May 30, 2011

Charts May 29, 2011

CMJ New World Top Ten
1 WESTERN JAZZ BAND | Songs Of Happiness, Poison And Ululation | Sterns
2 VARIOUS ARTISTS | Gozalo! Bugalu Tropical 4 | Vampisoul
3 DENGUE FEVER | Cannibal Courtship | Concord
4 VARIOUS ARTISTS | Fania Records 1964-80: The Original Sound Of Latin New York | Strut
5 TERAKAFT | Aratan N Azawad | World Village
6 VIEUX FARKA TOURE | The Secret | Six Degrees
7 SORRY BAMBA | Volume One 1970-1979 | Thrill Jockey
8 JOLLY BOYS | Great Expectation | eOne Music
9 SERGENT GARCIA | Una Y Otra Vez | Cumbancha
10 SMOD | SMOD | Nacional

CMJ New World Adds
1 ENRIQUE BUNBURY | Gran Rex | Capitol Latin
2 VARIOUS ARTISTS | Highlife Time, Volume 2 | Vampisoul
3 HELADO NEGRO | Canta Lechuza | Asthmatic Kitty
4 YOUSSOU N'DOUR | Dakar-Kingston | Emarcy
5 PLAYING FOR CHANGE | PFC 2: Songs Around The World | Concord

New & Recommended At WRIR
Abreu, Alexander Y Havana D'Primera | Haciendo Historia | Ahi-Nama
Balkan Brass Battle | (various artists) | Asphalt Tango
Bamba, Sorry | Volume One 1970-1979 | Thrill Jockey
Berner, Geoff | Victory Party | Mint
Bombino | Agadez | Cumbancha
Cherga, La | Revolve | Asphalt Tango
Dengue Fever | Cannibal Courtship | Concord
Fania Records 1964-1980: The Original Sound Of Latin New York | (various artists) | Strut
Gozalo! Bugalu Tropical 4 | (various artists) | Vampisoul
Hawk And A Hacksaw, A | Cerventine | LM Dupli-cation
Hazmat Modine | Cicada | Barbes
Hotel X | Unreleased 2010 | none
Jolly Boys, The | Great Expectation | eOne Music
Kuti, Femi | Africa For Africa | Knitting Factory Records
Orchestre Poly-Rythmo | Cotonou Club | Strut
Sergent Garcia | Una Y Otra Vez | Cumbancha
SMOD | SMOD | Nacional
Taylor, Ebo | Life Stories | Strut
Terakaft | Aratan N Azawad | World Village
Toure, Vieux Farka | The Secret | Six Degrees
Western Jazz Band | Songs Of Happiness, Poison & Ululation: Dar Es Salaam Dancing Club 1973-1975 | Sterns

Recent Arrivals
Bedouin Soundclash | Light The Horizon | Nat Geo Music
Beleza | Cookin' With Flavor | self-released
Brazilian Café, The Rough Guide To | (various artists) | World Music Network
Bunbury, Enrique | Gran Rex | Capitol Latin
Delhi 2 Dublin | Planet: Electrified | self-released
English Folk, The Rough Guide To | (various artists) | World Music Network
Hernandez, Saul | Remando | Capitol Latin
Highlife Time, Volume 2 | (various artists) | Vampisoul
Ndour, Youssou | Dakar-Kingston | Emarcy
Playing For Change | PFC 2: Songs Around The World | Concord
Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars Meet DJ Logic | Rise & Shine Remixes | Cumbancha
Starfire, David | Bollywood Bass Remixes, Volume 2 | Six Degrees

May 26, 2011

Program May 27, 2011

Great to be back after a week out of town.  Thanks to Sean from Slight Surface Noise Soundsystem for holding it down for me -- I got to hear most of his show, and I thought it was superb.

