Liquidus Ambiento - Mini Mondo

Environments, or atmospheres of sound, are the basis of Liquidus Ambiento. Guitar riffs, arrangements, baritone saxophone and trombone melodies crystalline sitar and flute, bass lines from below, are added to the lightness of an acoustic drum with jazz references. In the essence of instrumental music and electronics, the group enjoy his main influences of Dub, Nu Jazz, Trip Hop, Downtempo, Funk and Afro Beat.

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Hindi Zahra - Handmade

Moroccan-born, but Paris-based, and singing mostly in English, Hindi Zahra is a kind of postmodern Billie Holiday, who tinges her wistful ballads with a hint of urban irony. If the melodies are a shade monotonous, the sultry, spaced-out feel and sophisticated rock touches give this the capacity to win fans way beyond the world music scene.

 

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The Lions - Jungle Struttin

The Lions are something of an underground Los Angeles supergroup -- an ad hoc assemblage of current and former members of bands as diverse as Breakestra, Sound Directions, PlantLife, Orgone, and Poetics, among others. In late 2006 this motley crew of rock and funk musicians came together at Killion Studios and put together a ragged but enjoyable set of reggae, soul, and funk. There's no electronica here, no synthetically smooth soully and jazzy reggae, just lean and crunchy old-school grooves that sound like they could have been recorded and mixed at Dynamic Studios or the Black Ark in the early '70s. Opening with the dubwise slide guitar showcase "Thin Man Skank" (somewhere David Lindley is smiling), Jungle Struttin' then proceeds to explore instrumental funk ("Jungle Struttin'"), vintage rocksteady ("Think [About It]," featuring the fine and soulful singer Noelle Scaggs), and even some faintly Latin grooves ("Hot No Ho," "Cumbia de Lion"). "Lankershim Dub" is a melodica showcase in the style of Augustus Pablo, and "Fluglin' at Dave's" combines a mellow jazz horn sound with Skatalites-style early reggae. That last track is great, but would have been even better if the flügelhorn were in tune. Very nice overall.            

 

 

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Lack Of Afro - This Time

2011 release from British producer/remixer/DJ Adam Gibbons AKA Lack Of Afro. Gibbons combines his live musicianship and top notch studio production skills with rappers and vocalists into a skillful combination of compositions blending funk, Hip Hop and Soul into a steamy stew of a breakbeat bonanza. As a multi instrumentalist, in-demand producer and remixer, a DJ with his finger on the cutting edge of contemporary sounds, and an ear tastefully cocked to the hippest soul, Jazz and Funk music from the '60s and '70s, Gibbons has already established an unrivalled reputation as one of the most crucial names at work in funk and dance music today.

 

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Nickodemus - Endangered Species

With the burgeoning guitar rock of the sixties, kids growing up found heroes who played an instrument that could be easily mass manufactured for a relatively small amount of money. And over the next couple of decades, the guitar became the icon of new music in America, eventually becoming the most widely purchased musical instrument. Nonetheless, with the advent of DJ culture and assimilation of computers into our everyday lives, the sampler, turntable, and mixer have often supplanted the guitar as the instruments of choice for the new generation. No matter how cramped your apartment or how clumsy your hands may be, this technology allows you to manipulate and create such an incredible variety of sounds and structures that the possibilities are practically limitless. And with the amount and diversity of this kind of music now being created in all genres, the age of the DJ has truly arrived.These sounds are often created in a sterile electronic enviroment, but in the right hands they can be as compelling and organic as any other kind. Nickodemus is not a new kid on the block, but Endangered Species is his first full length album. Working parties in and around New York for well over six years, Nickodemus has honed his skills in melding genres and elements from various global musical styles—reggae, house, funk, Latin, Arabic, Afrobeat, and more. Using this experience, he has constructed an album that blends the familiar with the exotic. The urban meets world music aesthetic has been explored before with varying degrees of success, but Endangered Species is a compelling listen that does a good job of differentiating itself from the pack."Cleopatra in New York serves as a good example of how the album works as a whole. Nickodemus melds a complex rhythm of drums and various percussion instruments and lays Arabic-influenced flute and oud on top, which carries the main melody and serves as a textural bed for a wordless female vocal. The track has an assertive pulse that is calmed by the cool sound of the instruments, and although it may be considered a dance track, it is much more complex musically than that.The key here, and throughout the album, is that Nickodemus is not simply layering one beat or loop on top of another. Rather he is creating a foundation for these different musical elements to breathe and come together on their own accord. Every track here is cut from a similar cloth, but with vastly different colors and textures. From the laid back opening title track and its acoustic guitar groove to the roll call of drummers on Give The Drummer Some and the syncopated closing "Mystery of Life, each track provides a different journey and utilizes special guests to varying degrees.You can find common threads embedded throughout, but Nickodemus imbues Endangered Species with more than enough variation and ingenuity to hold interest while still marinating a dynamic sense of movement and flair. What will really be interesting is to see how he develops this already mature sound over time—and where he'll go next

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Monty Alexander - Stir It Up The Music Of Bob Marley

