Rolling Global Outernational Non-West Non-English (Some Exceptions) 2018 Thread Once Known as World Music

I was about to witness a three day ceremony with five gong players, each man holding one gong, drunk on new rice alcohol fermented for three weeks. All I knew when I left Banlung (a Khmer town) was wanting to check Kavet territory and luckily winter is the time of celebration when people of the villages congregate. Some have not seen each other for months or weeks and reunite on the territory of the village after rice harvest has been finished.

Excerpt from article about Laurent Jeanneau, aka Kink Gong, who traveled around Southeast Asia between 1996 and 2014 recording traditional musicians

https://www.popmatters.com/sounds-of-zomia-kink-gong-2608153653.html

thanks for posting -- saving for later
five gong players!

Angelique Kidjo sounded powerful and emotional in singing in front of world’s politicians in Paris at Armistice Day WWI event

Here's the video of Kidjo. She celebrated peace and sung tribute to fallen World War One African soldiers with a moving rendition of a song popularized by a Togo singer, Bella Bellow.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpABEO2Embs

Seeing Tal National & Fatoumata Diawara on best of lists, whom else do you like (yea I know it’s only November)!

Imarhan, Hailu Mergia, Ebo Taylor, Bombino

I generated this at work at Spotify using listening data from the first day of streaming in the 13 Middle-East/North-African countries we launched in this week:

https://open.spotify.com/user/glennpmcdonald/playlist/43PAWHK47Nl6B9BW59EDxI?si=-Sywg3ZeRPqKDCpuOtlbgg

Also, if you don't already know about these, a few other ways to see what people around the world are programming or playing on Spotify:

http://everynoise.com/worldbrowser.cgi (Spotify editorial playlists)
http://everynoise.com/countrysounds.html (countries)
http://everynoise.com/everyplace.cgi (cities)
http://everynoise.com/hyperspace_house_concerts.cgi (cities, part 2)

How are the editorial playlists generated?

Oh, sorry, the editorial playlists are made by humans, that's what "editorial" means in this context.

you hire ppl in all these different countries to make these playlists? how often do they update them?

Yes, although sometimes a small team handles multiple countries. Update frequencies vary, but most of the Featured ones get new stuff daily or weekly.

and who are the ppl who make them? music journalists in those places, radio ppl, fans?

They're Spotify employees, and come from various backgrounds. You can see openings on our Jobs site, including two of these positions right now (one for Classical, one for Indonesia):

https://www.spotifyjobs.com/search-jobs/#search=senior+editor&category=shows-editorial

New Music Friday Maghreb is largely US rap and indie. Uh, thanks Spotify editorial

Welcome to Mena is more interesting

Well, my rogue efforts at globalist data-liberation notwithstanding, NMF Maghreb exists for the local audience, not for musical tourism. In North Africa by default you see that instead of the other versions, not in addition, so of course it has a lot of global artists...

Spotify Colonialism Maghreb

But I like many of the other ones

The city thing there is interesting. Had used it before but forgotten about it.

Back to Mordy's post -- yes to Ebo Taylor and the others...Thanks for reminding me

Bandcamp and Pitchfork contributor Marc M*st#rs got folks talking about African reissues and some new stuff on Facebook the other day: Here's some stuff mentioned

subscribe to the Now-Again/Rappcats thing where I get downloads every month of whatever obscure Zamrock thing they're currently doing

Dur Dur of Somalia on Analog Africa Bandcamp

All the Zamrock stuff is a blast - Witch, Chrissy Zebby Tembo & Ngozi Family. Ripping guitars

African Scream, vol. 2; Ernesto Chahoud presents Taitu; Editions Syliphone Conakry reissues ; The first Rikki Ililonga record (Zambia) reish on Now-Again is GREAT.; Habibi Funk; Sahel Sounds; Asnakech, by Asnakech Worku; Two Niles to Sing a Melody: The violins and Synths of Sudan on Ostinato records via Bandcamp; Shina Williams & His African Percussionists are well worth checking out. He used a lot of the same musicians as Fela Kuti. ; Electric Jive label South African 60s reissues

I missed out on that Afro-garage rocking Zambia stuff like Witch when it was first getting reissued circa 2011 I think, but have heard a bit now

i love that stuff

I need to get to the South African and Sudan reissues next.

heads up jordan, there was a new toto bona lokua album in the past year, more than that long ago actually

http://www.noformat.net/album-toto-bona-lokua-bondeko-58.html

sounds great

Sometimes Richard Bona can be a bit too syruppy jazzy, but maybe not in Toto Bona Lokua

29. Hailu Mergia - Lala Belu

From the Wire magazine album poll. Sons of Kemet won

xps to curmudgeon:

The Dur-Dur and Sudanese compilations are talked about (a bit) on this thread:
’Sweet as Broken Dates: Lost Somali Tapes from the Horn of Africa' - THIS COMP OMG.

https://amanardekidal.bandcamp.com/album/alghafiat

Afropop worldwide podcast/radio show "Stocking Stuffers"-new,and reissued African and Caribbean and Central American and Latinx