You've probably already heard that May marks the 70th birthday of one of the most important musicians from the 1960's folk revival, a man whose music remains vital and current today.  It's Bob Dylan's 70th birthday as well.  But the man I'm talking about is Martin Carthy -- British balladeer, virtuoso guitarist, member of seminal bands Steeleye Span, The Albion Country Band, Brass Monkey, The Watersons and The Imagined Village.  (In the 1962 photo at the Troubadour in Kensington above, Martin is second from the left, Bob Dylan is second from the right.)  Today's show starts with a tribute to the career of Martin Carthy.

You'll also hear tracks from three new desert blues releases, by Vieux Farka Toure, Terakaft and Bombino.  And I'll play a selection from the record whose review is now the all-time most read post on my blog: Gozalo! Bugalu Tropical 4.

Click "Read More" for today's tracklist.  Click here for a podcast of today's program:

http://www.radio4all.net/index.php/program/52095

The complete catalog of Global A Go-Go podcasts is here:

http://www.radio4all.net/index.php/series/Global+A+Go-Go


Balkan Brass Battle

ARTIST:  Fanfare Ciocarlia vs. Boban & Marko Markovic Orchestra
TITLE:  Balkan Brass Battle
LABEL:  Asphalt Tango
REVIEW:  Like jazz musicians, gypsy brass bands have a competitive streak.  So the folks at Berlin’s Asphalt Tango Records, who put out some of the best Balkan recordings anywhere, had a stroke of genius -- a “cutting contest” disc (and an accompanying European tour) featuring two of the hottest brass bands, Romania’s Fanfare Ciocarlia and Serbia’s Boban & Marko Markovic Orchestra.  Each band gets a few tracks of its own to show off its chops.  The bands go head-to-head on Duke Ellington’s “Caravan” (tracks 5 and 6) -- I’ll call that one a draw.  And as a piece de resistance, they actually team up on four tracks (4, 7, 10 and 13) proving that two gypsy brass bands are twice as raucous as one.  This record had me grinning from start to finish -- everyone involved sounds like he’s having a great time.  My only regrets are (a) that there’s no bonus DVD so we can see the action (although the booklet photos are well worth the CD’s purchase price), and (b) that the tour isn’t coming to the USA.  Maybe next time? 
REVIEWER:  Bill Lupoletti
TOP TRACKS:    4    5    6    7    10    13
ALSO RECOMMENDED:    2    3    8    9    11    12

Hotel X | Unreleased 2010

ARTIST:  Hotel X
TITLE:  Unreleased 2010
LABEL:  none
REVIEW:  Here’s what Richmond’s long-running avant-groove ensemble has been up to lately -- eleven tracks cut in 2010, hopefully for future release but who knows what the future holds.  This remarkable band formed in 1992 and has had over 60 members since then.  The current incarnation is one of my favorites yet -- co-founding multi-instrumentalists Tim Harding and Ron Curry are sticking with alto sax and guitar respectively, and they’re committed to providing lots of room for other soloists, especially the astounding guitarist Chris Vasi, whose playing blurs any notion of the lines between jazz, world music and rock.  Bassist Wayne O’Bryan provides a solid fundamental ground for Harding’s compositions and the band’s improvisations, and Phil Pollard adds new colors to Hotel X’s sound on steel pan and vibraphone.  Unlike most bands, this one loves to rehearse -- that’s how they get their uniquely loose-yet-tight sound.  It’s always a pleasure to hear a new piece of documentation from this band; hopefully you’ll be able to purchase one soon.  In the meantime, go check them out in live performance.
REVIEWER:  Bill Lupoletti
TOP TRACKS:    3    8    9    11
ALSO RECOMMENDED:    5    7    10

Terakaft | Aratan N Azawad

ARTIST:  Terakaft
TITLE:  Aratan N Azawad
LABEL:  World Village
REVIEW:  This is the third album from this Malian desert blues trio (two electric guitars plus bass guitar, with percussion added).  They’re sort of an offshoot of Tinariwen, the most famous desert blues band -- front man Diara is a featured guitarist in Tinariwen, the other two members are his nephews.  And they sound a lot like a smaller version of the more famous group, without the female ululators and the multi-guitar raveups, but with the same crackling energy especially on tracks 1 and 2, which are as electric as any desert blues performances I’ve heard.  The rest of the material is a bit mellower and more atmospheric, but no one could keep up that pace.  Terakaft’s last album was one of my favorites of the year in 2008, and this one may be a contender in 2011.  This is top-shelf desert blues, definitely worthy of your attention.
REVIEWER:  Bill Lupoletti
TOP TRACKS:    1    2    7    9
ALSO RECOMMENDED:    3    5    6    8    10    11    12

