Reviews
Kairo
Kairo is a very sonically diverse and soulful record from the young Senegalese maestro, aiming to bring together ancient and...
Reviewed by Nik Hann in issue: January/2025
Maqam Pilgrims
Egyptian-born oud player and composer Mustafa Said is one of the most illustrious names in Arabic music today. Born blind,...
Reviewed by Simon Broughton in issue: January/2026
L’amour à la folie
You don’t know what you’ve got ’til it’s gone. Perhaps in recent years, we grew guilty of rather taking for...
Reviewed by Nigel Williamson in issue: December/2025
Listen All Around: The Golden Age of Central and East African Music
If it ain't exquisite, it ain't Dust to Digital. The record label is well known for its high-quality compilations of...
Reviewed by Jim Hickson in issue: Aug/Sep/2018
Habibi Funk 015: An Eclectic Selection of Music from the Arab World, Part 2
As the comprehensive and beautifully produced sleeve notes make clear, this compilation of 13 jaw-droppingly funky tracks from the Middle...
Reviewed by Russell Higham in issue: Aug/Sep/2021
Kenya-Congo Connection: From the Archives of Audio Productions, Nairobi, Kenya
There are several compilations of East African recordings that show the strong link between Congolese guitar-band music and bands located...
Reviewed by Martin Sinnock in issue: Jan/Feb/2017
Tibet: Music & Prayers from the Yellow Hats Monasteries, Tashilhunpo, Ganden, Séra
Since the early 1960s, most releases by the 15th-century Reformed School Gelugpa Tibetan Buddhist monks have been recorded at their...
Reviewed by Michael Ormiston in issue: May/2016
Pour Me A Grog: The Funaná Revolt in 1990s Cabo Verde
Anyone who has come across Madonna's latest album may have noticed the singer's recent love affair with Cape Verdean music....
Reviewed by GonÇalo Frota in issue: Jan/Feb/2020
Kulintang Kultura: Danongan Kalanduyan and Gong Music of the Philippine Diaspora
This album is a celebration Danongan Kalanduyan (1947-2016), a musician who migrated to the US in the 1970s from Mindanao...
Reviewed by John Clewley in issue: January/February/2022
Warsaw's Jewish Mermaid: Syrena Recordings from the Orvomaa Archive 1909-1933
Renair Records are unearthing rare sources of Jewish music from hidden archives. Chekhov's Band, the last album, reviewed in #114,...
Reviewed by Simon Broughton in issue: Aug/Sep/2018
