Songlines Magazine (June 2017, #128) by Songlines Magazine

WELCOME

Editor-in-chief Simon Broughton Publisher & Publishing Director Paul Geoghegan Editor Jo Frost Deputy Editor Alexandra Petropoulos Art Director Calvin McKenzie Advertisement Manager James Anderson-Hanney Marketing Manager Edward Craggs Online Content Editor James McCarthy Reviews Editor Matthew Milton News Editor Alex de Lacey Listings Editor Tatiana Rucinska World Cinema Editor John Atkinson Sub Editor Emma Baker Editorial Assistant Rachel Cunniffe Cover Photo Alex Harvey-Brown savannahphotographic.com Contributing Editors Jane Cornwell, Mark Ellingham & Nigel Williamson Subscriptions Director Sally Boettcher Editorial Director Martin Cullingford CEO Ben Allen Chairman Mark Allen SUBSCRIPTIONS

UK: 0800 137 201 Overseas: +44 (0)1722 716997 subscriptions@markallengroup.com ADVERTISING

Reconnecting folk and nature

ur pensive-looking cover star Sam Lee has been cropping up all over the place lately: on the radio, in the newspapers and even on BBC Breakfast TV. This flurry of interest in the folk singer is largely down to Lee’s penchant for singing with nightingales. Of all of Lee’s musical projects – and they are diverse and numerous – this is the one that’s most captured people’s imaginations. Lee’s profile is however likely to soar to skylark high levels once Guy Ritchie’s latest movie, King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, hits the screens, as it’s his melodious voice that features on the soundtrack. Find out what else this musical polymath has got lined up – including a special concert for Songlines Encounters Festival – on p32. One person who is well acquainted with the impact cinema can have on the popularity of an artist or musical genre is Francis Falceto, the man behind the Éthiopiques series. Director Jim Jarmusch featured music by Mulatu Astatke from one of the very first Éthiopiques albums in his film Broken Flowers (2005) and as a result, Ethiopian music gained huge international popularity. Falceto is the winner of this year’s Songlines World Pioneer award (p30) and to celebrate this and the label Buda Musique’s achievement on reaching the 30th volume in the series, we’re offering a chance to win all 30 albums (p31). Coincidentally this issue’s playlist, compiled by composer Max Richter, also features music from Ethiopia (p7). Richter’s musical choices and his work are shaped by a desire to counteract the current “data blizzard” we’re living in. I reckon Sam Lee’s got the answer – commune more with birds and reconnect with nature.

Sam Lee’s got the answer – commune with birds and reconnect with nature

Jo Frost, editor

CONTRIBUTORS THIS ISSUE INCLUDE

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Songlines is published by MA Music Leisure & Travel Ltd St Jude’s Church, Dulwich Rd, London, SE24 0PB, UK +44 (0)20 7738 5454 info@songlines.co.uk www.songlines.co.uk © MA Music Leisure & Travel Ltd, 2017. All rights reserved. No part of the Songlines may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without prior written permission of the Publishing Director. The views expressed do not necessarily represent those of the editor or Songlines Advertisements in the journal do not imply endorsement of the products or services advertised.

ISSN 1464-8113. Printed by: Pensord Press Ltd, Blackwood, NP12 2A Record trade distribution WWMD Ltd 0121 788 3112 Newstrade distribution COMAG 01895 433600

Jane Coyle A Belfast-based journalist, critic and playwright, Jane has worked extensively in the UK, Ireland and France. She reports from the recent Global Youth Peace Summit in Belfast (p95).

Nathaniel Handy (@padstm) Nat is a writer with an interest in everything from English folk to Turkish politics. His book Turkey’s Relations with the Middle East is published this year.This issue he speaks to cover star Sam Lee (p32).

Nick Hann Studying music at SOAS University, Nick’s main pursuit is contemporary African and Middle Eastern popular music, particularly hip-hop. This issue he reviews Congolese singer Baloji at XOYO (p86).

Songlines was launched in 1999 and is the definitive magazine for world music – music that has its roots in all parts of the globe, from Mali to Mexico, India to Iraq. Whether this music is defined as traditional, contemporary, folk or fusion, Songlines is the only magazine to truly represent and embrace it. However, Songlines is not just about music, but about how the music fits into the landscape; it’s about politics, history and identity. Delivered in both print and digital formats, Songlines, through its extensive articles and reviews, is your essential and independent guide to a world of music and culture, whether you are starting on your journey of discovery or are already a seasoned fan.

@SonglinesMag

facebook.com/songlines

www.songlines.co.uk ISSUE 128

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CONTENTS

11 Unicorns at Knockengorroch Alexis Maryon

19 Addictive TV

Vanessa Heins

Colin Hattersley

UPFRONT

FEATURES

REVIEWS

REGULARS

06 Top of the World CD 09 Bonus CD: World

27 Songlines Music

58 Africa 60 Americas 64 Europe 71 Asia 73 Middle East 74 Fusion 79 DVDs 81 Books 83 Classical & Jazz 84 World Cinema 86 Live Reviews

88 M y World:

Awards 2017

This year’s winners!

Music Festival Chicago 32 Sam Lee 11 What’s New Reconnecting people 17 Songlines Encounters with nature via folk song 18 Introducing... 38 SOAS Summer Solo & Indrė Music School Our intrepid contributor & Addictive TV tries out batá drumming 20 Simon Says... 40 Jayme Stone 21 Letters The banjo player delves 22 Songlines Music Travel into the archives 23 Songlines Fado Series 45 UK Festivals Guide 25 Spotlight: Nidia GÓngora

Lee Hodges

“I’m using the same principles as conservationists of rewilding certain areas of land into being musical places” Sam Lee talking to Nathaniel Handy, p32 W W W . S O N G L I N E S . C O. U K

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Max Richter 91 P ostcard from Tulle, France 92 B eginner’s Guide to Hariprasad Chaurasia 95 D ispatch from Belfast 97 Q uickfire 99 M y Instrument: Karl Seglem 101 Gig Guide 108 Overseas Festivals 113 Soapbox 114 E ssential Ten: Festival Bands

45 UK Festivals Guide ISSUE 128

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TOP OF THE WORLD

18/04/2017 09:53

01 Les Amazones d’Afrique ‘Dombolo’ 02 Quantic & Nidia Góngora ‘Que Me Duele?’ 03 Oumou Sangaré ‘Kamelemba’ 04 Lisa Knapp ‘Till April is Dead’ 05 Sväng ‘Tango de la Abuelita’ 06 The Secret Ensemble and Mahsa Vahdat ‘Arzulanan Yakut’ 07 75 Dollar Bill ‘Cummins Falls’ 08 She’Koyokh ‘Kćeri Moja & Kızım Seni Ali Vereyim Mi’ 09 Ollie King ‘Hornpipes’ 10 The McIntosh County Shouters ‘Jubilee’

Free tracks

THE BEST NEW RELEASES

MAX RICHTER’S PLAYLIST

TOP

OF THE WORLD

TOP

OF THE WORLD

CD ISSUE 128128 PLUS 5 tracks chosen by Max Richter

On your free CD – the editor’s selection of the top ten new releases reviewed in this issue

11 Spiro ‘Captain Say Catastrophe’ 12 Various Artists ‘Taireva’ 13 Hariprasad Chaurasia ‘Raga Basant Mukhari: Rupak “Flute Basant Mukhari” (Live)’ 14 Hailu Mergia ‘Shemonmuanaye’ 15 Konono No 1 Meets Batida ‘Nlele Kalusimbiko’

Featuring Oumou Sangaré, Spiro, She’Koyokh, Hariprasad Chaurasia, Les Amazones d’Afrique, Sväng, Quantic & Nidia Góngora and more...

STWCD104 This compilation & © 2017 MA Music, Leisure & Travel Ltd info@songlines.co.uk, www.songlines.co.uk Executive producer Paul Geoghegan. Compiled and sequenced by Alexandra Petropoulos. Design by Calvin McKenzie. Mastering by Good Imprint. CD pressing by Software Logistics Ltd. The producers of this CD have paid the composers and publishers for the use of their music.

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18/04/2017 09:54

10 The McIntosh County Shouters ‘Jubilee’ (2:25)

09 Ollie King ‘Hornpipes’ (4:50)

15 Konono No 1 Meets Batida ‘Nlele Kalusimbiko’ (8:49) Hailu Mergia & His Classical Instrument: Shemonmuanaye (Awesome Tapes from Africa) & © 2013 Awesome Tapes from Africa. Courtesy of Awesome Tapes from Africa

02 Quantic & Nidia Góngora ‘Que Me Duele?’ (6:48)

07 75 Dollar Bill ‘Cummins Falls’ (4:43)

13 Hariprasad Chaurasia ‘Raga Basant Mukhari: Rupak “Flute Basant Mukhari” (Live)’ (4:29, excerpt)

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01 Les Amazones d’Afrique ‘Dombolo’ (5:18) TOP OF THE WORLD SELECTION

12 Various Artists ‘Taireva’ (4:08)

06 The Secret Ensemble and Mahsa Vahdat ‘Arzulanan Yakut’ (5:20)

11 Spiro ‘Captain Say Catastrophe’ (2:14)

MAX RICHTER’S PLAYLIST

10 tracks from this issue’s best new albums + 5 bonus tracks exclusively with the June 2017 issue of Songlines

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06 The Secret Ensemble & Mahsa Vahdat ‘Arzulanan Yakut’

From République Amazone on Real World Records

From Kuşlarin Çağrisi on Kalan Müsik

This defiant, all-female collective speaks

The opening track, which is coloured by

out against violence towards women.

a myriad of beautiful tones, on an album

Angélique Kidjo struts her stuff on this

of extraordinary instrumentation and

Congotronics-style track. See p58

stunning sound quality. See p73

02 Quantic & Nidia Góngora ‘Que Me Duele?’

07 75 Dollar Bill

‘Cummins Falls’

From Wood/Metal/Plastic/Pattern/Rhythm/Rock on tak:til

From Curao on Tru Thoughts

An album quite unlike anything you’ve

A joyous, marimba-embellished track.

heard before. Influences are drawn from

Tropical bass, beats and melodies are

the Delta to the Sahara, from John Lee

provided by Quantic, while Góngora’s

Hooker to Ali Farka Touré, from Touareg

vocals shine on this collaboration. See p63

guitars to Appalachian noodlings. See p75

03 Oumou Sangaré ‘Kamelemba’

08 She’Koyokh ‘Kćeri Moja & Kızım Seni Ali Vereyim Mi’

From Mogoya on No Format!

