Top of the World
The editor's choice selection of the 10 best new releases, a track from each album appears on the issue's CD covermount.
Various Artists
Golden Afrique Vol 3
Network Medien
Read review
Most of the best-known names are here, including Ladysmith Black Mambazo, the Mahotella Queens, Mahlathini, Miriam Makeba and Hugh Masekela from South Africa, and Oliver Mtukudzi, the Four Brothers and Dolly RathebÈ from Zimbabwe. But to anyone already familiar with the main landmarks of southern African music, it is the unknown rarities that make this collection special: the roots-rocking South African township jive of Mparanyana and the Cannibals (imagine calling a band that today!); the urgent, cascading Zimbabwean guitars of the Hallelujah Chicken Run Band (an early but little heard home for Thomas Mapfumo); Zambiaís sublimely mellifluous Masasu Band and the same countryís whistling wonder, Smokey Haangala. This has to be one of the compilations of the year. And whatís great is that the series can just go on and on, for the well is almost bottomless.
Nigel Williamson
Rachid Taha
Diwan 2
Wrasse Records
Read review
Eight years ago he released the first Diwan album, explaining that this was his ëversion of John Lennonís RockíníRoll albumí ñ like Lennon he wanted ëto sing the songs that influence [him] and pay homage to [his] cultureí. Now comes Diwan 2, with the rhythmic, classy production work again handled by his long-term colleague Steve Hillage, who makes use of anything from sweeping strings to the traditional gasba reed flute. The songs range from compositions by Blaoui Houari, a major star in Algeria back in the 50s, to those made famous by Dahmane El Harrachi, the man responsible for Tahaís hit ëYa Rayahí. Then thereís the sturdy French ballad ë…coute-Moi, Camaradeí by Mohamed Mazouni, which Taha unearthed in his parentsí attic. He is in great voice throughout, whether handling slinky ballads or the more declamatory pieces, but the two finest tracks are ëJosephineí and ëAh Mon Amourí, on which his urgent, gutsy vocals are driven on by reed flutes and rattling hand drums. They sound like classic country rai songs, but they were written by Rachid Taha and Steve Hillage themselves.
Robin Denselow
Kila & Oki
Kila & Oki
Kila Records
Read review
Oki and KÌla, a progressive/traditional Irish music outfit, forged an immediate connection when they met on stage during KÌlaís 2004 tour of Japan, where their unlikely pairing making for a fascinating mix. Featuring eight tracks written in Irish, Ainu and English, and recorded in just ten days, KÌla & Oki is proof of this rapport (particularly that of Oki and frontman RÛn·n ” Snodaigh), and also of how apparently disparate musical cultures can relate to each other in ways both innovative and ancient. Depending on the track, Okiís eastern rhythms and dub obsessions lend an earthy feel to the often flighty and furious playing of the Irish ensemble (on fiddle, banjo, mandolin and other traditional instruments), while the multitalented KÌla sprinkle their energy and humour throughout. Any musical tensions are embraced and resolved as new avenues are explored and established. A very fine meeting of musical minds.
Jane Cornwell
Dona Dumitru Siminica
Sounds from a Bygone Age Vol 3
Asphalt Tango Records
Read review
The instrumental accompaniment is delicate and transparent, with lyrical violin, soulful accordion and the filigree rhythmic underpinning of cimbalom (dulcimer). At one time the Siminica? family lived in the same yard as the Gore Brothers (who featured on the last Asphalt Tango release of Romica Puceanu) and so had access to some of the best la?uta?ri musicians. On this CD time seems to stop as Siminica? sings his slow, love songs interspersed with faster instrumental numbers. Henry Ernst of Asphalt Tango has found treasure in the Electrecord archives with this Bygone Age series, and only fuller translations of the lyrics could improve it.
Simon Broughton
Dino Saluzzi
Juan Condori
ECM Records
Read review
Tango is more than an idea or a pulse; it is the framework on which the songs are hung. Listen, for instance to ëMilonga de mis amoresí, which has the lively bop of a dance tune. The opening track, ëLa Vuelta de Pedro Orillasí, is a gorgeous blast of swooning bandoneÛn (squeezebox). Even the slower tracks, more typical of Saluzzi, are heartfelt. Saluzzi describes the album as a collection of memories. But memory here is a concrete force, not the abstract, quasi-political category of the Argentinian left. Songs evoke the images of their titles: ëLas Cosas Amadasí (Beloved Things), ëLos Saucesí (The Willows), ëA Juan, Mi Madreí (To Juana, my Mother).
