Hey folks, welcome to your new Between The Cracks selection. As always no lengthy write-ups as who reads those anyway? We keep it short and to the point because you’re here to listen to the music! Check out our weekly mini-guide below and if you like what you hear, click the links and support the artists.
Albums
Bennie Maupin & Adam Rudolph – Symphonic Tone Poem for Brother Yusef
A tribute album from two musical heavyweights, Bennie Maupin & Adam Rudolph, is dedicated to the legendary Yusef Lateef, initially commissioned for the Angel City Jazz festival to mark Lateef’s 100th birthday in 2020. The two jazz greats weave a meditative blend of saxophone, percussion and electronics across five extended tracks.
Fuchs – Fuchs
A group of seven musicians gathered at a studio in Weilheim in 2005 to let their creative juices flow in an impromptu session. The recordings remained unheard for years until Alien Transistor decided to give Fuchs, the never-was band, the spotlight it deserves. The collective seamlessly weaves through alternative, indie pop, industrial, jazz, and krautrock on this newly discovered gem with a free-form approach.
Yama Warashi – Crispy Moon
We’re in love with this one! Yama Warashi’s beautiful third album is a dreamy psychedelic folk, pop and jazz experimentation that features Cathy Lucas of Vanishing Twin, Aletta Verwoerd on drums and Mermaid Chunky’s Moina Walker on sax. In contrast to early releases such as Moon Zero and Moon Egg, which had a lo-fi, homespun feel, this album is grander in its sound and possesses an understated yet confident grandeur. Well recommended.
Yaya Bey – Remember Your North Star
Needing some killer contemporary R&B? Look no further than the Brooklyn vocalist Yaya Bey’s new album for Big Dada records. One to watch in 2022 and beyond!
Rhabdomantic Orchestra – Almagre
Following their 2016 debut, open collective Rhabdomantic Orchestra unveils Almagre. By bringing together elements of Afrobeat, jazz, krautrock, Mediterranean melodies, salsa, and library music, this album creates an intensely fresh kaleidoscopic soundscape full of irresistible, addictive grooves. The project is rounded out by the dulcet tones of Colombian singer Maria Mallol Moya.
Noori & his Dorpa Band – Beja Power!
Noori & his Dorpa Band share their new album Beja Power! via Ostianto Records. The label discovered them while they were scrolling Sudanese Tik Tok videos. Noori presents a rivetting soundtrack of Sudan’s revolution showcasing the Beja sound. The tenor sax of bandmember Naji mixes fluidly with the sounds of electric soul, blues, jazz, rock, surf, and even some country. It’s all grounded by the hypnotic sweet Beja melodies of Noori’s tambo-guitar. Buy on sight!
ANTELOPER – Pink Dolphins
‘Pink Dolphins’ is the new album from ANTELOPER – a Brooklyn-based improv duo consisting of jaimie branch (trumpet, electronics, percussion, vocals) and Jason Nazary (drums, synths). The album features sound snippets from improvisations recorded by the pair (with engineer Ian Hersey) at Carefree Studios. Jeff Parker contributes his legendary skills in shaping, mixing, and editing the 5-track record. He also plays the guitar on some tracks. Get ready for improvisational, free-wheeling, other-worldly music that feels like it belongs in the cosmic world.
Kikagaku Moyo – Kumoyo Island
The fifth and final album from the Japanese band Kikagaku Moyo is a potent set of tripped-out acid and psychedelic rock tunes. Kumoyo Island is their most ambitious and expansive effort yet, featuring a mix of conventional psychedelic guitar rock with sitars, percussive drums, and wind instrumentation. Kikagaku Moyo go out the way they came in impressively!
Reissues
Ted Curson – Pop Wine
Grats to SouffleContinu Records for reissuing this fantastic album of modal with touches of free jazz brilliance by trumpeter Ted Curson. Alongside Curson are Georges Arvanitas (piano), Jacky Samson (double bass) and Charles Saudrais (drums). Pop Wine was recorded in Paris and released initially on Futura Records in 1971.
Compilations
Various Artists – Mr Bongo Record Club Volume Five
The fifth instalment in Mr Bongo’s ‘Record Club’ series cast its net far and wide by selecting sounds from Brazil to Cuba, Ghana, Japan, Jamaica, and beyond. The comp pulls music from the 70’s up to the present day, featuring John Barry-Moore, Mark Capanni, Sven Wunder, Admin, Gyedu Blay Ambolley, and more. Must-have.