The Jamaican-born pianist Monty Alexander has worked with musicians such as Milt Jackson, Dizzy Gillespie, and Sonny Rollins, but over the years he has always managed to wed North American improvisation to reggae and Jamaican folk rhythms. This CD is a happy hybrid of all of the above. Alexander weaves his American rhythm section consisting of drummer Troy Davis, bassist Hassan Shakur, and guitarist Derrick Di Cenzo with the five-man Jamaican ensemble Gumption--who back up dancehall stars like Buju Banton: drummer Rolando Alphonso, guitarist Robert Angus, keyboardist Dwight Dawes, bassist Glen Brownie, and percussionist Desy Jones. The result: Imagine the Nat King Cole Trio sitting in with the Wailers and you'll get the CD's boppish island-breezed vibe. Alexander and crew stick to Marley's melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic structures. Spliff anthem "Jamming," title tune "Kaya," and "Could You Be Loved" can rock any sports utility vehicle or summer festival, while "Heathen" rings with Alexander's raindrop chords, piercing melodica, and ethereal tonal shadings. The ska-guitar scratches drive "Is This Love?" and Alexander's gospelish pianisms echo Marley's loving laments on "No Woman No Cry." Steve Turre makes a guest appearance and his splendid seashell sound heralds "I Shot the Sheriff." Alexander's plaintive composition "Nesta"--Marley's middle name--is spiced by Jones's Rastafarian nyabinghi conga rhythms and completes this jazzy "jump up" carnival.
Alexander effectively and infectiously fuses jazz and reggae into a cohesive sound that may portend the future of one-world music without boundaries or labels.

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Easy Stars All Stars - Easy Stars Thrillah

Following up on the hugely successful reggae tribute albums of Dub Side of the Moon (2003), Radiodread (2006) and Easy Star's Lonely Hearts Dub Band (2009) comes the reggae adaptation of the greatest selling record of all time – Michael Jackson's Thriller.
 Easy Star's Thrillah brings back several of the reggae stars from previous albums, such as vocalists Michael Rose (Black Uhuru), Steel Pulse, Luciano, Mojo Morgan (Morgan Heritage), alongside the diverse playing of guests Yossi Fine (David Bowie, Lou Reed, Stanley Jordan), Joe Tomino (Dub Trio/Matisyahu), Andy Farag (Umphrey's McGee), and horn tracks courtesy of Israel's highly-acclaimed funk/hip-hop band Hadag Nachash. The album will be preceded by the July 10th digital release of the Billie Jean EP, which includes two album tracks, along with non-album remixes and a dub version.

In selecting Thriller, Easy Star Records co-founder Lem Oppenheimer says, "We've always tackled the greats - The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Radiohead - but while we wanted to take on another huge album, we also wanted to blaze new trails. In Thriller we found those new trails in a number of firsts for the series: the first album by an American artist, the first non-concept album, the first R&B/soul record, as well as the first release from the 80s."

 

 

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Originais Do Sample - Ladrão é Bóia

Originais do Sample é um projeto musical de Felipe Machado (felipe alma), Tiago Melo (zécafofinho) e Hugo Gilla que conta com a particitação de dois músicos do MOMBOJÓ, Chiquinho e Marcelo Machado (buchito). Felipe Machado nerd em tecnologias livres cria as bases+edição+programação.

A primeira conexão da tecnologia X música foi com Tiago de Melo, músico da Variant TL (banda pernambucana que faz releituras do SKA). “Estava um dia em casa tomando cerveja com Tiago e mostrei as bases que eu costumava fazer só por diversão, ele gostou e sugeriu uma parceria”. Foi nesse momento, no ano de 2002, que surgiu a idéia de formar um grupo onde ele fosse lançando as bases ao vivo enquanto os músicos tocassem. O nome Originais do Sample veio do fato de todas essas sonoridades serem sampleadas e introduzidas na reconstrução de novas faixas.

“A prática de baixar músicas na Internet mais a conexão com grupos de distribuição de mp3 do mundo inteiro faz parte da minha formação e me traz constantes influências artísticas e tecnológicas”. Entre as maiores inspirações para o Originais do Sample estão cloudDead (EUA), Dj Shadow (Inglaterra), Cut Chemist (EUA), Jurassic 5 (EUA), N.E.R.D (EUA), King Tubby (Jamaica), Aphex Twin (Inglaterra), Dj Remixsom (Peixinhos, Pernambuco), entre outros.

 

 

 

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Thievery Corporation - Radio Retaliation

It's ironic that a band with its musical head so firmly in the clouds thinks so much about what’s happening down here on Terra Firma. Yet, that’s what Thievery Corporation's Radio Retaliation is all about. The musical approach is the same; just as they have on releases like 2005's The Cosmic Game, Rob Garza and Eric Hilton still bring the dub-oriented beats, silky textures, world musicology and outer spacescapes. And while Thievery Corp have always been tuned into the strange currents and impulses of the now, words have never been so central to their work. Femi Kuti lets loose on Africa's long, sad history of oppression on "Vampires" while Seu Jorge preaches the gospel of peace on "Hare Krisna." Both those tracks are killers, but the record has a way of topping itself. In the midst of all the charged slogans and lullaby charm (listen to LouLou's Gallic flow on "Le Femme Parallel" for an example of the latter), Garza and Hilton will drop a celestial bomb like the painfully gorgeous "The Shining Path." So, while there's no missing how politically engaged they are (the liner notes include relevant words of wisdom from a range of open minds including Einstein, John Lee Hooker and Mos Def), Thievery Corp can still help us return to the serenity of nothing.

 

 

 

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Criolo - No Na Orelha

“Nó na Orelha” ('Knot In The Ear') is one of the most successful Brazilian albums of 2011. Completely self-penned, its recording was overseen by the experienced Nação Zumbi producer Daniel Ganjaman and aided by Marcelo Cabral. The result is that Criolo has received, among others, both a 'Best Show Of The Year' and a 'Best Newcomer' award.

With more than fifty-five concerts in Brazil plus one in New York, all in support of this new album, Criolo has worked hard to bring the message of his music to the people. Now, in 2012, it is the turn of Europe to welcome this most compelling and unique performer: the true voice of a new Brazil.

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