Vieux Farka Toure | The Secret

ARTIST:  Vieux Farka Toure
TITLE:  The Secret
LABEL:  Six Degrees
REVIEW:  Vieux Farka Toure has made quite a name for himself with his first two studios albums, a concert album and incendiary live performances that push his father Ali Farka’s desert blues stylings in the direction of Jimi Hendrix and other rock guitar gods.  So it’s not surprising that he’s looking to broaden his western audience by collaborating with well-known players in the rock and jazz idioms.  Although his duet with Derek Trucks (Allman Brothers Band) fall flat to my ears, the song he co-wrote with Dave Matthews (track 3) is one of the strongest on this session -- Matthews shades Toure’s minor-key chord changes in a more consonant direction and adds a characteristic vocal to a track that will satisfy the fans of both.  Jazzman John Scofield takes an opposite tack (10), moving Toure’s music farther outside with an improvisation that references American blues and North African modes.  And producer Eric Krasno (Soulive) gets down with Vieux on a two-guitar shootout (5) that rocks like the best of Vieux’s live gigs.  Vieux is much more a player than a songwriter, so some of the material here sounds like little more than a sketch.  I’m still waiting for his breakthrough album, but this is a quality addition to his body of work.
REVIEWER:  Bill Lupoletti
TOP TRACKS:    3    5    8    10

Western Jazz Band | Songs Of Happiness, Poison & Ululation

ARTIST:  Western Jazz Band
TITLE:  Songs Of Happiness, Poison & Ululation: Dar Es Salaam Dancing Club 1973-1975
LABEL:  Sterns 
REVIEW:  East Africa expert Doug Paterson adds another notch to his reissue belt with this well-conceived collection, his third for Sterns in association with AI Records of Nairobi, Kenya.  You’d have to be a real African music maven to be familiar with Western Jazz Band, who entertained their compatriots who migrated from Tanganyika’s Western Province to the busy port city of Dar Es Salaam starting in 1959.  Western’s style, which is called saboso, is closely related to the better-known Congolese and Kenyan styles of the same period -- indeed, Congo exported not only records to East Africa but also musicians, as quite a number took up residence in neighboring countries where they could be bigger fish in smaller ponds.  There’s loads of lovely two-guitar arrangements here where the second part is really equal in stature and importance to the solo; percussion is mostly on conga drums, many songs feature a horn section, and the vocals shine throughout.  If you like classic Congolese music, give a listen to the sounds from just across the border.
REVIEWER:  Bill Lupoletti 
TOP TRACKS:    3    7    15 
ALSO RECOMMENDED:    1    2    13

May 23, 2011

Charts May 22, 2011

CMJ New World Top Ten
1 VARIOUS ARTISTS | Sofrito: Tropical Discotheque | Strut
2 JOLLY BOYS | Great Expectation | eOne Music
3 DENGUE FEVER | Cannibal Courtship | Concord
4 WESTERN JAZZ BAND | Songs Of Happiness, Poison And Ululation | Sterns
5 SORRY BAMBA | Volume One 1970-1979 | Thrill Jockey
6 VARIOUS ARTISTS | Gozalo! Bugalu Tropical 4 | Vampisoul
7 ORCHESTRE POLY-RYTHMO | Cotonou Club | Strut
8 VARIOUS ARTISTS | Fania Records 1964-80: The Original Sound Of Latin New York | Strut
9 FEMI KUTI | Africa For Africa | Knitting Factory
10 LA VIDA BOHEME | Nuestra | Nacional

