David Murray - Black & Black 1992

In general, tenor saxophonist David Murray's Red Baron recordings are not on the same level of his Black Saints albums; the settings tended to be more conservative and the material not as strong. This outing with pianist Kirk Lightsey, bassist Santi Debriano, drummer Roy Haynes and trumpeterMarcus Belgrave is better than most of his Red Baron releases. The material is fairly basic (including "Duke's Place" and the two-note "C Jam Blues" theme, which is listed as being composed by four people), Murray tends to play fairly freely despite the boppish rhythm section, and the closing "Head Out" (the longest of the five lengthy jams) has plenty of fiery intensity. Not essential but worth picking up by David Murray fans. AMG.

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Emir Kusturica & The No Smoking Orchestra - Unza Unza Time 2000

No Smoking's debut as a "world" band reintroduces filmmaker Emir Kusturica -- who had a brief stint as the bass player of Zabranjeno Pusenje (Yugoslavian for No Smoking) in the mid-'80s -- to the group. Now one of the band's guitarists, he contributes sparingly toward songwriting and arranging. This is still the band of lead singer Dr. Nelle Karajlic, whose acerbic vocals and commanding presence dictate the group's course. But colorful instruments like balalaika, tuba, accordion, trumpet, and accordion contribute significantly as well. The term "Unza Unza" describes the hybrid of music found on this record. The Balkans are a centrally located region surrounded by Turkish, European gypsy, Greek, Russian, Middle Eastern, and Italian music. German and Spanish music is also welcome into this interwoven musical fabric that cites the local music of Romania, Serbia, Hungary, Albania, Bosnia, and Bulgaria as its foundation. The '70s punk sound that was No Smoking's initial influence is all but abandoned here, although Karajlic still retains some of his snarling and loathsome attitude. Combine that with the eclecticism of groups like Reptile Palace Orchestra and Brave Comboand the offbeat tendencies of mid-'80s Tom Waits, and perhaps a rough portrait of this group can be painted. This is an incredibly unique album that is essential listening for fans of alternative world music. AMG.

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Jimi Tenor & KabuKabu - The Mystery of Aether 2012

Best described as techno's first cabaret star, Finland native Jimi Tenor is what you might imagine Detroit's answer to a cheesy lounge artist would be. Coming off as a kind of lo-fi Prince cross-bred with Maurizio, Atom Heart, and perhaps Jean-Jacques Perrey, Tenor's recordings are released through Sähkö/Puu (home to most of the scant Finnish techno scene); despite the fact that they stick out of the label roster like a sore thumb, they have attracted something of a devoted cult following, mainly among the IDM/electronica crowds. Unlike most electronica artists, however, who routinely name-check Kraftwerk, Juan Atkins, and Carl Craig as influences, Tenor leans more toward names like Barry White, Isaac Hayes, and '70s B-movie and blaxploitation soundtracks. Classically trained,Tenor gained the attention of influential Sheffield label Warp after releasing the full-length Europa in 1996, leading to a recording deal and reissue plans for some of Tenor's Sähkö releases. Warp featured the previously unavailable Tenor cut "Downtown" on their Blechsdottir label comp and released the 7"/CD single "Can't Stay with You Baby" a few months later, with two additional singles appearing in early 1997.
Prior to his solo work, Tenor fronted Jimi Tenor & His Shamans, who in 1988 starting releasing several albums on the Poko, Euros, and Bad Vugum labels (including Total Capacity of 216, 5 Litres, Diktafon, and Fear of a Black Jesus, which included a 3-D sleeve and glasses). Despite the studied imperfection of his recordings (Tenor chides modern electronic music for sounding lifelessly exacting), he spent 12 years studying piano, flute, and saxophone at a Finnish music institute. After dissolving the Shamans in the late '80s,Tenor moved to New York, where he worked as a tourist photographer at the Empire State Building. He finally hooked up with Sähkö after receiving a copy of a solo recording by Mika Vainio (of Pan Sonic and Ø). Impressed with the label's openness to experimentalism (Sähkö had previously been known as something of the muso's minimalist techno label), Tenor sent along some tapes and landed a recording contract, releasing his debut, Sahkomies, in 1994. While in New York he also recorded withKhan/4E's Can Oral (under the name Bizz O.D.), releasing the "Traffic" single on Ozon in 1995. Tenorreturned to Finland in 1995 to film a documentary of Sähkö (funded, oddly enough, by a government grant) and has remained there since, releasing Europa in 1996 and securing licensing and recording arrangements with Warp. The full-length Intervision was released in 1997, followed two years later byOrganism.
After the release of Out of Nowhere in 2000, Tenor and Sähkö parted ways with Warp. His sixth full-length, Utopian Dream, an overtly solo electronics record, still received import distribution. Tenor was performing with a large band for 2004's Beyond the Stars, distributed widely through Kitty-Yo, and 2007's Joystone with his backing unit Kabu Kabu. The combination also paired for 2009's 4th Dimension. In 2010, Tenor and Afro-beat drum legend Tony Allencollaborated on a volume in Strut's excellent Inspiration Information series. Itetune, a collaboration with Ethiopian percussionist Abdissa "Mamba" Assefa, appeared in 2011. In February of 2012, the first exhibition of Tenor's photographs were shown at the Kingi Kongi Gallery in Helsinki, followed by his first feature film, Sähkö, which debuted in Berlin. He capped the eventful year by releasing The Mystery of Aether with Kabu Kabu for Kindred Spirits. AMG.

