Reviews
Dima Libre
This is the fifth album in the lengthy career of a group led by Algerian singer-songwriter, Nedjim Bouizzoul. Having migrated...
Reviewed by Mark Sampson in issue: January/2025
I’m Jimmy Reed
It’s routinely hailed as the first great blues album but, as was the case with most bluesmen of his generation,...
Reviewed by Kevin Bourke in issue: January/2025
Wani
Wani showcases an explosive collision between traditional Indonesian forms and Western instrumentation. It’s a daring and highly experimental project glued...
Reviewed by Tom Spargo in issue: January/2025
Our Ancestors Swam to Shore
Uninhabited until the Portuguese turned up in the 15th century, São Tomé is a volcanic island out in the Atlantic...
Reviewed by Robin Denselow in issue: January/2025
Femmina
The vocalist and clarinettist Gera Bertolone hails from Sicily, and here puts together an album of original songs which blend...
Reviewed by Maria Lord in issue: January/2025
Here and Now (Live at City Club)
Walid Ben Selim, from Casablanca, started out as a rapper, most notably leading contemporary Arabic-language band N3rdistan, but since then...
Reviewed by Jean Berry in issue: January/2025
Feja Feja
Haling from Victoria Falls on Zimbabwe’s border with Zambia, Flying Bantu have been a fixture on southern Africa’s touring and...
Reviewed by Nigel Williamson in issue: January/2025
Magnetismo Animal
Bogotá’s indie-tropical darlings La Sonora Mazurén continue their psychedelic musical adventures on their second album Magnetismo Animal. With a line-up...
Reviewed by Justin Turford in issue: January/2025
Golden Age
Any album that cites influences as diverse as swamp jazz, Malian desert rock, Peru’s psychedelic chicha music and ‘master of...
Reviewed by Chris Wheatley in issue: January/2025
