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Artist: DARA PUSPITA Title: Dara Puspita 1966-1968 Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $18.00 |
| "Dara Puspita (trans. "Flower Girls") was arguably the worlds greatest all-female garage rock band. The reason youve probably never heard of them was that they came from Indonesia where they were extremely popular during the 1960s. Their career spanned from 1965 until 1973 including 3 years (1969-1971) living and touring in Europe. The four albums recorded by the original members between 1966 and 1968 (the material represented on this CD) is one of the great chapters of 1960s popular music history never to be reissued, let alone recognized beyond a few tuned-in souls and adventurous record collectors in the Western world. Twenty-six of their most spectacular tracks (from the albums Jang Pertama, Special Edition, Green Green Grass, and A-Go-Go) are now finally available to hear in this essential release. Dara Puspita formed in their hometown of Surabaya in 1964. After relocating to Jakarta, the group began to create quite a stir with their wild stage shows. Their local performances were attended by teenagers grooving to the bands raw garage rock sound. The first all-female Indonesian pop group that could play their instruments and sing, Dara Puspita also attracted the attention of Indonesian president Sukarno who labeled Western rock music "a form of mental disease." In 1965 (an eventful and critical year for the group), the girls endured a month-long interrogation by the government for performing "outlawed" rock and roll music, became the house band in a Bangkok nightclub for three months, and were introduced to Dick Tamimi of Mesra records, the man who would launch their recording career. The tracks featured on this compilation were recorded at the height of Dara Puspitas popularity during the immediate post-Communist era of General Suhartos new order; a time when Indonesias musicians and artists were finally capable of launching their own creative renaissance. This collection is guaranteed to appeal to all fans of the beat a-go-go era of the mid-late 1960s and is a significant missing piece of the global pop music history puzzle. Every single track is a classic, the sound quality is superb, and it should only take one listen to become completely addicted to and charmed by this legendary Indonesian group. Tri-fold digipack CD with 20-page booklet featuring rare & unseen photos provided by Dara Puspita for this specific reissue project and extensive liner notes of the bands phenomenal history by Alan Bishop." -Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: GROUP BOMBINO Title: Guitars From Agadez (Music of Niger) Vol. 2 Format: LP Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $27.00 |
| "Group Bombino is the latest salvo from the Agadez music scene. Led by the guitar virtuoso Omara Mochtar (Bombino), the groups debut LP -- volume two in the Guitars From Agadez series, represents the latest chapter in the modern sound of the Tuareg revolution. As of 2008, the Tuareg rebellion is in full force again, and Bombino is in exile to parts unknown. Agadez has been cut off from the rest of the country. The only road that connects this legendary city with the rest of the country is littered with land mines and the only escorts are the military. This music and its messages of hope, justice, and desire for validation of the Kel Tamachek way of life ring louder than ever. Group Bombino are gaining mythic status in and around the Tuareg community for their incendiary live performances. Coming from the same scene as Group Inerane and sharing some of the same musicians, Group Bombino showcase both sides of the Tuareg guitar style. Side one features the "dry guitar" sound, an unplugged selection of songs sung among the dunes, camels and stars of the Tenere desert. Side two showcases the electric fury of the full band, a melding of heavy, psychedelic guitar heroics with a raw, garage sound, back beat percussion, all swirling in extended trance rock moves. Recorded live and unfiltered in Agadez and the surrounding desert in early 2007, with the bands equipment powered by generators and an unflinching dedication to the rebellion, Group Bombinos music transcends any influence and ignites the raw passion of its message to the outside world. This is a one-time pressing of 1,500 copies. Pressed on 180 gram vinyl and housed in a gatefold full-color jacket stocked with great photos of the musicians and liner notes by Hisham Mayet." -Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: GROUP BOMBINO Title: Guitars From Agadez (Music of Niger) Vol. 2 Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $17.00 |
| "Group Bombino is the latest salvo from the Agadez music scene. Led by the guitar virtuoso Omara Mochtar (Bombino), the groups debut LP -- volume two in the Guitars From Agadez series, represents the latest chapter in the modern sound of the Tuareg revolution. As of 2008, the Tuareg rebellion is in full force again, and Bombino is in exile to parts unknown. Agadez has been cut off from the rest of the country. The only road that connects this legendary city with the rest of the country is littered with land mines and the only escorts are the military. This music and its messages of hope, justice, and desire for validation of the Kel Tamachek way of life ring louder than ever. Group Bombino are gaining mythic status in and around the Tuareg community for their incendiary live performances. Coming from the same scene as Group Inerane and sharing some of the same musicians, Group Bombino showcase both sides of the Tuareg guitar style. The first half of this CD features the "dry guitar" sound, an unplugged selection of songs sung among the dunes, camels and stars of the Tenere desert. The last five tracks demonstrate the electric fury of the full band, a melding of heavy, psychedelic guitar heroics with a raw, garage sound, back beat percussion, all swirling in extended trance rock moves. Recorded live and unfiltered in Agadez and the surrounding desert in early 2007, with the bands equipment powered by generators and an unflinching dedication to the rebellion, Group Bombinos music transcends any influence and ignites the raw passion of its message to the outside world. Includes liner notes by Hisham Mayet with great photos of the musicians. This is a CD reissue of the limited LP pressing which sold out almost immediately upon release." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: GROUP DOEH Title: Guitar Music from the Western Sahara Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $16.00 |
| "This is a CD reissue of the very first Sublime Frequencies LP, which sold out in an instant in early 2007. If you think youve heard all the great electric guitar styles in the world, think again. This Saharan sand-blizzard of fine-crushed glass will grind your face to a bloody pulp. Group Doueh play raw and unfiltered Saharawi music from the former colonial Spanish outpost of the Western Sahara. Doueh (pronounced "Doo-way") is their leader and a master of the electric guitar. Hes been performing since he was a child playing in many groups before finally creating his own in the 1980s. Doueh says hes influenced by Western pop and rock music especially Jimi Hendrix and James Brown. His sound is distorted, loud and unhinged with an impressive display of virtuosity and style only known in this part of the world. His wife Halima and friend Bashiri are the two vocalists in the group. Sahrawi songs are from the sung poetry of the Hassania language. The music is based on the same modal structure as Mauritanian music, however, Douehs style is a looser appropriation infused with a Western guitar scope, one that relies, in his words, as much on Hendrix as it does traditional Sahrawi music. It also adds a playful pop element that rarely filters through in this region. Doueh has turned down countless offers from Morocco and Europe to release his music but he decided to offer Sublime Frequencies access to his homemade recordings and photo archive for this amazing debut. CD reissue of the first Sublime Frequencies LP release. Standard Sublime Frequencies 8-page CD insert includes great photos of the musicians and liner notes by Hisham Mayet." -Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: GROUP DOUEH Title: Treeg Salaam Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $17.00 |
| "Group Douehs follow-up to their now-legendary debut LP is here. While most would think it damn near impossible to top the former release, in terms of sheer "shock and awe," Treeg Salaam (trans. "Streets Of Peace"), blows hot and dusty from the infernal sand-swept dunes of the Western Sahara. Compiled from Group Douehs personal archives, these five tracks are as brain-shifting in their ecstatic brilliance as any music ever heard. From the wah-stroked lead-off track to the blazing dexterity of "Ragsa Jaguar," the whole of the first side is an entrance to the lip-puckering tea den of Saharan trance heaven. Salmou Baamars (Doueh) guitar/tinidit runs explode in cosmic shrapnel, raining down on the temporal nodes of the listeners brain. On "Tazit Kalifa," we have a 20-minute, smoky, slow-burning, psychedelic excursion into the great unknown. A meditation on the arid and inhospitable landscape that inspires this music and its people. Compiled by Hisham Mayet, this is a CD reissue of the limited LP pressing which sold out almost immediately upon release." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: GROUP INERANE Title: Guitars From Agadez Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $16.00 |
| "By popular demand, this is the CD reissue of the second Sublime Frequencies vinyl release (the limited LP release sold out almost immediately upon release in 2007). Group Inerane is the now sound of the Tuareg Guitar Revolution sweeping across the Sahara Desert and inspired by the rebel musicians that started this music as a political weapon used to communicate from the Libyan Refugee camps in the 1980s and 1990s. Spearheaded by the enigmatic guitar hero Bibi Ahmed, Group Inerane has been together for several years and carries the rich tradition of Tamachek guitar songs for another generation. These ten tracks are a combination of amplified roots rock, blues, and folk in the local Tuareg styles, at times entering into full-on electric guitar psychedelia. This music is performed with two electric guitars, a drum kit and a chorus of vocalists. The recordings were captured live in the city of Agadez in the Republic of Niger. Group Inerane was also featured in the Sublime Frequencies DVD Niger: Magic and Ecstasy in the Sahel. Recorded by Hisham Mayet, this CD reissue includes an 8-page insert with photos of the musicians and liner notes." - Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: KHORSHID, OMAR Title: Guitar El Chark (Guitar Of Format: Double LP Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $29.00 |
