks talking about African reissues and some new stuff on Facebook the other day: Here's some stuff mentioned
subscribe to the Now-Again/Rappcats thing where I get downloads every month of whatever obscure Zamrock thing they're currently doing
Dur Dur of Somalia on Analog Africa Bandcamp
All the Zamrock stuff is a blast - Witch, Chrissy Zebby Tembo & Ngozi Family. Ripping guitars African Scream, vol. 2; Ernesto Chahoud presents Taitu; Editions Syliphone Conakry reissues ; The first Rikki Ililonga record (Zambia) reish on Now-Again is GREAT.; Habibi Funk; Sahel Sounds; Asnakech, by Asnakech Worku; Two Niles to Sing a Melody: The violins and Synths of Sudan on Ostinato records via Bandcamp; Shina Williams & His African Percussionists are well worth checking out. He used a lot of the same musicians as Fela Kuti. ; Electric Jive label South African 60s reissues
― curmudgeon, Friday, 30 November 2018 13:47 (five years ago) link
I missed out on that Afro-garage rocking Zambia stuff like Witch when it was first getting reissued circa 2011 I think, but have heard a bit now
― curmudgeon, Friday, 30 November 2018 19:54 (five years ago) link
i love that stuff
― Mordy, Friday, 30 November 2018 20:06 (five years ago) link
I need to get to the South African and Sudan reissues next.
― curmudgeon, Saturday, 1 December 2018 15:58 (five years ago) link
heads up jordan, there was a new toto bona lokua album in the past year, more than that long ago actually
http://www.noformat.net/album-toto-bona-lokua-bondeko-58.html
sounds great
― j., Saturday, 1 December 2018 18:23 (five years ago) link