Reviews

Estuaire

Constantinople

Amid a plethora of crossover collaborations, the Montreal-based Constantinople stands out as an exemplary ensemble. Founded in 2001 by Iranian...

Reviewed in issue May/2026

Landscapes of Eternity

Naïssam Jalal

Every time Naïssam Jalal releases a new album, I get to have the same thought: ‘bloody hell, she’s a fantastic...

Reviewed in issue May/2026

Som Sistema

Da Cruz

Bern-based Afro-Brazilian singer Mariana Da Cruz’s seventh album is an urban, global-minded set that moves freely across genres, coloured by...

Reviewed in issue May/2026

Mīt warde

Sarāb

Sarāb’s Mīt warde confronts the turmoil of recent years head-on, transforming helplessness, anger and moral disorientation into an uncompromising assertion...

Reviewed in issue May/2026

Metamorphose

Mativetsky, Amiri & Pagé

Technically a debut, this coming together of three of Montréal’s most accomplished global musicians is as assured as any veteran...

Reviewed in issue May/2026

Ecstasy: Between Two Seas

Sami Yusuf

‘Epic’ is the word to best describe Sami Yusuf. A British-Azerbaijani singer, composer and multi-instrumentalist, he has been hailed as...

Reviewed in issue May/2026

Chasing Shadows

Nubiyan Twist

Despite the plethora of guests that guitarist and bandleader Tom Excell’s nine-piece outfit has employed over the course of five...

Reviewed in issue May/2026

Tirakat

Ali & Charif Megarbane

It’s not often we come across an album that purports to explore the longstanding cultural traffic between Indonesia and the...

Reviewed in issue May/2026

Surrender To Love

Peter Culshaw

Malcolm McLaren once called Culshaw “the Indiana Jones of world music”, and whether in Cuba at the start of the...

Reviewed in issue May/2026

Esperança

Nancy Vieira & Fred Martins

Esperança is a heartfelt collaboration celebrating two distinct but intertwined musical traditions. Fred Martins, from Brazil, and Nancy Vieira, from...

Reviewed in issue May/2026