http://afropop.org/audio-programs/stocking-stuffers-2018

Ebo Taylor, Yen Ara (Ghana)
Angelique Kidjo, Remain in Light (Benin artist covers T. Heads)
Bokanté & Metropole Orkest & Jules Buckley, What Heat, (US, Netherlands, Guadeloupe)
Ronnie Moipolai, I’m Not Hear to Hunt Rabbits, (Botswana guitarist)
“Listen All Around” Double cd comp of pre-independence music from central (Congo & more0 and east Africa
Bombino, Deran (Niger guitarist)
Delgres, Mo Jodi,(Paris-based Guadeloupe meets Creole Louisiana)
Stella Chiweshe, Kasahwa: Early Singles (Zimbabwe reissue)
Toko Telo, Diavola (Madagascar)
Damily, Valimbilo (Madagascar)
Doctor Nativo, Guatemaya (Guatemalan reggae-cumbia)
King Koya, Tierra de King Coya (Colombian techno-cumbia)
Anbessa Orchestra, Negestat (Ethiopiques led by Israelis in Brooklyn)
Hailu Mergia, Lala Belu (Ethiopia)
Sidi Touré, Toubalbero (Mali)
Fatoumata Diawara, Fenfo (Mali)
Harouna Samake, Kamele Blues (Mali)
Invisible System, Bamako Sessions (Mali)
Irene Mawela, Ari Pembele - Let's Rejoice (South African old-school mbaqanga singer)
Professor Rhythm, Professor 3 (South Affrican reissue on Awesome Tapes)
Qhizzo, Gqom Plug (South Africa)
Thabang Tabane, Matjale (South African Venda roots-jazz)
Lucibela, Laço Umbilical (Cape Verde singer's debut)
Los Rumberos De La Bahia, Mabagwe (Cuban rumba)
RAM, RAM 7 - August 1791 (Haiti)
Bachata Haiti, Bachata Haiti
Sarazino, Mama Funny Day (Paris-based Algerian singer)
MHD, 19 (Paris-based Afro-trap rapper whose parents are Guinean and Senegalese)
Moulay Masters, Moulay Ahmed El Hassani, Atlas Electric (Moroccan mountains)
Tallawit Timbouctou, Hali Diallo (Malian desert )
Dur-Dur Band, Dur-Dur Of Somalia
Two Niles to Make a Melody, the Violins and Synths of Sudan.
Cheikh Lô, Ne La Thiass vinyl reissue (Senegal)
African Scream Contest 2 (Benin)
Dr. Nico, Dieu De La Guitare vinyl reissue (Congo)
Bumba Massa, V70 (Congo)
Jupiter and Okwess, Kin Sonic (US release 2018) (Congo)
Bixiga 70, Quebra Cabeça (Brazil)

yeah! i was just listening to that ep. those are always great, lots of exposure to different stuff.

A Rosalia song seems to be the token non-English language track on Pitchfork’s top 100 tracks.

33-year-old singer Jackson Aluta Kazimoto, known as Dogo Jackie or Jackie Simela, of great Tanzanian band Jagwa Music died in a car accident

https://www.musicinafrica.net/magazine/tanzania-jagwa-music-frontman-dies

I listened to Irene Mawela, Ari Pembele - Let's Rejoice (South African old-school mbaqanga singer)
Thabang Tabane, Matjale (South African Venda roots-jazz)

from the afropop stocking stuffers list above-- eh they're ok. Still loving Ebo Taylor from Ghana. Need to hear more from that afropop list

https://www.catrinfinchandseckoukeita.com

Folk Roots critics poll album of the year is a collaboration between a Welsh harp player, Catrin Finch and a Senegalese kora player, Seckou Keita

http://www.transglobalwmc.com/category/charts/annual-charts/

Monsieur Doumani is their top North African/ Middle East winner

I still haven't listened to Doumani. Heard a little of the Finch and Keita record -- beautiful at times, too easy listening at other times

The Afro-folk of Madagascar group Teko Telo is pleasant enough

Transglobal WM Chart Best of 2018!
BEST ALBUM OF 2018: Monsieur Doumani
2-Catrin Finch & Seckou Keita
3-Fatoumata Diawara
4-El Naán
5-Ammar 808
6-Gabacho Maroc
7-The Turbans
8-SANS
9-Vigüela
10-Samba Touré

20 = Ammar 808 Maghreb United (Glitterbeat)

This on Folk Roots poll. I like it

Monsieur Doumani did not wow me. It turns out that they are a three-piece Cypriot band

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Tx4cRw6TIIg

Guitarist Ronnie Moipolai from Botswana has over a million views

Check out the flashy fingerwork, people!

That Jupiter & Okwess album from Congo is a keeper. Great guitar sound, unusual arrangements, head nodding but not typical rhythms

Some albums on the Quietus list of 100 that I need to check out. Heard a little of this one and liked it:

The sheer range of what Maryam Saleh, Maurice Louca and Tamer Abu Ghazaleh are trying to combine on Lekhfa - trad chaabi, mahraganat, Nile Delta psych, classic Egyptian pop, Middle Eastern jazz, smoky... ...That's a choice by the Q editor who has posted here on ocassion

Listening to Qhizzo- Gqomm Plug now. More interesting than European techno, but still the club beats can get a bit tiresome. This is from South Africa and the vocals are melodic and interesting in how the interact

Ammar 808 Maghreb United (Glitterbeat) has made a few polls

looking for Mdou Moctar bookings in florida, charleston sc, savannah, open to house shows - get at us at booking (at) sahelsounds (dot) com

didn't know you were repping Moctar curmudgeon! Hoping to see him briefly at Drom early next month.

That was from a Sahelsounds tweet. I am just trying to help Moctar and Sahelsounds out. Have seen Moctar live 3 times and he and his band are wonderful. They deserve well-paying gigs in Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina.

Jason King in his year-end piece as part of the Slate discussion among critics:

Though Africa has largely fallen off the American news radar, the music rocketing out of the continent remains straight fire. Projects by GuiltyBeatz, Aka, Fatoumata Diawara, Seun Kuti, Femi Kuti, Emmanuel Jal, Burna Boy, Muzi, Tal National, and Ammar 808 are all worth streaming. My favorite contemporary record this year, however, was I’m a Dream, the sophomore set from Gambian-Swedish chanteuse Seinabo Sey.

https://slate.com/culture/2018/12/2018-music-both-directions-at-once-coltrane.html