The power of Sangaré’s voice is striking on

From First Dance on Second Avenue on Riverboat Records

perhaps her funkiest album to date. The

A feast of expertly blended musical

rich musical heritage of the Wassoulou

flavours. New York-style klezmer is mixed

region remains prominent, augmented by

with Turkish Ladino styles and Albanian

rock guitars and drums. See p59

kaba, with skilful musical style. See p67

04 Lisa Knapp ‘Till April is Dead’

09 Ollie King ‘Hornpipes’

A magical collection of songs driven

Fascinated by the meeting of classical and

by purpose and conviction. Sounds

traditional music, King unites Handel’s

of birdsong, clock chimes, bells and

Water Music with the tune ‘The Hole in the

Victorian-era barrel organs conjure up

Wall’ for this track. A terrific album from

images of May rituals. See p66

the master of the melodeon. See p65

05 Sväng ‘Tango de la Abuelita’

10 The McIntosh County Shouters ‘Jubilee’

From Till April is Dead: A Garland of May on Ear to the Ground

From Hauptbahnhof on Galileo

06 S O N G L I N E S

03 Oumou Sangaré ‘Kamelemba’ (4:20)

08 She’Koyokh ‘Kćeri Moja & Kızım Seni Ali Vereyim Mi’ (4:33)

01 Les Amazones d’Afrique ‘Dombolo’

04 Lisa Knapp ‘Till April is Dead’ (3:44)

From Diffractions on RootBeat Records

Who knew the bass harmonica could

From Spirituals & Shouts Songs from the Georgia Coast on

be so exciting? This zany, brilliant

Smithsonian Folkways Recordings

harmonica quartet bring together some

This leading contemporary Gullah choir

of their best-loved tunes from the last 14

hark back to the hand-clapping, foot-

years, as well as some new ones. See p68

stomping roots of gospel. See p60

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+ MAX RICHTER’S PLAYLIST 11

11 Spiro ‘Captain Say Catastrophe’ From Lightbox on Real World Records Spiro have a raw take on minimalist systems music and the darker side of folk. “They’re tremendous live, with a lot of visual cues, as the patterns overlap and mutate,” says Max Richter.

12 Various Artists ‘Taireva’

From The Soul of Mbira: Traditions of the Shona People on Nonesuch The mbira has always been an essential part of tribal ritual in traditional Shona culture. “You’ve got this cyclical Yulia Mahr

structure...which evokes all kinds of early minimalist music, but prefigures all of it.”

13 Hariprasad Chaurasia ‘Raga Basant Mukhari: Rupak ‘‘Flute Basant Mukhari’’ (Live)’ From Live in Concert: Exclusive Archival Collection on Saregama

Richter says of Chaurasia, “he’s almost talking to you with his flute. An incredibly beguiling experience.”

14 Hailu Mergia ‘Shemonmuanaye’

“ I’ve always been quite omnivorous, so I suppose the playlist is me tumbling through the datasphere. Some things I’ve known for a long time and are favourites, other things I’ve chanced upon so it’s a real mix” Turn to p88 for the full interview with Max Richter

From Hailu Mergia & His Classical Instrument: Shemonmuanaye on Awesome Tapes from Africa “For me the linking theme is the cyclical repetition. It’s got a kind of trance/ritual quality, but at the same time tremendous freedom... engaging, fascinating music.”

15 Konono No 1

Meets Batida ‘Nlele Kalusimbiko’ From Konono No 1 Meets Batida on Crammed Discs

Angolan-born Batida brings a subtle

SONGLINES IS NOW ON APPLE MUSIC Songlines is one of Apple Music’s official music curators, creating bespoke playlists featuring many of the artists we cover each issue. Listen to our playlists at www.bit.ly/songlinesplaylists

approach to this union. “It’s got a funky quality which I love. It’s systems music, but it’s song based – it’s got everything.”

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03/05/2017 14:22

BONUS CD – ADVERTORIAL

WORLD MUSIC FESTIVAL CHICAGO

YOUR BONUS FREE CD

The World Music Festival Chicago is one of the largest and oldest festivals of its kind in the US, showcasing both traditional and contemporary artists at performing arts centres, clubs, public parks, museums, theatres and other venues throughout Chicago – completely free of charge. The festival has attracted over 800,000 concert-goers and has presented more than 800 artists and ensembles from over 80 countries since it began in 1999.

1 Iberi Choir ‘Khasanbegura’ A traditional Georgian celebratory wedding song from the western regions of Guria and Adjara that became a heroic war ballad recounting the battle of Shukhutperdi in their struggle against the Ottomans. It demonstrates a special yodeling style called Krimanchuli that is only heard in the Gurian and Adjarian regions of Georgia. iberi.ge

4 Beats y Bateria ‘Baile’ Havana-born, now Chicago-based DJ and producer AfroQbano, Moldovan ethno-jazz singer Ana Munteanu, multi-instrumentalist Patrick Donley and percussionist Daniel Crane place a Federico García Lorca poem in a landscape of Cuban rhythms, flamenco undertones and lush piano runs on their new single ‘Baile’. beatsybateria.bandcamp.com

2 Tcheka ‘Strada’ This song, from Cape Verdean singer Tcheka’s newest album Boka Kafé, recounts the true story of a young woman who loses her job for resisting the boss-man’s sexual advances as she toils loading gravel to build the road (strada) to the peak. tchekamusic.com

5 Grand Tapestry ‘Brother’ Merging hip-hop with classical Indian music, the newly formed group Grand Tapestry features Eligh, an independent hiphop heavyweight known for experimentation, Indian classical virtuoso Alam Khan on the 25-stringed fretless sarod, and the mesmerising Salar Nader on tabla. The song ‘Brother’ is off their selftitled, full-length album. grandtapestry.com

3 Los Hijos de la Montaña ‘La Bala’ Los Hijos de la Montaña is fronted by Calexico’s Sergio Mendoza and singer Luz Elena Mendoza. This song was written as a love story during the trial and verdict of Trayvon Martin’s killer. It imagines a boy meeting friends with news of a new love interest. The lyrics of the chorus explore the loss of possibilities, freedom and life when the bullet (la bala) randomly finds him ‘on his way home.’ www.vacilando68.org

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6 Mdou Moctar ‘Iblis Amghar’ This is from the rocking soundtrack of the Touareg version of Prince’s rock opera Purple Rain – Rain the Color of Blue With a Little Red In It (there’s no Tamasheq word for purple). It’s a revolutionary story of guitars, motorcycles, cellphones, and the music of a new generation. It is an original composition from guitarist Mdou Moctar about his rise to fame in Agadez. sahelsounds.com/mdou-moctar

7 Feufollet ‘Questions Sans Réponses’ This young and vibrant Louisiana band take Cajun, honky-tonk and string-band music as their starting point to where their open song craft will lead them. The Cajun influence is embedded throughout, even on the rhythm and blues of ‘Questions Sans Réponses’, the closer on their album Two Universes, in which Kelli Jones sings lead in Cajun-French. feufollet.net 8 Lúnasa ‘Ryestraw’ This track from Lúnasa’s 2010 album Lá Nua includes the Kevin Crawford-composed ‘The New Day March’ and two traditional tunes: ‘An Old Woman Would’ and ‘Ryestraw’. It exemplifies the band’s full range of instrumentation – flute, whistles, uilleann pipes, fiddle, guitar and double bass – that epitomises the ‘Lúnasa sound.’ It features intricate melodies with guitar and bass-driven rhythm. lunasa.ie 9 Betsayda Machado y La Parranda El Clavo ‘Sentimiento’ This rural recording brings together the magical voice of Venezuelan Betsayda Machado with the AfroVenezuelan village band Parranda El Clavo, from Barlovento, who are a troupe of musicians and dancers of all ages that are known for igniting local parties and taking street celebrations into the neighbours’ houses. The lyrics are by Youse Cardozo. betsayda.com

10 Vox Sambou ‘My Rhythm’ Vox Sambou fuses traditional rhythms from his native Haiti with Afrobeat, reggae and hip-hop. ‘My Rhythm’ represents the heritage and culture of the African diaspora. Vox says: “The resilience of our ancestors shows that we must regularly resist, but via the power of love. Our collective rhythm empowers, liberates and promotes peace and unity always.” voxsamboumusic.com 11 Underground System ‘Bella Ciao’ An original rework of an anti-fascist anthem popularised in Italy during World War II, Underground System’s interpretation juxtaposes the original Italian lyrics with contrasting melodies and rhythms inspired by Brazilian funk, dub and Afrobeat. With releases in the US and Italy, this track has been officially remixed close to a dozen times. undergroundsystembk.com 12 Bitori ‘Bitori Nha Bibinha’ Cape Verdean master accordionist Bitori and iconic singer Chando Graciosa revolutionised the exhilarating funaná musical style, forbidden under Portuguese rule until 1975. Their album, rereleased after 20 years, continues to have a worldwide impact beyond expectation. What Cesaria Evora is to morna, Bitori is to funaná, touring again now, aged 79. analogafrica.com + DATES This year’s festival runs from September 8-24

+ ONLINE worldmusicfestivalchicago.org

03/05/2017 13:29

OM TICKETS FR

£N9SA.LE5N0 OW O

Kings Place, London, June 1-3 2017

Now in its seventh year, Songlines Encounters Festival returns with an exciting programme of artists we feel passionate about. Expect compelling collaborations, two UK premieres and thrilling music from Portugal, India, Senegal, Lithuania, Norway and the UK

Bollywood Brass Band with Jyotsna Srikanth

FRIDAY JUNE 2, HALL 2, 8PM

Kefaya

THURSDAY JUNE 1, HALL 1, 8PM

FRIDAY JUNE 2, HALL 1, 8PM

Ricardo Ribeiro – UK premiere

Bollywood Brass Band & Jyotsna Srikanth

Ricardo Ribeiro is without question, the top male fadista of his generation. Much loved in Portugal, amazingly, this will be Ribeiro’s first solo UK concert. Renowned for the purity of his approach, the haunting quality of his voice is remarkable. His most recent CD Hoje é Assim, Amanhã Não Sei was nominated in this year’s Songlines Music Awards.