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Dashboard Confessional - Alter The Ending 2009

Other musicians have rounded out its lineup from time to time, but Dashboard Confessional has always been the brainchild of Chris Carrabba, the most sensitive raven-haired rocker this side ofMorrissey. Like Morrissey, Carrabba has built a career upon heartbreak; unlike Morrissey, he's never had a band as a strong as the Smiths to give his songs the right amount of lush, electric kick. As a result, Dashboard Confessional's best moments usually occur whenever Carrabba consolidates his strengths and functions as solo musician, from the more intimate moments of his MTV Unplugged performance to acoustic-based albums like The Places You Have Come to Fear the Most and The Shade of Poison Trees. 2009's Alter the Ending finds him reprising his role as frontman, though, yielding a track list that includes some fine songs but couches them in uninspired arrangements. It's testament to Carrabba's songwriting that these tunes fare far better on the bonus disc (available as part of the album's deluxe package), where they're played on acoustic instruments. Add a three-piece band to the mix, however, and you're left with hooks that suddenly feel clichéd, lyrics that try too hard to evoke a sense of teenaged abandon ("We lit the van with dreams after the sun burned into cinders"), and electric guitars that lack the trebly energy of their acoustic counterparts. Returning fans may take comfort in these cathartic anthems, but those who were won over by Poison Trees -- a return-to-form effort that combined melody with more nuanced arrangements -- will prefer the deluxe edition's acoustic disc. AMG.

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Colette Magny - Chansons pour Titine 1983

Colette Magny was a French singer/songwriter with a propensity for protest songs whose musical style was informed by blues, jazz, folk, poetry, and spoken word. Born on October 31, 1926, in Paris, France, she made her recording debut in 1963 with the single "Melocoton" on CBS. The single, the closest she would ever come to a mainstream breakthrough hit, was subsequently compiled on her full-length solo album debut, Les Tuileries (1964). Her final release on CBS, Les Tuileries is comprised of musical adaptations of works by writers Victor Hugo, António Jacinto, Arthur Rimbaud,Rainer Maria Rilke, Antonio Machado, and Louis Aragon, plus a couple American traditionals and a few originals. Magny returned two years later with "Avec" Poème (1966), an experimental full-length effort informed by musique concrète on which André Almuro is credited for the music. After this experimental effort on the short-lived label Disques Mouloudji, Magny began her long association with the label Le Chant du Monde, beginning with the album Colette Magny (1967), sometimes referred to by its album-opening song, "Vietnam 67." Subsequent albums on Le Chant du Monde include Magny 68 (1969), Feu et Rythme (1970), Répression (1973), Transit (1975), Chili un Peuple Crève... (1976), Visage -- Village (1977), Je Veux Chaanter (1979), Thanakan (1981), Cahier d'une Tortue (1981), and Chansons Pour Titine (1983). In later years, Magny self-released the album Kevork (1989) on the label Colette Magny Promotion, and some of her Le Chant du Monde output was reissued in the early '90s. Her death on June 12, 1997, in Villefranche-de-Rouergue, Aveyron, France, sparked another round of reissues including Melocoton (1997), which compiled the highlights of her CBS output, and Blues(1999), which is essentially a repackaged version of her final Le Chant du Monde album, Chansons Pour Titine. AMG.

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Bonnie Bramlett - I'm Still the Same 2002

Even those who remember her performances as copilot of the soulful all-star revue called Delaney & Bonnie & Friends will be startled by the intensity of this comeback album. With full-throated, empathetic vocals throughout I'm Still the Same, Bramlett connects a variety of pop traditions, from jump blues to gauzy romantic balladry, and makes it all work. Her ability to read a lyric on tunes like "Hurt" compares to that of Dinah Washington, and not unfavorably. At medium tempos, such as theSantana-style samba of "What If," Bramlett sings comfortably around the beat, working the tension between the steady pulse and her more rubato phrasing. She's strongest, however, when the groove is slow; the 6/8 crawl of "No Man's Land," for example, lets her draw full dramatic effect from the lyric, especially on long notes that she can twist, stretch, and milk dry through a carefully controlled vibrato, subtle timbral variation, and other tools of expression. And her wrenching, intimate revival of "Superstar," sweetened by Mickey Raphael's haunting harmonica fills, will induce chills, whether you remember the '70s or not. AMG.

