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Reviews

Review of Swingin’ Live at the Church in Tulsa

Swingin’ Live at the Church in Tulsa

The Taj Mahal Sextet

Lightning Rod

Rating: ★★★

Now in his 80s, Taj Mahal is the grand old man of American roots music and follows 2022’s old-timey Get...

Reviewed by Nigel Williamson in issue: May/2024

Review of Engelchen

Engelchen

Alison Cotton

Rocket Recordings

Rating: ★★★

Alison Cotton’s Engelchen is both a threnody and celebration, heartfelt, intense and deeply moving in its struggle through darkness to...

Reviewed by Michael Quinn in issue: May/2024

Review of The Confluence

The Confluence

Dele Sosimi & The Estuary 21

Wah Wah 45s

Rating: ★★★★

If there’s anything negative to say about Fela Kuti’s music in particular and Afrobeat in general it’s that it don’t...

Reviewed by Mark Sampson in issue: May/2024

Review of I am Kurdish

I am Kurdish

Mohammad Syfkhan

Top of the World

Nyahh Records

Rating: ★★★★

Sometimes moments of grace spring from conflict in a way that feels like the premise for a film or a...

Reviewed by Nathaniel Handy in issue: May/2024

Review of Faire Ça

Faire Ça

Meril Wubslin

Les Disques Bongo Joe

Rating: ★★★★

Meril Wubslin’s fourth album, born from a crossroads between Brussels and Lausanne, unfolds as a captivating sonic odyssey. Recorded at...

Reviewed by Buzz Bury in issue: May/2024

Review of Aguidavi do Jêje

Aguidavi do Jêje

Aguidavi do Jêje

Top of the World

Rocinante

Rating: ★★★★

Slaves from present-day Nigeria, Benin and Togo brought Candomblé to Bahia (Brazil) where it thrived, developing into Afro-Brazilian ceremonies performed...

Reviewed by Andy Cumming in issue: May/2024

Review of Hiddo Dhawr

Hiddo Dhawr

Sahra Halgan

Top of the World

Danaya Music

Rating: ★★★★

Sahra Halgan is a hero of Somaliland’s music. At home, in the unrecognised Somali state’s capital, Hargeisa, she runs the...

Reviewed by Jim Hickson in issue: May/2024

Review of Polonez

Polonez

Lumpeks

Umlaut Records

Rating: ★★★★

The second album by the Polish-French quartet Lumpeks picks up right where their self-titled debut (2020) left off. Founded by...

Reviewed by Michał Wieczorek in issue: May/2024

Review of BRSB

BRSB

Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band

Big Crown

Rating: ★★

Bacao pan out of Hamburg, lending a Caribbean touch to rap hits, although some of these covers are somewhat mainstream...

Reviewed by Martin Longley in issue: May/2024

Review of Araxes

Araxes

A.G.A Trio

Riverboat Records

Rating: ★★★

These tunes are steeped in sadness, arriving from Anatolia, Georgia and Armenia, the homelands of each band member. This is...

Reviewed by Martin Longley in issue: May/2024

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