For 25 years, Bollywood music has been the mainstay of London’s Indian-style wedding band. But now, with superb South Indian violinist Jyotsna Srikanth, they raise the rafters with Carnatic Connection, featuring South Indian movie hits, including AR Rahman. Many of the arrangements are played to dynamic film sequences. Ricardo Ribeiro

The winners of this year’s Songlines Music Awards Newcomer title (see p28), the London-based group Kefaya released their debut album, Radio International, last year. Their rapid rise in popularity has been phenomenal. The core members are guitarist Giuliano Modarelli, keyboard player Al MacSween, bassist Domenico Angarano and drummer Joost Hendrickx, but the collective often features guests from around the world. Don’t miss this terrific young band in the intimate space of Hall 2. SATURDAY JUNE 3, HALL 2, 5PM

Solo & Indre· – UK premiere

Literally meaning ‘Wind Eye,’ Vindauga is Old Norse for ‘Window.’ This perfectly describes this meeting of musical minds from England, Scotland and Norway as Vindauga/Wind Eye throws open new windows on these musicians’ traditions, with the wind blowing in a strong element of fearless experimentation. Vocalists Sam Lee and Unni Løvlid, Sarah-Jane Summers (fiddle), Erlend Apneseth (Hardanger fiddle), Juhani Silvola (guitars) and Andreas Utnem (harmonium) bring together virtuosity and an expressive energy. Read more about Sam Lee and all the artists involved in this exciting new project on p32.

Ayse Thornett

Aurélio Vasques

An innovative duo of West African kora and Baltic zither. Solo Cissokho is a singer and kora player from Senegal and Indrė Jurgelevičiūtė is a singer and kanklės player from Lithuania. The Songlines review of their album described it as ‘spontaneous improvisations to create a mesmerising flow of acoustic music.’ Simon Broughton chairs a Q&A and demonstration with the musicians to open the show and you can read more about the pair and their collaboration on p18.

SATURDAY JUNE 3, HALL 1, 8PM

Vindauga/Wind Eye feat Sam Lee – London premiere

Kefaya

For tickets www.kingsplace.co.uk/sef2017 +44 †(0)20 7520 1490 25% discount for Songlines subscribers

When booking tickets, subscribers can use the discount code printed on this issue’s carrier sheet (the sheet of paper on the front of the magazine). Already recycled it? Email subscriptions@markallengroup.com

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Terms and Conditions: †Limited to 30 tickets and excludes Online Saver tickets. Available online, by phone and in person.

ISSUE 128

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03/05/2017 14:29

INTRODUCING...

Solo & Indrė

Simon Broughton investigates the Senegalese and Lithuanian collaboration ahead of its UK premiere next month

asically it’s pretty simple – kora meets kanklės, Senegal meets Lithuania. Solo Cissokho, from Senegal, plays the West African kora and Indrė Jurgelevičiūtė, from Lithuania, plays a Baltic zither, the Lithuanian version of the Finnish kantele that is also played in Latvia and Estonia. But of course, none of these collaborations are as simple as they look. Just on the string-count, this involves 21 plus 29, that’s 50 strings to be pulled. What’s remarkable is how quickly this one took off. Jurgelevičiūtė had been interested in working with a kora player, so when Solo Cissokho was doing a concert in Vilnius with his trio, they met up for dinner, decided to try playing together the next day and ended up recording an album. A recording from that session won the Battle of the Bands competition in 2015 – a really useful leg-up organised by World Music Network – and the Solo & Indrė album got some very fine reviews. ‘The mix of Baltic and West African folk styles is an unlikely one, but the sound it creates is relaxing, thoughtful and oddly saddening, in the most beautiful way,’ said Jim Hickson in his review in #114. The duo actually create a very similar soundworld to Seckou Keita & Catrin Finch, whose Songlines Music Award-winning kora and harp collaboration Clychau Dibon has been a big success. Both duos feature plucked strings in which it’s hard to tell one instrument from another. There’s another connection as both kora players come from Ziguinchor in the kora heartland of Casamance. “We put the tunes from both of us together and the music decides where

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we go,” says Cissokho. “And we connect the tunes into one musical story,” Jurgelevičiūtė adds. “Sometimes I start a tune and Solo adds something very unexpected and beautiful,” which is exactly what such collaborations are about. The opening track on Solo & Indrė seamlessly joins a Cissokho composition to a Lithuanian tune, one melody magically evolving into another. Cissokho now lives in Sweden, where he forged his first BBC award-winning partnership with violinist Ellika Frisell. They recorded two albums and recently a third bringing in Mexican percussionist Rafael Sida, so Cissokho is no stranger to the art of collaboration. “I didn’t decide to do this project with Indrė,” he says, “the instruments did.” But collaborations are actually about people and not about instruments or musical genres. The best musical partnerships are about musicians working together and understanding each other. Indrė Jurgelevičiūtė started playing the kanklės aged seven. “This traditional Lithuanian instrument has its origins centuries back,” she

says, “and it was used in pagan rituals, for worshipping the gods and for protection from bad spirits.” As with the kantele, there are many versions from simple five, nine and 12-string versions to the 29-string ‘concert’ version of the instrument she uses here. “My songs are coming from traditional tunes,” she says, “often rearranged and improvised.” But both Cissokho and Jurgelevičiūtė are vocalists as well. Singing is central to the Casamance griot tradition and Jurgelevičiūtė has not only studied Lithuanian song, but is a big fan of Indian music and was about to start seriously studying with Kishori Amonkar, who sadly died last month (see obit on p15). Amonkar’s mantra was about really getting inside the raga and the space of the music. Solo & Indrė is not just a meeting of instruments, it is really a meeting of tradition bearers.

ATES Solo & Indrė play at +D

Songlines Encounters Festival at Kings Place on June 3, see p17

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03/05/2017 14:28

Addictive TV

Alexandra Petropoulos talks to the duo about their latest project that saw them recording musicians from every corner of the globe

ark Vidler and Graham Daniels have been working together for a while now, so they may not need introducing. In 2005 VJ Daniels was brought in to make a video for a track on Vidler’s album, Mashed, the first fully legal mashup album. Capitalising on an obvious synergy and mutual love of film, the two began touring their eye-catching audiovisual show as Addictive TV, creating music by cutting up and remixing video clips, mined from blockbuster films like Slumdog Millionaire. But it was while touring their show internationally that they had the idea for their latest project, a unique collaboration that showcases a collage of musicians from around the world – Orchestra of Samples. “We were always curious about music and meeting people,” Daniels tells me. “So we thought of spending a bit more time in every place that we were travelling and recording musicians all over the world.”

By arranging pop-up recording sessions in many of the places they visited, they built up an archive of samples – from musicians in Romania or Turkey to more experimental sounds like car-exhaust percussion. They aimed to keep each session unique, asking musicians to express their own musical individuality rather than playing along to something pre-recorded. Vidler explains, “we liked the chance and serendipity of it all. Great accidents can happen from improvisations.” It was only once they began listening back to the moments they had captured that they discovered the full extent of the serendipity. “You’d suddenly find people playing very similar things that were recorded three years apart from completely different sides of the planet,” Daniels says. “As we got more and more samples, you started to see patterns of arrangement,” Vidler adds. Perhaps the most impressive aspect of this project is that the duo strictly refused to alter any of the recordings.

This means no time stretching or pitch alteration; everything was sifted through in order to find genuine, accidental musical conversation. Daniels emphasises that “the whole idea is about musical serendipity, possibility and probability.” Vidler continues: “We tried to keep things as natural as possible. Otherwise, what’s the point in recording them if you’re just going to re-pitch everything, and put it together in a very ham-fisted way.” Thus, Orchestra of Samples was born. The album features a patchwork of musicians, but the duo stress that it wasn’t about anonymous samples from faceless musicians. Daniels clarifies that “these people have given their time and their skills to us, allowing us to record them and trusting us to do it justice.” All the musicians are clearly listed in the album notes, but the Orchestra of Samples website is a veritable treasure trove of information. There you can find blurbs about each track, blog posts about the recording sessions and links to the musicians’ websites. “There are stories behind every musician, track and session,” Vidler says. But Addictive TV’s strength is in their audiovisual shows and Orchestra of Samples is no different. The recording sessions were all taped, and using those visuals, the duo have put together a show that appeals as much to the eyes as the ears. On a big screen audiences will see the remixed footage. The project tours throughout the summer, when various musicians will join them live onstage, making each show a unique experience.

+A LBUM Orchestra of Samples will be + + W W W . S O N G L I N E S . C O. U K

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reviewed in the next issue D ATES Addictive TV tour Orchestra of Samples until October, see Gig Guide O NLINE orchestraofsamples.com ISSUE 128

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BEST ARTIST

BEST GROUP

NEWCOMER

Baaba Maal

Afro Celt Sound System

Kefaya

In the 15 years between 2001’s acoustic set Missing You (Mi Yeewnii) and 2016’s The Traveller, Maal released just one album, 2009’s bland and insubstantial Television. It seemed that his extra-curricular activities as a spokesperson for the United Nations Development Programme and a global ambassador for Oxfam, plus his involvement in campaigns for HIV/AIDS awareness, debt relief and other vital causes, had left him little time for making new music. So it was an unalloyed joy when The Traveller turned out to be a stunning comeback, a mature but exhilarating set in which his activism and his music intertwine into a single purposeful journey. He brought on board some intriguing collaborators, including Johan Hugo of The Very Best as producer, various members of Mumford & Sons and the British-Ethiopian poet Lemn Sissay. But substantial as their contributions are, the real triumph here belongs to Maal. From the irresistible dance floor Afro-pop of ‘Fulani Rock’ and the title-track to the haunting ‘Gilli Men’ and the deep, sombre blues of ‘Jam Jam’, the potency of his voice and the humanity of his vision combine in thrilling fashion to create one of the most satisfying albums of his storied career.

After a lengthy silence, the return of the Afro Celts seemed something of a risky proposition: would the group’s trademark global dance hybrid that sounded so cutting-edge when first unleashed in 1996 appear outdated some two decades on? Instead 2016’s The Source found the Afro Celts reinvigorated and sounding bigger, better and bolder than ever. Since the last Afro Celts’ album in 2005, a split among its founding members for a time resulted in two rival editions of the group fighting over the name. Happily that dispute has now been settled and it is the Simon Emmersonled line-up heard on The Source that officially inherits the Afro Celts’ legacy. With a core membership that includes long-serving kora and balafon player N’Faly Kouyaté, the thundering dhol drumming of Johnny Kalsi and the Scottish Gaelic rapper Griogair Labhruidh, there is much that is reassuringly familiar in the swirling mix of African rhythms and Irish jigs and reels. But the sound has also smartly developed, the electronica of earlier incarnations more muted and the acoustic textures more nuanced as the traditional African instruments vie with the pipes and flutes of Celtic heritage, underpinned by bhangra drums, and with vocal decoration ranging from the shamanic voice of Ríoghnach Connolly to Guinean devotional chanting.