| "The late Omar Khorshid remains an iconic legend of the Arab world, though hes received criminally little international acclaim. Born in Cairo in 1945, the glittering age of Egypts cultural reinvention, Khorshid was soon to become one of its luminaries and most well-known, if short-lived, voices. He is regarded as the greatest guitarist the Arab world has ever known. By the mid-60s, Khorshid was established with his group Le Petit Chats, an Egyptian beat group modeled after the prevailing influence of Elvis and The Beatles. It was at this time that one of the reigning figures of contemporary Arabic music, Abdel Halim Hafez, asked Omar Khorshid to join his orchestra. With Baligh Hamdi composing, Hafez with Khorshid in place would create some of the most innovative modern sounds in the Arabic musical canon. Time with the Hafez orchestra offered Khorshid instant fame, and it wasnt long before he was asked to play with the queen of Arab music, the voice of Egypt herself, Oum Kalthoum. Over the next few years, Khorshid became a well-established and integral part of the Arab musical landscape. He was featured heavily in live concerts, national TV and radio and studio recordings, playing for the leading artists of the day. The guitar had now become an essential ingredient in the Oriental orchestra. Khorshid began recording albums under his own name for the prestigious Lebanese record labels Voice Of The Orient and Voice Of Lebanon. Working with visionary engineer Nabil Moumtaz at Polysound studios in Beirut, Khorshid would take his music into some of the most progressive musical terrain of its time. The tracks included here in this retrospective are from the prolific span of Khorshids career in Beirut from 1973 to 1977. The venerable Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish best encapsulated this time in Lebanon: "unfortunately, it was paradise." Khorshids prolific instrumental music enjoyed recognition that transcended class and status during the brief period he shone. Its a testament to his immense talent and some of the finest guitar music the world has ever heard. This limited edition 2LP vinyl release features over 80 minutes of classic original recordings compiled by Sublime Frequencies housed in a beautiful full-color gatefold jacket with extensive liner notes." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: KOES BERSAUDARA Title: Koes Bersaudara 1967 Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $17.00 |
| "The first in a series of (Sublime Frequencies) releases to chronicle the Indonesian popular music scene from the late 1950s through the late 1970s -- titles to come will consist of single artist releases and various artists compilations dedicated to specific styles or genres. This CD features the first-ever reissue of Koes Bersaudaras two extremely rare and almost impossible-to-find original recordings from 1967 -- To The So-Called "The Guilties" (12 song full-length LP) and Djadikan Aku Domba Mu (8 song 10" LP). Guilties has long been considered by Indonesian music historians as their nations legendary garage rock masterpiece, not to mention the first record to directly challenge or speak out against the Indonesian government. Recorded live in the studio in a few hours, the album is laced with a raw, guitar-driven sound that forays into previously unexplored realms of the mid-60s Beat generation. Though Guilties is obviously inspired by Western bands of the period, the record possesses a unique feel throughout and will challenge you to find obvious derivative Western sources (with the exception of the Byrds guitar style on "Apa Sadja"). Djadikan Aku Domba Mu was recorded a few months before the Guilties album and has a much dreamier feel overall. Some of the tracks are more psychedelic and reminiscent of the ballads the Koeswoyo brothers would create at the end of the 1960s. Also included in this set is the studio outtake "The Land Of Evergreen," the only cut in this collection that was recorded in stereo. One of 4 tracks on this CD sung in English, "The Land Of Evergreen" features an absolutely stunning guitar intro and is one of the best songs the band ever created. Koes Bersaudara (Koes Brothers) were originally from East Java but formed in Jakarta in 1960. At the beginning, the group consisted of five Koeswoyo brothers -- Jon, Tonny, Nomo, Yon and Yok. After their first album was released in 1964, older brother Jon quit, reducing the group to a four-piece. Tonny (lead guitarist and songwriter) was the leader of the group with Yon (rhythm guitar) and Yok (bass) handling the vocals along with Nomo on drums. Their early recordings were influenced by The Everly Brothers and Western ballads, but by 1965, the group started to grow their hair longer, wore high-heeled leather boots, and added Beatles songs to their stage show. This caught the attention of President Sukarno who began waging war against the "Western decadence" of Beatlemania which had taken hold of the Indonesian popular music scene. Koes Bersaudara was arrested and spent 3 months in prison for performing a Beatles song at a private house party. They were released from jail at the same time General Suhuarto launched his military coup and former restrictions on Western pop music began to be lifted. By 1967, Koes Bersaudara were back in the studio recording Djadikan Aku Domba Mu and To The So-Called "The Guilties" (what would become their most challenging music) on Dick Tamimis Mesra Record label. Nomo left the group in 1968 and after Tonny, Yon and Yok found their new drummer Kasmuri (Murry), Koes Plus was born in 1969 and became the most popular Indonesian band of the 1970s. These reissued tracks have been coveted by serious "in the know" collectors worldwide for decades and will surely appeal to all fans of the garage rock/psychedelic era of the mid-late 1960s as a significant missing piece of the global pop music history puzzle. Housed in a tri-fold digipack CD with a 20-page booklet featuring selected lyrics, rare & unseen photos provided by Koes Bersaudara for this specific project and extensive liner notes of the bands amazing history by compiler Alan Bishop." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: KOES PLUS Title: Dheg Dheg Plas & Volume 2 Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $18.00 |
| "Often referred to as "the Beatles of Indonesia," Koes Plus are the most beloved pop group in the history of Indonesian music, yet theyve been basically unknown to the rest of the world. Born in 1969 from the previously established roots of Koes Bersaudara, the group blazed a trail across the Indonesian popular music landscape of the 1970s, with a scope that reached from the archipelago out to Singapore and Malaysia. The band began as a psychedelic-era beat group and eventually streamlined their sound into a successful formula of hit-making success. Recording relentlessly during the 1970s (40 full-length albums plus countless compilations), the band delivered a solid and familiar pop style and simultaneously branched out with an astonishing onslaught of LPs catering to specific genres which set a precedent for other popular groups to follow in the ensuing years. More than three decades removed from the peak of their popularity in the late 70s, most major Indonesian cities have their own Koes Plus fan clubs, local weekly radio shows dedicated to their music, and frequent tribute band shows. There are currently more than 60 Koes Plus tribute bands on the island of Java alone ranging in age from kids under 10 to those in their 60s. Koes Plus has become a national symbol of pride, an Indonesian legend larger than life; their music seamlessly crossing over from generation to generation. Reissued here for the first time, this CD contains the first two incredibly rare Koes Plus albums in their entirety: Dheg Dheg Plas (commonly referred to as Volume 1) from 1969 and Volume 2 from 1970. Dheg Dheg Plas features spectacular beat rockers such as "Kelelewar" ("The Bat"), "Awan Hitam" ("The Black Cloud"), "Hilang Tak Berkesan" ("Gone Without An Impression") and the title track. It also includes the original versions of two of Koes Plus most brilliant and beloved ballads: "Manis Dan Sayang" ("Sweet And Dear") and "Tjintamu Telah Berlalu" ("Your Love Has Passed"). Volume 2 has spectacular late-60s moments: brilliant and highly resourceful use of electric organ, amazing vocals and the acoustic guitar as a primary rhythmic component in an otherwise electric psychedelic and pop environment. It also includes their heaviest freak-out track, "Pent Juri Hati" ("Heart Stealer"). Both records have been coveted by serious "in-the-know" collectors worldwide for decades and will surely appeal to all fans of the beat and psychedelic era of the late-1960s as a significant missing piece of the global pop music history puzzle. Tri-fold digipack CD with a 20-page booklet featuring rare & unseen photos provided by Koes Plus for this specific reissue project and extensive liner notes of the bands amazing history by Alan Bishop." -Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: MAYET, HISHAM Title: Palace of the Winds Format: DVD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $22.00 |
| "Shot over the course of two years (2006-2008) by Hisham Mayet, Palace Of The Winds is an intimate and dream-like journey exploring the music of Saharawi culture from Guelmim in Southern Morocco to the Mauritanian capital of Nouakchott. With spectacular images from inhospitable landscapes, chimerical phenomena that transpire by the sheer remoteness of the land, and haunting indigenous music from a people that have long been shrouded in mystery, this is a genre-defying film of profound beauty. Explore the intoxicating tapestry of sight and sound that this obscure region has to offer through its most awe-inspiring musicians. Featuring live performances by Group Doueh, Group Marwani, Sadoum Oueld Aida and Group Bab Sahara. Color; 52 minutes; digipack; all-region DVD; NTSC format. Limited edition pressing of 1,000 copies." - Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: SOULEYMAN, OMAR Title: Dabke 2020: Folk & Pop Sounds of Syria Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: US Price: $15.00 |
