Music Reviews
Ba Cissoko - Electric Griot Land
TotoloSon of Kandara Cissoko (Ballet Djoliba) Ba Cissoko is a kora master who brings a fresh direction to the traditions of this instrument. His band features, Kourou and Sékou Kouyate on bass, kora and electric kora plus percussionist Ibrahim Bah plus there's several special guests featured like K'Naan, Les Nubians, and Amadou Bagayoko. Grooving along with the best of them.
PermalinkGraham Radley, 11/06
Baaba Maal - On The Road
Palm PicturesA retrospective of his acoustic live shows taken from gigs over the past ten years. Listen to the beautiful kora playing of the late Kaouding Cissoko, or Koni featuring Ernest and then drift into Baaba’s divine vocals and find yourself in a very special place, he’s a genius and please can we have a new CD soon.
Graham Radley, 05/09
Baaba Maal - Television
Palm PicturesThis might well upset the purists but Baaba Maal has always been adventurous and here he brings in a strong pop element to a Senagalese core heavily featuring Sabina Sciubba and Didi Gutman from the New York electronica outfit the Brazilian Girls . This is his first new release for about 8 years and my only real gripe would be that I’d love to hear even more of the great man featured. I think maybe the purists will retreat to the traditional albums like ‘Missing You’ but hopefully this release will bring in a whole new audience who will also go on to savour his back catalogue . I love it.
Graham Radley, 08/09
Bajka - In Wonderland
ChinChin RecordsAfter fifteen years of performing on numerous projects for other artists such as Radio Citizen, Bonobo and Beanfield, Bajka finally releases her long awaited debut, “In Wonderland”. The Indian born and South African raised singer delivers an exceptional album inspired by “The Hunting of the Snark” a book of poems written by Lewis Carroll, author of Alice in Wonderland. In fact, each song is devoted to a chapter from the book and Bajka brings each song to life with grace and subtlety. Among the highlights is “The Bellman’s Speech”, a dreamy string laden beauty where Bajka weaves her unique blend of singing andspoken word artistry to perfection. “The Barristers Dream” is another treat that is filled with warm melodies and joyful rhythms. “The Baker’s Tale” features superb performances by Daniel Regenberg on piano and Rhodes as well as Jerker Kluge on double bass. They along with drummer Phillip Bernhardt provide a jazz flavored canvas throughout the disc that allows Bajka plenty of space to improvise. Not only is this record is a sheer delight that gets better with each listen, it should give this wonderful artist the recognition she rightfully deserves.
Reg Dancy, 06/10
Baker Brothers - Bakers Dozen
Peddlers RecordsYes, The Baker Brothers are back with another fine selection of all things funky. Vocals again are supplied by Vanessa Freeman, who always sounds great with whatever productions are thrown at her. Ensure you give "Winding Rhythm" a listen for proof. On the first few listens, I'm not quite convinced that "Bakers Dozen" is in the same league as their debut "Ten Paces" but there is more than enough quality here to ensure that you give it a listen and add it to your wants list.
Simon Harrison, 06/06
Barbara & Ernie - Prelude To…
FalloutOriginally issued in 1972 on Cotillion Records, 'Prelude To' was Barbara Massey and Ernie Calabria's one and only album together. Due to the growing interest in the folk-funk sound this has become much sought after piece in recent years so top marks to Fallout for this timely reissue. Orchestrated by Eumir Deodato and featuring players such as Grady Tate, Ralph MacDonald, Joe Beck, Keith Jarrett and Richard Tee, it effortlessly fuses elements of psychedelic pop, folk, funk and jazz to create an outstanding collection. It includes the in demand 'Play With Fire' and 'Somebody To Love' but equally as good are 'Searching The Circle', and 'My Love & I.
Andy Allen, 06/07
Battlefield Band - Dookin'
Temple RecordsThe title comes from the Scots word for what you do at hallowe'en - as in 'dookin' for apples. Mike Katz, Alan Reid, Alasdair White and Sean O'Donnell demonstrate why they are still one of the best bands around, 30 years on and still producing creative, quality music. Picks for me would be 'Gathering Storm' a song from Alan and 'Dookin' For Beetroot/The Head Rooster' from Mike Katz. An excellent collection.
Graham Radley, 11/07
Bauchklang - Many People
Klein RecordsThis Album from the excellent and diverse Klein label has got a serious groove. Blauchklang are six "heads" from Austria whose only previous long playing release was 'Jamzero' back in 2001. 'Many People' is like nothing else i've heard. It would be impossible to pigeonhole, but lies somewhere in the 'extremely soulful' category. Don't get me wrong you won't hear this on Trevor Nelson's show. It's far too good and left of middle for that. It just has to heard to be defined. Vocal's are a major part of the album, but the beats compliment down to a tee. Some of the vibe is totally uptempo whilst other grooves are slow and dark. Looking for something different that sounds like Prefuse 73 recording with Rhazel's throat on Sonar Kollektiv? This could be the closest your gonna get.
Jax, 04/06
BBE 15 - 15 Years Of Real Music For Real People
BBESince 1996, BBE has released a whopping 160 compilations and in the process they have cemented their status as a groundbreaking record label that spans the musical landscape of quality music. Whether its funk, soul, house or hip-hop, you can always count on them to do it proper. This latest release highlights some of the prime cuts that only serious music lovers would be hip to over that period of time. Mixed by Chris Reed, “15 Years Of Real Music For Real People” starts out as a journey through early hip-hop with quality joints from Marly Marl’s “Spazz” to Pete Rock’s “Nothin Lesser”. There’s an assortment of soulful gems to savor in the form of Slakah The Beatchild’s “Enjoy Yo Self” and Katalyst’s “How Bout Us” feat. Steve Spacek. Vintage soul classics like “Funk In The Hole” and “Mystic Voyage”, courtesy of Roy Ayers fit nicely among these treats as well as the sorely underrated house track “Music In Me”, sung by Shaun Escoffery, mixed by DJ Spinna. Tracks of honorable mention are “I See The Sun” by Vikter Duplaix and “Dancing Girl” by Aaron Jerome. With well over fifty tracks included here it would be easy to dismiss many as simply filler but that’s not the case here. With BBE 15, you’re treated to nothing but simply good music and this is a compilation that can rock a party on its own or simply quench your musical thirst to get you through the day. Either way you won’t be disappointed once you add this impressive disc to your collection.
Reg Dancy, 10/11
Belleruche - The Express
Tru Thoughts RecordingsBelleruche serves up blues tinged soul with a touch of hip-hop for good measure. The trio builds on their warm soulful grooves that made their debut “Turntable Soul” such a success. On their latest release “The Express” vocalist Kathrin Deboer’s smooth smokey vocals complement Ricky Fabulous harmonic rhythm guitar playing. The disc starts off with the infectious “Anything You Want”. DJ Modest provides well placed sampling and electronic beats while Kathrin provides warmth to the mid-tempo soul track. “Goose Blues” has a traditional blues flavor that takes you back to the back roads of the Mississippi Delta. “Scratch My Soul” is a slow burning soul gem where Kathrin conveys enough passion to warm the coldest heart through the depth of her lyrics. “The Express” is a satisfying collection of soul and blues reminiscent of those dusty vinyl records buried in your parents basement. The production, arrangements and the trio’s diverse talents contribute to an eclectic musical experience that you shouldn’t miss.
Reg Dancy, 10/08