Formed by the Italian guitarist Giuliano Modarelli and keyboard player Al MacSween, the music of the London-based collective Kefaya has been called ‘guerrilla jazz,’ ‘contemporary world-fusion’ and ‘global protest music.’ The clumsiness of the terms are in stark contrast to the fluidity of their music but is indicative of how Kefaya’s eclectic sound transcends boundaries to defy definition. Recorded during travels and collaborations across India, Palestine, Spain and Italy, the group’s debut seeks out the common ground between folk traditions from around the globe, radical politics and sound system culture, delivered with a fizzing energy and commitment rooted firmly in the 21st century. Themes such as internationalism, freedom of movement and immigration are reinforced by the presentation of the album as a pirate radio station, tuned in to the struggle for equality and liberation and broadcasting stories of resistance and empowerment, with radio samples weaving together the musical and political intentions behind the concept. ‘We are all immigrants,’ the band state. ‘The chains of nationalism seek to restrain us within borders and boundaries, within checkpoints and separation walls. But to embrace our fellow traveller in the spirit of internationalism is to embrace the journey of human experience.’

The Traveller on Marathon Artists

The Source on ECC Records

Radio International on Radio International Records

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AFRICA & MIDDLE EAST

AMERICAS

Derek Gripper

Calypso Rose

Far From Home on Because Music

Onwards to Mars! on Asphalt Tango

“Absolutely amazing,” was Toumani Diabaté’s reaction when he first heard Derek Gripper’s transposition of music composed for the 21-string kora to the six-string guitar. When Gripper finally met Toumani in Bamako in 2016 (see #117), the world’s greatest kora player dubbed him “my white twin,” which was about as high a commendation as you could get. The classical guitar maestro John Williams was another who could not believe that it was possible to replicate the sound of the kora’s multiple strings on a simple six-string guitar and assumed that it must have had been achieved by studio trickery and multiple over-dubs. When he learned that Gripper performed the music live and solo, Williams invited him to play at a series of guitar concerts he was curating at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse at London’s Globe Theatre. Libraries on Fire, Gripper’s latest solo album, features breathtaking arrangements of kora pieces mostly associated with Toumani Diabaté, and is a richly deserving award winner. Gripper has since followed it with the equally fine Mali in Oak (a Top of the World review in #127), based on a collaboration at the Globe with the British kora and cello player Tunde Jegede. “The beauty of this music is its simplicity and its complexity, all coming from one instrument,” Gripper says.

‘No man alive or dead could take the crown off mi head,’ sings Calypso Rose in typically sassy style on Far From Home. Feisty singer, storyteller, feminist pioneer and Caribbean cultural icon, it’s more than 40 years since Rose was first crowned calypso queen in Trinidad and at 77 she continues to reign supreme. Co-produced by Stonetree Music’s Ivan Durán and Drew Gonsalves from Kobo Town, with Manu Chao sprinkling his magic on several tracks, Far From Home is a joyous, turbo-charged update on calypso tradition for a 21st-century global audience, Rose garnishing her sweet-and-spicy calypso/soca sound with rhythms and melodies from Africa, Central America and across the Caribbean. The upbeat dance tunes and carnival anthems also pack a powerful message with lyrics about subjects such as domestic violence and women’s rights. “Calypso is for partying but it’s also for storytelling, like being a reporter,” she says. “You can dance but you must also listen to the words.” Other songs are peppered with pugnacious personal observations about her long career. ‘They say I reign too long, forgetting my constitution is strong,’ she sings, making it clear that she has no intention of giving up her crown. This was evident at the Victoires de la Musique ceremony in Paris in February where she received the Best World Music Album award and declared “I am the Queen of France right now!”

One of the world’s most exhilaratingly raucous brass bands, Fanfare Ciocărlia celebrated their 20th anniversary in 2016 and marked the occasion with a groundbreaking album of energy and ingenuity that dug deep into their rural Balkan Gypsy heritage while reflecting a range of other genres and styles that they have absorbed on their nomadic travels around the globe. Hailing from the remote village of Zece Prăjini in north-east Romania, the 12-piece band learned their craft at the feet of their fathers and grandfathers, but their music remained a well-kept secret until Henry Ernst, a young German music fan, wandered into the village in 1996 and discovered a living tradition rooted in the ancient Ottoman tradition of brass bands, which had long died out in much of the rest of Romania. By the following year, Fanfare Ciocărlia were touring Europe and thrilling audiences with their earthy brass grooves played at breakneck speed. On Onwards to Mars! they mix riotous new versions of Balkan standards with a cover of ‘I Put a Spell on You’ sung by Gypsy blues singer Iulian Canaf, seven tunes written by Koby Israelite and even a spicy flavouring of cumbia.

Libraries on Fire on Derek Gripper

EUROPE

Fanfare Ciocărlia

Simon Broughton; Richard Holder; Arne Reinhardt

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SAM LEE

Rewilding As Sam Lee brings his Norwegian-British sound-jam Vindauga to this year’s Songlines Encounters Festival and pushes folk onto the big screen in Guy Ritchie’s new film, Nathaniel Handy steps into the headspace of folk music’s polymath

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It’s not the usual setting for English folk music, which is what makes Ritchie’s punt so brave. “He just put me in a studio with some scenes and said, ‘Sing’,” Lee explains. “I actually went for Scottish Traveller ballads, because they’re my favourites, but also because they have that sense of drama. A little bit of the song ‘The Wild, Wild Berry’ came to me.” It was to become the soundtrack to a trailer that has gone viral. “They said they’d never had a reaction to a song on a trailer like it,” says Lee. “I was immediately bombarded by people asking, ‘Dude, what sort of music is this? Where can I find it?’ It’s unbelievable what’s happened to it.” These are certainly strange environs for folk music. The trailer reveals classic Hollywood treatment, with a fantastical monster and CGI galore. It is English myth remade for the action movie age. Such big screen treatment of British folk song might make some uneasy, but Lee believes it’s high time it got the exposure. “The art of cinema is about trying to create an experience,” he says. “Folk music is a brilliant way to transport a viewer, which is why you get bagpipes all the time; they’re a great way of getting a sense of drama, ancientness and ensuing battle. It’s amazing that British folk hasn’t been utilised more in the way that American folk music has been in so much American cinema.” Lee’s sense of openness, exploration and enquiry is at odds with a more preservationist view of tradition, yet is perhaps closer to the spirit of folk music. “The final piece of ‘Wild Berry’ has lines that have been extended or rewritten for the film,” explains Lee. “It’s very textural. There’s no narrative to it in the way of the original.” Does he worry about such things?

Alex Harvey-Brown

am Lee is a song collector. More than that, he favours full-immersion baptism in the Gypsy and Traveller folk singing communities from which he has gleaned an oral repository. Yet he is not only a conserver of song, but also a conservationist more broadly. “Before folk music, I worked in nature studies doing a lot of wilderness training. It’s my first passion,” he tells me. And should the son and heir of Madonna and Guy Ritchie one day become a famous survival expert, we may well have Sam Lee to thank for it. He brought his bushcraft to the Ritchie household in Wiltshire when he was invited to discuss a new film project with the director. “Guy likes folk music,” reveals Lee. “He was making a film set in the first century and he wanted folk music. He wanted that sense of authenticity.” The film in question is the blockbuster King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, a sprawling epic of English braveheartedness set for release on May 19. “I went down to his house in Wiltshire and he took me on a tour round the grounds,” Lee remembers. “I taught him and his son a few things about the outdoors and he was like, ‘Geezer, how come there’s this Jewish kid who knows all about folk music and the outdoors?’ He just couldn’t get his head around it. But he said, ‘Right, we’ll get you in the film’.” Lee visited the Warner Bros Studios in Leavesden where he saw the sheer scale of a film that was also shot on location in Snowdonia, the Forest of Dean, Windsor Great Park and the Isle of Skye’s distinctive Quiraing region. “It’s enormous,” says Lee. “Castles. Cave systems. What they’ve built is phenomenal.”

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J AY M E S TO N E

An Open Ear

Rose Skelton speaks to Jayme Stone about revisiting and reinterpreting folk songs collected in the US and Caribbean

‘I

’m no collector,’ says Canadian banjo player, composer and folk song gatherer in the liner notes of his second volume of reinterpreted field and folk recordings. ‘Nor am I particularly nostalgic. I revel in the act of discovery.’ It is the joy of discovery, Stone tells me, the rooting out of unfamiliar, unusual and interesting sounds, that has compelled him to make a second album of rearranged songs that were originally collected from around the US and the Caribbean by collectors such as Alan Lomax, his father John Lomax, Artus Moser, Guy and Candie Carawan and Herbert Halpert. The songs were gathered by ethnomusicologists and folklorists – Alan Lomax being perhaps the best known – for research organisations such as the Library of Congress. These institutions wanted to document the work songs, spirituals, hymns, prison songs and sea shanties made by ordinary folk that might be, if not recorded, in danger of dying out. The recordings, which were made throughout the early and mid20th century, now reside in places like the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian Institute in Washington DC. Jayme Stone is a dedicated visitor to them both. “It’s really the stuff that just wakes up my ear in some way,” he says of how he came to choose the ten songs on this album, as well as the 19 songs and tunes on his 2015 Lomax Project release (reviewed in #108). There were tens of thousands of songs to choose from – Alan Lomax’s recordings number 35,000 alone – but he had to select just a few. “I tend to like things that are unfamiliar,” he says, “like a particular arcane corner of the tradition that I’ve just never heard anything quite like.” ‘Mwen Pas Danse’ is one of those songs, a curious and upbeat calypso from Dominica, an island in the Caribbean. The song features banjo and accordion – Stone’s band includes the vocalist Moira Smiley, who also plays accordion – as well as the playful words, expressions and sounds, which come at the listener in a variety of languages. “I had never heard anything like it,” says Stone. He had been on the hunt for a song that was originally composed for both banjo and accordion. “The song was in Dominican Creole, and they sang a little bit in English and a little bit in French and a little bit in a language I couldn’t understand. It’s the same recipe that a lot of American music is made

