Reviews
Mabrouk
The polyrhythms of Gnawa music have long lent themselves to jazz: Pharaoh Sanders, Don Cherry and Bill Laswell all famously...
Reviewed by Jane Cornwell in issue: Aug/Sep/2011
The InCider Sessions
Whatever fiddler Adam Summerhayes is on, I want some. He’s known for his formidable talent in classtcal and tolk traditions,...
Reviewed by Nathaniel Handy in issue: December/2020
The Rough Guide to Blues & Beyond
‘If the purists don’t like it, then that’s tough’. So run the liner notes to The Rough Guide to Blues...
Reviewed by Lucy Wilson in issue: March/2010
Mania Regressia
You can only get away with a name like this if you are Jewish, of course, and Jewish Monkeys consists...
Reviewed by Simon Broughton in issue: Aug/Sep/2015
Tropical Gypsy
The Balkan fusion group Molotov Jukebox, fronted by charismatic lead singer, accordionist and actress Natalia Tena, return with their second...
Reviewed by Jamie Kyei Manteaw in issue: June/2016
Good Times of Old England
Span are still a touring and recording band, like their 70s folk-rock compatriots Fairport, and a good portion of their...
Reviewed by Tim Cumming in issue: August/September/2022
Shouka
There hasn’t been much news from the Western Sahara recently. But all is not quiet on the Western front. Shouka...
Reviewed by Andy Morgan in issue: Aug/Sep/2010
The Best of the Black President 2
This is consistently great music: a sublime mix of jazz, funk and a dreamy groove. Fela Kuti created a whole...
Reviewed by Alastair Johnston in issue: Apr/May/2013
The Bridge
Arash Moradi plays the tanbur – a saz-like long-necked lute that is played in Iranian Kurdistan. For many it is...
Reviewed by Simon Broughton in issue: June/2018
Classic American Ballads from Smithsonian Folkways
The newest instalment of Smithsonian Folkways’ splendid vault-raiding Classic series compiles 25 songs written between 1836 and 1947 about topical...
Reviewed by Nigel Williamson in issue: Aug/Sep/2015