| "Sublime Frequencies is pleased to present the second volume of Northeast Syrian dabke music from legendary vocalist Omar Souleyman and his group. This CD was compiled by Mark Gergis to coincide with the Sublime Frequencies UK/European tour in May and June of 2009, featuring live performances by Omar Souleyman himself. Culled from dozens of cassettes recorded in Syria from 1999-2008, the music here is an extension of Omars Highway to Hassake: Folk & Pop Sounds of Syria (SF 031CD) release, touching on some previously-unheard angles. Their trademark serpentine synthesizers, electrified bouzok (traditional stringed instrument) and driving rhythms forge a severe form of "new wave dabke" with a live energy and integrity that captures the essence of the Syrian Northeast; one-of-a-kind Syrian dabke party tunes, regional atabat-styled crooners, and unbelievable Iraqi party jams. The CD is packaged in a cardboard sleeve with a paper insert." - Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: SOULEYMAN, OMAR Title: Highway to Hassake: Folk & Pop Sounds of Syria Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $16.00 |
| "Omar Souleyman is a Syrian musical legend. Since 1994, he and his musicians have emerged as a staple of folk-pop throughout Syria, but until now they have remained little known outside of the country. To date, they have issued more than five-hundred studio and live-recorded cassette albums which are easily spotted in the shops of any Syrian city. Born in rural northeastern Syria, he began his musical career in 1994 with a small group of local collaborators that remain with him today. The myriad musical traditions of the region are evident in their music. Here, classical Arabic mawal-style vocalization gives way to high-octane Syrian dabke (the regional folkloric dance and party music), Iraqi choubi and a host of Arabic, Kurdish and Turkish styles, among others. This amalgamation is truly the sound of Syria. The music often has an overdriven sound consisting of phase-shifted Arabic keyboard solos and frantic rhythms. At breakneck speeds, these shrill Syrian electronics play out like forbidden Morse-code, but the moods swing from coarse and urgent to dirgy and contemplative in the rugged anthems that comprise Souleymans repertoire. Oud, reeds, baglama saz, accompanying vocals and percussion fill out the sound from track to track. Mahmoud Harbi is a long-time collaborator and the man responsible for much of the poetry sung by Souleyman. Together, they commonly perform the "Ataba," a traditional form of folk poetry used in Dabke. On stage, Harbi chain smokes cigarettes while standing shoulder to shoulder with Souleyman, periodically leaning over to whisper the material into his ear. Acting as a conduit, Souleyman struts into the audience with urgency, vocalizing the prose in song before returning for the next verse. Souleymans first hit in Syria was Jani (1996) which gained cassette-kiosk infamy and brought him recognition throughout the country. Sublime Frequencies is honored to present the Western debut of Omar Souleyman with this retrospective disc of studio and live recordings spanning 12 years of his career, culled from cassettes recorded between 1994 and 2006. This collection offers a rare glimpse into Syrian street-level folk-pop and Dabke -- a phenomena seldom heard in the West, not previously deemed serious enough for export by the Syrians and rarely, if ever, included on the import agenda of worldwide academic musical committees." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: SOULEYMAN, OMAR Title: Highway To Hassake: Folk & Pop Sounds of Syria Format: Double LP Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $28.00 |
| "Previously released on CD by Sublime Frequencies in 2007, now available on 2LP. Omar Souleyman is a Syrian musical legend. Since 1994, he and his musicians have emerged as a staple of folk-pop throughout Syria, but until now they have remained little known outside of the country. To date, they have issued more than 500 studio and live-recorded cassette albums which are easily spotted in the shops of any Syrian city. Born in rural Northeastern Syria, he began his musical career in 1994 with a small group of local collaborators who remain with him today. The myriad musical traditions of the region are evident in their music. Here, classical Arabic mawal-style vocalization gives way to high-octane Syrian Dabke (the regional folkloric dance and party music), Iraqi Choubi and a host of Arabic, Kurdish and Turkish styles, among others. This amalgamation is truly the sound of Syria. The music often has an overdriven sound consisting of phase-shifted Arabic keyboard solos and frantic rhythms. At breakneck speeds, these shrill Syrian electronics play out like forbidden morse-code, but the moods swing from coarse and urgent to dirgy and contemplative in the rugged anthems that comprise Souleymans repertoire. Oud, reeds, baglama saz, accompanying vocals and percussion fill out the sound from track to track. Mahmoud Harbi is a long-time collaborator and the man responsible for much of the poetry sung by Souleyman. Together, they commonly perform the Ataba, a traditional form of folk poetry used in Dabke. On stage, Harbi chain-smokes cigarettes while standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Souleyman, periodically leaning over to whisper the material into his ear. Acting as a conduit, Souleyman struts into the audience with urgency, vocalizing the prose in song before returning for the next verse. Souleymans first hit in Syria was "Jani" (1996) which gained cassette-kiosk infamy and brought him recognition throughout the country. Over the years, his popularity has risen steadily and the group tirelessly performs concerts throughout Syria and has accepted invitations to perform abroad in Saudi Arabia, Dubai and Lebanon. Omar Souleyman is a man of hospitality and striking integrity who describes his style as his own and prides himself on not being an imitator or a sell-out. Sublime Frequencies is honored to present the Western debut of Omar Souleyman with this retrospective 2LP of studio and live recordings spanning 12 years of his career, culled from cassettes recorded between 1994 and 2006. This collection offers a rare glimpse into Syrian street-level folk-pop and Dabke -- a phenomena seldom heard in the West, not previously deemed serious enough for export by the Syrians and rarely, if ever, included on the import agenda of worldwide academic musical committees. This is a 2LP version of the CD release housed in a full-color gatefold sleeve and coinciding with Omar Souleymans tour of the UK and Europe in May/June of 2009." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: SOULEYMAN, OMAR Title: Jazeera Nights: Folk & Pop Sounds of Syria Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $16.00 |
| "Sublime Frequencies is honored to present Omar Souleymans third Western collection on disc. This retrospective features live recordings spanning 15 years of Omars tireless repertoire, and is rife with frenzied Syrian dabke (a regional folkloric dance and party music), Iraqi choubi and a host of Arabic, Kurdish and Turkish styles, among others -- an amalgamation that exemplifies the musical essence of Northeastern Syria. Culled from cassettes recorded between 1995 and 2009, this collection offers a further rare glimpse into Syrian street-level dabke folk-pop -- a phenomena seldom heard in the West, not previously deemed serious enough for export by the Syrians and rarely, if ever, included on the import agenda of worldwide academic musical committees. Over the years, Souleymans popularity has risen steadily and the group tirelessly performs concerts throughout Syria and has accepted invitations to perform abroad in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Lebanon. In 2006, Sublime Frequencies partnered with Omar to release Highway To Hassake (SF 031CD), the first compilation of his works to be issued in the West. The success of this release and the video for the song "Leh Jani" helped see Souleyman and his group invited for their first Western tour in 2009 alongside label-mates Group Doueh from the Western Sahara. This successful tour quickly elevated Souleyman to the status of an international legend -- and deservedly so. This release coincides with the beginning of Omars 2010 international tour in May which will take him to the UK, the European mainland, and hopefully the U.S. and Canada. CD features a full-color 8-page booklet with great photos, a general overview of the lyrics translated into English and liner notes by compiler Mark Gergis." -Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: V/A Title: 1970s Algerian Proto-Rai Underground Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $16.00 |
| "This is a CD reissue of the limited LP pressing which sold out almost immediately upon release in 2008. This is Raï music from Algeria as youve not heard it before. In the early 1970s, a new group of singers and musicians were operating on the northwest coast, and what they pioneered was a sound that eventually reached worldwide status by the end of the decade; however, their names are relatively unknown to this day outside Algeria. This crucial and defining period of the development of Raï is criminally ignored and overlooked by Algerian music historians and Raï fans. Due to censorship and government-controlled music diffusion, this scene and lyrical style was forced underground and banned from broadcasts, yet slowly built a small following around the seaside cabarets of Wahran (Oran). This period witnessed the rise of artists such as Groupe El Azhar ("The Flowers" group) and Messaoud Bellemou, who can comfortably be considered the Godfather of the modern Raï sound. His group, LOrchestre Bellemou, rewrote a heritage of centuries by using modern instruments and especially the trumpet, which became, during the 1970s, the backbone of the Wahrani genre. Reinterpreting the gasba melodies on trumpet, Bellemou backed singers such as Boutaiba Sghir and Sheikh Benfissa who carried on the lyrical tradition of their forefathers singing about daily preoccupations and problems as well as love affairs, alcohol, or simply owning an automobile! Toward the late 1970s, Cheb Zergui brought a newer ingredient: an electric guitar with a wah-wah pedal. Thankfully, the late 1960s saw the development of vinyl pressing in Algeria. This new industry allowed many small artists including the Wahrani "scene" to record and release singles documenting their repertoire. This compilation is a selection of this proto-Raï scenes vinyl 45s. CD insert features photos of the musicians & informative liner notes by the man who compiled it, Hicham Chadly." -Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: V/A Title: Bollywood Steel Guitar Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $16.00 |