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from – you have European-American and African-American influences coming together in unusual ways, so it’s like a sister-music to American music. But that song,” he says, “I heard it and I thought, I’ve never heard anything quite like that and that’s really attractive to me.” Stone’s interest in field recordings goes back 22 years to the year he took up the banjo. He would send away for the recordings from places such as Smithsonian Folkways, the Institution’s record label. “They used to have a programme where you could get a list of everything in their catalogue,” he says, “and they would take down the original masters and spin you up a cassette tape and send it with the liner notes on foolscap, usually with all the information they had about the artist or that session.” When much later he read the biography Alan Lomax: The Man Who Recorded the World by John Szwed, a light switched on. “The book lit up all these songs that had been a touchstone for 20 years, and I realised that there was this common thread that so many of the songs I knew and loved came from field recordings. It gave me a chance to delve deeper into some of the lesser-known corners of the collection.” Jayme Stone’s Lomax Project came first, followed by Folklife, his latest release, which brings together some musical reinventions of Lomax recordings, but also includes recordings by other collectors too. By the time he was touring the last album, with collaborators including mandolinist Tim O’Brien, old-time banjo player Bruce Molsky, singer Margaret Glaspy and fiddle player Brittany Haas, new recordings that Stone had discovered were making their way onto the set-list. “I’m always listening to things,” says Stone, “and part of the idea of not calling it an Alan Lomax record was being able to open the aperture a little wider.” He brought in a new band – bass player Joe Phillips, fiddler Sumaia Jackson and singer and accordionist Moira Smiley – and some new collaborators too. On ‘Buttermilk’, where Stone’s five-string banjo is fitted with a piece of sounddampening foam to replicate the tone of early gourd banjos, Dom Flemons, formerly of the Carolina Chocolate Drops, plays the quills, a traditional African-American instrument made from cane reeds. While Stone plucks the banjo in his unusual style, which is neither bluegrass, old-time nor W W W . S O N G L I N E S . C O. U K

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May 5-June 4 Brighton Fringe

Various venues, Brighton www.brightonfringe.org

May 12-14 Doncaster Folk Festival

Doncaster, South Yorkshire www.doncasterfolkfestival.co.uk

May 12-28 Norfolk and Norwich Festival Various venues in Norfolk

The UK’s oldest arts festival

Norfolk and Norwich Festival’s 200-year-old history makes it one of the most venerable arts events in the UK. This year’s musical line-up is made up of 27 concerts across the 17 days, including such luminaries as AfroColombian cantadora Totó la Momposina, Welsh harp and Senegalese kora duo Catrin Finch & Seckou Keita and a genre-breaking collaboration between Philip Glass and Laurie Anderson. The festival also features a full literature programme (check out Guyanese poet John Agard) as well as dance, literature, theatre, visual arts and circus performance. www.nnfestival.org.uk Southbank Centre

May 18-20 The Great Escape

Various venues, Brighton www.greatescapefestival.com

May 19-21 Shepley Spring Festival

Marsh Lane, Shepley, West Yorkshire www.shepleyspringfestival.co.uk

May 19-28 Bath International Music Festival Various venues, Bath www.bathfestivals.org.uk/music

May 19-29 Alchemy Festival

Southbank Centre, London

A celebration of South Asia in the capital For ten days, the Southbank Centre plays host to the largest festival of South Asian culture outside of the region itself. Alchemy lets you explore a wide range of subcontinental and British Asian art; many of the events are completely free. There’s comedy, film, art exhibitions, dance recitals and courses (both classical and popular), board games, lectures and discussions… and that’s not even mentioning the music! This year’s concerts include Pakistani Sufi singer Abida Parveen, a night of top hiphop entitled ‘Beats Without Boundaries’ and an afternoonlong sitarathon. There is a 46 S O N G L I N E S

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Alchemy Festival, May 19-29

focus on the life of Ravi Shankar this year, including a performance of his opera Sukanya. www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whatson/festivalsseries/alchemy

May 20 Música Eñe

The Dome, London www.enefestival.co.uk

May 25-28 Knockengorroch World Ceilidh Knockengorroch, Scotland www.knockengorroch.org.uk

May 25-28 Orkney Folk Festival

Various venues, Orkney, Scotland

Scottish folk favourites and pub sessions

For more than 30 years Orkney has opened its doors to folk music from across the UK with this wonderful festival. Homegrown heroes The Chair and Lau’s Kris Drever join the bill in 2017, playing alongside acts such as Eddi Reader and Blazin’ Fiddles. The most vibrant aspect of the festival, though, is its sessions – what’s more inviting than an Orkney pub filled with folk music? The pubs of Stromness will be buzzing to the sounds of impromptu sessions, but don’t be surprised to see some

of the ‘official’ line-up taking part too. So make sure you bring your instrument along and join the craic! www.orkneyfolkfestival.com

May 25-29 Small World Spring Festival Headcorn, Kent www.smallworldsolarstage.org

May 26-28 Shindig Weekender

Gilcombe Farm, Bruton, Somerset www.shindig-events.co.uk

May 26-29 Chippenham Folk Festival Chippenham, Wiltshire www.chippfolk.co.uk

May 26-29 Harambee Pasadia Festival

TCR Hub, Barnard Castle, County Durham www.harambeepasadia.com

May 26-June 11 Bath Fringe

Various venues, Bath www.bathfringe.co.uk W W W . S O N G L I N E S . C O. U K

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Africa Oyé Festival, June 17-18

June 1-3 Songlines Encounters Festival

Kings Place, London www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on/curatedweeks/songlines-encounters-festival-2017

June 1-4 Wirral Folk Festival

Alchemy F May 19-29

The Whitby Club, Ellesmere Port www.wirralfolkonthecoast.com

June 2-4 The Acoustic Festival of Britain Uttoxeter Racecourse, Staffordshire www.acousticfestival.co.uk

June 2-4 Fire in the Mountain

Mark McNulty

Nr Aberystwyth, Wales www.fireinthemountain.co.uk

June 2-4 MondoMix Festival

Calbourne Water Mill, Isle of Wight www.mondomix.uk

June 2-4 Wychwood Festival

Cheltenham Racecourse, Gloucestershire

A family-friendly festival with a rock attitude

All neatly contained within the Cheltenham Racecourse, what Wychwood Festival lacks in size it makes up for in energy. The headliners are of the rockier variety, from the Buzzcocks to original punk-folkers the Levellers, while elsewhere on the card you can dance to Congolese soukous with Kanda Bongo Man, North Indian party music with the Rajasthan Heritage Brass Band or Celtic folk from Canada with The East Pointers. On top of the musical offerings there are also renowned comedy and children’s programmes (CBeebies’ Kate Ashworth has already been confirmed), plus film and literature sides to give everyone something to enjoy. www.wychwoodfestival.com

June 3 Field Day

Victoria Park, London

Über-cool sounds in the capital

Slimmed down from a weekend to a oneday affair for 2018, this über-cool gathering will nevertheless bring an outstanding heterogeneous mix of hip-hop, electronica and alternative rock to East London’s wonderful Victoria Park. The line-up is full of crowd-pullers such as Aphex Twin, Run the Jewels and Flying Lotus. The worldier side of the menu is no less on-point and will be sure to appease East London’s world music fans: Nigerian jújù pioneer King Sunny Adé; Syrian dabke king, the moustachioed Omar Souleyman; and Afrofuturist jazzers Idris Ackamoor & the Pyramids and more. www.fielddayfestivals.com W W W . S O N G L I N E S . C O. U K

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June 8-11 The Gate to Southwell

Southwell Racecourse, Nottinghamshire southwellfolkfestival.org.uk

June 11 Harpenden Folk Festival

Harpenden Public Halls, Hertfordshire www.harpendenfolkfestival.co.uk

June 16-18 Beverley Folk Fest

Beverley Racecourse, Yorkshire www.beverleyfestival.com

June 17-18 Africa Oyé

Sefton Park, Liverpool

Celebrating a silver anniversary

Africa Oyé’s 25th anniversary is marked with cultural events across Liverpool throughout 2017, but the highlight will, of course, be the festival itself. As the UK’s largest free African and Afro-diasporic music festival, #Oyé25 invites some of the best artists to grace its stages over the years to return for the birthday bonanza in Sefton Park. Among the line-up are previous Songlines cover stars Jupiter & Okwess International (DR Congo) and Mokoomba (Zimbabwe). The festival is also an excuse for Merseyside’s best African and Caribbean kitchens to come and sell their wares, so remember to bring an appetite! www.africaoye.com

June 21-25 Glastonbury Festival

Worthy Farm, Pilton, Somerset

The festival that needs no introduction

It’s the Big One – the UK’s biggest arts festival has something for everyone, from hippies to ravers and metalheads. World music fans are well-served with some of the biggest names on the scene across more than 80 stages – of the handful of artists announced so far, Songhoy Blues and Toots & the Maytals will whet your appetite. Keep your eyes and ears peeled around the site – there is always something special, unlikely or out-of-thisworld happening. Enjoy it while you can: this year’s festival may be the last at the iconic Worthy Farm for a while, with no 2018 edition and talk of an alternative event on a new site for 2019 before Glastonbury as we know it returns to Pilton in 2020. www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk

June 22-25 The London Folkfest

The Bedford, Balham, London www.thelondonfolkfest.com

June 23-25 Solas Festival

The Bield, Blackruthven, Perthshire www.solasfestival.co.uk

June 29-July 16 Manchester International Festival Various venues, Manchester

Two weeks of unique performances

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Africa REVIEWS L’Orchestre Afrisa International Melanie Colomotion Records (80 mins)

HHHHH

Reviving rumba’s golden age These are new recordings of classic repertoire, mostly from the 70s and 80s, when Tabu Ley Rochereau led this wonderful band. The performances and production are both exceptional, allowing a pristine return to the golden age of Congolese rumba and soukous, now found in a gleaming new sonic setting. Innovation is not the aim here, as these old hands keep on playing in the fashion that first ensnared their admirers over 40 years ago. The contents of this release are of an unwaveringly high quality,

with sufficient thrust to ensure dancing for the duration, and enough interweaving intricacy to engage the mind of a seated listener. Most of the lead vocals are handled by Wawali Bonané, while lead guitarists Dino Vangu and Nseka Huit Kilos split their own duties equally, pleasure-stinging lines weaving around harmonised, liquid chord strumming. These alwaysextended tunes are loaded with gently swaying grooves and voices seeping with sweetness, as lead vocals engage in dialogue with the quartet of chorus singers. Saxophone solos abound, courtesy of musical director Modero Mekanisi, as his fellow horn players shift between riffing and spotlighting, setting up periodic punctuations. A classic sound, modernised for a fresh generation of admirers. MARTIN LONGLEY