CMJ New World Adds
1 LA VIDA BOHEME | Nuestra | Nacional
2 TERAKAFT | Aratan N Azawad | World Village
3 TIEMPO LIBRE | My Secret Radio | Sony Masterworks
4 WILLY TORRES | Hardcore | Latin Street Music
5 VIEUX FARKA TOURE | The Secret | Six Degrees

New & Recommended At WRIR
Abreu, Alexander Y Havana D'Primera | Haciendo Historia | Ahi-Nama
Aweke, Aster | Checheho | Kabu
Bamba, Sorry | Volume One 1970-1979 | Thrill Jockey
Berner, Geoff | Victory Party | Mint
Bombino | Agadez | Cumbancha
Cherga, La | Revolve | Asphalt Tango
Club d'Elf | Electric Moroccoland / So Below | Face Pelt
Dengue Fever | Cannibal Courtship | Concord
Fania Records 1964-1980: The Original Sound Of Latin New York | (various artists) | Strut
Gozalo! Bugalu Tropical 4 | (various artists) | Vampisoul
Hawk And A Hacksaw, A | Cerventine | LM Dupli-cation
Hazmat Modine | Cicada | Barbes
Jolly Boys, The | Great Expectation | eOne Music
Kuti, Femi | Africa For Africa | Knitting Factory Records
Orchestre Poly-Rythmo | Cotonou Club | Strut
Sergent Garcia | Una Y Otra Vez | Cumbancha
SMOD | SMOD | Nacional
Sofrito: Tropical Discotheque | (various artists) | Strut
Taylor, Ebo | Life Stories | Strut

Recent Arrivals
BATpointG | "Ile-De-France" | self-released
Professor | Madness | City Hall
Terakaft | Aratan N Azawad | World Village
Torres, Willy | Hardcore | Latin Street Music
Toure, Vieux Farka | The Secret | Six Degrees

May 15, 2011

Charts May 15, 2011

CMJ New World Top Ten
1 DENGUE FEVER | Cannibal Courtship | Concord
2 VARIOUS ARTISTS | Fania Records 1964-80: The Original Sound Of Latin New York | Strut
3 GEOFF BERNER | Victory Party | Mint
4 ORCHESTRE POLY-RYTHMO | Cotonou Club | Strut
5 VARIOUS ARTISTS | Sofrito: Tropical Discotheque | Strut
6 RATTLEMOUTH | 5 | self-released
7 HAZMAT MODINE | Cicada | Barbes
8 JOLLY BOYS | Great Expectations | eOne Music
9 SERGENT GARCIA | Una Y Otra Vez | Cumbancha
10 SMOD | SMOD |Nacional

CMJ New World Adds
1 VARIOUS ARTISTS | Balkan Brass Battle | Asphalt Tango
2 SORRY BAMBA | Volume One 1970-1979 | Thrill Jockey
3 FUNK ARK | From The Rooftops | ESL Music
4 MR. HO'S ORCHESTROTICA | Third River Rangoon | self-released
5 WESTERN JAZZ BAND | Songs Of Happiness, Poison & Ululation | Sterns

New & Recommended At WRIR
Abreu, Alexander Y Havana D'Primera | Haciendo Historia | Ahi-Nama
Aweke, Aster | Checheho | Kabu
Bamba, Sorry | Volume One 1970-1979 | Thrill Jockey
Berner, Geoff | Victory Party | Mint
Bombino | Agadez | Cumbancha
Cherga, La | Revolve | Asphalt Tango
Club d'Elf | Electric Moroccoland / So Below | Face Pelt
Dengue Fever | Cannibal Courtship | Concord
Fania Records 1964-1980: The Original Sound Of Latin New York | (various artists) | Strut
Gozalo! Bugalu Tropical 4 | (various artists) | Vampisoul
Hawk And A Hacksaw, A | Cerventine | LM Dupli-cation
Hazmat Modine | Cicada | Barbes
Jolly Boys, The | Great Expectation | eOne Music
Kuti, Femi | Africa For Africa | Knitting Factory Records
Orchestre Poly-Rythmo | Cotonou Club | Strut
Sergent Garcia | Una Y Otra Vez | Cumbancha
SMOD | SMOD | Nacional
Sofrito: Tropical Discotheque | (various artists) | Strut
Taylor, Ebo | Life Stories | Strut