| "Bollywood Steel Guitar is the most comprehensive collection to date of steel guitar pop instrumental music from India. All 21 tracks featured here were film hits from 1962-1986 and all the masters of the steel guitar sound from the period are represented: Van Shipley, Kazi Aniruddha, S. Hazarasingh, Sunil Ganguly, and Charanjit Singh. An entirely different approach that rocks, swings, and grooves through some of Indias most beloved film tunes, the electric steel guitar as lead instrument transforms the already infectious melodies into a multitude of higher sound dimensions. This CD was compiled and carefully selected from rare LPs over several years by Stuart Ellis. Here are some excerpts from his liner notes: "The term Bollywood originally referred to Bombays (now known as Mumbai) Hindi language film industry. Although there are a number of other studios that produce films in other languages, more recently the definition has been expanded in the West to describe pretty much all films produced on the sub-continent. But where in most countries a films soundtrack would merely be used as a promotional tool for the film, in India, film music has become an industry unto itself with playback singers and dance numbers. The music is just as important as the film and lives on long after the film has left the theaters. These songs are, for the most part, the pop music of India. As with most popular music, other artists sometimes recorded cover versions of these songs. Of these musicians, a small number specialized in instrumental arrangements and created what could be called the elevator music of India. While there were a few who used the harmonium or mouth organ, the most popular instrument used in these instrumental favorites was the steel guitar.""-Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: V/A Title: Brokenhearted Dragonflies: Insect Electronica from Southeast Asia Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $14.50 |
| "There is a legend in Burma stating that swarms of male dragonflies gather to join in choruses of high-pitched tones to court their mates. The ones that dont succeed in mating eventually scream so loud that their chests explode and they drop dead to the ground. These recordings are a tribute to this legend. Droning cicadas, dragonflies and other insects display their charm as masters of the High Frequency Airwaves recorded live and unprocessed by Tucker Martine in the lush settings of Laos, Thailand, and Burma. Enter the supernatural world where Entomology and Electronica converge in a tropical hallucination of alien sound. Anyone whos ever wondered if these strange symphonies could be recorded or preserved as precisely as they sound in the field need look no further! Martine has done it and you will be transported to the exact experience one would encounter in these mysterious lowlands. Liner notes by Hakim Bey!" - Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: V/A Title: Bush Taxi Mali: Field Recordings from Mali Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $14.50 |
| "Bush Taxi Mali is an aural tour through the heart of Mali. These field recordings were made by Tucker Martine in 1998 while travelling throughout the West African country. This blend of bluesy Ngonis, clamoring street sounds, the stunning voice of Jalimusa Amanita Diabate (of the famous Diabate family), passing radios, Fulani flutes, runaway sound systems and chants from the Dogon country creates a unique portrait of Malis rich musical heritage. Eventually Martine found himself in the backseat of a beat up Peugeot on his way to the village of Kela, a Jeli village, where the songs and traditions of the Mande people have been scrupulously preserved. Many of the musical performances heard on this disc were made during that visit. Bush Taxi Mali is a strikingly original tapestry of the ancient traditions of Mali in the modern era." - FE |
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Artist: V/A Title: Bush Taxi Mali: Field Recordings From Mali Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $14.00 |
| "Bush Taxi Mali is an aural tour through the heart of Mali. These field recordings were made by Tucker Martine in 1998 while travelling throughout the West African country. This blend of bluesy Ngonis, clamoring street sounds, the stunning voice of Jalimusa Amanita Diabate (of the famous Diabate family), passing radios, Fulani flutes, runaway sound systems and chants from the Dogon country creates a unique portrait of Malis rich musical heritage. Eventually Martine found himself in the backseat of a beat up Peugeot on his way to the village of Kela, a Jeli village, where the songs and traditions of the Mande people have been scrupulously preserved. Many of the musical performances heard on this disc were made during that visit. Bush Taxi Mali is a strikingly original tapestry of the ancient traditions of Mali in the modern era." -Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: V/A Title: Choubi Choubi! Folk & Pop Sounds from Iraq Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $14.50 |
| "Meticulously selected from Iraqi cassettes and LPs found in Syria, Europe and the Iraqi neighborhoods of Detroit, Michigan, this unique collection of folk and pop styles displays a wealth of outstanding music that is exclusive to Iraq and has rarely been showcased abroad. There are many reasons why Iraqi music stands alone in the dynamic world of Arabic music: one example is the unbelievable rapid fire machine-gun rhythms fluttering atop the main tempo. This is the work of a unique nomadic hand drum called the khishba -- also known as the zanbour (Arabic for "wasp"). A style prominently featured here is the infamous Iraqi choubi -- a driving rhythmic style that can include fiddles, double reeded instruments, percussion, bass, keyboards and oud over its signature beat. Other styles featured are the basta (an urban Baghdadi style), the bezikh , and the pulsating hecha . Also heard is the mawal -- a vocal improv that sets the tone of a song, regardless of the style. Additionally there are three cuts from Jaafar Hassan s 1970s record, Lets Sing Together . Being a folk-rock record, its a true anomaly for Iraq. Hassan was a mouthpiece for the Iraqi Socialist movement just a few years before Saddam Hussein . But most of the music in this collection was produced during the Saddam period between the 1980s and 2002. Since the 2003 invasion and the wholesale disassembly of the country, classic tracks like these may already be part of a disappeared past." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: V/A Title: Ecstatic Music of the Jemaa El Fna Format: LP Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $24.00 |
| "For centuries, the Jemaa El Fna (Rendezvous of the Dead) has remained the stage for one of the most spectacular social forums on the planet. By day, this central square in the city of Marrakesh, one of Moroccos great imperial cities, fosters a kaleidoscope of entertainment for its local inhabitants; storytellers, acrobats, magicians and snake charmers all create intriguing displays of bewitching spectacle. As the sun sets, the evening grows frantic with the pulse of the crowd; it is then that the night musicians set up. Free from the restrictions and expectations of light entertainment for a tourist crowd, these musicians manifest ecstatic performances that animate the audience and players alike. The groups represented on this album; Troupe Majidi, Amal Saha, and Mustapha Mahjoub, are working and carrying the torch of their musical heroes nightly in the square. These songs come from the repertoire of Moroccos greatest musical exports: Nass El Ghiwane, Lemchaheb, Jil Jilala, Larssad, and many others from the Chaabi (Moroccan popular music) canon and are given a raw, emotional and fiery interpretation. Instruments are powered by car batteries and blown out through megaphone speakers. These recordings represent a rare opportunity to hear this music at such close proximity taking in all the power and passion of the performances. The raw fidelity captures an unflinching immersion of what is simply some of the greatest street music on earth. Recorded by Hisham Mayet in 2005, a few of these performances were featured in his film Musical Brotherhoods From The Trans-Saharan Highway (SF 041DVD). This collection also contains tracks not present in the film for a more potent snapshot of the ecstatic Jemaa El Fna. Limited edition LP comes in a beautiful full-color gatefold jacket with photos of the musicians and liner notes by Hisham Mayet." -Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: V/A Title: Ethnic Minority Music of North Vietnam Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $15.50 |
| "This is the third volume in a series of tribal village music compiled by Laurent Jenneau from his continual journeys into the more remote tribal areas of Southeast Asia, featuring field recordings of the Giay, Lu, Red Zao, and Black Hmong peoples from North Vietnam. The five selections presented here by the Red Zao are of an unusual vocal style called Baozoo. The Baozoo singing technique can either be a responsive song, or canon singing where a lead singer has his or her words repeated with delay by one, two or three singers. Youve never heard anything quite like it before. The instruments used in other selections include kheng (bamboo mouth organ), jews harp, bamboo sticks with coins, and the piem zat (a reed instrument or oboe affiliated with Baozoo singing). Recorded in and around Sapa, this CD includes an extended track list with added information about each track recorded along with insightful liner notes by Laurent Jenneau with an excerpt included here: "The Lu are the most mysterious to me. First Im easily impressed by people who have radically different beauty criteria; their way to blacken their teeth with a thick layer of black stuff makes every smile special. They seem to have been established in northwest Vietnam since the 12th century. The Giay, like the Lu or Lao, belong to the Tay Kadai language group. They are well established in northern parts of Vietnam and Laos, but emigrated from China 200 years ago. They have three styles of singing for different occasions; for a feast, for night drinking or to sing farewell to someone." - Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: V/A Title: Ethnic Minority Music Of Northeast Cambodia Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $14.50 |
| "For the first time ever from this part of the world, here is a recording that documents the ceremonial animist music from the mysterious tribal villages of Northeast Cambodia. The Tampoans, Krungs, Kavets, Braos, and Jaraîs of Ratanakiri Province and the Phnongs in Mondolkiri Province have been living amidst each other in this region for centuries, preserving and expanding their unique cultural heritage, sometimes at peace and other times in conflict with one another or with foreign invaders. The music includes hypnotic gong ensembles, guitar ballads, bamboo flute and unique local instrumentation such as the gungteng (a 10-string instrument comprised of a bamboo tube holding 10 metallic strings with a dried gourd as resonator) and the mum (a unique one-string Krung instrument bowed with a bamboo using the mouth as a resonator, attached by a string between the instrument and the mouth). The superb singing styles and vocals present throughout are absolutely mesmerizing. These tracks sound like nothing youve heard before, all magnificently documented, transporting the listener into the heart of each performance. Recorded on location by Laurent Jenneau over a 2-year period from 2003-2005 with his revealing liner notes and a detailed tracklist included within." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: V/A Title: Ethnic Minority Music of Northwest Xinjiang, China Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $16.00 |