TRACK TO TRY Mela

Ethio Stars/Tukul Band feat Mulatu Astatke Addis 1988 Piranha Music (35 mins) VINYL & DIGITAL ONLY

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Two different sides of Ethio-jazz featuring Mulatu Astatke Originally released in 1992 and out of print for many years, this reissue has been remastered for vinyl and contains music originally recorded in 1988 in Addis Ababa by the mobile recording unit of the Global Music Centre, Helsinki. Two very different bands are featured, one on each side of the LP, both with the common factor of the presence of Mulatu Astatke. Mulatu is generally acknowledged as the leading musical force in

Ethio-jazz and his instrumental and arrangement skills are universally celebrated. With Ethio Stars he presents a modern take on an Ethiopian soul fusion, spread across three instrumentals and one reggaeflavoured vocal track by Getachew Kassa. Tukul Band, on the other hand, are a far more traditional outfit, albeit with an experimental edge. They are led by two electric krar players – the krar being a six-string Ethiopian lyre. They also feature an electrified traditional masinko (single-string fiddle), washint (bamboo flute) and Ethiopian drums. They make a gloriously rhythmic and evocative sound. This is a magnificent album, albeit quite a short one, contrasting two outstanding variations on Ethiopian music. MARTIN SINNOCK

TRACK TO TRY Bugalu

Valerie Malot

TOP

OFTHE WORLD

Les Amazons d’Afrique Republique Amazone

TRACK 1

Real World Records (60 mins)

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Joyous and defiant all-female collective speaks up Last year’s WOMAD performance by this collective of West African female singers of different generations and traditions was highly praised. The ensuing studio album is helmed by Irish producer Liam Farrell (the ‘Dr L’ of Mbongwana Star fame) and he has stamped his electronic trademark all over it. It feels less collaborative and there is only one track, ‘I Play the Kora’, that includes the entire cast. Yet there are many fine individual moments, prominent among them ‘Dombolo’, a brilliant Congotronics-style setting by Farrell for Angélique Kidjo to strut her mighty stuff on. The dubbed-up Afro hip-hop of ‘La Dame et Ses Valises’, sung by the rising young Nigerian star Nneka, is almost as good and the

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legendary Malian griot Kandia Kouyaté duets powerfully on two tracks with her young and lesser-known compatriot Rokia Koné, who emerges in many ways as the major voice here, singing with great soulfulness on six of the dozen tracks. Mariam Doumbia (of Amadou & Mariam) makes a brief appearance, as does Inna Modja, a Malian-French singer, who was a victim of female genital mutilation. The project was conceived as a campaign to support victims of violence against women and proceeds from the recording will go to the Panzi Foundation, which provides help for victims of such abuse in Democratic Republic of Congo. NIGEL WILLIAMSON

TRACK TO TRY Dombolo by Angélique Kidjo

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Africa REVIEWS Spoek Mathambo Mzansi Beat Code Teka Records (59 mins)

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A snapshot of South Africa’s underground hip-hop scene

ALEX DE LACEY

TRACK TO TRY Volcan

Nawal Aman

Editions Jade (66 mins)

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Mystical Indian Ocean sounds It’s not often that you hear music from the Comoros, and this reissue of singer and gambusi (oud-like lute) player Nawal’s second album is a treat. The album offers an insight into the historical international connections of the Indian Ocean islands. Subtle influences can be heard from Madagascar and East Africa to the

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JIM HICKSON

TRACK TO TRY Kweli II

VARIOUS ARTISTS Synthesize the Soul: Astro-Atlantic Hypnotica from the Cape Verde Islands 1973-1988 Ostinato Records (76 mins)

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The surprising sound of Cape Verde’s diasporic dance floors Fans of Cape Verdean music will be familiar with its typical lack of drums and use of gently strummed cavaquinho, so this compilation of dance floor-orientated music made by musicians in the diaspora will come as something of a surprise. The 18 tracks demonstrate a reasonable variety of arrangements, often adding strummed and/or picked electric guitar, kit drums, brass and real percussion instruments (rather than synthesized) on top of the liberally employed electronic keyboards. Disco and house beats often elaborate the funaná and coladeira rhythms that are staple dance rhythms of traditional Cape Verdean music, though purists might insist that this music doesn’t actually need pimping up. The best aspect of this selection is the fact that there are at least no soulless remixes by foreign DJs who have no real connection to the music. JON LUSK

TRACK TO TRY Nho Balta by Posse Bronck

Benoit Peverelli

South Africa’s Spoek Mathambo is a busy man. The celebrated songwriter and rapper also fronts Pan-African ensemble Batuk and the bass-heavy quintet Fantasma. In the light of all these projects, it’s unsurprising that Mzansi Beat Code is his first solo record since 2012. That’s not to say that this venture is without collaborators, though. Nearly 20 artists feature across the 13 tracks, with Mathambo largely presiding over production duties: the resultant record is a glorious homage to South Africa’s variegated and vibrant underground music scene. One of the stars of the record is Johannesburg singer/rapper Loui Lvndn, who features on three tracks including the uptempo ‘Blast Fi Mi’ and the densely textured ‘Landed’, a punchy, industrial piece as ferocious as they come. The other prevailing sound world on Mzansi Beat Code is the hyper-frenetic drumming styles of the genre known as Bacardi house. Fellow Fantasma member DJ Spoko is largely responsible for this sound, popularised by DJ Mujave’s ‘Township Funk’ in 2008 and both appear on the centrepiece track ‘The Mountain’. The infectious vocal of Los Angeles’ Pegasus Warning works wonderfully with the simmering bass and syncopated percussion and is emblematic of the ambitious vision that Mathambo has captured across the entire album.

Arabian peninsula and island neighbours such as La Réunion. Originally released in 2007, Aman is Nawal’s dive into her Islamic, ‘Afro Sufi’ heritage, and Islamic themes are evident throughout, including the evocative zikr – rhythmic repetition of the name of Allah to induce trance – at the end of the piece ‘Kweli II’. It’s one of several standout tracks: the haunting a capella ‘Dandzi’ stirs the soul; while on ‘Meditation’, Nawal’s guitar, mbira (thumb piano) and bass create mystical musical clouds over a drone, giving off an endearingly old-school world music vibe. It’s a shame that it ends in a somewhat clunky remix by French DJ Click. With its synth sounds and fourto-the-floor beat, it really sticks out as harsh compared to the vibe created over the rest of the album. Otherwise, this is a very worthwhile listen.

TOP

OFTHE WORLD

Oumou Sangaré Mogoya

TRACK 3

No Format! (42 mins)

HHHHH

Worth the wait: powerfully funky West African songs The last time this reviewer interviewed Oumou Sangaré was in January 2009. She was about to release the album Seya and the date sticks in the mind for it was the day of Barack Obama’s first inauguration. It was only her fourth album in a 20-year career and we’ve had to wait eight years for the follow-up. In that time the White House has received a scary new incumbent and Oumou has moved to a new label, after spending her entire career on World Circuit. The long absence and change of scenery seem to have done her a power of good. Mogoya remains rooted in the rich musical

heritage of the Wassoulou region from which she hails. But this is also Oumou as we’ve never quite heard her before, for alongside the traditional African kamelengoni (lute) and calabash percussion, the sound is augmented by rock guitars, keyboards and synths, while Tony Allen guests on drums on the funky ‘Yere Faga’. This subtle but striking makeover comes courtesy of Swedish producer Andreas Unge and the crack French team of Vincent Taurelle, Ludovic Bruni and Vincent Taeger. Amid all the innovations, their smartest move of all, though, is to emphasise the raw power of Oumou’s voice to create perhaps her funkiest album to date. NIGEL WILLIAMSON

TRACK TO TRY Yere Faga

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03/05/2017 14:40

Europe REVIEWS Keston Cobblers Club Almost Home

France. Elsewhere, Innes is joined by an impressive collection of musicians including his Mànran bandmate Ewen Henderson, and his co-producer Ali Hutton for an album as full of fire and beauty as anything this supremely accomplished musician has ever done.

Tricolour Records (41 mins)

HHHHH

Celebratory indie folkers return to familiar ground

KEVIN BOURKE

TRACK TO TRY The Road to Lochaber

Jenn & Laura-Beth Bound JBLB Records (46 mins)

HHHHH

Long-awaited debut from UK’s in-demand duo Based in Glasgow, Jenn Butterworth (guitar and voice) and Laura-Beth Salter (mandolin and voice) have become a ubiquitous presence on the UK folk scene. After eight years playing together in various bands and projects, including The Shee, Frigg, Dougie MacLean’s ‘The MacLean Project’, Anna Massie Band and the recent award-winning Songs of Separation project, they have finally released their debut duet – and a rather splendid piece of work it is. It’s a shrewdly considered collection of covers and self-penned tracks. Boo Hewerdine’s ‘Wings on My Heels’ is a sweet and tender cover, while Kate Wolfe’s ‘The Great Divide’ is delivered with a heartfelt simplicity and ‘If I Had a Lover’ is a fiery version of the Bert Jansch and Jacqui McShee classic. Some expert songwriting is on display too: ‘The Braver One’ demonstrates Salter’s fine socially minded voice while ‘1,2,3,4’ captures Butterworth’s talents as a tunesmith. Eclectic, with touches of Americana and Scandinavian influences, Bound is a beguiling debut. Butterworth’s guitar combined with Salter’s mandolin is a treat in itself, but layer on the duo’s atmospheric and affecting voices and something magical happens. BILLY ROUGH

TRACK TO TRY The Great Divide

Éilís Kennedy Westward Éilís Kennedy (42 mins)

HHHHH

Mature solo album from one of Lumiere’s bright lights One half of Irish duo Lumiere, with Pauline Scanlon, Éilís Kennedy hails from Dingle, Co Kerry in the west of

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TOP

Lisa Knapp Till April is Dead: A Garland of May

OFTHE WORLD TRACK 4

Ear to the Ground (48 mins)