Recent Arrivals
Balkan Brass Battle | (various artists) | Asphalt Tango
Bamba, Sorry | Volume One 1970-1979 | Thrill Jockey
Funk Ark, The | From The Rooftops | ESL Music
Lilong, Tony | "En Soiree" | G'Muzik
Mr. Ho's Orchestrotica | Third River Rangoon | self-released
Rhythms Of Black Peru, The | (various artists) | Secret Stash
Western Jazz Band | Songs Of Happiness, Poison & Ululation: Dar Es Salaam Dancing Club 1973-1975 | Sterns

May 14, 2011

Hazmat Modine | Cicada

ARTIST:  Hazmat Modine
TITLE:  Cicada
LABEL:  Barbes
REVIEW:  I don’t think I’ve ever previously reviewed a record that’s as appropriate for WRIR’s The Edge Of Americana or New Orleans Roots & More as it is for Global A Go-Go.  New York-based Hazmat Modine, fronted by singer-songwriter-harmonica player Wade Schuman, is one of the most thoroughly original bands you’ll ever hear.  Their sound is rooted in old American music -- jug bands, Tin Pan Alley, blues, gospel and more -- while incorporating influences from Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe.  On their first album they collaborated with Tuvan throat singers Huun Huur Tu; here they’ve enlisted Benin’s Gangbe Brass Band, who turn two tracks (2 and 12) into a funhouse mirror version of Dixieland.  Schuman’s gravelly voice and the archaic (and in the case of Schuman’s originals, archaic-like) material might remind you of Leon Redbone (10 is a version of Irving Berlin’s Walking Stick, a staple of Redbone’s repertoire) -- but only if you could imagine him backed up by, say, the Art Ensemble of Chicago.  File under “roots,” “jazz,” “world” or whatever -- just keep it handy as you’ll be going back to this brilliant album time after time.
REVIEWER:  Bill Lupoletti
TOP TRACKS:    2    7    10    11    13
ALSO RECOMMENDED:    1    3    8    12

May 13, 2011

Program May 13, 2011

What do these three dapper Jamaican gentlemen have in common with Amy Winehouse, New Order, The Stranglers and Iggy Pop?  Their band, The Jolly Boys, is perhaps the last of the original purveyors of mento music, and they've just released an album of mento-style covers of the aforementioned artists (not to mention Steely Dan, The Clash, Johnny Cash and more).  You'll hear a track from The Jolly Boys this week on Global A Go-Go, along with new releases by Hazmat Modine, SMOD and Sergent Garcia, a new reissue of Sorry Bamba, and plenty of favorites old and new.

And let me add a great big Global A Go-Go thank you to the 413 donors who contributed $30,670 during WRIR's Spring '11 Fund Drive.  You folks really put the community in community radio; we just can't do it without you.  Don't forget to pick up your premiums in person before 7 PM on Friday to save us the cost of mailing them to you.  And if donating just slipped your mind during the drive, it's not too late to make a contribution and get some cool premiums:

https://wrir.wufoo.com/forms/fund-drive-donation-wrirlp-973-fm/

Click "Read More" for today's tracklist; click here for a podcast of today's program:

http://www.radio4all.net/index.php/program/51765

The complete catalog of Global A Go-Go podcasts is here:

http://www.radio4all.net/index.php/series/Global+A+Go-Go


Sorry Bamba | Volume One 1970-1979

ARTIST:  Sorry Bamba
TITLE:  Volume One 1970-1979
LABEL:  Thrill Jockey
REVIEW:  Here’s another addition to the catalog of essential recordings from the golden age of West African music.  And it comes from an unlikely source, Chicago indie label Thrill Jockey, home to the wonderful American-Kenyan benga-rock band Extra Golden whose guitarists Alex Minoff and Ian Eagleson assembled this collection with Sorry Bamba’s help.  Bamba was chef d’orchestre (sounds much cooler than bandleader, doesn’t it?), singer, trumpeter and flautist for the Kanaga Orchestra, one of the great state-sponsored bands of Mali in the post-colonial 60’s and 70’s.  Like bands such as Guinea’s Bembeya Jazz, Senegal’s Orchestra Baobab and Mali’s Super Rail Band, Kanaga (also known as the Regional Orchestra of Mopti and as Bani Jazz) developed a whole new West African sound by drawing on traditional roots, the Cuban styles that were all the rage back then, and Western influences of funk and psychedelic rock.  Bamba and Kanaga are much less known than the aforementioned groups (I think this is their first reissue), but their music is no less compelling.  If you’re at all interested in African popular music, this album is really worth your time.  Great stuff.
REVIEWER:  Bill Lupoletti
TOP TRACKS:    2    4    7
ALSO RECOMMENDED:   1    3    5    6    8    10

The Jolly Boys | Great Expectation

ARTIST:  The Jolly Boys
TITLE:  Great Expectation
LABEL:  eOne Music 
REVIEW:  The Jolly Boys are perhaps the last surviving band from the original days of Jamaican mento.  For those who don’t know, mento is a uniquely Jamaican brand of popular music (closely related to Trinidadian calypso) that predates ska, rocksteady, reggae and dancehall.  It has a folky, jug band sound featuring banjo, acoustic guitar and rhumba box (a giant homemade mbira) and lyrics that, like calypso, lean to the bawdy side.  The Jolly Boys have stayed active through resort-hotel gigs in Jamaica; they made a comeback record in 1989, and now they’ve come back yet again.  The brilliant concept here is to have them cover decidedly non-mento, very recognizable material by folks like Iggy Pop, Amy Winehouse, Blondie and Johnny Cash.  This could be the recipe for high camp; instead Albert Minott’s remarkably weathered voice and the totally sympathetic arrangements and playing behind him actually give these songs back some of the edge that popularity has worn off of them.  Hats off for a great idea and superb execution of it by a band of consummate pros.  Fun for all.
REVIEWER:  Bill Lupoletti
TOP TRACKS:    1    3    6    10    11
ALSO RECOMMENDED:    4    5    7    13    14

Sergent Garcia | Una Y Otra Vez

ARTIST:  Sergent Garcia
TITLE:  Una Y Otra Vez
LABEL:  Cumbancha
REVIEW:  Sergent Garcia made some major-label noise with five albums between 1997 and 2006 that were marketed as Latin alternative (ie, rock en espanol).  Like Manu Chao (to whom he is frequently compared, and with whom he shares a mixed French-Spanish upbringing) he started his career as a punk-rocker, but his music more naturally fits into the world category.  He calls his style “salsamuffin” -- this accurately suggests the strong influences of Latin dance music and of the Jamaican styles of reggae and dancehall.  On his first indie album since leaving Virgin/EMI, he’s added a new element to the mix -- the sounds of Colombia.  Some of that country’s top young artists are guests here, such as Li Saumet of Bomba Estereo (she kills it on track 5) and members of the bands Sidestepper, La Mojarra Electrica and La-33.  This is energetic mestizo music with a very contemporary edge -- it’s a fine introduction for many Americans who won’t have heard Sergent Garcia until now, and the continuation of a winning formula for Europeans who have followed him for years.
REVIEWER:  Bill Lupoletti
TOP TRACKS:    2    5    13
ALSO RECOMMENDED:    1    3    4    6

May 8, 2011

Charts May 8, 2011

CMJ New World Top Ten
1    THE JOLLY BOYS | Great Expectation | eOne Music
2    DENGUE FEVER | Cannibal Courtship | Concord
3    VARIOUS ARTISTS | Fania Records 1964-80: The Original Sound Of Latin New York | Strut
4    RATTLEMOUTH | 5 | self-released
5    BALKANIZE! | Balkan Eyes | self-released
6    ORCHESTRE POLY-RYTHMO | Cotonou Club | Strut
7    FEMI KUTI | Africa For Africa | Knitting Factory
8    ASTER AWEKE | Checheho | Kabu
9    LOS CHICHARRONS | Roots Of Life | Tummy Touch
10    AURELIO | Laru Beya | Sub Pop / Next Ambiance