| "Laurent Jeanneau and Shi Tanding have returned from the northwest corner of Chinas Xinjiang province with an amazing batch of recordings collected during the weeks leading up to the volatile Uyghur uprising of 2009. Armed with their trusty audio gear, the couple was set on getting married and recording various styles of regional ethnic music near the Chinese border with Kazakhstan. However, the local authorities suspected that the pair had other intentions, shadowing and interrogating them wherever they went. Their marriage in Shi Tandings home town of Ili would have to wait for another time (the marriage documents were delayed in processing deep within the Chinese bureaucracy) but the recordings, preserved here, display several magnificent and unique varieties of traditional Islamic folk music with traces of Arabic, Persian, and Turkish influences heard throughout. The players are Kazakh, Uyghur, Kirgiz and Mongol Erut musicians performing on a wide array of local stringed instruments including topchar, komuz, rushtar, rawab and tchang. One amazing example is Kurmanjiang Zaccharia, a Kazakh string virtuoso, whose lightning-fast fingers blaze up and down the neck of his two-stringed dongbra. Another is an epic 10-minute vocal muqam performed by a trio of Uyghur musicians on satar, tambur and dotar. Also featured is a Kazakh singing-style called Ay Ikesse performed by Aken (improvising poet-singers utilizing dongbra accompaniment), Kirgiz songs sung in the Manas style and played on the komuz, and Mongol Erut bai boor den instrumental pieces. The CD comes with a 16-page full-color booklet featuring photos of the musicians and informative liner notes chronicling the journey, instruments and styles documented, and background information on the performers by Laurent Jeanneau." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: V/A Title: Ethnic Minority Music Of Southern Laos Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $15.50 |
| "This is a collection of landmark recordings by Laurent Jenneau, documenting music created by the Harak and various Brao ethnic groups in Southern Laos. This is the second release in a series of spectacular field recordings from some of the more remote ethnic minority communities in Southeast Asia. On this release, you can hear the true historic roots of Molam music (now a venerable popular music style in Laos and Thailand) played on the khaen along with vocal styles from this region. Also featured here are gong ensembles, various stringed instruments, cymbals, drums and sung poetry all captured live on location with the ambient sounds of the surrounding villages. These recordings were made in Xekong, Champasak and Attapeu provinces and because much of this music is unknown, this is probably the first time recordings have ever been released of indigenous music from these remote areas of Southern Laos. Features insightful liner notes by Laurent Jenneau and an extended track listing with added information about each track recorded." - Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: V/A Title: Folk and Pop Sounds of Sumatra Vol. 1 Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $14.50 |
| "The equator runs through only ten countries on earth and I bet that you cannot name them all without consulting a map. Indonesia is one of them and the only nation in Asia with the equatorial stripe impaling it. There are so many different cultures spread-out on these islands, that it would take several lifetimes to experience them all properly. Within this umbrella of diversity is one of the worlds richest and most dazzling sound museums. Sumatra is the northwestern entry point to the great archipelago. It is a large island approximately the size of California. There are jungles, mountains, swamps, various forms of myths and folklore, hustlers, Padang Food, Tigers, the Durian, dozens of cultures and languages, and more music than youve ever been allowed to hear. The selections on this CD are a combination of droning beat pop, pseudo-gypsy songs, jungle folk trance, and other improbable traditional and hybrid styles heard by only a handful of outsiders. These recordings are from old cassette tapes received as gifts, in trade, or purchased from sources in Sumatra in 1989. Some of the tapes are unmarked with the artists unknown, yet all of them are decaying documents of various sound quality containing some of the most eccentric artifacts ever uncovered from this fascinating island." - Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: V/A Title: Folk and Pop Sounds of Sumatra Vol. 2 Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $14.50 |
| "Folk and Pop Sounds of Sumatra (Volume 2) expands our presentation of the worlds least-known, outstanding musical improbabilities. From the infectious trance beat of Sumatras Folk Dangdut music, featuring Rabab (Violin) or Saluang (Flute), to the highly-refined and glorious Orkes Gambus (Orchestral Arabic music with Gambus literally meaning Oud), said to have been brought to the island by Islamic settlers from Yemen, the 18 tracks featured here will instantly convince the listener of the expressive beauty and diversity that Sumatra has contributed to the world music theater. Most of the musicians on this release are Minangkabau or Minang people who are devout followers of Islam as well as the worlds largest Matrilineal society (a Minangkabau child is the descendent of his/her mother, not father). These tracks (chosen from stacks of old cassettes) were recorded from the 1960s through the 1980s and are all but dismissed by many Sumatrans who seem to prefer a more contemporary sound. This is an assortment of relics from a forgotten period of transition in Sumatran music when psychedelic organs echoed underneath arabic string sections and rustic violins sawed atop trance beats from poorly-lit night markets. The Minang sound is like no other and it represents a vital link in the somewhat cloudy history of Sumatran music. Keep in mind that this is NOT a document for the mere purpose of preservation, although it may serve as such. This IS among the very best music youve never heard and you need to hear it NOW!" - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: V/A Title: Harmika Yab-Yum: Folk Sounds From Nepal Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $14.50 |
| "Harmika Yab Yum is a divine blend of Radio excerpts and field recordings from Nepal compiled by Robert Millis. This exciting mosaic snares among other oddities, a King Cobra snake charmer, the sounds of slaughtering buffaloes and guns firing amidst a Durga Puja festival, dreamy folk music, Sarangi and Harmonium players seeping in from unknown radio signals, pounding drums, praying monks, child choruses, street sermons, loudspeaker promotionals, and quiet footsteps at the top of the world. Millis has produced many curious audio works as a member of the group Climax Golden Twins and this collection of Himalayan ephemera captures the timeless beauty of the worlds highest Kingdom, land of the rhododendron, the Kumari (a living goddess), and the legendary Yeti. (Recorded in Kathmandu, Pokhara, Gorkha, and other undisclosed locales in 1996)." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: V/A Title: I Remember Syria Format: Double CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $16.50 |
| "A jaw-dropping expose of music, news, interviews and field recordings from one of the least-known quarters of the Arab world. The country of Syria has been politically and culturally exiled for decades by the western media leaving little known of its rich heritage of art, music and culture. Recorded and surgically-assembled by Mark Gergis from two trips to Syria in 1998 and 2000, disc one of this 2-CD set features recordings made in Damascus and is a virtual documentary of sound from the legendary Capital including street scenes, a wedding, a mosque interior, spontaneous live music and interviews with citizens, radio broadcasts, a song about Saddam Hussein, and the mystery of an underground city called Kazib. Disc two extends to Greater Syria with the same approach capturing live musicians, political opinions, radio excerpts, an interview with an anonymous homosexual, and unique sound documents from this small but highly-influential corner of the Middle East." - Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: V/A Title: Latinamericarpet: Exploring the Vinyl Warp of Latin American Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $15.50 |
| "...Psychedelia Vol. 1. "Latinamericarpet is a non-stop collage of vinyl artifacts culled from stacks of forgotten LPs of the 1960s and 1970s from Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Peru, Chile, and Isle de Pascua (Easter Island). Historically, Latin America was part of the "new world" that Christopher Columbus "discovered" in 1492, which soon was brutally conquered by the Spanish and Portuguese. Obviously it was only a "discovery" from a Eurocentric perspective because, in fact, on these vast lands there were hundreds of advanced native cultures living for centuries. However, after countless years of violent colonization and internal wars, the independence emerged on the whole continent, launching a group of new countries with their own unique identities. But what is Latin America nowadays? A complex answer for a complex puzzle: some people would say its a huge cocktail that combines -- in a more or less chaotic way -- the ruins of pre-Columbus cultures and diverse European traditions mixed with a high dose of pseudo-tropical weathers, Latin manners and unstable economies... although thats also a simplification: Latin America is just Latin America, and it deserves to be "rediscovered." But lets go straight to the record. This compilation brings together some glittering sounds from LPs that have been somehow forgotten over the years. Although most of the tracks presented here were recorded during the peak of the psychedelic era in the late 60s and early 70s, this is not a collection packed with guitar group psychedelia, although there are a few unknown gems here that qualify as such. There are also pop and folkloric songs, childrens songs, odd instructional record excerpts, and a few other anomalies from our neighbors to the south. These selections are only brief samples of what was made in Latin America in those glorious years, but while we wait for further works that can bring to light more sounds from this "undiscovered" continent, just relax, turn on your stereo and keep this magic Latinamericarpet flying." --Compilation liner notes by Albano Costillares (Argentina)." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: V/A Title: Molam: Thai Country Groove From Isan vol. 2 Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $15.50 |