HHHHH

Prepare to be a-May-zed In these garlands for May, Lisa Knapp sounds ardent and pure, driven by purpose and conviction. You can tell these songs are for real, not make-believe. Her voice, and the discrete musical settings featuring her partner and producer Gerry Diver, drummer Pete Flood and Knapp herself on strings, organ, keyboards and hammered dulcimer, is layered in the fabric of birdsong, clock chimes, bells and Victorian-era barrel organs. These are mechanical devices from a time when the May rites were still widely

celebrated, and the folk tradition itself was being documented. Blur’s Graham Coxon plays and sings harmony vocals on ‘Searching for Lambs’, while Current 93’s David Tibet lives it up on ‘Staines Morris’, originally published in 1653 as ‘The Maypole Song’, and Mary Hampton guests in the ‘Bedfordshire May Day Carol’. The clock chimes and pastoral whimsy is reminiscent of Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd weaving their exultant charms. Knapp’s voice is the voice of spring perceiving itself anew, and the music is the sound of a magical, not mechanical, universe. TIM CUMMING

TRACK TO TRY Searching for Lambs

The folk-pop troupe Keston Cobblers Club return here with their third album. Since they released Wildfire in 2015, these Kentish folksters have built an impressive fan base across the UK on the back of infectious hooks, slick vocal harmonies and genre-hopping chops. But while the five-piece invite comparisons to the likes of Beirut, Bon Iver and the Fleet Foxes, the Cobblers are distinctive for their inclination to celebration rather than melancholy. Almost Home is no exception. The 12 tracks on offer here touch upon the concept of home and family, and are driven forward by clever combinations of lyrics and instrumentation. One such example, ‘On Your Own’, overlays ingenious dovetailed vocal lines with synth pads, brass stabs, rhythmic electric guitar and jocular percussion. The deft songwriting of the duet ‘Martha & Giles’ and the quirky ‘Hand That Feeds You’ are also notable. But while the bunch clearly know their pop craft, it’s hard to hear the ‘simplicity of songwriting’ that lead singer Matthew Lowe has suggested was the band’s aim for this album – a simplicity often found in their charming early EPs. Nonetheless, fans will be rewarded with a dozen more foot-stompers. TOMMIE BLACK-ROFF

TRACK TO TRY Hand That Feeds You

Kíla Kíla Alive Kíla Records (50 mins)

Ireland. The rugged coastlines and untouched natural beauty of the area have certainly translated into this honest and authentic collection of songs, her third solo album. A favourite of Irish singers, ‘John O’Dreams’ by Bill Caddick opens the album, setting the tone for the remaining ten tracks. It’s a softly sung, beautiful version accompanied by co-producer William Coulter on guitar and Barry Phillip’s rich cello. The listener is not shortchanged of traditional ballads on this album either – whether it be Irish, American or Scottish. ‘Cailín mo Rún-sa’ again showcases Kennedy’s organic vocal, backed by a stunning arrangement for cello, fiddle and Jesse

Autumn’s harp. Kennedy makes her songwriting debut with ‘Highway Mack’, based on an experience she had while travelling in the US and ‘The Flannel Red’, an Irish lament inspired by the story of her great grandfather who drowned near Dingle. One of the more uptempo numbers, ‘Saucy Sailor’, follows, providing a melodically contrasting section between ballads. The closing, ‘Going Home’, acts as an apt bookend to this collection of songs heavily influenced by tradition. There is nothing groundbreaking here, but it is a beautiful offering that is sure to delight many listeners. RACHEL CUNNIFFE

TRACK TO TRY An t-Úll

HHHHH

All Kíla, no filler: this is a live album to die for Recorded live in various venues throughout 2016, this latest offering from the irrepressible Kíla captures the outfit in their natural environment. Packing plenty of punch soaked in adrenalin and wrapped up with a tight sense of ensemble playing, it sounds characteristically spontaneous. Renowned for their live appearances, the eight-piece don’t disappoint here even if the overall effect is more

W W W . S O N G L I N E S . C O. U K

03/05/2017 15:23

Europe REVIEWS ‘greatest hits’ collage than coherent set. On offer is the well-tested formula: driving Irish traditional tunes infused with multi-hued world music influences and topped by Rónán Ó Snodaigh’s husky vocals. The 11-minute ‘Seo Mo Leaba/Am Reel’ forms the epic centrepiece, with Eoin Dillon’s uilleann pipes and Polish chanteuse Kayah’s intense keening seamlessly meshed. There’s more than a hint of Horslips to ‘Skinheads’, where Alan Doherty’s dancing flute conjures up Jethro Tull against a barrage of percussion and urgent pipes. Ó Snodaigh’s ‘Raise the Road’ is given a rousing anthemic treatment but there’s room for the quietly poetic in the stillness of a new song, the lullaby-like ‘Babymouse’ and the stirring ‘Pota Óir’ with its echoes of the Middle East threaded through gravelly vocals and insistent Irish rhythms. Simply put, Kíla Alive finds Kíla doing what they do best.

and ritual songs, and from the wedding ceremony or the church calendar. And towards the end are several fascinating, archaic sounding, chromatic melodies with harsher and more bracing harmonies. KIM BURTON

TRACK TO TRY Oj Nevene, E Š stopere

MANdolinMAN Unfolding the Roots ARC Music (42 mins)

HHHHH

Four men, 34 strings: mandolin monomania pays off Projects such as this, in which everyone is playing the same type of instrument, can often seem like a

nerdy musicianly novelty act. Does the world really need a four-piece mandolin group? Well, the Belgian quartet known as MANdolinMAN are now on their third album, and this is their most convincing statement yet. It seems, on the whole, a little more jazzy than the quartet’s debut – the band have experimented with bossa nova in recent years, and there is certainly a jazz swing in their step on this album’s best tracks. There are plenty of blue notes, the occasional melodic turn of phrase reminiscent of another famous musical Belgian, Django Reinhardt. ‘Schottische Eppegem and Elewijt’ manages to swing with a cheeky swagger: it’s hard to do that sort of thing to traditional folk styles without them sounding cheesy, but MANdolinMAN pull it off with aplomb.

Andries Boone and Dirk Naessens both play traditional mandolins while Peter-Jan Daems has a ten-string version and Peter-Maarten Decombel plays mandocello. It’s hard to pinpoint which player is doing what, but there is inventive percussion on a mandolin body that lends a steady, moody pulse to tracks such as ‘Schottische Hever’ and the opener, ‘Polka Charleston Nederockerzeel’. ‘Mazurka Houtem’ and a few other tracks are a little too close to background music – something their previous albums have suffered from. But the album’s waltzes have a sunny, dainty bounce to them and Unfolding the Roots is an agreeable surprise. MATT MILTON

TRACK TO TRY Schottische Eppegem and Elewijt

MICHAEL QUINN

TRACK TO TRY Pota Óir

Smilja Kostur Pesme iz Jasenovca (Songs from Jasenovac) WMAS Records (52 mins)

HHHHH

Uplifting choruses from roots of deep suffering

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Savannah Photographic

‘Emergency ethnomusicology,’ as they call it, is a set of urgent interventions needing to be taken to record or preserve a fragile cultural inheritance before the bulldozer of modernity moves in. The choice is whether to preserve by sticking a pin in it, or to study, learn and perform it – changing it perhaps, but giving it fresh life. Serbian singer Svetlana Spajić is one of the most accomplished practitioners of the second path, and she has learned much from Smilja Kotur. Now living in Serbia, Kotur is originally from Jasenovac in Croatia, the site of a notorious World War II concentration camp, which she herself survived. All 24 songs here are performed without accompaniment by Spajić’s female chorus, but led by Kostur, whose slightly rougher tones stand out from the other younger singers. Despite the darkness of Kostur’s history, her songs are mostly full of light, propelled along with great verve. There are romantic lyrics like ‘Cijele Noći Ladovina’, energetic antiphonal songs for dancing, work

TOP

OFTHE WORLD

She’Koyokh First Dance on Second Avenue

TRACK 8

Riverboat Records (57 mins)

HHHHH

The London Gypsy klezmer band find their studio groove She’Koyokh, the London band who take their name from a Yiddish greeting, are a brilliant live ensemble who effortlessly blend musical flavours from Turkey to Poland while never sounding forced. And where previous She’Koyokh albums have failed to capture the band’s dynamic, First Dance on Second Avenue comes much closer, emphasising the band’s warmth and diversity. Album opener ‘Second Avenue Square Dance’ hooks listeners with Susi Evans’ seductive clarinet intro and throughout the album there are passages of fierce, inspired playing: Matt Bacon squeezes out sparks on guitar then conjures beautifully eerie sounds on kaval (a long thin flute), Meg Hamilton’s violin shrieks, weeps

and riffs hard, Christina Borgenstierna skilfully works an array of percussion and vocalists Çiğdem Aslan and Živorad Nikolić excel both on solo numbers and in witty duets. Nikolić also plays a tasty accordion. The music performed ranges from New York-style klezmer, Turkish Ladino styles and Albanian kaba (solo violin with drone) to imaginative interpretations of songs from the repertoires of Bulgaria’s Ivo Papasov and Serbia’s Šaban BajramoviĆ. The only fault I can find here is the band’s reliance on uptempo numbers when the most powerful (and memorable) tunes are the slow burners ‘Amani on Komitas Krung’ and ‘Sila Kale Bal’. First Dance on Second Avenue is a musical feast: tuck in. GARTH CARTWRIGHT

TRACK TO TRY Amani on Komitas Krung

ISSUE 128

› SONGLINES

03/05/2017 15:23

Gig Guide 07743 885991; 15 MAY The Storey, Lancaster 01524 582394; 16 MAY The Kitchen Garden Café, Birmingham 0121 443 4725; 18 MAY London Irish Centre 020 7916 2222; 19 MAY The Ram Club, Thames Ditton 020 8686 9421; 21 MAY The Garret Sessions, Toddington 07714 712253; 22 MAY Forest Folk, North Boarhunt 01329 833625; 23 MAY Dartford Folk Club 01322 277218; 24 MAY Quay Arts, Newport 01983 822490; 26 MAY The Beehive, Honiton 01404 384050; 28 MAY Tavistock Wharf 01822 611166.

