Reviews
Early Years: Madagascar Cassette Archives
Jazz had Miles Davis, rock had Jimi Hendrix, and tsapiky – the frantic, guitar-driven music from Toliara, Madagascar – has...
Reviewed by Lucy Hallam in issue: June/2020
Party Beats
This is another re-release from the Tabansi vault of 80s African music. The late Nkono Teles, who is perhaps better...
Reviewed by Lucy Hallam in issue: November/2019
La Vie est Belle
It’s been 20 years since Amadou & Mariam rocketed into the African superstar league with Dimanche à Bamako, the album...
Reviewed by Robin Denselow in issue: September/2024
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
Le Ballet National de Guinée Conakry invite Bertrand Renaudin
Le Ballet National de Guinée Conakry
Guinea’s Ballet National ensemble has existed since independence was won in 1958 and proudly stands as a symbol of Mande...
Reviewed by Martin Sinnock in issue: October/2010
Maputo Queens
This is the debut solo album from composer, arranger and producer Etienne de la Sayette. The Parisian is primarily known...
Reviewed by Alex De Lacey in issue: October/2016
Songs Inspired by the Film The Beatles and India
Here are two discs to accompany the new documentary film on the highly influential period when The Beatles visited India...
Reviewed by Martin Longley in issue: December/2021
Postcards and Pocketbooks: The Best of Bella Hardy
With a career stretching back to her early teens as a member of The Pack, a 12-piece that graced the...
Reviewed by Tim Cumming in issue: Jan/Feb/2020
Cajun Accordion Kings (and the Queen)
Valcour Records is run by Joel Savoy – of the celebrated Savoy Family Cajun Band – and he does a...
Reviewed by Garth Cartwright in issue: November/2017
Louisiana Saturday Night Revisited
This virtual tour of the dance halls, festivals, and saloons of south-western Louisiana follows Ace’s similar recorded visit to the...
Reviewed by Jeff Kaliss in issue: March/2014