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Artist: V/A Title: Molam: Thai Country Groove From Isan Vol. 2 Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $15.50 |
| "This is volume two in the Sublime Frequencies series, Molam: Thai Country Grooves From Isan. Molam is a multi-faceted folk country music native to Laos and the collection of rural Northeastern Thai provinces called Isan. Molam is an umbrella term used for numerous lam styles. It literally translates to "expert singer" or "expert song." Featured here in volume 2 of this series are lam phun, lam thuy, lam plern, lam dern and lam sing styles of molam recordings from the 1970s and 1980s. All of these forms are built from a tradition that is centuries-old. A few examples of molam/luk thung (Thailands national country music) hybrids are also featured here. In the late-1960s, at the onset of molams modern genesis, electric guitars and organs were introduced alongside the extant folk sounds of the khaen (bamboo mouth-organ) and phin (Thai lute). Hybrid styles were formed with an electrified sound that jived with tradition while creating something entirely new. Much of the music relies on stock formulas, designed primarily to showcase the stylings of various singers from the region. But, as this brilliant collection demonstrates, the rules tend to bend a bit as more adventurous groups experiment with the genre and the production. Sound effects, flamboyant vamping, odd vocal styles or trick intros and finales based on popular rock themes show up now and then, among other playful and dynamic shifts, making for some exceptional listening. So join the folks at Sublime Frequencies in their perpetual and confounding love affair with Thai Isan Molam. Enjoy this rarely-heard music, culled from vintage cassette and vinyl recordings, rescued from the silent places in which theyve rested for the past decades." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: V/A Title: Music of Nat Pwe: Folk and Pop Music of Myanmar (Burma) Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: US Price: $15.50 |
| ... Vol. 3. In Myanmar (Burma), many people believe in ghost spirits called Nats. These spirits are historical figures who met tragic or violent deaths. They are said to possess the power to assist or devastate the lives of those who recognize them. A Pwe is a ceremony held to appease a Nat. Pwes are arranged daily throughout Myanmar for many purposes including the achievement of success in business, a happy marriage, or improving ones health. A Nat is summoned through a Kadaw; the flamboyant and charismatic master of ceremony dressed in elegant costume. The Kadaw is a spirit medium, singer, dancer, storyteller and magician who exposes the crowd to a living incarnation of the Nat. Cash money is thrown and cigarettes and whiskey are hand-delivered by the Kadaw to the willing faithful. Audience participants are often ecstatic, spontaneously launching into trance as the Nat spirit possesses their bodies while the melodically ornamental and thundering sound of the Nat Pwe orchestra plays on as perhaps the last great internationally unknown musical juggernaut existing anywhere. This collection of music documents the phenomenon known as the Nat Pwe orchestra. There is absolutely nothing like it anywhere else on earth. If you are looking for some music to groove to, soothe your mind, or relax to, this is NOT for you! This is some of the most jarring, intense and maniacal music being created on earth today. Your head will be spinning amidst the cranked reverb and echo of the vocals as they swirl like locusts in a floating graveyard as the bells, cymbals, and tuned metal bars crash and spill down an endless staircase, while the hand drums and Hsaing-Wang circle of rhythm pound the beat in and out of a million twists and turns until youve either had enough or you get with the program. Turn it up and submit. This is what its ALL about, schoolboy! - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: V/A Title: Musical Brotherhoods from the Trans-Saharan Highway Format: DVD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $21.00 |
| "Filmed in 2005 by Hisham Mayet, predominately at the Jemaa Al Fna in Marrakesh, Morocco, Musical Brotherhoods from the Trans-Saharan Highway captures an assortment of spectacular musical dramas presented live and unfiltered on the home turf of the worlds most dynamic string and drum specialists performing and manifesting the ecstatic truth. Ancient mystical brotherhoods have been flourishing for centuries in and around the cities of Marrakesh and Essaouira in Morocco where the trade caravans have gathered from their long journeys across the Trans-Saharan Highway. This is some of the last great street music on Earth. A must-see for string aficionados looking for inspiration as electric ouds, banjos, mandolins and the Gnawa sentir peel flesh from bone right before your eyes! Color; 60 minutes; digipak; all-region DVD; NTSC format."- Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: V/A Title: My Friend Rain Format: DVD/CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $20.00 |
| "My Friend Rain -- A film by Robert Millis (color/38 minutes). Filmed throughout Southeast Asia by Robert Millis between 2002-2004, My Friend Rain is an abstract homage to the endless monsoon cycles of rebirth and destruction. Dreamy musical segments, fleeting glimpses, odd sounds, temple shrines, tropical backdrops, decay, death, languid afternoon rains, and mysterious celebratory events take the viewer from soaked mornings in the lowlands of the Irrawaddy Delta to humid nights on the streets of Isan province. Two tracks originally released on Millis Leaf Music, Drunks, Distant Drums CD from 2002 can now be witnessed for the first time in this film: an amazing elephant mahout playing a song on a leaf with his mouth and a Burmese marionette orchestra musician performing expertly on tuned drums. The overall experience is an impressionistic collage of sight and sound captured live and in the moment on location in Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Myanmar. Along with the DVD which features 12 minutes of extra footage and deleted scenes, the package includes a bonus CD with the films soundtrack of traditional and popular music culled from live performance, cassette and LP archives. Some of the soundtrack highlights: a gorgeous Thai Luk Thung track by Waiphot Phetsuphan, a classic Khmer performance by Pan Ron, one of the Queens of Cambodian music, and an epic Burmese pop rendition of the Bee Gees "How Do You Mend A Broken Heart," alongside folk performers, street musicians and a traditional Burmese orchestra. Robert Millis, original co-founder of both Climax Golden Twins and AFCGT, also co-produced the Victrola Favorites: Artifacts From Bygone Days (DTD 011CD) book/CD project on Dust-to-Digital and is a frequent contributor to the Sublime Frequencies label. DVD/CD comes in a 2-disc jewel box with a full-color insert. DVD is NTSC format, region free." -Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: V/A Title: Night Recordings From Bali Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $14.50 |
| "The island of Bali is Indonesias most popular place. With the modern beach resorts at Kuta and Legian, the lovely, tropic interior of palm-covered hills and rice paddies, and a rich variety of art, dance and music, the island is a destination of choice for travelers around the world. But, regardless of their increasing role of servicing an ever-demanding tourist industry, the Balinese are a strong-willed and tight-knit society. The island is a tiny enclave of Hinduism within a massive nation of Islam, yet, their Gamelan music is faster, tighter, and louder than their mighty neighbors to the west, the Javanese. Balinese Gamelan stylings and the Ketchak dance are legendary throughout the world and have been immortalized in sound recordings and on film for decades. But, beneath the creeping exterior of a pseudo-western culture slowly overtaking an amazing tradition of unique human expression, the moods of the island are governed by magic and superstition. The hills, forests, rivers, and crossroads are alive with tales of demons (Leyaks) and a flesh-eating Ogress (Rangda). A lesser-known darker side of Balinese life secretly balances the lighter side tropical paradise of tourist brochures. This CD is entirely composed of field recordings from August and September of 1989. The majority of the recordings were made at night in and around the villages of Peliatan and Ubud. Amidst the excerpts from Gamelan and Ketchak are sounds of the forests and mysterious crossroads where packs of dogs seem to take on forms of angry demons. Also encountered here are odd folk stylings for flute and drum, outdoor village theatre, and other sound anomalies from the center of Balinese culture." - Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: V/A Title: Proibidão C.V: Forbidden Gang Funk from Rio de Janeiro Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $15.50 |
