Sofa

If ever you've sat around with friends messing around on instruments, no matter the level of your expertise (or inexpertise, as it were), you'll have had moments when it comes together. MiraMundo are a joyous collective of musicians from Europe, Asia and Latin America who seem to specialise in such moments and this debut release is a paean to, and promo for, multiculturalism. From the outset, there's a convivial bagginess to the way songs begin to come together, as guitars move from strumming to melody, the rhythm gathers force and the voice is found – all five key members sing in their respective languages – while a huge gang of guests, from Poland, Uruguay, Kurdistan and elsewhere assist with percussion, backing vox and (for their concerts and workshops) flamenco dancing.

With the clannish vitality of Gitano Family or Manu Chao's roadshows, this band shifts from intelligent bossa nova (the Caetano Veloso or Chico Buarque kind) and Gypsy jazz to more free-form compositions that have the slightest hint of Serge Gainsbourg. Nothing is too trivial or exotic for their palate: Mexican mariachi, samba, Italian canzonetta, Japanese phrases, African beats, Viennese waltz. Slightly amateurish, technically uneven, Sofa is a riot of fun; Google it and you'll get settees for the first ten pages. Even that might be part of the non-plan plan.