There has always been conflict ñ or at least tension ñ in Saluzziís compositions. It stems from his reverence for a certain kind of humanity and an ancient, rural way of life that is ñ by virtue of his vocation ñ beyond his grasp. But on Juan Condori, the dialogue is harmonious and the mood lyrical. Tango, the product of immigrant alienation and nostalgia, here turns in on itself, easing the soul of the exiled musician-intellectual.
Chris Moss
Waterson: Carthy
Holy Heathens & The Old Green Man
Topic Records
Read review
It begins with a rousing New Year carol with the refrain ëResidue sing Residueí ñ the significance of which remains a mystery. The full-throated singing of ëDiademí and ëGlorylandí are spine-tingling ñ hats off to The Devilís Interval, the trio of young singers who augment the band here. But this is by no means a Christmas ñ or a Christian ñ album. Thereís a lovely ëJack Frostí song written by Mike Waterson, some wassails (ëThe Jacobstowe Wassailí is delicious), a song for St George and a May Song. The playing is excellent: Martinís guitar is driving yet subtle, particularly on ëJack Frostí; Elizaís fiddle playing wildly marvellous; and Timís box playing suitably rumbustious. There are also highly enjoyable brass arrangements. But the singing is the greatest delight. Norma has always been the most generous of singers, always making a gift of what she performs, and itís a quality that has rubbed off on everyone involved.
Julian May
Conjunto de Arpa Grande Arpex
°Tierra Caliente!
Smithsonian Folkways
Read review
The band play popular Mexican song forms like sones, jarabes and huapangos, with wonderful upbeat solos from Miguel ëEl Polloí Moraís great 37-stringed, five foot tall wooden harp, its luscious bottom bass notes providing the quintessential sound, its cedar-wood sound-box doubling for drumming and hand slaps. From their base in northern Californiaís San JoaquÌn Valley, Arpex create unadulterated good-time music that makes you imagine youíre sitting in a town square drinking a beer without a care in the world, while listening to the local life stories encapsulated in these terrific songs.
Jan Fairley
Dr L Subramaniam & Ustad Rais Khan
Sangeet Sangam
Navras Records
Read review
The complement of accompanying musicians includes the great percussionist K Sekar on tavil, a double-headed barrel-shaped drum that is not often heard in contexts other than accompanying the South Indian nagasvaram (long oboe). Mention should also be made of the liner notes by Martin Clayton, which are full and informative. The only slight quibble is that, at 39 minutes, the disc is a little short. But it is nevertheless highly recommended for the excellent musicianship on display.
Maria Lord
Shona Mooney
Heartsease
Foot Stompin' Records
Read review
The albumís title carries a wealth of folkloric resonance, betokening both the wild pansy traditionally prescribed for the heartbroken, and a Victorian symbol conveying a loverís constancy of thought. Flowers form one elegant thematic strand within Heartsease, while the other main connective element is Mooneyís evident fascination with the landscape and lore of her native Scottish Borders. Having graduated first-class among the inaugural intake of Newcastle Universityís Folk and Traditional Music degree, she sources tunes from both north and south of the border, while her own compositions derive inspiration from a winningly magpie-minded range of subjects, both human and pastoral.
Mooney is also a truly terrific player, marrying traditional fidelity with contemporary flair, and a beautifully rounded tone with ultra-sensitive phrasing. Featuring top-notch accompaniment on guitar, melodeon, harmonium, piano, bass and drums, the arrangements here cover the full spectrum: from stripped-down simplicity to far-out electronic experimentalism, taking in several splendidly rocked-up workouts along the way.
Sue Wilson
Mariza
Concerto em Lisboa
EMI
Read review
For what has been far less remarked upon than her radiant personality and inherent theatricality is the sheer quality of her voice. If her early concerts sometimes betrayed a certain shrillness, particularly in the upper register, there is not a trace of it here. Backed by the Sinfonietta de Lisboa conducted by Brazilís Jaques Morelenbaum, she is in total command of both her voice and her material, drawn from all three of her studio albums. Unsurprisingly, the selection has a natural bias in favour of the most recent, the Morelenbaum-arranged Transparente, but it is the songs from her first two releases that illustrate best her phenomenal development. Assisted by some wonderfully subtle orchestral re-arrangements, she brings both an emotional depth and a technical perfection to songs such as ëCavaleiro Mongeí, ëPrimaveraí and ë” Gente Da Minha Terraí that makes the originals sound like mere demos. Her modesty is one of her most appealing traits and she will probably go to her grave insisting she will never be as good as Am·lia Rodrigues. But Concerto em Lisboa proves sheís already up there.
In addition to the Concerto em Lisboa CD, thereís a DVD of the same concert and a deluxe edition of the CD and DVD combined, with three intimate Mariza performances at Tasca de Chico, one of Lisbonís best fado tavernas, filmed for the BBC documentary.
Nigel Williamson





