Through a large repertoire spanning from the 18th century to their own compositions, Jean-Francois Dutertre, Jean Ribouillault and Christophe Toussaint (key figures in the folk revival of the 1970s) display here the profound expressive richness of the epinette of the Vosges. The type of dulcimer called epinette des Vosges is a box zither which is commonly found in a few valleys of the Vosges, in Franche-Comte and Lorraine. It serves both as an accompaniment to dancing or singing, and as music for entertainment. This dulcimer belongs to a family of box zithers which is wide-spread throughout Northern and Central Europe (this European family of instruments is also related to certain Asian zithers). In Europe, the use of dulcimers seems to have remained popular for the most part, except in the context of religious ceremonies. It's main characteristic is the presence of frets under part of the strings, which distinguishes two groups: melody strings or chanterelles, and accompaniment strings, or drones, which produce a fixed, invariable chord.
Sakina Teyna was born into a Kurdish Alevite family in the small town of Varto in Turkey. As a teenager, she started singing with Turkish choirs and bands, but it wasn't until she entered university that she became acquainted with Kurdish musical traditions and set out to defy cultural assimilation. In 1991, she joined the Mespotamian Cultural Centre in Istanbul, a proponent of Kurdish culture, as a vocalist. Like many other Kurdish musicians, she was forced to literally go underground to practise her music, and soon she had to choose political activism over art. It wasn't until Sakîna arrived in Austria as a political refugee in 2006 that she took to singing as a full-time pursuit again. The first fruit of her concentrated creative efforts was released in the form of her first solo album ROYE MI. Suret is the story of a photograph, of a face. A story that also whispers the silent tales of the faces hanging on the walls of almost every home in Kurdistan, or hidden away in the quiet pages of photo albums. Some people visit the living world only briefly-they depart before dawn breaks, before their names are spoken widely, before their faces become etched in the memories of others. (Sakina Teyna in the booklet accompanying this CD)
CHOI Kyung-man, a virtuoso of the piri and taepyeongso oboes, acclaimed for his mastery of rhythm and improvisation, moves with ease between tradition and contemporary creation. This recording explores new roles for these instruments, offering a varied listening experience and a glimpse into a profound musical universe. This album brings together selected tracks from four CDs released in Korea between 2008 and 2021, offering a broad overview of the music of the piri and taepyeongso oboes. In Korean music, the piri is a leading melodic instrument with a loud and steady voice, and the taepyeongso, also played with a powerful and piercing sound, is mainly used for processional music or outdoor performances. Due to their distinctive nature, these instruments are rarely used outside their traditional repertoire to perform complex melodies drawn from folk songs. Found in similar forms across many cultures, the piri and taepyeongso oboes take on a new dimension here thanks to CHOI Kyung-man's unique sensitivity.
PRECIOUSLY few Irish bands can compare in both virtuosity and versatility with Solas, a quintet of truly dazzling individual talents. Multiple All-lreland champion Seamus Egan plays no fewer than eight instruments, John Williams is a gifted button accordionist and the only American ever to win the coveted All-lreland sen- ior concertina title, Winifred Horan weaves deft classical touches with an earthy passion in her fiddling, Karan Casey possesses a crystalline voice that can soar like no other, and John Doyle provides faultless guitar rhythms throughout. But the sum of Solas is far greater than their impressive parts, combining to produce a marvelously spirited and textured sound rich in imagination, innovation, and tradition. They are the most exciting Irish band to emerge in many years - as this stunning debut album attests. - Earle Hitchner, Irish Echo April 1996
Bringing new life to the electrifying sounds of Peru's golden era of cumbia, 'CHICHA POR FAVOR' features 12 rare tracks. From the historic El Volcan label, known for it's groundbreaking cumbia in the highlands of Cusco, Peru. This curated collection, spanning the 1970s and 80s, delivers listeners an immersive sonic journey into the heart of Peru's tropical music heritage. For vinyl collectors, cumbia enthusiasts, and aficionados of Latin American musical history, this album is a rare treasure, packaged with an exclusive insert detailing the cultural origins of each track and offering in-depth insights into the socio-musical evolution of Peruvian cumbia. This release is the inaugural volume of 'CHICHA POR FAVOR', a project aimed at preserving and celebrating the defining sounds of Peruvian tropical music.
Emerging in the early 1980s, Zig-Zag Band established themselves as one of Zimbabwe's most distinctive musical voices. Hailing from the small town of Kwekwe, Zig-Zag Band appeared out of nowhere and revolutionised the 80s music scene with a new sound. They crafted a bold and original style defined as Chigiyo - a vibrant fusion of reggae, traditional rhythms, brass arrangements and mbira-inspired guitar. With intricate guitar lines, infectious dance rhythms, and raw, soulful Shona vocals, they pushed beyond genre boundaries. While many contemporaries opted for commercially safer routes, Zig-Zag remained fiercely independent, committed to authenticity and innovation. Despite the loss of nearly all original members over the years, Gilbert Zvamaida-now based in the U.S. and performing with Thomas Mapfumo's Blacks Unlimited-continues to carry the torch. As the last surviving founding member, he remains a guardian of Chigiyo, keeping it's legacy alive for future audiences. Housed in a limited edition 3-color screen printed cover, which also includes a download voucher - this compilation brings Zig-Zag Band's groundbreaking music back into the spotlight- celebrating their unique contribution to Zimbabwean culture and reintroducing a vibrant, underappreciated catalogue to a new generation of listeners.
Khun Narin's Electric Phin Band are a multi-generational psychedelic powerhouse from rural Thailand whose ecstatic, amplifier-blown folk music has quietly become one of the most unlikely global cult phenomena of the last decade. Hailing from Phetchabun Province, the group formed as a community celebration band - playing weddings, temple fairs, ordinations and village parades. At the center of their sound is the electrified phin, a traditional three-stringed Thai lute whose piercing, spiraling melodies cut through walls of percussion and portable PA distortion. What might begin as a local procession quickly transforms into something transcendent: hypnotic riffs cycling endlessly, rhythms pushing forward with relentless momentum, musicians of all ages locked into communal euphoria. Ten years after their last release, Khun Narin's Electric Phin Band return with their first new album in a decade - and their first ever recorded inside a professional studio. Produced by Tommy Brenneck (known for his work with Amy Winehouse, Charles Bradley, Sharon Jones, Beyonce, Mark Ronson, and The Budos Band), the album captures the band with a depth and clarity never heard before - without sacrificing the ecstatic propulsion that defines them. The result is both refinement and revelation. The phin still soars in sharp, spiraling lines; the percussion still drives with marathon intensity; but now every texture resonates with new dimension. It is the sound of a village tradition amplified for the world stage - communal, kinetic, and joyfully uncontainable. Khun Narin's Electric Phin Band do not simply perform songs; they create momentum. They build trance from repetition. They turn celebration into transport. A decade later, their return feels less like a comeback and more like a continuation of something timeless - music that exists beyond borders, beyond genres, and beyond expectation.
