FlipSwitch - Past

	Jerry Leake, Cubist (Rhombus Publishing), It is no coincidence that the music in Cubist reinvigorates the concepts presented by the Cubist movement in the early 20th century. Like Picasso, Leake set out to represent each musical object—each theme, instrument, and influence—from all sides, in relation to the listener. As a result, a more profound musical awareness and aesthetic evolved with sounds that intertwine human experience with global music experience. 11/23/09 >> more
	Joyful Noise (I Grade Records), The urgency of the messages on Joyful Noise is plain to see. Each artist delves into their chosen topics with intense passion and skill. From spiritual anthems like “Everlasting” by the Nazarenes to sufferers anthems like Duane Stephensons “Hard Times”, this album is chock-full of songs that the earth needs hear – songs that will make you tune in and take notice as these sixteen different artists make a Joyful Noise unto the Lord 11/17/09 >> more
	WOMEXIMIZER, WOMEX, the annual gathering of the planet's global music pros, is about to happen in Copenhagen, Denmark. The WOMEXIMIZER compilation album gives the world a view into artists likely to tour worldwide in coming months and years. From the funk and rumba grooves of Kinshasa’s famous "disabled band" Staff Benda Bilili to the Chinagress revolution of Hanggai, the album has something for everyone; new sounds, old sounds, and everything in between. 10/14/09 >> more
	Mahala Rai Banda, Ghetto Blasters (Asphalt Tango Records), How do you find THE great Gypsy group, a sort of Balkan equivalent of the Memphis Horns with the rhythm section from Muscle Shoals, these two being the gold standard of soul music, combining power and finesse, groove and virtuosity? It’s easy, just bring together the musicians from Clejani and of Zece Prajini! 10/06/09 >> more
	Mr. Something Something, U.S. Tour, Mr. Something Something's highly energized, political, funny and unpredictable live shows have earned the band an extremely loyal following and a reputation among audiences and critics alike as an act not to be missed. In October, select American audiences will finally get a chance to see what all the fuss is about as the band is scheduled for six US engagements, including a stop at The Shrine in New York City. 09/16/09 >> more
	BalkanBeats, A Night in Berlin (Piranha Musik), The crowd is dancing wildly. Suddenly the rhythm stops, the drums fall silent. Only the trumpet moans, then changes into a looping oriental melody. The drums start again. The crowd jumps up, dancers shout in desperate ecstasy...This is BalkanBeats 09/09/09 >> more
	Les Triaboliques, rivermudtwilight (World Village), In summation, says Adams of rivermudtwilight, “I think it’s a record that couldn’t have been made by younger people. In the playing and singing you can feel the years of dusty bus rides, chaotic soundchecks, ecstatic concerts, mastery and confusion in roughly equal measures, a warts and all portrait of gnarly mavericks. Amen.” Amen, indeed 09/02/09 >> more
	Christine Vaindirlis, Dance Mama! (Ubuntu World Music), She tucked little tributes into her complex arrangements: a flugelhorn solo honoring Hugh Masekela, a piano nod to Abdullah Ibrahim, background vocals reminiscent of the Mahotella Queens, horns alluding to Robbie Jansen and the African Jazz Pioneers. She created the design for the album artwork after long days of arranging, inspired by images and colors from Zulu beadwork and colorful geometric paintings on Ndebele houses 08/31/09 >> more
	Slide to Freedom II, Doug Cox and Salil Bhatt (NorthernBlues Music), It’s a collaboration that goes far beyond the obvious “Indian meets blues;” it’s an improvised road trip across the terra incognita of the planet’s slide instruments. “People often think of slide instruments like the dobro as hokey American folk instruments, the kind of thing you play while sitting on a haybale,” Cox smiles, “but slide developed all over the world, from the United States to India and China, though it has a North American reputation. If you look at most folk musics, there usually is some kind of slide involved.” 08/19/09 >> more
	Indian Ocean, US Tour, Take basic Indian rhythms, throw in some reggae and jazz, mix in some folk and pop, season with some ragas and rock and the result is better than you might imagine. Well, Indian Ocean’s loyal following think so, anyway. The quartet from Delhi have refused to have their unique sound branded, defined or categorised. Not an easy thing to do, anyway, since many listeners and music critics agree that there has never been anything quite like Indian Ocean before. With traditional Indian hymns, chants and poetry incorporated into contemporary arrangements, their music is strikingly original and fresh. 08/17/09 >> more
