Reviews
Samba Azul
The back of Samba Azul's self-titled debut reads like the playlist of a particularly nerdy Brazilian music enthusiast, featuring obscure...
Reviewed in issue July/2019
Time and Place
When confronted by albums of new, original compositions by an instrumental folk artist, this reviewer must admit to a bit...
Reviewed in issue July/2019
Noites Brasileiras
These are admittedly troubling times for Brazil. Having elected a president known for his polemic and hostile quotes on minorities...
Reviewed in issue July/2019
Singing it All Back Home
Naomi Bedford has a distinctive voice, opening up like a tea rose, with its own colour and fragrance. On her...
Reviewed in issue July/2019
Reggae Mandela
In the 1980s, reggae singers began issuing songs either damning South Africa's apartheid government or praising the then-imprisoned Nelson Mandela....
Reviewed in issue June/2019
Just Dennis/Deep Down
Despite being dubbed ‘The Crown Prince of Reggae’ by Bob Marley, Dennis Brown's success in Jamaica never led to international...
Reviewed in issue June/2019
Águia Não Come Mosca
The second album from the Brazilian funk trio Azymuth, now reissued by Mr Bongo, was originally recorded in 1977 and traverses...
Reviewed in issue June/2019
Cuba Linda
Dutch-Colombian trumpeter Maite Hontelé's tour de force of Cuban rhythms is all delivered with a hint of Colombian sabor. Since...
Reviewed in issue June/2019
Perlas & Conchas
The incantation, ‘unidos, existimos’ (united, we exist), that opens this beguiling album suggests a pagan ritual, a mediation mantra, or...
Reviewed in issue June/2019
Chouïa
For the past decade this multi-instrumentalist trio have pushed the boundaries of Québécois traditional music by exploring other music cultures....
Reviewed in issue June/2019