CMJ New World Adds
1    HAZMAT MODINE | Cicada | Barbes
2    THE JOLLY BOYS | Great Expectation | eOne Music
3    RAY LUGO & THE BOOGALOO DESTROYERS | "Swingy Boogaloo" [single] | Freestyle
4    SERGENT GARCIA | Una Y Otra Vez | Cumbancha
5    SMOD | SMOD | Nacional

New & Recommended At WRIR
Abreu, Alexander Y Havana D'Primera | Haciendo Historia | Ahi-Nama
Aweke, Aster | Checheho | Kabu
Berner, Geoff | Victory Party | Mint
Bombino | Agadez | Cumbancha
Cherga, La | Revolve | Asphalt Tango
Chicharrons, Los | Roots Of Life | Tummy Touch
Club d'Elf | Electric Moroccoland / So Below | Face Pelt
Dengue Fever | Cannibal Courtship | Concord
Fania Records 1964-1980: The Original Sound Of Latin New York | (various artists) | Strut
Gozalo! Bugalu Tropical 4 | (various artists) | Vampisoul
Hawk And A Hacksaw, A | Cerventine | LM Dupli-cation
Kuti, Femi | Africa For Africa | Knitting Factory Records
Orchestre Poly-Rythmo | Cotonou Club | Strut
Rattlemouth | 5 | self-released
Sofrito: Tropical Discotheque | (various artists) | Strut
Sway Machinery, The | The House Of Friendly Ghosts, Volume 1 | JDub
Taylor, Ebo | Life Stories | Strut

Recent Arrivals
DeLeon | Casata | JDub
Hazmat Modine | Cicada | Barbes
Helado Negro | Canta Lechuza | Asthmatic Kitty
JarabeDePalo | Y Ahora Que Hacemos? | Nacional
Jolly Boys, The | Great Expectation | eOne Music
Kale, Karsh | Cinema | Six Degrees
Katchafire | On The Road Again | Ohana
Lugo, Ray & The Boogaloo Destroyers | "Swingy Boogaloo" | Freestyle
Magic System feat Soprano | "Cheri Coco" | Virgin France
Mista Savona Presents: Warn The Nation | (various artists) | Mista Savona Productions/Elfant Tracks
Persian Funk | (various artists) | Secret Stash
Prince Blanco | Unify On The Hi-Fi | Renegade Recordings
See-I | See-I | Fort Knox Recordings
Sergent Garcia | Una Y Otra Vez | Cumbancha
She'koyokh Klezmer Ensemble | Buskers' Ballroom | ARC
SMOD | SMOD | Nacional
Tiempo Libre | My Secret Radio | Sony Masterworks
Torkian, Loga Ramin | Mehraab | Electrofone
Vida Boheme, La | Nuestra | Nacional

SMOD | SMOD

ARTIST:  SMOD
TITLE:  SMOD
LABEL:  Nacional
REVIEW:  SMOD (with a long O, rhymes with “snowed”) is a trio of young Frenchmen of Malian descent.  One of them, Sam Bagayoko, is the son of Malian superstars Amadou & Mariam, and they’ve received a huge boost here in the production work of mega-superstar Manu Chao (who produced Amadou & Mariam’s hit Dimanche A Bamako as well).  SMOD describe their music as “African rap ‘n’ folk,” and that’s an apt label.  The Manu Chao sound – the strumming guitars, super-catchy melodies, short motifs frequently repeated, rapid vocals half-sung and half-rapped – is in full evidence, all that’s missing are the police sirens.  If you like Manu Chao and Amadou & Mariam (I’m a big fan of both), this is like getting a bonus new release from either of them.
REVIEWER:  Bill Lupoletti
TOP TRACKS:    2    7    8    10
ALSO RECOMMENDED:    1    3    4    6    12    13

May 5, 2011

Program May 6, 2011

WRIR really is the radio station that thinks globally and acts locally.  You hear global news on programs like Democracy Now!, Talk Of The Nation and Free Speech Radio News funded by donations from local listeners and underwriters right here in Richmond.  Local volunteer music hosts (like the two pictured above, modeling the Spring '11 T-shirt design) play music of all genres from around the globe.