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Eddie Hazel - Rest In P 2000

Like Jams From the Heart, Rest in P isn't a full-length LP but rather a compilation of vault recordings dug up to satisfy P-Funk fans' insatiable hunger for Eddie Hazel material. A Japanese import, Rest in Pactually manages to eclipse the brief four-song Jams of the Heart by featuring that material under different song titles as well as additional material. Standout moments include the three epic jams: "Juicy Fingers" (14 minutes), "We Three" (12 minutes), and "No, It's Not!" (nine-and-a-half minutes). These songs showcase exactly why Hazel became so revered among later generations of P-Funk aficionados -- his '70s studio work, with the exception of "Maggot Brain" and "Free Your Mind...And Your Ass Will Follow," only hints at his Hendrix-like soloing ability. Note that this collection is primarily instrumental studio brainstorming and was never intended for release. Hazel's 1977 solo album,Games, Dames & Guitar Things, is recommended first, since it features a more polished sound actually intended for mass release, along with songs to actually accompany the jamming; unfortunately, that album is near impossible to find. Either way, this is still a fine collection of Hazel's unreleased studio work from the late '70s that will provide ample insight to this man's ongoing legacy as an under appreciated funk-metal guitarist. AMG.

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Casuarina - Casuarina 2005

An interesting samba and choro group from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Here with one of his records give it  listen.

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Afrika Bambaataa & The Soulsonic Force - Don't stop...Planet rock The Remix EP 1992

An updated EP takes the by-now-ancient "Planet Rock" beat and runs it through the 1990s hip-hop production machine. The results aren't all that successful, even though the sound is now contemporary. But its hook was old-school, as was its charm. The newer version lacks bite. AMG.

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Concha Buika - Niña de fuego 2008

With a quivering, seductive, mournful, and remarkably flexible voice, Concha Buika earned a healthy following in her homeland as the great ‘00s chanteuse of flamenco. The singer enchanted crowds on a U.S. tour just prior to her 2008 stateside debut, NINA DE FUEGO, a bewitching and diverse record featuring echoes of everything from Coltrane to Jobim to Radiohead. The sound ranges from the dark offbeat artistry of the title track to the downright breezy playfulness of “Arboles de Agua,” on an engrossing opening statement of an album. AMG.

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Ballake Sissoko - Tomora 2005

One of the modern-day masters of his instrument, Ballaké Sissoko is a Malian kora player who found success as a recording artist, generally in collaboration with others, most notably fellow Malian kora player Toumani Diabaté. Born in 1968 in Mali and based in Paris, France, he is the son of Jelimady Sissoko, a master of the kora. Sissoko first made a name for himself as a recording artist in 1999 with co-billing on the Toumani Diabaté album New Ancient Strings. The following year, he released the solo-billed album Déli (2000), which features his wife, the vocalist Mama Draba, among other musicians. Subsequent albums include Diario Mali(2003), a collaboration with Italian contemporary classical pianist Ludovico Einaudi; Tomora (2005);3MA (2008), a collaboration with Moroccan oud player Driss el Maloumi and Madgascan valiha playerRajery; and Chamber Music (2009), a collaboration with French celloist Vincent Ségal. AMG.

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Aaron Goldberg - Worlds 2006

Pianist Aaron Goldberg has an intriguing style that is a little reminiscent of Marian McPartland in its harmonic sophistication. Although seven of the ten selections on Worlds are his originals, several hint at various standards, most notably "Unstablemates," a witty de-construction of Benny Golson's "Stablemates." The interplay between Goldberg, bassist Reuben Rogers, and drummer Eric Harlandis consistently inventive, and Luciana Souza adds her haunting voice to "Kianda's Song." However, the high point of this CD is "Oud to Omer," which matches Goldberg with guest guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel. The two musicians bring out the best in each other and plenty of sparks fly, making one hope that Goldberg and Rosenwinkel work together more often. AMG. 

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Carla Bley - Big Band Theory 1993

Carla Bley's 1993 recording Big Band Theory features her 18-piece orchestra playing three rather moody and atmospheric originals, plus a straightforward rendition of Charles Mingus' "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat." Listeners expecting the rambunctious humor that was present in some of Bley's earlier big band albums will be disappointed, but there is quite a bit of beauty on this set, particularly during the dramatic slow section of "Birds of Paradise" and the strangely episodic "On the Stage in Cages." Key among the soloists are trumpeter Lew Soloff, trombonist Gary Valente, altoist Wolfgang Puschnig,Andy Sheppard on tenor, and violinist Alex Balanescu. But overall this set (which is enjoyable enough) is less memorable than one would expect from Carla Bley. AMG.

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