Reviews
Port’Inglês
The tricky part about coming up with and cementing an aesthetic of your own is avoiding being cornered or imprisoned...
Reviewed by GonÇalo Frota in issue: January/2025
Al-Bahr
There’s so much going on with Finnish trio Wishamalii’s debut album that it almost invents a whole new genre of...
Reviewed by Daniel Spicer in issue: January/2025
Tension
Mulatu Astatke & Hoodna Orchestra
As the father of Ethio-jazz, the Ethiopian multi-instrumentalist and composer Mulatu Astatke has carved out a unique musical path. On...
Reviewed by Paul Bowler in issue: January/2025
Dima Libre
This is the fifth album in the lengthy career of a group led by Algerian singer-songwriter, Nedjim Bouizzoul. Having migrated...
Reviewed by Mark Sampson in issue: January/2025
I’m Jimmy Reed
It’s routinely hailed as the first great blues album but, as was the case with most bluesmen of his generation,...
Reviewed by Kevin Bourke in issue: January/2025
Wani
Wani showcases an explosive collision between traditional Indonesian forms and Western instrumentation. It’s a daring and highly experimental project glued...
Reviewed by Tom Spargo in issue: January/2025
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
Femmina
The vocalist and clarinettist Gera Bertolone hails from Sicily, and here puts together an album of original songs which blend...
Reviewed by Maria Lord in issue: January/2025
Here and Now (Live at City Club)
Walid Ben Selim, from Casablanca, started out as a rapper, most notably leading contemporary Arabic-language band N3rdistan, but since then...
Reviewed by Jean Berry in issue: January/2025