Everybody gets in on the global action here at WRIR.  For example, Greta Brinkman (right in picture), WRIR's Loud Music director, will play host to a live performance by Iraqi metal band Acrassicauda (made famous in the film Heavy Metal In Baghdad) Friday at 9 PM.  And Mike Rutz (left), WRIR board member and Local Music director, plays artists from around the world who stop off to perform in Richmond on his program Activate!  Plus he currently bears more than a passing resemblance to Gogol Bordello's Eugene Hutz.

We're coming into the final weekend of WRIR's Spring '11 Fund Drive, so let's start it with a big bang of generous donations to keep independent, unembedded, uncorrupted community radio in Richmond going and growing.  I have a few special premium packages of some of my favorite new releases  -- two for the first $100 donors during Global A Go-Go and one mega-package that will go to the person who donates the most money during the program.  Just click "Read More" for the details.

Also click "Read More" for today's tracklist; click here for a podcast of today's program:

http://www.radio4all.net/index.php/program/51563

The complete catalog of Global A Go-Go podcasts is here:

http://www.radio4all.net/index.php/series/Global+A+Go-Go


May 1, 2011

Charts May 1, 2011

CMJ New World Top Ten
1    VARIOUS ARTISTS | Fania Records 1964-80: The Original Sound Of Latin New York | Strut
2    FEMI KUTI | Africa For Africa | Knitting Factory
3    AURELIO | Laru Beya | Sub Pop/Next Ambiance
4    GEOFF BERNER | Victory Party | Mint
5    CLUB D'ELF | Electric Moroccoland/So Below | Face Pelt
6    BALKANIZE! | Balkan Eyes | self-released
7    THE BUDOS BAND | The Budos Band III | Daptone
8    VARIOUS ARTISTS | Gozalo! Bugalu Tropical 4 | Vampisoul
9    DENGUE FEVER | Cannibal Courtship | Concord
10    ORCHESTRE POLY-RYTHMO | Cotonou Club | Strut

CMJ New World Adds
1    DJ AFRO | Free | Nacional
2    DELEON | Casata | JDub
3    KARSH KALE | Cinema | Six Degrees
4    KATCHAFIRE | On The Road Again | Ohana
5    VARIOUS ARTISTS | Persian Funk | Secret Stash

New & Recommended At WRIR
Abreu, Alexander Y Havana D'Primera | Haciendo Historia | Ahi-Nama
Aweke, Aster | Checheho | Kabu
Berner, Geoff | Victory Party | Mint
Bombino | Agadez | Cumbancha
Cherga, La | Revolve | Asphalt Tango
Chicharrons, Los | Roots Of Life | Tummy Touch
Club d'Elf | Electric Moroccoland / So Below | Face Pelt
Dengue Fever | Cannibal Courtship | Concord
Diabate, Mamadou | Courage | World Village
Fania Records 1964-1980: The Original Sound Of Latin New York | (various artists) | Strut
Gozalo! Bugalu Tropical 4 | (various artists) | Vampisoul
Hawk And A Hacksaw, A | Cerventine | LM Dupli-cation
Kuti, Femi | Africa For Africa | Knitting Factory Records
Orchestre Poly-Rythmo | Cotonou Club | Strut
Rattlemouth | 5 | self-released
Sofrito: Tropical Discotheque | (various artists) | Strut
Sway Machinery, The | The House Of Friendly Ghosts, Volume 1 | JDub
Taylor, Ebo | Life Stories | Strut