fantazia
Content tagged as fantazia.
Toufic Farroukh: Tootya (Ode)
World music purists will moan that there is very little "authentic" about this album by Lebanese saxophonist Farroukh and they may well be right: the sessions in Paris doubtless account for the slightly synthetic and polished quality, and the clubland feel of some tracks. But . . . . With the core of the recordings seeming to...
Hadouk Trio: Baldamore (Naive)
For an issue of Real Groove magazine I wrote about how boring many New Zealand jazz albums are -- they simply don't surprise and are often retreads of standards which have been done better elsewhere. I like my jazz to have an element which makes me sit up and listen -- and this French/North African trio managed to do that, and more. I...
Various Artists: Turkish Groove (Putumayo/Elite)
The Putumayo label pumps out the compilations and some of them, most actually, are pretty indifferent. But the likeable generic packaging has captured the imagination so some people just get into that "buy the series" thing -- and get stuck with uninteresting Asian Lounge, various albums of kiddie folk, and disappointing collections...
world-music/870/various-artists-turkish-groove-putumayo-elite/
Fantazia: Mul Sheshe (Harmonia Mundi)
More music from an unexpected source, in this instance North East London where this group formed around oud player/songwriter Yazid Fentazi to play the music of the Algerian Berbers -- with a jazzy Western spin courtesy of saxophones, trumpet, flute and keyboards. Stupid band name unfortunately, but I guess that's what happens when you look...
Various: Belly Dance (Think Global)
Okay, okay. A belly dance album doesn't quite shake my tree either -- but put aside your preconceptions and what's here is a very good sampler of Arabic music from big names like Hossan Ramzy, the Cairo Orchestra, the Sami Mossair Orchestra and others. It comes with good liner notes too: the name "belly dance" for raqs sharki...