Reviews

Sidiba

Bako Dag

Ask any of your griot musicians from Mali, Senegal and the Gambia to name a favourite singer, and the one...

Reviewed by Jane Cornwell in issue: Nov/Dec/2011

Konono No 1 Meets Batida

Konono No 1 & Batida

It's 12 years now since Congotronics, the debut album of Konono No 1, but their manic roots energy continues to...

Reviewed by Max Reinhardt in issue: May/2016

Yalla Yalla!

Sultans of String

Rumba flamenco rhythms may be at the base of this endearing instru¬mental recording by Toronto-based Sultans of String, but you’ll...

Reviewed by Li Robbins in issue: Aug/Sep/2011

Time is Now

Oojami

Turkish ex-pat Necmi Calvi spent 20 years of his adult life in London; where – under the alias Oojami –...

Reviewed by Jane Cornwell in issue: Jan/Feb/2011

Carousel

The Pine Hearts

Hailing from Olympia, Washington, The Pine Hearts are a bluegrass trio with a penchant for expertly conjured, though largely conventional,...

Reviewed by Doug Deloach in issue: December/2018

Odyssee: A Journey Into the Light

Quadro Nuevo

Since their conception in 1996, this German outfit has toured the globe, released a raft of albums and scooped countless...

Reviewed by Mark Sampson in issue: April/2022

Knou

Malouma

Malouma Mint Meidah is a remarkable woman. She is a griot and a fine singer from Mauritania who has used...

Reviewed by Robin Denselow in issue: Aug/Sep/2014

Roots of Life

Los Chicharrons

Here's some Malian-inspired musical innovation from an unlikely source: maverick dance music producers Los Chicharrons, also known as the odd...

Reviewed by Jane Cornwell in issue: June/2011

The Ballad of Johnny Longstaff

The Young'uns

“If they were expecting any rewards, they didn't get any rewards. They were the first people to be victimised,” we...

Reviewed by Nathaniel Handy in issue: April/2019

Vesevo

Vesevo

The name of these highly respected Neapolitan musicians derives from the volcano that embodies many of the anxieties of the...

Reviewed by Ciro De Rosa in issue: March/2016