| "Proibidão is the name given to a certain kind of electronic funk music produced in Brazilian favelas, especially in Rio de Janeiro where it started to appear in the beginning of the 90s as a parallel phenomenon to the growth of drug gangs along the citys more than 600 slums. A raw mix of live funk vocals and Miami bass structures, these anonymous funk tracks are spread illegally by DJs and gang-sponsored parties. Proibidão is a raw musical genre that captures the dark side of Brazilian favelas. The explicit lyrics of apology to drug gangs and the violent content makes them illegal to broadcast through radio or as live public events. Proibidão can only be heard in the bailes or dances that the gangs organize and that run every day of the week in different locations in the slums around Rio. The production of a Proibidão occurs in different ways. A DJ spins Miami bass rhythms straight from sample CDs, and an MC talks on top of it, mainly live in street bailes and then recorded through a simple multichannel to a minidisc or simply straight. No mix is done and only sometimes an extra production is done. The gang leaders, to spread the respect and love for the gang as well as hate to the other gangs, finance the bailes and hire the DJs and sound systems. At most parties, this is recorded live and spread then as an mp3 or CD to different other DJs and bailes. Its life runs a minimum of 6 months and depending on its popularity, it can go on for more than one year. The selection featured on this CD compiles music recorded live during the beginning of 2003 in different favelas from Zona Sul, South Rio de Janeiro -- a zone once controlled by the drug gang called Comando Vermelho, mainly responsible for the citys growing rates of homicide and power corruption, as well as Rios and Brazils growing drug consumption. C.V Comando Vermelho (Red Command) is a criminal organization that was founded in 1979 in the prison Cândido Mendes, on the island Ilha Grande (RJ), as a connection of common prisoners and militants of the Falange Vermelha (Red Phalanx), which fought the military dictatorship. During the entire 1990s the criminal organization was the strongest in all of Rio de Janeiro, but today the principal leaders have been arrested or are dead, and the organization is not as strong. The Comando Vermelho still control parts of the city and seeing streets tagged with "CV" is common in many favelas in Rio de Janeiro. This CD is in no way an apology for these groups, but a document to portray a moment in time in Rio de Janeiros musical and social history. All audio imperfections are left as they were when collected, as these tracks are the only remaining documents of this music. Recorded and assembled by filmmaker Carlos Casas, courtesy of some anonymous MCs and DJs in different bailes along the favelas of Zona Sul, Rio de Janeiro during March-April 2003." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: V/A Title: Radio Java Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $14.50 |
| "Java is the center of Indonesian culture. Three out of every four Indonesians live on Java. It is the home of some of the most elegant musical styles to be found anywhere. To the veteran international sound collector, Javanese music is no secret. For the uninitiated, rather than going through an introductory outline of Javanese music history, I will wish you away to the internet, a library, or bookstore where you can find plenty of information on the subject. The selections on this CD are a combination of random radio excerpts sequenced in collage form and assembled in the summer of 1989. This disc is a highly unique document featuring many angles of Javanese sound finally slipping through the cracks. Among many other oddities, youll hear several examples of Javanese pop (from Dangdut and Keroncong to Hard Rock and Disco), news snippets, folk music, radio commercials, Jakarta DJs, The west Java Sundanese sound, spooky theatre extracts, and high-octane Jaipongan variations that are completely over the top. There has never been anything like this." - Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: V/A Title: Radio Myanmar (Burma) Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $15.50 |
| "The Union Solidarity & Development Association (USDA) has grown to become one of the most pervasive organizations in Burma, claiming over 22 million members (nearly half the countrys population). Very little is known of the USDA to the outside world, but it has become embedded throughout the social infrastructure of the state. Its widely-published statutes expressing the importance of state sovereignty and public solidarity can be found in all mediums throughout the country: newspapers, television, billboards and radio broadcasts. Known as the "Three Main National Causes," "Four-Point Peoples Desire," "Seven Point Road to Democracy" and "Twelve Political, Economic and Social Objectives," each broadcast day begins with their recitation. Most of the recordings featured in this radio collection were captured in Yangon during March and April of 2007. With the authorities attempting to control all information coming into or leaving the state, rarely does the world catch a glimpse inside Burma. This is a special opportunity for listeners to delve behind the headlines and into the airwaves; to hear for themselves the sounds, rhythms, and voices of urban Burmas radio experience, unfiltered by the international press or state-spokesmen. Myanmars Voice broadcasts nearly 24 hours a day across much of the country, playing an assortment of Burmese classics; USDA pledges; and recitations of articles published by the state-run The New Light of Myanmar Times. Due in part to the near-blackout of all foreign music on state airwaves, the few FM stations that do exist in Yangon and Bago divisions, transmit a rather bizarre assortment of music from 7am to 9pm: synth ballads, hip-hop jingles, and internationally popular songs re-recorded in Burmese. This release also features assorted tracks recorded between 1994-2002, highlighting many wonderfully strange and beautiful pop, folk, and classical music styles. There are vast resources easily available to anyone interested in learning more about Burma or the USDA; this recording is simply intended to showcase the extraordinary sounds rarely heard beyond its borders." -Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: V/A Title: Radio Sumatra: The Indonesian FM Experience Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $14.50 |
| "The music and production encountered here represents a cross-section of Sumatran FM radio and to a greater extent, whats happening now in Indonesian culture. From the signature sounds of Sumatra (Melayu, Minang Pop, the Batak ballad) to the widespread Indonesian phenomenon of Dangdut, this exclusive FM only Radio Collage will leave your skull shattered, wondering why its taken so long to be turned-on to the modern pulse of the worlds fourth largest country. Some of these selections come from Java and other parts of Indonesia via the FM airwaves of Sumatras major cities. Islamic Folk, Gambus Rock, and gorgeous anomalies are also placed in the mix amidst brief news reports, advertisements, prayers, and karaoke call-in shows. Many of the station IDs could be mistaken for American or European networks and much of the music is highly influenced by western pop/rock/punk/metal/rap/etc. But beyond these obvious comparisons is an explosive musical kaleidoscope; still fresh, somewhat sincere and naive, and a bit resistant to the grasp of the worlds cultural export Moguls. This is an essential listening experience. There is undeniable evidence here of how Indonesians have crafted some of the worlds most thrilling popular music....yet the rest of this world somehow refuses to recognize it....that is, until now! (Recorded, assembled and edited by Alan Bishop/ 2004)." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: V/A Title: Saigon Rock & Soul: Vietnamese Classic Tracks 1968-1974 Format: Double LP Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $29.00 |
| "The long-awaited foray into the Vietnamese rock, pop and soul sound of the late 1960s and early 1970s is finally here. Saigon Rock & Soul delivers the goods international retro collectors have been searching for in vain for many years -- and it delivers beyond belief. Every song is a mini-masterpiece, be it heavy acid-rock psychedelia, horn- and guitar-drenched funk grooves, or gripping soul ballads reflective of life during wartime. The tracks that form this collection cut a window into a rich musical Vietnamese music scene that has long been obscured, and for the most part, forgotten. As the scope of electrified Vietnamese music from the 1960s and 1970s begins to be revealed, it becomes evident that this was among the heaviest and most eclectic musical scenes of Southeast Asia at the time. These songs tell of war, love and what war does to love. All of them were recorded in makeshift studios and even U.S. army facilities while the Vietnam War raged -- and were issued by a handful of Saigon record companies on vinyl 45s and reel or cassette tapes. Westernized forms of music in Vietnam had appeared during the latter 19th century, and especially during the early 20th century, under the influence of the French colonizers. Tan Nhac (trans. "modern music") always incorporated both domestic and international sounds, and continued to develop alongside Western musical trends. During the 1960s and 1970s, pulp ballads were being recorded by leading crooners of the time who alternated between modern and traditional forms of regional music. When the electric guitar hit the streets of Saigon, Vietnamese renditions of contemporary instrumental trends such as surf-rock, beat and twist soon emerged, followed by some pretty deep soul sounds inspired by Motown radio hits as well as funk grooves brought on by James Brown and his contemporaries. By the mid-1960s, Vietnam had been ravaged by war for years. American G.I.s had become a standard fixture in Saigon, as did many of the cultural artifacts they brought with them. This certainly included the music. The sounds of rock and roll dominated the radio waves, and Saigon nightclubs were teeming with new sounds. Musically, The Shadows and The Ventures soon gave way to The Beatles and The Rolling Stones as an enthusiastic set of young Vietnamese rockers signed on to the lifestyle, always eager to hear the latest musical trends the G.I.s would bring in on LP or tape. This era saw the birth of a vibrant rock scene, yet rock music and anything that came close was commonly referred to as "soul" in the Vietnamese genre-listings. Like many cultures in Asia, Vietnamese music is recorded, marketed, listened to and disposed of in a relatively quick manner. This level of advanced ephemera ensures a degree of difficulty when trying to unearth and discover cultural histories. Literally, most of the music heard here has been brought back from the dead. Artists featured include some of Vietnams most popular at the time: Elvis Phuong, Hung Cuong, Mai Lei Huyen, Le Thu, Thai Thanh, Giao Linh, Mai Lei Huyen and the CBC Band. This limited edition 2LP vinyl release features 70 minutes of classic original recordings compiled by Mark Gergis housed in a beautiful full-color gatefold jacket with extensive liner notes." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: V/A Title: Shadow Music of Thailand Format: LP Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $26.00 |