	Boban i Marko Markovic, Devla (Piranha Musik), Markovic and his son and prized protégé Marko are the bomb in Balkan brass dance music, harnessing the absolute flexibility of Miles Davis and the cool funk of Herb Alpert in the ultimate expression of their Southern Serbian Rroma roots. 08/17/09 >> more
	Salsa Celtica, U.S. Tour (Discos León), Salsa Celtica kick off their US tour in NY and then move onto play some of the largest Celtic and World festivals in the US. Salsa Celtica last toured the US on 2001 when the played the Lincoln Centre and and some of Manhattans most underground salsa clubs since then the group has gone on to become one of the most exciting world music groups touring at the moment. 07/29/09 >> more
	Khaled, Liberté (Wrasse Records), Khaled's new album, Liberté, could not be more aptly named. Casting off the shackles of record company formatting, the Rai king has freed that extraordinary voice from beneath layers of synthesisers. Liberté, recorded with producer Martin Meissonnier, reveals the full extent of Khaled's incredible vocals Khaled digs deep into the past on his new album, bringing a handful of his old songs to light including the wonderful Raïkoum. But the outstanding feature of this new album is the reinstatement of the "intro", a scene-setting prelude on which the singer's carefully modulated voice extrapolates on the theme of each song 07/01/09 >> more
	Amadou & Mariam, The Magic Couple (Wrasse Records), Once upon a time there was a magical couple whose destinies were as intertwined as their actions and where their union rendered the impossible possible. His name is Amadou and hers, Mariam. Now their best tracks are available on "The Magic Couple" (Wrasse Records) and when they open for Coldplay on their July USA tour. 06/30/09 >> more
	[dunkelbunt], Raindrops and Elephants (Piranha Musik), Similar to Kruder & Dorfmeister and Jazzanova, Vienna-based Hamburg native Ulf Lindemann aka [dunkelbunt] is part of the creative DJ movement which transcends standard Central European techno and house music by drawing inspiration from other genres and cultures 06/18/09 >> more
	Aphrodesia, Precious Commodity (Shackrobeat Records), Aphrodesia isn’t afraid to turn everything on its head and send it through the distortion pedals of their own sensibility. A slang term for Shanghai hookers becomes a tribute to women’s value; wall-shaking amps create the perfect distortion for an age-old lamellophone; a cross-continent move spells inspiration not band demise; and a new-found freedom turns dedicated Afrobeat orthodoxy into free-wheeling fusion. 06/17/09 >> more
	Selaelo Selota, Lapeng Laka (SIN/Sony South Africa), For South African musician Selaelo Selota, home is where electric guitar intertwines freely with broken families, beloved forests, and the wily animals of sePedi legend. Memories of hunting with a throwing stick mix with those of mining gold and sweeping jazz clubs, before Selota discovered his talent for jazz guitar. Sorrow for the father who abandoned him mingles with commitment to be a central figure in his own family’s life. Anger over the abuse of an aunt who fled her cruel husband in terror on a bike intermingles with passionate appreciation for a beautiful lover. Selota’s roots and hopes combine on Lapeng Laka (SIN/Sony South Africa; August 4, 2009), Selota’s circumspect yet joyful return to the music and deeply personal experiences of his village youth. 06/12/09 >> more
	Sister Fa, Sarabah: Tales from the Flipside of Paradise (Piranha Musik), Sister Fa is Senegal's Queen of hip-hop. But getting to the top wasn't an easy road - for a woman to break through in an almost exclusively male field within a male-dominated society, it was a long, hard journey. Struggle breeds compassion, and Sister Fa uses her international album debut "Sarabah - Tales from the Flipside of Paradise" to speak out against the injustices rampant in her native country. Warm, groovy and unmistakably African, her raps, in Wolof, Manding, Jola and French, roll elegantly over beats as well as traditional sounds (kora and djembe), delivering tracks far removed from rap clichés, and more influenced by 80s Old Skool hip-hop than current Western forms of hip-hop. 05/20/09 >> more
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