ON TOUR

The East Pointers

Award-winning Canadian trio

Cole Ramstad

Vieux Farka Touré The charismatic Malian returns

Malian guitar hero Vieux Farka Touré, son of the legendary Ali Farka Touré, returns with a new album, Samba (to be reviewed next issue). Now a fully-fledged songwriter and bandleader, these ten ambitious new songs were recorded in front of a small live audience in Woodstock, New York. Following an extensive tour of the

eastern American states and various European countries, Vieux will perform at several venues throughout the UK in June. Without forgetting his Malian heritage, which he paid homage to on 2013 album Mon Pays, Vieux embraces myriad influences from elsewhere in Africa, as well as Latin, rock and blues styles. This is a rare UK tour not to be missed.

12 JUN Komedia, Brighton 0845 293 8480; 13 JUN Norwich Arts Centre 01603 660352; 14 JUN Turner Sims, Southampton 023 8059 5151; 15 JUN Howard Assembly Room, Leeds 0844 848 2727; 16 JUN Jazz Cafe, London 0844 277 4321; 17 JUN Doolin Folk Festival hoteldoolin.ie; 18 JUN The Apex, Bury St Edmunds 01284 758000.

Laura Cortese & The Dance Cards

A female quartet that rocks! 18 MAY Farncombe Boat House, Godalming wegottickets.com; 19 MAY The Anvil, Basingstoke 01256 844244; 20 MAY Selby Town Hall 01757 213758; 21 MAY The CatStrand, New Galloway 01644 420374; 22 MAY Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh 0131 228 1404; 23 MAY Kilbarchan Performing Arts Centre 01505 550550; 24 MAY The Blue Lamp, Aberdeen 01224 647472; 25-28 MAY Orkney Folk Festival 01856 851331; 30 MAY Mareel, Lerwick 01595 745500;

104 S O N G L I N E S

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› ISSUE

128

1 JUN Kirkcaldy Acoustic Music Club 01592 653645; 2 JUN The Live Room, Saltaire 01274 585140; 3 JUN Green Note, London 020 7485 9899.

Daphne’s Flight

Five leading ladies of folk 12 MAY Gulbenkian, Canterbury 01227 769075; 13 MAY Hailsham Pavilion 01323 841414; 14 MAY Hitchin Folk Club 01462 812391; 15 MAY Kings Place, London 020 7520 1490; 16 MAY Maldon Town Hall 01621 856503; 17 MAY Marlborough Town Hall 01672 512465; 18 MAY The Mill, Banbury 01295 279002;

19 MAY Floral Pavilion Theatre, Wirral 0151 666 0000; 20 MAY Sage Gateshead 0191 443 4661; 21 MAY Penistone Paramount 01226 767532; 23 MAY mac, Birmingham 0121 446 3232; 24 MAY Biddulph Town Hall 01782 523277; 25 MAY Cornerstone, Didcot 01235 515144; 26 MAY The Met, Bury 0161 7612216; 27 MAY The Ropewalk, Barton upon Humber 01652 660380.

John Doyle

Acclaimed guitarist from Dublin 12 MAY Stonehaven Folk Club 01569 764202; 14 MAY Milngavie Folk Club

20 MAY Shepley Spring Festival 01484 604704; 22 MAY Sage Gateshead 0191 443 4661; 23 MAY Pocklington Arts Centre 01759 301547; 24 MAY Tolbooth, Stirling 01786 274 000; 25-28 MAY Orkney Folk Festival 01856 851331; 30 MAY Glassel Hall, Banchory 07771 621577; 31 MAY Glenbuchat Hall, Strathdon 01975 641303; 1 JUN The Brewery, Kendal 01539 725133; 2 JUN The Met, Bury 0161 761 2216; 3 JUN Wychwood Festival 0844 338 0338; 4 JUN Henry Tudor House, Shrewsbury 01743 361666; 5 JUN Green Note, London 020 7485 9899; 7 JUN Cecil Sharp House, London 020 7485 2206; 8 JUN Marlowe Theatre, Canterbury 01227 787787; 9 JUN Pontardawe Arts Centre, Swansea 01792 863722; 10 JUN Thomas Hughes Memorial Hall, Uffington 01367 820282; 11 JUN Gate to Southwell Festival 0115 807 7900.

Daoirí Farrell

Double R2 Folk Award winner 19 MAY The Mariner, Bantry +353 (0)27 52501; 20 MAY Sirius Arts Centre, Cobh +353 (0)21 481 3790; 24 MAY The Linenhall, Castlebar +353 (0)94 902 3733; 25 MAY Mullingar Arts Centre +353 (0)44 934 7777; 27 MAY The Séamus Ennis Arts Centre, Naul +353 (0)1 802 0898; 28 MAY Spirit Store, Dundalk +353 (0)42 935 2697.

The Furrow Collective

Best Group at BBC R2 Awards 12 MAY The Little Museum of Dublin +353 (0)1 661 1000; 13 MAY The Band Room, Farndale 01751 432900; 15 MAY [+ Anna & Elizabeth] Brighton Festival 01273 709709; 17 MAY Universal Hall, Findhorn 01309 690170; 18 MAY The Old Brewery, Cromarty 01381 600354; 14 JUN The Met, Bury 0161 761 2216; 15 JUN Square Chapel, Halifax 01422 349422; 16 JUN Citadel, St Helens 01744 735436; 17 JUN The Hothouse, Morecambe 01524 831997; 18 JUN

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03/05/2017 16:23

Gig Guide Paisley Arts Centre 0141 618 5128; 24 JUN St Albans Folk at the Festival 0333 666 3366.

Phillip Henry & Hannah Martin

Roots music that makes you fly 12 MAY Williamson Tunnels, Liverpool 0151 291 1777; 13 MAY Craven Arms, Appletreewick 01756 720270; 19 MAY STEAM, Swindon 07415 861597; 20 MAY Carnglaze Caverns, St Neot 01579 320251; 24 MAY Lion Salt Works, Marston 07796 175437; 25 MAY The Witham, Barnard Castle 01833 631107; 26 MAY The Fleece Inn, Bretforton 01386 831173; 27 MAY Butser Ancient Farm, Waterlooville 01730 810947.

Khamira

Intriguing Welsh-Indian fusion 22 MAY Borough Theatre, Abergavenny 01873 850805; 23 MAY The Welfare, Ystradgynlais 01639 843163; 24 MAY Chapter, Cardiff 029 2030 4400; 25 MAY Span Arts, Narberth 01834 869323; 26 MAY Aberystwyth Arts Centre 01970 623232; 27 MAY Galeri Caernarfon 01286 685250; 28 MAY Ucheldre Centre, Holyhead 01407 763361; 30 MAY Theatr Clwyd, Mold 01352 701521; 31 MAY Hay Festival, Hay-on-Wye 01497 822629.

The Lowest Pair

Vocal harmonies, banjo and guitar

Juan Martín

Flamenco star and his trio 24 MAY Ashcroft Arts Centre, Fareham 01329 223100; 25 MAY Queen’s Hall Theatre, Cranbrook 01580 711856; 26 MAY Arts@Trinity, Leeds 0113 245 5570; 27 MAY The Atkinson, Southport 01704 533333; 28 MAY Catstrand, New Galloway 01644 420374; 29 MAY The Buccleuch Centre, Langholm 01387 381196; 1 JUN Dorchester Corn Exchange 01305 266926; 2 JUN Wiltshire Music Centre, Bradford on

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ON TOUR

Foghorn Stringband Portland’s finest old-time outfit

If you’re looking for authentic, old-time American string band music, look no further than Portland’s Foghorn Stringband. They’ve been on the circuit for over 15 years, with eight albums and thousands of live performances to show for it. All gathered around one microphone, they present

Betse Ellis

12 MAY Green Note, London 020 7485 9899; 13-14 MAY Square & Compass, Worth Matravers 01929 439229; 15 MAY The Bell Inn, Bath FREE 01225 460426; 16 MAY The Art Shop & Chapel, Abergavenny 01873 736430; 17 MAY The Square Tower, Old Portsmouth 02392 382888; 18 MAY George Hotel, South Molton 01769 572514; 19 MAY Party in the Garden, Thelma Hulbert Gallery, Honiton FREE 01404 45006; 20 MAY The Bridge Inn, Topsham 01392 873862; 21 MAY American Museum in Britain, Bath 01225 460 503; [eve] The Canteen, Bristol FREE 0117 923 2017.

classic bluegrass, country and Cajun music traditions with lively, toe-tapping fervour. Full of virtuosic fiddling and rapid mandolin picking, country vocals and slick harmonies, this group present a live to show to remember. You won’t be able to keep from clapping along.

12 MAY St Patrick’s Hall, Ballyboughal +353 (0)85 8582855; 16 MAY The Brudenell, Leeds 0113 275 2411; 17 MAY Carousel Sessions, Manchester wegottickets.com; 18 MAY Old Deer Park, Richmond brownpapertickets.com; 19 MAY Lewes Con Club 01273 473076; 21 MAY Castlering Wood, Presteigne 01544 350407; 23 MAY The Cross Keys, Selattyn 01691 791500; 24 MAY The Vic, Menai Bridge 01286 674631; 25 MAY The Wightman, Shrewsbury 0800 292 2116; 26 MAY The Greystones, Sheffield 0114 266 5599; 27 MAY Corfe Castle Village Hall, Wareham 07590 352219; 28 MAY Portesham Village Hall, Weymouth 01305 871925.

ISSUE 128

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04 Lisa Knapp ‘Till April is Dead’ (3:44) 03 Oumou Sangaré ‘Kamelemba’ (4:20)

or 5. TELEPHONE

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01 Les Amazones d’Afrique ‘Dombolo’ (5:18) TOP OF THE WORLD SELECTION

09 Ollie King ‘Hornpipes’ (4:50)

08 She’Koyokh ‘Kćeri Moja & Kızım Seni Ali Vereyim Mi’ (4:33)

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06 The Secret Ensemble and Mahsa Vahdat ‘Arzulanan Yakut’ (5:20)

13 Hariprasad Chaurasia ‘Raga Basant Mukhari: Rupak “Flute Basant Mukhari” (Live)’ (4:29, excerpt) The Soul of Mbira: Traditions of the Shona People (Nonesuch) & © 1973 Nonesuch Records. Courtesy of Nonesuch

12 Various Artists ‘Taireva’ (4:08)

11 Spiro ‘Captain Say Catastrophe’ (2:14)

MAX RICHTER’S PLAYLIST

10 tracks from this issue’s best new albums + 5 bonus tracks exclusively with the June 2017 issue of Songlines

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02/05/2017 12:52