| ""Shadow Music" was a broad term given to the Thai guitar pop movement of the 1960s and the groups that came out of it -- all under the profound influence of early Western rock and roll. British instrumental wonders The Shadows (as in Cliff Richards & The Shadows) were the origin of the genres title -- also coined "Wong Shadow" or early Thai "string" music. Shadow records were often marketed as "Thai Modernized Music" which it was in the truest sense. Traditional Thai melodies were given the Shadow treatment -- incorporating rock, surf, a-go-go, exotica, soul, blues, Latin and otherworldly styles of the times. Inventive compositions and instrumental genius meet the occasional odd vocal arrangement and the results range from plaintive guitar and organ-driven lullabies to full-blown electric garage folk-psychedelia! Featured on this collection are a handful of the leading recorded artists from the time; P.M. Pocket Music, The Son of P.M., P.M.7, Jupiter and Johnny Guitar. Throughout the 1960s, these groups forged a unique and highly self-referential Thai sound. This is a one-time pressing of 1500 LP copies and each of these beauties comes in a full-color, heavy-duty tip-on gatefold jacket featuring gorgeous original Thai Shadow LP artwork, and of course, 180 gram vinyl -- so dont sleep on this one." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: V/A Title: Shadow Music of Thailand Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $16.00 |
| "This is the CD issue of the sold-out limited LP vinyl release from 2008. "Shadow Music" was a broad term given to the Thai guitar pop movement of the 1960s and the groups that came out of it -- all under the profound influence of early Western rock and roll. British instrumental wonders The Shadows (as in Cliff Richards & The Shadows) were the origin of the genres title -- also coined "Wong Shadow" or early Thai "string" music. Shadow records were often marketed as "Thai Modernized Music," which it was in the truest sense. Traditional Thai melodies were given the Shadow treatment -- incorporating rock, surf, a-go-go, exotica, soul, blues, Latin and other worldly styles of the times. Inventive compositions and instrumental genius meet the occasional odd vocal arrangement and the results range from plaintive guitar and organ-driven lullabies to full-blown electric garage folk-psychedelia! Featured on this collection are a handful of the leading recorded artists from the time; P.M. Pocket Music, The Son of P.M., P.M.7, Jupiter, and Johnny Guitar. Throughout the 1960s, these groups forged a unique and highly self-referential Thai sound. Includes an 8-page insert featuring the gorgeous original Thai Shadow LP artwork and liner notes by compiler Mark Gergis." -Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: V/A Title: Siamese Soul: Thai Pop Spectacular 1960s-1980s Vol. 2 Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $16.00 |
| "This second volume in the Thai Pop Spectacular series brings together regional artists from across Thailand. Some were modest pop players of their time, while others were major stars. Siamese Soul features 1970s hard-grooved roots funk, hypnotic Luk Thung tracks from the Northeastern Thai countryside, 1960s rock & roll and 1980s groove anomalies. All cuts come heavily laced with electric organs and guitar, thick horn sections, the traditional khaen, driving bass and stunning vocal performances with a richness that can easily be called Thai soul music of the highest order. These creative sounds formed by hybrids with Western instrumentation and genres, result in an incredibly dynamic music that is distinctively Thai. Selected from cassette tapes and vinyl found buried on bottom shelves in rural locales, these tracks serve as further evidence of a vital Thai pop scene thats been kept from Western ears for far too long. This CD comes with a 16-page booklet of amazing exclusive photos documenting the era with translated song titles and liner notes by Mark Gergis and Alan Bishop." -Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: V/A Title: Singapore A-Go-Go Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $16.00 |
| "Sublime Frequencies works its way down to the tip of the Malaysian peninsula with this superb collection of Singaporean 60s beat, pop and "off-beat cha-cha" classics compiled from original vinyl 45s. These 22 supercharged beat-a-go-go tracks defy a common held belief that the Chinese couldnt rock, groove or swing back in the 1960s. The vocals are sung in the dialects of Mandarin and Hokkien and they soar, with catchy hooks atop groovy, clever beats. Theres plenty of electric guitar, organ and crazy percussion rocking and twisting behind it all, at times reaching quite a mad and freaky state of affairs. The records finale, "Happy Lunar New Year," sung by Linda Yong, may be the weirdest New Years greeting ever recorded. Every single cut is a winner and it never lets up, from start to finish. Although most of the lyrics focus on love, innocence and festive atmospherics, theres an epic vibe to the music that rivals other extremely well-recorded and unique pop styles emanating from the surrounding Southeast Asian scenes during the late 1960s. Seminal bands of the period like The Stylers and The Silvertones are well represented here, backing up a wide array of popular vocalists with Charlie Electric Guitar Bands Sound of Japan ripping it up on four brilliant instrumental tracks. CD comes with a 16-page booklet featuring gorgeous, full-color photos of the original 45 sleeves and extended liner notes from compiler William Gibson." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: V/A Title: Streets of Lhasa Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $14.50 |
| Latest amazing batch from Sublime Frequencies, the label overseen by Alan Bishop/Sun City Girls. The label defines itself as "a collective of explorers dedicated to acquiring and exposing obscure sights and sounds from modern and traditional urban and rural frontiers via film and video, field recordings, radio and short wave transmissions, international folk and pop music, sound anomalies, and other forms of human and natural expression not documented sufficiently through all channels of academic research, the modern recording industry, media, or corporate foundations. SUBLIME FREQUENCIES is focused on an aesthetic of extra-geography and soulful experience inspired by music and culture, world travel, research, and the pioneering recording labels of the past including OCORA, SMITHSONIAN FOLKWAYS, ETHNIC FOLKWAYS, LYRICHORD, NONESUCH EXPLORER, MUSICAPHONE, BARONREITER, UNESCO, PLAYASOUND, MUSICAL ATLAS, CHANT DU MONDE, B.A.M., TANGENT, and TOPIC." "Streets of Lhasa lifts us to the high plateau of Tibet where anonymous street balladeers sell folk songs for a living and ghostly voices drift in an ambience of time forgotten. Children, birds, trains, prayers and a traditional temple activity called bian jing (where monks discourse about scripture and punctuate their points by clapping loudly) provide the backdrop for this disc with the folk music of the street taking center stage. These enterprising musicians sing passionate songs and play instruments like the Erhu and the San Xian. The recordings are as clear as the strings of these banjo and violin-like instruments scathed by leather fingers of the high, thin air. Tibet has been under Chinese control for nearly half a century and their leader, The Dalai Lama, resides in exile to the south in Dharamsala India. Buddhism remains of primary importance here and chants of song and prayer are heard throughout the plateau. This ornamental carnival of sound was recorded by Zhang Jian (of the Beijing-based sound collective fm3) on the streets of Lhasa, ZhaDa and Shigatse in August 2003. Liner notes written by Steve Barker (ON THE WIRE/BBC)." - Sublime Frequencies. |
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Artist: V/A Title: Sumatran Folk Cinema Format: DVD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: USA Price: $21.00 |
| "A film by Mark Gergis and Alan Bishop (Sun City Girls), Sumatran Folk Cinema is a psychedelic collage of images and sounds from the heart and soul of the islands culture with the main focus on music. Witness classic dangdut rock music, street and country scenes, raw TV excerpts, Minang orchestras, night markets, a variety of folk musicians, audio/visual artifacts and much more wrapped in a 60 minute kaleidoscope complete with an epic soundtrack. Sumatra is the northwestern entry point to the Indonesian archipelago. Its 40 million inhabitants are primarily Muslim and speak the national language of Bahasa Indonesian. Most of the film was shot during a span of two weeks in August of 2004 in and around the cities of Medan, Padang, Bukitinggi, and Padang Panjang. It features a variety of street musicians, nightclub acts, folk groups, and incidental happenings that surround musicians in their daily lives. This film has no narration nor is it meant to express any particular theme or agenda. This is intuitive folk cinema and film collage, shot on location as it unfolded and assembled in an attempt to capture the essence of being there. All material was shot before the "Tsunami" of December 26, 2004 destroyed the city of Banda Aceh and the northwestern coastal areas of Aceh province. The Bandah Aceh segment was shot by David Martinez in 2003. The additional footage of the GAM (Free Aceh movement) rebels ambushing a government motorcade was filmed by Billy Nessen in 2001. GAM has since declared peace with the Indonesian government, given up their weapons and filtered back into Aceh society. All region DVD contains bonus footage of musical performances and trailer segment. Color; 60 minutes; digipak; NSTC format."- Sublime Frequencies |
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Artist: V/A Title: Thai Pop Spectacular: 1960s-1980s Format: CD Label: Sublime Frequencies Country: US Price: $15.50 |
| Thai pop history has been largely ignored and neglected by the international musical community for far too long. By the late 20th century, Thai pop music had developed as many faces as localized roots music such as molam or styles like luk thung or luk krung (each with their own respective pop-sectors). Bangkok -- always the hub of the Thai recording industry -- attracted musicians and singers from across the country that were both informed by tradition and inspired by the wealth of international sounds entering the region via radio and phonograph. Jazz, for instance, had a profound influence on early Thai pop music, the King of Thailand himself being a noted jazz composer. This superb collection features modern Thai music styles combining with elements of surf, rock, funk, disco and comedy, revealing the use of clever instrumentation, brilliant vocals, great arrangements, twisted breaks, and resourceful production techniques. Discover the Queen of Luk Thung, the 1960s "Shadow Music" sound, classic tracks from Thai films, blazing examples of Bangkok disco from the 1970s, legendary Thai comedy pop, and the most outrageous version of "The Night Chicago Died" youll ever encounter. Thick horn sections, wah-wah guitars, tight drums, and funky organs help round out this astounding set which proves beyond a doubt that the Thai were a completely unique and powerful force during the 1960s, 70s & 80s global popular music explosion. - Sublime Frequencies. |